Skip to main content

Full text of "Present day impressions of Japan; the history, people, commerce, industries and resources of Japan and Japan's colonial empire, Kwantung, Chosen, Taiwan, Karafuto;"

See other formats 


Present-Day  Impressions  of  Japan 


HIS    IMPERIAL    MAJESTY,    YOSHIHITO,    EMPEROR    OF    JAPAN 


:.^^:gi^;^-^^^^»r^;^^i^^^g^T;5^;>..^ 


j§g^:XS#'>^^^ffi^^^^g5g^>^;^S^i;^^ 


HER    IMPERIAL    MAJESTY,    EMPRESS    SADAKO 


Present  Decy  Impressions 


OF 


CTAe  HISTORY,  PEOPLE. COMMERCE, 
INDUSTRIES  and  RESOURCES  OF 


JAPAN 


JAPANS  COLONIAJL  EMPIRE 
KWANTUNG,  CHOSEN 
TAIWAN       KARAFUTO 


Compiler  WHMORrONCAMERON 


i^  CLOSE  ENCYCLOPEDIA 

MflurSTREET    COmp^Tiy  LONOO' 

CHICAGO  YOKOHAMA    SHA.NGK/  - 


Copyright  1919,  by 
W.  H.  Morton  Cameron 


Rl 


PREFACE 

A  CLEAR  and  unbiassed  presentation  of  those  facts  which  will  enable  the  reader  to  choose  a 
safe  way  amidst  the  shoals  of  conflicting  rumour  and  report,  and  read  correctly  those 
signs  of  the  times  indicative  of  Japan's  potential  future.  Such  is  the  useful  object 
of  this  compilation. 

To  that  end  every  article  has  been  contributed  by  an  expert,  each  a  keen  student  of  Japan 
who  has  spent  many  years  in  the  coimtr\',  and  who,  guided  by  our  polic\-,  avoids  on  the  one  hand 
that  laudatory  note  so  characteristic  of  the  official  or  subsidised  publication,  and  on  the  other  that 
too  heavy  and  erudite  style  so  much  more  effective  as  an  inducement  to  sleep  than  as  a  medium  of 
information. 

We  have  dealt  with  tables  of  statistics  only  where  absolutely  necessary,  under  the  impression 
that  the  business  man  whom  this  book  will  chiefly  interest,  prefers  information  presented  in  the 
most  assimilable  form,  as  opposed  to  the  befogging  diagram  and  the  formidable  array  of  figures. 

Our  statistics,  too,  are  mainly  comparative  of  the  pre-war  years  with  1916  and  191 7,  from 
which,  by  choosing  the  happy  medium  and  making  due  allowance  for  the  great  progress  we  out- 
line on  every  hand,  one  may  arrive  at  some  understanding  of  what  the  normal  de\'elopment 
will  probably  be  during  the  period  of  reconstmction. 

The  descriptions  of  commercial  enterprises  are,  we  think,  no  more  appreciative  than  they  ought 
to  be,  inasmuch  as  it  is  our  good  fortune  to  be  able  to  present  perhaps  the  most  lengthy  and  truly 
representative  list  of  reputable  and  (in  many  cases)  notable  houses  that  has  ever  been  included 
in  a  book  of  this  description  on  Japan. 

The  commercial  illustrations  we  regard  as  quite  the  most  interesting  feature  of  the  compilation ; 
indeed,  we  have  spared  neither  effort  nor  expense  to  make  them  so.  What  can  be  more  interesting 
to  the  busy  man  who  is  already  either  connected  with  the  country,  contemplates  business,  or  wishes 
merely  to  acquaint  himself  with  the  actual  situation  than  the  pictorial  presentation  of  the  c-ondi- 
tions  under  which  the  merchant  in  Japan  operates;  of  the  power,  transportation,  labour,  machinery, 
and  other  facilities  at  his  command? 

By  the  use  of  illustrations  of  a  different  nature,  presenting  the  elementary  or  historical  stages 
of  the  various  industries;  by  the  utilisation  of  tints  varying  with  the  subjects  and  the  interpolation 
of  attractive  colour  pages  throughout,  we  have  endeavoured  to  introduce  sufficient  variet}'  to 
maintain  the  interest  of  the  reader  from  cover  to  cover. 

In  the  arrangement  of  the  subjects  we  have  kept  in  view  the  same  object,  that  of  affording 
relief  and  contrast.  Information  relative  to  any  enterprise  will  be  found  in  connection  with  the 
city  in  which  the  concern  is  located,  and,  in  addition  thereto,  some  local  colour  which  may  ser\^e 
for  further  enlightenment. 

It  is  an  important  part  of  our  policy  not  to  accept  a  Government  subsidy,  nor  have  we  relied 
to  any  degree  upon  Government  departments  for  information.  The  book  is  in  consequence  entirely 
free  from  that  bias  so  characteristic  of  the  official  publication,  and,  apart  from  the  occasional  error 
into  which  even  an  expert  may  fall,  the  information  conveyed  can  be  relied  upon. 


I B  t  HaeB 


P  K   !•:  F  A  (■  K 


Coiiliiiiicil 


To  all  import  and  export  merchants  and  manufacturers  who  arc  interested  in  any  jiart  of  the 
Far  East,  and  to  business  men  generally,  we  believe  that  this  volume  not  only  has  a  message,  but  a 
significant  message  which  each  will  have  little  difficulty  in  interjireting  for  himself.  That  all- 
important  question  —  "What  place  will  Japan  occupy  in  the  future  markets  of  the  world?"  may 
perchance  be  answered  through  the  medium  of  these  pages. 

We  have  had  no  choice  but  to  make  enthusiastic  reference  from  time  to  time  to  what  has  been 
accomplished,  but  it  is  far  from  our  intention  to  convey  the  impression  that  Japan  is  prepared  to 
rest  on  her  laurels.  The  Japanese  business  man  has  been  so  long  accustomed  to  look  abroad,  to 
make  it  his  definite  duty  to  study  overseas  business  methods,  etc.,  and  adapt  them  to  his  purpose, 
that  he  cannot  quietly  view  matters  with  complacency.  He  doubtless  looks  with  pride  on  local 
developments,  but  his  satisfaction  is  ever  qualified  by  comparison  with  what  is  being  done  abroad. 

In  this  connection,  the  writer,  in  conversation  with  a  prominent  member  of  the  "Megata" 
economic  mission  to  the  United  States  (1917),  referred  to  the  great  development  in  Japan's  industries 
since  the  war,  and  was  surprised  to  hear  that  gentleman  rather  depreciatingly  compare  America 
and  Japan  commercially  and  industrially  to  the  disadvantage  of  the  latter. 

Such  a  comparison  is  manifestly  unfair,  but  it  was  not  the  foreigner,  who  is  usually  much 
impressed,  who  made  it,  but  a  j^rominent  representative  of  the  \-ounger  business  men  of  Japan, 
already  highly  placed,  whose  utterance  may  be  taken  as  significant  of  what  the  future  leaders  of 
the  country'  are  thinking  to-day,  and  valuable  as  a  gauge  to  their  ambitions. 

At  the  conclusion  of  our  work,  despite  every  effort  to  achieve  the  best,  we  could  wish  the  book 
to  be  much  better  still,  but  trust  that  those  who  are  inclined  to  criticise  it  adversely  will  stop  a 
moment  to  consider  what,  after  all,  has  been  accomplished. 


W'U^  i.CWU'^^v, 


Compiler. 


•  M-^ -^^av- ■  v■-:^- 


CONTENTS 


Chaptick 

I 


III 


IV 


VI 


VII 


VIII 


IX 


XI 


XII 


XIII 


THE   IMPERIAL   FAMILY   OF  JAPAN     . 
Foundation  of  the  Empire — The  Emperor - 
peror  Yoshihito — The  Princely  Families. 


Page 
3 


-The  Imperial  ronstitiition  —  'l"he  Late  Emperor  Mutsuhito — The  Em- 


THE   COUNTRY        

The  Name  —  Position  —  Area  —  Coast  Line  —  Orogra|)hy  —  Geology  —  Volcanic  and  Seismic  Action  —  Hydrography — 
Climate  —  Flora  and  Fauna  —  Population  —  Table  of  Weights,  Measures,  and  Moneys,  with  English,  American, 
French,  and  German  Equivalents. 

THE   PEOPLE       

(A)  The  Age  of  Myths  ( —  to  B.  c.  660),  Origin  of  the  Japanese — Cosmogony  —  Archaeological  Evidence  —  Dawn  of 
Empire^ — Early  Civilisation.  (B)  The  Yamato  Empire  (b.  c.  660  to  794  a.  d.),  Consolidating  the  Infant  Empire  — 
Expedition  to  Korea  —  Introduction  of  Buddhism  —  Beginning  of  Chinese  Influence.  (C)  Period  of  Family  Des- 
potism (794  to  1603  A.D.),  the  Fujiwara  Bureaucracy  —  Rise  of  the  Taira  and  Minamoto  Clans,  794  to  1199  a.d. — 
The  Shadow-shoguns,  1199  to  1334  a.d.  —  Arrival  of  Europeans  and  Christianity,  1334  to  1573  —  Age  of  Usurpers, 
1573  to  1603.  (D)  The  Tokugawa  Period  (1600  to  1868),  The  Eradication  of  Christianity  —  The  Laws  of  leyasu  — 
Fortign  Relations  in  the  Tokugawa  Era  —  Reopening  of  Japan  —  Fall  of  the  Shogunate.  (E)  The  Era  of  Meiji 
(1868  to   1914),   Early  Reforms  —  Foreign   Relations  —  Modern  Japan. 

THE   ARMY 

Army  of  Old  Japan  —  Evolution  of  a  Modern  Army  —  Recruiting  — Army  Organisation  —  Mobilisation  and  Equipment 
—  Army  Finance. 


THE    NAVY     

The  Navy  of  Ancient  Times  —  Birth  of  the  Imperial  Japanese  Navy  —  The  New  Navy  in  War  —  Japan's  Navy  To-day 
— Finance — Education  and  Personnel — The  Imperial  Dockyards. 

FOREIGN    EMBASSIES   AND   LEGATIONS 

The  British  Embassy — The  United  States  Embassy  —  Ihe  French  Embassy  —  The  Russian  Embassy  —  The  Italian 
Embassy  —  Germany  —  Austro-Hungary  —  The  Netherlands  Legation  —  The  Spanish  Legation  —  The  Portuguese  Le- 
gation—  The  Belgian  Legation  —  The  Swedish  Legation — The  Chinese  Legation  —  The  Siamese  Legation  —  The 
Mexican  Legation  —  Other  Legations. 

THE  DIPLOMACY  AND  FOREIGN  POLICY  OF  JAPAN.  By  D,  J.  Evans,  Managing  Editor  of  "The  Japan 
Chronicle" 

The  Opening  of  the  Ports  —  The  Recognition  of  Japan  as  a  Great  Power  —  Japan's  Policy  in  Korea  —  Japan's  Policy 
toward  China  —  Japan's  Southward  Expansion. 

THE  FUTURE  OF  JAPAN.  By  the  Hon.  Y.  Takegoshi,  Ex-Member  of  the  House  of  Representatives  .... 
The  Alliance  of  Races  —  Self-Government  —  Expansion  beyond  the  Seas — The  Japan-China  War  —  The  Japan- 
Russian  War  —  Lessons  of  Historj'. 

BANKING,  FINANCE,  AND  INSURANCE  (Yokohama  and  Tokyo  Section) 

Economics  of  Old  Japan  —  Financial  Pohcy  of  the  Tokugawa  Shoguns  —  Early  Meiji  Finance  —  The  First  Banks  — 
Improvement  of  Monetary  Organs  —  Currency  Reform  —  Taxation  and  Revenue — The  National  Debt  —  Banks  and 
Banking — Foreigii  Banks  —  Loan  Associations  —  National  Wealth  of  Japan  —  Exchanges — Foreign  Banks  —  Insurance 
Companies  —  Commercial  Notices — A  Short  History  of  Coinage  in  Japan  (By  Dr.  Yoshimasa  Koga,  F.  C.  S.,  Chief 
iVssayer  at  the  Imperial  Japanese  Mint,  Osaka). 

THE   CITY   OF   TOKYO 

Origin,  History,  and  Development  —  The  New  Tokyo  —  Municipal  Administration — Tokyo  Finance — Future  of 
Tokyo  —  Commercial  Notices. 

SHIPPING  (Yokohama  and  Tokyo  Section) 

History  of  Japanese  Shipping  —  The  Modem  Era  —  The  Position  before  the  War  —  Leaders  of  the  Industry  —  Capital 
Invested  —  Government  Subsidies  —  The  Shi|jbuilding  Industry  —  Harbours  —  Commercial  Notices. 

THE   PORT   OF   YOKOHAMA 

History  and  Progress  —  Government,  Finance,  Comnit-ree,  ami  Industry 


26 


44 


52 


76 


«.? 


qo 


156 


168 


197 


-  Commercial  Notice. 


XIV 


IMPORTS  AND  EXPORTS  (Yokohama  and  Tokyo  Section)         203 

Trade  in  Old  Japan  —  Beginnings  of  Trade  with  Europe  —  LTnlimited  Trade  —  Causes  of  Trade  Expansion  —  General 
Survey  of  Markets  —  Proportion  of  Raw  Materials  to  Finished  Articles — Principal  Exports  and  Imports — Japan's 
Trade  Pohcy  —  Commercial  Institutions  —  Japan's  Button  Trade  (By  Mr.  Emile  Ott,  of  Messrs.  Israel  &  Oppen- 
heimer,  Ltd.,  Kobe) — Commercial  Notices. 

ALACHINERY    IMPORTERS   AND   EXPORTERS 271 


■  I       W    I 


Chatter 
XV 


XVI 
XVII 

XVIII 
XIX 

XX 
XXI 

XXII 

XXIII 
XXIV 

XXV 

XXVI 

XXVII 
XXVIIl 

XXIX 

XXX 

XXXI 

XXXII 

XXXIII 
XXXIV 


CONTENTS  —  Continued 

Page 

AGRICULTURE ^qs 

General  Considerations — Intensive  Cultivation  —  The  Farmer's  Lot  —  Agricultural  Productivity  — Stock-breeding  — 
The  Rice  Industry  (By  Prof.  Shosuke  Sato  of  Tohoku  Imperial  University,  Sapporo) — Origin  and  Development  of 
Rice  Culture  —  Economic  Importance  of  the  Rice  Industry  during  Feudal  Times — Rice  in  the  Modem  Market  and 
in  the  National  Economy — Rice  Culture,  its  Extent  and  Varieties  —  Production  and  Consumption  of  Rice  in  Japan 
— Relation  of  the  Price  to  Other  Commodities  and  to  Wages — How  Rice  is  Grown  in  Japan — Conclusion — Com- 
mercial Industries — Commercial  Notices. 

TEA 330 

Shizuoka — Tea  (By  Charles  E.  Atwood,  Vice-President  of  the  J.  C.  Whitney  Company)  —  Commercial  Notices. 

THE  SILK  INDUSTRY  OF  JAPAN.     By  Mr.  Akira  Shito,    Director   of   the    Imperial   Japanese   Silk   Conditioning 

House         341 

History  of  the  Industry  —  Modern  Developments — Development  and  Improvement  —  Production  —  Filature  Opera- 
tions—  The  Export  Trade  —  Japan's  Place  in  World  Production  —  Commercial  Notices. 

THE   CITY   OF    NAGOYA 357 

FORESTRY 361 

Afforestation  —  Distribution  —  Forest  Acreage  and  Revenue  —  Other  Forest  Products  —  Commercial  Notice. 

FISHERIES 366 

Present  Conditions — Annual  Catches  —  Deep-sea  Fisheries  —  Marine  Manufactured  Products  —  Commercial  Notice. 

CONSTITUTION  AND  LAW  OF  JAPAN.     By  J.  E.  de  Becker,  LL.  B.,  D.  C.  L 374 

Bases  of  Japanese  Law — Constitution  —  Codes — Civil  Code — Civil  Procedure  —  Commercial  Code  —  Criminal  Code 
—  Code  of  Criminal  Procedure  —  Civil  Law  in  General — Criminal  Law  —  The  Judiciary. 

EDUCATION.     By  Dr.  J.  Ingram  Bryan,  M.  A.,  M.  Litt.,   Ph.  D.     The  Meiji  University  and  the  Imperial   Naval 

College,  and  Japan  Correspondent  of  the  London    "Morning  Post' ' 384 

Remote  Beginnings  and  Early  Development  —  Education  in  the  Tokugawa  Era  —Introduction  of  Modern  Education 
— Japan's  Educational  System  To-day  —  Outlay  on  Education. 

LANGUAGE   AND   LITERATURE 396 

The  Japanese  Language  —  Japanese  Literature — Poetry  and  Drama. 

THE  PROGRESS  OF  MEDICINE  IN  JAPAN.     By  Prof.  S.  Kitasato,  M.  D.,  F.  R.  S.,  London,  etc 409 

History — Institutions  for  Medical  Research  —  Medical  Societies  and  Periodicals. 

THE  FOREIGNER  IN  JAPAN.     By  Robert  Young,  Editor  and  Proprietor  of  "The  Japan  Chronicle" 411 

JAPANESE  CHARACTERISTICS:  THE  PHYSICAL,  THE  MENTAL,  AND  THE  MORAL.  By  Dr.  J.  Ingram 
Bryan,  M.  A.,  M.  Litt.,  Ph.  D.  The  Meiji  University  and  the  Imperial  Naval  College,  and  Japan  Correspon- 
dent of  the  London  "Morning  Post" 4'4 

Physical  Characteristics  —  Mental  Characteristics  —  Moral  Characteristics. 

JAPANESE  ARTS  OF  SELF-DEFENSE.     By  E.  J.  Harrison,  F.  R.  G.  S 425 

JAPAN  AS  A  TOURIST  LAND.  By  W.  B.  Mason,  Joint-Author  of  "Murray's  Handbook  to  Japan,"  etc.,  and  Corre- 
sponding Member  for  Japan  of  the  Royal  Scottish  Geographical  Society  430 

THE   CITY   OF   KYOTO 438 

The  Old  Capital  —  Kyoto  in  Modern  Times  —  Municipal  Finance  —  Industry  and  Commerce — Commercial  Notices. 

RELIGION 445 

Historical   Outlines  —  Shinto  —  Confucianism  —  Buddhism  — Christianity. 

MINES   AND   MINERALS 461 

Mining  in  Old  Japan  —  New  Era  in  Mining  —  Rapid  Development  —  Mineral    Production  in  Detail  —  The  Future  — 
Condition  of  Miners  —  Commercial  Notices  of   Mining  Companies  —  The  History  of    Oil  in  Japan     (By  A.   P.   Scott, 
Managing  Director,  Rising  Sun  Petroleum  Co.,  Ltd.) — Commercial  Notices  of  Oil  Companies. 

NATIONAL  ARTS  AND  CRAFTS.     By  Dr.  J.  Ingr.\m  Bryan,  M.  A.,  M.  Litt.,  Ph.  D.  The  Meiji  University  and  the 

Imperial  Naval  College,  and  Japan  Correspondent  of  the  London  "  Morning  Post "  495 

Dawn  of  Art  —  The  Cradle  of  Japanese  Art  —  The  Bronze  Workers — Other  Metals  —  Ivory  and  Wood  Carving  — 
Ceramics — Cloisonne  Enamel  —  Lacquer  —  Weaving  and  Embroidery  —  Pictorial  Art  —  Minor  Considerations. 

THE   CITY   OF   OSAKA 510 

Antiquity  —  Modem  Osaka  —  City  Government  —  Finance  —  Industries  and  Trades. 

BANKING,   FINANCE,  AND  INSURANCE  (Osaka  and  Kobe  .Section) 517 


jaWBdSSd^^ 


CONTENTS 


Continued 


Chapter 
XXXV 


XXXVI 
XXXVII 


XXXVIII 

XXXIX 

XL 

XLI 

XLII 

XLIII 

XLIV 
XLV 

XLVI 

XLVII 

XLVIII 

XLIX 


Page 


LABOUR   CONDITIONS 539 

Sudden  Transformation  —  Phenomenal  Growth  of  Cities  —  Japan  Necessarily  Industrial  —  Serious  Aspects  of  the  Situ- 
ation—  Unhealthy  Conditions  —  Moral  Dangers  —  Rights  of  Labour — Labour  Unions  Barred  —  Strikes  Frequent  — 
Wages  in  Japan  —  Future  of  Japanese  Labour. 


547 
540 


THE  PATENT  SYSTEM.     By  Morio  Nakamatsu,  Esq.,  ex-Director  of  the  Imperial  Japanese  Patent  Office  .      .      . 

MANUFACTURING   INDUSTRIES 

Industry  in  Old  Japan  —  Forms  of  Industry  —  Operatives  —  The    Cotton    Industry  —  The    Woollen    Industry  —  The 
Brewing    Industry  —  Machine-making— Ceramics  —  The  Lacquer  Industry  — The  Silk  Industry  — Other  Industries 

—  Commercial  Notices. 

THE   CITY   OF   KOBfi 654 

IMPORTS  AND  EXPORTS  (Kob^  and  Osaka  Section) 661 

SPORTS   AND   RECREATIONS   IN   JAPAN 706 

Golf — Yachting  —  Rowing  —  Horse  Racing  —  Dramatics  —  Music. 

PRESS   AND   PERIODICAL   LITERATURE 710 

News  in  Old  Japan  —  Introduction  of  Modem  Journalism  —  Make-up  and  Content  of  Leading  Japanese  Newspapers 

—  "The  Japan  Chronicle"  —  "The  Japan  Advertiser"  —  "The  Japan  Gazette." 


SHIPPING  (Osaka  and  Kob^  Section) 


717 


LI 

LII 
LIII 

LIV 

LV 


OTHER   IMPORTANT   TOWNS   OF   JAPAN 762 

The  City  of  Wakayama  —  The  City  of  Niigata  —  The  City  of  Sendai  —  The  City  of  Kanazawa  —  The  City  of  Hiro- 
shima. 

GOVERNMENT   RAILWAYS 768 

Brief  History — Railway  Nationalization  and  its  Results  —  New  Departures  since  Railway  Nationalization  —  Some 
Statistics  Showing  the  Progress  of  the  Government  Railways. 

POSTS,  TELEGRAPHS,  TELEPHONES,  ROADS,  RIVERS,   AND    BRIDGES 777 

I.  Post  Offices:  Courier  System  of  Old  Japan  —  Advent  of  a  Modern  Postal  System  —  Development  of  Postal  Busi- 
ness. II.  Telegraphs  and  Telephones:  Early  Development  —  Telegraph  and  Telephone  Rates  and  Revenue. 
III.     Roads,  Rivers,  and  Bridges. 

GOVERNMENT   MONOPOLIES 783 

The  Tobacco  Monopoly  —  The  Salt  Monopoly  —  The  Camphor  Monopoly  —  The  Opium  Monopoly  —  Commercial 
Notices. 

THE   CITIES   OF   MOJI   AND   SHIMONOSEKI 789 

THE   CITY   OF   NAGASAKI 805 

JAPAN'S  COLONIAL  EMPIRE:     THE  PROVINCE  OF  KWANTUNG 812 

How  Acquired  —  Area,  Population,  and  Government — Agriculture,  Industry,  and  Trade  —  Finance  and  Banking  — 
Education  —  Communications  —  Dairen  —  Commercial  Notices. 

JAPAN'S  COLONIAL  EMPIRE:     CHOSEN    (KOREA) 838 

Ancient  Relations  with  Japan  —  Modern  Relations  with  Japan  —  The  Annexation  of  Korea  by  Japan  —  Reforms 
Inaugurated  —  Modern  Regime  —  Area  and  Population  —  Forests  and  Fisheries  —  Agriculture  and  Industry  —  Com- 
mercial Notices  —  Minerals  and  Mines  —  Trade  and  Commerce — Commercial  Notices  —  Communications  —  Finance 
and  Banking  —  Banking  and  Currency  —  Commercial    Notices  —  Education  —  Keijo    (Seoul)  —  Commercial    Notices. 

JAPAN'S  COLONIAL  EMPIRE:     TAIWAN  (FORMOSA) 869 

History  —  Area,  Physical  Features,  and  Population — Administration  —  Finance  —  Commerce  and  Trade  —  Industry 
—  Communications  —  Education  —  Commercial  Notices. 

JAPAN'S   SUGAR   INDUSTRY 888 

Sugar  Production  in  Japan  Proper — Sugar  Production  in  Formosa  —  Commercial  Notices. 

JAPAN'S  COLONIAL  EMPIRE:     KARAFUTO   (JAPANESE   SAGHALIEN) 898 

History  —  Area,  Physical  Features,  and  Population  —  Commerce  and  Industry  —  Communications  —  Administration 
and  Finance. 

THE  AINU.     By  the  Venerable  Archdeacon  John  B.\tchelor 902 

BIOGRAPHICAL   NOTES 908 

INDEX   OF   COMMERCIAL   NOTICES   AND    PORTRAITS        927 


aam^mA  I 


FUJI-SA.N    AT   DAWN 


I.    The  Imperial  Family  of  Japan 

Foundation  of  the  Empire  — Thr  Emperor  — The  Imperial  Constitution  — The  Late  Emperor 
MuTSUHiTo  — The  Emperor  Yoshihito  — The  Princely  Families 


According  to  Japanese  history 
the  Empire  has  maintained  perfect 
independence  since  its  foundation 
more  than  2,500  years  ago;  and  the  present 
Emperor,  Yoshihito,  is  the  122nd  sovereign 
in  the  imperial  line  who  has  occupied  the 
throne  in  unbroken  succession  since  its 
establishment.  It  must  be  remembered, 
however,  that  competent  scholars  can  not 
carry  the  authentic  history  of  Japan  farther 
back  than  about  half  way  over  the  course 
ascribed  to  it  in  local  annals,  as  no  reli- 
ance can  be  placed  on  any  date  or  report 
of  Japanese  tradition  prior  to  the  opening 
of  the  fifth  century  A.  D.  The  Japanese 
Empire  was  no  doubt  founded  at  a  very 
remote  period,  and  most  probably  there  was 
some  substantial  basis  for  the  long-estab- 
lished tradition;  but  the  glimpses  of  the 
country  and  its  people  obtained  through 
contemporary  Korean  and  Chinese  records 
disclose,  not  an  organised  and  peaceful  state 
of  society  in  Japan,  but  segregated  clans  or 
tribes  practically  illiterate  and  barbarous, 
the  southern  elements  leading,  with  prospects 


of  becoming  sovereign.  Thus  the  formal 
establishment  of  the  Japanese  Empire  cannot 
be  dated  beyond  the  Christian  era.  From 
the  time  that  the  capital  was  established 
at  Yamato  in  the  early  Christian  era  until 
the  present  day,  there  is  no  doubt  that  the 
Imperial  House  has  reigned  in  unbroken 
succession,  though  at  times  there  were 
rebellions  and  a  divided  dynasty,  with  the 
ruler  in  exile;  and  sometimes  the  succession 
had  to  be  kept  up  by  adoption. 

THE  EMPEROR 
According  to  the  Japanese  system  of 
government  the  Emperor  is  the  head  and 
centre  of  the  organisation  of  the  Empire. 
The  distinction  between  sovereign  and  sub- 
ject is  vital  and  permanent,  and  has  been 
definitely  fixed  since  the  establishment  of  the 
imperial  throne;  from  which  time  it  has  been 
fully  accepted  that  the  sovereign  is  sacred 
and  his  person  inviolable,  an  attitude  never 
relaxed  in  spite  of  even  modern  ideas.  The 
Japanese  maintain  these  propositions  not- 
withstanding that,  as  already  mentioned,  in 


the  nation's  history  we  see  emperors  seized 
and  banished,  being  left  to  die  in  exile.  On 
the  whole,  however,  the  tenet  that  the 
Emperor  is  sacred  has  been  observed;  obedi- 
ence to  him  has  been  absolute  and  he  has 
been  and  is  treated  as  a  god  incarnate  on  the 
earth,  representing  the  divine  ancestors. 
The  religion  of  Japan  is  simply  ancestor 
worship;  and  the  Emperor  rules  not  in  his 
own  right  but  as  the  representative  of  the 
Imperial  Ancestors.  Japan  is  veritably  a 
theocracy  ruled  by  gods  innumerable.  The 
Imperial  Ancestors  are  worshipped,  not 
because  they  are  the  ancestors  of  the  present 
sovereign,  but  because  they  are  the  sover- 
eigns of  the  ancestors  of  the  Japanese  people. 
To  some  this  might  seem  like  the  essence  of 
self- worship;  and  when  one  looks  at  a  Shinto 
shrine  and  finds  the  chief  object  on  the  altar 
is  a  mirror,  the  assumption  might  seem  to 
receive  confirmation.  But  the  whole  thing  is 
very  human.  Man  naturally  turns  with  awe 
and  reverence  to  his  creator,  which  by  the 
logic  of  his  religion  must  extend  back  to  the 
Heavenly  Father.     The  Empire  of  Japan  ia 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


THE    EMPEROR    KAMMU,    ONE     OF     THE     EARLY 
RULERS   OF   JAPAN — THE    EMPEROR   DAIGO. 
BOTH    FROM    PAINTINGS    IN   THE    IM- 
PERIAL  MUSEUM,    TOKYO 

one  great  family  of  which  the  Emperor  is  the 
father  and  head,  the  representative  of  heaven 
and  earth.  Indeed,  Japanese  views  of  deity 
and  of  the  Imperial  Family  would  make  the 
Almighty  a  Japanese,  just  as  the  ideas  of 
some  of  the  ancient  Hebrews  would  make 


God  a  Jew  and  the  Jews  alone  his  chosen 
ones  or  children.  The  Japanese  claim  that 
the  rule  of  their  Emperor  has  been  divine 
and  that  history  affords  no  instance  of  falli- 
bility; no  Emperor  has  ever  ruled  despoti- 
cally or  arbitrarily,  but  always  as  the  divine 
father  of  his  people.  As  the  rulers  have 
always  shown  the  greatest  consideration  for 
the  people,  the  people  have  always  evinced 
the  utmost  loyalty  and  respect  for  the  sov- 
ereign. 

It  is,  of  course,  very  difficult  for  an  Occi- 
dental mind  to  appreciate  fully  just  what  is 
the  relation  between  the  Japanese  people  and 
the  Imperial  House.  It  is  doubtless  the 
most  intimate  possible  for  the  human  mind 
to  conceive.  To  say  that  the  Japanese 
believe  in  the  divine  right  of  riders  is  to 
put  the  case  much  too  mildly.  To  convey 
to  a  Western  mind  any  adequate  conception 
of  the  place  occupied  by  the  Emperor  of 
Japan  in  the  hearts  of  his  subjects  and  the 
degree  of  reverential  awe  with  which  he 
continues  to  be  invested,  even  in  these 
materialistic  times,  is  no  easy  thing  to  at- 
tempt in  mere  words.  One  has  to  live  in 
the  midst  of  this  mystic  loyalty  and  breathe 
its  atmosphere  for  years  to  realise  what  it 
means.  The  Emperor  of  Japan  is  not  only 
the  vicegerent  of  the  ancestral  gods  on  earth, 
but  is  himself  a  god  by  virtue  of  his  divine 
descent,  a  god  who  rules,  guides,  guards, 
and  keeps  his  people  with  unbounded  com- 
passion and  infallible  widsom,  a  task  possible 
only  to  one  who  has  inherited  the  attributes 
of  omnipotent  and  benevolent  ancestors  in 
heaven.  To  the  people  of  Japan  the  Emperor 
is  just  as  much  a  god  as  Christ  is  to  the 
Christians;  and  with  far  more  immediate  and 
practical  powers.  There  is  no  other  poten- 
tate on  earth  who  receives  .such  veneration 
and  service  as  the  ruler  of  Japan.  He  is  to 
them  their  heavenly  father,  present  with 
them  on  earth  to  share  their  joys  and  sorrows, 
and  to  whose  support  all  achievement  is  due. 
Such  a  view  of  deity  no  doubt  comes  as  a 
shock  to  the  pious-minded  Occidental ;  but 
the  Japanese  seem  to  regard  it  as  far  more 
rational  than  the  Western  notion  of  deity. 
If  it  be  objected  that  the  Japanese  view  of 
faith  and  loyalty  assumes  too  much  of 
mortals,  it  will  be  replied  that  the  Emperor 
is  just  as  much  a  heavenly  father  to  his 
people  as  Jehovah  is  to  the  European.  The 
Occidental  can  not  claim  that  his  god  has 
done  more  for  him  and  his  country  than  the 
divine  ruler  of  Japan  has  done  for  his  country 
and  people.  The  religious  people  of  Europe 
say  that  they  are  the  children  of  their 
Heavenly  Father;  they  claim  the  Almighty 
as  their  first  ancestor.  If  man  is  the  child 
of  God  he  is  of  divine  descent  and  can  be  a 
god.     The   Japanese   go   farther   and   insist 


that  the  divine  succession  has  never  been 
broken  and  that  they  are  still  connected 
with  the  original  creator  through  their  divine 
ruler  on  earth.  Such,  at  least,  is  the  con- 
ception of  deity  and  sovereignty  that  the 
European  must  be  able  to  grasp  before  he 
can  appreciate  what  the  Emperor  of  Japan 
is  to  the  nation. 

In     the    ancient    days    the    emperors    of 
Japan,  as  the  descendants  of  the  ancestral 


IM.\GE    OF    THE    EMPRESS   JINGO-KOGO. 

COLOURED    WOOD,    I    FOOT    2  INCHES    IN 

HEIGHT.       EARLY    FUJIWARA    PERIOD   (888- 

1068    A.    D.),    OWNED    BY    YAKUSHI-JI, 

A    TEMPLE    IN    NARA-KEN 

gods,  themselves  administered  the  affairs  of 
state.  As  time  went  on  the  divine  ruler 
began  to  rule  more  and  more  through  his 
agents.  First  there  was  the  Fujiwara  fara"  ■ 
which  attained  to  martial  fame  and  cc.i- 
sequent  great  influence  at  the  Imperial 
Court,  and  from  which  the  imperial  con- 
sorts have  ever  since  been  selected.  Later 
the  political  power  passed  into  the  control 
of  great  military  clans  like  the  Taira  and 
the  Minamoto,  and  finally  to  the  shoguns. 
If  it  be  suggested  that  this  seems  like  a 
usurpation  of  imperial  prerogative,  it  may 
be  replied  that  it  is  no  more  so  than  in 
those  European  countries  which  hold  the 
divine  right  of  kings  yet  entrust  their  ad- 
ministration to  governments  authorised  by 
the  sovereign.  Even  in  the  Church,  God  is 
said  to  rule  through  regularly  commissioned 
officers,  of  which  system  the  Papacy  is, 
perhaps,  the  best  example.  But  no  occupant 
of  the  papal  chair  was  ever  believed  so  in- 
fallible as  the  Emperor  of  Japan.  The  great 
clans  and  latterly  the  shoguns  did  not  make 
themselves  more  independent  of  imperial  rule 
than  the  Pope  of  Rome  has  often  done  of 
the  Almighty.     The  military  clans  respected 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


HER   LATE    MAJESTY    THE    EMPRESS    DOWAGER    SHOKEN 


THE   LATE    EMPEROR    MEIJI    TENNO 


ihe  Imperial  Court  and  observed  the  ad- 
ministrative power  in  such  form  as  was  en- 
trusted to  them  by  the  Emperor,  and  in  the 
exercise  of  their  power  there  existed  a 
formality  transmitted  by  the  court.  A  time 
at  'ved,  liowever,  when  the  people  preferred 
to  nave  the  direct  rule  of  the  divine  ruler. 
Like  the  Reformation  in  Europe,  the  Re- 
storation in  Japan  was  a  reversion  from  in- 
direct to  direct  relation  with  the  divine 
head.  With  the  Restoration  of  imperial 
rule  the  statecraft  that  came  between  the 
Emperor  and  his  people  was  done  away  with, 
a  change  as  great  and  as  vital  as  the  aboli  tion 
of  priestcraft  in  the  reformed  churches  of 
Europe.  With  the  central  power  presiding 
over  aU  public  affairs  there  was  reestablished 
that  direct  relationship  between  the  ruler 
and  people  that  existed  at  the  foundation 
of  the  Empire. 

"  Those  able  to  appreciate  the  force  of  what 
ilias  been  said  may  be  able  to  understand 
t  i<^  meant  by  the  claim  that,  in  spite  of 
Rebels  and  exiled  emperors,  the  Japanese  have 
Iways  b(;en  loyal  to  the  Imperial  House,  and 
hat  nev'.'r  once  through  the  long  history  of 
the  country  has  the  supreme  authority  of 
the  Emperor  been  questioned.  Even  the 
most  arrogant  of  Japanese  rebels  would  not 


have  admitted  that  he  was  up  in  arms 
against  the  Emperor.  Rebellions  were  always 
against  bad  officials  who  were  accused  of 
abusing  the  imperial  power  entrusted  to 
them.  If  it  be  asked  why  this  was  not  left 
to  the  Emperor,  as  being  his  concern  chiefly, 
the  answer  might  come  that  the  followers  of 
God  do  not  leave  the  punishment  of  the 
enemies  of  heaven  to  divine  interposition. 
Even  during  the  centuries  when  the  Emperors 
of  Japan  would  seem  to  have  been  reduced 
to  political  and  administrative  impotence  by 
successive  dynasties  of  military  usurpers, 
they  still  remained  theoretically  the  final 
source  of  all  executive  authority  and  the 
sole  fountain  of  honour.  No  act,  not  even 
of  the  most  powerful  and  arbitrary  regent, 
backed  though  it  might  be  by  irresistible 
militar>'  strength  and  efficiency,  was  valid 
unless  he  was  fortified  by  the  commission  of 
the  Emperor,  who  himself  had  not  a  single 
soldier  to  enforce  his  commands.  Military 
leaders  who  held  the  commission  were  always 
loyalists,  though  they  might  overturn  all 
existing  government.  Those  without  the 
imperial  commission  were  always  rebels, 
though  they  held  the  reins  of  government  in 
their  own  hands.  Thus  it  wiU  be  seen  that 
the  Japanese  do  not  regard  the  Emperor  as 


any  the  less  divine  or  infallible  or  omnipotent 
because  his  will  has  not  always  been  obeyed, 
any  more  than  religious  people  in  the  West 
regard  ungodliness  as  a  reflection  on  the 
Deity.  After  a  divine  manner  the  Emperors 
of  Japan  have  left  the  people  to  choose  for 
themselves  whom  they  would  serve,  and  for 
the  most  part  the  people  have  responded  to 
the  trust. 

THE  I.MPERIAL  CONSTITUTION 
With  the  restoration  of  direct  relations 
between  sovereign  and  people  a  constitution 
was  granted,  not  creating  any  new  principle 
or  policy,  but  stating  and  defining  the  divine 
principles  that  had  regulated  the  relations 
of  sovereign  and  people  from  the  beginning. 
As  Japanese  history  was  affirmed  to  afford 
no  instance  of  imperial  tyranny  or  oppression 
of  the  people,  the  portion  of  the  constitution 
relating  to  the  Imperial  House  was  formed 
on  a  basis  of  great  elasticity;  w-hile  all  that 
referred  to  the  rights  and  duties  of  the  people 
was  embodied  in  coded  laws.  Unlike  the 
constitutions  of  other  countries  that  of 
Japan  is  a  divine  covenant,  not  the  result 
of  coercion  nor  accorded  as  a  right,  but 
simply  as  a  voluntary  gift  and  blessing  from 
the    divine    ruler    to    his    people.     By    the 


P  R  K  S  E  N  T  -  n  A  Y        IMPRESSIONS        OF        JAPAN 


terms  of  the  Imperial  Constitution  the  im- 
perial power  remained  as  before,  or  strengtli- 
cned  rather  than  impaired;  while  rights  of 
honour,  liberty,  life,  property,  and  religion 
were  freely  bestowed  on  the  people.  The 
Emperor  exercised  his  administrativ-e  power 
through  the  two  Estates  of  the  Realm,  the 
Peers  and  the  Commoners,  both  vested  with 
extensive  powers,  but  both  of  which  ever 
bow  to  the  imperial  will,  however  much 
among  themselves  they  may  be  given  to 
division  and  disputation. 

The  name  usually  given  to  the  Emperor  is 
Tenno  Heika,  or  Divine  Ruler.  The  desig- 
nation Mikado,  or  August  Door,  is  seldom 
used  except  among  foreigners,  though  when 
it  is  spoken  it  shows  the  reluctance  felt  by 
the  Japanese  in  using  the  imperial  name. 
The  title  Kolei,  a  Chinese  word,  meaning 
King  of  Kings,  is  sometimes  used;  while 
Kinri,  Dairi,  and  Chutei  all  describe  the 
palace  and  are  intended  to  signify  the  Em- 
peror personally,  as  we  do  when  we  say  "the 
bench"  instead  of  the  judge."  Tenno,  how- 
ever, is  the  title  by  which  the  ruler  of  Japan 
is  most  commonly  known  among  his  people, 
and  also  Tenshi,  both  implying  his  divine 
descent  as  well  as  his  all-seeing  wisdom  and 
supreme  authority.  The  Empress  is  referred 
to  as  Kogo  Heika,  or  Imperial  Consort. 

THE  LATE  EMPEROR  MUTSUHITO 
The  late  Emperor,  Mutsuhito,  was  the 
first  ruler  for  nearly  a  thousand  years  to 
come  before  the  public  and  exercise  direct 
rale  over  the  people,  former  sovereigns  carry- 
ing on  the  administration  by  proxy  and 
themselves  livmg  in  the  most  profound 
seclusion,  the  imperial,  feet  never  being 
allowed  to  touch  the  earth.     During  his  rule 


A    MORE    RECENT    PHOTOGR.^PH    OF    HIS    L.M'E 
MAJESTY    THE    EMPEROR    MEIJI    TENNO 

Japan  became  a  modern  state  and  attained 
the  position  of  a  first-class  power  in  the 
comity  of  nations;  all  of  which  is  ascribed 
to  the  virtues  of  the  sovereign.  When  he 
ascended  the  throne  in  1867  at  the  age  of 
sixteen  he  found  his  country  in  the  throes 
of  rebirth  from  expiring  feudalism.  Tlie 
nation  was  regarded  by  the  powers  of  the 
world  as  an  isolated  and  self-centred  ana- 
chronism; but  the  young  ruler,  surrounding 
himself  by  the  choicest  spirits  of  his  time, 
determined  upon  a  thorough  and  radical 
reform.  Out  of  the  seclusion  to  which  the 
shogunate  had  consigned  him  he  emerged 
upon  a  plane  of  triumphant  and  enlightened 
rule,  breaking  the  shackles  of  feudalism  and 
setting     the     people     free.     He     found     his 


country  a  nation  of  30,000,000  ignorant  and 
unhappy  subjects;  and  after  fort3'-five  years 
of  illustrious  rule  he  left  a  vast  Empire 
extended  in  territory  and  having  more  tlian 
70,000,000  people.  Well  was  his  reign  en- 
titled the  Meiji  Period,  the  Age  of  Enlighten- 
ment; and  after  his  demise  the  great  Emperor 
was  permanently  given  the  posthumous  desig- 
nation of  Meiji.  The  material,  mental,  and 
moral  progress  of  Japan  during  the  reign  of 
the  Emperor  Meiji  owed  much  to  imperial 
solicitude  and  direction.  The  profound 
personal  interest  taken  by  the  Emperor  in 
the  welfare  of  the  people  may  be  illustrated 
by  one  of  the  imperial  poems,  the  late  sov- 
ereign having  been  one  of  the  greatest  poets 
of  the  nation: 

Teru  ni  tsukd 

Kumoru  ni  tsuketd 
Omou  kana 

Waga  tamigusa  no 

Uye  wa  ikani  to! 

I  Whether  it  rain  or  shine 
I  have  one  only  care; 
The  burden  of  this  heart  of  mine 
Is  how  my  people  fare') 

Taller  and  more  robust  than  the  majority 
ot  his  subjects,  with  dark  complexion  and 
pronounced  features,  the  late  Emperor  always 
seemed  grave  and  impassive,  ever  maintain- 
ing the  austere  dignity  of  one  whose  ancestry 
is  of  heaven.  vSeen  by  the  present  writer  on 
various  occasions,  social  and  official,  the 
same  outward  expression  of  grave  dignity 
remained  without  change  through  many 
years.  To  all  Japanese  he  appeared  more 
like  a  god  than  a  man.  They  took  the 
keenest  interest  in  every  detail  of  his  life, 
so  far  as  the  public  was  permitted  such  in- 
formation.    The    late    Empcroi    had    many 


THE    APPROACH    TO   THE    IMPERIAL    P.\L,^CES,    TOKYO 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


I 


detached  palaces,  but  he  did  not  often  occupy 
them,  seldom  taking  a  lioHday,  even  in  the 
heat  of  summer.  He  refused  to  complain  of 
winter  cold  or  summer  heat,  so  long  as  the 
toiling  multitudes  of  his  Empire  had  to 
endure  all  weathers,  this  idea  being  expressed 
in  one  of  the  imperial  poems.  The  Emperor 
always  arose  at  six  in  the  morning,  bathed 
and  had  breakfast  before  seven,  his  food 
being  the  simplest.  After  satisfying  his 
physician  that  he  was  physically  fit  for  the 
day,  the  pure  white  habutai  kimono  was 
put  off  for  the  uniform  of  a  generalissimo  of 
the  Imperial  Guards.  He  insisted  on  this 
even  in  the  heat  because  the  army  officers 
had  to  wear  it.  At  ten  the  Emperor  entered 
his  study  to  receive  official  reports  and  papers. 
At  one  o'clock  he  took  luncheon,  usually 
native  dishes,  and  then  lay  down  until  two. 
The  afternoons  were  spent  in  the  study  or 
in  riding.  At  six  the  Emperor  dined  with 
the  Empress;  and  the  evenings  were  spent 
in  poetry  together.  At  nine,  the  physician 
again  appeared,  and  after  massage  the  Em- 
peror retired.  His  late  Majesty's  hobbies 
were  poetry  and  gardening. 

The  late  Empress,  who,  like  her  predeces- 
sors through  so  many  centuries,  belonged  to 
the  Fujiwara  family,  also  traced  her  descent 
direct  to  the  gods,  as  the  Fujiwara  were 
descendants  of  the  Imperial  House.  She 
belonged  to  the  Ichijo  branch  of  the  family 
and  showed  in  every  line  of  her  features  the 
refined  and  intellectual  characteristics  of 
those  who  trace  unmixed  descent  from  the 
highest  nobility  of  old  Japan,  which  are 
better  preserved  in  the  women  than  in  the 
men.  She  was  the  first  Empress  to  appear 
among  the  people  and  take  part  in  public 
functions.  The  influence  of  the  good  Em- 
press Haruko  over  the  women  of  Japan  was 
remarkable,  especially  in  the  way  of  education 
and  charity.  In  Japanese  history  her  name 
will  shine  no  less  brightly  than  that  of  her 
illustrious  spouse,  the  Emperor  Meiji,  as  an 
ideal  of  devotion  and  duty. 


THE  EMPEROR  YOSHIHITO 
The  present  Emperor,  Yoshihito,  is  the 
122nd  in  the  imperial  line.  He  was  born 
August  31,  1879,  being  the  third  son  of  the 
late  Emperor.  He  was  declared  Imperial 
Crown  Prince  on  November  3,  1889,  and 
succeeded  to  the  throne  on  July  30,  191 2,  at 
the  moment  of  the  demise  of  his  father. 
The  formal  ceremony  of  public  accession  to 
the  throne  did  not  take  place  until  Novem- 
ber, 1914,  owing  to  national  mourning.  On 
the  loth  of  May,  1900,  while  still  Prince 
Imperial,  he  was  married  to  the  Princess 
Sadako,  fourth  daughter  of  Prince  Kujo, 
born  June  22,  1884,  the  results  of  the  union 
being  four  sons. 


H.    I.    H.    CROWN    PRINCE    HIROHITO 


The  succession  to  the  throne  of  Japan  is 
regulated  b^'  the  Imperial  House  Law,  passed 
as  supplementary  to  the  Imperial  Consti- 
tution in  1889  under  the  Emperor's  sign- 
manual.  It  declares  that  "the  Imperial 
Throne  of  Japan,  enjoying  the  grace  of 
heaven,  and  everlasting  from  ages  eternal  in 
unbroken  line  of  succession,  has  been  trans- 
mitted through  successive  reigns,"  and  that 
while  "the  fundamental  rules  of  the  Imperial 
family  were  established,  once  and  for  all, 
when  the  foundations  of  the  Empire  were 
laid,  and  are  even  at  this  day  as  bright  as 
the  celestial  luminaries,"  it  was  desired  "to 


establish  a  House  Law  for  posterity  by  which 
the  Imperial  House  should  be  founded  in 
everlasting  strength  and  its  dignity  forever 
maintained."  This  law  provides  for  the 
succession  to  the  throne  by  male  descendants 
in  the  male  line,  by  the  imperial  eldest  son 
or  the  imperial  eldest  grand.son,  by  younger 
sons  of  the  Emperor  in  order  of  birth,  failing 
an  eldest  son  or  grandson;  by  the  Emperor's 
brother  or  his  descendants  or  by  his  uncle  or 
his  descendants,  or,  failing  these,  by  the 
nearest  member  of  the  imperial  family.  It 
is  clear  that  in  the  above  law  two  of  the 
nation's  most  ancient  customs  were  departed 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


from:  empresses  were  excluded  from  the 
throne  and  the  succession  was  limited  to 
male  descendants  of  absolute  lineage.  An 
empress  or  a  princess  is  permitted  to  act  as 
regent  during  the  minority  or  permanent 
incapacity  of  the  Emperor  from  illness,  if 
there  is  no  prince  of  age  or  capacity  to 
undertake  the  duties.  It  is  remarkable  that 
women  should  be  thus  excluded  from  the 
tlirone,  since  some  of  the  most  illustrious 
sovereigns  of  old  Japan  were  empresses. 
The  male  succession  in  direct  line  is  now, 
however,  well  assured,  as  the  present  ruler 
is  the  son  of  the  late  Emperor,  and  has  four 
sons,  his  two  elder  brothers  having  died  in 
infancy. 

The  Emperor  Yoshihito  is  the  first  really 
modem  ruler  that  Japan  has  had,  as  he  was 
educated  in  a  modern  way  and  has  established 
his  family  and  houseliold  on  a  modern  basis. 
The  former  Emperor  was  brought  up  after 
the  manner  of  old  Japan;  but  the  education 
and  training  of  the  new  Emperor  combine 
the  best  of  the  old  with  the  best  of  the  new 
and  modem.  At  the  age  of  eight  he  entered 
the  primary  department  of  the  Peers' 
College,  and  passed  through  all  the  grades 
up  to  the  high  school  with  marked  ability. 
As  a  youth  he  was  somewhat  delicate  in 
constitution,  but  by  persistence  in  care  for 
his  health  and  in  outdoor  life  and  activity 
the  Emperor  is  now  robust  and  hale.  Upon 
leaving  the  Peers'  College  the  Prince  con- 
tinued his  education  at  the  Aoyama  Palace 
under  private  tutors.  Up  to  the  time  of  his 
accession  to  the  tlirone  the  Imperial  Prince 
gave  most  of  his  mornings  to  hearing  special 
private  lectures  from  eminent  scholars  and 
professors,  showing  a  special  aptitude  for 
Chinese  and  Japanese  classics.  Of  foreign 
languages  he  preferred  French,  in  which  he 
made  some  progress.  From  a  professional 
point  of  view  the  young  Emperor  is  a  soldier, 
though  he  is  an  officer  of  the  navy  as  well. 
While  yet  Crown  Prince  he  used  to  take  his 
seat  in  the  House  of  Peers  and  show  unabated 
interest  in  the  affairs  of  state.  Thus  it  may 
be  said  that  the  new  Emperor  of  Japan  has 
had  a  thorouglily  modem  education,  attend- 
ing the  public  school,  mixing  daily  with  com- 
panions selected  for  him,  and  making  himself 
familiar  with  the  duties  of  the  high  position 
he  was  destined  to  fiU.  On  attaining  man- 
hood he  neglected  no  opportunity  of  gaining 
further  knowledge  of  his  country  and  people, 
travelling  to  various  parts  of  the  Empire, 
even  to  Korea.  During  his  trips  inland  he 
proved  to  be  an  excellent  pedestrian  and 
mountain  climber,  often  outspeeding  his 
companions  and  appearing  unannounced 
among  the  rustic  villages.  The  present 
writer,  who  has  had  the  honour  on  more  than 
one  occasion  of  taking  luncheon  in  the  same 


H.    I.    H.    FIELD    MARSH.\L    PRINXE    S.\D.\N.^RU 
FLSHIMINOMIY.\ 

room  with  His  Majesty  when  he  was  Crown 
Prince,  noticed  how  genial  he  always  was 
with  those  about  him,  as  well  as  being  modest 
and  dignified  in  manner.  It  is  said  in  Japan 
that  once  when  the  late  Emperor  and  the 
Crown  Prince  were  in  conversation  together, 
the  father  said  to  the  son:  "In  the  past  those 
in  high  estate  have  shown  themselves  ig- 
norant of  those  below  them,  and  were  often 
haughty  and  arrogant.  I  pray  you  let  it 
not  be  so  with  you.  At  all  times  be  ready  to 
help  yourself."  This  wise  counsel  the  Prince 
always  has  carefully  observed;  and  now  that 
he  sits  on  the  throne  of  his  illustrious  father 
the  young  Emperor  is  ever  solicitous  of  the 
welfare  of  his  people.  When  officials  are  apt 
to  be  too  officious  in  repressing  the  free- 
dom of  the  public  during  imperial  journevs, 
it  is  said  the  Emperor  expresses  a  desire  that 
his  presence  shall  not  delay  traffic  or  interrupt 
public  business  longer  than  actually  necessary. 
As  a  prince  mixing  among  his  companions  he 
always  endeared  himself  to  them  by  his 
modest  and  unassuming  ways;  as  a  soldier 
he  was  distinguished  for  his  careful  observance 
of  the  military  regulations,  even  joining  the 
mess  and  partaking  of  the  rough  fare  of  the 
soldier,  to  the  astonishment  and  admiration 
of     the    officers    and    men.     Once     during 


manoeuvres  when  a  private  was  thrown  from 
his  horse  and  none  of  the  officers  appeared 
to  notice  it,  treating  it  as  an  incident  un- 
worthy of  attention,  the  Crown  Prince  leaped 
from  his  saddle  and  helped  the  fallen  soldier 
to  his  feet,  to  the  amazement  of  those 
standing  by.  When  they  expressed  great 
awe  at  what  he  had  done  he  replied:  "I  too 
am  a  soldier!"  On  another  occasion  he  was 
taken  out  hunting  and  shot  a  stag.  On 
seeing  the  beautiful  animal  lying  dead  before 
his  camp  the  Prince  wrote  the  following 
poem : 

Omoshiroku 

Uchi  wa  shitsuredo 
Naku  shika  no 

Koe  kiku  toki  wa 
Aware  nari  keri! 

(  For  my  own  amusement 
The  fatal  shot  I  fired; 
But  when  I  heard  the  doe's  lament 
The  pleasure  all  expired!) 

Thus  the  people  of  Japan  look  upon  their 
young  Emperor  as  not  only  brave  and  noble 
but  benevolent  and  tender-hearted  as  well. 
Her  Majesty,  the  young  Empress  Sadako, 
reveals  the  same  imperial  qualities  that  make 
her  a  gracious  ornament  to  the  throne  and  a 
mother  to  her  people.  As  a  student  at  the 
Peeress'  College  she  showed  untiring  ability 
in  the  acquirement  of  all  knowledge,  and  was 
distinguished  for  her  humble  and  womanly 
demeanor.  She  walked  to  and  from  school 
like  ordinary  folk,  and  never  fell  below  her 
form  in  school.  She  was  one  of  the  most 
admired  and  beloved  of  pupils  by  the  teachers, 
to  whom  she  never  forgot  to  show  marked 
kindnesses.  The  young  Empress  finds  time 
for  attending  public  functions  like  Red  Cross 
Society  meetings  and  so  on,  but  most  of  her 
time  is  devoted  to  her  children.  The  eldest. 
Prince  Hirohito,  was  born  April  29,  1901,  and 
proclaimed  Crown  Prince  September  9,  1912. 
He  has  graduated  from  the  Peers'  College, 
is  still  taking  private  lessons,  and  is  already 
a  Lieutenant  of  the  Army  and  of  the  Navy. 
The  second  of  the  imperial  sons,  Prince 
Yasuliito,  was  born  June  25,  1902,  and  is 
still  at  school.  Prince  Nobuhito,  the  third 
son  of  Their  Majesties,  was  born  January  3, 
1905,  while  the  last  son.  Prince  Takahito,  was 
born  December  2,  1915.  The  sons  of  the 
Emperor  are  brought  up  with  certain  com- 
panions selected  for  them  from  among  the 
sons  of  noble  families;  and  they  have  good 
times  like  other  boys,  going  to  school  or 
plajdng  in  the  imperial  gardens,  being  up  to 
all  the  mischief  of  boyhood.  Not  infre- 
quently the  imperial  parents  join  in  the 
children's  fun  and  add  to  an  afternoon's 
pleasure.  The  story  goes  that  one  day  the 
Imperial  Princes  were  found  in  a  pond 
hunting  tadpoles,  up  to  their  eyes  in  mud, 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


9 


to  the  consternation  of  the  attendants. 
Thus  the  young  Emperor  and  Empress  rep- 
resent the  true  Japanese  family:  keen  and 
ifitelligent  with  regard  to  all  that  concerns 
the  welfare  of  the  nation,  and  in  character 
and  habits  simple  and  unostentatious,  win- 
ning the  same  sympathy  and  devotion  so 
lavishly  bestowed  on  past  rulers. 

THE    PRINCELY    FAMILIES 
As   members   of  the  imperial  family   the 
princes  and  princesses  of  the  blood  also  take 
an  important  place.     The  Emperor  has  four 


H.    I.  H.    PKINCE    KOTOHITO    KANINNOMlY.\ 

sisters  living.  The  Princess  Masako  married 
Prince  Takeda,  the  Princess  Fusako  married 
Prince  Kitashirakawa,  the  Princess  Nobuko 
married  Prince  Asaka,  and  the  Priijcess 
Toshiko  is  the  consort  of  Prince  Higashi- 
kuni.  Besides  the  imperial  family  there  are 
some  fourteen  princely  families  who  are  of 
the  imperial  line,  divided  into  two  classes: 
the  Shinno,  or  imperial  princes,  and  the  O, 
or  ordinary  princes.  The  term  "O"  means 
a  suzerain  king,  like  the  King  of  Burmah, 
for  example,  or  one  of  the  rulers  in  Egypt. 
There  are  four  families  of  Shinno,  the  Im- 
perial Princes  of  Arisugawa,  Fushimi,  Kannin, 
and  Higashi  Fushimi,  to  whose  descendants 
the  succession  to  the  throne  falls  in  the  event 
of  failure  in  the  direct  line. 

The  oldest  of  the  princely  families  is  that 
of  Prince  Fushimi,  founded  by  a  son  of  the 
Emperor  Shuko  (1349-1352),  and  the  present 
head   is  the  twenty-first  of  the  line.     It  is 


remarkable  that  from  this  house  have  sprung 
all  the  other  princely  families  except  that  of 
Prince  Arisugawa,  which  would  have  become 
extinct  had  not  the  Emperor  appointed  his 
third  son,  Nobuhito  Takamatsu-no-miya,  to 
succeed  the  late  Prince  Arisugawa.  The 
eighteenth  Prince  Fushimi  was  Sadayoshi 
who  had  four  sons,  the  eldest  of  whom, 
Prince  Kuni-iye,  succeeded  him,  and  the 
other  three  founded  the  princely  houses  of 
Yamashina,  Nashimoto,  and  Kuni.  Prince 
Kuni-iye  had  fourteen  sons,  nine  of  whom 
became  the  heads  of  houses.  The  second 
succeeded  his  father,  becoming  the  twentieth 
Prince  Fushimi;  and  he,  having  no  children, 
was  succeeded  by  his  seventh  brother,  who 
is  the  present  prince.  The  eldest  son  founded 
the  house  of  Kitashirakawa,  the  third  that 
of  Komatsu,  and  the  fifth  that  of  Kwacho. 
The  first  Prince  Kitashirakawa  was  succeeded 
in  turn  by  two  of  his  brothers,  the  fourth  and 
sixth  sons  of  Prince  Kuni-iye.  The  eighth 
son  succeeded  as  the  sixth  Imperial  Prince 
of  Kannin,  and  the  ninth  as  the  second 
Imperial  Prince  Higashi  Fushimi.  Thus  the 
present  heads  of  the  houses  of  Fushimi, 
Kannin,  and  Higashi  Fushimi  are  Shinno,  and 
those  of  Yamashina,  Nashimoto,  Kuni,  Kita- 
shirakawa, and  Kwacho  are  O  princes;  but  all 
are  direct  descendants  by  blood  of  the  Prince 
Sadayoshi  and  have  the  Emperor  Shuko  as 
their  common  remote  ancestor.  Prince 
Fushimi  is  a  marshal  of  the  Imperial  Army, 
commanded  the  First  Army  Division  in  the 
war  with  Russia,  and  has  visited  England. 
The  house  of  Arisugawa  was  founded  by 
Prince  Yoshihito,  son  of  the  Emperor  Go- 
Yozei  (1587-1612),  and  has  had  four  sons 
of  emperors  as  heads,  the  present  head  being 
the  third  son  of  the  present  Emperor.  The 
family  of  Kannin  was  founded  by  a  son  of 
the  Emperor  Higashiyama  (1687-1710). 
The  founder  of  the  house  was  followed  by 
four  successors  of  his  own  blood,  but  the 
fifth  head  of  the  house,  being  childless, 
adopted  a  son  and  was  succeeded  by  the 
present  holder  of  the  title.  Prince  Kotohito, 
one  of  the  younger  sons  of  Prince  Kuni-iye. 
The  last  of  the  imperial  princely  houses  is 
that  of  Higashi  Fushimi.  The  title  was 
originall)'  conferred  after  the  Restoration  on 
Prince  Akihito,  the  third  son  of  Prince 
Kuni-iye,  who  played  a  distinguished  part 
in  the  latest  stages  of  the  civil  war.  While 
holding  this  title,  Prince  Akihito  adopted 
his  bi-other  Yorihito,  thirteen  years  younger 
than  himself,  as  his  heir,  but  subsequently 
another  title,  that  of  Komatsu,  was  con- 
ferred upon  him,  and  that  which  he  origi- 
nally held  passed  at  once  to  his  adopted 
heir,  who  accordingly  became  the  second 
Prince  Higashi  Fushimi.  Prince  Komatsu 
died  in    1903;   and  being  childless,   and  his 


adopted  heir  being  already  in  possession  of 
another  title  of  equal  degree,  that  of  Ko- 
matsu, as  an  imperial  princedom,  became 
extinct;  but  it  has  been  revived  as  that  of 
a  marquisate,  in  the  ranks  of  the  ordinary 
nobility,  and  conferred  on  the  youngest  son 
of  the  late  Prince  Kitashirakawa.  The  late 
Prince  Komatsu  was  one  of  the  few  Japanese 
princes  who  distinguished  himself  by  going 
abroad  for  an  education,  and  in  later  years 
he  again  visited  England  on  imperial  missions. 
Some  may  be  curious  to  know  how  it  is 
that    the    sons   of    subsequent   emperors    of 


VISCOUNT   YOSHIN.\0    H.\TANO,    MINISTER    OF 
THE   IMPERIAL    HOUSEHOLD    DEPARTMENT 

Japan  have  not  founded  princely  houses. 
But  it  has  been  the  custom  for  younger  sons, 
if  there  were  any,  to  retire  to  a  monastery 
and  lead  a  celibate  life,  so  as  to  avoid  rival 
claimants  to  the  throne.  The  monastery  at 
Ninnaji  in  Kyoto  was  considered  a  benefice 
for  priests  of  princely  birth  and  was  succes- 
sively ruled  by  thirty-three  princely  abbots. 
Four  other  princely  houses  of  Japan  are 
those  of  Kayo,  Takeda,  Asaka,  and  Higashi 
Kuni,  the  heads  of  which  are  scions  of  the 
house  of  Fushimi  and  blood  descendants  of 
Prince  Sadayoshi,  the  houses  being  founded 
by  his  grandsons,  all  the  sons  of  Asahito, 
first  Prince  Kuni.  The  house  of  Takeda 
was  founded  by  the  third  prince  of  Kita- 
shirakawa who  descended  from  the  eldest 
son  of  Sadayoshi.  Of  the  princely  houses 
that  of  Arisugawa  is  now  nearest  the  imperial 
family  in  line  of  succession,  as  the  head  of 
it  is  third  son  of  the  present  Emperor. 
The  ties  of  relationship  that  exist  between 
the  various   princely   houses   are   much   too 


lO 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


COUNTRY    SCENES 


involved  to  be  further  gone  into  here ;  but  as 
they  frequently  figure  prominently  in  war 
and  peace  one  is  usually  interested  in  know- 
ing what  they  are.  All  the  princes  of  adult 
age  take  a  very  active  part  in  public  life. 
As  members  of  the  House  of  Peers  they 
take  part  in  the  debates  and  vote,  and  in 
social  functions  they  are  usually  prominent. 
While  the  members  of  princely  houses  can 
not  be  said  to  take  the  same  part  in  war 
and  peace  that  is  taken  by  the  noble  families 
of  England,  there  are  notable  exceptions, 
such  as  those  of  Prince  Arisugawa  and 
Prince  Kitashirakawa  who  lost  their  lives 
during  the  war  with  China.  Members  of 
the  imperial  family  cannot  be  arrested  or 
summoned  before  a  court  of  law  except  with 
the  consent  of  the  Emperor,  though  they 
can  be  civilly  sued  before  the  Court  of 
Appeal  in  Tokyo,  but  their  presence  is  not 


required.  The  Emperor  can  deprive  them 
of  their  ranks  and  titles  if  they  should  prove 
unworthy;  and  they  cannot  marry  with- 
out the  consent  of  the  Emperor,  nor  are 
they  allowed  to  marry  outside  of  certain 
families. 

As  already  mentioned  the  four  daughters 
of  the  late  Emperor  married  four  of  these 
princes  of  the  blood.  Prince  Fushimi  is 
married  to  a  daughter  of  the  late  Prince 
Arisugawa,  Prince  Higashi  Fushimi  to  a 
daughter  of  Prince  Iwakura,  Prince  Kannin 
to  a  daughter  of  the  late  Prince  Sanjo,  and 
Prince  Kayo  to  a  daughter  of  the  Marquis 
Daigo,  all  members  of  the  old  court  nobility 
of  Kyoto  and  connected  with  the  Fujiwara 
family.  The  young  Imperial  Prince  of  Ari- 
sugawa is  not  yet  married,  but  his  prede- 
cessor was  married  to  a  daughter  of  the  late 
Marquis  Mayeda,  Prince  Kuni  is  married  to 


a  daughter  of  Prince  Shimadzu,  and  Prmce 
Nashimoto  to  a  daughter  of  the  Marquis 
Nabeshima,  all  great  feudal  families.  The 
princely  houses  receive  an  annual  allowance 
from  the  Civil  List,  varying  from  £3,000  to 
£1,000,  which  leaves  them  to  some  degree 
dependent  on  the  Emperor.  The  Emperor's 
own  allowance  from  the  Civil  List  is 
£500,000,  but  he  enjoys  a  larger  amount 
than  this  from  Crown  Lands  and  invest- 
ments. 

The  Emperor  and  the  Imperial  Princes 
reside  in  Tokyo,  though  they  have  their  own 
villas  in  various  summer  places.  While  the 
imperial  palace  in  Tokv'o  is  on  a  scale  of 
becoming  art  and  splendour  it  is  very  limited 
in  comparison  with  the  palaces  of  European 
sovereigns.  The  Japanese,  however,  admire 
this  elegant  simplicity  as  representative  of 
national  spirit  and  taste. 


THE    INLAND    SEA,    FROM    A    POINT   NEAR   ONOMICHI 

II.    The  Country 

The  Name  — Position  — Area  — Coast  Line  — Oro(,raphy  — Geology  — Volcanic  and  Seismic 

Action  — Hydrography  — Climate  — Flora  and  Fauna  — Population  — Table  of  Weights, 

Measures,  and  Moneys,  with  English,  American,  French,  and  German  Equivalents 


THE  country  which  Europeans  call 
Japan  is  known  to  the  people  them- 
selves as  Dai  Nippon,  or  Nihon, 
which  means  "Great  Sun-source  Land," 
hence  the  term,  "Land  of  the  Rising  Sun." 
The  name  Japan  had  its  origin  with  Marco 
Polo,  the  distinguished  Venetian  traveller 
who  found  his  way  to  China  toward  the  close 
of  the  thirteenth  century,  and  learned  of  a 
great  empire  still  farther  eastward  which  the 
Chinese  called  Jih-pen  and  he  Zipangu, 
gu  meaning  kuo  or  country,  which,  they 
assured  him,  was  rich  in  gold,  even  the 
houses  being  decorated  with  it.  Marco  Polo 
carried  this  news  back  to  Europe,  where  it 
excited  no  small  interest,  eventually  induc- 
ing Christopher  Columbus  to  set  out  in 
search  of  a  westerly  route  to  the  East,  when 
he  came  upon  the  New  World  instead  of 
Old  Japan.  Thus  Japan  was  indirectly  the 
cause  of  America's  discovery.  Up  to  the 
year  670  A.  D.,  however,  the  Empire  of 
Japan  was  officially  known  as  Yamato,  the 
name  of  the  province  wherein  the  first 
emperor  established  his  capital.  After  this 
time  the  official  designation  of  the  Empire 


was  Dai  Nippon,  referring  to  the  whole 
nation,  and  not  the  main  island  only,  as 
some  foreigners  supposed. 


POSITION 


\ 


The  Empire  of  Japan  is  situated  on  the 
northwest  side  of  the  Pacific  Ocean,  just  off 
the  coast  of  China;  and,  with  the  exception 
of  the  peninsula  of  Korea,  consists  of  an 
oblong  group  of  islands  extending  crescent- 
like down  the  coast  from  50°  56'  N.  latitude 
below  the  Kamchatka  peninsula,  south- 
westward  to  21°  48'  N.  latitude,  near  the 
Phihppine  Islands,  a  distance  of  over  2,000 
miles.  The  most  westerly  point  of  the 
Empire  is  in  Hokoto  in  the  Pescadores,  119° 
20'  E.  longitude;  and  the  most  easterly 
point  is  on  the  Island  of  Shumoshuto  in  the 
Kurile  group.  Province  of  Chishima,  150° 
32'  E.  longitude.  The  Empire  of  Japan 
thus  extends  over  29°  o'  8"  of  latitude  and 
37°  12'  of  longitude.      (See  map.) 

AREA 
Although  the  Empire  includes  some  3,000 
islands  only  541  are  habitable,  while  no  more 


than  six  are  of  any  extent  and  importance, 
viz.,  Hokkaido,  Honshu,  Shikoku,  Kyushu, 
Formosa,  and  Saghalien,  or  Karafuto,  as  it 
is  known  to  the  Japanese.  Of  these  by  far 
the  largest  and  most  important  is  Honshu, 
the  main  island,  sometimes  called  Hondo, 
and  situated  midway  in  the  archipelago  ex- 
tending like  a  bow  for  1,130  miles  down  the 
coast  of  the  continent  from  northwest  to 
southwest.  The  upper  portion  of  the  bow 
has  a  length  of  590  miles,  bent  toward  the 
Pacific,  while  the  southern  half  bends  for 
540  miles  toward  the  coast  of  Korea,  behind 
the  islands  of  Shikoku  and  Kyushu.  Next 
to  Honshu  in  size  though  not  in  importance 
comes  Hokkaido,  formerly  called  Yezo,  to 
the  north  of  the  main  island.  It  is  a  terri- 
tory of  bracing  climate  and  fertile  soil,  but 
sparsely  settled  and  still  in  process  of  colo- 
nisation from  the  southern  islands.  In  order 
of  size  and  importance  then  follow  Kyushu, 
Shikoku,  Formosa,  which  was  ceded  to  Japan 
by  China  as  a  result  of  the  war  of  1894,  and 
the  southern  half  of  Saghalien,  ceded  by 
Russia  as  the  result  of  war  in  1905.  The 
more   important   of  the  smaller  islands  are 


12 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


Sado,  Oki,  Tsushima,  Iki,  Oshima,  Awaji  and 
the  four  archipelagoes  known  as  the  Kuriles, 
called  Chishima  by  the  Japanese,  the  Benin 
Islands  (Ogasawara  in  Japanese),  and  the 
Luchu  group,  which  the  Japanese  call  Okin- 
awa. The  peninsula  of  Korea,  called  Chosen 
by  Japan,  was  annexed  to  the  Empire  owing 
to  political  complications  in  1910  and  has 
added  considerably  to  the  area  and  popula- 
tion of  the  territory  of  Japan.  The  total 
area  of  the  Empire  is  now  something  over 
253,929  square  mUes,  divided  into  the  several 
islands  and  their  dependencies  as  follows: 


case  the  geological  formation  is  more  broken 
and  the  coast  line  serrated,  resulting  in  the 
formation  of  numerous  gulfs  and  inlets,  while 
the  comparatively  unbroken  line  of  the  coast 
along  the  Japan  Sea  affords  few  sheltered 
harbours  or  safe  anchorages.  It  naturally 
follows  that  trade  has  gravitated  toward  the 
area  washed  by  the  Pacific  where  communi- 
cations, with  the  passing  of  time,  have  im- 
proved both  by  land  and  sea.  There  are  at 
present  sixty  harbours  open  to  foreign  ship- 
ping and  capable  of  accommodating  steam- 
ships. 


Name 


Honshu ... 

Hokkaido 

Formosa  (Taiwan) 

Kyushu 

Shikoku 

Luchu  (55  islands) 

Chishima  (Kuriles,  31  islands). 

Sado 

Tsushima 

Awaji 

Oki 

Hokoto  (Pescadores)    .    .    .    . 

Iki 

Ogasawara  (Bonins,  20  islands) 

Saghalien  (Karafuto) 

Chosen  (Korea) 


Area,  Square  Miles 


81,843.88 

30,299.87 

•      13,851-99 

15,600.54 

7,036.48 

935-18 

6,028.48 

335-73 
266.53 
218.67 
130.46 
47.62 

51-43 

26.82 

13.154-00 

84,102.00 

Total.  .  .  .253,929.68 


COAST  LINE 
The  coast  line  of  Japan,  omitting  Sag- 
halien which  has  not  yet  been  accurately 
determined,  and  Chosen,  is  18,340  miles  in 
length,  being  a  proportion  of  one  mile  to 
eight  square  miles  of  area,  a  ratio  unusually 
large  owing  to  the  country  consisting  wholly 
of  islands.  The  proportion  of  area  to  coast 
line  of  the  major  islands  may  be  represented 
as  below: 


Though  the  northern  coast  of  Honshu  is 
unusually  rocky,  contributing  to  lack  of 
good  harbours,  there  are  coastal  indentations 
like  the  Bay  of  Aomori  and  the  Sendai  Gulf 
farther  south.  This  portion  of  the  coast  is 
also  noted  for  the  beautiftd  Bay  of  Matsu- 
shima  with  its  numerous  pine-clad  islets,  a 
region  of  fairyland  very  attractive  to  tourists 
and  ranked  among  the  three  most  celebrated 
examples   of   scenic   beauty   in   Japan.     Off 


Name 

Extent  of 
Coast  Line 

Area  of 
Island 

Proportion  of  Area 

to  One  Mile  of 

Coast  Line 

Miles 

Square  Miles 

Square  Miles 

Honshu  and  dependencies . . . 
Kyushu  and  dependencies  . . . 

6,040 

4,507 
1,650 

1,535 
896 

87,450 
15,920 

7,037 
30,300 

13,851 

14.6 

3.51 
4.26 

19  74 
16.18 

Hokkaido  and  Chishima .... 
Formosa,  excluding  Hokoto . 

It  is  obvious  that  Kyushu  has  the  greatest 
proportion  of  coast  line  to  area,  with  Shikoku 
second,  Honshu  third,  Formosa  fourth,  and 
Hokkaido  fifth. 

Very  marked  differences  characterise  the 
coasts  of  Japan  facing  the  Pacific  as  compared 
with  those  on  the  Japan  Sea.     In  the  former 


this  northeast  coast  lies  the  fifth  deepest 
sea-bed  in  the  world,  the  descent  being 
4,655  fathoms.  Proceeding  southward  the 
coast  is  more  or  less  unbroken  until  reaching 
the  mouth  of  the  River  Ton^,  passing  which 
the  Boshu  Peninsula  is  turned,  leading  into 
Tokyo  Bay,  which  faces  south.     At  the  head 


of  this  bay,  which  is  some  twenty  miles  long, 
stands  the  capital  of  the  Empire,  but  owing 
to  shallow  water  large  ships  will  not  be  able 
to  enter  until  the  new  Tokyo  harbour  is 
completed.  Consequently  foreign  trade  is 
carried  on  at  the  port  of  Yokohama,  some 
twenty  miles  to  the  southwest.  Other 
smaller  ports  on  this  coast  are  Yokosuka, 
one  of  the  chief  naval  stations  with  extensive 
dockyards,  and  Uraga,  which  also  has  ship- 
building yards.  Between  Mizaki  and  the 
Peninsula  of  Izu  extends  far  inland  the  great 
Bay  of  Sagami,  with  its  seven  Isles  of  Izu, 
and  the  famous  Fujisan  dominating  the 
whole.  Around  the  base  of  Fuji  run  the 
rivers  Oi  and  Fuji  on  their  way  to  this  body 
of  water.  The  next  important  indentation 
on  this  coast  is  the  fair  Bay  of  Isi  with  the 
port  of  Yokaichi  at  the  head,  and  the  city 
of  Nagoya  not  far  away.  From  there  past 
Cape  Irakozaki  the  coast  is  dangerously 
precipitous,  a  menace  to  navigation,  until 
entering  the  Kii  Channel  leading  to  the 
extensive  Bay  of  Osaka  with  the  nation's 
commercial  metropolis  of  the  same  name  at 
the  head,  and  the  important  port  of  Kob6 
to  the  left.  Turning  thither  one  faces  the 
entrance  to  the  wonderful  Inland  Sea  with 
its  innumerable  islands,  having  a  coast  line 
of  more  than  700  miles.  From  here  passage 
may  be  made  to  the  Pacific  tlirough  the  Kii 
Channel,  the  Naruto  Straits  on  the  southeast, 
or  to  the  Japan  Sea  through  the  Straits  of 
Shimonoseki  at  the  southwestern  extremity 
of  Honshu.  Following  the  coast  of  Honshu 
along  the  Japan  Sea,  few  important  bays  or 
harbours  are  found,  as  already  indicated, 
except  the  Bay  of  Wakasa  where  are  the 
ports  of  Maizuru,  Miyazu,  and  Tsuruga, 
the  first  reserved  as  a  naval  station,  and 
the  latter  used  as  the  port  of  departure  for 
Vladivostock  and  the  Trans-Siberian  railway. 
In  this  bay  also  lies  the  noted  scenic  region 
of  Amanohashidate,  another  one  of  the  three 
most  beautiful  places  in  Japan.  Farther 
north  are  the  ports  of  Naoyetsu  and  Niigata, 
around  the  Noto  Peninsula,  and  then  the 
circle  of  the  main  island  is  completed  at 
Aomori,  the  gateway  to  the  northern  island. 
As  to  the  coast  line  of  Shikoku  there  is 
no  feature  meriting  special  mention.  The 
island  is  bounded  on  the  north  by  the  Inland 
Sea  and  the  southeast  coast  of  Honshu,  and 
on  the  south  it  faces  the  Pacific  and  the 
Island  of  Kyushu.  Shikoku  has  numerous 
small  bays,  and  the  coast  bears  evidence  of 
extensive  subsidence  of  the  sea  at  some 
remote  period.  The  coast  of  Kyushu  is 
remarkably  irregular  with  numerous  small 
islands,  and  bays  that  extend  far  inland. 
On  the  Pacific  lies  the  deep  Bay  of  Kago- 
shima  with  its  pretty  old  town  of  the  same 
name,    having    steamship    connection    with 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


13 


CAVES   AT    MATSUSHIMA    TO    WHICH    HUDDHIST 

PRIESTS      OF      MORE     THAN     TWELVE 

HUNDRED  YEARS  AGO  RETIRED 

TO    STUDY 

the  outlying  islands.  On  the  rocky  east 
coast  harbours  are  rare.  To  the  extreme 
south  lies  the  beautiful  harbour  of  Nagasaki, 
the  Naples  of  the  Orient;  and  farther  west 
the  Sasebo  naval  station.  Hokkaido  is 
rectangular  in  shape,  with  mountain  ranges 
running  parallel  to  the  coast  line.  South  of 
the  island  is  Hakodate  harbour,  having  con- 
nections with  the  main  island.  The  Pacific 
coast  of  the  island  has  long  stretches  of  sand 
dunes  thrown  up  by  the  violence  of  the 
wind  and  sea.  Along  this  coast  lies  the  port 
of  Otaru.  The  Island  of  Saghalien  extends 
like  a  monster  fish  up  along  the  Russian 
littoral,  half  belonging  to  Russia  and  half  to 
Japan.  There  are  several  bays  along  its 
serrated  coast,  the  most  important  of  which 
is  Otomari.  But  the  coast  of  the  island  is 
generally  devoid  of  good  anchorages.  For- 
mosa, which  runs  north  and  south,  with  a 
slight  inclination  to  southwest,  is  high  and 
rocky  on  the  east  coast,  and  sloping  toward 
the  west.  The  waters  are  deep  on  the 
elevated  side  and  shallow  on  the  other. 
The  best  harbour  is  Keelung  in  the  north, 
while  Tamsui  is  another  port,  with  other 
inlets  of  less  importance  in  the  south.  For- 
mosa is  not  very  distant  from  the  Philippines. 
On  its  western  coast  lie  the  forty-seven 
islands  of  Hokoto;  and  between  Formosa 
and  Kyushu  stretch  the  Luchu  Islands,  over 
fifty  in  number,  while  the  Kuriles,  or  Chis- 
hima,  away  in  the  north,  reach  from  Hok- 
kaido to  Kamchatka. 

OROGRAPHY 

Japan  is  as  noted  for  its  mountains  as  for 
its  numerous  islands,  which  cover  nearly  the 
whole  of  the  country  in  well-defined  ranges. 


taking  up  at  least  seven-eighths  of  tlie  total 
area,  though  there  are  extensive  plains  in 
Hokkaido,  Honshu,  and  Kyushu.  Tokyo 
stands  on  the  plain  of  Musashi  which  is 
included  in  the  Kwanto  plain  where  also 
stands  Yokohama;  while  the  great  cities  of 
Osaka,  Kyoto,  and  Kob6  are  on  the  plain  of 
Kinai.  The  plain  of  Tsukushi  is  in  Kyushu 
and  covers  large  coal  deposits.  Among  the 
more  important  of  the  great  mountain  ranges 
of  the  country  is  the  chain  which,  rising  in 
north  Saghalien  and  running  southwest 
across  Hokkaido,  goes  through  Honshu. 
Another  range  runs  from  southwest  to 
northwest  and  forms  the  south  wing  of 
middle  Japan.  This  range  originates  in 
China  and,  crossing  the  China  Sea,  passes 
through  Formosa,  branching  off  through 
Kyushu  on  one  side  and  through  Lake  Biwa 
on  the  other,  finally  joining  the  range  from 
Saghalien.  The  centre  of  Honshu  thus 
forms  a  meeting  ground  for  not  only  the 
important  ranges  of  the  island  but  for  tliose 
of  the  Empire,  forming  the  divisions  known 
as  North  and  South  Japan  and  diversifying 
the  country  in  climate  and  characteristics  if 
not  in  soil.  The  tract  of  country  facing  the 
Pacific  abounds  with  aqueous  rocks  and  has 
few  volcanoes,  while  the  western  side  of 
Japan  shows  an  extremely  complicated 
geological  formation  with  numerous  vol- 
canoes. 

There  are  three  princijial  volcanic  ranges 
in  the  Empire.  One  runs  along  the  line 
which  divides  the  country  into  north  and 
south,  extending  from  the  Mariana  Islands 
across  the  Bonin  group  to  Izu  and  Honshu, 
and  is  known  as  the  Fuji  Range.  The 
second,  known  as  the  Kurile  Range,  runs 
from  Chishima  through  Hokkaido  to  Hon- 
shu, while  the  third,  or  Kirishima  Range, 
commences  in  Formosa  and  passes  through 
the  Luchu  Islands  to  Kyushu,  the  chief 
vents  being  Sakurajima,  Kirishima,  and 
Asosan.  From  these  ranges  rise  various 
important  peaks,  the  highest  of  which  are 
Mount  Niitaka  in  Formosa  (14,240  feet) ; 
Fujisan  in  Honshu  (12,365  feet);  Akaishi  in 
Shinano  (10,214  feet);  Shirand  (10,212  feet); 
Ontak6  (10,128  feet);  and  the  volcano  of 
Asama  (8,900  feet).  The  peaks  of  the  Hida 
Range  in  Shinano  are  unusually  fine;  and,  as 
they  are  covered  with  snow  during  the 
winter  months  and  far  into  the  summer, 
have  been  called  the  Japanese  Alps.  Of 
course  Fujisan  is  the  queen  of  mountains  to 
all  Japanese,  towering  golden-crowned  into 
the  illimitable  blue,  with  her  eight  beautiful 
lakes  at  the  base.  Owing  to  the  volcanic 
nature  of  so  many  mountains  in  Japan  the 
country  abounds  in  hot  springs,  which  have 
become  popular  watering  places,  the  most 
important  of  which  are  Kusatsu,  Shiobara, 


Ikao,  Atami,  Shuzcnji,  Hakon^,  all  in  Hon- 
shu; and  Dogo  in  Shikoku,  Beppu  in  Ky- 
ushu, and  Hokuto  in  Formosa.  There  are 
more  than  a  hundred  of  these  spas  in  all, 
and  the  majority  contain  sulphur,  saline 
matter,  or  iron.  Many  of  these  hot  springs 
have  won  a  wide  reputation  for  their  cura- 
tive properties  for  rheumatism  and  skin 
diseases. 

GEOLOGY 

Japan  is  probably  for  the  most  part  a 
newer  geological  formation  than  the  main- 
land of  East  Asia,  though  the  subject  has 
not  yet  been  thoroughly  investigated.  It  is 
obvious,  however,  that  the  country  is  rising 
on  the  Pacific  side  and  subsiding  on  the 
coasts  of  the  Japan  Sea,  suggesting  that  the 
archipelago  was  formerly  a  part  of  the  ad- 
jacent continent.  This  conviction  is  con- 
firmed by  the  fact  that  the  coasts  of  Japan 
slope  toward  Asia  while  suddenly  descending 
to  abysmal  depths  on  the  Pacific  side.  The 
configuration  of  the  archipelago,  stretching 
like  stepping  stones  between  the  continent 
and  the  northern  islands,  and  between  the 
southern  extremity  and  Korea,  also  indicates 
a  possible  connection  with  the  mainland  in 
remote  geological  ages.  The  innumerable 
disturbances  in  stratification  experienced 
by  the  framework  of  the  islands,  as  well  as  by 
the  sedimentary  formations,  render  the  study 
of  stratification  and  the  mutual  relations  of 
strata  very  difficult,  if  one  would  reach  that 
degree  of  accuracy  demanded  by  science. 
Japanese  scientists,  however,  have  classified 


(upper)  YABAKEI  VALI-EY,  KYUSHU (lOWER) 

GEMBUDO   CAVE,    A    BAS.\LTIC    FORMATION 
ON    THE   COAST   OF   THE    JAPAN   SEA 


H 


PRESENT-DAY        IxMPRESSIONS        OF        JAPAN 


ims 


V  ^*^<l¥^ 


n 


ill 


VIEWS   OF    THE    SHORE    NEAR   ONOMICHI    AND    MATSUSHIMA 


the  geological  formation   of  the  country  as 
follows: 


Sedimentary  Rock 


Archaean 
Palaeozoic 
MesoEoic 
Cainozoic 


Older  Period 
Later  Period 


Total 


Igneous  Rock 


Total      .      . 
Grand  Total 


Per  Cent 

■  3.78 
10.24 

7-95 

■  45-84 


67.81 


Per  Cent 

.      11.27 

20.92 


32.19 


It  is  obvious  that  Japan  consists  largely 
of  igneous  rocks,  particularly  in  the  Kurile 
Islands,  Kyushu,  and  the  northern  part  of 
Honshu.  The  principal  rocks  seem  to  fall 
into  three  main  divisions:  Plutonic  rocks, 
more  especially  granite;  volcanic  rocks, 
principally  trachyte  and  dolerite;  and  Palae- 
ozoic schists;  while  hmestone  and  sandstone. 


particularly  of  the  Mesozoic  strata,  are 
strikingly  deficient.  Often  the  old  crj'stal- 
line  rocks  are  for  long  distances  overlaid  by 
also  very  old  schists  and  quartzites,  striking 
generally  in  the  main  direction  of  the  islands 
northeast  to  southwest.  The  older  regions 
appear  to  reach  an  average  height  of  from 
3,000  to  3,700  feet,  but  at  times  as  high  as 
6,000.  In  some  districts  Mesozoic  sand- 
stone and  limestone  are  found  in  con- 
nection, more  frequently  iti  Tertiary  for- 
mations, but  volcanic  masses  break  through 
and  overlay  all  these  rocks  and  deposits  in 
nimierous  places.  Often  they  fill  up  the 
gaps  between  them  and  appear  to  prevail 
for  long  distances,  though  frequently  they 
form  only  the  higher  summits  of  the  older 
mountains. 

The  basis  of  the  islands  consists  of  granite, 
syenite,  diorite,  diabase  and  related  rocks, 
porphyry  appearing  comparatively  seldom. 
Often  the  granite  prevails  for  long  distances 
as  the  chief  rock;  and  then  again  it  often 
forms  the  foundation  for  thick  strata  of 
schist  and  sandstone,  itself  only  cropping 
out    in    valleys    of   erosion,    river   boulders. 


rocky  projections  along  the  coast,  or  in 
mountain  ranges  or  ridges.  This  is  the  case 
in  Kyushu,  and  especially  in  Shikoku.  In 
the  composition  of  the  mountains  of  Honshu 
granite  plays  a  prominent  part.  In  the 
Peninsula  of  Chikoku  this  rock  forms  a  con- 
tinuous mass,  appearing  in  innumerable 
places  in  the  interior  and  toward  the  coast. 
Old  schists,  free  from  fossils  and  rich  in 
quartz,  overlay  it  in  parallel  chains  through 
the  whole  length  of  the  peninsula,  particularly 
in  the  central  and  higher  ridges,  sometimes 
bearing  such  ores  as  copper  and  magnetic 
pyrites.  These  schist  ridges  are  rich  in 
quartz  and  show  considerable  disintegration 
to  a  depth  of  thirty  or  more  feet,  resulting 
in  pebble  and  quartz  sand  which  affords 
scant  nourishment  to  the  scrub  pines  that 
try  to  cling  to  such  foundations.  In  the  hill 
country  on  the  borders  of  Ise,  Owari,  Mikawa, 
and  Totomi  on  the  one  side,  and  Omi,  Mine, 
and  Shinano  on  the  other,  granite  frequently 
forms  dark  grey  and  much  disintegrated 
rock  projections  above  schist  and  diluvial 
quartz  pebbles.  The  feldspar  of  a  splendid 
pegmatite  and  its  products  of  disintegration 


PRESENT-DAY        IMPRESSIONS        OF        JAPAN 


15 


on  the  borders  of  Owari,  Mine,  and  Mikawa 
form  the  raw  material  of  the  extensive  ke- 
ramic  industry  of  this  district  with  head- 
quarters at  Seto.  The  meridional  mountains 
of  Shinano  are  principally  of  granite,  which, 
together  with  Plutonic  rocks,  especially 
diorite,  hems  in  the  valleys  of  the  Kisogawa, 
Saigawa,  and  many  other  rivers  in  the 
district,  whose  clear  waters  flow  over  granite. 
In  the  \'icinity  of  Nikko  also,  especially 
along  the  upper  valley  of  the  Daiyagawa  and 


neighbouring  mountains,  this  granite  appears 
with  porphyry  in  large,  pale  flesh-coloured 
crystals  of  orthoclase,  dull  triclinic  feldspar, 
quartz,  and  hornblende.  In  the  border 
range  of  Kotsuk^  and  Echigo  there  are  also 
interesting  varieties  of  geological  formation. 
The  Tertiary  and  alluvial  deposits  form  a 
deep  and  friable  mould  easily  worked  and 
very  prolific,  this  being  the  chief  source  of 
the  nation's  agriculture.  Along  the  banks 
of  rivers  occur  Quaternary  argillaceous  soils 


of  an  alluvial  nature,  which  are  still  more 
fertile;  and  as  they  lie  low  for  the  most  part 
they  are  well  adapted  to  irrigation  and  con- 
sequently to  rice  culture. 

VOLCANIC  AND  SEISMIC  ACTION 
J.\PAN  is  indeed  a  land  of  volcanoes,  having 
more  than  fifty  still  active,  with  numerous 
craters  for  the  present  quiescent.  These 
vents  for  subterranean  forces  are  found  along 
throe  clearly  defined  ranges,   known  as  the 


MOLNT   ASA.MAYAM,    AN    .VCTIVI-:    VOLCANO  —  LNZEN    HOT    SPRING,    KYUSHL  —  HOT    SPRINGS,    KVUSHU- 

COUNTRV    AT    SAKURAJIMA,    AFTER    A    VOLCANIC    ERUPTION 


-ASPECT   OF   DEVASTATED 


i6 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


Kuri]e,  the  Fuji,  and  the  Kirishima  Ranges, 
which  exliibit  about  two  hundred  craters. 
The  Fuji  and  Kirishima  Hnes  of  force  seem 
to  show  activity  alternately.  For  several 
years  such  craters  as  Asama,  Oshima,  and 
Yakedake  in  the  Fuji  Range  were  marked 
by  the  most  conspicuous  activity,  but  after 
the  year  19 14  activity  shifted  more  to  the 
Kirishima  Range,  with  violent  outbursts  of 
volcanic  force  in  Kyushu.  In  1915  the 
strain  returned  to  the  Fuji  Range  and  the 
great  crater  of  Yakedake  re-awoke  to  violent 
energ>-,  with  resultant  subsidence  of  action 
in  the  Kirishima  Range.  The  most  noble  as 
well  as  the  most  remarkable  of  Japan's 
volcanoes  is  Asama,  some  eighty  miles  north 
of  Tokyo  in  the  Province  of  Shinshu,  its 
giant  cone  soaring  nearly  nine  thousand  feet 
above  the  surrounding  hills,  with  great 
masses  of  copper-hued  firnie  ever  rising 
sk>'ward.  At  present  it  ejects  nothing  more 
harmfid  than  showers  of  ashes  and  pebbles, 
but  in  1793  a  fatal  eruption  occurred  when  a 
lava  stream  poured  out  which  destroyed  a 
whole  primeval  forest  and  several  villages. 
The  land  for  miles  around  was  buried  to  a 
depth  of  from  two  to  four  feet  in  showers  of 
pumice  and  scoria.  In  recent  years  Asama 
has  shown  signs  of  further  activity,  but 
Japanese  scientists  are  assured  that  there 
are  no  indications  of  violence.  The  last 
eruption  of  Fuji  was  in  1707;  and  though  the 
base  of  the  cone  is  warm  and  abounding  in 
hot  springs,  there  appears  to  be  no  sign  of 
a  retuni  to  activity.  The  largest  volcano  in 
Japan  is  Asosan  in  Kyushu,  whose  crater  is 
about  fourteen  miles  in  diameter,  though 
the  active  portion  is  not  so  large  or  imposing 
as  the  crater  of  Asama.  Fugendake  is 
another  volcano  in  Kyushu,  rising  above 
the  hot  springs  of  Unzen.  In  1914  the 
V'Olcano  on  Sakurajima  near  Kagoshima  burst 
into  violent  fury,  forcing  out  lava  to  a  depth 
of  over  two  thousand  feet  above  sea  level 
and  kiUing  fifty-seven  persons,  several  others 
being  killed  by  the  resultant  earthquakes. 
Agatsuma  erupted  with  disastrous  effect  in 
1903  when  two  geologists  were  killed,  and 
Bandaisan  exploded  with  similar  effect  in 
1888. 

Japan  may  also  be  called  a  land  of  earth- 
quakes, if  an  average  of  more  than  four  a 
day  throughout  the  year  be  sufficient  to 
justify  this  description,  though  happily  few 
of  them  are  of  any  importance.  For  some 
time  now  the  country  has  been  experiencing 
about  1,365  shocks  annually;  and  during  a 
period  of  21  years,  ending  in  1905,  more 
than  30,680  shocks  were  felt,  omitting  minor 
vibrations  detected  only  by  the  most  delicate 
instruments.  As  subterranean  changes  in 
Japan  are  constant,  the  frequency  of  these 
minor  shocks  is  welcomed  as  a  tendency  to 


remove  weak  cleavages  and  bind  the  strata 
sufficiently  firm  to  prevent  severer  ones.  It 
is  when  seismic  disturbances  are  unusually 
rare  that  the  danger  of  disastrous  earth- 
quakes in  Japan  is  greater.  As  has  been 
already  indicated,  the  seismologists  of  Japan 
have  established  the  fact  that  the  districts 
bordering  on  the  Pacific  are  slowly  but 
perceptibly  rising,  while  those  on  the  Japan 
Sea  are  undergoing  subsidence.  On  the 
axis  of  the  central  mountain  range  the  whole 
main  island  appears  to  be  twisting  toward 
China.  During  the  last  300  years  Japan  has 
been  visited  by  no  less  than  108  shocks  of 
a  more  or  less  disastrous  nature,  seven  of 
them  particularly  so.  Every  Japanese  ex- 
pects to  experience  one  severe  earthquake 
during  a  lifetime.  From  the  year  1885  to 
1909  Japan  experienced  as  many  as  37,642 
earthquake  shocks,  an  average  of  1,506  per 
annum  for  25  years.  Mild  shocks  passing 
unnoticed  except  by  the  seismograph  occur 
daily.  During  the  last  500  years  earth- 
quakes in  which  5,000  or  more  persons  were 
killed  occurred  as  follows: 


members  of  the  household  each  with  a  lamp, 
all  silently  gazing  in  terror  at  each  other, 
wondering  what  it  was  all  about,  the  shock 
having  subsided  even  before  they  reached 
the  hall. 

The  regions  along  the  Pacific  coast  of 
Japan  exhibit  distinctly  different  seismo- 
logical  phenomena  from  the  opposite  coast, 
being  more  subject  to  secular  movements 
of  a  severer  nature  and  affecting  a  more 
extensive  area,  while  the  shocks  on  the 
coast  of  the  Japan  Sea  are  more  of  a  local 
character.  Along  the  Pacific  coast  the 
shocks  originate  in  the  great  ocean  depths 
just  off  Japan,  and  are  not  infrequently 
attended  by  destructive  tidal  waves.  The 
districts  least  liable  to  experience  seismic 
disturbances  are  Kotsuke,  Hida,  Tajima,  and 
some  parts  of  central  Japan,  while  the  wide 
plain  of  Musashi,  where  Tokj-o  stands,  and 
the  region  about  Sagami,  are  most  given  to 
such  \-isitations.  The  Japan  Earthquake 
Commission,  which  has  given  more  time  to 
the  study  of  this  subject  than  any  other 
scientific  body,  under  the  able  supervision 


Date 


1505 
1596 
1703 
1707 
1792 
1844 

1855 
1891 
1896 


Jan.  31. 
Dec.  30, 
Oct.  28. 
Feb.  10. 
May  8 . , 
Nov.  II 
Oct.  28. 
June  15 


Pl.\ce 


Tokaido 

Pacific  Coast 

Tok>'o  and  vicinity . .  . 
Coasts  of  Shikoku,  etc 

Hizen,  Higo,  etc 

Shinano 

Tokyo 

Mino,  Owari 

Sanriku  districts 


Houses     i 
Destroyed  1 


Deaths 


20,162 
2,2900 
12,000 
34.300 
50,000 
22,501 
13,073 


20,000 
5,000 

5.233 
5.000 
15,000 
12,000 
6,500 
7.223 


As  to  the  above  calamities  the  earthquakes 
of  1707,  1792,  and  i8g6  were  accompanied 
by  great  tidal  waves,  which  in  some  measure 
explains  the  abnormal  loss  of  life;  but 
numerous  shocks  have  been  omitted  in 
which  from  500  to  4,000  fatalities  occurred. 
To  the  resident  of  Japan  the  minor  shocks 
are  scarcely  less  alarming  than  the  greater 
ones,  for  w-hen  a  shock  begins  one  never 
knows  what  it  is  coming  to.  Consequently 
preparations  have  to  be  immechately  made 
to  face  the  worst.  With  the  introduction  of 
electric  lamps  in  most  of  the  towns  and 
villages  of  Japan  there  is  not  the  same  danger 
from  fire  as  prevailed  when  oil  lamps  were  in 
use;  but  every  Japanese  house  has  its  hibachi, 
or  small  brazier  for  charcoal  fire,  which  is 
sure  to  cause  a  conflagration  should  the 
timbers  of  the  house  be  precipitated  upon  it. 
The  writer  has  grim  recollections  of  having 
been  hurled  a  few  inches  above  his  seat 
while  quietly  reading  at  night,  jumping  to 
his  feet  and  seizing  the  lamp  from  the  table, 
rushing  into  the  hallway  only  to  meet  other 


of  Professor  Omori,  the  greatest  authority 
on  Japanese  seismology,  estimates  that  the 
country  has  experienced  2,006  earthquakes 
of  an  important  character  since  the  begin- 
ning of  the  nation's  authentic  history.  For 
the  last  thirty  j'ears  or  so  Tokyo  alone  has 
had  an  average  of  ninety-six  shocks  a  year, 
excluding  those  too  mild  for  personal  ex- 
perience; but  during  the  last  fifty  years  the 
capital  has  suffered  but  two  shocks  of  any 
great  severity.  The  lesident  of  Tokyo 
experiences  at  least  one  perceptible  shock  a 
week  on  an  average.  The  last  serious  disturb- 
ance was  in  1894  when  twenty-four  lives  were 
lost.  Needless  to  say,  the  frequency  of 
secular  movements  in  Japan  has  caused 
the  national  architectiu'e  to  assume  a  dis- 
tinct tj'pe  calculated  to  withstand  the  strain 
of  constant  temptation  to  sway.  Professor 
Omori  is  of  the  opinion  that  if  regions  ex- 
posed to  earthquakes  abroad,  such  as  Italy, 
gave  the  same  degree  of  attention  as  the 
Japanese  to  proper  construction  of  houses, 
fatalities     from     seismological     disturbances 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


17 


would  be  reduced.  Nearly  all  the  greater 
structures  now  erected  in  Japanese  cities  are 
built  after  plans  supposed  to  be  earthquake- 
proof,  a  claim  which  the  first  severe  shock 
will  doubtless  put  to  the  test.  Certainly  the 
Japanese,  with  their  ages  of  experience, 
have  achieved  more  efficient  means  of  pre- 
caution than  other  nations  with  regard  to 
safety  from  earthquakes;  for  in  the  severe 
shock  of  1891  out  of  a  population  of  165,339 
in  the  city  of  Nagoya  only  190  persons 
perished,  whereas  in  the  Reggio  earthquake 
in  Italy  in  1908  the  victims  numbered  over 
100,000,  the  difference  being  largely  due  to 
wiser  plans  of  house  construction.  In  1880 
the  Japan  Seismic  Society  was  founded  under 
the  united  auspices  of  Professor  John  Milne 
and  Professor  Ewing,  assisted  by  the  late 
Professor  Sekiya  who  gave  his  life  a  martyr 
to  the  science  in  the  eruption  of  Mount 
Azuma  in  1903.  The  work  has  been  very 
efficiently  carried  on  by  Drs.  Kato,  Tana- 
kadate,  and  Omori.  The  seismograph  in- 
vented by  the  society  is  one  of  the  most 
accurate  instruments  of  the  kind  known  to 
modern  science  and  has  opened  the  way  to 
the  creation  of  a  science  of  seismology. 
The  proceedings  of  the  Japan  Seismic  Society 
in  twenty  volumes  are  universally  regarded 
as  the  most  valuable  contributions  to  this 
science.  With  her  more  than  two  hundred 
craters  of  which  fifty  are  active  Japan  might 
be  supposed  to  suffer  from  earthquakes  chiefly 
on  this  account,  but  that  there  is  any  neces- 
sary connection  between  frequency  of  telluric 
movement  and  volcanic  energy  has  not  been 
clearly  established,  though  there  can  be  no 
doubt  that  active  volcanoes  act  as  safety 
valves,  places  situated  near  them  seldom 
having  suffered  from  seismic  disaster. 

HYDROGR.\PHY 
Since   the  islands  which  form  Japan  are 
narrow,  and  divided  in  the  middle  by  moun- 


AM.\N0H.^SH1DATE 

tain  ranges,  the  rivers  are  short  and  generally 
swift,  but  the  proximity  of  the  sea  to  all 
parts  of  the  country  and  the  great  conden- 
sation of  vapour  on  all  the  mountain  peaks 
keep  the  country  always  well  watered,  and, 
at  times,  destructive  floods  occur  from 
overflow  of  river  banks.  What  the  rivers 
lack  in  depth  and  length,  however,  they 
often  make  up  in  width,  though  for  the 
greater  part  of  the  year  the  actual  stream 
covers  but  a  small  area  of  the  bed.  Ad- 
vantage has  been  taken  of  this  to  construct 
great  hydro-electric  plants,  which  supply 
light  and  power  to  towns  and  cities  for 
miles  around.  The  shallowness  of  the 
rivers  is  a  great  hindrance  to  inland  navi- 
gation, on  which  so  much  of  the  countn,' 
still  depends  for  transportation. 

The  two  moimtain  ranges  which  intersect 
in  Hokkaido  form  four  distinct  watersheds, 
from  which  numerous  streams  flow  down 
through  extremely  fertile  plains.  The  River 
Ishikari,  which  runs  west,  is  the  largest 
stream  in  Japan,  being  over  400  miles  in 
length,  of  which  about  100  miles  are  navi- 
gable for  small  ships.  Other  rivers  of  the 
island  are  the  Teshio,  192  miles;  the  Tokachi, 
120  miles;  while  the  Kujiro  is  80  miles.  In 
Honshu  the  Abukuma  and  the  Kitakami  flow 
into  the  Pacific,  being  175  and  150  miles  long 
respectively.  Other  rivers  in  the  northern 
part  of  Honshu  are  the  Omono,  173  miles; 
and  the  Mogami,  140  miles.  In  middle 
Honshu  the  Shinano  River  flows  215  miles 
through  the  fertile  plains  of  Echigo  mto  the 
Sea  of  Japan,  and  is  navigable  to  small 
steamers  for  some  90  miles.  The  Jinzu  and 
the  Imizu,  about  150  miles  each,  and  the 
Kuzurin,  78  miles,  are  too  swift  for  navi- 
gation. Such  rivers  as  the  Kino,  Katsura, 
Ton6,  and  Oi  near  Tokyo  are  made  to 
furnish  electric  energy  for  lighting,  traction, 
and  other  purposes,  only  lack  of  capital 
hindering  further  application  of  this  force. 


The  Tond  flows  eastward  into  the  Pacific  for 
a  distance  of  some  200  miles,  watering  an 
area  of  about  770  square  miles,  the  largest 
plain  in  Japan.  The  Edo,  a  branch  of  the 
Tone,  flows  into  Tokyo  Bay,  as  also  does  the 
Sumida,  73  miles,  navigable  for  the  greater 
part.  The  River  Fuji,  which  rises  in  Kai, 
flows  around  the  base  of  the  celebrated 
mountain  of  the  same  name,  over  a  course 
of  125  miles,  when  it  falls  into  the  Bay  of 
Suruga;  while  the  Kiso,  which  rises  in  the 
Kiso  Mountains,  after  meeting  the  waters  of 
the  Hida  and  Nagara,  turns  westward  and 
enters  the  Bay  of  Is^  after  a  journey  of  130 
miles.  The  Jodo  flows  from  Lake  Biwa  past 
Kyoto  into  the  Bay  of  Osaka;  and  the  River 
Kamo  runs  for  85  miles  in  the  same  direction, 
having  its  source  in  Yamato.  The  only 
stream  of  importance  in  Shikoku  is  the 
Yoshino,  about  150  miles  in  length.  The 
rivers  of  Kyushu  are  extremely  tortuous,  like 
the  hills  whence  they  rise,  the  most  impor- 
tant being  the  Chikugo,  85  miles,  and  the 
Kawauchi,  112  miles.  The  largest  stream  in 
Formosa  is  the  Dakusuikei,  96  miles  in 
length,  and,  like  most  of  the  rivers  of  the 
island,  not  suited  to  navigation. 

The  lakes  of  Japan,  though  for  the  most 
part  merely  basins  of  water  of  seismic  or 
volcanic  origin,  are  often  extremely  pictur- 
esque in  scenery,  the  largest  being  Lake 
Biwa  in  Omi,  with  a  circumference  of  about 
180  miles.  Other  moderately  extensive  lakes 
are  the  Towada  in  Mutsu,  with  circum- 
ference of  37  miles;  Inawashiro  in  Inashiro, 
33  miles;  while  Chuzenji  above  Nikko, 
Hakon^  near  Mount  Fuji,  Lake  Suwa  in 
Shinano,  and  the  eight  small  lakes  of 
Fujisan,  are  all  famous  beauty  spots  form- 
ing attractive  summer  resorts.  In  Hok- 
kaido the  largest  lake  is  Saruma,  with  a 
circumference  of  about  50  miles,  while 
Lakes  Doya  and  Onuma  are  noted  for 
charming  scenery. 


i8 


PRESR  NT-DAY        IMPRESSIONS        OP        JAPAN 


CLIMATE 

The  climate  of  Japan,  as  might  well  be 
expected  from   the  countrj^'s  extraordinary 
projection  north  and  south,  varies  to  a  con- 
siderable  degree   according   to   locality   and 
in  general  characteristics,  the  districts  bor- 
dering   on    the    Pacific   being    much    milder 
than  those  on  the  coast  of  the  Japan  Sea, 
as    the   former   shores   are   washed   by   the 
equatorial  currents  and  protected  by  moun- 
tain ranges  from  cold  winds.     The  so-called 
knto-shco,  or  Black  Current,  divides  at  the 
southern  extremity  of  the  archipelago,  one 
portion     sweeping    back    into     the     Pacific 
through   the   Straits   of   Tsushima,  and   the 
other  northward  along  the  Pacific  coast  of 
Japan.     This    renders    the    chmate    on    the 
eastern     side     of     the     islands     remarkably 
temperate,  colder  in  winter  and  warmer  in 
summer    than    that    of    England.     In    the 
northern  part  of  Honshu  as  well  as  in  Hok- 
kaido and  Saghalien  the  degree  of  cold  is 
something  severe  during  the  winter  months, 
especially   in   January'   and   February,  when 
30°  below  zero  is  not  infrequently  registered 
on  the  west  coast  and  a  depth  of  from  5  to 
10  feet  of  snow  experienced.     Here  the  ther- 
mometer often   goes   as  low   as   21°   above 
zero  during   the  coolest  nights  in  summer; 
and  only  the  hardiest  grains  and  fruits  can 
thrive,  while  there  is  plenty  of    skiing   and 
skating   in   season.     The  lowness  of  winter 
temperature  is  no  doubt  dne  to  the  bitter 
winds  that  sweep  across  this  part  of  Japan 
from  the  Siberian  plains.     The  yearly  mean 
temperature    noted    at    the    meteorological 
station   at   Sapporo   in   Hokkaido  is  44°   F. 
In  the  more  southerly  portions  of  Honshu, 
on  the  other  liand,  as  well  as  in  Shikoku  and 
Kyushu,  winter  seldom  lasts  longer  than  two 
months,  January  and  February  alone  being 
recognised  as  winter  months,  though  some- 
times   there    may    be    occasional    frost    and 
snow  till  the  beginning  of  April.     Tokyo  and 
Kyoto  have  a  mean  annual  tempeiaturc  of 
57°  F.,  while  Nagoya,  Sakai,  and  Okayama, 
in  the  same  island,  have  one  degree  more, 
Osaka  and  Kobe  having  59°  F.,  and  Naga- 
saki  60°   F.     The   farther   one   goes   north- 
ward on  the  main  island  the  yearly  average 
is,  of  course,  lower,  being  50°  F.  at  Ishino- 
maki    and    50°    F.    at    Aomori.     The    more 
southern  portions  of  Honshu  and  the  Islands 
of  Shikoku  and  Kyushu  experience  hot  and 
humid   summers,    when    the    atmosphere    is 
unpleasantly    oppressive    and    the    mercury 
registers  from  90°  to  100°  F.  in  the  shade, 
which  is  much   more  unbearable   than   the 
same  degree  of  heat  in  a  less  humid  atmos- 
phere.    Periods  of  transition  between   sum- 
mer and  winter  are  short  in  the  north,  and 
toward  the  south  are  more  and  more  pro- 
longed at  the  expense  of  winter.     The  short- 


ness of  the  winter  in  the  south  somewhat 
compensates  for  the  extreme  heat  of  mid- 
summer. Oranges  and  semi-tropical  fruits 
gladden  the  eye  everywhere.  Though  the 
south  seldom  sees  enough  snow  to  cover  the 
ground,  the  more  elevated  mountain  peaks 
may  be  white  all  winter.  In  Formosa,  of 
course,  with  its  lower  half  in  the  torrid 
zone,  the  temperature  is  steadily  high,  the 
mean  annual  temperature  of  Taihoku  being 
71°  F.  The  following  are  the  official  figures 
of  the  Japan  Meteorological  Bureau  up  to 
Tgi2,  given  in  Centigrade: 


typlioons  generally  come  in  the  rainy  season 
in  August  and  September,  and  often  cause 
great  floods,  since  the  wind  is  accompanied 
by  heavy  rains.  Fortunately  not  many  of 
the  great  winds  cause  damage,  but  the  more 
violent  of  them  wreck  shipping,  destroy 
buildings,  flood  thousands  of  acres  of  land, 
doing  great  injury  to  crops  and  roads,  as 
well  as  causing  loss  of  life. 

Rainfall. — The  rainfall  in  Japan  is  more 
than  that  of  England  and  America,  and  in 
some  districts  four  times  greater,  but  happily 
the  number  of  wet  days  in  the  year  is  less. 


Monthly  Average  Temperature  of  Japan 


Month 


January  

February  .... 

March 

April 

May 

June 

July 

August 

September  .  .  . 

October 

November  .  .  . 
December .  .  . 

Average   . 

JVIaximum 

Minimum 


3 
o 


157 
14.0 
16.9 
20.7 
23.8 
26.6 
27.9 

27-7 
26.2 

23-3 
19.6 
16.7 


21.6 


370 


■z 


16.4 
15-8 

179 
20.8 

23  I 
26.0 
27.9 

27-7 
26.7 
24.0 
20.7 
174 


22.0 


351 


5-2 


4.2 
4.0 

7-5 
13 -4 
17-5 
21.8 
25.8 
27.2 
23.2 
16.9 
II  .2 

6.3 


14.9 


37-6 


-7.1 


ni 
M 
IS 

■z 


15 


36.7 


—  5-2 


o 
o 


c 
Z 


-1-4 

-1-5 
2.6 

9  7 
14.6 
18.9 
22.8 
24.0 

19-7 

12.9 

6.6 

1 .0 


13 


36.6 


—  8.1 


36.3 


— 16.4 


1.5 
1 .2 

4-5 
10.4 
15.0 
193 

23.5 
25-5 
21.3 

I5-I 
9-4 

4-1 


-03 
0.0 

2.9 
9.0 

134 
17-4 
20. 9 
22.9 
19.6 
13.6 
7-7 

2-3 


12.6 


39  I 


—9  7 


10.8 


34-8 


— 13.6 


•a 

o 


—3-1 

—  2.6 

0.7 

6.4 

10.4 

14 
18 
21 

17 
II 

5 

—  o 


8.3 


— 0 

—  5 

2 

3 

6 
9 

14 
17 
15 
10 

4 

—  I 


5-5 


33-5 


— 21 .7 


31-4 


—22.7 


Winds. — During  the  colder  season  which 
sets  in  with  September  and  ends  in  April, 
Japan  is  visited  by  northern  and  western 
gales  from  the  continent,  due  to  low  atmos- 
pheric pressure  on  the  Pacific  which  is  often 
down  to  750  m.m.,  while  on  the  mainland 
the  pressure  maintains  an  average  of  772 
m.m.,  a  difference  of  22  m.m.  In  the  warm 
season  from  May  to  September  the  pressure 
on  the  Pacific  rises  to  767  m.m.  or  so,  while 
that  on  the  continent  falls  to  762  m.m., 
caiising  a  southwest  wind  of  mild  velocity. 
Suttsu  in  Hokkaido  experiences  the  fiercest 
gales,  the  average  being  about  29  feet  per 
second.  Soya,  Akita,  Choshi,  and  Yoko- 
suka  also  have .  to  endure  strong  winds. 
Kumamoto,  Gifu,  Tokaichi,  and  Tsushima 
are  least  exposed  to  violent  winds,  the 
average  in  these  places  being  not  more  than 
7  feet  a  second.  A  peculiar  feature  of  the 
Japanese  climate  is  its  liability  to  periodic 
gales,  known  as  typhoons,  which  generally 
originate  in  the  Philippines.  These  hurri- 
canes usually  visit  Japan  between  June  and 
October,  and  their  force  not  infrequently 
attains  a  velocity  of  70  miles  an  hour.     The 


and  the  cloudless  beauty  of  the  blue  sky  is 
much  more  characteristic  of  Japan  than  of 
Europe.  The  average  annual  rainfall  for 
the  whole  of  Japan  reaches  1,570  m.m. 
The  rainiest  spot  in  the  Empire  is  Oshima  in 
Kyushu,  which  experiences  a  rainfall  of  3,400 
m.m.  a  year;  and  next  comes  Koshun  in 
Formosa  with  2,600;  Taihoku,  2,400;  while 
the  districts  least  exposed  to  rain  are  Abash- 
iri,  715  m.m.;  Soya,  840;  Sapporo,  970; 
Nagoya,  1,190;  and  Okayama  1,080  m.m. 
In  Japan  it  rains  or  snows  on  an  average  of 
150  days  a  year,  but  the  sunshine  of  the 
remaining  215  makes  up  for  it  all.  The 
most  delightful  months  of  the  year,  as  far 
as  climate  goes,  are  April  and  May,  and 
November  and  December,  when  bright  days, 
with  an  agreeable  atmosphere,  prevail.  The 
most  unpleasant  season  is  that  known  as 
the  tsiiyti,  or  bai-u,  which  means  "rainy 
season,"  from  the  middle  of  June  to  the 
beginning  of  July,  due  to  the  presence  of 
low  pressure  areas  in  the  Yangtze  Valley  in 
China,  proceeding  northeastward. 

Generally  speaking  the  climate  of  Japan  is 
less  bracing  and  more  trying  to  the  European 


PRESENT-DAY        IMPkESSIONS       OF        lAPAN 


19 


JAPANESE    WOMAN    PRAYING   AT   THE 
FAMILY    ALTAR 


than  his  own.  One  cannot  do  more  than 
half  the  amount  of  work  in  Japan  that  he 
can  do  at  home  without  feeling  greater  loss 
of  energy;  and  persistence  in  trying  inevi- 
tably brings  on  "Japanese  head,"  an  affec- 
tion resembling  nervous  prostration,  peculiar 
to  the  country,  which  always  involves  being 
invalided  home.  All  foreigners,  therefore, 
while  in  Japan  have  to  be  careful  not  to 
indulge  in  a  greater  degree  of  mental  or 
physical  exertion  than  the  climate  allows. 
It  has  been  said  that  the  lack  of  bracing 
qualities  experienced  in  the  climate  of  Japan 
is  due  to  absence  of  ozone,  owing  to  Japan's 
forming  the  main  conductor  of  the  terrestrial 
electric  current,  which  follows  the  Rockies 
and  the  Andes  through  North  and  South 
America  and  returns  through  the  Japanese 
ranges.  How  much  of  scientific  truth  there 
is  in  this  opinion  the  writer  does  not  under- 
take to  say.  For  those  who  suffer  from  the 
exigencies  of  climate  in  Japan  there  are 
attractive  hill  resorts  and  watering  places 
where  refuge  can  be  comfortably  had  from 
the  oppressive  heat  of  summer  or  when  in 
need  of  rest,  without  being  obliged  to  travel 
far.  The  most  common  affections  arising 
from  the  climate  of  Japan  are  catarrh, 
consumption,  rheumatism,  and  brain  troubles, 
but  many  of  these  may  be  as  much  due  to 
ignorance  of  sanitation  and  hygiene  as  to 
climate.  The  average  Japanese  ages  earlier 
than  the  European  and  American,  but 
whether  the  climate  has  anything  to  do 
with  this  is  uncertain.  One  is,  however, 
convinced  that  the  tendency  of  the  Japanese 
to  extremes  of  nervous  insensibility  on  the 
one  hand  and  uncontrollable  excitability  on 
the  other  is  in  some  measure  the  effect  of 
climate.  At  the  same  time  it  must  be  ad- 
mitted that  Japan  has  as  many  centenarians 
in  proportion  to  population  as  most  countries, 
the  last  census  giving  4,252  males  and  4,655 
females  as  over  one  hundred  years  of  age; 


hut  it  must  be  assumed  that  many  of  these 
probably  could  not  remember  the  exact  date 
of  their  birth.  The  Japanese  climate  on  the 
whole  agrees  admirably  with  foreign  children, 
which  do  not,  as  in  India,  have  to  be  sent 
home  for  recuperation.  Their  elders,  how- 
ever, find  that  to  ensure  permanent  fitness  of 
condition  they  must  take  a  year  at  home 
every  seven  years  or  so,  some  of  the  mission- 
ary societies  insisting  on  furlough  every  five 
years. 


in  any  part  of  Jajjaii  |)roper,  not  even  in 
Kyushu,  though  it  is  cultivated  in  small 
quantities  in  the  south,  planted  in  March 
and  cut  in  September,  after  but  six  months 
of  vegetation.  At  the  end  of  September 
the  rice  fields  begin  to  fade,  and  by  the  end 
of  October  autumn  tints  dominate  the  land- 
scape, surpassing  in  beauty  even  the  boasted 
colours  of  North  American  forests.  The 
tints  of  the  Japanese  maple  in  autumn  are 
particularly   beautiful;    and    it   assumes   the 


Average  Monthly  Rainfall  and  Snowfall  in  Jap\n 
(In  Millimetres) 


Month 


January 

February 

March 

April 

May.. 

June 

July 

August 

September 

October 

November 

December 

Total 

Days  of  rain  or  snow 


91.0 
130.7 
175-8 
137.6 
204.9 
241.2 
207.0 
246.9 

233-2 

102.7 

72.6 

93-1 


1940.1  2154.2 


136.8 
130.8 
149.9 
169.9 
258.6 
284.7 

183-7 
289.0 

183-9 
166.8 

144-4 
100.2 


185 


51-5 

49-4 

104-5 

151-4 

T27.8 

189-5 
163-7 
186.9 
185.0 
128.6 

74-3 
44.8 


377-4 


140 


78.9 

81.7 

130.1 

196.6 

1 80. 1 

294-9 

245-3 

77-5 

210.9 

117. 6 

85-4 

85-4 


1884.4 


164 


o 
>> 

o 


57-1 
58.0 
109.2 
131.8 
156.9 
153-8 
143-3 
145.2 
210.6 
1 80. 1 
100.3 
54-1 


1500.4 


146 


ac 
Z 


56.2 

50.5 

54-0 

68.2 

86.8 

108.5 

167.4 

98.8 

133. 1 

77.5 

50.3 

530 


1004.; 


176 


96.3 
125.2 
104.6 
106.0 

82.8 
132-9 
156-9 
130.9 
186.6 

146.3 
182.5 
232.6 


1793-5 


237 


49-3 

45-5 

75-9 

88.5 

122.4 

117.6 

145-I 

"7-3 

165. 1 

1 19.6 

58.4 

45-8 


■a 
o 

a 


55-8 
57-7 
64.1 

69-3 

80.1 

89.9 

138.0 

129.3 

168.4 

114.2 

95-8 

79-3 


1 150.5  1 142.0 


152 


191 


28.5 
21. 1 

43.7 
70.2 

97.9 
90.6 

85-9 
94-0 
134-5 
88.1 
79.2 
62.0 


825-7 


156 


FLOR.\  AND  FAUNA 
(.4)  Flora 
The  wealth,  variety,  and  luxuriance  of 
Japanese  vegetation  make  the  country  one 
of  the  most  interesting  outside  the  tropics 
to  the  student  of  plant  life.  That  the 
nation  itself  has  been  so  dependent  on  the 
vegetable  and  plant  world  for  existence  has 
always  rendered  the  subject  of  wide  interest 
to"  the  people  themselves.  The  Chinese 
system  of  medicine,  which  was  almost  wholly 
adopted  in  early  Japan,  demanded  a  thorough 
knowledge  of  plants,  and  developed  a  famil- 
iarity with  and  a  love  of  flowers  imequalled 
elsewhere.  The  cold  season  of  Hokkaido 
limits  the  period  of  vegetation  there  to 
about  five  months  in  the  year,  while  in  mid- 
Japan  the  season  is  six,  and  farther  south, 
seven  months,  when  the  growths  of  all 
woody  plants  are  interrupted,  including 
even  evergreens.  As  in  all  countries  of  low 
temperature  and  regularly  recurring  periods 
of  suspended  growth,  the  trees  of  Japan 
exhibit  distinct  year  rings.  Even  as  far 
south  as  Tokyo  the  palm  flourishes  only 
under  careful  protection,  and  oranges  are 
produced  only  m  the  more  fully  sheltered 
valleys.     The    sugar    cane    does    not    thrive 


same  rich  colouring  when  budding  out  in 
spring.  By  the  end  of  October  the  decid- 
uous trees  are  leafless,  and  but  few  plants 
then  refrain  from  winter  rest,  among  them 
the  camillia,  whose  blossoming  time  is  No- 
vember and  December,  the  last  buds  finally 
fading  before  the  severe  frost.  Another 
camillia,  called  the  Japonica,  prolongs  its 
flowering  time  to  April.  With  December  the 
grass  has  everywhere  faded,  and  all  the  green 
fields  turn  a  dull  grey,  changing  the  entire 
aspect  of  the  country,  which  has  been  for 
many  months  so  verdant.  The  plum  blos- 
som, which  is  a  favourite  with  the  Japanese, 
comes  out  in  the  south  as  early  as  February, 
announcing  the  approach  of  spring;  but  in 
the  north  its  delicately  tinted  flowers  are 
not  seen  before  March  and  often  run  into 
April.  The  most  beautiful  blossom  of  April 
is  the  Japanese  cherry,  but  the  number  of 
flowering  plants  at  this  season  is  still  less 
than  three  per  cent  of  the  nation's  flora. 

The  most  important  winter  crops  are 
barley,  wheat,  and  rape,  which  are  sown  in 
drills  and  rows  at  the  end  of  October  and 
show  a  vigourous  blade  in  November  and 
early  December  when  their  development 
ceases   until    waked    by    the    warm    sun    of 


20 


PRESENT-DAY        IMPRESSIONS        OF        JAPAN 


spring.  The  barley  and  rape  make  rapid 
growth  from  April  onward,  and  are  ready 
for  harvest  in  June,  with  the  wheat  harvest 
some  two  weeks  later.  In  the  south  the 
transition  from  winter  to  spring  is  much  less 
marked  and  rapid  than  in  the  north,  where 
everything  quickly  recovers  its  verdure  with 
the  return  of  spring.  Another  reason  why 
spring  is  not  so  marked  in  the  south  is 
because  the  deciduous  trees  of  groves  and 
woodlands  are  so  often  mixed  with  ever- 
greens that  their  change  to  spring  attire  is 
not  so  readily  noticeable.  By  the  beginning 
of  May  the  fields  of  the  south  are  in  full 
summer  dress  and  the  song  of  the  Japanese 
nightingale  is  again  heard.  Then  spring 
showers  are  frequent  and  plenteous;  and 
vegetation  soon  shows  a  variety  ana  luxuri- 
ance that  suggest  the  tropics. 

The  geographical  distribution  of  Japanese 
plants  is  decided  apparently  by  the  geological 
formation  of  the  countiy  and  the  nature  of 
the  soil,  producing  a  different  vegetation 
according  as  the  place  is  sand  dune,  fresh- 
water land,  plains,  bush  or  hill  country, 
highlands  and  mountains.     The  number  of 


sand  and  salt  plants  is  very  great,  while 
marine  flora  are  still  more  varied  and  plenti- 
ful, many  being  used  as  food.  Japan  has  no 
heaths  or  moors,  and  consequently  the 
plants  usually  associated  with  such  places 
are  wanting,  especially  peat  mosses;  but  the 
wet  rice  lands  have  a  peculiar  vegetation  of 
their  own,  starwort  and  pondweed  being 
prominent.  In  Japan  the  hills  are  terraced 
and  cultivated  to  a  height  and  degree  un- 
surpassed in  any  other  country-,  but  seldom 
higher  than  from  300  to  900  feet  above  sea 
level.  Most  of  the  hills  are  covered  with  red 
pine  and  low  brushwood,  but  in  places  are 
quite  bare.  How  barren  and  dry  the  soil  of 
some  of  the  hills  is  may  be  inferred  from  the 
scrubby  conditions  of  the  pines  that  try  to 
subsist  on  them.  Trees  of  juniper,  azalea, 
and  rose  grow  among  the  hill  grasses,  the 
latter  being  known  as  coarse  bamboo  grass. 
In  early  summer  when  everything  is  green 
and  the  scent  of  pine  resin  mingles  with  the 
perfume  of  wild  flowers,  and  the  grating  and 
chirping  of  cicadas  on  the  trunks  and 
branches  of  the  pines  echo  above  the  hum- 
ming   and    buzzing    of    innumerable    insects 


among  the  wild  flowers,  the  scene  is  animated 
and  delightful  in  the  extreme.  The  red- 
flowered  azalea  often  sets  the  hills  ablaze 
with  colour  and  presents  a  sight  uniquely 
picturesque.  The  plains  are  for  the  most 
part  given  over  to  the  growing  of  rice,  there 
being  practically  no  fallow  or  meadow  land. 
But  the  higher  hills  are  often  not  unlike 
meadows  in  their  lack  of  trees  and  in  their 
wealth  of  wild  flowers,  running  up  to  1,500 
or  even  3,000  feet,  the  more  beautiful  of 
the  flowers  being  the  mountain  lilies,  the 
azaleas,  and  wild  roses. 

Unlike  the  forests  of  Europe  those  of 
Japan  have  a  great  variety  of  trees  and 
shrubs  of  all  ages;  and  it  is  but  seldom  that 
one  finds  such  foliaceous  growths  as  oaks 
and  beeches  forming  a  forest  by  themselves. 
The  unusual  number  of  parasitic  and  climb- 
ing plants  reminds  us  of  the  virgin  forests 
of  the  tropics.  There  is  indeed  no  doubt 
that  the  forests  of  Japan  show  a  greater 
number  of  variously  mingled  trees  than 
those  of  North  America.  To  name  the  con- 
stituents of  a  Japanese  forest  would  be  to 
enumerate  at  least  half  the  entire  flora  of 


VIEWS  IN   KORAKUEN    PARK,    OKAYAMA,    ON    THE   INLAND    SEA 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


21 


the  world.  In  the  higher  mountains,  as  one 
proceeds  northward,  with  the  exception  of 
conifers,  there  are  few  evergreens,  and  these 
chiefly  shrubs.  The  principal  constituents 
of  such  a  deciduous  forest  are  oaks,  beeches, 
hornbeams,  maples,  birches,  horsechestnuts, 
magnolias,  azaleas,  walnuts,  elms,  planes, 
ashes,  alders  and  so  on,  all  of  which  flourish 
best  in  the  middle  part  of  the  Empire.  The 
great  number  of  climbers  one  can  do  no 
more  than  refer  to,  but  some  of  them  are 
very  beautiful,  especially  the  wistaria,  which 
is  often  found  climbing  a  hundred  feet  above 
the  earth  on  trees  or  cliffs.  The  multi- 
formity of  a  Japanese  foliaceous  forest  is 
further  increased  by  divers  kinds  of  conif- 
erous trees,  especially  firs,  pines,  and 
cryptomerias,  according  to  altitude.  The 
red  pine  and  the  black  pine  are  the  most 
common  conifers  in  Japan,  found  especially 
in  the  lower  levels  and  sandy  places,  like 
dunes  and  barren  hills.  Another  of  this 
family  is  the  Alpine  dwarf  fir  which  prefers 
the  higher  altitudes.  At  a  height  of  from 
1,500  to  3,000  feet  is  found  the  handsomest 
of  Japanese  conifers,  the  cryptomeria,  which 
furnishes  the  most  esteemed  wood  for  build- 
ing and  industrial  purposes.  This  noble  tree 
is  the  pride  of  temple  groves,  an  ornament 
wherever  found,  and  the  constant  theme  of 
national  poets.  The  mountains  of  Shinano 
possess  fine  forests  of  these  cypresses,  of 
which  there  are  two  kinds,  the  sugi  or  red 
cypress,  and  the  hinoki  or  white  cypress, 
which  attain  usually  a  height  of  about  sixty 
feet  and  a  diameter  of  three.  Firs  and 
larches  grow  at  an  altitude  up  to  7,000  feet, 
though  the  forest  limit  is  usually  about 
6,000  feet,  growth  depending  on  circum- 
stances of  wind  and  sun.  Since  growth  in 
Japan  frequently  depends  more  on  wind  and 
sun  than  on  temperature  one  often  finds 
the  beautiful  Japanese  Alpine  bell  growing  at 
surprising  altitudes.  The  flora  of  the  higher 
mountains  is,  therefore,  a  mixture  of  Alpine 
and  northern  plant  forms,  the  species  being 
such  as  are  found  widely  in  sub-arctic  regions 
of  the  Old  and  the  New  World;  especially 
common  are  they  in  the  shady  woods  of  the 
north  temperate  zone,  ascending  to  greater 
elevations  farther  south.  A  small  number  of 
species,  however,  are  peculiar  to  Japan. 
The  origin  of  these  has  undoubtedly  been  in 
Siberia  and  Kamchatka,  the  seeds  being 
borne  southward  by  currents  and  monsoons, 
though  probably  some  were  carried  by  birds, 
especially  by  the  ptarmigan. 

With  the  exception  of  a  few  plants,  like 
tobacco  and  potatoes,  most  of  the  cultivated 
products  of  Japan  have  been  derived  from 
China,  though  it  is  possible  some  are  in- 
digenous, such  as  the  lotus.  Hemp,  cotton, 
and  silk,  which  formed  the  chief  material  for 


clothing  in  China,  early  came  to  Japan,  as 
well  as  rice  for  food  and  tea  for  drink.  The 
catalogue  of  endemic  vascular  plants  of 
Japan,  however,  is  a  long  one;  and  the  great 
difference  in  their  genera  is  astonishing.  In 
the  enormous  number  of  monotype  genera 
Japan  stands  alone  among  extra-tropical 
countries,  with  a  remarkable  mixture  of 
species  peculiar  to  the  country,  as  well  as 
such  forms  as  are  distributed  over  China, 
the  Himalayas,  tropical  India,  North  Europe, 
Siberia,  and  North  America,  the  extra- 
ordinary luxuriance  and  variety  being  due 
for  the  most  part  to  high  temperature,  fertile 
soil,  and  abundant  rainfall.  Japan's  close 
connection  with  the  Kurile  Islands  in  the 
north  and  the  Luchu  Islands  in  the  south, 
as  well  as  with  Korea,  offers  every  attraction 
for  the  immigration  of  Asiatic  flora  from  the 
north,  west,  and  south,  the  intervals  between 
islands  being  bridged  by  sea  currents  and 
winds.  The  more  northern  forms  easily 
found  their  habitat  by  pushing  toward  the 
higher  mountains  with  the  assistance  of 
valley  winds,  the  migration  and  develop- 
ment probably  taking  place  after  the  glacial 
period. 

To  sum  up,  it  may  be  said  that  existing 
flora  in  Japan  number: 

Species 
Phanerogamia,  or  flowering  plants  3,200 
Cryptogamia,     or     flowerless     plants 

and  ferns 300 

Algae,  or  seaweeds 400 

For  fuller  information  as  to  the  various 
trees,  plants,  and  vegetables  of  Japan,  the 
readei  is  referred  to  the  chapters  on  Forestry. 
Tea,  and  Agriculture. 

(B)  Fauna 
The  animal  world  of  Japan  is  indeed 
scarcely  less  remarkable  for  interest  and 
variety  than  the  nation's  flora,  extending 
from  anthropoid  apes  down  to  simple  pro- 
tozoa, species  whose  morphological  relation 
or  correspondence  to  other  species  may  be 
separated  widely  in  space  and  time.  The 
land  fauna  undoubtedly  came  originally  from 
China,  Korea,  and  Manchuria,  and  belongs 
for  the  most  part  to  pateoarctic  types,  of 
which  most  of  the  Japanese  mammalia,  birds, 
and  insects  are  but  modifications,  indicating 
that  Japan  has  been  more  recently  connected 
with  the  continent  northward  than  south- 
ward. Though  assuredly  related  to  its 
neighbours  of  the  northern  half  of  Asia,  the 
fauna  of  Japan  has  its  own  peculiar  stamp, 
not,  perhaps,  so  pronounced  in  the  various 
classes  of  animals.  There  is  an  absence  of 
several  continental  genera  and  a  great  vari- 
ation of  common  species,  with  a  persistence 
of  others  which  in  other  countries  have  to 
be  reckoned  with  extinct  types.     Japan  is 


quite  an  exception  to  the  rule  that  the 
fauna  and  flora  of  islands  are  poorer  than 
those  of  the  neighbouring  continent;  for  the 
insect  world  alone  surprises  the  scientist  by 
the  great  wealth  of  forms  and  individuals,  of 
which  he  may  find  more  in  a  day's  walk  than 
he  could  find  in  the  whole  British  Isles, 
with  which  Japan  is  sometimes  compared  in 
point  of  size. 

Marine  Fauna.  —  The  sea  fauna  is  particu- 
larly rich  in  species  of  fish,  Crustacea,  and 
MoUusca,  as  well  as  in  individuals,  due 
doubtless  to  the  inter-mixture  of  northern 
and  southern  marine  fauna  by  sea  currents 
and  their  effect  on  climate.  Thus  while  the 
land  fauna  maintains  its  relation  to  that  of 
the  continental  temperate  zone,  the  marine 
fauna  represents  tropical  and  sub-tropical 
species  as  well,  some  of  which  are  to  be  met 
with  also  in  Malayan  and  Indian  waters. 
At  the  same  time  there  occur  numerous 
species  endemic  to  Japan.  As  fish  forms 
one  of  the  chief  items  in  the  national  dietary 
of  Japan  much  attention  has  been  devoted 
to  the  subject.  The  country  is  certainly  one 
of  the  most  remarkable  in  the  world  for  the 
number  and  variety  of  its  fish,  those  appear- 
ing in  the  market  alone  reaching  over  six 
hundred  species.  Even  the  inland  waters 
offer  abundant  quantities  of  trout,  carp,  shad, 
and  eel.  Japanese  fish  seem  to  migrate  with 
the  season,  as  do  the  birds,  a  fact  that  has  to 
be  borne  in  mind  if  one  is  not  to  make 
mistakes  in  studying  the  piscifauna  of  the 
islands.  The  Sea  of  Japan  has  been  called 
the  kingdom  of  the  mackerel  tribe,  and  with 
truth,  as  there  are  about  forty  species  of 
this  fish  alone.  One  of  the  best  fish  is 
known  as  lai,  a  bream  of  beautiful  deep  red 
colour  but  with  white  meat.  Tunny  and 
bonito  are  also  plentiful,  some  of  which  weigh 
over  a  hundred  pounds.  The  haddock 
family  has  many  relations;  as  also  has  the 
sole.  Salmon  is  a  very  important  fish, 
too,  of  which  there  are  several  species, 
ascending  the  lower  rivers  of  the  more 
northern  coasts  in  autumn  in  enormous 
numbers  and  affording  occupation  and  food 
to  thousands.  Herring  is  also  abundant,  as 
well  as  cod,  sardine,  and  eel.  Rays,  sharks, 
and  whales  also  abound  in  Japanese  waters, 
and  are  used  as  food.  It  would  be  quite 
impossible  in  the  space  at  our  disposal  even 
to  enumerate  in  any  lucid  manner  the  great 
variety  of  fish  found  in  Japanese  waters,  of 
which  there  are  at  least  1,230  species;  and 
of  amphibians  at  least  22  species.  On  the 
coasts  of  the  Japan  Sea  there  is  a  peculiar 
cuttlefish  of  phosphorescent  quality  which 
lights  up  the  sea  at  night  and  affords 
amusement  to  fishermen  to  catch.  Among 
Crustacea,  crabs  and  lobsters,  which  are 
really    crawfish,    as    well    as    crawfish    and 


22 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


RECEPTION    ROOM    IN    A   JAPANESE    HOME    OF    THE    HIGHER  CLASS 


shrimp,  abound.  The  hst  of  Mollusca  is 
also  long,  of  which  at  least  1,200  species  have 
been  classified.  Among  the  more  common 
are  mussels,  oysters,  clams,  auks,  and 
himdreds  of  the  snail  variety.  Most  of  the 
Japanese  sea  molluscs  point  to  the  Indian 
Ocean  and  the  Malay  Archipelago  as  their 
place  of  origin,  but  many  are  allied  to  the 
California  coast.  A  considerable  number  of 
the  marine  moUuscs  of  Japan  form  a  valu- 
able addition  to  the  nation's  food.  Among 
Echinoderms  sea  urchins  and  starfish  have 
numerous  species,  mostly  related  to  those  in 
the  Indian  and  Pacific  Oceans.  Corals, 
rock-corals,  and  glass-sponges  are  also  to  be 
found,  more  especially  in  the  southern  waters. 
(For  further  information  turn  to  the  article 
on  Fisheries  elsewhere  in  this  volume.) 

Mammals.  —  Even  a  slight  zoological 
knowledge  of  Japan  soon  reveals  the  fact 
that  the  country  possesses  a  great  variety 
of  mammalian  life.  The  red-cheeked  ape  is 
among  the  older  and  more  familiar  inhabi- 
tants of  the  islands,  being  found  as  far  north 
as  the  Straits  of  Tsugaru.  Of  bats  there 
are  some  ten  or  more  species,  though  they 
differ  from  those  of  Europe.  There  are  no 
hedgehogs,  but  there  are  six  species  of 
insect-eaters.  Moles,  shrew-mice,  and  river- 
rats  abound,  and  the  common  rat  in  millions, 
being  a  frequent  conductor  of  pestilence. 
Of  Camivora  Japan  affords  such  specimens 
as  bears,  of  which  there  are  three  species, 
wolves  and  martens,  though  no  wild  cats, 
tigers  or  any  of  the  tropical  Camivora.  The 
flesh  of  the  bear  is  eaten;  and  the  animal  is 


held  sacred  by  the  Ainu.  The  badger  and 
fox  are  common,  the  latter  being  enrolled 
among  the  figures  guarding  such  shrines  as 
those  to  Inari,  the  god  of  rice.  The  animal 
is  believed  to  have  powers  of  witchcraft  and 
to  take  possession  of  women.  While  Mar- 
supials are  not  well  represented,  there  are 
numerous  species  of  rodents,  like  squirrels  and 
flying  squirrels,  as  well  as  the  rats  already 
mentioned.  Hares  also  are  found,  those  in 
the  moimtains  changing  colour  with  winter. 
The  wild  boar  is  another  interesting  denizen 
of  the  mountain  forests,  affording  sport  to 
huntsmen  and  food  to  the  people.  The 
Japanese  deer,  or  antelope,  is  a  beautiful 
animal  with  eight-branched  antlers,  and 
found  in  various  parts  of  the  country. 
Among  domestic  animals,  birds,  and  insects, 
Japan  has  the  horse,  a  rather  stunted  animal, 
the  cow,  pig,  dog,  cat,  rabbit,  fowl,  duck, 
pigeon,  silkworm,  and  bee;  the  ass,  mule, 
sheep,  and  goose  being  absent.  The  Japanese 
bantam  and  large  gamecock  arc  celebrated. 
Birds.  —  In  birds,  too,  Japan  is  remarkably 
rich,  possessing  more  than  four  hundred 
species,  most  of  them  being  of  palasoarctic 
type  and  almost  a  quarter  of  them  peculiar 
to  the  country.  While  the  greater  number 
of  Japanese  birds  agree  with  the  same 
species  in  Europe,  the  jay,  cuckoo,  and  robin 
exhibit  slight  differences  in  size  and  colour. 
Sparrows,  crows  or  ravens,  and  swallows 
are  among  the  more  common  birds,  as  well  as 
kites,  falcons,  and  eagles.  The  uguisu,  or 
Japanese  nightingale,  is  more  like  the 
English    whitethroat,     though    its    song    is 


musical  enough.  Its  back  is  olive-green  and 
the  breast  grey  and  white.  The  golden- 
crested  wren  prevails  in  woods,  with  numer- 
ous companions  of  the  tomtit  family.  The 
Japanese  finch  sings  well;  and  a  species  of 
lark  called  the  hibari.  The  water-ousel  lives 
in  remote  places  like  mountain  streams. 
One  of  the  most  beautiful  of  Japanese  birds 
is  the  kiji.  or  pheasant,  of  which  there  are 
two  species  found  in  most  of  the  hilly  dis- 
tricts. Among  waders,  cranes  and  herons 
are  plentiful  and  pretty,  being  mentioned 
frequently  in  the  national  literature.  Wild 
ducks  of  various  kinds  abound,  too,  especially 
the  teal,  flocks  of  which  frequent  even  the 
moats  of  the  imperial  palace  in  Tokyo  un- 
molested. The  mandarin  drake  is  famed  in 
Japan  for  its  beauty.  Wild  geese  and  kindred 
water  fowl  are  numerous,  with  cormorants 
and  gulls  beyond  ntimber. 

Reptiles. — These  are  no  more  prominent 
in  Japan  than  in  China,  as  the  country  has 
no  more  than  thirty-four  species,  though 
their  relation  to  Indian,  North  American, 
and  North  European  reptiles  is  interesting. 
The  seven  marine  members,  three  turtles 
and  four  sea  snakes,  suggest  a  tropical  origin, 
coming,  as  they  no  doubt  do,  on  the  Black 
Current  to  the  southern  coasts  of  the  archi- 
pelago. There  are  also  two  species  of 
fresh-water  turtles,  which  occur  in  the  rivers 
and  ponds  of  southern  Honshu,  and  in  ,Shi- 
koku  and  Kyushu,  being  regarded  by  the 
people  as  a  symbol  of  longevity.  There  are 
several  kinds  of  snakes,  all  harmless  save 
the  niamushi,  or  \-iper,  a  small  green  snake 
which  is  very  poisonous,  but  which  is,  never- 
theless, often  eaten  as  a  remedy  against  con- 
sumption, or  made  into  snake  wine  for  the 
same  purpose.  Of  lizards  there  are  three 
species,  and  of  frogs  and  toads  several.  The 
giant  salamander  of  Japan  engages  our 
special  interest  because  of  its  limited  field  of 
distribution  and  its  relation  to  fossil  species. 
It  frequents  clear  mountain  streams  at  a 
height  of  1,200  to  3,000  feet,  and  feeds  on 
trout,  the  larvs  of  insects,  and  batrachians. 

1 11  seels  and  Spiders.  —  In  Japan  insects 
thrive  abundantly,  and  are  for  the  most  part 
related  to  kindred  species  on  the  continent, 
there  being  more  than  twenty  thousand 
species  recorded.  Everywhere  beetles  and 
butterflies  glow  with  richness  and  variety  of 
colour,  and  prevail  in  species  too  numerous 
to  mention.  Ground  beetles  and  stag  beetles 
are  abundant.  Fireflies  are  placed  in  cages 
as  toys  to  emit  light  at  night,  while  any 
insect  that  can  emit  a  strident  note  is  also 
caged  for  its  music.  The  butterflies  are  too 
wonderful  for  description,  there  being  over 
four  hundred  species,  many  of  them  of 
tropical  colouring.  Moths  are  still  more 
numerous    and    varied,    and    Japan    is    the 


PRESKNT-DAY        IMPRESSIONS        OF        JAPAN 


23 


paradise  of  the  entomologist.  Wasps,  bees, 
hornets,  and  ants  abound  innumerably. 
Gadflies,  biting  gnats,  and  mosquitoes  are 
in  millions  untold,  while  the  common  house 
fly  is  a  pest  wherever  odours  invite.  These 
are  confined  to  season  and  altitude,  but  the 
ubiquitous  flea  defies  all  circumstances  and 
makes  himself  a  perpetual  guest.  Happily 
there  are  no  bed-bugs,  except  as  brought  from 
China.  Of  Neuroptera  Japan  has  a  mar- 
vellous variety,  the  dragonfly  being  one  of 
the  most  beautiful  of  the  more  than  one 
hundred  species.  Grasshoppers,  locusts,  and 
crickets  also  flourish  in  their  season.  Several 
species  of  mantis,  too,  exist,  though,  owing  to 
their  quiet  habits  and  similarity  of  colour  to 
environment,  they  are  seldom  seen.  The 
Japanese  cicada  is  much  in  evidence  during 
the  heat  of  summer  when  he  always  insists  on 
being  heard,  making  an  ear-splitting  noise. 
Termites,  together  with  tree-bugs  and  spi- 
ders, are  also  abundant. 

The  species  of  fauna  found  in  Japan  and 
those  peculiar  to  the  country  may  be  sum- 
marised as  follows: 

Species 

Mammals 80 

Peculiar  to  Japan 30 

Birds 400 

Reptiles 34 

Amphibians 22 

Fishes 1,230 

Insects 20,000 

Dragonflies over     100 

Ants over     100 

Cicadas over       38 

Butterflies over     400 

Spiders over  1,000 

Mollusca over  3,000 

Crustacea over       70 

POPULATION 

The  crime  of  sterility,  mooted  in  some 
countries,  can  not  be  brought  against  the 
Japanese,  for  the  nation  is  increasing  at  the 
rate  of  over  700.000  a  year,  and  that  without 
any  assistance  from  immigration.  The  birth 
rate  at  present  is  nearly  4  per  100  of  the 
population,  which  is  greater  than  any  other 
country  except  Germany.  The  birth  rate  of 
males  exceeds  that  of  females,  there  being  an 
average  of  105  of  the  former  to  100  of  the 
latter,  but  the  death  rate  among  males  is 
sufficiently  greater  to  compensate  in  a  large 
measure  for  the  difference.  Taking  a  de- 
cennial period  for  which  accurate  figures  are 
available,  the  growth  of  population  may  be 
seen  in  table  at  top  of  this  page. 

The  birth  rate  may  be  clearly  seen  by 
surveying  the  decennial  period  from  1897  to 
1906,  as  shown  in  table  at  foot  of  this  page. 
The  table  will  prove  all  the  more  interest- 
ing if  it  be  borne  in  mind,  also,  that  the 
period  includes  the  years  of  the  war  with 


Increase 

Rate 

Year 

Male 

Female 

Total 

Previous 
Year 

OF 

Increase 

1899 

22,330,112 

21,930,540 

44,260,642 

496,787 

1-4 

1900 

22,613,177 

22,202,821 

44,815,980 

555,338 

I 

25 

1901 

22,933,469 

22,503,590 

45,437.032 

621,052 

39 

1902 

23.233.676 

22,788,833 

46,022,476 

585,444 

29 

1903 

23,601,640 

23,131,236 

46,732,876 

710,400 

54 

1904 

23.834.398 

23.381,237 

47,215,635 

482,754 

03 

1905 

24,047,953 

23,626,518 

47,674,471 

458,830 

0 

97 

1906 

24,312,779 

23,848,062 

48,160,825 

486,365 

01 

1907 

24,643,017 

24,172,702 

48,815,694 

654,869 

36 

1908 

25.045.,3,S9 

24,541,884 

49.587.243 

771,549 

58 

Russia.  Notwithstanding  the  losses  from 
war  it  will  be  seen  that  the  average  yearly 
birth  rate  was  1,432,431,  or  3.03  per  100  of 
population. 

As  to  the  death  rate,  the  number  of  deaths 
from  1897  to  1906  was  945,102,  the  rate  being 
2.07  per  100  of  population,  greater  among 
males  than  females,  as  will  be  seen  from  the 
first  table  on  next  page. 

The  present  population  of  the  Japanese 
Empire,  representing  the  latest  census  returns 
which  are  up  to  the  end  of  1915,  amounts  to 
approximately  74,000,000,  distributed  ac- 
cording to  provinces  and  dependencies  as 
follows : 

Hokkaido 2,256,633 

Tokyo 3,361,484 

Kyoto .  .  1,324,765 

Osaka .  2,578,576 

Kanagawa.  .                                     .  1,272,972 

Hyogo .  2,214,932 

Nagasaki,  .  .                                       .  1,163,595 

Niigata .  2,112,185 

Saitama 1,375,471 

Gumma .  1,042,279 

Chiba .  1,426,404 

Ibaraki 1,365,478 

Tochigi 1,066,184 

Nara 606,843 

Miy6 .  .  1,086,220 

Aichi 2,178,345 

Shizuoka 1,521,531 


Yamanashi 613,907 

Shiga 712,076 

Gifu 1,165,199 

Nagano 1,525,897 

Miyagi 947.658 

Fukushima 1,408,608 

Iwate 896,679 

Aomori 865,118 

Yamagata 1,068,696 

Akita 997,876 

Fukui 651,053 

Ishikawa 819,847 

Toyama 923,620 

Tottori 473,163 

Shiman^ 762,135 

Okayama 1,271,225 

Hiroshima 1,706,087 

Yamaguchi 1,107,994 

Wakayama 775,116 

Tokushima 758,073 

Kagawa 767,682 

Ehime 1,024,179 

Kochi 691,759 

Fukuoka i,953,i78 

Oita 972,465 

Saga 704,742 

Kumamoto 1,318,502 

Miyazaki 622,249 

Kagoshima 1,434,321 

Okinawa 549, 116 

Formosa 3,392,063 

Saghalien 35,823 

Korea 13,125,027 

Total 73,995,030 


Births 

Births 

Year 

Males 

Females 

Total 

PER  100 
OF 

Population 

OF  M.\LES 
PER  100 

Females 

1897 

683,941 

650,184 

1. 334. 1 25 

3  09 

105.19 

1898 

696,137 

673.501 

1,369,688 

313 

103 

36 

1899 

714,025 

674.052 

1,388,077 

3  04 

105 

93 

1900 

728,648 

693.271 

1,421,919 

317 

105 

03 

1901 

770,425 

732.936 

1,503.361 

3-31 

105 

11 

1902 

774.484 

738,606 

1,513,090 

3  29 

104 

86 

1903 

765.705 

727.842 

1.493.547 

3.20 

105 

20 

1904 

740,241 

704,066 

1.444.307 

3.06 

105 

14 

1905 

738,175 

718,868 

1.457.039 

3.06 

102 

68 

1906 

728,768 

670,435 

I, .399.203 

2.91 

108 

70 

24 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


Deaths 

Deaths 

Year 

Males 

Females 

Total 

PER  TOO 
OF 

Population 

OF  Males 
PER  100 
Females 

1897 

452,383 

424.454 

876,837 

2.03 

106.58 

1898 

459,307 

435,216 

894,524 

2.04 

i05-,54 

1899 

478,255 

456,301 

934,566 

2.  II 

104,96 

1900 

467,359 

447,190 

914,557 

2.03 

104 -53 

1901 

470,712 

457,857 

928,578 

2.03 

102.82 

1902 

488,615 

473,476 

962,097 

2.09 

103.41 

1903 

474,195 

459,633 

933,834 

2.00 

103.17 

1904 

524,670 

474,946 

999.621 

2.12 

110.26 

1905 

544,167 

500,682 

1.044.855 

2.09 

108.68 

1906 

484,675 

476,872 

961,551) 

I  98 

lOI .64 

CiTV 

1916 

1906 

Houses 

Population 

Houses 

Populatii.i-N 

Tokyo . . . 

519.735 
300,768 

91,105 
82,966 

97,114 
102,421 

23,551 
46,786 

37,592 

33,759 

2,050,126 

1,395,823 

509,380 

397,574 
452,043 
442,167 
161,174 
167,130 
129,804 
128,342 

501,000 
278,777 
81,136 
78,438 
84,438 
96,539 
23,816 

40,952 
28,613 
21,676 

1,440,121 
1,226,590 
442,462 
394,303 
378,331 
378,197 
176,480 

142,763 
110,994 
100,679 

Osaka.... 

Kyoto .... 

Yokohama 

Nagoya 

Koh6 

Nagasaki 

Hiroshima 

Kanazawa , 

Kur6 

Year 

Married 

Divorced 

Married 
PER  100 

Divorced 
PER  100 

1897 

365,207 

124,075 

8.45 

2.87 

1898 

471,298 

90,465 

10 

77 

2,27 

1899 

297,428 

66,626 

6 

72 

I   51 

1900 

346,590 

63,926 

7 

70 

1.42 

1901 

378,637 

63,593 

8 

33 

I  41 

1902 

394,378 

64,311 

8 

57 

1.40 

1903 

371,187 

65,571 

7 

97 

1.40 

1904 

399,218 

64,016 

8 

46 

1.36 

1905 

351,260 

60, 1 79 

7 

37 

1.26 

1906 

353,274 

65,510 

7 

34 

1.36 

1907 

433,257 

61,193 

8 

88 

I  25 

The  density  of  population  in  various  divi- 
sions of  the  Japanese  Empire  may  be  in- 
dicated thus: 


Division 

Population 
PER  Square 
Ri  (5-9552 
Sq.  Miles) 

Population 

PER 

Family 

Honshu  (Middle) 
Honshu  (North).. 
Honshu  (West).. . 
Shikoku 

3,315 
1,430 
3,347 
2,692 

2,782 
2,201 

3,284 

5 
6 

5 
5 
5 

5 

56 
62 

14 
40 
80 

17 

18 

Kyushu 

Okinawa 

Hokkaido 

The  average  density,  tlierefore,  per  square 
ri  of  the  entire  area  of  Japan,  is  1,809,  w-hich 
is  somewhat  less  than  that  of  the  British 
Isles  and  in  excess  of  the  density  of  popula- 
tion in  Italy,  Germany,  and  France. 

Though  agriculture  is  still  the  principal 
occupation  of  the  people  there  is  a  steady 
drift  toward  the  city,  especially  of  the 
young,  who  are  attracted  by  what  they  deem 
the  less  exacting  life  of  industry  and  trade. 
Ten  years  ago  some  16  per  cent  of  the  popu- 
lation resided  in  cities  of  over  10,000  inhabi- 
tants, while  to-day  more  than  25  per  cent  of 
the  population  is  urban.  Indeed,  it  is  not 
too  much  to  say  that  at  least  30  per  cent  of 
the  population  is  now  in  cities,  gravitation 


being  especially  toward  such  industrial  and 
commercial  centres  as  Osaka,  Tokyo,  Nagoya, 
Kobe,  and  Nagasaki,  while  the  country  is 
further  depopulated  by  the  numbers  that 
are  attracted  to  Formosa,  Korea,  Manchuria, 
California,  and  the  outlying  dependencies  of 
the  Empire.  The  second  table  on  this  page 
will  indicate  the  rate  of  growth  in  the  prin- 
cipal cities.  Thus  all,  with  the  exception  of 
Nagasaki,  have  shown  remarkable  growth  in 
the  decade  under  review,  the  exception  being 
due  chiefly  to  the  removal  of  trade  from  Nag- 
asaki to  Moji.  Minor  towns  exhibiting  an  un- 
usual increase  of  population  are  Sapporo, 
the  capital  of  Hokkaido,  Otaru  in  the 
same  island,  Moji  already  mentioned, 
Yokosuka,  Sendai,  Okayama,  Sasebo,  and 
Wakayama. 

The  people  of  Japan  are  divided  officially 
into  various  classes,  the  four  principal  ones 
being  the  Kwozoku,  comprising  the  imperial 
family  only,  whose  spirits  are  entitled  to 
worship  after  departing  this  life;  the  Kwuzoku, 
or  nobles;  the  Shizoku,  or  gentry;  and  the 
Heimin,  or  common  people.  Other  classes 
are  chokunin,  or  government  officials  ap- 
pointed by  imperial  mandate;  and  sonin,  or 
officials  appointed  by  government  depart- 
ments. Of  nobles  there  are  about  5,000;  of 
gentry  nearly  2,000,000,  and  of  commoners 
more  than  40,000,000,  tile  rest  being  of  no 
class.  In  addition  there  are  some  20,000 
Ainu  aborigines  in  the  northern  territories, 
and  about  115,000  savages  in  Formosa. 
The  number  of  foreigners  residing  in  Japan 
is  nearly  20,000,  of  whom  British,  Americans, 
and  Chinese  are  by  far  in  the  majority. 

A  good  deal  has  been  said  about  the  ratio 
of  marriage  to  divorce  in  Japan,  the  country 
having  long  had  the  unenviable  reputation 
of  showing  the  largest  divorce  rate  in  the 
world.  Happily  the  figures,  though  still 
large,  are  on  the  decline,  as  the  third  table 
on  this  page  will  indicate. 

It  may  be  questioned,  however,  whether 
the  rate  of  diminution  in  divorce  is  as  great 
as  the  above  figures  suggest,  for  divorce  in 
Japan  is  still  very  easy,  nothing  more  being 
necessary  than  a  declaration  by  two  reput- 
able witnesses  at  the  local  police  office  that 
the  divorce  has  taken  place  by  mutual  con- 
sent, judicial  divorces  being  comparatively 
rare;  but  it  is  doubtful  whether  all  the 
divorcees  go  to  the  trouble  or  publicity  of 
having  the  separation  thus  registered  Still 
there  is  no  doubt  that  the  new  civil  code 
issued  in  1898,  requiring  all  marriages  to  be 
registered  and  divorce  noted  officially,  has 
influenced  in  some  appreciable  measure  the 
rate  of  divorce  in  Japan.  Whether  Japan 
will  ever  return  to  the  old  ratio  of  one 
divorce  to  every  three  marriages  remains  to 
be  seen. 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


25 


TABLE   OF   WEIGHTS,    MEASURES,   AND   MONEYS,   WITH   ENGLISH, 
AMERICAN,    FRENCH,   AND   GERMAN    EQUIVALENTS 


Japan 

Great  Britain 

United  States 
OF  America 

France 

Germany 

Ri 

2.44030  Miles 

2.44029  Miles 

3.92727  Kilo- 
metres 

3.92727  Kilo- 
meter 

Ri  (marine) 

1.15152  Miles 

1.15151  Miles 

1. 853 1 8  Kilo- 
metre 

1. 853 1 8  Kilo- 
meter 

Square  Ri 

5.95505  Square 
Miles 

5-95.'iOi  Square 
Miles 

15.42347  Kilo- 
metres Carrds 

15.42347  Quad- 
rat-kilometer 

Cho  =  10  Tan 

=  3,000   Tstibo 

2.45064  Arres 

2.45062  Acres 

99-17355  Ares 

99-17355  Ar. 

Tsubo 

3-95369  Square 
Yards 

3-95367  Square 

Yards 

3-30579  Centi- 
ares 

3-3"579  Quad 
rat-meter 

Kokii  =  10  To 

= 100  Sho 

4.96005  Bushels 

47-65389  Gallons 

(Liquid) 
5.1 1902  Bushels 
(Dry) 

1.80391  Hecto- 
litre 

1.80391  Hekto- 
liter 

Koku  (Capacity 
of  vessel) 

y^g  of  one  Ton 

y-Q^  of  one  Ton 

y  0  de  Tonne 

y'j  Tonne 

Kwan  =  I, oon 

Moiintic 

8.26733  lbs. 

(Avoir.) 
10.04711  lbs. 

(Troy) 

8.26733  lbs. 

(Avoir.) 
10.04711  lbs. 

(Troy) 

3.75000  Kilo- 
grammes 

3.75000  Kilo- 
gram m 

Kin  =  160  Monnm 

1.32277  lbs. 

1.32277  lbs. 

0.60000  Kilo- 

0.60000 Kilo- 

(Avoir.) 

1.60754  lbs. 

(Troy) 

(Avoir.) 

1.60754  lbs. 

(Trov) 

gramme 

gramm 

Momme 

2.1 1644  Drams 
2.41 131  Dwts. 

0.13228  Ounce 

(Avoir.) 
0.12057  Ounce 

(Troy) 

3.75000  Gramme 

3.75000  Gramm 

Yen  =  100  Sen 

2s.  0.5821!. 

0.49X4  Dollar 

2.583  Francs 

2.0924  Mark 

The  value  of  Yen  is  as  follows: — 

Prior  to  December,  1885 

From  January,  1886,  to  September,  18 
Subsequent  to  October,  1897 


.  .  .Gold     Yen  (0.4  Momme  of  pure  gold) 
17.  .Silver  Yen  (6.7  Momme  of  pure  silver) 
. . .  .  Gold   Yen  (0.2  Momme  of  pure  gold) 


THE    FISHERMAN    SPEARS    A    S.\LMON    TROUT 


The  question  of  emigration  becomes  one 
of  absorbing  interest  in  view  of  Japan's 
enormous  annual  increase  in  population; 
and  the  majority  of  the  nation  is  convinced 
that  some  outlet  must  be  found  for  the 
surplus.  Inducements  are  offered  for  settle- 
ment in  the  outlying  territories  and  colonies, 
but  the  average  Japanese  does  not  care  for 


the  cold  of  Hokkaido  and  Manchuria,  nor 
the  torrid  heat  of  the  southern  islands.  He 
prefers  America,  South  America,  Australia, 
and  Canada.  It  is  a  question,  therefore, 
whether  the  activities  of  Japan's  surplus 
population  can  be  concentrated  on  the 
regions  of  the  Far  East  and  devoted 
wholly   to   the  development  of   the  nation's 


new  territories.  There  is  at  present  grave 
dissatisfaction  with  the  restrictions  against 
immigration  from  Japan  enforced  in  Amer- 
ica and  the  British  colonies,  and  most 
Japanese  are  persuaded  that  these  must 
be  removed  and  Japanese  immigrants 
placed  on  a  level  with  those  from 
the  countries  of  Europe. 


.3*Cw 


.'/   ^if 


"^'i^K^,- 


Hl.MEJl    CASTLE 


III.  The  People 


(A)    The  Age  of  Myths    (  —  to  b.  c.  66o),    Origin  of  the    Japanese— Cosmogony  —  Arch.'E. 
OLOGiCAL    Evidence  —  Dawn  OF  Empire  — Early    Civilisation.     (B)  The  Yamato  Empire 

(b.  C.  660  to  794  A.  D.),  CONSOLIDATING  THE  InFANT  EmPIRE  — EXPEDITION  TO  KoREA  —  INTRO- 
DUCTION OF  Buddhism  — Beginning  of  Chinese   Influence.       (C)    Period  of  Family 
Despotism  (794  to  1503  a.  d.), The  Fujiwara  Bureaucracy— Rise  of  the  Taira  and 
MiNAMOTO  Clans,  794  to  1199  a.  d.  —  The  Sh adow-Shoguns,  1199  to  1334  a.  d.  —  Arrival 
of  Europeans  and   Christianity,  1334  to  1573  — Age  of  Usurpers,  1573  to  I603. 
(D)  The Tokugawa Period  ( 1600  to  1868),  The  Eradication  of  Christianity  — 
The  Laws  of  Ieyasu  — Foreign   Relations  in  the  Tokugawa  Era  — 
Reopening  of  Japan  — Fall  of  the  Shogunate.      (E)  The  Era  of 

MeIJI   ( 1868  to   1914),    EaRLY    RefORMS  —  FoREIGN  RELATIONS  — 

Modern  Japan 


(A)     THE   AGE    OF   MYTHS 

—  10  B.  C.  660 

ORIGIN 

THE  origin  of  the  Japanese,  more 
than  that  of  most  peoples,  is  lost  in 
the  mists  of  antiquity.  Oriental 
ethnologists  and  anthropologists,  however, 
for  the  most  part  agree  in  ascribing 
the  birth  and  rise  of  the  race  that  now  in- 


habits the  islands  of  Japan  to  the  blending  of 
two  streams  of  immigration  that  set  in  to- 
ward the  archipelago  in  prehistoric  time,  the 
one  from  the  continent  of  East  Asia  and 
the  other  from  Malaya  and  the  islands  of 
the  Pacific.  The  southern  colony,  together 
with  intermittent  infiltrations  from  the  con- 
tinent, settled  on  the  island  of  Kyushu,  par- 
ticularly in  the  northern  part,  while  the 
adventurers  from  the  north,  most  of  whom 


were  of  Korean,  Chinese,  Mongolian,  and 
Indonesian  extraction,  peopled  the  west 
coast  of  Idzumo.  The  southern  contingents, 
pirates  from  the  wild  islands  of  the  Pacific, 
being  very  warlike  and  aggressive,  pushed 
their  borders  steadily  northward,  subduing 
if  not  wholly  absorbing  the  less  spirited  but 
more  highly  civilized  colonists  of  Idzumo, 
while  exterminating  almost  wholly  the 
savage     aborigines     that     lay     between.     A 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


27 


capital  was  finally  established  at  Kashiwa- 
bara  in  Yainato  under  their  leader,  Jummi 
Tenno,  who  became  first  emperor  of  the 
newly  formed  empire  in  is.  c.  660. 

It  may  be  no  more  than  a  mere  assumption 
to  suggest  that  the  more  salient  streams  of 
immigration  gave  rise  to  the  subsequent  clans 
which  are  found  to  have  been  so  marked  a 
feature  of  Yamato  civilisation  and  govern- 
ment, as  was  the  case  in  ancient  Britain;  V)ut 
in  all  probability  the  incessant  wars  between 
the  contending  tribal  settlements  led  to  tlie 
preeminence  of  warriors  who  succeeded  in 
founding  great  families  or  clans  under  whom, 
as  in  other  countries,  the  commonalty 
gathered  for  protection. 

As  the  two  main  streams  of  immigration 
perforce  more  and  more  harmonised  and 
blended  into  a  united  nation  called  the 
Yamato,  they  waged  relentless  war  against 
the  savage  Ainu,  as  the  latter  in  turn  did 
against  the  aboriginal  koropok-guru  (cave- 
dwellers),  or  tsiichi-gitma  (earth-spiders),  as 
the  Yamato  called  them,  which  doubtless 
were  the  first  human  inhabitants  of  the 
islands.  Thus  the  Yamato  extended  their 
boundaries  ever  northward,  partly  subduing 
and  partly  exterminating  the  native  peoples, 
until  the  whole  of  the  main  island  and  Kyushu 
were  brought  under  imperial  rule. 

That  the  above  contentions  have  some 
basis  in  reason  and  fact  is  clear  from  the 
following  considerations.  The  great  equa- 
torial current  from  the  south,  which  does  so 
much  to  moderate  the  climate  of  Japan, 
divides  at  the  southern  extremity  of  the 
archipelago,  one  part  sweeping  toward  the 
Korean  coast  and  into  the  Pacific  through 
the  Straits  of  Tsushima,  while  the  other 
moves  up  the  coast  of  Shikoku  and  the  main 
island  and  into  the  mid-Pacific,  modifying 
the  temperature  even  as  far  as  the  coast  of 
the  United  States.  The  significance  of  these 
currents,  however,  is  not  so  much  that  they 
have  given  Japan  a  climate  of  peculiar  soft- 
ness and  moderation,  but  that  they  have 
been  the  highways  of  immigration  peopling 
the  islands  of  the  rising  sun.  The  ktiro-siwo, 
or  Black  Current,  brought  the  wild  tribes  of 
the  Pacific  islands,  and  the  Tsushima  current 
hastened  the  stream  of  migration  from  the 
Asiatic  continent,  thus  making  that  complex 
mixture  of  races  that  now  comprise  the 
people  of  Japan. 

COSMOGONY 

The  above  hypothesis  is  confirmed  by 
Japanese  tradition,  and  tradition  again  by 
archseology.  According  to  Japanese  mythol- 
ogy there  were  two  original  deities,  male 
and  female,  named  Izanagi  and  Izanami, 
from  whom  in  direct  line  the  Emperor  of 
Japan  is  descended  through  the  daughter  of 


IWINTING  OF  .WCIENT  GODS  (KASUG.\  MIO-JIN) 
IN  THE  IMPERIAL  MUSEUM,  TOKYO 

the  first  divine  pair,  Amaterasu-Omikami, 
the  Sun  Goddess.  As  Izanagi  and  Izanami 
appeared  one  day  on  the  bridge  of  high 
heaven,  reclining  on  the  clouds,  in  order  to 
witness  the  raging  of  the  depths  beneath, 
Izanagi,  the  male  principle,  happened  to  let 
his  richly  decorated  lance  touch  the  sea, 
upon  which  the  latter  straightway  parted, 
the  land  appeared,  and  the  drops  falling 
from  the  lance  became  islands.  The  first 
land  to  appear  was  the  Island  of  Awaji  on 
which  the  divine  couple  settled,  as  did 
Adam  and  Eve  in  Eden.  From  the  same 
creative  act  seven  other  islands  arose  and 
bore  thenceforth  the  name  Gyashima,  or 
Great  Eight  Islands:  Honshu,  Kyushu,  Shi- 
koku, Sado,  Tsushima,  Oki,  and  Iki.  The 
fact  that  Hokkaido  is  not  mentioned  indi- 
cates that  it  was  unknown  to  the  myth- 
makers,  who  were  naturally  unacquainted 
with  the  more  northern  limits  of  the  archi- 
pelago. But  even  in  the  best  regulated 
households  there  are  troubles;  and  so  the 
divine  couple  at  last  quarrelled,  the  husband, 
Izanagi,  retiring  to  the  land  of  Idzumo. 
The  incident,  though  mythical,  is  no  doubt 
based  on  the  fact  of  the  constant  collision 
between  the  insular  and  the  continental  im- 


migrants, which  was  probably  a  marked 
feature  of  the  early  colonisation  of  the 
islands.  When  Japanese  mythology  further 
intimates  that  Susano-Omikami  and  his  elder 
sister,  Amaterasu-Omikami,  son  and  daughter 
of  the  first  divine  pair,  had  a  quarrel,  like 
the  first  two  offspring  of  Adam  and  Eve,  the 
brother  being  driven  to  Idzumo,  as  Cain  was 
to  the  land  of  Nod,  it  is  probably  a  repetition 
of  the  first  legend,  both  suggesting  the 
monstrous  regimen  of  woman  even  at  that 
early  date.  In  fact,  all  Japanese  mythology 
tends  to  confirm  the  conviction  that  in  the 
settlement  of  the  islands  the  southern  im- 
migrants vanquished  the  northern,  which 
renders  the  nature  and  origin  of  the  southern 
race  a  subject  of  great  interest. 

In  Japanese  mythology  the  southern  race 
is  represented  as  two  tribes;  the  Oyama-zumi, 
or  mountain-dwellers,  ami  the  Honosuserino- 
mikoto,  or  coast  men.  Doubtless  the  new- 
comers, being  fresh  from  the  parent  country, 
were  better  equipped  for  war,  and  drove  the 
coast  dwellers  into  the  mountains,  as  the 
Romans  did  the  Britons,  and  as  the  English 
colonists  did  the  Indians  in  America. 

ARCH^OLOGICAL  EVIDENCE 
Arch.bology  tends  to  emphasise  the  truth 
of  the  above  tradition,  as  well  as  to  throw 
some  light  on  the  origin  of  the  races  indicated. 
Fragments  of  pottery  known  as  yayoi  are 
supposed  to  represent  the  early  immigrants 
who  came  up  on  the  Black  Current,  as  they 
are  found  chiefly  in  Kyushu  and  Shikoku, 
and  even  as  far  north  as  mid- Japan.  The 
fact  that  they  have  some  remote  resemblance 
to  utensils  found  in  Java  and  Sumatra  affords 
interesting  inferences.  It  is  probable,  on  the 
other  hand,  that  the  more  recent  coast- 
dwellers  were  of  Malayan  origin.  The  name 
Hososuserino-mikoto,  by  which  they  are 
referred  to  in  Japanese  mythology,  means 
"blazing  fire,"  which  possibly  suggests  a 
very  warlike  temperament.  Landing  on  the 
coasts  of  the  Island  of  Kyushu,  these  Malay- 
ans probably  made  their  centre  in  Satsuma. 
One  tribe  of  these,  called  the  Hayato,  seems 
to  have  worn  clothes  not  unlike  those  in 
Oceania.  They  were  fond  of  dancing,  and 
were  noted  rebels,  as  may  be  inferred  from 
references  to  them  in  the  legends  of  old 
Japan.  These  Kyushu  tribes  were  doubtless 
of  large,  thickset  build,  brachycephalic,  flat- 
nosed,  with  thick  lips  and  mouth,  examples 
of  which  can  be  seen  among  even  the  noble 
famiUes  of  Satsuma  to-day. 

As  to  the  tribes  that  came  over  by  way 
of  Tsushima  and  settled  on  the  Idzumo 
coast,  it  is  evident  that  they  also  varied  to  a 
considerable  extent,  and  had  their  clans,  the 
chief  of  which  were  the  Idzumo  people  who 
make  Susano-Omikami,  son  of  Izanagi  and 


28 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


Izanami,  their  ancestor.     There  was  also  a 
tribe    known    as    the    Tajima,    headed    by 
Amano-hibokotono-mikoto,  and  another  tribe 
called  the  Tenson.     It  is  obvious  that  the 
Idzumo  tribe  came  from  Korea,  as  may  be 
inferred  from   the   legends   recorded   in    the 
ancient  fudoki,  or  provincial  oflficial  records 
of  Idzumo,  where  it  is  said  that  Susano-O 
went  to  Korea.     This  people  most  probably 
had     acquired     a     considerable     degree     of 
culture   before   immigrating   to   the   islands, 
associated,   as  they  must  have  been,   with 
the    civilisation    of    China,    and    skilled    in 
metallurgy,       weaving,       and      agriculture. 
Amano  was  possibly   the  son  of  a  Korean 
king  of  Shiragi.     The  tribe  which  he  led  to 
the  shores  of  Idzumo  no  doubt  came  into 
collision   with   the   tribes   already    there,   as 
did  the  Danes  and  Saxons  in  Britain,  and 
after  much   strife   they   were   in   turn   very 
likely  brought  into  subjection  to  the  Tenson 
people,  the  superior  of  all  the  other  tribes 
in    spirit,     skill,     and    general    civilisation. 
This    race    was    of    Mongolian    or    Palasian 
stock,    dolichocephalic,    of    slender    stature, 
with  long  face  and  nose,  and  small  mouth. 
Japanese   scientists  are   not   quite   agreed 
as  to  whether  the  superior  race  came  from 
the  north  or  the  south.     There  is  good  author- 
ity for  beheving  that  the  insular  and  con- 
tinental   tribes    which    peopled    the    north 
coast    of    Kyushu    were    of    quite    superior 
stock,  estabhshing  a  sea  kingdom  known  as 
the  Wadatsumi,  there  being  no  archaeological 
remains  to  show  that  this  tribe  settled  in 
the  south  of  the  island.     Moreover,  the  cult 
of   phallic    worship    which   persisted   for   so 
many  centuries  in  Japan,  and  is  not  even 
yet  quite  extinct,  coincides  remarkably  with 
similar  ctdts  in  Borneo,  and  no  doubt  had  its 
rise    in    Polynesia,    spreading    over    India, 
Phoenicia,  Greece,  Egypt,  and  other  countries. 
The  mathematics  of  Japanese  mythology  also 
suggests  a  southern  origin.     In  ancient  Japan 
they   had   a   system   of   counting   by   eight, 
which    probably    arose    from    omitting    the 
thumbs    when    counting    on    the    hands,    a 
custom    which    exists    in    Borneo    where    a 
sacred  value  is  attached  to  the  number  eight. 
Also  in  many  ways  Japanese  physiognomy 
resembles  that  of  the  natives  of  the  Philip- 
pines and  the  Tonga  Islands.     The  customs 
of  colouring  the   teeth  and  of  cockfighting 
which  prevailed  in  Japan  were  of  Polynesian 
origin.     The  architecture  of  the  two  races  is 
also  somewhat  alike,  especially  in  thatching 
and  the  elevation  of  the  floor  and  general 
openness.     These   facts,    of   course,    do   not 
tend   to   discredit   the   fact   of   immigration 
from  Korea  to  Idzuma  from  which  direction 
the    more    superior    of    the    Japanese    race 
probably  came,  especially  the  Tenson,  which 
some  Japanese  regard  as  the  imperial  race. 


iJ 


vv 


■1<- 


■^        -^iS' 


r 


SHIIR.\    MIO-JIX,    ONE  OF  THE  .\NCIENT  GODS. 

FROM    A    PAINTING  IN  THE  IMPERIAL  MUSEUM, 

TOKYO 

On  the  whole  it  seems  safe  to  conclude 
that  the  southern  and  northern  streams  of 
immigration  clashed  and  struggled  until 
fusion  was  finally  complete  and  that  unity 
achieved  which  now  characterises  the  people 
of  Japan.  It  cannot  be  denied,  however, 
that  the  uniformity  is  not  so  complete  as  to 
have  wholly  obliterated  the  original  diver- 
gences of  race  and  tribe,  for  reversion  to 
type  is  common,  and  enters  even  into  politics 
and  caste  in  modern  Japan.  Archeology 
further  reaffirms  the  tradition  of  the  Japanese 
and  the  Ainu  as  to  the  existence  of  cave- 
dwellers,  or  earth-spiders,  who  inhabited  the 
islands  before  the  Ainu  and  their  conquerors, 
and  who  were  of  a  culture  approaching  that 
of  the  neolithic  period.  The  kitchen  remains 
and  stone  implements  found  simultaneously 
in  Japan,  Saghalien,  and  the  Amur  region 
show  that  a  similar  culture  prevailed  in  all 
these  countries,  suggesting  the  northern 
origin  of  the  Ainu  and  their  predecessors, 
though  such  high  authorities  as  Dr.  Gordon 
Monroe  think  the  Ainu  may  have  had  a 
more  southern  origin.  One  must  at  least 
infer  that  the  Ainu  conquered  the  cave- 
dwellers  or  real  aborigines,  and  were  in  turn 
themselves  conquered  by  the  Yamato.  Thus 
the  Japanese  race  is  a  mixture  of  Mongolian, 


Annamese,  Malayan,  Javan,  and  Indonesian 
bloods,  though  their  philological  relations  are 
chiefly  with  the  continent  of  East  Asia. 

D.\WN  OF  EMPIRE 
Most  of  the  tales  with  regard  to  the  es- 
tablishment of  the  Empire  and  its  first  ruler 
must  be  regarded  as  mythical,  though  un- 
doubtedly there  are  some  substrata  of  truth 
in  them.  Although  there  are  no  authentic 
historical  records  before  the  sixth  century 
A.  D.,  the  Japanese  believe  that  their 
Empire  has  enjoyed  an  unbroken  and  in- 
dependent history  of  2,570  years.  While 
this  obviously  requires  more  faith  in  mythol- 
ogy than  the  modern  world  is  prepared  to 
approve,  archaeology  affords  ample  ground 
for  inferring  that  Japanese  history  and  civil- 
isation extend  far  behind  the  nation's  written 
records.  The  numerous  objects  of  highly 
developed  art  and  utility  that  have  come 
down  to  us  from  prehistoric  time  in  Japan 
suggest  at  once  a  state  of  society  so  well 
advanced  that  it  must  have  had  its  origin 
centuries  before  the  beginning  of  recorded 
annals.  When  objects  indicating  a  highly 
evolved  stage  of  civilisation  are  found  in  the 
Japan  of  the  seventh  century  it  is  not  too 
much  to  suppose  them  the  fruits  of  a  social 
system  that  had  birth  at  least  a  thousand 
years  before.  Yet  it  must  not  be  forgotten 
that  Japanese  civilisation,  like  the  national 
system  of  writing,  came  for  the  most  part 
ready-made  from  China,  and  soon  dominated 
the  semi-civilised  tribes  crowding  upon  the 
shores  of  the  archipelago  from  the  continent 
and  the  islands  of  the  Pacific.  Consequently 
the  Yamato  civilisation  developed  much  more 
rapidly  than  it  could  have  done  unaided. 

The  Kojiki,  or  Record  of  Ancient  Matters, 
is  the  oldest  of  Japan's  historical  records,  but 
nevertheless  mostly  of  a  mythical  nature; 
yet  it  very  probably  has  some  grain  of  histor- 
ical truth  in  the  assertion  that  the  first 
emperor  was  the  direct  descendant  in  the 
fifth  generation  of  the  Sun  Goddess,  Ama- 
terasu  Omikami.  His  original  home  is  in- 
dicated as  at  the  base  of  Mount  Takachiho, 
in  the  Province  of  Hyuga  in  Kyushu,  whither 
his  ancestors  had  descended  from  on  high. 
He  led  an  expedition  northward;  and  after 
many  long  travels  by  sea  and  land,  including 
some  miraculous  adventures,  he  reached  the 
land  of  Yamato  in  central  Japan  where 
Kyoto  now  stands,  establishing  his  capital 
at  a  place  between  Osaka  and  Nara.  There 
he  reigned  seventy-five  years,  at  last  passing 
away  at  the  age  of  one  hundred  twenty-seven. 
Divested  of  its  mythical  elements  this  prob- 
ably means  that  the  first  ruler  was  the  chief 
of  a  body  of  immigrants  which  landed  in 
Kyushu;  and  having  established  a  base  on 
the  island,   finally   pushed  authority  as  far 


PRESENT-DAY        IMPRESSIONS        OF        JAPAN 


29 


IRON    HELMET     RECOVERED    FROM    DOLMEN    IN 

YECHIZEN      PROVINCE.        IN     THE 

IMPERIAL    MUSEUM,    TOKYO 

north  as  the  central  portion  of  Honshu, 
meeting  the  men  from  Idzumo  on  the  way. 
The  first  chieftain,  like  the  vikings  of  Europe, 
was  undiscouraged  by  storms  and  other 
dangers,  but  jiroceeded  on  his  way,  laying 
waste  the  land  and  exterminating  the  Ainu 
and  the  tsuchi-guma  wherever  they  opposed 
his  march,  until  he  met  and  overcame  the 
more  highly  civilised  tribes  of  the  north. 
After  the  establishment  of  the  capital  at 
Kashiwabara  in  Yamato  the  prowess  of  the 
conquerors  was  chiefly  bent  on  subduing  the 
Ainu  and  other  northern  savages,  who  in- 
habited inaccessible  places  and  stubbornly 
contested  every  step  of  the  imperial  advance. 
Since  archsological  remains  of  the  Ainu  are 
found  as  far  south  as  Kyushu  it  is  supposed 
that  they  one  time  inhabited  the  whole  of 
the  archipelago  and  were  driven  north  by 
the  immigrants.  But  who  the  Ainu  are  and 
whence  they  came  remains  an  unsolved 
problem,  in  spite  of  extensive  research.  A 
study  of  their  language,  as  compared  with 
that  of  Japan,  shows  that  the  two  tongues 
have  but  little  in  common,  though  mutually 
borrowing  from  each  other.  The  traditions 
of  the  Ainu  themselves  indicate  a  northern 
origin.  Up  the  rivers  and  bays  of  the 
islands  they  came  two  thousand  years  ago 
in  their  rude  dugouts,  and  assaulted  the 
heights  occupied  by  the  unknown  race  now 
extinct.  They  won  their  way  south  until 
they  met  the  Yamato  and  so  were  finally 
turned  back  by  the  legions  of  Jimmu  Tenno. 
It  is  clear,  however,  that  through  the  seventh 
and  eighth  centuries  they  were  still  not  fully 
subdued,  as  expeditions  were  often  sent 
against  them.  Indeed,  relations  between  the 
Yamato  and  tlie  Ainu  were  much  the  same  as 
those  prevailing  to-day  between  the  Japanese 
and  the  savages  in  Formosa,  or  as  between 
the  Romans  and  Picts  in  ancient  Britain. 

EARLY    CIVILIS.\TION 
The   state    of    civilisation    prevailing    in 
Yamato   from    the    days   of   Jimmu    Tenno 


down  to  the  beginning  of  recorded  history 
in  the  sixth  century  A.  D.  may  be  inferred 
from  the  Kojiki,  the  Nihongi  and  other 
ancient  chronicles,  whose  mythical  nature 
need  not  nullify  their  evidence  as  to  the 
current  condition  of  society.  The  Yamato 
of  the  mythic  period  long  knew  how  to  work 
in  iron,  for  they  made  swords  and  lances 
and  other  objects  of  metal.  One  of  the 
southern  tribes  had  bronze  implements, 
some  of  which  have  been  found  in  archaeolog- 
ical remains.  Though  pestle  and  mortar, 
scythe  and  shuttle,  are  mentioned,  nothing 
is  said  of  the  saw  and  axe  which  must  have 
been  quite  as  common.  There  is  mention  of 
houses,  temples,  palaces  and  other  buildings, 
which  appear  to  have  been  along  the  banks 
of  rivers  and  the  seacoast.  Ropes  seem  to 
have  been  used  in  place  of  nails,  as  is  still 
often  the  custom  in  Japan,  even  for  fastening 
together  the  frames  of  houses,  of  which  the 
floors  were  on  a  level  with  the  ground,  afford- 
ing access  to  reptiles  and  other  creeping 
things.  The  roof  was  of  straw  thatch  in 
which  an  opening  was  left  for  smoke  to 
escape.  Houses  had  windows  and  skin  mats, 
doors  had  hinges,  and  there  is  mention  of 
silk.  Cleanliness  was  apparently  regarded 
as  important,  bathing  being  common.  The 
main  food  was  meat,  fish  and  rice,  but  beans, 
millet,  and  barley  are  also  mentioned. 
Food  was  served  in  pottery  or  on  leaves. 
Dress  showed  some  degree  of  elegance,  and 
included  jackets,  loose  trousers,  girdles,  hats, 
bracelets,  and  necklaces,  the  material  of 
clothing  being  chiefly  hemp  or  bark.  Horses 
and  domestic  fowls  were  kept,  and  the 
cormorant  was  used  for  fishing.  There  is 
no  reference  to  cats,  pigs,  or  sheep.  The 
orange  is  mentioned  as  having  come  from 
the  land  of  eternity.  The  people  as  yet 
knew  nothing  of  tea,  fans,  porcelain,  lacquer, 
carriages,  chronology,  money,  medicine,  or 
letters.  They  made  no  difference,  as  many 
Japanese  still  do,  between  blue  and  green; 
and  there  was  no  difference  between  the  word 
for  sister  and  for  wife,  as  marriage  with 
sisters  was  common,  especially  if  she  were 
the  child  of  a  different  mother,  as  must  often 
(or  perhaps  always)  have  been  the  case  in 
a  polygamous  society.  The  custom  still 
prevails  in  Siam.  There  was  no  marriage 
ceremony;  and  a  citizen  could  have  as  many 
wives  as  he  liked.  Burial  was  conducted 
with  due  ceremony;  and  the  house  of  a 
deceased  master  was  abandoned.  Coffins 
were  of  wood;  and  frequently  the  retainers 
of  great  personages  were  buried  alive  with 
their  masters,  the  heads  being  left  above  the 
earth.  This  custom  prevailed  down  to  70 
A.  D.,  when  clay  figures  were  substituted  for 
living  forms.  But  the  idea  of  it  being  the 
duty    of    the    dependent    to    die    with    the 


master  still  obtains  in  Japan,  as  was  seen 
in  the  action  of  the  late  General  Baron  Nogi, 
who  deliberately  took  his  life  to  depart  with 
the  late  Emperor  Meiji.  In  the  later  ages 
of  mythical  Japan  the  dead  were  interred  in 
dolmens,  many  of  which  yet  remain  to  in- 
dicate the  state  of  civilisation  contempo- 
raneous with  them.  Some  of  these  dolmens 
are  of  gigantic  proportions  and  of  a  megalithic 
construction  that  puzzles  the  mind  of  the 
modern  engineer  to  know  how  such  mono- 
liths were  lifted  into  place.  In  these  dol- 
mens are  found  fragments  of  pottery,  bronze 
harness  decorations,  bronze  mirrors,  and 
gold  rings.  Treachery  and  dishonesty  appear 
to  have  marred  the  social  and  moral  life  of 
the  ancient  Yamato,  examples  of  which  are 
numerous  in  the  ancient  chronicles. 

(B)     THE  YAMATO  EMPIRE 

B.  C.  660  to  794  A.  D. 

CONSOLIDATING  THE  INFANT  EMPIRE 
In  Japanese  history,  even  after  the  veil  of 
legend  has  been  lifted  and  tradition  begins 
to  assume  a  more  tangible  form  there  is  still 
a  remarkable  absence  of  reliable  data  by 
which  the  ancient  heroes  can  be  disrobed  of 
the  myths  that  enshroud  them.  As  has 
already    been    indicated,    according    to    the 


IRON     CUIRASS     RECOVERED    FROM     A    DOLMEN 

IN    VECHIZEN    PROVINCE.       IN    THE 

IMPERIAL  MUSEUM,  TOKYO 

ancient  chronicles,  Jimmu  Tenno,  the  first 
emperor,  set  up  his  capital  at  Kashiwabara 
in  Yamato  whence  he  subdued  the  tribes  of 
the  neighbouring  districts.  He  was  the 
founder  of  the  imperial  dynasty  that  still 
rules  Japan,  of  which  the  present  Emperor 
Yoshihito,  is  the  122nd  in  direct  succession. 
Jimmu  means  "Prime  War  Spirit,"  and 
Tenno  means  "King  of  Heaven,"  and  every 
emperor  of  Japan  has  the  latter  title.     As 


30 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


imperial  palladia  the  first  emperor  left  to 
his  successor  the  three  divine  symbols  given 
him  by  the  divine  ancestors;  the  sacred 
mirror,  the  sacred  sword,  and  the  sacred 
jewel,  which  each  ruler  of  Japan  has  since 
received  in  turn,  and  without  which  no  one 
can  ascend  the  imperial  throne  of  the  nation. 
The  three  sacred  treasures  were  handed  down 
in  order  by  the  succeeding  ten  emperors;  but 
in  the  reign  of  Sujin  Tenno  facsimiles  of  them 
were  made,  and  the  originals  deposited  in  the 
imperial  shrine  erected  at  Ise,  which  was 
built  in  honour  of  Tensho  Daijin,  the  pos- 
thumous name  of  the  ancestor  who  first  con- 
ferred the  sacred  treasures  on  the  Imperial 
House.  This  shrine  thenceforth  became  the 
central  altar  of  worship  for  the  whole  Empire, 
as  it  stUl  is,  thousands  making  pilgrimages 
to  it  from  all  parts  of  the  country.  The 
tenth  emperor,  Suiin  Tenno  (b.  c.  90  to  30), 
like  Jimmu  Tenno,  was  a  remarkably  en- 
lightened sovereign,  who  subdued  his  foes, 
promoted  civilisation  and  first  introduced  a 
system  of  irrigation  for  rice  fields,  as  well  as 
instituted  ta.xation  and  regular  religious  wor- 
ship.    In  his  reign,  for  the  first  time,  Japan 


ONE   OF    THE    FINEST   -VND    OLDEST   SPECIMENS 
OF    ANCIENT   JAP.^NESE    ARMOUR,  TRADI-- 
TIONALLY  SAID  TO  HAVE  BEEN'  WORN    BY 
GENERAL   MINAMOTONO    YOSHIIJE 


came  into  contact  with   Korea,   then  under 
the  suzerainty  of  China.     The  peninsula  at 
that   time   was   divided   into   various   petty 
kingdoms,  one  of  which  appealed  to  Yamato 
for  aid  against  oppression  from  the  north. 
The  Yamato  empire  sent  an  envoy  to  inter- 
view the  offender  and  his  mission  was  success- 
ful,  which  shows  the  respect  in  which  the 
Yamato   country   was   held   at    that   period. 
The   kingdom   of   Mimana   offered   compen- 
sation for  aggression  on  its  southern  neigh- 
bour  by   sending   tribute    to   Yamato,    and 
thus  began  a  dependency  which  extended  to 
other  Korean  states,  and  was  the  seed  which 
sowed  the  policy  leading  to  the  annexation 
of    the    peninsula    1942    years    later.      The 
succeeding  emperor,    Suinin,   (b.  c.  29  to  70 
A.  D.),  distinguished  his  reign  by  constructing 
great    rice    warehouses    and    abolishing    the 
cruel  custom  of  having  retainers  buried  alive 
with  the  body  of  their  master.     The  Emperor 
Keiko    (71    to    130    a.    d.)     was    an    active 
prince  who  had  much  to  do  with  suppressing 
the  Kumaso  tribe  in  Kyushu,  in  which  war 
his  younger  son.  Prince  Yamatodake,  became 
a  great  hero,  whose  name  still  lives  in  national 
legend.     He  it   was   who   also   subdued   the 
Yemishi  tribes  of  the  northern  plains  between 
Yedo  Bay  and  the  mountains  of  Nikko,  in 
fact  the  whole  kwanto  countr\'.     In  crossing 
the  Bay  of  Sagami  he  lost  his  beautiful  wife, 
Tachibana  Hime,  who  flung  herself  into  the 
angry  sea  to  appease  the  wrath  of  Kompira 
(Neptune)  and  aUay  the  waves  that  threat- 
ened   to    engulf    her    husband's    boat,    thus 
becoming    a   perpetual   example    to   faithful 
wi\-es    and    earning    the    veneration    of    all 
Japanese   women,    her   statue   being   a   con- 
spicuous ornament  in  the  capital  of  Japan. 

EXPEDITION  TO  KOREA 
In  the  reign  of  the  fourteenth  emperor, 
Chuai  (191  to  200  A.  D.),  the  tribal  im- 
migrants in  Kyushu  raised  another  insur- 
rection and  the  emperor  himself  led  an 
expedition  against  them,  accompanied  by 
his  consort,  the  beautiful  Jingo-kogo,  famed 
for  her  piety  and  intelligence.  She  con- 
ceived the  idea  of  pushing  the  expedition 
to  Korea,  which  her  lord  declined  to  favour, 
but  as  he  soon  died,  she  undertook  to  lead 
the  invasion  of  the  peninsula  herself  in 
person,  which  she  successfully  did,  to  the 
dismay  of  the  Korean  kingdoms,  all  of  which 
yielded  and  consented  to  pay  tribute  to 
Japan.  This  further  contact  of  Japan  with 
Korea  made  the  peninsula  a  regular  medium 
of  communication  with  China,  whence  the 
ci\alisation  and  art  of  that  country  now 
steadily  found  their  way  into  the  Yamato 
empire,  changing  its  language,  laws,  and 
industry.  This  tendency  was  further  pro- 
moted by  the  Emperor  Ojin  (270-310  a.  d.) 


ARMlU'R    USED    BY    KUSUNOKl    MASASHIGE,    IX 
THE    FOURTEENTH    CENTURY 

who  was  son  of  the  Empress  Jingo,  and  who 
drew  slaves  from  Korea  and  imported 
horses,  arms,  miners,  smiths,  weavers,  and 
teachers  from  China.  On  account  of  his 
martial  prowess  this  emperor  has  been 
apotheosized  as  Hachiman,  the  god  of  war, 
with  numerous  temples  still  throughout  the 
Empire,  succoring  the  souls  of  all  Japanese 
who  fight  for  their  country.  During  the 
reign  of  Nintoku  Tenno  (311-399  A.  d.) 
were  made  the  first  experiments  in  the  breed- 
ing of  silkworms  in  Yamato;  and  the  reign 
was  further  distinguished  for  liberal  remission 
of  taxation  and  encouragement  of  rice  cul- 
tivation as  well  as  by  construction  of  roads. 
An  expedition  had  to  be  sent  to  Korea  to 
insist  on  keeping  up  payment  of  tribute,  and 
another  revolt  01  the  Yeraislii  tribes  had  to 
be  stemlj'  put  down.  Succeeding  rulers  for 
some  time  appear  to  have  been  of  little  im- 
portance, save  as  they  weakened  the  Yamato 
empire  by  their  sensual  inclinations  and 
general  effeminac}-,  loosening  the  ties  with 
Korea.  The  whole  of  the  fifth  century  seems 
to  have  been  given  to  frequent  revolts  and 
dynastic  changes,  or  to  quarrels  with  Korea. 

IXTRODUCTIOX  OF  Bl'DDHIS.M 
With  the  advent  of  Buddhism  in  the  early 
part  of  the  sixth  century  a  change  for  the 
better  came  over  the  government  and 
country.  The  religion  of  Yamato  was 
Shinto,  the  Way  of  the  Gods;  but  as  the 
gods,  or  kami,  were  only  the  national  an- 
cestors, not  a  very  lofty  ideal  could  have 
been  before  the  people  for  worship  and 
emulation;  and  consequently  society  neither 
morally     nor     mentally     much     improved. 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


31 


Buddhism,  while  not  introducing  a  much 
more  definite  or  rational  thcogony,  yet 
brought  more  humane  ways  of  life  and  civil- 
isation, as  well  as  some  measure  of  the  art 
and  culture  it  had  given  to  India  and  China. 
Buddhist  statues  appear  to  have  reached  the 
land  of  Yamato  before  the  religion  they 
represented.  The  first  image  of  Buddha 
reached  the  country  in  the  reign  of  the 
Emperor  Ketai  (507-5,^1  A.  D.)  as  a  gift 
from  a  king  of  Korea.  By  the  year  552  the 
new  religion  began  to  inculcate  its  doctrines 
through  missionaries  from  Korea.  An  image 
which  the  king  of  Korea  sent  to  the  Emperor 
Kinmei  (540-571  A.  D.)  seems  to  have 
created  considerable  commotion  in  the 
religious  world  of  Yamato;  for  the  king  of 
Korea  praised  the  new  religion,  recounting 
the  wonders  it  had  wrought  for  his  country 
and  commending  it  to  His  Majesty  of 
Yamato,  with  accompaniments  of  mission- 
aries, books,  and  altar  ornaments;  but  the 
strange  faith  met  with  spirited  opposition 
from  the  e.\ponents  of  Shinto,  who  feared  it 
would  offend  the  national  gods  and  bring 
calamity  on  the  Empire.  The  emperor 
appears  to  have  taken  a  more  liberal  view 
and  not  to  have  assumed  a  partisan  attitude 
either  way.  He  was,  however,  obliged  to 
make  peace  by  handing  over  the  objection- 
able image  to  an  officer  of  the  court  who  had 
gone  over  to  the  Buddhist  faith,  in  whose 
hands  it  became  a  Ijasis  of  Buddhist  propa- 
ganda. Thereafter  the  emperor  contented 
himself  with  requesting  the  king  of  Korea 
to  send  to  Yamato  physicians,  soothsayers, 
and  chronologists  instead  of  Buddhist  mis- 
sionaries and  their  paraphernalia. 

Through  the  whole  of  the  sixth  century 
apparently  there  were  incessant  petty  quarrels 
among  the  kingdoms  of  Korea,  Mimana, 
and  Korai  finally  getting  the  best  of  it  and 
in  turn  invoking  the  aid  of  Yamato,  sending 
valuable  presents  which  the  Yamato  chron- 
iclers describe  as  tribute.  Meanwhile  the 
Buddhist  religion  continued  to  make  headway 
and  take  firm  root  in  Yamato,  although  the 
adherents  of  Shinto  ascribed  all  fires,  earth- 
quakes, and  national  calamities  to  the  anger 
of  the  old  gods  on  account  of  jealousy 
against  the  new.  The  progress  of  the  new 
faith  seems  to  have  been  due  for  the  most 
part  to  the  tact  of  the  Buddhist  missionaries 
in  hitting  upon  a  policy  of  compromise  in 
which  the  new  gods  were  represented  as 
being  really  the  Shinto  gods  under  other 
names,  to  prove  which  they  welcomed  many  of 
the  Shinto  deities  into  the  Buddliist  pantheon 
or   gave   the   Buddhist  gods   Shinto  names. 

BEGINNING    OF    CHINESE    INFLUENCE 
In    the    reign    of    the    Emperor    Sushun 
(560-592    A.    D.)    the    king    of    Kudara    in 


BELL-SHAPED     BRONZES     RECOVERED     FROM 

DOLMEN.      VERY    ANCIENT    SPECIMENS     OK 

METAL    WORK    IN   JAPAN.      NOW    IN 

THE    IMPERIAL    MUSEUM 

Korea  sent  over  to  Y'amato  temple  archi- 
tects, wood  workers,  painters,  priests,  Bud- 
dhas,  and  relics;  and  when  the  Empress 
Suiko  came  to  the  throne  in  593  she  openly 
declared  herself  in  favour  of  the  new  religion 
and  thus  gained  it  a  wider  admission.  This 
led    to    more    intimate    relations    with    the 


BRONZE  HALBERT  AND  DAGGER  RECOVERED 

FROM  DOLMEN.  NOW  IN  THE 

IMPERI.\L  MUSEUM 


Korean  kingdoins  and  especially  with  China. 
Now  came  to  Yamato  knowledge  of  paper- 
making,  ink,  and  millstones,  as  well  as  music. 
This  empress  further  introduced  the  elabo- 
rate ceremonies  of  the  Chinese  court  with 
all  its  rigidly  maintained  subordination  of 
class  and  rank.  The  Empress  Suiko  ruled 
through  her  adopted  son,  Prince  Shotoku,  as 
regent;  and  as  he  was  a  devoted  disciple  of 
Buddha  the  religion  made  great  progress 
under  his  auspices.  At  his  death  there  were 
no  less  than  46  temples,  816  priests,  and  569 
monks  in  the  country.  Upon  the  demise  of 
the  good  empress  internecine  strife  arose 
over  the  succession  and  continued  until  the 
Emperor  Kotoku  ascended  the  throne  in  662, 
after  which  time  Yamato  came  still  more 
under  the  influence  of  China.  Chinese  titles 
of  rank,  such  as  Daijin  (Great  Minister), 
Sadaijin  (Great  Left  Minister),  Udaijin 
(Great  Right  Minister),  and  Naidaijin  (Great 
Inside  Minister)  came  into  use  for  the  first 
time,  and  the  country  was  divided  into 
provinces  after  the  fashion  of  Chinese  ter- 
ritory. The  custom  of  burying  retainers 
alive  with  their  dead  masters,  which  had 
been  revived  with  the  growing  laxity  of 
society  in  previous  reigns,  was  now  sternly 
prohibited.  The  Emperor  Tenji  (662-670 
A.  D.)  further  increased  •  the  system  of 
Chinese  officialism,  creating  the  office  of 
Daijodaijin,  or  Minister  President,  and  made 
his  friend  Fujiwara  Imperial  Counsellor, 
next  in  rank  to  the  Imperial  Family.  Thus 
began  an  influence  which  the  Fujiwara 
family  retained  for  centuries,  the  imperial 
consorts  always  being  taken  therefrom;  and 
the  custom  continues  even  down  to  to-day, 
the  Fujiwara,  next  to  the  Imperial  Family, 
being  the  oldest  in  Japan.  In  this  reign 
China  joined  some  of  the  Korean  kingdoms 
in  an  expedition  against  Japanese  influence 
in  Kudara,  when  the  Yamato  garrison  was 
driven  out  and  sent  home,  bringing  witli  it 
a  large  Korean  immigration.  By  this  time 
Yamato  was  w'ell  under  the  influence  of  the 
Buddhist  religion;  for  we  find  the  next  Em- 
peror, Temmu  Tenno  (673-686  A.  D.), 
making  confession  of  Buddhist  faith  obliga- 
tory, and  prohibiting  the  eating  of  fiesh. 
At  this  time  silver  was  for  the  first  time 
found  in  Yamato,  on  the  Island  of  Tsushima. 
In  the  succeeding  reign,  that  of  the  Empress 
Jito  (687-696  A.  D.),  the  temples  of  Buddha 
increased  to  545;  and  tiles  were  for  the  first 
time  used  in  roofing  houses.  Under  Mommu 
Tenno  (697-707  A.  D.)  the  mulberry  was 
cultivated,  as  well  as  the  lacquer  tree,  and 
cremation  used  in  disposing  of  the  dead. 
During  the  rule  of  the  Empress  Gemmei 
(708-714  A.  D.)  the  great  highway,  known 
ever  since  as  the  Nakasendo,  was  constructed 
through    Mino    and    Shinano;    and    copper 


32 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF    JAPAN 


mines  were  discovered  and  worked  in  Mu- 
sashi.  It  was  in  this  reign  that  the  Kojiki, 
the  first  written  annals  of  the  Empire,  were 
compiled,  followed  in  the  next  reign,  that  of 
the  Empress  Gensho  (715-723  A.  D.),  by 
the  issue  of  the  Nihongi,  the  second  oldest 
source  of  Japanese  history.  Through  the 
reign  of  the  Emperor  Shomei  (723-748  A.  D.) 
expeditions  were  carried  on  by  Fujiwara 
Umakai  against  the  northern  savages,  the 
frontal  barrier  of  the  Empire  being  pushed 
as  far  as  the  present  Sendai.  Chinese 
learning  at  this  period  poured  into  Yamato; 
and  a  Japanese  who  had  lived  long  in  China 
introduced  a  sj-stem  of  syllabic  writing 
known  as  the  katakana,  used  ever  since. 

The  next  four  sovereigns  of  Yamato  did 
little  worthy  of  record;  but  the  reign  of  the 
Emperor  Kwammu  (782-807  \.  D.)  opened 
a  very  important  chapter  in  the  history  of 
the  Empire.  He  was  a  ruler  of  unusual  in- 
telligence and  application,  directing  all 
departments  of  government  with  efficiency 
and  success.  He  built  for  himself  a  new 
thv  on  the  banks  of  the  River  Kamo  which 


he  called  Kyoto,  and  removed  thither  the 
capital  from  Nara.  By  this  time  Buddhist 
superstition  seems  to  have  taken  full  posses- 
sion of  society;  for  it  was  believed  that  the 
approach  of  devils  would  always  be  from 
what  was  called  the  devil's  gate  toward  the 
northeast  of  the  new  city;  and  consequently 
the  sovereign  had  a  great  new  temple  erected 
at  Mount  Hiyei  to  keep  watch  and  ward 
over  the  capital,  by  reciting  sutras  and 
be -it  ng  drums  to  keep  away  the  evil  spirits; 
which  explains  why  Heiyeizan  has  been  held 
sacred  through  succeeding  generations. 
Expeditions  against  the  northern  tribes  had 
to  be  undertaken  in  this  reign  also.  Indians 
wrecked  on  the  coasts  of  Yamato  brought 
cotton  seed  to  the  islands  for  the  first  time; 
but  the  cultivation  of  the  plant  did  not 
succeed  and  it  had  to  be  reintroduced  later 
from  China. 

Thus  closes  a  period  of  more  than  a 
thousand  years  of  Yamato  history  in  which 
the  chief  events  were  the  nation's  increasing 
intimacy  with  Korea  and  China  and  the 
influence  of  Buddhism  on  Yamato  civilisa- 


tion. Both  Buddhism  and  Chinese  influence 
instilled  into  the  Japanese  that  reverence  for 
ceremonialism  and  "red  tape"  from  which  it 
has  not  yet  recovered,  and  led  to  an  effem- 
inacy of  spirit  that  devoted  more  attention 
to  sensuous  ease  and  inner  refinement  than 
to  the  sterner  \'irtues  which  manly  discipline 
demands.  Manners  became  morals,  and 
etiquette  more  important  than  character. 
The  world  was  essentially  evil  and  all  good 
lay  in  forsaking  it  or  commanding  supreme 
influence  in  it.  Government  was  for  the 
most  part  a  system  of  rivalry  between  great 
families,  while  society  was  marked  by  love 
of  ease  and  art,  with  the  masses  in  poverty 
and  ignorance.  With  the  firm  implantation 
of  Chinese  influence  distinction  between 
soldiers  and  civilians  became  more  marked. 
The  Mikado  no  longer  took  his  place  at  the 
head  of  his  battalions,  but  relegated  that 
authority  to  successful  warriors,  giving  rise 
to  three  great  rival  families,  the  Fujiwara, 
the  Taira,  and  the  Minamoto,  who  figure 
prominently  in  succeeding  history.  The 
monarch     having     thus     abandoned     direct 


THE    I.MPERI.M,    PAL.^CE,    TOKYO 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


33 


connection  with  active  government,  lived 
in  seclusion  with  his  court  nobles,  whilst 
the  military  class  thus  created  developed  a 
serving  class  known  as  samui-ai  who  fought 
for  their  masters,  paving  the  way  for  the 
final  introduction  of  feudalism.  The  Fuji- 
wara  family,  through  supplying  consorts  to 
the  rulers,  ultimately  had  the  upper  hand 
with  the  imperial  court,  and  allotted  the 
supreme  military  command  to  members  of 
the  Minamoto  or  the  Taira  clan. 

(C)     PERIOD  OF  FAMILY  DESPOTISM 

7Q4  to  1603  A.  D. 

THE    FUJIWARA    BUREAUCRACY 

The  Fujiwara  family,  which  derived  its 
infliRnce  from  having  been  reputed  friends 
of  the  first  emperor,  Jimmu  Tenno,  as  the 
years  went  on  occupied  a  position  of  in- 
creasing importance  in  the  government  of 
the  country,  always  being  in  close  relation 
with  the  imperial  court,  supplying  the  em- 
peror with  his  consort  and  the  government 
with  counsel.  For  centuries  this  family  hail 
command  of  all  the  higher  civil  offices,  and 
there,  as  well  as  in  the  intrigues  of  the  court, 
they  developed  their  main  activity.  As  the 
mothers  and  wives  of  the  IVIikados  were  all 
Fujiwara,  and  the  princesses  of  the  blood 
were  almost  all  married  to  members  of  that 
family,  its  influence  was  on  every  side  en- 
hanced and  established  beyond  question. 
The  Emperor  Saga  (810-823  a.  d.)  sup- 
planted his  brother  Heizei  Tenno  who  after- 
ward conspired  against  him.  He  set  free 
many  important  Yemishi  prisoners  who  had 
been  taken  in  war  and  allotted  land  to  them; 
and  also  introduced  the  cultivation  of  the 
tea  shrub,  beside  doing  what  he-  could  to 
stay  the  degeneration  of  the  Buddhist  priest- 
hood. His  reign  was  marked  by  frequent 
earthquakes  and  floods  which  enabled  the 
ruler  to  cooperate  with  the  rich  in  alleviating 
the  misery  of  the  people.  The  reign  of  Junna 
Tenno  (824-833  A.  D.)  suflfered  from  further 
distress  in  consequence  of  draught  and  in- 
fectious diseases.  The  next  emperor,  Nim- 
mio  Tenno  (834-851  A.  D.),  was  a  ruler  of 
great  independence  and  intelligence,  pro- 
moting agriculture  and  protecting  the  poor, 
for  whom  he  built  almshouses,  reducing  the 
income  of  the  rich  to  get  the  necessary 
funds;  but  after  his  death  succeeding  rulers 
failed  to  exercise  similar  control,  and  the 
Fujiwara  placed  a  child  on  the  throne, 
themselves  taking  the  regency.  Lacking  in 
military  qualities,  they  were  unable  to  keep 
down  the  savages,  giving  the  Taira  and  Mina- 
moto clans  the  opportunity  to  rise  to  superior 
positions.  A  member  of  the  Fujiwara 
family  during  the  next  reign  managed  to 
raise  himself  to  the  place  of  Kwanpaku,  or 
Chief  of  State,  who  was  really  regent,  as  the 


ruler  was  thenceforth  scarcely  more  than  a 
puppet.  At  this  time  pirates  from  Korea 
ravaged  the  coasts  of  Japan,  probably  in 
revenge  for  .similar  raids  by  the  Japanese 
<m  Korea,  but  were  finally  driven  off.  During 
the  reign  of  the  Emperor  Uda  (888-897 
a.  d.),  the  Fujiwara  had  an  influential  rival 
in  the  person  of  Sugawara  Michizane,  famous 
for  his  erudition  and  piety  and  one  time 
tutor  to  the  emperor,  and  liim  they  now 
wislied  to  oust.  The  Fujiwara  obliged  the 
reigning  emperor  to  abdicate,  placing  on  the 
throne  a  child  of  twelve,  Daigo  Tenno,  who 
reigned  until  930  a.  d.,  and  then  banished 
Sugawara  to  exile  in  Kyushu  where  he  died 
in  misery.  The  noble  spirit  of  Sugawara 
Michizan^  has  been  deified  as  Tenjin,  with 
temples  in  many  parts  of  the  country,  and 
worshipped  as  a  supreme  example  of  loyalty. 


THE    OLD    TOKUGAWA    TOMB,    ATAGO    HILL, 
TOKYO 


In  the  time  of  Shujaku  Tenno  (931-946 
A.  D.),  the  Fujiwara  influence  began  to  wane 
somewhat  before  the  rising  families  of  the 
Taira  and  Minamoto.  A  revolution  in 
Korea  led  to  the  establishment  of  the  king- 
dom of  Korai,  from  which  the  name  "Korea" 
is  derived.  Taira  Masakado  in  this  period 
raised  in  rebellion  against  the  Fujiwara 
autocracy  and  attempted  to  l^ccome  inde- 
pendent in  the  Kwanto  region  over  which 
he  was  governor,  the  rebellion  being  finally 
crushed  by  the  Fujiwara  and  their  influence 
thereby  continued.  The  most  sought-after 
position  as  time  went  on  was  that  of  Sei-i- 
tai-shogun,  or  Generalissimo  who  chastises 
the  Barbarians,  an  office  created  on  account 
of  the  expeditions  against  the  northern 
savages;  and  the  rival  candidates  for  this 
post  were  now  from  the  Minamoto  and  the 
Taira  clans,  both  of  which  traced  descent 
from  imperial  blood. 

RISE  OF  THE  TAIRA  AND  MIXAMOTO 

CLANS 

/g4  to  iigg  A.   D. 

During    the    ninth,    tenth,   and  eleventh 

centuries  while  the  Fujiwara  still  maintained 


its  bureaucratic  position  at  court,  and  the 
Taira  ambitions  were  confined  to  the  south- 
west of  the  Empire,  and  those  of  the  Mina- 
moto to  the  northeast,  both  winning  great 
martial  glory,  the  two  houses  managed  to 
maintain  a  tolerable  understanding;  but  now 
in  their  attempts  to  supplant  the  Fujiwara 
influence  at  court  they  often  came  into 
collision,  and  the  violence  of  their  enmity 
led  to  bloody  conflict.  From  947  to  1 108 
the  Fujiwara  kept  the  Mikado  under  their 
fetters  and  would  allow  no  intercourse  be- 
tween people  and  sovereign.  During  this 
period  there  were  Korean  raids  on  the 
Japanese  coast,  insurrections  among  the 
savages  and  even  among  the  Japanese  of 
Mutsu,  with  a  menacing  increase  of  insolence 
among  the  Buddhist  bonzes  at  Heiyeizan. 
In  expelling  the  Korean  invaders  and  in 
quelling  the  northern  rebels  the  Minamoto 
families  had  shown  themselves  warriors  of 
the  first  order.  During  the  reigns  of  the 
Emperors  Shirakawa  (1075-1086),  Horikawa 
(1086-1108),  and  Toba  (1108-1123)  the  in- 
solent attitude  of  the  Buddhist  monks  con- 
tinued. With  the  dawn  of  the  twelfth 
century  feudalism  and  military  despotism 
begin  to  appear.  The  influence  of  the 
Fujiwara  is  fast  waning  at  court,  and  quite 
lost  in  the  provinces,  where  the  military 
chieftains  are  predominant.  The  authority 
of  the  Mikado  was  like  an  empty  "ash  box 
of  which  the  Fujiwara  carried  the  key.  The 
sword,  rather  than  the  court,  henceforth 
decided  all  important  questions.  For  the 
five  succeeding  centuries  conflicts  for  posses- 
sion of  the  supreme  miHtary  power  and  the 
resultant  authority  of  government  devastate 
Japan.  No  wonder  the  national  historians 
refer  to  this  period  as  the  Dark  Age.  The 
Emperor  Toba  tried  to  prevent  the  samurai 
of  the  provinces  from  flocking  to  the  standards 
of  the  Minamoto  and  the  Taira,  but  it  was  of 
no  avail.  The  rivalry  of  the  two  houses 
grew  with  their  sense  of  self-sufficiency  and 
independence.  Finally  the  pent-up  rivalry 
between  the  two  great  houses  burst  into  a 
conflagration  consuming  the  whole  country, 
like  the  wars  of  the  Guelphs  and  GhibeUines 
in  Italy,  or  of  the  Roses  in  England,  only 
the  war  in  Japan  lasted  for  centuries.  In 
the  first  conflict  Taira  Kiyomori  was  victori- 
ous and  assumed  at  court  an  attitude  of  in- 
solence that  outdid  even  the  Fujiwara,  treat- 
ing the  vanquished  Minamoto  with  great 
cruelty.  Yoshitomo,  the  head  of  the  Mina- 
moto clan,  was  treacherously  assassinated, 
and  his  son  Yoritomo  took  his  place,  aided 
bj  his  half-brother  Yoshitsune,  both  being 
joined  later  by  their  cousin  Yoshinaka,  and 
their  forces  marched  victoriously  into  Kyoto, 
the  emperor  welcoming  them  as  his  liberator 
from    the   Taira   bondage.     Yoshinaga    who 


34 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


led  this  army,  proved  insolent  and  indiscreet, 
taking  a  hostile  attitude  toward  Yoritomo 
whose  headquarters  were  at  Kamahura;  so 
the  latter  sent  an  expedition  against  him  led 
by  Yoshitsun^,  when  Yoshinaga  was  defeated 
and  committed  suicide.  Yoshitsune  followed 
up  his  victory  by  pursuing  the  Taira  forces 
southward,  finally  completely  defeating  and 
annihilating  them  in  the  historic  battle  of 
Danno-oura  near  Shimonoseki,  1185  A.  D. 
The  Taira  clan  was  now  cut  off  root  and 
branch,  sparing  neither  age  nor  sex.  In  this 
war  the  character  of  Yoshitsun^  shone  ovit 
above  even  that  of  his  brother  Yoritomo  as 
a  knight  without  fear  and  without  reproach, 
which  greatly  excited  the  envy  of  Yoritomo 
who  thenceforth  sought  his  brother's  death, 
the  latter  finally  dying  in  exile.  Yoritomo 
now  marched  in  magnificence  to  Kyoto 
where  he  was  received  by  the  Emperor  Go- 
Shirakawa,  had  high  civil  and  military  rank 
conferred  upon  him  and  then  returned  in 
contentment  to  Kamakura,  his  miUtary 
capital.  It  was  Yoritomo  who  brought  the 
growing  feudal  system  of  Japan  into  its  final 
shape;  and  after  the  death  of  the  emperor 
he  had  conferred  upon  himself  the  title  of 
shogun,  which  thenceforth  became  hereditary 
in  the  Minamoto  family.  Notwithstanding 
his  jealous  and  cruel  disposition  Yoritomo 
was  a  man  of  great  intelligence  and  firmness 
of  character,  and  did  much  for  the  consoli- 
dation and  improvement  of  the  national 
government,  always  showing  special  deference 
to  the  imperial  court.  Time,  however,  can- 
not pardon  him  his  heartless  ingratitude  to 
his  brother  Yoshitsune;  and  the  mistake  he 
made  in  favouring  the  Hojo  family  repre- 
senting his  wife,  led  finally  to  the  undoing 
of  his  own  family,  the  Minamoto. 

THE  SHADOW -SHOGUNS 
iiQQ  to  i:;j4  A.  D. 
As  the  Japanese  proverb  says,  "A  brilliant 
general  never  begets  a  brilliant  son,"  and 
Yoritomo,  when  he  died  at  the  age  of  fifty- 
three,  left  to  succeed  him  a  libertine  named 
Yoriiye,  who  was  unlike  his  father  in  every 
way  save  physical  strength.  The  youth's 
mother,  Masako,  consulted  with  her  father, 
Hojo  Tokimasa,  how  best  to  restrain  the 
waywardness  of  the  young  shogun;  and  it 
was  decided  to  persuade  him  to  divide  the 
government  of  the  provinces  with  his  younger 
brother,  Sanetomo,  and  his  son  Ichiman, 
which  was  only  another  way  of  placing  the 
power  in  the  hands  of  the  Hojo  family,  since 
the  persons  named  as  governors  were  still 
but  children.  The  father-in-law  of  Yoshiiye 
saw  through  the  scheme  and  had  the  shogun 
veto  it,  but  Hojo  defeated  them,  had  his 
enemies  executed,  and  banished  Yoriiye  to 


Izu,  where  he  was  secretly  put  to  death, 
Sanetomo  being  appointed  his  successor. 
Thus  at  one  sweep  the  Hojo  family  attained 
the  military  ascendency  once  held  by  Yori- 
tomo and  the  Minamoto  family.  In  turn 
they  acted  toward  the  shogunate,  on  the 
one  hand,  and  the  imperial  court,  on  the 
other,  very  much  as  the  Fujiwara  family  had 
done  toward  the  court  in  the  days  of  old. 
The  Hojo  treated  the  shogun  as  a  puppet 
and  developed  a  despotism  that  threw  the 
annihilated  Taira  clan  far  in  the  shade. 
During  this  period,  therefore,  when  the 
house  of  Hojo  held  the  regenc^^  despotism 
prevailed,  though  it  cannot  be  denied  that 
some   of   the   twelve   regents   were    men   of 


ability  and  wisdom.  The  puppet-shogun, 
Sanetomo,  was  finally  assassinated  by  a 
priest  named  Kugio,  who  regarded  Sanetomo 
as  the  murderer  of  his  father;  and  thus 
ended  the  main  line  of  the  Minamoto 
family.  The  Imperial  Court  at  Kyoto  found 
it  impossible  to  tolerate  the  Hojo  regents 
and  the  Emperor  Toba  II  determined  if 
possible  to  get  rid  of  them.  The  imperial 
forces  were,  however,  routed  and  the  emperor 
banished  to  the  Island  of  Oki,  where  he 
died  in  1229  at  the  age  of  sixty.  Yoshitoki, 
the  representative  of  the  Hojo  family,  now 
made  the  Imperial  House  feel  his  power, 
deposing  emperors  and  banishing  them  right 
and  left,  as  well  as  all  who  had  any  sympathy 


-w:*V?>^-.-7.s;.- 


,  ,.5rf-^»-  -V^^a 


-0' 


FELD.\L    C.\STLE    AT    N.\GOY.\ 


PRESENT-DAY        IMPRESSIONS       OF       JAPAN 


35 


with  the  imperial  cause.  Under  succeeding 
regents  government  grew  more  and  more 
compUcated;  and  at  one  time  (1260-1274) 
there  was  a  child-regent  managing  a  child- 
shogun,  who  was  supposed  to  represent  a 
child-emperor.  During  the  regency  of  Toki- 
mune  occurred  the  Mongol  invasion  of  Japan 
under  Kublai  Khan,  whose  forces  were 
driven  back  in  1281,  a  high  wind  and  raging 
sea  assisting  in  the  destruction  of  the  enemy. 
It  was  shortly  after  this  time  that  Marco 
Polo  visited  the  Chinese  capital  and  learned 
of  the  untold  wealth  of  Japan.  During  the 
Hojo  regency  every  Mikado  who  showed  the 
slightest  tendency  toward  independence  was 
obliged  to  abdicate  as  soon  as  he  came  of 
age;  and  no  member  of  the  Fujiwara  or 
Minamoto  family  was  allowed  to  occupy 
the  imperial  throne.  As  the  absoluteism  of 
the  Hojo  family  became  more  and  more  in- 
tolerable the  court  at  Kyoto  sought  further 
opportunity  to  regain  its  freedom,  though  it 
had  not  forgotten  the  misfortunes  that  had 
followed  similar  attempts  on  the  part  of 
pre\'ious  sovereigns.  But  a  season  of  drought 
had  led  to  famine  in  which  the  agents  of  tlie 
Hojo  regents  had  treated  the  people  witli 
cruelty;  and  this  seemed  a  favourable  time 
to  declare  independence.  A  celebrated  war- 
rior named  Kusunoki  Masashige  collected  an 
army  in  Kawachi  and  came  to  the  assistance 
of  the  emperor,  joined  later  by  another 
warrior,  Ashikaga  Takauji,  from  the  north. 
Kamakura  was  taken  and  put  to  the  flames, 
many  members  of  the  Hojo  family  falling  in 
the  struggle.  Kyoto  was  also  taken  and  the 
Minamoto  interests  were  again  triumphant, 
as  represented  by  the  house  of  Ashikaga. 

ARRIVAL  OF  EUROPEANS  AND 
CHRISTIANITY 
1334  to  1573 
After  the  fall  of  the  Hojo  family  the  Em- 
peror Go-Daigo  made  the  mistake  of  dis- 
tributing many  of  the  important  offices  left 
vacant  among  unworthy  favourites,  exciting 
the  animosity  of  the  Ashikaga  family,  which , 
although  they  themselves  had  received  the 
rich  Provinces  of  Hitachi,  Musashi,  antl 
Shimosa,  were  determined  to  assume  a 
position  of  supreme  importance  in  the 
Empire.  The  shogun  at  Kamakura,  an 
imperial  prince  named  Moriyoshi,  was  a 
weakling  who  neglected  to  keep  the  pro- 
vinces in  order,  and  came  thus  into  collision 
with  the  house  of  Ashikaga  and  marched 
against  Kamakura  where  he  was  welcomed 
in  place  of  Moriyoshi,  proclaiming  himself 
shogun,  though  he  had  many  a  fight  to 
retain  the  title.  Imperial  forces  were  sent 
against  liim  from  Kyoto.  Ashikaga  set  out 
to  meet  them,  crossing  over  the  Hakone 
Pass,  where  he  totally  defeated  the  Kyoto 


army  in  1336.  Ashikaga  then  marched  on 
the  capital,  whence  the  Imperial  Court  fled 
to  Otsu.  The  famous  hero,  Kusunoki 
Masashige,  again  rallied  to  the  rescue  of  the 
imperial  cause,  assisted  by  various  loyal 
daimyo  and  their  troops.  At  first  the  im- 
perial army  was  successful,  but  was  later 
defeated  on  the  banks  of  the  Minatogawa 
near  Kobe,  after  which  Ashikaga  marched  in 
triumph  to  Kyoto,  where  he  placed  the  son 


even  the  shores  of  the  neighbouring  conti- 
nent. China  complained  to  the  Kyoto  au- 
thorities and  compensation  was  paid,  which 
the  Chinese  afterward  recorded  as  tribute 
from  Japan.  The  period  was  marked  by  the 
rise  of  powerful  daimyo  in  various  provinces, 
who  waged  relentless  warfare  with  each 
other,  conspicuous  among  whom  were  Takeda 
of  Koshiu  and  Uyesugi  of  Echizen,  while 
most  of  the  present  great  families  of  Japan, 


.\NCIKNT  IRON   KETTLE    AT  RENZAN,  CHOSE.N  (DIMENSIONS:    9  FEET  7   INCHES  IN  DIAMETER; 
29    FEET   IN    circumference;    I    INCH    THICK) 


of  a  former  emperor  on  the  throne,  tlic  real 
emperor,  Go-Daigo,  having  again  fled  for 
refuge  to  the  monks  at  Heiyeizan.  A 
bargain  was  struck  with  the  deposed  em- 
peror to  receive  the  sacred  regalia  in  order 
to  have  the  Emperor  Komyo  legally  en- 
throned. Receiving  encouragement  from 
sundry  loyalists,  the  ex-emperor  escaped  from 
the  monastery  and  issued  an  edict  proclaim- 
ing the  Ashikagas  to  be  rebels  and  outlawing 
them  as  usurpers.  From  this  time  for  fifty- 
six  years  Japan  had  two  rival  emperors, 
known  in  history  as  the  North  and  South 
Dynasties,  producing  a  state  of  internecine 
war  that  deluged  the  country  with  blood 
and  misery.  Takauji  Ashikaga  watched  over 
the  imperial  interests  at  Kyoto  while  his  son 
Yoshinori  resided  as  shogun  at  Kamakura. 
In  1392,  during  the  shogunate  of  Ashikaga 
Yoshimitsu,  the  two  emperors  were  recon- 
ciled, the  Emperor  Komiyama  coming  from 
Yoshino  to  Kyoto  and  handing  over  the 
regalia  to  Go-Komatsu.  Constitutional  wars 
had  disorganised  the  government  and  im- 
po%'erished  the  peasantry,  while  bands  of 
robbers  marauded  the  country.  The  coast 
population  was  given  up  to  piracy,  ravaging 


such  as  Shimadzu,  Hosokawa,  Mori,  Toku- 
gawa,  Takeda,  Maeda,  and  Satake,  laid  the 
foundation  of  their  power  at  the  same  period. 
Toward  the  end  of  this  period  of  political 
confusion  religion  was  characterised  by  the 
dissoluteness  of  its  teachers;  and  the  country 
suffered  from  famine  and  pestilence. 

It  was  on  this  state  of  political  and  moral 
darkness  that  there  now  dawned  a  light  from 
the  West.  The  first  European  to  reach 
Japan  was  a  Portuguese  named  Mendez 
Pinto  who  was  cast  ashore  on  the  Island  of 
Tanegashima,  south  of  Kyushu,  while  on  a 
voyage  from  China  to  the  colony  at  Goa. 
Pinto  was  kindly  received  by  the  officials 
and  people,  according  to  his  own  account, 
and  taught  them  how  to  make  guns  and  gun- 
powder, at  which  they  proved  apt  pupils. 
This  was  about  the  year  1543.  After  Pinto 
had  finally  found  his  way  back  to  China  he 
recounted  his  profitable  experiences  in  Japan 
to  his  countrymen,  who  induced  him  to  set 
out  on  another  expedition  to  Japan,  when  he 
was  wrecked  on  the  Luchu  Islands.  The 
trade  in  arms  and  ammunition  having  been 
thus  opened  with  the  Portuguese,  the  latter 
were  not  slow  to  take  advantage  of  it  and  a 


36 


PRESENT-DAV   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


brisk  commerce  sprang  up  in  that  lino,  the 
weapons  greatly  assisting  the  daimyo  in 
their  feuds  with  one  another.  In  the  midst 
of  this  trade  with  the  Portuguese  came  the 
celebrated  missionary  Francis  Xavier,  the 
disciple  of  Loyola,  who  landed  at  Kgoshima 
in  1549,  having  come  all  the  way  from 
Malacca  on  a  Chinese  junk  with  two  other 
Jesuits  named  de  Torres  and  Fernandez,  and 
one  Japanese,  who  could  speak  Portuguese 
and  acted  as  interpreter.  Xavier  was 
greatly  pleased  by  the  Japanese  and  praised 
them  as  superior  to  any  Jews  or  infidels  he 
had  met.  The  presence  of  the  foreigners 
with  their  firearms  soon  led  to  jealousy 
among  the  daimyo  who  sought  such  advan- 
tages, and  consequently  the  missionaries  were 
obliged  to  move  on  to  Hirado  and  Nagato, 
or  Choshu,  where  they  established  missions. 
In  1550  Xavier  proceeded  as  far  north  as 
Kyoto,  in  spite  of  the  dangerous  and  dis- 
turbed condition  of  the  country.  In  the 
capital  he  was  disappointed  to  find  nothing 
but  confusion  and  wretchedness  in  place  of 
the  splendour  reported  by  Marco  Polo. 
Xavier  sought  audience  with  the  emperor 
and  the  shogun,  but  failed  on  account  of  the 
poverty  of  his  appearance  which  rendered 
him  contemptible.  After  a  stay  of  some 
fourteen  days,  during  which  he  preached  in 
vain  to  the  people  on  the  streets,  Xavier 
returned  to  Bungo,  where  he  had  various 
controversies  with  the  Buddhist  priests,  and 
set  out  for  China  in  1 55 1 ,  dying  at  the  mouth 
of  the  Canton  River.  The  seed  which  he 
introduced  into  Japan,  however,  took  root 
and  continued  to  grow,  being  followed  by 
the  labours  of  succeeding  missionaries,  so 
that  within  twenty  years  the  number  of 
Christians  was  over  20.000. 

AGE  OF  USURPERS 
ij/j  to  1603 
The  second  half  of  the  period  covering 
the  Japanese  Middle  Ages  forms  an  import- 
ant epoch  in  Japanese  annals,  especially  in 
regard  to  the  internal  changes  of  the  country 
and  the  development  of  Christianity  with 
consequent  persecutions.  The  three  great 
names  associated  with  these  movements  were 
those  of  Nobunaga,  Hideyoshi,  and  leyasu. 
After  the  devastating  wars  and  consequent 
misery  and  defiance  of  order  of  the  Ashikaga 
era  the  country  was  awaiting  a  man  of  iron 
hand  to  restore  peace  and  reestablish  the 
social  and  political  fabric;  and  this  man 
proved  to  be  Oda  Nobunaga,  of  Taira  de- 
scent, being  a  great-grandson  of  Kiyomori. 
Oda  showed  great  prowess  in  war  and  soon 
added  to  his  already  valuable  estates,  be- 
coming one  of  the  most  powerful  feudal  lords 
in  the  Empire.  The  representatives  of  the 
Ashikaga    interests    which    he    had    at    first 


espoused,  after  receiving  his  assistance,  con- 
spired against  him,  and  he  deposed  the  last 
shogun  of  that  house  in  1573,  leaving  the 
office  vacant  until  the  rise  of  Tokugawa 
leyasu  in  1603.  With  the  arrival  of  Oda  in 
Kyoto  peace  and  order  were  restored  and 
regular  government  established.  He  built 
for  himself  the  palace  of  Nijo  in  the  west  of 
the  capital,  a  building  which  still  remains. 
Oda  Nobunaga  honestly  attempted  to  govern 
the  country  in  the  name  of  the  Mikado,  but 
the  attitude  of  the  Buddhist  priests  and  the 
more  powerful  daimyo  prevented  him. 
Feuda  went  on  between  Shimadzu  of  Sat- 
suma  and  Mori  of  Yamaguchi,  in  the  south; 
and  between  Takcda  of  Kai  and  the  Hojo  in- 
interests  in  the  north.  Of  the  five  great 
warriors  who  sided  with  Oda,  Hideyoshi, 
Shibata,  Ikeda,  and  leyasu  attained  to  wide 
fame  and  influence.  In  order  to  crush  the 
Buddhist  priesthood  Oda  favoured  the 
Christians,  bestowing  on  them  great  privi- 
leges and  giving  them  land  for  their  churches. 
In  1 57 1  he  despatched  forces  against  the 
Buddhist  strongholds  at  Heiyeizan  and  Osa- 
ka, reducing  them  to  ashes;  and  his  foremost 
general,  Hideyoshi,  he  sent  against  Mori  of 
Yamaguchi.  In  the  height  of  his  power, 
however,  in  the  year  1582,  Oda  was  assassin- 
ated by  one  of  his  generals,  named  Akechi 
Mitsuhide,  in  revenge  for  a  slight.  Thus  in 
his  thirty-ninth  year  ended  the  life  of  the 
only  man  who  had  the  courage  and  intelli- 
gence to  deal  with  the  refractory  daimyo  and 
tlie    degenerate    priesthood.     His    vanity   in 


setting  up  his  own  statue  in  a  shrine  for 
worship  and  his  double  dealing  in  favouring 
the  Christians  merely  in  revenge  against  the 
Buddhist  priests,  no  doubt  betray  a  moral 
weakness  that  Fate  resents.  At  the  time  of 
his  death  the  Christians  numbered  over 
150,000  and  their  churches  more  than  200, 
and  the  new  religion  included  among  its  ad- 
herents daimyo  and  men  of  jjosition.  With 
the  exception  of  the  names  and  character  of 
the  deity  the  new  religion  did  not  seem  so 
different  from  the  old,  as  there  were  the  same 
rosaries  and  beads,  with  all  the  images,  altars, 
and  general  paraphernalia  of  the  temple. 
The  foreigners  were  still  favoured  chiefly 
because  they  brought  firearms  to  the  country. 
The  Christians  became  so  powerful  that  they 
were  able  to  despatch  an  embassy  to  the 
Pope  in  1582,  reaching  Lisbon  in  1584,  It 
was  welcomed  at  Rome  by  the  Church  and 
returned  to  Japan  in  1588,  much  impressed 
by  the  might  and  power  of  the  Church  and 
the  nations  of  Europe  which  it  represented. 
After  the  death  of  Oda  Nobunaga,  Hide- 
yoshi returned  to  the  capital,  and,  with  the 
help  of  leyasu,  endeavored  to  restore  order 
and  confidence.  He  suppressed  his  opponent, 
the  lord  of  Shibata  in  Echizen,  improved  the 
plan  and  fortifications  of  the  capital,  and 
laid  the  foundation  of  a  great  city  and  castle 
at  Osaka.  In  1586  the  emperor  made  him 
Kwampaku,  an  office  hitherto  held  only  by 
the  Pujiwara  family.  How,  with  all  his 
selfishness,  shamelessness,  and  sensuality  he 
could  have  raised  himself  from  the  life  of  a 


Bm^^i^.  _. 

of 

11 

>7l^.   '...            '&W 

i. 

T 

FRONT   COrRTVARD,    WITH    TRIl'MPH.\L    WAV,    PErLING,    OR    NORTH    MAUSOLEUM, 
WHERE    THE    MANCHU    EMPERORS    WERE    BURIED 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


37 


peasant  to  the  most  exalted  position  in  the 
gift  of  tlie  throne  seems  a  mystery.  He  kept 
on  the  good  side  of  leyasu  and  had  him  visit 
the  emperor  at  Kyoto  where  high  honours 
were  conferred  upon  him.  Hojo  of  Oda- 
wara,  however,  would  not  acquiesce  in  like 
proceedings,  so  Hideyoshi  received  imperial 
permission  to  bring  Hojo  to  submission.  He 
set  out  for  Odawara  Castle  at  the  head  of 
170,000  men.  The  enterprise  was  crowned 
with  success,  Ujimasa  Hojo  was  captured 
and  executed  and  Hideyoshi  and  leyasu 
stood  supreme  in  the  Kwanto  region.  At 
the  suggestion  of  Hideyoshi,  leyasu  now 
removed  his  headquarters  to  Yedo,  an  in- 
significant village  where  Ota  Dokwan  had 
built  a  castle,  and  where  in  1591  the  eight 
provinces  of  Kwanto  presented  their  com- 
pliments to  leyasu,  their  new  feudal  lord,  on 
New  Year's  Day. 

For  a  long  time  Hideyoshi  had  contem- 
plated the  invasion  of  Korea;  and  now  that 
he  had  established  peace  in  the  Kwanto 
regions  and  brought  the  feudal  lords  of 
Yamaguchi  and  Satsuma  to  see  eye  to  eye 
with  him,  he  began  to  make  preparations 
for  the  expedition  to  the  peninsular  kingdom. 
By  despatching  insolent  embassies  which 
were  rejected  by  the  Korean  authorities,  he 
sought  pretext  for  strife;  and  when  his 
great  army  of  480,000  men  was  ready,  he 
made  Konishi,  a  Christian,  one  of  the 
generals,  and  the  famous  warrior,  Kato 
Kiyomasa  the  other.  As  there  was  no  love 
lost  between  the  two  they  did  not  work  well 
together;  but  they  landed  in  Korea,  laid 
waste  country,  demanding  of  the  Koreans 
an  open  road  to  China,  as  Germany  did 
through  Belgium  to  France.  Meanwhile  the 
Japanese  fleet  which  had  been  left  at  Fusan, 
was  defeated  by  the  Koreans,  giving  the  in- 
vaded country  new  courage;  while  the  Japa- 
nese had  defeated  on  land  not  only  the 
Koreans  but  the  Chinese  army  that  had 
come  to  their  succour.  The  terms  of  peace 
offered  by  the  Japanese  were  that  Korea 
should  cede  to  Japan  five  out  of  her  eight 
southern  provinces;  that  the  emperor  of 
China  should  send  one  of  his  daughters  to 
Hideyoshi  to  wife;  that  China  and  Japan 
should  resume  former  commercial  relations; 
and  that  both  Korea  and  China  should  pay 
an  annual  tribute  to  the  treasury  of  Japan. 
The  Chinese  replied  simply  demanding  the 
dismantling  of  the  Japanese  fortresses  in 
Korea  and  the  withdrawal  of  the  Japanese 
troops,  which  greatly  enraged  Hideyoshi. 
One  of  the  trophies  brought  back  by  the 
Japanese  troops  from  Korea  was  the  ears 
of  all  the  enemies  killed  in  battle,  numbering 
many  thousands,  salted  down  for  the  purpose, 
as  it  was  too  inconvenient  to  bring  over 
the  heads  of  the  victims-     These  ears  were 


buried  in  Kyoto  and  the  grave  had  a  stone 
monument  set  up  over  it,  called  Mimidzuka, 
or  ear-monument,  as  a  memorial  of  the  con- 
quest of  Korea.  At  first  Hideyoshi  favoured 
the  missionaries,  but  when  he  found  that  they 
interrupted  his  agents  sent  out  to  collect 
beautiful  girls  for  his  harem,  he  took  a  dis- 
like to  them  and  set  up  a  system  of  per- 
secution against  the  Christians.     In  1587  he 


the  south  were  on  the  side  of  Hideyori, 
which  leyasu  did  not  forget  after  he  became 
shogun  and  held  the  reins  of  power.  leyasu 
entertained  serious  suspicions  of  the  inten- 
tions of  Hideyori,  and  his  lieutenant  Ishida 
Mitsunari,  against  him,  and  sought  occasion 
to  make  them  show  their  hand.  He 
ordered  the  great  temple  of  Buddha  at  Nara 
to  be  reconstructed  and  commanded   Hide- 


tA.mmm 

.J^^lli 

^|BhH| 

1        i^'-^^mW^^^ 

CHIMPO    KINGS     TOMB    IN    KWAZAN,    CHOSEN 


issued  an  edict  banishing  the  Jesuits  from 
the  country;  and  when  no  ship  was  found 
leaving  Japan  within  the  prescribed  time,  he 
ordered  the  foreign  missionaries  to  proceed 
to  Hirado  to  wait  an  opportunity  of  sailing. 
Persecution  extended  to  the  native  members 
of  the  Church  who  were  given  the  choice  of 
renouncing  the  new  religion  or  leaving  the 
country.  In  spite  of  persecution  the  Chris- 
tian forces  seemed  to  grow;  and  probably 
persecution  would  have  died  down  had  it 
not  been  for  the  arrival  of  the  Spanish  friars 
from  the  Philippines,  who  defied  the  laws 
and  edicts  against  the  Christians  and  were 
ordered  to  be  crucified  at  Nagasaki,  the 
sentence  being  rigidly  carried  out.  Ex- 
hausted by  his  dissolute  life  Hideyoshi  was 
attacked  by  cholera  in  1598  and  died  in 
September,  obliging  his  vassals,  before  his 
death,  to  swear  fealty  to  his  son  Hideyori, 
especially  requesting  leyasu,  lord  of  the 
Kwanto  regions,  to  see  that  his  last  wishes 
were  fulfilled.  After  the  death  of  Hide- 
yoshi, however,  the  various  daimyo  rallied 
around  Hideyori  on  the  one  side  and  leyasu 
on  the  other,  and  it  was  evident  that  a  con- 
flict would  ensue.     The  Christian  daimyo  of 


yori  to  defray  the  cost,  with  the  hope  of 
thus  weakening  his  finances  so  that  he  could 
not  use  them  in  conspiracy  against  leyasu. 
After  the  work  was  completed,  leyasu  found 
fault  with  an  inscription  Hideyori  had  placed 
on  the  temple  bell,  which  he  affected  to 
believe  wished  bad  luck  for  the  house  of 
Tokugawa.  Mitsunari  now  summoned  the 
southern  daimyo  to  rally  to  the  support  of 
the  son  of  Hideyoshi;  and  leyasu  resolved  to 
lay  siege  to  Osaka  Castle  as  a  great  point  of 
vantage. 

Thus  began  a  war  which  ended  finally 
in  the  decisive  victory  of  leyasu  at  the  great 
battle  of  Sekigahara  in  October,  1600.  On 
hearing  of  the  victory  of  leyasu  most  of  the 
great  daimyo,  both  north  and  south,  sub- 
mitted to  him.  There  was  a  general  redis- 
tribution of  estates  and  offices,  after  which 
leyasu  sent  his  son  Hidetada  to  Kyoto  to 
report  to  the  emperor  and  to  obtain  imperial 
sanction  for  what  had  been  done.  In  1603 
leyasu  was  honoured  by  the  emperor  with 
the  title  of  Udaijin,  appointed  head  of  the 
Minamoto  clan,  and  made  shogun;  after 
which  he  received  the  homage  of  all  the 
daimyo  in  his  castle  at  Yedo, 


38 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


(D)     THE   TOKUGAWA    PERIOD 
1600  to  1S68 

THE    ERADICATION    OF 
CHRISTIANITY 

The  establishment  of  the  Tokugawa  sho- 
gunate  brought  to  Japan  a  new  era,  resulting 
in  two  hundred  fifty  years  of  peace,  a  state 
very  welcome  to  the  people  after  so  many 
centuries  of  strife.  Side  by  side  with  a 
further  development  and  consolidation  of 
the  feudal  sj'stem  went  on  an  increasing 
aversion  to  foreigners  and  a  determination  to 
eradicate  the  Christian  religion.  First  of  all 
leyasu  set  about  reestablishing  peaceful 
relations  with  Korea  and  China,  in  which  he 
was  successful.  After  this  he  retired  in 
favour  of  his  son,  Hidetada,  in  the  year 
1605,  to  his  mansion  at  Shidzuoka  in  Suruga, 
that  he  might  devote  his  declining  days  to 
the  elaboration  of  laws  for  the  nation,  though 
he  never  ceased  to  remain  the  soul  of  the 
administration.  After  his  death  his  body 
was  enshrined  in  a  magnificent  temple  at 
Nikko  and  his  name  raised  among  the  gods 
by  the  emperor.  Thus  passed  away  a  man 
of  remarkable  talent  and  wisdom,  who  raised 


sionaries  to  pave  the  way  for  her  invasion; 
and  a  Spanish  captain  wrecked  on  the  coast 
of  Japan,  being  subjected  to  what  he  deemed 
unfair  treatment,  threatened  that  his  king 
would  some  day  make  Japan  pay  for  it. 
These  things  led  the  shogun  to  make  investi- 
gation into  the  history  and  policy  of  Spain; 
and  his  suspicions  of  Spanish  policy  being 
thereby  confirmed,  as  it  seemed  to  correspond 
with  the  story  told  by  the  Dutch,  he  resolved 
to  banish  the  Spanish  missionaries  and  to 
suppress  their  religion.  At  the  time  when 
the  persecution  began  there  were  as  many 
as  600,000  Christians  in  the  country;  and 
the  attitude  toward  them  was  cruel  in  the 
extreme.  At  first  the  persecution  took  the 
form  of  a  ban  on  Christianity  and  banish- 
ment of  the  foreigners  and  all  who  adopted 
the  new  religion;  but  this  failing,  severer 
methods  were  soon  resorted  to.  Most  of 
the  native  Christians  remained  true  to  their 
profession  and  died  a  martyr's  death,  as  did 
many  of  the  foreign  missionaries.  The  test 
of  loyalty  to  the  Empire  was  willingness  to 
renounce  Christianity  by  trampling  on  the 
crucifi.x.  Rather  than  do  this  thousands 
went  to  the  stake  and  the  cross,  some  being 


foreigners  were  banished  from  the  country 
save  the  Dutch  and  Chinese  who  were  per- 
mitted to  live  on  a  small  island,  called 
Dcshima,  at  Nagasaki.  The  Shogun  lye- 
mitsu  was  still  more  persistent  in  enforcing 
the  laws  against  the  Christians,  and  thousands 
fled  to  China,  Formosa,  and  the  Philippines, 
while  those  left  behind  had  to  go  to  cruci- 
fixion or  the  stake.  After  suffering  such  un- 
told horrors  for  twenty  years  there  was  a 
rising  of  Christians  in  Shimabara  in  Kyushu, 
when  some  30,000  of  them  were  put  to  the 
sword.  In  spite  of  the  severe  and  cruel 
measures  enforced  for  the  extermination  of 
Christianity  it  was  not  wholly  accomplished, 
for  when  the  missionaries  returned  in  modern 
times,  they  found  some  native  Christians 
still  at  a  little  place  called  Urakami  near 
Nagasaki.  It  is  but  fair  to  admit  that  the 
behaviour  of  the  foreigners  was  in  many 
ways  sufficient  to  justify  the  suspicions  of 
the  authorities  against  them.  Many  of  the 
Portuguese  and  Spanish  merchants  were 
unprincipled  and  defiant  of  law,  engaging  in 
vice  and  slavery,  while  the  history  of  their 
countries  in  Mexico  and  the  Netherlands,  as 
well  as  the  venture  of  the  Spanish  armada, 
tended  further  to  warn  the  bakufu  authori- 
ties against  allowing  them  any  lease  of 
power. 


^sysr- 


^^ 


■V'*'*S*i''- . 


ANCIENT   ROYAL    TOMB    NEAR    SINGEN,    CHOSEN 


himself  from  the  position  of  a  peasant  to  a 
place  ot  supreme  power  in  the  councils  of 
the  Empire.  His  son,  Hidetada,  held  the 
shogunate  to  1623,  the  most  conspicuous 
acts  of  his  regime  being  the  edicts  against 
the  Christians.  The  arrival  of  the  Dutch 
merchants  at  Nagasaki  led  to  further  sus- 
picions against  the  Jesuits.  The  Dutch 
informed  the  shogun  that  Spain  had  con- 
quered numerous  foreign  lands,   using  mis- 


dipped  head  first  into  boiling  sulphur  springs 
until  they  recanted,  which  most  of  them  did 
not  do.  Mothers  went  to  the  flames  with 
their  babes  in  their  arms,  choosing  fire  rather 
than  paganism.  The  churches  at  the  same 
time  were  everywhere  demolished  and  their 
altars  scattered  to  the  winds.  In  161 7 
foreign  commerce  was  restricted  to  Nagasaki 
and  all  Japanese  were  forbidden  to  leave  the 
country    on    pain    of    death.     In    1624    all 


THE  LAWS  OF  lEYASU 
The  main  aim  of  the  Tokugawa  shogunate 
was  the  security  of  the  Tokugawa  family,  its 
supremacy  of  power  in  the  State  and  the 
maintenance  of  peace  throughout  the  Em- 
pire. To  this  end  Christianity  was  banished, 
for  safety  was  supposed  to  He  in  ignorance 
and  the  prevention  of  thought;  and  certain 
laws  were  promulgated  clearly  establishing 
between  classes  their  mutual  duties  to  one 
another  and  the  State.  Emoluments  and 
estates  were  placed  in  the  hands  of  favourites 
of  the  Tokugawa  family,  whose  loyalty  was 
held  firm  by  constant  dependence  on  the 
Tokugawa  shogunate.  The  proud  old  prince- 
ly houses  of  Satsuma  and  Choshu  had  thus 
to  submit  to  the  collective  force  of  the 
vassals  of  the  shogun;  and  he  placed  his 
vassals  and  spies  in  all  the  strategic  points 
and  outposts  of  the  Empire  to  prevent  mal- 
contents taking  any  advantage.  The  laws 
which  leyasu  formulated  for  this  purpose 
and  left  to  his  heirs,  known  as  The  Legacy 
of  leyasu,  held  the  country  in  leash  for  two 
hundred  fifty  years,  and  thereby  deserve  con- 
sideration as  an  example  of  mediseval  states- 
manship. Based  on  the  five  universal  duties 
of  Confticius,  the  laws  of  leyasu  dealt  with 
relation  of  subject  to  sovereign,  of  serf  to 
lord,  child  to  parents,  of  wife  to  husband  and 
of  brothers,  sister  and  friends  to  each  other. 
The  family   was  made  the   unit   of  society 


PRESKNT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


39 


FIGURE    OF    BUDDHA    AT    MYOKISSHO,    KONGO-SAN,    CHOSEN, 
HEWN    IN    SOLID    ROCK 


SOME     OF     THE    SEVEN     BUDDHIST     IMAGES     OF     KINZAN-JI, 
NEAR    KINTEI,    CHOSEN 


and  the  foundation  of  the  State.  As  the 
laws  were  not  published  but  made  simply 
for  the  guidance  of  the  government,  the 
people  were  held  responsible  of  duties  of 
which  they  were  largely  ignorant,  knowledge 
of  the  law,  as  in  ancient  Greece,  being  the 
right  only  of  the  priviliged.  The  code  of 
leyasu  implied  that  virtue  consisted  in 
ol)edience  to  superiors,  and  morality  lay  in 
assiduously  observing  the  law.  Life  is 
guided  by  custom  rather  than  by  right;  and 
as  the  inferior  is  absolutely  in  the  hands  of 
the  superior  he  has  no  rights;  and  conse- 
quently there  is  no  reference  to  contract, 
personal  property,  navigation,  or  trade;  but 
much  emphasis  is  laid  on  punishment  for 
crime,  and  on  legal  relations  between  classes 
on  etiquette,  rank,  precedence,  administra- 
tion, and  government.  Private  revenge  was 
recognised  and  provided  for;  an  e)'e  for  an 
eye  and  a  tooth  for  a  tooth.  Society  was 
divided  into  four  classes:  the  imperial  family, 
the  court  nobles,  the  feudal  lords,  and  the 
common  people.  Advantage  was  taken  of 
belief  in  the  divinity  of  the  em])cror  to  keep 
the    sovereign    strictly    secluded    from    the 


people,  that  he  might  know  nothing  of  their 
condition  and  take  no  inconvenient  interest 
in  public  affairs.  Through  the  course  of 
centuries  this  policy,  started  by  the  Fuji- 
wara,  developed  by  the  Taira  and  Minamoto 
clans  and  brought  to  its  logical  conclusion 
under  the  Tokugawa  shoguns,  caused  the 
court  and  the  court  nobility  to  lose  their 
influence  in  the  State  until  finally  all  power 
was  in  the  hands  of  the  military  chieftains 
of  which  the  shogun  was  now  the  head.  The 
daimyo,  of  which  there  were  more  than  two 
hundred  fifty,  had  to  have  mansions  in  the 
shogun's  capital  where  they  were  obliged  to 
reside  with  their  families  at  least  six  months 
out  of  each  year,  presenting  themselves 
annually  to  take  the  oath  of  homage  before 
the  shogun;  and  when  they  left  Yedo  they 
had  to  leave  their  wives  and  families  behind 
as  hostages.  Each  daimyo  was  like  a  sov- 
ereign within  his  own  estates,  having  an 
army  of  samurai  and  soldiers  to  do  his 
bidding,  as  well  as  endless  numbers  of  petty 
officials;  while  all  the  daimyo  were  bound  by 
pledges  of  fealty  to  the  shogun,  through 
whom   alone  they  could   approach   the   em- 


peror deep  in  the  shadow  at  Kyoto.  Outside 
the  pale  were  the  toiling  millions  living  in 
ignorance  and  poverty. 

FOREIGN    RELATIONS    OF    THE 
TOKUGAWA    ERA 

About  the  year  1600  Dutch  ships  first 
appeared  in  the  waters  of  Japan;  and  from 
that  time  onward  ships  of  the  Dutch  East 
India  Company  began  to  cultivate  a  thriving 
trade,  being  welcomed  in  place  of  the  banished 
Spanish  and  Portuguese  of  whom  they  were 
the  avowed  enemies.  Their  activities,  how- 
ever, were  confined  to  the  Island  of  Deshima 
at  Nagasaki,  the  only  open  port  after  the 
edict  excluding  foreigners.  On  one  of  these 
Dutch  ships  came  the  Englishman,  Will 
Adams,  who  was  so  highly  thought  of  that 
he  was  detained  in  the  country  as  foreign 
adviser  to  the  shogun  who  heaped  upon  him 
wealth  and  honours  until  his  death  in  1620 
when  a  fine  monument  was  erected  to  his 
memory.  Ships  from  England  under  the 
auspices  of  the  East  India  Company  came 
to  Japan  in  1613;  and  a  factory,  or  trade 
station,    was    opened    at    Hirado.     Captain 


40 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


John  .Saris  brought  a  letter  from  King  James 
I,  and  was  warmly  received,  being  granted 
a  charter  to  trade  where  he  pleased  on  equal 
terms  with  the  Dutch.  Leaving  Captain 
Cocks  in  charge,  Saris  returned  to  England 
to  report  his  experiences;  but  owing  to  the 
jealousy  of  the  Dutch  the  British  factory  was 
not  a  success  and  had  to  be  given  up.  Eng- 
lish traders  did  not  venture  to  the  coasts  of 
Japan  again  until  1673  when  they  were  again 
unsuccessful  on  account  of  the  war  with 
Holland ;  but  Captains  Beechy  and  Broughton 
deserve  mention  as  having  explored  the 
northern  coasts  of  Japan  later,  while  the 
French  mariner,  La  Perouse,  circumnavigated 
the  northern  coasts,  discovering  the  straits 
named  after  him,  and  Vries  the  Island  of 
Oshima.  Russia  also  came  into  unsuccessful 
contact  with  Japan  during  this  period.  All 
trade  was  confined  to  Deshima;  and  the 
annual  turnover  is  reported  to  have  totalled 
as  much  as  £660,000.  Enormous  quantities 
of  gold  were  taken  out  of  the  country  every 
year,  the  Japanese  not  realising  the  value  of 
their  coin,  which  was  almost  pure;  but  the 
shogun  placed  a  ban  on  exports  of  gold  later. 
The  chief  of  the  Dutch  factory  at  Deshima 
had  to  present  himself  before  the  shogun 
once  a  year  with  presents,  making  the 
journey  to  Yedo  in  state  like  a  daimyo. 
Thus  for  one  hundred  fifty  years  the  Dutch 
colony  at  Nagasaki  was  the  port  of  entry 
for  Western  knowledge  to  the  Empire  of 
Japan;  and  as  the  Dutch  always  had  men  of 
learning  among  them,  such  as  Kaempfer  and 
von  Siebold,  Western  science,  medicine,  art, 
and  letters  found  their  way  into  the  country, 
many  of  the  young  Japanese  learning  the 
Dutch  language  and  mastering  works  written 
in  Holland. 

REOPENING  OF  JAPAN 
In  process  of  time  succeeding  shoguns 
ceased  to  inherit  the  political  capacity  and 
energy  of  leyasu  and  the  machinery  of  state 
was  left  to  officials  and  their  officers  until  the 
shogim  became  a  mere  administrative  cipher 
like  the  sovereign.  Relieved  of  all  anxiety 
as  to  the  security  and  permanency  of  their 
dynasty  the  shoguns  devoted  their  time  to 
lives  of  ease  and  pleasure.  Meanwhile  the 
wrongs  and  injustices  suffered  by  great 
families  like  the  Satsuma  and  the  Choshu 
clans,  through  several  generations,  had  not 
been  forgotten,  and  they  now  only  awaited 
a  favourable  memont  to  assert  their  old 
liberties.  The  opportunity  came  with  the 
arrival  of  the  American  fleet  under  Commo- 
dore Perrv'  in  Yedo  Bay  in  1853,  bringing  a 
letter  from  President  Fillmore  requesting  a 
treaty  of  amity  with  Japan.  American 
whalers  cast  ashore  in  Japan  had  been 
cruelly    treated,    often    mtirdered,    and    the 


American  government  was  determined  to 
put  a  stop  to  it;  which  accounts  for  Perry's 
persistence  in  refusing  to  return  home  with- 
out a  treaty.  He  delivered  the  document 
and  sailed  away,  promising  to  return  in  a 
year  for  an  answer,  which  he  did,  ultimately 
obtaining  a  treaty  guaranteeing  safety  to 
sailors  of  his  country  and  safe  anchorage  for 
American  shijjs  in  certain  harbours.  The 
arrival  of  the  American  fleet  created  con- 
sternation throughout  Japan.  For  the  first 
time  every  one  realised  the  military  impo- 
tency  of  the  nation  and  the  uselessness  of 
opposing  foreigners.  The  treaty  obtained 
by  Perry  was  amplified  by  Townsend  Harris 
who  came  as  the  first  consul-general  of  the 
LTnited  States;  and  in  1859  similar  treaties 
were  secured  by  Great  Britain  and  France. 
Settlements  of  foreigners  were  now  estab- 
lished at  Nagasaki,  Yokohama,  and  Hako- 
date in  which  trade  was  aggressively  carried 
on;  and  thus  the  portals  of  the  long-secluded 
land  of  the  gods  had  been  broken  and  the 
foreigner  free  to  occupy  the  sacred  soil  of 
Nippon.  When  Harris  requested  that  an 
American  minister  should  be  allowed  to  re- 
side in  Yedo  the  shogun  was  more  puzzled 
than  ever,  and  had  to  refer  the  matter  to 
the  Imperial  Court  at  Kyoto,  which  showed 
the  great  families  how  helpless  was  the 
shogunate  in  the  face  of  such  a  situation. 
In  the  midst  of  divided  counsel  at  Kyoto 
the  shogun  granted  the  foreign  petition, 
creating  a  tremendous  agitation  against 
foreigners  and  especially  against  the  sho- 
gunate. The  old  shogun  died;  and,  as  a 
youth  was  appointed  to  succeed  him,  affairs 
of  state  were  in  the  hands  of  the  great 
Prime  Minister  li-Kamon,  who  had  the 
opponents  of  the  bakufu  and  its  policy 
arrested  and  banished,  and  some  of  them 
executed;  which  aroused  the  anger  of  the 
nation  still  further,  and  the  prime  minister 
was  assassinated.  In  the  ensuing  commotion 
government  was  set  at  nought  and  lawless- 
ness prevailed,  the  lives  of  foreigners  being 
very  insecure.  The  situation  then  became 
very  complicated.  On  the  one  hand  were 
many  foreigners  pouring  into  the  country, 
demanding  treaty  rights;  and  on  the  other 
was  the  emperor  and  his  friends  calling  for 
the  expulsion  of  the  barbarians.  Europeans 
were  ruthlessly  mvu-dered  in  the  streets,  the 
British  legation  at  Yedo  was  twice  attacked 
by  fanatics  eager  to  slay  those  within,  two 
Englishmen  were  wounded  and  the  secre- 
tary of  the  American  legation  was  killed. 
The  emperor  ordered  an  assembly  of  powerful 
daimyo  to  convene  in  Yedo  to  discuss  the 
situation:  and  the  Prince  of  Satsuma  was 
proceeding  thither  when  his  procession  met 
an  Englishman  named  Richardson  at  Kanag- 
awa.     The  Englishman  failed  to  dismount  in 


accordance  with  the  custom  and  was  immedi- 
ately despatched  by  the  irate  samurai  of 
Satsuma.  For  this  offence  the  bakufu  had 
to  pay  £100,000;  and  after  having  the  city  of 
Kagoshima  bombarded  by  a  British  fleet  the 
Prince  of  Satsuma  agreed  to  pay  an  indemnity 
of  £25,000  and  apologise  to  the  British 
go\'ernment.  Choshu  then  flung  down  the 
gauntlet  of  defiance  in  firing  on  foreign  ships 
passing  the  Straits  of  Shimonoseki,  when  his 
forts  were  bombarded  in  turn  by  a  combined 
fleet  of  American,  Dutch,  French,  and  British 
men-of-war.  It  soon  became  apparent  to  all 
that  foreign  ships  and  foreign  subjects  could 
not  be  insulted  with  impunity.  Satsuma  and 
Choshu  as  well  as  the  shogun  having  learned 
bitter  lessons,  it  became  clear  to  all  that  the 
proposal  to  banish  foreigners  was  an  impossi- 
ble one;  while  at  the  same  time  the  existing 
government  of  the  country  was  obviously 
incompetent  to  deal  with  the  situation. 

FALL  OF  THE  SHOGUNATE 
In  1867  the  Emperor  Komei  died  and  the 
young  Prince  Mutsuhito,  aged  seventeen, 
ascended  the  throne.  Leaders  everywhere 
began  to  see  now  that  what  the  nation  most 
needed  was  not  the  expulsion  of  foreigners 
but  a  new  government.  The  lords  of  Sat- 
suma, Choshu,  and  Hizen  now  resol\-ed  to 
challenge  the  authority  of  the  shogun  and 
declare  for  direct  imperial  rule.  To  this  end 
they  presented  a  memorial  to  the  shogun,  to 
which  the  emperor  subscribed;  and,  to  the 
surprise  of  all,  the  shogun  agreeably  ac- 
quiesced. The  shogun,  Tokugawa  Yoshin- 
obu,  who  belonged  to  the  great  clan  of  Mito, 
had  unbounded  respect  for  the  imperial  house, 
and  his  erudition  had  taught  him  that  the 
shogunate  was  anomalous  from  an  imperial 
point  of  view.  So  he  readily  handed  in  his 
resignation  to  the  emperor,  though  he  still 
had  his  numerous  vassals  behind  him  and  did 
not  desire  to  come  under  the  dominion  of 
Satsuma  and  Choshu  who,  he  knew,  bore  him 
no  good  will.  But  no  sooner  did  the  emperor 
get  all  power  in  his  own  hands  than  he  sub- 
mitted to  the  advice  of  Satsuma  and  Choshu, 
had  the  Aidzu  troops  which  had  for  years 
guarded  the  imperial  palace  removed,  and 
men  of  Satsuma  put  in  their  places,  to  the 
great  indignation  of  the  Tokugawa  family  and 
all  its  friends.  Tokugawa  Yoshinobu,  the 
ex-shogun,  while  on  his  way  to  Kyoto  was 
attacked  by  the  imperial  troops  under  Sat- 
suma and  defeated,  and  thus  the  revolution 
w-as  accomplished  with  very  little  shedding  of 
blood.  The  imperial  government  w-as  now 
supreme;  but  matters  were  not  yet  well,  for 
the  feeling  against  foreigners  still  ran  high. 
A  British  embassy  under  Sir  Harry  Parkes, 
while  on  its  way  to  an  imperial  audience  at 
Kyoto,   was  attacked  by  samurai,  and  ten 


PR  KSE  NT-DAY        IMPRESSIONS        OF        JAPAN 


41 


French  sailors  and  an  officer  were  murdered  at 
Sakai.  The  difficulty  was  that  most  of  the 
officials  of  the  new  government  were  ignorant 
of  Western  countries;  and  as  they  had  prom- 
ised those  who  assisted  them  in  overthrowing 
the  shogunate  that  they  would  expel  the 
foreigner,  they  now  had  no  easy  role  to  fill, 
knowing  that  they  could  not  fulfil  their 
promises.  The  three  classes,  nobles,  samurai, 
and  serfs,  had  no  conception  of  the  duties  now 
devolving  upon  them.  The  nobles  knew 
nothing  save  to  rule,  the  samurai  nothing  save 
to  fight,  and  the  people  had  no  idea  of  the 
rights  of  free  citizens.  Indeed,  few  statesmen 
have  ever  had  so  difficult  a  task  as  that  which 
confronted  the  young  emperor's  advisers; 
and  it  is  remarkable  how  successfully  they 
carried  it  to  a  triumjihant  conclusion. 

(E)  THE  ERA  OF  MEIJI 
1S6S  to  IQ14. 
EARLY  REFORMS 
As  Yedo  had  long  been  the  seat  of  execu- 
tive government  it  was  decided  to  continue 
it  as  such;  and  so  the  name  was  changed  to 
Tokyo,  or  Eastern  Capital,  and  the  imperial 
residence  was  removed  thither  and  the  em- 
peror expected  to  take  an  active  share  in  the 
new  imperial  administration.  Instead  of 
attempting  to  drive  out  the  foreigners  the 
new  regime  proclaimed  the  intention  of 
encouraging  intercourse  with  Western  na- 
tions, and  that  European  science  and  civili- 
sation should  be  introduced  into  Japan. 
The  sacrifices  which  such  changes  demanded 
were  indeed  great.  The  shogun  had  sacri- 
ficed his  power  and  prestige;  the  emperor 
had  emerged  from  his  ease  and  retirement; 
it  was  now  for  the  nobles  and  their  samurai 
to  face  the  great  sacrifices  entailed  in  the 
abolition  of  feudalism.  This  was  more  than 
some  of  the  daimyo  had  expected.  They 
wanted  the  imperial  restoration,  but  they 
did  not  see  why  otherwise  the  feudal  regime 
should  not  continue.  The  clans  of  Satsuma 
and  Choshu  merely  wanted  the  place  formerly 
occupied  by  the  Tokugawa.  But  the  pres- 
sure from  abroad  soon  led  them  to  see  that 
Japan's  safety  lay  in  united  counsels,  and  they 
too  must  be  ready  for  the  self-renunciation 
displayed  by  the  shogun.  The  young  re- 
formers finally  succeeded  in  persuading  the 
daimyo  of  Satsuma,  Choshu,  Tosa,  and  Hi.':en. 
four  of  the  most  powerful  feudal  chiefs  in  the 
Empire,  to  surrender  their  fiefs  to  the  em- 
peror, a  sacrifice  of  remarkable  magnanimity 
indeed.  More  than  two  hundred  fifty 
feudal  lords  followed  their  example;  and  thus 
in  a  moment  many  separate  governments 
passed  into  one,  its  center  Tokyo,  and  the 
emperor  its  head.  The  daimyo,  at  first  left 
as  governors  in  their  several  domains,  in  1 871 
were  deprived  of  this  office  and  all  taxes  were 


ordered  to  be  paid  into  the  central  treasury. 
All  officials  were  thenceforth  to  be  appointed 
by  the  central  government,  the  feudal  lords 
were  to  retain  one-tenth  of  their  former  in- 
come and  make  Tokyo  their  place  of  resi- 
dence, while  the  samurai  were  to  retain  their 
pensions,  the  latter  after  two  years  being 
commuted  by  the  government.  The  spirit 
in  which  these  sacrifices  were  undertaken  and 
carried  out  must  form  a  model  of  loyalty 
for  all  time.  All  class  privileges  and  disa- 
bilities were  now  abolished;  permission  was 
given  to  Japanese  to  go  abroad  for  study; 
the  foundation  was  laid  for  a  national  army 
recruited  by  conscription,  and  steps  taken 
for  the  creation  of  a  navy.  Carefully  se- 
lected teachers  were  brought  from  Western 
lands  to  direct  the  new  education,  England 
supplying  instructors  in  railway,  telegraph, 
engineering,  mint,  and  naval  education;  the 
United    States    in    postal    and    educational 


CO.NSULTl.NG    THE    FORTUNE    STICK 


work;  Germany  in  medical  science,  and 
France  in  military  science.  The  main  aim 
of  the  new  government  was  to  fit  the  people 
for  the  privileges  of  constitutional  govern- 
ment when  the  time  should  arrive  for  its 
inauguration.  Japan  must  be  raised  to  the 
status  of  a  great  military  power  able  to  secure 
immunity  against  foreign  aggression  and 
commanding  a  place  in  the  councils  of  the 
world.  The  government  should  be  supported 
by  increasing  the  country's  industrial  capacity 
and  development  of  foreign  trade.  Then 
would  come  a  realisation  of  Japan's  main 
ideals;  the  abolition  of  exterritoriality  and 
her  assumption  of  supremacy  in  East  Asia. 

FOREIGN  REL.\TIONS 
The  treaties  which  the  shogun's  govern- 
ment had  concluded  with  foreign  powers 
exempted  Europeans  resident  in  Japan  from 
the  jurisdiction  of  Japanese  law  and  author- 
ity, leaving  them  subject  to  their  own  law 
as  administered  by  their  consular  courts. 
The  Japanese  soon  learned  that  this  system 
was  derogatory  to  their  dignity  as  an  inde- 
liendent  nation,  and  they  were  determined 
to  have  the  stigma  removed.  The  peninsula 
of  Korea,  which  had  interested  Japan  from 
ancient  times,  now  showed  signs  of  weakness 
and  Japan  feared  it  might  fall  into  the  hands 
of  some  foreign  power  that  would  menace 
the  safety  of  the  Empire.  Saigo,  one  of  the 
greatest  heroes  of  the  wars  of  the  Restoration, 
favoured  stern  measures  in  Korea;  and  when 
the  government  ignored  his  opinions,  he 
withdrew  from  active  participation  in  its 
aflairs  to  his  home  in  Kagoshima  where  he 
started  a  military  school  that  was  interpreted 
as  a  scheme  to  educate  rebels  against  the 
government.  This  gave  rise  to  the  Satsuma 
Rebellion  in  1878  when  some  30,000  lives  were 
lost  in  battles  between  the  government  and 
rebel  troops,  Saigo  committing  suicide  on 
being  defeated.  Japan  was  finally  obliged 
to  take  active  interest  in  the  aflfairs  of  Korea, 
however,  and  to  insist  on  similar  reforms  to 
her  own,  if  that  country  was  to  be  saved  from 
foreign  aggression.  Korea  rejected  these 
o\-ertures  and  was  backed  by  China,  leading 
to  the  China-Japan  War  in  1894-5  in  which 
Japan  was  victorious.  Ten  years  later  she 
had  to  cross  swords  with  Russia  on  the  same 
question,  dri\'ing  the  aggressor  out  of  Korea 
and  herself  eventually  annexing  the  peninsula, 
August,  1910.  Japan's  claim  to  have  the 
disability  of  exterritoriality  removed  was  con- 
ceded by  the  foreign  powers  in  July,  1899, 
when  she  recovered  her  judicial  autonomy; 
but  she  did  not  recover  her  tariff  autonomy 
until  1894.  From  this  time  relations  between 
Great  Britain  and  Japan  began  to  grow 
increasingly  intimate;  and  when,  after  the 
war  with  China,  Germany  led  France  and 


42 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


Russia  in  ousting  Japan  from  the  fruits  of 
her  victories  in  Manchuria,  Great  Britain 
refused  to  be  a  party  to  it,  the  two  nations 
were  drawn  still  closer  together,  until  1902 
when  they  entered  into  a  formal  alliance  for 
the  maintenance  of  the  integrity  of  China 
and  mutual  protection  in  Asia.  The  Anglo- 
Jajianese  Alliance  was  renewed  with  some 
modifications  in  191 1  and  still  forms,  as  it 
long  may  do,  the  foundation  of  Japan's 
foreign  policy.  It  was  in  accordance  with 
this  policy  that  Japan  joined  Great  Britain 
in  the  war  with  Germany,  attacking  and 
capturing  the  fortress  of  Tsingtau  and  occu- 
pying German  possessions  in  the  South  Seas 
in  1914-5.  Relations  with  the  United  States 
have  been  disturbed  over  questions  of  immi- 
gration and  rights  of  land  ownership;  but. 
although  these  problems  are  as  yet  unsettled, 
the  invariable  good  tetnper  of  both  countries 
promises  a  near  solution.  By  the  so-called 
"Gentleman's  Agreement"  with  America  in 
1908  Japan  consented  to  limit  the  number 
of  her  immigrant  labourers  to  the  United 
States;  and  a  memorandum  had  been  signed 
with  Canada  to  the  same  effect  in  1907. 
Japan  formed  a  treaty  of  alliance  with  Russia 
in  1916,  establishing  relations  similar  to  those 
with  Great  Britain  in  the  Anglo- Japanese 
Alliance,  but  in  no  sense  menacing  the  latter ; 
and  new  agreements  were  entered  into  with 
China  in  the  same  year.  Thus  by  her  own 
efforts,  backed  by  the  sympathy  of  the  Eng- 
Hsh-speaking  peoples,  Japan  has  obtained 
the  recognition  of  all  the  world-powers,  and 
to-day  occupies  a  place  second  to  none  in 
the  comitv  of  nations. 


MODERN   J.\P.\N 

Though  the  fathers  of  the  Meiji  Restoration 
looked  forward  in  some  measure  to  the  observ- 
ance of  constitutional  principles,  and  a  con- 
stitution was  conceded  by  the  emperor  and 
eventually  promulgated  in  1889,  and  a  parlia- 
ment opened  in  1890,  Japan  is  still  ruled  by 
an  oligarchy  of  talented  men,  known  as 
Genro,  or  Elder  Statesmen,  representing  the 
great  clans,  some  of  whom  had  a  hand  in 
bringing  about  the  restoration  of  imperial 
rule,  and  some  of  whom  are  of  a  later  gen- 
eration. The  unwritten  system  is  indeed 
not  unlike  that  which  prevailed  in  Japan 
before  the  development  of  feudalism  and 
military  government.  It  is,  however,  meet- 
ing W'ith  increasing  popular  objection  as  the 
years  go  on;  and  the  contest  between  bureau- 
cracy and  democracy  has  still  to  be  fought 
out.  The  bureaucracy,  nevertheless,  has  a 
better  grasp  of  foreign  affairs  than  the  rising 
and  more  ignorant  and  inexperienced  democ- 
racy, and,  therefore,  has  often  saved  the  day 
when  the  Empire  would  otherwise  have  been 
endangered.  But  so  long  as  out  of  a  popu- 
lation of  nearly  60.000,000  in  Japan  proper, 
no  more  than  1,600,000  are  entitled  to  the 
franchise,  the  impossibiUty  of  popular  or 
liberal  government  remains. 

In  some  respects  it  is  but  natural  that 
Japanese  affairs  should  still  be  in  the  hands 
of  those  and  their  successors  who  brought 
about  the  downfall  of  the  shogunate,  the 
restoration  of  imperial  rule  and  the  moderni- 
sation of  the  Empire.  Of  the  forty-five  or 
more  patriotic  youths  who  braved  death  to 
bring   about   the    Restoration,    twelve   were 


'•tt-:?w  - 


iSSlE;-'- 


given  a  supreme  place  as  Genro,  namely, 
Saigo,  Okubo,  Kido,  Ito,  Inouye,  Oyama, 
Soejima,  Iwakura  Sanjo,  Matsukata,  Yama- 
gata,  and  Itagaki,  of  whom  the  last  three 
alone  are  still  living,  but  Count  Itagaki  has 
retired  from  politics.  On  his  recent  retire- 
ment from  the  premiership  Marquis  Okuma 
was  added  to  the  list  of  Elder  Statesmen,  and 
doubtless  Marquis  Saionji  will  become  one 
also.  Unhampered  by  precedents  and  deal- 
ing with  a  people  accustomed  to  autocracy 
the  Elder  Statesmen,  the  Privy  Council,  and 
the  Emperor  as  supreme,  have  little  difficulty 
in  manipulating  state  affairs  after  their  own 
will,  or  as  circumstances  dictate.  The  Upper 
and  Lower  Houses  of  the  Imperial  Diet  are 
subordinate  to  the  Imperial  advisers  and  can 
be  dissolved  at  their  instance  on  proving 
recalcitrant.  The  Imperial  Diet,  however, 
is  given  the  general  management  of  do- 
mestic affairs;  always,  however,  under  the 
supervising  eye  of  the  powers  behind  the 
scene. 

Constitutionalism,  however,  is  making 
some  progress;  and  when  one  realises  all  that 
the  bureaucratic  system  has  done  for  Japan 
in  bringing  about  reforms  without  resorting 
to  radical  measures,  there  should  be  nothing 
but  admiration  for  its  achievements  and 
patience  with  its  anachronisms.  It  has 
created  and  promoted  an  army  and  navy  of 
matchless  efficiency;  and  under  its  paternal 
auspices  national  industry  and  trade  have 
developed  beyond  a  nascent  stage  and  now 
bid  fair  to  rival  all  competitors  in  Far  Eastern 
markets.  Laws  incorporating  the  principles 
of  modern  civilisation  and  justice  have  been 
codified  and  enacted;  the  rights  of  the  people 
are  recognised  if  not  always  allowed.  The 
Lunar  calendar  was  replaced  by  the  Western 
calendar  in  1873;  and  in  the  same  year  mili- 
tary conscription  was  introduced.  The  ban 
on  Christianity  was  removed  in  that  year 
and  religion  made  free,  though  school 
children  are  still  taken  by  their  teachers 
to  the  national  or  communal  shrines  to  render 
homage  to  their  ancestors.  In  the  same  year 
an  official  mission  consisting  of  Kido,  Okubo, 
and  Iwakura  proceeded  to  America  and 
Europe  to  study  the  situation  there  and  glean 
suggestions  for  national  reform;  while  the 
visit  of  Ito  in  1882  further  prepared  the  way 
for  more  constitutional  methods  of  procedure. 
After  he  had  duly  drafted  the  constitution 
a  cabinet  was  organised,  a  constitution  pro- 
mulgated and  the  Diet  formally  opened. 
The  grave  doubts  entertained  as  to  the  suc- 
cess of  a  representative  system  of  government 
at  its  inauguration  have  not  been  justified, 
simply  for  the  reason  that  it  is  not  represen- 
tative in  any  sense  that  would  seriously 
threaten  the  prerogatives  of  the  bureaucracy. 


THE    W.WMUE    KJRTIJ-NE    TELLER 


PRESENT-DAY        IMPRESSIONS        OF        JAPAN 


43 


THE    PRAYER    WHEEL 


Dunng  the  twenty-six  years  of  its  liistory 
the  Imperial  Diet  has  been  dissolved  numer- 
ous times,  with  eighteen  changes  of  cabinet 
and  twelve  general  elections.  In  19 lo  the 
election  laws  were  revised,  extending  the 
franchise  to  those  paying  a  minimum  tax 
of  ten  yen  a  year,  whereas  before  the  mini- 
mum was  fifteen  yen;  which,  of  course,  was 


not  any  great  extension;  and  the  system  of 
signed  ballots  was  discontinued.  In  July, 
igi2,  the  Emperor  Mutsuhito,  posthumously 
known  as  Meiji  Tenno,  passed  away;  and  His 
Majesty,  the  Emperor  Yoshihito,  I22d  in 
the  dynasty,  ascended  the  throne,  naming 
the  new  era,  Taisho,  or  the  Era  of  Great 
Righteousness,  succeeding  the  last  era  which 


is   known  as  Mciji,  or  the    Era  of  Enlight- 
enment. 

The  forty- five  years  comprising  the  reign  of 
Meiji  Tenno  were  unparalleled  in  the  history 
of  the  nation's  progress.  Among  the  innu- 
merable reforms  of  the  period  three  stand  out 
as  paramount:  the  promulgation  of  the 
Imperial  Constitution,  including  the  estab- 
lishment of  the  Imperial  Diet,  with  local 
self-government  in  prefectures,  counties, 
cities,  towns,  and  villages;  the  codification 
of  national  law  to  take  the  place  of  mere  cus- 
tom and  ancestral  prestige,  paving  the  way 
for  the  last  but  not  least  great  reform,  the 
revision  of  foreign  treaties,  and  the  abolition 
of  extraterritoriality.  Whether  the  Taisho 
era  will  be  able  to  maintain  the  glory  of  the 
former  period  remains  to  be  seen.  The 
weakness  of  the  nation  is  its  disposition  to 
disputation  and  lack  of  great  leadership, 
rendered  more  complex  by  clan  precedence 
and  prejudice.  Education,  which  was  at 
first  established  on  American  lines,  has  since 
diverged  into  a  German  system,  very  narrow 
and  formal,  with  more  attention  to  the  ac- 
quirement of  facts  and  ideas  than  to  any 
practical  application  of  them.  The  whole 
country  is  still  in  a  state  of  transition  between 
old  and  new,  in  which  now  one  side  has  the 
upper  hand  and  now  the  other,  often  with 
amusing  eccentricities.  But  the  main  policy 
of  Japan  is  to  aJapl  foreign  ways  while  adopt- 
ing them:  in  other  words,  to  Japanise  every- 
thing, even  the  truth  itself.  Signs  are  not 
wanting,  however,  that  every  phase  of  Japa- 
nese society,  civilisation  and  polity  having  a 
no  more  stable  basis  than  mere  prejudice, 
superstition,  or  fancy,  may  suffer  a  rude 
upheaval  as  time  proceeds.  Modem  science 
is  undermining  many  of  the  more  sacred  and 
treasured  traditions  of  the  nation  and  point- 
ing to  practical  efficiency  under  altruistic 
principles  as  the  more  certain  way  to  perma- 
nent progress. 

Should  Japan,  in  her  ambition  to  be  the 
moral,  intellectual,  and  political  torch  of 
East  Asia  and  the  arbiter  of  Oriental 
destiny,  ignore  these  signs  of  the  times,  her 
future  can  only  be  vague  and  uncertain. 
But  the  Japanese  are  a  brave,  industrious, 
and  intelligent  people;  and  if  they  are  wisely 
led,  or  are  not  hindered  in  leading  themselves, 
Japan  will  have  Httle  difficulty  in  becoming 
what  she  has  long  desired,  the  Great  Britain 
of  the  East. 


MAKING   OBSERVATIONS    DURING    ARMY    MANCEUVRES,    I9I7 

IV.    The  Army 

Army  of  Old  Japan -Evolution  of  a  Modern  Army  — Recruiting  — Army  Organisation 

—  Mobilisation  and  Equipment— Army  Finance 


THE  Japanese  must  be  accounted  war- 
riors from  the  days  of  their  first 
appearance  as  conquerors  of  the  isles 
of  Nippon;  and  consistently  the  first  thousand 
years  of  their  history  in  settlement  of  the 
archipelago  may  be  regarded  as  largely  a 
period  of  strife,  either  with  opposing  aborigi- 
nes or  with  succeeding  migrations  from  the 
continent.  That  they  were  skilled  in  tlie 
arts  of  war  there  is  no  doubt,  since  they 
appear  to  have  had  small  difSculty  in 
enforcing  an  occupation  of  the  land,  the 
southerners  under  Jimniu  Tenno  proving 
the  more  dauntless  and  aggressive  of 
the  various  tribes.  It  must  be  assumed 
that  most  of  the  military  tactics  of  old 
Japan  had  their  origin  in  China,  whence  the 
nation  derived  all 'its  other  arts.  In  the 
national  records  of  ancient  matters  one  reads 
that  in  the  year  760  A.  D.  soldiers  were  sent 
to  Kyushu  to  study  the  art  of  warfare  under 
a  military  instructor  named  Kibi  Makibi, 
who  in  turn  had  made  a  study  of  the  science 
of  tactics  in  China,  the  lessons  learned  being 
taken  chiefly  from  books  prepared  by  Chinese 
strategists.  The  imperial  court  usually  kept 
a  teacher  of  Chinese  strategy;  and  there  is 
mention  of  the  custom  of  ascertaining  the 


whereabouts  of  enemy  troops  by  the  behav- 
iour of  birds,  especially  wild  geese,  by  means 
of  which  in  the  past  enemies  had  been  de- 
tected and  defeated.  This  scrap  of  history 
is  quite  consistent  with  Japanese  tradition 
that  the  race  descended  from  warriors  who 
became  the  ancestors  of  great  military 
families,  most  prominent  among  whom  was 
the  imperial  family  itself,  tradition  asserting 
that  the  Empress  Jingo  in  200  A.  d.  led  an 
expedition  in  person  to  Korea  to  subdue 
refractory  kingdoms  there.  During  the 
sixth  and  seventh  centuries  there  appears 
to  have  been  much  attention  devoted  to  the 
question  of  national  defence,  and  guards  of 
the  court  and  of  the  national  frontiers  were 
established.  In  661  A.  D.  it  is  said  that  the 
Emperor  Tenchi  issued  instructions  for 
regulating  the  national  army,  in  preparation 
for  an  encounter  with  China.  In  701  it 
seems  that  the  imperial  forces  were  divided 
into  corps,  each  consisting  of  a  thousand 
soldiers;  and  at  the  same  time  a  cavalry  sec- 
tion was  organised,  and  all  the  court  families 
were  obliged  to  lend  themselves  to  the  move- 
ment. Under  the  Emperor  Konin  in  780  A.  D. 
conscription  took  a  definite  form,  when  every 
able-bodied  man  was  compelled  to  fight,  the 


incompetent  being  left  to  work  the  land. 
From  this  time  began  that  military  class- 
distinction  based  on  fighting  quaUty,  which 
has  ever  since  characterised  the  Japanese. 
The  military  power  thus  created  brought 
about  a  long  period  of  peace,  which  in  turn 
resulted  in  luxurious  effeminacy  that  reacted 
unfavourably  on  the  nation.  In  many 
places  defence  gave  place  to  plunder  and 
rebellion,  and  the  integrity  of  the  nation 
could  only  be  restored  and  upheld  by  the 
military  class.  With  the  rise  of  great  feudal 
families  the  army  became  decentrahsed ,  and 
for  a  time  military  power  continued  to  be 
associated  with  the  Minamoto  and  the  Taira 
families.  The  long  dissension  between  these 
great  military  clans  kept  the  country  in 
intermittent  strife  for  centuries;  and  finally 
with  the  triumph  of  the  Minamoto  clan 
and  its  establishment  of  military  govern- 
ment at  Kamakura,  the  indomitable 
fighting  spirit  was  conserved  and  handed 
on   to   future   generations. 

ARMY    OF    OLD    JAPAN 
These  extended  periods  of  ancient  warfare 
were  for  the  most  part  under  the  auspices  of 
Chinese  methods  of  fighting,  though  we  may 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


45 


be  sure  such  sturdy  warriors  as  the  Japanese 
had  early  begun  to  develop  their  own  devices. 
Up  to  the  ninth  century  it  was  a  principle  of 
Japanese  tactics  to  attack  always   at  night 
or  early  in  the  morning,  which  well  suited 
the  national  disposition   and   temperament. 
This  practice  was  undoubtedly  continued  all 
through  the  civil  wars  of  the  eleventh,  twelfth, 
and    thirteenth    centuries.     It    was    indeed 
seldom     that     forces    of    any     considerable 
strength  met  on  the  open  plains  or  even  in 
valleys,  as  the  native  warrior  never  acquitted 
himself   so   well   under   such   circumstances. 
In  the  warfare  of  ancient  times  battles  were 
sometimes  decided  by  contests  of  individual 
prowess,  not  unlike  what  one  sees  traces  of 
in  Britain  during  the  age  of  chivalry.     Some- 
what after  the  manner  of  Gohath  a  Japanese 
general  would  stalk  out  in  front  of  his  forces 
and  challenge  a  representative  of  the  enemy 
to    single    combat.     The    challenging    hero 
stood  erect  between  the  opposing  hosts,  and 
in  stentorian  tones  recited  his  lineage  and 
military    achievements:    it    was    the    only 
moment  in  a  samurai's  life  when  he  was  free 
to  boast,  demanding  a  man  of  equal  family 
and  martial  attainments  on  the  enemy's  side 
to  be  pitted  against  him.     As  a  rule  the  chal- 
lenge was  promptly  accepted.     In  a  similar 
manner  a  hero  from  the  enemy's  ranks  would 
step  forward  and  proclaim  in  a  loud  voice 
his   family   history    and   his    own    deeds    of 
prowess  on  the  field  of  battle.     There  stood 
the  two  heroes  face  to  face  amid  the  silence 
of  intense  excitement  and  suspense  of  the 
assembled  troops.     At  once  the  duel  began. 
It  was  nothing  if  not  fierce,  a  battle  to  the 
death.     One  of  the  combatants  fallen,   an- 
other was  ready  to  step  in,  and  after  two 
or  three  such  contests  the  spirit  of  the  on- 
lookers was  up  and  the  two  armies  closed  in 
on  one  another  with  fearful  carnage.     It  was 
seldom,  however,  that   in   such   battles   the 
entire  forces  on  both   sides  participated,  as 
the    strategists    preferred    to   depend    on    a 
night  attack   for  the   final  result. 

Through  the  Middle  Ages  two  schools  of 
tacticians  developed  in  Japan,  chiefly  under 
the  impetus  of  the  civil  wars  already  alluded 
to.  The  one  was  known  as  the  Echigo  sys- 
tem, of  which  the  celebrated  warrior,  Uyesugi 
Kenshin,  was  the  exponent;  and  the  other 
was  called  the  Koshu  method,  elaborated 
by  one  of  the  most  famous  enemies  of  Ken- 
shin,  named  Takeda  Shingen.  The  Echigo 
tactics  involved  a  rapid  movement  of  troops 
and  the  springing  of  unheard-of  surprises 
on  the  enemy,  as  may  be  seen  from  a  careful 
study  of  the  plan  adopted  at  the  noted  battle 
of  Kawanakajima.  The  Koshu  tacticians, 
on  the  other  hand,  aimed  at  placing  their 
troops  in  strategic  positions,  and  insisted  on 
pressing  a  steady  frontal  attack  with  a  fight 


to  the  finish.  The  latter  way  came  to  be 
regarded  by  the  majority  of  soldiers  as  the 
more  scientific,  and  for  a  considerable  time 
it  prevailed  among  the  leading  clansmen- 
at-arms.  Succeeding  warriors  of  renown 
further  elaborated  the  Koshu  system,  each 
giving  it  his  own  name;  and  so  we  have  men- 
tion of  the  Obata  tactics,  the  Kagemori 
tactics,  the  Hojo  Ujimasa  method,  and  the 
popular  tactics  of  Yamaga  Soko. 

Of  course  the  introduction   of  guns  and 
modern    weapons    completely    changed    the 
army  system  of  old  Japan.     The  bowman  and 
the  lancer  had  small  chance  before  the  West- 
ern musket  and  cannon.     The  introduction 
of  the  new  methods  obliged  a  complete  rear- 
rangement of  the  line  of  battle.     The  musket- 
eers were  now  placed  in  front,  with  the  archers 
behind  and  the  spearmen  in  the  rear,  each 
vmder  a  special  officer.     The  muskets  were 
discharged,     the    bowmen    delivered    their 
shafts  and  emptied  their  quivers,  and  the 
spearmen  then  closed  in  on  the  struggling 
forces,  while  the  musketeers  and  archers  pre- 
pared for  a  second  onslaught.     These  Euro- 
pean ideas  of  military  science  came  with  the 
arms  and  ammunition  which  the  Portuguese 
and  Spanish  traders  brought  to  Japan  in  the 
middle  of  the  sixteenth  century.     The  first 
firearm  ever  seen  in  the  country  was  a  musket 
presented  to  the  daimyo  of  Higo  by  a  Portu- 
guese merchant  in  the  year   1551.     It  was 
not,   however,   until   1660  that   the   daimyo 
seriously  determined  on  the  use  of  Western 
firearms,  and  then  foreign  instructors  were 
engaged.     In   that   year   Hojo   Masafusa,   a 
celebrated   warrior  of  the  day,  took  lessons 
in  miUtary  tactics  and  the  use  of  Western 
war  weapons  from  a  Dutch  officer,  special 
emphasis  being  laid  on  the   use   of  cannon. 
Some  time  later  the  governor  of   Nagasaki 
brought   with   him    to   Osaka   and   Yedo   a 
Dutchman    skilled    in    the    use    of    Western 
implements  of  war.     When  the  foreigner  saw 
the  walls  of  Osaka  Castle,  the  Japanese  ex- 
pected him  to  be  much  impressed  by  their 
impregnabihty;    but   he   only   laughed   and 
said  "bom-bom,"  as  the  Japanese  accounts 
have  it,   which  greatly  puzzled  his  hearers 
and  the  great  man  whose  guest  he  was.     The 
governor  finally  learned  from  the  Dutchman 
his  meaning,  which  proved  to  be  that  the 
Europeans  had  a  weapon  which  would  destroy 
the  greatest  castle  in  Japan  with  a  few  shots. 
The  Japanese  were  so  much  impressed  by 
what  they   heard   of   cannon   that   they   set 
about  a  study  of  ordnance  and  soon  equipped 
themselves  with  big  guns  of  their  own.     Thus 
the  military  men  of  Nagasaki,  being  more  in 
touch  with  Europeans  than   the   officers  of 
other  fiefs,  were  the  first  to  realise  the  great 
importance  of  more  modem  military  equip- 
ment, and  memorialised  the  Government  to 


that  eflect  in  1818,  asking  also  that  warships 
be  constructed  for  coast  defence  purposes 
and  that  existing  castles  be  replaced  by  more 
impregnable  fortresses.  Shuhan  Takashima, 
of  Nagasaki,  for  his  presumption  in  thus 
daring  to  instruct  the  shogunate,  was  cast 
into  prison;  but  the  invasion  of  the  Kurile 
Islands  by  Russia  and  the  increasing  visi- 
tations by  foreign  warships  soon  showed  the 
authorities  that  something  should  be  done 
for  national  defence.  Some  time  later  a  young 
officer  named  Enomoto  Buyo,  afterward 
destined  to  play  an  important  part  in  the 
nation's  history,  went  to  Holland  to  study 
naval  and  military  science,  while  Count  Katsu 
took  lessons  from  Dutch  officers  at  Nagasaki. 
Such  was  about  the  sum  total  of  Japan's 
knowledge  of  modem  war  at  the  beginning 
of  the  Meiji  period,  though  there  no  doubt 
had  been  more  of  experiment  and  progress 
than  is  recorded,  as  may  be  seen  from  evidence 
still  extant.  In  Nagasaki,  for  example,  the 
writer  saw  set  up  as  a  monument  or  ancient 
relic  on  the  water  front  a  huge  iron  ball, 
more  than  two  feet  in  diameter.  It  looked 
like  an  ancient  cannon  ball,  except  that  the 
past  has  afforded  no  gim  of  sufficient  calibre 
to  receive  it.  No  reliable  account  of  its 
history  could  be  obtained,  but  the  most 
likely  story  is  worth  repeating.  It  is  said 
that  some  military  genius  of  old  Japan  con- 
ceived the  idea  of  defending  the  port  from 
foreign  ships  by  excavating  a  deep  hole  in 
the  side  of  a  lofty  hill,  the  hole  lined  with 
heavy  timber  to  form  a  sort  of  howitzer  gun, 
which  could  be  charged  with  powder  and 
then  loaded  with  the  hea\'y  ball.  The  enemy 
would  be  driven  to  a  certain  spot  in  the 
harbour  where  the  angle  of  the  gun  would 
throw  or  drop  the  huge  ball,  thus  penetrating 
the  enemy's  deck  and  even  bottom.  Be  the 
story  a  joke  or  not,  it  is  the  only  way  found 
to  account  for  the  existence  of  the  huge  iron 
ball  which  must  have  been  much  larger  cen- 
turies ago,  as  it  is  eaten  deeply  by  rust. 

As  to  recruiting,  it  may  be  said  that  after 
the  army  decentralisation  caused  by  the  rise 
of  the  feudal  system,  every  daimyo  had  his 
own  military  organisation;  but  with  most 
of  them  it  was  the  rule  to  take  one-fourth  of 
all  the  men  between  the  ages  of  twenty  and 
forty  for  training  as  soldiers,  while  the  other 
three-fourths  of  this  class  were  obliged  to 
provide  themselves  with  armour  and  weapons 
so  as  to  be  in  readiness  when  called  up  for 
war  in  emergency.  As  the  army  was  then 
constituted,  fifty  men  formed  a  band,  and 
five  hundred  men  a  company,  either  infantry 
or  cavalry,  each  with  its  leader  or  captain. 
Two  such  companies  were  a  corps;  and  troops 
numbering  twenty  thousand  had  one  general, 
one  lieutenant-general,  and  two  commis- 
sioned officers.     This  system  was  kept  up 


46 


PRESENT-DAY        IMPRESSIOTSTS        OF        JAPAN 


until  the  tenth  century;  but  as  the  daimyo 
became  more  and  more  independent  they 
often  followed  their  own  de\ices,  until  ulti- 
mately all  semblance  of  military  uniformity 
was  lost.  The  chief  weapons  used  in  war 
were  the  bow  and  arrow,  the  spear  and  a  long 
spear  like  a  halberd,  with  shields  of  tw'O  sizes 
for  defence,  a  small  one  for  fighting  and 
a  large  one  when  encamping.  These  large 
shields  were  used  to  form  a  wall  between 
an  army  encampment  and  a  sneaking  enemy. 
Much  more  could  be  said  about  the  uses  of  the 
various  weapons  of  war  used  in  old  Japan,  but 
lack  of  space  forbids.  The  great  war  museum 
at  Kudan  in  Tokyo  will  afford  those  inter- 
ested any  information  desired  on  this  score. 

EVOLUTION  OF  A  MODERN  ARMY 
With  the  abdication  of  the  shogun  in  1868 
the  supreme  command  over  all  the  naval  and 
military  forces  of  the  Empire  reverted  to  the 
Emperor.  The  expeditious  manner  in  which 
the  men  of  Satsuma  and  Choshu  overthrew 
the  opponents  of  the  new  regime  showed  that 
even  at  that  time  Japan  possessed  warriors 
of  no  mean  skill  and  prowess.  The  Naval 
and  Military  Bureau  organised  in  1868  soon 
evolved  into  the  Bureau  of  National  Defence, 
which  in  time  became  the  War  Office.  As 
the  new  national  army  consisted  of  the  various 
heterogeneous  forces  formerly  under  command 
of  the  feudal  lords,  it  represented  anything 
but  a  mobile  unit  of  defence;  and  so  the 
French  military  system  was  at  first  adopted 
with  the  hope  of  producing  some  show  of 
uniformity'  and  cohesion.  Regular  bodies  of 
infantry,  cavalr>-,  artillery,  and  engineering 
corps  were  organised,  including  an  Imperial 
Bodyguard.  A  garrison  was  stationed  in 
Tokj-o  for  the  protection  of  the  northern 
provinces,  another  in  Osaka  for  the  security 
of  the  western  provinces,  while  other  garrison 
detachments  were  posted  at  certain  strategic 
points.  Thus  in  a  remarkably  short  time 
great  improvements  were  brought  about  in 
the  military  system  of  the  country.  With 
the  abolition  of  feudalism,  the  disappearance 
of  clan  troops  and  the  introduction  of  a 
national  conscription  system  in  1871  a  most 
drastic  transformation  was  accomplished. 
The  military  profession  which  for  centuries 
had  been  a  monopoly  of  the  samurai,  was 
flung  open  to  every  male  citizen  of  the  Em- 
pire irrespective  of  class  or  clan.  In  1873 
the  nation  was  divided  into  six  military  dis- 
tricts, with  centres  at  Sendai,  Tokj'O,  Nagoya, 
Osaka,  Hiroshima,  and  Kumamoto,  at  all  of 
which  garrisons  were  stationed.  The  men 
recruited  by  conscription  went  into  battle 
with  the  clan  troops  for  the  first  time  in  the 
Satsuma  Rebellion  of  1877,  and  they  proved 
themselves  equal  in  every  way  to  the  veteran 
soldiers  of  the  feudal  days,  beside  w-hom  many 


A    TRIUMPHAL    ARCH    FOR    THE    VICTORIOUS    ARMY    OF    TS1NGT.A.O 


of  them  now  fought.  In  1878  the  War  Office 
was  reorganised  with  the  aim  of  further 
improving  the  military  organisation  of  the 
country,  a  general  staff  was  appointed  for  the 
super\asion  of  national  defence  as  well  as 
strategy',  and  a  superintending  inspector's 
office  was  established  for  general  military 
inspection  and  improvement  of  ordnance. 

From  the  year  1882  onward  Japan  began 
to  realise  more  and  more  the  necessity  of 
stronger  armaments  if  a  balance  of  power  was 
to  be  maintained  in  East  Asia;  and  from  that 
time  her  militarj'  forces  have  been  augmented 
year  by  year.  The  nation's  system  of  mili- 
tary command,  her  military  schools,  army 
organisation,   training,  accounts,   sanitation. 


and  all  other  essential  functions  were  com- 
pletely remodeled,  chiefly  after  the  German 
system,  as  that  country  had  in  Japan's  opin- 
ion proved  superior  to  France  in  the  Franco- 
Prussian  War.  In  1884  Generals  Oyama. 
Kawakami,  and  Katsura  went  to  Europe  to 
make  a  thorough  study  of  the  Prussian  mili- 
tary system,  and  brought  back  with  them  a 
German  officer.  General  Mickel,  who  put  the 
Japanese  army  through  its  Prussian  drill, 
and  was  the  tutor  of  most  of  the  Japanese 
army  officers  of  to-day.  As  time  passed  it 
became  increasingly  e\'ident  to  Japan  that 
she  must  concentrate  expenditure  on  means 
of  national  defence  and  offence.  Indeed, 
everything   was  directed  toward  that  great 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


47 


military  effort  which  culminated  in  the  war 
with  China  in  1895.  For  the  previous  ten 
years  army  reorganisation  had  been  steadily 
and  thoroughly  proceeding  under  the  direc- 
tion of  German  instruction.  A  military  staff 
college  had  been  established,  the  military 
academies  were  extended,  and  the  army  medi- 
cal college  was  improved.  Non-commissioned 
officers  were  trained  to  qualify  for  commis- 
sions and  the  whole  system  of  uniform  and 
drill  was  revised.  In  1888  garrisons  were 
organised  as  units,  complete  with  infantry, 
cavalry,  artillery,  railway  corps,  and  colonial 
militia,  ready,  if  need  be,  for  service  overseas. 
By  1893  Japan  had  established  16  military 
schools,  attended  by  2,602  students  with 
hundreds  of  thousands  of  young  recruits 
under  drill;  and  in  1894  she  was  ready  to 
oppose  China  with  an  army  of  more  than  240,- 
000  trained  men,  with  6,495  irregulars  and 
100,000  coolies.  Further  reforms  were  intro- 
duced during  the  war  with  a  view  to  making 
the  army  more  mobile  and  to  defend  more 
efficiently  the  outposts  of  the  Empire.  More- 
over, Japan's  association  with  the  European 
troops  during  the  Boxer  trouble  in  China  in 
1900  gave  her  many  new  ideas  concerning 
ammunition  and  armaments;  and  improve- 
ment and  expansion  of  the  imperial  army 
went  on  steadily  up  to  the  war  with  Russia, 
the  results  of  which  we  know. 

After  the  Russo-Japanese  War  the  military 
leaders  of  Japan  became  deeply  impressed 
with  the  need  of  further  army  expansion ;  and 
Prince  Yamagata  memorialised  the  Throne 
suggesting  that  the  armed  forces  of  the  nation 
should  be  increased  to  twenty-five  divisions 
and  the  navy  to  two  squadrons  of  eight 
dreadnoughts  and  four  battle-cruisers  each, 
with  cruiser  squadrons  and  ample  flotillas 
to  match.  The  Emperor  quite  agreed  with 
the  suggestion  and  the  military  authorities 
had  only  to  await  the  necessary  funds  to 
carry  the  new  programme  into  effect.  The 
army  that  opposed  and  triumphed  over  Rus- 
sia consisted  of  thirteen  divisions,  four  other 
divisions  having  been  provisionally  organised 
during  the  war;  but  in  1907,  two  years  after 
the  restoration  of  peace,  we  find  the  Japanese 
army  with  six  new  divisions  fully  organised, 
making  a  total  army  strength  of  nineteen 
divisions,  or  100,000  more  men  than  before. 
At  the  time  of  Japan's  conflict  with  Russia 
her  available  military  forces  were  600,000 
fighting  men:  two  years  after  the  war  these 
had  expanded  to  some  2,000,000  men.  In 
1914  the  Government  sanctioned  the  addition 
of  two  more  army  divisions,  to  be  stationed  in 
Korea,  one  of  which  has  already  been  organ- 
ised, so  that  Japan's  army  strength  at  present 
consists  of  twenty  divisions. 

Here  the  question  naturally  arises  as  to 
why  Japan  is  so  intent  on  military  expansion. 


Before  the  European  war  her  hypothetic 
objective  was  undoubtedly  Russia,  as  she 
had  the  conviction  that  the  northern  power 
was  some  day  sure  to  return  to  retrieve  her 
losses  and  humiliation  in  Manchuria,  and  the 
Japanese  army  should  be  of  sufficient  strength 
to  discourage  this.  Japan's  interests  in 
Manchuria  and  China  must  be  guarded  at  all 
costs.  During  the  European  war,  however, 
Japan  and  Russia  arrived  at  a  special  under- 
standing as  to  mutual  spheres  of  interest  in 
China,  and  now  Japan's  potential  objective 
is  supposed  to  be  across  the  Pacific,  should 
forces  from  that  direction  interfere  with 
Japan's  progress  in  China.  Thus  naval  and 
armamental  expansion  goes  on  to  the  full 
limit  of  Japan's  financial  capacity. 

RECRUITING 
In  Japan  military  service  is  personal,  uni- 
versal, and  obligatory  upon  every  citizen 
between  the  ages  of  seventeen  and  forty. 
Out  of  a  population  of  some  57,000,000  in 
Japan  proper  the  number  of  youths  who 
annually  reach  the  age  of  conscription  is 
about  450,000;  but  since  no  more  than  about 
260,000  of  these  are  found  physically  fit  for 
army  service  the  task  of  increasing  the  mili- 
tary forces  of  the  nation  to  twenty-five  divi- 
sions is  not  so  easy.  The  most  common 
causes  of  failure  to  qualify  for  army  service 
are  venereal  diseases  and  the  eye  affection 
known  as  trachoma,  the  next  most  common 
defect  being  low  stature  or  general  debility. 
Defective  physique  proved  most  common  in 
the  years  when  those  born  during  the  wars 
with  China  and  Russia  came  of  age.  The 
number  of  Japanese  recruits  above  5  feet 
6  inches  in  stature  does  not  number  more  than 
1 1 ,000  a  year,  while  more  than  50,000  are 
less  than  5  feet.  The  number  of  recruits 
above  5.3  feet  in  stature  is  about  323  per 
1,000.  The  military  authorities  report  the 
eagerness  with  which  recruits  enter  the  army , 
but  desertions  number  about  1,000  a  year, 
mostly  privates,  38  per  cent  of  which  are  said 
to  be  due  to  dislike  of  military  service  and 
the  rest  to  cruelty.  The  penalties  for  deser- 
tion are  so  severe,  however,  that  it  would  be 
a  mistake  to  estimate  the  popularity  of  the 
service  by  the  number  remaining  loyal  to  it. 
One  frequently  hears  of  cases  where  the 
body  has  been  mutilated  so  as  to  prevent  be- 
ing conscripted,  and  soldiers  are  said  to 
commit  suicide  rather  than  meet  the  trials 
to  be  endured.  The  custom  of  drilling 
and  marching  soldiers  in  the  hottest 
weather  results  in  frequent  cases  of  sunstroke 
and  death,  and  indicates  a  desire  to  weed  out 
of  the  army  all  unable  to  endure  such  strain, 
however  cruel  the  process.  Of  the  260,000 
men  annually  qualifying  for  conscription 
about   120,000  are  drafted  and   150,000  left 


as  reserves  to  be  called  up  any  time.     The 
numbers  above  indicated  can  not  be  enlarged 
at    present    without    lowering    the    general 
efficiency  of  the  service.     The  conscript  is 
called  up  during  the  year  which  follows  that 
in  which  he  reaches  the  age  of  twenty.     Re- 
cruits  are   divided   into   three   grades   after 
being   drafted,   and   the   number   desired   is 
drawn  by  lot  from  the  highest  grade.     The 
only  exemptions  allowed  under  the  conscrip- 
tion law  are  for  an  only  son  where  the  parent 
is  over  sixty  years  of  age  and  incompetent  to 
support  himself  or  herself.     Lads  registered 
in  schools  of  certain  grades  may  have  mili- 
tary service  postponed  until  finishing  their 
studies,  but  the  age  of  postponement  must 
not  exceed  twenty-eight.     There  are  reports 
of  youths  registering  at  schools  merely  to 
escape  conscription,  even  though  they  do  not 
attend  classes.     There  is  also  a  service  of  one 
year  for  scholars  and  those  of  the  upper  class, 
who,  after  putting  in  the  year  in  sections,  are 
registered   in   the   reserve   service   with    the 
rank    of    non-commissioned    officer.     These 
have  to  pay  their  own  expenses  while  in  bar- 
racks.    Recruits  drafted  into  the  annual  con- 
tingent have  to  pass  two  whole  years  with 
the  colours  in  the  case  of  infantry,  and  three 
years  in  the  case  of  other  arms.     They  then 
belong  to  the   Yobi,  or  reserve  of  the  active 
army,   until  the  age  of  twenty-seven,   after 
which  they  become  Kobi,  or  Landwehr,  for 
ten  years,  until  reaching  the  age  of  thirty- 
seven,  from  which  time  until  arriving  at  the 
age  of  forty  they  are  ranked  as  Kokiimin,  or 
Landslurm.     The  service  is  thus  divided  into 
an  active  service  of  two  years  for  infantry, 
three  for  cavalry  and  engineers,  reserve  ser- 
vice of  four  years  and  depot  service  of  ten 
years,  covering  in  all  a  period  of  seventeen 
years    beginning    from    the    age   of   twenty. 
The  Japanese  army  is  further  expanded  by 
what  is  known  as  the  Ersatz  system  by  which 
men  are  trained  for  a  period  of  ninety  days 
in  the  first  year,  sixty  in  the  second  and  third 
years,  the  candidates  serving  as  a  reserve  of 
recruiting   and   enabling  the   waste   in   each 
annual  draft  to  be  made  good.     The  Ersatz 
belong  to  the  active  and  reserve  forces  until 
the  age  of   twenty-seven  when  they  become 
territorials.     As  for  the  Landslurm  it  includes 
all  youths  between  the  ages  of  seventeen  and 
twenty  as  well  as  all  those  up  to  the  age  of 
forty  classed  as  good  for  service  or  excused 
from  service  for  reasons  other  than  physical 
unfitness.     This  category,  which  is  at  present 
untrained,  forms  a  reserve  of  something  over 
3,000,000  men  who  can  be  drawn  upon  any 
time  in  case  of  emergency,  but  need  not  be 
considered  in  the  effective  force. 

The  organisation  of  the  recruiting  territory 
is  based  upon  that  of  the  divisional  unit. 
Each  army  division  has  an  area  of  country 


^==s^s^^^^^\ 


\\\A 


;*>■: 


f  s'^i  t=^J? 


.v^^> 


/3? 


:^ 


1 


\r' 

Is'-'' 

n 

'  1 

>" 

^'-^■^ 

-•^ 

^1 

* 

--* 

^p  ''(^'^W(^^M^^€W^^-        -;,er^^>r's^j^:^3v^^|^v,^^^ 


SCENES    DURING    THE    JAPANESE    ARMY    MANCEUVRES,     iqi; 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


49 


allotted  to  it,  from  which  it  draws  its  recruits 
in  peace  and  its  reserves  on  mobilisation. 
There  are  eighteen  divisional  districts,  the 
divisions  detached  in  Korea  and  Manchuria 
retaining  their  districts  in  Japan.  The 
Imperial  Guards  alone  are  recruited  from  the 
whole  territory.  In  each  divisional  district  the 
country  is  divided  up  into  infantry,  brigade, 
regimental,  and  battalion  areas.  Other 
forces  are  recruited  from  the  divisional  dis- 
trict as  a  whole  or  from  appointed  portions 
of  it,  while  some  troops  are  allotted  special 
or  larger  areas.  Formosa  has  a  special  garri- 
son, as  have  also  Tsushima,  Saghalien,  and 
the  other  colonies.  The  total  number  of 
troops  quartered  outside  of  Japan  are  the 
divisions  in  Korea  and  34,000  others,  includ- 
ing 10,000  railway  guards,  in  Manchuria. 

The  peace  strength  of  the  Japanese  army 
is  now  about  250,000  men,  with  some  6,000 
officers,  and  the  first  line  of  defence  easily 
musters  600,000  strong,  including  260,000 
reservists;  while  the  total  fighting  force  at 
Japan's  disposal  in  case  of  need  is,  as  has 
been  before  mentioned,  not  less  than  2,000,- 
000. 

As  to  mounts,  Japan  has  been  importing 
large  numbers  of  Australian  horses  since  the 
war  with  Russia,  but  not  enough  for  the 
requirements  of  the  army,  and  consequently 
the  supply  has  been  supplemented  by  half- 
breed  animals  known  as  zashu,  which  are  by 
foreign  sires  from  home-bred  mares,  raised 
for  the  most  part  on  the  government  stock 
farms  and  in  Hokkaido.  These  zashu  are 
preferred  to  foreign  horses  by  most  Japanese 
officers,  as  they  are  said  to  stand  the  climate 
better  and  are  more  amenable  to  Japanese 
ways  of  handling.  The  Japanese  army 
requires  about  130,000  horses;  and  the  whole 
country  possesses  not  more  than  1,600,000, 
of  which  not  more  than  14,000  are  imported, 
and  530,000  are  half-breeds.  There  is  a 
drastic  law  in  existence  for  the  registration, 
classification,  and  requisition  of  horses  and 
wagons  on  mobilisation;  but  it  must  be 
remembered  that  horses  are  not  of  such  great 
importance  in  the  Japanese  military  system. 

.■\R.MY  ORGANIS.A.TION 
The  Japanese  army,  as  has  been  already 
pointed  out,  consists  of  twenty  divisions, 
with  prospects  of  five  more  in  the  near  futiu-e. 
A  division  is  composed  of  two  brigades  of 
infantry,  a  regiment  of  cavalry,  one  of  artil- 
lery, and  a  battalion  each  of  engineers  and 
army  service  corps.  Each  regiment  of 
infantry  consists  of  four  battalions  of  600 
men  each,  while  a  regiment  of  cavalry  has 
four  squadrons  of  100  sabres  each.  A  regi- 
ment of  field  artillery  is  made  up  of  six  bat- 
teries, each  of  four  guns  and  24  machine  guns; 
a  battalion  of  engineers  has  three  companies 


FIELD-MARSHAL    PRINCE    YAMAGATA,   HEAD  OF 
THE    GENRO,    OR    ELDER    STATESMEN, 

AND    ONE    OF    THE    MOST    INFLU- 
ENTIAL   MEN    OF   JAPAN 

of  200  men  each,  while  the  army  service  corpb 
has  300  men,  including  a  Ijridging  train, 
telegraph  section,  medical  corps,  eight  ammu- 
nition columns,  four  supply  columns,  four  to 
six  field  hospitals,  and  a  mobile  remount 
depot.  The  six-gun  battery  was  abandoned 
for  one  of  four  guns  after  the  war  with  Russia, 
as  it  was  found  impossible  to  carry  more 
than  289  shells  for  each  gun,  a  supply  quite 
insufficient  for  a  hot  artillery  duel  when  guns 
often  discharge  as  many  as  500  rounds  a  day; 


GENERAL      BARON      V.      UEHARA,      A     DIS- 
TINGUISHED  SOLDIER,    FORMERLY    MIN- 
ISTER   OF    W.4R    IN     THE     SAIONJI 
CABINET,    NOW    CHIEF    OF    THE 
GENER.\L      ST.\FF 


so  that  four  guns  were  all  that  really  could 
be  handled  with  advantage.  An  infantry 
company  numbers  156  all  ranks,  a  squadron 
140  with  135  horses,  and  the  field  battery 
128  with  62  horses;  an  engineer  company 
1 70  or  200.  Thus  the  Japanese  army  division 
remains,  as  before,  the  largest  imit  of  the  war 
organisation.  The  division  has  its  head- 
quarters, including  chief-of-staff  and  adju- 
liuifiir,  and  on  active  duty  it  has  about  18,875 
men,  with  4,938  horses  and  1,765  carriages. 
In  addition  to  the  twenty  divisions  com- 
posed as  above,  the  Japanese  army  has  troops 
numbering  four  brigades  of  cavalry,  each 
having  three  regiments  of  five  squadrons; 
two  batteries  of  horse  artillery;  three  inde- 
pendent brigades  of  field  artillery  forming 
six  regiments  with  216  guns;  three  indepen- 
dent mountain  batteries  with  54  guns;  four 
regiments  of  hea\'y  field  artillery;  railway 
troops,  wireless  and  other  telegraph  units;  a 
balloon  company;  searchlight  detachments 
and  field  gendarmerie.  There  are  also  troops 
for  lines  of  connection;  24  batteries  of  heavy 
artillery  for  coast  defence,  beside  the  garrisons 
outside  Japan.  It  has  been  the  practice  of 
Japan  to  add  a  brigade  of  reservists  to  each 
division  on  active  service,  but  as  time  goes 
on  this  may  be  unnecessary.  The  use  of 
these  reserve  troops  is  a  secret  of  the  higher 
command;  but  probably  the  trend  is  toward 
the  German  custom  of  depending  chiefly  on 
highly  trained  troops  and  not  to  hamper 
them  with  inferior  elements.  In  the  war 
with  Russia  Japan  created  four  or  five 
armies,  as  she  would  doubtless  do  in  case  of 
war  again;  but  there  exists  no  permanent 
arrangement  of  the  divisions  into  armies  and 
there  are  no  staffs.  The  Emperor  is  the 
supreme  head  of  the  army  and  navy;  and  in 
time  of  war  he  directs  the  combined  opera- 
tions of  these  forces  through  the  headquarters 
staff,  assisted  by  the  Field  Marshal,  the  mili- 
tary council  consisting  of  the  chief  officers 
of  the  army  and  navy  and  others.  The  army 
in  time  of  peace  is  governed  by  the  Minister 
of  War,  the  Chief  of  the  General  Staff,  and 
the  Director  of  Military  Education  and 
Training.  The  chiefs  of  these  departments 
are  independent  of  one  another  and  directly 
under  the  Emperor.  The  systems  followed 
by  the  War  Office  and  the  General  Staff 
Office   are  after   the   German   model. 

-MOBILISATION  AND  EQUIPMENT 
During  mobihsation  in  Japan,  as  in  Eu- 
rope, the  reser\'es  are  called  out,  depots  are 
formed  and  reserve  formations  prepared  on 
the  required  scale  and  in  the  orthodox  man- 
ner. Usually  the  first  divisions  mobilised 
are  allowed  10  days  for  preparation,  this  time 
having  been  proved  to  be  ample.  Reservists 
set  out  for  their  destinations  on  the  second 


50 


PRESENT-DAY        I>rPRESSIONS        OF        JAPAN 


THE    MILITARV    STAFF    OFFICE,    TOKVt> — OFFICE    OF    THE    GENERAL    STAFF,    TOKYO,    WITH    EQUESTRIAN    STATUE    OF    PRINCE    KITASHIRAKAWA 


day  of  mobilisation.  The  first  troops  are 
generally  ready  to  entrain  or  embark  on  the 
seventh  day  of  mobilisation;  the  entire  first 
line  is  ready  in  between  12  and  20  daj's, 
and  the  reservists  between  20  and  25  days. 
Japan  has  nearly  7,000  miles  of  railway  with 
over  2,500  locomotives  and  plenty  of  rolling 
stock  for  transportation  of  troops;  while  her 
marine  transportation  facilities  are  also  of 
the  best,  possessing,  as  she  does,  over  2,000,- 
000  tons.  Embarkation  drill  is  frequently 
practiced  in  harbours  and  on  open  beaches. 
The  regulations  allow  one  ton  of  shipping  per 
man  for  the  transport  of  troops  by  sea,  and 
four  and  one-half  tons  per  horse.  There  is 
no  doubt  that  in  case  of  war  Japan  would 
have  no  difficulty  in  transporting  her  active 
forces  to  the  continent  or  elsewhere  in  two 
echelons,  and  that  the  first  echelon  would  be 
ready  for  sea  as  soon  as  the  troops  were 
ready  to  embark. 

As  to  equipment,  the  Japanese  army  is 
supplied  with  an  improved  design  of  the 
Murata  rifle,  a  strong  and  serviceable  weapon 
rather  than  a  delicate  and  highly  finished  arm. 
The  field  artillery  has  guns  made  at  the  Osaka 
arsenal   from   Krupp   patterns   of    the    1889 


type,  as  well  as  quick-firing  mountain  guns 
of  the  same  type  and  date.  The  calibre  is 
2.95  inches,  weight  of  gun  3,450  pounds 
behind  the  teams,  and  it  fires  a  shell  of  I3}<j 
pounds  and  has  a  range  of  6,783  yards  with 
igniting  fuses  and  ammunition.  With  fixed 
ammunition  the  extreme  range  is  9,295  yards 
and  the  fuse  is  said  to  burn  up  to  a  range  of 
8,749  yards.  The  shield  is  of  steel,  .118  inch 
thick.  It  extends  over  the  wheels  and  has  a 
hinged  portion  under  the  axle-tree.  The 
mountain  gun  takes  the  same  ammunition 
as  the  field  gun,  and  has  a  range  of  5,500 
yards.  New  heavy  guns  of  10  centimetres, 
and  12-centimetre  howitzers,  with  24-centi- 
metre and  28-centimetre  coast  defence  guns, 
are  also  in  use.  The  i  o-centimetre  gun  has 
a  weight  of  5,200  pounds  behind  a  team  of 
eight  horses;  and  its  initial  velocity  is  1,770 
f.  s.,  with  a  range  of  10,396  yards.  It  fires  a 
40-pound  projectile,  and  carries  a  shield 
similar  to  that  of  the  field  gun.  The  Japa- 
nese also  use  the  Hotchkiss  gun,  taking  .256- 
inch  ammunition,  the  same  as  the  infantry 
rifle;  and  the  gun  is  sighted  up  to  2,187  yards. 
It  has  an  all-round  traverse  and  tripod 
mounting,  its  chief  defect  being  that  it  weighs 


lietween  70  and  100  pounds  including  tripod. 

The  field  service  dress  of  the  whole  army  is 
khaki,  cloth  in  winter  and  linen  in  summer, 
while  the  cap  is  somewhat  after  the  Russian 
pattern.  The  cap  is  gravely  defective  as  a 
protection  from  the  torrid  heat  of  the  Japa- 
nese summer,  to  which  many  soldiers  succumb 
on  the  march.  The  chief  military  arsenals 
are  at  Tokyo  and  Osaka,  the  first  manufac- 
turing small  arms  with  ammunition  therefor, 
and  the  Osaka  works  dealing  with  gims  and 
their  ammunition.  Most  of  the  arm)'  cloth 
is  made  at  the  Government  woollen  mill 
near  Tokyo,  the  uniforms  being  made  up 
regimentally. 

Military  education  in  Japan,  as  already 
indicated,  is  based  on  the  German  model, 
with  district  preparatory  schools,  central 
preparatory  school,  officers'  school  and  mili- 
tary staff  college,  as  well  as  the  Toyama 
Tactical  School,  the  Cavalry  School,  and 
various  schools  for  artillerj'  and  engineering. 
The  education  given  is  thorough  and  the 
discipline  very  strict.  The  rules  for  promo- 
tion of  military  officers  in  Japan  are  as  follows, 
the  limit  being  reduced  one-half  in  time  of 
war;  two  years  each  from  sub-lieutenant  to 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


51 


lieutenant,  and  to  a  captaincy  two  years 
more,  with  an  additional  four  years  for  a 
major  and  three  more  years  for  a  lieutenant- 
colonel,  three  years  to  a  colonel  and  three 
more  to  the  rank  of  major-general,  and  three 
years  again  to  the  rank  of  lieutenant-general, 
promotion  to  the  rank  of  general  and  marshal 
being  left  to  the  will  of  the  Emperor,  'ilie 
age  limit  for  officers  on  active  service  is  45 
for  a  sub-lieutenant  and  lieutenant,  48  for  a 
caiitain,  50  for  a  major,  53  for  lieutenant- 
colonel,  55  for  a  colonel,  58  for  a  major- 
general,  62  for  a  lieutenant-general,  and  65 
for  a  general,  there  being  no  limit  of  age  for 
a  marshal.  At  present  there  are  in  the 
Japanese  army  65  generals  and  officers  rank- 
ing as  such,  581  field  officers  and  those  of 
equal  rank,  1,429  company  officers  of  the 
highest  rank,  non-commissioned  officers  of 
highest  rank,  546,  ordinary  non-commis- 
sioned officers,  3,103.  The  total  number  of 
army  officers  is  about  5,524,  with  some  2,835 
civilian  officers. 

Aviation  was  not  introduced  into  the 
Japanese  army  until  191 1  when  two  native 
officers  trained  in  France  returned  to  organise 
an  air  service.  By  19 12  two  more  officers 
were  trained,  and  three  others  in  1913.  Since 
then  this  service  has  seen  much  greater 
development.  A  training  ground  was  estab- 
lished at  Tokorozaw'a  near  Tokyo,  where 
some  ten  flight  officers  are  graduated  every 
year.  The  army  now  possesses  20  aeroplanes 
and  one  airship.  So  far  no  great  skill  in  air 
navigation  or  in  the  handling  of  planes  has 
been  displayed  by  the  Japanese;  while  the 
number  of  victims  to  disaster  in  comparison 
to  the  number  of  officers  is  probably  larger 
than  in  any  other  country,  or  army.  This 
may  be  due  largely  to  the  prevailing  care- 
lessness that  is  evident  among  nearly  all 
Japanese  with  regard  to  machinery;  and  the 
numerous  air  accidents  in  Japan  might 
doubtless  be  considerably  reduced  by  more 
expert  and  responsible  engineers.  One  can 
not  help  feeling  that  many  of  these  air  dis- 
asters are  due  to  not  examining  the  parts  of 
the  machine  with  sufficient  care  before  as- 
cending. The  machines  thus  far  preferred 
are  Morris-Farman  biplanes  and  Newbolt 
monoplanes,  which  arc  rather  out  of  date 
beside  the  magnificent  machines  used  in 
Europe.  The  motors  at  best  do  not  develop 
a  horsepower  above  75,  and  by  the  Japanese 
themselves  they  are  held  largely  responsiljle 
for  the  many  tragic  accidents  that  have 
occurred.  Occasional  visits  from  expert 
American  aviators  have  shown  the  Japanese 
how  far  behind  they  yet  are  in  the  science  of 
air  navigation,   and   lent   much   impetus   to 


the  development  of  a  better  army  air  service. 
Consequently  in  1916  the  Government 
appropriated  some  600,000  yen  as  against 
the  400,000  yen  of  the  preceding  year  for 
improvement  of  aviation  in  the  army,  with 
orders  for  the  construction  of  forty  more 
machines.  Motors  of  150  horsepower  are 
to  be  imported  from  Europe,  and  others  after 
the  same  model  constructed  at  home.  The 
solitary  airship  possessed  by  the  Japanese 
army  is  of  no  great  importance,  having  a 
horsepower  of  300  and  a  speed  of  only  twenty 
miles.  The  Japanese  aviation  battalion  now 
has  forty  trained  officers;  and  the  service 
rendered  by  them  during  the  siege  of  Tsingtau 
as  well  as  during  army  manoeuvres  has 
proved  quite  effective. 

AR.MY    FINANCE 

J,\p.\N  is  a  country  where  army  expenditure 
centres  on  equipment  rather  than  on  per- 
sonnel. Since  19 10  the  monthly  allowance 
to  soldiers  has  been  increased  to  i  .95  yen  for 
first-class  privates,  and  1.56  for  other  ranks 
of  infantry.  An  extra  allowance  of  from  15 
to  20  sen  a  month  is  given  for  stationery. 
Privates  are  not  permitted  to  receive  money 
from  home.  As  to  food,  the  private  soldier 
is  allowed  l  quart  of  rice  a  day,  with  from 
7  to  1 1  sen  a  day  for  relishes,  the  money 
allowance  being  increased  to  15  sen  in  the 
colonies  and  25  sen  in  the  China  garrisons. 
The  infantry  soldier  is  allowed  from  27  to  34 
yen  a  year  for  clothes;  the  cavalry  soldier 
from  31  to  37  yen;  artillery  30  to  36  yen; 
engineers  from  28  to  34  yen,  and  the  commis- 
sariat from  29  to  35  yen.  Other  allowances 
are  given  for  camping  utensils  and  barracks 
necessities.  The  cavalry  are  allowed  fodder 
in  hay  and  barley  at  so  much  a  month,  with 
so  much  for  shoeing  and  clipping. 

Army  expenditure  is  divided  into  ordinary 
and  extraordinary,  all  drawn  from  the 
national  treasury.  The  ordinary  expenditure 
includes  the  annual  outlay  of  the  War  Depart- 
ment and  of  the  various  corps,  while  extraor- 
dinary   expenses    include    outlays    on    con- 


struction of  barracks  and  batteries,  on  quell" 
ing  disturbances,  on  medical  aid  for  sick  and 
wounded,  manufacture  of  weapons  and  other 
equipment,  as  well  as  transport  of  troops  and 
arms.  The  accompanying  table  will  indicate 
the  amount  Japan  has  spent  on  her  army 
since  1878  at  intervals  of  five  years. 

It  is  clear  from  the  above  that  the  military 
expenses  of  Japan  have  been  increasing 
vastly  and  that  it  must  tax  the  country  to 
its  utmost  to  sustain  such  outlay  on  unpro- 
ductive enterprise.  It  is  indeed  remarkable 
that  so  large  a  proportion  of  the  nation's 
financial  resources  should  be  concentrated 
on  development  of  forces  and  armaments  in 
a  country  whose  territory  is  practically 
unassailable,  not  only  by  any  .single  enemy 
but  by  any  reasonable  combination  of  ene- 
mies. Such  sustained  outlay  is  undoubtedly 
having  an  unfavourable  effect  on  the  inter- 
nal development  of  the  country,  and  there  is 
naturally  a  strong  reaction  against  the  heavy 
taxation  essential  to  the  maintenance  of  so 
enormous  an  expenditure.  But  the  army  and 
navy  are  the  only  two  departments  of  public 
service  where  efficiency  has  been  c|uite 
attained;  and  even  there  it  could  not  have 
been  attained  without  a  tremendous  sacrifice. 
Japan  is  now  sufficiently  defended  to  deter 
any  power  except,  perhaps,  England  and 
America,  from  attacking  her  in  her  own 
waters;  while  her  two  fighting  services  com- 
bined with  her  geographical  position  assure 
her  a  predominant  position  in  the  Far  East. 
In  weight  of  numbers,  excellence  of  organi- 
sation, adequacy  of  armament,  skill  of  per- 
sonnel, knowledge  of  war  science,  and 
splendour  of  fighting  spirit  Japan  ranks  with 
the  best  that  any  fighting  nation  can  com- 
mand. She  believes  that  to  maintain  her 
supremacy  in  Oriental  waters,  to  command 
the  wholesome  respect  of  the  great  powers 
of  the  world,  and  watch  over  the  destinies 
of  China  a  formidable  army  and  navy  are 
essential;  and  toward  this  end  Japan  will 
bend  her  main  energies  for  some  years  to 
come. 


Urdinwry 

E.XTR.\ORDIXARY 

Total 

Ye.\r 

Yen 

Yen- 

Yen- 

1878 

6,409,000 

220,740 

6,629,740 

1883 

10,764,590 

771,190 

11.535.780 

1888 

11,842,620 

,565,920 

12,408,540 

i«93 

12,419,830 

2,301,400 

14,721,230 

1898 

33.577.310 

i6,973.«90 

52,551,200 

1903 

39,169,670 

10,272,390 

49,442,060 

1908 

70,209,780 

37,206,990 

107,416,770 

191,^ 

80,175,381 

23,950,008 

104,125,389 

1918 

7*^.855.757 

15.457.357 

94.313. 1 14 

=fi«£.^ 


TORPEDO-BOAT    DESTROYER    "  KASHIWA,  '    OF    THE    MODERN    JAPANESE    TYPE 

V.    The  Navy 

The  Navy  of  Ancient  Times^Birth  of  the  Imperial  Japanese  Navy— The  New 

Navy  in  War  — Japan's  Navy  To-day— Finance  — Education 

AND  Personnel— The  Imperial  Dockyards 


IN  the  art  of  navigation  and  maritime 
prowess  the  people  who  conquered  and 
settled  upon  the  islands  of  Nippon  seem 
to  have  been  remarkably  skilled  for  so  remote 
a  period.  Allowing  that  the  Yamato  race 
arrived  in  the  archipelago  six  hundred  years 
before  the  Christian  era,  it  must  have  reached 
the  islands  in  ships  capable  of  resisting  the 
savage  hordes  that  probably  opposed  the 
landing  of  the  strangers;  and  thus  it  is  clear 
that  from  the  beginning  of  Japanese  history, 
or  tradition,  the  art  of  navigation  and  sea 
warfare  was  sufficiently  developed  to  allow 
of  transportation  of  troops  from  the  continent 
and  their  forcing  an  entrance  to  the  neigh- 
bouring islands.  According  to  the  most 
ancient  records  of  Japan  navigation  showed 
considerable  progress  between  the  years 
B.  c.  97  and  30,  when  troops  were  despatched 
to  Korea  to  assist  those  of  the  warring  king- 
doms there  who  were  friendly  to  Japan;  and 
this  was  the  beginning  of  Japan's  influence 
in  the  peninsula,  leading  to  what  was  tanta- 
mount to  a  protectorate  later.  During  the 
various  incipient  insurrections  among  the 
savage  tribes  whom  the  Yamato  brought 
under  their  sway,  especially  the  virile  Kumaso 


who  inhabited  Kyushu  and  caused  an  upris- 
ing in  71  A.  D.,  warships  were  used  with 
telling  effect;  and  in  a  subsequent  rebellion 
in  200  A.  D.  the  Emperor  Chuai  led  a  naval 
expedition  to  Chikuzen.  The  emperor  died 
during  the  campaign;  and  the  Empress 
Jingo,  having  discovered  that  the  rebels  were 
aided  by  kindred  from  Korea,  went  herself 
on  an  expedition  to  that  country  to  cut  off 
assistance  to  the  rebels  and  to  carry  out 
punitive  operations.  In  the  year  310  A.  D. 
we  find  that  the  art  of  navigation  had  so  far 
developed  in  Yamato  that  it  was  necessary 
to  appoint  maritime  officials  in  various  cen- 
tres and  Japanese  sails  were  seen  in  all  the 
waters  of  the  Far  East.  In  655  .\.  D.  a  naval 
expedition  subdued  the  Island  of  Oshima. 
During  the  prolonged  internecine  strife  of 
the  Middle  Ages  between  the  Taira  and  the 
Minamoto  clans,  naval  engagements  were 
frequent,  the  most  notable  being  the  great 
sea  fight  at  Dannoura  in  1185.  The  military 
government  established  by  Yoritomo  at 
Kamakura  in  the  twelfth  century  had  a 
powerfid  navy  for  that  time,  and  the  various 
feudal  lords  were  not  slow  to  imitate  the 
shogun  in  their  prowess  at  sea.     When  Kublai 


Khan  invaded  Japan  with  his  Mongol  Armada 
in  the  thirteenth  century  he  found  a  resistless 
maritime  force  waiting  to  oppose  his  landing, 
and  he  was  driven  back  to  sea,  where  a  furi- 
ous gale  completed  his  destruction.  The  sea 
power  of  Japan  thenceforth  expanded  rap- 
idly, both  internally  and  externally,  until 
its  development  was  checked  and  finally 
arrested  as  a  consequence  of  the  admission 
of  foreigners  to  Japan.  But  there  is  no  doubt 
that  the  gradual  internal  consolidation  of  the 
Empire  at  the  beginning  was  largely  the  work 
of  an  efficient  sea  power. 

With  the  opening  of  a  route  from  Europe 
by  way  of  the  Cape  of  Good  Hope  foreign 
navigators  began  to  make  their  way  to  Japan, 
encouraged  by  opportunities  of  trade  with  a 
people  not  yet  aware  of  the  values  of  the  main 
items  of  barter  and  trade.  From  these  Euro- 
pean seamen  Japan  learned  something  of  the 
outside  world  and  how  to  come  in  contact  with 
it.  During  the  fifteenth  and  sixteenth  cen- 
turies the  art  of  nav'igation  in  Japan  had  so 
developed  that  junks  of  three  masts  were 
built,  a  special  government  department  was 
organised  for  the  regulation  of  merchant 
marine,  and  vessels  engaging  in  foreign  trade 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


53 


had  to  have  a  special  license.  In  the  days  of 
Hideyoshi  vessels  of  Japan  were  found  in 
the  ports  of  China,  Siam,  India,  and  even 
across  the  Pacific  in  Mexico.  Between  the 
years  1604  and  1616  the  number  of  licenses 
given  to  vessels  trading  abroad  was  over 
two  hundred.  Owing  to  the  increasing 
danger  of  complications  with  foreign  coun- 
tries, however,  emphasised  by  suspicions 
circulated  by  rivals  in  trade,  the  Shogun 
lyemitsu  in  the  year  1636  placed  an  embargo 
on  all  communications  with  foreign  lands,  and 
the  building  of  seagoing  ships  was  prohibited. 
From  this  time  Japan's  naval  power  began  to 
decline.  With  the  expulsion  of  foreigners 
from  Japan  intercourse  by  sea  was  cut  off" 
save  for  the  limited  privileges  accorded  the 
Dutch  at  Nagasaki  under  the  most  humil- 
iating conditions,  and  navigation  abroad  was 
not  reopened  until  Commodore  Perry  broke 
down  the  walls  of  seclusion  in  1853. 

BIRTH  OF  THE  IMPERIAL  NAVY 
With  the  reopening  of  Japan  to  foreign 
intercourse  the  necessity  of  possessing  a 
strong  naval  force  was  keenly  felt  by  the 
nation.  The  ease  with  which  the  so-called 
"black  ships"  of  the  stranger  accomplished 
their  mission  in  the  presence  of  the  helpless 
native  war-junks  showed  the  Japanese  that 
the  shogunate  was  now  the  victim  of  its  own 
policy,  and  that  so  inefficient  a  government 
should  be  replaced  by  one  more  in  harmony 
with  the  expanding  needs  and  relations  of 
the  Empire.  The  people  of  Japan  did  not 
require  much  persuading  as  to  the  need  of 
reviving  the  navy.  It  was  soon  seen  that 
the  old  sea  power  suppressed  during  the 
Tokugawa  regime  was  not  dead  but  sleeping. 
The  Dutch  Government  suggested  the  estab- 
lishment of  a  navy  on  the  European  model. 
A  naval  school  was  opened  at  Nagasaki  in 
1855,  with  Dutch  instructors;  and  not  long 
afterward  a  shipyard  and  iron  works  were 
opened  at  the  same  port,  the  beginning  of 
the  present  great  establishment  known  as  the 
Mitsu  Bishi  Dockyard,  the  greatest  ship- 
building works  in  the  Empire.  Another 
naval  school  was  established  at  Yedo  where 
graduates  of  the  Nagasaki  institution  were 
brought  for  higher  studies  and  further  naval 
training,  the  Kanko  Maru,  a  present  from  the 
Dutch  Government,  being  the  first  training 
ship.  The  nucleus  of  a  navy  was  created 
by  gifts  from  various  countries  and  by  pur- 
chases from  the  United  States  and  Europe, 
one  of  the  gifts  being  a  warship  from  Queen 
Victoria.  The  Yedo  Government  now  be- 
gan to  despatch  students  to  Europe  to  pursue 
naval  studies,  and  the  feudal  lords  did 
likewise.  A  naval  dockyard  was  opened 
at  Yokosuka  for  the  promotion  of  an  im- 
perial navy. 


ADMIR.'^L   TOGO,   J.\PAN  S    GREAT    NAVAL    HERO 

It  must  soon  have  become  evident  to  the 
shogun's  government,  however,  that  its 
efforts  were  rather  belated ;  for  when  a  British 
squadron  was  obliged  to  carry  out  a  punitive 
bombardment  of  Kagoshima  in  1863  and  the 
comliined  fleets  of  England,  America,  France, 
and  Holland  had  to  bombard  the  forts  at 
Shimonoseki  in  the  following  year,  there  was 
no  sea  power  capable  of  offering  practical 
resistance.  In  the  years  immediately  follow- 
ing these  episodes  naval  preparations  were 
hastened  with  great  expedition,  officers  being 
invited  from  Europe  to  advise  and  instruct 
the  infant  navy,  among  whom  was  the  late 
Admiral  Sir  Richard  Tracey,,  who,  though 
he  had  as  a  young  commander  taken  part 
in  the  operations  at  Kagoshima,  was  subse- 
quently called  upon  to  lay  the  foundations 
of  the  new  Japanese  navy.  When  the  sho- 
gunate was  finally  overthrown  in  1867  the 
young  navy  of  Japan  passed  into  the  hands 
of  the  Emperor  as  the  commander-in-chief 
of  all  the  forces  of  the  Empire. 

The  Restoration  of  Imperial  Rule  was  not 
accomplished,  however,  without  the  aid  of 
the  navy,  when  it  had  a  chance  to  show 
something  of  its  mettle.  In  the  various  con- 
flicts that  ensued,  leading  eventually  to  the 
triumph  of  the  imperial  cause,  the  bulk  of  the 
feudal  na\'y  sided  with  the  shogunate  party; 
and  under  Commander  Enomoto,  one  of  the 
young  officers  trained  in  Holland,  it  made  a 
gallant  Ijut  vain  resistance  against  the 
superior  forces  of  the  Empire.  Baffled  in  the 
south,  Enomoto  retired  with  his  fleet  to  the 
north,  where  the  rebels  still  held  out  at 
Hokodatc.  There,  after  some  bold  fighting, 
he  was  forced  to  surrender  to  the  imperial 


fleet,  the  first  triumph  of  the  new-bom  navy. 
The  rebel  ships  were  at  once  incorporated 
into  the  navy  of  the  nation,  and  Enomoto 
and  his  men,  after  some  unnecessary  hard- 
ships, were  pardoned  and  ultimately  absorbed 
into  the  imperial  service.  Enomoto  himself 
subsequently  became  Admiral  of  the  Fleet, 
Minister  to  Russia,  Minister  of  Foreign 
Affairs,  and  finally  Prime  Minister. 

Thus  when  the  wars  of  the  Restoration 
were  over  and  the  imperial  forces  supreme 
on  land  and  sea,  a  fleet  of  but  nine  small 
vessels,  mere  gunboats,  none  of  which  was 
over  one  thousand  tons,  was  all  the  navy 
Japan  possessed.  The  dockyards  that  had 
been  established  turned  out  only  wooden 
vessels.  It  was  not  until  1887  that  Japan 
launched  her  first  iron  ship,  most  of  the  fleet 
up  to  that  time  having  been  purchased  abroad. 
The  nation  now  devoted  itself  with  energy 
and  determination  to  the  organisation  and 
evolution  of  an  efficient  navy.  What  the 
nascent  dockyards  and  arsenals  could  not 
as  yet  supply  in  the  way  of  ships  and  arma- 
ment continued  to  be  purchased  from  Europe ; 
while  with  amazing  application,  intelligence, 
and  insight  the  Japanese  set  themselves  to 
learn  the  best  uses  of  their  new  naval  equip- 
ment. Nor  did  they  make  the  mistake  of 
supposing  that  the  more  important  factor  in 
naval  efficiency  was  materiel,  realising  from 
the  start  that  naval  warfare  is  mainly  an 
affair  of  personnel,  a  truth  which  those  who 
have  since  had  the  misfortune  to  challenge 
Japan  on  land  and  sea,  have  never  learned. 
Not  content  with  acquiring  and  mastering 
Western  knowledge  of  the  forces  of  nature, 
Japan  engaged  officers  of  fine  personality 
and  efficiency  from  England  to  put  her  bud- 
ding naval  personnel  into  fighting  trim. 
In  addition  to  the  services  of  Admiral  Tracey, 
already  mentioned,  Admiral  Douglas  was 
selected  to  lead  a  naval  mission  to  Japan, 
consisting  mainly  of  British  naval  officers, 
to  instruct  the  Japanese  navy,  the  leader  of 
the  mission  becoming  director  of  the  Imperial 
Naval  College  from  1873  to  1875.  Later 
Rear-Admiral  Ingles  came  as  naval  adviser 
to  the  Japanese  Government,  while  Dr. 
William  Anderson  laid  the  foundations  of 
naval  medical  education  in  Japan. 

It  is  interesting  to  note  what  rapid  evolu- 
tion characterised  Japan's  naval  progress 
during  the  years  it  was  under  British  advise- 
ment. Between  the  years  1870  and  1880 
various  uprisings  marked  the  political  prog- 
ress of  Japan:  notably  the  Saga  rebellion  in 
1874,  the  attack  by  Korea  in  1875,  the  Hagi 
disaffection  and  the  Satsuma  Rebellion  in 
1876,  in  all  of  which  the  imperial  navy  had 
to  carry  out  punitive  operations  of  some 
sort,  and  this  it  did  so  effectively  as  to  prove 
its  remarkable  development.     The  warship 


54 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


DISTINGUISHED    NAVAL   OFFICERS 

(Upper  Row,  Left  to  Right)  Admiral  Saneyuki  Akiyama,  a  Distinguished  Naval  Tactician — Admiral  Baron  H.  Shimamura,  Chief  of 
the  Naval  General  Staff  —  Vice-Admiral  Isamu  Takeshita,  Member  of  the  Naval  General  Staff  and  Instructor  at  the  Naval  College. 
(Lower  Row)  Vice-Admiral  Baron  RoKURO  Yashiro,  Fonnerh'  Minister  of  Marine,  now  Commander  of  the  Second  Battle  Squadron 
— Vice-Admiral  Tetsutaro  Sato,  President  of  the  Naval  College  —  Vice-Admiral  Takeshi  Takarabe,  Member  of  the  Board  of 
Admirals  and  Commander  of  the  Maizuru  Naval  Station 


Jungei  was  launched  from  the  Yokosuka 
navy  yard  in  1876,  1,450  tons,  being 
considerably  larger  than  the  Seiki  of  the 
previous  year  which  was  only  897  tons.  The 
latter  was  the  first  Japanese-built  ship  to 
visit  Europe,  making  the  trip  in  1878.  But 
by  1876  Japanese  yards  were  capable  of 
repairing  their  own  ships  without  foreign 
assistance.  To  promote  more  rapid  naval 
development  three  ships  were  ordered  from 
England  in  1878,  the  old  Fuso,  3,777  tons, 
the  old  Kongo,  and  Hiyei,  2,248  tons  each. 
In  1884  the  Admiralty  Station  was  removed 
to  Yokosuka,  and  two  more  were  established, 
one  at  Kure  and  one  at  Sasebo,  in  1889.  In 
1892  the  Government  issued  a  new-  naval 
programme,  formulated  under  imperial  re- 
script, to  which  the  Emperor  contributed 
from  the  privy  purse  the  sum  of  300,000  yen 
for  six  years,  government  officers  and  high 


officials  following  the  Imperial  example  by 
giving  ten  per  cent  of  their  salaries,  and  there 
were  liberal  private  contributions  as  well. 
Thus  the  infant  navy  of  Japan  grew  in 
materiel  and  personnel  under  the  assistance 
and  advice  of  British  friends  until  at  the  time 
of  its  first  test,  in  the  war  with  China  in 
1894,  the  aggregate  tonnage  was  57,600, 
representing  28  ships  and  24  torpedo  boats, 
the  total  outlay  on  naval  repletion  up  to  that 
time  having  been  about  240,000,000  yen. 

THE    NEW    NAVY    IN    WAR 

In  the  war  with  China,  her  first  naval 
engagement  of  any  importance  in  modem 
times,  Japan  showed  that  during  the  short 
space  of  forty  years  she  was  able  to  evolve  a 
navy  capable  of  efficiently  performing  every 
duty  devolving  upon  it.  She  proved  to  the 
world    not    only    the    superb    prowess    and 


endurance  of  her  fighting  sons  but  also  how 
thoroughly  her  leaders  had  understood  and 
assimilated  the  eternal  principles  which  make 
for  sea  power.  It  seems  to  have  been  seen 
by  Japan  from  the  beginning  that  the  success 
of  her  entire  operations  against  China  de- 
pended on  keeping  the  sea  clear  for  trans- 
portation of  her  troops,  a  point  China  failed 
to  perceive,  if  she  saw  it  at  all,  until  it  was  too 
late.  With  Japan's  destruction  of  the 
Chinese  fleet  the  command  of  the  sea  was 
thenceforth  hers  and  she  was  able  to  keep 
sufficient  forces  under  her  command  to  carry 
everything  before  her  in  Manchuria.  Japan 
came  out  of  the  war  with  seventeen  more 
ships  added  to  her  navj-.  The  terms  of  peace 
with  China  contained  the  germs  of  the  next 
war,  for  they  gave  Japan  a  position  in  Korea 
and  China  that  Russia  was  certain  to  chal- 
lenge.    Japan  clearly  saw  this,  and  after  the 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


55 


■■jamtmmmm^mtm* 

4^                                                                       : 

llJ 

■- 

ttT^'t^^^'^'^tBPI 

-1      ••     ^ 

^^■^H^^^— 1            (    ^^^^ 

THE    "kIRISHIMA,"    A    BATTLE   CRUISER   OF    THE    MODERN   JAPANESE    TYPE 


war  with  China,  and  her  subsequent  com- 
pulsory withdrawal  from  Port  Arthur,  she 
set  about  acquiring  a  navy  that  even  any 
Western  power  might  hesitate  to  provoke. 
New  naval  stations  were  established,  new 
arsenals  opened,  new  ordnance  works  built, 
new  powder  factories  set  up,  and  powerful 
fighting  units  gradually  added  to  the  fleet, 
many  of  which  were  launched  from  home 
yards.  The  whole  navy  system  was  reor- 
ganised on  a  greatly  improved  scale,  and 
stricter  attention  was  devoted  to  education 
and  personnel.  A  squadron  of  first-class 
battleships  was  added  to  the  armoured 
cruisers  that  had  beaten  China.  When  the 
anticipated  crisis  came  in  1904  and  war  with 
Russia  was  imminent,  Japan  found  herself 
with  a  total  tonnage  of  258,000,  of  which  at 
least  233,876  tons  represented  ships  above  the 
destroyer  class ;  and  she  came  out  of  the  war, 
notwithstanding    important    losses,    with    a 


total  tonnage  of  410,000,  having  taken 
twelve  battleships  and  cruisers  beside  numer- 
ous small  craft  from  her  opponent.  In  that 
war  Russia  was  wholly  outwitted  by  Japanese 
strategy;  for  she  divided  her  naval  forces 
between  Port  Arthur  and  Vladivostock, 
making  no  intelligent  effort  to  prevent 
Japan's  command  of  the  sea,  thus  leaving 
the  latter  with  her  fleet  intact  to  meet  the 
main  naval  forces  of  Russia. 

japan's  navy  to-day 
Since  the  war  with  Russia  Japan  has 
relaxed  none  of  her  efforts  for  the  evolution 
of  a  navy  adequate  to  her  needs  and  worthy 
of  the  Empire.  The  twelve  battleships  and 
cruisers  captured  from  Russia  were  in  them- 
selves a  valuable  addition  to  her  fleet,  repre- 
senting, as  they  did,  an  extra  103,500  tons  or 
so.  Three  of  these  cruisers  were  subse- 
quently returned  to  Russia  during  the  Euro- 


pean war  for  a  consideration  of  14,500,000 
yen.  After  the  war  with  Russia  great  im- 
provements were  made  in  the  nation's  ship- 
building capacity,  and  Japan  was  soon  able 
to  construct  and  equip  all  sizes  and  kinds  of 
warships  at  home;  so  that  in  any  future  war 
her  strategy  will  not  be  hampered  by  con- 
sideration of  the  impossibility  of  obtaining 
reinforcements  during  its  continuance.  Ja- 
pan's idea  has  been  to  assure  herself  of  com- 
petence to  encounter  successfully  any  force 
that  any  foreign  State,  with  the  exception  of 
England,  may  send  against  her  in  Oriental 
waters;  and  judging  by  the  performance  of 
the  Baltic  fleet,  as  well  as  the  round-the- 
world  cruise  of  the  American  navy,  Japan 
assumes  that  a  Western  power  is  able  to  send 
its  whole  fleet  into  the  Orient.  The  ambition 
to  have  a  fleet  of  heavy  fighting  ships  aggre- 
gating over  500,000  tons  has  been  cherished 
by  Japan  for  some  time.     In  1915  the  Eight- 


,vvi«  ^"^^ 


THE   "  HYUGA,"    TYPE   OF    MODERN    JAPANESE    BATTLESHIP 


56 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


four  programme  was  formally  adopted  in  the 
Imperial  Diet;  which  means  that  Japan  will 
eventually  have  three  squadrons  consisting 
of  eight  dreadnoughts  and  four  battle- 
cruisers  each,  with  attendant  flotillas,  the 
whole  to  cost,  omitting  the  flotillas,  about 
310,000,000  yen,  and  to  be  complete  by  1924. 
Into  this  programme  enter  the  first-line-of- 
battle  units,  Fuso  and  Yamashiro,  recently 
completed  and  now  in  commission,  together 
with  the  sister  ships  Hyuga,  Isi',  and  Nagato 
in  course  of  construction.  The  seven-year 
programme  includes  two  battle-cruisers  to 
replace  the  Hiyei  and  Kongo  which  in  that 
time  will  have  to  fall  back  to  the  second 
line;  and  eleven  light  cruisers,  with  thirty- 
two  destroyers  and  sixteen  submarines. 
Owing  to  financial  considerations  Japan's 
dreadnoughts  have  had  to  be  separated  by  as 
many  as  four  years  in  date  of  launching,  so 
that  the)^  may  not  be  up-to-date  in  design 
after  the  close  of  the  European  war,  as  it  has 
been  found  impossible  to  utilise  the  lessons 
of  that  struggle  in  their  construction.  The 
four  new  dreadnoughts  to  be  launched  during 
the  next  four  years  will  be  more  favourably 
situated  in  this  respect,  and  will  have  a  main 
armament  considerably  in  advance  of  the 
first  four  of  the  squadron  unit.  It  may  be 
noted  here  with  interest  that  the  battleship 
Hyuga  is  said  to  be  an  entirely  Japanese 
design  and  quite  unlike  anything  of  its  class 
in  the  British  or  other  fleets,  the  most  impor- 
tant features  being  an  extreme  steadiness 
favouring  efficient  gunnery,  and  an  original 
axial  emplacement  for  her  10  14-inch  guns, 
as  well  as  increased  capacity  for  storage  of 
oil  side  by  side  with  coal.  Her  displacement 
is  30,500  tons;  length,  683  feet;  water  line, 
630  feet;  beam,  94  feet;  draught,  28  feet; 
speed,  23  knots;  main  armament  10  14-inch 
guns;  secondary  armament,  20  6-inch  guns. 

Recently  the  Japanese  have  been  making 
comparisons  with  regard  to  probable  objec- 
tives, with  the  following  results  in  the  year 
1918:  United  States:  17  first-Une-of-battle 
ships;  9  light  cruisers;  64  destroyers,  and 
62  submarines.  Russia:  14  first-Une-of- 
battle  ships;  14  Ught  cruisers;  67  destroyers, 
and  63  submarines.  Japan  has  8  first-line- 
of -battle  ships;  3  light  cruisers;  22  destroy- 
ers, and  8  submarines.  But  this  does  not 
adequately  express  Japan's  main  fighting 
strength,  as  the  accompanying  table  will 
indicate;  while  the  American  naval  pro- 
gramme during  the  European  war  has  com- 
pletely changed  her  naval  status. 

In  addition  to  the  above  Japan  has  46 
third-class  torpedo-boat  destroyers  most  of 
which  are  about  381  tons  displacement, 
having  a  speed  of  from  29  to  30  knots  and 
nearly  all  with  two  torpedo  tubes,  all  built 
between  1898  and  19 10.     Of  first-class  tor- 


The  Imperial  Fleet 
Battleships 


Name 

z 

w 

Eh 
» 

&• 

a 
s- 

z 
a 
►J 

Where 
Launched 

Horse- 
Power 

s- 
0 
z 

Q 
M 

a 
00 

a 

CO 

"It, 
Id 

as 

u 
Z 

*—* 

a 

0 

s 

PS 

< 

Main 

Armament 
(Inches) 

Shikishima 

1-1,580 

14.765 
15.362 
12,700 
15.950 
16,400 
19.350 
19,800 
20,800 
20,800 
30,600 
30,600 

400 
400 
400 

374 
420 

425 
482 
482 
479 
479 
673 
673 

England,  1S98.  . 
England,  1899.  . 
England,  1900.  . 
America,  1900.  . 
England,  1905.  . 
England,  1905.  . 
Yokosuka,  1906. 

Kur6,  1907 

Yokosuka,  :9io 

Kure,  191 1 

Kure,  1914 

Yokosuka,  1915. 

14.500 
15.207 
15,207 
16,000 
16,000 
15,600 
17.300 
24,000 
25,000 
25,000 
40,000 
40,000 

18 

18 

18 

18 

18 

18 

18.6 

20 

20.5 

20.5 

22 

22 

5 
4 
4 
6 

5 
5 
5 
5 
5 
5 
6 
6 

9 
9 
9 
9 
9 
9 
9 
9 

12 
12 

12(4):    6(14) 
12(4):    6(14) 
12(4):    6(14) 
12  (  4):    6(12) 
12  (  4):  10  (  4) 
12  (  4):  10  (  4) 

12   (   4):    ID  (12) 

12  (  4):  10  (12) 
12  (12):     6  (10) 
12(12):     6(10) 
14  (12):     6  (16) 
14(12):     6(16) 

Mikasa 

Hizen 

Katori 

Kashima 

Satsunia 

Aki     . 

Kawachi 

Settsu 

Fuso 

Yamashiro 

Battle-Cruisers 


Ikoma .  .  . 
Kurama.  . 

Ibuki 

Hiyei.  .  .  . 
Kongo.  .  . 
Kirishima 
Haruna.  . 


13,750 

440 

14,600 

450 

14,600 

450 

27,500 

704 

27,500 

704 

27,500 

704 

27,500 

704 

Kure,  1906 

Yokosuka,  1911 

Kure,  1911 

Yokosuka,  19 12 
England,  1912.  . 
Nagasaki,  19 13 
Kobe,  1913 


20,500 

20 

5 

7 

22,500 

21 

5 

7 

24,000 

22 

5 

7 

64,000 

25 

8 

64,000 

25 

8 

.  .  .  . 

64,000 

27-5 

8 

64,000 

275 

8 

12  (  4): 
12  (  4): 
12  (  4): 
14  (  8): 
14  (  8): 
14  (  8): 
14  (  8): 


(12) 
(  8) 
(8) 
(l6) 
(16) 
(16) 
(16) 


First-class  Cruisers 


Asama.  . 
Tokiwa . 
Yakumo 
Azuma.  . 
Iwate.  .  . 
Izumo . . 
Kasuga . 

Nisshin . 
Aso 


9,^&5 

408 

9,885 

408 

9,735 

407 

9,426 

431 

9,826 

400 

9,826 

400 

7,700 

344 

7,700 

344 

7,800 

443 

England,  1898. 
England,  1898. 
Germany,  1899 
France,  1899.  . 
England,  19 10 
England,  1899. 
Italy,  1902 .... 


Italy,  1903.  .  , 
France,  1900. 


18,248 

20.  I 

5 

7 

8  (  4) 

18,248 

20 

5 

7 

8  (  4)- 

15,500 

20 

5 

7 

8(  4): 

16,600 

20 

5 

6 

8(  4): 

14,700 

20 

4 

7 

8(  4): 

14,700 

20 

4 

7 

8(  4): 

14,696 

20 

4 

6 

10  (  I): 

14,696 

20 

4 

6 

8(  4): 

17,000 

21 

2 

3 

8(  2): 

6(  6) 
6(  6) 
6(12) 
6(12) 
6(14) 
6(14) 
8(2): 
6(14) 
6(14) 
6(  8) 


Second-class  Cruisers 


Kasagi .  .  . 
Chitose. . 
Tsugaru . . 

Tone 

Chikuma . 
Hirado.  .  . 
Suma .  .  .  . 
Akashi .  .  , 
Niitaka .  . 
Tsushima 
Otowa.  .  . 
Yahagi.  .  . 


5.503 

374 

4-992 

395 

6,630 

413 

4,100 

400 

4,950 

4.950 

2,700 

2,800 

295 

3,420 

235 

3.420 

235 

3.000 

341 

4.950 

America,  189! 
America,  189I 
Russia,  1899. 
Sasebo,  1907 . 
Sasebo,  1911 . 
Kob^,  19 1 1.. 
Yokosuka,  1895. 
Yokosuka,  1897 
Yokosuka,  1902 

Kur^,  1902 

Yokosuka,  1903 
Nagasaki,  1911 . 


17,235 

22.7 

4 

4 

15.714 

22.5 

4 

4 

11,600 

20 

6 

3 

15,000 

23 

3 

22,500 

22,500 

8,500 

26 

26 

20 

2 

2 

8,500 

20 

2 

2 

9.400 

20 

2 

9,400 

20 

2 

10,000 

20 

22,500 

26 

(    2) 
(    2) 

(  8)  (Sold) 
(12) 


(  8) 
(  8) 
(  2) 
(  2) 
(  6) 
(  6) 
(  2) 
(   8) 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


57 


The  Imperial  Fleet— (Continued) 
First-class  Coast  Defence  Boats 


Fuji . 
I  wain 

Suwo 


12,649 

374 

13.516 

367 

12,674 

401 

England,  1896. 
Russia,  1902 .  . 

Russia,  1900. . . 


13,678 
16,500 

14.500 


18 
19 


12  (  4) 
12  (  4) 


6  (10) 
8  (  6) 

(Sold) 
0(4):     6  (10) 

(Sold) 


Second-class  Coast  Defence  Boats 


Okinoshima . 
Itsukushima 
Hashidat^ .  . 
Chiyoda. .  .  . 
Akitsusliima 
Manshu.  .  .  . 
Matsuye.  .  . 
Karasaki.  .  . 
Yamato .  .  . . 
Musashi .... 
Komabashi . 


4,126 
4.278 
4,278 
2.439 
3. 112 
3.916 
2.550 
10,500 
1.502 
1.502 
1.230 


295 

295 


206 
206 


Russia,  1896. . . . 
France,  1889.  .  . 
Yokosuka,  1891. 
England,  1890.  . 
Yokosuka,  1892. 
Austria,  1901 . .  . 

1898.. 

England,  1896.  . 
Onohama,  1885. 
Yokosuka,  1886. 
Sasebo,  1913.  .  . 


6,000 
5.400 
5.400 
5.6/8 
8,516 
5.000 
1,500 
2,300 
1,622 
1,622 
1,824 


16 
16 
16 

17 
19 


18 
13 
13 


ID 
2 
2 

4 
3 


Wood 
Wood 


10  (3) 

12  (6) 

12  (6) 

4  (7) 

6  (4) 

3  (2) 


3  (I) 
3  (4) 
3  (4) 


First-class  Gunboats 


Chihaya 
Mogami 
Yodo . . . 


1.263 

273 

1,350 

316 

1.250 

300 

Yokosuka,  1900 
Nagasaki,  igo8 . 
Kobe,  1907 


6,000 

21 

5 

8,000 

23 

2 

6,500 

22 

2 

4  (7) 
4  (7) 
4   (7) 


Second-class  Gunboats 


Uji.... 
Sumida. 
Fushimi 
Toba . . . 
Saga. . . 


620 

180 

126 

180 

250 

785 

Kure,  1903. .  .  . 
England,  1903. 
England,  1906 . 
Sasebo,  191 1 .  . 
Sasebo,  1912 .  . 


1,000 

680 

800 

800 

1,600 

13 
13 
13 
15 

15 

(4) 
(2) 
(2) 
(2) 

(I) 


First-class  Torpedo-boat  Destroyers 

1 .  1 50 
1 .  1 50 

1910.  .  . 

35 
35 

4 
4 

4  (7) 
4  (7) 

Yamakaze 

T  Cl  T  T  . 

" 

Second-class  Tor pedo-boat  Destroyers 


Name 


Sakura . . . 
Tachibana 
Matsu. . .  . 
Kashiwa . . 

Kaba 

Sasaki .... 
Kusunoki . 

Ume 

Katsura.  . 
Kayede . . . 

Sugi 

Kiri 

Urakaz^ .  . 


Displace- 

ment 

Launched 

(Tons) 

600 

1911 

600 

1913 

655 

1915 

665 

1915 

665 

1915 

665 

1915 

665 

1915 

665 

1915 

665 

1915 

665 

1915 

665 

1915 

665 

1915 

955 

1915 

pedo  boats  the  imperial  navy  has  16,  most  of 
which  have  a  displacement  of  152  tons,  and 
all  built  between  1899  and  1904,  together  with 
10  second-class  torpedo  boats  ranging  from 
70  to  100  tons,  and  15  submarines. 

The  imperial  fleet  as  organised  at  present 
is  divided  into  three  sections,  or  fleets, 
the  first  being  stationed  at  Yokosuka, 
the  second  at  Kur^,  and  the  third  at 
Sasebo,  the  first  fleet  consisting  of  four 
squadrons,  the  second  of  three,  and  the  third 
of  three,  each  squadron  having  its  flagship 
and  from  three  to  four  first-line-of-battle 
shipt-  with  attendant  flotillas. 

The  Japanese  navy  did  not  begin  to  take 
up  aviation  until  1912  when  some  officers 
returned   from   a   study    of   the   science   in 


France,  after  which  a  training  ground  was 
opened  at  Oppama  near  Yokosuka.  A  naval 
aviation  corps  was  organised  in  1916,  and 
the  sum  of  630,000  yen  appropriated  for 
equipment.  At  present  the  navy  possesses 
some  thirty  flight  officers,  though  so  far  no 
very  great  progress  has  been  achieved  or  skill 
displayed,  accidents  being  far  too  numerous, 
owing  to  lack  of  care  on  the  part  of  engineers 
and  the  inexperience  of  aeronauts.  The 
subject  will  be  found  more  fully  treated  in 
the  article  on  Japan's  army  elsewhere  in  this 
volume. 

FINANCE 
There  is  nothing  very  special  to  be  said 
about  naval  finance,  except  to  show  what 
Japan  has  expended  on  naval  repletion  and 
expansion  since  the  year  1871,  which  will 
prove  that  her  naval  outlay  has  proceeded  at 
a  greater  rate  than  that  of  any  other  naval 
power,  reduction  being  marked  in  any  year 
only  by  the  necessities  of  war.  According 
to  her  eight-four  programme,  already  men- 
tioned, Japan  proposes  to  lay  out  on  naval 
expansion  during  the  next  seven  years  some 
310,000,000  yen;  but  as  she  is  following  the 
policy  of  scrapping  all  ships  that  reach  the 
stage  of  obsolescence,  probably  a  much 
greater  sum  will  have  to  be  expended.  Japan 
is  bent  on  a  naval  programme  of  utmost 
preparedness  without  provocation  or  vindic- 
tiveness.  She  desires  for  the  most  part  to 
build  her  ships  in  her  own  yards,  though  she 
can  not  yet  do  so  as  cheaply  as  she  can  pur- 
chase them  in  Britain,  but  she  is  convinced 
that  her  builders  need  to  be  kept  up  to  the 
utmost  mark  of  efficiency  in  steady  practice, 
and  she  orders  ships  abroad  only  for  the  sake 
of  keeping  foreign  models  well  in  evidence 
among  her  designers.     (See  table  next  page.) 

education  and  personnel 
For  the  educatiort  of  her  naval  officers 
Japan  has  a  fine  array  of  schools,  even  to  a 
Paymasters'  College,  which  work  other  na- 
tions usually  leave  to  extraneous  institutions. 
The  chief  educational  establishments  are  the 
Naval  Staff  College  in  Tokyo,  for  completing 
the  training  of  her  specialists,  the  Naval 
Engineering  College  at  Yokosuka,  the  Naval 
Cadets'  School  at  Etajima,  the  Naval  Pay- 
masters' College  and  the  Naval  Medical  Col- 
lege in  Tokyo.  There  are  torpedo  and  gun- 
nery schools  also  at  Yokosuka  as  w-ell  as  a 
school  for  the  training  of  na\-al  mechanics  and 
machinists.  The  highest  institution  is  the 
Naval  Staff  College  where  men  are  trained 
for  staff  officers  and  future  commanders. 
The  entrants  must  be  either  lieutenants  who 
have  finished  their  course  at  the  gunnery, 
torpedo,  or  navigation  schools,  or  officers  who 
have  served  two  whole  years  at  sea.     Appli- 


58 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


cants  have  to  undergo  a  stiff  examination 
before  they  can  be  admitted  to  the  courses 
in  the  Staff  College.  There  is  in  the  same 
institution  a  special  course  divided  into  navi- 
gation and  engineering  subjects.  The  en- 
trants to  the  Naval  Medical  College  are  grad- 
uates of  some  recognised  medical  college, 
and  their  course  of  special  training  for  the 
navy  lasts  about  six  months.  Senior  surgeons 
are  selected  for  a  year's  post-graduate  work  at 
this  college  after  having  served  some  years  in 


ships.  The  Paymasters'  College  admits  stu- 
dents by  examination  from  the  national 
middle  schools,  and  their  training  lasts  three- 
years  and  four  months.  Special  students  may 
be  admitted  for  a  six  months'  course  pro- 
vided they  are  graduates  of  some  higher 
school  or  university  recognised  by  the  naval 
authorities.  Senior  officers  in  the  accounting 
department  are  selected  every  year  for  a 
year  of  special  study  at  this  college  in  prep- 
aration for  staff  paymasters  and  specialists. 


Naval  Expenditure 


Disbursements 

ToT.AL  State 
Outlay 

Percent- 

age OF 

Year 

Ordinary 

Extraordinary 

Total 

Total  to 
State 

Outlay 

Yen 

Yen 

Yen 

Yen 

1871 

886,856.16 

1,995,509-13 
2,141,681.49 
2,622,439.26 

886,856.16 

19,235,158 

0.461 

1872 

1,995,509.13 

57,730,025 

0.346 

1873 
1874 

2,141,681.49 

62,678,601 

0.342 

167,004.42 

2,789.443-68 

82,269,528 

0.339 

1875 

5,342,515.00 

1,627,424.00 

6,969.939-00 

66,134,772 

0.604 

1876 

2,468,975.92 

985,783-69 

3.454,759-61 

59,308,956 

0-583 

1877 

2,235,720.91 

1,477,436-47 

3,713,157-39 

48,428,324 

0.767 

1878 

2,817,453-65 

16,494.74 

2,833,947.40 

60,941,336 

0.465 

1879 

2,904,347-96 

237,326.15 

3,141,674.11 

60,317,578 

0.521 

1880 

3,024,123.86 

391,747.91 

3,415,871.78 

63,140,897 

o.,54i 

1881 

2,851,576.50 

256,939-40 

3,108,515.90 

71,460,321 

0-435 

1882 

3,249,675.81 

396,327.90 

3,646,003.71 

73,480,667 

0.496 

1883 

3,171,466.15 

3,064,032.14 

6,236,498.29 

83,106,859 

0.750 

1884 

3,324,782.31 

4,186,154.47 

7,510,936.78 

76,663,108 

0.980 

1885 

2,878,204.67 

2,208,171.36 

5,086,376.03 

61,115.313 

0.832 

1886 

4,731.959-47 

4,220,408.31 

8,952,367-78 

83,223,960 

1.076 

1887 

4,941,523-77 

5,954,845.19 

10,896,368.96 

79,453,036 

1-371 

1888 

5,468,551.95 

4,340,908.59 

9,809,460.55 

81,504,024 

1.203 

1889 

5,277.331,56 

4,045,825.71 

9,232,157.27 

79,713,671 

1.170 

1890 

5,786,381.36 

4,372,923.28 

10,159,304.65 

82,125,403 

1-237 

1891 

5,412,490.61 

4,089,200.79 

9,501,691.40 

83,555.891 

I-I37 

1892 

5,347,185.88 

3.785.919-72 

9,133,105-60 

76,734,740 

1.190 

1893 

5,141,475-39 

2,959,445-77 

8,100,921.16 

84,581,872 

0.958 

1894 

4.573.605-46 

5,679,549-19 

10,253,154.66 

78,128,643 

1.312 

1895 

4,913,243.95 

8,607,025.18 

13,520,269.13 

85.317,179 

1-585 

1896 

7,351,329-92 

12,659,428.00 

20,005,757.92 

168,856,509 

1. 190 

1897 

9,543,888.99 

40,850,645.21 

50,.394.534-20 

223,678,844 

2.253 

1898 

11,191,474.86 

47,338,427.03 

58,529,901.89 

219,757,569 

2.663 

1899 

14,577,114-24 

47,084,495.87 

61,661,610.11 

254.165.538 

2.426 

1900 

16,911,000.08 

41,363,895.02 

58,274,895.10 

292,750,059 

1.990 

1901 

19,484,952.74 

24,494,374-85 

43,979.327-60 

266,856,824 

1.648 

1902 

21,063,345.00 

15,262,843.29 

36,326,188.29 

289,226,626 

1.256 

1903 

21,530,237.00 

14,587,619.95 

36,117,856.95 

249,596,953 

1-447 

1904 

8,132,720.08 

12,480,498.67 

20,613,218.76 

277,055,682 

0-744 

1905 

12,332.139-14 

11,079,801.72 

23,411,940.86 

420,731,068 

0-556 

1906 

27,991,349-97 

33,885,320.09 

61,876,670.07 

464,275,583 

1-333 

1907 

31,292,935.91 

40.979.383-87 

72,272,319.78 

602,400,959 

1.200 

1908 

34,347,699.64 

37,230,748.13 

71,578,447.77 

626,788,419 

1.141 

1909 

35,143,415.80 

35,902,959-24 

71,046,374.10 

582,893,635 

1-333 

1910 

38,359,312.42 

45,481,219.75 

83,840,532.17 

569,124,027 

1-473 

1911 

40,208,251.47 

60,255,366.29 

100,463,617.76 

585.374.613 

1.721 

1912 

41,533,600.57 

53,951,538.60 

95,485,139.17 

593.596,444 

1.609 

1913 

38,885,701.72 

57,559,890.04 

96,445,591-76 

573,633,925 

1.681 

1914 

30,398,898.97 

52,861,106.66 

83,260,005.64 

648,420,409 

1.284 

1915 

43,112,320.00 

52,376,637.00 

95,488,957-00 

602,610,719 

1-449 

1916 

46,496,165.00 

55,747.761-00 

102,243,926.00 

602,262,972 

1.699 

gyashirazu  cliff,  karenko  district, 

FORMOSA 

To  some  the  Japanese  navy  may  appear 
to    be    overstaffed    as    compared    with    the 
British  and  other  navies.     The  British  fleet 
with  its  more  than  2,500,000  of  tonnage  has 
scarcely  more  than  3,000  officers,  while  the 
Japanese  fleet  with  a  little  over  half  a  million 
tons  has  nearly  the  same  number  of  officers. 
The  reason  is  that  Japan  aims  always  to  have 
sufficient  officers  ready  on  active  service  to 
fill  any  complement  on  emergency;  and  thus 
while  the  British  navy  has  about  1.35  officers 
per  ton  the  Japanese  navy  has  3.42  per  ton. 
The  Japanese  custom  of  employing  officers 
on  active  service  for  shore  duty  and  routine 
work  may  not  make  for  the  efficiency  of  the 
service   at   sea.     In   practice   the   Japanese 
subordinate    officer    rarely    remains    at    sea 
longer  than  two  years  when  he  is  transferred 
to  shore  service.     Sometimes  one  hears  of 
admirals  and  rear-admirals  whose  service  at 
sea  has  not  been  above  a  few  years  on  training 
ships  or  as  deck  officers.     In  the  Japanese 
navy  promotion  is  always  by  selection  and 
never  by  seniority  of  service.     Promotions 
are  decided  at  the  conference  of  the  Admirals' 
Council,  the  limit  being  reduced  one-half  in 
time  of  war.     Midshipmen,  after  finishing  at 
the  Cadets'   School,  have  six  months  on  a 
training  ship,  and  are  then  assigned  to  various 
warships.     A  year's  practical  service  having 
been   completed   they   may   become   second 
sub-lieutenants,    and   in   four   months   more 
of  special  study  they  rise  to  first  sub-lieu- 
tenants, and  must  have  spent  full  two  years 
in  active  service  before  they  become  lieuten- 
ants.    A  lieutenant-commander    must  have 
seen  five  years  of  active  service,  and  two  years 
after    promotion    he    may    become    a    com- 
mander, and  another  two  years  can  make  him 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


59 


a  captain,  if  the  Admirals'  Council  selects 
him  for  promotion.  A  rear-admiral  must 
have  had  two  years'  experience  as  a  captain, 
and  in  three  more  years  after  promotion  he 
may  be  advanced  to  the  rank  of  vice-admiral, 
Admirals  are  men  of  long  experience  and  are 
alwaj's  appointed  by  imperial  order.  The 
age  limit  for  admirals  is  65,  vice-admirals  60. 
rear-admirals  56,  captains  53,  warrant  officers 
or  engineer  commanders  50,  commanders  47, 
lieutenant-commanders  45,  lieutenants  44, 
first  and  second  lieutenants  40,  and  other 
ranks  are  decided  according  to  competency. 
The  following  table  gives  the  number  of 
naval  officers  and  non-commissioned  officers 
up  to  1916: 


era,  and  was  provided  with  a  technical  stafi 
of  naval  constructors,  foremen,  and  leading 
hands  by  the  French  Government.  At  first 
it  was  used  mainly  for  general  shipbuilding, 
but  in  1872  it  became  the  principal  ship- 
building establishment  of  the  Japanese  navy. 
Up  to  1885  only  wooden  vessels  were  at- 
tempted, and  in  1887  the  first  iron  ship  was 
launched,  followed  by  several  third-class 
cruisers,  and  in  1906  the  first  battleship  to  be 
built  in  Japan,  the  Satsuma,  was  launched 
from  Yokosuka.  In  addition  to  its  two 
slips  for  constructing  large  ships,  there  are 
three  others  suitable  for  destroyers  and 
torpedo  boats.  The  yard  has  four  graving 
docks,    the   largest   of   which   is   capable   of 


Ranks 

Active 
Service 

Reserve 

Special 
Reserve 

Grand 

Total 

Admirals  and  those  receiving  equal  treatment. 
Captains,    lieutenants,    and    those   receiving 

corresponding    treatment 

Special     commissioned     officers     and     those 

receiving  corresponding    treatment 

Cadets 

Non-commissioned  officers 

Civil  officials  in  the  navy 

99 
3.95'> 

1,642 

173 

31.836 

1 ,069 

92 

503 
271 

18,638 

44 

127 

329 
11,678 

235 

4..S86 

2,242 

173 
82,172 

1.069 

7  0/0/ 

.S8.77.S 

I9„S24 

12,17^ 

W.477 

The  rank  and  file  of  the  Jajianese  navy  is 
recruited  from  both  conscripts  and  volun- 
teers, conscription  being  regarded  mostly  as 
a  supplementary  resource,  as  the  service 
always  aims  to  have  more  volunteers  than 
conscripts,  the  proportions  for  an  average 
five  years  standing  thus: 


taking  any  ship  afloat.  In  1865  the  Yoko- 
suka yard  employed  960  workmen;  in  191 1 
it  employed  over  8,000;  in  war  time  it  em- 
ploys as  many  as  16,000;  to-day  the  number 
engaged  there  is  about  11,000.  At  the  out- 
set the  area  occupied  by  this  yard  was  only 
18  acres  which  have  now  been  increased  to 


Year 

Conscripts 

Volunteers 

Total 

1910 

3.23,S 

3.487 

6.722 

191 1 

4,092 

4,009 

8,101 

1912 

4,457 

4.363 

8,820 

1913 

2,145 

3,112 

5,257 

1914 

4,501 

3.637 

8,138 

IMPERIAL     DOCKYARDS 

The  Imperial  Navy  Yards  at  present  num- 
ber four,  Yokosuka,  Kure,  Sasebo,  and 
Maizuru,  with  three  repairing  yards  of  less 
importance  at  Port  Arthur  and  two  other 
places.  All  the  four  principal  yards  possess 
dry  docks  for  the  accommodation  of  large 
warships;  and  the  first  two  have  cradles  for 
the  construction  of  dreadnoughts,  but  the 
latter  two  yards  are  able  to  build  only  light 
cruisers  and  destroyers.  The  Yokosuka  navy 
yard  is  now  in  equipment,  efficiency,  and 
execution  equal  to  any  yard  of  its  size  abroad. 
It  was  opened  in  1864  during  the  Tokugawa 


1 16.  From  the  Yokosuka  yard  were  launched 
fighting  monsters  like  the  Kawachi,  the 
Hiyei,  and  the  Yamashiro,  for  which  it  was 
able  to  provide  all  the  propelling  machinery, 
castings,  forgings,  and  most  of  the  auxiliary 
machinery.  The  Kurd  dockyard  dates  from 
1889,  and  first  assumed  a  place  of  importance 
just  before  the  war  with  China  in  1894.  Its 
two  large  building  slips  have  launched  some 
of  Japan's  biggest  fighting  units,  while  its 
smaller  slips  have  turned  out  several  de- 
stroyers and  torpedo  boats.  It  has  two 
fair-sized  graving  docks  and  one  large  one, 
able  to  accommodate  the  largest  of  ships. 


The  warship  Ibuki  was  launched  from  this 
yard  in  six  months  after  laying  down  the  keel, 
and  the  fine  cruiser  Tsukiiba,  unfortunately 
blown  up  at  Yokosuka  in  191 7,  was  also 
built  at  Kure.  to  say  nothing  of  the  Seltsu 
and  the  Fuso,  of  21,000  and  31,000  tons 
respectively.  At  this  dockyard  the  ordnance 
department  is  equipped  for  constructing 
guns  and  mountings  up  to  the  largest  size, 
most  of  the  armaments  for  warships  built 
in  Japan  in  recent  years  being  produced  here. 
The  Kure  armour  plate  is  reputed  to  have 
proved  more  irresistible  to  modern  gunnery 
than  that  imported.  Some  17,000  hands 
are  employed  at  Kurd.  The  Sasebo  navy 
yard  is  in  southwestern  Kyushu,  not  far  from 
Nagasaki.  Originally  intended  only  for  re- 
pair work  the  yard  has  shown  remarkable 
development.  Sasebo  is  now  able  to  build 
cruisers,  and  its  five  docks  have  good  accom- 
modations for  quick  repairing.  The  most 
recent  of  the  national  navy  yards  is  the  one 
at  Maizuru  on  the  Sea  of  Japan,  within  rail- 
way reach  of  Osaka.  Like  Sasebo  it  was  first 
established  as  a  repair  depot,  but  it  has 
developed  into  a  fine  construction  yard  where 
cruisers  of  a  formidable  type  can  be  turned 
out,  as  well  as  destroyers  and  torpedo  boats. 
It  has  two  large  and  two  smaller  graving 
docks,  with  the  usual  facilities  for  every  sort 
of  repair  work.  Port  Arthur  possesses  a 
good  dry  dock  but  still  lacks  the  means  for 
constructing  ships,  while  the  repair  stations 
at  Ominato  and  Takeshiki  have  floating  docks 
equal  to  minor  repairs.  The  total  number  of 
workmen  engaged  in  naval  construction, 
marine  engineering,  and  other  duties  con- 
nected with  the  imperial  dockyards  is  now 
something  over  40,000.  It  is  unnecessary 
to  say  what  further  facilities  Japan  enjoys 
in  the  way  of  private  dockyards  capable  of 
building  the  largest  ships,  as  these  are  dealt 
with  under  the  heading  of  Shipping  and 
Harbours  elsewhere  in  this  volume.  These 
private  dockyards  underwent  considerable 
development  during  the  European  war,  and 
are  to-day  better  equipped  than  ever  for 
increasing  and  replenishing  the  imperial  navy 
as  circumstances  shall  demand. 

Japan's  greatest  inconvenience  in  regard 
to  ship  construction  is  lack  of  material. 
This  was  especially  felt  during  the  European 
war  when  supplies  were  cut  off  from  Great 
Britain  and  Europe  and  the  American  steel 
mills  were  engaged  in  filling  orders  at  home 
and  for  Europe.  Japan  has  no  iron  mines 
of  any  great  importance,  and  is  largely  de- 
pendent on  China  for  ore.  The  Imperial 
Steel  Works  at  Yawata  in  Kyushu  can  turn 
out  60,000  tons  of  plate  annually  if  the  ore 
is  available.  The  new  steel  works  established 
at  Muroran  in  1908,  as  a  joint  undertaking 
of    the    Hokkaido    Colliery    and    Steamship 


6o 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


F??; 


Company  and  Messrs.  Armstrong  and 
Vickers,  of  England,  is  a  great  assistance  to 
the  imperial  navy  in  casting  big  guns.  The 
Government  is  at  present  devoting  consid- 
erable sums  to  the  enlargement  of  its  steel 
works,  and  securing  sources  of  ore,  so  as  to 
place  the  Empire  in  a  more  independent  posi- 
tion  as   regards   ship-construction    material 


NAVAL    OFFICE,    TOKYO 

in  case  of  emergency.  For  her  decks  Japan 
brings  teak  from  Siam  and  pine  from  Oregon, 
using  native  woods  generally  for  interiors 
and  decorations. 

On  the  whole  it  may  be  said  that  the 
struggle  for  a  greater  and  more  efficient  navy 
in  Japan  is  a  question  mainly  of  expenditure. 
Japan  has   the  skill    and    equipment   if   she 


can  only  be  sure  of  the  material,  and  that 
depends  on  the  outlay  she  can  afford. 
It  is  a  problem  whether  it  would  not  be  advis- 
able to  discontinue  subsidising  her  mercantile 
marine  so  liberally  and  devote  the  money  to 
the  more  immediate  needs  of  the  imperial 
navy,  thus  doing  away  with  a  process  that 
is  threatening  her  reserves. 


VIEW    OF    SUMA    BEACH,    NEAR    KOBE 


VI.    Foreign  Embassies  and  Legations 

The  British   Embassy— The  United  States  Embassy— The    French    Embassy— The   Russian 

Embassy— The    Italian     Embassy— Germany— Austro-Hungary— The  Netherlands 

Legation— The  Spanish  Legation— The   Portuguese  Legation— The  Belgian 

Legation— The  Swedish  Legation— The  Chinese  Legation— The  Siamese 

Legation— The  Mexican  Lecjation— Other  Legations 


THE  foreign  embassies  and  legations  in 
Tokyo  stand  for  something  more  than 
the  mere  diplomatic  representation 
that  pertains  to  their  office  in  other  national 
capitals.  They  also  signify  the  influence 
that  Western  nations  have  had  and  still  are 
having  on  Japan,  and  through  Japan  on  that 
portion  of  Asia  which  she  aspires  to  lead. 

From  the  remote  period  of  her  obscure 
origin  at  the  dawn  of  the  Christian  era,  down 
to  comparatively  modern  times,  Japan  had 
practically  no  diplomatic  intercourse  with 
any  country  save  Korea  and  China,  and  with 
them  mainly  in  the  way  of  acquiring  knowl- 


edge and  of  attempted  aggression.  N'o 
sooner  had  the  tribes  that  colonised  the 
Japanese  archipelago  been  fused  into  a  united 
empire  by  Jimmu  Tenno  and  assumed  terri- 
torial independence  of  China  and  Korea  than 
the  new  nation  began  to  take  an  interest  in 
the  continent  from  which  it  had  sprung. 
Yamato  had  to  rely  on  her  continental  neigh- 
bours for  instruction  in  the  arts  of  civiUsation ; 
but  having  once  acquired  these  she  assumed 
an  attitude  of  futile  aggression.  It  is  true 
Japan  may  have  been  stung  to  indignation 
by  the  raids  of  Korean  pirates  and  the 
attempts  of  the  Korean  kingdoms  to  foster 


rebellion  within  the  Yamato  empire,  and  was 
thus  led  to  enter  upon  her  earlier  invasion 
of  the  peninsula;  but  she  had  no  such  excuse 
for  her  later  depredations  on  the  continent. 
Having  completed  the  mastery  of  Korean 
and  Chinese  civilisation  by  the  sixteenth 
century  Japan  set  out  to  invade  these  coun- 
tries in  l,S93,  the  expedition,  after  devas- 
tating the  peninsula  of  Korea,  ultimately 
proving  unsuccessful.  Then  came  the  Portu- 
guese, Spanish,  English,  and  Dutch,  with  all 
of  whose  countries  there  were  desultory 
negotiations  leading  to  nothing  of  any 
importance  except  to  apprise  Japan  of  the 


62 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


fact  that  countries  more  formidable  than 
China  and  Korea  lay  beyond  and  threatened 
invasion  of  the  East.  Thereupon  Japan 
banished  all  foreigners  from  her  Empire  and 
retired  into  seclusion  for  more  than  two  hun- 
dred years. 

When  history  shall  have  placed  all  the  great 
political  events  of  the  nineteenth  century  in 
their  proper  perspective,  probably  none  will 
appear  more  important  to  posterity  than  the 
arrival  of  Commodore  Perry's  fleet  in  Japa- 
nese waters  on  July  8,  1853.  For  this  was  the 
beginning  of  that  mighty  influence  which 
Western  nations  have  had  on  Japan  in  awak- 
ening her  to  a  sense  of  her  power  to  assimilate 
Occidental  ways  and  means  for  the  estab- 
lishment of  her  supremacy  in  East  Asia. 
The  past  centiu^y  has  witnessed  the  fall  of  the 
Napoleonic  Empire,  the  unification  of  Italy, 
the  growth  of  the  Germanic  ascendency  with 
such  tragic  and  disastrous  consequences,  the 
disintegration   of  Turkey,   the  expansion  of 


the  United  States  and  of  the  British  self- 
governing  colonies  as  well  as  the  opening  up 
of  Africa;  but  none  of  these  will  eventually 
have  a  more  profound  effect  on  world-civili- 
sation than  the  modernisation  of  Japan.  In 
the  flexibility  and  tenacity  of  her  racial  spirit 
Japan  is  diff'erent  from  all  other  Asiatic  peo- 
ples; and  if  she  succeeds  in  becoming  the 
leader  of  Asia  it  will  be  a  question  of  the 
white  and  the  yellow  races  marching  together 
as  brothers  or  the  one  endeavouring  to  rule 
the  other.  Japan's  ambition  to  be  regarded 
the  leader  of  Asia  would  have  been  impossible 
but  for  the  opening  up  of  the  country  to  inter- 
national intercourse. 

The  great  events  of  world-history  outlined 
in  the  last  paragraph  all  served  to  mark  fur- 
ther stages  in  the  development  of  mankind 
under  the  dominating  influence  of  Western 
civilisation,  confirming  the  ascendency  of  the 
white  races  in  spite  of  their  numerical  inferi- 
ority.    But  the  opening  of  Japan,  her  rapid 


transformation  from  a  feudal  to  a  modern 
state,  and  her  emergence  on  the  plain  of  inter- 
nationalism equipped  with  all  the  material 
implements  of  peace  and  war,  mark  the  first 
check  to  Occidental  supremacy  over  the  other 
races  of  the  world.  For  the  changes  wrought 
in  Japan  by  the  advent  of  Western  civilisation 
are  not  those  experienced  by  other  races 
where  the  white  man  has  come.  Japan  has 
simply  changed  her  weapons,  but  not  her 
soul.  It  is  a  change  of  method  rather  than  a 
change  of  mind.  Japan  has  simply  put  on 
the  garments  of  Western  civilisation  as  con- 
venient to  her  policy  and  purpose,  but  at 
heart  she  is  still  what  the  ages  have  made  her, 
a  proud  nation  that  believes  in  her  own 
innate  superiority  to  all  others,  her  people 
verily  the  children  of  the  gods.  Here  for  the 
first  time  since  the  battle  of  Tours  in  the 
eighth  century  we  have  an  Asiatic  nation 
fully  assured  that  the  supremacy  of  the  white 
races    is    not    indisputable,    and    one    that 


DISTINGUISHED    DIPLO.M.\TS 


(Upper  Row,  Left  to  Right)  His  Excellency,  Keishiro  Matsui,  Ambassador  to  France  since  1915  —  Viscount  Sutemi  Chind.a,  Ambassador 
to  Great  Britain.  (Lower  Row,  Left  to  Right)  Baron  Megat.\,  Head  of  the  Japanese  Financial  and  Commercial  Mission  to  the 
United  States  in  191 7 — Mr.  Aimaro  Sato,  Former  Ambassador  to  the  United  States 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


63 


intends  to  see  that  they  do  not  much  longer 
rely  on  the  continuance  of  their  vested  monop- 
oly of  a  domineering  civilisation.  Japan  is 
an  excellent  example  of  a  whole  Tiation  stoop- 
ing to  conquer! 

The  foreign  embassies  and  legations  in 
Tokyo,  therefore,  find  themselves  confronting 
a  racial  obstinacy  not  experienced  perhaps 
elsewhere  outside  of  Berlin.  Ostensibly  the 
foreign  diplomat  is,  of  course,  received  with 
every  cordiality;  but  the  Japanese  never 
forget  that  he  forced  his  recognition  on  the 
sacred  soil  of  the  gods,  and  they  believe  that 
he  is  still  anxious  to  lead  Japan  after  Western 
ideals,  while  she  has  to  see  to  it  that  he  does 
not  succeed.  At  the  same  time,  Japan  has 
to  appear  grateful  for  what  the  foreigner  has 
done  in  equipping  her  as  a  modern  state.  It 
is  a  difficult  role  for  both  the  Japanese 
authorities  and  the  foreign  diplomats  to  fill; 
but  all  make  the  best  of  it  and  harmony 
prevails.  Yet  no  countr}-  takes  matters  out 
of  the  hands  of  local  diplomats  and  sends  her 
own  special  envoys  abroad  more  often  than 
does  Japan.  The  corps  diplomatique  is  re- 
garded as  largely  ornamental,  a  compliment 
to  Japan's  recognition  as  a  first-class  power. 
These  representatives  of  Western  nations 
engage  in  the  wonted  round  of  felicitations 
and  receptions  in  season,  to  which  the  Japa- 
nese authorities  duly  respond  with  polite 
advances,  but  not  a  step  farther  than  tlie 
utmost  diplomatic  propriety  prescribes. 
There  is  never  any  degree  of  profuse  cordiality 
between  the  embassies  and  the  authorities. 
Get  the  confidence  of  the  Western  diplomat 
and  he  will  admit  that  he  does  not  feel  quite 
sure  of  Japan.  Happily  he  is  more  inclined 
to  put  it  down  to  his  own  possible  misunder- 
standing of  the  remarkable  people  than  to 
any  real  ground  for  distrust.  Yet,  as  his 
association  is  altogether  with  the  higher 
classes  of  the  people,  he  must  essentially  have 
a  higher  opinion  of  Japan  than  the  merchant 
who  mixes  mostly  with  the  lower  orders  of 
the  community.  Consequently  an  adequate 
estimate  of  the  situation  should  include  the 
experiences  of  both. 

The  truth  has  to  be  admitted  that  Japan 
does  not  really  want  the  foreigner,  and  en- 
dures his  presence  only  as  a  dire  necessity, 
while  the  laws  in  Western  countries  against 
Japanese  immigration  render  the  Japanese 
population  all  the  more  averse.  Echoes  of 
Japan's  aversion  to  foreigners  must  be  heard 
at  times  in  the  embassies  and  legations  of 
Tokyo,  though  silence  must  perforce  be  ob- 
served on  such  matters.  The  racial  spirit 
and  prejudice  of  the  Japanese  is  narrower  and 
more  impenetrable  to  alien  influence  than  is 
the  case  with  any  other  race  known  to  diplo- 
macy; and  yet  no  people  are  more  adept  at 
hiding  their  feelings.     The  art,  if  it  may  be 


VISCOUNT    K.    ISHII 
.AMB.\SS.\DOR   TO   THE    UNITED    ST.\TES 


termed  so,  is  due  to  the  discipline  of  ages  of 
feudalism,  wherein  an  inconvenient  show  of 
feelings  would  often  cost  a  man  his  head. 
Consequently  there  is  practically  little  real 
social  intercourse  between  foreigners  and 
Japanese.  There  is  indeed  scarcely  any  con- 
tact save  in  the  way  of  trade,  which  is  apt 
to  foster  jealousy  and  misunderstanding 
rather  than  friendship.  The  Japanese  is 
always  laboiu-ing  under  the  irritation  and 
strain  of  trying  to  be  himself  while  accom- 
modating himself  to  the  practice  of  Western 
method  and  enterprise,  and  he  satisfies  neither 
himself  nor  his  customer.  Overconfidence  in 
his  own  instincts  leads  the  average  Japanese 
to  misjudge  or  to  mistrust  the  intentions  of 
the  West.  He  regards  all  foreigners  as  aim- 
ing from  the  start  to  get  the  better  of  him. 


And  this  in  spite  of  the  fact  that  Britain  and 
America,  at  least,  have  always  striven  to  be 
altruistic  in  their  relations  with  Japan.  But 
Japan's  success  in  attaining  the  rank  of  a 
first-class  nation,  annexing  the  peninsula  of 
Korea,  and  establishing  herself  permanently 
on  the  continent  of  East  Asia,  are  not  re- 
garded by  her  people  as  due  to  the  good  will 
of  the  powers,  but  in  spite  of  them,  and  the 
result  of  national  diplomacy  and  military 
prowess.  During  the  European  war  the 
prevaiUng  disposition  in  Japan  was  to  trust 
neither  side  to  the  conflict,  but  to  assume  an 
attitude  of  cynical  independence,  though,  of 
course,  the  authorities  did  not  openly  counte- 
nance this. 

Sufficient  has  been  said,  perhaps,  to  show 
that  the  position  of  a  foreign  diplomat  in 


64 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


Japan  is  one  of  the  most  difficult  in  the  gift 
of  his  government,  and  should  be  filled  only 
by  the  ver>'  ablest  of  men.  With  Japan 
herself  diplomacy  is  both  an  art  and  a  science 
of  the  profoundest  study  and  training.  All 
her  embassy  officials  abroad  are  men  of  care- 
ful education  and  long  experience,  speaking 
fluently  the  language  of  the  country  to  which 
they  are  accredited.  As  none  of  the  foreign 
ambassadors  and  ministers  to  Japan  speak 
the  language  of  the  country,  there  is  a  conse- 
quent tendency  to  discount  their  importance 
and  influence.  The  practice  of  having  the 
speeches  of  the  Emperor  translated  by  an 
interpreter  for  the  convenience  of  foreign 
diplomats  has  recently  been  abandoned  by 
the  imperial  court,  on  the  score  that  it  is 
undignified  to  adhere  to  a  custom  not  ob- 
ser\-ed  in  Europe.  If  this  is  a  hint  that  all 
foreign  diplomats  should  be  able  to  under- 
stand when  addressed  by  the  Emperor  of 
Japan,  as  Japanese  diplomats  do  when  spoken 
to  by  any  sovereign  in  Europe,  it  is  safe  to 
say  that  it  will  be  some  time  before  the  sug- 
gestion is  acted  upon.  Yet  there  is  no  doubt 
that  Western  governments  would  be  well 
advised  in  having  as  their  ambassadors  and 
ministers  men  who  are  familiar  w-ith  the 
language  and  civilisation  of  Japan. 

EMBASSIES 

THE  BRITISH  EMBASSY 
The  British  Legation,  now  the  British 
Embassy,  in  Tokyo,  from  the  time  of  its 
establishment  more  than  sixty  years  ago, 
has  occupied  a  position  of  prominence  and 
power  in  the  Japanese  capital,  exercising  an 
invaluable  influence,  not  only  on  relations 
between  Japan  and  Great  Britain,  but  on  the 
promotion  of  modem  progress  within  the 
Japanese  Empire.  This  attitude  for  the  good 
of  the  country  w'as  particularly  manifest  in 
the  refusal  of  the  British  authorities  to  con- 
cede treaty  revision  and  the  abolition  of 
extraterritoriality  until  Japan  had  modern- 
ised her  institutions,  especially  the  judiciary 
under  which  foreigners  were  to  come. 

Japan's  earliest  relations  with  England 
were  through  individuals  charged  with  no 
diplomatic  mission,  but  who,  nevertheless, 
paved  the  way  for  international  amity  later. 
The  first  British  subject  to  put  foot  on  the 
shores  of  Japan  was  a  man  of  Kent,  William 
Adams,  who  was  cast  ashore  from  the  wreck 
of  a  Dutch  ship  in  the  year  i5oo.  He  was 
detained  in  the  country  by  the  shogun  as  an 
interpreter  and  teacher  of  Western  ways, 
especially  of  shipbuilding;  and  after  serving 
the  authorities  faithfully  for  twenty  years, 
during  which  time  he  gave  Japan  a  taste  of 
the  British  spirit  in  the  "spacious  days  of 
good  Queen  Bess,"  Will  Adams,  as  history 
calls  him,  died,  full  of  honours  and  master 


HIS   EXCELLENCY    THE    RIGHT    HON.    SIR 

CONYNGHAM    GREENE,    K.  C.  B., 

BRITISH     .AMB.\SS.\DOR     TO     JAPAN 

of  a  fine  estate.  Various  other  Englishmen 
came  to  Japan  under  the  auspices  of  the  East 
India  Company,  for  purposes  of  trade,  con- 
spicuous among  whom  was  Captain  John 
Saris,  who  arrived  in  the  ship  Clove  in  1613 
and  met  with  a  cordial  reception,  being  given 
the  right  to  trade  where  he  pleased.  After 
some  thirteen  years  the  English  factory,  or 
trading  station,  in  Japan  closed  down  as 
unprofitable,  and  Japan  had  no  further  rela- 
tions with  Englishmen  until  modern  times. 
In  the  year  1853,  more  than  two  hundred 
years  after  the  departure  of  the  English  mer- 
chants from  Hirado,  Japan  was  obliged  once 
more  to  open  her  gates  to  foreigners  by  the 
arrival  of  Commodore  Perry  and  his  fieet 
from  the  United  States.  The  American  offi- 
cer succeeded  in  securing  a  treaty  of  amity 
and  commerce  from  Japan  in  1854;  and  some 
six  months  afterward  a  British  admiral  sailed 
into  the  harbour  of  Nagasaki  and  demanded 
a  similar  treaty,  the  request  being  granted. 
The  convention  signed  at  Nagasaki  was  fol- 
lowed by  a  larger  treaty  obtained  by  Lord 
Elgin  in  1858,  modelled  after  the  treaty  con- 
cluded between  America  and  Japan  by  Town- 
send  Harris  in  1857.  The  British  repre- 
sentative remained  but  five  days  in  Yedo, 
and  upon  conclusion  of  the  negotiations  he 
presented  Japan  with  a  ship  sent  by  Queen 
Victoria.     The  first  resident  British  minister 


to  Japan  was  Sir  Rutherford  -Alcock,  who 
arrived  in  1859  as  a  result  of  the  treaties 
permitting  foreigners  to  reside  in  the  capital 
of  the  shogun.  The  years  of  Sir  Rutherford 
Alcock's  tenure  of  office  were  a  crucial  period 
for  foreigners,  many  of  whom  were  killed  as 
hated  intruders  on  the  sacred  domain  of  the 
gods.  The  secretary  to  the  American  Lega- 
tion was  murdered  and  an  Englishman  named 
Richardson  was  cut  down  by  the  samurai  of 
Satsuma  because  he  failed  to  dismount  on 
meeting  their  lord.  This  was  too  much  for 
the  British  Government  and  the  shogun  was 
oliliged  to  pay  an  indemnity  of  £50,000  and 
the  daimyo  of  Satsuma  £100,000,  the  latter 
not  complying  until  after  the  bombardment 
of  his  capital  at  Kagoshima  by  a  British  fleet. 
Later  a  British  fleet  was  obliged  to  participate 
in  the  bombardment  of  the  forts  of  Choshu 
at  Shimonoseki  on  account  of  Japanese  firing 
on  foreign  vessels  passing  through  the  straits. 
At  this  time  both  Emperor  and  shogun  were 
bitterly  opposed  to  opening  the  country  to 
foreigners,  the  treaties  with  whom  had  been 
signed  by  the  shogun  only  through  fear  of 
invasion.  Peace  was  finally  restored  in  1863, 
Japan  paying  an  indemnity  of  £600,000. 
Sir  Rutherford  Alcock  retired  in  1865,  hav- 
ing proved  himself  an  able  diplomat  and 
an  earnest  student  of  things  Japanese.  Dur- 
ing the  four  years  of  his  residence  in  Japan 
the  nation  learned  something  of  British 
ideas  of  justice  and  the  sacredness  of  treaty 
relations. 

The  next  British  Minister  to  Japan  was  the 
famous  Sir  Harry  Parkes,  one  of  the  most 
remarkable  diplomats  ever  sent  to  the  Far 
East.  Having  been  born  and  brought  up 
in  the  East  he  had  an  adequate  knowledge  of 
Oriental  character.  Before  coming  to  Japan 
in  1865  he  had  been  British  representative 
in  China  where  he  had  once  been  captured  and 
put  to  the  torture,  he  of  aU  his  companions 
surviving.  Familiar  with  the  wiles  of  Ori- 
ental diplomacy  and  entertaining  a  whole- 
some fear  of  Oriental  civilisation,  Sir  Harry 
Parkes  was  in  a  position  to  know  just  how  to 
deal  with  affairs  in  Japan,  and  he  successfully 
engineered  his  country  through  some  of  the 
most  thrilling  episodes  of  Japanese  history. 
As  Japan  began  to  experience  the  birth-throes 
of  the  Restoration  the  British  Minister  saw 
what  was  going  to  happen  and  took  the  side 
of  the  Emperor,  while  most  of  the  other 
diplomats  were  disposed  to  aid  the  shogun. 
Sir  Harry  Parkes  won  for  himself  a  reputation 
for  great  firmness  of  character  and  irresistible 
energy,  and  was  universally  respected  for 
his  honesty  of  motive  and  candid  patriotism. 
Through  him  Japan  obtained  the  assistance 
of  British  officers  in  founding  her  new  navy 
and  the  inauguration  of  other  important 
reforms  and  enterprises. 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


65 


THE    BRITISH    LEGATION    AT    TOKYO 


In  1883  Sir  Harry  was  succeeded  by  the 
Right  Honourable  .Sir  F.  R.  Plunkett,  who 
retired  in  1888  and  was  followed  by  Mr. 
Hugh  Frascr,  a  man  of  marked  character, 
whose  charming  wife  was  a  sister  of  the  late 
Marion  Crawford,  the  novelist.  Mr.  Fraser 
died  at  his  post  in  1894  and  his  place  was  tak- 
en by  the  Honourable  P.  le  Poer  Trench,  as 
Envoy  Extraordinary  and  Minister  Plenipo- 
tentiary. .Sir  Ernest  Satow  succeeded  Mr. 
Trench  in  1895.  Sir  Ernest  was  the  first  of 
a  long  line  of  distinguished  Oriental  scholars 
who  have  been  officials  at  the  British  Legation 
in  Tokyo,  such  as  Aston,  Gubbins,  and  Hamp- 
den ;  but  he  has  been  the  only  one  rising  to  be 
chief.  During  the  incumbency  of  Sir  Ernest 
Satow  the  foreign  treaties  saw  revision  and 
Japan  regained  her  long-desired  autonomy. 
With  the  removal  of  Sir  Ernest  Satow  to 
Pekin  in  1900  the  new  British  Minister  to 
Tokyo  was  Sir  Claude  Maxwell  MacDonald; 
and  when  the  Legation  was  raised  to  an 
Embassy  in  1905  Sir  Claude  became  the  first 
British  Ambassador  to  Japan,  a  position  he 
filled  with  great  distinction  imtil  his  retire- 
ment from  diplomatic  service  in  1913.  Dur- 
ing his  twelve  years  as  British  representative 
in  Japan  Sir  Claude  MacDonald  saw  the 
satisfactory    conclusion    of    such    important 


treaties  as  the  Anglo- Japanese  Alliance  and 
the  new  Treaty  of  Commerce  and  Navigation 
with  Great  Britain,  the  latter  requiring  the 
utmost  tact  and  delicacy  in  the  face  of  a 
high  protective  tariff  on  one  side  and  free 
trade  on  the  other.  No  mention  of  what 
Sir  Claude  did  for  Japan  and  Great  Britain 
would  be  complete  without  reference  to  the 
gracious  influence  of  Lady  MacDonald  and 
her  family  on  the  life  and  civilisation  of 
Linan. 

The  present  British  Ambassador  to  Japan, 
the  Right  Honourable  William  Conyngham 
Greene,  was  appointed  in  19 13,  being  pro- 
moted from  Copenhagen.  Sir  Conyngham 
was  born  in  Ireland  on  the  29th  of  October, 
1854,  was  educated  at  Harrow  and  at  Pem- 
broke College,  Oxford,  and  passed  the  exami- 
nation for  a  clerkship  in  the  British  Foreign 
Office  in  1877.  He  became  third  secretary 
of  the  Legation  at  Athens  in  1880  and  was 
appointed  acting  third  secretary  at  Stuttgart 
in  1883,  and  later  was  charge  d'affaires  there. 
He  went  to  the  same  position  at  Darmstadt 
in  1884  and  back  to  Stuttgart  in  1885,  being 
raised  to  the  rank  of  second  secretary  in 
diplomatic  service  in  1887,  after  which  he 
was  charge  d'affaires  at  Stuttgart  till  1889. 
In  that  year  he  was  transferred  to  The  Hague 


where  he  acted  as  charge  d'affaires  until 
1892,  when  he  was  promoted  as  secretary  to 
legation  at  Teheran,  acting  there  as  charge 
d'affaires  until  1894.  He  became  H.  B.  M. 
agent  at  Pretoria  in  1896,  and  received  the 
title  of  C.  B.  the  following  year,  later  receiving 
the  Jubilee  Medal  and  being  gazetted  K.  C.  B. 
In  May,  1900,  Sir  Conyngham  was  appointed 
Minister  to  Switzerland  from  which  he  was 
transferred  to  Copenhagen  in  1 9 11 ,  where 
he  remained  until  his  promotion  to  the  British 
Embassy  in  Tokyo  in  1913,  previous  to  which 
he  had  been  sworn  as  a  Privy  Councillor. 
He  was  gazetted  a  G.  C.  M.  G.  in  June,  19 14. 
In  1915  Sir  Conyngham  was  decorated  with 
the  Order  of  the  Grand  Cordon  of  Paulownia 
by  the  Emperor  of  Japan.  He  was  married 
to  Lady  Lily  Frances  Stopford,  fifth  daughter 
of  the  fifth  Earl  of  Courtown,  in  1884,  and 
has  two  sons  and  two  daughters.  .Sir  Conyng- 
ham had  no  easy  position  to  fill  during  the 
period  of  the  European  war  when  the  machin- 
ations of  the  enemy  were  rife  in  the  Far  East; 
but  managed  diplomatic  affairs  with  great  tact 
and  distinction,  while  Lady  Lily  supervised  the 
remarkable  work  done  by  the  British  ladies 
in  Tokyo  for  the  relief  of  wounded  soldiers. 

The  Councillor  of  the  British  Embassy  in 
Tokyo  since    19 14    has    been   Mr.    Herman 


66 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


Cameron  Norman.  Mr.  Norman  was  born 
June  8,  1872,  and  after  passing  through  the 
schools  was  nominated  atlache  in  1894,  when 
he  passed  the  competitive  examination,  and 
was  appointed  to  Cairo  in  1896,  where  he 
received  an  allowance  for  knowledge  of 
Arabic.  He  was  promoted  third  secretary  in 
1897  and  transferred  to  Constantinople, 
being  granted  an  allowance  for  knowledge  of 
Turkish  in  1898.  Mr.  Norman  was  trans- 
ferred to  the  British  Embassy  at  Washington 
in  1900,  rising  to  the  rank  of  second  secre- 
tary the  same  year.  He  attended  the  repre- 
sentative of  the  Dominican  Republic  at  the 
coronation  of  King  Edward  VII  and  received 
the  Coronation  Medal.  Transferred  to  St. 
Petersburg  in  1903  he  received  the  allowance 
for  knowledge  of  Russian  in  1904,  and  then 
returned  to  the  Foreign  Office  in  London  till 
1906,  when  he  was  promoted  to  the  rank  of 
first  secretary  in  the  diplomatic  service  and 
acted  as  secretary  to  the  conference  on  sleep- 
ing sickness  convened  in  London  in  1907  and 
to  the  International  Naval  Conference  in 
1908.  Mr.  Norman  attended  the  Persian 
representative  at  the  coronation  of  King 
George  V  and  received  the  Coronation  Medal. 
He  organised  the  secretariat  of  the  conference 
of  Allied  Balkan  States  which  met  at  St. 
James's  Palace  to  conclude  peace  with  Tur- 
key in  1912,  and  was  appointed  to  his  present 
post  in  Tokyo  in  19 1 4. 

Other  important  members  of  the  British 
Embassy  staff  are  Mr.  C.  Wingfield,  who  is 
first  secretary.  Count  Charles  Henry  Ben- 
tinck,  the  second  secretary,  and  Mr.  H. 
Hobart-Hampden,  Japanese  secretary. 

THE  UNITED  STATES  EMBASSY 
As  America  was  the  first  nation  to  open 
diplomatic  intercourse  with  Japan  her  repre- 
sentation was  naturally  the  first  to  be  estab- 
lished in  the  Empire.  Various  futile  attempts 
had  been  made  by  individvial  Americans  to 
open  up  negotiations  with  Japan  for  pur- 
poses of  trade,  the  more  important  of  which 
was  the  visit  of  the  ship  Morrison  in  1837, 
which,  though  bearing  a  party  of  shipwrecked 
Japanese  on  board,  was  nevertheless  fired  at 
on  approaching  Yedo  Bay  and  forced  to  retire 
with  its  mission  unfulfilled.  Captain  Cooper 
came  with  another  group  of  Japanese  cast- 
aways in  1845,  and  met  with  a  more  cordial 
reception  owing  to  Japan's  greater  familiarity 
with  foreigners  in  the  meantime.  Though 
allowed  to  remain  four  days  he  was  warned 
on  his  departure  never  to  return,  no  matter 
how  many  Japanese  he  should  find  in  distress. 
Commodore  Biddle  appeared  in  Yedo  Bay 
in  1846,  but  was  immediately  surrounded  by  a 
cordon  of  war-junks  and  informed  that  no 
intercourse  would  be  permitted  between 
foreigners  and  Japan.     In  1849  Commander 


HON.    ROLAND    S.    MORRIS, 
.\MERIC.\N    AMBASS.\DOR    TO    JAPAN 

Glynn  of  the  American  ship  Preble  sailed  into 
Nagasaki  harbour  and  demanded  the  release 
of  some  shipwrecked  American  sailors  held 
prisoners  there,  and  his  request  was  reluc- 
tantly obeyed.  Reports  of  ill  treatment 
and  often  cruelty  to  American  sailors  created 
apprehension  in  America;  and  as  the  Japanese 
coast  was  now  swarming  with  American 
whalers  who  might  at  any  time  find  them- 
selves cast  ashore,  it  was  felt  by  the  United 
States  Government  that  some  understanding 
with  Japan  was  absolutely  necessary.  And 
so  in  1853  Commodore  Perry  was  commis- 
sioned by  the  President  of  the  United  States 
to  proceed  to  Japan  with  a  small  fleet  and 
open  friendly  intercourse  with  the  country. 
He  arrived  in  the  Bay  of  Yedo  with  his  "black 
ships, "  whose  dense  volumes  of  lilack  smoke 
terrified  the  inhabitants  of  the  shogun's 
capital,  but  succeeded  only  in  delivering  the 
letter  he  had  brought  from  President  Fillmore, 
saying  he  would  return  the  following  year 
for  a  reply.  In  March,  1854,  Perry  came 
back  and  succeeded  in  negotiating  a  treaty 
of  intercourse  with  Japan.  The  Japanese 
contend  that  he  forced  a  treaty  on  the  helpless 
shogun  at  the  muzzle  of  his  guns,  but  Ameri- 
can official  papers  and  the  evidence  of  eye 
witnesses,  two  of  whom  are  still  living,  do 
not  bear  out  this  view.  At  any  rate  Perry 
gained  a  signal  victory  in  a  diplomatic  sense 
without  firing  a  single  shot  or  unduly  offend- 
ing the  sensibilities  of  the  Japanese.  To 
have  knocked  at  the  portals  of  a  nation  closed 
to  foreign  intercourse  for  more  than  two  hun- 
dred years  and  to  have  gained  an  entrance 
was  regarded  as  a  triumph  by  the  nations  of 


the  world,  all  of  whom  forthwith  rushed  in 
to  obtain  a  similar  favour. 

An   American   consul   was   despatched   to 
Shimoda  and  another  to  Hakodate,  the  other 
open  port.     The  consul  sent  to  Shimoda,  a 
little  town  in  the  peninsula  of  Izu,  was  the 
famous    Townsend    Harris    who    afterward 
became   United   States   Minister   to   Tokyo. 
During  his  incumbency  the  American  Lega- 
tion secured  the  opening  of  additional  ports 
to  trade  and  the  various  powers  the  right  of 
sending     representatives     to     the     Japanese 
capital.     With  the  assistance  of  the  American 
Minister  Japan  despatched  her  first  embassy 
abroad  in   i860.     After  rendering  numerous 
invaluable  services  both  to  Japan    and   his 
own  country  Townsend  Harris  retired  through 
ill  health  in  1862,  and  was  succeeded  by  the 
Honourable  R.  H.  Prnyn  of  New  York.     The 
new  Minister  had  to  weather  the  storm  of 
anti-foreign   agitation  that  now  broke  out. 
The  American  Legation  was  burnt  and  its 
secretary,     Mr.     Heusken,     was     murdered. 
Then  came  the  bombardment  of  the  forts  of 
Choshu  at  Shimonoseki  and  the  big  indemnity 
paid    by     Japan,     the     American     portion, 
amounting   to  some  $300,000,   being  subse- 
quently returned.     Mr.  R.   B.  van  Valken- 
burg  came  to  the  American  Legation  in  1866, 
and   within  a   year  was  able  to  notify   his 
government  of  the  repeal  of  a  decree  that  had 
for  more  than  two  centuries  prohibited  Japa- 
nese from  leaving  their  country.     The  repre- 
sentative of  the  United   States  exercised  a 
powerful  influence  during  the   years    1868-9 
when  the  Restoration  of  imperial  power  was 
brought    about,    joining    with    the    British 
Minister   in   supporting   the   imperial   cause 
against  the  shogun.    The  American  Legation 
also  had  much  to  do  with  removing  the  ban 
on   Christianity,    and    when   there    came   a 
revival    of   restrictions    against   the    foreign 
religion  the  protest  of  the  American  Minister 
to  his   home  government  led    to    complete 
freedom  of  faith  in  Japan.     Owing  to  Japan's 
antiquated  system  of  laws  and  customs  she 
lost  some  of  her  judicial  and  trade  autonomy 
in  the  first  treaties  with  foreign  nations;  and 
when    she    later   became    naturally    restless 
under  this  discrimination  and  sought  a  re\d- 
sion  of  the  treaties  in  her  favour,  the  Ameri- 
can Legation  did  everything  possible  to  fur- 
ther this  end,  and  assisted  in  sending  a  Japa- 
nese embassy  abroad  for  this  purpose  in  1871 . 
The   policy   adopted   by   Commodore   Perry 
of  frankly  stating  facts  and  conditions  and 
requesting  official  action  on  the  basis  of  truth 
and  fact  has  always  been  followed  by  the 
United  States  representatives  in  Tokyo  and 
has   done   much   to   help   toward   a   mutual 
understanding    between   the   two   countries. 
After  the  retirement  of  Mr.  Charles  de  Long 
as     American     Minister    in     1873    he    was 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


67 


succeeded  by  Mr.  John  A.  Bingham,  who  was 
the  first  representative  from  the  United  States 
to  bear  the  title  Envoy  Extraordinary  and 
Minister  Pleni])otentiary.  He  was  followed 
by  Mr.  Richard  B.  Hubbard  in  1885,  and  he 
again  by  Mr.  John  F.  Swift  in  1889.  Mr. 
Frank  L.  Coombs  arrived  as  Minister  in 
1892  and  Mr.  Edwin  Dun  in  1893.  His 
successor,  Colonel  Alfred  E.  Buck,  was  a 
man  of  remarkable  personality  and  left  an 
indelible  impression  foi  good  on  Japanese 
and  foreigners  alike,  being  a  notable  gentle- 
man of  the  old  school.  Mr.  Lloyd  C.  Gris- 
com,  who  was  Minister  during  the  Russo- 
Japanese  War,  displayed  great  tact  and 
aljility  at  a  crucial  period,  and  was  followed 
by  Governor  Luke  E.  Wright  in  1906,  he 
being  the  first  American  Ambassador  to 
Japan.  During  his  brief  tenure  of  one  year 
Ambassador  Wright  dealt  successfully  with 
the  difficult  immigration  problem,  and  was 
succeeded  by  the  Honourable  Thomas  J. 
O'Brien  in  1907,  who  was  promoted  from 
Denmark.  The  new  Ambassador  had  the 
by  no  means  easy  task  of  carrying  through 
the  negotiations  with  regard  to  Japanese 
rights  in  California  and  the  Treaty  of  Com- 
merce and  Navigation  between  America  and 
Japan,  as  well  as  adjusting  the  rights  of 
American  citizens  in  Korea  after  annexation. 
The  next  Ambassador  was  Colonel  Charles 
Page  Bryan  who  had  previously  been  Ameri- 
can Minister  to  Lisbon,  and  to  Brussels. 
Colonel  Bryan  did  much  to  draw  Americans 
and  Japanese  into  closer  friendship  and  re- 
tired in  19 1 1 ,  to  be  succeeded  by  the  Honour- 
able Larz  Anderson,  whose  brief  sojourn  in 
Japan  afforded  an  excellent  example  of  an 
American  samurai.  With  the  change  of 
government  at  Washington  in  19 13  the  new 
American  Ambassador  to  Japan  was  the 
Honourable  George  Wilkins  Gutherie,  who 
died  at  his  post  in  1917,  and  was  succeeded 
by  Mr.  Roland  S.  Morris  of  Philadelphia  who 
still  remains  Ambassador  at  the  time  of 
writing.  Ambassador  Morris  was  born  on 
the  nth  of  March,  1874,  was  educated  at  the 
University  of  Princeton  in  arts  and  at  the 
University  of  Pennsylvania  in  law,  being 
graduated  in  1899.  In  1903  he  married  Miss 
August  Shippen  West  of  Philadelphia  and 
has  two  children.  Before  coming  to  Japan 
Mr.  Morris  was  a  prominent  member  of  the 
American  bar  and  influential  in  political 
circles,  having  been  a  law  examiner  and  a 
chairman  of  the  Democratic  State  Committee, 
presiding  at  the  conference  of  such  state 
committees  as  met  at  Washington. 

The  councillor  of  the  American  Embassy  is 
Dr.  Post  Wheeler  who  was  born  in  New  York 
in  1 87 1,  educated  at  Princeton  University 
and  the  Sorbonne  in  Paris.  He  married 
Miss  Hallie  E.  Rives,  the  authoress,  and  was 


HIS    E.XCELLENCY    M.    EUGENE   LOUIS    GEORGES    REGN.-^ULT,    AMB.\SS.'iDEUR    E.\TR.\ORDINAlKE 
ET  PLENIPOTENTIAIRE    DE   LA    REPUBLIC    FRANfAISE 


appointed  second  secretary  to  the  American 
Embassy  in  Tokyo  in  1906.  He  was  first 
secretary  at  Petrograd  in  19 10  and  at  Rome 
in  1913,  being  appointed  to  the  same  posi- 
tion in  Tokyo  in  1914,  and  later  made  em- 
bassy councillor,  acting  as  charge  d'affaires 
during  the  absence  of  the  Ambassador.  The 
Japanese  secretary  of  the  embassy  is  Mr. 
Charles  J.  Arnell  who  was  bom  in  1881. 
After  valuable  service  in  various  government 
positions  he  became  private  secretary  to  the 
American  Ambassador  in  1906,  American 
Vice-Consul-General  at  Mukden  in  1907,  at 
Antung  in  1908,  and  Japanese  secretary  at 
the  Embassy  in  1909.  As  attaches  and  other 
officials  of  the  Embassy  frequently  change, 
their  names  can  not  be  included  in  this 
volume. 

THE  FRENCH  EMB.\SSY 
Fr.^nce,  though  long  prominent  in  India 
and  at  one  time  influential  in  Siara,  seems 
to  have  made  little  effort  to  open  up  inter- 
course with  Japan  during  the  period  when 
Spain  and  Portugal,  Holland  and  England, 
were  endeavouring  to  exploit  the  treasures 
of  the  Far  East.  During  the  reign  of 
Louis  XIV,  however,  the  great  financier 
Colbert  seems  to  have  projected  an  expedi- 
tion to  Japan  for  the  purpose  of  obtaining 
gold  and  rehabilitating  the  depleted  finances 
of  France.  Accordingly  a  French  East 
India  Company  was  established  and  prepara- 


tions made  for  opening  up  of  trade  with  the 
Far  East,  with  Caron,  who  had  already  been 
in  Japan  with  the  Dutch  East  India  Com- 
pany, at  the  head  of  the  expedition.  The 
project  finally  fell  through  and  we  do  not  hear 
of  any  subsequent  effort  to  establish  inter- 
course with  Japan  until  1S43  when  a  French 
ship  touched  at  the  Luchu  Islands.  Three 
years  later  a  French  ship  entered  the  harbour 
of  Nagasaki  to  ask  for  provisions  and  to 
present  a  petition  asking  kind  treatment  for 
French  subjects  shipwrecked  on  ths  shores 
of  Japan,  receiving  no  reply  from  the  Japa- 
nese authorities.  In  1859  Nagasaki  was  again 
visited  by  a  French  admiral  who  requested 
intercourse;  but  the  strange  ship  was  quickly 
surrounded  by  war-junks  and  the  French 
left  without  accomplishing  their  mission. 
Eight  years  later  the  French  frigate  Cleo- 
patra called  at  Hakodate,  Shimoda,  and 
Nagasaki  to  open  friendly  intercourse  with 
Japan  on  the  same  terms  as  had  been  accorded 
Commodore  Perry.  After  being  threatened 
by  war-junks  Admiral  Cecille  sailed  up  to 
Yedo  Bay  and  demanded  a  treaty  direct 
from  the  shogun,  as  Perry  had  done.  The 
request  was  complied  with  after  much 
negotiation  and  a  French  Minister  was 
appointed  to  Yedo  in  1859  in  the  person  of 
M.  Duchesne  de  Bellecourt,  who  was  hon- 
oured with  a  personal  audience  by  the  shogun. 
Three  years  later  he  was  succeeded  by  M. 
Leon    Roches   as    Minister   Plenipotentiary, 


68 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


who  proved  an  able  diplomat  and  carried  his 
legation  safely  through  the  trj-ing  period  of 
anti-foreign  agitation.  In  l86,-5  when  the 
Tokugawa  government  repented  of  having 
granted  concessions  to  foreigners  and  the 
ports  opened  were  closed  and  the  various 
daimyo  warned  to  prevent  the  passage  of 
foreign  ships,  a  French  ship  was  fired  upon 
while  passing  through  the  Straits  of  Shimono- 
seki,  leading  to  a  Ijombardraent  of  the  forts 
by  a  combined  fleet  of  the  powers.  From 
this  time  onward  relations  between  France 
and  Japan  proved  of  the  most  amiable 
nature.  The  French  Minister,  M.  Roches, 
found  able  contemporaries  in  the  British, 
German,  and  American  Ministers  in  Yedo, 
but  in  friendly  rivalry  made,  the  mistake  of 
siding  with  the  shogun  against  the  Imperial 
Restoration.  The  French  Minister,  how- 
ever, succeeded  in  thus  ingratiating  himself 
with  the  Bakufu  authorities  and  a  Japanese 
envoy  was  sent  to  France  to  make  arrange- 
ments for  introducing  the  French  military 
system  into  Japan.  In  the  wars  of  the 
Revolution  French  officers  assisted  the  troops 
of  the  shogun,  and  the  authorities  were  also 
on  the  point  of  utilising  French  warships 
to  maintain  their  position,  when  it  was  sug- 
gested that  a  dangerous  precedent  for  the 
interference  of  foreigners  in  Japanese  affairs 
might  thereby  be  established.  In  1.868  the 
new  French  Minister.  M.  Maxime  Outrey, 
arrived  in  Tokyo  and  continued  to  occupy 


the  Legation  for  the  next  five  years,  during 
which  period  the  Franco-Prussian  War 
broke  out.  As  France  was  worsted  in  the 
conflict  Japan  now  abandoned  her  adoption 
of  the  French  militars'  system  and  took  the 
German.  In  1873  Compt  de  Berthemey 
came  as  French  Minister  to  Japan,  remaining 
until  1876,  when  a  change  again  took  place 
in  the  French  Legation,  M.  de  Geofroy  be- 
coming Minister  and  Envoy  Extraordinary. 
M.  Guillaume  de  Roquette  became  Minister 
in  1880  and  had  to  do  with  the  revision  of 
the  treaties  between  France  and  Japan, 
which  were  again  revised  in  1900.  The 
French  Minister  at  Tokv'O  in  1883  was 
M.  Tricon,  and  iVl.  Sienkiewiez  became 
Minister  in  1894,  soon  followed  by  M.  Har- 
mand,  who  was  in  Tokyo  when  France  united 
with  Russia  and  Germany  in  excluding  Japan 
from  possession  of  the  Liaotung  Peninsula 
after  the  war  with  China.  Then  came  M. 
Auguste  Gerard,  one  of  the  ablest  represen- 
tatives France  has  ever  had  in  Japan,  and  her 
first  Ambassador  after  the  Legation  was 
raised  to  an  Embassy,  in  1906.  M.  Gerard 
was  exceedingly  popular  among  all  nation- 
alities and  not  least  among  the  Japanese. 
He  retired  in  19 13  and  was  succeeded  by 
M.  Eugene  Louis  Georges  Regnault,  the 
present  Ambassador  of  France  in  Tok\'o. 
M.  Regnault  was  born  on  the  28th  of  Decem- 
ber, 1857,  graduated  in  law  and  entered  the 
Foreign  Office  in  1883,  becoming  secretary  of 


THE  FRENCH  CONSULATE,  .\T  THE  FOOT  OF  THE  BLLFF,  YOKOHAMA 


the  Tunisian  Government  in  1884.  He  was 
appointed  consul  at  Piraeus  in  1891  and  at 
Salonika  in  1892,  taking  an  important  posi- 
tion in  the  Foreign  Office  again  in  1 894.  He 
went  on  a  special  mission  to  the  East  in 
1895,  became  chief  of  the  foreign  secretary's 
office  in  1896,  and  went  with  the  foreign 
minister  to  Petrograd  on  a  mission  in  1897. 
M.  Regnault  was  appointed  Constil-General 
at  Geneva  in  1898  and  was  made  a  charge 
of  the  Morocco  mission  in  1904.  He  was 
made  an  officer  of  the  Legion  of  Honour  in 
1904  and  second  plenipotentiary  to  the 
Algeciras  Conference  in  1906,  and  later 
became  Minister  to  Morocco.  He  received 
the  decoration  of  the  Commander  of  the 
Legion  of  Honour  in  19 12  and  was  appointed 
French  Ambassador  to  Tokyo  in  19 1 3. 
M.  Regnault  married  Mile.  Cardon.  As 
the  chief  officials  of  the  Embassy  were  absent 
during  the  war  in  Europe  their  names  are 
not  mentioned  here. 

THE  RUSSI.\N  E.MBASSY 
Relations  between  Japan  and  Russia 
were  for  many  years  based  on  the  circum- 
stance that  Japan  was  a  backdoor  neighbour, 
until  recent  events,  which  have  contributed 
to  a  mutual  recognition  of  each  other's  rights. 
It  is  true  that  while  other  nations  were 
endeavouring  to  open  up  commercial  inter- 
course with  Japan,  Russia  was  lient  upon 
similar  favours,  but  she  was  constantly  sus- 
pected of  territorial  ambitions  as  well. 
In  1 713  Russian  ships  explored  the  Kurile 
and  other  northern  islands  and  later,  in  1 736, 
a  second  attempt  was  made  to  regard  these 
islands  as  Russian,  the  surveyors  coming  as 
far  south  as  Yezo  and  even  surveying  some 
of  the  harbours  of  Japan.  These  explorations  ' 
were  renewed  by  Potonchew  in  1777,  and 
ten  years  later  La  Perouse  made  maps  of 
Yezo  and  of  the  straits  that  bear  his  name, 
obtaining  for  Europe  its  first  reliable  knowl- 
edge of  Japan.  In  1783  the  Empress  of 
Russia,  Catherine  II,  directed  certain  Japa- 
nese castaways  to  be  returned  to  Japan,  and 
advantage  was  taken  of  the  mission  to  seek 
to  open  commercial  and  diplomatic  inter- 
course with  Japan.  The  expedition  arrived 
at  Matsumae  in  the  north  in  1792  and  was 
informed  that  Japan  had  no  intercourse  with 
foreign  nations  and  to  depart  and  never 
return.  The  interest  taken  by  Russia  in 
Japan  at  this  time  may  be  seen  from 
the  fact  that  Japanese  sailors  cast  ashore 
on  the  Russian  littoral  were  employed 
as  teachers  of  Japanese  in  schools  in 
Irkutsk.  In  1804  a  Russian  ship  under 
Captain  Krusenstern  arrived  at  Nagasaki 
with  Count  Resanoff,  an  envoy  from 
the  Tzar,  negotiations  being  carried  on 
through  Dutch  interpreters.     The  Japanese 


PRESENT-DAV   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


69 


evinced  abnormal  suspicion  of  tlic  mission 
and  nothing  could  be  accomplished,  the 
Russians  putting  it  down  to  the  jealousy  of 
the  Dutch.  In  retaliation  for  this  treat- 
ment reprisals  were  made  on  the  Kuriles  in 
1806,  the  raids  creating  immense  excitement 
in  Japan.  In  181 1  Captain  Golownin,  a 
Russian  naval  officer,  and  his  companions, 
while  engaged  in  taking  surveys  of  the  Kurile 
Islands,  were  invited  into  a  fort  for  negotia- 
tions and  taken  prisoner  by  the  Japanese,  who 
subjected  them  to  great  hardships.  They  did 
not  succeed  in  obtaining  their  freedom  until 
two  years  afterward  when  Captain  Rikord 
came  with  a  Russian  apology  for  the  raids 
on  the  Kuriles.  No  further  attempts  were 
made  to  open  intercourse  with  Japan  until  a 
Russian  squadron  sailed  into  Nagasaki  in 
1853  and  demanded  treatment  similar  to 
that  accorded  Commodore  Perry.  Admiral 
Pontiatine  obtained  his  request,  the  new 
treaty  being  of  great  advantage  to  Russia 
at  a  time  when  she  was  at  war  with  Britain 
and  wanted  a  place  of  refuge  for  her  ships 
in  Oriental  waters.  A  special  embassy  from 
the  shogun's  government  was  despatched  to 
Russia  in  1864  but  without  effect,  and 
further  negotiations  were  opened  in  1875 
for  the  settlement  of  disputes  regarding 
Saghalien  and  the  Kuriles,  when  Japan  was 
obliged  to  exchange  the  former  for  the  latter. 
The  first  Russian  representative  in  Japan 
was  M.  Eugenie  Byustoff,  who  was  Consul- 
General  and  charge  d'affaires.  He  was 
followed  by  M.  Sturve  in  1875,  the  latter 
being  created  Envoy  Extraordinary  and 
Minister  Plenipotentiary  in  1877.  M.  David- 
off  was  appointed  Minister  to  Japan  in  1883 
and  two  years  later  was  succeeded  by 
M.  Schievitch,  during  whose  tenure  of  office 
occurred  the  unfortunate  attack  on  the 
Russian  Legation  and,  in  i8gi,  the  following 
year,  on  the  life  of  the  Tzarevitch  who  was 
on  a  visit  to  Japan.  In  1893  M.  Hitrovo 
became  Minister  to  Japan,  and  remained 
until  relieved  by  the  arrival  of  Baron  Rosen 
in  1897.  He  was  succeeded  by  M.  Iswolsky 
in  1900.  Baron  Rosen  was  again  appointed 
to  Tokyo  in  1903  as  relations  between  Japan 
and  Russia  then  were  such  as  to  demand  the 
presence  of  one  well  versed  in  Japanese 
affairs.  Baron  Rosen  had  the  difficult  task 
of  the  negotiations  immediately  preceding 
the  war  with  Japan.  Upon  the  resumption 
of  peace  the  new  Russian  Minister  to  Japan 
was  M.  Bakhmeteff,  who  arrived  in  1906, 
since  when  both  countries  have  been  on  the 
best  of  terms,  with  ever  brighter  prospects 
diplomatically  for  the  future,  their  mutual 
interests  in  East  Asia  rendering  amicable 
relations  essential.  Russia  sent  her  first 
Ambassador  to  Japan  in  1908  in  the  person 
of    M.    Nicolas    Malewitch    Malewsky,  who 


represented  his  country  with  distinction  until 
his  retirement  in  1916,  when  M.  Basilc 
Kroupensky  came  to  the  Embassy. 

M.  Kroupensky  began  his  diplomatic 
career  as  third  secretary  of  the  Russian 
Legation  at  Constantinople,  being  promoted 
to  second  secretary  at  the  same  place  in 
1898.  He  was  subsequently  transferred  to 
the  same  position  in  the  Legation  at  Pekin, 
and  was  besieged  there  with  the  other  diplo- 
mats during  the  Boxer  Rebellion.  Subse- 
quently he  became  councillor  to  the  Russian 
Embassies  in  Washington  and  Berlin  and 
later  at  Vienna.  In  19 12  he  became  Russian 
Minister  to  China,  and  was  promoted  to 
his  present  position  at  Tokyo  in  1916.  The 
councillor  of  the  Russian  Embassy  in  Tokyo 


M.  Shekine  and  the  first  secretary  is  Baron 


IS 


Behr. 


THE  ITALI.\N  EMBASSY 
In  a  way  Italy  has  the  honour  of  first  mak- 
ing known  to  the  Western  world  the  existence 
of  Japan.  Before  the  thirteenth  century 
Europe  had  some  dim  knowledge  of  the  land 
of  Far  Cathay,  but  not  even  a  suspicion  that 
there  was  such  a  country  as  Japan.  But  in 
the  year  1275  a  Venetian  traveller,  Marco 
Polo,  had  succeeded  in  making  his  way  by 
the  Indian  route  to  China  where,  at  the 
court  of  the  famous  ruler,  Khublai  Khan,  he 
learned  of  an  empire  still  farther  eastward 
whose  wealth  in  gold  was  limitless.  The 
information  was  brought  back  to  Europe  by 


A  JAPANESE   GARDEN    K1    KYOTO 


70 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


Marco  Polo  and  resulted  in  the  organisation 
of  East  Indian  trading  companies  for  the 
exploitation  of  East  Asia.  One  of  the  first 
to  take  advantage  of  the  knowledge  im- 
parted by  the  returned  traveller  was  another 
son  of  Italy,  Christopher  Columbus,  the 
Genoese  sailor,  who  set  out  for  the  East  and 
discovered  America  instead.  Thus  did  Amer- 
ica come  between  Japan  and  European  inva- 
sion, tiuTiing  the  drift  of  immigration  to  the 
New  World.  In  this  way  the  sons  of  Italy 
have  had  a  far-reaching  effect  on  Japan  even 
before  any  of  them  ever  visited  her  shores. 

The  first  Italians  to  set  foot  on  Japanese 
soil  were  Jesuit  missionaries;  and  as  these 
were  imder  the  jurisdiction  of  the  Pope  of 
Rome,  they  naturally  brought  Japan  into 
contact  with  Italy.  An  embassy  went  from 
Japan  to  Italy  in  1582  and  another  in  1614. 
The  Jesuit  father,  Sidotti,  was  one  of  the 
most  fearless  of  the  missionaries  dming  the 
days  of  bloody  persecution;  and  from  him 
the  Japanese  obtained  much  knowledge  of 
Western  countries.  After  the  Japanese 
authorities  began  to  concede  treaties  of  inter- 
course to  Western  countries,  Italy  made 
application  for  similar  favours  and  obtained 
them.  In  the  year  1866  an  Italian  warship 
arrived  for  this  purpose  and  concluded  a 
provisional  treaty  with  the  shogun,  a  regular 
and  permanent  treaty  being  negotiated  the 
following  year,  along  the  lines  of  those  con- 
ceded to  other  countries.  In  the  year  1869 
the  first  Italian  Minister  to  Japan  arrived 
in  the  person  of  Count  Vittorio  Sallier  de  la 
Tour,  who  was  succeeded  in  the  following 
year  by  Count  Alessandro  F6  D'Ostiani. 
The  latter  remained  seven  years  and  then  in 
1877  Count  Raffaele  Ulisse  Barbolani  was 
appointed  Envoy  Extraordinary  and  Minis- 
ter Plenipotentiary  to  Japan,  during  whose 
tenure  an  Italian  Royal  Prince  visited  Japan 
and  was  accorded  imperial  honours.  In 
1882  came  Chevalier  Eugenio  Martin  Lan- 
ciarez  who  acted  as  charge  d'affaires  during 
the  revision  of  the  foreign  treaties,  and  was 
succeeded  by  Count  Renato  de  Martino  in 
1883.  Coimt  de  Martino  remained  until 
1894  when  Count  Ercole  Orfini  was  appointed 
Minister  to  Tokyo.  He  continued  in  the 
Legation  until  1901,  when  he  was  replaced 
by  Coimt  Gulio  Melegari,  w'ho  represented 
Italy  in  Tokyo  until  1904.  Count  Gulie 
Cesare  Vinci  then  became  Minister  to  Japan. 
After  the  European  nations  raised  their 
legations  in  Tokyo  to  embassies  the  first 
Italian  Ambassador  to  Japan  was  Count 
Giovaimi  Gallina,  who  arrived  in  1907,  and 
was  succeeded  by  Marquis  Alessandro 
Guiccioli  in  the  following  year.  The  present 
Italian  Ambassador  to  Tokyo  is  Count 
Fausto  Cucchi-Boasso,  who  was  appointed 
in  1916. 


GERMANY 
It  is  very  natural  that  Imperial  Germany 
should  have  long  held  a  definite  place  in  the 
mind  of  Imperial  Japan,  who  has  based  her 
national  constitution  and  many  of  her  laws 
on  those  of  Germany.  In  fact,  the  two  na- 
tions have  had  so  much  in  common  in  various 
ways  that  they  have  never  been  overdemon- 
strative,  toward  each  other,  and  the  war  in 
Europe  has  separated  them  still  farther. 
German  influence  in  Japan,  however,  has 
been  very  great,  especially  on  the  national 
army  and  on  the  national  educational  system. 
Diplomatically  Germany  was  somewhat 
behind  Great  Britain  and  America  in  opening 
up  relations  with  Japan.  A  Prussian  war- 
ship arrived  in  Yedo  Bay  in  i860  and  asked 
for  a  treaty  of  intercourse  such  as  had  been 
conceded  to  the  United  States  and  England, 
and  though  the  Bakufii  at  first  hesitated,  the 
perseverance  of  the  German  admiral  pre- 
vailed and  a  provisional  treaty  was  finally 
arranged.  Another  German  warship  ap- 
peared in  Yedo  Bay  in  1863  and  proceeded 
to  make  a  sur\'ey  of  the  waters.  In  1868 
Germany  appealed  for  a  more  satisfactory 
treaty  with  Japan,  and  one  was  granted 
giving  full  rights  and  privileges.  Herr  von 
Brandt,  the  first  German  representative, 
took  up  his  residence  in  1863  as  Consul  and 
was  made  Consul- General  in  1868.  After 
the  unification  of  Germany  in  1871  Herr  \-on 
Brandt  was  appointed  the  first  German 
Minister  to  Japan,  presenting  his  credentials 
from  the  emperor  of  the  newly  organised 
empire,  William  I.  Herr  von  Brandt  was 
German  Minister  in  Tokyo  during  the  time 
that  Sir  Harry  Parkes  represented  Great 
Britain,  and  the  two  diplomats  worked 
together  in  an  amicable  spirit  for  the  progress 
of  Japan  toward  modern  ways,  even  keeping 
up  a  regular  correspondence  after  the  removal 
of  the  German  Mini.ster  to  Pekin.  The  next 
German  Minister  to  Tokyo  was  Herr  von 
Eisendecher  who  came  in  1875  and  remained 
until  1880,  when  he  was  succeeded  by  Count 
Doenhoff  as  Envoy  Extraordinary  and  Min- 
ister Plenipotentiary.  In  1879  the  Emperor 
of  Japan  conferred  on  the  Emperor  of  Ger- 
many the  Grand  Cordon  of  the  Chrysan- 
themum, the  highest  honour  within  the 
imperial  gift ;  and  in  the  following  year  Prince 
William  Heinrich  visited  Japan  and  conveyed 
to  the  Emperor  the  Order  of  the  Black  Eagle. 
Dr.  von  Holleben  was  accredited  Minister  to 
Japan  in  1886  and  Baron  von  Gutschmid  in 
1892.  It  was  at  this  time  that  Germany 
united  with  Russia  and  France  in  ousting 
Japan  from  the  Liaotung  Peninsula,  and 
diplomatic  relations  were  much  strained. 
Count  Leyden  was  appointed  Minister  to 
Tokyo  in  1898  and  was  succeeded  three  years 
later  by  Count  von  Arco  Valley.     When  the 


Legation  was  raised  to  the  rank  of  an  Em- 
bassy in  1906  the  first  German  Ambassador 
to  Japan  was  Baron  Mumm  von  Schwarzen- 
stein  who  remained  until  191 1,  when  Count 
von  Rex  became  Ambassador.  Count  von 
Rex  held  office  until  the  rupture  of  relations 
with  Japan  in  19 14  on  the  outbreak  of  the 
war  in  Europe.  Japan,  in  accordance  with 
the  terms  of  the  Anglo-Japanese  Alliance, 
took  the  side  of  England  in  the  struggle, 
and  requested  Germany  to  withdraw  from 
Kiaouchou.  Germany  refused  and  Japan 
invested  Tsingtau  and  reduced  the  fortress 
to  submission. 

.\USTRO-HUNG.\RY 

Though  the  Empire  of  Austro-Hungary 
forms  one  of  the  great  powers  of  Europe, 
relations  with  Japan  have  been  of  such  recent 
date  that  there  is  not  a  great  deal  to  be  said 
in  the  way  of  history.  Austria,  for  many 
years  both  before  and  after  its  union  with 
the  Crown  of  Hungary,  was  engaged  in  such 
constant  warfare  that  there  was  little  time 
or  opportunity  for  opening  up  intercourse 
with  regions  more  remote.  But  as  soon  as 
Japan  opened  her  ports  to  foreign  commerce 
and  began  to  make  treaties  with  the  nations 
of  Europe,  Austro-Hungary  came  in  for 
similar  favours. 

The  first  negotiations  for  treaty  relations 
between  Japan  and  Austria  began  in  1869, 
the  proceedings  being  conducted  by  the 
Japanese  Minister  of  Foreign  Affairs.  The 
treaty  concluded  was  signed  on  the  12th  of 
September  the  same  year,  and  the  first 
Austrian  Minister  to  Japan,  Count  Petz, 
presented  his  credentials  and  was  accorded 
an  audience  by  the  Emperor  of  Japan.  On 
the  28th  of  November,  1871,  Japan  opened 
further  negotiations  for  improvement  of 
treaty  relations  with  Austria  and  a  new  treaty 
was  formally  signed  on  the  3d  of  December 
in  the  same  year.  The  new  Austro-Hunga- 
rian  Minister  was  Heinrich  Freiberr  von 
Calice  who  remained  in  Tokyo  until  March, 
1874.  During  the  year  1873  relations  be- 
tween Japan  and  Austria  were  made  closer 
by  an  invitation  from  Vienna  asking  Japan 
to  participate  in  the  great  International 
Exhibition  to  be  held  there.  This  was  one  of 
Japan's  earliest  opportunities  of  introducing 
her  arts  and  manufactures  to  the  Western 
world,  and  she  in  t\irn  brought  back  from 
Europe  many  valuable  hints  with  regard  to 
industry.  In  March,  1874,  Pgnaz  Freiberr 
von  Schaeffer  came  as  Minister  to  Japan, 
remaining  three  years,  when  he  was  suc- 
ceeded by  Herr  Carl  Ritter  von  Boleslawski 
during  whose  two  years  of  office  no  important 
event  marked  the  relations  between  the  two 
countries.  From  1879  to  1882  Herr  Mixi- 
milian    Ritter    Hoffer    von    Hoffenfels    was 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


71 


Austrian  Minister  in  Tokyo,  after  which  the 
legation  was  occupied  by  Carl  Graff  Zalushi, 
during  whose  tenure  of  office  the  foreign 
treaties  were  revised.  In  1888  Rudiger 
Freiherr  von  Biegeleben  represented  his 
country  at  the  Court  of  the  Mikado,  remain- 
ing until  1895,  when  he  was  succeeded  by 
Christoph  Graf  von  Wydenbruch  who  con- 
tinued to  represent  his  country  until  October, 
1899,  during  which  period  a  revised  Treaty 
of  Navigation  and  Commerce  was  success- 
fully concluded  with  Japan.  Adalbert  Am- 
bro  von  Adamosz,  who  came  as  Minister  in 
October,  1899,  was  promoted  to  the  rank 
of  Ambassador  in  1907,  and  was  succeeded 
by  Baron  Guido  de  Call  in  March,  1909.  In 
September,  1912,  Baron  Ladislaus  Miillcr 
was  appointed  Ambassador  to  Japan  and 
remained  until  the  rupture  of  diplomatic 
relations  in  19 14  on  account  of  the  European 
war. 

LEGATIONS 

THE  NETHERLANDS  LEGATION 
The  Dutch,  as  is  well  known,  were  among 
the  first  Europeans  to  open  up  intercourse 
with  Japan.  The  first  Hollander  to  set  foot 
on  the  sacred  soil  of  the  gods  was  Derrick 
Gerritson  who  came  on  a  ship  of  the  Portu- 
guese East  India  Company  in  1585.  On 
his  return  to  Europe  Gerritson  spread  the 
report  that  there  was  a  good  opening  for 
woollen  cloth  in  Japan  and  a  Dutch  East 
India  Company  was  established  in  1602  to 
engage  in  trade  with  Japan  and  the  Far 
East.  The  organisation  of  the  company  was 
furthered  by  the  expulsion  of  the  Dutch  from 
Lisbon  by  Philip  of  Spain  when  he  became 
king  of  Portugal  in  1580;  and  to  make  up  for 
their  loss  of  trade  as  distributors  of  spices  in 
Europe  they  started  out  to  trade  with  the 
East  on  their  own  account.  Indeed,  the 
Netherlands  had  been  so  ruthlessly  pillaged 
by  Spain  that  the  only  hope  of  the  country 
was  on  the  sea  whence  the  people  endeavoured 
to  repair  their  shattered  fortunes  by  trade. 
Dutchmen  arrived  in  Japan  on  the  same  ship 
with  Will  Adams,  the  Englishman;  and  one 
of  these,  Jan  Yoosen  van  Lodenstein,  was 
employed  as  an  interpreter  by  the  shogun, 
but  he  fell  into  debt  and  bad  habits  and  was 
finally  banished  the  country.  He  has  left 
his  name  in  Tokyo,  however,  Yalsucho  in 
Nihonbashi,  the  place  where  his  house  stood, 
being  called  after  him.  The  first  Dutch 
ships  that  came  to  Japan  were  welcomed  and 
given  permission  to  trade  where  they  would, 
and  from  1608  to  1638  there  was  unre- 
stricted trade  between  Japan  and  Holland; 
but  when  foreigners  were  finally  banished  the 
Dutch  were  confined  to  Nagasaki  and 
allowed  to  trade  when  all  other  foreigners 
except  Chinese  had  been  driven  out.     During 


A    WELL    KNOWN    SPOT    NEAR   THE    IMPERIAL    HOTEL,    TOKYO 


the  seventeenth  century  Dutch  ships  came 
regularly  to  Nagasaki,  save  toward  the  end, 
when  they  had  carried  away  so  much  gold 
that  only  two  a  year  were  permitted  to 
arrive;  and  as  these  carried  American  sailors 
to  avoid  seizure  by  the  English,  the  Japanese 
became  suspicious  of  them  and  serious  com- 
plications threatened.  Up  to  the  middle  of 
the  nineteenth  century  the  Dutch  settlement 
at  Nagasaki  was  Japan's  only  means  of  com- 
munication with  the  outside  world.     In  this 


way,  however,  sufficient  knowledge  was 
acquired  to  prepare  Japan  for  the  subsequent 
intercourse  forced  upon  her  by  Western 
nations.  Among  the  Dutchmen  at  Nagasaki 
there  were  some  distinguished  scholars,  such 
as  Kaempfer  and  von  Siebold,  who  imparted 
stores  of  knowledge  to  Japan  and  made  Japan 
known  in  the  Western  world.  In  i860  a 
Dutch  subject  in  the  employ  of  the  American 
Legation  as  secretary  and  interpreter,  Mr. 
Huesken,  was  assassinated.     The  first  Consul 


METROPOLITAN    POLICE    OFFICE    AND    IMPERIAL    THEATRE,  TOKYO 


^2 


PRESENT-DAY        I  M   I'  U  K  S  S  I  O  N  S        OF        JAPAN 


from  the  Netherlands  came  to  Japan  in  1 868 
in  the  person  of  Herr  van  Vorsblok  and  he 
was  followed  by  Herr  van  Doerfen  in  1871, 
who  also  acted  for  Norway  and  Sweden. 
He  was  the  first  foreign  representative  in 
Tok}-o  to  call  at  the  imperial  palace  on  New 
Year's  Day  to  offer  felicitations  to  the  Em- 
peror, a  custom  subsequently  adopted  and 
since  continued  by  all  foreign  representatives 
in  Tokj-o.  The  first  treaty  between  Japan 
and  Holland  was  concluded  in  1856  shortly 
after  the  opening  of  the  country,  this  being 
replaced  by  another  in  1866  and  this  again 
was  changed,  when  the  foreign  treaties  were 
revised  and  consular  jurisdiction  abolished. 
One  of  the  most  popular  representatives  of 
the  Netherlands  in  Tokyo  was  Herr  J.  H.  van 
Roj-en  who  remained  until  the  appointment 
of  the  present  Minister,  Baron  Dirk  van 
Asbeck.  The  councillor  of  the  Dutch  Lega- 
tion, Herr  Leon  van  de  Polder,  is  one  of  the 
oldest  and  most  respected  diplomatic  officials 
in  Tokyo,  having  been  in  office  there  for  a 
great  many  years. 

THE    SPANISH    LEGATION 
Spain  was  one  of  the  first  European  na- 
tions  to   have   communication   witli   Japan, 


her  merchants  and  missionaries  arriving  about 
the  middle  of  the  sixteenth  century.  The 
saintly  Francis  Xavier  landed  near  Kago- 
shima  in  1548  and  from  that  time  there  was 
a  steady  influx  of  missionaries  until,  in  half 
a  century,  there  were  nearly  a  million  Chris- 
tians among  the  Japanese.  These  Spanish 
missionaries  and  merchants  gave  Japan  her 
earliest  authentic  knowledge  of  Europe  and 
of  Western  civiUsation.  But  through  the 
jealousy  of  the  Portuguese  the  Japanese 
authorities  began  to  hear  of  Spanish  aggres- 
sion in  Mexico,  South  America,  and  the 
Philippines,  and  this,  together  with  the 
adverse  attitude  of  the  Spanish  missionaries 
to  Japanese  laws  and  morals,  aroused  suspi- 
cion in  the  minds  of  the  authorities  and 
finally  all  foreigners  were  banished  the  coun- 
try except  the  Dutch  and  Chinese.  The 
expulsion  of  the  missionaries  was  not  accom- 
plished without  persecution  of  the  most 
bloodthirsty  nature,  an  account  of  which 
will  be  found  in  the  article  on  Religion  else- 
where in  this  volume.  One  can  not  refrain 
from  seeing  in  the  awful  sufferings  of  the 
Spanish  missionaries  in  Japan  something  of 
the  Nemesis  of  fate  for  the  tortures  of  the 
"Holy    Inquisition"    in    Spain    itself.     Not- 


withstanding his  determination  to  rid  the 
countr>'  of  foreigners,  the  shogun  had  no 
desire  to  force  a  rupture  of  relations  with 
Spain,  and  an  embassy  was  sent  to  Europe 
in  1 61 4  with  the  idea  of  seeking  an  audience 
with  the  King  of  Spain  as  well  as  proceeding 
to  Rome  to  see  the  Pope.  In  1609  a  Spanish 
ship  bearing  Don  Rodrigo,  then  governor  of 
the  Philippines,  was  wrecked  on  the  shores  of 
Japan,  when  the  castaways  were  cordially 
received  and  kindly  treated,  being  allowed 
to  build  a  ship  imder  the  direction  of  the  Eng- 
Hsh  exile.  Will  Adams,  in  which  they  sailed 
for  Mexico  carrying  with  them  a  Japanese 
envoy  to  the  King  of  Spain,  with  a  special 
request  that  mining  engineers  be  sent  to 
Japan.  From  the  time  of  the  enforcement  of 
the  exclusion  policy  in  1623  down  to  the 
period  of  opening  Japan  to  international 
intercoiu"se,  there  were  no  fiorther  relations 
with  Spain;  and  when  a  treaty  was  asked  for 
it  was  cordially  conceded  by  the  same  sho- 
gunate  that  had  broken  off  all  relations  with 
Spain  nearly  two  centuries  before.  The  new 
treaty  with  Spain  was  signed  on  the  28th  of 
September,  1868,  since  which  date  relations 
between  the  two  countries  have  been  of  the 
best.       The    various    ministers    that    have 


THE    .MHONHASHI    BRIDGE,    TOKYO 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


73 


THE    GOLF    LINKS    AND    CLUB    HOUSE    AT    ROKKOSAN 


represented  Spain  at  the  Court  of  the  Mikado 
have  been  well  received  and  have  left  a 
very  pleasing  impression  on  Japan.  The 
present  Spanish  Minister  to  Japan  is  Don 
Jose  Caro  y  Szccheuyi. 

THE  PORTUGUESE  LEGATION 
After  the  famous  Portuguese  navigator, 
Vasco  de  Gama,  made  his  way  into  the  Indian 
Ocean  around  the  Cape  of  Good  Hope  in 
1497  his  country  soon  established  itself  in 
the  East,  taking  the  trade  in  silks  and  spices 
from  the  Arabs  and  Venetians.  The  adven- 
turers in  time  found  their  way  to  the  shores 
of  Japan.  The  first  natives  of  Portugal  to 
reach  Japan  were  Anthony  de  Moto  and  two 
companions  who  were  cast  ashore  by  the 
wreck  of  a  Chinese  junk  in  1542;  and  the 
following  year  came  Mendez  Pinto,  also  being 
driven  ashore  by  contrary  winds.  From  him 
the  Japanese  first  learned  of  the  existence  of 
firearms,  and  one  can  imagine  the  astonish- 
ment and  awe  of  the  crowd  that  gathered  to 
see  him  put  his  iron  tube  to  his  shoulder  and 
bring  down  a  bird.  The  people  at  first  be- 
lieved that  the  energy  exerted  by  the  weapon 
was  due  to  enchantment  or  magic.  Pinto 
and  his  men  were  forthwith  treated  as  won- 
der-workers and  borne  in  palanquins  through 
the  town  like  daimyo.  The  musket  was 
finally  presented  to  the  daimyo,  who  sent  a 
present  of  1,000  tales  of  silver  in  return. 
The  Portuguese  not  only  taught  the  Japanese 
how  to  use  firearms  but  how  to  manufacture 
them.  It  was  this  advantage  which  won  an 
opening  for  all  foreigners  who  arrived  in 
Japan  afterward.  It  was  Pinto  who  opened 
the  way  for  the  coming  of  the  missionaries; 


for  during  his  first  visit  in  1543  he  took  away 
with  him  to  Goa  a  Japanese  who  learned 
Spanish  and  returned  as  interpreter  with 
Francis  Xavier  in  1548,  Pinto  also  accom- 
panying them.  From  this  time  all  Portu- 
guese ships  coming  to  Japan  carried  two  com- 
modities: firearms  and  friars.  All  were  suc- 
cessful until  the  arrival  of  the  Franciscans 


from  Manila,  when  jealousy  broke  out  and 
backbiting  created  suspicion  among  the 
authorities.  The  rivalry  of  the  Franciscans 
with  the  Portuguese  Jesuits  was  further 
accentuated  by  rivalry  between  the  Spanish 
and  Portuguese  merchants,  finally  leading 
to  the  banishment  of  religion  and  trade 
alike. 

For  some  ninety  years  after  the  edict  ban- 
ishing foreigners  no  Portuguese  ship  ven- 
tured near  the  shores  of  Japan,  and  the  one 
that  did  appear  later  was  promptly  dis- 
missed with  a  copy  of  the  edict.  Intercourse 
between  Japan  and  Portugal  remained  qui- 
escent until  the  opening  of  Japan  to  Western 
nations,  when  the  usual  treaties  were  nego- 
tiated and  signed  between  the  two  countries. 
This  was  in  the  year  1859,  when  a  Portuguese 
ship  sailed  into  the  Bay  of  Yedo  and  re- 
quested a  treaty  such  as  had  been  accorded 
the  United  States.  This  was  followed  by  a 
more  permanent  treaty  in  1862.  In  1873 
Sgr.  Bicono  San  Shanwalico,  the  first  Portu- 
guese Minister  to  Japan,  arrived  in  Tokyo 
and  was  duly  accorded  an  audience  by  the 
Emperor.  Portugal  amicably  acquiesced  in 
Japan's  desire  for  a  revision  of  her  foreign 
treaties,  and  Portugal  agreed  to  the  abolition 
of  her  extraterritoriality  in  1892,  being  the 
first  of  the  Occidental  nations  to  abandon 
consular  jurisdiction  in  Japan.  At  present 
Portugal  is  represented  in  Japan  by  Sgr. 
Cesar  de  Sousa  Mendes,  as  charge  d'affaires. 


THE    UNITED    STATES   LEGATION    AT    TOKYO 


74 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


THE  BELGIAN  LEGATION 
At  a  time  when  other  European  countries 
were  pushing  their  interests  in  the  Far  East 
Belgium  was  subject  to  Spanish  rule,  passing 
successively  into  the  hands  of  France  and 
Austria;  and  later  she  united  with  Holland 
when  that  countrj'  was  extending  its  sea  trade 
eastward,  though  there  is  no  record  to  show 
how  far  Belgium  shared  in  this.  After  Bel- 
gium separated  from  Holland  and  elected 
Prince  Leopold  of  Saxe-Coburg  as  her  king 
in  1 83 1,  she  began  to  take  more  interest  in 
overseas  trade.  But  formal  negotiations  for 
a  treaty  with  Japan  were  not  begun  imtil 
some  time  after  the  other  powers  had  achieved 
this  end.  A  provisional  treaty  was  agreed 
to  in  1866  and  in  1870  the  first  representative 
of  Belgium,  M.  Auguste  Kint,  arrived  in 
Tokyo,  and  was  succeeded  in  1873  by  M.  Carl 
de  Claut.  Japan  was  invited  to  participate 
in  the  International  Commercial  Congress  at 
Brussels  in  1880,  and  in  the  same  year  the 
King  of  Belgium  conferred  on  the  Emperor  of 
Japan  the  Order  of  Knight  of  Leopold. 
When  the  conference  for  the  revision  of  for- 
eign treaties  was  held  in  Tokyo  in  1886  Bel- 
gium was  represented  by  M.  George  Martins, 
and  a  new  treaty  was  concluded  with  Belgium 
in  I  goo.  Among  the  various  distinguished 
citizens  of  Belgium  who  have  represented 
their  country  in  Japan  none  has  been  more 
favourably  known  than  the  late  Baron 
d'Anethan,  who  was  for  many  years  the 
doyen  of  the  diplomatic  corps  in  the  Japanese 
capital.  The  present  Belgian  Minister  is 
Count  della  Faille  de  Leverghem,  who  has 
occupied  the  Legation  since  1910.  He  was 
bom  in  1871  and  entered  diplomatic  life  by 
being  appointed  attache  to  the  Legation  at 
Berlin  in  1893,  and  secretary  at  Lisbon  in 
1894.  He  was  promoted  to  a  similar  position 
at  Rome  in  1898  and  again  to  Berlin  in  1900, 
being  raised  to  the  rank  of  councillor  in  1906. 
From  this  time  until  1909  he  was  councillor 
at  the  Belgian  Legation  at  The  Hague, 
coming  to  the  Belgian  Legation  in  Tokj'O  as 
Minister  in  1910.  The  Belgian  Minister 
bears  the  royal  decoration  of  a  Knight  of  the 
Order  of  Leopold,  and  the  First  Class  Order 
of  the  Rising  Sun  has  been  conferred  upon 
him  by  the  Emperor  of  Japan.  He  holds 
numerous  other  orders  from  Belgium  as  well. 
The  Countess  was  a  daughter  of  M.  Maskins, 
Belgian  Minister  to  Rome,  and  there  are  two 
children.  The  first  secretary  of  the  Belgian 
Legation  is  M.  Lemaire  de  Warzee  d'Her- 
malle. 

THE  SWEDISH  LEGATION 
While  the  Northmen  were  the  greatest 
sailors  of  the  early  European  world,  they  did 
not  find  their  way  to  the  Orient  as  soon  as 
their  southern  neighbours,  the  Dutch;  and 
Sweden  did  not  open  relations  with  Japan 


until  1868,  when  negotiations  were  begun  for 
the  conclusion  of  a  treaty,  which  was  signed 
on  the  7th  of  November,  1870.  This  treaty 
was  revised  and  enlarged  in  1896,  the  same 
being  true  of  Norway  which  was  united  with 
Sweden  at  this  time.  Relations  between 
Japan  and  Sweden  have  always  been  very 
cordial;  and  when  the  distinguished  traveller. 
Dr.  Sven  Hedin,  visited  Japan  in  1910  he 
was  accorded  a  most  enthusiastic  reception. 
Japan  sent  delegates  to  the  Olympic  Games 
in  Sweden  in  1912.  Until  the  present  war 
Japan  has  drawn  her  supply  of  wood  pulp 
largely  from  Sweden. 

The  present  Minister  of  Sweden  in  Tokyo 
is  M.  Gustaf  Oscar  Wallenberg,  who  arrived 
in  1907,  and  represents  his  country  at  Pekin 
as  well.  M.  W^allenberg  was  educated  as 
a  naval  officer  and  served  in  that  capacity 
at  home,  later  becoming  a  member  of  the 
Swedish  Parliament,  and  serving  on  many 
royal  commissions.  After  his  promotion  to 
the  rank  of  captain  in  the  royal  na\'y  of 
Sweden  he  was  appointed  Minister  to  Japan 
and  China.  Captain  Wallenberg  holds  many 
distinguished  orders,  including  First  Class 
Order  of  the  Swedish  Polar  Star,  the  First 
Class  Order  of  the  Rising  Sun,  and  the  First 
Class  Chinese  Double  Dragon,  as  well  as 
various  French  and  Spanish  decorations. 

THE  NORWEGIAN  LEGATION 
Relations  between  Japan  and  Norway 
are  included  in  those  with  Sweden,  and  since 
the  separation  of  Norway  from  Sweden  the 
representative  of  Norway  in  Japan  has  been 
Baron  d'Anker,  acting  as  charge  d'affaires. 

THE  CHINESE  LEGATION 
The  beginning  of  relations  between  Japan 
and  China  must  be  placed  far  back  in  the 
mists  of  prehistoric  time;  for  they  are  as  old 
as  those  of  Britain  with  her  ancestral  shores 
across  the  Oceanus  Germanicus.  The  first 
historic  mention  of  diplomatic  intercourse 
with  China  is  in  the  time  of  the  Emperor 
Suin,  40  A.  D.  The  Han  dynasty  of  China 
did  all  in  its  power  to  encourage  intercourse 
with  Japan.  We  have  mention  of  presents 
brought  to  the  Emperor  of  Japan  in  the 
middle  of  the  third  century  A.  D.,  which  sug- 
gests diplomatic  relations.  The  influence  of 
Chinese  literatitre  and  art  as  well  as  Budd- 
hism brought  the  two  countries  closer  to- 
gether; but  China's  attempted  invasion  of 
Japan  in  the  thirteenth  century  and  Japan's 
attempted  invasion  of  China  in  the  sixteenth 
century  show  that  diplomatic  relations 
were  never  intimate  after  Japan  secured  her 
independence.  A  close  study  of  the  frequent 
embassies  exchanged  by  the  two  countries 
between  the  years  600  A.  d.  and  1600  A.  D. 
will  show  the  truth  of  the  last  statement. 


These  embassies,  which  were  most  elaborate 
and  expensive  in  the  eighth  and  ninth  cen- 
turies, declined  after  the  tenth  century,  with 
the  rise  of  national  autonomy.  The  twelfth 
and  thirteenth  centuries  in  Japan  were  taken 
up  with  the  constant  clash  of  mighty  clans, 
and  there  was  no  time  for  foreign  diplomacy, 
though  China  intruded  by  an  abortive  inva- 
sion. In  the  seventeenth  century  when  Euro- 
pean ships  were  trading  with  Japan,  those  of 
China  were  accorded  similar  privileges,  for 
it  was  a  policy  of  the  shoguns  to  keep  the 
peace  with  China. 

When  Japan  consented  to  negotiate  treaties 
with  Western  powers  China  was  granted  a 
like  privilege,  an  agreement  was  concluded 
between  the  two  countries  in  1869,  and  the 
first  Chinese  consul  arrived  in  Japan  in  1877. 
Disputes  with  China  over  Formosa  occurred 
in  1874  and  over  Korea  in  1894,  the  latter 
trouble  leading  to  war.  In  recent  years 
relations  between  Japan  and  China  have  not 
been  overcordial,  chiefly  owing  to  Japan's 
policy  of  seeking  to  control  China  so  as  to 
prevent  foreign  concessions,  on  the  score  of 
Japan's  own  safety.  The  present  Chinese 
Minister  in  Tokyo  is  Mr.  Chang  Tsung- 
Hsiang,  who  was  born  in  1877  and  educated 
at  the  University  of  Pekin  and  in  Tokyo.  In 
19 10  he  became  Commissioner  of  Police  in 
Pekin,  and  was  Chief  of  the  Supreme  Court 
in  1913,  becoming  Minister  of  Justice  in 
1915.  The  following  year  he  was  appointed 
Chinese  Minister  to  Tokyo.  The  first  secre- 
tary to  the  Chinese  Legation  is  Mr.  Wong 
Hung-Nien. 

THE  SIAMESE  LEGATION 
Japan  opened  international  relations  with 
Siam  in  much  the  same  way  as  she  did  with 
Portugal,  Spain,  and  England,  through  her 
traders  and  merchant  adventurers  of  the 
sixteenth  century.  Japan  learned  about 
Siam  from  the  Spanish  and  Portuguese 
traders  and  missionaries  coming  to  her  shores, 
and  many  Japanese  began  to  find  their  way 
to  Siam.  In  1605  it  is  recorded  that  the 
Shogun  leyasu  sent  a  letter  to  the  King  of 
Siam  demanding  tribute,  and  another 
missive  five  years  later  asking  for  guns  and 
ammunition.  The  story  of  early  Japanese 
adventure  in  Siam  reads  like  a  tale  of 
the  Arabian  Nights.  The  Japanese  settle- 
ment there  was  so  large  and  influential  that 
during  a  rebellion  the  Japanese  aided  the 
king  in  suppressing  it,  the  king  giving  Ya- 
mada  Nagamasa,  the  leader,  his  daughter 
as  a  reward  for  his  valour.  In  1625  the 
ruler  of  Siam  sent  an  envoy  to  Yedo  to 
thank  the  shogun  for  the  assistance  rendered 
by  the  Japanese.  The  Japanese,  however, 
became  too  much  for  the  Siamese  and  they 
were  later  banished  from  the  country;  which 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


75 


THE    BRITISH   CONSULATE    AT   YOKOHAMA 


did  not  much  matter  to  the  shogun,  as  about 
this  time  he  issued  an  edict  prohibiting  all 
his  subjects  from  going  abroad.  Thus  from 
the  middle  of  the  seventeenth  century  to  the 
year  1875,  when  negotiations  were  reopened 
between  them,  there  was  no  formal  inter- 
course between  Tokyo  and  Bangkok. 

There  was  no  definite  outcome  of  the  first 
negotiations  with  Siam,  and  not  until  Prince 
Deva  Ouguz^  arrived  in  Japan  in  1887  were 
formal  relations  fully  restored.  The  prince 
presented  to  the  Emperor  of  Japan  the  Siam- 
ese Order  of  the  White  Elephant,  and  in  re- 
turn received  for  the  King  of  Siam  the  Order 
of  the  Rising  Sun.  From  that  time  the  gov- 
ernment of  Siam  began  to  employ  Japanese, 
and  the  relations  have  been  most  cordial. 
The  present  representative  of  Siam  at  the 
Court  of  the  Mikado  is  Phya  Chammong 
Dithakar,  who  came  in  191 1.  He  was  born 
in  1874,  being  the  son  of  a  former  Minister 
of  Foreign  Affairs,  and  was  educated  in  Siam 
and  in  England,  entering  diplomatic  service 
in  1897.  He  became  secretary  of  legation  at 
Tokyo  in  1901,  when  he  also  acted  as  charge 
d'affaires.  He  was  transferred  to  London  in 
1903  and  acted  as  charge  d'affaires  at  Paris  in 
1904,  returning  to  London  in  1905.  In 
1907  he  was  transferred  to  Petrograd  where 
he  remained  until  being  appointed  to  the 
consular  bureau  of  the  Foreign  Office  in  1909, 
after  which  he  was  appointed  Siamese  Minis- 


ter to  Japan.  The  Siamese  Minister  holds 
several  distinguished  decorations,  including 
the  Fourth  Class  Order  of  the  White  Ele- 
phant and  the  First  Class  Order  of  the  Rising 
Sun. 

THE  MEXICAN  LEGATION 
How  early  Japan  and  Mexico  had  more  or 
less  distant  relations  is  a  matter  of  specula- 
tion; but  there  is  good  reason  to  believe  that 
Japanese  drifted  to  the  shores  of  that  country 
in  prehistoric  times  as  well  as  subsequently, 
and  it  is  altogether  likely  that  the  ancestors 
of  the  tribes  that  peopled  North  and  South 
America  came  from  Asia.  At  any  rate  the 
archaeology  of  Mexico  and  Central  America 
is  more  suggestive  of  Japan  than  of  any  other 
country.  But  Japan  had  no  formal  knowl- 
edge of  Mexico  until  the  Spanish  came  to  her 
shores  in  the  fifteenth  century.  During  the 
Tokugawa  period  leyasu  was  anxious  to  pro- 
mote good  relations  with  Mexico  for  reasons 
of  trade,  and  even  sent  for  miners  from  that 
country.  The  first  treaty  between  Japan 
and  Mexico  was  negotiated  in  January,  1888, 
the  document  being  signed  at  Washington  by 
the  Japanese  Minister  there  and  a  represent- 
ative of  Mexico.  Since  then  relations 
between  the  two  countries  have  been  very 
intimate,  indeed,  so  much  so  as  to  have 
aroused  suspicion  in  some  quarters.  The 
present  Minister  of  Mexico  in  Tokyo  is 
M.    Manuel   Perez   Romero,    who  has   been 


Envoy  Extraordinary  and  Minister  Pleni- 
potentiary since  1916.  M.  Romero  belongs 
to  an  old  family  of  Mexico  and  was  educated 
at  home  and  at  Stanford  University,  Cali- 
fornia. On  the  election  of  his  brother-in-law, 
the  late  Francisco  Madero,  as  President  of 
Mexico,  M.  Romero  entered  politics,  taking 
a  prominent  part  in  the  revolutionary  move- 
ment initiated  by  President  Carranza.  Be- 
fore being  appointed  Minister  to  Japan 
M.  Romero  was  a  member  of  the  Mexican 
Legislature  and  Governor  of  the  State  of 
Vera  Cruz.  The  first  secretary  of  the  Mexi- 
can Legation  is  M.  Manuel  C.  Tellez,  who 
acted  as  Mexican  consul  in  various  countries 
before  coming  to  Japan. 

OTHER    LEGATIONS 

The  remaining  legations  in  Tokyo  are  of 
those  nations  that  have  but  recently  entered 
into  close  relations  with  Japan  and  keep 
usually  but  one  official  in  residence.  These  are: 

The  Danish  Legation:  Minister,  Count 
P.  Ahlefeldt  Laurvig. 

The  Swiss  Legation:  Minister,  M.  Ferdi- 
nand de  Salis. 

The  Argentine  Legation:  Minister,  M. 
Francisco  Ortiz. 

The  Brazilian  Legation:  Minister,  E.  L. 
Chermont. 

The  Chilian  Legation:  Minister,  M.  Fran- 
cisco Rivas  Vicuna. 


IKUTA    TEMPLE,    KOBE 


VII.    The  Diplomacy  and  Foreign 

Policy  of  Japan 

By  D.   J.   EVANS,  Managing  Editor  o(  "The  Japan  Chronicle" 

The  Opening  of  the  Ports— The  Recognition  of  Japan  as  a  Great  Power— Japans  Policy 
IN  Korea— Japans  Policy  Toward  China— Japans  Southward  Expansion 


Some  twenty  years  ago,  when  that 
well-known  figure  in  Japanese  politics, 
Marquis  Okuma,  was  Minister  for 
Foreign  Affairs,  he  delivered  some  obiter 
dicta  on  the  subject  of  diplomacy  which  may 
well  serve  as  an  introduction  to  this  brief 
sketch  of  Japan's  foreign  policy  during  the 
last  sixty  years.  The  then  Foreign  Minister 
said;  "Diplomacy  is  justice.  It  may  per- 
haps be  well  sometimes  in  diplomacy  to  be 
entrenched  within  fortifications,  but  I  do 
not  intend  so  to  shield  myself.  I  shall,  on 
the  contrary,  be  guided  by  a  spirit  of  perfect 
frankness.  Adhesion  to  this  policy  has,  I 
think,  been  the  secret  of  Japan's  success." 

Much  water  has  flowed  under  the  bridges 
since  this  speech  was  made,  but  probably 
Marquis  Okuma  would  say,  if  he  were  ques- 
tioned to-day,  that  what  he  said  in  1896  ex- 
actly and  precisely  represented  the  views  he 
held  in  1916  as  Premier,  the  notoriously  un- 
just and  unfrank  Twenty-one  Demands  he 
made  upon  China  notwithstanding,  of  which 
mention  shall  be  made  later. 

In  outlining  Japan's  foreign  policy  and 
diplomacy  during  a  period  of  sixty  odd  years, 
it  will  be  convenient  to  divide  the  review  into 
three  sections:  First,  from  the  arrival  of 
Perry  to  the  abolition  of  extraterritoriality 
and  the  Sino-Japanese  War;  second,  from  that 
date  down  to  the  Russo-Japanese  War;  and 
third,  from  that  great  struggle  down  to  the 


time  of  writing.  All  three  periods  have  their 
own  peculiar  and  particular  interest,  the  first 
as  showing  the  gradual  awakening  of  Japan, 
the  second  as  showing  the  consequences  of 
that  awakening,  and  the  third  as  indicating 
more  or  less  clearly  the  line  of  Japan's  future 
development. 

It  may  be  of  interest  to  devote  some  little 
space  to  sketching  Japan  before  the  arrival 
of  the  Perry  Expedition,  which,  of  course, 
was  not  the  first  time  that  American  ships 
had  entered  Japanese  waters.  During  the 
first  half  of  the  nineteenth  century  the  num- 
ber of  American  vessels  engaged  in  sealing 
in  the  northern  Pacific  rapidly  increased,  and 
from  time  to  time  they  put  into  Japanese 
ports,  although  the  country  was  not  open  to 
foreign  trade.  Sometimes  these  visits  were 
due  to  stress  of  weather,  and  ships  made  for 
the  nearest  port  in  order  to  get  food  or  new- 
tackle.  Sometimes  foreign  ships  would  call, 
to  land  Japanese  fishermen  carried  out  to 
sea  by  storms  and  rescued  by  a  foreign  ship. 
There  is  reason  to  believe  that  in  some  cases 
it  was  not  altogether  the  humane-  desire  to 
restore  to  his  fellow  countrymen  an  unlucky 
castaway  which  jjrompted  the  master  of  a 
foreign  ship  to  make  for  the  coast  of  Japan. 
Enterprising  men  were  the  shipmasters  of 
those  days,  and  the  prospect  of  doing  a  little 
prohibited,  but  profitable,  trade  with  the 
Japanese  probably  counted  for  much  in  con- 


sidering whether  the  ship's  course  should  be 
changed,  and  her  head  pointed  direct  for  the 
coast  of  Japan  to  land  two  or  three  fishermen. 
The  attitude  of  the  Japanese  toward  these 
intruders,  however,  was  not  at  all  cor- 
dial; shipwrecked  foreigners  were  sometimes 
treated  well,  but  often  with  much  harshness; 
unarmed  foreign  ships  were  usually  fired 
upon,  but  men-of-war  were  received  in  quite 
a  different  spirit.  They  were  towed  in  and 
out  of  harbour  without  charge,  and  so  long 
as  they  did  not  wish  to  enter  into  negotiations, 
provisions  were  supplied  free  on  the  under- 
standing that  they  left  at  once.  The  delicate 
distinction  shown  in  the  manner  of  receiving 
armed  and  unarmed  strangers  —  equally  un- 
welcome—  is  decidedly  interesting. 

THE  OPENING  OF  THE  PORTS 
It  was  about  1830  that  the  question  of 
opening  trade  relations  with  Japan  was 
actively  discussed  in  America,  and  after 
various  unsuccessful  preliminary  efforts  in 
this  direction.  Commodore  Perry  in  1852  was 
instructed  to  proceed  to  Japan  on  a  threefold 
mission  — to  make  arrangements  for  the  better 
treatment  of  shipwrecked  Americans  landing 
in  Japan,  to  obtain  permission  for  American 
ships  to  call  at  one  or  more  ports,  and  to  seek 
the  concession  of  a  coaling  depot.  The  story 
of  Perry's  mission  is  so  well  known  that  it 
need  only  be  briefly  touched  upon  here.     His 


I'  R  E  S  li  N  T  -  D  A  Y        IMPRESSIONS        OF        JAPAN 


11 


fleet  of  four  men-of-war  sailed  into  Uraga, 
Tokyo  Bay,  in  July,  1853,  and  having  ex- 
plained his  mission.  Perry  sailed  away  nine 
days  later,  intimating  to  the  Japanese  that 
he  would  return  in  the  following  spring  with 
a  larger  squadron.  In  February,  1854,  he 
arrived  with  six  ships,  and  at  the  end  of  the 
following  month  Japan  opened  relations  with 
a  foreign  nation  by  signing  a  treaty  opening 
the  ports  of  Shimoda  and  Hakodate  to 
American  ships.  This  treaty,  however,  did 
not  give  American  citizens  the  right  of  resi- 
dence in  Japan;  it  merely  provided  for 
American  ships  entering  the  two  ports  named, 
and  landing  goods  and  loading  other  goods  in 
exchange.  As  a  matter  of  fact,  neither 
Shimoda  nor  Hakodate  were  places  which 
offered  much  prospect  of  commercial  develop- 
ment. It  was  a  concession,  however,  which 
though  not  particularly  valuable  in  itself, 
was  an  important  one  inasmuch  as  it  placed 
relations  between  Japan  and  a  foreign  coun- 
try on  a  new  and  regular  footing.  Mr.  Gub- 
bins  (one-time  Secretary  of  the  British  Lega- 
tion in  Tokyo)  quotes  a  Japanese  authority 
to  the  effect  that  the  men  who  negotiated 
this  treaty  with  Perry  took  credit  to  them- 
selves for  having  conceded  so  little,  an  exam- 
ple of  one-sided  "reciprocity"  which  has  been 
frequently  repeated,  and  they  also  prided 
themselves  upon  having  reached  a  settlement 
with  Perry,  without  having  answered  the 
letter  from  the  President  of  the  United  States, 
which  Perry  had  handed  to  the  Japanese  on 
his  first  appearance  in  1853.  Further  satis- 
faction was  expressed  at  the  fact  that  the 
whole  affair  had  been  arranged  without  the 
members  of  the  council  being  called  upon  to 
place  their  seals  upon  any  document,  which 
"they  thought  was  a  worthy  upholding  of 
Japan's  dignity." 

Seven  months  after  Perry  obtained  the 
concessions  above-mentioned.  Admiral  Stir- 
ling (who  was  accompanied  by  four  war- 
ships) obtained  a  concession  for  Great 
Britain  whereby  Nagasaki  and  Hakodate 
were  opened  to  British  ships  for  supplies  and 
refitting.  No  right  of  residence  was  granted, 
and  it  was  actually  stipulated  that  "no  high 
officer  coming  to  Japan  should  alter"  the 
treaty  which  made  the  meagre  concessions 
mentioned.  Mr.  Gubbins  says  this  was 
evidently  intended  to  place  on  record  the  fact 
that  the  terms  of  the  convention  marked  the 
high-water  mark  of  Japanese  concessions. 
Certainly  the  British  Admiral  was  content 
with  very  little,  for  although  there  was  a 
most-favoured-nation  clause  in  the  treaty, 
it  was  also  stipulated  that  this  was  not  to 
apply  to  the  advantage  accruing  to  the  Dutch 
and  Chinese  from  their  existing  relations 
with  Japan.  Next  came  a  Russian  Admiral 
with  four  warships,  and  in  due  course  Shi- 
moda, Hakodate,  and  Nagasaki  were  opened 


COMMODORE    MATTHEW    C.    PERRY 


to  Russian  trade.  There  was  another  impor- 
tant feature  of  the  first  Russo-Japanese 
Treaty,  however,  inasmuch  as  it  provided 
for  the  residence  in  the  ports  of  Russian 
subjects  with  their  wives  and  families,  and 
for  the  first  time  the  important  principle  of 
extraterritoriality  was  recognised.  The  fol- 
lowing year  (1856)  saw  the  arrival  of  Mr. 
Townsend  Harris  in  Japan  as  the  first  Am- 
erican Consul-General,  a  very  unwelcome 
visitor.     The  Japanese  understood  that  the 


treaty  made  with  Admiral  Perry  provided 
that  a  Consul  should  be  appointed  by  the 
United  States  only  if  some  difficulty  arose 
between  the  two  governments,  and  no  diffi- 
culty having  arisen  they  deeply  resented  the 
coming  of  Townsend  Harris.  This  was  for- 
eign invasion  at  last,  and  every  form  of 
annoyance  and  aggravation  was  resorted  to 
in  the  hope  of  exhausting  the  American  emis- 
sary's patience  and  forcing  him  to  return  to 
Washington  disappointed  and  defeated.    An 


78 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


appeal  to  the  commander  of  the  warship  on 
which  Mr.  Harris  crossed  the  Pacific,  to  take 
the  undesired  visitor  away,  proving  ineffec- 
tive, the  Japanese  resorted  to  a  deliberate 
plan  of  passive  resistance  amounting  to  boy- 
cott. Despatches  were  unanswered,  and 
inquiries  for  information  evaded.  After  ten 
months  of  prevarication  and  procrastination 
on  the  part  of  the  Japanese,  Mr.  Harris  was 
able  in  June,  1857,  to  conclude  a  treaty  ampli- 
fying that  made  by  Commodore  Perry,  open- 
ing the  port  of  Nagasaki  in  addition  and 
establishing  the  principle  of  extraterrito- 
riality. Realising  the  desirability  of  a  still 
broader  understanding,  Mr.  Harris  resumed 
negotiations  with  the  Japanese  authorities, 
and  on  July  29,  1858,  a  treaty  was  signed  at 
Kanagawa  (in  Tokyo  Bay),  on  board  an 
American  warship,  which  amplified  and  ex- 
panded the  preceding  agreement.  Lord 
Elgin  next  made  a  treaty  for  Britain,  and  the 
French,  Russians,  and  Dutch  concluded  simi- 
lar treaties,  closely  following  the  lines  of  the 
British  documents.  On  July  4,  1859,  Mr. 
Townsend  Harris  landed  from  the  U.  S.  A. 
Mississippi  at  Kanagawa,  accompanied  by 
the  captain  and  officers,  and  at  noon  the  Stars 
and  Stripes  was  hoisted  to  mark  the  opening 
of  Yokohama  to  foreign  trade.  The  British 
Consul-General  (Sir  Rutherford  Alcock)  and 
other  foreign  officials  were  present  on  this 
notable  occasion,  which  marked  the  success- 
ful termination  of  many  months  of  patient 
and  painstaking  negotiations  in  the  face  of 
the  most  tremendous  difficulties.  In  her  first 
experiment  in  diplomacy,  Japan's  seclusion 
policy  was  defeated;  the  undesired  alien  won 
his  point,  and  Japan  was  opened  to  foreign 
trade  and  residence. 

THE    RECOGNITION    OF    JAPAN 
AS    A    GREAT    POWER 

With  the  resumption  of  foreign  intercourse 
after  more  than  two  centuries  of  seclusion  it 
became  necessary  for  Japan  to  frame  another 
foreign  policy.  At  first  that  policy  was  some- 
what obscvire  owing  to  the  strong  opposition 
of  a  section  of  the  Japanese  to  the  foreign 
barbarian.  This  feeling  was  most  marked 
among  the  "two-sworded  men"  of  samurai 
class;  the  common  people  as  a  whole  were 
friendly  enough,  but  the  warrior  class  were 
very  bitter  in  their  attitude  toward  the  for- 
eigners. Loyalty  to  the  Emperor,  in  their 
opinion,  demanded  that  the  intruders  be 
driven  out  of  the  country,  but  the  wiser 
among  the  nation  had  seen  —  or  at  least  had 
heard  of  —  the  tremendous  strength  and 
resources  of  the  Western  Powers,  and  realised 
that  any  attempt  to  force  the  foreigners  to 
surrender  the  rights  they  had  gained  by 
treaty  (supported  by  warships)  would  result 
in  swift  and  stem  retribution.     Those  who 


had  any  doubts  were  convinced  by  the  bom- 
bardment of  Shimonoseki  by  American, 
British,  French,  and  Dutch  warships.  Ja- 
pan's next  foreign  policy,  then,  was  one  of 
imitation.  Experts  were  engaged  in  Europe 
and  America  to  build  railways  in  Japan,  to 
establish  telegraphs,  lighthouses,  to  teach  in 
schools,  to  act  as  naval  and  military  instruc- 
tors, as  jurists,  as  financial  advisers,  and  in  a 
hundred  different  ways  to  guide  and  assist 
Japan  to  follow  in  the  steps  of  the  nations 
with  whom  she  had  suddenly  been  brought 
in  contact.  The  Japanese  were  apt  pupils, 
and  rapidly  learned  the  Western  arts  intro- 
duced to  them  by  the  expert  foreigners 
engaged  by  the  Japanese  Government  to 
expedite  the  change  from  feudalism  to 
modernism.  So  rapid  was  the  process  of 
advancement,  indeed,  that  in  1872  we  find 
an  effort  being  made  to  take  advantage  of 
the  opportunity  given  for  revising  the 
treaties  with  foreign  powers,  Japan's  principal 
object  being  to  obtain  the  abolition  of  extra- 
territoriality. Prince  Iwakura  was  sent  to 
America  to  conclude  a  new  treaty  to  this 
end,  but  after  a  year  returned  with  nothing 
accomplished.  Japan's  claims  were  regarded 
as  premature.  Under  the  extraterritorial 
system,  foreigners  residing  in  Japan  in  the 
settlements  set  apart  for  them,  were  under 
the  jurisdiction  of  their  Consuls.  A  foreigner 
committing  a  criminal  offence,  or  engaging  in 
civil  proceeding  as  plaintiff,  had  the  law  of 
his  own  country  administered  by  the  resident 
Consul,  but  Japanese  were  never  tried  by 
foreign  judges,  and  any  process  against  them 
was  conducted  through  the  Japanese  author- 
ities. One  of  the  first  aims  of  Japan's  early 
foreign  policy  was  to  bring  about  the  aboli- 
tion of  this  right  of  extraterritoriality, 
secured  by  the  treaties  with  the  various 
powers,  and  the  achievement  of  that  aim 
marks  an  important  stage  of  Japan's  diplo- 
matic policy. 

A  well-known  American  writer  on  things 
Japanese,  Dr.  Griffis,  has  given  quite  a  mis- 
leading account  of  the  history  of  treaty 
revision.  In  his  work  entitled  "Townsend 
Harris  in  Japan"  the  American  writer  says 
that  Japan's  efforts  at  obtaining  a  revision  of 
the  treaties  were  steadily  repulsed  by  the 
Treaty  Powers,  and  "her  rights  trampled 
upon  and  her  wrongs  multiplied  by  a  delay 
every  hour  of  which  is  injustice."  Dr.  Griffis 
describes  the  extraterritorial  system  as  "the 
intolerable  burden  under  which  the  govern- 
ments of  both  Yedo  and  Tokyo  groaned  for 
a  generation."  Yet  Mr. Townsend  Harris  has 
put  it  on  record  that  the  Japanese  without 
any  demur  whatever  agreed  to  his  proposi- 
tion that  Americans  should  be  tried  by 
their  Consul  and  punished  in  accord  with 
American  law, — indeed,  it  is  difficult  to  see 


how  the  case  could  be  otherwise,  seeing  that 
Japanese  law,  as  law  is  understood  by  for- 
eigners, was  practically  non-existent.  Vis- 
count Enomoto,  who  at  one  time  was  Japan's 
Foreign  Minister,  speaking  some  years  ago 
in  the  Diet,  admitted  that  when  the  treaties 
were  made  for  the  "intolerable  burden" 
which  Dr.  Griffis  says  was  placed  upon  Japan, 
his  complaints  regarding  the  delay  in  restor- 
ing to  Japan  complete  autonomy  over  for- 
eigners resident  within  her  dominions  are 
equally  unfounded.  It  was  the  vacillating 
attitude  of  the  Japanese  themselves  which 
caused  the  delay.  From  1880  to  1890  nego- 
tiations were  going  on  between  Japan  and  the 
Treaty  Powers  in  regard  to  treaty  revision, 
and  more  than  once  a  settlement  was  almost 
reached,  when  the  Japanese  suddenly  shifted 
their  ground,  and  the  task  had  to  be  com- 
menced afresh.  The  despatches  which  passed 
between  the  British  Government  and  its 
representative  in  Tokyo  show  clearly  that 
liberal  concessions  were  made  to  Japan.  In 
1889  the  counter-draft  of  a  treaty  was  sent 
from  London  to  Tokyo  in  which  practically 
all  the  Japanese  claims  were  conceded. 
Then  came  the  attack  upon  Count  Okuma 
(now  Marquis,  who  was  then  Foreign  Minis- 
ter), and  the  would-be  assassin's  demonstra- 
tion of  national  hostility  to  the  Japanese 
Government's  attitude  led  to  the  resignation 
of  the  ministry  and  to  further  delay  in  the 
negotiations  for  treaty  revision.  To  blame 
the  Treaty  Powers  for  the  long  delay  in  carry- 
ing out  this  first  big  move  in  Japan's  foreign 
policy  is  quite  unfair,  but  it  is  a  charge  fre- 
quently made  by  Japanese  writers  and  by 
certain  foreigners  whose  studies  of  Japanese 
affairs  show  an  extraordinary  bias  against 
the  foreign  point  of  view.  Professor  Cham- 
berlain—  than  whom  Japan  has  no  warmer 
friend,  and  whose  place  as  an  authority  on 
things  Japanese  is  beyond  question  —  sums 
up  the  situation  very  tersely.  Some  months 
after  the  attack  upon  Okuma  the  Japanese 
press  started  a  new  slogan,  taito  joyaku 
kaisei,  on  treaty  revision  on  a  footing  of 
equality.  This  was  the  second  classic  exam- 
ple of  "one-sided"  reciprocity,  for  "on  exami- 
nation it  turned  out  to  mean  simply  that  the 
foreign  powers  should  concede  everj'thing, 
and  Japan  nothing  at  all."  Incredible 
though  it  may  seem,  in  due  course  Japan  won 
her  point,  and  thus  revenged  herself  upon 
those  who  had  disturbed  her  seclusion  some 
forty  years  previously. 

"The  year  1894-5  ffs-Y  bs  said  to  mark  a 
turning-point  in  the  modem  history  of  Japa- 
nese diplomacy,"  writes  a  professor  at  Waseda 
University,  Tokyo,  in  a  brief  essay  on  the 
history  of  Japanese  diplomatic  affairs,  upon 
which  subject  he  is  regarded  as  an  authority. 
The  Sino- Japanese  War  "arising  out  of  the 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


79 


rival  claims  of  Iioth  countries  on  Korea," 
was  one  notable  event  of  this  period,  and  the 
other  was  "that  after  repeated  failures  Japan 
finally  succeeded  in  revising  the  humiliating 
treaties  with  the  powers."  It  has  been  al- 
ready shown  that  the  treaties  were  not 
humiliating  to  Japan,  and  that  the  repeated 
failures  of  negotiations  for  revision  were  due, 
not  to  the  injustice  and  illiberality  of  the 
Western  nations,  as  Dr.  Griffis  says,  but  to 
the  attitude  of  the  Japanese  Government. 
Let  us  now  turn  to  consider  the  "  rival  claims  " 
to  Korea,  and  what  came  of  them,  for  this 
forms  another  important  chapter  in  the  his- 
tory of  Japan's  foreign  policy. 

japan's  policy  in  KOREA 
It  was  the  Ming  dynasty  in  China  that 
placed  the  Korean  emperors  back  upon  the 
throne  after  Hideyoshi's  expedition  from 
Japan  at  the  end  of  the  sixteenth  century, 
and  thus  gave  China  the  rank  of  suzerain 
power  in  the  peninsula.  In  this  respect, 
when  Korea  was  opened  to  foreign  trade  in 
1876,  the  position  of  that  country  vis-a-vis 
China  and  Japan  was  just  what  it  was  nearly 
three  hundred  years  previously.  The  rapid 
adoption  by  Japan  of  Western  ideas,  and  the 
abandonment  of  so  many  customs  and  preju- 
dices more  or  less  shared  with  Korea  and 
China  in  feudal  days,  was  regarded  with  grave 
disfavour  by  the  conservative  Chinese  and 
Koreans.  Moreover,  from  the  very  begin- 
ning of  the  Meiji  era  in  1868  the  military 
party  in  Japan  adopted  an  aggressive  attitude 
toward  Korea,  though  there  were  other  influ- 
ential men  who  tried  to  restrain  this  feeling, 
which  they  foresaw  would  lead  to  serious 
complications.  The  suspicions  of  the  Kore- 
ans steadily  developed  into  manifestations 
of  fear  and  open  hostility.  Probably  they 
realised  that  with  the  increasing  strength  of 
Japan,  there  was  increasing  danger  to  their 
own  independence.  If  they  did  realise  this, 
their  expectations  were  fulfilled;  if  they  did 
not  realise  it,  they  went  the  right  way  about 
it  to  hasten  the  fatal  day. 

A  series  of  outrages  occurred  in  Seoul  in 
the  early  eighties,  of  which  Japanese  were  the 
frequent  victims,  together  with  many  of 
the  more  progressive  Koreans.  These  men, 
rightly  or  wrongly,  were  regarded  as  rene- 
gades by  their  conservative  fellow-country- 
men. Some  of  them  probably  were,  but 
there  were  others  who  were  progressive  with- 
out being  so  "  pro- Japanese "  that  they  were 
willing  to  further  Japanese  aims  in  the  penin- 
sula. The  conservative  Koreans,  how-ever, 
made  no  fine  distinctions  of  this  kind,  and  so 
the  muddle  went  on.  Irritation  in  Japan  at 
the  unsettled  state  of  affairs  in  Korea  steadily 
increased  until  in  1894  —  the  year  in  which 
judicial  and  tariff  autonomy  was  conceded  by 


Britain  (followed  by  other  powers)  to  Japan, 
as  already  mentioned  —  the  crisis  came.  A 
secret  society  known  as  the  Tonghaks  —  sus- 
pected in  some  quarters  of  being  agents  of 
Japan  —  started  to  make  trouble  in  Korea, 
and  the  troops  being  unable  to  control  them, 
the  Korean  Government  appealed  to  the 
Chinese  Resident  at  Seoul  for  help.  Before 
troops  from  China  could  arrive  on  the  scene 
Japanese  troops  had  taken  up  positions 
around  Seoul  (by  virtue  of  an  agreement  with 
China  which  provided  for  Chinese  and 
Japanese  troops  in  equal  number  to  maintain 
order),  and  the  Korean  Government  was 
informed  that  unless  conditions  were  at  once 
reorganised,  Japan  would  undertake  the 
task  herself.  At  the  same  time  Japan  noti- 
fied China  that  the  latter's  suzerainty  over 
Korea  was  not  recognised.  As  proof  of  this, 
a  transport  loaded  with  Chinese  troops  on 
their  way  to  Seoul  was  intercepted  and  sunk, 
and  a  week  later  Japan  formally  declared 
war  against  China.  The  fighting  lasted 
about  a  year,  but  in  spite  of  Japan's  easy 
victory,  the  political  situation  in  Korea  was 
much  the  same  as  before  the  war,  owing  to 
the  frequent  plots  and  counter-plots  peculiar 
to  Oriental  politics,  as  the  result  of  which 
the  men  who  were  in  power  when  Japan 
intervened,  returned  from  their  hiding- 
places  and  resumed  authority.  This  was 
unfortunate  indeed  for  Japan's  policy  in 
regard  to  Korea,  and  an  attempt  to  improve 
matters  led  to  still  more  disastrous  results. 
Viscount  Miura  was  sent  to  Seoul  as  the  Japa- 
nese Minister  Plenipotentiary,  and  five  weeks 
after  his  arrival  the  Queen  of  Korea  was  mur- 
dered, together  with  a  number  of  high  coiu-t 
officials  and  the  queen's  women  attendants. 
As  the  result  in  large  measure  of  the  action 
taken  by  the  British  Minister  at  Seoul, 
Viscount  Miura  was  recalled  to  Japan  and 
with  a  number  of  others  was  put  on  trial. 
The  Court  found  that  the  conspiracy  against 
the  Queen  of  Korea  was  formed  and  the 
actual  crime  instigated  by  the  Japanese 
Minister,  the  First  Secretary  in  the  Legation, 
and  the  Adviser  to  the  Legation.  But,  the 
judgment  of  the  Japanese  Court  proceeded, 
' '  there  is  not  sufficient  evidence  to  prove 
that  any  of  the  accused  actually  committed 
the  crime  originally  meditated  by  them." 
In  other  words,  though  the  accused  con- 
cocted the  plot  and  hired  the  assassins,  and 
though  the  selected  victim  was  undoubtedly 
murdered,  the  guilt  of  the  conspirators  was 
not  established  to  the  satisfaction  of  the 
Court.  Whether  persons  of  lesser  importance 
than  high  diplomatic  officials  would  have  been 
discharged  in  similar  circumstances,  the 
reader  may  judge.  The  finding  of  the  Hiro- 
shima Court,  of  course,  deceived  no  one,  and 
before    long    the    frightened    Korean    King, 


accompanied  by  the  Crown  Prince,  fled  from 
his  palace  to  the  Russian  Legation  in  Seoul, 
which  was  strongly  guarded  by  Russian  troops 
and  marines.  Chinese  influence  had  indeed 
been  completely  crushed  in  Korea,  but  in 
its  place  Japan  now  found  a  still  stronger 
influence  —  that  of  Russia.  Mr  Putnam 
Weale,  in  summarising  the  situation  at  this 
stage,  says  that  "eighteen  months  after  the 
war  with  China,  Russia  was  entrenched  more 
powerfully  than  China  had  ever  been  in 
Korea  —  thus  making  the  net  results  of  a 
conflict  which  had  cost  Japan  at  least  £30,- 
000,000  absolutely  nil."  A  new  start  had  to 
be  made  by  Japan  with  a  view  to  retrieving 
this  costly  blunder  in  her  Korean  policy.  Of 
the  events  leading  up  to  the  Russo-Japanese 
War  it  is  not  necessary  to  dwell  at  much 
length,  since  the  facts  are  better  known  than 
those  sketched  above  dealing  with  the  previ- 
ous decade.  Russian  politicians,  naval  and 
military  men,  and  financiers  visited  Korea 
in  turn  and  started  their  own  little  schemes 
to  their  own  ends.  The  Japanese,  however, 
were  not  idle,  and  profiting  by  the  lesson  of 
the  Miura  contretemps,  set  to  work  in  another 
direction.  They  succeeded  at  last  in  getting 
the  Korean  royal  family  away  from  the 
Russian  Legation,  and  when  the  king  said 
he  wished  to  become  emperor,  it  was  Japan 
who  first  recognised  the  new  title,  knowing 
that  whatever  he  might  call  himself,  the  last 
thing  the  nominal  ruler  of  Korea  would  do 
would  be  to  rule.  A  few  successful  railway 
deals,  and  the  next  thing  was  a  Russo- 
Japanese  convention  recognising  the  sover- 
eignty and  independence  of  Korea,  and 
pledging  the  signatories  not  to  interfere  in 
Korean  internal  affairs.  This  was  in  1898, 
but  there  were  men  in  Russia  who  saw  that 
Japan  was  making  headway  in  Korea  with 
various  industrial  and  commercial  under- 
takings, and  considered  that  Russian  prestige 
was  consequently  in  danger.  During  the 
next  four  or  five  years  Seoul  was  the  centre 
of  constant  intrigue  and  counter-intrigue 
between  Russian  and  Japanese  interests,  but 
something  of  the  sort  was  also  going  on  in 
Europe,  where  Japan  was  playing  off  Russia 
and  Britain  against  each  other.  The  manner 
in  which  the  Anglo-Japanese  Alliance  was 
concluded  has  been  told  by  a  Japanese  states- 
man. Count  Hayashi.  Only  part  of  this 
extremely  interesting  story  was  published  in 
Japan,  the  newspaper  which  commenced  to 
publish  the  deceased  diplomat's  memoirs 
being  warned  by  the  Japanese  Government 
that  further  disclosures  would  not  be  per- 
mitted. The  whole  story  w-as  made  public, 
however,  in  England,  but  owing  to  the  war 
attracted  less  attention  from  a  preoccupied 
world  than  it  otherwise  would  have  received. 
In  view  of  what  has  happened  since,  it  is 


80 


PRESENT-DAY    IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


curious  indeed  to  note  that  Germany  was 
ready  at  this  time  to  make  an  alliance  with 
Great  Britain  and  Japan  with  the  object  of 
maintaining  the  peace  of  the  Far  East. 
The  British  Government  and  Count  Hayashi 
(then  Japanese  Minister  in  London)  both 
approved  the  idea  when  first  mooted,  but  the 
latter  seemed  to  change  his  views  somewhat, 
and  during  the  informal  conversations  that 
followed,  the  British  Secretary  for  Foreign 
Aflfairs  had  occasion  to  remind  the  Japanese 
Minister  more  than  once  that  a  triple  alliance 
would  have  to  include  one  other  party  in 
addition  to  Britain  and  Japan.  Count 
Hayashi  seemed  to  have  some  suspicion  of 
Germa'ny's  intentions,  and  Britain  certainly 
had  a  lively  fear  of  Russia's,  for  it  was  appre- 
hension of  the  apparent  imminence  of  a 
Russo-Japanese  Alliance  that  stimulated  the 
British  Government  into  abandoning  the 
long  observed  policy  of  "splendid  isolation," 
and  joining  Japan  in  an  alliance  which 
brought  the  latter  country  into  line  with 
the  Great  Powers.  Count  Hayashi  himself 
has  told  how  he  played  on  the  fears  of  Britain 
in  getting  his  own  plans  accepted.  Finding 
that  negotiations  with  the  British  Govern- 
ment toward  the  conclusion  of  an  Anglo- 
Japanese  Alliance  did  not  make  progress  at 
the  pace  he  desired,  he  cabled  to  his  Govern- 
ment in  Tokyo  suggesting  that  Britain  might 
be  "stimulated"  into  expressing  speedy 
acquiescence  with  his  proposal. 

Now  in  Japan  there  was  another  party,  led 
by  Marquis  Ito,  which  favoured  an  under- 
standing with  Russia  as  a  preliminary  to  an 
Anglo- Japanese  Alliance.  Ito  was  of  opinion 
— and  events  showed  his  view  to  be  correct  — 
that  an  alliance  with  Britain  would  arouse 
suspicion  in  Russia.  Therefore,  before  con- 
cluding an  Anglo-Japanese  Alliance,  he 
favoured  the  arrangement  of  an  understand- 
ing with  Russia  disposing  of  the  various  out- 
standing issues  which  were  causing  constant 
irritation  in  Tokyo  and  Petrograd.  Having 
obtained  permission  from  high  authority  to 
see  what  could  be  done  in  this  direction,  Ito 
went  to  Europe  via  America  on  what  was  said 
to  be  a  "holiday  tour."  Mention  of  Petro- 
grad as  a  holiday  resort  for  a  Japanese 
diplomat  struck  the  British  as  rather  strange, 
and  soon  it  began  to  be  rumoured  that  Ito 
was  on  his  way  to  Russia  to  conclude  an 
agreement.  These  reports  had  the  "stimu- 
lating" effect  desired  by  Japan's  representa- 
tive in  London,  and  before  long  the  Anglo- 
Japanese  Alliance  was  signed.  Soon  after, 
as  Ito  had  prophesied  would  happen  unless 
Russia's  suspicions  were  first  dispelled,  Rus- 
sia and  Japan  were  at  each  other's  throats  in 
a  struggle  which  was  to  decide  the  doom  of 
Korea.  The  contest  resulted  in  the  humil 
iating  defeat  of  Russia  by  a  nation  numeri- 


cally and  financially  weaker  at  the  outset, 
and  further  weakened  almost  to  the  verge  of 
collapse  by  the  tremendous  sacrifices  of  men 
and  money  she  had  made.  It  was  the  incom- 
petence and  cowardice  of  the  Russian  milita- 
ry leaders  that  gave  Japan  the  victory,  but  it 
is  results  that  count  these  days,  not  causes. 
Following  close  upon  the  moral  triumph  of 
securing  an  alliance  with  Britain  came  this 
material  triumph  over  Russia,  giving  Japan 
undisputed  control  over  chaotic  Korea,  and 
limited  control  over  territory  belonging  to 
China  which  had  been  leased  to  Russia. 
Japan  was  now  firmly  established  on  the 
mainland.  No  longer  was  she  merely  an 
island  empire;  Korea  was  under  her  "pro- 
tection," and  the  Kwantung  Peninsula  was 
under  her  occupation  for  the  period  it  had 
been  leased  by  China  to  Russia  —  until  1923. 
Captain  Brinkley,  a  never-failing  apologist 
for  Japan  in  all  international  dififerences,  and 
for  years  the  sturdiest  champion  in  the  local 
and  London  press  that  Japan  had,  or  could 
have  had,  refers  in  his  "History  of  the  Japa- 
nese People"  to  the  peculiar  position  which 
Japan  found  herself  in  after  the  Russo-Japan- 
ese War.  Speaking  of  the  peace  treaty 
signed  at  Portsmouth  —  another  quiet  yet 
brilliant  diplomatic  success  for  Japan  —  Cap- 
tain Brinkley  said:  "Thus,  Japan  came  to 
hold  in  Manchuria  a  position  somewhat 
contradictory.  On  the  one  hand,  she  figured 
as  the  champion  of  the  Chinese  Empire's 
integrity  and  as  an  exponent  of  the  new  prin- 
ciple of  equal  opportunity  and  the  open  door. 
On  the  other,  she  appeared  as  the  legatee  of 
many  privileges  more  or  less  inconsistent  with 
that  principle.  Undoubtedly  it  was  a  posi- 
tion in  which  some  nations  would  have  felt 
embarrassed,  but  as  nothing  succeeds  like 
success,  Japan  went  boldly  forward  with  her 
plans.  Having  established  a  protectorate 
over  Korea  in  1905,  the  country  was  wholly 
annexed  by  Japan  in  1910.  The  independ- 
ence of  Korea  had  been  guaranteed  by  Japan, 
but  the  tearing-up  of  this  '  scrap  of  paper '  was 
not  protested  against  by  Britain,  America, 
or  any  other  Great  Power.  Outside  a  few 
Christian  missions,  and  a  fewer  number  of 
gold-mining  companies,  there  were  no  for- 
eigners personally  interested  in  the  fate  of 
Korea,  while  those  who  were  interested 
politically,  recognised  that  Japan  had  reached 
the  goal  she  had  been  striving  after  for  so 
long,  and  as  nobody  but  a  few  'ungrateful' 
Koreans  objected,  there  was  nothing  more  to 
be  said.  Her  position  in  Korea  being  now 
effectively  established,  Japan  began  to  look 
to  her  interests  in  Manchuria." 

japan's  policy  toward  china 
To   deal   adequately   with   Japan's   diplo- 
matic i3olicy  toward  China  would  fill  a  book. 


and  a  very  interesting  book  it  would  be. 
For  twenty  odd  years  it  has  been  the  pro- 
fessed object  of  Japan  to  develop  Sino- 
Japanese  friendship,  but  the  good  results  of 
that  policy  are  microscopic.  In  Japan  this 
melancholy  fact  is  explained  in  various  ways: 
by  the  unwarrantable  suspicions  of  the 
Chinese;  by  third  parties  who  do  not  wish 
to  see  closer  relations  between  the  Chinese 
and  Japanese  peoples,  circulating  damaging 
reports  regarding  Japan's  real  motives;  by 
all  sorts  of  theories  but  the  right  one — that 
it  is  Japan's  own  record  and  attitude  which 
stands  in  the  way  of  closer  relations  between 
the  two  nations.  In  the  Lansing-Ishii 
Agreement  (which  has  just  been  concluded 
as  these  lines  are  being  written),  the  world  is 
again  assured  that  Japan  has  no  intention  of 
encroaching  upon  the  independence  or  terri- 
torial integrity  of  China,  and  that  she  pledges 
herself  once  more  to  uphold  the  commercial 
principles  of  the  Open  Door  and  "Equal 
opportunity."  The  publication  of  this  agree- 
ment aroused  much  criticism  in  China,  not 
because  there  was  any  objection  to  the  main- 
tenance of  the  excellent  principles  set  forth 
by  the  American  and  Japanese  diplomatists 
who  framed  and  .signed  the  document,  but 
because  China  resented  the  idea  of  two  other 
nations  discussing  the  line  of  policy  they 
intended  to  pursue  in  China  without  China 
being  consulted  in  the  matter  at  all.  At 
first  glance  probably  few  people  in  America  — 
and  none  at  all  in  Japan — could  see  what 
grievance  China  could  make  out  of  the  con- 
clusion of  this  agreement  between  America 
and  Japan,  but  a  moment's  reflection  will 
show  that  when  two  nations  get  together  to 
guarantee  the  integrity  and  independence  of 
a  third,  who  is  not  approached,  consulted, 
or  considered  in  any  way,  the  signs  and  por- 
tents regarding  the  future  of  the  uncon- 
sidered and  unconsulted  third  party  are  not 
reassuring.  Further,  the  resentment  of  the 
third  party  at  having  his  affairs  discussed  in 
detail  by  two  outsiders  without  his  own 
feelings  being  considered  is  natural  enough, 
even  though  the  intentions  expressed  are 
of  the  most  honourable  character.  But 
when  one  of  these  two  parties  is  regarded 
with  considerable  suspicion,  a  suspicion 
which  it  must  be  admitted  is  not  without 
justification  in  the  light  of  history,  the 
indignation  with  which  the  news  of  the 
signing  of  the  Lansing-Ishii  Agreement  was 
received  in  China  can  be  easily  understood. 
Japan  declared  war  on  Russia  to  main- 
tain the  integrity  and  independence  of 
Korea;  that  country  to-day  has  neither 
integrity  nor  independence;  it  is  Japanese 
territory,  and,  ruled  with  a  rod  of  iron,  its 
people  are  dumb,  dispirited,  and  nationally 
dead.     Is  it  to  be  wondered  at  that  China 


rriii  m,  TWi'itii  1 1  '■  .■  ■  Tr^ 


iiiiii 


THE    PRESENT    IMPERIAL    JAPANESE    CABINET 

(Upper  row,  left  to  right)  Lieutenant-General  GiiCHi  Tanaka,  Minister  of  War  —  Tatsuo  Yamamoto,  Esq.,  Minister  of  Agriculture  and 
Commerce  — Utaro  Noda,  Esq.,  Minister  of  Communications.  (Second  row,  left  to  right)  Viscount  KosAi  Uchida,  Minister  of 
Foreign  Affairs  — Takashi  Hara,  Esq.,  Prime  Minister  and  Minister  of  Justice  —  Takejiro  Tokonami,  Esq.,  Minister  of  Home  Affairs. 
(Third  row,  left  to  right)  ToGUC.ORO  Nakahashi,  Esq.,  Minister  of  Education  — Vice-Admiral  Tomosaburo  K.\to,  Minister  of  the  Navy  — 
Baron  Korekiyo  Takahashi,  Minister  of  Finance 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


8i 


is     suspicious    of    Japanese     guarantees    of 
her  integrity  and  independence? 

For  twenty  years  the  necessity  for  drawing 
China  and  Japan  into  closer  bonds  of  friend- 
ship has  been  preaclicd  in  Japan  by  the  most 
brilliant  speakers  and  writers  in  the  country. 
To-day  the  bonds  between  the  two  countries 
are  as  far  apart  as  they  were  at  the  end  of 
the  Sino- Japanese  War.  What  is  the  reason? 
The  undoubted  advantages  of  territorial 
propinquity,  to  which  reference  is  made  in  the 
Ishii-Lansing  Agreement,  have  not  led  to  any 
closer  friendship  between  Chinese  and 
Japanese;  on  the  contrary,  Chinese  suspicions 
have  been  deepened.  True,  the  formal 
diplomatic  relations  between  the  two  govern- 
ments are  on  the  surface  friendly  enough, 
especially  since  the  fall  of  the  Okuma  Admin- 
istration, but  as  the  more  observant  of 
Japanese  publicists  have  frequently  pointed 
out,  it  is  closer  friendship  between  the  two 
peoples,  rather  than  between  the  two  govern- 
ments, that  it  is  desirable  to  bring  about. 
That  twenty  years  of  effort  in  this  direction 
have  been  without  result  obviously  shows 
there  is  some  serious  obstacle  in  the  %vay,  and 
it  is  necessary  to  find  out  where  and  what  that 
obstacle  is.  As  the  result  of  the  Sino-Japa- 
nese  War  the  Island  of  Formosa  was  surren- 
dered by  China  to  Japan.  The  record  of 
Japanese  administration  in  Formosa  is  not 
an  enviable  one.  No  doubt  there  have  been 
a  certain  number  of  improvements  of  a  char- 
acter likely  to  impress  visitors;  it  may  also 
be  admitted  that  the  administration  is  better 
than  under  the  Chinese  regime.  Neverthe- 
less, things  have  been  done  in  Formosa  by 
the  bureaucratic  militarism  which  Japan  has 
placed  in  power  there  which  are  no  credit 
to  a  civilised  nation.  The  victims  have  been 
Formosan  Chinese  and  the  savage  aborigines, 
but,  moreover,  the  Chinese  at  home  have 
seen  what  happened  in  Formosa  repeated  in 
a  measure  in  Korea.  Formosa  and  Korea, 
with  the  assistance  of  subsidies,  are  being 
exploited  for  the  benefit  of  Japanese  rather 
than  of  the  population  of  those  territories. 
All  this,  it  may  be  said,  is  of  only  academic 
interest  to  China,  and  does  not  affect  her 
individually.  This  is  true,  but  the  policy 
adopted  in  the  territory  already  under  Japa- 
nese control  is  regarded  as  indicating  Japan's 
real  disposition  to  those  weaker  than  herself, 
and  as  shadows  of  coming  events  in  closer 
proximity  to  Peking. 

Long  before  the  revolution  which  toppled 
the  tottering  power  of  the  Manchus  to  the 
ground  and  established  a  republic  in  China, 
there  were  frequent  "incidents"  in  Chinese 
territory  wherein  Japanese  invariably  figured, 
which  led  to  considerable  friction.  A  Japa- 
nese pedlar,  wandering  about  in  a  part  of 
the  country  where  according  to   treat}',    no 


foreigner  should  be,  is  murdered  by  bandits, 
whereupon  an  international  "incident"  is 
precipitated.  Japanese  newspapers  loudly 
demand  vigourous  measures  against  China, 
naturally  causing  deep  resentment  and  pro- 
voking angry  retorts  from  the  Chinese  press. 
Eventually  the  matter  is  settled  by  the  Chi- 
nese Government  paying  a  heavy  indemnity 
to  the  relatives  of  the  murdered  man,  the 
fact  that  he  met  his  fate  by  disregarding  inter- 
national agreements  stipulating  which  parts 
of  the  country  are  open  to  foreign  trade 
and  residence  not  being  considered.  In  the 
civil  disturbances  which  take  place  periodi- 
cally in  China  between  rival  bodies  of  troops, 
Japanese  frequently  disregard  warnings  that 
they  should  keep  out  of  danger,  and  get  hurt. 
Invariably  a  grave  international  "incident" 
is  precipitated,  and  just  as  invariably,  after 
a  long  and  tedious  series  of  conferences 
between  Chinese  and  Japanese  officials,  an 
indemnity  is  paid  by  the  Chinese  Govern- 
ment. Clashes  in  South  Manchuria  between 
Japanese  police  and  military  and  Chinese 
authority  are  common;  hot-heads  on  both 
sides  lose  their  tempers,  triggers  are  touched, 
and  men  get  killed.  Another  international 
and  most  regrettable  "incident,"  and  an- 
other series  of  conferences  to  decide  what 
China  shall  pay  in  cash  or  grant  in  concession 
as  indemnity  for  the  insult  to  Japan's  national 
honour.  This  sort  of  thing  has  been  going 
on  in  China  for  years,  and  every  incident  of 
the  kind  loosens  the  friendly  bonds  between 
the  two  countries  which  Japan  is  constantly 
declaring  it  is  her  great  ambition  to  tighten. 
The  climax  came  in  19 15,  when  the  Japa- 
nese Government,  of  which  Marquis  Okuma 
was  then  Premier,  presented  a  series  of  de- 
mands to  the  Chinese  Government  which, 
had  they  been  conceded,  would  have  made 
China  nothing  more  than  a  dependency  of 
Japan.  These  demands,  of  which  there  were 
twenty-one,  divided  into  five  groups,  were 
presented  to  China  by  Japan  with  injunc- 
tions that  complete  secrecy  was  to  be  observed 
in  regard  to  the  demands  and  the  negotiations 
arising  therefrom.  Special  privileges  were 
demanded  for  Japanese  subjects,  Japanese 
were  to  be  engaged  to  "advise"  China  in 
administrative,  financial,  and  military  affairs; 
a  Sino- Japanese  police  force  was  to  be  estab- 
lished ;  Japan  was  to  be  first  approached  when 
a  foreign  loan  was  required;  China  was  to  be 
bound  to  obtain  a  certain  quantity  of  arms 
from  Japan  or  a  joint  Sino-Japanese  arsenal 
was  to  be  established; — in  short,  the  pro- 
posals submitted  for  China's  acceptance  (not 
for  her  consideration,  be  it  noted)  were  such 
as  threatened  the  sovereignty  and  independ- 
nece  of  the  Chinese  Republic.  The  usual 
one-sidedness  of  Japan's  diplomacy  was 
demonstrated,  Japan  giving  nothing  in  return 


for  what  she  asked.  China,  weakened  by 
the  constant  struggles  between  rival  factions 
of  monarchist  and  republican  leanings, 
partly  as  a  result  of  the  war,  lacking  a  power- 
ful friend  in  the  comity  of  nations  to  support 
her  in  flatly  refusing  to  consider  the  Japanese 
demands,  struggled  through  negotiations  with 
her  avowed  friend  and  well-wisher.  Even- 
tually the  most  objectionable  demands  in 
Group  V  were  withdrawn  by  Japan  for  future 
consideration,  and,  stimulated  by  Japan's 
declaration  of  martial  law  in  South  Man- 
churia and  by  an  ultimatum  from  Tokyo, 
the  Chinese  Government  finally  conceded  the 
rest  of  the  demands,  with  some  modifications 
made  by  Japan  in  deference  to  the  signs  of 
irritation  and  annoyance  shown  in  other 
parts  of  the  world  at  Japan  having  chosen 
such  a  moment  to  force  upon  a  helpless  neigh- 
bour demands  which  no  country  could  have 
conceded  without  loss  of  prestige.  All  this 
happened  two  years  ago,  but  such  an  incident 
is  not  easily  forgotten  by  the  Chinese  people. 
And  when  they  read  of  yet  another  agreement 
guaranteeing  the  integrity  and  independence 
of  their  country — even  though  America  is 
one  party  to  the  compact — they  have  sus- 
picions as  to  what  may  be  behind  the  open 
move.  The  constant  friction  where  Chinese 
and  Japanese  officials  meet,  the  open  defiance 
of  Chinese  laws  and  regulations  by  Japanese 
in  Manchuria  and  elsewhere,  the  moral  and 
material  support  given  by  Japanese  indi- 
viduals and  business  firms  to  Chinese  who  are 
seeking  to  hamper  the  progress  and  weaken 
the  power  of  the  Central  Government  in 
Peking — all  these  things  prevent  that  tight- 
ening and  strengthening  of  the  bonds  of  friend- 
ship between  China  and  Japan  that  Japanese 
politicians  and  publicists  are  constantly 
preaching  about,  but  do  nothing  to  accomplish. 
Enough  has  been  said  to  show  how  Japanese 
diplomacy  has  failed  in  China,  in  spite  of  all 
the  advantages  of  territorial  propinquity. 
Even  the  young  Chinese  sent  to  Japan  to 
study,  return  to  their  own  country  with  anti- 
Japanese  ideas.  Prominent  Japanese  have 
repeatedly  complained  of  this,  and  demanded 
that  something  should  be  done  to  check  such 
an  unfortunate  tendency.  The  only  remedy 
for  this,  as  for  other  indications  of  lack  of 
Chinese  sympathy  for  Japanese  ideas,  is  to 
indicate  by  practical  measures  and  policy, 
the  reality  of  those  friendly  feelings  for  China 
which  are  so  often  proclaimed.  When  men 
like  Lindsay  Russell  talk  about  the  "bank- 
ruptcy" of  China,  and  the  necessity  of  Japan 
taking  over  the  receivership,  while  Viscount 
Ishii  declares  that  the  ideals  of  Japan  and 
America  are  the  same,  Chinese  must  be  ex- 
cused if  they  fall  into  error  in  assuming  that 
all  international  agreements  affecting  their 
vast  territory  are  designed  for  China's  undoing. 


82 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS    OF   JAPAN 


japan's  southward  expansion 
A  FEW  words  in  conclusion  regarding  Ja- 
pan's diplomatic  policy  in  other  directions 
than  the  Far  East.  Some  years  ago  there 
was  a  rather  heated  dispute  regarding  Japa- 
nese immigration  to  the  United  States.  There 
was  much  wild  talk  in  the  press  on  both 
sides  of  the  Pacific,  but  the  two  governments 
declined  to  be  carried  off  their  feet,  and  the 
Gentlemen's  Agreement  put  matters  on  a 
mutually  agreeable  footing.  Early  this  year 
(1917)  there  was  some  little  commotion 
caused  by  Japan's  protest  against  alleged 
anti- Japanese  land  legislation  in  certain 
States  of  the  Union.  This  was  another  in- 
stance of  that  peculiar  "one-sided  reciproc- 
ity" of  which  mention  has  been  made  previ- 
ously. Japan  has  most  illiberal  ideas  herself 
regarding  foreign  land  ownership,  but  prompt- 
ly interferes  when  other  States  propose  to 
enact  laws  for  preventing  aliens  holding  land. 
There  were  hints  of  "drastic  action"  being 
demanded  by  the  Japanese  people  if  the  pro- 
posed land  legislation  in  Oregon  and  Idaho 
was  carried  into  effect,  and  on  the  friendly 
suggestion  of  the  President  to  the  Governors 
of  the  States  concerned,  further  action  on 
these  measures  was  suspended.  Japan's 
line  of  action  at  this  time  was  unfortunate; 
America  was  on  the  eve  of  declaring  war  on 
Germany,  and  at  such  a  moment  was  not  dis- 
posed to  argue  with  Japan  about  reciprocity 
in  framing  land-ownership  laws.  As  a 
demonstration  of  what  is  fondly  called 
"strong  foreign  policy"  the  protest  was  gen- 
erally approved  in  Japan,  but  there  is  reason 
to  believe  that  in  America  the  action  taken 
by  the  Japanese  Government  through  its 
ambassador  at  Washington  was  deeply  re- 
sented, though  Uttle  was  said  about  it  by 
those  most  concerned  out  of  a  loyal  desire 
not  to  embarrass  the  President,  whose  atten- 
tion was  being  directed  to  important  matters 
on  the  other  side  of  the  world.  One  or  two 
facts  in  regard  to  the  immigration  question 
are  worth  special  attention.  First,  the  in- 
troduction of  Chinese  labour  into  Japan  is 
resented  by  Japanese  just  as  much  as  the 
introduction  of  Japanese  laboiu:  is  in  Cali- 
fornia. Second,  eminent  Japanese  sociolo- 
gists, who  have  gone  into  the  subject  care- 
fully, have  frankly  declared  that  Japanese 
immigrants  in  America  have  not  tried  to 
become  assimilated  and  therefore  cannot  be 
regarded  by  American  citizens  as  desirable 
additions   to    the    community.     When    ne.xt 


the  question  of  Japanese  emigration  to 
America  is  brought  up,  these  points  may  be 
argued  more  fully.  There  is  a  tendency  just 
now  (November,  1917)  for  American  and 
Japanese  public  men  to  denounce  all  criti- 
cism of  Japanese  policies,  opinions,  and 
actions  as  the  work  of  hired  slanderers  bought 
with  German  gold.  Men  who  write  and  talk 
in  this  strain  either  do  not  know,  or  deliber- 
ately suppress  their  knowledge,  that  in  their 
daily  newspapers  and  the  periodical  maga- 
zines views  are  expressed  by  eminent  Japa- 
nese entirely  different  from  those  served  up 
in  foreign  languages  for  foreign  consumption. 
There  can  be  no  suspicion  of  German  influ- 
ence behind  such  writings:  they  are  written 
by  Japanese  for  Japanese,  and  it  is  only  by 
the  occasional  publication  of  translations  of 
such  articles  that  the  outside  world  can 
get  to  know  the  real  opinions  of  Japanese  on 
important  questions  of  international  interest. 
For  example,  while  Viscount  Ishii  was  hand- 
ing bouquets  to  the  American  people  in  his 
speeches  at  San  Francisco,  Washington,  and 
New  York,  the  Japanese  press  was  expressing 
views  of  America,  her  people  and  her  policy 
which  were  as  uncomplimentary  as  they  were 
undeserved.  It  is  difficult  to  write  of  Japan's 
' '  policy ' '  when  such  contradictions  and  incon- 
sistencies are  constantly  encountered. 

This  brief  and  therefore  incomplete  review 
of  sixty  years  would  be  inexcusably  deficient 
without  some  reference  to  the  political  school 
in  Japan  which  strongly  advocates  expansion 
southward.  The  fact  that  Japanese  are 
investing  largely  in  land  in  the  Philippines, 
Java,  and  the  Straits  Settlements,  gives  rise 
occasionally  to  rumours  of  Japan's  intentions 
in  that  direction,  while  whispers  as  to  the 
ultimate  fate  of  the  Dutch  Indies  are  fre- 
quently heard.  The  pioneer  of  this  southern 
expansion  school  is  Mr.  Takekoshi,  who  has 
actually  urged  the  annexation  of  Java  by 
Japan,  while  Captain  Hosaka,  of  the  Japa- 
nese Navy,  recently  published  a  book  on  the 
Dutch  East  Indies  in  which  the  same  idea 
was  scarcely  less  plainly  expressed.  The 
Captain  is  of  opinion  that  Japan  finds  herself 
compelled  to  develop  southward,  and  it  is  of 
imperative  necessity  for  her  to  do  so.  "If 
stable  capitalists  undertake  proper  enterprises 
in  the  South  Seas  with  the  interests  of  the 
nation  as  a  whole  at  heart,  Japan's  economic 
development  in  that  region  will  come  by 
itself.  This  may  at  first  appear  (to  Mr. 
Takekoshi  and  the  annexationists?]  a  round- 


about way,  but  it  will  in  practice  prove  the 
shortest  cut  to  the  goal."  This  Captain  in 
the  Japanese  Navy  also  expresses  regret  that 
Japan's  financial  resources  are  inadequate  to 
a  scheme  of  annexation,  and — mirabile  dic- 
tu! — expresses  surprise  and  annoyance  that 
the  Dutch  officials  in  Java  regard  Japanese 
visitors,  whatever  their  real  or  assumed  sta- 
tion in  life,  with  considerable  suspicion.  The 
Dutch  authorities  are  doubtless  kept  in- 
formed of  the  activities  of  the  "southward 
expansionists"  in  Japan,  and  if  they  regard 
every  ragged  Japanese  pedlar  landing  in  Java 
as  a  possible  spy,  they  can  scarcely  be  blamed, 
even  if  their  suspicions  are  unfounded.  Men 
in  similar  humble  guise  have  been  found  in 
out-of-the-way  parts  of  China,  and  sometimes 
the  suspicions  held  regarding  their  mission 
have  been  confirmed — or  at  least  the  Chinese 
think  so. 

All  this,  of  course,  is  not  really  Japan's 
foreign  policy.  The  Foreign  Office  in  Tokj'o 
is  not  to  be  held  responsible  for  the  move- 
ments and  actions  of  every  Japanese  huckster 
who  ventures  into  Manchuria,  Mongolia,  the 
Philippines,  or  Java  with  a  tew  packets  of 
matches  and  strings  of  coloured  glass  beads. 
Japan's  foreign  policy  can  be  summed  up  in 
eight  words  —  the  maintenance  of  peace  in  the 
Far  East.  She  has  fought  two  wars  to  uphold 
that  policy, — and  a  third,  if  ''he  siege  of 
Tsingtau  can  be  regarded  as  a  war. 

The  number  of  prominent  Japanese  pub- 
licists who  urge  a  more  disinterested  method 
of  regarding  foreign  affairs  is  unfortunately 
few.  Even  Mr.  Ozaki,  the  representative  of 
democracy,  not  long  ago  declared  in  the  Diet 
that  if  Japan  and  Japan's  agents  did  wrong 
abroad,  a  patriotic  Japanese  would  conceal 
the  fact,  not  publish  it,  even  to  his  own  coun- 
trymen. 

In  estimating  Japan's  foreign  policy,  it 
must  be  remembered  that  the  country  has 
made  tremendous  commercial  and  indus- 
trial progress  within  a  few  decades,  and  this, 
together  with  her  military  successes,  have  led 
to  the  creation  of  a  feeling  of  national  self- 
sufficiency.  There  are  signs,  however,  of  a 
very  healthy  counter-movement  in  the  shape 
of  sincere  self-criticism,  and  the  development 
of  this  faculty  will  gradually  come  to  have 
considerable  influence  on  home  and  foreign 
policy.  Other  nations  have  gone  through  the 
same  evolutionary  process  as  Japan  is  going 
through,  and  as  they  have  recognised  faults 
and  remedied  them,  so   vill  she. 


t^V^- 


'^ 


PANORAMIC    HISTORY    OF   THE    PRIEST   HONEN.       A    PORTION   OF    THE    TENTH    OF    FORTY-EIGHT    ROLLS,    COLOURED.       IJY    YOSHIMITSU   TOSA, 

THIRTEENTH   CENTURY.       OWNED    BY   THE    TEMPLE   TAIMADERA,    YAMATO 

VIII.    The  Future  of  Japan 

By  The  HON.   Y.  TAKEGOSHI,   Ex-Member  of  the  House  of  Representatives 

The  Alliance  of  Races  — Self.Government— Expansion  beyond  the  Seas  — The  Japan-China 

Wak  — The  Japan-Russian  War  — Lessons  of  History 


WHAT  will  be  the  future  of  Japan? 
In  dealing  with  this  question, 
there  is  a  twofold  argument. 
How  shall  we  shape  the  future  of  Japan, 
and  what  will  be  the  future  of  Japan? 

Some  six  or  seven  years  ago,  when  Vis- 
count Motono  was  Japanese  Ambassador  in 
Paris,  M.  Lebon,  the  celebrated  authority  on 
evolution,  discussed  Japan's  future  with  him. 
The  trend  of  M.  Lebon's  argument  was  to 
the  effect  that  Japan's  appearance  on  the 
world's  stage  startled  the  world,  like  the 
sudden  appearance  of  a  brilliant  comet  in 
the  sky,  and  that  when  we  consider  that  no 
country  in  the  world  has  ever  before  made 
such  a  sudden  appearance,  there  is  room  for 
doubt  whether  Japan  is  not,  like  a  comet, 
destined  to  disappear  utterly  below  the 
horizon.  By  way  of  reply.  Viscount  Motono 
affirmed  that  Japan's  appearance  on  the 
world's  stage  was  not  a  sudden  one,  like  that 
of  a  comet.  Behind  it  there  is  a  reason,  a 
cause,  and  a  history.  M.  Lebon  then  said 
that  with  regard  to  the  future  of  Japan  not 
a  few  people  entertained  the  same  view  as 
he,  and  that  though  the  Viscount  had  a 
certain  amount  of  right  on  his  side,  yet  to 
men  like  himself  it  was  almost  impossible  to 
comprehend  the  real  state  of  affairs.  There- 
fore he  suggested  that  Viscount  Motono 
should    write    a    book   explaining    why   the 


appearance  of  Japan  on  the  world's  stage  was 
not  of  such  an  abrupt  and  sudden  nature. 
The  Viscount  was  highly  interested  in  this 
suggestion,  and  asked  me  if  I  would  not 
cooperate  with  him  in  writing  a  book  with  a 
view  to  the  explanation  of  this  problem.  I 
was  also  keenly  interested  in  this  suggestion, 
and  thought  of  making  an  attempt,  but  have 
been  hitherto  prevented  by  pressure  of  other 
work.  M.  Lebon  is  not  the  only  one  to  hold 
such  a  view  concerning  the  future  of  Japan. 
It  is  quite  possible  that  many  statesmen  in 
European  countries  regard  the  matter  in  the 
same  light. 

THE  ALLIANCE  OF  RACES 
There  is  another  class  of  men  who  form 
their  ideas  of  the  customs  and  manners  of 
the  Japanese  from  the  sketches  drawn  for 
them  by  men  of  letters,  poets,  and  travellers, 
and  who  imagine,  as  though  they  saw  her  in 
general  pictures,  that  Japan  is  a  poetical 
nation  full  of  classical  beauty  and  charm, 
and  who  are  desirous  of  preserving  unchanged 
this  nation  well  worthy  of  the  fame  of  ancient 
Greece.  When  these  people  are  brought  to 
the  knowledge  of  naked  facts,  and  learn  that 
this  picturesque,  poetical  nation  of  their 
dream  runs  electric  cars,  builds  guns,  drives 
motor-cars,  and  uses  electric  light,  they 
regard  the  nation  as  rapidly  changing  into 


one  unbearably  vulgar  and  prosaic.  Among 
our  own  people,  there  are  some  who  do  not 
rightly  interpret  the  history  of  their  own 
country,  and  who  do  not  take  their  national 
strength  into  proper  consideration  and  who, 
being  prompted  by  certain  fanatical  ideas, 
advocate  the  alliance  of  the  yellow  races 
against  the  white,  an  alliance  of  which  Japan 
should  be  the  leader,  and  with  that  object  in 
view,  they  favour  the  partition  of  China. 
Those  who  argue  in  this  strain  have  evidently 
lost  their  mental  balance.  Although  they 
form  an  infinitesimally  small  portion  of  the 
Japanese  people,  they  talk  loud,  and  because 
they  talk  loud,  Europeans  and  Americans  who 
hear  them  are  led  to  imagine  that  in  future 
Japan  will  lead  the  combined  force  of  the 
yellow  races  just  as  Genghis  Khan  at  the  head 
of  the  Orientals  invaded  Europe,  and  that  the 
Japanese  are  a  bellicose  nation.  Several 
years  ago,  the  Kaiser  drew  a  caricature  show- 
ing Japan  riding  a  yellow  dragon  (carrying 
on  an  invasion,  too!)  and  invading  Europe. 
The  insinuation  was  that  European  countries 
should  form  an  alliance  against  this  invasion. 
This  was  no  doubt  a  political  move  on  the 
part  of  the  Kaiser,  but  it  was  not  without 
some  foundation.  In  those  days  he  watched 
Japan  and  must  have  been  expressing  what 
he  really  felt.  Thus  we  see  that  diverse 
views  are  held  about  the  future  of  Japan 


84 


P  R  E  S  E  N  T  -  D  A  V        IMPRESSIONS        OF        JAPAN 


A    RECENT    IMPERIAL    JAPANESE    CABINET 


(Upper  Row,  Left  to  Right)  Baron  Kenjiro  Den,  Minister  of  Communications  —  Admiral  Tomosabiro  Kato,  Minister  of  Marine  — 
Dr.  Rentaro  Mizuno,  Minister  of  Home  Affairs.  (Middle  Row)  Ren  Nakashoji,  Esq.,  Minister  of  Agriculture  and  Commerce  — 
Field-Marshal  Count  Masakata  Terauchi,  Prime  Alinister  —  Baron  Shimpei  Goto,  Minister  of  Foreign  Affairs.  (Lower  Row)  Dr. 
Itasu   Matsumi-ro,  Minister  of  Justice  —  Lieut. -Gen.  Kenichi  Oshima,  Minister  of  War  —  Dr.  Ryohei  Okada,  Minister  of  Education 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


85 


In  my  opinion,  however,  these  views  are  wide 
of  the  mark.  The  reason  is  that  most  of 
these  thinkers  are  ignorant  of  the  history  of 
Japan. 

A  nation  can  not  be  manufactured  as  things 
are  made  in  American  factories.  The  state 
is  not  made,  but  is  subject  to  organic  growth. 
Biology  teaches  us  that  heredity  and  environ- 
ment govern  all  things,  and  nothing  can 
escape  their  control.  Then,  what  will  be  the 
future  of  Japan  considered  from  the  biological 
standpoint?  Geology  tells  us  that  the  earth 
consists  of  fixed  strata,  which  are  thin  in  some 
places  and  thick  in  others.  Owing  to  earth- 
quakes and  volcanic  action,  there  may  be 
more  or  less  irregularity  in  these  layers,  but 
the  construction  of  the  strata  is  in  the  main 
the  same  in  all  places.  Such  strata  are  not 
confined  to  geology  only,  but  are  also  found 
in  the  history  of  mankind.  In  every  country, 
the  transition  is  made  from  the  nomadic  life 
to  that  of  agriculture  and  from  agriculture 
to  commerce  and  industry.  The  history  of 
every  nation  shows  the  transition  from  feudal- 
ism to  commercialism  and  industrialism. 
The  reason  why  Europeans  regard  Japan  as 
a  peculiar  nation  arises  from  their  failure  to 
grasp  the  fact  that  Japanese  historj'  has  had 
the  same  strata  as  that  of  Europe.  Some  of 
our  fanatical  statesmen  have  a  blind  belief 
in  Japan's  position  —  a  belief  which  must  be 
attributed  to  their  ignorance  of  the  fact  that 
the  history  of  Japan  has  passed  through  the 
same  strata  as  those  of  European  history. 

SELF-GOVERNMENT 
For  instance,  some  European  statesmen 
are  inclined  to  believe  that  the  Japanese 
were  practically  devoid  of  the  idea  of  self- 
government  and  that  they  have  only  come 
to  possess  it  because  they  have  learned  the 
self-government  system  by  coming  into  con- 
tact with  Europeans.  This  could  hardly  be 
the  case.  However  clever  a  gardener  may 
be,  he  can  not  graft  a  bamboo  branch  on  the 
root  of  a  tree.  Had  there  not  been  the  idea 
of  self-government  already  in  existence  in 
this  country,  the  imported  and  acquired 
European  ideas  would  surely  have  perished. 
Therefore,  self-government  such  as  we  have 
at  present  is  none  other  than  what  has  come 
down  to  us  from  our  own  history.  It  is  only 
the  form  that  has  been  taken  from  Europe 
and  America.  In  Europe,  there  is  a  free  city 
of  Hamburg,  which  is  a  city  built  by  mer- 
chants opposed  to  military  government,  and 
which  has  grown  up  to  be  a  State  in  full 
possession  of  military  and  legal  powers.  The 
Belledame  waterworks  which  are  the  oldest 
in  Hamburg  were  constructed  in  1531  which 
corresponds  to  the  eleventh  year  of  Tenbun 
according  to  the  Japanese  chronology,  just 
one  year  before  the  Portuguese  knocked  at 


Japan's  door.  The  city  of  Sakae  whose 
prosperity  has  now  shifted  to  Osaka,  then 
existed  strictly  as  a  free  city,  being  several 
times  more  prosperous  than  at  present.  At 
that  time  most  of  the  daimyo  exercised  the 
feudal  system  and  governed  the  people  by 
strength.  Although  at  one  time  taxed  by 
these  powerful  lords,  Sakae  itself  as  a  free 
city  enjoyed  self-government.  The  city  was 
surrounded  by  a  moat,  being  provided  with 
its  own  soldiers  who  were  placed  under  the 
command  of  the  merchants  themselves  to 
resist  outside  invasion.  When  General  No- 
bunaga,  armed  with  tremendous  power, 
made  himself  generalissimo,  he  proposed  to 
levy  heavy  taxes  upon  the  city.  But  its 
self-governing  citizens  not  accepting  Nobun- 
aga  as  the  legitimate  generalissimo,  or 
shogun,  repudiated  the  order  for  taxation, 
and  made  an  attempt  to  resist  Nobunaga's 
forces.  The  military  strength  of  the  general 
was  so  great  that  the  city  was  ultimately 
compelled  to  pay  taxes,  but  for  the  time  being 
it  made  such  a  stubborn  resistance  thit 
Nobunaga  was  obliged  for  a  while  to  abandon 
his  scheme  of  taxation.  Amagasaki  which 
lies  between  Kob^  and  Osaka  was  a  free  city 
which  rejected  the  authority  of  the  feudal 
lords,  and  the  elders  governed  the  city.  We 
could  cite  a  number  of  such  instances. 

European  history  shows  us  that  when  the 
large  cities  of  Europe  assumed  self-govern- 
ment, the  market  originally  occupied  a  posi- 
tion like  that  of  the  kernel  in  fruit.  In  order 
to  protect  this  market,  the  right  of  self- 
government  was  bestowed  upon  it,  and  for 
the  purpose  of  ensuring  the  safety  and 
development  of  the  market,  it  became  neces- 
sary to  extend  the  same  right  beyond  the 
market  limits,  whence  it  spread  out  in  all 
directions  until  the  entire  city  became 
self-governing. 

The  development  of  our  market  has  been 
similar  to  that  of  European  cities.  Feudal 
lords  as  large  landowners  found  it  insufficient 
merely  to  collect  rice  from  their  lands  and 
sell  it  in  order  to  support  their  troops.  They 
found  it  expedient  to  protect  and  develop 
the  city  with  a  view  to  increasing  their 
revenue,  and  they  naturally  gave  it  the  right 
of  self-government.  Finding  that  the  grant- 
ing of  such  right  alone  was  not  sufficient,  they 
decreed  that  merchants  in  debt  should  be 
left  unmolested  by  creditors  while  they  were 
doing  business  in  the  market.  Originally 
the  object  of  these  lords  was  to  bring  about 
the  prosperity  of  the  city  by  extending  neces- 
sary protection,  and  to  make  it  grow  by 
allowing  self-government,  and  thus  to  facili- 
tate the  collection  of  taxes.  Later  on,  how- 
ever, a  law  was  made  to  exempt  the  market 
from  taxation,  and  thus  the  growth  of  the 
market  was  encouraged.     This  policy  doubt- 


less arose  from  the  consideration  that  the 
increased  prosperity  of  the  neighbouring 
districts  would  be  more  advantageous  than 
the  collection  of  heavy  taxes.  It  was  in 
this  wise  that  the  market  grew  to  be  a  city, 
which  in  its  turn  became  a  large  city  enjoying 
self-government.  In  these  respects,  the 
growth  of  these  cities  does  not  differ  from  the 
development  of  large  cities  in  Europe:  just 
as  earthquakes  and  volcanic  eruptions  cause 
variations  in  the  strata  of  the  earth,  the 
historic  strata  of  our  country,  according  to 
the  conditions  of  the  time,  show  some  varia- 
tions from  those  of  Europe — ours  being  some- 
times a  century  ahead  and  sometimes  a  cen- 
tury behind — but  all  the  Japanese  historic 
strata  are  the  same  as  those  of  Europe. 

EXPANSION  BEYOND  THE  SEAS 
Of  European  nations  the  Spaniards  and 
Portuguese  expanded  overseas,  being  actu- 
ated by  the  desire  to  seek  wealth  abroad. 
From  1400  to  1600,  maritime  expeditions 
formed  the  thickest  stratum  in  Europe,  and 
this  stratum  extended  to  Japan.  During 
this  period,  the  Japanese  despatched  priva- 
teers to  Manchuria,  Korea,  Shantung,  Kiang- 
Su,  Chekiang,  Canton,  Macao,  Siam,  Annam, 
Borneo,  and  the  Malay  Peninsula,  where 
thousands  of  adventurers  sought  power  and 
advantages  beyond  the  seas.  Hideyoshi's 
project  of  invading  Korea,  fighting  with 
China,  and  attacking  the  Philippines  was 
conceived  because  among  the  people  there 
arose  a  keen  desire  to  expand  beyond  the 
seas.  Our  hero  who  breathed  this  atmos- 
phere entered  into  a  gigantic  expedition.  In 
fact,  Hideyoshi  was  none  other  than  the 
personification  of  the  spirit  of  the  people. 
When  we  take  into  consideration  the  fact 
that  this  about  synchronises  with  the  rise  of 
the  Spanish,  the  Portuguese,  the  English, 
and  the  Dutch  East  Indian  Companies,  it 
will  become  plain  that  the  historic  strata 
both  East  and  West  are  practically  the  same. 
In  spite  of  this,  Japan  fell  behind  Europe 
in  commercialism,  industrialism,  democracy, 
constitutional  development,  and  scientific 
investigation — things  which  have  been  the 
creators  of  modem  Europe.  This  back- 
wardness is  nothing  more  nor  less  than  the 
result  of  the  policy  adopted  by  the  Tokuga- 
was,  who  cut  off  the  East  from  the  West 
by  shutting  the  door  of  Japan  for  three  hun- 
dred years,  a  policy  calculated  to  preserve 
the  safety  and  inglorious  ease  of  the  Toku- 
gawa  family.  It  was  some  sixty  years  ago 
that  Japan  opened  the  flood  gate  to  inter- 
course with  Europe  which  resulted  in  the 
creation  of  New  Japan. 

The  goal  after  which  mankind  strives  is 
one  and  the  same.  As  all  roads  lead  to  Rome, 
so  the  road  of  all  mankind  is,  generally  speak- 


86 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


ELDER    STATESMEN 


(Left)    Marquis  Masayoshi  Matsukata  —  (Upper  Portrait)  Marquis  Kimmochi  Saio.nji  —  (Lower  Portrait)  Marquis  Shigenobu  Okcma, 
Director   General   of   Waseda     University  —  (Right)     Field-Marshal    Prince    Aritomo     Yamagata,    President     of    the    Pri\^'    Council 


ing,  the  same.  "What  will  become  of  Japan 
in  the  future?"  is  not  a  distinct  and  separate 
question.  It  is  the  same  question  as  "What 
will  become  of  European  countries  in  the 
future?"  There  may  be  differences  of  shade 
but  not  of  colour. 

THE  JAPAN-CHINA  WAR 
Fanatics  and  bigots  are  found  in  Japan 
just  as  in  any  other  country.  There  are 
some  thinkers  who  believe  and  contend  that 
Japan  is  the  foremost  country  of  the  world; 
that  her  customs  and  manners  are  the  finest 


in  the  world,  and  that  Japan  could  unify  the 
countries  of  the  Orient.  Europeans  who 
have  heard  such  fanatical  arguments,  seeing 
Japan's  wars  with  China  and  Russia,  jump 
to  the  conclusion  that  Japan  is  a  bellicose 
nation  because  they  couple  these  arguments 
with  what  they  have  actually  witnessed. 
But  Japan  did  not  challenge  China  to  fight. 
The  neutrality  of  Korea  was  essential  to  the 
existence  of  Japan.  Therefore  if  China 
recognised  the  independence  of  Korea,  re- 
garding her  as  belonging  neither  to  Japan  nor 
to  China,  Japan  never  meant  to  fight  against 


China.  However,  China  in  those  days 
treated  Japan  with  contempt,  and  tried  to 
annex  Korea  at  one  stroke. 

In  1894,  the  Chinese  Minister  to  Japan 
despatched  a  most  laughable  report  to  the 
Chinese  Government  concerning  the  home 
administration  of  Japan.  China  in  those 
days  sent  many  Chinese  scholars  to  Tokyo 
who  formed  literary  friendships  over  the 
wine  cup  with  Japanese  students  of  the 
Chinese  classics.  Japanese  (scholars  of  Chi- 
nese classics)  Sinologues  in  general  were 
haters  of  European  civilisation,  and  naturally 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


87 


criticised  the  government  policy  of  following 
European  ways  and  ideas.  Some  of  these 
malcontents  thought  a  great  deal  of  the  reign 
of  the  departed  Tokugawas.  The  Chinese 
scholars  at  once  came  to  the  conclusion  that 
Japan  was  filled  with  the  atmosphere  of  reac- 
tionary revolution.  The  fact  of  this  whole 
trouble  in  a  nutshell  is  this:  Prince  Ito,  the 
then  Prime  Minister,  for  all  his  desire  to 
adopt  European  political  forms,  could  not 
see  his  way  to  give  consent  to  more  demo- 
cratic reforms  as  advocated  by  a  certain 
pohtical  party  among  the  people,  and  this 
brought  about  a  discussion  in  Parliament. 
Chinese  politicians  observed  the  fact  that  in 
Japan  there  existed  on  the  one  hand  those 
who  opposed  European  civilisation  and  that 
a  struggle  was  going  on  between  political 
parties  and  the  Government  and, they  formed 
an  idea  that  Japan  was  already  being  divided 
into   two   factions,    so   that   even   if   China 


annexed  Korea,  taking  advantage  of  the 
situation,  Japan  would  have  no  courage  to 
fight.  Actuated  by  these  convictions,  China 
suddenly  sent  troops  to  Korea  with  a  view 
to  annexing  it.  Should  Korea  become  a 
possession  of  China  and  Ma-Shan-P'u  and 
Fu-Shan-P'u  be  well  fortified,  Japan's  safety 
would  be  jeopardised.  Japan  was  forced  to 
resort  to  warlike  measures,  and  the  result 
was  the  Japan-China  War.  Japan  had  not 
the  least  aggressive  intention. 

THE  JAPAN-RUSSIAN  WAR 
In  the  twenty-eighth  year  of  Meiji,  the 
Russian  minister  locked  up  the  King  of 
Korea  in  the  Russian  Legation,  which  became 
in  fact  the  Korean  Government,  all  orders 
emanating  from  this  quarter.  Count  Mutsu 
was  then  the  Minister  for  Foreign  Affairs 
and  Prince  Ito  was  Prime  Minister.  The 
wounds  Japan  had  received  in  the  war  against 


China  were  not  then -completely  healed,  and 
it  was  next  to  impossible  to  cope  with  Russia. 
Japan  approached  England  comijlaiuing  of 
the  outrageous  attitude  of  Russia  in  Korea, 
and  asked  England  if  she  were  prepared  to 
take  any  steps.  Lord  Salisbury,  the  Premier 
of  England,  instructed  the  British  Foreign 
Minister  to  inform  our  government  to  the 
effect  that  England  could  not  stand  aside 
and  watch  the  forcible  absorption  of  Korea 
by  Russia.  These  words  sounded  strong 
enough,  but  when  carefully  analysed,  the 
expression  that  England  could  not  stand  aside 
and  watch  the  forcible  absorption  of  Korea 
by  Russia  is  merely  a  form  of  words  intended 
to  maintain  the  prestige  of  a  great  nation. 
It  implied  that  should  Korea  of  her  own  ac- 
cord become  a  dependency  of  Russia  nothing 
could  be  done.  The  Japanese  Government 
was  simply  powerless,  and  several  years  had 
to  be  passed  in  complaisance  and  indecision. 


\^:j-"r  :-:'?^c-~.^"5?ss«^?^ 


^^TattcaKzTw 


LEADING    POLITICIANS 

(From  Left  to  Right)  Mr.  Ikuzo  Ooka,  President  of  the  House  of  Representatives  since  1911 — Prince  Iyes.\to  Tokugawa,  Head  of 
the  Tokugawa  Family  and  Descendant  of  the  Last  Famous  Shogun — Mr.  Takeshi  Inukai,  M.  P.,  Leader  of  the  Kokuminto,  or 
National  Party,  in  the  House  of  Representatives — Viscount  Takaaki  K.\to,  Formerly  Japanese  Ambassador  to  London,  now  a 
Prominent  Political  Leader — Baron  K.  Takahashi,  Member  of  the  House  of  Peers,  and  One  of  the  Most  Powerful  Leaders  of  the 
Seiyukwai  Party  —  Mr.  Takashi  Har.\,  Present  Prime  Minister;   Leader  of  the  Seiyukwai  Party  in  the  House  of  Representatives. 


88 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


But  Russian  avarice  and  outrages  knew  no 
bounds.  After  occupying  Manchuria,  she 
was  prepared  to  swallow  up  Korea.  Japan 
was  compelled  to  open  negotiations  with 
Russia.  But  even  at  that  time  Japan  had 
still  no  intention  of  fighting  against  her. 
Japan  would  have  consented  to  Russian  occu- 
pation of  Manchuria  had  Russia  allowed 
Japan  to  hold  Korea,  making  the  Yalu  River 
the  boundary  line,  but  Russian  diplomats 
who  had  resided  many  years  in  Tokyo  had 
reason  to  believe  that  Japan  would  be  satis- 
fied if  Korea  could  be  divided,  with  the  Tai- 
Tung-Kiang  as  the  boundary  line,  and  if 
matters  could  be  delayed  Japan  would  surely 
give  her  consent  to  the  latter  arrangement. 
The  situation  in  both  countries  became  so 
pressing  that  Japan  had  to  wage  war  against 
Russia.  In  the  midst  of  the  Japan-Russian 
War,  the  Katsura  cabinet  published  for  the 
benefit  of  the  Imperial  Diet  all  the  documents 
and  correspondence  that  had  passed  between 
Japan  and  Russia.  These  documents  were 
partly  true  and  partly  false.  They  were 
false  in  that  they  did  not  contain  that  part 
of  the  documents  concerning  the  demand 
made  by  Japan  to  the  effect  that  Japan  would 
be  satisfied  if  Russia  took  Manchuria,  with 
the  Yalu  River  as  the  boundary,  leaving 
Korea  to  Japan's  control.  Thus  it  will  be 
seen  that  Japan  had  very  little  notion  of 
invasion  and  aggression  in  fighting  against 
Russia.  In  order  to  maintain  the  safety  of 
the  country,  it  was  necessary  for  Japan  to 
bring  about  either  the  occupation  of  Korea 
or  the  preservation  of  Korean  independence. 
Japan  even  went  so  far  as  to  give  her  consent 
to  Russia's  control  of  Manchuria,  but  Russia 
would  not  listen  to  either  of  these  proposi- 
tions, and  Japan  was  obliged  to  fight.  The 
most  powerful  reason  for  EiU"opeans'  estimate 
of  Japan  as  a  bellicose  nation  is  found  in 
connection  with  Japan's  wars  against  China 
and  Russia,  but  the  real  causes  of  these  wars 
are  exactly  as  I  have  stated  here.  In  these 
wars,  Japan's  attitude  was  one  of  passivity 
and  not  aggressiveness. 

LESSONS  OF  HISTORY 
Such  being  the  past  history  of  Japan,  her 
future  may  easily  be  known.  In  the  minds 
of  most  people,  the  future  of  Japan  is  at  once 
associated  with  the  future  of  China.  Japan 
has  not  the  least  ambition  in  the  direction  of 
the  territorial  disintegration  of  China.  The 
partition  of  China  is  only  possible  as  far  as 
Japan  is  concerned  when  China  destroys 
herself,  leaving  none  to  be  the  heir  to  her 
inheritance.  To  take  the  initiative  in  these 
affairs  is  certainly  not  the  national  policy 
of  Japan.  This  view  of  mind  is  shared  by  all 
the  sagacious  statesmen  of  Japan.  To  be 
sure,  there  are  some  fanatical  thinkers  who 


clamour  for  the  division  of  China.  These 
men  a'-e  small  in  number,  but  extremely 
boisterous,  and  therefore  Europeans  mis- 
understand Japan's  policy.  This,  I  say,  is 
absolutely  not  in  accordance  with  the  na- 
tional policy  of  Japan.  This  is  a  problem 
about  which  Europeans  are  particularly 
sensitive,  and  any  number  of  mere  words,  it 
is  to  be  feared,  wiU  not  mitigate  their  feelings. 
A  few  facts,  however,  will  suffice  by  way  of 
explanation.  In  order  to  maintain  her 
existence,  it  is  necessary  for  Japan  that 
China  should  keep  up  her  prestige,  being 
neither  destroyed  nor  divided,  but  developing 
adequately  so  as  to  preserve  the  power  and 
honour  of  an  independent  nation.  I  do  not 
deceive  myself  in  making  this  statement, 
but  rather,  it  is  the  expression  of  a  selfish 
love  for  my  own  country.  Why  is  this? 
Japan  needs  rice  in  order  to  live.  In  191 5 
Japan's  output  of  rice  was  55,920,000  kokii* 
while  the  population  in  Japan  proper  num- 
bered 53,350,000.  Even  with  this  enormous 
amount  of  rice,  the  nation  could  not  be  prop- 
erly fed.  Let  us  see  how  it  is.  The  amount 
of  rice  required  by  the  Japanese  for  a  year  is 
1  koku  8  lo  per  head.  Now  the  amount  of 
rice  consumed  by  the  population  of  53,350,- 
000  is  96,000,000  koku,  but,  as  I  said  before, 
Japan's  output  of  rice  is  only  55,920,000  koku. 
This  fact  gives  rise  to  the  necessity  of  import- 
ing food  from  foreign  countries.  Foodstuffs 
thus  imported  from  abroad  in  1912  amounted 
in  value  to  48,470,000  yen  of  rice,  12,350,000 
yen  of  wheat,  7,130,000  5'en  of  beans,  1,780,- 
000  yen  of  wheat  flour,  and  2,410,000  yen  of 
vegetables,  making  a  total  of  72,140,000  yen. 
In  addition  to  these,  Japan  imports  from 
Korea  40,000,000  yen  of  agricultural  prod- 
ucts and  40,000,000  yen  of  the  same  from 
Formosa.  The  principal  place  where  these 
imported  foodstuffs  are  produced  is  China, 
Annam,  and  Tonking.  It  is  quite  natural 
for  us  to  wish  that  China,  the  supplier  of 
such  an  enormous  amount  of  foodstuffs  to 
Japan,  should  enjoy  peace  so  that  her  agri- 
cultural products  may  be  increased  and  thus 
the  price  of  rice  be  naturally  lowered  to  the 
great  benefit  of  our  countrymen. 

We  need  iron.  Japan  is  very  poorly  sup- 
plied with  iron.  No  iron  is  available  in  this 
country  excepting  the  materials  for  pans, 
kettles,  knives,  and  kitchen  utensils.  In 
1914,  our  output  of  iron  ores  was  4,550,000 
kanme  of  manganese  iron,  30,820,000  kaiime 
of  sulphuric  iron,  564,000  kanme  of  chrome 
iron,  and  24,000,000  kanme  of  iron.  It  is 
true  that  more  than  one-half  of  the  iron 
mines  are  idle,  but  even  if  all  these  were  put 
into  operation,  the  output  could  not  be 
doubled.  The  demand  for  iron  in  this  coun- 
try  is  something   enormous.     Large,   active 

*  1  koku  =  4.9629  Imperial  or  5.  i  American  bushels. 


factories  in  Kyushu  alone  require  more  than 
one  million  tons  of  iron  per  year.  We  are 
therefore  importers  of  a  large  amount  of  iron 
at  present.  We  import  from  Europe,  Amer- 
ica, and  China  1,810,000  yen  of  pig-iron, 
7,940,000  yen  of  iron,  5,600,000  yen  of  iron 
rods,  77,790,000  of  sheet  iron,  1,220,000  yen 
of  electro-plated  sheet  iron,  4,790,000  yen 
of  leaf  iron,  380,000  yen  of  iron  wires,  1,170,- 
000  yen  of  electro-plated  iron  wires,  and 
1 ,340,000  yen  of  iron  tubes  and  pipes,  making 
a  total  of  102,040,000  yen.  The  iron  thus 
obtained  is  used  for  the  purpose  of  building 
electric  rails;  it  builds  railroads  throughout 
this  country,  and  it  builds  machinery.  This 
is  the  amount  of  iron  for  normal  times. 
Should  war  break  out,  there  wiU  arise  a 
greater  demand  both  for  iron  and  rice. 

When  the  Russo-Japanese  War  began, 
shells  for  our  guns  were  provided  at  the  rate 
of  two  shots  and  a  half  per  gun,  per  day. 
These  preparations  were  made  after  strict 
consideration  of  the  history  of  war  in  Europe, 
and  were  thought  to  be  more  than  sufficient. 
When  the  actual  battle  was  fought  in  Nan- 
shan  against  Russia,  Japan  found  to  her 
great  surprise  that  she  had  to  fire  fifty  shots 
a  day.  The  provision  for  our  shells  was  at 
once  exhausted.  Japan  was  then  obliged  to 
put  into  operation  small  iron  works  through- 
out the  country.  The  result  was  that  Japan 
fired  some  one  million  shells  in  the  war 
against  Russia  which  lasted  one  year  and  a 
half.  This  was,  indeed,  a  wonder  in  the  his- 
tory of  warfare.  But  what  is  the  state  of 
affairs  in  the  present  European  war?  It  is 
no  uncommon  event  for  some  seven  or  eight 
hundred  thousand  shots  to  be  fired  in  a  day. 
We  can  easily  surmise  the  nature  of  future 
warfare.  The  lack  of  iron  is  keenly  felt  even 
in  ordinary  times,  nay,  when  America  put  a 
ban  on  the  export  of  steel  to  Japan,  the  latter 
was  left  in  a  state  of  complete  dismay.  We 
are  pressed  with  the  need  of  iron  not  only  in 
normal  times,  but  in  time  of  war  the  lack  of 
iron  must  be  severely  felt.  Should  our 
neighbour  China  entertain  kindly  feelings 
toward  us,  and  we,  on  our  part,  help  her,  thus 
bringing  the  two  nations  nearer  in  economic 
relations,  and  mutual  friendly  intercourse; 
should  China  become  a  friendly  nation  able 
to  supply  us  with  iron  even  in  war,  then  our 
joy  and  happiness  would  be  infinite. 

Suppose  that  some  day  Japan  were  unfor- 
tunately placed  in  a  position  of  ha\-ing  to 
fight  against  a  foreign  enemy.  She  would 
put  in  the  field  some  one  million  and  a  half 
soldiers,  all  of  them  able-bodied  men  be- 
tween twenty  and  forty  years  of  age.  Should 
these  able-bodied  men  be  collected  from 
farms,  and  sent  to  a  foreign  country,  the 
production  of  rice  must  be  greatly  reduced. 
On  these  occasions,  should  China's  agricul- 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


89 


tural  condition  prove  itself  healthy  and  pros- 
perous, and  if  this  should  be  combined  with 
safety  of  communications  and  friendly  senti- 
ment on  the  part  of  China  to  supply  us  with 
rice  even  during  the  war,  and  should  China 
be  a  strong  country,  then  Japan  would  indeed 
be  blessed.  The  advantages  to  be  derived 
by  Japan  from  preserving  the  integrity  of 
China,  intact, — not  causing  her  to  be  dis- 
membered or  destroyed,  but  keeping  her  as 
a  safe  and  friendly  nation,  and  encouraging 
her  growth, — are  plain  enough  from  these 
figures.  It  is  needless  for  me  to  employ  clever 
language  and  sophistry  to  prove  the  fact  that 
Japan  has  no  ambition  against  China.  The 
bare  statistics  will  amply  prove  this  fact. 
Thus  it  will  be  seen  that  to  Japan  the  inde- 
pendence of  China  is  indispensable.  If  so, 
we  must  study  the  way  to  maintain  her  inde- 
pendence. In  the  matter  of  national  inde- 
pendence, Japan  is  ahead  of  China,  and  she 
is  prepared  to  give  her  advice,  warning,  and 
assistance  so  as  to  enable  her  to  be  inde- 
pendent. The  assertion  of  the  Oriental 
Monroe  Doctrine  made  by  our  special  envoy, 
Viscount  Ishii,  in  America,  was  favourably 
received  by  the  public  in  America  and  Eng- 
land. I  believe  that  this  fact  shows  that  they 
fully  appreciate  the  real  sentiments  of  Japan. 
I  have  already  made  it  plain  that  the 
strata  of  Japanese  history  in  the  past  are  the 
same  as  those  of  European  history.  I  have 
also  made  it  evident  in  connection  with 
Japan's  wars  against  China  and  Russia,  that 
Japan  is  not  a  bellicose  nation,  and  that  she 
has  no  sinister  designs  on  the  future  of  China. 
In  this,  Japan  is  simply  considering  herself: 
it  is  not  that  she  is  moved  by  any  love  of 
China.  These  facts  are  demonstrated  not 
only  by  the  history  of  our  country.  That  it 
is  not  to  the  advantage  of  Japan  to  conceive 
ambitious  designs  against  continental  coun- 
tries, is  also  proved  by  the  history  of  Europe. 
The  history  of  any  country  shows  that  the 
peninsula  is  very  weak,  because  on  the  one 
hand  it  is  in  contact  with  the  continent  so 
that  it  must  maintain  an  army,  while  on  the 
other  hand  it  must  devote  its  strength  to 
coast  defence,  since  it  faces  the  sea.  That 
is  to  say,  its  productive  capacity  is  squan- 
dered on  national  defence.  History  proves 
that  it  is  fatal  to  the  interests  of  the  penin- 
sular or  island  empire  to  entertain  any  ambi- 
tious designs  against  the  continent.  England 
once  held  territory  in  what  is  now  Normandy, 
but  for  years  and  years,  war  dragged  on  there, 
causing  thereby  the  decline  and  weakness  of 
England.  When,  however,  England  with- 
drew herself  from  Normandy  and  became 
purely  an  island  empire,  her  greatness  then 
began.  Again,  the  history  of  mankind  proves 
that  it  is  fatal  for  the  South  to  march  against 
the  North.     The  history  of  the  twenty-four 


dynasties  of  China  shows  that  invariably 
the  people  of  the  dark  lands  and  gloomy 
skies  of  the  north  invaded  the  sunny  south, 
where  grapes  ripen  and  the  apricot  blossoms. 
There  are  a  few  exceptional  instances  of  the 
Southern  people  driving  back  the  Northern- 
ers, but  they  are  merely  instances  of  lost 
ground  being  regained  by  remustered  forces. 
We  find  the  same  in  the  history  of  Europe. 
It  is  simply  the  history  of  the  oppression  of 


the  influence  of  heredity  and  environment. 
The  blood  that  we  inherited  tells  us  that  we 
are  a  maritime  people;  the  history  we  read 
teaches  us  that  we  are  a  nation  of  the  sea. 
It  also  teaches  us  that  our  destiny  is  to  ad- 
vance South.  The  future  of  Japan  lies  not 
on  the  continent,  but  on  the  sea;  not  in  the 
North,  but  in  the  South.  The  period  of  our 
forefathers'  greatest  activity  was  when  they 
sought  gain  in  the  China  Sea  and  the  Indian 


THE   HOME    OFFICE 


the  South  by  the  North.  Any  ambition 
entertained  by  Japan,  an  island  empire, 
against  the  continent,  would  be  in  defiance 
of  the  primary  lesson  of  history.  Japan  has 
already  assumed  responsibility  in  Manchuria, 
and  in  order  to  shoulder  this  responsibility, 
she  has  had  to  maintain  an  enormous 
army. 

The  comparatively  slow  progress  that  Japan 
has  unfortunately  made  in  productive  indus- 
try within  the  last  few  years  must  be  attri- 
buted to  this  military  preparation,  but  her 
need  for  maintaining  a  navy  has  not  in  the 
least  been  lessened  thereby.  Thus,  Japan  is 
now  obliged  to  keep  both  a  strong  navy  and 
a  strong  army.  Now,  Japan  keenly  feels  the 
actual  lesson  taught  by  history.  No  one 
but  a  madman  could  conceive  the  idea  that 
Japan  would  assume  the  further  responsi- 
bility of  stationing  troops  in  a  dismembered 
China. 

What  will  be  the  future  of  Japan?  The 
questions,  What  will  be  the  future  of  Japan? 
and  How  shall  we  shape  her  future?  resolve 
themselves  into  one.  However  hard  we  may 
struggle,  it  is  impossible  for  us  to  get  rid  of 


Ocean.  Many  a  thrilling  tale  of  romance 
and  bravery  which  fires  the  blood  of  our  youth 
was  handed  down  to  us  by  our  forefathers 
whose  activities  were  on  the  sea. 

At  present,  among  oiu-  countrymen,  there 
is  an  outburst  of  enthusiasm  for  the  South. 
The  conviction  has  arisen  among  us  that 
those  who  control  the  tropics  will  rule  over 
half  the  world.  Our  trade  has  begun  to 
advance  towards  the  South.  The  goal  of  our 
travellers  has  become  the  South;  we  find  this 
aspiration  toward  the  South  revealed  in  the 
textile  fabrics  exhibited  in  the  Mitsukoshi 
Department  Store;  we  find  it  revealed  in  the 
pictures  exhibited  in  our  art  exhibitions;  we 
discover  it  in  the  fancy  goods  shown  in  the 
windows  of  our  bazaars;  it  appears  in  the 
carvings  which  decorate  the  drawing  rooms 
of  the  rich.  Our  future  lies  on  the  Sea:  our 
hope  is  in  the  South.  How  shall  we  work  in 
the  South  and  on  the  Sea?  Our  ambition  is 
to  digest  and  harmonise  the  civilisations  of 
both  East  and  West,  and  convert  them  into 
a  civilisation  shedding  a  new  light  which 
shall  be  the  glory  of  Asia  and  a  beacon-light 
guiding    us    to    the    South  and  to  the  Sea. 


rn 


THE    BANK    OF    JAPAN 


IX.    Banking,  Finance,  and  Insurance 

(Yokohama  and  Tokyo  Section*) 

Economics  of   Old  Japan  — Financial  Policy  of  the   Tokugawa    Shoguns— Early    Meui 
Finance  — The  First  Banks  — Improvement  of  Monetary  Organs  — Currency  Reform  — 
Taxation  and  Revenue— The  National  Debt— Banks  and  Banking  — Foreign 
Banks— Loan  Associations  — National  Wealth  of  Japan— Exchanges- 
Foreign   Banks  — Insurance   Companies— A    Short 
History  of   Coinage  in   Japan 


Hew  revenue  and  expenditure  were 
adjusted  in  ancient  Japan  we  have 
now  no  means  of  knowing.  It  is 
clear,  however,  that  coins  were  early  used 
as  media  of  exchange,  the  custom  probably 
coming  from  China,  though  exchange  was 
chiefly  in  the  form  of  barter.  But  there  were 
no  devices  for  accumulating  precious  metal  or 
combining  capital  for  enterprise,  except  the 
treasuries  of  the  feudal  lords  in  later  times, 
each  clan  having  a  separate  system  of 
finance.  Taxes  were  collected  in  kind,  the 
gatherers  being  individuals  or  families  that 
had  displayed  some  talent  for  finance.  And 
there  is  reason  to  believe  that  the  tax- 
gatherer  of  ancient  Japan  was  no  less  stern 
and  unscrupulous  than  his  proverbial  con- 
temporary in  Europe.  As  a  system  of 
finance  developed  the  taxes  collected  in  kind 
were  converted  into  money  and  paid  to  the 
feudatories  or  to  the  Central  Government, 
as  the  case  might  be.  These  financial 
families,  some  of  whom  were  great  rice  mer- 
chants, often  made  loans  to  officials,  did 
some  exchange  business,  and  occasionally 
'See  Page  517, 


extended   accommodation 
viduals. 


to     private   indi- 


ECONOMICS  OF  OLD  JAPAN 
Before  the  opening  of  Japan  to  Western 
civilisation  there  were  no  banks  in  any  Occi- 
dental sense  of  the  term;  for  the  financial 
concerns  already  mentioned  neither  col- 
lected funds  by  receiving  deposits  nor  dis- 
tributed capital  in  loans  to  the  public.  The 
various  fiefs  were  so  isolated  from  one 
another  that  neither  social  nor  financial  inter- 
course was  possible.  In  any  case  all  who 
engaged  in  mercantile  or  manufacturing  pur- 
suits were  despised  as  "  mone3'-grubbers " 
by  the  upper  classes.  And  this  condition 
continued  until  the  first  Europeans  visited 
the  country  in  the  middle  of  the  sixteenth 
century.  The  foreigners  found  gold  plentiful 
in  some  places,  and  the  coinage  more  than 
eighty  per  cent  pure;  but  the  Japanese  did 
not  appear  to  realise  the  full  value  of  their 
coinage  and  allowed  it  to  be  exported  by  the 
Portuguese  and  Spanish  and  later  by  the 
Dutch  in  ever-increasing  quantities.     Gradu- 


ally, however,  the  Japanese  became  conscious 
of  their  mistake;  for  Hideyoshi  learned  from 
the  visitors  that  the  financial  policy  of  Spain 
and  other  European  countries  was  to  hoard 
gold,  and  he  made  up  his  mind  to  do  like- 
wise. But  the  supply  became  depleted  and 
he  was  obliged  to  take  over  the  gold  mines 
of  Sado  to  replenish  his  treasury.  At  the 
time  of  his  death  enormous  quantities  of  gold 
were  found  stored  in  Osaka  Castle;  and 
lyeyasu,  the  first  of  the  Tokugawa  shoguns, 
was  obliged  to  weaken  the  wealth  and  conse- 
quent power  of  Hideyori,  the  son  of  Hide- 
yoshi, by  imposing  upon  him  highly  expensive 
undertakings. 

FINANCIAL  POLICY  OF  THE  TOKUG.\AVA 
SHOGUNS 
The  financial  policy  of  the  bakiifu,  like  that 
of  its  successors  in  modem  Japan,  was  one 
of  temporisation.  The  underh-ing  financial 
policy  of  all  Japanese  governments  has  been 
that  inaugurated  by  Hidej'oshi  and  carried 
into  effect  by  the  Tokugawa  authorities; 
namely,   to  increase  at  all  costs  the  specie 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


91 


holdings  of  the  nation.  Modern  govern- 
ments have  tried  to  do  this  by  discouraging 
imports  and  encouraging  exports,  as  well  as 
by  raising  foreign  loans  to  cover  deficits.  To 
the  Tokugawa  Government,  isolated  as  it 
was,  foreign  loans  were  impossible;  and  con- 
sequently the  frequently  recurring  deficits 
had  to  be  made  up  by  resorting  to  habitual 
debasement  of  the  national  coinage,  causing 
an  abnormal  increase  of  currency,  a  corre- 


crucial  financial  situations,  until  at  last  the 
currency  was  so  inflated  and  imports  so  in- 
creased that  the  Finance  Minister,  Aral 
Hakuseki,  had  to  limit  commercial  imports 
to  the  value  of  the  copper  held  by  the  nation, 
in  order  to  prevent  outflow  of  specie.  Sucli 
was  the  financial  situation  in  Japan  at  the 
beginning  of  the  eighteenth  century.  By 
the  efi'orts  of  Aral  the  coinage  was  finally 
restored    to    the    purity    and    value    of    the 


EARLY  MEIJI  FIN.\NCE 
The  story  of  Japan's  financial  rehabili- 
tation in  the  Meiji  era  is  one  of  the  most 
sensational  in  the  history  of  national  econ- 
omy. It  is  chiefly  a  tale  of  remarkable  indi- 
vidualities dealing  with  striking  incidents  and 
vicissitudes  in  economic  situations.  Every- 
where on  its  pages  stand  out  conspicuously 
the  names  of  Ito,  Inouye,  Matsukata,  Okuma, 
and  Shibusawa,  the  fathers  of  modern  Japa- 


(LEFT    to    right)    viscount    Y.    MISHIMA,    governor    of    the    NIPPON    GINKO    (BANK    OF    JAPAN) MR.    J.    INOUYE,    PRESIDENT    OF    THE 

YOKOHAMA    SPECIE    BANK  —  MARQUIS    MASAYOSHI    M.^TSUKATA,    KNOWN   AS    "THE    FATHER    OF    JAPANESE    FIN.A.NCE " 


spending  rise  in  prices,  and  a  serious  insta- 
bility of  national  finance. 

At  the  beginning  of  the  Tokugawa  era  in 
1603  the  standard  gold  coin,  the  Keicho 
koban,  was  just  over  80  per  cent  pure,  the 
rest  being  silver,  while  the  subsidiary  silver 
and  copper  coinage  w'ere  proportionately 
good.  Thus  the  currency  of  the  Keicho 
period  enjoyed  the  confidence  of  both  for- 
eigners and  Japanese  alike.  So  much  did  the 
foreign  merchants  seek  exportation  of  the 
national  specie  that  the  authorities  had  to 
place  a  limit  on  the  sum  annually  taken  out 
of  the  country.  Even  this  could  not  maintain 
the  necessary  supply  for  the  shogun's  treas- 
ury, and  reminting  had  to  be  done  again  and 
again,  the  new  coinage  being  only  56.4  per 
cent  pure  gold,  and  the  subsidiary  coinage 
only  63  per  cent  pure  silver.  To  ensure  a 
sufficient  amount  of  metal  for  reminting,  the 
bakufu  ordered  all  taxes  to  be  paid  in  gold. 
As  has  been  suggested,  methods  of  debase- 
ment were  resorted  to  repeatedly  to  tide  over 


Keicho  era;  but  by  the  middle  of  the  eight- 
eenth centur\'  an  abnormal  depreciation  in 
prices  and  a  consequent  fall  in  rice,  which 
created  dangerous  speculation,  obliged  a 
reversion  to  the  policy  of  debased  coinage  to 
restore  equilibrium.  Various  new  and  oner- 
ous taxes  were  also  now  imposed,  and  rice 
merchants  became  bankers  to  the  impov- 
erished feudal  lords.  To  meet  the  expenses 
of  preparing  defences  against  intruding  for- 
eign nations,  the  coinage  was  once  more  re- 
minted  at  the  beginning  of  the  nineteenth 
century ;  and  revenue  was  further  increased  by 
finding  wealthy  husbands  among  the  feudal 
lords  for  daughters  of  the  shogun,  as  well  as 
b)'  selling  permission  to  wear  the  shogun's 
crest  and  other  marks  of  privilege  or  rank. 
Thus  by  a  remarkable  system  of  temporisa- 
tion  the  bakufu  was  enabled  to  meet  its 
financial  obligations  and  put  off  the  evil  day, 
until  its  downfall  in  1868,  when  an  empty 
treasury  was  the  only  inheritance  of  the 
new  regime. 


nese  finance.  When  the  financial  affairs  of 
the  nation  fell  into  the  hands  of  these  men, 
after  the  abolition  of  the  shogunate,  the 
country  was  not  only  without  money,  but 
had  no  means  of  obtaining  any,  as  the  fiefs 
and  their  taxes  were  still  in  the  hands  of  the 
feudal  barons;  and  in  the  absence  of  anything 
like  organised  commerce  or  finance  no  access 
to  funds  presented  itself.  Samurai  as  these 
men  were,  and  without  any  training  in 
finance,  it  is  remarkable  indeed  how  they  were 
able  successfully  to  extricate  their  country 
from  its  impossible  situation  with  compara- 
tive rapidity,  reforming  the  hopelessly  chaotic 
monetary  system  and  placing  it  on  a  sound 
basis.  The  shogunate,  in  its  slough  of  finan- 
cial embarrassment,  had,  as  we  have  said, 
reminted  and  debased  the  coinage  until 
coins  were  of  little  more  value  than  tokens, 
while  the  country  was  flooded  with  the  sur- 
reptitious paper  money  issued  by  feudal 
lords;  and  as  these  numbered  270  the  confu- 
sion caused  by  their  issues  of  script  of  1,600 


92 


PRESENT-DAY        IMPRESSIONS       OF       JAPAN 


>KYO   CHAMBER   OF   COMMF-RCE 


different     types     may     be     imagined.     The  economic  progress.     After  some  easy  natural 

story  of  the  evolution  of  Japanese  currency  mistakes  arising  from  inexperience,  the  work 

from  this  tangled   situation  is  one  of  the  of  regeneration  was  commenced  in  187 1  when 

most  extraordinary  in  the  history  of  national  gold  was  adopted  as  the  national  currency; 


in  1878  it  became  a  system  of  gold  and  silver 
bimetallism;  in  1879  it  was  equal  only  to  a 
system  of  inconvertible  paper  money;  in  1886 
the  paper  had  been  redeemed  by  silver  coins, 
and  at  the  end  of  1897  a  gold  standard  was 
adopted  to  replace  the  silver  system. 

To  avoid  the  bankruptcy  threatened  by 
the  expenses  of  the  wars  and  rebellions  of 
the  Restoration  period,  the  new  Imperial 
Government  was  obliged  to  issue  as  an  emer- 
gency measure  in  1868  a  large  amount  of 
paper  money,  at  first  convertible  into  specie, 
but  in  1 87 1  declared  inconvertible.  This 
action  failed  to  command  public  confidence, 
and  in  1873  the  Government  was  forced  to 
make  this  paper  exchangeable  for  gold  notes 
(kinsatsu),  or  inconvertible  exchange  bonds 
bearing  six  per  cent  interest,  with  the  hope 
of  destroying  the  paper  money  thus  brought 
in  and  promoting  the  establishment  of  banks 
which  should  issue  convertible  notes  on 
security  of  these  government  bonds. 

THE    FIRST    BANKS 

Although  special  organs,  such  as  exchange 
companies,  had  been  appointed  to  take 
charge  of  national  revenue,  encourage  indus- 
try, and  promote  trade  by  lending  money  at 
low  rates,  no  such  organs  as  banks  yet  existed 


TOKYO    STOCK    EXCH.^NGE.      (THE    BUILUlNo    W.\b    KEcENlLV    P.YRTIALLY   DESTROYED    BY   FIRE) 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS    OF   JAPAN 


93 


PROMINENT   TOKYO    BANKERS 

(Upper  Row,  Left  to  Right)  Mr.  Kenzo  Ikeda,  President,  One  Hundredth  Bank,  Ltd. — Mr.  R.  Mizukoshi,  President,  Hokkaido 
Colonization   Bank,   Ltd.  —  Baron    I.   Morimura,   Senior    Partner,   Morimura   Bank,    Unltd.    (Middle  Row)    Mr.  G.  Shimura,  President, 

The  Hypothec  Bank  of  Japan Dr.  Y.  Ono,  Vice-President,  The  Industrial  Bank  of  Japan  —  Mr.  T.  Shid.'^chi,  President,  The  Industrial 

Bank  of  Japan  —  Mr.  Y.  vSasaki,  President,  Dai-Ichi  Ginko — -Mr.  K.  Koike,  President,  Koike  Ginko  (Lower  Row)  Mr.  Z.  Yasuda, 
President,  Imperial  Hemp  Weaving  Co.,  the  Dai-!3an  Ginko,  the  Yasuda  Ginko,  and  Other  Banks  and  Industrial  Enterprises  —  Mr. 
Shigetake  Saito,  President,  Tokyo   Prefectural  Bank,  Ltd.  —  Mr.  K.  Mori,  Managing  Director,  Yokohama  Seventy-fourth    Bank,    Ltd. 


in  Japan.  First  there  was  a  Business  Bureau, 
then  a  Trade  Bureau,  and  afterward  these 
Commercial  Companies  and  finally  Exchange 
Companies  in  the  principal  cities,  their  per- 
sonnel consisting  chiefly  of  great  families 
like  the  Mitsui,  the  Shimada,  and  the  Ono, 
of  ancient  repute  in  the  world  of  Japanese 
finance.  These  companies  were  partnerships 
of  a  strictly  joint-stock  kind,  but  they  could 
receive  deposits  or  lend  money  to  merchants 
and  manufacturers  as  well  as  issue  notes, 
and  therefore  they  constituted  the  nucleus  of 
banks.  Neither  the  notes  of  these  concerns 
nor  of  the  Government  were  secured  by  any 
fi.xed  specie  holdings,  and  consequently  they 
had  soon  to  give  way  to  the  establishment 
of  regular  banks  after  a  modern  system. 
An  American  model  was  adopted  on  advice 
of  Ito,  afterward  Prince  Ito,  who  had  been 


sent  to  the  United  States  to  study  banking 
institutions  and  returned  to  submit  to  the 
Government  the  results  of  his  investigations. 
He  made  three  cardinal  proposals:  The 
adoption  of  the  gold  standard,  the  granting 
of  interest-bearing  bonds  for  the  treasury 
notes  in  circulation,  and  the  establishment  of 
banks  as  the  media  for  issuing  paper  money. 
These  proposals  were  adopted  in  1873,  and 
soon  national  banks  were  established  on  a 
system  that  combined  some  of  the  features 
of  English  banking  with  the  general  bases  of 
American  practice.  Each  bank  had  to  pay 
into  the  treasiuy  sixty  per  cent  of  its  capital 
in  government  notes,  and  was  credited  in 
turn  with  interest-bearing  bonds  to  be  re- 
tained in  the  treasury  as  security  for  the 
issue  of  bank  notes  to  an  equal  amount, 
the  banks  being  required  to  keep  in  gold  the 


remaining  forty  per  cent  of  their  capital  as  a 
fund  for  converting  the  notes,  which  conver- 
sion must  always  be  effected  on  application. 
To  prevent  the  rise  of  mushroom  financial 
institutions  the  capital  of  each  bank  had  to 
bear  a  fixed  ratio  to  the  population  of  the 
place  where  it  was  established.  The  Govern- 
ment's desire  to  replace  the  paper  money  it 
had  issued  by  convertible  notes  was  not 
realised,  however;  and  with  an  increasing 
unfavourable  balance  of  trade,  gold  flowed 
out  of  the  country  until  a  sharp  depreciation 
ensued  in  government  paper,  giving  rise  to 
the  financial  panic  of  1874.  Various  circum- 
stances had  combined  to  deepen  the  sense  of 
insecurity.  It  will  be  remembered  that  for 
years  the  Dutch  had  been  depleting  the 
country  of  its  gold,  and  the  process  continued 
until  the  opening  of  Japan  to  foreign  trade. 


94 


PRESENT-DAY        lAfPRESSIONS        OF        JAPAN 


During  the  centuries  of  seclusion  gold  had 
come  to  bear  to  silver  in  Japanese  coinage  a 
ratio  of  I  to  8 ;  so  that  the  yellow  metal  cost, 
in  terms  of  the  white,  only  one-half  of  what 
it  cost  in_  the  West.  Moreover,  the  new 
treaties  had  given  foreigners  the  right  to 
exchange  their  own  silver  coins  against  Japa- 
nese coins,  weight  for  weight,  so  that  a  for- 
eigner going  to  Japan  with  a  quantity  of 
Mexican  dollars  could  buy  with  them  twice 
as  much  gold  as  they  had  cost  in  Mexico. 
Thus  Japan  lost  heavily;  and  between  1872 
and  1874  the  balance  of  trade  swayed  heavily 
in  the  wrong  direction,  creating  consternation 
in  financial  circles,  and  the  bank  notes  were 
speedily  returned  for  conversion.  No  de- 
posits came  to  the  aid  of  the  banks  and  the 
circulation  of  money  almost  ceased. 

The  Imperial  Government  was,  therefore, 
obliged  to  issue  a  revised  code  of  banking 
regulations  which  dispensed  altogether  with 
hard  money  and  substituted  treasury  notes 
m  its  place.  Each  bank  was  required  to 
invest  80  per  cent  of  its  capital  in  6  per  cent 
state  bonds;  and  these  being  lodged  with  the 
treasury,  the  bank  became  competent  to 
issue  an  equal  quantity  of  its  own  notes, 
forming,  with  the  remainder  of  its  capital,  a 
reserve   of   treasury   notes   for   purposes   of 


redemption.  It  was  a  complete  subversion 
of  the  Government's  original  scheme;  but 
there  was  nothing  else  to  be  done,  and  it 
worked  well  at  a  time  when  the  Government 
had  to  commute  the  hereditary  pensions  of 
the  feudatories  by  issuing  bonds  aggregating 
174,000,000  yen,  which,  if  placed  all  at  once 
on  the  market,  would  sufler  depreciation; 
while  the  holders,  unaccustomed  to  business, 
might  easily  be  led  to  dispose  of  their  securi- 
ties and  invest  the  proceeds  in  hazardous 
ventures.  Therefore  the  new  regulations 
offered  an  excellent  opportunity  for  these 
bond-holders  to  combine  and  form  banks, 
continuing  to  draw  from  the  treasury  6  per 
cent  on  their  bonds,  while  at  the  same  time 
acquiring  competence  to  issue  a  corresponding 
amount  of  notes  which  could  be  lent  out  at 
profitable  rates.  The  scheme  was  a  success. 
The  number  of  banking  institutions  soon 
grew  to  153;  the  aggregate  capital  of  the 
banks  in  three  years  increased  from  2,000,000 
yen  to  40,000,000  yen,  and  their  note  issue 
from  :, 000,000  yen  to  34,000,000  yen.  It 
was  a  great  and  rapidly  growing  system  based 
wholly  on  state  credit,  without  special 
reference  to  specie.  The  rage  for  estab- 
lishing banks  finally  became  a  mania;  and 
the  Government  had  to  put  a  limit  on  the 


number  of  banks  and  the  aggregate  of 
their  note  issues,  which  was  placed  at 
34,000,000  yen. 

IMPROVEMENT    OF    MONETARY 
ORGANS 

It  has  already  been  shown  that  owing  to 
the  social  and  political  disaffection  of  the 
first  few  years  of  the  Meiji  era,  which  cost 
many  millions  to  suppress,  and  also  the  diffi- 
culty of  quickly  reforming  the  complicated 
taxation  systems  of  the  270  daimyo,  the 
expenses  of  the  Imperial  Government  in- 
crea.sed  so  enormously  that  further  note 
issues  were  necessary;  so  that  in  1878  the 
paper  currency  rose  from  120,000,000  yen 
to  164,000,000,  with  a  corresponding  rise  in 
prices  and  depreciation  in  the  value  of  paper. 
By  practising  the  utmost  economy  the  Gov- 
ernment managed  to  produce  a  surplus  which 
was  added  to  the  fund  for  redeeming  the 
paper  money  and  to  swell  the  specie  reserve, 
the  latter  being  especially  imperative  in  face 
of  the  demand  for  resumption  of  specie  pay- 
ments. It  was  clear,  however,  even  to  the 
most  inexperienced  economist,  that  to  amass 
notes  for  the  redemption  of  notes  could  never 
prove  a  successful  expedient.  Consequently 
the  great  financiers  of  the  day,  Ito,  Inouye, 


DEPARTMENT   OF    FINANCE 


P  R  IC  S  E  N  T  -  D  A  Y        IMPRESSIONS        OF        JAPAN 


95 


and  Matsukata,  hit  upon  the  plan  of  accu- 
mulating metal  by  buying  up  exporters'  bills 
with  notes  and  receiving  the  proceeds  in 
specie;  which,  together  with  the  imposition  of 
new  taxes  and  the  increase  of  old  ones,  helped 
over  the  crisis.  The  outcome  of  this  official 
incursion  into  export  trade  brokerage  was  the 
establishment  of  the  Yokohama  Specie  Bank, 
which  from  a  struggling  organ  of  exporter's 
finance,  has  grown  to  be  one  of  the  greatest 
financial  institutions  of  the  nation.  Further, 
in  its  efforts  to  accumulate  specie  and  resume 
payments  in  gold,  the  Government  organised 
a  central  bank,  the  Bank  of  Japan,  in  1882, 
with  a  capital  of  4,000,000  yen,  while  the 
numerous  national  banks  were  dissolved  and 
turned  into  joint-stock  concerns  for  the 
redemption  of  their  notes  in  circulation. 
Each  of  these  banks  was  required  to  deposit 
with  the  treasury  the  government  paper  kept 
in  its  strong-room  as  securit}^  for  its  own 
notes,  and  from  its  annual  profits  to  hand  to 
the  treasury  a  sum  equal  to  two  and  one-half 
per  cent  of  its  notes  in  circulation.  With 
these  funds  the  state  bank  was  to  purchase 
state  bonds,  devoting  the  interest  accrued 
from  them  to  redeeming  the  notes  of  the 
national  banks.  The  result  was  a  rise  in  the 
price  of  bonds,  which  were  soon  in  demand 
at  a  premium ;  and  since  the  Government 
began  converting  its  six  per  cent  bonds  to 
fives,  they  no  longer  produced  sufficient 
interest  to  redeem  the  notes  of  the  national 
banks,  in  accordance  with  the  scheme  agreed 
upon,  causing  a  tremendous  outcry  from 
these  banks  against  the  Government.  The 
dispute  lasted  until  1896  when  a  bill  was 
passed  providing  for  the  dissolution  of  the 
national  banks  at  the  end  of  their  charter 
terms  and  their  conversion  into  joint-stock 
companies  without  note-issuing  competence. 
Out  of  a  total  of  153  banks  only  132  continued 
under  the  new  regulations,  the  rest  being 
absorbed  or  liquidated,  the  notes  being  legal 
tender  until  1899.  In  1890  and  1893  minute 
regulations  were  issued  for  bringing  all  banks, 
except  certain  special  ones,  within  one  sys- 
tem of  official  accounting  and  auditing; 
while  savings  banks  had  to  lodge  security 
with  the  treasury  for  the  protection  of  their 
depositors. 

CURRENCY  REFORM 
According  to  the  monometallic  system 
prevailing  at  the  beginning  of  the  Meiji  era 
the  one-yen  gold  piece  was  the  unit.  To 
facilitate  foreign  trade  one-yen  silver  pieces 
were  issued  for  circulation  in  treaty  ports, 
equal  in  weight  and  fineness  to  the  Mexican 
dollar,  then  the  universal  medium  of  ex- 
change in  the  Far  East.  The  relative  value 
of  the  gold  and  silver  ven  oieces  was  fixed 
at  the  rate  of  16. 174  silver  to  i  of  gold.     In 


INTERIOR    OF    HALL    OF    THE   TOKYO    RICE    AND    PRODUCE   EXCHANGE    CO.,    LTD. 
(TOKYO    BEIKOKU    TORIHIKISHO) 


1873,  when  Germany  adopted  the  gold  stand- 
ard and  began  to  dump  her  silver,  the  price 
of  the  white  metal  fell,  in  1876  reaching  as 
low  as  20  of  silver  to  i  of  gold,  and  the  value 
of  Japan's  gold  coins  was  seriously  affected. 
To  encourage  circulation  of  silver,  the  use  of 
the  silver  yen  was  extended  to  silver-standard 
countries  and  became  legal  tender  side  by 
side  with  gold,  thereby  creating  a  gold  and 
silver  bimetallic  system.  The  Government's 
scheme  for  preventing  the  outflow  of  specie, 
meanwhile,  had  been  more  or  less  successful, 
and  sufficient  was  accumulating  to  resume 
specie  payments.  In  1885  the  Government 
announced  that  from  the  beginning  of  the 
following  year  it  would  be  in  a  position  to 
exchange  silver  for  notes,  thus  placing  silver 
on  a  par  with  gold  and  changing  from  a 
bimetallic  standard  to  a  silver  standard. 
The  result  was  an  immense  amount  of  dan- 
gerous speculation  in  the  financial  and  com- 


mercial world,  and  the  Government  began  to 
see  the  need  of  establishing  a  gold  standard. 
The  opportunity  came  after  the  war  with 
China  when  Marquis  Matsukata,  then  Minis- 
ter of  Finance,  asked  that  the  indemnity, 
amounting  to  360,000,000  yen,  be  paid  in 
British  money,  thereby  making  a  big  addition 
to  Japan's  specie.  Thus  in  1896  Japan  was 
ready  for  the  adoption  of  the  gold  standard, 
and  76,000,000  in  coin  was  immediately 
minted,  the  i-yen  silver  coins  being  discon- 
tinued, and  ceasing  to  be  legal  tender  after 
1908.  The  75,000,000  in  silver  yen  collected 
was  disposed  of  partly  by  recoinage  into 
subsidiary  money;  but  41,000,000  yen  were 
sold  to  Shanghai,  Hongkong,  and  elsewhere, 
while  6,750,000  was  placed  in  circulation  in 
Formosa,  Korea,  and  other  colonies.  The 
new  gold  standard  made  the  unit  of  coinage 
•  75  gramme  of  pure  gold,  the  standard  for 
subsidiary   coins   being   as   follows: 


Approximate 

Denomination 

Fineness 

Weight 

Value  in 
British  Money 

Gold    5  yen 

900  gold,  100  copper 

4. 1666  grammes 

£o:ios:6d 

10    " 

"                " 

8-3333 

i:  0  :6 

"     20    " 

11                It 

16.6665 

2:  0  :ll.5 

Silver  10  sen 

720  silver,  280  copper 

2.25 

0:  0  :  2.5 

"      20    " 

800      "      200 

405 

0:  0  :  5 

"      50    " 

** 

10.125 

0:  I  :  0.25 

Nickel  5    " 

250  nickel,  750  copper 

4.66 

0:  0  :  1.25 

Bronze  i 

950  copper,  40  tin 

3.56 

0:  0  :  0.3^8 

"         5  rin 

and  10  zinc 

96 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


The  total  arnount  of  coins  and  bank  notes 
in  circulation  at  the  end  of  191 5  was  as 
follows: 

Gold Yen    37,112,103 

Silver 114,232,513 

Nickel 9,084,710 

Bronze 9,011,398 

Tola! 169,440,724 

Bank  notes 430,138,010 

Grand  lota! 599.5/8,734 

According  to  a  statement  issued  by  the 
Department  of  Finance,  the  total  volume  of 
money  in  circulation  at  the  end  of  November, 
1917,  was  956,859,998  yen,  including  coin  and 
notes.  These  figures  are  further  evidence  of 
the  striking  improvement  in  the  economic 
situation  in  the  past  two  years. 

TAXATION    AND    REVENUE 

Naturally  the  confusion  that  had  so  long 
existed  in  the  national  banking  system  and 
in  the  circulating  medium  reacted  unfavour- 
ably on  finance  generally,  interfering  with  the 
collection  of  revenue.  Under  the  feudal  sys- 
tem the  270  daimyo  had  some  2,000  different 
kinds  of  taxes  which  the  new  Meiji  Govern- 
ment had  to  straighten  out  and  place  on  a 
modem  basis.  The  principal  revenues  of  the 
feudal  barons  had  been  land  tax  paid  in  rice, 
while  the  shogunate  had  a  small  revenue  from 
the  nation's  trifling  foreign  trade  with  China 
and  Holland,  besides  that  from  monopolies 
and  imposts  and  from  private  estates.  The 
aim  of  the  new  regime  was  a  uniform  system 
of  taxation  covering  the  whole  Empire, 
reducing  the  burdensome  land  tax  and  making 
up  the  deficiency  by  indirect  taxation,  so  as 
to  encourage  agricultiu"e.  By  1872  a  com- 
plete survey  of  the  country  had  been  made 
and  titles  to  land  ownership  decided,  the 
lands  being  assessed  on  a  basis  of  the  money 
value  of  their  produce  for  the  previous  five 
years.  The  new  land  tax  was  levied  at  the 
rate  of  three  per  cent  on  this  assessment  and 
payable  in  coin,  while  the  hitherto  onerous 
duties  and  imposts  were  abolished.  As  the 
demand  for  more  revenue  increased  with  the 
nation's  naval  and  military  expansion  new 
taxes  were  levied,  especially  an  income  tax, 
as  well  as  imposts  on  soy,  tobacco,  confec- 
tionery, and  stamps,  the  results  being  so 
satisfactory  that  in  1886  the  Government 
was  able  to  reduce  the  land  tax  again.  After 
the  war  with  China  the  demand  for  revenue 
became  still  more  pressing,  and  it  was  found 
necessary  to  establish  occupation  and  regis- 
tration taxes  as  well  as  to  increase  the  taxes 
on  sake  and  tobacco,  those  on  vehicles  and 
confectionery  being  at  the  same  time  abol- 
ished as  thev  had  added  little  to  the  nation's 


income.  By  this  means  some  35,000,000  yen 
was  added  to  the  treasury.  But  taxation  was 
further  increased  in  1896,  and  again  in  1900, 
after  the  Boxer  uprising  in  China  which 
entailed  an  outlay  in  Japan  of  some  22,000,- 
000  yen.  Further  increase  was  found  neces- 
sary in  1906  after  the  war  with  Russia,  when 
taxes  and  loans  greatly  increased,  the  latter 
alone  amounting  to  over  1,700,000,000  yen. 
The  new  taxes  were  raised  by  virtue  of  what 
is  called  the  Extraordinary  Special  Tax  Law, 
and  at  the  same  time  tobacco  was  made  a 
government  monopoly.  The  new  taxes  were 
an  additional  burden  of  145,000,000  yen  on 
the  people  and  were  considered  by  no  means 
light;  but  the  country  had  been  so  far  devel- 
oped that  the  tax-bearing  capacity  of  the 
people  had  improved  commensurately.  There 
was  considerable  complaint,  however,  and 
some  taxes  had  to  be  readjusted  to  allay 
disaffection.  The  following  table  will  show 
Japan's  revenue  and  expenditure  at  inter- 
vals of  ten  years  for  the  last  forty  years: 


prevent  deficit.  The  burden  of  taxation  thus 
became  markedly  more  onerous  and  the 
incidence  of  taxes  was  in  some  cases  uneven. 
Moreover,  economic  changes  necessitated  the 
abolition  of  some  taxes  and  the  revision  of 
others.  And  so  in  1910  all  taxes  save  that 
on  income  underwent  readjustment,  resulting 
in  a  decrease  of  revenue  to  the  extent  of 
15,000,000  yen;  while  in  1913  a  further  revi- 
sion resulted  in  a  deduction  of  taxation  by 
7,000,000  yen  more,  with  special  relief  to 
persons  of  small  incomes.  As  the  burden 
was  still  more  than  land-holders  could  well 
carry  a  more  radical  revision  came  in  1914, 
relieving  agriculturists  of  some  1 1 ,000,000 
yen  in  taxation.  The  Land  Tax  was  thence- 
forth assessed  upon  a  basis  of  ten  times  the 
annual  rental  value  of  the  land.  On  this 
assessment  residential  land  pays  2.5  per  cent; 
rice  and  other  fields,  4.5  per  cent,  but  3.2  per 
cent  in  Hokkaido;  and  the  other  fields, 
4  per  cent.  Income  Tax  is  payable  by  persons 
domiciled  or  who  have  resided  one  year  in 


Year 

Revenue 

Expenditure 

Surplus 

Yen 

Yen 

Yen 

1876 

1886 

1896 

69,482,677 

62,156,835 

118,432,721 

535,256,392 

608,269,267 

69,203,242 

61,115,313 

85,317,179 

420,741,205 

602,610,719 

279,434 
1,041,522 

33,115,541 

1906 

114,515,187 

1916 

5,658,548 

A  return  of  the  national  finances  for  the 
fiscal  year  ending  June  30,  1917,  gave  the 
receipts  as  813,293,836  yen,  and  the  expen- 
diture as  603,714,531  yen,  leaving  a  hand- 
some surplus  of  209,579,305  yen.  Revenue 
exceeded  the  budget  estimate  by  212,355,439 
yen,  and  expenditure  was  less  than  the  esti- 
mate by  12,919,178  yen.  Figures  issued 
later  in  the  year  showed  that  this  buoyant 
condition  of  the  national  finances  was  being 
more  than  maintained,  revenue  increasing 
by  substantial  sums,  though  the  figures  on 
expenditure  were  not  available  at  the  time 
this  article  was  written. 

In  any  study  of  Japanese  revenue  and 
expenditure  the  question  of  surplus  requires 
more  consideration  than  space  here  permits, 
since  deficits  seem  usually  turned  into  sur- 
plus by  means  of  loans  and  the  transposition 
of  funds,  so  that  a  table  such  as  the  above 
can  not  be  taken  fully  at  its  face  value. 

As  to  sources  of  revenue  in  detail,  it  may 
be  remarked  that  in  the  course  of  these 
observations  it  has  been  shown  that  during 
the  war  with  Russia  taxation  reached  a  higher 
ratio  than  at  any  time  before;  and  after  the 
war  was  over  taxation  was  practically  kept 
at  a  war  level,  as  the  debts  and  post-bellum 
responsibilities   demanded   extra   income   to 


places  where  the  income  tax  law  is  in  force, 
and  by  those  who,  though  not  thus  liable, 
derive  income  from  sources  within  the  Empire 
which  come  under  the  said  law.  There  are 
three  kinds  of  income  tax:  (1)  That  for 
joint-stock  companies  and  other  juridical 
persons;  (2)  That  for  interest  on  public  bonds 
or  company  debentures;  (3)  That  on  incomes 
not  derived  as  in  i  and  2.  In  Class  2  the  rate 
is  2  per  cent,  but  in  other  classes  an  addi- 
tional rate  of  I  per  cent  is  paid  on  incomes 
of  not  less  than  300  yen,  the  rate  increasing 
proportionately  to  22  per  cent  on  incomes  of 
100,000  yen  or  more,  in  accordance  with  the 
Extraordinary  Special  Tax  Law;  and  also 
there  is  the  ordinary  rate  of  2.5  per  cent  for 
Class  I ,  while  Class  2  ranges  on  a  sliding  scale 
from  I  per  cent  on  incomes  of  not  less  than 
300  yen,  to  5.5  per  cent  on  those  of  not  less 
than  100,000  yen.  In  1915  the  statement 
from  this  source  was  as  shown  in  table  at 
top  of  next  page. 

There  is  no  tax  on  incomes  of  army  and 
navy  officers  and  privates  while  engaged  in 
war,  while  income  derived  from  charity, 
pensions,  or  as  legal  support,  or  for  school 
expenses  or  from  government  loan  bonds,  is 
also  exempted.  The  Business  Tax,  which 
was   first   imposed   in    1896,    falls   upon   all 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


97 


Class 

Phrsons 

Incomk 

Tax 

I  . 

16,605 
979,020 

202,627,878 

20,874,384 

622,589,302 

13,168,299 

410,933 

23.933.296 

2 

3 

'raid! 

945.625 

846,091,564 

37,512,528 

descriptions  of  industry  and  commerce, 
assessment  being  based  on  capital,  sales,  com- 
missions, contract  values,  rentals  of  buildings, 
and  2  yen  for  each  employee  other  than 
labourers,  the  rate  for  the  latter  being  50  sen 
each.  The  rate  for  wholesale  houses  is 
12/10,000  on  sales,  and  for  retail  houses 
36/10,000  on  sales,  plus  90/1,000  of  the 
rental  value  of  the  buildings.  The  rate  for 
banking  and  insurance  companies  is  5/1,000 
of  the  capital  and  90/ 1 ,000  of  the  rental, 
while  for  manufacturing,  printing,  publishing, 
and  photography,  the  rate  is  3.7/  1,000  of  the 
capital  and  90/1,000  of  the  rental  value. 
Liquor  Tax  is  levied  on  various  classes  of 
brewers,  such  as  sake  brewers  of  different 
kinds,  beer  brewers,  distillers  of  wine  and 
alcoholic  liquors  and  so  on,  the  rate  vary- 
ing with  the  percentage  of  alcohol,  from  20 
yen  per  40  gallons  for  20  degrees  of  alcohol 


to  I  yen  for  each  degree  per  40  gallons,  in 
the  case  of  sake  brewers;  while  beer  brewers 
pay  10  yen  per  40  gallons,  or  about  sixpence 
a  gallon;  and  distillers  pay  l  yen  for  each 
I  per  cent  of  pure  alcohol  per  40  gallons, 
though  in  no  case  less  than  21  yen  per  40 
gallons.  The  Soy  Tax  is  levied  at  the  rate  of 
1.75  yen  for  each  40  gallons.  Those  making 
soy  for  their  own  use  must  pay  a  tax  of 
from  50  sen  to  4  yen  per  40  gallons.  The 
Mining  Tax  is  at  the  rate  of  30  sen  for  each 
4  square  yards  of  land  still  prospecting,  and 
double  that  rate  for  mines  in  operation.  The 
rate  on  output  is  i  per  cent  on  the  value,  gold, 
silver,  and  iron  ores  being  exempt.  There 
is  also  a  tax  of  30  sen  on  placer  mining  for 
two  and  one-half  acres  in  the  case  of  alluvial 
and  4,000  square  yards  in  non-alluvial  soil. 
A  Travel  Tax  was  imposed  in  1905  and  applies 
to  all  passengers  on  trains,  electric  cars,  and 


steamers,  the  rate  being  go  sen  first  class, 
25  sen  second  class,  and  4  sen  third  class  for 
200  miles  and  upwards,  40  sen,  20  sen,  and 
3  sen  respectively  for  the  various  classes  on 
distances  between  100  and  200  miles,  while 
passengers  travelling  less  than  100  miles  but 
more  than  50  miles,  pay  20,  10,  and  2  sen 
respectively  according  to  class,  and  those 
travelling  less  than  50  miles  pay  5  sen  for 
first  class,  3  sen  for  second,  and  i  sen  for 
third  class.  The  Succession  Tax  came  into 
force  in  1905,  the  rate  varying  according  to 
the  degree  of  relationship  and  other  circum- 
stances connected  with  the  successor  to  the 
headship  of  a  house  and  the  value  of  the 
heritable  property,  ranging  from  i  to  5  per 
cent.  A  Tax  on  Bourses  is  levied,  in  respect 
of  time  bargains,  upon  exchanges,  the  rates 
being  5/10,000  of  the  amount  of  the  transac- 
tion in  the  case  of  local  loan  bonds,  and 
12/10,000  in  the  case  of  other  securities  and 
negotiable  papers,  exempting  national  loan 
bonds.  The  Consumption  Tax  is  on  textiles 
to  the  amount  of  10  per  cent  ad  valorem, 
and  on  kerosene  to  the  amount  of  I  yen  per 
40  gallons.  Sugar  Excise  applies  to  sugar, 
syrup,  and  molasses  delivered  at  manufac- 
tories,  or    customs    or    bonded   warehouses, 


MITSUI   BANK  AND   MINING  DEPARTMENT 


98 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


the  rate  being  from  2  j-en  to  10  yen  per 
picul,  according  to  quality  and  methods  of 
manufacture.  Tonnage  Dues  were  introduced 
in  189C),  and  are  imposed  on  all  ships  enter- 
ing port  from  foreign  countries,  the  rate 
l)eing  5  sen  ]')er  registered  ton  of  the  actual 
capacity,  but  the  payment  at  a  port  of  15 
sen  per  ton  exempts  a  vessel  from  all  further 
tonnage  dues  at  that  port.  Stamp  Receipts 
are  those  other  than  business  tax  and  fees 
from  stamps  generally,  and  are  over  eighty 
in  number,  the  most  important  bping  the 
stamps  on  patent  medicines  and  legal 
documents,  the  registration  tax,  shooting 
license  tax,  civil  suit  stamps,  examination 
fees,  and  certain  custom  house  charges. 
Government  monopolies,  which  are  treated  in 
a  separate  article  in  this  volume,  comprise 
tobacco,  salt,  and  camphor,  as  well  as  opium 
in  Formosa,  the  tobacco  monopoly  being  the 
most  important.  The  revenue  from  Imperial 
Government  Railways  is  treated  as  a  special 
account,  divided  into  Capital,  Reserve,  and 
Revenue  Accounts,  the  excess  of  revenue  over 
expenditure  in  the  Revenue  Account  consti- 
tuting profit,  and  the  balance  remaining  after 
deducting  for  the  Reserve  Account  a  sum 
not  exceeding  10  per  cent  of  the  profit,  is 
transferred  to  the  Capital  Account,  the 
revenue  of  which  is  further  constituted  l^y 
any  public  or  temporary  loans  which  the 
Government  may  issue  in  the  case  of  a  deficit 
in  railway'  profit;  by  proceeds  of  sale  of  rail- 
way property  and  by  other  receipts.  Expen- 
diture of  Capital  Account  consists  of  disburse- 
ments for  construction,  improvements,  up- 
keep and  repair  of  railways,  the  redemption 
of  debts  and  other  charges.  The  expenditure 
of  Reserve  Account  consists  of  disbursements 
to  meet  deficits  in  the  revenues  of  the  other 
accounts  caused  by  accidents,  natural  catas- 
trophes, and  the  like.  The  Custom  Duties 
which  came  into  force  in  1859  and  were  re- 
vised in  1866  and  1899,  with  the  imposition 
of  a  special  super-tax  on  imports  in  1906, 
specify  538  articles  in  19  different  groups. 
The  tariff  was  fiu-ther  revised  in  19  u,  enu- 
merating 647  articles  classified  in  17  groups, 
the  duties  being  specific  as  far  as  possible, 
raw  materials  mostly  free  and  light  duties 
on  semi-manufactured  articles.  The  duties 
on  imports  range  from  15  to  40  per  cent,  the 
higher  rates  applying  chiefly  to  articles  of 
limited  importation;  while  articles  of  luxury, 
also  imported  in  small  quantities,  pay  a  duty 
of  50  per  cent.  A  treaty  with  Great  Britain 
provides  for  a  reciprocal  tariff  on  linen  yams, 
cotton  and  woollen  tissues,  iron,  and  paints. 
As  time  goes  on  the  question  of  revenue  be- 
comes one  of  increasing  importance,  and 
every  possible  resource  has  to  be  called  into 
service.  The  Japanese  army  is  now  three 
times  what  it  was  before  the  war  with  Russia, 


with  corresponding  naval  increment,  to  say 
nothing  of  the  millions  involved  by  partici- 
pation in  the  European  war.  The  national 
specie  holdings  which  amounted  to  some 
353,000,000  yen  before  the  war,  however, 
have,  on  account  of  the  enormous  favourable 
balance  of  trade,  risen  to  nearly  900,000,000 
yen  in  1917,  and  in  this  sense  Japan  has  been 
financially  benefited  by  the  war.  The  follow- 
ing table  indicates  sources  of  revenue  for  the 
last  fifteen  years,  at  intervals  of  five  years  for 
the  sake  of  comparison: 

The  table  on  the  following  page  gives  the 
expenditure  for  the  same  periods. 


THE  NATIONAL  DEBT 
In  Old  Japan  the  people  were  under  obli- 
gation to  lend  money  to  feudal  lords  who 
usually  entered  into  contracts  without  speci- 
fying any  security.  The  rights  of  creditors 
being  thus  unrecognised,  it  was  frequently 
the  case  that  the  lenders  were  forced  to  pro- 
vide further  contributions  or  lose  what  they 
had  already  loaned.  When  the  Meiji  Gov- 
ernment assumed  responsibility  for  the 
estates  of  the  daimyo  investigations  were 
made  as  to  debts  so  contracted,  and  the 
amounts  due  creditors  were  settled  by  public 
loan   bonds,    the   people   at    the    same   time 


Sources:  ORnixARY  T.wes 


Land  tax 

Income  tax 

Business  tax 

Succession  tax 

Travelling  tax 

Mining  tax 

Tax  on  bank  note  issues 

Liquor  tax 

Soy  tax 

Sugar  excise 

Consumption  tax  (textiles) 

"  ,,    (kerosene) 

Bourse  tax 

Custom  duties 

Tonnage  dues 

Other  taxes 

Stamp  receipts 

Public  undertakings,  etc 

Posts,  telegraphs,  and  telephones. . . 

Forests 

Government  Monopolies:  salt 

"  "  camphor. 

"  "  tobacco.. 

Railway  profits 

State  property 

Interest  on  transferred  deposits. ... 
Transferred  from  Korean  account . . 

"              "     Formosan    " 
Other  miscellaneous  receipts 


Total. 


E.\TR-\ORDINARY    REVENUE 


Sales  of  state  property 

Chinese  indemnity 

Issue  of  public  loans 

Forestry  funds  transferred 

Transferred  from  naval  funds 

Riparian  funds  transferred 

Local  contributions  by  prefectures .  .  . 

Temporary'  loans 

Surplus  of  preceding  year  transferred . 
Other  miscellaneous  receipts 


1907 


\\-n 


84,637,498 

26,348,739 

19,770.159 

1,409,425 

2,463,801 

1,928,152 

1,692,285 

71,100,004 

5,601,458 

16,156,704 

5.037.515 

4,679,831 

41.853,533 

580,581 

2I3,I7-1 

34,260,448 

1  liS,090,42l 

34,904,163 

5,468,786 

23,232,385 

1,163,826 

32,574,484 

l6,6iS7,452 

4,059,325 

3,268,885 

2,039,293 

:i.  7  70,346 


562,992,673 


Total . 


Total  revenue. 


3,886,527 

2,200,201 

15,508,259 

1,771,830 


1,330,298 

57,160,585 
4,691,856 


■"^'',549,556 


649,542,229 


191: 


Yen 


74,936,085 

34,755,746 

24,598,612 

4,061,596 

3,918,334 

2,238,072 

1,388,160 

86,032,832 

4,828,316 

17,255.548 

18,916,151 

1,925,503 

4,799,625 

48,518,614 

6.53,817 

244,309 

29,073,697 

132,252,365 

51,963,732 
11,047,947 

I  I,.S.)0,312 

179.903 
51,315.884 

5,904,587 
8,799,826 
1,348,065 

4,918,264 

3,095,146 


640,811,048 


3,704,396 
1,073,401 

11,200,730 
2,426,633 

12,000,000 
10,066,190 


101,247,795 
6,914.362 


148,633,507 


789,444,555 


I9I7 


Yen 


72,592,350 

33,438,186 

20,090,877 

2,853,302 

4.869,954 
2,958,781 
1,060,138 
91,719,091 
4,908,432 

25.3.39,357 

15,144,115 

1,457,021 

3.716,483 
32,024,415 

572,919 

247,739 

28.991,699 

165,702,494 

63,775,300 

10,659,246 

8,951,336 

49,248 

58,802,746 

23,464,618 

11,926,859 

5,011,606 

4,071,399 

3,095.935 


697.495.646 


3,740,201 
2,633,177 
1,550,000 
2,692,113 


2,346,390 
8,000,000 

24.437,759 
23,745,605 


69.145.245 


766,640,891 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


99 


I  )KI)1N.\KV    ExPiiNDITi:RH 


Imperial  househokl 

Foreign  affairs 

Home  affairs 

Finance 

Army 

Navy 

Justice 

Public  instruction 

Agriculture  and  commerce 

Communications 

Tola! 

Extraordinary  Expenditure 

Foreign  affairs 

Home  affairs 

Finance 

Army 

Navy 

Justice 

Public  instruction 

Agriculture  and  commerce 

Communications 

Total 

Total  Expenditure 


1907 


Yen 


;,  ,000,000 

^.672,573 

9.792,372 

2i6,894,,^37 

,V„S24.«95 
27.991.35" 
10,051,150 
5,004,547 
3.671.837 
23,051,172 


339,454.233 


2,308,141 

6.212,594 

1 6.039.521 

30,044,677 

33.885.320 

621,296 

1.935,862 

8,184,815 

25,089,124 


124,321,350 


463,775,583 


1912 


Yen 


4,500,000 

-1,558,942 

1 1,874,612 

185,1 1 1,582 

77.421,744 

40,208,251 

12,612,354 

9,025,399 

7.255.859 
57,320,301 


409,889,044 


1.097,531 

21,742,927 

37.842,241 

27.578,162 

60,255,366 

926,294 

1,422,928 

5,498,022 

19,122,096 


175,485,567 


585,374,611 


191; 


Yen 


4,500,000 

4,551,542 

12,788,981 

154.548.414 
78.855,757 
46,496,165 
11,588,000 

9,774,432 

7,130,440 

67,521,878 


397,755,609 


2,253,600 

34,641.248 
65,282,302 

15.457.357 

55.747.761 

992,664 

823.777 
13,418,081 
15.900,573 


204,507,363 


602,262,972 


being   relieved    of   all   further   obligation    to 
lend  money,  except  voluntarily  under  a  pub- 


lic loan  system  such  as  prevails  in  Occidental 
countries. 


The  first  loan  raised  by  the  new  Govern- 
ment was  one  of  500,000  yen  in  silver  from 
the  British  Oriental  Bank  in  1868,  a  tempor- 
ary accommodation  hardly  in  the  nature  of 
a  loan.  In  1878  a  loan  was  raised  in  London 
to  the  amount  of  £1,000,000  at  9  per  cent  for 
the  construction  of  a  railway  between  Tokyo 
and  Yokohama.  In  1876  and  the  following 
year  pension  bonds  were  issued,  increasing 
the  national  debt  to  250,000,000  yen.  The 
first  real  domestic  loan  was  issued  in  1877  for 
the  extension  of  public  works,  soon  followed 
by  certain  other  loans.  In  1886,  however, 
all  loans  at  more  than  5  per  cent  interest  were 
called  in  and  replaced  by  5  per  cent  bonds. 
A  second  foreign  loan  of  £2,400,000  was 
floated  in  London  a  few  years  later  at  7  per 
cent;  and  in  1897,  after  the  close  of  the  war 
with  China,  a  loan  of  43,000,000  yen  in  war 
bonds  was  floated  at  5  per  cent  in  London, 
followed  by  another  in  1899  in  the  London 
market    to   the   amount    of    £10,000,000    at 

4  per  cent  for  railway  purposes.     In  1902  a 

5  per  cent  loan  for  50,000,000  yen  was  raised 
in  the  same  market,  and  in  1905  a  loan  of 
£10,000,000  in  New  York  and  London.  The 
war  of  1904-5  increased  the  indel^tedness  of 
Japan  by  the  sum  of  1,100,000,000  yen. 
The  table  below  gives  the  general  features 
of  the  Japanese  national  debt  up  to  the  end 
of  March,   1916;  since  which  time  a  further 


Japan's  National  Debt 


Intern.\l  Loans 


Old  Public  Loan 

Five  per  cent  Loans 

Five  per  cent  Loan  (Ko) 

Five  per  cent  Loan  (Special)  .  . 
Five  per  cent  Loan  (Onshi)  .  .  . 

Four  per  cent  Loan 

Korean  Excheciuer  Bonds,  $% 
Railway  Notes,  5% 


Total. 


Interest 
Paid 


None 
Mar.,  Sept. 
June,  Dec. 

Mar.,  Sept. 
Mar.,  Sept. 
June,  Dec. 
Mar.,  Sept. 


When 

Issued 


1872 
1906-16 
1 908-9 

1906 
1910-13 
1910-12 

1913 

1915 


Redemp- 
tion 
Period 


192 1 
1970 
1963 
1935 
1967 
1969 
1917 
1920 


Amount 
Issued 


Yen 


10,972,725 

59,151.800 

476,318,800 

310,407,000 

30,000,000 

276,220,000 

30,000,000 

30,000,000 


1,223,070,325 


Amount 
Redeemed 


Yen 


9,678,972 

422,750 

16,073,200 

162,275,800 

6,527,950 


194,978,672 


Amount 
Out-standing 


Yen 


1.293.753 

58,729,050 

460,245,600 

148,131,200 

30,000,000 

269,692,050 

30,000,000 

30,000,000 


1,028,091,653 


Foreign  Loans 


Sterling  Loan,  4J^2%,  1st  issue   . 
Sterling  Loan,  4^-2 ?-c,  2nd  issue 
Sterling  Loan,  4%,  2nd  issue  . . . 
Sterling  Loan,  5% 


Sterling  Loan,  4%,  3rd  issue  . 
Exchequer  Bonds  (Paris),  5';f,i 
Hokkaido  Railwaj'  Bonds,  5''o 
Kwansai  "         "         4' 2'/ 


Total. 


June,  Dec. 
Feb.,  Aug. 
Jan.,  July 

Jan.,  July 
Mar.,  Sept. 
May,  Nov. 
June,  Dec. 
May,  Nov. 

Jan., July 
June,  Dec. 


1899 
1905 
1905 
1905 
1907 
1910 
1910 

1913 
1906 
1906 


1953 
1925 
1925 
1931 
1947 
1970 
1970 

1923 
1921 
1926 


97,630,000 

292,890,000 

292,890,000 

244,075,000 

224,549,000 

174,150,000 

107,393,000 

77,400,000 

3,905,200 

9,763,000 


4,881,500 

29.311.455 

29,297,006 

4,100 

4,686 

3.290 

195 

194 


92,748,500 
263,578,545 
263,592,994 
244,070,900 

224.544.314 

174,146,711 

107,392.805 

77.399,807 

3,905,200 

9,763.000 


1.524.645.200 


63,502,426 


1,461,142,776 


Grand  Total. 


2,747,715.525 


258,481,098 


2,489,234,429 


^:-^^^^^>-^'as^:-^e^^^»^g^^^i!i5^^^ 


SCENES   IN    TOKYO:   JIUNISO,    SHIMJIKU SACRED    PIGEONS    IN    ASAKUSA    PARK  — PINES    ON    THE    IMPERIAL    PALACE     MOAT- 
CHERRY    BLOSSOMS    IN    UYENO    PARK —CHILDREN    AT    PLAY    IN    THE    PARK 

CHERRY   BLOSSOMS   OVERHANGING   THE   YEDO   RIVER 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


lOI 


domestic  5  per  cent  loan  has  been  contracted 
to  the  amount  of  40,000,000  yen  for  railway 
purposes,  such  funds  during  the  previous  few 
years  having  been  appropriated  from  the 
national  sinking  fund  created  for  the  reduc- 
tion of  the  national  debt. 

In  comparison  with  the  above,  the  following 
table  giving  Japan's  debts,  raised,  redeemed, 
or  outstanding,  for  the  past  fifteen  years  will 
be  found  interesting: 


of  the  Katsura  ministry  the  provision  was 
not  wholly  respected,  large  sums  being  taken 
from  the  sinking  fund  for  railway  purposes; 
but  the  Terauchi  cabinet  promised  to  restore 
the  annual  appropriation  of  50,000,000  yen 
to  the  sinking  fund.  Owing  to  the  abnormal 
increase  of  specie  holdings  during  the  Euro- 
pean war  further  reductions  have  been  made 
in  the  national  debt;  but  there  is  a  general 
conviction  in  financial  circles  that  it  is  better 


Year 

Internal    Loans 

Foreign  Loans 

Total 

Debt  per  Head 

Yon 

Yen 

Yen 

Yen 

1902 

1903 

1904 

1905 

1906 

IQ07 

388,834,195 
404,596,140 

432,550,811 
441,332,521 
661,231,837 

899,975,947 
1,049,546,503 
1,088,645,228 
1,062,605,599 
1,417,128,864 
1,203,139,900 
1,116,216,270 
1,066,247,341 
1,054,633,854 

991,531,578 

97,630,000 

97,630,000 

97,630,000 

97,630,000 

605,306,000 

970,410,310 

1,146,160,579 

1,165,701,224 

1,165,701,224 

1,165,675,449 

1,447,215,716 

1,437,449,203 

1,427,682,905 

1,490,436,651 

1,485,550,664 

486,464,195 

502,226,140 

530,180,811 

538,962,521 

1,266,537,837 

1,870,386,257 

2,195,707,082 

2,254,346,452 

2,228,306,822 

2,582,804,313 

2,650,355,615 

2,553,665,473 

2,492,930,245 

2,545,070,505 

2,477,082,242 

10.412 
10.843 
10.865 
25.262 
36.922 
42.912 
43-486 
42.141 
48.438 
39-356 
38.001 
35-780 
34-198 
34- 155 
32.525 

1908 

1909 

1910 

IQI  I 

I9I2 

I9I3 

I9I4 

I9I5 

I9I6 

During  the  buoyant  times  that  have  pre- 
vailed since  the  outbreak  of  the  war  the 
Government  has  taken  every  opportunity  of 
redeeming  portions  of  the  national  debt. 
At  the  close  of  September,  19 17,  the  total 
stood  at  2,485,913,311  yen,  of  which  1,353,- 
470,089  yen  was  foreign  obligations  and 
the  balance  was  owed  internally.  If  these 
figures  are  compared  with  those  for  1916 
in  the  table  above  it  will  be  seen  how 
Japan,  while  her  debt  has  increased  by  only 
about  nine  millions,  has  reduced  her  foreign 
obligations  by  over  130,000,000  yen,  while 
she  has  become  a  greater  debtor  to  her  own 
people — in  other  words,  more  self-contained 
financially. 

Japan  took  advantage  of  the  low  rate  of 
interest  prevailing  in  1910  to  raise  4  per  cent 
loans  for  the  purpose  of  converting  her  5 
per  cents,  so  far  as  the  period  for  not  redeem- 
ing which  had  expired,  thus  saving  the 
treasury  an  annual  outlay  of  £368,739  in 
interest.  The  total  amount  of  loans  so 
redeemed  or  converted  was  523,300,000  yen. 
The  National  Debt  Consolidation  Fund  Bill 
provides  that  not  less  than  110,000,000  yen 
shall  be  set  apart  annually  from  the  general 
account  for  the  purpose  of  redeeming  the 
war  bonds  issued  in  connection  with  the 
Russo-Japanese  War;  and  later  a  sinking 
fund  was  established  to  receive  an  annual 
allotment  of  50,000,000  yen  toward  reduc- 
tion of  the  national  debt;  but  after  the  fall 


to  hold  the  debt  at  present  than  have  to  bor- 
row at  higher  interest  after  the  war. 

BANKS  AND  BANKING 
It  has  already  been  shown  that  the  Gov- 
ernment, finding  itself  without  proper  mone- 
tary organs  at  the  beginning  of  the  Meiji 
era,  induced  wealthy  companies  to  undertake 
banking  business  under  special  control  of  a 
Board  of  Trade;  but  the  privilege  of  issuing 
gold  and  silver  certificates,  which  they 
possessed,  led  to  their  undoing  and  the  whole 
banking  system  of  the  Empire  had  to  be 
reorganised  in  1872,  the  Government  pro- 
mulgating National  Bank  Regulations  mod- 
elled on  the  National  Bank  Act  of  the  L^nited 
States.  The  new  regulations  provided  for 
the  conversion  of  national  bank  notes  into 
specie.  Further  regulations  were  issued  in 
1883  depriving  national  banks  of  the  right 
to  issue  notes;  and  other  regulations  in  1884 
provided  for  the  establishment  of  savings 
banks.  Meanwhile  the  producing  power  of 
the  people  was  growing,  capital  was  accum- 
ulating, foreign  trade  was  fast  developing, 
and  bank  desposits  experiencing  unprece- 
dented increases.  By  1893  the  number  of 
banks  had  grown  to  763,  with  94,000,000  yen 
of  capital,  45,000,000  yen  of  deposits,  with 
loans  amounting  to  178,000,000  yen,  and 
bills  discounted  aggregating  211,000,000  yen. 
In  1903  the  number  of  banks  was  2,307;  total 
capital,  377,000,000  yen;  deposits,  755,000,- 


000  yen;  loans,  579,000,000  yen;  bills  dis- 
counted, 3,587,000,000  yen.  Thus  rapid 
development  continued  until,  in  1913,  the 
number  of  Japanese  banks  was  2,165;  capital, 
704,000,000  yen :  deposits,  1 1 ,048,000,000  yen ; 
loans,  3,050,000,000  yen;  and  bills  discounted, 
3,059,000,000  yen  annually. 

The  banks  of  Japan  are  divided  into  two 
classes,  ordinary  and  special  banks,  the 
former  for  the  general  circulation  of  capital 
and  the  latter  for  specific  functions.  The 
ordinary  banks  are  under  control  of  the 
Minister  of  Finance  whose  license  is  required 
for  their  establishment  or  for  the  amalga- 
mation of  existing  institutions.  He  is  em- 
powered to  investigate  the  condition  of  a 
bank  at  any  time;  and  all  banks  must  submit 
to  him  semi-annually  a  balance  sheet  and 
publish  the  same  in  the  press.  The  special 
banks  are,  as  has  been  said,  for  special  pur- 
poses, on  which  account  they  have  certain 
restrictions  which  are  compensated  for  by 
certain  privileges,  enabling  them  to  make 
more  profit,  while  at  the  same  time  they  are 
under   government   protection   and    control. 

FOREIGN  BANKS 
Among  the  foreign  banks  doing  business  in 
Japan  are  the  Hongkong  &  Shanghai  Banking 
Corporation,  the  Chartered  Bank  of  India, 
Australia,  and  China,  The  International 
Banking  Corporation  of  the  United  States, 
and  the  Russo-Asiatic  Bank,  for  further 
details  m  connection  with  which  the  reader 
is  referred  to  the  Foreign  Banking  Section 
(see  page  129),  following  the  detailed  descrip- 
tion of  the  Japanese  banks. 

LOAN  ASSOCI.\TIONS 
Besides  the  banks  there  are  in  Japan 
Loan  Associations  for  the  purpose  of  affording 
financial  facilities  to  the  poorer  classes.  The 
Mutual  Loan  Society  Act,  passed  in  19 15, 
restricts  promoters  of  loan  associations  to 
persons  with  a  capital  of  at  least  30,000  yen. 
At  present  these  societies  throughout  the 
country  number  831,  with  a  capital  of 
20,336,750  yen  of  which  only  6,946,884  yen 
is  paid  up,  and  having  liabilities  of  137,000,- 
000  yen.  In  Japan  much  use  is  made  of 
pawnbrokers,  of  whom  there  are  some 
30,000,  whose  interest  on  loans  amounts  to 
from  20  to  48  per  cent  per  annum.  There 
is  great  need  for  enlarging  the  scope  of  the 
Credit  Associations  to  provide  still  greater 
accommodation  to  those  now  exposed  to  the 
rapacity  of  usurers. 

A  difficulty  which  foreigners  experience  in 
connection  with  investments  in  Japanese 
securities  should  here  be  mentioned.  It  is 
very  difficult  for  those  not  able  to  read  the 
Japanese  language  to  ascertain  just  when 
securities  are  redeemed;  and  it  often  occurs 


102 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


that  the  holder  of  bonds  does  not  find  this 
out  until  the  coupons  for  the  next  half-year 
are  presented,  when  he  discovers  that  the 
bonds  were  redeemed  six  months  before  and 
he  must  lose  half  a  year's  interest.  This  is 
especially  the  case  with  municipal  bonds, 
notice  of  the  redemption  of  which  may  be 
published  in  some  obscure  journal,  and  even 
banks  sometimes  are  unaware  that  the  secur- 
ities they  have  in  safe-custody  have  been 
redeemed. 

NATION.^L  WEALTH  OF  JAPAN 
Outside  the  realm  of  government  finance 
and  banking,  statistics  are  not  so  easily 
available,  but  the  finances  of  the  larger  towns, 
villages,  and  municipaUties  are  known.  The 
revenue  of  prefectiu-es  consists  of  taxes, 
rates,  and  also  of  grants  from  the  national 
treasury.  A  sur-tax  is  levied  on  the  five 
national  taxes:  on  business,  land,  income, 
mining,  and  placer  mining  tax.  The  total 
amount  granted  from  the  national  treasury 
to  prefectures  in  1915  was  43,000,000  yen; 
and  special  subventions  are  made  in'  cases  of 
epidemic,  flood,  for  riparian  work  or  indus- 
trial encouragement.  The  revenue  of  towns 
and  municipalities  comes  from  property, 
rents  and  taxes,  school  fees  and  treasury 
grants,  with  the  same  sur-taxes  as  prefectures 
levy.  The  total  revenue  for  Japanese  pre- 
fectures, towns,  villages,  and  ■  municipaUties 
during  the  year  1915  ^^'as  286,755,540  yen, 
and  the  total  expenditure  283,746,924  yen, 
while  the  total  indebtedness  of  the  towns, 
villages,  and  municipalities  of  the  Empire 
was  334,892,234  yen.  Of  this  indebtedness 
the  amount  of  191,359.000  yen  rests  on  the 
cities  of  Tokyo,  Kyoto,  Osaka,  Yokohama, 
and  Nagoya,  as  foreign  loans. 

The  present  national  wealth  of  Japan  as  a 
whole  is  estimated  as  follows: 

Yen 

Land 17,052,000,000 

Buildings 6,771,000,000 

Furniture  and  valuables 3,428,000,000 

Domestic  animals,  poultry,  etc.      205,000,000 

Minerals 1,059,000,000 

Marine  products 1,476,000,000 

Forestry  products 776,000,000 

Electric,  gas  and  water  works . .      337,000,000 
Ships,    warships,    and    rolling 

stock 772,000,000 

Gold    and    silver    coins    and 

bullion 401,000,000 

Banks  and  companies 1,060,000,000 

Merchandise 1,511,000,000 

Railways,  telegraphs,  and  tele- 
phones     1,338,000,000 

Libraries 27,000,000 

Harbours,  rivers,  and  canals.  .    1,303,000,000 

Total 37,516,000,000 

Wealth  per  capita 725,000 


THE  BANK  OF  JAPAN 
The  Bank  of  Japan  was  created  in  1882 
as  a  necessary  part  of  the  Government's 
scheme  for  replacing  the  paper  currency  by 
metal  and  for  bringing  private  banks  and 
banking  companies  into  uniformity,  and 
soon  it  became  the  only  institution  authorised 
to  issue  notes.  The  bank  started  with  a 
capital  of  10,000,000  yen,  which  has  been 
three  times  increased,  and  now  stands  at 
60,000,000  yen,  of  which  37,500,000  yen  is 
paid  up.  This  bank  is  privileged  to  issue 
notes  against  gold  and  silver  coins  and  bullion 
and,  further,  to  issue  notes  on  security  of 
government  bonds  or  treasury  bills  and 
other  bonds  or  bills  of  a  rehable  nature,  the 
maximum  of  notes  in  the  latter  case  being 
120,000,000  yen.  In  case  of  necessity  the 
maximum  may  be  exceeded,  provided  the 
bank  pays  a  tax  of  at  least  5  per  cent  per 
annum.  The  business  of  the  Bank  of  Japan 
is  principally  to  discount  or  purchase  govern- 
ment bills,  bills  of  exchange,  or  commercial 
bills;  to  buy  or  sell  gold  or  silver  bullion;  to 
make  loans  on  security  of  gold  or  silver  coins 
or  bullion;  to  collect  bills  for  banks,  com- 
panies, or  merchants,  who  are  regular  cus- 
tomers; to  receive  deposits  and  accept  cus- 
tody of  articles  of  value  in  precious  metals 
or  documents;  to  make  advances  for  fixed 
periods  on  security  of  government  paper  or 
documents  guaranteed  by  the  Government. 
The  Bank  of  Japan  is  also  entrusted  with  the 
management  of  the  treasury  receipts  and 
disbursements. 

The  expansion  of  business  transacted  by 
the  bank  is  illustrated  by  a  comparison  of  the 
figures  shown  in  the  following  tables: 

The  Amount  of  Note  Issues  and   Specie 

Reserve  on  Hand  at  the  Close  of 

Five-Year  Periods 


Year 


Note 
Issues 


1885 

1 890 

1895 

1900 

1905 

1910 

IQ15 

1916 

191 7  (June  30) 


Yen 


Specie 
Reserve 


3,956,161 
102,931,766 
180,336,815 
228,520,032 
312,790,819 
401,624.928 
430,138,010 
601,224,410 
605,918,047 


Yen 


44,622,413 
60,370,797 
67.349,129 
115.59,5,026 
222,382,465 
248,417,800 
410,519,000 
486,520,060 


Tot.^l  Transactions  of  the  Bank 


Year 

1882  (for  S3  days  from  Oct 

10  to  Dec.  31) 

1885 

1890 


Yen 


roTAL  Transactions  of  the  Bank 
(Continued) 


Year 


1895 
1900 

1905 
1910 

1915 
1916 


Yen 


3,013,921,253 
9.748,987,192 
29.156,254,123 
38,702,112,955 
34,674,112,431 
40,610,210,097 


5,762,270 
882,315,837 
,213,369,812 


The  administration  of  the  Bank  of  Japan 
is  in  the  hands  of  the  Administrative  Board 
consisting  of  one  Governor,  one  Vice-Govem- 
or,  and  four  Directors.  The  Governor 
presides  over  the  Administrative  Board  and 
executes  the  resolutions  passed  at  the 
meetings  of  the  board.  The  present  Govern- 
or is  Viscount  Yataro  Mishima,  and  the 
Vice-Govemor  is  Kesaroku  Mizumachi, 
Hogakuhakushi. 

The  business  at  the  head  office  of  the  bank 
is  actually  conducted  through  the  following 
divisions,  under  the  management  of  a  chief 
officer  for  each  division:  (i)  Inspector's 
Bureau;  (2)  Business  Department;  (3)  Cash 
Department;  (4)  Treasury  Department; 
(5)  Secretary's  Department;  (6)  Securities 
Department;  (7)  Accountant  Department; 
(8)  Economic  Research  Department;  (9)  Pri- 
vate Secretary's  Bureau  The  bank  has 
eleven  branches  which  are  located  at  Osaka, 
Saibu  (Moji),  Kyoto,  Xagoya,  Otaru,  Hako- 
date, Fukushima,  Hiroshima,  Kanazawa, 
Niigata,  and  Matsumoto. 

The  Bank  of  Japan  publishes  a  half-yearly 
balance  sheet  in  February  and  August  of 
each  year,  when  the  general  meetings  of 
shareholders  are  to  be  held,  and  at  the 
general  meeting  in  February  also  publishes 
a  business  report  for  the  preceding  year.  In 
addition  to  these  reports  the  bank  publishes 
on  each  Wednesday  a  weekly  balance  sheet. 

The  half-yeariy  report  to  June  30,  1917, 
showed  a  surplus,  or  net  profit  for  the  term, 
of  4,691,961.54  yen  which  was  distributed  as 
follows:  Ordinary  dividends  at  6  per  cent 
per  annum,  1,125,000  yen;  secondary  divi- 
dends at  6  per  cent,  1,125,000  yen;  depre- 
ciation in  properties,  10,000  yen;  bonuses 
and  social  expenses  for  officers,  182,000  yen; 
carried    forward,    1,749,961-54   yen. 

THE  VOKOHAIIA  SPECIE  BANK,  LIMITED 
The  Yokohama  Specie  Bank,  Limited, 
officially  known  in  Japan  as  the  Yokohama 
Shokin  Ginko,  is  perhaps  the  most  prosperous 
and  popular  of  all  the  banking  institutions 
of  the  Empire,  being  second  to  none  save  the 
Bank  of  Japan,  Founded  in  1880  with  a 
capital  of  3,000,000  yen,  for  the  purpose  of 
affording  financial  facilities  to  the  nation's 
foreign  trade,  the  institution  passed  trium- 
phantly  through    the  economic  vicissitudes 


THE    HEAD    OFFICE    OF    THE    YOKOHAMA    SPECIE    BANK,    LIMITED,    YOKOHAMA 


I04 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


of  early  Meiji  finance  and  became  inde- 
pendent of  state  aid  as  early  as  1S89.  Since 
that  time,  owing  to  steady  expansion  and 
augmentation  of  business,  the  bank  has  been 
obliged  to  double  its  capital  four  times,  until 
now  it  stands  at  48,000,000  yen,  of  which 
36,000,000  yen  is  paid  up,  with  a  substantial 
reserve  fund  amounting  to  22,100,000  yen, 
and  paying  an  annual  dividend  of  12  per 
cent  since  1902. 

The  Yokohama  Specie  Bank  was  originally 
conducted  under  the  provisions  of  the 
National  Banking  Law;  but  a  special  Imperial 
Ordinance,  entitled  "  The  Yokohama  Specie 
Bank  Regulations,"  promulgated  in  1887, 
provides  strict  government  supervision,  under 
which  all  the  business  of  the  bank  is  now 
carried  on.  The  accounts  of  the  bank  are 
always  open  to  the  government  auditor,  and 
a  half-yearly  balance  sheet  approved  by  him 
has  to  be  presented  to  the  Government  and 
published  in  the  press.  The  term  of  the 
bank's  business  operations  was  originally 
fixed  at  a  period  of  twenty  years  from  the 
foundation  of  the  institution;  but  at  an 
Extraordinary  General  Meeting  of  the  share- 
holders convened  on  September  10,  1897,  it 
was  decided,  with  the  approval  of  the  Minis- 
ter of  Finance,  to  prolong  the  term  for 
another  twenty  years,  commencing  from 
February  28,  1900;  after  which  there  is  no 
doubt  that  the  term  will  again  be  extended. 

Among  the  great  financial  institutions  of 
Japan  the  Yokohama  Specie  Bank,  Limited, 
occupies  a  position  of  yearly  increasing 
importance.  It  is  often  entrusted  with 
matters  relating  to  foreign  loans  and  with 
the  management  of  public  money  for  inter- 
national account.  As  the  chief  monetary 
organ  of  the  nation's  foreign  commerce,  the 
Yokohama  Specie  Bank  pays  particular 
attention  to  foreign  exchange  and  the  finan- 
cial adjustment  of  trade.  During  the  war 
in  Europe  this  bank  took  an  important  part 
in  floating  the  British,  French,  Russian,  and 
other  loans  in  Japan  for  the  promotion  of 
the  interests  of  the  Allies.  The  bank  is 
authorised  to  issue  in  the  Province  of  Kwan- 
tung  and  in  China  bank  notes  convertible 
into  silver. 

The  ordinary  business  of  the  Yokohama 
Specie  Bank  consists  of  foreign  and  inland 
exchange,  loans,  deposits  of  money  and  safe- 
custody  of  articles  of  value,  discount  and 
collection  of  bills  of  exchange,  promissory 
notes  and  other  securities,  as  well  as  exchange 
of  coins.  The  bank  may  also  buy  and  sell 
public  bonds,  gold  and  silver  bulUon,  or  for- 
eign specie,   as  circumstances  may   dictate. 

The  enormous  extent  of  the  bank's  business 
may  be  inferred  from  its  increasing  extension 
in  every  part  of  the  world.  In  Japan  the 
bank  has  branches  in  Tokyo,  Osaka,  Kob^, 


THE    PALACE    OF    THE    GOVERNOR    OF    KANAG.^AVA    PREFECTURE    AT    YOKOHAMA 


and  Nagasaki,  while  abroad  it  has  branches 
at  London,  England,  and  Lyons,  France. 
In  the  United  States  branches  of  the  Yoko- 
hama Specie  Bank,  Limited,  are  found  at 
New  York,  San  Francisco,  and  Los  Angeles, 
as  well  as  at  Honolulu.  Further  branches 
are  at  Sydney,  Australia,  Bombay  and  Cal- 
cutta, India,  and  Hongkong  and  Singapore. 
In  China  branches  are  estal^lished  at  Shang- 
hai, Tsingtau,  Sinanfu,  Hankow,  Tientsin, 
Pekin,  Newchwang,  Dairen,  Port  Arthur, 
Mukden,  Tiehling,  Changchun,  Antung- 
Hsien,  Harbin,  and  Liaoyang.  The  bank 
also  has  correspondents  in  all  the  chief 
cities  of  the  world,  numbering  in  all  some 
three  hundred  and  fifty. 

The  superb  structure  which  forms  the  head 
office  of  the  Yokohama  Specie  Bank,  Limited, 
at  Yokohama  adapts  the  best  features  of 
modern  bank  buildings  of  the  most  advanced 


type  to  the  requirements  of  customs  and  con- 
ditions peculiar  to  Japan,  architectural  beauty 
being  skillfully  modified  both  externally  and 
internally  to  secure  solidity  in  a  land  of 
earthquakes,  as  well  as  to  ensure  utility 
of  service. 

The  Yokohama  Specie  Bank,  Limited,  has 
always  been  fortunate  in  the  character  and 
capacity  of  its  personnel.  The  present  presi- 
dent of  the  institution,  J.  Inouye,  Esq.,  is 
one  of  the  most  distinguished  of  the  nation's 
3-ounger  financiers,  as  well  as  a  master  of 
foreign  economic  knowledge;  while  the  vice- 
president,  Mr.  Y.  Yamakawa,  and  all  the 
directors  are  no  less  prominent  among  the 
financial  circles  of  the  Empire. 

The  table  below,  giving  the  balance  at  the 
end  of  each  year,  will  indicate  the  progress  of 
the  bank's  business  during  ten  ordinary 
years. 


Year 

Authorised 
Capit.^l 

Reserve 
Fund 

Deposits 

Loans 

Earnings 

Net 
Profit 

Divi- 
dend 

Yen 

Yen 

Yen 

Yun 

Yen 

Yen 

Per 
Cent 

1906 

24,000,000 

13.934.861 

120,004,921 

82,981,221 

22,125,099 

4,903,032 

12 

1907 

24,000,000 

14,591,707 

120,747,331 

99.379.166 

24,105,828 

4,030,405 

12 

1908 

24,000,000 

15,490,928 

116,526,482 

63,958.138 

22,238,051 

3,830,125 

12 

1909 

24,000,000 

16,483,130 

144,864,900 

54,740,180 

21,024,000 

3.655.731 

12 

1910 

24,000,000 

17,064,101 

120,864,978 

68,339,947 

21.415,574 

3,500,382 

J  2 

1911 

48,000,000 

17.514.833 

140,435,183 

83,461,469 

20,859,329 

3,837,346 

12 

1912 

48,000,000 

18,210,252 

166,191,379 

105,017,699 

28,166,562 

4.323,925 

12 

1913 

48,000,000 

19,819,232 

187,851,101 

107,274,127 

43,325,951 

4,348.427 

12 

1914 

48,000,000 

20,085,268 

180,890,765 

104,012,185 

43,229,419 

4.367,7,59 

12 

1915 

48,000,000 

21,350,172 

174.573.759 

94,320,381 

38,108,817 

4,401,468 

12 

PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


105 


Liabilities 

Assets 

Yen 

Yen                          Yen 

Capital  (paid  up) 36,000,000 .  00 

Reserve  fund 22,100,000.00 

Reserve  for  doubtful  debts.  .  .      2,828,504.21 
Notes  in  circulation 20,023,208  95 

Cash  account : 

In  hand....   39.915,479-39 

At  bankers. 133,320,613. 13  173,236,092.52 

In\'estments  in  public  securi- 
ties     25,780,5 II . 68 

Bills  discounted,  loans,  advan- 
ces, etc 225,531,618.83 

Bills  receivable  and  other  sums 

due  to  the  bank 551,767,497.66 

Bullion  and  foreign  money..     3,476,836.33 

Bank's    premises,    properties, 

furniture,  etc 2,963,397  .  00 

Deposits  (current,  fixed,  etc.)  527,004,429.91 

Bills  payable,  bills  rediscount- 
ed,   acceptances  and   other 
sums  due  by  the  bank. .  .  .368,909,057.45 

Dividends  unclaimed 10,304.77 

Balance    of    profit    and    loss 
brought   forward   from  last 
account 2,226,757  .81 

Net  profit  for  the  past  half- 
year 3,653,690.92 

Yen  982,755,954.02 

Y'en  982,755,954.02 

Pkofit  and  Loss  Account 


1)K. 

Cr. 

^■n 

Yen 

To  interests,  taxes,  current  ex- 
penses,  rebate   on   bills   cur- 
rent, bad  and  doubtful  debts, 
bonus  for  officers  and  clerks, 
etc 46,084,294 .  89 

To  reserve  fund 1,000,000.00 

To  dividend: 

6.00  yen  per  old  share  for) 

240,000  shares                     (        . 

,         ,     )  2,160,000.00 
3.00  yen  per  new  share  fori 

240,000  shares                     \ 

To  balance  carried  forward  to 

next  account 2  720  448  73 

By    balance    brought    forward 

June  30,  1917 2,226,757.81 

By  amount  of  gross  profits  for 
the  half-year  ending  Decem- 
ber 31,  1917 49.737.985-81 

Y'en  51,964,743.62 

Yen  51,964,743.62 

PHCENIX    PAVILION,    SHOWING    ARCHITECTURE    OF    1,200    YEARS    AGO 


The  figures  in  the  tables  on  this  page 
show  the  position  of  the  Yokohama  Specie 
Bank  as  at  December  31,  1917. 

Following  are  the  Directors  of  this  impor- 
tant institution:  Messrs.  Junnosuke  Inouye, 
President;  Yuki  Yamakawa,  Vice-President; 
Nagatane  Soma,  Kokichi  Sonoda,  Riyemon 
Kimura,  Rokuro  Hara,  Masnoske  Odagiri, 
Tchunosuke  Kawashima,  Baron  Koyata 
Iwasaki,  and  Konojo  Tatsumi. 

THE  DAI-ICHI  GINKO,  LIMITED 

This  important  institution,  which  deserv- 
edly ranks  very  high  in  banking  circles  in 
Japan,  was  formerly  the  First  National  Bank, 
and  was  established  in  1873.  Several  changes 
took  place  in  the  early  history  of  the  bank, 
and  its  capital  was  at  different  stages  in- 
creased to  enable  it  to  extend  its  operations. 
The  Dai-Ichi  Ginko  was  formally  incor- 
porated under  the  present  Banking  Act  of 
Japan  in  1896,  and  its  development  has  been 
such  that  now  it  is  one  of  the  richest  and  most 
sound  of  the  first  group  of  important  banks 
in  the  country.  The  capital  is  22,700,000 
yen,  of  which  16,250,000  yen  has  been  fully 
paid  up,  and  its  reserves  amount  to  the  sub- 
stantial total  of  11,200,000  yen.  A  general 
banking  business  is  conducted  on  a  wide  scale 
both  locally  and  abroad.  The  bank's  head 
office  is  at  No.  i  Kabutocho,  Nihonbashi-ku, 
Tokyo.  Branches  are  maintained  in  Yoko- 
hama, Kyoto,  Hakodate,  Kob^,  Osaka, 
Nagoya,  Otaru,  and  Shimonoseki,  as  well  as 
sub-branches  in  each  of  the  most  important 
centres,  the  total  in  Japan  being  twenty-four. 
In  Korea  the  Dai-Ichi  Ginko  has  branches 
at  Seoul  and  Fusan,  while  in  foreign  countries 
it  is  represented  by  correspondents  among 
the  leading  banks  of  the  world.  The  Board 
of  Directors  consists  of  the  following: 
Chairman,  Mr.  Y^.  Sasaki;  Directors,  Baron 
H.  Mitsui,  Prince  Y.  Tokugawa,  and  Messrs. 
T.  Kumagai,  Y.  Kusaka,  S.  Sasaki,  and 
G.  Tanaka.  The  Auditors  are  Messrs.  T. 
Doki  and  J.  Odaka.  In  the  forty-second  half- 
yearly  report  for  the  period  ending  June  30, 
191 7,  the  Directors  were  able  to  show  a  very 
satisfactory  state  of  affairs  for  this  famous 
bank.  The  gross  profit  was  5,676,277.55 
yen,  from  which  had  to  be  deducted  the 
general  expenditure  of  3,963,614.10  yen, 
lea\'ing  a  net  profit  of  1,712,663.45  yen,  to 
which  was  added  the  balance  brought  for- 
ward from  the  last  account,  viz.,  819,535.93 
yen,  making  a  total  divisible  profit  of  2,532,- 
199.38  yen.  Of  this  sum  700,000.00  yen  was 
added  to  the  reserve  (thus  raising  that 
account  to  11,200,000.00  yen).  Dividends 
were  declared  totalling  864,187.50  yen; 
85,630.00  yen  was  allotted  as  bonus  to  direc- 
tors, auditors,  and  chief  officers;  34,250.00 
yen  was  added  to  the  pension  fund  and  a 


io6 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


i 


TOKYO    PREMISES    OF    DAI-ICHI    GINKO,    LIMITED 


Liabilities 

Assets 

Yen 

Yen 

Capital 22,700,000 .  00 

Reserve  fund 10,500,000 .  00 

Redemption  fund  for  the  bank 

notes 5,122,000.00 

Current  accounts 95,526,764.47 

Deposit  receipts 83,855,274.08 

Other  liabilities 14,886,374.03 

Due  to  correspondents 3,802,545 .  59 

Acceptances  for  customers  . .  .      1,843,586.38 

Balance  brought  forward 819,535 .  93 

Net  profits  for  the  half-year.  .      1,712,663  .45 

Unpaid  capital 6,450,000.00 

Cash   in   hand   and   with   the 

Bank  of  Japan 18,666,938.25 

Investments 32,251,864.35 

Bills  discounted 58,211,560.63 

Loans  and  advances 118,073,420.42 

Due  from  correspondents.  .  .  .  3,162,882.07 
Liability     of     customers     for 

acceptances  per  contra.  .  .  .  1,843,586.38 
Rank  premises,  etc 2,108,491 .83 

Yen  240,768,743.93 

Yen  240,768,743.93 

balance  of  848,131.88  yen  was  carried  for- 
ward to  the  next  half-year.  The  balance 
sheet  for  the  period  to  June  30,  1917,  is 
given  above. 

THE  JUGO  GINKO,  LIMITED 
This  institution  is  also  known  as  the 
Fifteenth  National  Bank,  or  Nobles'  Bank. 
It  was  founded  under  the  old  National  Bank- 
ing Act  in  May,  1877,  and  on  the  termination 
of  the  original  charter  it  was  reorganised  in 


all  respects  as  a  joint-stock  concern  with  a 
capital  of  18,000,000  yen.  In  the  following 
year  Mr.  K.  Sonoda  was  elected  President. 
By  October,  1913,  the  capital  of  the  Jugo 
Bank,  Ltd.,  was  increased  to  40,000,000  yen, 
of  which  23,500,000  yen  is  now  paid  up. 
The  reserves  now  total  5,800,000  yen.  The 
Governing  Board  comprises  the  Hon.  Iwao 
Matsukata,  President;  Mr.  Masayasu  Na- 
ruse,  Vice-President,  and  the  following 
Directors:     Mr.    Kokichi    Sonoda,    Viscount 


Hisayoshi  Kano,  Viscount  YukiyoshiAoyama, 
Mr.  Yoshitero  Shimizu,  Marquis  Yorimichi 
Tokugawa,  and  the  Hon.  Nayayuki  Asano. 
The  Auditors  are  Messrs.  Mazakazu  Hisano, 
Naoyoshi  Yamamoto,  and  Tomaki  Hano. 
Mr.  Yutsuha  Sato  is  the  Manager  and  Mr. 
Kazusuke  Kumai  is  the  Sub-Manager.  The 
head  office  is  at  Xo.  6  Kobiki-cho,  Shichi- 
chome,  Kyobashi-ku,  Tokyo,  and  there  is 
one  branch  at  Nihonbashi-ku  in  the  metro- 
politan area.  The  Jugo  Bank,  Ltd.,  has  the 
following  London  branches  and  agencies: 
Parr's  Bank,  Ltd.,  Lazard  Bros.  &  Co.,  and 
the  Union  Discount  Co.,  of  London,  Ltd. 

The  Jugo  Bank,  Ltd.,  does  a  general  bank- 
ing business  and  its  record  is  one  of  continued 
and  pronounced  success.  The  last  balance 
sheet,  to  June  30,  1917,  showed  the  state  of 
affairs  for  the  six  months'  operations  (see 
next  page). 

THE  INDUSTRI.\L  B.\XK  OF  J.\P.\N, 
LIMITED  (NIPPON  KOGYO  GINKO) 
The  Industrial  Bank  of  Japan  is  one  of 
the  special  banks  under  direct  charter  from 
the  Imperial  Government,  and  was  estab- 
lished in  1902,  under  the  provisions  of  a 
special    act    of    the    Imperial    Diet     which 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


107 


Dr.  Yen 

Capital 40,000,000 .  00 

Reserve  funds 5,540,000.00 

Deposits,  current  accounts,  etc. 44, 750, 246. 10 
Due  to  other  banks  and  agents      388,913.68 

Dividends  unpaid 579-39 

Rebate  on  bills  discounted  and 

interest  unpaid 536,681 .96 

Profit 2,364,203.40 


93,580,624.5;, 


Cr.  Yen 

Capital  unpaid 16,500,000.00 

Loans   on   securities   and   bills 

discounted 39,700,684 .  85 

Account   with   Bank  of  Japan 

and  other  banks 5,659,263.40 

Government  bonds  (face  value 

33,726,300.00  yen) 22,232,980.25 

Foreign  government  bonds.  .  .  .       998,000.00 

Other  securities 3,459,600.00 

Due    from    other    banks    and 

agents 340,176.84 

Bank  premises,  etc 462,961 .06 

Cash 4,226,958. 13 

93,580,624.53 


Profit   akd  Loss  Account  for  the   Sik   Months   Ending  Junf   30,    191 


To  reserve  fund 260,000 .  00 

"    bonus  for  the  officers 68,000.00 

"    dividends  for  the  half-year 

at  the  rate  of  9  per  cent 

per  annum 1,057,500.00 

"    balance  carried  forwarii  to 

next  account 978,703 ,  40 

2,364,203  40 


By  net  profit  for  the  half-year. .    1,394,894. 13 
"    Ijalance     brought     forward 

from  Dec.  31,  1916 9^9,309  27 


2,364,203.40 


promulgated   laws  for  the  organisation   and 
control  of  industrial  banks.    The  object  of  the 
bank's    existence    is    to    deal    in    negotiable 
instruments,     supply     capital     for     various 
industrial  operations,   act  as  a  medium  for 
the  importation  of  foreign  capital,  and  deal 
with  trust  business.     In  detail,  the  special 
operations  of  the   Industrial  Bank  may  be 
described  as  follows:     (i)   making  loans  on 
the    security    of   national   loan    bonds,    pre- 
fectural  or  municipal  loan  bonds,  or  deben- 
tures   and    shares;    (2)    subscribing    for,    or 
underwriting,     national     loan     bonds,     etc.; 
(3)  receiving  money  on  deposit  and  valuables 
for  safe  custody;  (4)  undertaking  trust  busi- 
ness;   (5)   discounting  bills;    (6)   buying  and 
selling  of  exchange;  (7)  making  loans  on  the 
security  of  estates  (zaidan)  created  by  virtue 
of   special   laws;    (8)    making   loans   on   the 
security  of  lands  and  buildings  belonging  to 
factory  companies;  (9)  making  loans  on  the 
security  of  land  and  buildings  in  cities  and 
towns  designated  by  Imperial  Ordinance,  and 
(10)  carrying  on  other  banking  business  sanc- 
tioned by  the  Minister  of  Finance  in  accord- 
ance with  laws  or  ordinances.     As  indicated 
by  these  items  the  Industrial  Bank  of  Japan 
is   under   direct   Government   control.     The 


PREMISES   OF   JUGO    GINKO,    LIMITED 


PREMISES   OF    THE    NIPPON    KOGYO    GINKO    (INDUSTRIAL    BANK    OF   JAPAN,    LIMITED),    TOKYO,    AND    A   CORNER    OF 

THE  BANKING  CHAMBER 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


109 


President,  Vice-President,  and  Directors  are 
all  nominated  by  the  Government,  and  the 
auditors  are  selected  among  the  shareholders. 
Since  the  organisation  of  the  bank  some  of 
the  most  prominent  business  men  of  Japan 
have  been  on  the  directorate,  and  the  whole 
history  of  the  institution,  together  with  its 
sound  and  conservative  control  and  its  pres- 
tige, well  warrant  the  very  high  reputation 
in  which  it  is  held,  not  only  in  Japan,  but  in 
foreign  countries.  The  original  capital  of 
the  Industrial  Bank  was  Yen  10,000,000,  but 
with  the  rapid  expansion  which  took  place 
an  increase  of  capital  was  imperative.  In 
April,  1906,  this  was  raised  to  Yen  17,500,000, 
the  additional  amount  being  easily  secured 
in  the  foreign  money  market.  A  further 
increase  took  place  in  August,  191 7,  when 
new  shares  were  issued  of  a  face  value  of 
Yen  12,500,000,  75,000  being  offered  for  pub- 
lic subscription,  and  the  rest  being  assigned 
to  the  original  shareholders  at  the  rate  of  one 
new  share  against  every  two  old  ones.  With 
this  new  capital  a  broad  scheme  of  extension 
is  now  being  carried  out  by  the  bank,  includ- 
ing the  financing  of  industrial  workers  at 
home,  and  the  capitalisation  of  cooperative 
enterprises  in  China.  The  Vice-President, 
Dr.  Ono,  paid  a  visit  to  the  United  States 
in  1917,  and  consulted  with  the  leading 
financiers  of  that  country  on  questions  of  an 
industrial  and  financial  nature  on  which  the 
two  groups  of  banking  institutions  are 
mutually  interested  in  the  development  of 
public  works  in  China. 

The  general  expansion  of  the  business  of 
the  Industrial  Bank  has  been  remarkable  in 
the  last  few  years.  Not  only  has  it  invested 
money  in  all  parts  of  Japan  proper  and 
Korea,  but  as  suggested  above,  it  is  heavily 
involved  in  China  and  has  decided  to  expand 
its  influence  in  that  field  to  a  much  greater 
extent.  On  the  other  hand,  the  bank  has 
been  the  medium  for  the  importation  of 
several  hundred  millions  of  foreign  money 
from  the  French,  British,  and  American  mar- 
kets. Again,  the  Industrial  Bank  has  in- 
vested a  large  sum  of  money  in  the  Franco- 
Japanese  Bank,  which  was  established  with 
the  cooperation  of  Japanese  and  French 
capitalists.  That  the  President  of  the 
Industrial  Bank  is  at  the  same  time  Vice- 
President  of  the  Franco-Japanese  Bank,  and 
the  directors  of  the  former  are  on  the  board 
of  the  latter  institution,  shows  how  substan- 
tial is  the  backing  of  the  Franco-Japanese 
Bank.  Since  the  opening  of  the  foreign  ex- 
change business  the  Industrial  Bank  has  been 
dealing  not  only  with  the  sale  and  purchase 
of  foreign  bills  of  exchange,  but  has  exerted 
all  its  influence  to  make  the  Western  and 
Eastern  monetar>'  circulation  more  and  more 
smooth. 


The  officers  of  the  Industrial  Bank  of  Japan 
are:  President,  Mr.  T.  Shidachi;  Vice- 
President,  Dr.  Y.  Ono;  Directors,  Messrs.  T. 
Aoki,  T.  Iwasa,  and  M.  Ninomiya;  Auditors, 
Messrs.  N.  Soma,  F.  Uriu,  and  K.  Kawakami. 
The  head  office  of  the  bank  is  at  No.  r  Zeni- 
game-cho,  Kojimachi-ku,  Tokyo.  Below  is 
given  the  statement  of  assets  and  liabilities 
as  at  June  30,  1917. 

THE  BANK  OF  CHOSEN 
Vitally  important  to  the  development  of 
the  Japanese  territory  of  Chosen  (Korea)  is 
the  existence  of  a  strong  financial  institution, 
under  government  auspices,  and  such  a  need 
is  fulfilled  by  the  Bank  of  Chosen  which 
operates  under  special  charter  from  the 
Imperial  Japanese  Government.  This  bank 
was  formerly  known  as  the  Bank  of  Korea, 
and  was  established  in  October,  1909,  as  the 
central  bank  of  Chosen  with  a  capital  of 
Yen  10,000,000.  In  the  following  year 
Korea  was  annexed  by  Japan,  and  in  conse- 
quence the  bank  was  reorganised  under  its 
present  title,  with  a  charter  from  the  Govern- 
ment. 

During  the  first  few  years  of  the  bank's 
existence,   its   energies   were   devoted   exclu- 


sively to  Chosen,  there  being  a  great  deal  to 
be  done  there,  just  as  the  Bank  of  Taiwan  had 
found  much  to  do  in  Formosa  when  com- 
mercial and  industrial  order  and  system  had 
to  be  established  in  the  place  of  chaos.  In 
Chosen  the  work  of  coinage  reform,  which  had 
been  set  afoot  by  the  Imperial  authorities, 
was  still  going  on,  and  the  Bank  of  Chosen 
was  required  to  complete  it.  The  Govern- 
ment and  the  municipalities  were  greatly  in 
need  of  funds  to  prosecute  various  public 
works  and  the  bank  was  called  upon  to  supply 
the  money;  new  enterprises  were  springing 
up  in  all  directions,  and  those  that  were  at  all 
worthy  of  encouragement  had  to  be  accom- 
modated financially.  Generally  Chosen  was 
in  its  commercial  and  financial  birth,  and  all 
needs  had  to  be  met  by  the  bank,  as  far  as 
possible.  By  the  time  the  institution  began 
to  turn  its  attention  to  the  market  outside 
the  peninsula,  the  country  was  in  a  fair  way 
to  prosperity,  a  fact  readily  admitted  to  be 
largely  attributable  to  the  work  of  this 
institution. 

In  the  year  1913  the  Bank  of  Chosen  was 
ready  to  extend  its  operations  abroad,  and  a 
ready  field  was  found  in  Manchuria,  not 
only  because  it  lies  so  close  by,  but  because 


Dk. 

Cr. 

Yen 

Yen 

Capital      (350,000     shares     of 

50  yen) ly.soo.ooo.oo 

Cash  on  hand  and  at  bankers'       1,485,188.62 

Debentures  issued 76,853,400.00 

Deposits 38,071.703.73 

Advances  current  account ....  213 ,044 .  40 
Fixed  loans 34  495  608  40 

Reserves 2,116,800.00 

Dividend  unclaimed 71,490.25 

Correspondents'  accounts 26,885  •  34 

Net  profit  for  half-year 675, 1 38 .  00 

Funds  in  trust  and  other  sums 

Loans  on  lands  and  buildings        767,323.50 

Bills  discounted 32,123,061 .43 

Internal  national  loan  bonds .  .  10,195,220.03 
Foreign  national  loan  bonds.  .  21,016,873.72 
Local  loan  bonds. . .                        8  474,778  58 

due  by  the  bank 16,981,665.82 

Shares  and  debentures 4,078,525.28 

Funds  in  agencies 15,447,326.50 

Difference  on  subscription  of 

debentures 1.753>i47  02 

Correspondents'  accounts.  ...         112,142. 15 

Bank  premises,  etc 235,800.99 

Properties    acquired    through 

liquidation  of  debts 235,062 .  86 

Yen   152,297,173.14 

Yen  152,297,173.14 

Profit  and  Loss  Account 


DR. 

Cr. 

Yen 

Yen 

Current  expenses,  interests 3,592,481 .  10 

Reserve  fund 68,000 .  00 

Dividend 525,000.00 

Remuneration  to  officers 20,000 .  00 

Balance  carried  forward 62, 138 .  00 

Gross   profits   for   the  half-year 
including  60,138  yen.  Balance 
of  Profit  and  Loss  Account, 
Dec.  31,  1916 4,267,619. 10 

Yen  4,267,619. 10 

Yen  4,267,619.10 

no 


PRESENT-DAY    IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


HliAD    OFFICE    OI-    THE    BANK    i  U     iH'iSEN,    SEOUL 


MAP    SHOWING    THE    SPHERE    OF    ACTIVITY    OF    THE    BANK    OF    CHOSEN 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


III 


MR.    SHlNKlCHr     MINOBE,    L.OVERNC1K     i  IF    THE 
HANK    OF    CHOSEN 

the  economic  relations  between  the  two 
countries,  which  were  steadily  growing, 
necessitated  some  banking  facilities  being 
established  between  the  two.  This  initial 
step  was  fvirther  justified  by  the  fact  that  the 
Bank  of  Chosen  had  had  a  foothold  in  Man- 
churia for  some  time  through  its  branch  at 
Antung,  from  which  centre  its  bank  notes 
had  widely  circulated.  The  establishmetit  of 
branches  in  Mukden,  Changchun,  and 
Dairen  was  the  next  step  in  the  northward 
movement.  To-day  the  Bank  of  Chosen  has 
twelve  branches  in  Manchuria  including, 
besides  those  above  mentioned,  Newchwang, 
Harbin,  Kirin,  Szupingchieh,  Kaiyuan,  Fuch- 
iatien,  Yongchungchon,  and  Tsingtao.  Mean- 
while the  bank's  relations  with  eastern 
Siberia  had  been  constantly  growing,  but  as 
no  branch  of  a  foieign  bank  can  be  estab- 
lished on  Russian  territory,  the  Bank  of 
Chosen  took  over  the  business  and  premises 
of  the  Matsuda  Bank  of  Vladivostock,  which 
had  been  doing  business  there  for  some  years. 
The  activity  of  the  bank  in  Japan  proper, 
where  it  has  three  branches,  namely,  Tokyo, 
Osaka,  and  Kob6,  has  naturally  been  less 
conspicuous,  though  it  has  been  no  less 
significant.  Its  bitsiness  there  could  not  but 
grow  along  with  the  increase  in  the  trade  of 
the  country  with  Chosen  and  Manchuria. 
Besides,  as  a  member  of  the  syndicate  of  large 
banks  in  Japan,  not  a  single  loan  of  national 
importance  has  been  floated  there  of  recent 
years  but  that  the  Bank  of  Chosen  has  taken 
a  part  in  the  operations.  With  the  expansion 
of  its  network  of  branches  and  the  resultant 
inclusion  in  its  sphere  of  activity  of  such 
important  ports  as   Dairen,   Harbin,   Vladi- 


vostock, and  Kob^,  the  relations  of  the  bank 
with  the  world  at  large  became  closer.  The 
foreign  business  of  the  bank  has  in  conse- 
fiuence  assumed  an  importance  never  before 
known,  and  the  recent  establishment  at  its 
head  office  of  a  foreign  department  was 
necessitated  by  these  circumstances.  This 
enlargement  of  business  in  all  directions 
necessarily  entailed  a  greater  need  of  funds. 
Thus  it  naturally  followed  that  an  augmen- 
tation of  the  capital  of  the  institution  had  to 
be  considered  and  the  proposal  to  double  its 
capital  from  Yen  10,000,000  to  Yen  20,000,000 
was  submitted  to  the  general  meeting  in 
February,  191 7,  and  was  unanimously  car- 
ried. At  the  same  time  30,000  shares  were 
offered  for  public  subscription,  the  rest 
being  allotted  to  old  shareholders.  The 
shares  were  over-subscribed  three  times,  and 
only  those  applications  offering  a  premium 
of  Yen  29  or  over  were  considered,  those  of 
Yen  29  i^rcmium  being  accepted  in  part  only. 

THK  BANK  OF  TAIWAN,  LIMITED 
The  rapid  economic  development  of  the 
newly  acquired  territories  of  Formosa  (Tai- 
wan) and  Chosen,  is  largely  attributable  to 
excellent  banking  facilities  which  have  been 
provided  for  those  dependencies  under  a  wise 
system  of  state-aided  institutions  such  as  the 
Bank  of  Taiwan,  Limited.  This  bank  was 
founded  under  Government  auspices,  at  a 
time  when  there  existed  great  need  for  some 
substantial  financial  organisation  to  sta- 
bilise credit,  normalise  interest,  maintain  a 
uniform  monetary  system,  and  generally 
restore  order  out  of  the  chaos  which  had 
existed  in  the  island  under  the  old  regime. 
It  was  also  necessary,  if  the  economic  state  of 
Taiwan  was  to  be  in  any  sense  equal  that  of 
Japan,  or  the  island  to  become  a  valuable 
trade  acquisition  to  the  Empire,  that  a  bank, 
backed  by  the  Government,  and  to  that 
extent  a  state-controlled  institutior^,  should 
be  established.  This  was  accordingly  done 
by  a  law  passed  in  March,  1897,  which  em- 
powered the  Imperial  Government  to  estab- 
lish the  Kabushiki-Kaisha  Taiwan  Ginko,  and 
to  finance  it  in  certain  directions.  The  organ- 
isation of  the  institution  was  immediatelj' 
entered  upon,  and  a  charter  was  granted  for 
twenty  years  to  a  group  of  promoters,  ap- 
jjroved  by  the  Government.  The  Govern- 
ment took  up  stock  in  the  bank  to  the  extent 
of  Yen  1 ,000,000.00,  out  of  the  original  capital 
of  Yen  5,000,000.00,  and  in  July,  1899,  loaned 
to  the  bank  the  sum  of  Yen  2,000,000.00  in 
one-yen  silver  coins  for  fi\-e  years  without 
interest.  Under  the  charter  the  bank  was 
authorised  to  conduct  a  general  banking 
business;  to  issue  currency  notes;  to  act  as 
the  Imperial  Government's  bankers;  to  regu- 
late the  monetary  system,  and  generally  to 


fulfil  the  broad  objects  which  had  led  to  its 
foundation.  With  the  Government  and 
members  of  the  Imperial  Household  as  share- 
holders, and  under  the  most  influential  offi- 
cial and  commercial  support,  the  Bank  of 
Taiwan  formally  opened  for  business  on 
September  26,  1897,  its  head  office  being  at 
Taipeh,  and  with  branches  in  Tokyo  and  the 
other  principal  cities  of  Japan,  China,  Hong- 
kong, Singapore,  Soerabaya  and  other  East- 
ern centres  and  in  London  and  New  York. 
That  the  Bank  of  Taiwan  in  its  eighteen 
years  of  existence  has  fulfilled  the  hopes  of 
its  promoters,  and  has  rendered  an  immensely 
valuable  service  to  Taiwan  and  the  Japanese 
Empire  generally,  there  is  no  doubt.  Fur- 
thermore, it  has  proved  a  big  financial  suc- 
cess, and  it  is  to-day  one  of  the  most  powerful 
and  substantial  financial  institutions  in  the 
Orient.  In  fulfilment  of  the  object  of  its 
establishment,  the  Bank  of  Taiwan  has 
lessened  the  difficulties  of  the  monetary  cir- 
culation, reduced  the  general  rate  of  interest, 
and  has  helped  in  the  development  of  various 
enterprises  by  supplying  ready  funds  at  low- 
rates  of  interest.  The  directors  have  brought 
the  natives  to  understand  the  nature  of 
credit  and  to  appreciate  the  services  rendered 
by  the  bank;  also  to  induce  the  Japanese 
colonists  to  engage  in  various  industrial  enter- 
prises by  giving  them  financial  facilities. 
The  bank  has  carried  out  the  great  work  of 
reforming  the  monetary  system  of  the  Island 
of  Formosa,  by  establishing  the  gold  stand- 
ard, and  adjusting  local  and  foreign  currencies 
in  their  confused  circulation.  As  agent  of 
the  Hypothec  Bank  of  Japan,  the  institution 
under  review  has  granted  loans  on  long  terms 
to  induce  the  development  of  agriculture  and 
other  industries,  and  as  a  government  bank, 
in  charge  of  the  treasury  funds  and  loans,  it 
has  aided  the  construction  of  railways,  har- 
bour conveniences,  water  and  electric  works 
and  so  on.  The  Bank  of  Taiwan's  beneficial 
influence  has  also  extended  into  South 
China  and  the  South  Sea  Islands,  and  has 
helped  materially  to  stabilise  financial  trans- 
actions involved  with  trade  in  that  large 
territory. 

In  international  finance  the  Bank  of  Taiwan 
holds  a  very  prominent  position,  transacting 
business  direct  through  its  London  branch  at 
58  Old  Broad  Street  with  large  financial 
institutions  interested  in  Far  Eastern  affairs, 
and  operating  also  in  the  LTnited  States, 
Russia,  Manila,  and  other  foreign  countries. 
Some  idea  of  the  growth  of  the  bank  may 
be  gathered  from  its  increases  in  capital. 
The  first  took  place  in  April,  1910,  when  the 
amount  was  raised  to  Yen  10,000,000.00, 
which  sum  was  doubled  in  October,  1915,  at  a 
special  meeting  of  shareholders.  Of  this 
large  capital  Yen  17,500,000.00  is  fully  paid 


BANK    OF   TAIWAN,    LIMITED;  MR.    TETSUTARO    SAKURAI,    PRESIDENT MR.    KVOROKU    YAMANARI,    GENER.\L    MANAGER - 

TOKYO    PREMISES    OF    THE    BANK,    EIRAKU-CHO,    KOJIM.ACHI-KU 


iri>-.^^i^^^>r^^<:^?^^5^^^^gr^I^^^'^^  "M5@:-'>f 


TOKYO    PREMISES    OF   THE   HOKKAIDO   COLONIZATION    BANK,    LIMITED 


114 


PRESENT-DAY        I^FPRESSIONS        OF        JAPAN 


Balance  Sheet,  June  30,    1917,   Hank   oi'    Taiwan 


Liabilities 

Assets 

Yen 

^•L-n 

Capital  subscribed 20,000,000 .  00 

Reserve  funds 5,080,000 .  00 

Notes  in  circulation 26,841,120.00 

Current  accounts,  fixed  de- 
posits, etc 127,756,124,  17 

Deposits  in  trust 17,252,711  .06 

Bills  payable,  accejitaiices  and 

other  sums  due  by  the  bank  ,107,911 ,040 .  09 

Balance  brought  forward  from 
last  account 273,563 .09 

Net  profit  for  the  past  half- 
year 1,180,729.56 

Total Yen  306,295,287.97 


Cash  account: 

In  hand 8,770,433 .  03 

At  bankers 4,231,221.26 

Loans  to  Government 5,696,507  .  00 

Bills  discounted,  loans,  ad- 
vances and  other  sums  due 
to  the  bank 252,802,591 .65 

Government  bonds,  etc 16,312,404.07 

BiiUion  and  foreign  money.  .  .  13,424,710.72 

Capital  uncalled 2,519,550.00 

Bank's    premises,    properties, 

furniture,  etc 2,537,870  24 

Total Yen  306,295,287  .97 


Profit  and  Loss  Account 


Dr. 


Yen 


Current  expenses,  interests,  etc.  12, 164,7 1 5. 24 

Reserve  funds 300,000 .  00 

Bonus 60,000.00 

Dividend  (iot;  per  an.) 768,000.00 

Balance  carried  forward  to  next 

account 326,292  .  65 

Total Yen   13,619,007.89 


Cr. 


Yen 


Balance  brought  forward  from 

last  account 273,563  09 

Amount  of  gross  profits  for  the 

half-year    ending    June    30, 

1917 13.345.444^" 


Total. 


.Yen   13,619,007.89 


since  then  its  scope  of  operations  has  been 
considerably  enlarged  and  it  is  now  doing  a 
general  business  throughout  Japan  and 
abroad.  There  are  seven  branches  in  Hok- 
kaido, three  in  Karafuto,  and  one  in  Tokj'O. 
Business  is  transacted  with  clients  in  all 
parts  of  the  world,  especially  in  London, 
where  the  Hokkaido  Bank  has  an  agency 
established  at  the  time  of  the  issue  of  coloni- 
zation debentures  amounting  to  Yen  5,000,- 
000,  which  were  placed  in  London.  Alto- 
gether colonization  debentures  of  a  total  of 
Yen  21,000,000  have  been  issued.  The 
reserve  funds  of  the  bank  aggregate  Yen 
1,768,700.  Mr.  R.  Mizukoshi  is  the  Presi- 
dent of  the  Hokkaido  Colonization  Bank  and 
the  other  directors  are  Messrs.  U.  Akabana, 
\V.  Majima,  and  M.  Seki.  The  Auditors  are 
Baron  K.  Okura  and  Messrs.  T.  Matsumoto 
and  I.  Nagata.  The  head  office  is  at  No.  7 
Nishi  e-chome,  Odori,  Sapporo. 

In  the  thirty-fifth  half-yearly  statement  for 
the  period  ending  June  30,  1917,  it  was  shown 
that  the  net  profit  for  the  half-year  were 
Yen  325,481.35,  which  with  Yen  98,567.26, 
made  the  gross  sum  available  for  distribution 
Yen  424,048.62.  This  was  disposed  of  as 
follows:  To  general  reserves  Yen  34,000; 
to  reserve  for  equalisation  of  dividends.  Yen 
8,500;  to  special  reserve  Yen  22,000;  dividend 
at  9  per  cent  per  annum.  Yen  239,000;  bonus 
to  directors  and  auditors.  Yen  21,000;  carried 
forward.  Yen  99,548.62.  The  balance  sheet 
for  the  term  ending  June  30,  1917,  was  as 
follows: 


up,  and  the  reserves  amount  to  Yen  5,380,- 
000.00.  The  principal  officers  of  the  Bank  of 
Taiw^an,  Ltd.,  are:  President,  Mr.  Tetsutaro 
Sakurai;  Vice-President,  Mr.  Kojuro  Naka- 
gawa;  and  Directors,  Messrs.  lyetoshi  Sada, 
Kyoroku  Yamanari,  and  Shingo  Minami. 
Above  are  the  financial  statements  pre- 
sented at  the  thirty-sixth  half-yearly  meeting 
of  shareholders  held  at  Tok>'0  on  September 
I,  1917,  for  the  period  ending  June  30,  1917. 

THE     HOKKAIDO     COLONIZATION     BANK, 
LIMITED 

This  bank,  known  as  the  Hokkaido  Taku- 
shoku  Ginko,  is  one  of  the  special  banks  of 
Japan  founded  under  Government  direction 
for  the  specific  purpose  of  promoting  the 
development  and  colonization  of  Hokkaido 
by  supplying  the  necessary  capital  to  enter- 
prise and  immigration.  Its  operations  began 
in  April,  1900,  at  Sapporo,  Hokkaido,  with  a 
capital  of  Yen  3,000,000  which  has  since  been 
increased  and  now  stands  at  Yen  10,000,000 
of  which  Yen  6,250,000  is  paid  up.  At  its 
inception  the  bank  devoted  its  energy  only 
to   transacting   local   banking   business,    but 


Assets 

Yen 

Unpaid  capital 3.7.S0.937  ■  50 

Loans  on  immovable  properties  21,566,063.77 

1,484,481 .66 
Loans  on  movable  properties . .  .         36,936 .  43 

Bills  discounted 9,754,060.  14 

Documentary  draft 1.035,637  ,  51 

Overdrafts 513,167.64 

Deposits  at  call 5,300,980.45 

National  loan  bonds 3,487,384.40 

Shares  and  debentures 302,000.00 

Difference  on  subscription  price 

of  debentures 746,000 .  00 

Fund  for  payments  at  agencies  63,724.08 
Balances  due  by  other  banks .  .  476,476 . 1 5 
Bank  premises  and  furnitures .  .  699,780 .  86 
Loans    in     account    with    the 

Hypothec  Bank  of  Japan .  .       151 ,964 .  54 
Loans  in  Saghalien  branches.  .       208,191  .65 
Immovable  properties  in  posses- 
sion         236,643 .  62 

Provisionary  payments 2,837. 12 

Reserve  fund  for  new  building  11,258.25 
Cash  on  hand 1,262,891  .29 

Total Yen   51,091,417.06 


LIABILITIES 


Yen 


Capital 1 0,000,000 .  00 

Reserve  against  losses 1,154,000.00 

Reserve    for    dividend    equali- 
sation         325.200 .  00 

Special  reserve 289,500.00 

Unclaimed  dividend 15,410.44 

Amount  of  debentures  issued.  .20,728,090.00 

Deposits 16,090,679.01 

Drafts  payable 3IO.779-50 

Balances  due  to  other  banks.  .       695,776.03 
Guarantee  for  loans  in  account 
with  the  Hypothec  Bank  of 

Japan 151 .964  •  54 

Balance     with    the     Hypothec 

Bank  of  Japan 2,820.92 

Balance    with     the    Industrial 

Bank  of  Japan 61 1 .  76 

Provisionary  receipt 900,720.85 

Trust  deposits 1,815.40 

Brought  forward 98,567  .  26 

Net  profit  for  the  half-year.  . .       325.481-35 

Total Yen   51,091,417.06 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


115 


HEAD    OFFICE,    TOKYO,    OF    NIPPON    KWAMAO    GINKO    (HYPOTHEC    BANK    OF    JAPAN,  LIMITED) 


NIPPON    KWANGYO    GINKO 
(the    hypothec    BANK    OF    JAPAN, 

limited) 

(l,   Itchome,     Uchiyamashita-cho,     Koji- 
machi-ku,  Tokyo.  ^ 

The  Hypothec  Bank  of  Japan  is  a  joint- 
stock  company  with  a  capital  of  Yen  40,000,- 
000  (£4,000,000),  divided  into  200,000  shares 
of  Yen  200  (£20)  each.  This  amount  may, 
subject  to  the  approval  of  the  Government, 
be  increased  by  the  decision  of  a  general 
meeting  of  shareholders.  The  bank  is  incor- 
porated for  a  period  of  one  hundred  years 
from  the  date  of  its  establishment,  1897:  but 
the  said  term  may,  subject  to  the  sanction 
of  the  Minister  of  Finance,  be  extended  by 
the  decision  of  a  general  meeting  of  share- 
holders. The  Governor  and  the  Vice-Gov- 
ernor  are  appointed  by  the  Government  for 
a  term  of  five  years  from  among  share- 
holders owning  at  least  one  hundred  shares. 
The  Directors  are  appointed  by  the  Govern- 
ment for  a  term  of  five  years  from  among 
shareholders  owning  at  least  fifty  shares, 
who  have  been  elected  as  candidates  at  a 
general  meeting  of  shareholders.  The  Audi- 
tors are  elected  at  a  general  meeting  of  share- 
holders for  a  term  of  three  years  from  among 
shareholders  owning  at  least  thirty  shares. 
The  Governor,  the  Vice-Governor,  and  the 
Directors  are  not  allowed  to  engage  in  any 
other  business  or  trade  under  any  circum- 
stances whatsoever,  although  exceptions  to 
this  rule  may  be  made  by  the  special  permis- 
sion of  the  Minister  of  Finance. 

The  business  of  the  bank  is  as  follows: 
(i)  To  make  loans,  on  the  security  of  im- 
movable property,  redeemable  in  annual 
installments  within  a  period  of  fifty  years; 


(2)  To  make  loans,  on  the  security  of  immov- 
able property,  or  fishery  right,  redeemable  at 
a  fixed  time  within  a  period  of  five  years; 

(3)  To  make  loans,  redeemable  in  annual 
installments,  on  the  security  of  loans  redeem- 
able in  annual  installments  made  by  Agri- 
cultural and  Industrial  Bank,  together  with 


the  mortgages  connected  therewith;  (4)  To 
make  loans  without  security  to  prefectures, 
countries,  cities,  towns,  villages,  and  other 
public  bodies  organised  by  law;  (5)  To  take 
up  agricultural  and  industrial  debentures; 
(6)  To  make  loans  without  security  to  Arable 
Land  Readjustment  Associations  conforming 
with  the  Law  for  the  Readjustment  of  Arable 
Lands,  or  to  persons  carrying  out  such  read- 
justment on  their  joint  responsibility,  indus- 
trial associations,  fishery  associations,  for- 
estry associations,  livestock  associations  or 
unions  thereof;  (7)  To  receive  deposits  and 
to  accept  for  safe  deposit  gold  and  silver 
Vnillion  and  negotiable  instruments,  provided, 
however,  that  the  total  amount  of  the  former 
deposits  may  not  exceed  the  paid  up  capital; 
(8)  To  make  loans,  on  the  security  of  "the 
mass  of  property"  belonging  to  factories  or 
Hght  railways,  redeemable  in  annual  install- 
ments within  a  period  of  fifty  years,  or 
redeemable  at  a  fixed  time  within  a  period  of 
five  years;  (9)  To  engage  in  other  kinds  of 
business  prescribed  for  this  bank  by  law. 
In  order  to  meet  the  demand,  the  bank  is 
authorised  by  the  said  law  to  issue  special 
debentures  (Kwangyo-Saiken),  with  or  with- 
out premiums,  up  to  an  amount  not  exceeding 
ten  times  its  paid-up  capital,  and  they  are 
redeemed  by  means  of  semi-annual  drawings 
within  a  period  of  fifty  years.   The  debentures 


Liabilities 

Assets 

Yen 

Yen 

Capital 40,000,000.00 

Loss,  equalisation  and  special 

reserve 6,444,400 .  00 

Dividends  unclaimed 9.885  28 

Total  issue  of  debentures.  .  .  .210,837,680.00 

Total  issue  of  savings  deben- 
tures   16,782,38.5.00 

Deposits  and  current  accounts  6,602,852.01 

Due  to  other  banks 6,010.70 

Unclaimed  interest  and  pre- 
miums of  debentures 3,797,228.60 

Unclaimed  interest  and  pre- 
miums of  savings  debentures  67 1 ,582  66 

Fund  for  the  payment  of  pre- 
miums of  debentures 988,269  .  55 

Fund   for   the   redemption   of 

savings  debentures 125,189.00 

Provisional  receipts 282,989.74 

Amount  brought  forward  from 

the  last  account 145.555  ■  I3 

Profits 1,940.143  29 

7^0/(1/ Yen   288,634,170  97 


Capital  unpaid 1 5,000,000 .  00 

Loans   redeemable   in   annual 

installments 74.035,378.95 

Loans  guaranteed  by  agricul- 
tural  and  industrial  banks 
redeemable  in  annual  install- 
ments or  at  a  fixed  time ....  143,046,093 .  78 
Loans  redeemable  at  a  fixed 

time 4,715,331.32 

Agricultural     and     industrial 

bank  debentures 468,383 .  50 

Bills  discounted 5,343,105 .00 

Deposits  at  the  Deposit  Bu- 
reau of  the  Department  of 

Finance 20,028,595.00 

Deposits  at  other  banks  and 

postal  savings  oflfices 1 1,057,983.  II 

National  bonds 5,092,020.00 

Shares  and  debentures 94,860.00 

Foreign  bonds 6,726,799.69 

Difference  between  face  and 

issue  value  of  debentures.  .         507,111.00 

Agencies  accounts 1,263,777.  81 

Bank  buildings  and  fixtures.  .  50,151 .00 

Immovable  properties 150,770.02 

Provisional  payments 935,044  53 

Cashonhand 118,766.24 

Total Yen   288,634,170.97 


!• 


pgg;^^?r^rjr3vnii^^  ^^n:^^^^^-^-'^^^^^^:^^-^^^^:-^ 


PREMISES  OF  THE  TOKYO   PREFECTURAL  HYPOTHEC   BANK,   LIMITED 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


117 


with  premiums,  this  being  the  exclusive 
privilege  of  the  bank,  are  at  present  of  the 
value  of  Yen  10  (£1)  each,  and  carry  five  per 
cent  interest,  while  those  without  premiums 
are  issued  in  denominations  of  Yen  50  (£5), 
Yen  100  (£10),  Yen  500  (£50),  Yen  1,000 
(£100),  Yen  5,000  (£500),  Yen  10,000 
(£1,000)  each,  carrying  interest  at  the 
rate  of  from  five  to  seven  per  cent  per 
annum. 

The  Minister  of  Finance  exercises  a  general 
control  over  the  business  operations  of  the 
bank,  and  may  suspend  such  operations  as 
he  deems  contrary  to  laws  or  ordinances,  or 
to  the  articles  of  association  of  the  bank,  or 
injurious  to  the  public  interest.  The  bank 
must  obtain  the  sanction  of  the  Minister  of 
Finance  in  making  alterations  in  its  articles 
of  association,  and  in  fixing  the  rate  of  divi- 
dend to  be  distributed  among  its  share- 
holders. The  Minister  of  Finance  appoints 
special  government  officials  to  supervise  the 
business   operations  of  the  bank. 

The  financial  statement  of  the  bank,  as  at 
December  31,  1916,  appears  on  the  second 
preceding  page  (115). 


The  following  are  the  officers  of  the  Nippon 
Kwangyo  Ginko: 

Governor,  Mr.  Gentaro  Shimura;  X'ice- 
Governor,  Mr.  Usaburo  Yanagiya;  Directors, 
Messrs.  Naonosuke  Kawakami,  Junzo  Kawa- 
mura,  and  Keisaburo  Kato;  Auditors, 
Messrs.  Kwanzo  Matsuo,  Kahei  Otani,  and 
Katsuoki  Mizuno. 

THE  TOKYO  PREFECTURAL  HYPOTHEC 

B.\NK,  LIMITED 
This  bank  came  into  existence  in  1888  in 
accordance  with  the  Law  Relating  to  the 
Agricultural  and  Industrial  Banks.  As  its 
name  suggests  it  was  established  to  meet  the 
requirements  of  Tokyo  Prefecture,  and  it 
may  well  claim  to  have  done  a  great  deal  in 
the  direction  of  promoting  agriculture  and 
industry  generally  in  this  district.  The 
Tokyo  Prefectural  Hypothec  Bank,  Ltd., 
deals  principally  in  advances  to  farmers  and 
industrial  people,  supplying  funds  at  low 
interest  and  on  long  credit,  on  the  security  of 
farms,  home  lots,  buildings,  and  so  forth. 
The  bank  is  also  authorised  to  provide  fitnds 
for  the  self-governing  authorities  of  counties, 


cities,  towns,  or  villages,  to  enable  them  to 
carry  out  necessary  works  and  improvements 
that  will  lead  to  a  greater  expansion  of  indus- 
try. Loans  are  repaid  under  the  system  in 
operation  in  yearly  installments,  comprising 
a  portion  of  the  principal  and  interest,  so  that 
the  liquidation  of  liabilities  presses  very 
lightly  on  those  who  derive  so  much  benefit 
from  the  system. 

The  capital  provided  for  the  loans  made  by 
the  bank  is  raised  by  debentures,  the  bank 
being  authorised  to  raise  up  to  five  times  the 
amount  of  its  paid-up  capital.  Some  idea  of 
the  development  of  this  institution  may  be 
gathered  from  the  facts  that  at  its  inception 
the  authorised  capital  was  only  Yen  350,000, 
while  to-day  it  is  Yen  4,000,000;  the  amount 
of  debentures  issued  totals  Yen  9,300,000, 
and  loans  of  Yen  15,000,000  in  the  aggregate 
have  been  made.  Since  the  original  charter 
was  issued  the  Tokyo  Prefectural  Hypothec 
Bank  has  been  authorised  to  receive  deposits, 
give  short-date  loans,  and  conduct  general 
discount  and  banking  business.  The  assets 
of  the  Tokyo  Prefectural  Hypothec  Bank 
total  Yen  21,715,000,  and  its  reserves  amount 


!T^W???SJ]WBH 


•  -*'iT>.^   ►    ♦> 


iC-))) 


>^,.. 


PREMISES    OF    THE    YOKllU.\M.\    SEVENTY-FUl  k  111    l;ANK,    LIMITED 


Ii8 


PRESENT-DAY        I  M  P  R  E  S  S  I  O  X  S        OF        JAPAN 


to  Yen  1,543,000.  Mr.  S.  Saito  is  the 
President,  and  the  managing  director  is 
Mr.  T.  Hoshikavva.  The  bank  is  located  at 
No.  I.  Vurakucho,  Nichome,  Kojimachi-ku, 
Tok-yo. 

THE    YOKOHAMA    SEVEXTY-FOURTH 
BANK,    LIMITED 

The  Yokohama  Seventy-fourth  Bank, 
Limited,  or  the  Yokohama  Shichi-Ju-Shi 
Ginko,  is  a  popular  institution  in  the  port, 
and  has  won  a  full  measure  of  public  confi- 
dence and  support  by  its  record  as  a  sound 
and  conservatively  managed  concern.  This 
bank  operates  almost  exclusively  in  the 
Y'okohama  district,  conducting  a  general 
business,  and  facilitating  in  a  marked  degree 
the  large  volume  of  trade  which  annually 
passes  through  Yokohama.  The  Board  of 
Directors  comprises  a  nimiber  of  well  known 
business  men  and  consists  of  the  following: 
Mr.  K.  Otani,  President;  Mr.  K.  Mori,  Man- 
aging Director;  Mr.  S.  Mogi,  Mr.  C.  Minoda, 
and  Mr.  R.  Nagai,  Directors.  The  Auditors 
are  Messrs.  R.  Okano,  J.  Takahashi,  and 
S.  Minoda.  Branches  of  the  bank  are  main- 
tained at  Moto-machi,  Noge  Ishegakicho  and 
Kanagawa,  Yokohama,  and  at  Honcho, 
Nihonbashi-ku,  Tokyo.  The  capital  of  the 
Y'okohama  Seventy-fourth  Bank,  Ltd.,  is 
Yen  2,000,000  of  which  Yen  1,400,000  has 
been  paid  up.  Out  of  profits  a  handsome 
reserve  fund  of  Yen  810,000  has  been  estab- 
Ushed.  The  financial  returns  of  the  bank 
showed  the  following  position  on  June  30, 
1917: 


DRUM    BRIDGE,    KAMEIDO,    TOKYO 

THE    YASVDA    BAXK 

The  Yasuda  Bank  is  one  of  the  oldest  in 
Japan,  and  it  is  one  of  the  few  that  sur\-ived 
the  early  and  troublous  times  of  banking  in 
the  Empire.  To-daj'  it  commands  con- 
siderable influence,  and  the  substantial 
nature  of  its  business  and  the  soundness  of 
its  methods  are  known  and  appreciated  not 
only  in  Japan  but  abroad.  That  this  is  so  is 
due  to  the  business  acumen  of  Mr.  Zenjiro 
Yasuda,  the  founder  of  the  bank.  He  was 
bom  at  Toyama,  Tetchu  Province,  in  Octo- 


LlABILlTIES 


Yen 


Capital 2,000,000.00 

Reserve  fund 810,000.00 

Amounts  due  on  deposits 7,454,194.64 

Due  to  other  banks 1,305,819.23 

Acceptances  for  customers  ....         41,897 .  75 
Rebate  of  interest  on  bills  not 

due 55.772  07 

Balance  brought  forward  from 
previous  period  and  net  prof- 
it for  half-year 104,415 .  77 

Total Yen    11,772,099.46 


Assets 


Yen 


Uncalled  capital 600,000 .  00 

Bills  discounted,  loans  and  ad- 
vances    6,589,385 .  89 


Due  from  other  banks 96,724 

Liabilities     of     customers     for 

acceptances  per  contra 41,897 

Deposit  receipts 1 ,479,343 

Stock,  bonds,  and  securities.  .  .  2,370,096 

Sundry  accounts 8,171 

Bank  premises  and  furniture.  .  157,991 

Cash  in  hand 428,488 


Total . 


.Yen   11,772,099.46 


03 

75 
98 
21 
.37 
33 
90 


The  Profit  and  Loss  Account  showed  the 
following  items:  Transferred  to  reserve 
fund,  15,000  yen;  bonus  to  staff,  6,412  yen; 
dividend  for  the  half-year  at  the  rate  of 
seven  per  cent  per  annum,  49,000  yen; 
amoimt  carried  forward,  34,003.77  j-en. 

The  head  office  of  the  Yokohama  Seventy- 
fourth  Bank,  Ltd.,  is  at  Minami,  Naka-dori, 
Yokohama. 


ber,  his  father  being  Zenyetsu  Yasuda,  one 
of  the  warriors  of  the  Mayeda  family.  At  the 
age  of  eighteen  Mr.  Yasuda  went  to  Tokj-o, 
then  known  as  Y'edo,  in  the  first  year  of 
Ansei  (1854).  He  studied  in  the  capital  for 
some  years,  and  saved  some  money,  always 
with  the  idea  of  investment  in  a  suitable 
business.  He  realised,  with  the  influx  of 
foreigners  and  the  spread  of  Japan's   com- 


mercial relations  with  the  outer  world,  that 
there  would  be  a  vast  development  in  money 
exchange.  He  organised  the  Yasuda  Shoten 
in  March,  1864,  to  carrj'  on  the  exchange 
lousiness,  and  this  was  in  fact  the  beginning 
of  the  Yasuda  Bank.  The  Yasuda  Shoten, 
under  the  direction  of  its  young  manager, 
was  at  once  successful,  and  its  development 
was  such  as  to  warrant  its  reorganisation 
under  the  company  laws  in  January,  1880, 
when  it  became  the  Yasuda  Ginko  with  a 
capital  of  Yen  200,000.  In  July,  1887,  the 
capital  was  further  increased  to  Yen  1,000,- 
000.  When  the  Commercial  Law  and  Bank 
Act  came  into  force  in  July,  1893.  the  Y'asuda 
Bank  was  registered  as  a  joint-stock  company, 
and  increased  its  capital  yet  again  in  July, 
1900,  to  Yen  2,000,000.  There  were  several 
subsequent  changes  in  organisation  and 
status,  and  finally  the  bank  became  a  regular 
limited  liability  company  in  January,  1912, 
with  a  capital  of  Yen  10,000,000. 

The  second  vital  factor  in  the  groi;\'th  of 
the  Yasuda  Bank  has  been  the  service  ren- 
dered to  the  institution  by  Mr.  Zenzaburo 
Yasuda.  This  gentleman  is  now  the  head  of 
the  family.  He  was  bom  in  October,  1870. 
Upon  graduation  in  1892  from  Tokj'o  Im- 
perial Universit}^,  he  entered  the  Yasuda 
Bank  to  succeed  Mr.  Zenjiro  Yasuda,  and 
soon  demonstrated  his  capacity  for  carr\-ing 
on  the  work  so  ably  started.  Mr.  Zenzaburo 
Y'asuda  brought  new  and  vigourous  ideas  of 
business  into  the  management  of  the  bank. 
In  the  years  1901  and  1902  he  journeyed 
through  America  and  Europe,  making  a 
close  study  of  the  various  financial  systems, 
and  applying  to  his  own  institution  the  best 
results  of  his  investigations.  In  1909  Mr. 
Y'asuda  succeeded  to  the  headship  of  his 
family,  which  includes  many  strikingly  suc- 
cessful and  briUiant  business  men  such  as  the 
Messrs.  Zennosuke,  Zengoro,  Y'oshio,  Zen- 
shiro,  Y'oshiye,  Zenzuke,  Zenya,  Zenbei,  and 
Zenzo  Yasuda,  all  of  whom  are  distinguished 
alike  for  their  business  success  and  their 
probity,  tact,  and  enterprise. 

The  Yasuda  Bank  is  situated  at  Kofuna- 
cho,  Nihonbashi-ku,  Tokj'O.  Branches  are 
being  opened  ever>'  year.  Thej'  now  extend 
to  Fukushima,  Utsonomiya,  Akita,  Aomori, 
Sendai,  Wakamatsu  Morioka,  Nakamura, 
Kori}-ama,  Y'okohira,  Y'onezawa,  Honjo,  and 
Sakata.  With  such  a  mde  spread  of  activi- 
ties it  is  not  surprising  that  the  Yasuda  Bank 
is  in  a  most  flourishing  condition.  The  offi- 
cers of  the  bank  are  as  follows:  President, 
Mr.  Zennosuke  Yasuda;  Directors,  Messrs. 
Zenshiro  and  Zengoro  Yasuda;  Auditor,  Mr. 
Y'oshio  Yasuda;  Chief  of  Business  Depart- 
ment, Mr.  Yasutaro  Sudzuki;  Chief  of  Gen- 
eral Business  Department,  Mr.  J.  Kondo. 
Besides  these  officers  Mr.  Zenzaburo  Yasuda 


% 


i 

n 


I' 


J' 


m'^ 


^."^$S5v^., 


! 

T 

>                                          c 

i-                                       - ....,-._.       -.... -J — . 

y  . ..  '^.^A 


•^g^-;,.^ 


' !  C  Ti^  •''^***^<:":- . -^ ;  - '* 


B\ 


ij'M 


tr' 


THE    HEAD    OFFK  IC    dl-     IHK    \A>II1A    HANK,    TOKYO PREMISES    OF    DAISAN    GINKO    (THIRD    BANK,    LIMITED),    TOKYO 


120 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


is  Superintendent,  and  Mr.  Zenjiro  Yasuda 
is  general  business  adviser.  Such  close 
relationship  between  members  of  the  one 
family  in  the  common  interests  of  all,  which 
are  involved  in  the  Yasuda  Bank,  is  one  of 
the  secrets  of  its  great  success.  According 
to  the  report  and  balance  sheet  submitted 
up  to  June  30,  1917,  the  net  profit  of  the 
Yasuda  Bank  was  Yen  670,000,  and  the 
amount  carried  forward  after  the  dividend 
had  been  paid  was  the  large  sum  of  Yen 
340,000  which  showed  an  increase  of  Yen 
140,000  over  the  amount  carried  forward  the 
previous  year.  The  balance  sheet  to  June  30, 
1917,  is  shown  in  the  accompanying  table. 

THE    DAISAN    GINKO   (tHE    THIRD    BANK, 

limited) 
Prior  to  the  passing  of  the  National  Bank 
Act  in  1872,  none  of  the  financial  houses 
applied  the  name  of  "Ginko"  to  their  insti- 
tutions. The  act  was  revised  in  1876  and  it 
was  at  this  time  that  Mr.  Zenjiro  Yasuda 
organised  the  Daisan  Ginko,  or  Third  Bank, 
with  a  capital  of  Yen  200,000.  Two  years 
later  the  capital  was  increased  to  Yen  300,000, 
and  upon  the  amalgamation  with  the  Forty- 
fourth  Bank  in  1882,  the  amount  of  capital 
was  raised  to  Yen  1,000,000.  On  the  expira- 
tion of  the  national  bank  business  in  1896 
the  status  of  the  Third  Bank  was  changed 
to  that  of  a  joint-stock  company  and  the 
capital  was  doubled.  Further  increases  in 
capital  followed  upon  the  amalgamation  with 
the  Eighty-second  Bank  in  1898;  again  in 
July,  1910,  when  it  was  raised  to  Yen  5,000,- 
000  and  finally  in  May,  1917,  to  Yen  10,- 
000,000.  The  Third  Bank  has  foiu"  branches 
in  the  city  of  Osaka,  and  thirteen  other 
branches  scattered  throughout  Japan  in  such 
cities  as  Yokohama,  Hakodate,  Tottori, 
Matsuye,  Yonago,  Sakai,  Imaichi,  Kurayi- 
shi,  and  Nishiwaki.  It  was  also  recently 
decided  to  install  a  further  branch  at  Osaka. 
The  Third  Bank  has  had  a  remarkable  history 
of  expansion  and  of  continued  success.  For 
many  years  it  has  paid  an  annual  dividend 
of  twelve  per  cent.  The  last  balance  sheet 
presented  up  to  the  end  of  April,  19 17, 
showed  the  total  deposits  to  be  Yen  74,058,- 
505.  The  capital  is  as  stated  above.  Yen 
10,000,000,  of  which  half  is  paid  up,  and  the 
reserve  fund  amounts   to  Yen   3,450,000. 

THE  TEIYU  BA.\K,  LIMITED 
L\  1897  the  Fifteenth  National  Bank  at 
the  expiration  of  its  business  term  distributed 
amongst  the  shareholders  a  large  amount  of 
profit  and  reserves  as  the  result  of  a  very 
successful  term.  Prince  Iwakura,  Prince 
Shimazu,  Prince  Mori,  Marquis  Mayeda, 
Marquis  Asano,  Count  Tsugaru,  Count  li, 
and  some  others,  who  were  amongst  the  prin- 


cipal shareholders  of  the  Fifteenth  Bank, 
pooled  their  dividends  from  that  institution, 
and  with  the  fund  thus  raised  they  started 
the  Teiyu  Bank  under  the  joint-stock  com- 
pany laws,  with  a  capital  of  Yen  2,000,000. 
As   the   founders   were   nearly   all   peers,   it 


naturally  followed  that  the  new  bank  had  a 
strong  position  in  public  confidence,  and  its 
business  became  very  brisk.  For  fourteen 
years  the  Teiyu  Bank,  Limited,  was  con- 
ducted as  an  entirely  separate  institution, 
although   it   was   commonly   accepted   as   a 


Assets 

Liabilities 

Yen 

Yen 

Loan  and  temporary  overdrafts 41, 847, 252  .  70 
Call  loans. .              .    .                    5,900,000  00 

Capital 10,000,000.00 

Reserve  funds                                  'k  020  000  00 

Discount  bills,  etc 8,365,960 .  00 

Loans  to  other  institutions 1,022,450.13 

Land,  building,  etc 196,375 .  43 

Real  estate 30,443  1 8 

Deposits 72,794,842.38 

Loans  from  other  institutions .  .   2,637,635 .  13 
Interests    unclaimed    and    dis- 
count rate  unexpired 716,763.23 

Bids  and  bullion 27,057,604.20 

Cash  in  hand 6,342,808.04 

Profit   for  fiscal  term 674,877. 17 

Balance  brought  forward 211,584.82 

Total 90,762.893 .  68 

Total 90,762,893.68 

i  *-«  ■ 


THE    HANDSOME    NEW    PREMISES    OF    THE    TEIYU    BANK,    LIMITED,    TOKYO 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


121 


branch  of  the  Fifteenth  Bank.  In  191 1  its 
stocks  were  purchased  by  the  Fifteenth 
Bank,  and  the  capital  was  increased  to 
Yen  5,000,000,  while  Mr.  M.  Naruse,  Vice- 
President  of  the  Fifteenth  Bank,  became  the 
President  of  the  Teiyu,  and  Mr.  S.  Ogawa, 
from  the  same  institution,  was  appointed 
Managing  Director  of  the  new  company. 
The  solid  foundation  of  the  Teiyu  Bank  has 
resulted  in  a  highly  successful  career,  and  it 
is  to-day  at  the  height  of  its  prosperity.  The 
Directorates  of  the  Fifteenth  and  the  Teiyu 
Banks  are  practically  the  same,  the  board  of 
the  latter  being:  President,  Mr.  M.  Naruse; 
Directors,  Messrs.  K.  Sonoda,  Viscount  Kano, 
Viscount  Aoyama,  and  Managing  Director, 
S.  Ogawa.  The  Auditors  are  Messrs.  S 
Mayeda,  Y.  Sato,  and  T.  Imai.  The  head 
office  of  the  Teiyu  Bank,  Ltd.,  is  at  No.  13 
Sojurocho,  Kyobashi-ku,  Tokyo,  and  there 
are  branches  at  Gofukucho,  Nihonbashi-ku 
and  Tomiyoshicho,  Fukagawa-ku.  Tokyo. 

THE  ONE  HUNDREDTH  BANK,  LIMITED 
The  Dai  Hyaku  Ginko,  or  One  Hundredth 
Bank,  Ltd.,  of  Tokyo,  was  originally  founded 
under  government  charter  in  1878,  in  con- 
formance with  the  laws  governing  national 
banks.  In  those  days  the  pensions  of  the 
old  daimyo  and  samurai  were  granted  in 
bonds  and  it  was  their  custom  to  mortgage 
these  bonds  and  get  special  rights  to  issue 
paper  money.  For  this  purpose  therefore 
numerous  banks  of  this  class  were  established, 
not  only  in  the  principal  cities,  but  also  in 
every  principal  town  or  port.  About  150 
such  banks  were  formed,  and  the  One  Hun- 
dredth Bank  was  one  of  them,  being  organised 
under  the  auspices  of  Marquis  Ikeda,  the 
Chief  of  the  Tottori  Prefecture  and  the  samu- 
rai of  that  prefecture.  The  capital  was 
Yen  200,000  and  the  bank  was  known  as  Dai 
Hyaku  Kokuritsu  Ginko,  or  the  One  Hun- 
dredth National  Bank.  At  the  same  time 
the  Dai  Hachiju-ni  Kokuritsu  Ginko  (the 
Eighty-second  National  Bank)  was  opened 
in  Tottori  Prefecture  with  a  capital  of  Yen 
200,000.  The  rate  of  special  privilege 
granted  for  the  issue  of  paper  currency  was 
eight-tenths  of  a  l:)ank's  capital,  and  the 
amount  of  paper  money  issued  by  mort- 
gaging public  loan  bonds  to  the  Government 
was  Yen  160,000.  The  founders  of  the  One 
Hundredth  Bank  were  Messrs.  Rokuro  Hara, 
Saneatsu  Kawasaki,  Tadami  Yoshida,  Zen- 
jiro  Yasuda,  Kageyoshi  Kawada,  Hisashi 
Miyabe,  Chohei  Takasaki,  and  Yoshizo 
Enjoji. 

In  May,  1 883,  when  the  revision  of  the  laws 
of  the  national  banks  took  place,  and  their 
old  functions  were  suspended,  the  One 
Hundredth  Bank  continued  in  operation  as 
an  ordinary  bank,  and  has  ever  since  held  a 


prominent  place  in  public  esteem,  giving 
facilities  to  merchants  and  in  every  way 
endeavouring  to  hasten  the  development  of 
the  resources  of  Japan  and  to  promote 
exports.  The  old  paper  money  issued  by  the 
bank  was  all  paid  off  at  the  expiration  of  the 
business   term   in   August,    iS()8.     The   One 


Hundredth  Bank  conducts  a  general  business 
throughout  Japan  and  her  dependencies,  as 
well  as  abroad.  In  addition,  it  handles  trust 
company  business  and  maintains  a  safe 
deposit  department  at  the  Yokohama  branch. 
The  head  office  of  the  bank  is  at  Awomono- 
cho,    Tokyo.     Branches   are   maintained   at 


Resources 

Yen 

Cash  and  bullion  in  hand 6,374,697 .  70 

Cash  in  Bank  of  Japan 447,869 .  85 

Total 6,822,567.55 

Money  at  call 410,000.00 

Investments: 

Securities  of  Japanese  Gov- 
ernment    4,880,905.00 

Foreign     governments    treas- 
ury bills 2,406,744.47 

Japanese  corporation  bonds .         54,6oo .  00 
Japanese  corporation  stocks,         12,500.00 

Total 7,764,749.47 

Bills  discounted 25,472,989.26 

Loans  and  overdrafts 35i7i7i455- 13 

Foreign  bills  purchased 3i992i797.8o 

Liabilities  of  customers  on  ac- 
ceptances and  guarantees  as 

per  contra 7,458,502.93 

Due  from  other  banks 1,976,326.39 

Bank  premises  and  real  estates      890,859.57 
Suspense  accounts 11,835.01 

To'al 91,108,083.  II 


Liabilities 


Yen 


Yen 


Capital : 

Subscribed. .  10,000,000.00 

Paid  up 6,000,000 .  00      6,000 . 

Reserve  fund 4,090, 

Demand  deposits 30,687, 

Time  deposits,  certificates 37,379, 

Acceptances  and  guarantees .  .  .   7,458 
Liabilities  on  foreign  bills  sold . .      329, 

Due  to  Bank  of  Japan i  ,900, 

Due  to  other  banks 1,885, 

Transit  account 357, 

Unclaimed    dividends,    interest 

due,  rebates,  etc 524, 

Profit  and  loss : 

Balance    brought 
forward 46,798.74 

Net  profit  for  the 
half-year  ....447,786.55         494, 


000 . 00 
000 . 00 
923.98 

.507-83 
502.93 
,630.99 
000 . 00 

877.81 
610.97 

443  31 


585 . 29 


Total 91,108,083.  II 


PREMISES    OF    THE    TOKYO    BANK,   LIMITED 


122 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


A    COMMON    TYPE    OF    RIVER    BOAT 

No.  I  Torihatogocho,  Nihonbashi,  and  No.  lo 
Ginza,  Tokyo,  as  well  as  at  Yokohama, 
Osaka,  Kyoto,  and  Tottori.  The  London 
correspondents  are  Messrs.  Brown,  Shipley  & 
Company,  and  in  New  York,  Messrs.  Brown 
Brothers  &  Company.  Mr.  K.  Ikeda  is  the 
President  of  the  One  Hundredth  Bank,  Ltd., 
and  Mr.  S.  Choh,  the  Managing  Director. 
Some  idea  of  the  growth  of  this  institution 
may  be  gathered  from  the  fact  that  its  capital 
to-day  is  Yen  10,000,000,  of  which  Yen 
6,000,000  is  paid  up,  and  the  reserves 
amount  to  Yen  4,120,000.  The  balance  sheet 
as  at  June  30,  191 7,  is  given  on  the  preced- 
ing page. 

THE  TOKYO  BANK,  LIMITED 
The  Kabushiki  Kaisha  Tokyo  Ginko,  or 
Tolcyo  Bank,  Ltd.,  is  one  of  the  special  trade 
banks  of  Japan,  having  been  established  to 
give  facilities  to  the  cotton  and  dry-goods 
merchants,  who  have  derived  a  great  deal  of 
benefit  from  its  operations.  This  bank  was 
founded  in  1896  by  the  late  Mr.  Ginjiro 
Kobayashi,  with  a  capital  of  Yen  1,000,000, 
and  it  has  been  highly  successful,  its  financial 
position  to-day  being  a  particularly  strong 
one,  which  has  warranted  the  directors  in 
extending  the  operations  in  other  directions 
than  those  in  which  the  institution  has  exclu- 
sively worked  in  the  past.  The  Tokyo  Bank 
is  now  working  as  a  deposit  bank,  transacting 
a  general  business,  and  meeting  with  all 
success.  There  are  branches  at  Hongo, 
Kanda,  Fukagawa,  and  Koishikawa  in  the 
metropolitan  area  of  Tokj'o.  The  head  office 
is  at  No.  10  Tadokorocho,  Nihonbashi-ku, 
Tokyo.  A  staff  of  about  one  hundred  is 
employed  in  the  head  office  and  branches. 
Following  are  the  officers  of  the  Tokyo  Bank : 
President,  Mr.  Tabei  Mayekawa;  Vice- 
Presidents,  Messrs.  M.  Aizawa  and  S.  Mine- 
mura;  General  Manager,  Mr.  Yujiro  Anraku; 
Manager  of  Hongo  Branch,  Mr.  M.  Kato; 
Manager  of  Kanda  Branch,  Mr.  M.  Kawabe; 


Manager  of  Fukagawa  Branch,  Mr.  Y. 
Watanabe;  Manager  of  Koishikawa  Branch, 
Mr.  K.  Sugimoto.  (See  illustration  on  pre- 
ceding page.) 

THE  MORIMURA  BANK 
This  well  known  institution  in  financial 
and  banking  circles  of  Japan  was  founded  in 
1897  l)y  Baron  L  Morimura,  a  millionaire 
famous  throughout  the  Empire  for  his 
important  business  interests  which  he  directs 
with  conspicuous  ability.  Baron  Morimura 
is  the  Senior  Partner  of  the  bank.  The 
President  is  Mr.  S.  Hirose,  and  the  Manager, 
Mr.  K.  Morokudzu.  A  general  banking 
business  is  done  from  the  headquarters  at 
No.  3  Tori-Itchome,  Nihonbashi-ku,  Tokyo. 
The  capital  of  the  Morimura  Bank  is  Yen 
500,000,  the  legal  reserve  fund,  Yen  580,000, 
and  the  deposits  total  Yen  10,000,000. 


THE  NISHIWAKI  BANK,  LIMITED 
The  Nishiwaki  Bank,  Ltd.,  is  doing  a 
steadily  increasing  general  business,  and 
stands  high  in  public  estimation.  It  was 
established  eight  years  ago  with  a  capital  of 
Yen  1,000,000  which  is  fully  paid  up,  the 
shares  being  mainly  in  the  hands  of  the 
Nishiwaki  family,  who  are  well  known  in 
financial  circles  throughout  the  Japanese 
Empire,  and  are  closely  identified  with  several 
large  undertakings.  The  Board  of  Directors 
of  the  bank  is  as  follows:  President,  Mr. 
Seizaburo  Nishiwaki;  Kenji  Nishiwaki,  and 
Otoya  Tomono;  Auditors,  Messrs.  Shimbei 
Nishiwaki  and  Shimjiro  Nishiwaki.  On  the 
following  page  is  the  fifteenth  half-yearly 
balance   sheet   for   the   period   ending    June 

30,  1917- 

The    operations    of    the    Nishiwaki    Bank 
for  the  half-year  under  review  resulted  in  a 


premises   of    MORIMURA    BANK,    TOKYO 


PRESENT-DAY        IMPRESSIONS        OF        JAPAN 


123 


Assets 

Ll.\BII,ITIES 

Yen 

Yen 

Securities  against  loans 269,482.24 

Bills  against  loans 5,000,925.41 

Current  account  overdrafts 27,106.22 

Bills  discounted 1,532,002.53 

Capital 1 ,000,000 .  00 

Current  deposits 2,380,854.21 

Special  current  deposits 77,504.86 

Fixed  deposits 1,758,104.06 

Various  other  deposits 180,155 .  12 

Loans  from  other  firms 61,950.88 

Loans 1,590,000.00 

Deposit  monev 18,301 .38 

Public  bonds 225,000.00 

Shares 2 1 ,088 .  00 

Discounts  not  overdue 12,598.22 

Net  profit  for  half-year  including 
Yen   331,368.98   brought   for- 
ward       361 ,722 .  86 

Properties,  furniture,  etc 96,939 .  78 

Cash  on  hand 205,183.09 

Total Yen    7,423,290.21 

Tolal Yen   7,423,290.21 

profit  of  Yen  30,353.88,  which  together  with 
the  amount  brought  forward  from  the  pre- 
vious half-year,  viz.,  Yen  331,368.98,  was 
carried  forward. 

THE   TAIYO    LIFE   INSURANCE    COMPANY, 
LIMITED 

This  is  one  of  the  vigourous  concerns 
founded  under  the  auspices  of  the  Nishiwaki 
family,  proprietors  of  the  Nishiwaki  Bank, 
Ltd.  Although  of  comparatively  recent 
origin  the  Taiyo  Life  Insurance  Co.,  Ltd., 
has  already  won  a  permanent  position  in  life 
insurance  circles  in  Japan,  and  the  report 
for  the  year  1916  disclosed  a  healthy  state  of 
affairs  and  the  growing  popularity  of  the 
company.  Early  in  the  year  general  business 
conditions  became  active  owing  to  the 
influences  of  the  war,  but  as  it  is  well  known 
that  life  insurance  does  not  respond  imme- 
diately to  improved  business  conditions,  it 
was  some  time  later  in  the  year  before  the 
insurance  companies  began  to  feel  the  benefit 
of  the  change.  In  the  case  of  the  Taiyo  Life 
Insurance  Co.,  Ltd.,  the  latter  half  of  1916 
was  particularly  brisk.  Before  the  close  of 
the  period,  the  new  contracts  for  1916 
exceeded  in  total  those  of  the  previous  year, 
and  the  number  of  policies  surrendered  de- 
creased substantially,  showing  that  the 
policy-holders  were  in  a  much  better  position 
to  meet  their  premiums.  New  insurance 
written  during  1916  totalled  in  value  Yen 
3,420,000,  or  an  increase  of  eight  per  cent. 
Contracts  surrendered  or  cancelled  totalled 
in  value  Yen  2,360,000,  a  decrease  of  57  per 
cent.  The  total  amount  insured  with  the 
Taiyo  at  the  end  of  the  year  was  Yen  14,- 
200,000,  or  17  per  cent  increase  over  the 
previous  year.  Premiums  to  the  total  value 
of  Yen  729,000  were  received,  representing  an 
increase  of  twelve  per  cent.  During  the 
year  insurances  totalling  Yen  135,000  were 
paid  (increase  d^ / 10  per  cent);  money  re- 
turned on  surrendered  policies  wasYen  39,000, 
or  a  decrease  of  41   per   cent,  and  business 


expenses  totalled  Yen  248,000,  being  an  in- 
crease of  2''/  J II  per  cent  over  the  previous 
year.  The  reserves  of  the  company  were  in- 
creased by  29  per  cent,  and  now  stand  at  Yen 
1,989,000,  and  the  total  assets  are  Yen 
2,228,000,  or  an  increase  of  21  per  cent. 

The  Taiyo  Insurance  Co.,  Ltd.,  has  its 
head  oflRce  at  No.  12,  2  Chome,  Minami- 
Demmacho,  Kyobashi-ku,  Tokyo.  There 
are  eight  branch  offices,  which  are  located  in 
Tokyo,  Osaka,  Nagoya,  Sendai,  Fukuoha, 
Kanagawa,  Hiroshima,  and  Kyoto.  At  the 
end  of  1916  the  company  had  1,503  agencies 
spread  all  over  the  Japanese  Empire.  Fol- 
lowing are  the  officers  of  the  Taiyo  Life 
Insurance  Co.,  Ltd.;  President,  Mr.  Seiza- 
buro  Nishiwaki;  Managing  Director,  Mr.  B. 
Shimidzu;  Directors,  Messrs.  Kenji  Nishiwaki 
and  O.  Tomono;  Auditors,  Messrs.  Shinjiro 
Nishiwaki  and  K.  Shibata. 

THE  KOIKE  BANK,  LIMITED,  TOKYO 
This  institution  is  directed  and  controlled 
by  Mr.  Kunizo  Koike,  a  prominent  financier, 
industrial  organiser,  and  general  business 
man  of  wide  repute.  The  bank  was  originally 
founded  in  1888  as  an  institution  for  the 
financing  of  the  wooKdealing  interests  in 
Tokyo.  It  was  then  known  as  the  Shoyei 
Ginko.  Business  was  transacted  along  sound 
lines  among  a  restricted  clientele  of  solid  busi- 
ness men,  and  the  bank  developed  very 
strongly.  In  May,  191 1,  Mr.  Koike  pur- 
chased the  bank,  and  in  1917  its  title  was 
altered  to  the  Koike  Bank. 

Mr.  Koike's  record  as  a  business  man  is  an 
interesting  one.  He  was  born  in  Kofu, 
Yamanashi  Prefecture,  in  1866.  When 
young  he  was  in  the  employment  of  Mr. 
Ippei  Wakao  and  engaged  in  raw  silk,  mining, 
and  banking  businesses.  After  seventeen 
years  of  all-round  commercial  experience  he 
left  the  service  of  Mr.  Wakao  and  proceeded 
to  Tokyo.  There,  in  April,  1897,  he  com- 
menced his  business  as  a  broker  on  the  Yokyo 
Stock  Exchange,  and  was  soon  appointed  a 


member  of   the   Committee  of  the  Brokers' 
Association. 

Later  on  he  was  elected  chairman  of  that 
body  and  also  a  member  of  the  Tokyo  Cham- 
ber of  Commerce.  In  April,  1907,  he  estab- 
lished the  Koike  Joint  Stock  Company,  and 
was  engaged  solely  in  the  sale  and  purchase 
of  stocks,  bonds,  and  in  general  investments. 
His  effort  in  the  introduction  to  Japan  of 
foreign  capital  by  cooperating  with  British, 
American,  and  French  financiers  soon  made 
his  name  well  known  throughout  Japan  and 
abroad.  In  August,  1909,  Mr.  Koike  was 
among  the  body  of  prominent  Japanese  busi- 
ness men  which  was  organised  to  visit  the 
United  States  for  the  purpose  of  promoting 
business  relations  between  the  two  countries. 
In  1910,  when  the  Katsura  Government  had 
issued  the  four  per  cent  public  loan,  he  took 
a  prominent  part  in  its  flotation,  and  raised 
a  large  amount  of  money,  demonstrating 
once  more  his  financial  influence.  Since 
then  his  investment  business  has  been  on 
a  very  large  scale,  and  he  has  long  been 
recognised  as  a  leader  in  the  field  of  high 
finance. 

On  April  15,  1917,  which  date  is  recorded 
as  twenty  years  after  his  first  connection  with 
the  stock  business,  he  retired  from  the 
membership  of  the  Tokyo  Stock  Exchange, 
and  at  the  same  time  the  Koike  Joint  Stock 
Company  was  dissolved.  Since  that  time 
he  has  devoted  his  energy  entirely  to  the 
business  of  the  Koike  Bank  which  business 
is  solely  to  underwrite  national  loans,  float 
local  bonds,  and  issue  debentures  on  behalf 
of  municipalities,  public  corporations,  etc. 
Thus,  among  his  recent  operations,  for  in- 
stance, are  a  large  loan  for  the  city  of  Tolvyo, 
and  the  flotations  of  several  industrial  issues, 
amounting  in  the  aggregate  to  some  tens  of 
millions  of  yen,  and  for  further  extension  in 
this  line  of  business  Mr.  Koike  will  exert  all 
his  force. 

Apart  from  his  financial  business,  Mr. 
Koike's  career  in  industry  is  also  a  prominent 
one.  In  November,  1915,  he  estabhshed  the 
Japan  Chemical  Pulp  Co.,  Ltd.,  in  Saghalien, 
northern  extreme  of  Japan,  the  exploitation 
of  which  island  has  been  so  long  neglected. 
The  company's  goods  made  their  first  appear- 
ance in  the  market  in  Maj',  1917,  and  at  once 
acquired  a  reputation  for  the  excellence  of 
their  quality.  The  product  is  largely  sold 
on  the  local  market  and  is  also  exported  to 
India  and  elsewhere.  The  field  of  the  com- 
pany's activity  covers  forestry,  mining,  and 
agriculture,  and  it  is  largely  contributing  to 
the  colonisation  of  that  island. 


EDITOR'S  NOTE:  — Details  of  other  important 
Banking  and  Financial  Institutions  will  be  found  in 
connection  with  the  cities  in  which  they  are  located. 


^ 


— ^ •  T^   .V^-T. "iZi    TS!- — ^j-—^  '.'\  -  ^    '^  .  Jv>- 


PREMISES   OF    TAIVO   LIFE    INSURANCE   COMPANY,    LlxMITED  —  BVILDING    OCCUPIED    BY    THE    NISHIWAKI    BANK.    LIMITED 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


125 


TOKYO    STOCK    EXCHANGE 


EXCHANGES 

THE    TOKYO    STOCK    EXCHANGE 

The  Tokyo  Stock  Exchange,  which  was 
founded  on  May  15,  1878,  came  into  existence 
practically  under  the  auspices  of  the  Imperial 
Government,  and  to-day  still  retains  its 
official  status,  though,  of  course,  it  is  not  in 
any  way  a  government-controlled  institution. 
Early  in  the  Rleiji  era  it  was  recognised  that 
such  an  institution  was  a  necessity.  Japan 
was  then  just  developing  its  resources,  and 
entering  upon  foreign  trade.  Government 
loans  were  being  issued,  companies  of  various 
kinds  were  being  floated,  and  the  absence  of 
a  central  clearing  house  to  regulate  the  trade 
in  securities  was  badly  felt.  Accordingly  in 
October,  1874,  the  Government  issued  an 
Ordinance  No.  107  providing  for  the  estab- 
lishment of  stock  exchanges,  and  induce- 
ments were  offered  for  the  starting  of  such 
institutions  in  Tok\-o  and  Osaka.  In  the 
previous  year  a  large  number  of  national 
bonds  had  been  issued  and  it  was  particularly 
desired  that  there  should  be  a  medium 
through  which  these  could  be  smoothly  cir- 
culated, under  the  rules  and  conditions  which 
obtain  on  the  London  Stock  Exchange.  The 
project  of  a  stock  exchange  for  Tokyo  was 


taken  up  by  a  number  of  prominent  business 
men,  and  their  ideas  were  submitted  to  the 
Government  for  approval  under  the  law  re- 
ferred to.  It  is  interesting  to  recall  the  names 
of  the  men  who  originally  promoted  the 
Tokyo  Stock  Exchange,  the  first  to  be  estab- 
lished in  Japan.  They  were,  Messrs.  Riozo 
Fukagawa,  Eiichi  Shibusawa,  Yonosuke 
Mitsui,  Takenosuke  Mitsui,  Takashi  Masuda, 
Risuke  Minomura,  Shinobu  Komuro,  Akira 
Komatsu,  Genichiro  Fukuchi,  and  Kisaku 
Shibusawa.  The  Government  approved  to 
the  plan  submitted  by  these  gentlemen, 
whose  names  are  famous  in  Japan's  com- 
mercial history,  and  on  June  3,  1878,  the 
Tokyo  Stock  Exchange  began  operations. 
Meanwhile  it  will  be  of  interest  to  show  the 
development  of  official  ideas  regarding  the 
control  of  stock  exchanges  in  Japan. 

In  December,  1892,  regulations  governing 
exchanges  were  introduced  in  the  Imperial 
Diet,  and  were  passed.  It  was  provided  that 
stock  exchanges  could  be  of  two  kinds  — 
those  formed  of  private  members,  and  those 
constituting  a  joint-stock  company.  In  the 
former  case  no  deposit  was  called  for,  but 
in  the  case  of  a  joint-stock  company  exchange 
the  Government  decreed  that  one-third  of 
the   capital    should   be   lodged    as    security 


for  the  proper  conduct  of  business.  In  the 
private  membership  exchanges  both  brokers 
and  members  were  allowed  to  transact  busi- 
ness, but  a  joint-stock  company  exchange 
must  confine  its  transactions  solely  to  regis- 
tered brokers,  and  these  latter,  though  they 
could  make  sales  and  purchases  on  their 
own  account,  were  to  be  held  responsible  to 
the  Stock  Exchange  for  all  business  done  for 
their  own,  or  customers'  accounts.  And  to 
protect  itself  the  Stock  Exchange  was  given 
a  preference  right  over  other  creditors  with 
respect  to  deposit  money.  It  was  also  pro- 
vided that  the  capital  of  a  joint-stock  ex- 
change should  be  not  less  than  30,000  yen. 
Private  members  exchanges  were  not  subject 
to  any  restriction  as  to  capital.  These 
regulations  were  somewhat  altered  in  IQ02 
when  Imperial  Ordinance  No,  158  prescribed 
that  the  capital  of  a  stock  exchange  should 
be  not  less  than  Yen  100,000,  and  that  unless 
half  of  the  capital,  or  in  the  minimum,  Yen 
100,000,  be  paid  up,  no  business  could  be 
done.  Furthermore  the  personal  securities  of 
brokers  and  members  must  be  deposited. 
Such  regulations,  of  course,  were  drafted  to 
check  the  tendency  of  small  and  irresponsible 
concerns  from  springing  up  and  trading  on 
])ublic  confidence  as  regular  stock  exchanges. 


126 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


(Left)  Mr.  K.  Sl'GINO,  President  of  the  Yamaichi  Goshi  Kaisha.  (Upper  Row,  Left  to  Right)  Mr.  YosHio  S.\shid.^,  Chairman  of 
Board  of  Directors  (Tokyo  Rice  and  Produce  Exchange)— Mr.  T.  N.\kane,  Director.  (Lower  Row,  Left  to  Right)  Mr.  E.  Shink.\i, 
Director — Mr.   C.   Hirose,  Director.     (Right)  Mr.  R.\izo  K.\nd.\,  President  of  the  Momijiya  Bank 


As  a  matter  of  fact  the  Tokv'o  Stock  Exchange 
from  the  date  of  its  inception  was  a  joint- 
stock  concern,  and  its  initial  capital  was 
Yen  200,000,  far  exceeding  the  legal  require- 
ments. 

Apart  from  all  government  regulation  the 
Tokyo  Stock  Exchange  has  its  own  laws, 
embraced  in  the  Articles  of  Association,  for 
the  conduct  of  its  business.  These  have  been 
altered  and  varied  from  time  to  time,  as 
experience  required,  and  to-day  it  is  generally 
recognised  that  the  institution  is  exceedingly 
well  governed,  and  undoubtedly  it  has  the 
implicit  confidence  of  the  Government  and  of 
the  investing  public.  Abroad  the  Tokj'o 
Stock  Exchange  is  rated  as  on  an  equality 
with  all  the  great  bourses.  Its  capital  is 
now  Yen  20,000,000.  None  but  Ucensed 
brokers  can  be  members  of  the  exchange,  and 
their  dealings  are  subject  to  rigid  control. 
Before  being  allowed  to  operate  on  the  ex- 


change they  must  lodge  Yen  50,000  as  secur- 
ity. They  have  also  to  pay  the  license  fee 
of  Yen  100,  and  in  addition  must  contribute 
Yen  1,000  to  the  guild,  or  partnership  of 
brokers.  Any  man  may  become  a  member 
under  certain  conditions  contained  in  the 
Articles  of  Association.  All  transactions  on 
the  exchange  are  in  the  name  of  the  broker. 
Private  operations  by  outside  speculators  are 
not  recognised,  and  the  broker  is  held  strictlj' 
responsible,  financially  and  otherwise,  for 
anj'  trading  done  in  his  name  on  the  exchange. 
In  191 7  there  were  about  eighty  licensed 
brokers  operating  on  the  Tokyo  Stock 
Exchange. 

The  Tokyo  Stock  Exchange  is  open  from 
9  to  1 1 .30  A.  M.  and  from  I  to  4  P.  m.  The 
margin  money  to  be  collected  for  time  bar- 
gains is  of  three  kinds:  (l)  principal  margin 
money,  (2)  supplementary  margin  money, 
and   (3)  extra  margin  money.     The  margin 


money  is  bought  and  sold  on  the  following 
basis:  in  the  first  category  the  amount  to 
be  paid  is  not  more  than  one-half  of  the  value 
of  the  shares  booked;  in  the  second  category, 
one-half  of  the  amount  paid  for  the  first. 
Of  the  third  class  not  more  than  three  times 
the  amount  of  the  first  is  paid,  and  this  is 
to  be  collected  when  emergency  arises  or 
business  is  suspended,  or  when  it  is  con- 
sidered that  there  may  be  serious  fluctuations 
of  quotations.  This  margin  money  is  to  be 
both  for  buyer's  and  seller's  account.  Time 
bargains  are  made  for  Present  Month 
Delivery,  Second  Month  Delivery,  and 
Third   Month   Delivery. 

Some  idea  of  the  growth  of  the  transactions 
on  the  Tokyo  Stock  Exchange  will  be  gath- 
ered from  the  following:  In  the  seven 
months  of  operations  in  1878,  the  total  value 
of  national  bonds  changing  hands  was  Yen 
26,565,400.     Sales  and  purchases   of   shares 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


127 


only  reached  a  total  of  Yen  9,600,000,  and 
there  were  only  253  transactions.  In  the 
following  year  the  operations  in  national 
bonds  in  the  first  six  months  exceeded  in 
value  the  operations  of  the  previous  period  by 
over  Yen  30,000,000,  and  there  were  2,400 
transactions.  In  the  last  half-year  of  1879 
national  bonds  transactions  decreased  in 
value  by  Yen  23,000,000,  but  the  trading  in 
shares  increased  tenfold.  These  figures  look 
small  compared  with  those  of  to-day,  but  they 
indicate  how  quickly  the  Tokyo  Stock  Ex- 
change grew  in  popular  favour  when  its  func- 
tions were  understood.  There  have  been 
periods  of  depression  and  stagnation  in  the 
market,  but  generally  speaking  the  history 
of  the  exchange  is  one  of  rapid  development 
and  ever  increasing  share  operations.  After 
the  Russo-Japanese  War,  and  when  the  first 
period  of  depression  following  that  struggle 
had  passed,  a  strong  revival  in  the  market 
was  witnessed.  In  1906  shares  began  to 
rise  and  in  the  following  year  the  50-yen 
shares  of  the  Tokyo  Stock  Exchange  rose  to 
780  yen,  a  figure  which  has  never  been  ex- 
ceeded. A  strong  tone  has  prevailed  since 
1914,  and  some  very  heavy  operations  have 
taken  place,  over  a  quarter  of  a  million  shares 
sometimes  changing  hands  in  one  day.  In 
1 91 6  the  number  of  shares  bought  and  sold 
in  the  time  bargains  on  the  exchange  totalled 
31.707.580,  valued  at  Yen  4,066,861,382  and 
in  the  first  half  of  19 17  the  number  handled 
was  10,801,610,  valued  at  Yen  1,575,276,733. 
The  officers  of  the  Tokyo  Stock  Exchange 
are:  President,  Baron  Seinosuke  Goh;  Vice- 
President,  Mr.  Shimpei  Tsunoda;  Directors, 
Messrs.  K.  Eguchi,  U.  Yamaguchi,  T.  Maye- 
kawa,  and  R.  Fujiyama. 

The  Tolcyo  Stock  Exchange  is  housed  in 
a  handsome  and  substantial  building  of  three 
stories  at  Nos.  4  and  6  Kabuto-cho,  Nihon- 
bashi-ku.  The  exchange  floor  is  a  capacious 
mart,  covering  an  area  of  1,026  tsuho.  In 
addition  there  is  office  space  of  1,000  tsubo. 
A  staff  of  221  is  employed  for  the  conduct  of 
the  building  and  the  control  of  share-dealing 
operations.  The  building  is  ventilated  and 
kept  supplied  with  purified  air  by  mechanical 
apparatus  electrically  driven. 

TOKYO  RICE  AND  PRODUCE  EXCH.\NGE 
The  rice  industry  of  Japan  is  of  such 
importance  that  it  would  be  indeed  surpris- 
ing did  there  not  exist  well  regulated  organi- 
sations for  the  control  of  the  marketing  and 
sale  of  the  product.  As  a  matter  of  fact 
such  institutions  are  to  be  found  in  all  the 
big  centres,  and  they  carry  on  a  very  useful 
work  in  fixing  samples,  controlling  deliveries, 
and  generally  handling  a  large  volume  of 
trade  at  one  central  house.  .Such  an  insti- 
tution is  the  Tokyo  Rice  and  Produce  Ex- 


change, which  is  located  at  No.  2  Kakigaracho 
Itchome,  Nihonbashi-ku,  Tokyo.  This  ex- 
change was  originally  established  in  1876 
under  the  name  of  the  Beisho  Kaisho,  or 
meeting  place  of  rice  merchants.  It  was 
organised  by  Mr.  Ippei  Yonekura,  and  other 
merchants  prominent  in  the  industry.  The 
capital  at  that  time  was  only  Yen  100,000, 
but  this  has  since  been  increased  to  Yen 
3,000,000.  Furthermore  the  functions  of  the 
exchange  have  been  widely  extended,  and  it 
now  handles  the  business  of  the  sale  and  pur- 
chase of  rice,  other  grain,  salt,  fertilisers, 
cotton  and  silk  thread,  cotton  cloth  and  so 
on.  So  important  has  the  Tokyo  Rice  and 
Produce  Exchange  become  that  a  branch 
has  had  to  be  established  at  No.  20  Shinzai- 
mokucho,  Nihonbashi-ku.  The  two  build- 
ings are  handsome  modern  structures,  admir- 
ably adapted  for  the  transaction  of  a  large 
flow  of  trade,  and  convenient  in  all  respects 
as  meeting  places  for  the  many  hundreds  of 


merchants  interested  in  the  different  indus- 
tries. The  head  office  consists  of  a  three- 
storied  brick  building  with  a  basement  and 
large  vestibule.  The  first  floor  where  the 
open  market  takes  place  covers  233  tsubo. 
The  second  floor  is  of  185  Isubo,  and  with 
the  third  floor  of  45  Isubo  is  largely  occupied 
by  offices.  The  basement  and  sample  room 
is  238  tsubo  in  area.  The  branch  buiding 
is  three-storied  and  the  total  floor  space  is 
75  tsubo.  In  the  Tokyo  Rice  and  Prodiice 
Exchange  the  bulk  of  the  transactions  are 
for  forward  deliveries.  There  is  a  staff  of 
sixty-three  employees,  and  the  salary  bill 
runs  over  Yen  60,000  per  annum.  Following 
are  the  principal  officers  of  this  important 
institution:  President,  Mr.  Yoshio  Sashida; 
Directors,  Messrs.  C.  Hirose,  E.  Shinkai,  and 
T.  Nakane;  Auditors,  Messrs.  N.  Ikegami, 
E.  Sugihara,  and  Y.  Unyeda.  Mr.  Shichizo 
Date  is  the  General  Manager  of  the  Ex- 
change.     (See  illustration,  page  95.) 


PREMISES    OF    THE    MOMIJIYA    n.\XK 


128 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


THE  MOMIJIYA  BANK 
The  Momijiya  Bank  of  Tokyo  is  an  off- 
shoot of  the  famous  Momijiya  &  Co.,  Ltd., 
and  fulfils  an  important  and  special  function 
in  financial  circles  of  the  capital.  To  describe 
the  operations  of  this  bank  requires  that  the 
history  of  the  Momijiya  business  should  be 
related  to  some  extent.  The  establishment 
of  the  Momijiya  dates  back  to  February-, 
1900.  At  that  time  the  sale  and  purchase 
of  public  loan  bonds  was  in  a  rudimentarj' 
stage,  and  even  the  official  quotations  of 
public  bonds  were  in  a  state  of  uncertainty. 
The  Momijiya  was  opened  exclusively  for 
cash  transactions  in\"olving  the  purchase  or 
sale  of  public  securities,  and  it  began  the 
publication  of  daily  bulletins  reporting  the 
actual  quotations  of  public  bonds  and  stocks, 
as  well  as  financial  conditions  generally.  In 
this  way,  the  Momijiya  became  noted  as  a 
specialist  in  this  class  of  business,  and  there 
is  no  doubt  its  operations  were  viewed  with 
great  public  favour,  the  institution  being 
far  ahead  of  any  other  concern  in  keeping 
the  public  well  advised  regarding  the  mar- 
kets. It  is  also  equally  certain  that  the 
Momijiya  did  a  great  deal  to  stabilise  and 
systematise  transactions  in  public  bonds. 
Some  of  the  transactions  of  the  Momijiya 
have  reached  very  large  figures.  One  such 
was  the  handling  of  Yen  7,000,000  worth  of 
public  bonds  in  1903.  The  Momijiya  also 
carried  out  the  flotation  of  a  national  loan  to 
the  extent  of  Yen  50,000,000  during  the 
Russo-Japanese  War;  a  wholesale  export  of 
the  Railway  Nationalization  Loan  Bonds, 
and  the  Government  Loan  Bonds  Mark 
"Ko-go"  in  1908-9,  and  similar  huge  under- 
takings involving  millions  of  yen  and  calling 
for  careful  and  expert  handling  of  negotia- 
tions. The  Momijiya  was  transformed  into 
a  joint-stock  corporation,  with  a  capital  of 
Yen  1,000,000  in  December,  1910,  a  -d  in 
the  following  year  the  Momijiya  Bank  was 
inaugurated  with  a  moderate  capital  of 
Yen  1,000,000. 

The  Momijiya  Bank  conducts  a  general 
banking  business,  but  it  has  several  special 
features;  underwriting  and  issuing  loans  for 
municipalities  and  industrial  companies; 
conducting  financial  operations  in  foreign 
markets,  etc.,  these  special  features  being 
the  natural  result  of  its  association  with 
Momijiya  &  Co.,  Ltd.  The  bank  is  under 
the  direct  control  of  Mr.  Raizo  Kanda,  but 
a  clear  distinction  is  maintained  in  respect 
of  the  capital  and  business  management  of 
the  two  institutions,  though  they  operate 
together  along  certain  lines.  Both  may  well 
be  regarded  as  indispensable  for  the  benefit 
of  the  public  at  large. 

With  the  object  of  promoting  intimate 
relations  with  the  capitalists  and  financiers 


of  Europe  and  America,  Mr.  Kanda,  Presi- 
dent of  the  two  institutions,  made  a  tour  of 
inspection  in  1912,  covering  England,  France, 
Belgium,  and  Germany,  returning  via  the 
United  States.  The  result  of  this  visit  and 
association  with  the  leading  bankers  and 
capitalists  abroad  has  been  to  give  an  im- 
petus to  international  transactions  in  bonds 
and  other  securities  in  which  Japan  is  inter- 
ested. The  Momijiya  Bank  occupies  hand- 
some headquarters  at  26  Sakamatocho, 
Xihonbashi-ku,  Tokyo,  and  special  corre- 
spondents are  maintained  in  London, 
Paris,  Amsterdam,  Xew  York,  and  San 
Francisco.  The  General  Manager  of  the 
bank  is  Mr.  Yoshimi  Yokota.  Following  are 
the  financial  statements  of  the  bank  for  the 
half-year  ended  June  30,  191 7: 


capital.  On  April  15,  1917,  the  Koike  Goshi 
Kaisha  was  formally  dissolved  on  Mr.  Koike 
retiring  from  brokerage  business  to  take  up 
the  active  control  of  the  bank  which  bears 
his  name.  The  succeeding  day  the  Yamaichi 
Goshi  Kaisha  was  formed,  and  by  arrange- 
ment which  had  been  made  at  a  conference 
of  the  principals  and  staflE  of  the  former 
concern,  the  new  organisation  at  once  took 
over  the  business  which  had  been  directed  by 
Mr.  Koike.  On  the  latter's  retirement  the 
organisation  was  changed  somev.'hat,  but  all 
the  principal  directors  and  the  heads  of 
staffs  continued  with  the  new  firm.  Conse- 
quently the  Yamaichi  Goshi  Kaisha  may  be 
said  to  be  a  continuation  of  the  long  estab- 
lished business,  and  has  at  its  disposal  all  the 
experience   of   the   staff    which     Mr.    Koike 


DR. 

Cr. 

Yen 

Yen 

Capital 1 ,000,000 .  00 

Reserve 400,000.00 

Deposits 566,132, 17 

Money  at  call 1,970,000.00 

Loans 900,000 .  00 

Unpaid  interests,  etc 8,503  .  80 

Loan  bonds 201,374.00 

Advances  current  account 2,097,457  •  83 

Bills  discounted 1.374.364. 35 

Loans  to  other  banks  ...            .            1 1 1  48 

Negotiable  instruments 323,961 .  44 

Loan  bonds 221,440  00 

Loans  on  lands  and  buildings. .  .     100,000.00 

Funds  in  agencies 1,140,407.30 

Cash  on  hand 10,93 '  •  87 

5,268,674.27 

Bonds  in  trust 121,207.00 

Net  profit  for  half-year 101,457.30 

5,268,674.27 

Profit  and  Loss  Account 


Dr. 

CR. 

Yen 

Yen 

Reserve  fund 30,000 .  00 

Balance  carried  forward  to  next 

term 71.457-30 

Net  profits  for  half-year  ending 

Tune  "^o    IQ17 ^i ..102 .  ^0 

Balance  brought  forward 70,055 .00 

101,457.30 

101,457.30 

YA.MAICHI  GOSHI  K.\ISH.\ 
In  a  separate  article  reference  is  made  to 
the  operations  of  Mr.  Kunizo  Koike,  Presi- 
dent of  the  Koike  Bank,  and  to  the  important 
work  which  that  gentleman  has  done  in 
financial  circles  in  Japan.  Over  twenty 
years  ago  Mr.  Koike  engaged  in  brokerage 
business  in  Tokj-o,  and  held  a  very  prominent 
position  in  the  Tokj-o  Stock  Exchange.  He 
established  the  Koike  Goshi  Kaisha,  about 
ten  years  ago,  and  made  it  one  of  the  leading 
stock  and  share  brokerage  businesses  in  the 


gathered  around  him.  Business  is  conducted 
in  a  steady  and  progressive  manner.  The 
firm  are  licensed  brokers  of  the  Tokj'O  Stock 
Exchange,  and  deal  in  domestic  and  foreign 
securities,  and  undertake  the  underwriting 
of  government  and  municipal  bonds  and 
debentures,  the  flotation  of  share  stock,  and 
so  forth.  The  capital  of  the  Yamaichi 
Goshi  Kaisha  is  Yen  1,000,000  fully  paid  up, 
and  it  is  interesting  to  note  that  the  original 
founder  of  the  business  still  retains  a  large 
interest  in  it,  and  is  one  of  its  partners.     The 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


129 


INTERIOR    VIEW    OK    THE    COUNTING    HOUSE    OF    YAMAICHI    GOSHI    KAISHA  —  THE    HEAD    OFFICE,    KABUTO-CHO,    NIHONBASHI-KU,  TOKYO 


head  office  of  the  Yamaichi  Goshi  Kaisha  is 
at  No.  3  Kabuto-cho,  Nihonbashi-ku,  Tokyo, 
in  the  building  formerly  occupied  by  the 
Sumitomo  Bank.  A  staff  of  about  sixty  is 
employed  to  transact  the  large  volume  of 
business  which  passes  through  the  hands  of 
the  firm.  The  Managing  Director  is  Mr. 
Kisei  Sugino.  Partners  and  Directors  are 
Messrs.  H.  Arita,  N.  Hasegawa,  S.  Miyo, 
K.  Kusunoki,  and  Partners  and  Auditors, 
Messrs.  S.  Asakawa  and  D.  Hiraoka.  There 
are  fifteen  other  partners,  among  whom  are 
Mr.  K.  Koike,  who  holds  stock  to  the  value 
of  Yen  387,000,  and  Mr.  J.  Watanabe.  The 
cable  address  of  Yamaichi  &  Company  is 
"Montoneco,"  Tokyo. 

FOREIGN    BANKS 

HONGKONG    &    SHANGHAI    BANKING 

CORPORATION 

A  GENERAL  history  of  this  well  known 
institution  though  more  than  warranted  from 
the  point  of  interest  represents  altogether  too 
lengthy  a  document  to  be  contained  in  a  work 
of  this  character.  A  glance  at  the  balance 
sheet  of   the   bank   will   serve   to   show  the 


present  enviable  position  it  holds;  indeed, 
absolutely  second  to  none  in  the  Eastern 
Hemisphere,  in  addition  to  which  the  follow- 
ing details  are  important.  The  bank  was 
established  at  Hongkong  in  1865  and  at 
Yokohama  in  1867.  The  original  capital  of 
$2,500,000  was  increased  in  1872  to  $5,000,- 
000,  further  additions  brought  it  up  to  the  ten 
million  mark  in  1 891,  and  in  1907  it  was 
raised  again  to  $15,000,000,  where  it  stands 
to-day.  Of  even  greater  significance  is  the 
fact  that  so  successful  were  the  bank's  opera- 
tions up  to  the  end  of  1916  that  the  accumu- 
lated reserves  aggregated  $33,000,000,  or 
more  than  double  the  capital.  The  sum  of 
$15,000,000  has  been  set  aside  to  form  a 
sterling  reserve  (at  Ex  2/-  =  £1,500,000) 
which  is  invested  in  British  War  Loan 
Bonds. 

A  further  indication  of  the  phenomenal  rise 
of  the  institution  as  well  as  the  extraordinary 
degree  of  public  confidence  enjoyed,  is 
illustrated  by  the  expansion  of  the  deposit 
account  which  shows  an  increase  during  the 
last  thirty-six  years  from  $24,198,572,  in  1880, 
to  $303,067,800,  at  the  end  of  1916. 


In  addition  to  its  commercial  operations  the 
bank  has  rendered  valuable  assistance  in  the 
promotion  of  Japanese,  Chinese,  and  Siamese 
Government  Loans,  its  flotations  either  alone 
or  in  connection  with  other  institutions 
amounting  to  about  $200,000,000.  The 
savings  bank  department  for  the  small 
depositor  was  initiated  some  years  ago  and  is 
much  appreciated,  indeed  regarded  as  a  boon. 

The  Yokohama  premises  of  the  bank  are 
located  in  No.  2  Water  Street  (Midzu  Machi- 
dori)  on  property  covering  about  2,000  tsiibo 
which  runs  right  through  from  the  street  to 
the  water  front.  The  staff  employed  consists 
of  ten  British  besides  sixteen  Portuguese  and 
eight  Japanese  assistants,  also  a  Chinese 
department  of  sixteen.  Other  branches  of 
the  bank  in  Japan  are  located  at  Kobe  and 
Nagasaki,  representatives  in  Tokyo,  Osaka, 
and  Shimonoseki  being,  respectively,  the 
Mitsu  Bishi  Goshi  Kaisha,  the  Thirty- 
fourth  Bank,  and  Messrs.  Jardine,  Matheson 
&Co. 

The  Yokohama  branch  is  under  the  man- 
agement of  Mr.  R.  T.  Wright  who  was 
appointed   in    1911.     Mr.    Wright  has   been 


K-5^s 


'i 

>Jr^ 

1 

1 

1 

/in 

Sw ' 

1 

HONGKONG  &  SHANGHAI  BANKING  CORPORATION:  THE  BANKING  CHAMBER,  YOKOHAMA  —  THE  BANKS  PREMISES 

ENTRANCE  TO  THE  BANK  AT  YOKOHAMA 


AT  KOBE- 


THE   CHARTERED    BANK    OF    INDIA,    AUSTRALIA,    AND    CHINA:       THE    BANk's    BUILDING    AT    YOKOHAMA    AND    ITS    KOBE    BUILDING 


132 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


associated  with  the  bank  in  the  East  since  1886 
of  which  period  eight  years  represents  service 
in  Japan.  The  Sub-Manager  at  Yokohama 
is  Mr.  J.  K.  Hutton.  The  Kob^  branch  of  the 
Hongkong  &  Shanghai  Banking  Corporation 
was  opened  as  far  back  as  July,  1867,  or 
coincidentally  with  the  opening  of  the  port  to 
foreign  trade.  A  large  business  has  always 
been  done  there,  and  in  course  of  time  the 
branch  far  outgrew  the  original  quarters. 
The  present  magnificent  new  premises,  which 
unquestionably  are  a  feature  of  Kobe  archi- 
tecture, were  formally  opened  in  March,  1903. 
The  foundation  stone  had  been  laid  two  and  a 
half  years  earlier  on  September  25,  1900,  by 
the  late  Sir  Thomas  Jackson,  Bart. 

The  Acting  Agent  at  Kobe  is  Mr.  J. 
McArthur.  The  British  staff  consists  of 
seven.  There  are  eighteen  local  clerks,  a 
Chinese  stafi  of  seventeen,  and  a  number 
of  office  boys,  coolies,  and  other  employees. 
The  ground  is  527  tsubo,  and  the  building 
itself    covers    24452    tsubo. 

CHARTERED  BANK  OF  INDIA,  AUSTRALIA, 
AND    CHINA 

This  very  well  known  British  institution 
whose  activities  extend  throughout  the  Far 
East,  has  tw-o  important  branches  in  Japan, 


at  Yokohama  and  Kob6,  respectively,  where 
it  enjoys  a  large  volume  of  the  banking  and 
financial  business  transacted  in  the  handling 
of  foreign  and  local  trade.  The  Chartered 
Bank  is  one  of  the  remaining  five  that  were  in 
existence  at  the  time  it  secured  its  Royal 
Charter  in  1853,  the  others  being  the  Bank  of 
Australasia,  the  Bank  of  British  North 
America,  the  Colonial  Bank,  and  the  British 
Linen  Bank.  The  charter  has  been  renewed 
on  various  occasions,  the  last  date  being  in 
1909,  when  it  was  extended  for  another  thirty 
years.  In  the  prospectus  upon  which  the 
Chartered  Bank  was  originally  formed  it  was 
stated  that  it  was  to  be  "established  chiefly  in 
order  to  extend  the  legitimate  facilities  of 
banking  to  the  fast  and  rapidly  expanding 
trade  between  the  Australian  colonies,  British 
East  India,  China,  and  other  parts  of  the 
Eastern  Archipelago  —  a  field  at  present 
wholly  unoccupied  by  any  similar  institution. 
The  objects  of  the  company  will,  however,  also 
embrace  in  connection  therewith  the  extension 
of  banking  accommodation  to  the  direct  trade 
of  British  India,  China,  and  Australia  with 
this  country  (the  United  Kingdom)  at  present 
so  inadequately  provided  for."  In  all  respects 
but  one  these  objects  have  been  carried  out, 
the  exception  being  that  the  bank  has  not  so 


far  opened  any  office  in  Australia,  though, 
indeed,  the  project  has  been  mooted  on  more 
occasions  than  one.  The  bank  has  faithfully 
kept  in  view  the  purposes  which  originally 
attracted  the  capital  to  bring  it  into  existence, 
and  it  has  extended  its  influence  to  a  much 
greater  degree  than  was  originally  intended, 
business  being  carried  on  in  addition  to  India 
and  China,  in  the  Straits  Settlements,  Siam, 
the  Dutch  East  Indies,  the  United  States  of 
America,  and  Japan.  Although  chartered  in 
1853  the  bank  did  not  commence  business  till 
1857,  offices  being  opened  at  Bombay,  Cal- 
cutta, and  Shanghai.  Thenceforward  the 
influence  of  the  bank  extended  rapidly 
throughout  the  Far  East,  until  to-day  its 
name  is  a  household  word.  The  paid-up  cap- 
ital, which  had  been  raised  to  £800,000  in  1864, 
remained  at  this  figure  till  1907,  when  the 
steady  and  continued  expansion  of  business 
called  for  an  increase.  Accordingly  the  paid- 
up  amount  was  raised  to  £1,200,000,  consist- 
ing of  60,000  shares  of  £20  each,  fully  paid. 
Another  evidence  of  the  prosperity  of  the 
bank  is  the  state  of  the  reserve  fund  which 
amounted  in  19 1 7  to  £1,900,000  or  50  per  cent 
more  than  the  paid-up  capital,  and  moreover 
this  was  built  up  entirely  from  profits,  with 
one  exception.  In  1907  the  increase  of  capital 


L.ENERAL    VIEW    OF    BUSINESS    STREET    IN    TOKYO 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


133 


was  arranged  to  allow  of  a  premium  of  £400,- 
000  and  this  was  thrown  into  the  reserve  fund. 
The  Yokohama  branch  of  the  Chartered 
Bank  of  India,  Australia,  and  China  was 
opened  as  far  back  as  1878,  when  the  port  was 
still  in  the  process  of  merging  from  a  fishing 
village  to  a  commercial  entrepot  of  world 
importance.  The  Kob6  branch  was  opened 
in  1895.  The  high  record  established  and 
maintained  for  over  sixty  years  throughout 


the  Far  East,  and  the  early  start  made  in 
Yokohama  forty  years  ago,  have  combined  to 
give  the  bank  the  highest  prestige  in  Japan  as 
a  financial  institution.  The  bank  has  fine 
premises  in  both  Yokohama  and  Kobe,  the 
Yokohama  premises  being  as  handsome  and 
imposing  as  those  of  any  similar  institution  in 
the  Far  East,  and  its  towering  dome  is  one  of 
the  landmarks  of  the  port.  Mr.  J.  Alston 
has  been  manager  in  Yokohama  since  191 3. 


He  came  to  the  Far  East  in  1890  and  served 
the  interests  of  the  Chartered  Bank  in  Java, 
Singapore,  Hongkong,  Saigon,  Madras,  and 
Hankow,  before  being  transferred  to  the  Kob6 
branch  in  1907.  Mr.  Stewart,  the  present 
agent  in  Kobe,  has  been  there  for  only  a  year 
and  a  half,  having  been  stationed  previously 
in  India  and  Java. 

Following    is  the   balance   sheet    to   De- 
cember 31,  1916: 


Liabilities 


To  capital,  60,000  shares  of  £20  each,  paid  up.  .  .  .      1,200,000     o 

To  reserve  fund i  ,800,000     o 

To  notes  in  circulation 1,019,068  15 

To  current  and  other  accounts,  including  provision 

for  bad   and  doubtful  debts  and  contingencies.     14,463,317     9 

To  fixed  deposits 8,240,778   16 

To  bills  payable: — 

Drafts  on  demand  and  at 
short  sight  on  head  office  and 

branches £3,216,782     i     7 

Drafts  on  London  and  for- 
eign bankers  against  secur- 
ity, per  contra 205,879     4 


To  acceptances  on  account  of  customers 

To  loans  payable,  against  security,  per  contra.  . 

To  due  to  agents  and  correspondents 

To  sundry  liabilities,  including  rebates 

To  profit  and  loss 


3,422,661     6     3 


Total. 


930,138  12 

953,333  6 

12,116  10 

921,961  7 

427,465  10 

9 

8 

3 
I 
2 

£33.390.841  14 

1 1 

Assets 

£  s. 

By  cash  in  hand  and  at  bankers 5,640,891  19 

By  buUion  on  hand  and  in  transit 278,815  o 

By  government  and  other  securities 3, 184,307  4 

By  security  lodged  against  note  issue  and  govern- 
ment deposits 864,000  o 

By    bills    of    exchange,    including    treasury    bills 

£1,269,000 12,069,092  12 

By  bills  discounted  and  loans 9,601,277  5 

By   liability   of   customers   for   acceptances,    per 

contra 930,138  12 

By  due  by  agents  and  correspondents 132,329  18 

By  sundry  assets  including  exchange  adjustments . .  1 39,725  i 
By  bank  premises  and  furniture  at  the  head  office 

and  branches 550,263  19 

Toial £33,390,841  14 


d. 


8 
10 


Profit  kym  Loss  Account  —  For  the  year  ending  December  31,  1916 


Dr.  £  s.  d. 

To  interim  dividend  at  June  30,  1916 84,000    o    o 

To  balance  proposed  to  be  dealt  w'th  as  follows: — 
Dividend,  at  the  rate  of  14  per  cent 
per   annum,    for   the   half-year   to 
date £  84,000     o  o 

Bonus  of  I2s.  per  share 36,000  o  o 

Reserve  fund 100,000  o  o 

Officers'  superannuation  fund 20,000  o  o 

Bank  premises 30,000  o  o 

Carried  forward  to  profit  and  loss 

new  account 157,465  10  2 

427,465   10      2 

Total £511,465   10    2 


Cr. 


s.  d 


By  balance  at  December  31,  1915 399,205  12  4 

Less    dividend     for    half-year     to 

December  31, 191 5 £  84,000     o  o 

Appropriation    on    account    of    fur- 
ther depreciation  on  securities.  .  .     160,000     00 

Bank  premises 25,000     o  o 

269,000     o  o 


130,205    12  4 


By  gross  profits  for  the  year,  after 
providing  for  bad  and  doubtful 
debts,    excess    profits    tax    and 

bonus  to  the  staff £828,674  17     8 

Less: — 

Expenses  of  Management  and  gen- 
eral   charges    at    head    office    and 

branches 447,414  19  10 

381,259  17  10 

Total £511,465   10  2 


10 


u 


B 


I 


T  ':\ 


^Pl^ 

0     fl^   '~T ~ 

fli 

1^1^ 


.^li'i 


;  i/  -t  .1  1 


-^nl' — "~'' 


INTERNATIONAL    BANKING   CORPORATION:     KOBE    BRANCH INTERIOR   OF    HEAD    OFFICE   FOR   JAPAN   AT  YOKOHAMA — BUILDING   OCCUPIED 

BY   HEAD   OFFICE   FOR   JAPAN,    YOKOHAMA — INTERIOR    OF    KOBE    BRANCH 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


135 


THE    INTERNATIONAL    BANKING 
CORPORATION 

The   International   Banking   Corporation, 

of  which  Mr.  J.  D.  Longmire  is  Manager,  was 
opened  in  Yokohama  in  1902,  for  the  purpose 
of  assisting  American  commerce  in  Japan  and 
the  Far  East.  From  its  earliest  days  it  has 
shown  that  such  an  institution  was  urgently- 
required,  and  it  has  steadily  developed  a 
large  business  which  has  been  of  benefit  to 
American  interests  as  well  as  those  of  Japa- 
nese and  other  nationalities. 

The   International    Banking   Corporation 
has    a   capital    of    G.    $3,230,000,    with    re- 


serves of  G.  54,598,576.  It  has  established 
branches  at  the  following  cities: 

New  York  (head  office),  Bombay,  Cal- 
cutta, Canton,  Cebu,  Colon  (Isthmus  Pana- 
ma), Hankow,  Hongkong,  Kob^,  Manila, 
Medellin  (Rep.  of  Colombia),  Santiago 
de  los  Caballeros  (Dominican  Rep.), 
London,  Panama,  Peking,  Puerta  Plata 
(Dominican  Rep.),  San  Francisco,  Santo 
Domingo,  San  Pedro  de  Macoris  (Domini- 
can Rep.),  Shanghai,  Singapore,  Tientsin, 
Batavia. 

It  is  also  closely  allied  with  the  National 
City  Bank  of   New  York  and   through  this 


is  in  a  position  to  assist  trade  with  the  many 
points  at  which  they  are  represented. 

INSURANCE 

THE    TOKYO    MARINE    INSURANCE 
COMPANY,    LIMITED 

The  doyen  of  the  marine  insurance  com- 
panies of  Japan  is  the  Tokyo  Marine  Insurance 
Company,  Limited,  founded  August  i,  1879, 
at  a  time  when  insurance  was  in  its  infancy  in 
Japan,  and  nobody  could  have  conceived  that 
such  great  corporations  would  ever  exist. 
Some    idea    of    the    manner    in    which    this 


PROMINENT  TOKYO  AND  YOKOHAMA  INSURANXE  MEN 

(Upper  Row,  Left  to  Right)  Mr.  H.ajime  Kawasaki,  President,  Nippon  Fire  Insurance  Co.,  Ltd.  —  Mr.  Sunao  Kono,  General 
Manager,  Kyosai  Life  Insurance  Co.,  Ltd.,  Tokyo — Mr.  Zengoro  Yasuda,  President,  Imperial  Marine  Transportation  and  Fire  Insurance 
Co.,  Ltd.       (In  Oval)  Mr.  T.  Isaka,  Maiiaging  Director,  Yokohama  Fire,  Marine,  Transit  &  Fidelity  Insurance  Co.,  Ltd. 

(Middle  Row)  Mr.  H.  Shimidzi',  Managing  Director,  Aikoku  Life  Insurance  Co.,  Ltd. — Mr.  M.  Ono,  President,  Yokohama 
Fire,  Marine,  Transit  &  Fidelity  Insurance  Co.,  Ltd.  —  Mr.  A.  Fukuhara,  President,  Imperial  Life  Insurance  Co.,  Ltd.,  President  of 
the  Association  of  Life  Insurance  Companies  and  Special  Member  of  the  Tokyo  Chamber  of  Commerce — Mi.  A.  R.  Harris,  Manager 
for  Japan,  Sun  Insurance  Office  of  London,  Chairman  of  the  Foreign  Offices  Fire  Insurance  Association  and  Vice-President  of  the  Joint 
Fire  Insurance  Association  —  Mr.  Masao  Kurachi,  Managing  Director,  Kyodo  Fire  Insurance  Co.,  Ltd. 

(Lower  Row)  Mr.  Seizaburo  Nishiwaki,  President,  Nishiwaki  Bank,  Ltd.,  and  of  the  Taiyo  Life  Insurance  Co.,  Ltd. — Mr. 
C.  E.  Maligny,  General  Manager  for  Japan,  New  Zealand  Insurance  Co.,  Ltd.,  Vice-President  of  Foreign  Offices  Fire  Insurance 
Association  —  Dr.  Haruo  Mourasse,  Vice-President,  Imperial  Marine  Transportation  and  Fire  Insurance  Co.,  Ltd. — Mr.  T.  Yano, 
President,  First  Mutual  Life  Insurance  Co.,  Tokyo 


x^^^g 


M 


ff'i 


^i^i}^mm^'-^^m^^^^wsm^^>^m^:0B^<^mmi^^^^^^ 


TOKYO    PREMISES   OF    THE    IMPERIAL    MARINE    TRANSPORTATION    AND    FIRE    INSURANCE    COMPANY,    LIMITED 


138 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


institution  has  grown  may  be  gathered  from 
the  fact  that  its  initial  capital  was  only 
Yen  600,000  and  to-day  it  is  Yen  15,000,000. 
At  its  inception  the  Tokyo  Marine  Insurance 
Co.,  Ltd.,  did  a  small  business  in  the  coastal 
shipping  trade  of  Japan,  but  with  the  expan- 
sion of  Japan's  commercial  interests,  and  the 
tremendous  development  of  the  mercantile 
marine,  and  the  growth  of  exports,  the  company 
is  to-day  covering  risks  all  over  the  world,  and 
taking  its  place  with  the  greatest  corporations 
of  its  kind. 

Branches  and  agencies  exist  all  over 
Japan,  and  there  is  scarcely  a  business 
centre  of  any  importance  in  the  world  where 
the  company  is  not  represented.  The  Gen- 
eral Agents  for  Europe  are  Messrs.  Willis, 
Faber  &  Co.,  Ltd.,  si.Comhill,  London;  and 
for  the  United  States  and  Canada,  Messrs. 
Appleton  &  Cox,  3  South  William  Street, 
New  York.  General  marine  insurance  is 
transacted,  and  developments  in  the  business 
dimng  recent  years  include  fire,  transporta- 
tion, and  motor  car  insurance. 

Follow-ing  are  the  principal  officers  of  the 
Tokyo  Marine  Insurance  Co.,  Ltd.:  Chairman 
of  Directors,  Mr.  M.  Suyenobu  (Director  of 
the  Meiji  Life  and  Meiji  Fire  Insurance  Cos.) ; 
Directors,  Messrs.  T.  Abe,  S.  Komuro 
(Director  Mitsui  Bussan  Kaisha);  Baron 
R.  Kondo  (President  Nippon  Yusen  Kaisha) , 
K.  Mimura  (Director  Meiji  Fire  Insurance 
Co.),  S.  Sasaki  (Director  First  Bank),  H. 
Shoda  (of  the  Mitsubishi  Co.),  and  K.  Sonoda 
(Director  of  the  Fifteenth  Bank  and  Y'oko- 
hama  Specie  Bank).  A  board  of  more 
influential  commercial  men  could  scarcely  be 
found  on  any  corporation  in  Japan.  The 
Auditors  are  Messrs.  F.  Wuriu  and  S.  Ogawa. 
The  Managing  Directors  are  Mr,  K.  Kagami 
and  Mr.  H.  Hirao. 

The  financial  standing  of  the  Tokyo  Marine 
Insurance  Co.,  Ltd.,  may  be  gathered  from 
the  following  facts:  The  paid-up  capital  is 
Yen  3,750,000,  and  the  reser^'e  funds  total  Yen 
1 7 ,000,000.  For  the  year  ending  December  3 1 , 
1916,  the  net  premiums  totalled  Yen  11,419,- 
784.  After  provision  for  additions  to  reserves 
and  suspense  accounts  a  divisible  surplus  of 
Yen  2,421,228  was  distributed  as  follows: 
Dividend  at  Yen  4  per  share.  Yen  1,200,000; 
added  to  Legal  Reserve  Fund,  Yen  500,000; 
carried  forward,  Y''en  721,228.  The  profit 
and  loss  account  for  the  year  appears  in  the 
table  at  the  top  of  this  page. 

The  company  has  assets  totalling  Yen  42,- 
069,081.  Recently  a  magnificent  new  building 
(a  photograph  of  which  appears  on  page 
136  of  this  volume)  has  been  completed  for 
the  Tok->'o  Marine  Insurance  Co.,  Ltd.,  in 
Tokyo,  on  the  most  commanding  site  of  the 
business  and  commercial  centre  of  the  capital. 


DR. 

Cr. 

Yen 

Yen 

To  balance  from  last  account.  .       204,901  . 63 

Underwriting  fund  from  last 
account 15,500,223 .  79 

Net  premia  (less  returns,  rein- 
surance, commission,  etc 11,419,784.34 

Interest,  etc 2,216,327.01 

Net    payments    account    19 16 

and  previous  years 5. 561. 198. 35 

Charges,  head  office,  branches 

and  agencies 369,269.26 

Directors'  and  auditors'  fees..  17,625.00 
Underwriting  fund  at  the  end  of 

the  year 20,971,915.51 

Balance 2,421,228.65 

Total Yen  29,341,236.77 

Tola! Yen   29,341,236.77 

THE      IMPERIAL     .MARINE    TRANSPORTA- 
TION    AND    FIRE    INSURANCE 
CO.MPANY,    LIMITED 

This  company,  which  is  one  of  the  oldest 
established  of  the  marine  insurance  institu- 
tions in  Japan,  was  founded  in  1893,  and  is 
another  of  the  remarkable  enterprises  of  the 
wealthy  Y'asuda  family.  To-day  the  com- 
pany's sphere  of  influence  is  very  wide,  and 
its  business  is  conducted  on  the  most  modern 
lines  applicable  to  Japan,  and  based  on  a 
sound  experience  of  local  conditions.  Although 
originally  formed  for  marine  insurance  the 
Imperial  has  always  marched  with  the 
times,  and  when  railway  transportation  in 
Japan  became  properly  developed  the  company 
added  that  department  of  insurance.  This 
was  in  November,  1899.  The  business  of 
insurance  against  fire  risks  was  started  in 
August,  1902.  Mr.  Zengoro  Yasuda  is  Presi-. 
dent  of  the  company.  Dr.  Haruo  Mourasse, 
the  distinguished  authority  on  insurance  in 
Japan,  is  Vice-President,  and  in  that  capacity 
he  takes  a  very  large  share  in  the  control  of  the 
company,  making  every  efi'ort  to  select  the 
most  sound  risks,  and  devising  an  extension  of 
the  bvisiness.  Dr.  Mourasse's  efforts,  and  the 
prestige  attaching  to  his  name,  have  made 
the  Imperial  one  of  the  greatest  institutions 
of  its  kind  in  Japan.     Its  credit  is  particularly 


liigh  in  insurance  circles.  The  Managing 
Director  is  Mr.  Rintaro  Komon,  an  experi- 
enced and  highly  respected  figure  in  the 
insurance  world.  Branches  of  the  Imperial 
Company  are  established  at  Osaka  and  Kobe, 
and  agents  are  to  be  found  in  all  the  ports  of 
Japan  as  w'ell  as  abroad.  It  is  no  exaggeration 
to  say  that  for  promptness  and  exactness  in 
adjusting  claims  and  paying  indemnities  the 
Imperial  ranks  among  the  first  of  its  kind  in 
Japan.  The  last  balance  sheet  appears  at 
foot  of  this  page. 

In  addition  to  the  officers  mentioned  above 
the  following  are  Directors:  Baron  Morimasa 
Takei,  Messrs.  Shinkichi  Miyajima,  Zenno- 
suke  Yasuda,  Zenzaburo  Yasuda  and  Yeiichi 
Chichiiwa.  The  Auditors  are  Messrs.  Kahei 
Otani,  Seizo  Nakamura,  and  Masaoki  Hikida. 

THE  SUN  INSURANCE  OFFICE 
OF  LONDON 

The  Sun  Insurance  Office  of  London  holds 
the  unique  distinction  of  being  the  oldest  fire 
insurance  company  in  the  world,  ha\ang  been 
founded  in  1710.  At  that  distant  date  the 
principles  of  fire  insurance  were  little  known, 
and  such  business  as  was  done  was  confined  to 
a  few  mutual  societies  who  insured  buildings 
only.  Marine  insurance  had  been  in  opera- 
tion for  many  years  previously,  but  it  was  not 


Assets 

Liabilities 

Yen 

Yen 

Shares  unpaid 2,250,000.00 

Cash 207 .  75 

Postal  savings  account 12,987.09 

Bank  deposits 635,824.51 

Loans 237,500.00 

Investments 2,790,780.96 

Real  estate 153,902.61 

Capital 3,000,000.00 

Legal  reserve  fund 305,000 . 00 

Special  reserve  fund 1,420,000.00 

Emergency  reserve 200,000.00 

Responsibility  reserve  fund ....       660, 1 27 .  33 

Payment  reserve 218,000.00 

Account  due  by  the  company.  .         11,704.07 

Reinsurance  account 14,251 .04 

Sundrv  creditors 12,810. 16 

Furniture                      .                .           6,712.93 

Outstanding  premiums 87,7'^3.49 

Branch  account 45,687 . 1 1 

Unpaid  dividends 75  -OO 

Profit 528,877.31 

Agents 70,369.34 

Provisionally  paid  claims 20,647 .02 

Outstanding  account  reinsured        58,492.10 

Total Yen  6,370,844.91 

Total Yen  6,370,844.91 

140 


PRESENT-DAY 


IMPRESSIONS 


O  F 


J  A  PAN 


imtil  the  Great  Kire  of  London  in  1666,  ami 
tlie  consequent  enormous  damage  to  proixTty 
tliat  resulted,  tliat  mercliants  began  to  realise 
the  need  for  protection  against  such  loss. 
It  was  recognised  that  properties  on  land  were 
subject  to  equal  chances  of  entire  destruction 
as  w-ere  ships  and  cargoes  at  sea,  and  the  first 
principle  of  fire  insurance  was  impressed  upon 
the  business  mind,  that  is,  the  wisdom  and 
necessity  for  indemnifying  the  individual  loser 
by  fire  out  of  a  fund  provided  by  contributions 
from  the  rest  of  his  associates  in  the  insurance 
organisation  to  which  he  subscribed.  During 
the  first  twenty  to  thirty  years  following  the 
Great  Fire  of  London,  numerous  attempts 
were  made  to  establish  fire  offices  on  a  mutual 
plan,  but  most  of  them  ended  in  failure.  The 
Sun  Fire  Office  was  the  first  to  insure  movables 
as  well  as  buildings,  and  it  was  also  first  to 
extend  its  operations  to  other  parts  of  Eng- 
land. The  scope  of  its  activities  being  wider 
than  those  of  any  of  the  preceding  companies 
it  soon  became  the  leading  fire  office  and  one 
of  the  wealthiest  institutions  in  England. 
The  Sun  was  thus  the  pioneer  of  the  fire  insur- 
ance business,  and  the  conditions  under  which 
fire  insurance  could  be  undertaken,  and  which 
this  institution  found  necessary  in  its  practice 
have,  with  only  slight  modifications,  become 
the  basis  of  the  present-day  fire-insurance 
contract. 

Among  the  first  of  the  companies  to  extend 
its  operations  to  countries  outside  of  the 
United  Kingdom,  the  Sun  Insurance  Office  of 
London  now  has  branches  and  agencies  in 
practically  every  comer  of  the  world.  As 
regards  Japan,  the  company  has  been  operat- 
ing in  the  Empire  for  over  fifty  years,  and  its 
activities  in  this  field  now  cover  not  only  the 
islands  of  Japan  proper,  but  extend  to  the 
very  outposts  of  the  Japanese  Empire  such  as 
Formosa,  Korea,  the  Loochoos  and  even  to 
that  inhospitable  island  of  Karafuto,  more 
commonly  known  as  Japanese  Saghalien. 
The  Japanese  business  of  the  Sun  Insurance 
Office  was  formerly  conducted  through 
agencies,  but  in  May,  191 1,  a  head  office  for 
Japan  was  established  at  Yokohama  by  Mr. 
A.  R.  Harris,  who  came  over  from  Shanghai 
to  take  charge  of  the  company's  affairs. 
Branch  offices  are  maintained  in  Tokyo  and 
Osaka  Mr.  Harris  is  Chairman  of  the  foreign 
offices  Fire  Instu-ance  Association,  and  Vice- 
Chairman  of  theijoint  Fire  Insurance  Associa- 
tion  of   Japan. 

The  present  position  of  the  Sun  Insurance 
Office  is  shown  in  the  Directors'  report  and 
statement  of  accounts  for  the  year  ending 
December  31,  1916,  from  which  the  following 
facts  and  figures  are  taken :  The  capital  of  the 
Company  is  £2,400,000  divided  into  240,000 
shares  of  £10  each,  on  which  £2  per  share  has 
been  paid,  thus  giving  a  paid-up  capital  of 


£480,000.  During  19 1 6  fire  premia,  less  re-in- 
surance, totalled  £1,532,349;  losses  paid  dur- 
ing the  same  period  aggregated  £739,884,  being 
at  the  rate  of  48.28  per  cent  of  the  premiums 
received;  expenses  of  management  (including 
commission  to  agents  and  working  charges  of 
all  kinds)  totalled  £577,384;  interest  reaHsed 
£68,187.  After  reserving  as  unearned  40  per 
cent  of  the  premiums  to  cover  liabilities  under 
current  policies,  a  credit  balance  of  £253,526 
was  transferred  to  profit  and  loss  account. 
There  was  standing  at  credit  of  profit  and 
loss  account  at  the  beginning  of  the  year 
£335,271,  which  was  increased  by  the  oper- 
ations of  1916  to  £652,174.  The  pension  fund 
was  augmented  by  £20,000;  £5,000  was 
placed  to  the  war  contingenc}'  fund,  whilst 
sundry  investments  were  written  down  £70,- 
000,  thus  leaving  at  credit  of  profit  and  loss 
the  sum  of  £557,174.  Two  dividends  of  7/- 
per  share  each  were  paid  in  January  and  July 
of  1917,  thus  absorbing  £130,200,  the  sum  of 
£426,974  being  unappropriated.  At  the  end 
of  the  year  the  total  funds  of  the  Sun  Office 
stood  as  shown  below. 

The  Sun's  assets  as  set  forth  in  the  balance 
sheet  attached  to  the  1916  report  totalled 
£4,057,632  at  the  end  of  the  year,  its  invest- 
ments being  as  shown  below. 

NEW     ZEALAND     INSURANCE     COMPANY^ 
LIMITED 

EsT.\BLisHED  in  1 859  the  Xew  Zealand 
Insurance  Company,  Limited,  has  extended 
its  operations  all  over  the  world,  and  it  is 


to-day  an  institution  of  which  the  Dominion 
and  the  Empire  may  justly  be  proud,  occupy- 
ing as  it  does  a  position  of  wealth  and  impor- 
tance never  before  reached  by  any  company 
founded  in  a  remote  part  of  Britain's  Colonial 
Empire.  The  New  Zealand  Insurance 
Company,  Ltd.,  has  not  only  extended  its 
operations  in  a  manner  not  frequently  wit- 
nessed in  the  case  of  much  older  companies 
which  originated  in  the  United  Kingdom 
itself,  but  it  also  has  earned  the  reputation  in 
insurance  circles  of  being  most  progressive 
and  adaptable,  and  insurance  practice  gen- 
erally owes  not  a  little  to  ideas  put  into  force 
by  this  vigourous  Colonial  concern.  In  the 
Argentine,  for  instance,  this  company  was 
the  first  to  transact  insurance  under  the 
new  workers'  compensation  laws  of  that 
country,  and  the  tariff  framed  and  put  into 
force  was  made  the  basis  of  a  joint  tariff 
when  other  companies  took  up  the  busi- 
ness. The  company's  representatives  in  all 
parts  of  the  world  are  generally  to  be  found 
prominently  associated  with  whatever  in- 
surance organisations  may  exist,  stabilising 
and  regulating  the  business  for  the  general 
good  of  insurance  companies  and  the  in- 
sured. 

The  New  Zealand  Insurance  Co.,  Ltd.,  has 
been  transacting  business  in  Japan  for  over 
thirty  years.  It  was  represented  by  Messrs. 
Sale  &  Frazar,  Ltd.,  as  general  agents  up  to 
May,  1908,  when  the  first  branch  office  was 
opened  at  Yokohama.  The  head  office  for 
Japan  was  transferred  to  Tokyo  on  July  i, 
19 14,  the  address  being   No.  I   Yuraku-cho, 


Capital,  paid  up £    480,000     o 

Fire  fund 2,112,939   13 


Accident  fund 

Employers'  liability  fund 

Burglary  and  general  fund 

Dividend  reserve 

War  contingency  fund 

Investment  suspense  fund 

Pension  fund 

Balance  at  credit  of  profit  and  loss  account  after  payment  of  dividends ... 

Total 


o 
o 

7.914  18     5 

138,723  17     6 

25.979  16  10 

150,000     o     o 

25,000     o 

75,000     o 

76,559       2 
426,974    19 


^^3. 519.092     7     8 


British  Government  Securities £ 

Municipal  Securities,  United  Kingdom 

Colonial  Government  Securities 

Colonial  Provincial  Securities 

Colonial  Municipal  Securities 

Foreign  Government  Securities 

Foreign  Provincial  Securities 

Foreign  Municipal  Securities 

Railway  and  other  debentures — Home,  Colonial,  and  Foreign 1 

Railway  and  other  preference  and  guaranteed  stocks  and  shares 

Railway  and  other  ordinary  stocks  and  shares 

House  property,  including  premises  occupied  by  the  Office  .... 

Salvage  Corps  Premises 

Deposits  with  Colonial  banks    


313.748 

14 

2 

9,000 

0 

0 

31.803 

13 

6 

13,668 

8 

0 

73.566 

13 

10 

229,216 

12 

8 

5^.223 

0 

8 

113,722 

14 

8 

,063,869 

17 

5 

175,023 

5 

3 

141.552 

19 

2 

949.655 

5 

7 

22,038 

16 

9 

3.500 

0 

0 

SUN    INSURANCE    OFFICE    OF    LONDON:      THE    MANAGER    AND    HIS    ASSISTANTS,    TOKYO    OFFICE 

THE    HEAD    OFFICE    AND    STAFF,    YOKOHAMA 


142 


PRESENT-DAY 


IMPRESSIONS 


O  F 


JAPAN 


l->- 


^ 


!8 


ft-^" 


-<3 


THE    STAFF    AND    EXTERIOR    VIEW    OF    THE    HEAD    OFFICE    OF    THE    NEW   ZE.U.AND    INSURANCE    CO.,    LIMITED,    TOKYO 


Itchome,  Kojimachi-ku.  From  this  branch, 
which  is  under  the  direction  of  the  Manager 
for  Japan,  Mr.  C.  E.  Maligny,  the  whole  of 
Japan  proper,  including  Hokkaido  and  Kara- 
futo,  as  well  as  Formosa,  Chosen,  and  Man- 
churia, are  controlled,  the  company  being 
represented  in  these  territories  by  ten  British 
and  American  firms,  and  145  Japanese  banks, 
corporations,  and  firms.  Although  the  New 
Zealand  Insurance  Co.,  Ltd.,  transacts  fire, 
marine,  and  accident  insurance,  and  also  acts 
as  trustee,  executor,  attorney,  and  agent,  its 
business  in  Japan  is  restricted  to  fire  and 
marine  insurance,  of  which  it  enjoys  a  large 
share.  Under  the  Japanese  insurance  law  a 
substantial  deposit  is  required  by  the  Impe- 
rial Government  from  foreign  insurance  com- 
panies. This  represents  in  the  case  of  the 
New  Zealand  Insurance  Co.,  Ltd.,  Yen  290,- 
000,  which  is  50  per  cent  of  the  premium 
account  for  191 6.  Some  idea  of  the  financial 
strength  of  the  New  Zealand  Insurance  Co., 
Ltd.,  may  be  gathered  from  the  fact  that 
though  its  paid-up  capital  is  £450,000,  out  of 
a  subscribed  capital  of  £1,500,000,  its  reserves 


amount  to  over  £720,000.  It  had  a  premium 
income  for  the  year  1916  of  £924,790,  and 
the  available  surplus  at  the  end  of  the  period 
was  £1 16,379.  The  total  assets  of  the  com- 
pany are  £1,594,387.  It  has  paid  losses  to 
date  totalling  £10,540,329. 

The  principal  agents  of  the  New  Zealand 
Insurance  Co.,  Ltd.,  in  Japan  are  as  follows: 
Yokohama,  Messrs.  Sale  &  Frazar,  Ltd.,  and 
Mr  F.  Schoene,  167  Yamashita-cho;  Kobe, 
Messrs.  Shewan,  Tomes  &  Co.  and  J.  R.  Black; 
Moji,  Messrs.  Horace  Nutter  &  Co.;  Hako- 
date, Messrs.  E.  J.  King  &  Co.;  Seoul,  Messrs. 
L.  Rondon  &  Co.;  Dairen,  Fujiwara  Shokwai; 
Chemulpo,  the  Eighteenth  Bank;  Nagasaki, 
Mr.  F.  Fuse;  Nagoya,  Unso  Kai  Shoten; 
TolcN-o,  Kai  Shoten;  Fukuoka,  Meidi-ya 
Kaisha,  and  Osaka,  Tokiwa  Shokwai.  The 
staff  of  the  Japan  branch  comprises  Messrs. 
C.  E.  Maligny,  Manager;  R.  Graham, 
Accountant;  R.  Leopold  and  N.  B.  Forrest, 
Assistants;  S.  Normura,  Chief  Japanese  Clerk; 
S.  Ishiguro,  Assistant  Chief  Japanese  Clerk; 
K.  Kataoka,  Chief  Clerk,  Osaka  sub-branch ; 
O.  W.  Luke,  Chief  Clerk,  Yokohama  office. 


and  C.  W.  Cheng,  Compradore,  Yokohama 
office.  In  addition  forty-fi^•e  Japanese  clerks 
are  employed. 

THE  YOKOHAMA  FIRE,  MARINE,  TRANSIT 
AND     FIDELITY     INSUR-^XCE     COM- 
PANY,   LIMITED 

L'p  to  the  close  of  the  last  century,  all 
the  silk  merchants  of  Yokohama  as  well  as  the 
silk  manufacturers  in  the  remoter  parts  of 
the  country  had  to  rely  upon  chance  as  to  the 
safety  of  millions  of  yens'  worth  of  their 
expensive  stocks  and  outputs,  piled  up  in 
warehouses  or  godowns.  They  were  without 
any  protection  whatever  in  the  way  of 
insurance  over  their  fortunes,  as  the  few  fire 
offices  then  existing  in  the  Empire  were 
neither  prepared  nor  willing  to  accord  them 
this  much-needed  protection.  It  was  mainly 
to  supply  this  great  desideratum  to  the  silk 
trade  of  the  country  that  the  company 
under  review  was  first  established  in  1897 
by  millionaire  dealers  in  silk  and  prominent 
captains  of  the  trade  and  industrj'  of  Yoke- 


=:=TL 


YOKOHAMA    PREMISES    OF    THE    YOKOHAMA    FIRE,    MARINE,    TRANSIT    AND    FIDELITY    INSURANCE    COMPANY,    LIMITED 


144 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


hama,  followed  by  others  of  the  important 
silk  centres,  with  an  authorised  capital  of 
5,000,000  yen,  one-quarter  of  which  has  been 
paid  up. 

The  first  directorate  consisted  of  the  late 
Mr.  T.  Tomita,  ex-President  of  the  Bank  of 
Japan,  President;  Mr.  K.  Tsuchiko,  Vice- 
President  and  Managing  Director,  Mr.  M. 
Ono,  Mr.  I.  Wakao,  Mr.  Y.  Mogi,  and  Mr. 
S.  Shibusawa;  while  the  late  Mr.  T.  Anzai, 
Mr.  M.  Kaneko,and  the  late  Mr.  J.  Kakiage 
were  vested  with  the  first  auditorship. 

Ever  since  its  inception,  the  most  character- 
istic feature  of  the  company  has  been  its  very 
cautious  and  almost  conservative  way  of 
underwriting  and  to  this  very  policy  is  due  its 
incessant  progress  and  steady  development  in 
the  face  of  divers  difficulties  lying  in  the  way 
of  a  Japanese  fire  office,  such  as  the  general 
fiimsy  construction  of  nine-tenths  of  its  risks, 
highly  combustible  nature  of  the  building 
materials  commonly  used,  inefRcient  and 
primitive  methods  and  equipments  for  fire- 
fighting,  with  no  waterworks  or  utterly  inade- 
quate ones,  if  any,  in  most  cities  and  towns. 

Some  companies  have  been  very  seriously 
and  in  a  few  instances  almost  fatally  affected 
by  the  great  conflagrations  of  Tokyo,  Osaka, 
Hakodate,  and  Aomori,  and  more  recently  by 
those  that  devastated  the  larger  parts  of 
Yonezawa  and  Fukui,  but  the  contributions 
of  this  company  to  these  holocausts  have 
been  very  moderate  and  rather  slight  com- 
pared to  its  incomes  and  resources,  showing 
that  the  conflagration  hazard  has  been  care- 
fully observed  and  prudently  guarded  against. 

Finding  itself  on  a  firm  footing  and  with  a 
good  reputation,  the  Yokohama  Fire,  Marine, 
Transit,  &  Fidelity  Insurance  Co.  began  to 
write  the  marine  business  in  1908^  and  coming 
out  of  its  trial  period  of  the  first  few  years  and 
taking  full  advantage  of  the  most  favourable 
conditions  obtaining  in  the  Japanese  marine 
market  since  the  breaking-out  of  the  present 
great  war,  it  is  now  making  its  way  in  this  new 
field  by  leaps  and  bounds,  each  new  year 
seeing  its  incomes  from  this  source  more  than 
doubled   compared  with   the  preceding  year. 

While  the  company  has  never  been  slack  in 
its  endeavour  to  increase  its  reserve  funds  and 
to  set  itself  on  a  firmer  and  firmer  basis  every 
year,  it  has  been  paying  pretty  good  and  stead- 
ily increasing  dividends  to  its  shareholders, 
the  rate  for  the  last  fiscal  year,  ended  May  3 1 , 
1917,  being  13  per  cent  ordinary,  and  7  per 
cent  special,  though  the  year  has  been  the 
worst  year  in  a  long  time  for  the  fire  offices 
doing  business  in  the  country,  owing  to  the 
disastrous  fires  in  the  Yokohama,  Kobe, 
Osaka,  and  Hangkow  warehouses  and  the 
terrible  conflagrations  in  Yonezawa  and 
Fukui.  In  fact,  the  average  loss  ratio  of  this 
company  has  been  very  good,  being  only  42 


per  cent  of  the  premium  incomes  for  its  first 
nineteen  years,  and  the  enormous  warehouse 
and  conflagration  losses  during  the  last  fiscal 
year  making  it  an  average  of  49.7  per  cent  for 
the  whole  twenty  years  of  its  operation.  Its 
expense  ratio  is  slightly  over  28  per  cent  for 
the  same  period,  including  taxes  and  duties. 

Its  loss-paying  record  is  excellent  not  only 
under  ordinarj^  conditions  but  also  in  settling 
claims  arising  through  conflagrations. 

Besides  its  authorised  capital  of  5,000,000 
yen,  the  company  now  has  some  3,000,000 
yen  of  reserves,  all  to  meet  its  liabilities. 

As  is  implied  by  its  title,  the  company  also 
w-rites  transport  and  fidelity  business,  though 
minor  in  its  importance  compared  to  the  fire 
and  marine  business,  yet  very  successful. 
Incidentally,  this  is  the  only  company  in 
Japan  that  is  issuing  fidelity  bonds. 

The  present  management  still  consists 
mostly  of  notables  of  Yokohama,  with  Mr. 
M.  Ono,  M.  P.,  as  President,  Mr.  T.  Isaka  as 
Managing  Director,  and  Mr.  C.  Ohama, 
Chairman  of  the  Municipal  Council  of  Yoko- 
hama, Mr.  I.  Wakao,  M.  P.,  Mr.  T.  Hara, 
Mr.  G.  Shibusawa,  and  Mr.  S.  Mogi,  as 
Directors;  while  Mr.  T.  Ishikawa  and  Mr. 
B.  Watanabe  are  Auditors  and  Mr.  U. 
Nishikido,  General  Manager. 

An  examination  of  the  financial  state- 
ments of  the  company  for  the  year  ending 
May    31,    191 7,   shows    the   following   facts: 


and  stable  in  the  control  of  such  an  important 
enterprise.  The  company  has  had  a  very 
prosperous  career  and  in  1916  its  total  revenue 
was  Yen  2,347,439.30  The  staff  employed 
numbers  203.  Branches  of  the  company  exist 
at  Tokyo,  Osaka,  Kyoto,  Yokohama,  Kob6, 
Nagoya,  Sendai,  Fukuoka,  Kanazawa,  Dai- 
hoku,  and  Keijo.  There  are  also  agencies 
scattered  throughout  Japan  proper  and  the 
dependencies  of  the  Empire,  and  also  Man- 
churia, China,  Hongkong,  and  India.  The 
head  office  of  the  Kyodo  Company  is  at  Nos. 
4  and  5  Honkawaya-cho,  Xihonbashi-ku, 
Tokyo 

THE    CHIN.\    iMUTU.'i.L    LIFE    INSUR.^NCE 
COMPANY,    LIMITED,    TOKYO 

The  China  Mutual  Life  Insurance  Com- 
pany was  founded  early  in  1898,  and  was 
incorporated  under  the  Hongkong  Companies 
Ordinances.  In  1908  the  company  was  regis- 
tered in  Great  Britain,  under  the  Companies 
(Consolidation)  Act,  and  under  the  Assurance 
Companies  Acts,  and  annually  makes  the 
returns  required  under  those  Acts  The  com- 
pany is  also  registered  in  India,  the  Straits 
Settlements,  the  Philippines,  and  Japan. 

The  head  office  of  the  company  is  in 
Shanghai,  China,  the  building  being  a  very 
beautiful  piece  of  architecture,  probably 
unsurpassed  anj'where  by  any  edifice  of  the 
same  size.     The  outstanding  features  of  the 


Revenue  Account 


Yen 

Revenue    account    brought    for- 
ward      191,467.56 

Premium  reserves 1,860,000.00 

Reserve  for  unpaid  losses 65,000.00 

Premiums  received  during  year  .  2,726,914. 59 
Claims  recovered  or  indemnified .  1,170,971 .08 

Interest,  dividends,  etc 432,411 .46 

Income  from  investments 47,909 .  60 

Total Yen  6,494,674. 29 


Yen 

Losses  paid 1,791,231 .42 

Premiumsfor  reinsurances 1,283,594.05 

Commission,     taxes,     and     ex- 
penses      461,831 .60 

Depreciation 7,006 .  49 

Premium  reserve  fund 2,1 10,000 .  00 

Unpaid  losses 273,200.00 

Surplus 567,810.73 

Total Yen  6,494,674 .  29 


THE    KYODO    FIRE    INSURANCE 

CO.MPANY,    LIMITED 

This  company  was  founded  on  June  30, 
1906,  with  a  capital  of  Yen  5,000,000.00,  and 
is  to-day  in  a  very  strong  position,  handling  a 
large  volume  of  insurance  received  over  a  wide 
range  of  territory.  The  Managing  Directors 
are  Messrs.  S.  Morimoto  and  M.  Kurachi,  and 
the  Directors  and  Auditors  are  Messrs.  T.  Ta- 
nabe,  T.  Murai,  C.  Watanabe,  M.  Matsukata, 
N.  Hiroumi,  U.  Suzuki,  G.  Yamaguchi, 
K.  Ukita,  K.  Sugiyama,  and  K.  Banno. 
These  gentlemen  are  very  well  known  in 
insurance  and  commercial  circles  generally, 
and  their  names  stand  for  all  that  is  sound 


building  are  the  vestibule  done  in  marble, 
the  roof  being  inlaid  with  Salviati  gold 
mosaic;  the  principal  stairway  of  marble; 
and  the  dome  of  the  main  office,  lined  inter- 
nally with  sixteen  stained  glass  panels  repre- 
senting the  Virtues. 

While  the  head  office  of  the  company  is  in 
Shanghai,  China,  the  company  is  a  British 
company,  and  all  the  directors  and  officials 
are  British.  The  aim  of  the  management  and 
of  each  official  has  been,  and  is,  to  give  to 
both  Asiatic  and  European  residents  in  Asia 
the  benefits  of  life  insurance  in  a  company 
whose  aflfairs  are  conducted  according  to  the 
best  traditions  of  the  great  British  companies 


/,-. 


'/} 


-^ 


,:32l_ 


^-'^cs^^-U^Si^^i;^:^^^^! 


^^m^^^^^^M 


KYODO    FIRE    INSURANCE    COMP. 


ANY,    limited:    scenes    in    the    company's   offices— the    TOKYO    PREMISES 


f^b- 


1 


w,\ 


1} 


^#ii 


'T 


:-V'J 


■'*  '•  <lj^g=-=i/'*'"  '-i 


Xr 


>^-"'  ^x3^;.:;s^^^;^^ 


THE   CHINA   MUTUAL   LIFE    INSURANCE   COMPANY,    LIMITED:    HEAD    OFFICE    (NO.    ID   CANTON    ROAD,    SHANGHAI) VIEW 

OF    THE    STAIRCASE    FROM    THE    VESTIBULE  —  GLIMPSE   OF    THE    MAIN    OFFICE    FROM    THE 
VESTIBULE  —  VIEW    OF    THE    INTERIOR    OF    THE    HEAD    OFFICE 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


147 


in  England  and  Scotland,  with  the  conven- 
iences oflfered  by  the  location  of  the  head  office 
in  the  East.  Founded  originally  with  the 
primary  object  of  insuring  residents  in  China, 
the  company  quickly  grew,  so  that  it  now  has 
policy-holders  of  every  race  both  in  Asia 
and  in  Europe,  agencies  in  every  part  of  the 
Far  East,  and  has  arranged  facilities  for  the 
collection  of  premiums  and  the  payment  of 
claims  in  any  part  of  the  world.  The  policy 
adopted  by  the  company  in  regard  to  the  lives 
to  be  assured  has  also  been  followed  when 
dealing  with  investments.  The  company's 
investments  have  been  carefully  made  and 
judiciously  spread  over  the  world.  In  conse- 
quence of  this  geographical  distribution  of 
investments,  this  company  has  not  suffered 
to  nearly  the  same  extent  as  many  of  its 
competitors  from  depreciation  of  securities. 
The  Japan  Agency,  which  is  under  the 
management  of  Mr.  Charles  Neill,  was  estab- 
lished in  191 1.  Since  the  promulgation  of 
the  New  Insurance  Laws  in  December,  1912, 


the  company  has  been  licensed  by  the 
Imperial  Japanese  Government  to  transact 
the  following  plans  of  insurance  in  the  Em- 
pire of  Japan:  Whole  Life  Assurances,  En- 
dowment Assurances,  Children's  Endow- 
ments, Educational  Endowments,  Annuities. 

That  the  system  of  management  of  the 
company  has  been  fully  appreciated  by  the 
Japanese  is  evidenced  by  the  promptitude 
with  which  approval  has  been  granted  to 
transact  the  plans  of  assurance  referred  to, 
and  the  remarkable  success  which  has  at- 
tended the  company's  operations  in  Japan. 

The  chief  office  of  the  company  in  Japan 
is  in  Tokyo,  at  No.  3  Uchisaiwaicho,  Itch- 
ome,  Kojimachi-ku  (opposite  the  Hypothec 
Bank),  where  a  staff  of  twenty-five  clerks 
is  employed.  Branch  ofSces  are  estab- 
lished at  Yokohama,  Nagoya,  Kyoto,  Osa- 
ka, Kobe,  Shimonoseki,  Fukuoka,  Sasebo, 
Nagasaki,  Tokushima,  Tottori,  Saga,  Kum- 
amoto,  Kagoshima,  Utsunomiya,  Sendai, 
Hokkaido,  etc. 


NIPPON      FIRE      INSURANCE      COMPANY, 
LIMITED 

Established  in  1892,  the  Nippon  Fire 
Insurance  Company,  Limited,  ranks  amongst 
the  oldest  concerns  of  its  kind  in  Japan.  The 
head  office  of  the  company  is  at  12  Ginza 
Itchome,  Tokyo,  with  branches  and  agencies 
throughout  Japan  and  the  Far  East.  The 
fact  that  the  Kawasaki  family,  that  runs  the 
Kawasaki  Bank,  a  leading  private  bank  in 
Japan,  are  the  largest  shareholders  in  the 
Nippon  Fire  Insurance  Co.,  Ltd.,  speaks 
volumes  for  the  stability  and  financial  stand- 
ing of  the  organisation. 

The  company  engages  in  all  classes  of  fire, 
marine,  accident,  and  burglary  insurance,  the 
last  three  named  having  been  added  to  the 
company's  activities  at  a  comparatively 
recent  date.  As  pioneer  movements  of  a 
fire  company  and  also  as  undertakings  that 
satisfy  the  growing  demand  of  the  Japanese 
economic  world,  these  latest  enterprises  are 
developing  in  a  satisfactory  manner.     In  the 


HEAD    OFFICE    OF    THE    NIPPON    FIRE    INSURANCE    COMPANY,    LIMITED,  TOKYO 


148 


1'  R  E  S  E  N  T  -  D  A  V        IMPRESSIONS        OF        JAPAN 


report  for  the  year  ended  March  31,  191",  tht' 
volume  of  fire  insurance  showed  an  increase  in 
value  of  Yen  137,317,000  over  that  of  the 
previous  year,  and  the  premium  receipts 
increased  by  Yen  123,660,  the  lower  rate  of 
increase  in  the  latter  being  attributable  to  the 
downward  tendency  of  rates  ruling  in  Japan 
for  some  time  past.  The  year  was  fortunateh' 
free  from  any  serious  conflagrations,  and  the 
company  paid  claims  of  Yen  589,523, being  an 
increase  of  Yen  158,500  over  the  previous  year 
In  the  Accident  Insurance  Department  highly 
satisfactory  results  were  recorded,  thanks  to 
the  active  development  of  industry  recently, 
and  the  enforcement  of  the  Factory  Law  on 
March  31,  1917.  The  Marine  Insurance 
Department  of  the  Nippon  Company  had  been 
in  existence  only  nine  months,  but,  favoured 
by  the  marked  activity'  in  the  shipping  trade, 
the  volume  of  business  totalled  Yen  11,815,- 
784,yieldingapremiumincomeof Yen  1 13,640, 
as  against  an  outgoing  of  Yen  28,115.00.  It  is 
fully  expected  that  this  phase  of  the  com- 
pany's business  will  show  a  marked  increase. 
The  financial  statements  show  the  follow- 
ing balance  for  the  year  ending  March  31, 
1917: 


.AIKOKU    LIFE    INSIR.^NXE    COMP.\XY's   BUILDING,    TOKYO 


Assets 

Ll.^BILITIES 

Yen 

Yen 

Capital  unpaid 2,250,000.00 

Cash  in  hand 689 .  49 

Deposits  with  banks 1,863,941 .  15 

Postal  cheque  and  Giro  account        7,222.18 

Bonds  and  stocks 1,258,453.00 

Real  estate '?Q2,s68.83 

Capital  subscribed 3,000,000.00 

Legal  reserve  fund 310,000.00 

Reserve  fund   (including  premi- 
um reserve) i  ,903,500 .  00 

Reserve  for  outstanding  loss.  .  .       42,367.94 
Employees'  pension  fund 36,500 .  00 

Office  furniture                                     4  944  96 

Dividend  unclaimed 1,668.93 

Agencies'  balances 71,097.82 

Sundry  securities 472 .  60 

Bills  receivable 57,688 .  04 

Accounts  due  to  the  company.  .       83,242. 18 

Employees'  guarantee  fund 37,096 .  85 

Balance  of  re-insurance  account    235,200.72 

Bills  payable 30,629 .  44 

Profit 393.356 .  38 

Tola! Yen  5,990,320.26 

Total Yen  5,990,320.26 

The  capital  of  the  company  is  Yen  3,000,- 
000,  of  which  Yen  750,000  is  paid  up,  and  the 
reserves  amount  to  Yen  2,422,724.32 

The  Board  of  Directors  is  as  follows: 
Chairman,  Mr.  Hajime  Kawasaki;  Messrs. 
Jozaburo  limura,  Hachihemon  Kawasaki, 
Raita  Fujiyama,  Seishichi  Shikata,  and  Sin- 
ichiro  Sakuma.  The  Auditors  are:  Messrs. 
Yoshihisa  Usui,  Tanejiro  Kanazawa,  Sakugoro 
Kobayashi,  and  Hiroshi  Ando. 

THE  AIKOKU  LIFE    INSURANCE 
COMPANY,     LIMITED 

This  rich  and  strong  insurance  enterprise, 
which  ranks  very  high  in  Japan,  was  estab- 
lished in  Tokyo  in  July,  1896,  by  a  group  of 
prominent  business  men  included  among 
whom  were  the  present  President,   Mr.   ^L 


Suzuki,  Messrs.  M.  Kumakawa,  T.  Fujita, 
and  G.  Kishida  of  Tokyo;  K.  Hattori  and 
H.  Taniguchi  of  Kyoto;  M.  Takayasu, 
M.  Nakano,  and  R.  Kobayashi  of  Osaka,  and 
K.  Kato  of  the  Aichi  Prefecture,  and  many 
others  equally  well  known  in  Japanese 
commercial  and  financial  circles.  The  organ- 
isation was  that  of  a  joint-stock  company 
with  a  capital  of  Yen  300,000.00,  divided  into 
6,000  shares  of  Yen  50.00  per  share.  Business 
was  opened  in  February,  1897,  the  head  office 
being  situated  at  Nihonbashi-ku,  Tokyo, 
branch  offices  being  established  at  Osaka, 
Kyoto,  and  Nagoya.  The  first  Board  of 
Directors  comprised  the  following  gentlemen : 
President,  Mr.  B.  Totsuka;  Managing 
Director,  Mr.  I\I.  Suzuki  (now  President); 
and  Directors,  Messrs.  K.  Hattori,  K.  Osumi, 


M.  Nakano,  M.  Kumakawa,  T.  Fujita, 
R.  Kobayashi,  G.  Kishida,  T.  Miura,  and 
K.  Sudo.  Messrs.  K.  Kato,  M.  Takayasu, 
S.  Tamamidzu,  and  Y.  Kusaka  were  the 
Auditors.  The  Aikoku  Company  entered 
upon  the  following  classes  of  insurance: 
Ordinary  life,  limited  payment  life  policies, 
endowment  policies,  short-time  installments 
for  endowment  insurance,  endowment  pol- 
icies with  dividend,  insurance  for  business 
capital,  insurance  for  education  and  marriage 
expenses,  insurance  against  infectious  dis- 
eases. This  latter  class  of  insurance  was 
discontinued  in  1908  when  the  government 
introduced  the  preventive  system  against 
disease.  A  vigourous  and  broad  poUcy  of 
management  was  followed  from  the  inception 
of  the  company's  operations,  and  this  re- 
sulted in  a  rapid  extension  of  the  business. 
Branches  were  opened  throughout  Japan  in 
the  following  order:  Osaka  (April,  1897); 
Kyoto  (March,  1897);  Nagoya  (January, 
1905  );  Sendai  (Tohoku),  November,  1903; 
Kagoshima  (February,  1904);  Kanazawa 
(August,  1904);  Shizuoka  (March,  1905); 
Yokohama  (April,  1905);  Kofu  (Hokushin), 
June,  1905;  Okayama  (April,  1905);  Keijo, 
Korea  (June,  1908);  and  Kyushu  (September, 
1909) .  Besides  these  branches  the  company' 
has  954  agencies  throughout  Japan  and  its 
possessions.  In  1903  the  Aikoku  extended  its 
business  to  Seoul,  Chemulpo,  and  Fusan,  in 
Korea,  and  met  with  great  success.  Now 
the  directors  have  under  consideration  a 
further  extension  to  Taiwan  (Formosa),  Sag- 
halien,  and  China. 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


149 


The  first  dividend  of  the  company  was 
eight  per  cent,  in  1898.  This  rate  was  con 
tinned  until  1906  when  the  dividend  in- 
creased to  ten  per  cent  per  share  and  was 
maintained  at  this  figure  until  1914.  In  1915, 
15  yjer  cent  was  paid,  and  the  dividend  for 
19 1 6  rose  to  25  per  cent.  The  principal 
funds  of  the  company  at  the  end  of  19 16  stood 
as  follows:  Liability  Reserve  Fund,  Yen 
9,664,675;  Fixed  Dividend  Fund,  Yen  384,- 
995;  Profit  Dividend  Fund,  Yen  21,499; 
other  reserve  funds,  Yen  158,534.  At  the 
end  of  the  same  period  there  were  in  force 
117,206  policies  for  a  total  insurance  of  Yen 
47,234,832.  The  company  has  received  dur- 
ing its  twenty  years  of  existence  premiums 
totalling  Yen  18,299,866,  and  interest,  Yen 
3,041,389.  The  total  insurance  paid  for 
the  same  period  was  Yen  4,592,862.  The 
gross  expenditure  for  the  twenty  years  was 
Yen   5,555.191- 

The  present  Board  of  Directors  of  the 
Aikoku  Life  Insurance  Co.,  Ltd.,  consists  of. 
President,  Mr.  M.  Suzuki;  Managing  Direc- 
tors, Messrs.  H.  Shimidzu  and  M.  Nakano; 
Directors,  Messrs.  G.  Asayama,  N.  Miya- 
moto, R.  Koedzuka,  and  S.  Tamamidzu; 
Auditors,  Messrs.  Y.  Hyodo  and  S.  Shi- 
mada. 

The  handsome  new  premises  in  which  the 
company  has  its  headquarters  at  3  Yuraku- 
cho,  Kojimachi-ku,  Tokyo,  were  completed 
in  December,  191 2,  when  the  old  quarters 
in  Nihonbashi-ku  were  vacated. 

THE  KYOSAI  LIFE  INSURANCE  CO.MPANY, 
LIMITED,    TOKYO 

The  Kyosai  Life  Insurance  Co.,  Ltd.,  is 
one  of  the  enterprises  of  the  famous  Yasuda 
family,  and  its  organisation  and  management 
conform  in  every  respect  to  the  solid  and 
conservative  methods  which  have  become 
associated  with  the  name  of  Yasuda.  The 
company  was  originally  established  in  1880, 
when  it  became  the  pioneer  of  life  insurance 
companies  in  Japan.  At  the  time  of  its 
establishment  the  company  limited  its  oper- 
ations to  accepting  only  five  hundred  in- 
surers and  it  became  known  as  the  Kyosai 
(Mutual  Life)  500  Insurers  Society.  The 
organisation  was  changed  to  a  limited  lia- 
bility company  in  1 894,  and  the  business  was 
enlarged  to  accept  insurance  subscriptions 
from  the  general  public.  Again  the  organi- 
sation was  changed  in  April,  1900,  and  the 
company's  name  became  the  present  one. 
Thus  the  Kyosai  has  thirty-eight  years  of 
experience,  and  it  is  generally  recognised  to 
be  on  'a  solid  foundation  and  among  the 
leaders  of  insurance  in  the  Orient.  The 
polic)'  of  the  Kyosai  Company  is  a  wide  and 
sound  one.     All  speculation  is  avoided,  and 


an  earnest  effort  is  continually  being  made  to 
promote  the  interests  of  the  policy-holder, 
for  though  the  company  is  a  joint-stock 
concern,  it  is  really  conducted  as  a  mutual 
society.  For  instance,  the  company  does 
not  allow  more  than  six  per  cent  to  be  paid 


58,000,000.00,  and  the  limited  reserve  fund 
against  this  was  Yen  11,720,000.00.  The 
Kyosai  Company  accepts  only  two  kinds  of 
life  insurance  business,  namely,  the  ordinary 
and  the  special  endowment  policies  with 
participation  in  profits. 


PREMISES    OF    THE    KYOSAI    LIFE   INSURANCE   COMPANY,  LIMITED 


to  shareholders  and  from  five  to  fifteen  per 
cent  of  profit  has  been  deducted  every  year 
and  deposited  to  the  ordinary  reserve  fund. 
The  greater  part  of  all  profits  is  distributed 
among  the  policy-holders  according  to  the 
amount  of  the  insurance  policy.  With  such 
a  system  in  force  it  is  not  surprising  to  learn 
that  the  company's  business  is  growing 
annually,  new  contracts  to  the  value  of  over 
Yen  10,000,000.00  being  written  and  more 
then  Yen  2,000,000.00  of  premiums  being 
earned  every  year.  The  amount  of  insurance 
in  force  at  the  end  of   1916  was  over  Yen 


The  head  office  of  the  Kyosai  Company 
is  at  Kobuna-cho,  Nihonbashi-ku,  Tokj'O. 
Branches  are  maintained  in  Tokyo,  Osaka, 
Fukuoka,  Hiroshima,  Nagoya,  Sendai,  To- 
yama,  Kyoto,  Kob6,  Otaru,  Kagoshima, 
Dairen,  Seoul,  and  Taihoku  (Formosa).  The 
Board  of  Directors  comprises  the  following 
gentlemen:  Messrs.  Zenzaburo  Yasuda 
(President),  Zennosuke  Yasuda,  Zenshiro 
Yasuda,  Yoshio  Yasuda  (Auditor),  and 
Sunao  Kono  (General  Manager).  The  fol- 
lowing is  a  sketch  of  the  business  progress 
of  the  Kyosai  Co.,  1894- 19 16: 


11 


ISO 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


Years 

New 
Contracts 

Actual  Con- 
tr.-\cts  at  the 
End  of  Year 

Revenue  OF 
Premium 

Reserve 

Funds 

Yen 

Yen 

Yen 

Yen 

1894 

1,016,000.00 

1,400,600.00 

36,540.00 

56,090 .  00 

1895 

2,43,1.300.00 

3,792,700.00 

95,461.00 

83.330  00 

1896 

3,048,700.00 

6,471,800.00 

214,262.00 

178,015.00 

1897 

2,586,900.00 

^,709,500 .  00 

293.307  00 

311,653.00 

1898 

2,290,700.00 

10,434,200.00 

400,343 .  00 

552,923.00 

1899 

1,962,300.00 

11,254,200.00 

396,265.00 

757,911.00 

1900 

2,501,000.00 

12,044,700.00 

423,644.00 

964,330.00 

1901 

1,887,600.00 

11,634,200.00 

424,729.00 

1,157,686.00 

igo2 

2,345,000.00 

11,914,300.00 

490,926.00 

1,385,600.00 

1903 

3,343,700.00 

13,680,300.00 

573,391  00 

1,670,042.00 

1904 

2,419,600.00 

14,167,000.00 

596,616.00 

1,958.243  00 

1905 

3,372,000.00 

1 5,940,400 .  00 

659,460.00 

2,284,851.00 

1906 

6,520,000.00 

20,652,300.00 

828,432.00 

2,765,162.00 

1907 

8,302,900.00 

26,456,500.00 

1,091,381 .00 

3.3''7.'''37-00 

1908 

8,078,900.00 

30,828,000.00 

1,343,022.00 

4,169,944.00 

1909 

6,704,500.00 

33,300,100.00 

1,495,870.00 

5,063,331 .00 

1910 

7,149,400.00 

36,479,400.00 

1,631,257.00 

6,077,298.00 

1911 

8,312,900.00 

41,102,200.00 

1,803,698.00 

7. 1 77.553  00 

1912 

10,985,300.00 

47,868,600.00 

2,071,888.00 

8,435,551  00 

1913 

10,929,300.00 

53,651,200.00 

2,243,982.00 

9,766,645.00 

1914 

9,686,100.00 

57,357,400.00 

2,278,239.00 

10,965,208.00 

1915 

8,317,400.00 

57,086,400.00 

2,278,375  00 

12,152,983.00 

1916 

8,726,500 ,  00 

58,422,500.00 

2,391,146.00 

13,643,180.00 

THE     FIRST     MUTUAL     LIFE     INSURANCE 
COMPANY,    TOKYO,    JAPAN 

This  company  is  the  first  mutual  life  assur- 
ance concern  ever  established  in  Japan.  It 
was  projected  by  Mr.  Tsuneta  Yano,  Ex- 
President  I.  A.  J.,  F.  A.  S.  A.  and  M.  Cor. 
I.  A.  P.,  who  is  now  its  president.  Mr.  Yano 
was  a  professional  physician  and  first  con- 
nected himself  with  the  life  insurance  business 
in  1889,  as  a  competent  physician  of  The 
Nippon  Life  Assurance  Co.,  Ltd.  At  that 
time,  almost  aU  life  insurance  companies  of 
Japan  were  organised  and  conducted  with 
the  sole  idea  of  making  profits  for  the  stock- 
holders, and  as  such  a  principle  was  con- 
trary to  his  own,  Mr.  Yano  published  a 
pamphlet  in  1893,  earnestly  advocating  the 
establishment  of  a  life  insurance  company  of 
a  non-mercenary  nature. 

To  investigate  the  life  insurance  business 
abroad,  Mr.  Yano  made  a  tour  through 
Europe  and  America  in  1895,  returning  home 
in  1897.  In  the  year  following,  he  entered 
the  government  serv-ice,  and  in  the  Depart- 
ment of  Agriculture  and  Commerce,  and  the 
Investigation  Committee  of  Legislation,  he 
devoted  himself  to  the  task  of  drafting  the 
Assurance  Law,  containing  various  regula- 
tions for  superv-ising  insurance  business  and 
also  private  contracts  governing  mutual  life 
insurance  companies. 

In  1899,  when  the  project  of  law  had  passed 
the  Imperial  Diet  and  had  become  law,  a 
special  section  was  first  created  in  the  depart- 
ment for  its  execution,  and  Mr.  Yano  was 


appointed  the  first  Chief.  At  the  close  of 
1 901,  Mr.  Yano  resigned  his  government 
position  on  his  own  account  and  took  the  lead 
in  the  movement  for  establishing  in  Japan  an 
ideal  mutual  life  insurance  company',  which 
inaugurated  its  business  in  October,  1902,  and 
he  is  now  its  President. 


The  business   plan   was  drawn  up  princi- 
pally   in  accordance   with  Mr.  Yano's   idea. 
The  chief  features  are  briefly  as  follows: 
(a)     The  company  does  not  entertain  any 
life  insurance  contract  below  1, 000 yen. 
The  object  is  to  curtail  canvassing 
expenses,  which  are  apt  to  grow  too 
much,  if  smaller  contracts  are  to  be 
entertained,  as  was  the  case  with  some 
other  companies  when  this  company 
was    established,    entertaining    such 
small  contracts  as  50  yen  or  100  yen. 
(6)     The  company  does  not  propose  to  have 
agencies  or  branches  established,  for 
the  same  reason  as  stated  above, 
(c)     As  it  is  the  original  nature  of  a  mutual 
life  insurance  institution,  the  company 
gives  the  policy-holders  or  members 
the  right  to  participate  in  the  manage- 
ment and  entitles  them  to  due  share  of 
its  profits.     It  may  be  obser\-ed  also 
that  untU  the  First  Mutual  Company 
was  established,  few  of  the  other  com- 
panies had   declared   their  dividends 
sufficiently  to  their  poHcy-holders. 
There  are  now  no  less  than  thirty-seven  life 
insurance    companies,   of    which   six    are   of 
mutual  character.    Even  in  the  case  of  limited 
companies,  they  have  now  raised  their  stand- 
ard of  the  minimum  contract  to  300  or  500 
yen  and   there  is  none  now  that  does  not 
declare  certain  di\-idends  to  its  contractors. 
The  company  is,  however,  the  only  concern 
that  has  neither  agencies  nor  branches  estab- 
lished anywhere. 


TOKYO   premises   OF    FIRST    MUTU.\L    LIFE    INSURANCE   COMP.^NY 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


151 


As  it  will  be  very  clearly  seen  from  the  fore- 
going statement,  the  company  is  an  idea! 
mutual  life  insurance  establishment,  striving 
to  do  its  utmost  to  give  its  members  the  light- 
est possible  pecuniary  burdens.  The  rate, 
both  of  expenditure  and  of  surrenders  of 
contract,  is  smaller  than  that  of  any  other 
company.  On  the  other  hand,  the  new  con- 
tracts do  not  increase  as  much  as  other 
companies.  From  a  mercenary  point  of  view, 
therefore,  the  company  must  be  considered  a 
very  poor  institution.  This  is  because  the 
company  exerts  itself  to  the  utmost  to  become 
the  best  company,  but  not  the  largest  one. 
All  possible  efforts  have  been  made  to  curtail 
the  expenses  to  a  limit  of  ten  per  cent  of  the 
total  revenue. 

The  premium  of  the  company  is  based  upon 
the  national  mortality  table  and  the  assumed 
interest  of  3.5  per  cent.  The  premium  reserve 
is  of  the  net  premium  method  and  the  premium 
for  unexpired  risk  or  simple  unexpired  premium 
is  laid  by  gross  in  proportion  to  unexpired 
time.  The  dividend  is  paid  out  to  each  member 
every  year  on  the  basis  of  the  total  amount  of 
premiums  he  has  already  paid  up,  while  many 
companies  declare  their  dividends  according 
to  the  Tontin  system,  and  such  payment  of 
dividend  commences  only  when  the  polic\'- 
holder  has  paid  in  his  fifth  premium.     The 


company  undertakes  to  pay  the  dividend  to 
the  members  continually  for  four  years  even 
after  their  death,  so  each  member  receives 
his  dividend  exactly  as  many  times  as  he  pays 
in  his  premium.  The  company  has  been  pay- 
ing the  dividend  at  the  rate  of  three  per  cent 
per  annum  and  consequently  one's  premium 
decreases  year  after  year  in  arithmetical 
progression,  ot  the  sum  insured  increases  year 
by  year  in  considerable  amount  according  as 
the  policy-holder  applies  the  dividend  to 
reduce  his  premium  or  to  purchase  an  addi- 
tional    insurance. 

The  business  record  for  the  fourteenth 
fiscal  year,  from  September  I  to  August  31, 
191 6,  and  the  financial  condition  at  the  end  of 
the  same  fiscal  year  will  be  seen  from  the 
figures  in  the  table  below. 

Of  these  various  items,  the  negotiable 
instruments  and  immovable  property,  if 
valued  at  the  current  prices,  would  no  doubt 
amount  to  i  ,400,000  yen  more  than  the  figures 
given  in  the  Balance  Sheet,  and  moreover  the 
liability  reserve,  if  calculated  in  accordance 
with  the  Zillmer's  method,  as  in  the  case  of 
many  other  companies,  would  make  the 
liabilities  decrease  to  the  extent  of  some  500,- 
000  yen.  The  above  stated  surplus  is  chiefly 
paid  off  to  the  members  of  the  company  in  the 
form    of    dividends. 


Insurance  Issued  and 
Revived 

Deaths 

Lai'sed 

Insurance  in  Force 

Number  of  Policies  .                  3,503 
Amount Yen  5,221,400 

224 
Yen  354.343 

1,179 

Yen  1,726,622 

22,455 
Yen  35,276,041 

Premiums  Received 

Interest  of  Various  Kinds 
Received 

Business  Expense 

Yen  1,469.715 

Yen  436,729 

Yen  185,775 

Assets 

Liabilities 

Yen 

Yen 

Unpaid  fund 75  000.00 

Fund    .          .          100,000.00 

Cash 6,627.25 

Post  office  book  transfer  savings 

account 14,621.23 

Bank  deposits 1,677,984.12 

Loans 497,410.39 

Securities 3,275,827.10 

Real  estate A8o,';7q.'?J. 

Reser\-e  fund 100,764.74 

Liability  reserve 4,877,228.72 

Reserve    for    dividend    surplus 

from  insurance 376,163.63 

Current  reserve              .  .            .         32,407.26 

Amount  brought  over  from  pre- 
ceding term  of  fund  for  divi- 
dend                  0.76 

Outstanding  account 20,693.83 

Building  account 66,514.30 

Total Yen   6,115,057.56 

Caution 15,205.55 

Surplus 505,57544 

Total Yen  6,1 15,057.56 

TEIKOKU    SEIMEI    HOKEN    KAISHA    (tHE 
IMPERIAL     LIFE     INSURANCE     COM- 
PANY,  limited) 

This  company  was  established  on  March  i 
1888,    under    the    auspices    of    the    present 
President,  Mr.  A.  Fukuhara,  with  the  coopera- 
tion of  Messrs.  J.  Koaze,  I.  Matsumoto,  K. 
Ito,  and  T.  Kakara.     It  is  indeed  the  oldest 
institution  of  its  kind  in  Japan,  and  dates  back 
to  the  time  when  insurance  was  almost  un- 
known in  the  Empire.     The  original  capital 
was  Yen  300,000.     Headquarters  were  estab- 
lished at  Horidome-cho,  Nichome,  Nihonbashi- 
ku,   Tokyo.     When  the  Imperial  came  into 
existence  the  general  conception  of  insurance 
among  the  Japanese  was  of  the  most  primitive 
nature  and  not  only  did  the  promoters  of  the 
new  enterprise  find  great  difficulty  in  securing 
shareholders  in  the  company  for  such  a  com- 
paratively small  amount  of  capital,  but  when 
once  they  had  started  business  they  found  the 
task  of  securing  policy-holders  to  be  almost 
insurmountable.     Canvassing     was    a    very 
tough  proposition  in  those  days.     However, 
with  the  passage  of  time  and  the  education  of 
the  people  to  the  benefits  of  insurance  the 
initial  difficulties  disappeared,  and  since  then 
the  company  has  steadily  increased  its  busi- 
ness.    Early  in  its  career  the  old  offices  were 
found  to  be  too  small  for  the  volume  of  busi- 
ness transacted  and  the  company  removed  to 
Himono-cho,  Nihonbashi-ku. 

At  the  outset  Mr.  Koaze  occupied  the  office 
of  President  of  the  company,  but  three  years 
later  Mr.  A.  Fukuhara  took  his  place,  and 
under  his  personal  and  painstaking  efforts  the 
business  was  rapidly  developed,  many  branch 
offices  being  opened,  not  only  in  Japan  but  in 
Korea  and  Manchuria.  By  the  end  of  1893 
the  total  of  insurance  had  reached  to  over  Yen 
10,000,000.  In  November,  1897,  after  the 
close  of  the  Chino- Japanese  War,  the  economic 
condition  of  Japan  showed  unusual  activity, 
and  business  was  so  good  that  the  Imperial 
increased  its  capital- to  Yen  1,000,000.  The 
buoyant  condition  of  affairs  showed  itself  in 
the  greater  demand  for  insurance  and  the 
company's  policies  amounted  in  total  to  Yen 
20,953,200  by  the  end  of  1898.  It  was  after 
Mr.  Fukuhara's  return,  in  June,  1900,  from  an 
extensive  tour  of  Europe  and  America,  during 
which  he  made  a  comprehensive  investigation 
into  insurance  matters  in  three  countries,  that 
important  reforms  took  place  in  the  Imperial's 
system  of  doing  business.  The  participation 
in  profits  idea  was  introduced,  and  was  an 
entirely  new  thing  in  Japanese  insurance 
circles.  Other  improvements  were  also 
effected  and  proved  highly  acceptable  to  the 
poUcy-holders  and  the  general  pubUc,  so  that 
a  strong  demand  arose  for  the  Imperial's 
policies.  The  business  had  by  now  expanded 
so   vigourously  that  the    offices  had  to   be 


»g^^^^^ty^:^i^^S^>«r^|:^^ 


'^ 


PLANT    OF    THE    TAKASAGO    INDUSTRY   COMPANY,    LIMITED,    TOKYO  —  OFFICES   AND    WORKS    OF    THE    NIPPON    YUSI    KABISHIKI 
KAISHA,    YOKOHAMA PREMISES   OF    THE    TAKASAGO   LIFE    INSURANCE    COMPANY,    LIMITED 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


153 


removed  to  the  present  large  building  at  No. 
16  Oofuku-eho,  Nihonbashi-ku,  on  October  i, 
1902.  During  the  Russo-Japanese  War  of 
1904-5  the  Imperial,  in  common  with  all  other 
companies,  received  an  inevitable  setback 
through  the  death  of  so  many  policy-holders, 
but  after  the  restoration  of  peace  a  reaction 
set  in.  Trade  was  good  and  prosperity  general 
throughout  the  country.  The  Imperial  made 
special  efforts  to  strengthen  its  position  and 
succeeded,  its  business  expanding  by  leaps 
and  bounds,  as  may  be  judged  from  the  fact 
that  there  was  a  sudden  increase  in  the 
amount  insured,  reaching  a  total  of  Yen 
53,997,100.  Since  1909  the  company's  busi- 
ness has  been  steadily  developed  along  the 
best  lines,  its  financial  stability  becoming 
more  and  more  marked  each  year.  Branches 
were  opened  on  a  wide  scale  to  take  care  of  the 
exterior  development  of  the  business.  The 
branches  are  in  Tokyo,  Osaka,  Sendai, 
Fukuoka,  Sapporo,  Kanazawa,  Nagoya, 
Hiroshima,  Seoul,  Taipeh  and  other  impor- 
tant cities,  together  with  26  sub-branches  and 
over  1, 1 00 agencies  throughout  Japan  and  her 
dependencies.  The  company  has  also  ex- 
tended its  influence  to  China. 

According  to  the  balance  sheet  of  December 
31,  19 1 6,  the  total  contracted  insurance  was 
Yen  113,991,650,  with  the  reserve  fund 
amounting  to  Yen  21,297,292.  Since  the 
inauguration  of  the  business  Yen  15,904,817 
has  been  paid  to  beneficiaries  under  policies. 
Such  unrivalled  prosperity  as  has  attended 
the  operations  of  the  Imperial  Insurance 
Company  must  very  largely  be  attributed  to 
the  rare  character  and  ability  of  the  President, 
Mr.  Fukuhara,  who  has  laboured  for  over 
thirty  years  to  promote  the  welfare  of  the 
organisation,  no  less  than  to  the  sound 
system  on  which  the  company  operates. 
This  system  aims  at  conferring  the  largest 
possible  benefits  on  the  policy-holders,  and 
they,  in  their  turn,  have  shown  that  they 
heartily  appreciate  the  company  in  which 
they  have  placed  such  confidence. 

THE    TAKASAGO    LIFE    INSURANCE    COM- 
PANY,   LIMITED 

This  is  one  of  the  three  companies  under 
the  Presidency  of  Mr.  K.  Hara,  who  is  also 
the  head  of  the  Takasago  Industry  Co.,  Ltd., 
and  of  the  Nippon  Yusi  Kabushiki  Kaisha. 
When  the  Takasago  Insurance  Co.,  Ltd.,  was 
formed  it  was  decided  to  give  it  a  policy  widely 
different  from  those  of  most  life  insurance 
companies,  and  the  principles  of  a  joint-stock 
organisation  and  those  of  mutual  life  com- 
panies were  cleverly  blended.  Whatever  big 
profit  there  might  be,  the  dividend  to  the 
shareholders  is  limited  to  six  per  cent  of  the 
capital,  and  the  rest  is  credited  to  the  policy- 
holders, while  on  the  other  hand,  in  the  event 


of  losses  lieing  sustained  they  would  be  borne 
by  the  shareholders,  and  would  not  fall  on 
the  insured.  With  a  view  to  maintaining  the 
company's  financial  stability,  and  to  insure  a 
steady  business  policy,  over  half  of  the  paid- 
up  capital  is  deposited  with  the  Imperial 
Government,  and  the  Directors  have  also 
under  consideration  a  scheme  to  deposit  with 
the  Treasury,  the  responsibility  fund,  which 
is  to  be  set  aside  for  the  benefit  of  the  policy- 
holders. 

The  Takasago  Life  Insurance  Co.,  Ltd., 
handles  insurance  of  two  kinds,  namely, 
whole  life  insurance,  and  endowment  maturity 
insurance  with  participation  in  the  profits. 
Under  the  latter  class  of  policy,  an  endowment 
for  twenty  years,  taken  out  at  the  age  of  30, 
would  mature  for  a  gross  sum  of  Yen  1,501.53, 
profits  representing  Yen  301 .53  and  bonus  on 
maturity  Yen  200.  The  premium  for  such  a 
policy  would  be  Yen  52.90.  Similar  profits 
and  bonus  accrue  to  the  insured  under  the 
whole  life  policies  when  the  insured  is  alive  at 
certain  ages.  The  capital  of  the  Takasago 
Life  Insurance  Co.,  Ltd.,  is  Yen  500,000.  The 
head  office  is  at  No.  i  Sojurocho,  Kyobashi-ku, 
Tokyo,  and  there  are  branches  at  Osaka, 
Fukuoka,  Hokkaido,  Fukushima,  Nagoya, 
Kyoto,  Kob^,  Hiroshima,  and  Kanazawa. 
This  company  is  particularly  fortunate  in  its 
Board  of  Directors,  which  includes  some  of 
the  best  known  men  in  business  and  financial 
circles  in  Japan.  Mr.  Hara  is  President  and 
active  Manager,  assisted  by  Mr.  K.  Ikeda. 
The  Directors  are  Viscount  J.  Ito,  and  Messrs. 
S.  Sato,  K.  Kita,  D.  Sayegusa,  and  N.Tatsu- 
zawa;  Auditors,  Count  M.  Okudaira  and 
Messrs.  Y.  Toshida  and  T.  Kimura.  In 
addition  there  is  an  advisory  council  com- 
prising Viscount  M.  Kurushima,  Baron  T. 
Ozawa,  Dr.  T.  Okamura,  Dr.  K.  Keto,  and 
Messrs.  H.  Kawase  and  K.  Yegawa. 

TAKASAGO  KOGYO  KABUSHIKI  KAISHA 
The  rapid  industrial  development  of  Japan 
has  given  rise  to  many  subsidiary  commercial 
enterprises,  many  of  which  are  no  doubt 
destined  to  reach  great  importance,  especially 
as  their  activities  are  being  availed  of  for 
production  of  materials  for  which  there  is  not 
only  a  permanent  local  market,  but  a  strong 
demand  in  foreign  countries  owing  to  the  war. 
Among  such  enterprises  is  the  Takasago 
Kogyo  Kabushiki  Kaisha  (The  Takasago 
Industry  Co.,  Ltd.),  which  in  a  very  short 
space  of  time  has  developed  an  extensive  and 
valuable  business  in  the  manufacture  of  chem- 
ical products.  The  company  was  formed  on 
July  1,  19 16,  its  founders  being  such  well 
known  commercial  men  as  Messrs.  K.  Hara, 
N.  Hasegawa,  and  others.  The  nominal 
capital  is  Yen  i  ,000,000.00,  of  which  Yen  360,- 
000.00  has  now  been  paid  up.     Prior  to  its 


organisation  as  a  limited  liability  company 
the  concern  had  been  in  operation  as  a  partner- 
ship under  the  style  of  the  Dainihon  Denka- 
kogyosho,  with  Mr.  Hara  at  its  head  and 
Mr.  Hasegawa  managing  its  operations. 
Before  long  it  became  the  Takasago  Kogyo- 
sho,  and  finally  was  reorganised  as  a  kabushiki 
kaisha.  The  Takasago  Company  is  princi- 
pally engaged  in  the  manufacture  of  potas- 
sium chloride,  the  capacity  at  the  time  of 
writing  being  over  500  tons  per  annum,  though 
this  output  is  continually  being  increased. 
Other  chemicals,  drugs,  and  dyestuffs  are 
being  turned  out  in  rapidly  growing  quantities. 
The  head  office  and  works  of  the  Takasago 
Industry  Company,  Ltd.,  are  at  Osaki-machi, 
Ebara-gun,  Tokyo-fu,  and  a  branch  is 
established  at  Azuma-machi,  Minamikat- 
sushika-gun,  Tokyo-fu.  The  offices  and  works 
of  the  company  cover  an  area  of  4,242  tsubo. 
About  ninety  hands  are  employed.  The 
principal  local  consumers  of  the  products  of 
the  different  works  are  the  match  manufactur- 
ing companies,  and  an  export  trade  is  being 
done  with  England,  America,  Russia,  China 
and  other  countries.  This  trade  will  be 
enlarged  as  the  company's  operations  extend 
and  the  capacity  of  the  plants  is  increased  to 
embrace  the  manufacture  of  gelatine,  and 
other  chemical  products.  The  officers  of  the 
Takasago  Industry  Co.,  Ltd.,  are:  President, 
Mr.  K.  Hara;  Managing  Director,  Mr.  N. 
Hasegawa;  Directors,  Messrs.  K.  Ohashi, 
D.  Saegusa,  and  S.  Yamaguchi. 

THE    JINJU    LIFE    INSURANCE  COMPANY, 
LIMITED 

The  origin  of  this  company  dates  back  to 
September  28,  1894,  when  a  limited  partner- 
ship was  formed  by  Count  N.  Matsudaira, 
Viscount  Y.  Toda,  Messrs.  T.  Nishimura, 
R.  Minomura,  S.  Imamura,  I.  Tojo,  K.  Fukiji, 
Baron  S.  Tsuji  and  others.  Business  was 
opened  on  October  5,imder  the  presidency  of 
Baron  S.  Tsuji.  After  some  years  of  opera- 
tion the  company  was  taken  over  by  Mr.  D. 
Shimogou,  a  wealthy  merchant,  and  in 
December  of  19 15  it  was  reorganised  as  a 
joint-stock  company  with  a  capital  of  Yen 
1,000,000.  By  a  sound  and  conservative 
policy  the  business  has  shown  a  steady 
improvement,  and  the  credit  and  reputation 
of  the  Jinju  Life  Insurance  Co.,  Ltd.,  have 
spread  throughout  the  country.  At  the  con- 
clusion of  1916  the  insurance  in  force  was  over 
Yen  40,000,000,  and  the  various  reserve  funds 
stood  at  some  Yen  7,500,000.  The  minimum 
amount  of  a  policy  issued  by  the  company  is 
Yen  300,  and  the  maximum  Yen  30,000. 
The  premium  in  any  class  of  insurance  is 
the  lowest  that  can  possibly  be  charged.  In 
1909  the  company  inaugurated  the  system  of 
participation  in  profits  for  policy-holders  to 


154 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


the  amount  of  Yen  500,  provided  they  have 
maintained  their  insurance  fora  period  of  five 
years.  The  bonus  for  profits  is  allotted  every 
five  years.  In  many  directions  this  company 
has  shown  itself  progressive,  adopting  new 
and  sound  ideas  to  give  the  policy-holders 
the  fullest  benefits. 

The  principal  officials  of  the  Jinju  Life 
Insurance  Co.,  Ltd.,  are:  President,  Mr. 
Denbei  Shimogou;  Directors,  Messrs.  H. 
Yoshizawa,  H.  Okawa,  Toratoro  Shimogou; 
Auditors,  Messrs.  M.  Hirose  and  Y.  Kadono; 
Medical  Adviser,  Professor  Shu  Miyake; 
Councillors,  Viscount  N.  Matsudaira  and 
Mr.  E.  Tanaka,  and  Manager,  Mr.  T.Tamaki 
The  head  office  of  the  company  is  at  No. 
3,  l-chome,  Uchisaiwaicho,  Kojimachi-ku, 
Tokyo.  There  are  branches  and  agencies 
throughout  the  Empire  of  Japan. 

A  SHORT  HISTORY  OF 
COINAGE  IN  JAPAN 

By  DR.  VOSHIMASA  KOGA,   F.  C.  S., 

Chief     Assayer    at    the    Imperial    Japanese 

Mint,   Osaka 

IN  the  most  ancient  times,  ornamental 
stone  beads,  silk,  linen,  and  grain  appear 
to  have  served  the  purpose  of  money  in  Ja 
pan.  Later,  Chinese  cash  or  coins  were  used 
as  currency.  In  the  reign  of  Temmu  Tenno 
(673  A.  D.)  silver  coins  are  said  to  have  been 
current.  The  first  authentic  imperial  coins, 
or  cash,  were,  however,  cast  about  708. 
These  are  highly  prized  and  called  by  numis- 
matists the  Twelve  Ancient  Cash.  They  are 
the  following: 

1.  Wa-do-kai-chin  708  a.  d. 

2.  Man-nen-tsu-ho  760 

3.  Jin-ko-kai-ho  765 

4.  Ryu-heici-ho  796 

5.  Fu-ji-shin-ho  818 

6.  Jo-wa-sho-ho  S35 

7.  Chone-tai-ho  848     " 

8.  Nyo-yeki-shin-ho  859     " 

9.  Jo-kwan-ri-ho  870 

10.  Kwan-pyo-tai-ho  890 

11.  En-gi-tsu-ho  907     " 

12.  Ken-gen-tai-ho  958 

A  gap  of  six  centuries  separates  the  period 
at  which  the  imperial  coinage  ceased  and  the 
period  when  national  coinage  was  resumed. 
In  the  early  part  of  this  long  interval  grain, 
linen,  and  silk  formed  the  bulk  of  the  currency. 
Gradually,  however,  Chinese  cash  was 
imported  and  became  the  chief  standard  of 
value.  Gold  and  silver  in  the  form  of  small 
ingots  or  grains  were  also  in  use. 


MR.    H.    IKEBUKLRO,    DIRECTOR    OK    THE 
I.MPERI.^L    MINT,    TOKYO 

The  coins  of  Taiko  (about  1588)  were  of 
gold  and  silver  and  became  the  nuclei 
aroimd  which  the  Tokugawa  system  of 
coinage  was  elaborated.  In  this  latter 
system  as  it  was  first  instituted  in  1601,  gold 
alloyed  with  silver  in  the  form  of  thin  oblong 
plates,  and  also  of  thicker  rectangular  plates, 
was  struck  with  mint  dies  and  made  the 
currency  by  tale,  while  silver  alloyed  with 
copper  was  cast  into  small  ingots  of  varying 
weights  and  stamped  with  mint  marks. 
These  were  current  by  weight,  instead  of  by 
tale  as  in  the  case  of  gold.  It  was,  in  fact,  a 
peculiar  case  of  bimetallism,  if  it  may  be  so 
called. 

In  cotirse  of  time  it  came  to  pass  that  the 
extravagance  of  the  court  or  the  exigencies  of 
the  state  more  than  once  placed  the  finances 
of  the  government  on  the  brink  of  bankruptcy, 
and  each  time  the  temptation  to  replenish  the 
coflfers  of  the  state  by  the  debasement  of 
coinage  was  too  great  to  be  resisted  by  the 
officials.  In  such  a  system  of  bimetallism  the 
ratio  of  value  assigned  to  the  precious  metals 
was  not  apparent  to  the  iminitiated,  and  it 
was  comparatively  easy  for  the  officials  of  a 
despotic  government  to  multiply  the  number 
of  coins  at  the  expense  of  their  intrinsic  value, 
without  danger  of  exposure.  Accordingly, 
we  find  coinage  ordered  on  no  less  than  eight 
occasions  in  the  course  of  270  years  of  Toku- 
gawa power.  Each  time  standard  coins 
dwindled  in  weight  and  fineness.  The  silver 
currency,  which  passed  by  weight,  shared  a 
similar  fate,  having  the  proportion  of  base 
metal  increased,  until  finally  the  old  stand- 
ard of  Keicho  silver,  which  was  800  in  i  ,000, 


found  itself  debased  in  Ansei  silver  to  but 
130  in  1,000.  The  coining  of  silver  into 
pieces  of  definite  weight  began  in  1765,  and 
thenceforward  a  number  of  silver  coins  were 
issued,  each  issue  witnessing  a  gradual 
diminution  in  weight. 

The  system  of  coinage  in  the  last  days  of 
tlie  Tokugawa  government  comprised  the 
following  coins: 


Gold 


Form 


V.\I.UE 


Koban  Oblong  i  ryo 

Oban  Oblong  10  and  25  ryo 

Nibu-kin  Rectangular  K  ryo 

Ichibu-kin  Rectangular  )4  ryo 


Nishu-kin 

Rectangular 

M  ryo 

Silver 

Form 

V.\LUE 

Ichibu-kin 
Nishu-kin 
Ishu-kin 

Rectangular 
Rectangular 
Rectangular 

'i  ryo 

H  ryo 

'  I'fi  ryo 

In  this  system  silver  in  ingots,  or  shots,  was 
valued  at  I  ryo  per  60  momme. 

There  is  another  set  of  gold  coins,  interest- 
ing in  their  having  a  general  resemblance  to 
the  coins  of  Western  nations.  These  are  the 
so-called  Koshyu-kin,  round  struck  pieces, 
forming  by  themselves  a  series  quite  distinct 
from  the  standard  coins  of  Tokugawa.  They 
were  current  in  the  Province  of  Koshyu,  or 
Kai,  in  the  early  period  of  the  Tokugawa 
government,  and  were  not  the  state  coinage 
of  the  latter.  Some  of  them  were  of  an  older 
date  than  the  rise  of  Tokugawa. 

We  now  turn  for  a  moment  to  the  later 
history  of  cash,  which  was  the  money  par 
excellence  of  the  people.  The  Tokugawa 
government  put  a  stop  to  the  use  of  Chinese 
or  other  cash,  and  in  1636  ordered  the  casting 
on  a  large  scale  of  a  new  cash  called  Kwan-ei- 
tsu-ho  This  cash  was  manufactured  in 
various  places  and  at  diflferent  times  down 
to  about  1826.  Iron  cash  of  the  same  type 
as  of  copper  was  also  cast  and  circulated  in 
the  declining  days  of  Tokugawa.  An  oblong 
brass  cash  called  Ten-po-sen,  as  well  as 
round  cash  called  Bunkj'u-sen,  were  also 
current  at  the  latter  period. 

As  already  described,  the  currency  of  the 
country  at  the  time  of  the  Restoration  of  the 
Imperial  Government  was  in  a  state  of  chaos, 
and  measures  were  taken  without  delay  to 
establish  a  perfect  system  of  imperial  coinage. 
A  single  gold  standard  was  adopted  in  the  first 
coinage  system,  promulgated  in  June,  1 871. 
In  this  system  i-J^  gram  of  fine  gold  was 
made  the  unit  of  value  called  yen. 

The  coins  were  of  foiu"teen  denominations, 
namely:  Standard  gold  coins,  900  fine:  20-yen, 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


^00 


lo-yen,  5-yen,  2-yen,  l-yen;  silver  coins,  800 
fine:  50-sen,  20-sen,  lo-sen,  5-sen;  silver  coin, 
900  fine:  l-yen  for  trade  use;  copper  coins: 
2-sen,   J'^-sen,  l-rin. 

In  the  course  of  a  few  years  the  Govern- 
ment found  it  quite  difficult  to  maintain  the 
single  gold  standard,  when  the  law  was  so 
modified  as  to  have  the  appearance  of  a 
double  standard,  although  as  a  matter  of  fact, 
silver  became  eventually  the  only  standard. 
This  state  of  things  was  continued  until  after 
the  war  with  China,  when  the  receipt  of  the 
war  indemnity  in  gold  made  it  possible  for 
Count  (now  Marquis)  Matsukata,  then 
Minister  of  Finance,  to  successfully  adopt  the 
single  gold  standard  in  the  new  Coinage  Law 
of  March,  1897.  By  this  change,  the  old 
gold  coins  were  valued  at  double  their  face 
value,  and  a  new  series  of  gold  coins  nominally 
the  same  as  the  old,  but  weighing  only  one- 
half,  was  issued  as  the  standard  coins.  No 
change  was  made  in  silver  coins  except  that 
the  I -yen  silver  coin  was  demonetised.  By 
this  alteration,  the  old  mint  ratio  of  gold  to 
silver  was  doubled,  so  that  when  in  1905  the 
market  price  of  silver  rose  so  far  as  to  overreach 
the  mint  ratio,  the  Government  was  induced  to 
reduce  the  weights  of  silver  coins.  This  was 
effected  by  the  amendments  of  the  Coinage 
Law  in  April,  1906,  in  the  case  of  50  and  20 
sen,  and  in  March,  1907,  in  the  case  of  the 
lo-sen  coin. 

A  nickel  coinage  of  5  sen  had  been  intro- 
duced into  the  coinage  system  in  1888.  In 
1897,  bronze  was  substituted  for  copper  coin- 
age. Further,  in  1916,  a  perforated  nickel 
coinage  was  adopted  by  the  Law  of  February 


ENTRANCE    TO    THE    IMPERIAL    PAL.\CE,    SHOWING    THE    MOAT 


20th,    which    also    reduced    the    weights    of 
bronze  coins. 

The  weights,  fineness,  and  diameters  of  the 
coins  as  at  present  issued  are  shown  below. 

COINAGE  AND  REFINING 
Any  person  may  take  his  gold  to  the 
Imperial  Mint  for  coinage,  provided  the 
weight  of  the  bullion  is  over  100  niomme 
(12,956  ozs.  troy).  The  coinage  is  free  for 
any  amount.     Usually  on  the  third  day  after 


Metal 

Denomination 

Weight 

GRAM 

Fineness 
per  mil 

Diameter 

MM. 

Gold 

Silver 

Nickel 

Bronze 

20-yen 

lo-yen 

5-yen 

50-sen 
20-sen 
10-sen 

5-sen 

(perforated) 

I -sen 

5-rin 

16.6666 

8-3333 
4.1666 

10.125 
4-05 
2.25 

4-275 

3  ■  75 
2 .  10 

900 
900 
900 

800 
800 

720 

Nickel,   250 
Copper,  750 

Copper,  950 
Tin,           40 
Zinc,          10 

28.8 
21  .2 
17.0 

27-3 
20.3 
17-6 

20.6 

23.0 

18.8 

the  deposit  at  the  mint,  the  depositor  receives 
from  the  mint  a  memorandum  on  the  out- 
turn of  his  gold,  which  is  calculated  according 
to  the  mint  assay  on  the  basis  of  one  yen  per 
0.2  momme  or  0.75  gram  of  fine  gold.  The 
depositor  signs  the  deposit  receipt  and  returns 
it  to  the  mint,  when  he  will  receive  in  turn  a 
coin  certificate  for  the  entire  amount,  which 
is  payable  at  once  at  the  Osaka  branch  of 
the  Nippon  Ginko  (Bank  of  Japan). 

Silver  is  coined  into  subsidiary  coins  only 
on  government  account. 

When  the  bulUon  has  to  be  parted  and 
refined,  it  is  subject  to  parting  and  refining 
charges  for  the  silver  content  only,  at  the 
rate  of  from  0.20  yen  to  0.74  yen  per  100 
momme  of  fine  silver  contained,  the  rate 
varying  according  to  the  proportion  of  base 
metal  in  the  bullion.  No  bullion  contain- 
ing more  than  50  per  cent  of  base  metal 
is  received  for  parting.  At  the  end  of 
fifteen  or  twenty  days,  according  to  the 
amount,  the  silver  parted  is  returned  to  the  de- 
positor, who  disposes  of  this  ingot  as  he 
may  choose.  The  gold  content  in  refinable 
bullion  is  paid  for  in  coin  certificate  as  in  the 
case  of  gold  deposit. 


HOLSE    OF    REPRESENTATIVES 


X.    The  City  of  Tokyo 

Origin,  History,  and  Development  — The   New  Tokyo  — Municipal  Administration— Tokyo 

Finance— Future  of  Tokyo— Commercial  Notices 


TOKYO,  the  capital  of  the  Empire,  is 
not  remarkable  for  antiquit}-  as  that 
word  is  understood  in  Japan;  for, 
down  to  mediaeval  times,  Yedo,  as  the  city  was 
originally  called,  had  not  arisen  above  the 
level  of  a  seaside  hamlet,  the  ground  whereon 
the  city  now  stands  being  then  a  wilderness 
washed  by  the  sea  or  occupied  largely  by 
marshes  and  lagoons.  That  the  site  in  early 
times  was  frequented  by  primitive  tribes  is 
clear  from  the  sheU  mounds  and  evidences  of 
ancient  sepulchre  that  have  been  imearthed  in 
various  wards  of  the  city,  but  to  what  race 
or  races  these  early  inhabitants  belonged  it 
is  now  impossible  to  determine.  All  that  is 
known  of  the  origin  of  the  settlement  is  that  in 
the  fifteenth  centurj'  a  tiny  fishing  village 
named  Yedo,  meaning  estuary  gate,  was  found 
standing  on  the  shore  near  the  mouth  of  the 
Sumida  River.  The  headman  of  the  hamlet 
was  one  Shigetsugu,  a  descendant  of  one  of  the 
eight  great  famiUes  of  the  Heik^  clan,  whose 
father  was  a  henchman  of  the  great  Yoritomo 
at  Kamakura,  who  then  dominated  the  entire 
plain  of  Musashi.  With  the  rise  of  the  Hojo 
regency  the  military  power  began  to  shift  from 
Kamakura  to  Odawara,  and  .then  Yedo  was 
left  to  its  own  resources.  Thereupon  Ota 
Dokwan,  a  vassal  of  the  Uyesugi  family, 
seized  the  advantage  to  establish  a  fortress 
there,  the  forerunner  of  the  shogun's  palace, 
and  of  the  Imperial  Palace  of  to-day. 


ORIGIN,  HISTORY,  AND  DEVELOPMENT 
Doubtless  so  expert  a  tactician  and  mas- 
ter at  arms  as  Ota  Dokwan  selected  the  site 
for  its  strategic  advantages,  since  it  lay  be- 
tween the  embouchures  of  three  rivers  drain- 
ing the  hinterland  and  having  their  sources  in 
mountains  which  constitute  natural  battle- 
ments. A  centiuy  and  a  half  later  the  eagle 
eye  of  Hideyoshi  easily  perceived  this  and  en- 
trusted the  place  to  the  care  of  leyasu,  head 
of  the  Tokugawa  clan,  who,  when  he  became 
shogun  in  1603,  made  Yedo  the  administrative 
capital  of  the  Empire.  The  new  government 
inaugiirated  important  improvement  sin  every 
direction,  rapid  development  followed,  and 
soon  a  great  and  flourishing  city  began  to 
rise,  absorbing  the  site  of  the  former  hamlet. 
The  extensive  swamps  and  marshes  were 
drained  by  canals  w'hich  still  do  valuable 
service  in  the  city's  system  of  drainage  and 
communications;  and  large  sections  of  the 
sea  front  were  reclaimed,  imtil  the  sea,  which 
originally  had  its  boundary  at  the  present 
Hibiya  Park,  had  receded  to  the  limits  now- 
known  as  Tsukiki,  half  a  mile  away.  No 
change,  however,  was  more  remarkable  than 
that  which  was  wrought  in  the  palace  of  the 
shogun  and  its  en\'irons.  Few  sites  would 
have  seemed  less  favourable  for  the  erection 
of  a  fortress  than  Yedo,  for  no  stone  suitable 
for  the  construction  of  battlements  was  within 
many  miles,  while  the  subsoil  presented  great 


difficulties  for  foundations.  Y'et  in  a  verj'  few 
years,  using  forced  labour  and  enlisting  the 
competitive  aid  of  feudatories,  the  shogun 
succeeded  in  constructing  a  castle  surrounded 
by  a  double  line  of  moats,  the  inner  measuring 
4,800  yards  and  the  outer  8,700,  and  both 
ha\'ing  scarps  and  coimterscarps  composed  of 
huge  blocks  of  chiselled  granite  transported 
oversea  from  quarries  some  sixty  miles 
distant.  The  scarps  were  crowned  with  lofty 
banks  of  greensward,  over  which  drooped 
graceful  pine  trees,  mirrored  in  the  waters  of 
the  moat  beneath.  The  water  for  these 
moats,  as  well  as  for  the  city  itself,  was  carried 
by  an  aqueduct,  a  triumph  of  engineering 
skill,  from  the  upper  reaches  of  a  river  thirty 
miles  away.  The  mansion  of  the  shogun  him- 
self stood  in  a  fair  park  within  the  inner  moat, 
revealing,  as  the  place  still  does,  one  of  the 
most  beautiful  landscape  gardens  in  the 
world ;  while  all  around  the  western  boundary 
of  the  castle  precincts  the  shogun  had  his 
feudal  lords  build  their  yashiki,  or  town  \illas, 
where  they  had  to  reside  with  their  families 
one  out  of  every  two  years,  and  always  leave 
their  wives  there,  as  a  guarantee  of  their 
loyalty  to  the  shogun.  This  regulation 
bringing  all  the  great  barons  to  the  shogun's 
capital  was  in  itself  sufficient  to  change 
greatly  the  appearance  of  the  city;  for  they 
soon  began  to  vie  with  one  another  in  the 
erection  of  stately  mansions  and  the  keeping 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


157 


VISCOUNT    INAJIKO    TAJIRI,    MAYOR    OF    TOKYO 

of  large  retinues  of  servants,  living  in  imposing 
state.  In  Yedo  now  centred  all  the  admin- 
istrative and  financial  interests  of  the  nation, 
and  the  prosperity  of  the  city  was  assured. 
The  floodtide  of  immigration  to  the  shogun's 
capital  became  so  great  that  it  had  to  be 
strictly  prohibited,  and  thousands  were 
repatriated  at  the  expense  of  the  goveniment 
to  prevent  congestion  of  population.  In  the 
centre  of  the  city,  surrounding  the  palace  of 
the  shogun,  there  was  nothing  but  the  beauti- 
ful landscape  gardens  of  the  barons;  while  all 
around  them  were  the  miserable  hovels  of  the 
common  people,  with  gorgeous  Buddhist 
temples  and  mortuary  shrines  rising  here  and 
there  to  relieve  the  dead  monotony  of  the 
insignificant  and  contemptible  wooden  huts 
of  the  lowly,  whose  unrequited  toil  had  raised 
the  endless  walls  of  the  shogun's  fortress. 
Frequent  conflagrations  decimated  the  city, 
licking  up  the  flimsy  shanties  of  the  poor  as  so 
much  tinder;  but  the  capital  was  always 
rebuilt  on  a  more  improved  scale.  Thus 
matters  continued  until  the  downfall  of  the 
shogunate,  when  the  feudal  barons  were  free 
to  return  to  their  estates,  to  which  their 
retainers  began  to  follow  them,  the  two  million 
inhabitants  of  Yedo  dwindling  almost  to  one- 
half  that  number.  The  beautiful  mansions 
were  demolished  and  the  fair  gardens  turned 
to  desolation,  making  blots  to  break  the 
continuity  of  the  once  populous  city. 

THE  NEW  TOKYO 
With  the  decision  of  the  Emperor  to  make 
Yedo  his  new  capital  and  the  removal  thither 
of  the  imperial  residence  came  about  a  com- 
plete reversal  of  fortune  to  the  city.  The 
departing  population  began  to  return  and 
newer   and   more   wholesome   prosperity   to 


prevail  everywhere.  Before  the  fall  of  the 
shogunate  and  the  abolition  of  feudalism  it 
had  long  been  recognised  that  Yedo  was  a 
better  site  than  Kyoto  for  the  capital  of  the 
Empire,  as  being  more  centrally  situated  and 
less  open  to  attack.  The  new  government, 
therefore,  had  no  hesitation  in  deciding  to 
remove  the  capital  from  Kyoto;  and  when  the 
>-oung  Em[)eror  made  his  first  visit  to  Yedo, 
in  1 868,  it  had  already  been  ordered  that  the 
name  should  be  changed  from  Yedo  to  Tokyo, 
or  Eastern  Capital,  in  contrast  with  Kyoto, 
the  old  Western  Capital.  The  following  year 
His  Majesty  removed  permanently  to  the  new 
capital,  and  from  that  time  rapid  changes  and 
improvements  went  on  in  all  directions. 
Mansions,  schools,  official  buildings,  and 
great  banks  and  shops  began  to  rise  all  over 
the  capital.  A  new  municipal  administration 
was  established  in  1872  and  city  boundaries 
were  delimited,  wards  laid  ofl,  and  a  postal 
system  inaugurated.  Soon  the  dark  streets 
of  the  capital  began  to  be  lighted  with  gas, 
and  railways  to  run  north  and  south,  connect- 
ing with  distant  places.  It  was  not  long  until 
all  the  ajjpointments  and  conveniences  of 
Occidental  cities  appeared  in  the  new  capital 
of  Japan. 

In  the  year  1917  Tokyo  celebrated  its 
jubilee  as  the  capital  of  the  Empire.  One  can 
not  look  back  over  those  fifty  years  without 
being  impressed  by  the  remarkable  changes 
that  have  taken  place.  There  has  been 
phenomenal  advancement  politically,  com- 
mercially, socially,  educationally  and  in 
almost  every  other  way.  A  system  of  street 
widening  has  been  carried  out  that  could 
hardly  have  been  possible  outside  of  Japan, 
some  of  the  main  thoroughfares  having  been 
widened  thirty  feet  for  a  distance  of  several 


miles,  which  has  greatly  facilitated  communi- 
cation and  improved  the  appearance  of  the 
metropolis.  Dredging  and  riparian  works  ot 
various  kinds  have  been  carried  out  on  rivers 
and  canals,  and  large  sections  of  the  sea  front 
reclaimed;  while  the  street  railways  have  been 
taken  over  by  the  municipality,  and  the 
general  administration  of  the  city  placed  on  a 
thoroughly  modern  basis.  The  two  greatest 
needs,  namely,  a  modern  system  of  sewage 
and  a  good  harbour,  though  under  contempla- 
tion, have  not  yet  been  fully  realised.  Indeed, 
Tokyo  for  the  most  part  has  still  the  appear- 
ance of  a  city  in  transition  from  old  to  new. 
Its  one  hundred  square  miles  of  area  are  now 
occupied  by  some  two  and  a  half  millions  of 
people,  filling  the  busy  streets  with  scenes  that 
present  the  old  life  and  the  new  in  vivid 
juxtaposition.  On  one  street  the  eye  falls  on 
lines  of  houses  in  ancient  style,  lowly,  sombre, 
and  unattractive,  with  annexes  of  unshapely 
fireproof  rooms  for  the  safeguarding  of  valu- 
ables; while  in  the  next  street  one  sees  hand- 
some, lofty  edifices  of  brick  or  stone,  as 
imposing  as  are  to  be  found  anywhere.  The 
patter  and  rattle  of  wooden  clogs  is  drowned 
by  the  sweep  of  the  electric  tram  or  the  rush  of 
the  overhead  train,  while  the  eye  gazes  at  rows 
of  old-fashioned,  open-fronted  shops  with 
their  unalluring  array  of  strange  goods,  only 
to  turn  a  corner  and  come  upon  great  plate 
glass  windows  resplendent  with  foreign  wares 
and  exquisite  examples  of  native  art.  In  the 
distance  looms  the  factory  chimney,  belching 
forth  its  black  mass  to  stain  the  crystalline 
purity  of  the  atmosphere  that  bathed  old 
Yedo, —  if  at  that  time  the  city  was  less  dusty 
than  to-day.  Without  any  proper  system  ot 
watering  the  streets,  when  the  wind  is  high 
the  dust  amounts  to  a  veritalile  sandstorm 


TOKYO    MUNICIPAL    OFFICE 


'' ^    '   ^ 

; 

■I,""  .■ 

i  >  ■■/ 

/'■•I... 

iV.i 


z 

a 
o 

Q 


< 

a 
z, 

o 
a 


o 
z 

o 

K 


a. 
O 

a 
s 
t- 

s 
o 
m 


a 

III 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS    OF   JAPAN 


159 


MOAT  iW  THE  IMPERIAL   PALACE,   SHO\VIN(,  THE  SUPREME    CdlKI     HITLDINCS  IN    THE    DISTANCE 


while  the  inhabitants,  in  desperation,  with 
wooden  ladles  dip  up  putrid  slime  from  the 
surface  sewers  and  try  to  allay  the  dust,  thus 
covering  the  streets  with  filth  that  soon  in 
turn  becomes  dust  to  be  again  breathed  before 
it  can  be  allayed. 

The  following  figures  will  show  the  growtli 
of  Tokyo  during  the  last  thirty  years: 


Year 


Population 


1887. 
1897. 
1907. 
1917. 


.  1,200,000 

1,365,06s 

.2,063,828 

.2,500,126 


If,  however,  the  population  of  the  suburbs, 
not  included  in  the  city  limits,  be  taken  into 
consideration,  the  number  of  inhabitants 
would  be  well  over  3,000,000. 

MUNICIPAL  ADMINISTRATION 
During  the  three  hundred  years  of  its 
history  the  city  has  passed  through  various 
stages  of  development,  each  of  which  may 
fortunately  be  regarded  as  an  improvement 
on  the  last;  but  it  was  not  until  within  the 
last  one  hundred  years  that  the  municipality 
began  to  show  any  general  disposition  toward 
autonomy.     In  the  days  of  the  shogunate  the 


headquarters   of    the    TOKYO    METROPOLITAN    POLICE 


city  was  partly  under  the  authority  of  the 
bakufu,  as  the  adminstration  of  the  shogun 
was  called,  and  partly  under  what  was  known 
as  the  machikaisho,  a  body  representing  the 
property  holders  of  each  ward.  This  system 
was  replaced  by  the  yeizenkaisho,  a  sort  of 
Board  of  Works,  in  1873,  which  had  the 
general  supcr\'ision  of  the  city's  interests. 
After  the  city  assumed  the  name  of  Tokyo  in 
1868  and  became  the  Imperial  capital,  a 
municipal  government  was  appointed,  obtain- 
ing the  governor's  sanction  for  the  election  of 
city  councillors  and  other  officials.  At  this 
time  the  administration  was  divided  into  two 
branches:  one  for  the  discussing  and  planning 
of  city  improvements,  and  the  other  for 
executing  such  plans,  as  well  as  attending  to 
the  various  departments  involved  in  city 
government.  Herein  lay  the  germ  of  the 
modern  municipal  administration  that  later 
came  into  existence.  Subsequently,  when 
the  city  was  placed  under  the  management  of 
the  prefectural  authorities,  the  development 
of  autonomy  received  a  decided  check,  but 
happily  there  soon  took  place  a  complete 
reorganisation  of  cities,  towns,  and  villages 
throughout  the  Empire,  when  Tokyo  again 
experienced  further  reforms  insuring  a  greater 
degree  of  self-government.  The  citizens  of 
Tokyo,  however,  were  not  yet  satisfied  with 
the  degree  of  local  autonomy  conceded,  and 
began  to  agitate  for  complete  independence  of 
municipal  government,  finally  gaining  the  day, 
when  a  mayor  was  appointed  and  city  alder- 
men and  officials  elected  as  in  Western 
countries.  The  first  mayor  was  the  late 
jMr.  Hideo  Matsuda,  who  was  succeeded  by 
the  Hon.  Yukio  Ozaki,  followed  by  Baron 
Sakatani,  Dr.  Okuda,  and  the  present  mayor. 
With  modernisation  of  city  government  the 
modernisation  of  the  city  itself  went  on  more 
rapidly  and  efficiently.  A  new  City  Assembly 
came  into  office,  consisting  of  seventy-five 
members,  who  represented  the  will  of  the 
citizens,  presided  over  by  the  mayor,  and  in 
addition  there  is  the  Municipal  Council, 
which  consists  of  the  mayor,  the  deputy 
mayors,  and  members  elected  from  the  City 
Assembly.  Each  city  ward  has  its  own 
council  as  well,  which  decides  all  the  business 
pertaining  to  the  ward.  The  mayor  has  the 
general  supervision  and  control  of  the  whole 
city  administration,  and  all  subordinate 
powers  do  duty  under  him.  The  three 
deputy  mayors  have  each  several  departments 
to  supervise,  as  follows:  (i)  General  affairs, 
education,  finance,  and  street  improvements; 
(2)  Sanitation,  water  works,  commerce, 
industry,  and  statistics;  (3)  Public  highways, 
bridges,  rivers,  harbours,  and  construction  and 
repairs.  Other  and  independent  departments 
are  the  Electric  Bureau  for  the  management 
of  lighting  and  rapid  transit,  improvement  of 


i6o 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


water  supply,  tree  planting,  asylums,  hospi- 
tals, charities,  and  libraries;  while  various 
additional  committees  take  into  consideration 
such  problems  as  appointment  of  inspectors  of 
hygiene  and  sanitation,  investigation  of 
harbour  and  other  improvements,  education, 
commerce  and  industrial  interests. 

TOKYO  FINANCE 
In  recent  years  the  finances  of  the  city  of 
Tokj'O  have  shown  remarkable  expansion, 
especially  since  the  war  with  Russia,  thus 
keeping  pace  with  the  rapid  development  of 
the  city;  and  although  the  outlay  has  more 
than  doubled,  especially  since  the  acquire- 
ment of  the  city  tramway  system,  the  revenue 
has  also  greatly  increased,   and  by  curtail- 


ment of  expenses  it  is  usually  possible  to  meet 
the  requirements.  The  fiscal  statement  last 
published  shows  a  revenue  of  34,607,143  yen, 
with  an  expenditure  of  33,901,833  yen,  which 
is  quite  a  change  from  some  years  ago,  as 
mav  be  seen  from  the  following  figures: 


Ye.\k 

Revenue 

Expenditure 

1899 

6,254,246 

3.355.340 

1906 

7.998,224 

4,428,034 

1912 

91,671,016 

83.'7«.,34« 

1 9 1 6 

34,607, 14s 

33.901,833 

Though  the  finances  of  Tokyo  show  so  great 
an  expansion,  owing  to  the  municipalisation 
of  the  tramways  and  the  extensive  improve- 
ments undertaken,  the  burden  of  taxation  has 


not  correspondingly  increased,  due  chiefly  to 
rapid  increase  in  the  wealth  of  the  city, 
especially  in  property-value  and  population. 
Taxation  has  been  further  relieved  by  resort- 
ing to  loans.  In  addition  to  the  domestic 
loan  of  1 88 1  amounting  to  10,000,000  yen 
for  street  improvements  and  the  putting  in 
of  a  modern  water  system,  there  is  the  foreign 
loan  of  1907  amounting  to  14,580,000  yen 
at  five  per  cent,  raised  for  riparian  and  street 
work;  and  a  further  foreign  loan  of  91 ,750,000 
yen  at  five  per  cent  for  the  purchase  of  the 
city  tramways.  Thus  the  present  foreign 
indebtedness  of  the  city  is  something  over 
100,000,000  yen,  and  a  domestic  loan  of 
10,000,000  was  added  in  1917.  The  bonds 
for  city  improvements  are  to  be  redeemed 


1 

((  c^  ^\ ' 

'•'•^ 


theatre.    AS.\KUS.\,    TOKYO  —  MIDWAY    TO    ASAKUSA    TEMPLE,    TOKYO 


J 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


i6i 


within  the  next  ten  years  by  annual  payments 
of  729,000  yen;  while  the  tramway  bonds  will 
be  all  redeemed  within  thirty-six  years  by 
annual  redemptions  to  the  value  of  5,405,000 
yen.  For  other  much  needed  improvements, 
such  as  the  extension  of  the  water  system 
and  the  tramway  lines,  the  putting  in  of  a 
modern  sew'age  system,  improvement  of 
streets,  dredging  of  rivers  and  reclaiming  of 
lands,  the  erection  of  school  buildings  and 
numerous  other  essentials  of  modem  progress, 
the  city  authorities  are  forming  a  reserve 
fund,  to  which  will  be  added  each  year's 
surplus  revenue.  The  citizens  of  Tokyo 
have,  nevertheless,  to  bear  a  weight  of  taxa- 
tion at  least  two  and  one-half  times  greater 
than  it  was  ten  years  ago,  as  may  be  seen 
from  the  following  table,  which  includes  city 
tax  only  and  not  prefectural  tax,  equal  to 
about  as  much  more: 


of  the  whole  city;  (2)  a  Modern  Sewage 
System  in  accordance  with  the  laws  of  sani- 
tation; (3)  a  General  Improvement  of  city 
streets,  putting  down  proper  jjavements  and 
sidewalks,  with  facilities  for  allaying  dust; 
(4)  Harbour  Construction;  (5)  Electric  Tram 
Extensions  and  Lighting  Services,  and  lastly, 
(6)  Improvement  in  Facilities  for  Relief  and 
Moral  Reform  of  the  Defective. 

The  present  water  system  of  Tokyo,  based 
on  an  old  one  constructed  three  hundred 
years  ago,  which  brings  water  from  the  Tama 
River  over  a  course  of  some  thirty  miles 
through  an  old  canal,  is  quite  inadequate  to 
the  needs  of  modem  Tokyo.  The  total 
length  of  distribution  piping  in  the  city  is 
about  five  hundred  miles,  supplying  about 
1,500,000  people.  The  amount  spent  in 
construction  of  the  system  so  far  is  about 
10,000,000  yen;  bvit  to  carry  out  the  extcn- 


Year 

Additional 
Taxes 

Special 
Taxes 

Taxes  for 
Streets 

Total 

Yen 

Yen 

Yen 

Yen 

1898 

1905 
1910 

1915 

760,000 

856,000 

2,1 13,000 

1 ,605,000 

116,000 
588,000 
520,000 

347.000 
345.000 
671,000 
691,000 

1,108,000 
1,318,000 
3.373,000 
2,817,000 

The  figures  in  the  following  table  will 
indicate  the  items  in  revenue  and  expenditure 
for  Tokyo  in  1916: 


sions  contemplated  a  further  outlay  of 
20,000,000  yen  will  be  required,  as  nearly 
two  hundred  miles  of  streets  have  still  to 


Item 


City  general  account 

Employment  agencies 

Workliouses 

Labour  industries 

Reclaimed  land 

Street  improvements 

Sewage  system  improvements 

Sewage  and  riparian  improvement  fun' 

Waterworks 

Public  works  loan 

School  buildings 

Special  fund 

Fire  relief  fund 

Electric  railways 

Electric  Ughting 

Electric  works  property 

Total 


Revenue 


Yen 


5.619.703 

8,150 

209,259 

38,360 

347,331 

1,151,819 

1,007,067 

1,500,358 

4,688,617 

1,206,753 

827,339 

16,725 

64,760 

11,511,001 

2,545,851 
3.863,950 


34,607,043 


Expenditure 


Yen 


5,619,703 

8,000 

209,259 

31,860 

Ii8„338 

1,151,819 

1 ,007,067 

1,500,358 

4,688,617 

748,784 
827,339 

4.927 
64,760 

11.357.463 
2,699,389 
3.863,950 


33.901,833 


FUTURE  OF  TOKYO 
The  development  of  Japan's  capital  into 
a  completely  modern  city  depends  largely 
on  how  effectively  the  six  great  enterprises 
which  the  authorities  have  in  view  can  be 
carried  to  completion.  These  consist  of 
(1)  a  Water  System  adequate  to  the  needs 


be  laid  with  submains.     The  work  is  to  be 
completed  within  the  next  seven  years. 

Perhaps  Tokyo's  most  crying  need  is  a 
modem  sewage  system.  At  present  most  of 
the  city  is  drained  by  surface  sewers,  though 
underground  mains  have  been  laid  in  certain 
important  sections  of  the  city.     The  new  sys- 


tem is  estimated  to  cost  about  40,000,000  yen 
and  will  take  ten  years  to  complete,  the 
expense  to  be  met  by  loans,  government 
subsidy,  and  taxes. 

Though  much  has  been  done  on  the  way  of 
street  improvement  the  majority  of  the 
city's  streets  are  still  narrow  and  without 
sidewalks.  There  are  some  six  hundred 
miles  of  streets,  ranging  from  fifty  feet  to  a 
few  yards,  the  average  width  being  about  nine 
yards.  Some  three  hundred  miles  of  these 
streets  have  been  singled  out  for  widening, 
but  the  process  goes  on  very  slowly.  The 
work  is  hampered  by  lack  of  funds  and  the 
high  price  of  land.  Most  of  the  streets  so  far 
broadened  have  been  for  the  purpose  of 
affording  facilities  for  electric  tram  exten- 
sions. In  the  course  of  the  last  twenty  years 
Tokyo  streets  have  been  embellished  with 
miles  and  miles  of  cherry  trees,  and  now  such 
streets  are  not  only  shady  in  the  hot  months 
of  summer  but  bathed  in  an  atmosphere  of 
pink  and  white  bloom  in  April.  A  marked 
feature  is  that  all  the  houses  visible  to 
the  eye  are  the  small  dwellings  of  merchants 
and  the  office  buildings  that  dominate  them, 
the  more  beautiful  residences  being  all 
packed  away  behind  walls  where  no  one  but 
the  owners  can  ever  get  a  glimpse  of  them. 
Nowhere  are  to  be  found  public  parks  sur- 
rounded by  the  mansions  of  the  great;  no- 
where are  to  be  seen  the  residences  of  gentle- 
men forming  any  integral  portion  of  the  city. 
The  higher  classes  of  Japan  segregate  them- 
selves from  the  common  people  as  much  as 
possible. 

Nothing,  perhaps,  haS'  produced  a  greater 
change  socially  and  in  many  other  ways  in 
Tokyo,  than  the  electric  tram  system,  taken 
over  by  the  city  from  the  private  companies 
in  191 1.  The  car  lines,  traversing  as  they 
do  the  main  thoroughfares  of  the  capital, 
necessitated  the  pulling  down  of  many  old 
l>uildings,  the  erection  of  new  ones,  as  well  as 
the  straightening  and  widening  of  the 
streets;  while  the  enormous  increase  in  traffic 
and  population,  brought  about  by  improved 
facilities  of  locomotion  and  cheap  fares,  has 
resulted  in  a  great  extension  of  labour,  trade, 
and  social  intercourse.  In  the  old  days  the 
inhabitants  of  one  section  of  the  vastly 
spread-out  city  knew  little  or  nothing  of  the 
people  of  other  parts  of  the  city.  Travel, 
being  expensive,  was  not  much  practiced. 
Now  for  the  small  fare  of  five  sen  the  poor 
can  be  carried  to  any  part  of  the  city,  and  the 
labourer's  residence  is  independent  of  his 
place  of  work;  and  the  consequence  is  a 
rapid  extension  of  the  city  toward  the 
suburbs,  the  present  rate  being  over  114  per 
cent  annually.  The  present  mileage  of 
tramway  is  about  160,  and  in  the  near 
future  some  200  miles  in  all  will  have  been 


1 62 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OI'   JAPAN 


(Left)  Mr.  S.  Takata,  President  of  the  Well  Known  House  of  Takata  &  Co.  —  (Upper,  Centre)  Baron  K.  Okura,  President  of  the 
Important  Firm  of  Okura  &  Co.,  Ltd.,  Tokyo  —  (Lower,  Centre)  Mr.  K.  MuRAi,  Director  of  the  Meiji  Trading  Co.,  Ltd.,  and  President 
of  the  Murai  Bank,  Ltd. —  (Right)  Mr.  BuEi  Nakano,  Late  President  of  the  Tokyo  Chamber  of  Commerce,  an  Enterprising  and 
Progressive  Business  Man 


laid  down.  The  number  of  passengers  car- 
ried per  day  is  about  674,000,  the  average 
daily  income  from  passengers  is  about 
24,000  yen,  and  the  average  rides  per  unit  of 
the  city  population  annually  are  no.  In 
further  extension  of  ways  and  lighting  the 
sum  of  18,000,000  yen  is  to  be  expended. 

Elaborate  plans  are  under  way  for  the 
construction  of  a  harbour  for  Tokyo,  but  for 
lack  of  funds  these  have  so  far  been  post- 
poned. The  scheme  involves  an  outlay  of 
36,700,000  yen;  and  in  1914  the  Harbour 
Works  Committee  passed  a  resolution  to 
spend  the  sum  of  6,580,000  yen  as  an  initial 
outlay  spread  over  four  years,  the  limit  of 
outlay  to  be  20,000,000  yen  in  all.  There 
is  to  be  an  inner  and  an  outer  harbour  with 
cormecting  canal,  the  inner  to  have  an  area 
of  over  4,000,000  square  feet  and  a  depth  of 
from  15  to  25  feet. 

In  the  matter  of  charity  and  poor  relief 
Tokyo  is  not  very  well  off,  there  being  but 
one  almshouse,  a  city  infirmary,  a  municipal 


labour  exchange,  and  no  hospital  for  the 
insane.  In  Japan,  as  a  rule,  the  poor  and 
the  insane  have  to  be  cared  for  by  their 
friends,  and  sometimes  dangerous  lunatics 
are  left  to  commit  appalling  outrages.  In 
connection  with  the  almshouse  there  is  a 
reformatory  for  incorrigibles,  and  the  city 
also  has  a  home  for  orphan  children,  which 
has  about  2,000  inmates.  The  reformatory 
receives  some  150  children  annually.  The 
city  further  maintains  a  sanitorium  at  Awa 
for  sick  homeless  children,  which  takes  care 
of  over  120  little  ones  in  a  year.  The  Tokyo 
Charity  Hospital  affords  treatment  to  some 
14,000  patients  annually.  At  the  Municipal 
Labour  Exchange  those  out  of  work  or  lodg- 
ings can  be  taken  care  of  over  night  and  be 
provided  with  something  to  do.  It  shelters 
about  100  lodgers  a  night  and  receives  about 
13,000  applicants  for  work  every  year.  The 
city  has  no  lunatic  asylum,  but  entrusts  its 
insane  to  private  institutions  if  they  are 
dangerous  enough  to  need  restraining,   the 


average  number  in  care  of  the  city  being 
about  500  out  of  a  total  of  over  800  in  the 
municipality. 

Tokyo  has  a  great  many  places  of  historic 
and  scenic  interest,  but  it  would  require  a 
volume  to  recount  all  that  could  be  said  about 
them.  Its  palaces,  mansions,  embassies, 
schools,  government  buildings,  and  theatres 
can  be  no  more  than  mentioned.  The  great 
banks,  commercial  and  manufacturing  com- 
panies of  the  capital  will  be  found  duly 
noticed  elsewhere  in  this  volume.  Tokyo 
clubs,  hotels,  and  restaurants  are  a  feature 
of  some  interest,  too.  There  are  three  foreign 
hotels  at  present;  and  there  is  to  be  a  new 
Imperial  Hotel  which  will  be  the  finest  in 
the  Far  East.  The  shrines,  temples,  parks, 
and  bridges  form  another  unique  feature  of 
Tok>'o.  The  city  has  some  sixty  canals 
crossed  by  hundreds  of  bridges;  and  the 
famous  Nihonbashi,  or  Bridge  of  Japan,  is  in 
the  heart  of  the  metropolis,  all  points  in  the 
Empire   being   measured   from   there.     The 


^t^ 


fe^l 


iallll" 


SHANGHAI     BRANXH     OPP.CE    OF     THE     MITSU     BISHI     COMPA^•Y- MITSU     BISHI    2ISt     BmLmN;G  -  KOBE     BRA>XH    O^^^^^  BISH. 

COMPANY  — MITSU    BISHI    BANK    BUILDING    AND    GENERAL   AFFAIRS   DEPARTMENT,    TOK\0  (SEE   DESCRIPTUE    ARTICLEb    IN 

SHIPPING    SECTIONS,    XI    AND    XLXl) 


164 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


three  great  lungs  of  the  city  are  Shiba  Park 
where  stand  the  tombs  of  the  Tokugawa 
shoguns,  Uyeno  Park  which  was  formerly  a 
temple  enclosure,  and  Hibiya  Park  which  is 
the  only  one  laid  out  after  Western  fashion. 
There  are  eighteen  other  parks  of  smaller 
extent,  and  the  authorities  frequently  pro- 
mote the  extension  of  open  spaces  in  the  city. 
As  the  Imperial  Capital,  Tokj'o  is  the  gayest 
spot  in  all  Nippon,  with  every  form  of  enter- 
tainment and  -pleasure  that  the  human  mind 
can  desire  or  devise.  Geisha  and  other 
pleasure  houses  abound;  and  the  night  is 
turned  into  day  with  feasts  and  jeles  of  every 
description.  The  night  side  of  the  capital 
is  a  theme  in  itself,  though  more  of  interest 
than  edification.  As  the  Japanese  do  not 
entertain  in  their  homes,  the  city  restaurants 
do  a  thriving  business,  and  professional 
entertainers  usually  are  in  great  demand. 
There  is  a  huge  wrestling  theatre  in  the  centre 
of  the  city,  built  of  stone  and  ribbed  steel, 
capable  of  accommodating  thousands  of 
spectators  to  see  the  semi-annual  exhibitions 
and  contests  of  the  great  national  game.  In 
Tokyo,  ever>-  month  has  its  round  of  feasts 
and  festivals, —  religious,  floral,  or  having 
patriotic  associations. 

THE  MITSUI  BUSSAN  KAISHA 
As  a  great  commercial  and  financial  house, 
the  Mitsui  Bussan  Kabushiki  Kaisha,  or 
Mitsui  &  Co.,  Ltd.,  the  English  equivalent 
of  the  Japanese  name,  can  certainly  take  rank 
with  the  largest  and  most  influential  enter- 
prises in  any  part  of  the  world,  and  in  point 
of  age  it  antedates  most  of  the  best  known  of 
old  family  merchant  houses.  The  founda- 
tions of  the  enormous  business  now  controlled 
by  this  company  were  laid  over  two  centuries 
ago  by  Takatoshi  Mitsui,  who  founded  the 
Mitsui  Exchange  House  at  Osaka,  Kyoto, 
and  Yedo  (now  Tokj'o),  and  really  estab- 
lished the  first  banking  system  of  Japan. 
The  Mitsui  Bank  is  to-day  one  of  the  leading 
financial  institutions  of  the  Empire,  with  a 
capital  of  Yen  20,000,000  and  deposits  of  well 
over  Yen  124,000,000. 

In  a  general  review  of  Mitsui  cS:  Co.,  Ltd., 
it  is  not  possible  to  go  into  every  detail  of 
the  operations  of  the  old  established  house, 
unless  the  writer  is  to  take  much  more  space 
than  is  at  his  disposal.  The  Mitsui  Bank, 
great  institution  though  it  is,  is  only  one  phase 
of  the  company's  enterprises.  There  is  also 
the  Mitsui  Kozan  Kaisha,  with  a  capital  of 
Yen  20,000,000,  engaged  in  mining  on  a  huge 
scale,  and  there  is  the  better  known  Mitsui 
Bussan  Kaisha,  or  trading  department.  This 
latter  is  run  as  a  distinctly  separate  under- 
taking from  the  Bank  and  the  Mining  Com- 
pany, though  of  course,  the  guidance  of  all 
three  is  in  the  hands  of  the  Mitsui  family. 


which  has  maintained  control  of  the  entire 
business  through  the  two  centuries  that  have 
elapsed  since  the  foundation  of  the  old 
Mitsui  Exchange  House,  or  Bank. 

The  Mitsui  Bussan  Kaisha,  or  trading 
company,  is  in  itself  a  huge  and  widely 
ramified  merchant  undertaking,  the  business 
comprising  practically  every  line  of  trade 
conducted  either  in  Japan  or  between  Japan 
and  foreign  countries.  This  separate  branch 
of  the  Mitsui  interests  was  formally  organised 
in  1876,  the  firm  putting  its  power  and 
resources  into  the  new  concern  to  make  it 
one  of  the  most  powerful  and  influential 
commercial  organisations  in  the  Empire. 
Thaf-  the  effort  has  been  extraordinarily 
successful,  nobod}'  who  knows  the  commerce 


and  industry  of  Japan  can  deny.  What  this 
success  really  signifies  may  be  seen  from 
the  statement  that  close  upon  25  per  cent  of 
the  entire  foreign  trade  of  Japan  is  handled 
through  the  Mitsui  Bussan  Kaisha,  and 
although  the  company  has  its  own  fleet  of 
over  twenty  modem  steamers,  it  is  still  one 
of  the  biggest  buyers  of  freight  space  in  the 
world,  the  list  of  chartered  vessels,  alone 
running  into  scores. 

The  company  is  the  leader  in  the  raw  silk 
trade  of  Japan,  shipping  nearly  100,000 
bales  in  the  course  of  the  year.  In  the  coal 
trade,  also,  the  Mitsui  Bussan  Kaisha  is  pre- 
eminent The  company  controls  half  a  dozen 
of  the  best  collieries  in  Japan,  and  in  1916 
handled  8,500,000  tons  of  bunker  and  cargo 


NIHONBASHI    STREET,  TOKYO.      OFFICES   OF    THE    MITSUI    GINKO,    THE    MITSUI    GOMEI  K.USUA. 
AND    THE    MITSUI    BUSSAN    KAISHA    ARE    SEEN   ON   THE    LEFT.      THE    PALATIAL 
MITSUKOSHI    STORE    RISES  ON   THE    RIGHT 


PRESENT-DAY        I   M   I'  R   IC  S  S  1  O  N  S        OF        JAPAN 


165 


PRESIDENT   AND   DIRECTORS   OF   THE   TOKY<l    STOCK    EXCHANGE 

(Upper    Row,    Left    to    Right)    Mr.    Shimpei    Tsunoda,    Vice-President  —  Baron    Seinosuke    Goh,    President  —  Mr.   Raita    Fujiyama, 
Director,  and  President  of  Tokyo  Chamber  of  Commerce. 

(Lower  Row,  Left  to  Right)     Mr.  Unosuke  Yamaguchi,  Director  —  Mr.  Tahee   Mayekavva,   Director,   and   President   of   the   Bank   of 
Tokyo  —  Mr.  Komanosuke  Eguchi,  Director. 


coal,  or  approximately  40  per  cent  of  the 
entire  output  of  the  country.  It  is  to  be 
expected  that  such  a  huge  and  well  organised 
concern  would  have  been  the  pioneer  of 
many  branches  of  Japan's  foreign  trade. 
This  is  so,  for  the  Mitsui  Bussan  Kaisha  was 
the  first  to  export  the  highest  class  of  Japanese 
rice,  in  which  thej-  do  an  international  busi- 
ness. They  were  the  first  exporters  of  Man- 
churian  beans  to  Europe,  and  also  introduced 
Hokkaido  lumbers  to  America  and  the  Con- 
tinent. The  company  also  claims  to  have 
been  the  first  house  to  bring  American  and 
Indian  cotton  into  the  Japanese  market,  and 
they  are  now  recognised  as  the  largest  buyers 
of  this  staple. 

The  import  business  is  conducted  on  the 
same  huge  scale  as  the  export  of  Japanese 
natural  and  manufactured  products.  In  the 
list  of  imports  one  finds  steamers,  ordnance, 
locomotives,  steel  bridges,  rails,  electric  and 


other  machinery,  metals  of  all  kinds,  wheat, 
flour,  foreign  rice,  and  in  fact  every  line  of 
merchandise  that  is  required  in  Japan.  The 
many  subsidiary  enterprises  conducted  by  the 
company  include  the  operation  of  a  cotton 
mill  at  Shanghai,  in  conjunction  with  influ- 
ential Chinese  capitalists,  various  vegetable 
oil  factories  and  so  on.  Throughout  Japan 
proper  and  Chosen  and  vSouth  Manchuria, 
the  Mitsui  Bussan  Kaisha  is  very  strongly 
represented,  the  branch  houses  in  each  impor- 
tant commercial  centre  practically  controlling 
commerce  and  industry'  in  their  respective 
territories.  Abroad,  the  Mitsui  Bussan 
Kaisha  maintains  its  own  offices  in  such  cities 
as  London,  New  York,  Lyons,  Petrograd, 
Vancouver,  Singapore,  Bombay,  Calcutta, 
Shanghai,  Sydney,  and  San  Francisco.  The 
head  office  is  in  Tokyo. 

The    Directorate    of    the    Mitsui    Bussan 
Kaisha  comprises  Messrs.  Genyemon  Mitsui, 


President;  Y'onosuke  Mitsui,  Managing  Di- 
rector; Dr.  Takuma  Dan,  Messrs.  Senkichiro 
Kayakawa,  Kikusaburo  Fukui,  Masajiro 
Fujise,  and  Sutejiro  Odagaki.  The  Auditors 
are  Messrs.  Takakiyo  Mitsui,  Sankichi 
Komuro,  and  Tomoyoshi  Mashima. 

MITSUKOSHI 
Mitsukoshi,  the  greatest  amd  most 
famous  Department  Store  in  the  Far  East, 
where  everybody  goes  for  everything  and 
gets  it,  was  started  as  an  enterprise  of  the 
noted  Mitsui  family,  whose  commercial  his- 
tory goes  back  some  three  hundred  j-ears.  A 
family  whose  business  integrity  and  efficiency 
has  commanded  the  respect  and  confidence  of 
a  nation  for  so  long  is  naturally  successful 
in  its  enterprises,  and  none  of  its  ventures 
has  been  more  so  than  this  vast  emporium  of 
retail  trade  known  as  the  Mitsukoshi.  Xo 
one  visiting  Tok>-o  thinks  the  city  has  been 


12 


[66 


PRESENT-DAY        I   M   1>  R   1<;  S  S  I  O  M  S        OK        J   A  P  A  M 


NIHONBASHI    BRIDGE,    OF   INTEREST  AS    THE   CENTRE   OF    TOKYO    AND   THE    POINT   FROM    WHICH    ALL    DISTANCES   IN  JAPAN    ARE    MEASURED 


fully  explored  without  spending  half  a  day 
at  the  Mitsukoshi,  where  everything  needed 
in  the  ordinary  course  of  life  can  be  pur- 
chased. Constructed  of  beautiful  white 
brick,  the  Mitsukoshi  has  an  imposing 
exterior  in  Renaissance  style,  with  two  great 
bronze  lions  guarding  the  main  entrance, 
modelled  after  those  at  the  base  of  Nelson's 
pillar,  London;  while  the  interior,  finished 
and  furnished  in  the  most  palatial  manner, 
for  convenience  and  general  accommodation 
combines  the  best  features  of  such  great  stores 
as  Selfridge's  in  London  and  Wanamaker's  in 
Philadelphia,  together  with  some  unique 
Japanese  adaptations  that  make  for  native 
efficiency  and  comfort.  On  entering  the 
emporium  Japanese  footgear  is  removed  and 
slippers  put  on,  while  foreign  boots  are  cov- 
ered with  overshoes  supplied  at  the  door 
and  easily  slipped  on;  for  the  floors  of  this 
commercial  palace  are  covered  with  soft, 
clean  native  matting,  which  must  never  be 
soiled.  Indeed,  one  of  the  most  remarkable 
features  of  a  visit  there  is  to  see  hundreds  of 
gay  ladies  and  gentlemen  moving  noiselessly 
about  the  spacious  departments  engaged  in 


the  most  interesting  of  all  occupations,  that 
of  purchasing  the  best  for  the  most  reasonable 
price  and  getting  just  what  is  wanted.  The 
grand  court  leading  from  the  main  entrance 
at  once  gives  an  impression  of  expansiveness 
and  refinement,  with  its  lofty  pillars,  deco- 
rated balconies,  and  great  central  dome  in 
richly  colored  glass,  the  general  tone  being 
cream  and  white,  while  in  the  distance  the 
eye  rests,  charmed,  on  the  magnificent  flights 
of  marble  steps  leading  up  to  the  various 
floors.  All  about  are  waiting  floor-walkers 
and  clerks  to  afford  every  courtesy  in  giving 
information,  the  guest  being  at  once  person- 
ally conducted  to  any  department  desired. 
The  appointments  of  the  Mitsukoshi  Depart- 
ment Store  are  among  the  latest  that  science 
and  invention  have  produced,  including  fire- 
proof structure,  a  mail  chute  and  lifts  for  the 
convenience  of  customers,  pneumatic  cash 
and  parcel  tubes,  modem  ventilation,  auto- 
matic sprinklers,  smoking  room,  tea  room  and 
up-to-date  restaurant.  The  main  floor  of 
the  building  is  chiefly  occupied  with  travel- 
lers' requisites,  such  as  toilet  articles,  per- 
fumes,   gentlemen's   furnishings,    boots    and 


shoes,  trunks  and  bags  and  provisions  of  all 
kinds,  domestic  and  foreign.  Here  also  is  an 
office  for  the  purchase  of  wedding  presents, 
for  which  there  is  always  an  immense  demand 
on  Mitsukoshi;  and  if  one  fails  to  make  a 
choice,  a  commercial  money  order  can  be 
purchased  and  sent  to  the  bride  so  that  she 
may  make  her  own  choice.  The  second  floor 
is  given  over  to  dress  materials  of  everj' 
texture  and  pattern.  Here  the  exquisite 
silk  and  other  fabrics  from  Japanese  looms 
may  be  seen  to  better  advantage  than  possi- 
bly anywhere  else  in  the  world;  and  from  the 
time  the  store  opens  until  closing  time  the 
elite  of  Tokyo,  in  their  matchless  native 
gowns  or  ^!mo?;o, maybe  seen  moving  silently 
about  like  fair>'  beings,  to  the  intense  interest 
of  the  foreigner.  There  is  perhaps  no  better 
place  in  Japan  to  see  the  wealth  and  beauty 
of  the  land.  The  third  floor  is  devoted  to 
things  foreign,  especially  tailoring,  jewelry 
and  so  on,  while  the  fourth  floor  has  a  fine 
selection  of  foreign  and  native  furniture,  all 
made  in  Japan,  and  as  select  and  artistic  as 
can  be  seen  in  New  York,  London,  or  Paris. 
On  this  floor  also  is  situated  the  children's 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


167 


VIEW    OF    NIHONBASHI-DOKI,    FROM    THE    TOP   OF   THE    MITSUKOSHI    DEPARTMENT   STORE 


department  with  every  kind  of  toy  imagi- 
nable. After  doing  three  floors  of  this 
immense  space  one  feels  inclined  toward 
refreshments,  and  a  fine  room  for  this  pur- 
pose is  near  at  hand,  with  every  viand  that 
the  appetite  can  crave.  The  fifth  floor  is 
taken  up  with  objects  of  fine  art,  where  one 
can  examine  and  purchase  such  national 
masterpieces  in  sculpture,  painting,  lacquer, 
porcelain,  pottery  and  metal  work  as  can 
seldom  be  found  elsewhere.  Here  art  exhi- 
bitions are  frequently  held  and  lectures  given 
by  authorities  on  their  various  subjects. 
Above  all  is  the  famous  Mitsukoshi  roof  gar- 


den, in  beautiful  native  landscape  style, 
where  from  June  to  September  tea  is  served 
and  a  band  plays  daily  to 'the  delight  of  the 
happy,  talking  crowds  that  frequent  it. 
From  the  roof  garden  one  may  have  a  match- 
less view  of  the  great  city,  in  the  centre  of 
which  the  Mitsukoshi  store  stands.  To 
witness  the  numbers  of  gay  Japanese  ladies 
at  the  Mitsukoshi  restaurant  or  in  the  roof 
garden,  and  hear  the  band  rendering  its 
classical  or  native  airs,  is  to  realise  that  in 
Japan  shopping  is  not  the  solemn,  anxious 
thing  that  it  appears  to  be  in  some  countries. 
All  goods  purchased  are  delivered  promptly 


anywhere  the  customer  desires.  Thus  the 
great  store,  founded  in  1673  by  the  greatest 
of  Japan's  merchant  princes,  has  gone  on 
prospering,  enjoying  the  patronage  of  princes 
and  nobles  and  even  of  the  Imperial  Family, 
as  well  as  people  of  all  ranks  and  countries, 
until  to-day,  with  its  thousands  of  employees 
and  its  vast  array  of  the  best  that  Japan  and 
all  other  countries  can  produce,  it  has  become 
the  greatest  single  public  supplier  in  East 
Asia,  with  branches  in  various  parts  of  the 
Empire  and  its  colonies.  It  is  difficult  to 
calculate  the  influence  of  one  such  great 
institution  as  this. 


TRANS-PACIFIC    LINERS   MOORED    AT    THE    YOKOHAMA    DOCKS 

XL    Shipping 

(Yokohama  and  Tokyo  Section*) 

History  of  Japanese  Shipping— The  Modern   Era— The  Position  before  the  War- 
Leaders  OF  the  Industry— Capital  Invested— Government  Subsidies  — 
The  Shipbuilding   Industry— Harbours- 
Commercial  Notices 


IF  sea  power  is  a  necessary  corollary  of 
national  greatness,  then  in  no  other 
respect  has  Japan  made  such  tremendous 
strides  toward  national  grandeur  as  in  her 
attainment  of  sea  power.  It  is  indeed  ques- 
tionable whether  any  nation  in  history  has 
ever  developed  such  marine  strength  so 
rapidly  as  Japan  has  done,  and  this  is  true 
both  of  her  war  fleets  and  her  merchant 
marine.  Her  navy  ranks  in  fighting  strength 
amongst  the  first  five  of  the  world,  and  her 
merchant  fleet  must  be  the  third  strongest. 
On  this  latter  point,  however,  no  conclusive 
statistics  are  available  during  the  war.  We 
can  only  approximate  Japan's  position  from 
figures  given  by  world  authorities  up  to  the 
end  of  191 5,  and  from  general  facts  disclosed 
since  then  regarding  the  shipbuilding  pro- 
grammes of  the  various  nations.  When  these 
facts  are  related,  and  reasonable  conclusions 
are  derived  from  them,  it  will  be  recognised 
that  Japan's  position  among  the  maritime 
powers,  considering  the  brief  time  that  has 
elapsed  since  she  set  out  to  have  a  merchant 
fleet,  is  quite  as  wonderful  as  any  other 
*See  page  717. 


feature  of  her  evolution  from  Oriental  isola- 
tion and  obscurity,  to  her  present  status 
as  a  modem  nation. 

HISTORY  OF  JAPANESE  SHIPPING 
It  is  hardly  necessary  to  state  reasons  why 
Japan  should  naturally  be  a  great  maritime 
power  once  she  elected  to  march  with  Other 
nations  along  the  path  of  progress.  We 
have  only  to  realise  that  the  people  are 
islanders,  and  to  take  cognisance  of  certain 
other  historical  and  ethnological  and  geogra- 
phical facts,  to  understand  that  every  element 
of  maritime  greatness  was  at  least  latent  in 
the  case  of  Japan. 

The  origin  of  the  Japanese  people  has  not 
yet  been  clearly  defined,  but  that  they  were 
a  seafaring  race  as  far  back  as  the  time 
when  they  became  a  distinct  people,  apart 
from  the  mass  of  human  beings,  there  is  no 
reason  to  doubt.  Whether,  as  some  scien- 
tists suggest,  they  came  from  the  islands  of 
the  Southern  Pacific,  or  whether  they  mi- 
grated from  nearer  lands,  the  spirit  of  adven- 
ture   was    in    them,    and    they    must    have 


possessed  as  sound  a  knowledge  of  the  art  of 
navigation  of  those  times  as  any  other 
Oriental  race  possessed.  We  may,  at  least, 
imagine  the  great  armada  of  rude  junks,  or 
sampans,  in  which  they  set  out  to  conquer 
the  islands,  then  inhabited  by  the  Ainu  or 
more  savage  tribes,  and  at  once  our  imagi- 
nation suggests  a  hardy  Viking  spirit,  that 
must  in  the  fuUness  of  time  disclose  itself  in 
a  fondness  for  the  sea,  and  the  capacity  to 
do  and  dare  on  the  trackless  ocean. 

Two  thousand  years  ago  the  Japanese  were 
sea-rovers.  That  indisputable  fact  is  trace- 
able in  Oriental  history.  They  were  quite 
as  capable  navigators  as  the  Chinese,  and 
they  fared  forth  as  far  as  the  Chinese  ever 
did  either  in  search  of  trade,  or  as  bold  sea 
robbers.  The  Japanese  na\'igators  of  those 
times  penetrated  as  far  south  as  the  Malay 
Archipelago,  and  it  is  more  than  probable 
that  they  also  voyaged  to  India.  Later  the 
nation  carried  on  organised  sea  war,  and  in 
the  early  history  of  Japan  there  are  records 
of  more  than  one  expedition  to  Korea,  and 
other  parts  of  the  mainland,  to  make  war, 


PRESENT-DAY        IMI'RI<:sSIONS        OF        JAPAN 


169 


or  to  sustain  Japan's  national  interests  in 
other  ways.  In  the  sixteenth  century,  the 
Dutch  and  Portuguese  found  the  Japanese 
to  be  a  sea-faring  people,  their  coasts  being 
thronged  with  junks,  and  some  degree  of 
trade  being  maintained  between  the  islands 
and  the  mainland.  The  arrival  of  the  Euro- 
pean ships  aroused  great  interest  amongst 
the  Japanese,  who  were  not  slow  to  recognise 
the  superiority  of  the  three-masted,  high- 
decked  and  castled  galleons  of  the  Dutch  and 
Portuguese.  The  Japanese  were  also  im- 
pressed with  the  skill  of  the  foreigners  in  the 
management  of  their  ships.  There  is  in  the 
Tokyo  Imperial  Museum  an  old  painting  by 
a  Japanese  artist  depicting  a  scene  which  can 
only  be  representative  of  the  arrival  of  a 
Portuguese  or  Dutch  ship,  and  the  landing 


of  goods  for  trade.  The  artist  has  with  fair 
accuracy  portrayed  the  general  appearance 
of  the  vessel,  and  her  rigging,  but  has  allowed 
free  rein  to  his  imagination  of  the  agility  of 
the  crew.  Sailors  are  shown  among  the 
ropes  and  up  the  shrouds  in  all  manner  of 
extraordinary  acrobatic  feats.  One  man  is 
hanging  by  his  toes,  another  is  proceeding 
hand  over  hand  from  the  mizzen  to  the  main, 
and  a  third,  rivalling  any  modern  rope 
walker,  is  airily  waltzing  along  a  stay  at  a 
dizzy  height. 

The  first  lessons  received  by  the  Japanese 
in  shipbuilding  according  to  European  ideas 
were  given  by  the  Dutch,  some  of  whom 
settled  at  Nagasaki,  in  the  service  of  the 
Japanese  authorities  of  the  time,  and  taught 
the  art  of  ship  construction.     There  are  even 


now  one  or  two  Japanese  yards  which  were 
originally  established  at  that  time,  and 
received  state  aid  or  influential  patronage 
in  order  that  they  might  build  modern  ships. 
But  this  foreign  influence  upon  Japan  was 
only  passing.  Reaction  against  European 
civilisation  set  in,  and  Japan  lapsed  once 
more  into  seclusion,  all  intercourse  with 
foreigners  being  forbidden,  and  the  benefits 
of  the  brief  period  of  acquaintance  with 
Western  civilisation  being  nullified  by  official 
insistence  upon  an  entire  reversion  to  native 
ideas.  Thenceforward,  until  the  arrival  of 
Commodore  Perry's  fleet  in  1854,  the  Japa- 
nese, except  those  of  the  northern,  or  other 
far  distant  fishing  villages,  never  saw  a 
modern  ship.  Whaling  vessels  sometimes 
touched    at    Hakodate,    but   their   reception 


SHIPPINO    M.\GNATES 

(Upper  Row)     Mr.  Ryoso  Asano,  Director,  Toyo  Kisen  Kaisha  —  Mr.   K.    Hori,    President,    Osaka    Shosen   Kabushiki  Kaisha  —  Mr.  J. 

Ya.maoka,  President  of  Osaka  Chamber  of  Commerce  and  President  of  Osaka  Iron  Works. 

(Middle  Row)    Mr.  J.  Itami,  Co-Managing  Director,  Nippon  Yusen   Kaisha  —  Mr.    Soichiro   Asano,  President,    Toyo    Kisen   Kaisha, 

Asano    Shipbuilding    Yard,    Ltd.,    and   Asano    Portland   Cement  Co.,  Ltd. — Baron  R.    Kondo,   Japan's   Foremost   Shipping   Magnate, 

President,  Nippon  Yusen  Kaisha   and   the   Nisshin  Kisen   Kaisha — Mr.   K.    Matsukata,   President,   Kawasaki   Dockyard   Co.,  Ltd. — • 

Mr.  Y.  Ito,  Managing  Director,  Nippon  Yusen  Kaisha. 

(Lower  Row)     Mr.  K.    Nakashima,    Director,    Toyo   Kisen    Kaisha  —  Dr.    T.    SuDA,    Vice-President,    Nippon   Yusen   Kaisha — Mr.   Y. 

Kawasaki,  Vice-President,  Kawasaki  Dockyard  Co.,  Ltd. 


lyo 


PRESENT-DAY        I  .M  P  R  H  S  S  1  C)  N  S        O  F        J  A  P  A  N 


was  so  unfavourable  as  to  compel  the  United 
States  to  despatch  Perry  to  try  to  negotiate 
for  better  treatment  on  the  pari  of  the 
Japanese. 

THE    MODERN    ERA 

After  the  opening  of  the  treaty  ports  to 

foreign  trade  in  the  late  fifties,  the  Japanese 

soon   began   to  aspire  to  the   possession   of 

modem     sailing     vessels     and     steamships. 


schools  were  opened,  and  students  were  sent 
abroad  to  learn  engineering  and  navigation. 
Still  for  the  first  twenty  years  of  Japan's 
modern  history  as  a  maritime  nation,  it  was 
a  rare  thing  to  find  Japanese  in  command  of 
even  the  smallest  vessels,  most  of  the  ship- 
masters being  British,  Scandina%-ian,  or 
American. 

The   growth   of   the   Japanese   mercantile 
marine  kept  pace  with  the  development  of 


A  SCREEN  UPON  WHICH  ARE  DEPICTED  THE  EIRST  IMPRESSIONS    OF  A  JAP.\NESE  PAINTER 

OF  THE  ARRIV.\L    OF     A    FOREIGN     TRADING     VESSEL     IN     THE     SEVENTEENTH 

CENTURY.      IN  THE  IMPERI.\L  MUSEUM,  TOKYO 


companies  were  rapidly  drifting  toward  bank- 
ruptcy. An  amalgamation  of  most  of  these 
coastal  shipping  concerns  was  effected  in  1884 
when  the  Osaka  Shosen  Kaisha,  one  of  the 
three  largest  Japanese  shipping  companies 
to-day,  came  into  existence.  It  was  also 
about  this  time  that  the  Nippon  Yusen 
Kaisha  w-as  formed  to  open  up  foreign  serv- 
ices, the  inducement  offered  by  the  Imperial 
Government  being  the  granting  of  subsidies 
under  conditions  that  insured  the  enterprise 
being  entirely  Japanese. 

To  trace  every  step  in  the  development  of 
the  splendid  merchant  service  which  Japan 
has  is  not  possible  within  the  scope  of  this 
article,  nor  is  it  necessary  to  deal  with  the 
various  legislative  enactments  by  which  the 
Government  has  directed  the  shipping  policy 
of  the  countrj'.  It  is  sufficient  to  say  that  the 
Government  has  always  maintained  the 
closest  control  over  and  direction  of  the  ship- 
ping industrj',  and  has  pursued  a  simple 
policy  of  creating  a  merchant  marine  entirely 
Japanese  in  every  detail.  Navigation  schools 
are  maintained,  both  ashore  and  afloat,  and 
there  are  engineering  colleges  and  similar 
institutions  in  w'hich  the  highest  technical 
training  is  afforded.  Perhaps  more  in  Japan 
than  in  any  other  maritime  country  is  this 
matter  of  training  for  the  sea  a  state  business. 
By  means  of  subsidies  and  special  considera- 
tions of  other  kinds  a  big  oversea  traffic  was 
built  up  before  the  w-ar.  One  of  the  first 
legislative  steps  taken  for  the  protection  of 
Japanese  shipping  firms  was,  of  course,  the 
shutting  out  of  foreign  vessels  from  all  coastal 
irafhc,  as  is  the  case  in  the  United  States  and 
some  other  countries. 


The  era  of  enlightenment  began  with  the 
reign  of  the  late  Emperor  Meiji  in  1868,  and 
one  of  the  first  things  decided  upon  was  that 
Japan  must  possess  a  merchant  marine. 
Already  there  were  in  existence  a  number  of 
firms,  or  private  owners  of  ships,  the  vessels 
being  acquired  from  foreigners  and  being 
manned  by  them.  Some  of  the  Japanese 
merchants  who  had  a  keen  eye  to  the  future 
developments  of  the  shipping  trade,  entered 
upon  rather  extensive  purchases  for  those 
times.  The  more  ambitious  of  them  tried 
the  experiment  of  officering  their  ships  with 
Japanese,  but  the  results  were  frequently 
disastrous,  and  it  was  soon  recognised  that 
there  was  a  vast  difference  between  owning 
a  ship  and  successfully  running  it.  It  was 
then  that  the  Japanese  Government  took  up 
the  problem  of  fitting  its  own  people  for  the 
ownership  and  management  of  modem  ships. 
Foreign  shipmasters  were  engaged  for  the 
dual  purpose  of  commanding  Japanese-owned 
steamers,  and  for  training  young  Japanese 
to    become    officers.     Government    nautical 


the  foreign  trade  of  the  country.  With 
their  natural  quickness  to  assimilate  new- 
ideas  the  Japanese  were  apt  pupils  of  their 
foreign  teachers.  The  Government  and  the 
merchants  sensed  the  great  possibilities 
before  the  shipping  industry,  and  there  was 
also  a  strong  urge  of  pride  toward  the  building 
up  of  a  merchant  marine  that  should  be  solely 
and  wholly  Japanese  in  all  respects.  Up  to 
about  1880  Japan's  merchant  service  con- 
sisted almost  entirely  of  small  vessels,  more 
or  less  antequated,  and  practically  little  or 
no  overseas  trade  w-as  done  in  Japanese 
bottoms.  The  shipping  industry  flourished 
in  coastal  waters,  particvdarly  in  the  Inland 
Sea,  and  from  1875  on  many  new  companies 
came  ifito  existence,  to  compete  for  the  water- 
borne  traffic  from  port  to  port.  The  com- 
petition became  so  keen,  and  freights  were 
cut  so  low,  that  presently  the  Government 
had  to  demand  the  cessation  of  the  rate  war. 
Ships  were  under-manned,  so  badly  out  of 
repair  and  so  recklessly  run  that  serious 
accidents    were    common,    and    the    various 


THE    POSITION    BEFORE    THE    WAR 

This  brief  and  hurried  survey  of  the  grow-th 
of  Japan's  merchant  marine  has  brought  us 
down  to  the  period  just  before  the  outbreak  of 
the  European  War.  Some  idea  of  the  develop- 
ment of  Japan's  shipping  interests  is  obtain- 
able from  the  following  table,  showing  the 
leading  maritime  nations  in   1900  and   1915: 


I. 
2. 
3- 
4- 
5- 
6. 

/• 
8. 

9- 
10. 


Nation 


Great  Britain 
United  States 
Germany. . 
Norway.  ,  . 
France.  .  .  . 

Japan 

Italy 

Holland... 
Austria.  .  . 
Sweden .  .  . 


14,261,254 

2,750.271 

2,650,033 

1,640,812 

1,350,562 

574.557 

983.655 

530,277 

416,084 

637,272 


Tonnage 
1915 


!  1, 274,068 
5,892,639 
4,706,027 
2,529,188 
2,285,728 
1,826,068 
1.736,545 
1.522,547 
1,018,210 
1,122,833 


49 
114 

78 
54 
69 

2l8 

77 

187 

145 
76 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


171 


ISittmmmtt^m 


■iNiMillWIfMMI 


In  this  list  Japan  stood  sixth,  and  showed 
the  greatest  percentage  of  increase  in  the 
fifteen  years.  What  her  position  is  to-day 
can  only  be  roughly  estimated.  She  has  been 
Ijuilding  and  buying  ships  as  fast  as  she  could 
throughout  the  war,  and  her  losses  by  sub- 
marine warfare  have  been  very  slight,  so  that 
she  must  be  in  a  much  better  position  in  the 
scale  of  ship-owning  nations  than  she  was  two 
years  ago.  At  the  end  of  September,  19 17, 
the  Department  of  Communications,  which 
is  responsible  for  the  control  of  shipping, 
reported  that  there  were  308  tramp  steamers 
aggregating  805,405  tons.  To  that  figure 
must  be  added  all  the  tonnage  of  such  great 
passenger  and  mail  lines  as  the  Nippon  Yusen 
Kaisha  and  the  Toyo  Kisen  Kaisha,  as  well  as 
the  tonnage  engaged  in  the  coastal  and 
general  passenger  and  freight  trade,  the 
Department's  figures  applying  solely  to  those 
vessels  which  shipping  men  know  as"tramps," 
or  ships  with  a  kind  of  roving  commission, 
/.  e.,  not  plying  regularly  on  any  particular 
ocean  service.  If  Germany's  merchant  ma- 
rine be  eliminated  from  calculations,  Japan 
must  to-day  stand  third  amongst  the  mari- 
time powers,  and  her  tonnage  would  be  little 
short    of   2,500,000. 

LEADERS    OF    THE    INDUSTRY      ' 
The  three  leading  shipping  firms  of  Japan 
are  the   Nippon  Yusen   Kaisha,   the   Osaka 
Shosen  Kaisha,  and  the  Toyo  Kisen  Kaisha. 
The  two  former  are  the  oldest  of  the  well 
organised  companies,  and  each  has  a  history  of 
close  upon  forty  years.     The  Nippon  Yusen 
Kaisha  has  always  stood  in  the  position  of  a 
semi-national  concern,  shares  being  held  by 
the  imperial  family,  and  the  company  through 
its  directors  being  in  some  respects  govern- 
ment controlled,  while  of  course,  as  the  recip- 
ient of  large  subsidies  its  services  have  been 
regulated   to   some   extent   by   the   imperial 
authorities.     This    company    has    developed 
fast  mail  and  passenger  services  w-ith  all  parts 
of  the  world.    Its  vessels  are  as  large  and  as 
well  equipped  as  those  of  any  similar  company 
in  any  part  of  the  globe,  and  its  fleet  of  100 
steamers  aggregates  480,000  tons,  which  total 
represents  a  fairly  high  individual  ship  ton- 
nage.    The  most  modem  of  the  fleet  are  the 
Fushimi  Mam  and  the  Siiwa  Maru,  each  of 
which  has  a  cargo  capacity  of  10,000  tons  in 
addition  to  elaborately  furnished  passenger 
accommodation.     Throughout   the   war   the 
N.    Y.    K.    has   maintained   a   service   with 
England.     The  capital  of  the  company  is  Yen 
100,000,000,   and  its  annual  profits  of  late 
years  have  exceeded  Yen  20,000,000. 


KELIC  OF  XVi  EARLY  FOREIGN  VISIT  TO 
JAPAN.  A  DUTCH  CHART  SHOWING  JAPAN,  OF 
THE  EARLY  SEVENTEENTH  CENTURY.  IN  THE 
IMPERIAL  MUSEUM. — A  CHART  OF  THE  WORLD, 
A  RELIC  OF  THE   FIRST  DUTCH  VISIT  TO  JAPAN 


172 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


The  Osaka  Shoscn  Kaisha,  to  which 
reference  is  made  in  another  chapter,  is 
largely  a  cargo-carrying  concern,  though  on 
certain  of  its  ser\'iccs  it  provides  passenger 
accommodation  of  the  very  best  class.  It  was 
established  in  1884  to  operate  from  Osaka, 
the  commercial  metropolis  of  Japan.  This 
company,  popularly  known  as  the  "O.  S.  K.," 
has  a  fleet  of  154  steamers  of  a  total  of  416,000 
tons.  Its  capital  is  Yen  50,000,000,  and  the 
profits  during  the  war  have  exceeded  40  per 
cent  per  annum.  The  most  progressive  and 
strikingly  successful  of  the  great  trio  of 
Japanese  lines  is  the  Toyo  Kisen  Kaisha,  or 
the  Oriental  Steamship  Company,  which  has 
a  capital  of  Yen  32,000,000,  and  owns  the 
largest  and  fastest  ships  of  the  Japanese 
merchant  service.  This  company  is  the 
creation  of  Mr.  Soijiro  Asano,  one  of  the  most 
remarkable  of  Japan's  brilliant  captains  of 
industrj',  whose  activities  in  many  great 
enterprises  are  described  in  other  sections  of 
this  work.  The  Toyo  Kisen  Kaisha  does  not 
possess  a  large  fleet,  but  its  vessels  are,  taken 
as  a  whole,  the  largest  and  best  in  Japan,  ten 
of  them  alone  aggregating  89,81 1  tons.  This 
line  has  concentrated  on  a  fast  Trans- Pacific 
service,  and  upon  the  trade  with  the  West 
Coast  of  South  America,  via  San  Francisco, 
which  is  destined  to  grow  to  large  propor- 
tions. The  net  profit  of  the  T.  K.  K.  for  the 
six  months  to  June  30,  191 7,  was  Yen  7,474,- 
241. 

Next  in  rank  of  ownership  of  vessels  of  over 
1,000  tons  each  come  the  Mitsui  Bussan 
Kaisha  with  eleven  ships  of  a  total  of  35,083 
tons;  the  Sino- Japan  S.  S.  Co.  with  twelve 
ships  of  29,663  tons,  and  the  Yamashita 
Kisen  Kaisha  with  ten  ships  aggregating 
24^161  tons.  Comparatively  recent  figures 
gave  a  total  of  446  steamers  in  the  Japanese 
mercantile  marine,  each  of  over  1 ,000  tons,  the 
grand  total  being  1,425,689  tons  for  vessels  of 
this  class.  This  fact  alone  will  indicate  that 
Japan's  merchant  fleet  is  not  built  up  merely 
of  coastal  and  fishing  vessels  of  small  size. ' 
Perhaps  the  following  table,  which  discloses 
an  official  estimate  on  July  31,  1917,  will  best 
display  the  real  strength  of  the  Japanese 
merchant  service,  so  far  as  steamers  are 
concerned : 


of  people  employed  in  ships,  not  including 
those  engaged  in  the  shore  operations  of  ship- 
ping companies: 


Year 

Japanese 

Foreigners 

Total 

1881 

1,901 

325 

2,226 

1897 

7,<'44 

938 

7,982 

1905 

20,750 

352 

21,102 

1912 

26,140 

.^51 

26,492 

1914 

30,083 

351 

30,434 

1915 

.V./fif^ 

350 

32,116 

1917 

,1^.97f' 

351 

34.329 

CAPITAL  INVESTED 
It  is  almost  impossible  to  ascertain,  in  the 
absence  of  late  official  figures,  precisely  what 
amount  of  capital  is  invested  in  the  shipping 
industry  of  Japan.  With  the  three  leading 
companies  possessing  a  combined  capital  of 
Yen  182,000,000,  it  may  be  imagined  what  a 
huge  sum  has  been  launched  in  the  business 
prior  to,  and  since  the  outbreak  of  war.  A 
reliable  nevv'spaper  estimate  gave  the  number 
of  new  shipping  companies  started  since  the 
war,  as  thirteen,  with  a  total  capital  of  Yen 
57,200,000.  Therf  are  also  to  be  reckoned 
the  many  concerns  which  were  vigourously 
and  profitably  operating  before  the  war,  apart 
from  the  N.  Y.  K.,  O.  S.  K.,  and  the  T.  K.  K. 
Taking  all  things  into  consideration  it  would 
probably  not  be  an  exaggeration  to  say  that 
over  Yen  500,000,000  is  invested  in  ships,  and 
this  sum  is  quite  apart  from  the  huge  amount 
of  capital  involved  in  the  shipbuilding  in- 
dustry, which  for  the  moment  is  being  con- 
sidered apart  from  the  business  of  operating 
ships. 

GOVERNMENT  SUBSIDIES 
The  Japanese  Government  has  for  nearly 
forty  years  pitfsued  a  steady  policy  of  encour- 
agement of  the  shipping  industry.  Subsidies 
were  granted  in  the  very  early  days,  when 
all  the  capital  invested  had  to  be  provided 
by  other  industries,  and  the  business  was, 
for  the  Japanese,  a  precarious  one.  Unques- 
tionably the  Nippon  Yusen  Kaisha,  as  a 
specific  instance,  could  not  have  built  up  a 
big  business  before  the  war,  without  state  aid, 
in  the  face  of  keen  foreign  competition.   Since 


Under 
1,000 

Tons 

Between 
1,000 

AND  2,000 

Tons 

Between 
2,000 

AND  3,000 
Tons 

3,000 

TO 
4,000 

Tons 

4,000 

TO 
5,000 

Tons 

Over 
5,000 

Tons 

No.  OF  Steamers  .  .  . 

1,674 

133 

128 

84 

32 

71 

Another  interesting  little  table  which  will 
show  the  growth  of  the  shipping  industry'  of 
Japan  is  the  following,  relative  to  the  number 


shipping  became  so  profitable,  there  has  been 
some  talk  of  doing  away  with  the  subsidies, 
but,     strangely     enough,     the     Government 


has  not  shown  any  inclination  to  be  relieved  of 
a  considerable  tax  on  the  Treasury,  the 
explanation  being  that  it  desires  to  maintain  a 
rigid  control  over  certain  of  the  older  estab- 
lished companies  at  least.  As  a  matter  of 
fact  one  or  two  of  the  companies  have  endeav- 
oured to  get  free  of  this  control  by  declining 
the  subsidies,  but  the  Government  has 
insisted  on  paying  them.  The  principal 
subsidies  granted  as  follows: 

European  Service.  A  semi-monthly 
service  of  eleven  ships,  each  of  more  than 
5,500  tons,  and  a  minimum  of  14  knots  speed; 
26  round  trips  in  the  year;  subsidy  to  the 
Nippon  Yusen  Kaisha  for  1917,  Yen  1,689,- 
850;  for  1918,  Yen  1,569,672. 

PuGET  Sound  Service.  A  bi-monthly 
service  with  six  ships  each  of  more  than  5,500 
tons,  14  knots  speed,  26  round  trips  yearly; 
subsidy  to  the  Osaka  Shosen  Kaisha  for  191 7, 
Yen  2,669,925;  for  1918,  Yen  2,509,187. 

San  Francisco  Service.  A  monthly 
service  of  three  steamers,  each  of  12,500  tons 
and  18  knots,  14  round  trips  in  the  year.  The 
amount  of  the  subsidy  paid  to  the  Toyo  Kisen 
Kaisha  is  not  officially  disclosed  owing  to  the 
fact  that  these  ships  compete  with  more  than 
one  foreign  line. 

Pacific-South  American  Service.  A 
bi-monthly  service  with  three  ships  each  of 
more  than  6,000  tons;  13  knots  speed;  six 
round  trips  in  the  year;  subsidy  to  the  Toyo 
Kisen  Kaisha,  Yen  284,863  for  1917,  and  Yen 
269,350  for  1918. 

AusTR.\LiAN  Service.  Three  ships  of  more 
than  5,000  tons,  15  knots  speed,  12  round 
trips  in  the  year;  subsidy  to  the  Nippon 
Yusen  Kaisha  for  191 7,  Yen  169,470;  for 
1918,  Yen  188,497. 

It  is  needless  to  say  that  with  such  liberal 
subsidies  paid  in  these  times  when  freights 
are  higher  than  they  have  ever  been,  and 
passenger  rates  are  in  keeping,  the  Japanese 
ship-owners  are  making  fortunes.  Approxi- 
mately sixty  cargo  vessels  are  under  charter 
to  foreign  firms  or  governments,  and  it  is 
estimated  that  for  19 1 7  charter  fees  totalling 
Yen  60,000,000  were  received  by  the  fortu- 
nate owners.  Huge  fortunes  have  been 
made  since  the  war  broke  out. 

THE  SHIPBUILDING  INDUSTRY 
In  keeping  with  the  growth  of  the  shipping 
industry,  shipbuilding  has  made  equallj- 
remarkable  strides.  It  is  not  so  many  years 
ago  that  there  was  not  a  dozen  ships  in  the 
Japanese  merchant  fleet  which  were  built 
in  the  country,  and  even  those  considered  as 
being  of  Japanese  construction,  were  put 
together  in  local  yards  under  foreign  super- 
vision from  foreign  material  which  was 
shipped  to  Japan  all  ready  for  assembling. 
To-day  at  least  60  per  cent  of  the  Japanese 


^.N^VvW-^J^ Vn^>^'-^X:  ^  -^:  yH^^^'J^^^^J^^^^.^^^' 


YOKOHAMA    DOCK    CO.,    LTD.:      THREE    VIEWS    OF    THE    LAUNCHING    OF    THE    "SHINTEN    MARU" 


SEE  PAGE  1821 


174 


P  R  E  S  E  N  T  -  I)  A  V        IMPRESSIONS 


O  F        J  A  P  A  N 


ships  arc  the  product  of  local  yards.  As  a 
matter  of  fact,  since  the  war,  the  Japanese 
ship-owners  have  been  selling  off  the  old 
foreign-built  ships  at  good  prices,  and  rein- 
vesting the  money  in  modem  types  of  cargo 
and  passenger  vessels  built  in  the  local  yards. 
Thirty  years  ago  the  shi])yards  of  Japan  could 
have  been  counted  on  the  fingers  of  one  hand. 


and  even  then  only  the  Kawa.saki  and  tlie 
Mitsubishi  yards  were  constructing  small 
steamers,  their  attention  and  that  of  the  other 
yards  being  devoted  to  assembling  vessels, 
designed  and  built  abroad.  To-day,  how- 
ever, the  situation  is  completely  changed,  and 
the  Japanese  yards  are  not  only  building  all 
the  ships  locally  required,  but  are  constructing 


for  such  old  shipbuilding  countries  as  Britain, 
.America,  Italy,  and  France. 

The  oldest  yard  in  the  countrj'  is  the  Fuji- 
.Xagata  Shipyard  of  Osaka,  which  was  estab- 
lished two  centuries  or  more  ago,  and  proba- 
bly received  some  influence  of  the  Dutch 
invasion  of  the  country.  The  oldest  modem 
yards  are  those  of  the  Osaka  Ironworks,  which 
were  established  on  a  small  scale  in  1880,  or 
thereabouts,  by  Mr.  E.  H.  Hunter,  an 
Englishman.  The  Mitsubishi  yards  at 
Nagasaki  have  also  been  working  nearly  forty 
years,  and  the  Kawasaki  Dockyard  at  Kobe, 
a  little  less.  If  we  except  the  Government 
Navy  Dockyards,  there  are  something  like 
twenty  yards  in  Japan  capable  of  turning  out 
ships  from  1,000  up  to  20,000  tons.  The  big 
liners  of  the  Nippon  Yusen  Kaisha  and  the 
Toyo  Kisen  Kaisha  (the  latter's  two  vessels 
Tenyo  Maru  and  Shinyo  Maru  being  each  of 
22,000  tons)   have  all  been  built  in  Japan. 

The  following  statement  will  give  some  idea 
of  the  shipbuilding  capacity  of  Japanese 
yards: 

SHIPS    (over    1,000    TONS)    LAUNXHED    IN"  I917 


Shipv.\rd 

Ships 

ToNN.\CiE 

Kawasaki  Dockyard 

Osaka  Iron  Works 

21 
17 

112,250 

6 1 ,000 

Uraga  Dock 

Mitsubishi,  Nagasaki 

Mitsubishi,  Kobe 

7 
5 
4 

32,200 

33.J«4 
19,811 

Ishikawajima  Dock. 

Asano  Dock 

Ono  Iron  Works. .  - 

4 
3 
3 

8,400 

24.759 

5,250 

Fuji-Nagata 

Harima  Dock 

2 

I 

4,200 

3.750 

Matsuo  Dock 

I 

3.030 

AN   ANCIENT    DUTCH    MAP   ON    PARCHMENT,    IN    THE    IMPERI.AL    MUSEUM,  TOKYO — RELIC  OF  THE 
EARLIEST  VISIT  OF  FOREIGNERS   TO   JAPAN,    AN  ANCIENT    NAVIGATOR'S   CHART,  PROB.\- 

BLY  PORTUGUESE,  FOUND    IN   JAPAN    AND    PLACED    IN  THE  IMPERIAL  MUSEUM 


In  all  there  were  constructed  in  1917,  69 
vessels,  each  of  over  1,000  tons,  and  in  the 
aggregate  299,684  tons,  not  -counting  the 
number  of  smaller  vessels  turned  out  for  the 
coastal  services,  or  for  special  purposes. 

The  future  of  the  industry  promises  much 
greater  results,  especially  when  Japan  solves 
the  problem  of  finding  her  own  supplies  of  raw 
material,  and  does  not  depend  so  much  as  in 
the  past  upon  the  United  States  and  Great 
Britain  for  steel  plates.  Many  of  the  larger 
yards  have  berths  for  five  and  six  vessels,  each 
of  10,000  tons  or  over,  for  simultaneous  con- 
struction. A  return  furnished  by  the  Depart- 
ment of  Communications  at  the  end  of 
December,  1917,  showed  that  there  were  then 
in  hand  orders  for  105  merchant  vessels  of  an 
aggregate  tonnage  of  over  500,000  for  launch- 
ing in  1918.  The  Osaka  Iron  Works  alone  has 
prepared  for  36  ships  of  a  total  of  170,000  tons. 
The  Asano  Yard,  which  did  not  exist  in  June, 
191 6,  was  constructed  and  turned  out  its  first 
ship  of  7,000  tons  within  twelve  months. 
This  company  is  also  providing  its  own  steel 


PRESENT-DAY    IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


175 


works  at  Yokohama,  and  no  doubt  will  turn 
out  a  large  number  of  vessels  in  the  near 
future. 

It  is  estimated  that  Japan  can  build  250 
ships  a  year,  each  over  1,000  tons,  there  being 
113  sliijs  and  24  under  construction  at  the  end 
of  October,  1917.  If  wc  may  assume  an 
average  of  3,000  tons  per  ship,  this  means  that 
Japan  can  build  at  the  rate  of  750,000  tons  per 


ON  THE  (IISO  ROCK-BDLND  COAST 

annum,  instead  of  the  500,000  stated  above  to 
be  planned  for  191 8.  Of  the  quality  of  the 
ships  turned  out  of  the  Japanese  yards,  only 
an  expert  can  speak.  It  is  asserted  that  the 
Japanese  ships  can  not  be  compared  with 
foreign-built  vessels,  though  this  statement  is 
open  to  grave  doubt,  because  it  must  not  be 
forgotten  that  the  Japanese  are  not  self- 
taught  in  the  art  of  ship  construction,  neither 
do  they  employ  materials  of  their  own  make. 
The  big  yards  like  the  Mitsubishi  and  Kawa- 
saki have  had  the  benefit  of  the  best  foreign 
supervision,  and  their  present  technical 
experts  are  all  highly  trained  and  experienced 
men.  The  yards  are  admittedly  equipped 
with  the  very  best  plant,  and  the  designing  is 
done  by  men  who  have,  as  a  rule,  spent  years 
abroad  in  the  study  of  marine  architecture. 
Even  if  the  ships  at  present  being  launched 
are  not  so  well  constructed,  under  the  pressure 
of  time  and  demand,  there  is  no  reason  to 
believe  that  the  Japanese  can  not  build 
splendid  vessels,  and  will  readily  build  better 
still. 

The  idea  that  the  ships  are  not  quite  up  to 
European  or  American  standard  of  construc- 
tion most  probably  arises  from  the  fact  that 
the  Japanese  build  so  quickly.  The  Kawa- 
saki Dockyard  holds  the  world's  record  for 
launching  a  io,ooo-ton  freight  steamer,  one 
month  and  29  days  after  the  first  keel  plate 
was  laid.  These  records  are  not  made  by 
skimping  the  work,  but  are  possible  under 
peculiarly  favourable  conditions  which  proba- 
bly do  not  obtain  elsewhere  in  the  world. 
There  is  no  scarcitv  of  skilled  and  unskilled 


labour,  and  work  goes  on  day  and  night  with- 
out a  stop  in  the  big  yards.  The  new  Asano 
works  employ  6,000  men,  and  such  a  force, 
under  skilled  direction,  using  the  very  latest 
plant  and  appliances,  with  a  plenitude  of 
material  all  ready  at  hand,  should  be  able  to 
make  good  time  on  ship  construction  when  the 
demand  for  tonnage  is  so  imperative. 

A  lengthy  article  could  be  written  on  ship- 
building, but  enough  has  been  said,  in  con- 
junction with  the  shipping  industry,  to  show 
what  wonderful  iirogress  has  been  made  in 
this  department  of  Japan's  industrial  life. 


HARBOURS 

AL  T  HOUGH  there  are  over  one 
thousand  harbours  now  visited  by 
merchantmen,  before  the  opening  of  the 
country  to  foreign  trade  the  number  of  har- 
bours able  to  accommodate  ships  was  neg- 
ligible, as  they  remained  in  their  natural 
state.  It  was  not  until  1878  that  any 
serious  attempt  was  made  at  reclamation  and 
improvement  of  harbours,  since  when  many 
roadsteads  capable  of  accommodating  ships  of 
considerable  size  have  been  completed.  The 
following  table  gives  the  leading  harbours  of 
Japan  with  improvements  carried  out : 


yen  to  open  connection  with  the  Trans- 
Siberian  railway.  Osaka  harbour,  which  was 
started  by  the  city  in  1897,  has  already  cost 
24,200,000  yen  in  improvements,  but  owing  to 
defective  plans  the  results  are  not  yet  satis- 
factory. Kob^  harbour  is  also  under  con- 
struction and  when  completed  will  be  one  of 
the  best  in  the  Empire.  Some  fourteen  other 
harbours  have  been  nominated  for  improve- 
ment by  the  Government  Harbour  Commis- 
sion at  a  cost  of  100,000,000  yen,  one  of  the 
most  important  of  which  is  Yokkaichi  at  an 
outlay  of  7,500,000  yen;  but  the  success  of 
this  venture  is  doubtful  owing  to  sandy 
bottom.  The  harbour  at  Funakawa  is  to  be 
completed  at  a  cost  of  3,000,000  yen,  Shio- 
gama  at  4,000,000  yen,  Kagoshima  a  further 
2,500,000  yen,  and  Aomori  3,000,000  yen. 
The  relative  importance  of  the  more  prosper- 
ous ports  of  Japan  may  be  seen  from  the 
table  (191 5)  on  the  followins  page. 

It  will  thus  be  seen  that  of  the  36  open  ports 
in  Japan,  Yokohama  and  Koh6  are  by  far  the 
most  important  commercially,  as  through 
these  the  bulk  of  the  nation's  foreign  trade 
passes,  and  consequently  in  both  ports  har- 
bour improvements  and  extensions  are 
constantly  under  way.  Yokohama  harbour, 
with  its  more  than  two  miles  of  breakwater, 
enclosing  a  space  of  nearly  1,300  acres,  and 


Place 

Works 

Begun 

Completed 

CosT,Yi;\ 

Nagasaki 

Dredging,  walls,  etc. 

July,  1897 

September,  1904 

3,100,000 

Miike 

Breakwater,  etc. 

November,  1902 

November,  1907 

3,000,000 

Nagoya 

Piers,  dredging,  etc. 

August,  1896 

August,  1907 

2,383,000 

Yokohama .... 

Piers,  walls,  etc. 

September,  1889 

May,  1896 

2,353.000 

Otaru 

Breakwater,  etc. 

May,  1897 

May,  1908 

2,189,000 

Kagoshima.  .  . 

Dredging,  breakwater 

April,  1900 

March,  1909 

843,000 

Hakodate 

Breakwater,  dredging 

June,  1896 

April,  1899 

820,000 

Takamatsu .  .  . 

Breakwater,  dredging 

July,  1897 

September,  1904 

328,000 

Ujina 

Dredging,  walls,  etc. 

September,  1884 

April,  1890 

300,000 

Sakai 

Piers,  etc. 

May,  1878 

June,  1882 

228,000 

Misumi 

Piers,  etc. 

May,  1883 

June,  1892 

107,000 

The  harbour  works  completed,  however,  are 
as  nothing  compared  to  those  still  under  way, 
and  now  to  be  mentioned  in  due  course.  In 
Japan  there  are  altogether  some  530  ports 
regularly  visited  by  steamers,  most  of  which 
are  coasting  vessels.  These  include  36  open 
ports,  4  naval  ports,  and  3  fortified  ports. 
The  greater  portion  of  the  funds  for  harbour 
improvements  have  been  drawn  from  local 
taxation  or  public  works  funds;  but  in  excep- 
tional cases  of  national  importance,  like  Kobe 
and  Yokohama,  the  expenses  have  been  met  by 
the  National  Treasury.  The  harbour  works 
at  Miike  were  constructed  at  the  expense  of 
the  Mitsui  Company  whose  great  coal  mines 
are  in  the  vicinity.  But  the  harbour  at 
Tsuruga  was  completed  at  a  cost  of  800,000 


its  magnificent  new  quay  walls  and  ware- 
houses, provides  accommodation  second  to 
none  in  the  East  for  ships  of  all  sizes;  and  a 
canal  between  that  port  and  Tokyo  is  under 
contemplation.  The  question  of  a  new  har- 
bour for  Tokyo,  capable  of  receiving  large 
ships,  has  long  been  advocated,  but  the  scheme 
has  not  yet  been  commenced,  although  the 
surveys  have  been  made  and  plans  are  being 
perfected.  The  harbour  improvements  at 
Kobe,  when  completed,  will  leave  that  port 
with  three  miles  of  breakwater,  enclosing  an 
area  of  nearly  1,800  acres,  to  protect  shipping 
from  south  and  east  winds;  while  sheds  and 
landing  facilities  are  of  the  best.  The  subject 
will  be  found  more  fully  treated  in  the  chap- 
ters devoted  to  these  cities. 


176 


P  R  E  S  K  N  T  -  D  A  Y        IMPRESSIONS        OF        JAPAN 


Y0KOH.\MA  H.\RBOUR  AND  DOCKS,  AS  SEEN  FROM  THE  MEMORIAL  TOWER 


Port 

Exports 
Yen 

Imports 
Yen 

TOT.\L 

Yen 

Yokohama 

Kobe 

Osaka 

Nagasaki 

305,953.588 

197,597.830 

93,822,636 

4,639,673 
18,604,378 

4.791.279 
82,897,613 

140,350,624 

269,216,398 

50,610,954 

7.829.518 

23,200,974 

399.318 

40,842,152 

446,304,212 

466,814,228 

144,433,590 

12,469,191 

Moji. 

41,805,352 
5,190,597 

Hakodate .    . 

Other  ports 

123.739,765 

Total 

708,306,997 

532,449,938 

1,240,756,935 

SHIPBUILDING 

THE    MITSU    BISHI    COMPANY 

Amonc  the  greatest  and  most  powerful 
financial  and  industrial  corporations  of  Japan 
is  the  Mitsu  Bishi  Company,  known  in  legal 
terminology  as  The  Mitsu  Bishi  Goshi  Kaisha, 
whose  enormous  wealth  and  influence  are 
vitally  felt  in  every  department  of  national 
activity  and  progress.  Though  not  so  old  as 
the  Mitsui  firm,  the  Mitsu  Bishi  is  none  the 
less  a  family  concern,  having  been  founded  by 


the  Iwasaki  family  in  the  early  years  of  the 
Meiji  era,  and  in  the  short  space  of  fifty  years 
it  has  come  to  be  a  worthy  rival  of  its  great 
competitor  in  every  direction.  Through  the 
founder  of  the  company,  the  late  Mr.  Yataro 
Iwasaki,  and  his  successor,  the  late  Baron 
Yanosuk^  Iwasaki,  Japan  established  her  first 
steamship  company,  which  in  time  recovered 
the  nation's  shipping  from  foreign  control  and 
made  the  Japanese  flag  supreme  in  Oriental 
waters.  After  the  Mitsu  Bishi  Steamship 
Company     amalgamated     with    the     Union 


Transport  Company  in  1885  to  form  the 
Nippon  Yusen  Kaisha,  or  Japan  Mail  Steam- 
ship Company,  the  Iwasaki  family  formed 
themselves  into  the  Mitsu  Bishi  Company, 
which,  however,  still  remains  one  of  the 
largest  shareholders  in  Japan's  greatest  ship- 
ping company,  whence  its  influence  extends 
widely  into  commerce  and  communications, 
augmenting  its  fortunes  and  promoting  at  the 
same  time  the  interests  of  the  Empire. 

The  remarkable  prosperity  of  the  Mitsu 
Bishi  Company  is  due  largely  to  the  character, 
energy,  and  foresight  of  the  late  Baron  Yano- 
suke  Iwasaki,  and  his  nephew.  Baron  Hisaya 
Iwasaki,  who  in  1916  resigned  the  presidency 
of  the  company  in  favour  of  Baron  Koyata 
Iwasaki.  The  present  head  of  the  house  was 
educated  in  England  and  is  a  man  of  excep- 
tional brilliancy  in  financial  circles.  In  1916 
the  Mitsu  Bishi  Company  was  reorganised 
with  the  following  departments,  for  greater 
facilitation  of  its  increasing  enterprises: 
(1)  General  Affairs  Department,  with  Mr. 
K.    Aoki   as    General    Manager;    (2)    Metal 


MITSU  BISHI  company:     the   12,000-ton    MITSU  BISHI    floating    dock    A1    KOBE    WITH    THE    S.  S.  "EMPRESS    OF    CHINA      IN    DOCK — -GIANT 

CRANE    AT    NAGASAKI    SHIPYARD  —  S.    S.    "MANILA    MARU,"    BUILT    BY    THE    COMPANY,    LEAVING    THE    STOCKS  —  THE    PROCESS   OF 

COALING  THE  S.  S.   "MANCHCRIA"  BY  THE    COMPANY  IN    RECORD    TIME  —  THE    MACHINE    SHOP,  NAGASAKI    DOCKYARD 


178 


P  R  E  S  E  N  T  -  I)  A   \         IMPRESSIONS        OF        JAPAN' 


Mining  Department,  Mr.  Shinji  Harada  being 
General  Manager;  (3)  Coal  Mining  Depart- 
ment, with  Mr.  Kusuyata  Kimura  as  General 
Manager;  (4)  Trading  Department,  General 
Manager,  Mr.  Sadaye  Eguchi;  (5)  Real  Estate 
Department,  Mr.  Shoichi  Kirishima,  General 
Manager;  (6)  Banking  Department,  of  which 
Mr.  Manzo  Kushida  is  General  Manager; 
(7)  Shipbuilding  and  Engineering  Depart- 
ment, Mr.  Taisuke  Shiota  being  General 
Manager;  (8)  Iron  Works  Department,  with 
two  General  Managers,  Mr.  Teizaburo  Hori 
and  Mr.  Shinji  Harada;  (9)  the  Oriental 
Department,  managed  by  Mr.  Hyakutaro 
Miyagawa.  The  private  secretary  of  the 
President  is  Mr.  Goro  Oyama. 

In  its  Banking  Department,  which  was 
opened  as  far  back  as  1885,  the  Mitsu  Bishi 
has  been  remarkably  successful,  and  it  is  now- 


one  of  the  largest  private  banking  houses  in  fund  of  .some  10,142,000  yen,  deposits  of  over 

the  Empire,  enjoying  the  confidence  of  the  1 18,930,000  and  loans  of  aboutoi, 61  i,oooyen. 
public  and  wielding  an  increasing  influence  on  In  coal,  gold,  and  copper  mining  the  Mitsu 

national  finance,  as  may  be  seen  from  its  Bishi  Company  is  one  of  the  largest  owners 

large  number  of  foreign  clients  and  depositors,  and  operators  in  the  world,  having  ten  metal 

the    latter  being    often    from    Europe    and  mines   and    eight   coal   mines    whose    total 

America.     Following     a     policy     sufficiently  annual  output  for  some  years  has  averaged  as 

conservative    to    be    consistent    with    sound  follows: 

finance,   the   Mitsu   Bishi   Bank  has  passed  

safely  through  the  various  economic  crises  the  Gold i,t.4.?2  lbs. 

nation  has  experienced.     The   Banking    De-  Silver 65,273  lbs. 

partment  carries  on  all  the  transactions  of  a  Copper 13.000  tons 

first-class  banking  house,  including  loans  on  Coal 3,100,000  tons 

approved  securities,  discounting  bills,  receiv- 
ing deposits  and  opening  current  accounts,  Each  of  the  metal  mines  has  its  own  refining 

making  collections  and  remittances,  dealing  i.'i  plant,  but  as  the  capacity  is  limited,  most  of 

negotiable  paper;  and  all  on  the'  best  terms  the  refining  takes  place  at   the   company's 

possible.     The  Mitsu  Bishi  Bank  is  working  great  metallurgical  works  in  Osaka,  where  the 

on  a  capital  of  1,000,000  yen,  has  a  reserve  process  of  electrolysis  has  been  brought  to 


DIRECTORS  OF  THE  MITSU  BISHI  COMP.WV 


(i)  Mr.  Sadaye  Eguchi,  General  Manager,  Trading  Department  —  (2)  Mr.  Shinji  Harada,  General  Manager,  Metal  Mining  Depart- 
ment—  (3)  Mr.  T.  Shiota,  General  Manager,  Shipbuilding  and  Engineering  Department  —  (4)  Baron  Hls.^YA  Ivvasaki,  Partner — (5) 
Baron  Koyata  Iwasaki,  President — (6)  Mr.  Seijiro  Sho,  Late  General  Manager,  General  Affairs  Department — (7)  Mr.  K.  AoKi,  General 
Manager,  General  Aflairs  Department — (8)  Mr.  T.  Uyematsu,  Newly  Appointed  Managing  Director  of  Mitsubishi  Shipbuilding  Co., 
Ltd. —  (9)  Mr.  Kusuy.\TA  Kimura,  General  Manager,  Coal  Mining  Department  —  (10)  Mr.  Manzo  Kushida,  General  Manager,  Banking 
Department — (11)  Mr.  Shoichi  Kirishima,  General  Manager,  Estate  Department 


■^ 


.; 


^ 


ASANO    SHIPBUILDING    COMPANY:       GENKRAI.    VIKW    OK    YARD    AJ*D    MACHINE    SHOP  —  VIEW    OF    THE    DOCKYARD — BIG    FREIGHT    SHIPS 

NEARING   the' LAUNCHING    STAGE 


i8o 


PRESENT-  I)  A  Y        I  M  P  R  ]i  S  S  1  O  N  S 


()  V 


I   A  P  A  .\ 


such  perfection  that  the  electrolytic  ingots 
and  plates  of  copper  turned  out  are  renowned 
for  a  purity  that  brings  them  into  constant 
demand  throughout  the  world.  No  less 
conspicuous  is  the  company's  enterprise  in 
coal  mining,  the  quality  of  the  output  being 
such  that  it  is  in  constant  demand  by  all  the 
great  steamship  lines  as  well  as  the  Imperial 
Na\'y,  to  whom  the  company  are  contractors, 
while  large  and  increasing  exports  are  sent  out 
in  the  company's  own  colliers. 

The  phenomenal  progress  made  in  ship- 
building in  Japan  is  in  a  great  measure  due  to 
the  enterprise  and  ability  of  the  Mitsu  Bishi 
Company,  with  its  great  dockyards  at  Naga- 
saki and  Kobe,  which  have  supplied  the 
nation's  shipping  companies  with  most  of 
their  vessels  and  the  Imperial  Navy  with 
some  of  its  finest  battleships  and  destroyers. 
For  descriptions  of  these  docks  the  reader  is 
referred  to  the  Osaka  and  Kobe  section  on 
Shi|)ping  in  this  volume.  Further  extensive 
undertakings  of  the  Mitsu  Bishi  Company 
are:  paper-making,  its  mills  having  a  capac- 
ity of  some  70,000  pounds  a  day;  warehous- 
ing, with  great  sheds  at  Kobe  and  Osaka  and 
the  best  equipment  in  landing  facilities;  real 
estate,  and  iron  and  steel  works.  The  total 
capital  of  the  Mitsu  Bishi  Company  is 
15,000,000  yen,  and  it  gives  employment  to 
nearly  100,000  men.  The  company's  head 
ofTce  is  at  Marunouchi,  Tokyo,  where  its  fine 
array  of  buildings,  with  latest  appointments, 
occupy  several  city  blocks  and  form  an 
enormous  asset.  The  company  has  branches 
in  the  various  important  cities  and  ports  of 
Japan,   and  is  well  represented   in   the   Far 


East  as  well  as  in  London  and  New  \'<)rk, 
where  its  foreign  trade  is  showing  remarkable 
development. 

.\S.\NO    SHIPBUILDING    COMP.\NV, 
LIMITED 

One  of  the  most  remarkable  men  in 
Japanese  industrial  circles  is  Mr.  Soichiro 
Asano.  He  has  developed  enormous  interests 
of  all  kinds,  in  which  millions  of  capital  are 
invested,  and  it  is  hard  to  say  where  his 
interests  begin  and  end.  He  is  the  president 
and  moving  spirit  of  the  Toyo  K!isen  Kaisha, 
one  of  the  three  greatest  shipping  companies 
in  Japan,  besides  being  the  leading  man  in  the 
cement  industry,  which  he  controls  as  presi- 
dent of  the  Asano  Cement  Co.,  Ltd.  In 
addition  he  is  one  of  the  founders  of  the  Tokyo 
Ropeworks,  is  on  the  boards  of  half  a  dozen 
other  commercial  concerns,  and  is  now  lead- 
ing the  movement  for  the  proper  development 
of  the  steel  industry. 

It  was  only  to  be  expected  that  a  man  of 
Mr.  Asano's  energy  should  realise  the  great 
opportunity  the  war  has  presented  for  ship- 
builders, and  that  he  should  strive  to  outdo 
the  biggest  concerns  in  the  country,  when 
once  he  decided  to  embark  in  the  enterprise 
Mr.  Asano  formed  the  Asano  Shipbuilding 
Co.,  Ltd.,  in  the  middle  of  1916,  and  before 
his  new  venture  had  been  in  existence  twelve 
months  it  had  established  several  records. 
Application  was  first  made  for  a  dock  and 
shipbuilding  site  at  Yokohama.  When  this 
was  refused  Mr.  Asano  set  out  to  reclaim 
land  at  Tsurumi,  a  place  in  Tokyo  Bay,  about 
six  or  seven  miles  from  Yokohama.     Up  to 


this  stage  Tsurumi  was  nothing  but  a  small 
hamlet,  having  no  houses  to  speak  of,  and 
certainly  no  industries.  To-day  it  is  the 
centre  of  an  enterprise  that  bids  fair  to  rival 
any  in  the  world.  A  record  was  established  in 
the  construction  of  the  dockyard  and  building 
berths,  which  were  completed  in  about  five 
months  from  the  day  reclamation  was  started. 
The  first  ship  was  launched  on  the  anniver- 
sary of  the  commencement  on  the  site.  She 
was  the  Hakushika  Maru,  a  vessel  of  11,000 
tons,  built  for  the  Tatsuma  Steamship  Com- 
pany, and  to  date  is  the  largest  ship  turned 
out  on  Tokyo  Ba\-.  A  month  later  the  second 
ship   was  launched. 

This  was  a  fair  beginning  for  a  company 
that  had  been  in  existence  only  a  year,  but 
it  is  an  indication  of  the  speed  and  energy 
which  Mr.  Asano  has  injected  into  his  en- 
terprise, in  which  he  originally  invested  Yen 
3,750,000.  Before  the  end  of  the  year  1917  he 
had  increased  the  capital  of  the  Asano  Ship- 
building Co.,  Ltd.,  to  Yen  15,000,000,  and  had 
laid  down  plans  which  stagger  belief.  The 
Toyo  Kisen  Kaisha,  or  Asano  interest,  already 
have  eight  building  berths  which  can  turn 
out  vessels  of  the  Tenyo  Maru  class  (22,000 
tons).  With  some  alteration  two  of  these 
berths  can  be  made  to  accommodate  ships  of 
30,000  tons.  In  addition,  it  is  planned  to  lay 
down  eight  more  berths,  including  six  for 
ships  of  8,000  tons  and  two  for  freighters  of 
3,000  tons  deadweight.  Any  of  these  ships 
can  be  built  inside  of  six  months,  and  when  all 
the  berths  are  completed  the  Asano  Shipbuild- 
ing Company  will  have  a  capacity  for  turning 
out  500,000  tons  of  ships  annually,  which  is 


^■''^''•'•''^^j^'^yBTnkwwaarv''''^^      \ 


OYEBASHI  (bridge)   NEAR    THE    SAKURAGICHO    ELECTRIC    RAILW.W    ST.\TION,    YOKOHAMA 


•i 


m 

m 
til 


YOKOHAMA    ENGINE    AMI    IKON    WciKK-.,    LIU.;      \IK\\    OF    THE    MAIN    WORKS    AT   CHIWAKA-CHO,  YOKOHAMA  —  INTERIOR    OF    THE 
MACHINE    SHOP  —  THE    NEW    SHIPBUILDING    BERTH    AT    CHIWAKA-CHO,  YOKOHAMA 


13 


IS2 


P  R  E  S  E  N  T  -  I)  A  V        IMPRESSIONS        OF        JAPAN 


almost  twice  as  great  as  the  capacity-  of  all  the 
yards  of  Japan  before  the  war.  The  company 
is  said  to  be  better  stocked  with  steel  and 
other  materials  than  any  concern  in  Japan, 
but  Mr.  Asano's  plans  include  the  erection  of 
two  steel  plants,  one  in  Yokohama  and  the 
other  in  Chinnampo,  Korea,  the  scheme  call- 
ing for  an  investment  of  Yen  15,000,000.  The 
Yokohama  plant  is  expected  to  be  producing 
steel  in  Januarj',  1918,  and  the  mill  in  Korea 
will  be  a  producer  in  April  or  May.  The 
Asano  3'ards  require  about  250,000  tons  of 
steel  annually.  Over  6,000  w'orkmen  are 
engaged,  the  yards  working  to  full  capacity 
day  and  night  to  fulfil  orders  w'hich  have 
poured  in  from  all  parts  of  the  world. 

Mr.  M.  Hara  is  the  Managing  Director  of 
the  Asano  Shipbuilding  Co.,  Ltd.,  and  Mr. 
Rio  Kato  is  the  Technical  Managing  Director. 

YOKOHAMA    ENGINE    AND    IRON    WORKS 
LIMITED 

This  company  has  the  distinction  of  own- 
ing one  of  the  oldest  iron  and  engine  works  in 
Japan,  and  of  being  the  successor  of  the  first 
business  of  its  kind,  conducted  under  the 
European  system,  ever  established  in  the 
countr}'.  The  history  of  the  business  goes 
back  to  the  earliest  days  of  the  arrival  of  the 
foreigner,  for  the  first  small  plant  and  repair 
shop  was  erected  in  1861,  when  Mr.  Whitfield, 
an  Englishman,  started  in  the  trade,  and 
located  his  shop  at  No.  69  in  the  foreign 
settlement.  Later  on  Mr.  Edward  Kildoyle, 
an  American,  opened  a  similar  business,  close 
to  the  works  of  Mr.  Whitfield  and  for  some 
years  the  two  engineers  and  iron-founders 
were  in  competition.  Between  them  the  two 
firms  engaged  in  shipbuilding  and  repairing, 
and  the  manufacture  and  repair  of  machinery 
of  all  kinds,  for  marine  and  land  use.  Finally 
Mr.  Kildoyle  bought  the  business  of  his  rival, 
and  later  on  formed  a  joint-stock  company 
under  the  name  of  the  Yokohama  Engine  and 
Iron  Works,  Ltd. 

The  development  of  Yokohama  led  to  a 
considerable  expansion  of  the  company's 
business,  and  the  works  extended  over  newly 
acqvured  ground.  A  high  reputation  for 
accuracy  and  finished  workmanship  and 
general  reliability  was  gained,  and  the  busi- 
ness became  very  prosperous.  The  company 
purchased  the  interests  of  the  Peterson 
Engineering  Works,  which  were  established 
at  No.  113  Yamashita-eho.  This  step  led  to 
an  increase  in  the  capital,  the  rebuilding  of  the 
works,  and  the  introduction  of  many  improve- 
ments. At  this  time  the  Yokohama  Engine  and 
Iron  Works,  Ltd.,  owned  2,000  tsubo  of  ground 
and  on  this  area  was  erected  the  machine  con- 
struction shops,  moulding  shop,  iron  foundry, 
wrought-iron  works,  boiler-making  plant, 
finishing  and  erecting  shops,  etc.,  the  whole 


plant  being  modem  and  complete  in  every 
sense. 

In  December,  1916,  Dr.  Tsuneta  Shin 
(Doctor  of  Technology)  purchased  the  com- 
pany's interest  in  the  entire  plant  and  works, 
and  changed  the  name  to  the  Yokohama 
Iron  Works.  The  rapid  development  of 
industry  in  all  directions,  and  particularly 
the  expansion  of  the  shipping  industry,  dic- 
tated an  early  expansion  of  the  operations  of 
the  concern,  and  in  April,  191 7,  Dr.  Shin 
formed  a  partnership  with  Mr.  Nobuya 
Uchida,  President  of  the  Uchida  Steamship 
Company,  of  Kob^.  The  capital  was  raised 
to  Yen  1,000,000,  the  partnership  being 
transformed  straightway  into  a  joint-stock 
concern,  and  many  improvements  being 
eflfected  in  the  general  conduct  of  the  busi- 
ness. One  immediate  efTect  of  this  important 
change  was  that  the  new  company  was  able 
to  enter  upon  shipbuilding  on  a  much  larger 
scale  than  before.  A  shipbuilding  site  was 
purchased  at  Chiwakamachi,  Kanagawa, 
comprising  12,000  tsubo  of  land.  Three 
building  berths  were  laid  down,  and  the 
necessary  machine  shops,  etc.,  were  erected. 
At  the  time  of  writing  the  first  steamer  is 
under  construction,  and  when  the  plant  is 
complete  the  company-  will  be  able  to  build 
three  ships,  each  of  10,000  tons,  simulta- 
neously. In  the  near  future  docks  will  be 
constructed,  so  that  the  company  will  be  in 
a  position  to  carry  on  work  through  all 
stages  of  shipbuilding  and  repairing,  on  an 
extensive  scale.  As  it  is,  the  Yokohama 
Engine  and  Iron  Works,  Ltd.,  is  undertaking 
engineering  work  of  practically  every  descrip- 
tion. Apart  from  the  building  and  repair 
of  ships,  the  works  are  turning  out  engines 
and  boilers  for  land  and  marine  purposes, 
mining  machinery,  spinning  machines,  tur- 
bines and  other  plant  for  water  power,  elec- 
trical machinery,  locomotive  and  other  rail- 
w'ay  machinery  and  material,  metal  work 
generallj^  and  tools,  as  well  as  doing  a  large 
business  in  the  repair  and  overhaul  of  machin- 
ery of  all  kinds.  There  is  a  large  stafT  of  the 
most  skilled  technical  specialists,  and  the 
company  also  has  the  advantage  of  a  numer- 
ous and  well  trained  body  of  mechanics  and 
workmen.  The  principal  officials  of  the 
Yokohama  Engine  and  Iron  Works,  Ltd., are: 
Mr.  Nobuya  Uchida,  President;  Dr.  Tsuneta 
Shin,  Mr.  Seitaro  Uchida  and  Mr.  Teiji 
Yagi,  Managing  Directors;  Messrs.  Sanjiro 
Yamamoto  and  Yoji  Kasuya,  Auditors.  The 
head  office  of  the  company  is  at  No.  161 
Yamashita-cho,  Yokohama. 

YOKOHAMA     DOCK     COMPANY,     LI.MITED 
Evidence  of  the  importance  of  this  com- 
pany is  found   in   the  fact  that  it   has  the 
support  of  the  Nippon  Yusen  Kaisha,  and 


has  lately  been  awarded  a  contract  for  the 
construction  of  twenty  vessels,  amounting 
in  value  to  84,000,000  yen.  The  Yokohama 
Dock  Company,  Ltd.,  has  been  in  existence 
for  some  years,  and  has  developed  a  large 
industry  which  is  of  great  value  to  Yokohama. 
Its  yards  and  plant  are  situated  close  to  the 
town,  and  comprise  modern  slips  and  all 
necessary  equipment.  The  greatest  progress 
has  been  made  in  the  last  two  or  three  years, 
and  though  at  the  time  of  writing  there 
are  only  tw'o  berths,  one  for  1,500-ton  and 
the  other  for  2,500-ton  vessels,  the  capital 
has  lately  been  increased  to  Yen  10,000,000 
to  enable  the  company  to  carry  out  an  exten- 
sive programme  which  will  put  it  right  in 
the  forefront  of  the  shipbuilding  concerns  of 
Japan.  The  plans  now  in  course  of  com- 
pletion include  an  entirely  new  dockyard 
within  the  breakwater  at  Yokohama.  Per- 
mission has  been  granted  for  this  new  yard, 
and  the  site  has  been  secured.  It  covers  an 
area  of  6,676  tsubo.  Part  of  the  work  will 
include  reclamation  of  the  foreshore  at 
Kanagawa,  and  when  this  is  carried  out  five 
shipbuilding  berths  will  be  laid  down.  One 
of  these  will  be  large  enough  to  accommodate 
a  vessel  up  to  30,000  tons,  and  the  others  will 
be  for  steamers,  such  as  those  ordered  by  the 
Nippon  Yusen  Kaisha,  each  about  6,000  tons. 
The  capital  for  this  purpose  has  been  raised 
partly  by  the  Nippon  Yusen  Kaisha  which 
took  up  30,000  of  the  new  issue  of  50,000 
shares,  and  partly  by  the  general  public. 

The  Yokohama  Dock  Company,  Limited, 
not  only  builds  ships,  but  does  an  extensive 
business  in  the  repairing  and  overhaul  of 
vessels.  The  illustrations  of  the  company, 
shown  in  this  volume,  were  taken  on  the 
occasion  of  the  launching  of  the  Shinten 
Maru,  which  was  constructed  for  Tatsuma 
S.  S.  Co.  Though  the  day  was  spoiled  by 
the  hea\^  rain  that  fell,  the  ceremony  never- 
theless was  attended  by  thousands  of  per- 
sons, all  interested  in  the  success  of  the  local 
company.  The  launching  was  a  perfect 
success,  and  the  officials  of  the  company 
were  heartily  congratulated.  Mr.  S.  Ya- 
mada,  the  Managing  Director  of  the  Yoko- 
hama Dock  Company,  Limited,  is  a  man  of 
considerable  experience  in  modem  ship- 
building, and  there  is  little  doubt  his  com- 
pany will  develop  into  a  mammoth  under- 
taking. The  head  office  and  yards  of  the 
company  are  at  Irifune-cho,  Yokohama. 

ISHIKAWAJIMA     SHIPBUILDING     AND 

ENGINEERING    COMPANY, 

LIMITED 

This  company,  known  under  its  Japanese 
title  as  the  Tokyo  Ishikawajima  Zosenjo, 
was  founded  in  1876  by  the  late  Mr.  Tomiji 
Hirano,  at  a  time  when  it  was  not  expected 


ff:, 


NIPPON    YUSEN    KAISHA:      INTERIOR    VIEWS    OF    S.    S.    "SVWA    MARU";      THE    UINING    SALOON  —  THE    SOCIAL    HALL - 
THE    LOINGE  —  THE    SMOKING    ROOM  —  THE    CHILDREN'S    PLAY    ROOM 


J 


P  R  i:  S  K  N  T  -  D  A  Y        I  At  I'  R  E  ft  S  I  O  N  S       OF       JAP  A  N 


183 


that  the  engineering  and  ironworking  trades 
would  ever  reach  the  huge  dimensions  to 
which  they  have  now  attained.  After  carry- 
ing on  for  thirteen  years  as  a  private  concern, 
these  old  established  works  were  turned  over 
to  the  present  company,  which  was  incor- 
porated in  1889  with  a  capital  of  Yen  175,000. 
To-day  the  capital  of  the  company  is  Yen 
5,000,000.  From  their  inception  the  dock- 
yards and  machine  shops  at  Ishikawajima 
were  mainly  devoted  to  repair  work,  but  with 
the  development  of  the  iron  and  steel  indus- 
tries, and  the  growth  of  shipping  in  Japan,  the 
plant  was  gradually  enlarged  and  the  com- 
pany took  on  heavier  and  more  important 
work,  including  the  building  of  ships  and  the 
manufacture  of  boilers,  cranes,  girders, 
bridges,  pumps,  etc.,  besides  undertaking 
contracts  for  structural  steel  work,  the  instal- 
lation of  hydraulic  machines,  and  general 
engineering.     As  an  example  of  the  develop- 


ment and  present-day  capacity  of  the  Ishika- 
wajima Company  it  may  be  mentioned  that 
in  the  last  half  of  1917  six  vessels,  of  a  total 
of  13,600  tons,  constructed  for  such  important 
Japanese  shijiping  companies  as  the  Osaka 
Shosen  Kaisha,  the  Kishimoto  S.  S.  Co.  and 
others,  were  launched  from  the  yards.  The 
company  is  the  licensee  of  Woodeson's 
patent  watertube  boilers  and  of  Clarke, 
Chapman  &  Co.'s  patent  pumps.  In  addi- 
tion to  the  main  dockyard  and  big  machine 
shops  at  Ishikawajima,  the  company  owns  a 
branch  works  at  Wakamatsu,  Kyushu.  The 
area  of  land  covered  by  the  main  yard  and 
shops  is  22,500  tsubo,  or  about  18.38  acres. 
The  shops  and  other  buildings  cover  6,800 
Isubo.  They  comprise  machine  shops, 
smithy,  foundry,  plate  and  girder  works, 
boiler  shops,  pattern  shop,  copper  smithy, 
saw  mill,  etc.  There  are  four  shipbuilding 
berths  and  one  dry  dock.     The  yards  are 


fitted  with  the  latest  plant  and  machinery, 
giving  the  company  every  advantage  in 
turning  out  work  expeditiously  and  at  a 
minimum  cost.  Electrical  power  is  used. 
Altogether  3,600  hands  are  engaged  at  the 
works  and  the  annual  wages  bill  runs  to  over 
Yen  720,000.  The  value  of  the  output 
of  the  comjiany  is  about  Yen  5,000,000  per 
annum.  As  with  most  other  shipbuilding 
and  engineering  concerns  in  the  Far  East, 
the  steel  and  iron  required  are  obtained  from 
the  United  States  and  Great  Britain.  The 
Ishikawajima  Company  has  no  dearth  of 
orders  from  the  local  market  and  from 
China. 

The  principal  officers  of  this  important 
company  are:  President,  Ur.  Kaichi  Wata- 
nabe,  M.  E.  (Eng.);  Managing  Director, 
Mr.  Tokuro  Uchida,  M.  E.;  and  Directors, 
Messrs.  Teikichi  Shimizu,  M.  E.,  Kadzuo  Sato, 
Shigeru  Tanaka,    and    Tokujiro  Yokoyama. 


X  ■'!!•- ser  ;-S';-**v;;»JS96«E!iSK»2iS.-,T^3^^ 


CARGO  JUNKS  ON  THE  SUMIDA  RIVER,  TOKYO 


1 84 


P  R  !•:  S  E  N  T  -  D  A  V        IMPRESSIONS        O  I-"        J  A  PAN 


GENERAL      VIEW     OF     THE      URAGA 


THE  URAGA  DOCK  COMPANY 
To  no  industry  has  the  European  ^A'ar 
given  greater  impetus  than  to  shipbuilding; 
and  among  the  Japanese  yards  that  have 
come  in  for  a  large  share  of  this  prosperity  is 
the  Uraga  Dock  Company.  Established  in 
1894  under  the  auspices  of  the  famous  Japa- 
nese naval  officer  and  statesman,  Viscount 
Enomoto,  backed  up  by  such  capitalists  as 
Messrs.  I.  Arai  and  G.  Watanabe,  the  concern 
did  not  experience  much  activity  until  the 
completion  of  its  plant  in  1S97.  Five 
years  later  the  company  pm-chased  the  prop- 
erty of  the  Ishikawa  Shipbuilding  Company 
in  the  neighbourhood,  which  greatly  extended 
its  capacity.  The  progress  of  the  Uraga 
Dock  Company,  however,  was  slow  until 
taken  in  hand  by  its  present  president,  Mr. 
T.  Machida,  with  the  skilled  assistance  of 
Mr.  Tomizo  I  to,  the  present  manager.  Ac- 
cepting office  in  191 1,  Mr.  Machida  at  once 
set  about  overcoming  the  various  difficulties 
in  the  way  of  further  activity,  when  the  situ- 
ation soon  improved.  The  scarcity  of  bot- 
toms caused  by  the  war  in  Europe  reacted 
enormously  in  favour  of  the  Uraga  Dock 
Companj',  as  many  orders  were  received  for 
the  construction  of  new  steamers,  and  the 
business  of  the  company  began  to  forge 
ahead  with  remarkable  rapidity.  An  exten- 
sion of  works  and  enlargement  of  capacity 
for  construction  at  once  became  necessary, 
and  at  present  the  company  is  one  of  the  most 
successfvd  and  prosperous  shipbuilding  con- 
cerns in  the  Empire. 

In  1916  the  Uraga  Dock  Company  built 
five  vessels  of  3,500  tons  each,  and  two  of 
6,500  tons  each ;  and  the  yards  now  have 
under  waj-  the  construction  of  ten  vessels, 
of  which  five  are  to  be  of  over  10,000  tons 
each,  and  one  of  over  8,000  tons;  and  there 


appears  everj'  prospect  of  further  orders. 
The  two  magnificent  drv-  docks  and  five 
building  slips  of  the  company  provide  every 
facility  for  the  latmching  and  repairing  of 
vessels  of  considerable  size,  the  largest 
graving  dock  being  able  to  accommodate 
ships  of  8,000  tons  and  500  feet  in  length, 
while  the  smaller  dock  receives  vessels  up  to 
450  feet  in  length.  There  is  every  provision 
for  the  repairing  of  over  200  ships  a  year, 
and  the  average  for  some  time  has  been  over 
100  ships  a  year.  Two  of  the  construction 
slips  have  a  capacity  for  vessels  of  over 
10,000  tons,  and  three  slips  can  launch  hulls 
of  over  6,500  tons.  The  company  at  present 
has  a  building  capacity  of  about  ten  steamers 
annually. 

To  go  fully  into  the  details  of  the  Uraga 
Dock  Company's  fine  equipment  for  turning 
out  ships  of  the  best  class  would  fill  more 
space  than  is  at  the  disposal  of  this  notice, 
but  it  may  be  mentioned  that  the  main  plant 
covers  some  eight  acres  of  ground  and  the 
branch  plant  considerably  more.  Number  i 
graving  dock  is  70  feet  wide  at  the  top  and 
60  at  the  bottom,  with  a  length  over  all  of 
500  feet  and  on  blocks  of  485  feet.  Number  2 
dock  has  a  width  at  the  top  of  66  feet  and 
54  below,  the  total  length  above  being  459 
feet;  and  on  the  blocks,  413  feet.  Both 
docks  are  built  of  brick  and  stone,  and  have 
a  depth  of  27  feet  of  water  at  high  tide  in 
Number  i  dock,  and  over  15  feet  in  Number  2 
dock.  The  time  required  for  displacement 
of  water  in  Number  i  dock  is  3  hours;  for 
Number  2  dock,  2  hours.  As  to  slips. 
Number  i  has  a  total  length  of  700  feet,  and  a 
width  of  over  50;  while.  Number  2  slip  has  a 
length  of  500  feet  and  a  width  of  over  40. 
The  slips  in  the  branch  works  have  a  length 
of  500  feet  in  both  cases,  and  a  width  of  40 


feet.  The  various  shops  for  fitting  and 
repairing,  as  well  as  the  iron  works  and 
machine  shops,  are  provided  with  the  most 
up-to-date  equipment;  and  the  company  is 
alwaj's  prepared  to  accept  and  efficient^  and 
expeditiously  execute  orders  for  either  con- 
struction or  repairs. 

The  outlook  of  the  Uraga  Dock  Company 
being  so  bright  and  the  demands  upon  its 
capacity  so  constantly  increasing,  the  man- 
agement has  decided  on  an  expansion  of 
capital,  issuing  84,000  new  shares  represent- 
ing a  value  of  4,200,000  yen,  which  brings 
the  total  capital  of  the  companj-  up  to 
5,000,000  yen.  Thus  provided  with  more 
ample  financial  resources,  the  company  will 
easily  redeem  its  old  obligations  and  be  able 
to  enlarge  its  plant  sufficiently  to  build 
larger  ships  and  with  greater  expedition. 

SHIPPING 

THE  NIPPON  YUSEN  KAISH.\ 
The  Nippon  Yusen  Kaisha,  or  Japan  Mail 
Steamship  Company,  is  one  of  the  great 
enterprises  of  which  the  Japanese  are  justly 
proud,  because  it  represents  all  that  is  best 
and  grandest  in  their  fine  mercantile  marine. 
Indeed,  the  Nippon  Yusen  Kaisha  must  rank 
among  the  greatest  of  the  world's  merchant 
shipping  concerns,  possessing  as  it  does  a 
fleet  of  over  a  hundred  ships  with  a  total 
gross  tonnage  of  470,000,  which  has  carried 
its  flag  into  every  port  of  importance  now 
open  to  foreign  traffic. 

This  great  organisation,  like  most  others  in 
Japan,  had  a  humble  beginning.  It  was  es- 
tabhshed  in  1885  as  a  result  of  the  amal- 
gamation of  two  concerns,  namely,  the  Kyodo 
Unyu  Kaisha  (the  Union  Transport  Co.)  and 
the  Mitsu-bishi  Kaisha  (the  Three  Diamonds 
Co.).     The  capital  of  the  company  was  then 


P  R  K  S  E  N  T  -  n  A  V        I   M    I'  R  !•;  S  S  I  O  N  S        OF        JAPAN 


185 


DOCK    company's    SHIPHIII.DING    VAKI) 


Yen  1 1 ,000,000  and  the  combined  fleet  com- 
prised fifty-eight  steamers  representing  a 
total  of  68,700  tons,  most  of  them  being 
small  craft,  in  no  way  comparable  to  the 
magnificent  ocean  steamers  now  included  in 
the  fleet  of  a  hundred  ships.  The  Nippon 
Yusen  Kaisha  at  first  confined  itself  to  the 
Japanese  coastal  trade,  but  gradually  extend- 
ed its  operations  to  Korea,  North  China,  and 
Vladivostock.  Its  regular  first  ocean  service 
was  inaugurated  in  1893  when  ships  were 
despatched  to  and  from  Bombay,  a  move- 
ment which  has  since  materially  helped  the 
growth  of  the  cotton  manufacturing  industry 
in  Japan.  The  China- Japan  War  in  1894- 
1896,  and  the  Government's  promulgation 
of  the  Navigation  Encouragement  Law  in 
1896,  gave  a  marked  impetus  to  maritime 
enterprise  in  Japan.  The  N.  Y.  K.  was 
among  the  first  of  the  companies  to  claim  the 
support  of  the  Government  under  the  new 
law,  and  at  once  extended  its  activities  in 
foreign  waters.  Ten  new  steamers  were 
ordered  to  be  built  abroad  and  in  Japan,  and 
for  this  purpose  the  capital  of  the  company 
was  increased  to  Yen  22,000,000.  Three 
main  lines  of  passenger  and  freight  service 
were  opened,  namely,  a  European,  an 
American,  and  an  Australian  line,  all  the 
steamers  on  these  services  running  under 
mail  contract  with  the  Japanese  Govern- 
ment. 

During  the  decade  following  the  China- 
Japan  War,  the  business  of  the  Nippon 
Yusen  Kaisha  steadily  increased,  keeping 
pace  with  the  general  expansion  of  the  coun- 
try's foreign  trade.  After  the  close  of  the 
Russo-Japanese  War  in  1906,  the  N.  Y.  K. 
went  in  for  a  further  wide  expansion  of  its 
ocean  services,  and  the  management  concen- 
trated  its  energies  on  giving  its  passengers 


and  treight  customers  the  best  that  could 
possibly  be  given  in  the  way  of  accommo- 
dation, comfort,  and  fast  passages.  The 
line  to  Calcutta  was  opened  in  1 9 1 1 ,  and  the 
service  thus  provided  has  done  much  to 
promote  Indo-Japanese  trade.  The  out- 
break of  the  great  war  placed  enormous 
difficulties  in  the  way  of  all  shipping  com- 
panies, but  notwithstanding  these  difficulties 
and  the  dangers  with  which  traffic  in  certain 
waters  was  beset,  the  Nippon  Yusen  Kaisha 
has  not  only  maintained  its  regular  services 
but  has  reinforced  its  fleet  with  many  new 
steamers,  and  has  opened  up  additional 
freight  lines.  Thus  the  company's  extra 
freight  steamers  on  the  European  line,  now 
cross  the  Atlantic  to  New  York,  and  return 
to  Japan  via  the  Panama  Canal,  completing 
the  round-the-world  voyage.  In  1915  the 
N.  Y.  K.  doubled  its  capital  to  Yen  44,000,- 
000,  and  in  June,  19 16,  opened  a  regular 
four-weekly  freight  service  between  the  Far 
East  and  New  York  via  the  Panama  Canal, 
establishing  a  direct  waterway  communi- 
cation between  Oriental  ports  and  the  eastern 
shores  of  the  United  .States.  A  few  months 
later  a  further  development  took  place  when 
the  freight  service  with  New  Zealand  was 
initiated,  opening  up  new  trade  relations 
between  that  country  and  Japan.  To-day 
the  company's  operations  cover  almost  all 
parts  of  the  world,  including  South  America, 
to  which  ships  with  cargo  and  immigrants 
are  often  despatched. 

During  the  past  thirty  years  or  so  the 
N.  Y.  K.  has  on  several  occasions  been  able 
to  render  signal  services  to  the  Japanese 
Empire  through  the  agency  of  its  organi- 
sation and  its  magnificent  fleet.  During  the 
two  wars  of  1894  and  1904,  and  again  in  19 14 
at    Tsingtao,    it    sacrificed    its    commercial 


interests  to  the  needs  of  the  nation,  and  well 
deserved  the  thanks  tendered  to  it  by  the 
Government.  In  the  campaign  against 
Tsingtao  the  N.  Y.  K.  successfully  performed 
the  task  of  transporting  the  major  portion 
of  the  armies,  with  all  their  stores  and  equip- 
ment, to  and  from  the  front.  .Since  the  year 
1905  the  Nippon  Yusen  Kaisha,  in  addition 
to  numerous  steamers  for  its  coastal  services, 
has  had  the  following  vessels  designed  and 
built  for  its  various  foreign  services: 

6  ships  Kama  Maru  type,  of   8,000  tons 
each. 

2  ships  Katori  Maru  type,  of  10,000  tons 
each. 

3  ships  Fusliiini  Mani  type,  of  12,000  tons 
each. 

14  ships  Toyama  Maru  type,  of  7,000  tons 
each. 

These  ships,  and  others  now  in  course  of 
construction,  give  the  company  an  entirely 
modern  fleet  of  one  hundred  vessels  of  over 
470,000  gross  tonnage — a  remarkable  stride 
since  the  establishment  of  the  company. 
Such  an  achievement  has  only  been  possible 
under  the  most  capable  management  and 
direction.  In  this  respect  the  N.  Y.  K.  is  to 
be  congratulated  on  its  officers  and  staflf. 
It  has  had  three  able  presidents.  First,  the 
late  Baron  M.  Morioka,  who  was  elected  as 
President  on  the  company's  formation,  and 
who  held  office  until  1894  when  he  retired; 
second,  the  late  Mr.  T.  Yoshikawa,  who  suc- 
ceeded Baron  Morioka,  and  died  in  1893 
while  holding  office,  and  thirdly,  the  present 
President,  Baron  R.  Kondo,  who  was  at  once 
elected  to  the  chair  on  the  death  of  Mr. 
Yoshikawa,  and  was  reelected  in  1907  when 
his  first  term  had  expired. 


'«?"^^r--r-'^;r^^'"~c -^.  ^  «»^^.^«.v.  ^.  ^ 


iii 


"       1 

J 

.•:    _  _ 

ISEE  PAGE  182] 


ISHIKAWAJIMA    SHIPBUILDING    AND    ENGINEERING    CO.,    LTD.:      THE    M.^CHINE    SHOPS    AND    DOCKYARD 


NISSHIN    KISliN    KAISHA      (JAPAN-CHINA    STEAMSHIP   CO.):      S.    S.    "SIANGYUANG    MARU"  — SCENE    ON    THE    POOTUNG    WHARF, 

SHANGHAI GODOWN    AT   HANKOW 


1 88 


P  R  E  S  I-    N  T  -  I)  A  \ 


I   M    P  R  !•;  S  S  I  ()  N  S 


O  F 


J  A  P  A  N 


THK    JAPAN-CHINA    STEAMSHIP 
COMPANY 

The  Nisshin  Kisen  Kaisha,  or  Jajjan- 
China  Steamship  Company,  as  the  name 
signifies,  confines  its  operations  to  the  waters 
of  Japan  and  China,  in  contrast  to  the  other 
national  companies  which  run  Hnes  to  Europe, 
America,  and  Australia.  The  Nisshin  Kisen 
Kaislia  was  formed  ten  years  ago  by  amal- 
gamating the  Yangtsze-Kian  lines  of  the 
Nippon  Yusen  Kaisha  and  Osaka  Shosen 
Kaisha,  the  Hunan  and  the  Daito  S.  S.  Com- 
panies, in  order  to  meet  the  increasing  demand 
for  improved  facilities  in  freight  and  passen- 
ger traffic  between  Japan,  China,  and  the 
upper  reaches  of  the  great  Yangtsze  River. 
The  Nisshin  Kisen  Kaisha  has  a  paid-up 
capital  of  8,100,000  yen,  a  reser\-e  fund  of 
2i993,ooo  yen  and  a  fleet  of  fifteen  fine 
steamers  aggregating  a  tonnage  of  45,000, 
the  business  at  present  jdelding  an  annual 
dividend  of  twelve  per  cent.  The  head 
office  of  the  company  is  at  Yuraka-cho, 
Kojimachi-ku,  Tokyo,  with  branch  offices  at 
Shanghai,  Hankow,  Chinkiang,  Wuhu,  Kiu- 
kiang,  Changsha,  Ichang,  and  Chunking. 
Regular  agencies  have  been  established  at 
Nanking,  Yochow,  Siangtan,  Changteh,  and 
vShasi. 

The  Nisshin  Kisen  Kaisha  maintains  five 
lines  of  steamers  plj'ing  in  the  waters  of 
China.  Some  of  the  finest  and  most  com- 
modious boats  are  on  the  Shanghai-Hankow 
line,  navigating  the  vast  reaches  of  the  lower 
Yangtsze.  The  nine  vessels  on  this  line 
maintain  a  regular  service  five  times  a  week 
with  terminus  at  Hankow,  where  close  con- 
nections are  made  with  the  lines  branching 
off  to  other  great  centres  of  Chinese  trade 
and  industry.  Descending  the  Whanpoo 
River  from  the  port  of  embarkation,  the 
vessels  of  this  line  soon  join  the  main  stream 
of  the  Yangtsze  on  the  way  to  Hankow  by 
way  of  Chinkiang  and  intermediate  ports.  A 
further  service  is  maintained  on  the  Shanghai- 
Ichang  line,  the  Hankow-Ichang  line,  the 
Hankow-Siantang  line,  the  Hankow-Chanteh 
line,  and  the  Poyang  Lake  line.  Under 
special  arrangements  with  the  Nippon  Yusen 
Kaisha  and  the  Osaka  Shosen  Kaisha  passen- 
gers may  transfer  from  the  steamers  of  the 
Nisshin  Kisen  Kaisha  and  proceed  to  ports 
served  by  these  lines. 

In  Shanghai  three  vessels  of  the  Nisshin 
Kisen  Kaisha  moor  at  the  same  pier  as  those 
of  the  Nippon  Yusen  Kaisha,  while  the  rest  of 
the  fleet  for  Hankow  may  be  found  at  the 
company's  own  wharf  across  the  river  at 
Pootung.  As  the  boats  of  the  Nisshin  Kisen 
Kaisha  always  sail  at  midnight  passengers 
have  to  go  on  board  the  previous  evening. 
A  launch  runs  every  hour  from  the  Shanghai 
pier  for  the  convenience  of  those  embarking  at 


Pootung.  Those  desiring  to  see  the  most 
interesting  portions  of  old  China  with  con- 
venience and  up-to-date  comforts  can  not  do 
better  than  take  the  boats  of  the  Nisshin 
Kisen  Kaisha  from  Shanghai  and  proceed  up 
the  Yangtsze,  connecting  with  the  various 
other  lines  at  Hankow  and  reaching  by  the 
way  such  ancient  cities  as  Chinkiang,  with  its 
densely  crowded  streets  and  picturesque 
civilisation,  situated  on  the  southern  bank  of 
the  river  about  165  miles  above  the  port  of 
departure.  Here  the  grand  canal  constructed 
during  the  Sui  dynasty  joins  the  river, 
at  one  time  the  main  waterway  between 
Chinkiang,  Tientsin,  Soochow,  and  Hang- 
chow.  Chinkiang  is  not  only  one  of  the 
principal  emporiums  of  trade  on  China's 
greatest  river,  but  possesses  many  ancient 
temples  and  other  structures  of  more  than 
ordinary  historic  interest.  Next  the  com- 
pany's boats  arrive  at  Nanking,  the  ancient 
capital  of  China,  some  212  miles  from  Shang- 
hai. Nanking  was  long  the  seat  of  govern- 
ment under  the  Ming  emperors,  and  the 
colossal  walls  they  constructed,  40  to  90  feet 
high  and  22  miles  in  circumference,  still  stand 
to  attract  the  keen  attention  of  every  traveller. 
Having  been  the  national  capital  for  so  many 
centuries  Nanking  has  many  interesting 
places  and  buildings,  while  the  celebrated 
Ming  tombs  are  not  far  away.  Some  fifty 
miles  farther  up  the  river  one  comes  to  Wuhu, 
with  its  pretty  environs  of  undulating  hills, 
its  quaint  street  scenes,  and  its  famous  rice 
market.  Here  connections  may  be  made 
with  Luchow  and  other  important  centres. 
The  boat  next  calls  at  Kiukiang,  444  miles 
above  Shanghai,  one  of  the  chief  tea  markets 
of  China,  and  also  a  famous  centre  of  the 
porcelain  market,  the  latter  being  the  finest 
made  in  China.  From  here  the  traveller 
may  take  a  trip  to  Kuling,  one  of  the  most 
attractive  summer  resorts  in  China,  with 
bracing  atmosphere  and  splendid  natural 
scenery.  Finally  the  steamer  moors  at  the 
Hankow  pier,  after  a  trip  of  600  miles  from 
Shanghai,  the  fine  city  of  Wuchang  being 
directly  opposite.  Hankow  is  the  great 
metropolis  of  central  China  whence  trade 
branches  out  into  all  the  famous  nine  pro- 
vinces, and  is  destined  one  day  to  become 
the  Chicago  of  the  Far  East,  the  population 
being  already  nearly  one  million.  The  foreign 
settlement  at  Hankow  is  pleasantly  situated 
on  an  expansive  area  a  little  to  the  south  of 
the  native  city,  running  some  five  miles  along 
the  river  front. 

From  Hankow  the  traveller  may  take  any 
of  the  other  Nisshin  Kisen  Kaisha  lines  to  the 
many  important  centres  of  trade  and  popula- 
tion that  lie  along  the  higher  regions  of  the 
Yangtsze.  Starting  for  Ichang  the  boat  calls 
at  Yochow  at  the  entrance  to  Lake  Tunting, 


one  of  the  finest  and  most  picturesque  inland 
sheets  of  water  in  China,  sixty  miles  long 
and  thirty  wide.  The  home  of  numerous 
mandarins  and  the  Commissioner  of  Maritime 
Customs,  Yochow  is  a  pleasant  place  to  stop 
over,  having  enough  places  of  antiquarian 
interest  to  occupy  all  the  time  at  one's  dis- 
posal. Some  seventy  miles  farther  on  the 
boat  arrives  at  Shasi,  another  interesting 
place;  and  then,  after  a  voyage  of  387  miles 
from  Hankow,  the  city  of  Ichang  is  reached, 
with  its  commodious  w'harves  and  great  walls 
and  well-placed  foreign  settlement.  The 
scenery  around  Ichang  is  ver\'  beautiful, 
with  magnificent  green  hills  rising  in  every 
direction;  and  some  five  miles  away  is  the 
noted  gorge  where  the  river  narrows  between 
precipitous  clififs  to  about  four  hundred  yards, 
and  affords  one  of  the  most  picturesque,boat 
trips  imaginable.  It  is  really  equal  to  any- 
thing on  the  Rhine  or  the  Hudson.  Proceed- 
ing up  the  Siangkiang  River  from  Lake 
Tunting  the  boat  arrives  at  the  fine  old  city  of 
Changsha,  said  to  be  one  of  the  cleanest  cities 
of  China,  with  many  interesting  sights  and  a 
population  of  over  half  a  million.  About  18 
miles  farther  the  steamer  reaches  Siangtan,  a 
great  distributing  centre  for  rice,  tea,  and  coal. 

To  reach  the  interesting  old  city  of  Chang, 
teh  one  must  take  the  boat  from  Hankow- 
proceeding  up  the  Yuen  River,  the  place 
being  a  centre  of  vegetable  oil  industry. 
Soochow,  the  Venice  of  the  Orient,  is  also  a 
place  of  noted  scenes,  and  famous  for  its 
exquisite  silks  and  brocades.  One  may  also 
visit  Hangchow,  said  to  be  the  prettiest  city 
in  China,  and  the  provincial  capital  of  Cheki- 
ang.  It  is  a  trip  of  not  more  than  113  miles 
from  Shanghai  and  should  not  be  omitted  by 
any  one  who  desires  to  see  the  best  part  of 
the  country.  Not  very  far  from  Hangchow 
the  famous  tidal  bore  is  to  be  seen,  considered 
one  of  the  wonders  of  the  world.  The  best 
time  to  witness  it  is  at  the  time  of  the 
autumn  equinox,  two  days  after  full   moon. 

It  will  thus  be  seen  that  the  steamers  of  the 
Nisshin  Kjsen  Kaisha  afford  every  accom- 
modation for  seeing  the  most  accessible  and 
interesting  portions  of  ancient  China  at 
reasonable  expense.  The  entire  voyage  from 
Shanghai  to  Hankow  on  the  main  line  of  the 
Yangtsze  costs  no  more  than  40  Mexican 
dollars,  first  class,  and  25,  second  class,  and 
other  trips  in  proportion.  All  information 
will  be  gladly  supplied  and  tickets  arranged  by 
application  to  any  of  the  company's  offices. 

THE  TOYO  KISEN  KAISHA 
Though  among  the  youngest  of  Japan's 
great  steamship  companies,  having  been 
founded  only  in  1896,  the  Toyo  Kisen  Kaisha, 
or  Oriental  Steamship  Company,  has  made  a 
remarkable  record  of  progress  and  efficiency. 


Li#- 


'JJJJJJJJ^. 


^ 


TOVO    KISEN    KAISHA,    LTD.;      S.  S.  "TENYO    MARU"  LEAVING    WHARF    AT    YOKOHAMA  —  HEAD    OFFICE    AT   TOKYO — "S1DERL\    MARU,"  20,000 
TONS — "KOREA   MARU,"   20,000   TONS — "SHINYO   MARU,"    22,000   TONS,    SISTER   SHIP  OF   "XENYO  MARU" 


I90 


P  R  E  S  E  N  T  -  D  A  V        IMPRESSIONS        OF        JAPAN 


(Jn  a  capital  of  32,500,000  yen  the  Toyo 
Kisen  Kaisha  runs  two  trans-Pacific  lines: 
one  to  the  United  States  and  the  other 
to  South  America.  The  North  American 
line  maintains  a  fortnightly  service  between 
Japanese  ports,  Honolulu,  and  San  Fran- 
cisco on  the  one  hand,  and  Shanghai,  Manila, 
and  Hongkong  on  the  other.  The  eight 
magnificent  boats  on  this  service  have 
earned  a  well-de.served  reputation  for  com- 
fort, speed,  and  punctuality,  forming  one  of 
the  most  popular  lines  between  America  and 
the  Orient.  Indeed,  on  any  of  the  com- 
pany's ships  passages  usually  have  to  be 
engaged  long  beforehand  if  passengers  are 
to  avoid  inconvenience  as  to  dates  of  sailing. 

The  larger  ships  of  the  Toyo  Kisen  Kaisha, 
such  as  the  Tenyo  Maru  and  the  Shinyo 
Maru,  were  built  in  the  Mitsu  Bishi  yards 
at  Nagasaki,  have  a  displacement  of  22,000 
tons,  a  speed  of  over  21  knots  an  hour,  and 
are  among  the  finest  boats  crossing  the 
Pacific,  being  fitted  with  turbine  engines, 
consuming  liquid  fuel,  and  possessing  all  the 
up-to-date  appointments  of  the  famous 
Atlantic  liners.  The  vessels  are  570  feet 
long,  63  feet  beam,  and  can  carry  261  first 
class  and  73  second  class,  as  well  as  742 
steerage  passengers.  Three  spacious  decks 
afford  4,000  feet  of  promenade  area,  while 
the  cabins  are  of  liberal  dimensions,  the 
dining  saloon  and  ladies'  parlour  being 
beautifully  decorated  and  of  ample  propor- 
tions. The  lounge,  library,  and  smoking 
rooms  are  also  artistically  finished  and  well 
adapted  to  their  purposes.  Indeed,  every 
modem  device  for  the  comfort  and  safety  of 
passengers  has  been  employed  in  the  con- 
struction of  these  palatial  steamers,  repre- 
senting, as  they  do,  not  only  the  highest 
expression  of  the  shipbuilder's  art  in  material, 
construction,  and  stability,  but  providing 
that  splendour,  ease,  and  space  that  travellers 
nearly  always  appreciate.  These  vessels 
have  been  built  in  conformity  with  Lloyd's 
exacting  requirements  and  the  equally 
stringent  regulations  of  the  Japanese  Govern- 
ment. The  other  four  vessels  of  the  com- 
pany's American  line  are  all  over  8,800  and 
up  to  20,000  tons  displacement,  and  make 
speedy  voyages  with  every  convenience  that 
the  most  fastidious  traveller  can  require. 
Of  all  the  steamers  leaving  the  Golden  Gate 
bearing  the  tourist  westward  over  the  vast 
Pacific,  none  are  more  palatial,  safer,  or 
more  fleet  than  those  of  the  Toyo  Kisen 
Kaisha. 

The  enterprise  of  the  Oriental  Steamship 
Company',  however,  is  not  limited  to  pro- 
viding fast  and  luxurious  ser\dce  between 
the  United  States  and  the  Far  East,  as  the 
company  has  also  a  fine  line  of  steamers 
plying  between  Japan,  Hongkong,  and  South 


America,  a  venture  that  began  when  the 
Toyo  Kisen  Kaisha  was  a  pioneer  in  this 
direction,  but  which  has  been  attended  by 
signal  success.  The  vessels  of  the  South 
American  line,  three  in  number,  are  from 
14,000  to  18,000  tons  displacement,  and  run 
regularly  between  points  in  Japan  and  Hong- 
kong, via  Honolulu,  Hilo,  San  Franci.sco,  Los 
Angeles,  Salinas  Cruz,  Panama,  Callao,  Iqui- 
que,  and  Valparaiso.  This  line  affords  the 
only  direct  service  between  the  Orient  and 
South  America  via  San  Francisco.  The 
company  has  in  addition  a  fine  service  of 
tank  steamers,  carrying  oil  from  California 
to  Japan  and  the  Far  East. 

The  president  of  the  Toyo  Kisen  Kaisha 
is  Mr.  Soichiro  Asano,  a  gentleman  of  great 
personality,  originality,  and  achievement,  to 
whom  the  company  owes  much  of  its  remark- 
able success.  Though  associated  with  sev- 
eral other  important  national  enterprises, 
Mr.  Asano  seems  never  too  busy  to  take  a 
keen  and  personal  interest  in  the  passengers 
travelling  by  the  Toyo  Kisen  Kaisha,  often 
inviting  them  in  parties  to  his  magnificent 
residence  in  Tokyo  and  making  their  first 
visit  to  Japan  one  of  warm  welcome.  Two 
of  his  able  assistants  are  Mr.  R.  Asano,  a 
graduate  of  Harvard  University,  and  Mr. 
Nakashima,  at  the  head  office  of  the  company 
in  Yokohama.  The  Toyo  Kisen  Kaisha  has 
reaped  a  great  harvest  during  the  war  and 
is  now  promoting  hotel  enterprises,  having 
purchased  and  reconstructed  the  Oriental 
Hotel  at  Kobe,  for  the  comfort  and  accom- 
modation of  travellers  to  the  Far  East. 

THE    YAMASHITA    KISEN    KABUSHIKI 

KAISHA   (yAMASHITA  STEAMSHIP 

COMPANY,    limited) 

This  company,  whose  history  is  one  of 
rapid  expansion,  covers  a  wide  range  of 
activities.  Beside  the  shipping  business  it  is 
conducting  a  general  brokerage  and  mer- 
cantile agency,  trading  in  fuel,  directing 
mining  and  dock  operations,  and  in  other 
ways  stimulating  and  developing  the  indus- 
trial and  business  energies  of  the  Empire. 
The  capital  of  the  company  amounts  to  Yen 
10,000,000  and  the  Board  of  Directors  com- 
prises the  following:  President,  Mr.  K. 
Yamashita;  Vice-President,  Mr.  K.  Matsuki 
(late  President  of  the  Tokyo  Municipal  Elec- 
tric Bureau  and  Director  of  the  Imperial 
Board  of  Railways);  Managing  Directors, 
Messrs.  M.  Itani  and  S.  Hata;  Director, 
Mr.  B.  Hayayashi,  and  Auditor,  Mr.  T. 
Machida,  President  of  the  Uraga  Dock 
Company. 

The  Yamashita  Company  originated  with 
Mr.  K.  Yamashita,  who  founded  the  business 
in  1 894  at  which  time  he  was  Manager  of  the 
Yokohama  Coal  Company.     Mr.  Yamashita 


was  conspicuously  successful,  and  his  business 
having  developed  to  embrace  other  lines  of 
trade,  he  rapidly  added  one  department  after 
another  to  his  activities.  He  opened  a 
shipping  and  forwarding  business  in  1903 
with  the  S.  S.  Kisagata  Maru.  Eight  years 
later  he  formed  a  partnership  and  instituted 
the  Yamashita  Steamship  Company,  which 
in  the  following  year  (1912)  took  over  the 
Nippon  Shosen  Kwaisha,  a  steamship  com- 
pany with  several  vessels.  This  step  gave 
the  Yamashita  Company  a  foremost  place  in 
the  shipping  industry,  and  started  it  on  its 
real  career  of  prosperity,  the  concern  being 
noted  already  before  the  present  world  war 
as  one  of  the  leaders  in  Japan's  mercantile 
marine.  In  May,  191 7,  the  company  was 
reorganised  as  the  Yamashita  Kisen  Kabus- 
hiki  Kaisha,  a  limited  liability  corporation 
controlling  enormous  interests. 

The  company's  regular  fleet  is  as  follows: 
Teikoku  Maru,  Itsukushima  Maru,  Biiyo 
Maru,  Bushu  Maru,  Asahi  Maru,  Otaru 
Maru  2nd,  Otaru  Maru  3rd,  Echigo  Maru, 
Togo  Maru,  Akebono  Maru,  Toyotomi  Maru, 
Doyo  Maru,  Sodegaura  Maru,  Yoshida  Maru 
1st,  and  Yoshida  Maru  2nd.  These  vessels, 
with  three  others  which  are  nearing  com- 
pletion, give  the  company  a  gross  tonnage  of 
60,276,  and  a  deadweight  carrying  capac- 
ity of  82,729  tons.  In  addition  to  this  fleet 
the  Yamashita  Company  has  chartered  rights 
over  the  following  vessels:  Uraga  Maru, 
Rokuko  Maru,  Shokwa  Maru,  Miyo  Maru, 
Fuzan  Maru,  Kinko  Maru,  Katori  Maru, 
Toto  Maru,  Chiyoda  Maru,  Hirado  Maru, 
Toshima  Maru,  Chichibu  Maru,  Etsuyo  Maru, 
and  the  Masaki  Maru. 

The  company's  business  includes  that  of 
shipping,  forwarding,  chartering,  and  brok- 
erage, and  among  its  agencies  is  that  of  the 
London  Marine  Insurance  Co.,  handling 
ordinary  and  war-risk  insurance.  A  big 
trade  is  done  by  the  Yamashita  organisation 
in  domestic  and  foreign  fuels.  Among  the 
subsidiary  companies  directed  by  the  Yama- 
shita combine  are  the  Yamashita  Sekitan 
Kabushiki  Kaisha  (Yamashita  Coal  Co.,  Ltd.), 
capital  Yen  1,000,000;  Fukushima  Tanko 
Kabushiki  Kaisha  (Fukushima  Coal  Mining 
Co.,  Ltd.);  capital  Yen  2,000,000,  and  the 
Honbetsu  Tanko  Kabushiki  Kaisha  (Hon- 
betsu  Coal  Mining  Co.,  Ltd.),  capital 
Yen  1,000,000.  The  two  coal  mines  re- 
ferred to  are  now  set  in  working  order  and 
they  are  expected  within  a  year  or  two  to 
have  an  annual  total  output  of  600,000  tons 
of  coal.  In  order  to  govern  these  various 
enterprises  Mr.  Yamashita  formed  the 
Yamashita  Gomei  Kaisha,  an  investing 
organisation. 

Mr.  Yamashita  intends  to  take  a  big  step 
in  the  marine  insurance  business  by  accepting 


-.W'gy.'^ 


^^PC>r^  = 


■h,      M.I     IF" 


aL- 


vii/ 


\ 


r-1-.i 


Vi! 


~i 


!^ 


,li:::-.- 


^^^ 


■^ 


./a^^'^'^'^^:^^^:^''^'^ 


YAMASHITA    KISEN    KABUSHIKI    KAISHA:      THE    NEW    BRANCH    OFFICES    AT    TOKYO — S.    S.    "YOSHIDA    MARU' 


192 


I'  K  R  S  E  N  T  -   1)  A  \'        IMPRESSIONS        OF        JAPAN 


one-quartor  of  the  shares  in  the  Fuso  Marine 
Insurance  Company,  which  is  expected  any 
moment  to  be  estabhshed  under  his  auspices 
with  a  capital  of  Yen  10,000,000.  The  great 
Yamashita  Company  is  also  deeply  inter- 
ested in  shipbuilding,  having  bought  up  a 
large  number  of  shares  in  the  Uraga  Dock 
Company.  It  is  fiu"ther  intended  to  open 
up  iron  and  steel  works,  so  it  may  be  seen  to 
what  an  important  and  varied  extent  the 
Yamashita  concern  is  interested  in  general 
affairs,  and  how  rapid  and  substantial  has 
been  its  development.  The  head  office  of 
the  company  is  at  47  Nichome,  Sakae-michi, 
Kob^.  Branches  are  maintained  at  37  It- 
chome,  Kitajimacho,  Nihonbashi-ku,  Tokyo, 
and  at  31 14  Yo-chome,  Higashi  Honmachi, 
Moji.  Agencies  of  the  Yamashita  Kisen 
Kabushiki  Kaisha  exist  at  London,  New 
York,  Seattle,  San  Francisco,  Honolulu, 
Shanghai,  Hongkong,  Singapore,  Penang, 
Colombo,  Bombay,  Port  Said,  and  Sydney 
(Australia). 
(See  also  page  732.) 

KABUSHIKI  KAISHA  SHOSHO-YOKO 
This  concern  is  one  of  those  remarkable 
developments  of  the  past  two  decades  in 
Japanese  commerce  and  industr)',  and 
already  large  and  important  though  it  is, 
it  is  certain  to  play  an  even  yet  more  impor- 
tant part  in  the  economic  life  of  Japan  in 
the  not  distant  future.  The  Shosho-Yoko 
has  far  outgrown  many  similar  businesses, 
and  its  operations  are  widespread  and  varied, 
covering  a  whole  range  of  industrial  and  com- 
mercial activity,  not  only  in  Japan,  but  in 
China,  and  farther  afield. 

The  Shosho-Yoko  was  originally  estab- 
lished in  1889  by  the  late  Mr.  H.  Shimomura, 
the  founder  of  the  Hokkaido  Colliery  and 
Railway  Company,  who  was  renowned  as 
one  of  the  most  enterprising  business  men  of 
his  day  in  Japan.  Mr.  Shimomura  was  the 
pioneer  of  the  export  of  Japanese  hardwood 
sleepers  from  Hokkaido  to  North  China  at  the 
time  when  that  territory  was  being  developed 
by  railways.  In  fact  this  was  the  first  pur- 
pose of  the  concern,  and  as  an  experiment  it 
was  watched  with  great  interest,  and  its  suc- 
cess directed  attention  to  the  enterprise  of  the 
Shosho-Yoko.  It  was  in  1894  that  Mr.  T. 
Yamamoto,  the  present  principal  of  the  com- 
pany, entered  the  service  of  the  Shosho-Yoko 
as  manager  of  the  office  at  Tientsin.  Mr. 
Yamamoto  was  only  twenty-two  years  of  age 
at  the  time,  and  was  fresh  from  the  Agri- 
cultural College  at  Sapporo,  Hokkaido,  when 
he  entered  upon  a  business  career  which  has 
been  conspicuously  brilliant.  He  showed 
himself  to  be  a  man  of  extraordinary  business 
capacity  and  energy,  and  under  his  manage- 
ment the  Shosho-Yoko  grew  from  a  compara- 


tively small  firm  into  a  great  enterprise.  Mr. 
Shimomura  retired,  and  Mr.  Yamamoto  took 
entire  charge  of  the  business,  expanding  it  in 
all  directions.  At  present  it  is  registered  as  a 
limited  company  with  a  capital  of  5,000,000 
yen,  l)Ut  its  annual  business  transactions 
embrace  a  sum  of  nearly  fifty  million  yen. 
The  oijerations  of  the  Shosho-Yoko  are  con- 
ducted under  four  departments,  viz..  Timber, 
Coal,  Shipping,  and  Shipbuilding.  The  Ship- 
ping Department  has,  since  the  outbreak  of 
the  war,  been  enormously  enlarged. 

The  Shosho-Yoko  has  the  distinction  of 
having  introduced  the  Kaiping  coal  to  Japan. 
This  operaition  resulted  from  a  trial  shipment 
some  eight  years  ago  when  one  of  the  com- 
pany's steamers  carrying  timber  from  Hok- 
kaido to  China,  returned  with  a  trial  ship- 
ment of  coal,  and  demonstrated  its  true  value 
for  steam  and  general  purposes,  particularly 
for  gas  making  and  for  smelting  coke,  for 
which  latter  purpose  it  exceeds  in  value  the 
best  Japanese  coal.  The  Shosho-Yoko  is  now 
sole  sales  agent  in  Japan  for  the  Kailan 
Mining  Administration  which  operates  the 
enormous  coal  fields  of  Kaiping  territory. 
This  enterprise  of  the  Shosho-Yoko,  like  the 
original  experiment  of  shipping  Japanese 
hardwood  to  China,  was  regarded  as  a  foolish 
move,  in  view  of  Japan's  own  great  coal-pro- 
ducing capacity,  and  the  result  of  the  trial 
shipments  was  watched  with  much  interest. 
When  its  success  was  seen,  the  energy  and 
foresight  of  Mr.  Yamamoto  and  his  company 
received  another  great  advertisement.  The 
success  of  the  move  may  be  gathered  from  the 
fact  that  now  over  600,000  tons  of  Kaiping 
coal  are  annually  imported  to  Japan.  Con- 
tinuing a  progressive  policy  the  Shosho-Yoko 
purchased  its  own  collieries  in  Japan,  taking 
over  the  Koyanose  Colliery  Company  at  the 
end  of  191 6  and  purchasing  the  Fukuoka 
coal  mines  at  Kyushu  early  in  1917.  A  vig- 
ourous  development  policy  was  put  in  force 
and  these  collieries  are  now  turning  out  20,000 
tons  of  the  best  quality  coal  per  month.  New 
shafts  are  being  sunk  and  it  is  expected  that 
the  output  from  the  Fukuoka  mines  alone 
will  be  raised  to  700,000  tons  per  annum. 
To  handle  this  output  the  Shosho-Yoko  has 
not  hesitated  to  spend  its  money  on  new 
wharves  and  shipping  plant.  The  company 
is  also  interested  in  the  Kanko  Mining  Com- 
pany at  Kankonando,  Chosen,  which  pro- 
duces the  only  bituminous  coal  in  the  depen- 
dency. Another  enterprise  associated  with 
the  coal-mining  interests  of  the  Shosho-Yoko 
is  the  establishment  of  a  coke  works  at 
Higashi-Kanagawa,  near  Yokohama.  This 
factory  is  now  producing  100  tons  daily  of  the 
best  quality  of  smelting  and  industrial  coke, 
for  which  the  demand  in  Japan  has  increased 
enormously  owing  to  the  rapid  expansion  of 


engineering  and  other  manufacturing  works 
of  all  classes. 

Of  the  original  operations  of  the  Shosho- 
Yoko,  the  shipment  of  Japanese  hardwood 
for  railway  and  similar  purposes,  it  need  only 
be  said  that  this  industry  has  steadily  pro- 
gressed. The  leading  buyers  are  the  Kailan 
Mining  Administration  which  use  the  com- 
pany's mining  props  exclusively,  and  the 
railways  of  North  China,  as  well"  as  the  prin- 
cipal Chinese  contractors.  Although  this 
department  of  the  Shosho-Yoko  business  does 
not  enjoy  the  same  degree  of  prosperity  as 
other  departments,  owing  to  high  freights,  it 
is  nevertheless  one  of  which  the  concern  is 
justly  proud  because  it  was  the  pioneer  of  an 
important  industry.  The  cutting  and  prep- 
aration of  timber  is  going  on  on  a  large  scale 
at  Saghalien,  Hokkaido,  and  Hoki,  and  the 
annual  sales  of  such  products  as  mining  props, 
sleepers,  round  poles,  square  logs,  etc.,  in 
China  and  Japan  aggregate  about  2,000,000 
cubic  feet. 

The  Shipping  Department  of  the  Shosho- 
Yoko  was  originally  established  for  the 
sole  pvupose  of  handling  the  timber  and  coal 
shipments,  but  upon  the  outbreak  of  the  war 
Mr.  Yamamoto,  who  is  especially  quick  to 
seize  an  opportunity,  realised  the  impending 
shortage  of  tonnage,  bought  several  ships, 
and  chartered  as  many  more  as  his  success 
allowed.  Again  it  was  considered  in  general 
business  circles  that  this  step  was  an  auda- 
cious one,  but  it  was  a  decision  not  based  on 
a  desire  for  speculation,  but  upon  the  soundest 
judgment  and  foresight.  Once  more  the 
success  of  the  Shosho-Yoko  policy  had  to  be 
admitted.  To-day  the  firm's  house-flag  with 
the  character  "Matsu"  (pine)  is  to  be  seen 
not  only  in  every  port  of  Japan  and  China, 
but  also  in  British  and  American  ports.  The 
investment  in  ships  can  not  fail  to  remain  a 
successful  one,  because  even  if  after  the  war 
freights  fall,  the  Shosho-Yoko  will  have  hun- 
dreds of  thousands  of  tons  of  its  own  products 
to  transport,  and  thus  derive  the  benefit  of 
reduced  freights  and  its  own  management  of 
the  vessels.  Of  the  Shosho-Yoko  fleet  five 
large  vessels  are  engaged  in  trading  overseas 
in  Europe,  America,  the  South  Sea  Islands, 
and  the  Pacific.  The  remaining  vessels, 
mostly  on  time  charter,  are  engaged  in  the 
Chinese  and  coastwise  traffic.  Following 
are  the  ships  owned  by  the  Shosho-Yoko: 
Daiten  Marti  (5,800  tons),  Daisai  Maru 
(4,800),  Tansan  Maru  (3,800),  Miyo  Maru 
(3,350),  No.  6  Fukusan  Maru  (1,420).  Total, 
5  vessels,  19,170  tons.  Chartered  steamers: 
Rokko  Maru  (3,600  tons),  Omuro  Maru 
(3,400),  Yesan  Maru  (4,600),  Shokwa  Maru 
(3.300),  Paling  Maru  (3,100),  Nichihoku 
Maru  (2,800),  Kinko  Maru  (2,700),  Takeshi- 
ma    Maru    (2,100),    Kfllohuki    Maru    (1,850), 


\.-. 


^x- 


:  /.\ 


--*^  -'w^^   ^^  -^  i?r1N  ^-  ^^''•^  ^--^.^   r...^ 


^ 


S.  S.  "dAITEN    MARU" — TIMBER    DEPOT,    SAGHALIEN,    SHOWING    STOCKS    OF    MINING    PROPS    AND    SLEEPERS   ON    THE    PRIVATE    RAILWAY   OF 

THE    SHOSHO    YOKO,    CONNECTING    THE     TIMBER     DEPOT     WITH     THE     SEAPORT     OF     ODOMARI — NISHISHIN    SHAFT,    FUKUOKA 

MINES,  OWNED  BY  SHOSHO  YOKO—  HEAD  OFFICES  OF  THE  GOSHI  KAISHA  SHOSHO  YOKO,  TOKYO 


J. 


e?^ 


r 


fyins 


o,,^.  j;j-.u,>!,u,;u;uvu;j4.H';u-p,vitp- 


^ 


TOKYO    SHIPPING    CO.,    LTD.:      TYPE    OF    STE.^MER    OWNED    BY    THE    COMP.\NY THE    GENER.\L    OFFICE — THE    M.\N.^GER'S    PRIV.ATE    OFFICE 


1'  R   !•;  S  E  N  T  -  I)  AY        I  M   P  R   IC  S  S  I  O  N  S        OF        J  A  I'  A  N 


195 


Taishu  Maru  (1,800),  Fuyo  Maru  (1,600), 
Yahiko  Maru  (4,000),  Miyoshino  Maru  (3,900), 
Yechigo  Maru  (3,600),  Karafuto  Maru  (3,150), 
Heiitia  Maru  (3,000),  Fudo  Maru  (2,600), 
Choko  Maru  (2,100),  Yeikn  Maru  (1,900), 
Dainichisan  Maru  (900),  Sanpeisan  Maru 
(900).    Total  21  vessels,  56,900  tons. 

The  Shosho-Yoko  has  now  organised  a 
dockyard  company  with  a  capital  of  Yen 
1,000,000,  to  construct  dry-docks  in  the 
harbour  of  Yoshiura,  and  the  work  is  being 
advanced  at  such  a  rate  as  to  warrant  the  hope 
that  in  the  course  of  a  few  months  the  yards 
will  l>e  able  to  turn  out  five  steamers  of  from 
2,000  to  3,000  tons,  and  two  vessels  of  5,000 
tons  each.  There  is  no  doubt  that  for  such  an 
undertaking  the  outlook  is  very  bright. 

From  this  recital  of  the  activities  of  the 
Shosho-Yoko  it  may  readily  be  seen  what  a 
vigourous  and  enterprising  concern  it  is,  and 
how  wide-spread  are  its  activities.  The  suc- 
cess attained  by  Mr.  Yamamoto  has  been 
most  pronounced,  and  all  the  more  con- 
spicuous because  his  efforts  have  been  di- 
rected  generally  in  new  Unes   of   enterprise. 

The  head  office  of  the  Shosho-Y'oko  is  at 


3-chome,  Ginza,  Kyobashi-ku,  Tokyo.  The 
Shipping  Department  is  at  No.  5  B,  Kaigan- 
dori,  Kobe.  It  also  has  branches  at  Tientsin, 
North  China,  Nagoya,  Osaka,  Wakamatsu, 
Imajuku,  Hakata  Bay,  Yonago,  Hoki,  Odo- 
mari,  Saghalien,  Chinwangtao,  and  Yoko- 
hama. Mr.  Yamamoto  is  Managing  Director. 
Mr.  T.  Ogawa  is  chief  of  the  Shipping  Depart- 
ment. Other  officers  of  the  Shosho-Yoko  are 
Mr.  N.  Inoh,  Manager  of  the  head  office,  and 
Mr.  I.  Mori,  General  Secretary. 

THE     TOKYO     SHIPPING     COMPANY, 
LIMITED 

A  STRIKING  instance  of  the  vigour  with 
which  Japanese  business  men  have  entered 
into  the  shipping  industry  is  fiu-nished  in  the 
case  of  the  Tokyo  Kaiun  Kabushiki  Kaisha, 
or  the  Tokyo  Shipping  Company,  Ltd.  This 
company  came  into  existence  on  June  3, 1917, 
under  the  auspices  of  Messrs.  Kiyomatsu 
Tokushima,  Nobujiro  Iguchi,  Makoto  Ogawa, 
and  Hanroku  Ota.  The  inital  capital  was 
Yen  2,000,000  which  was  quickly  subscribed. 
At  once  the  new  company  chartered  vessels, 
and   entered   upon  the  lucrative  business  of 


marine  transport,  at  the  same  time  placing 
orders  for  the  construction  of  steamers  of 
modem  design  for  deep  sea  freight  carrying, 
and  also  for  the  coastal  trade.  On  October  i , 
19 1 7,  an  amalgamation  was  effected  with  the 
Hokkai  Shipping  Company,  Ltd.,  and  the 
capital  of  the  joint  concern  was  raised  to  Yen 
2,750,000.  What  a  rapid  development  has 
taken  place  may  be  seen  from  the  state- 
ment of  the  fleet,  on  the  ne.xt  page,  now 
under   the   control   of   the   company. 

The  Tokyo  Shipping  Company,  Ltd.,  has 
also  purchased  the  Kirishimasan  Maru,  of 
7,300  tons  D.  W.,  for  delivery  on  December 
31,  1917,  and  has  under  construction  the 
vessels  shown  in  the  second  table  on  the 
next  page. 

It  can  easily  be  seen  what  energy  has  been 
displayed  by  the  new  company  during  the  few 
short  months  it  has  been  in  existence,  to 
enable  it  to  command  such  a  volume  of  ship- 
ping. The  policy  of  the  directors  is  an 
ambitious  one,  though  well  justified  by  the 
healthy  tone  which  prevails  in  Japanese  ship- 
ping circles,  and  by  the  strong  demand  that 
will  obtain,  even  when  the  war  is  over,  for 


THE    HEAD    OFFICE    OF    MESSRS.    TANIMICHI    &    CO.,    TOKYO 


196 


P  R  E  S  K  N  T  -  I)  A   \ 


IMPRESSIONS 


O  F 


.1   A  P  A  X 


shipping  space.  Mr.  Tokushima  is  the 
Managing  Director  of  the  Tokyo  Shipping  Co., 
Ltd.,  and  his  co-directors  arc  Messrs.  Iguchi, 
Ogawa,  and  Ota.  The  head  office  of  the 
company  is  at  No.  7  Hiramatsu  Cho,  Nihon- 
bashi-ku,    Tokyo. 

T.\NIMICHI    AND    COMP.\NY, 

INCORPORATED 

Messrs.  Tanimichi  &  Co.,  Inc.,  transact 
a  large  volume  of  business  as  steamship  agents 
and  ship  and  freight  brokers,  their  business 
having  expanded  considerably  since  the  great 
development  in  the  shipping  interests  of 
Japan.  The  firm  is  one  of  the  oldest  estab- 
lished concerns  in  this  line  of  activity,  having 
been  founded  in  1 889  by  the  late  Mr.  Eikitsu 
Tanimichi.  It  was  originally  a  private  con- 
cern, but  in  February,  1908,  the  business  was 
incorporated  as  the  Goshi  Kaisha  Tanimichi 
Shoten  with  a  capital  of  Yen  10,000.  The 
partners  are  Messrs.  Seinosuke  Tanimichi, 
Manager,  Kotaro  Tanimichi  and  Masao 
Nakai,  the  liability  of  the  latter  two  being 
limited,  in  accordance  with  the  law  under 
which   the  firm   was  incorporated.     Messrs 


Vessels  owned : 


Vessels  under  ch, 


Takeno  Maru 1,800  tons  D.  W. 

Tenun  Maru 910  " 

rtcr:  Taislio  Maru 4>50Q  " 

Taman  Maru 4,500  " 

Tsuru  Maru 4,250  " 

Kaga  Maru 3,450  " 

Ularu  Maru  I 3,200  " 

Kissho  Maru 3,200  " 

Kabajuto  Maru 3A50  " 

Toryo  Maru 2,850  " 

Fukuju  Maru 2,350  " 

Cliisan  Maru 2,300  " 

Mansei  Maru  II 2,250  " 

Jun  Maru 1,585  " 

Kashin  Maru 1,450  " 

Shunyo  Marti 500  " 

Kinko  Maru  V 480  " 


Tama  Maru 4,900  tons  D.  W. 

Sumida  Maru 2,000     "  " 

Ayase  Maru 1,600     "         " 

Onuma  Maru 870     "  " 

Saru  Maru 230     "  " 


Tanimichi  &  Co.,  Inc.,  have  their  head  office 
at  No.  12  Nishigashi,  Nihonbashi-ku,  Tokyo, 
and  a  branch  has  been  established  at  Kobe, 


where  the  bulk  of  the  shipping  business  is  now 
being  done.  The  cable  address  of  the  firm  is 
"Tanimichi,"  Tokyo. 


THE  BENTEN-DORI,  A  FAMOUS  SHOPPING  CENTRE  FOR  FOREIGNERS 

XII.    The  Port  of  Yokohama 

History  and  Progress— Government,  Finance,  Commerce,  and 
Industry— Commercial  Notice 


YOKOHAMA  is  the  gateway  through 
which  most  travellers  find  their  w'ay 
to  Japan.  Its  name  seems  familiar 
even  to  the  untravelled,  while  to  everj'  tourist 
it  recalls  first  impressions  of  the  Far  Eastern 
wonderland.  Approaching  the  city  from  the 
sea  it  seems  a  vast  aggregation  of  houses 
covering  the  extensive  reclaimed  foreshore, 
with  well  inhabited  hills  rising  like  sentinels  in 
the  background.  The  harbour  is  filled  with 
shipping  of  every  sort  and  nationality ;  and  on 
shore  everywhere  are  signs  of  active  indus- 
try and  trade.  This  is  the  ocean  gateway 
through  which  Japan  pours  a  great  part  of  her 
silk  and  other  merchandise  into  the  markets 
of  the  world.  The  premier  port  of  Japan  in 
volume  of  trade,  Yokohama  claims  over  40  per 
cent  of  the  nation's  total  foreign  commerce, 
and  has  a  larger  foreign  population  than  any 
other  city  in  Japan. 

Yet  sixty  years  ago  Yokohama  was  but  a 
tiny  fishing  village  on  a  marshy  beach  near  the 
town   of   Kanagawa.     When  the  Tokugaw-a 


authorities  concluded  the  first  treaties  with 
Western  powers,  opening  up  Japan  to  foreign 
trade  and  intercourse,  Hakodate,  Kanagawa, 
and  Nagasaki  were  designated  as  open  ports. 
Soon  afterward  the  French  Minister  estab- 
lished his  residence  there,  and  the  British  and 
American  consuls  were  lodged  in  temples.  A 
few  foreign  merchants  had  by  this  time  settled 
in  Kanagawa;  but,  as  the  tow-n  was  on  the 
main  highway  of  the  Empire,  the  Tokaido 
as  the  Japanese  called  it,  the  authorities 
thought  the  proximity  of  foreigners  to  the 
route  taken  by  the  great  daimyo  processions 
on  their  way  to  the  shogun's  capital  might 
engender  foreign  complications.  This  actu- 
ally did  happen  in  one  notable  case  w-hen  the 
Englishman,  Richardson,  was  attacked  and 
killed  by  the  men  of  Satsuma  because  he 
failed  to  dismount  as  their  daimyo  was  passing. 
Consequently  the  Government  deemed  it 
safer  to  have  the  foreign  settlement  at  Yoko- 
hama, although  the  treaties  definitely  desig- 
nated Kanagawa  as  the  site  of  the  open  port. 


The  foreigners,  in  the  person  of  their  consuls, 
protested  against  the  change,  on  the  ground 
that  Kanagawa  was  the  place  named  in  the 
treaties,  and  that  it  was  an  unfriendly  act  to 
banish  the  foreigners  to  the  insignificant  fish- 
ing village  of  Yokohama.  The  authorities  of 
the  shogun  were  inclined  to  heed  the  protest 
as  reasonable,  but  Midzuno,  lord  of  Chikugo, 
interfered  and  insisted  on  the  decision  of  the 
Government  being  acted  upon.  So  the 
foreign  consuls  were  duly  informed  that, 
although  the  site  selected  for  the  foreign 
settlement  was  not  exactly  in  Kanagawa,  it 
was  at  the  northern  boundary  of  the  district; 
that  if  foreigners  were  allowed  to  frequent  the 
main  highway  of  the  Empire  collisions 
between  them  and  obstinate  samurai  were 
likely  to  arise;  that  although  Yokohama  had 
no  harboiu-  it  was  a  better  site  for  the  con- 
struction of  one  than  Kanagawa,  where  the 
foreshore  was  precipitous,  and  as  Yoko- 
hama was  in  the  vicinity  of  watering 
places  like  Kamakura  and  Enoshima,  it  was 


14 


iqS 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


THE    LAW    COURTS,    YOKOHAMA 


certain  to  become  an  important  town  and  well 
suited  to  the  residence  of  foreigners.  The 
foreigners  at  first  were  not  disposed  to  fall  in 
with  the  decision  of  the  authorities,  for,  being 
not  verj"  familiar  with  Japanese  customs,  they 
supposed  that  if  they  were  cut  off  from  the 
daimyo  routes  they  would  be  deprived  of 
valuable  opportunities  of  trade  with  the 
wealthy  feudal  chieftains.  However,  at  the 
order  of  the  Government,  many  foreign 
merchants  opened  offices  in  Yokohama,  and 
the  place  soon  proved  to  be  a  much  better  site 
for  trade  than  Kanagawa. 

Those  visiting  the  large  and  flourishing  city 
that  is  now  known  as  Yokohama  can  hardly 
realise  the  vast  changes  that  have  taken 
place  since  foreigners  first  began  to  settle 
there.  From  the  spacious  and  imposing 
waterfront  of  to-day,  with  its  magnificent 
buildings,  onward  to  the  end  of  the  settle- 
ment at  Honmoku,  there  stretched  in  the  old 
days  nothing  but  a  reedy  marsh  with  heaps  of 
shells  here  and  there,  together  w4th  a  few- 
scattered  huts,  hardly  more  than  a  hundred  in 
all.  With  the  transfer  of  the  foreign  con- 
cession to  Yokohama  a  great  transformation 
at  once  began,  of  which  the  present  city  is  the 
proud  achievement. 

Originally  there  were  three  villages,  Yoko- 
hama, Ota,  and  Tobe,  swamps  and  streams 
separating  them;  but  when  the  merchants 
began  to  flock  into  the  newly  opened  port, 
all  those  doing  business  with  the  Govern- 
ment were  ordered  to  engage  in  reclaiming 
the  land  as  far  as  possible,  until  finally  the 
three  tiny  villages  became  one  large  town. 
Soon  the  people  in  Kanagawa  found  that  if 
they  wanted  to  deal  in  the  best  shops  they  had 
to  go  over  to  Yokohama,  and  it  was  not  long 
until  they  decided  that  Yokohama  was  also 


the  best  place  to  live.  Foreign  merchants 
coming  to  Yokohama  took  land  on  perpetual 
lease  for  a  nominal  ground  rent  and  exempt 
from  further  taxation.  Many  of  these  lots 
are  still  held  by  foreign  firms,  and  as  the 
value  has  in  the  meantime  enormously  in- 
creased the  authorities  have  sought  to  le\-y 
taxes  over  and  above  the  original  agreement. 
The  attempt,  however,  was  frustrated  by  an 
appeal  to  The  Hague  Tribunal,  which  resulted 
in  a  decision  in  favour  of  the  contention  of 
the  foreigners.  There  are  some  650  of  these 
perpetual  leases  still  valid  in  Yokohama, 
representing  about  1,353,628  square  feet  of 
land,  paying  an  annual  rental  of  60,406  yen. 
The  first  foreign  building  in  Yokohama  was 
owned  by  a  British  firm,  as  was  also  the 
second,  while  the  third  one  was  owned  by  an 
American  firm;  and  this  proportion  has  con- 
tinued pretty  well  ever  since.  These  pio- 
neers in  the  foreign  settlement,  following  the 
instincts  of  their  civilisation,  at  once  set  about 
making  a  model  city,  and  by  1869  the  whole 
waterfront  was  improved.  Ten  years  later 
Yokohama  had  been  completely  transformed 
from  a  village  to  a  great  and  growing  city. 
In  i860  there  were  only  100  houses,  which  by 
1867  had  grown  to  a  population  of  21,000, 
and  in  1897  to  187,400.  To-day  the  popula- 
tion of  the  port  is  over  450,000,  with  some 
90,000  households.  Nowhere  in  Japan  are 
the  benefits  of  Western  influence  more  appar- 
ent than  in  Yokohama,  which,  so  far  as  the 
foreign  settlement  goes,  is  more  like  a  pro- 
gressive Western  city  than  an  Oriental  port. 
It  is  only  fair  to  state,  however,  that  since 
the  revision  of  treaties  and  the  abolition  of 
extraterritoriality,  the  Japanese  authorities  in 
Yokohama  have  utiUsed  their  assumption  of 
autonomy  to  preserve  as  far  as  possible  the 


policy  initiated  by  the  foreigners  in  the  settle- 
ment, though  they  have  not  always  been  as 
successful  as  they  might  desire.  Foreigners  in 
Yokohama,  of  whom  there  are  at  present 
about  8,000,  reside  for  the  most  part  on  the 
beautiful  eminence  known  as  the  Bluff  at 
Honcho,  with  the  exception  of  the  Chinese, 
who  occupy  numbers  120  to  160  in  Ihe  settle- 
ment. The  influence  of  foreigners  has  been 
rendered  still  more  conspicuous  by  the  erec- 
tion of  a  magnificent  City  Hall  in  commem- 
oration of  the  opening  of  Yokohama  to  foreign 
trade,  the  cost  of  which  was  borne  by  the 
Japanese,  with  liberal  subscriptions  from  the 
leading  foreign  firms  of  the  port.  Yokohama 
has  the  most  modem  streets  and  gardens 
and  the  finest  hotels  in  Japan.  The  Japanese 
city  is  something  apart,  most  of  the  best  shops 
being  in  the  foreign  settlement.  The  centre 
of  native  life  is  Isegaki-cho,  where  kinemato- 
graph  halls,  theatres,  and  restaurants  present 
a  gay  scene,  especially  at  night.  The  princi- 
pal streets  are  in  the  lower  town  near  the 
harbour,  where  are  also  located  the  Govern- 
ment and  pubhc  offices  as  well  as  the  foreign 
consulates  and  great  banks. 

GOVERNMENT,  FINANCE,  COMMERCE, 
AND  INDUSTRY 

From  an  administrative  point  of  view 
Yokohama  may  be  regarded  as  a  provincial 
capital,  as  it  is  the  seat  of  the  Prefectural 
Office,  as  well  as  ha\-ing  its  own  municipal 
government,  with  mayor,  municipal  council 
and  all  the  latest  methods  of  management 
adopted  in  Western  cities.  There  is  a  well 
organised  poHce  force,  modelled  in  some 
measure  after  English  methods,  British  offi- 
cers having  been  employed  in  the  early  days 
of  its  organisation.  Owing  to  constant 
danger  from  devastating  conflagrations  the 
Yokohama  fire  brigade  is  one  of  the  best  in 
the  Empire,  having  over  a  thousand  men. 
The  municipal  council,  which  administers  the 
affairs  of  the  city,  has  under  its  control  the 
gas  works,  waterworks  and  other  undertak- 
ings, including  the  tramways,  which,  never- 
theless, are  owned  by  a  private  company. 
Special  attention  has  been  paid  by  the  city 
authorities  to  the  development  of  education, 
the  municipality  maintaining  a  good  com- 
mercial school  and  an  adequate  number  of 
secondary-  and  primary  schools,  and  in  addi- 
tion there  are  several  good  mission  schools. 
The  total  number  of  school  children  in  the 
city  is  over  50,000. 

Being  one  of  the  greatest  financial  centres 
of  the  Empire,  Yokohama  has  branches  of  all 
the  great  banks,  and  the  head  office  of  the 
Yokohama  Specie  Bank,  which  is  second  only 
to  the  Bank  of  Japan,  but  first  in  the  promo- 
tion of  foreign  trade.  In  addition  to  the 
numerous  Japanese  banks  there  are  branches 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


199 


VIEW    OF    YOKOHAMA,    TAKEN   FROM    THE    MEMORIAL    TOWER,    LOOKING    WEST   ALONG    MAIN    STREET, 
THE    YOKOHAMA    SPECIE    BANK    BUILDING    IN    THE    LEFT    BACKGROUND 


of  the  Hongkong  &  .Shanghai  Banking  Cor- 
poration, the  Chartered  Bank  of  India, 
Australia,  and  China,  the  International  Bank- 
ing Corporation,  the  Russo-Asiatic  Bank  and 
others.  The  annual  revenue  of  Yokohama 
City  is  about  3,000,000  yen  and  the  expendi- 
ture usually  a  trifle  less.  For  gas,  water- 
works, hospitals,  and  cemeteries  there  is  a 
separate  and  larger  account.  The  city  has 
some  250  miles  of  gas  mains  connected  with 
16,991  houses,  representing  70,000  lamps. 
Gas  is  used  for  the  greater  part  as  motive 
power  and  for  street  lighting,  as  most  of  the 
houses  are  lighted  by  electricity.  The  gas 
works  consume  only  22,125  tons  of  coal 
annually,  and  the  revenue  from  the  service 
is  about  900,000  yen  a  year,  on  an  investment 
of  1,041,364  yen.  Yokohama  was  one  of 
the  first  cities  in  the  Empire  to  put  in  a 
modern  system  of  waterworks,  from  which 
the  annual  revenue  is  572,684  yen  and  ex- 
penses 444,258  yen.  The  total  foreign 
indebtedness  of  the  municipality  is  14,000,000 
yen,  involving  an  annual  interest  of  780,000 
yen,  most  of  the  debt  having  been  incurred 


THE    MEMORIAL    H.\LL,  ERECTED    BY'  JAPANESE 

AND    FOREIGN    RESIDENTS    TO    COMMEMO- 

R.\TE    THE    OPENING    OF    THE    PORT 


in  putting  in  the  gas  works  and  the  water 
system.  The  drainage  system  of  Yokohama, 
which  is  superior  to  that  of  most  Japanese 
cities,  was  carried  out  on  the  advice  of  an 
English  engineer. 

Commercially,  of  course,  Yokohama  has 
witnessed  its  greatest  development.  So 
remarkable  has  been  the  growth  in  this  direc- 
tion in  recent  years  that  a  new  harbour  works 
was  found  absolutely  necessary  to  meet  the 
situation;  and  already  at  great  outlay,  borne 
largely  by  the  Government  but  shared  by  the 
municipality,  fine  new  customs  piers  with 
adequate  warehouses  have  been  constructed. 
The  harbour  is  spacious  and  well  protected 
by  breakwaters  and  can  accommodate  vessels 
up  to  20,000  tons.  In  the  early  days  the 
Government  did  not  encourage  expansion  of 
foreign  trade,  even  taking  special  steps  to 
check  it;  but  the  inauguration  of  a  modem 
government  and  the  introduction  of  European 
methods  proved  that  the  policy  was  a  mis- 
taken one,  and  a  revolution  was  soon  brought 
about  in  commercial  practice  and  progress. 
Imports  continued  to  exceed  exports  almost 


200 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


THE  WEST  END    OF    MAIN    STREET,    YOKOHAMA,    LOOKING    TOWARD    THE    ELECTRIC    RAILWAY    STATION 


even^  year  between  1868  and  1876.  The 
decade  beginning  with  1882  saw  a  great 
increase  in  the  demand  for  Japanese  silk 
abroad,  and  then  exports  commenced  to 
show  a  favourable  balance  of  trade.  The 
table  at  the  foot  of  this  page  will  indicate 
the  rate  of  growth  in  Yokohama's  foreign 
trade  at  intervals  of  some  years.  It  is 
apparent  that  Yokohama's  ascendency  to  a 
paramount  position  in  the  foreign  com- 
merce of  the  nation  is  assured,  and  when  the 
Panama  route  is  fully  taken  advantage  of  it 
will  lend  further  impetus  to  Yokohama  trade. 
It  is  not  too  much  to  say  that  similar 
progress  is  being  made  by  Yokohama  along 
industrial  lines,  though  this  is  a  new  phase 
of  the  city's  ambition.  By  decreeing  that 
water  for  industrial  purposes  should  be  fur- 
nished free  for  the  first  five  years  of  a  fac- 
tory's establishment,  and  the  exemption  of 
new  industries  from  taxation  for  the  same 
period,  great  inducements  were  offered  by 
the  Yokohama  municipality  for  the  promo- 
tion of  new  enterprises,  and  capitalists  from 
Tokyo,    Kob^   and   other   industrial   centres 


began  to  secure  lots  and  build  factories  in 
Y'okohama.  In  191 1  there  were  practically 
no  industries  of  any  size  or  significance  in 
Yokohama,  except,  of  course,  those  asso- 
ciated with  the  business  of  exporting.  By 
191 7,  however,  there  were  no  less  than  125 
new  factories,  representing  some  500  com- 
panies and  a  capital  of  nearly  200,000,000 
yen.  Among  the  new  undertakings  must  be 
mentioned  several  important  shipyards  cap- 
able of  turning  out  large  vessels. 

The  interests  of  merchants  and  manufac- 
turers in  Yokohama  are  watched  over  by  an 
efficient  native  Chamber  of  Commerce,  while 
the  Foreign  Chamber  of  Commerce  has  done 
and  is  doing  excellent  work  in  suggestion  and 


leadership,  to  promote  the  extension  of  for- 
eign trade.  Nowhere  in  Japan  is  there 
keener  rivalrj'  between  the  native  and  the 
foreign  merchant  than  in  Yokohama;  but  the 
foreigner  seems  to  be  holding  his  own  exceed- 
ingly well,  as  may  be  seen  by  reference  to  the 
article  on  Exports  and  Imports  in  this 
volume,  thus  proving  that  the  best  e\adence 
of  a  port's  prosperity  is  its  power  to  attract 
and  hold  the  foreign  merchant.  The  great 
Silk  and  Rice  Exchanges  of  the  nation  are 
at  Yokohama,  as  well  as  the  Government 
.Silk  Conditioning  Office,  while  native  indus- 
trial guilds  to  the  number  of  over  sixty  are 
another  interesting  feature  of  the  city's 
commercial    methods.      There    is    but    one 


Year 

Exports 

I.\l  PORTS 

'I'oTAL 

Yen 

Yin 

Ytn 

i860 
1906 
1911 
1916 

578,907 
200,847,000 
225,174,470 
497,6.13,158 

343,005 
149,070,000 
■54,284,552 
209,737,683 

1,121,912 

349,917,000 
379,459,022 
707,390,841 

PRESENT-DAY    IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


20I 


foreign  newspaper  at  present,  the  Japan 
Gazelle,  printed  in  English.  The  Yokohama 
race  course,  situated  near  Negishi,  is  one  of 
the  finest  in  Japan,  and  race-mcctings  regu- 
larly are  held.  Though  Yokohama  is  too 
new  to  possess  the  historical  relics  and 
associations  of  other  Japanese  cities,  it  is  a 
pretty  and  a  pleasant  place  either  to  visit  or 
to  reside  in.  while  its  commercial  importance 
renders  it  a,  centre  of  vital  activity  to  the 
Empire. 

Brett's  ph.vkm.vcy 
The  development  of  Yokohama  as  the 
oldest  centre  of  foreign  commercial  influence 
in  Japan  has  brought  in  its  train  most  of  the 
conveniences  and  services  which  are  usualK- 
associated  with  a  modem  town  or  city.  In 
Brett's  Pharmacy  Yokohama  possesses  what 
has  come  to  be  regarded  as  a  public  institu- 
tion, as  well  organised  and  as  large  as  any 
similar  concern  in  the  Orient.  And  as  a 
matter  of  fact  Brett's  Pharmacy  has  been 
established  so  long,  and  has  grown  so  en- 
tirely in  keeping  with  the  development  of 
Yokohama  itself,  that  it  can  properly  be 
regarded  as  one  of  the  landmarks  of  the 
foreign  settlement.  The  business  was 
founded  considerably  over  thirty  years  ago. 
There  are  very  few  people  who  can  give  the 
history  of  the  Pharmacy,  but  all  know  that 
it  has  been  in  existence,  never  failing  in  its 
ser\'ices  to  the  general  community,  a  fact 
which  doubtless  explains  what  seems  Hke  a 
lack  of  interest  in  the  names  associated  at 
different  times  with  the  business.  The 
original  Brett  has  passed  out  of  present-day 
knowledge.     Through  various  stages  of  con- 


BRETT  S    PHARMACY,    YOKOHAMA 


trol  and  direction  the  business  has  come  down 
to  the  present  time,  when  it  is  conducted  as 
a  proprietary  concern  under  the  management 
of  Mr.  H.  V.  Hawley,  M.  P.  S. 

Situated  in  Main  Street,  at  No.  60,  Brett's 
Pharmacy  occupies  a  singularly  central  and 
convenient  position  for  all  the  foreign  resi- 
dents, or  visitors  at  the  leading  hotels.  The 
store  itself  is  a  large  and  commodious  two- 
story  modem  building,  with  a  well  arranged 
interior,  and  ample  accommodation  for  the 
dispensary     and     other    departments    of    a 


THE    YOKOHAMA    UNITED   CLUB,    Ox\    THE    BUND 


modern  pharmacy.  Progressive  ideas  have 
kept  the  business  well  abreast  of  the  times, 
and  Brett's  Pharmacy  presents  all  the  con- 
veniences which  are  looked  for  in  such  an 
institution.  Large  and  complete  stocks  of 
all  standard  British  and  American  drugs, 
medicines,  toilet  requisites,  etc.,  are  main- 
tained, and  with  the  numerous  transient  and 
permanent  community  continually  making 
their  purchases,  a  busy  air  prevails.  There 
is  a  large  staff  of  foreign  qualified  dispensers, 
trained  in  the  best  colleges.  Practically  all 
foreign  languages  are  spoken  by  the  staff, 
and  prescriptions  are  dispensed  in  accordance 
with  the  pharmacopceias  of  the  country  in 
whose  language  the  prescription  is  written. 
This  is  a  consideration  and  convenience 
which  is  greatly  appreciated  in  a  community 
like  that  of  Yokohama,  which  is  very  cos- 
mopolitan. It  also  means  much  to  passing 
travellers  from  foreign  countries.  The  at- 
tendance at  the  Pharmacy  is  all  that  could 
be  desired,  a  day  and  night  service  being 
maintained,  a  qualified  foreign  chemist  being 
always  in  attendance. 

Brett's  Pharmacy  has  a  number  of  exclu- 
sive agencies,  amongst  which  may  be  men- 
tioned Gerhard  Mennen's  products;  Kolynos 
Co.'s  tooth  pastes  and  other  lines;  Nyal's 
toilet  requisites  and  proprietary  preparations ; 
and  the  "B.  K."  disinfectants,  prepared  by 
the  General  Laboratories,  Inc.,  Wisconsin, 
U.  S.  A.  This  latter  agency  represents  the 
most  recent  products  in  antiseptic  research, 
"B.  K."  disinfectants  having  not  so  long  ago 
been  adopted  for  army  medical  purposes 
on  the  Western  Front.     Another  important 


202 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


A  PRETTY  SPOT  IN  THE  PUBLIC  PARK  AT  YOKOHAMA 


agency    is    that    which    has    recently    been 
acquired    for    the    tabloid    products    of    the 


famous  Burroughs  &  Welcome,  Ltd.     A  num- 
ber of  travelling  salesmen  are  now  distrib- 


uting these  various  special  lines  throughout 
Japan  on  account  of  Brett's  Pharmacy. 
Laboratory  work  has  also  become  quite  a 
feature  of  Brett's  Pharmacy's  business,  as 
many  as  four  hundred  to  five  hundred  anal- 
yses of  a  clinical  and  commercial  nature 
being  carried  out  monthly.  For  some  time 
an  American  soda  fountain  was  maintained 
in  the  store,  but  with  the  expansion  of 
business,  this  department  had  to  be  trans- 
ferred to  adjacent  premises,  together  with 
the  department  handling  the  agency  for  the 
Columbia  Gramaphones. 

Lender  the  same  management  is  a  modem 
aerated  mineral  water  and  cordial  factory, 
Brett's  being  the  manufacturers  of  all  classes 
of  soda  water  and  other  distilled  waters, 
which  are  such  a  boon  in  a  country  where 
the  water  supply  is  not  always  above  sus- 
picion. In  the  summer  season  the  plant  is 
worked  at  full  capacity,  a  staff  of  fourteen 
or  fifteen  being  employed.  L'nder  the  direc- 
tion of  the  proprietary  of  Brett's  Pharmacy 
are  branches  at  Tokj'o,  Karuizawa  (the  sum- 
mer resort),  Osaka,  and  Harbin,  Manchuria. 


THE    BUND,    OR    WATERFRONT,    YOKOHAMA 


CHERRY    BLOSSOMS 


XIII.    Imports  and  Exports 

(Yokohama  and  Tokyo  Section*) 

Trade  in  Old  Japan  — Be(;innings  of  Trade  with  Europe— Unlimited  Trade  — Causes  of 

Trade  Expansion  — General  Survey  of  Markets  — Proportion  of  Raw  Materials 

to  Finished  Articles  — Principal  Exports  and  Imports  — Japan's  Trade  Policy 

-Commercial  Institutions— Japan's  Button  Trade— Commercial  Notices 


THE  story  of  Japan's  abnormal  develop- 
ment and  appearance  as  a  rival  of 
more  advanced  nations  in  the  great 
trade  fields  of  the  world  is  one  of  the 
most  interesting  and  remarkable  in  the 
records  of  modem  enterprise.  As  Japanese 
history  mns  back  till  lost  in  the  mythic  ages, 
it  is  impossible  to  say  just  when  the  nation's 
foreign  trade  began;  but  in  all  probability  the 
immigrants  from  the  continent  who  colonised 
the  coast  of  Idzumo  tried  to  keep  up  some 
measure  of  communication  with  the  ancestral 
mainland,  and  to  bring  over  as  far  as  possible 
the  available  necessities  of  civilisation.  There 
is  mention  of  iron  for  spears  and  of  earthen- 
ware utensils,  as  well  as  of  silk  and  hemp,  all  of 
which  must  at  first  have  been  imported  from 
Korea.  In  ancient  Yamato  imports  must 
have  formed  a  more  practical  commodity  than 
exports.  With  the  dawn  of  recorded  history, 
*  See  Page  661. 


in  the  sixth  century,  we  read  of  horses,  cotton 
cloth,  musical  instruments,  and  jewels,  as  well 
as  of  bronze  mirrors,  coming  from  the  conti- 
nent. It  is  safe  to  assume  that  with  increas- 
ing intercourse  between  Yamato  and  China  in 
the  seventh  and  eighth  centuries  went  on  a 
corresponding  development  of  trade,  though 
the  year's  turnover  was  probably  insufficient 
seriously  to  affect  much  one  way  or  the  other 
the  finances  of  the  infant  empire,  since  the 
nation  apparently  was  much  more  concerned 
with  extracting  tribute  from  Korea  than  in 
pushing  commercial  enterprise.  At  any  rate, 
trade  was  sufficient  to  enable  the  superior 
intelligence  and  ciNnlisation  of  the  early 
settlers  to  overcome  the  savage  aborigines, 
who  were  left  to  defend  themselves  unequally 
with  their  prehistoric  weapons  and  implements 
of  war.  The  ver>'  remarkable  development  of 
ci\'ilisation  and  culture  that  characterised  the 


Heian  era  (800-1 100  A.  D.)  implied  an  unusual 
measiu-e  of  commercial  intercourse  with  Korea 
and  China,  if  not  with  India,  promoted,  as 
commerce   not   infrequently   is,   by  religion. 

BEGINNINGS  OF  TRADE  WITH  EUROPE 
With  the  advent  of  Europeans  in  the 
sixteenth  centur>-  Japanese  commerce  entered 
on  a  new  phase.  The  long  period  of  civil 
strife  which  the  Tokugawa  regime  had  ended, 
must  have  given  prominence  to  trade  in 
weapons  and  munitions  of  war.  But  just 
when  the  land  was  seething  with  blood  and 
anarchy  a  Chinese  junk  was  blown  ashore  on 
the  coast  of  Japan  with  a  Portuguese  mer- 
chant adventurer  aboard,  who  was  on  the 
lookout  for  new  fields  of  trade.  He  and  his 
two  companions  quickly  saw  that  Japan  was  a 
country  well  worthy  of  exploitation,  and  they 
returned   to  their  colony  with   a  tale   that 


204 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


brought  more  Portuguese  traders,  eager  to 
enter  the  new  market.  The  foreign  merchants 
were  welcomed  by  the  dainiyo  of  Japan,  the 
great  feudatories  competing  with  one  another 
in  their  offers  of  facilities  of  trade.  For  half  a 
century  or  so  the  Portuguese  merchants  had 
things  all  their  own  way,  but,  having  taken 
into  their  service  and  confidence  a  Dutchman 
named  Linschoten,  they  gave  away  their 
secret.  In  consequence,  when  the  Dutch 
shook  oflf  the  domination  of  Spain,  which  at 
the  time  held  Portugal,  they  resolved  to  send 
ships  of  their  own  to  the  East,  since  they  were 
no  longer  allowed  to  deal  in  Oriental  goods  at 
Lisbon.  On  finding  their  hated  rivals  in 
possession  of  the  field  in  Japan,  the  Dutch 
naturally  did  all  in  their  power  to  drive  them 
out  by  fair  means  or  by  foul.  When  they  had 
finally  succeeded  in  doing  this  by  arousing  the 
suspicions  of  the  authorities  against  the 
poUtical  motives  of  the  Spanish  and  Portu- 
guese, English  arrived,  whom  the  Dutch  in 
turn  hated  and  tried  to  hinder  in  trade.  From 
these  bickerings  and  animosities  between 
peoples  of  the  same  religion  the  Japanese 
derived  a  very  poor  idea  of  Western  mer- 
chants, who  were  so  willing  to  betray  one 
another  for  the  sake  of  gold;  and  consequently, 
in  time  they  obliged  all  merchants  to  reside  in 
Nagasaki,  the  Dutch  at  Deshima  and  the 
English  at  Hirado,  the  latter  finally  abandon- 
ing the  field. 

But  the  foreigners  did  a  roaring  trade  while 
it  lasted,  amounting  to  over  £660,000  a 
year;  and  during  the  sixteenth  and  seven- 
teenth centuries  they  carried  out  of  Japan 
no  less  than  Yen  100,000,000  in  gold,  until 
the  shogun  had  at  last  to  place  restric- 
tions on  exports  of  the  precious  metal.  The 
Dutch  made  a  clear  gain  of  100  per  cent  on 
each  voyage,  while  the  English  gave  up  after 
a  loss  of  some  £40,000.  The  foreigners  at 
any  rate  succeeded  in  opening  up  trade 
between  Japan  and  the  Occident,  bringing  in 
firearms,  powder,  woollens,  and  various 
utensils,  while  taking  away  silk,  lacquer  and, 
above  all,  gold.  There  are  indications '  that 
the  Japanese  did  not  fully  understand  or 
failed  to  appreciate  foreign  methods  of 
barter  and  trade.  The  predominance  of  the 
military  spirit,  which  always  takes  instead 
of  gives,  and  despises  the  mere  bargainer, 
placed  the  merchant  at  some  disadvantage; 
and  it  is,  therefore,  all  the  more  remarkable 
that  the  foreign  merchants  did  so  well. 
Trade  in  Japan  was  carried  on  by  the 
lowest  classes  only,  who  won  a  reputation  as 
tricksters  and  barter-mongers.  The  seclusion 
policy  of  the  Tokugawa  Government  proved 
a  serious  set-back  to  foreign  trade,  which 
did  not  revive  until  the  reopening  of 
the  country  to  foreign  commerce  in  the 
year  1854. 


B.^ROX    EIIUCHI    SHIBUS.^WA,    ONE    OF  J.^P.^N  S 
GRE.\TEST    BUSINESS   MEN 


UNLIMITED  TRADE 
After  Commodore  Perry's  treaty  of 
commerce  in  1854,  followed  by  similar  agree- 
ments with  Prussia,  France,  and  England  in 
1859,  the  foreign  merchant  soon  appeared  in 
all  open  ports  and  began  to  lay  the  founda- 
tions on  which  Japan's  foreign  trade  has  since 
been  built  up.  From  that  time  Japan's 
commercial  history  has  been  one  of  unbroken 
progress.  The  first  essays  at  trade  were  over- 
cast by  the  gloom  of  civil  war,  and  some  of  the 
earliest  imports  were  in  munitions  for  the 
respective  belligerents  of  the  Restoration 
period.  Foreigners  and  Japanese  were  alike 
ignorant  of  each  other's  ways  and  customs, 
and  consequently  of  the  proper  values  of  what 
each  had  to  sell.  During  the  early  years  of 
the  Meiji  era  trade  had  to  struggle  against  a 
depreciated  irredeemable  paper  currency, 
liable  to  fiuctuations  of  value  from  day  to  day, 
while  a  total  w-ant  of  credit  and  a  low  produc- 
tive capacity  on  the  part  of  the  people  added 
further  complications  to  commerce.  The 
nation  had  practically  no  manufacturing 
industries.  Exports  were  confined  for  the 
most  part  to  agricultural  products  such  as 
silk,  tea,  and  rice,  the  only  manufactures 
being  such  objects  as  fans,  porcelain,  and 
lacquer.  Other  difficulties  of  trade  arose 
from  the  fact  that  although  Japan  was  a 
bimetallic  country,  silver  had  practically 
displaced  gold;  and  as  the  silver  market 
depreciated  throughout  the  world  the  reaction 
on  Japanese  credit  and  foreign  trade  was 
unfavourable.  With  the  revision  of  the 
monetary  system  in  1871,  introducing  a  uni- 
form currency,  and  the  establishment  of  a 
legal  system  of  weights  and  measures  in  1875, 
together  with  needed  improvements  in  com- 
munications and  media  of  exchange,  commerce 
entered  on  a  new  and  more  progressive  phase 
wherein   modem   methods  became  possible. 


The  general  commercial  awakening  of  the 
nation  must  in  a  large  measure  be  ascribed  to 
the  efficient  assistance  of  the  Government  in 
aiming  definitely  at  improvement  of  commer- 
cial institutions,  the  establishment  of  banks 
and  educational  facilities  and  means  of 
communication  based  on  Western  systems. 
The  result  was  a  phenomenal  growth  in  the 
progress  of  trade,  together  with  greatly 
improved  methods  in  commercial  intercourse 
By  the  year  1878  the  total  trade  of  the  coun- 
try had  arisen  to  twice  what  it  was  at  the 
beginning  of  the  Restoration  in  1 868 ;  and  ten 
years  later  it  was  nearly  three  times  that  of 
the  previous  decade.  Capital  invested  in 
Japanese  commercial  companies  in  1908  was 
twice  that  of  the  ten  years  before,  amounting 
to  over  120,000,000  yen,  a  sum  that  jumped  to 
2,700,000,000  in  1916,  and  to  10,047,000,000 
yen  in  1917.  In  1908  the  total  amount  of  bills 
exchanged  at  the  national  clearing  houses  was 
6,370,000,000  yen,  while  to-day  it  is  over 
20,1 12,640,000  yen.  Thus  almost  at  a  bound 
Japan  has  passed  from  the  land  of  romance 
and  cherry  blossoms  to  a  country  of  trade  and 
energetic  materialism. 

CAUSES  OF  TR.\DE  EXPANSION 
The  two  great  landmarks  in  the  history  of 
Japan's  foreign  trade  are  the  war  with  China 
in  1895  and  that  with  Russia  in  1905.  The 
indemnity  of  350,000,000  yen  which  Japan 
received  from  China  was  largely  applied  to 
reform  of  national  currency;  and  in  1897  the 
gold  standard  was  adopted,  when  trade,  freed 
from  speculative  risks  inseparable  to  fluctuat- 
ing exchanges  in  silver  currency,  rapidly 
advanced,  and  lent  impetus  to  manufacturing 
industries  as  well.  A  tide  of  commercial 
prosperity  seemed  to  flow  over  Japan  after  the 
war  with  China.  In  1899  the  new  customs 
tariff  increased  import  duties  from  5  per 
cent  to  over  15  per  cent;  so  that  from 
that  period  the  value  of  goods  imported 
must  be  taken  to  represent  the  cost  of  goods 
as  landed  in  Japan,  instead  of,  as  before, 
the  cost  at  the  place  of  production.  Men- 
tion of  a  few  figures  is  sufficient  to  show  the 
remarkable  expansion  of  Japanese  trade  in 
recent  years,  especially,  as  already  suggested, 
since  the  wars  with  China  and  Russia.  At  the 
beginning  of  the  Meiji  period  in  1868  the  total 
trade  of  Japan  amounted  to  26,000,000  yen. 
Ten  years  later  it  had  more  than  doubled, 
amounting  to  56,000,000  yen;  while  in  the 
succeeding  decade  it  increased  fivefold  to 
over  130,000,000  yen.  In  1887,  about  ten 
years  before  the  war  with  China,  the  total 
value  of  foreign  trade  was  96,710,000  yen;  but 
two  years  after  the  war  with  China  it  jumped 
to  382,440,000  yen,  nearly  four  times  more 
than  the  total  of  ten  years  earlier.  The  suc- 
cessful termination  of  the  war  with  China  gave 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


205 


a  tremfiiiloiis  impetus  to  industrial  expansion 
on  account  of  influx  of  capital  for  indemnity ; 
and  this  rate  of  increase  was  steadily  main- 
tained up  to  the  time  of  the  war  with  Russia, 
one  year  after  which  the  nation's  foreign 
trade  arose  to  926,880,000  yen,  or  more  than 
nine  and  one-half  times  the  total  of  1887. 
Indeed,  it  may  be  questioned  whether  any 
other  country  has  shown  in  its  foreign  trade 
such  a  ratio  of  progress  in  a  similar  period. 
With  the  outbreak  of  the  great  war  in  Europe 
Japanese  trade  grew  to  figures  still  more 
unprecedented,  totalling  over  1,833,000,000 
for  1916,  and  in  1917,  an  abnormal  year,  the 
total  trade  of  Japan  reached  the  amount  of 
2,583,290,000  yen.  The  causes  of  this  enor- 
mous development  must  be  ascribed  to  an 
increasing  demand  for  Japanese  goods  abroad, 
to  rapid  increase  of  industrial  enterprise 
within  the  country,  and  especially  to  the 
exigencies  of  the  war  in  Europe. 

The   following   table   gives   the    totals   of 
Japan's  foreign  trade  since  1868; 


fore,  had  it  not  been  for  the  war  the  exports 
for  1916  ought  to  have  totalled  about  735,- 
247,541  yen,  which  is  some  392,220,577  yen 
below  the  actual  figures,  or  an  increase  of  62 
per  cent  in  exports  due  to  the  war  alone.  At 
the  same  time  it  should  be  borne  in  mind  that 
such  calculations  deal  with  values  only  and 
not  with  (juantities;  and  since  the  prices  of 
almost  all  commodities  have  advanced  con- 
siderably in  the  war  years,  the  actual  quan- 
tities of  imports  and  exports  should  be 
examined  in  order  to  arrive  at  an  accurate 
estimate  of  the  ratio  of  increase  in  Japan's 
trade.  If  this  be  done  the  results  will  show  a 
decrease  in  volume  of  imports  for  the  year 
1 9 16  of  about  26  per  cent,  while  exports  will 
show  an  increase  in  Quantitv  of  about  29  per 
cent. 

GENERAL    SURVEY    OF    MARKETS 
A  SURVEY  of  the  general  position  shows  that 
the  United  States  of  America  stands  foremost 
in   Japan's  export  trade,  China  coming  next, 


Year 

Exports  (Yen) 

Imports  (Yen) 

Total  (Yen) 

Population 

1868 

15.533,473 
23,349,000 

10,693,072 
27,421,000 

26,246,545 
50,770,000 

1877 

35.768,547 

1882 

37,722,000 

29,447,000 

67,168,000 

37.451,727 

1887 

52,408,000 

44,304,000 

96,712,000 

39,607,234 

1892 

91,103,000 

71,326,000 

162,429,000 

41.388,313 

1897 

163.135.000 

219,301,000 

382,436,000 

43.763.855 

1902 

258,303.000 

371,731,000 

530,034,000 

46.732.876 

1907 

432,414,000 

494,467,000 

926,880,000 

48,825,234 

1908 

378,246,000 

436,257,000 

814,503,000 

49,588,804 

1909 

413,113,000 

394,199,000 

807,311,000 

50,295,279 

1910 

458,429,000 

464,234,000 

922,663,000 

50,939.137 

1911 

447,434,000 

513,806,000 

961,240,000 

5 1,. 59 1. 342 

1912 

526,982,000 

618,992,000 

1,145,974,000 

53,362,682 

1913 

632,460,000 

729,432,000 

1,361,892,000 

55.467,530 

1914 

591,101,000 

595.736,000 

1,186,837,000 

57.442.177 

1915 
1916 
1917 

708,307,000 
1,116,744,465 
1.596,830,000 

532,450,000 

754.933.723 
983,230,000 

1,120,757,000 
1,833,896,028 
2,583,290,000 

Of  course  the  increase  of  over  40  per  cent  in 
imports  and  57  per  cent  in  exports,  a  total 
increase  of  over  112  per  cent,  represented  by 
the  war  years,  can  not  be  taken  as  normal.  To 
ascertain  the  actual  growth  of  Japanese  trade 
during  the  war  years  the  normal  ratio  of 
increase  must  be  deducted  from  the  actual. 
If,  for  example,  the  figures  for  the  ten  years 
preceding  the  war  be  examined,  they  will 
show  an  increase  in  the  value  of  imports 
amounting  to  41,229,612  yen,  which,  had  the 
war  not  broken  out  and  the  average  of  imports 
been  maintained,  would  have  brought  the 
imports  of  1916  up  to  about  853,120,480  yen, 
or  96,692,570  yen  less  than  the  actual  imports 
for  that  year,  or  a  fall  of  over  13  per  cent. 
Comparing  exports  in  the  same  way  for  a 
similar  normal  period  we  find  an  average 
increase  of  34,295,776  yen  per  annum.    There- 


followed  by  England,  France,  Russia,  British 
India,  and  Italy,  Germany  and  Austria  having 
been  eliminated  by  the  war.  Asia  continues 
to  be  Japan's  best  customer,  America  coming 
second  and  Europe  third,  though  the  whole  of 
Europe  does  not  take  as  much  from  Japan  as 
the  United  States  or  China.  The  war  years 
saw  an  extraordinary  increase  in  Japan's  trade 
with  Russia,  the  Dutch  East  Indies,  the 
South  Sea  regions,  and  South  Africa,  which 
may  or  may  not  continue.  There  was  also  a 
considerable  extension  of  Japanese  trade 
toward  Egypt  and  Australia.  In  regard  to 
imports  Japan  still  draws  most  of  her  stock 
from  British  India,  England,  and  the  United 
States,  after  which  come  China,  the  Dutch 
East  Indies,  and  French  India. 

The  main  volume  of  Japanese  exports  to 
Europe  consists  of  foodstuffs,  raw  materials. 


AN  AGREEABLE  OCCUPATION - 
COCOONS 


-SORTING   SILK 


and  indigenous  manufactures  in  the  way  of 
luxuries,  while  to  America  go  chiefly  raw  silk 
and  tea,  India  and  China  taking  mostly  cotton 
yarns  and  textiles,  which  commodities  also 
had  extended  sales  recently  in  the  South  Seas 
on  account  of  the  war.  With,  perhaps,  the 
exception  of  cotton  hosiery,  Japan's  latest 
application  of  mechanical  science  plays,  as  yet, 
an  exceedingly  small  part  in  Western  markets, 
where  her  exports  would  recently  have  show'n 
but  slight  increase  had  it  not  been  for  the  war. 
Most  of  Japan's  manufactures  go  to  Eastern 
markets,  in  which  direction  the  ratio  of 
increase  is  much  more  pronounced.     In  the 


THE    SE.\L-CARVER 


206 


PRESENT-DAY    IMPRESSIONS    OF   JAPAN 


matter  of  imports,  however,  Japan  gets  from 
Europe  chiefly  manufactured  goods,  while 
deriving  her  provisions  for  the  most  part  from 
Oriental  countries.  With  the  increasing  and 
rapid  development  of  domestic  industry 
Japan  will  probably  import  less  manufactures 
from  the  West,  and  will  continue  to  depend  on 


Asia 


China 

Kwantung 

Korea 

Hongkong 

British  India 

Straits  Settlements. 

Dutch  India 

French  India 

Russian  Asia 

Philippines 

Siam 


Total . 


Europe 


England 

France 

Germany 

Belgium 

Italy 

Switzerland 

Austria-Hungaiy 

Holland 

Sweden 

Norway 

Russia 

Spain 

Denmark 

Turkey 

Portugal 


Total. 


America 


United  States. 

Canada 

Mexico 

Peru 

Chile 

Argentine. .  .  . 


Total . 


Australasia . . . 

Hawaii 

Egypt 

South  Africa . 


Total . 


Other  Countries . 
Ambiguous 


1905 


Yen 


98,681,998 
26,618,870 
20,215,081 

7,997.594 
4,424,068 
1,233,011 

406,933 
1,709,787 
1,363,673 

I03,.H2 


162,754,357 


13,039,401 
27,227,473 

4,360,402 
665,520 

8,095,467 

ii.5,S4 
414,106 
161,834 

193 
11,689 

10,584 
77,742 
70,045 
50,516 
604 


54,197,130 


94,009,072 

3,240,036 

60,935 

10,407 


97,320,450 


E.\  PORTS 


I9IO 


Yen 


90,037,354 

17,450,330 

23,459.911 

18,712,918 

6,549,661 

3,133,598 

341,083 

2,503,476 

4,410,505 

533,098 


167,131,934 


Grand  Total . 


Eastern  countries  for  her  raw  materials.  The  in  a  remarkably  brief  period  has  developed 
following  table  gives  Japan's  relations  with  for-  from  a  purely  agricultural  to  an  important 
cigncountriosinrespecttoimportsandexports.       industrial   and   commercial   nation.     During 

the  enforcement   of   her   policy  of  isolation 

PROPORTION     OF     RAW     MATERIALS     TO        ^^ade  depended  almost  wholly  on  agriculture, 

FINISHED   ARTICLES  ^^^  ^,^^^  ^■^^  country  was  again  opened  to 

Enough  has  been  said  to  show  that  Japan       foreign  trade  there  was  an  immediate  influx  of 

—       Western  manufactures  and  a  return  trade  was 
at  once  established.     In  1868  trade  consisted 

chiefly  of  imports  of  cotton  and  woollen  cloth, 

'915  and  exports  of  tea  and  raw  silk,  the  latter 

covering  at  least  two-thirds  of  the  total  value 

of    exports.     As    time    went    on,    however, 

141,123,000  Western  manufacturing  processes  were  intro- 

22,201,000  duced  and  soon  developed  to  a  point  where  the 

49,492,000  home  demand  was  being  supplied  and  a  sur- 

27,401,000  pj^jg    jgff    g^.gj.   foj.    exportation.     This    was 

42,202,000  particularly  the  case  with  such  items  as  cotton 

''  "'.'  goods,  sheetings,  watches,  beer,  and  groceries, 

'';"    '  which  had  changed  from  being  the  largest 

637,000  *=■  .        . 

-8  200  000  figures   among   imports   to   bemg   important 

-  771  000  exports.     This  tendency  is  emphasised  by  the 

778,000  fact  that  while  the  total  value  of  Japanese 

imports  to-day  is  some  forty  times  greater 

390,982,000  jj^^n  tj^g  figures  of  1868,  the  importation  of 

cotton  is  only  about  five  times  as  great,  and  of 

other  textiles  and  manufactured  clothing  only 

68  SQA.  000  about  thirteen  times  as  great. 

.j'^Q^jooo  The  nature  of  a  country's  imports  and 

exports  is  always  a  good  test  of  its  industrial 

and   tradal   conditions;   for  no   matter  how 

3,012,000  great  its  increase  of  foreign  trade  may  be,  the 

44,000  circumstances  can  not  be  taken  as  a  sign  of 

permanent   progress   if   imports   are    chiefly 

42,000  manufactures,  and  exports  mostly  raw  mate- 

'"'  rials.     It  has  aU  ready  been  shown  that  up  to 

1877  most  of  Japan's  exports  were  raw  mate- 
11,239,000  ''  ■'  '^ 

rials,  while  her  machine-made  products  were 

45'?  000  ^^1  imported,  a  condition  that  during  the  last 

2,000  decade  or  so  has  been  completely  reversed. 

13,000  Thus  it  has  come  about  that  the  class  of 

commodities  formerly  supplied  to  Japan  from 

126,081,000  abroad  has  now,  in  turn,  become  the  chief 

item  in  Japan's  exports,  which  accounts  for 

the  remarkable  development  already  shown 

204  142  000  i"  '^he  country's  foreign  trade.     This  steady 

7,024,000  decline  in  the  importation  of  manufactured 

13,000  articles    simultaneously    with    an    increasing 

135,000  domestic  demand  for  such  goods,  proves  the 

170,000  reality  of  Japan's  industrial  progress,  fostered 

1,129,000  largely  by  her  protective  tariff.     As  time  goes 

,  on  Japan  will  become  more  and  more  indepen- 
212,613,000  -'   ' 
dent  of  foreign  nations  in  regard  to  all  manu- 

18,098,000  factured  articles,  except,  perhaps,  machinery, 

6,095,000  pursuing  a  policy  of  importing  mostly  raw 

985,000  materials    and    exporting    finished    articles. 

1,000,000  'j-jjg  table  on   the  next  page  gives  the  pro- 

,      „  portion  of   raw   materials  to  manufactured 
26,178,000  '^ 
articles  in  imports  and  exports  during  thirty 

722,000  years  of  the  nation's  development 

381,000  How  far  Japan  will  be  able  to  maintain 

this  policy  successfully  in  competition  with 

75  ,957i jjjg  usually  superior  manufactures  of  Western 


25,781,364 

44,925,229 

11,167,773 

3,464,839 

16,834,878 

1,943,040 

1,159,587 

725,952 

256,115 

5.107 

1,811,283 

269,911 

138,021 

81,166 

5,640 


108,569,905 


143,702,249 

4,261,792 

318,350 

200,378 

71,411 


4,072,936 

1,876,454 

283,801 


6,233,191 


10,281,482 


330,786,610 


148,554.180 


6,552,457 

3,964,066 

806,821 


11,323.344 


2,728,837 
972,333 


439,280,533 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


207 


countries  is  an  interesting  question.  Com- 
plaints from  importers  of  Japanese  manu- 
factures arc  numerous  in  respect  to  lack  of 
uniformity  in  quality  and  regularity  in  output, 
due  chiefly  to  the  fact  that  so  often  large 
orders  are  sublet  to  various  smaller  concerns, 
each  making  the  goods  according  to  his  own 
lights.     Doubtless  with  closer  official  super- 


vision and  increase  of  efficiency,  Japanese 
goods  will  eventually  attain  a  reputation  for 
standard  quality  and  hold  their  own  in  the 
trade  markets  of  the  world. 

Notwithstanding  the  remarkable  extension 
of  trade  experienced  by  Japan  in  recent  years 
the  value  of  her  trade  per  head  of  the  popula- 
tion is  still  found  to  be  only  something  over  30 


Asia 


China 

Kwantung 

Korea 

Hongkong 

British  India 

Straits  Settlements 

Dutch  India 

French  India 

Russian  Asia 

Philippines 

Siam 

Total 

El'ROPE 

England 

France 

Germany 

Belgium 

Italy 

Switzerland 

Austria-Hungary 

HoUand 

Sweden 

Norway 

Russia 

Spain 

Denmark 

Turkey 

Portugal 

Total 

Amkrica 

United  States 

Canada 

Mexico 

Peru 

Chile 

Argentine 

Tola! 

Australasia 

Hawaii 

Egypt 

Total 

Other  Countries 

Ambiguous 

Grand  Total 


1905 


Yen 


52,618,408 

6,150,541 

90,226,830 

,S.397,886 

14,830,004 

10,147,957 
2,276,564 
1,367,612 
4,5«6,555 


186,730,954 


ii5,3''<o,ioi 

5,129,208 

42.579,960 

11,002,185 

502,091 

2,974.305 

2,256,196 

873,528 

1,002,574 

1,268,615 

29,049 

249,083 

24,'95 

36,964 

15,720 


183.323.774 


104,286,528 

732,022 

166,873 

3,608 


105,189,031 


Imports 


6,001,197 

13.692 

2,999,133 


9,014,022 


3,336,867 
493,369 


1910 


Yen 


68,569,541 

9,740,160 

8„S9I,835 

674,651 

106,361,497 

4,615,981 

18,879,501 

4,438,133 
762,610 
788,206 

2,635,575 


!26,()57,6go 


94,700,911 

5,404,849 

43,946,478 

9,409,075 

591,502 

1,694,199 

2,782,032 

919,207 

3,059,596 

371,350 

208,015 

536,490 

97,840 

20,417 

21,371 


163,763,332 


54,699,166 
850,126 

12,775 
456,059 

1,469,517 


57,487,643 


7,601,681 

11,526 

4,192,196 


11,805,403 


488,088,017 


4,689,800 
429,940 


1915 


Yen 


85,848,000 
27,819,000 

1,594,000 
147,585,000 
5,356,000 
16,312,000 
3,687,000 
3,564,000 
7,309,000 
2,808,000 


301,882,000 


58,084,000 

3,891,000 

5,919,000 

372,000 

299,000 

1,513,000 

70,000 

278,000 

6,299,000 

1 ,225,000 

607,000 

194,000 

165,000 

94,000 

5.000 


79,015,000 


102,534,000 

1,053,000 

7,000 

22,000 

2,999,000 


106,615,000 


28,571,000 

43.000 

6,136,000 


34,750,000 


3,657,000 
6,344,000 


464,233,808 


532,263,000 


yen,  as  compared  with  260  yen  per  head  in 
Great  Britain,  a  contrast  which  is  very  strik- 
ing, especially  as  the  per  capita  ratio  of 
Japanese  trade  is  even  lower  than  that  of 
Spain  and  Italy.  Moreover,  in  such  articles 
as  first-class  woollens,  iron,  machinery,  dyes, 
and  paper  Japan  will  be  more  or  less  depend- 
ent on  foreign  countries  for  some  time  to 
come,  though  in  chemical  dyes  and  cheap 
paper  she  has  made  rapid  development  since 
the  war.  But  it  may  safely  be  said  that  in  all 
the  highest  classes  of  goods,  except  silks, 
Japan  still  depends  on  other  countries,  more 
especially  on  England.  In  1913  Japan 
imported  iron,  machinery,  woollen  stuffs, 
cotton  fabrics,  and  paper  to  the  value  of 
29,000,000  yen;  but  in  1916,  notwithstanding 
a  decline  in  imports  on  account  of  the  war, 
she  yet  managed  to  import  these  goods  to  the 
value  of  about  1 10,000,000  yen,  and  in  1917  to 
the  value  of  150,000,000  yen. 

PRINCIPAL  EXPORTS  AND  I.MPORTS 
Japan's  principal  exports  at  present  are 
raw  silk,  cotton  yams  and  fabrics,  silk  goods, 
copper,  coal,  sugar,  matches,  knitted  goods, 
waste  silk,  tea,  hemp  plaits,  timber,  fish  (both 
salt  and  dried),  earthenwares,  straw  plait, 
chip  plait,  hats,  handkerchiefs,  rice,  figured 
matting,  camphor,  menthol  crystal,  pepper- 
mint oil,  fish  oil,  whale  oil,  canned  and  bottled 
foods,  glass  and  glassware,  buttons,  paper, 
towels,  machinery  and  accessories,  toys, 
pulse,  brushes,  fruits,  sak^,  edible  seaweed, 
sulphur,  bamboo  ware,  umbrellas,  isinglass, 
ships,  boats,  patent  medicines,  soaps,  vegeta- 
bles, etc.,  of  which  silk,  copper,  camphor, 
braids,  and  fish  oil  go  chiefly  to  America 
and  Europe,  while  cottons,  knitted  goods, 
and  marine  products  as  well  as  sugar  go  for 
the  most  part  to  Oriental  countries.  Porce- 
lain and  timber  go  to  America,  Austraha, 
and  Mexico. 

The  principal  imports  are  raw  cotton, 
ginned  cotton,  rice,  fertilizers,  sugar,  machin- 
ery, wool,  crude  sulphtuic  acid,  ammonia, 
woollen  goods,  wheat,  petroleum,  woollen 
yams,  finer  cottons,  mineral  phosphates,  flax, 
hemp,  vegetable  fibers,  paper,  pulp,  aniline 
dyes,  railroad  equipment,  coal,  ships,  boats, 
India  rubber,  gutta  percha,  zinc,  artificial 
indigo,  bicycles  and  accessories,  iron  goods, 
drugs  and  chemicals.  Of  these,  most  of  the 
iron,  machinery,  and  woollens  come  from 
Great  Britain;  raw  cotton  from  the  United 
States,  India,  Egypt,  and  China;  wool  from 
Australia  and  Germany;  sugar  and  cereals  from 
India  and  Oriental  lands;  paper  from  England, 
Germany,  and  Austria;  petroleum  from 
America;  and  fertilizers  from  South  America. 
The  table  on  the  next  page  shows  the  prin- 
cipal items  of  Japanese  exports  and  imports 
during  intervals  of  five  years  for  the  fifteen 
years  up  to  the  European  war. 


208 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


Raw  M 

VTERIALS 

Manifactirks 
Used  as  Raw   Materials 

Finished 

Articles 

Year 

Exports 

Imports 

Exports 

Imports 

Exports 

Imports 

Yen 

Yen 

Yen 

Yen 

Yen 

Yen 

1877 

i.794.24f' 

1 .205,507 

10,923,091 

6,659,352 

749,430 

14,833,175 

1893 

9.579.377 

IS,S17,674 

36,616,197 

17.725,982 

22,260,622 

29,550,820 

1903 

30.399.596 

89.303,711 

138,948,851 

42,918,267 

79,207,104 

78,286,198 

1913 

4i.7'0.399 

292,792,054 

335,132,884 

141,812,555 

183.748,683 

191,608,329 

1917 

65,000,000 

455,000,000 

£89,000,000 

250,000,000 

473,000,000 

83,000,000 

japan's  trade  policy 
It  is  not  too  much  to  say  that  the  entire 
population  of  Japan  is  now,  and  will  be  for 
many  years  to  come,  absorbed  in  the  ambi- 
tion to  become  supreme  in  the  commercial 
as  well  as  the  political  world  of  East  Asia. 
With  their  enormous  expansion  of  industry 
and  shipping  as  a  result  of  the  war,  and  their 
close  and  accurate  investigation  of  trade  con- 
ditions everywhere,  the  commerce  of  the 
country  may  be  expected  to  find  permanent 
extension  in  fields  formerly  held  by  Western 
countries,  more  especially  in  India,  South 
America,  South  Africa,  the  South  Sea  Islands, 
Australia,  and  China;  while  the  nation's  high 
tariff  protects  its  nascent  industries  from 
competition  through  foreign  imports  at  home. 
But,  as  has  already  been  suggested,  Japan 
has  still  to  show  that  she  can  hold  her  own 
against  the  superior  manufactures  of  Great 
Britain    and    the    United    States    on    even 


terms.  Owing  to  her  cheap  labour  and 
better  knowledge  of  conditions,  Japan  has 
already  practically  driven  her  American 
rivals  from  the  cotton  and  tobacco  markets 
of  China,  and  is  running  Great  Britain  a 
close  second.  She  is  making  a  big  bid  for 
similar  achievements  in  India,  the  chances 
there  being  so  far  problematical.  What 
Japan  has  to  remember  is  that  her  phe- 
nomenal expansion  thus  far  has  been  in  no 
small  measure  due  to  the  satisfactory  rela- 
tions she  has  been  able  to  maintain  with  the 
nations  she  now  hopes  to  rival  and  outdis- 
tance in  the  great  trade  fields  of  East  Asia. 
The  question  of  direct  trade  is  one  of 
increasing  interest  to  foreigners  and  Japanese 
alike.  The  foundations  of  Japan's  foreign 
trade  were  laid  by  the  merchants  of  Europe 
and  America  who  established  branches  and 
agencies  in  the  open  ports  at  a  time  when 
Japan  had  practically  no  commercial  inter- 


course with  the  outside  world.  For  the 
first  years  of  Japan's  foreign  trade  these 
intermediaries  were  essential  to  the  proper 
facilitation  of  trade,  but  with  the  increasing 
expansion  of  commerce  in  recent  years  efforts 
arc  being  made  to  get  rid  of  the  foreign  mid- 
dleman and  bring  the  trade  of  the  Empire 
as  far  as  possible  into  native  hands.  The 
policy  is  regarded  by  foreigners  as  a  mistaken 
one,  since  foreign  merchants  resident  in 
Japan  know  the  needs  of  the  foreign  market 
best,  and  are  more  trusted  by  Western  buyers 
in  promoting  transactions  with  Japan.  That 
the  policy  of  eliminating  the  foreign  middle- 
man has  not  yet  been  wholly  successful 
may  be  seen  from  the  large  number  of  foreign 
firms  still  prospering  in  the  great  commercial 
centres  of  the  Empire,  as  well  as  from  the 
fact  that  about  60  per  cent  of  the  country's 
foreign  export  trade  is  still  transacted  by 
foreign  middlemen,  the  ratio  according  to 
nationality  being  about  40  per  cent  British 
and  American  (17  per  cent  of  which  was  in 
German  hands  before  the  war),  China  16  per 
cent,  and  other  nations  the  rest.  In  imports, 
the  Japanese  control  about  58  per  cent, 
British  and  Americans  30  per  cent  (of  which 
10  per  cent  was  in  German  hands  before  the 
war),  and  China  7  per  cent. 

It  has  already  been  shown  that  by  the 
introduction  of  a  high  protective  tariff  and 
the  promotion  of  rapid  development  in  indus- 
trial output,  Japan  has  succeeded  in  reducing 
her  imports  and  bringing  about  a  favourable 


main    street.    YOKOHAMA,    IN    THE   FOREIGN    BUSINESS    SECTION 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


209 


Comparative  Value  of  Classes  of  Commodities  Exported  and  Imported 


Articles 


Exports 


Grains,  flours,  starches,  and  seeds.  .  .  .  . 

Tea 

Marine  products 

Sugar,  confections,  sweetmeats,  etc. .  .  . 

Beverages  and  comestibles 

Tobacco 

Animal  products  (skins,  horns,  bones) . 
Drugs,  chemicals,  medicines,  pigments. 

Oils,  fats,  waxes,  etc 

Tissues,  yarns,  and  materials  thereof: 

Silk 

Cotton 

All  others 

Clothing  and  accessories 

Paper  and  manufactures  thereof 

Minerals  and  manufactures  thereof.  .  .  . 

Ores  and  metals 

Metal  manufactures 

Earthenware,  porcelain,  glass,  etc 

Machinery 

Miscellaneous 


Tolul . 


Imports 


Grains,  flours,  starches,  and  seeds.  .  . 
Sugars,  confections,  and  sweetmeats. 

Beverages  and  comestibles 

Animal  products  (skins,  bones,  etc.) . 
Drugs,  chemicals,  and  medicines .... 

Dyes,  pigments,  and  paints 

Oils  and  waxes 

Tissues,  yarns,  and  materials  thereof: 

Cotton 

Wool 

Silk 

Flax,  hemp,  etc 

All  others 

Clothing  and  accessories 

Paper  and  stationery 

Minerals  and  manufactures  thereof.  . 
Ores  and  metals: 

Iron 

All  other  metals 

Metal  manufactures 

Earthenware,  procelain,  glass,  etc.. .  . 

Machines  and  machinery 

Miscellaneous 


Total . 


Total  of  Exports  and  Imports. 


1905 


Yen 


4,168,60,^ 

1 0,584, ,^22 

8,044,480 

4,440,863 

12,460,633 

2,209,089 

18,058,186 

2,661,596 

1I3,7I,?,.WI 

47,818,865 

2,142,893 

5.&,S7.,S36 

4.043.469 

14,816,190 

17,181,108 

2,245,661 

7,563.,S,3,S 

3.<'97.i«3 

37,102,923 


321..S33.610 


1910 


Yen 


7,5S<).384 

14.342,334 

9.107,39" 

6,259,807 

12,488,799 

1,256,659 

3,811,268 

I9,.S«9,I9l 

6,"C>9.37.=i 

>79,3«7,322 

68,927,518 

6,652,169 

14,009,389 

5,025,218 

18,004,547 

24,617,004 

3,53".6^<'i 

7,64^,737 

3,357,054 

46,564,145 


458,428,996 


66,573,005 
14,018,277 
16,489,805 
18,661,482 
15,404,274 
8,254,532 
i5-«30,7''<2 

i3i.3«6,909 

35.249.740 

2,237,290 

6,869,698 

6,620,995 

I  .^56.303 
7.509,556 

9.736,767 

36,688,029 
15,090,221 
10,390,769 
2,302,298 
38,160,773 
29,206,512 


488,538,017 


810,071,627 


27,172,655 

13,293,191 
6,772,327 
7.432,712 
26,012,802 
10,082,802 
21,359,661 

173,474,600 
31,969,967 
2,202,175 
4,582,709 
4,503,016 
i,3«6,757 
12,042,291 
«,  1 29,243 

33.644,467 

9,609,041 

1 1,102,417 

3,173.941 
23,611,774 
32,675,260 


464,233,808 


922,662,804 


1915 


Yen 


24,466,898 
15,402,023 

11.934.355 
12,092,461 

1 4,308,542 

372,203 

6,021,548 

32,825,053 

10,146,513 

207,414,456 

108,968,247 

29,277.630 

36,532,349 

6,351,436 

22,191,233 

64,719,377 
7,760,036 
12,857,089 
10,031,193 
74,634,255 


708,306,897 


24,802,559 
14,912,886 

5,204,255 
12,622,144 
30,596,1 16 

7,373,468 
'7,276,236 

222,369,433 
34,764,123 
4,476,245 
9,148,398 
2,530,888 
368,285 
9,786,359 
9,321,564 

36,232,296 
22,437,421 
4,118,158 
1,252,006 
14,707,887 
48,148,111 


532,448,838 


1,240,755,735 


Years 

ToT.\L  Imports 
Yen 

Goods  Dutiable 
Yen 

Customs  Revenue 
Yen 

Average 
Percent.\ge 

1912 

618,992,000 

312,689,000 

58,242,000 

18.63 

1913 

729,431,000 

368,256,000 

73,580,000 

19.78 

1914 

595,735,000 

255,667,000 

50,512,000 

19.76 

1915 

532,449,000 

174,783,000 

30,195,000 

17.28 

1916 

756,427,000 

294,876,000 

33.832,000 

11.47 

balance  of  trade.  Her  ability  to  maintain 
this  position  depends  somewhat  on  whether 
she  can  retain  command  of  the  Oriental  mar- 
kets in  the  necessities  of  life.  In  her  efforts 
in  this  direction  she  can  never  afford  to  be 
defiant  toward  her  competitors,  with  whom 
in  any  tariff  war  she  must  inevitably 
suffer. 

Now  that  Japan  has  chosen  to  become  a 
mercantile  and  commercial  nation  her  pros- 
perity must  largely  depend  on  foreign  trade. 
Apart  from  silk,  tea,  copper,  and  coal  she 
has  no  staple  commodities  for  which  the 
Western  world  might  have  to  depend  on  her. 
She  is  always,  therefore,  more  beholden  to 
her  friends  than  they  to  her.  Her  home 
markets  can  not  be  compared  for  a  moment 
to  those  of  the  countries  she  most  desires  to 
rival  in  industry  and  trade.  In  both  England 
and  the  United  States  the  consuming  power 
of  the  individual  is  ten  times  what  it  is  in 
Japan,  to  say  nothing  of  his  greater  purchas- 
ing power.  Ignoring  these  facts  Japan  has, 
nevertheless,  gone  on  increasing  her  tariff 
until  in  some  items  it  is  now  almost  pro- 
hibitive. Not  over  5  per  cent  in  1896,  it 
jumped  to  8}^  in  1900;  and  now  for  some 
years  it  has  been  steadily  over  15  per  cent, 
and  recently  above  17  per  cent.  The  table  at 
the  foot  of  this  page  will  indicate  the  upward 
movement  of  Japan's  tariff. 

COMMERCI.\L    INSTITUTIONS 

In  old  Japan  commercial  institutions  per- 
tained to  the  local  daimiates,  but  after  the 
opening  of  the  country  to  foreign  trade 
chambers  of  commerce  began  to  appear,  of 
which  there  are  now  sixty  in  the  Empire, 
with  over  1,800  members  and  spending  about 
350,000  yen  a  year.  The  chambers  are  con- 
ducted entirely  on  European  lines  and  are 
self-governing  bodies,  whose  chief  functions 
are  the  investigation  of  industrial  and  com- 
mercial affairs,  arbitration,  commercial  con- 
sultative bodies  for  the  Government  and  the 
carrying  on  of  commercial  propaganda. 
Japan  has  also  numerous  Trade  Guilds 
which  exercise  an  important  influence  on 
commerce. 

These  guilds  represent  the  various  indus- 
tries and  manufactures,  and  their  main  pur- 
pose is  to  promote  the  benefit  of  the  mem- 
bers generally,  the  rectifying  of  bad  business 
customs,  as  well  as  improvement  of  produc- 
tion and  the  opening  of  new  markets.  The 
guilds  act  in  conjunction  with  one  another 
toward  the  attainment  of  common  ends  and 
the  exchange  of  mutual  information  helpful 
to  trade  and  industry.  The  various  local 
guilds  are  united  under  one  central  authority 
W'hose  officers  are  appointed  by  the  Govern- 
ment.    The   total   number   of   these   guilds 


210 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


is  now  over  1,000,  with  some  46  allied  asso- 
ciations, having  a  membership  of  1,100,000 
and  an  annual  expenditure  of  some  3,000,000 
yen. 

The  total  capital  now  represented  by 
the  industrial  guilds  of  Japan  is  estimated  at 
about  720,000,000  yen.  The  Central  Asso- 
ciation of  Trade  Guilds,  as  well  as  the  Govern- 
ment, is  devoting  careful  attention  to  the 
regulation  of  quantity  and  quality  of  output 
in  the  more  important  lines  of  industry, 
especially  as  to  goods  intended  for  export, 
all  manufactures  being  subject  to  inspection. 
By  this  careful  conditioning  of  exports  it  is 
hoped  to  prevent  the  sending  abroad  of 
inferior  or  unsatisfactory  goods  such  as 
might  prejudice  the  reputation  of  Japanese 
manufactures. 


JAPAN'S  BUTTON 
TRADE 

By  MK.  K.MILE   OTT,  of  Messrs.    Israel   & 
Oppenheimer,  Ltd.,  Kobe 

THE  manufacture  of  buttons  from  sea 
shells  is,  in  Japan,  a  comparatively 
young  industry,  and  it  is  interesting  to 
trace  the  development  of  the  button  trade 
from  the  first  small  and  primitive  factory 
to  the  present  up-to-date  installations  and 
enormous  export  capacity. 

It  is  a  difficult  matter  to  decide  who  was 
the  first  button  maker  as  there  are  several 
men,  each  of  whom  claims  to  be  the  founder 
of  one  of  Japan's  most  important  modern 
industries.  However,  there  is  no  doubt 
but  that  a  Japanese  can  claim  this  distinction. 


In  1 87 1,  only  forty-seven  years  ago,  Mr. 
Uwo,  who  still  lives  in  Osaka,  obtained  a 
foreign  made  button  from  a  foreign  mer- 
chant, and  immediately  began  to  manu- 
facture buttons,  though  on  a  very  small 
scale.  He  made  use  of  the  Shinju  shell, 
which  he  obtained  from  the  Inland  Sea  of 
Japan,  the  same  shell  which  is  being  used 
to-day.  Mr.  Uwo's  only  tools  to  cut  the 
shell  were  scissors,  and  the  holes  were  bored 
through  the  unfinished  buttons,  one  by  one, 
w'ith  a  primitive  borer,  therefore  one  can 
easily  imagine  how  small  his  output  of  poor 
quality  buttons  was.  His  first  essay  at 
button- making  was  certainly  not  a  very 
profitable  proposition  but  it  did  not  dis- 
courage him,  though  he  soon  realised  that 
without   better   tools  it   could   not   possibly 


LEADING   FOREIGN   MERCHANTS    OF    YOKOHAMA 

(Upper  Row,  Left  to  Right)  H.  M.  Arnould,  of  Varnum  Amould  &  Co.  — E.  C.  Davis,  Partner  of  Davis,  Summers  &  Co. — J.  Alston, 
Manager  for  Japan  of  the  Chartered  Bank  of  India,  Australia,  and  China  — F.  W.  R.  Ward,  Managing  Partner,  Cooper  &  Co.— S.  IsA.\cs, 
of  S.  Isaacs  &  Co.  (Middle  Row)  J.  D.  Longmire,  Manager,  International  Banking  Corporation— R.  T.  Wright,  Manager  for  Japan, 
Hongkong  &  Shanghai  Bank,  Yokohama— The  Hon.  A.  M.  Chalmers,  British  Consul-General  at  Yokohama— F.  H.  Bugbird,  Repre- 
sentative for  Japan,  Jardine,  Matheson  &  Co.,  Ltd. — A.  H.  CoLE  Watson,  Yokohama  Representative  of  Findlay,  Richardson  &  Co.,  Ltd. 
(Lower  Row)  R.  E.  Kohzevar,  Yokohama  Agent  for  Peninsular  &  Oriental  S.  N.  Co.  —  O.  M.  Poole,  Manager,  Dodwell  &  Co., 
Ltd.  —  A.  P.  Scott,  Managing  Director,  The  Rising  Sun  Petroleum  Co.,  Ltd.,  and  Author  of  Article  on  "Petroleum"  in  this  Volume 
—  H.  A.  Ensworth,  General  Manager  for  Japan  of  Standard  Oil  Co.  of  New  York,  and  President  of  the  American  Association  of 
Japan  —  H.  S.  Hume,  Managing  Director,  Samuel  Samuel  &  Co.,  Ltd.  —  R.  M.  Varnum,  of  Amould  Varnum  &  Co. 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


211 


turn  out  a  success.  He  made  experiments 
with  a  view  to  devising  a  machine,  and 
succeeded  in  improving  to  a  considerable 
extent,  at  least,  on  the  scissors,  and  produced 
a  certain  quality  of  very  cheap  Shinju 
buttons,  quite  good  enough  for  home  use. 

Mr.  Uwo's  activity  attracted  the  attention 
of  other  persons  to  the  industry,  and  the 
Okayama  and  Osaka  penitentiaries  soon 
began  turning  out  similar  buttons.  A  few 
years  later  about  a  dozen  small  factories 
were  at  work. 

In  1880  the  first  South  Sea  Island  and 
Indian  shell  was  imported  to  Japan,  and  the 
makers  of  the  cheap  Shinju  buttons  imme- 
diately started  to  copy  the  foreign  good 
quality  buttons.  The  bleaching,  however, 
was  very  bad,  as  none  of  the  manufacturers 
seemed  able  to  get  hold  of  the  chemical 
process  formulas  which  were  in  use  in  Europe. 
Some  nine  years  later,  in  1889,  a  German  by 
the  name  of  Winkler  established  a  button 
factory  in  Kobe,  starting  on  quite  an  e.xten- 
sive  scale,  with  two  hundred  up-to-date 
machines,  forty-eight  of  which  he  imported. 
He  began  at  once  to  use  other  shells  from 
Japan's  Inland  Sea,  such  as  Yanko  and 
Awabi,  beside  those  of  Macassar  and  South 
Sea  Island  Takase.  Winkler  brought  out 
experts  from  Germany  thoroughly  ac- 
quainted with  the  manufacture  of  buttons, 
and  he  thus  established  himself  from  the 
beginning  as  the  leading  manufacturer, 
keeping,  moreover,  all  his  machines  and 
manufacturing  processes  as  secret  as  possible. 
After  a  few  years  he  began  the  importation  of 
the  necessary  bleaching  material  and  started 
his  own  bleaching  department,  along  the 
same  Unes  as  the  Austrian  and  German 
manufacturers  in  Europe.  In  1895  a  Japa- 
nese named  Masagaki  experimented  success- 
fully in  the  bleaching  of  buttons  with  chemi- 
cals, and  much  of  the  tremendous  develop- 
ment of  the  export  business  in  the  following 
years  is  due  to  the  early  adoption  of  this 
bleaching  process  and  the  consequent  expor- 
tation of  the  completely  finished  buttons. 

FIRST    EXPORT 

According  to  statistics  of  the  Department 
of  Finance,  early  in  1872  the  first  buttons 
were  exported  from  Koh6  to  Austria,  amount- 
ing to  3,880  pieces  of  buttons  of  a  value  of 
Yen  40.00.  It  is  very  doubtful,  however, 
whether  these  buttons  were  made  in  Japan, 
as  Austria  then  produced  a  very  good  button 
and  could  not  possibly  use  Japan's  first  trial 
in  cheap  Shinju.  In  fact,  Japan's  statistics 
do  not  mention  buttons  as  an  export  during 
the  seventeen  years  following  1872.  During 
the  first  years  Winkler  exported  the  unfin- 
ished buttons  (simple  holed  button  forms, 
unbleached)   to  Germany,  where  they  were 


bleached  and  finished.  There  is  no  further 
record  though  it  is  possible  that  Japan-made 
buttons  may  have  been  exported  together 
with  manufactured  articles  such  as  under- 
wear, clothing,  etc.  The  first  export,  accord- 
ing to  official  statistics,  was  made  in  1893,  of 
a  total  value  of  Yen  174,000. 

The  war  has  naturally  had  a  great  influence 
on  Japan's  button  trade,  and  the  following 
facts  will  be  of  interest.  Despite  the  fact 
that  labour  in  Japan  has  gone  up  since  the 
beginning  of  the  war  from  forty  to  fifty  per 
cent;  that  prices  of  bleaching  materials  have 
doubled,  and  that  foreign  raw  material  has 
raised  from  twenty  to  forty  per  cent  owing 
to  the  scarcity  of,  and  increase  in,  shipping 
space,  the  prices  of  buttons  have  remained 
not  only  the  same,  but  dropped  in  certain 
instances  twenty  per  cent.  This  is  princi- 
pally due  to  the  fact  that  Japan  lost  in 
Germany  one  of  its  largest  buyers,  and, 
further,  to  the  import  restrictions  of  England 
in  19 16  (fifty  per  cent  of  previous  years' 
import  only).  On  the  other  hand,  however, 
the  exports  to  the  United  States  nearly 
doubled.  In  America,  the  buttons  known 
as  the  Mississippi  fresh  water  buttons  are 
used  in  tremendous  quantities,  but  the  cost 
of  labour  in  the  United  States  has  risen 
during  the  war  to  such  an  extent  that 
Japan  is  able  to  sell  buttons  at  favourable 
prices,  despite  the  high  customs  tariff  of 
the  United  States.  The  American  consumer 
did  not  want,  however,  to  part  with  his 
white  fresh  water  button,  so  large  quantities 
of  Taimin  Dobu,  a  white  shell  of  similar 
appearance  to  the  Mississippi  shell,  are  im- 
ported into  Japan  especially  for  the  American 
and  Canadian  markets.  This  tremendous 
export  of  Dobu  buttons  in  Taimin  and  Japa- 
nese Dobu  shell  did  not  influence  the  other 
quality  buttons  to  the  betterment  of  the 
trade,  and  prices  are  still  low.  They  will 
presumably  rise  as  soon  as  the  war  is  over. 

WORK  OF  THE  EXPORTER 
To-day  Japan  with  her  modern  machinery 
and  perfect  bleaching  and  shaping  plants  can 
produce  buttons  which  compete  with  the 
foreign  product,  and  the  labour,  which  in 
comparison  with  other  button-producing 
countries  is  still  cheap,  enables  her  to  lead 
all  foreign  producers.  France,  of  course, 
manufactures  a  very  good,  or  even  better, 
quality  button,  but  the  prices  are  propor- 
tionately higher.  The  fancy  shaped  buttons 
are  not,  of  coiu-se,  to  be  forgotten,  and  the 
dyeing  of  buttons,  which  has  improved  of 
late,  enables  Japan  to  compete  also  with  the 
French  manufacturers  in  the  fancy  and 
coloured  lines.  There  are  actually  only  a 
limited  number  of  exporters  who  are  oper- 
ating successfully  in  the  button   trade,   for 


only  years  of  experience  in  the  different 
markets,  a  perfect  knowledge  of  the  raw 
material  and  the  manufacturing  process, 
will  enable  an  exporter  to  handle  buttons 
successfully  and  satisfy  customers  abroad. 
Winkler  was  the  only  man  who  exported  his 
own  buttons,  whereas  to-day  all  manufac- 
turers deal  through  exporters,  though  it  is 
easily  understood  that  most  of  the  leading 
exporters  are  financially  interested  on  the 
manufacturing  side.  The  very  greatest  care 
has  to  be  exercised  because  so  many  points 
require  consideration.  The  diflferent  quali- 
ties of  shell  of  almost  identical  appearance 
but  difference  in  price,  the  various  thick- 
nesses of  the  shell  and  consequently  varying 
thickness  of  the  buttons,  the  size  of  the  holing, 
which  differs  according  to  the  market,  the 
thorough  bleaching  and  polishing,  and  the 
various  different  grades  (first,  second,  third, 
and  fourth  quality),  all  make  it  essential  that 
the  up-to-date  exporter  shall  keep  an  experi- 
enced staff  of  inspectors  with  a  thorough 
knowledge  of  the  raw  materials  and  the 
requirements  of  the  different  markets.  The 
careful  inspection  of  every  single  button  is 
the  only  way  to  satisfy  the  foreign  consumer. 

Some  of  the  leading  exporters  are  actually 
importing  their  own  raw  and  bleaching  mate- 
rials, beside  giving  to  the  manufacturers 
financial  assistance.  Some  exporters,  with 
world-wide  connections,  control  the  whole 
outjjut  capacity  of  several  factories  and  their 
export  to  various  countries  enables  them  to 
dispose  of  every  grade  the  factories  produce, 
while  it  is  of  great  importance  that  the 
makers  be  induced  to  turn  out  new  shapes 
and  designs.  The  great  improvements  in  the 
fancy  buttons  within  the  last  few  years  is 
mostly  due  to  the  assiduous  work  of  some  of 
the  leading  exporters  and  foreign  experts  in 
buttons. 

The  Japanese  button  manufacturers  are 
preparing  for  foreign  competition  after  the 
war,  and  are  confident,  not  only  of  being 
able  to  hold  their  position,  but  of  being  able 
to  improve  the  same,  and  their  expectations 
appear  in  many  ways  to  be  justified. 

TOKYO  BUSINESS 
HOUSES 

OKURA  AND  COMPANY 
The  firm  of  Okura  and  Company  was 
founded  by  the  present  Baron  Okura,  a  man 
of  fine  personality,  unusual  genius  for  organi- 
sation, unflinching  faith  in  industry  and  of 
resistless  enterprise.  Baron  Okura  stands  a 
peer  among  the  great  merchant  princes  of 
Japan,  and  his  concern  is  one  of  the  leading 
import  and  export  houses  of  the  Empire. 
Commencing  business  in  1869  to  supply 
equipment   for   Japan's   nascent    army,    the 


TOKYO    PREMISES    OF    OKURA    &    COMPANY 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


213 


firm  made  large  profits  on  Government  con- 
tracts, and  has  ever  since  enjoyed  the  confi- 
dence and  patronage  of  the  Imperial  au- 
thorities. Messrs.  Okura  and  Company  arc 
doing  business  on  a  capital  of  10,000,000  yen, 
and  are  engaged  chiefly  in  the  importing  of 
mining  and  other  engineering  machinery,  as 
well  as  in  the  export  of  leather  goods,  army 
cloths,  arms,  ammunition,  explosives,  muni- 
tions, pig  iron,  smokeless  coal,  engineering 
equipment,  and  manufacturing  machinery. 
The  company  has  branch  offices  in  Shanghai, 
Hankow,  Tientsin,  Darien,  Mukden,  Tsing- 
tau,  Tsainanfu  and  other  places  in  China, 
with  offices  in  Sydney,  New  York,  and  Lon- 
don, as  well,  the  Okura  house  being  the  first 
Japanese  company  to  open  an  office  in  Lon- 
don. The  company  is  especially  popular  in 
China,  where  Baron  Okura  has  himself  gone 
to  interview  Government  officials  and  close 
contracts,  frequently  accommodating  China 
with  private  loans.  The  head  and  founder 
of  Okura  and  Company  takes  a  keen  and 
liberal     interest     in     national     aflfairs.     He 


established  the  Okura  Commercial  College  in 
Tok>'0  for  the  educating  of  men  of  business 
so  much  in  demand  everywhere  in  Japan, 
and  in  iSyS  he  endowed  the  institution  with 
half  a  million  yen.  Baron  Okura  has  estab- 
lished similar  schools  at  Osaka  and  in  Seoul. 
Recently  he  presented  the  nation  with  a 
valuable  museum.  Beside  the  head  of  the 
firm.  Baron  Okura,  there  are  Mr.  C.  Kadono, 
Mr.  Kumema  Okura,  Mr.  Hatsumi  Okura, 
Mr.  K.  S.  Okura,  and  Mr.  Yamada,  as 
Directors. 

TAKATA  AND  COMPANY 
Mr.  Shinzo  Takata,  who  established  the 
business  which  bears  his  name,  was  one  of 
the  very  earliest  importers  and  exporters  in 
Japan,  having  entered  upon  trade  with  for- 
eign countries  as  far  back  as  1869.  After 
many  difficulties  which  attended  the  effort 
to  do  foreign  business  in  those  early  days, 
Mr.  Takata  built  up  a  world-wide  connec- 
tion, and  the  firm  to-day  is  undoubtedly 
among  the  most  important  concerns  in  Japan. 


Messrs.  Takata  &  Co.  are  general  mer- 
chants, mine  owners,  and  industrial  manu- 
facturers and  Government  contractors,  their 
interests  being  widely  varied.  They  direct 
and  manage  the  Takata  Ship  Paint  Factorj' 
at  Ohsakimura,  Tokj'O-fu;  the  Yanagishima 
Iron  Works,  Tokyo;  the  Ohdera  Zinc  Refin- 
ing Works  at  Fukushima-ken,  and  are  inter- 
ested in  the  following  mining  properties: 
Takata  Mine  (zinc  and  lead),  Miyagi-ken; 
Hiroo  Zinc  Mine,  Hokkaido;  Takakoshi 
Copper  Mine,  Tokushima-ken;  Hiyoshi  Cop- 
per Mine,  Okayama-ken,  and  the  Katsuura 
Mine,  Hyogo-ken.  In  the  Sino- Japanese 
and  Russo-Japanese  Wars  Mr.  Takata  ren- 
dered great  service  to  the  Imperial  Govern- 
ment and  he  was  awarded  the  third  Order 
of  the  Rising  Sun.  In  1909,  owing  to  the 
great  expansion  which  had  taken  place,  the 
business  was  transformed  into  a  semi- 
partnership,  the  principals  of  which  are 
Mr.  Shinzo  Takata  and  his  two  sons,  Messrs. 
Kamakichi  and  Nobujiro  Takata.  The  head 
office  of  Messrs.  Takata  &  Co.  is  at  Eiraku- 


PALATIAL  TOKYO  OFFICES  OF  TAKATA  &  CO. 


15 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


215 


cho,  Nichome,  Kojimachi-ku,  Tokyo,  and 
there  arc  branches  at  Osaka,  London, 
New  York,  Shanghai,  Hankow,  Dalny, 
Keijo,  Taihoku,  Yokosuka,  Yokohama,  Kob6, 
Maizuru,   Kurc,   Moji,  and  Sascbo. 

SALE  AND  FIi,\ZAR,  LIMITED 
Among  the  names  of  the  pioneers  of  foreign 
trade  in  the  Orient,  none  are  better  known 
than  those  of  Sale  and  Frazar,  and  in  Japan, 
the  names  in  combination  in  the  big  enter- 
prise known  as  Sale  &  Frazar,  Limited,  stand 
for  all  that  is  enterprising,  substantial,  and 
stable  in  commerce.  The  origin  of  the  con- 
cern goes  back  into  the  remote  stages  of  trade 
development  in  China  and  Japan,  and  in  the 
early  and  romantic  history  of  the  pioneer 
days  the  two  names  of  George  Frazar  and 
George  Sale  frequently  recur,  as  do  those  of 
their  respective  descendants.  The  late  Mr. 
George  Frazar,  who  founded  the  firm  of 
Frazar  and  Company,  started  in  business  in 
Canton  as  far  back  as  1834.  He  was  captain 
of  one  of  the  famous  clippers  which  used  to 
carry  raw  silk  and  tea  from  China  to  Boston. 
Mr.  Frazar  was  among  the  earliest  settlers  in 
Hongkong  when  that  port  was  ceded  to  the 
British  and  opened  for  foreign  trade  in  the 
forties.  His  son,  Everett  Frazar,  proceeded 
to  Shanghai  in  1856  and  there  established  a 
branch  of  Frazar  and  Company,  engaging  in  a 
general  import  and  export  business,  which  is 
still  actively  operated  under  the  proprietor- 
ship of  Mr.  MacMichael,  who  purchased  the 
firm's  interest  in  1890.  Everett  Frazar  made 
his  first  visit  to  Japan  with  Commodore 
Perry's  second  expedition  in  1858,  but  as  at 
that  time  the  future  of  foreign  trade  with 
Japan  was  a  closed  book,  owing  to  the 
extremely  hostile  attitude  of  the  Japanese, 
Mr.  Frazar  considered  the  prospect  too  unin- 
viting, and  retlu^led  to  Shanghai.  In  1878 
his  partner,  Mr.  John  Lindsley,  started  the 
firm  in  business  in  Yokohama,  and  remained 
with  it  until  his  retirement  in  1901.  Mr. 
Everett  Frazar  died  in  the  same  year,  and  his 
son,  Mr.  E.  W.  Frazar,  the  present  Managing 
Director  of  Sale  &  Frazar,  Ltd.,  succeeded  his 
father  in  the  business,  and  in  1902  bought  out 
Mr.  Lindsley.  In  the  same  year  the  combina- 
tion of  Messrs.  Frazar  and  Company  and 
Messrs.  Sale  and  Company  took  place,  Mr. 
C.  V.  Sale  becoming  a  partner  of  Frazar  and 
Company  and  Mr.  Frazar  a  director  of  Sale 
and  Company. 

Meanwhile  the  Sale  family  had  been  estab- 
lishing their  great  interests  in  Japan.  The 
pioneer  was  the  late  Mr.  George  Sale  who 
came  to  Japan  from  England  in  1879,  and 
opened  up  business.  He  was  succeeded  by 
his  son,  Mr.  Charles  V.  Sale,  and  the  business 
was  developed  to  a  large  extent,  ultimately 
being  incorporated  under  the  laws  of  Japan  in 
1895  ^s  Sale  and  Company.     In   1907   Mr. 


WOOD   CARVERS   AT   WORK 


Sale  retired  and  took  over  the  London  branch 
of  the  firm.  This  branch  was  subsequently 
made  a  separate  concern,  and  is  controlled  by 
Mr.  Charles  V.  Sale.  His  brother,  Mr.  Fred 
G.  Sale,  continued  with  the  business  in  Japan 
until  191  •?,  when  he  retired  to  England. 

The  linking  of  the  interests  of  these  two  old 
firms,  which  took  place  in  1902,  was  entirely 
successful,  and  two  years  later  it  was  decided 
to  make  the  amalgamation  complete,  the  two 
concerns  being  merged  in  the  present  corpora- 
tion of  Sale  &  Frazar,  Ltd.  During  the  many 
years  of  the  activity  of  the  old  partnerships 
and  the  present  company  almost  every 
branch  of  business  has  been  carried  on  in 
import  and  export,  shipping  and  finance. 
Sale  &  Frazar,  Ltd.,  have  the  distinction  of 
having  brought  the  first  electric  dynamo  to 
Japan,  and  they  installed  the  first  electric 
plant  in  the  Emperor's  Palace.  They  also 
put  in  the  first  plant  for  the  Tokyo  Electric 
Light  Company.  They  introduced  the  first 
phonograph  and  the  first  American  locomo- 
tive. They  were  pioneers  of  American  cotton 
and  flour,  and  also  inaugurated  the  Canadian 
Pacific  Railway  Company's  ocean  service, 
beginning  with  sailing  ships,  next  with 
chartered  steamers,  and  finally  the  magnifi- 
cent    Empress"  liners. 

From  this  history  it  will  be  seen  what  an 
important  part  the  company  and  its  predeces- 
sors have  played  in  the  development  of  foreign 
interests  in  Japan.  The  foundations  laid  by 
the  founders  of  the  great  concern  have  been 
steadily  built  upon  and  to-day  the  business 
must  be  numbered  among  the  very  first  in  the 
Far  East.  It  is  conducted  with  vigour  and 
along    the   soundest   lines,    making    for    the 


maintenance  of  British  and  American  com- 
mercial prestige  in  Japan.  The  business  is 
organised  into  eight  departments,  each  under 
expert  direction,  and  well  staffed  with  foreign 
and  Japanese  servants  fitted  by  experience  to 
handle  the  intricate  and  multitudinous  under- 
takings which  the  companyalwayshasin  hand. 
To  attempt  to  describe  the  work  of  each 
department  is  not  within  the  scope  of  this 
brief  description  of  Sale  &  Frazar,  Ltd. 
There  is  hardly  a  l^ranch  of  trade  with  Japan, 
no  matter  over  what  wide  range  of  activity 
we  glance,  that  is  not  dealt  with.  In  imports 
such  agencies  as  those  of  Armour  &  Co.,  of 
Chicago,  "Carnation  Milk,"  Morgan  Crucible 
Co.,  and  Ford  cars  may  be  mentioned. 
Imports  include  rubber,  metals,  chemicals, 
fertilizers,  textiles,  dyes,  paper  pulp  and 
scores  of  other  lines.  Exports  embrace 
practically  every  exportable  line  produced  in 
Japan.  The  company  is  agent  for  half  a 
dozen  insurance  companies,  and  several  of  the 
big  shipping  organisations,  and  it  is  hard  to 
say  where  its  ramifications  end,  the  business 
extending  through  several  branches  in  Japan 
and  to  such  important  commercial  centres  as 
London,  New  York,  Sydney,  Shanghai, 
Peking,  Tientsin,  Dairen,  and  Thursday 
Island. 

Sale  &  Frazar,  Ltd.,  is  capitalized  at  Yen 
400,000.00  fully  paid  up.  The  legal  reserve  is 
Yen  100,000.00.  The  Board  of  Directors 
consists  of  Messrs.  E.  W.  Frazar  (Managing 
Director),  V.  R.  Bowden,  F.  S.  Booth, 
H.  Carew,  E.  J.  Libeaud,  J.  N.  Strong,  A.  L.J. 
Dewette,  and  C.  E.  Kirby  (Auditor).  The 
head  office  is  at  No.  i  Yaesu-cho,  Itchome, 
Kojimachi-ku,  Tokyo. 


2l6 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


THE  MEI.TI  TRADING  COMPANY,  LIMITED 
The  officers  of  this  company  arc  Mr.  S.  H. 
Matsubara,  President;  Mr.  K.  Ishikawa,  Mr. 
Tad.  Ayai,  and  Mr.  S.  Soycjima,  Managing 
Directors;  Mr.  T.  Funiya,  Mr.  S.  Xishimura, 
Mr.  T.  Murai,  and  Mr.  Yakichi  Murai, 
Directors;  and  Mr.  G.  Murai,  Mr.  Yaichiro 
Murai,  and  Mr.  Y.  Uyeno,  Auditors.  Mr. 
K.  Murai,  a  well  known  millionaire  and  the 
paterfamilias  of  the  Murai  family,  is  the 
largest  stockholder  of  the  company.  He  is 
the  President  of  the  Murai  Bank,  with  paid  up 
capital  of  Yen  2,000,000,  a  reserve  of  over  Yen 
1,000,000,  and  deposits  of  about  Yen  30,000,- 
000.  Mr.  K.  Murai,  as  President,  and  Mr. 
S.  H.  Matsubara,  as  Secretary,  had  both  been 
Directors  of  the  American-Japanese  Tobacco 
Syndicate,  known  as  Murai  Bros.  Company, 
Ltd.  Mr.  T.  Murai  had  also  been  on  the 
Board  of  Directors  of  the  Syndicate,  and  at 
present  is  one  of  the  Managing  Directors  of 
the  Murai  Bank.  Mr.  K.  Ishikawa  had  been 
head  of  the  supply  department  of  the  Syndi- 
cate which  was  bought  up  by  the  Government 
in  the  year  1904,  when  tobacco  was  monopo- 


lised in  Japan.  Mr.  Tad.  Ayai,  who  had  also 
been  connected  with  the  Syndicate  as  Assis- 
tant Treasurer  and,  at  one  time.  Manager  of 
the  Murai  Bank,  and  until  lately  one  of 
The  Meiji  Trading  Company's  Auditors, 
succeeded,  in  December,  1916,  Mr.  Ter.  M. 
Uyeno,  who,  on  account  of  illness,  had  retired 
from  the  directorship.  Mr.  S.  Soyejima  has 
until  recently  been  Assistant  Manager  of  one 
of  the  local  branches  of  Mitsui  &  Company. 
Mr.  T.  Furuya  and  Mr.  S.  Nishimura  were 
formerly  proprietors  of  the  firm  of  Furuya  & 
Nishimura,  prominent  tea  exporters,  and 
these  two  gentlemen  are  now  in  charge  of  the 
Shizuoka  and  New  York  offices.  Mr.  G. 
Murai  is  the  General  Manager  of  the  Murai 
Bank,  and  Mr.  Y.  Uyeno  is  the  Superintend- 
ent of  the  general  business  of  the  Murai 
Honten.  Mr.  Yakishi  Murai  is  the  President 
of  the  Murai  Colliery  Company,  while  Mr. 
Yaichiro  Murai  is  the  President  of  the  Murai 
Warehouse  Company  at  Kyoto. 

The  British  references  of  The  Meiji  Trading 
Co.,  Ltd.,  are  the  Yokohama  Specie  Bank, 
London,  the  British  American  Tobacco  Co., 


PREMISES   OF   MEIJI   TRADING   CO.,    LTD.,    LOCATED    IN   MUR.M    BUILDING 


Ltd.,  Messrs.  George  Kent,  Ltd.,  London, 
Messrs.  Robert  Legg,  Ltd.,  London,  and 
Messrs.  Betts  &  Co.,  London.  American 
references  are:  The  American  Tobacco  Co., 
New  York,  Messrs.  J.  P.  Taylor  Company, 
Richmond,  Va.,  the  Yokohama  Specie  Bank, 
Ltd.,  New  York,  The  United  States  Steel 
Products  Company,  New  York,  California 
Ink  Company,  San  Francisco,  and  Messrs. 
Felton  &  Son,  Inc.,  Boston. 

The  business  was  first  established  under  the 
title  of  Ishikawa  &  Company,  with  a  capital  of 
Yen  100,000,  in  1904,  when  the  Tobacco 
Syndicate  was  liquidated.  In  December, 
1911,  Messrs.  Murai  joined  the  firm  as  part- 
ners, the  capital  was  doubled,  and  the  name 
was  changed  to  Meiji  Trading  Company. 
In  January,  1915,  it  was  reorganised  into  a 
limited  joint-stock  company.  As  the  sphere 
of  work  was  widened  from  time  to  time,  and 
the  business  rapidly  expanded,  the  capital 
was  again  increased,  in  Januarj',  1917,  to  Yen 
1,000,000  —  five  times  the  amount  previously 
invested.  Furthermore  the  company  has  the 
financial  support  of  the  Murai  Bank,  as  well 
as  that  of  Mr.  K  Murai,  personally,  and  is 
enabled  to  carry  out  almost  any  large  under- 
taking. The  principal  lines  are,  in  the 
Import  Branch,  leaf  tobacco  and  tobacco 
manufacturing  supplies,  cork,  pig  iron,  steel, 
tin  plates,  galvanized  sheets  and  wire  and 
other  metals,  hardware  in  general,  machinery, 
pulp,  paper,  rubber  (crude  and  manufactured) 
tops,  textiles  of  all  kinds,  printing  inks  and 
supplies,  building  materials,  paints,  tea  lead, 
water  metres,  hemp,  flax,  etc.  The  chief 
exports  are  cigarette  mouthpieces,  menthol 
crj'stal,  peppermint  oil,  lily  bulbs,  peanuts, 
vegetable  oil,  fish  oil,  sulphur,  hemp  braids, 
matches,  copper,  cathodes  and  sheets,  Japa- 
nese paper,  rice,  tea,  coal,  textiles  of  silk  and 
cotton,  etc.  The  Osaka  branch,  with  the 
Kob^  branch  under  the  new  organisation, 
looks  after  the  business  in  the  western  part  of 
Japan,  under  the  supervision  of  Mr.  S.  Soye- 
jima, one  of  the  Managing  Directors,  assisted 
by  Mr.  T.  Kaneko,  who  has  had  long  experi- 
ence in  foreign  trade.  The  oversea  branches 
are  as  follows:  Shanghai,  Dairen,  Tsingtao, 
New  York  (attending  to  all  imports  from  and 
exports  to  America),  Chicago,  Montreal, 
and  Sydney.  The  London  branch  is  now 
being  opened.  The  head  office  of  the  Meiji 
Trading  Co.,  Ltd.,  is  Murai  Bank,  Xihon- 
bashi-ku,   Tokyo. 

GOMEIKAISHA  .MURAI  BANK 
This  bank,  the  partners  of  which  are  Mr. 
Kichibei  Murai  (who  is  popularly  known,  and 
has  contributed  much  to  the  finance  and 
economy  of  the  country,  as  the  pioneer  of 
cigarette  manufacture  in  Japan)  and  his 
relatives,  was  first  established  in  Ohdemma- 


SANKYO   &    CO.,    LTD.:      GENERAL    VIEW    OF    LABORATORIES,    SHINAGAWA — INTERIOR    OF    OFFICE  —  PART   OF    RESEARCH    ROOM - 

SECTION    OF     RETAIL    SHOP,    TOKYO — SHOW    ROOM    OF    SURGICAL    INSTRUMENTS,    TOKYO    OFFICE 


2l8 


PRESENT-DAY        I  M  P  R  I<:  S  S  I  O  N  S        OF        JAPAN 


cho  Street,  Nihonbashi  district,  Tokyo,  in 
January,  1904,  a  year  after  the  liquidation  of 
Murai  Brothers  Company  owing  to  the 
Government  monopolising  the  tobacco  busi- 
ness in  1903.  The  next  year,  the  Kyoto 
Branch  was  established  in  Shijo  and  Tomino- 
koji  streets,  Kyoto,  and  the  Shichijo  Ware- 
house came  into  the  bank's  possession  and 
under  its  management,  and  then  the  Shichijo 
Branch    was    opened.     In    191 1,    Kabushiki 


of  Jajian's  leading  scientists  and  discoverers, 
and  it  occupies  a  foremost  jjlace  in  the  chem- 
ical and  drug  industry,  which  has  attained 
such  importance  in  Japan  since  the  outbreak 
of  war.  The  origin  of  the  company  dates 
back  to  1899,  when  Mr.  Matasaku  Shiohara, 
the  present  Managing  Director,  opened  in 
Yokohama  an  agency  for  the  importation  and 
sale  of  the  digestive  preparation,  "Taka- 
Diastase,"  invented  by  Dr.  Takamine,  who 


MAKING   DRAWNWORK   FOR   EXPORT 


Kaisha  Murai  Chokin  Ginko  (Murai  Savings 
Bank,  Ltd.)  was  established  in  addition. 
Then  several  branch  offices  were  opened  in 
Tokyo,  Kyoto,  and  Osaka.  In  Sejjtember, 
1913,  the  magnificent  new  five-story  building 
at  the  south  comer  of  the  Nihonbashi  Bridge, 
which  is  situated  at  the  very  centre  of  the 
metropolis,  was  completed,  and  the  bank 
moved  there  in  October  of  that  year.  The 
rigid  way  of  conducting  business  has  more 
and  more  enhanced  the  bank's  good  reputa- 
tion, and  with  the  expansion  of  its  business  an 
increase  of  capital  became  inevitable,  and  it  is 
now  under  contemplation  to  reform  the 
organisation  into  a  joint-stock  company  with 
a  capital  amounting  to  Yen    10,000,000.00. 

SANKYO  AND  COMPANY,  LIMITED 
Messrs.  Sankyo  &  Co.,  Ltd.,  are  manufac- 
turers, importers  of,  and  dealers  in,  chemicals, 
drugs,  hardened  oils,  surgical  instruments, 
chemical  apparatus,  electric  insulating  mate- 
rials and  various  patented  articles  appertain- 
ing to  the  trade  in  which  the  company  is 
active.  This  organisation  is  associated  with 
the  great  name  of  Dr.  Jokichi  Takamine,  one 


had  been  a  resident  of  New  York  for  over 
thirty  years,  establishing  there  the  Takamine 
Laboratory,  Inc.,  where  scientific  research 
work  under  his  direction  had  given  to  the 
world  "Taka- Diastase,"  "Adrenalin,"  and 
many  other  preparations,  manufactured  by 
Messrs.  Parke,  Davis  &  Co.  of  Detroit, 
Michigan. 

In  1912  Mr.  vShiohara  removed  to  Tokyo 
and  established  a  factory  at  Hakozaki  (the 
works  being  still  in  use  under  the  direction  of 
the  present  company),  and  begun  the  manu- 
facture of  pharmaceutical  preparations,  at  the 
same  time  exerting  his  energies  toward 
importing  and  selling  various  drugs  and 
chemicals,  both  medicinal  and  industrial. 
All  kinds  of  chemical  and  industrial  machin- 
ery were  also  handled,  Mr.  Shiohara  always 
keeping  in  touch  with  the  most  influential 
companies  in  his  own  line  of  business  in  the 
LTnited  States,  and  thus  building  up  and 
extending  the  influence  and  prestige  of  his 
business.  In  1913  Mr.  Shiohara  transformed 
his  private  interests  into  a  limited  liability 
company,  known  under  the  present  title  of 
Sankyo  and  Company,  Ltd.     This  operation 


gave  the  business  further  impetus,  because 
the  formation  of  the  company  attracted  the 
support  of  many  influential  business  men  who 
realised  the  value  to  the  country  of  the 
industry  which  Mr.  Shiohara  had  put  on  such 
a  prosperous  footing.  The  outbreak  of  the 
great  war  and  the  cutting  ofT  of  commercial 
relations  with  warring  nations,  drew  serious 
attention  on  the  jiart  of  the  Japanese  to  the 
uncertain  supply  of  drugs  and  chemicals, 
seeing  that  the  principal  articles  used  by 
physicians  in  Japan  were  mainly  imported 
from  foreign  countries.  Sankyo  &  Co.,  Ltd., 
were  the  first  to  take  in  the  situation  and 
begin  the  manufacture  of  drugs  and  chemicals, 
and  their  efforts  have  been  rewarded  with 
success.  In  a  year  they  were  able  to  supply 
the  market  with  their  products,  all  of  the 
highest  quality,  as  enumerated  hereafter: 
Salicylic  acid  and  salicylates,  acetyl  salicylic 
acid  (Aspirin),  dimethylamidoantipyrin 
(Pyramidon),  phenacetin,  lactic  acid 
and  lactates,  hexaraethylenetetramine  (Uro- 
tropin),  carbolic  acid,  Arsaminol  (606),  Salol, 
Theobromine  sodio  salicylate  (Diuretin), 
Antifebrin,  citric  acid,  benzoic  acid,  caffeine 
sodio  benzoate,  etc.  Thus  the  company 
which  had  hitherto  been  chiefly  engaged  in 
the  manufacture  of  galenic  preparations  and 
other  specialties,  has  added  to  its  list  of 
manufactured  articles  the  leading  general 
products  of  world  demand,  as  mentioned 
above.  Sankyo  &  Co.,  besides  being  the 
largest  pharmaceutical  manufacturing  con- 
cern in  Japan,  is  also  making  investments  in 
chemical  industries  in  all  directions,  and  thus 
endeavouring  to  extend  its  lines  of  business. 
As  an  example  we  may  mention  that  the 
future  of  the  Satowlite  Company,  which  was 
recently  organised  at  the  initiative  and  under 
special  auspices  of  Sankyo  &  Co.  for  the  pur- 
pose of  manufacturing  non-inflammable  cellu- 
loid-like articles,  is  attracting  special  interest  in 
the  scientific  world.  The  Satowlite  articles 
are  the  products  resulting  from  the  scientific 
investigations  and  researches  made  by  the 
Science  Institute  of  the  North  Eastern  Imperial 
University,  the  Institute  being  kept  going  by 
funds  contributed  by  Sankyo  &  Co.  Several 
of  the  professors  of  the  University,  of  most 
advanced  knowledge  and  progressive  spirit, 
are  energetically  and  enthusiastically  pur- 
suing their  investigations,  the  results  of  which 
will  be  forthcoming  to  brighten  the  future  of 
Sankyo  &  Co.  more  and  more. 

Messrs.  Sankyo  &  Co.,  Ltd.,  have  a  capital 
of  Yen  2,300,000.00,  with  various  reserve 
funds  aggregating  Yen  1,700,000.00.  The 
shareholders  number  167,  most  of  whom  are 
men  of  prominent  position  in  the  financial 
circles  of  Japan.  The  company  owns  seven 
factories,  three  at  Shinagawa,  one  each  at 
Hakozaki,  Onagigawa,  and  Mukojima,  Tokyo, 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


219 


and  another  at  Noda-machi,  Osaka.  A  staff 
of  300  experts  and  clerks  is  engajjed  and 
employment  is  found  for  over  2,000  factory 
hands  of  both  sexes,  actively  engaged  in  the 
manufacture  of  chemicals  and  pharmaceutical 
preparations,  hardened  oils,  insulating  mate- 
rials, surgical  instruments,  etc.  The  factory 
at  Shinagawa,  which  is  the  subject  of  an 
illustration  in  this  volume,  is  the  largest  of 
its  kind  in  Japan.  The  concerns  in  the  United 
States  for  which  Sankyo  &  Co.,  Ltd.,  are  the 
sole  exclusive  agents  for  Japan  are :  Hooker 
Electrochemical  Co.,  Niagara  Falls,  N.  Y.; 
Arthur  Colton  &  Co.,  Detroit,  Mich. ;  General 
Bakelite  Co.,  New  York  City;  Gall  and 
Henning  P.  M.  D.  Manufacturing  Co., 
Milwaukee,  Wis. ;  Parke,  Davis  &  Co.,  Detroit, 
Mich.;  Chesebrough  Manfg.  Co.,  New  York; 
J.  P.  Devine  Co.,  Buffalo,  N.  Y.;  Radium 
Chemical  Co.,  Pittsburgh,  Pa.;  Spencer  Lens 
Co.,  Buffalo,  N.  Y.,  and  Johnson  &  Johnson, 
New  Brunswick,  N.  J. 

The  officers  of  Messrs.  Sankyo  &  Co.,  Ltd., 
are  as  follows:  President  and  Director,  Dr. 
Jokichi  Takamine;  Managing  Director,  Mr. 
Matasaku  Shiohara;  Directors,  Messrs.  Shin- 
taro    Ohashi,    Chosaburo    Uyemura,    Sojiro 


Furuta,  and  Oenjiro  Fukui;  Inspectors, 
Messrs.  Yoshibumi  Murota  and  Konosuke 
Otani.  The  head  office  of  the  company  is 
at  Muromachi  Sanchome,  Nihonbashi-ku, 
Tokyo. 

TANAKA  AND  COMPANY 
The  business  of  the  Tanaka  Gomei  Kaisha 
was  established  about  thirty  years  ago  by 
Mr.  Mokujiro  Tanaka,  who  has  spent  a 
lifetime  in  scientific  research,  and  who 
undoubtedly  has  contributed  a  great  deal  to 
Japan's  store  of  higher  technical  knowledge. 
Messrs.  Tanaka  &  Co.  devote  themselves  to 
the  importation  and  manufacture  of  all 
classes  of  surgical  and  scientific  instruments 
and  appliances,  test  tubes,  microscopes,  etc., 
as  well  as  to  the  manufacture  of  chemicals 
for  laboratory  use  and  commercial  purposes 
generally.  Mr.  Tanaka  himself  has  been 
responsible  for  a  large  number  of  inventions 
of  a  scientific  nature,  and  he  is  the  one  man 
in  Japan  who  has  really  succeeded  in  a  sub- 
stantial way  in  producing  glass  of  the 
chemically  hard  quality  and  fineness  requisite 
for  laboratory  use.  For  this  purpose  the 
company  started  a  factory  in  191 1,  at  Tama- 


himccho,  Asakusa,  and  produced  and  sold 
its  product  under  the  name  of  "Japan  Jena 
Glass."  The  success  thus  obtained  prac- 
tically stopped  the  importation  of  this  kind 
of  glass  from  abroad,  and  directed  attention 
again  to  the  fact  that  Japan  was  rapidly 
becoming  more  and  more  self-reliant  in  the 
higher  branches  of  manufactures.  Mr.  Tan- 
aka soon  found  that  his  patent  rights  were 
being  infringed  by  rival  concerns,  who  were 
imitating  his  products  but  were  unable  to 
produce  the  right  quality.  Taking  advan- 
tage of  the  Imperial  Coronation  ceremony  in 

1915,  he  obtained  another  special  trade 
mark,  "Yata  Glass,"  and  put  on  the  market 
a  glass  of  such  superior  quality  as  to  chal- 
lenge all  rivalry.  It  was  at  once  recognised 
that  the  Tanaka  "Yata  Glass"  was  better 
than  the  imported  Jena  glass  of  Germany, 
and  the  reputation  of  the  firm  was  estab- 
lished. In  the  report  of  the  Industrial 
Experimental    Laboratory    for    August    20, 

1916,  it  was  shown  that  in  the  case  of  the 
German  glass  the  degree  of  oxygen  test  was 
0.13,  and  the  heat  resistance  155  to  160 
degrees,  whereas  in  the  case  of  the  Tanaka 
"Yata  Glass"  the  o.xygen  test  was  o.io,  and 


SAMPLE  ROOM  OF  TANAK.\  GOMEI  KAISH.\,  TOKYO 


220 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   ()  I"   JAPAN 


the  heat  resistance  from  230  to  235.  The 
gauge  glasses  manufactured  by  the  Tanaka 
Gomei  Kaisha  are  exckisively  used  in  the 
Imperial  Japanese  Na\'y.  Mr.  Tanaka  has 
also  invented  what  is  known  as  the  "Tanaka 
Style  Microscope."  For  more  than  twenty 
years  he  was  experimenting  with  this  in- 
strument. Other  persons  also  tried  to  turn 
out  a  satisfactorj'  instrument,  but  they 
failed,    and    to    Mr.    Tanaka    belongs    the 


of  Tokyo.  The  factories  are  of  brick,  and 
are  quite  modern  in  design  and  construction. 
They  cov^er  a  total  area  of  about  1,000 
tsubo,  and  about  500  men  are  employed. 
The  annual  output  of  the  factories  is  valued 
at  half  a  million  yen,  and  in  addition  to 
supplying  the  requirements  of  the  local 
markets,  the  firm  is  exporting  to  England, 
America,  Russia,  Australia,  India  and  else- 
where. 


K.  OGURA  AND  COMPANY 
This  is  one  of  the  oldest  commercial 
houses  in  Japan,  having  been  established 
over  one  hundred  and  ten  years,  and  having 
been  controlled  by  five  generations  of  the 
Ogura  family.  Messrs.  K.  Ogura  &  Com- 
pany are  manufacturers  and  importers  and 
exporters,  and  their  business  extends  through- 
out Japan,  and  also  far  abroad,  the  firm 
having  connections  with  all  the  commercial 


II 


^11! 


-  -'SI 


Sammemaa 


<-T<--i:.K7!i<g&-E--Tt«:^-iicT-.v.  -v.?i?iXS«a£aB«r 


SAKAI-CHO-DORI,    YOKOH.\MA,    LOOKING    TOWARD    THE    CUSTOM    HOUSE 


credit  of  having  produced  the  first  micro- 
scope in  Japan.  The  Tanaka  microscope 
may  be  compared  with  Wright's  microscope. 
A  factory  for  its  manufacture  was  estab- 
lished at  Minamimachi,  and  to-day  the  firm 
is  turning  out  the  lenses  and  complete  instru- 
ments in  large  quantities.  The  Tanaka 
Gomei  Kaisha  has  also  erected  a  chemical 
factory  at  Tozukamura,  in  the  suburbs  of 
Tokyo,  where  such  chemicals  as  carbonate 
of  potassium,  chloride  of  potassium,  molyb- 
den  acid,  ammonia,  etc.,  are  made  in  large 
quantities  for  general  commercial  purposes. 
The  laboratory  is  also  energetically  engaged 
in  the  production  of  other  chemicals,  and 
general  research  and  experimental  work  is 
continually  being  carried  on.  To  recapitu- 
late the  activities  of  the  Tanaka  Gomei 
Kaisha  it  should  be  said  that  the  head  office 
and  salesroom  is  at  No.  I  Yaesucho,  Itchome, 
Kojimachi-ku,  Tokyo.  The  glass  factory  is 
at  Tamashimecho,  Asakusa,  the  metal  fac- 
tory at  Takecho,  Shitaya,  and  the  experi- 
mental laboratory  at  Tozukamachi,  outside 


Since  October,  1 909,  Mr.  Tanaka  has 
been  publishing  a  monthly  magazine  called 
" Kagaku-no-Tomo "  (The  Chemist's  Friend). 
He  has  also  circulated  a  large  catalogue  of 
five  hundred  pages  over  the  country  where 
chemical  laboratories  are  established,  and 
to  Saghalien,  Formosa,  China,  and  Man- 
churia. The  high  position  which  Mr. 
Tanaka  has  reached  among  the  manufac- 
turers of  Japan  was  recognised  in  1910,  when 
he  was  appointed  a  member  of  the  Tokyo 
Committee  to  select  exhibits  for  the  Anglo- 
Japanese  Exhibition  held  in  London  that 
year.  Mr.  Tanaka  was  deputed  to  visit 
London,  and  he  made  an  extensive  tour  of 
Europe,  enquiring  into  conditions  of  manu- 
facturing in  various  countries.  In  July, 
1917,  the  Bureau  of  Decorations  conferred 
on  Mr.  Tanaka  a  special  silver  cup  in  recog- 
nition of  his  services  to  the  manufacturing 
industries  of  Japan.  The  Tanaka  Gomei 
Kaisha  is  capitalised  at  Yen  50,000.  Mr. 
Mokubei  Tanaka  is  the  Managing  Director 
of  the  Tanaka  Gomei  Kaisha. 


centres  in  foreign  countries.  Principal 
among  the  Unes  handled  are  all  sorts  of  flax, 
hemp,  and  cotton  goods,  fishing  tackle,  pro- 
visions, chemicals,  and  sundries.  The  firm 
imports  hemp,  jute  and  flax,  cotton,  wool, 
all  sorts  of  vegetable  fibres,  Hessian  cloth, 
metals,  such  as  steel,  tin,  etc.,  dyestuffs, 
copra,  cocoanut  oil,  cedar,  black  lead,  chemi- 
cals and  agricultural  stuffs.  The  bulk  of 
these  imports  are  either  sold  direct  to  the 
local  trade,  or  are  worked  up  into  manu- 
factured goods  in  the  factories  of  Ogura 
&  Company.  Exports  comprise  the  finished 
articles  in  hemp,  flax,  cotton  and  woollen 
goods,  chemicals,  agricultural  produce, 
caimed  provisions,  stationery  and  paper, 
lacquer  ware,  glass  manufactures,  filter  cloth 
and  all  kinds  of  sundries.  These  articles 
go  to  Great  Britain,  the  United  States, 
Australia,  India,  China,  the  Straits  Settle- 
ments, and  Asiatic  and  European  Russia. 
The  factories  and  godowns  are  at  Nishima- 
rucho,  Koishikawa,  Tokj^o,  and  there  are 
branch  establishments  at  Yokohama,  Osaka, 


GURA    &    company:     the    YOKOHAMA    OFFICES— THE    MAIN    GODOWN.    TOKYO  — THE    HEAD    OFFICE,    TOKYO 


222 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


Kob(5,  Ilankow,  Chiu-chiant;,  Wu-chung, 
Singapore,  and  Manila.  Tlic  firm's  godowns 
and  factories  are  mainly  of  stone  and  brick, 
though  some  portions  are  of  wood.  They 
cover  an  area  of  over  i,ooo  tsiibo,  and  com- 
prise two-  and  three-storj-  buildings.  About 
200  clerks  and  other  assistants  arc  employed 
in  the  different  offices,  and  300  hands  are 
engaged  in  the  works  and  godowns.  The 
annual  wages  bill  is  about  Yen  50,000. 
What  the  original  capital  of  this  firm  was  is 
unknown,  but  to-day  it  is  about  Yen  200,000, 
and  the  annual  turnover  is  approximately 
Yen  2,000,000. 

Messrs.  Ogura  &  Company  are  agents  for 
the  Teikoku  Seima  Kaisha,  the  Taiwan 
Seima  Kaisha,  and  the  Nihon  Seima  Kaisha, 
as  well  as  for  other  industrial  concerns. 
They  are  represented  abroad  as  follows: 
New  York,  American  Import  and  Export 
Corporation;  Belfast,  Ireland,  Mr.  D.  K. 
Duncan;  Singapore,  Arisaka  Riichi;  Vladi- 
vostock,  Hara  Shoten;  and  Sydney,  Austra- 
lia, Messrs.  E.  Bentley  &  Sons.  The  head 
office  of  the  firm  is  at  No.  3  Koamicho, 
Itchome,  Nihonbashi-ku,  Tokyo.  Mr. 
Kyubei  Ogura  is  the  proprietor  of  the  busi- 


ness. Mr.  T.  Hiraga  is  manager  of  the  head 
office  at  Tokyo,  and  Mr.  Takahashi  is  in 
charge  of  the  imi)ortant  branch  at  Yokohama. 

SUZUKI  .\ND  COMI>.\NY 
The  name  of  Suzuki  &  Co.  is  familiar  to 
all  those  who  are  in  any  way  connected  with 
the  commerce  and  industry  of  Japan.  The 
firm  was  established  in  1887,  and  is  now  one 
of  the  most  influential  houses  in  the  domestic 
and  foreign  trade  of  the  country,  there  being 
branches  and  agencies  throughout  Japan, 
and  in  every  important  commercial  centre 
abroad,  since  the  business  is  world-wide  in 
its  extent.  Not  only  are  Messrs.  Suzuki  & 
Co.  one  of  the  largest  importing  and  export- 
ing concerns,  but  they  are  managing  agents 
for  several  dockyards  and  industrial  com- 
panies, as  well  as  being  proprietors  of  large 
factories  which  produce  many  lines  for 
export. 

The  Tokyo  branch  of  Messrs.  Suzuki  &  Co. 
transacts  a  large  volume  of  business  of  a 
general  nature,  each  department  being  busily 
engaged  in  attention  to  the  various  diflerent 
activities  of  the  concern.  Among  the 
imports  are  such  lines  as  sugar,  rice,  wheat. 


fiour,  cotton,  fertilizers,  iron,  steel,  ship- 
building materials  and  railway  reciuirements, 
machiner)',  metals,  ores,  timber,  chemicals, 
etc.  Exports  comprise  practically  every 
Japanese  natural  or  manufactured  product, 
and  merchandise  of  various  kinds,  shipment 
being  made  to  Europe,  the  United  States, 
India,  China,  the  South  Seas,  Australia  and 
elsewhere.  The  Industrial  Department  deals 
with  the  firm's  interests  in  camphor  and 
methol  refineries,  fish  and  vegetable  oil, 
chemical  works,  rice  mills,  alcohol  distillery, 
and  coal  mines.  Our  illustration  in  con- 
nection with  the  Tokyo  branch  shows  the 
bean-oil  factory  which  is  located  at  Shim- 
idzu,  Shizuoka  Prefecture. 

The  Tokyo  office  is  situated  at  Nos.  52 
and  53  Koamicho,  Nichome,  Nihonbashi-ku, 
Tokyo.  This  branch  was  opened  on  May  5, 
1915,  and  is  now  under  the  management  of 
Mr.  K.  Kubota.  The  number  of  employees  at 
the  Tokyo  office  is  one  hundred  and  twenty. 

HOBO,    KONDO    AND    COMPANY 
Messrs.  Hobo,  Kondo  &  Co.,  or  as  they 
are    styled    in   Japanese,    the   Hobo   Kondo 
Gomei  Kaisha,  are  importers  and  exporters, 


BEAN    OIL    MILL    OF    SUZUKI    &    CO.,    SHIMIDZU,    SHIZUOK.\    PREFECTURE 


HOBO,    KONDO    &    CO.:      THE    TOKYO    OFFICE — ^  SCENE    IN    ONE    OF    THE    GODOWNS  —  ENTRANCE    TO    YOKOHAMA    PREMISES - 

THE    TOKYO    PREMISES 


224 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


ENTERPRISING    MERCHANTS   OF    TOKYO   AND   YOKOHAMA 

(Left  to  Right,  Upper  Row)  Mr.  M.    Ogawa,    Managing   Director,    Nippon   Shoji   Kaisha,    Ltd. —  Mr.    S.    Matsuyama,   of   Matsuyaraa 

Jimusho  —  Mr.  Seisuke  Koro,  President,  Southern  Pacific  Trading  Co.,  Ltd. —  Mr.  G.   Kumazawa,   Proprietor,    G.   Kumazawa  &  Co. — 

Mr.  T.  Shimidzu,  Proprietor,  Shimidzu  Trading  Co. —  Mr.  Seizo  OhsAWA,     Proprietor,  Ohsawa  Seizo  Shoten 

(Middle  Row)  Mr.  Konosuke  Abe,  of  Abe  Kobei  —  Mr.  K.  Sugiyama,  Managing  Director,  International  Trading  Corporation,  Ltd.  —  Mr. 

S.  MoGi,  Managing  Partner,  Mogi  &  Co. — Mr.  Kobei  Abe,  Proprietor,  Abe  Kobei — Dr.  Jokichi  Takamine,  President,  Sankyo  &  Co. — 

Mr.  M.  Shiohara,  Managing  Director,  Sankyo  &  Co. — Mr.  K.  Yamamoto,  Managing  Director,  Imperial  Theatre,  Tokyo 

(Lower  Row)    Mr.  M.  Yamaguchi,    Proprietor,   Yamatake  &  Co.,   President,  Japan  Precision  Works  Co.,  Ltd.,  President,  Japan  Oxygen 

Co.,  Ltd.  —  Mr.   M.  Tanaka,  Proprietor,  Tanaka   Gomei  Kaisha — Mr.   S.   Nak.ai,  President,  Nakai  &  Co.,  Ltd.  —  Mr.  Kyubei  Ogura, 

Proprietor,  K.  Ogura  &  Co.  —  Mr.  Tokutaro  Hir.\ga,  General  Manager,  K.  Ogura  &  Co.  —  Mr.  G.  Moritani,  Principal,  Moritani  &  Co. 


and  manufacturers'  agents,  and  are  very 
widely  known  throughout  Japan  and  the 
Far  East,  an  extensive  business  having  been 
built  up  over  a  long  period,  during  which 
the  firm  has  established  a  high  reputation. 
The  business  was  formerly  carried  on  under 
the  name  and  style  of  Shigekichi  Kondo, 
from  1907  to  1915,  when  the  organisation 
was  changed  into  the  present  joint  partner- 
ship which  comprises  Messrs.  Sankuro  Hobo 
and  Shigekichi  Kondo,  Managing  Directors, 
and  Messrs.  Yeinosuke  Totsuka  and  Teisuke 
Kondo.  Messrs.  Hobo,  Kondo  &  Co.  carry- 
on  a  general  business  as  exporters  of  Japanese 
articles,  chiefly'  dealing  in  curios  and  toys, 
and   numerous   other    lines.     They  are   also 


importers  of  several  particular  lines,  and  as 
exclusive  agents  for  Roneo,  Limited,  London, 
for  Japan,  Chosen,  and  Manchuria,  they 
possess  a  valuable  connection.  In  the  Roneo 
products  Messrs.  Hobo  and  Kondo  do  a  large 
business  which  is  steadily  expanding.  Their 
well  equipped  showrooms  in  Tokyo  and 
Yokohama  display  the  Roneo  appliances  to 
the  best  advantage,  and  it  is  not  surprising 
to  learn  that  through  such  active  agents, 
the  Japanese  business  houses,  eager  on  their 
part  to  avail  themselves  of  all  modem  busi- 
ness methods,  are  rapidly  learning  the  value 
of  the  Roneo  lines. 

Both  Messrs.  Hobo  and  Kondo,  and  their 
partners,   have  had   considerable   experience 


of  foreign  trade,  and  possess  a  thorough 
knowledge  of  the  English  and  other  foreign 
languages.  This  also  applies  to  the  majority 
of  their  different  staffs,  and  greatly  facilitates 
the  transaction  of  business  with  foreign  firms 
locally  and  abroad.  All  business  and  corre- 
spondence are  treated  exclusively  through 
the  head  office,  No.  2  Nichome,  Honza- 
imokucho,  Nihonbashi-ku,  Tokj'O,  except 
transactions  relating  to  Hongkong,  India, 
and  the  Straits  Settlements,  which  are  dealt 
with  in  the  Asiatic  Department  of  the  Yoko- 
hama 1:)ranch  under  the  management 
of  Messrs.  M.  A.  Sofaer  and  D.  Darab,  who 
are  both  British  subjects.  The  Roneo  busi- 
ness is  handled  in   Tokvo  and   Yokohama. 


y^ 


C.    TSUUOVA    i.    CO.:       SCENE    IN    THE    CENERAL    OFEI.  E  -  CUKRIUUK    LEADING    TO    OFFICES,    TAKEN    FROM    THE   CENTRE    FLOOR - 

THE  manager's   office  —  THE    STAFF 


226 


PRESENT-  DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


Branches  of  Messrs.  Hobo,  Kondo  &  Co.  are 
also  established  at  No.  3  Sanchomc,  San- 
nomiya-machi,  Kob6,  and  at  No.  27  San- 
chomc, Nakanocho,  Nakaku,  Nagoya.  The 
firm  has  factories  in  Tokyo,  Yokohama,  and 
Nagoya,  and  warehouses  and  shipping 
departments  at  each  branch.  The  head 
office  in  Tokyo  consists  of  the  main  building 
(brick,  two  storj-s),  and  in  addition  there  are 
two  fire-proof  two-stor}-  warehouses,  one 
one-story  wooden  building,  and  the  ser- 
vants' quarters,  the  whole,  together  with 
ample  ground  space  for  the  arrival  and 
departure  of  goods,  covering  an  area  of  257 
tsubo,  forming  a  very  valuable  and  com- 
modious property  for  general  business  pur- 
poses. The  Kobe  and  Y'okohama  premises 
are  of  brick.  The  Nagoya  branch  and  the 
branch  establishment  in  Tokyo  are  wooden, 
but  the  warehouses  attached  are  fire-proof, 
being  constructed  according  to  the  Japanese 
system  to  secure  this  result.  Messrs.  Hobo, 
Kondo  &  Co.  give  employment  to  thirtj^ 
persons  in  their  head  office  and  stores,  and 
about  ten  persons  are  engaged  at  each  of  the 
several  branches.  Some  idea  of  the  impor- 
tance of  the  business  transacted  by  this 
well-organised  concern  may  be  gathered 
from  the  fact  that  the  annual  turnover  is 
approximately  Yen  3,000,000. 

In  Yokohama  as  well  as  in  other  ports  and 
cities  throughout  the  world,  the  business 
man  will  find  that  all  his  requirements  for 
putting  his  office  in  order  can  be  obtained 
from  the  agents  of  that  enterprising  London 
firm,  Roneo,  Ltd.  The  offices  and  show- 
rooms are  situated  at  77  Main  Street,  where 
all  kinds  of  up-to-date  appliances  for  pro- 
moting business  efficiency  are  attractively 
displayed.  At  the  time  of  the  compilation 
of  this  publication  the  war  is  still  going  on, 
and  business  men  are  certainly  very  fortu- 
nate in  that  they  have  no  difficulty  in  obtain- 
ing Roneo  specialities,  and  share  in  the  same 
ser\'ice  rendered  the  London  business  men. 
who  have  the  benefit  of  being  so  much  nearer 
the  factory.  To  the  majority  of  commercial 
men  "Roneo,"  and  all  it  stands  for,  is  too 
well  known  to  need  detailing  at  length  here, 
but  one  should  remember  that  a  visit  peri- 
odically is  necessary  in  order  to  keep  pace 
with  new  ideas  and  improvements.  In  addi- 
tion to  the  Roneo  Duplicator,  Roneo  Letter 
Copier,  Roneo  Steel  FiUng  Cabinets  and 
Systems,  many  innovations  may  be  seen 
which  are  an  absolute  necessity  in  the  accel- 
eration of  business. 

C.    TSUBOYA    AND    COMPANY 

This     firm,     which     was    established     in 

Januarj',    1913,    has    developed    a    valuable 

business,    comprising    many    new    lines    of 

activities  which  were  not   very  well  known 


at  the  time  Mr.  Chuzo  Tsuboya  directed  his 
attention  to  them.  These  lines  arc  largely 
connected  with  the  exploitation  of  Japan's 
resources  in  rare  metals,  such  as  tungsten, 
and  similar  products  utilised  so  largely  since 
the  outbreak  of  the  war  for  hardening  steel. 
Messrs.  Tsuboya  &  Co.  have  built  up  an 
extensive  trade  in  metals,  as  well  as  handling 
other  more  general  lines  such  as  curios, 
cereals  and  so  forth.  The  firm  has  its  own 
factories  which  are  situated  at  No.  82  Higashi 
Ogibashi-machi,  Fukagawa-ku,  Tokyo,  and 
at  No.  I  Hanabusa-cho,  Kanda-ku,  Tokyo. 
These  factories  are  known  respectively  as 
the  Omura  and  Kanda  factories.  The  first 
covers  an  area  of  1,050  Isubo,  and  the  Kanda 
factory  extends  over  450  Isubo,  the  buildings 
being  constructed  of  stone,  brick,  and  wood, 
three  storys  high.  The  motive  power  used 
is  electricity,  and  about  a  hundred  work 
people  are  employed. 

The  firm  imports  minerals,  shipbuilding 
and  railway  materials,  and  general  machinery, 
and  exports  tungsten  ore,  molybdenite  ore, 
metallic  tungsten,  tungsten  trioxide,  every 
description  of  ferro-alloys,  sulphur,  cereals, 
oils,  and  curios.  The  bulk  of  the  shipments 
go  to  Europe  and  America,  but  an  extensive 
trade  is  also  done  with  China  in  certain  lines. 
Agents  of  the  firm  are  located  at  Shanghai, 
London,  New  York,  and  San  Francisco. 
It  is  estimated  that  the  yearly  output,  or 
turnover,  is  about  Yen  3,500,000,  but  the 
trade  is  constantly  expanding,  the  firm's 
operations  being  governed  by  a  progressive 
policy,  which  is  responsible  for  the  pros- 
perous condition  of  the  business.  The  head 
office  of  Messrs.  Tsuboya  &  Co.  is  at  No.  7 
Hiramatsucho,  Nihonbashi-ku,  Tokyo,  and 
there  are  branch  offices  at  Osaka  and  Kure. 

FUTABAY'A  AND  COMPANY 
The  Japanese  are  great  lovers  of  Nature, 
and  their  conceptions  of  the  beautiful  in 
Nature's  works  are  frequently  to  be  found 
expressed  even  in  business  undertakings.  It 
is  not  uncommon  to  find  names  of  business 
houses,  trade  marks,  etc.,  which  suggest 
something  of  Nature.  Such,  for  instance,  is 
expressed  in  the  name  Futabaya.  This 
name  had  its  origin  in  the  idea  of  Mr.  K. 
Inomata,  founder  of  the  business  of  Futabaya 
&  Co.,  that  his  enterprise  should  suggest  by 
its  name  the  twin  leaves  of  a  bud  in  which 
lay  all  promise  of  the  development  of  the 
large  and  strong  tree.  The  literal  meaning 
oi  jutaba  is  "the  twin  leaves  of  a  bud." 

Convinced  of  the  success  of  his  enterprise 
which  was  to  develop  from  a  small  beginning 
into  a  great  and  powerful  undertaking,  the 
late  Mr.  K.  Inomata  founded  the  business 
as  a  personal  venture  many  years  ago,  the 
original  capital  being  50,000  yen.     The  trade 


name  was  then  Futabaya.  In  1903  the 
business  became  a  goshi  kaisha,  or  partner- 
ship, members  of  the  late  Mr.  K.  Inomata's 
family  being  admitted  to  the  firm.  Through 
the  energy  and  sound  business  policy  of  the 
founder,  supported  particularly  by  the  vigour- 
ous  work  of  his  son-in-law,  Mr.  Taisaku 
Inomata,  Futabaya  &  Co.  realised  the  earliest 
expectations  of  its  founder,  and  has  developed 
in  a  manner  comparable  to  the  growth  of  the 
strong  tree  from  the  bud. 

Messrs.  Futabaya  &  Co.  are  general  im- 
porters and  exporters  and  manufacturers, 
their  special  lines  being  cycles,  motor  cycles, 
motor  cars  and  their  accessories,  rubber 
goods,  chemicals,  hardware,  etc.  The  firm 
does  a  splendid  and  increasing  business  in  all 
these  lines,  and  has  the  great  advantage  of 
being  in  close  touch,  through  family  connec- 
tions, with  the  two  factories  for  the  output 
of  cycle  parts,  rubber  goods,  etc.,  owned  by 
Mr.  Kichihei  Inomata,  though  conducted  by 
that  gentleman  as  his  private  undertaking. 
Futabaya  &  Co.  are  among  the  leaders  in  the 
cycle  and  atitomobile  trade.  They  import  a 
wide  variety  of  lines,  and  have  the  agency  for 
the  famous  Indian  motor  cycle.  Their 
manufactured  lines  are  exported  to  China, 
India,  the  Malay  States,  and  Dutch  Indies. 
Attention  is  not,  however,  confined  solely  to 
this  trade,  for  the  firm  is  importing  all  classes 
of  hardware  and  manufactured  goods  for  the 
Japanese  market,  and  its  operations  will  be 
very  widely  extended  in  the  near  future,  the 
Directors  being  determined  to  develop  the 
business  in  everj'  direction.  They  will 
import  large  quantities  of  raw  materials  to 
be  made  up  into  manufactured  goods, 
Messrs.  Futabaya  &  Co.  being  convinced 
that  there  is  a  wide  scope  for  the  exportation 
of  Japanese-made  goods. 

Messrs.  Futabaya  &  Co.  have  their  head 
office  and  handsome  showrooms  at  No.  7 
Tatami-cho,  Kyobashi-ku,  Tokyo.  Their 
main  warehouse  is  located  at  Shinanomachi, 
Yotsuya-ku,  Tokyo.  There  is  a  branch  at 
No.  7  Utsubo  Shimo-dori,  Nishi-ku,  Osaka, 
and  an  American  branch  has  been  tempo- 
rarily established  at  No.  30  Church  Street, 
New  York.  The  firm  employs  about  thirty 
clerks,  mechanics,  etc.  The  co-Managing 
Directors  of  the  firm  are  Messrs.  Kichihei 
Inomata  and  Taisaku  Inomata,  though  the 
latter  gentleman  chiefly  attends  to  the  direc- 
tion of  affairs. 

OHSAWA  SEIZO  SHOTEN 
The  Ohsawa  Scizo  Shoten  are  general 
importers  and  exporters,  established  in  191 1. 
The  general  office  and  showroom  is  at  No.  4 
Shichome,  Koamicho,  Nihonbashi-ku,  Tokyo; 
the  sawmills  and  timber  yards  are  at  No.  18 
Kibamachi,   Fukagawa-ku,   Tokyo,  and  the 


FUTABAYA    &    CO.:        IHK    MANA..ER'S    PRIVATE    OFFICE  — THE    MOTORCYCLE    SHOWROOM  —  TOKYO    HEAD    OFFICE - 
THE   CHARMING    RESIDENCE    OF    MR.    T.    INOMATA,   CO-MANAGING    DIRECTOR    OF    FUTABAYA   &   CO. 


228 


PRESENT-DAY        I  M    I'  R  K  S  S  I  O  N  S        OF        JAPAN 


oak  furniture  factory  is  at  No.  19.  The 
telegraphic  address  is  "Easterning,"  Tokyo. 
The  main  line  of  business  of  this  firm  formerly 
was  and  is  at  present  the  exportation  of  hard- 
woods from  Hokkaido,  especially  oak,  for 
Europe,  North  America,  Africa,  Australia, 
and  India.  The  company  has  made  the 
most  strenuous  efforts  to  advance  the  trade 
in  which  it  is  interested,  and  has  made  endless 
improvements  in  business,  to  give  the  very 
finest  results,  and  accordingly  has  made  a 
rapid  development  and  enjoys  the  highest 
confidence  of  its  customers  in  the  countries 
above  mentioned.  Its  reputation  is  one  of 
entire  trustworthiness  and  this  is  reflected 
in  the  increasing  volume  of  orders  received 
day  after  day  from  the  important  centres 
of  Australia  and  Africa. 

Owing  to  the  growth  of  its  relations  with 
foreign  firms,  the  Ohsawa  Seizo  Shoten  has 
started  as  general  importers  and  exporters 
of  Japanese  goods,  for  which  there  is  such  a 
strong  demand.  Under  present  war  condi- 
tions, what  with  restrictive  government 
regulations  and  lack  of  cargo  space,  the 
Ohsawa  Seizo  Shoten,  like  many  other  con- 
cerns, has  been  seriously  handicapped  in 
filling  orders,  but  it  nevertheless  invites  early 
inquiries,  especially  for  Japanese  agricvd- 
tural  products  and  any  other  manufactures, 
as  well  as  the  materials  for  manufacture,  etc., 
from  present  and  prospective  customers  in 
Europe,  North  America,  Australia  and  else- 
where. There  is  every  reason  to  foresee  that, 
immediately  the  war  terminates,  the  com- 
pany will  be  in  a  most  favourable  position 
to  supply  all  foreign  requirements  and  give 
that  faithful  and  prompt  attention  to  orders 
which  is  its  characteristic. 

In  the  oak-working  factorj'  the  company 
utilises  the  short  lengths  of  wood,  working 
them  up  in  furniture  and  interior  decora- 
tions and  for  other  general  purposes,  with 
careful  attention  and  endless  improvements 
in  machinery  and  methods  of  manufacture 
and  treatment  of  timber. 

MATSUYAMA  AND  COMPANY 
The  business  of  the  Matsuyama  Jimusho, 
or  Matsuyama  &  Co.,  comprises,  apart  from 
the  ordinary  lines  of  the  import  and  export 
trade,  a  number  of  activities  which  are  of 
first  rate  importance  to  the  secondary  indus- 
tries of  Japan.  To  the  principal  of  the  house, 
Mr.  Shigeru  Matsuyama,  is  due  the  credit 
for  a  great  deal  of  enterprise,  and  the  develop- 
ment of  new  lines  which  were  practically 
unknown  until  he  devoted  his  attention  to 
them.  Mr.  Matsuyama's  business  career 
is  an  instance  of  the  good  use  to  which  the 
best  trained  commercial  men  of  Japan  put 
the  knowledge  gained  by  them  in  foreign 
fields. 


Mr.  Matsuyama  went  to  the  United  States 
in  1895  to  study  the  science  of  mechanical 
engineering.  He  was  graduated  from  Michi- 
gan University  in  1900  with  the  degree  of 
B.Sc.  (M.  E.),  and  after  another  year  devoted 
to  the  practice  of  the  theories  he  had  learned, 
he  returned  to  Japan  in  1901  and  entered  the 
service  of  the  Mitsui  Mining  Company,  by 
which  he  was  engaged  to  superintend  the 
plaiming  and  construction  of  mining  plants. 
Mr.  Matsuyama  joined  the  Mitsui  Bussan 
Kaisha  in  1904  and  was  appointed  chief  of 
the  Machinery  Department  at  the  company's 
New  York  Branch  in  1906.  He  devoted  a 
great  deal  of  attention  to  the  development 
of  the  machinery  trade  with  Japan  and  in 
1909  returned  to  Japan  to  take  charge  of 
the  Mitsui  Bussan  Kaisha's  machinery  and 
metal  department  at  Moji.  In  1912  Mr. 
Matsuyama  resigned  from  the  company  and 
entered  upon  his  present  business.  It  may 
be  seen,  therefore,  that  the  principal  of 
Matsuyama  &  Co.  is  well  qualified  by 
training  and  experience  to  carry  on  a  brisk 
trade  in  machinery  and  hardware  generally, 
and,  as  a  matter  of  fact,  Mr.  Matsuyama  has 
achieved  a  success  which  is  enviable.  Since 
the  war  the  development  of  his  interests  has 
been  extensive.  In  19 16  the  volume  of 
imports  and  exports  was  Yen  800,000,  but 
this  sum  was  doubled  in  191",  such  a  remark- 
able growth  necessitating  an  extension  of 
premises  and  the  planning  of  an  expansion 
of  activities. 

Mr.  Matsuyama  principally  imports  from 
England  and  the  United  States  and  exports 
to  those  two  countries,  as  well  as  to  France, 
China,  India  and  the  South  Seas.  The  fol- 
lowing are  the  principal  articles  in  which  the 
firm  deals:  Machines  and  tools  for  machine 
shops,  mining  machinery  and  equipment, 
electric  machinery  and  equipment,  motive 
power  machinery  and  equipment,  Ikeda's 
patent  water  tube  boilers,  locomotives  and 
railway  supphes,  steel  rails  and  accessories, 
steel  pipes,  gas  pipes  and  fittings,  electric 
insulating  materials,  electric  sheets,  mining 
steels,  wire  ropes,  chains,  ship-weights  mate- 
rials, marine  auxiliary  machines,  steel  wires, 
copper  wires,  bright  nuts,  black  nuts,  rivets, 
steel  plates,  steel  bars,  channels,  angles, 
beams,  pig  iron,  spiegel-isen,  silico-spiegel, 
ferro-manganese,  ferro-silicon,  ferro-chrome, 
ferro-vanadium,  ferro-tungoten,  ferro-molyb- 
den,  ferro-titanum,  metallic  tungsten,  tung- 
sten trioxide,  nickel,  spelter,  antimony, 
aluminum,  lead,  tin,  copper,  sulphate  copper, 
sulphur,  manganese,  ores,  tungsten  ores, 
molybden  ores,  graphite,  zinc,  chrome  ores, 
asbestos,  micas,  talcs,  barites,  silica,  clays, 
boiler  compound,  mineral  oils,  fire  bricks, 
rosin,  cyanides,  caustic  sodas,  and  many 
other  chemical  products,  buttons  and  other 


sundries  too  numerous  to  mention.  In 
all  these  lines  a  large  import  and  export 
trade  is  done,  but,  in  addition,  Matsuyama 
&  Co.  have  other  interests. 

The  firm  has  a  silica-crushing  factory  at 
Kamcido,  a  suburb  of  Tokyo,  and  an  asbestos 
factory  at  Ohsaki.  At  these  factories  large 
quantities  of  material  are  produced  to  meet 
the  strong  local  demands  from  steel  makers, 
glass  makers,  brick  makers,  and  manufac- 
turers of  asbestos  articles  and  products. 
The  factories  are  equipped  with  the  latest 
machinery,  comprising  rock  crushers,  asbestos 
beaters,  etc.  For  manganese  and  other 
ferro-alloys  the  firm  has  close  connections 
with  mines  in  Akita  and  Aomori  Prefectures, 
and  is  exporting  alloys  of  excellent  quality. 
An  extensive  warehouse  is  maintained  at 
Zaimokugashi,  Nihonbashi-ku,  Tokyo,  where 
there  is  always  in  stock,  rails,  steel  manu- 
factures, ferro-alloys,  etc.,  in  large  quantities 
to  meet  the  demand  of  the  market  at  any 
time.  A  staff  of  technical  experts  is  employed 
whose  services  are  at  the  disposal  of  local 
customers,  and  through  them  new  products 
are  continually  being  introduced  to  the 
market,  while  Japanese-made  goods  are 
placed  before  foreign  buyers.  The  whole 
business  is  conducted  on  the  most  progressive 
lines  and  is  a  good  example  of  the  thorough 
organisation  which  has  been  introduced  in  the 
great  modem  Japanese  houses. 

The  head  office  of  the  Matsuyama  Jimusho 
is  at  No.  7  Hiramatsucho,  Nihonbashi-ku, 
Tokyo. 

NAKAI  AND  COMPANY,  LI.MITED 
This  company  claims  the  distinction  of 
being  the  oldest  paper-trading  concern  in 
Japan,  the  business  having  been  founded  in 
1867  by  the  late  Mr.  Saburobei  Nakai.  At 
that  time  there  was,  of  course,  very  little 
paper  made  in  Japan,  and  the  business  was 
almost  entirely  confined  to  the  handling  of 
foreign-made  products,  but  with  the  expan- 
sion of  the  paper-making  industrj^  within 
recent  years,  the  company  has  realised  an 
enormous  trade,  both  in  import  and  export 
lines.  For  many  years  the  business  was 
conducted  as  the  private  enterprise  of  Mr. 
Nakai  and  his  family,  then  it  was  turned  into 
a  limited  partnership,  and  in  191 7  it  was 
reorganised  as  a  limited  liability  company 
with  a  capital  of  Yen  2,000,000. 

Messrs.  Nakai  &  Co.,  Limited,  operate 
as  wholesale  paper  merchants,  deaUng  in 
imported  and  locally  made  products  of 
every  description.  They  handle  practically 
all  classes  of  newsprint  paper  in  reels  and 
sheets,  general  printing  and  writing  papers, 
straw  and  card  board,  packing  paper,  and  so 
on.  Furthermore,  they  do  a  large  trade  in 
paper  pulp,  which  is  obtained  from  Karafuto 


11'  -I  ill 


fiPiPiPWipr 


MATSUYAMA   &    CO.!       GENERAL    VIEW    OF    SILICA    lACTORY,    SHOWING    SILICIOUS    ROCK   FOR   THE  CRUSHERS  —  GROLP   COMPRISED    OF    THE 

PROPRIETOR,    THE    PRINCIPAL    OFFICERS,    AND    THE   HEAD    OFFICE   STAFF SCENE    IN    THE    GENERAL 

OFFICE — POWDERED    SILICA    BEING    WEIGHED   AND    BAGGED 


16 


230 


P  K  E  S  E  N  T  -  1)  A  V        IMPRESSIONS        OF        J   A  1'  A  X 


NAKAI    &-   company:      THE    HEAD    OFFICE    AND   GODOWNS  —  THE    OSAKA    BRANCH 


and  brought  to  Hokkaido,  or  is  shipped 
abroad  to  foreign  paper  manufacturers  in 
China,  India,  Siam,  Australia,  the  United 
States  and  elsewhere.  The  company  is  the 
selling  agent  for  such  important  paper 
manufacturers  as  the  Fuji  Paper  Mills  Co., 
Ltd.,  the  Oji  Paper  Mills,  the  Kyushu  Paper 
Mills,  and  the  Chuo  Paper  Mills,  and  they 
hold  altogether  seven  difTerent  agencies  for 
mills.  Nakai  &  Co.,  Ltd.,  number  among  their 
clients  the  Imperial  Government  Monopolies 
Bureau  and  the  Government  Printing  Office, 
beside  other  important  Government  depart- 
ments. Some  idea  of  the  extent  of  the  trade 
which  passes  through  the  company's  hands 
may  be  gathered  from  the  fact  that  the 
annual  turnover  is  about  Yen  20,000,000. 
The  head  office  is  at  No.  7  Jukkendana- 
cho  Nihonbashi-ku,  Tokyo,  and  there  are 
branches  at  Osaka,  Nagoya,  and  Kyoto. 
In  addition,  the  company  is  represented  at 
Shanghai  by  the  Daishin  Shokai.  The  main 
warehouse  of  the  company  is  a  four-story 
stone  building  of  modem  construction. 
Mr.  Sannosuke  Nakai  is  President  of  the 
company.  The  other  Directors  are  Messrs. 
Yakichi  Tanino  (Manager  of  the  Osaka 
branch),  Mijiro  Nakai,  and    Shigeru    Inui. 


TOKIWA  &  COMPANY,  LIMITED 
Messrs.  Tokiwa  &  Co.,  Ltd.,  is  a  company 
that  has  developed  to  a  remarkable  extent  in 
the  last  year  or  two,  having  expanded  from 
almost  purely  an  insurance  broking  business, 
into  that  of  insurance,  and  import  and  export 
and  commission  merchants  and  ship  brokers, 
the  activities  of  the  company  covering  a 
wide  range  of  commercial  enterprises.  Origi- 
nally the  establishment  was  known  as  the 
Nitto  Shokai,  then  working  only  for  the 
Liverpool  &  London  &  Globe  Insurance  Co., 
Ltd.,  as  their  agents  for  Japan.  It  was  in 
1910  that  Mr.  Goro  Matsukata  bought  the 
business  from  the  Nitto  Shokai  and  it  was, 
indeed,  at  this  time  that  the  trade  name  of 
"Tokiwa"  was  adopted.  This  means  literally 
in  Japanese,  "everlastingly  green,"  or  more 
appropriately  for  such  an  enterprise,  "con- 
stant" or  "permanent."  Since  Mr.  Matsu- 
kata took  over  the  business  there  has  been  a 
most  marked  expansion.  He  formed  a 
limited  liability  company  with  a  capital  of 
500,000  yen  of  which  160,000  yen  is  paid  up. 
At  the  same  time  the  South  British,  the  New 
Zealand,  and  the  Scottish  Union  Insurance 
Companies  appointed  the  Tokiwa  &  Co.,  Ltd., 
their  agent,  testifying  to  the  high  respect  in 


which  the  company  is  held  by  foreign  corpora- 
tions. Beside  the  above  named  agencies, 
which  in  themseh-es  mean  a  vast  volume  of 
business  for  Tokiwa  &  Co.,  Ltd.,  the  company 
opened  a  department  for  the  transaction  of 
general  commerce  in  1916,  the  activities  of 
this  new  department  embracing  general 
brokerage,  and  the  import  and  export  of 
merchandise,  machinery,  and  products. 

The  principal  lines  of  import  are:  Steel,  pig 
iron,  galvanized  iron,  sheet  iron,  tin  plate, 
nickel  and  other  metals:  boiler,  electric 
machine,  and  other  machinen,',  parts  and 
accessories,  and  machine  tools  of  every 
description,  shafting,  etc. ;  piano  wire,  spring 
wire,  galvanized  wire,  wire  rope,  and  nails  of 
every  description;  boiler  tube,  gas  pipe,  etc.; 
materials  for  railway  construction,  materials 
for  construction  of  buildings,  bridges,  ships, 
docks,  mines,  etc.;  quicksilver,  drugs  and 
chemicals,  paints  and  colours,  etc.;  eye- 
glasses, telescopes,  microscopes,  surveying 
instruments,  etc. 

The  main  lines  of  export  are:  Electric  and 
alloy,  heating  apparatus,  crucible  or  gas 
apparatus  and  parts  thereof,  enamelled  ware, 
glass  ware,  buttons,  surgical  instruments, 
pressure  and  vacuum  gauges,  every  kind  of 


PRESENT-DAY 


IMPRESSIONS 


O  F 


J  A  P  A  N 


231 


gauges,  clinical  thermometers,  other  kinds  of 
metres,  and  all  kinds  of  goods  for  surgical  use; 
copper,  zinc,  lead,  sulphur,  and  other  kinds  of 
mine  produce;  fish  oil,  whale  oil,  soja  bean  oil, 
colza  oil,  peppermint  oil,  etc.;  ammunition 
and  sundry  goods. 

The  company  has  two  branches,  one  at 
Kitadori,  Edobori,  Ni.shi-ku,  Osaka,  and  the 
other  at  Meiji-machi,  Keijo,  Chosen,  and, 
moreover,  three  hundred  agencies  throughout 
the  Empire  of  Japan,  Formosa,  and  Chosen. 
Unquestionably  the  development  of  this 
Inisiness  is  due  to  Mr.  Matsukata's  influence, 
energy,  and  business  experience.  This  gentle- 
man has,  in  fact,  had  a  sound  commercial 
experience  extending  over  many  years,  with 
some  of  the  largest  enterprises  in  Japan, 
notably  the  Kawasaki  Dockyard  Co.,  Ltd., 
Kobe,  Japan  Steel  Works  at  Muroran,  Hok- 
kaido (Armstrong  &  Vickers,  Associate  in 
England),  and  he  is  now  the  proprieter  and 
President  of  Tokiwa  &  Co.,  Ltd.,  the  Presi- 
dent of  the  Tokyo  Gas  &  Electric  Co.,  Ltd. 
(Agencies  for  the  Studebaker  Motor  Car  Co., 
National  Motor  Car  and  Vehicle  Corporation, 
Empire  Automobile  Co.,  Interstate  Motor  Co., 
NashMotorCo.,and  Republic  Motor Tr'k  Co.) 
President  of  the  Tokai  Mutual  Life  Ins.  Co., 
Ltd.,  Managing  Director  of  the  Toyo  Sugar 
Mfg.  Co.,  Ltd.,  Director  of  the  Toyo  Marine 
Ins.  Co.,  Ltd.,  Director  of  the  Toa  Cement 
Co.,  Ltd.,  and  Inspector  of  the  Ujigawa 
Hydroelectric  Co.,  Ltd.  Beside  these  busi- 
ness experiences  Mr.  Matsukata's  family 
influence  has  also  been  a  contributing  factor 
to  his  success.  He  is  a  son  of  Marquis 
Masayoshi  Matsukata,  one  of  the  Elder 
Statesmen  of  Japan,  the  present  "Naidaijin" 
(the  Keeper  of  the  Privy  Seal)  and  many 
times  Premier  of  the  country,  who  made  his 
fame  by  his  administration  and  his  financial 
reforms. 

YAMATAKE  &  CO.\ll'.\NV 
Among  the  successful  business  men  of 
Japan  who  have  put  their  technical  knowl- 
edge and  experience  to  good  use  and  have 
launched  out  on  new  lines,  is  Mr.  Takehiko 
Yamaguchi,  jjroprietor  of  the  Yamatake 
Shokwai  of  No.  i,  Yuraku-cho,  Kojimachi-ku, 
Tokyo.  This  business  covers  a  wide  range  of 
activity,  but  its  main  purpose  is  the  importa- 
tion and  sale  of  high-grade  machinery  and 
machine  tools,  etc.,  principally  for  use  in 
arsenals,  dockyards,  and  railway  shops. 
And  as  may  be  seen  from  the  biography  of  its 
proprietor,  no  one  is  better  fitted  for  handling 
such  a  trade  than  Mr.  Yamaguchi  himself. 
This  gentleman  is  a  native  of  Kagoshima,  and 
was  born  in  1865.  After  his  preliminary 
education,  he  took  a  long  course  in  the  techni- 
cal school  of  the  Tokyo  Higher  Industrial 
College,  from  which  he  was  graduated  in  1 89 1 . 


For  a  few  years  Mr.  Yamaguchi  was  an 
inspector  of  machinery-  in  the  Patents  Bureau, 
engaged  in  the  examination  of  models  and 
plans  submitted  to  that  Bureau.  In  1896 
when  Mr.  Zenjiro  Yasuda  projected  the  for- 
mation of  a  nail  factory  he  selected  Mr. 
Yamaguchi  as  his  Chief  Engineer,  and  des- 
patched him  to  Europe  and  America  with  in- 
structions to  examine  closely  the  industry  in 
those  countries  and  to  purchase  the  necessary 


operations,  and  to-day  the  firm  of  Yamatake 
&  Co.  are  sole  agents  for  over  forty  of  the  best 
known  American  tool  and  machinery  manu- 
facturers. Mr.  Yamaguchi's  intimate  knowl- 
edge of  the  requirements  of  the  various 
construction  concerns,  and  his  thorough 
technical  training  have  stood  him  in  good 
stead,  and  his  firm  is  doing  what  is  prob- 
ably oni'  of  the  largest  businesses  in 
Japan    to-day.     Another  factor   making   for 


BUILDIN(i    l-\    WHICH    .\RE   LOCATED   THE    OFFICES    OF    TOKIWA    SHOKAI,    LTD. 


plant  and  machinery  for  the  factory.  On  his 
return  Mr.  Yamaguchi  took  up  the  position  of 
General  Manager  of  the  Yasuda  nail  factory, 
but  it  was  found  impossible  to  compete  with 
the  cheap  imports  from  Germany,  and 
the  works  were  closed.  On  Mr.  Yasuda's 
recommendation  Mr.  Yamaguchi  was  then 
appointed  to  a  highly  responsible  post  with 
the  Hokkaido  Railway  Company,  and  became 
one  of  the  managers.  From  this  position  he 
was  selected  as  Manager  of  the  Hokodate 
Dockyard  Company,  and  so  further  extended 
his  already  wide  knowledge  of  mechanical 
engineering,  and  the  requirements  of  the 
industries  of  Japan.  Mr.  Yamaguchi's  skill 
and  capacity  for  organisation  and  control 
were  prominently  displayed  during  the  Russo- 
Japanese  War,  when  he  rendered  signal 
.service  to  the  nation  by  handling  traffic  and 
facilitating  the  building  and  repair  of  ships. 
At  the  conclusion  of  the  war  Mr.  Yamaguchi 
came  to  Tokv'O  and  established  himself  in 
his  present  business  in  1906.  At  first  he  was 
merely  local  agent  for  one  or  two  manu- 
facturers,   but    gradually    he    extended    his 


the  success  of  the  business  is  that  Mr. 
Yamaguchi  has  all  along  gauged  the  effects  of 
the  war  accurately,  and  has  anticipated  the 
conditions  which  must  arise  in  Japan.  For 
instance,  he  was  one  of  the  first  to  realise 
that  the  great  war  would  seriously  interrupt 
supplies  of  various  kinds  of  machinery  and 
requisites  from  Europe,  and  he  lost  no  time 
in  strengthening  and  widening  his  connections 
with  the  manufacturing  companies  in  the 
United   States. 

Arising  from  the  business  of  the  Yamatake 
Shokwai,  and  organised  by  Mr.  Yamaguchi, 
are  two  other  important  enterprises,  both 
highly  successful  adjuncts,  or  developments, 
of  the  phenomenal  growth  of  the  dockyard, 
machine  shop,  and  arsenal  undertakings  in 
Japan.  The  first  is  the  Japan  Oxygen  Com- 
pany, to  carry  on  oxy-welding  and  cutting 
operations.  Mr.  Yamaguchi  was  the  first 
to  introduce  this  system  to  the  naval  and 
other  Government  departments.  As  the 
oxygen  had  to  be  made  in  Japan  after  the 
cessation  of  imports,  two  factories  were 
established  under  Mr.  Yamaguchi's  direction, 


®: 


0^: 


YAMATAKE    &    CO.:      INTERIOR   OF    TOKYO   OFFICE  —  MR.    M.    YA.MAGUCHI,    I'KOPRIETOR,    IN    HIS   OFFICE - 

SCENE    IN   THE   TOKYO   GODOWN 


P  R  E  S  E  N  T  -  n  A  Y        IMPRESSIONS        OF        JAPAN 


233 


one  in  'I'okyo  and  llie  otlu-r  in  Hiroshima. 
The  second  industry  is  that  conducted  by 
the  Japan  Precision  Works.  Considerable 
difficulty  has  always  been  experienced  in 
gauging  small  parts,  such  as  gun  sights,  etc., 
and  it  was  to  fulfil  this  requirement  that  the 
Ja])an  Precision  Works  entered  on  the  manu- 
facture of  special  tools  and  gauges  for  the 
arsenals,  dockyards,  spinning  mills,  etc. 
The  company  has  saved  Government  ofificials 
all  the  trouble  of  sending  to  Europe  for  tests 
of  accuracy  to  be  made,  as  the  work  can  now 
lie  done  by  the  Japan  Precision  Works.  The 
Imperial  Government  has  given  its  hearty 
support  to  the  works,  and  the  company  has 
been  appointed  makers  of  many  different 
classes  of  deUcatc  mechanisms.  Last  year 
the  Japan  Precision  Works  were  taken  over 
by  a  limited  liability  company,  having  a 
capital  of  Yen  350,000. 

Mr.  Yamaguchi's  services  to  mechanical 
engineering  in  Japan  have  been  freely  recog- 
nised. In  February,  1917,  he  was  appointed  a 
member  of  the  Tokyo  Chamber  of  Commerce, 
to  w'hich  he  is  now  giving  valuable  assistance 
regarding  all  industrial  and  manufacturing 
interests. 


NIPPON     HIIOJI     KAISHA,     LIMITED     (tHE 
JAPAN    TRADING    CO.,    LTD.) 

This  is  a  company  that  is  bound  to  become 
an  important  factor  in  the  general  commerce 
and  trade  of  Japan.  It  is  an  organisation 
under  the  auspices  of  the  well  known  Kawa- 
saki family,  Mr.  Hajime  Kawasaki,  principal 
of  the  Kawasaki  Bank,  the  Japan  Fire 
Insurance  Co.,  and  other  concerns,  being  its 
President.  The  company  was  established  on 
February  29,  1916,  as  a  branch  enterprise  of 
the  Kawasaki  interests,  and  though  the 
capital  placed  at  its  disposal  was  only  Yen 
500,000,  this  was  merely  by  way  of  an  initial 
investment,  and  it  is  now  planned  to  increase 
the  capital  to  Yen  5,000,000.  As  a  matter  of 
fact  that  sum  has  already  been  placed  in 
circulation  for  Nippon  Shoji  Kaisha,  Ltd. 
(The  Japan  Trading  Co.,  Ltd.),  the  business 
having  proved  so  successful.  That  is  to  say, 
the  Kawasaki  group  have  furnished  the 
money  to  finance  several  industries  and 
investments  conducted  by  the  company. 
The  Managing  Director  is  Mr.  INIakoto 
Ogawa,  who  w-as  long  in  the  service  of  the 
Mitsui  Bussan  Kaisha.  Mr.  Ogawa  is  one 
of  the  few  licensed  firearms  and  explosives 


merchants,  so  that  his  company  can  deal  in 
these  lines,  in  which  it  occupies  an  excellent 
position  among  trading  companies.  The 
business  of  Nippon  Shoji  Kai.sha,  Ltd.,  is 
jirincipally  exporting  and  importing,  but  it 
is  also  investing  in  any  promising  manufac- 
turing industry  that  comes  under  its  notice. 
In  this  connection  it  is  interested  in  mining 
affairs,  in  shipping  and  transport  generally, 
and  is  also  engaged  in  the  selling,  buying, 
and  chartering  of  ships. 

The  main  lines  dealt  in  b^'  Nippon  Shoji 
Kaisha,  Ltd.,  as  import  and  export  merchants 
are:  Machinery  and  materials  for  the  manu- 
facture of  same,  cotton,  cotton  piece  goods, 
hemp  cloth,  silk  thread,  silk  cloth,  woollen 
piece  goods,  etc.,  coal,  coke  and  other  fuels, 
cement,  timber,  stone,  brick  and  other  building 
materials,  electrical  and  gas  plants  and 
appliances,  material  for  railways,  waterworks, 
and  ships,  metallic  ores  of  every  description, 
minerals,  metal  goods,  materials,  and  wares, 
leather  and  skins  and  their  manufactures, 
surgical,  medical,  and  industrial  chemicals, 
dye  stuffs,  etc.  Among  the  other  lines, 
mainly  domestic  products,  handled  by  the, 
company    are,    rice,    cereals    and    fertilizers. 


THE   TOKYO    PREMISES   OF    NIPPON    SHOJI    KAISHA 


234 


PRESENT-DAY        IMPRESSIONS        OF        JAPAN 


sugar,  clothing,  ornamental  articles,  paper  and 
pulp,  glass  and  glassware,  lacc|uer  and  por- 
celain, oils  and  tallow,  chemical  and  indus- 
trial articles  and  materials,  toys  and  station- 
ery, curios,  cinematograph  instruments  and 
films,  automobiles,  aeroplanes,  firearms,  ex- 
plosives, and  military  goods. 

The  head  office  of  Nippon  Shoji  Kaisha, 
Ltd.  (The  Japan  Trading  Co.),  is  at  No.  5 
Kabutocho,  Nihonbashi-ku,  Tokyo  (P.  O.  Box 
No.  39),  and  the  Automobile  Garage  is 
at  Uchisaiwaicho  Kohjimachi-ku,  Tokyo. 
There  are  branch  and  despatch  offices  at 
Osaka,  Moji,  Yokohama,  Kobe,  London, 
New  York,  and  other  commercial  centres 
of  importance.  The  company's  banks  and 
references  are,  for  Japan,  the  Kawasaki 
Bank,  and  for  abroad,  the  Yokohama  Specie 
Bank.  The  principal  officials  of  the  company 
are:  President,  Mr.  Hajime  Kawasaki; 
Managing  Director,  Mr.  Makoto  Ogawa;  Di- 
rector, Mr.  K.  Sugiura;  and  Auditors,  Messrs. 
M.  Yoshii,  S.  Suzuki,  and  Kaneo  Kawasaki. 

THE  B.  F.  GOODRICH  RUBBER  COMPANY 

The  Japan  offices  of  the  B.  F.  Goodrich 

Rubber  Company  are  under  direct  manage- 


ment and  control  of  the  B.  F.  Goodrich 
Company,  the  well-known  New  York  cor- 
poration with  its  head  offices  located  at  Nos. 
1 780-82  Broadway,  New  York  City. 

This  corporation  has  a  paid  up  capital  of 
gold  §90,000,000.00  and  during  the  year  1916 
its  sales  figure  reached  the  tremendous 
volume  of  gold  §71,000,000.00.  The  com- 
pany dates  its  inception  from  the  year  1869, 
when  Dr.  B.  F.  Goodrich  settled  in  the  city 
of  Akron,  where  he  started  the  nucleus  of 
this  wonderful  industry  and  began  building 
up  the  world-wide  reputation  that  Goodrich 
rubber  products  now  enjoy. 

To-day  the  Goodrich  plant  has  the  proud 
distinction  of  being  universally  recognised 
as  the  "Largest  Rubber  Factory  in  the 
World,"  comprising  a  group  of  fifty-seven 
buildings,  covering  in  excess  of  4,000,000 
square  feet,  where  a  staff  of  18,000  employees 
are  regularly  engaged  in  the  manufacture  and 
handling  of  the  many  hundreds  of  different  rub- 
ber articles  the  company  produces.  It  is  diffi- 
cult to  grasp  the  magnitude  of  the  company's 
operations,  but  some  conception  of  its  scope 
and  standing  may  be  realised  from  the  follow- 


ing facts,  representing  a  part  of  the  daily 
volume  shipped  out  from  these  factories: 
5  miles  of  belting;  14  miles  of  hose;  70  miles 
of  insulated  wire;  17,000  pairs  of  boots  and 
shoes;  and  200,000  automobile  tires  and 
tubes. 

To  arrive  at  the  stage  outlined  above,  it 
will  be  apparent  that  something  more  than 
the  mere  ability  to  manufacture  was  required. 
Throughout  the  whole  period  of  forty-eight 
years  the  company's  interests  have  been  in 
the  hands  of  capable,  far-seeing,  and  shrewd 
business  men,  who  have  handled  its  aflfairs 
along  the  lines  of  soundest  business  principles. 
It  has  always  been  their  aim  to  maintain  the 
highest  standard  of  quality,  till  to-day  the 
Goodrich  trade  mark  stamped  upon  any 
rubber  article  is.  universally  recognised  and 
accepted  as  similar  to  the  hall-mark  on 
silver. 

Along  these  same  progressive  lines  new 
fields  have  been  opened  after  a  careful  and 
first-hand  study  of  existing  conditions  and 
possibilities.  The  company  was  until  the 
year  191 3  represented  in  Japan  bj-  agents. 
It  then  decided  to  open  up  a  main  branch  in 


KOnE    PREMISES   OF    B.    DIEDEN   &   CO. 


PRESENT-DAY        I  ^[  P  R  E  S  S  I  O  N  S        OF        JAPAN 


235 


Tokyo,  and  a  little  later  subsidiary  branches 
were  started  in  the  cities  of  Osaka  and 
Kokura,  the  former  to  take  care  of  the 
demand  in  the  Kwansai  district,  the  latter 
to  take  care  of  the  demand  in  Kyushu.  In 
addition  to  this,  representative  houses  act  as 
agents  in  the  larger  cities  such  as  Sapporo, 
Nagoya,  Nagasaki,  etc.  Japan's  depen- 
dencies such  as  Korea,  South  Manchuria,  and 
Tsingtau  (North  China)  are  handled  from  the 
main  Tokj-o  branch,  also  by  means  of  direct 
agents. 

The  principal  demand  in  Japan  for  rubber 
goods  is  for  those  articles  comprised  in  the 
mechanical  line,  and  to  take  care  of  all  ordi- 
nary requirements  stocks  to  the  value  of 
Yen  150,000.00  to  Yen  200,000.00  are 
regularly  carried  at  the  Tokyo  and  Osaka 
branches.  Goodrich  conveyor,  elevator  and 
transmission  belting;  water,  fire,  steam,  and 
acid  hoses,  spiral,  superheat,  square  duck, 
brass  wire  and  cloth  insertion  packings; 
rotary  drillers'  hose,  printers'  blankets, 
pneumatic  and  air  drill  hoses,  pimip  valves, 
etc.,  represent  part  of  the  goods  regularly 
supplied  to  the  Imperial  Government  Rail- 
ways, Government  dockyards,  steel  works, 
and  arsenals;  all  the  largest  copper,  coal, 
iron,  silver,  gold,  and  zinc  mines;  the  many 
cotton,  woollen,  muslin,  linen  and  other 
textile  mills;  sugar,  beer,  coke,  and  cement 
plants;  shipbuilding  and  car  manufacturing 
yards;  paper  and  pasteboard  mills;  also  all 
factories  of  importance  throughout  the 
Empire. 

In  addition  there  are  carried  large  stocks 
of  automobile,  solid,  and  motorcycle  tires 
and  tubes,  to  look  after  a  demand  which 
is  as  yet  small  but  steadily  increasing. 
Goodrich  druggist  and  surgical  goods,  sport- 
ing goods  such  as  tennis  and  golf  balls,  base- 
ball body  protectors,  etc.,  are  in  regular 
demand  amongst  the  better  class  retail 
stores.  Last  but  not  least  are  the  numerous 
sundrjr  articles  such  as  boots  and  shoes, 
rubber  bands,  rubber  thread,  raincoat  mate- 
rial, stamp  gum,  dental  rubber,  dental  dam, 
dental  bulbs,  plaster  bowls,  rubber  matting, 
interlocking  tiling,  etc.,  for  which  there  is  an 
ever-increasing  demand,  and  throughout  the 
countrj'  the  fact  is  recognised  that,  whilst 
Goodrich  products  are  usually  considerably 
dearer  than  the  locally  manufactured  articles 
and  those  from  other  foreign  countries,  they 
are  at  all  times  to  be  depended  upon  and  the 
service  given  is  such  as  to  render  them 
"Cheapest  and  Best   in  the   I>ong   Run." 

SOUTH    SEA    TR.\DING    CO.,    LI.MITED 

The  trade  possibilities  of  the  South  Sea 
Islands  have  been  evident  to  the  Japanese 
business  man  for  some  time  past;  a  fact 
obvious    from    the    number    of    companies 


springing  u]>  for  the  .sok;  purpose  of  trading 
with  the  islands. 

The  South  Sea  Trading  Co.,  Ltd.,  com- 
menced operations  in  1893,  as  a  private 
enterprise,  and  became  a  limited  company 
with  a  capital  of  Yen  100,000  in  1899.  No 
great  degree  of  progress  was  made  until  the 
appointment  of  Mr.  Tanakamaru  as  presi- 
dent of  the  company  in  191 5.  The  capital 
was  then  immediately  increased  from  Yen 
150,000  to  Yen  500,000;  to  twice  that  sum 
within  one  year,  and  in  191 7  to  the  present 
figure  of  Yen  3,000,000. 

The  sphere  of  operations  was  greatly 
increased  to  embrace  shipping,  shipbuilding, 
imports  and  exports,  agriculture,  and  marine 
products.  The  head  office  of  the  company 
is  at  Kamiyanagiwarcho,  Kyobashi-ku, 
Tokyo,  with  branches  at  Yokohama,  Toba, 
Singapore,  and  forty  other  points  throughout 
the  South  Sea  Islands. 

Naturally,  the  business  of  the  company, 
especially  in  imports  and  exports,  has  in- 
creased pro  rata  with  the  capital,  thus,  in 
the  three  years  1912,  1913,  and  1914,  the 
total  business  was  about  Yen  800,000,  as 
compared  with  imports  Yen  3,500,000  and 
exports  Yen  2,000,000  for  1917.  Practically 
all  lines  for  which  there  is  a  market  are 
handled,  but  special  mention  may  be  made 
of  copra,  shell,  tortoise-shell,  manila  hemp, 
rice,  ivory  nuts,  etc.,  imported,  and  curios, 
provisions,  clothing,  cement,  kerosene  oil, 
beer,  building  materials,  tinned  provisions, 
biscuits,  sugar,  tobacco,  cotton  cloth,  general 
necessities,  etc.,  exported.  Copra  may  be 
said  to  be  the  company's  special  line.  Des- 
patch  offices  are   continually   Ijeing   opened 


throughout  the  islands  wherever  the  pro- 
duction warrants  it.  Moreover,  the  com- 
pany has  actually  3,000  acres  of  their  own 
property  under  cocoanuts. 

The  company  enjoys  the  great  advantage, 
especially  in  these  times,  of  owning  a  fleet 
of  well  equipped  steamers  and  auxiliary 
sailing  vessels,  representing  more  than 
20,000  tons,  in  addition  to  which  10,000  tons 
is  chartered.  The  fleet  is  being  continually 
added  to,  as  the  company's  shipbuilding 
yard  at  Toba  works  solely  for  this  purpose. 
At  present  three  auxiliary  sailing  vessels 
of   1,000  tons  each  are  nearing  completion. 

The  following  gentlemen  are  the  principal 
officers  of  the  company:  E.  Tanakamaru, 
Esq.,  President;  R.  Fujiyama,  Esq.,  Adviser; 
Messrs.  M.  Ishikawa,  S.  Iwasaki,  T.  Sato, 
Directors,  and  Messrs.  H.  Kawasaki  and  S. 
Tanakamaru,  Auditors. 

SHIBAK.WVA  &  CO.,  LI.MITED 
Founded  in  1866  by  the  late  Mr.  Shinsuke 
Shibakawa,  father  of  Mr.  Shinjiro  Shibakawa, 
this  enterprise  operated  privately  until  1903 
when  it  was  turned  into  an  unlimited  com- 
pany with  a  paid-up  capital  of  Yen  500,000. 
The  expansion  of  the  business  has  pro- 
ceeded since  the  Meiji  Restoration,  pro 
rata  with  that  of  the  import  and  export 
trade  of  Japan.  Indeed,  by  the  adoption 
of  a  most  progressive  policy,  the  formation, 
and,  be  it  noted,  retention  of  important 
international  connections,  and  by  setting 
an  example  of  unquestionable  business 
integrity,  the  company  may  be  regarded 
as  having  done  signal  service  in  fostering 
the    same.     Thus,    from    the    most    humble 


FEEDING    SILKWORMS 


TOKYO    PREMISES   OF    THE    SOUTH    SEA    TRADINX.   C'OMrANV,    LIMITED    (NANYO    nOYEKI    KAISHA) 


PK]':SK  NT-DAY        IMPRESSIONS        OF        JAPAN 


237 


THE   TOKYO   OFFICES   OF    SHIBAKAWA    &    COMPANY,    LIMITF.D 


beginnings  the  Shiliakawa  Shoten,  at  present 
Shibakawa  &  Co.,  Ltd.,  has  become  one  of 
the  foremost  houses  in  the  country,  operat- 
ing with  a  capital  of  Yen  3,000,000,  of  which 
Yen  2,400,000  is  paid  up. 

The  head  office  is  located  in  well  con- 
structed and  spacious  premises  at  No.  10 
Koraibashi,  3-chome,  Higashiku,  Osaka,  and 
branches  equally  up-to-date  are  maintained 
at  No.  8  Sanaicho,  Nihonbashiku,  Tokyo. 
No.  91  Kitamachi,  Kobe,  No.  202  Yamashita- 
cho,  Yokohama,  No.  18  6-chome,  Demmacho 
Nishiku,  Nagoya,  No.  6  Lloyds  Avenue 
London  E.  C,  120  Broadway,  New  York, 
No.  5  Hankow  Road  (British  Concession), 
Shanghai,  and  No.  17  Wha-cheong  Road 
(British   Concession),   Hankow. 

The  goods  handled  include  practically  all 
important  lines  listed  in  the  Japanese  Trade 
returns.  Chief  among  the  staple  imports 
maybe  mentioned  woollen  and  worsted  goods, 
raw  cotton  and  cotton  goods,  yams,  wools, 
tops,  metals,  machinery,  paper,  pulp,  rosin, 
chemicals,  drugs,  dyestuffs,  etc.  The  princi- 
pal exports  are  woollen  and  worsted  goods. 


cotton  goods,  linen  goods,  raw  silks,  habutai 
and  other  silk  products,  hosiery,  cotton  and 
woollen  yams,  hemp  braids,  rubber  goods, 
matches,  tinned  foods,  cereals,  beans,  oils, 
chemicals,    minerals,    etc. 

As  may  be  surmised  from  the  above  list, 
very  close  connections  are  maintained  with 
the  principal  cotton  and  woollen  mills  of  the 
country,  such  as  the  Osaka  Woollen  Manu- 
factyring  Company,  the  Nippon  Woollen 
Manufacturing  Company,  the  Tok^'o  Woollen 
Manufacturing  Company,  the  Tokyo  Woollen 
Cloth  Manufacturing  Company,  the  Tokyo 
Weaving  Company,  the  Teikoku  Hemp 
Manufacturing  Company,  the  Nippon  Wor- 
sted Spinning  Company,  and  others,  both 
for  the  supply  of  the  raw  material  and  the 
marketing  of  the  finished  products. 

The  business-like  methods  of  the  house 
attract  special  attention,  and  are  explained 
by  the  length  of  time  the  company,  has  been 
engaged  in  foreign  trade,  and  the  further 
fact  that,  like  Mr.  Shinjiro  Shibakawa,  the 
able  Managing  Director,  many  of  the  heads 
of  departments  have  a  fluent  knowledge  of 


English  and  other  languages,  and  have 
gained  valuable  experience  in  the  London 
and  New  York  branches,  and  elsewhere 
abroad. 

The  officers  of  the  company  are:  Mr. 
Yeisuke  Shibakawa,  President;  Mr.  Shinjiro 
Shibakawa,  Managing  Director;  Mr.  Ein- 
shin  Yuasa,  Director;  Mr.  Terukichi  Shiba- 
kawa, Auditor;    Mr.  Gitaro  Hirata,  Auditor. 

YOKOHAMA 
BUSINESS   HOUSES 

JARDINE,  MATHESON  &  CO.,  LIMITED 
In  previous  numbers  of  this  series  of  pub- 
lications the  complete  history  of  the  famous 
house  of  Jardine,  Alatheson  &  Co.,  Ltd.,  has 
been  given,  but  in  dealing  with  its  operations 
in  Japan  it  will  not  be  out  of  place  to  refer 
again  to  the  origin  and  early  development  of 
the  gigantic  concern  whose  name  has  been 
associated  with  the  commerce  and  progress 
of  the  Orient  for  the  best  part  of  a  century. 
Among  the  officials  of  the  old  East  India 
Company   in   the   days   when   that   politico- 


jm^m 

^■-"■iP 

T^ 

4" 

4  ^. 


I 


OLD    STYLE    FOREIGN    PREMISES   OF   JARDINE,    MATHESON   &    CO.,    LTD.,    OCCUPIED    BY    THE    FIRM    FOR    OVER   SIXTY    YEARS. 
THE   JAPANESE   GATEWAY    WAS   ORIGINALLY    BlILT    FOR    DEFENSIVE    PURPOSES 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


239 


commercial  organisation  was  in  the  zenith  of 
its  power,  was  the  late  Dr.  WilHam  Jardine. 
This  was  the  time  when  Macao  was  at  the 
height  of  its  prosperity,  and  when  the  East 
India  Company  had  practically  a  monopoly 
of  the  China  trade.  That  monopoly  came 
to  an  end  in  1832,  and  Dr.  Jardine  started  the 
premier  mercantile  house  in  the  Far  East, 
associated  with  him  being  Mr.  James  Mathe- 
son,  afterwards  Sir  James  Matheson,  Bart., 
and  Mr.  Hollingw^orth  Magniac.  Offices 
were  opened  at  Macao  and  Canton,  and  at 
once  Jardine,  Matheson  &  Co.  set  out  to 
earn  and  justify,  by  their  energy,  enterprise, 
and  honourable  dealing,  the  name  of  the 
"Princely  House,"  which  was  early  applied 
to  them,  and  has  remained  ever  since.  In 
1835  Mr.  Alexander  Matheson,  afterwards  a 
baronet,  came  from  India  where  he  had 
received  his  business  training,  and  was  taken 
into  the  partnership  by  his  uncle.  As  a 
result  of  the  first  "Opium  War"  with  China, 
Hong  Kong  was  ceded  to  the  British  in  1 84 1 . 
The  iilace  was  then  only  a  barren  island  and 
military  post,  with  nothing  to  suggest  its 
subsequent  rise  to  great  commercial  pros- 
perity and  importance.  The  young  firm  of 
Jardine,  Matheson  &  Co.  found  its  business 
interests  in  Macao  threatened  by  the  short- 
sighted policy  of  the  Portuguese  Govern- 
ment, and  turned  its  attention  to  Hong  Kong, 
opening  offices  there  in  1842,  a  year  after  the 
island  had  been  opened.  From  that  day  to 
the  present  Hong  Kong  has  been  the  head- 
quarters of  the  great  business,  and  history 
records  how  much  the  progress  of  the  colony 
owes  to  the  enterprise  of  Jardine,  Matheson 
&  Co.  The  enterprise  and  pioneer  spirit 
which  the  old  firm  displayed  at  Hong  Kong 
has  actuated  the  operations  of  the  house 
ever  since,  and  there  is  not  a  commercial 
centre  in  the  Orient  that  does  not  claim  them 
amongst  its  earliest  traders  and  benefactors. 
Jardine,  Matheson  &  Co.  were  pioneers  in 
Shanghai,  after  that  jiort  was  opened  to 
foreign  trade  by  the  signing  of  the  treaty  of 
October  24,  1842,  and  later  on  they  were 
among  the  first  British  business  houses  to 
turn  to  Japan. 

For  the  ten  years  from  1842  on,  the  firm 
grew  in  strength  and  prosperity,  pursuing  a 
simple  policy  of  enterprise  and  fair  dealing, 
ever  expanding  along  new  lines,  and  asso- 
ciating its  fortunes  with  those  of  commercial 
centres  the  future  of  which  only  the  greatest 
foresight  could  have  imagined.  The  founder 
of  the  firm  passed  away,  and  with  him  went 
his  early  associates.  Sir  Alexander  Matheson 
retired  from  business  in  1852,  and  the  suc- 
cessive heads  of  the  business  were  Andrew', 
Oaviil,  Joseph,  and  Sir  Robert  Jardine, 
Bart.,  whose  death  took  place  in  1905. 
These  gentlemen  were  all  nephews  of  the 
founder  of  the  house,  and  all  were  men  of 


K7m  Mi' 


WINDING    SILK   ONTO    B.XMBOO    STICKS   FOR   CROSS-WE.WING PREPARING 

HEMP    BR.\ID   FOR   EXPORT HEMP    BR.\ID    MIl-L 


240 


I'  R  K  S  K  N  T  -  D  A  ^•        I   M   P  li   IC  S  S  I  O  N  S        OF        J  A  P  A  N 


business  in  the  best  sense  of  tlic  word,  types 
of  the  merchant  princes  who  in  the  eigh- 
teenth and  nineteenth  centuries  did  so  much 
to  Iniild  up  British  trade  and  prestige  in  all 
parts  of  the  world.  After  the  death  of  Sir 
Robert  Jardine  in  1905  the  firm,  for  family 
reasons,  was  turned  into  a  private  limited 
liability  company  with  the  following  direc- 
torate: Sir  R.  A\'.  Buchanan- Jardine,  Gov- 
erning-director; Messrs.  William  Keswick, 
M.  P.,  W.  J.  Gresson,  and  Henry  Keswick 
(who  succeeded  his  father,  Mr.  William  Kes- 
wick, on  the  latter's  decease).  Managing- 
directors.  During  the  most  prosperous  part 
of  its  career  the  old  firm  was  under  the  con- 
trol of  Mr.  William  Keswick,  M.  P.,  who  for 
forty  years  was  its  guiding  hand,  and  under 
him  it  spread  its  branches  in  all  the  leading 
centres  of  trade  in  the  Far  East.  Mr.  Kes- 
wick it  was  who  opened  the  Yokohama 
branch  in  1859,  almost  as  soon  as  the  port 
was  thrown  open  to  foreign  trade. 

As  to  the  activities  of  the  company  dtuing 
its  long  existence,  it  would  be  almost  like 
writing  the  history  of  the  Far  East  to  attempt 
to  give  in  sequence  the  story  of  Jardine,  Ma- 
theson  &  Co.,  Ltd.,  and  to  write  of  its  oper- 
ations is  to  write  of  the  whole  trade  of  the 
Orient  in  its  varied  phases.  The  enterprise 
of  the  company  has  been  witnessed  in  prac- 
tically every  direction  in  which  trade  and 
commerce  have  expanded,  and  has  been 
associated  with  every  great  movement  tend- 
ing to  open  up  and  develop  new  avenues  of 
business.  Jardine,  Matheson  &  Co.,  Ltd., 
has  done  much  in  this  latter  direction,  and 
the  name  is  to-day  inseparably  linked  with 
the  progress  of  the  East.  The  company  is 
looked  upon  to  take  the  lead  in  every  new 
development,  because  its  history  has  demon- 
strated its  keen  interest  in  all  that  pertains 
to  the  welfare  of  British  trade  generally, 
and  the  good  of  the  centres  in  which  its 
energies  are  in  force.  In  Hong  Kong  and 
elsewhere  Jardine,  Matheson  &  Co.,  Ltd., 
has  covered  every  field  of  enterprise,  asso- 
ciating itself  with  the  opening  of  harbours, 
construction  of  docks  and  wharves,  railways, 
new  industries,  and  many  another  movement 
tending  to  increase  the  general  prosperity 
and  make  progress  possible  for  all. 

As  stated  above,  the  Japanese  business 
was  opened  in  1859  W'hen  the  outlook  for  the 
foreigner  at  Yokohama  was  not  a  very 
encouraging  one  in  view-  of  the  attitude  of  the 
Japanese  toward  the  newcomers.  With 
customary  foresight  Mr.  Keswick  selected  a 
business  site  that  in  after  years  was  to  be 
the  threshold  and  centre  of  foreign  commerce 
in  the  port.  Appropriately  enough  the 
address  is  No.  i,  the  site  of  one  and  a  half 
acres  being  situated  close  to  the  landing 
stage,  on  the  Bund,  and  demarking  the  main 


business  artery  of  Yokoham;i.  This  site  is 
held  on  perjietual  lease,  and  in  point  of  value 
there  is  none  to  exceed  it.  Here  are  estab- 
lished the  offices,  counting-house,  and  the 
raw  silk  inspecting  rooms  and  godow^ns. 
The  waste  silk  department  is  on  Lot  21  and 
the  shipping  and  insurance  offices  on  Lot  22. 
The  Kobe  branch  is  at  Xos.  83-85  Kyo- 
machi,  and  from  this  centre  is  handled  the 
export  of  hemp  braid,  Panama  hats,  copper, 
and  many  other  lines  comprised  under  the 
heading  of  general  merchandise.  At  Shi- 
monoseki  the  export  of  Japanese  coal  is 
principally  dealt  with.  There  are  also 
branches  at  Tokyo,  Shizuoka,  and  Nagasaki. 
Jardine,  Matheson  &  Co.,  Ltd.,  act  as 
General  Managers  and  General  Agents  for 
the  following,  among  others:  Indo-China 
Steam  Navigation  Co.,  Ltd.;  the  Glen  Line, 
trading  between  British  and  Continental 
ports  and  Japan;  the  Indra  Line,  between 
New  York  and  the  Philippine  Islands  and 
Japan;  the  Waterhouse  Steamship  Line;  the 
China  Sugar  Refining  Co.,  Ltd.;  the  Hong 
Kong  Cotton  Spinning,  Weaving  and  Dyeing 
Co.,  Ltd.;  the  Ewo  Cotton  Spinning  and 
Weaving  Co.,  Ltd.;  the  Shanghai  and  Hong- 
kew  Wharf  Co.,  Ltd.;  the  Canton  Insurance 
Office,  Ltd.;  and  the  Hong  Kong  Fire  Insur- 
ance Co.,  Ltd.  The  following  British  insur- 
ance companies  are  also  represented  in  Japan 
by  the  company:  Alliance  Assurance  Co., 
Ltd.,  Royal  Insurance  Co.,  Ltd.,  and  the 
London  Insurance  Co.,  Ltd.  Jardine,  Ma- 
theson &  Co.,  Ltd.,  are  selling  agents  for  the 
New  York  Lubricating  Oil  Co.,  the  Bombay- 
Burmah  Trading  Corporation,  exporters  of 
teak  and  hard  woods,  and  the  Mercantile 
Bank  of  India  is  another  of  their  general 
agencies.  Jardine,  Matheson  &  Co.,  Ltd., 
are  importers  to  Japan  of  machinery,  metals, 
chemicals,  drugs,  raw-  cotton,  wool  and  other 
requirements  for  the  mills  and  factories  of  the 
country.  They  are  exporters  of  raw  and 
waste  silk,  braids  and  general  produce  of  all 
kinds. 

Apart  from  the  London  house,  and  the 
head  offices  for  the  Orient  at  Hong  Kong, 
branches  in  addition  to  those  mentioned  for 
Japan  are  maintained  at  New  York,  Canton, 
Wuchow,  Samshui,  Swatow,  Amoy,  Foochow, 
Shanghai,  Chinkiang,  Nanking,  Wuhu,  Kiu- 
kiang,  Hankow,  Ichang,  Changsha,  Peking, 
Tientsin,  Neuchuang,  Vladivostock,  Harbin, 
Tsingtau,  and  Taipeh. 

The  Manager  for  Japan  is  Mr.  F.  H.  Bug- 
bird,  who  in  addition  to  the  extensive  inter- 
ests which  he  has  to  control,  still  finds  time 
to  associate  himself  in  many  ways  with  the 
general  welfare  of  the  British  trading  and 
social  interests  of  Yokohama.  He  is  Vice- 
Chairman  of  the  Foreign  Board  of  Trade  and 
Chairman    of  the  Yokohama    United    Club 


MASfDA  AND  CO.MPANY 
The  foundations  of  the  enormous  business 
controlled  by  Messrs.  Masuda  &  Co.,  of 
Yokohama,  were  laid  as  far  back  as  1862, 
by  Mr.  Kahei  Masuda,  shortly  after  the  port 
had  been  opened  to  foreign  trade,  but  the 
firm  as  it  is  to-day  was  actually  started  in 
1884  when  Mr.  Masuzo  Masuda,  jointly 
with  Mr.  Fusajiro  Nakamura,  succeeded  his 
father,  and  commenced  trading  in  sugar, 
petroleum,  and  flour.  Since  that  time  the 
business  has  grown  to  control  vast  enter- 
prises, and  the  operations  of  the  firm  now 
cover  a  very  wide  range,  branches  being 
established  all  over  the  world  (directly  by  the 
Masuda  Trading  Company,  Limited).  Ori- 
ginally a  merchant  house,  dealing  only  in 
certain  lines  of  imports  and  exports,  Messrs. 
Masuda  &  Co.  are  to-day  general  exporters 
and  importers,  shipping  brokers  and  ship 
ow-ners,  factory  owners  and  manufacturers, 
proprietors  of  a  sugar  refinery,  and  interested 
widely  in  a  variety  of  industrial  and  trading 
enterprises.  They  control  the  Masuda  Saw 
Mill  at  Yokohama,  the  Masuda  Flour  Mill, 
Kobe,  the  Masuda  Sugar  Refinery,  Yoko- 
hama, the  Matsuo  Sulphur  Mine  at  Iwate, 
the  Kobe  Drier  Co.,  Ltd.,  Kob^,  the  Yoko- 
hama Beancake  Mill,  and  the  Otori  Tungsten 
Mine. 

The  principal  imports  of  the  firm  are: 
Raw  sugar,  wheat  and  other  grains,  wheat 
flour,  beancake,  beans  and  other  cereals, 
lead  ore,  zinc  ore  and  concentrates,  copper  and 
nickel  ores,  iron  and  steel,  tin  and  tin  solder, 
sulphate  of  ammonia  and  other  chemicals 
and  fertilizers,  wood  pulp,  hides  and  skins, 
wool-yarn  and  tops,  raw  cotton  dye-stuffs, 
timber,  rubber,  all  kinds  of  machinery  and 
many  other  lines.  Masuda  &  Co.  export 
principally  timber,  sulphur,  raw  and  refined 
sugar,  rice,  barley,  oats,  and  other  grains  and 
cereals,  fish  oils,  menthol,  tinned  salmon  and 
crab,  coal,  various  ores  and  metals  and  their 
alloys,  electrical  machinery,  porcelain,  Port- 
land cement,  toys,  silk  and  cotton  goods, 
glassware,  chemicals  and  practically  every 
ine  of  Japanese  manufactures  or  products. 

The  development  of  this  huge  business,  the 
annual  transactions  of  which  cover  a  value 
of  over  Yen  50,000,000,  has  been  due  to  the 
energy  of  Mr.  Masuda  and  his  original  part- 
ner, Mr.  Fusajiro  Nakamura,  both  rated  as 
among  the  most  substantial  and  progressive 
of  Japanese  business  men.  From  the  incep- 
tion of  the  firm  Mr.  Masuda  has  been  extend- 
ing its  operations  year  by  year.  The  Masuda 
Flour  Mill  was  established  in  1905,  and  the 
following  year  Mr.  Masuda  and  his  colleagues 
organised  the  Yokohama  Sugar  Refining 
Company,  which  w'as  amalgamated  in  19 12 
with  the  Meiji  Sugar  Company,  chiefly 
through  the  efforts  of  Mr.  Masuda,  who  saw 


242 


P  R  E  S  K  X  T  -  D  A  Y        I  M  I'  R  !•:  S  S  I  O  X  S        OF        J  A   I'  A  \ 


the  advisability  of  uniting  the  interests  of  the 
two  companies,  one  manufacturing  refined 
sugar  and  the  other  dealing  in  the  crude 
product.  At  the  same  time  Mr.  Masuda 
directed  his  attention  to  trading  with  foreign 
countries,  and  established  the  Masuda  Gomei 
Kaisha  (Masuda  &  Co.),  a  partnership  con- 
cern with  a  capital  of  Yen  500,000  and 
having  for  its  members  Messrs.  Fusajiro 
Nakamura,  Masutaro  Masuda,  Genjiro  Ma- 


Icum  in  Japan,  being  the  sole  selling  agent 
for  the  Meiji  Sugar  Company  and  the  Masuda 
Flour  Mill.  It  is  one  of  the  largest  business 
establishments  interested  in  the  lines  enum- 
erated in  Japan.  The  Masuda  Gomei 
Kaisha,  which  originally  took  over  the  foreign 
trade  branch  of  the  Masuda  Shoten,  has  its 
branches  throughout  Japan  and  abroad,  and 
its  rejiresentatives  are  stationed  in  or  travel 
throughout    Europe,    Asia,    Australia,    and 


ifr 


n 


REELING    R.WV    SILK 


suda,  and  Yoichi  Masuda,  Mr.  Masuzo 
Masuda  himself  acting  as  general  super- 
visor. This  new  concern  took  over  the 
foreign  business  of  Masuda  &  Co.,  which  it 
has  since  developed  widely,  particularly 
after  the  outbreak  of  the  war.  The  Masuda 
Gomei  Kaisha  has  its  branches  and  agencies 
at  all  important  centres  in  Japan  and  abroad, 
principal  of  which  are  the  following:  Tokyo, 
Kob6,  Osaka,  Nagoya,  Otaru,  Shimoiioseki, 
Naba,  Tainan,  Fusan,  Dairen,  Shanghai, 
Tientsin,  Hankow,  Tsingtau,  Singajjore, 
Calcutta,  Bombay,  Vladivostock,  Sydney. 
Melbourne,  Seattle,  San  Francisco,  New 
York,  and  London.  In  February,  1917, 
another  development  took  place  when  the 
Masuda  Gomei  Kaisha  and  their  higher 
employees  established  the  Masuda  Boeki 
Kabushiki  Kaisha  (Masuda  Trading  Co., 
Ltd.),  a  limited  liability  company  with  a 
capital  of  Yen  1,000,000  to  further  extend 
the  foreign  trade  operations  of  the  group. 
The  three  businesses,  though  engaged  in 
different  lines  of  trade,  are  closely  allied  in 
order  to  ensure  their  respective  and  mutual 
success.  Mr.  Masuda's  private  firm,  the 
Masuzo  Masuda  Shoten,  is  chiefly  concerned 
with  the  sale  of  sugar,  wheat  flour,  and  petro- 


North  and  South  America.  Its  shipping 
department,  brought  into  being  by  the 
extraordinary  condition  of  the  freight  market 
after  the  beginning  of  the  war,  is  doing  active 
business  in  charterage,  and  has  recently 
come  to  own  a  number  of  steamers  and  sailing 
ships.  The  Masuda  Boeki  Kabushiki  Kai- 
sha, trading  in  conjunction  with  the  two 
concerns  above  mentioned,  is  carrying  on 
an  extensive  trade  abroad,  and  promises  to 
be  one  of  the  greatest  commercial  organi- 
sations of  the  country.  Its  officers  are  as 
follows:  President,  Mr.  Fusajiro  Nakamura; 
Vice-President,  Mr.  Masutaro  Masuda;  Di- 
rectors, Messrs.  Yoichi  Masuda,  Inesaburo 
Masuda,  Eijiro  Shiokawa,  Tadasu  Okabe, 
and  Michisuke  Kakinuma;  Auditors,  Messrs. 
Genjiro  Masuda,  Eijiro  Masuda,  Yasutaro 
Hasegawa,  Eigoro  Nagai,  and  Hachirotaro 
Nakamura.  Mr.  Masuzo  Masuda  is  the 
Superintendent. 

The  three  business  concerns  under  the 
direction  of  the  Masuda  family  are  located  at 
the  same  premises  at  Nos.  68  and  6g  Shi- 
chome,  Honcho,  Yokohama.  There  are  also 
extensive  warehouses.  A  large  staff  is  em- 
ployed in  the  administration  of  the  wide- 
spread interests  which  Mr.  Masuda  controls. 


W.  .M.  STR.\CH.\N  &  CO.,  LI.MITEU 
A  DL'siNEss  house  with  over  fifty  years  of 
trading,  along  the  most  sound  and  progressive 
lines,  to  its  credit,  is  W.  M.  Strachan  &  Co., 
Ltd.,  of  No.  71  Main  Street,  Yokohama. 
This  business  was  established  by  the  earliest 
pioneers  in  the  foreign  trade  of  Japan,  and 
with  the  house,  at  one  time  or  another,  have 
been  associated  some  of  the  best  known  names 
in  Yokohama's  business  history. 

The  inception  of  the  business  dates  back  to 
January    i,    1864,   when    Mr.   Tom   Thomas 
founded  the  house,  which  became  known  after 
July   of  tliat  year  as   Strachan  &   Thomas, 
Mr.   W.   M.   Strachan   having  arrived   from 
Hankow  to  join  Mr.  Thomas  m  partnership. 
It  is  interesting  to  note  that  both  the  founders 
of  the  house  are  still  alive  and  active  in  trade 
with  Japan,  though  Mr.  Thomas  is  no  longer 
connected  with  the  business.     For  the  first 
few  years  an   export   business   was  done  in 
uncoloured  Japan  tea,  but  the  principal  line 
was  raw  silk  in  the  handling  of  which  Messrs. 
Strachan  &  Thomas  were  among  the  largest 
houses,  as  they  were  among  the  first.     The 
silk  export  trade  was  specialised  in  until  about 
1900  or  a  little  later.     In  imports  the  old  firm 
was  early  noted  for  Manchester  cottons  and 
cotton  yarns,  and  Bradford  goods,  in  which 
lines  they  have  always  held  a  premier  position. 
It    was   about    1880   that   the   firm   became 
W.  M.  Strachan  &  Co.,  and  in  1894,  when  the 
business  had  grown  far  beyond  the  original 
conceptions  of  its  founders,  it  was  turned  into 
a  limited  liability  company  with  a  registered 
capital  of  £50,000.     A  full  measure  of  success 
has  attended  the  widening  of  the  concern  and 
the  increase  in  its  scope  of  operations,  and 
to-day  the  company  has  reserve  funds  con- 
siderably exceeding  the  amount  of  its  capital. 
Messrs.  W.  M.  Strachan  &  Co.,  Ltd.,  are 
the   only   people   among   British   traders   in 
Japan  dealing  to  any  extent  in  wool,  a  line 
they  have  handled  for  many  years.     Prior  to 
the  war  a  large  import  business  in  this  com- 
modity was  done  with  Australia,  but  to-day 
the  main  source  of  supply  is  South  Africa. 
The  other  principal  imports,  apart  from  wool 
and    Manchester    cottons,    are    machinery, 
metals,     and     general     lines.     The     exports 
comprise   chiefly  silk  piece  goods,   tungsten 
and  copper  ores,  and  practically  all  lines  of 
general  merchandise  and  Japanese  produce. 
An  important  branch  of  the  business  is  that 
of  machinery.     W.  M.  Strachan  &  Co.,  Ltd., 
are  the  agents  for  the  Crossley  oil  and  gas 
engines,  and  in  this  capacity  they  equipped 
the  Tokyo  Seiju  Kaisha,  probably  the  first 
mill  in  Japan  to  be  installed  with  such  modern 
plant.     Though  Japan  is  to-day  producing  a 
great  deal  of  locally  made  machinery  and  the 
demand  for  the  British  plant  is  not  so  pro- 
nounced, W.  M.  Strachan  &  Co.,  Ltd.,  still 


S  K  N    r  -  I)  A  V        1   M   1'  1<  E  S  S  I  O  N  S        O  F        JAPAN 


243 


haniilc  a  large  volume  of  trade  in  machinery. 
The  comijany  is  agent  for  the  following 
concerns:  The  Guardian  Assurance  Co.,  Ltd.; 
London  &  Lancashire  Fire  Insurance  Co. ; 
Northern  Assurance  Co.,  Ltd.;  Phoenix 
Assurance  Co.,  Ltd.;  Queen  Insurance  Co.; 
London  &  Provincial  Marine  &  General 
Insurance  Co.,  Ltd.;  Royal  Exchange  Assur- 
ance Corporation;  Sea  Insurance  Co.,  Ltd.; 
Federal  Insurance  Co.;  The  Mutual  Life 
Insurance  Co.  of  New  York ;  The  General 
Life  Insurance  Co. ;  The  Provident  Clerks'  & 
Mutual  Life  Assurance  Association;  Cros- 
sley's  Gas  and  Oil  Engines;  Sparkbrook 
Bicycles;  Earl  of  Dudley's  Round  Oak  Iron 
&  Steel  Works,  Ltd. 

In  the  early  days  the  old  firm  was  agent 
for  the  Equitable  Life  Assurance  Society  of 
the  United  States,  until  that  Society,  tempted 
by  the  promising  field  which  the  country 
offered,  opened  its  own  branch  in  Japan. 
They  were  also  agents  for  the  China  Mutual 
Steam  Ship  Company  until  the  sale  of  that 
line  to  Messrs.  Alfred  Holt  &  Co.  The  firm 
was  connected  with  the  establishment  of 
several  of  the  large  manufacturing  enterprises 


in  Japan  and  acted  as  supplier  of  machinery 
and  raw  material.  Among  the  men  who 
have  been  connected  with  the  house  in  its 
various  stages  —  some  for  many  years  and 
others  for  a  comparatively  short  period  — 
the  following  may  be  mentioned  as  those 
whose  names  are  well  known  throughout 
China  and  Japan:  Messrs.  Tom  Thomas, 
W.  M.  Strachan,  James  Downie,  James 
Bissett,  Frederick  Pollard,  W.  Sutter,  David 
McCulloch,  Alfred  Dare,  G.  H.  Allcock, 
J.  D.  Hutchison,  J.  P.  Reid,  J.  W.  Crowe, 
J.  T.  Esdale,  A.  L.  Robinson,  Ducan  McLaren, 
George  Philip,  F.  H.  Bull,  E.  T.  Nicholas, 
W.  Ross,  and  F.  J.  Lias.  The  Directors  of 
the  company  in  London  are  Messrs.  W.  M. 
Strachan,  C.  H.  Pearson,  J.  D.  Hutchison, 
and  G.  C.  Bolton.  Mr.  F.  O.  Stuart  is 
Manager  at  Yokohama.  Here  the  company 
has  its  main  godowns  and  oflSces  in  which 
employment  is  found  for  about  70  persons. 
The  Kobe  branch,  from  which  the  principal 
exports  are  hemp  and  straw  braids,  etc.,  is 
under  the  management  of  Mr.  E.  B.  S. 
Edwards. 
(See  also  page  664.) 


DODWELL  &  CO.,  LIMITED 
Among  the  many  great  concerns  whose 
business  ramifications  extend  throughout  the 
Far  East  and  Japan,  is  Dodwell  &  Co.,  Ltd. 
It  is  difficult  to  say  where  the  activities  of 
this  company  begin  and  where  they  end,  for 
they  embrace  practically  every  branch  of 
trade  and  commerce,  the  name  being  well 
known  in  every  commercial  centre  of  any 
importance.  The  history  of  the  company  is 
one  of  rapid  growth  and  wide  development. 
Mr.  George  B.  Dodwell,  founder  of  the  Ijusi- 
ness,  and  now  Chairman  of  the  Board  of 
Directors  in  London,  was  for  many  years  in 
Hong  Kong  and  Shanghai  with  the  firm  of 
Messrs.  Adamson,  Bell  &  Co.  When  that 
concern  went  out  of  business  in  1891  Mr. 
Dodwell,  with  Mr.  Carlill,  formed  a  partner- 
ship styled  Dodwell,  Carlill  &  Co.,  taking 
over  the  business  interests  of  Messrs.  Adam- 
son,  Bell  &  Co.  and  securing  the  services  of 
many  of  that  firm's  employees.  The  new 
organisation  was  immediately  successful, 
and  in  1899  it  became  Dodwell  &  Co.,  Ltd. 
The  capital  to-day  is  £200,000.  With  its 
head  office  at  Exchange  Chambers,  St.  Mary 


HEAD   OFFICE    OF    W.    M.    STK.\CH.\N   &    CO.,    LTD.,    YOKOH.\M.^ 


DODWELL   &    CO.,    LTD.,    YOKOHAMA:      A   CORNER   OF   THE   OFFICES  —  THE    STAFF    AND    HEAD    OFFICE 

—  SCENE   IN   ONE   OF   THE   GODOWNS 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


245 


Axe,  London,  the  company  extended  from 
its  original  branches,  taken  over  from 
Adamson,  Bell  &  Co.,  until  it  is  now  directly 
represented  at  Hong  Kong,  Shanghai,  Foo- 
chow,  Hankow,  Canton,  Yokohama,  Kob^, 
Colombo,  New  York,  Seattle,  San  Francisco, 
Tacoma,  Victoria,  Vancouver,  and  Antwerp, 
and  in  many  other  commercial  centres  the 
company  is  served  by  agents.  To  attempt 
to  describe  in  a  few  words,  such  as  would 
exactly  and  completely  explain,  the  business 
activities  of  Dodwcll  &  Co.,  Ltd.,  is  an 
impossibility.  They  are  not  only  merchants 
and  importers  and  exporters,  but  are  actively 
engaged  in  shipping,  chartering, the  coal  busi- 
ness, in  all  branches  of  insurance,  in  general 
agency  business,  as  well  as  in  engineering 
and  contracting,  and  a  score  of  other  depart- 
ments of  commerce,  industry,  and  trade. 

THE    JAPANESE    BUSINESS 

The  Yokohama  branch  was  actually  estab- 
lished in  1877  by  Messrs.  Adamson,  Bell  & 
Co.,  and  was  taken  over  by  Dodwell,  Carlill 
&  Co.  when  that  firm  came  into  being  in 
1891.  To-day  Dodwell  &  Co.,  Ltd.,  are 
foremost  among  the  great  British  interests  in 
Japan.  They  are  shipping,  chartering,  and 
coaling  contractors,  fire  and  marine  insurance 
agents,  manufacturers'  representatives,  and 
agents  for  many  well  known  British  and 
American  products,  such  as  the  British  Anti- 
fouling  Composition  and  Paint,  Underwood 
typewriters,  and  Overland  motor  cars.  They 
export  coals,  'oils,  straw  envelopes,  straw- 
braid,  matches,  rugs,  underwear,  towels, 
flour,  electric  fittings,  produce,  chemicals, 
bronze  powder,  fertilizers,  gunny  tares  and 
bagging,  earthenware,  tea  and  rubber  chests, 
bottles,  general  glassware,  and  Japanese 
merchandise  of  all  kinds.  Among  the  prin- 
cipal imports  handled  by  the  company  are 
piece  goods,  typewriters,  paints,  varnishes 
and  oils,  metals,  chemicals,  aqua  ammonia, 
machinery,  leather,  shells,  resin,  and  the 
famous  Overland  car.  The  Japanese  busi- 
ness, under  the  general  management  of  Mr. 
J.  P.  Warren  at  Kobe  and  Mr.  O.  M.  Poole  at 
Yokohama,  is  divided  necessarily  into  many 
departments.  In  shipping  Dodwell  &  Co., 
Ltd.,  are  the  agents  for  the  Dodwell  Line  of 
Steamers  for  New  York,  and  the  following 
other  lines:  Mogul,  Warrack,  Saint  and 
Barber  Lines,  New  York  and  Oriental  S.  S. 
Co.,  American  and  Oriental  S.  S.  Co.,  and  the 
Natal  Line.  They  are  the  secretaries  of  the 
New  York  Conference  for  Freights.  In 
earlier  times  the  company  ran  its  own  line 
of  sailing  ships,  but  to-day  it  is  not  directly 
interested  as  owners. 

In  the  Insurance  Department  Dodwell  & 
Co.,  Ltd.,  have  the  agencies  for  the  Standard 
Life  Assurance  Co.,  the  Yorkshire  Insurance 


Co.,  Ltd.,  the  Alliance  Assurance  Co.,  the 
Ocean  Marine  Insurance  Co.,  the  Providence 
(Washington)  Insurance  Co.  Regarding  the 
very  important  representation  of  the  Under- 
wood Typewriter  Company,  which  is  in  the 
hands  of  Dodwell  &  Co.,  Ltd.,  it  is  interesting 
to  note  that  this  typewriter  finds  exceptional 
favour  amongst  the  Japanese  and  large  num- 
bers are  being  imported  annually. 

Dodwell  &  Co.,  Ltd.,  through  its  world- 
wide activities  has  done  very  valuable  work- 
in  developing  Japanese  native  industries. 
It  was  the'  pioneer  foreign  concern  in  the 
straw  braid  industry  in  Japan,  and  Mr.  T. 
Niwa,  who  is  in  the  company's  service  at 
Kobe,  is  a  recognised  authority  on  this 
important  business.  He  is  President  of  the 
Straw  Braid  Guild.  The  Yokohama  oflSce 
of  Dodwell  &  Co.,  Ltd.,  employs  forty-six 
persons,  and  the  Kobe  office,  seventy-five. 
The  company  is  also  well  represented  in 
Tokj'o  by  sub -agents  for  the  especial  purpose 
of  pushing  sales  in  that  quarter. 

Mr.  Poole,  the  company's  manager  in 
Yokohama  since  January,  1916,  has  been 
with  Dodwell  &  Co.,  Ltd.,  for  twenty-one 
years,  having  served  in  the  London,  Hong 
Kong,  and  Kobe  branches.  He  succeeded 
Mr.  George  Syme  Thomson,  upon  the  death 
of  that  very  well  know-n  figure  in  the  Far 
Eastern  trade.  Mr.  Poole  is  an  American 
by  birth,  and  apart  from  his  business  activ- 
ities, he  is  like  many  another  principal  of 
great  foreign  interests,  deeply  concerned  in 
public  and  semi-public  organisations.  He  is 
on  the  Executive  Committee  of  the  American 
Association,  and  Hon.  Secretary  of  the  Naigai 
Club.  This  latter  institution  fulfils  a  valu- 
able function  in  bringing  Japanese  and  for- 
eigners into  close  contact  in  a  friendly  w'ay. 
It  consists  of  the  heads  of  most  of  the  impor- 
tant Japanese  and  foreign  houses,  and  Mr. 
Ryozo  Asano  is  Joint-Secretary  with  Mr. 
Poole.  Among  several  other  honourary  posi- 
tions w-hich  he  fills  in  the  commercial  and 
social  life  of  the  community  may  be  men- 
tioned the  secretarj'ship  of  the  Nippon  Race 
Club  Golfing  Association. 

SAMUEL  SAMUEL  &  CO.,  LIMITED 
Messrs.  S.\muel  Samuel  &  Co.  were 
first  estabhshed  in  Japan  some  thirty  years 
ago  and  continued  trading  as  a  pri\-ate  com- 
pany until  1908,  w-hen  owing  to  the  great 
expansion  of  the  business,  it  was  decided  to 
incorporate  the  firm  as  a  limited  liability 
company.  From  the  inception  of  its  busi- 
ness in  Japan  the  firm  took  a  conspicuous 
part  in  the  development  of  the  country,  and 
came  into  closer  relationship  with  the 
Japanese  Government  than  perhaps  any  other 
foreign  house  has  ever  been.  Through  their 
London  agents,  Messrs.  M.  Samuel  &  Co.,  of 


whom  Sir  Marcus  Samuel,  Bart.,  is  the  well- 
known  head,  Messrs.  Samuel  &  Co.  were 
enabled  to  float  loans  for  the  Japanese 
Government,  and  to  supply,  under  special 
arrangements,  the  material  for  the  construc- 
tion of  the  railways  and  other  public  works. 
In  more  recent  years  they  handled  the  cam- 
phor monopoly  for  the  Government.  With 
the  grow-th  of  the  economic  and  commercial 
independence  of  Japan  the  opportunity  for 
such  activities  has  necessarily  become  lim- 
ited, and  the  nature  of  Messrs.  Samuel 
Samuel  &  Co.'s  business  has  changed  in 
accordance  with  circumstances  and  the 
requirements  of  the  times.  Thus,  while  a 
decade  ago  their  principal  business  was  with 
imports,  now  it  lies  with  the  export  of  Japa- 
nese goods.  The  company  has  branch  offices 
at  Kob^,  Tokyo,  Shimonoseki,  and  at  Taipeh, 
Keelung,  and  Takao  in  Formosa,  while 
abroad  it  is  directly  represented  by  its  own 
staffs  at  San  Francisco  and  New  York.  In 
1914  the  immense  possibilities  of  trade  with 
India  became  apparent  to  Messrs.  Samuel 
Samuel  &  Co.,  Ltd.,  and  with  the  idea  of 
extending  their  activities  in  the  Indian  mar- 
ket, they  inaugurated  a  special  Indian 
department  in  Koh6  for  the  sole  purpose  of 
attending  to  this  branch  of  their  business. 
Their  policy  w-as  successful  from  the  outset 
and  to-day  they  do  a  larger  business  with 
India  than  any  other  foreign  firm  or  company 
in  Japan. 

At  both  the  larger  branches,  Yokohama  and 
Kobe,  Messrs.  Samuel  Samuel  &  Co.,  Ltd., 
have  an  Engineering  Department,  each  of 
which  does  a  large  business  in  the  maou- 
factures  of  the  various  well-known  firms  they 
represent,  such  as  Messrs.  Cammell,  Laird  & 
Co.,  the  Fairfield  Shipbuilding  Co.,  D.  &  H. 
Haggie  &  Co.,  Asa  Lees  &  Co.,  Petter  &  Co., 
Ltd.,  the  Blackman  Export  Co.,  and  many 
others.  The  company  also  has  extensive 
shipping  interests  and  is  continuously  en- 
gaged in  the  purchase,  sale,  and  chartering  of 
steamers.  Messrs.  Samuel  Samuel  &  Co.  are 
agents  for  the  Shell  Transport  &  Trading 
Co.,  the  Anglo-Saxon  Petroleum  Co.,  Ltd., 
the  Royal  Mail  Steam  Packet  Co.,  the  East 
Asiatic  Co.,  Ltd.,  the  Swedish  East  Asiatic 
Co.,  Ltd.,  the  Compania  Transatlantic  de 
Barcelona,  and  others.  They  also  represent 
the  Zocus  Paint  Co.  for  their  well-known 
anti-fouling  compositions  for  ships'  bottoms. 
Messrs.  Samuel  Samuel  &  Co.,  Ltd.,  are  the 
general  agents  for  the  Commercial  Union 
Assurance  Co.,  Ltd.,  the  London  &  Liverpool 
and  Globe  Insurance  Co.,  Ltd.,  the  Union 
Insurance  Society  of  Canton,  Ltd.,  and  the 
Alliance  Assurance  Co.,  Ltd. 

The  business  premises  and  godow-ns  of  the 
company  are  at  No.  27,  Yokohama,  and 
cover  a  considerable  area.     The   Managing 


17 


[fe= 


HEAD   OFFICE    AND   GODOWNS    OF    SAMUEL    SAMUEL   &    CO.,    YOKOHAMA 


SAMUEL    SAMUEL   &   CO.,    LTD.,    KOBE:      A    SECTION    OF    THE    KOBE    OFFICES— A    SCENE    IN    THE 
SAMPLE    ROOM  —  PACKING   DEPARTMENT    IN    ONE   OF    THE    GODOWNS 


248 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


Director  at  Yokohama  is  Mr.  H.  T.  Ilume, 
who  came  to  Japan  over  ten  years  ago,  after 
seven  years  in  Rangoon,  and  succeeded  to 
the  management  in  iyi3-  Mr.  Hume  is 
Vice-Chairman  of  the  Foreign  Board  of 
Trade,  a  member  of  the  Naigai  Club,  and 
Vice-President  of  the  Yokohama  Countn,- 
and  Athletic  Club,  among  other  public  or 
semi-public  positions  whieli  he  holds. 


plied  by  Messrs.  Cooper  &  Co.  They  are 
also  agents  for  Japan  for  the  famous  distilling 
company,  John  Walker  &  Sons,  Ltd. 

Messrs.  Cooper  &  Co.  have  an  embroidery- 
factory  at  Mishima-machi,  Idzu,  which 
employs  from  fifteen  to  twenty  girls.  The 
godowns  in  Yokohama  are  three  in  number, 
l^uilt  of  stone,  two  of  two  and  one  of  three 
stories,  giving  a  large  storage  capacity  for  the 


and  export  trade  of  Japan,  are  Singleton, 
Benda  &  Co.,  Ltd.,  whose  offices  and  godowns 
are  at  No.  96  Yamashita-cho,  Yokohama. 
The  foundations  of  this  great  concern  were 
laid  nearly  fifty  years  ago  when  the  business 
was  originally  that  of  M.  Levy  &  Co.,  sub- 
sequently passing  into  the  hands  of  Messrs. 
Singleton  and  Benda.  This  firm  was  incor- 
porated   in    London    as    a    limited    liability 


M 


IMPERI.'VL    PALACE,    TOKYO 


COOPER    &    CO. 

The  growth,  development,  and  extent  of 
the  present-day  business  interests  of  Messrs. 
Cooper  &  Co.,  No.  47,  Yokohama,  are 
remarkable  in  view  of  the  comparatively 
short  time  the  concern  has  been  in  existence. 
The  business  was  founded  in  April,  1909,  by 
Mr.  A.  E.  Cooper,  who  is  now  principal 
partner  resident  in  London.  In  1912,  when 
the  present  managing  partner,  Mr.  F.  W.  R. 
Ward,  joined  the  firm,  it  was  incorporated 
under  the  laws  of  Japan  as  a  Goshi  Kaisha. 

Messrs.  Cooper  &  Co.  are  general  importers 
and  exporters,  specialising  in  the  export  of 
silk,  drawn  work,  and  general  Japanese 
manufactures,  and  importing  sundry  Unes 
to  meet  local  requirements.  The  firm  is 
particularly  well  known  in  London  and  New 
York  markets  and  undoubtedly  handles  a 
very  large  proportion  of  the  silk  trade  with 
those  two  centres.  They  are  associated  with 
Messrs.  J.  A.  Finn  &  Co.  of  New  York,  im- 
porters of  fancy  silks,  whose  needs  are  sup- 


heavy  stocks  carried.  Among  the  lines 
exported  are  silk  piece  goods,  plain  and  fancy 
silk,  handkerchiefs  (plain  and  fancy),  hemp 
braid,  drawn  work  and  embroideries,  lace 
goods,  kimonos  (silk  and  cotton),  cotton 
piece  goods,  boot  laces,  press  studs,  elec- 
trical fittings,  incandescent  gas  lamps,  gas 
fittings,  and  glassware.  About  seventy  hands 
are  employed  in  the  various  departments. 
Messrs.  Cooper  &  Co.  maintain  a  branch  in 
New  York,  at  33  Union  Square,  where  they 
are  represented  by  Mr.  W.  L.  Croker. 

Mr.  Ward,  the  Managing  Partner,  joined 
the  firm  in  191 2,  and  succeeded  to  the  man- 
agement of  the  business  upon  the  departure 
of  Mr.  Cooper  for  London  the  following  year. 
He  is  an  Englishman  with  sixteen  years  of 
business  experience  in  Japan. 

SINGLETON,    BENDA    &    CO.,    LLMITED 
Prominent  among  the  leading  houses  of 
Yokohama,   carrying  on  the  extraordinarily 
varied  business  which  constitutes  the  import 


company  about  twenty  years  ago  with  a 
capital  of  £140,000.  The  London  office  is 
at  27  London  Wall,  and  the  directors  of  the 
company  are  Mr.  C.  Williamson  MUne, 
Chairman,  Messrs.  C.  Benda  and  J.  F.  Fitz- 
patrick.  Managing  Directors,  and  Mr.  W. 
Bromley  Taylor,  Director. 

Singleton,  Benda  &  Co.,  Ltd.,  handle 
practically  every  line  known  to  the  Japanese 
trade,  either  in  imports  or  exports.  The 
range  of  their  exports  is  too  wide  to  be  more 
than  briefly  mentioned  in  this  article.  They 
ship  general  fancy  goods,  antimony,  lacquer, 
and  porcelain  ware  of  all  kinds  including 
articles  of  the  most  famous  Japanese  crafts- 
manship, such  as  Kutani  tea  sets,  vases, 
figures;  Bishiu  sets,  vases,  figures,  etc.; 
Aidzu  tea  pots,  coflfee  and  other  services, 
Ishiguro  and  Riosai  vases,  match  stands,  and 
bowls;  Banko  ash  trays,  teapots,  and  figures, 
and  all  classes  of  Satsuma  ware.  Basket 
ware  of  all  kinds  is  another  line,  as  also  are 
paper  goods,   toys,  umbrellas,  etc.     Carved 


il^l 


COOPER    &   CO.     YOKOHAMA:      THE    FANCY    SILKS    DEPARTMENT  -  THE   HEMP    BRAID    DEPARTMENT  -  SORTING   AND 
PACKING    IN   THE    HANDKERCHIEF    DEPARTMENT  —  EXTERIOR    VIEW   OF    OFFICES    AND   GODOWNS 


250 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


wood  work,  including  furniture,  screens, 
panels,  painted  and  plain,  and  knickknacks 
of  all  descriptions  form  another  department, 
and  in  sundries  ranging  from  leather  suit 
cases  down  to  pocket  knives,  the  list  is  excep- 
tionally long.  Singleton,  Benda  &  Co., 
Ltd.,  also  buy  for  export,  bronzes,  ivor>-  and 
walnis  car\-ings,  ivory  and  gold  vases,  lacquer 
ware,  antiques,  and  curios.  In  the  more 
regular  trade  lines  they  cover  straw,  chip,  and 
hemp  braids,  silk  piece  goods,  cotton  piece 
goods  and  made-up  articles  of  apparel,  cotton 
crepes,  linens,  embroideries,  and  drawn. thread 
work.  The  field  of  export  is  as  wide  as  the 
lines  are  varied.  An  extensive  business  is  done 
with  the  United  Kingdom,  the  Continent 
of  Europe,  Austraha,  Canada,  the  United 
States,  and  South  Africa,  and  Singleton, 
Benda  &  Co.,  Ltd.,  are  represented  by  agents 
in  practically  ever>'  important  centre  where 
they  transact  business.  The  company  does  a 
large  trade  in  Panama  hats,  and  also  has  its 
own  factories  for  the  manufacture  of  shirts, 
collars,  kimonos  and  such  goods.  Further- 
more, practically  all  kinds  of  produce,  such 


as  peas,  beans,  fish  oil,  menthol  crystals  and 
other  commodities,  are  exported. 

Singleton,  Benda  &  Co.,  Ltd.,  are  the 
Japanese  agents  for  Peter  Dawson  &  Co.,  the 
distillers.  They  were  the  first  house  in 
Japan  to  open  up  the  bicycle  trade  and  the 
importing  of  accessories  and  parts,  and  still 
do  a  considerable  business  in  this  direction, 
though  to-day  no  bicycles  are  imported,  the 
finished  article  being  put  together  locally  from 
parts  and  accessories  brought  in  from  other 
countries.  In  the  representation  of  Turner 
Brothers  belting  the  company  has  another 
important  agency.  Attached  to  the  Yoko- 
hama offices  of  Singleton,  Benda  &  Co.,  Ltd., 
are  two  spacious  three-storj-  godowns  built 
of  brick,  and  giving  storage  capacity  for  an 
enormous  and  highly  valuable  stock  of  goods. 
One  godown  is  123  by  72  feet  and  the  second 
is  68  by  38  feet.  In  the  various  departments, 
such  as  silk  piece  goods,  cottons,  Panama 
hats,  fancy  goods,  and  gloves  and  hosiery, 
and  in  the  offices,  employment  is  found  for  a 
staff  numbering  over  thirty.  At  Kob^, 
where  the  company  has  an  important  branch. 


there  are  also  two  godowns.  From  that 
centre  a  large  business  is  done  in  the  export 
of  cotton  waste,  carpets  and  rugs,  matting 
and  mats,  bamboo  and  willow  work,  glass- 
ware, straw  envelopes,  brushes,  etc. 

The  Manager  for  Japan  is  Mr.  George  W. 
Brockhurst,  who  has  had  twenty-six  years  of 
experience  in  the  trade. 

VARXU.M    ARXOULD    &    CO. 

A.v  extensive  industry  has  been  built  up 
by  the  firm  of  Messrs.  Vamum  Amould  & 
Co.,  who  are  the  pioneers  and  the  leaders 
to-day  in  the  box-making  trade  of  Japan,  in 
so  far  as  high  class,  machine-made  tea  and 
rubber  boxes  are  concerned.  The  origin 
of  this  industry  goes  back  many  years  before 
the  establishment  of  the  present  partnership. 

It  was  Mr.  R.  M.  Vamum  who  first  com- 
menced this  industrj'  in  Yokohama  and 
opened  up  what  to-day  constitutes  a  large  ex- 
port in  the  trade  of  Japan.  He  was  himself 
a  practical  tea  taster  and  while  a  member  of 
the  firm  of  Fraser,  Farley  &  Vamum,  finding 
that    the    cost    of    cooperage   for   the   large 


SINGLETON,    BENDA    &    CO.,    LTD.:      THE   YOKOHA.M.\    PREMISES — THE    KOBE    OFFICE 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


?5I 


quantity  of  tea  they  were  then  handling  was 
enormous,  owing  to  the  use  of  hand-made 
boxes,  Mr.  Varnum  on  going  into  the  ques- 
tion decided  that  the  boxes  could  be  better 
and  more  economically  made  with  modern 
machinery  than  by  the  then  prevailing 
methods.  Consequently  machinery  was  im- 
ported from  America  and  Messrs.  Fraser, 
Farley  &  Varnum  then  started  the  original 
manufacture  of  machine-made  boxes  for  their 
own  use  about  1883.  The  plant  installed 
was  at  first  only  sufficient  to  supply  the 
firm's  own  requirements,  but  later  a  trial 
shipment  was  made  to  Colombo.  The  result 
was  entirely  satisfactory  and  orders  from 
Ceylon  increased  to  such  an  extent  that  the 
firm  extended  the  capacity  of  their  mill. 
As  the  export  trade  expanded  Messrs.  Fraser, 
Farley  &  Varnum  arranged  to  supply  milling 
plants  to  the  Japanese  timber  companies, 
and  imported  from  Chicago  the  first  modern 
saw  mill  that  ever  came  to  Japan.  By 
an  arrangement  with  the  timber  companies 
the  firm  sold  the  machinerj'  on  the  hire- 
purchase  system,   having  also  the  first  call 


on  the  output  of  the  different  mills.  These 
arrangements  continued  after  the  old  firm 
ceased  to  exist,  owing  to  the  deaths  of  two 
of  the  original  partners.  With  Mr.  H.  M. 
Amould,  who  had  come  to  Japan  at  the  end 
of  the  eighties,  Mr.  Varnum  then  formed  the 
partnership  of  Varnum  Arnould  &  Co.,  about 
sixteen  years  ago,  and  the  energies  of  the  new 
firm  were  concentrated  entirely  on  the  box- 
making  business.  Their  factory,  situated 
in  the  Settlement  of  Yokohama,  was  burnt 
down  in  October,  1909,  and  was  not  replaced, 
as  the  locality  was  unsuitable,  but  the  firm 
arranged  for  the  entire  output  of  a  factory 
in  the  outskirts  of  Y'okohama.  A  similar 
arrangement  exists  with  ten  or  a  dozen 
factories  throughout  the  country,  situated  in 
proximity  to  the  timber  districts,  on  the  out- 
put of  which  Messrs.  Varnum  Amould  &  Co. 
have  first  call.  Boxes  are  made  both  for 
tea  and  rubber,  the  timber  employed  being 
"  /  J  g  inch  or  '  ■>  inch  and  of  various  sizes, 
according  to  requirements.  The  output 
handled  by  the  firm  is  now  1,000,000  per 
annum,  the  bo.xes  being  exported  to  Ceylon, 


India,  the  Straits  Settlements  and  elsewhere, 
and  for  the  jjurpose  of  export  are  packed  in 
shocks. 

Owing  to  the  wise  administration  of  the 
forestry  laws  of  Japan  there  is  no  dearth  of 
excellent  timber,  and  no  shortage  seems 
possible  with  re-afforestation  going  on  as 
fast  as  the  forests  are  cut.  The  wood  used 
in  the  manufacture  of  tea  and  rubber  boxes 
is  know'n  locally  as  momi,  though  other 
suitable  woods  are  available. 

Messrs.  Varnum  Amould  &  Co.  are  con- 
tinually extending  their  export  trade  and  are 
also  in  a  position  to  ship  all  kinds  of  three- 
ply  planking  and  three-ply  boxes,  with  the 
usual  fittings,  to  all  parts  of  the  world.  The 
firm's  address  is  No.  247-249,  Yamashita- 
cho,  Yokohama. 

IWAI  &  CO.,  LIMITED 
The  history  of  this  important  import  and 
export  company  is  given  in  full  in  the  Osaka 
section  of  this  volume.  The  business  was 
foimded  in  1898  by  Mr.  Katsujiro  Iwai,  one 
of  the  originators  of  direct  foreign  trade  from 


VARNUM    ARNOtTLD   &   CO.,   YOKOHAMA:      MESSRS. 
THE    PACKING    GODOWN- 


VARNUM    AND    ARNOVLD   IN   THEIR   OFFICE  — 
-THE    BOX    FACTORY 


252 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


YOKOHAMA    HK\M  II    lil-    IWAI    &    CO.,   LTD. 


Osaka.  A  comparatively  small  capital  was 
employed  at  the  initiation  of  operations,  but 
the  business  proved  immediately  successful, 
and  from  the  head  office  at  Osaka,  it  was 
extended  in  many  directions,  a  large  branch 
being  opened  at  Yokohama,  among  other 
important  trading  centres.-  Conducted  as  a 
private  enterprise  for  some  years,  the  business 
was  later  on  transformed  into  a  limited  lia- 
bility company  and  its  present  capital  is 
Yen  2,000,000  with  reserves  of  Yen  925,000. 
The  Yokohama  branch  of  Iwai  &  Co.,  Ltd., 
is  under  the  management  of  Mr.  Y.  Araki, 
who  is  particularly  well  known  throughout 
the  Japanese  and  foreign  business  community 
of  the  port.  An  excellent  business  site  at  No. 
180  Yamashita-cho  contains  the  commodious 
four-story  brick  Ijuilding  and  godowns.  The 
business  at  the  Yokohama  branch  naturally 
specialises  in  those  lines  which  are  best 
handled  at  this  centre.  They  comprise 
mainly  the  export  of  silk   goods  of  various 


descriptions,  cotton  goods,  silk  and  cotton 
manufactures,  hat  braids,  natural  produce, 
and  other  merchandise.  These  shipments  go 
to  Europe,  America,  Australia,  India,  the 
South  Sea  Islands,  China  and  elsewhere. 
The  Yokohama  branch  also  handles  a  large 
import  trade  in  hemp  and  similar  raw  mate- 
rials required  for  manufacture  in  Japan. 
This  branch  was  established  in  1907,  and  has 
developed  into  a  very  valuable  section  of  the 
businessof  Iwai&  Co., Ltd.  (.Seealso page 680.) 

KEANE  &  STROME,  LIMITED 
Messrs.  Keane  &  Strome,  Ltd.,  No.  12, 
Water  Street,  Yokohama,  are  export  and 
import  merchants  doing  a  very  extensive 
business  in  all  Japanese  produce  and  merchan- 
dise, besides  importing  and  distributing  to  a 
large  extent.  The  business  was  originally 
established  by  the  late  Mr.  C.  J.  Strome,  in 
1880,  under- the  trade  name  of  Strome  &  Co. 
In  1912  the  business  had  grown  to  such  an 


extent  that  a  limited  liability  comjjany  was 
formed  and  carried  on  as  Strome  &  Co.,  Ltd., 
for  two  years,  when  it  went  into  liquidation 
owing  to  the  death  of  the  founder,  Mr. 
Strome.  This  liquidation,  it  may  be  stated, 
was  merely  to  adjust  family  interests  and  the 
present  managing  director,  Mr.  O.  Strome, 
became,  and  still  is  liquidator  in  that  direction . 
The  firm  of  Keane  &  Strome,  a  partnership, 
was  formed  by  Messrs.  W.  L.  Keane  and 
Strome,  and  from  January  I,  1915,  carried  on 
the  business  till  the  following  year,  when  Mr. 
Keane  retired  and  Mr.  Strome  incorporated 
the  present  company  under  Japanese  law 
with  a  capital  of  Yen  50,000.00  fully  paid  up. 
Mr.  Strome  was  appointed  managing  director, 
Messrs.  Land  &  Cox  of  New  York  and  Kobe 
as    agents. 

Keane  &  Strome,  Ltd.,  specialise  in  silk 
manufactures  of  all  kinds  and  hemp  braids 
and  produce,  doing  also  an  extensive  business 
in  all  lines  of  export,  such  as  pressed  studs, 
boot  laces,  curios,  and  fancy  goods.  The 
company  is  a  licensed  exporter  of  tobacco 
from  Japan,  this  commodity  being  a  Govern- 
ment monopoly.  Messrs.  Keane  &  Strome, 
Ltd.,  are  in  an  enviable  position  in  this 
respect  and  they  are  able  to  sample  and  quote 
upon  request.  At  the  present  time,  largely 
due  to  the  war,  all  markets  are  bare  of 
tobacco  stocks  and  the  demand  is  general  for 
the  Japanese  leaf,  which  has  been  favourably 
reported  upon  as  suitable  mostly  for  cigarettes 
and  is  being  used  largely  for  that  purpose  in 
Egypt,  as  also  in  London  and  New  York. 
The  company  exports  tobacco  leaf  baled. 
The  main  centres  to  which  Keane  &  Strome, 
Ltd-,  export  are  England,  Australia,  the 
United  States,  and  South  America.  In  the 
hemp  braid  industry  the  company  was  one  of 
the  first  exporters,  beginning  operations  in 
1906,  and  to-day  it  is  one  of  the  leading 
dealers  in  this  product.  The  company 
maintains  a  factory  which  is  particularly 
useful  for  experimenting  on  -new  ideas  and  for 
ascertaining  costs.  The  godowns  of  the 
company  have  a  floor  space  of  526  Isiibos  (or 
3,156  square  feet)  in  which  employment  is 
given  to  about  fifty  hands.  The  normal  staff 
of  the  company  is  three  Europeans  and  thirty- 
live  Japanese.  The  firm  are  also  agents  for 
the  well-known  "Bon  Ami"  products. 

Mr  Strome,  the  Managing  Director,  has 
been  in  Japan  since  1 899.  He  was  manager  of 
the  business  in  his  father's  time  and  having 
secured  during  this  long  experience  a  thorough 
knowledge  of  commercial  conditions  gener- 
ally, he  has  been  able  to  develop  the  interests 
of  the  company  to  a  wide  extent  especially 
since  he  has  had  the  responsible  direction 
of  its  energies.  Mr.  Strome  is  connected  with 
several  public  organisations,  the  firm  being 
a  member    of  the  Foreign  Board  of   Trade. 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


253 


KEANE    &    STROME,   LTD.:      SILK    PIECE    GOODS   DEPARTMENT — -STRAWBRAID   GODOWN  —  THE   TOBACCO    GODOWN 


J.  WITKOWSKI  &  CO.,  LI.NtlTED 
In  the  first  rank  of  the  foreign  import  and 
export  houses  in  Japan  is  that  of  J.  Witkowski 
&  Co.,  Ltd.,  a  business  that  was  started  over 
forty-five  years  ago.  Originally  the  business 
was  known  as  Marcus  &  Co.,  but  later  on  it 
became  J.  Witkowski  &  Co.,  the  partners 
being  Messrs.  Witkowski  and  Henri  Blum. 
On  the  death  of  Mr.  Witkowski,  Mr.  Blum 
took  Messrs.  Lee  Meyer  and  L.  Lazarus  into 
partnership,  and  seven  years  ago  the  concern 
was  turned  into  a  private  limited  liability 
company  under  its  present  designation. 

From  the  earliest  days  a  large  trade  has 
l>cen  done  by  the  house,  and  of  recent  years 
the  expansion  of  business  has  been  most 
marked.  The  company  has  a  large  number  of 
first-class  agencies,  such  as  those  of  F.  J.  Fry 
&  Son,  Ltd.,  A.  &  F.  Pears,  Ltd.,  Peak,  Frean, 
Ltd.,  the  Crown  Perfumery  Co.,  "D.  O.  M." 
Benedictine,  Schwob  Freres  &  Cie  (watches), 
Borden's  Condensed  Milk  Co.,  and  the 
California  Fruit  Canners'  Association.  The 
Yokohama  branch  of  J.  Witkowski  &  Co., 
Ltd.,  handles  the  products  of  these  well- 
known  concerns,  as  well  as  others,  and  also 


imports  large  quantities  of  diamonds  from 
Amsterdam  for  the  local  jewellery  trade. 
Other  imported  lines  are  chemicals  and  drugs, 
California  and  French  wines,  etc.,  as  well  as 
general  merchandise.  Exports  from  Yoko- 
hama comprise  principally  silk  goods,  drawn 
work  and  embroidery,  gloves,  produce, 
including  mineral  oils,  metal  manufactures, 
toys,  fancy  goods  and  general  lines  of  all 
descriptions.  The  company  does  a  partic- 
ularly large  export  business  in  knitted  and 
fabric  gloves,  taking  the  entire  output  of  two 
or  three  factories.  There  are  six  godowns, 
spread  over  a  wide  area  of  the  most  central 
portion  of  the  foreign  business  section  of 
Yokohama,  and  these  are  under  the  control  of 
the  different  departments  into  which  the 
business  of  J.  Witkowski  &  Co.,  Ltd.,  has 
been  organised. 

Mr.  Blum,  who  is  of  French  nationality, 
has  charge  of  the  New  York  office  of  the 
company.  Mr.  Lazarus  (British)  manages 
the  Kob^  branch,  and  Mr.  Meyer,  who  is  an 
American  citizen,  is  the  Manager  of  the 
Yokohama  branch.  Both  Mess.-s.  Meyer  and 
Lazarus  have  been  with  the  house  for  over 


twenty  years,  and  have  an  intimate  knowl- 
edge of  the  trade  in  Japan,  and  of  the 
requirements  of  foreign  markets.  The  Yoko- 
hama branch  office  is  located  at  No.  93 
Yamashita-cho.     (See  page  670.) 

S.  IS.A.ACS  &  COMPANY 
Prominent  among  the  import  and  export 
firms  of  Yokohama  is  that  of  S.  Isaacs  &  Co., 
controlled  and  managed  by  Mr.  S.  Isaacs. 
The  firm's  offices  and  godowns  are  at  No.  200. 
Originally  the  business  was  that  of  R.  Isaacs 
and  Brother,  having  been  founded  in  1868  by 
the  father  and  uncle  of  the  present  proprietor. 
Mr.  S.  Isaacs  joined  his  father  in  the  business 
in  1 89 1,  and  when  the  former  retired,  Mr. 
Issacs  started  under  the  present  trade  name 
on  his  own  account  in  1903.  To-day  the 
business  is  in  a  highly  flourishing  condition, 
and  gives  every  evidence  of  rapid  expansion 
at  no  distant  date.  It  is  directed  with  energy 
and  sound  judgment  based  on  an  experience 
of  over  thirty  years  of  trading  in  Japan.  A 
general  import  and  export  business  is  done  in 
practically  all  lines,  with  special  attention 
paid  to  silk  and  other  products  in  the  raw  or 


254 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


THE    STAFF    AND    WORK    PEOPLE    OF   J.    WITKOVVSKI    &    CO.,    LTD.,    YOKOHAMA    BRANCH 


manufactured  stages.  S.  Isaacs  &  Co.  are 
probably  among  the  largest  shippers  of 
Japanese  produce  such  as  peas,  beans,  and 
similar  agricultural  crops,  and  their  activities 
also  embrace  the  operation  of  factories  for 
the  manufacture  of  hosiery  of  all  kinds,  and 
gloves.  The  hosiery  factory  is  one  of  the 
largest  of  its  kind,  and  its  goods  are  well 
known  in  New  York  and  London.  Among 
the  imports  by  the  firm  are  iron,  piece  goods, 
large  quantities  of  leather,  chemicals,  and 
general  merchandise.  Exports  comprise  the 
products  of  the  factories  under  the  direction 
of  the  firm,  agricultural  products,  silk  of  all 
kinds,  silk  manufactures  such  as  ties,  hand- 
kerchiefs, etc.,  drugs  and  chemicals,  curios, 
and  general  lines.  Several  large  godowns 
are  maintained  for  the  storage  or  finishing  of 
products  for  export.  Every  department  of 
the  varied  business  of  the  firm  is  in  charge  of 
a  European  expert.  Messrs.  S.  Isaacs  c&  Co. 
are  the  general  agents  in  Japan  for  the  Pala- 
tine Insurance  Company. 

Mr.  Isaacs  is  one  of  the  best  known  sports- 
men in  Japan.  He  is  a  keen  follower  of  the 
turf,  and  undoubtedly  the  interest  he  has 
shown  in  the  King  of  Sports  has  done  a 
great  deal  to  bring  it  to  the  position  it  now 
occupies.  He  was  for  some  years  Chairman 
of  the  Nippon  Race  Club,  and  is  still  a  com- 
mitteeman of  that  body.  As  an  owner  he 
has  had  a  full  measiu-e  of  success.  His  mare 
Virginia  holds  the  very  fine  record  of  23 
starts,  15  wins,  and  6  seconds.  She  raced 
through  three  seasons,  including  the  Spring 


of  191 5,  and  in  addition  to  winning  the 
Emperor's  Cup,  scored  five  championships, 
and  three  Australian  championships.  St. 
Augustine,  another  of  Mr.  Isaacs's  string,  by 
Ebor  from  Smart,  holds  the  mile  record  for 
Japan  in  i  m.  42?^  sees.  Mr.  Isaacs  was 
the  first  President  of  the  Yokohama  Country 
and  Athletic  Club,  a  position  he  has  held 
for  several  years.  He  is  Chairman  of  the 
Council  of  the  Society  for  the  Prevention  of 
Cruelty  to  Animals,  and  President  of  the 
Columbia  Society. 

THE    HOUSE    OF    iMOGI,    BENTEN-DORI, 
YOKOHAMA 

A  STUDY  of  the  commerce  and  industry  of 
Japan  reveals  few  more  substantial  and  well 
credited  concerns  than  the  House  of  Mogi 
of  Yokohama,  which  is  an  important  factor 
in  the  commerce  of  Japan,  and  also  has 
ver>'  wide-spread  foreign  connections.  The 
business  goes  back  originally  to  the  first 
days  of  the  opening  of  Yokohama,  when  Mr. 
Sobei  Mogi,  grandfather  of  the  present 
principal  of  the  house,  started  in  trade,  and 
numbered  the  original  pioneers  of  the  port 
among  his  customers  and  friends.  In  those 
times  the  business  was  mainly  confined  to 
transactions  in  raw  silk,  in  the  name  of 
Nozawaya.  However,  with  the  development 
of  trade  generally,  the  operations  of  this 
house  were  extended  to  include  many  other 
lines,  and  a  large  import  and  export  business 
was  built  up.  In  1 88 1  the  old  name  was 
changed    to    Mogi.     Several   other    changes 


took  place  as  the  business  grew,  and  in  1913 
the  title  of  Mogi  &  Company  was  adopted. 
Recently,  the  business  of  the  house  became 
so  extensive  that  the  name  of  Mogi  &  Co. 
was  no  longer  adequate  to  cover  the  sphere 
of  operations,  and  in  June,  191 7,  the  whole 
system  was  reorganized  and  the  business  was 
divided  up  among  various  departments. 
The  House  of  Mogi  now  is  composed  of  Mogi 
Gomel  Kaisha  (with  the  old  title  of  Mogi  & 
Co.  abroad),  Mogi  Bank,  Mogi  Mining 
Department,  Mogi  Raw  Silk  Department, 
Mogi  Real  Estate  Department,  Mogi  Dry- 
Goods  Department,  and  Mogi  Commercial 
and  Industrial  Department. 

Mogi  &  Co.  has  never  publicly  announced 
its  financial  condition,  but  when  it  is  con- 
sidered that  the  annual  turnover  is  in  excess 
of  Yen  150,000,000,  it  may  be  realised  what 
a  vast  concern  it  is,  and  how  large  is  its 
share  in  the  trade  and  commerce  of  the 
country. 

Mogi  &  Co.  carries  on  raw  silk,  which  is 
its  old  original  business,  as  well  as  general 
import  and  export.  As  importers  and  ex- 
porters, Mogi  &  Co.  are  among  the  most 
influential  people  in  Japan.  There  is  hardly 
a  line  of  goods  that  they  do  not  handle,  and 
they  import  from,  or  export  to,  practically 
every  country  in  the  world.  Among  the 
principal  imports  are  cotton,  wool  and 
woollen  goods,  iron  and  steel,  chemicals, 
paper,  shipbuilding  materials,  timber,  cer- 
eals, machinery,  etc.  Exports  comprise 
principally  raw  silk,  habutai,  cotton  and 
silk  goods,  ores  and  minerals,  various  prod- 
uce, chemicals,  etc.  They  have  already 
established  their  own  branches  in  Shanghai, 
Tientsin,  Hankow,  London,  Lyons,  New 
York,  Bombay,  and  Sydney,  besides  their 
offices  in  Tokyo  and  Osaka. 

The  Mogi  Bank  does  a  general  banking 
business.  It  has  a  separate  capital  of  Yen 
1,000,000  and  deposits  of  Yen  22,000,000. 
The  bank  is  the  joint  property  of  Messrs. 
Sobei  Mogi  and  Taijiro  Mogi.  In  addition 
to  the  head  office,  it  has  branches  at  Tokyo 
and  Takasaki.  and  two  new  branches  are 
now  being  contemplated,  to  be  opened  at 
Kyoto  and  Osaka. 

The  Mogi  Mining  Department  controls 
various  mines  in  which  the  house  is  interested, 
and  also  two  refineries  where  crude  copper 
and  zinc  ores  are  treated.  It  employs  a 
technical  and  clerical  staff  of  150,  not  count- 
ing the  workmen.  The  department  has  its 
own  offices  at  No.  13  Akashi-cho,  Tsukiji, 
Kyobashi-ku,  Tokyo. 

The  Mogi  Raw  Silk  Department  directs 
the  operations  of  several  factories  which  have 
an  annual  output  of  14,000  bales.  The 
factories  are  the  Sanrj-usha,  in  Okazaki, 
Mikawa    Province,    the    Asahisha,    Gumma 


iMi 


::  l^'! 


S     ISAACS   &    CO.,    YOKOHAMA:      VIEW    IN    SILK   GODOWN  —  INTERIOR   OF   CURIOS   GODOWN 
—  EXTERIOR    VIEW   OF    PREMISES 


i 

1 

!#^"   ■ 

r 

(r^i_. 

j^ 

j  ' 

-^ 

rJq 

' — ^ 

t 


^inrlfll'ii'll'il'llilhl 


tniiiliiii'llir'' 


ll'ji'i. 


MOGI    &   COMPANY,    YOKOHAMA:      VIEW    OF    THE    HANDSOME    NEW    PREMISES  —  INTERIOR    OF    THE    MOGI    BANK 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


257 


Prefecture,  and  the  Shinshosha,  in  Gifu 
Prefecture.  These  factories  employ  a  staff 
of  200  and  about  7,000  women  workers.  The 
([uality  of  the  raw  silk  is  of  the  highest  grade 
in  Japan  and  the  system  and  equipment  are 
the  most  modem. 

The  Mogi  Dry-Goods  Department  is  an  old 
"Nozawaya,"  well  known  among  tourists 
visiting  Yokohama.  There  are  two  stores  in 
Yokohama,  and  the  employees  number  120. 
Small  as  it  may  appear,  yet  this  is  the  cradle 
business  out  of  which  Mr.  Mogi's  forefather 
started. 

The  Mogi  Commercial  and  Industrial 
Department  controls  a  vast  number  of  inter- 
ests in  which  the  house  has  direct  or  indirect 
investments. 

Naturally  to  control  such  a  widely  diversi- 
fied business,  there  must  be  a  central  direct- 
orate and  it  is  known  as  the  Mogi  Somubu, 
or  the  Mogi  General  Control  Department, 
which  undertakes  the  whole  superintendence 
and  financial  control  of  the  various  interests. 

The  head  oflfice  is  situated  at  No.  30 
Benten-dori,  Yokohama  City.  The  principal 
officers  are:  Mr.  S.  Mogi,  President;  Messrs. 


J.  Takahashi,  T.  Nagayo,  and  S.  Yamaguchi, 
Directors.  The  various  departments  of  the 
Mogi  business  employ  all  together  staffs  of 
about  one  thousand. 

DAVIS,  SUMMERS  &  CO.,  YOKOHAMA 
The  business  of  this  well  known  firm  was 
originall}'  founded  in  Kob6  in  igi2,  under  the 
name  of  Summers  &  Co.,  and  became  known 
under  its  present  name  in  the  following  year, 
when  the  head  office  was  established  in 
Yokohama.  From  the  point  of  view  of 
business  experience  on  the  part  of  its  founders 
and  partners,  it  would  have  been  indeed 
surprising  had  not  success  been  almost 
immediately  achieved  by  the  firm.  The 
partners  are  Messrs.  E.  C.  Davis,  E.  H. 
Summers,  and  H.  V.  Summers.  Mr.  Davis 
had  been  Managing  Director  of  Samuel 
Samuel  &  Co.,  Ltd.,  from  1902  to  1912,  having 
been  with  that  company  for  seventeen  years 
from  the  time  he  first  entered  its  service  in 
London.  Mr.  H.  V.  Summers  had  also  been 
with  the  same  company  for  fifteen  years  as 
Chief  Shipping  Clerk,  working  under  the 
direction   of   Mr.   Davis.     His  brother,   Mr. 


E.  H.  Summers,  had  been  manager  for  various 
firms  in  Kob6  for  eighteen  years,  up  to  the 
time  he  left  Messrs.  A.  Cameron  &  Co.  to 
enter  business  on  his  own  account  with  the 
firm  of  Summers  &  Co.  Quite  apart  from  the 
lengthy  experience  and  wide  knowledge  of 
conditions  in  Japan  which  these  records  of 
business  suggest,  the  Messrs.  Summers  are 
fluent  speakers  of  Japanese,  and  have  estab- 
lished the  most  intimate  relations  with 
Japanese  business  men,  especially  in  shipping 
circles. 

The  development  of  the  operations  of 
Davis,  Summers  &  Co.  has  been  very  rapid, 
and  in  several  directions  the  firm  is  to-day 
doing  a  larger  business  than  any  other  foreign 
concern.  This  is  particularly  so  in  ship 
chartering,  which  is  imder  the  management 
of  Mr.  H.  V.  Summers.  Details  of  the  firm's 
operations  in  this  department  of  commerce 
will  be  found  in  the  notice  of  Davis,  Summers 
&  Co.,  Kobe  Branch,  which  follows.  The 
Yokohama  office  is  mainly  concerned  w-ith 
the  export  trade.  Davis,  Summers  &  Co. 
deal  only  in  export  lines.  Apart  from  a  wide 
range  of  general  merchandise,  manufactured 


&i 


DAVIS,    SUMMERS   &    CO.,    YOKOHAMA:      INTERIOR   OF    ONE   OF    THE    GODOWNS THE   OFFICE    PREMISES 


258 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


THE    MUNICIPAL    OFFICES,    YOKOHAMA 


goods  of  all  kinds,  curios,  silks,  etc.,  the  firm 
has  made  a  speciality  of  Japanese  wallpaper, 
of  which  they  export  possibly  ninety  per  cent 
of  the  entire  shipments  from  Japan.  They 
also  handle  grass  cloth,  and  are  the  only 
exporters  of  Orientine,"  which  is  a  highly 
refined  Fuller's  earth  used  for  cleansing  edible 
oils.  This  particular  product  of  Japan  has 
experienced  a  phenomenal  rise  in  values. 
At  one  time  it  was  sold  at  £  5  per  ton,  but 
recent  quotations  have  gone  over  £  30  per  ton. 
The  firm  manufactiu'es  shirts,  pyjamas, 
underware,  robes,  garments,  etc.  These  and 
other  lines  mentioned  are  shipped  mainly  to 
the  United  States,  though  some  portion  goes 
to  Canada  and  elsewhere.  The  Yokohama 
head  office  and  the  extensive  godowns  of  the 
firm  are  situated  at  No.  208  Yamashita-cho. 
Mr.  Davis,  who  has  charge  of  the  firm's 
interests  at  Yokohama,  has  spent  twenty-one 
years  in  Japan,  and  is  a  prominent  rtiember  of 
the  foreign  community,  being  associated  with 
a  number  of  foreign  sporting  and  semi-public 
bodies.  He  is  Chairman  of  the  Executive 
Committee  of  the  Nippon  Race  Clul^,  and  has 
been  associated  with  the  sport  of  horse-racing 
for  twenty  years  or  more.  He  was  for  six 
years  President  of  the  Amateur  Dramatic 
Club,  Chairman  of  the  Foreign  Board  of 
Trade  for  two  years,  and  was  also,  for  a  time, 
Consul  for  Peru. 

DAVIS,  SUMMERS  &  CO.,  KOBE 
The  Kob6  branch  of  Messrs.  Davis, 
Summers  &  Co.  was  first  estabUshed  in  1912 
and  was  for  some  time  the  head  office  of  the 
firm,  until  the  extension  of  the  business  to 
Yokohama.  Messrs.  E.  H.  and  H.  V.  Sum- 
mers are  the    resident    partners,   and    have 


under  their  direction  the  shipping  inter- 
ests of  the  firm,  and  the  handling  of  special 
lines  for  which  Kob6  is  noted.  The  firm 
does  an  extensive  export  business  in  all 
classes  of  goods,  their  specialties  being: 
floor  coverings,  comprising  cotton  rugs  and 
carpets,  grass  mats  and  carpets,  jute  rugs, 
mattings,  woollen  rugs  and  similar  articles; 
cotton  and  silk  goods  of  all  kinds;  enamel 
ware;  glassware;  chip,  hemp,  and  straw 
braids;  glass  bottles:  shell,  bone,  and  metal 
buttons;  all  classes  of  agricultural  pro- 
ducts, cereals  and  manufactures,  chemicals, 
matches,  etc. 

The  Shipping  Department,  under  the  direc- 
tion of  Mr.  H.  V.  Summers,  has  been  a 
remarkably  successful  feature  of  the  business, 
largely  owing  to  the  close  relations  established 
with  Japanese  concerns.  The  firm  acts  as 
brokers  for  the  sale  and  charter  of  steamers. 
A  large  number  of  Japanese  ships  have  been 
sold  to  the  Allied  Governments  and  private 
companies,  and  many  charters  have  been 
arranged,  not  only  with  foreigners,  but 
with  the  Japanese  people.  Messrs.  Davis, 
Summers  &  Co.  represent  the  Kishimoto 
Kisen  Kaisha  of  Osaka  as  Foreign  Agents. 
They  are  also  agents  for  the  London  & 
Lancashire  Fire  Insurance  Co.  and  the 
Scottish  Union  and  National  Insurance  Co. 
of  London  and  Edinburgh.  The  Kobe 
office  and  godowns  are  at  No.  62  Naniwa- 
machi.  Mr.  H.  V.  Summers  is  the  Consul 
for  Sweden  at  Kobe. 

ABE    KOBEI    COMPANY 
The  enterprises  in  which  Mr.  Kobei  Abe 
and  his  family  connections  are  interested  are 
so  numerous,   so  varied,  and  so  important. 


that  every  justification  exists  for  describing 
Mr.  Abe  as  the  foremost  business  man  in  the 
Yokohama  district,  and  his  firm  as  one  of 
the  most  influential  in  the  whole  of  Japan. 
Mr.  Abe  has  been  closely  associated  with 
trade  and  commerce  in  Yokohama  since  he 
started  his  business  in  1873.  In  those  early 
days  he  established  a  reputation  for  progress 
and  enterprise,  and  with  the  lapse  of  time 
the  firm  has  grown  out  of  all  recognition. 

It  is  not  easy  to  describe  the  entire  business 
operations  of  the  Abe  Kobei  Company, 
because  they  embrace  so  many  distinct 
branches  of  trade,  industry,  and  commerce. 
From  the  head  office  at  Yokohama  the  firm 
handles  a  general  import  and  export  business, 
covering  practically  every  line.  The  princi- 
pal items  of  trade  are  sugar,  flour,  wheat, 
bran,  rice,  rice  bran,  beans,  peas,  hemp, 
cotton,  cotton  yam,  superphosphates,  sulph- 
ate of  ammonia,  sulphuric  ash,  jute,  Hessian 
cloth,  gunny  bags,  tallow,  bean  cake,  hemp 
seed,  rape  seed  and  rape  seed  cake,  ground 
nuts  cake  and  every  kind  of  fertilizer,  rubber 
goods,  wire  rope,  electric  apparatus  and 
machinery.  Branches  of  the  business  are 
established  at  Tokyo,  Osaka,  Nagoya,  Kob^, 
Shimonoseki,  Nagasaki,  Naha,  Taichu,  Takao, 
Shanghai,  Tientsin,  Hankow,  Tsingtau,  Dai- 
ren,  Tsinan,  Shashi,  Manila,  Calcutta,  and 
New  York,  with  agencies  and  connections 
all  over  the  world.  The  trade  mark  of 
"ABK"  in  a  diamond  is  as  well  known 
abroad  as  the  firm's  trade  mark  for  Japan 
is  famous  throughout  the  Empire. 

Mr.  Abe  has  adopted  the  happy  idea  of 
making  his  most  trusted  employees  co- 
partners with  him  in  the  business.  The 
manager  of  each  branch  office  is 'appointed 
with  his  sons,  adopted  sons,  or  grandsons, 
as  partners,  so  that  the  business  is  being 
carried  on  most  faithfully  and  energetically 
with  family  ties  binding  all  the  principals  in 
a  common  interest.  The  total  number  of 
employees  in  the  head  office  and  all  branches 
is  760,  so  it  may  be  seen  how  substantially 
the  firm's  operations  utilise  labour.  The 
firm  is  the  selling  agent  for  many  important 
manufacturing  companies,  handling  the  entire 
output  of  certain  factories,  and  transacting 
a  volume  of  general  business  of  an  immense 
annual  value.  The  General  Manager  is 
Mr.  Y.  Aotani. 

What  services  Mr.  Abe  has  rendered  to 
the  development  of  the  commerce  of  Japan 
may  be  seen  from  the  statement  of  his  main 
activities,  outside  the  direction  of  his  own 
private  business.  His  firm  stands  third 
among  the  many  great  and  famous  houses 
of  Japan,  as  a  supporter  of  other  enterprises. 
Abe  Kobei  Company  are  large  shareholders 
in  different  concerns,  and  in  this  respect 
they    rank    first    in    Kanagawa    Prefecture, 


m 


Ml 


THE  OSAKA  BRANCH  OF  ABE  KOBEI  —  THE  HEAD  OFFICE  AT  YOKOHAMA 


260 


P  R  E  S  E  N  T  -  D  A  Y        IMPRESSIONS        OF        JAPAN 


which  embraces  the  great  trading  centre  of 
Yokohama.  Mr.  Abe  personally  is  con- 
nected with  the  Second  Bank,  Ltd.,  the 
Yokohama  Fertilizer  Manufacturing  Co., 
Ltd.,  the  Land  and  Sea  Enterprise  Co.,  Ltd., 
of  Taiwan,  the  Iwaki  Cement  Co.,  Ltd.,  the 
Yensuiko  Sugar  and  Development  Co.,  Ltd., 
Japan  and  China  Spinning  Co.,  Ltd.,  the 
Japan  Flour  Milling  Co.,  Ltd.,  Japan-Taiwan 
Tea  Co.,  Ltd.,  Japan  Steel  Pipe  Co.,  Ltd., 
Tsurumi  Land  Co.,  Ltd.,  Daian  Life  Insur- 
ance Co.,  Ltd.,  Tainan  Sugar  Manufacturing 
Co.,  Ltd.,  Manchuria  Flour  Milling  Co., 
Ltd.,  Omura-wan  Pearl  Co.,  Ltd.,  Oki-Dai 
Development  and  Sugar  Co.,  Ltd.,  Japan 
Crystal  Sugar  Co.,  Ltd.,  Kagi  Electric  Light 
Co.,  Ltd.,  Imperial  Sugar  Manufacturing 
Co.,  Ltd.,  and  the  Japan  Delicious  Fermen- 
tation Co.,  Ltd. 

Naturally  such  a  successful  business 
career  as  Mr.  Abe  has  had  has  made  him  a 
w-ealthy  man,  but  it  is  claimed  that  he  is  a 
liberal  investor  and  is  always  ready  to  sup- 
port any  new  enterprise  that  will  add  to  the 
wealth  of  Japan.  He  is  the  largest  tax- 
payer in  Kanagawa  Prefecture.  Mr.  Abe 
has  held  a  number  of  public  and  semi-public 
positions.  He  is  a  member  of  the  Standing 
Committee  of  the  Yokohama  Chamber  of 
Commerce,  and  has  been  President  of  the 
Sugar  Trading  Association  since  it  was 
established  in   1874. 

SUZUKI    &    CO. 
One  of  the  largest  commercial  houses  in 
Japan  is  Suzuki  &  Co.,  a  firm  that  is  known 
all  over  the  world,  through  its  widely  scat- 
tered branch  offices,  and  the  great  extent  of 
its  foreign  trade.     The  firm  is  a  remarkably 
well    organised    concern,    and    through    its 
different   departments   it   transacts  business 
in  practically  every  line  of  trade  and  com- 
merce, imports  and  exports  taking  a  foremost 
place,  while  such  enterprises  as  camphor  and 
menthol  refineries,  rice  mills,  chemical  works, 
coal  mines,  and  distilleries  are  also  conducted. 
Messrs.  Suzuki  &  Co.  are  the  managers  for 
a  number  of  industrial   concerns,   and  also 
act  as  selling  agents  for  many  others,   the 
full  list  of  these  agencies  being  given  in  the 
Kob6     section     of     this     publication.     (See 
page  661.)   Branches  are  established  through- 
out Japan,  and  one  of  the  most  important 
is  at  No.  73  Hon-cho,  Gochorne,  Yokohama. 
At  the  Yokohama  branch  the  firm  handles 
a    large    variety    of    imports    and    exports, 
particularly  those  which  are  germane  to  the 
port  and   district.     Imports   comprise   such 
lines   as    sugar,    rice,    wheat,    flour,    cotton, 
wool,  fertilizers,  iron,  steel  and  shipbuilding 
materials,   machinery,   metals,   ores,   timber, 
chemicals,   etc.     The   principal    exports  are 
brown  and  polished  rice,  beans,  peas,   and 


other  agricultural  produce,  potato  starch, 
vegetable  wax,  isinglass,  rape  and  peanut  oil, 
bean  oil,  copper,  antimony  and  other  metals, 
suljihur,  superphosphates,  cement  and  other 
Jai)anese  products  and  manufactures.  An  ex- 
tensive business  is  transacted  and  the  branch 
worthily  maintains  the  high  reputation  which 
Messrs.  Suzuki  &  Co.  have  established. 

SIIIB.\K.\WA  &  CO. 
This  firm  has  been  identified  with  the  im- 
port and  export  trade  of  Japan  from  the  very 
earliest  days  of  the  opening  of  the  ports  to 
foreign  trade,  the  business  originally  having 
been  established  by  the  late  Mr.  Shibakawa 
as  far  back  as  1866.  From  its  inception 
the  business  was  prosperous  and  many 
important  connections  were  formed  in 
foreign  countries.  A  reorganisation  took 
place  in  1903  when  the  business  was  turned 
into  a  limited  partnership,  with  the  head 
office  at  No.  10,  Koraibashi,  3-chome,  Osaka. 
From  that  stage  the  development  has  been 
very  rapid,  branch  after  branch  being  inaug- 
urated to  cope  with  the  growing  business. 
In  1905  a  branch  office  was  opened  at  Tokyo, 
and  this  was  followed  by  branches  at  Kobe 
and  Yokohama.  So  far  as  foreign  business 
is  concerned  the  firm  opened  a  branch  office 
at  Hamburg,  Germany,  in  191 1,  but  on  the 
outbreak  of  the  war  this  was  transferred  to 
London,  the  office  there  being  located  at 
No.  no,  FenchuTch  Street,  from  where  all 
the  business  in  the  United  Kingdom  and  on 
the  Continent  is  transacted. 

As  exporters,  Messrs.  Shibakawa  and  Co. 
are    principally    interested    in    woollen    and 


cotton  goods,  linen  goods,  habutai  and  other 
silk  goods,  hosierj',  yams,  oils,  buttons, 
minerals,  agricultural  and  marine  products, 
as  well  as  all  descriptions  of  manufactured 
articles,  curios,  etc.  The  company  has  very 
close  connections  with  many  of  the  leading 
cotton  and  woollen  factories  in  Japan,  such 
as  the  Osaka  Woollen  Manufacturing  Co., 
the  Nippon  Woollen  Manufacturing  Co.,  the 
Tokyo  Woollen  Manufacturing  Co.,  Tokyo 
Woollen  Cloth  Manufacturing  Co.,  the 
Tokyo  Weaving  Co.,  the  Imperial  Hemp 
Manufacturing  Co.,  the  Nippon  Worsted 
Spinning  Co.  and  many  others.  Imported 
lines  handled  in  large  quantities  by  Shi- 
bakawa &  Co.  comprise  woollen  and  cotton 
goods,  yams,  wool  tops,  metals,  paper, 
paper  pulp,  chemicals,  drugs,  and  machinery. 
The  bulk  of  the  export  business  is  transacted 
from  the  Yokohama  and  Kobe  offices,  while 
the  Osaka  office  looks  after  imports.  The 
Yokohama  branch  is  located  at  No.  202 
Yamashita-cho,  and  is  under  the  manage- 
ment of  Mr.  T.  Tono.  Mr.  Eisuke  Shi- 
bakawa  is   the   President   of   the   company. 

THE  YOKOHAMA  NURSERY  COMPANY, 
LI.MITED 
A  NEVER-F.\iLiNG  souTCc  of  delight  to  the 
visitor  to  Japan  who  is  also  a  lover  of  Nature, 
is  the  national  passion  for  trees,  shrubs,  and 
flowers,  and  the  joy  of  cultivating  them. 
The  Japanese  are  unquestionably  wonder- 
ful gardeners,  and  there  is  hardly  a  visitor 
who  does  not  wish  to  take  away  with  him 
some  specimens  of  the  flora  of  the  country. 
This    desire    has    been    recognised    by    the 


YOKOHAMA   BRANCH    OFFICE   OF    SUZUKI    &   CO. 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


261 


Yokohama  Nursery  Company,  Limited, 
which  has  made  it  iiossiblc  and  practicable 
for  all  classes  of  plants  and  shrubs  and  the 
famous  dwarf  trees  of  Jajjan  to  be  exported 
to  all  parts  of  the  world.  It  is  almost  unnec- 
essary to  say  that  the  fame  of  this  enterprise 
has  spread  abroad  wherever  the  products  of 
its  gardens  and  nurseries  have  been  exported, 
and  the  fact  that  so  many  specimens  of 
Japanese  floriculture  and  arboriculture  are 
to  be  found  in  Europe  and  America,  as  well 
as  in  Australia,  is  largely  due  to  the  fact  that 
the  export  of  such  has  been  turned  into  almost 
a  science  by  the  Yokohama  Nursery  Com- 
pany, Limited.  The  company  is  the  oldest 
and  largest  organisation  of  its  kind  in  the 
East.  The  original  founders  were  the  late 
Messrs.  U.  Suzuki,  M.  Yamaguchi,  A.  lijima, 
and  S.  Suda,  of  the  former  Gardeners'  Asso- 
ciation, which  was  reorganised  into  a  limited 
liability  company  and  incorporated  in  1890 
under  the  present  title.  The  existing  Board 
of  Directors  comprises  Messrs.  H.  Suzuki, 
President:  S.  Tokuda,  G.  Tanabe,  R. 
Yamaguchi,  and  S.  lida.  Manager.  All 
these  gentlemen  are  well  known  in  flori- 
cultural  circles  throughout  Japan,  and 
their  expert  knowledge  of  conditions  abroad, 
and  of  the  requirements  for  the  export 
of  the  choicest  specimens  of  Japanese 
plants,  seeds,  bulbs,  etc.,  is  recognised 
by  scientific  gardeners  all  over  the  world. 
The  company  has  made  a  specialty  of 
the  business.  It  is  fully  equipped  for 
collecting  varied  examples  of  horticultural 
and  agricultural  products  from  extensive 
territories  of  wide  latitudinal  range,  and 
topographical    and    climatic    conditions.     A 


YOKOHAMA    PREMISES   OF    SHIBAKAVVA    &    CO. 


lengthy  experience,  and  continued  corre- 
spondence with  foreign  customers,  have  made 
the  company  fully  acquainted  with  all  the 
intricacies  of  shipment  and  seasons  when 
acclimatisation  can  be  expected  to  take 
place  with  the  best  results.  From  its  exten- 
sive nurseries  and  beautiful  gardens,  to  which 
visitors  to  Japan  are  always  cordially  invited, 
the  company  annually  despatches  huge 
numbers  of  plants,  seeds,  and  shrubs,  the 
packing  and  shipment  being  conducted 
under  the  most  approved  methods.  Apart 
from  the  export  of  the  items  mentioned  the 
company   carries   on   the   business   of   land- 


WINDING    HEMP    BRAID   INTO    BUNDLES   FOR    EXPORT 


scape  garden  architects;  florists  and  general 
horticulturists;  growers,  exporters,  and  im- 
porters of  lily  bulbs,  garden,  forest,  and 
agricultural  seeds,  nursery  stocks,  orchids, 
porcelain  pots,  bamboo  stakes,  stone  lanterns, 
horticultural  sundries,  botanical  drugs,  grains, 
etc.  Since  its  foundation  the  company  has 
grown  in  a  remarkable  manner,  and  is  well 
represented  abroad,  having  branch  offices 
in  the  Woolworth  Building,  New  York,  at 
Craven  House,  Kingsway,  London,  and  at 
Vladivostock.  The  Yokohama  address  is 
P.  O.  Box  No.  72.  The  main  nursery  is 
at  Nakamura,  Yokohama.  Branches  are 
also  maintained  at  Otaru  and  Tokyo.  The 
experimental  nursery  ground  is  at  Nakayama, 
near  Kanagawa,  and  the  iris  and  peony 
garden  is  at  Kamata,  half-way  between 
Yokohama  and  Tokyo.  It  is  interesting  to 
note  that  the  company  has  done  a  great 
service  to  Japan  by  advertising  the  products 
of  the  land  in  foreign  countries.  It  is  always 
well  represented  at  international  expositions 
and  has  received,  among  other  honours,  a 
diploma  from  the  Japan-British  Exposition 
of  London,  1910;  silver  cups  from  the 
Royal  Horticultural  Society,  London,  1912, 
and  grand  prize,  diploma  of  honour,  six 
gold  medals,  and  five  silver  medals  from  the 
Panama-Pacific  Exposition,  191 5.  A  valu- 
able and  highly  interesting  catalogue  is  issued 
every  year,  which  contains  a  mass  of  useful 
information  regarding  Japanese  plants  and 
flowers,  and  also  embodies  a  simple  code 
for  telegraphic  orders.  This  catalogue  is 
widely  distributed  abroad  and  may  be  had 
on  application.  The  whole  enterprise  is  a 
tribute  to  Japanese  business  methods,  and 
of  intense  interest  to  foreigners. 


18 


YOKOHAMA   NURSERY   COMPANY,    LTD.:      SCENE    IN   THE    PACKING   DEPARTMENT   SHOWING   THE    GRADING   OF   LILY    BULBS — PLANTATION 

OF   LILIUM    SPECIOSUM    RUBRAM  —  IRIS   GARDEN    AT   KAMATA DWARF    PINE   TREE — P.EONIA    MOUTAN SPECIMEN 

DWARF    WISTARIA  TREE  —  AN    ARBOUR   IN   THE   GARDEN THE   MAIN   OFFICE    IN    YOKOHAMA 


PRESENT-DAY        IxMPRESSIONS        OF        JAPAN 


263 


JAPAN  IMPORT  AND  EXPORT  COMMISSION 
COMPANY 
This  business  was  established  in  Japan 
some  twenty-five  years  ago  by  Mr.  B. 
Guggenheim  of  New  Yorlv.  It  comprises 
a  general  import  and  export  agency,  business 
being  transacted  directly,  or  for  others  on 
commission.  The  (irm  also  manufactures 
several  lines,  notably  brushes,  in  Osaka,  and 
porcelains,  at  Nagoya.  The  works  at  the 
latter  city  have  a  large  output  of  the  highest 
class  of  porcelain  ware.  Main  lines  of  export 
arc  manufactured  silks,  toys,  brushes,  porce- 
lain and  fancy  goods,  as  well  as  general 
produce  and  manufactures.     The  head  office 


is  at  No.  63,  Yokohama,  where  there  are  also 
godowns  for  the  classification,  packing,  and 
shipping  of  all  classes  of  exports.  The  office 
and  works  at  Nagoya  cover  2,000  Isttbo. 
There  is  a  branch  at  Koh6.  The  partners 
of  the  firm  are  Messrs.  B.  Guggenheim  of 
New  York,  and  F.  P.  Solomon,  resident  in 
Japan,  both  of  whom  have  had  a  lengthy 
and  valuable  experience  of  the  requirements 
of  trade  between  Japan  and  foreign  countries. 

INTERNATIONAL   TRADING    CORPORA- 
TION,   LIMITED 

A  VIGOUROUS  development  has  been  witness 
of  the  business  activities  of  the  International 


YOKOHAMA    PREMISES   OF    THE   JAPAN   IMPORT    ANO    E.KPORT    COMMISSION   COMPANY 


Trading  Corporation,  Ltd.,  although  this 
company  only  came  into  existence  on  July  i , 
1917.  From  the  outset  of  its  operations  the 
company  adopted  the  wise  policy  of  being 
strongly  represented  in  every  important 
centre  of  foreign  trade,  and  to  this  end 
branches  were  established  at  KobiS,  Yoko- 
hama, and  Tokyo,  the  head  oflice  being 
located  in  Osaka.  At  each  of  these  respec- 
tive centres  the  International  Trading  Corpo- 
ration, Ltd.,  has  concentrated  on  the  special 
lines  for  which  that  district  is  noted.  At 
the  Yokohama  Branch,  which  is  located  at 
No.  225  Yamashita-cho,  the  principal  lines 
of  export  are  raw  silk,  silk  piece  goods, 
drawn  thread  work,  embroideries  and  similar 
textile  products,  chemicals  and  drugs,  hemp 
braids,  lumber,  metal  goods  of  all  kinds, 
paper,  produce,  sulphur,  superphosphates, 
tinned  goods,  wires  and  cables,  a  large  trade 
being  done  with  the  United  States,  Canada, 
the  South  Seas,  China,  and  India.  In 
imports  the  company  handles  such  lines  as 
chemicals,  drugs,  dyes  and  colours,  lumber, 
machinery  and  tools,  motor  cars,  metals  and 
metal  goods  of  all  descriptions,  nitrate  of 
soda  and  other  fertilizers,  paper  mill  supplies, 
paper  and  pulp,  wool,  cotton,  and  linen  goods. 
The  capital  of  the  company  is  Yen  2,000,- 
000.  Mr.  Matsao  Kita  is  the  President  and 
Mr.  Kintaro  Sugiyama  is  the  Managing 
Director. 

G.    KUMAZAWA    &    CO. 

From  the  priesthood  to  be  proprietor  of  one 
of  the  most  successful  businesses  in  Japan,  is 
the  story  of  Mr.  G.  Kumazawa,  principal  of 
the  well-known  firm  which  bears  his  name. 
The  history  of  Messrs.  G.  Kumazawa  &  Co.  is 
indeed  interesting.  The  founder  of  the  busi- 
ness was  originally  a  priest  in  the  Zen  sect  of 
Buddhism,  a  sect  noted  for  the  high  degree  of 
culture  and  the  virtues  of  its  followers.  Mr. 
Kumazawa  was  not  yet  twenty  years  of  age 
when  lie  took  a  keen  interest  in  the  efforts 
being  made  to  establish  Japan's  trade  with 
foreign  countries.  This  was  then  in  its 
infancy  and  Mr.  Kumazawa,  regretting  the 
slow  development,  decided  to  give  up  the 
priesthood  and  devote  himself  to  the  task  of 
promoting  foreign  trade.  He  gave  the  matter 
minute  and  thorough  investigation.  Then 
getting  together  all  the  capital  he  could,  which 
was  hardly  Yen  1,000,  he  launched  out  in 
business  as  an  importer  and  exporter,  making 
Yokohama  his  headquarters.  This  was  in 
the  year  1886.  At  that  time  trade  with 
Russia  was  very  small,  compared  with  the 
trade  between  Japan  and  Great  Britain  and 
the  United  States.  Mr.  Kumazawa  saw  an 
opportunity  in  this  direction,  and  established 
close  relations  with  merchants  in  Russia. 
The  business  was  developed  very  well,  when 


264 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


disaster  came  in  the  form  of  the  Russo- 
Jajjanesc  War.  A  large  number  of  merchants 
then  went  bankrupt,  anil  included  among  them 
was  Mr.  Kumazawa,  who  was  rendered  penni- 
less. However,  he  started  again  and  by 
honesty  and  soimd  methods  in  his  business 
management  he  soon  had  laid  the  foundations 
of  permanent  prosperity.  The  opening  of 
the  Kobe  branch  led  to  a  strong  trade  with 
China  and  the  South  Sea  Islands,  and  the 
Russian  business  was  brought  up  to  its 
present  vigour  by  the  branches  at  Harbin 
and  Moscow.  More  recently,  Mr.  Kumazawa 
despatched  his  representatives  to  Lima,  Peru, 
to  open  up  trade  with  South  America  gener- 
ally, and  a  partnership  was  entered  into  with 
a  large  cotton  cloth  dealer  in  New  York,  a 
movement  that  bids  fair  to  make  Mr.  Kuma- 
zawa a  pioniinent  figure  in  that  trade. 

The  main  business  of  Messrs.  G.  Kumazawa 
&  Co.  is  export  and  import  of  different  lines 
connected  with  the  textile  industries  gener- 
ally. The  firm  is  engaged  in  the  manufacture 
and  sale  of  silk  and  cotton  piece  goods, 
several  factories  being  controlled  for  this 
purpose.     In    addition    the    firm    handles    a 


large  range  of  general  manufactures  and 
]5roducts,  the  principal  exports  being  silk 
fabrics,  cotton  fabrics,  silk  and  cotton  manu- 
factures, curios  and  other  articles,  which  are 
shipped  to  Russia,  England,  North  and  South 
America,  Australia,  the  South  Sea  Islands, 
India,  and  China.  Various  kinds  of  raw 
materials  are  imported  from  Russia  and 
America.  Messrs.  G.  Kumazawa  &  Co.  have 
extensive  offices  and  godowns  at  273  Yama- 
shita-cho,  Yokohama.  The  offices  occupy  a 
two-story  brick  building  covering  an  area  of 
96  tsiibo,  while  the  godowns  are  four-storied 
brick  premises  of  modern  construction  with 
an  area  of  634  Isubo.  Branches  are  estab- 
lished at  Kob6,  Harbin,  and  Moscow.  There 
are  143  employees,  and  the  salaries  and  wages 
total  about  175,000  yen  per  annum.  Mr. 
Kumazawa  is  the  principal  of  the  business, 
and  he  is  fortunate  in  having  under  his 
direction  a  highly  capable  and  loyal  staff. 
The  relation  between  the  proprietor  and  staff 
is  that  of  a  father  and  sons,  and  a  keen  esprit 
de  corps  prevails  throughout  the  personnel. 
From  the  original  Yen  i  ,000,  with  which  this 
important  business  was  founded,  the  capital 


has  now  grown  to  Yen  1,000,000,  and  some 
idea  of  the  volume  of  business  transacted  may 
be  gained  from  the  statement  that  the  value 
of  the  trade  done  reaches  over  Yen  10,000,000 
per  annum. 

AMERIC.\N  EXPRESS  COMl'.XNV 
I.N  the  course  of  the  consistent  development 
and  expansion  of  its  foreign  service,  the 
American  Express  Company  has  recently 
established  a  branch  in  Yokohama  at  75-A, 
Yamashita-cho  (Main  Street).  The  average 
American  is  familiar  with  this  company  in 
connection  with  the  express  business  which  it 
operates  in  the  United  States  and  Canada, 
where  its  service  extends  over  57,000  miles  of 
railways,  with  over  10,000  agencies  in  the 
United  States  and  Canada.  In  the  foreign 
fields  the  company  maintains  some  tw-enty- 
three  offices  in  Europe,  and  is  established  in 
Buenos  Ayres,  Manila,  and  Hong  Kong,  and 
will  shortly  be  at  Shanghai.  These  offices  are 
established  with  salaried  employees  engaged 
exclusively  in  the  company's  service,  trans- 
acting its  business  under  uniform  and 
systematic    methods    attained    after    many 


INTERN ATION.\L    TR.^DING   CORPOR.\TION,    LTD.:       li.\LIXG   GOODS    IX    THE    SILK-SHIPPING   GODOWX  — 
YOKOHAM.A    OFFICES   AND   GODOWNS  —  INTERIOR    OF    SILK    GODOWN 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


265 


years  of  successful  experience.  They  act  as 
General  Forwarding  Agents  for  both  small 
and  heavy  shipments,  in  connection  with 
express  or  freight  service  to  and  from  various 
parts  of  the  world,  and  act  as  General  Foreign 
Agents  of  the  Now  York  Central  Lines  and 
Merchants  Despatch  for  freight  traffic. 

In  addition,  the  company  carries  on  the 
various  operations  connected  with  foreign 
exchange,  such  as  arranging  for  commercial 
credits,  sale  and  purchase  of  drafts,  cheques, 
T/Ts,  etc.  The  well-known  Trav'ellers' 
Cheque,  originated  by  the  American  Express 
Co.,  is  quite  familiar  to  travellers  as  a  safe 
and  convenient  means  of  carrying  funds  in 
negotiable  form  in  all  countries. 

THE  SHLMIDZU  TRADING  CO. 
Mk.  T.  S.  Shimidzu  has  built  up  an  exten- 
sive import  and  export  trade  within  the 
past  ten  or  eleven  years.  He  started  in 
business  on  his  own  account  in  1906  with 
a  small  capital  of  Yen  20,000,  and  by  close 
attention  to  the  requirements  of  foreign 
trade  formed  valuable  connections  abroad, 
and  increased  his  turnover  very  largely, 
finally  forming  his  business  into  the  Shimidzu 
Trading  Co.,  with  the  present  capital  of 
Yen  50,000.     The   firm   has  its  head  office 


and  godowns  at  No.  24-E,  Yamashita-cho, 
Yokohama,  and  there  is  a  branch  at  Sakaye- 
Machi,  3-chome,  Kob^.  The  buildings  are 
of  stone  and  are  modern  in  construction. 
Among  the  principal  imports  handled  by 
the  Shimidzu  Trading  Co.  are  iron  and 
steel,  wool  tops,  woollen  cloth,  machinery, 
and  chemicals.  These  lines  are  imported 
mainly  from  Great  Britain  and  the  United 
States.  As  exporters,  the  Shimidzu  Trad- 
ing Co.  handles  beans,  peas,  rice,  dried  pro- 
visions, natural  products,  electrical  goods, 
stationery,  woollen  yarns  and  cloth,  silk 
and  silk  goods,  toys,  cotton  yams,  glassware, 
rubber  goods,  hosiery,  leather  goods,  shoe 
laces,  cotton  goods,  chemicals,  and  almost 
all  lines  of  merchandise  and  manufactured 
articles  and  produce  of  Japan.  An  exten- 
sive trade  is  now  being  done  with  the  United 
States,  Great  Britain,  India,  France,  Russia, 
Egypt,  South  Africa,  Italy,  Canada,  and 
elsewhere.  Messrs.  Hongo  &  Co.,  Nassau 
Street,  New  York,  are  the  agents  in  the 
United  States  for  the  Shimidzu  Trading  Co. 

SOUTHERN    PACIFIC    TRADING     CO., 
LIMITED 

A  RAPID  development  has  taken  place  in 
the    export   trade   between    Japan    and    the 


South  Seas,  particularly  since  the  outbreak 
of  the  war.  Much  of  this  expansion  is  due 
to  the  activities  of  such  companies  as  the 
Southern  Pacific  Trading  Co.,  Ltd.,  which 
was  founded  some  time  ago  by  a  number 
of  prominent  Yokohama  business  men, 
included  among  whom  were  Messrs.  S.  Koro, 
H.  Ogawa,  W.  Watanabe,  R.  Okano,  N. 
Yoshinaga,  M.  Mayeda,  and  A.  Matsuoka. 
The  capital  of  this  company  is  Yen  1,000,- 
000,  and  the  head  office  is  at  No.  22 
Honcho,  Nichome,  Yokohama. 

The  Southern  Pacific  Trading  Co.,  Ltd., 
has  its  own  vessels,  and  is  now  importing 
large  quantities  of  various  raw  products, 
principal  among  which  is  copra,  from  the 
many  islands  in  the  Pacific.  In  return,  the 
company  exports  a  full  line  of  general  mer- 
chandise and  Japanese  specialties,  the  largest 
trade  being  done  in  provisions,  cloth,  earthen- 
ware, and  beer.  Another  department  is  the 
agency  for  shipping  and  freight  between 
Japan  and  the  islands.  Branches  have  been 
established  at  Tokyo,  Suva  (Fiji  Islands), 
Menado  (in  the  Celebes),  and  Petta,  at 
Sangir  Island. 

The  President  of  the  Southern  Pacific 
Trading  Co.,  Ltd.,  is  Mr.  S.  Koro.  The 
Managing   Director  is   Mr.   H.   Ogawa,   and 


HEAD   OFFICE    AND   GODOWNS   OF    C.    KU.MAZAWA    S:   CO. 


M.    DM)   &    CO.,    LTD.:      PREP.\RING   GOODS   FOR   EXPORT — VIEW    IN    THE    SILK    DEPARTMENT  —  BALING    GOODS   FOR 
EXPORT — THE    PREMISES   OCCUPIED    BY    THE   GENERAL   TRADING    DEPARTMENT 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSI  0_N  S   OF   JAPAN 


267 


the  other  Directors  are  Messrs.  W.  Watan- 
abe,   R.   Okano,   and   N.   Yoshinaga. 

ADET,  CAMPREDON  &  CO. 
Thk  development  of  the  foreign  wine  and 
spirit  trade  in  Japan  is  not  the  least  of  the 
changes  which  have  taken  place  in  this  coun- 
try which  is  so  quick  to  adjust  its  life  to  out- 
side influences.  In  other  sections  of  this 
work  we  have  referred  to  the  growth  of  the 
great  brewing  interests,  and  the  acquisition 
of. a  taste  for  the  best  foreign  wines  and 
spirits  is  a  further  indication  of  the  rapidity 
with  which  the  Japanese  have  assimilated 
Western  ideas  and  manners,  even  in  their 
private  lives.  Messrs.  Adet,  Campredon  & 
Co.  are  among  the  most  widely  known,  and 
oldest  of  the  foreign  wine  and  spirit  mer- 
chants, transacting  an  ever-increasing  volume 
of  trade,  and  enjoying  a  high  reputation  in 
the  foreign  communities,  and  among  the 
Japanese.  This  business  was  established  in 
1887  by  the  late  Messrs.  Gustave  Adet  and 
Gustave  Campredon,  under  the  firm  name 
and  style  of  Adet  &  Campredon.  They  were 
probably  the  first  to  install  proper  wine 
cellars,  and  to  establish  local  facilities  for 
the  maturing  and  bottling  of  liquors  imported 
in  bulk.  As  the  result  of  thirty  years' 
experience  in  the  local  market,  and  with  the 
advantages  which  their  enterprise  have 
given  them,  the  firm  has  established  itself 
very  strongly.  An  extensive  business  is  done 
with  Japanese  dealers,  whose  confidence 
Messrs.  Adet,  Campredon  &  Co.  enjoy. 
The  various  hotels  are  regularly  visited,  so 
that   tlic  different  brands  controlled  by  the 


firm  are  always  to  be  found  in  every  i)art  of 
Japan  and  Formosa,  as  well  as  on  the  Imperial 
Government  Railway  dining  cars.  Adjoin- 
ing the  office,  which  is  at  No.  g$,  Yamashita- 
cho,  Yokohama,  are  the  vast  cellars  and 
godowns  in  which  are  stored  many  old  and 
rare  vintages  of  wines,  etc.  The  bottling 
department  is  one  of  the  best  equipped  and 
regulated  in  Japan. 

The  name  of  the  firm  was  changed  in  1897 
to  Adet,  Campredon  &  Co.,  when  Mr.  Emile 
Adet  was  admitted  to  partnership.  The 
founders  have  died,  but  the  business  remains 
in  the  hands  of  relatives,  the  present  partners 
being  Messrs.  Charles  Henry  Moss  (Managing 
Partner)  and  M.  Campredon. 

The  firm  represents  for  Japan  the  following 
concerns:  Adet,  Seward  &  Co.,  Bordeaux 
(claret);  Associated  Vineyard  Cultivators' 
Association  (Beehive  Brandy) ;  John  Dewar  & 
Sons,  Ltd.,  Perth,  Scotland  (whisky);  P.  de 
Marcilly  Freres,  Beaune  (burgundy);  Alfred 
de  Montebello  et  Cie,  Chateau  de  Mareuil- 
sur-Ay  (champagne);  Charles  Day  &  Co., 
London  (gins);  Diez  Hermanos,  Jerez  de  la 
Frontera  (sherry) ;  Guimaraens  y  Cia, 
Oporto  and  Silva  and  Cosens  Oporto  (ports) ; 
Rutherford,  Brown  and  Miles,  Madeira 
(madeira);  W.  A.  Ross  &  Brother,  Ltd., 
Liverpool  (stout).  In  addition  to  this 
list  of  first-class  agencies,  Adet,  Campredon 
&  Co.  are  export  agents  for  the  Imperial 
Mineral  Water  Co.,  Ltd.,  of  Tokyo  and 
Osaka,  whose  aerated  waters  have  the  largest 
sale  on  the  local  market  and  an  extensive 
sale  abroad.  They  are  also  representatives 
for  Yokohama  of  the  Coniite  des  Asstireurs 


TVl'E   OF    SM.^LL    HOME    TII.E    FACTORY 


Maritimes  de  Bordeaux  (Board  of  Under- 
writers). Telegrams  should  be  addressed 
"Mossycamp"  or  "Adet,"  Yokohama,  the 
codes  used  by  the  firm  being  A.  B.  C.  4th  and 
5th  editions,  Bentley's  and  Western  Union. 

M.    ONO    &    CO.,    INCORPORATED 

Although  established  since  the  War,  M. 
Ono  &  Co.  can  not  be  regarded  as  a  new 
enterprise,  but  rather  as  ranking  with  the 
oldest  in  Yokohama,  for  there  are  few  better 
known  or  more  highly  respected  business  men 
in  Japan  than  the  President  and  founder, 
Mitsukage  Ono,  Esq.,  member  of  the  House 
of  Peers,  President  of  the  Yokohama  Fire, 
Marine,  Transit  &  Fidelity  Insurance  Co., 
Auditor  of  the  First  Fire,  Marine  &  Re-Insur- 
ance Co.,  member  of  the  Board  of  Trustee  of 
Yokohama  Commercial  School,  prominent 
Yokohama  silk  merchant,  former  president 
of  the  Yokohama  Specie  Bank,  Ltd.,  former 
president  of  Yokohama  Chamber  of  Com- 
merce, former  president  of  Silk  Association  of 
Yokohama,  and  former  Mayor  of  Yokohama. 
Mr.  M.  Ono  is  also  responsible  for  the  pro- 
motion of  the  Yokohaina  Harbour  Scheme 
recently  completed,  and  many  other  improve- 
ments which  ha\'e  benefited  the  port.  The 
principal  business  of  the  concern  is  the 
exportation  of  silk  and  it  is  because  Mr.  M. 
Ono  is  one  of  the  oldest  living  silk  merchants 
in  the  country,  commencing,  as  he  actually 
did,  as  a  wholesale  dealer  in  1883,  that  the 
concern  may  be  considered  in  the  light  of  an 
old  established  house  branching  out  into  new 
lines,  and  generally  expanding. 

Mr.  Tetsuro  Ono,  son  of  the  above  gentle- 
man, and  Managing  Director  of  this  company, 
has  had  all  the  advantages  of  a  first-class 
European  and  American  commercial  training 
and  holds  a  prominent  position  in  Japan. 
He  is  a  director  of  the  Tokyo  Silk  &  Woollen 
Milling  Co.,  Ltd.,  the  Japan  Veneer  Manu- 
facturing  Co.,    Ltd.,   and  other  enterprises. 

Connections  have  been  formed  with  the 
United  States  of  America,  Dominion  of 
Canada,  England,  France  and  other  countries 
in  Europe,  South  American  republics,  Austra- 
lia, New  Zealand,  India,  and  China,  etc.  for 
the  importation  of  iron,  steel,  hardware,  ma- 
chinery, stationery,  chemicals,  cotton,  rubber, 
leather,  hemp,  wool,  bristles,  tallows,  wax, 
rosin,  fertilizers  and  all  kinds  of  raw  materials. 

In  addition  to  raw  silk,  which  they  handle 
to  the  extent  of  more  than  fifty  thousand 
bales  annually,  at  the  present  market  rates 
valued  approximately  at  Yen  75,000,000, 
habutai,  silk  and  cotton  goods,  hosiery, 
notions,  veneer  manufactured  goods,  vege- 
table oil,  beans,  seeds,  peanuts,  canned  fish, 
etc.,  and  a  long  list  of  raw  materials  embrac- 
ing practically  everything  produced  in  the 
country,   arc  also  exported. 


268 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


ADET,    CAMPREDON    &    CO., 


YOKOHAMA:      A   CORNER    OF   THE    BOTTLING    AND    PACKING  DEPARTMENT - 
VIEW   OF    WINE    AND   SPIRITS   CELLAR 


A  large  staff  is  employed,  the  heads  of 
departments,  like  Mr.  T.  One,  for  example, 
speaking  English  and  other  languages  with 
fluency.  It  may  be  observed  that  such 
modem  and  progressive  organisations  as  M. 
Ono  &  Co.  will  do  much  to  maintain  the 
trade  of  the  country  in  the  competitive 
struggle  that  it  is  probable  will  ensue  with 
the  return  of  peace. 

IWAKAMI  &  CO. 
IWAKAMI  &  Co.  is  another  firm  which 
enjoys  an  excellent  and  well  earned  reputa- 
tion, and  from  the  most  modest  beginning 
has  achieved  a  prominent  place  in  the  Import 
and  Export  Trade  of  Japan.  The  firm  was 
first  established  in  Yokohama  in  1889,  and 
in  1893  opened  its  first  branch  at  Sino. 
Further  branch  offices  are  now  maintained 


at  Osaka,  Kobe,  Ashikaga,  Hawaii,  San 
Francisco,  and  New  York,  and  agents  have 
been  appointed  at  Seattle.  Los  Angeles, 
Ogden,  Salt  Lake  City,  Vancouver,  Manila, 
in  Korea  and  Formosa,  and  in  Chili,  Peru 
and  other  points  in  South  America. 

Mr.  Iwakami  has  very  considerable  inter- 
ests in  various  industrial  concerns  for  the 
manufacture  of  cotton  crepe  and -silk  goods, 
which  represent  the  principal  lines  of  export. 
In  addition,  textiles,  hemp  and  straw  braids, 
and  matches  are  exported.  Tinned  crab, 
shrimps,  and  salmon,  for  the  preparation 
of  which  the  company  operates  its  private 
packing  plant,  as  well  as  rice  and  beans 
from  their  own  mills,  are  other  important 
export  lines.  Imports  handled  include  iron, 
tin  plate,  drugs,  dyestuflfs,  leather,  machinery, 
chemicals,   and   practically  any  other   com- 


modity for  which  there  is  a  demand  in  the 
market. 

About  one  hundred  and  fiftj'  clerks  are 
employed  in  all  branches,  and  agents  are 
maintained  in  the  manufacturing  centres 
to  command  buying  facilities. 

Mr.  Iwakami,  the  founder  and  president 
of  the  company,  is  greatly  interested  in  the 
encouragement  of  industry  and  is  personally 
connected  with  many  ventures.  The  Ashahi 
Textile  Co.  is  under  his  direct  management, 
and  he  is  also  a  director  of  the  Nippon 
Cotton  Crepe  Co.,  Ltd. 

Editorial  Note: — Interesting  details  in 
connection  with  other  import  and  export 
houses  located  in  Kobe,  Osaka,  Shizuoka, 
Shimonoseki,  Moji,  Dairen,  and  Keijo  are 
given  in  the  sections  dealing  ii\-ith  these  cities. 


1^ 


[i^^^^ijljjjk^ntj^ijv\i>^^ii{jn^^^^^^ij^^uiu\i 


IWAKAMI   &    CO.:      GODOWNS   AT   OSAKA — KOB^    GODOWNS  —  YOKOHAMA    PREMISES   AND    STAFF  —  SAN    FRANCISCO    BRANCH 


m 


m 


BABCOCK    &    WILCOX,    LIMITED:    ELECTRIC    COAL    HOIST    INSTALLED    BY    THE    COMPANY    FOR    THE    OSAKA    ELECTRIC    LIGHT    CO.,    LTD. BOILER 

INSTALLATION    AT    THE    KANEGAFUCHI    SPINNING   COMPANY'S    PLANT  —  AN    EXAMPLE    OF    THE    STOCK    OF   COMPLETE    WORKING    MODELS    OF 
THE   company's    VARIOUS    IMPORTANT    INSTALLATIONS  —  BOILER    HOUSE    EQUIPPED    FOR    THE    OSAKA    ELECTRIC   LIGHT   CO.,   LTD. 


XIV.    Machinery  Importers  and 

Exporters 


BABCOCK  &  WILCOX,  LIMITED 

WHEREVER  the  steam  boiler  is 
known  the  name  of  Babcock  & 
Wilcox  is  famiUar,  for  it  stands  for 
the  greatest  progress  made  in  the  science  of 
development  of  power  from  steam.  The 
boiler  with  which  the  name  is  inseparably  as- 
sociated is  manufactured  both  in  England  and 
America,  but  it  is  only  with  the  British  com- 
pany that  this  present  article  deals.  Babcock 
&  Wilcox,  Limited,  is  an  old  established  com- 
pany, and  quite  apart  from  its  great  work  for 
the  manufacture  of  boilers,  it  is  to-day  one  of 
the  largest  manufacturers  of  engineering 
plants  in  the  world,  employing  in  peace  time 
upwards  of  6,000  people,  and  having  its  fac- 
tories, assembling  shops,  and  repair  plants  es- 
tablished in  practically  every  centre  of  the 
world.  Some  idea  of  the  high  appreciation 
in  which  the  Babcock  &  Wilcox  boiler  is  held 
by  the  engineering  world  may  be  gathered 
from  the  fact  that  over  12,000,000  horsepower 
land  type  and  over  3,000,000  horsepower 
marine  type  of  boilers  have  been  installed  in 
all  classes  of  industries  ashore  and  afloat.  The 
British  and  American,  also  a  number  of  the 
other  navies  of  the  world,  have  adopted  the 
system,  and  have  installed  Babcock  &  Wilcox 
boilers,  and  in  the  mercantile  marine  these 
are  coming  daily  more  into  use.  Where  wa- 
ter tube  boilers  of  lighter  make  are  required, 
as  for  instance  in  torpedo  boats,  the 
company  make,  under  license,  the  White 
Forster   boiler. 

It  is  interesting  to  note  that  in  Japan  alone 
Babcock  &  Wilcox  boilers  generating  428,000 
H.  P.  are  in  use.  Among  the  large  boiler 
plants  installed  by  the  company  in  Japan 
may  be  mentioned  those  at  the  Imperial  Steel 
Works,  Yawata,  the  Japan  Steel  Works, 
Muroran,  the  Kawasaki  and  Mitsubishi 
Dockyards,  the  naval  arsenals,  and  at  the 
Imperial  Palace.  A  great  number  of  the 
largest  power  houses  and  electric  light  stations 
use  Babcock  &  Wilcox  boilers,  and  generally, 
the  manufacturing  and  industrial  concerns  of 
any  magnitude  in  the  Empire  have  installed 
complete  Babcock  &  Wilcox  plants  with  their 
component  attachments  such  as  superheaters, 
automatic  stokers,  coal  and  ash  conveyors, 
pipework,  etc. 

It  would  be  a  mistake,  however,  to  imagine 
that  the  entire  energies  of  the  company  are 
devoted     to     boiler-making.     That     is     the 


original  and  principal  business  of  the  enter- 
prise, but  just  as  the  operations  of  the  com- 
pany are  widespread  throughout  the  world, 
so  has  their  range  of  manufactures  extended 
until  to-day  it  covers  practically  every  line 
incidental  to  the  development  of  power,  and 
the  manufacture  of  accessories.  The  Babcock 
&  Wilcox  patent  superheaters  and  mechan- 
ical stokers  and  conveyors  for  coal,  ashes,  and 
ores  are  as  widely  known  and  used  as  the 
famous  boilers.  The  company  also  manu- 
factures steel  buildings  for  the  boiler  and 
engine  houses  of  large  plants,  as  well  as 
electric  cranes,  transporters,  and  practically 
everything  that  is  required  for  the  equip- 
ment of  electricity-producing  stations,  except- 
ing the  steam  engines  and  the  electrical 
machinery.  Babcock  &  Wilcox,  Ltd.,  have 
carried  out  and  have  on  order  many  con- 
tracts which  comprise  steel  buildings,  boilers, 
superheaters,  mechanical  stokers,  all  the 
steam  and  water  piping,  pumps,  water- 
softening  apparatus,  circulating  water  pipes, 
water  filters,  fuel  and  ash  conveyors,  and 
ash  ejectors.  A  department  of  the  company's 
business  which  has  developed  into  a  very  well 
organised  and  important  one  is  that  of  the 
manufacture  of  electric  cranes  of  all  descrip- 
tions; for  instance,  overhead  travelling 
cranes  for  conveying  goods  or  materials  in 
workshops  or  warehouses;  cranes  for  charging 
steel  furnaces,  or  for  conveying  heated 
billets  of  steel  from  furnaces  to  the  rolling 
machinery,  and  cranes  for  wharves  and 
docks  for  unloading  goods  from  steamers. 
Several  important  harbours  have  been 
equipped  with  such  cranes.  They  are 
installed  by  the  Admiralty,  the  Port  of 
London  Authority,  Hay's  Wharf,  London, 
and  on  the  South-Eastern  and  Chatham 
Railway  Company's  docks  at  Dover,  also  in 
numerous  works,  as  well  as  abroad.  A 
number  of  these  cranes  are  in  use  in  Japan. 
Babcock  &  Wilcox  also  make  and  install 
coal-lifting  and  -conveying  plants.  They 
manufacture  oil  engines,  and  hold  patents 
for  boat  davits  which  are  rapidly  coming 
into  general  favour  because  of  their  advan- 
tageous features. 

The  head  offices  of  the  British  Com- 
pany of  Babcock  &  Wilcox,  Ltd.,  are 
at  Farringdon  Street,  London,  E.  C,  Eng- 
land, and  the  main  works  are  at  Renfrew, 
Scotland. 


For  well  over  a  quarter  of  a  century  the 
products  of  Babcock  &  Wilcox,  Ltd.,  have 
been  used  in  Japan.  The  business  with 
that  country  was  originally  conducted 
through  agents,  but  about  twelve  years  ago 
the  company  opened  its  own  branch  in  Yoko- 
hama. Subsequent  extensions  were  made 
through  branch  offices  at  Osaka,  Moji,  and 
Seoul.  In  1912  Tokj'O  was  made  the  head- 
quarters for  Japan,  offices  being  taken  at 
No.  I,  Yuraku-cho,  Ichome,  Kojimachi-ku. 
Assembling  and  repair  shops  are  maintained 
at  Yokohama,  besides  warehouses  for  the 
stocks  carried  for  the  Japanese  trade.  The 
Manager  for  Japan  is  Mr.  H.  E.  Metcalf 
and  the  Sub-Manager  is  Mr.  J.  Thompson. 

L.  J.  HEALING  &  CO.,  LIMITED 
The  firm  now  known  as  L.  J.  Healing  & 
Co.,  Ltd.,  was  originally  founded  by  Mr. 
L.  J.  Healing,  who  in  a  small  way  began 
importing  electrical  material  into  Japan  in 
the  latter  part  of  1891.  For  several  years 
Mr.  Healing  worked  alone  and  it  was  not 
until  1S97,  when  he  took  a  trip  back  to  Eng- 
land, his  native  land,  that  he  was  joined  by 
Mr.  Edwin  Eddison,  M.  A.,  who  looked 
after  the  business  in  his  absence  and  sub- 
sequently joined  him  in  partnership.  The 
business,  which  was  confined  entirely  to 
electrical,  mechanical,  and  engineering  work 
gradually  expanded,  a  branch  being  opened 
in  Kobe  in  1903.  It  was  not  until  1907, 
however,  that  the  firm  was  registered  in 
London  as  a  limited  liability  company  with 
a  capital  of  £100,000,  this  being  deemed  a 
necessary  step  in  order  to  define  the  interests 
of  the  partners. 

Many  important  contracts  have  been 
undertaken  for  the  company,  among  which 
may  be  mentioned  the  notable  one  of 
erecting  and  equipping  a  complete  Gas 
Power  Station  for  the  Imperial  Government 
Railways  of  Japan.  This  plant  is  unique 
in  its  waj',  consisting  of  a  6,000  K.  W.  Mond 
Gas  Plant  with  Ammonia  Recovery  driving 
four  Nuremberg  type  gas  engines  of  2,500 
H.  P.  each  direct  connected  to  a  Dick-Kerr 
Alternator  of  1,500  K.  W.  This  plant, 
which  was  finished  in  1914,  has  been  a 
complete  success,  running  with  the  least 
amount  of  trouble  and  generating  elec- 
tricity at  a  cost  of  under  a  farthing  per 
K.  W.  hour. 


Tr^- 


HEAD    OFFICE    OF    MESSRS.    L.    J.    HEALING    &    CO.,    LTD.,    TOKYO  —  ELECTRICAL    POWER    PLANT    INST.\LLED    AT    KANAGAWA    BY 

MESSRS.    L.    J.    HEALING   &    CO.,    LTD. 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


^12^ 


PROMINENT    FOREIGN    ENGINEERS    AND    BUSINESS    MEN    OF    TOKYO 

(Left)  L.  Brl'sewitz,  Managing  Director,  J.  A.  Kjellberg  &  Sons,  Ltd.  (Upper  Row,  Left  to  Right)  H.  E.  Metcalf,  Manager  for  Japan, 
Babcock  &  Wilcox,  Ltd. — W.  Stanley  Moss,  Representative  for  Japan,  Arthur  Balfour  &  Co.,  Ltd. — Arthur  Buckney,  A.  M.  I.  E.  E. 
(Middle  Row)  F.  W.  Horne,  President,  The  F.  W.  Home  Co. —  E.  W.  Frazar,  Managing  Director,  Sale  &  Frazar,  Ltd. —  L.  J.  Healing, 
President,  L.  J.  Healing  &  Co.,  Ltd.  — W.  Egbert  Schenck,  Treasurer  and  General  Manager,  The  F.  W.  Horne  Co.  (Lower  Row) 
J.  Thompson,  Sub-Manager  for  Japan,  Babcock  &  Wilcox,  Ltd. — K.  Gadelius,  Proprietor  of  Gadelius  &  Co. — A.  J.  S.  Lefroy,  Representa- 
tive of  Thomas  Firth  &  Sons,  Ltd. 


Besides  this,  a  large  producer  plant  has 
been  supplied  to  the  South  Manchuria 
Railway,  as  well  as  a  number  of  gas  power 
plants  too  numerous  to  mention  here,  all 
of  which  have  given  the  greatest  satisfaction. 
Besides  gas  power  plants,  a  large  number 
of  steam  plants  and  water  power  plants 
have  been  designed  and  su|:)p!ied  by  the 
firm. 

Another  distinctive  feature  of  the  firm's 
business  has  been  the  supply  and  erection 
of  town  gas  plants  and  among  those  may  be 
mentioned  two  retort  houses  to  the  Yoko- 
hama Municipality,  a  large  plant  to  the 
Kobe  Gas  Company  with  two  subsequent 
extensions,  a  large  plant  to  the  Tokyo  Gas 
Company,  and  also  a  large  number  of 
smaller  ones  in  various  other  towns  in 
Japan. 

Sugar  mills  have'  been  erected  in  Formosa, 
and  a  number  of  all  kinds  of  manufacturing 
plants  have  also  been  supplied  to  the  leading 
business  men  in  Japan. 


It  should  also  be  mentioned  that  the  impor- 
tation of  telegraphic  apparatus  has  been  par- 
ticularly specialised  in  by  the  company,  a 
vast  amount  of  apparatus  having  been  fur- 
nished to  the  Communication  Department, 
and  nearly  all  the  submarine  cable  imported 
in  recent  years  has  passed  through  their  hands, 
the  contracts  running  into  millions  of  yen. 

There  is  no  branch  of  the  engineering 
business  which  the  firm  does  not  undertake, 
and  since  Japan's  development  as  a  manufac- 
turing company,  an  Export  Department  under 
expert  supervision,  has  been  opened,  confined 
to  engineering  supplies  and  machinery. 

The  present  Directors  of  the  firm  are 
Messrs.  L.  J.  Healing,  J.  I>.  Graham,  and 
J.  D.  Collier  in  Japan,  while  Messrs.  W. 
Kemsley,  G.  E.  Healing,  and  E.  Tozer  con- 
stitute the  London  Board. 

The  London  office  is  at  84,  Fcnchurch 
Street,  while  besides  the  head  office  at  24, 
Unemecho,  Tokyo,  there  are  branch  offices 
at  Osaka  and  Dairen. 


JAMES  MORRISON  &  CO.,  LIMITED 
No  better  method  can  be  found  to  give 
an  idea  of  the  extent  and  importance  of  the 
operations  of  Messrs.  James  Morrison  & 
Co.,  Ltd.,  the  well-known  firm  of  manu- 
facturers' agents  and  representatives,  than 
to  publish  the  following  comprehensive  list 
of  sole  agencies  held  by  them  for  Japan: 

W.  H.  Allen,  Son  &  Co.,  Ltd.  Open  and 
Enclosed  Engines  (simple,  compound,  and 
triple  expansion  types).  Condensing  Ma- 
chinery (surface,  barometric,  and  low-level 
jet  types),  including  "Allen-Edwards"  recip- 
rocating or  "Kinetic"  rotary  air  pumps. 
"Conqueror"  centrifugal  low-lift  and  turbine 
high-lift  pumps.  Fans  for  forced,  induced 
draught,  and  general  ventilating  purposes. 
Vertical  Enclosed  Oil  and  Gas  Engines. 
Steam  Turbines  (radial  flow  and  axial  flow 
types).  Steam  Driven  Air  Compressors. 
Continuous  current  dynamos  and  motors  and 
control  gear.  Electrically  driven  coaling 
winches,  ash,  ammunition,  and  boat  hoists,  etc. 


JAMES   MORRISON    &    CO.,   LTD.    (jAP.\N    BRANCH),    .\GEXTS    AND    REPRESENT.\TIVES     FOR   W.    H.    .\LLEN     SON     &    CO.,    LTD.,    BEDFORD,    ENGLAND; 

J.    &    E.    HALL,    LTD.,    DARTFORD,    ENGLAND;    P.\LMERS,    LTD.,    JARROW-OX-TYNE;    ROPEWAYS,    LTD.,    LONDON;    SAUTTER   HARLE 

&    CIE,     PARIS;     RANSOMES     &     RAPIER,     LTD.,     IPSWICH,     ENGLAND;      COCHRAN      &     CO.,      ANNAN,      SCOTLAND; 

MELDRUMS,   LTD.,    MANCHESTER,    ENGLAND;    W.    T.    GLOVER   &   CO.,    LTD.,    MANCHESTER,    ENGLAND 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


275 


J.  &  E.  Hull,  Lid.  Patent  Carbonic 
Anhydride  (CO2)  and  Ammonia  (NHn) 
Ri-fri},'fralinj,'  and  Ice  Making  Machinery 
for  land  and  marine  installations. 

Palmers,  Lid.  Naval  and  Mercantile 
Vessels  of  all  descriptions.  Blast  Furnaces 
and  Rolling  Mills,  Galvanising  Works.  Pig 
Iron  Manufacture.     Steel  Manufacture. 

Ropeways,  Lid.  "Roes"  Patent  System 
of  Aerial  Rope  Tramways  and  Transmission 
Lines. 

.Soulier  Ilarle.  Jean  Rey's  System  of 
Lighthouse  Mirrors  and  Reflectors,  Naval 
and  Military  Searchlights,  Makers  of  the 
Patent  Metallic  Reflector,  Military  Auto- 
mobiles, Submarine  Mines. 

Raiisomes  &  Rapier,  Lid.  The  "Stoney" 
Patent  System  of  Water  Control,  Makers  of 
Water  Sluice  Gates  for  hydro-electric  works, 
river  control  irrigation  and  drainage  work. 

Cochran  &  Co.,  Lid.  Patent  Vertical 
Multitubular  Boilers  for  land  and  marine 
use,  adapted  for  coal  or  oil  firing. 

Meldrums,  Lid.  Mechanical  Stokers  for 
all  purposes  of  the  coking  and  sprinkler  types. 
Dust  Destructors. 

W.  T.  Glover  &  Co.,  Lid.  "Glovers" 
Electric   Cal^les   for  all   purposes. 

John  Thornycraft  &  Co.  Torpedo  Boat 
Destroyers,  Mine  Layers,  Marine  Motors 
for  all  purposes. 

Ilawlhorn,  Leslie.  Locomotives  for  all 
purposes.     Locomotive  Cranes. 

F.    W.    Scott.     Steel   Wire   Ropes. 

C.  Isler  &  Co.  Boring  Plants  for  Pros- 
pecting for  Minerals,  Oil  and  Water  Supplies. 
Hydraulic   and   Consulting   Well   Engineers. 

Ransomes,  Sims  &  Jefferies.  Agricultural 
Machinery  for  all  purposes.    Portable  Engines. 

Hick,  Hargreaves.  Horizontal  Corliss  Type 
Engines. 

It  will  be  noted  that  the  manufacturers 
represented  are  of  international  reputation 
since  there  are  few  parts  of  the  globe  where 
their  products,  covering  practically  the  whole 
field  of  steam  and  electrical  machinery,  rail- 
way and  marine  supplies,  the  latest  mechan- 
ical devices  and  installations  of  all  descrip- 
tions, are  not  in  use. 

The  space  at  our  disposal  does  not  permit 
of  the  inclusion  of  a  complete  list  of  the  big 
contracts  handled  in  Japan,  but  it  may  be 
observed  that  practically  all  departments  of 
the  Japanese  Government  are  continually 
being  supplied  with  important  installations, 
auxiliarj'  machinery  for  the  fleet,  etc.  Munic- 
ipalities throughout  the  country  are  also  num- 
bered amongst  the  most  important   clients. 

The  head  office  of  James  Morrison  &  Co., 
Ltd.,  is  at  No.  5,  Fenchurch  Street,  London, 
and  the  Japan  branch,  under  the  manage- 
ment of  Mr  .G.  B.  Slater,  is  at  No.  i,  Yaye- 
sucho  Itchome,  Kojimachiku,  Tokyo. 


To  facilitate  inquiries,  which  receive 
immediate  attention,  it  should  bo  noted 
that  the  telegraphic  address  is  Manifesto, 
for  both  London  and  Tokj'O,  and  the  follow- 
ing codes  are  used:  A.  B.  C.  4th  &  5th 
Editions,  Bedford  McNeil,  Moreing  &  Neal's 
New  General  and  Mining  Code,  Western 
Union  and  Private  Code. 

The  Directors  of  the  company  are:  Messrs. 
S.  C.  Clarke,  J.  Ewart,  C.  B.  Ewart,  G.  M. 
Palmer,  C.  E.  Wood,  and  E.  C.  Potter, 
Secretary. 

EDG.\R  ALLEN  &  CO.,  LLMITED 
WhilI'I  it  is  recognised  by  those  at  all  well 
versed  in  the  conditions  of  commerce  and 
industry  in  Japan  that  the  Japanese  have 
made  tremendous  strides  towards  economic 
self-reliance,  it  is  equally  well  recognised  that 
there  are  still  industries  which  present  a  wide 
field  of  opportunity  for  the  foreign  manufac- 
turer. One  direction  in  which  such  an  oppor- 
tunity exists  is  that  of  the  supply  of  special 
steel  castings,  forgings,  machine  tools,  tool  steel 
and  so  forth,  for  in  this  field  the  older 
steel  masters  of  England  are  without  rival. 
Their  great  experience,  completely  equipped 
plants,  and  specialised  processes  maintain 
their  products  against  all  competition,  and 
the  Japanese  themselves  readily  admit  their 
dependence  upon  such  concerns  for  many 
manufactures  which  Japan  will  not  be  in  a 
position  to  furnish  for  years  to  come. 

These  remarks  apply  to  Edgar  Allen  &  Co., 
Limited,  who  have  held  a  prominent  position 
in  the  Japanese  market  for  many  years  past. 
This  company  and  its  special  products  are  so 
well  known  that  it  hardly  seems  necessary  to 
make  more  than  passing  reference  to  the 
history  of  the  business,  or  to  those  particular 
features  of  its  operations  which  have  made  it 
world  famous.  The  company's  Imperial 
Steel  Works  at  Sheffield  have  acquired  a 
reputation  that  requires  no  discussion.  The 
business  was  founded  in  1868  by  the  late  Mr. 
William  Edgar  Allen,  LL.D.,  who  manufac- 
tured principally  tool  steel  and  files.  Mr. 
Allen  sought  his  most  important  markets 
abroad,  and  long  ago  established  a  reputation 
for  his  special  lines  in  Italy,  Spain,  Portugal 
and  other  foreign  coimtries.  That  this  policy 
of  opening  up  and  developing  new  fields  of 
enterprise  has  had  a  great  deal  to  do  with  the 
success  of  the  Imperial  Steel  Works  there  can 
be  no  doubt.  Through  careful  study  of 
foreign  requirements  and  conditions,  and  a 
readiness  to  meet  peculiar  needs  as  ascer- 
tained in  other  coimtries,  Edgar  Allen  &  Co., 
Limited,  have  always  readily  achieved 
success  wherever  they  have  extended  their 
operations.  Their  experience  in  Japan  has 
proved  no  exception  to  this  rule. 

The  late  Mr.  Allen  developed  the  business 


steadily,  and  lost  no  opportunity  of  acquiring 
new  and  wider  interests.  He  bought  out  the 
very  old  established  firm  of  Hoole,  Staniforth 
&  Company,  and  in  1890  transformed  the 
business  into  the  present  limited  liability 
company.  Three  years  later  Edgar  Allen  & 
Co.,  Limited,  absorbed  the  interests  of  Ask- 
ham  Brothers  &  Wilson,  Limited,  who 
specialised  in  points  and  crossings  for  railways 
and  tramways,  and  in  the  manufacture  of 
stone  breakers,  ore  crushers,  and  grinding  and 
conveying  machinery.  Consistent  with  these 
important  additions  to  the  manufacturing 
capacity  of  the  company,  a  progressive  policy 
of  development  has  been  followed  right  down 
to  the  present  day,  and  step  by  step  Edgar 
Allen  &  Co.,  Limited,  have  widened  their 
operations,  and  increased  the  number  of 
specialised  lines  of  industry,  thus  assuring  to 
themselves  a.  strong  position  in  the  markets 
of  the  world.  From  1903  onward  the  prog- 
ress of  the  company  has  been  particularly 
marked.  The  Imperial  Steel  Works  covers 
at  present  over  22  acres  of  ground  and  nor- 
mally employs  a  technical  staff  of  over  200, 
with  more  than  2,000  workmen,  though  under 
war  conditions  which  have  led  to  such 
phenomenal  expansion  in  the  whole  of  Eng- 
land's iron  and  steel  industry,  these  figures 
scarcely  convey  an  idea  of  the  activity  which 
prevails  in  the  works.  But  we  are  not  dealing 
with  the  part  which  Edgar  Allen  &  Co., 
Limited,  have  played  and  are  playing  in 
support  of  the  Allied  cause.  What  is  of 
more  vital  interest  in  foreign  fields  is  their 
capacity  to  maintain  British  industrial  pres- 
tige under  normal  conditions  in  competition 
with  the  world. 

The  company  manufactures  a  wide  range 
of  special  steel  castings  and  forgings,  tool 
steel,  machine  tools,  crushing  and  grinding 
machinery  for  many  different  industries, 
motor  car  steels,  railway  and  tramway 
switches,  and  crossings,  special  railway 
material,  gears,  saws,  drills  and  so  forth.  It 
is  in  these  special  lines  that  the  company  has 
made  its  reputation,  and  associated  its  name 
with  all  that  is  best.  The  foundry,  which  was 
remodelled  just  before  the  war,  is  replete 
with  every  system  and  appliance  for  turning 
out  special  work  by  the  crucible,  Tropenas, 
Siemens  open  hearth,  and  electrical  processes. 
It  may  be  mentioned  that  the  Tropenas 
system  produces  steel  castings  which  contain 
the  essential  combination  of  high  tensile 
strength  and  high  elongation,  the  process 
having  been  adopted  by  the  British  and  Japa- 
nese and  other  foreign  governments.  All 
classes  of  ordinary  carbon  tool  steel  are  made, 
as  well  as  the  famous  "Stag  Special"  and 
"Chikara"  high-speed  steels,  "Imperial" 
turning  and  finishing  steel,  and  other  special 
steels.      Mention  should  also  be  made  of  the 


'  t- '• ' '  'I 


-> 


toi:^j 


EDGAR    ALLEN    &    CO.,    LTD.:       (LEFT    TO     RIGHT)     PATTERN     SHOP  — TRAMWAY     POINT    SHOP  — FOUNDRY,     BAY    2  — PL.\TE     SHOP— TOOL     STEEL 

WAREHOUSE FOUNDRY,    B.\Y    I 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


277 


large  output  of  miners'  drill  steels.  Apart 
from  tool  steels  the  eomi)any  has  specialised 
in  the  manufacture  of  alloy  steels  for  motor 
cars  and  aircraft,  and  the  "Imperial"  manga- 
nese steel  is  renowned  for  its  remarkable 
qualities.  This  product  can  be  supplied  as 
eastings,  rolled  bars,  sheets,  forgings,  or  pat- 
ent-rolled railway  and  tramway  rails;  cross- 
ings, switches  and  so  on.  The  chief  purposes 
to  which  it  is  applied  are  points  and  cross- 
ings for  railways  and  tramways,  screening 
bars,  renewable  jaws  of  crushers  and  other 
hard-wearing  parts  of  crushing  and  grinding 
machinery',  dredger  pins,  and  bushes.  It  is 
also  interesting  to  note  that  it  is  utilised  for 
making  shrapnel-proof  helmets   for  soldiers. 

"Imperial"  manganese  steel  has  been  very 
widely  supplied  by  Edgar  Allen  &  Co., 
Limited,  who  have  carried  out  extensive  con- 
tracts for  the  supply  of  special  track  work, 
points  and  crossings,  etc.,  in  connection  with 
some  of  the  biggest  traction  undertakings  in 
the  world.  In  this  connection  it  may  be 
mentioned  that  the  company  supplied 
requirements  of  this  nature  for  the  Tokyo, 
Yokohama,  and  Osaka  electric  tramway 
systems.  Edgar' Allen  &  Co.,  Limited,  manu- 
facture a  large  variety  of  machinery  for  such 
industries  as  mining,  cement  making,  ore 
treatment  plants,  dredging  operations  and 
general  contracting  work.  Among  their  lines 
may  be  mentioned  crushers,  battery  parts, 
such  as  stamp  shoes  and  dies,  tube  and  ball 
grinding  mills,  rotary  kilns,  conveyors, 
elevators,  and  disintegrators. 

The  record  and  reputation  of  Edgar  Allen 
&  Co.,  Limited,  are  too  well  known  to 
require  further  comment.  The  organisation 
of  the  company  is  modern  and  perfect,  giv- 
ing the  concern  the  capacity  to  handle  any 
new  developments  in  foreign  fields.  Branch 
oflfiees  and  stores  are  maintained  in  Johannes- 
burg, Montreal,  Chicago,  New  York,  Petro- 
grad,  Tokyo,  and  Osaka,  and  there  are 
agencies  spread  throughout  the  world.  The 
Tok-yo  oflfice,  which  is  under  the  manage- 
ment of  Mr.  R.  H.  Gordon,  was  estab- 
lished in  1905,  and  it  is  needless  to  say 
that  in  the  remarkable  expansion  which  has 
taken  place  in  Japan  of  recent  years,  the 
company  has  found  a  rich  market  for  its 
products,  the  trend  of  industrial  development 
establishing  a  keen  demand  for  high  grade 
special  products  such  as  Edgar  Allen  &  Co., 
Limited,  manufacture. 

Mr.  R.  Woodward  is  chairman  of  the 
Directors  of  the  company,  the  Board  com- 
prising also  the  following:  Messrs.  A.  E. 
Wells,  F.  A.  Warlow,  W.  Crosby,  C.  K. 
Everitt,  J.  F.  Moss,  and  J.  C.  Ward.  The 
authorised  capital  is  £525,000,  in  Ordinary 
and  Preference  shares,  the  amount  paid  up 
being  £490,000. 


ARTHl'R    BUCKNEY,    A.    M.    I.    E.    E. 

The  rapid  industrial  development  of  Japan, 
and  the  bold  strides  which  the  country  has 
made  in  all  branches  of  manufacturing  enter- 
prise, while  they  have  displaced  many  foreign 
interests  in  the  assiduously  fostered  effort  to 
make  Japan  entirely  self-contained,  have  not 
yet  made  the  country-  independent  of  the 
thoroughly  qualified  foreign  engineer,  nor 
have  they  lessened  the  demand  for  special 
plant  necessary  to  the  greatest  enterprises. 
As  a  matter  of  fact  the  reverse  is  the  case, 
for  with  every  new  departure  in  the  field  of 
electrical  or  mechanical  engineering,  the 
services  of  the  foreign  engineer  become  more 
valuable,  and  a  call  is  made  on  the  great 
works  of  Britain  or  elsewhere  to  supjily  the 
machinery.  In  the  introduction  of  modern 
engineering  methods  to  Japan,  Mr.  Arthur 
Buckney,  A.  M.  I.  E.  E.,  has  taken  a  prom- 
inent part,  his  own  business  giving  him  a 
particularly  close  connection  with  every 
development. 

Mr.  Buckney  has  had  a  lengthy  experience 
as  an  engineer  in  this  country,  and  he  knows 
the  conditions  and  requirements  of  Japan 
perhaps  more  intimately  than  most  of  his 
professional  colleagues.  He  was  engaged  in 
the  capacity  of  Technical  and  Engineering 
Manager  for  a  formerly  important  German 
firm,  but  naturally  severed  his  connection 
with  the  same  immediately  upon  the  decla- 
ration of  war  with  Germany.  One  of  the 
agencies  of  Carl  Rhode  was  that  of  the 
Lymn  Chemical  Engineering  Co.,  Ltd.,  of 
London,  which  had  originally  been  obtained 
through  Mr.  Buckney 's  influence,  and  that 
agency  came  into  his  hands  when  he  estab- 
lished himself  in  business  on  his  own  account. 
What  Mr.  Buckney  has  to  say  with  regard 
to  the  introduction  of  the  Lymn  system  of 
gas-producer  plant,  and  by-products  from 
lignite  coal,  peat,  etc.,  and  the  extensive  use 
of  this  system  throughout  the  important 
and  ever  expanding  chemical  industry  of 
Japan,  will  be  read  with  keen  interest. 

One  of  the  most  important  installations 
so  far  undertaken  is  of  a  10,000-kilowatt 
gas  power  plant  at  the  famous  Fushun 
Collieries  of  the  South  Manchuria  Railway 
Co.,  Ltd.  This  plant  was  supplied  through 
the  agency  of  Mr.  Buckney  and  represents 
only  one  of  several  units.  The  Fushun 
Collieries  require  an  aggregate  of  80,000 
kilowatts,  and  this  enormous  power  is  to 
be  furnished  by  the  supply  of  one  unit  per 
annum,  the  time  limitation  being  enforced 
by  the  difficulties  of  transportation  and 
other  harassing  war  conditions.  Should  the 
war  terminate  and  conditions  improve  to 
permit  of  a  quicker  installation,  the  work 
will  naturally  be  completed  as  fast  as  possible. 
The  power  generated  in  this  particular  install- 


ation is,  of  course,  for  the  working  of  the 
collieries,  and  also  for  the  large  chemical 
works  which  are  to  be  constructed. 

Whilst  the  Lymn  products  are  Mr.  Buckney 's 
special  care,  he  is  also  active  in  the  supply  of 
all  kinds  of  heavy  machinery.  The  contract 
for  several  large  floating  cranes  on  account  of 
the  Russian  Government  was  .secured  by  this 
gentleman  and  the  way  in  which  the  contract 
was  handled,  combined  with  the  successful 
working  of  the  cranes,  resulted  in  further 
orders  being  placed  with  Mr.  Buckney  in  the 
face  of  keen  competition.  These  particular 
cranes,  some  of  which  were  for  the  harbour 
construction  work  while  others  were  specially 
designed  for  the  handling  of  locomotives  and 
railway  stock  arriving  from  North  America 
for  war  purposes,  have  a  lifting  capacity  of  45 
tons  with  an  80-foot  head  and  a  span  of  45  feet. 
A  number  of  tug  boats  were  also  supplied 
through  Mr.  Buckney  to  the  Russian  Govern- 
ment. In  the  field  of  mining  enterprise,  Mr. 
Buckney  supplies  not  only  power  plants,  but 
general  machinery  such  as  batteries,  winding 
engines,  and,  especially,  various  chemical 
plants  for  the  direct  recovery  of  the  by- 
products from  coal  and  the  manufacture 
of  nitric  acid,  salicylic  acid,  trinitrotoluol 
(TNT),  and  for  ammonia  oxidation,  distil- 
lation, and  similar  processes. 

It  is  generally  believed  that  anybody  can 
succeed  in  business  to-day  in  Japan,  so  pro- 
pitious are  the  times  and  so  buoyant  the 
situation,  but  while  there  may  be  a  good  deal 
of  warranty  for  such  a  belief,  in  so  far  as 
ordinary  trade  is  concerned,  it  is  obvious  that 
success  in  the  skilled  professions  of  electrical 
and  mechanical  engineering  is  not  casually 
obtained.  There  are  such  things  as  initial 
qualifications  and  practical  and  ripe  experi- 
ence which  are  essentials  to  success  in  such  a 
wide  field  as  Mr.  Buckney  has  trenched  upon. 
Mr.  Buckney  received  his  professional  educa- 
tion in  England  and  Germany,  and  gained  his 
initial  experience  with  the  British  Thomson- 
Houston  Co.  Thereafter  he  went  to  Germany, 
where  his  general  knowledge  and  experience 
were  widened  by  visiting  some  of  the  greatest 
engineering  plants  in  that  country.  Mr. 
Buckney  was  engaged  for  several  years  with 
one  of  the  largest  gas  engine  building  works  in 
Saarbnicken,  the  famous  centre  of  the  Ger- 
man steel  industry.  Such  a  ripe  experience 
is  invaluable,  especially  in  a  country  like 
Japan  where  electrical  enterprises  of  every 
description  are  likely  to  become  very  impor- 
tant, and  the  products  of  which  undoubtedly 
will  constitute  a  large  section  of  future  exports. 
The  sphere  of  Mr.  Buckney's  business  is  wide, 
as  a  branch  is  maintained  at  Vladivostock  in 
charge  of  a  European  engineer,  and  a  further 
branch  is  now  being  established  at  Tomsk. 
From  these  centres  the  Russian  territory  is 


19 


It 


p% 


m 


iJ':;  ' 


i 


ARTHUR  BUCKNEY,  A.  M.  I.  E.  E. :  ERECTION  Ol    LVM.V-RILEY  OAS  PRODUCERS TYPE  OF  FLOATING  CRANE  SUPPLIED  TO  THE  RUSSIAN  GOVERNMENT 

—  TYPE    OF    TUG    BOAT    SUPPLIED   TO   THE    RUSSIAN    GOVERNMENT ANOTHER    PROCESS   IN    THE    ERECTION    OF    LVMN-RILEV    GAS    PRODUCERS 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


279 


very  thoroughly  covered.  Mr.  Buckney's 
Tokyo  office  is  located  in  the  Mitsubishi 
Building,  where  there  are  commodious  and 
well  installed  business  quarters.  The  per- 
sona! staff  comprises  two  qualified  European 
engineers,  a  European  chief  clerk,  and  a 
number  of  Japanese  assistants. 

DICK,  KERR  &  CO.,  LIMITED 
The  remarkable  development  which  has 
taken  place  in  the  industrial  life  of  Japan 
during  the  past  few  decades  has  afforded 
opportunity  to  many  great  British  enterprises 
to  expand  their  foreign  business  and  establish 
in  the  Japanese  market  the  most  valuable  of 
connections.  Such  is  the  case  with  Messrs. 
Dick,  Kerr  &  Co.,  Ltd.,  the  well  known 
engineers  and  contractors.  For  a  good  many 
years  the  company  has  been  prominent  in  all 
the  important  engineering  developments  in 
Japan,  and  has  carried  out  a  number  of  con- 
tracts for  public  services,  apart  from  the 
transaction  of  a  volume  of  business  in  elec- 
trical installations  and  electrical  supplies 
generally.  To  such  an  extent  has  the  reputa- 
tion of  Dick,  Kerr  &  Co.,  Ltd.,  become  known 
as  manufacturers  of  electrical  machinery  and 
appliances,  that  it  is  frequently  forgotten  that 
the  company  was  originally  a  contracting 
concern.  As  a  matter  of  fact  it  was  only 
about  sixteen  or  seventeen  years  ago  that  the 
company  found  it  necessary  to  make  electric 
machinery  and  plant,  so  as  to  facilitate  the 
carrying  out  of  large  contracts  which  were 
secured  in  the  United  Kingdom  and  abroad. 
The  company  is  still  one  of  the  largest  con- 
tracting concerns  in  the  world,  and  its 
operations  embrace  many  countries,  perma- 
nent branches  being  maintained,  apart  from 
the  works  in  England,  at  Tokyo,  Milan, 
Buenos  Aires,  Rio  de  Janeiro,  Sydney,  and 
Johannesburg.  The  activities  of  the  firm 
consist  essentially  of  the  two  sections  of 
contracting  and  manufacturing,  equal  in 
importance,  though  differing  in  character. 
Dealing  with  the  contracting  operations  of 
Dick,  Kerr  &  Co.,  Ltd.,  it  may  be  said  that 
they  cover  practically  every  class  of  public 
service.  For  instance,  railways  have  been 
constructed  for  the  Government  of  Portuguese 
East  Africa,  in  Argentina,  and  in  Canada; 
a  huge  reser\'oir  has  been  built  for  the  Lon- 
don Metropolitan  Water  Board;  a  pumping 
station  has  been  constructed  at  Walton,  and 
waterworks  at  Las  Palmas.  These  are  only 
examples  of  the  widespread  operations  of  the 
company,  which  is  open  to  contract  for 
practically  any  work  in  any  part  of  the  world. 
The  manufacture  and  installation  of  electric 
plant  and  machinery  constitute  as  diversified 
a  set  of  undertakings  as  does  the  general 
contracting.  The  electric  works  are  in 
Preston,   Lancashire,  and  the  General  Iron 


Works  in  Kilmarnock,  N.  B.  At  these  works 
Dick,  Kerr  &  Co,.  Ltd.,  manufacture  electrical 
machinery  of  all  kinds,  electric  locomotives, 
electrical  apparatus  and  also  steam  turbines, 
light  railway  rolling  stock  and  permanent  way 
material,  and  metallic  filament  lamps  known 
as  the  "Britannia"  Lamps.  In  addition  to 
their  being  manufacturers  of  electric  and 
railway  apparatus  Dick,  Kerr  &  Co.,  Ltd., 
have  special  facilities  for  the  supply  of  engines, 
boilers,  pumps,  condensers,  water  turbines, 
rails,  etc.  The  company  is  in  the  exceptional 
position  of  being  able  to  carry  out  the  com- 
plete equipment  and  installation  of  electric 
power  and  lighting  plants,  whether  driven  by 
steam  or  water  power,  electric  railways  and 
tramways  and  all  kinds  of  electrical  installa- 
tions for  industrial  purposes,  and  when 
required  the  company  would  enter  into  a 
contract  for  the  supply  of  all  apparatus  and 
materials,  including  the  erection  of  same,  and 
would  hand  it  over  to  the  customers  in  perfect 
working  condition.  For  an  example  of  this 
kind  of  work  in  Japan,  it  should  be  mentioned 
that  Dick,  Kerr  &  Co.,  Ltd.,  undertook  in 
1904  to  supply,  as  well  as  to  install,  the  whole 
of  the  equipment  and  installation  of  the  late 
Tokyo  Denki  Tetsudo  Kabushiki  Kaisha 
system  of  tramways.  This  line  is  known  as 
the  "Sotobori-Sen,"  now  a  part  of  the  lines  of 
the  Tokyo  Municipal  Tramways.  This 
contract  included  the  supply  and  erection  of 
the  entire  apparatus  and  material  for  the 
Shibuya  Power  Station,  two  sub-stations, 
equipments  and  trucks  including  car  bodies, 
overhead  and  feeder  lines,  permanent  way, 
and  repair  shop. 

Up  to  this  stage  in  their  operations  in  Japan, 
Dick,  Kerr  &  Co.,  Ltd.,  had  representatives 
in  the  country,  but  in  May.  1907,  they  opened 
their  own  branch  in  Tokyo,  at  No.  3,  Itchome, 
Uchisaiwaicho,  Kojimachi-ku.  They  were 
one  of  the  first  of  the  large  British  manufac- 
turers to  adopt  the  policy  of  carrying  on  their 
business  in  Japan  with  their  own  staff,  instead 
of  following  the  more  general  custom  of  being 
represented  by  some  merchant  house,  and 
much  of  the  success  which  they  have  gained 
has  been  due  to  this  policy.  The  Japan 
branch  is  not  only  engaged  in  the  importation 
and  sale  of  machinery,  but  has  a  staff  of 
expert  engineers  for  the  erection  of  machinery 
supplied  by  the  company.  Among  the  large 
contracts  which  Dick,  Kerr  &  Co.,  Ltd.,  have 
carried  out  in  Japan  may  be  mentioned 
the  Inawashiro  Hydro-Electric  Power  Co.'s 
installation,  which  is  said  to  be  the  largest  in 
the  Far  East.  In  this  power  station  there  are 
installed  six  sets  of  7,775  K.  V'.  A.  generators, 
all  of  which  were  manufactured  by  the  com- 
pany at  their  Preston  Works.  Another  nota- 
ble contract  is  that  of  four  sets  of  slow  speed 
gas-driven  1,500  K.  V'.  A.  alternators,  supplied 


to  the  Yaguchi  Power  Station  of  the  Imperial 
Government  Railways  of  Japan.  These 
machines  supply  electrical  energy  for  opera- 
ting the  trains  running  between  Tokyo  Station 
and  Yokohama,  and  the  first  section  of  the 
main  line  of  Japan  to  be  operated  electrically. 
All  these  machines  are  giving  very  good 
results,  and  are  now  operating  in  good 
condition.  Since  the  establishment  of  the 
Japan  branch  Dick,  Kerr  &  Co.,  Ltd.,  have 
supplied  various  electrical  and  other  machin- 
ery to  the  following:  The  Financial  Depart- 
ment of  the  Imperial  Japanese  Government; 
Sasebo  Naval  Dockyard;  Kure  Naval  Dock- 
yard; Imperial  Government  Railways; 
Formosan  Government  Railways;  Tokyo 
Municipal  Tramways;  Kyoto  Municipal 
Tramways;  Osaka  Municipal  Tramways; 
South  Manchuria  Railway  Co.;  Kawagoe 
Railway  Co.;  lyo  Railway  Co.;  Keisei  Elec- 
tric Railway  Co.;  Keio  Electric  Railway 
Co. ;  Tamagawa  Electric  Railway  Co. ;  Yoko- 
hama Electric  Railway  Co. ;  Odawara  Electric 
Railw-ay  Co.;  Nikko  Electric  Railway  Co.; 
Nagoya  Electric  Railway  Co.;  Seto  Electric 
Railway  Co.;  Mino  Electric  Railway  Co.; 
Kyoto  Electric  Railway  Co.;  Keihan  Electric 
Railway  Co.;  Kob^  Electric  Railway  Co.; 
Tatsuno  Electric  Railway  Co.;  Kure  Electric 
Railway  Co.;  Tosan  Electric  Railway  Co.; 
Ina  Electric  Railway  Co. ;  Inawashiro  Hydro- 
Electric  Power  Co.;  Soma  Electric  Co.; 
Motomiya  Electric  Co. ;  Tokiwa  Electric  Co. ; 
Japanese  Explosives  Co. ;  Nippon  Celluloid  & 
Artificial  Silk  Co. ;  Japan  Steel  Manufacturing 
Co.,  and  many  others  too  numerous  to 
mention. 

THE  F.  W.  HORNE  CO. 
The  F.  W.  Home  Company,  a  leading 
concern  in  the  machinery  and  hardware 
industries  of  Japan,  was  established  about 
twenty-six  years  ago,  by  Mr.  F.  W.  Home, 
as  a  private  enterprise,  to  import  American 
machinery  and  tools.  After  some  years  of 
successful  trading  Mr.  Home  converted  the 
enterprise  into  a  stock  company  of  which 
he  became  the  President.  Holding  the  rep- 
resentation for  Japan  of  over  fifty  of  the 
best  known  manufacturers  of  machinery 
and  machine  tools  in  the  United  States,  the 
F.  W.  Home  Co.  is  in  a  position  to  handle  a 
very  large  trade,  and  cater  in  every  con- 
ceivable direction  for  the  rapidly  expanding 
manufacturing  industries  of  Japan.  A 
specialty  is  made  of  machine  tools  for  arsenals, 
dockyards,  and  railway  shops,  as  well  as 
steels,  fittings,  and  parts.  The  company 
has  agencies  for  practically  every  line  that 
may  be  called  for,  from  locomotives,  saw 
mill  and  other  machinery,  boilers,  etc.,  down 
to  the  smallest  fittings.  From  his  lengthy 
experience  in  the  Far  East  Mr.  Home  has 


W: 


M^aassawMi 

-     .     -                        - -u 

— — — 

DICK     KERR    S:   CO.,  LTD.:    ONE    l,V    FUl  R    I.SOO   K.  V.  .\.   II,000-VOLT    ^-PH.XSE    25    CVCI.K    ALIIkNAlnKS    SUPPLIED   TO    THE    IMPERIAL    J.A.PANESE 
'       GOVERNMENT    RAILWAYS    IN    CONNECTION    WITH    THE    ELECTRIFICATION    OF    THEIR    MAIN    LINE  — 50-TON    ELECTRIC    LOCOMOTIVE 
SUPPLIED    TO    THE    BRITISH    COLUMBIA    ELECTRIC    RAILWAY  —  POWER   HOUSE    AND    PLANT    ERECTED    AND 
INSTALLED    AT    KINLOCHLEVEN    FOR    THE    BRITISH    ALUMINUM    COMPANY,    LTD. 


T^ 


THE    F.    W.    HORNF.   COMPANY:      TWO    VIEWS    OF    MACHINERY    DISPLAYED    AT    A    JAPANESE    EXHIBITION 

THE    TOKYO    PREMISES    OF    THE    FIRM 


282 


PRESENT-DAY        I  M  P  R  E  S  S  T  O  X  S        OF        JAPAN 


always  been  ven-  closely  in  touch  with 
Japanese  requirements,  and  the  trend  of  the 
trades  or  cnteqirises  for  which  his  compan}- 
caters,  and  it  has  always  been  the  policy  to 
handle  only  the  goods  of  the  better  class 
manufacturers.  Exceedingly  valuable  con- 
nections have  been  formed  in  the  United 
States,  as  may  be  seen  from  the  list  of  com- 
panies represented,  which  is  given  below. 
The  head  office  of  the  F.  W.  Home  Co.  is 
at  Nos.  6  and  7,  Takiyama-cho,  Kyobashi-ku, 
Tokyo.  Here  the  company  owns  the  prop- 
erty on  which  its  offices  and  godowns  are 
located.  The  building  is  one  of  three  stories, 
constructed  of  brick,  on  the  most  modem 
lines.  The  showrooms  are  on  the  ground 
floor,  where  a  large  sample  stock  is  displayed, 
the  bulk  storage  being  in  the  spacious  go- 
downs.  Over  150  hands  are  employed. 
On  the  stafT  arc  a  number  of  qualified  engin- 
eers, lumber  and  other  specialists,  and  experts 
for  demonstrating  new  ideas  and  educating 
the  local  trade  along  modem  lines.  The 
iron  and  steel  purchasing  department  of  the 
Home  Co.  is  at  2  Rector  Street,  New  York, 
through  which  the  company  is  able  to  keep 
in  constant  touch  with  all  the  important 
manufacturing  concerns  in  the  United  States. 
In  Japan  the  F.  W.  Home  Co.  has  branches 
at  Osaka,  Nagoya,  and  Otaru;  also  at  Keijo, 
Korea,  and  Dairen. 

Mr.  Home  has  been  decorated  by  the 
Japanese  Government.  He  has  other  large 
interests  in  Japan,  including  the  Presidency 
of  the  Nipponophone  Manufacturing  Com- 
pany, which  is  noticed  elsewhere,  and  has 
retired  from  the  active  management  of  the 
F.  W.  Home  Co.  He  has  one  of  the  most 
beautifid  private  residences  at  Nikko,  the 
scenic  ideal  of  all  Japanese  and  foreigners. 
Mr.  W.  Egbert  Schenck,  Treasurer,  is  also 
General  Manager  of  the  F.  W.  Home  Co., 
with  which  he  has  been  associated  for 
over  ten  years. 

Following  is  a  list  of  the  principal  agencies 
held  by  the  company  in  Japan:  Brown  & 
Sharpe  Mfg.  Co.,  Providence,  R.  I.;  Pratt  & 
Whitney  Co.,  Hartford,  Conn.;  J.  A.  Fay  & 
Egan  Co.,  Cincinnati,  Ohio;  Nicholson  File 
Co.,  Providence,  R.  I.;  L.  S.  Starrett  Co., 
Athol,  Mass.;  Yale  &  Towne  Mfg.  Co., 
New  York  City;  Norton  Co.,  Worcester, 
Mass. ;  Chicago  Pneumatic  Tool  Co.,  Chicago, 
111.;  Standard  Tool  Co.,  Cleveland,  Ohio; 
Nordyke  &  Marmon  Co.,  Indianapolis, 
Ind.;  Wells  Bros.  Co.,  Greenfield,  Mass.; 
Gould  &  Eberhardt,  Newark,  N.  J.;  E.  W. 
Bliss  &  Co.,  Brooklyn,  N.  Y.;  E.  C.  Atkins 
&  Co.,  Indianapohs,  Ind.;  International 
Curtis  Marine  Turbine  Co.,  New  York; 
Heald  Machine  Co.,  Worcester,  Mass.; 
Phillips  Pressed  Steel  Pulley  Co.,  Philadel- 
phia,  Pa.;    Albany   Hardware   &    Specialty 


Mfg.  Co..  Albany,  Wis.;  Gandy  Belting  Co., 
Baltimore,  Maryland;  Fitchburg  Machine 
Works,  Fitchburg,  Mass.;  Green  Tweed  & 
Co.,  New  York;  Standard  Pressed  Steel  Co., 
Philadelphia,  Pa.;  W.  H.  Bagshaw,  Lowell, 
Mass.;  Espen  Lucas  Machine  Works,  Phila- 
delphia, Pa.;  Diamond  Machine  Co.,  Provi- 
dence, R.  1.;  Chalmers  &  Williams,  Inc., 
Chicago  Heights,  111.;  Carratt-Callahan  Co., 
.^0-32  Fremont  Street,  San  Francisco;  Noble 
&•  Westbrook  Mfg.  Co.,  Hartford,  Conn.; 
Davenport  Locomotive  Works,  Davenport, 
Iowa;  Mosaic  Tile  Co.,  Zanesville,  Ohio; 
Rivett  Lathe  &  Grinder  Co.,  Brighton, 
Boston,  Mass.;  N.  O.  Nelson  Mfg.  Co., 
loth  &  Chestnut  Sts.,  St.  Louis,  Mo.;  Arm- 
strong-Blum Mfg.  Co.,  339-.S57  North 
Francisco  Ave.,  Chicago,  111.;  The  White  & 
Bagley  Co.,  Worcester,  Mass.;  The  Shaw 
Blue  Print  Mach.  Co.,  9-1 1  Campbell  St., 
Newark,  N.  J.;  E.  J.  Long>-ear  Co.,  710-722 
Security  Bldg.,  Minneapolis,  Minn.;  Inland 
Steel  Co.,  First  National  Bank  Bldg.,  Chicago, 
111.;  Gulf  States  Steel  Co.,  Brown-Marx 
Bldg.,  Birmingham,  Ala.;  Alan  Wood  Iron 
&  Steel  Co.,  Widener  Bldg.,  Philadelphia; 
Athol  Machine  Co.,  Athol,  Mass.;  Pierce 
Machine  Tool  Co.,  617  W.  Jackson  Blvd., 
Chicago,  111.;  National  Roofing  Co.,  Tona- 
wanda.N.Y.;  La  Salle  Machine  and  Tool  Co., 
La  Salle,  111.;  Bilgram  Machine  Works,  1231 
Spring  Garden  St.,  Philadelphia,  Pa.;  Bickett 
Machine  &  Mfg.  Co. ;  Phoenix  Mfg.  Co. ;  Falk 
Co.,  Milwaukee;  Clarke  Bros.,  Olean,  New 
York;     U.  S.  Graphite   Co.,  Saginaw,   Mich. 

J.  A.  KJELLBERG  &  SONS,  LI.MITED 
The  business  now  conducted  in  Japan  by 
Messrs.  J.  A.  Kjellberg  &  Sons,  Ltd.,  was 
originally  started  by  Mr.  L.  Brusewitz,  who 
came  to  the  country  in  1906  and  established 
himself  in  business  as  the  first  Swedish 
merchant  in  Japan.  Two  years  later  he 
opened  the  business  in  cooperation  with  the 
old  Swedish  export  firm  of  Messrs.  J.  A. 
Kjellberg  &  Soner,  of  Gothenburg,  and 
became  Managing  Director  of  the  entire 
Japanese  interests  of  the  company.  J.  A. 
Kjellberg  &  Soner  was  estabhshed  in  Sweden 
in  1810,  and  thus  it  may  be  claimed  that 
J.  A.  Kjellberg  &  Sons,  Ltd.,  which  is  an 
amalgamation  of  their  interests  and  those 
founded  in  the  country  by  Mr.  Brasewitz, 
is  not  only  the  oldest  Swedish  concern  in 
Japan,  but  also  holds  the  leading  position  in 
the  Swedish-Japanese  trade. 

The  company  at  present  represents  the 
foremost  of  Swedish  industrial  concems,  thus 
continuing  and  developing  its  original  aim 
of  introducing  the  products  of  Sweden  to 
the  local  market.  However,  the  sphere  of 
activity  of  the  company,  which  has  consider- 
able funds  at  its  disposal,  is  by  no  means 


limited  to  imports  from  Sweden,  but  includes 
an  extensive  trade  with  Great  Britain,  the 
United  States,  and  other  countries.  Lately 
an  export  department  has  been  organised 
which  is  doing  successful  business  in  Japanese 
goods  with  Eastern  Asia  and  Australia. 
Among  the  important  agencies  held  by  J.  A. 
Kjellberg  &  Sons,  Ltd.,  may  be  mentioned 
that  of  the  Swedish  Ball  Bearing  Facton.- 
("S.  K.  F. ")  of  Gothenburg,  which  has 
developed  during  the  last  ten  years  into  a 
world-wide  business,  the  company  having 
branch  factories  at  several  centres  in  the 
United  States  and  in  England,  and  sales 
offices  all  over  the  world.  To  give  an  idea 
of  the  magnitude  of  this  industry  it  may  be 
mentioned  that  in  the  United  States  alone, 
the  sale  of  "S.  K.  F."  ball  bearings  amounts 
to  over  10,000  sets  a  day.  For  the  sale  of 
this  line  in  Japan  Messrs.  Kjellberg  have 
organised  a  special  department  employing 
a  number  of  foreign  as  well  as  Japanese 
engineers  and  salesmen,  throughout  Japan, 
Korea,  and  Manchuria.  The  singular  suc- 
cess of  these  ball  bearings  may  be  attributed 
not  only  to  the  superior  design,  but  also  to 
the  good  quality  of  the  steel,  which  is  supplied 
from  the  S.  K.  F.  Company's  own  steel  works 
at  Hofors,  Sweden,  and  last  but  not  least,  to 
the  accuracy  in  manufacturing  which  guaran- 
tees a   precision   of  o.oooi    mm. 

Messrs.  Kjellberg  also  represent  the 
Bofors  Ordnance  and  Gunpowder  Works, 
for  which  they  are  doing  a  considerable 
business,  chiefly  in  semi-finished  steel  pro- 
ducts for  war  material.  The  Bofors  Works 
in  Sweden  are  well  known  for  their  high 
quality  alloy  steel  forgings  and  castings. 
The  casting  of  big  guns  is  carried  out  accord- 
ing to  the  special  Bofors  process.  Bofors 
Nobel  powder  is  manufactured  in  various 
grades,  including  excellent  qualities  of  smoke- 
less and  flameless  powder.  Another  interest- 
ing article  brought  on  the  market  by  Messrs. 
Kjellberg  is  the  Johansson  Combination 
Gauge  Set.  By  the  use  of  these  gauges  it 
has  been  made  possible  to  introduce  into 
the  busiest  workshops  a  system  of  control 
which  carries  a  precision  hitherto  unobtain- 
able. One  of  our  illustrations  shows  a  set 
of  Johansson  measuring  blocks  by  which 
an  accuracy  of  i  10,000th  of  a  millimetre 
can  be  obtained.  When  the  Johansson 
system  was  first  brought  to  the  notice  of 
various  authorities,  including  the  experts  of 
different  universities,  they  doubted  the 
possibility  of  such  a  degree  of  accuracy 
being  reaUsed.  Now  it  has  been  submitted 
to  practical  tests  in  the  foremost  control 
offices  in  Europe  and  the  United  States, 
such  as  the  Bureau  International  des  Poids 
et  Mesures,  in  Paris,  the  National  Physical 
Laboratory,      London,     and     the     Kaiserl. 


I     .\    KJELLBERG    &    SONS,    LTD.:    S.  K.  F.  BALL    BEARINX.    FACTORY    AT    GOTHENBURG,  SWEDEN  — THE    GUN   FACTORY,    BOFORS   WORKS,    SWEDEN - 
THE    HEAD    OFFICE,    TOKYO— SANDVIKEN    STEEL    WORKS,    EMPLOYING    OVER    3,000    WORKMEN,    SANDVIKEN,    SWEDEN  — GUNS    AND 
MOUNTINGS   IN    THE    ERECTING    SHOPS    OF    THE    BOFORS    WORKS,    SWEDEN —  OFFICE    BUILDING,    GOTHENBURG,    SWEDEN 


'    1 

X 

i 

t-^-.'l 


fA\ 


M~ 


m 


J.    A.    KJELLBERG   &    SONS,    LTD.:      BALL    BEARING   OF   LOCOMOTIVE    WHEELS  —  S.    K.    F.    BALL    BEARING    IN    BELT    PULLEYS  —  DISPLAY    OF    BALL 
BEARINGS    IN    THE   TOKYO    OFFICE  —  A.    JOHANSSON    MEASURING    GAUGE    SET  —  S.    K.    F.    BALL    BEARING    MOTOR  — 

S.    K.    F.    BALL    BEARINGS 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


28.S 


Normal  Aichungs  Kommission,  Berlin,  etc. 
These  testing  offices  themselves  have  adopted 
the  Johansson  system  for  their  control  work. 
A  more  striking  success  for  a  Swedish  inven- 
tor could  hardly  be  imagined.  It  may  be 
mentioned  that  the  S.  K.  F.  Ball  Bearing 
Co.  has  based  its  manufactures  on  the 
Johansson  Gauge  System. 

Besides  the  above-mentioned  specialties, 
Messrs.  Kjellberg  carry  on  an  extensive 
trade  in  iron  and  steel,  representing  leading 
Swedish  steel  works,  such  as  Sandviken, 
Wikmanshyttan,  Soderfors  and  others,  and 
also  buying  direct  from  Sheffield  and  the 
United  States.  Messrs.  Kjellberg  have  for 
many  years  been  suppliers  to  the  Japanese 
Army  and  Navy  Departments,  and  are  well 
known  throughout  Government  circles.  The 
senior  partner,  Mr.  C.  A.  Kjellberg  of 
Gothenburg,  Sweden,  is  President  of  the 
Chamber  of  Commerce,  and  President  of 
the  Gothcnijurg  Bank,  besides  taking 
an  active  part  in  promoting  and  financ- 
ing railway  companies  and  industrial 
enterprises  throughout  Sweden.  The  Japan 
head  office  of  the  company  is  at  Mitsu- 
bishi Building,  Yiiraku-cho,  Kojimachi-ku, 
Tokyo. 

ALFRED    HERBERT,    LIMITED 
The  firm  of  Alfred  Herbert,  Ltd.,  Yoko- 
hama, Tokyo,  and  Osaka,  is  a  branch  of  the 
well-known    firm    of    Alfred    Herbert,    Ltd., 
Coventry,  England. 

For  many  years  this  firm  have  had  a  world- 
wide reputation  as  builders  of  high-class 
machine  tools  and  their  accessories.  From 
a  comparatively  small  beginning  twenty- 
eight  years  ago,  they  have  built  up  one  of 
the  largest  machine  tool  building  and  sell- 
ing organisations  in  the  world.  They  now 
have  two  works  in  the  city  of  Coventry, 
England,  where  nearly  3,000  persons  are 
engaged,  and  have  branch  offices  in  eight  of 
the  principal  cities  in  Great  Britain.  Abroad 
they  have  offices  in  New  York,  France,  Italy, 
India,  Japan,  and  Russia.  In  their  own 
works,  they  specialise  in  the  manufacture  of 
turret  lathes,  horizontal  and  vertical  mill- 
ing machines,  cutter  grinders  and  dieheads 
for  bolt  screwing.  All  these  machines  and 
dieheads  are  built  in  large  quantities  on  the 
most  modern  manufacturing  lines.  Jigs 
and  fixtures  are  used  as  much  as  possible 
for  all  machining  process,  all  rotary  parts 
are  ground  to  predetermined  limits  of  accu- 
racy, and  all  slides  are  planed  and  scraped 
to  true  surface  plates.  Special  attention  is 
paid  to  the  material  entering  into  the  con- 
struction of  all  their  machines,  and  its 
quality  is  kept  strictly  up  to  standard  by 
continual  tests  and  inspection  carried  out 
in  their  own  chemical  laboratory. 


Messrs.  Alfred  Herbert,  Ltd.,  take  great 
pleasure  in  showing  their  works,  and  explain- 
ing their  methods  of  manufacturing  to  any 
one  interested,  and  visitors  from  all  parts  of 
the  world  are  cordially  invited.  In  addition 
to  being  manufacturers  of  the  machines 
mentioned  above,  they  are  large  dealers  in 
all  other  types  of  machine  tools,  being  sell- 
ing agents  for  many  of  the  leading  makers 
in  Great  Britain  and  America. 

The  firm  claim  to  be  in  a  position  to  sup- 
ply practically  every  type  of  metal-working 
machine  or  accessory  required  in  an  engi- 
neering workshop,  and  being  makers  and 
actual  users  of  machine  tools  in  their  own 
factories,  have  an  ever  accumulating  supply 
of  experience  to  guide  them  in  their  selec- 
tion of  the  best  machines  to  suit  their 
clients. 

All  the  branch  offices  of  Messrs.  Alfred 
Herbert,  Limited,  are  under  the  manage- 
ment of  men  who  have  been  trained  in  their 
own  works  and  are  fully  capable  of  dealing 
with  all  points  connected  with  the  selection, 
installation,  and  output  of  metal-working 
machinery.  Their  principal  office  in  Japan 
is  situated  at  No.  4,  Yamashita-cho,  Yoko- 
hama. Here  they  have  a  large  showroom 
and  warehouse  where  many  machines  and 
small  tools  are  always  carried  in  stock.  A 
picture  of  this  office  and  showroom  accom- 
panies this  article. 

The  office  system  of  the  firm  is  thoroughly 
up  to  date.  The  many  thousand  small 
tools  in  stock  are  carefully  tabulated  on 
cards  so  that  it  is  possible  at  any  moment 
to  ascertain  the  exact  quantities  of  any  goods 
in  stock.  Complete  stock  lists  are  sent  to 
their  branch  offices  and  representatives  every 
week,  which  enables  their  salesmen  to 
quickly  advise  customers  of  the  goods  avail- 
able for  immediate  delivery.  They  are  one 
of  the  few  foreign  firms  in  Japan  who  arc 
using  the  Japanese  typewriter.  Although  a 
slow  and  cumbersome  machine  compared 
with  the  English  typewriter,  they  claim  that 
the  uniform  style  and  neatness  of  the  letters 
produced  gives  a  tone  to  their  correspondence 
which  is  difficult  to  obtain  when  letters  are 
written  by  hand.  Another  interesting  ma- 
chine used  in  the  office  is  a  dictaphone  and 
the  necessary  transcribing  machines.  By 
the  use  of  the  dictaphone,  the  manager 
finds  that  he  can  get  his  correspondence 
off  his  mind  any  time  of  the  day  or  night 
regardless  of  whether  his  stenographer  is 
there  or  not. 

One  room  is  set  apart  for  commercial  pho- 
tography. Here  is  installed  a  photostat, 
which  is  a  large  camera  specially  made  for  com- 
mercial work,  the  photograph  being  taken 
direct  onto  the  paper  and  developed  and 
fixed  in  the  machine,  the  whole  process  being 


completed  in  a  very  few  minutes.  Specifi- 
cations, drawings,  letters,  catalogue  illus- 
trations, and  documents  of  all  kinds  are 
quickly  and  accurately  copied  on  this  machine 
and  consequently  a  great  saving  in  time  is 
effected.  The  office  in  Tokyo  is  situated  at 
No.  18,  Yamashita-cho,  Kyobashiku.  Here 
a  representative  stock  of  small  tools  is 
carried  so  that  customers  in  Tokj'O  can  in- 
spect samples  of  their  goods  without  having 
to  visit  Yokohama.  A  capable  Japanese 
salesman  is  in  charge  who,  with  a  number  of 
assistants,  thoroughly  covers  the  Tokyo  dis- 
trict. Being  in  close  proximity  to  Yoko- 
hama, Messrs.  Alfred  Herbert,  Ltd.,  can 
quickly  draw  upon  their  head  office  for  special 
assistance  or  advice.  In  Osaka  they  have  a 
large  office  and  showroom  at  98-1  Kami 
2-chome,  Sonezaki-cho,  Kitaku.  It  is  con- 
trolled by  a  British  engineer  who  has  a  capa- 
ble staff  of  salesmen  under  him.  In  addition 
to  carrying  a  representative  stock  of  small 
tools,  a  number  of  machines  are  exhibited 
at  this  office,  and  as  the  men  in  charge  are 
kept  fully  posted  regarding  machines  avail- 
able and  prices  they  are  in  a  position  to 
dea'  fidly  with  all  business  in  the  western 
portion   of  Japan. 

Owing  to  the  rapid  progress  which  is  being 
made  in  the  Kyushu  Island  of  Japan,  Messrs. 
Alfred  Herbert,  Ltd.,  have  just  opened  a  new 
office  in  Kokura,  in  order  to  give  better  service 
to  their  customers  in  that  part  of  the  country. 
Machines  supplied  by  the  firm  are  to  be  found 
in  all  the  Government  dockyards  and  arsenals 
in  Japan,  in  all  the  large  engineering  works, 
and  in  a  great  number  of  the  smaller  ones. 
Many  Japanese  engineers  travelling  in  Eng- 
land have  visited  their  works  and  have  been 
given  an  opportunity  of  studying  their 
machines  and  their  methods  of  manufactur- 
ing them,  and  a  cordial  invitation  is  always 
extended  to  those  interested  to  do  likewise. 

In  addition  to  representing  their  own  works 
in  Japan  Messrs.  Alfred  Herbert,  Ltd.,  are 
agents  for  the  following  British  and  American 
concerns:  Ajax  Manufacturing  Co.,  Cleve- 
land, O.,  U.  S.  A.,  Forging  Machinery; 
AUdays  &  Onions  Pneumatic  Eng.  Co.,  Ltd., 
Birmingham,  England,  Furnaces  and  Pneu- 
matic Hammers;  American  Machine  Tool 
Co.,  Hackettstown,  N.  J.,  U.  S.  A.,  Machine 
Tools;  Arundel  &  Co.,  Stockport,  England, 
Thread  Milling  Machines  and  Cutters; 
Atlas  Press  Co.,  Kalamazoo,  U.  S.  A.,  Arbor 
Presses;  "Auto"  Recorder  Co.,  Leicester, 
England,  COj  Recorders;  Baush  Machine 
Tool  Co.,  Springfield,  Mass.,  U.  S.  A., 
Multiple  Spindle  Drilling  Machines;  Bilton 
Machine  Tool  Co.,  Bridgeport,  Conn., 
U.  S.  A.,  Machine  Tools;  Beauderj'  &  Co., 
Inc.,  Boston,  Mass.,  U.  S.  A.,  Power  Ham- 
mers; Borden  Company,  Warner,  O.,  L^.  S.  A., 


MESSRS.    ALFRED    HERBERT,    LIMITED:      A    SECTION    OF    THE   YOKOHAMA    MACHINERY    WAREHOUSE -THE    OSAKA    BRANCH    OFFICE 

THE   TOKYO    OFFICE THE    YOKOHAMA   HEAD    OFFICE 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


287 


Stock  and  Dies;  N.  P.  Bowsher  Co.,  South 
Bend,  Indiana,  U.  S.  A.,  Balancing  Ways; 
Henry  Broadbcnt,  Ltd.,  Sowerby  Bridge, 
England,  Machine  Tools;  Broom  Wade, 
Ltd.,  High  Wycombe,  England,  Air  Com- 
pressors; Davis,  Brown  &  Sons,  Ltd.,  Hidders- 
field,  England,  Bevel  Gear  Generators; 
Carborundum  Company,  Niagara  Falls, 
U.  S.  A.,  Grinding  Wheels  and  All  Kinds  of 
Abrasive  Products;  Champion  Tool  Works 
Co.,  Cincinnati,  0.,  U.  S.  A.,  Lathes;  James 
Clarke,  Jnr.,  Electric  Co.,  Louisville,  Ky., 
U.  S.  A.,  Portable  Electric  Tools;  Cleveland 
Planer  Works,  Cleveland,  O.,  U.  S.  A., 
Open  Side  Planer;  Cochrane-Bly  Co., 
Rochester,  N.  Y.,  U.  S.  A.,  Sawing  Machines 
and  Universal  Shaping  Machines;  Com- 
mercial Camera  Co.,  Rochester,  N.  Y., 
U.  S.  A.,  Commercial  Photographing  Ma- 
chines; Dill  Machine  Co.,  Philadelphia,  Pa., 
U.  S.  A.,  Slotting  Machines;  Drummond 
Bros.,  Ltd.,  Guildford,  Machine  Tools; 
De  Mooy  Machine  Co.,  Cleveland,  O., 
U.  S.  A.,  Drilling  Machines;  Fellows  Gear 
Shaper  Co.,  Springfield,  Vermont,  U.  S.  A., 
Gear  Cutting  Machines;  L.  Gardner  &  Sons, 
Ltd.,  Patricroft,  Manchester,  Crank  Pin 
Turning  Machines;  Garvin  Machine  Co., 
New  York,  Machine  Tools;  John  Hands  & 
Son,  Ltd.,  Birmingham,  England,  Presses; 
Hardinge  Bros.,  Inc.,  Ravenswood,  U.  S.  A., 
Precision  Machines  and  Watchmen's  Clocks; 
Joshua  Heap  &  Co.,  Ltd.,  Ashton-Under- 
Lyne,  Screwing  Machines;  Holbrook  & 
Sons,  London,  England,  Machine  Tools; 
H.  W.  Kearns  &  Co.,  Ltd.,  Manchester, 
England,  Boring  Machines;  Lapointe  Ma- 
chine Tool  Co.,  Hudson,  Mass.,  U.  S.  A., 
Broaching  Machines;  Manlove,  AUiott  & 
Co.,  Ltd.,  Nottingham,  England,  Oil  Sepa- 
rators; New  Britain  Machine  Co.,  New 
Britain,  Conn.,  U.  S.  A.,  Chucking  Machines; 
Napier  Saw  Works,  Springfield,  Mass., 
U.  S.  A.,  Hack  Saw  Blades;  Narragansett 
Machine  Co.,  Pawtucket,  R.  I.,  U.  S.  A., 
Drill  Chucks;  George  Oldham  Son  &  Co., 
Philadelphia,  Pa.,  U.  S.  A.,  Pneumatic  Tools; 
Oliver  Instrument  Co.,  Detroit,  Mich., 
U.  S.  A.,  Sawing,  Filing  and  Lapping  Ma- 
chinery; Peerless  Belt  Lacing  Machine  Co., 
Philadelphia,  Pa.,  U.  S.  A.,  Belt  Lacing 
Machines;  Plank  Flexible  Shaft  Machine 
Co.,  Grand  Rapids,  Mich.,  U.  S.  A.,  Flexible 
Shafting  and  Outputs;  Racine  Tool  & 
Machine  Co.,  Racine,  Wis.,  U.  S.  A.,  Hack 
Sawing  Machines;  Reading  Chain  Block  Co., 
Reading,  Penn.,  U.  S.  A.,  Chain  Blocks; 
Rudge  Whitworth,  Ltd.,  Coventry,  England, 
"Etemite"  Casehardening  Mixture;  W.  J. 
Savage  &  Co.,  Inc.,  Kno.wille.Tenn.,  U.  S.  A., 
Sheet  Metal  Cutting  Machines;  Sililey 
Machine  Tool  Co.,  South  Bend,  Ind.,  U.  S.  A., 
Drilling  Machines;  J.  T.  Slocomb  Co.,  Provi- 


dence, R.  I.,  U.  S.  A.,  Micrometers;  Spring- 
field Machine  Tool  Co.,  Springfu-ld,  O., 
U.   S.   A.,   Machine  Tools. 

One  of  their  most  important  agencies  is 
that  of  the  Carborundum  Co.  of  Niagara 
Falls,  U.  S.  A.,  comprising  as  it  does  a  com- 
plete line  of  abrasive  material  for  all  purposes. 
Grinding  wheels,  abrasive  cloth  and  paper, 
abrasive  grains  and  stone  suitable  for  the 
metal,  woodworking,  leather,  glass,  and  stone 
trades,  etc.,  are  made  by  the  Carborundum 
Co.,  and  are  stocked  in  Yokohama. 

Another  well  known  American  firm  who 
have  placed  their  Japanese  business  in  the 
hands  of  Alfred  Herbert,  Ltd.,  is  the  J.  T. 
Slocomb  Co.,  of  Providence,  U.  S.  A.  The 
company  manufacture  precision  measuring 
tools  of  a  very  high  order  and  their  products 
are  known  all  o\-er  the  world. 

GADELIUS    &    CO. 

This  firm  is  of  Swedish  nationality,  the 
proprietor  being  Mr.  K.  Gadelius  of  Stockholm, 
who,  however,  is  at  present  a  resident  of 
Tokyo,  Japan.  Its  activities  are  strictly 
confined  to  Japan,  where  the  office  was  opened 
in  January,  1907.  Previous  to  this  Mr. 
Gadelius  made  several  business  visits  to  the 
Far  East,  from  1895  onwards,  to  gain  the 
necessary  experience  of  Eastern  requirements, 
so  that  when  the  firm  formally  opened  its 
operations,  its  principal  was  well  acquainted 
with  market  conditions. 

The  development  of  Swedish  interests  in 
Japan,  through  the  agency  of  Messrs.  Gade- 
lius &  Co.,  is  attributable  to  the  tremendous 
industrial  expansion  which  has  taken  place  in 
Sweden  since  the  latter  part  of  the  nineteenth 
century.  Sweden  has  natural  resources, 
principally  of  iron,  timber,  and  cheap  water 
power,  second  to  none  in  the  world,  and  the 
development  of  these  resources,  followed  by 
the  rapid  growth  of  all  industries  associated 
with  them,  necessarily  gave  the  impulse  to 
Swedish  manufacturers  to  seek  wider  markets 
for  their  trade  and  commerce.  It  was  this 
impulse,  and  Mr.  Gadelius'  recognition  of  the 
wide  field  in  Japan,  that  led  to  the  establish- 
ment of  his  business  in  Tokyo.  During  the 
first  few  years  the  firm  made  steel  and  iron  its  _ 
specialties,  but  as  the  industrial  and  engineer- 
ing sciences  of  Sweden,  in  various  specialties, 
were  brought  to  the  same  level  of  excellence  as 
those  of  larger  and  more  developed  countries 
of  the  world,  the  firm  gradually  brought  its 
engineering  department  to  the  front.  To-day 
Messrs.  Gadelius  &  Co.  represent  some  of  the 
largest  manufacturers  of  Swedish  specialties 
which  have  gained  their  reputations  in  the 
markets  of  the  world. 

The  machinery  business  of  Messrs. 
Gadelius  &  Co.  comprises  three  different 
classes,  namely: 


Mining  and  Metallnrgy:  Swedish  diamond 
Ijoring  machines,  Atlas  pneumatic  rock  drills, 
Ludwigsljergs  pumps,  Grondal's  ore  flotation 
plants,  concentrating  and  briquetting  plants, 
Raman's  chloridising  roasting  plants,  etc. 

Power  Supply:  Stal  Steam  Turbo-Genera- 
tors, Polar  Diesel  motors,  Bolinders  oil  motors, 
Penta  motors,  Nydqvist  &  Holms  water 
turbines,  etc. 

Miscellaneous:  Arehns  match-making  ma- 
chinery, Bolinders  wood-working  machines, 
Ludwigsbergs  high-pressure  pumps,  Mono 
combustion  gases  controlling  apparatus,  etc. 

Sweden  is  a  very  old  mining  country,  and  it 
is  only  natural  that  the  manufacturers  of  that 
country  should  be  producing  superior  machin- 
ery for  mining  and  kindred  purposes.  The 
Swedish  Diamond  Boring  Company  have  been 
makers  of  boring  machines  for  the  past  thirty 
years,  and  their  drills  are  recognised  for  their 
efficiency  in  conjunction  with  simplicity  in 
design,  making  them  easy  for  anybody  to 
handle.  The  good  Swedish  material  of  which 
they  are  made  gives  them  the  advantage  of 
light  weight.  These  drills  have  easily  found 
their  way  to  the  larger  mining  companies  of 
Japan,  and  the  same  distinct  success  in  the 
Japanese  market  has  been  gained  by  the  Atlas 
Rock  Drills.  The  manufacturers  of  these 
tools  have  a  still  older  experience  and  their 
product  has  gained  a  world-wide  reputation. 

Among  metallurgical  inventions  in  Sweden 
those  of  Dr.  Grondal  and  Engineer  Ramen  are 
noteworthy.  The  former's  eflorts  extending 
over  many  years,  for  the  successful  crushing, 
concentrating,  and  briquetting  of  low-grade 
and  impure  ores,  have  met  with  pronounced 
success,  as  is  shown  by  the  many  plants  that 
have  been  erected  after  his  design  and  fitted 
with  his  machines,  not  only  in  Sweden  but 
also  in  other  countries.  Mr.  Ramen's 
chloridising  roasting  process  for  sulphide 
pyrite  cinders  is  to  be  considered  as  a  revolu- 
tionary process  in  the  field  of  extraction 
processes  of  copper  and  other  metals.  The 
invention  not  only  diminishes  the  cost  of  such 
a  process,  but  makes  it  also  possible  to 
successfully  extract  a  larger  precentage  of 
copper,  as  well  as  other  valuable  metals  in  the 
ore,  and,  furthermore,  the  residue  obtained  con- 
stitutes an  iron  ore  of  the  very  best  quality. 

In  the  line  of  power  supply  machinery 
Sweden  at  an  earlier  stage  did  not  bring  out 
anything  of  special  value  until  the  develop- 
ment of  the  enormous  water  power  existing  in 
that  country  gave  her  engineers  a  large  field 
for  their  energy  and  skill.  Some  of  the  largest 
water  turbines  in  existence  are  now-  produced 
in  Sweden,  and  the  Swedish  manufacturer  in 
this  line  is  known  everywhere.  The  firm  of 
Nydqvist  &  Hohns  of  TroUhattan  is  one  of  the 
best  known  water  turbine  makers,  and  one 
represented  in  Japan  by  Messrs.  Gadelius  & 


li: 

/* 

r  !'■ 

-a 

GADELIUS    &   CO.:   MOTOR    SCHOONER    "ci  1 V    OK    PORTLAND,"  Fill  tD     WITH    64O    B.   H.   P.    I!ol-IM)KKb     MOTORS  —  M.    S.    "  HAMLET,"  FITTED  WITH 
3,300    B.    H.    P.    DIESEL-POLAR    MOTORS STAL   TURBO    GENERATOR,    1,500    K.    W. — MOTOR    ROOM    OF    M.    S.    "hAMLET" 


GADEL.US  &  CO.:   BOLINDERS  WOOD-WORKING  MACHINES,  LOG  FRAME-LUDVVIGSBERGS  MOTOR  FIRE  ENGINE  WORKHsG  ™'*«^";»^^J^\^',fJ^^ 
HOSE-LUDWIGSBERGS    AIR    COMPRESSOR    AGGREGATES   FOR    SUBMARINES-ATLAS   ROCK   DRILL    (jj/^      "CLOP       ROCK    DR^^^    WITH 
TRIPOD) -NYDQVI'ST    &    HOLMS    WATER   TURBINE    (l2,500    H.   P.  TURBINE   DELIVERED    TO    THE    SWEDISH    GO\ERNMENT) 


290 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


THOS.    FIRTH    &    SONS,    LTD.:    STAMPS    AND    OTHER    MINING    BATTERY    PARTS    AND    LOCOMOTIVE    DRIVING    WHEELS 

MANUFACTURED    BY   THE    FIRM 


Co.  An  accompanying  illustration  shows  a 
12,500  H.  P.  aggregate,  manufactured  by 
them  for  the  Swedish  Government.  In 
steam  power  the  great  cultured  countries  for 
a  long  time  were  ahead  as  to  cheapness  and 
efficiency  of  power,  and  although  the  steam 
turbine  invented  by  the  Swedish  engineer, 
Mr.  de  Laval,  was  the  very  first  commercially 
successful  steam  tiu-bine,  it  was  soon  over- 
ruled by  English  and  American  manufac- 
turers. In  the  last  ten  years,  however,  a 
Swedish  engineer,  Mr.  Ljungstrom,  has 
succeeded  in  inventing  a  steam  turbine  which, 
in  efficiency  and  economy,  has  created  a 
record.  The  turbine  called  Stal,  composed  by 
the  first  characters  of  the  company,  Svenska 
Turbinfabriks  Aktiebolaget  Ljungstrom,  is 
already  too  well  known  to  need  further 
comment.  It  has  in  Japan,  as  in  other 
countries,  been  received  with  great  interest. 
License  rights,  as  well  as  engines  for  both 
stationary  use  and  for  ship-driving  purposes, 
have  been  sold  to  large  concerns  here.  The 
oil-engine  industry  of  Sweden  has  for  many 
years  had  a  leading  position.  In  this  branch 
Messrs.  Gadelius  &  Co.  represent  such  famous 


factories  as  the  Bolinders  and  the  Polar  Diesel 
Companies,  whose  engines  are  used  and 
appreciated  all  over  the  world.  Sweden  has 
also  a  unique  position  in  regard  to  the  match 
industry,  being  a  large  manufacturer  of 
matches  as  well  as  of  machines  for  the  match 
industry. 

In  Japan  the  blacksmith's  and.  carpenter's 
toolmakers  have  for  a  long  time  been 
familiar  with  the  use  of  Swedish  steel  and  iron. 
The  splendid  ore  of  the  Swedish  iron  mines, 
and,  furthermore,  the  piu-ifying  of  the  same 
by  means  of  charcoal  as  practised  in  Sweden, 
gave  this  country  a  unique  standing  in  the 
iron  and  steel  market,  one  which,  in  certain 
lines,  has  up  to  now  been  without  competition. 
In  Japan  the  cutlery  industry  maintains  very 
high  standards,  and  the  high  quality  of 
Swedish  steel — its  nature  as  charcoal  steel 
exceedingly  well  suits  the  Japanese  black- 
smith— has  opened  its  way  all  over  the 
country.  Besides,  there  is,  of  course,  in  a 
countr)'  like  Japan,  with  its  important 
industries,  a  large  demand  for  different 
purposes,  for  a  middle  high  class  pioduct 
like  the  Swedish  charcoal  steel,  and  the  import 


is  therefore  not  small.  Much  the  greater 
part  of  this  import  is  carried  on  by  Messrs. 
Gadelius  &  Co. 

The  offices  of  Messrs.  Gadelius  &  Co.  are  at 
No.  41,  Tsukiji,  Akashi-cho,  Kyobashiku, 
Tokyo,  at  No.  40,  Uramachi,  Kob^,  and  at 
No.  44  Skeppsbron,  Stockholm. 

THOS.  FIRTH  &  SONS,  LI.MITED 
This  famous  Sheffield  house  is  prominent 
in  the  markets  of  Japan,  and  through  the 
representation  of  Mr.  A.  J.  Lefroy,  it  has 
placed  a  large  number  of  valuable  orders 
in  a  field  where,  if  the  demand,  owing  to  the 
rapid  industrial  expansion  of  Japan,  is  strong, 
the  competition  is  none  the  less  keen.  Thos. 
Firth  &■  Sons,  Ltd.,  own  the  Norfolk  Works  at 
Sheffield,  from  which  are  turned  out  all  classes 
of  mining  machinery,  tools  and  tool  steel, 
manganese  and  other  special  steel  castings, 
aircraft  steels,  and  the  Firth  "stainless  cutlerj' 
steels."  To  enumerate  all  the  products  of 
these  famous  Norfolk  Works  is  not  within  the 
scope  of  this  article.  It  is  sufficient  to  say 
that  Thos.  Firth  &  Sons,  Ltd.,  have  given  the 
most  careful  study  to  the  varying  conditions 


ARTHUR    HALFOUR   CO.,    1.TU.:    IMKRIUK    C)|.    tULCIIILli    hlliliL    MELTING    DEPARTMENT  — SAWING    A    STEEL    BAR   TO   LENGTH    FOR    TWIST 

DRILLS — (centre)    ELECTRIC    FURNACE  —  INSPECTION    DEPARTMENT    IN    TWIST    DRILL    AND   CUTTER    WORKS TWIST    DRILL 

AND   CUTTER    HARDENING    SHOP  —  THE    TURNING    OF    TWIST   DRILLS  —  A   FEW    OF    THE    MILLING    MACHINES    IN    ONE 
OF    THE    BAYS    ENGAGED    IN    PRODUCING    MILL   CUTTERS,    ETC. —  HAMMERING    A    BAR    OF    STEEL 


292 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


of  foreign  markets,  and  turn  out  machinery, 
steel,  tools  and  parts  that  meet  with  general 
favour.  This  is  so  in  Japan,  which  has 
become  an  exceedingly  valuable  market  for 
the  careful  manufacturer.  The  mining 
industry  is  developing  rapidly,  and  there  is  a 
strong  call  for  such  high-grade  products  as 
those  from  the  Norfolk  Works.  The  same  is 
tnie  of  the  engineering  trades,  from  which 
there  is  a  great  demand  for  tool  and 
machine  steel,  machineni-  and  parts,  and 
special  grades  of  steel. 

Thos.  Firth  &  Sons,  Ltd.,  are  noted  for  their 
attention  to  the  requirements  of  the  trades 
and  industries  which  are  showing  the  greatest 
expansion  in  Japan,  and  their  enterprise  in 
being  directly  represented  in  the  market,  in 
conformity  with  a  policy  that  has  given  them 
branches  and  agencies  in  all  parts  of  the 
world,  has  met  with  all  success.  The  "stain- 
less" cutlery  steel  produced  at  the  Norfolk 
Works  is  the  result  of  a.  discovery  made  in 
191 3,  the  development  of  which  has  given 
Thos.  Firth  &  Sons,  Ltd.,  a  foremost  place  in 
the  ranks  of  contributors  to  -  metallm-gic 
science,  and  they  have  also  made  valuable 
improvements  in  aircraft  steel  manufac- 
ture. 

The  company's  Japan  office  is  under  the 
direction  of  Mr.  Lefroy,  and  is  in  the  Mitsu- 
bishi Building  at  Tokj'o. 

ARTHUR  BALFOUR  &  CO.,    LTD.    (dANNE- 

mor.\  steel  works,  sheffield, 
England) 

The  city  of  Sheffield,  England,  is  weil 
known  the  world  over  for  the  excellence  of 
its  products,  chief  amongst  these  being  the 
manufacture  of  High  Speed  and  Crucible 
Tool  Steels. 

One  of  the  firms  that  have  contributed 
largely  to  the  prestige  of  the  famous  city,  by 
this  special  industrj',  is  that  of  Arthur 
Balfour  &  Co.,  Ltd. 

This  business  was  established  in  1865,  and 
from  the  commencement  was  marked  by  an 
almost  uninterrupted  growth,  the  works 
being  enlarged  or  reconstructed  from  time 
to  time  to  meet  the  increased  demands  made 
upon  them. 

The  firm  became  well  known  for  the  excel- 
lent quality  of  its  products  in  Great  Britain 
and  on  the  Continent  of  Europe,  but  it  was 
not  until  the  present  Managing  Director, 
Mr.  Arthur  Balfour,  joined  the  Directorate, 
thirty  j'ears  ago,  that  the  active  policy  of 
extension  on  a  large  scale  was  inaugurated 
in  regard  to  the  overseas  markets,  and  that 
the  firm  attained  its  world-wide  renown  as 
manufacturers  of  high  class  Crucible  Tool 
Steels,  etc.  Mr.  Arthur  Balfour  personally 
visited  the  Far  East,  penetrating  places  well 
off     the     beaten     track,     and     accumulated 


TOKYO    BRANCH    OFFICE    OF    KAWAKIPA    ELECTRIC   CO.,   LTD. 


information  valuable  to  the  requirements  of 
tool  steel  users.  This  became  manifest  by 
the  continued  extension  of  the  works  in 
Sheffield,  and  to-day,  not  only  do  the  firm 
own  their  original  plant,  btit  the  increase 
of  business  and  the  pressure  on  the  then 
existing  resources,  necessitated  the  erection 
of  a  branch  works  in  another  portion  of  the 
city,  and  more  recently,  an  up-to-date  works 
in  another  manufacture  of  high  speed  engi- 
neers' tools,  including  twist  drills,  milling 
cutters,  reamers  and  other  small  tools  of 
precision. 

Arthiu-  Balfour  &  Co.,  Ltd.,  have  been 
conspicuous  in  the  advances  made  in  tool 
steel  manufacture  of  recent  years,  notably 
in  connection  with  High  Speed  Steel.  Their 
"Capital"  trademark  used  with  their  High 
Speed  Steels,  is  well  known  in  the  Far  East, 
as  also  their  brands  of  steel,  viz.:  "New- 
Capital,"  "Sento  Capital,"  and  "Ultra 
Capital."  The  last  named  quality  is  the 
steel  which  will  give  the  maximum  of 
efficiency  at  high  speeds,  especially  on  cast 
iron  and  hard  materials. 

The  Crucible  Cast  Steels  of  this  company 
are  known  and  appreciated  in  Government 
workshops,  railway  workshops,  shipyards, 
engineering  shops,  mines,  etc.,  in  all  the 
principal  markets,  and  they  have  held  for 
many  years  the  British  Admiralty  contract 
for  ordinary  crucible  steel  for  engineers' 
tools.  The  manufacture  of  special  steels  for 
various  purposes,  such  as  mint  dies,  motor 
car  parts,  electrical  resistances,  magnets,  etc., 
claims  the  company's   particular   attention. 


Circular  saw's  (both  high  speed  and  carbon 
steel)  for  metal  or  wood,  handsaws,  websaws, 
hacksaws,  rubber  knives,  parangs,  etc.,  are 
extensively  manufacttu"ed.  Other  special- 
ties are  woodworking  tools  and  knives, 
leather  knives,  hammers,  picks,  and  files. 
Several  grades  of  files  are  made,  including 
their  special  "D.  S.  W."  Brand,  the  file  with 
the  sharp  teeth  and  long  life. 

In  these  days  of  chemistry  and  science,  it 
is  interesting  to  note  that  Arthur  Balfour  & 
Co.,  Ltd.,  employ  a  staff  of  fully  qualified 
chemists.  Their  laboratorj'  is  one  of  the 
finest  of  its  type  in  Sheffield,  equipped  with 
the  latest  appliances  for  analj^tical,  micro- 
scopical, and  pyrometric  research,  and  the 
careful  examination  on  a  scientific  basis,  of 
both  raw  materials  and  finished  products 
enables  them  to  maintain  their  qualities  to 
their  well  known  high  standards. 

The  manufacturing  and  commercial  sides 
of  this  business  have  been  highly  organised, 
and  direct  representation  by  resident  officials 
in  all  the  important  countries  of  the  world, 
enable  Arthur  Balfour  &  Co.,  Ltd.,  to  meet 
the  special  conditions  prevailing  in  any  of 
their  markets,  or  the  special  requirements  of 
individual  customers. 

They  have  their  own  staffs  and  offices  in  the 
following  countries: 

Japan  —  Tokj'o  and  Osaka. 

China  —  Shanghai. 

Australia  —  Melbourne,  Sydney,  Kalgoorlie, 
and  Fremantle. 

Canada  —  Montreal  and  Toronto. 

South  .Africa  —  Johannesburg. 


PRESENT-DAY    IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


293 


)RITANI    &   CO.:    (left    UPPER)    one    of    the    firm's    GODOWNS — (left   lower)    head    office,    TOKYO — (right)    KYUSHU    BRANCH 


G  las- 


France —  Paris. 

Great  Britain  —  Sheffield,     London, 
gow,  and  Newcastle-on-Tyne. 

Agencies  and  stocks  are  held  also  in  Adel- 
side,  Brisbane,  and  Wellington  in  Australasia ; 
Bombay  and  Calcutta  in  India;  Winnipeg 
and  Vancouver  in  Canada;  in  the  United 
States  of  America,  Mexico,  and  on  the  con- 
tinent of  Europe. 

The  offices  of  their  Far  Eastern  branches 
are  as  follows; 

Japan — Tokyo,  No.   i 
Kyobashi-ku.       Osaka, 
Nibanco,  Nishi-ku. 

China  —  Shanghai,  No. 

The  trademarks  of  this 
"Capital,"  "An  Eagle  on  a  Globe,"  and 
"Griffin,"  are  recognised  in  all  parts  of  the 
world  as  a  standard  of  high  quality,  and  the 
unique  experience  gained  during  the  half- 
century  of  existence,  together  with  close 
supervision  throughout  every  stage  of  manu- 
facture of  the  products  of  this  firm,  ensures 
the  consistently  high  quality,  the  maximum 
of  life,  and  the  efficiency  of  the  steel  or  tools, 
which  give  satisfaction  to  the  practical  user. 


Minaini  Saegi-cho, 
No.     35     Honden, 

8  Museum  Road, 
company,    viz. : 


THE  KAWAKITA  ELECTRIC  CO.,  LIMITED 
Prominent  among  the  electrical  engineer- 
ing enterprises  of  Japan  is  the  well  known 
Osaka  company,  the  Kawakita  Denki 
Kabushiki  Kaisha,  or  Kawakita  Electric  Co., 
Ltd.  This  large  concern  has  invested 
millions  of  yen  in  the  development  of  hydro- 
electric and  other  electricity-generating 
schemes,  and  is  also  carrying  on  an  extensive 
manufacturing  industry,  embracing  practi- 
cally all  lines  of  electrical  machinery,  appli- 
ances, and  accessories. 

In  the  development  of  its  manufacturing 
enterprises  and  the  distribution  and  sale  of 
its  products,  the  company  has  established 
branches  in  various  important  centres  of 
Japan.  Offices  and  salesrooms  on  a  large 
scale  are  maintained  at  No.  19,  Shinsakana- 
cho,  Kj'obashi-ku,  Tokyo.  Here  a  most 
complete  stock  of  dynamos,  motors,  trans- 
formers, switch-boards,  fan  motors  and 
other  ventilating  appliances,  meters,  lamps, 
etc.,  is  on  display.  The  company's  reputa- 
tion as  a  manufacturer  has  become  known 
not  only  throughout  Japan,  but  abroad,  and 
already  a  substantial  export  trade  is  being 


done  in  many  lines  that  previously  were 
imported  to  Japan.  Some  idea  of  the  extent 
of  the  company's  manufacturing  capacity 
may  be  gathered  from  the  fact  that  the  works 
turn  out  goods  to  the  value  of  close  on  Yen 
4,000,000  per  annum.  An  interesting  de- 
scription of  this  enterprise  appears  in  the 
Osaka  Industrial  Section  of  this  volume,  see 
page  592. 

MORITANI    &    CO. 

This  firm  was  established  on  September  1 1 , 
1901,  by  its  present  principal,  Mr.  Gohei 
Moritani,  who  may  justly  claim  to  be  one 
of  the  most  experienced  men  in  Japan  in 
the  iron  and  steel,  and  general  machinery 
business.  Messrs.  Moritani  &  Co.  do  an 
enviable  volume  of  trade,  which  runs  to 
about  Yen  8,000,000  per  annum,  but  this 
figure  is  only  indicative  of  present  activities. 
The  history  of  the  business  is  one  of  continual 
and  steady  expansion,  and  there  is  no  doubt 
but  that  in  the  immediate  future  the  annual 
turnover  will  be  much  larger. 

The  success  which  has  attended  the  firm 
is    mainly    due    to    Mr.    Moritani's    sound 


20 


294 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


organisation  and  the  experience  which  he 
has  had  in  all  branches  of  the  trade.  Mori- 
tani  &  Co.  may  be  described  as  general 
importers  and  exporters  of  machinery, 
metals,  and  hardware.  They  are  agents  for 
such  well  known  concerns  as  the  Tokyo 
Rope  Manufacturing  Co.,  Ltd.,  the  Meiden- 
sha  Co.  (Electric  Works),  Oriental  Rubber 
Co.,  Kawasaki  Dock-j^ard  Co.,  Japan  Hide  & 
Leather  Co.,  Asano  Slate  Co.,  Kobukuro 
Iron  Works,  Imperial  Fire-proof  Briclv  Co., 
the  Oriental  Paint  Manufacturing  Co.,  and 
the  Osaka  Wire  Netting  Co.  The  manu- 
factures of  these  different  concerns,  together 
with  other  lines,  including  imported  goods, 
are  distributed  throughout  Japan  by  Messrs. 
Moritani  &  Co.,  who  have  a  strong  selling 
organisation,  working  through  the  following 
branches:  Osaka,  Kokura,  Naokata,  Fuku- 
shima,  Taira,  Iwaki,  Kanazawa,  Sapporo,  and 
Taikoku.  Furthermore,  the  firm  exports 
very  largely  to  China,  Europe,  America, 
and  the  South  Sea  and  South  Pacific 
islands. 

The  business  is  divided  into  well  organised 
departments,   as  follows: 

No.  I,  Mechanical  DeparlmenI:  Steam 
engines,  -boilers,  -pumps,  -hammers,  -heaters, 
-locomotive  engines,  -presses,  -pipes,  -wind- 
ing engines,  -endless  winding  engines,  and 
other  steam  machines;  gas  engines,  gas 
plants,  -tanks,  -pipes,  etc.  Oil  engines,  oil 
tanks.  Air  compressors,  -pumps,  -vacuum 
engines;  wire  ropes,  cotton  ropes,  manila 
ropes,  fans  for  mines,  tramway  machines, 
chilled  castings,  cast  steel  and  cast  iron 
products,  cars,  wagons,  iron  bridges,  copper 
and  gun  metal  cast  products,  malleable 
castings,  girder  works,  cranes,  rails,  steel  or 
iron  pipes,  steel  or  iron  plates,  steel  or  iron 
rods,  water  turbines,  mine  selecting  machines, 
crushers,  wire  nettings,  winches,  special 
cotton  belts,  etc. 

No.  2.  Electrical  DeparlmenI:  A.  C.  Gen- 
erators —  Single  phase  and  3-phase  A.  C. 
Generators,  engine  type  A.  C.  generator  and 


motor  generator  sets  for  frequency  changer, 
etc.,  high  frequency  generators  for  wireless 
telegraph  and  telephone,  synchronous  motors, 
all  necessary  equipments  for  A.  C.  generator 
sets.    D.  C.  Generators — Shunt  or  compound 
series  generators  with  or  without  interpoles, 
dynamo  motor  and  rotary  converters,  motor 
generator  sets  with  D.  C.  or  A.  C.  motors, 
engine  type  D.  C.  generators,  heavy  current 
D.    C.   generators   for  electro-chemical   pur- 
poses,  all  necessary   equipments   for   D.   C. 
generator   sets.      Induction   Motors  —  Single 
phase   and   3-phase   induction   motors   with 
squirrel   cage   rotor   or   wound   rotor,    semi- 
enclosed    motors   for   drip    proof   and    dust 
proof,  totally  enclosed  motor  for  water  proof, 
etc.,   variable   speed  induction   motors   with 
special  winding  on  starter  or  special  resist- 
ance in  rotor  circuit,  speed  regulators,  starters, 
controllers,  compensators,  all  necessary  equip- 
ments for  induction  motors.     D.  C.  Motors 
— Shunt  or  compound  series  motors  with  or 
without  interpoles,  semi-enclosed  motors  for 
drip   proof    and-  dust    proof,   ventilated  en- 
closed motors  for  dust  proof,  gas  proof,  and 
rain  proof,  totally  enclosed  motor  for  water 
proof,    etc.,    starters,    speed    regulators,    all 
necessarj'  equipments  for  D.  C.  motors  sets. 
Transformers — Single    phase    and    3-phase 
transformers    for    lighting    and    power    use, 
high    frequency    transformers    for    wireless 
telegraph,    extra   high   tension   transformers 
for  testing  use,  heavy  current  transformers 
for    electric    furnaces,   single    phase  and    3- 
phase    auto    transformers    for    line    voltage 
controlling,  single  phase  and  3-phase  induc- 
tion    regulators     for     regulating     voltages, 
all   necessary   equipments   for   transformers. 
Switch   board,    etc.  —  All   kinds   of    switch 
boards  and  switch  gears,  switch  board  motors 
and     instrument     transformers,     protecting 
devices   and   indicating    devices,    etc.     Mis- 
cellaneous—  Fan  motors,  repairing  materials, 
necessary  tools  for  setting  machines,  electric 
meters,    copper    and    steel    wires,    insulated 
wires,  cables,  cords,  cars,  locomotive  engines, 


pumps,  cranes,  winding  engines,  telephones, 
telegraphs,  fittings  for  electric  lighting,  line 
materials  for  electric  cars,  electric  heaters, 
illumination  works. 

No.  3,  Rubber  DeparlmenI:  Rubber  belting, 
valves,  packings,  sheets,  hoses,  tubing,  mats, 
gloves,  pneumatic  and  solid  rubber  tyres  for 
automobiles,  carriages,  and  bicycles;  ebonite 
products,  and  all  other  kinds  of  rubber 
products. 

No.  4,  Lealher  DeparlmenI:  Leather  belts 
(single,  double,  and  triple),  link  or  chain 
leather  belts,  round  leather  belts,  water- 
proof leather  belts,  leather  pickers,  buffalo 
pickers,  leather  packings  (hydraulic  rams  or 
U  packings,  etc.),  leather  hoses,  leather 
laces,  rawhide  pinions,  rawhide  pins,  rawhide 
ropes,  belt  cements,  adhesive  greases,  waxes, 
buttons,  button  plates,  ovals  and  oval  plates, 
alligator  belt  lacings,  belt  hooks,  round  belt 
hooks,  belt  lacing  needles,  all  kinds  of  machin- 
ery leather. 

No.j,  DeparlmenI  of  Archileclural  Materials: 
Patented  ornamental  tiles,  patented  fire- 
and  acid-proof  bricks,  patented  zinc  and  gas 
retorts,  patented  Asano  slates  (cement  asbestos 
plates),  patented  Santoku  paints  (originally, 
fire  proof,  water  proof,  and  ship  bottom 
paints),  common  paints,  icolailo  (patented 
by  Japenese  and  English  Governments)  to 
make  cement  water  proof,  patented  quick 
wotailo  (when  water  gushes  out  at  cement 
or  concrete  works),  patented  safe  tailo 
(which  makes  wood  fire  proof),  compressed 
cork  plates  for  covering  floor,  best  diatom 
earth  which  is  produced  in  Akita,  creosotes 
and  creosotum  for  wood,  etc. 

The  capital  employed  by  the  firm  is  Yen 
1,000,000.  Mr.  Gohei  Moritani  is  the  princi- 
pal of  the  business  and  the  General  Manager 
is  Mr.  Yosabuyo  Inoue.  A  staff  of  nearly 
100  experts  and  salesmen,  etc.,  is  em- 
ployed. The  head  office  of  Moritani  &  Co. 
is  at  No.  I  Sanjukkenbori,  Xichome,  Kyoba- 
shi-ku,  Tokyo,  where  the  firm  has  extensive 
godowns. 


w 


3si^msas^^sBSBas:s^:sSTW!fssBSss!:n!;B!^^^^ssm!S!S^E!!m!ssi^ 


-=J'.';i'**~'*JS 


AGRICULTURE    AND    COMMERCE    DEPARTMENT    BUILDING 

XV.    Agriculture 

Genf.kal  Considerations— Intensive  Cultivation— The  Farmers  Lot— Agricultural 

Productivity- Stock-Breeuinc;.    The  Rice   Industry:  Origin   and  Development 

OF  Rice  Culture— Economic  Importance  of  the  Rice  Industry   During 

Feudal  Times  — Rice  in  the  Modern  Market  and  in  the  National 

Economy— Rice  Culture,  its  Extent  and  Varieties— Production 

and    Consumption    of    Rice    in    Japan— Relation    of   the 

Price  to   Other   Commodities  and  to   Wages— How 

Rice  is  Grown  in  Japan— Conclusion.    Chemic\l 

Industries— Commercial  Notices 


DESPITE  the  mountainous  nature  of 
the  country  and  the  consequently 
limited  area  of  arable  land  agri- 
culture is  and  always  has  been  Japan's  most 
important  industry,  occupying,  as  it  does, 
more  than  seventy  per  cent  of  the  people. 
The  possession  of  a  moderate  and  humid 
climate  enhances  the  natural  productivity 
of  the  alluvial,  volcanic  soil  of  the  plains 
and  valleys  to  an  extent  that  largely  com- 
pensates for  restriction  of  agricultural  area; 
and  although  storms  are  expected  in  early 
summer  and  autumn,  of  a  severity  fre- 
quently destructive  to  the  rice  crops,  the 
remainder  of  the  year  is  free  from  such 
dangers  and  growth  is  ever>'where  rapid 
and  luxuriant,  accounting  for  rich  har- 
vests and  the  verdant  appearance  of  the 
country. 


Agriculture  has  always  played  an  impor- 
tant part  in  the  policies  of  successive  rulers 
and  governments  and  been  steadily  promoted 
as  the  foundation  of  national  prosperity  even 
from  the  remotest  times.  In  the  past  it  has 
proved  as  important  a  factor  in  the  social 
structure  of  the  country  as  it  has  in  the 
economic  situation ;  for,  in  Japan,  the  country 
parts  show  a  much  lower  death  rate  than  the 
cities,  and  Japan's  best  physique  has  always 
been  recruited  from  the  rural  population. 
The  sons  of  sttu-dy  farmers  form  the  backbone 
of  the  national  army  and  navy,  while  the 
ranks  of  commerce  and  industry  constantly 
depend  on  the  agricultural  districts  for  a 
supply  of  muscle,  health,  steadiness,  and 
probity. 

The  remarkable  extension  of  the  Japanese 
Empire  north  and  south  affords  every  variety 


of  climate  and  a  resultant  variety  of  crops, 
the  greater  portion  of  the  country  easily 
producing  two  harvests  a  year,  with  a  large 
average  yield.  The  land  produces  enough  to 
meet  nearly  the  whole  demand  for  provisions 
at  home,  as  well  as  the  needs  of  various 
industries,  thus  contributing  immensely  to  the 
national  welfare.  In  Japan,  therefore,  the 
commercial  prosperity  of  the  country  is 
largely  bound  up  with  its  agricultural  prog- 
ress, and  the  Government  is  always  doing 
what  it  can  to  promote  a  more  intensive  as 
well  as  a  more  extensive  cultivation  of  the 
soil  by  introducing  more  scientific  methods 
and  facilitating  financial  accommodation. 

INTENSIVE    CULTIVATION 
The    steady    and    enormous    increase    of 
population  in  Japan  and  the  small  area  of 


296 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


RESERVOIR    AT    KOBE 


Area  Cultivated  per  Family 

Under  2  acres 

Over  2  acres 

Over  2  and  a  half  acres 

Over  5  acres 

Over  7  and  a  half  acres 

Over  1 5  acres 

Total  farming  population  in  families 


Number  of  Families 


1,996,638 

1,816,721 

1,086,871 

332,224 

66,258 


5,448,292 


Percentage 

36.65 

33 

34 

19 

95 

6 

09 

2 

75 

I 

22 

100 

00 

Landed  Farmers 

Tenants 

Both  Owners  and  Tenants 

Total  Families 

1,728,692     (34%) 

1,517,520     (28%) 

2,202,008     (4o'o) 

5,448,220 

holding  is  about  half  an  acre  for  each  person, 
or  two  and  one  half  acres  per  family:  but  in 
the  north  where  the  population  is  less  dense, 
the  average  per  family  often  rises  even  to 
seven  and  a  half  acres.  These  statements 
will  he  borne  out  by  the  first  table  on  this 
page,  illustrating  the  area  under  cultivation 
jicr   family    (1914). 

The  figures  for  1915,  1916,  and  1917  are 
fractionally  less.  Thus  it  is  seen  that  by  far 
the  largest  number,  amounting  to  over 
seventy  per  cent  of  the  total  number  of 
families,  are  cultivating  less  than  two  and  a 
half  acres,  while  those  cultivating  more  than 
seven  acres  do  not  constitute  four  per  cent  of 
the  agricultural  population.  Therefore  it  is 
only  l)y  double  crops  and  subsidiary  occupa- 
tions that  the  average  Japanese  farmer 
can  hope  to  make  ends  meet.  These  side 
industries  chiefly  comprise  sericulture,  tea, 
poultry,  fishing  and  various  handicrafts  in 
straw  and  wood  work,  by  which  family 
earnings  are  increased,  rendering  poverty  and 
destitution  verj'  rare  among  the  farming 
portion  of  the  communit)'.  Japanese  farmers 
may  be  divided  in  four  groups:  those  who 
are  merely  landowners;  those  who  are  land- 
owners working  a  portion  of  their  land 
themselves  and  renting  the  rest;  those  who 
cultivate  all  their  own  land  and  rent  more; 
and  lastly,  those  who  are  simply  tenant 
farmers.  The  number  thus  occupied  in 
1 9 14  with  percentage  of  the  total  was  as 
shown  in  the  second  table  on  this  page 

In  the  years  1915,  1916,  and  1917  there  was 
only  a  fractional  difference.  From  the  above 
it  appears  that  the  number  of  farmers  who 
own  no  land  at  all  is  about  28  per  cent,  while 
the  number  of  those  owning  land  and  yet 


arable  land  available  necessitate  an  intensive 
system  of  cultivation.  With  the  number  of 
inhabitants  to  the  square  mile  ten  times 
greater  than  that  of  the  United  States,  and 
with  a  smaller  cultivable  area  than  Great 
Britain  together  with  a  greater  population, 
and  with  no  adequate  outlet  for  her  surplus 
people,  Japan  is  forced  to  till  every  foot  of  the 
soil,  even  to  terracing  the  steep  hillsides;  all  of 
which  is  done  for  the  most  part  by  manual 
labour,  using  rude  and  simple  implements. 
Horses  and  oxen  are  coming  into  use  to  some 
extent,  over  two  million  of  these  animals  now- 
being  so  employed,  and  a  few  farmers  have 
introduced  foreign  implements  as  far  as 
possible,  but  the  country  as  a  whole  is  not 
suited  to  Western  farming  machinery.  Out 
of  a  total  population  of  some  57,000,000  in 
Japan  proper,  over  40,000,000  are  living  on 
the  land,  cultivating  some  15,000,000  acres. 
Out  of  this  total  about  7,383,325  acres  are 
paddy  fields  and  7,155,893  acres  of  upland, 
with  some  plains  and  pastiu-es.     The  average 


WOODEN    PLOW,    OF    THE    STYLE    MLCH    USED    TO-DAY 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


297 


having  no  conTU'Clion  witli  agriculture  is 
almost  negligible.  It  is  obvious,  therefore, 
that  the  land  is  fairly  evenly  distributed. 

THK  f.\rmi;k's  lot 
TiiK  lot  of  the  Japanese  farmer  is  not 
generally  regarded  as  a  desirable  one,  and 
there  is  a  constant  drift  from  rural  to  urban 
population.  'Phis  tendency  is  especially 
marked  among  the  younger  members  of  the 
tenant  farmers.  _  The  reason  may  lie  in  the 
fact  that  from  45  to  60  per  cent  of  their  crops 
has  to  go  to  the  landlord  for  rent,  and  out  of 
the  balance  they  must  pay  heavily  for  the 
indispensable  fertilizer.  On  what  is  left,  even 
with  the  proceeds  of  their  subsidiary  labours, 
a  life  of  privation  is  their  only  outlook.  The 
jieasant  proprietors  are  usually  better  oR. 
In  addition  to  their  own  plots  they  may 
cultivate  portions  of  land  for  the  larger  pro- 
prietors and  make  a  fair  living.  The  majority 
of  these  peasant  proprietors,  however,  own 
only  from  two  and  a  half  to  five  acres,  which 
they  till  with  the  assistance  of  the  entire 
family.  Taxes  take  about  16  per  cent  of  their 
proceeds,  and  expenses  in  connection  with 
cultivation,  apart  from  labour,  take  about  2^ 
per  cent  more,  leaving  a  balance  of  about  61 
per  cent  for  wages,  interest  on  capital,  and 
profit.  Then  there  are  the  landed  proprietors 
who  act  as  capitalists,  letting  out  their  land  to 
tenants.  These  are  a  class  that  have  sup- 
planted the  country  gentry  of  the  good  old 
days,  neither  commanding  the  respect  of 
their  predecessors  nor  showing  the  same 
kindly  feeling  for  their  tenants.  When 
feudalism  came  to  an  end  in  1872  the  feudal 
lords  anil  the  samurai  were  compelled  to 
relinquish  their  domains  to  the  Imperial 
Oovernment,  hut  no  allotment  of  lands  could 
Ijc  made  as  in  former  times.  Consequently 
the  title  to  lands  was  given  to  the  farmer  w'ho 
happened  to  be  in  possession.  Thus  while 
the  nobility  and  the  samurai  lost  their  lands, 
the  farmer  retained  his  and  became  a  pro- 
prietor, and  after  a  Government  survey 
certifieates  or  deeds  of  ownership  were  given 
to  the  farmers  in  possession.  But  even  the 
most  fortunate  of  these  landowners  was  not 
in  possession  of  more  than  75  acres  and  most 
of  them  not  more  than  25  acres.  The  tenant 
always  pays  the  landlord  in  rice.  The  rate 
for  paddy  fields  is  about  57  per  cent  of  the 
total  yield,  while  the  rate  for  upland  fields  is 
44  per  cent  and  paid  generally  in  cash.  The 
taxes  are  paid  by  the  landowners,  and  as  these 
amount  to  about  33  per  cent  of  the  rent,  the 
actual  income  to  owners  is  not  large.  As  the 
holdings  are  small,  however,  the  profit  to 
the  tenant  is  not  sufficient  to  maintain  him 
witliout  other  work.  Japan  has  no  special 
legislation  as  to  agricultural  holdings  as 
England  has.     In  the  civil  code  a  long  lease  of 


agrarian  land  is  defined  as  running  from 
twenty  to  fifty  years,  though  most  of  the 
tenants  hold  land  from  ten  to  twelve  years  on 
verbal  contract;  but  now  that  the  agrarian 
population  is  turning  toward  the  city  tenants 
are  more  difficult  to  get  and  something  will 
have  to  be  done  to  improve  the  lot  of  the 
farmer.  The  present  policy  is  to  increase  the 
area  of  holdings  without  decreasing  intensity 
of  cultivation  and  amount  of  average  yield  per 
acre. 

Another  interesting  feature  of  the  agrarian 
problem  is  the  Japanese  economy  of  human 
waste  in  the  cultivation  of  the  soil,  which 
supplies  the  greater  portion  of  the  vast 
amount   of   fertilizer   required    to   keep   the 


.•\    J.^PANESE   FARMER  S   IRRIC-VTION    WHEEL 

constantly  depleted  soil  up  to  the  utmost 
possible  limit  of  productivity.  The  annual 
consumption  of  all  kinds  of  fertilizer  in  Japan 
is  valued  at  about  220,000,000  yen.  Besides 
nightsoil  the  principal  fertilizers  are  stable 
manure,  vegetable  ash,  fish  guano,  oilcake, 
rice  bran,  with  large  imports  of  phosphate, 
sulphate  of  ammonia,  and  Chilian  nitrate. 
The  Japanese  are  also  utilising  nitrogen 
derived  by  electrical  process  from  the  atmos- 
phere. 

An  unfortunate  aspect  of  the  farmer's  lot  in 
Japan  is  the  way  in  which  he  is  preyed  upon 
by  usurers,  who  extract  from  i  o  to  20  per  cent 
interest  on  loans  now  totalling  over  992,225,- 
000  yen,  which  the  Government  is  ofTering 
accommodations  to  reduce. 

AGRICULTURAL    PRODUCTIVITY 

Of  the  total  area  of  Japan  only  some  1 5  per 

cent  is  under  cultivation,  and  of  this  by  far 

the  most  valuable  are  the  paddy  fields  which 

take  up  one-half  of  the  total.     Paddy  land, 


being  thus  far  more  productive  than  that  used 
for  dry  crops,  commands  a  proportionately 
high  rental,  which  is  usually  from  two  to  three 
times  as  great  as  for  upland  fields,  but  for 
which  the  higher  rate  of  production  in  a  great 
measure  compensates.  The  average  yield  of 
rice  per  acre  is  about  thirty-three  bushels, 
which  by  intensive  cultivation  may  be 
increased  to  forty;  and  in  the  south  where  two 
crops  a  year  are  possible,  the  yield  may  be 
increased  to  sixty  per  acre.  On  dry  land 
barley  may  be  grown  at  twenty  bushels  to  the 
acre.  Though  most  of  the  arable  land  of  the 
Empire  seems  to  be  under  cultivation  it  is 
said  that  eight  million  acres  more  might  easily 
be  reclaimed  for  agricultural  purposes.  This 
process  is  already  going  on,  while  in  many 


Cere.\ls  Yen 

Rice 966,449,000 

Barley 63,334,000 

Rye 74,210,000 

Wheat 52,538,000 

Soy  beans 35,948,000 

Millet 15,839,000 

Others 38,098,000 

Total 1,246,416,000 

Industri.\l  Products  Yen 

Rape 12,481,000 

Tea 14,498,000 

Tobacco  leaf 8,540,000 

Sugar  cane 4,633,000 

Rushes 3.953.000 

Others 21,521,000 

Total 65,626,000 

Horticultural  Products  Yen 

Fruits 44,868,000 

Vegetables,  etc 151,946.000 

Total 196,814,000 

Cocoons  and  Silkworms  Yen 

Cocoons 147,614,000 

Silkworm  eggs i6,577.o"0 

Total 164,191,000 

Live-Stock  Yen 

Domestic  animals,  etc 22,461,000 

Poultry  and  products 19,812.000 

Total 42,273,000 

Others Yen  89,229,000 

Grand  Total  Approximately  Yen  1,800,000,000 


298 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


places  single  crops  are  fast  giving  way  to  two 
a  year  by  irrigation  and  additional  fertilizer. 
The  system  established  by  the  Imperial 
Government  for  the  readjustment  of  land  and 
the  granting  of  facilities  to  farmers  has  met 
with  deserved  success  under  able  administra- 
tion, increasing  harvests  by  about  20  per  cent 
and  decreasing  the  necessity  of  labour  to  a 
proportionate  extent.  Most  of  the  adjust- 
ments have  consisted  in  bringing  together 
scattered  plots  by  reshaping  the  paddies  and 
removing  old  boundaries,  lessening  the  land 
taken  up  by  dykes  and  paths  as  well  as 
increasing  the  size  of  the  average  field. 
Nearly  one  million  acres  have  thus  been 
already  improved,  at  a  cost  of  51,811,784  yen. 
About  65  per  cent  of  the  irrigation  for  rice 
fields  comes  from  rivers,  and  the  rest  from 
reservoirs. 

The  annual  returns  for  agriculture  at 
present  indicate  a  greatly  increased  produc- 
tivity everj'where.  The  total  annual  value  of 
agricultural  products  is  over  1,800,000,000 
yen,  represented  by  the  accompanying  table. 

As  will  be  seen  from  the  table,  rice  forms 
the  chief  agricultural  product  of  Japan, 
accounting  for  about  half  of  the  total,  while 
next  are  raw  silk,  rye,  barley,  vegetables, 
wheat,  and  soy  beans,  all  of  which  have 
shown  a  remarkable  increase  during  the 
last  twenty  years,  during  which  time  rice 
has  increased  26  per  cent,  barley  28  per 
cent,  rye  39  per  cent,  and  wheat  about  70 
per  cent.  In  horticulture  and  live-stock  the 
development  has  also  been  quite  marked. 
The  table  on  this  page  indicates  the  rapid 
increase  in  agricultural  products  during  the 
last  fifteen  years. 

Since  1915,  while  there  has  been  an  increase 
of  only  950,000  acres  under  rice,  yielding 
an  additional  12,500,000  bushels,  the  acre- 
age under  barley  and  wheat  has  decreased. 

The  three  great  agricultural  staples  of 
Japan,  rice,  tea,  and  silk,  will  be  treated 
separately,  but  a  brief  account  may  here  be 
given  of  the  minor  products  and  the  uses 
to  which  they  are  put.  Barley,  next  to  rice, 
with  which  it  is  mixed,  forms  the  staple 
food  of  the  people.  As  it  is  about  half  the 
price  of  rice  it  is  chiefly  consumed  among 
the  poor,  and  large  quantities  are  used  for 
beer  brewing,  this  grade  of  barley  being 
grown  from  imported  seed  in  Hokkaido. 
As  much  as  15  per  cent  of  the  barley  crop 


DIGGING    B.^MBOO    SHOOTS   FOR   FOOD 


is  used  in  feeding  cattle.  A  species  known 
as  "naked  barley"  is  sown  in  paddy  fields 
for  harvesting  immediately  before  the  rice- 
planting  season.  Wheat  is  now  becoming 
a  crop  of  increasing  importance  to  Japan, 
as  it  is  fast  getting  to  be  a  food  of  the  people. 
It  is  grown  as  a  winter  crop  in  paddies  and 


upland  fields  in  the  colder  districts.  About 
80  per  cent  of  the  yield  is  made  into  flour 
for  bread  and  food  pastes  such  as  macaroni 
and  vermicelli.  At  least  one-quarter  of  the 
total  of  wheat  consumed  comes  from  the 
United  States  and  Canada,  but  the  increas- 
ing  production   at  home   promises   to   meet 


Rice 

Barley,  Rye,  and  Wheat 

Raw  Silk 

Ye.\r 

Acres 

.■\CRES 

Yield,  Bushels 

Yield,  Bushels 

Pounds 

1901 

7,119,193 

-M.57  2,170 

33  Per  Acre 

4,54(1,502 

U);,,2i)i,n>iS 

2^^  Per  Acre 

14,308,274 

1905 

7-213,383 

190,862,800 

26  Per  Acre 

4.543,805 

93.679.295 

2 1  Per  Acre 

15.500,523 

1910 

7,373,600 

233,166,880 

31  Per  Acre 

4,429,060 

103,964,845 

24  Per  Acre 

36,751,130 

1915 

7.631,318 

279,722,950 

36  Per  Acre 

4,529,573 

118,907,210 

26  Per  Acre 

40,169,250 

PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


299 


the  demand  of  domestic  flour  mills  in  the 
near  future,  imi)orts  having  largely  declined 
in  the  last  ten  years.  With  the  rise  in 
standard  of  living  the  cultivation  of  such 
unpalatable  cereals  as  millet  and  sorghum 
is  decreasing.  The  soy  bean,  so  much 
prized  abroad  as  a  cattle  food,  is  used  in 
Japan  not  only  for  human  beings  but  in  the 
manufacture  of  soy,  soup,  and  tnfu,  or  bean 
curd,  a  cheap,  highly  nutritious,  and  very 
popular  article  of  diet.  The  residue  is  used 
as  cattle  feed,  or  as  fertilizer,  and  sometimes 
oil  is  extracted  from  it.  Soy  beans  form  the 
principal  upland  crop  of  the  summer  months, 
and  require  less  labour  and  fertilizer  than 
other  crops.  The  supply,  however,  is  never 
equal  to  the  demand,  large  importations 
coming  from  China.  There  is  a  great 
variety  of  beans  grown  in  Japan,  among 
which  the  more  popular  are  small  red  beans, 
largely  cultivated  in  Hokkaido,  and  used 
for  cakes  and  confectionery,  and  boiled  with 
rice  on  occasions  of  ceremony.  There  is 
also  a  large  growth  and  consumption  of  peas, 
horse-beans,  kidney  beans  and  others,  grown 
between  crops  after  the  rice  is  har\-csted  in 
the  paddies  and  before  it  in  the  upland 
fields. 

There  are  two  varieties  of  buckwheat,  one 
sown  in  spring  and  the  other  in  autumn. 
The  flour  from  this  grain  is  made  into  what 
is  called  soba,  a  kind  of  macaroni,  one  of  the 
favourites  among  the  cheaper  foodstuffs  of 
the  country.  The  sweet  potato  is  an  im- 
portant upland  crop,  cultivated  chiefly  in 
the  southwestern  part  of  the  country.  It 
is  a  popular  food  among  the  poorer  classes, 
and  in  every  town  may  be  seen  sweet  potato 
ovens  from  which  hungry  passersby  take  a 
sen's  worth  to  carry  them  on  to  a  better 
meal.  In  some  parts  the  children  live  on 
this  food.  The  ordinary  potato  is  also  exten- 
sively cultivated,  with  increasing  exports  to 
Siberia,  China,  and  the  Philippines,  though 
it  is  used  for  food  at  home  almost  as  much 
as  the  sweet  potato.  Among  special  crops, 
rape  seed  covers  the  greatest  area.  Since 
the  introduction  of  Western  methods  of 
house  illumination  the  rape-seed  oil  is  no 
longer  used  for  that  purpose,  now  finding  its 
chief  utiUsation  in  cookery  and  lubrication, 
while  oil  cake  of  this  seed  is  often  used  as 
nitrogenous  fertilizer.  Rape-seed  oil  also 
finds  an  increasing  demand  abroad.  The 
tea  plant  demands  exclusive  use  of  the 
ground  it  occupies  and  requires  careful  culti- 
vation, the  chief  districts  being  around 
Shizuoka,  Miye,  and  Saitama  districts.  A 
very  fine  quality  of  indigo  plant  is  cultivated 
in  Japan,  but  owing  to  the  invention  of 
artificial  indigo  in  Europe  the  crop  declined, 
though  since  the  European  war  it  has  been 
greatly  revived,  and  the  production  is  now 


about  10,000  acres,  yielding  some  20,000,000 
pounds  a  year.  Cotton  growing  has  made 
no  headway  owing  to  cheaper  and  superior 
imports  from  China,  America,  and  India. 
Cotton  has  supplanted  hemp  as  a  material 
for  cloth,  and  hemp  is  now  used  only 
for  fishing  nets  and  for  rope  making. 
Flax  is  grown  for  the  most  part  in  Hok- 
kaido, where  it  now  forms  an  important 
industry. 

Tobacco  is  cultivated  in  every  part  of 
Japan  except  Hokkaido,  the  most  impor- 
tant districts  being  Ibaraki,  Tochigi, 
Fukushima,  Okayama,  and  Hiroshima  in 
the  main  island,  Kagawa  and  Tokushima 
in  Shikoku,  and  Kagoshima  and  Gita  in 
Kyushu.  As  the  manufacture  and  sale 
of  tobacco  is  a  Government  monopoly 
the  growers  have  to  sell  all  their  crop 
to  the  authorities  of  the  Monopoly  Bureau. 
The  authorities  exercise  extreme  care  as 
to  the  cultivation  and  improvement  of 
the  crop,  and  great  progress  has  been 
made  in  output  and  quality,  the  chief  varie- 
ties being  a  native  plant  and  the  yellow 
American  varieties.  The  following  table 
will  indicate  the  progress  of  the  industry 
for  the  last  fifteen  years: 


The  tobacco  consumed  in  Japan  is  cMefly 
cigarettes,  though  a  few  cigars  are  made, 
but  most  of  the  latter  used  in  Japan 
are  imported.  (See  "Government  Monop- 
olies.") 

Sugar  cane  is  grown  in  the  Luchu 
Islands  and  Formosa,  the  latter  producing 
by  far  the  greater  quantity,  though  the 
crop  there  per  acre  is  not  yet  more 
than  half  of  what  it  is  in  Java.  The 
subject  will  be  found  more  fully  treated 
under  the  heads  of  "Manufacturing  Indus- 
tries" and  "The  Sugar  Industry."  Rushes 
for  the  making  of  matting  are  largely 
cultivated  in  Japan,  growing  abundantly 
in  swamp  and  paddy  land.  Peppermint 
is  also  an  agricultural  product  of  grow- 
ing importance,  the  leaves  being  dried 
and  distilled  to  make  menthol  and  pepper- 
mint oil.  Ginseng  is  a  medical  plant 
grown  to  some  extent  in  Japan,,  but 
chiefly  in  Korea.  The  paper  mulberry 
is  grown  for  making  paper,  and  can 
be  profitably  cultivated  on  slopes  and 
river  banks  not  suitable  to  other  crops. 
Osiers  for  basket-making  are  also  a  useful 
crop,  and  braids  are  made  from  barley 
straw. 


Year 

Acres 

Yield,   Pounds 

110,077,510 

95,000,000 

91,847,081 

106,000,000 

128,175,000 

P.\iD,  Yen 

AvER.\GE  Price  Per  Lb., 
Yen 

1901 

1905 
1910 

1915 
1916 

91,800 
83,000 
71,966 
90,000 
76.944 

7,720,610 

8,166,922 

10,617,607 

14,116,612 

13.31 1.386 

0.07 
0.71 

0.93 
1 .106 

0.857 

RICE    FIELDS 


300 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF    JAPAN 


STOCK-BREEDING 
The  demand  for  horses  and  oxen  as  draught 
animals  makes  stock-breeding  an  industry'  of 
increasing  importance  in  Japan,  which  the 
Government  has  greatly  assisted  by  the  stock- 
farms  established  in  various  parts  of  the 
country,  especially  in  Hokkaido.  The  grow- 
ing demand  for  a  meat  diet  is  also  lending 
impetus  to  the  breeding  industry.  Owing 
to  the  absence  of  suitable  pasture  lands  and 
the  ubiquity  of  rice  fields,  Japan  has  not 
been  a  great  liorse-breeding  country.  After 
the  Russo-Japanese  War,  however,  it  was 
seen  that  the  need  of  horses  for  army  purposes 
was  paramount,  and  consequently  a  Horse- 
breeding  Bureau  was  established  in  1906. 
At  present  some  1,500  foreign-bred  stallions 
are    kept    for    mating    with    native    mares, 


and  the  Army  purchases  about  5,000  of 
the  progeny  annually.  The  breeds  imported 
are  chiefly  from  Australia  and  England,  and 
the  table  below  will  show  that  they  are 
gradually  replacing  the  native  stock. 

In  much  the  same  way  horned  cattle  of 
the  native  breed  are  fast  disappearing  before 
imported  or  cross-breeds.  In  some  respects 
this  is  to  be  regretted,  as  the  native  ox  of 
Japan  is  a  magnificent  animal  and  as  strong 
and  docile  as  his  proverbial  mate  abroad. 
The  imported  cattle  first  came  from  England, 
for  the  most  part  Devon,  Ayrshire,  and 
Shorthorn,  but  strains  like  the  Holstein  and 
Simmenthal  are  now  being  introduced  as 
more  suitable.  Owing  to  the  immense 
increase  in  dairy  industries  cows  are  now 
largely  imported  and  bred  for  the  sake  of 


Year 

Native  Horses 

Cross 

FOREIGN 

Total 

1905 
1910 

1915 

1,284,840 
1,242,921 

987,188 

103,120 
281,199 

529.948 

2,047 
27.036 
14.927 

1,390,017 
1. 55 1. 1 56 

1,579,454 

Year 

Xative  Horned  Cattle 

Cross 

Foreign 

Total 

Sheep 

Goats 

Swine 

1905 
1910 

1915 

1,167,610 

1,043,568 

987,188 

189,520 
450,828 
529,948 

20,219 
14.534 
14,927 

1,286,116 
1.581.743 
1.579.454 

3.590 
3.357 
2,771 

72,121 
91.730 
95.323 

228,204 
279,101 
332.465 

milk,  including  some  fine  Jerseys.  The 
Government  has  eight  large  stock-farms  in 
Hokkaido,  and  there  are  many  private  ones 
elsewhere.  The  Government  in  every  possi- 
ble way  encourages  the  breeding  of  horses 
and  cattle,  and  when  the  difficulties  to  be 
encountered  in  the  way  of  pasturage  are 
considered,  the  progress  made  has  been 
nothing  short  of  remarkable.  This  statement 
will  be  borne  out  by  the  second  table  below 
showing  the  number  of  cattle  in  Japan. 

No  government  in  the  world  gives  so  much 
attention  to  the  promotion  of  industry  as 
the  Japanese,  and  it  is  worthy  of  note  that 
more  is  done  for  the  encouragement  of  agri- 
culture than  for  any  other  industry.  The 
Hypothec  Bank  facilitates  supply  of  capital 
for  agricultural  purposes,  and  the  Coopera- 
tive Society  Law  promotes  the  formation  of 
credit,  purchase,  sale,  and  productive  asso- 
ciations, of  which  some  eight  thousand  are 
already  in  operation.  This  assiduous  care, 
combined  with  the  inherited  aptitude  of  the 
Japanese  agriculturist,  assures  the  position 
of  agriculture  in  Japan  for  many  years  to 
come.  The  demand  is  always  ahead  of  the 
supply,  and  with  prices  steadily  rising,  in 
spite  of  increasing  outlay  on  land,  the  outlook 
for  Japan's  most  important  industry  is  decid- 
edly favourable. 


RICE    FIELD    AT    ARIMA,    NEAR    KOBE 


PRESENT-DAY    IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


301 


THE  RICE  INDUSTRY 

liy  PROFESSOR   SHOSl'KF  SATO  of 

Tohoku    Imperial    University, 

Sapporo,   Japan 

RICE  is  the  staple  crop  of  Japanese 
agriculture,  the  national  food  of 
the  people,  and  is  widely  cultivated 
throughout  the  length  and  breadth  of  the 
country.  Without  it  Japanese  agriculturi- 
could  hardly  be  said  to  exist.  The  croj) 
returns  are  eagerly  studied  by  the  financiers 
of  the  grain  market,  for  its  price  regulates 
the  prices  of  all  the  other  necessaries  of  life. 
Tlie  rice  market  is  very  sensitive  to  weather 
conditions,  especially  at  the  ripening  season, 
when  storms  often  upset  the  financial  market, 
while  dry  weather  is  the  source  of  economic 
disturbances  in  the  rural  communities. 
The  paddy  fields  are  watered  from  rivers 
and  irrigation  canals,  and  protected  against 
inundation  and  floods  by  means  of  embank- 
ments and  sluice  gates.  Hydraulic  engineer- 
ing also  plays  no  small  part  in  the  success  of 
rice  culture.  Agronomists  are  making  their 
best  efforts  to  increase  the  average  yield  of 
the  paddy  fields,  and  experiments  are  con- 
stantly being  made  from  the  agronomical 
as  well  as  chemical  standpoint  to  determine 
what  varieties  are  best  and  give  the  largest 
yield.  The  principles  of  the  new  genetic 
science  are  being  applied  to  rice  culture, 
experiments  especially  in  the  search  for  early 
varieties  suitable  to  northern  Japan.  The 
increase  of  yield,  however,  has  not  kejjt 
pace  with  the  increase  of  population,  and 
imports  from  Indo-China  and  elsewhere 
must  make  up  the  national  deficiency.  In 
good  years  the  price  falls  so  low  that  the 
country  feels  a  kind  of  agricultural  depres- 
sion, such  as  is  felt  at  times  in  England  and 
other  countries,  and  in  such  seasons,  adjust- 
ing the  price  of  rice  becomes  an  important 
agrarian  question.  Granaries  are  in  demand 
in  the  rural  districts  in  which  to  store  the 
surjilus  until  the  price  goes  up,  while  agri- 
cultural banks  advance  money  to  the  owners 
of  these  granaries  in  order  to  aid  the  pro- 
ducers. Rice  culture,  nevertheless,  is  always 
on  a  small  scale  and  farmers  are  never  well 
off.  However,  most  of  them  find  it  difficult 
to  subsist  on  any  other  diet  than  their  chei- 
ished  rice,  hence,  ever  since  the  foundation 
of  the  Empire,  2,600  years  ago,  rice  culture 
has  been  handed  down  from  generation  to 
generation  as  the  most  important  agricultural 
occupation  of  the  country.  The  future  wel- 
fare and  strength  of  Japan,  iiot  to  speak  of 
advancement  in  civilisation,  depend  much 
upon  how  the  question  of  rice  culture  is 
solved,  for  if  the  present  system  continues 
the  rural  population  will  never  get  beyond 
the  horizon  of  a  small-scale  rice  culture  and 
a  low  standard  of  living. 


SCENES    DIKING    THE    PI..\NTING    SE.ASON 


ORIGIN    .\ND    DEVELOPMENT    OF    RICE 
CULTURE 

Rice  was  the  chief  agricultural  product  at 
the  beginning  of  authentic  Japanese  history, 
no  account  coming  down  to  us  that  the  people 
were  engaged  in  any  other  occupation  than 


that  of  agriculture.  The  ancestors  of  the 
Japanese  people  must  have  already  passed 
the  nomadic  stage  of  life  before  they  settled 
in  their  adopted  island  country,  where  their 
economic  life  began  with  the  cultivation  of 
rice.     When  the  paddy  fields  yielded  abun- 


302 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


liantly,  the  founders  of  the  Empire  were 
pleased  to  call  the  country  "the  land  of  full 
crops,"  a  land  where  their  descendants 
could  multiply  and  dominate.  From  such 
traditional  facts  it  may  be  interred  that  the 
original  home  of  the  Japanese  people  was 
somewhere  in  the  southern  islands  of  Asia, 
not  in  the  highlands  of  the  continent,  where 
the  subsistence  of  the  people  was  derived 
from  stock-raising  as  in  the  case  of  the 
present  Mongolian  Tartars.  Rice  has  thus 
been  the  national  food  of  the  people  of  Japan 
since  time  immemorial. 

The  periodical  partition  of  land,  and  the 
common  cultivation  of  the  royal  domain  seem 
to  have  been  practised  in  the  early  days  of 
Japanese  history.  The  size  of  such  allotted 
areas  was  just  sufficient  to  yield  enough  rice 
to  sustain  the  cultivator,  each  adult  man 
and  woman  being  entitled  to  half  an  acre 
of  land,  which  averaged  twenty  bushels  of 
rice  per  acre  even  during  the  primitive 
stages  of  agriculture.  The  rice  of  the 
domain  was  stored  in  the  Government 
granaries,  and  made  good  use  of  during 
odd  years.  It  was  the  established  policy 
of  the  Government  to  provide  reservoirs 
and  canals  for  the  irrigation  of  the  paddy 
fields,  and  wherever  water  courses  could 
be  secured  rice  culture  has  found  its  way, 
the  rural  population  accordingly  increasing 
and  prospering. 

Rice  was  originally  a  tropical  plant  and 
gradually  became  acclimatised  to  the  soil  of 
Japan.  Even  now,  the  late  varieties,  though 
they  are  the  largest  producers,  can  not  be 
safely  depended  upon  in  the  northeastern 
sections  of  the  country,  while  the  early 
varieties  are  the  only  kinds  that  can  be  grown 
in  the  Island  of  Hokkaido.  It  was  a  slow 
process  of  evolution — the  work  of  centuries, 
necessitated  by  the  growth  of  population  and 
by  the  frequent  occurrences  of  famines — 
to  acclimatise  a  tropical  plant  to  even  the 
extreme  north  of  Japan.  The  extension  of 
its  culture  is  still  going  on,  for  to  make  the 
nation  self-supplying  and  independent  in  this 
important  national  food,  the  paddy  fields 
must  be  extended.  The  following  statistical 
table  shows  the  recent  increase  in  area  and 
yield  of  paddy  fields: 


SCENES    DURING    THE    RICE    HARVEST 


Year 

Area  1,000  Cho 

Production  1,000  Koku 

Average  Production  Per    Tan 

1912 

1913 
1914 

1915 

3.003 
3.029 
3.033 
3.056 

50,222 
50,255 
57,006 
,=.5.914 

1.672  koku 
1.659  koku 
1.879  koku 
1.830  koku 

ECONOMIC    IMPORTANCE    OF    THE    RICE  paid  in  kind.     Not  only  were  taxes  paid  in 

INDUSTRY    DURING    FEUDAL   TIMES  kind  for  the  paddy  fields  and  upland  farms, 

Japan    began   to    coin    money    about    90  but  all  the  industries,  such  as  mining  and 

a.  d.,  but  for  a  long  time  all  the  taxes  were  fishing,  paid  their  share  in  goods.     Exchange 


was  mostly  by  barter,  though  money  came 
gradually  to  be  used  to  some  extent.  Un- 
hulled  rice  was  kept  in  national  granaries  and 
often  formed  a  medium  for  deferred  payments. 
The  paddy  fields  were  granted  to  courtiers 
and  men  of  rank  according  to  the  scale  and 
importance  of  office.  After  feudalism  be- 
came established  in  the  eleventh  century, 
till'  basis  of  grants  was  changed  gradually 
from  land  to  the  product  of  the  land.  A 
koku  of  rice  (5  bushels)  was  the  unit  of  meas- 
ure for  the  income  of  feudal  lords  and  their 
vassals,  though  the  koban  of  gold  was  minted 
and  until  the  Restoration  in  1868  maintained 
a  ratio  to  subsidiar>'  silver,  at  I  to  5.  The 
'I'okugawa  shogunate  domain  was  estimated 
to  be  8,000,000  koku  of  rice.  The  wealthiest 
feudal  lord,  represented  at  the  present  by 
the  family  of  the  Marquis  Maeda,  who 
stood  at  the  head  of  all  the  other  feudal  lords, 
was  estimated  to  possess  a  territory  yielding 
1,000,000  koku. 

All  the  great  feudal  lords  as  well  as  their 
vassals  were  compelled  to  sell  their  rice 
in  the  markets  in  order  to  maintain  their 
domestic  finances,  consequently  rice  was 
transported  to  the  nearest  markets  to  find  a 
ready  sale.  Yedo  (the  present  Tokyo)  and 
Osaka  were  the  two  great  rice  markets.  At 
Asakusa,in  Tokyo,  granaries  maystill  beseen, 
remains  of  the  feudal  days,  though  they  have 
since  been  rebuilt.  The  present  Rice  Ex- 
changes in  Tokj'O  and  Osaka  have  thus  a 
historical  basis. 

RICE   IN   THE    MODERN   MARKET   .\ND   IX 
THE    NATIONAL    ECONOMY 

The  market  for  rice  is  chiefly  domestic. 
Formerly  it  was  transported  by  means  of 
river  and  coastwise  na\'igation,  but  with 
the  construction  of  railroads  for  internal 
traffic  the  course  of  transportation  has  under- 
gone many  changes.  Besides  the  two  cen- 
tral markets,  Tokyo  and  Osaka,  there  are 
many  imjiortant  pro\-incial  markets,  such  as 
Nagoya  and  Kuwana,  where  produce  ex- 
changes have  been  established.  In  recent 
years  the  quality  of  rice  has  been  consider- 
ably improved,  hence  provinces  which  former- 
ly had  only  local  markets  for  their  rice  can 
now  send  it  to  Tokyo  and  sell  it  there.  The 
earliest  varieties,  grown  in  Nigo-Han,  near 
Tokyo,  appear  in  the  market  even  as  early 
as  August,  but  the  latest  varieties  are  of  the 
best  quality  and  command  the  highest 
prices.  It  is  the  aim  of  agriculturists  through- 
out the  country  to  improve  the  qualitj^  of 
rice,  as  well  as  the  manner  of  packing  in 
straw  bags  for  transportation,  considerable 
improvement  having  been  achieved  in  that 
respect,  especially  in  the  provinces  of  Ku- 
mamoto,  Oida,  and  Yamaguchi.  The  result 
is  a  saving  in  handling  and  transportation 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS    OF   JAPAN 


303 


TWO    PROCESSES   OF    SEPARATING    THE    RICE    GRAINS   FROM    THE    HUSK 


and  a  gain  in  commanding  a  good  price  in 
the  markets. 

Rice  growers  usually  use  barley  or  naked 
barley  as  a  diet  and  sell  their  rice  in  the 
markets.  This  is  similar  to  the  case  of  silk 
raisers,  who  sell  their  silk  and  buy  cotton  for 
their  own  use. 

The  annual  production  of  rice  is  over  250,- 
000,000  bushels  and  if  we  estimate  it  as 
averaging  three  yen  per  bushel,  the  whole 
value  would  be  Yen  750,000,000.  No  other 
industry  can  compare  with  this  one  in  im- 
portance in  the  national  economy.  When 
such  a  vast  quantity  of  rice  begins  to  appear 
in  the  markets  in  the  fall,  throughout  the 
country,  it  can  be  easily  imagined  that 
business  is  very  brisk,  in  which  bankers  and 
merchants  share.  If,  however,  the  crop  is 
short,  business  becomes  dull,  and  every  one 
feels  an  agricultural  depression.  This  single 
crop  seems  to  be  the  mainspring  of  the 
national  economic  activity,  —  its  importance 
to  the  welfare  of  the  people  of  Japan  can  not 
be  overestimated. 

RICE  culture:  its  extent  and 

VARIETIES 
The  cultivation  of  rice  is  not  poetical  nor 
fancy  work  liut  a  work  of  real  drudgery. 
Japanese  farmers  are  bom  to  rice  growing, — 
the  paddy  fields  seem  to  them  a  paradise, 
their  homes  are  surrounded  by  them.  The 
farmer  and  his  family  look  after  the  water, 
morning  and  evening,  during  the  growing 
season,  and  do  not  mind  the  heat  of  the 
summer  sun  when  weeding.  They  are, 
however,  afraid  of  storms  at  the  time  of 
flowering,  and  of  the  2ioth  day  of  the  lunar 
calendar.  When  crops  are  ripe  and  ready 
to  harvest,  men  and  women  are  kept  busy 
with  the  sickles.  The  rice  plants  bend  with 
the  heavy  grain  and  the  paddy  fields  look  as 


if  loaded  with  precious  gold.  The  rural  folk 
are  then  active  in  the  fields,  and  as  merry 
as  at  the  time  of  transplanting.  Drying, 
threshing,  and  hulling  involve  much  hard 
work,  while  no  labour  is  spared  in  securing 
a  good  yield.  Vigilance  is  required  in  look- 
ing after  enemies,  especially  insects  and 
borers.  Idlers  can  not  succeed  in  the  grow- 
ing of  rice,  and  it  is  inherited  experience 
which  enables  Japanese  farmers  to  become 
expert  in  its  cultivation.  They  are  more 
pleased  when  working  in  paddy  fields  than 
on  the  upland  farms,  which  is  one  reason 
why  the  culture  of  rice  has  been  gradually 
extended,  even  to  the  northern  provinces. 
The  Island  of  Hokkaido  is  rapidly  becoming 
a  rich  rice-growing  country,  though  but 
thirty  years  ago,  rice  was  grown  only  in 
limited  localities  in  the  southern  part,  and 
not  a  bushel  was  produced  in  the  vicinity  of 
Sapporo  at  that  time.  Now  about  4,000,000 
bushels  are  grown  annually  in  Hokkaido, 
which  within  thirty  years  may  be  increased 
fivefold  —  to  20,000,000  bushels  —  inasmuch 
as  the  paddy  fields  can  be  increased  without 
much  difficulty  to  about  five  times  the  present 
area.  If  the  experiments  in  scientific  rice- 
breeding  succeed  in  producing  earlier  varie- 
ties, then  the  culture  may  still  be  extended 
to  those  provinces  in  Hokkaido  where  the 
climate  has  hitherto  been  considered  too 
severe  for  its  growth.  The  acclimatisation 
of  rice,  though  a  slow  process,  is  a  possi- 
bility; therefore,  it  will  make  possible  the 
replacing  of  the  present  earliest  varieties  by 
still  earlier  and  newer  varieties.  There  are 
three  kinds  of  rice;  ordinary,  glutinous,  and 
upland.  The  most  important  of  the  three 
is  the  ordinary  rice,  which  may  be  divided 
into  three  varieties,  namely,  early,  medium, 
and  late.  Each  of  these  varieties  has  about 
ten    chief    sub-varieties    and    are    the    most 


commonly  cultivated.  One  variety  differs 
from  another  in  the  length  of  the  straw,  the 
number  of  shoots,  the  length  of  ears,  the 
number  of  grains  in  the  ear,  the  size  and  form 
of  grains,  the  time  of  ripening,  and  other 
peculiarities.  So  long  as  rice  forms  the 
chief  national  food  and  plays  an  important 
part  in  the  economy  of  the  nation,  it  is  very 
desirable  to  produce  the  best  early  varieties 
and  to  extend  rice  culture  to  all  parts  of 
Hokkaido  and  even  to  Saghalien. 

PRODUCTION    AND    CONSUMPTION    OF 
RICE    IN    JAPAN 

Rice  culture  may  be  said  to  form  the 
backbone  of  Japanese  agriculture,  the  paddy 
fields  constituting  more  than  one-half  of  the 
arable  land  of  the  country.  The  mulberry 
and  tea  farms  produce  two  important  articles 
of  export,  but  the  value  of  tea  and  silk  can 
not  be  compared  with  the  importance  of  rice. 
If  cotton  merits  the  name  of  "King"  in 
America,  rice  is  certainly  entitled  to  be  called 
"Queen"  in  Japan.  The  following  table 
shows  the  increase  of  area  of  the  paddy  fields 
during  nearly  forty  years: 


Average  Area 

Period 

OF 

Paddy  Fields 

From  1878  to  1887 

2,579,060  cho 

From  1888  to  1897 

2,754,289  cho 

From  1898  to  1907 

2,861,158  cho 

From  1908  to  1914 

2,978,576  cho 

These  statistics  show  that  the  area  increase  of 
paddy  fields  from  1878  to  1914  was  399,516 
cho  (i  cho  being  equal  to  about  2K  acres); 
that  is,  the  increase  averaged  11,103  cho  per 
year.  From  this  fact  we  infer  that  Japan, 
being  pressed  by  the  growth  of  population,  is 


304 


PRESENT-DAY 


1   M   I'  R  E  S  S  I  O  N  S        OF        JAPAN 


using  the  lands  available  for  rice  culture  as 
paddy  fields.  This  increase  in  area  is  not  at 
the  expense  of  the  upland  farms  because  the 
total  area  of  the  latter  also  shows  some 
increase.  Hence  we  conclude  that  arable 
lands  are  constantly  being  reclaimed  from 
new  lands  and  that  the  margin  of  cultivation 
is  extended  to  inferior  soil.  The  result  is  an 
increased  production  of  rice,  as  may  be  seen 
from  the  following  statistics: 


Period 


From  1878  to  18S7 
From  1888  to  1897 
From  1898  to  1907 
From  1908  to  1914 


.\vER.\GE  Yield 
OF  Rice 


31,809,467  koku 
38,236,831  koku 
44,382,972  koku 
51,457,321  koku 


This  shows  that  the  increased  production  of 
rice  amounted  to  19,647,854  koku  (i  koku 
equals  5  bushels)  in  thirty-six  years.  The 
average  increase  per  year  is  545,773  koku, 
which  is  about  the  amount  needed  for  the 
increase  of  population.  How  long  we  can 
continue  to  increase  the  production  of  rice  at 
such  a  ratio  is  a  question  of  vital  importance 
to  the  welfare  of  the  nation. 


The  consumption  of  rice  per  capita  is 
increasing  constantly,  as  the  following 
statistics  show.  The  statistics  are  based  on 
the  assumption  that  the  rice  consumed  is  the 
amount  of  production  of  the  previous  year 
plus  or  minus  the  amount  of  rice  imported 
or  exported,  as  the  case  may  be. 


Period 

AVER-\GE 

CONSLMPTIO.N 

PER    C.\PIT.\ 

From  1888  to  1897 

From  1898  to  1907 

From  1908  to  1912 

.946  koku 

. 984  koku 

I . 042  koku 

Besides  being  consumed  as  food  in  the  form 
of  rice  flour,  rice  is  used  for  confectionery,  for 
distilling  sake,  and  for  starch.  The  standard 
of  living  being  constantly  raised,  the  con- 
sumption of  rice  in  the  future  will  far  exceed 
one  koku  per  capita.  It  is,  therefore,  neces- 
sary to  increase  the  yield  of  rice  per  tan  by 
means  of  intensive  culture.  The  following 
statistics  show  that  the  yield  of  rice  per  tan 
has  been  raised  within  the  last  twenty 
vears. 


Period 

Aver.\ge   Yikl.d 

PER    T.\N 

From  1888  to  1897 

From  1898  to  1907 

From  1908  to  19 12 

I .401  koku 
1 . 57 1  koku 
I   734  koku 

If  we  take  the  three  years  1912,  1913,  and 
1 9 14,  the  average  comes  up  to  1.771  koku  per 
tan  (I  Ian  equals  yi  acre),  so  that  the  yield 
per  acre  is  over  35  bushels.  It  will  not  take 
many  years  to  bring  the  average  yield  up  to 
40  bushels  per  acre.  The  four  prefectures, 
Kyoto,  Osaka,  Nara,  and  Wakayama, 
returned,  in  the  year  19 14,  49  bushels  as  the 
average  yield  per  acre. 

RELATION    OF    THE    PRICE    OF    RICE    TO 
OTHER   COMMODITIES   .\ND  TO   WAGES 

The  price  of  rice  is,  of  course,  regulated  by 
the  law  of  supply  and  demand,  but  it  con- 
stantly fluctuates  in  the  market,  depending 
chiefly  on  the  condition  of  the  crops.  The 
produce  exchanges  find  it  very  difficult  to  fix 
the  normal  price  during  the  ripening  season 
when  the  facts  of  temperature  and  humidity 
are  still  uncertain.     The  fluctuation  of  the 


;7/  V- 


t^?^.r 


I 

In 


wooden    mortar    and    pounder    for    polishing    rice  —  THE    RICE    MERCHANT 


PRESENT-DAY    IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


305 


HARVESTING    SCENE 


During  the  iieriod  under  consideration  the 
rice  exported  averaged  272,121  koku  per  year 
at  a  value  of  5,627,997  yen,  showing  that  the 
quantity  of  the  export  was  about  7  per  cent, 
while  the  value  of  the  import  was  about  10  per 
cent.  When  the  price  rises  it  can  be  steadied 
by  the  im|jortation  of  foreign  rice,  but  when 
it  gets  so  low  as  to  cause  loss  to  the  producers 
it  is  very  difficult  to  bring  the  price  up  again 
to  a  normal  standard,  because  there  is  not 
sufficient  mark-et  abroad  for  Japanese  rice. 
Elasticity  and  adjustment  of  the  price  seem 
to  be  one-sided.  Hence,  at  the  last  meeting 
of  the  AgricuUural  Committee  for  the 
Adjustment  of  the  Price  of  Rice  in  Tokyo,  the 
establishment  of  rice  granaries  in  different 
prefectures  was  recommended  as  the  only 
ellective  method  of  keeping  up  the  price  to  a 
normal  standard.  But  the  most  natural  and 
the  most  economical  way  of  adjusting  the 
price,  whether  high  or  low,  must  be  to  open 
world  markets  to  Japanese  rice.  The  follow- 
ing table  shows  the  price  per  koku  per  decade 
since  the  Restoration: 


])rice  often  causes  anxiety  to  the  people  inas- 
much as  rice  is  their  main  food,  and  also 
because  it  also  fixes  the  standard  price  of  other 
necessaries  of  life,  as  well  as  the  wages  of  the 
working  classes.  The  rice  imported  from 
British  India,  Siam,  French  Indo-China,  and 
other  countries  in  Asia  tends  to  moderate 
prices  as  it  is  cheaper,  being  of  an  inferior 
quality.  Within  three  years,  from  1912  to 
19 1 4,  the  rice  imported  from  these  sources 
averaged  2,631,450  koku  per  annum  and 
amounted  to  34,996,573  yen.  There  is  also  a 
supply  from  Formosa  and  Korea  which  helps 
to  steady  the  rice  market.  In  Formosa  there 
are  two  crops  per  year,  l>ut  the  quality  is 
rather  poor.  In  Korea  they  depend  chiefly 
upon  rainfall  for  irrigation,  but  the  rice  is  of 
better  quality  and  commands  a  higher  price 
than  that  grown  in  Formosa.  From  1912  to 
191 4,  inclusive,  the  rice  imported  from  For- 
mosa averaged  820,018  koku  per  annum, 
valued  at  10,953,215  yen,  an  average  of  13.28 
yen  per  koku.  From  Korea  the  Japanese 
imported  rice  during  the  same  period  which 
averaged  624,629  koku  per  year,  valued  at 
9,582,674  yen,  or  15.71  yen  per  koku.  Thus 
it  will  be  seen  that  within  three  years,  from 
1912  to  1914,  inclusive,  the  rice  imported  from 
the  Asiatic  countries,  Formosa,  and  Korea, 
averaged  over  4,000,000  koku,  w'ith  a  value  of 
more  than  Yen  55,530,000  per  annum.  This 
cheaper  rice  supplied  food  to  the  poorer 
rlasses  and  supplemented  the  deficiency  in 
([uantity  of  the  native  rice.  Without  this 
importation  the  prices  of  commodities  other 
than  rice  would  have  become  higher.  These 
other  commodities  are  barley,  beans,  and 
other  necessities  made  out  of  such  grains,  as, 


for  instance,  miso  and  sauce,  and  would  much 
affect  the  domestic  economy  of  the  wage- 
earning  classes.  If  this  imported  rice  (4,076,- 
097  koku)  be  added  to  the  average  quantity  of 
rice  produced,  it  would  make  a  total  of 
56,570,758  koku.  This  amount  would  repre- 
sent the  average  quantity  of  rice  consumed 
during  the  period  under  consideration, 
provided  none  is  exported.  Though  the 
native  rice  commands  a  higher  price,  some  of 
it  is  exported  to  other  countries,  chiefly  for 
the   consumption   of   Japanese  living    there. 


Period 


1868  to  1S77 
1S78  to  1887 
1888  to  1897 
1898  to  1907 
1908  to  191 2 


Yen 


6 

,^6 

7 

40 

8 

09 

'3 

3.3 

16 

72 

During  these  forty-five  years  the  minimum 
price  was  3. 88  yen  per  koku,  in  1872,  and  the 
maximum  price  was  20.72  yen  per  koku,  in 
1912. 


CHANGING    THE    ROOF.    AN    orUKATION    NECESSARY    BUT    ONCE    IN    A    GENERATION 


3o6 


P  R  K  S  E  N  T  -  D  A  Y        IMPRESSIONS        OF        JAPAN 


HOW    RICIv    IS    GROWN    IN    JAPAN 

I  HAVE  hitherto  treated  some  of  the 
economic  features  of  the  Rice  Industry  in 
Japan,  but  its  agronomical  features  may  also 
interest  some  readers.  The  rice  grower  has 
pursued  most  unique  methods  of  culture  from 
ancient  times.  The  modern  science  of  agri- 
culture has  introduced  some  new  innovations, 
but  on  the  whole  the  culture  remains  the  same, 
and  the  farmers  attend  to  the  various  phases 
of  the  work  in  the  paddy  fields,  deep  in  mud, 
as  in  days  of  yore.  A  certain  reverence  is 
accorded  to  rice  culture  because,  as  a  time- 
honoured  industry,  it  has  produced  for  the 
people  of  Japan  the  necessities  of  life.  We, 
too,  have  our  Thanksgiving  Day,  the  17th  of 
November,  which  is  a  national  holiday,  when 
the  ceremony  of  first-offerings  of  rice  to  the 
Ancestors  is  observed  by  the  Imperial  House- 
hold. 

With  regard  to  the  technical  points  of  rice 
agronomy,  the  following  may  be  noted ; 

(1)  The  selection  of  the  best  rice  for  seed  is 
very  essential  in  order  to  secure  good  crops. 
The  selection  may  be  made  by  means  of  salt 
water,  as  good  seed  always  sinks  to  the  bottom. 
The  seed  beds  are  first  thoroughly  prepared, 
from  which  the  plants  are  transplanted  into 
the  paddy  fields.  If  the  seeds  are  immersed 
in  cold  water  about  a  week,  germination  in  the 
seed  beds  is  hastened.  In  the  northern  pro- 
vinces, especially  in  Hokkaido  seeds  are 
dribbled  directly  mto  the  paddy  fields,  thus 
dispensing  with  the  practice  of  transplanting. 

(2)  The  preparation  of  paddy  fields  must 
be  thoroughly  done  before  transplanting. 
This  involves  the  work,of  plowing  or  spading, 
pulverising,  manuring,  and  irrigating.  In 
southern  Japan  the  paddy  fields  are  cropped 
twice  a  year,  that  is,  one  crop  of  rice  is  followed 
by  barley  or  rape.  Much  work  and  care  is 
involved  in  preparing  the  soil  for  two  such 
different  kinds  of  crops.  Transplanting  is 
the  most  lively  field  work  performed  by  the 
country  people,  both  men  and  women,  old  and 
young.  After  transplanting,  care  must  be 
taken  to  have  sufficient  water  in  the  paddy 
fields,  otherwise  the  plants  will  not  grow  well. 
The  manures  used  are  of  various  kinds,  such 
as  night  soil,  barnyard  manures,  fish  guano, 
bean  cake,  wood  ashes,  bone  meal,  artificial 
fertilizers,  and  green  manures.  The  time  of 
application  depends  upon  the  kinds  used,  as 
well  as  the  soil  and  climate,  but  it  must  be 
remembered  that  the  plant  needs  food  mostly 
during  the  growing  season,  especially  just 
before  flowering.  Weeding  is  done  two  or 
three  times  during  the  plants'  growing  period. 
This  is  a  most  tedious  kind  of  work,  as  it 
must  be  done  by  hand  in  the  muddy  rice  fields, 
since  no  adequate  implements  can  be  used. 
After  the  weeding  is  attended  to  farmers  can 
rest  and  await  the   ripening  of  the  grain. 


A   COUNTRY   GIRL    IN   THE   CHERRY    SEASON 

(3)  A  good  crop  of  rice  depends  much  upon 
favourable  weather,  storms  being  the  deadly 
enemies  of  the  plants,  especially  at  the  flower- 
ing season.  Not  only  the  farmers,  but  also  all 
classes  of  people,  who  know  that  the  pros- 
perity of  the  year  depends  much  upon  climatic 
conditions,  anxiously  watch  the  weather  sig- 
nals and  reports  during  the  summer 
months.  The  most  favorable  weather  for 
the  growth  of  the  plants  is —  (a)  high  tempera- 
ture, (i)  rainfall,  not  too  frequent,  (c)  no 
storms  during  the  flowering  season.  Extremes 
of  weather  are,  however,  very  frequent  during 
the  growing  period.  At  such  times  not  only 
no  good  grain,  but  even  no  good  straw  may  be 
expected.  There  is  no  other  crop  on  the  face 
of  the  earth  which  climatic  influences  affect  so 
much  as  rice  grown  in  Japan. 

(4)  Harvesting,  threshing,  and  hulling  are 
all  done  by  means  of  crude  implements  and 
tools.  As  the  paddy  fields  are  dry  at  the 
time  of  harvesting  some  harvesting  machines 
can  be  used,  but  the  fields  are  so  small  that  the 
farmers  stiU  use  th.e  simple  sickle.  After 
being  dried  in  the  fields  the  harvested  crop  is 
subjected  to  hand  threshing,  and  the  grains 
are  hulled  in  a  hand  mill.  Then  the  rice  is 
packed  in  straw  bags  and  sent  to  the  market. 


where  the  polishing  is  usually  attended  to  by 
the   rice  dealers. 

CONCLUSION 
Ca.n    the   cultivation   of   paddy    fields   be 
organised    as    a    business?     They    are   now 

simply  employment  fields,  that  is,  farmers 
employ  their  time  and  get  a  wage-income 
but  nothing  more.  Can  not  culture  on  a 
large  scale  be  introduced?  The  extreme 
small-scale  culture,  or  spade  farming,  is  still 
the  chief  method  of  rice  culture.  How  can 
improvement  be  introduced  into  this  national 
industry  so  as  to  elevate  it  as  a  business? 
Prosperous  rural  economy  depends  much 
upon  the  solution  of  such  a  vital  problem. 
According  to  recent  statistics  the  total  num- 
ber of  farming  families  was  5,453,969  in  the 
year  191 5,  while  the  total  area  of  paddy 
fields  was  given  as  2,965,566  cho.  The 
average  area  per  family  is  a  little  over  0.5  cho. 
The  total  area  of  upland  farms  is  given  as 
2,893,760  cho,  so  that  the  average  area  per 
family  is  also  a  little  over  0.5  cho.  Both 
being  added  together  it  will  make  a  little 
over  one  cho  per  family.  One  cho  of  arable 
land,  which  is  equivalent  to  about  two  acres 
and  a  half,  is  not  sufficient  to  make  farming 
a  prosperous  business.  Consequently  the 
farmers  are  farm  labourers  who  employ  their 
time  on  their  own  or  tenanted  land  in  order 
to  earn  wages,  but  they  obtain  no  profits  on 
other  business  undertakings.  This  wage- 
income  is  not  enough  to  support  farmers' 
families,  therefore  subsidiary  occupations 
are  necessary  in  order  to  eke  out  an  existence. 
However,  as  in  France,  there  being  not  many 
profitable  industries  in  rural  districts  where 
they  can  employ  their  surplus  time,  the 
farmers  migrate  from  the  rural  communities 
to  the  cities  and  industrial  centres. 

This  is  a  vital  national  problem,  which 
must  not  be  overlooked.  This  rural  exodus 
is,  however,  not  a  thing  entirely  to  be  regret- 
ted in  Japan.  It  may  give  a  much  needed 
stimulus  to  the  reorganisation  of  the  rural 
communities  and  the  improvement  of  agri- 
culture. It  is  hardly  possible  that  this  rural 
exodus  will  be  carried  to  such  as  extent  as 
to  leave  arable  lands  uncultivated  or  villages 
deserted.  On  the  contrary,  we  can  main- 
tain the  productivity  of  the  soil,  or  even 
make  it  more  productive,  by  reorganising 
agriculture,  even  though  there  may  be  some 
exodus  of  the  rural  population  to  the  urban 
districts.  How  we  shall  accomplish  this 
reorganisation  is  a  grave  question  which  the 
people  must  seriously  consider. 

I  have  shown  above  that  the  average 
area  cultivated  by  one  farmer  family  is  a 
little  over  one  cho,  but  a  great  majority  of 
farmers  cultivate  considerably  less  than  one 
cho.     In  the  year   19 15   the  following  sta- 


PRESKNT-DAY 


I  M  I'  R  E  S  S  I  O  N  S 


OF        JAPAN 


307 


tistics  were  gi\-cn  by  the  C'lOvoniment  author- 
ities: 


Area  Cultivated 

PER 

Farmer  Family 

Families 

Per 
Cent 

Under  0.5  cho 

Over  0 . 5  cho 

Over  I  0  cho     

',990,275 
1,823,895 

1,092,157 

330,121 

149,367 

68,154 

36.64 
33  ■  35 
•9  95 

Over  2.0  cho 

Over  3.0  cho 

Over  5 . 0  cho 

6.10 

2.74 

1 ,22 

Total 

5,453,969 

100.00 

Thus  70  per  cent  of  the  farmers  cultivate 
an  area  less  than  one  cho.     No  rice  industry, 


however  intensively  it  may  be  carried  on, 
can  flourish  on  such  a  small  patch  of  ground. 
Hence,  the  reorganisation  of  agriculture  in 
Japan  so  as  to  increase  the  area  of  arable 
lands  is  most  urgent.  This  can  be  done  by 
turning  some  portions  of  the  forest  lands  into 
arable  lands,  the  extent  of  the  former  being 
three  times  as  great  as  of  the  latter.  In 
191 5  the  total  area  of  all  kinds  of  forests, 
namely.  Crown,  State,  Communal,  Temple, 
and  private  forests,  was  given  as  18,640,873 
cho.  Perhaps  on  account  of  the  difficulty 
of  irrigation  the  newly  reclaimed  lands  can 
not  be  turned  into  paddy  fields.  If  so,  we 
could  here  grow  upland  rice,  or  more  profit- 
ably still,  raise  stock,  whether  horned  cattle, 
sheep,  or  pigs.  The  income  from  these 
sources  would  greatly  supplement  that  from 


the  original  paddy  fields  or  upland  farms. 
Moreover,  manures  are  a  great  asset  to  the 
farmers  as  they  enable  them  to  keep  up  the 
fertility  of  the  soil.  The  introduction  of 
stock  will  naturally  lead  to  the  cultivation 
of  grasses  and  root  crops,  and  hence  more 
work-horses,  with  plows,  harrows,  cultivators 
and  other  tools  will  come  into  use.  The 
rice  industry,  accompanied  by  the  raising 
of  a  small  amount  of  stock,  will  greatly 
ameliorate  the  condition  of  the  farmers. 
Sericulture,  hitherto  known  as  the  great 
subsidiary  occupation,  and  stock-raising, 
the  new  subsidiary  occupation,  both  being 
united  in  an  organisation,  will  make 
the  rice  industry  a  profitable  business, 
and  the  farmer's  life  endurable  and  even 
happy. 


PROMINENT   IN    THE    FERTILIZER    AND   CHEMICAL    INDUSTRY 

(Upper  Row)  Mr.  B.  Oi,  Chairman  of  Directors,  Tokj-o  Sulphuric  Acid  Co.,  Ltd. — The  late  Mr.  M.  Yamada,  founder  of  the  Japan  Sulphur 
Co.,  Ltd. — Mr.  A.  Yamada,  Managing  Director,  Japan  Sulphur  Co.,  Ltd. — Mr.  S.  K.ytow,  Managing  Director,  Japan  Acetic  Acid  Mfg.  Co.,  Ltd. 
(Middle  Row)  Mr.  J.  Kamiryo,  Managing  Director,  Osaka  Alkali  Co.,  Ltd. — Mr.  K.  Anraku,  President  of  Great  Japan  Artificial  Fertilizer 
Co.,  Ltd. — Mr.  ToKUGORO  Nakahashi,  President,  Nippon  Chisso  Hiryo  Kabushiki  Kaisha — Dr.  N.  Tsuneto,  President,  Rasa  Island  Phos- 
phate Co.,  Ltd. — Mr.  U.  Ishikawa,  Managing  Director,  Kanto  Sanso  Kabushiki  Kaisha. 

(Lower  Row)  Mr.  Hidekichi  Kojima,  Managing  Director,  Japan  Artificial  Fertilizer  Co.,  Ltd. — Mr.  H.  Hirata,  of  Great  Japan  Artificial 
Fertilizer  Co.,  Ltd. — Mr.  S.  Fujimoto,  Chairman  of  Directors,  Osaka  AlkaH  Co.,  Ltd. — Mr.  Noguchi,  Managing  Director,  Nippon  ChissoHiryo 
Kabushiki  Kaisha  —  Mr.  Y.  Tanaka,  President,  Kanto  Sanso  Kabushiki  Kaisha  —  Mr.  Tetsutaro  Hasegawa,  Standing  Director,  Japan 
Artificial  Fertilizer  Co.,  Ltd. 


3o8 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


THE   CHEMICAL 
INDUSTRIES 

JAPAN'S  chemical  industries  received  a 
tremendous  impetus  during  the  war, 
especially  in  coal-tar,  alkaline,  and  electro- 
chemical enterprises,  as  well  as  to  some  extent 
in  metal  refining,  particularly  zinc.  The  Ja- 
panese have  taken  up  the  industry  of  manu- 
facturing saltpetre  with  nitrogen  from  the  air 
by  electrical  process.  Red  phosphorus  is  also 
being  produced  in  large  quantities  for  matches. 
If  all  the  companies  engaged  in  the  produc- 
tion of  chlorate  of  potash  go  on  at  the  present 
rate,  the  output  will  greatly  exceed  the  de- 
mand. The  Japanese  are  using  a  great  deal 
of  glycerine  now,  which  is  being  made  from 
fish  oil,  but  the  production  is  yet  far  below 
the  demand.  Commercial  oxygen,  sulphate 
of  ammonia,  and  carbide  works  are  doing 
their  best  to  meet  domestic  requirements. 
Japan  usually  uses  about  140,000  tons  of 
sulphate  of  ammonia  atmually,  of  which  the 
local  output  supplies  some  100,000  tons. 
The  Government  is  creating  free  laboratories 
for  the  promotion  of  technical  educat'on  in 
chemistry  and  research,  and  wealthy  public- 
spirited  citizens  are  doing  likewise. 

THE  JAPAN  ARTIFICIAL  FERTILIZER  CO., 
LIMITED 

One  of  the  most  flourishing  industries  in 
Japan  is  that  involving  the  production  of 
artificial  manures,  and  chemicals  for  general 
commercial  use.  Apart  from  the  commercial 
side  of  the  industn,',  it  may  be  said  that  it 
has  been  found  absolutely  essential  for  Japan 
to  produce  her  own  artificial  fertilizers,  in 
order  to  obtain  the  greatest  possible  yield 
from  the  rice  and  other  arable  lands  in  the 
country.  These  are  limited  in  extent,  and 
the  harvests  fall  far  below  the  requirements 
of  the  rapidly  growing  population.  Without 
the  use  of  fertilizers,  the  disparity  between 
the  supply  and  the  demand  for  the  staples 
of  life,  such  as  rice,  vegetables,  etc.,  would 
be  a  very  serious  one.  Up  to  quite  recent 
times  Japan's  requirements  in  fertilizers  were 
largely  met  by  import  from  foreign  countries, 
but  once  the  problem  of  making  the  country 
largely  independent  of  foreign  supply  was 
faced  by  the  Japanese  engineers  and  chemists, 
the  situation  has  been  completely  changed. 
Not  only  does  the  chemical  fertilizer  industn,' 
provide  for  all  domestic  requirements  in 
many  leading  lines,  but  a  large  export  trade 
has  been  developed. 

In  the  forefront  of  the  artificial  fertilizer 
industry  is  the  Japan  Artificial  Fertilizer  Co., 
Ltd.,  a  strong  organisation  which  has  the 
backing  of  the  Furukawa  interests.  Baron 
Toranosuke  Furukawa  being  one  of  the 
largest     shareholders.     The     company     was 


originally  established  in  1899,  a  factory  being 
erected  at  Kinegawa,  Tokyo  Prefecture. 
Several  changes  took  place  in  the  organisa- 
tion during  the  first  years  of  the  existence  of 
the  enterprise,  but  steady  progress  was 
always  maintained,  the  company  increasing 
its  output  year  by  year,  developing  new  lines 
of  manufacture,  and  generally  prospering 
with  the  improvement  in  conditions  through- 
out Japan.  In  1907  the  Kyoyeki  Artificial 
Fertilizer  Co.,  Ltd.,  at  Ogu,  Kitatoshima 
County,  Tokyo  Prefecture,  was  purchased, 
and  its  plant  was  made  the  Japan  Artificial 
Fertilizer  Co.'s  Ogu  branch  factory.  In 
19 1 5  Baron  Furukawa,  realising  the  great 
future  before  the  company,  and  the  bright 
prospects  for  the  industry  generally,  jiur- 
chased  a  large  interest  in  the  concern.     At 


TEA    PICKERS 

this  time  the  market  for  fertilizers  was  extra- 
ordinarily active,  and  a  broad  expansion 
policy  for  the  Japan  Artificial  Fertilizer  Co. 
was  entered  upon.  Up  to  this  time  the 
capital  had  been  Yen  500,000,  but  now  the 
sum  was  raised  to  Yen  2,000,000.  A  des- 
patch office  was  opened  at  No.  7  Komatsucho, 
Fukagawa-ku,  which  is  the  centre  of  the  ferti- 
lizer market  in  Japan,  and  a  chemical  factory 
was  established  at  Nagoya,  for  the  produc- 
tion of  sulphuric  acid  and  superphosphates 
of  lime.  A  technical  staff  of  50,  and  500 
workmen,  were  engaged,  and  when  in  full 
operation  this  factorj'  began  to  turn  out 
80,000  tons  of  chemical  products  per  annum. 
Up  to  this  time  the  company  was  princi- 
pally engaged  in  the  manufacture  of  super- 
phosphate, but  vvith  the  development  of  the 
business,  attention  was  given  to  the  pro- 
duction of  all  classes  of  artificial  manures 
for    different    purposes.     Over    a    himdred 


different  fertilizers  were  invented  in  the 
company's  laboratories,  and  their  values  for 
various  branches  of  agriculture  were  demon- 
strated by  practical  tests.  These  fertilizers 
are  now  all  on  the  local  and  foreign  markets, 
and  their  excellence  is  generally  recognised  to 
be  surj:)assed  by  no  other  products.  Among 
these  special  products  may  be  mentioned  an 
ideal  fertilizer  for  young  rice  plants,  for  rice 
production  generally,  for  wheat,  for  tobacco 
plants,  for  sweet  potatoes,  for  ordinarj' 
potatoes,  for  mulberry  trees  (the  food  of 
silkworms),  and  for  fruit  trees.  The  com- 
pany's superphosphates  are  sold  in  various 
degrees  from  15  to  21  per  cent  of  water 
soluble  phosphoric  acid.  The  different  prod- 
ucts have  been  exhibited  in  competition 
at  many  trade  exhibitions,  and  have  been 
awarded  medals  and  the  highest  honours. 
Besides  the  lines  mentioned,  the  Japan 
Artificial  Fertilizer  Co.,  Ltd.,  manufactures 
strong  sulphuric  acid,  muriatic  acid,  and 
muriates.  The  company  also  engages  in  the 
sale  and  purchase  of  organic  and  inorganic 
manures  such  as  sulphate  of  ammonia, 
Chilian  saltpetre,  bean  cake,  rape-seed  cake, 
etc.  The  name  of  "Japan  Fertihzer"  and 
the  company's  brand  in  a  diamond,  are  well 
known  throughout  Japan  and  abroad,  a 
large  export  trade  being  done  with  India, 
Java,  Australia,  the  Philippines  and  else- 
where. 

The  principal  officials  of  the  Japan  Arti- 
ficial Fertilizer  Co.,  Ltd.,  are:  Mr.  K.  Yoko- 
gawa.  President  and  Director:  Mr.  H.  Ko- 
jima.  Managing  Director;  Mr.  T.  Hasegawa, 
Standing  Director;  Messrs.  N.  Hasegawa  and 
R.  Suga,  Directors,  and  Messrs.  K.  Kita  and 
M.  Ishii,  Auditors.  At  the  close  of  the  half- 
year,  June  30,  1917,  the  company's  balance 
sheet  showed  assets  of  Yen  2,686,007.34. 
The  profit  for  the  period  was  Yen  116,322.45, 
which  with  Yen  20,805.35,  brought  forward, 
was  distributed  as  follows:  Repayment  of 
fixed  capital.  Yen  20,000;  bonus,  Yen  7,500; 
to  legal  reserve.  Yen  5,500;  to  special  reserve. 
Yen  25,000;  dividend  at  12  per  cent,  Yen 
57,000;  leaving  a  balance  to  carrj'  forward 
of  Yen  22,127.80 

THE   RASA  ISLAND  PHOSPHATE  CO., 
LIMITED 

Ax  enterprise  of  considerable  importance 
to  Japan  is  that  which  is  being  carried  on  by 
the  Rasa  Island  Phosphate  Company, 
Limited,  a  company  engaged  in  developing 
the  immense  ])hosphatic  rock  fields  on  Rasa 
Island,  a  hitherto  deserted  and  neglected 
outpost  of  the  Japanese  Empire.  This  island 
was  not  discovered  till  late  in  the  last  century, 
and  for  some  years  it  appeared  on  the  British 
Admiralty  charts  as  Rasa,  or  Kendrick 
Island.     In  August,  1892,  a  Japanese  warship 


-     > 

!^    < 

S  5 

C    0 

r   -^ 

•3     H 

55    S 

C    B 

n   > 

o 

>     H 

O    C 

5  S 

> 

-H 

?; 

z 

w 

1         <^ 

1         > 

\  ■ 

21 


3IO 


P  R  E  S  E  N  T  -  D  A  \'        I   M   P  R  I^.  S  S  I  O  N  S        O  I'        JAPAN 


RASA    ISLAND    PHOSPHATE    CO.,    LTD. 


TRUCKING   THE     ROCK    AWAY TRENCHING    FOR     PHOSPH.\TIC     ROCK- 
SHEDS —  THE    BIG   QUARRY    NEAR   THE    WATERFRONT 


-THE    STORING    AND    DESPATCHING 


was  despatched  to  survey  the  island  which  lies 
in  latitude  24°,  32  north,  and  longitude  131°, 
19  east,  about  850  miles  south-south-west  of 
Yokohama.  Rasa  Island  was  entirely  unin- 
habited, and  apparently  had  no  commercial 
value,  but  in  September,  1 900,  it  was  formally 
declared  by  the  Japanese  Government  to  be  a 
Japanese  possession  under  the  name  of 
Okidaitojima,  and  annexed  to  Daitojima, 
Okinawa  Prefecture,  in  the  Luchus.  Later 
on  the  existence  of  phosphatic  rock  was 
discovered  on  the  island,  and  Dr.  N.  Tsuneto 
visited  the  place,  and  the  result  of  a  most 
thorough  investigation  by  this  eminent 
scientist  disclosed  the  existence  of  extensive 
deposits.  The  field  offered  every  facility  for 
easy  working,  and  the  prospects  of  establish- 
ing a  successful  industry  seemed  excellent  to 
Dr.  Tsuneto,  since  Rasa  Island  is  free  of 
noxious  insects,  malaria,  or  other  conditions 
militating  against  the  importation  of  work- 
men. On  Dr.  Tsuneto's  recommendation  it 
was  decided  to  establish  a  company  to  exploit 
the  phosphate  deposits,  and  the  Rasa  Island 
Phosphate  Goshi  Kaisha  was  formed  in  191 1 
with  Dr.  Tsuneto  as  its  President.     Excava- 


tion work  was  soon  commenced,  and  a 
preliminary  survey  of  the  fields  showed  a 
most  encouraging  state  of  affairs.  Phosphatic 
rock  deposits  were  exposed  over  a  surface  of 
35,612  tsitbo,  but  excavation  showed  that 
the  area  available  for  working  was  some 
280,000  tsuho,  or  roughly  2,450  acres,  the 
strata  being  from  9  to  30  feet  deep.  A  careful 
survey  and  calculation  resulted  in  an  estimate 
being  framed  of  10,071,720  tons  of  available 
rock.  This  estimate  could  hardly  be  credited 
by  those  who  had  not  visited  the  island,  but  it 
was  more  than  confirmed  by  a  body  of  experts 
who  examined  the  field  in  1912.  Moreover, 
independent  analyses  demonstrated  the  rock 
to  be  exceedingly  rich  in  phosphoric  acid, 
three  different  laboratories  giving  the  percent- 
age as  36.90,  36.52,  and  35.99  respectively. 
This  percentage  is  greater  than  that  of  either 
the  Algerian  or  Florida  phosphates,  and  the 
Rasa  Island  rock  is  superior  to  the  other  two 
in  that  there  is  an  absence  of  obnoxious 
fluorine  matter,  as  well  as  a  lesser  admixture 
of  iron  and  alumina.  Rasa  Island  rock  is  also 
superior  to  the  others  because  the  phosphoric 
acid  yielded,  taking  20  per  cent  as  a  basis,  is 


soluble  to  the  extent  of  18  per  cent  in  water, 
and  0.5  per  cent  in  ammonium  citrate.  As 
rock  suitable  for  the  fabrication  of  superphos- 
phates, the  Rasa  Island  material  at  once 
attracted  keen  interest  in  Japan,  when  these 
facts  were  made  known.  The  demand  for 
superphosphates  in  Japan  is  calculated  at 
300,000  tons  per  annum,  and  naturally  the 
discovery  of  such  a  rich  new  field  offered  a 
most  attractive  proposition  for  commercial 
exploitation. 

After  some  thousands  of  tons  of  rock  had 
been  excavated,  and  trial  shipments  made,  it 
was  seen  that  the  Rasa  Island  Company  was 
not  large  enough  to  handle  the  enterprise, 
and  get  out  the  rock  fast  enough  to  meet  the 
demand.  Some  150  workmen  had  up  to  this 
time  been  engaged  in  excavating  by  hand,  but 
the  need  for  a  more  numerous  force  and  an 
up-to-date  excavating  plant  was  realised. 
Accordingly,  in  1913,  a  limited  liability  com- 
pany was  formed  with  a  capital  of  Yen 
3,000,000,  and  the  thorough  development  of 
the  field  was  taken  in  hand.  Since  then,  the 
history  of  the  Rasa  Island  Phosphate  Com- 
pany, Limited,  has  been  one  of  rapid  progress. 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


,11 


THE    GREAT  JAPAN    ARTIFICIAL    FERTILIZER   CO.,    LTD.:      THE    YOKOHAMA,    KAMAYABORI,    AND    KOMATSL'GAWA   FACTORIES 


The  number  of  workmen  on  the  island  at 
present  has  been  increased  to  more  than 
2,000,  excavating  machines  have  been  in- 
stalled, railway  lines  laid,  piers  con- 
structed, and  four  steamers  of  2,500  to 
3,000  tons,  besides  a  number  of  sailing 
ships,  have  been  purchased  or  chartered 
for  the  transportation  of  the  rock  to 
Japan  for  treatment  in  the  fertilizer  fac- 
tories. The  operations  of  the  company 
have  demonstrated  beyond  doulat  that  the 
field  is  an  exceedingly  valuable  one, 
the  rock  having  been  found  to  extend 
in  places  over  seventy  feet  below  the 
surface.  It  is  easily  worked  by  open 
quarrying,  and  the  shipping  facilities  are 
excellent,  there  being  good  anchorages 
and  plenty  of  water  close  in  to  the  shore. 
The  output  of  rock  has  rapidly  increased 
under  the  improved  system  of  working  the 
field,  and  everj'thing  points  to  the  company 
realising  good  profits  from  its  enterprise. 
Dr.  Tsuneto  is  the  President  of  the  Rasa 
Island  Phosphate  Company,  Limited,  the 
head  office  of  which  is  at  No.  i,  Yuraku-cho, 
Kojimachi-ku,  Tokyo. 


GREAT    JAPAN    ARTIFICIAL    FERTILIZER 
CO.,    LIMITED 

Perhaps  the  first  steps  taken  in  the 
direction  of  establishing  the  artificial  ferti- 
lizer business  of  Japan  were  those  which  led 
to  the  formation  of  the  business  at  present 
conducted  by  the  Dai-Nippon  Jinzo  Hiryo 
Kabushiki  Kaisha,  known  by  its  English 
title  of  the  Great  Japan  Artificial  Fertilizer 
Co.,  Ltd.  The  genesis  of  the  industry  is 
undoubtedly  to  be  found  in  the  enthusiastic 
work  of  Dr.  Jokichi  Takamine,  one  of  the 
best  known  men  of  science  in  Japan,  and  a 
chemist  of  world-wide  reputation.  Dr.  Taka- 
mine was  at  one  time,  as  Professor  of  Tech- 
nology and  Professor  of  Pharmacy,  in  the 
service  of  the  Department  of  Agriculture  and 
Commerce,  and  in  the  years  1885-6  was 
despatched  to  Europe  on  official  business  for 
the  Imperial  Japanese  Government.  He 
was  deeply  impressed  with  the  extent  to  which 
foreign  agriculturists  made  use  of  artificial 
fertilizers,  and  the  importance  of  the  manu- 
facture of  these  aids  to  crop  production. 
Upon  his  return  to  Japan  Dr.  Takamine 
strongly  urged  upon  a  number  of  influential 


men  in  commerce  and  indnstry,  the  impera- 
tive need  for  the  establishment  of  fertilizer 
manufacture  in  Japan,  and  the  greater  use 
of  artificial  manures  in  all  departments  of 
agriculture.  Under  his  direction  a  company 
was  decided  upon,  the  promoters  including 
the  following  influential  Japanese  men  of 
affairs:  Baron  Shibasawa,  Baron  Okura, 
Messrs.  Takenosuke  Mitsui,  Kisaku  Shibu- 
sawa,  Zenjiro  Yasuda,  Takashi  Masuda, 
Soichiro  Asano,  and  Kyohei  Mikoshi.  It 
would  be  difficult  even  now  to  find  a  more 
influential  body  of  men  in  Japan  to  act  as 
the  fathers  of  a  new  industry,  for  these  gentle- 
men are  to-day  the  foremost  leaders  in 
finance  and  commerce  in  the  country,  their 
names  being  associated  with  the  greatest 
and  most  successful  enterprises  in  Japan. 
The  company  was  formed  in  1887  with  a 
capital  of  Yen  250,000,  and  the  erection  of  a 
factory  at  Kamayabori,  Fukagawa,  Tokyo, 
was  started,  though  it  was  not  till  1888  that 
the  plant  was  actually  in  operation. 

As  a  pioneer  in  a  new  industry'  the  way  of 
the  Great  Japan  Artificial  Fertilizer  Co., 
Ltd.,  was  at  first  beset  with  difficulties,  and. 


312 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


in  fact,  its  progress  may  be  said  to  date 
only  from  after  the  Russo-Jai)ani'SC  War. 
The  first  years  were  occupied  in  developing 
some  degree  of  productive  capacity,  estab- 
lishing factories,  and  learning  the  business, 
while  at  the  same  time  financial  arrangements 
had  to  be  continually  altered  to  meet  increas- 
ing demands  and  changing  conditions.  The 
first  increase  in  capital  did  not  take  place 
till  1896  when  the  sum  was  raised  to  Yen 
500,000.  Thereafter  increases  in  capital 
followed  very  regularly,  as  new  factories 
were  called  for,  and  the  company's  interests 
widened  by  the  amalgamation  of  or  purchase 
of  other  proprietory  concerns.  The  last 
increase  of  capital  took  place  in  January, 
1913,  when  the  amount  was  raised  to  Yen 
12,500,000,  thus  making  the  concern  the 
largest  of  its  kind  in  Japan.  In  August, 
1908,  the  companjr  purchased  the  Hokkaido 
Artificial  Fertilizer  Co.,  Ltd.,  and  the  Im- 
perial Fertilizer  Co.,  Ltd.  The  following 
year  the  fertilizer  department  of  the  Settsu 
Oil  Manufacturing  Co.,  Ltd.,  was  purchased, 
a  special  loan  of  Y  n  i  ,000,000  being  floated 
for  this  purpose.  In  July,  1910,  the  Osaka 
Sulphide  Soda  Co.,  Ltd.,  was  bought  out, 
this  step  necessitating  the  raising  of  the 
capital  to  Yen  6,250,000.  The  same  year 
the  present  title  of  the  Great  Japan  Arti- 
ficial Fertilizer  Co.,  Ltd.,  was  adopted.  It 
may  be  said  that  up  to  19 10,  despite  the  fact 
that  the  business  had  then  been  in  existence 
over  twenty  years,  the  company's  energies 
had  been  devoted  to  building  up  the  industry, 
increasing  the  capital,  amalgamating  various 
competing  interests,  and  generally  establish- 
ing a  powerful  organisation  to  deal  with  a 
most  important  and  rapidly  expanding 
industry.     When    this    work    was    complete 


the  company  despatched  its  distinguished 
specialist,  Dr.  Toranosuke  Nishikawa,  to 
Europe  and  America  to  make  a  close  exami- 
nation of  the  conditions  of,  and  methods 
obtaining  in,  the  industry  in  foreign  coun- 
tries. Upon  Dr.  Nishikawa's  report,  many 
improvements  in  the  factories  and  in  the 
methods  of  production  and  general  business 
conduct  were  effected  by  the  Directorate. 
If  a  bird's-eye  view  of  the  expansion  of 
the  business  be  taken  it  will  be  seen  what 
great  strides  have  been  made  in  the  thirty 
years  during  which  the  business  has  been 
operated.  The  production  of  all  classes  of 
fertilizers  was  only  50,000  kwan  the  first 
year.  At  the  end  of  the  first  twenty  years 
the  output  reached  23,400,000  kwan,  and 
to-day  the  yearly  production  is  approximately 
100,000,000  kwan  (i  kwan  equals  8%  pounds). 
One  of  the  specialties  of  the  Great  Japan 
Artificial  Fertilizer  Co.,  Ltd.,  is  the  manu- 
factiu'e  of  sulphuric  acid,  about  187,000  tons 
being  produced  annually,  which  is  equivalent 
to  about  one-third  of  the  total  production 
from  all  factories  in  Japan.  The  company  is 
also  producing  nitric  acid,  muriatic  acid, 
precipitates  of  copper,  iron  precipitates, 
sugar  piu-ifying  compounds,  sulphur  liquid, 
superphosphate  of  hme,  bisuperphate  of 
lime,  and  complete  manures.  Besides  these 
manufactures,  the  company  imports  and  sells 
Ocean  Island,  Christmas  Island,  Angaul, 
Macatea,  Naul,  Florida,  Gaftha,  and  Llasa 
phosphates,  as  well  as  those  from  Noto,  a 
province  of  Japan.  These  phosphates  are 
used  as  raw  materials  for  the  production  of 
superphosphates  of  lime.  There  are  eight 
factories,  located  as  follows:  Kamayabori, 
Tokyo;  Komatsugawa,  Tokyo;  Yokohama; 
West  Osaka;   North  Osaka;   Owada;   Shinio- 


noseki,  and  Hakodate.  The  headquarters 
of  the  Great  Japan  Artificial  Fertilizer  Co., 
Ltd.,  are  at  No.  17,  Kitashimbori-cho,  Nihon- 
bashi-ku,  Tokyo,  and  there  is  a  branch  at 
Xishino,  Osaka. 

Mr.  Kanemichi  Anraku  is  the  President  of 
the  company.  The  Managing  Director  is 
Mr  .Hatsukuma  Hirata,  and  other  Directors 
are  Messrs.  Meizaburo  Horinchi,  Ichisaburo 
Abe,  Taro  Masuda,  Motosaburo  Tanaka, 
Teinosuke  Murai,  Toranosuke  Nishikawa 
(Professor  of  Technology  and  Chief  of  the 
Technical  Department),  and  Yoshibumi 
Murota.  The  Auditors  are  Messrs.  Shuzo 
Matsuoka,  Jinzaburo  Yeto,  and  Chozaburo 
Uyemura. 

THE   OSAKA  CHEMICAL  FERTILIZER   CO., 
LIMITED 

To  realise  a  profit  of  85  per  cent  on  capital 
in  the  first  year  of  operations  speaks  well 
for  the  soundness  of  management  of  the 
Osaka  Chemical  Fertilizer  Co.,  Ltd.  This 
concern  came  into  existence  in  December, 
1916,  as  a  joint-stock  company  with  a  capital 
of  Yen  2,000,000,  the  President  being  Mr. 
Konosuke  Abe.  The  Abe  Kobei  Fertilizer 
Company's  interests  were  purchased  by  the 
new  organisation,  and  the  methods  of  manu- 
facture and  handling  of  products  were  at 
once  revolutionised,  to  bring  about  economy 
of  production,  the  highest  quality,  and  a 
large  output  at  the  lowest  prices.  The 
Osaka  Chemical  Fertilizer  Co.,  Ltd.,  imports 
its  raw  materials  direct  from  abroad  and 
ships  directly,  its  factories  and  plants  being 
so  arranged  as  to  permit  of  the  cheapest 
handling.  There  are  three  factories,  namely, 
at  Osaka,  Yokohama,  and  Kawanoishi  in  lyo 
Province.     Crude   phosphates   are   imported 


nrmn   ■? 


F 

-7 

L 

i                                          ;l 

U 


PREPARING   THE    DRIED    INDIGO    LEAVES    FOR    SHIPMENT  —  INDIGO   LEAVES  —  SIFTING   THE    DRIED    LEAVES 


314 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


and  transformed  into  superphosphates,  and 
other  lines  dealt  in  are  sulphate  of  ammonia, 
sulphate  of  potash,  Chilian  nitrates,  fish 
guano,  seed  cake  (cotton  and  hemp),  bone 
meal,  hoof  meal,  horn  meal,  bean  cake,  and 
other  fertilizers.  By  a  most  economical 
process  the  company  also  produces  large 
quantities  of  sulphuric  acid  from  the  by- 
products of  zinc  refining.  As  an  indication 
of  the  company's  well  designed  plants,  it 
may  be  mentioned  that  steamers  of  2,000 
tons  can  be  moored  at  the  Kawanoishi 
factor}-.  In  no  other  fertilizer  business  is 
this  the  case,  and  it  may  be  readily  realised 
what  this  advantage  means  in  economy  of 
handling  of  imported  raw  materials  and  the 
export  of  the  manufactured  products.  The 
Yokohama  factory  is  entirely  modem,  and 
also  most  advantageously  placed.  It  faces 
the  sea,  and  is  equipped  with  the  most 
effective  labour-saving  devices.  Branch  rail- 
way lines  are  laid  directly  into  the  factory, 
connecting  with  the  entire  Government 
system,  and  the  facility  with  which  material 
and  products  is  handled  is  not  excelled  any- 
where else.  Apart  from  the  local  trade  a 
large  export  business,  mainly  w'ith  South 
Africa  and  Russia,  is  being  done  by  the 
Osaka  Chemical  Fertilizer  Co.,  Ltd.  The 
managerial  policy,  based  on  the  exceptional 
advantages  the  company  enjoys  through  the 


convenient  location  of  its  factories  and  the 
modern  jilants  employed,  is  to  turn  out  a 
maximum  of  high-grade  products  at  the  least 
margin  of  profit.  Nevertheless,  as  stated 
before,  the  result  of  the  first  year's  operations 
has  been  a  profit  of  85  per  cent  on  ca))ilal. 
The  head  office  is  established  at  Nichomc, 
Bingomachi,  Higashiku,  Osaka.  The  fac- 
tories are  located  at  Otakami,  Hiyijima 
Village;  Nishinari,  Osaka;  Koyasumachi, 
Yokohama;  and  Kawanoishi,  \ishi-uwa,  lyo. 
The  principal  officers  of  the  Osaka  Chemi- 
cal Fertilizer  Co.,  Ltd.,  are:  Mr.  Abe,  Presi- 
dent; Mr.  Xobuhara  Abe,  Managing  Direct- 
or; Mr.  Toshiro  Saito,  Co-Managing  Director, 
and  Mr.  Juntaro  Yamaoka,  Adviser. 

THE    OSAKA    ALKALI    CO.,  LIMITED 

An  industry  that  has  made  remarkable 
strides  in  Japan  of  late  years  is  that  invoh-- 
ing  the  manufacture  of  drugs  and  chemicals, 
and  artificial  fertilizers.  The  shutting  out  of 
all  European  products  because  of  the  war 
has  naturally  compelled  the  Japanese  to 
provide  their  own  requirements,  and  it  may 
be  said  at  once  that  not  only  have  they  done 
this,  but  they  are  now  in  a  position  to  export 
freely  in  almost  unlimited  quantities.  There 
are  three  or  four  large  companies,  which  were 
in  existence  before  the  war,  and  a  number 


have  sprung  up  since.  It  is  claimed  for  the 
Osaka  Alkali  Company,  Ltd.,  that  it  is  the 
real  pioneer  of  the  industry,  and  the  fact  that 
this  powerful  concern  came  into  existence  in 
1880,  when  manufacturing  of  any  kind  was 
in  its  infancy  in  Japan,  supports  the  claim. 
The  Osaka  Alkali  Co.,  Ltd.,  is  certainly  one 
of  the  most  important  and  enterprising 
chemical  manufacturers  in  the  Far  East, 
and  it  is  entitled  to  all  credit  for  the  work 
done  in  the  early  days  in  developing  an 
industry  that  means  so  much  to  the 
Empire. 

This  company  owns  several  factories,  which 
are  continuously  engaged  on  the  production 
of  the  highest  grade  of  chemicals,  fertilizers, 
and  commercial  drugs.  The  Azikawa  Facto- 
ry, at  Minatoya-cho,  Nishi-ku,  Osaka,  turns 
out  such  items  as  double  superphosphate, 
calcium  superphosphate,  garden  tablet  ferti- 
lizer, mixed  fertilizer,  ammonium  sulphate, 
potassium  sulphate,  bean  cakes,  oil  cakes, 
sulphuric  acid,  hydrochloric  acid,  nitric  acid, 
sodium  sulphate,  sodium  hyposulphate,  iron 
vitriol,  ehrumanite  (clarifying  agent  for  low 
grade  sugar  syrup),  and  carbonizers  which 
are  used  in  place  of  ammonium  sulphate  for 
double  safety  machines.  The  Ono  Factory 
at  Chifune-mura,  Nishinari-gun,  Osaka-fu, 
has  a  similar  range  of  production  to  that  of 
the  Azikawa  Factorj'. 


GENER.\L    VIEW   OF    F.\CTORV    OF    THE    OS.AKA    .\LKALI    CO.,    LTD. 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


315 


BAMBOO   SHOOTS,    WHICH    GROW    ABOUT   EIGHT   INCHES   IN   A   DAY 


The  Matsumoto  Factory  at  Shiriata, 
Matsumoto-shi,  Nagano-ken,  turns  out  caus- 
tic soda,  gelatine  and  glue,  bone  ash,  bromine, 
bleaching  powder,  hydrogenated  oil,  chry- 
salis oil,  degras,  fatty  acids,  glycerine,  bean 
oil  and  other  oils.  At  the  Sakaide  Factory, 
which  is  situated  at  Hayashida-mura, 
Ayauta-gun,  Kagawaken,  the  main  lines  of 
production  are  magnesium  carbonate  (pre- 
cipitated), magnesium  sulphate,  potassium 
chloride,  potassium  permanganate,  sodium 
sulphate,  sodium  silicofluoride,  potassium 
bromide,  and  sodium  bromide. 

In  all  these  products  the  Osaka  Alkali 
Co.,  Ltd.,  has  a  large  output,  and  so  far  as 
the  quality  is  concerned,  comparison  with 
the  world  is  invited.     The  company  has  had 


nearly  forty  years'  experience,  and  its  direc- 
tion is  in  the  hands  of  such  capable  and 
well  qualified  business  men  as  Mr.  S.  Fuji- 
moto,  the  Principal  Director,  and  Mr.  J. 
Kamiryo,  the  Managing  Director,  who  has 
the  reputation  of  being  one  of  the  most 
experienced  manufacturers  in  Japan,  as  well 
as  a  sound,  progressive,  and  energetic  busi- 
ness director.  The  capital  of  the  company 
is  approximately  £455,000,  but  so  great  has 
been  the  demand  for  the  company's  products, 
owing  to  the  high  quality,  and  the  reputation 
which  they  have  won  abroad,  that  it  is  now 
proposed  to  increase  this  capital  largely,  to 
permit  of  a  wide  extension  of  business,  follow- 
ing substantial  additions  to  the  factories 
and  plant.     The  Directors  have  already  de- 


cided on  a  new  factory,  designed  by  the 
experts  of  the  Osaka  Alkali  Co.,  Ltd.,  and 
when  this  is  completed  it  will,  it  is  claimed, 
be  without  a  rival,  in  point  of  size  and  com- 
plete e(|uipment,  in  Japan.  The  head  office 
of  this  rapidly  growing  and  old-established 
company  is  at  No.  127,  Minatoya-Machi, 
Nishi-ku,  Osaka,  Japan.  Correspondence 
from  abroad  is  freely  invited. 

JAPAN  SULPHUR  CO.,  LIMITED 
To  this  enterprising  corporation  must  be 
given  the  credit  for  having  placed  the  sulphur- 
producing  industry  of  Japan  on  a  sound  busi- 
ness basis,  applying  proper  mining  methods 
to  the  operation  of  getting  out  the  crude  ore, 
and  utilising  the  best  machinery  and  appli- 
ances for  the  transport  of  the  product  from 
the  mines  to  the  refineries.  To  bring  about 
such  results  has  not  been  an  easy  task,  but 
the  Japan  Sulphur  Co.,  Ltd.,  has  persevered 
in  the  face  of  many  difficulties,  and  its  policy 
has  proved  highly  successful.  It  is  the 
largest  concern  of  its  kind  in  Japan,  and  is 
engaged  in  very  extensive  operations,  not 
alone  dealing  with  the  production  of  sulphur, 
but  embracing  the  manufacture  of  various 
commercial  products,  and  also  in  transpor- 
tation within  the  sphere  of  its  influence 
over  a  large  area  of  country.  In  brief,  the 
history  of  the  Japan  Sulphur  Co.,  Ltd., 
follows. 

In  1904  Mr.  Makoto  Yamada,  of  Fukui 
Prefecture,  bought  the  sulphur-mining  rights 
of  Messrs.  Kisaku  Shibusawa  and  Jiro  Hoso- 
no,  which  consisted  of  mines  and  other 
property  at  Mount  Numajiri,  in  Yama 
County,  Fukushima  Prefecture.  The  prop- 
erty was  not  developed  to  any  great  extent, 
and  furthermore,  the  entire  sulphur  industry 
was  in  a  backward  state.  Mr.  Yamada 
sought  the  financial  assistance  of  Mr.  Cho 
Okabe,  and  the  latter  gentleman  financed 
the  preliminary  operations,  and  also  the 
purchase  of  the  neighbouring  district.  It 
was  realised  that  further  aipital  would  be 
required,  and  to  establish  a  joint-stock 
company  Baron  Matsudaira  of  Fukui  was 
invited  to  become  Chairman  of  the  Com- 
mittee of  Organisation.  Baron  Matsudaira 
secured  the  cooperation  of  several  influential 
friends,  including  some  peers,  and  a  com- 
pany was  formed  with  a  capital  of  Yen 
1,000,000.  Even  so,  the  extent  of  the 
work  to  be  done  and  the  difficulties  of 
the  economic  situation  at  that  time,  made 
the  financial  problem  a  serious  one,  and  the 
assistance  of  the  Yokohama  Specie  Bank  had 
to  be  obtained,  Mr.  Suteroku  Takahashi, 
Vice-President  of  the  bank,  doing  his  utmost 
to  help  the  company.  Meanwhile  the  direc- 
tors had  proceeded  with  the  preparation  of 
plans  for   sulphur  mining    on    a    big    scale. 


JAl'AN     M  l.l'Hl  K    CO.,    LIU.;     IHK     tUMPANV's    No.    I     FACiURV  —  AERIAL    IKAMWAV    AI      IIIL     NL^L\JIKI      MINE  —  SULPHUR    REFINERY    AT    THE 

NUMAJIRI    MINE GALLERY   ENTRANCE   TO   THE   TUNNEL    AT   ONE    OF   THE   COMPANY'S   SULPHUR   MINES  — 

MANUFACTURING   STICK   SULPHUR   AT   THE    KAWAGETA   WORKS 


PRESENT-DAY        IMPRESSIONS        OF        JAPAN 


317 


Mr.  Akira  Yamaria,  soti  of  tlic  founiler  of  the 
company,  was  appointed  specialist  to  super- 
vise the  entire  arrangements  for  refining. 
Mr.  Yamada  is  a  Master  of  Technology,  and 
made  a  special  study  of  sulphur  while  in  the 
Technological  Department  of  the  Imperial 
University.  Mr.  Makoto  Yamada's  interests 
were  formally  merged  in  the  Japan  Suljjhur 
Co.,  Ltd.,  in  April,  1907,  and  the  company 
actually  started  operations  in  the  following 
year.  Since  then  the  company  has  pursued 
a  steady  ])olicy  of  development  of  its  prop- 
erties and  improvement  of  different  processes. 
In  July,  1913,  Mr.  Akira  Yamada  was  made 
Managing  Director  in  lieu  of  Mr.  Kyutaro 
Nagai,  and  Mr.  Rikisaburo  Ikeda  was 
appointed  Chief  of  Mining  Operations.  The 
outbreak  of  the  European  war  adversely 
affected  economic  circles  in  Japan  and  the 
.sulphur  industry  suffered  to  .some  extent, 
but  as  the  war  developed  conditions  improved 
and  by  March,  1916,  the  market  for  sulphur 
was  extremely  brisk,  the  company's  output 
rising  from  about  35  tons  of  sulphur  to  60 
tons  a  day. 

The  Japan  Sulphur  Co.,  Ltd.,  operates 
two  sulphur  fields,  Numajiri  and  Numano- 
taira,  both  of  them  in  Azuma  Village,  Fuku- 
shima.  The  two  fields  have  a  combined 
area  of  over  390,000  Isubo.  This  district  is 
noted  for  its  hot  springs  and  sulphur  baths, 
principal  among  which  are  Nakanosawa, 
Numajiri,  and  Yokomuki.  Numajiri  is  a 
mining  bed  of  precipitated  sulphur,  about 
50  feet  in  depth,  approximately  500  feet  from 
cast  to  west,  and  1,000  feet  from  north  to 
south.  The  ore  is  obtained  by  tunneling 
into  the  bed.  The  Numanotaira  deposits 
are  located  on  the  summit  of  the  mountain 
and  are  of  volcanic  origin,  the  sulphur  being 
obtained  by  open  cuts  into  the  mass  of  the 
(-leposit.  The  sulphur  rock  is  transported  to 
the  refinery  by  wire  haulage,  similar  to  an 
aerial  tramway.  At  the  refinery  the  crude 
product  is  treated  by  the  dual  processes  of 
fumigating  and  steaming.  From  the  refinery 
it  is  sent  by  wire  haulage  to  Ohara  railway 
station  and  thence  to  market.  The  haulage 
is  known  as  the  Tamamura  System,  which 
has  been  patented  in  various  parts  of  the 
world.  Steam  power  is  at  present  employed, 
but  a  recent  decision  of  the  directors  will 
result  in  electrical  power  being  used  at  an 
early  date  for  all  operations. 

The  operations  of  the  JapaUi Sulphur  Co., 
Ltd.,  are  directed  by  various  departments. 
The  Engineering  Department  makes  all  the 
wire  ropes,  rails,  and  mining  machinery 
required,  and  also  turns  out  rock-drills  of 
the  Ashio  and  American  type.  There  is  a 
forestry  department  engaged  in  the  produc- 
tion of  all  fuel  needed  for  the  mining  opera- 
tions and  refining  purposes,  and  in  the  manu- 


facture of  lumber  ami  wood  work,  including 
seasoning  of  timber  for  the  general  trade. 
The  forest  area  is  about  3,000,000  Isiibo,  and 
250  men  are  engaged,  the  lumber  being  hauled 
over  4^2  miles  of  railway  and  by  a  1,200-foot 
span  of  wire  rope.  A  general  transportation 
business  is  conducted  over  the  company's 
line  from  Kawageta  to  Ohara,  a  distance  of 
9^  miles,  three  locomotives,  four  passenger 
cars,  and  39  freight  cars  being  employed. 
An  elementary  school  is  maintained  for  the 
children  of  the  men  engaged  in  the  company's 
service,  and  there  is  also  a  hosi)ital  at  the 
mines. 

Besides  the  digging  and  refining  of  sulphur 
rock,  the  Japan  Sulphur  Co.,  Ltd.,  is  engaged 
in  the  production  of  sulphide  of  carbon, 
sulphur  liquid  (concentrated  lime  sulphur 
solution),  calcium  acetate,  charcoal,  aceton, 
methyl  alcohol,  jjrecipitated  sulphur,  sulphur 
sticks,  powdered  suljihur,  and  flowers  of 
sulphur.  These  products  are  manufactured 
at  the  Kawageta  Refinery.  Sulphide  of 
carbon  is  produced  in  large  quantities  and  is 
sold  as  an  insecticide,  particularly  for  the 
destruction  of  insects  which  are  injurious  to 
cereal  jilants.  The  sulphur  liquid  is  generally 
used  for  the  destruction  of  insect  life  in  the 
rice  fields,  wheat  fields,  and  orchards,  being 
used  by  means  of  sprays,  or  otherwdse. 
Following  is  the  annual  productive  capacity 
of  the  mines  and  the  refinery:  sulphur  rock 
mined,  51,100  tons;  refined  sulphur,  20,000 
tons;  stick  sulphur,  6,000  tons;  powdered 
sulphur,  2,000  tons;  flower  of  sulphur,  1,000 
tons;  bisulphide  of  carbon,  1,000,000  pounds; 
calcium  carbide,  300  tons;  concentrated 
lime  sulphur  solution,  1,000,000  gallons. 

The  head  office  of  the  Japan  Sulphur  Co., 
Ltd.,  is  at  No.  T2  Kagacho,  Kyobashi-ku, 
Tokyo.  The  principal  officials  of  the  com- 
pany are:  President  and  Managing  Director, 
Mr.  Akira  Yamada;  Directors,  Messrs.  Kodo 
Hiroshi,  Yasusaburo  Hara,  and  Komatsu 
Fukuma;  Auditors,  Messrs.  Tomoso  Shino- 
zaki  and  Masao  Inouye.  It  is  proposed  to 
enter  into  coaling  operations  in  191 8,  when 
the  company  will  acquire  and  develop  certain 
properties  with  this  object  in  view. 

NIPPON    CHISSO    HIRYO    K.\BUSHIKI 
KAISHA     (japan     NITROGENOUS     FERTI- 
LIZER CO.,   limited) 

The  most  highly  scientific  methods  are 
being  applied  in  the  works  of  the  Nippon 
Chisso  Hiryo  Kabushiki  Kaisha  to  the  in- 
dustry of  producing  artificial  fertilizers,  and 
other  chemical  products  largely  demanded 
under  modern  commercial  conditions.  Not 
satisfied  with  a  large  and  varied  production 
by  methods  that  are  still  availed  of  by  other 
concerns,  this  company  has  purchased  a 
number  of  foreign  patents,  among  which  is 


the  right  to  manufacture  Calcium  Cyanamide 
and  Sulphate  of  Ammonia  from  the  atmospheric 
nitrogen.  As  the  company  has  available  an 
enormous  and  cheap  supply  of  water  power, 
its  operations  have  proved  remarkably 
successful  from  all  points  of  view. 

This  company  was  originally  formed  in 
January,  1906,  with  a  capital  of  Yen  200,000. 
It  was  then  known  as  the  Sogi  Denki  Kabus- 
hiki Kaisha  (Sogi  Electric  Co.,  Ltd.).  The 
original  purpose  of  the  company  was  the 
supply  of  cheap  electric  power  to  two  gold 
mines,  namely,  Ushio  and  Okuchi,  and  to 
furnish  electric  light  for  the  town  of  Okuchi. 
In  April,  1907,  the  Sogi  Denki  Kabushiki 
Kaisha  made  an  agreement  with  the  Nippon 
Chisso  Carbide  Company  to  produce  calcium 
carbide,  for  acetylene  gas  making.  To 
carry  out  this  undertaking  the  capital  of 
Sogi  Denki  Kabushiki  Kaisha  was  raised  to 
Yen  400,000  and  this  company  erected  an 
electric  power  station  which  generates  6,000 
kilowatts  at  the  lower  part  of  the  Sendai 
River.  At  the  same  time  the  Nippon 
Carbide  Company  installed  a  new  carbide 
factory  at  Minamata,  Kumamoto  Prefecture, 
where  the  manufacture  of  carbide  was  started, 
the  operation  of  manufacttunng  being  placed 
in  the  hands  of  a  subsidiary  to  which  the 
Sogi  Denki  K.  K.  supplied  free  of  charge, 
the  profits  from  the  carbide  factory  being 
shared  equally  by  the  two  companies.  In 
April,  1908,  the  company  acquired  the  sole 
patent  right  for  Japan  of  the  Frank- Caro 
process  of  manufacturing  calcium  cyanamide 
and  sulphate  of  ammonia  from  atmosphere, 
and  the  capital  was  increased  to  Yen  1,000,- 
000.  An  amalgamation  of  these  companies 
took  place  at  this  juncture,  and  the  name  of 
the  new  company  was  changed  from  Sogi 
Denki  Kabushiki  Kaisha  to  that  of  the 
Nippon  Chisso  Hiryo  Kabushiki  Kaisha. 
In  October,  1910,  the  capital  was  increased 
to  Yen  2,000,000,  subsequently  being  raised 
to  the  present  figure  of  Yen   10,000,000. 

Since  that  time  the  company  has  developed 
in  several  directions  and  the  plan  of  exten- 
sions, shortly  to  be  completed,  will  give  the 
following  productive  capacity  per  annum: 
calcium  carbide,  85,000  tons;  calcium  cyana- 
mide, 105,000  tons;  sulphate  of  ammonia, 
90,000  tons;  Portland  cement,  600,000 
casks,  and  oxygen,  360  cubic  metres  per 
hour.  The  company  owns  the  following 
patents:  No.  15,481,  a  method  for  making 
nitrogenous  compound;  No.  16,650,  a  method 
for  extracting  nitrogen  from  atmosphere  with 
copper;  No.  18,642,  a  method  for  making 
carbide  into  powder  in  nitrogen  gas;  No. 
18,018,  a  method  for  making  atmospheric 
ammonia  fertilizer;  No.  20,730,  a  method 
for  making  nitrogenous  compound  from 
carbide,  and  patents  Nos.  24,317  and  22,678 


Ill 

!^1 


TWO    FACTORIES    OF    THE    NIPl'ON    CHISSO    HIRYO    KAUUSHIKI    KAISHA,    AT    KUMAMOTO,    KYUSHU 


PRESENT-DAY 


IMPRESSIONS 


O  F 


J  A  P  A  N 


319 


comprises,  Mr.  T.  Nakahashi,  President, 
Mr.  J.  Noguchi,  Managing  Director,  and 
Directors,  Messrs.  S.  Ishikawa,  Y.  Watanabe, 
R.  Toyokawa,  and  Dr.  N.  Shiraishi  (Doctor 
of  Technology).  The  Auditors  are  Messrs. 
K.  Kagami  and  K.  Hon.  Baron  Kondo  is 
adviser  to  the  company.  The  head  office  is 
at  Tosabori-dori,   Nishiku,  Osaka. 


YE.-kR 

Net  Profit 

Dividend 

1906 

1907 

7,663 

10% 

1908 

42.754 

10% 

1909 

9,1,975 

10% 

I9IO 

142.443 

10% 

I9II 

145.992 

9% 

I912 

286,238 

10% 

191.^ 

382,622 

10% 

I9I4 

463,536 

9% 

I915 

1 ,608,493 

i3>^% 

I916 

2,451,197 

n'AJo 

TE.\    PICKERS   OK    SHIZUOK.\ 


for  similar  jirocesses.  Briefly  described,  the 
Nippon  Chisso  Hiryo  Kabushiki  Kaisha  is 
producing  chemicals,  nitrogenous  fertilizers 
and  Iiy-products  by  the  following  processes 
and  for  the  purposes  stated: 

Charcoal  and  Limestone. —  A  mixture  of 
lime  and  coal  or  charcoal  is  heated  in  an 
electric  furnace.  At  high  temperature  the 
lime  and  carbon  combine  and  form  calcium 
carbide.  Carbide  generates  acetylene  gas 
by  interaction  with  water  for  lighting,  and 
for  cutting  and  welding  of  iron  and  steel. 
Also  it  is  used  as  raw  material  of  fertilizers. 

Atmospheric  Nitrogen  and  Carbide. —  Nitro- 
gen, extracted  from  the  atmosphere  and 
crushed  carbide;  being  heated  again  in  elec- 
tric furnace,  calcium  cyanamide  is  formed. 
This  material  contains  20  per  cent  nitrogen 
and  is  known  as  the  newest  available  nitro- 
gen fertilizer. 

Sulphuric  Acid  and  Calcium  Cyanamide. — 
When  calcium  cyanamide  is  treated  with 
steam  the  ammonia  gas  generates  and, 
combining  with  sulphuric  acid,  the  sulphate 
of  ammonia  is  produced.  This  material  is 
used  as  fertilizer  most  extensively  throughout 
the  world.  From  the  residue  of  sulphate  of 
ammonia  and  clay,  Portland  cement  is  made. 

Oxygen  is  extracted  from  the  atmosphere 
and  is  employed  in  various  industries  for 
welding,  cutting,  and  otherwise  treating  iron 
and  steel.  It  is  also  sold  for  medical  and 
general  purposes. 

Nippon  Chisso  Hiryo  Kabushiki  Kaisha 
has  two  factories  in  Kumamoto  Prefecture, 
and  one  factory  in  Cita  Prefecture.  There 
are  two  electrical  generating  stations  in 
Kagoshima    and    three   in    Kumamoto    Pre- 


fecture. These  electrical  plants  give  the 
company  about  25,000  horsepower  at  a 
remarkably  low  cost,  and  as  it  derives 
most  of  its  chemical  products  from  the 
atmosphere,  it  can  be  seen  at  once  how  sound 
a  financial  proposition  the  whole  enterpri.se 
is.  Still,  the  best  way  to  illustrate  the 
financial  condition  of  the  company  is  to  give 
the  figures  in  the  accompanying  table. 

Furthermore,  this  company  has  written 
off  Yen  3,000,000  against  its  properties  and 
has  built  up  a  reserve  of  Yen  450,000.  The 
company    has    a    strong    directorate    which 


TOKYO    SULPHURIC    ACID    CO.,    LIMITED 
(TOKYO   RYUSAN  KABUSHIKI   KWAISHA) 

In  the  matter  of  chemical  production 
Japan  has  rapidly  come  to  the  front  among  the 
nations  of  the  world,  and  she  is  now  almost 
independent  of  foreign  sources  of  supply  for 
most  of  the  leading  commercial  requirements. 
This  result  has  been  brought  about  by  the 
special  efforts  of  a  small  group  of  farseeing 
men,  who  have  devoted  their  time  and  money 
to  building  up  the  chemical  industry,  and 
among  them  must  be  prominently  placed  Mr. 
Bokushin  Oi,  President,  and  Mr.  Seinosuke 
Shibata,  Managing  Director,  of  the  Tokyo 
Sulphuric  Acid  Co.,  Ltd. 


WO.MEN    PICKING    TE.A 


I 


mn 


:j; 


)i 


a 


> 

■W      a 


:t  ?  •»* 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


321 


Mr.  Oi,  witli  Mr.  Slii1i,-ita  .-iiid  five  other 
Kcntk-mcii,  established  tlie  business  now 
coniiucted  so  successfully  by  the  company, 
in  1905,  the  capital  originally  at  their  dispcsal 
l)eing  Yen  250,000,  as  against  the  Yen  1,500,- 
000  now  available.  From  the  inception  of  this 
special  branch  of  the  chemical  manufacturing 
industry,  the  company  has  been  noted  for  its 
progressive  policy,  and  to  it  is  due  the  credit 
of  many  advancements  in  the  methods  of 
manufacture.  As  an  example  it  may  be  said 
that  although  sulphuric  acid  is  produced  in 
large  cjuantities  in  Japan,  most  of  it  obtained 
by  means  of  the  "lead  chamber"  system,  the 
Tokyo  Sulphiu-ic  Acid  Co.,  Ltd.,  is  now  lead- 
ing the  field  with  the  production  of  anhydrous 
and  fuming  sulphuric  acids,  under  a  special 
patented  process,  the  rights  of  which  were 
acquired  in  19 16.  So  far  anhydrous  and 
fuming  sulphuric  acids  have  not  been  pro- 
duced perfectly,  or  on  a  large  scale,  in  Japan, 
except  in  the  Government  plants.  For  some 
industries,  such  as  the  refining  of  mineral  oils, 
the  manufacture  of  dyestuflfs  and  explosives, 
and  the  production  of  nitro-compounds,  etc., 
anhydrous  and  fuming  sulphuric  acids  are 
absolutely  indispensable.  Realising  this  need, 
the  Tokyo  Sulphuric  Acid  Co.,  Ltd.,  although 
producing  almost  every  kind  of  acid  under  the 
best  conditions,  set  out  to  supply  this  special 
demand.  The  patent  rights  of  making  acid 
by  the  most  modern  contact  system  were 
purchased  from  the  Tentelov  Chemical 
Industry  Company  of  Petrograd,  so  that 
the  company  now  has  the  monopoly  for  Japan 
and  her  territories  for  producing  anhydrous 
and  fuming  sulphuric  acids  by  this  process. 

The  Tokyo  Sulphuric  Acid  Co.,  Ltd., 
erected  and  installed  a  special  factory  with 
this  system,  and  it  is  expected  that  the  new 
product  will  be  marketed  in  the  near  future, 
when  the  chemical  industrial  field  of  Japan 
will  lie  well  supplied  with  pure  and  low-priced 
sulphuric  acid.  At  present  the  company  has 
an  annual  output  of  35,000  tons  of  sulphuric 
acid,  valued  at  Yen  398,000.  The  installa- 
tion under  the  old  system  comprises  the  lead 
chamber  method  with  an  ore  burning  furnace 
and  lead  room  and  acid  refining  and  decocting 
arrangements.  The  new  contact  system 
comprises  the  ore  burning  furnace  and 
various  arrangements.  There  are  also  the 
necessary  air  compressors,  gas  compressors, 
water  raisers,  etc.,  the  whole  plant  being 
perfectly  equipped  for  the  production  of 
every  class  of  commercial  acid.  Motive 
power  is  derived  from  electricity  and  steam. 
An  excellent  factory  site  of  10,000  Isiiho  is 
owned  by  the  company  at  Oshima-machi,  in 
the  outskirts  of  Tokyo.  The  buildings  are 
ver>'  extensive  and  cover  2,500  tsubo,  there 
being  no  fewer  than  40  spans  of  roof,  the 


DRYING    TE.\    LEAVES   OVER    A   CHAR- 
COAL   HEATER 


factory  being  constructed  on  the  modem 
"bay"  system.  At  present  there  are  150 
employees,  the  wages  bill  amounting  to  Yen 
50,000  per  annum,  but  when  the  factory  is 
being  operated  at  its  full  capacity  this  number 
will  have  to  be  increased.  Sulphuric  acid 
of  65  and  66  degrees  is  sold  very  widely 
throughout  Japan,  and  the  company  has  also 
developed  an  export  trade  with  the  South 
Seas,  India,  China,  and  Russia. 

The  head  office  of  the  Tokyo  Sulphuric 
Acid  Co.,  Ltd.,  is  at  No.  7-chome,  Oshima- 
machi,  Minami-Katsushika  County,  Tokyo 
Prefecture.  Mr.  Bokushin  Oi  is  the  Presi- 
dent-Director, Mr.  Seinosuke  Shibata,  the 
Managing  Director,  and  other  Directors  are 
Messrs.  Jozo  Suzuki,  M.  P.,  Kotaro  Uyeda, 
Ikusaburo  Hirano,  and  Sosuke  Nakagawa. 
The  Auditors  are  Messrs.  Tarobei  Akita  and 
Matayemon  Tazawa. 


KANTO  SANSO  KABUSHIKI  KAISHA 
One  noteworthy  direction  in  which  rapid 
and  substantial  progress  has  been  made  in  the 
industries  of  Japan,  is  in  connection  with  the 
manufacture  of  chemicals,  fertilizers,  dye- 
stuffs  and  similar  lines,  upon  which  the 
country,  like  many  others,  was  largely  depen- 
dent upon  Germany  before  the  war.  Of 
course,  the  war  has  given  rise  to  a  number  of 
new'  enterprises  to  exploit  this  wide  field  of 
commercial  activity.  The  pioneer  and  most 
substantial  of  all  such  concerns  is,  however, 
the  Kanto  Sanso  Kabushiki  Kaisha,  or  the 
Kanto  Acids  and  Alkali  Co.,  Ltd.  Originally 
the  business  which  has  since  been  developed 


on  such  a  wide  scale  by  the  Kanto  Company 
was  a  State  enterprise,  the  Japanese  Govern- 
ment, under  the  policy  which  then  prevailed 
of  fostering  certain  industries,  having  estab- 
lished a  factory  at  Oji,  Tokyo,  in  1885,  for 
the  manufacture  of  acids  and  other  chemicals. 
The  works  were  continued  by  the  Govern- 
ment for  ten  years,  without  any  marked 
jirogress  being  made,  except  to  demonstrate 
that  the  manufacture  of  such  lines  was  a 
practical  business  in  Japan,  and  then,  in  1895, 
the  Kanto  Sanso  Kabushiki  Kaisha  was  formed 
and  took  over  the  Government  interest.  The 
founders  of  the  company  were  its  present 
directors.  Their  original  capital  was  only 
Yen  95,000.00,  as  against  the  present  capital 
of  Yen  5,000,000.00.  The  guiding  spirit  in 
the  company  is  Mr.  Y.  Tanaka.  From  the 
inception  of  its  operations  the  Kanto  Com- 
pany made  progress,  and  undoubtedly  the 
success  which  attended  its  pioneer  efforts 
in  this  new  field  of  industry,  encouraged  other 
concerns  to  open  up  business  in  the  same  line 
and  thus  help  to  give  Japan  another  powerful 
commercial  outlet  for  her  activities  and 
resources. 

The  Kanto  Sanso  Kabushiki  Kaisha  is 
engaged  in  the  manufacture  and  sale  of 
sulphuric  acid,  hydrochloric  acid,  phosphoric 
acid,  caustic  soda,  sodium  sulphide,  lime 
sulphur  liquor,  bleaching  powder,  copper, 
zinc,  hydrosulphide,  superphosphate,  mixed 
fertilizers  and  several  other  chemicals.  The 
head  office  and  principal  works  are  at  Oji, 
Tokyo,  and  branches  are  established  at  Kobe 
and  Osaka.  The  company  has  its  own  mines 
at  Niigata-ken  and  Akita-ken,  from  which  are 
derived  a  large  quantity  of  the  raw  materials 
used  in  the  manufacture  of  the  commercial 
products.  Excluding  the  mines,  the  works 
and  factories  of  the  Kanto  Company  cover 
over  60  acres.  The  buildings  are  mainly  of 
brick  and  concrete,  erected  according  to  the 
most  approved  designs  and  installed  with  the 
latest  plant  and  machinery  for  the  treatment 
of  the  raw  material.  About  1,200  hands  are 
employed  regularly,  and  the  pay-roll  totals 
over  Yen  400,000.00  annually.  In  addition, 
about  a  thousand  coolies  are  employed  as 
casual  labourers,  being  hired  by  the  day. 
The  annual  output  of  the  company's  works  is 
approximately  Yen  10,000,000.00  in  value. 
This  is  disposed  of  in  the  Japanese  market, 
and  large  quantities  are  exported  to  Japanese 
possessions,  China,  Australia,  New  Zealand, 
the  South  Pacific  islands,  Africa,  India  and 
elsewhere . 

Following  are  the  officers  of  this  important 
enterprise:  President,  Mr.  Y.  Tanaka; 
Managing  Director,  Mr.  U.  Ishikawa;  and 
Directors,  Messrs.  Y.  Konishi,  A.  Fukuhara, 
and  T.  Moritomo. 


ELECTRO-CHEMICAL    INDUSTRY    CO.,    LTD.     (DEXKI    KAGAKU    KOGYO    KABUSHIKI    KAISHA)  :    F.ACTORY    AT   TOMAKOMAI - 

F.\CTORY   AT    BUJUN  —  FACTORY    AT   OMUDA 


324 


PRESENT-DAY        I   M   P  K  i;  b  S  I  O  N  S        OF        J   A  P  A  X 


GENERAL   VIEW   OF  THE   FACTORY   OF   THE 


THE  ELECTRO-CHEMICAL  INDUSTRY  CO., 
LIXHTED 

A  RAPID  development  has  taken  place  in 
the  chemical  and  fertilizer  industries  in  Japan, 
and  the  Empire  is  almost  independent  of 
foreign  products.  This  result  has  been 
brought  about  by  the  war  conditions  compel- 
ling greater  attention  to  the  industries  on  the 
part  of  the  Japanese,  but  it  must  be  admitted 
that  some  of  the  scientific  men  of  Japan  only 
needed  a  little  opportunity  to  enable  them  to 
show  what  they  could  do.  Foremost  among 
the  chemical  manufacturers  and  experts  of 
Japan  is  Mr.  Tsuneichi  Fujiyama,  who  has 
given  many  years  to  the  study  of  the  science, 
and  is  the  inventor  of  several  processes  by 
which  commercially  required  chemicals  may 
be  satisfactoril}'  and  cheaply  produced. 
Under  the  auspices  of  the  Mitsui  family,  Mr. 


Fujiyama  established  the  Hokkai  Carbide 
Works  at  Tomakomai,  Hokkaido,  in  May, 
1912,  and  after  conducting  this  enterprise  for 
three  years,  he  transferred  all  the  plants  to 
the  Electro-Chemical  Company,  Limited,  or 
the  Denki  Kagaku  Kogj-o  Kabushiki  Kaisha, 
which  was  formed  for  the  purpose  with  a 
capital  of  Yen  5,000,000.  The  promoters  of 
this  company  were  Baron  E.  Shibusawa, 
Messrs.  Takashi  Masuda,  Takuma  Dan, 
Kyohei  Makoshi,  Shintaro  Ohashi,  Toj'oji 
Wada,  Nagabumi  Ariga,  Jugoro  OtagiiTO, 
Senkichiro  Hayakawa  and  others.  The  new 
company  acquired  the  patent  rights  of  Air. 
Fujiyama,  and  was  also  fortunate  in  securing 
his  services  as  a  director.  His  invention,  a 
patent  granted  by  the  Japanese  and  almost 
all  other  governments  of  civilised  countries, 
consists  in  making    carbide  of    lime   absorb 


nitrogen,  the  product,  viz.,  nitrate  of  lime, 
being  used  as  an  effective  fertilizer  in  that 
condition  or  transformed  into  sulphate  of 
ammonia  by  adding  sulphuric  acid  thereto 
These  are  among  the  principal  products  of 
the  Electro-Chemical  Industry  Co.,  Ltd. 
The  company  started  operations  on  a  large 
scale  in  May,  191 5,  and  has  extensive  works 
at  Omuda  City,  Fukuoka  Prefecture,  and 
also  at  Bujun,  5?outh  Manchuria.  The 
plants  cover  an  area  of  about  130,000  Isiiho, 
and  give  employment  to  a  staff  of  150  officials 
and  1,200  workmen,  the  annual  wages  and 
salan,'  bill  being  over  Yen  200,000.  Chem- 
icals of  various  kinds  are  produced  to  the 
value  of  over  Yen  6,000,000  per  annum,  and 
apart  from  the  strong  local  demand  for  the 
company's  manufactures,  an  extensive  export 
trade     is    being    done    in    China,     Hawaii 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


325 


JAPAN   GLYCERINE    INDUSTRY   COMPANY,    LIMITED 


Australia,  the  East  Indies  and  elsewhere.  The 
company  is  well  represented  abroad  by  the 
Mitsui  Bussan  Kaisha  and  its  agencies  are 
to  be  found  in  all  the  branches  of  that  con- 
cern abroad.  That  the  undertaking  of  the 
company  is  a  profitable  one  may  be  seen  from 
the  fact  that  though  it  has  been  established 
less  than  three  years  it  paid  a  dividend  in 
the  last  half  of  191 6  of  12  per  cent  ordinary 
and  5  per  cent  sjiecial,  and  for  the  first  six 
months  of  191 7  the  dividends  were  12  per 
cent  ordinary  and  10  per  cent  special.  The 
officers  of  the  Electro-Chemical  Industry  Co., 
Ltd.,  are:  President,  Mr.  Kyohei  Makoshi; 
Managing  Director,  Mr.  Jugoro  Otaguro, 
and  Director,  Mr.  Tsunoichi  Fujiyama. 
The  head  office  of  the  company  is  at 
Xii.  4,  Honkawaya-cho,  Nihonbashi-ku, 
Ti  )kyo. 


THE    JAP.\N    GLYCERINE    INDUSTRY    CO., 
LIMITED 

The  manufacture  of  glycerine  and  kindred 
products  is  not  a  very  old  industry  in  Japan, 
and  it  does  not  appear  to  have  been  success- 
fully conducted  before  the  Nippon  Glycerine 
Kogyo  Kabushiki  Kaisha,  with  expert  direc- 
tion, took  over  the  business.  Prior  to  that 
time,  there  were  several  concerns  in  existence. 
The  promoters  of  the  Japan  Glycerine  In- 
dustry Co.,  Ltd.,  formed  a  company  with  a 
capital  of  Yen  3,000,000,  under  the  auspices 
of  the  Government  to  take  over  the  Teikoko 
Gyoyu  Seisei  Kabushiki  Kaisha's  factory 
and  plant,  as  well  as  that  of  the  Nippon 
Seiyu  Kogyo  Kabushiki  Kaisha.  The  Im- 
perial Government  entered  into  an  arrange- 
ment with  the  company  under  which  a  return 
of  eight  per  cent  on  the  capital  was  guaran- 


teed, and  the  company  started  operations 
on  March  i,  1916.  For  the  first  business 
period  the  company  received  a  small  subsidy 
from  the  Government  to  make  good  the 
deficiency  on  the  working,  but  since  that  time 
the  concern  has  been  able  to  pay  dividends 
on  its  own  account,  despite  the  fact  that  raw 
material  rose  three  to  five  times  higher  than 
the  pre-war  prices,  and  that  manufactured 
articles  required  in  the  industry  were  60  to 
70  per  cent  higher.  War  prices  have  materi- 
ally affected  the  company's  operations,  and 
the  sooner  the  war  ends  the  better  from  the 
point  of  view  of  the  shareholders  in  the 
Japan  Glycerine  Industry  Co.,  Ltd.  Never- 
theless the  company  paid  an  eight  per  cent 
dividend  in  its  second  term,  and  a  similar 
dividend  with  an  additional  special  dividend 
of  one  per  cent  in  the  third  period.     With 


22 


326 


P  R  K  S  K  N  T  -  n  A  V        I   M   P  R  K  S  S  I  O  N  S        OF        JAPAN 


DWAKl-     IRKE,    OLDER    THAN    HIMSELF 


the  eight  per  cent  dividend  guaranteed  by 
the  Government  for  a  term  of  ten  years,  the 
company's  stock  is  an  attractive  investment, 
and  it  is  not  surprising  to  learn  that  when, 
after  eighteen  months  of  prosperous  trading, 
the  capital  was  doubled  and  made  Yen  6,000,- 
000,  the  public  readily  provided  the  funds. 

This  company  manufactures  glycerine, 
oleic  acid,  stearic  acid,  soapstock  (fatty 
acids),  stearine  pitch,  etc.  Beef  tallow  is 
imported  from  Australia  and  China.  The 
detailed  lines  of  production  are  as  follows: 
glycerine  is  made  for  explosives,  medical  and 
industrial  purposes,  tobacco  curing,  printing, 
toilet  purposes,  technical  and  other  uses. 
Stearic  acid  is  made  for  candle-manufacture 
and  carbon  papers.  Oleic  acid  is  produced 
for  the  woollen,  cotton,  and  silk  industries, 
and  as  a  base  for  metal  polishes.  Soap- 
stock  is  for  making  soaps,  for  sizings  on  piece 
goods,  and  for  metal  polishes.  Stearine  pitch 
forms  the  base  of  such  things  as  ships'  paint, 
water-proofing,  for  coating  electric  wires, 
for  asphalt,  for  water-proof  paper,  etc.  In 
its  soft  form  it  is  used  for  heavy  steel  plate 
rollers;  and  for  electrical  machinery  and 
dry  batteries,  the  hard  pitch  is  used.  Con- 
sumers of  the  company's  products  are: 
the  Imperial  Army  and  Navy  Departments, 
the  Tobacco  Monopoly  Bureau,  Imperial 
University,  woollen  goods  factories,  silk  and 
cotton  factories,  cotton  piece  goods  printing 
factories,  chemists  generally,  and  the  soap- 
makers.  An  export  trade  is  done  with  Russia, 
America,  China,  and  India. 

The  Japan  Glycerine  Industry  Co.'s  main 
factory    is    at    Tsukuda,    Chifune    Village, 


Nishinari,  Osaka,  and  there  is  a  branch 
factory  at  Nunoya,  Kawakita,  Osaka  Pre- 
fecture. The  head  office  and  main  factory 
cover  23,000  tsiibo,  and  the  branch  factory 
extends  over  8,131  tsubo.  Buildings  are  of 
brick,  reinforced  concrete,  or  wood,  and 
are  of  three  stories.  The  total  area  covered 
by  buildings  is  3,766  tsubo.  Steam  is 
employed  for  power  purposes,  and  the  plant 
comprises  the  very  latest  machinery.  About 
500  hands  are  engaged.     When  the  works  are 


entirely  completed,  according  to  present 
plans,  the  output  will  reach  about  17,500 
tons  of  all  the  products  enumerated,  per 
annum,  representing  a  gross  sales  value  of 
Yen  12,100,800.  The  Board  of  Directors 
and  Inspectors  consists  of  the  following: 
Directors,  Messrs.  S.  Hirata  (President), 
T.  Fujimoto  (Managing  Director),  Y.  Hiraga 
(Professor  of  Technology),  S.  Uyemura,  C. 
Kase,  H.  Soma,  and  G.  Koizuka.  Inspectors, 
Messrs.  R.  Iwasaki,  R.  Miura,  and  M.Taku. 

THE    J.\PAN    ACETIC    ACID    MANUFAC- 
TURING  CO.,  LIMITED 

The  success  of  the  Japan  Acetic  Acid 
Manufacturing  Co.,  Ltd.,  or  Nippon  Sakusan 
Seizo  Kabushiki  Kaisha,  is  another  instance 
of  the  determination  with  which  Japanese 
manufacturers  have  fought  to  establish  indus- 
tries the  operation  of  which  tends  to  make 
the  Empire  self-contained  and  independent  of 
foreign  products.  The  history  of  the  concern 
also  demonstrates  the  persistence  with  which 
the  pioneers  of  many  of  these  industries  have 
held  to  their  original  plans,  overcoming  many 
difficulties,  and  steadily  solving  one  problem 
after  the  other  as  it  arose. 

The  inception  of  the  large  business  now 
controlled  by  the  Japan  Acetic  Acid  Manu- 
facturing Co.,  Ltd.,  dates  back  to  May, 
1894,  when  a  small  factory  was  started  by 
the  present  Managing  Director,  Mr.  Shoich- 
iro  Katow,  as  a  private  enterprise.  The 
works  were  established  in  Ochiaimura, 
Kamitsuga-Gun,Tochigi-ken,  machinery  was 
imported  from  Europe,  and  the  manufacture 
of    certain    products    started    in    August    of 


JAPAN    ACETIC    A(  111    M  AMFACTrRING   CO.,  LTD.:   GENERAL    VIEW    OF    AKAYA    F.XCTORY — GENERAL    VIEW    Ob    HONJO    F.^CTORV  —  THE   OSAKA 
FACTORY,    UNDER   CONSTRUCTION,    I9I5  —  THE    SHIOBARA    WOOD   DISTILLING    WORKS 


32« 


P  R  E  S  E  N  T  -  n  A  V         IMPRESSIONS        OF        JAPAN 


1894.  Mr.  Katow  had  to  overcome  many 
difficulties  in  his  effort  to  manufacture  locally 
the  products  which  had  hitherto  been  im- 
ported, but  he  plodded  along  and  had  the 
satisfaction  of  seeing  his  business  gradually 
extend,  and  of  arousing  some  interest  in  his 
work  among  other  manufacturers.  In  one 
direction  in  particular  was  this  the  case,  viz., 
among  the  charcoal  manufacturers,  whose 
attention  was  directed  by  Mr.  Katow  to  the 
profitable  production  of  acetate  of  lime,  by 
means  of  an  economising  method  of  utilising 
waste  smoke  from  their  kilns.  Mr.  Katow's 
business  continued  to  increase  to  such  an 
extent  that  in  July,  1903,  he  transformed  his 
private  concern  into  a  joint-stock  company 
with  a  capital  of  Yen  100,000,  and  concen- 
trated chiefly  on  the  production  of  acetic 
acid  and  acetates.  Despite  the  growing 
demand  for  these  chemicals  in  Japan,  the 
new  company  did  not  prosper  because  it 
could  not  compete  with  the  foreign  products 
which  were  far  superior  in  quality.  Mr. 
Katow  knew  where  the  difficulty  lay,  and 
believing  that  he  could  overcome  it  and  turn 
out  chemicals  equal  to  those  of  foreign  pro- 
duction he  approached  Baron  Eiichi  Slii- 
busawa,  Baron  Kihachiro  Ohkura,  Mr. 
Kyohei  Makoshi,  Mr.  Chosaburo  Uyemura, 
and  other  prominent  business  men,  and 
succeeded  in  enlisting  their  interest  and 
support  in  his  work.  With  such  powerful 
assistance  the  capital  of  the  company  was 
increased  to  Yen  300,000  in  September,  1906, 
and  in  the  following  year  the  works  were 
extended,  and  machinery  of  the  most  modern 
type  was  installed  for  the  production  of  acetic 
acid  of  the  purest  quality.  The  new  plant 
was  put  in  operation  in  February,  1908,  and 
the  results  justified  all  Mr.  Katow's  expec- 
tations. The  products  speedily  earned  an 
excellent  reputation  for  their  quality,  and 
though  a  strong  foreign  competition  had  still 
to  be  faced,  the  company's  output  increased, 
while  the  quality  improved,  and  since  191 1 
the  foreign  product  has  been  almost  entirely 
driven  out  of  the  Japanese  market.  The 
manufacture  of  acetone  was  commenced  in 
February,  1909,  when  new  machinery  was 
installed  for  the  purpose,  and  this  under- 
taking has  also  met  with  great  success. 
The  Japan  Explosives  Co.,  Ltd.,  which  manu- 
factures gun  powders  for  the  Imperial  Japa- 
nese Navy,  looks  exclusively  to  the  Japan 
Acetic  Acid  Manufacturing  Co.,  Ltd.,  for 
the  supply  of  all  its  requirements  of  acetone, 
and,  besides  this,  the  company's  product  is 
in  much  demand  for  the  manufacture  of 
celluloid  and  artificial  leathers. 

In  spite  of  the  great  development  which  had 
taken  place  in  the  manufacture  of  acetic  acid 
and  acetone,  the  supply  of  the  raw  material, 
acetate  of  lime,  had  remained  inactive  for  a 


numljcr  of  years,  and  the  greater  part  of 
the  demand  had  been  met  by  importing 
from  the  United  States.  Realising  the  situa- 
tion in  July,  191 1 ,  the  Japan  Company  estab- 
lished a  large  wood  distillation  works  on 
the  European  model  in  Shiobara-mura,  near 
Nikko.  This  gave  rise  to  the  company's 
trade  mark,  "Maru-ko,"  "maru"  meaning  a 
circle,  and  "ko"  being  taken  from  the  name  of 
the  popular  visiting  place.  To  carry  out  this 
undertaking  the  capital  of  the  concern  was 
increased  to  Yen  600,000,  and  in  August,  191 1, 
distillation  was  started  in  what  is  regarded  as 
the  model  works  of  its  kind  in  the  Orient, 
where  acetate  of  lime,  crude  methyl  alcohol, 
and  charcoal  and  wood  tar  are  produced, 
graded  up  to  the  best  foreign  standards. 
The  output  of  these  works  being  insufficient 
to  meet  the  demand  for  acetate  of  lime,  the 
company  in  1915  established  four  other  works 
in  the  provinces  of  Shima,  Akaya,  Sennai,  and 
Kurisawa.  Meantime  the  manufacture  of 
formalin  from  crude  methyl  alcohol  had  been 
started  by  the  company  in  November,  1913, 
when  machinery  of  the  latest  type  was 
imported  from  Eiu'ope.  On  the  organisation 
of  the  Toyo  Chemical  Co.,  Ltd.,  in  1915,  the 
Japan  Acetic  Acid  Manvifactiu-ing  Co.,  Ltd., 
made  over  to  that  company  all  its  formalin 
manufacturing  plant,  and  has  since  supplied 
the  Toyo  Co.  with  the  materials  for  producing 
formalin.  This  step  was  taken  in  accordance 
with  the  regulations  of  the  Government  under 
the  Encouragement  Act  for  the  production  of 
dyestuffs  and  chemicals.  The  demand  for 
acetic  acid  having  still  further  increased,  and 
the  foreign  product  being  almost  out  of  the 
market,  the  company  established  a  second 
factory  at  Osaka  in  December,  1913,  and  in 
May,  1914,  they  purchased  the  Osaka  Acetic 
Acid  Company,  Ltd.,  and  brought  the  works 
into  the  organisation  under  the  name  of  the 
Owada  Factory.  To  make  this  purchase  the 
capital  was  increased  to  Yen  680,000.  In 
June,  1915,  the  capital  was  further  increased 
to  Yen  1,300,000,  at  which  figure  it  stands 
to-da}'.  The  company  has,  under  the  pros- 
perous conditions  brought  about  by  the  great 
war,  opened  up  foreign  markets  such  as  Great 
Britain,  France,  Russia,  China,  India,  Dutch 
East  Indies,  Australia,  French  Indo-China, 
the  Malay  States,  the  Philippines,  etc.,  and 
its  factories  are  working  at  full  capacity  to 
execute  the  orders. 

The  factories  of  the  Japan  Acetic  Acid 
Manufactiuing  Co.,  Ltd.,  are  modem  build- 
ings of  brick  and  stone,  and  together  with  the 
offices  they  cover  about  25,000  tstibo.  A 
stafT  of  75  experts  and  administrative  officers 
is  engaged  as  well  as  an  average  of  about 
1,000  labourers.  The  amount  paid  annually 
in  wages  runs  to  Yen  85,000.  The  annual 
output  of  the  company  is  valued   at    Yen 


3,200,000,  and  the  products  include:  acetic 
acid,  gracial,  96  per  cent,  98  per  cent,  99  per 
cent — 100  per  cent  (pure  and  technical); acetic 
acid,  35  per  cent,  36  per  cent,  and  48  per  cent 
(pure  and  technical) ;  acetate  of  lime,  acetone, 
sodium  acetate  and  lead  acetate  (crystal,  pure 
and  technical);  methyl  alcohol,  95  per  cent, 
99  per  cent,  and  99-5  per  cent  (refined  and 
crude).  The  prosperous  condition  of  the 
company  may  be  gathered  from  its  develop- 
ment as  recorded  above,  and  from  the  fact 
that  it  has  in  hand  reserve  funds  totalling  Yen 
542,524.  The  head  office  and  main  factory  of 
the  company  are  located  at  No.  3  Yanagi- 
shima,  Yokogawa-cho,  Honjo-ku,  Tokyo,  but 
the  general  business  is  transacted  at  its 
branch  off.ce.  No.  4  Yorozu-cho,  Xihonbashi- 
ku,  Tokyo.  Following  are  the  principal 
officers  of  the  Japan  Acetic  Acid  Manufactur- 
ing Co.,  Ltd.:  President,  Mr.  K.  Makoshi; 
Managing  Director,  Mr.  Shoichiro  Katow; 
Directors,  Messrs.  C.  Uyemura,  H.  Ohkawa, 
C.  Shiga,  T.  Kitagawa;  Auditors,  Messrs.  N. 
Ohta,  K.  Ohkura,  T.  Shibusawa;  Advisers, 
Baron  Kihachiro  Ohkura  and  Mr.  K.  Kume 
(Bungakuhakushi) ;  General  Manager,  Mr.  T. 
Miyahara  (Hogakushi),  and  Chief  Engineer, 
Mr.  K.  Kobayashi  (Hogakushi). 

TOYO    CHEMICVL    INDUSTRI.\L    COM- 
PANY, LIMITED 

This  company  was  established  for  the 
refining  of  chemicals,  the  manufacture  of 
drugs,  and  although  not  indicated  by  the 
business  title,  for  mining  operations  on  a 
fairly  extensive  scale.  Well  installed  works 
and  extensive  godowns  of  the  company  are 
located  in  Nagano,  Miye,  and  Fukui  Pre- 
fectures, the  combined  sites  measuring  nearly 
9,000  tsiiho.  Chloride  of  potash,  iodine, 
sulphate  of  potash,  carbonate  of  potash, 
chloride  of  soda,  chlorate  of  potash,  acetate 
of  lime,  permanganate  of  potash,  etc.,  are 
produced  on  a  large  scale.  The  present 
mining  concessions  held  by  the  company 
represent  an  area  of  2,442,900  tsubn  located  in 
the  Aomori,  Akita,  Fukushima,  Fukui,  and 
other  prefectures.  They  produce  gold,  silver, 
copper,  zinc,  and  lead  in  quantities,  which, 
considering  that  the  development  may  be 
regarded  as  still  in  the  initial  stages,  augurs  a 
very  bright  future  for  the  enterprise. 

The  offices  of  both  the  mining  and  chemical 
departments  of  the  business  are  located  at 
I-chome,  Fushima-machi,  Higashi-ku,  Osaka, 
though  each  carries  its  separate  staff.  The 
former  is  equipped  with  a  small  but  modem 
ore-reducing  plant,  and  the  latter  with  a 
well  installed  chemical  laboratory,  affording 
unusual  facilities  for  the  work  of  the  min- 
ing and  chemical  experts  in  charge.  The 
President  of  the  company  is  Mr.  Gentatsu 
Shimidzu. 


n. 


Hi 

I  [J 


m 


CORAL  POTASH  — THE  WELL-INSTALLED  CHEMICAL  LABORATORY  — A  CORNER  IN  THE  CHEMICAL  DEPARTMENT 


THE  FAMOUS  CASTLE   WALLS   AND   MOAT  CONSTRUCTED   BY  lYEYASU 


XVI.    Tea 

Shizuoka  — Tea  — Commercial   Notices 


SHIZUOKA,  the  capital  of  the  Prefecture 
of  the  same  name  of  the  Province  of 
Suruga,  lies  120  miles  to  the  southwest 
of  Tokyo  by  the  Tokaido  Railway,  and 
has  a  population  of  about  55,000.  Sit- 
uated on  the  highway  connecting  Kyoto 
with  Tokyo  over  which  the  feudal  lords 
with  their  numerous  retinues  had  to 
pass  in  former  days,  Shizuoka  has  played 
an  important  part  at  various  periods  of 
Japanese  history.  It  was  there  that  lyeyasu, 
the  founder  of  the  Shogunate,  retired  more 
japonico  in  his  latter  days  and  where  he  died. 
On  the  Restoration  of  the  Imperial  Power  in 
1868  this  great  example  was  followed  by 
Keiki,  the  last  of  the  line,  who  lived  in  seclu- 
sion in  Shizuoka  up  to  1897,  when  he  removed 
to  Tokyo.  Many  mementoes  of  its  connec- 
tion with  names  famous  in  history  are  to  be 
found  in  the  art  objects  treasured  in  the 
neighbouring  temples. 

The  town  is  pleasantly  situated  and,  being 
protected  from  the  northern  blasts  by  the 
great  mountain  range  which  embraces  the 
lofty  Koshu  Shirane-san,  Akaishi-san  and 
others,  and  from  the  bleak  northeasterly 
winds  by  the  Peninsula  of  Izu,  it  enjoys  a 
much  more  equable  and  a  milder  climate  than 
most  places  on  or  near  this  coast.  Tea  is  the 
chief  product.  It  ranks  second  only  to  that 
of  Uji  near  Kyoto,  and  the  thick  tea-bushes, 
symmetrically  trimmed  and  laid  out,  which 


cover  the  low-lying  hills  and  the  ground  in 
this  neighbourhood  form  a  pleasing  feature 
of  the  landscape  to  the  passing  traveller. 
The  proximity  of  Shizuoka  to  the  port  of 
Shimizu  has  largely  assisted  in  the  develop- 
ment of  the  tea  industry,  shipment  of  the 
staple  now  being  made  thence  direct  to 
America  and  Canada,  the  chief  buyers,  in- 
stead  of,  as  formerly,   from  Yokohama. 


BUDDHIST   TEMPLE   AT   SHlZUOK.\ 


The  principal  manufactures  of  Shizuoka 
consist  of  a  cheap  form  of  lacquer-ware, 
bamboo-wares,  and  paper  goods.  The  por- 
celain, known  as  Shidoro-yaki,  which  bears  a 
marked  resemblance  to  the  famous  Bizen 
ware,  is  produced  in  the  Province  of  Totomi, 
now  part  of  the  Shizuoka  Prefecture.  The 
egg-shell  porcelain  cups  come  from  the 
Province  of  Mino. 

Though  Shizuoka,  like  most  Japanese 
provincial  towns,  is  dull  and  of  httle  interest 
in  itself,  the  temples  in  its  immediate  vicinity 
and  the  noted  spots  within  easy  reach  afford 
attractions  to  the  tourist,  besides  making  it 
a  pleasant  place  at  which  to  break  the  long 
journey  between  Kyoto  and  Tokyo.  Noth- 
ing remains  of  the  old  feudal  castle  except  the 
walls  and  moats.  The  prefecture  and  other 
official  buildings  stand  within  the  grounds. 
There  is  also  an  imperial  villa  just  outside. 
Of  the  temples,  Rinzaiji,  belonging  to  the 
Zen  sect  of  Buddhists,  is  noted  for  its  connec- 
tion with  lyeyasu,  and  its  treasures,  especially 
the  screens,  scrolls,  specimens  of  lacquer  and 
jiorcelain,  and  kake-mniio  by  Kano  Masanobu, 
Chin  Nampu,  and  other  old  masters.  The 
temple  of  Sengen,  though  devoted  to  Shinto 
worship,  is  constructed  in  the  most  ornate 
Buddhistic  style  and  decorated  with  ex- 
cellent carvings.  Some  of  the  compart- 
ments contain  very  fine  specimens  of 
paintings    by    artists    of    the    Kano    school. 


P  R  IC  S  E  N  T  -  1)  A  Y        IMPRESSIONS        OF        JAPAN 


331 


The  grounds  which  siirrounrl  this  temple 
are  noted  throughout  Japan  for  their  more 
than  usual  beauty.  Also,  that  great  com- 
pany of  world  travellers  that  has  visited 
the  Land  of  the  Rising  Sun  has  spread  the 
fame  of  these  temple  parks  abroad,  so 
that  Shizuoka  and  its  temples  are  known 
in  all  lands.  The  exceptionally  fine  speci- 
mens of  wood  carving  to  be  seen  in  the 
Temple  of  Sengen  constitute  another  claim 
on  the  traveller's  attention.  Altogether, 
Shizuoka  offers  much  of  interest  to  the 
sightseer  from  other  lands,  both  in  the  way 
of  modern  industrial  enterprise,  as  displayed 
by  the  great  tea  houses,  and  in  historical 
monuments  and  natural  beauty. 

Some  six  miles  to  the  east  of  Shizuoka  lies 
Kuno-zan,  one  of  the  most  interesting  and 
picturesque  spots  on  this  part  of  the  coast. 
It  is  a  steep  fortress-like  hill,  though  only 
900  feet  high,  and  was  the  first  burial-place  of 
the  illustrious  lyeyasu.  The  magnificent 
mausolea  at  Nikko,  whither  his  remains  were 
removed  in  1617,  are  but  more  elaborate 
examples  of  the  shrine  at  Kuno-zan  erected 
in  his  honour. 


STREET   SCENE   IN    SHIZUOK.A 


GENER.\I.    VIEW    OF    THE   CITY   OF    SHIZIOK.^ 


332 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


TEA 

By  CHARLES   E.  ATWOOD,   Vice-Presi- 
dent of  the  J.  C.  \\'hitney  Company 

IT  is  interesting  to  note  that  as  far  back 
as  history  records,  the  use  of  tea  as 
a  beverage  has  been  connected  with  man- 
kind; not  at  first,  perhaps,  in  the  exquisite 
perfection  that  now  marks  it,  but  always  as  a 
benefit,  from  the  time  of  its  earhest  history 
when  taken  as  a  medicine,  to  the  present  day, 


A       TEA    GARDEN 

when  it  serves  to  refresh  and  stimulate  and 
vitalise.  .In  the  earliest  Chinese  records,  the 
tea  plant  is  mentioned,  and  from  China  it  has 
been  transplanted  to  the  various  countries 
now  interested  in  its  production.  Wherever 
cultivated  it  forms  a  large  percentage  of  the 
products  of  the  country',  whether  it  be  Green 
or  unfermented  tea,  or  Black  fermented  sorts 
from  China;  unfermented  tea  from  Japan: 
semi-fermented  from  Formosa,  or  fully  fer- 
mented   teas   from   Ceylon,  India,   or  Java. 


FLOWERING    TEA 


In  the  earliest  ages  tea  was  used  as  a 
medicine  and,  with  the  Chinese,  believed  to 
have  power  not  only  to  reUeve  fatigue,  but  to 
delight  the  soul,  fortify  the  will,  and  improve 
the  eyesight.  It  was  even  applied  externally 
for  various  ailments.  Monks  and  priests 
used  it  in  ritualistic  services,  with  even  a 
patron  saint  to  aid.  Many  ceremonies  were 
quite  incomplete  without  the  introduction  of 
a  Tea  Service,  which  lent  no  detrimental 
effects  but,  on  the  contrary,  was  felt  to  bring 
into  harmony  everj-thing  that  had  to  do  with 
the  development  and  the  movements  of  the 
peoples.  Prom  this  historical  past  we  have 
moved  down  through  the  ages,  with  tea  ever 
producing  "the  cup  that  cheers  but  does  not 
inebriate,"  until  it  has  become  a  real  bene- 
factor, helping  the  human  race  to  overcome 
its  fatigue,  to  enjoy  its  foods,  to  satisfy  its 
thirst,  and  to  bring  gladness  to  the 
heart. 

It  is  wonderful  how  the  development  of  the 
tea  plant  in  the  various  countries  has  pro- 
duced beverages  that  take  on  a  variety  of 
qualities,  from  the  very  light,  thin,  unfer- 
mented teas  producing  pale  liquors,  to  the 
thick,  heavy  liquoring  sorts,  producing 
infusions  as  thick  as  coffee.  To  really 
discriminate  in  tea  has  become  a  real 
attainment,  reached  by  few  and  by  them 
only  through  years  of  study  and  appli- 
cation. 

While  climatic  conditions,  together  with 
favourable  positions  of  tea  gardens  on  the 
mountain  sides  or  in  the  higher  altitudes,  have 
much  to  do  with  the  qualities  of  various  teas 
produced,  yet  this  variation  is  enhanced  and 


I'  K  !•;  S  E  N  T  -  n  A  Y       I  M  I'  K  i:  S  S  I  O  N  s 


O  I'- 


I  A  P  \  N 


333 


nioR'  fully  (IfVflopc'd  by  thf  iih-iIukI  of 
procedure  in  the  curing  or  firing  of  the  leaf. 
When  it  is  known  that  the  tea  plant  is  the 
same  species,  whether  from  the  mountains  of 
Darjeeling,  India,  producing  the  thick,  heavy 
liquoring  kinds,  or  from  the  hills  of  Japan, 
with  its  mild,  bright  liquoring  sorts,  it  can  be 
seen  at  once  that  the  method  of  culture  or 
manufacture  has  mucli  to  do  with  the  varieties 
that  arc  offered  to  the  consumers  throughout 
the  entire  world.  We  need,  therefore,  to 
distinguish  between  the  methods  of  manu- 
facture and  to  note  that  in  the  production  of 
so-called  Green  tea,  that  may  be  had  from 
China  under  the  names  of  Gunpowder, 
Imperial,  and  Young  Hyson,  or  from  Japan. 
Whether  called  Natural  Leaf,  Basket  Fired 
Leaf,  or  Pan  Fired  Leaf,  these  teas  may  be 
classed  as  unfermentcd  for  the  reason  that 
the  leaf  is  transferred,  as  rapidly  as  possible 
after  being  picked,  to  small  out-houses 
stationed  in  close  proximity  to  the  tea  fields, 
where  the  leaf  can  have  heat  or  steam  applied. 
This  process  at  once  seals  the  pores  of  the  leaf, 
drying  up  the  natural  sap  and  thus  prevent- 
ing the  leaf  from  fermenting  or  oxidizing. 
After  this,  the  leaf  can  be  handled  in  many 
forms  that  show  m  the  variety  of  colors  and 
sizes  offered  in  trade,  but  its  character  has 
been  fixed  by  this  process,  and  after  that  it  is 


but  a  matter  of  sorting  and  sifting  and  blend- 
ing, through  which  process  the  tea  travels. 
After  receiving  a  second  firing,  either  in  the 
jians  set  in  masonry  in  the  interior  of  China, 
or  in  the  more  up-to-date  firing  pans  and 
wicker  baskets  of  Japan,  the  care  of  the  tea  is 
definitely  fixed  or  set,  and  it  becomes  the 
finished  product  traded  in  throughout  the 
world. 

From  this  we  turn  to  the  semi-fermented 
teas  of  South  China,  exj)orted  from  the 
market  of  Foochow,  and  the  Formosa  teas, 
brought  from  the  island  from  which  it  takes 
its  name,  both  of  which  kinds  have  been 
allowed  to  partially  ferment  by  remaining  in 
withering  trays  so  that  the  leaf  has  taken  on  a 
semi-oxidization.  Afterward  the  leaf  is  fired 
and  fixed  in  the  particular  form  that  produces 
the  distinguishing  features  of  its  infusing  or 
steeping  qualities. 

From  this  we  turn  to  the  teas  of  India, 
Ceylon,  and  Java,  where  we  find  that  the 
growers  believe  that  a  better  beverage  is 
produced  by  allowing  the  leaf  to  become  fully 
fermented  —  done  by  allowing  the  leaf  to 
remain  in  withering  rooms  so  oxidization  is 
completed  before  it  is  taken  into  the  firing 
rooms,  there  to  be  cured  so  as  to  produce 
the  dark,  heavy  liquors  that  constitute  the 
particular  character   of   these    teas. 


Thus  we  see  that  there  are  three  general 
classes  of  tea,  covering  the  entire  tea  world; 
namely,  fermented,  semi-fermented,  and 
unfermented.  This  is  the  first  step  in  learn- 
ing the  A  B  C's  of  tea. 

While  characters  are  dependent  in  a  large 
measure  upon  climatic  conditions,  the  ele- 
vation of  the  plantations,  the  care  in  matters 
of  cultivation  and  fertilisation,  yet  grades 
and  values  are  produced  through  the  manip- 
ulation of  the  leaf.  Discrimination  is  re- 
quired, in  the  first  place,  in  the  early  plucking 
of  the  leaf;  secondly,  in  the  care  with  which 
it  is  handled  in  its  curing  process;  and 
thirdly,  in  the  sifting  out  or  separating  of 
the  leaf. 

This  latter  process  may  be  handled  in  the 
more  crude  method  used  in  China,  winnow- 
ing by  hand  —  placing  the  tea  in  bamboo  trays 
and  so  manipulating  it  that  different  sizes 
of  leaf  are  thrown  off  of  the  trays  in  different 
piles,  or  by  the  use  of  machine  sieves,  over 
which  the  leaf  is  passed  and  separated  in 
liifferent  sizes  for  use  in  making  up 
the  various  grades.  This  separation,  or 
sortation,  becomes  one  of  the  features 
of  each  tea  estate,  as  the  object  to  be 
attained  is  the  sorting  and  blending  of  the 
leaf  into  the  forms  best  suited  for  the  mar- 
ket to  which  the   particular  tea  is  destined. 


ANOTHER    GARDEN    SCENE 


334 


I'  K   !•:  S  E  N  T  -  I)  A  Y        I  M   T  R  E  S  S  I  O  N  S        OF        JAPAN 


WILTING    THE    TEA    LEAVES   IN   THE    SUN 


In  the  case  of  the  fermented  teas  of  India, 
Ceylon,  and  Java,  these  sortations,  or  sepa- 
rations, take  on  characters  known  to  the  trade 
under  various  names,  which  designate  the 
character  of  the  leaf  as  finally  offered  for 
sale;  namely,  Flowery  Orange  Pekoe, 
Broken  Orange  Pekoe,  Orange  Pekoe,  Broken 
Pekoe,  Pekoe,  and  Pekoe  Souchong.  While 
in  Japan  and  Formosa  there  may  be  no 
significant  names  in  common  use,  yet  to  those 


engaged  in  actual  production  of  tea,  their 
grades  may  be  known  as  Choicest,  Choice, 
Finest,  Fine,  Superior,  Good-common,  and 
Common  sorts.  In  China,  the  Green  or 
unfermented  leaf  is  simply  classed  generally 
as  Gunpowder,  Imperial,  and  Young  Hyson, 
although  Gunpowder  and  Imperial  may  be 
known  as  Extra-firsts,  Firsts,  Seconds,  and 
the  Young  Hyson  as  Chun  Mee,  Foong  Mee, 
Sow     Mee,     Firsts,     Seconds,     Thirds,     and 


DRYING    THE   TEA    OVER    A    CHARCOAL    I-TRE,    AS   IT   IS   DONE    IN    A    SM.\LL    F.\CTORV 


Fourths, — all  these  names  indicating  grades 
and  sizes  of  leaf. 

We  should  now  be  fairly  intelligent  as  to 
method  of  manufacture  and  general  char- 
acters of  various  teas,  and  be  prepared  to 
enter  into  the  post-graduate  course  of  tea 
knowledge  —  that  of  distinguishing  in  the 
infused  leaf,  liquor-producing  qualities 
that  make  the  distinguishing  features  in 
placing  values  on  the  teas.  This  requires 
an  education  of  the  palate  to  distinguish 
flavours,  and  of  the  smelling  senses  to  note 
aroma,  which  can  only  be  developed  by 
years  of  practice.  When  it  is  considered 
that  teas  are  graded  down  to  as  small  margins 
as  a  quarter  of  a  cent,  with  prices  varying 
from  fifteen  cents  per  pound  for  the  common 
sorts,  to  as  high  as  one  dollar  per  pound  for 
the  choicest  teas — import  costs — it  is  at  once 
recognised  that  to  become  an  expert  in  the 
handling  of  this  product  is  a  matter  of 
extensive  education. 

THE    J.    C.    WHITNEY    COMPANY 

The  corporation  that  becomes  the  subject 
of  this  sketch  came  into  its  present  form  of 
organisation  in  the  year  1905,  although  the 
men  comprising  this  company  have  been 
identified  with  the  tea  trade  as  far  back  as 
1870,  when  associated  with  the  firm  of  J.  W. 
Doane  &  Company,  to  which  firm  they  be- 
came the  successors. 

Upon  the  incorporation  of  the  J.  C.  Whit- 
ney Company,  the  studied  policy  of  the 
organisation  to  put  itself  in  active  touch 
with  the  growers  of  all  kinds  of  teas,  took 
form  in  the  sending  to  the  Orient  of  a  staff 
of  tea  experts,  who  had  been  trained  in  the 
United  States  and  Canada.  These  experts 
had  knowledge,  from  personal  touch,  of  the 
exact  needs  of  each  particular  buyer  in  the 
very  large  territory,  comprising  various 
sections,  each  having  its  own  peculiar  require- 
ments, which  knowledge  would  unques- 
tionably fit  them  to  select  the  special  char- 
acters of  teas  demanded  by  distributors  in 
these  sections  throughout  the  United  States 
and  Canada. 

At  the  time  of  writing  (191 8),  this  policy 
has  been  so  developed  and  perfected  that 
wherever  tea  is  grown,  experts  from  this 
firm  are  established,  and  the  policy  first 
adopted  has  proved  its  own  wnsdom  in  the 
volume  of  business  actually  done  —  which 
is  second  to  that  of  no  other  firm. 

It  was  in  the  very  early  years  of  the 
twentieth  century  that  the  Japan  tea  trade 
began  to  undergo  a  marked  change  and  a 
transition,  from  the  former  method  of  selling 
raw  leaf  to  foreign  firms  for  final  manufacture, 
to  the  final  curing  of  teas  by  the  Japanese 
themselves.  At  this  time,  practically  all  of 
the  Japan  tea  exported  was  handled  through 


Us  to 


! « tk 


Tiist 


tores  in 


stomlt 


"ws-itisatonu 
»ai  expert  in  He 
*«  is  a  mate  of 


rm  COMPASY 

at  becomes  He  subject  '|| 
ito  its  prsent  foru  of 
iari90j,alttaglitbe 
mpaii)'  lave  been  .'| 
i  tude  as  far  back  as 
#  tie  firm  of  J.  W, 
0  whicb  film  tbev  be- 


iioDo[tbeJ.C.» 
stndied  policy  of  tie 
itself  in  active  toicb 
al  kiiids  of  teas,  took 
;otbeOiientofasta5 
'leiiintlie 


personal  toiick,  of  tie      1 
Mrtioilaibtyerintbe 
various 


tsownpecmaiK 


unijijes-      1 


ttlies] 


tetthel'nitedStatts     J 

ting  (1918).  *!»'''' 
ed  and !«««'  *' 
,CT,  experts  from  t* 
^  and  tbe  pofcj  ^ 
its  own  wisdom  in* 
actu*done'*k 
JO  other  firm. 
En-  early  «>«  '^  * 
ia't.ie]apa»"»'f' 
,  marked  cb*»^' 

former«tW«''*' 

asforfii 

,fteasbytteJ»P^ 

stiine.P® 


P  R  E  S  1-;  N  T  -  D  A  Y 


I   NI   IMt  E  S  S  I  O  N  S 


OF        JAPAN 


335 


foreign  houses,  largely  English,  stationed  at 
the  two  i)orts  of  Yokohama  and  Kobe.  Some 
influential  Japanese  began  to  see  an  oppor- 
tunity of  organising  Japanese  firms  for  the 
final  curing  of  tea.  This  sometimes  took 
the  form  of  cooperative  companies  and  the 
establishment  of  Japanese  firing  plants  in 
the  various  tea-producing  prefectures,  whicli 
mo\-ement  has  continued  to  develop.  At 
the  present  time  it  might  be  estimated  that 
70  per  cent  of  the  entire  Japan  crop  is  finally 
cured  by  native  re-firers  stationed  through- 
out the  tea-producing  sections  of  Japan. 

It  was  in  the  earliest  period  c.if  tliese 
changing  conditions  that,  through  wisdom 
and  foresight,  the  J.  C.  Whitney  Company 
established  themselves  in  the  heart  of  the 
largest  tea-producing  prefecture,  and  at  once 
became  a  factor  in  the  manufacturing  and 
shipping  at  Shizuoka,  Japan,  being  the 
first  foreign  firm  to  take  up  direct  relation- 
ship with  the  Japanese  re-firers.  The  fact 
that  each  year  has  seen  an  increasing  amount 
of  tea  bought  and  shipped,  until  the  firm 
stands  to-day  the  largest  single  exporter  of 
Japan  tea,  is  ample  proof  of  the  successful 
results  attending  the  policies  adopted.  It 
is  also  worth  noting  that  the  old  markets 
at  Kob(5  and  Yokohama  are  now  practically 
abandoned  as  tea  centres,  and  every  tea- 
exporting  firm  of  importance  now  has  its 
headqitarters  at  Shizuoka. 

This  firm  early  adopted  the  method  of 
training  its  own  men  in  every  branch  of  the 
business,  and  has  been  constantly  develop- 
ing talent  and  building  up  an  organisation 
that  has  no  equal  in  the  tea  trade,  and 
because  of  this,  its  business  has  been  con- 
stantly enlarging,  both  in  the  buying  markets 
in  the  Orient  and  in  the  distributing  sections 
throughout  the  United  States  and  Canada. 

The  personnel  of  the  firm  may  be  stated 
as  being  Messrs.  Joel  C.  Whitney,  President 
(now  retired);  Gustav  A.  Brecher,  Vice- 
President  and  Treasurer,  who  carries  the 
financial  burdens  of  the  institution;  Charles 
E.  Atwood,  Vice-President,  and  Fred  A. 
Grow,  Vice-President  and  Secretary,  who  are 
engaged  in  the  active  operating  end  of  the 
business.  Associated  with  them  are  men  of 
years'  experience  in  the  tea  trade,  some  of 
whom  have  become  managers  of  the  branch 
offices  of  the  firm  stationed  at  various  cities 
in  the  United  States,  and  managers  of  the 
firm's  buying  offices  in  the  Orient.  Among 
them  might  be  mentioned  Mr.  J.  F.  Oglevee, 
stationed  at  Shizuoka,  Japan;  Mr.  E.  J. 
Hazen,  at  Shanghai,  China,  and  Mr.  F.  D. 
Mott,  at  Daitotei,  Formosa. 

HELLYER    &    CO. 
It  would  be  difficult  to  imagine  what  the 
tea   industry   of    Japan    would    be    without 


SORTING   TEA 


the  control  and  direction  of  the  foreign 
firms  which  originally  developed  the  trade, 
and  made  it  one  of  the  staples  of  the  country. 
From  the  very  earliest  days  of  the  opening 
of  Japan  to  foreign  trade  and  influence,  the 
tea  industry  has  been  almost  entirely  in 
the  hands  of  foreigners;  in  fact,  it  is  one  of  the 
very  few  that  have  not  reverted  to  Japanese 
control.  Associated  with  the  history  of  the 
development  of  the  trade  are  several  firm 
names,  known  throughout  Japan,  and  in  the 
United     States    and    Canada,     with    which 


countries  practically  the  entire  export  trade 
is  done.  Among  these  names  is  that  of 
Hellyer  &  Co.  This  business  was  founded 
by  Mr.  Frederick  Hellyer,  in  1875,  who  was 
assisted  by  his  brother,  Mr.  Thomas  Hellyer. 
Originally  the  business  was  conducted  from 
Kobe,  and  later  at  Yokohama,  but  when  the 
centre  of  the  tea  industry  shifted  to  Shizuoka, 
Hellyer  &  Co.  established  their  factory  there, 
and  made  it  their  headquarters  for  Japan. 
The  firm's  factory  and  plant  are  among 
the  largest  and  most  completely   equipped 


WEICHI.NC    TE.\   LE.WES   WITH    PRIMITIVE    SCALE 


^^i^g:rg^>a^^^cw>^0i^^ 


HELLYER   &    COMPANY:     TEA    TASTER   AT   WORK SCENE   IN   THE    PACKING    DEPARTMENT  —  TEA    SIFTING    DEPARTMENT - 

PACKING    TEA    IN   CHESTS — MECHANICAL    TEA   FIRING   PLANT   AT   SHIZUOKA 


P  R  E  S  E  N  T  -   I)  A  V        1   M    I'  R  [C  S  S  1  O  N  S        O  F 


ARAN 


337 


I'ROMINENT    TEA    TRADERS 


Mr  Kahei  Otani,  President  of  the  Yokohama  Chamber  of  Commerce  and  an  Outstanding  Figure  in  the  Japanese  Tea  Trade  —  Members 
of  the  Firm  of  Hellycr  &  Co.,  the  Pounder,  Mr.  Frederick  Hellyer  (seated),  and  (from  left  to  right)  Messrs.  Walter,  Arthur  T., 
and  Harold  J.  Hellyer,  Partners  —  Mr.  H.  R.  Hunt,  Managing  Partner,  Hunt  &  Co. 


in  Japan,  the  whole  presenting  a  vastly 
different  spectacle  from  that  to  have  been 
observed  forty  years  ago  when  the  trade 
was  in  its  infancy  and  the  methods  used 
were  crude  and,  to  some  extent,  casual. 
To-day     the     modern     tea     factory,     which 


embraces  in  its  operations,  the  different 
processes  of  grading,  firing,  preparing,  and 
packing  teas  for  export,  is  replete  with 
mechanical  appliances  that  not  only  have 
the  virtue  of  being  labour-saving,  but  also 
conduce  to  an  output  uniform  and  regular 


GROWERS    BRINGING    IN    THEIR    TEA    TO    THE    MARKET    AT    SHIZUOKA 


in  quantity  and  qualit}'.  In  these  respects 
Messrs.  Hellyer  &  Co.  have  every  advantage, 
backed  by  their  lengthy  experience,  not 
only  of  the  business  of  preparing  tea  for 
export,  but  of  the  requirements  of  the  con- 
sumers of  the  product.  The  factorj'  covers 
an  area  of  3,700  tstibo,  and  the  buildings 
are  of  stone,  plaster,  and  wood.  One  of  our 
illustrations  shows  the  tea-firing  plant  which, 
before  it  was  brought  to  its  present  state  of 
perfection,  was  the  subject  of  years  of  experi- 
ment by  practical  tea  men,  in  the  effort  to 
overcome  the  costly  and  slow  process  of 
hand-firing.  Other  photographs  convey  an 
idea  of  the  busy  scenes  which  are  witnessed 
at  the  plant  during  the  height  of  the  tea 
season,  when  the  firm  employs  from  five  to 
six  hundred  hands.  Messrs.  Hellyer  &  Co. 
deal  with  about  6,000,000  pounds  of  tea  per 
annum,  the  product  of  their  factory  being 
exported  in  chests  as  well  as  in  packets. 
The  business  is  a  partnership  which  com- 
prises Messrs.  Arthur  T.,  Walter,  and  Harold 
J.  Helh'er.  The  firm's  head  office  is  at  No. 
326  West  Madison  Street,  Chicago. 

HUNT  &  CO. 
In  these  days  of  the  "mushroom"  com- 
pany, and  when  so  much  attention  is  being 
directed  to  the  history  of  the  commercial 
and  industrial  development  of  Japan,  con- 
siderable interest  attaches  to  the  origin  and 


HUNT   &   company:      A   (,I.IMI's|..    ,  ,|      ||||      main    1   \(    HIKV  —  AUTOMATIC    HIT.  I    liiNVEYOR   AND    WOMEN    I'AIKING   TEA - 
THE    PROCESS   OF    WEIGHING    AND    PACKING   IN    CHESTS — THE    SHIPPING    GODOWN 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


339 


history  of  some  of  I  lie  old  foreign  houses, 
whose  names  are  inseparably  assoeiated  with 
the  early  and  strenuous  pioneer  days.  This 
is  the  case  with  Messrs.  Hunt  &  Co.,  of 
Shizuoka,  a  concern  that  can  lay  claim,  not 
only  to  being  one  of  the  first  half-dozen 
pioneers  of  the  tea  trade,  and  to  having 
held  that  position  through  all  the  vicissi- 
tudes of  nearly  fifty  years,  but  to  being 
one  of  the  actual  founders  of  the  industry. 
Mr.  H.  J.  Hunt,  father  of  the  present 
active  partners,  but  now  retired,  was  in  i86H 
stationed  at  Nagasaki  as  the  manager  of  the 
business  of  Ault  &  Co.,  a  firm  which  traded 
in  practically  every  line  of  merchandise, 
though  the  principal  items  of  trade  were 
arms,  ships,  and  piece-goods,  their  custom- 
ers being  spread  throughout  the  southern 
islands  and  the  western  parts  of  Japan. 
During  the  Satsuma  Rebellion  of  1871-2, 
the  revolting  clans  made  large  purchases 
of  ships  and  arms.  They  were  unable  to 
pay  cash,  and  the  produce  of  certain  lands 
was  offered  in  lieu  thereof,  the  firm  of 
Hunt  &  Co.  being  formed  to  operate  the 
various  transactions.  Later  it  was  dis- 
covered that  a  portion  of  the  lands,  from  the 
produce  of  which  the  claims  of  the  firm  were 
to  be  satisfied,  was  under  tea,  in  which  trade 


LOADING   TEA   LIGHTERS    lOK    I  KANSFER   TO   LINERS 


Mr.  Himt  had  fortunately  had  previous 
experience.  Hunt  &  Co.  developed  the  tea 
production,  rough  dried  the  leaf  and  shipped 
it   to  America,   where  it  met  with  a  ready 


market.  Such  is  the  origin  of  the  firm,  and 
the  inception  of  a  business  which  has  grown 
to  enormous  proportions  in  the  inter\'ening 
years. 


BUYING    TEA    FROM    THE    GROWERS 


340 


P  R  E  S  E  N  T  -  I)  A  V        IMPRESSIONS        OF        JAPAN 


Messrs.  Hunt  &  Co.  opened  offices  at 
KoW  in  1874,  but  in  1882  the  head  office 
was  removed  to  Yokohama,  and  in  19 10  a 
further  transfer  took  place,  the  centre  of 
operations  being  changed  to  Shizuoka,  in 
the  heart  of  the  principal  tea  district.  At 
Shizuoka  the  firm  has  one  of  the  most 
complete  tea  factories  to  be  found  in  the 
Orient.  The  offices  and  spacious  godowns, 
compounds,  etc.,  cover  an  area  of  6,000  tsttbo, 
or  about  36,000  square  feet,  but  even  so  the 
accommodation  is  no  more  than  is  necessary 
for  the  firm's  operations  during  the  heavy 
movement  in  the  height  of  the  tea  season. 
Rough  granite  has  been  employed  in  the 
construction  of  the  various  buildings,  which 
comprise  all  the  usual  departments  of  the 
modern  tea  factory.  The  plant  and  equip- 
ment is  of  the  latest  design.  One  interest- 
ing feature  is  the  endless  belt  conveyor 
system,  which,  by  the  way,  is  the  invention 
of  the  present  Managing  Partner,  Mr.  H.  R. 
Hunt.  By  this  installation  the  tea,  when 
ready  for  packing,  is  transported  down  a 
line  of  waiting  girls,  facilitating  the  packing 


operations  considerably,  the  importance  of 
which  can  be  realised  when  it  is  stated  that 
the  firm  exports  an  average  of  three  million 
packets  of  tea  annually. 

Practically  everj'  line  of  Japanese  tea  is 
handled  by  Messrs.  Hunt  &  Co.,  but  the 
largest  share  of  the  business  is  done  in  the 
medium  grades  for  which  there  is  the  strong- 
est demand.  The  tea  is  not  dried  by  the 
firm,  but  that  stage  of  its  treatment  is 
left  to  a  number  of  smaller  concerns  who 
work  exclusively  for  Messrs.  Hunt  &  Co. 
Besides  a  large  number  of  women  and  coolies, 
a  staff  of  thirty-five  clerks  is  employed  at 
Shizuoka.  At  Kobe  the  firm's  property 
extends  over  about  2,000  tsuho,  and  is  located 
in  the  most  valuable  part  of  the  foreign 
section,  while  at  Yokohama,  Messrs.  Hunt 
&  Co.  own  close  on  4,000  tsiiho  in  the  best 
residential  quarters  of  the  Bluff.  They  are 
perhaps,  the  largest  foreign  landholders  in 
Japan. 

The  accompanying  illustrations  of  the 
firm's  Shizuoka  factory  and  appurtenances 
will   give   an   idea   of   the   unusual   facilities 


enjoyed  by  the  firm,  in  the  way  of  godowns 
and  other  structures,  but  as  the  photographs 
were  taken  at  the  end  of  the  season,  they  do 
not  adequately  portray  the  busy  scenes 
which  are  to  be  witnessed  every  day  during 
the  height  of  the  activity  in  the  tea  industry 
of  Japan. 

The  active  partners  in  the  firm  of  Hunt 
&  Co.  are  Messrs.  H.  R.  and  E.  G.  Hunt. 
Mr.  H.  R.  Hunt  makes  an  annual  l)usiness 
visit  to  the  United  States  and  Canada,  where 
the  principal  connections  of  the  firm  are 
established,  and  where  the  house  and  its 
products  enjoy  a  high  reputation.  The 
firm  has  its  own  branch  offices  at  \o.  135 
Front  Street,  New  York  City;  at  Hearst 
Building,  326  West  Madison  St.,  Chicago, 
and  at  3  Nicholas  Street,  Montreal.  Both 
the  Messrs.  Hunt  were  educated  at  O.xford 
and  take  a  keen  interest  in  sport.  Old 
Oxonians  will  remember  Mr.  H.  R.  Hunt  as  a 
football  half-blue.  Mr.  E.  G.  Hunt  is  now 
at  the  front.  Mr.  H.  R.  Hunt  took  his 
turn  earlier  in  the  war,  but  has  been 
invalided  out. 


A    HUMBLE    PRODUCER   OF   THE    MULBERRY    TREE  — 
SILKWORMS,    FOUR   WEEKS   OLD  —  FEEDING   SILKWORMS 


XVII.    The  Silk  Industry  of  Japan 

By  MR.  AKIRA  SHITO,   Director  of  the  Imperial  Japanese  Silk  Conditioning  House 

History  of  the   Industry  —  Modern    Developments  —  Development  and  Improvement 
Production— Filature  Operations  — The  Export  Trade  — Japan's  Place  in 
World  Production  — Commercial  Notices 


IT  is  impossible  to  overstate  the  impor- 
tance of  the  silk  industry  to  Japan. 
The  country  is  peculiarly  well  adapted 
to  siUc  production,  sericulture  being  practised 
practically  throughout  the  entire  Empire, 
giving  employment  to  close  on  2,000,000 
families,  and  constituting  the  most  valuable 
of  the  primary  resources  of  Japan.  As  a 
source  of  wealth  silk  is  easily  first  among  the 
industries.  It  may  not  be  as  vital  to  the 
existence  of  the  Japanese  as  the  production 
of  rice,  which  is  the  "staff  of  life,"  but  it 
would  be  hard  to  imagine  the  condition  of 
Japan  without  the  silk  industry.  And  in  a 
country  like  Japan  sericulture  has  this  great 
advantage,  that  it  does  not  materially  in- 
terfere with  the  energy  and  enterprise  neces- 
sary for  the  ordinary  pursuits  of  husbandry. 
Quite  possibly  if  the  silk  industry  were 
unknown,  or  at  least  were  not  developed  to 
the  extent  it  is,  the  volume  of  labour  avail- 
able for  rice  cultivation,  or  for  other  depart- 
ments of  agriculture,  would  be  to  some 
extent  greater,  and  the  production  of  food- 
stuffs would  be  enlarged,  but  even  this  is 
doubtful,  because  sericulture  is  only  one  of 
the  natural  concomitants  of  husbandry,  in- 
terfering no  more  with  the  tillage  of  the 
soil  and  the  harvesting  of  its  produce,  than 
does  poultry  breeding,  or  hog  raising,  in- 
terfere with  farming  in  other  countries. 

In  Japan  silkworm-rearing  and  silk  pro- 
duction, speaking  generally,  may  best  be 
described  as  the  home  industry  of  the  farmer 
and  his  family.  It  is  specialised  as  an  in- 
dustry in  some  cases,  but  as  a  rule  it  is  merely 


incidental  to  ordinary  farming,  the  time 
devoted  to  it  not  interfering  with  the  farmer's 
primary  business  of  producing  food,  and  the 
labour  absorbed  being  that  which  can  well 
and  most  profitably  be  spared.  Sericulture 
provides  an  occupation  for  the  entire  family, 
just  as  in  other  countries  dairying,  chicken 
raising  and  other  occupations  associated  with 
the  farmer's  home,  provide  an  interest  and  a 
usefulness  for  those  who  do  not  actually 
engage  in  the  rough  work  on  the  land.  And 
there  is  this  difference,  that  for  the  labour 
called  for,  silk  is  more  profitable.  Indeed  it 
is  questionable  whether  the  Japanese  farming 
families  would  be  able  to  make  agriculture 
pay  at  all  did  they  not  have  such  an  industry- 
as  silk  production  to  help  them  out.  Where 
the  business  of  silkworm-rearing,  and  the 
reeling  of  silk  do  call  for  labour  that  at  other 
seasons  of  the  year  is  available  to  the  farmer 
as  assistance  on  the  land,  the  attention  to 
the  silk  industry  pays  him  well  enough  to 
enable  him  to  engage  outside  labour,  and 
then  leave  him  a  profit.  These  general  state- 
ments, of  course,  need  qualification  in  certain 
respects,  particularly  in  the  cases  where  silk 
as  an  industry  comes  first  in  the  farmer's 
ideas  of  importance,  but  broadly,  what  has 
been  said  above  holds  true  for  the  entire 
country. 

To  gain  an  idea  of  the  extent  to  which 
sericulture  is  practised  in  Japan  it  may  be 
said  that  official  figures  for  19 1 6  gave  the 
number  of  families  engaged  in  the  production 
of  cocoons  as  1,498,007.  If  we  take  the 
average  Japanese  family  as  five  in  number, 


this  means  that  7,490,035  persons  gave  some 
portion  of  their  time  and  attention  to  silk- 
worm-rearing. In  the  same  year  there  were 
284,500  families  employed  in  filatures,  or  in 
reeling  operations  in  their  own  homes.  The 
raising  of  silkworms  and  the  production  of  the 
raw  silk  are  only  two,though  they  are  the  most 
important,  phases  of  the  silk  industry.  If  we 
consider  the  silk  weaving  and  spinning 
factories,  the  hundreds  of  godowns,  the 
transportation,  sorting,  grading,  testing,  and 
general  handling  of  the  raw  product,  it  would 
not  be  extravagant  to  say  that  the  siUc 
industry  furnishes  whole,  or  part-time,  occu- 
pation to  at  least  ten  millions  of  the  people 
of  Japan.  What  the  actual  value  of  the 
industry  is  to  Japan  could  only  be  estimated 
after  an  involved  calculation.  Official  returns 
for  1 9 16  gave  the  total  production  as  6,084,- 
406  kivan,  or  approximately  50,400,000 
pounds  of  silk  valued  at  Yen  322,551,660. 
Other  figures  to  be  given  later  will  more  fully 
demonstrate  the  monetary  importance  of  this 
great  industry. 

HISTORY    OF    THE    INDUSTRY 

As  in  the  case  of  many  other  arts,  crafts, 
and  industries,  the  Japanese  appear  to  have 
obtained  their  knowledge  of  sericulture  orig- 
inally from  the  Chinese.  The  antiquity  of  the 
industry  is  lost  in  the  mists  of  time  and  leg- 
end. Whence  the  Chinese  secured  their 
knowledge  of  silk  and  its  production  is  not 
known,  but  ancient  records  ascribe  the 
introduction  of  sericulture  to  Hwang  Ti 
about  the   year  2,697  b.  c.     In  Japan  the 


23 


342 


PRESENT 


-DAY        IMPRESSIONS        OF        JAPAN 


INTERIOR    (IF    THE   COCOON 


existence  of  silkworms  as  early  as  in 
Jindai  (the  Sacred  Age)  is  recorded,  but 
whether  their  rearing  was  practised  as  an 
occupation  is  not  ascertainable.  The  first 
definite  information  regarding  silk  as  an 
industry  in  Japan  discloses  the  fact  that  it  was 
introduced  from  China  about  199  A.  D.,  in  the 
reign  of  the  Emperor  Chu-ai,  when  Koma-0, 
a  descendant  of  a  Chinese  emperor,  came  to 
Japan  and  secured  naturahsation,  paying 
tribute  for  the  privilege  with  precious  things, 
which    included    silkworm    eggs.     There    is 


every  reason  to  believe  that  from  that  time 
silk  production  was  a  regular  thing  in  Japan, 
but  not  till  the  time  of  the  Emperor  O-jin 
(270  A.  D.)  was  there  a  definite  move  to  make 
it  an  industry.  At  that  time  a  descendant  of 
Koma-O,  named  Tsudzuki-no-kimi,  brought 
to  Japan  from  China  a  large  number  of  silk 
farmers.  These  were  distributed  throughout 
Japan,  and  were  ordered  by  the  Emperor  to 
engage  in  silkworm-rearing.  This  may  be 
said  to  have  been  the  real  start  of  sericulture 
in   Japan. 


SORTING   OUT   THE   COCOONS 


The  succeeding  Emjieror  Nin-toku  showed 
a  warm  interest  in  silk  culture  by  sending  the 
Empress  to  visit  Nurinomi,  a  Korean  lady 
who   was  engaged  in   rearing  silkworms  at 
Tsudzuki,    in    the    Province    of   Yamashiro. 
From  this  time  sericulture  flourished  under 
imperial  patronage.     The  Emperor  Yu-r>'aku 
induced  his  consort  to  set  an  example  to  the 
people  by  rearing  silkworms  in  person.     He 
also  gathered  all  the  naturahsed  Chinese,  who 
had  been  scattered  throughout  the  country, 
and  set  them  to  work  under  the  direction  of 
Miki-no-kimi,  a  descendant  of  Koma-O,  to 
undertake  sericulture  more  extensively.     An 
imperial  decree  was  also  issued  encouraging 
the  cultivation  of  the  mulberry  tree.     Sub- 
sequent rulers  keenly  appreciated  the  value  of 
the  silk  industrj-  and  history  records  many 
Lflorts  made  to  foster  its  development.     Thus 
a  decree  issued  in  the  reign  of  the  Empress 
Suiko,    about   thirteen   hundred   years   ago. 
secured  to  the  people  freedom  from  pubhc 
ser\-ices  during  the  seasons  of  farming  and 
silkworm-rearing.     At    that    time    also    fire 
warming  was  resorted  to,  to  raise  the  temper- 
ature of  the  rearing  rooms.     In  the  reign  of 
Emperor  Kotoku  (645  A.  D.)  a  new  system  of 
taxes  was  inaugurated  under  which  imposts 
were  payable  in  silk  fabrics,  and  this  naturally 
increased   the  value   of   silk  and  led  to  its 
further  production.     The   forty-second  Em- 
peror,  Bum-bu,   ordered   that   every  family 
should  cultivate  mulberry  trees  according  to 
the  family  class,  namely,  three  hundred  trees 
for  the  first  class,  two  hundred  for  the  second, 
and  one  hundred  for  the  third  class. 

Up  to  this  time  silk  production  was  confined 
to   the  central    and    southwestern    parts   of 
Japan,  but  in  the  reign  of  the  Empress  Gem- 
myo  some  of  the  rich  families  in  the  central 
part  of  Japan  were  transferred  to  the  northeast- 
ern provinces  and  sericulture  was  introduced 
there.     In  the  reign  of  the  Emperor  Daigo, 
some  thousand  years  ago,  the  districts  pro- 
ducing silks  of  a  superior  quality  were  the 
following    prefectures:  Miye,    Aichi,    Shiga, 
Gifu,   Hyogo,   Okayama,  Hiroshima,  Waka- 
yama,    and    Tokushima.     Medium    quality 
silks   were   produced    in    the    prefectures   of 
Fukui,    Ishikawa,    Xiigata,    Kyoto,    Tottori, 
Shimane,Yamaguchi,Kagawa,  Ehime,  Kochi, 
Fukuoka,  Nagasaki,  Saga,  Kumamoto,  Oita, 
Miyazaki,  and  the  southern  part  of  Shizuoka. 
Inferior  silks  came  from  the  northern  part  of 
Shizuoka,    Yamanashi,     Kanagawa,    Tokyo. 
Chiba,     Ibaraki,     Nagano,      Gumma,     and 
Tochigi.     At  that  time  the  industry  flour- 
ished    more     in     the     central    and     south- 
western  districts,    the    distribution   of    seri- 
culture   being    quite    different    from    what 
it    is    to-day    when    the    northeastern    dis- 
tricts   are    such    prominent   silk   producers. 
Up   till   the  turbulent  era  of  Gem-pei,  when 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


343 


the  rival  families  of  Minamoto  and  Taira 
plunged  the  country  in  war,  the  silk  in- 
dustry flourished,  but  the  wars,  and  the 
introduction  of  cotton  gave  it  a  serious  set- 
back from  which  it  did  not  recover  until  the 
sixteenth  centurj'  when  the  establishment  of 
the  Tokugawa  regime  brought  peace.  Then 
sericulture,  along  with  other  industries, 
received  due  encouragement,  but  the  produc- 
tion was  not  what  it  had  been  in  former 
periods.  There  were  two  reasons  for  this. 
First,  frugality  in  the  mode  of  living  and  dress 
was  the  order  of  the  day,  and  naturally  the 
wearing  of  silk  was  discountenanced.  Sec- 
ondly, the  common  people  were  not  allowed  to 
wear  silk,  that  material  being  reserved  for  the 
samurai,  or  military  class. 

Nevertheless  in  this  era  of  the  Tokugawa 
shoguns,  the  industry  made  some  advance- 
ment, the  development  of  silk-producing 
areas  being  mainly  toward  the  north.  The 
terrible  famine  of  1785  devastated  the  whole 
country,  and  a  decree  was  again  passed 
prohibiting  the  common  people  from  wearing 
silk,  with  consequent  unfavourable  influences 
upon    the   industry. 

From  this  history  it  may  be  observed  that 
the  Japanese  have  always  been  sensible  of  the 
importance  of  sericulture,  and  it  is  doubtful 
if  any  industry  ever  had  so  much  encourage- 
ment as  a  national  occupation,  or  was  more 
studiously  fostered  by  the  successive  emperors 
and  governments,  except  in  times  of  internal 
strife. 

MODERN  DEVELOPMENTS 
Japanese  silks  were  amongst  the  most 
valued  articles  of  trade  in  the  eyes  of  foreign- 
ers, and  with  the  opening  of  Yokohama  to 
overseas  commerce  in  1857,  silk  production 
was  one  of  the  first  of  the  national  activities  to 
feel  the  influence  of  contact  with  the  outer 
world.  From  the  inception  of  the  Meiji  era, 
or  even  earlier,  the  Japanese  Government  and 
the  people  generally,  gave  closer  attention  to 
sericulture  which  promised  to  become  such  a 
source  of  wealth  from  foreign  countries. 

Perhaps  the  first  real  stimulus  to  the 
industry  was  the  demand  which  arose  over 
fifty  years  ago  for  Japanese  silkworm  eggs,  to 
replace  the  stock  which  had  been  ravaged  in 
Italy  and  France  by  the  disease  known  as 
pebrine.  The  annual  export  of  egg  cards  from 
Japan  at  one  time  reached  the  enormous 
figure  of  1,000,000,  and  the  production  of  eggs 
for  foreign  silk-growing  countries  became  in 
itself  an  important  industry.  The  export  of 
egg  cards  began  to  fall  off  when  the  late  M. 
Pasteur  introduced  his  system  of  egg  selection 
for  the  benefit  of  the  European  silk  farmers. 
In  1886  only  4,000  cards  were  exported  from 
Japan.  The  number  dropped  to  800  in  1895 
and  at  the  present  time  t.he  export  has 
practically   ceased. 


COCOONS    READY    FOR    THE    MARKET 


Throughout  the  history  of  Japanese  silk 
production,  up  to  the  opening  of  the  country 
to  foreign  trade,  silk-reeling,  or  the  unwinding 
of  the  silk  from  the  cocoons,  had  been  per- 
formed by  primitive  methods,  the  simple  hand 
wheels  being  employed.  It  was  not  long, 
however,  before  foreign  methods  were  intro- 
duced, and  the  industry  gradually  became 
systematised  along  modern  lines.  In  1869  the 
Ono-gumi  established  a  filature  of  one  hun- 
dred reelers  at  Tsukiji,  Tokyo,  the  French 
model    being    adopted.     This    factory    was 


removed  three  years  later  to  Nihonmatsu, 
Fukushima  Prefecture,  where  it  remains  to 
this  day  under  the  name  of  the  Sosho-kwan. 
In  1870  the  Government  started  a  factory 
at  Tomioka  in  Gumma  Prefecture,  and  a 
Frenchman,  Paul  Bruner,  was  employed  as 
an  instructor.  This  was  the  inception  of 
practical  and  modern  governmental  super- 
vision of  the  industry  without  which  it  is 
questionable  whether  silk  production  would 
have  reached  the  high  standard  to  which  it 
has  attained.     Later  on  we  mav  come  to  the 


THE    SILK-COI  ciuN    MERCHANT 


344 


I'  R  E  S  !■;  N  T  -  D  A  Y        I   M   1'  R   IC  S  S  I  O  N  S        OF        J  A  P  A  N 


THE    PROCESS   OF   IMMERSING    THE   COCOON    IN    BOILING   WATER    PRIOR   TO    TNWINDING    THE    SILK, 

AND   IN    THE    FACTORY 


AS   CARRIED    ON   IN   THE    HOME 


discussion  of  the  question  of  Government 
control  and  regulation  designed  to  maintain 
and  improve  the  entire  industry  as  one  of 
first  rate  national  importance.  The  earliest 
factories  were  soon  followed  by  others,  and 
presently  filatures  were  established  all  over 
Japan.  The  number  in  operation  to-day  is 
approximately  4,200,  which  number,  however, 
includes  small  household  work-rooms  fitted  up 
as  filatures,  and  employing  only  the  members 
of  the  family.  These  home  "factories,"  for 
the  most  part,  have  under  ten  basins.  Among 
the  regular  factories,  however,  the  smallest 
have  from  50  to  70  basins,  and  the  largest 
range  from  800  to  1,000  basins  in  the  one 
building.  In  France  and  Italy  the  largest 
filatures  have  from  500  to  600  basins,  so 
that  in  this  respect  many  of  the  Japanese 
filatures,  or  raw  silk  factories,  are  the  largest 
in  the  world,  though  some  experts  do  not 
consider  it  so  advantageous,  from  the  point  of 
view  of  economical  and  efficient  working,  for  a 
filature  to  have  more  than  500  basins  in  one 
building.  In  all  operations  of  reeling  and 
re-reeling  silk  there  were  in  use  in  1916,  615,- 
675  basins. 


DEVELOPIIEXT  AND  IMPROVE.MENT 
We  have  dealt  with  the  ancient,  and  one 
phase  of  the  modem,  history  of  the  silk 
industry  of  Japan,  and  have  indicated  the 
great  extent  of  its  growth.  It  is  now  neces- 
sary to  speak  of  the  means  adopted  to  im- 
prove the  qualit}-  of  the  product,  and  develop 
a  more  extensive  production,  and  generally 
to  systematise  the  industry  in  all  respects. 
This  work  has  been  almost  entirely  carried 
out  under  Government  supen'ision,  with  the 
assistance  of  foreign  experts  originally,  and 
supported  by  various  associations  of  seri- 
culturists. 

The  Imperial  Japanese  Government,  early 
in  the  Aleiji  era,  exerted  every  effort  to  foster 
sericulture,  and  readily  adopted  foreign  ideas 
for  the  betterment  of  the  industry.  We 
have  seen  that  a  State  factory  was  started 
in  1870.  Coincidentally  the  supervision  of 
sericulture  was  placed  in  the  hands  of  the 
Department  of  Agriculture  and  Commerce. 
Foreign  experts  were  engaged  to  raise  the 
standard  of  production,  and  modem  machin- 
ery' and  methods  were  introduced.  Need- 
less to  say  the  silk  produced  forty  or  fifty 


years  ago  under  the  old  methods  was  much 
inferior  in  quality  to  what  it  is  to-day.  A 
greater  part  of  it  was  reeled  from  yellow- 
cocoons.  This  gradually  gave  place  to  the 
white  silk  which  is  so  much  in  demand  to-day. 
The  silkworms  raised  were  then  of  the  uni- 
voltine  race,  hatching  in  spring.  Some 
attempts  had .  been  made  to  rear  bivoltine 
worms  for  a  summer  crop,  but  it  was  not 
till  fifty  years  ago  that  it  was  found  by  chance 
that  the  eggs  of  the  univoltine  race,  preserved 
in  a  cave,  would  retard  their  hatching  until 
autumn.  From  that  time  the  practice  of 
keeping  the  egg  cards  in  cool  storage,  which 
is  generally  found  in  caves,  or  special  places 
dug  in  the  hillsides,  has  been  general,  and 
Japan  now  raises  a  spring,  summer,  and 
autumn  crop  of  cocoons. 

It  would  be  too  lengthy  a  process  to  de- 
scribe all  the  steps  that  have  been  taken  to 
bring  the  industry  to  the  remarkable  state 
of  efficiency  and  national  value  which  it 
discloses  to-day,  but  we  may  touch  on  the 
leading  features  of  the  State  policy.  Special- 
ists have  regularly  been  sent  abroad  by  the 
Government  to  study  conditions  prevailing 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


345 


MANUFACTURING    SILK    THREAD    FROM    SILK   WOOL 


in  the  industries  in  France,  Italy  and  else- 
where, and  to  investigate  the  market  require- 
ments in  America.  In  1874  the  Sericultural 
Experiment  Station  was  opened  by  the 
Department  of  Home  Affairs  at  Naito, 
Shinjuku,  Tokyo.  This  was  abolished  in 
1879,  but  the  terrible  ravages  of  disease  in 
Italy  and  France  showed  that  scientific  con- 
trol of  sericulture  was  absolutely  essential 
in  Japan,  and  the  Government  established  a 
station  for  the  investigation  of  silkworm 
diseases,  at  Kojimachi-ku,  Tokyo,  in  1884. 
Research  revealed  the  presence  of  pi-brine 
in  Japanese  silkworms  and  in  1886  official 
regulations  for  the  examination  of  eggs  were 
promulgated.  Students  were  trained  in  the 
examination  of  eggs  and  moths,  and  by  this 
means  a  better  knowledge  of  the  methods  of 
preventing  disease  was  spread  throughout 
the  industry.  Government  supervision  was 
coordinated  and  centred  in  the  Sericultural 
Institute  in  1896,  and  three  years  later 
another  institute  was  established  at  Kyoto, 
where  experiments  were  conducted,  and  in- 
struction regularly  given.  The  question  of 
reeling  became  as  important  as  that  of  the 
proper  scientific  methods  of  raising  silkworms 
and  preventing  disease,  and  accordingly  a 
filature  department  was  added  to  the  Seri- 
cultural Institute  at  Tok>-o  in  1902  to  con- 
duct experiments  and  give  instruction  to 
those  in  the  industry'. 

Through  the  work  of  these  state  institu- 
tions, seconded  by  the  many  prefectural 
schools  and  supervising  bodies,  as  well  as 
different  associations  of  a  semi-public  nature, 
the  entire  industrj'  of  raising  silkworms,  pro- 
ducing cocoons,  and  working  off  the  raw  silk. 


was  raised  to  a  high  degree  of  perfection, 
being  standardised  in  every  respect.  There 
only  remained  the  need  for  conditioning  and 
regulating  silk  for  the  open  market  and  for 
export.  This  work  was  taken  in  hand  by 
the  Government  which  in  1895  established 
two  conditioning  houses,  one  at  Yokohama 
and  the  other  at  Kobe.  The  latter  was 
closed  in  1897,  as  there  did  not  appear  to  be 
much  need  for  it,  Yokohama  having  become 
the  silk-marketing  centre  of  the  Empire. 
The  operations  of  the  silk-conditioning  house 
there  have  increased  enormouslv  and  to-day 


the  value  and  importance  of  the  Yokohama 
Silk  Condition  House  can  hardly  be  over- 
estimated, its  operations  being  indispensable 
to  the  industry.  Besides  these,  a  few  years 
ago  the  Government  established  the  Seri- 
cultural Experimental  Station  at  Nakano, 
Tokyo,  and  it  has  seven  branches  located 
according  to  climatical  conditions. 

PRODUCTION 
As  mulberry  trees  can  be  cultivated 
almost  anywhere  in  the  Japanese  Empire, 
between  Hokkaido  and  Formosa,  a  geograph- 
ical range  of  twenty-three  degrees  of  latitude, 
it  may  be  said  that  the  sericultural  industry 
is  general  to  Japan  with  the  exception  of 
the  Saghalien  territory.  There  is  hardly  a 
district  in  which  silkworms  are  not  reared 
on  a  large  scale,  but  the  most  attention  is 
given  to  the  industry  in  the  prefectures  of 
Nagano,  Fukushima,  Gumma,  Aichi,  Saitama, 
Yamanashi,  Gifu,  Shiga,  Yamagata,  and 
Tokyo.  Practically  all  the  mulberry  trees, 
to  the  number  of  several  hundred  different 
varieties,  are  indigenous  to  Japan,  though 
one  or  two  varieties  were  imported  from 
China.  From  the  point  of  view  of  zoology 
the  silkworms  are  only  one  species  of  the 
insect,  albeit  there  are  many  varieties  ob- 
tained by  natural  and  artificial  selection  and 
breeding.  In  Japan  the  worms  are  classified 
as  univoltines  (or  annuals),  bivoltines,  and 
polyvoltines.  The  annuals  produce  one 
brood,  the  bivoltines  two  broods,  and  the 
polyvoltines  three  or  more  broods  in  the 
year.  The  annuals  are  conceded  by  silk 
growers  to  be  the  most  satisfactory  and 
profitable,  because  they  produce  the  greatest 
amount  of  silk  for  the  quantity  of  mulberry 


THE  WEAVING  LOOM 


346 


PRESENT-DAY 


IMPRESSIONS 


OF        JAPAN 


leaves  fed  to  them.  The  l>ivoltincs  produce 
less  silk,  and  the  least  productive  are  the 
poly\'o!tincs.  The  latter  are  the  easiest  to 
rear,  being  vigourous  and  ready  eaters.  In 
inverse  ratio  the  annuals  are  the  most  diffi- 
cult to  rear  and  feed.  Varieties  of  worms 
are  often  also  known  by  the  class  of  cocoon 
they  produce,  as  white,  yellow,  and  green, 
but  the  white  cocoon  is  the  chief  variety. 
Lastly  the  Japanese  silkworms  are  classified 
as    spring,    summer,    and    autumn    breeds. 


ence  between  this  number  and  the  number 
given  in  our  table  obviously  representing 
the  farmers  who  raise  summer  and  autumn 
cocoons  only.  The  total  value  of  the  cocoons 
raised  for  191 6  reached  the  enormous  figure 
of  Yen  273,058,254.  A  study  of  the  table 
above  also  indicates  a  higher  degree  of  skill 
in  sericulture  during  the  last  few  years  of  the 
period  under  review,  for  it  will  be  seen  that 
though  the  number  of  families  engaged  did 
not     increase    very    materially,     a    greater 

Production    of    Cocoons,    1907    to    1916 


weaving  factories,  the  great  bulk  of  it  is 
exported.  Fonnerly,  raisers  of  raw  silk 
used  to  sell  off  their  products  at  Yokohama, 
whence  it  passed  into  the  hands  of  foreign 
dealers  for  export.  In  1875  the  first  at- 
tempt at  direct  export  was  made  by 
Chotaro  Hoshino,  of  Gumma  Prefecture, 
who  made  a  shipment  through  Messrs. 
Kindon  &  Co.,  of  Yokohama,  but  the  attempt 
to  open  direct  trade  with  importers  and 
manufacturers  in  other   countries,  was   not 


Year 

No.  of 
Families 

No.  OF 
Egg  Cards 

Cocoons 

(KoKU)* 

DopnoNi 

(KoKU)* 

Pierced 
Cocoons 

Waste 
Cocoons 

Total 
(KoKu)* 

Percentages 

Spring 

Summer 

Autumn 

1907 

1,421,030 

4.433.157 

2,789.815 

359.659 

58,646 

248.847 

3.456,967 

65 

14 

21 

1908 

1,436,805 

4.554.922 

2,860,031 

364,968 

56,221 

248,948 

3,530,168 

62 

14 

24 

•  909 

1,450,248 

4.598,331 

2,928,437 

383.973 

57.416 

260,041 

3,629,867 

63 

13 

24 

1910 

1,462,976 

4,839,128 

3.137,104 

414.325 

69.563 

279,970 

3,900,962 

62 

13 

25 

191 1 

1.507,550 

5.058,810 

3,431,060 

446,708 

65.059 

292,463 

4.235,290 

61 

12 

27 

191J 

1,300,409 

5. 1 35. .568 

3,610,180 

471.544 

67.677 

302,906 

4.452..307 

57 

12 

31 

1913 

1,500,280 

5,159,421 

3.759.398 

467.997 

63.672 

300,481 

4.,59i.548 

57 

12 

31 

1914 

1,459,016 

5,094,856 

3.607,989 

449,480 

61.132 

293.638 

4.412.239 

59 

14 

27 

1915 

1,433,045 

5.332.323 

3,845,567 

478,767 

323,094 

4.647.428 

56 

13 

31 

1916 

1,498,007 

5.757.414 

4.775.085 

576,104 

357.274 

5,708,463 

54 

1 1 

35 

*  The  yield  of  cocoons,  it  will  be  obser\-ed,  is  given  in  koku.  a  measure  of  capacity  which  is  a  little  under  five  bushels. 


Though  this  classification  is  popularly  used 
it  does  not  mean  that  the  worms  are  different 
varieties,  but  only  shows  the  different  seasons 
of  their  feeding.  The  spring  breed  is  allowed 
to  hatch  after  the  budding  of  the  mulberry 
trees,  the  siunmer  breed,  soon  after  the 
"mounting"  of  the  spring  worms,  and  the 
autumn  breed  from  about  the  beginning  of 
August  till  the  middle  of  September. 

Japanese  statistics  disclose  the  extent  of 
the  sericultural  industry  by  giving  the  areas 
under  mulberry  plantation,  the  number  of 
families  engaged  in  silkworm-raising,  the 
quantity  of  egg  cards  obtained,  the  yield 
of  cocoons  for  the  three  seasons,  and  the  pro- 
duction of  raw  silk.  For  instance,  we  learn 
that  the  area  of  mulberry  trees  in  1916  was 
465,865  cho,  or  about  1,164,660  acres,  or 
close  on  20  per  cent  of  the  total  farm  lands, 
and  the  area  is  increasing  every  year.  A 
comparative  idea  of  the  extent  of  the  industry 
may  be'  gained  from  the  accompanying  table. 

In  the  foregoing  table  the  number  of 
families  engaged,  represents  those  who  raise 
spring  cocoons.  Many  of  these  same  fami- 
lies raise  summer  and  autumn  cocoons  as 
well,  while  other  families  devote  their  atten- 
tion either  to  summer  or  autumn  cocoons 
alone,  so  to  gain  an  idea  of  the  total  number 
of  families  engaged  it  is  necessary  to  take  the 
figures  for  19 16,  compiled  by  the  Depart- 
ment of  Agriculture  and  Commerce,  applying 
to  the  production  of  all  cocoons,  irrespective 
of  season.  In  this  return  the  number  of 
families  is  stated  to  be  1,765,937,  the  differ- 


numbcr  of  egg  cards  were  hatched,  and  the 
production  steadily  increased,  with  a  regular 
diminution  of  pierced,  or  spoiled,  cocoons. 
The  steady  development  of  autumn  breeding 
is  also  a  conspicuous  feature  of  the  return. 
As  a  matter  of  fact  this  and  other  statis- 
tical tables  demonstrate  the  results  of  the 
careful  attention  which  the  Government  has 
given  to  the  great  silk  industry,  the  farmers 
handling  all  phases  of  silkworm-rearing  and 
silk  production  with  a  degree  of  skill  that  has 
eliminated  much  of  the  risk  and  loss  from 
what  was  once  a  precarious  business,  subject 
to  many  baneful  influences. 

FIL.4TURE    OPER.\TIONS 

As  a  general  rule  the  Japanese  farmers 
stop  with  the  raising  and  sale  of  their  cocoons. 
There  are  many  thousands  of  homes  in  which 
reeling  operations  take  place,  but  with  the 
establishment  of  regular  factories  this  busi- 
ness is  left  to  them.  The  regular  filatures 
are  equipped  in  a  most  scientific  manner, 
and  they  handle  the  bulk  of  the  cocoons. 
Re-reeling  is  largely  left  to  the  home  workers, 
however,  as  may  be  seen  from  the  first  table 
on  the  following  page. 

There  is  some  extent  of  export  and  im- 
port of  cocoons,  though  the  latter  exceeds 
the  former.  The  second  table  on  the  follow- 
ing page  shows  the  movement  in  this  trade. 

THE    EXPORT   TRADE 

While  a  considerable  quantity  of  Japanese 
raw  silk  is  consumed  by  local  spinning  and 


on  that  occasion,  successful.  However,  in 
the  following  year  Mr.  Hoshino,  associated 
with  Mr.  Momotaro  Sato,  of  Chiba  Pre- 
fecture, succeeded  in  executing  the  sale  of 
400  kin  at  Yen  650  per  kin,  to  a  merchant 
in  New  Jersey.  This  was  the  first  instance 
of  direct  export  recorded. 

It  may  be  mentioned  here,  in  this  connec- 
tion, that  for  export  purposes,  silk  weights 
are  given  in  kin,  each  equal  to  approxi- 
mately ij^  pounds  avoirdupois.  The  es- 
tablishment of  the  Doshin  Kwaisha  at 
Yokohama,  in  1879,  opened  the  way  for 
regular  direct  export,  and  the  inauguration 
of  the  Yokohama  Specie  Bank  the  follow- 
ing year  gave  great  faciUties  for  the  hand- 
Hng  of  the  foreign  trade. 

The  raw  silk,  as  it  comes  from  the  homes 
which  engage  in  reeling  operations,  or  from 
the  larger  filatures,  is  practically  all  con- 
signed to  Yokohama,  where  it  is  disposed 
of  in  the  Doshin  Kwaisha,  or  Silk  Exchange, 
buyers  purchasing  either  direct  or  through 
silk  brokers.  Thence  the  silk  passes  into  the 
godowns  of  the  exporting  firms,  and  event- 
ually is  shipped,  mainly  to  the  United  States. 
In  the  operations  of  purchase  and  handling 
for  shipment,  the  raw  silk  is  tested,  classified, 
and  in  other  ways  "conditioned,"  this  work 
being  generally  carried  out  by  the  Imperial 
Silk  Conditioning  House  at  Yokohama. 
Most  of  the  buying  is  done  subject  to  certifi- 
cates of  condition,  obtainable  on  tests,  from 
the  Silk  Conditioning  House.  The  extent 
to  which  this  Government  institution  controls 


P  R  E  S  E  N  T  -  II  A  Y        IMPRESSIONS         O  F 

Filature,  Re-Reel,  and  Other  Operations,   1910 


JAPAN 


347 


Filatures 

Totals 

Operation 

Under  10 
Rasins 

Over  10 
Basins 

Over  50 
Basins 

Over  100 
Basins 

No.  of 
Filatures 

No.  of 
Basins 

Production 
(Kwan) 

Value 
(Yen) 

Value 

per 

Kwan 

Raw  Silk 
Waste  Silk: 

Noshi 

Kibiso 

Others 

Re-Reel 
Waste  Silk: 

Noshi 

Kibiso 

Others 

Doppioni 
Waste  Silk; 

Noshi 

Kibiso 

Others 

Floss  Silk 
Yamamai  anil 
Tussah 

1,588 

238,383 
40,670 

1 ,200 
891 
225 

785 
26 

71 

621 

4 
36 

4, 1 94 

2,W,3"4 
(families) 

41,002 
(families) 

224,569 

328,384 

62,722 

3„S38,9i8 

60,877 
687,916 
450,620 
636,4,^4 

68,740 
105,164 

43,412 
344,478 

44.759 
41,425 
61,643 

119,525 
308 

261,890,860 

721,397 

5,315,921 

775,314 

40,166,562 

544,476 

638,489 

114,752 

11,775,537 

223,808 

285,761 

98,783 

2,645,313 

25,073 

74 

12 
8 
2 

63 

8 
6 
3 

34 

5 

7 

2 

22 

Totals 

615,675 

6,204,239 

323,222,046 

Exports 

\xi)  Impokis  (II'    Cocoons,    1907  to  igif 

Exports 

I.MP( 

RTS 

Year 

Quantity 

(Kin) 

Value 
(Yen) 

QUAXTITY 

(Kin) 

Value 

(Yen) 

1907 

22,005 

11,057 

1,031,278 

1,090,272 

1908 

16,597 

11,1 50 

581,678 

474,417 

1909 

5,450 

3.735 

1,112,886 

859,255 

1910 

304,531 

524.151 

1,791,309 

1,299,776 

1911 

408,709 

679,896 

1,353,436 

919,383 

iqi2 

226,446 

369,737 

1,879,495 

1,152,551 

1913 

377.776 

662,716 

1,609,685 

952,765 

1914 

266,212 

327,557 

901,198 

683,486 

I915 

449,326 

664,483 

1,774,968 

1,845,100 

1916 

513,225 

823.855 

1,349,506 

1,370,837 

the  sale  and  export  of  silk  may  be  gathered 
from  the  fact  that  in  1916,  195,715  tests 
were  made,  the  quantity  of  raw  silk  handled 
for  conditioning  being  about  8,848,854  pounds. 
The  number  of  tests  conducted  in  1916  was 
more  than  twice  the  number  in   1907. 

In  the  following  table  will  be  found  figures 
disclosing  the  c^uantity  and  value  of  raw  silk 
exported  from  Japan  for  ten  years.  The 
table  deals  only  with  the  two  main  items, 
raw  silk  and  waste  silk.  There  are  other 
qualities  or  varieties  of  silk  exported,  which 
would  swell  the  grand  total,  but  these  figures 
are  a  suflficient  indication  of  the  great  expan- 
sion which  has  taken  place  in  the  trade. 


Produciiiin  ami  Exports  of  Silk,   1907   10   19 16* 


Raw 

Silk 

Waste  Silk 

Balance  of 

\'alue  of 

Value  of 

Year 

Production 

Exports 

Production 

Exports 

Production 

Exports 

Exports 

Kin 

Kin 

Kin 

Yen 

Kin 

Kin 

Yen 

1907 

15,331,088 

9,354.361 

5,976,727 

116,888,627 

4,843,625 

5,650,123 

6,243,305 

1908 

16,946,694 

11,521,795 

5,424,899 

108,609,052 

5,009,338 

7,891,257 

7,872,465 

1909 

18,139,100 

13,469,406 

4,669,694 

124,243,239 

5,459,100 

6,733,023 

6,928,607 

1910 

19,840,469 

14,846,175 

4,994,294 

130,832,940 

6,083,344 

7,506,054 

8,417-344 

191 1 

21,341,500 

14,456,047 

6,885,453 

128,875,094 

6,501,781 

6,975,191 

7.785,646 

1912 

22,780,96^ 

17.102,574 

5,678,395 

150,321,198 

6,773,038 

9,745,746 

10,543,264 

1913 

23,381,406 

20,228,616 

3,152,790 

188,916,892 

6,878,206 

8,034,014 

10,471,008 

1914 

23,474,288 

17.148.753 

6.325,535 

161,797,411 

6,955,500 

3,816,610 

4,672,560 

1915 

25,286,506 

17.814.174 

7.472.332 

152,030,518 

8,840,344 

5,818,849 

5,951,526 

1916 

28,249,063 

21.741.976 

6,507,087 

267,036,616 

9,778,475 

8,366,238 

10,480,462 

*In  the  table  the  e.\port  of  waste  silk  considerably  excee(Js  the  production  in  the  years  anterior  to  igij.  This  discrepancy  is  officially  explained  to  be  due  to  the  fact 
that  production  is  ascertained  from  figures  of  prefectural  authorities,  and  export  from  figures  of  the  Department  of  Finance,  the  presumption  being  that  the  prefectural 
reports  are  not  conclusive  as  to  actual  production. 


■■*;J 


m 


kl 


fll 


SIBER,    HEGNER   &•    CO.,    YOKOHAMA:     THE   COMPOIND,    SHOWING   OFFICES   AND   GODOWNS — SCENE   IN    THE    SILK    PACKING    GODOWN 

THE    SILK   DEPARTMENT THE   WASTE   SILK   DEPARTMENT 


P  R  1'".  S  E  N  T  -  n  A  ^■        I   M   I'  1^   l\  S  S  I  O  N  S        OF        J  A  P  A  N 


349 


Japan's  place  in  world  production 

To  conclude  tliis  necessarily  quick  survey 
of  the  silk  industry  of  Japan  it  is  proper  to 
give  some  idea  of  the  position  which  Japan 
occupies  as  a  producer  of  silk,  in  relation  to 
the  rest  of  the  silk-growing  countries  of  the 
world.  She  is  easily  first,  her  production 
being  three  times  greater  than  that  of  the 
whole  of  the  European  silk  countries,  and 
twice  that  of  her  greatest  rival,  China. 
Statistics  of  silk  production  are  classified 
geographically,  the  figures  for  each  country 
being  grouped  as  "Western  Europe,"  "East- 
ern Europe  and  Central  Asia,"  and  "Eastern 
Asia."  Western  Europe  produced  in  1916, 
4,072,000  kilogrammes  of  raw  silk.  Eastern 
Europe  and  Central  Asia  produced  1,040,000 
kilos,  and  Eastern  Asia,  20,583,000  kilos,  or 
a  grand  total  for  the  world  of  25,695,000 
kilos,  equal  to  about  56,529,000  pounds. 
Japan  alone  produced  13,350,000  kilos,  or 
more  than  one-half  of  the  total  world  output 
of  raw  silk. 

The  United  States  is  the  largest  importer 
of  raw  silk  in  the  world,  France,  Italy  and 
other  silk  producing  and  manufacturing 
countries  depending  almost  entirely  on  their 
own  supplies,  though  they  also  export.  Some 
interesting  figures  for  the  United  States  show 
the  following  for  three  years  past: 

Total  imports  of  all  silks,  1914,  25,000,000 
pounds  of  which  74  per  cent  came  from  Japan, 
17  per  cent  from  China,  7  per  cent  from 
Italy,  and  3  per  cent  from  France. 

Total  imports  of  all  silks,  1915,  30,000,000 
pounds,  of  which  64  per  cent  came  from 
Japan,  24  per  cent  from  China,  10  per  cent 
rom    Italy,  and  3  per  cent  from  France. 


Total  imports  of  all  silks,  1916,  32,000,000 
pounds,  of  which  75  per  cent  came  from 
Japan,  19  per  cent  from  China,  4.7  per  cent 
from  Italy,  and  2  per  cent  from  France. 

Japan's  trade  with  the  United  States  for 
191 7  was  estimated  by  the  Silk  Association 
of  America  to  be  from  220,000  to  230,000 
bales  of  raw  silk,  an  increase  of  from  18  to 
20  per  cent  above  the  imports  for  the  previous 
year. 

Truly  the  silk  imlustry  of  Japan,  and  the 
maintenance  of  her  great  market  in  the 
United  States,  are  two  things  of  first  rate 
economic  and  political  importance. 

SIBER,    HEGNER    &    CO. 

This  firm  which  is  incorporated  in  Switzer- 
land, is  the  largest  foreign  firm  of  raw  silk 
exporters  in  Japan,  and  for  many  years,  until 
the  huge  Japanese  organisations  came  on  the 
scene,  it  was  the  first  concern  in  the  trade,  at 
one  time  handling  one-fourth  of  the  entire 
export.  The  business  was  founded  in  1866  by 
Mr.  H.  Siber  and  the  late  Mr.  Brennwald, 
who  were  among  the  first  foreign  merchants  in 
Yokohama.  Mr.  Siber  had  been  engaged  in 
the  silk  business  in  Switzerland  and  concen- 
trated on  that  branch  of  Japanese  industry 
upon  his  arrival  in  Yokohama.  Mr.  Brenn- 
wald died  about  1899  and  as  the  Swiss 
company  laws  dictate  that  the  name  of  a 
deceased  partner  shall  not  be  used  in  the  trade 
designation,  the  firm  then  became  known  as 
Siber,  Wolff  &  Co.,  and  subsequently  as  Siber, 
Hegner   &    Co. 

From  the  records  of  the  firm  it  is  possible  to 
obtain  a  very  good  idea  of  the  remarkable 
expansion  of  the  raw  silk  industry  of  Japan, 


TYPE   OF    SMALL    SILK    RETWI  STING    MILL 


in  the  development  of  which  Messrs.  Siber, 
Hegner  &  Co.  have  played  an  important  part. 
It  is  not  so  many  years  ago  that  the  entire 
export  of  silk  from  Japan  was  only  between 
40,000  and  50,000  bales,  of  which  20  per  cent 
was  handled  by  the  firm.  This  year,  which 
will  constitute  the  firm's  record,  they  will  have 
handled  over  21.405  bales,  out  of  a  total  of 
239,800  bales.  The  Japanese  Government 
has  not  been  unmindful  of  the  work  done  by 
the  firm  for  the  development  of  the  industry. 
In  1903  they  were  awarded  a  gold  medal  and 
diploma,  the  latter  setting  out  that  the  firm 
had  been  estabhshcd  in  Yokohama  at  the 
time  of  the  opening  of  the  port,  and  further 
stating  that  the  Japanese  Government  had 
been  advised  by  them  to  encourage  the 
improvement  of  the  quality  of  silk  produced, 
with  the  very  best  results  to  the  great 
national  industry. 

Messrs.  Siber,  Hegner  &  Co.  also  do  a  very 
large  business  in  waste  and  carded  waste  silk. 
As  general  importers  and  exporters  they 
handle  principally  the  lines  stated  above  as 
well  as  general  produce,  and  they  import 
textiles,  iron,  machinery,  chemicals,  and 
dyestuffs,  for  the  latter  of  which  they  have 
their  own  laboratory  under  the  direction  of  a 
fully  qualified  analytical  chemist,  who  is 
constantly  engaged  in  research  work.  Siber, 
Hegner,  &  Co.  also  do  a  large  import  business 
in  electrical  metres  and  watches.  They  have 
branches  at  Tokyo,  Kobe,  Seoul,  and  Zurich. 
Agencies  are  maintained  at  London,  New 
York,  Milan,  and  Lyons. 

The  offices  and  godowns  of  Messrs.  Siber, 
Hegner  &  Co.  are  among  the  most  extensive  of 
foreign  properties  in  Yokohama.  The  land 
is  held  under  perpetual  lease,  and  has  an  area 
of  1,000  tsubo.  On  this  area  are  erected  the 
main  offices,  twelve  godowns  and  other 
buildings,  all  of  the  most  substantial  construc- 
tion, brick  and  stone  being  employed.  The 
staff  comprises  ten  Europeans,  and  for  regular 
work  about  60  hands  are  employed  at  Yoko- 
hama and  another  35  at  the  Kobe  branch. 
But  in  the  height  of  the  silk  season  the  firm 
engages  from  four  to  five  hundred  sorting 
women  and  from  forty  to  sixty  coolies.  A 
pleasing  feature  about  the  work  people  of  this 
old  established  firm  is  that  ver>'  many  of  them 
have  been  with  the  concern  for  practically  all 
their  lives.  Messrs.  Siber,  Hegner  &  Co.  have 
many  hands  who  have  served  their  interests 
for  thirty-five  years,  and  some  of  the  old 
pensioners  have  been  with  the  house  well  over 
forty-five  years.  Of  the  partners  in  the  firm, 
Mr.  Siber  is  at  Milan  and  Mr.  Hegner  in 
Zurich.  The  local  managing  partners  are 
Messrs.  F.  Ehrismann  and  Ed.  Bosshart, 
each  of  whom  has  had  about  thirty  years' 
experience  of  the  business  of  silk  production 
and  exportation. 


350 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


L.    BARMONT   &   CIE:     THE    SILK-TESTIXG    ROOM  —  THE    OFFICE    AND   GODOWNS,    YOKOHAMA  —  INTERIOR   OF    SILK   GOUOWN 


L.    BARJIONT    &    CIE 

The  firm  of  L.  Barmont  &  Cie,  which,  as  the 
name  implies,  is  a  French  business  concern, 
was  originally  established  by  the  late  Mr. 
L.  Mottet  in  1895.  In  1907  Mr.  Mottet  was 
joined  by  Mr.  L.  Barmont  as  partner,  and  the 
firm  became  known  as  L.  Mottet  &  Barmont. 
Both  Messrs.  Mottet  and  Barmont  had  had  a 
lengthy  experience  of  the  silk  trade,  both  in 
France  and  China,  and  when  they  turned 
their  attention  to  the  rapidly  developing 
industry  in  Japan,  they  qviickly  established  a 
substantial  business,  and  through  the  special 
knowledge  of  the  Lyons  market  which  they 
possessed  they  were  able  to  develop  their 
interests,  and  at  the  same  time  materially 
promote  the  silk  industry  of  Japan.  On  the 
death  of  Mr.  Mottet,  Mr.  Barmont  became 
the  sole  proprietor  of  the  business. 

At  one  time  the  firm  of  Barmont  &  Cie 
handled  some  general  lines  of  imports  and 
exports,  but  their  trade  in  raw  silk  increased 
to  such  an  extent  that  finally  they  concen- 
trated their  efforts  entirely  on  this  industry, 
and  are  to-day  among  the  largest  dealers 
of  the  foreign  firms  in  silk,  shipping  annuallj' 


about  10,000  bales  to  the  United  States  and 
France,  approximately  75  per  cent  of  the 
export  going  to  the  former  country.  While 
all  silk  exported  from  Japan  passes  through 
the  Imperial  Japanese  Silk  Conditioning 
House,  and  is  there  tested  and  classified, 
Messrs.  Barmont  &  Cie  have  their  own  testing 
machines  by  means  of  which  their  exports  are 
subjected  to  a  double  test,  the  private  one, 
and  the  official  test.  The  advantage  of  this 
system  is  obvious.  Messrs  Barmont  &  Cie 
know  from  their  own  investigations  in  their 
testing  room  whether  the  sil5*liey  are  export- 
ing is  well  up  to  standard,  and  the  official  test 
which  follows,  ensures  customers  of  the  most 
careful  inspection,  and  is  a  double  guarantee 
of  the  quaUty  which  the  firm  handles. 
Furthermore  Messrs.  Barmont  &  Cie  have  in 
their  service  as  inspector,  Mr.  Rciffingcr,  who 
has  been  in  the  silk  business  for  practically 
forty  years,  of  which  thirty  have  been  spent 
in  Japan.  Mr.  Reiffinger  is  recognised 
generally  to  be  one  of  the  best  judges  of  silk  in 
the  Japanese  market.  Amongst  the  raw  silk 
handled  by  Barmont  &  Cie  are  the  Gunze 
filature,  the   Sano  filature,   the   Matsushima 


filature,  and  the  Higoseishi  filature.  These 
names  are  particularly  well  known  to  the 
trade  for  the  extra  fine  quality  of  their 
products.  For  some  time  Barmont  &  Cie 
took  the  whole  of  the  output  of  the  famous 
Gunze  filature.  They  are  now  handUng  the 
entire  production  of  the  Sano  filature,  which 
for  years  has  been  considered  as  one  of  the 
best  sources  of  supply  in  Japan.  The 
Matsushima  filature  is  under  the  control  of 
Mr.  Sano.  Barmont  &  Cie  have  also  given  a 
good  deal  of  attention  to  the  production  of 
silk  hosiery  in  Japan,  and  until  a  few  months 
ago  they  did  a  large  business  in  raw  silk  with 
Moscow,  as  well  as  shipping  largely  to  the 
United  States  and  France. 

Barmont  &  Cie  have  excellent  connections 
abroad.  They  operate  on  joint  account  with 
Messrs.  F.  Desgeorge  et  Cie,  who  are  one  of 
the  oldest  and  most  respected  firms  operating 
as  importers  on  the  Lyons  market.  In  New 
York  the  firm  is  represented  by  Messrs. 
Aldridge  &  MacFarlane,  Incorporated,  and 
Messrs.  H.  L.  Walter  &  Co.  Barmont  &  Cie 
have  a  large  three-story  godown,  complete 
with   all   appliances  for  handling   raw  silk, 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


351 


adjacent  to  their  offices,  which  are  at  No.  183 
Yamashita-cho,  Yokohama. 

A.    P.    VILLA    &    BROS.,  OF   JAPAN, 
INCORPORATED 

A  VISIT  to  the  silk  godowns  of  IVIessrs. 
A.  P.  Villa  &  Bros,  furnishes  one  with  an 
impression  of  the  great  care  taken  in  the 
handling  of  raw  silk  for  export,  and  conveys 
an  idea  of  the  extremely  delicate  nature  of 
the  business  in  which  this  firm  specialises. 
Messrs.  V'illa  &  Bros.,  of  Japan,  Inc.,  are 
among  the  largest  foreign  firms  dealing  in 
raw  silk.  They  export  to  France,  Italy,  and 
Switzerland,  but  the  main  outlet  for  the 
goods  they  handle  is  the  New  York  market, 
where  they  have  special  warehouses  and 
plant  for  working  up  the  raw  silk  into  various 
plies,  suited  to  the  requirements  of  the 
American  manufacturers.  Among  their  reg- 
ular customers  in  the  United  States  are 
some  of  the  greatest  silk  piece  goods  and 
hosiery  manufacturers,  and  it  necessarily 
follows  that  the  most  careful  attention  is 
called  for  in  Japan  to  ensure  that  the  high 


reputation  which  the  firm  has  obtained  for 
the  uniform  excellence  of  its  shipments,  is  in 
no  way  injured.  This  means,  as  stated 
above,  very  careful  handling  of  the  raw 
product  in  the  Yokohama  godowns.  Messrs. 
Villa  &  Bros,  have  spared  no  expense  in  their 
establishment.  The  raw  silk  comes,  in  llie 
first  place,  from  the  very  best  filatures,  but 
even  so,  it  is  carefully  examined  and  tested 
before  it  is  purchased  for  shipment  abroad. 
The  firm  has  extensive  godowns  for  the 
storage  and  inspection  and  packing  of  the 
silk,  but  prior  to  its  reaching  those  stages  it 
has  to  pass  the  most  rigid  tests  for  colour, 
fineness,  elasticity,  and  strength.  Messrs. 
Villa  &  Bros,  have  their  own  testing  rooms, 
replete  with  the  most  approved  modern 
appliances,  which  are  attended  by  skilled 
work  people  whose  business  it  is  to  record 
the  results  of  all  tests.  These  results  are 
then  examined  by  the  buying  experts,  and 
the  silk  offered  by  the  filatures  is  accepted, 
or  rejected,  as  the  case  may  be. 

The   firm   also   has   its   own   conditioning 
room,  for  the  projier  regulation  of  the  silk 


to  be  shipped  under  its  name  and  guarantee, 
and  it  is  obvious  from  the  care  taken  and 
the  degree  of  skill  exercised  in  the  examina- 
tion, classification,  and  testing  of  the  silk, 
that  the  very  highest  standards  of  quality 
are  maintained.  About  7,000  bales  of  silk 
are  shipped  annually  by  Messrs.  Villa  & 
Bros.  The  silk  goes  direct  to  the  firm's 
own  warehouses  in  New  York,  or  to  the 
branches  at  Turin,  Milan,  and  Lyons.  This 
quantity  refers,  of  course,  to  the  Yokohama 
office.  There  are  also  buying  offices  and 
godowns  at  Shanghai  and  Canton,  which 
deal  in  Chinese  silk.  The  Yokohama  branch, 
which  is  under  the  management  of  Mr. 
T.  M.  G.  da  Cruz,  was  opened  on  June  26, 
1912,  and  is  located  very  centrally  to  the 
Imperial  Silk  Conditioning  House,  and  the 
business  quarter  generally,  at  No.  206  Yama- 
shitacho.  Mr.  da  Cruz  is  an  expert  silk 
man  of  over  seventeen  years'  experience. 
The  Canton  branch  was  opened  in  September, 
1912,  under  the  management  of  Mr.  Gustave 
Hoppeler.  The  Chinese  hong  name  for  the 
house  is  "Tak  Lee."     The  Shanghai  branch 


fi  ~'.'  II  ' 


A.    VILLA   &    BROS.    OF   JAPAN:      INTERIOR    VIEW    OF    THE   CANTON   OFFICES — THE   OFFICES   AND    GODOWNS    .\T   VOKOHAMA- 

THE   firm's   HANDSOME    PREMISES   AT   SHANGHAI 


i 


C.   liVMAKD   &•   CIE:      the    HEAD    OFFICE 


—  THE   CUMPOUiND,    FILLED    WITH    DALES   OF    WASTE    SILK  — WOMEN    AT    WOKE    ON    \\\--ll-.    --11  K 


P  R  IC  S  I',  N  T  -  I)  A  V 


I  M   1'  k  K  S  S  r  O  N  S 


O  I" 


J   A  P  A  N 


353 


Z3 


ffiHSl 


SILK    MERCHANTS 


(Upper  Row,  Left  to  Right)  M.  Zahn,  Manager,  Nabholz  &  Co.  —  L.  Barmont,  of  L.  Barmont  &  Cie — K.  Ono,  a  Prominent  .Silk 
Merchant  of  Yokohama,  and  Chairman  of  Memorial  Hall  Committee.  (Lower  Row)  Charles  Eymard,  of  C.  Eymard  &  Cie — 
Claude  Eymard,  of  C.  Eymard  &  Cie  —  Cesar  Eymard,  of  C.  Eymard  &  Cie 


was  established  in  May,  19 13,  and  is  under 
the  management  of  Mr.  Eric  Ericson,  the 
house  being  known  to  the  Chinese  as  "Ching 
Chong." 

The  Messrs.  Villa  Brothers  are  Italian 
silk  merchants,  whose  interests  are  very 
extensive.  They  have  been  in  the  business 
for  a  lifetime,  and  undoubtedly  have  estab- 
lished a  world-wide  reputation  in  the  silk 
trade. 

C.  EYAL\RD  &  CIE 
There  are  several  branches  of  the  great 
staple  industry  of  Japan  —  silk.  The  most 
important,  of  course,  is  the  export  of  the  raw- 
product,  which  is  shipped  in  vast  quantities 
to  Europe  and  America.  Silk  weaving  in 
Japan  is  a  secondary  industry,  which,  how- 
ever, is  making  vast  strides.  Then  comes 
the  handhng  of  the  waste  silk,  an  industry 
which  calls  for  thousands  of  work  people, 
mostly  women.      In   this   business    Messrs. 


C.  Eymard  &  Cie,  the  well  known  French 
firm  of  Yokohama,  do  perhaps  the  largest 
business  in  Japan.  The  interests  of  this 
firm  were  established  at  Yokohama  in  1885 
by  Mr.  Claude  Eymard,  and  they  have 
steadily  expanded  with  the  development  of 
the  silk  industry.  Messrs.  C.  Eymard  & 
Cie  export  entirely  to  France,  where  the  waste 
silk,  carefully  examined  and  classified  at 
Yokohama,  is  utilised  for  many  purposes. 
The  firm  handles  approximately  about  2,000,- 
000  kilos  of  waste  silk  per  annum,  and  tlic 
value  of  the  material  varies,  according  to 
the  market,  between  Yen  2,000,000  and 
Yen  4,000,000.  Godowns  utilised  by  the 
firm  are  of  solid  brick  construction,  and 
cover  an  area  of  1 ,200  Isubo.  In  the  height 
of  the  season  the  compound  is  a  scene  of  great 
activity,  and  one  of  our  illustrations  shows 
the  scores  of  bales  of  waste  silk,  laid  out  and 
opened  for  inspection.  At  such  times  500 
or  more  hands  are  employed,  sorting,  grading, 


and  picking  over  the  material  as  it  comes 
from  the  filatures.  The  silk  is  re-baled  under 
an  hydraulic  press,  gas  power  being  utilised 
for  the  plant. 

The  partners  of  the  firm  are  Messrs. 
Claude,  Charles,  and  Cesar  Eymard.  A 
capital  of  Yen  100,000  is  employed  in  the 
business,  the  offices  of  which  are  located  at 
No.  253,  Yamashita-cho,  Yokohama. 

KYOTO  TEXTILE  CO.,  LI.MITED 
In  the  history  of  this  company  is  to  be 
found  the  story  of  the  eflfort  on  the  part  of 
the  textile  industries  of  Japan  to  produce 
the  higher  class  of  goods,  such  as  silk  fabrics, 
brocades,  etc.,  as  manufactured  in  Europe 
by  modern  machinery,  as  against  the  old- 
fashioned  hand  weaving  processes.  The 
Kyoto  Orimono  Kabushiki  Kaisha,  or  Kyoto 
Textile  Co.,  Ltd.,  was  originally  established 
m  May,  1887,  with  a  capital  of  Yen  450,000, 
its  objective  being  to  develop  the  industry 


354 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


(0 


^ 


1  I 

t'fl'MBiii  wi    I  PtiBW  I    I  IIJJl 


Ill 


KYOTO    SILK    WEAVING   CO  ,    LTD. 


INTERIOR    OF    THE    MECHANICAL    WEAVING    DEPARTMENT  — GENERAL    VIEW   OF    THE    FACTORY  — 
THE    SII.K-1-INI?.HING    PLANT — THE    DYEING   DEPARTMENT 


of  weaving  and  dyeing,  by  mechanical  pro- 
cesses, utilising  machinery  imported  from 
Europe,  and  following  the  most  approved 
modern  theory  and  practice.  It  was  also 
designed  to  become  a  model  organisation,  to 
improve  and  build  up  the  entire  textile  in- 
dustries of  Japan.  At  this  time  there  was  in 
operation  the  "Oridono,"  or  "weaving  man- 
sion," conducted  under  the  control  of  the 
Kyoto  Prefecture,  as  a  semi-official  institu- 
tion. The  business  of  this  concern  was 
transferred  to  the  Kyoto  Textile  Co.,  Ltd. 
What  was,  in  effect,  an  entirely  new- 
industry  for  Japan,  was  thus  entered  upon. 
The  comjiany  despatched  three  specialists 
to  Europe  to  study  the  business  of  dyeing 
and  weaving,  and  at  the  same  time  three 
French  experts  were  engaged  to  super\'ise 
the  work  in  the  factories.  Great  difficulties 
were  encountered  in  the  first  years.  Among 
the  obstacles  to  advancement  was  the  reluc- 
tance of  dyers  and  weavers  to  depart  from 
old  methods,  and  their  general  inability  to 
acquire  the  knowledge  of  the  use  of  the  new 
machinery.  However,  the  company's  efforts 
were  not  relaxed,  and  steady  progress  was 


made.  The  construction  of  the  new  Imperial 
Palace  gave  the  company  a  chance  to  show 
what  was  being  done,  the  directors  being 
favoured  with  substantial  orders  for  fabrics 
for  the  new  mansion,  and  the  imperial  com- 
mand demonstrating  that  the  work  had  the 
hearty  approval  of  His  Majesty  the  Emperor. 
Four  or  five  years  after  the  commencement 
of  operations  the  work  was  going  on  nicely 
and  the  Kyoto  Textile  Co.,  Ltd.,  was  able 
to  produce  Chinese  satin,  thereby  giving  a 
check  to  the  import  of  this  material.  On 
the  contrary  the  company  began  the  export 
of  Chinese  satin  to  several  markets  in  the 
East. 

By  1896  the  new  industry  was  on  such  a 
sound  footing  that  the  directors  found  it 
necessary  to  increase  the  capital  to  900,000 
yen,  to  admit  of  an  enlargement  of  business, 
and  further  the  sales  of  the  Toyo  Donsu,  the 
Oriental  damask,  a  silk  and  cotton  satin, 
which  had  already  been  sold  successfully  in 
China  in  trial  lots.  In  1900  the  company 
made  a  trial  with  chiffon,  which  was  so 
popular  in  Europe.  The  trial  was  a  success 
and  the  product  of  the  Kyoto  factory  found 


favour  at  home  and  abroad.  It  was  ex- 
ported in  large  quantities  to  India  and  the 
South  Seas,  and  with  the  Oriental  damask 
became  one  of  the  two  specialities  of  the 
company  The  name  of  the  Kyoto  Textile 
Co.,  Ltd.,  was  honoured  by  inclusion  in  the 
list  of  approved  suppliers  to  the  Imperial 
Household  in  1902.  In  1905  an  amalgama- 
tion was  effected  with  the  Murasakino  Tex- 
tile Co.,  Ltd.,  of  Atago  County,  and  that 
company's  works  were  made  the  Kyoto 
Textile  Co.'s  branch  factorv',  this  new  de- 
velopment calling  for  an  increase  of  the 
capital  to  1,050,000  yen.  At  this  time  the 
company  was  favoured  with  large  orders  for 
fine  art  decorations  for  the  new  palace  of 
the  Imperial  Crown  Prince.  The  capital  of 
the  concern  was  again  increased  to  2,500,000 
yen,  in  1907.  The  next  development  was 
the  weaving  and  dj'eing  of  men  and  women's 
dress  stuffs,  brocades,  and  damasks  for  India 
and  China,  the  result  being  to  supplant 
French  and  German  products  in  the  markets 
of  those  countries.  Crepes  were  woven  in 
1914,  and  were  exported  to  America,  where 
they  met  with  a  favourable  reception,   the 


PRESENT-nA^    IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


355 


output  of  this  material  now  being  very 
large.  For  the  great  Imperial  Coronation 
Ceremonies  in  1915  the  Kyoto  Textile  Co., 
Ltd.,  received  a  large  number  of  valuable 
orders  for  the  highest  class  of  fabrics.  The 
manner  in  which  the  company  and  its  work 
have  been  officially  honoured  may  be  seen 
from  the  following  facts  relative  to  Imperial 
patronage,  and  awards  won  at  expositions: 
On  April  27,  1900,  the  Empress  Dowager 
(consort  of  the  late  Emperor  Meiji)  visited 
the  factory,  and  the  following  year,  on  October 
24,  the  mother  of  the  late  Emperor  honoured 
the  company  with  a  visit  of  inspection.  On 
May  23,  1899,  and  again  on  April  23,  1903, 
the  Chamberlain  Yoneda  was  despatched  to 
the  company's  factory  by  Imperial  Command. 
In  June,  1903,  the  Princesses  Tsune  and 
Chika  visited  the  works,  and  the  present 
Emperor,  then  Crown  Prince,  honoured  the 
company  with  a  \'isit  on  September  28, 
1910.  The  company  was  awarded  the  Effec- 
tive Medal  at  the  Third  National  Industrial 
Exhibition  in  1900;  the  silver  medal  at  the 
Chicago   International    Exposition    in    1892; 


the  First  Progress  Medal  at  the  Fourth 
National  Industrial  Exhibition  in  1895;  the 
Medal  of  Honour  at  the  Paris  International 
Exposition  in  190a;  the  Gold  Medal  at  the 
Fifth  National  Industrial  Exhibition  in  1903; 
the  Medal  of  Honour  at  the  St.  Louis  Inter- 
national Exposition  in  1904,  and  the  Medal 
of  Honour  at  the  Tokyo  Taisho  Exhibition 
in   1914. 

The  company's  present  capital  is  Yen 
2,500,000.  Of  recent  years  the  annual  out- 
put has  been  valued  at  Yen  4,500,000.  A 
stafT  of  technical  experts  numbering  52,  and 
2,200  workmen  and  workwomen  are  engaged 
in  the  factories.  The  principal  products  of 
the  works  are:  crepe  Georgette,  crepe  de 
chine,  and  other  silk  crepes;  silk  and  cotton 
linings,  ladies'  dress  stuflfs,  fine  art  house 
decoration  fabrics,  and  other  lines  compris- 
ing the  most  beautiful  products  of  the  weav- 
er's and  the  dyer's  arts.  Mr.  G.  Tanaka, 
who  holds  the  Order  of  the  3rd  Merit,  and  the 
5th  Rank,  is  the  President  and  Chairman  of 
Directors.  Other  Directors  are:  Messrs.  H. 
Funasaka    (Managing    Director),    J.    Naiki 


(Order  of  the  4th  Merit),  S.  Nakai,  and  M- 
lida.  The  Auditors  are:  Messrs.  H.  Funa- 
bashi,  Y.  Tsuda,  and  H.  Ito. 

T.-\KASHIM.\Y,\ 
(MESSRS.    IID.\    &    CO.,    LI.VIITEd) 

For  many  years  now  the  well-known  firm 
of  Takashimaya,  owned  by  Messrs.  lida  & 
Company,  Limited,  has  been  one  of  the 
leading  dealers  in  silk  piece  goods  in  Japan. 
No  one  visiting  the  Japanese  capital  has 
seen  what  the  weavers  of  the  nation  can 
produce  in  the  way  of  beautiful  silks,  until 
an  inspection  has  been  made  of  the  magnifi- 
cent store  of  Takashimaya.  Indeed,  the 
silk-weaving  industry  owes  more  to  Mr. 
Shin-hichi  lida  and  his  brother,  Mr.  Shimbei 
lida,  for  improvement  and  expansion,  than 
perhaps  to  any  other  two  persons  in  the 
Empire.  Born  in  1 859  in  Kyoto,  the  ancient 
centre  of  the  silk-weaver's  highest  art,  Mr. 
Shin-hichi  lida  devoted  most  of  his  early 
life  to  the  art  of  producing  silks  of  incom- 
parable texture  and  design,  obtaining  through 
long  years  of  perseverance  and  unexampled 


TAK.\SHI.\I.\-V.\,    limited:      SCENE    IN    THE    DEP.\RTMENT    STORE — A   CORNER    OF    THE    SCREEN    DEP.\RTMENT 


356 


p  R  r:  s  K  N  T  -  n  A  V      i  m  !•  u  !•:  s  s  i  o  x  s      of     jap  a  n 


skill  tho  recognition  of  the  public,  both  at 
home  and  abroad,  as  one  of  the  greatest 
silk  merchants  of  the  world.  The  name  of 
Takashimaya  on  a  piece  of  silk  embroidery, 
or  figured  or  plain  goods,  will  carry  it  any- 
where that  fine  goods  are  known  and  api>re- 
ciated. 

Proceeding  to  China,  America,  and  Europe 
in  1889,  the  senior  partner  of  the  firm  made 
exhaustive  investigations  concerning  the  silk 
business,  and  on  his  return  to  Japan  made 
important  improvements  in  accordance  with 
foreign  demand,  especially  in  silk  velvet. 
The  improvements  introduced  into  the  weav- 
ing of  habutai  and  brocade  won  express 
appreciation  from  that  most  infallible  of  all 
judges  of  fine  silks,  the  Imperial  Household. 
The  fact  that  the  Imperial  Household  should 
entrust  the  Takashimaya  firm  with  the 
selection  of  its  silk  for  gifts  and  other  pur- 
poses, is  the  highest  commendation  a  silk 
house  can  receive. 

Starting  in  Kyoto,  the  Tokyo  office  was 
opened  in  1898  to  accommodate  the  demand 
from  the  Imperial  Household  and  the  army 
and  navy;  and  in  the  same  year  another 
branch  store  was  opened  in  Osaka,  the  Kobe 
shop  being  opened  in  1901.  It  was  not  until 
1893,  when  the  quality  of  the  goods  turned 
out  by  Takashimaya  began  to  become  known 
abroad,  that  the  Export  Department  of  the 
company  commenced  to  show  rapid  develop- 
ment. The  refined  taste  of  the  Japanese  in 
silks  is  not  fully  shared  abroad,  and  the 
Takashimaya  people  have  been  devoting 
special  attention  to  the  foreign  demand, 
with  remarkable  satisfaction  and  success. 
Members  of  the  firm  frequently  visit  Europe 
and  America  to  study  the  prevailing  taste; 
and  the  branch  office  in  Lyons,  France,  does 
an  immense  business  in  importing  silks  to 
that  country.  The  Yokohama  branch  of 
Takashimaya  deals  mostly  in  goods  for 
export.  At  the  time  of  the  great  Paris 
Exposition,  representatives  of  Takashimaya 


went  to  study  the  situation  in  silk,  and  since 
then  the  firm  has  kept  constantly  in  touch 
with  the  overseas  demand.  The  Chinese  are 
always  lovers  of  good  silk,  and  Takashimaya 
devotes  considerable  attention  to  that  coun- 
try, where  its  large  branch  office  at  Tientsin 
distributes  the  most  exquisite  fabrics  among 
the  great  families  of  China. 

As  business  began  gradually  to  centre  in 
the  Capital  —  and  also  to  facilitate  the  busi- 
ness activity  of  import  and  export  —  lida 
&  Co.,  Takashimaya,  which  is  the  partner- 
ship of  Messrs.  lida  Brothers,  established  a 
new  company  in  Tokyo,  forming  the  present 
joint-stock  concern,  with  a  capital  of  Yen 
1,000,000.  Mr.  Shin-hichi  lida  became 
President  of  the  new  concern.  The  import 
and  export  business  of  this  company  shows 
a  remarkable  development  from  year  to 
year,  a  progress  that  must  surely  continue, 
based  as  it  is  on  a  long-established  repu- 
tation, and  high  quality  of  goods.  The 
main  store  of  Takashimaya  is  situated  at 
No.  I  Nishikonya-cho,  Kyobashi-ku,  Tokyo. 
In  addition  to  the  branch  offices  at  Yoko- 
hama, Osaka,  Kyoto,  Yokosuka,  and  Tient- 
sin, the  company  has  offices  at  London, 
England,  and  Sydney,  Australia.  The  Lon- 
don office  is  at  122  Wood  Street  and  the 
Sydney  office  is  at  47  King  Street. 

The  Yokohama  branch  deals  in  all  sorts 
of  silk  piece  goods,  embroideries,  velvets, 
coloured  silks  and  designs  of  every  texture 
and  description,  as  well  as  the  manufacture 
of  such  goods,  and  those  pertaining  to  the 
drapery  business. 

Among  the  more  important  activities  of 
Takashimaya,  Ltd.,  in  addition  to  silk  piece 
goods  of  every  description,  and  silk  em- 
broideries and  brocades  of  the  finest  quality, 
are  cotton,  wool,  and  hemp  fabrics,  as  well 
as  waterproof  cloths,  and  cloths  used  for 
uniforms  in  trains,  ships,  and  tramways. 
The  company  imports  wool,  woollen  yarn, 
woollen  cloth  and  the  material  therefor,  also 


industrial  and  construction  materials  such  as 
iron,  weaving  machines,  and  other  appliances. 
These  transactions  in  general  merchandise 
are  principally  controlled  in  the  Tokyo  office. 

Apart  from  the  great  silk  business  con- 
ducted by  Messrs.  lida  &  Co.,  Ltd.,  there  is 
lida  &  Co.,  Takashimaya  (lida  Gomei 
Kaisha),  a  partnership  of  the  lida  Brothers, 
as  above  referred  to,  which  conducts  a 
magnificent  department  store  at  Tokyo, 
handling  dry  goods  of  all  descriptions, 
household  furniture  and  general  lines.  This 
department  store  is  housed  in  a  splendid 
building,  and  is  one  of  the  show  palaces  of 
the  Capital. 

One  has  only  to  send  for  samples  of  the 
wonderful  silks  produced  by  Takashimaya 
to  be  at  once  charmed  by  their  singular 
beauty  and  excellence,  from  fabrics  of  the 
most  exquisite  and  filmy  texture  to  those  of 
heavier  weaves.  The  crepes,  embroideries, 
and  brocades  are  a  dream  that  no  one  would 
believe  possible  until  after  seeing  them. 
The  material  for  upholstering  fine  furniture, 
too,  is  not  to  be  matched  elsewhere,  and  is 
found  in  the  best  rooms  of  all  the  princely 
houses  of  Japan.  The  finest  robes  of  the 
princes  and  princesses  of  the  Empire  usually 
come  from  the  house  of  Takashimaya.  A 
visit  to  the  great  store  in  Tok\-o  at  once 
brings  one  among  great  ladies  of  wealth  and 
station  making  select  purchases,  as  well  as 
introducing  one  to  a  fairyland  of  beauty  that 
seems  much  too  exquisite  to  have  been  the 
work  of  human  hands.  Nor  are  the  variety 
and  excellence  of  the  fabrics  displayed  more 
astonishing  than  the  moderate  prices  at 
which  the  most  lovely  things  are  to  be  had. 

Editor's  Note:  In  this  section  we  have 
dealt  with  those  firms  handling  silk  only, 
but  there  are  a  large  number  of  important 
concerns  operating  very  largely  in  silk  de- 
partmentally.  Such  firms  are  reviewed  in  the 
Import  and  Export  sections  of  this  volume. 


VIEW   FROM    SAKAYE-MACHI-DORI,    LOOKING    TOWARD    THE    MONUMENT 

XVIII.    The  City  of  Nagoya 


THE  city  of  Nagoya,  the  seat  of  the 
prefectural  capital,  lies  midway  be- 
tween the  two  great  cities  of  Tokyo 
and  Osaka,  and  its  ambitious  citizens  are 
wont  to  call  it  the  Chukyo,  or  mid-capital, 
of  the  Empire,  as  against  Tokyo,  the  eastern 
capital,  and  Kyoto,  the  western  capital.  In 
ancient  times  Nagoya  was  an  important 
strategic  point  of  the  Tokugawa  clan,  who 
erected  the  famous  castle,  still  extant,  and 
celebrated  not  only  for  its  proportions  but 
for  the  golden  dolphins  which  adorn  its 
gables.  Until  recent  years  the  city  attracted 
little  attention  save  as  a  stop-over  point 
between  Tokyo  and  Kyoto  for  tourists  who 
desired  to  see  the  castle.  In  the  last  few 
years,  however,  Nagoya  has  come  to  be  a 
centre  of  great  commercial  and  industrial 
enterprise,  as  well  as  an  important  railway 
junction  for  passengers  branching  off  by  the 
new  short  line  opened  up  to  the  west  coast 
of  Japan.  All  through  mediaeval  times  the 
site  remained  a  spacious  plain,  sparsely 
populated,  whatever  community  existed 
being  centred  around  the  village  of  Kiyosu, 
where  Oda  Nobunaga  had  a  seat.  But  when 
leyasu  became  shogun  he  made  his  son  Yo- 
shinao  lord  of  the  Province  of  Owari,  at 
which  period  the  present  fortress  was  con- 
structed, and  the  town  soon  began  to  attract 
population.     In   fifty   years    more,   in    1657, 


Nagoya  had  grown  to  a  place  of  over  50,000 
people.  As  the  Owari  clan  was  closely  related 
to  the  shogun,  Nagoya  was  greatly  favoured, 
and  after  the  abolition  of  feudalism  Owari  was 
made  a  prefecture  of  the  Empire.  By  1889 
the  population  of  Nagoya  had  increased 
to  the  number  of  160,000,  and  to-day  it  is 
not  less  than  453,000,  or  a  little  over  that 
of   Kobe. 

The  municipality  of  Nagoya  is  presided 
over  by  a  mayor  and  council  of  aldermen, 
who  manage  all  municipal  affairs;  and  the 
city  is  divided  into  four  wards,  known  as  the 
east,  west,  south,  and  central  wards.  Nagoya 
is  one  of  the  few  important  cities  of  Japan 
which  appears  to  get  along  without  the  bur- 
den of  large  loans.  Its  municipal  taxes  work 
out  at  the  rate  of  about  2.37  yen  per  head. 
The  following  figures  show  the  revenue  and 
expenditure  of  Nagoya  in  an  ordinary  year: 


Revenue 


Expenditure 


SouKrKs 

Yen 

City  fees 

Municipal  taxes 

Miscellaneous  taxes 

124,080 

1,025,513 

162,820 

135,026 

Total 

1.447.439 

Objects 

Yen 

199.447 
93,375 

463.348 
109,204 

Bounties  for  industries 

Public  charities    ,                 

Police  affairs 

Special  account 

Miscellaneous 

6,773 

35.730 

25.533 

441,000 

47,638 

Total 

1,.J22,048 

The  Nagoya  municipality  receives  four 
per  cent  of  the  net  profit  from  the  city  gas 
company,  and  three  per  cent  from  the  Nagoya 
Electric  Company,  as  well  as  four  per  cent 
from  the  City  Electric  •Light  Company,  and 
manages  on  its  own  resources  the  city  water- 
works, sewage,  a  butchery,  public  cemetery, 
and  disposal  of  city  refuse.  The  waterworks, 
started  in  1907,  at  a  cost  of  5,715,000  yen, 
are  now  completed,  as  is  the  sewage  system, 
begun  about  the  same  time,  at  an  outlay  of 
3,150,000  yen.  The  expense  for  waterworks 
was  assisted  by  the  State  Treasury  to  the 
extent  of  1,302,000  yen,  while  the  amount 
spent  for  the  sewage  system  included  1,043,- 
000  ven  from  the  State,  the  balance  having 


24 


358 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


VIEW    OF    NAGOVA    PIER    AND    HARBOIR,    NOW    UNDER    CONSTRUCTION 


been  raised  from  public  loans.  The  out- 
standing liabilities  of  the  municipality  are 
as  follows: 

Waterworks  Loan  (British). .  .  .7,816,000  yen 
(£800,000)  redeemable  1917-43 


Public  Instruction  Loan 
(redeemable  1915-29) 


.  .     870,000  yen 
Total 8,686,000  yen 


For  meeting  obligations  arising  out  of  the 
above  loans  the  sum  of  438,650  yen  is  annu- 
ally set  aside  from  the  municipal  treasurj', 
met  chiefly  by  ta.xation.  The  city  as  an 
asset  holds  2,000,000  yen  in  Government 
4  per  cent  bonds. 

'  The  future  of  Nagoya  lies  in  its  commer- 
cial and  industrial  possibilities,  which  are 
very  bright.  Development  in  this  respect 
in  the  last  few  years  has  been  remarkably 
rapid;  and  its  central  position,  together  with 
easy  facilities  of  communication  bv  rail  and 


sea,  have  also  assisted  in  its  advancement, 
to  say  nothing  of  the  advantages  offered  by 
its  level  en\'irons  for  the  erection  of  great 
manufacturing  works.  The  streets  of  the 
city  have  been  extended  on  a  spacious  scale, 
and  along  the  centre  of  its  main  thorough- 
fare, seventy-eight  feet  wide,  runs  a  street 
car  line  for  seven  miles.  If  Osaka  is  the 
Manchester  of  Japan,  Nagoya  may  be  re- 
garded as  the  Birmingham  of  the  countn,'. 
The  annual  trade  of  the  city  for  191 5 
amounted  to  6,349,564  yen  in  imports  and 
3,726,112  in  exports,  not  a  very  large  total 
compared  with  Kobe  and  Yokohama,  but  an 
important  beginning,  when  it  is  remembered 
that  it  is  but  recently  that  Nagoya  has  come 
into  possession  of  a  harbour.  Beside  its 
numerous  and  important  textile  factories, 
Nagoya  is  the  centre  of  a  great  cloisonne 
industry,  and  the  foremost  city  of  the  Em- 
pire in  the  manufacture  of  clocks,  which  are 
turned  out  in  enormous  quantities  for  the 
Asiatic    market.     Innumerable   other  indus- 


tries employ  the  large  and  skilful  industrial 
population  of  Nagoya.  In  this  city  is  situated 
the  Japan  Car  Works,  with  a  capital  of  over 
1,200,000  yen,  manufacturing  railway  rolling 
stock  of  all  kinds.  The  Miye  Spinning  Mill, 
with  a  capital  of  10,250,000  yen,  is  engaged 
in  spinning  cotton  yam  and  wea\-ing  cotton 
fabrics,  emploving  over  2,000  operatives  and 
having  an  annual  output  worth  3,000,000  yen. 
Another  important  concern  is  the  Suzuki 
Violin  Factory  which  supplies  fine  toned 
instruments  which  will  bear  favourable  com- 
parison with  the  best  made  in  Europe. 
Large  quantities  of  these  instruments  are 
sold  in  the  United  States.  The  Japan  Potterj- 
Company  employs  over  2,000  hands  in  man- 
ufacturing a  kind  of  porcelain  peculiar  to  the 
city,  known  as  Nagoya  ware;  while  some  ten 
miles  away  is  the  great  Seto  factory  where 
600  kilns  are  turning  out  the  famous  ware 
of  the  same  name.  Nagoya  potters  employ 
about  5,000  hands  and  their  annual  output 
is  valued   at   about   4,000,000   yen,  most   of 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS    OF   JAPAN 


359 


the  pottery  going  to  Europe,  America, 
and  Australia.  The  total  value  of  Nagoya's 
cotton  output  is  about  8,000,000  yen.  The 
making  of  fans,  geta,  confections,  straw 
and  chip  braid,  lanterns,  toys,  hosiery, 
and  lacquer  occupies  large  numbers  of  people 
as  well. 

The  harbour  of  Nagoya  lies  some  distance 
southward  from  the  city,  facing  the  Bay  of 
Is^.  Though  much  money  has  been  expended 
upon  it  the  results  are  not  wholly  satisfac- 
tory, as  it  does  not  yet  afford  accommodation 
for  ships  of  any  great  size.  In  addition  to 
the  3,000,000  yen  or  so  expended  on  the  har- 
bour, at  least  another  2,000,000  yen  will  be 
necessary  to  bring  accommodation  up  to  the 
needs  of  the  city.  The  annual  tonnage 
entering  the  port  is  already  in  the  vicinity 
of  a  million,  however,  and  shipping  is  ex- 
pected to  increase  with  further  harbour  im- 
provements. 

Nagoya  is  also  well  equipped  with  facilities 
of  modern  civilisation,  having  good  scliools, 


including  a  polytechnic  high  school  and  a 
national  high  school.  Other  important  build- 
ings are  the  Prefectural  Office,  the  Appeal 
Court,  and  the  Headquarters  of  the  Third 
Imperial  Army  Division.  Tsuruma  Park  lies 
toward  the  east  end  of  the  city,  and  Naka- 
mura  Park,  toward  the  west,  marks  the  birth- 
place of  such  heroes  as  Hideyoshi  and  Kato 
Kiyomasa.  In  this  locality  is  also  a  shrine 
dedicated  to  the  spirit  of  the  Shogun  leyasu 
and  his  son  Yoshinao.  Nagoya  has  plenty  of 
temples  and  Christian  churches,  and  the 
vitality  of  the  native  religions  may  be  inferred 
from  the  number  and  vigour  of  the  national 
religious  festivals  that  annually  take  place. 
Over  all  towers  the  noted  castle,  dominating 
the  whole  city  and  plain  for  miles.  Every 
one  approaching  the  city  is  struck  by  its 
unique  and  imposing  proportions  rising  sol- 
emnly over  the  city,  the  two  golden  dolphins 
still  lifting  their  tails  gamely  from  the  horns 
of  the  great  tower.  No  one  would  suppose 
that   they  were  of   gold   or   that   they  were 


forty-eight  feet  long,  but  it  is  averred  that 
they  are,  and  were  placed  in  that  position  to 
avert  fire,  the  fish  being  regarded  as  sacred 
and  a  master  of  water,  of  which  the  god  of 
fire  is  in  constant  terror.  The  amusement 
places,  theatres,  and  dancing  halls  of  Nagoya 
are  a  feature  of  interest  to  the  tourist  and 
sightseer.  The  Nagoya  Hotel  affords  com- 
fortable accommodation  to  foreigners  at 
reasonable    rates. 

THE    MITSUI    BUSSAN    KAISHA,  LTD., 
NAGOYA    BRANCH 

The  famous  Mitsui  Bussan  Kaisha,  Ltd., 
occupies  a  leading  position  in  the  rapidly 
increasing  trade  of  Nagoya,  where  a  branch 
was  established  in  1899.  This  branch 
engages  principally  in  imports  and  exports, 
sales  on  commission,  transportation,  insur- 
ance agency,  and  brokerage  generally.  Since 
the  original  establishment  the  branch  has 
developed   to   a   surprising   extent,   and    its 


SCENE    IN    NAGOY.^    HARBOUR 


36o 


P  R  E  S  E  N  T  -  I)  A   \-        I  M   P  K  i:  S  S  I  O  N  S        OF        JAPAN 


THE    NEW    OFFICES    OF    THE    MITSUI    BUSSAX    KAISHA,    LIMITED 


annual  transactions  now  total  over  Yen 
30,000,000  in  value.  The  whole  scope  of  the 
business  has  been  enlarged  many  times,  new 
departments  continually  being  added.  At 
present  the  business  includes  departments  for 
handling  cotton,  cereals  and  fertilizers, 
coal,  machinery,  sugar,  timber,  and  sundry 
goods. 

One  of  the  main  items  of  export  is  enamel 
ware  of  all  descriptions,  and  other  leading 
lines  are  packing  cases  of  all  kinds,  bean-oil, 
cotton  yarn,  and  cotton  piece  goods.  Imports 
are  mainly  rice,  soya  beans,  bean  cake, 
machinery,  and  hardware.  In  the  domestic 
trade  the  Nagoya  Branch  of  the  Mitsui 
Bussan  Kaisha,  Ltd.,  handles  practically 
every  item  of  general  merchandise.  Mr. 
G.  Mitsui  is  the  President  of  the  company 
and  Mr.  S.  Futagami  is  the  Manager.  The 
premises  of  the  company  are  located  at 
Sasashima-cho,  Shichome,  Nakaku,  \agoya, 
where  a  very  handsome  new  building  has 
been  erected  which  is  one  of  the  most 
conspicuous  and  extensive  structures  in 
the  city,  and  is  equipped  in  the  most 
modern    manner    throughout. 


LOOKING    TOWARD   THE    MOXVMENT   FROM   THE    ROOF  OF  FIJIMOTO  BILLBROKER   BANK,  NAGOYA 


XIX.    Forestry 


Afforestation— Distribution— Forest  Acreacje  and  Revenue— Other  Forest  Products 


THE  tojiographical  formation  of  Japan, 
with  its  numerous  hills  and  moun- 
tains, as  well  as  the  mild  and  humid 
climate  of  the  country,  both  go  to  favour 
forest  growth,  and  consequently  over  seventy 
per  cent  of  the  total  area  is  so  occupied.  The 
beauty  of  Japan's  thickly  wooded  plains  and 
uplands  has  no  doubt  left  its  aesthetic  mark 
on  the  people,  moulding  the  native  mind  into 
an  appreciation  of  sylvan  scener>'  and  of 
nature  generally,  and  revealing  an  innate 
love  of  trees  and  shrubs  among  Japanese  of 
all   classes. 

Commercially  Japan's  forests  have  not 
bulked  very  largely  as  yet  in  the  national 
economy,  chiefly  for  the  reason  that  the 
Government  exercises  a  jealous  care  and  pro- 


tection o\'er  them,  not  only  preserving  them 
intact  as  far  as  possible,  but  adding  consider- 
ably to  their  original  extent  by  aflforestation. 
Japan  regards  her  forests  as  a  trust  inherited 
from  the  past,  and  the  entail  is  profoundly 
respected.  The  result  is  that  she  still  has  a 
large  and  \'aluable  area  of  forest  land,  while 
neighbouring  countries  are  almost  denuded 
of  their  arboreal  fauna.  The  system  of  for- 
est management  in  Japan  aims  at  securing 
continuity  and  at  the  same  time  increasing 
the  most  valuable  timber-producing  trees  as 
a  national  asset.  Though  it  is  still  but  a 
few  years  since  forestry  and  dendrological 
research  have  been  placed  on  a  scientific  basis 
in  Japan,  very  creditable  progress  has  been 
made  in  all  directions.     The  Forestry  Bureau 


established  in  1 897  aims  at  a  thorough  work- 
ing of  the  forests,  disposing  of  those  not 
needed  as  State  lands,  supervising  the  siu-vey 
of  forests,  regulating  the  procedure  and  oper- 
ations of  forest  officers,  the  afforestation  of 
bare  lands,  the  improvement  of  transporta- 
tion facilities  for  timber,  the  purchase  of 
forests  required  by  the  State,  and  the  pro- 
motion of  improvement  works.  The  expenses 
of  the  work  are  borne  from  the  proceeds 
of  the  forests  themselves.  The  afforestation 
system  especially  has  been  vigourously 
developed,  trees  being  regularly  planted  on 
hillsides  and  denuded  areas  as  well  as  in  the 
uncultivable  land  of  mountain  regions,  thus 
adding  to  the  beauty  of  the  landscape,  pro- 
tecting the  hills  against   landslides,  feeding 


SCENE    NEAR    KVOfO 


BRI.NGINC    LOOS   POW.V    THE    RIVER 


362 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


CRYPTOMERIA    GROVE    AT    XIKKO 


springs  and  rivers,  precluding  floods,  improv- 
ing the  public  health,  and  creating  a  forest 
heritage  for  posterity.  In  Japan,  forests  are 
planted  and  harvested  with  the  same  regu- 
larity and  care  as  any  other  crop,  the  people 
showing  the  same  patience  for  crops  of  de- 
cades and  centuries  as  for  those  of  annual 
yield.  In  1910  Forest  Plantation  Encourage- 
ment Regulations  were  issued,  granting  sub- 
sidies to  towns  and  villages  imdertaking 
afforestation.  In  191 1  the  sum  of  15,598,000 
yen  was  appropriated,  to  be  expended  over 
a  period  of  nineteen  years,  for  readjustment 
of  watercourses,  and  the  areas  of  prohibited 
exploitation  were  extended. 

DISTRIBUTION 
I.N  Japan,  forests  clothe  the  slopes  of  most 
of  the  mountains,  abounding  more  particu- 
larly in  the  central  portion  of  Honshu,  and 


in  Hokkaido  and  Saghalien,  as  well  as  in 
Formosa.  The  lack  of  uniformity  in  distri- 
bution is  due  for  the  most  part  to  peculi- 
arities of  soil.  Density  of  population  renders 
paramount  the  claims  of  agriculture;  and 
consequently,  in  those  regions  favourable  to 
cereal  production,  such  as  the  islands  of 
Shikoku,  Kyushu,  and  certain  portions  of 
Honshu,  forest  areas  naturaUj-  had  to  give 
way  to  cultivated  lands.  Broadly  speaking, 
there  are  four  zones  of  forest  distribution  in 
Japan.  The  tropical  zone  extends  through 
south  Formosa  and  the  more  southern  archi- 
pelagoes generally:  that  is,  through  Luchu 
and  the  Bonin  Islands,  where  the  bamboo 
and  the  banj'an  attain  their  most  luxuriant 
growth.  The  sub-tropical  zone  covers  north 
Formosa,  Kyushu,  and  Shikoku,  as  well  as 
the  lower  parts  of  Honshu,  where  broad- 
leaved     evergreens,     conifers,     and     broad- 


leavcd  deciduous  trees  predominate.     Here 
the  camphor,  the  oak,  and  the  pine  flourish, 
as  well  as  the  box  and  the  ilex.     There  is  also 
a  great  growth  of  bamboo,  and  the  edible 
fungus  that  thrives  on  the  pine  trees,  known 
as    matsiitake.      The    temperate    zone   runs 
through  the  north  part  of  Honshu  and  the 
southwest   regions  of   Hokkaido,   where  the 
forests    most    economicaUj'    important    are 
found,  such  as  the  sugi,  or  cryptomeria,  the 
hinoki  and  the  black  and  red  pine,   as  well 
as   the   oak,    chestnut,    maple,    and   several 
other    valuable    woods    peculiar    to    Japan. 
Among  the  more  than  sixty  species  available 
for  use,  the  peculiarh-  scented  fir  known  as 
hinoki  is  perhaps  the  most  valuable,  being 
tough,    strong,    close-grained,   and   excellent 
for    house    construction,    shipbuilding,    and 
bridge  work.     The  sugi  which  resembles  the 
great    sequoia   of   CaUfomia   in   appearance 
and  texture,  is  one  of  Japan's  noblest  trees, 
thriving   well   in   moist   soil   and   on   sunny 
places,   specimens  often   measuring  six  feet 
in   diamater   and    130  feet   in   height.     The 
wood  is  light  yellow  with  a  tinge  of  red,  and 
is  used  largely  for  the  manufacture  of  wooden 
kitchen   utensils  and  tools.     The  sawara  is 
used  much  for  boards  and  planks,  being  a 
wood   that   is   soft   and   sphts   easily.     The 
momi    (maple)    is   used    largely   for   making 
pulp  for  paper  and  for  tea-chests.     The  pines, 
both  red  and  black,  all  through  this  region 
make  valuable  timber.     Among  the  broad- 
leaved    trees    of    this    zone,    the    keyaki    is 
supreme  in  respect  to  utility  and  value.     It 
is  found  in  mixed  woods  all  through  Honshu, 
Shikoku,    and    Kyushu,    attaining    its    best 
■  kvelopment  in   calcareous  soils.     The  tree 
grows  slowly,  but  its  timber  is  strong,  hard, 
and  lustrous  and  it  is  in  great  demand  for 
building,  canning,  and  good  furniture,  some 
species  having  a  beautiful  grain.     The  buna 
(beech)  is  a  verj'  widely  distributed  species, 
attains  a  great  size,  and  was  used  by  the 
ancient  aborigines  of  Japan  for  making  their 
dug-outs.     The    inuenji,    the   chestnut,    and 
the  oak  are  found  through  Honshu  and  the 
plains  of  Hokkaido,  and  are  used  for  furniture 
and  railway  sleepers.     In  the  frigid  zone  of 
the  high  mountains  of  Honshu  and  the  north- 
east part  of  Hokkaido  the  black  and  white 
pine  is  the  most  valuable  wood,  growing  with 
great  luxuriance  in  the  mountains  of  Ishikari, 
Teshio,  Tokachi,  Nemuro,  and  Kitami.     The 
wood  is  light,  coarse-grained,  and  liable  to 
warp,  but  is  always  in  demand  for  building 
work.     In  the  Kurile  Islands  there  is  little 
timber  of  much  value,  chiefly  a  stunted  larch 
and   white  birch.     It  would,   of  course,   be 
impossible  to  discuss  aU  the  valuable  woods 
of  Japanese  forests  in  the  space  at  our  dis- 
posal.    Further    treatment    of    the    subject 
will  be  found  under  the  Flora  and  Fauna  of 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


363 


Japan  (page  19).  The  most  famous  primi- 
tive forests  still  intact  are  at  Kiso  in  Nagano, 
at  Nagasawa  in  Akita,  and  Tsugaru  in 
Aomori.  The  beautiful  forests  at  Yoshino  in 
Yamato,  Tenryu  in  Shizuoka,  and  Oso- 
washii  in  Kii  are  of  artificial  origin.  Almost 
the  whole  of  the  Island  of  Saghalien,  except 
a  small  sandy  area  along  the  coast,  is  covered 
with  virgin  forest  of  large  and  valuable 
growth.  The  forests  of  Korea  have  been 
greatly  depleted,  but  under  Japan's  admin- 
istration reafTorestation  is  making  great 
headway.  Japan  has  also  fine  timber  forests 
on  the  Yalu  River,  whence  valuable  ship- 
ments of  timber  constantly  come  to  Japan 
proper,  usually  in  logs  and  balks. 

FOREST  ACREAGE  AND  REVENUE 
The  forest  areas  of  Japan  are  classified 
according  to  ownership,  as  follows:  Those 
belonging  to  the  State;  the  Crown;  to  com- 
munal bodies;  to  shrines  and  temples;  and 
to  private  individuals.  These  are  again 
divided  by  the  Government  into  forests 
under  Government  protection,   forests  open 


sistent  with  the  possibilities,  yet  there  is 
evidence  of  considerable  progress  in  this 
direction.  The  revenue  of  State  forests  for 
the  financial  year  ending  March,  1915, 
derived  from  sale  of  products,  by-products, 
rents,    and    other   receipts,    was    10,275,822 


7,242,205  yen,  so  that  the  net  profit  of  the 
year's  working  was  only  3,766,492  yen,  not 
including  Hokkaido  and  the  Bonin  Islands. 
The  average  profit  for  the  previous  four 
years,  however,  was  about  five  million  yen 
a   year.     The   income   from    Crown   forests 


Products 


Logs  and  balks 

Railway  sleepers •. 

Wood  for  clogs 

Pulp  wood 

Bamboo 

Hinoki  and  Sugi  bark 

Charcoal 

Mushrooms 

Total,  including  others 


■905 

(Yen) 


22,334,610 

703,580 

1,254,420 

231,430 

1,280,870 

659,120 

11,393,010 

1,344,500 


59,302,180 


1909 

(Yen) 


38,899,380 
1,342,140 
1,818,970 
523,500 
1,697,701) 
1,021,070 

18,419,460 
2,363.710 


96,944,560 


1914 

(Yen) 


38,485,340 

1.591.371 
2.319.809 
1.028,512 
2.439.985 
1.334.184 
22,634,342 
2,400,732 


108,310,872 


yen,  which  was  three  times  that  of  ten  years 
before.  An  additional  income  of  2,699,201 
yen  came  from  sales  of  forests  and  plains. 
But    expenses    were    heavy,    amounting    to 


Classification 

Protection 

Forests 

Acres 

Utilisation 

Forests 

Acres 

Tot.-u. 
Acres 

26,805 

1.517,767 

610,452 

18,603 

531.555 

4,458,175 
18,073,713 

5.923.845 

266,980 

15,107,920 

4,484,980 
19,591,480 

6.534.297 

285.583 

15.639,475 

5.459.882 

State  Forests 

Communal  Forests    

Temples  and  Shrines 

Private  Forests     

Moors  and  Plains 

Total 

2,705,182 

43.830,633 

5 1. 995.697 

can  only  be  estimated,  a  rough  calculation 
making  it  about  2,000,000  yen;  while  the 
revenue  from  private  forests  is  estimated  at 
about  63,000,000  yen  a  year.  The  total 
output  of  timber  for  the  year  191 5  was 
229,832,256  cubic  feet,  valued  at  34,588,387 
yen;  and  of  fire-wood  and  charcoal,  296,261,- 
460  cubic  feet,  valued  at  28,378,216  yen. 
The  value  of  the  principal  forest  products  of 
Japan  is  given  in  the  preceding  table  for  the 
years  1905,  1909,  and  1914. 

It  will  be  seen  that  the  productivity  of 
Japanese  forests  greatly  increased  during 
the  ten  years  above  indicated.  The  figures 
for  the  years  up  to  191 7  are  not  materially 
different. 


to  exploitation,  and  forests  under  the  control 
of  villages  or  towns  which  are  entitled  to  a 
percentage  of  the  forest  proceeds.  The 
total  area  of  forest  and  wild  land  in  Japan 
at  the  end  of  March,  1915,  was  51,995,697 
acres,  owned  as  above. 

The  State  forests  represent  those  which 
the  feudal  princes,  at  the  time  of  the  Resto- 
ration, surrendered  to  the  Government,  some 
of  which  were  taken  as  Crown  Lands  for  the 
benefit  of  the  Imperial  Household,  and 
which  are  now  under  the  administration  of 
the  Minister  of  the  Imperial  Household; 
while  the  State  forests  are  under  the  Forestry 
Administration  Bureau  in  the  Department 
of  Agriculture  and  Commerce.  In  early 
times  shrines  and  temples  were  erected  in 
forests  to  protect  the  latter  from  molestation, 
and  the  titles  to  these  properties  have  been 
recognised  by  the  Government.  The  forests 
in  Hokkaido,  Saghalien,  Formosa,  and  Korea 
are  under  the  Governors-General  of  these 
territories. 

Forestry  as  a  source  of  revenue  has  not 
yet  attained  an  importance  in  Japan   con- 


CAMPHOR    TREE 


^64 


I'RRSENT-DAY        IMPRESSIONS        OF        JAPAN 


ORIEN'TAL    CREOSOTIN'G    CO.,    LTD.:       (ABOVE)    GENERAL    VIEW    OF    OSAKA    WORKS — (BELOW)    CYLINDRICAL    CHAMBERS    IN    WHICH 

CREOSOTE     OIL      IS     IN'JECTED      INTO     TIMBER 


OTHER  FOREST  PRODUCTS 
Forest  growths  that  iisuallj'  go  to  waste 
in  other  countries  are  made  profitable  use 
of  by  the  Japanese  to  an  enormous  extent. 
The  forests  of  the  country  are  rich  in  long 
grasses  and  undergrowth  of  great  variety, 
which  are  much  used  as  fuel  and  fertilizer. 
Seeds,  acorns,  and  walnuts  are  also  a  great 
item  of  forest  produce,  and  wax  and  oil  are 
extracted  from  various  trees  for  industrial 
uses.  The  barks  of  certain  species  of  oaks, 
alders,  and  chestnuts  is  used  for  tanning 
and  dyeing,  while  the  stone  quarries  of  the 
forest  districts  are  of  great  utility  and  value. 
Up  to  a  few  years  ago  all  timber  in  Japan 
was  sawn  by  hand,  but  now,  with  the  in- 
creasing industrial  utilisation  of  wood,  there 
are  numerous  private  saw-mills  representing 
an  invested  capital  of  some  7,000,000 
yen,  with  ten  Government  mills  for  the 
conversion  of  timber,  in  Aomori,  Akita, 
Mumamoto,  Oita,  and  Kochi.  The  amount 
of  timber  converted  by  all  the  mills  of  Japan 
in  1915  was  about  229,833,256  cubic  feet, 
with  a  value  of  34,588,387  yen,  while  the 
output  in  fagots  was  592,523,520  cubic  feet. 


valued  at  28,378,216  yen.  The  cost  of 
transportation  from  the  forests  to  the  lumber 
mills  is  very  high,  particularly  when  roads 
are  few  and  rough,  with  torrential  streams 
to  be  crossed.  In  Hokkaido  the  timber  can 
be  skidded  or  hauled  over  the  snow,  but  in 
the  more  southern  parts  of  the  Empire  such 
advantages  do  not  exist.  No  doubt  as  time 
goes  on  better  roads  will  be  made  into  the 
heart  of  the  timber  regions  and  steam  power 
utilised  for  transporting  the  logs  to  the  mills, 
as  in  other  countries.  The  principal  exports 
of  timber  from  Japan  are  to  China,  Great 
Britain,  and  the  United  States,  with  some 
to  Australia,  chiefly  for  making  tea-chests 
and  match-wood,  valued  at  about  10,000,000 
yen  annually;  while  wooden  manufactures, 
such  as  bent- wood  chairs,  toys,  and  articles  of 
furniture,  are  increasing  in  export.  Japan's 
imports  of  timber,  chiefly  teak  for  ships  and 
Oregon  pine  for  flooring,  amount  to  about 
2,500,000  yen  in  value  annually,  the  teak 
coming  principally  from  Siam.  The  camphor 
industr\-  is  one  of  Japan's  important  forest 
undertakings;  but  it  must  be  treated  under 
the  head  of  Government  Monopolies. 


THE    ORIENTAL    CREOSOTING    CO., 
LIMITED 

The  value  of  the  system  of  preser\'ing 
timber  by  the  injection  of  creosote  oil  is 
too  well  known  to  require  much  discussion. 
It  is  adopted  in  aU  coimtries  where  timber 
has  to  be  exposed  to  the  elements,  or  is 
likely  to  be  attacked  by  white  ants,  or  other 
insects.  Exhaustive  tests  under  practical 
conditions  have  shown  that  creosoted  timber 
will  outlast  all  others,  and  it  is  used  nowa- 
days for  virtually  all  classes  of  heavy  con- 
struction, including  wharf  piles,  etc.  In 
Japan  the  industry  is  largely  in  the  hands 
of  the  Oriental  Creosoting  Co.,  Ltd.,  an 
Osaka  company  which  has  obtained  a  num- 
ber of  patent  rights  under  Japanese  laws 
for  its  method  of  treating  the  timber.  The 
company  is  also  the  sole  contractor  for  all 
the  creosote  oil  produced  in  Japan,  which 
amounts  to  about  10,000  tons  yearly.  This 
oil  is  the  best  grade  of  coal  tar  product, 
obtained  from  coal  gas  tar,  or  coke  oven  tar. 
It  is  entirely  liquid  and  its  specific  gravity 
is  at  least  1.03  at  38  degrees  Centigrade. 
When  distilled  by  the  common  method,  that 


I'  R  K  S  E  N  T  -  11  A  \-         IMPRESSIONS        OF        JAPAN 


365 


is,  usinf^  an  S-ouncv  retort,  asbestos  covered, 
with  standard  thermometer,  bulb  half  an 
inch  above  the  surface  of  the  oil,  the  oil, 
calculated  on  the  basis  of  the  dry  oil,  gives 
no  distillate  below  200.  C,  and  not  more 
than  5  per  cent  below  210.  C,  not  more  than 
25  per  cent  below  235.  C,  and  the  residue 
above  355.  C,  which  is  more  than  5  per  cent, 
is  soft.  With  a  large  stock  of  oil,  the  com- 
pany is  carrying  on  an  extensive  industry, 
preparing  well  preserved  timbers,  for  which 
the  two  creosoting  plants  at  Osaka  and  Tokyo 
are  working  constantly.  From  August,  1907, 
to  the  end  of  19 17,  the  Oriental  Creosoting 
Company  has  treated  about  12,000,000  cubic 
feet  of  timber,  under  its  special  processes. 
Of  this  output  of  preserved  timber,  railway 
sleepers  form  the  largest  part,  about  8,000,- 
000  ha\'ing  been  treated.  The  timbers  used 
for  these  sleepers  are  all  of  Japanese  growth, 
being  mainly  beech,  oak,  and  elm.     Electric 


look's  have  been  creosoted  to  the  niuiiljer  uf 
about  1,200,000  cubic  feet,  the  wood  in  this 
case  being  chiefly  cryptomeria.  The  balance 
of  the  quantity  treated  has  comprised  heavy 
stmctural  timber,  such  as  piers,  piles,  etc., 
])avement  blocks  and  sundry  lines,  the 
materials  generally  being  "Matsu,"  or 
Jajjanese  pine.  The  company  is  injecting 
oil  into  timbers  with  several  different  pro- 
cesses. In  the  main  the  idea  is  the  universal 
one  of  drying  the  timber,  while  at  the  same 
time  extracting  all  air  from  the  pores  in 
hermetically  sealed  cylindrical  chambers, 
and  then  forcing  creosote  oil  into  the  pores. 
Timber  so  treated  is  practically  immune 
from  attacks  by  fungus,  white  ants  xylotrya, 
and  teredo  worm.  The  Oriental  Creosoting 
Company  has  given  innumerable  demon- 
strations of  the  success  of  its  system,  and 
inquirers  are  readily  invited  to  apply  to  the 
Japanese  Imperial  Railways,  the  Telephone 


and  Telegraph  Department,  the  Civil  Engi- 
neering Bureau  and  the  Formosan  Govern- 
ment, as  to  the  official  view  of  the  success  of 
the  work  carried  out. 

Apart  from  the  actual  work  of  treating 
timbers,  the  company  is  also  trading  in 
creosote  oil,  and  sells  a  large  jjart  of  the 
surplus  product,  which  it  controls,  to  the 
United  States.  Within  recent  times  a 
(juantity  of  10,000  tons  has  been  exported 
and  has  been  used  by  the  Pacific  Creosoting 
Company  of  Seattle,  and  others.  The  head 
office  of  the  Oriental  Creosoting  Company 
is  at  No.  I  Nakano-shima,  3-chome,  Kitaku, 
Osaka.  The  Tokyo  office  is  at  No.  8  Kaga- 
cho,  Kyobashi-ku,  Tokyo.  The  works  are 
.situated  at  Sakurajima-cho,  Nishi-ku,  Osaka, 
and  No.  593  Senda-cho,  Fukagawa-ku,  Tokyo. 
Mr.  Yoshitomi  Hiraga,  Doctor  of  Chemistry, 
is  in  charge  of  the  company's  technical 
operations. 


A    TYPICAL    FISHING    VILLAGE 

XX.    Fisheries 

Present  Conditions  — Annual   Catches  — Deep-Sea    Fisheries— Marine   Manufactured 

Products— Commercial   Notice 


WITH  a  coastline  o£  over  18,000 
miles,  exclusive  of  Korea,  and  a 
geographical  extension  from  the 
torrid  to  the  frigid  zone,  with  innumerable 
bays,  gulfs,  and  river-mouths,  it  is  but 
natural  that  the  densely  populated  islands 
of  Japan  should  form  one  of  the  greatest 
fishing  countries  in  the  world.  As  the  daily 
fare  of  rice  and  vegetables  needs  to  be 
supplemented  by  some  more  invigourating 
food,  the  Japanese  must  to  a  very  great 
extent  resort  to  the  sea  for  sustenance; 
and  the  habit  has  long  been  confirmed  by 
Buddhism  in  its  aversion  to  a  meat  diet. 

The  importance  of  the  fishing  industry 
to  Japan  is  indicated  by  the  fact  that  almost 
1,000,000  persons  are  engaged  in  it,  about 
800,000  exclusively  and  the  rest  partially 
so  employed.  The  number  of  boats  on  the 
Japanese  fishing  grounds  is  over  400,000, 
mostly  small,  native,  open  craft  about  thirty 
feet  in  length,  though  foreign-built  boats  and 
steam  trawlers  are  gradually  coming  into 
use,  as  the  people  can  afiford  them.  When 
the  total  value  of  the  annual  catches,  which 
amounts  to  about  95,000,000  yen,  is  divided 
among  the  fishing  boats,  it  amounts  to  an 
average  of  no  more  than  237  yen  for  each 
crew  of  five,  a  very  small  return  indeed  for 
such  hard  and  perilous  toil.  The  unprofitable 
aspect  of  the  industry  accounts  for  the 
gradual  decrease  in  the  number  of  fishing 
boats  witnessed  during  the  past  few  years. 


amounting  to  over  14,000  fishing  craft  in 
the  last  decade.  The  Japanese  fisherman  is 
easily  attracted  by  any  labour  offering  a 
higher  living  wage.  Owing  to  the  frequent 
and  treacherous  storms  of  the  Japanese 
waters  the  lives  of  the  toilers  of  the  sea  are 
seldom  without  imminent  peril,  and  more 
than  a  thousand  boats,  with  as  many  crews, 
suffer  shipwreck  annually.  It  may  be,  how- 
ever, that  as  time  goes  on  and  more  sea- 
worthy craft  become  possible,  the  fishing 
industry  of  Japan  will  attract  increasing 
instead  of  decreasing  numbers,  as  at  present. 
Already  166  trawlers  have  been  intro- 
duced, although  the  European  war  has  re- 
duced the  number  to  some  extent,  while 
fishing  boats  of  Western  type  now  number 
over  one  thousand  in  all. 

.\XNUAL    CATCHES 

Japanese  waters  afford  an  enormous 
number  and  variety  of  fish,  though  intensive 
methods  have  reduced  the  species  in  some 
cases.  The  Marine  Biological  Bureau  at 
Tajima  has  classified  over  four  hundred 
species  of  marine  products  that  may  be  util- 
ised either  as  food  or  fertilizer,  or  as  providing 
material  for  various  industries.  If  the  neces- 
sary capital,  therefore,  were  forthcoming,  and 
better  equipment  provided,  the  sea  harvest 
of  Japan  could  be  made  infinitely  more  eco- 
nomically popular.  It  is  in  this  connection 
encouraging  to  note    that   certain   Japanese 


capitalists  are  beginning  to  be  interested, 
and  already  two  or  three  have  made  success- 
ful ventures.  In  accordance  with  the  Fishery' 
Agreement  which  Japan  made  with  Russia 
in  1907,  Japan's  fishing  rights  along  the 
coasts  of  Siberia  and  north  Saghalien  %vere 
confirmed,  and  now  extend  as  far  north  as 
Kamchatka.  The  value  of  the  catches  in 
these  northern  waters  is  about  8,000,000  yen 
a  year,  while  the  fish  taken  in  the  waters  of 
Korea,  Kwantung,  and  Formosa  are  worth 
at  least  1 1 ,000,000  yen  more,  which,  added 
to  the  total  of  Japan's  fishery  harvest  at 
home,  brings  the  grand  total  for  the  Empire 
up  to  about  113,000,000  yen  annually.  The 
abbreviated  table  on  the  next  page  wiU  give 
some  idea  of  Japan's  inshore  and  freshwater 
fisheries  for  the  year  1914,  with  the  figures 
for  two  previous  inter\'als  of  five  years  each, 
for  comparison.  The  figures  for  1915,  1916, 
and  191 7  are  in  most  cases  less. 

The  herring  fishery  is  chiefly  carried  on 
along  the  western  shores  of  Hokkaido  and 
the  north  of  the  main  island,  March  and  May 
being  the  best  months.  The  fish  are  taken 
with  pond-nets  and  gill-nets,  and  only  the 
parts  along  the  backbone  are  used  for  food, 
the  rest  being  turned  into  fertilizer.  Besides 
herring,  the  principal  fish  taken  on  inshore 
grounds  are  salmon  and  salmon  trout,  for 
which  gill-nets  and  drag-nets  are  used.  Sar- 
dines and  anchovies  are  caught  all  along  the 
Japanese  coast,  seines  and  purse-seines  being 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS    OF   JAPAN 


367 


CORMORANT   FISHING — TWO   GROUPS    ENGAGED    IN    SPEARING    SALMON   TROUT 


chiefly  used.  Formerly  these  fish  were  used 
as  fertilizer,  but  in  recent  years  they  have 
been  tinned  and  are  finding  an  increasing  sale 
abroad.  The  bonito,  a  very  favourite  fish 
with  the  Japanese,  is  taken  chiefly  in  the 
warmer  waters,  being  caught  with  a  hook, 
using  live  sardine  for  bait.  Tai  is  the  prin- 
cipal fish  of  spring  and  summer,  the  best 
coming  from  the  Inland  Sea  waters.  The 
fish  are  corralled  by  drive-nets  and  then  taken 
with  a  seine,  but  sometimes  the  fish  is  taken 
with  long  lines.  This  fish  is  seldom  salted, 
as  the  people  regard  it  as  the  best  product  of 
the  sea  and  want  it  always  fresh.  The 
sawara  also  comes  mostly  from  the  Inland 
Sea,  and  as  it  swims  in  shoals,  it  may  be  taken 
with  drift-nets.  The  tunny,  which  is  found 
everywhere,  is  taken  in  the  same  manner. 
Though  usually  eaten  fresh,  the  tunny  is 
often  salted  or  dried.  The  yellow-tail  is 
caught  for  the  most  part  in  the  Japan  Sea 
and  along  the  southwestern  coast,  and  may 
be  eaten  either  fresh  or  salted.  One  of  the 
most  ubiquitous  of  Japanese  fish  is  the 
mackerel,  which  is  caught  with  spread-nets 
and  seines,  and  usually  preserved  in  salt. 
Cod  is  taken  with  lines  and  nets,  and  there 
is  some  business  done  in  cod-liver  oil.  Tlie 
Japanese  salmon  is  a  very  fine  fish.  It 
ascends  the  rivers  flowing  into  the  Japan  Sea 
and  into  the  Pacific  towards  the  north, 
especially  in  Hokkaido  and  north  Honshu, 
where  it  is  taken  with  river-seines  and  traps, 
but  at  sea  the  salmon  is  caught  with  pound- 
nets.  Most  of  the  catch  is  salted  or  tinned. 
Salmon  trout  is  another  delicious  product 
of  Japanese  waters,  and  is  taken  and  pre- 
served in  the  same  manner  as  salmon. 

The  sea-ear  is  one  of  Japan's  most  impor- 
tant shell  fish,  being  valuable  both  for  its 
flesh  and  for  the  mother-of-pearl  found  in 
its  shell.  The  flesh  is  exported  to  China 
and  brings  in  a  considerable  income.  There 
is  a  growing  demand  for  oysters  in  Japan, 
and  the  culture  of  this  bivalve  is  now  exten- 


Species 


Herring 

Sardine  and  Anchovy 

Bonito 

Mackerel 

Tunny 

Yellow-tail 

Tai  (Pagrus) 

Karei  (Flatfish) 

Sawara  (Cybium) .  .  .  . 

Horse  mackerel 

Grey  Mullet 

Salmon 

Eel 

Sea-ear 

Squid  and  Cuttlefish . 
Prawns,  Lobsters.  ,  .  , 
Others 

Tolal 


1904 


Yen 


3 


070,337 
330,969 
613.796 
,874,660 
,126,067 
878,978 
334,899 
439.969 
707,164 
899,582 
869,295 
037,050 
604,460 

576,485 
303.143 
333,455 
229,309 


55,2^9,618 


1909 


Yen 


5,938.312 
9-353,197 
7,208,462 
2,366,185 
2.471.527 
3.127. 715 
5,465,386 
1,922,654 
1,295,835 
1,479,713 
1,320,627 

918,523 
1,160,334 

730,554 

3,483,046 

1,686,899 

27.663,740 


77.592,709 


1914 


Yen 


10,474,131 
10,180,426 
7,683,158 
2,727,119 
2,982,706 
4,357,824 
5,785,126 
2,627,771 
1,150,105 
1,244,884 
1,063,683 
1,291,566 
1.238,995 
979,472 
5,141,472 
2,291,013 

33,834,367 


95,053,818 


sively  carried  on.  At  Tobashima,  in  the 
Bay  of  Ago,  Mr.  Mikamoto  has  the  unique 
monopoly  of  hatching  pearl-oysters,  the 
method  being  to  raise  the  oysters  in  the  usual 
bed  and  to  introduce  grains  of  mother-of- 
pearl  between  the  shells  of  three-year-old 
oysters,  the  irritation  thus  set  up  causing 
the  fish  to  put  forth  the  secretion  which 
produces  the  pearl;  and  in  four  years'  time 
a  pearl  of  considerable  size  and  beauty  is 
formed. 

Lobsters  may  be  taken  anywhere  along 
the  coast  of  Japan,  gill-nets  being  used. 
The  Japanese  lobster  appears  to  be  diflferent 
from  the  same  fish  in  Western  countries, 
as  it  has  no  claws.  The  prawn,  which  it 
resembles,  abounds  in  the  Inland  Sea  waters 
and  warmer  inlets,  and  is  taken  chiefly  with 
trawl-nets,  exports  being  large  to  China. 
The  cuttlefish,  squid,  and  octopus  find 
increasing  use  at  home  and  are  also  largely 
exported  to  China,  being  caught  by 
trawls  and  with  lines;  while  the  sea-cucumber. 


or  beche  de  mer,  is  found  mostly  in  Hokkaido 
and  along  the  coasts  of  Honshu.  This 
product  goes  chiefly  to  China,  as  does  the 
shark-fin,  which  is  taken  mostly  off'  the  coasts 
of  Oita.  There  is  in  Japan  an  immense 
harvest  of  seaweeds,  which  grow  principally 
along  the  shores  of  Hokkaido  and  southeast 
Honshu.  The  various  weeds  are  taken  and 
dried,  and  usually  pressed  into  form  for  the 
market,  being  used  as  a  relish  with  soup, 
fish,  or  rice.  When  dissolved  and  properly 
treated  the  weed  produces  kaiilen,  a  kind  of 
gelatin,  which  is  much  used  for  food  and  as 
isinglass. 

DEEP-SEA  FISHERIES 
On  account  of  the  striking  ingenuity  and 
inventiveness  displayed  by  the  Japanese 
fisherman,  resulting  in  diversity  of  method 
and  implement  in  catching  fish,  the  inshore 
waters  in  recent  years  have  been  suffering 
from  a  growing  scarcity  of  fish.  Conse- 
quently  the  Government  is  promoting  the 


74 


i 

I 


^ 


if 


r  _ 

I 

7- 

v/ 


DRYING    BONITO   FISH  — DEVIL    FISH — A    SARDINE   CATCH TAX   FISH  —  OCTOPUS,    TOKYO    BAY — ON   THE   LOOKOUT   FOR 

SARDINES — BLUE   FISH  —  SUN   FISH FISHWIVES 


PRESENT-DAY        INrPRESSIONS        OF        JAPAN 


369 


DYEING    NETS,    A    WEEKLY   OPERATION,    WITH    A    VIEW    TO    PRESERVATION  — MENDING   THE    NETS  — ROLLING   TWINE 

FOR   THE   MANUFACTURE    OF    BLUE-FISH    NETS 


encouragement  of  better  and  more  extensive 
equipment  for  deep-sea  fishing.  There  are 
now  about  800  deep-sea  boats  in  use,  pro- 
pelled mostly  by  oil  engines,  and  going  after 
cod,  tunny,  bonito,  mackerel,  shark,  and 
whale,  with  a  few  sealers.  In  1898  the 
Government  granted  State  aid  to  the  amount 
of  150,000  yen  to  encourage  pelagic  fisheries, 
limited  to  those  equipped  for  taking  bonito, 
and  those  using  drag-nets,  drift-lines  and  so 
on.  The  amount  has  since  been  increased 
to  200,000  yen  a  year,  and  vessels  entitled 
to  a  share  of  it  must  not  be  over  200  tons  for 
steamers,  and  150  tons  for  sailing  ships,  with 
the  exception  of  whalers,  which  may  be  as 
large  as  400  tons.  Under  State  encourage- 
ment the  deep-sea  fisheries  of  Japan  have 
made  remarkable  progress  in  the  last  ten 
years.  Before  State  aid  was  granted  there 
were  only  9  deep-sea  vessels,  aggregating 
581  tons,  their  annual  catch  being  valued 
at  77,000  yen.  To-day  there  are  over 
1,800  deep-sea  boats  with  a  total  tonnage  of 
18,345,  anci  taking  an  annual  catch  worth 
5,860,087  yen. 


Owing  to  intensive  methods  the  seal 
fisheries  of  Japan  have  been  exhausted  and 
the  Government,  after  negotiation  with 
Great  Britain,  the  United  States,  and  Russia, 
in  191 1  agreed  to  prohibit  the  taking  of  fur 
seals  for  a  period  of  ten  years,  expending  some 
45,000  yen  in  the  effort.  In  addition  to  seals, 
such  fur-bearing  animals  as  otters,  black 
foxes,  and  sea  lions  are  protected.  After 
the  introduction  of  Norwegian  methods  of 
whale  fishing  the  species  frequenting  the 
waters  of  Japan  greatly  decUned,  especially 
right-whale,  sulphur-bottom,  and  hump- 
back, which  used  to  appear  in  great  numbers 
off  the  coasts  of  Shikoku  and  Kyushu.  Con- 
sequently the  Government  had  to  issue  an 
ordinance  for  the  protection  of  whales,  and 
in  1909  the  number  of  whalers  was  limited 
to  thirty.  The  present  whaling  grounds  are 
off  Kinkazan  Island  in  summer  and  as  far 
south  as  Tokyo  Bay,  and  the  Sea  of  Kishu 
and  Tosa  in  winter.  Korean  waters  have 
recently  been  taken  by  Japanese  whalers, 
formerly  monopolised  by  the  Russians.  The 
annual   value  of  the  whales  taken  by  the 


thirty  Japanese  vessels  now  thus  engaged  is 
about  1,300,000  yen,  and  the  total  for  deep- 
sea  fisheries  is  about  6,000,000  yen. 

MARINE    MANUFACTURED    PRODUCTS 

With  the  rapid  development  in  means  of 
transportation  and  the  increasing  demand 
for  prepared  marine  products,  this  aspect  of 
Japan's  industry  has  shown  remarkable 
growth  in  the  last  few  years.  In  1900  the 
total  income  from  this  source  was  a  little 
over  33,000,000  yen;  in  1910  it  had  grown  to 
43,000,000  yen;  and  to-day  it  is  over  60,- 
000,000  yen.  The  greater  part  of  the  indus- 
try is  in  dried  fish,  especially  bonito, 
cuttlefish,  tunny,  and  sardine,  besides  the 
immense  development  of  the  tinned  fish 
industry,  particularly  crab  and  salmon  as 
well  as  sardine,  to  say  nothing  of  various 
kinds  of  shell-fish.  The  table  on  the  follow- 
ing page  gives  the  progress  of  Japan's  fish- 
products  industry  for  the  last  ten  years,  in  in- 
tervals of  five  years.  The  total  for  191 5  was 
63,527,567  yen,  and  for  1917  somewhat  less. 


370 


PRESENT-DAY        IMPRESSIONS        OF        JAPAN 


Products 


Dried  cuttlefish  and  squid 
Sardine,  dried  and  boiled  , 

Dried  bonito 

Seaweeds 

Isinglass 

Fish  guano 

Herring  bone 

Others 

Total 


1904 


Yen 


3,021,059 

2,234.877 

3,958.45<'' 

909,472 

865,586 

6,516,503 

2,349,338 

12,737.054 


32,592,345 


1909 


Yen 


3,264,115 
2,841,711 
6,089,759 
1,466,123 
1,531,532 
3,990,574 
919,404 
20,116,522 


40,219,740 


1914 


Yen 


4,466,888 

3,6i5,'94 

8,707,716 
1,809,263 
1 ,833,340 

10,756,748 
1,325,342 

27,765,178 


60,279,669 


Another  industry  of  great  antiquity  in 
Japan,  and  of  increasing  importance,  is  that 
of  salt-refining  from  sea- water;  but  as  this  is 
a  Government  monopoly  it  will  be  treated 
under  that  head.  The  annual  output  is 
about  1,600,000,000  pounds,  valued  at  about 
12,000,000  yen. 

The  manufacture  of  by-products  from 
marine  industries  has  greatly  developed  in 
recent  years,  and  now  such  imports  as  iodine, 
iodide  of  potash,  isinglass,  and  shell  buttons 
have  quite  ceased,  resulting  in  considerable 
exportation  of  these  commodities  abroad. 
This  progress  has  been  achieved  chiefly  under 
encouragement  from  the  Government  Bureau 
of  Marine  Products.  The  shell  button 
industry  has  increased  to  an  extent  that 
shells  have  now  to  be  imported  from  Singa- 
pore, Australia,  and  the  South  Seas  to  meet 
the  demand,  while  the  market  for  Japanese 
tinned  crab  and  salmon  has  shown  unusual 
development  of  late.  The  accompanying 
table  indicates  the  progress  in  marine  by- 
products for  the  last  five  years: 


The  total  of  Japan's  annual  exportation 
of  fish  and  marine  products  now  generally 
amounts  to  about  20,000,000  yen,  going 
mostly  to  China,  the  United  States,  Europe, 
South  America,  and  the  South  Seas.  Of  this 
total  about  12,000,000  yen  represents  manu- 
factured products. 

The  Imperial  Government  has  encouraged 
the  promotion  of  various  institutions  for  the 
improvement  of  fisheries  and  the  increasing 
of  marine  products,  and  also  established 
Experimental  Fishery  Stations  and  Fisheries 


Schools,  there  being  at  present  some  twenty- 
nine  of  the  former  and  five  of  the  latter.  At 
the  same  time  there  arc  3,669  fishery  guilds 
for  protecting  the  interests  of  fishermen, 
with  a  membership  of  468,100;  while  the 
.Marine  Products  Guild  numbers  212  asso- 
ciations, with  309,846  members.  The  arti- 
ficial breeding  of  important  fish  like  salmon, 
trout,  carp,  eel,  and  also  of  snapping-turtles 
is  carried  on  in  numerous  places  at  an  expense 
of  some  3,000,000  yen  a  year. 

THE  ORIENTAL  WH.\LING  CO.,  LIMITED 
The  frequently  heard  statement  that 
whaling  as  an  industry  is  a  thing  of  the  past 
can  not  be  applied  to  the  industry  in  Japanese 
and  adjacent  waters.  The  Oriental  Whaling 
Co.,  Ltd.,  is  doing  an  extensive  trade  in  oil, 
and  with  modern  methods  reports  an  increas- 
ing production  of  oil  and  other  whale  prod- 
ucts every  year.  This  company  was  estab- 
lished in  1909  by  an  amalgamation  of  four 
companies,  namely,  the  Oriental  Fishery  Co., 
the  Nagasaki  Whaling  Co.,  the  Dai-Nippon 
Whaling  Co.,  and  the  Imperial  Marine 
Products    Co.'s    whaling    department.     The 


Products 

191 1 

1916 

Yen 

Yen 

242,789 
502,984 

1,531,532 
1,476,530 
1,981,032 

1,209,207 

Iodide  of  Potash                                                         - 

857,562 

1,832,240 

Shell  buttons                                                           

1,550,823 

2,653,915 

Tolal                                                             

5,734,867 

8,103,747 

FISHING    BO.\TS,    M.\TSUSHIM.\ 


«. 


y. '  ii 


VI 


^ 


I 


S^ 


M^^!^^ 


t:^^>c:^V^:/ ,;  ^fclcW"^^^'''^:;^^ 


ORIENTAL   WHALING   CO.,   LTD.:      TYPE   OF   THE   COMPANY'S  WHALING  VESSEL,  SHOWING  THE   HARPOON   GUN   IN  THE   BOWS- 
FIRING   THE   HARPOON   GUN ONE   OF   THE   COMPANY'S    STEAMERS 


372 


I'  I<  E  S  H  N  T  -DAY        IMPRESSIONS        OF        J  A   F  A  N 


PICKING    SEAWEED  —  CULTIVATED   SEAWEED   AT   OMORI,    NEAR   TOKYO- 


-A    SEAWEED    MARKET  —  DRYING    EDIBLE    SEAWEED 


original  capital  was  Yen  2,100,000  and  the 
company  then  possessed  eighteen  whaling 
ships,  and  it  also  had  two  chartered  ships. 
The  company  also  purchased  the  interests  of 
the  Tokai  Fishery  and  Pacific  Fishery  Com- 
panies, and  in  April,  19 1 6,  it  further  extended 
its  control  of  the  whaling  industry  by  buying 
out  the  Kii  Marine  Products  Co.,  the  Nagato 
Whaling  Co.,  the  Dai-Nippon  Marine  Prod- 
ucts Co.,  and  the  Naigai  Marine  Products 
Co.,  and  increased  the  capital  to  Yen  3,- 
000,000,  fully  paid  up.  The  fleet  now  num- 
bers twenty-four  whaling  ships,  and  the 
sphere  of  operations  extends  over  the  entire 
coast  of  Japan,  Formosa,  Saghalien,  Kuerile 
Islands,  Kwantung  Province,  and  even  to 
Tsingtao.  Thus,  viewed  from  the  strength 
of  its  capital,  the  number  of  ships  that  it 
owns,  and  the  extent  of  waters  in  which  it 
operates,  the  Oriental  Whaling  Co.,  Ltd., 
may  be  considered  one  of  the  largest  whale- 
fishing  concerns  in  the  world.  The  table  on 
the  next  page  shows  the  assets  of  the  com- 
pany for  three  business  periods. 

In  none  of  these  periods  is  any  remark- 
able increase  to  be  found,  except  in  the  third 


column,  and  this  increase  is  due  to  the 
purchase  of  the  four  companies,  as  stated. 
Otherwise  the  slow  increase  means  that  the 
company  is  steadily  writing  off  the  value  of 


THE  CAPSTAN  IN  USE  TO  HAUL  IN 
FISHING  JUNKS 


its  property  at  the  rate  of  Yen  110,000  per 
annum.  The  amount  already'  paid  back 
from  fixed  capital  amounts  to  Y^en  750,000. 
In  the  company's  first  business  period  (cover- 
ing a  year's  operations),  there  was  placed  to 
reserve  Y'en  181,544,  and  dividends  and 
bonus  amounting  to  Y'en  332,000  were  paid. 
For  the  year  ended  January  31,  1917,  Yen 
340,862  was  placed  to  reserve  and  dividends, 
and  bonus  totalling  Yen  376,210  were  paid. 
From  the  commencement  of  the  twelfth 
period,  which  began  on  February  i,  1917, 
there  was  a  noticeable  improvement  in  gen- 
eral conditions.  The  companj-  employed 
twenty-three  whaling  vessels  and  eight 
transports  in  the  whaling  in  Miyagi,  Waka- 
yama,  Kochi,  Miyazaki,  Nagasaki,  and 
Kagoshima  Prefectures,  Korea,  and  Kwan- 
tung. From  the  rise  in  the  price  of  whale 
oil  the  concern  is  realising  a  fairly  large 
profit.  What  the  increase  in  the  price  means 
may  be  seen  from  the  statement  that  in  its 
tenth  business  period  the  Oriental  Whaling 
Co.,  Ltd.,  had  a  gross  revenue  of  Yen 
1,360,000,  of  which  only  Yen  260,000  came 
from  the  sale  of  whale  oil,  but  in  the  ele\-enth 


P  R  E  S  E  N  T  -  U  A  Y        IMPRESSIONS        OF        JAPAN 


373 


period,  out  of  a  gross  revenue  of  Yen  1,960,- 
000  whale  oil  yielded  the  handsome  figure  of 
Yen  710,000.  In  view  of  this  development 
the  company  is  now  giving  particular  atten- 
tion to  the  oil-production  side  of  the  industry, 
and  it  is  expected  that  the  output  will  be 
increased  by  from  30,000  to  40,000  cases  per 
annum,  bringing  the  company's  total  pro- 
duction of  whale  oil  up  to  130,000  cases  per 
annum.  Taking  the  price  at  Yen  10  per 
case,  it  is  expected  that  the  revenue  from  this 
source  will  almost  cover  the  entire  annual 
expenditure  of  the  company.  As  all  other 
products  of  whale  fishing  have  increased  in 
value  by  at  least  20  per  cent,  and  more  often 
by  50  per  cent,  the  directors  naturally  antici- 
pate an  extraordinarily  successful  future  for 
the  company.  The  development  of  the 
business  side  of  the  Oriental  Whaling  Co., 
Ltd.,  is  shown  in  the  accompanying  table. 
The  catch  of  whales  is  likely  to  be  consid- 
erably increased  as  the  company  has  started 
operations  in  new  waters  around  Korea  and 
Skikotan  Island,  as  well  as  in  the  coastal 
waters  of  Kii  Province.     A  refining  factory 


I  IsIU-KMAnV    HilMK,    UHAKA,     K\/l    --A     I'KOVINCE 


Bl  SINESS 

Jan.  31,  1915 

Jan.  31,  1916 

Jan.  31,  1917 

Yen 

Yi-n 

Yen 

Ships 

1,273,401.1 1 
278,817.34 
254,772.78 
153,838.43 

1,231,8.39-35 
275,437.60 
249,104.85 
153,920.01 

1,790,285.25 
304,201.73 

Machinery,  etc. 

284,917.37 

Land 

I54,429.,36 

Tolals 

T, ((60,829. 66 

1,910,301.81 

2,533,833-71 

is  to  be  started  in  the  near  future,  and  a 
chemical  investigation  is  now  proceeding 
with  a  view  to  establishing  the  following 
secondary  productive  undertakings:  To  ob- 
tain adolinalin  from  the  whale  kidnevs;  to 


obtain  valuable  chemicals  from  the  under 
part  of  whale  bodies;  to  manufacture  dye- 
stuffs  from  whale  blood;  and  to  utilise  the 
retitin.  This  investigation  will  also  cover 
many  other  questions  of  the  more  thorough 


use  of  whale  products  for  commercial  pur- 
poses. At  present  the  Oriental  Whaling 
Co.,  Ltd.,  is  selling  whale  oil,  salted  flesh, 
whale  flesh  for  fertilisers,  whale  beard, 
whale  bone  and  muscle,  and  other  products. 
In  September,  1917,  the  company,  through 
its  President,  Mr.  J.  Oka,  petitioned  the 
Imperial  Government  to  give  it  special  pro- 
tection in  its  operations,  and  to  eliminate 
competition  with  other  concerns,  the  grounds 
of  the  request  being  that  the  industry  has 
now  become  a  national  one  through  the 
absorption  of  so  many  companies  and  the 
regulation  of  the  fisheries. 

The  heaid  office  of  the  Oriental  Whaling 
Co.,  Ltd.,  is  at  No.  14  Kawaguchi-cho, 
Nishi-ku,  Osaka. 


Year 

Whales  Caught 

Net  Profit,  Yen 

Dividend,  Per  Cent 

1909 

897 

514,000 

15 

1910 

898 

474,000 

15 

1911 

937 

415,000 

10 

1912 

824 

412,000 

10  (first  half) 
12  (second  half) 

1913 

978 

49 1 ,000 

12 

1914 

952 

412,000 

12 

1915 

1,083 

441,000 

12 

1916 

1,261 

717,000 

12 

25 


TOKYO   GENERAL   DEPARTMENT   OF   JUSTICE 


XXI.    Constitution  and  Law  of  Japan 

By  J.   E.   de  BECKER,   LL.  B.,   D.  C.  L. 

Bases  of  Japanese  Law— Constitution  — Codes— Civil  Code— Civil  Procedure— Commercial 
Code  — Criminal  Code  — Code  of  Criminal  Procedure  — Civil  Law  in  General- 
Criminal  Law— The  Judiciary 


THE  original  foundation  of  law  in 
Japan  may  be  traced  back  to  the 
national  patriarchal  system,  which 
was  based  on  the  family  as  a  unit,  and  on 
ancestor-worship.  It  consisted  in  those 
far-off  times  of  little  more  than  custom 
hardened  into  precedent;  but  subsequent  to 
the  seventh  century,  and  up  to  the  Imperial 
Restoration  in  1868,  the  Chinese  legal 
sj'stem  was  adopted  and  elaborate  criminal 
and  civil  laws  were  enacted.  All  these 
laws,  however,  were  extremely  arbitrary, 
and  were  simply  made  for  the  convenience 
and  protection  of  the  governing  classes, 
quite  regardless  of  the  welfare  of  the  people 
at  large  or  the  claims  of  justice  and  fair- 
play.  The  tyrannous  methods  of  the  Toku- 
gawa  government  had  become  so  unbearable, 
and  its  political  system  so  rotten,  that  it 
only  survived  the  shock  of  foreign  inter- 
course for  a  few  years.  On  March  31,  1854, 
Japan's  first  treaty  with  America  was  signed, 
but  it  provided — like  all  the  older  treaties 
— for  the  establishment  of  extraterritoriality, 
which  granted  the  exemption  of  foreigners 
from  the  jurisdiction  of  the  Japanese  tribu- 
nals and  the  right  to  set  up  their  own  courts 
in  Japan.  The  "tacitly  assumed  basis"  of 
these  old  treaties  was   "the  unequal   status 


of  the  two  contracting  parties, —  civilised 
white  men  on  the  one  hand,  Japan  but 
just  emerging  from  Asiatic  semi-barbarism 
on  the  other  ";  and,  indeed,  the  position  was 
actually  such  that  it  would  have  been 
positively  criminal  for  the  Foreign  Powers 
to  have  placed  their  nationals  at  the  mercy 
of  the  ignorant,  untrained,  brutal  Japanese 
judges  of  these  early  days,  when  the  grossest 
forms  of  torture  were  freely  employed  as 
officially  recognised  part  and  parcel  of 
judicial  proceedings.  In  1867  the  Restora- 
tion of  the  Emperor  took  place,  the  feudal 
system  gradually  was  broken  up,  and  in  1871 
a  centralised  bureaucracy  was  established. 
It  then  became  clear  that  the  hitherto 
existing  legal  system  was  out  of  date,  and 
entirely  unsuited  to  the  changed  circum- 
stances of  the  time.  Japanese  statesmen 
began  to  recognise  that  Japan  could  never 
hope  for  admittance  to  the  comity  of  civilised 
nations  unless  radical  reforms  were  instituted, 
and  that  the  abolition  of  extraterritoriality 
would  be  impossible  until  the  Treaty  Powers 
were  satisfied  that  the  Japanese  Empire 
was  equipped  with  a  legal  system  of  which 
those  Powers  approved.  A  Judicial  Depart- 
ment was  established  and  the  legislative 
activity  of  the  Government  resulted  in  the 


production  of  a  number  of  codes,  the  pro- 
visions of  which  were  largely  borrowed  from 
French  and  German  law.  Finally,  to  cut  a 
long  story  short,  Japan,  by  the  recognition 
of  her  new  codes,  obtained  the  abolition  of 
extraterritoriality,  and  the  coimtrj'  is  now 
more  or  less  committed  to  the  principle  of 
enacting  laws  on  bases  and  usages  approxi- 
mating the  average  European  standard. 

CONSTITUTION 
The  basic  law  of  the  State  is  found  in 
the  Constitution  and  the  Imperial  House 
Law.  The  former  embodies  regulations 
which  form  the  fundamental  organisation 
of  the  State,  define  the  powers  of  the  direct 
and  immediate  organs  thereof,  and  deter- 
mine the  rights,  privileges,  and  obligations 
of  subjects;  while  the  latter  consists  of 
organic  regulations  relating  to  the  internal 
affairs  of  the  Imperial  House. 

CODES 
The  principal  Codes  of  Japan  are : 
(l)  the  Civil  Code,  (2)  the  Code  of  Civil 
Procedure,  (3)  the  Commercial  Code,  (4) 
the  Criminal  Code  and  (5)  the  Code  of 
Criminal  Procedure,  and  these  are  supple- 
mented   by   a    host   of   auxiliary   laws   and 


PRESENT-DAY        I%rPRESSIONS        OF        JAPAN 


375 


ordiiiaticfs.  All  these  codes  have  been 
translated  into  English  by  the  writer  of 
this  article. 

CIVIL  CODE 
'1'he  Civil  Code  (which  was  pronmlKatcd 
on  April  27,  1896,  and  enforced  on  July  16, 
1898)  is  a  very  creditable  piece  of  work, 
based  on  Roman  law.  It  consists  of  five 
books  arranged  in  the  following  sequence: 
(i)  General  Provisions,  (2)  Real  Rights, 
(3)  Obligations,  (4)  Relatives,  and  (5)  Suc- 
cession. The  provisions  of  the  first  three 
books  follow  Continental  precedents  very 
closely,  but  the  last  two  l.iooks  take  into 
greater  account  the  existing  fabric  of  Japa- 
nese society,  which  is  based  on  the  family 
as  the  social  unit.  ("Annotated  Civil  Code 
of  Japan"   by  Dr.   J.   E.   de  Becker). 

CIVIL  PROCEDURE 
The  Code  of  Civil  Procedure  (which  was 
promulgated  on  April  21,  1890,  and  enforced 
on  April  i,  1891)  is  a  law  governing  the 
formalities  laid  down  for  obtaining  remedies 
from  the  State  for  encroachments  upon 
private  rights.  It  needs  radical  revision  to 
bring  it  up  to  date.  It  lacks  in  completeness 
in  many  essential  points,  and  one  of  its 
great  faults  is  inflexibility,  the  judges  being 
bound  hand  and  foot  by  its  rigid  provisions. 

COMMERCIAL  CODE 
The  Commercial  Code  (which  was 
promulgated  on  March  9,  1899,  and  enforced 
on  June  16,  1899)  contains  provisions 
relating  to  commerce,  such  as  partake  of 
the  nature  of  private  law.  It  is  divided 
into  five  books,  I'iz.:  (i)  General  Provisions, 
(2)  Companies,  (3)  Commercial  Trans- 
actions, (4)  Bills,  and  (5)  Commerce  by  Sea. 
The  code  itself  is  a  good  one  so  far  as  it  goes, 
but  its  draftsmen  lacked  broadness  of 
vi.sion.  While  it  may  serve  the  purpose  of 
petty  dealers,  it  is  not  sufficiently  flexible  to 
suit  the  needs  of  large  traders,  and  requires 
considerable  amendment  to  bring  it  into 
line  with  commercial  law  and  practice  as 
understood  and  recognised  in  business 
circles  in  Europe  and  America. 

CRIMINAL  CODE 
The  Criminal  Code  (which  was  promul- 
gated on  April  24,  1907,  and  enforced  on 
October  i,  1908)  is  practically  a  "hash-up" 
of  the  various  European  codes.  It  has  been 
called  by  one  of  the  former  Judges  of  the 
Supreme  Court,  "the  worst  criminal  code 
in  the  world,"  but,  on  the  average,  it  is 
neither  better  nor  worse  than  its  Occidental 
prototypes.  It  is  divided  into  forty  chapters, 
and  provides  penalties  for  various  oR^ences, 
ranging  from  death  to  simple  fine.  Acts 
done  to  avert  imminent  danger,  or  in  justifi- 
able defence,  are  not  punishable,  and  first 


offenders  may,  under  certain  conditions, 
escape  actual  imprisonment  by  virturc  of 
provisions  to  that  effect.  The  code  recog- 
nises amnesty,  pardon,  prescription,  and 
liberation  on  tickets-of-leavc. 

CODE  OF  CRIMINAL  PROCEDURE 
The  Code  of  Criminal  Procedure  (which 
was  promulgated  on  October  7,  1890,  and 
enforced  on  November  i,  1890)  is  a  formal 
public  law  containing  provisions  with  which 
the  Public  Procurators,  accused  persons, 
etc.,  must  comply  in  regard  to  any  dispute 
about  the  application  of  law  when  the  State 
enforces,  or  endeavours  to  enforce,  its  penal 
power  against  alleged  offenders  under  the 
Criininal  Code.  This  code  constitutes  a 
danger  to  the  community,  and  contains 
very  few  provisions  calculated  adequately  to 
guard  the  interests  of  the  accused  against 
abuse  of  power. 

CIVIL  LAW  IN  GENERAL 
The  Judicial  System.  — The  Japanese  Courts 
consist  of  (l)  Local  Courts  (Ku-Saibanslw), 
(2)  District  Courts  {Chiho-Saibansho) ,  (3) 
Courts  of  Appeal  (Koso-In),  and  (4)  the  Su- 
preme Court  (Daishin-In).  The  Local  Courts 
are  held  by  single  judges ;  District  Courts  and 
Courts  of  Appeal  are  collegiate  courts,  divided 
into  several  divisions,  each  consisting  of 
three  judges;  and  the  Supreme  Court  is  a 
collegiate  court,  also  divided  into  divisions, 
in  each  of  which  five  judges  sit.  All  the 
courts  have  both  civil  and  criminal  jurisdic- 
tion, but  the  scope  of  jurisdiction  possessed 
by  the  various  classes  is  defined  by  law.  In 
addition  to  the  ordinary  courts  there  is  one 
called  the  Court  of  Administrative  Litiga- 
tion (Gyosei-Saibansho) ,  which  tries  actions 
brought  by  the  injured  party  when  the  right 
of  an  individual  is  injured  by  an  illegal 
administrative  disposition. 

Actions. —  (/)  Forum.  The  place  where 
an  action  may  be  brought  against  a  person 
is  the  place  of  his  domicile.  The  court  of  the 
general  forum  has  jurisdiction  over  all  actions 
brought  against  such  person,  unless  an  exclu- 
sive forum  is  prescribed  by  law  for  a  particu- 
lar action.  The  general  forum  of  a  person 
having  no  domicile  in  Japan  is  the  place  of 
his  residence,  or,  if  that  is  not  known,  the 
place  of  his  last  domicile  in  Japan;  but  if  he 
has  a  domicile  in  a  foreign  country,  an  action 
can  be  brought  against  him  in  such  general 
forum  only  in  ease  the  right  on  which  the 
action  is  based  arose  in  Japan.  A  special 
forum  is  the  place  where  some  particular 
kind  of  action  may  be  brought.  The  .Jaw 
prescribes  certain  special  forums.  By  con- 
sent of  the  parties,  an  action  may  be  brought 
in  any  court  of  first  instance,  except  where  an 
exclusive  forum  is  prescribed  by  law,  or 
where  the  right  on  which  the  action  is  based 


is  not  a  jjropcrty  right.  Any  right  having  a 
pecuniary  value,  or  any  claim  to  recover 
pecuniary  damages,  is  included  under  the 
expression  "property  right." 

(.2)  Parlies. — -A  party  may  in  any  case 
conduct  his  action  himself.  If  he  does  not 
choose  to  do  so,  he  must  be  rejiresented  by  a 
lawyer,  except  that  before  a  local  court,  or  if 
no  lawyer  is  obtainable,  a  party  may  be 
represented  by  a  relative  or  a  servant;  if  no 
such  person  is  obtainable,  by  any  other 
competent  person.  A  written  power  of 
attorney  must  be  filed  in  the  court.  It 
must  be  certified  by  a  notary  or  some  other 
proper  public  officer,  if  the  other  party  de- 
mands such  certificate.  A  power  of  attorney 
authorises  the  representative  to  do  all  acts 
relating  to  the  action  except  those  bearing 
upon  an  appeal,  a  revision,  appointment  of  a 
substitute,  a  compromise,  or  the  renunciation 
or  acknowledgment  of  the  claim.  If  the 
power  of  attorney  is  to  include  those  acts, 
they  must  be  specified  in  it,  and  it  is  always 
advisable  to  make  the  instrument  very 
comprehensive. 

(j)  Security. — A  foreign  plaintiff  is  required 
to  give  security  for  costs,  except  — 

(a)     When  by  treaty,  or  by  the  laws  of 

the  plaintiff's  country,   a  Japanese   in   a 

similar    case    would   not    be    required   to 

give  security. 

(6)     On  a  counter-claim. 

(c)     In  the  special  proceedings  based  on 

bills  of    exchange,  promissory  notes   and 

other  kinds  of  documents. 

If  security  to  the  amount  fixed  by  the 
judge  is  not  furnished  within  the  time 
allowed,  the  action  is  deemed  to  have  been 
discontinued.  A  foreigner  who  is  unable 
to  bear  the  costs  of  a  lawsuit  may,  on  applica- 
tion, obtain  provisional  dispensation  from 
the  payment  of  the  costs  and  from  the 
furnishing  of  security,  provided  that  -a 
Japanese  enjoys  the  same  right  in  the 
country  of  the  applicant.  If  the  applicant 
has  a  domicile  or  residence  in  Japan,  he 
must  produce  a  certificate  from  the  head  of 
the  city,  town,  or  village  where  he  lives,  or, 
if  these  officers  can  not  givs  such  certificate, 
from  his  Consul.  Otherwise  he  must  pro- 
duce a  certificate  from  the  proper  authorities 
of  his  country,  which  must  be  confirmed  by 
a  Consul  of  his  country  residing  in  Japan. 

(4)  Service  of  Papers. —  Service  of  paper 
is  made  by  the  Shiltatsuri*  or  by  post.  It 
must  be  made  on  the  party  himself,  or,  if 
the  action  is  conducted  by  a  representative, 
on  the  latter.  However,  if  a  party  has  a 
"prociu-ator,"t  service   on  the  procurator  is 


*ShiUatsuri  is  an  executive  officer  attached  to  certain 
courts  whose  principal  duty  is  the  service  of  papers  and 
the  execution  of  judicial  decrees. 

tA  "procurator"  is  a  registered  manager,  holding 
power  to  represent,  and  sign  for,  a  firm  or  company. 


376 


PRESENT-DAY        I   M   I'  R  E  S  S  I  O  N  S        ()  !■■        J  A  1'  A  N 


generally  equivalrnt  to  service  on  the  party 
himself.  In  the  case  of  a  commercial 
company  or  other  juridical  person,  it  is 
sufficient  to  make  service  upon  some  one  of 
the  managers.  If  a  person  has  a  residence 
or  an  office  in  a  place,  service  on  him  in  that 
place  can  be  made  only  at  such  residence  or 
office,  unless  he  consents  to  service  else- 
where. If  the  person  to  be  served  is  absent 
from  his  residence,  service  may  be  made  on 
any  adtilt  relative  living  in  his  house,  or  on 
his  servant.  If  the  person  to  be  served  is 
absent  from  his  office,  service  may  be  made 
on  a  trade  assistant  found  on  the  premises. 
If  service  can  not  be  made  in  any  of  the 
above  mentioned  ways,  it  may  be  made 
by  delivering  the  paper  to  the  chief  official 
of  the  city,  town,  or  village  where  the  service 
ought  to  be  made,  and  also  posting  a  written 
notice  on  the  door  of  the  residence  and 
giving  notice  thereof  to  two  neighbours. 
If  acceptance  of  the  paper  to  be  served  is 
refused  without  any  reasonable  cause,  it 
it  may  be  left  at  the  place  of  service.  Ser- 
vice can  r.ot  be  made  by  a  Shiltatsuri  on 
Sunday,  or  any  legal  holiday,  or  at  night, 
except  by  permission  of  the  judge. 

The  person  who  serves  a  paper  must 
make  a  written  return  of  the  service,  which 
must  be  signed  by  the  person  to  whom  the 
paper  is  delivered.  If  the  whereabouts  of 
the  person  to  be  served  is  not  known,  service 
may  be  made  by  a  public  notification. 

(5)  Procedure  in  Court.  —  All  proceedings 
are  oral,  unless  it  is  otherwise  provided  by 
law.  For  persons  unacquainted  with  the 
Japanese  language  an  interpreter  must  be 
provided.  In  an  action  to  which  a  foreigner 
is  a  party,  the  oral  proceedings  may  be  in  a 
foreign  language,  if  the  officials  and  all  other 
persons  concerned  are  acquainted  with 
such  language,  but  no  instance  of  actual 
application  of  this  provision  of  the  law  has 
been  known.  An  action  is  generally  begun 
by  filing  in  the  court  a  written  statement 
of  claim,  which  must  contain: 

(a)     The  designation  of  the  parties  and 

of  the  court; 

(6)     A   statement  of   the  nature  of  the 

plaintiff 's  claim  and  of  the  ground  on  which 

it  is  based; 

(c)     A  prayer  for  relief; 

W)     A  statement  of  the  facts  of  the  case ; 

{e)     A  statement  of  the  mode  in  which 

the  plaintiff's  allegations  are  to  be  proved; 
(/)     The  signature  and  name-stamp  of 

the  plaintiff; 
ig)     The  date. 

In  addition,  the  value  of  the  subject  of 
the  controversy  must  be  stated. 

Between  the  service  of  the  statement  of 
claim  and  the  trial  a  jieriod  of  at  least 
twenty  days  must  intervene.     The  defendant 


must  file  an  answer  to  the  statement  of 
claim  within  two  weeks  after  its  service 
upon  him.  These  periods  may,  in  a  proper 
case,  be  shortened  or  extended.  The  with- 
drawal of  the  action  without  the  defendant's 
consent,  or  the  putting  of  a  dilatory  plea 
by  the  defendant,  including  an  objection  to 
the  competence  of  the  court,  is  allowed  only 
before  the  defendant  begins  his  oral  pro- 
ceedings at  the  trial.  Judgment  must  be 
given  within  seven  days  after  the  last  oral 
proceedings  (Art.  233).  It  must  be  pro- 
nounced orally  in  open  court.  The  judge 
may  at  the  same  time,  if  he  chooses  to  do  so, 
state  the  reasons  for  his  judgment.  If  a 
party  does  not  appear  at  the  time  fixed  for 
a  trial,  judgment  is  given  against  him  on 
the  application  of  the  other  party.  If  it  is 
the  plaintiff  who  fails  to  appear,  the  action 
is  dismissed.  If  the  defendant  makes 
default,  a  judgment  on  the  merits  is  given 
against  him  pursuant  to  the  statement  of 
claim,  if  and  in  so  far  as  the  facts  alleged  by 
the  plaintiff,  if  proved,  would  justify  such 
judgment.  A  judgment  given  on  the  non- 
appearance of  a  party  is  vacated  as  of 
course  on  an  application  made  to  the  court 
within  two  weeks,  but  the  party  applying 
must  pay  costs.  A  second  judgment 
given  on  the  party's  failure  to  appear  is  not 
so  vacated.  As  to  the  procedirre  in  Local 
Courts,  the  interval  between  the  service  of 
process  and  the  trial  need  not  be  more  than 
three  days,  or  in  cases  of  urgency  twenty- 
four  hours  (Art.  377).  On  regular  trial 
days  the  parties  may  appear  before  the 
judge  and  proceed  with  the  action  without 
any  process.  Instead  of  bringing  an  action, 
a  party  may  apply  to  the  court  to  summon 
the  other  party  for  the  purpose  of  making 
an  amicable  settlement  of  the  case. 

(6)  Eindence.  —  Evidence  is  generally 
taken  before  the  court.  Every  person  is 
bound  to  testify,  except  where  it  is  other- 
wise provided  by  law.  A  witness  who 
fails  to  appear  must  pay  the  costs  arising 
therefrom  and  also  a  fine  not  exceeding 
Yen  20.  If  he  fails  to  appear  a  second 
time,  the  judge  may  order  him  to  be  brought 
to  the  court.  A  relative*  of  a  party,  a  person 
under  his  guardianship,  his  servant,  or  a 
person  living  in  his  house  may  refuse  to 
testify,  except  in  certain  specified  cases. 
The  following  persons  may  also  refuse  to 
testify : 

(a)     Public   officers   in    regard  to   facts 

which  their  official  duty  requires  them  to 

keep  secret; 

(h)     Priests,    physicians,     apothecaries, 
lawyers,  notaries,  etc.,  in  regard  to  facts 


♦These  include  relatives  by  blood  up  to  the  sixth 
degree  inclusive,  husband  and  wife,  and  relatives  by 
affinity  up  to  the  third  degree  inclusive. 


DR.    J.    E.    DE    BECKER,    YOKOH.\MA 

confided    to    them    by    reason    of     their 
position ; 

(c)     Any  person  as  to  questions  the  an- 
swer to   which  would   disgrace   himself,   a 
relative  or  his  servant,  or  a  person  living 
in   his   house,  or    would    cause  pecuniary 
damage  to  himself,  or  to  such  a  person. 
A  party  may  object  to  a  witness  if  he  is 
a  relative  or  servant  of  the  other  party,  or 
lives  in  the  same  house  with  him.     A  witness 
must  affirm  that  he  will  speak  the  truth  and 
will  not  conceal  or  add  anything.     Perjury 
can  be  punished  as  a  crime.     A  witness  who 
refuses    to   affirm    is    deemed   to   refuse    to 
testify.     The  parties  are  not  allowed  to  put 
questions    direct    to    a    witness,    but    may 
request  the  president  of  the  court  to  do  so. 
If  the  president  refuses  to  put  the  question, 
the   court   decides  whether   he   shall   do  it. 
Hearsay  evidence,  and  what  would  be  con- 
sidered in  America  irrelevant  testimony,  is 
freely  admitted.     If  after  all  the   evidence 
produced  by  the  parties  has  been  taken  it 
seems  to  the  cottrt  to   be  insufficient,   the 
court    may   order   the    examination    of   the 
parties. 

(7)  Appeal,  Revision,  and  Complaint. — 
An  appeal  lies  against  a  judgment  rendered 
in  first  instance  by  a  District  Court  or  a 
Local  Court.  It  must  be  taken  within  one 
month  from  the  service  of  the  judgment. 
Proceedings  before  the  Court  of  Appeal 
are  oral,  and  new  allegations  of  facts  and 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


377 


IMPERIAL    LAW   COURT,    KOBE 


new  evidence  may  be  introduced.  Revision 
applies  to  judgments  rendered  in  the  second 
instance  by  a  District  Court  or  a  Court  of 
Appeal.  It  is  only  for  errors  in  law.  The 
time  for  revision  is  the  same  as  for  appeal. 
Complaint  can  be  made  against  any  ruling 
or  order  of  the  court,  other  than  a  judg- 
ment, by  which  an  application  relating  to 
the  proceedings  is  refused,  and  in  such  other 
cases  as  are  prescribed  by  law.  A  decision 
on  a  complaint  is  generally  made  without 
oral  proceedings.  No  period  is  fixed  for  a 
complaint  except  that  in  certain  cases  an 
immediate  complaint  is  provided  for,  wliich 
must  be  made  within  one  week  from  the 
service  of  the  order  or  ruling. 

(S)  Summary  Proceedings. —  When  a  claim 
is  for  a  fixed  sum  of  money,  or  for  the  presta- 
tion of  a  fixed  quantity  of  other  fungible 
things,*  or  of  securities,  the  creditor,  instead 
of  bringing  an  action,  may  apply  to  the 
Local  Court  of  the  general  forum  of  the 
debtor,  or,  if  the  claim  is  secured  by  a  lien 
on  an  immovable  of  the  real  forum,  to  make 
an  "order  of  payment"  agianst  the  debtor. 
The  latter  may  object  to  this  order  within 
two  weeks  after  it  is  served  upon  him,  or 
at  any  time  before  an  order  of  execution  is 
made.  If  he  does  not  do  so,  an  order  is 
made  for  the  execution  of  the  order  of  pay- 
ment. 

ig)  Execution. — As  a  general  rule  execu- 
tion is  granted  on  a  judgment  which  is  no 
longer  subject  to  appeal  or  revision,  and 
also   on   certain   orders   of   court,    on    com- 


*  A  fungible  thing  is  a  thing  which  is  to  be  deliv- 
ered in  kind  and  not  in  species,  as.  for  example,  a 
certain  quantity  of  rice  when  no  specific  rice  is  agreed 
upon. 


promises  made  in  court,  and  on  notarial 
instruments  for  the  payment  of  a  fixed  sum 
of  money  or  the  prestation  of  a  fixed  quantity 
of  fungible  things  or  of  securities,  provided 
it  is  so  expressly  stipulated  in  the  instrument. 
In  certain  cases  of  urgency,  or  in  any  case 
if  the  plaintiff  gives  security,  a  judgment 
may  be  on  application  at  once  declared 
provisionally  executory.  It  may  then  be 
executed  immediately,  although  the  time 
for  appeal  or  revision  has  not  elapsed.  In 
certain  cases  enumerated  in  Art.  501  of  the 
Code  of  Civil  Procedure  judgments  are 
declared  provisionally  executory  without 
any  application  on  the  part  of  the  creditor. 
Execution  is  generally  carried  out  by  the 
Sfiittalsuri.  It  can  not  be  effected  at  night, 
or  on  Sunday,  or  on  a  legal  holiday,  except 
by  the  express  permission  of  the  court. 
Necessaries  of  life  are  exempt  from  execution. 
What  these  are,  is  specified  in  Art.  570  of 
the  Code  of  Civil  Procedure.  Movables 
seized  on  execution  can  not,  as  a  general 
rule,  be  sold  until  one  week  after  seizure. 
The  sale  is  by  public  auction,  but  securities 
which  are  listed  on  the  Stock  Exchange  are 
sold  by  private  sale  at  the  quotation  of  the 
day.  Execution  on  an  obligation  in  favour 
of  the  debtor  against  a  third  person  is  made 
by  an  order  of  the  court  forbidding  the 
third  person  to  perform  to  the  debtor,  and 
either  transferring  the  obligation  itself  to 
the  creditor  or  authorizing  him  to  enforce  it 
for  his  own  benefit.  If  an  execution  is  made 
on  an  obligation  which  is  secured  by  mort- 
gage, the  fact  must  be  registered.  The 
income  of  a  public  officer,  a  priest  or  clergy- 
man,    teacher,     workman,     labourer,     and 


servant  is  exempt  from  execution,  unless 
it  exceeds  Yen  300  yearly,  in  which  case 
half  of  the  excess  can  be  taken.  Execution 
against  immovables  is  either  by  a  sale  at 
auction  or  by  sequestration.  The  fact  of 
the  execution  must  be  entered  on  the  Register. 
A  sale  is  allowed  only  if  it  is  probable  that 
a  surplus  will  remain  after  deducting  the 
value  of  all  real  rights  and  other  charges 
prior  to  the  claim  of  the  execution  creditor, 
unless  the  latter  offers  to  purchase  the 
immovable  at  higher  price  and  gives  security 
therefor.  This  sale  is  made  by  a  Shittaisuri. 
On  demand  of  any  person  interested,  a 
bidder  must  give  security,  to  the  amount  of 
one-tenth  of  his  bid,  by  a  deposit  of  cash 
or  equivalent  security.  If  the  piu-chaser 
fails  to  pay  the  pitfchase  money  at  the 
proper  time,  the  coiu't  must  order  a  re-sale, 
and  the  first  purchaser  is  liable  for  the 
difference  between  the  price  obtained  at 
the  first  and  at  the  second  sale,  and  for  all 
expenses  caused  by  his  failure  to  pay. 
Instead  of  an  auction,  bids  in  writing  may 
be  ordered  by  the  court. 

A  ' '  provisional  seizure ' '  t  may  be  made  in 
a  case  where  otherwise  execution  would  be 
found  impossible  or  substantially  more 
difficult,  e.g.,  where  there  is  reasonable 
ground  to  believe  that  the  debtor  is  about  to 
abscond  to  a  foreign  covmtry.  A  "pro- 
visional disposition''^  as  to  a  matter  in 
dispute  may  be  made  by  the  court  if  it 
appears  that  by  the  act  of  one  of  the  parties 
the  existing  situation  may  be  so  changed 
that  execution  may  become  impossible  or 
substantially  more  difficult,  etc. 

(10)  Arbitration. — -An  agreement  to  ar- 
bitrate is  void  unless  it  refers  to  a  specific 
matter  and  controversies  arising  therefrom. 
Thus,  an  agreement  made  beforehand  to 
submit  to  arbitration  all  controversies  which 
may  arise  out  of  a  specific  partnership 
contract  would  be  quite  valid,  but  an  agree- 
ment between  two  persons  to  submit  to 
arbitration  controversies  which  might  there- 
after arise  between  them  would  be  void. 

Arrest. — Imprisonment  for  debt  is  unknown, 
and  even  in  the  case  of  a  party  disobeying 
the  mandate  of  a  Civil  Court  or  leaving 
Japan  to  avoid  civil  process,  personal  arrest 
is  not  allowed.  "Contempt  of  Court"  (in 
the  English  and  American  sense)  can  not  be 
dealt  with  by  committal,  the  result  being 
that  certain  court  orders  in  the  nature  of 
injunctions  (provisional  dispositions)  are  ren- 
dered entirely  nugatory  in  practice. 

Bankruptcy. — There  is  an  old  bankruptcy 
law  in  force  which  regulates  the  bank- 
ruptcy of    traders,    but   it    has  proved  un- 


trhat  is.  "attachment,"  the  Japanese  word  is  kari- 
saiihiosae. 

XKari-shobitn. 


378 


PRESENT-DAY        IMPRESSIONS        OF        JAPAN 


satisfactory,  and  the  dov-ernment  is  now- 
drafting  a  new  statute  dealing  with  the 
matter.  An  adjudication  may  lie  made 
on  the  application  of  the  debtor  himself,  or 
of  any  of  his  creditors;  but  if  made  by  a 
creditor  security  must  be  lodged  with  the 
Court.  Any  trader  who  suspends  payment 
must  give  notice  to  the  Court  within  five 
days.  Any  gratuitous  disposition  made 
by  the  debtor  after  suspension  of  payment, 
or  within  thirty  days  previous  thereto,  is 
void  as  against  the  creditors.  The  law 
provides  penalties  for  deceit  and  fraud  in 
connection  with  bankruptcy,  and  contains 
pro\isions  for  respite,  composition  and 
rehabilitation  under  certain  specific  con- 
ditions. Domestic  and  foreign  creditors 
are  on  an  equal  footing.  Bankruptcy 
administration  is  conducted  by  an  adminis- 
trator chosen  from  a  list  of  official  adminis- 
trators, subject,  however,  to  the  supervision 
of  a  commissioner  appointed  from  among 
the  judges  of  the  court  having  jurisdiction. 
Claims  are  presented  and  examined  at  a 
creditors'  meeting  called  by  the  commissioner, 
and  are  deemed  to  be  admitted  if  not  chal- 
lenged. If  a  claim  is  objected  to,  it  is 
referred  by  the  commissioner  to  the  Bank- 
ruptcy Court,  and  decided  upon  at  a  regular 
sitting.  Assets  are  gradually  distributed 
among  the  creditors  who  have  enforceable 
claims  against  the  bankrupt  subsisting 
when  the  proceedings  are  commenced. 
There  are  provisions  for  the  protection  of 
preferential  claims. 

Bills  of  Exchange,  Promissory  Notes,  and 
Cheques.  —  The  law  of  bills  and  notes,  which 
is  contained  in  the  Commercial  Code,  is 
substantially  the  same  as  that  of  most 
European  countries.  As  there  is  no  law 
which  forbids  the  making  of  a  bill  or  note  in 
any  language,  such  instrument  can  be  drawn 
up  in  foreign  languages.  A  bill  or  note  must 
contain  an  explicit  denomination  of  itself  as 
such.  For  instance,  in  Japanese  the  words 
" Kawase-legata  or  "  Yakusokii-tegata,"  in 
English  the  words  "bill  of  exchange" 
or  "promissory  note,"  in  German  the 
words  "Wechsel"  or  " Hand-schein,"  in 
French  the  words  "Lettre  de  change"  or 
"Billet  de  change,"  or  " Promesse"  should 
be  used.  A  mere  written  order  for  money, 
or  a  promise  to  pay  money,  which  does  not 
declare  itself  to  be  a  bill  or  note  is  not 
sufficient.  If  anything  is  inserted  in  a  bill 
or  note  in  addition  to  the  matters  specified 
in  the  law  as  proper  to  be  inserted,  that  is 
not  regarded  as  forming  a  part  of  the  instru- 
ment, although  it  may  be  binding  as  a 
contract  between  the  immediate  parties. 
This  includes  a  stipulation  for  interest  on 
the  principal  sum  named  in  the  bill.  There- 
fore if  interest  is  to  be  made  payable,   it 


should  be  computed  in  advance  and  put  in 
as  a  part  of  the  principal  sum.  A  bill  or 
note  for  less  than  Yen  30  can  not  be  made 
payable  to  bearer.  Days  of  grace  are  not 
allowed.  A  bill  payable  at  sight  or  on 
demand  must  l:)e  presented  for  payment 
within  one  year,  unless  a  shorter  time  is 
specified  in  the  instrument  itself.  Not 
only  foreign  bills,  but  all  bills  or  notes  which 
are  dishonoured  must  be  protested  to  enable 
the  holder  to  have  recourse  against  the 
prior  parties. 

A  cheque  can  be  made  payable  only  at 
sight,  and  must  be  presented  for  payment 
within  ten  days  from  its  date.  If  dis- 
honoured, it  may  be  protested,  but  it  is 
sufficient  instead  of  a  formal  protest  for 
the  bank  to  make  a  memorandum  on  the 
cheque  of  the  fact  and  date  of  dishonour. 
On  a  crossed  cheque  the  word  "bank" 
iginko)  or  some  equivalent  word  (such  as 
"&  Co.")  should  be  written.  It  is  made 
an  offence  punishable  by  fine  to  draw  a 
cheque  on  a  bank  where  the  drawer  has 
neither  a  deposit  nor  a  credit,  even  without 
any  fraudulent  intent.  The  formal  validity 
of  a  bill  drawn  in  a  foreign  country  is  deter- 
mined according  to  the  laws  of  such  country. 

Bills  of  Sale  and  Chattel  Mortgages. —  These 
are  unknown,  but  conditional  sales  of 
specific  property  can  be  made  effective  in 
the  case  of  immovables  (real  estate)  by 
registration,  and  in  the  case  of  movables 
(personal  property)  by  means  of  a  notarially 
attested  deed,  which  must  be  drawn  by  a 
Japanese  notary  in  the  Japanese  language. 

Companies. — There  are  four  kinds  of 
commercial  companies,  viz.:  Ordinary  part- 
nerships (gomeikwaisha),  limited  partner- 
ships (goshi-kwaisha) ,  joint-stock  companies 
[kabushiki-kwaisha),  and  joint-stock  limited 
companies  ikabiishiki-goshi-kwaisha).  Each 
of  these  (including  an  ordinary  partnership) 
is  a  juridical  or  artificial  person  like  a 
corporation,  having  for  legal  purposes  a 
personality  distinct  from  that  of  its  members 
and  being  able  as  a  person  to  hold  property, 
buy,  sell  and  contract,  sue  and  be  sued 
separately.  A  partnership  or  company 
created  in  Japan  under  the  Commercial  Code, 
and  duly  registered,  becomes  a  Japanese 
juridical  person  distinct  from  its  individual 
members,  even  though  some,  or  all,  of  its 
members  are  foreigners.  Such  a  partner- 
ship or  company  of  foreigners  has,  as  a 
Japanese  juridical  person,  practically  all 
the  rights  of  a  similar  native  organisation. 
(A)  Ordinary  partnerships  have  two  or 
more  partners,  each  of  whom  is  unlimit- 
edly  liable  for  the  debts  of  the  firm.  Newly 
admitted  partners  become  personally  respon- 
sible for  all  the  debts  of  the  partnership, 
even  for  those  which  were  contracted  before 


their  admission,  and  a  retiring  partner 
continues  liable  for  the  debts  of  the  firm 
contracted  before  he  left  it  for  two  years 
calculated  from  the  registration  of  his 
retirement  (Commercial  Code,  Arts.  49  to 
103).  (B)  Limited  partnerships  are  made 
up  of  one  or  more  active  partners  with  un- 
limited liability  and  one  or  more  partners 
with  limited  liability  (Commercial  Code, 
Arts.  104  to  118).  (C)  Joint-stock  com- 
panies resemble  the  English  joint-stock 
companies,  and  can  not  be  formed  by  less 
than  seven  persons  (Commercial  Code,  Arts. 
119  to  234).  In  the  absence  of  any  regis- 
tered restriction  on  his  powers,  each  and 
every  director  is  entitled  to  represent  the 
company.  (D)  Joint-stock  limited  com- 
panies are  limited  partnerships  in  which  the 
part  of  the  capital  contributed  by  the 
limited  partners  is  represented  by  transfer- 
able shares,  like  the  capital  of  a  joint- 
stock  company  (Commercial  Code,  Arts. 
225  to  254).  (E)  Foreign  commercial  com- 
panies. A  foreign  company  is  a  company 
which  is  organised  under  the  law  of  a 
foreign  country.  A  company  formed  by 
foreigners  in  Japan  under  the  Japanese  law 
is,  as  already  mentioned,  a  Japanese  and 
not  a  foreign  company,  and  enjoys  nearly 
all  the  rights  of  a  Japanese  company,  but 
it  does  not  enjoy  diplomatic  protection. 
This  should  be  borne  in  mind. 

Foreign  commercial  companies  are  recog- 
nised by  Japanese  law  and  are  allowed  to  do 
business  in  Japan,  subject,  however,  to  the 
power  of  the  court  to  close  the  office  of  the 
company  if  its  representative  commits,  in 
the  course  of  its  business,  "any  act  contrary 
to  public  welfare  or  to  good  morals."  A 
foreign  commercial  company  may  even  have 
its  principal  office  in  Japan,  but  in  that  case 
it  must  comply'  with  all  the  requirements 
which  the  law  imposes  upon  Japanese 
companies.  If,  however,  it  only  establishes 
a  branch  office  here,  it  must  appoint  a  repre- 
sentative, who  will  be  deemed  to  possess 
full  and  unrestricted  power  to  act  for  the 
compan}'.  For  certain  purposes,  that 
branch  office  of  a  foreign  company  which 
is  first  established  in  Japan  is  treated  as  its 
principal  office.  A  foreign  company  must 
make  the  same  registrations  as  are  required 
to  he  made  by  a  Japanese  company  of  the 
same  or  a  similar  kind.  In  making  an 
application  to  register  a  foreign  commercial 
company,  the  name  and  domicile  of  the 
representative  of  the  branch  office  must  be 
inserted  in  the  application,  and  the  follow- 
ing documents  annexed: 

(a)      A    document    sufficiently    showing 

that  a  principal  office  exists; 

(6)      A   document  showing  the  character 

of  the  representative  as  such; 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


379 


(c)  The  company  contract  or  a  docu- 
ment sufficient  to  show  the  nature  of  the 
company. 

The  above  documents  must  be  certified 
by  the  proper  authorities  of  the  country 
to  which  the  foreign  company  belongs,  or 
by  a  consul  of  such  country  residing  in 
Japan  (Commercial  Code,  Arts.  255  to  260 
and  special  laws). 

Copyright. —  By  the  revised  law  enforced 
since  1910,  and  based  on  the  resolution  of  the 
International  Copyright  Convention  held 
at  Berne  in  1908,  the  protection  covered  b}- 
the  new  legislative  act  has  been  consider- 
ably enlarged  in  scope.  The  law  no  longer 
requires  the  registration  of  copyright  merely 
for  the  purpose  of  protecting  it  against 
piracy,  but  registration  is  required  when 
copyright  is  to  be  used  as  an  object  of 
pledge,  and  generally  as  an  object  of  market 
value.  The  fee  is  Yen  10  for  a  book,  Sen 
50  (25  cents)  for  a  newspaper  or  periodical, 
and  Sen  45  (22  >^  cents)  for  a  drama  or 
photograph.  A  Copyright  Convention  exists 
between  Japan  and  the  United  States. 

Descent  and  Succession. — The  family  law 
of  Japan  and  the  law-  of  succession  as  set 
forth  in  Books  IV  and  V  of  the  Civil  Code 
differ  from  the  other  parts  of  the  code  in 
being  mainly  of  native  origin.  They  are 
founded  upon  and  adapted  to  the  peculiar 
conditions  of  society  in  Japan.  In  accord- 
ance with  the  general  principles  of  inter- 
national law  which  obtain  among  European 
nations,  the  Government  of  Japan  has,  for 
the  most  part,  exempted  foreigners  from  the 
operation  of  its  peculiar  family  law  and  left 
them  to  be  governed  by  the  laws  of  their 
own  nationalities,  which,  however,  are  of 
course  to  be  administered  and  applied  by  the 
Japanese  courts,  except  as  otherwise  pro- 
vided by  treaty.  If  a  person  belongs  to  a 
country  the  law  of  which  is  different  accord- 
ing to  locality,  he  is  governed  by  the  law  of 
the  locality  to  which  he  belongs.  Thus  an 
American  citizen  remains,  as  to  family  and 
succession  matters,  under  the  law  of  his 
particular  home  State.  Succession  to 
property  at  death  is  determined  according 
to  the  law  of  the  country  of  the  decedent. 
This  appUes  to  the  question  as  to  who  is  to 
receive  the  property.  The  appointment 
and  the  powers  of  an  executor  would  be 
determined  by  Japanese  law,  unless  other- 
wise provided  by  treaty.  By  Japanese 
law  the  property  goes  to  the  heirs  directly, 
and  the  executor,  if  there  is  one,  is  a  mere 
manager  and  does  not  become  the  owner  of 
the  property.  There  is  no  process  by  which 
an  executor  can  obtain  a  formal  discharge 
from  the  Court  upon  the  completion  of  his 
duties  or  upon  his  resignation. 

Divorce. — The   causes   for  which   divorce 


may  be  granted  are  determined  by  the 
law  of  the  husband's  nationality,  except 
that  a  Japanese  court  can  not  decree 
a  divorce  for  any  cause  which  is  not  deemed 
sufficient  by  the  Japanese  law.  Application 
for  divorce  should  be  lodged  within  one 
year  from  the  time  when  the  party  entitled 
to  sue  had  knowledge  of  the  facts  forming 
the  cause  for  divorce.  Proof  of  the  foreign 
law  must  be  furnished  to  the  Court.     Adul- 


not  be  specified  in  detail  owing  to  want  of 
space.  Claims  under  the  Civil  Code  are 
extinguished  by  prescription  after  the  lapse 
of  from  five  to  twenty  years;  while  claims 
under  the  Commercial  Code  are  extinguished 
in  from  one  to  five  years  according  to  class. 
Prescription  is  recognised  in  all  criminal 
matters    also. 

Marriages. — The  capacity  of  parties  to  a 
marriage,  and  such  matters  as  the  consent 


4 

ftuJ^l.  .^^, 

H^^^^^9B  ^■^^61 

^.:.f:;: 

^ 

SUPREME   COURT    BUILDING,    TOKYO 


tery  of  the  male  is  not  a  ground  for  divorce 
unless  coupled  with  cruelty. 

Land.  —  The  distinction  between  real  and 
personal  property,  which  plays  so  important 
a  part  in  English  and  American  law,  has  no 
place  in  the  law  of  Japan,  which  latter,  in 
this  respect,  resembles  the  laws  of  most 
continental  European  countries.  A  "real" 
right  in  the  Japanese  law  means  simply  a 
right  in  a  thing,  as  distinguished  from 
contract  rights  and  rights  arising  from  quasi- 
contracts  and  from  wrongs.  The  rules  for 
all  kinds  of  property  are  the  same,  except  in 
so  far  as  the  peculiar  nature  of  immovable 
things  creates  a  necessity  for  special  rules 
Contrary  to  the  Anglo-American  rule, 
buildings  and  fixtures,  and  in  many  cases 
even  trees  and  plants,  upon  land  are  not 
considered  for  legal  purposes  as  forming 
part  of  the  land,  and  a  tenant  who  has 
attached  such  things  to  the  land  may  usually 
take  them  away.  Foreigners  are  not  entitled 
to  own  and  hold  land,  but  they  may  acquire 
the  ownership  of  buildings.  They  can 
acquire  long  building  leases  (period  unlimited) 
called  "Superficies"  (Civ.  Code,  Arts.  265 
to  269),  which  are  valuable  properties  if 
registered.  At  the  end  of  a  lease  the  houses 
on  the  land  do  not  vest  in  the  landlord. 

Limitations  of  Actions. —  All  rights  of 
action  are  barred  by  lapse  of  time,  but  the 
periods  of  time  vary  considerably  and  can 


of  parents  or  guardians  are  governed  by  the 
law  of  the  parties'  own  country.  As  to  the 
form  and  manner  of  the  celebration  of  a 
marriage,  it  is  sufficient  it  the  law  of  the  place 
of  the  marriage  is  complied  with.  Therefore, 
as  far  as  the  law  of  Japan  goes,  foreigners  who 
marry  here  may  follow  the  forms  of  their 
own  law  or  of  Japanese  law;  but  care  must 
be  taken  to  examine  the  law  of  their  own 
country  and  of  the  various  consular  regula- 
tions in  regard  to  this  matter,  as  otherwise 
the  marriage  may  be  valid  in  Japan  and  yet 
not  be  recognised  at  home  or  in  the  consulate 
having  jurisdiction.  The  effect  of  a  marriage 
—  that  is,  the  relations  created  by  it  between 
husband  and  wife  and  the  rights  of  each  in 
the  other's  property — is  determined  accord- 
ing to  the  law  of  the  husband's  nationaUty, 
except  in  the  case  where  a  foreigner  marries 
a  Japanese  woman  who  is  the  head  of  a 
house  and  enters  her  house,  or  marries  the 
daughter  of  a  Japanese  and  is  adopted  by  the 
father.  For  instance,  if  an  Englishman 
marries  a  Japanese  woman,  his  rights  in  his 
wife  and  her  property  are  determined  by 
the  English  and  not  by  the  Japanese  law. 

Matrimonial  Property. — According  to  Art. 
795  of  the  Civil  Code,  if  aliens  who  have 
made  an  arrangement  as  to  their  matrimonial 
property  different  from  the  legal  arrangement 
of  the  country  to  which  the  husband  belonged 
at  the  time  of  the  marriage,  acquire  a  domicile 


38o 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


in  Jai)aii,  they  must  have  such  arrangement 
registered  within  one  year,  or  else  the  contract 
can  not  be  set  up  against  the  successors  of 
the  husband  or  wife  or  against  third  per- 
sons. The  registration  of  a  contract  relating 
to  matrimonial  property  is  made  on  the 
ap]>Hcation  of  all  the  parties  to  the  con- 
tract. In  the  case  of  foreign  writing,  a 
Japanese  translation  must  be  annexed. 
In  the  case  of  a  foreigner  marrying  in  Japan 
and  desiring  to  make  a  special  arrangement 
re  matrimonial  property,  the  contract  embody- 
ing the  same  must  be  registered  prior  to 
the  marriage.  If  a  special  arrangement  is 
not  made,  then  the  matrimonial  property 
is  governed  by  the  law  of  the  country  to 
which  the  husband  belongs  at  the  time  of  the 
marriage. 

Mining.  —  Individual  foreigners  can  not 
engage  in  mining,  but  a  company  formed 
under  Japanese  law  by  foreigners  can  do  so. 
Generally  speaking,  the  Japanese  Mining 
Law  is  satisfactory. 

Minors.  —  Majority  is  attained  at  the  age 
of  full  twenty  years.  In  the  case  of  for- 
eigners, the  age  of  majority  follows  the  laws 
of  their  respective  home  countries. 

Mortgages.  —  Foreigners  are  entitled  to 
acquire  mortgages  on  immovables  upon  the 
same  conditions  as  Japanese  subjects.  A 
mortgage  (teiko-ken)  is  an  hypothecation  of 
land  or  buildings  to  secure  the  performance 
of  an  obligation.  Contrary  to  the  English 
rule,  but  in  accordance  with  the  laws  of 
most  Eiu-opean  countries  and  of  some  of  the 
American  States,  the  mortgagee  does  not 
become  the  owner  of  the  mortgaged  property 
and  has  no  right  of  possession.  A  mortgage 
is  created  by  the  written  agreement  of  the 
parties,  and  in  order  to  render  it  valid 
against  third  persons  it  must  be  registered. 
A  separate  column  is  set  apart  in  the  Registry 
Book  for  mortgages.  These  are  registered 
in  the  order  of  the  times  of  the  applications 
for  their  registration,  and  rank  among 
themselves  according  to  the  order  of  their 
registration.  An  unregistered  mortgage  can 
not  be  enforced  against  the  holder  of  a 
subsequently  registered  one,  though  it  may 
be  good  between  the  parties.  A  superficies 
or  emphyteusis  may  be  mortgaged;  so  may 
buildings.  A  mortgage  of  land  or  buildings 
includes  fixtures  attached  to  them.  A 
mortgage  of  land,  however,  does  not  cover 
the  buildings  on  it,  unless  they  are  specified 
in  the  agreement.  The  mortgage  does  not 
include  the  fruits  of  the  land  until  a  judicial 
seizure  has  been  made  under  the  mortgage. 
Movables  can  not  be  separately  mortgaged, 
Ijut  only  when  they  are  attached  to  land  or 
buildings  as  fixtures.  Machinery,  as  under 
the  English  law,  may  be  a  fixture  or  not, 
according  to  its  nature  and  the  manner  of 


its  attachment.     A  mortgage  of  machinery 
by  itself  is  entirely  invalid. 

If  the  debt  for  which  the  mortgage  is 
given  is  not  paid  at  maturity,  the  mortgagee 
may  bring  an  action  for  foreclosure.  A 
strict  foreclosure  after  the  English  fashion 
is  not  allowed,  but  the  foreclosure  is  by  a 
sale  of  the  property  made  under  an  order 
of  the  Court.  Out  of  the  proceeds  the  debt 
and  the  costs  of  the  foreclosure  are  paid,  and 
the  remaining  proceeds,  if  any,  go  to  the 
mortgagor  or  to  the  holders  of  junior  liens. 
If  the  proceeds  are  insufficient  to  pay  the 
debt,  the  debtor  remains  personally  liable 
for  the  amount  unpaid;  and  if  he  is  himself 
the  mortgagor,  a  judgment  for  the  amount 
may  be  given  against  him  in  the  same 
proceeding.  The  Civil  Code  says  nothing 
about  the  insertion  of  a  power  of  sale  in  a  . 
mortgage,  although  in  case  of  pledge  it  is 
forbidden  by  Art.  349;  but  the  courts  have 
already  unheld  such  a  power.  As  between 
the  parties  the  mortgage  is  extinguished 
by  the  discharge  of  the  debt;  but  so  long 
as  it  stands  uncancelled  upon  the  Register 
it  is  considered  to  exist  in  favour  of  any 
third  person  who  acquires  it  in  good  faith, 
and  such  person  may  still  enforce  payment 
of  it.  Therefore  it  is  advisable  for  the 
mortgagor,  when  he  pays  the  debt,  to  make 
sure  that  the  mortgage  is  cancelled  on  the 
Register. 

Patents. —  An  applicant  for  a  patent  or  a 
patentee  who  is  not  domiciled  in  Japan  must 
appoint  a  representative  domiciled  in  Japan. 

A  patent  right  is  granted  for  a  term  of 
fifteen  years  from  the  day  of  the  registration 
of  the  patent.  The  term,  however,  can  be 
extended  for  a  period  of  from  three  to  ten 
years.  A  patent  right  can  be  assigned  or 
pledged,  but  such  assignment  or  pledge  can 
only  be  set  up  against  third  persons  when 
registered.  If  a  person  who  has  applied  for 
a  patent  in  a  country  belonging  to  the 
International  Union  for  the  Protection  of 
Industrial  Property  applies  in  Japan  within 
twelve  months  thereafter  for  a  patent  on  the 
same  invention,  such  latter  application  has 
the  same  effect  as  if  it  had  been  made  at 
the  time  of  the  former  application.  When 
an  application  for  a  patent  is  refused,  the 
applicant  may  within  sixty  days  demand  a 
re-examination  by  another  examiner,  stating 
grounds  for  such  demand.  If  the  desired 
patent  is  again  refused,  he  is  entitled  to  a 
hearing  before  the  Patent  Office,  if  he  should 
apply  for  it  within  sixty  days.  From  a  de- 
cision of  the  Patent  Office,  an  appeal  lies 
to  the  Supreme  Court  on  questions  of  law 
only. 

A  patent  may  be  revoked  by  the  Director 
of  the  Patent  Office:  (i)  If  the  patentee 
does  not,  for  three  years  or  more  from  the 


day  of  the  registration  of  his  patent,  pro- 
jjcrly  use  the  same,  or,  if  he  suspends  the  use 
thereof  for  three  years  or  more.  (2)  If  the 
patentee  fails  to  pay  any  fee  on  his  patent 
when  it  falls  due. 

Fees  are  payable  on  a  yjatcnt  as  follows: 

Yen 

1.  Aiiijlication  for  a  patent 5 

lst-3rd  years  payable  at  once  at  time 

of  registration 20 

4th-6th  years  payable  annually 10 

7th-9th  years  payable  annually 15 

2.  Patent  fee. 

ioth-i2th  years  payable  annually.. .  .20 
1 3th- 1 5th  years  payable  annually..  .  .25 

3.  Patent  fee  for  extended  term. 
ist-3rd  years  payable  at  once  at  time 

of  registration 150 

4th-6th  years  payable  annually 70 

7th-ioth 100 

Pledge. — A  pledge  (shichi-ken)  is  where 
property  is  put  in  the  possession  of  the  creditor 
to  hold  as  collateral  security  for  his  claim. 
Movables,  immovables,  or  rights  may  be 
pledged.  The  thing  pledged  must  be  actuallj' 
delivered  into  the  possession  of  the  pledgee. 
It'  can  not  be  kept  for  him  by  the  pledgor  as 
his  agent  or  bailee.  There  is  no  method  by 
which  security  can  be  given  on  movables 
without  actual  delivery,  except  when  they 
are  stored  in  a  public  warehouse  or  are  in 
course  of  carriage,  and  a  warehouse  receipt 
or  bill  of  lading  has  been  given  for  them. 
The  practice  in  England  and  America  of 
hypothecating  chattels  by  a  registered  bill 
of   sale   is    not   admitted    in   Japanese  law. 

Prize  Law.  —  Proceedings  in  prize  are 
regulated  by  Imperial  Ordinance  No.  149 
of  the  27th  year  of  Meiji  (1894)  amended  by- 
Imperial  Ordinance  No.  188  of  the  3rd 
year  of  Taisho  (19 14). 

Seals. — In  Japan  every  person  possesses 
—  or  is  supposed  to  possess — a  seal,  which 
he  affixes  to  important  papers.  Alost 
persons  have  two  seals,  one  known  as  a  jilsii- 
in  (true  seal)  and  the  other  as  a  mitome-in 
(initialling  seal).  The  jitsu-in  is  registered 
with  the  local  Government  office,  and  a 
certificate  of  an  impression  thereof  can  he 
procured  from  the  mayor  for  a  trifling  fee, 
on  the  application  of  the  owner  whenever 
necessity  arises  to  prove  its  authenticity. 
The  mitome-in  is  used  for  formal  acts, 
and  is  generally  not  registered,  but  it  is 
equally  binding  on  the  user.  Seals  are 
only  a  relic  of  a  past  age  when  few  persons 
could  write  their  names.  In  these  modem 
times  the  omission  to  seal  a  document  after 
signature  does  not  invalidate  the  instru- 
ment, unless  in  a  case  where  sealing  is  a 
formal  and  specific  statutory  requirement. 
The    ([uestion    is   one   of   personal    identity 


pure  a 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


381 


pure  and  simple.  The  common  seal  of  a 
corporation  is  unknown  in  Ja[)an  in  the 
Anglo-American  sense.  While  corporations 
do  actually  adopt  and  use  seals  for  purposes 
of  advertisement  and  convenience,  the 
afli.xing  of  a  corporation  seal  has  no  special 
signification.  The  corporation  does  not 
"speak  through  its  seal,"  but  through  the 
signature  of  its  directors.  The  name  of 
the  corporation  is  first  written  down,  after 
which  each  of  the  directors  acting  signs  his 
own  name  and  affixes  his  own  seal.  Cor- 
porations do  not  possess  an  oflfieial  secretary, 
president,  or  treasurer  recognised  by  law. 
So  far  as  foreigners  are  concerned,  where 
under  any  law  or  regulation  a  Japanese 
subject  must  sign  his  name  and  affix  his 
name-stamp,  or  sign  his  name  or  affix  his 
name-stamp  to  a  document,  it  is  sufficient 
for  a  foreigner  to  sign  only.  The  old  foreign 
custom  of  using  wafer-seals  on  documents  in 
Japan  is  entirely  superfluous  unless  such 
papers  are  intended  for  subsequent  use 
abroad. 

Trade-marks. — Trade-marks  are  regulated 
by  Law  No.  23  of  April  2,  1909.  The 
exclusive  right  is  granted  for  a  term  of  twenty 
years  from  the  day  of  registration,  but  it 
can  be  renewed.  A  trade-mark  can  not 
be  assigned  except  in  connection  with  the 
business  for  the  purposes  for  which  it  is 
used.  Such  assignment  can  only  be  set  up 
against  third  persons  when  duly  registered. 
If  several  applications  are  made  for  the 
registration  of  the  same  trade-mark,  the 
first  one  takes  precedence.  If  they  are 
made  at  the  same  time,  none  of  them  is 
granted.  If  a  person  who  has  applied  for 
the  registration  of  a  trade-mark  in  a  country 
belonging  to  the  International  Union  for  the 
Protection  of  Industrial  Property  applies 
in  Japan  within  four  months  thereafter 
for  the  registration  of  the  same  trade-mark, 
such  latter  application  has  the  same  effect 
as  if  it  had  been  made  at  the  time  of  the 
former  application.  The  fees  payable  are: 
Yen  3  upon  application.  Yen  20  upon 
registration,  Yen  10  on  assignment.  Yen  2 
upon  application  for  renewal,  Yen  20  for 
renew-al.  Yen  3  upon  application  for  re-exam- 
ination, and  Yen  12  upon  application  for 
decision  of  the  Patent  Office. 

Trusts. —  Trusts  as  such  are  unknown  in 
Japan,  but  in  order  to  meet  the  demand  for 
a  system  for  the  protection  of  debenture- 
holders,  a  law  known  as  "The  Secured 
Debentures  Trust  Law"  (No.  52  of  1905) 
has  been  enacted  in  connection  with  "The 
Factory  Mortgage  Law"  (No.  54  of  1905) 
and  "The  Railway  Mortgage  Law"  (No.  53 
of  1905).  Under  its  provisions  it  is  now  pos- 
sible to  mortgage  various  kinds  of  property, 
both  movable  and  immovable,  including  {in- 


ter-aiia)  j^Iedges  of  movable  properties, 
pledges  of  claims  sujiported  by  documentary 
evidence,  mortgages  of  immovable  properties, 
of  ships,  railways,  tramways,  factories  (includ- 
ing fittings,  machinery,  tools,  and  acces- 
sories), mining  properties,  rights  of  individ- 
ual ownership,  etc.  The  modus  operandi  is  to 
create  "Estates"  or  Foundations"  com- 
jjosed  of  certain  property,  and  to  register 
a  mortgage  on  the  same  to  a  trust  company 
for  the  benefit  of  the  debenture-holders. 
The  trust  only  extends  to  specific  property 
listed  in  the  inventories,  and  no  words 
inserted  in  the  deed  can  create  a  floating 
charge.  An  agreement  can  be  made  to 
add  after-acquired  property  to  the  mort- 
gaged "estate,"  but  until  such  property  is 
specifically  added  and  registered,  the  bond- 
holders to  not  acquire  any  extra  security. 
A  "floating  charge"  is  unknown  in  Japanese 
law,  and  is  opposed  to  its  fundamental 
principles. 

War  Legislation. — An  Imperial  Ordinance 
(No.  41  of  April  23,  191 7)  has  been  pro- 
mulgated forbidding  transactions  with  enemy 
subjects  and  States.  It  provides  that  no 
unlicensed  transactions  may  be  made  or 
entered  into  with  or  for  the  benefit  of: 
(i)  Enemy  countries  (the  German  Empire 
and  other  Powers  engaged  in  hostile  acts 
against  the  Allied  Powers);  (2)  Enemy 
subjects  or  juridical  persons;  (3)  Persons 
who  are  domiciled  in  enemy  territory,  or 
who  make  it  their  principal  object  to  carry 
on  businesses  within  enemy  territory;  (4) 
Businesses  which  have  been  publicly  listed 
by  the  Government  as  being  imder  the 
management,  either  wholly  or  partly,  of 
enemy  persons,  or  as  being  under  enemy 
influence.  The  penalties  imposed  are  (i)  a 
fine  not  exceeding  Yen  200  or  (2)  penal 
servitude  for  a  term  not  exceeding  one  year. 
The  ordinance  is  effective  throughout  the 
Empire,  and  wherever  Japan  enjoys  extra 
territorial  jurisdiction. 

Enemy  subjects  in  Japan  receive  remark- 
ably liberal  treatment  in  regard  to  freedom 
of  residence,  etc.,  but  their  incomes  and 
disbursements  are  controlled  by  the  Govern- 
ment, and  any  indiscreet  conduct  leads  to 
deportation.  Xo  enemy  subjects  are  now 
allowed  to  land  in  Japan.  No  moratorium 
has  been  decreed.  A  law  has  been  passed 
dealing  with  the  control  and  utilisation  of 
industrial  property  rights  owned  by  enemy 
subjects.  The  tendency  is  to  make  the 
regulations  for  the  control  of  enemy  subjects 
stricter  as  time  goes  on. 

Wills. — A  person  who  has  completed  his 
fifteenth  year  can  make  a  will.  A  will  can 
be  made  (i)  by  a  holograph  document, 
(2)  by  public  (notarially  certified)  document, 
or  (3)  by  a  secret  document ;  but  exceptional 


forms  are  provided  for  in  cases  of  urgency 
(Civ.  Code,  Arts.  1050  to  1086).  Wills 
must  not  contravene  provisions  re  legal 
portions  (lineal  descendant  who  is  the  legal 
heir  to  a  house,  50  per  cent;  any  other  heir 
to  a  house,  333^  per  cent).  As  regards 
foreigners,  the  existence  and  the  effect  of  a 
will  are  governed  by  the  law  of  the  nation- 
ality of  the  testator.  As  to  the  form  and 
manner  of  making  a  will,  the  law  of  the 
place  where  it  is  made  may  be  followed. 
Apparently,  therefore,  so  far  as  the  form 
is  concerned,  a  foreigner  may  make  his  will 
in  the  manner  prescribed  by  his  own  law  or 
by  the  law  of  Japan;  but  care  must  be 
exercised  in  regard  to  form  when  disposing 
of  property  situated  abroad. 

CRIMINAL  LAW 
(t)  Arrest  and  Criminal  Procedure. — 
Offences  are  divided  by  the  Japanese  law  into 
three  classes,  which  may  be  conveniently 
distinguished  as  crimes,  misdemeanours, 
and  petty  offences.  A  police  officer  may 
arrest  a  person  without  a  warrant  and  may 
even  enter  a  private  house  for  that  purpose, 
in  the  following  cases: 

(a)  If  the  person  arrested  is  in  the  act 
of  committing  an  offence  or  has  just  com- 
mitted one; 

(i)  If  other  persons  are  in  actual  pursuit 
of  him  as  an  offender; 

(c)  If  dangerous  weapons  or  stolen  goods 
or  other  indicia  of  an  offence  having  been 
committed  are  found  in  his  possession; 

{d)  If  the  assistance  of  the  officer  is 
called  for  by  the  head  of  a  house  in  case 
of  an  offence  committed  in  the  house. 
For  a  petty  offence  the  officer  can  only 
take  the  name  and  address  of  the  offender  in 
order  to  make  a  complaint  against  him; 
except  that  he  may  arrest  him  if  his  name 
or  address  appear  to  be  uncertain,  or  there 
is  danger  that  he  will  run  away.  An  arrest 
may  also  be  made  in  a  similar  case  by  a 
private  person,  if  the  offence  is  a  serious 
one  punishable  by  imprisonment  or  severer 
punishment.  A  person  who  is  arrested 
without  a  warrant  must  be  taken  imme- 
diately to  a  police  office,  where  the  officer 
in  charge  must  inquire  into  the  facts  and 
draw  up  a  protocol  of  the  result  of  his 
inquiry.  The  person  arrested  can  not  be 
forced  to  answer  any  question,  nor  can  any 
violence  be  used  against  his  person.  Any 
ill-treatment  of  the  accused  person  would 
amount  to  a  crime  for  which  the  officer 
would  be  punishable. 

If  the  offence  is  a  petty  one,  punishable 
only  by  a  fine  of  not  more  than  Yen  20,  or 
by  detention  for  not  more  than  thirty  daj's, 
the  officer  in  charge  of  the  station  may 
dispose  of  the  case  summarily.     His  decision, 


382 


P  R  E  S  K  N  T  -  n  A  V 


IMPRFSSTONS        OF        JAPAN 


however,  is  subject  to  review  l^y  the  court. 
If  the  defendant  desires  to  bring  the  matter 
before  the  court,  he  must  give  security  for 
his  appearance,  which,  in  case  of  a  fine,  may 
be  done  by  the  deposit  of  the  amount  of 
the  fine.  If  the  off'ence  is  too  serious  to  be 
dealt  with  summarily,  the  case  goes  into  the 
hands  of  the  pulilic  procurator,  the  defendant 
being  either  detained  or,  if  the  charge  is 
not  of  great  importance,  released  for  the 
time  being  w-ithout  giving  bail.  If  he  is 
detained,  he  is  to  be  brought  before  an 
examining  judge,  by  whom  he  may  be 
admitted  to  bail.  Under  Japanese  law, 
prosecutions  for  criminal  offences  are  not 
conducted  by  private  persons  but  by  the 
public  procurator,  whose  official  duty  is  to 
prosecute  for  every  offence  of  which  he 
has  knowledge.  A  separate  procurator  is 
attached  to  each  criminal  court. 

When  the  public  procurator  is  informed 
of  the  commission  of  an  offence,  he  takes 
one  of  two  coiu-ses.  If  the  offence  is  a 
misdemeanour,  he  may  himself  make  the 
necessary  investigation,  and  if  he  finds 
sufficient  cause  for  doing  so,  at  once  institute 
a  criminal  prosecution.  If  the  offence  is  a 
crime,  he  must  apply  to  an  examining  judge 
for  a  preliminary  examination;  and  he  may 
do  so,  if  he  thinks  fit,  in  the  case  of  a  mis- 
demeanour. The  preliminary  examination 
is  an  investigation  of  the  entire  case,  includ- 
ing the  examination  of  the  defendant  himself, 
the  hearing  of  witnesses  and  the  taking  of 
any  other  evidence  for  the  purpose  of  ascer- 
taining whether  there  is  probable  cause  for 
holding  the  defendant  for  trial.  Generally,  the 
examining  judge  issues  a  summons  to  the  de- 
fendant to  appear  for  examination  on  an  ap- 
pointed day.  If  the  summons  is  disobeyed, 
an  attachment  against  his  person  is  issued ; 
but  in  certain  cases  specified  by  the  law  the 
judge  is  empowered  to  issue  an  attachment 
in  the  first  place  instead  of  a  summons. 

The  first  examination  of  a  person  arrested 
must  take  place  within  forty-eight  hours  of 
his  arrest.  But  either  at  the  preliminary 
examination  or  the  trial  he  may  refuse  to 
answer  any  question  which  is  put  to  him. 
After  the  examination  he  must  either  be  set 
free  or  a  warrant  of  detention  must  be  made. 
No  time  limit  is  fixed  by  the  law  for  the 
completion  of  the  preliminary  examination, 
so  that  it  might  extend  over  a  long  period, 
during  which  the  accused  person  might  be 
kept  in  confinement. 

In  case  of  the  flight  of  an  accused  person 
no  preliminary  examination  is  held,  but  a 
warrant  of  detention  is  issued  immediately, 
on  which  he  may  be  arrested  and  detained 
for  trial.  In  order  to  arrest  a  person  against 
whom  a  warrant  has  been  issued,  any  house 
or  place  where  he  is  supposed  to  be  may  be 


searched,  but  such  a  search  can  be  made 
only  in  the  daytime,  except  in  a  hotel  or 
other  place  of  public  entertainment.  The 
search  is  made  by  the  police  officer  in  the 
presence  of  the  mayor  of  the  town  or  village, 
or,  if  he  is  not  available,  in  the  presence  of 
two  neighbours.  The  judge  may  also  order 
a  search  of  the  house  of  the  accused  penson 
or  of  any  place  where  there  is  reason  to 
suppose  that  things  important  as  evidence 
may  be  found.  The  accused  person  has  a 
right  to  be  present  at  the  search,  unless  he 
is  under  detention.  In  the  absence  of  the 
accused,  a  search  must  be  made  in  the 
presence  of  relatives  living  in  his  house,  or  of 
the  mayor.  If  on  such  a  search  any  articles 
are  found  which  will  probably  be  important 
as  evidence,  they  may  be  taken  possession 
of  by  the  public  authorities.  The  judge 
may  also  require  the  officials  of  the  post- 
office  and  of  telegraphs  and  railways  to 
deliver  to  him  for  inspection  all  letters, 
messages,  and  parcels  directed  to  the  ac- 
cused person. 

A  defendant  has  no  absolute  right  to  bail, 
the  allowance  of  bail  being  discretionary 
with  the  examining  judge,  but  in  practice 
the  granting  of  bail  is  often  delayed  on  the 
ground  that  the  accused  may  destroy 
evidence,  etc.  Bail  may  be  given  by  the 
deposit  of  money  or  satisfactory  securities, 
or  l)y  a  single  bondsman  who  must  be  a 
person  of  sufficient  pecuniary  standing, 
residing  within  the  jurisdiction  of  the  court. 
Even  after  bail  has  been  allowed,  the  judge 
may  at  any  time,  if  he  thinks  it  necessary  to 
do  so,  revoke  the  allowance  and  order  the 
defendant  to  be  arrested.  Instead  of  releas- 
ing the  defendant  on  bail,  the  judge  has 
power,  if  he  thinks  fit,  to  entrust  the  defend- 
ant to  the  custody  of  relatives  or  friends. 
If  bail  is  refused,  complaint  may  be  made  to 
the  court,  but  the  judges  are  usually  guided 
in  their  decision  by  the  views  of  the 
procurator. 

The  trial  is  not  by  jury,  but  is  before 
three  or  five  judges,  or  in  petty  cases  before 
a  single  judge.  Under  present  conditions 
in  Japan  this  is  probably  a  better  tribunal 
than  a  jury  would  be  so  far  as  foreigners, 
at  any  rate,  are  concerned.  The  accused 
person  must  not  be  fettered  during  the  trial. 
He  is  entitled  to  counsel,  but  must  employ 
one  of  the  counsel  attached  to  the  court  in 
which  he  is  tried,  unless  the  court  grants 
him  permission  to  employ  somebody  else. 
The  defendant  may  testify  in  his  own  behalf, 
and  after  the  testimony  of  any  witness  has 
been  given  or  any  evidence  adduced,  he  is  to 
be  allowed  an  opportunity  to  remark  upon 
it.  If  the  defendant  does  not  understand 
the  Japanese  language,  an  interpreter  must 
be  provided  by  the  court. 


In  the  case  of  petty  offences  punishable 
only  by  a  fine  the  defendant  need  not  be 
present  at  the  trial,  but  may  be  represented 
by  an  attorney.  If  he  does  not  appear  at  all, 
judgment  may  be  given  against  him  by 
default.  From  the  court  of  first  instance 
an  appeal  can  be  taken  on  both  the  facts 
and  the  law;  and  any  question  of  law  in 
serious  cases  can  be  carried  to  the  court  of 
last  resort.  The  time  within  which  an 
appeal  can  be  taken  is  very  short,  being 
only  three  or  five  days.  There  is  no  right 
of  habeas  corpus  or  anything  exactly 
equivalent  thereto.  Administrative  arrests, 
however,  are  not  allowed,  and  the  unlawful 
imprisonment  of  a  person  is — at  least  in 
theory — a  serious  crime.  According  to  Japa- 
nese lav/,  a  person  who  is  needed  as  a  witness 
can  not  be  detained  beforehand  to  secure 
his  appearance. 

(2)  Domiciliary  Visits. —  Besides  the  right 
to  enter  a  private  house  in  order  to 
make  an  arrest  for  crime  or  to  execute  a 
search  warrant,  the  police  and  sanitary 
officials  have  a  right  to  visit  private  houses 
in  the  following  cases: 

(a)  When  a  person  is  suffering 
from  an  infectious  disease  in  a  house, 
certain  sanitary,  police,  and  admin- 
istrative officers  may  enter  the  place 
and  take  necessary  measures  for 
cleansing  and  disinfecting  it.  They 
may  put  the  house  under  quarantine, 
or,  if  necessary,  a  whole  street  or  block 
of  houses.  They  also  have  power  to 
require  the  removal  of  the  sick  person 
to  a  hospital,  if  they  think  it  necessary. 
lb)  If  it  is  reported  that  any  person 
has  an  infectious  disease,  the  police 
authorities  may  require  him  to  appear  at  a 
police  station  for  inspection,  or  may 
send  a  physician  to  his  house  to  make 
the  inspection,  but  a  policeman  who 
goes  with  the  physician  must  remain 
outside  the  house. 

(c)  At  certain  intervals  every  house  is 
visited  by  a  police  officer  for  the  pur- 
pose of  inquiring  what  persons  are 
inmates  of  it,  especially  in  regard  to 
servants  or  guests.  The  officer  has  no 
right  to  enter  the  house  against  the  will 
of  the  householder,  but  must  make  his 
inquiries  at  the  door.  Except  as  specially 
provided  by  law  or  regulation,  a  police 
officer  has  no  right  to  enter  a  dwell- 
ing house. 

(3)  Criminal  Law  Generally. — The  sub- 
stantive law  itself  is  neither  worse  nor  better 
than  that  of  most  other  countries,  but  the 
adjective  law  needs  drastic  revision.  The 
system  of  criminal  procedure  is  calculated 
to  entail  hardship  and  much  waste  of  time. 
At  the  moment  of  writing  there  is  a  move- 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


383 


nn'iit  oil  foot  having  for  its  ohjfct  the  better 
protection  of  aeeused  persons,  and  it  is 
reassuring  to  know  that  the  Imperial  Govern- 
ment is  considering  a  reform  in  criminal 
procedure.  Under  the  present  system  of 
preliminary  examination,  few  guilty  persons 
escape  when  once  in  the  meshes  of  the  law, 
but  innocent  people  occasionally  suffer  by 
the  process.  Witnesses  can  only  appear 
by  consent  of  the  judge,  and  are  examined  by 
him  and  not  by  the  parties  or  their  attorneys. 
Effective  cross-examination  is  thus  practi- 
cally impossible. 

The  so-called  "mise  en  secret,"  by  which 
a  person  under  examination  could  be  put 
into  solitary  confinement,  if  the  judge 
should  consider  it  necessary  in  order  to 
ascertain  the  truth,  is  abolished.     A  person 


who  has  been  arrested  and  is  under  examina- 
tion may  see  other  persons  in  the  presence 
of  an  officer,  and  may  send  and  receive 
letters  and  any  otiier  written  communications 
after  they  have  been  examined  bj-  the  judge 
conducting  the  preliminary  examination  or 
the  public  jirocurator.  The  judge  may, 
however,  if  he  thinks  it  necessary,  isolate 
the  cell  in  which  the  person  under  examina- 
tion is  confined,  or  may  forbid  intercourse 
with  other  persons  or  the  sending  or  receiv- 
ing of  writings  or  other  things,  or  may 
take  possession  of  them. 

In  some  respects  the  administration  of 
the  criminal  law  in  Japan  is  certainly  not 
what  it  should  be,  and  accordingly  it  is  hoped 
that  the  Government  will  early  give  its  atten- 
tion to  necessary  reforms.     It  is  only  fair  to 


add  that  the  courts  have   shown  themselves 
particularly  careful  in  foreign  criminal  cases. 

THE    JUDICIARY 

The  status  of  the  judiciary  is  by  no 
means  satisfactory,  the  emoluments  of  its 
members  being  meagre,  their  official  rank 
below  what  it  should  be,  and  their  pros- 
pective pensions  altogether  too  small.  Not- 
withstanding the  disadvantages  imdcr  which 
they  labour,  it  must  be  conceded  that  the 
judges  are,  on  the  whole,  a  high-minded 
and  conscientious  body  of  men,  characterised 
by  honesty  and  painstaking   industry. 

To  sum  up,  Japan  has  accomplished  a 
good  deal  in  connection  with  the  reform  of 
her  judicial  system,  but  much  remains  to  be 
done  in  order  to  make  it  reasonably  perfect. 


CAVES   AT    MAT>USHIMA    TO    WHICH    IHt    I'KII  -I-    i  i!     HIUDHA    KKUKED   FOR   STUDY    MORE   THA!f  1,200    YEAR-    Ai.i' 

XXII.    Education 

By   Dr.   J.   INGRAM   BRYAN,    M.   A.,    M.    Litt.,    Ph.  D.   The   Meiji   University   and   the   Imperial   Naval   College,   and   Japan   Corre- 
spondent  of  the   London   "Morning   Post" 

Remote  Beginnings  and  Early  Development  — Education  in  the  Tokugawa  Era- 
Introduction  OF  Modern  Education  — Japans  Educational 
System  To-day— Outlay  on  Education 


BEFORE  the  opening  of  Japan  to  the 
modem  world  the  nation  was,  of 
course,  without  any  system  of  secular 
education.  Pre-Restoration  Japan  had  wit- 
nessed no  such  steady  evolution  of  great 
centres  of  learning  as  had  marked  the  prog- 
ress of  pre-Reformation  Europe.  Indeed, 
education  can  scarcely  be  said  to  have 
attained  a  degree  of  development  either  so 
general  or  so  effective  as  that  of  the  later 
schools  of  Greece,  not  to  sav'  anything  of  its 
inferiority  to  Rome's  improvement  on  her 
heritage  of  Hellenic  culture.  As  among  the 
ancient  nations  of  Europe  a  youth  bent  upon 
satisfying  his  thirst  for  knowledge  and  intel- 
lectual achievement  had  to  fit  himself  for  a 
reaUsation  of  his  ambitions,  if  not  by  what  he 
could  gain  of  experience  and  suggestion  from 
the  wandering  sage  or  "the  schools  of  the 
prophets,"  yet  from  the  stern  realities  of  Ufe 
itself,  so  was  it  with  the  men  of  old  Japan. 
Education,  in  so  far  as  it  had  ceased  to  be  a 


conventional  dabbling  in  Chinese  classics  or 
a  mere  mental  abstraction  of  the  idle  and  the 
pretentious,  centred,  as  in  early  Greece, 
around  a  few  great  names;  but  these,  unlike 
the  Sophists  of  old,  founded  no  schools,  left 
no  successors,  and  the  pupils  scattered  with 
the  decease  of  the  master.  In  the  realm  of 
arts,  crafts,  and  general  industry  it  was  in 
some  measure  otherwise,  for  here  education 
and  the  secrets  of  artificial  production  often 
passed  from  master  to  pupil  until  craft 
became  hereditan,';  which  means  that  the 
education  of  early  Japan  was  for  the 
most  part  utiUtarian  both  in  spirit  and 
practice. 

As  Rome  from  Greece  and  Egypt,  so  did 
Japan  from  China  and  Korea  draw  most  of 
her  intellectual  inspiration.  But  Confucius 
and  Mencius,  who  might  have  been  to  Japan 
what  Socrates  and  Plato  were  to  the  pre- 
Christian  world,  produced  only  a  stoicism 
that  appealed  to  none  but  the  stern  dictators 


of  unreasoning  loj'alty,  leaV'ing  the  mass  of 
the  people  to  the  crude  superstitions  of  Shinto, 
the  native  religion;  and  so  the  nation  was 
thrown  back  upon  Buddhism  for  its  "Moses 
and  the  prophets,"  the  schools  that  the  alien 
religion  brought  with  it  from  India  and 
China.  This  turned  the  mind  of  the  Japa- 
nese to  aesthetic  vagaries  tending  largely  to 
the  grotesque,  with  a  depreciation  of  the  prac- 
tical world  and  a  failure  to  produce  much 
character  of  the  heroic  mould.  Buddhism  by 
compromise  ultimately  united  with  Shinto  to 
enslave  the  national  mind  in  still  more  grovel- 
ling superstition,  until  men  emulated  the 
goblins  of  primitive  or  aberrant  fancy,  and 
felt  themselves  bound  every  way  about  by  the 
guardian  semi-human  deities  of  ancestral 
days.  Here  and  there  appeared  a  brilliant 
scholar,  a  popular  poet  or  minstrel,  a  Budd- 
hist saint  of  high  degree,  but  the  masses 
remained  untouched  and  dense.  Education 
so  far  as  it  can  be  said  to  have  existed,  clung 


P  K  E  S  E  N  T  -  D  A  Y        IMPRESSIONS        OF        JAPAN 


385 


(AHOVE)    the    TAIMEI    GAKKO,    an   ordinary    PRIiMARY   SCHOOL   AT   TOKYO — ^(bELOW)    TOKYO   HIGHER    TECHNICAL    SCHOOL - 

THE   SEISHIN  JOGAKUIN,   OR   GIRLS'   HIGH    SCHOOL,    TOKYO 


to  the  skirts  of  princes  and  potentates  about 
the  changing  capitals  of  the  Empire,  until  in 
the  twelfth  century,  with  the  rapid  decline  of 
imperial  power,  the  rule  of  empire  passed  into 
the  hands  of  the  militarists,  and  education 
took  refuge  where  it  began,  with  the  teachers 
of  religion.  It  was  thenceforth  a  thing  of 
temples  and  monasteries  as  in  mediaeval 
Europe,  but  with  little  of  the  intellectual 
eminence  displayed  by  the  monastic  schools 
of  the  West,  until  the  ascendancy  of  the 
Tokugawa  shoguns,  when  it  once  more  began 
to  receive  the  active  support  of  the  author- 
ities, and  schools  of  a  kind  commenced  to 
flourish  at  the  courts  of  the  more  prominent 
daimyo,  like  those  of  Satsuma,  Mito,  Owari, 
and  Hizen,  the  present  Imperial  Universities 
having  germinated  from  these  feudal  acad- 
emies. 

Thus  in  Japan,  as  in  all  other  lands, 
education  began  only  after  the  nation  had 
passed  through  the  struggle  that  resulted  in 
the  birth  of  an  empire,  and  the  people  had 
begun  to  realise  that  they  had  done  something 
worthy  of  thought.  Adversity  is  as  much 
the  mother  of  intellectual  and  moral  achieve- 
ment as  it  is  reputed  to  be    of   invention. 


Japan  had  now  reached  a  stage  where  her 
heroes  were  sufficiently  conspicuous  to  be 
easily  separated  from  their  deeds  and  set  up 
as  ideals  for  the  race.  The  nation  was  l^egin- 
ning  to  break  away  from  the  fatal  preposses- 
sion that  a  man  can  only  be  what  his  ancestors 
have  made  him  and  it  is  the  will  of  the  gods 
that  he  have  little  to  do  with  his  destiny, 
though  a  great  part  of  Japan  still  labours 
under  this  fatalism.  Discovering,  with  the 
birth  of  knowledge,  that  nations,  like  men, 
are  but  what  they  make  themselves,  the 
leaders  of  Japan  were  no  longer  content  to 
have  life  regulated  by  ancestral  custom,  but 
by  thought,  truth,  and  action.  When  educa- 
tion ceased  to  be  a  thing  of  family  convention 
and  superstitious  scruples  and  became  a 
definite  necessity  of  service  and  choice,  the 
citizen  for  the  first  time  was  given  an  oppor- 
tunity to  regulate  his  life  by  reason  and 
conscience  rather  than  by  rigid  ancestral  rule. 
Education  was  no  longer  regarded  as  an 
ornament  of  the  few,  but  an  inalienable  right 
of  the  many.  Such,  indeed,  was  the  ideal 
with  which  the  new  Japan  set  out,  but  how 
far  she  has  lived  up  to  it,  we  shall  now  endeav- 
our to  examine. 


REMOTE    BEGINNINGS 
AND    EARLY    DEVELOPMENT 

The  Japanese,  no  more  than  other  races, 
could  have  sprung  from  barbarism  at  a 
bovmd.  The  early  settlers  on  the  islands, 
having  come  from  the  continent,  doubtless 
carried  with  them  some  modicum  of  formal 
education,  such  as  then  existed  in  Korea  and 
China.  It  is  not,  however,  necessary  to 
suppose  that  they  were  at  first  much  con- 
cerned with  education  except  in  an  ancestral 
sense.  Nascent  peoples  must  preserve  their 
family  or  racial  customs,  which  implies  some 
notion  of  education.  Primitive  races  always 
have  some  conception  of  religion,  and  religion 
always  stands  for  education  in  some  degree. 
The  basis  of  Japanese  religion  was,  and  stiU 
is,  ancestor  worship,  and  the  state  of  society 
it  represented  naturally  recognised  no  social 
tie  save  that  of  blood.  The  aim  of  a  primitive 
people  is  the  satisfaction  of  immediate  wants; 
and  youth  was  no  doubt  taught  the  occupa- 
tions of  the  race  so  as  to  take  part  in  providing 
the  necessaries  of  life:  food,  clotliing,  shelter, 
protection  from  enemies,  and  the  procreation 
of  the  tribe.  Education  in  early  Japan  was, 
therefore,    much    too    practical    for    formal 


386 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JATAN 


schools.  It  proceeded  through  the  family 
and  clan  and  involved  a  working  knowledge 
of  how  to  deal  with  Nature  and  everyday  life, 
as  well  as  to  propitiate  the  Unseen.  Youth 
for  the  most  part  blindly  imitated  age,  as  age 
did  its  ancestors,  and  life  was  as  it  always  had 
been  and  always  would  be.  The  main  duty 
of  Hfe  was  to  "carry  on"  in  the  most  prim- 
itive sense.  Custom  was  the  rule  of  living, 
and  the  right  of  individual  development  was 
not  recognised.  Ethical  doctrines,  so  far  as 
they  existed,  were  prudential  and  sordid, 
and  precept  did  not  always  appeal  to  the 
inner  hght  in  man.  As  education  was  chiefly 
utilitarian,  on  the  one  hand,  and  a  sheer 
effort  of  memory  on  the  other,  it  naturally 
did  little  for  intellectual  and  moral  develop- 
ment. These  considerations  it  is  essential 
to  bear  in  mind,  for  it  will  be  seen  as  we 
proceed  that  the  underiying  principles  of 
Japanese  education  have  not  been  able  yet  to 
rise  above  those  primitive  notions  that 
retarded  its  progress  from  the  outset,  in  spite 
of  the  outward  adoption  of  modern  modes 
and  forms. 

Nor  can  one  wonder  at  this,  since  from  its 
very  inception  Japanese  education  has  been 
based  on  that  of  China,  whence  it  sprang 
and  drew  its  first  ideals  and  inspiration. 
Chinese  education,  like  the  civilisation  pro- 
duced by  it,  has  not  changed  a  whit  in  three 
thousand  years,  no  matter  what  waves  of  out- 
ward influence  have  at  times  ruffled  its  surface. 
Confucius,  the  greatest  teacher  of  China,  de- 
clared that  Heaven  had  given  man  Nature 
to  follow,  and  that  his  whole  duty  lay  in 
imitating  Nature.  But  by  Nature  he  meant 
custom,  or  what  has  been  agreed  upon  in  the 
past.  Thus  virtue  is  knowledge  and  obser- 
vance of  fixed  ideas  and  customs.  The  sum 
total  of  duty  is  loyalty  of  subject  to  sovereign, 
child  to  parent,  and  man  to  Nature.  Of 
course  if  this  is  all  there  is  to  education,  it 
must  necessarily  be  non-progressive.  In 
China  only  what  proceeded  from  authority 
was  of  any  importance  and  required  any 
deference,  a  principle  that  still  very  much 
prevails  in  Japan.  The  early  immigrants  to 
Japan  got  away  from  this  system  as  it 
obtained  in  China,  and  had  nearly  a  thousand 
years  of  independent  development,  but  com- 
munication with  the  continent  was  apparently 
more  or  less  unbroken  and  the  Yamato  race 
did  not  proceed  very  far  along  instinctive 
lines  before  Chinese  ideas  began  to  reappear 
and  impose  themselves  upon  a  race  still 
primitive    enough    to    be    purely    imitative. 

The  question  as  to  when  formal  education 
commenced  in  Japan  may  be  regarded  as 
speculative  as  it  is  academic.  The  ancient 
records  make  mention  of  a  set  of  Chinese 
classics  presented  to  the  Imperial  Court  of 
Yamato  by  the  tripartate  kingdom  of  Korea 


in  270  A.  D.,  or  284  as  other  records  aver; 
but  in  such  matters  a  discrepancy  of  ten  or 
twenty  years  does  not  seem  to  be  of  great 
importance.     We    do    not    come    down    to 
authentic    history   until   the   sixth   century, 
when  Chinese  and  Hindu  religion  and  civil- 
isation began  to  take  root  in  Japan.     In  the 
reign  of  the  Emperor  Mommu,  701  .\.  D.,  an 
ordinance  relating  to  education  was  issued, 
establishing  formal  schools,  of  which  history 
seems  to  make  little  or  no  subsequent  men- 
tion.    The  Japanese  boast  of  this  as  ante- 
dating the  Educational  Ordinance  of  Charla- 
magne    by    a    hundred    years,   and    Oxford 
University  by  nearly  two  centuries,  but  the 
facts   as   regards   the   system    of   education 
established  by  Charlamagne  and  King  Alfred 
the  Great  are  based  on  evidence   much  less 
mythical  than  the  records  on  which  Japanese 
educationists  base  their  claims  to  antiquity. 
The  Japanese  themselves  must  admit  that 
the   schools   thus   early   mentioned   did   not 
succeed     in     maintaining     continuity,     like 
Oxford  and  Cambridge  and  the  great  insti- 
tutions   of    continental    Europe.     The    edu- 
cational system  of  ancient  Japan,  if  it  existed 
at   all,    must   have   been    swept   away   and 
obliterated    during    the    long    ages    of    civil 
strife  from  the  tenth  to  the  fifteenth  century. 
Through  those  dark  centuries  of  bloodshed 
the  only  remnant  of  education  was  found  in 
Buddhist    monasteries    and    temples;     and 
Buddhist  priests,  as  at  the  beginning,  came 
to  be  the  only  educators  of  the  nation.     They 
it  was  who  brought  books  from  China,  in- 
vented a  system  of  native  writing,  and  taught 
the  people  of  Japan  how  to  read,  for  which 
some  of  them,  like  Kobodaishi,  are  to-day 
worshipped  as  gods.     As  early  as  771  A.  D. 
we   have  reference  to  books  being   printed 
from  wooden  blocks,  also  the  work  of  the 
priests;    but   for  the  most  part  they   were 
laboriously  copied,  as  in  Europe  of  the  same 
period.     Even  then,  education  was  confined 
to  courtiers,   priests,   and   the   few   warriors 
who  cared  for  such  diversions,  though  in  the 
eighth  and  ninth  centuries  it  is  remarkable 
what  a  number  of  women  authors  appeared. 
The  task  of  memorising  Chinese  ideographs 
was  no  doubt  as  much  a  drawback  to  ancient 
as  it  is  to  modern  education  in  Japan,  and 
for  this  reason  a  native  syllabary  was  in- 
vented to  assist  in  conveying  the  sounds  of 
the  alien  characters  and  denoting  the  correct 
pronunciation  of  them;    but  the  vast  mass 
of    the    commonalty    was    even    more      un- 
touched by  education  than  it  was  in  Europe. 
During  the  Nara  period,  from  the  eighth  to 
the  eleventh  century,  an  imposing  array  of 
scholars,     poets,     and     poetesses     appeared 
around    the    Imperial    Court,    whose    works 
are  still  read  as  ancient  classics  of  the  nation ; 
yet  in  this  as  in  less  enlightened  eras  the 


people  were  left  in  ignorance,  poverty,  and 
serfdom.  That  age  of  enlightenment  among 
the  upiier  classes  of  society,  due  to  priestly 
culture  from  China,  seems  to  have  been 
almost  obliterated  by  the  succeeding  centuries 
of  civil  war,  when  education  fled  with  religion 
into  the  temples  and   monasteries. 

EDUCATION    IN    THE    TOKUGAWA    ERA 
With  the  return  of  peaceful  days  during 
the  era  of  the  Tokugawa  shoguns,  when  the 
nation  knew  no  war  for  two  hundred  and 
fifty     years,     education    naturally     revived, 
under  the  auspices  of  the  Buddhist  schools 
and  the  favour  of  the  authorities.     It  was 
still  anything  but  universal,  however,  and  so 
far  as  women  were  concerned  education  did 
not  exist  at  all.     Nothing,  indeed,  is  more 
remarkable  than   the   contrast   between  the 
brilliant    period    of    female    authors    in    the 
Nara  age  and   their   utter  absence  in   sub- 
sequent times.     Who  can  say  how  much  of 
greatness  Japan  lost  by  this  total  suppres- 
sion  and  neglect  of  her   womanhood   intel- 
lectually?    Surely  no  further  proof  is  needed 
of   the   national   deterioration    that    can   be 
brought   about  by  long   periods   of  bloody 
strife!     The  education  of  the  Tokugawa  era 
proved  no  more  able  than  that  of  previous 
periods,  to  rise  above  the  level  set  by  Con- 
fucian  ethics   and   models.     It   was   stilted, 
barren,  and  without  inspiration  or  outlook. 
Education  limited  its  scope  to  the  instruc- 
tion  of  boys  in   Chinese  classics,   Japanese 
history,  laws,  and  a  little  mathematics  and 
Japanese  literature.     It  had  little  or  nothing 
to  do  with  real  life  or  the  development  of 
manhood.     Ideas  on  education  were  as  con- 
fused as  they  were  on  religion.     Though  in 
the  past  education  had  been  largely  a  matter 
of   mental   drill   under   the   tutelage   of   the 
Buddhist    priesthood,    it    had   no  vital  con- 
nection  with   religion.     The  Japanese  seem 
never  to  have  associated  religion  with  real 
life:   it  w-as  usually  treated  as  a  thing  apart. 
Yet  Shinto,  the  native  religion  of  the  Japa- 
nese, taught  that  true  citizenship  involved 
the  worship  of  the  Emperor  as  the  descend- 
ant of  the  gods,  which  w-ould  seem  to  have 
some   connection    with    practical    life,    since 
loyalty   is   a   practical   ideal   of   citizenship. 
In  the  modern  system  of  Japanese  education 
this    confusion    and    inconsistency    prevails, 
the  nation  denying  that  religion  can  have 
any  connection  with  education,  while  insist- 
ing on  the  pupils  of  the  schools  worshipping 
before  the  national  shrines!     The  Tokugawa 
authorities  at  first  cared  for  none  of  these 
things.     Their  main  concern  was  with  mak- 
ing the  subject  loyal  to  his  master,  and  every 
one  obedient  to  the  rule  of  the  shogun.     For 
this  Confucianism   was  more  adapted  than 

either    Shinto    or     Buddhism;      for    Shinto 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


387 


insisted  on  loyalty  to  the  Imperial  House, 
whose  rights  the  shogunate  had  in  some 
degree  usurped,  and  Buddhism  was  devote<l 
to  theological  intricacies  that  tould  never 
prove  practical  politics,  while  the  main 
principle  of  Confucianism  was  loyalty  of 
inferior  to  superior,  an  excellent  religion  for 
promoting  Prussianism.  Against  this  aggres- 
sive insistence  on  absolute  subservience  to 
government  authority  there  came  a  reaction 
due  to  a  revival  of  the  ancient  classics  of  the 
nation  under  teachers  like  Motoori  and  the 
lord  of  Mito,  himself  a  member  of  the  Toku- 
gawa  family,  which  in  time  began  to  shake 
people's  faith  in  loyalty  to  the  shogun  and 
turn  it  back  to  its  original  objective  in  the 
Imperial  House.  Thus  it  will  be  seen  that 
education  in  the  Tokugawa  era  no  more 
escaped  from  Chinese  influence  than  it  did 
in  previous  ages,  and  Confucianism  still 
remains  the  foundation  of  morality  and 
education  in  Japan. 

INTRODUCTION  OF  MODERN  EDUCATION 
It  has  already  been  pointed  out  that  up 
to  the  end  of  the  Tokugawa  period  in  1868, 
there  was  no  proper  system  of  education  in 
Japan,  the  schools  being  under  the  auspices 
of  Buddhist  temples,  and  culture  confined 
to  the  few.  Preparation,  nevertheless,  had 
long  been  going  on  for  a  change  in  education, 
which  eventually  reached  its  consummation 
in  the  Meiji  era,  the  so-called  Era  of  En- 
lightenment, when  Japan  set  about  a  trans- 
formation to  modern  ways.  This  prepa- 
ration, it  is  trtie,  was  limited  to  but  few,  yet 
these  had  an  influence  far  beyond  their  own 


SCHOOL    BOYS 

individual  importance.  How  was  it  that  a 
people  isolated  for  centuries  from  the  West- 
ern world  came  suddenly  to  decide  to  change 
its  policy?  There  are  those  who  suppose 
that  the  idea  had  birth  with  the  arrival  of 
Commodore  Perry,  who  opened  up  Japan 
to  foreign  intercourse  in  1854.  As  far  back 
as  1573,  however,  a  Japanese  embassy  had 
traversed  the  whole  of  Europe  and  returned 
with  marvellous  stories  of  the  barbarian 
world.  This  arrested  the  attention  of  the 
nation  and  furthered  the  welcome  offered  the 
Europeans  who  came  to  Japan  for  purposes 


SCHOOL    EXCURSION   TO    NARA    PARK 


of  trade  and  religious  propaganda.  From 
1542  to  1637  Japan  was  under  the  influence 
of  the  Portuguese,  Spanish,  Dutch,  and 
iMiglish,  who  began  the  movement  toward 
overthrowing  the  intellectual  and  moral 
<lomination  of  China,  which  was  partially 
completed  by  the  colony  of  Dutch  inter- 
preters at  Nagasaki,  whose  influence  re- 
mained unbroken  over  Japan  from  161 1  to 
the  opening  of  the  country  in  1854.  From 
these  foreigners  Japan  gradually  becafne  con- 
scious of  the  greatness  and  necessity  of  a 
world  of  knowledge  yet  unacquired  by  her. 
As  she  listened  with  amazement  to  the  tales 
of  emprise  and  achievement  retailed  to  her 
by  such  men  as  Kaempfer  and  von  Siebold, 
curiosity  and  ambition  overthrew  the  walls 
of  conservatism,  until  not  only  were  the 
strangers  permitted  to  sojourn  in  the  land 
after  the  Spanish  and  Portuguese  had  been 
banished,  but  steps  were  taken  to  learn  all 
that  the  Dutch  could  teach. 

In  this  way  it  came  about  that  a  con- 
siderable knowledge  of  Occidental  arts  and 
crafts,  mathematics  and  medicine,  began 
to  circulate  throughout  the  Empire,  and  the 
sacrifices  made  by  the  youth  of  Japan  to 
obtain  what  information  the  foreigners 
could  impart  was  unprecedented  in  the 
experience  of  the  teachers.  The  circum- 
stances only  go  to  show  what  an  apt  pupil 
Japan  would  have  proved  had  she  not  been 
isolated  from  the  Europe  of  the  mediaeval 
period,  and  perhaps  by  this  time  might  have 
surpassed  the  Europe  of  to-day. 

Shortly  after  Commodore  Perry  had  suc- 
ceeded in  negotiating  his  treaty  of  amity  and 
intercourse  with  Japan,  a  deputation  of  the 
leading  minds  of  the  nation,  including  some 
of  the  more  brilliant  pupils  of  the  Dutch 
teachers  at  Nagasaki,  was  sent  abroad  to 
investigate  the  secrets  of  Occidental  prog- 
ress, and  to  report  on  Japan's  requirements 
for  successful  development  of  the  Empire 
and  efficient  competition  with  the  outside 
world.  Among  the  more  important  recom- 
mendations made  by  the  deputation  on  its 
return  was  the  establishment  of  a  modern 
system  of  education.  In  1869  an  ordinance 
relating  to  universities,  secondary  and  pri- 
mary education,  was  issued,  and  in  187 1  the 
first  Department  of  Education  was  organised 
for  the  supervision  of  the  schools  to  be  es- 
tablished throughout  the  Empire.  One  of 
the  most  important  articles  in  the  five  sec- 
tions of  the  Imperial  Oath  sworn  to  on  April 
6,  1868,  in  the  presence  of  the  Imperial 
Princes  and  other  high  personages  of  State, 
at  the  palace  in  Kyoto  was:  "Knowledge 
shall  be  sought  for  throughout  the  world, 
so  that  the  welfare  of  the  Empire  may  be 
promoted."  This  gave  the  keynote  to  the 
great      educational     change     that     rapidly 


388 


P  R  R  S  K  N  T  -  D  A  Y        IMPRESSIONS        OF        JAPAN 


followed  and  supplied  Japan  with  a  carefully 
devised  school  system.  In  1872  a  code  re- 
garding education  was  promulgated,  consist- 
ing of  one  hundred  and  nine  chapters,  dealing 
fully  with  all  subjects  connected  with  the 
establishment  of  the  new  system.  Educa- 
tion was  to  be  diffused  everywhere.  There 
was  not  to  be  a  village  with  an  ignorant 
family  nor  a  family  with  an  ignorant  member. 
The  system  put  into  force  was  based  on  the 
French  model.  The  whole  country  was 
divided  into  eight  educational  districts,  each 
to  have  one  university,  32  middle  schools, 
and  6,720  primary  schools,  or  one  elementary 
school  for  everj'  600  of  the  population. 
Superintendents  were  duly  appointed  to  see 
to  the  establishment  and  maintenance  of 
these  institutions. 

The  hastily  prepared,  cut-and-dried  sys- 
tem of  education  thus  imported  from  abroad 
and  imposed  upon  the  whole  Empire  proved 
immature,  however,  and,  as  it  was  thought 
•an  American  model  might  be  better  for 
Japan,  where  education  was  to  be  made 
universal,  educational  experts  were  sought 
from  that  countrj',  and  Dr.  David  Murray, 


SCHOOL    GIRLS 

of  the  Massachusetts  State  Department  of 
Education,  was  brought  out  to  reorganise 
the  new  system.  This  he  did  with  excellent 
effect,  establishing  schools  all  over  the  coun- 
try; but  the  authorities,  fearing  the  oppor- 
tunities afforded  for  the  development  of 
individuality  by  the  American  system,  later 
introduced  Prussian  models  as  being  more 
consistent  with  native  ideals.  From  the 
beginning  the  Japanese  insisted  on  having 
a  system  that  was  purely  utilitarian,  unas- 
sociated  with  religion.  No  distinction  was 
drawn  between  moral  and  intellectual  train- 
ing; which  was  quite  in  line  with  Shinto 
teaching  as  well  as  Confucianism,  that 
morals  are  for  barbarians,  a  Japanese  being 
so  inherently  moral  that  he  may  always  do 
what  he  thinks.  Although  religion  was 
rigidly  excluded  from  the  new  system  of  edu- 
cation, the  pupils  in  Japanese  schools  are 
brought  to  worship  at  the  national  shrines, 
which  the  authorities  insist  is  not  associat- 
ing religion  with  education.  It  is  clear  that 
the  educational  authorities  of  Japan  were 
from  the  first,  if  not  suspicious  of  foreign 
ideas,  yet  very  restless  under  foreign  guid- 


ance, as  they  always  are;  and  consequently 
students  were  early  sent  abroad  to  famil- 
iarise themselves  with  American  and  Euro- 
pean methods  of  education,  that  they  might 
return  and  adapt  these  methods  to  Japanese 
ideas  as  far  as  was  consistent  with  national 
ideals.  It  is  rather  difficult,  however,  to 
Japanise  the  truth;  and,  with  Western  con- 
ceptions of  education,  and  foreign  influence 
generally,  constantly  filtering  into  the  coun- 
try, the  notions  of  science,  religion,  and 
human  freedom  that  consequently  began  to 
grow,  threatened  the  native  cosmogony  and 
tended  to  disturb  traditional  tenets  as  to 
monarchy  and  government.  Therefore,  with 
a  view  to  controlling  these  alleged  "danger- 
ous thoughts,"  as  they  were  called,  the  regu- 
lations pertaining  to  education  were  revised 
in  1880,  the  discipline  and  management  of 
students  being  made  more  rigid  and  strict, 
which,  however,  did  not  seem  to  bring  about 
the  desired  effect,  as  school  discipline  in 
Japan  is  anything  but  good,  and  school 
strikes  are  an  increasing  feature  of  educa- 
tion. The  conservative  reaction  against 
the  new  code  was  so  strong  that   the  entire 


P  R  E  S  R  N  T  -  n  A  V        I   M   I>  K  E  S  S  I  O  N  S 


O  F 


I  A  P  A  N 


389 


educational  code  was  revised  once  more  in 
1886,  an  Imperial  Ordinance  was  again  issued 
in  relation  to  universities,  middle  and  normal 
schools,  and  inspection  was  made  more  exact- 
ing. The  new  trend  in  education  was 
appropriately  marked  by  the  employment 
of  a  German  to  take  the  place  of  an  American 
in  the  Teachers'  Training  College  for  those 
of  higher  grade,  and  soon  military  and 
physical  training  was  added  to  the  curricula 
of  the  various  schools.  The  Prussian  ideals 
of  education  then  introduced  as  being  more 
consistent  with  Japanese  nationality,  still 
obtain  with  increasing  emphasis,  whereby 
the  individual  is  a  mere  lump  of  dough  to 
be  modelled  into  whatever  shape  the  author- 
ities may  decide,  independently  of  will 
and  individual  fitness.  All  pupils  are  now 
turned  into  a  machine  from  which  after  a 
prescribed  time  they  are  turned  out,  all  after 
the  same  pattern,  models  of  absolute  sub- 
servience to  authority,  recognising  no  other 
duty  and  claiming  no  other  rights;  but 
grossly  ignorant  of  the  first  principles  of 
citizenship  and  good  government,  as  under- 
stood in  Western  countries.  The  defects  of 
Japanese  education  have  been  frequently 
pointed  out  by  leaders  of  thought  in  Japan, 
and  need  not  here  be  specially  dwelt  upon. 
To  correct  the  dangers  arising  from  West- 
ern ideas  of  education  and  form  a  statement 
of  Japanese  ideals  on  which  all  education 
in  future  might  be  safely  based,  the  follow- 
ing  Imperial    Rescript    was   issued  in  1890: 

"Know  ye.  Our  subjects: 

"Our  Imperial  Ancestors  have  founded 
Our  Empire  on  a  basis  broad  and  everlast- 
ing and  have  deeply  and  firmly  implanted 
virtue;  Our  subjects,  ever  united  in  loyalty 
and  fiUal  piety,  have  from  generation  to 
generation  illustrated  the  beauty  thereof. 
This  is  the  glory  of  the  fundamental  char- 
acter of  Our  Empire  and  herein  hes  the 
source  of  Our  education.  Ye,  Our  subjects, 
be  filial  to  your  parents,  affectionate  to  your 
brothers  and  sisters;  as  husbands  and  wives 
be  harmonious;  as  friends,  true;  bear  your- 
selves in  modesty  and  moderation;  extend 
your  benevolence  to  all;  pursue  learning  and 
cultivate  arts,  and  thereby  develop  intel- 
lectual faculties  and  perfect  moral  powers; 
furthermore,  advance  public  good  and  pro- 
mote common  interests;  always  respect  the 
Constitution  and  observe  the  laws;  should 
emergency  arise  ofTer  yourselves  courage- 
ously to  the  State;  and  thus  guard  and  main- 
tain the  prosperity  of  Our  Imperial  Throne 
coeval  with  Heaven  and  Earth.  So  shall 
ye  not  only  be  Our  good  and  faithful  subjects, 
but  render  illustrious  the  best  traditions  of 
your  forefathers. 

"The   way   here   set   forth   is  indeed    the 


"home  lessons' 


teaching  bequeathed  by  Our  Imperial  An- 
cestors, to  be  observed  alike  by  Their  De- 
scendants and  Their  Subjects,  infallible  for 
all  ages  and  true  in  all  places.  It  is  Our 
wish  to  lay  it  to  heart  in  all  reverence,  in 
common  with  you  Our  Subjects,  that  we  may 
all  attain  to  the  same  virtue." 

"The  30th  day  of  the  23rd  year  of  Meiji." 
(October  30,    1890) 

(Imperial  Sign  Manual.     Imperial  Seal.) 

A  copy  of  the  above  rescript  is  distributed 
by  the  Department  of  Education  to  each 
school  in  the  Empire,  and  is  kept  in  a  sacred 
place,  with  photographs  of  the  Emperor  and 


Empress;  and  on  all  imijortant  public  occa- 
sions they  are  brought  out,  when  the  assem- 
bled school  hears  the  reading  of  the  Imperial 
Rescript  and  bows  before  the  imperial  por- 
traits, the  function  being  regarded  as  the 
most  solemn  that  can  take  place.  Cases  are 
on  record  where  teachers  and  school  officials 
have  given  their  lives  to  save  the  imperial 
pictures  from  fire  or  other  destruction,  the 
victim  being  accorded  the  rank  of  a  hero 
forever. 

Education  in  Japan,  being  considered  one 
of  the  most  important  functions  of  the 
State,  is  entirely  under  Government  control. 
The  department  charged  with  these  duties 


PHYSICAL    DRILL    BY    GIRLS    .\T    .\    SCHOOL    DEMONSTR.\TIO.\,    YOKOH.\M.\ 


26 


390 


PRESENT-DAY        I  M   I'  K  K  S  S  I  O  N  S        OF        JAPAN 


bl-OKlS    AT   WASEDA    UNIVERSITY 

is  under  the  Minister  of  Education  who 
directly  or  indirectly  supervises  the  whole 
educational  system  of  the  Empire.  It  is  to 
be  noticed  that  in  Japan  education  is  not 
based  on  laws  passed  by  the  national  legis- 
lature, but  on  Imperial  Ordinances  issued 
by  the  Emperor  on  recommendation  of  the 
cabinet  after  being  submitted  to  the  Privy 
Council.  The  people,  therefore,  have  no 
voice  in  how  their  children  are  to  be  edu- 
cated. 

japan's  educational  system  to-day 
The  educational  system  of  Japan  as  it 
stands  at  present  may  be  said  to  have  its 
basis  in  a  patriotic  and  aggressive  mate- 
rialism. Its  controlling  motive  is  undoubt- 
edly utilitarian  rather  than  the  improvement 
of  morals  or  the  acquirement  of  culture.  Its 
most  glaring  weakness  is  that  it  fails  to  draw 
out  and  develop  the  natural  powers  to  the 
same  extent  that  it  succeeds  in  cramming 
the  mind  of  the  rising  generation  with  a  vast 
collection  of  all  sorts  of  unrelated  and  undi- 
gested facts  about  the  science  of  the  modern 
world,  and  the  general  affairs  of  Occidental 
life.  The  Japanese  apparently  have  not  yet 
reached  that  period  of  national  evolution 
where  they  are  so  much  concerned  with 
man's  potentialities  or  his  place  in  the  uni- 
verse, as  they  are  with  their  own  destiny  on 
earth  and  the  best  means  of  ensuring  it. 
Education  in  Japan  is  not  influenced  by  any 
profound  philosophy  of  life,  nor  by  religion 
in  any  sense  that  the  West  would  not  regard 
as  superstitious.  There  are,  of  course,  here 
and  there  some  hopeful  indications  of  a 
change,  especially  since  the  war  with  Russia 
and  the  unprecedented  conflict  in  Europe, 
both  of  which  have  given  Japan  much  food 
for  thought.  From  an  educational  point  of 
view,  however,  these  two  great  events  in 
human  history  leave  Japan  still  seriously 
confused.  The  victory  over  Russia  was 
ascribed  to  the  superiority  of  the  Japanese 
spirit  under  impetus  from  the  spirits  of  the 
Imperial  Ancestors,  but  the  war  in  Europe 
has  shown  that  the  spirit  of  the  Anglo-Saxon 
is  in  no  sense  inferior  to  that  of  the  Japanese. 


This  will  doubtless  lead  th?  more  intelligent 
of  Japanese  educationists  to  lay  greater 
stress  on  the  moral  side  of  human  culture, 
while  the  war  itself  must  prove  to  Japan  that 
real  education  implies  ap])lication  as  much 
as  theory  and  the  mere  acquirement  of 
facts. 

Apart  from  the  weaknesses  above  indi- 
cated, the  educational  system  of  modern 
Japan  is  fairl}'  fulfilling  the  aim  of  its  founders 
and  directors.  The  aim  which  it  emphasises 
is  a  general  education  for  the  masses,  a  special 
education  for  the  professions,  and  a  technical 
education  for  industry  and  trade,  each  of 
these  branches  of  education  being  divided 
into  three  grades:  primary,  secondary,  and 
higher  education.  The  system  of  general 
education  is  supposed  to  impart  the  knowl- 
edge and  training  essential  to  every  citizen 
without  reference  to  any  particular  occu- 
pation or  calling.  It  is  entrusted  for  the 
most  part  to  the  primary  schools,  to  which 
all  the  children  of  the  nation  must  go.  In 
this  respect  Japanese  education  may  be  said 


SPORTS    at    WASEDA    UNIVERSITY 

to  resemble  that  of  the  United  States, 
though  apart  from  universality  the  resem- 
blance ceases.  The  middle  schools  of  Japan 
are  nothing  more  than  the  primary  schools 
carried  to  a  higher  grade.  Special  education 
has  to  do  with  instruction  in  science  and  art 
for  the  promotion  of  social  and  industrial 
progress:  it  provides  specialists  in  law, 
politics,  medicine,  science,  literature,  music, 
painting,  and  pedagogy.  Technical  educa- 
tion comprises  the  knowledge  necessary  to 
farmers,  mechanics,  artisans,  merchants  and 
others,  for  which  the  nation  has  provided 
agricultvu-al  schools,  technical  schools,  and 
commercial  schools,  of  various  grades.  In 
addition  to  the  schools  under  the  Board  of 
Education  there  are  schools  in  connection 
with  the  Imperial  Household  Department, 
the  Army  and  Navy,  the  Department  of 
Home  Affairs,  and  the  Department  of  Com- 
munications ;  and  there  are  numerous  private 
schools  corresponding  in  purpose  and  grade 
to  the  various  Government  schools  alread)' 
mentioned. 


It  will  thus  be  seen  that  the  educational 
system  of  Japan  divides  its  common  schools 
into  three  grades;  elementary,  secondary,  and 
high  schools.  These,  together  with  four 
imperial  universities  and  various  special  and 
technical  schools,  form  the  main  educational 
forces  under  direct  control  of  the  Govern- 
ment. Of  course  it  must  be  remembered 
that  all  education  in  Japan  is  more  or  less 
under  official  supervision,  including  even 
private  schools  if  they  desire  recognition 
from  the  Department  of  Education,  and  this 
all  do  desire,  since  without  it  the  graduates  of 
such  schools  would  stand  no  chance  of 
appointments.  For  the  more  careful  control 
of  national  education  the  Department  of 
Education  has  three  bureaux,  known  as  the 
Bureau  of  General  Education,  the  Bureau 
of  Special  Education,  and  the  Bureau  of 
Religion,  the  latter  surely  being  an  anomaly 
in  a  land  that  ostensibly  insists  in  separating 
religion  and  education  in  theor}-  while  inter- 
fering to  some  extent  with  religion  in  practice. 
The  school  age  in  Japan  is  from  six  to 
fourteen,  the  child  entering  the  primary 
school  on  completing  the  sixth  year,  and  there 
attendance  is  compulsorj-  for  the  next  six 
years  of  life,  during  which  time  the  pupil  must 
apply  the  mind  studiously  for  five  hours  a 
da\-,  six  days  a  week,  with  rest  on  Sundays 
and  national  holidays  and  about  one  month 
in  summer.  The  Japanese,  however,  regard 
holidays  as  a  sign  of  inferiority  physically  and 
do  not  encourage  them,  some  schools  insisting 
on  lessons  during  the  unbearable  heat  of 
summer,  the  pupils  attending  naked.  Before 
entering  the  primary  school,  pupils  may 
attend  kindergartens,  if  there  be  any  in  the 
neighbourhood,  but  in  Japan  such  schools 
are  yet  in  a  nascent  stage,  there  being  no 
more  than  535  in  the  w'hole  Empire,  with 
45,000  pupils  and  1,535  teachers.  The  ele- 
mentary schools  are  of  two  kinds,  known  as 
the  ordinary  and  the  higher,  but  in  many 
instances  both  are  in  the  same  building. 
Children  are  universally  under  compulsion  to 
attend  the  ordinary  elementary  school  for 
six  years;  and  then  if  they  do  not  intend  to 
proceed  to  the  middle  school,  they  may  take 


sports    at    WASEDA    UNIVERSITY 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


391 


further  advanced  courses  in  the  local  higher 
elementary  school.  The  existence  of  private 
elementary  schools  side  by  side  with  public 
schools  of  the  same  grade  is  recognised  by 
law,  provided  such  schools  are  subject  to 
Oovcrnment  supervision.  As  a  rule  the 
rliililreii  of  all  classes  attend  the  same  school, 
tliough  there  is  a  distinct  movement  toward 
providing  separate  private  schools  for  children 
of  the  better  classes,  especially  in  female 
education.  Every  locality  is  bound  to  make 
provision  for  all  the  children  within  its  juris- 
diction, but  arrangements  are  made  by  which 
several  small  communities  may  combine  in 
a  school  union,  bearing  the  costs  of  primary 
schools  for  several  villages,  each  village 
sharing  proportionately  the  expenses.  Some- 
times school  grants  are  afforded  to  poor 
districts  by  the  county  authorities.  The 
higher  elementary  school  course  as  a  rule 
extends  over  two  or  three  years,  according 
to  the  decree  of  the  local  authorities,  and  a 
small  fee  may  be  charged.  About  65  per 
cent  of  primary  education  in  Japan  is  repre- 
sented by  schools  of  the  lower  grade,  while 
35  per  cent  would  represent  those  combining 
the  higher  standard.  In  [primary  schools 
boys  and  girls  may  be  taught  together  or  the 
sexes  may  be  in  separate  classes.  The  num- 
ber of  elementary  schools  is  now  25,615,  with 
'57i285  teachers  and  7,095,755  pupils.  The 
curriculum  embraces  instruction  in  Japanese 
morals,  Japanese  language,  arithmetic,  Japa- 
nese history,  geography,  science,  drawing, 
singing,  gymnastics,  and  sewing  for  girls, 
with  manual  training  for  boys,  and  during 
the  last  three  years  of  the  course  the  following 
subjects  are  added:  agriculture,  commerce, 
and  English  language,  the  latter  depending  on 
local  circumstances.  Although  the  teaching 
hours  must  number  at  least  from  21  to  32 
per  week  according  to  age,  in  certain  schools 
18  hours  a  week  may  be  permitted,  and  in 
the  case  of  young  children  12  hours  a  week. 
All  text  books  are  provided  by  the  Depart- 
ment of  Education  and  purchased  by  the 
pupils,  the  subjects  being  treated  carefully 
from  a  native  point  of  view.  Owing  to  the 
strict  regulations  attendance  is  very  regular 
and  satisfactory  at  elementary  schools, 
reaching,  as  it  does,  a  total  of  98.16  per  cent, 
as  may  be  seen  from  the  following  table: 


coed  to  the  middle  school,  thougli  there  is 
not  always  sufTieient  accommodation  to 
receive  them.  From  and  including  the 
middle  school  upward  the  education  of  the 
sexes  in  Japan  is  strictly  separate,  and  even 
the  schools  are  of  different  standard,  that  for 
girls  being  lower.  At  present  there  are  only 
318  middle  schools  for  boys  in  the  whole 
Empire,  with  6,276  teachers  and  131,846 
pupils,  indicating  an  accommodation  cer- 
tainly inadequate  for  a  population  of  57,000,- 
000  people.  The  subject  of  educational 
provision  is  all  the  more  pressing  when  it  is 
remembered  that  the  Japanese  system  is 
like  a  machine,  and  unless  one  passes  through 
the  entrance  he  is  not  permitted  to  issue  at 
the  exit;  and  all  young  men  who  hope  to 
seciu-e  employment  under  the  Government  in 
any  capacity,  or  in  banks,  schools,  and  the 
higher  circles  of  commerce  and  industry,  as 
well  as  those  who  hope  to  get  a  university 
education,  must  first  pass  through  the  middle 
school.  The  method  of  limiting  numbers  is 
by  severe  competitive  examinations,  with 
the  result  that  nearly  50  per  cent  of  the  youth 
of  the  nation,  anxious  and  ready  for  higher 
education,  are  precluded  from  ever  realising 
their  ambitions  in  this  direction,  and  through 
no  fault  of  their  own.  Lack  of  school 
accommodation  is  one  of  the  greatest  disa- 
bilities that  the  rising  generation  of  Japan 
has  to  face ;  but  so  long  as  the  main  volume  of 
expenditure  is  devoted  to  armamental  expan- 
sion there  is  no  hope  of  relief.  As  the  Gov- 
ernment spends  little  more  than  10,000,000 
yen  annually  on  education,  it  has  been 
suggested  that  the  present  deficiency  in 
school  accommodation  could  be  met  by  doing 
with  one  gunboat  the  less.  Many  an  ambi- 
tion cruelly  nipped  in  the  bud  by  lack  of 
facilities  for  education  has  led  to  suicide,  or 
a  life  of  dissipation  equally  ruinous.  Over 
against  the  Government  outlay  on  education 
we  have  some  80,000,000  yen  spent  by  the 
people  themselves  every  year,  which  amply 
indicates  the  interest  being  taken  in  the 
subject  by  the  people  of  the  Empire. 

Japanese  boys  enter  the  middle  school  at 
the  age  of  12,  having  first  completed  the  six 
years  required  at  the  elementary  school,  and 
they  must  then  pass  through  a  course  of  study 
covering   five   years,   with   a   supplementary 


Children  of  School  Age 

Children  at  School 

Aver.^ge 

Boys 

Girls 

Total 

Boys 

Girls 

Total 

Boys 

Girls 

Av. 

3.854.376 

3.558,792 

7.4 1 3. 1 68 

3,805,817 

3.471. 107 

7.276,924 

98.74 

97-54 

98.16 

From  the  elementary  school,  in  which  the 
vast  majority  of  the  children  of  Japan  com- 
plete their  education,  those  desiring,  and 
able  to  afford,  a  higher  course  of  study,  pro- 


course  not  exceeding  one  year  in  duration. 
In  Japan  the  main  difficulty  is  to  get  into  a 
school;  there  appears  to  be  none  in  leaving  it. 
In  other  words,  the  entrance  examination  is 


much  more  important  than  tlic  graduating 
examination,  as  few  matriculants  are  success- 
ful, but  all  invariably  graduate.  This  is 
doubtless  because  room  can  not  be  afforded 
for  keeping  a  student  to  take  his  course  over 
again,  on  account  of  the  number  waiting  to 
enter,  and  the  result  is  that  hundreds  of 
young  men  possess  diplomas  who  are  not  up 
to  the  standard  entitled  to  them.  Education 
is  thus  turned  into  a  process  of  putting  in  the 
required  time,  rather  than  in  mastering  and 
applying  the  required  knowledge  and  culture, 
which  again  quite  corresponds  with  a  theory 
of  education  that  involves  cramming  instead 
of  educating  individual  ability  and  talent. 
The  middle  school  curriculum  requires  over 
30  hours  a  week  of  study,  which  includes 
Japanese  morals,  Japanese  language,  Chinese 
classics,  either  the  English  or  German  lan- 
guage, history,  geography,  arithmetic,  natural 
history,  physics,  chemistry,  drawing,  singing, 
and  gymnastics,  including  military  drill. 
The  regulations  also  provide  for  instruction 
in  law  and  enonomics,  but  the  hours  for  these 
subjects  may  be  devoted  to  foreign  languages, 
while  singing  may  be  omitted.  Great  stress 
is  laid  on  the  Japanese  language,  and  on  the 
Chinese  classics,  the  one  being  essential  to 
success  in  practical  life,  and  the  other  to  an 
understanding  of  Confucian  morals.  Next  in 
importance  come  modern  languages,  chiefly 
English,  for  which  the  more  important  middle 
schools  employ  a  foreign  instructor  in  addi- 
tion to  native  teachers.  There  are  numerous 
private  middle  schools  besides  those  under 
official  auspices,  all  being  subject  to  the  same 
supervision,  and  many  of  them  supported  by 
foreign  mission  boards. 

Graduates  of  middle  schools,  who  wish  to 
enter  the  teaching  profession,  must  enter  a 
normal  school,  men  and  women  proceeding  to 
separate  institutions,  where  they  take  a 
course  of  five  years  morality,  pedagogics, 
Japanese  language,  Chinese  literature,  Eng- 
lish language,  history,  geography,  mathemat- 
ics, natural  historj-,  physics,  chemistry,  law, 
economics,  penmanship,  drawing,  manual 
training,  music,  and  gymnastics  or  driU,  the 
only  optional  subject  being  English.  They 
have  to  study  31  out  of  the  34  hours  per  week 
on  the  curriculum.  In  connection  with  each 
normal  school  is  an  elementarj'  school  in 
which  prospective  teachers  practise.  Tuition 
in  normal  schools  is  free,  and  students  are 
provided  with  board  and  clothing,  in  return 
for  which  they  must  serve  as  teachers  for  a 
certain  period  in  the  locahty  where  they  have 
been  trained.  In  normal  schools  great  stress 
is  laid  on  rigid  discipline  and  on  militan,' 
training.  There  are  also  two  higher  normal 
schools,  one  in  Tokyo  and  one  in  Hiro- 
shima, with  others  for  women,  all  having  a 
course  of  four  years.  There  are  two  kinds  of 


392 


P  R  K  S  K  N  T  -  n  A  Y 


M  I'  R  n;  s  s  I  o  N  s      of      j  a  I'  a  n 


certificates  for  teachers,  General  Certificates 
granted  by  the  Department  of  Education 
and  vahd  anywhere  throughout  the  Empire, 
and  Prefectural  Certificates,  available  only 
in  the  prefecture  where  they  have  been  issued. 
In  addition,  there  are  certificates  for  regular 
teachers,  assistant  teachers,  and  special 
teachers,  each  carefully  indicating  the  grade 
of  school  where  the  holder  may  be  employed. 
The  number  of  ordinary  normal  schools  for 
men  is  86,  in  addition  to  the  two  higher 
institutions  already  mentioned,  and  the 
number  of  teachers  is  1,623,  with  27,928 
])upils.  Of  girls'  higher  normal  schools  there 
are  also  two,  with  126  teachers  and  689 
students.  Girls  attend  the  ordinary  normal 
schools  in  separate  classes  from  the  boys. 
In  spite  of  the  years  of  training  afforded,  the 
native  teacher  is  regarded  as,  on  the  whole, 
rather  inefficient,  due  possibly  to  the 
methods  already  indicated  in  the  case  of 
Japanese  education  generally.  It  is  impos- 
sible for  the  Prussian  system  in  vogue  to 
escape  from  being  mechanical,  carefully 
following  rules  and  regulations  rather  than 
pursuing  reason  and  progress,  with  careful 
application  and  development  of  initiative. 
The  Japanese  now  regard  themselves  as  equal 
to  Western  nations  in  pedagogical  attain- 
ments and  no  longer  employ  foreign  experts 
in  this  department,  except  as  instructors  in 
language  only.  But  no  one  familiar  with 
Japanese  education  can  avoid  the  conviction 
that  the  system  has  still  much  to  learn  from 
Western  countries,  especially  in  the  science 
of  teaching.  This  is  now  sought  by  sending 
Japanese  teachers  abroad  for  a  short  time  to 
acquaint  themselves  with  methods  adopted 
by  experts  in  England,  Germany,  and  the 
United  States,  but  it  requires  a  man  of  unus- 
ual ability  and  natural  talent  to  gain  much 
from  a  brief  sojourn  under  foreign  educators. 
Much  more  practical  would  it  be  to  have 
British  or  American  pedagogical  experts  in 
Japanese  normal  schools,  to  collaborate  with 
native  instntctors  as  to  methods  of  teaching. 
But  as  Western  schools  of  education  do  not 
adopt  this  method,  Japan  considers  it  likely 
to  create  a  misunderstanding  as  to  her 
advancement  to  do  so.  All  normal  schools 
in  Japan,  whether  under  prefectures  or  the 
Government,  must  have  a  Government 
director,  paid  by  the  Department  of  Educa- 
tion. There  are  eleven  school  inspectors 
under  the  same  department,  whose  duties  are 
mainly  connected  with  supervision  of  primary 
schools,  but  there  is  still  greater  need  for  more 
efficient  inspection  in  regard  to  middle  and 
higher   schools. 

The  Japanese  high  schools  were  established 
for  the  purpose  of  preparing  pupils  in  a  special 
way  for  entrance  to  the  various  colleges  of  the 
imperial  universities.     Of   these  institutions 


COMMEMl)R.\T10N    H.\1,I.,    W.\SED.\    UNIVERSITY  —  LECTURE    H.\l,L    OF    THE    MEIJI    LXIVERSITY  — 

JOCHI   UNIVERSITY,   TOKYO 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


393 


thiTc  art:  now  t'l^Iit,  cmil'  each  at  Tokyo,  Scn- 
dai,  Kyoto,  Kaiiazavva,  Kmnamoto,  Kago- 
shiina,  Okaj'ama,  and  Nagoya.  The  high 
schools  lay  emi^hasis  chiefly  on  three  phases  of 
university  study:  the  faculties  of  Law  and  Lit- 
erature, of  Pharmacy  and  Medicine,  and  of 
Science  and  Engineering;  in  all  of  which  tht: 
principal  subjects  arc  ethics,  Japanese  lan- 
guage, English,  Chinese  and  German,  or 
French,  each  course  affording  facilities  for 
sijccialising  according  to  the  department  the 


in  foreign  language's.  All  the  graduates  of 
high  schools  do  not  proceed  to  the  university, 
of  course,  as  these  institutions  are  also 
regarded  as  schools  where  men  of  talent  arc 
prepared  for  the  Government  services  and 
higher  callings  of  life.  In  addition  to  the 
national  high  schools  there  arc  five  commer- 
cial high  schools  which  turn  out  hundreds  of 
graduates  annually  for  the  ranks  of  trade  and 
industry.  At  the  eight  national  high  schools 
there  are  358  instructors,  with  6,^,^9  students. 


university  at  Kyoto  still  lacks  a  faculty  of 
Agriculture,  but  has  172  instructors  and  1,707 
students;  while  the  University  of  Tohoku, 
with  colleges  of  Science,  Agriculture,  Medi- 
cine, and  Engineering,  has  187  instructors 
and  1,945  students.  The  new  university 
established  at  Fukuoka  in  Kyushu  in  1910 
has  only  79  teachers,  and  595  students 
enrolled,  having  as  yet  only  the  two  colleges, 
one  of  Medicine  and  one  of  Engineering. 
The  average  age  at  which  students  enter  the 


TECHNICAL    SCHOOL,    TOKYO    IMriiRI.\L    UMNLKMTV — THE    LAW   COLLEGE,    TOKYO   IMPERI.YL    U.VIVERSITY 


student  expects  to  enter  at  the  university.  In 
the  section  concerned  with  Literature  and 
Law,  for  instance,  the  principal  subjects  are 
history,  logic,  mental  philosophy,  elementary 
law,  political  economy  and  so  on,  while  in  the 
medical  section  stress  is  laid  mostly  on  mathe- 
matics, physics,  chemistry,  zoology,  botany, 
and  drawing,  while  in  the  third  section 
geology  and  mineralogy  are  more  important 
than  zoology  and  botany.  Here  also  accom- 
modation is  sadly  limited,  the  rigid  competi- 
tive examinations  excluding  thousands  of 
ambitious  youths  who  are  unable  to  gratify 
their  thirst  for  higher  education.  The  high 
schools  devote  much  attention  to  instruction 


There  are  at  present  four  Imperial  Univer- 
sities in  Japan:  one  each  at  Tokyo,  Kyoto, 
and  Kyushu,  and  the  University  of  Tohoku, 
in  the  north.  The  Tokyo  University,  which 
is  the  most  important,  was  established  in 
1877,  arising  from  an  amalgamation  of  older 
colleges.  It  was  created  an  Imperial  Univer- 
sity in  1886  and  assumed  its  final  form  in 
1890.  It  now  consists  of  a  University  Hall, 
a  College  of  Law,  a  College  of  Medicine,  a 
College  cf  Literature,  and  a  College  of  Science 
and  Engineering  and  of  Agriculture.  At 
present  the  number  of  instructors  at  the 
various  colleges  of  the  Imperial  Tokyo 
University  is  377,  with  4,993  students.     The 


university  is  about  twenty-three,  and  as  they 
have  to  spend  four  years  at  the  institution 
they  are  nearly  thirty  before  entering  upon 
their  life's  work.  This  is  regarded  as  a 
disadvantage,  which  the  authorities  are 
endeavouring  to  obviate.  There  is  also  a 
Woman's  University  in  Tokyo,  which  is  of 
lower  grade  than  the  usual  institution  under 
that  name.  Tokyo  also  has  several  private 
universities,  such  as  the  Keiogijuku,  founded 
by  the  late  Mr.  Fukuzawa,  which  has  faculties 
of  Law,  Politics,  Economics,  Medicine,  and 
Literature,  and  the  Meiji  University  and 
VVaseda  University,  with  the  same  faculties 
with     the     exception    of    Medicine.     There 


394 


PRESENT-DAY        TNrPRESSIONS        OF        JAPAN 


are  some  thirty-four  others  of  university 
standard  but  possessing  only  one  or  two 
faculties,  the  most  important  of  which  is  the 
Doshisha  in  Kyoto.  The  Christian  Church, 
as  represented  by  various  foreign  mission 
boards,  is  contemplating  the  establishment 
of  a  first-class  university  in  Tokj'o  under 
Christian  auspices  to  meet  the  deficiency  in 
university  accommodation  in  Japan,  but 
whether  this  movement  will  come  to  anything 
remains  to  be  seen. 

Japan  has  numerous  other  schools  of 
various  kinds.  There  are  six  schools  of 
medicine,  with  three  other  medical  schools 
established  by  prefectures,  to  say  nothing 
of  private  schools  of  medicine,  the  period 
of  study  at  which  is  four  years  for  medicine 
and  three  for  pharmacy.  To  each  govern- 
ment medical  school  a  hospital  is  attached 
and  every  equipment  is  provided  for  a  com- 
plete medical  education.  The  graduates  of 
these  colleges,  however,  are  below  those  from 
the  schools  of  medicine  connected  with  the 
Imperial  Universities,  as  they  lack  the  pre- 
jiaratory  high  school  education  and  pro- 
ficiency in  foreign  languages.  The  Govern- 
ment also  provides  a  school  of  foreign  lan- 
guages in  Tokyo,  where  practical  instruction 
is  given  both  by  native  and  foreign  teachers 
in  English,  German,  French,  Italian,  Spanish, 
Russian,  Chinese,  Korean,  Tamil,  Hindu- 
stani, Mongolian,  and  Malay,  the  course 
taking  three  years.  For  this  school  also  the 
number  of  applicants  is  far  more  than  can 
be  admitted.  For  the  education  of  students 
in  technical  subjects  fourteen  colleges  are 
established  in  various  parts  of  the  Empire, 
and  there  are  also  many  others  of  secondary 
and  primary  grade.  There  are  also  schools 
for  mechanics,  dyeing,  weaving,  architecture, 
chemistry,  mining,  metallurgy,  and  com- 
merce, the  usual  course  being  three  years, 
with  facilities  for  postgraduate  work.  The 
higher  education  of  women  is  provided  by 
girls'  high  schools  and  the  one  woman's 
imivcrsity,  already  mentioned.  There  are 
33"  girls'  higher  schools,  which  are  practically 
only  of  middle-school  grade,  having  4,118 
teachers  and  83,287  pupils.  The  education 
of  women  is  still  more  or  less  neglected  in 
Japan,  though  there  are  efficient  higher 
schools  under  private  auspices,  such  as  the 
Toranomon  School,  and  the  Peeresses'  School, 
as  well  as  various  mission  schools  for  girls. 
Under  the  influence  of  Buddhist  and  Con- 
fucian teaching  the  women  of  Japan  have 
been  for  centuries  relegated  to  a  secondary 
position,  their  chief  duty  being  as  faithful 
wives  and  devoted  mothers.  With  the  ad- 
vancement of  civilisation,  however,  and  a 
greater  division  of  labour,  the  Japanese 
woman  is  coming  to  the  front  as  a  com- 
petitor with  man  in  the  ranks  of  trade  and 


industry,  and,  as  for  this  some  special  edu- 
cation is  necessarj',  more  attention  is  now 
being  given  to  the  provision  of  schools  for 
women   in  Japan. 

One  of  the  greatest  handicaps  of  Japanese 
education  is  the  immense  disadvantage  under 
which  the  child  labours  in  having  to  devote 
so  much  time  to  the  memorising  of  the  thou- 
sands of  Chinese  ideographs  that  he  must 
know  before  being  able  to  read.  The  diffi- 
culty might  easily  be  obviated  by  the  sub- 
stitution of  the  Roman  alphabet  for  the 
native  characters,  but  prejudice  is  yet  too 
powerful  and  ingrained  to  permit  this,  and 
thus  the  mind  of  the  rising  generation  is 
cramped  and  burdened  by  unprogressive 
labour,  until  at  the  age  of  even  fourteen 
ability  to  read  a  book  or  newspaper  is  still 
unattained,  all  the  early  portion  of  youth 
being  enslaved  to  merely  memorising  word- 
pictures  that  could  much  more  readily  be 
known  from  the  twenty-six  letters  of  the 
Occidental  alphabet.  A  movement  has  been 
started  to  save  the  three  years  of  every 
Japanese  child's  life  wasted  in  memorising 
Chinese  characters,  though  it  is  discourag- 
ing to  find  that  it  has  made  so  httle  progress. 
For  international  reasons,  too,  it  is  very 
necessary  that  Japan  should  adopt  a  modern 
system  of  writing,  since  the  use  of  ideo- 
graphs is  always  a  positive  deterrent  to  a 
study  of  the  Japanese  language  by  Western 
nations. 

The  following  statistics  show  the  number 
of  Japanese  schools,  teachers,  and  pupils  in 
the  year  1916: 


higher  remuneration.  The  foreign  teacher, 
however,  is  at  present  somewhat  at  a  dis- 
count in  Japan,  and  there  is  little  to  encour- 
age those  of  higher  standing  and  ability  to 
undertake  service  in  this  country,  as  the 
work  has  no  future.  Even  in  the  Imperial 
Universities  there  are  no  professors  of  English 
now,  although  that  is  the  chief  foreign  lan- 
guage, the  foreigners  employed  there  being 
relegated  to  the  rank  of  instructors,  or 
assistants  to  the  Japanese  professors,  who 
regard  themselves  as  quite  capable  of  lectur- 
ing on  English  language  and  literature. 
The  whole  system  of  foreign-language  teach- 
ing in  Japan  is  admittedly  quite  unsatis- 
factory, simply  because  most  of  those  engaged 
at  it  are  not  teachers  in  the  modem  scientific 
sense  of  the  term,  and  the  Japanese  system 
does  not  allow  the  student  proper  oppor- 
tunities for  language  study. 

OUTLAY  ON  EDUCATION 
In  Japan  education  is  not  free  except  for 
the  absolutely  poor  and  indigent,  most  of 
the  schools  charging  a  small  fee,  which  in 
elementary  schools  amounts  to  about  ten  sen 
per  month  in  rural  districts  and  twenty  sen 
in  urban  districts,  while  the  fee  for  higher 
grades  is  thirty  sen  for  the  country  and 
sixty  for  the  city.  Of  the  total  number  of 
children  attending  school  in  1916,  24,578 
were  exempted  from  fees,  and  107,030 
partially  exempted.  The  salaries  paid  in 
elementary  schools  are  much  too  small  to 
command  either  ability  or  efficiency,  the 
average  being  about  eighteen  yen  a  month. 


Institutkin 

Elementary  schools 

Middle  schools  (boys) 

Middle  schools  (girls) 

High  schools 

Nonnal  schools 

Higher  normal  schools  (men).  .  . 
Higher  normal  schools  (women) 

Imperial  universities 

Special  schools  (high) 

Technical  high  schools 

Technical  common  schools 

Teachers'  training  institutes. .  .  . 

Sericultural  schools 

Other  schools 

Total 


Number 


25,615 

3i« 

330 

8 

86 

2 

2 

4 

17 

I'l 

531 

5 

2 

2,532 


29,471 


Te.achers 


157,285 
6,276 
4,118 

35s 

1,623 

126 

96 

815 

1,991 

673 

4,639 

26 

48 

7,633 


185,707 


Pupils 


7,095,755 

131,846 

83,287 

6,359 
27,928 

1,077 
689 

9,572 

30,109 

7,098 

80,922 

339 

338 

154,429 


7,629,748 


The  number  of  foreigners  employed  in 
Japanese  Government  schools  is  now  105, 
of  whom  31  are  British,  17  American,  11 
French,  27  German,  and  the  rest  other 
nationalities,  the  total  amount  paid  annually 
in  salaries  to  foreign  teachers  being  366,510 
yen.  Salaries  to  foreign  teachers  range  from 
250  to  300  yen  a  month,  though  a  few  get 


Many  teachers,  cspeciallj'  women,  get  as 
low  as  five  yen  a  month.  Out  of  131,295 
elementary  school  teachers  in  19 1 6,  65 
received  less  than  5  yen  a  month,  only  875 
received  over  50  yen  a  month,  while  the  vast 
majority  ranged  between  15  and  20  yen  per 
month.  For  middle  schools  the  salaries  of 
teachers   average   about   47   yen   a    month, 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


395 


while  puinls  sometimes  pay  as  high  as  2  yen 
a  montli  in  fees.  In  high  schools  the  fees 
are  from  30  to  35  yen  a  year,  while  the 
salaries  of  teachers  range  from  60  to  100  yen 
a  month;  and  the  same  rates  apply  to  the 
universities,  except  that  professors'  salaries 
are  naturally  somewhat  higher.  Owing  to 
the  largest  portion  of  the  annual  budget  being 
appropriated  for  military  expansion,  the 
amount  devoted  by  the  Government  to 
education  must  always  be  quite  inadequate 
to  the  needs  of  the  nation.  After  the  war 
with  China,  in  1895,  some  10,000,000  yen 
was  set  apart  from  the  indemnity  received, 
as  an  educational  fund,  but  this  was  again 
appropriated  by  the  war  chest  during  the 
war  with  Russia,  in  1905,  to  be  refunded 
later.  This  has  not  been  done,  however, 
except  that  the  National  Treasury  affords  a 
grant  of  250,000  yen  each  year  for  the  origi- 
nal purposes  of  the  fund.  A  supplementary 
fund  was  created  in  lyoi  which  now  amounts 


to  about  4,500,000  yen.  Another  fund  of 
some  6,000,000  yen  exists  for  increasing  the 
salaries  of  teachers.  The  annual  grant  of 
250,000  yen  has  recently  been  increased  to 
500,000,  devoted  mostly  to  construction 
of  new  school  buildings  and  the  rewarding  of 
deserving  teachers.  For  the  promotion  of 
commercial,  technical,  agricultural  and  other 
forms  of  education  the  Government  makes 
further  grants  to  the  amount  of  some  300,000 
yen  a  year,  but  the  burden  of  education  in 
Japan  has  to  be  borne  by  the  provinces.  In 
spite  of  the  enormous  rate  of  taxation  im- 
posed in  Japan  the  Government  in  1916 
afforded  only  10,798,209  yen  for  public 
instruction,  while  the  provinces  paid  directly 
for  schools  about  78,000,000  yen. 

It  is  only  in  recent  years,  especially  since 
the  great  wealth  accumulated  during  the 
European  war,  that  any  citizens  of  Japan 
have  begun  to  take  an  interest  in  the  endow- 
ment  of   education.     The   example   was  set 


by  Baron  Okura,  who  founded  and  endowed 
with  a  sum  of  500,000  yen  a  commercial 
school  in  Tokyo  and  another  in  Osaka,  the 
Sumitomo  family  following  suit  in  191 5  by 
donating  more  than  1,000,000  yen  to  an 
apprentice  school  in  Osaka,  while  the  Furu- 
kawa  Mining  Company  has  endowed  a 
faculty  of  science  at  the  Kyushu  University 
with  a  sum  of  1,000,000  yen,  and  Mr.  Yasu- 
kawa,  another  mining  millionaire,  gave  an 
endowment  of  over  3,000,000  yen  to  establish 
a  technical  college  at  Wakamatsu.  The 
nation  as  a  whole,  however,  including  the 
Government,  has  not  begun  to  reaUse  the 
absolute  necessity  of  efficient  education  to 
national  progress;  in  which  respect,  of 
course,  it  is  not  unlike  even  some  Western 
countries.  The  only  departments  that  show 
any  adequate  appreciation  of  the  importance 
of  education  are  the  Armj'  and  Navy;  and 
even  these  are  by  no  means  as  efficient  in 
this  respect  as  they  could  be. 


TORII    GATE    OF    HIKAWA    TEMPLE 


XXIII.    Language  and  Literature 

The  Japanese  Language— Japanese  Literature— Poetry  and  Drama 


THE  language  of  Japan  is  associated 
by  philologists  with  the  Turanian  or 
Oural- Altaic  family,  of  which  Turkish, 
Finnish,  Tinguisic,  and  Korean  are  also 
surviving  tongues.  Like  these,  Japanese  is 
distinctively  an  agglutinative  language,  build- 
ing up  its  words  and  grammatical  forms  by 
means  of  suffixes  loosely  joined  to  roots  or 
stems,  the  latter  undergoing  no  change, 
though  these  particles  which  take  the  place 
of  inflexions  in  other  languages,  in  being 
affixed  to  the  roots  are  sometimes  blended 
with  them  sufficiently  to  satisfy  the  require- 
ments of  euphony.  Further  fundamental 
characteristics  of  the  structure  of  the  Jap- 
anese language  are  its  use  of  postpositions 
in  place  of  prepositions,  while  qualifying 
words  must  invariably  precede  the  words 
they  modify  and  dependent  clauses  alwaj's 
the  principal  clause,  the  principal  verb  always 
coming  last  in  the  sentence.  The  object, 
moreover,    invariably    precedes    the    verb. 


There  is  no  relative  pronoun,  and  personal 
pronouns  are  used  but  sparingly.  The 
Japanese  do  not  say,  "The  man  who  came 
yesterday,"  but  "Yesterday's  came  man," 
and  in  asking  the  question,  "Do  you  see  it?" 


of  verb  inflexions  for  persons  and  the  absence 
of  personal  pronouns.  In  Japanese,  wa  is 
the  particle  which  signifies  the  nominative 
case,  ga  being  also  used,  and  wo  indicates 
the   accusative,   as  — 


Kane  wa  nai  (I  have  no  money);       Ano      hito      wo    mimaska?      (Do  you  see  that  man?) 
Money  as-for  is-not  That    man     (accus)    do-you-see? 


no  pronoun  is  used,  the  question  being 
simply,  "See  it?"  In  accidence  the  dis- 
similarity to  English  is  stiU  more  striking, 
as  Japanese  nouns  have  no  number  or  gender, 
and    adjectives    no    degrees   of   comparison 


In  Japanese  the  object  often  becomes  the 
subject,  as  in  the  first  example  above  given. 
A  further  example  of  construction  in  a  longer 
sentence  may  be  seen  from  the  following: 


Kaeri-gake         ni         kaiikoba         ye         yolle, 
Returning-while   in    bazaar  at       stopping 


sukoshi         kaimono         shite         kimashita 
little       buying-thing   doing    have    come 


except  what  can  be  conveyed  by  using 
"more"  and  "most,"  while  even  verbs 
have  no  persons.  But  verbs,  on  the  other 
hand,  have  a  negative  voice  and  forms  to 
indicate  causation  and  potentiality,  as  well 
as  an  elaborate  system  of  honorifics  which 
to  some  extent  compensates  for  the  absence 


In  English  we  should  say:  "On  my  way 
back  I  stopped  in  at  a  bazaar  and  did  a  little 
shopping."  To  get  any  adequate  idea  of 
the  intricacies  of  Japanese  construction, 
however,  a  paragraph  of  composition  should 
be  studied.  The  following  is  a  very  good 
example,   taken   from   a   Buddhist   sermon: 


PRESENT-DAY        I  .M   I'  K  I<;  S  S  I  O  N  S        O  E        JAPAN 


397 


Uma 
Horse 

Cliiigi 
Loyalty 

dckiru 
forthcomos 

zen-aku 
good -evil 


ni  miikatte  Koko  wo  tsukusc!  "         okami       iii         mtikalte 

to        confronting  "Filial-piety  (accus)  exhaust!"  wolf        to      confronting 


wo 
(accus) 

koio 
fact 

wo 
(accus) 


tsukusc!" 
exhaust !" 

lie   wa 
indeed 

wakatsu 
discern 


nada 
etc. 

gnzaimasen 
is-not 

chic 
intelligence 


to 
that 


Ma 
said 


tokoro 
place 


ga,    hi  to 
but  man 

(nom) 


wa 
as-for 


although 

ze-hi 
right-wrong 


attc  kiini  ni  chu 

being,    lord  to  Loyally 


wo  tsukiislii,        oya      ni      ko      ton  tsukitshi,        kyodai       wa  naka 

(accus)    exhausting,  parent   to    Filial-piety  (accus)    exhausting,   brethren  as-for,  intercourse 


yoku 

fufu 

zua 

mutsumashiku          hoyu        ni 

loa             sliitashiku 

being-good, 

spouses 

as-for 

being-harmonious,   friends      to 

as-for      being-inlimate 

makoto 

wo 

matte 

majiwalti                 koso, 

hajimete  shin  no  kilo 

sincerity 

(accus) 

taking, 

having-intercourse       indeed, 

firstly  truth's  person 

/()        rwun-nuisii. 

that       gets- 

■sail 

i. 

In  ordinary  English  the  above  would  be 
as  follows:  "If  you  were  to  say  to  a  horse, 
'Practise  Filial  Piety!'  or  to  a  wolf,  'Prac- 
tise Loyalty!'  and  so  on,  they  would  not 
be  able  to  do  it ;  but  man  has  the  intelligence 
wherewith  to  discern  right  from  wrong, 
good  from  evil,  and  he  can  only  be  said  to 
be  truly  man  when  he  practises  loyalty 
towards  his  master  and  filial  piety  towards  his 
parents,  when  he  is  affectionate  towards 
his  brethren  and  lives  harmoniously  with 
his  wife,  when  he  is  amiable  towards  his 
friends  and  acts  sincerely  in  his  social  inter- 
course." 

It  is  a  remarkable  fact  that  although  the 
Japanese  language  has  some  structural  fea- 
tures in  common  with  the  same  family  of 
languages,  it  yet  has  nothing  in  common  as 
to  vocabulary,  with  the  exception  of  a  few 
words  of  Korean  origin.  Of  course  after  the 
advent  of  Chinese  influence  additions  from 
the  vocabulary  of  that  language  became 
numerous,  especially  for  official  and  technical 


purposes.  The  masses  of  the  people,  how- 
ever, ignored  most  of  the  strange  words,  and 
the  language  of  the  country  did  not  change. 
The  sound  of  Japanese  speech  is  distinguished 
for  its  musical  softness  in  which  it  may  be 
said  to  surpass  any  of  the  languages  of 
Europe,  all  words  ending  in  vowels  excepting 
those  concluding  with  the  consonant  n. 
The  less  it  is  mixed  with  Chinese  or  other 
foreign  words  the  more  pleasant  it  is  to  the 
ear,  and  therefore  comes  most  sweetly  from 
the  lips  of  Japanese  women,  whose  language 
is  always  purer  than  that  spoken  by  the  men 
of  the  country.  It  is,  therefore,  only  in  a 
technical  way  that  the  language  of  Japan 
has  been  enriched  by  that  of  China.  By  a 
skillful  combination  of  Chinese  mono- 
syllabics  the  Japanese  can  express  any 
technical  term  desired,  just  as  Western 
scientists  do  with  Greek  and  Latin  in  arriv- 
ing at  terms  to  convey  scientific  ideas. 
Electricity  becomes  den-ki,  or  "lighting- 
spirit";    and  jin-riki-sha    "man-power-car"; 


torpedo,  "water-thunder";  fish-torpedoi 
"fish-form- water-thunder,"  and  so  on.  In 
all  Chinese  words  and  their  combinations  a 
Japanese  pronunciation  is  used  and  to  all 
intents  and  purposes  they  are  regarded  as 
part  of  the  native  language,  much  in  the  same 
way  as  we  regard  words  of  Latin  or  French 
extraction  in  English  speech. 

It  must  also  be  remembered  that  the 
spoken  language  of  Japan  is  quite  different 
in  many  respects  from  the  written  language. 
This,  of  course,  is  true  of  European  languages 
also  to  some  extent,  there  being  a  natural 
difference  between  the  colloquial  and  the 
literary  styles,  but  the  difference  is  still 
more  marked  in  Japanese,  since  the  spoken 
language  is  an  ear-language,  intended  only 
for  hearing,  but  unpleasant  to  the  eye,  while 
the  written  language  is  an  eye-language,  not 
intended  for  the  ear,  and  some  Japanese 
can  not  well  understand  written  language 
unless  they  can  see  it.  The  spoken  language 
is  natural  and  the  written  is  artificial,  the 
latter  being  composed  of  Chinese  ideo- 
graphs which  are  pictures  made  for  the 
eye.  The  Japanese  originally  had  no  way  of 
writing,  the  art  being  introduced  from 
China  and  the  Chinese  method  of  writing 
adopted.  As  the  mass  of  the  people  could 
neither  remember  nor  understand  the  for- 
eign ideographs,  a  native  syllabary  was 
invented  in  time  to  convey  the  sounds  of 
the  foreign  characters.  This  syllabary  for 
phonetically  expressing  the  pronunciation  of 
the  Chinese  ideographs  appeared  in  the 
eighth  century,  the  sounds  of  the  language 
being  analysed  into  forty-seven  syllables, 
symbolised  by  abbreviated  forms  of  the 
Chinese  characters.  The  native  syllabary 
has  two  forms,  known  as  the  katakana, 
and  hiragana,  the  former  being  a  more 
simple  form,  like  our  printed  alphabet,  while 
the  latter  is  more  like  our  script.     As  there 


V.\K-X    OF    THE    GENJI    MONOGAT.^RI,    SHOWING   CHINESE    AND    HIRAGANA    CURSIVE    SCRIPT    (ELEVENTH    CENTURY) 


598 


P  R  E  S  K  N  T  -,D  A  Y        I  Nf  P  R  E  S  S  I  O  N  S        OF        JAPAN 


are  many  different  forms  of  the  latter  it  is 
much  more  difficult  to  acquire,  but  it  has  to 
be  mastered  by  those  who  wish  to  read 
Japanese,  since  it  is  the  form  most  commonls' 
used  in  books  and  in  the  press.  The  kanii 
syllabary  is  constantly  mixed  with  the 
ideographs  to  express  the  sound  intended 
by  the  latter  or  to  form  suffixes  used  as 
inflexions.  To  read  Japanese  well  a  mastery 
of  some  four  thousand  characters  is  essential, 
and  this  very  few  foreign  students  of  the 
language  have  ever  accomplished.  A  knowl- 
edge of  two  thousand  characters,  however, 
will  enable  one  to  make  out  most  of  what  is 
in  the  newspapers  and  ordinary  books.  The 
intelligent  student  of  Japanese  must,  there- 
fore, master  two  languages,  the  spoken  and 
the  written,  he  must  learn  two  syllabaries 
so  as  to  know  them  at  sight,  and  he  must 
master  the  hundreds  of  ideographs  in  the 
various  forms  in  which  they  appear,  from 
a  plain  square  print  to  the  most  abbreviated 
scrawl,  looking  like  a  war  of  angle-worms, 
and  at  the  same  time  get  accustomed  to  a 
page  without  either  punctuation  or  division 
of  words,  hke  the  ancient  cursive  writing  of 
the  Greeks  and  Latins.  One  does  not 
wonder  at  the  remark  of  the  Jesuit  mission- 
aries that  the  Japanese  language  was  in- 
vented by  the  Devil,  as  the  surest  way  to 
prevent  the  introduction  of  Christianity. 
To  make  the  situation  worse,  there  remains 
the  persistent  refusal  of  the  Japanese  people 
to  obviate  one  of  the  greatest  obstacles  to 
the  acquirement  of  their  language  by  replac- 
ing the  complicated  ideographs  by  the  use 
of  the  Roman  alphabet,  and  thus  put  the 
language  within  reach  of  Europeans.  In 
doing  this  they  would  at  the  same  time  save 
six  or  seven  years  of  every  Japanese  child's 
life  now  wasted  in  mastering  the  ideographs 
before  he  can  read  his  school  books.  The 
only  virtue  possessed  by  the  written  language 
of  Japan  is  its  beauty,  and  the  centuries  of 
practising  it  have  made  the  nation  a  race 
of  artists. 

JAPANESE  LITERATURE 
As  writing  was  not  introduced  into  Japan 
for  a  thousand  years  after  the  foundation 
of  the  Empire  literature  did  not  begin  until 
then,  the  first  traces  of  anything  in  that 
direction  appearing  with  the  establishment 
of  the  capital  at  Nara  at  the  beginning  of 
the  eighth  century.  The  Japanese  claim  that 
the  ancient  records  of  the  nation  were  com- 
mitted to  writing  as  early  as  the  fourth  cen- 
tury, but  it  is  not  probable  that  writing  was 
introduced  long  before  the  advent  of  Buddh- 
ism, about  the  middle  of  the  fifth  centur>% 
when  Chinese  influence  attained  its  greatest 
power.  Under  the  influence  of  learning 
developed  by  Buddhist  scholars,   literature 


HIHAKU    WRITING    (NINTH    CENTURY), 
BY    THE    PRIEST    KOBO 

began  to  dawn.  It  must  be  borne  in  mind, 
however,  that  literature  in  Japan  and  Japa- 
nese literature  are  two  very  different  things, 
as  unlike  as  the  Latin  writings   of  medisval 


Europe  and  the  native  languages  of  the 
nations  where  these  classical  compositions 
flourished.  Not  for  many  years  after  Japan's 
acquisition  of  Chinese  letters  did  she  make 
any  attempt  to  express  the  language  of  her 
people  in  writing.  The  higher  officials  of 
State  and  the  priests  had  a  monopoly  of 
learning,  and  up  to  the  eighth  century  all 
writing  was  Chinese  in  form  and  diction. 
With  the  invention  of  a  native  script  means 
were  at  last  provided  foi;  the  expression  of 
Japanese  speech  and  ultimately  a  native 
literature. 

The  earliest  existing  literary  product  of 
Japan  is  that  mar\'ellous  summary  of  treas- 
ured tradition  known  as  the  Kojiki,  or 
Record  of  Ancient  Things,  written  by  im- 
perial command  in  712  .\.  d.  Like  the  Book 
of  Genesis,  it  is  a  compilation  of  preceding 
traditions,  giving  an  account  of  creation,  the 
origin  of  the  imperial  family,  the  history  of 
the  Japanese  people,  and  the  general  status 
of  the  country  down  to  the  era  immediately 
preceding  its  compilation.  It  is  especially 
valuable  to  the  student  of  literature,  as  it 
reveals  the  nature  of  the  earliest  hterary 
impulses  of  the  Japanese.  It  shows  that  the 
Japanese  people,  like  those  of  other  nations, 


WRITING    BRUSHES,    WITH   CAPS    AND    DRIED    INKS,    PRESERVED   IN    THE    SHOSO-IN 
TREASLRY,    NARA    (EIGHTH   CENTURY) 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


399 


passed  through  a  period  of  song  and  iioetry 
before  reaching  the  age  of  prose.  Nine 
years  after  the  Kojiki  there  appeared  another 
compilation  known  as  the  Nihpngi,  bringing 
the  national  story  down  to  the  close  of  the 
seventh  century,  but  as  the  volume  was 
chiefly  in  Chinese  it  is  of  value  to  Japanese 
literature  only  because  it  preserves  some 
examples  of  ancient  Japanese  verse.  The 
chief  depository  of  Japanese  literature  in . 
its  beginnings  is  that  wonderful  anthology 
of  the  Nara  period  called  the  Manyoshu,  or 
Collection  of  a  Myriad  Leaves,  wherein  the 
choicest  utterances  then  existing  in  verse 
were  garnered,  and  which  still  remains  the 
most  valuable  memorial  of  the  intellectual 
awakening  that  followed  Japan's  first  inter- 
course with  China.  Poets  and  scholars 
began  now  to  flock  around  the  Imi)erial 
Court  and  a  real  national  literature  was 
beginning  to  appear.  The  native  syllabary 
soon  became  so  improved  as  to  lend  itself 
to  a  better  expression  of  native  speech,  and 
to  supplant  the  foreign  ideographs  in  litera- 
ture. When  the  next  anthology,  the  Kokin- 
shu,  was  published  in  900  A.  D.,  by  order  of 
the  Emperor  Daigo,  it  proved  to  be  a  collec- 
tion of  songs  and  poems  evidencing  a  fuller 
fruition  of  poetic  excellence.  The  capital 
of  the  Empire  had  moved  from  Nara  to 
Kyoto,  where  it  became  fixed,  and  during 
the  succeeding  four  hundred  years  there  was 
a  remarkable  development  in  literature. 
The  nation  had  done  something  worth  writ- 
ing about,  but  not  in  the  way  of  history  or 
the  impulse  to  epic  poetry.  These  were 
centuries  of  serene  development,  when  the 
ruling  classes  entered  on  a  period  of  high 
culture,  refinement,  and  elegance  of  life  that 
eventually  passed  into  an  excess  of  luxury, 
effeminacy,  and  dissipation.  The  nation 
was  more  interested  in  poetry  than  in  prose, 
and  the  themes  of  the  Muses  were  petty  and 
restricted,  being  for  the  most  part  love, 
pleasure,  and  admiration  for  nature.  The 
culture  of  literature  in  the  Chinese  language 
never  wholly  ceased,  especially  in  history 
and  theology,  but  the  poetry  of  this  time  was 
composed  in  the  pure  native  language.  At 
this  time,  too,  appeared  the  first  fiction,  the 
Genji  Monogatari  and  the  Makura-no- 
Soshi,  both  the  work  of  women;  indeed, 
some  of  the  best  literary  artists  of  the  day 
were  ladies  of  the  court. 

Among  the  prose  writings  of  this  period 
none  is  more  interesting  than  the  Tosa  Nikki, 
a  diary  of  travel,  from  the  pen  of  one  of  the 
most  distinguished  poets  of  the  day,  Tsuray- 
uki,  who  was  Governor  of  the  Province  of 
Tosa,  the  diary  giving  an  account  of  his 
journey  from  Tosa  to  Kyoto,  written  in  the 
purest  of  native  speech.  The  poet  was  one 
of  the  editors  of   the  Kokinshu  anthology, 


PART     OF     A     SCREEN     PRESERVED     IN     THE 

SHOSO-IN   TREASURY   AT   NARA.      CHINESE 

IDEOGRAPHS    ARE     DECORATED    WITH 

DOW.N     FEATHERS    OF    BIRDS,    AND 

,  COLOURING    (EIGHTH   CENTURY) 


already  mentioned,  and  the  account  which  he 
gives  of  his  tastes  and  experiences  in  the  Tosa 
Nikki  is  a  charming  study  of  the  life  of  old 
Japan,  written  in  935.  Among  the  other 
choice  tenth-century  classics  may  be  men- 
tioned the  Taketori  Monogatari,  or  Tales  of 
a  Bamboo  Cutter;  the  Ise  Monogatari,  or 
Story  of  Ise;  and  the  Yamamoto  Monogatari. 
None  of  these,  however,  excel  the  Genji 
Monogatari  and  the  Makura-no-Soshi,  al- 
ready mentioned,  written  by  the  two  court 
ladies,  Murasaki  Shikibu  and  Sei  Shonagon. 
These  works  mark  the  close  of  Japan's 
greatest  literary  epoch.  From  the  twelfth 
century  the  country  became  a  battlefield  and 
civil  strife  reigned  to  the  discomfiture  of 
literature,  which,  like  religion,  was  banished 
to  temples  and  monasteries.  During  this 
period  the  Imperial  Court  ceased  to  be  a 
political  factor  in  the  life  of  the  nation,  and 
with  its  decline  in  influence  literature  suffered. 
During  these  five  centuries  of  unrest  most  of 
the  works  written  were  of  politics  or  history, 
like  the  Heike  Monogatari,  or  Story  of  the 
Hcike  War,  somewhat  like  the  Wars  of  the 
Roses  in  England;  the  Hojoki  by  Chomei  and 
the  Tsure-zure  gusa  by  Kenko,  which  are 
excellent  examples  of  the  forcible  and  viva- 
cious prose  style  still  possessed  by  the  nation, 
the  last-named  work  especially  opening  the 
way  for  that  literary  speech  that  came  into 
full  development  in  the  seventeenth  century 


and  has  ever  since  remained  the  language  of 
literature  in  Japan.  Here  for  the  first  time 
we  find  Chinese  words  being  blended  into 
Japanese  forms  and  phrases  without  doing 
violence  to  native  modes  of  expression.  But 
the  voice  of  poetry  was  not  extinct,  for  in  the 
last  half  of  the  thirteenth  century  another 
anthology  was  compiled,  known  as  the  Hyaku 
Nin  Isshu,  or  Single  Poems  of  a  Hundred 
Men,  which  is  still  one  of  the  most  popular 
volumes  of  national  poetry  in  Japan.  The 
only  form  of  literary  art  that  much  appealed 
to  the  ages  of  anarchy  was  the  dramatic 
imijulse,  and  so  we  find  that  in  this  period  the 
old  religious  dances  and  dramas  begin  to 
assume  a  secular  form  and  motive,  as  seen  in 
the  Noh-no-Utai.  These  strange  lyric  plays 
are  mostly  dateless  and  probably  came  from 
the  hands  of  priests,  who  may  have  used  them 
as  the  Miracle  Plays  were  used  in  Europe,  to 
interest  the  uninterested  in  religion.  Com- 
edies called  kyogen  were  also  written  as  inter- 
ludes in  the  more  severe  and  less  interesting 
sacred  drama,  and  composed  in  the  ordinary 
colloquial  of  the  day. 

After  the  age  of  strife  was  passed  and  the 
Tokugawa  shogunate  established  at  the 
beginning  of  the  seventeenth  centxiry,  there 
came  a  revival  of  the  study  of  ancient  records 
and  the  writings  of  the  classic  age.  Led  by 
the  example  of  leyasu,  the  first  shogun  of  the 
new  line,  the  various  territorial  nobles  estab- 
lished schools  for  the  revival  of  learning. 
Mitsukuni,  lord  of  Mito,  had  a  history  of 
Japan,  called  the  Nihonshi,  compiled  by 
scholars,  and  later  came  the  Nihon  Gwaishi, 
a  history  of  the  shogunate.  Both  these 
works  had  great  political  influence,  and  event- 
ually discredited  the  shogunate  in  favour  of 
direct  imperial  rule.  The  elaborate  critical 
commentaries  of  such  writers  as  Keichyu 
(1640-1701),  Mabuchi  (1700-1769),  and  Mo- 
toori  (1730- 1 800)  elucidated  the  ancient 
annals  of  the  nation  as  well  as  its  religion 
and  literature.  Novelists  like  Bakin  (1767- 
1840)  and  Ikku  (i  763-1 831)  wrote  popular 
stories  that  displayed  new  literary  skill. 
Other  noted  writers  of  the  Tokugawa  period 
were  Takdea  Izumo  (1690-1756)  and  Chika- 
matsu,  the  Shakespere  of  Japan  (1652- 1724). 
Most  of  the  fiction  was  full  of  offensive 
elements  but  the  otogi-banashi,  or  fairy  tales, 
were  charmingly  innocent  and  humourous, 
most  of  which  have  appeared  in  English  and 
are  familiar  to  Western  readers. 

It  will  thus  be  seen  that  the  earlier  litera- 
ture of  Japan  is  Chinese  in  language  and 
script,  which  attained  its  dominance  between 
the  eighth  and  the  thirteenth  centuries. 
During  the  ages  of  strife  it  was  becoming 
blended  with  a  pure  native  form  in  which  the 
ideographs  were  mixed  with  native  script 
and  the  mode  of  expression  essentially  true  to 


400 


P  R  E  S  K  N    r  -  1)  A  Y        IMPRESSIONS        OF        JAPAN 


the  Japanese  language  in  idiom  and  construc- 
tion. This  achievement  was  perfect  by  the 
close  of  the  Tokugawa  period.  Then  with 
the  fall  of  the  shogunate  and  the  Restoration 
of  Imperial  Rule,  literature  underwent  a 
change  and  during  the  last  fifty  years  quite  a 
new  school  of  writers  has  arisen. 

Now,  the  change  that  Japanese  literature 
underwent  with  the  dawn  of  the  modern 
period  was  in  itself  largely  the  means  of 
bringing  about  the  modernisation  of  Japan, 
in  which  literature  has  had  more  direct  influ- 
ence than  any  other  single  factor.  Japan's 
leading  writers  were  the  first  pioneers  of 
liberty,  individual  rights,  and  constitutional 
government.  And  strange  to  say,  the  peculiar 
history  of  their  language  had  prepared  the 
nation  in  the  best  way  for  expressing  foreign 
ideas  in  native  ways.  Used  for  over  a  thou- 
sand years  almost  exclusively  as  a  medium 
for  expressing  Chinese,  the  Japanese  language 
turned  quite  naturally  to  expressing  the 
thought  of  Europe  with  which  it  had  little 
natural  affinity.  It  is  nothing  less  than 
astonishing  how  well  this  task  has  been 
accomplished.  Much  of  the  success,  how- 
ever, must  be  attributed  to  the  mar\'ellous 
capabilities  of  the  Chinese  ideographs  in 
lending  themselves  to  any  combination 
necessary  to  express  all  kinds  of  ideas,  foreign 
or  alien.  It  is  almost  inconceivable  that 
Western  thought  could  have  made  such  rapid 
progress  in  Japan  had  it  not  been  for  this  long 
period  of  training  in  expressing  native  thought 
through  a  foreign  medium  offering  facility  for 
every  turn  of  expression  and  definition. 
And  thus  these  long  centuries  of  culture  in 
expressing  Chinese  thought  and  civilisation 
united  in  qualifying  the  Japanese  language 
for  the  great  work  it  has  accomplished  in  the 
modem  era. 

The  history  of  Japanese  modem  literature, 
which  is  much  too  long  for  full  transcription 
here,  indicates  clearly  the  various  stages 
through  which  the  thought  of  the  nation  has 
passed  in  the  modernisation  of  the  country. 
During  the  past  fifty  years  three  distinct 
influences,  marked  by  as  many  periods,  have 
been  at  work  on  the  Japanese  mind  and 
conspicuously  represented  in  the  national 
literature.  There  is  first  the  strong  Occiden- 
talising  tendency  seen  for  the  first  fifteen 
years  following  1870.  This  was  followed  by 
some  ten  years  of  reaction  when  the  tide  set 
strong  towards  ultranationalism,  owing  to  the 
sudden  and  radical  changes  taking  place. 
Foreign  countries  were  to  be  imitated  only  in 
a  material  sense,  but  in  moral  standards, 
religion,  refinement,  and  modes  of  life  gen- 
erally Japan  was  to  learn  nothing  from 
Europeans.  The  third  period  began  with  a 
fear  that  Japan  was  to  revert  to  feudal  days 
and  so  there  was  an  attempt  to  introduce  the 


A    STAGE    SETTING   FOR    ONE    OF    THE    .\NCIENT    DRAM.\S,   AT    THE    IMPERIAL    THEATRE,   TOKYO 


individualism  of  Nietzsche,  led  by  a  Dr. 
Takayama.  During  all  this  time  the  English 
language  was  being  earnestly  studied  in  the 
national  schools  and  in  private  and  most  of 
the  great  English  writers  were  read  or  trans- 
lated into  Japanese.  Herbert  Spencer,  Mill, 
Tyndall,  Huxley,  Bacon,  Scott,  Dickens, 
Hugo,  Gibbon,  Macaulay,  and  Carlyle  were 
used  as  text-books  in  the  public  schools. 
Owing  to  the  Germanisation  of  the  army  and 
the  medical  schools,  that  language  perforce 
came  into  use  and  German  philosophers  and 
scientists  were  also  widely  read  and  trans- 
lated, as  well  as  the  works  of  Tolstoi  and 
other  Russian  writers.  Many  Japanese 
writers  now  began  to  imitate  British  and 
German  models.  Mozume  issued  a  history 
of  Japanese  civilisation  something  like 
Green's  "History  of  the  English  People." 
Hundreds  of  dictionaries,  grammars,  and 
phrase  books  showed  the  attention  being 
given  to  foreign  languages.  Attempts  were 
made  to  replace  the  complicated  Chinese 
ideographs  by  the  Roman  alphabet,  but 
Japanese  minds  proved  unable  to  carry  on 
complicated  trains  of  thought  apart  from  the 
old  idea-expressing  media.  In  Japan,  spoken 
language  does  not  wield  half  the  power  that 
written  language  does,  and  so  books  are 
always  the  nation's  best  teachers.  As  a 
famous  Japanese  writer  has  said:  "The  Japa- 
nese are  earless  and  tongueless,  all  eyes."  In 
spite  of  this,  however,  the  approach  of  the 
written  to  the  spoken  language  is  closer  than 
it  has  been,  chiefly  through  the  influence  of 
the  public  press,  which  has  a  habit  of  insert- 
ing colloquial  phrases  in  learned  articles.  It 
may  be  noted  here  that  formal  public  speeches 


were  never  heard  in  Japan  until  modern 
times,  the  late  Mr.  Fukuzawa,  founder  of  the 
Keiogijuku  University,  being  the  first 
Japanese  to  attempt  it,  and  his  first  efforts 
were  delivered  squatting  on  the  floor  in  native 
fashion.  Talk  is  plentiful  enough  in  modern 
times,  however,  but  no  one  pays  much  atten- 
tion to  it.  The  press  and  periodical  literature 
of  the  day  have  an  immeasurably  greater 
influence  than  the  nation's  teachers,  and 
here  some  of  the  best  minds  of  the  nation 
have  made  their  mark.  But  Japan  has  yet 
produced  no  great  philosophical  thinkers, 
nor,  indeed,  any  scientific  writers  of  very 
high  merit.  The  national  mind  dislikes 
metaphysical  speculation,  and  has  not  suffi- 
cient regard  to  the  importance  of  truth  to 
regard  science  with  real  reverence.  The  best 
writing  at  present  is  in  the  sphere  of  com- 
merce, finance,  and  fiction. 

Japan  has  no  veteran  fiction  writers  such 
as  are  to  be  found  in  England,  France,  and 
the  United  States.  Public  taste  is  so  fickle 
that  the  lion  of  to-day  is  forgotten  to-morrow, 
and  the  career  of  even  the  greatest  is  but 
short-lived.  Thus  a  novelist  has  no  incen- 
tive to  essay  anything  worth  while.  He 
usually  tries  to  meet  the  taste  of  the  moment 
and  make  what  hit  he  can  in  the  time  avail- 
able. This  is,  perhaps,  due  to  the  fact 
that  the  majority  of  Japanese  readers  of 
fiction  are  students  and  leisure-lo\'ing  house- 
wives, the  intellectual  class  as  yet  showing  no 
appreciation  of  fiction.  Formerly  such  was 
the  case  in  regard  to  drama  and  the  theatre, 
but  histrionic  art  is  now  recovering  and  begin- 
ning to  command  the  respect  of  minds  jaded 
with  the  boredom  of  daily  business.     The 


P  R  K  S  E  N  T  -  D  A  \'        IMPRESSIONS        OF        JAPAN 


401 


JAPANESE       GEISHA 


novel  has  yet  to  win  readers  from  the  more 
influential  classes,  and  hence  it  is  forced  to 
move  in  a  limited  area  of  love  and  the  hack- 
neyed tales  of  ronin  and  vendetta.  Indeed, 
ver>'  few  Japanese  novelists  can  live  from 
their  works;  they  have  to  make  up  the  defi- 
ciency of  income  by  doing  hack  work  for 
the  press  and  periodicals.  The  most  suc- 
cessful of  recent  Japanese  novelists  have 
been  Soseki  Natsume,  bom  1867;  Roka 
Tokutomi,  1868;  Katai  Toyama,  1871; 
Koda  Rohan,  1867;  Mori  Ogai,  i860;  and 
Dr.  Tsubouchi,  1858.  These  men  have  won 
fame  amidst  a  host  of  lesser  lights  who  died 
poor  and  mostly  unremembered.  Yet  the 
greater  writers  have  stuck  to  their  pens  with 
true  literary  spirit  and  persisted  in  their 
art  with  genuine  artistic  zeal.  The  work  of 
the  writers  of  fiction  has  done  more  to  mark 
the  break  between  feudalism  and  the  new 
Japan  than  any  other  force  to  be  reckoned 
with.  Tsubouchi's  "Essentials  of  Fiction," 
published  in  1885,  asserts  that  the  most 
important  element  in  the  novel  is  passion, 
to  which  circumstances  and  customs  must 
be  subject.  This  affirmation,  which  the 
novelist  faithfully  practised,  was  in  radical 
opposition  to  the  old  national  fiction,  as 
represented  by  Bakin,  where  passion  was 
always  subdued  to  conscience  and  reason 
in  an  artificial  manner  never  seen  in  real 
life.  The  motive  of  the  old  fiction  was  moral 
and  didactic;  that  of  the  new  is  truth. 

Taking  modem  Japanese  fiction  as  a  whole 
it  resolves  itself  into  three  schools,  all  reveal- 
ing the  effect  of  corres])onding  influences  in 
European     literature:     the     Classicists,     the 


Realists,  and  the  Naturalistic  School.  In 
the  Classic  School  Ogai  was  the  leader,  all 
his  work  being  highly  polished  and  revealing 
evidence  of  the  ease  that  comes  of  toil.  One 
of  the  greatest  writers  of  the  school  of  Realism 
was  Hasegawa,  who  died  in  lyog.  He  was 
a  disciple  of  the  Russian  school  of  writers, 
and  was  followed  by  Oguri  Tayo,  Kosugi 
Tagai,  and  Yanagawa  Shunyo,  as  well  as 
Koyo  Ozaki.  These  writers  were  not  all 
quite  the  same,  though  they  represented  the 
same    school.     Hasegawa    was    humanistic. 


using  art  on  behalf  of  life,  while  Ozaki  was 
aesthetic,  devoted  to  art  for  its  own  sake. 
These  writers  sought  to  bring  literature  into 
closer  relation  to  life,  though  as  yet  no 
separation  was  made  between  the  individual 
and  society.  The  fiction  of  Koda  Rohan 
lays  emphasis  on  the  invisible  elements  of 
life  as  the  more  important;  he  attached  more 
importance  to  insight  than  to  observation. 
Thus,  the  Realistic  writers  were  in  some 
measure  adherents  of  idealism.  .And  then 
came  the  Naturalistic  School  represented  by 
writers  like  Kunikida  Doppo,  who  died  in 
1908,  followed  by  Toson,  Masamune  Haku- 
cho  and  many  others,  who  produced  stories 
in  a  fascinating  style  and  bold,  unconven- 
tional treatment,  which  charmed  the  young 
and  unsophisticated  while  causing  the  sober 
to  frown.  Most  of  these  writers,  like  their 
masters  in  France  and  Russia,  were  bom  in 
the  provinces,  gave  up  unfinished  the  dull 
routine  of  school  life,  and  took  to  Bohemian 
ways  of  existence  as  aspirants  to  fame,  being 
usually  connected  with  some  journal  or 
another.  Besides  these  there  are  numerous 
productions  representing  the  political  novel, 
the  historical  novel,  the  domestic  novel, 
the  chivalrous  novel,  the  social  novel,  the 
psychological  novel,  the  tenderloin  novel,  and 
the  novel  of  lower  class  society.  In  fact, 
every  side  of  the  national  life  is  set  forth  in 
the  popular  fiction  of  the  day,  a  good  deal 
of  which  is  •>  mere  reflex  of  European  liter- 
ature. Its  most  significant  feature  is  the 
break  with  the  past  which  it  shows  and  its 
intense  interest  in  the  present,  with  a  con- 
sequent greater  breadth  of  range  and  a 
deeper  seriousness  in  art. 


A    STAGE    SETTING 


4o2 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


It  must  not  l)f  imagined,  however,  that  the 
change  has  been  wrought  without  great 
sacrifice.  Some  of  the  naturalism  is  too  base 
and  the  reahsm  too  gross  to  be  quite  whole- 
some. The  artificial  marvels  of  the  old 
fiction  have  not  been  replaced  by  the  normal 
and  the  ordinary;  too  often  the  fabulous  lias 
been  replaced  by  the  hideous,  and  mystery 
by  sen.suality.  The  recognition  of  natural 
passion  in  fiction  has  not  solved  the  problem 
of  its  reinstatement.  The  cosmic  force  of 
love  is  recognised  but  the  legitimate  form  of 
its  self-expression  is  not  yet  found  to  be  a 
spring  of  ser\'ice  and  a  source  of  joy  in  har- 
mony with  the  spirit  of  the  universe. 

Looking  back  over  the  history  of  Japanese 
literature  as  a  whole,  one  can  not  say  that  it 
abounds  in  a  content  of  living  interest  to 
Western  readers.  It  springs  from  customs, 
events,  personages,  places,  and  traditions  so 
utterly  different,  and  from  motives  of  action, 
of  praise  and  censure,  so  widely  at  variance 
with  those  dominating  Western  civilisation, 
that  on  reading  it  the  Western  mind  finds 
little  in  common  and  a  marked  absence  of 
appeal.  To  us  it  seems  strange  and  alien, 
dwelling  painstakingly  on  minute  details 
that  no  Western  mind  would  pause  over, 
indulging  in  the  most  prolix  verbosity,  dealmg 
freely  with  matters  forbidden  by  the  more 
delicate  taste  of  the  West.  It  nevertheless 
records  the  social,  religious,  and  political  his- 
tory of  the  Japanese  people,  and  for  this 
reason.it  may  be  profitably  studied,  though 
the  reader  will  look  in  vain  for  intellectual 
creativeness  or  invention.  The  whole  history 
of  Japan  appears  as  an  unbroken  imitation 


YUR.\Kr-KW.'VN   THE.\TRE,    TOKYO 


.\    1'I<(1VINC1.\L    .\CTOR 


of  Other  nations,  until  the  genius  of  the 
native  mind  now  lies  in  the  appropriation 
and  refinement  of  the  gains  and  acquirements 
of  others.  Yet  Japanese  literature  attained 
to  considerable  excellence  in  art  and  mode 
of  expression,  as  did  the  nation's  other  arts, 
particularly  in  poetry  and  drama. 

POETRY  AND  DRAM.\ 
J.\p.\NESE  poetry  remains  the  most  original 
of  the  nation's  literary  efforts.  Much  Chi- 
nese poetry  has  been  w-ritten  by  the  Japanese, 
just  as  much  Latin  verse  has  been  composed 
by  English  scholars  and  students,  but  unlike 
Japanese  prose,  the  national  poetry  has 
never  been  subjected  to  Chinese  ways  of  < 
thought  and  expression.  With  but  little 
variation  the  oldest  Japanese  song  recorded 
is  still  the  model  for  the  versification  of  her 


poets.  Its  first  characteristic  is  its  extreme 
brevity,  and  the  whole  range  of  poetic  liter- 
ature includes  nothing  in  the  way  of  an  epic 
or  even  a  narrative  poem,  all  such  attempts 
being  as  brief  as  they  are  few.  When  the 
Japanese  speak  of  poetry  they  always  mean 
a  tiny  verse  known  as  a  tanka,  or  waka,  of 
five  lines,  containing  in  all  thirty-one  sylla- 
bles, the  first  and  third  lines  each  making  five 
and  the  others  each  seven  syllables;  a-b-a-b-b. 
But  short  as  it  is,  it  has  the  divisions  of  a 
sonnet,  the  first  three  lines  forming  the 
"upper"  and  the  last  two  lines  the  "lower," 
a  slight  break  occurring  in  the  sequence  and  a 
slight  pause  marking  it  in  the  reading.  In 
expression  it  is  extremely  compact  and 
limited.  The  native  idea  of  poetry  is  as  a 
verse  of  mere  suggestion,  a  gem  of  thought 
from    which    a    world    of    meaning    can    be 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


403 


OPEN-AIR    STREET   THEATRE    DURING    A   FESTIVAL 


inferred.  If  the  poet  can  thus  produce  a 
gram  of  raihuni  he  is  successful,  but  if  his 
efforts  require  artificial  illumination  he  is 
only  a  scribbler.  The  following  is  the  oldest 
Japanese  poem  in  existence,  sung  at  the 
opening  of  the  bridal  palace  of  the  gods: 

Yakumo  tatsu; 

Izumo  yae  gaki; 
Tsuma  gomi  ni 

Yae  gaki  tsukuru: 

Sono  yae  gaki  wo! 

(Many  clouds  appear: 

Eightfold  clouds  a  barrier  raise 

Round  the  wedded  pair. 

Manifold  the  clouds  stand  guard; 
O,  that  eightfold  barrier-ward!) 

In  Japanese  poetry  there  are  remarkabU- 
eccentricities  such  as  redundant  expletives, 
phrases  called  "pillow  words"  and  "intro- 
ductions," into  which  we  can  not  now  go. 
The  subject  matter  of  poetry  is  usually  some 
simple  and  serene  emotion  in  reference  to 
man  or  nature.  It  always  has  a  dainty 
quality  and  a  meditative  mood.  It  is  marked 
by  a  lyric  character  that  is  often  idyllic,  like 
a  painting  on  a  Greek  vase,  conventional, 
suggestive,  and  impressionistic,  as  is  the 
national  pictorial  art.  The  ■waka  metre  is 
not  the  only  form  of  Japanese  verse.  There 
is  a  mode  still  more  brief  known  as  the 
hokku,  consisting  of  seventeen  syllables,  and 
formed  like  the  first  three  lines  of  the  tanka 
verse.  It  is  used  mostly  for  an  expression 
of  wit  or  an  epigrammatic  statement.  For 
long  poems  the  Japanese  poet  adopts  what 
is  called  the  naga-iUa  mode,  consisting 
merely  of  a  series  of  tanka  verses,  like  a 
sonnet    sequence.     In    this   as   in    all    other 


forms  of  Japanese  poetry,  there  is  nothing 
to  distinguish  it  from  prose  except  the 
regular  alternation  of  five  and  seven  syllables. 
There  is  neither  rhyme,  tone,  alliteration, 
accent,  nor  quantity.  Nearly  all  Japanese 
have  a  knack  for  poetry  and  try  verse  com- 
position some  time  or  other,  but  more 
especially  when  they  come  to  die,  that  being 
the  most  dignified  form  of  farewell  to  life. 
Various  attempts  have  been  made  to 
modernise     Japanese     poetry     by     making 


translations  from  Western  poets  into  Japa- 
nese, but  none  of  them  have  been  considered 
successful.  The  Bureau  of  Poetry  main- 
tained by  the  Imperial  Court  in  Tokyo  holds 
a  poetic  symposium  annually  at  the  beginning 
of  the  year,  when  efforts  in  verse  are  sub- 
mitted by  any  one  who  wishes,  the  number 
sent  in  being  usually  over  25,000,  of  which  a 
certain  number  are  selected  by  experts  for 
submission  to  the  Emperor.  The  late  Em- 
peror was  himself  a  poet  of  no  mean  dis- 
tinction, and  the  art  greatly  flourished  under 
imperial  patronage. 

The  works  of  all  the  more  famous  of  the 
ancient  poets  are  included  in  the  three 
anthologies  already  mentioned  in  the  course 
of  this  essay.  The  editor  of  the  anthology 
known  as  the  Kokinshu,  Tsurayuki,  was  a 
distinguished  poet  himself,  and  one  of  the 
gems  from  his  pen  reads: 

Sakura  chiru, 

Sono  shita  kaze  wa 
Samukara  de 

Sora  ni  shirarenu 

Yuki  zo  furikeru! 

(The  white  flakes  fall ; 

Yet  "neath  the  trees 

Unchilled  the  breeze; 
For  over  all 

A  snow  that  never  knew  the  sky. — 

Fair  cherry  petals — fall  and  die!) 

The  following  is  a  translation  of  a  verse 
of  zaaka  by  Prince  Aki  of  the  eighth  century: 

Blue  depths  to-night  are  as  the  sea 

Where  clouds  like  billows  rise. 
Through  which  the  moon  glides  gracefully 
To  portals  in  the  skies: 
O  Love,  thus  you 
Elude  me,  too!  ) 


JAPANESE    .\C1UK^    oi 


ITIE  iMi'iiKiAL  tiii:atki;,  Ti 

FOR    AX    ANCIENT   DRAMA 


iKVi),    IN    Till-    C 


404 


PRESENT-DAY        I   M   I'  R  E  S  S  I  O  N  S        OF        JAPAN 


One  or  two  examples  may  now  be  given 
from  modem  poets,  the  following  being  from 
the  pen  of  the  late  Emperor  of  Japan : 

Puyu  fukaki 

Neya  no  fusuma  wo 
Kasanete  mo 

Omou  wa  shizu  ga 

Yosameru  nari  keri! 

(On  winter  nights  when  wild  winds  blow. 

And  double  care  keeps  out  the  cold, 
I  think  of  those  exposed  to  snow, — 

The  nameless,  homeless  poor  and  old ! ) 

These  examples  of  modern  Japanese  poetry 
may  fitly  conclude  with  one  by  the  late 
Empress  of  Japan : 

Midaru  beki 

Ori  wo  ba  okite 
Hana-zakura 

Mazu  emu  hodo  wo 
Naraiteshi  gama! 

(Flowers  have  their  smiling  time. 
And  then  their  time  of  wilding: 
Girls  should  have  their  smiling  time. 
And  never  reach  their  wilding!) 

It  will  thus  be  seen  that  Japanese  poetry 
can  not  be  regarded  as  a  means  chosen  for 
sounding  and  recording  any  very  profound 
spiritual  experience.  But  if  it  can  not  be 
ranked  among  the  great  achievements  of  the 
human  intellect,  it  has,  nevertheless,  a  degree 
of  art  and  ideal  that  is  truly  pleasing,  and 
if  it  has  given  solace  to  the  mind  of  the  nation 
at  all  times,  the  unappreciative  foreigner 
should  not  despise  it  as  unworthy  of  atten- 
tion. The  poetr>'  and  romance  of  the  nation 
have  had  much  influence  on  the  drama  and 
the  theatre,  as  we  shall  now  see. 

Japanese  drama  originated,  as  drama  did 
elsewhere,  in  the  performance  of  the  ancient 
folk-dances  and  folk-songs  known  as  the 
kuhiiki,  which  go  back  beyond  the  dawn  of 
history,  probably  having  a  religious  origin, 
as  in  Greece.  Nations  have  always  been 
able  to  write  poetry  before  prose,  to  sing 
before  they  could  speak,  and  to  dance  before 
they  could  act  with  any  histrionic  art.  This 
dance  that  gave  rise  to  the  theatre  was  a  folk- 
dance  and  consequently  different  from  danc- 
ing as  a  social  amusement,  a  distinction  which 
led  to  the  ballet  in  Europe  as  to  the  geisha 
dance  in  Japan.  The  motive  of  the  his- 
trionic dance,  however,  was  as  sacred  as  the 
religious  dances,  being  an  attempt  to  give 
expression  to  an  undying  passion,  a  bit  of 
eternal  reality  which  is  the  source  of  all  true 
dramatic  inspiration.  At  just  what  period 
the  kabuki,  or  secular  dance,  separated  from 
the  kagura,  or  sacred  dance,  no  one  now 
knows,  but  the  existence  of  the  Noh,  or 
Lyrical  Drama,  indicates  a  brave  attempt 
to  preserve  the  sacred  dignity  of  the  art, 
keeping  it  just  above  the  status  of  an 
operetta. 


A    GREAT   JAPANESE    ACTRESS,    MISS    RITSUKO    MORI,    AN    IMPERIAL    THE.\TRE    STAR 


The  first  Japanese  theatre  is  said  to  have 
appeared  in  the  land  of  Idzumo  where  the 
immigrants  from  northern  China  first  settled, 
and  to  a  lady  is  ascribed  the  honour  of  the 
invention.  Tradition  has  it  that  the  Lady 
Kuni  left  Idzumo  and  came  to  '  Kyoto, 
where  she  set  up  a  stage  near  Shijo  by  the 
sea.  A  remarkable  feature  of  histrionic  art 
at  this  early  period  was  that  most  of  the 
performers  appear  to  have  been  females, 
who  adopted  male  attire  for  stage  purposes. 
Kuni  and  her  troupe  eventually  invaded 
Yedo,  the  capital  of  the  shogun,  and  set  up  a 
stage  in  1603,  just  about  the  time  when  the 
English  stage  was  coming  into  prominence. 
The  popularity  of  the  new  form  of  art  (ind 


entertainment  soon  led  to  its  having  imita- 
tors, and  other  theatres  began  to  be  set  up 
in  Yedo.  It  is  probable  that  the  acting  of 
the  period  was  not  much  abov-e  the  puppet 
shows  that  were  already  in  vogue  in  such 
centres  as  Osaka.  The  puppet  shows  were, 
of  course,  the  precursors  of  the  modern 
theatre,  but  to  a  woman  is  given  the  dis- 
tinction of  having  dared  to  perform  in  person 
what  the  public  had  been  accustomed  to  see 
done  by  puppets.  The  puppets  moved  on 
wires  and  acted  their  parts  to  the  sound  of 
what  was  called  music,  accompanied  by  a 
kind  of  song,  called  joruri,  explaining  the 
meaning  of  the  action.  Those  familiar  with 
Japanese  plays  and  stage  life  will  be  inclined 


PRESENT-DAY        IMPRESSIONS        OF        JAPAN 


405 


to  conclude  that  the  actors  of  the  nation 
not  only  imitated  the  puppets,  but  have,  in 
fact,  never  gotten  away  from  that  style  of 
acting,  the  stiff,  unnatural,  and  even  gro- 
tesque movements  of  the  actor  being  much 
after  the  manner  of  the  ayatsuri.  Thus  what 
was  first  a  mere  imitation  of  the  puppets  for 
the  amusement  of  the  audience,  has  now 
become  a  convention  from  which  the  actor 
has  great  difficulty  in  breaking  away. 

The  Japanese  theatre  is  usually  a  modest 
oblong  building  constructed  of  plain,  unvar- 
nished wood,  the  only  adornments  being  a 
ponderous  roof  and  glaring  wooden  posters 
outside,  illustrating  the  plays  to  be  performed 
within.     The  interior  is  divided,   first,   into 
the  pit,   or   hiradoma,   covered   with   square 
spaces,  each  capable  of  seating  four  persons 
on  a  matted  floor,  while  on  either  side  are 
two-storied     galleries    with    the    best    seats 
arranged    in    a    boxlike   fashion.     Over   the 
entrance,  on  a  level  with  the  second  tier  of 
boxes,  is  a  single  gallery,  which  is  the  cheap- 
est portion  of  the  house.     The  stage,  facing 
the  door,  has  two  curtains,  the  outer  one  to 
hide  the  whole  when  the  play  is  not  in  motion, 
a  very  elaborate  affair  usually  presented  by 
some  patron  and  bearing  his  name,  and  the 
second,  or  drop  curtain,  to  let  down  during 
a  change  of  scene.     Entry  to  the  stage  is 
obtained  not  only  from  the  wings  but  by  a 
long  gangway  known  as  the  hanamichi,  or 
Flower   Path,  so  called  because  the  original 
intention  was  to  afford  persons  who  desired 
to  make  presents  to  the  actors,  easy  access 
to  the  stage.     It  runs  across  the  entire  pit 
and    has    the    advantage    of    enabling    long 
processions  characteristic  of  feudal  plaj^s  to 
be  seen  by  the  audience,  and  also  permits 
two  scenes  to  be  acted  simultaneously,  the 
one  on  the  stage  engaged,  and  the  one  on 
the  hanamichi  approaching.     In  the  centre 
of  the  stage  is  a  large  revolving  platform, 
which  allows  one  scene  to  be  in  preparation 
while    another    is    being    acted,    and    then 
suddenly  to  be  brought  into  view  without 
dropping  the  curtain.     The  European  stage 
appeals  to  the  mind  like  a  framed  picture, 
but   the  Japanese   stage   does   not   attempt 
to  be  different  from  ordinary  life  or  to  be 
apart  from  it.     But  the  Japanese  theatre  is 
becoming    more    and    more    like    those    of 
Europe,  the  best  one  in  the  capital  having 
dispensed  with  the  revolving  stage  and  the 
hanamichi  altogether.     After  the  manner  of 
the  theatres  of  ancient  Greece  the  Japanese 
stage  has  a  star-trap,  or  seridashi,  a  hollow 
place  under  the  stage  with  a  trap-door  to 
it,  into  which  the  actor  can  drop  when  he 
desires  to   disappear,   and   from   whence   he 
can  also  rise  as  an  apparition.     The  kurombo 
is  another  curious  feature  of  Japanese  the- 
atrical personnel,  the  term  being  applied  to 


a  person  draped  in  black  and  su]>posc(i  to 
be  invisible,  whose  duty  is  to  assist  the 
actors  by  carrying  lights  or  removing  corpses 
killed  in  stage  action.  The  scenery  and 
dress  of  the  Japanese  stage  is  accurate  and, 
as  a  rule,  of  high  artistic  excellence.  When 
the  time  arrives  for  the  play  to  begin  two 
pieces  of  wood  are  clapped  together. 

Generally  speaking,  the  accessories  of  a 
Japanese  stage  do  not  appear  to  be  far 
removed  from  the  unimaginative  scenery 
of  the  stage  in  Elizabethan  England.  In 
fact,  such  plays  as  the  Noh  can  only  be  com- 
pared to  the  Moralities  and  Mysteries  of 
pre-Shakesperian  times.  Yet  one  is  forced 
to  admit  that,  so  far  as  histrionic  art  goes, 
mediaeval  Japan  reached  a  higher  level 
than  the  England  of  the  same  period,  for 
the  English  mediaeval  plays  were  somewhat 
rough  and  vulgar,  displaying  little  of  that 
beauty  and  refinement  still  evident  in  the 
Japanese  lyrical  drama,  yet  the  English 
plays  were  much  more  infused  with  whole- 
hearted human  passion  and  natural  action. 
What  the  Japanese  play  lacks  in  dramatic 
action  is  compensated  for  by  grave  and 
graceful  motion  and  sober,  pleasing  drapery. 

Theatre-going  in  Japan  is  a  long-drawn- 
out  affair,  lasting  most  of  the  day.  In  old 
Japan  the  play  lasted  all  day,  but  in  these 
more  active  days  it  lasts  from  two  in  the 
afternoon  until  ten  or  eleven  at  night.  Every 
theatre  is  surrounded  by  restaurants  of  all 
kinds  and  playgoers  send  out  for  food  and 
refreshments  as  wanted.  Actors  were  for- 
merly all  of  the  male  sex,  as  the  profession 
deteriorated  after  its  foundation  by  a  woman, 


I  )ut  in  recent  years  the  profession  has  regained 
respectability  and  women  are  permitted  in 
the  best  theatres,  some  of  the  actresses 
displaying  considerable  ability,  yet  nothing 
to  that  seen  among  European  actresses. 
The  raising  of  the  Japanese  theatre  to  a 
place  where  respectable  persons  might  be 
found  was  managed  by  the  theatre  man- 
agers themselves,  and  in  a  very  simple  way. 
After  the  opening  of  Japan  to  foreign  inter- 
course many  foreigners  of  importance  began 
to  visit  the  country,  whereupon  the  theatre 
managers  adopted  a  custom  of  inviting 
foreigners  to  their  theatres,  including  Minis- 
ters and  Ambassadors  as  well  as  foreign 
princes  who  chanced  to  visit  Japan.  In 
most  cases  these  invitations  were  accepted. 
When  General  Grant  and  the  grandson  of 
the  German  Emperor  visited  the  Shintomi 
Theatre,  no  one  could  say  that  such  places 
were  unfit  for  high-class  patrons.  From 
this  time  the  upper  classes  began  to  patron- 
ise the  theatre  and  the  Imperial  Court 
invited  great  actors  to  perform  before  dis- 
tinguished assemblages  in  private.  Hav- 
ing attained  unto  imperial  favour  the  Japa- 
nese theatre  had  nothing  more  to  do  toward 
retrieving  its  respectability. 

As  to  the  plays  of  the  modern  Japanese 
theatre  they  are  legion,  and  represent  every 
side  of  human  life  from  ancient  to  modem 
times.  The  most  aristocratic  play  is  that 
called  the  Noh,  a  kind  of  operetta  consist- 
ing of  singing  and  dancing,  being,  as  has 
been  already  pointed  out,  a  descendant  of 
the  ancient  kagura,  or  temple  dances.  There 
are  hundreds  of  Noh  dramas  in  existence 


THE  KABUKI-Z.\,  A  JAPANESE  THEATRE  AT  TOKYO 


27 


IMITRIAI.    THEATRE.    TOKYO THE    UPPER   FOYER    AND   ENTRANCE   TO    DRESS   CIRCLE  — THE    FOYER —THE    RESTAIRAXT    ON    THE    DRESS 

CIRCLE    FLOOR  —  THE    AUDITORIl^M 


PRESi:  NT-DAY        IMPRESSIONS        OF        JAPAN 


407 


most  of  tlu'iii  written  Ijy  priestly  autliors 
prior  to  the  sixteenth  century.  No  scenery 
is  used  on  the  stage  where  they  are  performed. 
A  chorus  sits  on  the  ground  to  one  side  and 
there  is  a  simple  orchestra  at  the  back,  with 
a  large  painting  of  a  pine  tree.  But  the  robes 
worn  in  the  Noh  drama  are  very  elaborate, 
being  triumphs  of  artistic  skill.  Some  of 
these  robes  are  the  property  of  ancient 
families  and  have  been  preserved  in  the  same 
family  for  centuries.  To  relieve  the  mo- 
notony of  Noh  plays  there  is  the  kyogen,  a 
kind  of  farce  used  as  an  interlude.  The 
common  people,  however,  had  small  appre- 
ciation for  these  plays.  They  preferred  the 
puppet  shows  and  later  the  kabiiki,  or  popular 
drama,  of  which  there  are  numerous  varieties 
both  ancient  and  modern.  Two  classes  of 
plays  predominate,  however,  the  jidai,  or 
historical  dramas,  and  the  sewa-mono,  or 
comedies  of  contemporar\'  life.  There  is 
hardly  any  important  incident  of  national 
history  that  has  not  been  dramatised  and 
in  the  most  realistic  manner,  like  the  Chushin- 
Hiini,  or  League  of  the  Forty-seven  Ronin, 
the  Soga-Kyodai,  and  others.  The  last 
named  is  based  on  the  tale  of  two  brothers 
who  seek  revenge  on  the  murderer  of  their 
father.  The  Sendai  Hagi  is  based  on  the 
attempt  to  poison  a  child  of  the  Lord  of 
Sendai,  and  the  Kokusenya  on  the  story  of 
the  expulsion  of  the  Dutch  from  Formosa 
by  Koxinga  in  the  seventeenth  century. 
Among  modern  playwrights  the  most  noted 
is  Dr.  Tsubouchi,  a  university  professor  of 
literature.  His  Maki-no-kata,  an  historical 
drama  based  on  the  efforts  of  the  Hojo 
family  to  obtain  the  shogunate  for  their 
house,  is  praised  by  Japanese  critics  as  a 
clever  depiction  of  a  woman's  intrigue  for 
the  sake  of  her  child.  Some  of  Shakespere's 
plays,  such  as  "Othello"  and  "Hamlet," 
have  been  translated  and  acted  in  Japan, 
with  indiflerent  success.  Japanese  forms  of 
llisen's  plays  and  those  of  George  Bernard 
Shaw  and  Sudermann  have  been  more  pop- 
ular, though  it  is  a  question  whether  such 
plays  are  really  understood  by  a  Japanese 
audience.  The  theatres  have  some  difficulty 
in  fulfilling  police  regulations  prohibiting 
plays  with  so-called  "dangerous  thoughts"; 
and  consequently  no  great  plays  dealing  with 
modem  life  and  its  difficulties  appear  on  the 
Japanese  stage.  The  mind  of  the  nation  is 
devoted  to  a  worship  of  its  own  past,  as  a 
reaction  against  the  modern  tendency  to 
abandon  Oriental  for  Occidental  ideals. 
But  in  the  pull  of  the  dead  past  and  the  pull 
of  the  living  present  there  is  an  odds  which 
no  devotion  to  the  past  can  overcome. 
Japan  is  destined  to  break  away  from  her 
antiquated  notions  of  drama  as  surely  as 
she  is  abandoning  her  old  modes  of  commerce 


and  industry,  and  if  she  can  carry  with  her 
the  imperishal:>le  good,  to  the  rest  she  may 
say  farewell  with  a  will.  When  Japan 
becomes  more  imljued  with  a  world-conscious- 
ness of  culture  she  will  move  on  in  literature 
and  drama  to  a  future  that  may  easily 
outshine  her  past. 

THE  1MFEKI.\L  THE.\TRIC,  TOKYO 
The  Tcikoku  Gekyo,  or  the  Imperial 
Theatre  at  Tokyo,  may  truly  be  described 
as  a  Japanese  national  institution,  designed 
to  foster  the  highest  art,  supported  by  the 
most  prominent  art  patrons  of  the  Country, 
and  conducted  under  those  auspices  which 
raise  such  an  institution  above  the  ranks  of 
mere  commercial  enterprises.  It  is  famous 
the  world  over  as  the  home  of  Japanese 
dramatic  art,  and  as  a  theatre  it  unquestion- 
ably occupies  the  same  place  in  the  nation 
as  the  greatest  theatres  occupy  in  Great 
Britain,  France,  Germany,  or  Itah*.  Attend- 
ance at  the  Imperial  Theatre  is  almost 
obligator^'  on  all  visitors  to  Japan  who  wish 
to  see  the  best  performances,  not  only  of 
modern  Japanese  plays  and  foreign  pro- 
ductions, but  of  the  old  lyric  dramas  for 
which  the  Japanese  have  long  been  famous. 
At  the  Imperial  Theatre  the  visitor  sees 
nothing  but  the  best,  and  the  most  charac- 
teristic plays,  dances  and  other  features  of 
the  dramatic  art  of  the  country,  performed 
by  the  best  and  highest  paid  artists  in  the 
Orient. 

As  stated  before,  the  Imperial  Theatre  is 
not  so  much  a  commercial  enterprise  as  it  is 
the  national  home  of  the  drama.  A  school  of 
acting  is  maintained,  actors  and  actresses  are 
trained  from  youth,  and  to  appear  on  the 
stage  of  the  Imperial  in  one  of  the  great  pro- 
ductions is  to  have  the  seal  set  on  the  artist's 
fame.  The  Imperial  Theatre  in  every  sense 
maintains  the  highest  traditions  set  by  its 
founders.  Directing  the  theatre  there  is,  of 
course,  a  body  of  the  best  known  business 
men  and  art  patrons  of  Japan.  The  joint- 
stock  company  which  controls  the  institution 
was  established  in  1909  under  the  encourage- 
ment of  the  late  Prince  Ito,  Marquis  Saionji, 
the  late  Count  Hayashi  and  others,  equally 
well  known  for  their  fer\'id  interest  in  aflfairs 
of  state,  and  in  the  encouragement  of  the  fine 
arts.  The  company  was  formed  with  a 
capital  of  Yen  1,200,000,  divided  into  24,000 
shares  of  Yen  50  each.  A  magnificent  site 
for  the  great  new  theatre  was  secured  at  No.i 
Yuraku-cho,  Tokj'o.  This  position  is  in 
front  of  the  Babasaki  Mon,  a  gateway  leading 
to  the  Imperial  Palace,  and  is  near  the  Hibiya 
Park,  in  the  most  attractive  part  of  the 
national  capital.  The  theatre  is  adjacent  to 
the  Central  Railway  Station  and  is  also  easily 
reached  from  other  points  of  interest  to  the 


visitor  to  Tokyo.  The  building  was  com- 
pleted in  February,  191 1,  at  a  cost  of  about 
Yen  1,000,000,  and  was  formally  opened  in 
the   following    month. 

The  beauty  and  excellence  of  the  building 
can  not  be  denied.  Before  the  plans  were 
drawn  the  directors  had  placed  before  them 
the  best  ideas  of  foreign  designers,  and  the 
Superintending  Architect,  Dr.  T.  Yokogawa, 
was  sent  abroad  to  investigate  the  construc- 
tion and  design  of  theatres  in  Eiu'ope  and 
America.  Himself  a  Master  of  Technology, 
Dr.  Yokogawa  was  readily  able  to  assimilate 
the  good  points  of  foreign  theatres,  and  to 
incorporate  with  them  Japanese  ideas  in  the 
design  and  lauilding  of  the  Imperial  Theatre. 
The  building  is  both  fire-proof  and  proof 
against  damage  by  earthquake.  The  prep- 
aration of  the  site  comprised  the  driving  of 
15,000  piles,  18  to  21  feet  long,  into  the 
ground,  and  binding  them  into  a  solid  mass 
w'ith  reinforced  concrete  filling.  The  founda- 
tions of  the  building  were  then  laid  15  feet 
below  the  surface  of  the  ground,  and  upon 
them  was  erected  the  steel  frame,  which  is 
filled  in  with  bricks.  The  design  is  of  the 
Renaissance,  and  the  whole  conception 
is  pleasing  to  the  eye.  The  building 
measures  approximately  102  feet  wide  along 
the  front  elevation,  this  width  extending  to 
150  feet  in  the  central  part.  It  extends  back 
from  the  street  a  depth  of  198  feet.  The  front 
of  the  building  is  52  feet  high,  but  above 
the  stage  the  roof  is  raised  to  a  height  of  66 
feet.  Surmounting  the  front  arched  roof  is 
the  figure  of  the  God  of  Good  Luck.  The 
entire  outside  walls  of  the  theatre  are  faced 
with  pure  white  tiles  from  Imbe,  a  place  in 
Bizen  Pro%'ince  famous  for  its  manufacture  of 
tiles.  There  are  many  fine  points  about  the 
building  which  must  be  seen  to  be  appreci- 
ated. The  interior  decoration  is  delicate  and 
tasteful,  every  window  and  stairway,  or 
appurtenance  of  the  building  being  carried 
out  in  good  style,  and  there  is  a  profusion  of 
marbles,  statuary,  and  pictures  to  heighten 
the  effect  of  the  tout  ensemble.  No  trouble  or 
expense  has  been  spared  in  the  lighting  and 
ventilating  arrangements,  which  are  most 
modem  in  their  planning.  For  instance,  the 
Imperial  Theatre  maintains  its  own  plant  for 
cooling  and  heating  the  atmosphere,  and  for 
drawing  off  vitiated  air,  which  is  entirely 
renewed  every  ten  minutes  by  mechanical 
appliances.  The  electrical  current  for  light- 
ing purposes  is  accumulated  in  storage 
batteries  in  the  machine  rooms,  and  it  is 
impossible  for  the  theatre  to  be  thrown  into 
darkness  through  any  sudden  failure  of  the 
city  light  service.  It  may  be  added  that  all 
these  features  of  the  internal  arrangement 
and  maintenance  of  the  theatre  were  care- 
fully studied  by  experts  sent  abroad  specially 


4o8 


P  R  E  S  E  N  T  -  n  A  \' 


I   M   r  R  E  S  S  I  O  N  S 


O  F 


J  A  P  A  N 


to  investigate  such  questions,  and  everything 
of  a  mechanical  nature,  whether  for  the 
control  of  the  footlights,  or  otherwise,  is  the 
result  of  close  attention  to  what  is  the  best 
and  latest.  The  same  applies  to  the  work 
which  has  been  done  to  make  the  Imperial 
Theatre  thoroughly  fireproof.  In  addition  to 
the  usual  asbestos  curtain  before  the  stage, 
the  theatre  is  divided  into  three  sections,  each 
of  which  can  be  isolated  from  the  others 
instantaneously  and  automatically  by  con- 
trivances which  operate  when  fire  raises  the 
temperature.  As  to  the  seating  arrange- 
ments, they  are,  naturally,  installed  mainly 
with  the  idea  of  the  comfort  of  the  Japanese 
patrons,  but  it  may  be  said  at  once  that 
foreigners  are  accommodated  in  boxes,  or 
with  chairs  which  leave  nothing  to  be  desired 
for  ease  and  for  convenience  of  view.  The 
internal  arrangement  of  the  Imperial  Theatre, 
is,  in  fact,  a  great  tribute  to  the  cleverness  of 
the  Japanese  for  blending  their  own  require- 
ments with  those  of  the  foreigners.  An 
evening  spent  at  the  Imperial  Theatre  will 
disclose  that  nothing  is  lacking  to  promote 
the  comfort  and  enjoyment  of  the  visitor, 
Japanese  or  foreign.  There  are  four  floors, 
or  tiers  of  seats,  arranged  in  conformity  with 
the  European  plan  for  a  horseshoe-shaped 
auditorium.  Ranged  to  left  and  right  of  the 
first  and  second  tiers  are  the  boxes,  private 
and  public,  including  the  special  boxes  for 
dignitaries.  The  seating  accommodation  is 
for  1,700  persons. 

The  proscenium  is  48  feet  wide  and  24  feet 
high,  the  stage  itself  being  raised  about  six 
feet.  All  curtains  and  backs  are  raised  with- 
out being  folded  or  rolled.  A  revolving 
stage,  48  feet  in  diameter  and  operated  by  a 
1 2  horsepower  electric  motor  is  provided,  and 
is  controlled  by  specialists  w'ho  were  sent  to 
Europe  and  America  to  study  mechanical 
arrangements    of    this    nature    in     modern 


theaters.  The  general  a|)pointments  of  the 
Imperial  Theatre  are  remarkably  fine. 
Quite  apart  from  all  modern  conveniences, 
such  as  toilet  rooms,  retiring  rooms,  smoking 
rooms,  lounge,  and  bar,  there  is  a  well 
organised  catering  department  having  the 
appointments  of  a  first  class  restaurant  which 
is  always  well  patronised  by  the  Japanese 
and  foreign  visitors.  In  addition  there  are 
dining  and  refreshment  rooms  for  each  floor. 
The  main  restaurant  is  a  handsome  room, 
its  walls  hung  with  pictures  by  such  a  re- 
nowned artist  as  Mr.  Yeisaku  Wada.  In 
the  retiring  rooms  adjacent  are  also  magni- 
ficent paintings,  one  particularly  fine  series 
in  oils  being  morning,  noon,  and  evening 
scenes  by  Mr.  Saburosuke  Okada,  another 
famous  painter.  The  theatre  also  contains 
a  post  and  telegraph  department,  medical 
room,  telephones  for  the  use  of  the  public, 
and  many  more  similar  thoughtfully  pro- 
vided conveniences. 

In  the  School  of  Art  conducted  by  the 
Imperial  Theatre,  actors  and  actresses, 
vocalists,  musicians,  and  dancers  are  trained, 
so  that  the  standard  of  talent  to  be  presented 
to  patrons  is  always  maintained  according  to 
the  highest  traditions.  In  this  school  there 
is  a  stage  for  the  novices,  apart  from  the 
second  stage  on  which  rehearsals  take  place. 
A  large  number  of  pupils  attend  the  school, 
and  as  they  qualify  they  are  introduced  into 
the  performances  as  their  services  may  be 
called  for.  By  May,  191 7,  there  were  many 
fifth-year  graduates  of  the  dramatic  course 
placed  by  the  Directorate  of  the  theatre.  A 
widely  diversified  programme  of  entertain- 
ments is  presented  at  the  Imperial  Theatre 
throughout  the  year,  including  ancient  and 
modem  dramas,  dances,  and  so  on,  as  well  as 
cinematograph,  and  opera.  The  theatre  is 
available  under  special  arrangements  for 
foreign     companies,     and     many     excellent 


touring  companies  have  been  seen  there. 
Occasionally  the  Japanese  artists  cooperate 
with  local  foreign  talent  in  producing  operas 
and  similar  works,  and  one  may  often  see 
adaptations  of  foreign  drama  staged  in  the 
best  style  and  acted  by  artists  whose  fame 
has  spread  far  beyond  Japan.  Many  of  the 
Japanese  performances  start  about  four 
o'clock  in  the  afternoon,  and  extend  through- 
out the  evening,  but  as  a  rule  the  perform- 
ances are  timed  as  they  are  in  foreign 
countries. 

The  Directorate  of  the  Imperial  Theater 
comprises  Baron  Shibusawa,  Honourary 
Adviser;  Baron  Okiu"a,  President;  Mr.  K. 
Yamamoto,  Managing  Director,  and  Messrs. 
M.  Fukuzawa,  T.  Masuda,  T.  Tanaka, 
T.  Tezuka,  R.  Fujiyama,  and  S.  Tsunoda, 
Directors.  Messrs.  K.  Murai  and  C. 
Yasoshima  are  the  Auditors.  The  great 
success  which  has  attended  this  undertaking 
is  admittedly  largely  due  to  the  highly  capable 
management  of  Mr.  Yamamoto,  whose  name 
is  familiar  in  theatrical  circles  throughout 
the  world.  Mr.  Yamamoto  has  a  keen  sense 
of  the  dignity  of  the  Imperial  Theatre,  and  it 
is  his  constant  endeavour  to  maintain  the 
highest  standards  of  excellence  in  the  conduct 
of  the  institution  and  in  the  presentation  of 
the  best  that  money  can  provide  in  the  way 
of  art.  Very  high  salaries  are  paid  to  the 
leading  actors  and  actresses.  It  is,  of  course, 
impossible  to  regard  the  Imperial  Theatre  in 
the  light  of  a  business  concern  purely  and 
simply,  nevertheless  the  financial  situation  is 
a  very  satisfactory  one.  For  the  half-year 
ended  July  31,  19 17,  the  gross  earnings  were 
Yen  349,530  and  the  expenses  Yen  268,753, 
leaving  a  net  profit  of  Yen  80,777.  A  divi- 
dend of  Yen  1.13^^4  per  share  was  declared. 
Yen  4,100  was  added  to  the  reserves,  and 
after  distribution  of  other  sums,  Yen  12,000 
was    carried    forward. 


THE  HOSPITAL  AND  HEADQUARTERS  OF  THE  JAPAN  RED  CROSS  SOCIETY 

XXIV.    The  Progress  of  Medicine 

IN  Japan 

By  PROF.  S.  KITASATO,  M.  D.,  F.   R.  S.,   London,  etc. 

History— Institutions  for  Medical  Research  — Medical  Societies  and  Periodicals 


ROME  was  not  built  in  a  day,"  says 
an  often  used  proverb,  and  the  same 
is  true  of  the  science  of  Japanese 
medicine  which  is  to-day  the  result  of  a  slow 
but  steady  growth  that  has  extended  over 
two  thousand  years  from  the  time  when 
intercourse  between  Japan  and  the  Asiatic 
continent  had  its  first  misty  beginnings. 
An  external  culture  and  Buddhism  were 
then  introduced  into  the  country,  and  the 
seeds  of  medical  knowledge  were  sown  on 
Japanese  soil,  together  with  the  seeds  of 
various  other  sciences  and  arts. 

.•\s  a  result  of  the  new  knowledge,  and  of 
its  influence  on  the  life  of  the  people,  a  body 
of  laws,  which  is  known  as  the  "Taihorei," 
was  drawn  in  the  reign  of  Mommu  Tenno 
(701  A.  D.),  in  which  some  articles  were 
devised  to  regulate  and  control  the  practice 
of  medicine.  From  those  laws  we  learn  that 
even  at  that  time  distinctions  were  already 
made  between  the  practice  of  medicine, 
surgery,  pediatrics,  ophthalmology,  and 
otology,  acupuncture  and  massage.  Medical 
students  were  educated  at  the  public  expense 


and  their  qualification  was  finally  deter- 
mined by  a  kind  of  state  examination.  The 
progress  of  medicine,  however,  was  impeded 
by  the  fact  that  it,  as  well  as  other  branches 
of  learning,  were  usurped  by  Buddhism. 
This  continued  to  be  the  case  until  the 
beginning  of  the  Kamakura  period  (1186- 
1315  A.  D.),  when  a  revolution  against  the 
general  government  was  attempted.  The 
result  was  that  both  religion  and  medicine 
gradually  began  to  assume  features  that 
were  more  in  consonance  with  the  national 
character.  Modifications  and  improvements 
were  made  along  lines  of  practical  knowledge 
which  led  to  corresponding  improved  methods 
of  treatment.  Quite  a  number  of  volumin- 
ous medical  works  were  also  published,  which 
embodied  the  results  of  previous  experiences, 
so  that  the  medical  practitioner  had  a  reli- 
able source  of  information  to  guide  him  and 
to  extend   his  knowledge. 

In  the  time  of  Oda-Yoyotomi  (l 568-1 614 
A.  D.)  the  medical  school  of  Japan  had  to 
meet  a  strong  current  of  Western  medical 
learning,  whose  first  indications  were  to  be 


seen  coincident  with  the  introduction  of 
Christianity  in  Japan  in  1549.  It  led  Japa- 
nese medicine  to  take  a  quick  gait  toward 
the  progress  in  surgery,  which  was  known 
as  "Nambanryu,"  meaning  the  "System  of 
the  South."  The  long  years  of  internal 
peace  and  quiet  of  the  Tokugawa  reign 
(1615-1867  A.  D.)  greatly  favoured  the 
spreading  of  Chinese  medicine  and  of  Chinese 
medical  methods  in  Japan,  which  were 
strongly  supported  by  the  respect  and 
popularity  which  Chinese  ethics,  and  the 
moral  precepts  of  Confucius  and  Mentius, 
found  among  the  learned  and  educated 
classes  of  Japan.  The  fact,  however,  must 
not  be  overlooked  that  at  the  same  time  the 
Japanese  school  also  had  produced  physi- 
cians of  note  and  high  repute,  who,  how- 
ever, formed  a  class  of  their  own. 

In  the  further  development  of  Japanese 
medicine,  the  Dutch  medical  learning,  intro- 
duced in  Japan  about  1641  A.  D.,  was  greatly 
studied  and  investigated  by  the  followers  of 
the  Japanese  school.  In  the  latter  part 
of    the    Tokugawa    reign,    great   physicians 


4IO 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


PROFESSOR  S.  KITASATD,  M.  D.,  F.  R.  S. 
(LONDON) 

appeared,  such  as  Ranka  Mayeno  and  Gem- 
paku  Sugita,  who  were  the  harbingers  of 
the  further  progress  and  enlightenment  of  the 
Meiji  Era.  They  saw  the  imperative  neces- 
sity of  employing  the  empiric  methods  of 
the  new  school,  and  of  abandoning  the  old 
deductive  methods.  The  propagation  of 
these  new  methods  was  greatly  helped  by 
the  work  of  Dr.  von  Siebold,  a  German 
physician  who  came  to  Nagasaki  in  1826, 
and  to  the  Government,  which  established 
a  Translation  Bureau  in  which  many  of  the 
leading  foreign  medical  works  were  translated, 
and  thus  made  accessible  to  all.  But  the 
advocates  of  the  old  Chinese  and  Japanese 
schools  succeeded  in  getting  the  govern- 
mental authorities  to  prohibit  the  propaga- 
tion of  the  new  learning  in  Japan,  and  accord- 
ingly a  corresponding  prohibition  law  was 
enacted  in  1849.  Strange  to  say,  it  was  in 
the  same  year  that  Jenner's  method  of 
vaccination  was  introduced  in  Japan.  The 
followers  of  the  European  school  carried  on 
their  work  and  studies  in  secret,  in  the  guise 
of  vaccinators.  It  was  not  long,  however, 
before  the  prohibition  was  rescinded,  and  a 
number  of  medical  schools  came  into  exis- 
tence toward  the  close  of  the  Tokugawa 
reign.     The  most  famous  of  them  were  the 


Tokyo-Igakkwan,  which  later  was  reorgan- 
ised as  the  Tokyo  Imperial  University 
Medical  College,  and  the  Scitokukwan  in 
Nagasaki,  later  reorganised  as  the  Naga.saki 
Medical  School. 

At  the  beginning  of  the  Meiji  Era,  Dr. 
William  Millis,  an  English  physician,  who 
was  then  physician  to  the  British  Legation 
in  Tokyo,  applied  for  a  position  in  the  medical 
service  of  the  imperial  army  which  was  then 
contending  with  the  shogunate  forces. 
.'\fterward,  he  was  engaged  in  the  organisa- 
tion of  the  Medical  College  and  Hospital  of 
the  Tokyo  Imperial  University.  Later  on, 
the  German  school  of  medicine,  which  ap- 
pears to  have  been  better  adapted  to  the 
genius  and  bent  of  mind  of  the  Japanese, 
took  the  place  of  other  schools  that  had 
hitherto  existed.  In  the  fourth  year  of 
Meiji  (1872),  Drs.  Miiller  and  Hoffman  were 
engaged  to  take  the  place  of  the  English 
physician,  and  since  then  numerous  German 
instructors  have  followed,  to  be  attached 
to  the  Tokyo  Imperial  University  as  pro- 
fessors. The  last  of  these  were  the  late 
Dr.  von  Barlz  and  Dr.   Scriba. 

Medical  education  in  Japan  consists  of 
two  classes;  namely,  university  and  medical 
school.  Both  require  a  four-year  course  of 
study,  the  only  difference  between  them 
being  the  two  years  of  preliminary  study 
in  the  higher  schools,  besides  the  five-year 
course  of  the  middle  schools  and  six  years 
in  the  primary  school.  Graduates  of  both 
are  qualified  and  licensed  to  practise  medi- 
cine. There  are  at  present  four  Imperial 
Universities:  namely,  in  Tolcyo,  established 
in  1879;  in  Kyoto;  in  Sendai  (the  Tohoku 
Imperial  University);  and  in  Fukuoka 
(the  Kyushu  Imperial  University).  There 
are  still  two  other  colleges,  such  as  the 
Osaka  and  the  Keiogijiku.  The  Osaka 
Medical  College  is  the  district  govern- 
mental institution  and  the  other  is  the  private 
college  of  the  Keiogijiku  University.  The 
medical  schools  are  the  Chiba,  the  Sendai, 
the  Okayama,  the  Kanazawa,  the  Nagasaki, 
the  Niigata,  the  Kyoto,  the  Aichi,  and  the 
Kumamoto.  and  the  Tokyo  Charity  Hospital 
Medical  School. 


INSTITUTIONS    FOR   MEDICAL 
RESEARCH 

The  Kitasato  Institute  for  Infectious 
Diseases,  established  in  1892,  was  the  first 
of  the  kind  to  be  organised  in  Japan.  It 
has  been  due  to  this  institute  that  some  of 
the  world-famous  discoveries  were  made. 
Among  these  may  be  mentioned  the  dis- 
covery of  plague  bacillus  and  dysentery 
bacillus;  contributions  to  the  serum  therapy 
of  tetanus  and  diphtheria;  improvements 
in  the  preparation  of  pure  calf  lymph;  es- 
tablishment of  rational  method  for  preven- 
tion of  plague  and  of  other  infectious  diseases ; 
discovery  of  intermediate  hosts  of  lung  and 
liver  flukes  and  other  biological  studies  of 
parasites;  improvements  in  the  preparation 
of  efficacious  sensitised  typhoid,  cholera, 
gonorrhoea  and  other  vaccines.  Two  of  the 
most  widely  known  discoveries  made  in 
Japan  lately  are  the  determination  of  the 
causative  agent  of  Schistosomiasis,  that  was 
made  by  Professors  Fujinami  and  Katsurada, 
and  of  Weil's  disease,  or  hemorrhagic  jaun- 
dice, that  was  achieved  by  Professors  Inada 
and  Ido  of  the  Fukuoka  Imperial  University. 
They  named  the  germ  as  "Spirocheta  icter- 
ohsmatologiae."  Full  details  regarding  the 
discoveries  and  work  referred  to  above  may 
be  found  in  medical  literature  throughout  the 
world,  and  therefore  further  reference  here 
will  be  omitted. 

MEDICAL    SOCIETIES    AND 
PERIODICALS 

The  first  among  the  medical  bodies  is 
the  Association  of  Physicians,  of  all  Japan, 
which  watches  over  the  rights  and  interests 
of  the  profession.  There  are  more  than 
forty-five  medical  societies  and  associations 
for  scientific  purposes,  which  all  have  their 
own  journals.  There  are  over  sixt}'  medical 
periodicals,  all  of  which  arc  published  in 
Japanese,  but  journals  in  foreign  languages 
are  pubUshed  periodically  by  the  Tokyo, 
Kyoto,  and  Kyushu  Imperial  LTniversities. 
Another  periodical  in  the  European  languages 
is  published  by  the  Kitasato  Institute  for 
Infectious  Diseases,  entitled  "The  Kitasato 
Archives  of  Experimental  Medicine." 


'  1 1 


:♦     •»       & 


GOLF    LINKS    ON    ROKKO    MOUNT 


XXV.    The  Foreigner  in  Japan 

By   ROBERT  YOUNG,  Editor  and  Proprietor  of  "The  Japan  Chronicle" 


IN  books  on  Japan  it  is  not  uncommon 
to  find  it  assumed  that  the  remarkable 
changes  which  have  taken  place  in  the 
course  of  the  last  sixty  years  have  been  the 
product  solely  of  Japanese  initiative  and 
energy,  and  that  changes  of  such  a  far-reach- 
ing character  should  have  been  possible  in 
so  short  a  time  is  quoted  as  proof  of  the 
marvellous  capacity  of  the  Japanese.  What 
may  be  justly  credited  to  the  Japanese  is 
their  receptivity  and  openness  to  new  ideas, 
their  readiness  to  learn  from  others,  and  their 
facility  for  adaptation.  This  has  been 
evident  throughout  their  history.  From 
China  or  Korea  the  Japanese  received  their 
script,  their  art,  their  philosophy,  their 
methods  of  government,  and  for  the  great 
mass  of  the  people  their  religion.  When,  a 
few  centuries  later  (in  1542),  the  first  Euro- 
peans appeared  on  the  scene,  in  the  guise 
of  three  Portuguese  adventurers,  followed 
by  Portuguese  missionaries  and  traders,  the 
Japanese  were  found  equally  receptive.  The 
adoption  of  Western  firearms  revolutionised 
the  art  of  war.  It  was  to  the  Portuguese 
that  the  castles  which  played  so  great  a 
part  in  those  troublous  times  owed  their 
architecture,  and  when  Nobunaga,  the 
great  warrior  of  the  sixteenth  century,  reared 
his  famous  castle  at  Azushi  in  the  Province 
of  Omi,  "he  placed  the  Christian  God  (by 
which  it  is  supposed  is  meant  a  crucifix]  on 


the  top  of  the  keep."  The  Christian  religion 
of  the  Catholic  variety,  with  all  its  intoler- 
ance, was  introduced  and  spread  rapidly;  it 
might  even  have  supplemented  the  Buddhist 
religion,  which  it  so  much  resembled,  had 
it  not  been  for  the  suspicion  aroused  by  the 
aggressive  designs  of  the  Portuguese  in  the 
East  and  the  interference  of  the  priests  in 
Japanese  politics.  It  was  in  this  period  that 
the  Japanese  began  to  take  interest  in  over- 
sea trade,  and  when  a  Kentish  sea-captain 
named  Adams,  pilot  or  sailing-master  of  a 
Dutch  vessel,  arrived  in  Japan  in  1600, 
with  the  only  remaining  ship  of  a  fleet  that 
had  set  sail  originally  for  the  purpose  of 
trading  to  Spanish  America,  the  Japanese 
eagerly  learned  from  him  the  art  of  building 
sea-going  vessels  that  would  be  capable  of 
something  more  than  coasting  voyages. 

Dutch  and  English  traders  arrived  in 
Japan  in  the  early  years  of  the  seventeenth 
centur>',  and  were  warmly  welcomed.  The 
English  withdrew  after  a  somewhat  chequered 
business  career  of  ten  years,  but  the  Dutch 
remained,  and  when  Christianity  was  pro- 
scribed and  the  Portuguese  expelled,  the 
Dutch  were  allowed  to  remain,  quarters 
being  given  them  in  Nagasaki,  where  a  small 
trade,  limited  to  two  or  three  ships  a  year, 
was  maintained  with  the  West.  For  more 
than  two  centuries  Japan  led  a  secluded  life. 
Unfortunately  for  her  this  was  a  period  of 


great  progress  in  Europe,  in  which  science 
gradually  extended  its  range,  the  distant 
places  of  the  world  were  explored,  new 
products  were  discovered  or  invented,  and 
steam  began  to  revolutionise  industry. 
Japan  of  her  own  will  remained  outside 
the  circle  of  cultiu-e  contact,  and  when  the 
country  was  reopened  to  the  world  in  the 
middle  of  the  nineteenth  century  Japan  was 
found  to  be  still  at  a  stage  of  civilisation 
which  other  nations  had  long  passed.  Yet 
during  all  that  time  the  small  Dutch  colony 
at  Nagasaki  had  been  a  window  through 
which  gleams  of  the  light  of  science  came 
from  the  Western  world.  Some  members 
of  the  Dutch  factory  were  men  of  consider- 
able learning,  and  the  colony  from  time  to 
time  numbered  among  its  members  German 
scientists  who  desired  to  study  conditions 
in  Japan.  To  them  came  Japanese  secretly, 
thirsting  for  knowledge,  and  the  elements 
of  mathematics,  geographjs  astronomy,  bot- 
any, medicine,  and  other  sciences  were 
obtained  from  this  source. 

Nevertheless,  the  "black  ships"  of  Com- 
modore Perry  found  in  1853  a  Japan  but 
little  changed  from  the  Japan  of  the  seven- 
teenth centurj'.  The  tide  of  progress  in 
civilisation  had  passed  her  by  and  left  her 
stranded.  As  the  result  of  his  efforts  a  few 
ports  were  unwillingly  opened  to  foreign 
trade.     Then    commenced    a    long    struggle 


412 


PRESENT-DAY        IMPRESSIONS        OF        JAPAN 


between  the  forces  of  conscr\'atism  and 
innovation,  compHcated  by  the  strife  between 
the  shogunate  and  the  clans  of  Satsuma  and 
Choshu,  which  lasted  until  1868,  when  the 
shogunate  fell.  Up  to  that  time  the  clans 
opposing  the  shogunate  had  been  counted 
as  conser\-atives,  though  as  a  matter  of  fact 
the  daimyate  of  Satsuma  had  introduced 
some  foreign  innovations,  purchasing  steam- 
ships and  establishing  a  spinning  mill.  But 
generally  the  clans  claiming  to  be  pro- 
Imperialist  and  anti-shogim  denounced  the 
opening  of  the  ports  to  foreigners  as  a  dese- 
cration of  Japanese  soil  and  insistently 
demanded  that  the  "hairy  barbarians" 
should  be  driven  into  the  sea  and  the  ports 
closed.  When  the  shogunate  fell  and  the 
Mikado  came  to  rule  as  well  as  reign,  with 
the  Satsuma  and  Choshu  clans  in  full  control 
of  the  reins  of  government,  a  complete 
change  took  place  in  their  attitude.  They 
began  to  perceive  that  owing  to  the  exten- 
sion of  communications  seclusion  was  no 
longer  possible  and  that  intercourse  with 
foreign  nations,  once  restored,  could  not  be 
broken  off  without  danger.  It  was  natural 
that  in  these  new  circumstances  the  younger 
men,  some  of  whom  had  visited  foreign 
countries  and  learned  how  far  Japan  lagged 
behind  the  times,  should  be  called  to  fill  a 
place  in  the  national  councils,  and  to  insti- 
tute reforms  calculated  to  bring  Japan  on  a 
level  with  the  progressive  countries  of  the 
West. 

The  consequence  of  this  new  spirit  was 
that  foreign  scientists  and  experts  were  en- 
gaged as  teachers.  Japanese  weakness  being 
strikingly  evident  in  the  matter  of  defence, 
it  was  the  reorganisation  of  the  army  and 
navy  to  which  attention  was  first  directed. 
Englishmen  were  employed  to  convert  a 
navy  of  war-junks,  propelled  by  sweeps  or 
sails,  into  a  nax'j'  of  modem  steam-driven 
warships,  the  success  of  which  was  shown  in 
1894  at  the  Yalu  and  in  1904  at  Tsushima. 
Frenchmen  were  engaged  to  build  arsenals 
and  dockyards  and  reorganise  the  army, 
being  replaced  by  Germans  after  the  war 
of  1870-71  had  shown  the  superiority  of  the 
German  military*  machine.  How  closely  the 
Japanese  army  has  followed  German  patterns, 
even  to  the  goose-step,  will  be  realised  bv 
any  one  who  makes  an  examination  of  its 
methods.  Organisation,  administrative  de- 
tails, training,  equipment,  the  whole  is  a 
remarkably  close  copy  of  the  German  mili- 
tary machine,  and,  unlike  copies  in  general, 
the  imitation  showed  itself  in  its  encounter 
with  the  Russian  armies  to  possess  the  driv- 
ing force  of  the  original.  From  questions  of 
defence  the  new  Government  turned  to  the 
reorganisation  of  the  civil  and  criminal  law, 
early  reaUsing  that  unless  its  legal  adminis- 


mr.  robert  vovxc,  proprietor  of 
"the  j.\p.\n'  chronicle" 

tration  could  be  brought  more  into  accord- 
ance with  the  principles  animating  the 
juridical  systems  of  the  West,  it  would  be 
hopeless  to  expect  admission  to  the  comity 
of  nations.  The  codification  of  Japanese 
law  was  begun  by  a  Frenchman,  M.  Bois- 
sonade  de  Fontarabie,  who  incidentally 
brought  about  the  abolition  of  torture  by 
offering  his  employers  the  choice  between 
its  immediate  suspension  or  his  resignation. 
His  work  of  codification  was  continued  by 
Germans,  and  the  Japanese  legal  system 
to-day  may  be  said  to  be  an  amalgam  of 
French  and  German  principles  upon  which 
Japanese  customar\'  law  and  institutions 
are  grafted. 

Another  important  question  to  which  the 
new  Government  early  turned  its  attention 
was  that  of  the  currency,  which  was  reorgan- 
ised under  British  auspices.  A  mint  origin- 
ally erected  at  Hongkong  was  obtained  and 
set  up  in  Osaka,  where  for  many  years  it 
was  operated  by  English  experts  who  raised 
the  Japanese  coinage  to  an  equalitj-  with 
that  of  any  other  nation  both  as  regards 
standard  and  appearance.  Education  was 
placed  in  the  hands  of  Americans,  who  laid 
the  foundations  of  an  excellent  system  of 
instruction,  afterward  influenced  and  modi- 
fied by  German  ideas.  But  it  was  an  English- 
man —  Basil  Hall  Chamberlain  —  who  was 
made  Professor  of  Japanese  and  Philology 
in  the  Imperial  University  of  Tok\-o,  and 
whose  example  did  so  much  to  encourage  the 
study  of  the  language  from  a  philological 
standpoint  among  the  Japanese  themselves. 
The  higher  medical  instruction  of  the  coun- 
try was  for  many  years  in  the  hands  of 
Germans,  the  whole  medical  science  of  the 
country  to-day  being  on  German  lines. 
Post  office,  telegraphs,  and  railways  were  all 


organised  or  constructed  by  British  subjects. 
Lighthouses  were  planned  and  erected  under 
British  super\'ision.  The  reform  of  the 
prisons  was  undertaken  vmder  British  advice. 
Waterworks  and  harbour  works  were  con- 
structed under  the  superintendence  of  Brit- 
ish employees  of  the  Japanese  Government. 
The  first  spinning  mills  were  erected  and 
run  by  men  from  Lancashire;  the  first  flour 
mills  were  built  and  operated  by  English- 
men, while  the  organisation  of  the  first 
steamship  company  was  undertaken  by 
foreigners,  chiefly  British  and  Americans, 
who  also  for  many  years  officered  the  vessels. 
It  was  an  Englishman  who  started  the  first 
newspaper  in  Japan  printed  in  the  native 
script.  "By  foreigners,"  says  Professor 
Chamberlain,  "the  first  men-of-war  were 
built,  the  first  large  public  edifices  erected, 
the  first  lessons  given  in  rational  finance. 
Nor  must  it  be  supposed  that  they  have 
been  mere  supers'isors.  It  has  been  a  case 
of  off-coats,  of  actual  manual  work,  of 
example  as  well  as  precept.  Technical  men 
have  shown  their  Japanese  employees  how- 
to  do  technical  things,  the  name  of  chef  de 
bureau,  captain,  foreman,  or  what  not,  being 
no  doubt  generally  painted  on  a  Japanese 
figure-head,  but  the  real  power  behind  each 
little  throne  being  the  foreign  adviser  or 
specialist." 

Nothing  but  praise  is  due  the  Japanese 
for  so  readily  recognising  that  they  must  sink 
any  national  pride  and  employ  foreigners  in 
the  work  of  reorganisation,  and  it  may  be 
acknowledged  that  these  experts  were  liber- 
ally recompensed  and  generously  treated. 
But  this  scarcely  gives  the  Japanese  the  right 
to  claim  the  labours  of  the  foreign  experts 
as  their  own,  and  it  does  not  justify  the 
assumption  so  frequently  made  that  the 
metamorphosis  from  feudalism  to  the  modem 
industrial  State  has  been  the  unaided  work  of 
the  Japanese,  without  expert  knowledge  or 
training — a  modem  miracle.  What  is  so 
remarkable  is  that  despite  the  assistance 
rendered  by  foreigners  in  the  great  work  of 
reconstruction,  the  general  attitude  towards 
the  resident  foreigner  is  neither  just  nor 
generous.  Considerable  jealously  is  shown 
regarding  his  efforts  both  in  the  matter  of 
trade  and  industries.  Ten  years  ago,  one  of 
Japan's  greatest  admirers,  the  late  Captain 
Brinkley,  wrote:  "He  would  be  a  very  ill- 
advised  Occidental  who  carried  his  money  to 
Japan  and  proceeded  to  set  up  a  factory  on 
his  own  account."  The  attitude  taken  by 
the  bulk  of  the  Japanese  is  that  any  profit 
made  by  a  foreigner  in  Japan  is  so  much  taken 
from  the  pockets  of  Japanese.  No  considera- 
tion is  given  to  the  development  of  resources 
effected  by  foreign  aid  or  even  to  the  fact  that 
in  the  majority  of  cases  any  profits  made  are 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   O  !•'   JAPAN 


413 


spent  in  tlic  country  itself.  The  Japanese 
view  seems  to  be  that  capital  invested  in  the 
country  must  be  under  the  sole  administra- 
tion of  Japanese.  It  was,  of  course,  the  foreign 
merchant  who  instituted  and  developed 
Japan's  oversea  trade,  and  it  is  due  in  no 
small  measure  to  the  foundation  he  laid  that 
Japan's  exports  in  the  Meiji  Era  increased 
from  a  total  value  of  Yen  15,000,000  in 
1868  (say  Yen  3,000,000  at  the  then  rate  of 
exchange)  to  Yen  458,000,000  in  19 10. 
Nevertheless,  the  view  of  the  Japanese  is 
that  the  foreign  merchant  is  an  interloper 
and  that  he  should  go  his  way  with  the 
foreign  experts  whose  services  have  now 
been  dispensed  with.  It  does  not  seem  to 
occur  to  the  Japanese  who  take  this  view  — 
and  it  is  to  be  feared  that  they  are 
the  large  majority  —  that  the  more  foreign 
merchants  who  can  be  persuaded  to  use  their 
energy,  capacity,  and  capital  in  developing 
Japanese  trade  and  finding  a  market  for 
Japanese  products,  the  greater  must  be  the 
profit  for  Japan.  The  general  feeling  seems 
to  be  that  the  foreign  merchant  is  in  some  way 
robbing  the  Japanese  of  business  that  would 
otherwise  come  into  his  hands,  and  upon 
which  he  w-ould  reap  the  profit  that  is  now 
made  by  the  foreigner.  Of  course,  as  time 
has  gone  by  it  is  only  natural  that  the  bulk  of 
Japan's  foreign  trade  should  pass  into  the 
hands  of  the  Japanese,  who,  with  growing 
experience,  have  become  more  capable  of  con- 
ducting it.  But,  as  might  be  expected,  with 
an  increase  of  the  bulk  of  foreign  trade,  the 
share  of  foreign  merchants  has  increased  in 
amount,  though  it  has  diminished  in  the  per- 
centage of  the  total.  As  indicating  the 
extent  of  trade  done  by  foreign  merchants 
and  the  contributions  levied  thereupon  by 
Japanese  taxation,  it  may  be  interesting  to 
state  that  according  to  an  investigation  made 
a  few  years  ago,  the  foreigners  of  Kobe,  who, 
including  the  Chinese,  do  not  constitute  quite 
I  per  cent  of  the  population,  paid  almost  10 
per  cent  of  the  total  imperial  taxation,  13  per 
cent  of  the  total  income  tax,  and  21  per  cent 
of  the  total  business  tax.  A  similar  investi- 
gation with  regard  to  Yokohama  showed  that 
while  foreigners  constituted  only  2.09  per 
cent  of  the  total  population,  they  paid  22.62 
per  cent  of  the  business  tax. 

It  might  be  thought  that  such  facts  as  these 
would  prove  the  value  of  the  small  foreign 
community  to  the  Japanese  State,  both  from 
the  work  done  in  extending  Japanese  trade 
and  the  contributions  to  Japanese  expendi- 
ture, but  this  is  not  the  case.  The  attitude 
of  the  Japanese  Government  as  well  as  the 
Japanese  people  is  that  of  hostility,  more  or 
less  veiled,  to  foreigners  and  foreign  enter- 


prise. The  alien  is  imder  many  disabilities. 
Foreigners  are  denied  the  right  to  possess 
land  in  their  own  names.  Prior  to  the  last 
revision  of  the  treaties  in  191 1  a  Land  Owner- 
shi]>  Bill  was  passed  which  proposed  to  extend 
this  right  to  foreigners  whose  countries 
granted  Japanese  a  similar  concession.  The 
measure  was,  however,  hedged  about  with  so 
many  harassing  restrictions,  such  as  that  a 
foreigner  who  desired  to  purchase  land  must 
be  domiciled  in  the  country  and  must  sell  his 
land  on  leaving  Japan  on  pain  of  confiscation, 
that  it  would  have  been  of  but  little  value  in 
practice.  Though  passed  by  the  Diet,  it  has 
never  come  into  operation,  and  it  remains  a 
dead  letter.  It  is  possible,  however,  for  two 
or  more  foreigners  to  organise  a  company 
under  Japanese  law  and  thus  hold  land,  but 
the  device  is  not  altogether  satisfactory  as  it 
does  not  rest  on  any  established  right.  Dr.  de 
Becker,  a  jurist  of  acknowledged  authority, 
points  out  that  foreigners  can  be  interested 
in  (i)  limited  partnerships,  (2)  joint-stock 
limited  partnerships,  and  (3)  joint-stock 
limited  companies  owning  Japanese  ships; 
but  in  the  first  place  they  can  not  become 
partners  with  unlimited  liability;  in  the 
second  case,  the  same  rule  applies,  and  in  the 
third  case,  they  can  not  become  directors. 
In  other  words,  the  law  is  so  framed  that 
all  the  executive  power  is  vested  in  the 
hands  of  Japanese  subjects.  Foreigners 
may  not  become  shareholders  in  the  semi- 
State  banks,  such  as  the  Bank  of  Japan, 
the  Yokohama  Specie  Bank,  or  the  Agri- 
cultural or  Industrial  Banks.  These  banks, 
with  the  authority  of  the  State  behind 
them,  in  some  cases  make  loans  to  Japanese 
at  rates  far  below  those  ruling  in  the 
markets,  in  order  to  enable  Japanese  to 
compete  on  favourable  terms  with  foreign 
undertakings.  Seeing  that  any  loss  is  borne 
by  taxation,  to  which  foreigners  contribute, 
the  exclusion  of  foreigners  from  being  share- 
holders or  from  the  benefits  derived  from  such 
banks  is  evidently  unjust.  Again,  the  articles 
of  subsidised  companies,  such  as  the  Nippon 
Yusen  Kaisha  (Japan  Steamship  Company), 
exclude  foreigners  from  membership,  though 
here  also  the  sulisidies  come  from  general 
taxation  to  which  foreigners  contribute. 
Foreigners  can  not  become  members,  share- 
holders, or  brokers  of  the  various  exchanges, 
and  they  are  excluded  from  membership  in 
the  chambers  of  commerce.  Foreigners  can 
not  engage  in  the  emigration  business  either 
as  individuals  or  as  shareholders  of  the  emi- 
gration companies.  Foreigners  i>a\-  rates, 
but  can  not  vote  in  municipal  elections. 
Foreigners  can  not  become  members  of  the 
Japanese  Bar  or  practise  in  a  Japanese  court. 


despite  the  fact  that  a  number  of  Japanese 
have  been  called  to  the  English  Bar.  Vessels 
flying  a  foreign  flag  are  not  only  excluded 
from  the  Japanese  coasting  trade,  but  even 
the  concession  under  which  foreign  ships  on  a 
continuous  voyage  were  able  to  carry  cargo 
and  passengers  between  Nagasaki,  Kob(5,  and 
Yokohama  was  withdrawn  when  the  treaties 
were  revised  in  191 1.  Thus,  while  Japanese 
ships  may  ply  to  and  from  any  British  port 
(Hongkong  to  Singa])ore,  Singapore  to  Cal- 
cutta, Colombo,  Bombay,  or  home  ports),  a 
British  vessel  is  prohibited  from  carrying  a 
pound  of  tea  or  a  single  passenger  between 
Formosa  and  Nagasaki,  Kobe,  or  Yokohama. 

In  view  of  these  disabilities  it  is  scarcely 
surijrising  that  the  extension  of  Japanese 
influence  or  territory  in  the  East  is  not  wel- 
comed by  British  or  any  other  foreigners  in 
this  part  of  the  world.  In  Formosa,  for 
example,  there  has  been  a  deliberate  attempt 
to  squeeze  out  foreigners  from  the  trade  they 
established.  "Japan  for  the  Japanese"  is  the 
principle  advocated,  and  reciprocity  is  lost 
sight  of.  When  it  is  considered  how  much 
Japan  has  owed  to  foreigners  in  the  past,  it  is 
surprising  that  such  a  short-sighted  policy 
should  prevail.  In  the  matter  of  the  admin- 
istration of  justice,  foreigners  have  full  and 
unrestricted  access  to  the  courts,  but  the 
procedure  is  so  cumbrous  and  is  subject  to  so 
many  delays  that  merchants  in  many  cases 
prefer  to  suffer  loss  rather  than  indulge  in 
svich  an  expensive  luxury.  However,  they 
are  no  worse  oflt  in  this  respect  than  their 
Japanese  fellow-residents.  What  may  justly 
be  resented  is  the  latent  hostility  to  foreigners 
and  foreign  enterprise,  which  is  sometimes 
even  more  evident  in  Government  circles  than 
among  the  mass  of  the  people.  Occasionally 
even  officials  of  Government  departments 
have  openly  advocated  the  supplanting  of  the 
foreign  merchant  in  the  interests  of  what  is 
called  "direct  trade,"  quite  oblivious  to  the 
fact  that  every  agency  which  can  be  recruited 
is  of  advantage  to  the  extension  of  Japanese 
cominerce. 

It  inay  be  hoped  that  as  a  knowledge  of  the 
teachings  of  economics  extends,  there  will  be 
a  wider  appreciation  of  the  benefits  to  be 
derived  from  the  assistance  given  by  foreign- 
ers in  the  extension  of  Japanese  trade  and  the 
development  of  Japan's  resources.  No  one 
suggests,  of  course,  that  foreigners  are 
animated  by  an  altruistic  motive  in  their 
commercial  undertakings,  but,  in  view  of  the 
liberty  extended  abroad  to  Japanese  when 
engaged  in  mercantile  pursuits,  foreign  mer- 
chants in  Japan  and  Japanese  territories 
have  a  right  to  expect  some  measure  of 
reciprocity. 


XXVI.    Japanese  Characteristics: 

THE  Physical,  the  Mental, 

AND  THE  Moral 

By  DR.  J.   INGRAM   BRYAN,   M.   A.,   M.   Litt.,   Ph.D.     The  Meiji   University  and  the  Imperial  Naval  College, 

and  Japan  Correspondent  of  the  "  London  Morning  Post  " 

Physical  Characteristics— Mental  Characteristics —  Moral  Characteristics 


A  GOOD  deal  has  been  said  and  written 
by  Occidentals  on  the  character- 
istics of  the  Japanese,  mostly  by 
those  whose  briefness  of  sojourn  in  Japan 
could  not  possibly  have  made  them  author- 
ities on  the  subject.  Even  old  residents 
increasingly  feel  convinced  that  the  longer 
one  lives  in  the  country  the  more  one  should 
honestly  hesitate  to  venture  upon  any  pos- 
itive estimate  of  the  nation's  more  salient 
points  of  character.  All  that  one  feels  fully 
persuaded  of  is  that  while  the  Japanese  are 
in  many  ways  a  puzzle,  from  an  Occidental 
point  of  view,  they  are  nevertheless  neither 
beneath  nor  beyond  the  pale  of  humanity  as 
known  in  other  lands ;  they  are  indeed  the  most 
human  of  mortals,  with  their  full  share  of  all 
the  virtues  and  vices,  the  greatness  and  mean- 
ness, that  man  is  heir  to  everywhere,  only 
developed  from  a  different  angle,  so  to  speak. 


With  those  who  hold  that  long  intimacy 
of  contact  with  Eastern  peoples  incapaci- 
tates an  Occidental  for  trustworthy  appre- 
ciation of  their  character,  surely  no  rational 
mind  can  agree.  If  the  resident  of  the  Far 
East  be  supposed  to  lose  sense  of  proportion 
and  even  to  forget  or  ignore  the  alleged 
superior  standards  of  the  West,  or,  on  the 
other  hand,  to  acquire  that  familiarity 
which  breeds  contempt  by  over-long  associ- 
ation with  the  life  of  the  Orient,  how  is  it 
that  no  such  absurd  notion  is  entertained 
when  the  case  is  reversed  and  the  problem 
becomes  a  proper  estimate  of  Occidental 
character  by  Orientals?  No  one  would  dare 
to  advance  the  contention  that  extended 
residence  in  Europe  or  America  invalidated 
the  claim  of  a  Japanese  to  a  proper  appraise- 
ment of  Occidental  characteristics.  If  the 
qualification  of  a  careful  first-hand  study  of 


a  people's  civilisation  and  historj-  be  deemed 
essential  in  the  one  case,  it  must  be  equally 
so  in  the  other.  What  one  has  to  avoid,  in 
order  to  get  at  the  truth,  is  that  attitude  of 
prejudice  so  often  evinced  by  the  average 
Occidental  in  approaching  an  estimate  of 
Oriental  characteristics.  It  is  a  matter 
where  absolute  impartiality  is  imperative,  if 
one  desires  the  truth.  Too  often  it  is  found 
that  when  the  verdict  is  condemnatory  of 
the  East  the  Occidental  does  not  discredit 
it  as  the  product  of  over-ripe  or  over-hasty 
observation,  but  when  judgment  turns  out 
to  be  of  a  eulogistic  nature  it  is  declared  due 
to  one  or  other  of  the  causes  stated.  Thus 
it  is  only  a  favourable  opinion  that  seems 
open  to  suspicion.  This  prejudice  may  be 
unconscious,  but  it  is  too  frequently  obvious, 
none  the  less,  and  it  inevitably  revolts  against 
anything  antagonistic  to  its  promptings. 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


415 


The  present  essay,  based  on  many  years 
of  close  first-hand  study  and  observation  of 
life  and  character  in  Japan,  is  an  appeal 
only  to  those  of  an  ojicn  mind.  Facts  and 
incidents  which  only  extended  residence  and 
laljour  could  have  accumulated,  will  be 
brought  to  light  and  opinion  frankly  stated. 
No  attempt  will  be  made  to  deny  that  the 
globe-trotter  and  other  superficial  observers 
may  find  in  Japan  conditions  which  merelj' 
to  see  are  sufficient  ground  for  judgment. 
But  this  concession  can  not  alter  the  fact 
that  for  any  adequate  appreciation  of  Japa- 
nese characteristics  a  knowledge  of  the 
language  and  some  degree  of  communion 
with  the  thought  of  the  people  are  essential. 
Even  the  average  foreign  resident  of  Japan, 
much  less  the  average  tourist,  sees  no  more 
than  the  barest  superficialities  of  everj'day 
life.  To  some,  of  course,  this  is  all  of  life, 
but  it  is  a  very  inadequate  basis  for  trust- 
worthy understanding  of  national  character- 
istics. Even  from  those  Japanese  who 
speak  one's  language  very  little  can  be 
gathered  of  the  native  character  and  spirit, 
as  they  invariably  put  themselves  in  the 
position  of  the  foreigner  and  talk  to  him 
from  his  point  of  view.  And  to  increase  the 
difficulty,  the  Japanese  with  whom  the 
average  foreigner  most  comes  in  contact 
are  least  representative  of  the  nation  at  its 
best.  This  is  especially  true  of  the  foreign 
merchant  and  the  foreign  tourist,  the  one  in 
Japan  to  get  money  and  the  other  to  spend 
it,  and  both  of  whom  meet  as  a  rule  only 
the  inferior  type  of  trader.  Very  seldom 
indeed  do  those  engaged  in  trade  and  pleas- 
ure-hunting meet  the  best  class  of  Japanese. 
The  missionary  and  the  teacher  of  a  foreign 
language  are  the  foreigners  in  closest  contact 
with  all  classes  of  the  people  and  must  be 
regarded  as  the  best  judges  of  the  nation's 
character,  though  the  data  supplied  by  the 
foreign  merchant  should  receive  due  con- 
sideration. 

To  the  foreign  observer  Japanese  charac- 
teristics can  be  most  conveniently  considered 
under  three  heads:  the  physical,  the  mental, 
and  the  moral. 

PHYSICAL  CHARACTERISTICS 
The  Japanese  race  no  doubt  derived  its 
physical  characteristics  from  the  various 
migrations  arriving  in  the  islands  from  Korea, 
Mongolia,  Malaya,  and  the  islands  of  the 
Pacific,  the  predominant  type  being  Mon- 
goloid. The  admirable  qualities  of  Mongol 
physique,  however,  have  been  diluted  by 
infiltrations  of  tribal  inferiority  from  the 
Pacific  islands,  forming  a  blend  of  bloods 
that  his,  been  a  tremendous  handicap  to 
Japanese  racial  development.  Fear  of  this 
retarding  influence  of  inferior  immigrants  on 


racial  progress  is  natural  and  legitimate 
among  the  white  races,  and  eminently 
justified  by  a  study  of  Japanese  evolution. 
The  racial  intermixture  took  place  in  Japan 
in  prehistoric  times,  and  though  the  memo- 
ries of  it  are  now  forgotten,  echoes  of 
the  ancient  antagonisms  are  still  heard  in 
the  clan  disputes  of  modern  politics,  and 
in  the  struggle  for  priority  and  position.  On 
the  other  hand,  Japan's  mixture  of  bloods, 
so  far  as  the  ingredients  were  superior,  has 
proved  the  salvation  of  the  race.  After  all, 
only  mixed  races  are  strong,  as  may  be  seen 
in  the  case  of  the  Anglo-Saxons;  but  when 
the  mixture  is  of  doubtful  reputation,  as 
was  the  case  in  Spain,  the  race  is  inevitably 


threatened  with  deterioration.  After  more 
than  two  thousand  years  Japan  is  just 
beginning  to  show  signs  of  rising  above  the 
disabilities  imposed  upon  her  by  the  tide  of 
inferior  blood  from  the  south,  and  she  now 
bids  fair  to  reveal  an  immense  racial  potenti- 
ality. 

Archaeological  and  anthropological  re- 
search indicate  that  two  main  streams  of 
immigration  met  in  Japan,  a  mild  and 
cultured  strain  to  the  west  coast  from  China 
and  Korea,  and  a  fierce,  warlike  strain  from 
the  south,  the  latter  subduing  the  former 
and  imparting  those  fighting  qualities  that 
enabled  the  race  to  conquer  the  aborigines 
and     establish     the     Empire.     The     upper 


PE.^S.\.\T    TYPES 


4i6 


PRESENT-DAY        IMPRESSIONS        OF        JAPAN 


nmrrrf-i  -TWinjM-. '  I  'I  ifr.:.-riss 


YOUTHFUL    BABY    NURSES 


classes  of  Japan,  descended  from  the  priests 
and  soldiers  of  the  invaders,  have  preserved 
the  blood  of  their  distant  ancestors  free  from 
the  aboriginal  bloods  of  the  islands,  and 
mixed  only  with  Korean  and  Chinese 
immigrants  and  missionaries  who  came  to 
Japan  in  large  numbers  in  the  fifth  and  sixth 
centuries,  thus  accentuating  the  aristocratic 
characteristics  of  the  nation.  This  type  is 
distinguished  by  long  oval  faces,  oblique 
eyes  set  in  deep  sockets,  long  eyelids,  small 
mouths,  straight  noses  and  finely  cut  features, 
high  and  narrow  foreheads,  fair  complexions 
with  soft  hairless  skin,  called  by  the  Japa- 
nese "silken  skin."  On  the  other  hand,  in 
the  labouring  and  agricultural  classes  of  the 
present  day  we  see  the  squat  round  faces 
and  coarse  features  of  the  aboriginal  races 
and  the  migrations  from  the  southern  islands. 
Their  eyes  are  level  with  their  faces,  and  they 
have  thick,  upturned  noses  and  exposed 
nostrils.  All  Japanese  have  the  yellow  skin 
and  black  hair  of  their  Mongol  ancestors, 
but  there  are  important  excejjtions,  which 
will  be  noted  later. 

In  physique  and  muscular  energy  the  Japa- 
nese are  inferior  to  Europeans,  but  their  defi- 
ciency in  these  respects  is  redeemed  in  some 
measure  by  their  activity  and  endurance. 
No  one  can  mingle  with  the  Japanese  without 
seeing  at  once  that  their  stature  is  quite 
diminutive  compared  with  foreigners,  the 
average  height  for  men  being  five  feet  three 
inches,  and  for  women  four  feet  ten  inches. 
The  stature  of  male  Japanese  seems  about 
equal  to  that  of  European  females.  The 
average  Japanese  soldier  is  two  inches  less 


in  height  and  twenty  pounds  less  in  weight 
than  the  average  European  soldier.  The 
shortness  of  Japanese  stature  is  found  to  be 
in  the  legs  more  than  in  the  body,  the  trunk 
being  but  slightly  shorter  than  that  of  the 
European.  In  case  of  a  difference  of  two 
inches  in  height  between  a  Japanese  and  a 
European,  there  will  be  found  a  difference 
of  only  half  an  inch  in  their  bodies.  It  is 
said  that  the  cause  of  the  disparity  is  the 
Japanese  habit  of  squatting  on  the  floor, 
drawing  the  legs  up  under  the  body  in  a  very 
cramped  position,  a  posture  that  no  Euro- 
pean can  endure  for  more  than  a  minute 
but  which  a  Japanese  can  maintain  for  hours 
at  a  time.  This  custom  may  also  account 
for  the  prevalence  of  bandy  legs  in  Japan, 
though  this  deformity  is  also  ascribed  by 
some  to  the  further  habit  of  carrying  babies 
and  children  on  the  backs  of  mothers  and 
nurses  with  the  legs  drawn  around  the 
bearer's  hips. 

Though  so  diminutive  in  physique  the 
Japanese  command  a  remarkable  strength 
of  muscle,  and  can  easily  carry  burdens 
that  both  baffle  and  astonish  the  Occidental. 
Trunks  and  baggage  that  a  Western  railway 
porter  would  not  dream  of  handling  alone, 
because  they  tip  the  scales  at  between  200 
and  300  pounds,  are  seized  by  a  single  Japa- 
nese coolie  and  borne  from  the  deck  of  a 
steamer  down  to  the  launch  with  apparent 
ease.  And  the  Japanese  can  live  and  main- 
tain himself  in  a  working  condition  on  food 
that  would  soon  make  an  Occidental  work- 
man an  invalid.  It  is  a  question,  however, 
whether  the  Japanese  is  capable  of  enduring 


the  same  degree  of  steady  strain  as  a  Euro- 
pean of  the  same  class.  Certainly  Japanese 
servants  and  labourers  are  not  capable  of 
doing  the  work  that  Western  men  and 
women  do  in  the  same  time.  In  long  and 
forced  marches  Japanese  soldiers  are  found 
to  fall  out  and  collapse  more  frequently 
than  in  the  case  of  Europeans,  though  it 
must  be  admitted  that  the  Japanese  recruit 
receives  less  consideration  from  his  officers. 
On  the  other  hand,  Japanese  appear  capable 
of  enduring  greater  physical  pain  than 
Europeans,  evidently  having  a  coarser  grain 
and  a  more  metallic  nerve.  Japanese  go 
through  surgical  operations  without  an 
anaesthetic  that  no  Occidental  could  face, 
and  they  meet  death  with  equal  composure. 
Physically  and  mentally  the  Japanese  woman 
seems  less  developed  than  the  man,  though 
her  nervous  system  is  naturally  more  highly 
organised.  On  the  whole  it  may  be  said 
that  the  Japanese  w-oman  is  not  equal  to  the 
Eiu'opean  woman  in  physical  endurance, 
perhaps  because  her  life  is  harder,  lacking, 
as  she  usually  does,  the  consolations  of  con- 
jugal love  and  tenderness,  w'hich  mean  so 
much  to  women. 

Looking  into  the  matter  of  Japanese 
physique  more  in  detail  one  can  not  refrain 
from  saying,  without  any  attempt  at  being 
guilty  of  Hibemianism,  that  Japanese  heads 
and  faces  are  things  in  themselves.  When 
one  is  prone  to  criticise  the  cartoons  in 
"Punch"  and  "Puck"  and  "Judge"  and 
"Life,"  as  sometimes  too  severe  a  strain  on 
the  imagination,  all  one  has  to  do  is  to  come 
to  Japan  and  find  that  the  most  extravagant 
reaches  of  the  brush  and  pencil  are  true  to  life. 
There  are,  indeed,  three  distinct  types  of  face 
among  the  Japanese,  recalling  the  various 
bloods  comprising  the  race.  These  may 
be  termed  the  oval,  the  wide,  and  the  long 
face.  The  dolichocephalous  head  is  not  so 
common  as  the  brachycephalic,  while  progna- 
thous countenances  both  among  the  upper 
and  lower  classes  are  frequent.  Some  Japa- 
nese have  a  negroid  face,  with  thick  pro- 
truding lips  and  fine  teeth,  and  others  have 
a  Filipino  cast  of  countenance,  indicating 
their  origin.  Then  there  are  faces,  as  already 
mentioned,  strikingly  like  those  of  Chinese 
and  Koreans,  with  high  cheek  bones  and 
oblique  eyes.  The  noblest  examples  of  face 
and  physique  among  the  Japanese,  how- 
ever, are  of  a  type  quite  different  in  some 
important  respects  from  any  of  the  above. 
These  have  faces  that  would  make  as  perfect 
Greek  models  as  any  to  be  found  in  Europe, 
and  with  complexions  to  match.  Again, 
there  are  numerous  faces  that  remind  one  of 
the  American  Indian  and  of  the  Esquimo. 
Invariably  the  eyes  and  hair  are  dark,  but 
in  varying  degrees,  from  pitch-black  to  light 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


417 


brown,  and  some  heads  have  even  a  tinge  of 
red.  The  eyes,  likewise,  arc  black,  but  also 
varying  in  shade  to  light  brown,  hazel,  and 
lic|uid  amber.  The  hair  is  nearly  always 
straight  and  lanky,  but  wavy  and  even  fuzzy 
heads  are  seen.  While  the  men  have  their 
hair  clipped  short,  the  women  devote  great 
attention  to  the  dressing  of  their  wonder- 
fully long  tresses,  always  having  them  built 
up  in  a  remarkable  coiffure  on  the  top  of 
the  head.  Some  of  the  women  have  locks 
of  raven  black  that  fall  below  the  hips,  as 
may  be  seen  among  the  school-girls  who 
have  not  yet  put  their  hair  up.  One  may 
even  see  cases  where  the  hair  falls  below  the 
knees.     While  the  eyes  of  the  Japanese  are 


either  almond-shaped  and  oblique  or  big 
and  ox-like,  there  are  many  with  tiny  eyes 
and  others  with  eyes  that  dance.  It  is 
at  once  quite  evident  that  the  cause  of  the 
oblique  eye  is  that  the  eye  .socket  is 
thrown  up  at  the  outer  side  by  the  high 
cheek  bone.  The  nose  is  truly  one  of  the 
most  distinguishing  facial  characteristics  of 
the  Japanese,  its  proverbial  flatness  doubt- 
less due  to  its  having  scarcely  any  bridge. 
In  width  and  length  the  Japanese  nose  re- 
minds one  of  the  Egyptian  nose,  as  seen  in 
the  ancient  sculpture  of  that  country.  The 
best  example  of  a  typical  Japanese  nose  is 
to  be  seen  in  the  great  statue  of  Buddha  at 
Kamakura.     Not  infrequently  one  sees  indi- 


A    STREET   CONJURER    PRODUCING    A    PIECE    OF    WIRE    FRO.M    HIS    NOSE 


viduals  whose  cheeks  and  lips  protrude  quite 
beyond  their  noses,  the  latter  set  in  a  little 
hollow  between  the  eyes  and  mouth,  the 
effect  being  not  exactly  successful  from  an 
artistic  point  of  view. 

The  colour  of  Japanese  skin  is  dark  ivory 
often  merging  into  yellow  and  brown,  but 
there  are  striking  differences,  more  striking 
than  in  the  shades  of  complexion  to  be  seen 
in  Europe,  varying  from  dark  brown,  copper 
and  leather  colour,  to  skins  as  white  as  a 
European's.  According  to  native  taste  the 
ideal  complexion  for  a  woman  is  pure  ivory, 
or,  as  the  Japanese  poets  say,  "white  as 
young  tree  roots,"  which  in  reality  are  ivory 
colour.  To  this  ideal  most  of  the  women 
of  Japan  endeavour  to  attain  by  means  of  face 
powder,  though  in  numerous  cases  it  is 
reached  by  nature.  It  will  probably  sur- 
prise Europeans  to  be  told  that  some  Japa- 
nese, especially  ladies,  have  skins  as  white 
as  Occidentals;  but  it  is  a  fact  that  often 
one  can  see  young  women  in  Japan  with  a 
natural  complexion  even  superior  to  any- 
thing that  can  be  seen  abroad.  One  must 
needs  concede  that  a  country  which  can 
produce  such  pretty  girls  must  surely  have 
in  it  the  makings  of  a  great  nation.  Only 
too  often,  however,  the  exquisite  natural 
tint  of  young  maidenhood  is  spoilt  by 
artificial  additions  that  poison  the  skin  and 
destroy  forever  its  god-given  peachbloom. 
The  incomparable  complexion  of  what  may 
lie  called  a  white  Japanese  girl  is  rich  rose- 
misted  marble,  not  unlike  the  Italian  girl 
at  her  best,  while  the  hands  of  Japanese 
women  are  no  less  than  a  dream  of  shapely 
refinement.  As  a  rule,  the  Japanese  women 
are  much  more  handsome  than  the  men, 
and  they  are  also  generally  far  more  re- 
fined in  speech  and  manners.  In  most  cases, 
at  the  age  of  about  thirty  the  Japa- 
nese woman  begins  to  lose  the  bloom  of 
youth,  fading  into  an  appearance  that  surely 
must  come  from  unfair  treatment;  but  to 
this  also  there  are  notable  exceptions,  which 
suggest  that  with  proper  care  the  women 
of  Japan  might  preserve  their  youth  and 
beauty  as  long  as  their  Western  sisters. 
.Another  sad  phase  of  life  in  Japan  is  that 
some  of  the  most  beautiful  girls  are  devoted 
to  the  business  of  singing  girls,  called  geisha, 
for  in  no  other  land  has  beauty  a  higher 
])ricc  than  in  Japan.  Japanese  ideas  of 
physical  beauty  differ  considerably  from 
those  of  the  West,  many  Occidental  beauties 
seeming  to  the  children  of  the  gods  like 
green-eyed  goblins,  though  it  is  noticeable 
that  when  Japanese  marry  Occidental  wives 
they  almost  invariably  choose  women  with 
auburn  hair  and  eyes  of  blue.  The  Japa- 
nese children  are  almost  always  pretty,  being 
rosy  as  ripe  apples. 


41 8 


P  R  E  S  E  N  T  -  n  A  ^•        IMPRESSIONS        OF        JAPAN 


DR.  EDWARD  SALISBURY,  A  NUMBER  OF  WHOSE 

ADMIRABLE  PHOTOGRAPHIC  STUDIES  OF 

PEASANT  TYPES  APPEAR  IN  THIS 

ARTICLE  AND  ELSEWHERE 

IN    THIS    VOLUME 

Japanese  arms  are  longer  than  ours,  the 
peculiarity  being  emphasised  by  the 
shortness  of  the  legs;  and  their  hands 
and  fingers  have  a  graceful,  prehensile 
movement.  Indeed,  the  Japanese  can  do 
much  more  with  hands  and  fingers  than 
Europeans  can;  and  where  fingers  prove 
inadequate  even  teeth  and  toes  easily  come 
into  requisition.  Some  Japanese  can  tie 
or  untie  a  knot  as  easily  with  their 
toes  as  foreigners  can  with  their  fingers. 
The  Japanese  are  the  most  dexterous  race 
in  the  world,  that  being  one  reason  why 
they  are  in  such  demand  as  fruit-pickers 
in  California.  To  see  a  row  of  Japanese 
girls  rolling  cigarettes  in  a  factory  is  to  see 
a  manipulation  so  agile  as  to  seem  scarcely 
human.  Japanese  sometimes  use  their  ears 
as  purses  for  small  coins,  while  behind  the 
ear  is  often  carried  a  toothpick  or  a  cigarette 
or  both.  The  people  have  remarkably  good 
teeth,  of  which  they  take  excellent  care  by 
brushing  them  while  they  take  a  morning 
w-alk.  Dentists  are  many  and  cheap  and 
even  the  common  coolie  may  be  seen  with  a 
mouth  full  of  gold  teeth.  As  a  rule,  the 
hands  are  carefully  manicured,  the  nail  on 
one  little  finger,  in  Chinese  fashion,  often 
being  left  about  half  an  inch  long.  The 
shoulders  of  the  Japanese  are  usually  wider 
than  the  hips,  the  latter  being  remarkably 
narrow,  especially  in  the  women.  The 
foot  is  broad  and  not  deprived  of  its  natural 
shape  by  boots.  The  feet  of  ladies  and 
gentlemen  are,  as  a  rule,  small,  and  covered 
with  a  kind  of  sock  divided  for  the 
great  toe. 


The  general  appearance  of  Japanese  phy- 
sique in  the  nude  is  that  of  a  baby,  rather 
stocky  and  undeveloped,  something  after 
the  manner  of  Michael  Angelo's  angels. 
Indeed,  when  the  writer  first  saw  these  he 
wondered  if  the  Italians  were  really  so 
stocky  in  the  Middle  Ages,  but  on  coming 
to  Japan  he  was  interested  to  note  that  such 
mortals  still  live. 

On  the  whole  it  may  be  said  that  Japanese 
physique  is  generallj'  inferior  to  that  of  the 
European.  One  seldom  sees  a  really  well- 
built  man  or  woman  on  the  streets.  For  this 
reason  the  people  look  better  in  native 
than  in  foreign  costume,  the  latter  expos- 
ing their  physical  defects,  this  being  more 
especially  true  of  w-omen.  It  must  be 
understood,  however,  that  there  are  notable 
exceptions,  which  suggest  hopeful  possi- 
bilities for  the  future.  It  is  onlj'  a  case  of 
arrested  development,  and  with  proper 
physical  education  and  feeding  no  doubt 
great  improvement  could  be  brought  about. 
For  the  present  it  is  to  be  hoped  that  the 
desire  to  introduce  foreign  dress  will  not  be 
gratified.  A  long  waist  and  short  skirt  are 
conducive  neither  to  grace  nor  beauty,  while 
the  native  kimono  makes  any  figure  look 
well.  In  some  cases  arrested  development 
is  so  conspicuous  as  to  suggest  the  survival 
of  the  cave  man,  offering  a  splendid  field  of 
study  for  the  anthropologist,  while  side  by 
side  with  these  are  examples  of  physical 
development  equal  to  any  seen  in  Europe, 
suggesting  what  Japan  might  have  been  but 
for  the  blighting  strain  of  inferior  blood 
mixture. 


MENTAL  CHARACTERISTICS 
The  Japanese  mind  is  a  much  more  for- 
midable problem  to  the  Occidental  than  the 
question  of  Japanese  physique,  for  native 
reticence  and  proverbial  precaution  render 
it  almost  impossible  to  get  at  what  a  Japa- 
nese really  thinks,  or  even  to  learn  his  mental 
processes.  To  gauge  the  mental  phenomena 
of  a  countrj-  and  people  steeped  for  ages  in 
occultism  and  superstition  is  assuredly  a 
task  for  first-hand  study  by  an  expert  psy- 
chologist, and  a  task  which  even  he  must 
approach  with  hesitation.  Of  course  the 
grey  matter  of  the  brain  is  essentially  the 
same  in  kind,  if  not  in  degree,  everj'where, 
and  two  plus  two  make  four  in  Japan  as 
in  the  West.  Yet,  owing  to  difference  of 
education  and  social  environment,  the  gulf 
between  the  mind  of  the  Occident  and  that 
of  the  Orient  is  admittedly  wide,  and  only 
the  greatest  patience  and  honesty  can  hope 
to  bridge  it. 

The  question  whether  Japanese  cerebral 
capacity  is  equal  to  that  of  the  European 
has  long  ago  been  decided  by  scientists  in 
the  affirmative,  though  sometimes  one  sees 
things  in  Japan  which  would  tend  to  reopen 
the  question. 

To  a  pedagogist  there  can  be  no  doubt 
that  the  Japanese  system  of  education, 
a  natural  evolution  from  feudal  training, 
which  places  the  many  at  the  mercy 
of  the  few,  tends  toward  arrest  of  mental 
development.  Japanese  education  develops 
the  lower  faculties  of  the  mind,  such  as 
memor}',  at  the  expense  of  the  higher  facul- 
ties    of    reasoning     and     logical    inference. 


DR.    SAilSBURY    H. 


>■-    A    LEVEE 


THE    YOUNGER    GENERATION  —  STIDIES    BY    DR.    SAI.ISBIRY 


420 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


Memory  in  itself  is  not  a  mark  of  sanity, 
since  some  lunatics  have  marvellous  memo- 
ries. The  first  fourteen  years  of  every 
Japanese  child's  life  are  given  perforce  to 
memorising  thousands  of  Chinese  ideo- 
graphs, even  the  meaning  of  which  he  does 
not  always  know-,  and  after  he  has  mastered 
them  the  rest  of  his  life  is  devoted  to  memo- 
rising what  his  ancestors  thought  and  did. 
Thus  his  whole  existence  is  a  memon,-  and  an 
imitation  and  his  whole  duty  memorising 
and  imitating,  with  little  attention  to  ini- 
tiati\-e  or  originaUty.  His  mind  is  like  a 
photographic  plate  which  is  ever  receiving 
but  seldom  imparting.  During  the  long 
centuries  of  feudalism  the  whole  nation  was 
in  subservience  to  authority  that  forced 
everything,  and  every  mind  especially,  into 
the  same  narrow  groove,  and  after  a  nation 
has  depended  so  long  on  others  to  do  its 
thmking,  it  does  not  readily  begin  to  think 


GEISHA 


for  itself.  This  attitude  of  incapacity  is  a 
feature  of  Japan's  social  and  industrial 
machinery  still  The  Japanese  does  not 
follow  reason;  he  follows  his  eye  and  his 
memory.  He  is  confined  to  rules,  and  if 
they  do  not  work  he  is  helpless.  A  Japanese 
who  can  memorise  the  most  complex  system 
of  ideographs  often  can  not  do  a  simple 
problem  in  mental  arithmetic  without  his 
abacus,  or  by  counting  on  his  fingers. 

The  average  Japanese  seems  to  have  more 
fear  of  being  different  or  being  laughed  at 
than  of  being  in  the  wrong.     The  people  are 
very    emotional    and     liable     to    extremes. 
Society,  is  subject  to  waves  of  emotion  and 
sentimentality   which   a   Western   mind   can 
hardly   understand.     They   will   die    for   an 
idea  too  minute  for  any  Occidental  mind  to 
perceive.     Thus  one  finds  in  Japan  a  childish 
cheerfulness  and  a  crass  contentment  with 
listlessness     and     inefficiency.     Among     the 
peasantry   there   is  an   unsophisticated   dis- 
position   to    trustfulness    that    becomes    an 
easy   prey    to    the    designing,   and    on    the 
other     hand    an    unreasoning    suspicion    of 
all     things     strange.     With     the   Japanese, 
silence   always   means   dissent.     Their   long 
feudal  subjection  has  created  a  state  of  mind 
that  is  content  to  take  nominality  for  actu- 
ality.    If   a    man   treats   you   with    profuse 
politeness  you  must  not  expect  him  to  pay 
his  debts.     If  he  subscribes  to  your  fund  he 
may  pay  it  by  getting  an  equal  subscription 
trom  you  to  a  fund  of  his.     Even  patriotism 
is  more  of  an  emotion  than  an  ideal  or  even 
an  idea;    it  seems  an  instinct,  like  the  devo- 
tion   of    the    bees    to    the    queen.     Natural 
under  a  system  where  intellectual  and  social 
development  has  been  retarded,  the  childish 
emotions  are  conspicuous. 

Devoted  for  so  long  to  the  objective  and 
what  appeals  to  the  eye,  the  Japanese  mind 
has  little  appreciation  of  metaphysical, 
psychological,  and  ethical  subtleties,  and 
disdains  idealism  save  in  the  direction  of  the 
l^etty  and  the  queer.  With  even  the  educated, 
life  is  rather  a  mechanical,  humdrum  affair, 
since  they  are  quite  unable  to  appreciate  the 
moral  and  iesthetic  niceties  of  Western  civil- 
isation. One  can  only  infer  this  from  the 
indifference  shown  to  Western  culture  as  seen 
in  the  lives  of  scholars  resident  in  Japan,  and 
in  the  Japanese  contention  of  their  superiority 
to  Occidental  civilisation.  The  only  excep- 
tion seems  to  be  in  the  direction  of  poetry  and 
pictorial  art,  where  the  treatment  is  always 
more  suggestive  than  finished,  and  often 
exquisitely  idealistic.  Yet  it  is  always  the 
idealism  that  runs  to  little  things.  It  adores 
little  wives,  little  children,  little  houses,  little 
hands,  little  gardens,  little  flowers,  little  trees, 
little  pictures,  little  poems,  miniature  scenes 
and  plants.     In  religion,  art,  and  poetr>-  the 


COOUE    TYPE 

Japanese  always  look  for  the  spirit,  without 
which  no  perfection  of  form  can  av-ail.  But 
this  virtue  is  confined  to  the  very  few  able 
fully  to  appreciate  art,  the  masses  popularly 
following  the  fashion  in  this  respect. 

Consistently,  however,  the  Japanese  mind 
loves  simplicity  and  strives  to  achieve  great 
things  from  small  means.  It  may  be  some- 
thing more  than  simplicity,  for  ages  of  forced 
frugahty  must  have  preserved  the  original 
primitiveness  to  a  large  extent.  The  Japa- 
nese house  is  a  very  simple  affair.  From  the 
bamboo  tree  alone  hundreds  of  simple  articles 
for  daily  use  are  made,  from  toothpicks  to 
tables.  A  Japanese  does  not  hesitate  to  set 
up  a  piano  factor^'  of  ten  by  twelve  feet. 
The  most  exquisite  silk  fabrics  are  produced 
from  tiny  looms  in  small  houses.  Some 
Japanese  motor-car  agents  have  to  climb  over 
the  sample  car  to  get  into  their  houses,  as  it 
fills  the  whole  of  the  front  room.  Their  love 
of  the  bizarre  and  the  grotesque  may  be  a 
reaction  against  the  monotonous  convention- 
ality of  daily  life. 

The  Japanese  mind  has  a  tendency  to  be 
active  rather  than  passive,  and  it  absorbs 
only  what  is  agreeable  to  it;  that  is,  only  what 
is  capable  of  being  Japanised.  It  is  naturally 
anti-pessimistic  and  gay,  having  little  use  for 
melancholy  either  in  religion  or  society.  The 
famous  Japanese  smile,  however,  is  often  no 
more  than  a  brave  endeavour  to  hide  a  sad 
heart,  as  well  as  a  courteous  effort  to  save 
others  from  unpleasant  feelings.  Predilection 
for  the  agreeable,  which  is  confounded  with 
the  good,  often  deprives  the  Japanese  of  what 
is  most  necessary  for  their  moral  and  mental 
good.  In  adopting  their  eclectic  system  of 
Western  civilisation  the  Japanese  do  not  ask 
whether  it  is  good  or  true  but  whether  it  can 


PRESENT-DAY        I   M   I'  K  E  S  S  T  O  N  S        OF        JAPAN 


421 


WARV       AND       DANGER    PAST 

be  adapted  to  native  ideas  of  nationality. 
To  be  contrary  to  or  inconsistent  with  the 
jjenius  of  Japanese  civilisation  is  to  stand 
condemned.  For  a  thousand  years  Japan 
has  been  imitating  China  and  for  half  a 
century  Europe,  but  never  for  a  moment  has 
she  lost  her  mental  independence  or  the  genius 
of  her  own  civilisation,  always  exercising  the 
most  careful  discrimination.  It  is  the  nature 
of  the  Japanese  mind  to  Japanise  everything 
it  receives,  even  the  truth  itself. 

It  is  this  characteristic  that  leads  thu 
foreigner  to  the  conviction  that  the  Japanese 
are  an  obstinate  and  stubborn  race,  with  an 
abnormal  degree  of  self-conceit.  There  is 
nothing  the  Japanese  mind  hates  more  than 
to  retract  a  statement,  and  t  his  is  why  the 
people  as  a  race  are  noted  for  their  reticence, 
though  a  further  reason  is  that  they  arc 
always  suspicious  .Jest  they  be  taken  advan- 
tage of.  It  is  al  so  due  to  the  influence  of 
feudalism  which  often  made  mistakes  fatal. 
The  Japanese  usually  think  a  long  time  before 
committing  themselves,  but  after  the  utter- 
ance is  made  ,  it  will  not  be  reiracted,  even  if 
it  be  proved  inaccurate.  Their  principle  is  to 
assert  only  mature  thought  and  then  stand  by 
it.  It  is  always  a  matter  of  astonishment  to 
Japanese  to  hear  great  men  abroad  admitting 
their  errors  or  mistakes.  A  Japanese  official 
wo  uld  resign  and  retire  from  the  world  rather 
than  admit  he  was  mistaken.     Most  Western 


people  would  regard  this  attitude  of  infalli- 
bility as  one  of  pure  conceit  and  a  weakness, 
but  in  Japan  it  is  takenfor  nobility  of  spirit. 
It  certainly  leads  to  infliction  of  mistakes  and 
errors  on  a  long-sufTering  population,  and  to  a 
disrespect  for  truth.  It  is  a  weakness  that 
also  leads  to  frequent  misunderstanding  of 
foreigners.  A  Japanese  believes  he  can  infer 
the  future  from  the  past  and  the  whole  froin 
the  part,  making  no  allowance  for  evolution 
and  development;  and  this  constant  effort  to 
arrive  at  truth  without  adequate  investiga- 
tion, leads  him  to  think  that  when  he  is 
talking  to  any  one  he  can  know  what  is  in  his 
interlocutor's  head.  In  judging  a  foreigner 
from  a  Japanese  standard  and  motive,  the 


!li" 


4- 


DECOR.^TIOXS    FOR    A    BOYS     FESTIVAL 

verdict  is  more  often  than  not  quite  unjusti- 
fied and  unfair  to  the  foreigner.  This 
belief  in  thuir  powers  of  mind-reading  often 
leads  the  Japanese  to  make  mistakes  in  regard 
to  foreigners.  Often  when  a  foreigner  is 
advising  Japanese  for  their  own  good  they 
believe  he  is  advising  them  for  his  own  good, 
and  so  refuse  to  take  the  advice. 

MOR,\L  CHAR.\CTERISTICS 
The  subject  of  Japanese  morals  has  been 
discussed  with  such  diverse  conclusions  that 
one  naturally  hesitates  to  approach  the 
question  with  any  degree  of  confidence.  To 
many  Europeans  the  Japanese  seem  less 
developed  morally  than  the  peoples  of  Chris- 


tendom, while  to  others,  a  minority  perhaps, 
Japanese  ideas  of  ethics  are  more  enlightened 
and  rational  than  those  of  Europe.  Certainly 
in  some  ways  the  Japanese  are  more  free  in 
respect  to  moral  scruples  than  Occidentals, 
since  their  civilisation  permits  many  things 
that  would  be  offensive  to  the  moral  laws  and 
ideals  of  the  West.  This  is  only  to  say,  how- 
ever, that  the  East  and  West  are  morally 
different.  To  the  average  Occidental  the 
Japanese  appear  to  treat  moral  questions  very 
lightly,  this  being  also  due  to  the  fact  that 
the  Japanese  differ  from  foreigners  as  to  what 
is  and  what  is  not  moral.  Japanese  morals 
are  based  on  a  very  simple  if  inadequate 
foundation,  free  from  the  complexities  and  the 
conscience  of  Western  moral  codes.  There  is 
but  one  law  of  conduct,  known  as  Loyalty 
and  Filial  Piety:  Loyalty  to  sovereign,  to 
parents  and  superiors,  apart  from  which  there 
is  no  piety,  religion,  or  morality.  The  great 
weakness  of  this  code  is  that  once  the  individ- 
ual has  satisfied  himself  as  to  his  duty  toward 
those  above  him,  his  duty  is  done;  he  owes 
nothing  to  those  below  him.     It  is,  therefore, 


THE    EL.\BORATE   COIFFURE 


28 


\-'>€ 


m^ifj^ 


/ 


•t; 


A^   -^^ 


-  -  ■  V 


A 


im^. 


k 


^ 


■>a^'  I 


■Mj>"  r 


-----'           ;^\ 

J^:  iV 

\^>V^'i:^ 


^^m^ 


-Mf'-Mr: 


I       ilL'Mli 


Z2^Ek 


WP"  / 


va 


^\--- 

^^^L- 


iw,^m~ 


THE    OLDER    GENERATION  —  STUDIES    BY    DR     SALISBURY 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


423 


PLAYING    UNDER    DIFFICULTIES 


a  morality  fitted  only  for  slaves  and  serfs,  and 
was  indeed  the  outcome  of  feudal  days  when 
there  was  a  law  for  the  inferior  but  none  for 
the  superior  save  his  own  will.  Consequently 
there  is  no  immorality  except  in  relation  to 
sovereign,  or  parents  or  superiors.  It  is 
immoral  not  to  put  away  your  wife  if  your 
mother  commands  it,  but  not  immoral  to 
be  unfaithful  to  your  wife,  or  to  put  her 
away  after  falling  in  love  with  some  other 
woman.  Morality  consists  in  observing  the 
precepts  of  one's  ancestors,  and  for  the  rest, 
simply  following  the  dictates  of  nature. 
According  to  Western  morals  it  would  be 
immoral  for  a  parent  to  sell  a  daughter  to  a 
life  of  shame,  but  in  Japan  it  would  not  be 
immoral  for  her  to  acquiesce  if  the  parents 
required  it.  Man  should  follow  nature,  as 
Confucius  taught.  It  is  not  wrong  to  do 
what  nature  demands  so  long  as  it  in  no 
way  conflicts  with  one's  superiors.  But  the 
superior  is  not  bound  in  the  same  way  to 
respect  the  inferior  except  as  the  legal  code 
demands,  and  this  the  superior  can  easily  find 
a  way  of  evading,  for  if  the  inferior  does  not 
submit  to  the  superior  he  or  she  will  soon 
be  without  a  master  and  a  living.  Due  pro- 
vision is  made  by  the  State  to  gratify  all  the 
normal  mental,  physical,  and  social  wants  of 
man;  but  for  woman  it  is  different.  Espe- 
cially in  regard  to  sexual  morals  there  is  one 
code  for  the  man  and  another  for  the  woman. 
There  is  among  the  Japanese  apparently  no 
sense  of  shame  with  regard  to  what  nature 
demands.  If  it  is  natural  it  is  nothing  to  be 
ashamed  of.  Once  admit  this  and  one  can 
fancy  many  things  to  be  seen  and  done  in 


Japan  that  are  cither  not   seen  or  secretly 
done  abroad. 

When  it  is  said  that  canons  of  probity 
do  not  command  so  wide  an  observance 
in  Japan  as  in  Europe,  the  Japanese  reply 
that  foreigners  associate  only  with  the 
inferior  classes.  Taking  truth  as  a  matter 
of  expediency,  however,  is  not  apparently 
limited  to  any  one  grade  of  society  in 
Japan.     The    hal^it    is    naturally    the     out- 


come of  feudal  government  and  military 
regime,  where  the  only  escape  is  by  deceit 
and  lying.  For  nearly  three  hundred  years 
Japan  was  practically  governed  by  means 
of  secret  information  obtained  through  spies. 
Thus  every  one  had  to  be  careful  as  to  whom 
he  talked  with  and  to  say  only  what  would 
be  in  the  interests  of  his  master  and  his 
family.  Of  course,  white  lies  are  a  matter  of 
course.  In  the  West  this  habit  is  usually 
confined  to  doctors  and  patients,  parents  and 
children,  where  the  truth  can  not  always 
be  told  with  good  effect;  but  the  Japanese 
I)lay  fast  and  loose  with  this  principle  to  an 
extent  that  must  be  regarded  by  Europeans 
as  immoral.  If  a  servant  is  going  to  leave 
her  mistress  she  seldom  tells  the  truth  about 
it.  She  acts  like  a  diplomatic  official  and 
gives  some  agreeable  reason  for  her  conduct. 
Consequently  in  Japan  no  one  believes 
servants  and  diplomatists. 

The  main  feature  of  Japanese  morality 
is  its  communaUsm;  it  is  a  morality  for 
classes  and  families,  and  entirely  inade- 
quate to  the  individualism  w'hich  modern 
democracy  is  bringing  to  Japan.  An  exami- 
nation of  70,000  children  in  Japanese  schools 
carefully  made  by  an  expert  educationist 
showed  that  the  vast  majority  put  down 
Loyalty  and  FiUal  Piety  as  the  end  and  aim 
of  Hfe.  Truth,  honesty,  sincerity,  kindness, 
philanthropy,  altruism  had  no  place.  Such 
is  the  natural  result  of  a  civilisation  that 
has  been  communal  and  military  rather  than 
commercial  and  industrial,  for  no  commerce 
can    succeed    where    confidence    is    lacking. 


INTERIOR    DECOR.\TI0XS    FOR    A    BOYS     FESTIVAL 


424 


PRESENT-DAY 


I  M   I'   k  E  S  S  I  O  N  S 


O  F 


J  A  I'  A  \ 


Ja])aii  has  yet  to  prove  that  her  physical, 
mental,  and  moral  virtues  are  sufficient  to 
meet  the  strain  of  modern  evolution.  Until 
her  communalism  makes  room  for  the  indi- 
vidual, fully  developed  and  capable  of 
all  the  virtues  of  the  best  sort  of  ^lan, 
it  will  fail  to  hold  its  jilace  in  the  modern 
world. 

That  Japanese  society  is  capable  of  chang- 
ing to  suit  the  demands  of  growing  humanity 
there  is  no  doubt.     The  difference  in  charac- 


teristics between  Japanese  and  foreigners  is 
not  due  so  much  to  inherent  i)sychic  nature 
transmitted  by  heredity,  as  to  the  nature  of 
the  social  order  transmitted  by  social  heredity. 
In  other  words,  it  is  the  result  of  a  false 
system  of  education,  and  can  only  be  obviated 
by  a  proper  system  of  education.  No 
amount  of  boasting  about  bushido  and  the 
Japanese  spirit  can  take  the  place  of  this. 
There  is  nothing  in  bushido  nor  in  any  com- 
pendium   of    morality    published    in    Japan 


that  contains  anything  so  admirable  as  the 
simple  catechism  of  the  Church  of  England 
in  the  part  dealing  with  one's  duty  to  one's 
neighbour.  Bushido  is  a  code  for  soldiers, 
a  class  code:  and  Yatnato  Damashii,  or  the 
Japanese  Spirit,  is  only  the  spirit  of  a  people 
forced  to  stern  endurance  and  convention 
in  the  fires  of  a  merciless  and  selfish  feudalism. 
A  truly  scientific  educational  system  would 
alone  meet  the  physical,  mental,  and  moral 
needs  of  Japan. 


1 


• 

4 

K  'y^ 


I 


A-  i^ 


mt 


^>^,-s^v>."  ■ 


J^^9f* 


LAKK    BIWA,    NEAR    KYOTO 


XXVII.    Japanese  Arts  of  Self-Defenge 

By  E.  J.   HAURISON,   F.   K.  G.  S. 


THE  most  distinctive  Japanese  arts  of 
both  defence  and  attack  are  judo 
(more  generally  known  abroad  as 
jiujilsu)  and  kenjitsu,  or  fencing.  The 
former,  by  name  at  least  and  to  some  extent 
in  practice,  has  become  popularised  in 
Europe  and  America,  but  the  latter  is  less 
familiar.  Both,  however,  are  admirable  in 
their  respective  ways,  embodying  as  they  do 
the  applied  and  cumulative  wisdom  of  many 
successive  generations  of  sturdy  fighters. 
In  this  place  I  am  not  concerned  to  decide 
whether  or  not  the  Japanese  deserve  to  be 
called  warlike;  be  that  as  it  may  there  is 
no  gainsaying  the  fact  that  certain  chosen 
spirits  from  the  earliest  times  have  dis- 
played a  remarkable  aptitude  for  combining 
theoretical  and  empirical  knowledge  in  the 
domain  of  what,  for  lack  of  a  more  con- 
venient nomenclature,  may  be  termed  the 
warlike  arts.  This  aptitude  is  perhaps 
attributable  to  a  phase  of  the  Japanese 
mentality  which  in  some  quarters  has  been 
denied  originality,  but  which  nevertheless 
can  not  justly  be  denied  genius  if,  as  a 
certain  sage  has  observed,  genius  is  an 
infinite  capacity   for  taking   pains. 

Thus,  even  if  it  were  true,  which  is  doubt- 
ful, that  jujitlsu  was  introduced  into  Japan 
by  Chucn  Yuan-pin,  of  the  Ming  dynasty, 
the  fact  remains  that  the  art  owes  its  develop- 
ment solely  to  native  investigators  and 
practitioners.  Like  so  many  other  things 
Japanese,  the  original  of  jujutsu  is  traced 
back  to  the  mythological  age,  for  it  is  said 
that  the  gods  Kajima  and  Kadori  availed 


themselves  of  the  art  to  chastise  the  lawless 
inhabitants  of  the  eastern  provinces.  But 
from  then  until  the  Hojo  regime — from  the 
twelfth  to  the  fourteenth  •  century  —  no 
special  schools,  styled  rytigi,  existed.  Later, 
however,  the  various  methods  employed  by 
a  weaker  person  to  defeat  a  stronger  adver- 
sary were  carefully  elaborated  until,  in 
course  of  time,  many  ryugi,  sects,  or  schools 
arose  throughout  the  country.  A  volume 
could  be  filled  merely  with  the  mass  of  fact 
and  fancy  that  has  grown  up  around  the 
names  of  these  various  systems  which, 
however  greatly  they  may  differ  in  detail, 
are  all  based  upon  one  and  the  same  princi- 
ple. This  principle  is  aptly  signified  in  the 
very  name  of  the  art,  for  jujutsu  is  written 
with  two  ideographs,  the  first,  ju,  meaning 
"to  obey,  submit  to,  weak,  soft,  pliable," 
and  the  second  meaning  "art"  or  "science." 
This  combination,  sometimes  facetiously 
spoken  of  as  the  "gentle  art,"  thus  con- 
nects a  system  which  relies  for  its  triumphs, 
not  upon  brute  strength,  but  upon  skill  and 
finesse,  the  ability  to  win  by  appearing  to 
yield.  The  basic  idea  of  opposing  skill  to 
"beef"  in  combat  is  fully  exemplified  in 
the  story  of  the  origin  of  the  well-known 
Yoshin-ryu  or  Yoshin  sect  of  jujutsu.  The 
founder  of  this  sect,  a  Nagasaki  physician 
named  Akiyama  Shirobei  Yoshitaki,  chanced 
to  notice  one  day  in  winter  that  the  branches 
of  a  willow-tree  in  front  of  a  temple  where 
he  was  staying,  did  not  retain  the  show, 
even  after  a  heavy  fall,  and  that,  owing  to 
the  suppleness  of  the  branches,  which  gave 


way  under  the  falling  snow,  and  thus  threw 
it  off  as  fast  as  it  accumulated,  the  tree 
escaped  the  fate  of  seemingly  sturdier 
growths,  whose  branches  were  everywhere 
ruthlessly  crushed  and  broken  under  the 
burden.  This  observation  gave  him  the 
clue  to  the  valuable  principle  which  lies  at 
the  root  of  a\\  jujutsu  "te,"  or  tricks,  thanks 
to  which  he  was  able  greatly  to  improve 
his  art  and  increase  the  number  of  his 
disciples.  Hence  he  styled  his  sect  Yoshin- 
ryu,  meaning  "Willow-heart  school."  The 
name  of  jujutsu  ryugi,  or  sects,  is  legion. 
Among  the  better  known  which  have  sur- 
vived to  this  day  are  the  Kiraku-ryu,  Take- 
nouchi-rj'u,  Sekiguchio-ryu,  Shinnoshindo- 
-ryu,  Tenshin  Shinyo-ryu,  Shibukawa-ryu, 
Kito-ryu,  Shimmei  Sakkwatsu-ryu,  etc. 
But  all  these  at  the  present  day  are  en- 
tirely secondary  to  what  is  known  as  the 
Kodo-kwan  system  of  judo,  founded  by 
Dr.  Kano  Jigoro,  an  educationist  of  con- 
siderable prominence  who,  some  twenty- 
five  or  thirty  years  ago,  was  induced  to 
take  up  the  practice  of  the  old  jujutsu  in 
order  to  improve  his  own  physique  which 
then  left  much  to  be  desired.  On  account 
of  the  reaction  against  the  warlike  arts  that 
had  set  in  after  the  Restoration  and  the 
abolition  of  feudalism,  the  former  prosper- 
ous ryugi  had  fallen  upon  evil  days  and 
were  almost  deserted.  Young  Kano  was 
therefore  welcomed  with  open  arms  by  their 
teachers  and  speedily  initiated  into  all  the 
secrets  of  the  different  schools,  with  the 
result  that  in  the  end  he  evolved  his  own 


426 


PRESENT-DAY        I  M  P  R  I-:  S  S  I  O  N  S        OF        JAPAN 


MASTER    AND    PUPIL    AT    ^\V(IRU    PRACTICE 


system,  which  is  an  eclectic  one  embracing 
all  the  best  features  of  the  older  sects,  with 
the  addition  of  numerous  improvements  of 
his  own.  Among  Dr.  Kano's  pupils  are 
many  of  the  most  prominent  military  and 
naval  men  of  Japan,  not  excepting  even 
princes  of  the  imperial  blood.  Judo  is  the 
system  officially  recognised,  compulsory  in 
all  naval  and  military  schools,  practised  at 
all  Government  universities  and  schools,  at 
nearly    all    the    larger    private    educational 


establishments,  and  by  the  police.  It  is 
impossible  within  the  limits  of  an  article 
to  give  anything  like  a  complete  description 
of  this  art,  which  would  require  a  special 
treatise,  with  illustrations,  for  its  satisfactory 
elucidation.  The  word  judo,  it  should  be 
said,  differs  from  jujulsu  only  in  the  last 
syllable  which  means  "way"  or  "path," 
thus  implying  that  judo  is  not  simply  a 
method  of  defence  and  attack,  but  an 
ethical  system  as  well. 


SWORD    PRACTICE 


The  non-esoteric  branches  of  judo  are 
called  randori,  or  "free  wrestling,"  and 
kala,  or  "form,"  in  which  the  principal 
tricks  are  demonstrated  in  a  given  order 
for  two  performers.  Free  wrestling  com- 
prises a  most  effective  repertoire  of  throws, 
choke-locks,  and  bone-locks,  called  gyaku, 
and  methods  of  pinning  an  opponent  to 
the  ground,  styled  osae-komi.  There  is  a 
strict  system  of  classification  according  to 
merit,  the  external  badges  of  progressive 
efficiency  being  belts  of  three  colours,  namely, 
white,  brown,  and  black,  in  the  order  named. 
Wearers  of  the  white  belt  are  merely  be- 
ginners. The  right  to  wear  the  brown  belt 
goes  willi  the  grade  of  kyu,  from  three  kyu 
to  one  kyu,  of  which  the  latter  is  the  highest. 
From  one  or  the  first  kyu  (ikkyu),  the  stu- 
dent graduates  into  the  lowest  of  the  dan 
(meaning  "grade"  or  "degree")  class, 
entitling  him  to  wear  the  coveted  black 
belt  and  to  teach  randori.  In  contradis- 
tinction to  the  kyu  classification,  the  second 
dan  is  higher  than  the  first  dan,  the  third 
than  the  second  dan,  and  so  on,  up  to  the 
seventh  dan,  of  which  there  are  probably 
not  more  than  two  or  three  holders  through- 
out Japan,  belonging,  that  is,  to  the  Kodo- 
kwan  school.  After  the  student  has  won 
the  black  belt  with  the  rank  of  shodan  (first 
dan),  he  is  gradually  initiated  into  the 
esoteric  branches  of  judo,  which  include 
atemi,  or  the  art  of  striking  and  kicking 
vital  spots,  and  kwappo,  or  methods  of 
resuscitating  one  who  has  been  rendered 
unconscious  by  strangulation  or  other  cause. 
Among  other  things  the  graduate  is  required 
to  undergo  a  decidedly  tr>'ing  ordeal  which 
takes  the  form  of  both  strangling  and  being 
strangled.  Under  the  supervision  of  experts, 
each  newly  made  shodan  must  lie  limp  and 
supine,  offering  no  resistance  to  the  choke- 
lock  of  another  shodan,  the  while  a  time- 
keeper tells  off  the  number  of  seconds  it 
requires  to  "put  him  to  sleep."  The  shodan 
who'  has  performed  the  active  role  must 
then  revive  his  victim  by  the  recognised 
form  of  kwappo.  The  principal  object  of 
this  ceremony  is  to  strengthen  the  student's 
nerve  and  presence  of  mind,  so  that  in  a  real 
emergency  he  may  not  be  found   wanting. 

Proficiency  in  the  art  of  judo  is  gained,  as 
in  most  forms  of  sport,  both  by  everj'day 
practise  and  periodical  contests  for  the 
various  classes.  .\t  the  Kodo-kwan,  and 
kindred  institutions,  competitions  are  held 
every  month  or  six  weeks,  while  twice  a 
year,  in  the  spring  and  autumn,  an  all-day 
series  of  contests  is  given  for  the  ikkyu  (  first 
kyu")  and  dan  classes.  These  occasions  are 
termed  Kohaku  shobu,"  or  "Red  and  White 
Contests,"  because  the  competitors  are 
divided   into  two  rival  teams  distinguished 


PRESENT-DAY    IMPRESSIONS    OF   JAPAN 


427 


by  red  and  white  colours.  The  leader  of 
either  team  is  usually  of  the  fourth  grade 
(yodan).  A  good  showing  at  this  form  of 
contest  is  a  great  aid  to  rapid  i)romotion. 
The  skill  and  endurance  exhibited  arc 
extraordinary,  and  in  both  the  brown  and 
black  belt  classes  good  wrestlers  will  some- 
times throw  five  or  six  opponents  in  succes- 
sion. In  the  usual  monthly  contests  the 
maximum  proportion  of  falls  required  for  a 
victory  is  two  out  of  three,  but  if  the  con- 
test continues  longer  than  a  given  time  with- 
out a  score  on  either  side,  the  umpire  may 
declare  the  first  fall  to  win,  or  if  that  limit 
is  exceeded,  a  draw  is  announced.  On  the 
other  hand,  in  the  Red  and  White  com- 
petitions the  first  fall  scored  decides  thf 
contest,  when  the  winner  must  meet  the 
next  man  on  the  list,  and  retires  only  after 
he  has  been  defeated  or  wrestled  a  draw. 
In  the  brown  belt  (kym)  class  a  win  can  be 
scored  by  a  clean  throw  from  a  standing 
position,  a  choke-lock,  or  pinning  one's 
opponent  to  the  mat  for  a  fixed  time  de- 
cided by  the  umpire;  in  the  brown  belt 
class  recourse  to  bone-locks  (gyaku)  is  pro- 
hibited as  far  as  regular  contests  are  con- 
cerned, though  it  is  allowed  in  practice. 
Among  competitors  of  the  black  belt  class 
(yiidansha)  throws,  choke-locks,  bone-locks, 
and  osae-komi  are  all  permitted,  and  it  not 
infrequently  happens  that  bones  are  broken 
on  these  occasions.  I  can  recall  one  Red 
and  White  Competition  at  which  three 
elbows  and  two  knee-caps  were  dislocated. 
When,  as  sometimes  takes  place,  a  good 
ikkyu  meets  a  shodati  (holder  of  the  first 
dan),  the  former  may  resort  to  gyaku  which, 
however,  is  forbidden  to  the  shodan.  Excite- 
ment runs  high  at  these  contests,  especially 
towards  the  end  of  the  day,  when  one  side 
or  the  other  is  in  the  lead.  Should  it  happen 
that  the  two  team  captains  have  to  wrestle, 
the  umpire  has  the  right  to  extend  the 
ordinan,'  time  allotted  for  competitors  of 
lower  grade,  unless  a  decision  has  been 
reached  beforehand.  I  have  known  two 
team  captains  to  bout  for  an  hour  before 
a  \'ictor>'  could  be  scored  on  either  side,  and 
it  is  in  struggles  of  this  kind  that  one  sees 
judn  at  its  best.  Both  the  Red  and  White 
and  periodical  Kodo-kwan  competitions  are 
conducted  with  the  greatest  formality.  The 
umpire  is  always  an  experienced  judo-ka  of 
the  third  grade  or  higher,  and  from  his 
decisions  there  is  no  appeal.  As  the  result 
of  observation  extending  over  many  years, 
I  do  not  hesitate  to  declare  that  although 
the  Japanese  have  been  accused,  not  always 
unjustly,  of  being  poor  sportsmen  in  Western 
games,  they  give  little  cause  for  criticism  on 
their  own  ground.  It  might  be  too  much 
perhaps  to  assert  that  displays  of  bad  tem- 


ONE    PH.ASE    OF    .ATT.\CK    .\ND    DEFENCE 


per  are  unknown  in  either  judo  or  kenjutsu, 
but  certainly  they  are  few  and  far  between, 
and  if  carried  to  extremes  meet  with  stern 
and  speedy  repression.  The  student  of 
judo  voluntarily  submits  to  a  rigourous 
discipline  which  makes  for  both  his  physical 
and  moral  wellbeing.  Just  as  the  best 
boxers  are  generally  the  men  who  possess 
self-control  and  live  clean  lives,  so  no  Japa- 
nese can  hope  to  excel  in  judo  if  prone  to 
give  way  to  bad  temper  or  to  over-indulge 


in  any  shape  or  form.  Now  that  freedom 
to  practise  the  art  is  no  longer  confined  to 
the  samurai  class  but  includes  all  sorts  and 
conditions  of  young  men,  it  is  impossible  to 
guarantee  that  there  will  be  no  black  sheep 
in  the  fold;  but  applying  the  law  of  aver- 
ages, I  can  honestly  say  that  I  could  not 
reasonably  ask  for  a  finer,  manlier  set  of 
young  fellows  than  the  judo-ka  of  the  Kodo- 
kwan. 

Nevertheless  the  superstition  entertained 


P.\RRYING    .\    BODY    BLOW 


428 


PRESENT-DAY        IMPRESSIONS        OF        J  A  P  A  N 


A    WOMAN    FENCER 


in  some  quarters  abroad  that  every  Japanese 
is  a  judo  expert  must  be  dispelled.  Perhaps 
the  ratio  of  good  judo  men  in  Japan  is  not 
larger  than  that  of  good  boxers  in  England 
or  America,  and  as  in  the  West,  so  in 
Japan,  as  a  rule  the  best  men  are  to  be 
found  among  the  student  body  and  to  a 
lesser  extent  among  the  police.  On  the 
other  hand,  the  Japanese  judo-ka  probably 
trains  far  more  systematically  and  zealously 
than  the  average  Western  amateur  boxer. 
The  majority  of  students  at  the  Kodo-kwan 
attend  daily  from  three  or  four  to  five  or 
six  P.  M.,  year  in  and  year  out,  until  they 
win  the  coveted  black  belt.  Many  devote 
Sunday  mornings  also  to  the  exercise. 

It  is  my  opinion,  shared  by  all  other  for- 
eigners who  have  devoted  any  attention  to 
the  subject,  that  judo  is  superior  to  all  known 
forms  of  Western  wrestling.  Judo  is  essenti- 
ally practical  in  its  conception  and  proceeds 
upon  the  assumption  that  as  a  rule  your 
adversary  will  be  clad  and  that  he  will  not 
always  adhere  strictly  to  Marquis  of  Queens- 
bury  rules.  Therefore  in  practise  the 
contestants  wear  a  special  costume  made  of 
strong  cotton  cloth,  with  long  sleeves,  and  in 
theory  nothing  is  barred,  although  in  friendly 
bouts  every  care  is  taken  to  prevent  accidents 
which,  nevertheless,  can  not  always  be 
avoided.  Anybody  familiar  with  the  arbi- 
trary limitations  of  the  Greco-Roman  and,  to 
a  lesser  extent,  of  the  catch-as-catch-can,  or 
free  American  styles  of  wrestling,  will  appre- 
ciate this  distinction.  Thus  in  judo  almost 
every  muscle  of  the  body  and  limbs  is  brought 
into  play  and  developed.     Indubitably  judo, 


when  systematically  and  conscientiously 
practised  from  youth  up,  produces  a  splendid 
type  of  physique  characterised  by  a  harmoni- 
ously distributed,  all-round  development,  not 
always  found  among  our  own  heav\'weights 
of  the  mat  in  Europe  and  America,  although 
the  latter  would  generally  greatly  outweigh 
the  judo-ka,  or  exponent  of  judo.  With  a 
fairly  comprehensive  experience  of  both  the 
Western  and  Japanese  types  of  physique,  I 
am  inclined  to  say  that,  owing  in  some  degree. 


no  doubt,  to  the  habit  of  squatting  and  to 
early  training,  the  Japanese  wrestler  enjoys 
an  advantage  over  the  Westerner  in  the  pos- 
session of  comparatively  more  powerful  loins, 
which  play  such  an  important  part  in  judo. 
Undeniabl)'  many  of  our  Western  sports,  like 
football,  tennis,  and  rowing,  develop  the  leg 
muscles,  but  strong  as  are  the  lower  limbs  of 
our  European  and  American  athletes,  they 
generally  lack  the  elasticity,  the  fluid  quality, 
so  to  speak,  of  the  thigh  and  buttock  muscles 
of  an  expert  Japanese  wrestler.  The  rela- 
tively greater  need  for  strength  of  loin  in  the 
Japanese  as  compared  with  the  Western 
system  of  wrestling,  especially  Greco-Roman, 
must  be  apparent  when  we  remember  that 
under  the  rules  of  the  latter  the  contestants 
may  not  lift  their  feet  from  the  ground  to  trip 
an  opponent.  Judo,  on  the  other  hand,  may 
almost  be  termed  tripping  in  excehis.  A 
good  judo-ka  can  use  his  loin  ("koshi"  in 
Japanese)  with  the  force  of  a  battering-ram 
to  disturb  his  adversary's  centre  of  gravity 
and  throw  him  to  the  ground.  After  years  of 
assiduous  practice  the  judo-ka  develops  some- 
thing almost  in  the  nature  of  a  sixth  sense, 
which  enables  him  instinctively  to  feel  in 
what  part  of  the  body  his  opponent  is  concen- 
trating his  strength,  when,  with  the  swiftness 
of  a  reflex  action,  he  will  direct  his  attack 
against  the  unprotected  area  and  score  a 
victory.  The  Japanese  language  provides  a 
multitude  of  technical  terms  to  describe  every 
phase  of  judo,  both  passive  and  active, 
physical  and  mental.  Thus  we  speak  of  the 
"fleating"  condition  of  our  adversary's  unpro- 
tected   area,    whether    the    upper    or    lower 


AN    OLD    SWORDSMAN 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


429 


I)ortion  of  tlie  body.  And  tlic  rrpcrtoire  of 
tricks  in  judo  is  so  extensive  that  an  expert  is 
never  at  a  loss  to  find  a  method  of  dealing 
with  either.  Randori,  or  free  wrestling,  for 
example,  is  subdivided  into  groups  of  tricks 
in  which  the  arms,  loins,  feet,  singly  or  in 
combination,  are  subtly  utilised  to  bring  about 
the  desired  result.  Not  every  expert  judo-ka 
could  verbally  explain  the  laws  of  leverage 
and  balance,  but  in  practice  he  is  continually 
applying  them  with  the  maximum  efTect. 

The  question  is  constantly  being  asked. 
How  does  judo  compare  with  boxing?  No 
fair  reply  can  as  yet  be  given  to  this  question, 
because  only  a  contest  which  no  police  regula- 
tions now-adays  would  permit  could  ever 
decide  the  point.    The  so-called  "tests"  here- 


school  known  to  have  been  guilty  of  unjustifi- 
able violence  or  rowdy  conduct  is  promptly 
expelled.  The  rarity  of  such  cases  proves 
the  effectiveness  of  the  training  given  not 
only  in  relation  to  the  body,  but  also  in  the 
formation  of  character.  As  bearing  upon 
this  latter  phase  of  the  subject,  I  must  sj)eak 
briefly  about  the  distinctive  summer  and 
winter  exercises  which  are  part  of  the  curricu- 
lum of  the  Kodo-kwan  and  other  jujulsu 
schools.  For  the  former,  the  hottest  season 
of  the  year,  from  about  mid-July  to  mid- 
August  is  chosen,  and  for  the  latter  the  coldest 
month,  January,  when  daily  the  pupils  start 
wrestling  at  four  A.  M.  and  keep  at  it  until 
seven  or  eight  A.  M.  The  summer  practice  is 
called  shochu-geiko,  and  the  winter  practice, 


A    WRESTLING    MATCH 


tofore  held  have  been  mere  farces,  since  the 
boxer  has  had  to  wear  gloves  and  the  judo-ka 
has  necessarily  been  obliged  to  abstain  from 
employing  tricks  which,  against  an  inexperi- 
enced antagonist,  might  entail  very  grave  if 
not  fatal  consequences.  Personally,  I  am 
convinced  that  given  experts  on  either  side, 
barring  accidents,  the  judo-ka,  with  his  far 
more  extensive  repertoire  of  tricks,  ought  to 
win  in  a  fight  to  a  finish.  In  Japan  a  good 
man  of  the  third  or  fourth  grade  would  think 
nothing  of  defeating  half  a  dozen  adversaries 
ignorant  of  the  art,  and  had  I  space  at  my  dis- 
posal I  could  cite  several  authentic  instances 
where  judo  experts  have  fought  successfully 
against  amazing  odds.  But  it  must  be  added 
that  the  rules  of  the  Kodo  kwan  are  uncom- 
promisingly strict  against  the  abuse  of  this 
dangerous  power,   and   any   member  of  the 


kangeiko.  In  this  manner  not  only  is  the 
judo-ka  inured  to  the  two  extremes  of  heat 
and  cold,  but  also  cultivates  the  virtue  of 
perseverance,  thus  developing  will-power. 
It  is  not  too  much  to  say  that  the  revival  of 
the  samurai  art  of  judo  in  this  improved  form 
has  done  wonders  to  reclaim  the  physique  of 
young  Japan,  which  was  undeniably  on  the 
downgrade  when  Dr.  Kano  appeared  on  the 
scene.  The  Kodo-kw^an  as  an  institution  has 
no  money-making  objects,  but  exists  solely 
for  the  purpose  of  imparting  a  valuable  art  to 
the  rising  generation  for  a  fee  which  barely 
suffices  to  support  the  place,  and  although 
regular  judo  teachers  are  paid  for  their 
services,  they  are  not  allowed  to  give  exhibi- 
tions of  their  skill  in  public,  if  any  charge  has 
been  made  for  admission,  save  for  charity. 
Japanese    kenjulsu,     or    fencing,     appeals 


perhaps  less  to  the  Westerner  than  judo,  but 
it  is  a  genuine  national  growth  and  as  emi- 
nently practical  in  its  own  way  us  judo.  The 
weapon  used  in  practice,  to  imitate  as  closely 
as  possible  the  old  two-handed  sword  of  the 
samurai,  is  a  stick  called  a  shinae,  made  of 
three  strips  of  bamboo  bound  tightly  together, 
with  a  small  round  guard  and  a  hilt  large 
enough  to  accommodate  both  hands.  It  is 
usually  about  four  feet  long.  In  practice  the 
performers  are  protected  by  masks  and 
breastplates  of  strong  lacquer  and  by  gaunt- 
lets. In  practice  bouts  striking  at  the  legs  is 
forbidden  and  the  decisive  points  are  the 
head,  both  sides,  the  right  arm,  and  throat, 
the  latter  being  virtually  the  only  thrust 
permitted.  The  Japanese  style  may  seem  to 
lack  the  fineness  and  grace  of  the  French  and 
Italian  rapier  play,  but  of  its  value  in  real 
combat  there  can  be  no  question.  One  good 
cut  with  a  Japanese  two-handed  sword  on  any 
of  the  points  cited  would  put  the  victim  out 
of  commission  then  and  there.  Although,  I 
think,  inferior  to  judo  as  a  physical  exercise, 
kenjulsu  provides  an  excellent  training  for 
hand,  foot,  and  eye.  Japanese  addicted  to 
the  sport  can  as  a  rule  be  detected  by  the 
abnormal  development  of  their  forearms. 
Tlie  principal  native  schools  are  the  Shinkage, 
Shinto,  Yagiu,  Ono-ha-itto,  and  the  Nito-ryu, 
the  last  named  being  practised  with  two 
swords,  one  for  each  hand,  as  invented  by  the 
famous  Miyamoto  Musashi  during  the  seven- 
teenth century. 

I  shall  close  this  brief  sketch  of  the  princi- 
pal Japanese  arts  of  self-defence  by  hardly 
more  than  a  reference  to  the  native  pro- 
fessional style  of  wrestKng  called  sumo, 
which  must  on  no  account  be  confounded 
with  judo.  Sumo  is  usually  practised  pro- 
fessionally by  men  of  great  size,  "moun- 
tains of  fat  and  muscle,"  as  Mr.  Mitford 
(now  Lord  Redesdale)  rightly  calls  them. 
The  biggest  are  often  considerably  over  six 
feet  in  height  and  three  hundred  pounds  in 
weight.  Properly  speaking,  sumo  is  not  a 
defensiv'e  or  an  offensive  system,  but  a  test 
of  skill  and  strength,  like  our  Western  styles 
of  wrestling.  Of  course,  among  the  twelve 
throws,  twelve  lifts,  twelve  twists,  and 
twelve  throws  over  the  back  which  go  to 
make  up  the  repertoire  of  sumo,  there  are 
many,  no  doubt,  that  could  be  utilised  in  a 
genuine  encounter,  but  as  in  our  own  popu- 
lar styles  the  test  of  victory  or  defeat  is 
artificial  and  arbitrary,  consisting  as  it 
does  in  the  ability  of  one  of  the  contestants 
not  only  to  throw  his  opponent,  but  to  carry 
or  push  him  beyond  the  boundary  of  the 
arena.  Thus,  other  things  equal,  weight  is 
the  decisive  factor,  and  the  sumo-lori,  or 
wrestlers,  are  therefore  at  great  pains  to 
cultivate  it. 


"geishas" 


XXVIII.    Japan  as  a  Tourist  Land 

By    W.    B.    MASON,    Joint-author    of    "Murray's    Handbook    to    Japan,"    etc.,    and    Corresponding    Member 

for  Japan  of    the   Royal  Scottish   (Jeographical  Society 


JAPAN  has  become  the  wonder-land  of 
the  tourist.  Ever  since  her  unique 
social  and  political  structure  was  rudely 
shaken  by  the  guns  of  Western  navies  at 
Shimonoseki  and  Kogoshima,  the  interest 
taken  in  the  Land  of  the  Rising  Sun  has  been 
absorbing  and  universal.  The  traveller  has 
found  there  the  charm,  the  mystery  of  an 
ancient  civilisation,  for  whose  manners  and 
customs  we  have  to  go  back  to  Pompeii  and 
Herculaneum  to  find  a  parallel.  Certainly, 
more  for  these  than  for  the  feverish  rush  of 
modem  industrialism  or  her  great  achieve- 
ments in  arms  has  Japan  drawn  the  tourist 
to  her  shores. 

Let  us  first  take  a  general  glance  at  what 
the  life  was  and  can  still  be  for  him  a  few 
miles  away  from  railways  and  the  Open 
Ports.  He  comes  to  his  journey's  end 
after  a  day  in  the  open  air,  transported  by 
a  jinrikisha  —  that  "pull-man-car"  of  Japa- 


nese roads  —  having  men  in  the  shafts  with 
the  limbs  of  athletes.  He  is  made  welcome 
at  the  threshold  of  the  inn  by  both  master 
and  servant;  he  leaves  his  boots  behind 
him  at  the  entrance;  his  room  is  devoid  of 
what  we  call  furniture,  but  he  stretches 
himself  on  the  spotless  mats,  while  a  wait- 
ing-maid, always  bright  and  cheerful,  brings 
him  a  tiny  cup  of  refreshing,  unsweetened 
tea.  Later,  the  bath  is  ready  for  him, 
followed  by  a  simple  dinner  of  soup,  fish, 
vegetables,  and  rice,  laid  out  on  miniature 
tables.  While  he  deftly  plies  the  chop-sticks, 
the  maid  is  there  to  replenish  his  rice-bowl 
and,  should  he  understand  the  language, 
beguile  the  time  with  the  chatter  and  gossip 
of  the  "petty  burgh."  Finally,  the  futon, 
or  mattress,  is  brought  in  and  spread  over 
the  mats  —  sitting-room,  dining-room,  and 
bedroom  in  one.  He  "turns  in,"  again 
hears  the  thoughtful  inquiry  if  all  is  to  his 


satisfaction,  and  a  last  gentle  "0  yasumi 
nasai,"  or  "Pleasant  rest  to  you."  Is  it  a 
matter  for  wonder,  then,  that  he  composes 
himself  to  sleep  with  the  reflection,  it  may  be, 
that  there  is  an  element  of  comfort  in  this,  a 
something  in  the  philosophy  of  living  that 
Europe  and  America  with  their  huge  hotels 
and  groaning  machinery  have  not  attained? 
Indeed,  it  is  this  idyllic  simplicity,  together 
with  the  natural  charm  of  the  people,  that 
has  left  such  a  pleasing  impression  on 
generations  of  visitors. 

Next  morning  the  traveller  takes  a  walk 
along  the  street  of  this  country  town,  for 
he  is  off  the  beaten  track.  It  is  a  lengthy 
line  of  wooden  houses  with  open  shop-fronts, 
and  nothing  very  remarkable  in  them,  just 
the  common  articles  of  everyday  use.  The 
fac  similes  of  the  dainty  cabinets  which 
adorned  the  niches  of  the  rooms  of  the 
Duchess    of    Portsmouth    in    the    time    of 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


431 


"the  waiting  maid" 

Charles  the  Second  are  not  to  be  seen  there, 
nor  will  he  meet  with  specimens  of  porce- 
lain like  those  with  which  Mary,  the  consort 
of  William,  Prince  of  Orange,  amused  her- 
self in  embellishing  Hampton  Court  during 
the  mania  for  collecting  china  from  the  Far 
East.  He  will  have  to  go  to  the  big  cities 
or  the  open  ports — to  Tokyo,  Kyoto,  Yoko- 
hama, or  Kob^  —  for  these  and  other  art 
treasures  so  eagerly  sought  by  connoisseurs. 
We  are  in  Old  Japan,  the  Japan  that  lives 
and  thrives  still  in  spite  of  the  rapid  exten- 
sion of  the  railway  system,  the  introduction 
of  electric  tramways,  and  the  electric  light. 
That  these  Western  innovations  have 
effected  vast  change  in  almost  every  phase 
of  native  life  is  readily  apparent.  The 
tourist  can  now-  travel  through  the  country 
without  being  subjected  to  unfamiliar  con- 
ditions, which,  though  often  interesting,  may 
sometimes  be  not  altogether  congenial.  Let 
it  be  said  at  once  that  Japanese  inns  lack 
what  we  regard  as  comfort;  they  are,  for 
instance,  open  to  every  wind  that  blows, 
draughts  which  we  abhor  are  a  joy  to  the 
Japanese,  there  is  no  real  privacy,  the  sani- 
tary arrangements  leave  much  to  be  desired, 
while    except    for   youth   and    supple  limbs. 


sejuatting  on  the  floor  is  not  an  ideal  means 
of  resting.  Nor  is  eating  with  chop-sticks 
(though  one  finds  pleasure  in  their  cleanli- 
ness), instead  of  knives  and  forks,  an  accom- 
plishment to  be  acquired  in  a  day.  Yet, 
for  the  curious,  some  experience  of  such  a 
mode  of  living  can  always  be  obtained  by  a 
visit  to  one  of  the  attractive  tea-houses  or 
restaurants  that  abound  in  every  town. 

What  about  the  home  life  of  the  people? 
The  tourist  complains  of  seeing  so  little  of 
it  and  is  often  at  a  loss  to  account  for  a 
seeming  lack  of  hospitality  in  a  people 
renowned  in  literature  for  that  virtue.  The 
fact  is  that  society,  as  it  exists  in  the  West, 
is  unknown  in  the  Orient ;  there  is  ceremonial 
visiting  and  feasting  of  intimate  friends,  but 
otherwise  little  to  compare  with  the  social 
amenities  of  Occidental  lands.  This  has 
led  various  writers,  Lafcadio  Hearn  amongst 
them,  to  make  the  curious  assertion  that 
the  inner  life  of  the  people  still  remains  a 
sealed  book  to  the  stranger.  If  by  inner 
life  is  meant  the  soul,  the  hidden  sources 
from  which  flow  the  elements  that  con- 
stitute the  special  characteristics  of  the 
race  and  of  which  a  knowledge  can  only  be 
acquired  by  prolonged  study  of  the  history 
and  language,  the  statement  may  not  be 
contested.  In  all  other  respects  it  is  falla- 
cious. The  ordinary  work-a-day  life  of  the 
Japanese  is  openly  revealed;  it  is  there  for 
all  to  see.  A  stroll  along  the  main  street 
of  any  town  on  a  summer  day  will  show, 
from  the  open  shop-front,  the  family  sitting 
at  their  meals  or  at  work  and,  at  the  same 


time,  give  you  a  glimpse  through  the  house 
to  the  tiny  garden  beyond.  There  are  no 
veiled  mysteries,  no  secret  cupboards.  Plots 
and  con.spiracies,  such  as  we  are  familiar 
with,  are  unthinkable  things  in  Japan, 
because  of  a  mode  of  living  where  conceal- 
ment is  so  difficult.  Every  pickpocket,  of 
any  notoriety  in  his  profession,  is  said  to  be 
known  to  the  police.  You  may  realise  this 
should  you  happen  to  be  relieved  of  your 
gold  watch;  the  chances  are  ten  to  one  that 
it  will  be  restored  to  you  within  twenty-four 
hours.  The  same  may  not  be  asserted  of 
your  purse !  For  this  and  cognate  reasons 
Tokyo,  the  capital,  is,  for  its  size,  the  safest 
of  any  of  the  great  cities  in  the  world  for 
one  to  roam  about  in  at  any  hour  of  the 
day  or  night. 

On  two  important  points  sufficient  stress  is 
never  laid  in  treating  of  Japan  as  a  tourist 
land  —  first,  the  time  of  year  at  which  it  will 
be  found  at  its  best;  and  second,  the  climate. 
There  is  a  deep-rooted  impression  that  Japan 
lies  in  the  tropics  and  that  it  is  bathed  in 
continual  sunshine.  Except  for  a  part  of  July 
and  all  of  August,  and  a  rainy  season  during 
June,  there  is  not  much  else  to  recall  the 
hotter  parts  of  the  earth.  The  climate, 
however,  differs  in  one  respect  from  that  of 
England,  for  instance,  in  so  far  as,  when  it 
rains,  it  may  continue  without  intermission 
for  several  days.  Showery  weather  is  almost 
unknown.  A  visitor  unfortunate  enough  to 
choose  a  week  of  rain  and  gloom  for  his  little 
tour  is  not  likely  to  be  enthusiastic  over  his 
experience,   and  such  is  the  fate  of  many. 


DANCING   GEISHAS 


432 


P  R  E  S  E  N  T  -  D  A  \'         I   M    1'  R  E  S  S  I  O  \  S        OF        J   A   l^  A  X 


GEISHAS    ENJOYING   A   JAUNT    IN    THE    COUNTRY 


Japan  is  at  her  best  in  Spring,  from  the  first 
days  of  April  till  well  on  in  May;  again  in  late 
October,  throughout  November,  and  often 
up  to  Christmas  and  New  Year's  time,  —  the 
former  period  for  its  succession  of  flowers  and 
gay  outdoor  life,  the  latter  for  its  bright 
cloudless  skies  and  the  colouring  of  the 
wooded  uplands.  It  is  worthy  of  note  that 
the  crowds  who  flock  every  summer  to  the 
famous  mountain  resorts  of  Karuizawa, 
Nikko,  Unzen,  etc.,  are  not  composed  of 
tourists,  but  of  residents  of  Japan  and 
other  parts  of  the  Orient — South  China, 
Singapore,  etc.  —  in  search  of  rest  and 
recreation. 

Geographical  and  historical  considerations, 
together  with  the  facilities  of  modern  travel 
and  the  wide-spread  knowledge  of  the  English 
language,  render  Japan  peculiarly  easy  for 
the  tourist  to  take  on  his  way,  it  may  be, 
round  the  world.  There  need  be  no  retracing 
of  one's  footsteps.  Mr.  Gerard,  late  United 
States  Ambassador  to  Germany,  tells  us  how 
in  a  few  hours  in  Europe  it  is  possible  to 


travel  in  an  automobile  across  country  where 
people  differ  violently  from  the  countries 
surrounding  them,  not  only  in  language, 
customs,  and  costumes,  but  in  methods  of 
thought  and  physical  appearance.  Japan, 
on  the  contrary,  presents  a  singular  homo- 
geneity. From  one  end  to  the  other,  for  a 
distance  of  1,400  miles,  the  people  speak  the 
same  tongue  with  only  slight  dialectic  diver- 
gences, manners  and  customs  vary  scarcely  at 
all,  even  the  scenery  of  Nambu  in  the  north  — 
a  succession  of  mountains,  valleys,  and  rice- 
plains —  much  resembles  that  of  Satsuma  in 
the  south.  Volcanoes  active  and  extinct  are 
found  in  both.  The  few  aboriginal  Ainu 
inhabitants,  whose  physical  features  are  more 
akin  to  the  European  than  to  the  Japanese, 
scattered  about  the  Island  of  Yezo  (now 
known  as  Hokkaido),  are  of  interest  only  to 
the  anthropologist.  Hence  it  is  not  essential 
in  Japan,  as  it  would  be  in  China,  for  instance, 
to  travel  extensively,  to  wander  in  remote 
parts,  in  order  to  gain  anything  like  a  compre- 
hensi\e  knowledge  of  the  people. 


The  question  of  the  length  of  time  to  be 
given  to  one's  stay  is,  however,  an  important 
factor.  A  trustworthy  authority  suggests 
two  or  three  weeks  for  ordinary  sightseeing; 
more  serious  observation  may  require  months. 
Our  point  of  view  is  that  of  the  former. 

Now  that  the  automobile  is  available  at 
every  popular  spot  the  matter  of  roads  suited 
to  that  mode  of  locomotion  looms  in  impor- 
tance. Cars  are  not  infrequently  brought  by 
tourists  themselves  to  Japan  for  touring 
purposes;  but,  taking  it  altogether,  the 
roads,  with  few  exceptions,  are  not  well 
adapted  to  them.  Unfamiliarity  with  native 
ways,  though  another  obstacle,  may  largely 
be  overcome  by  the  employment  of  Japanese 
guides  or  chauffeurs.  Roads  and  bridges, 
swept  away  bj'  the  floods  which  now  and  then 
devastate  the  land,  are  long  left  unrepaired, 
while  the  roads  in  the  more  hilly  parts  are  apt 
to  be  much  neglected  at  all  times. 

With  the  spread  of  railways  and  tramways 
the  jinrikisha,  once  ubiquitous,  has  dis- 
appeared from  rural  parts,  though  in  busy 


I'  K  K  S  K  N  T  -  I)  A  V        I   M    I'  R  K  S  S  1  O  N  S 


O  I- 


.1  A  P  A  N 


433 


PARK    VIEWS    AT    NARA 


centres  it  still  continues  to  be  a  convenient 
method  for  making  short  trips  and  for  shop- 
ping. 

It  may  here  be  remarked  that  the  policy 
of  centralisation  which  set  in  after  the  Court 
removed  from  Kyoto  to  Tol<yo  had  the  effect, 


not  only  of  attracting  most  of  the  wealth  and 
intellectual  energy  to  the  new  capital,  but 
of  reducing  provincial  life  to  the  dullest  of 
routine  existence.  The  old  feudal  chiefs, —  the 
historic  daimyos, —  now  that  they  possess 
IJermancnt  residences  in  Tokyo,  rarely  visit 


their  former  domains,  so  that  nothing  exists 
at  all  apjjroaching  to  British  squirc-archy  or 
country  gentry  life. 

The  traveller  will  usually  either  touch  first 
at  Yokohama,  after  crossing  the  Pacific  in 
one  of  the  luxuriously  fitted  steamers  of  the 
Canadian  Pacific  Ocean  Service,  the  Toyo 
Kisen  Kaisha,  or  the  Pacific  Mail  Company; 
or  else  he  will  be  landed  at  Koh6 — rarely  at 
Nagasaki — by  one  of  these  Hners  or  the 
equally  well-known  boats  of  the  Nippon 
Yusen  Kaisha.  The  latter  simply  involves 
a  reversal  of  the  following  order  of  doing 
things. 

The  two  cities  of  Tokyo  and  Kyoto,  with 
their  adjacent  seaports  of  Yokohama  and 
Kob6  respectively,  one  in  eastern  Japan  and 
the  other  in  the  west,  form  good  centres  from 
which  to  make  excursions  to  places  and  from 
which  to  see  things  worth  seeing.  All  the 
towns  just  mentioned  possess  excellent  hotels 
in  foreign  style,  as  well  as  shops.  But  one 
must  be  careful  not  to  judge  Japan  by  what 
is  seen  in  the  so-called  "Foreign  Settlements" 
in  the  Treaty  Ports,  at  which  the  traveller 
often  stays  for  but  a  few  hours  while  en  route 
to  China,  Manila,  or  other  parts  of  the  Far 
East.  They  originated  in  the  early  days  of 
foreign  intercourse,  when  trade  and  residence 
with  the  alien  were  confined  to  narrow  limits. 

Tokyo  lies  eighteen  miles  by  rail  from 
Yokohama.  It  claims  neither  the  historic 
interest  nor  the  charming  situation  for  which 
Kyoto,  the  old  capital,  is  renowned,  but  it 
is  the  city  that  affords  the  most  varied 
aspects  of  modern  social  and  political  life. 
There  reside  the  Emperor  and  Empress  and 
the  members  of  the  Imperial  Family,  who 
twice  a  year  entertain  the  Diplomatic  Corps, 
the  elite  of  Japanese  society,  and  distinguished 
visitors  at  a  garden  party  in  one  of  the  sub- 
.sidiary  palace  grounds,  the  first  in  spring  for 
\  iewing  the  cherry  blossoms  and  the  later  one 
in  autumn  for  the  show  of  chrysanthemums. 
The  theatres,  museums,  and  exhibitions  — 
]  lain  tings,  industries,  wrestling,  etc. —  are,  of 
course,  the  finest  of  their  kind  in  the  country. 
Permission  to  inspect  the  various  educational 
and  other  institutions  not  open  to  the  general 
liublic,  is  freely  granted  to  those  furnished 
with  proper  introductions.  On  the  whole, 
Tokyo  is  not  without  a  beauty  of  its  own, 
especially  in  the  early  half  of  the  year,  when 
it  is  radiant  with  blossom  and  verdant  foliage. 

Save  for  the  mausolea  of  the  shoguns 
situated  in  Shiba  Park,  time  need  not  be  set 
aside  for  temple  viewing,  as  a  trip  to  Nikko, 
the  incomparable,  if  only  for  two  or  three 
days,  must  not  be  omitted, — Nikko,  "a  glory 
of  nature  and  art,"  where  stand  the  tomb  of 
lyeyasu,  the  founder  of  the  Tokugawa 
dynasty,  and  the  gorgeous  shrines  dedicated 
to  his  memory.     They  are  amongst  the  most 


434 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS    OF   JAPAN 


NIGATSUDO   TEMPLE,    NARA 


perfect  specimens  of  religious  architecture  in 
Japan,  and  are  approached  by  magnificent 
avenues  of  gigantic  cryptomerias.  This 
sacred  spot  stands  about  a  hundred  miles 
from  Tokyo  by  rail.  If  fatigued  by  much  art 
and  legendary  lore  at  Nikko,  a  welcome 
change  may  be  obtained  by  an  excursion  on 
horseback,  or  by  jinrikisha,  to  Lake  Chuzenji 
and  the  pretty  waterfalls  in  its  vicinity. 

Nothing  of  much  interest  to  the  casual 
tourist  is  to  be  found  north  of  Nikko.  True, 
the  pine-clad  islets  of  Matsushima,  one  of 
"The  Great  Sights"  of  Japan,  lie  another 
hundred  miles  farther  in  the  same  direction, 
but  it  is  a  conventional  beauty  spot  in  a  land 
enslaved  by  convention,  and  with  so  much  to 
see  elsewhere,  it  may  well  be  omitted.  Of  the 
other  so-called  "Great  Sights,"  the  sacred 
island  of  Itsukushima,  near  Hiroshima,  in  the 
west,  alone  merits  a  visit.  It,  however,  is 
reached  from  Kob6,  and  if  made  by  steamer, 
the  trip  thither  affords  at  the  same 
time,  an  excellent  panoramic  view  of  the 
Inland   Sea. 

Returning  to  Tokyo  or  Yokohama  from 
Nikko,  a  day  should  be  given  to  Kamakura, 
once  the  site  of  the  capital  of  eastern  Japan, 
for  the  sake  of  the  world-famed  image  of  the 
Daibutsu,  or  "Great  Buddha,"  which  stands 
there,  and  other  lesser  sights.  Kamakurj 
itself  has,  of  late  years,  become  a  fashionable 
seaside  resort  for  both  the  Japanese  and  the 
foreign  resident. 

Few  places  in  Japan  present  better  oppor- 
tunities for  studying  the  manners  and  cus- 
toms of  the  people  than  the  natural  hot  spring 
resorts  which  are  found  chiefly  in  the  more 


mountainous  parts.  Some  of  these  possess 
fine,  modem  foreign-built  hotels  for  the 
accommodation  of  the  tourist,  whilst  the 
Japanese  live  apart  in  their  own  specially 
constructed  hostelries. 

Within  easy  reach  of  Yokohama,  either  by 
automobile  or  by  train,  tramway  and  jin- 
rikisha, Miyanoshita,  with  its  noted  hotel, 
the  "Fuji-ya,"  should  on  no  account  be 
missed.  It  can  be  taken  on  the  journey  west- 
ward to  Kyoto,  and  whether  for  novelty  and 
scenic  charm  or  for  rest  after  davs  of  strenu- 


ous sightseeing,  the  change  will  be  found 
delightful.  There  are,  besides,  numerous 
short  excursions  available  from  Miyanoshita, 
notably  to  Lake  Hakone  and  the  solfataras  in 
the  immediate  neighbourhood. 

When  the  ascent  of  Fuji,  "the  peerless 
mountain,"  is  practicable  in  late  July  and 
during  August,  Miyanoshita  makes  a  good 
starting-point,  guides  and  coolies  being  there 
obtainable.  Let  it  be  borne  in  mind  that  the 
expedition  to  Fuji  calls  for  nothing  beyond 
simple  endurance  and  the  power  of  with- 
standing a  highly  rarefied  atmosphere;  of 
climbing,  properly  so-called,  there  is  none. 
Of  real  mountaineering  such  as  the  "Japanese 
Alps"  afford,  there  is  no  lack,  but  the  subject 
demands  special  treatment. 

The  leisurely  disposed  tourist  in  continuing 
his  journey  westward  may  like  to  break  it  at 
the  large  and  prosperous  town  of  Nagoya. 
Its  chief  sight  is  the  Castle,  in  perfect  repair, 
with  fine  suites  of  apartments,  decorated  by 
artists  of  the  Kano  School  of  painting,  and 
formerly  reserved  for  the  use  of  the  shogun. 
Some  of  the  rooms  are  never  shown  to  vis- 
itors because  of  being  occasionally  occupied 
by  H.  M.  the  Emperor. 

It  is  possible,  b}'  diverging  and  taking  a 
branch  railway  at  Nagoya,  to  visit  the  cele- 
brated Shinto  shrines  at  Ise.  The  buildings 
there  are  after  the  usual  Shinto  pattern  — 
plain,  unomamented,  wooden  structures, 
representative  of  the  most  archaic  st^'le  of 
Japanese  architecture,  but  they  are  to  be 
viewed  only  from  the  outside.  As  has 
been  aptly  said  of  them:  "There  is  noth- 
ing to  see  and  they  won't  let  you  see 
it."       The     chief    shrines    stand     in     noble 


FUJIYAMA,    FROM    KAWAC.UCHI    LAKE 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


435 


HOT    SPRINGS    NEAR   FUKUSHIMA 


parks   timbered   with   a  wealth    of    glorious 
cryi^tomeria,    camphor,      and    maple    trees. 


Kyoto,    the    ancient    capital    before    the 
Restoration  of  the  Mikado  to  absolute  power, 


is  by  far  the  most  fascinating  of  all  Japan's 
cities,  for  it  realises  to-day,  in  spite  of  modern 
innovations,  the  ideal  formed  from  descrip- 
tions of  the  country  Vjy  old  writers  and  which 
one  wishes  to  verify  —  the  quaintness,  the 
charm,  the  colour,  the  marvel  of  an  alien  and 
unique  civilisation.  Nothing  can  rob  Kyoto 
of  its  delightful  situation,  surrounded  as  it  is 
by  wooded  heights,  nor  so  long  as  the  ancient 
palaces  and  temijles  remain  can  its  historical 
associations  fail  to  interest  the  serious  stu- 
dent. Specimens  of  the  achievements  of  the 
nation's  greatest  artists  and  painters  will  be 
found  amongst  the  temple  treasures,  while  the 
landscape  gardens  are  dreams  of  beauty. 
'File  natural  Ijcauty  of  the  landscape  sup- 
plies a  setting  for  the  handiwork  of  man, 
which  spring  enhances  with  clouds  of 
tinted  cherry  blossoms,  and  autumn  glori- 
fies with  its  gorgeousness  of  maple  col- 
ouring. 

A  hurried  stay  in  Kyoto  is  a  misfortune, 
for  time  and  leisure  should  be  at  one's  dis- 
posal not  only  to  see  its  sights  but  to  inspect 
the  various  art  industries  for  which  the  city 
is  famed.  These  latter  embrace  pottery  and 
porcelain,  bronze,  lacquer,  embroideries, 
brocades.     Curios,  both  old  and  new,  deplete 


ii),  -i-tT »  i:i*\  ¥:'AMrvA  *:¥i(  -Of' 


\ 


:^^ 


-a^ 


Wi*'  *  '1  n  -A     -^a'  ^  .'■f 


-^NS' 


DOTAN-BORI    STREET,    CTNIMA    THEATRE    DISTRICT,    OSAKA 


436 


P  R  K  S  E  N  T  -  n  A  Y        IMPRESSIONS        O  !■■        JAPAN 


A    JAPANESE    CEMETERY 


the  purses  of  those — and  few  escape  —  who 
are  lured  towards  them 

Nowhere  else  in  Japan  are  the  religious 
festivals  (matsuri)  in  connection  with  the 
popular  shrines  and  temples  maintained  in 
greater  splendour.  At  some  of  the  temples, 
too,  the  old-fashioned  custom  of  the  cha-no- 
yu,  or  "tea  ceremony,"  is  displayed  for  the 
delectation  of  visitors.  The  dancing  by 
geishu  in  spring  and  autumn,  emblematic   of 


fioral  life,  is  quaint  and  pretty  and  forms  a 
special  feature  at  those  times. 

The  traveller  desirous  of  visiting  the  pal- 
aces which  are  not  accessible  to  the  general 
public  must  not  fail  to  be  provided  with  the 
permits,  usually  obtainable  by  application 
to  one's  own  embassy  in  Tokyo. 

Among  pleasant  excursions  in  the  envi- 
rons are  those  to  Lake  Biwa  and  to  Nara, 
the    former     made    from     Kyoto     and     the 


n 


STONE    BUDDHAS    BY   A    ROADSIDE 


latter  preferably  by  making  a  stay  at  Nara 
itself.  Nara,  the  capital  of  Japan  from 
700  to  784  A.  D.,  is  a  mullum  in  parvo  for 
ancient  art  and  architecture,  if  one  has  not 
liad  a  surfeit  already  of  what  Kyoto  provides 
in  abundance  in  that  respect. 

The  great  city  of  Osaka  with  its  forest  ol 
chimneys  and  its  pall  of  smoke,  so  unlike 
any  other  place  in  the  Empire,  will  detain 
only  those  interested  in  manufactures  and 
commerce.  It  is  the  Manchester  of  Japan. 
The  old  Castle,  whose  buildings  were  com- 
pletely destroyed  by  the  Tokugawa  troops 
in  1868,  is  a  noteworthy  relic  of  feudal  days. 
The  Cyclopean  granite  walls  attest  its  former 
strength. 

Kobe,  with  the  adjoining  large  town  of 
Hyogo,  is  the  most  flourishing  of  the  Treaty 
Ports,  and  shows  in  its  rapid  growth  from 
insignificant  beginnings  in  1868,  what  foreign 
trade  has  done  to  develop  the  resources  of  the 
country.  The  "Foreign  Concession"  is  a 
model  of  its  kind,  being  well  laid  out  with 
spacious  streets.  But  a  fine  situation  shel- 
tered from  the  northern  blasts  and  a  com- 
paratively dry  climate  are  in  themselves  not 
sufficient  to  keep  the  toitrist  long  away  from 
the  manifold  novelties  and  attractions  of 
Kyoto  and  its  neighbourhood,  with  the  his- 
toric interest  of  centuries  behind  them,  lying 
within  such  easy  reach. 

As  already  indicated,  Kob6  is  the  starting- 
point  for  the  Inland  Sea  by  whose  islet- 
studded  waters  one  proceeds  to  their  western 
gate  at  Shimonoseki  and  thence  into  the 
Korean  Straits  on  to  Nagasaki.  It  is  at 
Shimonoseki  that  those  bound  for  Korea, 
Manchuria,  and  North  China  leave  the 
shores  of  Japan,  and  for  them  it  is  more 
convenient  to  go  by  rail  from  Kobe,  as  the 
big  trans-Pacific  liners  do  not  touch  at 
Shimonoseki.  The  railway  journey,  though 
not  devoid  of  scenic  beauty,  is  long  and  apt 
to  be  tiresome. 

The  Island  of  Kyushu,  which  is  separated 
from  the  mainland  by  the  narrow  straits  of 
Shimonoseki,  is  picturesque  throughout,  but 
has  no  hotels  approaching  the  standard  of  the 
places  hitherto  described.  The  solfataras  at 
Unzen  in  the  Shimabara  peninsula  afford 
good  accommodation  in  foreign  style,  as 
does  the  hot  spring  resort  of  Beppu  on  the 
east  coast  of  the  island;  but  the  latter  lies 
off  the  beaten  track  of  the  tourist  itinerary. 
'l"hc  important  towns  of  Kumamoto  and 
Kagoshima,  celebrated  for  the  part  they 
played  in  the  last  rebellion  against  the  new- 
order  of  things,  furnish  only  Japanese  inns. 

Nagasaki,  with  its  memories  of  the  old 
Dutch  traders,  the  Portuguese  missionaries, 
and  the  days  of  our  early  intercourse  with  the 
Island  Empire,  calls  for  little  comment  from 
a   traveller's   point   of   view.     The  steamers 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


437 


usually  remain  in  port  but  a  few  hours 
for  coaling  purposes,  during  which  a 
jinrikisha  drive  through  the  narrow  streets 
will  suffice  for  all  there  is  to  see.  Pierre 
Loti,  it  must  be  rememljered,  was  not  a 
globe-trotter. 

As  we  leave  the  beautiful  landlocked  har- 
bour of  Nagasaki  with  the  islets  guarding  it, 
the  shores  of  Dai  Nippon  soon  fade  from  view 
and  we  settle  down  to  prepare  for  other  and 
vastly  dififcilng  sights  and  sounds. 

NIKKO 

THE  Japanese  speak  in  aflfectionate  and 
extravagant  terms  of  their  famous  town 
of  Nikko,  unquestionably  one  of  the  most 
beautiful  spots  in  the  Orient,  and  with  the 
natural  beauties  of  the  place  accentuated  by 
the  fact  that  Nikko  is  a  repository  of  ancient 
Japanese  art,  it  is  not  surprising  that  the 
town  has  become  such  a  popular  point  in 
the  itinerary  of  the  tourist.  The  Japanese 
have  a  saying,  "Don't  use  the  word  'splen- 
dour' until  you  have  seen  Nikko." 

The  town  is  the  terminus  of  the  Utsun- 
omiya-Nikko  branch  line,  and  is  situated  in 
northeastern  Japan,  about  90  miles  from 
Tokj-o,  the  railway  journey  occupying  about 
four  and  a  half  hours.  It  lies  in  a  most 
attractive  setting  of  scenery  and  presents  to 
the  lover  of  beauty  a  wonderful  vista  of 
mountain,  cascade,  sparkling  streams,  lovely 
lakes,  and  ancient  trees.  Naturally  gorgeous 
in  its  surroundings,  Nikko  has  been  enriched 


KIKIFIRI    WATERF.\LL 

by  the  cunning  craftsmanship  of  the  Japanese, 
and  presents  a  delectable  scene  in  which  to 
spend  several  days.  Commercially,  the  town 
has  no  great  importance.  The  population  is 
under  20,000.  But  Nikko  has  historical 
associations,  and  a  general  attractiveness  that 
have  raised  it  to  a  position  of  eminence  among 
the  lesser  towns  or  cities  of  Japan. 

Nikko  itself  possesses  several  remarkable 
features.  It  was  first  brought  to  public 
attention  in  766,  when  Shodo-Shonin  pene- 
trated the  mountains,  intending  to  reach  the 


SHINTO    TEMPLE    FESTIV.AL    DAY    AT    NIKKO 


summit  of  Futarasan.  He  was  unable  to 
accomplish  his  object,  and  remained  in  the 
forest,  practising  ascetic  exercises  for  fourteen 
years,  finally  reaching  the  top  of  the  mountain 
in  781.  Shodo-Shonin  founded  several 
temples  at  Nikko  and  attracted  to  his  retreat 
a  band  of  devotees,  who  were  later  followed 
by  regular  settlers.  In  course  of  time  Nikko 
became  a  famous  religious  centre,  and  many 
temples  were  built,  the  first  shogun  taking  a 
keen  interest  in  the  development  of  the  site. 
The  town  became  still  more  famous  as  the 
Ijurial  place  of  Tokugawa-Iyeyasu,  the 
founder  of  the  Tokugawa  shogimate,  whose 
remains  are  interred  there.  His  grandson, 
lyemitsu,  who  succeeded  to  the  shogunate, 
erected  the  magnificent  mausoleum  which 
took  twelve  years  to  complete,  and  is  reputed 
to  have  cost  Yen  17,000,000.  This  gorgeous 
shrine  became  the  special,  charge  of  successive 
princes  of  the  Imperial  Family,  who  were 
known  as  Prince-Superiors.  This  custom 
was  maintained  until  the  collapse  of  the  sho- 
gunate in  1868,  when  the  shrine  became  the 
charge  of  the  Imperial  Government,  which  has 
recognised  certain  Shinto  temples  and  sacred 
places  as  State  institutions.  Apart  from 
this  great  mausoleum,  Nikko  possesses  an 
abundance  of  wealth  of  Japanese  architecture 
of  various  periods.  There  are  three-  and  five- 
storied  pagodas,  the  Sacred  Cistern,  the 
Drum  Tower,  and  other  features  always 
of  interest  to  the  tourist  or  the  lover  of  art. 
The  temples  are  amongst  the  most  ancient  in 
Japan. 

Nikko  is  attractive  at  all  seasons  of  the 
year,  but  particularly  so  in  the  spring  and  the 
autumn,  while  as  a  summer  resort  it  has 
become  quite  popular,  on  account  of  the 
mildness  of  the  climate.  Here  one  may  also 
see,  at  different  seasons  of  the  year,  the  most 
ancient  religious  and  other  festivals.  The 
town  is  also  famous  for  its  beautiful  avenues 
of  cryptomerias,  which  extend  for  a  distance 
of  24  miles.  These  beautiful  trees  are  over 
300  years  old,  and  visitors  rarely  miss  the 
opportunity  of  walking  the  whole  distance  to 
enjoy  to  the  full  the  enchanting  aspect  of  the 
beautifully  bordered  highway  into  the  town. 
The  environs  of  Nikko,  and  the  adjacent 
scenic  beauties  give  the  town  as  much  of  its 
splendour  as  the  sights  within  its  boundaries. 
Lake  Chuzenji,  one  of  the  most  entrancing 
visions  in  Japan,  lies  about  ten  miles  distant, 
and  the  neighbouring  mountain  ranges  are  a 
perpetual  glory  to  the  place.  About  15  miles 
away  is  the  famous  Ashio  Copper  Mine, 
worked  by  the  Furukawa  family.  This  mine 
and  the  smelting  and  refining  works,  give  the 
district  about  the  only  industrial  interest  that 
exists  for  it,  the  town  of  Ashio  having  a  busy 
population  of  30,000  people,  four-fifths  of 
whom  are  miners. 


29 


A   WINTER    SCENE    AT    KIXKAKUJI,    KYOTO 


XXIX.    The  City  of  Kyoto 

The  Old  Capital  — Kyoto  in  Modern  Times  — Municipal  Finance 

Industry  and  Commerce 


THE  city  of  Kyoto,  known  as  the 
ancient  capital  of  Japan,  a  distinc- 
tion it  enjoyed  for  more  than  eleven 
hundred  years,  was  founded  by  the  Emperor 
Kwammu  in  781  a.  d.  In  the  long  course 
of  her  history  Japan  has  had  many  capitals, 
more  than  sixty  in  all,  it  is  said,  due  to  the 
fact  that  in  ancient  times  there  was  a  super- 
stitious dread  of  any  place  where  death  had 
occurred.  Just  as  the  sons  of  a  dead  father 
had  to  build  the  family  a  new  house  if  the 
father  died  in  the  old  one,  so  when  an 
emperor  passed  away  his  successor  had  to 
find  himself  a  new  capital.  With  the  advent 
of  a  more  permanent  civilisation  from  China 
and  the  rise  of  great  temples  and  other  insti- 
tutions, the  inconvenience  of  removing  the 
capital  with  each  accession  to  the  throne 
began  to  be  felt,  and  we  find  that  Nara 
remained  the  national  capital  through  eight 
reigns.  When  the  Emperor  Kwammu  came 
to  the  throne  he  found  the  Government 
indulging  in  grave  irregularities  under  the 
aegis  of  a  corrupt  and  lax  officialism,  nor  was 


the  condition  of  religion  much  better,  and  so 
he  decided  to  get  away  from  it  all  by  estab- 
lishing a  new  capital  on  the  river  Kamo  at  the 
foot  of  beautiful  hills  which  he  had  learned  to 
admire  during  his  hunting  trips. 

THE  OLD  CAPITAL 
Kyoto  is  one  of  the  few  cities  of  the  world 
that  did  not  rise  by  chance,  as  it  was  duly 
planned,  and  the  plan  carefully  carried  out. 
Under  the  famous  architect,  Kiyomaru,  the 
new  city  was  skilfully  designed,  the  site  being 
an  extended  parallelogram,  with  a  central 
avenue  leading  to  the  imperial  palace.  One 
side  of  the  main  avenue  was  known  as  the 
Sakyo,  or  left  city,  and  the  other  was  called 
the  Ukyo,  or  right  city,  each  side  to  contain 
nine  jo,  or,  in  all,  about  14,832  houses,  the 
streets  running  at  right  angles  from  east  to 
west  and  north  to  south,  1,216  streets  in  all. 
The  central  avenue  was  280  feet  in  width,  and 
the  adjoining  streets  from  170  to  120  feet,  the 
minor  streets  being  from  80  to  40  feet  wide. 
The  new  capital  was,  indeed,  the  model  of  a 


Chinese  city,  surrounded  b}'  moats  ten  feet 
wide,  flanked  by  high  walls.  Traversing  the 
city  were  eight  canals  excavated  for  ornament 
as  well  as  transportation  purposes,  of  which 
but  one  now  remains.  At  the  entrance  to 
the  central  avenue  was  a  great  gate,  storied 
and  roofed  with  tiles.  The  imperial  palace 
stood  between  the  first  and  second  jo,  or  city 
blocks,  facing  the  south,  with  a  frontage  of 
4,600  feet,  and  a  depth  of  over  3,000  feet. 
The  imperial  apartments  were  in  the  centre  of 
the  building,  with  rooms  and  offices  for 
courtiers  and  officials  all  around.  The 
expense  of  constructing  the  new  capital  was 
borne  by  the  various  provinces,  the  12  gates 
of  the  city  being  special  gifts  from  feudal 
lords. 

.lEsthetically,  at  least,  Kyoto  has  remained 
through  the  centuries  much  what  it  was  at 
the  beginning.  Antiquity  and  imperial 
dignity  still  possess  Kyoto  in  a  marked  degree, 
as  well  as  great  natural  beauty,  and  the 
sacredness  of  the  place  to  the  Japanese  mind 
mav  be  inferred  from  the  fact  that  the  rulers 


HONGWANJI,    THE    LARGEST    Hll)I)HI>T    TEMPLE    IN   JAPAN — KIYOMIZL    TEMPLE,    KYOTO — THE   CHIO-IN    TEMPLE    AT   KYOTO- 
ANOTHER   VIEW    OF    KIVOMIZU    TEMPLE  —  KINKAKUJI    TEMPLE,    GOLDEN    PAVILION,    KYOTO 


440 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


of  Japan  are  still  crowned  there.  It  would, 
indeed,  be  difficult  to  imagine  a  more  superbly 
situated  city  than  Japan's  ancient  capital. 
But  the  changes  and  vicissitudes  of  time  have 
done  much  to  remove  some  of  its  material 
splendoiu",  for  it  has  been  decimated  by  fire 
time  and  again,  and  each  time  the  rebuilding 
has  been  on  an  inferior  scale.  Ashikaga 
Takauji,  Oda  Nobunaga,  and  Hideyoshi  To- 
yotomi  all  tried  to  beautify  the  capital  and 
make  it  a  worthy  imperial  city,  but  wars 
raged  round  it  and  pestilence  came  at  times 
to  quench  the  ardour  of  the  citizens.  Popu- 
lation gradually  moved  toward  the  Sakyo,  or 
left  district  of  the  city,  and  so  the  Ukyo,  or 
right  side  of  the  old  capital,  has  completely 
disappeared,  being  now  but  a  planted  field. 
The  Kyoto  of  to-daj'  is  less  than  half  the 
size  of  the  ancient  capital,  and  when  the 
Emperor  removed  to  Tokyo,  a  decline 
naturally  set  in  for  Kyoto. 

KYOTO    IN    MODERN    TIMES 
When  the  Emperor  Kwammu  founded  his 
capital  he  called  it  Heianjo,  the  City  of  Peace, 


and  though  it  has  seen  stormy  times  in  the 
course  of  its  long  history,  Kyoto  is  still  a 
place  of  delightful  tranquillity.  On  three 
sides  are  yet  the  beautiful,  well-wooded 
mountains,  looking  down  on  the  peaceful 
streets.  A  great  part  of  the  city's  area  seems 
still  given  up  to  temples,  palaces,  and  pleasure 
grounds.  The  Japanese  like  to  erect  their 
sacred  edifices  in  groves  of  stately  trees  on  the 
hillsides  or  in  picturesque  spots  along  the 
mountain  ranges,  their  gilt  or  burnished 
copper  decorations  rising  through  the  dark 
green  of  the  environing  cryptomerias  with 
impressive  effect.  The  modem  city  of  Kyoto 
covers  an  area  of  some  i8  square  miles,  the 
Kamo  River  penetrating  it  from  the  north 
and  the  Katsura  River  on  the  west,  with  the 
Takase  between.  The  present  population  of 
Kyoto  is  about  510,000,  more  than  twice  the 
number  of  a  century  ago.  As  a  place  of 
scenic  and  historic  interest,  the  old  city  can 
never  lose  its  charm  either  for  Japanese  or 
foreigners.  The  establishment  of  lines  of 
communication,  the  development  of  num- 
erous industries,  especially  those  of  an  artistic 


nature,  as  well  as  the  natural  beauty  of  the 
place,  all  combine  to  preser\'e,  if  not  to  bring 
back,  something  of  its  ancient  glor>',  and  to 
attract  all  who  appreciate  lovely  things. 

As  to  government,  the  municipality  has  its 
mayor  and  city  council,  as  other  cities  of 
Japan,  only,  perhaps,  it  may  be  said  that  the 
municipal  officials  of  the  old  capital  are  men 
of  keener  artistic  appreciation  than  most  of 
such  officials  usually  are.  Kyoto  is  fortunate 
in  having  men  at  the  head  of  affairs  who 
realise  the  city's  possibilities  from  a  historic 
and  Eesthetic  point  of  view,  and  try  to  have 
their  city  take  full  advantage  of  its  prestige. 

MUNICIP.\L  FIN.\NCE 
FiN.\xci.\LLY  the  old  capital  is  not  so  pros- 
perous, perhaps,  as  cities  like  Osaka  and 
Tokyo,  where  commerce  and  industrj'  are 
making  greater  progress,  but  Kyoto  has 
considerable  wealth  and  manages  to  meet  its 
obligations  without  embarrassment.  The 
city  is  well  provided  with  communications, 
having  its  canal  running  through  the  streets, 
and  another  nmning  to  Lake  Biwa,   which 


SHIGOnORI,    THE    BISIEST   STREET   IN    KYOTO 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


441 


A    BEAUTIFUL    PRIVATE    GARDEN 


existed  even  before  railways.  The  main  lines 
of  the  Imperial  Government  Railway  now 
meet  there,  while  an  electric  tram  system 
connects  the  city  with  Osaka.  When  the 
time  comes,  as  it  no  doubt  will,  that  Kyoto 
becomes  a  residential  centre  for  Osaka  mil- 
lionaires and  prosperous  merchants,  the  pros- 
pects of  the  city  financially  may  be  brighter, 
though  artistically  it  may  suffer.     Kyoto  is 


well  lighted  with  electricity  and  is  admirably 
governed.  The  amount  of  annual  revenue  is 
a  little  below  5,000,000  yen,  while  the  city's 
indebtedness  in  foreign  loans  is  19,500,000 
yen,  contracted  mainly  for  waterworks,  street 
improvements,  and  tramways.  Though  Ky- 
oto can  not  boast  of  the  wealthy  citizens  that 
Osaka  and  Tokyo  can,  it  nevertheless  may  be 
regarded  as  a  wealthy  city  for  Japan  and  its 


citizens  show  a  good  deal  more  public  spirit 
than  in  most  cities  of  the  Empire.  In  1915 
the  revenue  and  expenditure  of  Kyoto  were 
as  follows: 


Receipts 


Sources 


Yen 


City  properties 2,176 

Fees 73.567 

Subsidies  75,o"3 

Legacies 3i05" 

Taxes i  ,202,242 

Other  receipts 129,837 


Expenditure 


Objects 


Yen 


City  office 187,706 

Public  works 182,762 

Public  instruction 250,655 

Sanitation 247,204 

Bounties 83,926 

Interest  on  loans 22,838 

Loan  account 150,000 

Miscellaneous 402,626 


In  addition,  there  was  an  estimated  outlay 
of  about  4,000,000  yen  on  canals,  water- 
works, tramways,  and  interest  on  loans. 
Already  some  6,316,122  yen  have  been  spent 
on  canals  and  a  water-power  system  for  pro- 
ducing electricity,  which  are  now  nearing 
completion,  if  they  are  not  already  finished. 
The  canal  is  for  purposes  of  transportation 
and  to  supply  the  hydro-electric  plant  of  the 
city.  The  city  waterworks  is  a  separate 
undertaking,  completed  in  1912  at  a  cost  of 
3,000,000  yen,  of  which  750,000  yen  came 
from  the  national  treasury.  The  water  for 
the  city  is  drawn  by  special  canal  from  Lake 
Biwa  and  is  sufficient  for  a  population  of 
500,000.  The  city  electric  tramways  have  a 
mileage  of  fourteen,  carrying  an  average  of 
24,000  passengers  a  day,  and  the  annual 
receipts  in  1915  were  839,935  yen.  The  sys- 
tem was  completed  at  a  cost  of  10,379,212 
yen.  The  liabilities  of  the  municipality  are 
as  follows: 


French  Loan 19,500,000  Yen 

Municipal  Loan i  ,200,000  Yen 

Park  Extension  Loan 50,000  Yen 

Total 20,750,000  Yen 


HOZU    RAPIDS   AT    KYOTO 


44^ 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSION'S   OF   JAPAN 


LIGHTERS  CONVEYING   TEA    TO    STEAMERS   LYING   OFF    SHORE 


KYOTO   LEADING    BUSINESS   MEN 

(Upper)  Mr.  T.  Shimadzi-,  Managing  Director,  Shimadzu  Seisakusho,  Ltd.  (Middle  Row) 
Mr.  Yuzo  Kami,  Managing  Director,  Nihon  Chozo  Ginko — Mr.  H.  Funasaka,  Managing 
Director,  Kyoto  Orimono  Kaisha  —  Mr.  Genzo  Shimadzu,  President,  Shimadzu  Seisakusho, 
Ltd.     (Lower)   Mr.  G.  Otani,  President,  Hyogo  Prefectural  Hypothec  Bank 


INDUSTRY  AXD  COMMERCE 
The  admirable  commercial  museum  estab- 
lished in  Okazaki  Park  by  the  citizens  of 
Kyoto  indicates  what  the  population  is  doing 
in  the  way  of  art,  commerce,  and  industry. 
It  would,  indeed,  be  diflScult  to  imagine  a 
better  way  of  displaying  the  beautiful  prod- 
ucts of  the  district,  which  include  ceramics, 
embroideries,  silk  tapestry,  and  other  exqui- 
site silk  fabrics  and  brocades  imrivalled  else- 
where. Every  possible  effort  is  being  made 
not  only  to  secure  and  retain  for  the  benefit 
of  the  public  all  the  fine  examples  of  early 
Japanese  arts  and  crafts,  but  also  to  improve 
by  the  aid  of  scientific  and  experimental 
institutions  the  production  of  all  classes  of 
modem  Japanese  manufactures,  some  of  the 
most  attractive  of  which  are  produced  at 
Kyoto. 

Among  the  more  famous  products  of  the 
district  are  the  rich  brocades  woven  at  the 
Kawashima  factory,  than  which  no  creation 
of  the  weaver's  art  can  be  more  beautiful. 
These  fabrics,  known  as  tsiizure-nishiki,  are  a 
form  of  woven  embroider}',  emploj'ed  with 
advantage  by  the  wealthy  and  the  great  for 
the  decoration  of  walls  and  ceilings  of  palatial 
apartments.  The  accomplished  artists  em- 
ployed in  this  establishment  can  produce  any 
scene  from  nature  or  life.  The  magnificent 
piece  of  silk  tapestrj-  presented  by  the  late 
Emperor  of  Japan  to  the  Japanese  room  in 
the  Peace  Palace  at  The  Hague,  was  woven  in 
the  Kawashima  factor}',  where  there  is  one 
loom  capable  of  producing  fabrics  fifty  feet 
wide.  Some  of  the  exquisite  historical 
scenes  in  the  panels  of  the  imperial  palace 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


443 


were  also  woven  here.  Of  course,  weaving  is 
one  of  the  oldest  of  Japanese  arts,  and  has 
been  a  specialty  of  Kyoto  for  more  than  a 
thousand  years.  The  industrial  history  of 
the  city  would,  in  fact,  be  a  history  of  the 
finest  textile  fabrics  of  the  Empire.  Besides 
silk  tapestry  weaving  and  embroidery,  there 
is  silk  cord  making,  lace  work,  porcelain, 
lacquer  work,  fans,  metal  work,  cloisonne 
enamel,  dolls,  toys,  trays,  gold  and  silver 
goods,  umbrellas,  needles,  paper,  copper 
sheeting,  and  others  too  numerous  to  be 
recorded  here.  Kyoto  has  over  10,000  arti- 
sans of  skill  working  in  more  than  200  fac- 
tories, and  there  are  about  400  great  com- 
mercial corjiorations  in  the  city,  with  a  capital 
of  over  52,000,000  yen.  The  city  Chamber 
of  Commerce  is  an  intelligent  and  energetic 
body  of  men,  anxious  to  promote  the  com- 
merce and  industry  of  their  city.  The  annual 
value  of  the  city's  industrial  output  is  esti- 
mated at  20,000,000  yen,  of  which  1,000,000 
yen  represents  cotton,  2,500,000  yen  porce- 
lain, 600,000  yen  paper,  and  500,000  yen 
lacquer. 

Kyoto  is  also  a  noted  educational  centre, 
having  an  Imperial  University,  a  national 
high  school,  a  great  Christian  university 
called  the  Doshisha,  and  many  other  schools. 

THE  JAP.\N  S.WINGS  BANK 
This  institution  was  originally  known  as 
the  Kyoto  Savings  Bank.  It  was  established 
on  May  25,  1893,  with  a  capital  of  Yen  100,- 
000,  and  its  policy  of  encouraging  thrift 
amongst  the  workers  and  others  quickly 
found  favour,  and  led  to  the  bank  becoming 
a  popular  concern.  Branches  were  opened 
in  several  places,  and  a  general  extension  of 
business  necessitated  increases  in  the  capital. 
This  was  raised  to  Yen  500,000  in  November, 
1913,  and  finally  to  Yen  800,000  on  May  27, 
1 9 16.  At  this  time  the  Taisho  Savings  Bank, 
Ltd.,  of  Awajicho,  Higashi-ku,  Osaka,  was 
amalgamated,  and  the  name  of  the  joint  con- 
cern was  changed  to  the  Japan  Savings  Bank. 
In  every  sense  the  bank  is  one  for  the  people 
at  large.     Deposits  as  small  as  10  sen  are 


fmmuMU.! 


V 


III 


HEAD    OFFICE    OF   THE   JAPAN    SAVINGS   BANK,    LIMITED,    KYOTO 


INTERESTED    ONLOOKERS    .AT    A    bLHOOL 
DEMONSTRATION 


accepted,  and  liberal  interest  is  paid,  though 
at  the  same  time  the  public's  money  is  most 
carefully  invested,  in  the  highest  grade  of 
securities,  no  speculative  risks  being  taken. 
There  are  nine  branches  in  Kyoto  and  four- 
teen in  Osaka,  a  staff  of  152  clerks  and 
others  being  employed.  The  Directorate 
consists  of  Messrs.  Y.  Kami  (Managing 
Director),  R.  Imanishi,  Y.  Uyeda,  and  T. 
Takakura  (Manager).  The  Auditors  are 
Messrs.  K.  Yendo,  K.  Uyeda,  and  H.  Mori. 
The  head  office  is  at  No.  401  Karasumaru, 
Matsubara,  Shimokyo-ku,  Kyoto, 

INABA    CLOISONNE    WARE    COMPANY 
No  art  store  in  Japan  is  better  known  to 
foreign  visitors  and  lovers  of  the  beautiful 


than  "  Kin-un-Kcn,"  at  Kyoto,  which  is  the 
store  of  Mr.  Hiroichi  Inaba,  whose  cloisonne 
ware  factory  and  showrooms  are  indeed  a 
sight  well  worth  seeing.  Mr.  Inaba  is  an 
authority  on  the  beautiful  work  of  which  he  is 
a  maker.  From  his  researches  it  appears  that 
the  method  of  manufacturing  cloisonne  ware 
in  Japan  was  transmitted  from  China  about 
850  years  ago,  but  nothing  in  detail  can  be 
ascertained,  as  there  are  no  relics  of  the 
earliest  work.  In  1 871,  Mr.  Ozaki,  master 
of  the  Kin-un-Ken,  made  cloisonne  as  a  trial. 
At  first  the  raw  material  was  earthenware, 
but  gradually  copper  came  into  use.  In  1874 
the  Chemical  Bureau  was  established  at 
Kyoto,  and  physical  and  chemical  investiga- 
tions were  made  under  the  direction  of  Mr. 


444 


PRESENT-DAY    IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


CHOICE    SPECIMENS    OF   CLOISONNE    WARE    IN    THE    SHOWROOMS   OF    KIN-UN-KEN 
(KYOTO   CLOISONNE    WARE   COMPANY) 


Wagner.  Part  of  the  work  of  this  bureau  was 
the  study  of  the  making  of  enamel  for 
cloisonne  ware.  Mr.  Y.  Momonoi,  of  Aichi 
Prefecture,  was  Mr.  Wagner's  assistant. 
They  prepared  an  enamel  and  distributed  it 
to  all  the  people  engaged  in  the  making  of 
cloisonne  and  similar  work,  which  gave  a 
great  stimulus  to  the  manufacture  of  cloi- 
sonne, and  a  considerable  improvement  was 
effected  in  the  shapes,  designs,  hardness, 
lustre,  fineness,  and  finish.  A  special  im- 
provement was  noticed  in  the  "lineless  cloi- 
sonne," which  was  invented  by  Mr.  Xami- 
kawa  of  Tokyo. 

In  1897  silver  was  used,  and  transparent 
enamel  was  applied  on  this  metal,  while  at 
about  the  same  time  red  iridescent  cloisonne 
made  its  first  appearance.  This  was  pro- 
duced by  applying  red  enamel  on  copper 
material.  The  next  development  was  the 
production  in  1899  of  silver-plated  cloisonne. 
Transparent  productions  were  made  in  1907, 
the  method  being  to  apply  acid  preparations 
on  copper.  The  manufacture  of  cloisonne 
falls  within  the  fine  arts,  so  that  it  is  rather 
hard  to  make  it  a  business  under  the  ordinary 
industrial  system,  and  consequently  it  is  not 
possible  to  start  a  large  company  for  the 
exploitation  of  the  great  popularity  of  this 
beautiful  ware.  Cloisonne  can  only  be  made 
by  artists  who  have  been  carefully  trained 
and  who  have  some  natural  skill  for  the 
work.  But  so  far  as  it  is  possible  to  con- 
duct the  making  and  sale  of  cloisonne  as  a 
business,  this  has  been  well  done  by  the 
Kin-un-Ken. 

The  business  controlled  by  Mr.  Inaba  was 
founded  by  Mr.  Ozaki  in  1871,  and  was 
transferred  to  its  present  owner  in  1888.  In 
1902  the  late  Emperor  Leopold  of  Belgium 
favoured  the  firm  with  an  order  for  making 
cloisonne  for  the  imperial  household  at  Brus- 
sels. In  1900  Mr.  Inaba  was  awarded  the 
silver  medal  at  the  Paris  Exposition,  and  he 
has  also  received  many  other  awards  for  the 
beauty  and  exceptionally  high  quality  of  his 
work. 

The  works  and  the  beautiful  showrooms 
of  the  Kin-un-Ken  are  at  Xo.  12  Sanjo, 
Shinakawabashi    Kvoto. 


If 


A    DIDUHIST   CEREMONY 


XXX.    Religion 

Historical  Outlines  — Shinto  — Confucianism  — Buddhism  — Christianity 


THERE  are  those  who  aver  that  the 
Japanese  are  not  a  religious  people, 
but  the  fact  that  Japan  has  more  re- 
ligions, sects,  and  cults  to  the  square  acre  than 
perhaps  any  other  countrj'  of  modeni  times 
may  be  taken  to  indicate  the  reverse  of  this 
statement,  while  almost  every  year  sees  new 
religions,  or  sects  of  old  ones,  emerging  into 
prominence  and  claiming  official  recognition. 
In  Japan  every  religious  society  must  gain 
the  formal  acquiescence  of  the  Government 
before  it  can  lay  claim  to  the  legal  status  of 
a  religion  and  hope  to  be  successful  in  the 
propagation  of  its  tenets.  Religion  is  free, 
but  not  to  the  extent  of  setting  forth  doctrines 
considered  dangerous  to  the  State:  hence  the 
necessity  of  acquiring  official  status. 

As  all  religions  can  not  be  equally  true, 
nor  prove  equally  worthy  of  public  confi- 
dence, one  might  be  disposed  to  assume  that 
a  people  who  welcome  so  many  religions 
really  have  faith  in  none.  But  the  Japanese 
are  not  only  a  very  pragmatic  people,  but  per- 
sistently pantheistic,  and  as  God  is  every- 
where and  in  everything,  one  religion  may 
have  as  much  divine  truth  as  another,  as 
they  are  all  different  ways  of  reaching  the 
same  end.  The  proof  of  a  religion  is  in  its 
utility,  especially  for  national  purposes.     As 


no  man  can  claim  a  monopoly  of  the  secrets  of 
the  Unseen,  one  religious  teacher  may  know 
as  much  about  the  subject  as  another. 

Though  the  more  educated  classes  of  Japan 
are  prone  to  be  cynical  if  not  atheistic  in 
regard  to  the  supernatural,  they  are  inclined 
to  hold  that  the  motives  supplied  by  religion 
are  useful  for  cultivating  and  maintaining 
reverence  for  national  tradition  and  respect 
for  authority  in  the  ignorant,  the  fanatical, 
and  the  superstitious.  Of  this  theory  the 
late  Mr.  Fukuzawa,  the  Sage  of  Mita,  and 
founder  of  the  Keiogijuku  University,  was 
the  most  notable  exponent.  He  contended 
that  while  religion  was  no  use  to  him  per- 
sonally, nor  could  he  see  how  it  could  be  to 
any  fully  developed  mind,  he  was  ready  to 
believe  that  in  the  future  it  might  prove,  as 
it  had  in  the  past,  a  very  valuable  aid  to 
morals  and  government  among  the  more 
ignorant  masses  of  the  population.  Be  the 
mind  of  the  educated  classes  what  it  may  in 
regard  to  religion,  there  is  no  doubt  that  large 
numbers  of  them  uphold  it,  while  the  vast 
mass  of  the  Japanese  people  zealously  support 
some  creed  or  cult,  which  could  hardly  be  the 
case  without  some  degree  of  faith  in  religion. 

The  astonishing  thing,  of  course,  is  not 
that  the    Japanese  have  so    many  religions, 


for  that  is  true  of  other  countries,  but  that 
they  should  believe  more  or  less  in  all,  or 
nearly  all,  that  claim  their  allegiance,  with 
the  exception  of,  perhaps,  Christianity. 
There  are  numerous  cases  where  Christians 
hold  to  the  old  faiths  to  some  extent,  while  at 
the  same  time  being  out-and-out  followers 
of  Christ.  Shinto  is  popular  as  a  means  of 
promoting  patriotism,  as  a  counterblast  to 
Buddhist  pessimism,  and  as  affording  a 
becoming  ritual  for  marriage  ceremonies; 
Buddhism  is  popular  for  funerals  and  impos- 
ing ceremonies  of  state;  Confucianism  proves 
most  useful  in  education  and  government,  for 
inculcating  practical  politics  and  unreasoning 
subserviency  to  bureaucracy;  Christianity  is 
welcomed  for  its  international  influence  and 
its  eleemosynary  institutions.  Taking  the 
Japanese  as  a  whole,  it  is  safe  to  say  that  the 
one  aspect  of  religion  that  claims  universal 
allegiance  is  its  patriotism.  Religion  implies 
belief  in  the  national  gods,  as  taught  by  Shinto 
and  Buddhism,  or  in  the  Almighty,  as 
taught  by  the  Christians:  so  that  the  divine 
being  or  beings  are  the  ancestors  of  the 
Japanese,  the  Emperor  being  the  descendant 
direct  and  representative  immediate  of  the 
gods,  and  to  be  reverenced  and  obeyed  as 
such.     True  religion  is  devotion  to  Emperor 


446 


PRESENT-DAY        IMPRESSIONS        OF        JAPAN 


If 


;^^ 


_x^ 


III 


t^^^lW^^'''^^'^^ 


GILT    BRONZE    EMBOSSED    BUDDHIST   FIGURES    OF    THE    IMPERIAL    COURT    (EIGHTH    CENTURY). 
EXHIBITED    IN    THE    TOKYO    IMPERIAL    MUSEUM 


and  country.  As  Shinto  best  sets  forth  the 
national  ideal,  all  Japanese  are  more  or  less 
Shintoists,  including  those  whose  main  inter- 
ests are  with  Buddhism  or  Confucianism  or 
Christianity.  To  most  of  the  educated 
classes,  no  doubt,  Shinto  is  a  refined  form  of 
patriotism,  and  probably  the  so-called  wor- 
ship of  ancestors  does  not  mean  much  more 
than  the  veneration  Occidentals  accord  the 
memory  of  the  great  dead;  but  there  is  not 
the  slightest  doubt  that  to  the  vast  majority 
of  the  Japanese  Shinto  is  a  religion,  and  to 
many  of  them  the  only  one.  Nevertheless 
the  Government  avers  that  Shinto  is  not  a 
religion,  and  thus  evades  the  inconsistency 
of  officially  supporting  the  national  shrines. 

HISTORICAL  OUTLINES 
What  the  religion  of  the  Yamato  race  was 
when  it  first  settled  in  the  islands  of  Nippon 
can  only  be  surmised  from  archseological 
remains  and  from  what  is  found  in  practice  at 
the    beginning   of    the  sixth   century  A.  D., 


when  authentic  history  begins.  It  is  quite 
clear  that  the  Yamato  had  a  definite  religion 
then,  and  it  was  characterised  by  three  main 
elements:  Nature  worship,  which  may  have 
been  imbibed  from  the  native  inhabitants; 
ancestor  worship,  involving  deification  of 
progenitors,  which  the  conquering  race  had 
brought  with  them  from  their  own  home;  and 
Confucianism,  which  had  early  found  its  way 
to  the  country,  probably  with  some  of  the 
original  immigrants.  With  the  advent  of 
Buddhism,  in  535  A.  D.,  we  find  the  three 
elements  combining  to  resist  the  invader;  and 
so  the  early  days  of  Buddhist  propaganda 
were  marred  by  civil  strife. 

Japan's  theogony  as  well  as  her  ideas  of 
cosmology  will  be  found  more  fuUy  treated  in 
the  chapter  on  the  origin  and  historj'  of  the 
Japanese  people  at  the  beginning  of  this 
vokime.  Suffice  it  here  to  say  that  believing, 
as  the  Yamato  did,  in  their  heaven-descended 
sovereign  and  themselves  as  the  children  of 
the  gods,  destined  to  deification  after  this  life, 
they  could  not  very  well  accept  the  pessi- 
mistic affirmations  of  the  Indian  religion. 
The  literary  monuments  of  the  struggle  for 
preservation  of  the  national  ideals  in  religion 
are  to  be  found  in  the  two  oldest  records  of 
the  nation,  known  as  the  Kojiki  and  the 
Nihongi,  which  belong  in  spirit,  at  least,  to 
this  period,  and  occupy  in  Japanese  tradition 
much  the  same  position  as  the  Old  Testament 
does  in  the  Hebrew.  These  mythical  com- 
positions pointed  the  Yamato  people  to  an 
origin  and  sovereignty  more  ancient  than 
China,  summing  up  the  legends  on  which  such 
claims  were  based  and  showing  "the  Way  of 
the  Gods."  With  the  growth  of  Chinese 
influence  and  the  constant  introduction  of 
new  cults,  it  was  no  doubt  found  necessar>'  to 


ONE    OF    THE    ANCIENT    GODS,    BIZEN    IMBE 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


447 


ofTcr  tliis  protest  and  assert  the  priority  and 
preeminence  of  the  national  faith. 

Uuddhism,  however,  waged  an  incessant 
l)attle.  The  influence  of  Korea  and  China, 
with  their  ancient  tradition  and  Hterary  lore, 
permeated  Yamato  civiHsation,  and  when  the 
rulers  of  Japan,  as  well  as  her  leading  states- 
men, finally  espoused  the  foreign  religion,  the 
result  was  naturally  a  compromise.  The 
tenacity  of  the  national  faith,  however,  is 
seen  in  the  fact  that  the  yielding  was  on  the 
side  of  the  alien  religion.  Indeed,  Buddhism 
had  always  won  its  way  to  new  lands  and 
peoples  by  this  same  method  of  compromise. 
Buddhism,  though  essentially  atheistic,  even 
on  its  native  soil  never  rejected  the  gods  of 
Brahmanism,  and  it  was  prepared  to  accept 
the  indigenous  deities  of  Yamato  on  the  same 
terms.  During  its  long  journeyings  across 
the  plains  of  Asia  the  Indian  religion  had 
learned  to  believe  that  Buddhas  and  Bod- 
hissatvas  could  be  incarnated  many  times  for 
the  benefit  of  suffering  humanity,  and  why 
should  not  the  same  principle  be  extended  to 
the  Japanese  pantheon?  This  was  especially 
necessary  in  regard  to  the  deified  rulers  of  the 
Yamato  race!  And  so  the  gods  of  Shinto 
were  accepted  as  reincarnations  of  the  great 
Buddhas,  and  the  two  religions  were  treated 
practically  as  indentical.  Thus  the  outward 
form  of  Buddhism  was  superimposed  on  the 
national  cult  of  Shinto  mainly  through 
the  influence  of  Chinese  civilisation  and  the 
Imperial  Court,  which  had  adopted  it,  though 
the  Yamato  race  had  never  really  changed  at 
heart. 

The  period  best  representing  the  age  of 
compromise  was  when  the  capital  was  at  Nara 
in  the  eighth  century.  During  this  time  and 
for  centuries  afterward,  the  foreign  religion 
continued  to  gain  influence  and  to  hold  sway 
over  the  Japanese  race.  Great  temples  arose, 
numerous  monasteries  were  established, 
princes  and  potentates  championed  the  faith 
of  Buddha,  until  at  last  the  entire  State  was 
under  the  domination  of  priests  and  monks. 
And  as  is  usually  the  case  with  a  secularisation 
of  religion,  it  became  corrupt  and  devoted 
to  intrigue  and  poHtical  aspirations.  The 
Emperor  Kwammu,  at  the  beginning  of  the 
ninth  century,  removed  the  capital  from 
Nara  to  Kyoto  to  elude  the  tentacles  of  the 
monks  and  enable  the  national  ideal  to  assert 
itself.  The  Buddhism  of  Kyoto  was  much 
more  consonant  with  Japanese  character  and 
tradition  than  that  of  Nara.  During  the 
three  centuries  that  had  elapsed  since  the 
advent  of  Buddhism,  the  peculiar  insistency 
of  the  native  character  had  successfully 
regained  the  ascendancy  in  national  affairs, 
having  absorbed  and  digested  Confucianism, 
Taoism,  Indian  and  Chinese  Buddliism,  and 
numerous  elements  of  less  immediate  impor- 


I  I-. 


URONZE    BUDDHA    IN    ASAKUSA    PARK,    TOKYO 


tance,  the  result  being  a  masterpiece  of 
theological  construction,  known  as  the 
Tejidai. 

Amid  the  incessant  civil  strife  of  the 
eleventh,  twelfth,  and  thirteenth  centuries 
religion  fell  sadly  into  decay.  Perhaps  it  is 
safe  to  assume  that  because  it  had  already 
lost,  or  refused  to  lose,  its  soul,  the  nation 
descended  to  these  long  periods  of  civil  war. 
Religion  now  took  refuge  from  the  sword  in 
temples  and  monasteries,  and  here  and  there 
in  the  hearts  of  the  common  people.  From 
this  time  religion  came  to  be  marked  by  these 
three  distinct  types:  that  of  the  monk,  the 
warrior,  and  the  peasant.  The  type  still  per- 
sists and  must  be  borne  in  mind  by  all  who 
would  not  misunderstand  Japanese  religion. 
Nowhere  in  the  world  is  it  more  evident  than 
in  Japan  that  religion  is  not  racial  but  human. 
In  the  Japanese,  as  in  all  mortals,  there  is  a 
mystic  strain,  which  in  some  individuals  finds 
its  highest  experience  in  monastic  life.     Even 


in  the  busy  Japan  of  to-day  the  monk  persists 
and  thrives.  In  the  dark  days  of  civil  war 
much  of  the  best  intellect  and  spirit  of  the 
nation  found  its  way  to  the  cloister.  There 
it  preserved  the  religion  that  would  have 
perished  in  blood,  and  the  literature  that 
would  have  been  obliterated  in  burning  cities, 
supplying  the  nation  with  the  only  moral  and 
intellectual  stimulus  of  the  time.  The  mon- 
asteries and  temples  of  Japan  were  as  truly 
lights  in  the  darkness  of  the  Middle  Ages  as 
were  those  of  the  Christians  in  contemporary 
Europe.  In  the  great  monasteries  at  Hiye- 
zan,  Koyasan,  and  Nara,  art,  religion,  and 
literature  were  prescribed  from  annihilation. 
Nearly  all  the  great  teachers,  painters,  poets, 
and  authors  of  this  period  were  monks  and 
priests. 

Over  against  the  monks  and  their  aversion 
to  blood  and  strife  stood  the  warrior  class, 
represented  by  the  great  military  government 
which  raised  itself  to  power  at  Kamakura. 


448 


P  R  E  S  K  N  T  -  D  A  Y        IMPRESSIONS 


O  F 


JAPAN 


For  centuries  it  was  seen  that  a  faith  which 
opposed  the  taking  of  Hfe,  even  animal  Hfc, 
was  not  well  suited  to  the  sturdy  and  stren- 
uous Yaniato,  so  recently  removed  from  that 
primitive  stage  where  victims  were  sacrificed 
to  appease  angrj'  deities.  The  early  Japanese 
sovereigns  always  had  victims  buried  alive 
with  their  masters,  so  that  the  departed  might 
not  have  to  venture  unattended  into  the 
Shinto  unseen.  Under  the  influence  of  the 
new  religion  this  practice  was  discontinued. 
But  the  wars  of  the  Minamoto  and  the  Taira, 
of  Yoritomo,  Hojo,  and  Hideyoshi,  showed 
that  the  Japanese  were  not  at  heart  Buddhist, 
just  as  the  great  war  in  Europe  showed  that 
the  Germans  were  not  at  heart  Christian. 
The  whole  period  of  civil  war  was  a  protest 
against  the  religion  of  the  monks.  They  were 
accused  of  political  intrigues  for  opposing 
the  warriors,  of  which,  indeed,  some  were 
undoubtedly  guilty,  and  actual  war  had  to  be 
waged  against  some  of  the  monasteries  at 
Kyoto.  As  the  years  of  strife  proceeded 
there  arose  a  class  known  as  the  biishi,  or 
knights,   as  in   England.     They   were   what 


J, 


rVm^  9   at  trA^ 


n! 


i!L?" 


1^  I 


subsequently  came  to  be  known  as  samurai, 
the  proud  descendants  of  the  ancient  warriors 
who  had  conquered  Nippon.  They  held  a 
position  not  unlike  that  usurped  by  the  Anglo- 
Norman  aristocracy  in  medieval  England. 
The  samurai  were  not  exactly  an  irreligious 
people,  but  they  wanted  a  religion  appropriate 
to  their  nature,  and  a  faith  that  forbade  the 
taking  of  life  was  not  one  for  men  whose  soul 
was  the  sword.  They  were  the  descendants 
of  the  men  who  had  resisted  the  introduction 
of  Buddhism  and  with  whom  the  foreign 
religion  had  to  reach  a  compromise  before  it 
could  secure  freedom  in  the  islands.  They 
still  form  the  most  powerful  influence  in 
Japanese  society,  and  any  religion  that  desires 
favour  in  Japan  has  to  reckon  with  them. 
Buddhism  in  the  thirteenth  century  began  to 
realise  that  it  must  be  prepared  for  further 
compromise.  The  first  compromise  had  been 
in  regard  to  gods;  the  second  had  to  be  con- 
cerned with  certain  doctrines  averse  to 
war.  At  Kamakura,  the  military  capital, 
accordingly,  was  found  emerging  a  form  of 
Buddhism   which   appealed   to   the   military 


instincts  of  the  samurai.  It  is  known  as  Zen 
Buddhism,  and  makes  little  of  forms,  cere- 
monies, and  doctrines,  aiming  chiefly  at  strict 
intellectual  and  moral  discipline.  It  is  an 
attempt  to  deal  with  bushido  in  a  religious 
way.  Bushido  is  really  the  conquering  spirit 
of  the  warriors  who  subdued  Japan  under 
Jimmu  Tenno;  and  Buddhism  had  tried  to 
tame  it  and  make  it  religious,  with  only 
indifferent  results,  but  yet  quite  as  successful 
as  the  Church  has  been  with  Teutonic  kultur. 
At  any  rate,  Zen  Buddhism  is  the  only  sect  of 
that  faith  that  has  any  special  appeal  for  the 
samurai. 

And  for  the  poor  and  the  unlettered  there 
was  the  teaching  of  the  all-embracing  mercy 
of  Amida,  the  father  of  all  sentient  beings, 
and  through  whom  the  worlds  came  into 
existence  and  of  whom  all  Buddhas  are  mani- 
festations. He  came  into  human  flesh  to 
find  a  way  to  save  rnen  from  their  unhappy 
condition  in  this  world,  and  all  who  have 
faith  in  him  and  invoke  his  name  will  be 
welcomed  at  last  into  the  habitations  of  bliss 
whiTr  Ik-  w.'iits  to  ri'cvivi'  tlnm.     .\nd  then 


-^ 


i 


FIGURE  OF   KOXGWORIKISHF,  IN  COLOURED   WOOD,   FIVE   FEET   IN   HEIGHT,   ATTRIBUTED  TO  JOKEI,   THIRTEENTH  CENTURY,  OWNED   BY   KOFUKU-JI, 
A    TEMPLE    AT    KARA    CITY  —  INTERIOR    OF    THE    HOODO    H.\LL,    UJI,    YAMASHIRO,    AND    ITS    PRINCIPAL    WOODEN    IMAGE    OF    BUDDHA 

AMITABHA,    PROBABLY    BY   JOCHO,    ELEVENTH    CENTURY FIGURE    OF    MEIKIRA-TAISHO,    ONE    OF    THE    TWELVE    COMPANION 

BUDDHIST   DEITIES    KNO%VN    AS    JUNI-SHINJO.    H.\LF-RELIEVO    ON    WOOD,    EARLY    FUJIWARA    PERIOD    (888-1068    A.    D.) 


P  k  K  S  E  N  T  -  n  A  V        IMPRESSIONS        OF        JAPAN 


449 


8SI 


THE    FAMOUS    HONGVVAN'JI    TEjMPI.E    AT    KYOTO 


came  Christianity,  in  the  sixteenth  century, 
with  the  Portuguese  and  Spanish  mission- 
aries. The  aversion  of  the  Buddhists,  their 
cruel  persecutions  in  cooperation  with  the 
government  for  the  eradication  of  the  Western 
rehgion,  and  all  that  interesting  record  of 
martyrdom  must  be  reserved  for  its  proper 
place. 

It  will  now  be  in  order  to  deal  with  each  of 
the  religions  claiming  the  allegiance  of  the 
Japanese  —  what  they  are  and  what  they  have 
accomplished  in  modern  times. 

SHINTO 
Shinto,  or  the  Way  of  the  Gods,  is  the 
original  faith  of  the  Japanese.  To  justify 
their  claim  that  there  is  no  official  religion 
in  Japan,  the  Government  holds  that  Shinto 
is  not  a  religion,  as  it  has  no  dogmas,  no 
sacred  books,  and  no  moral  code,  but  it 
will  hardly  be  conceded  that  a  cult  which 
insists  on  recognition  of  deities  and  the 
worship  of  them  is  not  a  religion.  Nowhere 
is  this  remarkable  inconsistency  more  con- 
spicuous than  in  the  words  of  the  Govern- 
ment itself,  as  may  be  seen  from  the  following 
extract  taken  from  a  statement  issued  by  the 
Bureau  of  Shrines  connected  with  the  Govern- 
ment: "Whatever  ideas  or  beliefs  the  people 
may  have,  the  Government  does  not  look 
upon  the  shrines  as  being  religious  in  nature. 
However  desirable  it  may  be  for  people 
gradually  to  return  to  the  former  ideas  and 
interpretations  regarding  the  shrines,  at  the 
present  time  the  Government  has  no  thought 
of  doing  anything  to  bring  this  about.     The 


Government  simply  encourages  respect  for 
shrines  and  believes  that  shrines  may  be 
reverenced  and  supported  by  those  who 
have  faith  in  any  religion  without  conflict 
or  inconvenience.  Whatever  opinion  may 
be  held  as  to  what  should  be  done  regard- 
ing the  religious  attitude  toward  the  shrines, 
the  Government  will  maintain  a  neutral 
position,  on  the  ground  that  religious  belief 


should  be  free!"  Obviously  this  must  be 
interpreted  as  an  attitude  calculated  to  lead 
all  other  religions  to  revere  the  Shinto  shrines 
and  deities  as  a  patriotic  duty,  on  the  score 
that  they  have  official  assurance  that  in  doing 
so  they  are  in  no  way  disloyal  to  their  own 
faith.  As  already  stated,  to  the  great  mass 
of  the  Japanese  people  Shinto  is  undoubtedly 
a  religion  and  the  spirits  of  the  dead  are 
worshipped  as  gods.  Shinto  is  primarily  a 
system  of  ancestor  worship,  according  to 
which  the  spirits  of  the  dead  become  kami, 
or  exalted  beings  of  god-like  rank,  entitled 
to  the  homage  and  reverence  of  the  living. 
Doubtless  the  cult  originated  with  the  fear 
of  ghosts  which  characterises  the  beliefs  of 
primitive  races,  and  is  now  used  as  a  form 
of  filial  piety,  yet  there  is  no  doubt  that  a 
Japanese  believes  that  his  ancestors  are  liv- 
ing, know  all  about  him,  and  perceive  as 
well  as  endeavour  to  guide  his  every  action, 
and  that  he  should  always  be  governed  by 
their  example  and  counsel.  In  every  Japa- 
nese home  there  is  an  altar-shelf  in  which 
are  enshrined  the  ancestral  spirits,  and 
offerings  are  made  and  worship  performed 
before  the  shrine  twice  a  day.  The  number 
of  gods  in  the  Shinto  pantheon  is  legion, 
vaguely  enumerated  as  "eight  hundred 
myriads,"  a  sort  of  bacteriological  calcu- 
lation. 

There  are,  however,  three  prevailing  types 
of  gods  that  call  for  more  than  passing 
notice;  the  National  Gods,  the  Communal 
Deities,  and  the  Family  Gods.  The  Nation- 
al   gods    comprise    the    spirits    of    departed 


KASUGA    TEMPLE    AT    NARA,    NEAR    KYOTO 


P  R  E  S  E  N  T  -  D  A  V        IMPRESSIONS       OF       JAPAN 


ENTRANCE    AND    INTERIOR    OF    A    NIKKO    TEMPLE 


emperors,  the  central  shrine  being  at  Ise, 
with  a  branch  in  the  Imperial  Palace  in 
Tok\'0.  These  are  honoured  at  certain 
appointed  periods  and  on  great  national 
occasions,  the  officiants  being  appointed 
for  the  purpose  by  the  Imperial  Household. 
All  matters  of  national  importance  are 
referred  to  the  notice  of  the  Imperial  Spirits 
at  the  national  shrine,  and  thanks  are  offered 
to  them  for.  national  mercies.  Since  the 
victories  over  China  and  Russia  greater 
attention  has  been  devoted  to  these  shrines, 
and  the  highest  authorities  have  freely  pro- 
claimed the  invincibility  of  the  nation  to  be 
due  to  the  assistance  of  the  ancestral  spirits, 
whom  to  ignore  or  offend  is  to  be  condemned. 
It  is,  of  course,  rather  difficult  to  arrive  at 
any  very  definite  idea  of  what  the  Japanese 
mean  by  a  Creator.  Shinto  speaks  of  the 
Ogami,  or  great  God,  of  Ise,  but  what  deity 
is  singled  out  from  the  gods  many  and  lords 
many  of  the  national  pantheon,  it  is  im- 
possible to  determine.  The  inevitable  infer- 
ence, however,  is  that  the  Almighty  is  a 
Japanese,  the  Emperor  of  Japan  is  His  de- 
scendant,  and  that  the   Imperial   House  of 


Japan  is  therefore  superior  to  all  the  petty 
rulers  of  other  countries,  if  not  destined  to 
rule  them. 

The  Communal  Gods  are  the  spirits  of 
great  personages,  such  as  princes  or  daimyo 
or  other  potentates,  who  have  been  bene- 
factors to  the  pro\'ince  or  community.  The 
shrines  in  their  honour  are  to  be  seen  in  ever\- 
community  down  to  the  tiniest  hamlet, 
while  cities  have  many  such  shrines,  and  on 
appointed  occasions  and  anniversaries  offer- 
ings are  made  at  festivals  celebrated  before 
these  shrines  for  the  consolation  of  the 
departed  spirit  and  the  winning  of  its  favour 
to  bless  and  prosper  the  community.  Some 
of  these  shrines  date  their  foundation  in 
remote  antiquitj',  and  the  older  they  are  the 
greater  becomes  their  claim  to  reverence 
and  gifts.  These  gods  must,  of  course,  be 
always  Japanese,  and  when  the  nation 
began  to  acquire  colonies,  these  could  have 
no  shrines  because  these  countries  had  no 
gods,  all  deities  being  Japanese.  However, 
a  Japanese  prince  happened  to  die  in  Formosa 
while  on  a  visit  and  the  occasion  was  seized 
to   raise  a  shrine  to  his  memory,  and  thus 


that  colony  is  now  fortunately  provided 
with  a  guardian  deit}',  relieving  the  com- 
munal deities  in  Japan  proper  from  the  care 
of  the  outlying  portions  of  the  Empire.  In 
Korea  no  Japanese  shrine  of  any  importance 
has  yet  been  erected  as  no  great  spirit  con- 
nected with  that  country  and  of  Japanese 
blood  has  passed  into  the  unseen  as  j'et; 
but  no  doubt  in  due  time  occasion  will  be 
afforded  for  the  founding  of  such  a  shrine. 
As  to  family  shrines,  these,  as  has  already 
been  indicated,  are  in  the  form  of  small 
altars  in  the  household,  the  Shinto  shrines 
being  very  simple,  but  the  Buddhist  more 
elaborate  wnth  the  name  of  the  departed 
inscribed  on  a  tablet,  or  thai,  before  which 
the  family  perform  their  dailj-  devotions, 
seeking  the  help  of  the  departed.  How  far 
back  ancestor  worship  should  go  has  not 
been  decided,  though  to  the  evolutionists 
in  Japan  it  must  form  an  interesting  ques- 
tion. The  average  Japanese,  however,  is 
not  troubled  by  such  problems,  as  he,  like 
the  average  Christian  of  the  West,  believes 
he  has  descended  in  direct  succession  from 
the  gods,  without  a  thought  of  any  missing 


P  R  IC  S  K  N  T  -  D  A  Y        IMPRESSIONS        OF        JAPAN 


451 


link  between.  To  the  more  educated  classes, 
on  the  other  hand,  it  must  appear  that  the 
less  remote  one's  ancestors  are  the  more 
worthy  of  worship  and  emulation  in  charac- 
ter do  they  become.  In  addition  to  the 
ancestral  gods,  the  Japanese  have  innumer- 
able other  deities  whose  duty  is  to  oversee 
every  action  and  aspect  of  human  life,  from 
the  performance  of  a  great  State  ceremony 
to  the  performance  of  the  toilet,  the  build- 
ing of  a  house  or  the  marrying  of  a  wife. 
There  are  gods  of  wind,  of  fire,  of  pestilence, 
of  war,  of  food,  of  the  pot  in  which  the  food 
is  cooked,  gods  of  the  kitchen,  the  door, 
and  the  gate. 

In  spite  of  its  avowed  independence  of 
moral  codes  and  dogmatics  in  general,  Shinto 
has  a  complicated  ritual  which  requires  a 
special  education  to  understand  and  perform, 
and  it  has  numerous  ceremonies  of  purifica- 
tion from  wrongdoing  and  bodily  defilement. 
It  is  a  religion,  however,  which  has  no 
heaven  or  hell,  and  no  morals  except  man- 
ners and  national  customs,  in  which  it  shows 
Confucian  influence.  Shinto  holds  that  the 
Japanese,  being  children  of  the  gods,  are 
naturally  and  innately  moral,  and  so  require 
no  moral  code  or  teaching  as  do  the  barba- 
rian nations  of  the  West.  All  a  Shintoist 
has  to  do  is  to  follow  the  devices  and  desires 
of  his  own  heart  and  obey  the  Mikado  and 
he  has  fulfilled  his  whole  duty  to  man. 
The  Imperial  Rescript  on  Education,  quoted 
in  the  article  on  that  subject  in  this  volume, 
may  be  taken  to  represent  the  Shinto  sum- 
mary of  ethics,  and  on  this  the  ethical  edu- 
cation of  each  rising  generation  is  based. 
That  the  theory  is  not  only  defective  but  quite 
ineffective,  either  as  a  motive  or  a  mode  for 
the  shaping  of  moral  life,  is  clear  from  the 
appalling  degree  of  immorality  characteristic 
of  Japanese  civilisation,  where  not  only  has 
the  Golden  Rule  small  place,  but  the  general 
idea  is:  Do  unto  others  as  they  would  do 
unto  you,   only  do  it   first. 

The  Shinto  temple,  in  contrast  to  the 
gorgeous  altars  of  Buddhism,  is  very  simple, 
constructed,  as  it  is,  of  plain,  undecorated 
wood,  without  any  altar  save  a  shelf  on 
which  stand  a  mirror,  and  some  bunches  of 
paper  symbolizing  prayers  and  offerings. 
The  aim  of  the  architecture  seems  to  be  to 
preserve  the  form  of  the  primeval  hut  in 
which  lived  the  ancestors  to  be  worshipped. 
The  Shinto  priest  when  engaged  before  the 
altar  wears  a  loose  gown  of  black  over  white, 
fastened  at  the  waist  with  a  girdle,  and  he 
has  a  black  cap  of  curious  form  on  his  head. 
.•\t  Shinto  festivals  there  are  intoning  of 
prayers,  the  reciting  of  incantations,  and  the 
performing  of  dances  for  the  pleasure  and 
entertainment  of  the  gods.  Some  of  the 
plays  and  operettas  go  back  in  origin  to  the 


birth  of  music  and  poetry.  Shinto  is  possi- 
bly the  most  optimistic  religion  in  the  world. 
Its  gods  are  very  human  and  enjoy  what 
man  enjoys;  and  consequently  one  is  not 
surprised  to  find  Shintoists  now  and  then 
even  joking  with  the  gods.  It  may  be  that 
it  was  felt  impossible  to  survej'  some  of  the 
countenances  the  gods  had  produced  in 
Japan  and  believe  the  Creator  was  lacking 
in  a  sense  of  humour.  And  sometimes  the 
gods  are  even  punished,  as  there  are  cases 
on  record  where,  prayers  for  rain  being 
ignored,  the  image  of  the  deity  petitioned 
was  taken  down  from  its  pedestal  and  hurled 
into  a  pond.  Even  the  gods  have  to  play 
up  to  Japanese  ideas  or  suffer  the  conse- 
quences. The  Japanese  mother  takes  her 
new'-bom  babe  to  the  Shinto  shrine  to  invoke 
the  protection  of  the  guardian  deity  for  its 


success  in  life,  for  there  also  she  was  prob- 
ably married.  In  death,  however,  recourse 
is  had  to  Buddhism,  which  claims  to  be  more 
familiar  with  the  dark  secrets  of  the  unseen 
than  Shinto,  and  therefore  to  offer  better 
facilities  of  ceremonial  for  the  dead.  At  the 
famous  war  museum  at  Kudan  in  Tokyo 
there  is  a  great  shrine  known  as  the  Yasukuni 
Jinja,  dedicated  to  the  spirits  of  all  those 
that  have  died  on  the  field  of  battle  for 
Japan,  including  even  the  names  of  some 
Englishmen.  There  twice  every  year  repre- 
sentatives of  the  Emperor,  the  Government, 
and  the  army  and  navy,  as  well  as  of  the 
people  at  large,  hold  a  solemn  festival  in 
honour  of  the  fallen  heroes,  when  their 
spirits  are  invoked  for  the  prosperity  of 
the  country  for  which  they  have  given 
their  lives. 


BRONZE    BUDDH.\    .\T    SHIN.\G.\VV.\,    TOKYO 


452 


P  R  E  S  K  N  T  -  I)  A  \'        I  M  P  R  !•:  S  S  [  O  N  S        O  F        JAPAN 


INTERIOR    OF    A    BUDDHIST    SHRINE 


As  to  official  status,  Shinto  shrines  are 
divided  into  twelve  grades,  with  the  Grand 
Shrine  of  Ise  at  the  head  and  the  Grand 
Shrine  of  Izumo  second,  the  Kashima  Shrine 
at  Hitachi  third,  and  so  on.  Every  portion 
of  the  Empire  is  under  the  guardianship  of 
Shinto  deities.  The  total  number  of  Shinto 
shrines  in  Japan  is  122,593,  with  14,223 
priests,  the  latter  being  as  a  rule  of  little 
education,  though  there  is  a  college  in  Tokyo 
for  the  training  of  priests.  As  this  training 
consists  of  mere  memorising  and  practising 
the  national  ritual  for  State  occasions,  the 
course  is  only  for  a  few  months  and  the 
education  in  no  way  profound.  In  Japan 
the  Emperor  is  the  chief  priest  of  the  nation, 
and  he  may  officiate  at  the  Shinto  altar  or 
appoint  a  deputy,  while  at  the  inferior 
shrines  a  duly  appointed  Shinto  priest 
attends  to  such  duties,  the  office  being 
generally    hereditary.     To    make    confusion 


worse  confounded,  from  a  theological  point 
of  view,  there  are  numerous  sects  of  Shinto, 
and  subjects  galore,  of  which  thirteen  are 
of  more  than  ordinary  importance,  and  are 
accorded  official  recognition.  The  leading 
sect  simply  calls  itself  the  Shinto  Sect,  and 
announces  that  its  main  claim  to  distinction 
lies  in  the  facilities  it  offers  for  the  worship 
of  the  ancestors  of  "the  whole  divine  race" 
of  the  age  of  myth.  The  Jingukyo  Sect 
enshrines  the  Sun  Goddess  as  its  principal 
deity,  and  makes  a  special  feature  of  marriage 
services  and  correctness  of  national  ritual. 
The  Taishakyo  Sect  looks  to  the  Grand 
Shrine  of  Izumo  as  its  head,  is  dedicated 
to  six  deities  of  the  mythic  ages,  and  special- 
ises in  luck  for  lovers  and  their  weddings. 
The  Fuso  Sect  was  founded  by  Fujiwara 
Sumi}'uiki  in  the  sixteenth  century  after  a 
prolonged  meditation  on  Mount  Fuji,  where 
he    obtained    a    divine    revelation.     Conse- 


quently it  is  much  associated  with  the 
sacred  mountain,  and  worships  the  three 
principal  deities  of  creation,  in  other  words, 
the  ancestors  of  the  Japanese  race.  The 
Daiscikyo  Sect  worships  the  "myriad  deities" 
of  heaven  and  earth,  including  the  imperial 
ancestors,  and  upholds  the  divine  precepts 
that  maintain  national  polity.  Another  sect, 
called  the  Jikko,  teaches  that  Fujisan  is  the 
heart  of  the  whole  earth,  offers  worship  in 
connection  with  that  mountain,  and  prays 
unceasingly  for  the  prosperity  of  the  Imperial 
House.  The  Kurozumi  Sect  was  founded 
in  1849  by  a  man  of  the  same  name,  with 
a  view  to  upholding  more  fer\'ently  the 
divine  precepts  of  the  Imperial  Ancestors 
and  making  the  Sun  Goddess  the  central 
object  of  worship,  the  sun  being  the  primal 
source  of  life  and  light.  This  sect  makes 
much  of  sun  baths  and  sun  meditations, 
with  deep  respiration,  and  is  very  popular. 
The  Shuseiha  Sect  aims  at  a  closer  harmony 
between  Shinto  and  Buddhism,  while  wor- 
shipping the  national  ancestors;  and  the 
Jisshukyo  Sect  aims  at  undoing  the  evils 
of  Buddhism  and  Christianity  in  national 
life,  the  effects  of  which  it  professes  to  remove 
by  exorcism  and  divination.  The  main 
features  of  the  Mitakekv'o  Sect  are  cleanli- 
ness of  body  and  mind  as  the  means  of 
winning  godly  favour,  and  it  propitiates  the 
national  deities  by  promoting  mountain 
climbing.  Loyalty  to  the  Imperial  Throne 
is  the  outstanding  feature  of  the  Miharaikyo 
Sect  of  Shinto,  with  a  corresponding  aver- 
sion to  all  foreign  religions.  It  laj's  great 
stress  on  bodily  purification.  The  founder 
of   the   Shinrikyo   Sect   is   still   living.     His 


BRONZE    RELL,    D.\TED     1577,    ^^    RELIC    OF    AN 

EARI.V    JESUIT    MISSION.       NOW    PRESERVED 

IN    A    BUDDHIST    TEMPLE    AT    KYOTO 


I'RESENT-DAY       IMPRESSIONS       OF       JAPAN 


453 


name  is  Sano  Tsucnhiko,  and  his  main 
principle  of  faith  is  unceasing  prayer  and 
the  practice  of  divination.  The  Tenrikyo 
Sect  was  founded  V)y  a  farmer's  wife  named 
Miki  Nakayama,  in  iHS".  At  first  im- 
prisoned for  imposing  on  the  public,  the 
founder  of  the  new  sect  at  last  won  her  way 
to  official  recognition.  Ten  gods  are  wor- 
shipped and  self-sacrifice  and  benevolence 
are  the  chief  features  of  ])ractice.  A  holding 
of  property  and  wealth  in  common  is  advo- 
cated and  a  life  of  poverty  commended. 
This  new  sect  is  very  popular,  having  in 
the  short  space  of  its  existence  already  3,000 
shrines  and  more  than  4,000,000  adherents. 
It  will  thus  be  seen  that  if  the  Japanese  are 
not  sufficiently  patriotic,  it  is  not  for  want 
of  sects  to  impress  them  with  its  importance 
and  necessity;  and  if  Japan  is  unfortunate 
in  the  future  as  a  nation  it  will  not  be  for 
lack  of  gods  to  look  after  her  interests  and 
devotees   to    remind    them    of    their    duties. 

CONFUCIANISM 
Confucianism  can  hardly  be  said  to 
exist  as  a  separate  cult  in  Japan,  though 
no  doubt  it  is  the  only  rule  of  life  for  a 
considerable  number  of  individuals,  especially 
among  the  upper  classes.  It  is  particularly 
adapted  to  that  increasing  number  of  Japa- 
nese who,  through  the  influence  of  modern 
science,  ha\-e  broken  away  from  and  aban- 
doned the  myths  and  su]5erstitions  of  national 
tradition  and  now  only  observe  the  ancient 
ceremonies  out  of  respect  for  the  past  and 
loyalty  to  the  present.  Being  more  of  a 
philosophy  of  life  than  a  religion,  Con- 
fucianism in  Japan  has  no  more  to  say  about 
gods  than  it  has  in  China.  It  simply  avers 
that  the  chief  end  of  man  is  to  follow  nature; 
that  is,  to  be  true  to  his  own  instincts.  This 
cult  is  especially  adapted  to  Japanese  notions 
of  nationality  and  citizenship,  since  it  agrees 
with  Shinto  in  teaching  that  the  Japanese 
are  the  direct  descendants  of  the  gods,  and, 
with  such  a  parentage,  are  well  fitted  to 
assume  the  responsibility  which  freedom  to 
follow  nature  offers.  When  Baron  Shi- 
busawa,  one  of  the  most  distinguished  dis- 
ciples of  Confucius  in  Japan,  returned  from 
a  visit  to  the  United  States,  he  told  his 
fellow  countrymen  how  John  Wanamaker, 
the  great  merchant  prince  of  America, 
asked  him  one  day  before  a  public  audience 
how  it  was  that  he,  an  intelligent  man,  could 
accept  a  religion  or  rule  of  life  that  China 
had  followed  for  3,000  years  without  making 
any  progress.  Baron  Shibusawa's  admission 
that  he  had  no  answer  to  this  question  is 
significant.  In  days  when  so  much  con- 
fusion prevails  in  regard  to  religion,  and  yet 
many  men  feel  that  life  must  have  some 
anchor  in  the  way  of  a  creed,  Confucianism 


THE   FAMOUS    DAIBUTSU    AT    KAMAKURA 


appeals  to  many  Japanese  as  offering  the 
least  that  religion  can  demand  and  retain 
its  name.  In  its  emphasis  on  the  loyalty 
of  subject  to  sovereign  and  children  to 
parents  and  inferior  to  superior,  this  cult 
is  very  agreeable  to  the  bureaucratic  spirit 
of  Japanese  government  and  civilisation, 
and  is  always  made  the  basis  of  national 
ethics.  For  the  masses,  however,  Con- 
fucianism has  little  or  no  appeal,  as  it  lacks 
the  motives  which  faith  in  deity  compels 
and  sincere  worship  inspires  and  strengthens. 
A  religion  or  cull  that  offers  mortal  man 
nothing  better  than  himself  to  have  faith  in 
and  emulate,  can  never  command  confidence 
save  among  those  already  pretty  well  fixed, 
to  use  a  vulgar  term.  Without  a  faith  that 
can  be  touched  by  some  sincere  emotion 
and    ideal,    Confucianism    lies    cold    in    the 


brains  of  its  exponents,  and  suffering  human- 
ity finds  little  or  no  place  for  it  in  the  heart. 
In  this  respect  Buddhism  with  its  tender 
and  merciful  deities  appeals  to  the  Japanese 
people  much  more,  and  consequently  there 
w-as  never  much  harmony  between  the  two 
until  the  Tokugawa  days,  when  the  shogun, 
in  his  grasp  of  power,  was  bent  on  making 
the  subservience  of  inferior  to  superior  a 
religion.  A  school  of  Confucianism  was 
established,  but  failed  to  accomplish  much. 
Such  scholars  as  Hirata  and  Motoori  began 
to  expound  the  ancient  doctrines,  tending  to 
show  that  Japan  was  the  country  of  the 
gods,  the  divine  ancestors  whom  the  con- 
querors worshipped  long  before  Confucianism 
and  Buddhism  ever  came  to  the  sacred  land 
of  Yamato.  As  these  ancient  gods  had 
created  Japan  and  gave  it  to  their  descend- 


30 


454 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


MIYAJIMA    TEMPLE 


ants,  it  was  the  duty  of  all  loyal  Japanese 
to  worship  these  gods  and  the  Emperor  who 
represented  them  on  earth.  Patriotism, 
loyalty,  and  religion  were  one  and  the  same 
thing  to  these  new  teachers  of  the  old  faith. 
It  did  not  take  very  long  for  such  teaching 
to  overthrow  the  shogunate,  which  had 
usurped  the  imperial  prerogatives  and  set 
up  a  centre  of  government  of  its  own.  That 
was    the    beginning    of    a    new    movement 


that  received  fresh  impetus  with  the  down- 
fall of  feudalism  and  the  Restoration  of 
Imperial  Rule,  so  that  for  the  last  fifty  years 
or  more  Shinto  has  been  leaving  both  Bud- 
dhism and  Christianity  and  all  other  reli- 
gions in  the  shade. 

BUDDHISM 
In  the  brief  space  at  our  disposal  it  would 
be  absurd  to  attempt  an  exposition  of  Bud- 


INTERIOR    OF    A    BUDDHIST    TEMPLE,    SHOWING    THE    CEREMONI.U,    FURNITURE 


dhism  as  taught  in  Japan,  where  it  is  not 
at  all  the  same  religion  that  it  is  in  India 
and  other  countries  of  its  adoption.  The 
Buddhism  of  India  offers  salvation  through 
self-perfection — grace  comes  through  knowl- 
edge and  enlightenment.  Japanese  Bud- 
dhism, on  the  other  hand,  leans  far  toward 
the  Christian  doctrine  of  faith  in  a  saviour 
as  the  way  to  life,  and  perhaps  largely  under 
Christian  influence.  In  Japan  Buddhism 
has,  nevertheless,  been  unable  to  divest 
itself  of  its  inherent  pessimism,  nor  to  escape 
from  pantheism,  notwithstanding  its  athe- 
istical trend.  Japanese  Buddhism,  however, 
teaches  that  Amida  is  the  creator  and  father 
of  men  and  that  salvation  depends  on  man's 
faith  in  Buddha,  the  incarnation  of  Amida. 
Beneath  this  outward  show  of  theism  Bud- 
dhism yet  remains  essentially  panthetistic. 
The  Divine  Being  is  regarded  as  identical 
with  the  universe,  one  with  the  Mind  of 
the  Universe,  absorbed  in  the  five  elements 
that  go  to  the  composition  of  matter.  In 
philosophic  treatises,  in  hymns,  and  in  general 
liturgies,  this  teaching  is  certainly  implied. 
Those  familiar  with  the  details  of  early 
Christian  history  will  see  in  Buddhism  much 
of  the  pantheism  which  IrenKus  describes  in 
the  God  of  Basilides.  Between  Mahayana 
Buddhism  and  ancient  Gnosticism  there  is  a 
striking  resemblance,  showing  that  the  long 
exploded  and  forgotten  theories  and  heresies 
of ,  ancient  Egypt  and  Syria  still  sur\'ive  in 
Japan.  Traces  of  similarity  are  also  found 
between  the  Buddhism  of  Japan  and  the 
religion  of  ancient  Egypt,  both  having  the 
same  central  deity,  with  his  retinue  of  sub- 
sidiary deities  and  a  host  of  minor  beings, 
the  whole  making  up  the  sum  total  of  the 
divine.  There  are,  moreover,  the  same  incan- 
tations, charms,  and  manual  gesticulations. 
Interesting  references  were  made  to  this  by 
Professor  Sayce  during  his  visit  to  Japan, 
after  concluding  his  great  explorations  and 
excavations  in  Egypt.  So  from  Egypt, 
through  India  and  China,  this  religion  came 
to  Japan,  and  the  Daibutsu  at  Nara  maj'  be 
taken  as  identical  with  Osiris.  Nor  may  the 
idea  be  wholly  farfetched  to  suppose  that 
there  is  possibly  some  Egj^ptian  blood  in  the 
Japanese  race.  In  its  appeal  to  the  masses 
in  Japan,  however.  Buddhism  lays  great 
stress  on  the  mercy  and  all-abounding  love 
of  Amida.  This  idea  was  first  put  forth  by 
Zcndo  of  the  seventh  century  in  China,  and 
early  found  its  way  to  Japan,  stirring  power- 
fully the  hearts  of  such  men  as  Genshin, 
Honen,  Shinran  and  others,  but  the  cele- 
brated reformer,  Xichiren,  rejected  it  and  its 
Amida  as  a  new  thing  in  Buddhism  and  pro- 
claimed Shakyamuni  as  supreme,  seeking  to 
call  men  back  to  the  original  beliefs  of  the 
faith.     Thus  arose  in  Japan  sect  after  sect. 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


455 


each  warring  with  the  other,  the  new  sects 
often  becoming  pohtical  intriguers,  with  their 
trainbands  of  warriors,  while  pious  souls  in 
secluded  temples  kept  alight  the  lamp  of 
religion. 

When  Christianity  came  to  Japan  in  the 
sixteenth  century.  Buddhism  waged  relentless 
war  against  it,  while  to  the  Jesuits  there  w-as 
no  love  lost.  Those  who  had  for  centuries 
been  teaching  the  sin  of  taking  animal  life, 
and  of  eating  animal  food,  now  saw  no 
iniquity  in  delivering  up  innocent  men  and 
women  and  even  babes  to  deaths  of  the  most 
cruel  and  revolting  kind.  From  this  rever- 
sion to  barbarism  Japanese  Buddhism  has 
never  recovered,  the  effect  being  not  unlike 
that  of  the  Inquisition  in  Spain.  With  the 
downfall  of  the  shogunate  and  the  Restoration 
of  Imperial  Rule,  Buddhism  was  disestab- 
lished and  left  to  its  own  resources.  Since 
then  it  has  greatly  bestirred  itself,  under  the 
rivalry  of  Christianity,  and  constrained  by 
the  whip  of  adversity.  Its  chief  success,  so 
far  as  it  may  truthfully  be  said  to  have  had 
any,  has  been  in  impressing  the  people  with 
the  mercy  and  all-embracing  care  of  Amida, 
which  are  described  in  terms  remarkably 
like  those  of  the  Christian  preacher.  The 
Zen  sect  has,  perhaps,  been  the  most  popu- 
lar, especially  in  educated  and  military  cir- 
cles, as  it  appeals  to  the  fighting  qualities  in 
man,  but  the  masses  support  one  or  the  other 
of  the  remaining  innumerable  sects  into 
which  the  religion  is  divided.  Buddhism  in 
Japan  can  not  be  said  to  show  much  indi- 
cation of  progress,  though  it  no  doubt  still 
has  a  great  hold  on  the  masses  of  the  people. 
Too  often  one  sees  temples  neglected  and 
falling  into  decay  to  believe  that  the  faith  is 
universally  very  much  alive.  But  the  popu- 
lar temples  seem  well  supported,  the  annual 
collections  dropped  into  the  treasure  boxes 
at  the  doors  amounting  to  enormous  sums. 
In  recent  years  attempts  have  been  made 
to  establish  Buddhist  missions,  but  with 
indifferent  results.  Even  in  the  Japanese 
colonies,  if  we  are  to  go  by  accusations  in  the 
vernacular  press,  Buddhism  takes  little  or 
no  practical  interest,  as  compared  with  that 
shown  by  the  Christians.  Temples  have 
been  erected  in  America  and  England,  but 
no  one  will  claim  that  Buddhist  propaganda 
in  these  countries  has  had  any  appreciable 
effect.  The  Buddhist  priesthood  in  Japan  is 
still  too  generally  illiterate  and  lax,  and  even 
immoral,  according  to  the  daily  papers,  to 
exercise  a  commanding  religious  influence  on 
the  nation,  while  even  among  the  leading 
temples,  such  as  those  at  Kyoto,  verj-  ques- 
tionable financial  transactions  are  reported, 
causing  grave  scandal.  During  the  war  with 
Russia  Buddhism  made  special  efforts  to 
assist  the  troops  in  a  practical  way  at  the 


front,  which  attracted  very  favourable  recog- 
nition and  caused  some  revival  of  interest  in 
the  religion.  There  is  yet  little  or  no  coop- 
eration between  Buddhism  and  Christianity 
in  Japan,  but  relations  between  them  are 
much  less  acrimonious  than  in  the  old  days. 
At  present  the  number  of  Buddhist  sects 
entitled  to  official  recognition  by  the  Govern- 
ment in  Japan  is  twelve,  which  again  are 
subdivided  into  numerous  other  sects,  the 
Shin,  Zen,  and  the  Shingon  sects  claiming 
each  ten  minor  sects,  and  others  more  or  less 
subdivisions.  The  Hosso  Sect,  which  is  the 
oldest,  dating  from  653  A.  D.,  has  its  head- 
quarters at  the  Kofukuji  temple  at  Nara, 
being  the  family  temple  of  the  great  Fujiwara 
clan,  whence  the  empresses  of  Japan  are 
always  taken.  Another  ancient  sect  is  the 
Kegon,  dating  from  735  A.D.,  with  its  head 
temple  in  Nara,  famous  for  the  colossal 
image  of  Buddha.  The  Tendai  Sect  was 
introduced  from  China  by  Saicho  in  805  A.  D., 
and  was  the  first  to  base  all  religious  doctrines 
on  the  scriptures  and  the  attainment  of  salva- 
tion by  practising  the  cardinal  virtues  and 
religious  observances.  The  Enr>-akuji  tem- 
ple on  Mount  Hiyei  is  the  head  of  this  sect. 
The  Shingon  Sect  was  founded  by  Kukai  in 
the  year  806,  the  founder  being  the  inventor 
of  the  Japanese  syllabary.  This  sect  has  its 
central  temple  in  Kyoto,  the  famous  Goko- 
kuji,  and  one  of  the  chief  features  is  the 
emphasis  it  lays  on  mystic  rites  and  prayers. 
The  Yuzu  Nembutsu  Sect  dates  from  the 
twelfth  centur\',  and  makes  a  specialty  of 
chanting  invocations  and  incantations.  The 
Jodo  Sect  also  dates  from  the  twelfth  century, 
having  been  founded  by  the  great  priest 
Honen,  who  tried  to  make  religion  popular 
by  expounding  a  difference  between  the  doc- 
trines necessary  for  the  initiated  and  those 
for  the  masses.  The  head  temple  is  the 
Chion-in  in  Kyoto.  The  Zen  Sect  came  to 
Japan  from  China  in  the  thirteenth  century, 
making  salvation  depend  on  meditation  and 
introspection,  the  essential  virtue  cultivated 
being  self-control.  There  are  numerous 
subjects,  but  it  would  take  the  acumen  of  a 
schoolman  to  detect  the  differences  between 
them.  One  of  the  most  prosperous  of  Bud- 
dhist sects  is  the  Shin,  founded  by  Shinran, 
who  based  his  doctrines  on  the  three  great 
.sutras.  This  sect  does  not  prohibit  the 
eating  of  meat  or  the  marriage  of  the  priest- 
hood. Salvation  is  attained  by  faith  in 
Amida  and  by  praising  his  holy  name.  The 
chief  prayer  is  Namu  Amida  Bulsii,  which 
means,  "I  trust  in  the  mercy  of  Buddha." 
The  chief  temple  is  the  Hongwanji  at  Kyoto. 
The  Hokke  Sect  was  founded  by  Nichiren 
in  the  thirteenth  centurj'.  Its  distinctive 
feature  is  the  doctrine  that  salvation  is  to  be 
attained  by  chanting  a  certain  invocation  to 


the  accompaniment  of  noisy  drum-beating. 
The  head  temple  is  the  Kyuenji,  on  Mount 
Minobu,  in  Kai.  The  Ji  Sect  is  another 
offshoot  of  the  thirteenth  century,  and  repre- 
sents a  compromise  between  the  Holy  Path 
school  and  the  Pure  Land  school  of  some  of 
the  older  sects.  The  Shinshoji  Sect  was 
formed  from  a  schism  in  the  Shingon  Sect, 
caused  by  a  difference  of  opinion  over  the 
Masakado  rebellion  in  940  a.  d.  For  this 
reason  it  is  resorted  to  by  all  in  trouble 
through  war  or  other  calamity.  The  sects 
of  Buddhism  in  Japan  possessing  over  a 
thousand  temples  are  the  Tendai  with  4,572; 
the  Shingon,  12,357;  the  Jodo,  8,356;  the 
Rinzai,  6,091;  the  Sodo,  14,225;  the  Shinshu, 
19,638;  the  Nichiren,  5,028,  the  total  number 
of  temples  being  71,730,  with  53,558  priests. 

CHRISTI.\NITY 

The  opposition  which  Buddhism  met  with 
as  an  alien  religion  on  its  advent  to  Japan 
w-as  nothing  to  that  which  Christianity  ulti- 
mately had  to  face  when  it  was  discovered 
that  the  Western  religion  was  less  ready  to 
compromise  for  its  existence.  The  mis- 
sionaries of  the  Nazarene  were  firm  in  their 
teaching  and  unyielding  in  their  moral  restric- 
tions, two  features  that  did  not  well  fall  in 
with  a  people  taught  that  the  way  of  nature 
was  the  way  of  the  gods.  At  first,  of  course, 
Christianity  was  welcomed  with  open  arms, 
and  no  more  strange  and  violent  contrast  can 
be  found  than  that  between  the  cordiality  of 
its  inception  and  the  violent  hatred  of  its 
rejection  a  hundred  years  later.  It  was  at 
first  received  because  it  brought  the  foreigner 
with  his  knowledge  of  Western  science  and 
the  arts  of  war;  it  was  rejected  because  the 
Spanish  and  Portuguese  came  to  be  suspected 
as  political  emissaries  bent  on  the  final  subju- 
gation of  Japan,  while  the  religion  of  the 
missionaries  was  inconvenient  to  the  sensual 
and  harem-loving  authorities  who  controlled 
the  national  policy.  The  progress  of  the 
Christian  religion  in  Japan  during  the  first 
years  of  its  propaganda  was  nothing  short 
of  marvellous.  Converts  were  drawn  from 
all  classes  alike.  Noblemen,  Buddhist  priests, 
men  of  learning  and  probity,  even  great 
daimyo,  embraced  the  new  faith  with  the 
same  conscientious  zeal  as  did  the  poor  and 
the  lowly.  In  some  thirty  years  from  the 
date  of  its  advent  in  1549,  the  Christian 
Chiu-ch  in  Japan  had  no  less  than  600,000 
converts,  with  130  European  missionaries  and 
numerous  native  priests  and  teachers. 

One  of  the  first  as  well  as  the  greatest  of 
these  early  missionaries  was  the  noble  and 
saintly  Francis  Xavier.  He  had  been  en- 
gaged in  the  evangelisation  of  India  and  the 
Sunda    Islands    when    he    met    a    Japanese 


456 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


THE   GOD   OF    SICKNESS — A   BUDDHIST    PRIEST   AND   A    SHINTO    PRIEST,    BOTH    IN    FULL   CEREMONIAL    ROBES 


named  Anjiro,  a  native  of  Kagoshima,  who 
had  gone  to  India  in  a  Chinese  junk.  Anjiro 
was  a  man  of  some  character  and  eagerly 
embraced  the  faith  and  was  baptised.  The 
account  of  Japan  which  he  gave  to  Xavier 
induced  the  famous  missionary  to  set  out 
for  the  country.  Arriving  at  Kagoshima 
in  1549,  the  stranger  was  received  with 
distinguished  courtesy  by  the  Prince  of 
Satsuma,  and  forthwith  began  to  preach 
the  Gospel  unhindered.  This  man  remained 
only  two  years  and  a  half  in  Japan  but  in 
that  time  established  missions  at  various 
places,  notably  at  Hirado,  Yamaguchi,  and 
Kyoto.  Xavier  left  behind  him  two  Jesuits 
who  had  accompanied  him,  named  Cosmo 
de  Torres  and  one  Fernandez.  Other 
missionaries  soon  came  in  the  various  ships 
of  Spain  and  Portugal  that  began  to  trade 
with  Japan.  In  forty  years  the  faith  had  so 
well  established  itself  that  the  Church  was 
able  to  send  an  embassy  to  Rome,  supported 
by  the  daimyo  of  Bungo,  Arima,  and  Omura. 
The  embassy  reached  Rome  in  1585,  having 
been  three  years  on  the  way,  and  was  re- 
ceived   warmly   l)y    the    Pope.     The   letters 


brought  to  His  Holiness  from  the  daimyo 
of  Japan  expressed  gratification  for  the 
opportunity  of  knowing  Christ,  and  besought 
the  favour  of  the  Holy  Father  on  the  infant 
Church  of  Japan.  The  party  had  sailed 
from  Japan  by  way  of  Goa  and  thence  around 
the  Cape  of  Good  Hope  to  Mexico,  whence 
it  proceeded  to  Spain  and  from  Madrid  across 
the  continent  to  Rome.  Returning  by  the 
same  route  the  embassy  came  by  way  of 
Manila  and  did  not  reach  Japan  until  1590. 
Another  emljassy  was  despatched  to  Europe 
by  the  daimyo  of  Sendai  in  1613,  but  while 
it  was  on  the  way  persecution  against  the 
Christians  had  broken  out  in  Japan,  and  the 
envoys  did  not  meet  with  a  very  hearty 
reception,  the  lord  of  Sendai  himself  having 
proved  a  betrayer  of  the  faithful. 

vSuch  then  was  the  happy  situation  of  the 
Church  in  Japan  when  fierce  persecution 
arose.  TJie  earlier  persecutions  were  in  some 
degree  due  to  the  mistakes  of  the  missionaries 
themselves.  The  Christian  propaganda  at 
first  went  on  harmoniously,  save  for  the 
opposition  it  met  from  Buddhism,  until  the 
arrival  of  the  Franciscans  from  the  Philip- 


pines. These  were  in  some  measure  jealous 
of  the  Jesuits,  and  their  attitude  was  still 
more  emphasised  by  the  bitterness  prevail- 
ing between  the  Spanish  and  Portuguese 
traders,  who,  in  order  to  compass  each 
other's  ruin,  began  a  campaign  of  mutual 
libel  in  the  ears  of  the  Japanese  authorities. 
This  acrimonious  division  of  opinion  among 
the  foreigners  gave  rise  to  suspicions  among 
the  Japanese.  The  Portuguese  said  that 
Spain  had  subdued  the  Americas  with  great 
cruelty,  as  well  as  taken  the  Philippine 
Islands,  and  that  the  same  policy  would 
be  pursued  doubtless  in  Japan.  When  the 
Dutch  traders  began  to  come  they  confirmed 
this  rumour  and  included  the  Portuguese  in 
its  sinister  significance.  These  suspicions, 
combined  with  the  constant  quarrels  between 
the  Buddhists  and  the  Christians,  in  which 
both  sides  showed  too  great  a  spirit  of  ag- 
gression, led  to  the  enactment  of  laws  restrict- 
ing religious  propaganda,  and  as  the  Francis- 
cans defied  these  regulations,-  it  looked  to 
the  authorities  as  if  the  foreigners  were  not 
going  to  wait  for  the  lielp  of  European  armies 
l:>efore  taking  matters  into  their  own  hands. 


PRESENT-DAY 


I  M   P  R  K  S  S  I  O  N  S 


O  1' 


J  A  PAN 


457 


At  thi'  same  tinir  tlic  war  I)ct\vccn  liuddhism 
and  Christianity  grew  more  bitter  and 
relentless,  furthered  by  certain  daimyo  who 
had  a  grudge  against  the  monks  and  were 
anxious  to  use  the  foreign  religion  as  a 
means  of  taking  revenge  on  the  temples. 
To  make  matters  worse,  the  Governor  of 
Nagasaki,  where  Christianity  was  strongest, 
had  borrowed  a  large  sum  of  money  from 
the  foreigners  for  military  purposes,  and 
being  unable  to  repay  the  money  when  it 
became  due,  he  was  obliged  to  concede  the 
foreigners  certain  privileges  in  regard  to 
trade  and  religion  that  in  time  seemed  to 
threaten  the  independence  of  the  authorities. 
To  evade  these  responsibilities  Nagasaki 
petitioned  Hideyoshi,  the  war  lord  of  Kyoto, 
to  withdraw  the  privileges  and  suppress  the 
foreigners.  Hideyoshi  had  no  love  for 
Christianity,  as  the  missionaries  had  inter- 
fered with  his  domestic  policy  of  sending 
out  agents  to  collect  all  the  prettiest  maidens 
of  various  districts  for  his  harem,  refusing 
to  give  up  the  Christian  girls.  So  he  was 
ready  to  sanction  the  Nagasaki  proposal 
and  suppress  the  Christians.  From  this 
time  the  trial  of  blood  began,  that  was  to 
sweep  so  unmercifully  over  the  Christian 
Church  in  Japan.  This  was  about  the 
beginning  of  the  seventeenth  century,  at 
which  time  it  is  said  there  were  no  less  than 
a  million  Christians  in  the  Empire,  with 
churches  in  almost  every  important  place. 
To  undertake  the  eradication  of  the  religion 
was,  therefore,  no  easy  task,  yet  the  feudal 
authorities  attempted  no  less.     Although  the 


PICTURES   OFFERED   TO   THE    TEMPLE    WHEN    PR.WERS    H.WE    BEEN   ANSWERED 


early  Christian  persecutions  began  from 
causes  which  we  have  seen  to  be  hardly 
conscientious,  the  campaign  against  the 
Church  during  the  seventeenth  century  was 
no  doubt  inspired  by  fear  of  foreigners  as 
well  as  hatred  of  the  stubborn  martyr- 
spirit  of  the  faithful.  At  first  there  was  some 
hesitation  in  enforcing  the  laws  against  the 
Christians,  lest  such  a  policy  should  result 
in  the  destruction  of  foreign  trade  which 
was  then  flourishing  between  Japan  and 
Europe,   for  the  authorities  knew  it   would 


A  DunnmsT  cemetery,  showing  the  sticks  which  .\re  set  ve  whenever  speci.-vl 

PR.^YERS   ARE    OFFERED    BY   THE    PRIEST 


be  difficult  to  keep  out  the  missionaries  so 
long  as  foreign  ships  were  allowed  to  come 
to  Japan.  But  the  arrival  of  the  Dutch 
obviated  this  difficulty,  as  they  were  not 
only  opposed  to  the  Spanish  and  Portuguese 
but  brought  no  missionaries  in  their  ships, 
W'hile  at  the  same  time  the  Tokugawa  sho- 
guns  had  not  so  much  interest  in  trade  as 
their  predecessors.  The  Dutch  proved  their 
sincerity  in  supporting  the  authorities  by 
sending  a  ship  to  bombard  the  Christians 
who  had  taken  refuge  in  the  castle  at  Shima- 
bara  during  the  Amakusa  rebellion. 

From  the  year  1611  onwards  for  half  a 
century  the  persecutions  enforced  for  the 
eradication  of  Christianit}'  in  Japan  were 
so  terrible  as  to  be  among  the  most  bar- 
barous in  the  annals  of  human  cruelty.  At 
first  it  was  against  the  leaders,  and  more 
than  200  of  the  missionaries  suffered  martyr- 
dom, Japanese  and  foreigners  alike  going 
bra\-ely  to  the  stake,  the  cross,  or  slow  death 
by  unmentionable  mutilation.  But  the  laity 
jjroved  as  staunch  adherents  of  the  faith  as 
the  priests  and  teachers,  and  they,  too,  were 
finally  included  in  the  holocaust  of  terror. 
E\-ery  man,  woman,  and  child  who  refused 
to  recant  according  to  a  prescribed  formula 
was  put  to  the  torture  and  the  death.  The 
ways  and  means  of  increasing  the  terror 
were  of  the  most  fiendish  invention  and  the 
most  excruciating  nature.  Many  were  cruci- 
fied by  being  fastened  to  X-shaped  crosses 
and  having  spears  thrust  through  their 
bodies  obliquely  from  either  side,  piercing 
the  vitals.  Others  were  suspended  by  the  feet 
in  deep  holes  in  the  ground,  until  ready 
to  recant  or  die,  as  they  usually  did  in  three 
or  four  days.     In  Sendai  and  that  neighbour- 


458 


RESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


SHINTO    PRIEST   OFFERING    PRAYER   ON    FESTIVAL    DAY 


hood  the  method  most  popular  was  to  strip 
the  victims  naked  and  throw  them  into  icy 
ponds    mitil    they    perished    with    cold.     In 
Kyushu   the   Christians  were  taken  to   the 
boihng  springs  at  Unzen  and  suspended  head- 
first   in    the    water    seething   with   intense 
heat,  being  dipped  up  and  down  until  recan- 
tation or  death  relieved  the  agony.     Hun- 
dreds   were    simply    burned    at    the    stake, 
mothers   bearing   their   little   ones   in   their 
arms  to  the  flames.     Others  were  beheaded, 
drowned,  flung  over  precipices,  buried  alive, 
torn  asunder  by  oxen,  tied  up  in  rice  sacks, 
piled  in  heaps  and  set  fire  to;    some  were 
put  in   cages   with   food   suspended   beyond 
their    reach    until    they    starved    to    death. 
No  form  of  torture  or  inhumanity  was  too 
terrible  if  the  people  could  only  be  turned 
from    the    foreign    religion.     Most    of    the 
Christians    were    faithful    unto    death,    and 
this  left  an  impression  on  the  Empire  that 
has  never  been  forgotten.     The  cruelties  of 
the  persecution  not  only  appeared  to  have  no 
terror  for  the  martyrs  of  Japan,  but  seemed  to 
them  to  prove  the  truth  of  their  creed  and  its 
superiority  to  the  civihsation  that  so  rtith- 
lessly  committed  them  to  an  inhuman  death. 
The  methods  adopted  by  the  authorities 
for   testing   the    Christians   are   interesting. 
The  Buddhist  temples  were  asked  to  make 
a  census  of  each  district  and  to  keep  a  record 
of  all  who  were  suspected  of  being  Christians. 
Every  governor  of  every  province  was  made 
responsible    for   the   religious    beUef    of    all 
within  his  jurisdiction,  and  he  in  turn  made 
the    headman    of    every    village    similarly 
responsible.     Every    street    in    every    city, 
town,  and  village  was  divided  into  families 
of  five,  one  household  being  made  responsible 


for  the  religion  of  the  other  four,  and  having 
to  report  regularly  to  headquarters.     Officials 
went   from   house   to   house   requiring   each 
member   of   the   family   to  trample   on  the 
crucifix.     The    latter    was    known    as    the 
fitmi-ye,   a  kind  of  figure  in  reUef  made  of 
brass  or  copper  cast  by  a  brass  founder  in 
Nagasaki,    the   invention   being    distributed 
all  over  the  country  for  testing  the  victims. 
Public  meetings  were  summoned  at  temples 
where    the   fumi-ye    were    displayed    to    be 
trampled  on,  refusal  to  do  which,   or  even 
to  attend  the  meeting,  was  met  by  instant 
arrest   and   torture.     Every   daimyo  in   the 
Empire  had  to  establish  an  official  bureau 
for  the  extirpation  of  Christianity.     At  first 
a    suspect    might    escape    by    purchasing    a 
certificate    from    a    local    temple,    the    idea 
being  that  this  might  add  to  temple  funds, 
but  the  Christians  refused  this  compromise 
and  the   scheme  was   abandoned.     Then   a 
census  was  resorted  to,  this  being  the  origin 
of  census-taking  in   Japan.     In  its   anxiety 
to  ensure  the  extermination  of  the  Christians, 
Buddhism  became  barbarous,  cowardly,  and 
materialistic,  bringing  in  a  spiritual  decadence 
from  which  it  has  not  since  recovered.    Prize 
money  was  offered  by  the  Government  to 
all  informers  against  the  Christians,  notices 
to  this  effect  being  posted  in  all  conspicuous 
places.     Two  hundred  pieces  of  silver  were 
paid  for  the  apprehension  of  one  padre,  one 
hundred  tor  a  deacon,  and  fifty  for  a  common 
Christian,  the  money  to  be  paid  even  if  those 
apprehended  should  renounce  the  faith.     All 
books  making  reference  to  the  hated  religion 
were  collected  and  burnt      Thus  the  perse- 
cution continued  until  it  was  supposed  no 
Christians  were  left.     Here  and  there,  how- 


ever, a  remnant  happened  to  escape  detection. 
Mter  the  centuries  of  seclusion  had  passed 
away  and  the  cruelties  of  the  bloody  perse- 
cutions had  been  forgotten  and  the  mission- 
aries were  allowed  to  return,  descendants  of 
the  early  Christians  were  found  still  adher- 
ing to  the  faith  of  their  fathers.  In  an 
around  Nagasaki  were  discovered  Christian 
families  who  had  survived  the  ruins  of  the 
Church  two  centuries  before.  The  history 
of  Christianity  in  feudal  Japan  forms  one 
of  the  noblest  records  of  martyrdom  in  the 
history  of  the  Church,  and  proves  how 
bravely  and  firmly  the  Japanese  people  can 
face  danger  and  even  death  itself  for  an  ideal 
they  can  believe  in.  Given  a  great  faith 
and  a  life  worth  dying  for,  the  Japanese 
will  prove  the  most  devoted  of  people.  As 
they  have  not  yet  had  full  freedom  in  this 
direction,  the  Japan  of  to-day  is  doubtless 
nothing  to  the  Japan  of  the  future. 

After  the  opening  of  Japan  to  international 
intercovuse  the  missionaries  came  back  as 
a  matter  of  course,  the  first  ones,  however, 
representing  only  the  Protestant  churches. 
There  was  a  clergyman  on  board  the  flagship 
of  Commodore  Perry  when  he  visited  Japan 
in  1853,  who  showed  some  interest  in  the 
evangelisation  of  the  Japanese.  The  first 
missionary  to  Japan  following  the  abolition 
of  the  exclusion  poUcy  was  Dr.  Brown,  who 
came  to  Kanagawa,  followed  by  Dr.  Hepburn, 


"pilgrims' 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


459 


with  l^r.  Wills  Williams  at  Nagasaki,  Bishop 
Williams  at  Osaka,  Dr.  Greene  in  Tokj-o,  and 
Dr.  Davis  at  Kyoto.  These  leaders  of  the 
pioneer  band  proved  remarkably  worthy  of 
the  resi)Onsil)ility  thus  thrust  upon  them 
and  soon  won  the  confidence  of  the  Jajjanese, 
preparing  the  way  for  the  progress  Christi- 
anity has  since  experienced  in  the  country. 
These  men  were  not  only  teachers  of  religion, 
but  leaders  of  the  whole  nation  at  a  time 
when  little  was  known  of  Western  ways. 
Men  like  Drs.  Greene  and  Verbeck  saved 
the  Government  from  mistakes  it  might 
easily  have  made  in  its  early  relations  with 
Western  nations,  and  Dr.  Verbeck  especially 
had  much  to  do  with  laying  the  foundations 
of  Japanese  education.  As  the  first  treaty 
of  amity  and  commerce  was  with  the  United 
States,  it  was  but  natural  that  the  first 
missionaries  should  be  mostly  from  that 
country.  The  school  of  Dr.  Brown  and  the 
dispensary  of  Dr.  Hepburn  at  Yokohama 
had  much  to  do  with  showing  the  Japanese 
the  humanitarian  side  of  the  foreign  religion. 
Captain  James,  an  earnest  Christian  leader 
employed  in  a  school  at  Kumamoto,  and 
Professor  Clarke  of  the  Sapporo  College 
were  able  leaders  in  the  new  Christian  move- 
ment. Soon  native  Christians  like  Xijima, 
who  founded  the  Doshisha  University, 
began  to  rise,  with  a  large  following  from 
among  their  fellow  countrymen. 

The  first  Roman  Catholic  missionaries 
came  to  Japan  in  1844,  landing  in  Luchu, 
but  as  there  was  yet  no  treaty  with  France, 
they  were  deported  to  Hongkong.  In  1859, 
after  the  conclusion  of  the  treaty  with  France, 
Roman  Catholic  missionaries  came  to  Naga- 
saki, Kob6,  Yokohama,  and  Luchu,  and  in 
1872  the  work  was  extended  to  Tokyo,  the 
present  head  of  the  mission.  The  Russian 
Orthodox  Church  arrived  in  Japan  in  1855, 
and  under  one  man,  the  late  Archbishoji 
Nicholai,  who  lived  for  fifty  years  in  Japan, 
made  remarkable  progress,  the  work  being 
all  done  through  native  converts.  From 
the  beginning  of  its  mission  the  Russian 
Church  looked  forward  to  making  its  work 
independent  and  it  has  well  succeeded  in 
this  policy,  save  financially.  In  one  sense 
the  missions  of  the  Russian  Church  and  the 
Roman  Church  have  been  more  successful 
in  Japan  than  the  Protestant  missions,  as 
they  appeal  more  to  the  Japanese  love  of 
ceremonial  and  elaborate  form,  and  closeh- 
resemble  Buddhism  outwardly,  while  satis- 
fying the  Japanese  jiroclivity  to  superstition. 
On  the  other  hand,  the  Japanese  reveal  an 
almost  opposite  preference  for  elegant  sim- 
plicity, as  may  be  seen  in  Shinto,  and  to 
this  side  of  their  nature  Protestantism  most 
appeals.  The  existence  of  numerous  sects, 
of  all  degrees  of  enlightenment  and  none, 
among  the  Shintoists  and   Buddhists  shows 


HOY.S   CELEBR.\TI.NG   A    SHINTO    FESTIV.\L    D.W 


the  Japanese  weakness  for  religious  divisions 
and  affords  ample  soil  for  the  sects  and  cults 
of  Christendom  to  take  root  and  flourish. 
In  addition  to  all  the  denominations  of 
European  and  American  Christendom,  Japan 
has  the  Young  Men's  Christian  Association, 
which  is  very  popular  on  account  of  its 
unsectarian  principles  as  well  as  its  assistance 
to  young  men,  and  the  Salvation  Army, 
which  is  also  popular,  chiefly  on  account 
of  the  military  aspect  and  its  charity  and 
rescue  work.     It  is  not  too  much  to  say  that 


closer  union  and  more  efficient  cooperation 
between  the  various  Christian  sects  and 
churches  in  Japan  would  doubtless  ensure 
greater  progress  for  the  Church  as  a  whole. 
Some  of  the  denominational  subdivisions  have 
already  united  under  this  conviction,  but  the 
medley  of  creeds  and  forms  still  appealing 
to  the  Japanese  is  very  confusing,  as  well  as 
calculated  to  create  hesitation  and  doubt. 
The  ordinary  Japanese  does  not  find 
Christianity  more  irrational  or  less  desirable 
than  the  religions  of  his  country,  his  only 


SACRED    PIGEONS    IN    ASAKUSA    PARK,    TOKYO 


460 


PRESENT-DAY        IMPRESSIONS 


O  F 


J  A  P  A  N 


objection,  as  a  rule,  being  that  it  is  a  foreign 
religion,  forgetting  that  the  same  argument 
was  originally  used  against  Buddhism.  One 
can  appreciate  his  attitude  by  trying  to 
imagine  what  would  be. the  attitude  of  the 
average  Englishman  toward  a  Buddhist  priest 
who  should  open  a  preaching  place  in  an 
English  town  and  begin  to  persuade  the 
Englishman  concerning  the  superiority  of 
the  Oriental  religion.  With  the  more  edu- 
cated Japanese  the  difficulty  is  greater;  for 
he  has  already  abandoned  Shinto  and  Bud- 
dhism save  for  ceremonial  or  patriotic 
reasons,  and  he  is  not  ready  to  accord  a 
hearing  to  any  creed  that  seems  to  savor 
of  the  superstitions  and  traditions  from 
which  he  has  cut  himself  free.  Among  the 
Christian  propositions  that  most  baffle  him 
are  the  doctrine  of  the  Trinity,  the  Incar- 
nation, and  the  Atonement.  The  man  Christ 
Jesus  he  has  no  objection  to,  except  that  he 
is  a  foreigner,  and  claims  an  allegiance  above 
that  accorded  the  Emperor.  To  those  Japa- 
nese who  accept  the  creeds  of  Shinto  and 
Buddhism,  as  the  majority  of  Japan's  millions 
do,  Christianity  can  not  appear  more  irra- 
tional than  what  they  already  believe. 
Indeed,  it  seems  to  many  much  more  rational, 
as  well  as  better  calculated  to  inspire  man 
to  nobler  ideals  and  save  his  soul  from  hell. 
To  all  Japanese  alike,  however,  there  is 
some  difficulty  in  reconciling  the  claims  of 
Christ  with  those  of  the  Imperial  House. 
The  Japanese  Christians  seem,  however,  to 
find  no  difficulty  here,  as  they  see  no  con- 
flict between  the  loyalty  to  Christ  and  loyalty 
to  their  ruler.  But  those  who  are  not  Chris- 
tians profess  to  find  serious  objections  to 
Christianity  on  the  score  of  loyalty,  even  so 
erudite  a  citizen  as  Dr.  Tetsujiro  Inouye,  of 
the  Tokyo  Imperial  University,  holding  that 
Christianity  is  incompatible  with  Japanese 
loyalty  to  the  Imperial  Throne,  since  it 
places  Christ  above  all  rulers  on  earth.  He 
becomes  absurd,  however,  when  he  bases 
his  objections  on  the  fact  that  Christianity 
can  not,  like  Shinto,  be  nationalised  so  as 
to  make  the  Christian  God  a  Japanese.  It 
is  abundantly  evident,  therefore,  that  the 
more  Christianity  finds  itself  able  to  concede 
compromise  and  lend  itself  to  Japanisation, 
as  Buddhism  did,  the  more  prospect  it  will 
have  of  claiming  universal  acceptance  in 
Japan.  Already  some  missions  appear  to 
have  reached  a  state  of  mind  where  the  prop- 
agation of  Christianity  is  handed  over  wholly 
to  the  Japanese,  but  the  Church  as  a  whole 
is  firmly  set  against  such  compromise.  The 
Congregationalists  have  placed  their  work 
practically  in  the  hands  of  native  workers, 
to  whom  the  foreign  missionaries  are  assist- 
ants and  advisers.  The  Methodists  have 
gone  so  far  as  to  make  bishops  of  native 


Christians,  thus  providing  seed  for  schism 
should  a  difference  of  opinion  arise  between 
native  and  foreign  workers;  but  the  Anglican 
and  the  American  Episcopalians  still  hesitali- 
to  raise  natives  to  the  highest  office  in  thv 
Church,  chiefly  through  fear  of  the  passion 
for  Japanising  Christianity.  Of  course,  it 
has  to  be  admitted  that  since  Christianity 
has  taken  on  so  many  accretions  to  faith 
and  practice  on  its  journey  westward,  until 
much  that  is  taught  to-day  as  essential,  was 
originally  no  part  of  the  faith  delivered  to 
the  saints,  it  is  not  unreasonable  to  assume 
that  a  people  with  so  aggressive  a  racial  spirit 
as  the  Japanese  may  be  expected  to  add 
their  quota  in  adapting  the  new  religion  to 
their  notions  of  life  and  citizenship.  But 
those  who  have  proved  such  martyrs  as  the 
Japanese  have  done,  might  surely  be  trusted 
to  guard  the  faith  for  which  they  were  so 
ready  to  die.  The  progress  of  modern 
science  is  undermining  Japan's  notions  of 
cosmogony  and  tradition  and  inclining  the 
masses  to  democratic  and  liberal  institutions, 
and  as  Christianity  is  undoubtedly  the 
religion  most  consistent  with  such  progress, 
as  w-eU  as  its  best  aid,  the  mind  of  Japan  will 
eventually  turn  more  seriously  toward  the 
religion  of  Christ.  The  Christianity  of 
Japan  will,  however,  be  of  a  more  modem 


MET.\L    PL.\QUE    IN    THE     IMI>ERI.\L    MUSEUM, 
TOKYO.     A  RELIC  OF  THE  FIRST  CHRISTI.\N 
MISSION   IN   J.-^P.\N,    IN   THE    SEVEN- 
TEENTH  CENTURY 

type  than  that  prevailing  in  the  West  and 
preached  by  the  foreign  missionaries;  it 
will  be  modern  in  the  best  sense  of  the  term. 
The  following  table  represents  the  latest 
statistics  for  the  Christian  Church  in  Japan : 


Missions 

Buildings 

Believers 

SUXD.\Y 

School 
Children 

MiSSION'.iRIES 

Foreign 

X.\TIVE 

Congregationalist 

Baptist 

Christian  Convention 

Church  of  Christ 

133 
43 
14 

i2 

13 
18 

117 

17 

19 

224 

214 

73 
3 
4 
5 
5 

31 
9 

87 

2 

14 
13 
21 

19.521 

4.479 

1. 1 43 

756 

626 

1.315 
14,089 

1. 33 1 

1. 30 1 

29.519 

7.007 

6,460 

98 

302 

355 

.?33 

2,086 
4.569 
1.540 

10,848 

15.917 
2,550 
3,000 
3.620 
3.343 

34,848 
3.733 
1.510 

30.142 

22,833 

4.445 

1,693 

500 

329 

600 

2,000 

351 

1,484 
2,383 
4,30s 

78 

74 

9 

29 

41 

15 

194 

13 

8 

189 

241 

12 
13 

6 
6 

24 

13 

18 

15 
10 
20 
20 
29 

278 

265 

26 

124 

34 

40 
290 
114 

25 
563 
330 
235 

31 
5 

10 

45 
37 
73 
29 

15 

59 

97 

136 

Evangelical  Association.    . 

Japan  Methodist 

Protestant  Methodist .  .    .  . 

Japan  Christian  Church..  . 

Episcopal  Church 

Salvation  Army 

Society  of  Friends 

Universalists .  . 

Gen.  Ev.  Prot.  Miss.  Soc. . 

Japan  Evangelists 

Omi  Mission 

Oriental  Mission  Society.  . 
Seventh  Day  Adventist.  .  . 

Y.  M.  C.  A 

Y.  W.  C.  A 

Canada  Presbyterian 

English  Presbjrterian .... 
Other  Protestant  Societies 

Total  Protestants 

1,128 

96,827 

1 50,496 

1,084 

2,861 

Roman  Catholic 

Russian  Orthodox 

275 

267 

75.983 
36,2(13 

2,021 

352 
I 

179 
159 

1,670 

2<H|,073 

'52,217 

1.437 

1.199 

VIEW    OF    AWAJI    SHIMA,    FROM    MAIKO 


XXXI.    Mines  and  Minerals 

Mining  in  Old  Japan— New  Era  in  Mining  — Rapid  Development— Mineral  Production  in 

Detail— The  Future— Condition  of  Miners— Commercial  Notices  of  Mining  Companies. 

The  History  of  Oil  in  Japan  — Commercial  Notices  of  Oil  Companies 


THERE  are  authentic  records  to  show 
that  mining  is  one  of  the  oldest  of 
Japanese  industries.  The  enterprise 
reached  considerable  development  even  as 
early  as  the  sixth  centurj^  when  the  demand 
for  metals  in  connection  with  the  making  of 
war  weapons  lent  impetus  to  the  winning  of 
ore.  With  the  advent  of  Chinese  customs 
and  the  Buddhist  religion,  in  the  seventh 
century,  metal  became  still  more  important 
for  coinage  and  the  casting  of  sacred  images, 
as  well  as  for  the  decoration  of  temples  and 
shrines.  In  the  fifteenth  century  there  is 
every  evidence  that  the  mining  of  iron  and 
copper  became  specially  active,  as  the  Chinese 
had  begun  to  look  to  Japan  for  a  portion  of 
the  copper  used  in  minting.  An  era  of  still 
greater  prosperity  in  mining  began  with  the 
rise  to  power  of  the  famous  warrior  Hideyoshi 
in  1583,  as  the  unremitting  strife  between 
feudal  lords  created  increased  demand  for 
metals,  while  captured  prisoners  were  kept 
in  safe  custody  by  being  put  to  work  in  the 


mines.  The  export  of  copper  and  sulpluir 
which  began  in  the  fifteenth  centur>-  con- 
tinued down  to  the  seventeenth,  when  gold 
and  silver  were  added  to  the  list  of  metals 
in  demand  abroad. 

MINING  IN  OLD  JAPAN 
The  opening  of  trade  with  Holland  un- 
doubtedly gave  greater  impetus  to  exports 
of  metals,  the  foreigners  taking  large  quanti- 
ties of  gold,  copper,  and  silver  in  every  cargo. 
The  extent  of  this  trade  can  be  inferred  from 
the  fact  that  during  the  153  years  between 
161 1  and  1764,  exports  of  gold  amounted  to 
3,763,572  ounces,  and  of  silver  to  135,768,918 
ounces,  while  exports  of  copper  in  the  256 
years  between  the  establishment  of  the 
Tokugawa  shogunate  in  1603  and  the  year 
1859,  amounted  to  389,250  tons.  At  the 
beginning  of  the  eighteenth  century  the  export 
of  copper  to  Holland  and  China  was  three 
times  that  of  the  quantity  consumed  in 
Japan.     Such    activity    indicates    that    the 


metal  veins  of  the  country  must  have  been 
extraordinarily  rich  and  ver>'  easily  worked 
in  those  days.  Of  course,  the  mining  industry 
was  conducted  according  to  traditional 
methods  which  were,  no  doubt,  somewhat 
primitive.  The  usual  method  in  Japanese 
copper  mines,  before  the  introduction  of  the 
Bessemer  process,  was  mat  smelting,  which 
was  suitable  onl^'  for  small  work,  a  process 
still  used  in  the  less  developed  mines  of 
Japan.  The  mat  smelting  process  was 
invented  in  the  Tada  mine  by  a  metallurgist 
of  the  sixteenth  century.  It  is  a  simple  form 
of  the  Bessemer  process,  and  can  be  operated 
at  small  cost.  The  process  adopted  in  the 
Tada  mine  spread  to  others.  In  the  gold 
mines  of  Sado  Island  a  pump  on  the  principle 
of  the  Archimedian  screw  was  used,  and  plans 
of  the  mines  were  drawn  with  specially  pre- 
pared instruments,  after  sur\'eys  were  taken. 
The  method  of  selection  was  not  unlike  that 
of  the  dolly-tubs  employed  in  the  Cornish 
mines  for  separating  tin.     Reference  is  also 


462 


P  R  E  S  E  X  T  -  D  A  Y        IMPRESSIONS        OF        JAPAN 


made  in  the  old  records  to  methods  of  separat- 
ing gold  and  assaying  gold  and  silver.  But 
in  the  absence  of  any  full  application  of 
scientific  principles  the  industrj^  suffered  a 
tremendous  handicap,  an  immense  amount  of 
manual  labour  being  required  to  perform 
merely  superficial  work.  Consequently  as 
the  upper  veins  became  exhausted,  and 
excavation,  transportation,  and  ventilation 
grew  more  difficult,  the  industry  decUned  and 
many  mines  were  abandoned. 

NEW  ERA  IN  MINING 
During  the  process  of  reconstruction  and 
reform  that  began  with  the  Meiji  Restoration, 
it  was  soon  seen  that  without  the  use  of  proper 
machinery  and  modern  chemical  methods  the 
mining  industry  in  Japan  could  not  hope  to 
make  any  substantial  progress.  In  1868  the 
majority  of  mines  were  worked  in  shallow 
bonanzas  and  ore  shoots,  and  they  were 
generally  filled  with  water  and  foul  air,  while 
the  unevenness  of  the  mine  beds  caused 
considerable  loss.  At  the  same  time,  the 
general  depression  in  trade  during  the  closing 
years  of  the  Tokugawa  era  reacted  against 


tlic  mining  industry'.  Then,  with  the  opening 
of  the  country  to  Western  civilisation,  came 
the  study  and  ultimate  adoption  of  Western 
mining  methods,  the  Government  of  the  day 
laying  on  itself  the  responsibility  of  recovering 
the  mining  industry  and  promoting  its 
development  to  the  utmost.  In  1873  special 
mining  regulations  were  drawn  up  by  the 
Privy'  Council,  according  to  which  obligations 
of  mine  owners  were  defined  and  a  system  of 
inspection  instituted.  The  extension  of 
mining  rights  to  individuals  was  liberally 
accorded,  and  the  industry  no  longer  regarded 
as  a  Government  monopoly.  The  mining 
regulations  thus  issued  for  the  promotion  and 
encouragement  of  the  industry  became  laws 
of  the  nation  on  the  opening  of  the  Imperial 
Diet  in  1890,  and  after  subsequent  revisions 
a  new  law  was  enacted  in  1905.  The  Bureau 
of  Mines  was  placed  under  the  Department  of 
Agriculture  and  Commerce,  and  for  adminis- 
trative purposes  the  country  was  divided 
into  five  districts,  each  having  its  own  super- 
vision office.  In  1878  a  Bureau  of  Geology- 
was  founded,  which  in  time  organised  an 
institute  for  carrj'ing  on  geological  surveys 


and  duly  publishing  maps  of  the  country. 
Mining  engineers  from  Europe  and  America 
were  engaged  for  the  diffusing  of  scientific 
knowledge,  and  the  old  secret  methods,  so  far 
as  they  were  of  any  value,  found  a  new  basis, 
with  Western  mining  machinery  to  make 
them  practical,  and  mechanical  power  applied 
wherever  possible.  To  describe  all  that  the 
seventy  or  eighty  Occidental  mining  experts 
did  for  the  mining  industry  of  Japan  is  beyond 
the  limit  of  the  brief  space  at  our  disposal. 
Suffice  it  to  say  that  inside  of  ten  years  ten  of 
the  most  important  mines  that  had  been 
closed  for  want  of  proper  means  of  working, 
were  reopened,  yielding  gold,  silver,  copper, 
iron,  and  coal  in  paying  quantities.  The 
mines  were  then  all  worked  under  expert 
foreign  guidance  and  were  used  as  training 
schools  for  miners  who  later  opened  other 
mines.  After  the  desired  results  had  been 
effected  by  Western  training,  official  action 
was  discontinued,  though  the  Government 
still  retains  control  of  a  few  mines  of  iron  and 
coal.  The  engineering  college  established 
by  the  Government  in  connection  with  the 
Imperial  University,  with  the  assistance   of 


MiTSU  BisHi  company:  (lpper)  ore  dressing  pl.ant  .\t  the  s.\do  mine  —  (left)  ar.\k.\\va  mine  —  (right)  osaruzawa  mine 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


463 


professors  from  England,  has  done  a  great 
deal  for  the  jiromotion  of  education  in  mining. 
Such  courses  are  now  conducted  at  all  the 
national  universities  and  technical  high 
schools,  as  well  as  at  some  private  institutions 

R.^I'ID    DEVELOPMENT 

In  1875  Jai)an's  total  mineral  outjuit  did 
not  amount  in  value  to  more  than  2,500,000 
yen  annually.  In  1880  it  was  6,700,000  yen, 
and  by  1890  it  had  grown  to  15,500,000  yen. 
Ten  years  later  it  rose  to  49,000,000  yen,  in 
1905  it  was  106,900,000  yen,  while  the  total 
value  of  mineral  output  in  1913  was  146,000,- 
000  yen,  or  about  three  times  that  of  the 
previous  decade.  The  mineral  outijut  of 
Japan  to-day,  including  Korea,  is  about 
200,000,000  yen  a  year  in  value.  The 
number  of  mines  existing  in  1908  was  11,099, 
covering  a  total  area  of  2,362,777  acres,  with 
233,144  cm])loyees,  and  possessing  1,236  miles 
of  railway,  and  100  miles  of  cable  tramway, 
while  such  as  produce  oil  have  160  miles  of 
piping.  The  following  table  illustrates  the 
quantity  and  value  of  Japan's  principal 
mineral  output  for  periods  covering  five 
years  for   fifteen   average   years: 


As  to  the  amount  of  capital  invested  in 
mining  operations  there  is  no  very  reliable 
information,  but  the  registered  mining  cor- 
porations, which  represent  about  75  per  cent 
of  the  total,  show  a  paid  up  capital  of  178,- 
146,600,  yen,  among  which  there  are  53 
companies  with  a  capital  of  over  1,000,000  yen. 


represent  a  \'alue  of  nearly    60,000,000    yen 
annually. 

.MINERAL    PRODUCTION    IN    DETAIL 
The  facts  and  figuresalready  indicated  form 
the  basis  of  the  present  importance  of  the 
mining  industry  in  Japan.     The  possibilities 


Prodi'cts 


Coal  (met.  tons) . . . 
Copper  (met.  tons) 
Iron  (met.  tons) . .  . 

Gold  (ounces) 

Petroleum  (gals.).  . 


Quantity 


1912 


20,046,081 

63,893 

56,731 

358,065 

67,586,860 


1913 


n, 762, 036 

67,967 

56,971 

387,568 

"1,779,000 


1914 


19,518,480 

67,000 

58,500 

217,000 

89,500,000 


1915 


17,836,750 

72,500 

49,750 

262,000 

100,000,000 


Year 

E.\  PORTS 

I.MPORTS 

TuTAl, 

Excess 

Yen 

Yen 

Yen 

Yen 

1904 
1908 

1913 

29,996,164 

42,942,556 
57,612,495 

73,268,684 

80,319,250 

1 1 1,283,761 

103,264,848 
123,261,806 
168,896,256 

43,272,520 
27,376,694 
53,671,266 

Average  for  5  years 

46,987,755 

89,974,109 

136,961,864 

42,986,353 

1904 

1909 

1914 

Products 

Quantity 

Value 

Quantity 

Value 

Quantity 

Value 

Yen 

Yen 

Yen 

Gold  (oz.) 

Silver  (oz.) 

Copper  (tons) ... 

Lead  (tons) 

Iron  (tons) 

Pyrites  (tons) 

Manganese  (tons)  . 
Antimony  (lbs.) .  .  . 

Coal  (tons) 

Sulphur  (tons) .... 
Petroleum  (gals.).  . 

88,756 

3,174.436 

35,440 

18,500 

36,547 

29,407 

6,265 

938,260 

■0,723.796 

28,205 

51,452,320 

3.880,685 

2,276,805 

17,928,255 

236,234 

1,317,397 

53,089 

37,884 

83,744 
29,218,134 

571,444 
2,776,433 

126,324 

3,498,787 

50,504 

37,800 

48,075 

24,815 

9.7,56 

374.884 

15,048,113 

40,625 

79,137,728 

5,077,058 

4,261,481 

24,536,150 

428,204 

2,067,102 

106,840 

51,119 

39,452 

58,213,680 

812,673 

6,428,514 

222,044 

4,866,084 

71,430 

50,200 

99,208 

127,604 

3.010 

53,933 
22,293,000 

9,494 
107,184,000 

9,430,000 

5,384,000 

38,350,000 

827,000 

3,636,000 

600,000 

15,900 

3,000 

80,350,000 

2,050,000 

9,631,000 

The  progress  of  output  for  Japan's 
principal  mining  industries  for  the  years 
leading  up  to  the  European  war  was  as 
shown   in    the    table   above. 

A  considerable  portion  of  Japan's  mineral 
output  finds  its  way  abroad,  and  during  the 
European  war  there  was  a  remarkable  increase 
in  this  direction,  especially  as  regards  copper. 
In  1905  mineral  exports  amounted  to  34,000,- 
000  }'en  in  value,  and  in  1910  they  increased 
to  44,000,000  yen.  while  at  the  time  of  writing 
they  are  in  the  vicinity  of  80,000,000  yen. 
The  progress  of  exports  and  imports  of 
minerals  will  be  seen  from  the  table  above, 
which  shows  also  how  dependent  Japan  still  is 
on  imports  of  minerals. 


Japan's  principal  mineral  for  export  is  cop- 
per, which  is  sent  abroad  annually  to  the 
value  of  more  than  30,000,000  yen,  and  during 
the  European  war  much  more  than  this  was 
realised.  In  normal  times  about  44  per  cent 
of  the  copper  exports  go  to  Europe  and  27  per 
cent  to  the  United  States.  Next  in  impor- 
tance among  mineral  exports  comes  coal, 
amounting  to  nearly  4,000,000  tons  a  year, 
chiefly  to  the  Philippine  Islands  and  the 
Straits  Settlements,  as  well  as  Australia. 
The  United  States  and  Australia  take  most  of 
the  export  in  sulphur,  the  annual  total  being 
about  2,000,000  yen  in  value.  Among 
mineral  imports  the  chief  are  pig  iron,  iron 
bars,  rod  and  plate  as  well  as  pipes,  which 


of  expansion  and  further  development  depend 
on  resources,  and  these  must  now  be  examined . 
The  most  important  of  Japan's  minerals  at 
present  is  coal,  which  is  of  a  non-metal  variety 
and  found  chiefly  in  Kyushu,  Hokkaido,  and 
in  certain  parts  of  the  main  island.  The 
oldest  coal  is  found  in  the  Mesozoic  formation, 
but  the  greater  seams  are  all  in  Tertiary 
strata,  especially  in  Kyushu  and  Hokkaido. 
The  Kyushu  fields  are  in  Chikuzen  and  Buzen, 
and  supply  about  75  per  cent  of  the  total,  with 
about  10  per  cent  from  Hokkaido  and  the  rest 
from  Honshu.  The  coal  resources  of  the 
country  have  not  been  fully  explored,  but  the 
Mining  Bureau  estimates  that  there  are  at 
least  1,738,000,000  tons  in  sight  out  of  a  total 
of  3,762,000,000  tons  in  workable  seams  not 
yet  surveyed.  Of  this  quantity  i  ,000,000,000 
tons  are  in  Kyushu,  568,000,000  in  Hokkaido, 
and  170,000,000  tons  in  Iwaki,  Ibaraki,  and 
Choshu.  The  anthracite  mined  in  Kyushu 
is  of  excellent  quality,  and  more  is  found  in 
Kii  and  Choshu  in  the  main  island.  The 
predominant  type,  however,  is  a  brown  bitu- 
minous coal  of  which  there  are  heavy  deposits 
in  both  Kyushu  and  Hokkaido.  The  great 
Miike  colliery  in  Kyushu  works  two  main 
layers,  one  20  feet  thick  in  parts,  and  produces 
over  a  million  tons  annually.  In  the  Fuku- 
oka  district  of  Kyushu  there  are  over  20 
mines.  The  coal-field  of  Hokkaido  is  at 
Ishikari,  and  is  about  50  miles  long  by  12 
broad.  The  best  coal  in  Japan  is  produced  at 
the    Takashima    mine    on    an    island    near 


464 


P  R  E  S  E  N  T  -  D  A  V 


I  M   I'  K   1:  S  S  I  O  N  S 


O  F 


A  I'  A  N 


Nagasaki.  Japan  has  also  valuable  coal 
resources  in  the  big  Fushun  mines  in  Man- 
churia. Following  are  the  more  important 
mines,  with  locality,  proprietorship,  output, 
and  numlier  of  labourers  emi)loyed   in  1914: 


while  in  the  northern  arc  the  metasomatic 
type  prevails,  the  vein  type  predominating  on 
the  inner  arc  on  the  Japan  Sea  side  of  the 
country.  In  the  latter  are  found  the  greater 
number   of   mines.     Of   53   principal   mines, 


Mines 


Miike 

Mitsui-Tagawa . 

Onoura 

Yubari .  .  . 
Mineji .  . 
Futase.  .  , 

Iriyama 

Yoshinodani .  .  . 

Meiji 

Hokkoku .  . 
Namazuta. 

Shinnyu 

Mitsui-Yamano 

Tadakuma 

Shiogashira .  -  -  . 

Uchigo 

Mitsui-Hondo . . 

Ochi 

Kanada 

Shin- Yubari .  .  . 

Yoshima 

Matsushima.  .  , 
Kinoshima ... 

Otsuji 

Yoshio 

Sorachi 


Prefkctiri; 


Fukuoka 

Fukuoka 

Fukuoka 

Hokkaido 

Kyushu 

Fukuoka 

Iwaki 

Saga 

Fukuoka 

Fukuoka 

Fukuoka 

Fukuoka 

Fukuoka 

Fukuoka 

Fukuoka 

Iwaki 

Fukuoka 

Saga 

Fukuoka 

Hokkaido 

Iwaki 

Nagasaki 

Kyushu 

Fukuoka 

Fukuoka 

Hokkaido 


COXCESSION.MRES 


Mitsui  Mining  Co. .  . 
Mitsui  Mining  Co.. 

Kaijima  Tasuke 

Hokkaido  Coal  &•  S.  S.  Co 

Kurauchi,  Y 

Government 

Iriyama  Coal  Co 

Mitsu  Bishi  Co 

Meiji  Mining  Co 

Meiji  Mining  Co. . . 

Mitsu  Bishi  Co 

Mitsu  Bishi  Co 

Mitsui  Mining   Co. . 

Sumitomo 

Furukawa  &  Co 

Iwaki  Coal  Mining  Co. . . 

Mitsui  Mining  Co 

Mitsu  Bishi  Co 

Mitsu  Bishi  Co. . 
Toky-o  Gas  Co ...  . 

Yo.shima  Coal  Co 

Matsushima  Coal  Mng 

Iko,  T 

Kajima  Mining  Co 

Aso,  T 

Hokkaido  Coal  &  S.  S.  Co, 


Co. 


Output 
(Long  tons) 


2,011,046 
983.356 
791.879 
696.953 
663,528 

594.435 
536,682 

535,550 
495.707 
495.576 
469.750 
421,665 
409,882 
409,882 
404.376 
375.199 
369.305 
363.572 
329.790 
328,434 
324.213 
315,894 
285,290 
278,602 
258,486 
248,460 


L.\BOURERS 


9.976 
4,460 

6,195 

5,008 

2,629 
1,402 
3,160 
3,186 

2,207 

4.945 
2.320 
1,697 

2,705 
1,408 
3,084 
2,476 
2,442 
913 


1,694 
1,792 
1,957 


Copper  comes  next  in  importance  as  a 
mineral  product.  It  occurs  in  deposits  of  two 
kinds.  The  first  and  richest  is  as  a  vein  in 
tuflf  or  other  volcanic  rocks,  the  ore  sometimes 
containing  as  much  as  30  per  cent  of  copper. 
Most  of  the  ore  is  found  both  on  the  outer  and 
inner  side  of  the  southern  and  northern  arcs  of 
Japan  proper.  In  the  southern  arc  the  con- 
tact-metamorphic  type  is  much  in  evidence. 


veins  supply  44  per  cent,  representing  32 
mines;  in  11  mines  beds  supply  20  per  cent; 
in  3  mines  metasomatic  deposits  supply  18 


per  cent;   m 


mines  contact-metamorphic 


deposits  yield  3  per  cent  of  the  output. 
Deposits  of  the  vein  type  are  worked  in  such 
mines  as  the  Ashio  in  Tochigi,  the  Kosaka  in 
Akita,  as  well  as  by  mines  in  Niigata  and 
Fukushima  and  the  north  generally.     Where 


the  deposits  are  found  in  crystalline  schists 
the  percentage  obtained  is  not  above  ten  per 
cent  and  often  as  low  as  two  per  cent.  The 
principal  district  for  this  type  of  mine  is 
Miyazaki  in  Kyushu,  but  copper  is  found  in 
almost  every  district  in  Japan  with  the 
exception  of  Saitama,  Shizuoka,  Toyama, 
Oita,  and  Kagoshima.  The  largest  and 
richest  copper  mines  in  the  Empire  are  those 
of  the  Fujita  Company  in  Akita,  the  Ashio 
mines  owned  by  the  Furukawa  Company, 
and  the  Besshi  mines  of  the  Sumitomo  Com- 
pany as  well  as  the  Kuhara  Company  of 
Ibaraki.  The  Ashio  mine  possesses  a  some- 
what remarkable  system  of  electric  railways 
serving  the  workings,  where  the  daily  output 
is  about  1,200  metric  tons,  which  after  con- 
centration yields  about  1 1  per  cent  Cu.  At 
the  Osaruzawa  mine  are  employed  the 
Mabuki  hearths,  an  invention  of  the  old 
Japanese  smelters,  which  has  been  brought 
into  line  with  modern  ideas,  producing  about 
1 1  per  cent  Cu.  matte.  The  Ikuno  mine  is 
another  good  producer,  with  a  large  output 
of  silver,  and  a  high  percentage  of  both  gold 
and  silver  comes  from  the  dressed  ore  of  the 
Hitachi.  There  is  no  doubt  that  the  copper 
industry  in  Japan  is  destined  to  experience 
still  more  remarkable  development,  especially 
as  the  export  now  represents  between  50  and 
60  per  cent  of  the  total  production,  whereas 
the  export  of  coal  is  now  only  about  20  per 
cent  of  the  total  output. 

In  recent  years  petroleum  has  become  one 
of  the  most  important  products  of  Japan's 
mineral  kingdom,  the  petroliferous  strata 
apparently  extending  from  the  northern  to 
the  southern  limits  of  the  Empire,  chiefly  in 
a  narrow  vein  following  the  western  coasts  of 
the  islands,  occurring  in  Tertiary  rocks  of  the 
same  geological  epoch  as  those  of  Galicia, 
California,  and  Baku.  The  chief  oil  wells  are 
in  Echigo  and  Akita,  but  there  are  five  oil 


SUMITOMO   company:      view    of    the    TREATMENT    WORKS   IN   CONNECTION    WITH    THE    BESSHI    COPPER    MINE,    AT    NIIHAMA 


P  R  K  S  H  N  T  -  D  A  Y 


I  M 


RESSIONS        OF        JAPAN 


465 


fields  ill  all,  wliosc  dopth  ranges  from  180  lo 
2,880  feet.  Ecliigo  alone  has  over  300  pro- 
ducing wells,  and  there  are  about  900  wells  in 
all.  Some  remarkable  gushers  have  been 
tapped,  yielding  over  400,000  gallons  of  crude 
oil  a  day,  though  the  average  yield  of  wells  is 
com]iaratively  modest,  the  specific  gravity 
varying  not  only  in  each  field  but  acconling 


Tertiary  rocks,  especially  in  sedimentary  and 
eruptive  strata.  The  output  of  gold  is  con- 
stantly increasing,  as,  on  account  of  the  recent 
development  in  the  smelting  of  copper  ores 
and  the  invention  of  the  cyanide  process, 
gold  is  being  extracted  from  ores  that  were 
formerly  difficult  to  treat.  In  the  principal 
mines,  notably  at  Sado,  the  Yamagano  and 


occurs  for  the  most  part  in  the  form  of  sul- 
phides in  tuff  and  other  volcanic  rocks,  usually 
in  association  with  copper,  lead,  gold,  and 
zinc,  the  Kosaka  mine  being  particularly  rich 
in  silver.  Most  of  the  best  silver-producing 
mines  are  in  Honshu,  one  of  the  largest  being 
the  Tsubaki.  The  ore  is  argentiferous  galena 
and    blende,    and    the  silver  content  of  the 


OENER.\L   VIEW    OF  THE   VILLAGE    OF    S.\G.\NOSEKI,    KUHARA    MINING   CO.,    LTD. 


to   depth.     The  petroleum   industry  is   fur- 
ther treated  in  a  special  article. 

Gold  is  found  in  almost  every  part  of  Japan, 
though  not  in  any  great  quantities,  the  chief 
producing  districts  being  Kagoshima,  Niigata, 
and  Hokkaido.  There  are  also  mines  in 
Korea  and  Fomiosa.  Placer  mining  is 
practised  to  some  extent,  but  over  90  per  cent 
of  the  metal  is  obtained  from  lode  mining. 
The  precious  metal  occurs  in  three  types  of 
deposits,  the  most  important  of  which  is  con- 
tained in  quartz  veins  in  volcanic  rocks,  such 
as  obtain  in  north  Formosa,  at  Niigata,  and 
the  island  of  Sado  in  Honshu.  The  greater 
number  of  the  veins  found  in  Japan  occur  in 


the  Serigano,  modern  plants  have  been  put 
up,  complete  in  some  cases,  not  only  with 
cyaniding  machinery,  but  with  slimes  plant. 
At  Sado  there  is  a  battery  with  a  capacity  for 
treating  650  tons  of  ore  per  day,  the  ore 
averaging  0.0071  per  cent  and  at  Yamagano 
0.0087  per  cent.  Alluvial  gold  is  found 
chiefly  in  Hokkaido,  and  to  a  lesser  extent  at 
Ishikawa  in  north  Honshu.  Some  of  the 
deposits  in  Korea  are  being  worked  by  Ameri- 
can interests.  The  total  output  amounts  to 
about  400,000  ounces  a  year. 

Silver  is  found  in  much  the  same  geological 
formations  as  gold,  the  chief  mines  being  in 
Honshu,  Kyvtshu,  and  Hokkaido.     The  metal 


dressed  ore  averages  0.078  per  cent,  without 
gold  or  copper.  In  the  Innai  mine  the 
dressed  ore  contains  o.  i  per  cent,  with  a 
small  gold  content.  Over  60  per  cent  of  the 
silver  produced  is  obtained  from  argentiferous 
lead  ores.  The  annual  output  is  about  5,000,- 
000  ounces. 

Japan  is  not  rich  in  jVoh  deposits,  but  such 
iron  as  does  exist  consists  of  magnetite, 
hematite  iron  sand,  and  limonite,  the  first 
being  the  principal  oxide,  widely  distributed 
but  with  few  mines  yet  in  operation.  One  of 
tlie  largest  deposits  is  at  Wakamatsu,  in 
Kyushu,  where  the  Government  iron  works  is 
situated,    but    there    are    other    important 


466 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


SUMITOMO    company:     aerial  tramway    at 

THE  BESSHI  COPPER  MINE 

deposits  at  Kamaishi  in  Iwate,  north  Honshu, 
where  a  quantity  of  magnetite  is  smelted. 
Hematite  is  also  found  in  north  Honshu  at 
Akadani  and  Kamo,  while  limonite,  or 
hydrated  oxide,  occurs  in  many  places.  Iron 
pyrites  is  found  in  Akita,  Gumma,  and 
Ibaraki,  as  well  as  in  south  Honshu.  Japan, 
however,  is  obliged  to  bring  most  of  her  iron 
ore  from  China.  The  number  of  blast 
furnaces,  which  for  some  time  stood  at  seven, 
has  been  increased,  and  the  output  of  pig 
iron  is  now  some  50,000  tons  a  year.  Steel  is 
produced  to  the  amount  of  from  12,000  to 
14,000  tons  in  acid  open-hearth  furnaces,  and 
it  may  be  noted  that  most  of  the  steel  made 
in  Japan  is  manufactured  by  acid  process. 
None  of  the  ore  is  exported,  and  in  view  of  the 
urgent  need  for  expanding  the  native  iron 
industry  a  good  deal  of  prospecting  has  still 
to  be  done.  In  fact,  the  native  iron  and  steel 
trade  is  still  in  its  infancy,  and  the  total  pro- 
duction is  about  250,000  tons  of  both  pig  iron 
and  steel  annually,  which  is  far  short  of  the 
quantity  required  for  domestic  consumption. 
While  the  annual  production  is  only  about 
17,500,000  yen,  the  value  of  iron  imports  is 
almost  60,000,000  yen.  The  establishment 
of  the  Imperial  Iron  Works  has  given  great 
impetus  to  the  manufacturing  side  of  the 
industry.  The  equipment  is  designed  on 
modern  lines,  with  several  blast  furnaces  of 
large  capacity — up  to  150  tons  —  in  opera- 
tion, together  with  steel  converters  of  the 
Bessemer  type  and  an  open-hearth  plant. 
In  point  of  value  sulphur  is  next  on  the 
list.  It  is  but  natural  that  in  so  volcanic  a 
country  as  Japan  large  deposits  should  be 


found.  Only  high  grade  deposits  are  worked, 
those  yielding  not  less  than  40  per  cent. 
About  70  per  cent  of  the  total  yield  comes 
from  Hokkaido.  Other  sulphur  mines  are 
in  Fukushima  and  northward  in  the  main 
island  generally.  Kyushu  produces  smaller 
quantities  about  the  districts  of  Kagoshiam 
and  Oita.  Zinc  blende  occurs  in  numerous 
veins  with  other  metalHc  sulphides,  Kamioka 
in  Hida  being  the  most  important  mine 
both  for  lead  and  zinc.  Formerly  the  zinc 
ore  had  to  be  shipped  abroad  for  refining, 
but  recently  the  number  of  smelting  plants 
has  been  increased  and  imports  of  this  metal 
may  be  expected  to  diminish.  The  chief 
refineries  are  at  Osaka,  Miike,  and  the 
Fujita  Company  at  Kosaka  mine,  with 
electric  refining  works  in  Niigata.  Lead 
occurs  as  sulphides  containing  more  or  less 
silver,  in  tuff  and  other  volcanic  rocks,  Gifu 
being  the  most  productive  district.  The 
total  annual  output  is  valued  at  827,000  yen. 
The  only  district  producing  tin  to  any  extent 
is  Kagoshima,  though  a  little  is  produced  in 
Gifu  and  Ibaraki.  Tin  is  a  new  industry 
which  was  started  by  the  Mitsu  Bishi  Com- 
pany at  its  Ikuno  mine  in  1914,  but  the  out- 
put is  still  insignificant  and  more  than  380,- 
000  yen'  worth  has  to  be  imported  annually. 
Antimony  is  produced  chiefly  in  Ehime  in 
Shikoku.  It  is  also  found  at  Nara  and  in 
Kyushu.  The  war  caused  a  tremendous 
increase  in  the  output.  Manganese  occurs 
in  Hokkaido  and  in  several  districts  in 
other  islands  of  the  Empire.  About  half 
the  total  yield  comes  from  Aomori,  the 
northenmiost  district  of  the  main  island,  with 


other  mines  in  Kochi  in  Shikoku  and  near 
Kyoto,  the  annual  output  being  valued  at 
about  160,000  yen. 

As  to  other  minerals  in  Japan  there  are  not 
many  that  are  mined  in  sufficient  quantities 
to  be  worthy  of  extended  notice.  Asphalt 
deposits  occur  in  the  district  around  Akita, 
and  graphite  is  found  principally  in  Iwate 
in  north  Honshu  as  well  as  in  Hokkaido, 
Gifu,  Toyama,  and  Kagoshima.  Phosphate 
ore  has  been  found  near  Tokyo  and  in  the 
Ishikawa  districts  and  tungsten  at  Ibaraki 
and  in  Korea,  the  latter  mines  proving  quite 
promising.  Chrome  iron  ore  is  found  at 
Tottori  and  near  Kumamoto,  and  a  little 
mercury  at  Tokushima. 

The  value  of  the  total  yield  of  minerals 
in  Japan  proper  is  now  about  155,000,000 
yen  annually,  with  some  50,000,000  more 
for  the  output  in  Korea,  of  which  nearly 
60  per  cent  represents  collieries. 

THE  FUTURE 
The  present  preponderance  of  coal  output 
and  copper  does  not  at  all  indicate  that 
Japan  is  poor  in  other  mineral  possibilities, 
as  almost  every  part  of  the  country  is  miner- 
alogically  rich.  The  figures  indicating  pro- 
duction do  not  as  yet  begin  to  represent 
the  potential  and  actual  mineral  wealth  of 
the  country.  Owing  to  lack  of  proper  facil- 
ities of  transportation  and  the  absence  of 
modem  methods  of  extraction  still  employed 
in  many  mines,  this  important  industry  has 
not  kept  pace  with  others.  As  soon  as 
sufficient  capital  is  attracted  no  doubt  a 
vast  increase  of  output  in  all  directions  may 


KUNE    MINES,    I'lRUKAWA    GOMEI    KAISHA 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


467 


be   expcctfd.     Tlie    abnormal   expansion    of 
the  mining  industry  in  Japan  after  the  war 
with     Russia     suggests     that     development 
largely   depends  on   the   amount  of  capit:il 
that  can  be  attracted,  which  is  still  further 
emphasised  by  the  fact  tliat  an  increase  of 
mineral   output  is  certain   to  be  associated 
with  advance  in  metal  manufacturing  indus- 
tries as  distinguished  from  the  mining  and 
smelting  of  ores.     The  tremendous  impetus 
lent    to   Japan's   mining   industries   by    the 
European  war  can  not  fail  to  be  followed  up 
1)V  a  permanent  advance  in  operation  and 
output.     Applications   for   prospecting  have 
greatly  increased,  and  all  mines  are  showing 
extended  operations.     The  minerals  indicat- 
ing the  most  phenomenal  increase  in    1914 
and   1915  are  tin,  with  an  increase  of  2,110 
per  cent;    zinc,   no  per  cent;    bismuth,  250 
per  cent;    manganese  and  tungsten,  50  per 
cent;    gold,   15.3  per  cent;    silver,   1.7  per 
cent;     copper,    3.9    per    cent;     while    coal 
decreased  8 . 7  per  cent  and  iron  29 .  i   per 
cent.     One  of  the  most  interesting  features 
of  the  present  situation   is  the  increase   in 
such   rare   metals   as   tungsten   and   molyb- 
denum,   caused    chiefly    by    the    war.     The 
nctable  increase  in  gold  production  is  due 
mainly    to   the   discovery   of   new   veins   in 
Shizuoka   Prefecture,   but   some  are  resusci- 
tated mines.     Another  important  aspect  of 
the  situation  is  the  activity  in  zinc  refining, 
the  six  refining  works  now  not  only  dealing 
with   all   domestic   ores   but   importing   ore 
from    China    and    the    South    Seas.     Such 
wealthy   and   prosperous   companies   as   the 
Kuhara,   the   Mitsu   Bishi,   the   Mitsui,   the 
Sumitomo,   and   the   Okura  have   all   intro- 
duced the  latest  scientific  refining  plants  with 
a  view   to  meeting    the  increasing    national 
demand  for  iron  and  steel.     The  European 
war  has  made  it  imperative  that  Japan  shall 
have  some  source  of  iron  and  steel  supply 
independent  of  war  conditions,  as  she  can 
turn  out  only  about  400,000  tons  of  the  more 
than  1,500,000  tons  required  by  her  annually. 
The  Government  has  made  an  appropriation 
of  35,000,000  yen  more  for  improvement  of 
its  steel  works  at  Wakamatsu,  and  is  trying 
to  double  its  output  to  some  600,000  tons. 
Large  companies  are  being  formed  for  similar 
purposes,  one  of  which  will  have  a  capital 
of   50,000,000   yen,   the  iron   ore   to  be  im- 
ported   from  China.     Indeed,   the  situation 
makes   it   absolutely   necessary   that   Japan 
shall   at  all   times  have  access  to  the  iron 
mines  of  China,  which  will  explain  her  politi- 
cal   attitude    on    Chinese    questions,    when 
Western  nations  are  puzzled  to  know  why 
lier  interest  in  that  country  is  so  keen  and 
persistent.     The  question   of  self-sufficiency 
in  iron  is  the  one  vital  problem  of  the  political 
as  well  as  of  the  mineral  situation  in  Japan 


at  present,  being  frequently  before  the 
Imperial  Diet,  which  has  now  committed  it 
to  the  supervision  of  twenty  specialists,  who 
will  see  that  the  nation's  iron  interests  and 
resources  are  duly  safeguarded. 

CONDITION    OF    MINERS 

The  condition  of  miners  in  Japan  repre- 
sents some  remarkable  features,  not  the  least 
of  which  is  the  comparative  absence  of  strikes, 
though  these  are  not  wholly  unknown.  But 
the  mine  workers  of  Japan,  especially  those 
underground,  as  a  rule  are  satisfied  with 
their  wages.  The  miner  works  from  eight 
to  eleven  hours  a  day,  usually  about  twenty- 
seven  days  a  month,  and  his  wages  are  no 
more  than  seventy  sen  a  day  for  the  highest, 
and  forty- two  sen  a  day  for  the  lowest, 
while  women  get  only  twenty-five  sen  as  a 
maximum  and  twenty-three  as  a  minimum 
wage.  These  wages  apply  to  metal  mines, 
but  in  coal  mines  men  get  seventy-eight  sen 
and  women  sixty  sen  a  day,  with  forty-four 
sen  as  minimum  for  men  and  twenty-eight  for 
women.  Children,  of  whom  there  are  many, 
get  from  sixteen  to  twenty  sen  a  day  in 
metal  mines,  and  from  thirteen  to  thirty- 
eight  sen  in  coal  mines.  The  number  of 
males  employed  in  metal  mines  is  about 
47,000,  underground,  and  the  number  of 
females  is  about  23,000,  of  whom  children 
both  male  and  female,  number  about  1,000. 
Above  ground  the  number  of  men  in  metal 
mines  is  about  34,000,  with  some  13,000 
women  and  some  900  children.  In  coal 
mines  the  number  of  hands  is,  of  course, 
greater.  Underground,  men  number  103,- 
000,  women  38,000,  with  about  2,000  children, 
while  above  ground  the  numl^er  of  men  is 
33,000,  woman  15,000,  and  children  1,000. 
The  following  table  will  give  some  idea  of 
the  sexes  and  numbers  of  those  employed 
in  mining  operations  in  Japan: 


SUMITOMO  company:  the  village  of 

TONARU,    nESSHI   COPPER    MINE 

They  bring  their  wives  and  families  and 
settle  down  in  the  thatched  huts  provided 
by  the  company,  while  the  unmarried  men 
live  in  large  common-rooms.  Food  is  sup- 
plied by  the  mine  owners  at  less  than  the 
usual  cost,  and  the  miner  is  generally  satis- 
fied if  he  has  enough  to  eat.  The  average 
Japanese,  however,  does  not  care  for  the  life 
of  a  miner,  and  the  raining  companies  have 
to  have  agents  to  secure  hands,  so  that  one 
often  sees  placards  in  cities  calling  for  volun- 
teers. The  miners  usually  work  in  three 
relays  per  day,  every  few  men  having  a  boss, 
who  gets  a  much  higher  wage  than  those  he 
oversees.  The  Japanese  miner  is  apt  to  be 
superstitious,  and  has  a  conviction  that  the 
spirits  of  all  killed  in  the  mines  still  haunt 
their  dark  chambers.     If  his  lamp  suddenly 


Underground 

Above  Ground 

Total 

Age 

Male 

Female 

Male 

Female 

Male 

Female 

Under  12     

56 

1,563 

21,609 

128,837 

34 

930 

8,983 

29,544 

23 
921 

9,434 
64,679 

21 

1,027 

7,055 

19,697 

79 

2,884 

31,043 

193,516 

55 

Under  I'y 

1,957 

16,038 

Above  ''O                     .  . 

49,241 

Total  

152,065 

39,491 

75,057 

27,800 

227,522 

67,291 

The  Japanese  miner  is  proverbially  care- 
less and  accidents  from  fire  and  explosives 
are  common.  In  1914  the  number  of  acci- 
dents was  no  less  than  157,021,  with  1,758 
deaths,  the  total  list  of  casualties  numbering 
159,002.  The  miners  are  usually  natives  of 
the    district    or    the    adjoining    prefecture. 


goes  out  he  believes  a  spirit  has  extinguished 
it.  Seeing  phosphoric  light  along  mine 
floors,  he  says  there  is  where  the  bones  of 
the  dead  have  crumbled  into  dust.  Like 
all  Japanese  labourers,  the  miner  sings  as 
he  works.  Mine  owners  bear  the  expense 
of  hospital   treatment  in  case  of  accidents, 


468 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


THE    MITSU    DISHI   COLLIERY   ON    TAKASHIMA    ISLAND 


of  pay  during  disablement,  and  of  compen- 
sation in  case  of  permanent  disablement  or 
death.  In  the  larger  mines  the  men  have 
mutual  aid  associations  to  whose  funds  the 
owners  contribute,  and  miners'  children  are 
educated  either  at  schools  established  by 
the  mine  owners  or  at  institutions  subsidised 
by  them,  thus  reducing  the  fees  paid  by  the 
children.  There  is  little  disaffection  among 
the  miners  of  Japan,  and  when  it  does  appear 
it  is  usually  due  to  some  injustice,  such  as 
the  dismissal  of  some  employee  or  the  ill 
treatment  of  some  popular  member  of  a 
gang,  rather  than  to  improper  wages,  and 
then  the  usual  method  is  to  attack  the  house 
of  the  manager.  The  gang-boss  wields 
absolute  authority;  his  orders  must  be 
obeyed,  right  or  wrong,  and  if  one  boss  has 
a  quarrel  with  another,  the  men  take  it  up 
and  soon  there  is  a  riot. 

The  five  mining  inspection  offices  exercise 
due  control  over  such  matters  as  ventilation, 
constrvtction,  and  the  use  of  explosives.  The 
mine  owners  have  to  submit  to  these  inspec- 
tion offices  the  rules  and  regulations  adopted 
for  their  men.  The  inspection  offices  are 
at  Sapporo,  Sendai,  Osaka,  Tokyo,  and 
Fukuoka.  While  foreigners  are  not  per- 
mitted to  hold  mining  property  in  Japan, 
they  are  allowed  to  work  mines  in  partner- 
ship with  Japanese  subjects.  The  Mining 
Law  of  1905  authorises  the  Minister  of 
Agriculture  and  Commerce  to  grant,  cancel, 
or  suspend  mining  rights.  The  area  for 
coal  mines  must  be  not  less  than  four  acres, 
for  other  mines  less,  and  in  no  case  to  exceed 
820  acres.  A  limited  time  is  allowed  for  the 
development  of  concessions  registered,  and 
all  mines  in  operation  must  pay  a  tax  of 
one  per  cent  on  value  of  products,  except 
in  the  case  of  gold,  silver,  and  iron  mines. 
According  to  Japanese  law,  the  owner  of  the 
land  is  not  de  facto  the  owner  of  the  minerals 
it  may  contain;  he  has  to  make  application 
for  prospecting  rights  the  same  as  any  other 
man,  in  default  of  which  another  applicant 


may   have   the   right   to  work   the  mine  on 
his  property. 

[Editorial  Note:  While  in  the  foregoing 
article  the  statistics  furnished  appear  to  be, 
in  certain  cases,  far  behind,  we  are  assured 
by  the  writer  of  the  article  that  they  were  the 
very  latest  official  figures  available  at  the 
time  the  matter  was  prepared.  It  is,  how- 
ever, generally  recognised  that  the  mining 
industry  of  Japan  and  Chosen  made  great 
strides  during  the  period  subsequent  to  the 
outbreak  of  the  European  war.  This  is  par- 
ticularly the  case  with  copper  and  iron. 
The  rapidly  developed  shipping  industry  of 
Japan  has  called  for  enormous  quantities  of 
iron  and  steel,  and  the  limitation  of  exports 
from  the  United  States  has  compelled  the 
Japanese  to  concentrate  attention  on  their 
own  resources.  These  are  admittedly  scant, 
but  such  as  they  are,  they  are  now  being 
most    energetically   exploited  by  the    Japa- 


nese, and  there  has  been  quite  a  boom  during 
1 91 7  in  opening  up  iron  fields  in  Chosen  and 
Kwantung  (Manchuria).  The  high  price  of 
copper  has  also  led  to  strong  development  in 
that  branch  of  mining.  It  is  generally  con- 
ceded that  the  figures  of  the  production  for 
191 7  easily  exceed  those  of  all  former  years, 
and  the  manufactured  output  of  metals  and 
mineral  products  will  also  show  a  heavy 
increase.  With  reference  to  the  capital  em- 
ployed in  this  industry,  we  are  entitled  to 
infer  from  the  increases  that  were  recorded 
in  191 7,  in  the  case  of  the  largest  companies, 
and  from  the  flotations  of  new  enterprises, 
that  the  investment  to-day  is  well  over 
Yen  200,000,000.  The  Kuhara  Mining  Com- 
pany alone  has  a  capital  of  Yen  75,000,000, 
and  the  other  big  concerns  such  as  the 
Furukawa,  Suzuki,  Fujitagumi,  and  Mitsu 
Bishi  employ  similarly  large  sums  of  money 
in  the  exploitation  of  the  industry.] 


TOKYO   office   OF   FURUKAWA    GOMEI    KAISHA 


KUHARA    MINING   COMPANY,    LIMITED:    GENERAL   VIEW    OF    THE   SAGANOSEKI    SMELTING   WORKS    AND    THE   HARBOUR— GIGANTIC 
CHIMNEY    AT   THE    SAGANOSEKI    SMELTING    WORKS  —  ANOTHER   VIEW    OF   THE    SAGANOSEKI    SMELTING    WORKS 


31 


4/0 


PRESENT-DAY        I  M  1'  K  li  S  S  1  O  N  S 


O  F 


J  A  P  A  N 


THE  KUHARA  MINING  COMPANY 
This  famous  mining  company  is  numbered 
amongst  the  most  active  of  the  big  concerns 
of  Japan,  and  though  the  title  suggests  only 
one  enterprise,  the  Kuhara,  like  the  Mitsu 
Bishi  and  the  Sumitomo,  is  engaged  in  many 
varied  commercial  and  industrial  under- 
takings. Departments  of  the  business  com- 
prise: (A)  mining;  (B)  chemical  industry'  in 
connection  with  mining;  (C)  manufacture 
and  construction  of  machinery;  (D)  electrical 
works;  (E)  agriculture  and  forestry;  (F)  to 
carry  on  any  of  the  foregoing  businesses, 
pursuits,  or  undertakings,  in  partnership  or 
on  joint  account  with  other  persons  or  cor- 
porations. In  addition,  the  Kuhara  Company 
is  now  giving  its  attention  to  the  shipbuild- 
ing industry. 

The  business  originated  in  December,  1905, 
when  Mr.  Fusanosuke  Kuhara  purchased  the 
Hitachi  Mine  in  the  prefecture  of  Ibaraki, 
and  commenced  operations  there.  The  mine 
at  that  time  was  comparatively  undeveloped, 
but  when  it  came  into  Mr.  Kuhara's  hands  he 
pushed  on  with  explorations  and  development 
work  and  also  established  smelting  works,  the 
output  of  the  mine  being  increased  year  by 
year,  and  the  Hitachi  property  became  known 
as  one  of  the  greatest  in  the  Empire.  Mean- 
while several  mines  such  as  Higashiyama, 
Mineosawa,  and  Takeno  were  purchased,  and 
the  manufacture  of  machinery  was  started  as 
a  subsidiary  enterprise.  In  .September,  19 12, 
the  concern's  organisation  was  changed  and 
the  Kuhara  Company  became  a  limited 
liability  corporation,  with  a  capital  of  Yen 
10,000,000.  The  mines  of  Ose,  Takaura, 
Toyoha,  Kawadzu,  Nii  Kameda,and  Yoshino 
were  added  to  the  company's  possessions, 
and  a  smelting  plant  was  erected  at  the  port 
of  Chinnampo,  Chosen.  In  February,  1916, 
the  company  increased  its  capital  to  Yen 
30,000,000,  purchased  the  Kapsan  Mine  in 
Chosen,  and  erected  the  smelting  works  at 
Saganoseki  and  lyejima.  With  these  devel- 
opments the  opportunity  came  for  the 
company  to  extend  its  operations  to  the  outer 
world,  and  the  capital  was  again  increased  to 
the  huge  sum  of  Yen  75,000,000.  The  mines 
operated  by  the  company  are  scattered  all 
over  the  Empire,  and  number  71  in  all, 
including  some  properties  which  are  held  for 
prospecting.  Besides  these  mines,  the  com- 
pany has  the  Chinnampo  Smelting  Works, 
the  lyejima  Zinc  Works,  the  Saganoseki 
Smelting  Works,  the  Hitachi  Engineering 
Works,  the  Tsukudajima  Engineering  Works, 
Tokyo,  and  the  Tawao  Estate  in  British  North 
Borneo.  In  order  to  govern  and  manage 
these  enterprises,  the  company  has  estab- 
lished offices  at  the  following  centres:  Main 
office,  Osaka,  Japan,  and  branch  offices,  at 
Tokyo,  Japan;  London,  England;  New  York 


City,  U.  S.  A.;  Singapore,  Federated  Malay 
Settlements;  Tientsin,  China;  Tsinan,  China, 
and  Mukden,   Manchuria. 

The  Kuhara  Company  has,  in  all,  some  700 
concessions  for  metal,  coal,  petroleum,  and 
sulphur,  the  total  area  being  317,375  acres, 
with  41  miles  of  river  bed.  Due  to  a  constant 
expansion  of  area  mined  and  the  development 
of  treatment  plants,  the  company's  mineral 
production  is  annually  increasing.  The  out- 
put for  1916  was:  4,428  kilos  of  gold;  57,928 
kilos  of  silver;  23,674  metric  tons  of  copper, 
and  1,182  tons  of  zinc,  the  total  value  being 
estimated  at  Yen  40,000,000.  Comparing 
these  figures  with  those  of  1912,  when  the 
reorganisation  of  the  concern  took  place,  we 
find  an  increase  of  nearly  seven  times  of  gold 
and  silver,  and  three  times  of  copper,  the 
value  of  the  products  having  in  the  same 
period  increased  five  times. 

The  production  of  manufactures  has  also 
increased  by  a  little  more  than  220  per  cent, 
the  value  of  the  output  in  1912  having  been 
Yen  792,422  as  against  Yen  2,542,447  in  1916. 
The  number  of  employees  in  a  clerical  or 
technical  capacity,  but  excluding  those  rated 
as  assistant  clerks,  was  443  at  the  end  of  1912. 
This  number  was  increased  to  841  at  the  end 
of  1915,  and  reached  1,457  at  the  beginning 
of  August,  191 7.  The  labour  forces  at  the 
end  of  May,  1917,  were  24,591.  That  the 
enterprise  of  the  Kuhara  Company  has  been 
singularly  successful  may  be  gathered  from 
the  statement  that  since  191 2  it  has  always 
paid  a  profit  of  more  than  30  per  cent  on  the 
paid-up  capital,  and  maintained  this  rate  of 
earning  even  in  1914,  when  copper  dropped 
so  low  in  price.  For  the  six  months  ending 
May  31,  1917,  the  profit  was  80  per  cent 
against  the  paid-up  capital.  The  dividends 
paid  to  shareholders  during  these  years  were 
at  least  from  15  to  35  per  cent  per  annum. 
The  reserve  funds  have  been  increased  every 
six  months,  and  the  total  has  now  reached 
Yen  13,325,744,  which  represents  45  per  cent 
of  the  paid-up  capital. 

While  a  technical  description  of  the  mines 
and  works  of  the  Kuhara  Company  would  be 
out  of  place  in  this  article,  it  may  be  said  that 
the  properties  are  developed  or  are  being 
opened  up  along  the  most  modern  lines.  The 
equipment  is  recognised  to  be  the  very  best 
in  the  Orient,  and  the  products  of  the  various 
plants  leave  nothing  to  be  desired. 

The  Tawao  Estate  in  British  North  Borneo 
was  acquired  by  the  company  in  January, 
1916.  It  is  splendidly  situated,  and  the  soil 
is  fertile  enough  not  only  for  a  rubber  and 
cocoanut  plantation,  but  for  one-year  crops 
such  as  rice,  tobacco,  hemp,  sugar,  etc.  The 
area  of  the  estate  is  26,710  acres,  of  which  the 
company  has  the  lease  of  3,310  acres,  an 
application  now  being  lodged  for  the  balance. 


The  Kuhara  Company  has  made  rapid  pro- 
gress with  development,  there  being  471  acres 
already  under  rubber. 

The  Kuhara  Company  in  191 7  took  up, 
with  its  usual  energy,  the  question  of  ship- 
building, forming  a  subsidiarj'  company  for 
this  purpose.  The  details  of  the  new  enter- 
prise are,  however,  given  in  the  Tokyo 
section  of  this  work.     (See  page  634.) 

THE    Fl'RUKAWA    GOMEI    KAISHA 

(furukaw.a  &  CO.) 

More  than  ordinary  commercial  interest 
attaches  to  the  history  of  several  of  the  great 
industrial  houses  of  Japan,  because  in  writing 
of  their  origin  and  development  one  neces- 
sarily writes  of  the  origin  and  growth  of  some 
of  Japan's  greatest  industries.  Such  is  the 
case  with  the  Furukawa  Gomel  Kaisha,  a 
concern  which  ranks  among  the  pioneers  of 
the  mining  and  metal  industry  of  the  Empire, 
and  is  to-day  perhaps  the  greatest  organisa- 
tion of  its  kind  in  the  entire  East.  Under  the 
control  of  the  Furukawa  Gomei  Kaisha  are 
many  of  the  richest  and  best  developed 
mining  properties  in  Japan,  and  its  smelters, 
refineries,  foundries,  and  iron  and  steel  works 
are  famous  for  their  management  and  for  the 
fineness  of  their  products. 

It  is  now  over  forty  years  since  the  late 
Mr.  Ichibei  Furukawa  established  the  busi- 
ness and  made  it  the  first  copper  concern 
in  Tokyo.  He  was  energetic,  far-seeing,  and 
progressive,  and  under  his  direction  the  busi- 
ness became  one  of  first  rate  national  impor- 
tance. The  mines  were  worked  under  the 
most  modern  systems,  and  as  the  output 
increased,  mills  and  factories  grew  apace  to 
handle  the  crude  products.  To-day  the 
kaisha  has  eleven  branch  offices,  four  copper 
works,  and  twenty-five  mines,  whose  grand 
total  area  is  about  70,000  acres,  employing 
2,000  officials  and  35,000  hands.  The 
annual  production  is  35,000  tons  of  copper, 
220,000  tons  of  copper  ore,  1,200,000  tons 
of  coal,  and  large  quantities  of  bullion,  lead 
ingot,  silver  ore,  gold,  zinc,  and  by-products. 
The  principal  mines  are:  Ashio,  Ani,  Naga- 
matsu,  Muzusawa,  Otori  Kune,  and  Furo- 
kura  (copper);  Kijo  gold  mine,  Innai  silver 
mine,  Daira  lead  mine,  and  the  Shakanoo, 
Shiogashira,  Dai-ni-Shakanoo,  Shimoyamada, 
Shin-Shakanoo,  and  Yoshima  collieries.  The 
company  deals  in  all  kinds  of  ores  and  metals, 
in  the  crude,  manufactured,  or  partially 
refined  stages,  and  also  through  its  agencies 
in  America,  Australia  and  elsewhere,  is  able 
to  handle  practically  any  metal  or  by-product 
of  the  world.  The  quality  of  the  products 
from  the  company's  own  mines  is  spoken  of 
in  metallurgical  circles  as  of  the  very  best. 
The  establishment  of  the  company's  first 
copper  refinery  dates  back  over  thirty-two 


7«ir 


>  I 


'''0 


s; 
i 


A 


Hi 

fi    I 

i  ' 

i 


»i%*J' 


Sr 


FURUKAWA    GOMEI    KAISHA:     ASHIO  COPPER    MINE NIKKO   COPPER   WORKS ENTRANCE   TO   ASHIO  COPPER   MINE- 
POWER   HOUSE    OF    THE    ASHIO   COPPER    MINE    AND   WORKS  —  INTERIOR   OF    BESEMA   WORKS 


472 


PRESENT-UAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


GENERAL    VIEW   OF    THE    SUMITOMO 


years,  whun  the  refining  of  crude  copper  ores 
from  the  mines  under  their  own  control  was 
started  at  the  works  at  Yanagiwara,  Honjo, 
Tokyo,  and  the  products  were  gradually 
introduced  to  the  Japanese  markets.  The 
electrolytic  process  was  adopted  in  1889,  and 
in  1895  a  copper  wire  works  of  a  rather 
primary  nature  and  scale  was  erected  to 
meet  the  demand  of  electrical  requirements, 
then  rapidly  developing,  Extensive  im- 
provements followed,  and  in  1902  the  kaisha 
began  making  trolley  wire  for  traction 
purposes.  The  great  advances  then  being 
rapidly  made  in  all  branches  of  electrical 
engineering  demanded  that  the  company 
should  move  with  the  times,  and  in  1905 
both  refining  and  wire  works  were  erected 
at  Nikko,  occupying  an  area  of  twenty-five 
acres,  inclusive  of  five  acres  for  buildings. 
Two  years  later  the  original  works  at  Tokyo 
were  discontinued.  The  works  at  Nikko 
are  regarded  as  modern  and  complete  in 
every  respect,  and  a  world-wide  reputation 
has  been  won  for  the  products.  The  works 
are  fully  equipped  with  smelting  furnaces, 
rolling  apparatus,  and  a  complete  set  of 
wire-drawing  machinery  capable  of  making 
every  description  of  copper  bare  wire  for 
electrical  uses,  from  the  largest  sized  trolley 
wire  down  to  the  wire  necessary  for  the 
finest  and  most  delicate  mechanism,  the 
output  totalhng  2,500  tons  monthly,  of 
which  80  per  cent  is  for  domestic  consump- 
tion. In  addition,  the  works  are  well  pro- 
vided with  chemical,  physical,  and  electrical 
laboratories,  all  problems  arising  from  time 


to  time  being  solved  by  entirely  reliable  and 
accomplished  experts.  The  systems  of  in- 
spection and  testing  are  most  modern,  and 
as  a  consequence  the  Purukawa  Gomel 
Kaisha  has  earned  the  very  best  name  for 
the  uniform  quality  and  thorough  reliableness 
of  its  products,  which  conform  in  all  respects 
to  the  highest  accepted  European  standards. 

To  give  a  detailed  description  of  the  prod- 
ucts of  the  Purukawa  Gomel  Kaisha  is 
impossible  in  small  compass.  An  extensive 
domestic  and  foreign  trade  is  done  in  every 
line  of  metals,  ores,  and  manufactures,  such 
as  wires,  cables,  bearing  metals,  and  ingots. 
The  company  are  sole  agents  for  the  Yoko- 
hama Electric  Wire  Works,  the  Taisho 
Kogyo  Kabushiki  Kaisha,  and  the  Takata 
Coal  Co.  Works  are  maintained  at  Nikko, 
Tokyo,  Amagasaki,  and  Mizushima.  The 
head  office  of  the  Purukawa  Gomei  Kaisha 
is  at  Yaesucho,  Kojimachi-ku,  Tokyo,  and 
the  branches  are  at  Osaka,  Moji,  Wakamatsu, 
Hakata,  Shanghai,  Hankow,  Hongkong, 
Dairen,  and  New  York.  The  company  has 
representatives  and  agencies  at  London, 
Petrograd,  Moscow,  Vladivostock,  Harbin, 
Bombay,  Calcutta,  and  elsewhere. 

The  immense  business  of  the  company 
was  directed  by  the  late  Mr.  Junkitchi 
Purukawa,  a  son  of  the  founder  of  the  con- 
cern, from  1903,  and  upon  his  death  in  1907, 
his  brother.  Baron  Purukawa,  became 
President  of  the  enterprise.  The  present 
officers  of  the  Purukawa  Gomei  Kaisha  are: 
President,  Baron  Toranbsuke  Purukawa; 
Managing  Director,  Dr.  Rokusaburo  Kondo; 


and  Directors,  Dr,  Masayuki  Otagawa,  Mr. 
Koji  Inouye,  and  Mr.  Bunjiro  Konda. 

THE    HOUSE    OF    sr^^TOMO 

In  the  House  of  Sumitomo  there  is  found 
one  of  the  most  ancient  firms  in  Japan  —  a 
firm  in  which  the  stability  of  an  old  house 
and  sound  business  principles  of  a  noble 
entrepreneur  are  well  combined.  Ever  since 
the  discovery  of  the  Besshi  Copper  Mine 
in  1690  —  four  years  before  the  foundation 
of  the  Bank  of  England,  so  far  back  does  the 
Sumitomo's  business  record  go  —  the  family 
has  been  engaged  in  mining.  The  firm  were 
for  nearly  two  centuries  concerned  with  no 
other  business,  and  were  quite  satisfied  with 
the  slow  but  steady  progress  they  made  in 
working  and  developing  the  copper  mine. 
They  carried  on  the  development  of  mining 
with  unwearied  research  and  scrupulous 
fidelity,  and  so  laid  the  corner-stone  upon 
which  the  present  structure  of  the  Sumitomo 
firm  has  been  reared.  Soon  after  the  Res- 
toration in  1868  they  began  to  advance 
loans  against  mercliandise  and  shares,  afford- 
ing facilities  for  the  enhancement  of  the 
commerce  of  all  the  "river  valley"  of  the 
day.  On  the  other  hand,  they  started  export 
business  with  their  product,  providing  a 
special  office  at  Kobe,  known  in  later  years 
as  Sumitomo  Copper  Sales  Department. 
When  they  had  entered  upon  a  general 
financial  business,  they  paved  the  way  for 
a  bank  with  a  capital  of  30,000,000  yen,  and 
a  warehouse,  with  its  branches  all  over  the 
city  and  Kobe,  as  well  as  Tokyo,  for  there 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


473 


STEEL    WORKS    AT    NISHl-KU,    OSAKA 


have  sprung  up,  in  later  years,  the  Sumitomo 
Bank,  Ltd.,  and  Sumitomo  Warehouse,  in 
the  course  of  the  firm's  evolution.  As 
nations  grow  in  intelligence  and  civilisation, 
their  industry  extends.  Japan's  has  vastly 
advanced  and  the  Sumitomo's,  too!  Dur- 
ing the  year  1894  they  bought  out  a  copper 
rolling  concern  in  Osaka,  their  old  and 
original  seat,  and  started  manufacturing 
their  copper  from  the  Besshi  Mine  into 
plates,  rods,  tubes,  and  all  sorts  of  things. 
A  few  years  later,  to  reinforce  their  manu- 
facturing facility,  they  took  up  another 
works  in  the  metallurgical  line  of  business, 
and  made  it  a  branch  of  their  copper  rolling 
works,  where  zinc  plates  and  rods,  aluminum 
plates,  and  all  sorts  of  wires  for  electrical 
purposes,  both  bare  and  insulated,  were 
made.  Since  that  date,  improvement  has 
been  regularly  made  to  keep  up  with  impor- 
tant changes  and  remarkable  advances  in 
all  branches  of  metallurgical  industry  and 
electrical  engineering.  The  works  is  very 
well  known  as  the  first  one  that  succeeded 
in  turning  out  home-made  shipbuilding 
materials  of  a  quality  that  could  be  relied 
upon.  Their  pipes  and  steam-turbine  ma- 
terials are  both  ajiproved  for  use  by  the 
Imperial  Japanese  Navy.  In  1894,  the  firm 
procured  a  coal  mine  in  Tadakuma,  Chikuzen, 
Kiushiu.  The  concession  covers  an  area  of 
over  nine  thousand  acres  and  yields  some 
five  hundred  thousand  tons  per  annum  of 
black  and  bituminous  coal  of  high  heating 
value.  Coal  from  the  mine  is  selling  very 
well  on  account  of  its  high  heating  value, 


which  makes  it  so  suitable  for  the  produc- 
tion of  coke.  In  1901,  a  small  private  steel 
manufacturing  corporation,  then  in  exist- 
ence by  the  name  of  Nippon  Steel  Works, 
was  taken  over  by  the  firm,  who  launched 
out  as  steel  manufTcturers.  The  Sumitomo 
Steel  Works,  it  must  be  noted,  was  the  first 
private  steel  works  to  set  up  in  Japan,  and 
there  was  little  indication  in  its  earlier  exist- 
ence of  the  prosperity  which  it  was  later  to 
enjoy  under  the  firm's  name.  Along  with 
the  development  of  the  business  that  has 
followed  fast  upon  the  public  appreciation 
of  its  products,  shops  and  sheds  have  been 
erected,  and  plants  and  furnaces  have  been 
installed.  The  works  turns  out  over  a 
million  tons  of  wheels,  axles,  rollers,  cylinders, 
toothed  wheels,  ship  and  engine  accessories, 
etc.,  every  year.  It  is  now  a  maker  approved 
by  the  Imperial  Japanese  Government,  and 
by  Lloyds,  in  England.  Six  years  ago 
(191 1)  the  wire  and  cable  factory  of  the  firm, 
where  the  first  paper  cable  in  Japan  had 
been  produced,  was  made  independent  of 
the  copper  works,  to  accompany  the  steady 
growth  of  its  business.  The  Sumitomo 
Electric  Wire  and  Cable  Works  is  the  name 
of  the  new  works,  which  has  been  separated 
from  the  parent  works.  In  its  present 
buildings,  important  improvements  in  manu- 
facturing of  all  kinds  of  wire  have  been 
invented  and  adopted.  Its  business  and 
plants  have  rapidly  developed.  The  factory 
equipment  is  the  most  extensive  and  best 
accommodated  one  in  the  Orient.  Its 
products  have  the  appreciation  of  the  Depart- 


ment of  Communications,  Japan,  for  their 
unexcelled  quality.  The  ores  mined  at 
the  Besshi  Copper  Mine  contain  sulphur 
beside  copper  and  other  components,  but 
none  of  them  had  been  treated  for  their 
sulphur  content  till  19 1 3,  when  the  Sumi- 
tomo Fertilizer  Manufactory  was  established 
in  Niihama,  lyo  Province.  The  factory  is 
now  in  full  operation  after  three  years  of 
preparation.  It  produces  some  two  million 
tons  of  artificial  fertilizer  which  are  sold 
through  the  firm's  selling  agents,  one  in 
each  prefecture,  direct  to  the  farmers.  The 
firm's  mining  activities  of  recent  years  in  the 
northern  part  of  Japan  must  also  be  noted. 
Their  gold  mines  in  Hokkaido,  among  others, 
have  such  good  prospects  that,  it  is  said,  it 
will  not  be  long  before  the  Sumitomo  will  en- 
joy as  world-wide  a  reputation  as  a  gold 
producer  as  it  does  now  as  a  copper 
supplier. 

These  different  enterprises  are  continuing 
as  prosperous  as  ever  under  the  personal 
guidance  of  the  energetic  captain  of  indus- 
try, Baron  Kichizayemon  Sumitomo,  present 
head  of  the  firm  and  family.  He  is  a  younger 
brother  to  Prince  Tokudaiji,  ex-Lord  Chara- 
berlain-in-Chief  to  His  Late  Imperial  Maj- 
esty Meijitenno,  and  to  Marquis  Saionji,  a 
political  star  that  illuminates  Modern  Japan. 
He  was  adopted  into  the  Sumitomo  famil)'  in 
1892,  when  he  was  twenty-eight  years  old, 
and  set  out  on  a  tour  to  Europe  and  Amsrica 
in  1897.  The  days  spent  on  his  trip  were 
well  employed,  for  he  visited  many  works, 
factories,     and     mines.     Baron     Sumitomo 


474 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


SUMITOMO  STEEL  WORKS:    ENTRANCE  TO  NO.  3 
PIT   AT   THE    BESSHI    COPPER   MINE 

studied  organisation  and  system  that 
would  promote  the  happiness  of  his 
men.  Soon  after  his  return,  he  was  elected 
a  member  of  the  House  of  Peers,  but  he 
resigned  in  order  to  apply  himself  more 
closely  to  the  development  of  his  enter- 
prises. On  August  25,  191 1,  he  was  created 
a  baron  in  recognition  of  what  he  had  done 
for  the  sake  of  industrial  Japan. 

SUMITOMO    GENERAL    HEAD    OFFICE 

The  entire  organisation  of  the  Sumitomo 
Company  is  controlled  through  the  Sumi- 
tomo Honten,  or  Head  Oflfice.  Baron  Sumi- 
tomo is  the  head,  and  has  with  him  in  the 
management  of  the  firm's  vast  interests,  a 
Board  of  Directors,  which  comprises  Messrs. 
Masaya  Suzuki  (Director  in  Chief),  Kin- 
kichi  Nakada,  Kwankichi  Yukawa,  and 
Munio  Kubo.  There  are  two  joint  Man 
agers,  Messrs.  Yoshitaro  Yamashita  and 
Masatsune  Ogura.  The  four  directors  and 
two  managers  keep  all  the  various  enter- 
prises under  their  control  and  account  to 
Baron  Sumitomo  for  all  affairs  of  impor- 
tance, and  also  see  that  his  policy  is  carried 
out. 

Each  department  has  its  own  executive, 
who  reports  to  his  special  director.  It  is 
interesting  to  mention  the  great  change 
which  has  taken  place  in  the  attitude  of  the 
Sumitomo  towards  foreign  trade.  Although 
the  old  firm  was  as  good  and  as  stable  as 
any  concern  in  Japan,  its  policy  was  restricted 
and  the  general  attitude  was  one  of  self- 
centralisation  and  self-satisfaction.  With  the 
present  Board  of  Directors  the  Sumitomo 
to-day  is  always  closely  in  touch  with  world 
affairs.  It  has  become  a  firm  with  a  broad 
vision  whose  horizon  takes  in  every  part  of 
the  globe,  and  finds  interests  in  all  phases 
of  the  world's  business  activities. 

SUMITOMO    BESSHI     MINING    OFFICE 

Mr.  Munio  Kubo  is  President  of  this 
branch    of    the    Sumitomo    enterprises    and 


has  the  assistance  of  two  co-managers, 
Messrs.  Junkichi  Matsumoto  and  Komad- 
zuchi  Ohdaira.  The  famous  old  Besshi 
Copper  Mine  was  discovered  in  1690,  and 
has  been  worked  ever  since  by  the  family. 
The  mine  is  situated  in  the  central  part  of 
Shikoku  Island  in  the  Inland  Sea,  and  the 
mining  concession  extends  over  6,480  acres. 
There  is  no  richer  copper  mine  east  of  Suez. 
This  one  mine  has  produced  194,552  tons 
of  refined  copper  and  the  product  has  be- 
come famous  all  over  the  world  under  the 
name  of  "K.  S  Ingots  of  Japan,"  its  purity 
being  99.7  to  99.9  per  cent  of  copper.  The 
Besshi  Mine  is  a  model  of  modern  working, 
ics  plant  and  general  equipment  being  the 
finest  in  Japan.  The  firm  has  all  accessory 
departments  of  the  mine,  such  as  machine 
shops,  etc.  There  are  3,700  men  on  the  pay- 
roll, and  for  this  army  of  employees  the 
Sumitomo  has  provided  every  convenience 
for  the  betterment  of  working  and  living 
conditions,  such  as  workmen's  quarters, 
schools,  a  hospital,  and  so  on. 

SUMITOMO  WAREHOUSE 

This  is  a  separate  department  of  the  Sumi- 
tomo business,  and  was  established  to  pro- 
vide warehouse  accommodation  for  goods 
taken  by  the  Sumitomo  Bank  on  mortgage. 
Since  then  it  has  developed  into  a  public 
business,  the  company  having  erected  go- 
downs  in  various  centres.  Some  idea  of  the 
popularity  of  this  institution  may  be  gathered 
from  the  fact  that  the  company  now  has 
goods  valued  at  Yen  60,000,000  entrusted 
to  its  care.  Mr.  Chojiro  Kusaka  is  the 
Manager  of  this  department. 

WAKAMATSU   COAL   DEPARTMENT 

The  Sumitomo  has  in  the  Wakamatsu 
Colliery  one  of  the  finest  mining  properties 


in  the  whole  of  Japan,  and  the  working  and 
equipment  of  the  colliery  are  in  keeping 
with  the  extent  and  richness  of  the  concern. 
This  colliery  produced,  in  191 5,  352,900 
tons  of  black  and  bituminous  coal  of  the 
highest  grade.  Over  3,000  men  are  engaged 
in  this  branch  of  the  Sumitomo  operations, 
under  the  direction  of  Mr.  Yoshiharu  Yoshida. 

SUMITOMO   COPPER   WORKS 

These  works  are  located  at  Ajigawa, 
Kita-ku,  Osaka,  and  deal  principally  with 
the  output  of  the  Besshi  Mine.  The  plant 
covers  13.61  acres,  and  employs  2,700  hands. 
Dr.  Enju  Adagiri  is  President  of  the  sub- 
sidiary company,  and  Mr.  Kumajiro  Honjo 
is  the  Manager.  The  works  are  divided  into 
six  departments,  comprising  foundries,  sheet 
and  plate  mill,  tube  mill,  bar  mill,  steel  tube 
mill,  and  testing  department.  It  may  be 
taken  for  granted  that  the  plant  is  up  to 
date  in  every  respect  and  is  staffed  and 
equipped  in  the  best  style.  The  company 
produces  many  kinds  of  materials,  and  its 
output  finds  a  ready  demand  among  its 
numerous  customers,  including  the  Imperial 
Navy 

SUMITOMO  ELECTRIC   WIRE   &•  CABLE   WORKS 

Though  this  enterprise  was  only  started 
in  1908,  the  works  have  the  reputation  of 
being  the  most  efficiently  equipped  in  the 
Orient.  It  is,  in  fact,  the  only  plant  in 
Japan  where  the  system  of  "standardised 
production  "  has  been  introduced.  All  classes 
of  electric  wires  and  cables  are  manufactured, 
and  several  new  processes  have  been  intro- 
duced to  the  industry  through  these  works. 
In  191 1  the  works  employed  no  more  than 
180  hands,  but  the  number  to-day  is  over 
2,000.  The  products  of  the  Sumitomo  Elec- 
tric  Wire   &   Cable   Works   are   extensively 


VIEW    OF    SHISAKAJIMA    S.MELTING    WORKS   OF   THE    BESSHI    COPPER    MINE 


-^m 

f 

stixJ^^^I^^^^E 

^^^ 

L 

1    JL>.-'^»--"-flg                  ^jldfcuiMii'j  1 

^^PI^JjIHB                                  aSB"""^^^ 

J 

ri-^^^^UlMkllL 

\ 

V         v.-.-^* 

s; ^^.^m 

f 

rr 


i 


KONOSHIMA    (west)    AND    KONOSHIMA    (EASt)    WORKS   OF    THE   OSAKA    ZINC    MINING    AND    SMELTING   CO.,    LTD. 


476 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


exported  to  India,  Australia,  Russia,  China, 
Italy,  and  Canada.  Dr.  Yasuo  Riko  is 
President,  and  Mr.  Denichiro  Nishizaki  is 
Manager.  The  works  are  advantageously 
located  at  Okijima-minamicho,  Nishi-ku, 
Osaka. 

SUMITOMO  FERTILIZER  M.\NUFACTORY 

This  plant  is  under  the  direction  of  Messrs. 
Niihama  lyo  and  Kamajiro  Kajiura.  The 
output  includes  sulphuric  acid,  nitric  acid, 
superphosphate,  compound  manure,  and 
complete  manure.  Though  it  is  one  of  the 
youngest  amongst  the  firm's  enterprises,  its 
products  are  well  known  in  all  the  local  and 
foreign  markets.  The  plant  is  of  the  very 
best  type,  and  as  the  company  has  no  lack 
of  raw  materials  from  the  Besshi  Mine  and 
the  copper  works,  the  plant  is  able  to  pro- 
duce more  phosphate  than  is  turned  out  by 
all  the  other  works  in  Japan. 

SUMITOMO  STEEL  WORKS,  LIMITED 

This  enterprise  is  organised  as  a  separate 
company,  the  directorate  comprising  Baron 
Sumitomo,  President;  Messrs.  Kinkichi 
Nakada  and  Yoshio  lijima,  Managing 
Directors,  and  Messrs.  Masaya  Suzuki, 
Kwankichi  Yukawa,  and  Yoshitaro  Yama- 
shita,  Directors.  Messrs.  Munio  Kubo, 
Shizetaro  Ueno,  and  Masatsuma  Ogura  are 
the  Auditors. 

The  works  are  situated  at  Shimaya-cho, 
Osaka,  and  claim  the  distinction  of  having 
been  the  first  of  the  kind  to  be  established 
in  Japan.  The  operations  are  confined  to 
the  production  of  steel  castings  with  one 
fifteen-ton  acid  process  and  one  basic  Siemens 
furnace  of  the  same  capacity.  Among  the 
products  are  cast  steel  crossings,  turns, 
wheels,  etc.,  for  railways,  collieries,  and 
mines;  all  essential  parts  of  marine  boilers 
and  engines,  propellers,  propeller-blades, 
anchors,  marine  steering  gears,  and  general 
shipwrights'  materials;  rollers,  for  iron, 
copper,  and  brass  mills;  hydraulic  cylinders; 
yokes  for  electric  dynamos,  gearings  with 
straight  or  helical  teeth,  dredger  buckets, 
etc.,  and  all  heavy  parts  of  machinery. 
The  works  have  received  Lloyds  certificate 
and  have  also  won  the  highest  awards  at 
industrial  exhibitions  at  home  and  abroad. 

THE    OSAK.\    ZINC    MINING    &    SMELTING 
CO.MPANY,    LIMITED 

Until  a  few  years  ago  the  zinc  ore  pro- 
duced in  Japan  was  always  exported  to 
Germany  and  Belgium,  where  it  was  refined 
and  treated  for  commercial  purposes,  and 
then  shipped  back  to  Japan.  A  large 
opportunity  awaited  the  establishment  of 
domestic  treatment  plants,  especially  in 
view  of  the  increasing  production  of  the 
crude  ore  from  the  rapidly  developed  mines 


of    Japan     and    contiguous    countries.     To 
take  advantage  of  the  situation    the  Osaka 
Kogyo   Shikenjo   was   established   at   Ama- 
gasaki,    Hyogo   Prefecture,    and    the    treat- 
ment of  ore  was  started.     In  October,  191 1, 
another  company  was  founded  with  a  capital 
of  Yen  1,000,000,  and  a  little  later  the  busi- 
ness   of    the    Osaka    Kogyo    Shikenjo    was 
transferred    to    it,    the    new    amalgamation 
becoming  known  as  the  Osaka  Zinc  Mining 
&   Smelting   Company,   Ltd.     The   business 
of  the  company  was  not  flourishing  for  some 
time,  but  with  the  outbreak  of  the  war  and 
the  entire  stoppage  of  all  imports  of  zinc, 
the  promoters  of  the  industry'  had  the  chance 
to  carry  out  their  long-cherished  design  and 
to  show  the  world  their  mechanical  ability. 
The   factory   at    Amagasaki    was   enlarged, 
and  at  the  same  time  the  Konoshima  facton.' 
was  newly  estabUshed  in  Okayama  Prefec- 
ture and,  also,  electric  refineries  were  erected 
at  Torishima,  Osaka  Prefecture.     From  this 
moment  the  industry  was  put  on  a  proper 
footing  and  ever  since  the  output  has  in- 
creased, and  its  quality  has  improved.     Such 
a    degree    of   prosperity   has   been    attained 
that    the    Osaka    Zinc    Mining    &    Smelting 
Company,   Ltd.,  is  now  turning  out  about 
60  per  cent  of  the  total  production  of  Japan, 
and    the    products   are    regarded    with    the 
highest  favour  abroad.     In  the  Konoshima 
refinery,   Mr.  Van  Quick,  a  Belgian  expert 
metallurgist,    has    been    engaged    since    the 
end  of   19 16,  and  the  manufacturing  under 
his  direction  has  been  most  successful.     The 
company  produces  zinc  sheet,   refines  gold, 
silver,  lead  ore,  copper  ore,  and  other  basic 
mineral   products,   manufactures  zinc    chlo- 
ride,   sulphate    of    copper,    sulphuric    acid, 
and    bleaching    powder,    and,    furthermore, 
supplies  cheap  electrical   current  by  means 
of  its  powerful  water  plant,  which  is  operated 
under  the  name  of  the  Meiji  Suiryoku  Denki 
Kabushiki  Kaisha.     A  most  important  proj- 
ect now  before  the  directorate  of  this  com- 
pany  is   the   starting   of  mining   operations 
in    China,    Korea,    and    other   Oriental   and 
Southern    territories,    wherever    there    is    a 
possibility  of  obtaining   base  ore  in   ample 
quantity.     For    instance,    the    company    is 
now  negotiating  the  purchase  of  a  big  copper 
mine   in    Kosho    County,    in    the    north    of 
Heiando.    Korea.     Mining    is   now   actually 
going  on  in  connection  with  this  property, 
the   operations  being   conducted   under  the 
name  of  the  Kosho  Mining  Company,  Ltd. 
The  Osaka  Zinc  Mining  &  Smelting  Com- 
pany,  Ltd.,   has  its  head   office  at   No.   20 
Kitamachi,    Dojima,    Kitaku,    Osaka.     The 
factories  are:    Konoshima,   where   the   area 
held  covers  175,000  tsubo  and  the  buildings 
cover  15,144  tsubo;    Amagasaki,  area  1,373 
tsubo,  buildings  853  tsubo;    and  Torishima, 


area  5,602  tsubo,  buildings  3,055  tsubo. 
A  staff  of  400  officials,  experts,  and  clerks 
are  engaged  at  the  head  office  and  factories, 
and  the  mill  hands  number  4,634.  The 
capital  of  the  company  has  been  increased 
on  more  than  one  occasion,  the  last  being 
in  May,  1917,  when  the  sum  was  raised  to 
Yen  7,500,000,  of  which  Yen  5,000,000  is 
paid  up.  The  resen-e  fund  amounts  to 
Yen  4,544,905.  The  following  is  a  list  of 
the  products  manufactured  by  the  company, 
with  the  annual  output  given  for  each: 
Pure  zinc  (high  grade  spelter)  of  over  99.9 
per  cent,  12,000  tons;  pure  zinc  of  over 
99.5  per  cent,  2,000  tons;  primary  spelter, 
98  per  cent,  5,200  tons;  electrolytic  copper, 
2,500  tons;  soft  pig  lead,  6,000  tons;  zinc 
dust,  500  tons;  silver,  25,000  pounds; 
chloride  of  zinc,  600  tons;  sulphate  of  copper, 
500  tons;  ordinary-  sulphuric  acid,  108,000,- 
000  pounds,  and  strong  sulphuric  acid, 
43,200,000  pounds.  The  following  shows 
the  volume  of  the  export  business  done  by 
the  company  during  1916,  and  exemplifies 
how  solidly  Japan  is  now  producing  for 
markets  from  which  she  once  imported: 
828  tons  of  pure  zinc  sold  in  the  general 
market;  3,144  tons,  to  the  Imperial  Army 
and  Na\-y;  4,073  tons  to  Britain;  2,907 
tons  sold  to  Russia;  2,643  tons  sold  to 
France;  51  tons  sold  to  the  United  States; 
2,581  tons  of  slab  zinc  sold  to  the  general 
market;  80  tons  sold  to  the  Imperial  Army 
and  Navy;  1,118  tons  sold  to  Britain;  and 
1,498  tons  sold  to  Russia. 

As  to  the  general  business  policy  of  the 
Osaka  Zinc  Mining  &  Smelting  Company, 
Ltd.,  it  may  be  said  that  it  does  not  believe 
in  distributing  aU  its  profits  to  the  share- 
holders, but  is  consistently  building  up 
reser%'es,  and  paying  off  capital,  while  it 
is  spending  large  sums  on  experimental  work 
for  the  improvement  of  its  products,  and  is 
also  carrying  out  arrangements  for  the 
promotion  of  the  technical  skill  of  its  em- 
ployees. Nevertheless  the  profits  of  the 
enterprise  distributed  to  shareholders  have 
been  substantial.  In  the  last  half  of  1915 
the  dividend  was  i8Jis  per  cent,  20  per  cent 
in  the  first  half  of  1916,  and  10  per  cent  in 
the  last  half  of  that  year.  The  Directorate 
of  the  company  is  as  follows:  Messrs.  H. 
Fujita  (President),  S.  Hashimoto  (Managing 
Director),  K.  Tsujimoto,  Y.  Takagi,  N.  Saka, 
and  T.  Sakano.  The  Auditors  are  Messrs. 
R.  Sakai  and  S.  Yamashita.  The  Sales 
Department  of  the  Osaka  Zinc  Mining  & 
Smelting  Company,  Ltd.,  is  at  No.  26 
Tosabori-dori,    Nishiku,    Osaka. 

OS.\K.\  DENKIBUNDO  K.\BrSHlKl  K.\ISH.A. 

This  company,  known  in  English  as  the 
Osaka  Copper  Refining  Company,  Ltd.,  was 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


477 


■ 

--! 

1 

^ 

i 

J 

OSAKA   COPPER    REFINING    CO.,  LTD.:     VIEW    SHOWING    THE    ELECTROLYTIC    REFINING    PROCESS VIEW    SHOWING    THE    PREPARATION 

OF   COPPER,    BRASS,    AND    ZINC    PLATES GENERAL    VIEW   OF    THE    FACTORY 


founded  in  April,  1893,  with  a  capital  of 
Yen  300,000,  and  operated  a  metal  refining 
and  treatment  works  in  a  small  way  of  busi- 
ness, before  it  launched  out  on  its  present 
wide  scale  of  operations,  which  has  made 
it  one  of  the  largest  works  of  its  kind  in 
Japan. 

Coincident  with  the  development  of  min- 
ing in  Japan,  and  the  expansion  of  manu- 
facturing industries  calling  for  copper,  zinc, 
etc.,  the  Osaka  Copper  Refining  Co.,  Ltd., 
experienced  a  strong  demand  for  its  products. 
This  necessitated  extension  of  the  plant,  the 
installation  of  new  machinery,  and  other 
improvements,  following  the  lines  of  the 
leading  refineries  in  other  parts  of  the  world. 
To  carry  out  this  work  the  capital  of  the 
company  has  been  increased  on  several 
occasions  and  now  stands  at  Yen  5,000,000. 
The  main  plant  of  the  Osaka  Copper  Refin- 
ing Company,  Ltd.,  is  at  57 1  Temmabashisuji, 
Nishi  Nichome,  Kitaku,  Osaka,  and  covers  an 
area  of  12,500  tsubo.  The  buildings  are  of 
stone  and  brick,  and  house  the  most  modern 
of  plants  for  the  production  of  fine  brass, 
copper,  electrolytic  copper,  zinc  plate,  etc. 


The  annual  output  of  copper  alone  is  about 
35,000,000  pounds  per  annum,  valued  at 
Yen  17,000,000.  The  office  staff  of  the  com- 
pany comprises  30,  and  there  arc  50  engineers 
and  about  1,500  workmen.  At  Chinan,  in 
the  Shantung  Province,  China,  the  Osaka 
Metal  Refining  Co.,  Ltd.,  has  a  branch  works 
and  sales  department.  To  keep  the  works 
going  at  full  capacity  the  company  not 
only  utilises  a  large  quantity  of  crude  ores 
produced  in  Japan,  but  also  imports  exten- 
sively from  China,  India,  AustraUa  and 
elsewhere,  in  return  shipping  the  refined 
products  to  Europe,  China,  and  India.  The 
sole  sales  agent  for  the  products  of  the  Osaka 
refinery  are  the  Mitsui  Bussan  Kabushiki 
Kaisha.  Mr.  S.  Matsuoka  is  the  President 
of  the  Osaka  Copper  Refining  Co.,  Ltd. 
The  Managing  Director  is  Mr.  S.  Suzuki, 
and  the  Directors  are  Messrs.  S.  Yoshida 
and  S.  Kotera.  The  inspectors  are  Messrs. 
T.  Koono,  S.  Kitaraura,  and  S.  Noda. 

THE    FUJITA    COMPANY 

There    are    a    few    companies    in    Japan 
which,    although    private    enterprises,    may 


yet  be  said  to  be  great  national  concerns  in 
the  sense  that  their  work  is  of  first-rate 
national  importance,  the  profits  from  the 
undertakings  going  to  the  shareholders, 
but  the  real  benefits  of  the  enterprise  dis- 
played, accruing  to  the  Nation  and  the 
people.  Foremost  amongst  such  companies 
must  be  named  the  Pujitagumi,  or  Fujita 
Company.  This  powerful  concern  has 
carried  out  work  of  such  an  important 
nature  that  it  is  rightly  regarded  more  in 
the  nature  of  a  branch  of  national  develop- 
ment than  as  a  private  corporation.  A 
specific  instance  of  this  work  of  the  opening 
up  of  new  sources  of  wealth  and  industry 
may  be  mentioned.  The  Fujita  Company 
has  largely  made  Japan  independent  of 
foreign  countries  in  the  production  of  ferro- 
alloys, but  the  most  conspicuous  evidence 
of  its  broad-minded  national  policy  is  the 
reclamation  of  a  large  tract  of  tidal-water 
land  at  Kojima  Bay  for  agricultural  purposes. 
Reclamation  for  public  purposes,  such  as 
the  provision  of  quays  and  harbour  ap- 
proaches, etc.,  is  fairly  common  throughout 
the  world,  but  it  is  necessary  to  go  to  Holland 


HEAD   OFFICE   OF   THE   FUJITA    GUMI    AND    THE    FUJITA    MINING   CO.,    LTD.,    OSAKA  —  THE    FTJITA    BANK,    LTD.,    OSAKA 


P  R  E  S  !■:  N  T  -DAY        I   M   I'  R  IC  S  S  1  O  N  S        OF        JAPAN 


479 


to  see  similar  work  to  tliat  carried  out  Ijy 
the  Fujita  Company  at  Kojima  Bay.  Here 
the  company  has  already  placed  4,000  acres, 
out  of  a  total  of  12,000  acres,  under  rice 
production,  and  when  the  work  is  completed 
it  is  anticipated  that  there  will  he  an  annual 
production  of  about  4,000,000  Inishels  of 
rice  of  a  value  of  Yen  3,000,000.  What  this 
mi'ans  to  a  coimtry  like  Japan,  which  needs 
every  acre  of  rice  land  that  can  be  obtained 
in  order  to  make  up  the  present  deficiency 
between  rice  i>roduction  and  domestic  con- 
sumption, can  better  be  imagined  than 
stated  in  set  terms.  The  company's  under- 
taking is  recognised  as  a  striking  instance 
of  national  spirit,  and  it  is  not  surprising  to 
learn  that  the  new  rice  area  is  now  officially 
known  as  Fujita  County,  in  honour  of  the 
founders  of  the  scheme. 

It  would  be  impossible  to  describe  in  detail 
all   the   activities   of   the   Fujita   Company. 


The  company  is  associated  in  a  vast  number 
of  enterpri.ses,  all  tending  toward  the  develop- 
ment of  the  resources  of  the  Empire.  These 
enterprises  may  be  enumerated  as  follows: 
mining  and  smelting,  production  of  timber, 
direction  of  timber  mills,  cultivation  of  rice 
and  cereals,  development  of  agricultural 
lands,  and  the  financing  of  various  other 
industries.  Farther  afield,  the  company  is 
deeply  interested  in  the  development  of 
rubber  plantations  in  the  Malay  Peninsula. 
Before  dealing  with  these  various  activities 
it  is  well  to  mention  that  the  business  of 
the  company  was  founded  in  1869  in  Osaka, 
the  commercial  and  industrial  centre  of 
Japan,  by  the  late  Baron  Denzaburo  Fujita, 
who  did  as  much  as  any  man  could  have 
done  toward  the  exploitation  of  the  latent 
resources  of  the  Empire,  not  merely  with 
the  object  of  deriving  profit  from  his  energies, 
but  with  the  broader  object  in  view  of  doing 


his  best  to  make  Japan,  as  far  as  possible, 
self-contained,  and  independent  of  foreign 
countries.  The  founder  of  the  company 
has  passed  away,  but  on  his  death  he  was 
succeeded  by  his  eldest  son,  Baron  Heitaro 
Fujita,  who  is  now  President  of  the  company. 
The  registered  capital  of  the  Pujitagumi  is 
Yen  5,000,000,  but  the  capital  actually  in 
operation  in  the  various  enterprises  exceeds 
the  large  sum  of  Yen  50,000,000. 

Preeminent  among  the  activities  of  the 
Fujita  Company  is  its  close  association  with 
the  mining  industry  of  Japan.  When  metal- 
lic mining  was  started  in  Japan  the  company 
was  among  the  first  to  take  an  active  interest 
in  it,  and  started  mining  operations  in  1880, 
leading  the  way  with  the  adoption  of  the  best 
methods  and  the  latest  machinery  and  ap- 
pliances as  utilised  in  Europe  and  America. 
The  total  number  of  mining  claims  held  by 
the  company  in  Japan  and  Korea  is  127,  while 


DIRECTORS   OF    L.\KGE    MINING    INTERESTS 

(Upper  Row,  Left  to  Right)  Mr.  His.\hiro  N.\ito,  President,  Nippon  Oil  Co.,  Ltd.  —  Mr.  Keiz.^buro  H.\shimoto,  President,  Hohden 
Oil  Co.,  Ltd.  (Middle  Row)  Mr.  Sennosuke  H.\shimoto,  Managing  Director,  Osaka  Zinc  Mining  and  Smelting  Co.,  Ltd. —  Mr. 
FusANOSUKE  KuH.\R\,  President,  Kuhara  Mining  Co.  —  Mr.  K.  Taked-'^,  President,  Great  Japan  Mining  Co.,  Ltd.  (Lower  Row)  Mr. 
H.  Fujita,  Chairman  of  Board  of  Directors,  Osaka  Zinc  Mining  and  Smelting  Co.,  Ltd.  —  Mr.  Nakaslke  Saka.  Managing  Director, 
The  Fujitagumi,  Osaka. 


48o 


PRESENT-DAY 


IMPRESSIONS 


OF        JAPAN 


it  is  the  direct  owner  of  44  different  mines, 
some  of  which  are  now  being  developed,  while 
13  are  actually  being  successfully  worked. 
Of  these  mines  the  Kosaka  is  the  most  famous. 
It  produces  gold,  silver,  copper,  lead,  zinc, 
and  bismuth.  The  other  mines  well  known 
by  their  names  are:  Hanaoka,  Akitsu, 
Shikaku,  Oarasawa,  Unekura,  Matsuoka, 
Tagonai,  Ohmori,  Obij'e,  Ohmidani,  Hisaki, 
Somin,  Antotsu,  and  Zuiko.  The  total  value 
of  the  mineral  products  of  the  Fujita  Com- 
pany exceeds  Yen  10,000,000  per  annum, 
and  the  productive  capacity  of  the  mines  is 
steadily  increasing,  the  ratio  of  their  output 
to  the  total  mineral  production  of  Japan 
standing  very  high.  Of  silver,  the  company 
produces  31  per  cent  of  the  total  yield  of 
Japan;  of  copper,  19  per  cent,  and  of  gold,  13 
per  cent.  Special  efforts  have  been  made  by 
the  metallurgical  experts  of  the  company  to 
supply  many  of  the  necessaries,  the  lack  of 
which  was  felt  in  Japan  immediately  foreign 
sources  of  supply  were  cut  off  by  the  war. 
Ferro-alloys  is  a  case  in  point.  These  were 
always  imported,  but  when  the  war  came  on 
the  Fujita  Company  started  to  produce  ferro- 
alloys of  many  kinds,  the  works  at  Hirota,  in 
the  Fukushima  District,  operated  by  hydro- 
electric power,  being  engaged  in  the  work. 
So  far  the  greater  part  of  the  company's 
output  of  ferro-alloys  has  been  taken  by  the 
Imperial  Army  and  Navy  arsenals,  and  by 
various  engineering  works,  though  some 
alloys  are  exported  to  Russia,  Australia,  and 
the  United  States.  The  Osaka  Zinc  Mining 
&  Smelting  Co.,  Ltd.,  is  a  subsidiary  company 
controlled  by  the  Fujita  Company,  and  is  the 
pioneer  of  the  spelter  industry'  in  Japan. 
This  concern  operates  four  smelting  plants, 
and  produces  an  enormous  quantity  of  high- 
grade  spelter  and  other  metals,  two-thirds  of 
the  production  being  available  for  export. 
The  Forestry  Department  of  the  Fujita 
Company  is  another  very  important  enter- 
prise, conducting  work  of  largely  a  national 
character,  embracing  all  businesses  which 
ordinarily  come  within  the  purview  of  forestry 
management.  The  company's  operations 
include  deforestation  and  afforestation,  activ- 
ities not  being  confined  alone  to  Japan,  but 
extending  wherever  a  suitable  field  for 
enterprise  is  located.  Extensive  forests, 
aggregating  some  180,000  acres,  are  being 
worked  in  Hokkaido,  which  is  famed  for  its 
oak.  The  Fujita  Company  is  in  a  position  to 
supply  any  orders  for  oak,  ash,  birch,  tamo, 
pine,  etc.,  both  in  logs  and  sawn.  The 
Yawataya  Saw  Mill,  which  is  regarded  as  one 
of  the  finest  equipped  lumber  plants  in  the 
entire  Orient,  is  operated  by  the  Fujita 
Company.  It  is  conveniently  situated  on  the 
harbour  front  at  Osaka,  and  apart  from  the 
usual  equipment  of  such  a   mill,   there  are 


flooring  and  box-making  plants,  together 
with  drj'-kilns  of  the  latest  tj'pe.  The 
Xagakisawa  Saw  Mill,  also  owned  by  the 
Fujita  Company,  is  in  the  northern  part  of 
Japan,  in  the  Akita  district,  and  not  far  from 
the  famous  Kosaka  Mine,  in  the  heart  of  the 
cedar-producing  forest  lands.  The  company 
has  a  large  concession  of  cedar  forest  from  the 
Government  to  supply  the  mill  with  logs. 
This  mill  produces  about  30,000,000  B.  M. 
feet  per  annum  for  the  home  market. 

In  the  Malay  Peninsula  the  Fujita  Com- 
pany has  taken  an  important  position  in  the 
rubber  industry.  The  company's  estate  is 
situated  at  Kota  Tinggi,  in  the  State  of 
Johore,  about  30  miles  up  the  river  from 
Singapore,  and  covers  some  6,000  acres. 
This  property  was  acquired  in  1910  and  since 
then  practically  the  whole  of  it  has  been 
planted.  The  first  and  second  years'  plant- 
ings are  now  yielding  rubber,  and  when  the 
whole  comes  into  bearing  the  output  is 
expected  to  be  about  1,200  tons  of  crude 
rubber  aimually.  It  is  also  proposed  to 
establish  a  rubber  factor>',  either  in  Singapore 
or  Kobe,  in  connection  with  the  Fujita  Com- 
pany's Nam  Heng  Rubber  Estate. 

From  this  brief  description  of  the  enter- 
prises controlled  by  the  Fujita  Company,  it 
may  be  gathered  how  important  are  its 
operations,  view-ed  from  a  Japanese  national 
standpoint.  The  company  holds  the  highest 
reputation  for  its  progressive  policy  and  the 
soundness  of  its  business  methods,  and  there 
is  no  question  but  that  it  is  destined  to  play 
an  even  greater  part  in  the  further  develop- 
ment of  the  natural  resources,  and  the 
secondary  industries  of  Japan,  than  it  has 
played  in  the  past. 

Since  the  above  article  was  written  vari- 
ous important  changes  have  been  made 
which  may  briefly  be  summarised: 

The  Fujita  Gumi,  a  private  enterprise, 
as  heretofore  operates  in  mining,  forestry, 
agriculture,  and  banking.  The  partners  are 
Baron  Heitaro  Fujita,  Tokujiro  Fujita, 
Esq.,  and  Hikosaburo  Fujita,  Esq. 

The  Fujita  Mining  Co.,  Ltd.,  with  a 
nominal  capital  of  Yen  30,000,000,  of  which 
15,000,000  is  paid  up,  is  under  the  direction 
of  T.  Fujita,  Esq.,  as  President,  and  N. 
Saka,  Esq.,  as  Managing  Director.  The  pro- 
ducts, to  a  large  extent  exported,  comprise 
gold,  silver,  electrolytic  copper,  electrolytic 
zinc,  ferro-alloy,  ferro-silicon,  ferro-titanium, 
ferro-tungsten,  ferro-manganese,  ferro-molyb- 
denum,  and  ferro-chrome.  The  mines  oper- 
ated are  located  at  Kosaka,  Obiye,  Omori, 
Oarasawa  Zuiho,  and  a  number  of  other 
places  in  Japan  proper,  Korea,  and  Formosa. 

The  Fujita  Bank,  Ltd.,  a  further  distinct 
branch   enterprise,    with   a   nominal   capital 


of  Yen  10,000,000,  Yen  5,000,000  paid  up 
is  under  the  direction  of  Baron  H.  Fujita 
as  President  and  K.  Suzuki,  Esq.,  as  Man- 
aging Director.  The  head  oflfice  is,  as  will 
be  seen  from  the  accompanying  illustration, 
located  in  very  fine  premises  at  4-chome, 
Imabashi,  Higashi-ku,  Osaka.  Branches 
are  rapidly  being  opened  throughout  the 
country.  Those  at  Tokyo,  Kyoto,  and  other 
important  centres  will,  of  course,  be  operating 
ere  this  publication  is  issued.  It  may  with 
safety  be  predicted  that  the  expansion  over- 
seas will  follow  at  no  distant  date. 

GREAT  JAPAN  MINING  CO.,  LIMITED 
Ix  mining,  as  in  all  other  industries,  great 
progress  has  been  witnessed  in  Japan,  modem 
methods,  and  labour  saving  machinery,  com- 
bined with  the  bold  investment  of  a  large 
amount  of  capital,  and  expert  technical 
direction,  having  led  to  a  large  increase  in  the 
output  from  old  mines,  and  the  opening  up  of 
many  new  mineral  areas.  The  greatest 
enterprise  has  been  shown  by  such  concerns 
as  the  Great  Japan  Mining  Co.,  Ltd.,  the 
Mitsu  Bishi  Company,  Ftirukawa  &  Co.,  and 
the  Kuhara  Mining  Company,  all  of  which 
are  powerful  corporations,  having  abundance 
of  capital  at  their  disposal,  and  working  on 
the  most  improved  methods  to  develop  the 
mineral  resources  of  Japan. 

The  Dai-Nippon  Kogyo  Kabushiki  Kaisha, 
or  Great  Japan  Mining  Co.,  Ltd.,  has  been  in 
existence  only  two  or  three  years,  but  it  has 
accomplished  a  vast  amount  of  useful  and 
profitable  work,  particularly  in  the  opening 
up  on  a  proper  scale  of  old  mines,  and  in  the 
development  of  new  processes  for  the  more 
effective  extraction  of  gold,  silver,  and  copper 
from  base  ores.  This  company  was  estab- 
lished in  November,  191 5,  by  Messrs. 
Kyosaku  Takeda,  Xobuo  Tajima,  and  a  small 
group  of  their  business  associates,  the  original 
capital  being  Yen  2,000,000.  This  sum  was 
shortly  afterwards  increased  to  Yen  5,000,000, 
when  it  was  seen  that  extensive  work  would 
have  to  be  done  in  the  provision  of  smelting 
works,  refineries,  and  other  establishments 
necessarj'  for  the  handling  of  the  large  bodies 
of  ore  in  sight  in  the  company's  mines.  The 
company  is  working  chiefly  the  following 
properties:  Hassei  Mine,  situated  at  Hachi- 
mori  \''illage,  Yamamoto  County,  Akita 
Prefecture,  producing  gold,  silver,  and  copper 
ore;  Yoshino  Mine,  at  Nishi-Naruse  Village, 
Okachi  County,  Akita,  producing  gold,  silver, 
copper,  and  lead  ores;  Kitomo  Colliery,  at 
Funagata  Village,  Mogami  County,  Yama- 
gata  Prefecture,  producing  lignite  and  a 
special  coke  or  charcoal.  In  addition,  the 
company  is  operating  its  own  iron  works  at 
Saruyecho,  Fukagawa-ku,  Tokj-o. 

The  areas  under  control  comprise:  Hassei 


ife 


I:      ''^         ^ 


■vx.^ovVi  W-^sj^^^A^-.  %  ^/^^J'/J^/.^/JJJa^UOL^^ 


J 


GREAT  JAPAN    MINING   CO.,    LTD.:     HASSEI    MINE    .^ND   CENTRAL    SMELTER  — YOSHINO    MINE,    SHOWING   THE  CONCENTRATION 

IN   COURSE   OF   CONSTRUCTION    (NOVEMBER,    I9I7) 


PLANT 


482 


PRESENT-DAY 


IMPRESSIONS        O  E 


A  P  A  N 


Mine  and  subsidiary  workings,  940,892  tusbo, 
of  which  35,000  tsubo  are  being  worked; 
Yoshino  Mine,  10,261,676  tsubo,  of  which 
90,000  tsubo  arc  being  w'orked;  and  Kitom 
Colliery,  8,695,632  tsubo,  of  which  25,000 
tsubo  are  being  worked.  The  various  build- 
ings, such  as  battery  houses,  concentration 
plants,  smelters,  refineries,  etc.,  are  con- 
structed of  stone,  wood,  or  brick,  and  cover  in 
all  an  area  of  20,000  tsubo.  There  are  installed 
with  all  the  latest  machinerjr  for  mining  use, 
and,  moreover,  the  company  has  a  complete 
iron-working  plant  at  its  Tok>-o  factory,  as 
well  as  wood-working  machinery.  Water 
power,  steam  and  gas  engines  are  employed 
for  different  purposes,  according  to  the 
localities  of  the  several  plants.  The  technical 
and  clerical  staff  comprises  2 1  o,  and  at  the  end 
of  October,  1917,  there  were  4,480  workmen 
on  the  company's  payroll,  the  amount  dis- 
bursed in  wages  being  about  Yen  950,000  per 
annum.  These  figures  will  indicate  the 
extent  of  the  operations  of  the  Great  Japan 
Mining  Co.,  Ltd. 

Although  the  number  of  shares  in  the  com- 
pany is  100,000,  at  Yen  50  each,  there  is  a 
comparatively  small  number  of  shareholders, 
consequently  the  policy  of  the  concern  is 
easily  directed  and  there  is  the  smoothest 
relationship  between  the  directorate  and  the 
shareholders. 

Hassei  Mine  possesses  the  largest  silver  ore 
bed  in  Japan.  When  it  was  known  as  the 
Tsubaki  (Camelia)  Silver  Mine,  a  few  years 
ago,  it  produced  the  largest  output  of  silver 
in  the  country.  The  situation  of  the  pro- 
perty is  very  convenient,  being  easily  access- 
ible both  by  sea  and  land.  The  site  is  an 
ideal  one  for  a  central  smelter  and  refinery. 


because  there  is  no  settlement  to  be  damaged 
by  smoke  or  fumes,  but  the  nature  of  the 
silver  ore  being  too  silicic,  refining  has  been 
greatly  decreased,  and  the  company  does  not 
attach  much  importance  to  the  silver  mining 
at  this  centre.  The  Yoshino  Mine  is  pre- 
eminent for  the  extent  of  the  ore  body,  which 
is  perhaps  the  largest  in  Japan.  It  is 
estimated  that  there  is  about  1,500,000,000 
kwan  of  payable  ore  in  sight  (i  kwayi  equals 
8}^  lbs.),  but  exploratory  work  now  in  pro- 
gress is  expected  to  disclose  a  further  5,000,- 
000,000  to  10,000,000,000,  kwan  of  ore. 
The  concentration  of  the  ore  is  very  simple, 
being  carried  out  by  what  is  known  as  the 
"flotation"  process.  In  other  ways  the 
Yoshino  Mine  is  a  model  of  simplicity  and 
automatic  w'orking,  giving  the  most  effective 
results  at  a  minimum  of  cost.  At  present 
about  100  tons  of  ore  are  handled  daily,  which 
within  a  few  months  will  be  increased  to  1,500 
tons.  The  concentrates  produced  are  noted 
for  the  large  percentage  of  gold  and  silver 
which  they  contain.  Under  the  present 
arrangement  the  ores  and  concentrates  from 
the  Yoshino  and  other  mines  are  sent  to  the 
Hassei  Mine,  where  the  central  smelter  and 
the  refinery  are  located  and  there  they  are 
smelted  and  refined,  together  with  the  silver 
and  other  ores  from  the  Hassei.  It  is  the 
intention  of  the  company  to  begin  the  pro- 
duction of  electrolytic  copper  at  an  early  date, 
a  new  concentration  plant  being  under 
construction  at  the  Yoshino  Mine,  to  be 
completed   by   March,    1918. 

At  the  Kitomo  Colliery  a  special  charcoal 
factory  is  being  erected  for  the  production  of 
a  new  kind  of  lignite  charcoal,  made  by  a 
distillation  process.     This  product  is  known 


as  "new  charcoal,"  produced  under  a  special 
and  recent  invention.  It  is  like  charcoal  in 
many  respects,  and  is  much  cheaper  than  the 
latter,  while  possessing  a  higher  calorific 
value.  Ashes,  which  constitute  a  big  defect 
in  most  cokes,  are  very  limited  with  the  "new 
charcoal,"  and  it  is  also  deficient  in  phos- 
phorus and  sulphur.  It  is  claimed  to  be  an 
ideal  fuel  for  making  a  special  iron  and 
steel,  and  can  also  be  used  for  general  indus- 
trial and  household  purposes.  In  the  course 
of  producing  this  coke  there  are  by-products, 
such  as  tar,  and  also  acetic  and  carbolic 
acids.  To  utilise  these  the  company  is  now 
contemplating  the  installation  of  a  plant  to 
produce  various  chemical  substances,  and  so 
to  engage  largely  in  the  chemical  industry. 

The  output  of  the  various  properties  owned 
by  the  Great  Japan  Mining  Co.,  Ltd.,  for 
the  ten  months  ended  October  31,  1917,  were 
as  follows:  Gold,  2,304  momme,  valued  at 
Yen  11,520;  silver,  1,536,000  momme,  valued 
at  Y^en  307,200;  copper,  3,000,000  kin,  valued 
at  Yen  1,740,000,  or  a  total  value  of  Y'en  2,- 
058,720,  apart  from  the  value  of  the  coal  and 
coke  produced  from  the  colliery.  In  19 18,  it 
is  estimated  that  the  output  will  be  increased 
as  follows:  Gold,  12,000  momme;  silver, 
6,600,000  momme,  and  copper  8,000,000  kin 
(120  momme  equal  i  pound;  I  kin  equals 
I  yi  pounds).  In  addition  to  its  own  output, 
the  company  purchases  ores  from  other 
sources  for  treatment  in  its  works. 

The  head  office  of  the  Great  Japan  Mining 
Co.,  Ltd.,  is  at  No.  6  Tameike-machi,  Aka- 
saka-ku,  Tokyo.  Mr.  K.  Takeda  is  the 
Chairman  of  Directors,  and  the  following 
are  also  on  the  Board:  Messrs.  X.  Tajima, 
M.  Isobe,   N.   Namiki,  and  M.   Mayekawa. 


PRESENT      n  A  \-        I  M   IM<   I-:  S  S  I  O  N  S        OF        JAPAN 


483 


THE    HISTORY    OF    OIL 
IN  JAPAN 

By  A.  P.  SCOTT,    Manaiiin^  Director, 
Rising  Sun  Petroleum  Co.,  Ltd. 

MORE  than  1,200  years  ago  pctroloum 
was  known  in  Japan  as  "burning 
earth  and  burning  water."  In  those  ages 
these  elements  were  considered  as  something 
spiritual,  and  were  approached  with  awe 
and  reverence.  Then  the  insect- kilhng  prop- 
erties of  petroleum  were  discovered,  and 
about  two  hundred  vears  ago  petroleum 
began  to  be  used  for  illuminating  purposes 
in  its  crude  and  semi-crude  state.  But  dan- 
ger, smoke,  and  bad  smell  were  inseparable, 
and  as  a  result  the  use  of  it  was  confined  to 
the  poor  people  of  the  producing  districts. 

When  Japan  was  opened  for  foreign  trade 
some  sixty  years  ago,  refined  petroleum  began 
to  be  imported  from  America  in  small  quan- 
tities by  Chinese  merchants  of  Nagasaki  as 
one  of  the  Western  novelties.  Such  importa- 
tions at  Nagasaki  were:  8  cases  in  1869; 
70  in   1870;  417  in   1871;  3,530  in    1872. 

In  this  early  period  only  the  progressive 
upper-class  made  use  of  the  refined  product. 
Of  its  value  as  a  novelty  of  the  Western 
world  the  following  anecdote,  told  by  the 
Japanese,  affords  a  good  illustration:  In 
1869  a  number  of  young  men  wished  to  find  an 
occasion  of  showing  their  gratitude  towards 
their  English  master,  an  official  translator  of 
the  Department  of  Foreign  Affairs,  recently 
returned  from  Europe,  who  gave  them  Eng- 
lish lessons  free  of  charge.  They  raised  a 
subscription  and  bought  a  present  that  was 
handed  to  the  wife  of  the  official.  It  con- 
sisted of  a  lamp  stand  and  half  a  dozen  black 
bottles,  each  having  a  label  printed  in  Eng- 
lish. The  master  coming  home  saw  the 
present,  took  up  a  bottle,  read  the  label  and 
said:  "This  is  Triangle  Brand  Bass  Ale,  a 
precious  liquor  that  is  brewed  in  England 
from  wheat.  Happy  am  I  to  taste  the  long 
forgotten  drink."  Thus  speaking  to  his  wife 
he  poured  it  in  a  glass,  and  as  soon  as  he 
gulped  it  down  he  vomited  and  gurgled  in  a 
very  excited  and  confused  manner.  It  was 
not  beer,  as  he  expected,  but  kerosene!  The 
colour  of  early  imported  kero.sene  was  not 
the  water  white  of  the  present  day,  and  it  was 
sold  in  old  beer  bottles.  The  wholesale  price 
was  about  Yen  40  per  case.  Later  it  came 
down   to  82. 60   Mexican  silver 

Until  1893,  when  the  Standard  Oil  Com- 
pany began  direct  sales  in  Japan,  the  import 
trade  had  been  very  speculative.  The  cus- 
tomary transaction  was  to  buy  forward  from 
importers.  Sailing  vessels  usually  left  the 
Atlantic  coast  during  the  months  of  February 
and  March  and  took  six  to  seven  months 
before  they  arrived  in  Japan.     Forward  sales 


.\    BIG    GUSHHR    HROl'GHT    IN    liV    THE    NIPPON   OIL   COMPANY 


contracts  were  chiefly  made  in  May,  June, 
and  July.  The  buyer  had  to  bear  the  risk 
of  fluctuation  of  price  during  from  two  to  six 
months.  The  matter  was  made  worse  by 
violent  and  frequent  fluctuation  of  the  ex- 


change rate  of  the  Mexican  dollar.  Thus,  a 
kerosene  merchant  was  regarded  as  a  specu- 
lator rather  than  a  sound  business  man. 

In  1887  Russian  oil  was  imported  to  Japan 
by  Samuel  Samuel  &  Co.,  and  for  a  time  it 


4S4 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


occupied  an  important  position  in  the  Japa- 
nese oil  trade. 

Meanwhile  the  native  oil  industry  was  in  a 
struggling  state.  Production  of  native  crude 
was:  24,000  koku  in  1879,  and  39,000  koku 
in  1888.  The  oil  wells  were  dug  by  hand  and 
the  deepest  one  was  not  more  than  600  feet. 
By  the  year  1889  there  existed  four  or  five 
refineries  in  the  oil-producing  centres  of 
Echigo,  but  these  being  the  undertakings  of 
private  individuals  were  necessarily  on  a 
small  scale  and  imperfectly  equipped.  The 
total  output  of  refined  petroleum  of  the  same 
year  was  4,511  koku,  against  an  import  of 
28,500,000  gallons.  About  this  time  several 
oil  wells  of  the  Amase  field  succeeded,  and 
this  place  attracted  the  attention  of  the 
Echigo  people.  Stimulated  by  the  activity 
of  the  Amase  field,  Messrs.  G.  Yamaguchi, 
S.  Homura,  H.  Naito,  and  other  prominent 
men  of  Echigo  promoted  a  company  in  1889, 
with  a  subscribed  capital  of  Yen  150,000. 
Mr.  Naito  was  elected  the  Managing  Director 
of  the  new  company.  During  a  dinner  given 
to  celebrate  the  organisation  of  the  company 
a  bat  entered  the  room.  They  interpreted 
this  as  a  good  omen  because  the  Chinese 
character  of  "bat"  is  pronounced  the  same  as 
that  of  "happy  fortune,"  so  they  adopted 
"Bat"  as  their  trade-mark. 

In  the  year  1887  Mr.  Yamada,  Ex-Presi- 
dent of  the  Hohdcn  Oil  Company,  first 
engaged  in  the  oil-well  trade.  In  1890  the 
Nippon  Oil  Company  imported  drilling 
machines  from  America,  and  these  proved  a 
success.  In  1891  there  were  430  companies 
doing  oil  business,  with  a  capital  invested 
amounting  to  Yen  5,535,300.  In  1893  the 
Hohden  Oil  Company  was  organised  by 
Mr.  M.  Yamada  and  others,  with  a  subscribed 
capital  of  Yen  15,000,  and  an  oil  field  of 
4,000  tsubo.  This  company  was  very  well 
managed  and  was  lucky  in  striking  oil,  and 
was  so  prosperous  that  business  rapidly 
expanded.  Within  seven  years  their  capital 
had  been  increased  to  Yen  600,000,  and  they 
purchased  fifteen  companies  and  partner- 
ships. Ever  since,  amalgamation  of  smaller 
companies  has  been  characteristic  of  the 
policy  of  the  Hohden  Oil  Company. 

As  stated  elsewhere,  up  to  1893  the  Stand- 
ard Oil  Company  had  no  direct  selling  organ- 
isation in  the  country.  American  oil  was 
imported  by  the  Japan  and  China  Trading 
Co.,  Smith-Baker,  Brown  &  Co.,  Jardine, 
Matheson  Co.,  the  Mitsui  Bussan  Kaisha, 
etc.  In  this  year  the  Standard  Oil  Company 
opened  their  Japan  branch  headquarters  at 
Yokohama,  and  branch  offices  at  Kobe  and 
Nagasaki. 

Against  the  selling  organisation  of  the 
Standard  Oil  Company  Mr.  Asano,  the  sole 
buyer  of  Russian   oil  for  Nagoya  and   the 


northeast,  organised  a  Guild  in  Tokyo,  and 
his  operations  through  this  medium  were  so 
successful  that  from  the  start  100,000  units 
were  sold  monthly,  and  this  increased  to  over 
180,000  units.  Later  this  Guild  was  dis- 
solved, and  Mr.  Asano  opened  branch  selling 
offices  in  many  up-countr>'  towns  to  deal 
direct  with  local  buyers. 

From  Januarj'  i,  1899,  the  new  tariff 
law  took  effect.  Kerosene  was  to  be  charged 
I  sen  per  gallon  bulk  and  1.6  sen  packed  in 
tins.  Before  this,  though  there  was  a  rate 
fixed  for  import  duty  of  kerosene,  it  was  not 
enforced  over  foreigners  because  they  were 
hidden  behind  the  wall  of  exterritoriality. 

By  the  year  1900  the  Echigo  fields  were 
very  flourishing,  and  both  Samuel  Samuel  & 
Co.  and  the  Standard  Oil  Company  began  to 
consider  seriously  the  advisability  of  exploit- 
ing Japanese  oilfields.  The  former,  after 
careful  examination  of  the  fields,  abandoned 
the  idea,  while  the  Standard  Oil  Company 
had  not  much  confidence  in  them,  yet  they 
saw  that  the  oil-indicating  area  was  vast  and 
that  if  these  fields  really  produced  oil  under 
the  direction  of  native  enterprise,  their  own 
strong  position  in  the  Oriental  countries 
might  be  seriously  affected.  They  therefore 
decided  to  take  the  risk  of  entering  Japan  as 
producers,  and  in  November,  1900,  the  Inter- 
national Oil  Company,  a  branch  of  the 
Standard  Oil  Company,  w'as  formed  with  a 
capital  of  Yen  10,000,000.  Such  a  gigantic 
enterprise  by  foreigners  inspired  awe  and 
suspicion  among  the  natives. 

The  same  year  the  International  Oil  Com- 
pany began  the  exploitation  of  the  Hokkaido 
oilfield.  The  existence  of  mineral  oil  in 
Hokkaido  has  been  known  since  long  before 
the  Restoration.  First  it  was  sold  as  a  cure 
for  skin  diseases,  and  very  much  later  as  an 
illuminant.  Several  attempts  on  a  small 
scale  by  Japanese  in  Hokkaido  had  ended 
without  any  good  result. 

However,  this  attempt  of  the  International 
Oil  Company  stimulated  native  enterprise. 
Oil  rights  at  the  end  of  1899  were  1,640,000 
tsubo,  which  suddenly  increased  to  101,970,- 
000  tsubo  by  the  end  of  1900,  besides  14S,- 
950,000  tsubo  then  pending  application. 

The  year  1900  is  also  a  memorable  one, 
because  the  import  of  Russian  oil,  which  had 
regularly  appeared  in  the  Japanese  market 
since  1887,  ended  this  year,  and  Samuel 
Samuel  &  Co.  substituted  Borneo  oil  for  it. 
The  tank  steamer  Strombus  arrived  at  Yoko- 
hama in  October  with  the  first  consignment 
of  1,500  tons  of  Borneo  oil.  At  first  sales  of 
the  new  oil  met  with  competition,  but  it 
soon  found  its  way  into  the  market  in  spite 
of  it.  The  second  consignment  of  3,500  tons, 
per  tank  steamer  Clam,  followed  imme- 
diately. 


The  import  of  kerosene  in  this  year  (1900) 
was  as  follows:  American  oil,  48,472,229 
gallons;  Russian  oil,  13,904,266  gallons; 
Borneo  oil,  5,465,829  gallons. 

By  this  time  Mr.  Asano  had  opened  his 
selling  offices  in  more  than  forty  towns,  well 
spread  over  his  selling  area.  This  was  to 
protect  his  oil  business  against  possible 
attack  from  the  Standard  Oil  Company. 

The  native  oils  up  to  this  period  (1900)  were 
mostly  sold  in  Echigo  Province,  and  in  Tokyo 
and  the  western  provinces  they  were  in  de- 
mand only  for  mixing  with  American  oil.  In 
order  to  raise  the  standing  of  Echigo  oil  it  was 
necessary  to  standardise  the  products,  and 
thus  a  large  refinery  was  established  in  Naga- 
oka  in  1900  with  a  capital  of  Yen  500,000,  un- 
der the  name  of  the  Nagaoka  Refinery  Com- 
pany. In  this  year  the  Xippon  Oil  Company 
commenced  sales  of  lamp  oil  in  Tokyo. 

Up  to  this  time  the  holding  of  an  oilfield 
right  was  charged  with  no  royalty  until  the 
field  was  actually  worked.  This  resulted  in 
the  holding  of  vast  fields  by  mere  adven- 
turers, shutting  out  earnest  industrial  people. 
Though  the  opinion  of  the  Government  met 
with  opposition  from  miners  on  the  ground 
that  the  Japanese  oil  industry  still  needed 
contributions  from  adventurous  prospectors, 
it  was  decided  in  1 90 1  to  charge  10  sen  per 
1,000  tsubo  per  year  on  holding  rights  of 
oilfields. 

In  this  year  a  law  to  increase  the  import 
duty  on  kerosene  was  passed,  and  the  rate 
was  doubled,  i.  e.,  bulk  kerosene  rose  from 
1  sen  per  gallon  to  2  sen,  and  in  tins  from 
1 .6  sen  to  3.2  rin  per  gallon.  By  this  charge 
an  increase  of  revenue  of  Yen  850,000  was 
expected. 

In  1902  the  Hohden  Oil  Company  success- 
fully effected  the  amalgamation  of  thirty 
companies,  and  among  the  companies  thus 
amalgamated  were  several  pipe  line  com- 
panies and  refineries.  They  increased  their 
capital  from  Yen  650,000  to  Yen  1,500,000. 
Up  to  this  time  the  products  of  the  Hohden 
Oil  Company  were  sold  through  the  Oil 
Department  of  Mr.  Asano,  but  the  expansion 
of  the  company  by  amalgamation  necessitated 
a  modification  of  the  sales  system,  and  a 
partnership  called  Hosen  Shokai  was  organ- 
ised with  a  capital  of  Yen  350,000. 

In  this  year  the  Nippon  Sekiyu  Kaisha 
increased  their  capital  to  Yen  2,400,000. 
This  company  first  started  with  a  capital  of 
Yen  150,000,  then  increased  to  Yen  600,000 
in  1894,  and  to  Yen  1,200,000  in  1900. 
According  to  statistics  taken  by  the  Nagaoka 
Miners'  Association,  there  w-ere  fifty-two 
companies,  with  a  capital  of  Yen  33,180,000, 
at  the  end  of  1902,  as  against  fifty-eight  com- 
panies, with  a  capital  of  Yen  4,900,710,  five 
years  previously. 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF    JAPAN 


485 


At  this  time  the  Niitsu  ficlil  suddenly 
became  active.  The  new  demand  for  liquid 
fuel  was  created,  and  the  Niitsu  crude  was 
the  cheapest  for  the  purpose.  Up  to  1900 
it  had  been  65  sen  per  koku.  Also,  the  wells 
were  shallow,  the  average  depth  being  about 
600  feet.  At  the  end  of  June,  1902,  there 
were  101  wells  with  an  average  daily  output 
of  704  koku.  The  price  of  Niitsu  crude 
ranged  from  Yen  i.oo  to  Yen  1.60  per  koku. 


shares,  owing  to  general  depression  of  trade 
and  industry  by  the  Russo-Japanese  War. 

In  this  year  the  Native  Oil  Selling  Com- 
pany was  organised  with  a  capital  of  Yen 
500,000.  The  whole  products  of  the  Nippon 
and  the  Hohden  were  to  be  sold  through 
this  organisation,  the  Bat  and  the  Jewel  being 
the  chief  brands. 

In  1905  the  Mining  Law  was  revised  and 
foreigners  were  given  mining  rights,  provided 


solved.  Thus  a  big  selling  competition  was 
generally  anticipated,  but  it  only  brought 
about  competition  for  improvements  of 
merchandise. 

In  1907  the  International  Oil  Company  was 
sold  to  the  Nippon  Oil  Company  for  Yen 
1,750,000.  The  failure  of  this  company  is 
ascribed  to  difiticulty  arising  out  of  the 
difference  of  feelings  and  customs  between 
America  and  Japan.     From  the  beginning  of 


By  the  middle  of  the  following  year  the  daily 
output  of  crude  increased  to  1,210  koku,  and 
the  price  also  advanced  to  Yen  2.30  per  koku. 

The  Standard  Oil  Company  planned  to 
import  kerosene  in  bulk.  This  was  advan- 
tageous because  the  import  duty  of  bulk  oil 
was  20  sen  per  unit  of  10  gallons,  while 
kerosene  in  t.ins  was  charged  32  sen.  But 
this  idea  was  abandoned  as  a  consequence  of 
the  revision  of  the  tariff,  and  the  import  duty 
of  both  bulk  oil  and  in  tins  was  made  the 
same,  i.  e.,  32  sen  per  unit  of  10  gallons. 

Up  to  this  time  the  grading  of  kerosene 
was:  American  oil  first,  Russian  oil  second, 
and  native  oil  third,  but  from  October  of  this 
year  the  positions  of  Russian  and  native  oil 
were  reversed.  The  anti-Russian  feeling 
just  before  the  Russo-Japanese  War  brought 
about  this  change.  In  Osaka  a  placard  was 
shown  warning  the  public  to  stop  using  Rus- 
sian oil,  with  the  penalty  of  one's  house 
being  burnt  down. 

In  1904  the  Hohden  Oil  Company  effected 
another  amalgamation  and  purchased  nine- 
teen companies.  This  work  was  made  easy 
in   consequence   of   a   great   depreciation   of 


SCENE    IN    K.\B.\KEI    V.\LLEV,    KYUSHU 

they  formed  their  companies  under  Japanese 
laws. 

In  this  year  the  Government  Railway 
Bureau  laid  a  pipe  line  near  Karuizawa,  be- 
tween Yokogawa  and  Usui,  in  order  to 
remedy  the  insufficient  carrying  capacity  of 
the  train  carrying  ser\^ce. 

In  1905  the  Namboku  Oil  Company  was 
organised  with  a  subscribed  capital  of  Yen 
1,500,000.  Among  the  promoters,  Messrs. 
Okura,  Yamada,  Watanabe,  Murai,  and 
Asano  were  prominent. 

The  Nippon  Oil  Company,  taking  advan- 
tage of  the  prosperity  of  the  share  market 
after  the  war,  increased  their  capital  from 
Yen  2,400,000  to  Yen  5,000,000,  and  the 
Hohden  Oil  Company  effected  a  third  amal- 
gamation of  twenty-six  oil  companies. 

In  August,  1906,  Mr.  Asano's  selling  con- 
tract with  Samuel  Samuel  &  Co.  expired,  and 
since  then  sales  northwest  of  Gifu,  including 
Hokurokudo,  have  been  made  by  the  im- 
porters direct.  In  the  following  month  the 
Native  Oil  Selling  Company,  the  combined 
selling  organisations  of  the  Nippon  Oil  Com- 
pany  and   the   Hohden   Oil  Company,   dis- 


the  existence  of  this  company  working 
expenses  were  very  heavy,  and  loss  followed 
loss.  Finally  they  had  to  decide  whether  to 
abandon  the  enterprise  or  reinforce  it  with 
much  more  capital.  In  connection  with  this 
ciuestion  the  Standard  Oil  Company  head- 
quarters in  America  sent  their  Engineer,  Mr. 
Carter,  to  Japan.  Upon  investigation  of  the 
Echigo  oilfields  he  saw  that  only  shallow 
strata  had  been  exploited,  and  he  had  good 
hopes  of  them  for  deeper  boring  with  better 
and  larger  plants.  This  opinion  of  Mr. 
Carter's  unfortunately  did  not  meet  with  the 
approval  of  Mr.  Copman,  the  Manager  of  the 
Standard  Oil  Company's  Japan  Branch,  and 
American  Headquarters.  Under  such  cir- 
cumstances it  is  the  usual  policy  of  the 
Standard  Oil  CoSnpany  to  carry  home  all 
tools,  machinery,  etc.,  so  that  these  may  not 
be  utilised  by  their  competitors.  But  the 
case  of  the  International  Oil  Company  in 
Japan  was  an  exception.  Mr.  Dunn,  the 
Naoetsu  Manager  of  the  International  Oil 
Company  and  ex-American  Minister  for 
Japan,  was  well  disposed  towards  the  Japa- 
nese nation,  and  he  advocated  transferring 


32 


486 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


the  undertaking  to  able  Japanese  successors. 
Mr.  Copman  was  of  the  same  opinion,  and 
the  whole  property,  excepting  that  in  Hok- 
kaido, was  transferred  for  Yen  1,750,000. 
In  the  field  there  were  70  oil-producing  wells 
with  280  koku  daily  output  of  oil,  and  one 
well  with  1,300,000  cubic  feet  of  gas. 

In  1903  there  was  a  great  controversy  in 
regard  to  import  duty  on  crude  oil.  After 
several  revisions  kerosene,  both  bulk  and  in 
tins,  was  charged  38  sen  per  10  gallons. 
Added  to  this  another  38  sen  was  charged  as 
war  duty,  and  this  latter  was  increased  to 
58  sen  from  June  i,  1905.  The  war  tax  was 
continued  after  the  war,  and  from  April  i, 
1906,  kerosene  import  duty  was  made  96  sen 
per  10  gallons. 

The  import  duty  in  1906  relating  to  pe- 
troleum was  as  follows:  Mineral  Oil  (ex- 
cepting  crude  oil)  — 

1.  Light  Oil  (Benzine)  below  0.730  of  s.  g. 
@  15°  C,  20  per  cent  ad  valorem. 

2.  Lamp  Oil,  not  exceeding  0.875  of  s.  g. 
@  15°  C,  96  sen  per  lo  gals. 

3.  Heavy  Oil,  over  0.875  s.  g.  @  15°  C, 
Yen  1.23  per  100  kin. 

Thus  there  was  no  rate  fixed  for  crude  oil, 
because  no  crude  oil  had  been  imported  into 
Japan,  and  it  was  the  intention  of  the  Govern- 
ment to  include  crude  oil  in  the  category  of 
"Oil,  grease,  and  wax,"  and  charge  20  per 
cent  ad  valorem.  If  so,  it  was  obvious  that 
the  export  of  lamp  oil  would  be  substituted 
for  crude  oil.  This  meant  a  decrease  of 
revenue  and  it  was  thought  that  the  native 
oil  industry  would  be  threatened.  In  1907 
the  bill  relating  to  import  duty  of  crude  oil 
was  presented  to  the  Diet  by  the  Govern- 
ment. There  were  two  divisions  of  opinion. 
One,  represented  by  Mr.  Asano,  insisted  upon 
reducing  crude  oil  import  duty,  while  the 
other  strongly  advocated  raising  it  to  a  level 
equivalent  to  that  of  illuminating  oil.  Mr. 
Naito  was  the  champion  of  the  latter  group. 
Finally  the  original  bill  was  a  Uttle  modified 
and  the  new  duty  was  put  into  effect  from 
April  I,  1909. 

MINERAL  OIL 

I.  Crude  Oil.  Percentage  of  liquid  distilled 
at  a  temperature  from  I20°C.  to  275°C.  by 
fraction   distillation   against   original   crude. 

(A)  Not   exceeding   20  per  cent  duty, 
.17  sen  per  10  gallons. 

(B)  Not  exceeding   25  per  cent  duty, 
.21  sen  per  10  gallons. 

(C)  Not   exceeding   30  per  cent  duty, 
.25  sen  per  10  gallons. 

(D)  Not  exceeding   35  per  cent  duty, 
.29  sen  per  10  gallons. 

(E)  Not   exceeding   40  per  cent  duty, 
.33  sen  per  10  gallons. 

(F)  Others.     Duty,     .36    sen    per    10 
gallons. 


2.     Other  Mineral  Oils.     Gravity  at  15  °C. 

(A)  Not  exceeding  .730,*  duty,  20  per 
cent  ad  valorem. 

(B)  Not  exceeding  .875,  duty,  .96  sen 
per   10  gallons. 

(C)  Others.     Duty,  Yen    1.23  per  100 
kin. 

The  origin  of  the  controversy  and  agitation 
over  the  crude  oil  import  duty  is  ascribed  to 
Mr.  Asano's  ambition  to  monopolise  the  oil 
business  in  the  East.  As  the  first  step 
towards  this  realisation  he  made  a  contract 
with  the  Graciosa  Oil  Company  of  California, 
and  two  other  oil  companies,  to  buy  crude  oil, 
and  at  the  same  time  he  secured  a  site  at 
Maiko  (near  Kob6)  and  secured  a  lease  of 
land  at  Dalny  from  the  Government.  Then 
he  increased  the  capital  of  the  Namboku  Oil 
Company  (established  in  1905,  capital  Yen 
1,500,000)  to  Yen  3,000,000,  and  amalga- 
mated the  Tozai  Oil  Company  (established 
in  1906,  capital  Yen  1,500,000).  The 
Namboku  erected  a  large  refinery  at  Hodo- 
gaya  and  tank  storage  installation  at  Hira- 
numa  in  1908,  and  the  crude  oil  imported  by 
Mr.  Asano  was  sold  to  the  Namboku  at  a 
small  profit.  Thus  it  was  very  important 
for  Mr.  Asano  to  keep  the  import  duty  of 
crude  oil  at  the  lowest  possible  rate.  How- 
ever, in  spite  of  his  efforts,  the  Graciosa  and 
the  two  other  Californian  oil  companies  were 
bought  up  by  the  Standard  Oil  Company, 
and  Mr.  Asano's  plan  became  impossible. 
While  the  crude  oil  duty  controversy  was 
being  hotly  discussed,  the  Miyasawa  Oilfield 
began  boring  and  found  new  gushers.  The 
Nippon  Kaisha  struck  eight  wells,  getting 
850  koku  per  day,  and  the  Hohden  struck 
four  wells,  getting  420  koku  per  day. 

In  1908  the  Nippon  Oil  Company  struck 
oil  at  a  depth  of  360  feet  near  Akita,  and  got 
over  10  kuko  per  day.  This  was  the  first 
well  of  any  significance  in  the  Akita  district. 
It  was  known  from  early  times  that  oil 
existed  underground  in  the  Akita  district, 
and  from  the  Second  Year  of  Meiji  (1869) 
there  had  been  several  attempts  to  get  at  it, 
but  these  had  ended  without  any  satisfactory 
results.  With  the  trial  success  of  the  Nippon 
Oil  Company,  oil  people  began  putting  some 
hope  in  the  Akita  fields.  In  1910  the  Nippon 
Oil  Company  built  a  refinery  at  Tsuchizaki 
to  refine  Akita  crude.  In  1908  the  Namboku 
struck  a  good  well  at  Byoritsu  in  Formosa, 
and  in  the  same  year  the  Nippon  Oil  Company 
bought  oil  rights  in  southern  Formosa. 

The  Rising  Sun  Petroleum  Co.,  Ltd.,  a 
concern  which  had  taken  over  a  large  number 
of  Mr.  Asano's  up-country  depots  and  built 
up  a  detailed  up-country  organisation,  bought 
a  large  tract  of  land  at  Saitozaki,  near  Hakata, 

*    Benzine.     This  was   revised  to   so    sen  per    lo 
gallons  in    1910. 


in  1908,  and  began  constructing  a  refinery 
with  a  view  to  refining  Borneo  and  Sumatra 
oil  to  provide  for  Japan,  Korea,  and  Man- 
churia. The  equipment  of  the  refinery  was 
as  follows: 

2  4,000-ton  crude  tanks 


1,500- 
200- 
60- 
500- 
100- 
12- 
100- 


kerosene  tanks 
benzine  tanks 
agitators 
silting  tanks 
receiving  tanks 
liquid  fuel  tanks 
distiUing  boilers 


Two  tin-shops  (capacity,  8,000  pieces  per 
day),  godowns,  condensing  house,  electric 
generating  house,  laborator>',  pumping  house, 
filling  shed,  living  quarters,  and  railway  con- 
nection to  the  Hakata  Railway  Company's 
line. 

It  was  so  arranged  that  a  6,000-ton  tanker 
could  discharge  its  whole  bulk  oil  cargo  at 
a  point  600  feet  from  the  shore  through  an 
8-inch  pipe  within  20  hours.  The  work  was 
completed  in  July,  1909,  and  refining  com- 
menced in  September. 

In  1908  the  Namboku  Oil  Company  was 
finally  amalgamated  into  the  Hohden  Oil 
Company. 

In  April,  1908,  the  Standard  Oil  Company 
commenced  sales  of  Tiger  Brand  oil  in  bulk. 
In  January,  1909,  the  native  companies 
entered  into  a  price  agreement  with  the 
importing  companies,  and  strengthened 
market  prices.  The  foreign  companies  also 
raised  prices  and  the  market  seemed  to 
improve.  This  lasted  but  a  very  short  time, 
and  before  long  there  was  keen  competition 
among  the  various  parties,  each  endeavour- 
ing to  make  full  use  of  their  new  facilities. 

The  native  oil  people  endeavoured  to 
stop  competition  and  to  form  a  sales  confer- 
ence, and  an  arrangement  was  made  in 
February,  1910,  by  which  the  two  native 
companies  were  to  supply  35  per  cent  and 
the  two  foreign  companies  65  per  cent  of 
the  total  lamp  oil.  The  total  consumption 
was  then  estimated  at  10,000,000  c/s 

Hohden Echigo 1,520,000 

"        from  imported  crude 600,000 

Nippon 1,380,000 

S.  O.  C.  &  R.  S.  P.  Co 6,500,000 


Total 10,000,000 

The  arrangement  worked  for  about  six 
months,  but  in  September  a  period  of  un- 
precedentedly  keen  competition  set  in.  The 
effect  of  this  competition  on  the  native  oil 
industry  was  so  disastrous  that  the  Govern- 
ment contemplated  taking  some  steps  to 
stop  it.  However,  the  competition  slack- 
ened by  the  end  of  December,  and  in  August, 
191 1,  they  entered  into  a  state  of  truce. 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


487 


As  far  as  productiun  went,  it  was  in  1910 
thai  there  were  several  gushings  at  Garameki, 
Niitsu  district,  the  largest  of  which  put  out 
1,360  koku  per  day,  which  at  the  time  was 
the  record. 

In  191 1  the  desirability  of  amalgamation 
of  the  Nippon  and  the  Hohden  was  loudly 
discussed.  After  the  purchase  of  the  Inter- 
national Oil  Company  by  the  former  these 
two  oil  companies  almost  equally  shared 
nearly  the  total  native  production;  other 
people  were  too  small  to  be  considered. 
There  were  obvious  evils  under  such  circum- 
stances in  the  existence  of  two  companies. 
They  competed  with  each  other  in  sales,  and 
there  was  useless  competition  in  drilling. 
The  controversy  of  amalgamation  versus 
non-amalgamation  had  increased  its  zeal 
after  the  severe  blow  received  by  the  native 
companies  from  the  oil  war  of  the  previous 
year.  The  chief  point  of  the  amalgamist 
is  that,  the  two  companies'  oilfields  lying 
side  by  side  in  almost  every  district,  a  success 
on  the  part  of  one  company  in  boring  a  well 
results  in  a  competitive  drilling  along  the 
boundary  by  the  two  companies,  thus  wast- 
ing energy  and  capital  uselessly.  The  con- 
tending argument  is  that  the  development 
of  the  oil  industry  is  chiefly  due  to  com- 
petition, and  more  or  less  waste  of  labour 
is  worth  sacrificing.  The  amalgamation  will 
result  in  the  monopoly  of  the  native  oil  busi- 
ness on  the  one  hand,  and  will  tend  to  check 
technical  development.  Much  importance 
was  attached  to  the  question  by  the  inter- 
vention of  Baron  Goto,  then  the  Chief  of 
the  Government  Railway  Bureau,  who 
advised  the  companies  concerned  to  amalga- 
mate. The  directors  seriously  considered 
the  question  and  met  several  times,  but 
failed  to  agree  on  any  definite  action. 

Meanwhile  deep  drilling  at  Imo  field,  in 
the  Nishiyama  district,  proceeded  success- 
fully. Previous  attempts  in  this  oil  field 
have  failed,  and  the  mining  right  was  trans- 
ferred to  the  International  Oil  Company, 
which  in  May,  1906,  erected  a  big  two-story 
derrick,  84  feet  high,  for  deep  drilling,  and 
in  May,  1907,  struck  the  oil  bed  at  a  depth 
of  2,219  feet,  with  a  production  of  45  koku 
of  crude  per  day.  Three  or  four  years 
passed  without  any  further  attempts,  and 
after  the  right  was  transferred  to  the  Nippon 
Oil  Company,  deep  drilling  was  again  com- 
menced, in  1909,  In  1910  there  were  several 
wells  struck  in  an  oil  bed,  at  a  depth  of  about 
2,500  feet,  the  wells  putting  out  some  50 
koku  per  day.  In  191 1  success  was  more 
brilliant.  The  biggest  gusher  put  out  120 
koku  per  day,  and  the  deepest  well  reached 
a  depth  of  3,180  feet.  Deep  drilling  at 
2,500  to  3,000  feet  with  rope  was  a  rather 
difficult  feat,  and   the  success  at  Imo  field 


must  be  considered  a  remarkable  achieve- 
ment of  the  art  of  drilling.  The  average 
length  of  time  required  to  drill  such  a  deep 
well  was  about  a  year.  In  this  year  (191 1) 
the  Nippon  Oil  Company  purchased  the 
whole  of  the  International's  Hokkaido 
business,  comprising  forty-one  mining  rights 
covering  an  area  of  over  600,000  tsubo,  with 
seven  oil-producing  wells  (daily  output,  170 
koku),  54,000  tsubo  of  land,  some  buildings, 
seven  tanks  (two  of  4,000  tons,  two  of  1,000 
tons,  two  of  400  tons,  one  of  200  tons),  60,000 
feet  of  pipeline,  and  drilling  machines  and 
tools. 

By  this  time  the  total  production  of  crude 
had  decreased  to  1,550,000  koku  per  year 
as  against  l  ,830,000  koku  three  years  before, 
and  the  future  of  the  Japanese  oil  industry 
was  viewed  with  pessimism.  The  cause  of 
the  decrease  of  production  was  that  the 
shallow  wells  were  gradually  dying  out,  and 
deep  well  drilling  takes  a  long  time  and  is 
accompanied  by  many  difficulties.  However, 
the  importation  of  a  new  and  powerful  rotary 
drilling  machine  by  the  Nippon  Oil  Company, 
from  America,  with  four  mechanics,  threw 
new  life  into  the  Echigo  oilfields.  The  effi- 
ciency of  the  new  rotary  machine  was  so 
great  that  it  drilled  from  120  feet  to  180  feet, 
per  day  of  24  hours,  in  the  Nishiyama  fields, 
and  only  two  or  three  months  were  required 
to  drill  a  well  that  would  need  one  or  two 
years'  drilling  by  the  rope  system.  One  well 
drilled  3,300  feet  in  only  80  days,  and  struck 
oil!  The  first  rotary  drilled  well  of  2,880  feet 
was  commenced  on  April  5th  and  completed 
on  June  23rd,  and  gushed  100  koku  per 
day.  Encouraged  by  these  successes,  the 
Nippon  Sekiyu  Kaisha  installed  rotary  ma- 
chines at  Kamada,  Takiya,  Nagamini,  Gochi, 
and  Niitsu,  and  these  met  with  good  results. 
Then  the  Hohden  followed  the  example,  and 
ordered  rotary  machines  from  America.  The 
new  machine  was  installed  at  Iriwada  field, 
in  Nishiyama  district.  Mr.  Ogura  bought 
one  and  used  it  at  Kamata.  Then  many 
others  began  to  use  the  rotary  machine.  Not 
only  did  the  new  machine  do  wonderful  ser- 
vice itself,  but  it  served  as  a  stimulus  to  the 
old  rope  system,  and  the  latter  was  much 
improved,  and  increased  its  efficiency.  The 
continued  prosperity  of  the  Nippon  Sekiyu 
Kaisha  decided  them  to  increase  their  capital 
from  Yen  10,000,000  to  Yen  20,000,000. 

In  September,  1912,  No.  71  rotary  drilled 
a  well  at  Imo  field,  and  at  a  depth  of  443 
feet  struck  oil,  which  gushed  out  at  a  rate 
of  600  koku  per  day.  About  the  same  time 
another  rotary  well  at  Kamada  struck  gas 
and  blew  out  6,000,000  cubic  feet  of  gas 
per  day.  These  two  weUs,  one  oil  and  the 
other  gas,  were  then  the  biggest  on  record 
in   Japan.     The   total   production   of   crude 


oil  in  1913  increased  to  1,750,000,  as  against 
1,470,000  koku  in  1912. 

In  this  year  the  Nippon  Oil  Company 
erected  a  refinery  at  Garugawa,  Hokkaido. 

One  of  the  most  remarkable  occurrences 
in  the  annals  of  Japanese  oil  history  is  that 
the  Nippon  Company's  No.  5  rotary  well 
at  Kurokawa  field,  Akita  district,  struck  an 
extraordinarily  big  oil  deposit.  The  well 
began  gushing  at  midnight  on  May  25,  1914. 
By  the  test  made  at  nine  in  the  morning  it 
gushed  at  a  rate  of  nine  koku  per  minute, 
or  12,960  koku  per  24  hours.  This  Kurokawa 
field  is  at  a  distance  of  four  rin  from  Akita 
town,  and  dating  from  very  ancient  times 
there  have  been  oil  indications.  Crude  oozed 
out  of  the  ground  and  floated  on  top  of  the 
stream — perhaps  this  is  why  the  place  is 
called  Kurokawa,  or  "Black  Stream." 

The  news  of  the  gushing  spread  all  over 
the  country  at  once  and  caused  a  sensation. 
Everybody  rushed  to  buy  shares  in  the 
Nippon  Oil  Company,  and  prices  advanced 
by  Yen  22  per  share  in  one  day!  The  con- 
fusion in  the  Tokyo  stock  exchange  market 
became  so  uncontrollable  that  they  were 
obliged  to  suspend  transactions  temporarily. 

The  Nippon  Oil  Company  had  good  luck 
at  the  Kurokawa  oilfields.  There  were  few 
wells  that  failed.  After  the  great  gushing 
of  No.  5  well,  the  No.  8  was  the  next  largest, 
putting  out  5,000  koku  per  twenty-four 
hours. 

The  question  of  the  Japanese  oil  companies 
has  been  dealt  with  at  some  length  because, 
under  present  conditions  of  a  decreasing 
consumption,  the  native  production  naturally 
remains  the  keynote  to  the  oil  market  of 
Japan.  The  operations  of  the  importing 
companies,  the  Rising  Sun  Petroleum  Co., 
Ltd.,  and  the  Standard  Oil  Company,  have 
been  touched  upon  briefly,  as,  while  they 
both  have  detailed  organisations,  the  sphere 
of  their  activities  is,  of  course,  affected  by  the 
decreased  consumption  and  increased  pro- 
duction of  the  country. 

In  addition  to  the  kerosene  trade,  there  are 
the  benzine  or  gasolene,  and  wax  markets. 
The  Rising  Sun  Petroleum  Co.  imports  in 
bulk  the  well  known  Shell  Brand  of  motor 
spirit,  and  does  a  large  business  in  it.  The 
Standard  Oil  Company  sells  a  certain  amount 
of  naphtha,  and  the  production  of  the  native 
benzine  has  shown  considerable  increase, 
though  it  seems  that  about  the  highwater 
mark  of  this  production  has  been  reached, 
unless  the  quantity  of  kerosene  taken  from 
the  crude  is  considerably  reduced. 

Both  the  Rising  Sun  Petroleum  Co.  and 
the  Standard  Oil  Company  sell  large  quan- 
tities of  wax  and  wax  in  the  form  of  candles 
— -the  former  concern  making  a  special  fea- 
ture of  the  candle  trade.    It  possesses  candle 


^=^ 


\n 


NIPPON   OIL   CO.,   LTD.,   TOKYO:      THE    REFINERY   .^T    K.'iSHIW.iiZAKI — OIL    WELLS   ON    NAG.^MIXE   LE.\SE,    NISHIY.\MA   OILFIELD 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


489 


factorii'S  of  its  own,  ami  lias  doiu'  much  to 
raiso  the  stamianl  of  this  particular  form  of 
illuminant.  The  native  companies  have,  up 
to  the  present,  done  but  little  in  the  way  of 
producing  wax,  although  wax  plants  have 
been  installed.  There  is  also  a  considerable 
business  in  matchwax  done  by  the  importing 
com])anii's. 

The  lubricating  oil  business — an  impor- 
tant branch  of  the  trade — was  until  recently 
largely  in  the  hands  of  the  Standard  Oil 
Company,  and  Vacuum  Oil  Co.,  but  here, 
too,  the  native  production  has  shown  a  large 
increase  and  the  importers  have  suffered 
accordingly. 

In  conclusion,  the  figures  of  production  of 
crude  oil  in  Japan  for  the  past  three  years 
may  be  given,  the  information  being  that 
compiled  by  the  Nagaoka  Chamber  of  Com- 
merce, which  is  the  most  actively  interested 
public  body,  so  far  as  the  petroleum  industry 
is  concerned.  The  output  for  1915  was 
2|653,5ii  koku,  or  approximately  106,- 
150,000  gallons.  That  for  1916  was  2,648,- 
284  koku,  or  105,940,000  gallons.  It  is 
reliably  estimated  that  in  191 7  the  output 
decreased  to  2,300,000  koku,  a  falling  off  of 
300,000  koku.  This  decrease  is  attributable 
to  the  "petering  out"  of  certain  wells,  and  the 
failure  to  make  big  strikes  during  the  year 
to  offset  the  exhaustion   of  the  older  wells. 

However,  if  we  take  the  annual  production 
of  crude  oil  in  Japan  at  100,000,000  gallons 
per  annum,  valued  at  from  Yen  4  to  Yen  5  per 
unit  of  ten  gallons,  in  the  open  market  it  will 
be  seen  that  the  industry  is  an  exceedingly 
valuable  one. 

THE     NIPPOX     OIL     COMPANY,     LLMITED 

The  existence  of  petroleum  in  Japan  was 
known  very  early  in  the  history  of  the  coun- 
try, and  it  is  recorded  in  the  ancient  annals 
that  in  668  a.  d.  the  people  of  Echigo  paid 
homage  to  the  court  of  Emperor  Tenchi, 
offering  a  marvellous  liquid  called  Moyuru 
mizu,  or  "inflammable  water,"  which  must 
evidently  have  been  the  natural  oil.  The 
first  efforts  to  work  the  oil  beds  were  made 
three  hundred  years  ago  when  wells  were 
sunk  at  Echigo,  but  the  commercial  history 
of  the  industry  dates  back  no  farther  than 
the  early  part  of  the  Meiji  era,  when  the 
Japanese  found  the  newly  imported  kerosene 
to  be  a  refined  product  of  the  petroleum  oil 
they  knew  to  exist  in  their  own  country. 
This  knowledge  led  to  attempts  of  a  crude 
nature  to  sink  wells  for,  and  refine,  the  oil 
at  Echigo.  A  small  seaside  town,  called 
Amaze,  on  the  coast  of  Echigo,  became  the 
centre  of  this  industry  and  many  wells  were 
sunk,  with  fair  results.  Anticipating  large 
returns,  attempts  were  made  to  drill  with 
American  apparatus,  but  owing  to  want  of 


proper  technical  knowledge  and  other  difli- 
cultics,  the  initial  effort  to  develop  Japan's 
oil  resources  with  modern  plant  was  a  com- 
plete failure. 

The  honour  of  being  the  first  successful 
driller  for  oil  was  reserved  for  the  Nippon 
Oil  Company,  Ltd.,  the  pioneer  and  the 
largest  of  the  Japanese  oil  companies.  This 
concern  was  organised  in  the  Spring  of  1888, 
with  a  capital  of  Yen  150,000,  and,  unlike 
other  companies  then  existing  the  Nippon 
had  on  its  board  of  directors  only  men  of  the 
highest  social  and  financial  standing,  includ- 
ing Mr.  Hisashiro  Naito,  the  President,  the 
most  prominent  man  in  Echigo  and  a  leading 
spirit  in  the  Japanese  oil  industry.  This 
company  started  its  operations  by  digging 
several  wells  on  one  of  the  holdings  secured  in 
Amaze,  and  though  these  wells  were  a  payable 
proposition  and  placed  Mr.  Naito  and  his 
associates  on  a  good  footing  from  the  start, 
the  first  move  by  which  they  were  able  to 
lay  a  secure  foundation  for  success  was  their 
introduction  of  American  methods  of  drilling. 
A  complete  set  of  drilling  plant  and  an  expert 
driller  were  brought  to  Japan  in  the  Fall  of 
1890.  A  derrick  was  rigged  over  one  of  the 
old  holes  at  Amaze,  and  driUing  was  started 
in  December  of  the  same  year.  The  well  was 
completed  in  the  following  April,  a  depth  of 
1,000  feet  being  reached,  and  the  bore  pro- 
ducing 40  koku  (i  koku  equals  39.70  gallons) 
a  day  of  very  fine  oil,  having  a  gravity  of 
42  deg.  Be.  Thus  encouraged,  the  Nippon 
Oil  Company  drilled  several  wells  in  succes- 
sion, and  struck  oil  in  all  of  them  at  depths 
varying  from  1,200  to  1,500  feet,  producing 
from  80  to  180  koku  a  day.  This  decided 
success  opened  a  new  era  in  the  history  of  the 
Japanese  oil  industry,  and  led  to  the  rapid 
development  of  Amaze,  and  other  fields  as 
well,  not  alone  by  the  Nippon  but  by  other 
companies  also. 

It  was  then  that  the  Nippon  Oil  Company 
showed  itself  the  leader  in  the  newly  devel- 
oped industry,  its  name  being  associated 
with  every  progressive  step.  President  Naito 
himself  visited  the  United  States  in  189 1, 
taking  with  him  Messrs.  Hirpse  and  Takano, 
the  superintendents  respectively  of  the  pro- 
ducing and  refining  departments.  Further 
visits  were  made  periodically,  and  always  the 
Nippon  Company  kept  abreast  of  the  times, 
importing  the  best  plant,  and  introducing 
the  latest  methods  for  working  the  oil  fields 
and  treating  the  rapidly  growing  output. 
Later  on,  in  1900,  Mr.  Sasamura,  the  Super- 
intendent of  the  Niigata  Iron  Works  (owned 
by  the  Nippon  Oil  Co.,  Ltd.),  was  sent 
abroad  to  make  a  thorough  study  of  the 
process  of  manufacturing  oil  drilling  appar- 
atus and  refining  machinery,  and  on  his 
return  the  entire  plant  of  the  company  was 


enlarged,  and  the  Niigata  Iron  Works  began 
the  manufacture  of  drilling  and  refining 
apparatus,  thus  enabling  Japanese  oil  com- 
panies to  purchase  these  essentials  much 
cheaper  than  they  had  been  able  to  import 
them.  In  1907  the  International  Oil  Com- 
pany, a  subsidiary  of  the  Standard  Oil  Com- 
pany, sold  out  to  the  Nippon  Company  its 
entire  property  in  the  Echigo  district.  This 
was  a  valuable  acquisition  of  developed  and 
undeveloped  holdings,  the  most  modem 
and  best  equipped  refinery  in  the  country, 
as  well  as  pipe  lines,  tank  cars  and  other 
plant,  and  a  large  number  of  operatives  who 
had  had  the  best  of  training  under  American 
technical  experts.  This  record  of  progress 
and  development  has  been  well  maintained 
by  the  Nippon  Oil  Co.,  Ltd.  Within  the 
past  few  years  the  company  has  introduced 
the  American  rotary  drilHng  and  the  Russian 
system  of  continuous  distillation,  as  well  as 
installing  gasolene  and  wax  plants,  in  all  of 
which  great  success  has  been  realised.  In 
May,  1914,  the  Nippon  brought  in  a  record- 
breaking  gusher  in  Kurokawa  lea.se,  Akita 
Prefecture,  initially  producing  10,000  barrels 
a  day.  Since  then  several  gushers,  not  quite 
so  large,  have  come  in,  changing  the  entire 
situation  of  the  Japanese  oil  industry.  In 
order  to  meet  the  requirements  of  its  enor- 
mously expanded  business,  the  Nippon  Oil 
Co.,  Ltd.,  increased  its  capital  in  1913  to 
Yen  20,000,000,  and  removed  its  headquar- 
ters to  Tokyo  the  following  year,  taking  up 
offices  at  21  Mitsubishi  Building,  Yuraku- 
cho,  Kojimachi-ku.  The  extent  and  sta- 
bility of  the  Nippon  Oil  Co.,  Ltd.,  may  be 
gathered  from  the  following  financial  facts 
taken  from  the  balance  sheet  for  the  half-year 
ended  June  30,  191 7.  The  net  profits  for  the 
half-year  were  Yen  3,219,223,  and  the 
balance  brought  forward  from  the  previous 
period  (Yen  1,360.062)  brought  the  gross 
profits  up  to  Yen  4,580,185.  From  this, 
Yen  500,000  was  set  aside  against  depre- 
ciation of  the  company's  property  and  plant, 
and  the  balance  was  distributed  as  follows: 
Added  to  reserves.  Yen  135,961;  bonuses  for 
officers  and  employees.  Yen  163,153;  pension 
reserves.  Yen  27,000;  commemoration  allow- 
ances, Yen  403,813;  dividends  at  20  per  cent 
per  annum.  Yen  1,650,000;  balance  carried 
forward,  Y'en  1,700,258. 

THE    HOHDEN    SEKIYU    KABUSHIKI 
KAISHA 

The  rapid  development  of  the  petroleum 
industrj'  of  Japan  is  largely  due  to  the  enter- 
prise and  business  courage  of  one  or  two 
companies,  foremost  among  w-hich  is  the 
Hohden  Sekiyu  Kabushiki  Kaisha,  or  the 
Hohden    Oil    Company,    Ltd.     This    com- 


GENERAL   VIEWS   OF   OILFIELDS   OF  THE    HOHDEN   OIL   CO.,    LTD. 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


491 


pany  is  one  of  the  largest  industrial  concerns 
in  the  country,  its  authorised  capital  being 
Yen  20,000,000,  of  which  Yen  16,250,000 
is  paid  up.  In  1893,  when  the  Hohden  Oil 
Company  was  established  at  Nagaoka,  in  the 
Niigata  Prefecture,  with  a  modest  capital 
of  Yen  15,000,  the  oil  industry  of  Japan 
was  still  undeveloped,  and  what  prospecting 
or  boring  was  done  was  mostly  conducted 
by  small  concerns  directed  by  enterprising 
speculators.  The  future  of  the  industry 
was  doubtful  and  certainly  appeared  to  be 
fraught  with  many  dangers,  the  whole 
business  being  considered  a  doubtful  specu- 
lation. The  founders  of  the  Hohden  Oil 
Company  realised  the  situation,  and  aimed 
to  stabilize  the  industry  to  make  its  future 
certain.  To  this  end  they  sought  to  com- 
bine all  the  small  companies  which  had  been 
started  by  adventurous  capitalists,  and  they 
were  successful  in  bringing  about  an  amal- 
gamation that  placed  the  development  of 
the  industry  on  a  firm  foundation.  The 
company  at  once  embarked  on  a  vigourous 
policy  and  brought  about  a  healthy  develop- 
ment in  the  oil  resources  of  Japan.  Its 
capital  was  several  times  enlarged,  and  now 
its  prosperity  and  the  scope  of  its  activities 
are  quite  striking,  while  the  services  it  has 
rendered  to  the  Empire  in  promoting  a 
valuable  industry  are  equally  well  recog- 
nised. At  present  the  affairs  of  the  company 
are  divided  into  five  departments;  viz., 
working  of  the  oil  fields,  refining  of  oil,  sale 
of  the  products,  accountancy,  and  general 
affairs.  The  system  of  working  the  fields 
is  most  modern,  the  latest  appliances  being 
employed,  and  every  method  science  has 
so  far  devised  for  this  particular  branch  of 
the  industry,  is  adopted.  The  activity  of 
the  exploitation  department,  and  the  great 
confidence  which  the  company  enjoys  with 
the  authorities,  is  strikingly  demonstrated 
by  the  area  of  the  concessions  obtained. 
The  company  has  constantly  carried  on 
investigations  into  the  geological  features 
of  every  nook  and  corner  of  the  Empire  to 
find  oil  veins,  and  even  now  its  capable 
experts  are  at  work  in  different  districts 
thought  likely  to  produce  oil.  The  area  of 
the  concessions  held  in  the  main  islands 
and  in  Taiwan  (Formosa)  is  over  586,000,000 
square  yards.  At  the  oilfields  actually  being 
worked,  viz.,  at  Higashiyama,  Nishiyama, 
Niitsu,  Maki,  Sagara,  and  Taiwan,  branch 
offices  are  established,  and  connected  with 
these  fields  and  directed  from  them,  16  works 
are  in  operation.  For  the  actual  working 
of  the  fields,  over  200  boilers,  700  engines, 
and  300  pumps  are  operated  to  the  fullest 
capacity.  For  the  sinking  of  wells  the 
company  principally  utiHses  the  American 
mechanical  boring  system,   though  at  some 


District 

Area 
Being  Worked 
(Square  Yards) 

Area 

Being  Prospected 

(Square  Yards) 

Niigata 

58.459.9.59 
1.247,957 

1. 197.769 

262,992 

22,405,420 

1,078,971 

179.009,143 

86,996,367 

6,957,818 

13,031.790 

93,876,591 

Akita 

Aomori 

Shizuoka 

Hokkaido 

Taiwan 

Yamagata 

96,826,107 
1,109,089 

Nagano 

Tolal 

108,137,459 

477,806,905 

fields  the  old-fashioned  methods  are  still 
resorted  to.  At  present  over  1,500  wells 
have  been  sunk,  and  up  to  the  end  of  1916 
the  annual  combined  output  was  estimated 
at   1,100,000  barrels  in  round  figures. 

The  second  department  of  the  company 
owns  refineries  at  Nagaoka,  Niitsu,  Nuttari, 
Niigata,  Kashiwazaki,  and  Taiwan,  their 
capacity  being  so  large  as  to  turn  out  100,000 
gallons  of  refined  oil  a  day.  At  all  these 
refineries  the  most  up-to-date  plant  is  in- 
stalled, and  under  highly  competent  super- 
vision the  best  possible  goods  are  produced. 
In  the  open  market  the  Hohden  Company's 
products  are  received  with  favour  and  it  is 
generally  said  that  they  are  equal  in  every 
respect  to  the  imported  goods.  The  recep- 
tacles for  the  perfected  products  are  also 
turned  out  by  the  company  itself  with  every 
possible  care  and  precaution,  at  its  factories 
at  Kashiwazaki,  Nagaoka,  and  Niitsu. 
The  average  monthly  production  at  these 
factories  is  400,000  cans.  The  principal  of 
the  company's  products  are  as  follows: 
volatile  oil  gasolene,  illuminating  oil  kero- 
sene, vistral  oil,  lubricating  oil,  heavy  oils 
residue,  anti-insect  oil,  and  paraffin  pitch. 
The  company's  sales  department  has  offices 
at  Tokyo,  Osaka,  Shimonoseki,  arid  Otaru. 
Thanks  to  the  efforts  which  the  company 
has  made  in  the  oil  industry,  and  to  the 
superior  quality  of  its  products,  the  Hohden 
lines  have  been  advertised  to  the  public,  and 
now  their  reputation  is  well  established.  The 
Imperial  Army,  the  Imperial  Navy,  and  other 
Government  Departments,  as  well  as  a  large 
number  of  the  largest  private  concerns,  are 
numbered  among  the  buyers  of  the  Hohden 
Company's  products.  The  officers  of  the 
company  are  as  follows:  President,  Mr. 
Keizaburo  Hashimoto;  Managing  Director, 
Mr.  Kinezo  Fukushima;  Directors,  Messrs. 
Tokichi  Watanabe,  Kwan-ichi  Nakano,  Sa- 
taro  Kawakami,  Tokujiro  Kakitomi,  and 
Shintaro  Ohashi;  Auditors,  Viscount  Ta- 
daatsu  Makino,  and  Messrs.  Kichibei  Murai 
and  Zensaku  Shibuya. 


The  above  shows  the  various  localities 
and  total  areas  of  the  concessions  held  by 
the  Hohden  Oil  Company,  Ltd. 

STANDARD  OIL  COMPANY  OF  NEW  YORK 
It  is  not  surprising  to  find  such  a  world- 
renowned  organisation  as  the  Standard  Oil 
Company  of  New  York  so  strongly  repre- 
sented in  Japan.  The  company's  first  active 
operations  in  the  Far  East  date  back  only 
twenty-seven  years,  but  during  this  short 
period  it  has  built  up  a  strong  organisation 
and  its  products  have  become  well  known 
throughout  the  Orient,  even  to  the  inhabit- 
ants of  the  most  outlying  districts,  and  are 
in  popular  demand. 

Previous  to  the  year  1880  or  thereabouts 
the  importation  of  kerosene  oil  into  Japan, 
as  well  as  into  China,  was  on  only  a  small 
scale,  in  part  cargo  shipments,  but  from  that 
time  on  importations  increased  rapidly. 
Vessels  were  chartered  by  leading  concerns  in 
Japan  and  cargoes  were  bought  direct  from 
the  Standard  Oil  Company  and  the  Atlantic 
Refining  Company  on  f.  o.  b.  terms,  the 
vessels  loading  at  the  company's  wharves. 
For  many  years  sailing  vessels  only  were 
employed  in  this  business,  until  it  was  found 
that  steamer  shipments  could  be  made.  By 
the  year  1890,  the  trade  had  assumed  large 
proportions,  not  only  in  kerosene  oil,  but  in 
other  petroleum  products,  and  the  Standard 
Oil  Company  of  New  York  then  decided  to 
control  the  distribution  of  their  products  in 
the  Orient  and  thus  create  better  facilities  to 
actual  consumers,  with  the  resultant  increase 
in  consumption.  It  was,  therefore,  during  the 
early  part  of  1891  that  the  company's  repre- 
sentatives were  sent  to  Japan  and  offices 
were  shortly  opened  at  Yokohama,  Kobe,  and 
Nagasaki. 

The  development  of  the  oil  districts  in 
Japan  naturally  for  a  time  interested  the 
company,  and  in  fact  they  were  (in  a  practical 
sense)  the  pioneers  of  the  exploitation  of  the 
country's  oil  resources.  The  company,  how- 
ever, has  mostly  confined  their  operations  to 


y^vm-^ 


./.'., 


/ 


T^':^.?4; 


/    '  K** 


< 


THE   STORAGE    TANKS   A.NU   CANMNc.    WORKS  OF    THE    STANDARD   OIL  CO.    OF    NEW    YORK,    NEAR   YOKOHAMA- 

THE   YOKOHAMA   OFFICES 


1'  R  K  S  E  N  T  -  D  A  V        IMPRESSIONS        OF        JAPAN 


493 


GREAT   JAPAN    PETROLEUM    MINING   CO.,    LTD.:      THE    HE.\D   OFFICE THE    TORIKOYE   FIELD  —  ROTARY   WELL    BORING    PLANT 

AT   TORIKOYE    FIELD,    NIIGATA 


illiiininating  oils,  gasoline,  and  all  grades  of 
luliricating  oils  and  greases  manufactured 
abroad.  A  portion  of  their  kerosene  oil  is 
shipped  to  Japan  in  tank  steamers  and  is  then 
pumped  into  large  storage  tanks  conveniently 
situated  near  Yokohama,  Osaka,  Nagasaki, 
and  Itozaki  on  the  Inland  Sea,  where  cans  and 
other  receptacles  are  manufactured,  in  which 
part  of  the  oil  is  filled  and  boxed  for  the  retail 
trade.  The  balance  is  transported  in  bulk  b}^ 
the  company's  own  tank  cars,  bulk  lighters, 
and  other  vessels  to  secondary  storage  points, 
placed  at  many  convenient  outlying  centres 
for  further  distribution  to  the  trade. 

A  big  selling  and  distributing  force  is 
employed  to  handle  the  company's  lines 
throughout  Japan  and  its  dependencies.  The 
principal  offices  are  maintained  at  Yokohama, 
Kob6,  Nagasaki,  and  Seoul  (Korea),  and 
these  branches,  as  well  as  many  others,  are 
under  the  direction  of  the  General  Manager 
at  Yokohama,  Mr.  Herbert  Allan  Ensworth, 
who  holds  this  responsible  post  and  has  spent 
many  years  in  the  service  of  the  Standard  Oil 
Company  of  New  York.     He  came  to  Japan 


in  1906  as  Assistant  General  Manager  for 
this  field,  and  in  1914  was  appointed  as 
General  Manager.  Mr.  Ensworth  is  well 
known  to  the  native  and  foreign  communities 
of  Yokohama  and  Tokyo,  and  is  prominently 
associated  with  various  representative  organ- 
isations promoting  interests  in  both   cities. 

GRE.\T    JAPAN   PETROLEUM  MINING  CO., 
LIMITED 

That  Japan  contains  many  oilfields  has 
been  amply  demonstrated  by  the  success 
which  has  attended  the  operations  of  several 
of  the  old-established  companies,  and  that 
the  oil  industry  is  a  permanent  one  is  appar- 
ent from  the  steady  increase  which  has 
taken  place  in  the  yields  from  all  the  well- 
known  centres.  It  is  the  opinion  of  oil 
experts  that  even  now  only  a  small  portion 
of  the  resources  of  the  country  has  been 
tapped,  and  consequently  it  is  not  at  all 
surprising  to  find  a  powerful  organisation, 
such  as  the  Dai  Nippon  Sekiyu  Kogyo 
Kabushiki  Kaisha,  engaged  in  a  systematic 
search   for   petroleum.     The   need   for   such 


work  has  been  apparent  to  all  who  have  given 
thought  to  the  matter,  because  Japan  can 
be  made  practically  independent  of  all 
foreign  oilfields  if  her  own  resources  are 
thoroughly  developed.  This  is  the  task 
on  which  the  Great  Japan  Petroleum  Mining 
Company,  Ltd.,  is  engaged. 

The  company  came  into  existence  in 
January,  191 6,  with  the  fixed  purpose  of 
prospecting  for  oil  in  certain  localities  where 
investigations  made  by  the  Geological 
Department  of  the  Bureau  of  Commerce 
and  Agriculture  disclosed  indications  of  the 
presence  of  petroleum.  The  capital  at  first 
was  Yen  5,000,000,  and  the  promoters  of 
the  company  secured  the  interest  and  finan- 
cial assistance  of  some  of  the  best  known 
business  men  in  Japan.  Furthermore,  the 
direction  of  the  company's  affairs  was  under- 
taken by  men  well  versed  in  the  oil  business, 
the  services  of  acknowledged  experts  being 
secured  for  the  prospecting  of  fields,  and  the 
putting  down  of  bores.  On  April  24,  1917. 
the  Hoko  Kerosene  Oil  Company  and  the 
Shin-Nippon   Kerosene   Oil    Company   were 


494 


PKI<:SENT-DAY        IMPRESSIONS        OF        JAPAN 


amalgamated,  the  authorised  capital  of  the 
company  being  then  raised  to  Yen  7,500,000, 
of  which  Yen  1,875,000  has  already  been 
paid  up.  Operations  were  begun  in  the 
districts  recommended  by  the  Department 
of  Commerce  and  Agriculture,  the  company 
taking  up  leases  in  thirteen  different  areas, 
namely:  Asahi,  Y'okoyama,  Nishiyama, 
Kanatsu,  Higashijima,  Koshi,  Higashiyama, 
Niizu,  Nadachi,  Ogumi,  Furuoi,  Ochiai,  and 
Maki.  These  areas  are  situated  in  Niigata 
or  Akita  Prefectures,  and  the  Furuoi  is  in 
Hokkaido.  The  leases  comprise  118  sec- 
tions, having  a  total  area  of  48,719,531  tsubo. 
Prospecting,  which  includes  the  sinking  of 
trial  wells,  has  been  carried  out  over  an  area 
of  31,810,944  tsubo,  which  means  that 
already  about  two-thirds  of  the  leased  area 
has  been  explored.  Regular  boring  has  been 
carried  out  over  about  4,089,000  tsubo. 
Furthermore,  the  company  has  applied  for 
further  leases  comprising  12,818,937  tsubo, 
so  it  may  be  seen  at  a  glance  how  thoroughly 


the  directors  arc  carrying  out  the  object  of 
making  the  closest  search  for  oilfields.  There 
are  in  all  95  wells  or  bores,  either  complete, 
or  in  course  of  sinking.  Oil  has  been  struck 
in  greater  or  lesser  quantities  in  75  bores, 
21  have  been  abandoned,  and  17  arc  being 
sunk. 

That  the  capital  and  energy  of  the  com- 
pany has  been  wisely  applied  is  apparent 
from  the  results  achieved  after  so  short  a 
period.  For  the  first  half  of  191 7  the  com- 
pany's production  of  oil  was  3,741  koku, 
which  was  sold  for  Yen  36,000.  Small 
though  this  revenue  was,  there  was  only  a 
deficiency  in  working  expenses  of  about 
Yen  9,200,  the  loss  representing  about  one- 
two-hundredth  part  of  the  capital  paid  up. 
With  the  work  done,  and  the  prospects  dis- 
closed, it  was  anticipated  that  for  the  latter 
half  of  191 7  there  would  be  an  average  daily 
yield  of  160  koku  of  oil,  and  with  such  a 
yield  there  should  be  a  revenue  sufficient 
to  provide  a  surplus  over  working  expenses. 


and  leave  a  balance  to  pay  a  dividend  of 
ten  per  cent.  Should  these  expectations  be 
fulfilled,  then  the  Great  Japan  Petroleum 
Mining  Co.,  Ltd.,  will  have  achieved  some- 
thing very  rare  in  the  history  of  oil  mining, 
considering  that  it  has  been  in  existence 
only  a  little  more  than  two  years.  There 
is  no  question  but  that  the  company  has 
a  great  future  before  it.  Its  operations 
are  on  an  extensive  scale,  and  the  results 
to  be  obtained  should  be  commensurately 
great. 

Following  are  the  Directors  of  the  com- 
pany: Admiral  Baron  Y.  Ito  (President), 
Messrs.  M.  Hirose  and  T.  Watanabe  (Man- 
aging Directors),  S.  Kobayashi,  H.  Nishi- 
mura,  S.  Nakamura,  T.  Okumura,  K.  Goto, 
Y.  Uyeda.  The  Auditors  are  Messrs.  C. 
Hirose,  S.  Okada,  S.  Yokota,  T.  Nakanishi, 
K.  Sakurai,  and  S.  Machida.  The  head 
office  of  the  company  is  at  Mitoshiro-cho, 
Kanda-ku,  Tokyo,  and  there  are  factories 
at  Nagaoka,  in  Niigata  Prefecture. 


■^•yv^a*' 


A    MONOCHROME    SIX-FOLDING    SCREEN,    ATTRIBUTED    TO    KANO    MASANOBU    (149O   A.    I).),    ONE   OF    THE    NATIONAL 

TREASURES   IN   THE    KYOTO   IMPERIAL    MUSEUM 

XXXII.    National  Arts  and  Crafts 

By  Dr.  J.   INGRAM   BRYAN,   M.   A.,   M.   Litt.,    Ph.    D.   The   Meiji   University  and   the   Imperial   Naval   Colle)<e,   and  Japan 

Correspondent   of  The   London  "Morning  Post" 

Dawn  of  Art— The  Cradle  of  Japanese  Art— The  Bronze  Workers— Other  Metals- 
Ivory  AND  Wood  Garvinc—Geramics— Cloisonne  Enamel— Lacquer— Weaving 
AND  Embroidery— Pictorial  Art— Minor  Considerations 


THE  mythological  period  of  Japanese 
history  reveals  the  same  traces  of 
the  beginnings  of  art  that  are  to  be 
found  in  the  prehistoric  remains  of  European 
nations.  The  earliest  examples  of  the  idea 
of  art  in  Japan  are  figures  of  men  and  animals 
found  in  dolmens  and  other  places  of  archa;- 
ological  sepulchre,  and,  although  very  primi- 
tive in  both  conception  and  execution,  these 
figures  must  be  regarded  as  considerably  later 
developments  of  the  race's  earliest  attempts 
at  art.  The  contents  of  these  ancient  sep- 
ulchres show  that  in  prehistoric  times  the 
artisans  of  Japan  could  forge  iron  into  swords, 
spear-heads,  armour,  and  horse-trappings, 
and  could  use  gold  and  silver  for  decorative 
purposes,  as  well  as  cast  bronze  and  man- 
ufacture wheel-turned  pottery.  There  is 
abundant  evidence  that  in  the  remoter  periods 
of  Japanese  history  the  arts  and  crafts  were 
highly  honoured.  The  first  metal-worker,  a 
being  descended  from  prehistoric  ages,  for 
martial  reasons  naturally  receives  the  highest 
honour  and  is  ranked  among  the  kami,  or 
gods,  equally  with  the  canonized  warriors  of 
the  mythic  period.     It  is  clear,  therefore,  that 


the  hammerer  preceded  the  sculptor  and  the 
painter  in  Japanese  art,  and  prepared  the  way 
for  the  great  glyptic  artists  of  a  later  period. 
Another  evidence  of  the  early  inception  of 
Japanese  arts  and  crafts  is  seen  in  the  heredi- 
tary corporations  mentioned  in  the  most 
ancient  chronicles  of  the  nation:  there  are 
associations  of  guilds  of  priests,  metal- 
workers, weavers,  and  potters.  Such  institu- 
tions appear  to  have  been  peculiar  to  Japan. 
They  make  their  appearance  at  the  very 
dawn  of  the  nation's  existence,  and  it  is 
obvious  that  whatever  country  the  Yamato 
race  came  from,  they  brought  these  art 
associations     with    them. 

DAWN  OF  ART 
Not  until  the  introduction  of  Buddhism, 
however,  does  the  real  history  of  Japan's  arts 
and  crafts  begin.  Whatever  art  instinct  the 
Japanese  possessed,  it  seems  to  have  found 
no  appreciable  expression  until  the  stirring 
inspiration  and  the  gorgeous  paraphernalia  of 
the  Indian  faith  became  a  part  of  the  national 
hfe.  And  thus,  as  in  Europe,  so  in  Japan,  did 
religion  become  the  mother  of  art.     For  true 


art  is  always  an  attempt  to  suggest,  imitate 
or  depict  some  divine  idea  that  lies  behind 
things  human  —  the  effort  of  the  divine  unseen 
to  express  itself  in  material  form.  As  religion 
stands  for  the  same  conception  in  the  moral 
and  spiritual  sphere,  so  the  Church  has  ever 
been  the  patron  of  art,  and  art  has  naturally 
been  regarded  as  the  handmaid  of  religion. 
And  a  reUgion  like  Buddhism,  wherein  images 
and  pictures  find  an  important  place,  naturally 
lent  impetus  to  sculpture  as  well  as  to  pictorial 
art,  to  say  nothing  of  applied  as  distinguished 
from  creative  art. 

The  beginnings  of  Japan's  arts  and  crafts 
thus  came  to  be  exotic,  as  they  were  con- 
stantly in  the  keeping  of  the  Korean  and 
Chinese  Buddhist  missionaries  and  othei 
immigrants  who  came  from  the  continent. 
It  speaks  well  for  the  catholicity  of  the 
Japanese  mind  even  in  that  far-oflf  day,  that 
these  foreign  artists  should  have  found  so 
warm  a  welcome  in  the  country.  In  that 
period  Japan  seems  to  have  offered  many 
attractions  to  her  continental  neighbours, 
and  not  to  the  least  intelligent  or  aesthetic  of 
them    either.     She    was    not    convulsed    by 


496 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


(left   to   right)    seventh   century   embroidery,    showing    the    figure    of    BUDDHA  —  GOLD   LACQUER   WORK   OF   THE    EIGHTEENTH, 
TENTH,   FIFTEENTH,    SEVENTEENTH,    AND   TENTH   CENTURIES.      ALL    SPECIMENS   FROM   THE    IMPERIAL    MUSEUM. 


dynastic  changes,  and  she  received  with  open 
arms  all  who  could  add  to  her  knowledge  or 
capacity.  Japan  set  up  no  racial  distinctions 
between  men's  claims  to  the  gratitude  of  the 
State.  In  one  of  her  oldest  authentic  records, 
a  list  of  peers  compiled  in  814  a.  d.,  out  of  a 
total  of  1,177  noble  families  enumerated  as 
representing  her  aristocracy,  no  fewer  than 
381  traced  their  descent  from  Chinese  or 
Korean  ancestors.  To  this  stream  of  immi- 
gration, with  its  fresh  brain  and  blood  from 
the  continent,  Japan  owed  the  development 
if  not  the  origin  of  her  arts  and  crafts.  And 
even  after  the  national  art  had  started  on  an 
independent  career,  it  refreshed  its  inspiration 
constantly  by  careful  study  of  and  imitation 
of  Chinese  models,  and  even  down  to  the 
present  day  Chinese  subjects  may  be 
said  to  preponderate  in  the  classical  art 
of  Japan.  It  must  not  be  forgotten, 
however,  that  Japan's  earhest  arts  were 
practical  and  applied  rather  than  assthetic 
and  creative,  and  to  this  aspect  of  her 
development  prior  attention  should  be 
devoted. 


THE  CRADLE  OF  JAPANESE  ART 
While  it  is  clear  that  the  beginnings  of 
Japanese  art  came  from  India  and  China, 
it  was  in  the  old  city  of  Nara,  the  Florence 
of  Japan,  that  the  newly  born  artistic  impulse 
found  its  earliest  cradle  of  development  and 
nurture.  In  the  first  Buddhist  images  and 
pictures  brought  to  Japan,  it  is  easy  to  trace 
resemblances  to  the  contemporary  period  of 
Gandhara  in  India,  while  the  wall  pictures 
of  the  Horyuji  temple  in  Yamato,  one  of  the 
oldest  sacred  edifices  in  Japan,  suggest  the 
frescoes  of  caves  of  Ajunta.  Numerous 
relics  of  metal-work,  lacquer-work,  ceramics, 
and  textile  fabrics  indicate  that  in  this  period 
Japan  was  not  only  in  communication  with 
China  and  Korea,  but  with  India  as  well, 
if  not  regions  beyond.  In  the  capital  at 
Nara,  where  the  Imperial  Court  resided 
from  709  to  784  A.  D.,  four  sovereigns  reigned 
in  succession,  and  during  this  period  the  art 
of  the  nation  began  to  lay  serious  claims  to 
high  achievement.  In  other  times,  when 
the  capital  moved  with  each  new  monarch, 
art  had  no  settled  home.     Once  the  Imperial 


Court  settled  pcrmanentlj^  at  Nara  and  art 
at  last  found  a  safe  abiding  place,  beautiful 
temples  were  erected,  with  highly  wrought 
designs  in  wood  and  metal  to  decorate  them, 
and  enshrining  images  and  other  objects 
indicating  a  remarkable  degree  of  attain- 
ment. There  is  still  at  Nara  a  wooden 
museum  called  the  Shoso-in,  which  for 
eleven  centuries  or  more  has  been  kept 
intact  to  store  the  most  ancient  art  relics 
of  the  nation,  most  of  them  associated  with 
the  emperors  who  ruled  in  Nara.  This 
building  is  quite  unique  in  the  history  of 
art.  There  is  some  difficulty  in  distinguish- 
ing the  origin  of  the  various  objects  of  art 
in  the  Shoso-in,  but  a  catalogue  which 
dates  back  to  756  a.  d.,  indicates  objects 
that  are  Korean  and  Chinese,  leaving  one  to 
infer  that  all  not  thus  indicated  are  Japa- 
nese. It  is,  however,  going  too  far  to 
assume  that  so  many  of  the  undesignated 
art  objects  could  have  been  produced  in 
Japan  at  a  period  when  decorative  designs 
had  not  yet  developed  their  distinctive 
character.     How  to  know  with  any  degree 


PRESENT-   ri  A  V        IMPRESSIONS        OF        JAPAN 


497 


of  accuracy  whether  one  is  deaUng  with 
the  work  of  the  Cliinese  teacher  or  the 
Japanese  pupil  is,  therefore,  a  problem. 
If  these  objects  are  the  work  of  Japanese 
artists,  then  it  must  be  concluded  that  the 
native  workers  of  the  eighth  century  could 
sculpture  delicately  and  minutely,  could  inlay 
metal  with  shell  and  amber,  could  apply  cloi- 
sonne decorations  to  objects  of  gold,  using 
silver  cloisons,  could  work  skilfully  in  lacquer, 
black  or  golden,  could  encrust  gold  with 
jewels,  chisel  metal  in  designs  i  jour  or  in  the 
round,  could  cast  bronze  by  the  cire-pardue 
process,  could  overlay  wood  with  ivory  or 
inlay  it  with  mother-of-pearl,  gold,  or  silver, 
could  weave  rich  brocades,  and  paint  decora- 
tive designs  on  wood,  overlaying  them  with 
translucent  varnish.  That  such  a  degree  of 
artistic  and  technical  skill  could  have  been 
attained  by  the  Japanese  in  an  epoch  so 
remote  as  the  eighth  century  seems  to  some 
very  doubtful.  Certainly,  if  true,  it  is  very 
notable.  Whether  these  achievements  were 
due  to  Japanese  genius  or  to  Chinese  and 
Korean  example  and  inspiration  is  a  question 
we  can  not  now  answer.  But  the  Japanese 
themselves  are  quite  willing  to  attribute  the 
major  portion  of  these  ancient  artistic  suc- 
cesses to  foreign  guidance  or  even  to  foreign 
hands.  But  how  is  one  to  get  over  the 
difficulty  of  attributing  art  work  that  is 
undoubtedly  above  the  level  of  China  and 
Korea  in  that  period  to  these  countries? 
If  they  were  equal  to  such  heights  in  Japan, 
why  not  at  home?  And  this  applied  to 
masterpieces  of  statuary  as  well  as  to  smaller 
objects  of  art.  In  such  fields  as  painting, 
ceramics,  bronze-casting,  cloisonnd  enamel, 
cameo-glass  making,  w'eaving,  and  embroi- 
dery, China,  of  course,  excelled  anything 
to  be  found  in  contemporary  Japan,  but  in 
statuary  and  sculpture  generally  the  pupils 
were  able,  under  the  inspiration  of  the  new 
religion,  to  carry  conception  and  execution 
far  beyond  the  precepts  of  their  instructors 
from  China  and  Korea.  In  the  same  way 
the  artists  of  the  Nara  period  out-distanced 
their  instructors  in  bell-making.  In  the 
year  732  A.  D.  they  cast  a  bell  for  the  Todaiji 
Temple  at  Nara,  which  is  12  feet,  9  inches 
in  height,  and  8  feet,  10  inches  in  diameter, 
weighing  49  tons.  For  jierfection  of  execu- 
tion and  beauty  of  tone  this  bell  is  away 
beyond  anything  that  China  could  do  at 
that  time,  or  even  since.  The  famous  statues 
in  wood  belonging  to  this  period,  now  pre- 
served at  the  Horyuji  Temple,  representing 
the  four  Heavenly  Kings,  are  ascribed  to 
artists  from  Korea  and  China  in  the  sixth 
centurj-.  In  addition  to  the  great  bell 
mentioned  above,  the  colossal  statue  of 
Buddha,  53>2  feet  high,  at  Nara,  was  cast 
in    this   period,   about   the   year   760.     The 


\r    -  , 

'^^^^^^^^■■B 

I  t:s^^^^^^^^^^| 

|i 

^B^^^^B 

CARVED  BRONZE  BELL,  MANY   CENTURIES  OLD, 

RECOVERED   FROM    A    BURIAL    MOUND. 

IN    THE    IMPERIAL   MUSEUM 

master-caster  of  that  day  was  Kunio,  and 
in  wood  carving  and  sculpture  Gyoki,  Bunkei 
and  others  were  famous,  while  work  in  terra- 
cotta and  lacquer  also  made  remarkable 
progress. 

THE  BRONZE  WORKERS 
The  marvellous  artistic  achievements  of 
the  Nara  period  show  how  early  Japan  at- 
tained high  skill  in  all  kinds  of  metal-work, 
more  particularly  in  bronze.  It  would  be 
an  error,  however,  to  assign  to  Japan  the 
palm  in  bronze-casting  skill.  Her  wood 
carvings  are  generally  far  superior  to  those 
of  China  and  Korea,  and  in  bronze  her 
artists  produced  some  castings  cf  matchless 
art,  as,  for  example,  the  immortal  statue 
of  Amida  at  Kamakura,  but  in  this  sort  of 
work  the  Chinese  excelled  in  designs  and 
accurate  technique,  while  the  Koreans  were 
superior  in  relief  decorations.  Nowhere  in 
the  Orient,  however,  has  there  been  any 
approach  to  Greece  as  an  interpreter  of 
beauty  of  form.  The  Oriental  artists  in 
bronze  are  apparently  unable  to  appreciate 
the  contour  of  the  human  body  or  mould  a 
form  after  the  divine  model  of  the  Greeks. 
China,  however,  has  produced  some  models 


in  bronze  vessels  whose  graceful  shapes 
compel  admiration,  whereas  in  Japan  there 
is  seldom  excellence  of  this  sort  except  at 
the  cost  of  originality.  But  in  giant  statuary, 
superiority  rested  with  the  East.  The 
Spartans  had  to  hammer  out  the  bronze 
plates  for  the  statue  of  Zeus  on  a  model,  but 
the  Chinese  learned  the  art  of  hollow  casting 
in  remote  antiquity  and  handed  it  on  to 
Japan.  During  the  Heian  era,  from  794  to 
1183  A.  D.,  there  is  evidence  of  continued 
excellence  in  metal-work  of  all  kinds,  due 
to  the  demand  for  armour  and  its  accessories 
by  the  warrior  classes.  All  through  the 
Kamakura  period,  from  1183  to  1332,  chisel- 
ing, casting,  and  hammered  work  advanced 
in  the  direction  of  greater  elaboration  and 
finer  technique.  Bronzes  having  decoration 
in  relief  did  not  make  such  marked  progress. 
Although  the  Japanese  early  in  the  four- 
teenth century  had  received  matchless 
examples  of  bronze  work  from  China,  with 
the  peony  scroll  in  relief,  it  was  not  until 
the  close  of  the  sixteenth  century  that  fine 
specimens  of  Korean  work,  brought  over 
by  the  predatory  troops  of  Hideyoshi,  gave 
any  determining  impulse  to  the  adoption  of 
similar  decorative  designs  in  Japan.  There- 
after we  find  Japanese  artists  in  bronze  mak- 
ing stupahs,  lamps,  vases,  pricket-candle- 
sticks, censers,  pagodas,  gates,  fonts,  pillar- 
caps  and  all  the  other  ornaments  of  the 
Buddhist  faith  which  one  sees  in  such  pro- 
fusion at  the  Tokugawa  mausolea  in  Tokyo, 
where  there  is  abundant  evidence  of  Japan's 
skill  in  great  variety.  The  process  went 
on  until  Chinese  shapes  were  covered  with 
Korean  decorations,  heralding  quite  a  new 
departure  in  bronze  work.  The  movement 
soon  became  apparent  in  household  orna- 
ments, such  as  flower  vases  and  censers, 
which  up  to  this  time  had  been  made  in  other 
metals  only.  It  was  not  until  the  seven- 
teenth century,  therefore,  that  in  Japan  the 
art  of  casting  bronze  became  so  delicate 
and  refined  that  its  products  could  rank 
with  the  choicest  specimens  of  glyptic  art. 
Among  the  names  that  stand  out  conspic- 
uously in  the  development  of  the  art  in  Japan 
are  those  of  Kame,  Seimin,  Jouin,  Masatsune, 
Teijo,  Sonin,  Keisei,  Gido,  and  Takusai,  in 
the  older  period,  while  in  more  modern 
times  Suzuki,  Okazaki,  Hasegawa,  Jouin, 
and  Jomi  have  produced  work  equal  to 
anything  done  by  the  masters  of  the  past. 

OTHER  METALS 
Japan  is  a  country  of  contrasts,  and 
nowhere  is  this  more  true  than  in  her  art. 
The  difference  between  the  colossal  statues 
of  Buddha  in  bronze  at  Nara  and  Kamakura, 
and  the  exquisite  temple  and  parlour  bronzes 
of  later  periods  is  assuredly  vast,  and  in  the 


498 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


IVORY   CARVINGS    (tWO   UPPER    ROWS)    AND    EXAMPLES   OF   NETSUKE    WORK 


same  way  one  may  note  the  contrast  between 
the  Cyclopean  mediaeval  castles  of  Japan 
and  the  tiny  metal-work  ornaments  that 
may  be  said  to  constitute  their  jewelry.  As 
time  went  on  the  artist  turned  from  giant 
forms  to  small,  and  in  all  lines  of  diminu- 
tive metal-work  the  glyptic  artists  of  Japan 
stand  unrivalled,  especially  when  it  is  re- 
membered that  here  they  owe  nothing  to 
foreign  inspiration.  As  an  example  of 
forging  the  Japanese  sword  was  unique,  but 
it  was  not  more  original  than  the  metal 
ornaments  it  carried.  In  all  forms  of  sword 
furniture  the  Japanese  artist  in  metal  dis- 
played remarkable  excellence.  Unlike  West- 
em  weapons  of  this  class,  the  Japanese  sword 
had  nine  adjuncts,  in  every  one  of  which 
the  native  artists  produced  peerless  specimens 
of  sculpture  and  metallurgic  processes. 
Some  of  these  pieces  are  idyls  of  pictorial 
art,  equal  to  the  tiny  scenes  on  Greek  pottery. 
The  artist  in  this  sort  of  metal-work  appar- 
ently loved  to  expend  the  most  patient 
efforts  on  even  the  least  conspicuous  portions 
of  the  object  ornamented,  partly  because 
loyalty  to  his  art  demanded  it,  and  partly 
because  he  wished  to  protest  against  any 
striving  after  mere  ostentation. 

In  exquisite  achievements  in  metal-work 
there  are  thirteen  generations  of  the  Goto 
family,  extending  from  the  sixteenth  to  the 
nineteenth  century,  each  of  which  excelled 
in  some  specialty  of  technique  or  decorative 
design;  as,  for  example,  the  Yokoya  experts 
who  invented  katakiri-bori  in  which  every 
line  has  its  own  value  in  the  pictorial  scheme, 
the  Nagoya  masters,  famous  for  wood- 
grained  grounds  on  metal,  the  Myochin 
family,   in  whose  hands  iron   was  as  tract- 


able as  wood,  the  Nagayoshi,'  who  were 
renowned  for  inlaying,  the  Kisai  artists, 
associated  with  fine  carving  a  jour,  and  there 
are  hosts  of  other  names  almost  equally 
celebrated. 

In  this  kind  of  art  must  be  included  tielsuke 
also,  those  delightful  objects  revealing  as 
much  the  art  of  the  metal-worker  as  the  skill 
of  the  sculptor.  The  art  which  India  had 
learned  from  Persia  in  the  car\-ing  of  ivory 
and  wood,  and  which  China  had  developed 
in  carving  elephant  tusks  and  the  horns  of 
the  rhinoceros,  attained  its  full  range  of 
conception  only  in  Japan,  where  it  reveals 
a  wealth  of  fancy,  realistic,  conventional, 
grave,  humourous,  and  grotesque  in  the  mak- 
ing of  netsuke,  that  has  no  equal  anywhere. 
With   the   passing  of   the  ancient  pipe-case 


and  tobacco  pouch,  as  well  as  of  the  old-time 
medicine  box,  the  day  of  the  netsuke  ended, 
but  the  glyptic  artists  found  other  fields  for 
skill  in  the  sculpturing  of  ivory  statuettes 
and  the  production  of  various  utensils  and 
ornaments  of  impressive  beauty.  In  silver 
salvers,  tea  and  coffee  services,  fruit  dishes, 
napkin  rings,  spoons  and  other  table  furni- 
ture, the  work  of  the  Japanese  artist  has  a 
beauty  all  its  own,  made,  as  such  work  is, 
by  the  hand  of  a  master,  and  not  cast,  as 
abroad.  The  demand  for  cheap  art  is,  how- 
ever, forcing  the  metal-worker  down  to  the 
level  of  his  customers,  resulting  in  mere 
decorative  effect  rather  than  artistic  merit. 

IVORY  AND  WOOD  CARVIXG 
We  have  seen  how  Buddhism  from  the 
beginning  lent  great  impetus  to  wood  sculp- 
ture, for  when  metal  could  not  be  had,  or 
was  too  expensive,  wood  was  always  at  hand 
to  afford  imposing  images  of  gods  and  saints, 
as  well  as  to  adorn  in  fine  carvings  the  temple 
friezes  and  gates.  Few  examples  of  the 
wood-carver's  art  now  remain,  as,  unlike 
bronze  work,  wood  was  subject  to  decimation 
by  fire.  A  wooden  statue  by  the  famous 
Shiba  Tori  is  still  preserved  in  the  Hor>-uji 
Temple,  dating  from  623  A.  D.  Later  cen- 
turies, however,  show  few  carvers  of  great 
talent  and  skill,  the  most  important  in  the 
ninth  and  tenth  centuries  being  Kosho  and 
his  son  Jocho,  with  Unkei  in  the  Kamakura 
period.  The  art  of  the  sixteenth  and  seven- 
teenth centuries  in  wood  was  confined  to 
exterior  embellishment  of  temples,  fine  exam- 
ples of  which  are  to  be  seen  at  Nikko  in 
pillars,  panels,  beams,  brackets,  animals, 
birds,  and  flowers.  The  greatest  name  in 
this  period  was  that  of  Hidari  Jingoro.  With 
the  rise  of  the  puppet  theatres  there  was  new 
employment   for  carvers  in   the  making   of 


THE   lAMOLS  CARVING   OF    THE   THREE   MONKEYS,    AT    NIKKO 
("HEAR  NO  EVIL,  SPEAK  NO  EVIL,  SEE  NO  EVIL") 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


499 


WOOD    AND   IVORY   CARVERS    AT    WORK' 


images  and  masks,  the  work  of  such  artists 
as  Matsumoto  Kisaburo  in  the  nineteenth 
century  even  finding  its  way  abroad.  Among 
modem  wood-carvers  and  sculptors  the 
names  of  Takamura  Koun  and  Takenouchi 
Kyuchi  are  prominent.  In  ivory  carving, 
as  well  as  in  wood,  art  is  suffering  from  want 
of  appreciative  patronage.  Most  of  the 
demand  for  work  of  this  kind  is  abroad, 
some  90  per  cent  of  all  the  objects  made 
being  exported,  chiefly  to  the  United  States. 
The  old  carvers  were  forced  to  work  on  small 
bits  of  tusk  which  were  big  enough  to  produce 
netsuke,  but  the  modern  carver  may  have 
a  whole  tusk  to  himself  if  he  so  desires,  and 
has,  therefore,  an  unlimited  field.  Most  of 
the  ivory  artists,  however,  have  to  be  content 
with  carving  decorative  objects  for  foreign 
customers,  which  work  they  find  more  lucra- 
tive than  aesthetically  inspiring,  compelled, 
as  they  are,  to  think  of  time  and  contract, 
and  not,  as  in  the  old  days,  moved  by  genius 
and  ideal  conception.  There  does  not  appear 
to  be  any  very  great  appreciation  of  ivory 
carving  among  the  Japanese  themselves, 
owing,  perhaps,  to  the  comparatively  high 
cost,  and  the  unsuitability  of  Japanese 
houses  for  such  ornaments.  Nevertheless, 
at  present  carving  in  ivory  is  showing  more 
skill  and  achievement  than  carving  in  wood, 
and  many  of  the  wood-carvers  are,  therefore, 
abandoning  wood  for  ivory.  The  wood- 
carver  has  indeed  fallen  upon  evil  days  in 
Japan.  The  successors  of  those  inimitable 
artists  who  produced  the  friezes  and  pillars 
of  the  temples  at  Nikko  and  the  wonderful 
masks  of  the  Noh  drama,  have  now  to  be 
content  with  making  fancy  table  legs  and 
other  furniture,  stands  for  metal  vases,  and 
even  toys.  In  such  work  as  sashimono,  or 
cabinet-making,  there  is,  of  course,  room  for 
the  display  of  great  art  in  carving  and  in 
objects  like  tansu.  or  chests  of  drawers,  char- 


coal braziers,  tobacco  trays,  and  furniture 
generally,  some  really  beautiful  work  is  being 
done.  Here  the  skill  of  the  joiner  combines 
with  the  genius  of  the  artist  to  produce  cas- 
kets and  cabinets  worthy  of  all  admiration. 

CERAMICS 

The  making  of  porcelain  and  pottery  is,  of 
course,  one  of  the  oldest  of  Japanese  arts. 


/T\ 


«  11 


\^L/ 


A 


raanoB 


UDO  COPPER  SWORD  FURNITURE  INLAID  WITH 
GOLD.  DESIGNED  AND  CARVED  BY  GOTO  MUNE- 
NORI  (sixteenth  CENTURV)  —  RARE  SPECIMEN 
OF  KOZUKA  UDO  COPPER  SWORD  FURNITURE 
(SI.XTEENTH  CENTURY).  CARVED  WITH  BUD- 
DHIST   WHEELS    AND    INLAID    WITH   GOLD.   BY 

JOSHIN   GOTO IRON    SWORD   GUARDS   OF    THE 

SIXTEENTH  CENTURY (KANAYAM-TSUBA  STYLE), 
MADE  BY  NOBUIYE,  A  NOTED  ARTIFICER.  SPEC- 
IMENS   FROM   THE    IMPERIAL    MUSEUM,  TOKYO 


Introduced  originally  from  China  and  Korea, 
and  improved  under  the  tutelage  of  later  con- 
tinental teachers,  the  ceramic  art  of  Japan 
early  attained  a  high  degree  of  excellence, 
especially  under  the  patronage  of  the  great 
feudal  lords,  who  encouraged  in  every  fief 
the  art  and  activity  of  potters  to  meet  the 
needs  of  the  people  as  well  as  to  produce 
speciaHsts  in  the  craft.  Upon  the  decUne  of 
feudalism  the  art  of  pottery  suffered  a  relapse, 
and  the  number  of  districts  engaged  in  it 
considerably  lessened.  The  Meiji  Govern- 
ment imported  experts  from  abroad  who 
introduced  new  methods  of  manufacture 
and  the  use  of  foreign  pigments  in  decora- 
tion, after  which  the  potters  of  Mino,  Kyoto, 
Aichi  and  other  centres  began  to  emulate 
one  another  in  the  new  movement,  which, 
though  more  profitable  commericaUy  in  its 
appeal  to  the  inferior  taste  of  the  West,  has 
departed  sadly  from  the  ceramic  art  of  the 
old  masters. 

Although  collectors  generally  speak  of 
Japanese  porcelain  in  accents  of  enthusiasm, 
it  has  to  be  admitted  that  the  Japanese  artist 
in  porcelain,  as  distinguished  from  faience, 
never  rose  quite  to  the  level  of  his  Chinese 
teacher.  The  pottery  of  Imari,  called  in 
Europe  Old  Japan  Ware,  with  its  deep- 
toned  fields  and  crowded  designs;  the 
Nabeshima  porcelain,  which  stood  for  a 
more  aristocratic  type  of  ceramic  art;  the 
Kutani  ware  with  its  brilliant,  richly  massed 
enamels,  and  the  Hirado  pottery  in  delicate 
blue  sous  couverte,  all  go  to  testify  to  the 
aesthetic  sobriety  of  Japanese  taste,  and  they 
form  the  four  great  divisions  of  porcelain 
on  which  the  fame  of  Japanese  ceramists 
must  rest.  Yet  in  the  opinion  of  experts 
they  are  on  the  whole  inferior  to  Chinese 
masterpieces  with  their  wonderful  mono- 
chromes, in  indescribably  delicate  clair-de- 
lune  or  faultless  liquid-dawn;  or  the  Chinese 


PRESENT-DAY        I  M  P  U  I-:  S  S  I  O  N  S        OF        JAPAN 


CLOISONN'E-WARE    ARTIST   AT   WORK 


hawthorns,  soft  paste  blue-and-white,  bean 
blossom,  transmutation  glaze,  egg-shell, 
famille-rose,  and  other  incomparable  crea- 
tions. Before  this  galaxy  of  brilliant  varie- 
ties the  masterpieces  of  Japanese  porcelain 
must,  perhaps,  pale.  But  not  so  in  the  case 
of  faience,  which  the  Chinese  ceramist  was 
prone  to  regard  with  contempt,  but  in 
which  the  Japanese  potter  most  excelled. 
The  choicest  specimens  of  old  Satsuma 
ware,    as    well    as   some   from   Kyoto,   hold 


undisputed    preeminence    in    the    realm    of 
faience. 

While  the  ceramists  of  modern  Japan  do 
not  seek  to  build  their  fame  on  reproducing 
the  masterpieces  of  the  past,  they  do  turn 
out  work  equally  fine,  and  in  much  greater 
variety,  at  the  same  time  adapting  their 
art  to  the  needs  of  modern  markets  at  home 
and  abroad.  Foreign  influence,  however, 
has  forced  deterioration,  as  will  be  noted 
later.     Instinctively  the  Japanese  artist   in 


porcelain  turns  to  China  still  for  models,  for 
he  knows  that  the  Kangh.si,  Yungcheng, 
and  Chienlung  masters  stand  on  a  pedestal 
to  which  he  must  climb  before  essaying 
independent  flight.  While  the  Japanese 
ceramist  has  produced  many  notable  pieces 
of  beautiful  porcelain,  the  liquid-dawn 
monochrome  of  his  Chinese  master  still 
eludes  him.  In  ivory-white,  celadon,  blue 
sous  coui'erle,  enamelled  painting  over  glaze, 
mirror-ljlack,  translucid  decoration,  and 
various  subglaze  colours,  as  red,  green, 
vellow,  and  black,  the  Japanese  potter  has 
succeeded  admirably,  as  well  as  in  the 
wonderfully  attenuated  pdie  of  the  Chinese 
Totai-ki.     In     ceramics,    Japan    has    never 


THE    POTTER 


SPECIMEN    OF   CLOIbO.NNE    WARE    IX   THE 
IMPERIAL    MUSEUM 

ceased  to  be  China's  pupil.  In  the  thir- 
teenth century  Kato  Shirozaemon  visited 
the  Sung  kilns  and  acquired  knowledge  that 
resulted  in  the  wares  of  Seto.  In  the  six- 
teenth century  Shonzui  learned  at  Ching- 
te-chen  the  process  of  making  blue-and-white 
porcelain,  and  in  the  nineteenth  century 
Seifu,  Shozan  Takemoto,  Kato,  and  Higuchi 
had  no  higher  ambition  than  to  reproduce 
the  masterpieces  of  China. 

At  present  there  are  some  fifteen  places 
in  Japan  noted  for  the  production  of  pottery, 
among  which  the  more  distinguished  are 
Kyoto,  Hizen,  Seto,  Mino,  Kaga,  Satsuma, 
and  Tokyo.  In  porcelain,  as  in  other  arts, 
the  difficulty  is  to  find  patronage  that  will 
justify  the  patience  and  application  of 
genius  necessary  to  the  production  of  master- 
pieces. In  the  United  States,  where  there 
is  a  large  demand  for  Japanese  pottery,  taste 


EXAMPLES   OF    KYOTO    WARE,    BY   THE    ARTIST    KANZAN  —  ANCIENT   SPECIMENS   OF    KUTANI    AND   IMARI    WARE  — SETO    WARE THE    KANON 

BUDDHA,    IN    PORCELAIN  — KYOTO    WARE    BY    THE    FAMOUS    ARTIST,    NINSEI ANCIENT    SPECIMENS   OF    SATSUMA — SETO   WARE 

RARE    SPECIMENS   OF    IMARI    AND    SATSUMA    WARE  —  IMARI    WARE.      ALL   FROM   COLLECTION    IN    IMPERIAL    MUSEUM,    TOKYO 


33 


502 


PRESENT-nAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


EXCELLENT   MODERN    SPECIMENS   OF    CLOISONNE    WARE    BY    THE    KIN-l'N-KEN    FACTORY,    KYOTO 


has  encouragingly  improved  within  the  last 
few  years,  but  as  much  can  not  be  said  for 
other  countries,  the  demand  being  still 
greatest  for  hasty  productions  in  gaudy 
decoration.  Naturally  the  demand  for  inar- 
tistic exports  has  reacted  unfavourably  on 
ceramic  art  in  Japan,  but  there  is  now  a 
firm  move  being  made  to  eliminate  at  least 
the  vulgar  mixture  of  Japanese  and  foreign 
elements  in  form  and  decoration.  Some  of 
the  modem  porcelains  produced  for  those 
willing  to  pay  for  them  are  exquisitely  beau- 
tiful, comparing  favourably  with  the  best 
of  the  past.  Even  the  table-ware  of  the 
poorest  Japanese  is  infinitely  more  artistic 
than  that  of  the  higher  classes  in  Western 
countries.  Thus  it  is  clear  that  it  is  not  so 
much  cost  of  production,  as  it  is  inferiority 
of  taste,  that  results  in  the  enormities  of 
decoration  made  for  foreign  export. 

CLOISONNE  ENAMEL 
This  is  another  of  the  deUghtful  arts 
that  Japan  acquired  from  China.  In  old 
Japan  the  process  of  enclosing  vitrifiable 
enamels  in  designs  traced  with  cloisons  was 
employed  solely  for  the  decoration  of  sword 


AN   exquisite    EXAMPLE    OF    THE    CLOIS0Nn£ 

ART    (kIN-UN-KEN) 


furniture  and  other  subordinate  purposes, 
but  Kaji  Tsunekichi  in  the  nineteenth 
century  extended  its  use  to  the  manufacture 
of  vases,  censers,  and  bowls.  At  first,  in 
cloisonne  work  the  Japanese  did  not  approach 
the  excellence  of  the  Chinese  in  grandeur  of 
colour  and  perfection  of  technique,  their 
shades  being  always  sombre  and  often 
impure,  but  this  period  of  inferiority  soon 
gave  way  to  work  of  high  skill,  showing 
specimens  of  remarkable  richness  of  deco- 
ration and  purity  of  design,  as  well  as  admir- 
able harmony  of  colour.  New  departures 
were  made  by  the  introduction  of  cloison- 
less  enamel,  known  as  miisen-jippo,  and 
translucent  enamel.  In  this  connection  the 
names  of  the  two  Xamikawas,  and  of  Ando 
and  Hattori  deser\-e  special  mention.  The 
use  of  silver  instead  of  copper  as  a  base,  and 
the  setting  of  designs  on  the  surface  in 
greater  relief  by  the  ishime  process,  indicate 
still  more  recent  progress  in  the  art,  while 
Ando  has  successfully  imitated  the  French 
process  of  translucent  designs,  and  Ota  in 
producing  the  red  monochrome  that  has 
long  been  the  ambition  of  workers  in  cloi- 
sonne enamel. 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


503 


LACQUER 
This  is  certainly  one  of  the  most  beautiful 
of  Japan's  arts  and  crafts.  On  account  of 
the  high  excellence  it  has  attained  in  form, 
design,  and  execution,  as  well  as  on  account 
of  the  remarkable  patience  and  skill  required 
in  its  successful  manufacture,  the  art  must 
rank  among  the  noblest  efTorts  of  icsthetic 
achievement.  The  designs  in  lacquer  range 
from  great  simplicity  to  elaborate  decoration, 
while  the  wonderful  glow  and  sheen  of  the 
gold,  silver,  and  other  variously  coloured 
lacquers  represent  something  that  is  a  joy 
forever.  Like  other  Japanese  arts,  lacquer 
work  first  came  from  China,  and  that  very 
early,  as  it  is  mentioned  in  the  oldest  chron- 
icles of  Japan.  Articles  in  this  craft  are 
preserved  in  museums  and  temples  of  Japan, 
that  date  as  far  back  as  the  sixth  century. 
The  earlier  work  appears  to  have  been  in 
black,  often  inlaid  with  mother-of-pearl,  and 
mother-of-pearl  on  a  gold  ground  appears 
in  the  tenth  century,  and  boxes  with  light 
gold,  with  fence,  fiower  petals,  and  birds 
have  come  down  from  the  twelfth  century. 
By  the  fifteenth  century  decoration  expanded 
into  floral  and  conventional  landscapes,  as 
well  as  figures  and  architectural  themes. 
In  process  of  time  the  Japanese  artist  in 
lacquer  seems  to  have  far  surpassed  his 
Chinese  masters,  especially  after  the  four- 
teenth century.  The  carved  cinnabar  lacquer 
of  China,  of  course,  had  no  equal  anywhere, 
but  in  other  forms  the  Japanese  artist  showed 


THE    PROCESS   OF   CONDENSING   LIQUID   LACQUER    IN    THE    SUN 


unapproachable  excellence.  In  the  second 
half  of  the  fifteenth  century  the  dilettante 
shogun  Yoshimasa  established  tea  clubs 
which  demanded  various  artistic  utensils 
in  lacquer,  when  the  craftsmen  of  Japan 
soon  began  to  produce  that  beautiful  gold 
lacquer  with  decorative  designs  in  relief, 
known  as  laka-nmkiye,  as  well  as  nashiji,  or 


lacquer  with  aventurine  ground,  resulting 
in  a  long  succession  of  exquisite  specimens 
and  culminating  in  the  elaborate  decoration 
applied  to  the  interior  of  the  Tokugawa 
mausolea  in  Tokyo  and  Nikko.  The  summit 
of  development  was  reached  in  the  latter 
part  of  the  seventeenth  century  when  the 
output  was  as  artistic  as  it  was  extensive 


VERY    EARLY    SPECIMENS   OF    TAPESTRY  —  A  SPECIMEN    OF    CUT    VELVET,    A    HUNDRED   YEARS   OLD,    HY    IIDA    SHINSHICHI  OF  KYOTO A    SPECIMEN 

OF   CUT   VELVET    AND   GOLD    BROCADE,    MORE   THAN    A   HUNDRED   YEARS   OLD,    BY   OKIO.      (SPECIMENS   FROM    THE    IMPERIAL    MUSEUM,   TOKYO) 


504 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


In  the  eighteenth  century  the  names  of 
Sonsen-sai,  Chohci,  Jokasai,  Tayo,  Kokyo, 
Hirose,  and  Eki  were  among  the  most  notable 
artists  in  lacquer,  while  in  modern  times 
Uyematsu  Honin  and  Shirayama  Shosai 
have  no  equals.     Indeed,  the  work  of  the 


Western  mind  has  a  full  appreciation  of  this 
art  in  the  same  sense  as  the  Jajianese,  and 
consequently  lacquer  has  always  been  more 
valued  in  Japan  than  abroad,  though  the 
demand  for  better  work  in  Western  countries 
is    increasing.     Even    in    Japan    the    best 


SPECIMEN   OF   ANCIENT  CUT-VELVET   WORK,    IN    THE    IMPERIAL    MUSEUM,   TOKYO 


lacquer  artist  to-day  is  quite  up  to  that  of 
any  of  his  predecessors.  All  the  finest 
pieces  of  the  past  were  made  to  order,  just 
as  it  must  be  with  the  best  work  to-day. 
It  is  impossible  to  form  any  adequate  con- 
ception of  the  wonderful  variety  of  designs 
and  the  endless  combination  of  colours  and 
materials  over  which  the  modern  craftsman 
holds  magic  command.  The  Japanese,  as 
a  rule,  reveal  simple  taste  in  lacquer,  such 
as  the  plain,  severe  black,  or  nashiji,  of  the 
seventeenth  century,  with,  perhaps,  a  spray 
of  plum  or  cherry  blossom  or  a  bird  soaring 
toward  the  rising  moon  or  rising  sun.  For- 
eigners, however,  prefer  the  more  elaborate 
and  overcrowded  work  of  the  Genroku  period, 
inlays  of  mother-of-pearl  or  coral,  various 
metals   with   special   use  of  gold.     But   no 


pieces  have  always  been  purchased  by  the 
Imperial  Family,  to  be  used  as  gifts  for  great 
personages  and  foreign  potentates. 

WE.WJNG  AND  EMBROIDERY 
As  one  of  the  earliest  industries  of  the 
nation,  weaving  in  time  began  to  reveal  the 
development  and  originality  of  an  art.  In 
the  oldest  annals  of  Japan  it  is  mentioned 
as  an  avocation  of  goddesses  in  the  myth- 
ology of  the  nation,  and  corporations  of 
figured-cloth  weavers  are  mentioned  as 
existing  in  lo  a.  d.  From  this  it  appears 
that  the  art  of  weaving  was  practised  in 
Japan  from  immemorial  times,  and  China 
and  Korea  contributed  materially  to  its 
development.  Embroidery,  too,  must  have 
been  an  ancient  art  of  Japan,  for  embroidered 


representations  of  Buddha  sixteen  feet  long 
are  mentioned  in  the  sixth  century,  and  the 
older  temples  of  Japan  have  specimens  of 
this  art  dating  from  remote  antiquity. 
Both  weaving  and  embroidery  received 
marked  impetus  from  certain  schools  of 
actors  whose  theatres  required  elaborately 
woven  and  embroidered  robes  to  lend  spec- 
tacular effect  to  their  dramas.  In  connec- 
tion with  this  Noh-kyogen  drama,  Japan  in 
time  became  the  possessor  of  such  stores 
of  textile  fabrics  as  have  never  been  excelled 
anywhere  in  point  of  richness  of  quality, 
beauty  of  design,  and  delicacy  of  technique. 
Many  of  these  famous  collections  have 
been  dispersed  abroad  where  they  ser\-e  to 
denote  the  achievements  of  old  Japan,  but 
the  modern  exponents  of  these  arts  and 
crafts  are  in  no  way  behind  their  predecessors. 
The  modern  brocades  of  Japan  are,  perhaps, 
not  always  superior  to  those  of  the  old 
masters,  but  on  the  whole  they  afford  very 
favourable  comparison  with  the  best  achieve- 
ments of  the  past.  Especially  in  tzuzure- 
ttishiki,  or  tapestry,  the  modem  manufacturer 
has  far  out-distanced  his  ancestors,  while  in 
embroidery  the  present-day  masterpieces  in 
their  wonderful  chiaroscuro  effects  and  aerial 
perspective  are  away  beyond  anything  that 
the  past  has  produced,  and  the  remarkable 
cut-velvets  of  the  Kyoto  artists  have  made 
an  entirely  new  addition  to  the  list  of  art 
fabrics.  In  silk  brocade  the  Japanese 
artist  can  produce  any  scene  from  nature 
or  any  pattern  selected,  with  his  tiny  loom 
and  threads  of  silk  and  gold.  This  is  now 
the  most  highly  prized  of  all  Japan's  textiles, 
but  such  products  can  be  afforded  only 
by  great  personages,  and  even  these  wear 
them  only  on  important  occasions.  Dur- 
ing the  last  fifty  years  the  art  of  wea\'ing 
silk  brocade  has  made  marvellous  progress 
under  Jimbei  Kawashima  of  Kyoto  who 
received  much  encouragement  from  the  late 
Emperor.  He  it  was  who  undertook  the 
matchless  creations  in  this  art  which  the 
late  Emperor  presented  to  the  Palace  of 
Peace  at  The  Hague.  One  of  the  finest 
pieces  of  silk  tapestry  in  the  world  is  in  the 
Imperial  Palace  at  Tokj'o,  a  magnificent 
creation  eighteen  feet  by  twenty-four,  which 
took  several  years  to  complete.  Only 
genius  of  great  originality  and  inspiration 
could  have  produced  the  masterpieces  in 
this  art  to  be  seen  only  in  Japan. 

PICTORIAL  ART 
In  the  past  foreigners  have  been  prone 
to  treat  Japanese  art  as  for  the  most  part 
decorative  or  applied  art,  quite  satisfied  if 
they  have  taken  a  scant  review  of  the  nation's 
porcelain,  pottery,  lacquer,  carving,  and 
colour-prints,  without  making  any  study  of 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


505 


its  creative  or  pictorial  art  at  all.  This 
was  in  some  measure  due  to  the  fact  that 
the  masterpieces  of  Japanese  painting  were 
hidflcn  away  as  treasures,  and  the  world 
was  ignorant  of  the  existence  of  such  works 
as  Japan  can  show.  In  recent  years,  how- 
ever, these  have  been  brought  from  their 
hiding  places  and  put  on  view  in  the  great 
museums  and  galleries  of  the  nation,  and 
the  wealth  of  Japan's  artistic  achievements 
has  become  better  known.  After  all  it  must 
be  admitted  that  a  nation's  applied  or  in- 
dustrial arts  and  crafts  are  but  the  overflow 
of  the  shaping  and  inventing  energy,  as  well 
as  tlie  inspiration  of  her  creative  or  free 
arts.  The  decoration  of  things  of  use  and 
luxury  is  but  the  reflection  of  designs  emanat- 
ing from  the  minds  of  the  great  masters  of 
the  brush  and  the  chisel. 

Pictorial  art  is  one  of  Japan's  oldest 
achievements,  introduced,  like  other  and 
kindred  arts,  from  Korea  and  China.  In 
the  hands  of  Kanaoka  in  the  ninth  century 
the  national  pictorial  art  began  to  show  some 
signs  of  breaking  away  from  slavish  imita- 
tion of  the  Chinese  masters,  but  the  paint- 
ing of  Japan  did  not  completely  find  itself 
until  the  eleventh  century,  when  the  Tosa 
school  appeared  at  Nara.  Before  this  there 
had  been  the  Yamato  school,  established  by 
Motomitsu,  which  contained  in  itself  most 
of  the  peculiarities  that  have  characterised 
Japanese  painting  ever  since,  such  as  neglect 
of  perspective,  impossible  mountains,  quaint 
dissection  of  roofless  interiors,  and  devotion 
to  insects  and  hobgoblins.  This  school 
finally  evolved  into  the  Tosa  school  of  paint- 
ers and  thenceforward  devoted  itself  more 
to  classical  subjects.  The  Tosa  painters 
were  intent  on  the  national  manners  and 
customs  of  the  past,  and  included  a  long 
line  of  brilliant  names  down  to  Mitsuoki 
of  the  seventeenth  century,  who  painted  the 
thirty-six  poets  for  the  Toshogu  at  Nikko. 
From  the  Tosa  school  arose  another  line  of 
artists  with  Kosin  at  their  head,  producing 
richly  decorated  pieces  in  coloured  ink, 
depicting  scenes  and  objects  in  nature.  In 
more  modern  times  the  honours  of  the  Tosa 
school  have  been  worthily  upheld  by  Kobori. 
The  Kano  school  of  painters,  an  imitation  of 
the  northern  school  of  China,  arose  in  the 
fourteenth  century,  producing  an  extended 
list  of  great  names  like  Shoku,  Suten,  and 
finally  Masanobu,  whose  works  are  still  to 
be  seen  in  various  temples.  The  fifteenth 
century  is  generally  regarded  as  the  most 
glorious  period  of  painting  in  Japan,  as 
indeed,  by  strange  coincidence,  it  was  in 
Italy,  Chodensu  and  Josetsu  achieving  fame 
in  the  depiction  of  Buddhist  subjects.  Other 
names  of  the  period  were  Mitsunobu  of  the 
Tosa    school      and     Sesshu,     Shubun,     and 


EMBROIDERY   .ARTISTS 


Masanobu  of  the  Kano  school.  The  latter, 
even  down  to  the  present  day,  has  continued 
to  be  the  stronghold  of  classicism  in  Japa- 
nese painting,  by  which  is  rneant  a  close 
adherence  to  Chinese  models  and  subjects 
at  second  hand.  The  quiet  harmonious 
colouring  and  the  bold  calligraphic  drawing 
of  the  old  masters  have  justly  excited  the 
emulation  of  succeeding  generations,  though 
the  circle  of  ideas  in  which  the  old  masters 
moved  was  too  restricted  to  command 
universal  admiration.  It  was  under  the 
influence  of  the  calligraphic  art  of  the  south- 
ern school  of  China  that  the  Bunjinja  school 
arose  in  Japan,  a  school  noted  for  the  elegance 
and  beauty  of  its  brush  work,  and  of  which 
Kazan    was    a    master.     One    of    the    great 


names  of  the  Kano  school,  Maruyama  Okyo, 
founded  a  school  in  the  eighteenth  century 
bearing  his  name,  its  leading  feature  being  a 
faithful  adherence  to  nature.  Keibun,  Toko- 
hiko,  Gyokusho,  and  Bunkyo,  who  died  some 
time  ago,  were  all  brilliant  pupils  of  Okyo. 
The  Shijo  school  of  painters,  notably  Take- 
nouchi,  showed  admirable  independence  in  the 
direction  of  a  pure  Japanese  style,  practis- 
ing a  graceful  naturalism,  while  the  school 
of  everyday  life,  known  as  the  Ukiyo-e, 
devoted  itself  to  the  manners  and  customs 
of  the  common  people  of  the  streets.  The 
beginning  of  this  popular  movement  in 
Japanese  art  may  be  traced  back  to  the 
droll  sketches  of  Iwasa  Matahei  in  the 
sixteenth   century,   and   the  idea   was   later 


So6 


PRESENT-DAY        IMPRESSIONS        OF        J  A  I'  A  N 


A    VERY   OLD    PORTRAIT   OF    YOSHITSUNE,  IN 
THE    IMPERIAL   MUSEUM,    TOKYO 


developed  by  Moronobu  and  Hanabusa,  who 
illustrated  books  in  popular  style  in  colour. 
The  influence  of  Okyo,  who  made  a  sincere 
attempt  to  paint  with  his  eye  on  nature,  did 
something  to  turn  the  public  mind  to  things 
natural  and  real,  and  a  whole  host  of  artists 
arose  depicting  life  around  them,  releasing 
art  from  the  cold  conventionalities  of  Chinese 
taste  and  bringing  it  down  to  the  society 
of  living  men  and  women.  One  of  the 
greatest  names  in  this  artisan  school  was 
that  of  Hokusai,  who  from  1760  to  1849 
poured  forth  a  continuous  stream  of  novel 
and  vigourous  creations  covering  the  whole 
range  of  Japanese  motives,  and  resulting  in 
those  wonderful  colour-prints  for  which 
Japan  has  become  justly  famous.  Other 
noted  names  of  the  Ukiyo-e  school  were 
those  of  Toyokuni,  Kunisada,  Shigenobu, 
Hiroshige,  and  Kyonobu.  The  last  of  the 
masters  of  the  old  school  was  Kyosai,  who 
sur\'ived  until  1889,  his  main  themes,  with 
grim  appropriateness,  being  the  ghosts  and 
skeletons  of  the  past. 

After  the  opening  of  Japan  to  Western 
civilisation  and  art,  the  painters  of  the  nation 
had  serious  difficulties  with  which  to  contend, 
just  as  their  ancestors  before  them  had  when 
Japan  came  into  contact  with  the  influence 
of  China,  with  this  difference,  however,  that 
when  Japan  came  under  the  tutelage  of 
China  in  art  as  in  other  things,  she  had  no 


traditions  and  nothing  to  unlearn  but  every- 
thing to  learn,  but  when  she  came  face  to 
face  with  the  West  she  had  an  immense 
tradition  to  overcome  and  a  long  line  of 
artists  to  demand  her  loyalty.  Art,  like 
religion,  is  something  inseparable  from  the 
soul  of  a  race,  and  the  result  will  wholly 
depend  on  the  attitude  of  the  mind  to  the 
woi'ld.  In  that  attitude  the  religion  and 
tin-  mind  of  Japan  differed  profoundly  from 


AN    ANCIENT    PAINTING    OF    SUGIWARA 
MICHIZANE 

Europe.  At  first  it  was  supposed  that  every- 
thing foreign,  including  art,  was  superior, 
and  native  masters  like  Hogai  and  Kyosai 
were  neglected,  the  pupils  flocking  to  the  new 
art  teachers  imported  from  Europe  by  the 
Government.  But  even  the  foreigners  them- 
selves, led  by  Professor  Fcnollosa,  opposed 
the  aversion  from  the  old  masters  and  did 
something  to  stay  the  wild  rush  to  escape 
the  past,  and  so  evade  all  pretence  to  orig- 
inality. And  so  when  the  National  School 
of  Fine  Arts  was  founded  in  1886,  Hogai 
and  Gaho  were  its  chief  teachers.  A  brave 
attempt  was  made  to  preclude  the  old, 
native  artistic  individuality  being  lost  dur- 
ing the  absorbing  interest  in  the  art  of  the 
West.  Devoted  as  some  Japanese  artists 
have  been  to  the  Western  style  of  painting, 
Japan  has  not  yet  produced  her  Turners  or 
Tintorets,  nor  at  the  same  time  has  she 
given    the    world    anything   in    native    style 


worthy  of  universal  appeal.  It  is  a  grave 
question  with  some  whether  the  pictorial 
art  of  Japan  has  made  much  progress  since 
the  days  of  Okyo  and  Motonobu,  while  others 
even  doubt  whether  at  any  time  she  has 
risen  above  the  level  of  her  Chinese  masters, 
especially  in  the  delineation  of  landscape 
with  noble  breadth  of  design,  subtle  relation 
of  tones,  splendid  calligraphic  force,  and  an 
all-pervading  sense  of  poetrv-,  such  as  one 
sees  in  the  masterpieces  of  the  Tang,  Sung, 
and  Yuan  epochs,  and  which  have  been  at 
once  the  ideal  and  the  inspiration  of  the 
artists  of  Japan.  But  just  as  the  glyptic 
art  of  Japan  won  triumphs  of  its  own  in 
such  spheres  as  netsuke  and  sword  furniture, 
the  pictorial  art  of  the  nation  has  revealed 
its  special  genius  in  the  Tosa  and  the  Ukiyo-^ 
painters  and  their  successors  in  modem 
times.     Though  now  in  art  the  nation  seems 


PAINTING  OF  AN  ANCIENT  GOD  (tODAIJI  HACHI- 
MAN),  from  the  IMPERI.^L    MUSEUM,    TOKYO 


HUMBLE    MODERN    CRAFTS:      (UPPER    ROW)    THE    SHOE    REPAIRER  — THE    SHOE    MAKER  — PRAYER    BEAD    MAKERS;       (SECOND    ROW) 

THE    UMBRELLA    MAKER  — FAN    MAKERS— THE    VILLAGE    BLACKSMITH;       (THIRD    ROW)    SAMISEN    MAKERS  — THE    DRUM 

FISH   LANTERN    MAKER— LANTERN    MAKERS;       (LOWER    ROW)    DOLL    MAKERS  — A   TOY    MAKER 


5o8 


RESENT-DAY    IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


at  the  ijarting  of  the  ways,  at  a  loss  whether 
to  follow  the  West  or  to  rely  on  the  inspira- 
tion and  example  of  its  own  past,  there  is  no 
doubt  that  the  Japanese  artist  will  eventually 
find  himself,  however  difficult  it  may  be 
for  him  to  get  away  from  convention,  Occi- 
dental or  Oriental.  Even  as  the  Tosa 
painters  had  no  peers  in  China  as  historical 


a;sthetic  realm,  Kuroda  and  Miyak^  have 
boldly  adopted  Occidental  canons  of  art: 
all  these  have  produced  pictures  and  are 
still  producing  them,  none  of  which,  perhaps, 
are  quite  worthy  to  hang  with  the  old  masters. 
But  as  the  noi.se  and  confusion  of  the  transi- 
tion period  cease  and  the  era  of  doubt  passes, 
the  era  of  achievement  approaches.     When 


FU-JIN    (god   of   wind).       ONE    OF    A    P.\IR   OF   COLOURED,    TWO-FOLDING   SCREENS, 

ATTRIBUTED   TO   TAWARAYA    SOTATSU,    SEVENTEENTH   CENTURY. 

OWNED    BY   KENNIX-JI   TEMPLE,    KYOTO 


illustrators,  combining  the  realistic  and  the 
decorative  in  an  admirable  manner,  so  the 
modern  painters  of  Japan  will  eventually 
contradict  the  contention  that  they  are 
degenerating  into  hybrid  schools  with  the 
virtues  of  neither  East  nor  West.  The  Tosa 
school  found  its  inspiration  in  the  camp, 
the  castle,  and  the  battlefield,  and  the 
Ukiyo-6  in  the  voluptuoas  sestheticism  and 
the  refined  sensuality  of  the  boudoir  and  the 
bagnio,  but  the  painters  of  new  Japan  will 
not  fall  into  the  austerities  resulting  from 
war  on  the  oi)e  hand,  nor  the  vices  resulting 
from  idle  peace  on  the  other.  They  live  in 
an  age  of  transition  without  any  traits 
sufficiently  marked  to  arouse  enthusiasm 
or  inspire  ideals.  Bunkyo  and  Imao  have 
explored  the  naturalistic  field,  Kawabata 
and   Watanabe    have   been   groping  in   the 


achievement  arrives  will  it  reveal  more  of 
what  is  Japanese  or  more  of  what  is  foreign? 
There  are  those  who  wisely  hope  that  the 
artists  of  Japan  will  aim  at  maintaining 
the  nation's  reputation  in  the  field  of  art 
after  the  native  rather  than  after  the  foreign 
manner,  as  in  the  old  ways  they  are  more 
likely  to  succeed.  If  Japan's  fame  is  not  to 
suffer  she  must  aspire  to  eminence  in  lines 
that  do  not  come  closely  into  competition 
with  Western  achievement.  Japanese  paint- 
ing is  distinguished  by  directness,  facility,  and 
strength  of  line,  revealing  a  bold  dash  that  is 
probably  due  to  the  habit  of  writing  and  draw- 
ing from  the  elbow  rather  than  from  the  wrist. 
The  merest  sketch  has,  therefore,  a  calli- 
graphic quality  that  gives  it  merit.  Though 
it  may  be  faultlessly  accurate  in  natural  de- 
tails, it  scorns  to  be  tied  down  to  any  rules. 


The  bird  may  be  perfect,  but  the  tree  only  a 
conventional  short-hand  symbol;  the  bamboo 
lifelike,  but  part  of  it  blurred  by  an  artificial 
atmosphere  that  never  was  on  sea  or  land. 
The  Japanese  artist  is  a  poet  and  not  a  photog- 
rapher; he  is  painting  memories  and  feelings, 
not  scenes  or  objects.    Had  he  breadth  of  view 
and  great  genius  he  might  produce  something 
grand,   but   he   aims   at   condensation,    not 
expansion.     He    is    intensive     rather     than 
extensive,   beUeving  that   the  divine  begins 
where    the    visibility    ends.     Perhaps    it    is 
because  Japanese  art  has  been   utilised  so 
much  in  decoration  that  its  peculiarities  have 
been  over-emphasised,  for  who  would  look  on 
the  side  of  a  teapot  for  a  rigid  observance  of 
perspective?     And  so,  while  in  broad  surfaces 
Japanese   art   has   won    no   great   place,    as 
decoration  for  smaller  surfaces  it  has  already 
conquered  the  world.     In  this  way  Japanese 
art  has  discovered  the  truth  that  mechanical 
symmetry  does  not  make  for  beauty.     West- 
ern art  aims  at  the  complete  reaUsation  of  a 
scene,  whether  observed  or  imagined,  while 
the  Japanese  artist  is  concerned  only  with 
abstracting  the  reality  by  reproducing  for  the 
spectator  the  emotion  evoked  in  the  artist  — 
and  all  not  tending  toward  this  end  is  omitted. 
Western   artists   are   to-day   devoting   more 
attention  to  this  spiritual  presentation  of  life 
than  to  the  pursuit  of  realism  for  its  own  sake, 
and  thus  they  are  more  closely  approaching 
the  Japanese  ideal.     This  the  Japanese  artist 
is  himself  beginning  to  realise  in  some  meas- 
ure, and  the  more  he  does  so  the  less  likely  he 
is   to   abandon   the   native   for  the   foreign 
tradition.    W^hile  adopting  Occidental  superi- 
ority in  knowledge  of  perspective,  anatomy, 
light  and  shadow,  the  Japanese  artist  will 
preserve  his  own  ideals  and  have  more  regard 
to  motive  and  nature  and  man  than  to  the 
mere   crust   of   society   and   ci\'ihsation.     It 
would,  indeed,  be  a  misfortune  if  the  artists 
of  the  new  Japan  should  allow  their  ideas  to 
be  clogged  or  their  ideals  to  be  swamped  with 
Western   materialism,    or   that   they   should 
surrender  their  delicacy,  suggestiveness,  and 
reticence  of  power  for  mere  imitation  of  some 
Western  ideal,  losing  touch  with  the  life  of 
Japan.     Many  of  the  foremost  artists  of  the 
nation  have  already  come  to  the  conclusion 
that  greatness  can  never  lie  in  a  combination 
of  qualities  that  do  not  harmoniously  blend. 
The  distinctive  virtues  of  Japanese  and  West- 
em  art  can  never  be  combined  without  losing 
something  of  individuality  and  charm.    Art, 
however,  must  always  be  a  criticism  of  Ufe,  or 
nothing,    and    the    future    of   Japanese   art 
depends  on  the  moral  and  spiritual  ideals  of 
Japan  herself.     The  present   confusion  pre- 
vailing   in    this    respect    accounts    for    the 
corresponding    confusion    in    the    world    of 
national  art. 


PRESENT-DAY        IMPRESSIONS        OF        JAPAN 


509 


THE    ARROW    MAKER 


PASSING   CRAFTS 


THE    SWORD    SHARPENER 


MINOR  CONSIDERATIONS 
Sculpture,  which  used  to  be  one  of  Japan's 
fine  arts,  has  not  been  such  now  for  centuries. 
The  static  poses  of  Buddhist  statuary  have 
chilled  the  native  ideal  and  resulted  in  a 
decline  of  skill  and  aspiration  that  no  effort 
seems  able  to  overcome.  Serious  attempts 
are  being  made,  nevertheless,  toward  revival, 
and  there  is  really  no  good  reason  why  the  art 
of  sculpture  should  not  develop  and  expand. 
Most  of  the  modern  efforts  in  marble  and 
plaster  are  close  imitations  of  Western  art 
and  too  trivial  or  lacking  in  force  of  concep- 
tion to  claim  the  honour  of  genius,  or  even  to 
claim  kinship  with  their  Western  masters. 
In  art  processes,  however,  Japan  is  more 
highly  distinguishing  herself.  If  she  can  not 
paint  modern  masterpieces  she  can  at  least 
print  them  as  nearly  hke  the  originals  as  any 
copy  can  be.  In  the  magnificent  reproduc- 
tions of  ancient  masterpieces  by  the  Shimbi 
Shoin  the  world  has  at  its  disposal  the  whole 
output  of  Japanese  pictorial  and  other  art  for 
centuries  in  albums  of  reasonable  price. 
Most  of  the  minor  arts,  however,  are  sadly 
affected  by  modern  commercialism.  With 
the  introduction  of  aniline  dyes  has  come  a 
renewal  of  the  colour-print,  but  the  skill  of 
the  wood-engravers  is  especially  seen  in  the 
reproducing  of  old  masterpieces  already 
mentioned.  -•\t  the  same  time,  there  is  going 
on  a  divorce  between  creative  and  decorative 


art  that  is  to  be  deplored,  and  the  only  hope 
lies  in  the  real  artists  taking  more  interest  in 
the  too  long  despised  crafts.  To  a  large 
ixtent,  modern  Hthography  is  driving  the  old 
art  of  xylography  from  the  field,  while  photog- 
raphy is  being  more  and  more  preferred  to 
the  illustrator  for  books  and  periodicals. 
Even  the  Japanese  colour-printers  of  old 
masterpieces  have  in  some  measure  to  rely  on 
jihotography  for  accuracy  of  reproduction, 
hut  the  results  are  far  superior  to  those  of 
former  days  under  the  old-fashioned  pro- 
cesses, as  the  print  is  an  exact  copy  of  the 
original  and  often  as  many  as  a  hundred 
tints  are  used  in  one  picture. 

The  Japanese  are  now  beginning  to  appre- 
L-iate  the  value  of  their  national  masterpieces 
and  are  buying  them  up  to  prevent  their  leav- 
ing the  country.  When  a  painting  from  one 
of  the  old  masters  comes  on  the  market  the 
competition  for  it  is  most  keen.  Recently  one 
1  y  Korin  was  knocked  down  at  105,000  yen, 
and  another  from  the  brush  of  Okyo  at  108,- 
000  yen.  Museums  and  galleries  for  the 
preservation  of  art  treasures  have  been 
established,  and  the  Government  holds  an 
annual  exhibition  of  present-day  masters, 
when  over  3,000  pieces  are  submitted  and 
about  300  selected  for  hanging.  The  ancient 
art  treasures  of  the  nation  now  number  2,533, 
and  are  preserved  at  a  cost  of  some  2,000,000 
ven. 


.\   H.WVK   ON   .\    PINE   TREE.      MONOCHROME, 
ONE   OF    A   PAIR  OF  KAKEMONO,  BY    SESSOU, 
SIXTEENTH  CENTURY,  OWNED  BY  MANSHU-IN 
TEMPLE,  KYOTO-FU 


VIEW   OF   A    BUSY    SECTION,    SHOWING    THE   CONTRAST    BETWEEN   THE    EUROPEAN    AND   JAPANESE    STYLES    OF    ARCHITECTURE,    TYPIFYING   THE 

PROGRESS    OF    MODERN   JAPAN 

XXXIII.    The  City  of  Osaka 

Antiquity— Modern  Osaka  — City  Government  — Finance  — Industries  and  Trades 


OSAKA,  the  commercial  and  industrial 
metropolis  of  the  Japanese  Empire, 
has  had  a  lengthy  and  interesting 
history,  rivalling  that  of  the  capital  itself. 
When  the  first  Emperor  of  the  newly  founded 
Empire  of  Yamato,  Jimmu  Tenno,  undertook 
an  expedition  to  the  eastern  portion  of  his 
dominions,  he  landed  near  the  site  where 
Osaka  now  stands,  and  called  the  place 
Naniwa.  From  that  time  the  village  became 
a  centre  of  importance,  especially  as  a  rendez- 
vous for  ships  and  a  stopping  place  for 
travellers.  In  the  literature  of  the  day  the 
place  is  mentioned  as  possessing  a  good 
harbour.  The  space  now  occupied  by 
crowded  thoroughfares  and  imposing  build- 
ings given  to  manufacture  and  trade  was  in 
ancient  times  the  foreshore,  long  since  rescued 
from  the  sea.  At  first  the  localities  now 
known  as  Momoyama  and  Tennoji  went 
under  the  general  name  of  Naniwa,  and  when 
the  Emperor  Nintoku  set  up  his  capital  there 


in  the  fourth  century  the  city  began  to  assume 
a  position  of  national  importance.  Much 
attention  was  devoted  to  the  improvement 
and  development  of  the  new  capital,  the 
streets  being  better  laid  out,  canals  excavated, 
and  everything  possible  done  to  make  it  a 
place  worthy  of  imperial  residence.  During 
the  time  of  the  Emperor  Kinmei  and  the  Em- 
press Suiko,  Naniwa  was  a  great  meeting  place 
for  foreigners,  including  embassies  from  China. 
Stately  mansions  and  gorgeous  Buddhist 
temples  began  to  rise,  and  the  city  became  a 
centre  of  political  and  religious  propaganda, 
and  in  its  environs  not  a  few  famous  battles 
were  fought.  In  time  the  capital  removed 
to  Nara  and  Naniwa  began  to  decline,  but 
owing  to  its  advantageous  position  as  a  port 
and  centre  of  commerce,  it  never  could  fall 
into  complete  decay.  When  the  famous 
Hideyoshi  built  his  castle  there  in  1583  the 
place  again  assumed  the  importance  of  an 
administrative    centre.     To    raise    the   lofty 


walls  of  this,  the  greatest  fortress  of  old  Japan, 
is  said  to  have  taken  years  of  labour  and  the 
toil  of  more  than  a  million  hands.  Upon  the 
overthrow  of  the  To}'otomi  family  and  the 
rise  to  supremacy  of  the  Tokugawa  clan,  a 
representative  of  the  central  Government 
was  stationed  at  Osaka  as  the  strategic  point 
of  the  Empire,  and  from  that  time  its  com- 
mercial prosperity  was  assured. 

ANTIQl'ITY 
From  very  early  times  Osaka  was  regarded 
as  the  Chicago  of  the  Empire.  Within  its 
walls  were  established  great  warehouses  for 
the  storing  of  rice,  and  it  became  the  grain 
emporium  of  the  nation.  Into  these  ware- 
houses flowed  the  rice  paid  in  taxes  to  the 
several  daimyo,  and  from  there  the  grain  was 
sold  or  exchanged.  Possessing  a  convenient 
outlet  to  the  Inland  Sea,  Osaka  afforded 
facilities  for  the  despatch  of  supplies  to  the 
various  vassals  of  the  barons,  as  well  as  for 


rRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


;ii 


the  markx'ting  of  surplus  products,  and  it 
came  to  be  an  industrial  centre  as  well.  The 
city  was  not,  however,  wholly  given  up  to 
material  pursuits.  Osaka  was  celebrated  in 
the  dramas  of  Chickamatsu,  the  Shakespcre 
of  Japan,  and  also  in  the  popular  novels  of  the 
city,  producing  new  schools  of  acting  and  of 
writing. 

In  the  year  1625  the  population  of  Osaka  is 
recorded  as  numbering  300,000,  and  by  the 
year  1662  it  had  increased  to  400,000 — a 
time  when  the  number  of  citizens  in  London 
was  no  more  than  179,000.  Plague  and  fire 
often  decimated  Osaka,  as  they  did  the 
capital  of  Britain,  and  Osaka  continued  to  be 
a  place  of  great  commercial  and  industrial 
importance  while  many  of  the  modern 
European  cities  were  still  in  the  making.  A 
century  later  we  find  the  Imperial  Govern- 
ment depending  on  the  wealth  of  Osaka  to 
tide  over  its  financial  emergencies,  and  the 
calls  made  upon  its  citizens  for  loans  were 
promptly  responded  to,  the  money  being 
suppHed  by  a  remarkably  small  number  of 
capitalists.  With  the  abolition  of  feudalism 
Osaka  naturally  lost  its  chief  source  of  wealth, 
the  sale  of  daimyo  commodities.  But  few  of 
tlic  old  firms  sustained  the  shock,  most  of 
them  going  into  bankruptcy.  Thus,  fifty 
years  ago  Osaka  had  to  begin  its  career  all 
over  again.  This  time  it  concentrated  its 
main  attention  on  manufacturing  industries, 
and  although  it  has  ceased  to  be  the  store- 
house of  the  nation's  rice,  it  was  given  the 
Imperial  Mint  and  made  the  storehouse  of 
the  nation's  gold. 

MODERN    OS,\KA 
The  city  of  Osaka  stands  on  a  broad  plain 
midway  between  Kyoto  and  Kob^,  covering 
the  southeastern  corner  of  the  province  of 


MR.    SHIRO   IKF.r,.\MI,    M.AYOR    OF    OS.\K.\ 

Settsu,  facing  the  island  of  Awaji  and  the  gulf 
of  Osaka.  Behind  the  city  rise  the  distant 
peaks  of  Mount  Ikoma  and  Mount  Katsuragi 
in  the  east,  with  the  ranges  of  Izumi  soaring 
away  northward.  Osaka  is  well  equipped  with 
what  geographers  regard  as  the  important 
factors  of  a  city's  composition  —  rivers,  sea- 
front,  and  rich,  alluvial  soil  outside.  The 
atmosphere  is  not  too  humid  and  the  rainfall 
not  excessive,  so  that  life  there  is  fairly  com- 
fortable the  year  round.  Occupying,  as  it 
does,  the  centre  of  the  Empire  for  national 
communication,  Osaka  becomes  a  vital  point 
in  commerce  and  industry.  The  streets 
and  canals  of  Osaka  are  thronged  with  busy 
multitudes   of   people,   numbering   1,400,000 


in  all.  On  approaching  the  city  one  sees 
innumerable  tall  factory  chimneys  sending 
l^rth  clouds  of  black  smoke,  but  on  entering 
iIk-  city  these  establishments  are  found  to  be 
mostly  of  one  story,  on  account  of  frequent 
earthquakes.  Through  the  dense  smoke 
loom  up  the  picturesque  hills  and  mountain 
peaks  in  the  shadowy  background,  while  the 
numerous  canals  and  busy  water  life  remind 
one  of  Amsterdam  or  Venice.  This  network 
of  canals,  laden  with  barges  and  boats  of  every 
sort  and  description,  relieves  the  streets  of 
pressure  caused  by  the  endless  traffic  in  goods 
and  materials  between  the  thousands  of  mills 
and  factories.  The  bridges  of  Osaka  number 
more  than  450,  most  of  them  of  wood,  though 
llie  Tenjin  Bridge  over  the  River  Yodo  is  of 
steel,  780  feet  long.  The  stores  and  shops  of 
Osaka  seem  to  be  also  workshops  and  ware- 
houses, as  the  process  of  production  is  every- 
where in  evidence.  Clerks,  designers,  artisans, 
packers,  carters,  sellers,  and  buyers  all  seem  so 
hopelessly  mixed  up  that  the  wonder  is  how 
they  ever  manage  to  evolve  anything  out  of 
the  apparent  chaos.  One  is,  indeed,  reminded 
of  the  cities  of  the  ancient  world  before  the 
days  of  modern  capitalisation  and  centrali- 
sation of  industrial  energy,  when  division  of 
laljour  had  not  been  accurately  worked  out. 
Here  one  sees  people  working  at  making 
umbrellas  or  fans;  there  is  a  shop  where  they 
are  producing  or  decorating  pottery;  next 
comes  an  emporium  of  cotton  fabrics,  or  rugs 
or  brushes  or  leather  goods,  all  made  and  sold 
on  the  same  premises.  And  methods  and 
implements  are  as  various  as  occupations. 
On  the  streets  are  men  pulling  heavy  loads  on 
carts  to  the  wharf  or  depot,  while  within  doors 
are  men  in  loincloths  working  modern  sewing 
machines.  Side  by  side  are  ancient  weavers 
and  the  most  modern  looms;  the  post  office, 


\^ 


A    VIEW   OF    KITA    WARD,    SHOWINc.    WATANABE    BRIDGE.       PROMINENT    IN    THE    PICTURE    IS   THE    SUPREME   COURT    BUILDING 


YEBISU-BASHI    DISTRICT,  OSAKA,  SHOWING   UP-TO-DATE   ELECTRIC    ADVERTISING SENNISHIMAYE,  IN    FRONT   OF   THE    RAKUTENCHI    AND    ASHIBE 

CLUB    HRESTLING  —  SHIN-SAI-BASHI,    ICHOME — VIEW   TO   THE    SOUTH   FROM    SHIN-SAI-BASHI    BRIDGE,    IN    THE    SHOPPING   CENTRE 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


513 


the  telephone,  and  the  electric  car  beside  the 
courier  flying  along  the  street;  the  ancient 
handcart  and  the  pedlar  with  his  merchandise 
on  his  back.  Every  one  is  busy  —  a  delirium 
of  labour  seems  to  pervade  the  population. 
In  matters  of  education,  public  health,  com- 
munications, lighting,  harbour  works,  water 
system  commerce,  and  industry  Osaka  has 
made  remarkable  progress,  all  of  which  will 
find  appropriate  mention  in  the  proper  place. 


of  self-government  was  accorded  to  Osaka. 
The  city  was  divided  into  548  streets,  which 
increased  to  620  a  little  later.  Subsequently 
the  city  was  divided  into  four  wards  with  903 
streets.  When  self-government  was  finally 
conceded  to  cities,  Osaka  established  a  muni- 
cipal office,  a  mayor  and  attendant  officials 
were  appointed,  and  a  modern  system  of  city 
administration  began.  The  mayor  has  under 
him  two  deputy  maj'ors,  a  treasurer,  and  an 


the  construction  of  an  adequate  system  of 
waterworks.  The  old  system  which  was  a 
serious  menace  to  the  public  health,  was  done 
away  in  1887,  and  great  improvements  were 
inaugurated,  resulting  in  the  introduction  of 
a  thoroughly  modern  system  of  waterworks 
with  all  sorts  of  preventive  measures  against 
disease.  At  present  the  densely  populated 
city  is  regarded  as  quite  satisfactory  from  a 
sanitary-  point  of  view.     Although  completed 


KIT.\HAMA,    OSAK.-V.       A    SCENE    NEAR    THE    STOCK   EXCHANGE 


CITY  GOVERNMENT 
In  no  way,  perhaps,  has  Osaka  shown  more 
modern  development  than  in  the  promotion 
of  municipal  government.  During  the 
Tokugawa  period  the  municipal  government 
of  the  city  was  quasi-democratic,  for  in  old 
Japan  municipal  management  was  always 
partly  the  business  of  the  central  authorities. 
There  was  a  Jodai,  who  represented  the 
Imperial  Government,  and  under  him  was  a 
machibug^yo,  or  mayor,  with  subordinate 
officials  representing  the  city.  The  citizens, 
through  their  representatives,  were  enabled  to 
participate  to  some  extent  in  the  city  adminis- 
tration. The  city  council  men  were  known 
as  sotoshiyori,  and  stood  for  three  sections  of 
Osaka,  and  with  these  the  higher  officials  duly 
consulted.  The  old  system  of  municipal 
administration,  of  course,  came  to  an  end 
with  the  beginning  of  the  Meiji  era,  when 
Osaka  came  directh'  under  the  control  of  the 
Imperial  authorities.     In  1889  some  measure 


assistant  treasurer,  and  there  are  eight 
departments  of  city  government;  namely. 
Commerce,  Industry,  Education,  Miscel- 
laneous Affairs,  Waterworks,  Engineering, 
Sanitation,  and  Accounts;  while  the  Electric 
Bureau  manages  the  city  lighting  system  and 
a  Harbour  Committee  attends  to  affairs 
pertaining  to  shipping.  The  city  adminis- 
tration is  directly  under  the  supervision  of 
the  mayor,  who  enjoys  a  large  measure  of 
initiative,  but  he  is  bound  to  consult  the 
aldermen's  council  in  matters  relating  to 
finance.  The  Municipal  Assembly,  compris- 
ing 60  members,  has  to  pass  all  important 
undertakings  before  they  can  be  proceeded 
with.  There  are  also  ward  councils,  which 
manage  affairs  pertaining  to  their  respective 
wards. 

Under  the  present  form  of  administration 
various  improvements  have  been  carried  out 
in  the  city,  or  started  w-ith  hopes  of  comple- 
tion.    Among  the  more  important  of  these  is 


in  1 90 1,  the  water  system  of  Osaka  soon 
proved  inadequate  to  the  rapidly  increasing 
population,  and  in  1908  some  9,500,000  yen 
more  was  expended  in  extensions,  the  present 
supply  being  sufficient  for  a  population  of 
2,000,000   people. 

Osaka  has,  moreover,  an  extensive  mile- 
age of  tramways,  with  satisfactory  income 
and  management.  This  service  has  been  a 
municipal  undertaking  from  the  outset. 
Though  the  mileage  is  not  large  as  com- 
pared with  Tokj'o,  the  passenger  receipts 
are  about  10,000  yen  a  day  throughout 
the  year.  There  is  great  need  for  further 
extension  of  tram  lines,  but  the  streets  of 
the  city  are  too  narrow  to  allow  this,  and 
the  authorities  may  have  to  depend  on 
conflagrations  to  widen  the  streets  suffi- 
ciently to  permit  their  plans  to  be  carried 
out.  It  will  take  about  18,000,000  \'en  to 
complete  the  tramway  system.  Further 
works  to  be  carried  out  consist  of  construct- 


514 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


ing  a  new  harbour  for  the  city.  Harbour 
works  have  been  under  way  since  1897  at 
a  contemplated  cost  of  20,000,000  yen,  but 
owing  to  increased  price  of  labour  and 
material  a  further  10,000,000  has  been 
added,  but  it  will  require  considerable  time 
yet  before  the  undertaking  is  completed. 
Already  a  good  deal  of  ground  has  been 
reclaimed  and  two  large  stone  breakwaters 
have  been  constructed,  but  Osaka  is  not  a 
natural  harbour  like  Kobe,  and  the  work  is 
very  difficult  and  uncertain.  Warned  by 
the  outbreak  of  virulent  epidemics,  Osaka 
undertook  to  put  in  a  modem  system  of 
sewerage  works  to  be  completed  in  ten  years 
from  191 1,  at  an  estimated  outlay  of  4,500,- 
000  yen,  one-third  of  which  was  to  come 
from  the  national  treasury,  and  the  work 
is  still  in  progress.  Osaka  is  also  doing 
something  for  education,  especially  in  the 
way  of  technical  schools,  and  there  are  some 
good  libraries,  many  temples,  shrines,  and 
Christian  churches.  There  are  fifteen  thea- 
tres in  the  city,  with  pleasure  resorts  in 
plenty,  and  also  a  fine  museum  which  is  at 
once  a  gallery  of  the  fine  arts  and  an  exhibi- 
tion of  the  manufactures  and  products  of 
the  district. 

FIN.\N'CE 

The  ordinary  revenue  of  Osaka  amounts 
to  about  20,000,000  a  year,  and  is  usually 
exceeded  by  the  expenditure,  which  has 
sometimes  to  be  met  by  loans.  The  accom- 
panying table  indicates  sources  of  revenue 
and  items  of  expenditure  for   1915. 

Owing  to  loans  contracted  for  such  enter- 
prises as  harbour-works,  electric  tramways, 
waterworks,  and  sewerage  the  debts  of  the 
municipality  of  Osaka  now  amount  to  as 
much  as  70,000,000  yen,  of  which  about 
33,300,000  was  issued  abroad.  According 
to  the  plans  of  the  city  administration  these 
loans  are  to  be  redeemed  between  1923  and 
1942  with  funds  from  taxation,  electric 
railways,  and  harbour  dues. 

INDUSTRIES  AND  TRADE 
It  was  not  until  after  the  beginning  of 
the  Meiji  era  that  Osaka  showed  any  re- 
markable development  as  an  industrial 
centre,  but  the  superior  advantages  it  pos- 
sessed in  the  way  of  communications  and 
transportation,  as  well  as  its  central  location 
naturally  lent  impetus  to  the  city's  industrial 
progress.  The  convenient  factory  sites 
afforded  by  its  extensive  level  environs 
have  been  eagerly  bought  up  and  utilised 
by  masters  of  industry,  both  native  and 
foreign.  As  a  manufacturing  and  industrial 
centre  Osaka  has  out-distanced  all  its  rivals 
on  this  side  of  the  Pacific,  and  has  been 
called    "the   Manchester   of  Japan,"   as   its 


I-   Reve.me 

Revenue 

E.XPENDITURE 

SOURCKS    0 

Yin 

Yen 

Taxes 

3,2io,iii)() 

1,482,000 

465,000 

4,168,000 

1 ,995,000 
652,000 
465,000 

\\''a.rds       . .                              

Electric  trams 

Tr.im  lavinp' 

1 ,885,000 
2,773,000 
1 ,306,000 

1.314,000 
185,000 
267,000 
683,000 
6,000 
507,000 

6,747,000 

80,000 

267,000 

Other  works                                       

683,000 

Trusts  business                                   

6,000 

Sewerage                            

507,000 

Loans                                        

5,716,000 

Total  ...      .          .                 

19,034.000 

16, ■535,000 

chief  manufacturing  staple  is  cotton.  Enor- 
mous spinning  mills  raise  their  towering 
chimneys  everywhere  within  and  without 
the  city,  and,  in  addition,  there  are  other 
factories  of  vast  extent  and  capacity,  turn- 
ing out  textiles  in  silk,  wool,  cotton,  while 
others  producing  chemicals,  fertilizers,  brush- 
es, carpets,  bicycles,  with  great  copper 
smelting  and  refining  works,  engineering 
works,  type  foundries  and  establishments 
are  too  numerous  to  mention.  Factories 
employing  50  hands  and  over  now  number 
as  many  as  14,105,  an  increase  of  more  than 
1,500  a  year  for  the  last  few  years,  while 
the  number  of  factory  workers  in  the  city 
is  162,217,  represented  in  the  table  below. 

It  is  not  too  much  to  say  that  almost 
every  form  of  industrial  enterprise  may  be 
found  at  Osaka,  either  on  a  large  or  small 
scale,  and  side  by  side  with  its  industrial 
progress  have  grown  up  great  banking 
corporations  that  have  enormous  influence 
in  the  financial  circles  of  the  Empire.  Houses 
like  the  Svmiitomo,  the  Fujia,  Konoike,  and 
Kuhara  are  well  known  throughout  the 
world.  The  value  of  the  annual  output 
of  Osaka  factories  is  in  the  vicinity  of  300,- 
000,000  yen.  The  Osaka  Clearing  House 
represents  transactions  totalling  over  3,400,- 
000,000  yen  annually. 


In  trade,  too,  Osaka  shows  remarkable 
development.  The  total  tonnage  of  ships 
entering  Osaka  harbour  has  more  than 
doubled  in  recent  years.  In  1915  exports 
leaving  Osaka  amounted  in  value  to  93,822,- 
636  yen,  while  the  total  value  of  imports 
was  50,610,954  yen,  or  about  twice  the 
volume  of  ten  years  ago.  The  table  on  the 
next  page  will  indicate  the  progress  of  for- 
eign trade  with  Osaka  for  the  last  fifteen 
years,  at  intervals  of  five  years  for  the 
sake   of   comparison. 

These  figures  reveal  an  astonishing  growth 
for  a  Japanese  city,  and  the  same  progress 
is  going  on  in  various  centres  of  the  Empire. 
The  most  of  Osaka's  trade  is  with  China, 
Korea,  and  Asia  generally,  which  takes  over 
90,000,000  yen'  worth  of  her  total  exports 
and  represents  nearly  43,000,000  yen  of  her 
imports.  The  city  contains  the  head  offices 
of  the  Osaka  Shosen  Kaisha,  one  of  the 
nation's  great  steamship  companies.  Judg- 
ing by  the  present  rate  of  development  Osaka 
will  in  the  near  future  eclipse  in  population 
and  trade,  as  it  does  already  in  industry,  all 
other  cities  of  the  Empire.  Osaka  has  suc- 
ceeded in  impressing  on  the  whole  Empire 
the  lesson  that  a  realisation  of  industrial 
development  is  the  primary  factor  in  achieve 
ment  and  the  preservation  of  national  inde- 


Industries 

Dyeing  and  weaving 

Machinery 

Ship  and  car  building 

Metallurgical  works 

Chemical  works 

Kilns 

Combustibles 

Hides  and  leather 

Comestibles 

Miscellaneous 

Special 

Total 


Workers 


78,827 
9.157 
4,179 

21,180 

9,499 
10,730 

3,184 
1 ,4.So 
8,101 

14,907 
1,003 


162,217 


P  K  !•:  S  E  N  T  -  n  A  Y        IMPRESSIONS        OF        JAPAN 


515 


Year 

Exports 

Imports 

Total 

Yen 

Yen 

Yen 

1 900           

9,626,595 
55,938,208 

53,4«2,45o 
93,822,636 

9.741.437 
i8,499,«3i 
30,695,577 
50,610,954 

i9,'i68,o-?2 

74,438,039 
84,178,027 

I  n  I  ^                         

144.433.390 

pcnilence,  dissipating  forever  the  antiquated 
notion  that  mercantile  life  is  to  be  held 
contemptible.  The  political  and  military 
classes  no  longer  look  down  on  centres  like 
Osaka  as  merely  sordid  and  materialistic, 
but  as  standing  for  the  vita!  factors  of 
national  progress,  producing  and  possessing 
both  the  wealth  and  means  to  accomplish 
great  achievements. 

OSAKA      DOJI.MA      RICE      AND      PRODUCE 
EXCHANGE,    LIMITED 

The  control  of  a  vast  amount  of  business, 
transacted  in  the  great  commercial  centre 
of  Osaka,  lies  in  the  hands  of  the  Osaka 
Dojima  Rice  and  Produce  Exchange,  Lim- 
ited, an  institution  which  fulfils  the  same 
functions  at  Osaka  as  the  Tokyo  Rice  and 
Produce  Exchange,  Limited,  does  at  the 
capital.  These  concerns  bear  the  same 
relation  to  commerce  in  rice,  grain,  and  other 
produce,  as  the  big  stock  exchanges  bear  to 
trading  in  stocks  and  shares  and  bonds. 
The  Osaka  Dojima  Rice  and  Produce  Ex- 
change, Limited,  is,  however,  one  of  the 
very  oldest  institutions  of  its  kind  in  Japan. 
Speculation  in  rice  and  produce  actually 
began  in  Japan  as  far  back  as  the  Kyoko 
era  (1650),  and  continued  right  down  to 
modern  times,  when  the  necessity  for  organi- 
sation and  control  became  apparent.  A 
Ijind  of  rice  and  produce  exchange  was  started 


in  Osaka  in  April,  1871.  It  was  known  as 
the  Kome  Kaisho,  or  "meeting  place  of  rice 
dealers,"  and  became  the  recognised  centre 
of  all  speculative  operations.  In  December, 
1875,  the  office  of  the  Kome  Kaisho  was 
built  at  No.  55  Dojima,  Hamadori,  Itchome, 
Osaka.  This  institution  subsequently  de- 
veloped into  the  present  exchange.  Appli- 
cation was  made  to  the  Imperial  Government 
for  permission  to  incorporate  such  a  body, 
under  the  laws  governing  stock  exchanges, 
the  applicants  being  the  leaders  of  the 
Kome  Kaisho.  The  capital  of  the  new  organ- 
isation was  set  at  Yen  75,000,  divided  into 
750  shares.  The  application  was  granted, 
and  the  Exchange  started  operations  under 
its  new  constitution.  In  1895  the  name  of 
the  Exchange  was  changed  to  its  present 
title  and  the  capital  was  increased  to  Yen 
150,000,  divided  into  3,000  shares  of  Yen 
50  each.  The  transactions  of  the  Osaka 
Dojima  Rice  and  Produce  Exchange,  Lim- 
ited, rapidly  increased  in  number  and  value, 
and  from  time  to  time  it  was  found  necessary 
to  avigment  the  capital,  which  to-day  is 
Yen  2,000,000.  The  guiding  spirit  of  the 
Exchange  through  its  most  difficult  periods, 
and  also  in  the  days  of  its  greatest  success, 
was  its  late  President,  Mr.  Tokei  Takakura. 
Mr.  Takakura  died  in  September,  1917,  and 
by  his  death  the  whole  commercial  com- 
munit}'  of  Osaka  sustained  a  very  severe  loss. 


The  other  principal  officers  of  the  Osaka 
Dojima  Rice  and  Produce  Exchange,  Lim- 
ited, are:  Directors,  Messrs.  Masatoshi 
Fujino,  Yasutaro  Motodc,  and  Yahei  Uyeda; 
Manager,  Mr.  Buye  Yoshida;  Auditors, 
Messrs.  Seijiro  Gion,  Tommichi  Hamazaki, 
and  Keisuke  Miyazaki.  The  exchange  is 
located  in  a  capacious  building  at  No.  39 
Dojima,  Itchome,  Kita-ku,  Osaka. 

OSAKA  MERCANTILE  AGENCY 
What  Bradstreet  and  R.  G.  Dun  &  Co.  are 
to  the  Anglo-Saxon  business  world,  the 
Shogyo  Koshinsho,  or  Mercantile  Agency,  is 
to  Japan.  This  institution  fulfils  a  highly 
important  function  in  the  business  and  com- 
mercial life  of  the  country,  and  its  work  should 
be  of  considerable  interest  to  foreign  traders 
who  wish  to  be  kept  well  posted  regarding 
commercial  operations  in  Japan,  and  the 
credit  ratings  of  concerns  with  whom  they 
wish  to  do  business.  The  need  for  such  an 
agency  was  recognised  very  early  in  the 
development  of  Japan's  commercial  field,  and 
as  a  matter  of  fact  the  Shogyo  Koshinsho  is 
the  oldest  mercantile  agency  in  Japan,  having 
been  estabHshed  in  1892.  Such  agencies  had 
been  in  existence  for  many  years  in  Europe 
and  America.  Their  operations  were  studied 
Ijy  the  Japanese,  and  it  was  realised  that 
there  was  ample  scope  for  such  an  institution 
in  a  great  commercial  centre  like  Osaka. 
Consequently  four  of  the  bankers  of  that  city 
conjointly  established  the  Shogyo  Koshinsho, 
which  makes  the  reasonable  claim  that  it  was 
the  original  medium  through  which  credit 
inquiries  and  similar  work  was  started  in 
Japan.  Since  that  time  the  Shogyo  Koshin- 
sho has  amply  justified  the  ideas  of  its 
founders.  It  has  attained  an  importance  in 
Japan  and  abroad  that  can  not  be  questioned. 


OSAKA    dojima    RICE    AND    PRODUCE    EXCHANGE,    LIMITED 


Ii6 


PR  KSE  NT-DAY        IMPRESSIONS        OF        JAPAN 


FINE    OSAKA    PREMISES   OF   SHOGYO   KOSHINSHO    (MERCANTILE   AGENCY) 


From  the  original  branch  at  Osaka  it  has 
spread  itself  all  over  Japan  and  China,  and 
moreover,  through  the  introduction  of  home 
and  foreign  consuls  and  the  Yokohama  Specie 
Bank  it  communicates  with  Bradstreet's, 
Seyd  &  Co.  of  England,  and  other  similar 
foreign  organisations,  besides  being  associated 
with  kindred  concerns  established  in  other 
cities  in  Japan. 

The  Shogyo  Koshinsho  conducts  a  business 
precisely  similar  to  that  of  other  mercantile 
agencies  abroad,  furnishing  reports  on  the 
means,  credit  rates,  characters,  and  business 
affairs  of  bankers,  merchants,  and  industrial 
companies.  Reports  are  supphed  in  con- 
fidence to  subscribers,  who  may  be  of  one  of 
four  classes.  Special,  First,  Second,  and  Third 
class,  the  annual  subscription  fees  ranging 
from  Yen  200  to  Yen  60  per  annum.  The 
agency  collects  a  variety  of  information  of 
general  interest  to  the  business  world,  besides 
supplying  copies  of  the  daily  bulletins  of  the 
Bank  of  Japan,  regarding  exchange,  specie 
movernents,  etc.,  furnishes  reports  on  promis- 
sory notes  and  bills  of  exchange  issued,  and 
makes  special  enquiries  at  home  and  abroad, 
according  to  request.  As  an  indication  of  the 
confidence  which  the  Shogj'o  Koshinsho  has 
established,  it  may  be  said  that  the  Osaka 
and  local  district  courts  have  appointed  the 
agency  appraisers  of  movables  and  immov- 
ables that  come  within  the  notice  of  the  courts 
in  legal  actions,  and  members  of  its  staff  have 
been  appointed  examiners  of  joint-stock 
companies  by  the   Osaka    Local    Court,  on 


various  occasions,  the  authorities  being  quite 
satisfied  with  the  impartiality  and  correct- 
ness of  the  agency's  deaUngs.  In  the  first 
seven  months  of  its  existence  the  Shog\'0 
Koshinsho  furnished  1,200  reports  on  enquir\-, 
and    19   reports  on  lawsuits.     To  show   the 


growth  of  the  operations  of  the  agency  it  is 
only  necessar>'  to  say  that  now  it  is  furnishing 
annually  over  150,000  reports  for  enquirers, 
62,000  reports  on  lawsuits,  over  17,000  daily 
reports,  and  130,000  sets  of  registrations. 
The  Shogyo  Koshinsho  is  in  a  position 
through  its  correspondents  and  associated 
agencies  to  conduct  investigations  in  the 
United  States,  Canada,  Mexico,  Cuba, 
France,  England,  Italy,  Switzerland,  Spain, 
Portugal,  Holland,  Belgium,  Denmark,  India, 
AustraUa,  Russia,  Roumania,  and  Egypt. 
The  principal  officers  of  the  Shogj'O  Koshinsho 
are:  Managing  Director,  Mr.  Motoyoshi 
Makino;  Manager,  Mr.  Naomi  Abe;  Auditor, 
Mr.  Y.  Ashida;  Adviser,  Mr.  S.  Toyama; 
Secretarj-  and  Superintendent  of  the  Investi- 
gation Department,  Mr.  T.  Shibuya;  Super- 
intendent of  the  Recording  Department, 
Mr.  Y.  Hata;  Superintendent  of  the  Local 
Department,  Mr.  M.  Mitsuoka;  Superintend- 
ent of  the  Foreign  Department,  Mr.  T. 
Tashima,  and  Treasurer,  Mr.  S.  Taki.  The 
head  office  of  the  Shogyo  Koshinsho  is  at 
15  Kitahama,  3-chome,  Osaka.  There  arealso 
offices  at  Kobe,  Kyoto,  Nagoya,  and  Moji, 
with  sub-offices  established  in  about  twenty- 
five  other  centres  of  commercial  importance. 
Moreover,  through  its  association  with  the 
Tokyo  Koshinsho,  the  agency  has  representa- 
tion in  many  outlying  centres,  including 
Shanghai. 


A    STREET   BAND    ADVERTISING    A    MOVING    PICTURE    SHOW 


XXXIV.    Banking,  Finance,  and 

Insurance 


BANKING 

THE     THIRTY-FOURTH      BANK,      LIMITED 

UXDER  the  National  Bank  Laws, 
which  led  to  the  formation  of  so 
many  financial  institutions  about 
forty  years  ago,  the  Thirty-fourth  National 
Bank  was  formed  at  Osaka,  in  March,  1878, 
under  a  time  charter  of  twenty  years'  dura- 
tion. When  this  charter  expired  the  Thirty- 
fourth  Bank  became  for  a  time  a  private 
concern,  but  later  on,  after  several  amalga- 
mations, it  was  registered  as  a  joint-stock, 
limited  liability  bank,  and  to-day  it  occupies 
a  position  of  great  importance.  A  vigourous 
policy  has  always  been  associated  with  the 
conduct  of  the  Thirty-fourth  Bank,  Ltd. 
Shortly  after  the  expiration  of  its  original 
charter  it  amalgamated  with  the  121st  Bank, 
and  since  then  has  absorbed  the  Nippon 
Churitsu,  Nippon  Kyodo,  and  the  Yugyo 
Banks,  the  capital  rising  to  Yen  10,000,000, 
which  was  the  figure  on  June  30,  191 7.  At 
the  date  of  writing  it  is  planned  to  absorb 
the  Amagasaki  Bank,  and  if  this  is  carried 
out  the  capital  will  become  Yen  10,300,000, 
all  fully  paid  up.  The  Thirty-fourth  Bank, 
Ltd.,  has  reserves  amounting  to  Yen  4,350,- 
000,  and  if  those  of  the  Amagasaki  Bank 
be  added  this  will  raise  the  sum  to  Yen 
4,460,000.  The  deposits  on  June  30,  191 7, 
totalled  Yen  73,000,000,  and  the  volume  of 
business  handled  in  the  six  months  reached 
the  large  figure  of  Yen  3,872,000,000. 

From  May,  1907,  the  Thirty-fourth  Bank, 
Ltd.,  became  the  agent  of  the  International 
Banking  Corporation,  and  in  May,  1910,  the 
Hongkong  &  Shanghai  Banking  Corporation, 
Ltd.,  appointed  the  head  office  at  Osaka, 
agent  for  that  important  commercial  centre. 
It  was  at  that  time  that  the  Thirty-fourth 
Bank,  Ltd.,  began  to  conduct  a  foreign 
exchange  business.  From  time  to  time  the 
bank  has  extended  its  foreign  relations,  and, 
furthermore,  it  has  taken  a  very  active  part 
in  the  industrial  development  of  Osaka.  An 
important  move  was  made  in  April,  1912, 
when  it  was  decided  to  supply  funds  at  low 
rates  of  interest  to  industrial  concerns.     The 

*The  institutions  enumerated  in  this  section  are 
identified  with  the  cities  of  Osaka  and  Kob<'.  Others 
located  in  Yokohama  and  Tokyo  will  be  found  in  the 
Section  devoted  to  them,  page  90. 


(Osaka  and  Kobe  Section*) 

value  of  this  assistance  to  industry  in  such  a  Electricity  Co.,  Ltd.     The  head  office  of  the 

great  manufacturing  city  as  Osaka  can  not  be  bank  is  at  Koraibashi,  4th  Street,  Higashi-ku, 

overestimated,  and  the  Thirty-fourth  Bank,  Osaka.     There  are  six  branches  in  the  same 

Ltd.,  may  justly  claim  to  have  recognised  the  city,  and  one  each  at  Tokyo,  Kyoto,  Kob6, 


HE.^D    OFFICE    OF    THE    THIKTY-ForRTH    B.\NK,    LIMITED,    OSAK.\ 


need  of  such  accommodation,  well  ahead  of 
most  other  banks.  From  the  same  period 
the  bank  began  the  trustee  business  of  issuing 
debentures  for  industrial  concerns.  At  pres- 
ent such  investments  are  being  made  in  the 
case  of  five  large  concerns,  the  amount  taken 
up  by  the  bank  being  over  Yen  10,640,000. 
The  latest  undertakings  in  this  line  were  the 
issues  of  the  Dunlop  Rubber  (Far  Eastern) 
Co.,  I>td.,  and  the  Kinugawa  Water  Power 


Hyogo,  Amagasaki,  Himeji,  Itami,  Hiroshima, 
Tokushiina,  Nara,  Taihoku,  and  Tainan.  In 
addition,  the  bank  is  in  correspondence  with 
4,286  banks  and  financial  houses  in  Japan  and 
abroad,  which  gives  it  a  remarkably  strong 
influence  in   all   local   and    foreign   business. 

THE    K.\JI.\1A    BANK,    LI.MITED 
There  are  very  few  banks  in  the  world 
that  can  claim  a  continued  existence  of  three 


34 


lil 


:l 


i 

I 

I 
e 


S 


1 


HEAD    OFFICE    OF    KAJIMA    ulNKo    ^ THE    KAJIMA    BANK,    LID  j    AT    OSAKA 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


519 


hundred  years.  This  is  the  record  of  the 
Kajima  Ginko  of  the  Osaka  Prefecture,  an 
institution  whose  history  is  as  interesting  as 
any  that  may  be  found  in  the  prosaic  story  of 
financial  houses.  The  Kajima  Bank  was  known 
over  three  hundred  years  ago  in  mediasval 
Japan  under  the  name  of  the  Kajimaya. 
It  then  attended  to  the  interests  of  the 
Tokugawa  shogunate  as  accountants,  and 
was  also  engaged  for  centuries  in  the  exchange 
of  old  gold  and  silver  bullion  and  paper  cur- 
rency. As  occasion  arose,  also,  the  Kajimaya 
acted  as  financiers  to  the  shogunate  in  the 
stormy  times,  right  down  to  the  Restoration. 
From  the  commencement  of  the  Meiji  era 
(1867)  the  Kajimaya  engaged  solely  in 
exchange  business  for  some  years.  When 
new  ideas  had  spread  through  Japan,  the 
Kajimaya  decided  on  reorganisation  on 
modern  lines,  and  in  December,  1887, 
apjilied  for  permission  to  establish  the 
Kajima  Bank.  This  was  granted,  and  the 
modern  business  was  started  in  January, 
1888.  Naturally  such  an  ancient  institu- 
tion did  not  lack  public  confidence,  and 
with  the  broadening  of  its  charter  business 
grew  rapidly,  especially  when  Osaka  and 
the  district  developed  such  commercial  and 
industrial  activity.  The  Kajima  Bank  was 
entrusted  by  the  Imperial  Treasury  with 
the  handling  of  public  funds,  and  later  on 
permission  was  obtained  for  making  invest- 
ments with  debentures  as  security.  When 
the  Bankers'  Syndicate  was  formed  the 
Kajima  Ginko  became  a  member,  and  en- 
larged its  foreign  operations.  On  November 
3,  1916,  the  last  stage  in  the  evolution  of 
this  old  bank  was  reached  when  it  became 
a  joint-stock  company,  with  a  capital  of 
Yen  5,000,000  fully  paid  up.  Then  under 
special  contract  with  the  Yokohama  Specie 
Bank,  foreign  drafts  were  handled.  The 
reserves  of  the  Kajima  Bank  amounted  to 
Yen  1,800,000  at  the  end  of  August,  1917. 
The  head  office  is  at  Tosabori-dori,  First 
Street,  Osaka.  There  are  six  branches  in 
Osaka,  and  two  at  Tokyo,  with  other  branches 
distributed  as  follows:  Kyoto,  Kob6, 
Okayama  (2),  Fukuyama,  Hiroshima,  Toku- 
yama,  Makikata,  Ibaraki,  Ikeda,  Amagasaki, 
and  Takatsuki.  The  Presiding  Director  is 
Mr.  K.  Hiro-oka;  Managing  Director,  Mr. 
Y.  Hoshino;  Director,  Mr.  S.  Gion,  and 
Manager,  Mr.  S.  Kawakami.  Cable  address, 
"Kajimagink,"  Osaka,  or  Kob6;  code  A.  B. 
C,  5th  edition.  The  balance  sheet  for  the 
period  ended  August  31,  19 17,  follows. 

THE    OMI    BANK.    LI.MITED 

In  1894  some  wealthy  merchants  of  Shiga 

Prefecture  founded  the  Omi  Ginko  with  a 

modest   capital   of   Yen   500,000.     The   new 

bunk  had  its  periods  of  prosperity  and  adver- 


Credit 

Debit 

Yen 

Yen 

Loans  against  securities 428,601 .  13 

Loans  against  drafts 37,781,502.63 

Temporary  overdrafts 3,396,094,26 

Capital 5,000,000.00 

Reserve 1,800,000.00 

Public  funds  on  deposit 2,335,922 .  75 

Current  deposits 21,506,929.72 

Special  deposits 14,036,381 .  65 

Deposits  on  notice 3,072,982.00 

Fixed  deposits 32,554,949.64 

Other  special  deposits 2,625,522  .  82 

Due  to  other  banks                        I  520  536  75 

Promissory  notes 13,272,795.82 

Bills  drawn  against  shipments  .      386,741 . 1 7 

Loans  to  other  banks 615,633 .49 

Acceptance  of  payments  coun- 

termanded 1,415,481 .53 

Deposits 986,267 .  05 

Foreign  loan  bonds 5,348,000 .  00 

Public  loan  bonds 8,080,390  34 

Acceptances  of  payment 1,415,481 .53 

Interest  not  yet  paid 534,269 .  92 

Discount  fee  not  yet  passed ....       337,846 .  93 
Foreisn  drafts  sold •?5'?,iqo.  52 

Debentures 868,236  00 

Shares 331,538.90 

Land,  buildings,  and  furniture.       850,168.91 

Other  properties 224,481 .  10 

Cash  on  hand 8,052,763  .  38 

Foreign  drafts  bought 353,199.52 

Net  profit  (including  Yen  81,- 
942.40  brought  forward  from 
last  period) 307,872 .  00 

Total Yen  87,401,895.23 

Total Yen  87,401,895.23 

sity  during  the  first  few  years  of  its  existence, 
but  on  the  whole  it  made  steady  progress, 
and  when  the  great  industrial  and  com- 
mercial expansion  of  Japan  took  place,  the 
bank's  business  developed  to  a  remarkable 
extent,  until  to-day  it  has  a  capital  of 
Yen  10,000,000  and  conducts  twenty-one 
branches.  During  the  first  half  of  1917  the 
deposits   with   the   bank   totalled   over  Yen 


65,000,000,  and  the  credit  given  by  way  of 
overdrafts  and  loans  was  in  excess  of  Yen 
53,000,000.  Drafts  put  through  the  Clear- 
ing House  during  19 16  represented  a  value 
of  over  Yen  1,149,000,000,  and  the  money 
handled  by  the  Omi  Bank  in  the  same 
period  exceeded  Yen  5,674,000,000.  With 
the  outbreak  of  war,  trade  and  commerce 
witnessed    a    strong    revival,    especially    at 


HE.^D    OFFICE    OF    OMI   GINKO    (THE    OMI    B.\NK,    LTD.),    OSAK.\ 


520 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


Osaka.  'I'his  activity  placed  a  strong 
demand  on  monetary  accommodation,  and 
the  necessity  for  ready  financing  was  espec- 
ially urgent  in  view  of  Japan's  operations 
in  foreign  markets.  The  Omi  Bank  recog- 
nised the  situation  and  has  done  its  best  to 
supply  commercial  and  industrial  concerns 
with  funds,  while  at  the  same  time  accept- 
ing foreign  and  domestic  loans  as  a  member 
of  the  Japan  Banks'  Syndicate.  Banks 
that  have  over  a  hundred  millions  of  yen 
in  deposits  and  at  credit  are  not  rare,  so 
that  the  Omi  Bank's  total  deposits  and  loans 
(Yen  118,000,000)  for  the  first  half  of  1917 
are  not  exceptional,  but  when  such  a  figure 
is  set  in  proportion  against  the  amount  of 
capital  actually  paid  up,  it  can  readily  be 
seen  how  strenuously  this  institution  has 
performed  its  functions  as  a  backer  of  trade 
and   commerce.     The   total   deposit  is  over 


sixteen  times  the  paid-up  capital  of  Yen 
4,000,000,  and  the  total  credit  given  exceeds 
the  same  figure  over  thirteen  times.  Such 
a  state  of  affairs  is  seldom  seen  in  the  sta- 
tistics of  other  banks,  except  those  of  a 
special  nature.  The  average  amount  of 
drafts  put  through  the  Clearing  House 
during  the  first  half  of  1917,  for  ,^5  banks 
in  Osaka,  was  28  in  numlier  daily,  while  the 
Omi  Bank  put  through  an  average  of  135. 
From  such  figures  the  confidence  in  the 
Omi  Bank,  and  the  extent  of  its  operations 
may  easily  be  gauged.  This  institution  is, 
furthermore,  closely  connected  with  the 
industries  of  cotton  yarn  and  cotton  piece 
goods,  and  with  the  wholesale  dry  goods 
merchants  generally.  This  is  one  of  the 
specialties  of  its  operations  and  it  gives 
the  Omi  Bank  a  firm  basis  among  the 
trading   community. 


In  the  latter  half  of  191 7  the  capital  was 
increased  to  Yen  10,000,000,  of  which  Yen 
5,500,000  was  paid  up.  Foreign  drafts, 
debentures  with  security,  and  investments 
in  accordance  with  the  Investment  Law 
began  to  be  handled  by  the  Omi  Bank.  This 
was  a  big  development,  and  the  progressive 
policy  of  the  institution  has  resulted  in  a 
large  increase  in  the  deposits,  and  in  the 
credit  and  reputation  of  the  bank. 

From  the  first  half  of  19 1 2  the  Omi  Bank 
has  paid  dividends  of  not  less  than  eight 
per  cent  per  annum,  and  more  frequently 
nine  per  cent.  For  the  six  months  ended 
June  30,  1917,  a  net  profit  of  Yen  362,852 
was  realised,  which  is  equal  to  18  per  cent 
of  the  paid  up  capital.  It  is  confidently 
expected  that  the  dividends  will  be  main- 
tained at  nine  per  cent,  and  quite  probably 
that    figure    will    be    exceeded.     The    head 


PROMINENT    B.^NKERS    OF    KOBE    .\ND    OS.\K.\ 

(Upper  Row,  Left  to  Right)  Messrs.  K.  Banno,  Managing  Director,  Yamaguchi  Bank,  Ltd.  —A.  E.  Irving,  Manager,  International 
Banking  Corporation— Kentatsu  Aiko,  Managing  Director,  Naniwa  Bank,  Ltd.  (Middle  Row)  Y.  Hoshino,  Managing  Director,  Kajima 
Bank  — Masao  -Matsuk.wa,  President,  Naniwa  Bank,  Ltd. — K.  Yamaguchi,  President,  Yamaguchi  Bank,  Ltd.  (Lower  Row)  T. 
Hika(;a,  President,  Fujimoto  Billbrokers  Bank,  Ltd.  — Ichitaro  Tanimura,  Managing  Director,  Fujimoto  Billbrokers  Bank,  Ltd.  — Y. 
YoKoTA,  Managing;  Director;  •F.ajimoto  Billbrokers  Bank,  iLtth  '    ! 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


;2i 


Assets 

Liabilities 

Yen 

Yen 

Loans  on  securities 193,584.  18 

Loans  on  drafts 20,269,325.05 

Overdrafts 5,348,^50.  39 

Capital 4,000,000 .  00 

Legal  reserve 690,000 .  00 

Staff  pension  fund 10,000.00 

Call  loans       2.qoo,ooo .  00 

Fixed  deposits 30,184,204.97 

Current  deposits 19,336,396.69 

Special  current  deposits 13.579,253 .  63 

Special  deposits 972,316.82 

Deposits  on  notice 1 ,334, 1 74 .  94 

Deposits  from  other  banks 5,267,343.28 

Acceptances 136,748.85 

Remittance  drafts  payable ....         56,359 .  59 

Dividends  unpaid 1,520. 10 

Interest  unpaid 28,617.29 

Drafts  discounted 23,928,029.41 

Documentary  drafts  discounted      625,742  .  45 

Deposits  with  other  banks 2,477,866 .  02 

Acceptances  of  payments  with- 
drawn      136,748  85 

Deposits 1,074,305.06 

National  loan  bonds 4,252,107. 17 

Russian  Exchequer  bonds 1,800,000.00 

British  Exchequer  bonds 1,599,000  00 

Various  debentures                  .  .  .       '^80.612 .  SO 

Discount  fee  not  yet  passed ....  267, 1 63 .  89 
Net  profit  for  the  half-year.  .  .       362,825.03 

Real  estate,  buildings,  etc 630,785 .  82 

Tolal Yen  76,226,952  .08 

office  of  the  Omi  Bank  is  at  No.  35-37  Bingo- 
machi,  Higashi-ku,  Osaka.  There  are  twenty- 
one  branches  situated  in  Osaka,  Kyoto, 
Tokyo,  Kob6,  Nagoya,  Otsu,  and  other 
places   in    Shiga   Prefecture.     The   principal 


officials  of  the  bank  are:  President  and 
Director,  Mr.  K.  Ikeda;  Directors,  Messrs. 
K.  Seo,  S.  Nishida,  F.  Abe,  C.  Ito,  and  D. 
Shimogo.  The  Auditors  are  Messrs.  Y. 
Kitagawa  and  I.  Abe.      Above  appears   the 


balance  sheet  for  the  period  to  June  30,  191 7. 
The  profit  for  the  half-year  was  divided 
as  follows:  To  legal  reserve,  Yen  100,000; 
bonus,  Yen  32,300;  staff  pension  fund,  Yen 
10,000;  dividend  at  nine  per  cent,  Yen  172,- 
500;  carried  forward.  Yen  48,052.03. 

SUMITOMO    BANK,    LIMITED 

This  old  institution  may  fairly  claim  to 
be  older  by  four  years  than  the  Bank  of 
England,  for  it  really  came  into  existence 
at  the  same  time  as  the  Sumitomo  firm 
itself,  which  was  in  1690.  In  its  early 
days  the  Sumitomo  firm  was  advancing 
loans  to  tlie  daimyos  and  feudal  lords  under 
the  shogunate,  and  to  the  merchants  of 
Osaka,  which  city  was  then  rapidly  advanc- 
ing to  its  present  position  as  the  mercantile 
centre  of  the  Empire.  Of  course,  since  those 
early  days  the  institution  has  undergone 
many  changes,  but  the  control  has  always 
remained  with  the  Sumitomo  family.  To- 
day the  affairs  of  this  bank  are  directed  by 
Baron  Sumitomo,  President;  Kwankichi 
Yukawa,  Managing  Director;  and  Messrs. 
Masaya     Suzuki     and     Kinkichi     Nakada. 


THE    SUMITOMO    B.\NK    AND    SU.MITO.MO    C.EXERAL    HEAD    OFFICE    AT    OSAKA 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


The  Auditors  arc  Messrs.  Teigo  Iba  and 
Munio  Kiibo.  There  are  three  managers, 
Messrs.  Shigetaro  Uyeno,  Shinhichi  Yos- 
hida,  and  Norihiko  Yatsushiro.  The  sub- 
scribed capital  is  Yen  30,000,000,  of  which 
Yen  18,750,000  has  been  paid  up.  The 
reserves  total  Yen  2,100,000  and  the  de- 
posits amount  to  the  large  sum  of  Yen  180,- 
270,000,  as  against  loan's  of  Yen  170,600,000. 

In  1895,  the  firm  built  upon  its  old  general 
financiers'  business  a  modern  banking  sys- 
tem with  a  capital  of  one  million  yen,  under 
the  title  of  the  "Sumitomo  Bank."  Since 
that  date  the  Ijank  has  made  steady  prog- 
ress, as  may  be  seen  at  a  glance  from  the 
statement  at  the  top  of  this  page. 

The  private  bank  was  converted  into  the 
Sumitomo  Bank,  Ltd.,  in  April,  1912,  and 
the  figures  since  then  are  shown  in  the 
second  table. 

Many  important  branches  have  been 
established,  and  the  Foreign  Exchange 
Department  was  opened  in  1905,  with 
numerous  correspondents  in  the  principal 
centres  of  the  world.  When  the  bank  was 
incorporated  under  the  Japanese  law  as  a 


Date 

Deposits 

Loans 

Reserves 

Yen 

Yen 

Yen 

Dec.  31,  1895 

Dec.  31,  1899 

Dee.  31,  1903 

Dec.  31,  1907 

Dec.  31,  1 9 1 1 

882,000 

7,486,000 

19,468,000 

32,596,000 

44,348,000 

2,142,000 

8,164,000 

16,220,000 

26,539,000 

35.,39i.ooo 

0 

850,000 

1 ,950,000 

3,400,000 

4,Soo,ooo 

Date 


Dec.  31,  1912 
Dec.  31,  1915 
June  30,  19 1 7 


Deposits 


Yen 


51,937,000 

86,123,000 

1 56,228,000 


Loans 


Yen 


43,909,000 

75,014,000 

139,048,000 


Reserves 


Yen 


200,000 
1,100,000 
2,100,000 


joint-stock  company  in  1912,  its  capital  was 
increased  to  15,000,000  yen,  the  greater  part 
of  which  was  subscribed  by  the  Sumitomo 
family.  Another  increase  in  capital  was 
found  necessary  in  order  to  keep  pace  with 
the  rapid  growth  in  its  business.  In  July, 
1917,  therefore,  an  increase  in  capital  by 
15,000,000    yen    was    decided    upon,     and 


Liabilities 

Assets 

Yen 

Yen 

Deposits 156,228,874.15 

Exchange  sold i  ^7^  770  80 

Loans,    bills   discounted    and 

exchange  purchased I35,,S48,577.47 

Customers'  liability  on  foreign 

credits,     acceptances,     and 

guarantees 27,198,044.67 

Account    with    the    Postal 

Transfer  Savings  Office.  .  .  168,577.69 
Government  bonds 18,597,002.09 

Bills  payable 864,039.70 

Margin  of  exchange  unsettled          249,210.30 
Foreign  credits,  acceptances, 

and  guarantees 27,198,044.67 

Due  to  other  banks 2,394,795.13 

Due  to  foreign  banks 624,580.02 

Rebate  on  bills  not  yet  due. .           537,460.97 
Interest  accrued  on  deposits .           909,480.96 
Subscribed  capital 30,000,000.00 

Municipal  and  other  securities       2,496,850.00 

Due  from  other  banks 594.596-31 

Due  from  foreign  banks 948,509.13 

Bank  premises  and  furniture.        1,702,820.66 
Real  estates 21,05^.82 

Reserve  for  doubtful  debts. . .             70,000.00 

Pension  reserve 50,000.00 

Foreign  currencies 7,871.1  ^ 

Dividends  unpaid  .  .                                   11 1  98 

Capital  unpaid 1 5,000,000.00 

Money  at  call  and  at  short 

notice 3,500,000.00 

Cash  in  hand 18,368,298.36 

Balance  brought  forward  from 

last  half-year 334,051.82 

Net  profit  for  the  half-year.  .        1,717,771.83 

Total Yen  224,152,201.33 

Tolul Yen    224,152,201.33 

Profit  and  Loss  Account 


Yen 


To  reserve  fund 500,000.00 

To  dividends 600,000.00 

To  resen,-e  for  doubtful  debts  350,000.00 

To  pension  reserve 150,000.00 

To  bonus 55,000.00 

To  balance  carried  forward  to 

next  half-year 516,823.65 

Total Yen  2,171,823.65 


Yen 


By  balance  brought  forward 

from  last  half-year 334,051.82 

By  reserve  for  doubtful  debts  70,000.00 

By  pension  reserve 50,000.00 

By  net  profit  for  the  half-year  1,717,771.83 

Total Yen  2,171,823.65 


public  subscription  was  invited,  with  great 
success.  The  Sumitomo  Bank,  Ltd.,  occupies 
a  foremost  position  in  the  banking  system  of 
Japan.  The  balance  sheet  for  the  six  months 
ending  June,    19 17,  appears    on    this  page. 

NANIWA    BANK,    LIMITED 

The  record  of  the  Naniwa  Bank,  Ltd.,  is 
one  of  rapid  development  to  a  position  of  first 
rate  importance  in  finance  in  Japan.  It  was 
originally  the  32nd  National  Bank,  formed 
in  February,  1878,  under  the  National  Bank 
Laws,  but  when  the  business  term  expired  in 
January,  1898,  an  amalgamation  was  eff'ected 
with  the  5th  National  Bank,  and  the  joint 
concern  became  the  Naniwa  Bank,  Ltd., 
with  a  capital  of  Yen  1,800,000.  The  5th 
National  Bank  had  been  the  property  of 
Prince  Shimazu  and  his  family,  and  after  the 
amalgamation  the  Naniwa  Bank  continued 
to  serve  those  private  interests,  but  some  time 
later  the  capital  was  increased  to  Yen  2,400,- 
000,  and  the  business  circle  was  considerably 
widened,  the  bank  beginning  to  exercise  some 
influence  in  general  financial  affairs.  Within 
the  next  three  years  three  strong  banks,  the 
Osaka  Meiji,  Osaka  Kyoritsu,  and  Osaka 
Shoko  Banks  were  amalgamated  and  the 
capital  became  Yen  4,000,000.  Subsequent 
to  the  Russo-Japanese  War  further  extensions 
took  place.  The  capital  was  made  Yen 
7,000,000,  the  Wakayama  Bank  was  pur- 
chased, the  Mitsui  Bank's  business  through 
the  branch  at  Wakayama  City  was  turned 
over  to  the  Naniwa  Bank,  Ltd.,  and  the  latter 
then  established  branches  at  many  important 
centres  in  Japan.  In  1914  the  business  of  the 
Tennoji  Bank  was  purchased.  The  entire 
capital  of  Yen  7,000,000  was  paid  up  in 
January,  1916,  and  at  once  the  shareholders 
agreed  to  double  the  capital.  Under  present 
arrangements  the  Bakan  Shogyo  Bank  of 
Shimonoseki  is  to  be  amalgamated,  and 
negotiations  have  been  completed  for  the 
purchase  of  the  Kyushu  Jitsugyo  Bank,  these 


,4:i:>^^?^^'-^ 


THE    HEAD    OFKICE    OF    NANIWA    GINKO    (NANIWA    BANK,    LTD.),    OSAKA 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


A    SCENE    IN    THE    BUSINESS    SECTION    OF    OSAKA    (HONMACHI-DORI,    SANCHOME} 


Operations  calling  for  a  still  further  increase 
in  capital. 

It  may  be  seen  from  this  record  of  expan- 
sion how  influential  the  Naniwa  Bank,  Ltd., 
has  become.  The  shareholders  of  the  banks 
absorbed  are  spread  all  over  Japan,  and 
amongst  the  principal  shareholders  are  Prince 
Shimazu  and  his  family,  as  well  as  many 
other  influential  persons.  As  one  of  the 
syndicate  of  eighteen  leading  banks  of 
Japan,  and  by  reason  of  its  widespread 
connections  throughout  the  country,  the 
Naniwa  Bank,  Ltd.,  claims  a  leading  position 
in  the  financial  world,  and  undoubtedly 
it  is  one  of  the  foremost  institutions  of 
western  Japan. 

Mr.  M.  Matsukata,  President  of  the 
Naniwa  Bank,  Ltd.,  is  the  fourth  son  of 
Marquis  Matsukata,  who  was  the  senior 
clansman  for  the  Restoration.  Mr.  Matsu- 
kata studied  political  economy  abroad,  and 
returned  to  Japan  in  1898.  He  was  for  some 
time  Managing  Director  of  the  Naniwa  Bank 
at  Kobe,  and  upon  the  resignation  of  the 
presidency  by  Mr.  N.  Nagata,  Mr.  Matsukata 
succeeded  to  that  position.  He  is  a  man  of 
very  likable  disposition,  and  has  a  sound 
knowledge  of  the  banking  business.  Others 
who  have  rendered  valuable  services  to  the 
institution  are  the  late  Mr.  T.  Toyama,  the 


first  President;  Mr.  G.  Nomoto,  the  second 
President;  Mr.  N.  Nagata,  ex- President,  and 
Mr.  K.  Aiko,  now  the  Managing  Director. 
The  proud  position  in  which  the  bank  stands 
to-day  is  due  to  their  splendid  services,  and 
the  substantial  work  done  by  the  experienced 
staffs.  The  capital  of  the  institution  is  Yen 
14,000,000,  and  there  are  reserves  of  Yen 
2,985,000.  Deposits  total  Yen  82,686,000. 
At  the  last  settlement  of  accounts  a  profit  for 
the  half-year  of  Yen  817,000  was  shown.  A 
dividend  of  nine  per  cent  per  annum  was  paid 
and  Yen  164,000  was  carried  forward.  Busi- 
ness transacted  by  the  Naniwa  Bank,  Ltd., 
consists  of  current  accounts,  discounts, 
collections  of  drafts,  agencies  for  other  banks, 
and  investments  generally.  It  is  in  cor- 
respondence with  the  principal  banks  of 
Japan,  and  through  the  Y'okohama  Specie 
Bank  it  is  now  handling  foreign  drafts  for 
London,  Lyons,  New  York,  San  Francisco, 
Los  Angeles,  Hawaii,  Sydney,  Singapore, 
Bombay,  Calcutta,  and  throughout  China 
and  Manchuria.  The  head  office  of  the 
Bank  is  at  Awajicho,  2nd  Street,  Higashi-ku, 
Osaka.  There  are  branches  in  West,  South, 
and  North  Osaka,  as  well  as  at  Namba,  Kujo, 
Tennoji,  Tamatsukuri,  Tokyo,  Sakai,  Waka- 
yama,  Nishinomiya,  Kob6,  Fukuoka,  and 
Kagoshima.     The  head  office  is  a  handsome 


new    building,    and    all    the    branches    are 
modern. 

THE    Y.\MAGVCHI    BANK,    IIMIIED 

HE.\r)  Office  :  2  chome,  Karamono-Machi, 
Higashiku,  Osaka.  Branches  in  Osaka: 
Xishi,  Minami,  Kita,  Kyomachibori,  Uema- 
chi,  Kohzu,  Dohjima,  Kujoh,  and  Namba. 
Other  branches:  Tokyo,  Kyoto,  Kobe,  Oka- 
yama,  and  Mikage. 

The  origin  of  the  business  now  conducted 
by  the  Yamaguchi  Bank,  Ltd.,  at  Osaka  goes 
very  far  back  in  the  financial  history  of  Japan. 
In  the  first  year  of  Ganji  (1864),  in  the  time  of 
the  Tokugawa  shogunate,  the  Yamaguchi 
Money  Exchanger,  or  Ryogaeya,  was  formed, 
and  carried  on  business  for  many  years,  long 
before  the  modem  bank  was  thought  of  in 
Japan.  The  business  was  carried  on  by  the 
148th  National  Bank,  which  was  established 
in  1879  with  a  capital  of  Yen  100,000.  In 
1888  the  capital  was  increased  to  Yen  300,000, 
and  when  the  bank's  business  term  expired  in 
1898  under  the  old  National  Bank  Act,  the 
Yamaguchi  Bank  took  over  the  business  as  a 
private  concern,  the  capital  being  fixed  at 
Yen  1,000,000.  For  some  years  the  Yama- 
guchi Bank  was  conducted  as  a  private 
partnership,  but  in  May,  191 7,  a  reorgan- 
isation  took   place,   and   a   limited   liability 


PRESENT-DAY        IMPRESSIONS        OF        J  A  I'  A  N 


525 


company  was  formed  with  a  capital  of  Yen 
20, 000, 000,  of  which  Yen  10, 000, 000  has  been 
paid  up.  All  descriptions  of  general  domestic 
and  foreign  banking  business  are  transacted. 
The  confidence  shown  in  the  bank  is  best 
exemplified  by  the  statement  that  deposits 
exceed  Yen  88,000,000,  and  total  resources 
Yen   100,000,000.    (Nov.,  1917.) 

Tlic  Directors  are:  Messrs.  Kichirobei 
Yamaguchi  (President),  Kanemichi  Banno 
(Managing  Director),  Kamanosuke  Sasaki 
(Managing  Director),  Chuji  Machida,  Kat- 
sujiro  Iwai,  and  Kanjuro  Tomonaga.  The 
.Auditors  are  Messrs.  Kenshiro  Yamaguchi 
and  Ichigoro  Hirase. 

THE    OSAKA    SAVINGS    BANK,  LIMITED 

This  is  one  of  the  important  savings  banks 
of  Japan,  and  operating  in  a  great  industrial 
centre  like  Osaka  and  adjoining  districts,  it  is 
not  surprising  to  learn  that  the  Osaka  Savings 
Bank,  Ltd.,  conducts  an  enormous  business. 
The  bank  was  established  in  December,  1890, 
with  a  capital  of  Yen  100,000,  which  w'as 
increased  in  March,  1916,  to  Yen  500,000,  in 


UMEUA    STATION,    OS.\KA 


500  shares  of  Yen  i  ,000  each.  Originally  the 
liank  was  described  as  a  "savings  deposits" 
institution,     I.iut     in     accordance    with     the 


Savings  Banks  Law  it  now  confines  its  busi- 
ness solely  to  the  handling  of  ordinary  savings. 
On  September  25,   191 7,  the  Osaka  Savings 


THE    FINE    OSAKA    OFFICES    OF    YAMAGUCHI    GIXKO 


526 


PRESENT-DAV   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


OS.\KA    CHOCHIKU    GINKO    (OSAK.\    SAVINGS    BANK,    LTD.):    THE    PREMISES    OF    THE    KYOTO    BRANCH — THE    HEAD    OFFICE    AT    OS.\KA 


Bank,  Ltd.,  had  1,150,000  deposit  accounts, 
representing  a  grand  total  of  deposits  of  Yen 
32,674,477.  The  officials  of  the  bank  are: 
Messrs.  K.  Yamaguchi  (President),  M.  Hirase 
(Managing  Director),  S.  Toyama  (Director), 
and  T.  Taku  and  J.  Ashida,  Auditors.  The 
head  office  is  at  No.  18  Fushimicho,  3rd 
Street,  Higashiku,  Osaka,  and  there  are  eight 
branches  in  that  city  and  four  in  Kyoto.  Fol- 
lowing is  the  balance  sheet  as  at  June  30, 191 7: 


FUJIMOTO    BILLBROKERS    BANK, 
LIMITED 

The  Fujimoto  Billbrokers  Bank,  Ltd.,  of 
Osaka,  is  one  of  the  leading  institutions  of  its 
kind,  and  also  a  special  development  of  the 
banking  system  of  Japan,  playing  an  impor- 
tant role  in  the  stimulation  of  the  money 
market  and  in  the  financing  of  industries. 
The  business  originated  with  a  private  firm, 
known  as  "Fujimoto  Billbroker,"  which  was 


Assets 

Liabilities 

Yen 

Yen 

Capital 500,000.00 

Legal  reserve 580,000.00 

Special  reserve 1,220,000.00 

Liquidation  of  property  fund .           50,000.00 

Staff  pension  fund 120,000.00 

Ordinary  savings 30,146,520.90 

Interest  unpaid 51,609.01 

Discount  fee  not  passed 23,869.27 

Net  profit  for  term,  including 
Yen  119,619.25  brought  for- 
ward..   .                                            ■;j.o7;7.j.6 

Drafts  discounted        .                       187  749  07 

Deposits 9,716,787.76 

Russian  Exchequer  Bonds.  .  .  .      1,110,000.00 

Public  loan  bonds 18,265,260.00 

Debentures 976,310.00 

Shares 294,412.50 

Fund  for  various  purchases.  .  .           20,000.00 
Land,  building,  furniture,  etc.        617,551.37 
Cash  on  hand 838,265.94 

Tola! Yen  33,032,736.64 

Total Yen  33,032,736.64 

established  by  Mr.  Seibei  Fujimoto  in  Osaka, 
and  commenced  operations  on  May  i,  1902. 
This  firm  was  the  pioneer  of  such  undertakings 
and  the  business  transacted  was  the  fore- 
runner of  bill  broking  in  Japan,  the  special 
function  of  which  is  to  act  as  the  intermediary 
for  bill  discounting  and  short  term  loans,  that 
is  "call  money"  and  call  loans"  as  handled 
by  the  old  established  brokerage  houses  of 
Lombard  Street,  London.  The  introduction 
of  the  English  terms,  "bill  broker,"  "call 
money,"  etc.,  into  the  title  and  account  of 
the  firm,  and  their  use  in  the  daily  monetary 
transactions  of  the  business  people  of  the  big 
industrial  and  commercial  centres  of  Japan, 
irresistibly  excited  the  curiosity  of  traders, 
and  yet  it  was  not  an  easy  task  to  lead  them 
to  understand  and  utilise  this  newly  formed 
agency.  Fortunately  the  firm  found  itself  in 
harmony  with  the  demand  of  financial  circles. 
The  business  gradually  expanded,  and  in  the 
course  of  a  few  years,  this  simple  brokerage 
firm  came  to  be  a  retail  dealer  in  bills,  employ- 
ing more  capital  and  securing  more  extended 
credit.  Through  the  era  of  severe  mone- 
tary crisis  which  was  experienced  during 
the  Russo-Japanese  War  and  throughout  the 


y 


mil 


\ 


4\ 
I 

I 
I 


A, 


I: 

■(t7 

IS 

% 

i\ 


i:- 


•\{:-\\ 


,.k>j 


LU 

4 


-'^   '%\    .  .  ^-  ^^"^'^ 


FUJIMOTO    BILLBROKERS    BANK,    LIMITED:    TOKYO    BRANCH    (KABVTO-CHtl,    MHONBASHI-KU) — NAGOYA    BRANCH    (5-CHOME, 

SHIMADA-CHO) — HEAD    OFFICE,    OSAKA 


528 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


postbellum  boom  which  was  its  reaction, 
the  firm  was  steadily  growing,  and  in  Octo- 
ber, 1906,  it  was  reorganised  as  a  joint-stock 
company,  with  a  paid  up  capital  of  Yen  200,- 
000,  under  the  control  of  Mr.  Fujimoto. 

It  was  not  long  before  the  necessity  for 
more  solidarity  and  the  improvement  of 
business  demanded  that  the  company  should 
increase  its  capital,  which  was  raised  to  Yen 
1,000,000.  In  1908  the  company  was  author- 
ised by  the  Minister  of  Finance  to  undertake 
ordinary  banking  business,  and,  in  addition, 
to  act  as  an  agency  for  various  financial 
purposes.  Then  the  present  title  of  the 
Fujimoto  Billbrokers  Bank  was  adopted, 
subject  to  the  provisions  of  the  current 
Banking  Act.  The  next  year  Mr.  Fujimoto 
resigned  his  presidency  on  account  of  the 
disturbance  over  the  affairs  of  the  Dai 
Nippon  Sugar  Refining  Company,  and  Mr. 
Toshi  Hiraga  took  the  presidency  of  the 
disordered  bank.  By  the  zealous  efforts 
of  the  new  President  and  the  Directors,  the 
bank  rapidly  restored  its  credit   and   repu- 


tation, and  year  by  year  became  more 
prosjjerous,  consequent  on  the  increase  in 
the  volume  of  business  and  the  enlarged 
sphere  of  operations.  To-day  the  Fujimoto 
Billbrokers  Bank,  Ltd.,  performs  a  number 
of  functions  and  maintains  the  following 
departments:  (i)  Banking  Department  — 
deposit,  loans,  discount  of  bills,  dealing  in 
domestic  exchange  and  documentary  drafts, 
acceptances,  safe-deposit  and  other  mis- 
cellaneous banking  business;  (2)  Invest- 
ment and  Trust  Department — underwriting 
and  subscription  of  high-grade  bonds,  stocks 
(domestic  and  foreign),  dealing  in  bonds, 
stocks,  and  other  securities,  corporation 
reorganisation  and  financing,  sundry  busi- 
ness as  agent  or  trustee  for  corporations, 
intermediary  for  long  and  short  term  loans, 
and  intermediary  for  the  sale  and  mortgage 
of  real  estate;  (3)  Investigating  Department 
—  investigation  of  economic  and  financial 
conditions  (domestic  and  foreign),  investi- 
gation of  credit  and  property  of  corporations 
and   individuals,   and   the   publication   of   a 


journal,    the    "Fujimoto    Billbrokers    Bank 
Weekly." 

The  main  office  of  the  bank  is  located  at 
Yokobori,  i-chome,  Higashi-ku,  Osaka,  and 
there  are  branches  at  Tokyo,  Nagoya,  and 
Kobd.  Members  of  the  present  Board  of 
Management  are  Messrs.  Toshi  Hiraga, 
President;  Yoshio  Yokota  and  Ichitaro 
Tanimura,  Directors;  and  Auditors,  Messrs. 
Y.  Yagi,  H.  Yanagi,  and  T.  Kuwabara. 
The  tables  on  page  530  will  indicate  the 
extent  of  the  transactions  of  this  important 
institution,  and  will  also  show  its  develop- 
ment during  the  past  three  business  periods 

THE    OKAZ.\KI    BANK,    LIMITED 

The  widespread  interests  of  the  Okazaki 
family  at  Kobe  have  attracted  a  great  deal 
of  attention  in  commercial  and  financial 
circles  in  Japan,  the  family  being  noted  for 
its  keen  enterprise  and  its  readiness  to  em- 
bark on  new  ventures,  having  for  their 
object    the   strengthening    of    Japan's    com- 


SAKAI-SUJI.    HlGASHI-KU,    OSAKA 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


529 


HEAD    OFFICE    KOBE    OKAZAKI    GINKO    (KOBE    OKAZAKI    BANK,    LIMITED) 


SHIX-XANIWA-BASHI    BRIDCE,    OSAKA,    SHOWING    TOWER    OF    OSAKA    COURT    OF    APPEAL    ON    THE    LEFT 


.■>j 


o 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


mercial  position.  As  an  instance  of  this 
spirit  tnay  be  mentioned  the  Okazaki  Bank, 
Limited.  This  institution  was  founded  after 
the  outbreak  of  the  war,  the  object  being  to 
provide  free  banking  facilities  for  the  ship- 
ping interests,  and  particularly  as  the  medium 
for  the  financial  operations  of  the  Okazaki 
Steamship  Co.,  Ltd.     Mr.  Tokichi  Okazaki 


has  had  a  lengthy  experience  of  the  shipping 
business,  and  when  the  great  development 
of  Japan's  mercantile  marine  took  place,  and 
the  need  for  accommodating  the  shipping 
concerns  vWth  funds  was  felt,  he  was  one  of 
the  first  to  appreciate  the  situation,  and  to 
do  something  to  meet  it.  Consequently 
the  Okazaki  Bank  was  established,  with  a 


Assets 


Item 

June  30,  1916 

Dec.  31,  1916 

June  30,  1917 

Yen 

Yen 

Yen 

600,000 

46,608 

8,090,024 

35,810,855 

4,043 
562,616 

600,000 

21,213,043 

4,117,108 

6,806,559 

400,000 

Loans  (collateral  and  overdrafts) 

26,045,537 
15,115.778 

12,246,388 

27,817 

Stocks  and  bonds  (including  foreign  bonds) 

Customers'  liability  on  acceptances 

Due  from  correspondent  banks 

Office  furniture  and  other  assets 

1,976,606 

30,000 

183,440 

6,537 

238,657 

3,800,240 
60,000 

118,947 
6,461 

392,675 

558,816 

8,076 

934.340 

Totals 

45,632,232 

35,171,952 

59,196,992 

Liabilities 


Item 


Capital 

Reserve  funds 

Deposits 

Money  borrowed 

Call  money 

Bills  rediscounted 

Acceptances 

Due  to  correspondent  banks 

Other  liabilities 

Profit 

Totals 


Jl  NE  30,  I916 


Y'en 


1 ,000,000 
151.740 

6,720,934 
16,842,549 
11,410,000 

8,441,681 

676,831 

103,393 
285,100 


45,632,232 


Dec.  31,  1916 


Yen 


1 ,000,000 

226,740 

11,489,921 

9,761,912 

7,065,000 

4.598,445 
30,000 

528,439 
144.031 
327,464 


"  1 .952 


June  30,  191 7 


Yen 


1 ,000,000 

331.740 

16,444,064 

16,639,274 

15.779.000 

6,563,251 
60,000 

1,844,720 
193.876 
341.067 


59.196.992 


The  dividends  paid  for  these  periods  were:  June  30,  1916,  ordinary,  10  per  cent  and  special 
5  per  cent;  December  31,  1916,  ordinary  10  per  cent,  special  10  per  cent;  June  30,  1917,  ordinary 
10  per  cent,  and  special,  10  per  cent. 


Traxs.\ctioxs 


Item 

Jl  NE  30,  1916 

Dec.  31,  1916 

Jim;  30,  191 7 

Yen 

Yen 

Yen 

Call  money .    . 

Money  borrowed ... 

Fixed  deposits. .  .                                        .  .  . 

Bills  rediscounted . 
Call  loan 

218,061,000 
44,110,600 
15,042,997 
33,146,631 

106,866,737 
58,242,978 

67,377,983 
2,312,497,748 

348,510,255 
38,839,100 
23,163,626 
26,262,502 
98,951,118 
37,210,076 
82,545.374 
2,935,798,774 

406,426,007 
38,600,100 
31,094,928 
30,632,744 

150,3-50,875 

43,166,701 

Loans  on  collateral 

Payment  and  receipt  of  cash .  . 

84,549,101 
3.393.707.581 

capital  of  Yen  10,000,000.  It  is  the  only 
financial  institution,  so  far,  in  Japan,  devot- 
ing its  business  mainly  to  shipping.  Mr. 
Tokichi  Okazaki  is  the  President  of  the 
Okazaki  Steamship  Co.,  Ltd.,  and  of  the 
Kobe  Marine  Transport  and  Fire  Insurance 
Co.,  Ltd.  His  son,  Mr.  Tadao  Okazaki,  is 
Managing  Director  of  the  bank,  which  is 
located  at  No.  56  Naniwacho,  Kob^. 

IIASUDA    BILLBROKER    BANK 

The  business  of  bill  brokerage  as  a  branch 
of  banking  has  been  in  existence  in  Japan 
only  about  ten  years,  but  it  has  now  reached 
very-  large  proportions  through  such  insti- 
tutions as  the  Masuda  Billbroker  Bank  at 
Osaka,  Tokyo,  and  other  centres.  While 
the  banks  generally  do  their  best  to  provide 
money  for  accommodating  holders  of  drafts, 
there  frequently  arise  circumstances  which 
prevent  the  regular  institutions  from  giving 
satisfaction  to  clients,  mainly  because  funds 
for  such  purposes  are  limited.  The  Masuda 
Bank  does  its  utmost  to  meet  all  such  cases. 
It  also  deals  with  call  money  and  call  loans 
at  the  lowest  premium,  the  advances  and 
repayments  being  made  at  a  day's  notice 
mthout  any  particular  conditions  of  terms. 
Besides  pro\'iding  money  to  meet  bills,  and 
to  cover  documents  drawn  against  ship- 
ments, the  Masuda  Billbroker  Bank  deals 
in  bonds,  loans  against  other  securities, 
mortgages,  etc.,  and  also  acts  as  financial 
adviser  to  many  small  industrial  concerns 
who  can  not  obtain  monej'  easily  from  the 
regular  sources.  The  bank  is  divided  into 
two  departments,  one  dealing  with  loans 
and  the  other  with  investments.  In  the 
Loans  Department  the  following  classes  of 
business  are  done:  (i)  sale  and  purchase 
of  commercial  drafts,  and  drafts  with  secu- 
rity; (2)  handling  call  money  and  call  loans; 
(3)  sale  and  purchase  of  bills  and  bills  drawn 
against  shipments;  (4)  other  general  bank- 
ing business.  In  the  Investment  Depart- 
ment the  business  transacted  is:  (i)  sale 
and  purchase  of  bonds  and  securities;  (2) 
acceptance,  raising,  and  payment  of  deben- 
tures, shares,  etc.;  (3)  sale  and  purchase 
of  real  estate  and  for  lease,  mortgage,  etc. 

The  Masuda  Billbroker  Bank  was  es- 
tablished in  October,  1897,  but  it  was  then 
doing  a  general  business  and  was  known  as 
the  Masuda  Ginko  Gomei  Kaisha.  In 
September,  191 1,  its  status  was  changed 
and  it  became  the  Masuda  Billbroker  Bank, 
concentrating  on  the  classes  of  business 
outlined  above.  The  head  office  of  the  bank 
is  at  No.  14  Inabashi,  Higashiku,  Osaka. 
There  are  important  branches  at  Sakayecho, 
Kobe,  and  at  Minami-Kayabacho,  Nihon- 
bashiku,  Tokv'O.  The  principal  officials  are: 
Directors,    Messrs.    S.    Masuda    (President), 


P  R  K  S  R  N  T  -  n  A  Y        IMPRESSIONS        O  !•        JAPAN 


531 


M.  Masuila 
Auditor,  Mr. 
Uyesugi. 


M 


Hida,    and    T.    Hayami; 
llayami;    Manaf;cr,  Mr.  S. 


IIYOC.O  PREFECTURAL  HYPOTHEC  BANK 
Tm>  bank  was  established  under  the  laws 
promulgated  in  1896,  whereby  provision  was 
made  by  the  Law  for  Hypothec  Banks 
(No.  83)  and  the  Law  for  Subsidies  to  Hypo- 
thec Banks  (No.  84),  to  create  funds  for  the 
use  of  local  agricultural  and  industrial  people, 
on  long  credit  and  at  low  rates  of  interest, 
the  objects  being  to  promote  improvement 
and  development  in  these  departments  of 
national  activity.  Up  to  1896  in  Japan 
there  was  no  institution  which  gave  assist- 
ance to  agriculturists  and  industrial  con- 
cerns, under  the  conditions  stated,  though 
there  were  many  banks  to  help  mercantile 
people  generally.  Hypothec  banks  were 
established  by  the  Government  to  make 
good  this  deficiency,  and  they  were  endowed 
with  special  facilities  w'hile  at  the  same 
time  remaining  under  Government  sur- 
veillance. It  was  in  November,  1897,  that 
Mr.    Shoichi     Omori,    Governor    of     Hyogo 


Prefecture  at  that  time,  appointed  a  com- 
mittee of  twenty-eight  to  discuss  ways  and 
means  of  providing  an  hypothec  bank  under 
the  new  laws.  This  committee  decided, 
after  several  conferences,  to  raise  the  capital 
stock  necessary.  Hyogo  Prefecture  had  to 
take  up  is>ooo  shares,  representing  Yen 
300,000,  and  the  balance  of  35,000  shares, 
valued  at  Yen  700,000,  was  allotted  to  the 
general  public,  irrespective  of  locality.  The 
subscription  for  the  stock  was  much  greater 
than  anticipated.  The  bank  was  formally 
established  at  a  general  meeting  held  March 
I,  1898,  when  the  principal  officers  were 
elected.  Offices  were  taken  at  No.  60 
Sakaye-machi,  i-chome,  Kob6,  and  business 
was  started  from  July  1st  of  that  year.  As 
the  business  of  the  bank  developed  the 
original  premises  were  found  quite  inade- 
quate, and  after  several  changes,  the  bank 
took  up  its  quarters  at  No.  17,  Shimoyamate- 
dori,  in  July,  1907.  Even  this  move  was  not 
final  and  the  directors  have  purchased  a  fine 
site  at  Sakaye-machi,  i-chome,  Kob6,  where 
the  erection  of  the  new  building  (expected 
to  be  completed  early  in  191 8)  is  now  going 


on.  The  capital  of  the  institution  has  also 
been  increased  several  times,  and  finally,  in 
November,  1916,  it  was  brought  up  to  the 
present  figure  of  Yen  4,000,000.  Although 
for  the  first  seven  or  eight  years  the  Hyogo 
Prefectural  Hypothec  Bank  had  a  reserve 
of  only  Yen  60,000,  this  sum  has  been  steadily 
added  to,  and  the  reserves  now  total  Yen 
1,900,000,  to  which  the  sum  of  Yen  110,000 
was  added  at  the  last  half-yearly  meeting. 
This  is  the  largest  reserve  held  by  any  of  the 
agricultural  banks  of  Japan.  The  bank's 
agricultural  and  industrial  debentures  have 
been  issued  on  thirty  different  occasions 
and  at  present  total  Yen  11,300,000.  The 
issue  has  been  popularised  through  the  use 
of  the  post  offices,  which  raise  the  money 
and  pay  principal  and  interest,  as  due,  to 
debenture  holders.  Loans  to  the  public 
since  the  commencement  of  operations  total 
12,840  transactions,  involving  Yen  40,600,- 
000,  of  which  Yen  18,800,000  has  been  paid 
back,  leaving  a  total  on  loan  of  Yen  21,800,- 
000.  As  the  loans  are  made  on  the  basis 
of  half  the  value  of  the  securities,  there  is 
no    apprehension    of    the    standing    of    the 


i\ 


MASVDA    BILLBROKER    BANK,    LTD.:    THE    TOKYO    BRANXH    (aT    M1N.\MI-KA\  \HAi  II' >,    MHi  INHASHI-KU) 

INTERIOR    AND    EXTERIOR    VIEWS   OF    THE    HEAD    OFFICE    AT    OSAKA 


532 


P  R  E  S  E  N  T  -  D  A  V        IMPRESSIONS        OF        JAPAN 


HE.\D    OFFICE    OF    HYGGG-KEN    NGKO    GINKO  (HYOGO    PREFECTUR.\L    HYPOTHEC    BANK),  KOBE 


KoW;  No.  13  Tamon-dori,  Shichomc,  Kob6, 
No.  I  Mij-ukidori  Rokuchome,  Fukiyai, 
KoW;  No.  30  Kitanaka-cho,  Kob^;  No. 
86  Mikawaguchi-cho,  Kob6,  and  No.  166 
.\ishi-nakasangc',  Okayama.  The  Kishimoto 
Bank,  Ltd.,  is  in  correspondence  with 
about  225  banks  in  such  centres  as  Tokyo, 
Yokohama,  Kyoto,  Osaka,  Nagoya,  Gifu, 
Kanazawa  and  other  principal  cities  and 
towns  throughout  Japan.  The  Directors 
are  pursuing  a  very  steady  policy,  and  are 
placing  a  large  proportion  of  the  profits  to 
reserve  with  a  view  to  future  expansion. 
The  reserves  on  June  30,  191 7,  totalled  Yen 
216,000,  and  since  then  another  Yen  40,000 
has  been  added.  From  the  balance  sheet  at 
the  foot  of  this  page  for  June  30,  1917,  the 
financial  position  of  the  bank  can  be  seen. 
The  net  profit  of  Yen  83,071.18  was  dis- 
tributed as  follows:  To  reserve  funds,  Yen 
40,000;  to  redemption  of  properties  account, 
Yen  4,000;  dividend  at  5  per  cent  per  annum, 
Yen  25,000;  bonus.  Yen  5,000;  staflf  pension 
fund.  Yen  4,000;  and  carried  forward  to 
next  term,  Yen  5,071.18. 


bank  being  affected  by  any  economic  crisis 
that  may  arise.  Loans  are  of  various  classes, 
made  under  the  regulations  governing  the 
hypothec  banks  of  Japan.  To  meet  the 
overwhelming  demand  for  accommodation 
from  the  bank's  funds,  branches  have  been 
established  at  convenient  centres,  and  there 
are  thirty-seven  other  banks  acting  as  agents, 
in  addition  to  the  post  offices  throughout 
Japan.  The  directorate  of  the  Hyogo  Pre- 
fectural  Hypothec  Bank  comprises  the 
following:  President,  Mr.  Ginyemon  Ohtani; 
Directors,  Messrs.  Chojiro  Ito,  Kenjiro  Hori, 
Gendayu  Hirao,  Yei-ichi  Ito;  and  Auditors, 
Messrs.  Injiro  Nakamura,  Narakichi  Hatsui, 
and  Shinyemon  Konishi.  The  staff  com- 
prises Manager,  Sub-Manager,  20  clerks, 
6  sub-clerks,  14  assistants,  and  5  servants. 
The  balance  sheet  for  the  half-year  ending 
June  30,   191 7,   appears   on   this   page. 

THE  KISHIMOTO  BAXK,  LI.MITED 
Established  in  1894  as  a  private  concern, 
the  Kishimoto  Bank  of  Kobe  became  a  joint- 
capital  bank  in  October,  1913,  its  capital 
being  fixed  at  Yen  1,000,000.  The  bank 
has  developed  a  large  business  in  proportion 
to  its  capital,  and  has  become  a  popular 
institution  in  business  circles,  a  good  part 
of  its  operations  being  associated  with  the 
financing  of  shipments,  acceptances  of  drafts, 
etc.  Mr.  N.  Kishimoto  is  the  President, 
and  the  other  directors  are  Messrs.  K.  Kishi- 
moto, J.  Kishimoto,  R.  Tanaka,  and  Audi- 
tors, Messrs.  B.  Kinoshita  and  H.  Hirano. 
The  head  office  is  at  No.  14  Minatocho, 
Nichome,  Kob^,  and  there  are  the  following 
branches:  No.  48  Motomachi-dori,  Shichome, 


Balanxe   Sheet  of  the   Hvggg  Prefectckal   Hypothec   Bank 


Debit 

Credit 

1 ,500,000.00 

11,720,282.75 

2,120,241.71 

7,978,001.90 

13,435.00 

3,607,032.71 

169,340.51 

89,395-11 
187,953-00 
580,610.41 

38,055.82 
131,350.00 
125,602.21 

85,918.43 
121,466.76 

28,468,686.32 

Capital 

Reserve  against  losses 

Reserve  to  equalise  dividends . 

4,000,000.00 

Loans  on  yearly  installments. . 

Loans  on  fixed  period 

Loans   as  agents   for   the    In- 
dustrial Bank  of  Japan.... 

715,000.00 

180,000.00 

410,000.00 

6,230.85 

10,144.630.00 

Fixed  deposits 

Current  accounts 

Post  Office  transfer  savings .  .  . 

National  Loan  Bonds 

Foreign  loan  bonds 

2,670,980.32 

Current  deposits 

Guarantee  for  loans  as  agents. 

Fund  for  payment  for  Indus- 
trial Bank  of  Japan 

Money  to  be  collected  for  In- 
dustrial Bank  of  Japan 

Money  temporarily  received .  . 

Balance  from  previous  term. . . 

1. 305. 765-51 
7,978,001.90 

■^.70^.00 

Funds  in  agents'  hands 

Real  estate,  furniture,  etc 

Other  properties 

Money  temporarily  paid  out . . 

4,427.28 
234.55596 
120,249.32 
695,052.18 

Total Yen 

Tola! Yen 

28,468,686.32 

Balance   Sheet  of   the   Kishimoto  Bank,   Ltd. 


Liabilities 

Capital 1,000,000.00 

Reserves 216,000.00 

Deposits 12,478,632.10 

Loans  on  drafts 451,738.46 

Acceptances  for  payments.  . .  .  163,156.00 

Sundry  accounts 302.00 

Staff  pension  fund 7,232.73 

Interest  and  discounts  unpaid  92,635.10 
Net    profit    for    half-year    in- 
cluding amount  brought  for- 
ward   83,071.18 

Total Yen  14,492,767.57 


Assets 

Sundry  credits 10,120,242.73 

Credit  by  drafts 392,507.24 

Acceptances  countermanded.  .  163,156.00 

Bonds  and  shares 919,508.00 

Land,  buildings,  and  furniture.  265,956.64 

Immovable  properties 49.581-44 

Guarantee  money  for  accept- 
ance of  shares 125.00 

Deposits  and  cash  on  hand.  .  .  2,581,690.52 

Total Yen  14,492,767.57 


"S 


k 


\'A 


1} 


l& 


35 


534 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


INTERNATIONAL    BANKING 
CORPORATION 

The  Kobe  branch  of  the  International 
Banking  Corporation  was  established  in 
1904  and  is  located  in  a  handsome  red  brick 
structure  at  No.  38  Akashi-machi,  in  the 
centre  of  the  business  quarter.  The  staff 
comprises  four  foreigners  and  twenty  assist- 
ants. The  International  Banking  Corpora- 
tion has  branches  in  all  the  important  busi- 
ness centres  of  the  Far  East,  and  it  has  made 
great  progress  of  recent  years,  particularly 
since  marked  increase  has  taken  place  in 
the  business  transacted  between  the  United 
States  and  Japan  and  China. 

The  Kobe  branch  of  the  bank  has  been 
under  the  direction  of  Mr.  A.  E.  Irving 
since  September,  1914,  that  gentleman  hav- 
ing been  in  the  company's  ser\-ice  for  over 
thirteen    years. 

(See  Section  IX,  page  90,  for  the  notices 
of  other  Banks  and  Insurance  Companies.) 

INSURANCE 
COMPANIES 

HOKOKU  FIRE  INSVRANCE  CO., 
LIMITED 
This  company  was  founded  in  February, 
19 1 2,  by  a  number  of  the  wealthy  and 
influential  business  men  of  Osaka,  and 
in  common  with  most  new  enterprises, 
the  Hokoku  Fire  Insurance  Co.,  Ltd., 
had  some  obstacles  in  doing  business  at 
first.  But  after  six  3^ears  of  ceaseless  plan- 
ning, surmounting  all  difficulty  since  it  had 
commenced  business,  it  has  outgrown  that 
stage,  and  its  development  leaves  nothing 
to  be  desired  by  its  founders.  A  steady 
policy  has  been  pursued  all  along,  and  the 
confidence  which  the  company  has  created 
with  the  public  is  best  evidenced  by  the 
fact  that  the  amount  of  insurance  now  con- 
tracted for  exceeds  Yen  200,000,000.  The 
directors  came  to  a  working  agreement  with 
the  Tokyo  Marine  Insurance  Co.,  Ltd., 
which  is  undoubtedly  the  leader  in  marine 
insurance  business  in  Japan,  and  from  July, 
19  17,  this  class  of  insurance,  as  well  as  general 
transportation  insurance,  was  entered  upon. 
This  development  is  a  highly  important  one 
for  a  company  located  in  such  an  important 
industrial  and  shipping  centre  as  Osaka,  and 
the  future  of  the  Hokoku  concern  should  be 
well  worth  watching.  The  capital  of  the 
company  is  Yen  3,000,000.  Its  head  office  is 
at  No.  53,  3  chome,  Sonezaki  Shinchi,  Kita- 
ku,  Osaka,  and  there  are  branches  at  Tokyo, 
Yokohama,  Nagoya,  Kyoto,  Kob^,  Hiro- 
shima, and  Fukuoka.  The  head  office  is 
established  in  a  splendid  new  building  at 
the  comer  of  the  electric  railway  crossing 
point  at  Sakurabashi. 


Mr.  J.  Otani  is  the  President-Director  of 
the  Hokoku  Fire  Insurance  Co.,  Ltd.  Other 
members  of  the  Board  are  Messrs.  T.  Shima, 
I.  Amagasaki,  H.  Abe,  S.  Shikata,  S.  Ota, 
and  W.  Mayijima.  The  Auditors  are  Messrs. 
K.   Hamazaki  and   R.   Kobayashi. 

THE    TOKYO    MARINE    INSURANCE    CO., 
LI.MITED 

In  the  Tokyo  section  of  this  work  full 
reference  is  made  to  the  history  and  develop- 
ment of  the  Tokyo  Marine  Insurance  Co., 
Ltd.,  one  of  the  acknowledged  leaders  of 
insurance  in  Japan,  and  certainly  one  of 
the  greatest  companies  of  its  kind  in  the 
world.  Unquestionably  the  company  owes 
a  great  deal  of  its  prestige  to  the  strong 
position  which  it  has  assumed  in  Osaka, 
where,  as  might  be  expected,  in  such  a  great 
commercial  and  shipping  centre,  a  large 
volume  of  business  is  being  done.  The 
Osaka  branch  of  the  Tokyo  Marine  Insur- 


ance Co.,  Ltd.,  was  opened  in  June,  1895, 
but  as  the  company  then  had  neither  busi- 
ness connections  nor  shareholders  in  Osaka 
to  assist  in  developing  its  interests,  the 
business  done  was  very  small,  the  annual 
insured  amount  not  exceeding  about  Yen 
30,000,000  for  the  first  two  or  three  years. 
When,  however,  the  wonderful  development 
in  commerce  and  industrj'  took  place  in 
Osaka,  the  company's  business  began  to 
improve.  Full  advantage  was  taken  of  the 
activity,  especially  in  foreign  trade,  and  the 
company  was  fortunate  in  having  in  charge 
of  its  interests  such  an  energetic  and  sound 
insurance  man  as  Mr.  H.  Hirao.  This 
gentleman,  who  founded  the  Osaka  branch, 
and  is  now  the  Resident  Managing  Director 
there,  with  the  assistance  of  a  loyal  and 
competent  staff,  has  placed  his  company  in 
a  position  that  is  not  rivalled  by  the  old  or 
new  concerns  handling  insurance  in  Osaka. 
The  total  volume  of  insurance  contracted  by 


HEAD   OFFICE    OF    KISHIMOTO    GINKO,    KOBfe 


P  R  E  S  E  N  T  -  D  A  \         I   M   P  K  1^:  S  S  I  O  N  S        OF        JAPAN 


535 


the  Osaka  office  during  191 7  was  over  Yen 
300,000,000,  or  ten  times  the  amount  written 
in  the  first  years.  Such  a  record  is  one  to 
be  proud  of,  and  it  testifies  to  the  high  regard 
in  which  the  Tokyo  Marine  Insurance  Co., 
Ltd.,  is  held  in  business  and  commercial 
circles  generally.     While  it  is  admitted  that 


ness  that  was  started  about  a  quarter  of  a 
century  ago  in  Osaka.  The  establishment 
of  the  Osaka  Insurance  Co.  can  be  traced 
back  to  1893.  The  corporation  has  since 
altered  its  name  twice,  such  as.  The  Osaka 
Fire  Insurance  Co.,  Ltd.,  and  The  Osaka 
Fire,    Marine   &   Transport    Insurance   Co., 


THE    SPLENDID    NEW   BUILDING    OF    THE    TOKYO   M.\RINE   INSURANCE  COMPANY,  LTD.,   AT  OSAKA 


much  of  this  increase  is  due  to  the  marvel- 
lous growth  of  Osaka's  foreign  trade,  and 
the  increase  in  the  number  of  local  ship- 
owners, it  is  also  a  tribute  to  the  vigourous 
management  of  the  branch  by  Mr.  Hirao. 
(See  also  page   135.) 

THE    OSAKA    M.\RINE    AND    FIRE    INSUR- 
ANCE   CO.,    LIMITED 

This  influential  corporation,  which  trans- 
acts a  large  volume  of  the  marine  insurance 
effected  abroad,  is  the  development  of  a  busi- 


Ltd.,  respectively.  The  latter  name  was 
held  until  March,  1916,  when  a  great  change 
took  place  in  the  insurance  situation.  The 
reorganised  company  was  given  the  name  of 
The  Osaka  Marine  &  Fire  Insurance  Co., 
Ltd.,  and  its  last  capital  of  Yen  1,000,000 
was    increased    to    Yen    5,000,000. 

The  personnel  of  the  shareholders  was 
changed  to  include  some  of  the  most  influen- 
tial ship-owners,  merchants,  and  manufactur- 
ers. New  staffs  were  appointed,  properties 
were  adjusted,  and  the  losses  incurred  up  to 


that  time  were  regulated.  An  entire  change 
in  the  policy  of  the  company  took  jilacc  under 
expert  direction,  a  special  effort  being  made 
to  concentrate  on  marine  insurance,  and  to 
change  the  methods  under  which  the  busi- 
ness had  been  conducted  in  the  past.  The 
Directors  gave'  their  attention  to  the  foreign 
situation,  and  appointed  many  agents  abroad, 
one  of  the  most  effective  moves  being  the 
appointment  as  sole  agents  for  the  United 
Kingdom,  France,  and  Norway  of  Messrs. 
Sedgwick,  Collins  &  Co.,  Ltd.,  of  No.  7 
Gracechurch  St.,  London,  E.  C.  This 
company  is  one  of  the  best  and  most  experi- 
enced of  insurance  brokers  in  the  world,  and 
the  special  contract  entered  into  with  Messrs. 
Sedgwick,  Collins  &  Co.,  Ltd.,  by  the 
Osaka  Marine  and  Fire  Insurance  Co.,  Ltd., 
gave  insurers  against  marine  and  fire  risks 
many  advantages  that  could  not  be  offered 
them  previously. 

This  vigourous  policy  has  resulted  in 
completely  changing  the  company's  position 
in  the  insurance  world.  It  is  to-day  doing 
a  very  extensive  business,  and  through  its 
foreign  connections  it  is  able  to  issue  insur- 
ance in  any  part  of  the  world,  members  of 
its  own  staff  being  attached  to  Messrs. 
Sedgwick,  Collins  &  Co.'s  office  in  London. 
Branches  of  the  company  have  been  estab- 
lished at  the  following  centres  in  Japan: 
Tokyo,  Yokohama,  Nagoya,  Kanazawa, 
Kyoto,  Kobe,  and  Kyushu,  and  there  are  in 
addition  scores  of  agencies  throughout  the 
Japanese  Empire  and  abroad.  So  great 
has  been  the  development  of  the  company's 
L)usiness  that  the  capital  has  been  increased 
to  Yen  5,000,000,  of  which  Yen  1,540,000 
lias  been  paid  up.  The  Board  of  Directors 
of  the  Osaka  Marine  and  Fire  Insurance 
Co.,  Ltd.,  comprises  such  well  known  com- 
mercial men  as  Messrs.  R.  Hunter  (Presi- 
dent), G.  Tarao  (Managing  Director),  M. 
Kita,  and  K.  Kimiu-a.  The  Auditors  are 
Messrs.  T.  Inouye,  S.  Nango,  and  S.  Naka- 
yama.  Mr.  Y.  Asai  is  the  Manager.  The 
company  has  its  head  office  at  No.  10  Kawa- 
guchicho,  Nishi-ku,  Osaka. 

KOBE    MARINE    TRANSPORT    AND    FIRE 
INSURANCE    CO.,    LIMITED 

The  history  of  this  powerful  organisation 
covers  the  period  of  Japan's  greatest  com- 
mercial expansion,  and  its  origin  is  to  be 
found  in  the  determination  of  the  Japanese 
to  be  independent,  as  far  as  possible,  of 
foreign  insurance.  After  the  Russo-Japanese 
War  commerce  and  industry  in  Japan  went 
ahead  by  leaps  and  bounds,  and  the  merchant 
marine  grew  apace.  Cargoes  of  goods  were 
plentiful,  and  the  commercial  community 
began  to  feel  the  need  of  trustworthy  com- 
panies to  accept  insurance.     At  that  time 


OSAKA    KAIJO    KASAI    HOKEN    KAISHA  (OSAKA    MARINE  AND  FIRE  INSURANCE  CO.,  LDT.):      THE   TOKYO   OFFICE- 

A  CORNER  OF  THE  OSAKA    OFFICE 


W'''S^^^^P^>^'-&^--''i-4:&^'^i^^ 


KOBfe    MARINE    TRANSPORT    AND    FIRE    INSURANCE   COMPANY,    LTD  :      MARINE    INSURANCE    DEPARTMENT THE    PICTURESQUE 

KOBE    OFFICE FIRE    INSURANCE    DEPARTMENT 


538 


PRESENT-DAY        I  M    I'  K   i;  S  S  I  ()  N  S        OF        JAPAN 


PROMINENT  KOBE  AND  OSAKA  INSURANCE  MEN 

(Upper  Row,  Left  to  Right)  Mr.  G.  Tarao,  Managing  Direetor,  Osaka  Marine  and  Fire  Insurance  Co.,  Ltd.  —  Mr.  J.  Otani,  President, 
Hokoku  Fire  Insurance  Co.,  Ltd.  —  Mr.  M.  HiRAO,  Managing  Director,  Tokyo  Marine  Insurance  Co.,  Ltd.  (Lower  Row,  Left  to 
Right)  Mr.  S.  Tanaka,  Managing  Director,  Kobe  Marine  Transport  and  Fire  Insurance  Co.,  Ltd.  —  Mr.  Tokichi  Okazaki,  President, 
Okazaki  Bank,  Ltd.,  Okazaki  Steamship  Co.,  Ltd.,  and  KoM  Marine  Transport  and  Fire  Insurance   Co.,  Ltd. — Mr.  S.  MiKi,  Manager. 

KoW  Marine  Transport  and  Fire  Insurance  Co.,  Ltd. 


the  business  was  affected  by  only  two  or 
three  Japanese  companies,  and  it  was  felt 
that  the  bulk  of  the  business,  which  was 
left  to  the  foreign  companies,  could  more 
advantageously  be  handled  by  powerful 
local  organisations,  if  such  could  be  brought 
into  existence.  It  was  to  carry  out  this 
mission  that  the  Kob^  Marine  Transport 
and  Fire  Insurance  Co.,  Ltd.,  was  formed, 
the  promoters  being  almost  all  the  ship- 
owners belonging  to  the  Japan  Shipowners 
Union,  excluding  the  Nippon  Yusen  Kaisha 
and  the  Osaka  Shosen  Kaisha;  the  big 
shippers  or  consignors,  wealthy  commercial 
magnates,  and  foreign  residents  in  Japan, 
influential  in  commercial  and  industrial 
circles.  The  company  was  formally  estab- 
lished in  May,  1907,  with  a  capital  of  Yen 
5,000,000,  and  with  Mr.  Tokichi  Okazaki 
as  its  President.  The  promoters  wisely 
decided  to  make  Koh6  their  base  of  opera- 
tions,  instead   of  Tokyo,   the   former  being 


the  more  important  shipping  and  com- 
mercial centre  for  oversea  trade.  Further, 
with  a  view  to  facilitating  business,  the 
shareholders  were  sought  among  the  ship- 
owners and  consignors,  foreigners  and  Japa- 
nese jointly,  and  the  shareholders  were  the 
first  to  be  insured.  Putting  aside  all  specula- 
tive tendencies,  such  as  are  found  among 
most  newly  formed  concerns  of  this  nature, 
the  company  adopted  a  slow-but-sure  policy, 
as  a  result  of  which  the  insurance  in  this 
company  won  the  public  confidence  and 
made  steady  advancement.  In  the  first 
year  of  operations  the  company  covered 
insurance  of  only  Yen  60,089,806.  Its 
income  was  Yen  238,050,  and  it  sustained 
losses  totalling  Yen  133,938.  In  1916, 
however,  the  insurances  affected  reached 
the  enormous  total  of  Y'en  805,564,150,  and 
the  income  from  premiums  amounted  to 
Yen  3,243,880,  from  which  Yen  1,681,587 
was    paid     for    losses.     The    statistics     for 


191 7  are  not  available  at  the  time  of  writ- 
ing, but  it  is  confidently  expected  that 
further  increases  will  be  shown,  as  the  year 
was  more  brisk  than  was  1916. 

The  head  office  of  the  company  is  at  No. 
19  Akashicho,  Kobe,  and  branches  are 
maintained  at  Tokyo,  Osaka,  Yokohama, 
Kob6,  Otaru,  Nagoya,  Kyoto,  and  Fukuoka. 
In  addition,  there  are  over  a  thousand  agents 
throughout  the  principal  towns  in  Japan, 
as  well  as  in  foreign  ports.  On  the  Board  of 
Directors  of  the  Kobe  Marine  Transport  and 
Fire  Insurance  Co.,  Ltd.,  are  some  of  the  best 
known  men  in  business  circles  in  Japan.  The 
Directors  are:  Messrs.  Tokichi  Okazaki  (Presi- 
dent), Seizo  Tanaka,  Chojiro  Ito,  Kichizaye- 
mon  Tatsuma,  Kanetaro  Kishimoto,  Toshio 
Momozaki,  and  Chokei  Yoshida.  The  Aud- 
itors are  Messrs.  Kiichiro  Osone,  Miyakichi 
Itaya,  and  Tashiro  Tsuchihashi.  Mr.  Saburo 
Miki  is  General  Manager  and  Mr.  Toyotoshi 
Kojima  is  Chief  of  the  Business  Department. 


A    FACTORY   GIRLS     PICNIC 


XXXV.    Labour  Conditions 

Sudden  Transformation— Phenomenal  Growth  of   Cities— Japan  Necessarily  Industrial- 
Serious  Aspects  of  the  Situation— Unhealthy  Conditions- Moral  Dangers 
— Rkjhts  of  Labour— Labour  Unions  Barred— Strikes  Frequent- 
Wages  IN  Japan— Future  of  Japanese  Labour 


THE  same  process  by  which  such  coun- 
tries as  England,  Germany,  and  Italy 
have  been  transformed  from  an  agri- 
cultural to  an  industrial  basis  is  now  going 
on  in  Japan,  but  at  a  rate  so  rapid  that  the 
country  is  unprepared  to  deal  with  it,  result- 
ing in  serious  evils  to  labour  and  industry. 
The  more  extensive  and  insistent  markets 
opened  up  to  Japan  by  the  wars  with  China, 
Russia,  and  Germany  have  greatly  expanded 
the  nation's  industries,  shifting  them  from 
the  home  to  the  factory,  creating  crowded 
centres  of  activity  with  their  consequent 
questions  of  labour. 

SUDDEN  TR.\NSFORMATION 
Notwithstanding  that  she  is  primarily 
an  agricultural  nation,  Japan  is  now  forced 
to  lay  increasing  emphasis  on  commerce 
and  industry,  to  the  comparative  neglect 
of  agrarian  interests,  for  the  sake  of  supply- 
ing the  revenue  necessary  to  maintain  her 
vast  armamental  programme,  and  the  out- 
come is  an  abnormal  rush  of  population  to 
the  cities,  with  social  conditions  anything 
but    favourable.     Thus    the    changes    that 


took  a  hundred  years  for  accomplishment 
in  Europe,  Japan  has  undergone  in  the 
memory  of  people  now  living,  and  the 
phenomenal  celerity  of  the  revolution  has 
naturally  given  rise  to  problems  still  more 
intensive  and  acute,  commanding  a  place 
in  the  councils  of  her  statesmen  and  all 
who  are  interested  in  the  labour  movement. 

PHENOMENAL  GROWTH  OF  CITIES 
As  in  other  countries,  so  in  Japan  the 
dominant  characteristic  of  the  new  indus- 
trialism is  the  trend  of  population  from  the 
country  to  the  city,  always  the  main  sphere 
of  industrial  activity.  This  abnormal  ex- 
pansion of  urban  population  is  almost  revolu- 
tionary in  its  effect  on  Japanese  society. 
In  the  case  of  Tokyo,  the  capital,  population 
during  the  last  twenty-five  years  has  in- 
creased from  857,780  to  2,500,000,  while 
Osaka,  the  greatest  industrial  centre  of  the 
Empire,  during  the  same  period  has  grown 
from  500,000  to  over  1,500,000,  Nagoya  from 
200,000  to  450,000,  Yokohama  has  increased 
fourfold  and  Kob^  fivefold.  The  five  great 
industrial    centres    above    mentioned    have 


thus  increased  325  per  cent,  or  300  per 
cent  more  than  the  nation  as  a  whole.  For 
Tokyo  alone  the  growth  of  industrial  popu- 
lation has  been  about  415  per  cent  in  the 
last  decade  or  more.  The  transformation 
has,  indeed,  been  nothing  short  of  marvel- 
lous. Great  areas  which  ten  years  ago  were 
taken  up  with  rice  fields  or  marshes  are  now 
reclaimed  and  covered  with  factories  or 
labour  tenements,  and  property  values  at  the 
same  time  have  gone  up  more  than  1,000 
per  cent.  Osaka,  Kobe,  and  Yokohama  have 
had  much  the  same  experience.  These  cities 
may  be  justly  taken  as  focal  points  to  reveal 
the  metamorphosis  of  Japan  from  a  feudal 
to  an  agricultural  country,  and  now  to  the 
age  of  steam,  electricity,  and  steel. 

japan  necessarily  industrial 
The  extraordinary  development  of  indus- 
trialism in  Japan  is  neither  accidental  nor 
temporary.  Situated  like  Great  Britain,  on 
the  shoulders  of  a  continent,  Japan  occupies 
a  position  of  unique  commercial  advantage. 
In  her  own  ships  she  can  move  the  products 
of  her  own  factories  to  any  port  of  the  exten- 


540 


PRESENT-DAY        IMPRESSIONS        OF        JAPAN 


sive  coast-line  of  China,  and  up  that  coun- 
try's endless  waterways,  at  lower  rates  and 
with  greater  expedition  than  any  of  her  com- 
petitors. Without  sufficient  resources  of 
her  own  in  iron  and  other  raw  materials, 
Japan  early  realised  in  her  contact  with 
modern  nations,  that  to  keep  up  a  balance 
of  trade  she  must  vastly  increase  her  indus- 
trial capacity  and  lay  hold  of  the  markets 
of  China,  where  the  iron  resources  of  East 
Asia  lie  unexploited,  and  now  she  has  been 
drawn  so  far  into  the  race  for  industrial 
supremacy  in  the  Far  East  that  her  system 
has  invaded  every  country  and  her  merchant 
marine  is  placing  her  products  in  every 
market.  Japan  believes  that  her  future  as 
a  world-empire  depends  on  her  ability  to 
hold  and  increase  the  markets  she  has  won. 
She  has  entered  on  a  path  of  empire  from 
which  she  can  not  draw  back.  To  her,  the 
expansion  of  commerce  and  industry  is  not 
an  academic  but  the  most  vital  of  all  ques- 
tions. The  future  of  Japan  depends  not 
on  her  statesmen  nor  her  commercial  mag- 
nates, nor  even  on  her  naval  and  military 
strength,  but  on  her  factorj'  workers. 


SERIOUS  ASPECTS  OF  THE  SITUATION 

Japan's  sudden  leap  from  feudalism  to 
labour  and  then  from  a  rural  to  an  urban 
population  has  created  contrasts  that  gravely 
menace  each  other.  The  transformed,  over- 
grown cities  are  like  separate  nations  in  the 
midst  of  a  rural  population  that  has  not 
changed  with  the  times  at  all.  There  is  a 
great  gulf  between  the  life  and  environment 
of  the  peasant  villager  and  the  denizen  of  a 
congested  commercial  and  industrial  centre. 
The  thousands  of  workers  that  pour  into  the 
cities  every  year  find  themselves  in  a  wholly 
new  world.  In  the  space  of  one  day  the  old 
restraints  of  family,  religion,  and  society, 
that  hitherto  molded  and  steadied  the  life  of 
the  villager,  are  all  removed,  and  the  individ- 
ual is  up  against  a  huge  and  soulless  machine 
where  the  forces  of  capital  and  greed  hold 
the  whip  hand.  Into  this  machine,  more  mer- 
ciless than  any  now  to  be  found  in  Occidental 
lands,  the  labourer  must  merge  or  be  crushed. 
Yet  in  Japan  his  power  to  understand  his  new 
environment  or  to  adjust  himself  to  his  new- 
social  order  is  extremely  limited.  But  whether 
he  understands  or  not,  he  must  be  prepared 


to  have  himself,  as  a  unit,  assessed  at  less 
value  than  the  material  product. 

The  difficulty  of  the  situation  will  be  more 
fully  appreciated  if  the  nature  of  the  society 
from  which  the  Japanese  labourer  is  drawn 
be  kept  carefully  in  view.  The  labourer 
comes  from  the  country,  which  has  changed 
but  little  since  the  days  of  feudalism.  Feu- 
dalism but  poorly  prepared  the  individual 
to  face  the  demands  of  modem  industrialism. 
Customs  of  centuries  get  into  the  blood  and 
become  second  nature.  The  feudal  habit 
of  the  vassal  depending  on  the  lord,  the 
servant  on  the  master,  the  inferior  on  the 
superior,  created  ties  which  modem  con- 
ditions have  suddenly  snapped,  while  the 
herding  of  great  masses  of  people,  thus 
left  masterless,  in  congested  cities  means, 
to  most  of  them,  social  and  economic  demor- 
alisation. In  a  period  of  such  violent  transi- 
tion a  nation's  social  liabilities  are  always 
greater  than  its  assets.  The  great  cities  of 
Japan,  already  overburdened  with  their  own 
poor,  and  harassed  by  complex  civic  problems, 
are  quite  unable  to  assimilate  or  care  for  the 
large  annual  additions  to  their  population. 


GROUP    PHOTOGRAPHED    ON    THE    OCCASION    OK    THE    VISIT    OF    PREMIER    TERAUCHI  TO  THE  F.\CTORV  OF  THE  TOVO  .MUSLIN   KABU^HIKI   KAISHA. 
PREMIER    TERAUCHI   TAKES    A    KEEN    INTEREST    IN    QUESTIONS   OF    INDUSTRY    AND    LABOUR 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


541 


UNHEALTHY    CONDITIONS 

Of  course  time  is  needed  to  allow  the  new 
population  flowing  into  the  cities  to  find  itself 
socially  and  economically,  as  well  as  to  allow 
the  upper  classes  to  realise  their  responsibility 
for  the  needs  of  their  expanding  cities.  As 
yet  there  is  in  Japan  no  [lublic  conscience  able 
to  perceive  any  close  connection  between  the 
uplift  and  conservation  of  the  labour  class 
and  the  permanence  of  the  nation's  industrial 
power.  Even  factory  owners  yet  fail  to  see 
that  there  is  a  direct  relation  between  the  care 
accorded  the  human  machine  and  its  working 
output.  Young  men  and  women  suddenly 
removed  from  the  fresh  air  and  healthful 
.surroundings  of  country  life  to  the  foul  atmos- 
phere of  factories  and  the  low,  damp  beds  and 
poor  food  of  the  industrial  centres,  soon 
undergo  physical  deterioration.  Long  hours 
of  toil  amid  unsanitary  conditions  lead  to 
contagion  and  disease.  Few  constitutions  are 
able  to  endure  the  strain  of  standing  from  12 
to  16  hours  a  day  at  high-powered  machines. 
The  unhygienic  conditions  in  which  Japanese 
factory  girls  have  to  work  and  live  are  espe- 
cially bad,  while  the  over-crowding  of 
dormitories  and  the  use  of  child  labour  but 
increase  the  danger.  Nearly  half  a  million 
workers  recruited  from  the  best  blood  of  the 
country  annually  pour  themselves  into  the 
polluted  conditions  of  factory  life,  most  cf 
them  never  to  return. 

The  results  are  particularly  disastrous  to 
women  and  children.  Of  the  more  than 
500,000  female  workers  in  Japanese  factories 
some  300,000  are  under  20  years  of  age.  In 
the  spinning,  weaving,  and  dyeing  industries 
over  400,000  girls  and  children  are  engaged, 
70  per  cent  of  whom  live  in  factory  quarters 
where  they  are  subject  to  restrictions  border- 
ing on  confinement.  In  the  raw  silk  mills 
work  lasts  from  13  to  14  hours  a  day  on  an 
average,  and  in  the  weaving  mills  from  14  to 
16  hours  a  day.  The  hands  in  the  spinning 
mills  have  to  take  night  work  every  other 
week.  The  week  ending  the  night  shift 
always  shows  a  loss  of  weight  in  the  girls,  and 
ultimately  wrecks  their  health.  Few  can  go 
on  longer  than  a  year,  when  desertion,  illness, 
or  death  affords  relief.  Statistics  show  that 
some  80  per  cent  of  the  workers  leave  the  mills 
every  year,  their  places  being  taken  by  new 
recruits  collected  by  agents  going  through  the 
country.  Women  on  the  night  shift  sleep  in 
the  same  beds  as  those  on  day  work,  the  beds 
thus  never  getting  a  chance  to  be  aired  or 
cleaned,  and  consequently  are  nests  of 
bacteria  for  the  spread  of  disease.  More  than 
200,000  girls  are  recruited  for  the  factories 
every  year,  of  whom  more  than  120,000 
never  return  to  the  parental  roof.  Some  die, 
some  find  refuge  in  places  of  questionable 
resort,  and  some  openly  adopt  an  ill  life.     Of 


the  80,000  who  find  their  way  home  again 
13,000  are  sick,  25  per  cent  of  them  with 
consumption. 

MORAL    DANGERS 

Nor  are  the  moral  dangers  of  the  Japanese 
worker  more  hopeful  than  those  menacing  his 
physical  condition.  Housing  is  congestive 
in  the  extreme,  leading  to  moral  as  well  as 
bodily  deterioration.  The  houses  are  too 
small,  and  the  smallest  often  contains  more 
than  one  family  of  five  or  more  persons  each, 
all  jumbled  together  in  one  room  where 
decency  of  life  is  impossible.  Many  of  the 
poor  families  take  lodgers  who  sleep  with  the 
family  on  the  same  floor.  In  the  factory 
dormitories  for  girls  unscrupulous  managers 
are  reported  to  hold  the  victims  in  virtual 
moral  slavery.  One  Japanese  expert  on 
factory  conditions  avers  that  it  is  not  uncom- 
mon for  more  than  half  the  girls  in  a  factory 
to  lose  their  virtue  in  a  year.  The  long  hours 
leave  the  workers  so  weary  that  any  sort  of 
excitement  is  welcome  and  tempting,  and 
consequently  vicious  pleasures  and  pastimes 
are  encouraged  and  common.  The  most 
usual  amusements  are  drinking,  gambling, 
and  sensuality.  Thus  the  youths  and  maid- 
ens from  wholesome  country  homes  are 
suddenly  separated  from  the  moral  restric- 
tions of  innocency  and  childhood  and  are 
plunged  into  immoral  conditions  where  they 
lose  self-respect  and  health,  and  where  death 
is  often  a  happy  relief. 

Much  might  also  be  said  of  the  moral  effects 
of  turning  away  from  hand-made  products  to 
machinery,  from  art  to  artificiality,  from 
conscience  and  idealism  to  expediency  and 
wages,  with  a  consequent  stunting  of  individ- 
uality and  ideals.  Moreover  the  constant 
shifting  of  hands  on  account  of  illness  or 
injustice  or  breach  of  contract  renders  main- 
tenance of  highly  skilled  labour  difficult. 
In  some  factories  when  a  worker  becomes  too 
familiar  with  skilled  processes  he  is  considered 
dangerous  and  removed  to  another  depart- 
ment 

RIGHTS  OF  LABOUR 
The  Japanese  labourer  enjoys  no  political 
rights,  and  of  others  he  possesses  but  few. 
He  has  no  vote  and  therefore  no  way  of  con- 
trolling or  improving  the  conditions  under 
which  he  has  to  live  and  work.  He  has  to 
accept  the  decision  of  his  employer  as  to 
hours,  safety  devices,  health  provision,  wages 
and  all  the  usual  details  of  labour,  without 
question,  though  a  factory  act  recently  put 
into  operation  may  slightly  modify  this  state- 
ment in  respect  to  hours  and  safety.  At 
present  no  more  than  eight  per  cent  of  the 
men  of  Japan  have  the  right  of  franchise,  and 
of  this  proportion,  numbering  in  all  a  little 


over  1,600,000,  only  153,768  live  in  cities  and 
have  any  chance  to  experience  or  influence 
in<lustrial  life.  As  labour  organisations  are 
prohibited  the  labourer  has  no  way  of  appeal- 
ing to  public  opinion  except  by  strikes,  which 
also  are  prohibited  and  severely  dealt  with 
when  they  occur.  In  Japan,  therefore, 
labour  is  placed  almost  wholly  at  the  mercy 
of  the  priviliged  classes,  and  has  to  submit  to 
increased  cost  of  living  without  a  correspond- 
ing rise  in  wages. 

Conditions  seem  all  the  harsher  seeing  that 
the  Japanese  worker  is  not  illiterate,  more 
than  80  per  cent  being  able  to  read  and  write, 
and  over  90  per  cent  of  the  children  of 
labourers  are  at  school.  The  Japanese 
worker  not  only  reads  the  newspapers  but 
takes  considerable  interest  in  the  public 
questions  of  the  day.  The  sources  of  knowl- 
edge being  thus  open  to  him  he  is  not  likely 
to  submit  much  longer  to  the  contrasts  that 
exist  between  his  lot  and  that  of  his  fellow- 
workman  in  other  countries.  It  is,  therefore, 
quite  improbable  that  the  labourers  of  Japan 
will  continue  content  to  create  the  nation's 
wealth  without  receiving  a  larger  share  of  the 
opportunities  of  Hfe  and  the  benefits  of  civili- 
sation. Education  without  rights,  knowledge 
without  opportunity,  is  like  generating  steam 
in  a  flask  —  a  dangerous  experiment! 

For  what  interest  has  been  created  in  the 
rights  of  labour  in  Japan  the  labourer  is 
largely  indebted  to  Occidental  organisations. 
In  the  past  Japan  has  not  figured  as  a  very 
important  factor  in  the  labour  movement  in 
foreign  eyes.  To  the  average  economist  as 
well  as  worker,  in  Western  lands,  Japanese 
labour  has  seemed  a  thing  apart,  deser\-ing 
perhaps  a  degree  of  consideration  but  unappre- 
ciably  affecting  the  great  labour  world  as  a 
whole.  This  attitude  no  doubt  has  been  due 
to  a  prevailing  conviction  as  to  the  cheapness 
and  inefficiency  of  the  Japanese  workman  as 
eornpared  with  his  Occidental  contemporary, 
and  to  the  isolation  of  Japanese  labour  from 
Western  labour  unions.  But  the  recent  pro- 
gress of  Japanese  industry,  having  begun  to 
affect  the  world's  supply  and  demand,  is 
arousing  interest  abroad  and  already  repre- 
sentatives of  Japanese  labour  have  been 
conferring  with  labour  organisations  in 
America. 

LABOUR    UNIONS  BARRED 

It  is  Japan's  unique  distinction  to  have  no 
labour  unions,  but  from  what  has  already 
been  said  it  is  clear  that  this  is  not  because 
labour  needs  no  amelioration  in  Japan. 
While  labour  unions  are  strictly  prohibited 
by  the  authorities,  a  society  known  as  theYuai- 
kai,  or  Labourers'  Friendly  Society,  has  been 
tolerated  and  is  doing  what  it  can  to  improve 
the  conditions  of  the  workingman.     Founded 


542 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


"^v^V 


'&     '» 


■i(«Secf.;^ 


"'■SB*.. 


■%:-y<i^' 


v:,?^ 


WORKMEN  S    QUARTERS    AT   HIOGO    MILL,    KANEGAFUCHI    SPINNING    CO.,    LTD. 


in  1912  it  already  has  a  membership  of  some 
30,000,  most  of  whom  are  in  Tokyo.  For  a 
monthly  fee  of  i  o  sen  members  receive  legal  and 
medicinal  advice,  may  hear  lectures  on  social 
questions,  personal  hygiene,  and  domestic 
economy,  secure  participation  in  a  cooperative 
supply  union,  and  also  find  an  authorised 
medium  to  air  grievances.  Speaking  gener- 
ally, Japan  has  no  social  settlements  for  the 
improvement  of  conditions  among  the  poorer 
classes  of  the  city,  but  a  few  under  missionary 
auspices  have  been  started  and  are  doing  good 
work.  What  the  Japanese  labourer  W'ants, 
however,  is  not  charity  but  his  rights,  such  as 
are  enjoyed  in  all  free  and  progressive  coun- 
tries. Given  these,  he  is  as  well  able  to  take 
care  of  himself  as  the  worker  of  any  other 
country. 

It  must  be  admitted  with  disappointment 
that  so  far  the  labour  movement  in  Japan  has 
not  met  with  much  encouragement.  With 
the  diffusion  of  liberal  and  philanthropic  ideas 
following  the  introduction  of  Western  civili- 
sation and  intercourse  with  Occidental 
nations,  it  was  hoped  that  labour  would 
receive  due  attention  and  be  accorded  its 


rights.  Leaders  like  Count  Itagaki  endeav- 
oured to  circulate  newer  ideas  of  freedom,  but 
his  propaganda  was  checked  by  an  attempt 
to  assassinate  him.  Later,  the  labour  move- 
ment in  England  and  the  United  States  began 
to.  find  echoes  in  Japan  under  the  leadership 
of  Mr.  Sen  Katayama,  Professor  Ab^,  and 
others,  who  had  studied  abroad  and  on  their 
return  started  a  crusade  for  the  reform  of 
labour  conditions  at  home.  Books  like 
Bellamy's  "Looking  Backward,"  Henry 
George's  "Progress  and  Poverty,"  and 
Booth's  "Darkest  England"  were  eagerly  read 
and  labour  unions  after  the  Western  fashion 
were  talked  of,  but  in  their  zeal  the  leaders 
made  the  mistake  of  attempting  to  graft 
Occidental  institutions  unmodified  into  the 
radically  different  social  body  of  Japan.  As 
time  went  on  the  movement  divided  into 
what  might  be  called  an  evolutionary  and 
revolutionary  trend  that  proved  fatal,  for  the 
evolutionists  sided  with  socialism  and  the 
revolutionists  with  anarchy.  Through  books, 
papers,  and  public  speeches  Katayama  led  in 
an  aggressive  propaganda  for  socialism,  while 
the  other  wing,  led  by  Kotoku,  under  guise 


of  a  party  called  the  Social  Democrats,  urged 
the  most  radical  and  alarming  measures.  On 
his  return  from  America  Kotoku  finally 
became  an  advocate  of  anarchist  doctrines, 
and  in  1910  he,  with  twenty-six  others,  was 
involved  in  a  conspiracy  to  assassinate  the 
Emperor,  whereupon  the  whole  twenty-six 
were  condemned  to  execution.  Of  the  con- 
spirators, thirteen  had  their  sentences  com- 
muted to  imprisonment  for  life,  and  Kotoku 
and  his  wife  and  the  remaining  eleven  were 
executed.  This  was  a  tremendous  blow  to 
the  labour  movement,  as  subsequently  it 
became  associated  with  disloyalty  and 
thoughts  dangerous  to  the  nation,  which  was 
just  what  its  opponents  wanted  for  its  over- 
throw. 

Since  the  above  unfortunate  episode,  w-hich 
really  had  nothing  to  do  with  any  genuine 
labour  movement,  the  regulations  concern- 
ing socialism  and  anarchy  have  been  made 
unprecedentedly  rigourous.  All  the  author- 
ities have  to  do  in  order  to  destroy  any  new 
movement  at  present  is  to  brand  it  with  the 
hated  name  of  socialism.  Even  a  hint  in  this 
direction  is  sufficient  to  make  everj'  Japanese 


PRESENT-DAY        IMJ'RESSIONS        OF        JAPAN 


543 


fly  from  it  in  tfrror.  I.aljour  unions  are 
inchidcd  in  the  regulations  against  socialism 
and  anarchy,  which  is  sufficient  to  give  them 
the  quietus.  There  are  many  socialists  still 
among  the  Japanese  labour  classes  as  well  as 
among  the  young  men  of  the  middle  class, 
but  they  can  find  no  vent  for  expression. 
Thus  all  the  work  which  Katayama  did  in 
organising  labour  unions  among  the  iron- 
workers, typographers,  street-car  men,  ship- 
builders, miners,  and  railway  men  seems  to 
have  melted  into  nothing. 

For  some  years  now  Japanese  labour  has 
been  left  without  any  resource  except  the 
strike,  and  strikes  have  marked  the  annual 
progress  of  labour  ever  since,  in  spite  of  the 
stern  regulations  against  them.     In  Japan  a 


factory  legislation  became  rife,  and  in  1898  a 
factory  law  was  drafted  and  approved  by  the 
Department  of  Agriculture  and  Commerce. 
There  it  rested,  however,  and  other  bills  were 
brought  forward,  modelled  after  American  or 
European  precedents,  and  providing  for  the 
organisation  of  cooperative  industrial  soci- 
eties, for  manhood  suffrage  without  property 
qualification,  for  building  and  loan  associa- 
tions, and  for  housing  reform,  going  even  so 
far  as  to  suggest  that  Labour  should  have  a 
special  representative  in  parliament.  Parallel 
with  these  efforts  after  political  and  economic 
reform  the  labour  leaders  were  doing  all  they 
could  in  a  quiet  way  to  further  the  spirit  of 
brotherhood  and  mutual  aid  among  the 
workmen    themselves.     Labour    clubs    were 


ROOM    M.\INTAINED   FOR    THE    EMPLOYEES    OF    THE    NIPPON    HEIKI    SEIZO    K.\BUSHIKI 
K.\ISHA    (j.\P.\N    ARMS    AND    MACHINERY    MANUF.WTURING   CO.,    LTD.) 


strike  is  not  quite  tlic  same  thing  that  it  is 
abroad,  for  it  is  often  the  result  of  ill  treat- 
ment as  well  as  of  economic  reasons,  and 
when  a  company  of  Japanese  workmen  re- 
solves on  a  strike  the  employer  may  always 
prepare  for  violence.  The  first  strike  of 
any  serious  importance  in  Japan  was  that 
of  the  Takashima  coal-mine  workers  at 
Nagasaki  in  1888,  and  shortly  afterwards 
this  was  followed  by  a  strike  of  the  tea-curers 
at  Yokohama.  In  1891  the  bootmakers' 
union  caused  a  strike  on  the  business  being 
taken  over  by  the  Army.  In  the  decade 
between  1891  and  1900  the  question  of  labour 
and  social  conditions  generally  attracted  wide 
public  attention,  the  leading  newspapers 
showing  a  sympathetic  interest.  Agitation 
for  the  lowering  of  taxes  and  the  enactment  of 


opened  at  various  centres,  especially  among 
railway  men.  The  educated  classes  began  to 
evince  some  intelligent  interest  in  social  and 
labour  problems.  The  largest  and  most 
influential  of  the .  unions  was  that  of  the 
engineers  and  firemen,  which  had  a  member- 
ship of  over  a  thousand  and  a  fund  of  48,000 
yen.  The  climax  of  the  movement  was 
reached  in  1899  when  the  Engineers  and 
Firemen's  Union  declared  a  strike  against  the 
Japan  Railway  Company.  The  railway 
officials  immediately  set  to  work  promoting 
measures  for  the  destruction  of  labour  unions. 
Within  the  succeeding  five  or  six  years  most 
of  the  labour  unions  were  suppressed.  The 
process  of  abolition  was  hastened  by  schism 
among  the  labourers  themselves,  who  lacked 
efficient     and     intelligent     leadership,     and 


funds  wi-re  not  infrequently  misappropriated. 
Finally  the  day  arrived  when  not  a  single 
labour  union   remained. 

At  present  the  general  attitude  of  state 
authority  in  Japan  is  firmly  opposed  to  labour 
unions,  and  this  may  be  taken  as  a  reflection 
of  the  attitude  of  capitalism  in  Japan  gener- 
ally. The  majority  of  Japanese  employers 
hold  tenaciously  to  the  feudal  conception  of 
the  right  of  the  master  to  force  his  will  on  the 
labourer  without  conference.  To  recognise 
the  rights  of  labour  is  regarded  as  both  incon- 
venient and  unprofitable.  There  are  a  few 
capitalists,  however,  who  realise  that  the 
rights  of  labour  to  consideration  must  inevit- 
ably be  recognised,  and  that  such  a  day  should 
be  warded  oflf  by  compromise.  Not  a  few 
capitalists  also  are  beginning  to  take  an 
interest  in  promoting  the  comfort  and  welfare 
of  labour  as  the  best  way  to  hasten  the  pro- 
gress of  industry,  though  some  of  the  mutual 
benefit  associations  and  insurance  schemes 
fostered  by  capitalism  are  obviously  only  a 
means  of  holding  the  ser\'ices  of  the  workers 
who  would  suffer  economically  by  cutting 
loose.  As  a  rule,  however,  the  Japanese 
capitalists  as  a  class,  having  the  reins  in  their 
own  hands,  are  indifferent  to  labour  questions, 
while  the  universities  are  more  concerned 
with  the  economic  than  the  human  aspect  of 
laljur. 

STRIKES  FREQUENT 
Meanwhile  strikes  and  labour  disputes 
are  remarkably  on  the  increase.  With  the 
mounting  inequality  of  distribution,  the 
unrest  of  labour  is  becoming  yearly  more 
serious  and  never  more  so  than  at  present. 
The  capitalists  can  no  longer  depend  on  the 
canine  submissiveness  of  the  masses  nor 
suppress  complaints  against  injustice  by  mere 
intimidation,  for  it  is  apparent  now  to  all  that 
the  struggle  between  capital  and  labour  in 
Japan  has  at  last  begun.  In  the  last  few 
years  serious  strikes  have  occurred  in  such 
industries  as  steel,  iron,  shipbuilding,  weaving, 
and  spinning,  and  in  some  instances  con- 
ditions were  so  grave  as  to  require  the  calling 
out  of  the  troops  to  restore  order.  In  most 
of  these  conflicts  between  labour  and  capital, 
however,  the  latter  comes  out  victorious, 
concession,  where  it  occurs,  being  in  almost 
every  case  due  to  the  magnanimity  of  the 
employer.  But  circumstances  at  present 
point  to  a  more  hopeful  development  of  the 
labour  movement  in  future.  Between  1897 
and  1902  Japan  had  127  strikes  involving 
more  than  20,000  workers,  of  which  57, 
representing  some  8,000  labourers,  were  par- 
tially successful.  Between  1908  and  1911 
there  were  68  strikes  more  or  less  futile,  and 
the  story  of  unameliorated  disaffection  of 
labour  still  continues.    Between  1912  and  1915 


544 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


there  were  146  strikes  involving  about  20,000 
hands,  without  much  satisfaction.  The  num- 
ber of  strikes  in  1916  was  108,  reprcsentiiif; 
some  g.ooo  men,  while  in  1917  strikes  num- 
bered 31,  affecting  over  30,000  workmen. 
Thus  it  is  evident  that  every  year  the 
number  of  strikes  and  of  hands  involved  is 
increasing.  The  most  serious  strikes  in  19 1 7 
were  12,000  men  at  the  Mitsubishi  Dock- 
yard at  Nagasaki,  2,000  men  at  the  Osaka 
Iron  Works,  4,000  hands  at  the  Tohata  Glass 
Works,  2,200  at  the  Fuji  Spinning  Company's 
mills,  1,920  at  the  Japan  Steel  Works,  and 
4,000  men  at  the  Mitsubishi  mines.  The 
cause  of  these  strikes  was  in  most  cases  for  a 
rise  of  from  15  to  20  per  cent  in  wages  and 
better  treatment  of  workers,  which  is  doubt- 
less an  echo  of  the  greatly  increased  cost  of 
living  without  a  corresponding  rise  in  wages. 
It  is  the  general  belief  in  economic  and 
industrial  circles  that  strikes  will  become  an 
increasing  feature  of  Japanese  labour  until 
such  time  as  it  receives  due  recognition. 

WAGES    IN   JAPAN 

To  arrive  at  any  degree  of  accuracy  as 
to  wages  in  Japan  is  not  easy,  as  such 
terms  are  usually  secret.  On  the  whole 
it  may  safely  be  said  that  the  wage  scale 
in  Japan  is  far  below  what  it  is  in  West- 
ern countries.  Taking  cotton  mills  as  an 
example,  the  wage  per  thousand  spindles 
managed  by  one  operative  in  the  United 
States  is  Yen  3.53;  England  by  two  opera- 
tives. Yen  2.78;  Japan  by  five  operatives. 
Yen  1 .  67.  If  the  same  material  be  worked 
upon,  the  output  in  Japan  would  be  much 
cheaper  than  in  either  England  or  America. 
Again,  if  the  weekly  wages  of  five  common 
trades  in  five  other  countries  be  compared 
with  the  wage  prevailing  in  Japan,  the 
latter  seems  remarkably  low. 

The  average  Japanese  family  is  supposed 
to  require  Yen  22.64  per  month  to  live 
upon.  As  large  numbers  of  the  principal 
wage  earners  get  only  from  10  to  15  yen  per 
month  it  is  difficult  to  understand  how  they 
make  ends  meet,  but  no  doubt  it  is  done 
by  the  assistance  of  wife  and  children,  or 
else  the  family  is  underfed.  Judging  from 
the  emaciated  faces  of  the  poor  one  must 
assume  that  lack  of  sufficient  nourishment 
is  only  too  common.  The  average  wage 
earner  in  Japan  gets  no  more  than  21  yen  a 
month,  which  is  clearly  below  the  require- 
ments of  the  average  family.  The  average 
annual  income  of  the  Japanese  labourer  is 
about  252  yen,  which  is  miserably  inade- 
quate compared  with  the  1,121.77  in  Eng- 
land, 1,409.78  in  America,  669.84  in  Ger- 
many, and  933.34  in  France.  The  accompa- 
nying table  illustrates  the  daily  wagesforlead- 
ing   occupations  in  Japan  before  the  war  in 


Europe,    since    which    wages    have    largely 
increased. 

Prior   to   the  European   war   the  average 
daily  wage  of  Japanese  labour  had  risen  to 


45  sen.  There  was  an  increase  of  4  per 
cent  in  1915,  of  11  per  cent  in  1916,  and  of 
16  per  cent  in  1917,  but  this  has  not  kept 
pace   at   all    with    the    ratio   of   increase   in 


Country 


England 

Germany.  .  .  . 

France 

Belgium 

United  States 
Japan 


Brickl.wer 


Yen 


19.70 
15.20 
14.04 
II  .68 
60.84 
7.07 


C.\RPKNTER 


Yen 


i.S 

14 
12 

4,S 


20 
72 
28 
80 
60 


P.A  INTER 


Yen 


18 

U 
12 
10 
41 
.3 


24 
44 
86 

50 
36 
26 


S.MITH 


Yen 


16 

15 
1 1 

41 

4 


■S2 
.06 
.46 
.92 

.S2 
,69 


Compositor 


Yen 


1 6  06 
12.62 
14.04 
1 1  .  12 
39- 14 
3  57 


Class 


Textile  factories 

Chemical  works 

Food  and  drink 

Paper  and  publishing . 
Electricity,  gas,  etc. .  . 

Mining 

Agriculture,  silk , 

Tailors,  etc 

Brewers 


Adlxts 


Male 


Sen 


39-64 
44-58 
43-71 
50-62 
56-61 
56-61 
30-83 
29-84 
41-70 


Female 


Sen 


28-36 

22-39 
20-33 

25-29 
21-25 
21-25 
28-35 


Children 


Male 


Sen 


17-35 
19-28 
18-22 

15-24 
17-20 
17-20 


Female 


Sen 


9-23 
15-21 
13-18 
12-16 
10-00 
10-00 


Domestics,  4.60,  with  food,  per  month.     Women  ser\-ants,  2.95  per  month,  with  food. 


Trade 


Weaver,  male 

Tailor,  native 

Tailor,  European 

Shoemaker 

Confectioner 

Tobacco-cutter 

Carpenter 

Plasterer 

Stone  cutter 

Sawyer 

Tile-roofer 

Bricklayer 

Shipwright 

Cabinet-maker 

Carriage-maker 

Harness-maker 

Lacquerer 

Gold  and  silver  smith . . 

Blacksmith 

Potter 

Silk  spinner,  female.  .  . 

Gardener 

Fisherman 

Farm  labourer,  male . . . 

Paper-maker 

Printer 

Day  labourer 

Male  servant,  monthly 
Maid  sen.'ant,  monthly 
(including  food) 


I9I0 

191 1 

igi2 

1913 

Sen 

Sen 

Sen 

Sen 

49 

43 

43 

45 

57 

58 

60 

64 

81 

85 

89 

88 

67 

65 

69 

71 

43 

45 

44 

44 

61 

62 

64 

66 

80 

83 

87 

88 

83 

86 

89 

93 

93 

94 

100 

lOI 

80 

-8 

85 

85 

95 

100 

103 

105 

104 

106 

106 

109 

S3 

86 

91 

93 

76 

79 

83 

84 

67 

69 

73 

77 

70 

70 

7" 

75 

63 

68 

70 

72 

63 

66 

67 

67 

69 

70 

71 

73 

62 

63 

63 

68 

31 

30 

31 

33 

/  / 

83 

85 

85 

54 

59 

62 

59 

39 

42 

44 

46 

41 

44 

46 

48 

50 

50 

52 

53 

53 

56 

58 

59 

4-56 

4  65 

4-73 

4.68 

2.96 

3- 12 

3  66 

2.99 

I9I4 


Sen 


46 
63 
84 
72 
46 
70 
86 
89 

lOI 

84 
104 

105 
92 

80 
73 
75 
71 
65 
74 
64 
35 
83 
60 

47 
45 
55 
56 
4.60 

2-95 


PRESENT-DAY    IMPRESSIONS    OF   JAPAN 


545 


commodity  prices,  the  average  daily  wage 
in    igi7  Inking  only  52  sen. 

If  the  matter  of  wages  be  looked  at  more 
in  detail  it  will  be  seen  that  for  the  five 
years  previous  to  the  Eurojiean  war  the 
wages  of  the  principal  occupations  did  not 
show  much  advance,  in  spite  of  the  increased 
cost  of  living. 

If  the  year  1900  be  taken  as  a  basis  of 
100,  the  index  numbers  for  the  above  occu- 
pations during  the  fifteen  years,  taken  every 
five  years,  will  show  the  ratio  of  increase 
in  wages,  as  follows: 


a  master,  and  capital  easily  has  its  own  way. 
Another  reason  that  retards  the  progress 
of  the  labour  movement  in  Japan  is  that 
in  spite  of  the  increa.sing  urban  jjopulation, 
the  country  is  still  for  the  most  part  a  land 
of  small  industries,  the  concentration  of 
factories  being  yet  comparatively  at  a  nas- 
cent stage.  Of  33,000  factories  in  Japan 
employing  a  total  of  over  1,000,000  opera- 
tives, the  vast  majority  are  concerns  having 
from  five  to  ten  hands  engaged  in  domestic 
industry.  Nearly  all  the  silk  factories  are 
thus  run  on  a  small  scale,  cotton  mills  being 


TRADE 

Weaver,  male 

Tailor,  native  dress 

Tailor,  European  dress 

Shoemaker 

Confectioner 

Tobacco-cutter 

Carpenter 

Plasterer 

Stone-cutter 

Sawyer 

Tile-roofer 

Bricklayer 

Shipwright 

Cabinet-maker 

Carriage-maker 

Harness-maker 

Lacquerer 

Gold  and  silver  smith 

Blacksmith 

Potter 

Silk  spinner 

Gardener 

Fisherman 

Farm  labourer,  male 

Paper-maker 

Printer 

Day  labourer 

Male  servant 

Maid  seri'ant 


1905 


103.0 

■23  7 
108.5 
121.3 

1 13.3 
1 23  6 
1 1 1  I 
1 1 1  .  I 
10X2 
1113 

11(1.2 
112,7 

114  3 
1 10  0 
108.5 
131  9 
104  3 
1 23  .  8 
1 1 4  6 
121  .  1 
1 10.0 
107.  8 
107.7 
106.7 
100.  o 
111,8 
I  10  8 
119.3 
114.7 


I9IO 


I4«.5 
146,2 

137  3 
142.6 

•43  3 
141. 9 
14S.  1 

153  7 
i,S2,5 
1  ,S0 ,  c; 
I6l  .0 

165. 1 
148.2 
152  .0 

•44  7 
148,9 

1 50 .  o 

i43.« 

1 63 . 2 
•3,S  o 
151  ,11 

130.0 
128.  1 
•47  I 
143  -' 
168,9 
189,7 


•915 


139.4 
1 6 1  .  5 
142.4 
■53-2 
•53-3 
162.7 

•39-3 
164.8 
165.6 

•  76 . 3 
166.7 

•64  3 

1 60 ,  o 

155-3 
•59-6 
151. 1 

•54  7 

134- 2 

168,4 

1750 

162,7 

•53 

•56.7 

140.6 

161  ,8 

131  4 
170,4 
1 89 .  I 


8 


FUTURE  OF  JAPANESE  LABOUR 
In  forecasting  the  future  of  labour  in 
Japan,  the  extent  to  which  the  female 
element  enters  into  it  must  be  taken  strictly 
into  account.  Female  labour  constitutes 
the  main  princ'ple  of  factory  economy  at 
present.  Taking  17,062  of  the  more  impor- 
tant factories  it  will  be  found  that  37  per 
cent  of  the  labour  is  male  and  the  remaining 
percentage  female.  Of  the  total  number  of 
child  workers  under  fourteen  years  of  age, 
81  per  cent  are  girls.  Nearly  half  the  opera- 
tives in  Japanese  factories  are  under  twenty 
years  of  age.  It  is  this  predominance  of 
youth  and  female  labour  that  not  only 
cheapens  the  factory  products  of  Japan  but 
renders  the  progress  of  improvement  in 
labour  conditions  so  slow,  for  the  Japanese 
female    is    practically    non-assertive    under 


practically  the  only  ones  employing  large 
numbers  of  workers  in  one  place.  Domestic 
industries  and  small  manufactures  pre- 
dominate. So  long,  therefore,  as  female 
labour  continues  to  dominate  the  industrial 
life  of  the  nation  and  industry  remains 
distributed  in  small  factories,  labour  will 
fail  to  exercise  any  potent  influence  on  public 
opinion.  It  has  already  been  shown,  how- 
ever, that  in  the  centres  where  industry 
has  begun  to  concentrate,  the  disaflection 
of  labour  is  so  pronounced  as  to  cause  in- 
creasing strikes  and  other  forms  of  labour 
disturbance,  and  the  question  of  ameliora- 
tion is  bound  to  become  one  demanding  a 
solution. 

The  rapid  development  now  going  on  in 
all  spheres  of  economic  activity,  and  espe- 
cially in  the  manufacturing  industries,  must 


soon  cause  a  still  greater  concentration  of 
industry  as  well  as  a  more  menacing  con- 
gestion of  city  life,  forcing  Japan  to  face 
her  social  problems,  including  the  problem 
of  labour.  As  conflicts  between  capital 
and  labour  acquire  intensity  with  the  increase 
of  male  over  female  labour,  Japanese  law 
will  be  obliged  to  allow  greater  freedom 
to  labour  associations,  and  admit  the  sacred 
right  of  revolution.  With  the  necessities 
of  life  rising  out  of  all  proportion  to  the 
increase  of  wages  and  the  relentless  attitude 
of  severity  toward  labourers,  the  voice  of 
discontent  can  not  but  rise  against  capitalism 
until  authority  is  compelled  to  heed.  In 
speaking  of  the  attitude  of  the  Government 
toward  labour  organisations  a  leading  Japa- 
nese professor  says:  "The  Government  is 
stupidly  shortsighted  in  keeping  the  labour- 
ers crippled  by  refusing  to  let  them  organise, 
and  trying  to  make  amends  by  giving  them 
crutches  in  the  form  of  insurance  and  fac- 
tory law."  The  relatively  large  number 
of  people  employed  in  Government  factories, 
bureaux,  and  monopoly  undertakings  further 
militates  against  freedom  of  labour,  while 
the  persistence  of  the  apprentice  system  in 
trades  still  tends  to  restrict  the  freedom  of 
workers. 

Owing  to  the  aggressive  disquietude  of 
Japanese  labour  the  authorities  have  recently 
been  forced  to  adopt  some  measures  of 
remedial  legislation,  which,  though  late  and 
decidedly  defective,  are  yet  better  than 
nothing.  The  factory  act  passed  in  1911 
was  not  enforced  until  the  Government 
was  compelled  by  conditions  to  do  so  in 
1916.  The  act  is  palpably  imperfect  and 
must  be  improved,  as  it  seems  to  favour 
the  employer  at  the  expense  of  the  worker. 
As  the  factory  law  applies  only  to  factories 
of  15  hands  or  over,  a  great  many  establish- 
ments will  escape  its  remedial  provisions. 
In  jjrineiple  the  act  prohibits  the  employ- 
ment of  children  under  twelve  years  of  age 
in  factories,  but  exceptions  are  easy.  Per- 
sons under  twelve  years  of  age  and  women 
are  regarded  as  protected  workers  and  not 
allowed  to  work  over  twelve  hours  a  day, 
and  not  between  10  p.  m.  and  4  A.  M.  These 
protected  workers  must  also  be  allowed 
regular  holidays  and  proper  rest,  and  must 
not  be  employed  on  any  work  involving 
danger  to  life  and  health,  decision  as  to 
which  being  apparently  left  to  agreement 
between  employers  and  factory  inspectors. 
Sick  persons  and  prospective  mothers  can 
be  employed  only  under  restrictions.  The 
Government  enacts  the  right  of  the  author- 
ities to  inter  "ere  where  factories  or  portions 
of  them  threaten  to  menace  public  interest 
or  their  employees.  Factory  owners  are 
obliged    to   assist    the   dependents   of   those 


546 


PRESENT-DAY    IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


killed  in  factories.  The  act  further  makes 
provision  for  the  proper  dismissal  of  emjiloy- 
ees  and  apprentices  and  for  the  appointment 
of  factory  superintendents.  The  governors 
of  prefectures  are  made  responsible  for  the 
enforcement  of  the  act  within  their  terri- 
tories, and  twenty-one  factory  inspectors 
are  to  assist  them  in  seeing  to  a  proper 
enforcement  of  the  law.  An  insurance 
scheme  for  labourers  at  Government  factories 
is  proving  beneficial,  but  is  hardly  compre- 
hensive enough.  Various  cooperative  socie- 
ties which  chiefly  benefit  the  rural  population 


have  been  organised,  and  there  are  also 
charity  associations,  but,  as  has  been  said 
before,  what  the  Japanese  labourer  wants 
is  not  coddling  or  charity  but  a  chance  to 
demand  the  value  of  his  labour  and  freedom 
to  maintain  his  independence  and  self-respect. 
But  for  this  he  has  yet  to  fight  the  battle 
that  has  been  fought  and  won  in  Occidental 
countries.  That  the  authorities  do  not  yet 
clearly  see  the  issue  may  be  inferred  from 
the  fact  that  after  the  Kotoku  affair,  when 
thirteen  Socialists  were  executed,  1,500,000 
yen   was  given  from  the  imperial   purse  to 


found  a  charity  association,  and  the  408 
millionaires  of  Japan  were  thereby  moved 
to  add  liberal  subscriptions  to  endow  charity. 
But  the  wealth  of  Japan  is  in  the  hands  of 
the  mercantile  and  manufacturing  classes, 
who  had  much  better  pay  a  living  wage 
than  engage  in  endowing  charity.  From 
what  has  been  said  it  is  evident  that  all 
efforts  at  amelioration  of  labour  in  Japan 
are  futile  until  the  worker  is  accorded 
the  freedom  to  organise  and  demand  his 
rights,  the  same  as  he  does  in  Europe  and 
America. 


NAGARA    RIVER,    NEAR    GIFU 


XXXVI.    The  Patent  System 

By   MOKIO   NAKAMATSU,    Ex-Director  of  the   Imperial   Japanese   Patent   Office 


THERE  were  in  Japan  before  the 
Restoration  of  Meiji,  regulations, 
or  rather  customs,  governing  the 
granting  to  individuals  of  certain  privileges 
regarding  traffic  and  trade,  something  like 
the  monopolies  of  Europe,  but  there  was  no 
system  for  protecting  industrial  property  in 
any  form.  Persons  who  discovered  or 
invented  new  arts,  therefore,  used  to  keep 
them  secret,  bequeathing  them  only  to  their 
successors  or  their  special  pupils.  With  the 
fall  of  the  shogunate  and  the  abolition  of 
the  feudal  system,  however,  the  new  Gov- 
ernment of  the  Meiji  era  adopted  the  poHcy 
of  the  "Open  door  and  progress,"  and 
strenuously  introduced  into  the  country  in- 
stitutions of  the  Occident.  Among  other 
things,  the  Government  framed  and  promul- 
gated what  was  called  "Previsional  Rules 
Governing  Patents."  According  to  these 
rules,  patents  were  given  only  to  new  articles 
of  art  for  seven,  ten,  or  fifteen  years,  and  these 
periods  might  be  extended  according  to 
circumstances.  The  time  was  not,  however, 
yet  ripe  for  such  legislation,  and  the  ne.Nt  year 
the  Government  revoked  the  rules  until 
further  notice.  At  the  same  time  the  Govern- 
ment instructed  local  authorities  to  report  to 
the  Department  of  the  Interior  detailed 
accoimts  of  inventions  made  within  their 
respective  jurisdictions,  and  thus  announced 
its  intention  to  protect  inventions.  Since 
then  the  Government  has  had  to  face  many 


difficult  problems  of  great  moment,  and  at 
one  time  it  had  even  the  great  task  of  quelling 
a  civil  war  of  a  serious  nature.  Thus,  for 
more  than  ten  years  the  Government  had  no 
leisure  to  turn  its  attention  to  the  protection 
of  industrial  property.  The  internal  dis- 
turbances were  at  last  subdued  and  measures 
have  been  taken  by  the  Government  since  the 
Restoration  for  the  development  of  the 
country,  which,  since  they  have  begun  to 
work,  have  resulted  in  commerce  and  industry 
making  steady  progress. 

The  first  subject  which  attracted  the 
attention  of  the  Government  in  the  way  of 
protection  of  industrial  property  was  the  pro- 
tection of  trade  marks,  and  in  the  seventeenth 
year  of  Meiji  (1884),  Regulations  Governing 
Trade  Marks  were  promulgated  and  enforced. 
These  were  followed  by  Regulations  Govern- 
ing Patents,  which  were  promulgated  in  April 
of  the  eighteenth  year  of  Meiji  (1885),  and 
took  effect  from  July  of  the  same  year. 
Viewed  from  to-day  these  trade  mark  and 
patent  regulations  were  very  imperfect,  but 
in  protecting  new  inventions  and  legitimate 
trade  marks  they  were  just  as  good  as  similar 
legislation  of  Europe  and  America. 

The  Government  was  not,  of  course,  satis- 
fied with  these  regulations,  and  sent  officials 
abroad  to  study  the  subject  of  the  protection 
of  industrial  property.  Taking  the  reports 
of  these  officials  into  consideration,  in  the 
twenty-first  year  of  Meiji  (1889),  the  Govern- 


ment promulgated  new  patent  regulations 
and  also  designs  regulations,  and  amended 
trade  mark  regulations,  enforcing  them  from 
February  of  the  ne.xt  year.  By  these  regula- 
tive enactments  applications  and  requests 
relating  to  patents,  designs-  and  trade  marks, 
which  under  former  regulations  had  been  filed 
through  local  authorities,  were  now  filed 
direct  at  the  Patent  Office,  and  examiners  of 
that  department  investigated  them  and 
decided  whether  they  should  be  granted  or 
not.  Persons  not  satisfied  with  the  decision 
of  first  instance  could  request  re-examination, 
from  which  there  was  appeal  to  judges  of  the 
Patent  Office.  The  above  mentioned  three 
regulations  form  the  basis  of  the  present 
system  for  the  protection  of  industrial  prop- 
erty, the  laws  and  rules  now  in  force  being 
compiled  from  them  by  introducing  thereto 
amendments  and  additions  required  by 
necessity  or  suggested  by  experience. 

One  thing  to  be  noted  here  is  the  fact  that 
when  the  three  regulations  referred  to  were 
promulgated,  the  foreigners  in  Japan  enjoyed 
the  privilege  of  exterritoriality  and  were  not 
amenable  to  the  Japanese  law.  At  the  same 
time,  they  could  not  benefit  themselves 
through  the  protection  given  by  the  regula- 
tions, and  if  their  industrial  property  was 
infringed  by  the  Japanese,  there  was  no  way 
for  them  to  obtain  satisfaction  from  the 
infringers.  When,  however,  the  Treaty  of 
Commerce  between  Japan  and  Great  Britain 


548 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


was  revised,  the  Japanese  Government 
promised  to  extend  to  the  British  subjects 
the  protection  with  regard  to  patents,  designs, 
and  trade  marks,  and  also  to  join  the  Inter- 
national Union  for  the  protection  of  indus- 
trial property,  and  at  the  same  time  the 
British  Government  waived  the  privilege  of 
exterritoriality.  The  other  powers  followed 
the  British  Government  in  revising  their 
treaties.  Now,  in  order  to  meet  the  altered 
conditions  caused  by  the  revision  of  the 
treaties  of  commerce,  the  Patent,  Designs,  and 
Trade  Marks  Laws  and  Rules  were  amended, 
but  these  amendments  were  introduced  so  as 
to  make  the  laws  applicable  to  foreigners 
as  well  as  to  Japanese,  in  other  respects 
remaining  practically  the  same  as  before. 

In  Japan  there  is  a  special  kind  of  inven- 
tion, called  "Utility  Models,"  protected  by 
a  special  law.  Utility  models  are  new 
industrial  devices  of  practical  use  pertaining 
to  the  form,  construction,  or  combination  of 
articles,  which  though  new  and  useful,  are  not 
dignified  enough  to  be  protected  with  patents. 
The  law  protecting  such  models  was  first 
promulgated  in  the  thirty-eighth  year  of 
Meiji  (1905),  taking  effect  from  July  i .  In  the 
forty-second  year  of  Meiji  (1909)  all  the  four 
laws  and  rules  were  amended  and  brought  to 
the  form  in  which  they  are  now  in  force, 
although  some  minor  changes  have  been  made 
since  then,  being  necessitated  by  treaty  with 
other  powers,  etc. 

The  above  is  a  short  history  of  the  legisla- 
tion in  relation  to  industrial  property  in 
Japan.  There  will  follow  a  summary  of  the 
Japanese   Patent   Office  practice. 

PATENTS 

A  PATENT  is  granted  for  any  novel  indus- 
trial invention,  and  any  foreigner  who  is  a 
subject  or  citizen  of  a  country  with  which 
Japan  has  a  reciprocal  arrangement  for  the 
mutual  protection  of  industrial  property,  or 
any  person  of  any  nationality  residing,  or 
having  a  place  of  business  in  Japan,  or  in  a 
country  where  Japanese  industrial  property 
is  protected,  can  apply  for  a  patent  for  an 
invention  in  his  possession.  The  duration 
of  a  patent  right  is  fifteen  years  from  the  date 
of  registration,  which  can  be  extended  in  some 
rare  instances  for  a  period  of  not  less  than 
three  years,  and  not  more  than  ten,  if  the 
invention  is  of  great  importance  and  the 
patentee  has  not  realised,  for  good  reasons, 
adequate  profit  from  the  patent  during  its 
existence. 

Persons  not  in  Japan  are  not  allowed  to 
make  an  application  or  request,  or  take  any 
other  step  with  regard  to  a  patent,  except 
through  an  agent  residing  in  Japan,  and  the 
documents  which  must  accompany  applica- 
tions by  foreigners  are  power  of  attorney  and 
certificate  of  nationality  given  by  a  notary 


public  or  any  other  competent  authority, 
and  the  signature  of  the  applicant  affixed  to 
them  must  be  legalised. 

The  Examiners  of  the  Patent  Office  examine 
applications  as  to  their  novelty  and  give  a 
decision  as  to  whether  the  patent  should  be 
granted  or  not.  Against  the  decision  of  an 
examiner,  re-examination  may  be  requested. 
In  order  to  have  a  patent  invalidated,  or  to 
have  the  limits  of  a  patent  right  determined, 
trial  may  be  requested.  Against  a  decision 
on  re-examination,  a  decision  of  an  Inter- 
ference Examiner  or  a  judgment  on  trial, 
recourse  may  be  had  to  trial-on-appeal,  from 
which  appeal  may  be  made  to  the  Court  of 
Cassation,  but  only  on  questions  of  law  and 
with  regard  to  cases  appealed  from  trial,  or 
from  a  decision  of  an  Interference  Examiner. 

A  patent  is  liable  to  cancellation  for  non- 
working,  or  discontinuation  of  working,  of 
three  years,  unless  sufficient  reasons  be  given 
therefor. 

TRADE    MARKS 

Tr.\de  marks  must  consist  of  letters, 
devices,  or  signs,  or  their  combination,  and 
must  be  distinctive  and  conspicuous.  They 
may  also  be  registered  with  designation 
of  colours.  A  mark  similar  to  one's  own 
trade  mark,  and  to  be  used  with  the  same 
kind  of  articles,  may  be  registered  as  an 
associated  mark. 

A  mark  coming  under  one  of  the  following 
items  may  not  be  registered: 

(i)  One  containing  a  device  identical  with, 
or  similar  to,  the  Imperial  Chrysanthemum 
Crest. 

(2)  One  identical  with,  or  similar  to,  the 
national  flag,  the  army  or  navy  ensign,  a 
decoration,  a  medal  of  merit  or  a  badge,  or 
the  national  flag  of  a  foreign  country. 

(3)  One  liable  to  disturb  public  order  or 
morals,  or  to  deceive  the  public. 

(4)  One  identical  with,  or  similar  to,  a  mark 
commonly  used  on  the  same  kind  of  goods. 

(5)  One  identical  with,  or  similar  to,  a 
mark  known  to  the  public  to  belong  to 
another  person  and  to  be  used  on  the  same 
kind  of  goods. 

(6)  One  identical  with,  or  similar  to,  the 
device  of  the  Red  Cross  on  a  white  ground, 
or  the  name  of  or  characters  for  Red  Cross 
or  Geneva  Cross. 

(7)  One  containing  a  device  identical  with, 
or  similar  to,  a  prize  medal,  a  diploma  of 
honour,  or  a  certificate  of  merit,  of  an  expo- 
sition or  competitive  exhibition  held  by  or 
with  the  permission  of  the  Government,  or 
of  an  exposition  held  in  a  foreign  country 
by  the  Government  thereof,  or  an  inter- 
national exposition  held  in  a  foreign  country 
with  the  permission  of  the  Government 
thereof,  not  obtained  bj^  the  party  using 
it  in  his  trade  mark. 


(8)  One  containing  a  likeness,  the  per- 
sonal name,  or  the  fiim  name,  of  another 
person,  or  the  title  of  a  juridical  person  or 
partnership,  unless  with  jsermission. 

(9)  One  identical  with,  or  similar  to,  a 
trade  mark  of  another  person,  in  the  case  of 
which  one  year  has  not  elapsed  since  the 
loss  of  validity  of  the  registration  thereof, 
unless  it  has  remained  unused  for  more  than 
one  year  previous  to  the  loss  of  validity  of 
registration. 

However,  marks  used  with  good  faith 
from  before  July  I,  1899,  can  be  registered 
notwithstanding  the  Item  5  above. 

To  apply  for  registration  of  trade  marks, 
one  application  for  one  trade  mark  must 
be  filed  with  respect  to  one  class  of  articles, 
according  to  the  Patent  Office  classification. 
Documents  to  accompany  application  are 
five  copies  of  specimen  marks,  power  of 
attorney,  and  certificate  of  nationality,  the 
latter  two  documents  to  be  executed  as  in 
the  case  of  a  patent  application.  When  there 
are  two  more  similar  applications,  all  appli- 
cants being  entitled  to  obtain  registration, 
the  first  application  will  be  registered,  and 
if  they  are  made  at  the  same  time,  none  of 
them  will  be  registered,  unless  the  applicants 
make  arrangements  among  themselves.  As 
to  examination,  re-examination,  trial,  and 
trial-appeal,  they  are  the  same  as  in  the  case 
of  patents.  The  duration  of  registration  is 
twenty  years,  and  is  renewable. 

DESIGNS 

New  industrial  designs  with  reference  to 
form,  pattern,  colouring,  or  their  combina- 
tion, applicable  to  articles  of  artistic  worth, 
are  registered.  One  application  for  one 
device  must  be  filed  with  respect  to  one  class 
of  articles,  according  to  the  Patent  Office 
classification.  The  application  must  be 
accompanied  by  three  copies  of  the  draw- 
mg  and  power  of  attorney  and  certificate 
of  nationality.  The  treatment  of  a  design 
application  is  the  same  as  that  of  a  patent 
application,  except  that  in  the  case  of  a 
design  application  the  decision  on  re-exami- 
nation is  final,  there  being  no  appeal  there- 
from. 

The  duration  of  design  rights  is  ten  years. 

UTILITY    MODELS 

Utility  models  are  new  industrial  devices 
of  iiractical  use  pertaining  to  the  form,  con- 
struction, or  combination  of  articles.  The 
treatment  of  utility  model  applications  is 
the  same  as  with  patent  applications,  except 
that  with  utility  models  the  decision  on  re- 
examination is  final,   there  being  no  appeal. 

The  duration  of  a  utility  model  right  is 
three  years,  which  term  can  be  renewed 
twice,  first  for  three  years  and  then  for 
lour,  the  total  duration  being,  thus,  ten  years. 


DISTANT    VIEW    OF    YODOYABASHI    BRIDGE,    OSAKA,    SHOWING    OFFICES    OF    BANK    OF   JAPAN,    JAPAN   COTTON    TRADING    COMPANY, 
AND    MESSRS.    TAKATA    &    CO.    ON    THE    LEFT,    AND    NEW    TOWN    HALL    IN    THE    DISTANCE 

XXXVII.    Manufacturing  Industries 


Industry   in  Old  Japan  — Forms  of   Industry— Operatives— The  Cotton   Industry  — 

The  Woollen  Industry —  The  Brewing  Industry  — Machine-making  — Ceramics  — 

The  Lacquer  Industry— The  Silk  Industry— Other  Industries 


THE  progress  of  Japanese  manufac- 
turing industry  forms  one  of  the 
romances  of  modem  enterprise.  In 
1868,  when  the  Meiji  era  opened,  there 
was  but  one  factory  in  the  country,  and  the 
only  articles  of  domestic  industry  and  com- 
merce were  woven  goods,  earthenware, 
copper  ware,  and  lacquer.  Industry  was 
wholly  manual,  and  satisfied  if  it  met  the 
demands  of  the  local  community.  During 
the  fifty  years  since  then  the  progress  of 
Japanese  industry  has  been  nothing  short 
of  phenomenal.  Even  as  late  as  1872  all 
industry  was  still  domestic,  carried  on  by 
the  families  of  individual  households.  But 
by  1883  no  less  than  eighty-four  factories 
had  appeared,  with  machinery  aggregating 
1,382  horse-power  in  steam,  and  365  horse- 
power in  water.  Ten  years  later  the  number 
of  factories  had  grown  to  1,163,  the  steam 
horse-power  totalling  31,165  and  the  water 
horse-power  4.122.  By  1909  all  factories, 
including  those  in  homes,  numbered  33,000 
with  total  horse-power  in  steam,  gas,  water, 
and  electricity  amounting  to  419,657.  As 
far  back  as  1872  there  were  no  imports  of 
raw  materials;  in  1895  imports  of  such 
materials  were  valued  at  40,000,000  yen, 
and  in  1910  imports  of  raw  cotton  alone 
exceeded  158,000,000  yen  in  value.  Omit- 
ting  government   factories  and   insignificant 


domestic  undertakings,  the  number  of 
legitimate  factories  is  now  about  20,000, 
using  21,145  engines  or  motors,  representing 
a  horse-power  of  1,321,320,  having  a  paid- 
up  capital  of  over  1,000,000,000  yen,  and 
employing  about  a  million  operatives. 

INDUSTRY  IN  OLD  JAPAN 
Prior  to  the  opening  of  Japan  to  the 
world  there  was  no  system  of  technical 
education.  Industry,  so  far  as  it  existed,  was 
local,  not  national,  the  various  daimyo 
keeping  their  hereditary  mechanics  and 
craftsmen,  who  transmitted  their  knowledge 
to  the  next  generation  by  means  of  appren- 
tices. The  craftsman  or  artisan  made 
utensils,  swords,  and  arms,  or  wove  cloth, 
for  the  livelihood  afforded  by  his  master, 
and  he  and  his  were  usually  held  in  contempt 
by  their  military  superiors.  Nevertheless 
there  were  many  who  developed  remarkable 
skill  in  handicraft  and  showed  an  intuitive 
love  of  art  and  achievement  for  their  own 
sake,  making  for  themselves  names  that  are 
still  honoured  in  the  annals  of  art  and  indus- 
try. The  arrival  of  Portuguese  and  Spanish 
merchants  with  manufactures  from  Europe 
lent  some  measure  of  impetus  to  industry, 
and  with  the  downfall  of  feudalism  and  the 
establishment  of  schools  began  a  period  of 
technical   education  in   science,   engineering, 


chemistry,  mining,  and  metallurgy,  while 
many  students  were  sent  abroad  to  acquire 
the  rudiments  of  knowledge  of  manufactur- 
ing industry.  To  this  poUcy  the  Govern- 
ment has  devoted  its  untiring  attention,  with 
the  result  that  Japan  is  to-day  enabled  to 
sell  more  goods  than  she  buys.  In  fact, 
many  of  the  nation's  industries  which  but 
a  few  years  ago  were  in  a  nascent  stage  and 
are  now  prominent,  owe  their  rapid  develop- 
ment largelj'  to  Government  assistance  and 
encouragement.  Cotton  and  silk  spinning, 
shipbuilding,  cement-making,  glass-making, 
match-making,  gas  works,  brick-making, 
loom- weaving, —  none  of  these  now  profitable 
enterprises  could  have  attained  their  present 
development  so  quickly  had  it  not  been  for 
Government  help.  Many  of  the  national 
industries  were  started  by  the  Government 
itself.  After  reaching  a  paying  basis  they 
were  handed  over  to  private  enterprise,  the 
only  ones  still  under  Government  auspices 
being  the  Senju  Woolen  Mills,  the  Waka- 
matsu  Steel  Works,  and  the  Government 
Printing  Bureau,  as  well  as  the  Imperial 
Mint. 

The  new  industries  are  purely  utilitarian 
in  contrast  to  the  old,  which  were  so  largely 
Eesthetic.  So  long  as  Japan  was  proud  to 
be  distinctive  in  art  she  had  Uttle  difficulty 
in    holding    her    own    against    the    cruder 


36 


550 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


artistic  productions  of  the  West,  but  she 
can  hardly  expect  to  surpass  the  West  in 
the  realms  of  shipbuilding  and  shoemaking! 
In  the  course  of  her  rise  as  an  industrial 
nation  Japan  has  discovered,  however,  that 
the  profits  from  the  minor  arts  and  crafts, 
for  which  she  was  so  duly  celebrated,  were 
insixfficient  to  support  her  army  and  navy 
and  to  make  her  the  leading  power  of  the 
East.  Only  b}'  manufacturing  staple  com- 
modities on  a  large  scale  could  she  hope  to 
become  a  first-class  power.  Consequently, 
the  antiquated  industrial  system  of  the  nation 
has  been  almost  completely  transformed 
after  the  Occidental  manner.  The  result 
is  a  deterioration  of  the  old  arts  and  crafts 
and  a  remarkable  expansion  of  modem 
industry. 

FORMS  OF  INDUSTRY 
Bro.adly  speaking,  as  has  been  already 
suggested,  Japanese  industry  is  divided  into 
factory  operations  conducted  according  to 
the  Western  system,  and  the  domestic  in- 
dustries long  indigenous  to  the  country  and 
carried  on  in  the  homes  of  the  people.  The 
factories  of  Japan  simply  aim  at  supplying 
the  manufactures  formerly  imported  from 
abroad,  or  those  especially  demanded  by 
East  Asia.  One  reason  why,  in  certain  lines 
of  industry,  efficiency  is  so  difficult  to  achieve 
is  because  the  operatives  are  engaged  in 
making  that  of  which  they  do  not  know  the 
use,  and  in  which  they  take  no  personal 
interest.  It  stands  to  reason  that  the 
artisan  can  not  do  so  well  on  an  article  of 
which  he  does  not  know  the  use  as  he  can 
on  an  object  such  as  is  used  everywhere 
around  him.  Over  the  factories  and  their 
output  the  Government  has  to  exercise  care- 
ful supervision,  in  spite  of  which  the  results 
are  still  not  always  satisfactory  to  the 
consumer,  while  the  attitude  of  the  authori- 
ties towards  domestic  industry,  on  the  other 
hand,  is  merely  one  of  encouragement  and 
protection  by  accommodation  in  loans  and 
the  supplying  of  machinery.  Many  of  the 
larger  manufacturers,  in  order  to  hasten 
completion  of  contracts  from  abroad,  sublet 
in  part  to  domestic  concerns, which  accounts 
for  the  lack  of  uniformity  in  quaUty  often 
complained  of  by  foreign  consumers.  The 
silk  industry,  especially,  is  in  a  transition 
stage  from  manual  weaving  to  machine- 
made  goods,  but  most  of  the  spinning  in 
silk  and  cotton  is  now  done  on  modem 
machines.  As  to  chemical  industry,  the 
results  of  modem  science  are  being  skilfully 
applied  in  every  branch.  The  making  of 
machinery  has  not  yet  made  much  progress, 
though  parts  are  supplied  in  increasing 
quantity.  At  present  the  most  important 
of  Japan's   industries   are   silk   and    cotton 


spinning  and  weaving,  sugar,  matches, 
plaits,  porcelain,  matting,  to  say  nothing 
of  her  mining  and  agricultural  industries, 
which  are  duly  treated  elsewhere  in  this 
volume. 

OPERATIVES 

In  regard  to  the  character  and  efficiency  of 
its  operatives,  Japanese  industry  stands  out 
in  marked  contrast  to  the  great  industrial 
undertakings  of  Occidental  countries.  This 
is  especially  so  in  the  absence  of  any  great 
number  of  skilled  artisans  and  labourers,  as 
the  term  is  understood  abroad.  Another 
feature  in  which  the  Eastern  and  Western 
systems  appear  in  striking  contrast  is  in  the 
predominance  of  female  operatives  in  Japan. 
As  most  of  the  factories  in  this  country  date 
from  a  period  subsequent  to  the  war  with 
China  in  1895,  the  lack  of  skilled  labour  is  not 
to  be  wondered  at.  Even  in  the  Government 
arsenals,  steel  mills,  and  shipyards,  where  the 
labourers  are  at  their  best,  all  work  is  more  or 
less  characterised  by  inefficiency,  being  capable 
of  a  much  less  daUy  output,  man  for  man, 
than  is  the  case  with  the  Occidental  artisan. 
Female  operatives,  on  the  other  hand,  are 
usually  more  deft  in  factory  labour  than  the 
women  workers  in  Western  countries,  which 
contributes  materially  to  the  success  of  many 
leading  Japanese  industries,  like  cotton,  tea, 
and  silk.  In  silk-reeling,  w-omen  do  90  per 
cent  of  the  work;  in  weaving,  cigarette  mak- 
ing, network,  and  cord  making  they  do  80  per 
cent;  while  in  drawn  work,  mat  making,  and 
straw  plaiting  they  do  70  per  cent.  Over  60 
per  cent  of  the  cotton  mill  hands  are  women, 
a  similar  percentage  of  females  prevailing  in 
such  industries  as  paper  making,  meat  pack- 
ing and  canning,  and  fruit  canning.  In  short, 
Japanese  industry  is  as  yet  in  the  hands  of 
w'omen,  in  contrast  to  Western  industry, 
which  is  for  the  most  part  man's  work.  The 
Japanese  are  beginning  to  discover,_ however, 
that  women  are  more  adapted  to  domestic 
industry  than  to  the  factory  system,  and  as 
time  goes  on  skilled  male  citizens  will  come 
more  and  more  into  prominence. 

Of  some  forty  forms  of  industrial  activity 
now  prevailing  in  Japan  the  cotton  spinning 
business  easily  absorbs  the  largest  share  of 
capital,  followed  by  mining,  electricity,  and 
shipbuilding.  Agriculture  absorbs  a  greater 
aggregate  of  capital  than  trade,  manufactures, 
or  transportation. 

COTTON  INDUSTRY 

No  department  of  Japanese  industry  has 
made  more  phenomenal  progress  than  that 
of  cotton.  The  first  cotton  mill  in  Japan 
was  established  at  Kagoshima  in  1862,  but, 
although  the  main  imports  of  the  time  were  of 


this  fabric,  no  serious  attention  was  devoted 
to  domestic  production  until  mills  began  to 
rise  in  Osaka  between  1886  and  1889,  when 
some  215,000  spindles  were  registered.  By 
1900  this  number  had  jumped  to  one  million. 
At  the  end  of  1913  the  number  of  spindles  had 
grown  to  3,162,832,  with  181  mills  in  opera- 
tion and  many  more  in  course  of  construction. 
Such  progress,  of  coarse,  is  not  greatly  to  be 
wondered  at  in  the  foremost  of  Oriental 
countries,  where  cotton  is  the  main  article  of 
clothing,  and  the  particulars  of  Japan's  pro- 
gress in  the  cotton  industry  must  be  taken  in 
some  measure  as  representing  her  general 
industrial  advance  in  recent  years,  because  it 
was  largely  on  account  of  her  success  in  cotton 
manufactures  that  she  w'as  emboldened  to 
launch  out  in  so  many  other  lines.  Japan  is 
not  in  any  important  sense  a  cotton-growing 
country,  since  she  harvests  only  from  7,000  to 
10,000  bales  annually  in  the  south,  and  that  a 
short  fibre  like  Chinese  cotton,  and  used  only 
for  inferior  purposes.  In  Korea,  however, 
serious  efforts  are  being  made  to  cultivate 
superior  raw  cotton  from  American  seed,  but  it 
is  not  yet  produced  in  marketable  quantities. 
Japan  gets  about  60  per  cent  of  her  cotton 
from  India,  25  per  cent  from  the  United 
States,  eight  per  cent  from  China,  and  about 
two  per  cent  from  Egypt,  the  total  imports 
being  valued  at  some  270,000,000  yen. 
Owing  to  the  demand  for  coarser  counts  the 
raw  cottons  are  usually  mixed  in  Japanese 
mills,  especially  for  the  use  of  hand  looms. 
But  the  Japanese  are  turning  more  and  more 
to  finer  qualities,  and  by  combing  are  success- 
fulh'  producing  yams  up  to  6o's  counts  on 
ring  frames,  though  most  of  this  work  is  still 
confined  to  thick  numbers.  The  average  is 
probably  growing  finer,  for  it  appears  that  in 
1913,  for  example,  Japanese  mills  consumed 
690  bales  per  thousand  spindles.  In  1914, 
however,  the  ratio  fell  to  no  more  than  511 
bales  per  thousand  spindles,  which  is  still 
large  as  compared  with  Indian  spindles,  which 
consume  398  bales  per  thousand  spindles,  and 
British,  which  consume  only  77.  Japanese 
mills  still  suffer  from  inability  to  produce 
uniformity  of  quality,  yams  of  the  same  count 
often  differing  seriously  in  size  of  filament, 
though  such  defects  do  not  apply  to  all  the 
mills,  but  chiefly  to  those  without  skilled 
operators,  where  the  machinery  is  overworked 
and  hygienic  conditions  are  bad.  The 
average  monthly  output  is  about  170,000 
bundles  of  yam,  about  100,000  of  which 
are  consumed  at  home,  the  balance  going 
chiefly  to  China.  Exports  of  Japanese  cotton 
yam  to  China  began  in  1890,  when  31 
bundles  were  sent  as  samples.  In  ten  years 
China  was  taking  340,000  bales  a  year, 
and  now  she  takes  an  aggregate  amount- 
ing to  more  than   360,000  bundles  annually. 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


551 


MEN    PROMINENTLY    ASSOCIATED    WITH    THE    DEVELOPMENT    OF    THE    TEXTILE    INDUSTRY 

Messrs.  Y.  Kinbara,  Managing  Director,  Mousseline  Boshoku  K.  K.  —  Katsutaro  Inabata,  President  and  Director,  Mousseline 
Boshoku  K.  K.  —  S.  Kawasaki,  Director,  Mousseline  Boshoku  K.  K. — T.  Wada,  President,  Fujigasu  Spinning  Co.,  Ltd. — ^Dr. 
Kyozo  Kikuchi,  President,  Amagasaki  Spinning  Co.,  Ltd.  —  Denshichi  Ito,  President,  Toyo  Boseki  Kabushiki  Kaisha — ^Hisao  Matsuo, 
Managing  Director,  Jomo  Muslin  Co.,  Ltd.  —  M.  Kita,  President,  Japan  Cotton  Trading  Co.,  Ltd. — A.  Yamada,  Managing  Director, 
Japan  Cotton  Trading  Co.,  Ltd. 


Cotton  weaving  is  of  a  still  later  develop- 
ment than  spinning  in  Japanese  industry. 
Ten  years  ago  the  number  of  looms  was  9,225, 
with  an  annual  output  of  about  135,000,000 
yards.  In  1910  looms  numbered  17,072,  and 
in  1916  they  were  over  30,000  in  number, 
which,  of  course,  is  still  nothing  compared 
with  the  800,000  of  Lancashire.  For  the 
most  part,  it  is  only  possible  as  yet  for  Japan 
to  compete  in  markets  demanding  coarser 
goods,  and  therefore  her  rivals  in  this  line  are 
Oriental  rather  than  Occidental.  Even  the 
finer  goods  that  Japan  is  sending  to  India  are 
inferior  to  those  produced  in  Lancashire, 
which  they  vain  would  emulate.  In  the  final 
issue  successful  competition  depends  on  skill, 
and  in  this  respect  it  will  take  Japan  some 
time  to  overtake  the  more  advanced  weaving 
centres  of  the  West.  The  most  significant 
feature  of  the  situation  at  present  is  that 


Japan  is  now  able  to  meet  the  domestic 
demand  for  cotton  piece  goods,  which  may  be 
seen  from  the  fact  that  while  imports  of  such 
goods  totalled  in  value  25,000,000  yen  in  1906, 
they  fell  to  10,000,000  yen  in  19 1 3  and  to 
5,000,000  in  1916.  Most  of  Japan's  cotton 
imports  now  are  among  those  difficult  for  the 
country  to  manufacture,  such  as  satins, 
Italians,  umbrella  cloths,  cotton  velvets, 
Victoria  lawns,  and  so  on.  On  the  other 
hand,  Japan  exports  chiefly  coarse  qualities 
like  jeans,  T-cloths,  shirtings,  sheetings,  and 
cotton  flannels  of  low  grade,  and  as  flimsy  in 
quality  as  they  are  low  in  price,  the  demand 
being  for  the  most  part  in  India,  China,  the 
South  Sea  regions,  and  Australia.  The  value 
of  the  total  output  from  Japan's  cotton  looms 
is  now  about  250,000,000  yen  annually,  of 
which  about  125,000,000  yens'  worth  is  con- 
sumed at  home. 


WOOLLEN  INDUSTRY 

The  woollen  industry,  unlike  silk,  is  not 
indigenous  to  Japan,  and,  therefore,  the 
output  is  not  yet  of  a  quality  and  price  able 
to  pass  the  goods  in  all  markets.  Even  wool 
would  have  remained  more  or  less  of  an  exotic 
but  for  its  conversion  into  mousseline  de  laine, 
a  light  fabric  which  the  Japanese  have  made 
their  distinctive  specialty  and  incorporated 
into  their  national  dress.  The  manufacture 
of  this  wool  muslin,  first  for  the  home  trade 
and  more  recently  for  export,  forms  the  chief 
part  of  Japan's  wool-using  industry.  In 
recent  years  the  use  of  Western  clothing  has 
been  greatly  extended  in  Japan,  especially  in 
banks  and  business  offices,  and  for  a  few  years 
Japanese  mills  have  been  weaving  union 
worsted  coatings,  made  with  worsted  across 
a  cotton  warp.     However,  the  best  cloth  for 


552 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


foreign  suits  still  comes  from  British  mills. 
Before  the  war  Japan's  muslin  looms  were 
dependent  on  Germany,  England,  and 
Australia  for  their  tops,  but  when  supplies 
were  suddenly  cut  off  by  the  war  they  began 
installing  more  machine  combs,  and  are  now 
better  able  to  handle  raw  wool.  Wool-raising 
is  impossible  in  Japan  to  any  great  extent 
owing  to  lack  of  pasture,  the  coarse  bamboo 
grass  of  the  country  being  fatal  to  sheep,  and 
consequently  the  country  must  always  look 
abroad  for  its  raw  material.  The  war  also 
lent  impetus  to  worsted  spinning,  the  Japa 
nese  mills  having  hitherto  been  accustomed  to 
weave  more  than  they  spun  of  worsted  yam. 
Japan's  first  woollen  factory  started  in  1877, 
as  a  Government  experiment,  and  another 
one,  the  Tokj'o  Woolen  Company,  began  in 
1895  with  a  paid-up  capital  of  1,250,000  yen. 
The  Nippon  Woolen  Company  was  organised 
in  1896,  with  a  paid-up  capital  of  2,625,000 
yen,  and  other  companies  started  later.  The 
Government  mill  makes  army  cloth,  and  the 
others  for  the  most  part  muslins,  blankets, 


and  serges.  Owing  to  technical  difficulties 
of  blending  and  mixing,  as  well  as  scarcity  of 
noils  and  wastes,  other  kinds  of  cloth  are  still 
in  an  undeveloped  stage,  while  the  figured 
cloths  produced  are  yet  also  of  an  inferior 
quality.  The  number  of  spindles  working 
on  carded  wool  in  Japan  is  about  50,000,  and 
the  two  arms  of  the  industry  have  a  capital  of 
some  20,000,000  yen.  Most  of  the  imports 
from  England  are  of  the  type  generally  known 
as  army  cloths,  consisting  chiefly  of  black  or 
blue  overcoatings,  about  seven  and  one-half 
million  yards  being  imported  annually  be- 
fore the  war,  worth  about  2  shillings  a  yard, 
but  recently  the  volume  has  fallen  to  one- 
third  that  yardage.  English  worsted  coatings 
and  light  worsted  stuffs  to  the  amount  of 
3,500,000  yards  a  year,  averaging  2  shillings 
to  3  shillings  a  yard,  come  to  Japan.  A  good 
deal  of  this  trade  was  through  German  agents, 
but  the  war  did  away  with  that,  and  if  British 
firms  would  take  up  the  matter  in  earnest  no 
doubt  extensive  business  could  be  done,  as, 
for  years  to  come,  Japan  will  continue   to 


depend  on  Western  countries  for  her  best 
cloths.  The  total  output  of  Japan's  woollen 
mills  is  valued  at  about  40,500,000  yen  a  year. 
The  annual  value  of  Japan's  textile  industries 
reaches  over  381 ,000,000  yen. 

THE    ORIENTAL    MUSLIN     COMPANY, 
LIMITED 

This  important  manufacturing  enterprise, 
known  under  its  Japanese  title  as  the  Toyo 
Muslin  Kabushiki  Kaisha,  is  among  the 
leading  industrial  concerns  of  Japan,  and 
during  the  past  year  or  two  has  made  re- 
markable progress.  So  pronounced  has  been 
its  success  that  it  has  doubled  its  capital  in 
ten  years,  and  its  output  has  been  enormously 
increased.  Nevertheless,  so  great  has  been 
the  demand  for  cotton  goods  and  muslins 
for  export,  that  it  has  been  found  quite 
impossible  for  the  company  to  meet  it.  This 
condition  has  faced  all  the  leading  cotton 
mills  of  Japan,  and  a  veritable  boom  has 
been  created. 


JAPANESE    HOUSES    ALONG    A    RIVER    IN    TOKYO 


TOYO    MUSLIN    KAHUSHIKI    KAISHA    (THE    ORIENTAL    MUSLIN    CO.,    LTD.):       GENERAL    VIEWS    OF    FIRST    AND    SECOND    F.\CTORIES  —  SPINNING 

SHED TWO    VIEWS    OF    THE    WEAVING    SHED — PACKING    ROOM 


554 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


The  Toyo  Muslin  Kabushiki  Kaisha  was 
organised  in  January,  1907,  with  a  capital 
of  Yen  2,000,000,  to  weave  muslin.  An 
excellent  factory-  site  was  secured  at  Kameido, 
in  the  suburbs  of  Tokyo,  and  a  modern 
plant  was  installed.  Almost  at  once  the 
products  of  the  company  sprang  into  favour 
among  the  manufacturers  and  wholesalers 
of  piece  goods.  The  quality  of  the  product 
was  very  high,  and  thanks  to  the  develop- 
ment of  trade  generally  a  strong  demand 
existed  for  all  that  could  be  turned  out. 
Subsequently  a  second  factory  had  to  be 
established,  and  the  capital  of  the  company 
was  increased  to  Yen  4,000,000.  In  view 
of  the  changed  conditions  of  the  local  and 
foreign  markets,  the  company  is  now  con- 
templating the  installation  of  another  plant 
to  weave  satins,  fifty-four  inches  wide. 
That  such  a  new  branch  can  be  added  to  its 
already  widely  ramified  business,  indicates 
what  progress  the  Toyo  Muslin  Kabushiki 
Kaisha  has  made.  It  is  producing  cottons 
and  muslins  of  an  excellent  quality,  and 
the  directors  are  keenly  alert  to  the  urgency 
of  still  widening  the  scope  of  the  operations 
and  increasing  the  output.  They  have 
already  completed  the  annex  to  the  factories, 
and  the  new  plant  will  have  been  installed 
before  this  volume  goes  to  press.  With 
this  additional  weaving  and  spinning  ma- 
chinery it  is  the  hope  of  the  company  that 
they  will  be  able  to  give  full  satisfaction  to 
their   domestic   and   foreign    customers. 

The  factories  of  the  company  have  a  total 
floor  space  of  7,871  Isubo,  and  the  offices  and 
warehouses  cover  in  addition  26,304  tsiibo, 
the  entire  plant  being  one  of  the  largest 
in  the  country.  The  factories  are  single- 
story  brick  buildings  of  modem  and  sound 
design.  The  offices  and  dormitories  for  the 
workpeople  are  of  wood,  and  are  two  stories 
high.  Employment  is  found  in  the  factories 
for  180  boys  and  men,  and  1,500  girls,  and 
the  annual  wages  bill  is  Yen  337,550.  The 
annual  output  is  6,734,900  yards  of  muslin 
and  3,439,800  yards  of  cotton  goods,  this 
great  production  being  absorbed  by  the 
wholesale  dealers  in  Tokyo,  Osaka,  and 
other  centres,  and  by  foreign  buyers  in 
China,  India,  the  South  Sea  Islands,  and 
elsewhere.  The  export  business  of  the 
company  is  increasing  rapidly. 

The  officers  of  the  Toyo  Muslin  Kabushiki 
Kaisha  are:  President,  Mr.  Tahei  Mayekawa; 
Managing  Director,  Mr.  Kyoichi  Kanbe; 
Manager,  Mr.  K.  Tanaka;  Directors, 
Messrs.  Y.  Owaki,  C.  Kikuchi,  F.  Watanabe, 
T.  Yamahoshi,  and  I.  Wakao;  Inspectors, 
Messrs.  T.  Yoshida,  G.  Yasuda,  and  K. 
Watanabe.  A  very  high  compliment  was 
paid  the  company  in  April,  1917,  when  the 
Premier  of  Japan,  Count  General  Terauchi, 


visited  the  works,  and  was  shown  over  them 
by  the  President  and  other  officers.  Count 
Terauchi,  who  is  very  desirous  of  encourag- 
ing Japanese  industry,  set  a  precedent  by 
this  visit,  as  no  Premier  had  ever  before 
made  such  a  visit  of  inspection,  and  the 
great  honour  paid  to  the  model  works  of 
the  company  was  highly  appreciated.  The 
occasion  of  this  distinguished  visit  is  the 
subject  of  one  of  the  illustrations  pub- 
lished on  another  page  of  this  work.  (See 
page   540.) 

THE    TOYO    BOSEKI   KABUSHIKI    KAISH.\ 
(the    oriental    SPINNING    COM- 
PANY, limited) 

SiNXE  the  outbreak  of  the  war  the  textile 
industries  of  Japan  have  been  developed 
to  a  remarkable  extent,  but  it  must  not  be 
thought  that  the  weaving  and  spinning  of 
fabrics  in  Japan  is  only  of  recent  growth. 
In  the  case  of  the  Toyo  Boseki  Kabushiki 
Kaisha,  or  the  Oriental  Spinning  Co.,  Ltd., 
we  have  an  organisation  that  dates  back, 
in  its  origin,  over  forty  years,  for  the  present 
concern  is  only  an  enlargement  by  amal- 
gamation of  two  of  the  first  spinning  com- 
panies to  be  established  in  Japan.  These 
were  the  Miye  Spinning  Co.,  Ltd.,  and  the 
Osaka  Spinning  Co.,  Ltd.  The  latter  was 
founded  at  Osaka  in  1879  with  a  capital  of 
Yen  280,000,  and  at  the  time  of  the  amalga- 
mation was  a  flourishing  enterprise  with  a 
capital  of  Yen  5,000,000.  The  Miye  Spinning 
Co.,  Ltd.,  was  started  in  July,  1886,  with  a 
factory  at  Yokkaichi.  Its  initial  capital 
was  only  Yen  220,000,  but  when  it  became 
absorbed  in  the  Oriental  Spinning  Co.,  Ltd., 
it  had  a  capital  of  Yen  10,250,000,  and 
operated  269,100  spindles  and  5,330  looms. 
So  it  may  be  seen  that  the  industrial  strength 
taken  over  by  the  Oriental  Spinning  Co., 
Ltd.,  when  the  amalgamation  took  place 
in  19 1 4,  antedated  the  war,  and  represented 
a  vast  amount  of  pioneering  work,  and  a 
flourishing  enterprise,  which  only  needed 
the  extra  stimulus  of  the  war  to  make  it 
one  of  the  greatest  in  the  world.  As  a 
matter  of  fact,  the  Oriental  Spinning  Co., 
Ltd.,  is  to-day  one  of  the  two  largest  spinning 
concerns  La  Japan,  the  other  being  the  Kane- 
gafuchi  Spinning  Co.,  Ltd. 

The  capital  of  the  amalgamated  concern 
was  originally  Yen  14,250,000,  but  since  that 
time  the  business  has  developed  to  such  an 
extent,  and  the  producing  capacity  of  the 
various  mills  has  been  so  increased,  that  the 
capital  has  been  augmented  to  the  present 
figure  of  Yen  25,000,000,  which  was  fixed 
in  September,  1916.  The  Oriental  Spinning 
Co.,  Ltd.,  has  an  annual  production  of 
220,000,000  yards  of  textile  fabrics  of  all 
kinds,   and   its  capacity  is  said   to  be   the 


third  greatest  in  the  world.  It  operates 
486,376  spindles  and  11,353  looms  in  sixteen 
different  mills,  situated  in  Tokyo,  Kyoto, 
Osaka,  Miye,  Aichi,  Eechime  and  Saitama 
Prefectures.  It  may  be  added  that  the 
spindles  operated  by  the  company  represent 
16  per  cent  of  the  total  number  in  Japan, 
and  the  looms  37  per  cent.  The  amount  of 
cotton  yarn  spun  annually  is  356,000  bales, 
and  the  textiles  woven  constitute  the  220,- 
000,000  yards  mentioned  above.  Cotton 
yam  and  textiles  for  domestic  consumption 
are  valued  at  Yen  48,300,000  per  annum, 
and  for  export  the  production  is  valued  at 
Yen  16,800,000  per  annum.  The  principal 
articles  of  production  are  cotton  yam  (Nos. 
8  to  43),  twisted  yam  (Nos.  20  to  43),  rough 
sheetings,  drills,  thick  sheetings,  T-cIoth, 
calico,  white  shirtings,  etc.  In  the  different 
mills  5,500  men  and  25,000  women  are 
employed  day  by  day,  the  annual  pay  bill 
being  approximately  Yen  3,620,000.  That 
such  a  gigantic  enterprise  is  a  big  financial 
success  goes  without  saying.  The  last 
dividend  declared  was  35  per  cent,  and  even 
then  Yen  2,760,000  was  carried  forward  to 
the  next  period.  The  reserves  total  Yen 
11,100,000. 

The  directorate  of  the  Oriental  Spinning 
Co.,  Ltd.,  comprises:  Messrs.  D.  Ito  (Presi- 
dent), Dr.  T.  Saito  (Professor  of  Technology), 
F.  Abe,  Dr.  S.  Hattori  (Professor  of  Tech- 
nology), T.  Oka,  A.  Matono,  and  O.  Shoji. 
The  Auditors  are  Messrs.  M.  Kuki,  S.  Kawa- 
kita,  K.  Kamino,  T.  Kumagai,  K.  Seo,  and 
H.  Abe. 

THE  FUJIGASU  SPINNING  CO.,  LIMITED 
The  services  rendered  to  the  spinning 
industry  in  Japan  by  Mr.  Toyoji  Wada, 
President  of  the  Fujigasu  Spinning  Co., 
Ltd.,  are  very  well  known,  and  it  may  not 
be  out  of  place  to  record  them  as  an  intro- 
duction to  a  description  of  the  operations 
of  the  company. 

The  Fujigasu  business  was  established  in 
1896,  the  company  starting  with  a  capital 
of  Yen  2,000,000.  With  such  a  capital  and 
a  strong  plant,  the  outlook  seemed  favour- 
able enough  for  the  company,  although  the 
industry  was  then  in  its  infancy,  and  it  was 
realised  that  many  initial  difficulties  had  to 
be  surmounted.  The  plant  comprised  28,- 
256  spindles  for  cotton  yam,  5,104  spindles 
for  cotton  twists,  and  5,940  spindles  for  silk 
spinning,  with  water  motors  developing 
1,196  horse-power.  But  from  the  start  the 
company  appeared  to  be  in  difficulties. 
Apart  from  mishaps  in  the  mills,  and  other 
difficulties,  the  economic  situation  following 
on  the  China- Japan  War  was  very  serious, 
and  before  the  effects  of  this  condition  had 
disappeared,  the  Boxer  Rebellion  in  China 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


557 


arose,  and  furlht-r  complicated  affairs. 
Monetary  circulation  almost  ceased,  loss 
after  loss  was  incurred  in  the  trading  opera- 
tions, and  the  company's  products  lay 
unsold  in  vast  quantities.  So  bad  was  the 
condition  of  the  Fujigasu  that  the  Yen  50 
shares  fell  to  Yen  15  or  less.  The  directors 
were  faced  with  the  serious  question  of 
calling  in  somebody  to  reorganise  the  entire 
business,  or  letting  the  grass  grow  in  the  mill 
yards,  and  the  machinery  rust  out.  It  was 
at  this  juncture  that  the  services  of  Mr. 
Wada  were  sought.  Mr.  Wada  was  at  that 
time  abroad  in  the  interests  of  the  Mitsui 
family,  investigating  spinning  and  weaving 
in  Europe.  His  position  was  a  very  lucra- 
ti\'e  one,  but  when  he  was  urged  to  take 
the  Presidency  of  the  Fujigasu  Company, 
and  to  endeavour  to  save  an  important 
section  of  the  Japanese  textile  industry  from 
ruin,  he  agreed.     That  was  in  January,  1901. 

Since  tnen  Mr.  Wada  has  devoted  all  his 
energies  to  the  service  of  the  Fujigasu  Com- 
pany, and  incidentally  to  the  betterment 
of  conditions  throughout  the  spinning  and 
weaving  industries  of  Japan,  and  his  efforts 
have  proved  extraordinarily  successful.  IVIr. 
Wada  made  some  drastic  changes  in  the 
organisation  of  the  company,  and  in  its 
methods  of  doing  business,  and  the  result 
was  quickly  visible  in  the  improved  financial 
condition  of  the  company.  At  the  settle- 
ment of  accounts  for  the  second  half  of  1902, 
the  company's  losses  were  entirely  made  good, 
and  the  shareholders  received  their  first 
dividend  since  the  formation  of  the  company 
eight  years  before  From  that  time  onward 
the  affairs  of  the  Fujigasu  have  been  always 
prosperous,  and  dividends  maintained  at 
an  average  of  13K0  per  cent  per  annum. 
From  1902  down  to  the  time  of  writing  the 
company  has  developed  in  all  directions. 
Its  capital  to-day  is  Yen  18,000,000,  of 
which  Yen  13,000,000  is  paid  up.  This 
means  that  the  paid-up  capital  has  been 
increased  six  and  one-half  times  since  Mr. 
Wada  took  charge.  Loans  of  Yen  3,240,000 
have  been  paid  off  out  of  revenue,  the  re- 
serves have  been  built  up  to  Yen  7,156,235, 
and  the  sales  of  products  have  risen  to  twenty- 
one  times  what  they  were  in  1901.  Mean- 
while the  shareholders  have  received  hand- 
some dividends,  that  for  19 16  being  at  the 
rate  of  16  per  cent.  Such  a  change  in  the 
company's  affairs  is  recognised  to  be  almost 
entirely  due  to  Mr.  Wada,  and  it  is  gratify- 
ing to  learn  that  in  19 16,  the  shareholders, 
represented  by  Baron  Morimura  and  Mr. 
H.  Hibiya,  presented  Mr.  Wada  with  their 
thanks  and  a  cheque  for  Yen   100,000. 

It  must  not  be  forgotten  either  that  Mr. 
Wada,  in  promoting  the  interests  of  the 
Fujigasu  Company  has  done  a  great  service 


TENGU        MASKED,    IN    PROCESSION    OF 
SHINTO    TEMPLE    FESTIVAL 

to  the  entire  spinning  and  w'eaving  industry. 
He  introduced  new  methods,  improved  the 
quality  and  quantity  of  the  outputs,  and 
took  as  active  a  part  as  any  man,  in  making 
the  industries  stable  and  of  first  rate  national 
importance.  To-day  the  Fujigasu  Spinning 
Co.,  Ltd.,  operates  ten  mills.  There  are 
five  at  Oyama  and  two  at  Kawasaki,  in 
addition  to  one  each  at  Onagigawa,  Oshiage, 
and  Hodogaya.  The  number  of  spindles 
has  increased  far  beyond  any  conception 
of  the  magnitude  of  the  business  that  the 
original  founders  might  have  had.  There 
are  292,168  cotton  yam  spinning  spindles, 
71,028  twist  spindles,  62,040  silk  spinning 
spindles,  and  1,774  silk  and  cotton  weaving 
looms.  At  the  half-yearly  meeting  in  June, 
1917,  the  financial  report  disclosed  a  most 
favourable  state  of  affairs,  and  Mr.  Wada 
was  able  to  speak  in  optimistic  terms  to 
the  shareholders  regarding  the  future  of  the 
company.  It  was  then  shown  that  the  net 
profit  for  the  half-year  was  Yen  3,382,874, 


which,  with  Yen  2,143,938,  brought  forward 
from  the  previous  term,  was  available  for 
distribution.  A  substantial  increase  in  the 
reserves  was  made,  bonuses  were  paid,  and 
then  a  dividend  of  28  per  cent  per  annum 
was  declared.  A  big  change  from  the 
situation  of  seventeen  years  before! 

SETTSU    SPINNING    AND    WEAVING    CO., 

LTD.     (SETTSU     AND   AMAGASAKI 

COTTON    SPINNING    CO.) 

The  history  of  these  two  companies  which 
are  now  amalgamated  into  one  of  the  largest 
concerns  of  its  kind  in  the  world,  practically 
embraces  the  whole  period  since  cotton 
spinning  began  in  Japan.  The  origin  of 
the  business  now  controlled  by  the  Settsu 
Spinning  Co.,  Ltd.,  known  by  its  Japanese 
title  as  the  Settsu  Boseki  Kabushiki  Kaisha, 
dates  back  to  the  time  when  the  Hirano 
Cotton  Spinning  Company  was  formed  in 
the  year  1888,  with  a  capital  of  Yen  250,000. 
In  the  following  year  the  first  mill  of  the 
company  commenced  operations  in  the  town 
of  Hirano,  near  Osaka,  with  5,000  spindles 
of  ring  frames.  In  190 1  the  sphere  of  the 
company's  business  was  greatly  enlarged  by 
the  extension  of  the  plant  and  by  the  pur- 
chase of  a  mill  which  had  been  erected  in 
Osaka.  These  additions  gave  the  com- 
pany about  40,000  spindles  of  ring 
frames. 

One  year  after  the  establishment  of  the 
Hirano  Spinning  Company,  the  Settsu  Cot- 
ton Spinning  Company  was  formed,  steady 
progress  being  made  year  by  year.  The 
Settsu  Company  amalgamated  with  the 
Takata  Cotton  Spinning  Company,  and  then 
followed  an  amalgamation  of  the  Hirano 
and  the  Settsu  companies,  under  the  title 
of  the  Settsu  Cotton  Spinning  Company. 
Following  this  amalgamation  the  new  com- 
pany erected  two  additional  mills,  and  so 
marked  was  the  progress  that  by  1909  the 
paid-up  capital  reached  Yen  1,735,000,  the 
concern  operating  no  fewer  than  156,000 
spindles.  When  the  great  development  took 
place  in  Japan's  textile  and  other  industries, 
the  Settsu  Company  considerably  enlarged 
its  plant  and  took  up  several  new  lines  of 
business,  such  as  weaving,  in  addition  to 
cotton  spinning.  In  1916  the  paid-up  capi- 
tal of  the  company  was  Yen  2,100,000, 
and  there  were  215,000  spindles  for  spinning 
and  doubling  as  w^ell  as  560  sets  of  looms. 

On  the  other  hand,  the  Amagasaki  Cotton 
Spinning  Company  was  established  in  1889, 
the  mill  being  situated  in  the  town  of  Ama- 
gasaki, near  Osaka.  At  that  time  the  com- 
pany had  a  capital  of  Yen  500,000  and 
operated  10,000  spindles  of  ring  frames,  but 
by  1894  the  number  of  spindles  had  been 
increased  to  31,000.     In  the  course  of  the 


TAKATA    AND    SETTSU    MILLS   OF    THE    AMALGAMATED    COMPANIES.    SETTSU    SPINNING    AND    WEAVING    CO.,    LTD.,    AND    SETTSU    AND 

AMAGASAKI   COTTON    SPINNING   CO. 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


559 


TEMPORARY  STAGE  ERECTED  IN  THE  STREET  ON  FESTIVAL  DAY 


years  1908  to  igi6,  amalgamations  were 
effected  witli  the  Toyo  Spinning  and  Weav- 
ing Co.,  Tokyo  Spinning  and  Weaving  Co., 
and  the  Nippon  Cotton  Spinning  Company. 
While  the  amalgamations  were  proceeding 
two  new  mills  were  added.  In  1916  the 
capital  of  the  company  was  Yen  10,000,000, 
and  the  total  number  of  spindles  was  343,500 
for  spinning  and  130,500  for  doubling,  as  well 
as  2,775  sets  of  looms. 


In  the  Summer  of  1917  the  amalgamation 
of  the  Settsu  and  the  Amagasaki  Cotton 
Spinning  Companies  was  consented  to  at 
general  meetings  of  the  shareholders  in  both 
companies.  The  capital  of  the  combined 
concern  was  fixed  at  Yen  30,500,000,  and 
it  was  agreed  to  run  the  two  businesses 
separately  till  May,  1918,  when  the  whole 
business  will  be  merged  under  the  title  of 
the  Settsu  Spinning  and  Weaving  Co.,  Ltd. 


A    FUNERAL    PROCESSION    READY    TO    SET   OUT 


The  President  of  the  combined  company 
is  Dr.  Kyozo  Kikuchi,  M.  E.,  M.  I.,  Mech. 
E.  (London).  Dr.  Kikuchi  is  a  prominent 
figure  and  one  of  the  pioneers  of  the  textile 
industry  in  Japan.  He  was  graduated  from 
the  Imperial  College  of  Engineering  in 
Japan,  in  1884,  and  studied  cotton  spinning 
and  weaving  at  the  Manchester  Technical 
School  until  1888.  On  his  return  to  Japan 
he  started  the  Hirano  Cotton  Spinning 
Company,  in  1889.  After  the  establishment 
of  the  Hirano,  Settsu,  Amagasaki,  and 
Nippon  Cotton  Spinning  Companies,  Dr. 
Kikuchi  devoted  himself  entirely  to  the 
services  of  these  concerns,  which  he  has 
served  as  superintending  engineer,  managing 
director,  and  president  for  thirty  years. 
He  was  President  of  both  the  Settsu  and 
the  Amagasaki  Companies  prior  to  the 
amalgamation,  and  when  the  combination 
comes  into  force  in  191 8  he  will  be  President 
of  the  new  organisation. 

The  present  members  of  the  Board  of 
Directors  in  these  companies  are  as  follows: 
Messrs.  J.  Tashiro,  T.  Matsumura,  S. 
Matsumoto,  S.  Tsukaguchi,  and  M.  Fuku- 
moto.  The  variety  of  cotton  manufactured 
by  the  companies  which  are  to  form  the 
Settsu  Spinning  and  Weaving  Co.,  Ltd., 
ranges  from  8's  to  120's;  the  cotton  cloth 
is  thin-grade  shirting  and  calico,  36-50  inches 
in  reed  space.  Among  the  different  varieties 
of  the  yams  turned  out  the  principal  ones 
are  i6's,  20's,  42's,  6o's,  8o's,  and  loo's, 
the  latter  four  kinds  being  usually  doubled, 
gassed,  and  mercerised. 

The  following  table  shows  the  number 
and  capacities,  etc.,  of  the  different  mills. 
They  are  for  the  most  part  two-storied 
modem  buildings,  in  which  the  motive 
power  is  steam  or  electricity.  The  amount 
paid  annually  for  salaries  by  the  combina- 
tion is  Yen  427,700,  and  the  wages  total 
Yen  4,680,000.  The  latest  returns  show  the 
annual  output  to  be  about  327,600  bales  of 
yam  (about  410  pounds  to  the  bale),  of 
which  quantity  about  50  per  cent  is  consumed 
in  the  home  markets,  the  balance  being 
exported.  Cloth  piece  goods  are  produced 
to  the  extent  of  1,153,100  pieces  (average, 
60  yards  per  piece),  this  production  being 
utilised  in  equal  proportions  for  local  do- 
mestic requirements  and  exports.  The  total 
value  of  the  outputs  of  the  miUs  is  Yen 
56,565,200  per  annum.  The  exports  go 
chiefly  to  India,  China,  and  other  countries 
in  the  Far  East.  Principal  imports  of  raw 
materials  comprise  American,  Chinese,  Indian, 
and  Egyptian  cotton. 

The  head  office  of  the  Settsu  Spinning 
and  Weaving  Co.,  Ltd.,  is  at  Bingo-machi, 
3-chome,    Higashiku,    Osaka. 


bird's-eye    view    of    HIOGO    MILL    OF    KANEGAFUCHI    BOSEKI    KAISHA    (KANEGAFUCHI    SPINNING   CO.,    LTD.) — THE    COMPANY'S 

PRIVATE    HOSPITAL    AT   HIOGO    MILL 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


561 


Mill 

No.  of 
Spindles 

No.  OF 
Looms 

Dimensions 
of  Mill 

(Tsubo*) 

Dimensions  of 

Warehouses 

and  Other 

Buildings 

(Tsubo*) 

Area  of 
Ground 

(Tsubo*) 

Situation 

No.  of 
Labourers 

30,720 
46,000 

79,78« 
27,648 
54,262 
1 1,520 
67,112 
22,232 

.^4.404 
40,196 
26,880 
36,704 
75,704 

1,866 
560 

909 

4,656 
7,133 
4,555 
3,162 
3,092 
989 
10,387 
2,436 
5,994 
3,630 
3,846 
3.51 1 
8,733 

8,652 
8,113 
5,444 
7,148 
11,837 
3,458 
8,418 

5,311 

12,473 

2,775 

8,811 

3,957 
5,359 

28,934 
59,305 
24,706 
18,907 
27,680 

6,428 
51,665 

7,413 
43,375 
15,639 
40,946 

7,674 
57,464 

Hyogo 
Prefecture 

Hyogo 
Prefecture 

Osaka 
Prefecture 

Osaka 
Prefecture 

Osaka 
Prefecture 

Osaka 
Prefecture 

Osaka 
Prefecture 

Nara 
Prefecture 

Nara 
Prefecture 

Aichi 
Prefecture 

Gifu 
Prefecture 

Tokyo 
Prefecture 

Tokyo 
Prefecture 

1,677 
2,548 
2,956 
1,294 
2,755 
615 
4,094 
1,045 
1,898 
1,514 
i,559t 
1,839 
3,370 

Amagasaki 

Hirimo 

Kizugawa    

Noda 

Koriyania      .  . 

Takata .... 

Ichinomiya 

Ogaki 

Fukagawa 

Hashiba  . 

Total 

553.170 

3,335 

62,124 

91,756 

390,136 

27,164 

*  One  tsubo  equals  36  square  feet,     t  Spinners  work  through  day  and  night,  looms  run  12  hours  per  day. 


KANEGAFUCHI  SPINNING  CO.,  LIMITED 
The  magnitude  of  the  spinning  and  weav- 
ing industry  of  Japan,  and  its  rapid  develop- 
ment, constitute  one  of  the  marvels  of  Japan's 
industrial  growth.  There  are  several  large 
companies,  equal  in  production  capacity  to 
any  concerns  in  the  world,  and  the  amount 
of  capital  invested  in  the  industry  can  only 
be  figured  by  scores  of  millions  of  yen.  An 
example  of  the  vigour  and  strength  of  this 
trade  is  found  in  the  famous  Kanegafuchi 
Spinning  Co.,  Ltd.,  one  of  the  greatest  in 
the  world.  Its  capital  is  Yen  17,427,650. 
The  annual  output  runs  close  to  Yen  100,- 
000,000.  The  company's  reserves  are  Yen 
I ',585,367;  annual  profits  are  approximately 
Yen  15,000,000,  and  it  operates  twenty-two 
mills,  etc.  Ring  spinning  spindles  for  cot- 
ton yarn  number  533,084,  spindles  for  spun 
silk  yarn,  62,632,  and  there  are  7,814  power 
looms.  These  figures  are  eloquent  enough 
evidence  of  the  strength  of  the  company,  but 
to  appreciate  the  position  occupied  to-day 
by  the  Kanegafuchi  Co.,  Ltd.,  it  is  necessary 
to  understand  that  this  development  is  the 
result  of  barely  thirty  years'  work,  that  the 
company  started  with  a  nominal  capital  of 
only  Yen  1,000,000,  and  for  some  time 
worked  only  one  mill. 


It  was  in  1887  that  a  spinning  company  was 
established  at  Sumida-mura,  in  the  suburbs 
of  Tokyo,  the  place  being  traditionally  known 
as  "Kanegafuchi."  The  mill,  now  known  as 
"Tokyo,  No.  i,"  was  equipped  with  29,000 
ring  spindles.  This  was  the  cradle  of  the 
Kanegafuchi's  great  enterprise,  for  from  this 
small  beginning  the  company,  from  time  to 
time,  either  through  amalgamation,  by 
purchase,  or  by  extension,  expanded  into  the 
largest  concern  in  the  spinning  and  weaving 
industry.  In  1893  the  construction  and 
equipment  of  No.  2  Mill  was  completed  in  the 
same   compound   at   Tok-yo,   and   two  years 


later  there  followed  the  Hiogo  No.  i  Mill  at 
Kobe.  During  the  succeeding  22  years  the 
company  obtained  control  of  nine  spinning 
and  weaving  companies  in  the  Kansai, 
Kiushu,  and  Chiugoku  districts,  either 
through  amalgamation  or  purchase,  while,  on 
the  other  hand,  it  extended  on  its  own  initia- 
tive and  established  14  more  spinning  and 
weaving  mills,  both  for  cotton  and  spun  silk. 
The  company  has  spared  no  effort  in  pioneer- 
ing the  industry  in  new  fields,  and  to  this  end 
the  Yodogawa  Mill  for  bleaching,  dyeing,  and 
finishing  has  been  started  on  the  right  bank 
of  the  Yodo  River.     Since  its  establishment 


Year 

Cotton  Spinning 
Spindles 

Spun  Silk  Spinning 
Spindles 

Power  Looms 

1906 

218,080 

100 

1907 

251,792 

13,560 

100 

1908 

294,900 

19,920 

700 

1909 

301,860 

19,920 

1,934 

1910 

374,744 

51,832 

3,903 

191 1 

378,316 

56,032 

4,153 

1912 

414,076 

56,032 

4,884 

1913 

417,852 

56,032 

5,096 

1914 

446,308 

56,032 

6,766 

1915 

449,580 

57.832 

6,980 

1916 

533.084 

62,632 

7.814 

562 


PRESENT-DAY    IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


Name 

Nature  ok 

Work 

Location  of  Mill 

Tokyo  Head  Mill 

Cotton  spinning 

and 

Suniida-mura,  Minami-Katsushika-Gun, 

weaving 

Tokyo-Fu. 

Hiogo  Branch  Mill .... 

Cotton    spinning 

and 

Higashi-shiriike,  Hiogo,  Kob6  City. 

weaving 

Judo  Branch  Mill 

Spinning  only 

Judo-mura,  Kita-kawachi-gun,  Osaka-Fu. 

Nakajima  Branch  Mill. 

Spinning  only 

Nishi-Nakajima-mura,       Nishinari-gun, 
Osaka-Fu. 

Sumoto  Branch  Mill .  . . 

Sjiinning  and 

weaving 

Sumoto-cho,  Tsuna-gun,  Hiogo-ken. 

Tak  asago  Branch  Mill . 

Spinning  only 

Takasago-cho,  Kako-gun,  Hiogo-ken. 

Miike  Branch  Mill 

Spinning  only 

Ohmuta-shi,  Miike-gun,  Fukuoka-ken. 

Kiininie  Branch  Mill  .  . 

Spinning  only 

Sasayama-cho,  Kurume-shi,  Fukuoka-ken. 

Kumamoto  Branch  Mill 

Spinning  only 

Kasuga-cho,  Kumamoto-shigai. 

Nakatsu  Branch  Mill.  . 

Spinning  and 

weaving 

Toyota-mura,  Shimoke-gun,  Oita-ken. 

Hakata  Branch  Mill.  .  . 

Spinning  and 

weaving 

Sumiyoshi-cho,  Tsukushi-gun,  Fukuoka- 
ken. 
Hanabatake,  Okaj'ama-shi. 

Okayama  Branch  Mill. 

Spinning  and 

weaving 

Bizen  Branch  Mill 

Spinning  only 

Shimoishi,  Okayama-shi. 

Saidaiji  Branch  Mill .  .  . 

Spinning  only 

Saidaiji-cho,  Jodo-gun,  Okayama-ken. 

Wakayama  Branch  Mill 

Spinning  only 

Nakanoshima-mura,  Kaiso-gun,  Wakaya- 

ken. 
Joto-mura,  Higashinari-gun,  Osaka-Fu. 

Osaka  Branch  Mill .... 

Spinning  and 

weaving 

Kyoto  Branch  Mill 

Silk  spinning  and 

Tanaka-mura,  Otagi-gun,  Kyoto-Fu. 

wea\'ing 

Kamikyo  Branch  Mill. . 

Silk  spinning 

Higashi-takeyacho,  Kamikyo-ku,  Kyoto. 

Shimokyo  Branch  Mill. 

Silk  spinning 

Aburanokoji,  Shimokyo-ku,  Kyoto. 

Okayama  Kenshi  Mill . . 

Silk  spinning 

Kadotaoomichi,  Okayama. 

Shinmachi  Branch  Mill. 

Silk  spinning 

Shinmachi,  Tano-gun,  Gunma-ken. 

Yodogawa  Branch  Mill . 

Bleaching,   dyeing 

,   and 

Tomobuchi,   Johoku-mura,   Higashi-Nari- 

finishing 

gun,  Osaka-Fu. 

the  pursuance  of  a  vigourous  policy  by  the 
Kanegafuchi  Spinning  Co.,  Ltd.,  has  been 
consistently  followed,  and  through  the  ebb 
and  flow  of  business,  the  enterprise  has 
reached  the  highest  position,  not  only  in  the 
industry  which  it  leads,  but  in  industrialism 
generally  in  Japan. 

Remembering  that  the  company  originally 
started  with  one  mill  and  only  29,000  spindles, 
the  table  on  page  561,  covering  a  period 
of  ten  years,  will  demonstrate  at  a  glance 
the  remarkable  growth  that  has  taken 
place. 

The  Kanegafuchi  Spinning  Co.,  Ltd.,  pro- 
duces all  kinds  of  cotton  fabrics,  yam,  etc.,  as 
well  as  spun  silk  yam,  and  silk  piece  goods. 
In  the  six  months  preceding  June  25,  1917, 
the  total  sales  were  Yen  44,317,044.  This 
means  that  the  company  is  not  only  supplying 
a  large  portion  of  the  demand  of  the  local 
market,  but  it  is  exporting  to  a  considerable 
extent,  foreign  markets  having  learned  to 
appreciate  the  quality  and  the  productive 
capacity  of  the  leading  Japanese  mills.  The 
head  office  of  the  company  is  at  Sumida-mura, 
near  Tokyo,  but  the  business  headquarters 
are  at  Hiogo,  Kob^.  Accompanying  is  a  list 
of  the  factories,  showing  their  locations 
and    the    work  W'hich  is  done  in  each. 

The  principals  of  the  Kanegafuchi  Spin- 
ning Co.,  Ltd.,  are:  Chairman  of  the  Board  of 
Directors,  Mr.  Heizaemon  Hibiya;  Managing 
Director,  Mr.  Sanji  Muto;  Directors,  Messrs. 


Narazo  Takatsuji,  Riokichi  Nagao,  Junichi 
Nagaye,  Hachisou  Yamaguchi,  Masazumi 
Fuji,  Takeshi  Yamaguchi,  and  Hisakichi 
Maeyama.  The  Auditors  are  Messrs.  Bin 
Hiraga,  Kuninosuke  Kiyooka,  Yoshibumi 
Murota,  Hirota  Nozaki,  and  Zenzaburo 
Yasuda.  The  report  and  balance  sheet  for 
the  six  months  ended  June  25,  191 7,  showed 
a  very  healthy  state  of  finances.  The  net 
profit  for  the  period,  including  Yen  2,977,- 
885.97  brought  forward  from  the  previous 
term,  was  Yen  7,781,672.64,  compared  with 
Yen  6,222,880.47  for  the  preceding  six 
months.  From  this  handsome  profit  Yen 
1,000,000  was  added  to  the  reserves.  Yen 
100,000  was  placed  to  the  pension  fund. 
Yen  100,000  to  the  fund  for  the  promotion 
of  welfare  of  operatives,  Yen  150,000  to  the 
invalided  work  people  and  to  the  relatives  of 
those  who  had  died  dtunng  the  term,  Yen 
150,000  as  a  bonus  to  officials.  From  the 
remainder,  two  dividends  (ordinary  16  per 
cent,  extra  24  per  cent)  were  paid,  absorbing 
Yen  2,993,326.90,  and  a  splendid  balance 
of  Yen  3,288,346.64  was  carried  forward. 
Special  mention  should  here  be  made  that 
the  Kanegafuchi  Company  takes  a  keen  in- 
terest in  welfare  work  amongst  its  operatives, 
and  has  spared  no  expense  to  fit  up  hospitals, 
sanatoria,  conveniences  at  the  mills,  and 
modem  aids,  for  the  improvement  of  the 
conditions  under  which  the  many  thousands 
of  hands  work. 


MOUSSELINE    SPINNING    &    WE.^^VINr, 
COMPANY,  LLMITED 

This  company  is  the  pioneer  of  the  mousse- 
line  weaving  industry  in  Japan,  and  is  rightly 
regarded  as  one  of  the  leaders  in  the  textile 
trades  of  Japan  to-day,  its  plant  and  factory 
arrangements  being  modem  in  every  sense, 
and  its  poHcy  one  of  the  broadest  and  most 
progressive.  As  the  Mousseline  Boshoku 
Kabushiki  Kaisha,  the  company  was  first 
organised  in  December,  1895,  and  was  incor- 
porated in  February  of  the  following  year, 
operations  actually  beginning  in  October, 
1898.  Since  that  date,  of  course,  the  scope 
of  operations  of  the  MousseUne  Spinning  & 
Wea\'ing  Co.,  Ltd.,  has  been  widely  extended. 
The  capital  of  the  company  has  been  in- 
creased, its  plant  and  equipment  added  to 
and  improved,  and  its  lines  of  manufactures 
extended  to  include  many  products  that  were 
not  originally  anticipated.  To-day  the  com- 
pany has  an  annual  output  valued  at  about 
Yen  15,000,000,  covering  all  manufactured 
goods  produced  by  carding,  combing,  bleach- 
ing, weaving,  and  spinning  machines,  many 
of  which  were  first  introduced  to  Japan  by 
this  organisation.  Among  the  products  are 
mousseline,  cotton  cloth,  bunting  (for  flags), 
cloth  for  ladies'  "hakama,"  shalloon  (for  the 
use  of  boxes  for  gunpowder  and  other  explo- 
sives), worsted,  and  woollen  and  cotton  yams. 
The  head  office  and  main  factory  are  at 
Koryuji,  Nakatsucho,  Nishinarigun,  Osaka, 
the  buildings  covering  a  large  area,  and  being 
constructed  on  modem  lines.  There  is  also 
a  branch  factory  at  Tsukuda,  Chifunemura, 
Nishinarigun,  Osaka.  Some  idea  of  the 
capacity  of  the  mills  may  be  gathered  from 
the  statement  that  the  company  operates 
60,800  spindles  and  more  than  1,700  looms. 
There  are  over  3,000  mill  hands,  male  and 
female.  The  Mousseline  Spinning  &  Weav- 
ing Co.,  Ltd.,  has  done  a  great  deal  to  remove 
the  reproach  against  the  textile  companies 
that  they  are  indifferent  to  the  conditions  of 
laboiu-  in  their  plants.  As  a  matter  of  fact, 
this  company  has  gone  in  for  a  great  deal  of 
welfare  work  among  its  employees.  The 
large  number  of  girls  are  accommodated  in 
the  dormitories,  and  are  brought  up  with 
family  sympathy  at  the  company's  expense. 
As  much  as  possible  has  been  done  to  provide 
proper  equipment  for  sanitation,  and  there 
are  special  arrangements  for  the  education  of 
the  girls,  for  giving  them  the  necessary 
attention  that  they  would  have  in  their 
homes,  for  the  development  of  character,  and 
for  the  encouragement  of  habits  of  thrift. 
To  carry  out  these  broad  ideas  of  improving 
the  condition  of  the  workers,  the  company 
has  provided  dormitories,  shops  for  the  pur- 
chase of  what  the  workers  may  require,  dining 
room,  hair  dressing  room,  laundry,  kitchen 


■   ■   ■"' ij.a-i -imj-gi 


IM  ^ImT 


MOUSSELINE    SPIINNNG   AND    WEAVING    COMPANY:    MILL    AT    NISHINARIGUN,    OSAKA,    SEEN    FROM    THE   CANAL - 

INTERIOR    VIEW   OF   FACTORY 


564 


P  R  E  S  E  N  T  -  D  A  V        IMPRESSIONS        OF        JAPAN 


where  the  girls  may  cook  their  meals,  hos- 
pital, school,  sewing  room,  room  for  instruc- 
tion in  manners  and  etiquette,  play  ground, 
and  nursing  room.  There  is  also  a  smoking 
room.  The  fresh  milk  supply  for  the  factory 
hands  is  under  the  company's  supervision, 
a  dairy  being  maintained  for  that  purpose. 
The  Mousseline  Spinning  &  Weaving  Co., 
Ltd.,  has  received  many  honours  for  the 
excellence  of  its  products,  and  in  recognition 
of  its  services  to  the  Empire.  During  the  war 
of  1904-5  its  organisation  was  largely  devoted 


to  show  what  was  being  done  for  the  care  and 
improved  treatment  of  factory  hands.  This 
exhibit  attracted  a  great  deal  of  attention 
locally,  and  when  the  manufactured  articles 
were  displayed  in  London  at  the  exhibition, 
the  company  received  the  highest  awards. 
Apart  from  the  immense  business  done 
for  domestic  needs,  the  Mousseline  Spinning 
&  Weaving  Co.,  Ltd.,  is  engaged  in  a  large 
export  trade,  its  goods  being  in  strong 
demand  in  foreign  markets,  where  their 
excellent    quaUty    is  freely  admitted.     The 


concerns  of  its  kind,  controlling  and  leading 
the  important  secondary  industries  of  Japan. 
It  is  the  oldest  company  in  the  muslin- 
weaving  business,  and  has  been  all  along  the 
pioneer  in  developing  the  local  and  foreign 
trades.  The  origin  of  the  Jomo  Company 
dates  back  to  1894  when  a  small  concern 
was  formed  under  the  name  of  the  Woollen 
Goods  Weaving  Co.,  with  a  capital  of  only 
Yen  20,000,  the  organisation  taking  place 
under  the  auspices  of  the  Tatebayashi 
people,  who  were  interested  in  starting  such 


KITA-KU,    OSAK.\,    NORTHWARD    FROM    ROOF    OF    MITSUKOSHI 

to  meeting  the  needs  of  the  Imperial  Army  capital  of  the  company  at  the  time  of  writing  an     enterprise.       For     several     years     the 

and  Navy,  and  in  recognition  of  the  patriotic  is  Yen  7,500,000,  of  which  Yen  6,250,000  is  old     company     carried     on,     making     slow 

work  then   done,   the   company  received   a  paid  up.     Reserves  amount  to  Yen  875,000,  progress     and     overcoming     many     initial 

certificate    of    merit    from    the    Bureau    of  and  a  further  sign  of  the  financial  stability  difficulties.      It    was    reorganised    in    April, 

Decorations.     Various    kinds    of    mousseline  and  sound  policy  of  the  company's  manage-  1902,   as   a   limited  liability  company  under 

and  buntings  have  been  sent  as  exhibits  to  ment  is  the  fact  that  the  large  sum  of  Yen  its  present  title,  and  some  idea  of  its  devel- 

intemational  expositions,  where  the  highest  739,000  has  been  written  off  for  depreciation.  opment  since  that    date  may  be  gathered 

awards  have  been  gained.     More  than  once  The  leaders   of   this   important   and   highly  from  the  following  statement  of  its  capital 

these  exhibits  have  been  purchased  by  Their  successful     enterprise     are     Mr.     Katsutaro  movement : 

Imperial  Majesties,  and  on  several  occasions  Inabata,  President  and  Director;  Mr.  Suke-  Yen 

the  Emperor  and  Empress  have  sent  their  taro  Kawasaki,   Director,  and   Mr.  Yokichi  ]une   iqo-'   Capital                                  ^o  000 

chamberlains  to  the  mills  to  inspect  the  works,  Kinbara,  Managing  Director.     In   addition,  September   iqo'                                         2S00O 

and    to    make    purchases   for   the    Imperial  there  is  a  directorate  of  well  known  business  September   iqo"                                         So  000 

Palaces.     In  July,   1909,  the  Commissioners  men,  besides  a  strong  and  highly  competent  December   iqo6                                     I  000  000 

of   the   Anglo-Japanese   Exhibition    held    in  staff  of  experts,  inspectors,  etc.  Tanuarv   iqi'>                                        •»  000  000 

London,  appointed  the  Mousseline  Spinning  Au<nist  191^  .                   4000000 

&  Weaving  Co.,  Ltd.,  to  prepare  a  typical  THE   JOMO   MUSLIN   COMP.\Ny,    limited 

exhibit  of  the  Japanese  textile  industries,  and           The  Jomo  Muslin  Kabushiki  Kaisha,  or  At  the  time  of  its  reorganisation  the  Jomo 

also  to  arrange  for  the  display  of  a  model  mill  Jomo  Muslin  Co..  Ltd.,  is  one  of  the  largest  Mushn   Co.,    Ltd.,   was   manufacturing   and 


if 


PRESENT-DAY       lAfPRRSSIONS       OF       JAPAN 


56: 


GENERAL    VIEW    OF    KOZUKE    FACTORY    OF   JOMO    MUSLIN    KABUSHIKI    KAISHA 


marketing  muslin  only,  but  from  December, 
1906,  it  began  to  weave  woollen  and  silk, 
and  cotton  mixed  goods,  besides  muslin. 
Further  extensions  took  place  in  the  range 
of  manufactures,  and  in  August,  1915,  the 
company  commenced  weaving  all  kinds  of 
materials,  and  also  began  the  dyeing  of  its 
own  output.  As  the  result  of  strenuous 
efforts  on  the  part  of  the  President  and 
officers  of  the  company,  the  career  of  the 
Jomo  concern  has  been  conspicuously  suc- 
cessful. New  buildings  and  great  improve- 
ments in  the  plant  and  equipment  of  the 
mills  have  taken  place  year  by  year,  follow- 
ing on  the  increases  in  the  capital  outlined 
above,  and  to-day  the  works  are  entirely 
modem  and  complete  in  every  detail.  The 
quality  of  the  goods  turned  out  has  been 
maintained  at  the  highest  standard,  and  it 
is  generally  recognised  that  the  muslin  under 
the  well  known  brand  of  <^^JwS>  is  superior 
to  most  on  the  market,  even  including  the 
best  imported  brands.  This  result  is  "due 
to  the  use  of  the  most  approved  machinery 
known  in  the  trade.  The  works  of  the 
Jomo  Muslin  Co.,  Ltd.,  are  situated  at 
Tatebayashimachi,  Yurakugun,  Gumma  Ken, 
and  there  is  a  business  office  at  Sumiyoshicho, 
Nihonbashi-ku,    Tokyo.     The   total   area  of 


land  occupied  by  the  company  is  30,000 
tsubo.  The  buildings  cover  5,500  Isubo 
and  are  of  the  most  modem  construction  of 
brick  and  stone  (brick  and  wood  in  the  case 
of  the  offices),  the  factories  and  godowns 
being  one-  or  two-storied  as  conditions  re- 
quire. The  plant  comprises  several  hundred 
machines,  and  power  is  supplied  from  electric 
dynamos  and  a  Cornish  boiler.  Employ- 
ment is  found  in  the  mills  for  250  men  and 
1,250  girls,  the  annual  wages  bill  running 
over  Yen  200,000.  An  idea  of  the  magni- 
tude of  the  operations  of  the  Jomo  Mushn 
Co.,  Ltd.,  may  be  gathered  from  the  state- 
ment that  its  mills  turn  out  10,000,000 
yards  of  muslin  per  annum,  worth  Yen  8,000,- 
000,  and  approximately  1,500,000  pounds 
weight  of  woollen  and  other  fabrics,  valued 
at  Yen  6,000,000.  Woollen  tops  and  other 
raw  material  are  imported  from  Australia 
and  the  machinery  comes  from  Europe  or 
America.  The  principal  buyers  of  the  Jomo 
products  are  the  piece  goods  manufacturers 
of  Tokyo  and  Osaka,  and  a  large  export 
trade  is  done  with  Europe,  India,  and  the 
South  Sea  Islands.  The  principal  lines  of 
exports  are  muslin  under  the  two  brands 
-<37io5>-  and  -cCSTo^-  Nos.  40  to  80. 
Mr.  Hisao  Matsuo,  Managing  Director  of 


the  Jomo  Muslin  Co.,  Ltd.,  is  a  graduate  of 
Keio  University.  After  some  time  spent  as 
a  journalist  with  the  "Jiji  Shimpo"  Sha,  he 
accepted  a  managerial  position  with  Messrs. 
Murai  Brothers,  and  subsequently  became 
Managing  Director  of  the  Osaka  Muslin 
Boseki  Kabushiki  Kaisha,  in  which  position 
he  was  recognised  as  an  able  and  excellent 
executive.  In  January,  1915,  he  joined  the 
Jomo  Muslin  Co.,  Ltd.,  as  Managing 
Director.  Mr.  Matsuo  encountered  a  serious 
difficulty  soon  after  his  connection  with  the 
company.  As  a  result  of  the  European  War 
the  importation  of  English  tops  was  pro- 
hibited, and  raw  material  could  scarcely  be 
olitaincd  because  of  its  exorbitant  price. 
All  the  mushn  companies  were  seriously 
affected  by  this  sudden  check  on  importation, 
but  the  Jomo  Company,  which  had  been 
using  English  tops  exclusively,  was  handi- 
capped to  such  an  extent  that  its  miUs  had 
to  stop  working  for  a  while.  At  this  time  of 
difficulty,  Mr.  Matsuo  perceived  the  immense 
possibihties  underlying  the  industry,  on 
account  of  shortages  of  material  in  Europe 
and  the  markets  which  had  hitherto  been 
dependent  upon  the  continental  mills,  and 
with  unusual  energy  he  developed  new  sources 
of  raw  suppUes,  and  pushed  on  with  the  work 


37 


566 


P  R  E  S  E  N  T  -  I)  A  V        IMPRESSIONS        OF        JAPAN 


in  the  face  of  many  difficulties.  It  is  ad- 
mitted that  Mr.  Matsuo's  strong  handling 
of  a  serious  situation  at  that  time  saved  the 
Jomo  Company  from  disaster  and  restored 


A    F.\RMER  S    HOME    AND    FAMILY 

it  to  the  prosperous  condition  in  which  it  is 
to-day.  Supporting  Mr.  Matsuo  are  the 
following  Directors:  Messrs.  Tetsujiro  Mat- 
sumoto,  Kiichiro  Chikira,  Shobei  Nakatani, 
Riichiro  Kagami,  and  Kiichiro  Wakatabi. 
Mr.  Eihachiro  Arai  is  the  General  Manager 
of  the  Jomo  Muslin  Co.,  Ltd. 


THE    IMPERIAL    FLAX    MANUFACTURING 
CO.,    LIMITED 

The  Teikoku  Seima  Kabushiki  Kaisha,  or 
Imperial  Flax  Manufacturing  Co.,  Ltd.,  is 
an  amalgamation  of  four  of  the  most  impor- 
tant flax  manufacturing  companies  in  the 
Empire,  and  the  origin  of  the  business  really 
dates  back  to  1885,  when  the  Omi  Flax  Co. 
was  formed  This  company,  together  with 
the  Shimotsuke  Flax  Manufacturing  Co., 
and  the  Osaka  Flax  Manufacturing  Co., 
joined  forces  in  July,  1903,  under  the  name 
of  the  Nippon  Flax  Manufacturing  Co.  In 
July,  1907,  the  Hokkaido  Flax  Manufactur- 
ing Co.  was  amalgamated  and  the  new 
organisation  became  the  Imperial  Flax 
Manufacturing  Co.,  Ltd.  Some  idea  of  the 
strength  of  this  enterprise  may  be  gathered 
from  the  fact  that  its  capital  to-day  is  Yen 
12,800,000,  of  which  Yen  800,000  is  paid  up, 
and  (June,  1917)  there  are  reserves  totalling 
Yen  1,400,000.  Factories  are  operated  at 
Osaka,  Otsu,  Kanuma,  Nikko,  and  Sapporo 
and  there  are  twenty-two  flax  mills  in  Hok- 
kaido.    All  the  factories  are  of  modem  con- 


struction, built  of  stone  or  brick  and  equipped 
with  the  latest  machinery  for  the  handling 
of  all  classes  of  products  such  as  flax  canvas, 
linen  duck,  hose,  linen  cloth,  linen  shirting, 
table  cloths,  napkins,  sheets,  towels,  elastic 
canvas,  linen  yam,  seaming  twine,  linen 
thread  for  lace,  fishing  net,  netting  twine, 
sewing  thread,  and  all  similar  lines  of  hemp 
and  flax  products  and  manufactures.  The 
annual  capacity  is  12,000,000  yards  of  linen 
fabrics  and  17,000,000  pounds  of  yams  and 
tw'ines.  Arrangements  are  now  being  made 
for  the  increase  in  the  plant  and  manufactur- 
ing capacity  to  take  care  of  the  rapidly 
expanding  business  of  the  company. 

In  addition  to  its  factories  the  Imperial 
Flax  Manufacturing  Co.,  Ltd.,  maintains  an 
experimental  farm  for  the  production  of 
linseed.  The  motive  power  of  the  different 
plants  is  either  steam  or  electricity,  and  a 
total  force  of  3,200  horse-power  is  generated. 
The  different  weaving  and  spinning  machines 
have  mainly  been  imported  from  England 
and  France.  Over  5,000  hands  are  emploj'ed 
by  the  company.     The  output  of  their  mills 


PREMISES    OF   THE    IMPERl.'VI,    FLA.X    MANUF.^CTURING   CO.,    LTD.,    TOKYO 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


567 


bird's-eye   view    of   HIGASHI-KU    and    NISHI-KU    wards,    OSAKA 


is  in  great  demand  in  Japan  and  abroad. 
Much  of  the  company's  production  is  taken 
by  the  Imperial  Household  Department,  the 
Army  and  Navy,  the  Railway  Department, 
and  various  other  Government  offices  and  the 
local  trade  generally.  A  steady  demand  for 
the  output  is  recorded,  and  it  is  now  on  the 
increase.  The  export  trade  has  naturally 
increased  during  the  war,  and  the  Imperial 
Flax  Manufacturing  Co.,  Ltd.,  is  now  ex- 
porting regularly  to  Great  Britain,  the  United 
States,  Russia,  France,  Australia,  India, 
China,  the  South  Sea  Islands,  etc.,  etc. 

The  principal  officers  of  the  company  are: 
President,  Mr.  Zenzaburo  Yasuda;  Manag- 
ing Directors,  Messrs.  Takeshi  Doki  and 
Ryozaburo  Saiga;  Directors,  Baron  Kiha- 
chiro  Okura,  Messrs.  Gentaro  Tanaka  and 
Shintaro  Ohashi;  Auditors,  Messrs.  Shichibei 
Ozawa  and  Zennosuke  Yasuda.  Mr.  Rcnzo 
Ejiri  is  private  secretary  and  Messrs.  Jiro 
Sakamoto  and  Suguma  Suzuki  are  Chief 
Experts.  The  head  office  of  the  Imperial 
Flax  Manufacturing  Co.,  Ltd.,  is  at  Uragashi, 
Nihonbashi-ku,  Tokyo.  This  company  is  also 
sole  agent  for  the  Taiwan  Seima  Kabushiki 
Kaisha  of  Coroton,  Formosa,  manufacturers 
of  jute  canvas,  gunny  bags,  Hessian  cloth,  etc. 


SCENE    IN   UYENO    PARK,    TOKYO 


lELv^ 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


569 


NIPPON    MENKWA  K.\BUSHIKI    KAISHA 

(THE    JAPAN    COTTON    TRADING 

CO.,  LTD.) 

Before  the  cotton  spinning  industry  of 
Japan  had  been  long  in  existence  it  was 
realised  by  a  number  of  Osaka  business  men 
that  there  was  ample  scope  for  the  operations 
of  a  company  that  would  handle  raw  materials 
and  keep  the  mills  well  supplied  from  distant 
markets,  as  well  as  export  the  products  of 


extent  of  the  operations  of  the  company  is 
obtainable  from  the  statement  that  the 
yearly  trade  in  all  lines  exceeds  Yen  200,000,- 
000  in  value.  The  present  capital  stands  at 
Yen  5,000,000,  subscribed,  of  which  Yen 
3,500,000  has  been  paid  up.  The  reserve 
funds  total  Yen  2,750,000.  For  the  half- 
year  ended  March  31,  1917,  the  profit  was 
Yen  1,075,755,  to  which  was  added  the  sum 
of  Yen    196,985  brought  forward  from  the 


WAKINOHAMA,    KOBfe 


the  mills  to  foreign  markets.  To  this  end, 
the  late  Mr.  Tsuneki  Sano  of  Osaka  organ- 
ised a  meeting  of  promoters  to  the  number 
of  twenty-four,  and  on  November  10,  1892, 
the  Nippon  Menkwa  Kabushiki  Kaisha 
came  into  existence,  with  a  capital  of  Yen 
200,000.  With  the  phenomenal  development 
of  the  Japanese  spinning  industry  during 
the  last  decade,  the  business  of  the  Japan 
Cotton  Trading  Company  has  grown  year 
by  year,  and  the  capital  has  had  to  be  in- 
creased several  times. 

Besides  raw  cotton  and  cotton  yarn,  the 
company  does  an  extensive  business  in  piece 
goods  and  has  recently  added  the  trade  in 
wool  and  silk.  The  company  has  branches 
and  agencies  at  Shanghai,  Hankow,  I3airen, 
Tientsin,  Tsingtau,  Hongkong,  Bombay, 
Calcutta,  New  York,  Fort  Worth,  Moppo, 
Tokyo,  and  Kobe,  and  operates  a  cotton- 
pressing  factory  at  Hankow.  The  company 
has  also  good  connections  at  Rangoon, 
Alexandria,  Liverpool,  Buenos  Aires,  Sydney, 
and  other  trading  centres.     Some  idea  of  the 


previous  term.  Of  the  gross  sum  Yen  500,000 
was  then  added  to  the  reserves,  and  after 
paying  directors'  fees,  and  an  ordinary  divi- 
dend of  18  per  cent  and  a  special  dividend  of 
12  per  cent.  Yen  285,240  was  carried  forward. 
The  directorate  of  this  important  trading 
concern  comprises  Messrs.  M.  Kita  (Presi- 
dent), A.  Yamada  (Managing  Director), 
K.  Suyeyoshi,  Y.  Baba,  and  H.  Ohka. 

BREWING   INDUSTRY 

This  industry  is  chiefly  occupied  with  the 
production  of  sake,  beer,  and  soy,  as  wine- 
making  is  still  in  its  infancy,  and  the  distilling 
of  such  spirits  as  whiskey  is  hardly  yet  begun. 
It  is  probable,  however,  that  in  the  near 
future  Japan  will  have  her  own  distilleries  and 
come  into  close  competition  with  imported 
whiskey,  especially  among  those  whose  taste 
in  beverages  is  not  cultivated.  Sake  and  soy, 
or  shoyu,  have  been  made  in  Japan  for  cen- 
turies and  have  naturally  reached  a  state  of 
development  bordering  on  perfection,  though 


usually  adhering  to  primitive  processes. 
Recently,  however,  the  Government  has 
established  a  brewing  laboratory  on  scientific 
principles,  to  promote  the  introduction  of 
modern  methods.  Sake,  the  national  liquor, 
is  brewed  from  rice,  the  greatest  centre  of 
manufacture  being  the  region  between  Kob6 
and  Osaka.  The  quality  and  flavour  of  sak6 
is  attributed  by  the  Japanese  to  the  quality  of 
the  water  used  in  its  preparation,  and  the 
districts  named  are  regarded  as  having  the 
best  water  for  the  purpose.  The  peculiar 
merit  of  this  water  is  said  to  come  from  its 
possession  of  a  species  of  bacilli  imparting  an 
agreeable  flavour  to  the  finished  sak^.  A 
great  difficulty  of  the  sak6  industry  is  the 
inability  to  keep  the  liquor  unimpaired  for 
more  than  a  few  months,  and  of  not  being  able 
to  brew  it  successfully  at  all  seasons.  To 
remedy  the  former  defect  salicylic  acid  is  used, 
while  the  Government  laboratory  already 
mentioned  is  introducing  methods  that  are 
successful  at  all  seasons,  as  well  as  hastening 
the  slow  process  which  was  a  great  drawback 
to  the  old  ways.  The  annual  production  of 
sak6  is  nearly  180,000,000  gallons,  worth 
about  Yen  220,000,000,  on  which  a  tax  of 
some  Yen  90,000,000  is  imposed  annually. 
The  export  of  sak^  is  about  240,000  gallons, 
valued  at  Yen  4,000,000,  going  chiefly  to 
Japanese  settlements  abroad. 

The  chief  centre  of  soy  brewing  is  Chiba, 
near  Tokyo.  The  most  important  ingredi- 
ents used  are  parched  wheat  and  salted  beans, 
and  the  liquid  requires  about  twelve  months 
to  mature.  The  new  Government  laboratory 
is  trying  to  introduce  more  scientific  and 
expeditious  methods,  encouraged  by  the 
growing  demand  for  Japanese  soy  abroad. 
The  output  is  about  100,000,000  gallons  a 
year,  which  pays  a  tax  of  some  Yen  5,000,000, 
and  the  value  of  the  export  is  about  Yen 
4,000,000  a  year. 

Beer  brewing  started  in  Japan  in  1 87 1 
under  German  experts,  and  has  made  rather 
phenomenal  progress  in  recent  years,  being 
now  under  native  supervision  only.  The 
barley  is  grown  in  Hokkaido  from  imported 
seed.  The  five  large  breweries  in  operation 
produce  about  10,000,000  gallons,  of  which 
there  is  an  increasing  consumption  at  home 
and  an  increasing  export  abroad,  especially 
to  Oriental  countries.  Beer  halls  and  bars 
are  now  common  in  Japanese  towns,  and  the 
people  have  quite  taken  to  the  beer  habit. 

THE     KIRIN     BREWERY    CO.,    LIMITED 

For  nearlj'  a  generation,  beer  has  been 
produced  in  Japan,  and  the  name  of  "Kirin" 
has  been  prominent  in  connection  writh  this 
agreeable,  beneficial,  highly  popular  beverage. 
The  history  of  this  famous  brewerj'  is  insepa- 
rably connected  with  that  of  the  growth  and 


570 


PRESENT-nAY        IMPRESSIONS        OF        JAPAN 


FACTORY    GIRLS    ENJOYING    A    CHERRY    BLOSSOM    PARTY 


development  of  one  of  Japan's  greatest 
industrial  interests.  The  company  was 
originally  registered  in  Hongkong  in  1885 
under  the  style  of  the  Japan  Brewery  Com- 
pany. Its  capital  amounted  to  some  Yen 
50,000,  and  its  output  was  limited  to  75,000 
gallons  per  annum,  which  is  even  less  than 
the  output  of  one  month  at  the  present  time. 
Before  that,  two  or  three  breweries  had  been 
started  on  a  small  scale.  Their  products, 
though  called  beer,  were  scarcely  recognised 
as  such,  and  were  driven  out  by  imported 
beer.  In  1888  the  total  import  amounted  in 
value  to  some  Yen  460,000,  but  once  the 
excellent  quality  of  Kirin  Beer  became  known 
among  customers  (and  the  discriminating 
public  were  not  slow  to  recognise  its  sterling 
value),  the  importation  practically  ceased, 
and  the  road  was  paved  for  the  forthcoming 
of  the  Yebisu  Brewerj'  in  Tokj'o  and  the 
Asahi  Brewerj'  in  Osaka.  It  is  to  the  prestige 
it  has  won  that  the  company  now  owes  the 
privilege  of  having  Kirin  Beer  consumed  in 
the  Imperial  Household  and  among  the  upper 
classes  of  the  Japanese  in  general. 

In    1899   the   company  was   registered   in 
Japan  under  the  name  of  Japan  Brewerj'  Co., 


Ltd.,  and  its  capital  increased  to  some  Yen 
600,000,  which  amount  was  doubled  later  on, 
in  1906.  In  January,  1907,  a  technical 
change  was  made  in  the  style  of  the  company, 
which  became  the  present  Kirin  Brewery 
Company,  Ltd.,  its  capital  amounting  to  Yen 
2,500,000.  In  1917  the  capital  was  increased 
to  Yen  5,000,000,  which  is  a  hundred  times  the 
original  amount,  while  the  works,  when  the 
new  brewery  near  Osaka  is  finished,  will  be 
capable  of  producing,  from  the  first  year, 
over  8,000,000  gallons,  which  is  also  over  a 
hundred  times  the  original  output. 

These  striking  figures  bear  eloquent  testi- 
mony to  the  energy  and  ability  of  the  Direc- 
tors and  shareholders.  It  would  be  unwise 
to  set  bounds  to  the  future  ramifications  of 
the  brewery's  activity,  or  to  the  consump- 
tion of  the  celebrated  Kirin  Beer.  The 
local  and  domestic  trade  of  early  days  has 
begun  to  conquer  foreign  markets.  During 
the  past  few  years,  the  exportation  of  Kirin 
Beer  has  developed  enoiTnously,  not  only  in 
the  dominions  and  colonies  —  Formosa, 
Korea,  and  Manchuria — but  also  in  China, 
Hongkong,  the  Straits  Settlements,  Siam, 
Annan,  British  and  Dutch  Indies,  the  Philip- 


pines, and  even  British  East  Africa.  Kirin 
Beer  has  a  reputation  and  an  increasing  sale, 
which  indicate  the  universal  esteem  in  which 
the  brand  is  held.  And  when  the  facts  are 
examined,  this  confidence  in  the  genuineness 
and  high  quality  of  Kirin  Beer  is  found  to 
be  well  based.  Indeed,  the  Kirin  Beer  is  now, 
and  was  from  the  first,  prepared  from  the 
best  of  materials  and  by  a  method  and  ap- 
paratus highly  scientific.  What  the  future 
will  be  is  a  closed  book,  but  it  looks  as  if 
the  company  which  produces  the  best  beer 
will  hold  the  winning  hand. 

It  is  well  worth  mentioning  here  that  the 
ability  and  undivided  attention  of  the  com- 
pany's sole  agents,  Kabushiki  Kaisha  Meidi- 
Ya,  have  had  a  great  deal  to  do  with  its 
prosperous  development,  and  with  the 
establishment  of  the  beer  in  the  favour  and 
confidence  of  the  public. 

The  present  Board  of  Directors  of  the 
Kirin  Brewery  Co.,  Ltd.,  is  as  follows:  Mr. 
Genjiro  Yonei  (Managing  Director) :  Baron 
Rempei  Kondo,  Mr.  Furuu  Wuriu,  Mr. 
Tsunenori  Tanaka,  and  Mr.  Seizo  Ida 
(Directors);  Mr.  Kotaro  Mizutani  and  Mr. 
Ryozo  Hiranuma    (Auditors). 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


571 


KABUSHIKI  KAISHA  MEIDI-YA  (THE 
IIEIDI-YA  CO.,  LTD.) 
For  over  a  quarter  of  a  century,  a  posi- 
tion of  high  repute  and  foremost  importance 
in  the  wine  and  provision  trade  in  Japan 
has  consistently  been  held  by  the  Meidi-Ya 
Co.,  Ltd.  The  company's  extensive  busi- 
ness, which  is  now  conducted  through  ten 
offices  spread  throughout  the  Empire,  was 
originally  founded  at  Yokohama  in  1885 
by  the  late  Mr.  H.  Isono  Having  been 
graduated  from  the  Tokyo  Imperial  Uni- 
versity, he  went  over  to  England  and  entered 
a  firm  to  learn  business  practically.  After 
a  few  years,  he  returned  to  Japan  full  of 
ambitious  ideas,  and  in  1885,  he  opened  a 
store  at  Yokohama  to  deal  in  provisions  and 
liquors,  while  acting  as  purveyor  to  the 
Nippon  Yusen  Kaisha.  In  1887,  Meidi- 
Ya  took  up  the  sole  agency  for  the  sale  of 
Kirin  Beer,  which  has  since  won  a  great 
name  throughout  the  Far  East  and  is  es- 
teemed by  the  discriminating  public  as 
comparing  favourably  with  famous  Euro- 
pean  beers. 


Mr.  Isono  steadily  developed  his  business, 
but  he  died  an  early  death  in  1897,  at  the 
age  of  thirty-nine  years.  Thereupon,  Mr. 
G.  Yonei,  a  relative  of  the  deceased  who 
had  assisted  Mr.  Isono  for  a  long  time,  con- 
tinued the  business  of  the  Meidi-Ya  in  his 
capacity  as  the  guardian  of  the  daughter  of 
the  deceased.  In  1903,  Mr.  Yonei,  in  con- 
cert with  Mr.  C.  Isono,  the  adopted  son  of 
the  late  Mr.  Isono,  reorganised  the  firm  as  a 
partnership  company  under  the  name  of 
Gomei  Kaisha  Meidi-Ya.  In  May,  191 1, 
the  firm  became  incorporated  as  a  limited 
company  under  the  name  of  Kabushiki 
Kaisha  Meidi-Ya  (The  Meidi-Ya  Co.,  Ltd.), 
taking  in  the  chief  employees  as  shareholders, 
the  present  directorate  being  constituted  as 
follows;  President,  Mr.  G.  Yonei;  Vice- 
President,  Mr.  C.  Isono;  Director  and 
Manager,  Mr.  M.  Miyaji;  Directors,  Mr. 
K.  Sano  and  Mr.  S.  Mikami.  The  company 
now  has  its  general  office  in  Tokyo,  head 
office  in  Yokohama,  and  branches  in  Tokyo, 
Osaka,  Kyoto,  Kobe,  Moji,  Nagoya,  Kana- 
zawa,    Fukuoka     and    Seoul.     It    deals    in 


Kirin  Beer  as  well  as  in  wines,  liquors,  pro- 
visions, tablewares,  tobacco,  and  toilet 
articles,  all  imported  from  famous  manu- 
factories in  Europe  and  America,  for  the 
most  of  which  the  company  acts  as  sole 
agent.  As  to  the  reputation  of  the  com- 
pany, nothing  could  bear  more  eloquent 
testimony  than  the  fact  that  it  has  the 
honour  to  hold  the  special  warrant  of  Ap- 
pointment to  the  Imperial  Household.  It 
is  also  supplier  to  the  Imperial  Navj',  and 
contractor  to  prominent  shipping  com- 
panies, such  as  Nippon  Yusen  Kaisha,  Toyo 
Kisen  Kaisha,  and  Osaka  Shosen  Kaisha. 
The  Meidi-Ya  Co.,  Ltd..  is  sole  agent  for 
Japan  for  the  following  firms: 

The  Kirin  Brewery  Co.,  Ltd.,  Yokohama 
(Kirin  Beer). 

Nunobiki  Mineral  Water  Co.,  Ltd.,  Kob6 
(Mineral  Water). 

Suehiro  Pasturage,  Shimoosa  (Hams  and 
Bacon). 

Koiwai    Pasturage,    Morioka    (Butter). 

James  Buchanan  &  Co.,  Ltd.,  and  John 
Brown  &  Co.  (Whiskey). 


MINATOGAW.A    (THE    THEATRE    STREET),    KOBE 


m 


w. 


\m 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


573 


Moet  &  Chandon,  Epemay,  France 
(Champagne). 

J.  J.  Mortier,  Bordeaux    (French  Wines). 

Otard    Dupuy,    Cognac    (Brandy). 

FUi  Gancia  &  Cic,  CancUi,  Italy  (Vermuthj. 

B.  Amhold  &  Co.,  San  Francisco  (Ameri- 
can Wines). 

G.  H.  Hammond  Co.,  Chicago  (Canned 
Meats). 

E.  &  J.   Burke,   Ltd.,  DubHn   (Stout). 

THE  DAI  NIPPON  BREWERY  COMPANY, 
LIMITED 

Among  the  many  distinctions  which  Japan 
can  claim  in  connection  with  its  remarkable 
industrial  progress,  is  that  of  possessing  the 
fourth  largest  brewing  concern  in  the  world. 
The  largest  are  Guinness  &  Co.,  of  Dublin, 
Ireland,  and  Anheuser-Busch  of  St.  Louis, 
U.  S.  A.,  and  the  fourth  in  point  of  size 
and  output  is  the  Dai  Nippon  Brewery  Co., 
Ltd.,  of  Japan.  The  distinction  is  all  the 
more  remarkable  when  it  is  remembered 
that  the  brewing  of  beer  is  an  industry  that 
was  scarcely  known  in  Japan  a  quarter  of 
a  century  ago,  and  that  beer  was  introduced 
to  the  Japanese  only  after  the  advent  of 
the  foreigners.  From  about  1874  the  quan- 
tity of  imported  beer  increased,  as  the  taste 
for  the  drink  was  acquired  by  the  Japanese. 
The  importation  of  foreign  beers,  mostly 
brought  from  Germany,  Great  Britain,  and 
the  LTnited  States,  amounted  in  value  to 
about  Yen  400,000  per  annum  for  many 
years,  but  since  1897  the  quantity'  imported 
has  rapidly  decreased,  owing  to  the  opera- 
tions of  Japanese  breweries,  which  have 
turned  out  a  high  grade  product  which  has 
perfectly  satisfied  the  domestic  taste.  That 
this  taste  is  a  good  one  is  evidenced  by  the 
fact  that  foreigners,  as  a  general  rule,  are 
well  satisfied  with  the  better-class  Japanese 
beers,  and,  furthermore,  a  large  export  trade 
is  being  done.  Whereas  Japan  used  to  im- 
port large  quantities  of  beer,  the  Dai  Nippon 
Brewery  Co.,  Ltd.,  alone  is  now  exporting 
over  Yen  4,000,000  worth  of  beer  per  annum 
to  such  countries  as  China,  India,  Persia, 
Egypt,  Australia,  the  South  Seas,  and  even 
to  East  Africa. 

The  Dai  Nippon  Brewery  Co.,  Ltd.,  is 
not  only  the  largest  brewing  concern  in 
the  Far  East,  and  also  the  fourth  largest  in 
the  world,  but  it  is  one  of  the  greatest  of 
Japanese  industrial  combines.  It  really 
embraces  several  companies  in  one  organisa- 
tion. Originally  the  business  was  that  of 
the  Nippon  Brewery  Company.  In  Janu- 
ary, 1906,  steps  were  taken  to  amalgamate 
several  breweries,  and  as  a  result  the  Nippon, 
the  Sapporo  Brewing  Company,  and  the 
Osaka  Brewing  Company  agreed  to  combine. 
The  combination  was  effected  on  March  26 


!i 

^1 

» 

i 

Si 

t.  1 

«* 

>s 

1 

K 

^'jftk, 

-i-  .^^^^^M 

^s^^^H 

fefc^ 

iS^H 

MtSiJk       1 

.     """^jT^:- 

u|1h| 

■H 

^^S^^^i^ 

H 

MEMORI.^L  TOWER  ERECTED  FOR  AN  INDUS- 
TRIAL   E.XHIBITION    AT     UYENO     PARK,    TOKYO 

of  the  same  year,  when  a  promoters'  meet- 
ing was  held  and  the  Dai  Nippon  Brewery 
Company,  Limited,  was  formed,  with  a 
capital  of  Yen  5,600,000.  With  the  expan- 
sion of  the  local  demand  it  was  soon  found 
impossible  to  tvu-n  out  a  sufficient  supply 
unless  the  company's  plants  were  enlarged, 
and  accordingly,  in  January,  1908,  the  capital 
of  the  combine  was  increased  to  Yen  12,- 
000,000,  and  the  whole  of  the  property  and 
business  of  the  Tokyo  Brewery  Company 
was  bought  up.  That  company's  brewery 
then  became  known  as  the  Hodogaya  Works 
of  the  Dai  Nippon  Brewery  Company, 
Limited,  and  the  plant  was  exclusively 
devoted  to  the  manufacture  of  cordials  and 
other  non-alcoholic  beverages.  Since  then 
the  history  of  the  Dai  Nippon  has  been  one 
of  constant  increase  in  output  and  expansion 
of  capacity  by  the  increase  of  plant  and  the 
establishment  of  new  breweries.  Plants  are 
now  in  operation  at  Tokyo,  Osaka,  Yoko- 
hama, Nagoya,  Hakata,  Sapporo,  Seoul,  and 
Shanghai,  and  the  capacity  of  the  combine 
is  over  270,000  koku,  or  16,125,000  gallons, 
per  annum.  The  great  popularity  of  the 
Dai  Nippon  products  is  undoubtedly  due, 
first,  to  the  high  quality,  and,  second,  to  the 
variety  of  ales  turned  out.  The  company 
produces  the  following  well  known  brands: 
"Ebisu,"  "Sapporo,"  "Asahi,"  "Sapporo 
Black,"  "Peace,"  "Tokyo,"  and  "Munche- 
ner."  In  addition,  it  makes  a  diversified 
line  of  non-alcoholic  drinks  such  as  "Ribbon 
Citron,"  "Ribbon  Raspberry,"  "Ribbon 
Tansan,"  "Napolin,"  and  malt  coffee.  The 
beer  is  marketed  in  bottles  and  in  draught 
to  the  hotels  and  caf&. 


The  Sapporo  Brewerj',  controlled  by  the 
Dai  Nippon  Company,  is  one  of  the  oldest 
in  Japan,  and  has  more  than  once  been 
singled  out  for  distinction  by  the  Imperial 
Family.  When  the  late  Emperor  Meiji 
visited  Hokkaido  he  paid  a  visit  to  the 
Sapporo  Brewery  on  August  31,  1 881,  and 
the  present  Emperor,  then  Heir  Apparent, 
also  honoured  the  brewery  with  a  visit  in 
August,  191 1,  when  travelling  through 
Hokkaido. 

Some  idea  of  the  financial  transactions 
of  the  Dai  Nippon  Brewery  Co.,  Ltd.,  may 
be  gathered  from  the  fact  that  in  the  ten 
years  from  its  inception,  to  March  26,  1916, 
dividends  totalling  Yen  11,822,447  were  paid, 
and  in  the  same  period  the  Government 
taxes  totalled  Yen  14,356,574.  This  is  an 
average  annual  dividend  and  tax  payment 
of  Yen  1,182,244  ^"d  Yen  1,435,657  respec- 
tively. The  rate  of  dividend  has  been 
maintained  at  from  12  to  15  per  cent  per 
annum.  The  Dai  Nippon  Brewery  Com- 
pany, Limited,  unlike  some  enterprises,  has 
never  been  subsidised  by  the  Government. 
On  the  other  hand,  it  has  contributed  to  the 
Imperial  Treasury  Yen  2,530,000  more  than 
it  has  paid  to  its  shareholders,  and  when  the 
value  of  such  an  industry  to  the  country 
directly,  and  indirectly  through  the  wages  it 
pays  and  the  money  expended  in  the  main- 
tenance of  its  trade,  is  considered,  it  will  be 
recognised  what  a  nationally  important 
enterprise  it  is.  In  the  first  ten  years  of 
their  existence  the  Dai  Nippon  breweries 
turned  out  more  than  365,000,000  bottles 
of  beer.  The  head  office  of  the  company 
is  at  Meguro,  Tokyo.  The  President  of  the 
Dai  Nippon  is  Mr.  K.  Makoshi. 

THE    IMPERIAL    BREWERY    CO.,    LIMITED 
(the  TEIKOKU  BREWERY  KABUSHIKI 

kaisha) 

The  traveller  in  Japan,  or,  for  that  matter, 
in  the  Far  East,  to-day  seldom  fails  to  remark 
upon  the  excellence  of  the  beer  supplied  by 
all  the  leading  hotels,  and  to  express  surprise 
on  learning  that  it  is  manufactured  in  Japan. 
It  is,  however,  a  fact  that  the  Japanese  have 
achieved  wonders  in  this  direction,  as  will 
be  noted  by  reference  to  the  output  and 
exportation  figures  of  the  principal  Japanese 
breweries.  The  organisation  of  the  Teikoku 
Brewery  took  place  in  1910,  the  majority  of 
the  capital  of  Yen  2,000,000,  25  per  cent 
paid  up,  being  subscribed  by  the  firm  of 
Suzuki  &  Co.  (described  in  connection  with 
a  dozen  different  enterprises  in  this  compila- 
tion), but  the  company  did  not  actually  come 
into  existence  until  June,  1912.  The  con- 
struction of  the  brewerj'  was  started  in  the 
same  month  and  completed  in  April,  19 13. 
The  product,  which  is  labelled  "Sakura  Beer." 


'll^i 


W'l 


hJ\ 


|W!1 


JBI 


TEIKOKU     BREWERY    CO.,    LTD.:     CASKS    IX     WHICH     THE      FERMENTING     PROCESS     T.\KES     PL.\CE  —  HUGE     STOR.\GE      VATS- 
THE   OFFICES   AND     MAIN   BREWERY — BOILING    PANS — ^THE   BOTTLING   DEPARTMENT 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


575 


II 


HIGASHI-KU    AND    KITA-KU    WARDS,    OSAKA 


was  first  put  on  the  market  in  July,  1913,  and 
very  soon  created  a  large  demand,  so  great, 
indeed,  that  it  was  found  necessary  to  increase 
the  capacity  of  the  brewery  from  59,550 
gallons  to  202,470  gallons,  a  further  25  per 
cent  of  the  capital  being  called  up  for  this 
purpose. 

The  outbreak  of  hostilities  in  Europe  had 
a  depressing  effect  on  the  company's  busi- 
ness, but  during  191 5  the  demand  became 
greater  than  ever.  A  considerable  part  of 
the  Indian  trade  formerly  supplied  by 
Great  Britain  and  Germany,  principally  the 
latter,  came  into  the  company's  hands, 
necessitating  a  yet  further  extension  of  the 
plant,  adding  59,550  gallons  to  the  annual 
output,  and  also  increasing  the  storage 
capacity  very  considerably.  Permission  was 
obtained  from  the  Government  to  open  a 
private  bonded  warehouse  in  April,  1916,  to 
afford  additional  facilities  for  the  importation 
of  the  raw  materials  and  the  export  of  the 
product.  Domestic  sales  continued  to  in- 
crease as  well  as  the  overseas  demand,  so 
that  the  plant  was  again  extended  in  1916, 
and  the  capacity  to-day  stands  at  2,954,400 
gallons    annually.     The    malt    works    were 


enlarged  in  1917,  and  now  produce  1,958,000 
gallons  of  malt. 

The  brewery,  located  at  Dairi,  near  Moji, 
occupies  an  area  of  2,300  tsubo,  and  is  oper- 
ated by  combined  electrical  and  steam  power, 
representing  a  total  of  725  H.  P.  Nearly 
300  workmen  are  employed. 

A  number  of  gold  and  silver  medals  have 
been  awarded  to  the  company  at  both 
Japanese  and  foreign  exhibitions,  but  more 
important  is  the  patronage  and  encourage- 
ment received  from  H.  I.  M.  the  Emperor, 
who  sent  his  special  envoy  in  the  person  of 
Viscount  Kaiyeda  to  personally  inspect  the 
brewery  in  November,  1916.  The  company 
took  advantage  of  the  opportunity  to  present 
the  Imperial  Household  with  a  number  of 
photographs  in  a  beautifully  prepared  album, 
some  of  which  views,  eloquent  of  the  excel- 
lence and  modernity  of  the  plant,  we  have 
pleasure  in  reproducing. 

The  officers  of  the  company  are  Messrs. 
Masajiro  Miyamoto,  Torataro  Hiraoka, 
Fukutaro  Sekiya,  Kozaburo  Kishi,  Ushi- 
matsu  Sakai  (Directors),  and  (Auditors)  Jiro 
Fukunaga,  Yoshio  Kawai,  Kawaichi  Ishida, 
Sozabiu:o  Hirano.  whilst  Mr.  Igahiko  Sumida 


very  ably  directs  the  affairs  of  the  company 
in  the  combined  capacity  of  President  and 
Manager. 

Besides  exporting  to  India,  the  company 
exports  to  China,  the  Straits  Settlements, 
and  the  South  Sea  islands. 

MACHINE   MAKING 

Japan's  great  engineering  works  are 
dealt  with  under  a  separate  heading.  Here 
it  will  be  sufficient  to  indicate  the  progress 
made  in  machine-making,  which  has  been 
fair,  though  still  slow  owing  to  lack  of  skilled 
mechanics.  Most  of  the  hea\'ier  machinery 
has  still  to  be  imported,  such  as  locomotives, 
turbines,  engines,  electric  generators,  and 
hea%'y  railway  materials,  as  well  as  weaving, 
spinning,  and  printing  machines,  though 
attempts  are  being  made  at  producing  some 
of  these.  Japanese  machine  shops  are  con- 
fined chiefly  to  turning  out  boilers,  railway 
carriages,  lathes,  cranes,  electric  and  tele- 
phone apparatus.  As  heavier  machines  can 
nearly  all  be  purchased  abroad  cheaper  than 
they  can  be  made  in  Japan,  this  side  of  the 
industry    suffers   a   handicap    which    is   not 


NIPPON    REIKI    SEIZO   KABUSHIKI    KAISHA  (jAPAN   ARMS   AND   MACHINERY    MAM  1  ACTURING   CO.,  LTD.);      GENERAL   VIEW   OF    THE 
WORKS    AT   OSAKA — PUMP-MAKING    SHOP — MAKING    AUXILIARY    PARTS    FOR    NAVAL    USE — -TURNING   OUT   SHELL    FUSES 


SEIKO    SHOKAI,   REPRESENTING   THE    JAPAN    STEEL    WORKS,  LTD.    (KAUUSHIKI    KAISHA    NIHON    SElKOSHOj:       75-TON    INGOT   ON    PRESS  — 
4,000-TON   HYDRAULIC    PRESS — THE   GUN    SHOP — I4-INCH    GUN   JACKET — 12-INCH   GUN 


578 


PRESENT-DA  \-   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


easy  to  surmount.  Many  of  the  factories 
still  import  the  smaller  parts  of  the  cars  they 
make,  such  as  wheels,  axles,  sole-bars,  springs, 
etc.  The  Japanese  are  making  their  most 
conspicuous  progress  in  the  .  production  of 
electrical  machinery,  fixings,  and  apparatus. 
Sewing  machines  have  still  to  be  wholly 
imported.  The  war  lent  tremendous  impetus 
to  the  increase  of  machine  shops  in  Japan 
and  to  better  technical  education  along 
this  line.  The  making  of  gas  and  oil  engines, 
machines  used  in  the  fibre  industry,  and 
various  kinds  of  tools  and  implements  is 
making  gradual  progress.  The  total  out- 
put of  tools  and  machinery  is  now  about 
20,000,000  yen  in  value  annually.  Imports  of 
machinery  are  still  annually  over  40,000,000 
yen  as  against  only  3,000,000  yen  in  exports. 
Most  of  the  imports  in  spinning  and  weaving 
machines,    motors,    electric    machines,    tools 


and  implements  come  from  England,  Ger- 
many, and  the  United  States,  England  fur- 
nishing about  one-half  of  the  total.  The 
more  important  companies  turning  out 
machinery  are  shown  in  the  table  below. 

THE      J.\P.\N      ARMS      AND      MACHINERY 
MANUFACTURING   COMPANY,    LIMITED 

Up  to  the  outbreak  of  the  European  war 
the  manufacture  of  arms  and  munitions  in 
Japan  was  confined  entirely  to  the  Govern- 


ment arsenals,  but  here  again  Japan  has 
profited  by  the  lessons  taught  by  the  great 
conflict,  and  the  development  of  such  a  huge 
plant  as  that  of  the  Japan  Arms  and  Machin- 
ery Manufacturing  Co.,  Ltd.,  is  one  of  the 
consequences.  This  concern,  known  in  Japa- 
nese as  the  Nippon  Heiki  Seizo  Kabushiki 
Kaisha,  is  indeed  one  of  the  interesting 
developments  in  the  industrial  activity  of 
Japan.  It  was  originally  founded  as  a  small 
joint   partnership  company  at  a  time  when 


Company 


Shibaura  Engine  Works . 

Niigata  Iron  Works 

Tokyo  Electric  Company 
Toyoda  Machine  Works. 


CAPITAL 

Receipts 

Expenses 

Dividend 

Yen 

Yen 

Yen 

Per  Cent 

2,750,000 

5,347,000 

5,082,000 

9 

1,200,000 

1,986,000 

1,702,000 

10 

2,600,000 

5,554.000 

4,765,000 

20 

300,000 

313,000 

208,000 

6-5 

(Upper  Row,  Left  to  Right)  Mr.  T.  Watanabe,  Managing  Director,  Great  Japan  Petroleum  Mining  Co.,  Ltd.  —  M..  K.  Konishi,  Pre- 
sident, Japan  Arms  and  Machinery  Mfg.  Co. — Mr.  Y.  KsTWakita,  Piesident,  Kawakita  Electrical  Co.,  Ltd.  (Middle  Row)  Mr. 
Terugoro  Fujii,  Director,  Fuji  Steel  Co.,  Ltd.  —  Mr.  S.  Hoshino,  President,  Fuji  Steel  Co.,  Ltd.  —  Mr.  Shigeta  Fujii,  Vice- 
President  and  Director,  Fuji  Steel  Co.,  Ltd. — Mr.  N.  Tajima.  Member  Board  of  Directors,  Great  Japan  Mining  Co.,  Ltd.  (Lower  Row) 
Admiral  Baron  Y.  Ito,  President,  Great  Japan  Petroleum  Mining  Co.,  Ltd. — Mr.  T.  Sakano,  Managing  Director,  Osaka  Electric  Light 
Co.,  Ltd. — Mr.  K.  Tsuda,  President,  Osaka  Steel  Mfg.  Co.,  Ltd. — Mr.  A.  Nakagawa,  Managing  Director,  Ujigawa  Electric  Co.,  Ltd. 


OSAKA    STEEL   MANUFACTURING  CO.,  LTD.:      THE    STEEL    PLANT  — 4OO    H.    P.    MOTOR   FOR   SMALL    BAR   MILL  -  THE    SMALL    BAR    MILL  — 

THE   LATHE    SHOP—  I5-TON   OPEN    HEARTH    FURN.\CE 


58o 


P  R  F,  S  E  N  T  -  D  A  Y        I  M  P  R  F,  S  S  I  O  N  S        OF        JAPAN 


the  Government  and  people  of  Japan  began 
to  realise  that  they  must  have  private  muni- 
tion-making plants  similar  to  those  in  opera- 
tion in  the  foremost  countries  of  Europe,  and 
in  the  United  States.  For  a  time  the  com- 
pany operated  a  small  plant,  but  in  1915, 
when  an  order  came  from  Russia  for  4,000,- 
000  fuses  for  3-inch  shrapnel  shells,  a  big 
opportunity  was  presented,  which  the  direct- 
ors of  the  company  eagerly  seized.  The 
Government  arsenals  were  not  in  a  position 
to  carry  out  the  order,  and  it  was  about  to 
lapse,  owing  to  there  being  no  private  con- 
cerns of  sufficient  experience  or  strength  of 
plant  to  carry  it  through,  when  the  Japan 
Arms  Company  undertook  to  fulfil  the  order. 
With  such  a  contract  before  them  the 
directors  found  it  necessary  to  have  addi- 
tional capital  and  to  reorganise  their  works. 
Consequently,  the  joint  partnership  concern 
was  turned  into  a  limited  liability  company 
with  a  sufficiency  of  capital,  and  the  Nippon 
Heiki  Seizo  Kabushiki  Kaisha  was  started. 
Incidentally  it  may  be  said  that  of  the  big 
Russian  order  placed  with  the  company 
over  2,4.50,000  fuses  were  made  and  delivery 
given  before  the  end  of  July,  1917- 

At  the  same  time  that  this  large  order  was 
accepted    the    company    was    successful    in 
securing    Government    orders    for    machine 
parts,  pumps,   etc.,  for  the  Imperial  Army 
and  Navy,  work  that  could  conveniently  "be 
carried  on  with  the  part  of  the  plant  not 
required    for   work    on    the    Russian    order. 
These   and   other   contracts   have   kept   the 
company's   works   fully   occupied   and   have 
enabled  the  concern  to  pay  a  dividend  of  50 
per   cent    every   half-year.     However,    it   is 
recognised  that  such  a  large  profit  is  only  a 
momentary  phenomenon,  and  it  can  not  be 
expected  in  ordinary  times.     The  directors 
have  therefore  made  all  arrangements  to  alter 
the  plant,  as  occasion  may  arise,  to  enable  the 
company  to  manufacture  articles  for  which 
there   is   always   a   demand   in   peace   time, 
though  the  works  will  be  maintained  primarily 
for  the  manufacture  of  rifles,  machine  guns, 
and  other  munitionment.     It  may  take  some 
time  to  readjust  the  plant  to  peace  conditions, 
but  the  work  is  under  way  and  the  company 
has  already  carried  out  the  manufacture  of 
machine  parts,  pumps,  and  other  requisites. 
It  is  hoped  also  to  make  machinery'  for  silk 
and   cotton   spinning,   small   machines,    and 
parts  for  ships,  water  and  other  metres,  and 
sundry  other  articles.     In  this  connection  the 
future  of  the  company  should  be  very  bright, 
because  the  industrial  development  in  Japan 
is  so  pronounced,  and  the  demand  for  machin- 
ery can  not  be  met  from  the  countries  to 
which  the  industrial  concerns  looked  before 
the  war.     The  Japan  Arms  and  Machinery 
Manufacturing     Company,     Limited,     fully 


FUJ1V.\M.\,    FROM    SHIRAITO    \V.\TERF.\LL 

recognises  that  if  the  local  requirements  are 
properly  filled  at  the  right  prices,  there  will 
be  no  dearth  of  orders.  Having  been  estab- 
hshed  scarcely  two  years,  the  plant  has  not 
yet  been  developed  as  fully  as  the  directors 
hope  for,  but  this  will  be  reached  in  the  course 
of  another  year.  The  capital  of  the  company 
to-day  is  Yen  5,000,000,  but  under  the  scheme 
of  future  development  it  is  planned  to 
increase  this  largely,  and  in  other  ways  make 
the  undertaking  the  greatest  enterprise  of  its 
kind  in  the  Far  East.  The  works  of  the 
Japan  Arms  and  Machinery  Manufacturing 
Company,  Limited,  are  at  Minamihama, 
Toyozakicho,  in  the  suburbs  of  Osaka  City. 
At  present  over  1,000  men  are  employed  in 
the  factory,  which  is  an  entirely  new  building 
of  most  modem  design.  The  plant  and 
machinery  is  automatic  and  designed  to  per- 
mit the  greatest  output  at  a  minimum  cost. 
When  the  works  are  enlarged  as  forecasted, 
it  is  expected  that  from  2,500  to  3,000  men 
will  be  engaged.  The  President  of  the 
company  is  Mr.  Kiyomatsu  Konishi. 

THE  SEIKO  SHOK.A.I 
This  firm  deals  extensively  in  metals, 
machinery,  shipbuilding  material,  and  elec- 
trical appliances,  and  is  under  the  expert 
direction  of  Mr.  Masayuki  Naruse,  who  is  the 
sole  proprietor.  Mr.  Naruse  is  particularly 
well  qualified  for  the  business  he  conducts, 
and  his  record  has  estabhshed  a  confidence  in 


the  Seiko  Shokai  which  largely  accounts  for 
the  prosperity  which  the  firm  enjoys.  Mr. 
Naruse,  who,  by  the  way,  is  a  brother  of  Mr. 
Masayasu  Naruse,  President  of  the  Fifteenth 
Bank,  Ltd.,  was  bom  in  Kagawa  Prefecture, 
forty-two  years  ago.  He  was  graduated 
from  the  Keio  College,  and  won  the  travelling 
scholarship  awarded  by  the  Department  of 
Agriculture  and  Commerce,  entitling  him  to 
proceed  to  America  for  five  years'  business 
training.  Mr.  Naruse  closely  studied  the 
subjects  of  iron  works  and  shipbuilding  in  the 
United  States,  and  on  his  return  to  Japan 
entered  the  service  of  the  Kawasaki  Dock- 
yard Co.,  Ltd.  In  this  famous  company's 
employment  he  spent  twelve  years,  and  was 
promoted  to  be  Chief  of  the  Godown  Depart- 
ment. During  the  Russo-Japanese  War  he 
did  valuable  service  for  the  Empire  and  was 
awarded  the  Sixth  Rank  and  the  Zuiho 
Decoration.  Mr.  Naruse  resigned  from  the 
Kawasaki  Company  and  entered  upon  busi- 
ness on  his  own  account,  founding  the  firm  of 
which  he  is  now  principal. 

When  the  war  broke  out  in  1914  Mr. 
Naruse  realised  the  value  of  large  ships,  and 
to  the  great  siu-prise  of  his  business  friends  he 
was  one  of  the  first  to  invest  in  shipping, 
purchasing  five  or  six  vessels,  at  advantageous 
prices.  Throughout  his  business  career  Mr. 
Naruse  has  shown  independent  and  progres- 
sive tendencies.  He  studies  various  problems 
closely  and  then  acts  on  his  own  judgment, 
which  is  sound  and  safe.  In  this  way  he  has 
made  his  business  very  prosperous  and  he  is 
regarded  as  one  of  the  shrewdest  of  modem 
commercial  men.  The  head  office  of  the 
Seiko  Shokai  is  at  No.  2  Kaigan-dori,  3rd 
Street,  Kob^,  and  there  are  branches  at  Tokyo 
and  Hakata.  The  Tok>-o  branch  engages  in 
the  direct  importation  of  steel  plate,  pig  iron, 
motor  cars,  machiner}',  etc.  The  Hakata 
branch  acts  as  agent  for  the  Kuhara  Mining 
Company's  Hidachi  Factory  in  the  sale  of 
electrical  manufactures.  The  Kobe  branch 
of  the  Seiko  Shokai  trades  in  shipbuilding 
materials,  engines,  boilers,  and  machinery 
generally,  and  has  special  contracts  with  the 
following  well  known  companies:  The  Japan 
Steel  Works,  Ltd.,  Shinagawa  Fire  Brick  Co., 
Ltd.,  the  Japan  Paint  Co.,  Ltd.,  the  Furu- 
kawa  Gomel  Kaisha,  and  the  S.  K.  F.  Ball- 
bearing Manufacturing  Co. 

THE      OSAK.\      STEEL      M.\NaT.\CTrRIXG 
CO.,    LIMITED 

One  of  the  problems  before  Japan  is  the 
production  of  iron  and  steel.  It  is  largely  a 
question  of  getting  the  supplies  of  iron  ore, 
because  there  are  a  number  of  first-class 
plants  for  the  treatment  of  the  raw  material, 
and  already  in  the  works  of  the  Osaka  Steel 
Manufacturing  Co..  Ltd.,  iron  and  steel  ingots 


■r-tf:-^.^^'j:iAiy.jLX^:iir3zrr  ^ 


NO'lfj 


38 


582 


PRKSE  NT-DAY        lAfPRESSIONS        OF        JAPAN 


VIEW    OF    KOBE    HILL 

and  bars  arc  being  turned  out  in  large  quan- 
tities. It  is  confidently  expected  that  these 
works  will  start  the  production  of  pig  iron 
from  the  ore,  a  few  months  hence,  and 
plans  are  already  nearing  completion  to 
effect  that  purpose,  one  proposal  being  that 
the  capital  of  the  concern  shall  be  increased 
to  the  sum  of  Yen  15,000,000. 

The  Osaka  Steel  Manufacturing  Co.,  Ltd., 
is  the  only  company  of  its  kind  in  Osaka, 
W'hich  is  one  of  the  most  active  centres  of 
manufacturing  industries  in  the  entire  Orient. 
It  was  established  in  191 5,  with  a  capital  of 
Yen  5,000,000.  Mr.  K.  Tsuda,  the  President 
of  the  company,  is  perhaps  the  leading  iron 
merchant  in  Japan.  Mr.  Y.  Kurimoto  is 
Managing  Director.  He  is  a  Master  of  Laws, 
graduated  from  the  Imperial  University,  and 
is,  moreover,  a  thoroughly  scientific  and  highly 
experienced  iron-master.  Mr.  Kurimoto  is 
the  owner  of  the  Kurimoto  Iron  Works,  a 
member  of  the  Osaka  Chamber  of  Commerce, 
and  a  Director  of  the  Osaka  Industrial 
Society.  The  Chief  Engineer,  and  also  a 
director,  Mr.  U.  Hayakawa,  was  at  one  time 
Chief  of  the  Engineering  Department  of  the 
Yawata  Iron  Works.  These  three  gentlemen 
are  well  known  authorities  on  the  iron 
industry  of  Japan,  and  vmder  their  direction 
it  is  confidently  expected  that  the  corripany 
will  have  a  bright  future,  and  prove  of  great 
service  in  overcoming  Japan's  industrial 
problem,  so  far  as  the  production  of  iron  is 
concerned. 

The  head  office  of  the  Osaka  Steel  Manu- 
facturing Co.,  Ltd.,  and  its  works  are  situated 
on  the  western  bank  of  the  River  Kizu, 
Minami-Okajimacho,  Nishi-ku,  Osaka.  They 
are  connected  with  the  Osaka  harbour  by  the 
River  Kizu,  and  the  harbour  canal,  so  that 
large  vessels,  bringing  raw  materials  and 
other  supplies,  can  be  moored  directly  in 
front  of  the  works,  thus  facilitating  and 
cheapening  the  cost  of  handling  cargoes.  In 
area,  the  site  is  about  30,000  tsubo,  and  the 
arrangement  and  capacity  of  the  plant  is  as 
follows:  Two  15-ton  open  hearth  furnaces; 
two  25-ton  open  hearth  furnaces;  one  small 


bar  mill  and  one  plate  mill;  annual  productive 
capacity,  43,000  kilo  tons  of  steel  ingots. 
12,000  kilo  tons  of  small  sized  steel  bars,  and 
'7..S50  tons  of  steel  plates.  When  the  plant 
is  entirely  completed  it  is  expected  to  turn 
out  27,000  kilo  tons  of  steel  ingots  and  20,250 
kilo  tons  of  medium  sized  steel  bars  and 
shapes  per  annum,  in  addition  to  the  quan- 
tities mentioned  above.  The  importance  of 
such  a  production  can  not  be  over-estimated, 
and  when  the  treatment  of  iron  ore  and  the 
manufacture  of  pig  iron  is  realised,  there  will 
no  doubt  be  a  general  feeling  of  appreciation 
of  the  enterprise  which  the  Directors  of  the 
company  have  shown. 

THE  FUJI  STEEL  CO.,  LIMITED 
The  rapid  expansion  of  all  industries  in 
Japan,  and  especially  of  such  great  enter- 
prises as  shipbuilding  and  machinery  con- 
struction, have  made  Japan  a  great  consumer 
of  steel,  and  has  disclosed  to  many  of  her 
best  business  men  the  urgent  necessity  for 
making  her  as  far  as  possible  self-reliant  in 
this  direction.  There  can  be  no  doubt  that 
the  ban  on  the  export  of  steel  from  the 
United  States  brought  the  question  more 
prominently  than  ever  before  Japanese  iron- 
masters and  engineers,  and  gave  impetus  to 
the  movement  to  provide  steel  works  in  the 
country,  and  to  open  up  local  or  nearby 
sources  of  iron  ore.  These  are  among  the 
reasons  which  have  brought  about  the 
establishment  of  such  a  powerful  concern 
as  the  Fuji  Seiko  Kabushiki  Kaisha,  or  Fuji 
Steel  Co.,  Ltd. 

This  company  was  formally  incorporated 


on  December  5,  19 17,  with  a  registered  capi- 
tal of  Yen  6,000,000,  the  promoters  being 
Messrs.  Seki  Hoshino,  Shigeta  Fujii,  Shinichi 
Hara,  Shinkichi  Tamura,  Tcrugoro  Fujii, 
Katsusaburo  Watanabe,  Fukusaburo  Watan- 
abe,  Yoshifumi  Murota,  Ryosaku  Kume, 
Raita  Fujiyama,  Shohachi  Wakao,  Masa- 
goro  Satow,  and  others,  all  well  known  in 
commerce  and  industrial  circles  in  Japan. 
The  company  plans  to  manufacture  the  best 
quality  of  steel  castings  and  forgings,  and 
special  lines  of  cast  iron,  steel,  gun  metal, 
etc.,  as  well  as  many  manufactures.  An 
excellent  factory  site  of  35,000  tsubo  has  been 
secured  at  Kawasaki,  a  suburb  of  Tokyo, 
about  twelve  miles  from  the  metropolis,  and 
about  eight  from  Yokohama.  No  better 
position  could  be  secured  for  convenience  of 
traffic,  etc.  It  is  in  close  contact  with  the 
railways,  rivers,  and  harbours  through  which 
all  raw  material  must  come  and  manufac- 
tured products  pass.  Close  by  are  several 
large  shipbuilding  and  engineering  plants 
which  are  already  large  consumers  of  steel 
and  iron,  and  electrical  power  can  readily 
be  obtained  either  from  the  adjacent  works 
of  the  Keihin  Electric  Co.,  Ltd.,  or  from 
hydro-electric  sources  at  a  reasonable  price. 
Now  if  we  turn  to  examine  what  this  power- 
ful company  has  already  done  in  the  brief 
time  it  has  been  in  existence  we  find  that 
it  has  under  construction  for  completion  by 
the  end  of  March,  1918,  a  great  modem 
steel  plant  on  the  Kawasaki  site  described 
above.  This  factory  will  cover  an  area  of 
2,500  tsubo,  or  go, 000  square  feet,  and  will 
be  the  last  word  in  modern  construction  and 


■t 


I 


J.\PANESE    JUNKS    IN     KOBE    H.\RBOUR 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


583 


equipment,  the  main  buildings  being  of 
reinforced  concrete,  with  secondary  build- 
ings constructed  of  wood.  The  foundry  is 
equipped  with  Siemens  furnaces  of  25,  15, 
and  10  tons  capacity.  Besides  the  above, 
a  600-ton  press  and  200  different  kinds  of 
machines,  comprising  smaller  ]]resses,  steam 
hammers,  large  and  small  lathes,  drilling 
machines,  etc.,  are  installed.  As  early  as 
post^ible  a  1,000-ton  press  will  be  added,  and 
two  45-ton  furnaces,  the  determination  of 
the  directors  being  to  leave  nothing  undone 
that  will  make  the  plant  equal  to  any- 
thing in  Japan,  and  capalile  of  carrying 
out  any  orders  that  come  in.  The  products 
of  the  works  already  provided  for  will  be: 
(i)  All  kinds  of  castings  (brass,  bronze,  iron, 
semi-steel,  and  steel),  malleable  castings, 
chilled  castings,  etc.  (2)  Ingots;  all  kinds 
of  forgings,  such  as  piston  rods,  connecting 
rods,  crank  shafts,  rudder  frames,  turbine 
rotaries,  etc.  (3)  Special  steel,  shells,  springs, 
etc.  (4)  Special  materials  for  dynamos, 
internal  combustion  engines,  aeroplanes,  etc. 
In  addition,  the  company  will  undertake  the 
erection  and  repairing  of  any  class  of  land 


or  marine  machinery,  and  generally  will  be 
in  a  position  to  carry  out  all  those  under- 
takings, great  or  small,  which  we  usually 
associate  with  a  fully  equipped  iron  and 
steel  establishment.  Provision  is  already 
made  for  the  employment  of  some  1,500 
hands,  all  of  whom  will  be  the  most 
skilled  mechanics  the  company  can  procure. 
It  may  readily  be  seen  what  an  important 
undertaking  this  is,  and  how  materially  it 
will  help  to  solve  the  serious  problem  of 
making  Japan  less  dependent  upon  foreign 
sources  of  supply  for  many  of  her  steel  and 
iron  requirements.  A  number  of  these  re- 
quirements, it  is  considered  in  some  quarters, 
Japan  can  not  possibly  manufacture,  but  in 
the  case  of  Fuji  Steel  Co.,  Ltd.,  there  is 
unbounded  confidence  on  the  part  of  the 
directors  that  they  can  develop  an  industry 
of  a  substantial  nature,  because  they  have 
at  their  command  all  the  necessary  experi- 
ence and  skilled  workmanship.  It  is  hoped 
that  the  new  works  will  be  able  to 
supply  the  Allies  with  the  best  quality 
of  steel  castings  and  forgings,  and  after 
the   war  they    will    be    able    to    meet    the 


local  demand  and  also  export  to  China, 
India  and  elsewhere.  It  is  claimed  that 
such  raw  material  as  pig  iron,  etc.,  can 
readily  be  obtained  from  local  sources,  as 
well  as  from  Korea,  Manchuria,  and  China, 
while  the  great  amount  of  scrap  iron 
and  steel  that  is  still  available  in  Japan 
will  make  the  cost  of  products  moderate. 
The  company  certainly  does  not  lack 
influential  support.  Among  the  promoters 
are  the  following  well  known  men:  Messrs. 
Tadasaburo  Yamamoto,  ship-owner;  Fuku- 
saburo  Watanabe,  President  of  the  Watanabe 
Bank,  Yokohama;  Shinkichi  Tamura,  Presi- 
dent of  Tamura  &  Co.  and  President  of  the 
Kob6  Chamber  of  Commerce;  Seki  Hoshino, 
President  of  United  Society  of  Commercers 
in  Tokyo  and  member  of  the  Tokyo  Chamber 
of  Commerce;  Shohachi  Wakao,  Director  of 
the  Wakao  Bank  of  Tokyo;  Tosuke  Yama- 
moto, iron  and  copper  merchant,  Osaka; 
Masanosuke  Naoki,  match  manufacturer, 
Kobe;  Raita  Fujiyama,  President  of  the 
Tokyo  Chamber  of  Commerce;  Masagoro 
Satow,  iron  and  copper  merchant,  Yokohama; 
Keizo  Oaki,  President  of  the  Oaki  Steamship 


A    FAMOUS   TEMPLE    ON    MIYAJIMA    ISLAND 


'^^W''  ^  ^^^^^^^^^^^1 

.'  T  "fl^Si^^^^^^H 

IM 


M 


4 


TOKYO   STEEL   AND   SPRING   WORKS   CO.,    LTD.:      THE   LABORATORY  —  THE    SPRING   TESTING   ROOM — -THE    ROLLING    MILL  — 
THE  SPRING  BANDING  ROOM  —  DRAWING   OFF   THE    METAL   FROM   THE    SIEMENS   FURN.\CE 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


585 


Co.,  Tokyo;  Ryosaku  Kunic,  President  of  the 
Tokyo  Gas  Co.;  Shigeta  Fujii,  Lieutenant- 
General  (Reserve)  of  the  Imperial  Japanese 
Army;  Yoshifumi  Murota,  Auditor  of  the 
Kanegafuchi  Spinning  Co.,  Ltd.,  and  Manji 
Yotsumoto,  ship-owner,   KoW. 

The  head  office  of  the  Fuji  Steel  Co.,  Ltd., 
is  at  No.  15  Hiyoshi-cho,  Kyobashiku,  Tokyo. 
The  Board  of  Directors  is  as  follows:  Messrs. 
Seki  Hoshino  (President),  Shigeta  Fujii 
(Vice-President),  Shinichi  Hara,  Shinkichi 
Tamura,  Tadasaburo  Yamamoto,  Terugoro 
Fujii,  and  Katsusaburo  Watanabe.  Audit- 
ors are  Messrs.  Yoshifumi  Murota,  Mohei 
Suzuki,   and   Masagoro   Satow. 

TOKYO   STEEL  AND   SPRING   WORKS   CO., 
LIMITED 

Although  the  iron  and  steel  and  asso- 
ciated industries  of  Japan  have  made  wonder- 
ful strides  during  the  past  few  years,  it  is 
quite  evident  that  in  certain  special  lines  the 
country  will  not  be  able  to  supply  its  own 
needs  for  some  years  to  come.  The  defi- 
ciency in  this  respect  has  been  most  marked 
since  the  outbreak  of  war,  when  the  normal 
importation  of  such  articles  as  special  steels, 
springs,  tool  steel  and  so  on,  was  seriously 
interfered  with.  The  position  became  worse 
when  Britain  and  the  United  States  placed 
further  restrictions  on  the  export  of  such 
lines.  It  can,  therefore,  be  readily  imagined 
what  interest  attaches  to  the  enterprise 
which  has  been  started  by  the  Tokyo  Steel 
and  Spring  Works  Co.,  Ltd. 

This  company  came  into  existence  on 
April  14,  1917,  having  been  organised  by 
Mr.  Kiyoshi  Toh,  with  an  initial  capital  of 
Yen  1,000,000,  which  has  been  fully  paid  up. 
It  may  be  well  to  point  out,  however,  that 
the  programme  before  the  company  is  such 
a  large  one,  that  this  initial  capital  will  not 
suffice,  and  accordingly  the  shareholders 
decided  at  a  meeting  held  in  October,  1917, 
to  authorise  a  new  capitalisation  of  Yen 
3,000,000.  The  new  concern,  known  by  its 
Japanese  title  of  the  Tokyo  Kozai  Kabushiki 
Kaisha,  bought  out  the  Tokyo  Steel  Ma- 
terials Engineering  Works  in  Oshima-machi, 
in  the  suburbs  of  Tokyo,  establishing  there 
a  larger  and  much  better  equipped  factory, 
specially  designed  for  the  production  of 
special  steels,  springs,  etc.,  so  largely  in 
demand  by  the  various  general  engineering 
works  all  over  Japan.  The  need  for  a 
standardisation  in  this  class  of  manufacture 
had  long  been  realised  by  the  steel  and  iron 
masters  of  the  country.  Mr.  Toh  has  had 
a  lengthy  experience  in  mechanical  engineer- 
ing, and  he  was  the  right  man  to  undertake 
the  installation  of  the  new  plant. 

Mr.  Toh  was  bom  in  1872,  the  second 
son  of  Mr.  Y.  Wakaizumi,  a  Samurai,  but 


was  adopted  into  the  Toh  family  when  a 
child.  He  studied  in  the  Higher  Technical 
College,  being  graduated  from  the  Engineer- 
ing Department  in  1894.  For  ten  years  he 
served  as  an  expert,  or  expert  chief,  in  the 
Kanegafuchi  Spinning  Co.,  Ltd.,  the  Ajini 
Spinning  Company,  the  Japan  Woollen 
Spinning  Company,  and  the  Fuji  Gas  Spin- 
ning Company.  In  1904  he  opened  his  own 
engineering  works,  his  mind  being  fixed  on 
meeting  certain  deficiencies  which  he  had 
recognised  during  his  experience  with  the 
various  concerns  mentioned.  When  with 
the  Onagi  and  Fuji  companies,  fire  destroyed 
the  factories.  Repairs  to  the  machinery 
were  all  effected  in  Japan  with  the  exception 
of  the  replacement  of  springs,  and  this  gave 
Mr.  Toh  the  idea  to  concentrate  on  their 
production.  He  opened  his  own  factory, 
under  the  name  of  the  Tokyo  Spring  Engi- 
neering Works,  and  despite  many  initial 
difficulties  made  a  success  of  it,  his  plant 
being  patronised  by  the  Railway  and  Naval 
Departments.  Later  on  Mr.  Toh  went 
thoroughly  into  the  problem  of  producing 
spring  steel,  and  his  works  became  known 
as  the  Tokyo  Steel  Materials  Engineering 
Factory.  So  that  in  both  of  these  depart- 
ments Mr.  Toh  was  the  pioneer,  his  works 
finally  being  reorganised  in  the  new  company 
with  which  we  are  now  dealing. 

The  steel  material  department  of  the  Tokyo 
Steel  and  Spring  Works  Co.,  Ltd.,  is  equipped 
with  two  Siemens  basic  open  furnaces,  with 
a  capacity  of  ten  tons  in  one  charge,  using 
scrap  or  cast  iron  mixed  with  ferro-man- 
ganese  ores,  ferro-manganese,  and  ferro- 
silicon.  Steel  is  also  produced  by  the  crucible 
furnace  and  electric  furnace  methods,  in 
each  case  the  highest  quality  of  material 
being  obtained  at  a  low  cost.  The  crucible 
and  electric  furnace  steels  are  known  in 
the  trade  as  high  speed  steels.  Their  quality 
is  so  good  that  the  company's  product  is  in 
great  demand  for  the  same  purposes  as  the 
material  turned  out  at  the  Government 
Steel  Works,  and  among  the  customers  of 
the  new  industry  are  the  Imperial  Japanese 
Railways,  the  Department  of  Communica- 
tions, and  the  Navy  Department.  The 
annual  output  of  these  various  high  grade 
steels  is  about  12,000  tons.  At  the  spring- 
making  shop  the  Tokyo  Steel  and  Spring 
Works  Co.,  Ltd.,  makes  bearings  springs, 
buffer  springs,  large  helical  springs  and 
others,  suitable  for  the  requirements  of 
railways,  military  armament,  and  general 
machinery. 

It  is  unnecessary  to  go  farther  into  the 
detail  of  the  important  industry  conducted  by 
the  Tokyo  Steel  and  Spring  Works  Co.,  Ltd. 
That  such  an  industry  is  a  natural  develop- 
ment of  manufacturing  in  Japan  is  obvious. 


and  the  success  which  the  company  has 
realised  is  evidence  alike  to  the  soundness  of 
its  enterprise  and  the  appreciation  shown  by 
manufacturers.  The  direction  of  the  com- 
pany is  wise  and  progressive.  Not  only  are  the 
works  and  the  equipment  modern  in  every 
sense,  but  the  welfare  and  training  of  the 
employees  is  being  attended  to  in  order  to 
promote  the  interests  of  the  workmen  at  the 
same  time  that  the  general  standard  of 
efficiency  is  raised.  The  head  office  and  steel 
material  shop  of  the  company  is  located  at 
No.  50  Oshima-machi,  Rokuchome,  Minami 
Katsushika-gori,  Tokyo-fu.  The  spring  shop 
is  at  No.  6,58  Oshima-machi,  Nichome. 
There  are  sub-branches  at  No.  30  Nakano- 
shima,  Gochome,  Osaka,  and  at  Yeiraku-cho, 
Seoul,  Chosen.  Factories  and  offices  cover 
about  2,202  tsubo.  New  two-story  buildings 
are  under  construction  and  will  be  completed 
in  February,  1918.  The  Board  of  Directors 
of  the  Tokyo  Steel  and  Spring  Works  Co., 
Ltd.,  is  as  follows:  President,  Mr.  Kiyoshi 
Toh;  Managing  Director,  Mr.  Tomojiro 
Hayashiya;  Directors,  Messrs.  Y.  Wakaizumi, 
Dr.  S.  Ishimaru  and  K.  Hanai;  Auditors, 
Messrs.  Y.  Yamamoto  and  J.  Hayashiya; 
Chief  Engineer,  Mr.   R.  Endo. 

THE    KOBE    STEEL   WORKS,    MOJI 

BR.\NCH    (kabushiki    KAISHA    KOBE 

SEIKOSHO    MOJI    KOJO) 

This  concern  is  but  a  further  example  of 
the  never  flagging  enterprise  of  the  firm  of 
Suzuki  &  Co.,  the  sole  proprietors.  July  13, 
of  191 7,  will  remain  memorable  in  its  history 
as  the  day  upon  which  the  construction  of 
the  works  was  commenced.  The  inaugura- 
tion ceremony  took  place  less  than  six  months 
later  and  work  was  actually  started  in  March, 
19 1 8,  in  other  words,  in  less  than  eight  months 
from  the  turning  of  the  first  sod.  A  further 
section  of  the  works,  at  present  under  con- 
struction, will  be  completed  with  all  installa- 
tions by  August  of  this  year  (1918),  and  will 
be  ready  to  operate  in  September. 

It  may  be  observed  that  there  is  little  to 
be  said  of  the  achievements  of  so  youthful 
an  enterprise,  but  as  a  branch  of  the  famous 
Kobe  Steel  Works,  although  working  inde- 
pendently, it  will  be  admitted  that  a  special 
significance  attaches. 

The  new  works  are  located  at  Dairi,  form- 
ing one  of  the  imposing  group  of  industries 
referred  to  in  the  description  of  the  Dairi 
Flour  MiU,  and  command  a  view  of  the 
port  of  Shimonoseki  across  the  bay.  The 
buildings,  of  solid  stone  and  brick,  have  a 
superficies  of  5,425  tsubo  and  are  installed 
with  one  500  H.  P.,  two  450  H.  P.,  four  50 
H.  P.,  and  two  5  H.  P.  electrical  motors;  one 
50  H.  P.  vertical  steam  boiler,  and  one 
horizontal  water-tube  steam  boiler. 


w 


B 
m 

If-  i 


THE    Konii    STEEL    WORKS:      VIEWS    OF    THE    WORKS   AT   DAIRI,    MOJl 


PRESENT-DAY        I  M   1'  R  E  S  S  I  O  N  S        OF        JAPAN 


587 


The  output  takes  the  form  of  copper  anti 
brass  pipes  and  bars,  high  speed  or  tool 
steel,  copper  and  brass  plates,  for  the  pro- 
duction of  which  the  works  are  adequately 
installed,  the  plant  including  the  follow- 
ing: Mannesman  tube  piercing  machines, 
grooved  rolling  mills,  hydraulic  pipe  and 
bar  machines,  cranes,  etc. 

From  all  reliable  indications  the  annual 
output  can  safely  be  estimated  as  follows: 
pipes  and  tubes,  2,500  tons;  bars,  2,500 
tons;  plates,  500  tons,  and  tool  steel,  500 
tons.  No  export  is  yet  undertaken,  the 
whole  of  the  production  being  supplied  to 
the  naval  and  military  arsenals  of  Japan. 

The  following  gentlemen  form  the  Board 
of  Directors:  Iwajiro  Suzuki,  Esq.,  Presi- 
dent; Shosuke  Yorioka,  Managing  Director 
(Kob^) ;  Sakamitsu  Morito,  Managing  Direc- 
tor (Dairi);  Messrs.  Kasinon  Tamiya, 
Mantaro  Matsuda,  and  Chujiro  Matsuo, 
Directors,  and  Messrs.  Koro  Yoshii  and 
Fujimatsu  Yanagida,   Auditors. 

HAKODATE    FISH    NET    MANUFACTURING 

AND     shipbuilders'     SUPPLY     CO., 

LIMITED 

This  old  established  company  practically 
controls  one  of  the  important  industries  of 
Japan,  viz.,  that  of  making  fishing  nets,  twine, 
and  many  shipping  supplies,  such  as  chain 
cable,  rigging,  etc.  The  business  has  been 
brought  to  a  state  of  high  perfection,  mainly 
through  the  efforts  of  Mr.  Yasutaro  Okamoto, 
the  President,  who  has  been  connected  with 
the  industry  all  his  Hfe.  Mr.  Okamoto  had 
his  own  factory  in  operation  more  than 
thirty  years  ago.  It  was  in  April,  1911,  that 
he  formed  the  Hakodate  Fish  Net  Co.,  which 
was  an  amalgamation  of  the  Okamoto  Fish 
Net  Co.  and  the  Hokkaido  Machine  Made 
Net  Co.,  Ltd.'s,  business  department.  The 
original  capital  was  Yen  100,000.  For  one 
year  the  new  company  conducted  operations 
on  a  moderate  scale,  but  more  recently  great 
extensions  have  taken  place.  In  December, 
1912,  the  capital  was  increased  to  Yen  200,- 
000.  The  following  year  the  company  was 
turned  into  a  joint-stock  concern,  and  the 
title  was  altered  to  the  Hakodate  Seimosengu 
Kabushiki  Kaisha,  at  the  same  time  as  the 
ship-chandlery  business  of  Hidzume  Shoten 
was  absorbed,  and  the  capital  was  increased 
to  Yen  300,000.  A  further  increase  of  the 
capital  by  Yen  30,000  was  made  in  November, 
1916,  when  the  whole  of  the  interests  of  the 
old  Hokkaido  Machine  Made  Net  Co.,  Ltd., 
were  purchased.  Finally  the  capital  of  the 
company  was  raised  to  Yen  1,000,000,  on 
September  20,  1917.  Of  this  sum,  Yen  497,- 
500  is  paid  up,  and  the  sundry  reserves  and 
undistributed  balances  total  Yen  656,473,  a 
very  satisfactory  financial  position. 


CABLE    CHAIN    WORKS    OF    HAKODATE    FISH    NET   &    SHIPBUILDERS'    SUPPLY   CO.,    LTD., 

AT   FUKAGAWA,    TOKYO 


The  head  office  of  the  Hakodate  Fish  Net 
Manufacturing  and  Shipbuilders'  Supply  Co., 
Ltd.,  is  at  No.  84  Suyehiro-cho,  Hakodate 
City.  A  branch  office  is  at  No.  100  Suyehiro- 
cho,  Hakodate,  under  the  management  of  Mr. 
K.  Suyetomi.  The  main  Shipping  Supplies 
Department  is  at  Nos.  31  and  32  Higashi- 
hama-cho,  Hakodate,  under  the  management 
of  Mr.  H.  Hidzume.  Through  this  depart- 
ment the  company  deals  extensively  in 
copper,  iron,  ship  fittings  and  materials, 
machinery,  engineering  requisites  and  so  on. 
The  Tokyo  branch  office  is  at  No.  14  Kita- 
shimbori-cho,  Nihonbashi-ku.  Here  the  com- 
pany does  an  extensive  trade  as  importers 
and  salesmen  of  engineering  plant  and 
machinery,  steel  and  iron  material  for  ship- 
building, rails  and  other  railway  equipment, 
and  general  import  and  export.  The  Manag- 
ing Director  of  the  compan)^,  Mr.  T.  Hidzume, 
is  in  charge  of  this  important  department. 
There  is  also  a  Shipping  Supplies  Department 
at  Otaru,  Hokkaido,  under  the  management 
of  Mr.  S.  Yashiki,  and  a  Fish  Net  and  Fishing 
Supplies  Branch  in  the  same  port  under  Mr.  Y. 
Akio.  It  will  therefore  be  seen  how  widely 
spread   throughout  Japan    the   company   is 

The  principal  factories  are  located  as 
follows:  No.  I  Factory,  for  the  production  of 
cotton  yarn,  twisted  thread,  and  machine 
made  fish  nets,  at  No.  5  Goryokaku-dori, 
Hakodate;  No.  2  Hakodate  Factory,  for 
cotton  yarn,  twisted  thread,  and  machine  and 
hand    made    nets,    at    Kameda-mura,    near 


Hakodate;  No.  3  Hakodate  Factory,  for 
machine  made  nets,  at  Matsukaze-cho, 
Hakodate;  No.  4  Factory,  for  machine  and 
hand  made  nets,  at  Naibo-mura,  near  Sap- 
poro; No.  5  Factory,  for  strong  hemp  thread 
and  machine  made  nets,  at  Sendai;  No.  6 
Factory,  for  strong  hemp  thread,  at  Tamachi, 
Hamamatsu.  Last,  but  not  least,  is  the 
modern  and  well  equipped  chain  cable  making 
factory  at  No.  116  Higashi,  Hirai-cho, 
Fukagawa-ku,  Tokyo.  Here  the  Hakodate 
Fish  Net  Manufacturing  and  Shipbuilders' 
Supply  Co.,  Ltd.,  has  established  a  very 
important  industry,  turning  out  chain  of  all 
sizes,  and  particularly  hea'vj'  cable  for  ships' 
use.  Some  idea  of  the  development  of  the 
company's  vast  interests  may  be  gathered 
from  the  figures  relative  to  the  production  of 
various  articles.  The  following  tabulation 
shows  the  annual  production  for  the  periods 
mentioned: 

Dec.,  1914  —  Nov.,  1915 Yen  1,571,405 

Dec,  1915  —  Nov.,  1916 "     1,981,871 

Dec,  1916  —  Sept.,  1917 "     3,891,780 

The  total  area  covered  by  the  company's 
various  factories  is  3,860  tsiibo.  Included 
in  the  plant  are  230  patented  machines  for 
fishing  net  manufacture,  etc.,  and  the  number 
of  hands  engaged  is  over  1,250.  Following 
are  the  principal  officers  of  the  company: 
President,  Mr.  Yasutaro  Okamoto;  Managing 
Directors,  Messrs.  Kojiro  Suyetomi  and 
Teitaro     Hidzume:     Director,     Mr.     Sanjiro 


588 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


-  f* 


PORTABLE    UNIVERSAL    RADL\L    DRILLING    MACHINE,    BUILT    BY    KISHA    SEIZO    KAISHA    (LOCO- 
MOTIVE   MANUFACTURING   CO.,  LTD.) — TYPE    OF    LOCOMOTIVE    BUILT    BY    THE    FIRM 


kinds,  and  about  8,000  tons  of  bridge  work, 
otc. 

The  company's  sites  cover  about  28,000 
tsubo,  and  the  buildings  have  a  ground  area 
of  7,000  tsubo.  Annual  sales  total  Yen 
4,580,000.  Nearly  2,000  well  trained  work- 
men  are  employed. 

The  Locomotive  Manufacturing  Co.,  Ltd., 
includes  among  its  clients  the  Imperial  Rail- 
way Bureau,  the  Formosa  Railways,  the 
South  Manchuria  Railway  Co.,  Mitsubishi 
Shipbuilding  Yard  at  Nagasaki  and  Kob6, 
Naval  Arsenals,  the  Military  Arsenals  at 
Osaka,  Kawasaki  Dockyard  Co.,  Kob6, 
Osaka  Iron  Works,  Ltd.,  Okura  &  Co.,  and 
Takata  &  Co.,  Alfred  Herbert,  Ltd.,  and 
many  customers  in  India,  China,  and  the 
South  Seas.  Agents  for  the  company  are 
Takata  &  Co.,  Tokyo,  and  Alfred  Herbert, 
Ltd.,  Yokohama. 

Following  is  a  list  of  the  principal  lines  of 
this  well  equipped  company:  Railway  loco- 
motive, steam  motor  car,  passenger  car, 
goods  and  steel  coal  car,  steel  bridge-work, 
turntable,  railway  point  and  crossing,  engi- 
neering machinery  and  general  structural 
steel  and  iron  work,  etc. 

The  staffs  of  the  Locomotive  Manufactur- 
ing Co.,  Ltd.,  includes  Mr.  Izuha,  manager 
and  chief  engineer  at  the  Osaka  works, 
assisted  by  84  technical  experts,  and  Mr.  S. 
Murakami,  manager  and  chief  engineer  at  the 
Tokyo  branch  works,  assisted  by  50  technical 
experts. 

Dr.  S.  Hasegawa  (Doctor  of  Teclmology) 
is  the  Managing  Director.  The  Board  of 
Directors  comprises  Mr.  R.  Hiraoka  as 
Adviser.  The  Auditors  are  Messrs.  T. 
Tanabe  and  T.  Hano.  The  company's  main 
workshops  and  head  office  are  at  Shimaya- 
cho,  Nishiku,  Osaka,  and  the  Tokj^o  work- 
sliops  are  at  Kinshi-cho,  Honjoku,  Tokyo. 


Sugino;  Auditors,  Messrs.  Kunitaro  Kamei 
and  Zenkichi  Tachikawa;  Advisor,  Mr. 
Koichiro  Oguma. 

LOCOMOTIVE    MANUFACTURING    CO., 
LIMITED 

The  Kisha  Seizo  Kaisha,  or  Locomotive 
Manufacturing  Co.,  came  into  existence  in 
September,  1896.  It  was  promoted  by  the 
late  Viscount  Inouye,  who  w'as  a  pioneer  of 
railways  in  Japan,  and  was  originally  a  joint- 
capital  concern  with  a  capital  of  Yen  640,000. 
Since  that  time,  of  course,  the  industry  has 
developed  rapidly,  and  the  company  has  gone 
from  one  stage  of  success  to  another,  until 
to-day  it  must  be  numbered  among  the  very 
large  industrial  manufacturing  concerns  of 
the    coimtr>'. 

In  July,  1 90 1,  the  Hiraoka  Factory  at 
Tokyo  w-as  purchased  by  the  company  and 


was  made  the  Tokyo  branch  works.  The 
style  of  the  company  was  altered  in  October, 
1912,  and  it  became  a  joint-stock  liabiHty 
organisation.  The  following  month  the 
capital  was  increased  to  Yen  2,700,000,  of 
which  sum  Yen  975,300  has  still  to  be  called 
up  as  the  necessity  arises.  The  company's 
reserve  fund  amounted  to  Yen  674,051  in 
August,   191 7. 

The  Locomotive  Manufacturing  Co.,  Ltd., 
builds  locomotives  and  passenger  and  freight 
cars  for  the  Government  or  for  pri\-ate  rail- 
ways. The  number  so  far  constructed  is 
over  10,000,  and  in  addition,  the  company 
has  built  about  45,000  tons  of  steel  work  for 
bridges.  An  idea  of  the  manufacturing 
capacity  of  the  company's  plants  may  be 
gathered  from  the  statement  that  the  annual 
output  is  100  locomotives,  200  bogie  cars, 
3,500  freight  cars,  500  machines  of  different 


NIIGATA  TEKKOSHO 
The  remarkable  development  which  has 
taken  place  in  the  industrial  life  of  Japan  is 
in  no  direction  more  pronoimced  than  in 
mechanical  engineering,  and  in  the  manu- 
facture of  machinery.  Japan  possesses  to- 
A&y  some  of  the  greatest  engineering  and 
construction  plants  in  the  world,  and  their 
services  have  been  of  immeasurable  value  to 
the  Allied  cause  in  this  war.  We  have  only 
to  consider  the  shipbuilding  plants,  and  the 
works  that  have  been  placed  on  munition 
making  to  recognise  this  fact.  In  no  way 
secondary  to  these  large  enterprises  are  the 
machine  shops  and  engineering  works,  from 
which  a  steadily  increasing  output  of  mechan- 
ical appliances,  necessary  to  the  various 
industries  and  construction  concerns,  is 
being  recorded.  In  this  category  of  impor- 
tant enterprises  is  the   name  of  the  Niigata 


OSAKA    ELECTRIC   LIGHT  CO.,  LTD.:      INTERIOR   AND    EXTERIOR    VIEWS   OF    THE    WORKS   AND   THE    POWER   STATION 


590 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


Tekkosho,  or  the  Niigata  Engineering  Works, 
Ltd.  This  company  has  been  engaged  for 
years  in  the  manufacture  of  all  kinds  of 
plant  for  industrial  and  public  utility  work. 
In  its  works  and  yards,  perfectly  equipped 
to  handle  any  orders,  the  company  is  engaged 
in  the  building  of  oil  engines,  for  stationary 
and  marine  use,  and  several  kinds  of  machine 


for  over  1,500  persons,  and  the  annual 
salaries  and  wages  bill  exceeds  Yen  470,000. 
At  the  present  the  Niigata  Engineering 
Works,  Ltd.,  has  an  average  annual  output 
of  work  of  the  value  of  Yen  3,500,000,  and 
its  capacity  is  being  increased  to  take  care 
of  any  future  orders.  The  products  of  the 
plants   are,   of   course,   largely   destined    for 


GENER.'iL    VIEW    OF    F.\CTORY    .^ND    MACHINE    SHOP    OF    K.^BUSHIKI    K.\ISH.\   XIIG-\TA    TEKKOSHO 
(niigata    engineering    works,    LTD.) 


tools,  especially  in  their  Tokyo  works;  the 
manufacture  of  many  classes  of  pumps,  and 
hea\'y  pumping  machinery  for  big  under- 
takings; oil  well  machinery,  steam  engines, 
boilers,  and  also  the  building  of  ships  of  wood 
and  iron. 

The  business  was  founded  in  1895  by  the 
late  Mr.  Gonzaburo  Yamaguchi,  and  Mr. 
Hisahiro  Naito,  who  is  now  President  of  the 
Japan  Oil  Co.,  Ltd.  The  original  capital 
w-as  Yen  100,000,  but  with  the  grow'th  of 
the  business  this  w-as  extended  and  increased 
on  several  occasions  until  to-day  its  stands 
at  Yen  2,000,000.  The  head  office  of  the 
Niigata  Engineering  W^orks,  Ltd.,  is  at 
No.  5,  Sanchome,  Yurakucho,  Kojimachi- 
ku,  Tokyo.  At  Tokyo  the  works  cover  an 
area  of  two  acres;  at  Kashiwazaki,  one  acre; 
at  Nagaoka,  0.7  acre;  at  Tsuchizaki,  15 
acres.  The  principal  works  are  at  Niigata, 
where  the  company's  property  extends  over 
forty  acres.  All  the  plants  are  modem  in 
every  sense,  the  most  accurate  machines  and 
labour-saving  appliances  being  utilised.  The 
buildings  are  of  brick,  steel,  and  reinforced 
concrete,  constructed  on  up-to-date  lines, 
and  specially  designed  for  the  work  which 
the  company  carries  on.  In  the  various 
plants  and  the  offices  employment  is  found 


use  in  Japan,  but  the  company  also  manu- 
factures for  the  foreign  markets  and  is  now 
exporting  to  Russia,  China,  Australia,  and 
India.  The  President  of  the  company  is 
Mr.  Tatsutaro  Yamaguchi.  Mr,  Kichiro 
Sasamura  is  the  Managing  Director,  and  the 
Directors  are  as  follows:  Messrs.  Hisahiro 
Naito,  Shinsaku  Homma,  and  Sansaku 
Kagitomi.  The  principal  officers  are:  Audi- 
tors, Messrs.  Hidesaburo  Kusumi,  Chutaro 
Nakano,  and  Kuranosuke  Saito;  General 
Manager,  Mr.  Kichijiro  Nagashima:  Super- 
intendent of  Sales  Department,  Mr.  Sataro 
Kumazaki;  W^orks  Manager  (Tokyo),  Mr. 
Tadashi  Motogi;  Works  Manager  (Niigata), 
Mr.  Kozo  Kigawa. 

OSAKA  ELECTRIC  LIGHT  CO.,  LI.MITED 
This  great  company,  which  has  a  capital 
of  Yen  21,600,000  fully  paid  up,  was  estab- 
lished in  1888,  the  promoters  being  Mr.  Z. 
Konoike  and  nineteen  others,  who  sub- 
scribed the  original  capital  of  Yen  400,000. 
Business  was  actually  started  in  May,  1889, 
with  a  small  generating  station  at  Ajikawa 
in  Osaka.  Generally  speaking,  the  company 
experienced  a  successful  career  in  its  initial 
stages,  and  the  business  expanded  steadily, 
calling  for  increase  in  capital  and  the  erec- 


tion of  new  plants  at  such  places  as  Saiwacho 
and  Honden.  Furthermore,  the  Osaka  Elec- 
tric Light  Co.,  Ltd.,  established  power 
stations  in  W'estern  Japan  at  such  centres 
as  Moji,  Sakai,  Saseho,  and  Maizuru,  but 
these  outlying  stations  and  plants  were  sub- 
sequently sold  to  other  concerns  and  the 
company  concentrated  attention  on  the 
growing  demands  of  the  rapidly  developing 
great  commercial  and  industrial  centre  of 
Osaka.  In  1906  a  contract  was  entered 
into  with  the  city  authorities  for  the  lighting 
of  Osaka,  and  that  arrangement  has  con- 
tinued ever  since,  the  contract  leaving  the 
company  a  fair  margin  of  profit  above  instal- 
lation and  running  expenses.  Up  to  1897 
the  sole  business  done  was  in  the  sale  of 
electric  current  for  lighting  purposes,  but 
after  that  date  the  Osaka  Electric  Light  Co., 
Ltd.,  generated  current  for  power  purposes, 
and  it  is  now  disposing  of  over  5,500  horse- 
power for  industrial  purposes.  A  large 
generating  plant  was  installed  at  the  Ajikawa 
station  in  1908,  and  the  stations  at  Saiwacho 
and  Honden  were  then  aboUshed,  further 
pow'er  being  obtained  under  contract  with 
the  Ujigawa  Electric  Co.,  Ltd.,  from  the 
latter's  water-driven  plant  at  Ujimachi. 
The  demand  on  the  company's  generating 
capacity  rapidly  increased  as  Osaka  rose  in 
commercial  and  industrial  importance,  and 
two  new  stations  had  to  be  provided,  one  at 
East  Ajikawa  and  the  other  at  West  Ajikaw'a, 
a  combined  capacity  for  25,000  kilowatts. 
With  this  system  installed,  and  the  supply 
from  the  Ujigawa  Electric  Co.,  Ltd.,  in 
operation,  the  old  station  at  Ajikawa  was 
abolished.  Since  the  war,  however,  the 
development  in  Osaka  has  been  so  rapid 
and  phenomenal,  that  the  Osaka  Electric 
Co.,  Ltd.,  has  been  forced  to  make  further 
large  extensions  in  its  plant.  To  this  end  a 
new  station  has  been  opened  at  Kasugade, 
and  the  following  generating  force  is  being 
installed:  West  Ajikawa,  5  turbo-generators, 
made  by  Westinghouse,  each  of  3,000  k.  w., 
1 ,800  r.  p  m. ;  East  Ajikawa,  2  turbo-genera- 
tors (Westinghouse),  each  of  5,000  k.  w. , 
1,800  r.  p.  m. ;  I  turbo-generator,  made  by 
the  Mitsubishi  Co.  at  Nagasaki,  12,500, 
1,800  r.  p.  m.;  and  2  generators  of  25,000 
k.  w.,  each  1,000  r.  p.  m. 

In  addition  to  the  supply  of  current  for 
lighting  and  power  purposes,  the  Osaka 
Electric  Light  Co.,  Ltd.,  manufactures  and 
sells  electrical  machinery  and  instruments, 
and  is  the  owner  of  several  investments  in 
electrical  undertakings.  A  factor^'  was  es- 
tablished in  1894  at  Nakanoshima,  Kitaku, 
Osaka,  for  the  manufacture  and  repair  of 
machinery  and  instruments  used  by  the 
company,  and  for  the  public.  Since  that 
time  several  new  factories  have  been  built. 


■it  ■  *^ 

'""'li 

y^H 

1  n 

^1 

h 

\ 

! 

^;,i' 

ixriiTiPiiniiiioantiiipniDiMl » 1 1  a » n « i  <  iij  "  <  u  u  *  t  ij ; 


/•IS^^if' 


rB-i-¥i-BnnirT''iiil^ 


1 1' 'J 


,lp , 

Sj,   ■"■ 

i  p-J 

r 

p. 

►  < 

'  ' 

w 

UJIGAWA    ELECTRIC   CO.,    LTD.:      THE    OVERFLOW  —  THE    OS.\K.\   OFFICES  —  THE    REGULATOR    GATES  —  UJI    POWER   HOUSE 


592 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


and  the  manufacturing  side  of  the  company's 
enterprise  has  been  widely  extended,  one 
particular  line  being  the  production  of  cotton- 
coated  copper  wire  for  general  installation. 
Factories  were  established  at  Nakanoshima, 
Sakai,   and    Nishinoda.    hut    the   latter   was 


in  its  various  plants,  factories,  and  offices. 
The  head  office  of  the  company  is  at  No. 
60  Nakanoshima,  Kita-ku,  O.saka.  The 
Directors  are  Messrs.  T.  Sakano,  J.  Tcrada, 
B.  Hiraga,  T.  Shima,  and  the  Auditors  are 
Messrs.  T.  Fujita,  N.   Nagata,  and  S.  Gion. 


A    TEMPLE    AT   NIKKO 


destroyed  by  fire  in  19 17.  Thereupon  the 
company  purchased  a  site  belonging  to  the 
Osaka  Iron  Works,  and  another  factory  was 
erected  there.  When  the  works  are  fully 
equipped  and  organised  according  to  present 
plans,  it  is  expected  that  the  output  of 
electrical  machines,  appliances,  wire,  etc., 
and  repairs  will  amount  in  value  to  over 
Yen  4,000,000  per  annum.  Viewed  from  the 
financial  point,  the  business  of  the  Osaka 
Electric  Light  Co.,  Ltd.,  has  been  highly 
successful.  From  the  first  half  of  19 10  a 
sound  system  of  distributing  profits  has 
been  followed,  and  this  has  had  the  result 
of  equahsing  dividends  and  strengthening 
the  position  of  the  company.  For  the  half- 
year  ended  June  30,  191 7,  the  gross  revenue, 
including  the  balance  brought  forward  from 
the  previous  term,  was  Yen  4,278,137.05, 
which  latter,  deducting  gross  expenses  of 
Yen  2,738,730.40,  resulted  in  a  net  divisible 
profit  of  Yen  1,559,406.64.  From  this  sum 
a  dividend  of  12  per  cent  was  paid,  absorbing 
Yen  1,152,000;  Yen  255,000  was  placed  to 
reserve;  a  bonus  of  Yen  55,000  was  distrib- 
uted, and  Yen  87,406  was  carried  forward. 
The  dividend  of  12  per  cent  has  been  paid 
regularly  every  half-year  since  191 5.  In- 
cluding the  technical  stafl,  the  Osaka  Elec- 
tric Light  Co.,  Ltd.,  employs  2,401  persons 


UJIGAWA  ELECTRIC   COMPANY, 
LIMITED 
Japan   is   fortunate   in   the  possession   of 
ample  sources  of  water  power,  the  value  of 
which  has  been  recognised  by  several  enter- 
prises, such  as  the  Ujigawa  Electric  Company, 
Limited.     This  company  furnishes  the  busy 
industrial  and  commercial  city  of  Osaka  with 
an  immense  volume  of  electrical  current  for 
light  and  power,  at  a  price  that  for  cheapness 
can    hardly   be   outdone,    and   it   is   indeed 
questionable  whether  this  fortunate  state  of 
affairs    is    not    largely    responsible    for    the 
remarkable   growth   and    prosperity    of    the 
important  industries  located  in  that  city.     As 
an  engineering  enterprise,   the  work  of  the 
Ujigawa  Electric  Co.,   Ltd.,   is  one   of   the 
largest  in  Japan.     The  company  was  organ- 
ised in  October,  1906,  and  the  following  month 
obtained  authority  to  develop  its  plans  and 
enter  upon  the  supply  of  electrical  current. 
Preliminary  surveys  and  other  works  occupied 
the  company  till  December,   1908,  when  it 
started  on  the  installation  of  its  power  plant. 
The  construction   of  channels,   tunnels  and 
other    works    occupied    several    years,    and 
business  with  the   public   was  not  actually 
entered  upon  till  August  i,  1913,  when  Osaka 
found  herself  in  possession  of  one  of  the  best 
power   systems   yet   devised.     The   Ujigawa 


Company's  scheme  comprises  the  tapping  of 
the  River  Seta  at  Ishiyama  Village  in  the 
Province  of  Omi;  a  power  station  at  Ujimachi, 
and    several   substations   in    Osaka   and    its 
environs.     At  Ishiyama  an  inlet  was  made  on 
the  right  bank  of  the  River  Seta,  which  flows 
out  strongly  from  Lake  Biwa.     The  water  is 
taken  into  the  company's  channel  at  the  rate 
of  2,200  cubic  feet  per  second,  and  is  then 
conducted  by  channels  and   tunnels  36,790 
feet  long,  with  a  slope  of  i  in  2,000,  to  the 
electrical   power  station  at   Ujimachi.     The 
water  reaches  the  turbines  through  six  iron 
pipes  of  8  feet  inside  diameter,  having  a  fall 
of    203.77.     The    turbines,    of    spiral    type, 
mo\'e   at   360   revolutions   per   minute,    and 
develop  8,100  horsepower.     The  turbines  and 
generators  are  installed  in  a  brick  building 
which     covers     626    Isubo.     There    are    six 
generators,  each  having  a  capacity  of  three 
phases,  '60  cycles,  and  12,000  volts,  7,000  kilo 
volt  amperes.     The  total  volume  of  electricity 
generated  by  this  plant  is  48,600  horsepower. 
A  part  of  this  power  is  sent  to  the  Toji  sub- 
station of  the  Kyoto  Electric  Light  Co.,  at 
Higashi  Kujo  Village,  Kyoto,  the  main  line 
being  about  8  miles  in  length  and  carrying  a 
load  of  12,000  volts.     The  other  part  of  the 
power  (raised  to  55,000  volts)  generated  at 
Ujimachi  goes  by  wire,  a  distance  of  22  miles, 
to  the  Noye  substation,  Osaka.     There  the 
current  is  reduced  to  11,000  volts,  and  is  sent 
to  the  two  substations  of  the  company  at 
Yebiye  and  Dotombori,  in  which  the  current, 
being  once  more  reduced  to  3,500  volts,  is 
distributed  to  Osaka  and  its  environs.     Other 
substations  are  now  being  constructed  for  the 
further  supply  of  current.     Since  the  business 
was   opened   in    19 13    the   demands   on   the 
Ujigawa    Electric    Company's   service   have 
steadily  increased,  and  at  the  end  of  August, 
191 7,  the    total    horsepower   employed    was 
43,268,  covering  4,191   factories  and  works. 
The  company  is  also  supplying  20,000  kilo- 
watts to  the  Osaka  Electric  Light  Co.,  4,000 
kilowatts  to  the  Kyoto  Electric  Light  Co., 
and  2,000  kilowatts  to  the   Osaka   Electric 
Tramway.     So  rapid  has  been  the  advance 
of  industrial  enterprise  at  Osaka,  however, 
that  the  Ujigawa  Electric  Company's  service 
is   likely   to   prove   insufficient   in   the   near 
future.     An  extension  is  contemplated  and 
the  company  has  already  lodged  an  applica- 
tion with  the  authorities  for  permission  to 
install  another  water  power  generating  plant 
to  produce  25,000  kilowatts,  and  a  fire  power 
plant   for   30,000   kilowatts.     As   permission 
for  the  latter  has  already  been  granted  this 
work  will  be  put  in  hand. 

THE    KAWAKITA    ELECTRICAL   COMPANY, 
LIMITED 
A  LARGE  item  in  the  foreign  trade  of  Japan 
is  the  export  of  electrical  machinery,  appli- 


KAWAKITA    DENKI    KIGYOSHA    KABUSHIKI    KAISHA    (KAWAKITA    ELECTRICAL   CO.,    LTD.):      THE   OSAKA   OFFICES — GENERAL   VIEW 

OF    THE    WORKS  —  INTERIOR   OF    THE   ELECTRIC    WORK   AT   OSAKA 


594 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


anccs,  and  parts,  the  manufacture  of  which 
has  developed  to  a  remarkable  extent  within 
the  last  few  years.  It  is;  indeed,  a  matter  of 
j!;reat  surprise  to  all  foreign  students  of  the 
industrial  growth  of  Japan,  to  learn  that  a 
country  which  about  twenty-five  years  ago 
imported  its  first  electric  motor,  should 
to-day  be  not  only  supplying  the  great 
bulk  of  its  own  domestic  requirements,  but 
exporting  some  millions  of  yens'   worth  of 


regarded  by  other  electrical  concerns  as  good 
profitable  undertakings,  tiut  the  Kawakita 
Company  made  them  successful.  The  com- 
pany also  reorganised  some  already  existing 
plants,  and  turned  them  into  profitable 
enterprises,  by  bringing  to  bear  on  the  under- 
takings sound  business  methods  and  proper 
technical  control,  in  place  of  bad  administra- 
tion and  faulty  engineering.  As  examples  of 
the  company's  success  in  this  direction  may 


fan-motors  and  other  ventilating  appliances, 
watt-hour  meters,  mine  lamps,  and  other 
electric  installation  apparatus  and  materials. 
Some  idea  of  the  extent  of  the  productive 
capacity  of  the  manufacturing  plant  may  be 
gathered  from  the  statement  that  the  works 
turn  out  over  Yen  3,800,000  worth  of  electri- 
cal goods  and  appliances  per  annum,  among 
which  are  the  following  items:  dynamos  and 
motors.    Yen    2,000,000;    pole   transformers. 


electrical  manufactures  annually.  Electrical 
manufacturing  enterprises  are  not  industries 
that  come  naturally  to  any  country.  To  be 
successful  they  must  have  behind  them  large 
organisations  of  capital  and  technical  skill, 
and  the  degree  of  importance  to  which  such 
enterprises  have  attained  in  Japan  is  evidence 
of  sound  business  knowledge,  capable  manage- 
ment, and  close  study  of  electrical  .science. 
Amongst  the  greatest  of  the  Japanese 
concerns  in  this  branch  of  industry  is  the 
Kawakita  Denki  Kigyosha  Kabushiki  Kaisha, 
or  the  Kawakita  Electrical  Company,  Ltd. 
This  company  is  not  a  very  old  one,  but  it  has 
had  a  remarkably  successful  career,  and  is  an 
enterprise  that  bids  fair  to  rival  some  of  the 
greatest  electrical  manufacturing  organisa- 
tions of  the  world. 

The  Kawakita  Electrical  Co.,  Ltd.,  was 
organised  in  July,  1909,  as  an  ordinary  com- 
pany, with  a  comparatively  small  capital,  but 
with  plenty  of  financial  support  available 
through  the  friends  of  the  founder  of  the 
enterprise.  At  first  the  company  endeavoured , 
acting  as  promoters  and  financiers,  to  estab- 
lish a  few  hydro-electric  light  and  power  plants 
in  the  western  part  of  Japan.  Some  of  these 
undertakings,  for  instance,  were  the  Miye 
Kyodo  Denki  Kaisha,  the  Ohmi  Suiryoku 
Denki  Kaisha,  the  Hase  Suiden  Kaisha,  and 
others.     These  schemes  had  not  hitherto  been 


VIEWS    IN   ARASHIYAM.\,    KYOTO 

be  cited  the  Nagasaki  Dento  Kaisha,  the 
Hiroshima  Dento  Kaisha,  and  the  Matzuye 
Dento  Kaisha.  Attention  was  directed  also 
to  the  manufacture  of  certain  lines  that  could 
be  produced  locally  in  competition  with 
imported  goods.  In  the  meanwhile  the 
Kawakita  Company  was  reorganised  in  April, 
1913,  into  a  joint-stock  company,  with  a 
capital  of  Yen  1,000,000.  After  achieving 
good  results  as  a  manufacturing  concern  the 
company  extended  its  factory,  as  well  as  its 
sales  department,  and  at  present  is  carrying 
on  business  with  a  capital  of  Yen  3,000,000, 
which  is  to  be  increased  in  the  near  future. 
The  company's  branches  to-day  comprise: 
The  manufacture  of  electrical  machines; 
import  and  export  of  electrical  appliances, 
machinery,  parts,  etc.  There  is  hardly  a 
branch  of  electrical  manufacturing  that  is  not 
conducted  in  the  extensive  works  of  the 
company.  Moreover,  the  Kawakita  Electri- 
cal Company,  Ltd.,  is  interested  very  largely 
in  electrical  engineering  in  its  broader  aspects, 
operating  as  a  general  contracting  company 
for  electric  installations,  plants,  and  projects, 
carrying  out  public  and  civil  undertakings, 
and  acting  as  promoters  and  financiers  of 
electric  light  and  power  schemes.  The  manu- 
facturing side  of  the  enterprise  embraces  the 
making  of  every  kind  of  electrical  machinery, 
dynamos,  motors,  transformers,  switch-boards, 


Yen  400,000;  large  transformers.  Yen  500,000; 
table  and  ceiling  fans,  Yen  600,000;  watt-hour 
meters.  Yen  100,000;  and  other  appliances, 
Yen  200,000.  The  customers  of  the  company 
comprise  practically  all  the  electric  Ught, 
power,  and  railway  companies  in  Japan, 
mining,  spinning,  and  industrial  companies 
generally,  and  factories  where  electricity  is  the 
motive  power.  The  bulk  of  the  export  trade 
is  done  with  China,  India,  and  Australia,  but 
many  new  markets  are  being  opened  up 

The  Kawakita  Electrical  Co.,  Ltd.,  has  an 
exceptionally  large  and  modem  factory  at 
Imafuku  near  Osaka.  The  site  is  about 
20,000  tsubo,  with  extensions  now  going  on 
to  make  the  area  60,000  tsubo.  In  this 
fine  plant,  which  covers  about  4,000  tsubo, 
the  best  and  most  modem  machinery  in 
Japan  is  installed,  giving  the  company  the 
greatest  productive  capacity  and  ensuring 
economy  of  manufacture,  with  the  highest 
quality  of  goods.  A  feature  of  the  instal- 
lation is  the  excellent  testing  machinery, 
which  ensures  the  highest  standards  of 
accuracy  in  all  manufactures.  Electric  pow-er 
is  employed  throughout.  Apart  from  the 
technical  experts  and  clerical  staffs,  totalling 
300,  in  the  various  oflSces  and  at  the  works, 
about  1,500  hands  are  employed  regularly. 
As  importers  and  exporters  of  electrical 
manufactures,  or  the  materials  thereof,  the 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


595 


TWO   VIEWS   OF    THE    PREMISES   OF    THE   CHICHIBU    ELECTRIC    WIRE    WORKS,    LIMITED 


company  has  a  very  wide  range  of  operations. 
Imported  lines  include  electrical  sheet  iron, 
magnets,  insulation  materials,  and  other 
requisites  for  the  manufacture  of  machines 
and  apparatus,  as  well  as  some  imports  of 
completed  manufactures.  The  imports  come 
from  the  United  States,  Great  Britain, 
Switzerland  and  other  countries. 

The  head  office  of  the  Kawakita  Electrical 
Co.,  Ltd.,  is  at  No.  65  Itchome,  Dojima- 
Hamadori,  Kita-ku,  Osaka.  A  large  stor- 
age godown  is  maintained  at  Fukushima. 
There  are  branches  of  the  company  at 
Sonczaki  in  Osaka,  and  also  at  Tokyo, 
Fukuoka,  and  Shanghai,  and  sub-branches  at 
Niigata,  Sendai,  Sapporo,  Kyoto,  Hiroshima, 
Kokura,  Ohita,  Nakatsu,  Taihoku  (Formosa), 
and  Amoy  (China).  Agencies  are  estab- 
lished at  Moji,  Nagoya,  Nagasaki,  Kuma- 
moto,  and  Daircn,  each  having  showrooms 
and  godowns  of  larger  or  smaller  capacity. 
Mr.  Y.  Kawakita,  founder  of  the  enter- 
prise, is  the  President  of  the  company,  and 
his  co-directors  are  Messrs.  J.  Noguchi  and 
H.  Koga.  Mr.  P.  Raison  is  the  Auditor 
and  Mr.  K.  Y'amura  the  Manager. 


CHICHIBU     ELECTRIC     WIRE      MANUFAC- 
TURING   CO.,    LIMITED 

Electrical  engineering  has  more  than 
kept  pace  with  other  industrial  develop- 
ments in  Japan,  and  many  highly  important 
associated  industries  have  sprung  up.  One 
of  these  is  the  manufacture  of  electric  wire, 
cables,  etc.,  and  in  this  work  the  Chichibu 
Electric  Wire  Manufacturing  Co.,  Ltd.,  has 
taken  a  foremost  position. 

This  company's  business  was  originally 
the  private  enterprise  of  Mr.  Sadaharu 
Chichibu,  who  began  the  manufacture  of 
wire  for  electrical  engineering  purposes  in 
1906,  establishing  a  factory  at  Aoyama, 
Tokyo,  for  that  purpose.  The  work  went 
on  satisfactorily,  and  Mr.  Chichibu  was 
able  to  supply  a  large  portion  of  the  local 
demand  for  wires  and  cables,  so  much  so 
that  in  1911  he  was  compelled  to  erect  a 
new  and  larger  factory  at  Shibuya,  Tokj-o. 
The  output  was  considerably  increased,  in 
keeping  with  the  expansion  of  the  industr\' 
generally,  and  an  export  trade  was  entered 
upon.  With  the  outbreak  of  the  European 
war  and  the  cutting  off  of  a  large  portion  of 


foreign  supplies,  Mr.  Chichibu's  industry 
developed  at  a  very  rapid  pace.  Capital  was 
required  to  enlarge  the  works  and  extend 
the  field  of  operations,  and  to  this  purpose  the 
private  enterprise  was  reorganised  in  Septem- 
ber, 1915,  as  a  limited  liability  company. 
Mr.  Osuke  Asano,  Professor  of  Technology, 
joined  the  company,  and  the  plant  was  en- 
larged and  improved  in  various  directions. 
The  company  owns  a  number  of  patents 
dealing  with  the  manufacture  of  wire  and 
cable,  as  well  as  patents  for  devices  for 
testing  insulations  and  so  on,  it  being  con- 
ceded that  some  of  the  best  and  most  modem 
ideas  are  involved  in  the  work.  The  princi- 
pal items  of  manufacture  by  this  company 
are:  magneto  wire,  signal  wire,  telephone 
wire,  military  telegraphic  wire,  high  power 
electrical  cables,  electric  lamp  cord,  insu- 
lating compound  and  varnish  and  accessories 
for  cables,  etc.  "Chichibu"  patented  wire 
is  insulated  with  an  elastic  compound  that 
yields  with  the  bending  of  the  core  wire, 
instead  of  India  rubber.  This  compound  is 
covered  with  a  strong  tape  made  from  pure 
Japanese   paper,   and   is   then   covered   with 


Mi 


i^S^5^i¥l 


KYUSHU   ELECTRIC    WIRE    MANUFACTURING  CO.,  LTD.:      BRAIDING   WIRE   IN   THE   WIRE   DEPARTMENT — LEAD    PLATE    DEPARTMENT - 

GENERAL   VIEW   OF   THE   WORKS  AT   DAIRI,    MOJI 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


597 


several  layers  of  protective  composition.  By 
this  special  process  the  (juality  of  the  wire 
does  not  deteriorate  for  a  very  long  time, 
and  the  efficiency  of  the  cable  is  not  aflfected 
by  moisture,  acids,  salts,  gas,  etc.  It  is 
claimed  for  the  wire  turned  out  by  the 
Chichibu  Electric  Wire  Manufacturing  Co., 
Ltd.,  that  it  has  the  following  special  fea- 
tures: It  insulates  well,  stands  high  pressure 
and  lasts  long;  it  can  be  used  for  electrical 
installations  at  the  seashore,  hot  springs, 
mines,  and  in  other  cases  where  a  special 
class  of  wire  is  generally  needed;  contrary 
to  rubber  insulated  wire,  the  "Chichibu" 
wire  can  be  used  in  conjunction  with  metals 
without  any  fear;  it  is  light  in  weight,  so 
that  the  cost  of  transportation  is  not  heavy; 
the  "Chichibu"  wire  can  be  repaired  easily, 
because  the  wire  does  not  change  into  copper 
sulphide,  and  even  when  the  wire  is  dis- 
carded and  is  cut  into  small  pieces  it  can  be 
disposed  of  as  "scrap"  material  at  a  high 
price;  and  finally,  as  the  raw  material  used 
is  not  imported,  the  "Chichibu"  wire  can 
be  made  and  sold  at  a  low  price. 

That  the  company  is  turning  out  a  high- 
class  product  may  be  judged  from  the  fact 
that  testimonials  have  been  received  on  no 
less  than  six  occasions  from  the  Electric 
E.xperimental  Station  of  the  Imperial  Gov-- 
ernment,  and  also  from  the  Shibaura  Iron 
Works,  the  Asano  Cement  Company,  the 
Kanto  Sanso  Chemical  Co.,  Ltd.,  and  from 
the  Dai-Nippon  Artificial  Fertihzer  Co.,  Ltd. 
The  head  office  of  the  Chichibu  Electric 
Wire  Manufacturing  Co.,  Ltd.,  is  at  No.  934 
Shimo  Shibuya,  Tokyo.  Mr.  C.  Chichibu 
is  the  President  of  the  organisation. 

KYUSHU    ELECTRIC   WIRE    MANUFACTUR- 
ING CO.,    LI.MITED.    (KYUSHU   DENSEN 
SEIZO  KABUSHIKI   KAISHA) 

It  is  almost  impossible  to  avoid  referring 
continually  to  the  enormous  growth  of 
Japanese  industry,  especially  since  the  War, 
when  entering  upon  a  description  of  any 
particular  line  of  the  country's  activities, 
and  this  remark  has  especial  weight  in  con- 
nection with  the  electrical  manufacturing 
industry.  The  number  of  huge  companies 
manufacturing  electrical  supplies  to-day  in 
Japan  is,  to  say  the  least,  astonishing,  and 
although  the  country  has  not  yet  any  con- 
cern of  Westinghouse  dimensions,  there  are, 
at  least,  enterprises  with  which  the  Westing- 
house  Company  has  thought  it  convenient 
to  form  intimate  connections. 

The  all-important  problem  at  present 
occupying  the  attention  of  business  men  in 
connection  with  Japan  is,  how  peace  in 
Europe  will  affect  her.  We  put  this  ques- 
tion, as  far  as  it  concerns  the  wire  manu- 
facturing industr)',   to  Mr,  Shimpei  Higasa, 


the  astute  Managing  Director  of  the  Kyushu 
Electric  Wire  Manufacturing  Co.,  Ltd. 
Mr.  Higasa  expressed  the  emphatic  ojjinion 
that  this  trade  will  be  maintained,  at  least. 
He  pointed  out  that  Japan  ranks  high  among 
the  copper-producing  countries  of  the  world, 
and  that  rubber  is  produced  nearer  to  Japan 
than  to  any  other  great  manufacturing  coun- 
try. Japan  produces  both  cotton  and  hemp, 
and  silk  to  a  much  more  important  degree, 
which  advantages,  combined  with  an  ample 
supply  of  labour  particularly  suited  to  just 
this  kind  of  work,  surely  warrants  an  op- 
timistic outlook.  This  gentleman's  opinion 
sheds  an  interesting  light  on  the  subject. 
Moreover,  it  must  be  granted  that  such 
observations  apply  equally  to  the  manu- 
facture of  all  electrical  goods. 

.\  further  indication  may  be  deduced 
from  the  history  of  the  electrical  wire  indus- 
try in  Japan. 

It  is  not  many  years  ago  since  the  whole 
consumption  was  imported,  and  could  only 
be  purchased  at  very  exorbitant  rates. 
The  actual  manufacture  of  electrical  wire  on 
a  small  and  primitive  scale  was  commenced 
in  Japan  in  1888,  but  made  no  headway 
until  about  1903-4,  when,  in  the  commercial 
movement  which  followed  the  Russo-Japanese 
War,  it  received  a  considerable  impetus  and 
began  to  show  promise  of  becoming  a  national 
industry  of  great  and  increasing  importance. 

The  following  statistics  referring  to  the 
importation  of  insulating  wire  for  a  period 
of  five  years  are  illuminating: 

1910 Yen  3,232.404 

191 1 "     4.076.533 

1912 "     5.594.834 

1913 "     2,062,519 

1914 ■'     1,370,170 

In  the  year  1912  the  import  will  be  seen 
to  have  reached  its  zenith,  but  note  what 
was  accomplished  in  two  years  following, 
for  in  19 1 4  the  importation  is  seen  to  have 
fallen  to  no  less  than  25  per  cent  of  that  of 
191 2,  a  fact  which  becomes  even  more 
significant  if  we  glance  at  the  items  which 
tell  us  that  the  telephone  wires  and  sub- 
marine cables  imported  represented  Yen 
926,489,  and  metal-covered  wires  Yen  374,- 
225  of  the  total.  In  other  words,  practically 
the  whole  sum  represents  the  importation  of 
what  must  be  regarded  as  specialties.  On 
the  other  hand,"  not  only  was  the  whole 
consumption  of  ordinary  wire  produced  in 
the  country,  but  the  export  figures  for  1914 
show  that  Japanese  manufactured  wire  was 
exported  abroad  to  the  value  of  Yen  393,855. 
It  is  a  somewhat  difficult  matter  to  obtain 
correct  figures  regarding  the  total  output  of 
wire  in  Japan,  but  manufacturers  who  may 
be  regarded  as  authorities  upon  the   matter 


place  the  figure  at  well  over  Yen  20,000,000 
annually. 

The  follovving  facts  supplied  ample  and 
sound  reasons  for  the  promotion  of  the 
Kyushu  Electric  Wire  Manufacturing  Co., 
in  July,  191 1,  with  a  capital  of  Yen  250,000, 
and  Messrs.  Shigeo  Fujinami,  Shimpei 
Higasa,  Tejiro  Uyemura,  Notoichi  Akao, 
Tadasu  Uchimura,  Yoichiro  Ikegaki,  and 
two  other  gentlemen,  the  founders  of  the 
company,  have  since  had  cause  for  satis- 
faction in  the  soundness  of  their  judgment. 

The  first  dividend  was  declared  at  10  per 
cent  per  annum  after  the  company  had  been 
one  year  in  operation.  The  capital  was 
later  augmented  to  Yen  500,000,  and  various 
important  additions  made  to  the  plant  and 
buildings  in  order  to  keep  pace  with  the  de- 
mands. A  10  per  cent  dividend  was  main- 
tained until  the  latter  half  of  1915,  when  it 
was  increased  to  15  per  cent.  One  year  later 
25  per  cent  per  annum  was  declared  and  has 
been  maintained  up  to  the  -present. 

The  factory  is  located  at  Dairi,  within  ten 
minutes  by  electric  car  of  the  port  of  Moji. 
The  factory  buildings  are  constructed  of  red 
brick,  covering  2,240  tsubo.  The  installa- 
tions comprise  one  100  H.  P.  steam  engine, 
one  200  H.  P.  steam  boiler,  one  200  H.  P. 
motor,  one  100  H.  P.  motor,  and  various 
smaller  motors,  the  total  force  utilised  being 
about  480  H.  P.  With  regard  to  wire 
machines  the  factory  is  most  up  to  date,  the 
installations  including  a  42-inch  triple  roller, 
18  inches  diameter;  lo-inch  twine  roller,  36 
inches  diameter;  36-inch  twine  roller,  12  inches 
diameter;  48-inch  twine  roller,  14  inches  diam- 
eter; 28-inch  twine  roUer,  12  inches  diameter; 
electrical  cranes,  water  pressure  testing 
machinery,  rubber  covering,  wrapping,  and 
cutting  machines,  rubber  drying  ovens,  etc. 

There  are  115  workmen  and  125  girls 
employed,  working  under  the  supervision  of 
a  chief  engineer  and  six  assistant  engineers, 
also  there  is  an  office  stafif  of  23,  including 
the  Manager. 

The  recent  movement  in  Japan  towards 
the  installation  of  waterworks  and  other 
sanitary  arrangements,  and  the  consequent 
demand  for  lead  pipes,  caused  the  company 
to  increase  its  sphere  of  operation  in  this 
direction;  hence,  it  is  interesting  to  note 
that  the  factory  is  at  present  producing 
about  500  tons  annually  of  lead  pipe  and 
about  3,000  tons  of  lead  plate.  The  output 
of  wire  represents  24,000,000  feet  of  rubber 
insulated  wire,  60,000,000  feet  of  cotton 
covered  wire,  6,000,000  feet  of  code  wire, 
7,200,000  feet  of  lead  covered  wire;  7,200,000 
feet  of  twisted  wire  of  all  kinds,  and  6,000 
feet  of  miscellaneous  wire. 

The  officers  of  the  company  are  Mr. 
Shigeo    Fujinami,    President;    Mr.    S.    Hi- 


39 


598 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


VIEWS  IN  THE  FACTORY  OF  THE  JAPAN  ELECTRIC  WIRE  AND  CABLE  CO.,  LTD. 


gasa,  Managing  Director;  Messrs.  Teiji 
Inouye,  Notoichi  Akao,  and  Tadasu  Uchi- 
mura.  Directors. 

THE    JAPAN    ELECTRIC    WIRE     &    CABLE 

CO.,    LTD.    (the    NIPPON    DENSEN 

ICAISHA,    LTD.) 

The  Japan  Electric  Wire  &  Cable  Co., 
Ltd.,  was  founded  in  1908  and  is  one  of  the 
companies  responsible  for  the  surprising 
transition  that  has  taken  place  in  this  item  of 
trade.  As  stated  elsewhere  in  this  volume, 
the  import  of  v.'ire  to  Japan  in  1912  repre- 
sented Yen  5,594,834,  a  figure  which  in  the 
next  three  years  was  not  only  entirely  elim- 
inated, but  exportation  initiated  to  the  value 
of  Yen  393,855  (1914).  To  the  end  of  1917 
it  is  conservatively  estimated  that  the  wire 
exported  represented  considerably  over  Yen 
20,000,000,  and  it  may  be  added  there  is 
every  indication  that  the  figirre  will  be  greatly 
exceeded  during  1918. 

The  works,  as  will  be  seen  from  the  accom- 
panying illustrations,  are  up  to  date  in  all 
respects.     They  are   located   in   Mukojima, 


Tokyo,  and  the  following  varied  list  of  wires 
manufactured  by  the  company  will  give  a 
further  indication  of  the  extent  and  modernity 
of  tlie  plant  installed:  Bare  wares  and  cables 
(copper,  steel,  and  aluminum),  rubber  insu- 
lated wires  and  cables,  lead  covered  wires 
and  cables,  weather  proof  wires  and  cables, 
armoured  cables,  cotton  and  silk  braided 
flexible  cords,  enamel  wires,  electric  bell, 
telephone,  and  telegraph  wires  and 
cables,  etc. 

It  is  the  boast  of  the  company  that  although 
for  years  past  they  have  carried  on  a  consider- 
able and  increasing  export  trade,  filling  many 
Government  orders  in  connection  with 
military  and  naval  arsenals,  railways  and 
big  power  plants  in  China,  Australia,  the 
South  Sea  islands.  North  and  South  America, 
England,  Russia,  South  Africa  and  else- 
where, they  have  up  to  date  had  no  com- 
plaints, or  claim  of  any  description  —  surely 
an  enviable  record. 

The  present  capital  of  the  company  is  Yen 
1,000,000,  and  the  principal  officers  are  Mr. 
S.  Ishikawa,  President;  Managing  Director, 


Mr.   O.   Otsuki;   other   Directors,  Messrs.  I. 
Suzuki  and  T.  Watanabe. 

SHI.MADZU  SEISAKUSHO,  LI.MITED 
Japan  has  rapidly  come  to  the  front  as  a 
country  in  which  close  scientific  research  is 
made,  and  it  has  also  proved  to  be  singularly 
well  adapted  for  the  manufacture  of  instru- 
ments, glassware,  porcelain,  and  a  score  of 
different  necessities  of  medical  and  chemical 
science.  In  the  case  of  the  Shimadzu 
Seisakusho,  Ltd.,  the  progress  made  of  recent 
years  is  perhaps  best  displayed.  This  com- 
pany is  not  only  supplying  a  great  portion 
of  the  requirements  of  Japan,  in  many  lines, 
but  is  also  exporting  widely,  its  fame  and 
reputation  having  spread  to  foreign  coun- 
tries. 

The  business  was  established  in  1875  by 
Mr.  Genzo  Shimadzu,  who  is  perhaps  the 
pioneer  of  the  industry  of  which  he  is  to-day 
the  acknowledged  leader.  For  many  years 
it  was  conducted  as  a  partnership  firm,  but 
to-day  the  magnitude  of  the  business  is  so 
great    tliat    it    is    controlled    by    a    limited 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OK   JAPAN 


599 


t: 


SHIMADZU    SEISAKUSHO,    LIMITED:    A    PART    OK    THE    STOCK    OF    CHEMICAL    GLASSWARE - 

SHOP  (brass  works) 


-THE    MACHINE    SHOP    AND    FINISHING 


liability  company  having  a  capital  of  Yen 
2,000,000,  Mr.  Shimadzu  being  President. 
The  company  manufactures  and  sells  physi- 
cal and  chemical  instruments  and  apparatus, 
chemicals  and  re-agents,  precision  instru- 
ments for  general  measurements,  storage 
batteries,  accumulators,  X-Ray  apparatus 
and  electrical  instruments  for  medical  pur- 
poses, electrical  and  other  appliances,  electric, 
gas,  water  and  other  devices.  Furthermore, 
a  large  business  is  done  in  the  preparation  of 
specimens  and  models  of  natural  history, 
pathological,  and  sanitary  models,  ana- 
tomical models,  geographical  and  other 
specimens,  and  models,  medical  and  chemical 
glassware  and  porcelain,  etc.,  acid-resisting 
iron  vessels,  etc.  In  fact,  there  is  hardly 
a  line  of  such  articles  which  is  not  handled 
by  the  company,  and  what  can  not  l)e  pro- 
duced locally  is  imported.  The  output  of 
the  works  of  the  Shimadzu  Seisakusho,  Ltd., 
is  briskly  exported  to  America,  India, 
Australia,  •  China,  and  Russia.  There  is  a 
particularly  strong  demand  for  the  chemical 
glassware  of  the  "non-alkali"  make,  which 
is  produced  under  a  special  process,  and  has 


won  a  high  reputation  abroad.  The  various 
instruments  are  superior  in  quality  and  have 
a  ready  sale  abroad.  A  steadily  expanding 
demand  is  being  experienced  for  the  speci- 
mens of  natural  history  and  anatomical 
models  made  by  the  company.  The  acid- 
resisting  iron  wares,  sold  under  the  name 
of  "Ariron,"  and  the  chemical  porcelain 
which  is  made  under  the  brand  of  "S.  C.  P.," 
have  created  the  most  favourable  impression 
for  their  special  qualities.  The  Shimadzu 
Seisakusho,  Ltd.,  has  the  selling  agency  for 
the  Japan  Battery  Co.,  Ltd.,  a  sister  com- 
pany, and  on  that  account  handles  the 
famous  "G.  S."  battery,  the  initials  being 
those  of  Mr.  Genzo  Shimadzu. 

It  may  safely  be  said  that  the  Shimadzu 
Seisakusho,  Ltd.,  is  a  high-class  manufactur- 
ing company  which  has  done  a  great  deal  to 
develop  the  particular  business  in  which  it 
is  engaged,  and  it  is  noteworthy  that  not 
only  has  the  company  received  the  highest 
awards  for  the  excellence  of  its  products, 
when  displayed  at  various  expositions,  but 
Mr.  Shimadzu  himself  has  received  the 
Symbol  of  Merit  with  Blue  Ribbon,  granted 


under  Imperial  Rescript  for  the  conspicuous 
services  he  has  rendered  to  the  industry,  and 
to  the  manufacturing  interests  of  Japan. 
The  company  over  which  he  presides  has 
won  a  high  reputation,  and  anything  with 
Mr.  Shimadzu's  name  to  it,  commands  the 
respect  due  to  his  successful  record  and  close 
study.  The  head  office  of  the  Shimadzu 
Seisakusho,  Ltd.,  is  at  Nijo,  Kawaramachi, 
Kyoto,  where  the  main  works  are  established. 
There  are  branches  at  No.  i8  Nishikicho, 
Itchome,  Kanda,  Tokyo;  at  Kitahama, 
Nichome,  Higashi-ku,  Osaka,  and  at  Nishina- 
kasu,  Fukuoka,  Kyushu.  A  department  for 
specimens  is  also  maintained  at  Kiyamachi, 
Kyoto. 

The  principal  officers  of  the  Shimadzu 
Seisakusho,  Limited,  are  Mr.  Genzo  Shim- 
adzu, President  (also  Managing  Director 
of  the  Japan  Battery  Co.,  Ltd.);  Mr. 
Genkichi  Shimadzu,  Managing  Director; 
Mr-  Tsunesaburo  Shimadzu,  Managing 
Director;  Messrs.  Zensuke  Fujii,  Seibei 
Naiki,  and  Jinyemon  Matsumura,  Directors; 
and  Messrs.  Katsutaro  Inabata,  Sukesaburo 
Kawasaki,  and  Kohei  Imu  are  the  Auditors. 


6oo 


PRESENT-DAY        IMPRESSIONS        OF        J  A  I'  A  N 


illl 


general    view    of    first    factory    of    NIPPON    cement   CO.,    LTD. 


CERAMICS 


Judging  from  archffiological  research,  the 
making  of  pottery  in  Japan  dates  back,  Hke 
the  silk  industry,  to  prehistoric  times,  the 
earliest  examples,  of  course,  being  of  rather  a 
crude  type.  Japan's  growing  intimacy  with 
Korea  and  China  in  the  sixth,  seventh,  eighth, 
and  ninth  centuries  led  to  the  early  intro- 
duction of  finished  ceramic  art  from  these 
countries,  many  skilled  potters  being  brought 
over  from  time  to  time.  In  the  sixteenth 
century,  Hideyoshi  Taiko,  who  was  a  great 
lover  and  collector  of  the  finest  examples  of 
Chinese  porcelain,  encouraged  the  manu- 
facture of  finer  and  more  beautiful  ceramic 
ware  around  Kyoto,  the  capital.  Korean 
potters  discovered  fine  clay  at  Arita,  and  from 
that  time  Arita  ware  became  famous  for  its 
beautiful  porcelain,  as  it  still  is  From  there 
the  art  spread  to  Seto  and  Kutani,  which 
wares  are  now  admired  and  in  demand  the 
world  over.  Most  of  the  Seto  ware  is  of 
cheap  quality.  Nagoj'a  has  recently  been 
turning  out  a  very  good  hard  porcelain  for 
foreign  export,  as  well  as  Gifu,  but  the  latter 
is  rather  gaudy  and  fancied  only  by  the  more 


uneducated  classes  abroad.  For  elegance 
and  general  artistic  effect  Kutani  ware  appeals 
to  foreigners  and  Japanese  alike,  but  in  blues, 
the  Arita  ware  is  still  unrivalled.  In  baking, 
wood  is  still  largely  used  in  Japan,  but  the 
old-fashioned  method  consumes  about  20  per 
cent  of  the  cost  of  production  and  is,  therefore, 
a  hindrance  to  the  progress  of  the  industry, 
as  well  as  causing  that  lack  of  hardness  so 
characteristic  of  much  Japanese  earthenware. 
Coal  is,  however,  finding  its  way  into  gradual 
use,  and  with  further  utilisation  of  Western 
methods  Japanese  pottery  will  doubtless  be 
cheaper  and  in  a  sense  more  durable,  but 
will,  perhaps,  not  so  well  deserve  to  last,  as 
the  use  of  printing  for  hand  work  in  decora- 
tion  does   away   with   that   exquisite   touch 


characteristic  of  the  best  Japanese  porcelain. 
Porcelain  forms  the  bulk  of  Japan's  produc- 
tion, but  faience,  stone-china,  and  terra-cotta 
are  finding  increased  output.  In  addition  to 
the  usual  tableware,  fancy  pieces,  kitchen 
ware,  and  toys,  attention  is  also  being  given 
to  making  insulators,  and  sanitary  and 
scientific  appliances  for  medical  and  other 
apparatus.  The  total  annual  production  of 
Japanese  pottery  is  valued  at  about  17,000,- 
000  yen,  of  which  about  6,000,000  yen  is 
exported,  chiefly  to  the  United  States,  South 
Africa,  and  Australia.  The  manufacture  of 
bricks  and  tiles  is  now  also  a  large  industry, 
equal  to  about  12,000,000  yen  annually. 
The  table  given  below  will  show  the  pro- 
gress made  since  19 12. 


Year 

Potteries 

Exports 

Enamel 
Ware 

E.xports 

Fire 
Brick 

Ordinary 
Brick 

Tile 

Yen 

Yen 

Yen 

Yen 

Yen 

Yen 

Yen 

1912 

1913 
1914 

1915 

16,544,000 
17,676,000 
15,656,000 
17.532,000 

6,637,000 
5,913,000 
6,952,000 
5,913,000 

247,000 
152,000 
134,000 
228,000 

86,000 
74,000 
3 1 ,000 
71,000 

1,551,000 
1,410,000 
1,015,000 
1,723,000 

4,900,000 
4,824,000 
4,196,000 
3.353.000 

11,751,000 

1 1,838,000 

9,940,000 

9,014,000 

ASANO    PORTLAND   CEMENT   COMPANY,  LTD, :      THE    TAIWAN   WORKS — THE   HOKKAIDO   WORKS — THE    KAWASAKI    WORKS- 

THE    MOJI    WORKS — THE    TOKYO    WORKS 


602 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


The  cement  industry  has  been  suffering 
from  over-production,  the  output  equalling 
about  5,000,000  barrels,  with  a  home  demand 
of  2,800,000  and  exports  naturally  increasing. 

THE  NIPPON  CEMENT  CO.,  LIMITED 
The  Nippon  Cement  Kabushiki  Kaisha 
was  established  in  1885,  when  the  manufact- 
ure of  Portland  cement  was  inaugurated  at  a 
small  factorj'  at  Tomigawacho,  Fukagawa-ku, 
though  the  business  was  not  converted  to  a 
joint-stock  company  till  1888.  To-day  this 
concern  is  the  largest  of  its  kind  in  Japan  and 
has  won  an  international  reputation  for  the 
quality  of  its  products,  the  highest  testimo- 
nials having  been  received  from  directors  of 
government  enterprises,  private  construction 
companies,  and  general  contractors.  With 
the  organisation  of  the  company  in  1888  a  new 
factory  was  started  at  Gohonmatsu,  and  the 
capacity  of  the  concern  was  thereby  largely 
augmented.  At  this  time  there  was  a  great 
demand  for  Portland  cement  consequent  on 
the  extension  of  public  works  and  other 
enterprises,  and  the  Nippon  Cement  Com- 
pany launched  a  plan  for  the  extension  of  its 
business  in  all  directions.  A  suitable  site  was 
obtained  for  a  new  factory  at  Yatsushiro- 
machi,  Higo  Province  in  Kyushu,  and  with 
the  completion  and  setting  in  operation  of 
these  works  the  company  became  the  pioneer 
of  cement  manufacture  in  Kyushu,  which  has 
since  become  the  centre  of  the  Portland 
cement  industry  in  Japan.  The  factory  was 
completed  in  1890.  It  has  a  most  advan- 
tageous position  at  the  mouth  of  the  River 
Kuma,  commanding  convenient  means  of 
transportation  on  land  and  water,  and  in  its 
neighbourhood  lies  the  district  noted  for  the 
production  of  raw  materials  for  the  manu- 
facture of  cement,  and  fuel  of  excellent 
quality.  Between  l8g6  and  1914  the  Nippon 
Cement  Company  carried  out  further  exten- 
sion and  reconstruction  of  its  factories  and 
introduced  machinery  of  the  latest  make, 
acknowledged  by  the  cement  manufacturers 
of  the  world  as  the  best.  Throughout  its 
career  the  Nippon  Cement  Company  has 
always  been  abreast  of  the  times  in  its 
methods  of  manufacture  and  handling  of  its 
products,  and  it  now  enjoys  the  reputation  of 
being  the  manufacturer  of  the  best  domestic 
cement,  and  of  A-i  quality  compared  with 
all  other  brands,  local  or  imported.  Besides 
commanding  a  large  portion  of  the  trade 
throughout  Japan  and  Taiwan  (Formosa), 
the  company  has  developed  a  big  export 
business  with  Manchuria,  Russia,  China,  the 
South  Sea  Isalnds,  British  India,  the  Dutch 
Indies,  French  Indo-China,  the  Philippines, 
and  Austraha.  To  meet  the  fast-increasing 
demand  in  various  directions  the  company 
has    decided    on    further    extension    to    its 


STEPS    AT   MAYASAN,    NEAR    KOBE 

factories  and  plant.  The  products  have  been 
subjected  to  the  most  severe  tests,  not  alone 
in  Japan,  but  abroad,  and  on  every  occasion 
have  emerged  successful  and  up  to  the  highest 
known  standards  of  excellence.  Testimonials 
have  been  received  from  almost  every 
Government  department,  and  from  num- 
erous big  contracting  and  construction 
concerns. 

It  is  not  surprising,  therefore,  to  learn  that 
the  Nippon  Cement  Company  numbers 
practically  every  well  known  enterprise 
among  its  customers.  The  share  capital  of 
the  Nippon  Cement  Kabushiki  Kaisha  is  Yen 
2,500,000.  Its  annual  output  is  1,000,000 
barrels.  The  head  office  of  this  important 
industrial  company  is  at  Nishiimagawacho, 
Kanda,  Tokyo,  with  a  branch  office  at  Yatsu- 
shiro,  Yatsushiro-gun,  Kumamoto-ken.  Sub- 
branches  are  maintained  at  Osaka  and  Seoul. 
The  first  factory  is  at  Yalsushiro,  the  second 
factory  at  Okawa. 

ASANO    PORTLAND    CEMENT    CO., 
LIMITED 

The  Agano  Portland  Cement  Company, 
Ltd.,  is  one  of  the  several  highly  important 
Japanese  enterprises  controlled  by  Mr. 
Soichiro  Asano,  perhaps  the  most  active  and 
interesting  figure  in  the  history  of  Japan's 
industrial  development,  with  whose  name  is 
associated  such  great  undertakings  as  the 
Toyo  Kisen  Kaisha  and  the  Asano  Ship- 
building Company.  To  give  the  history  of 
the  company  is  to  write  the  story  of  the 
development  of  the  cement  industry  in  Japan, 
because  the  Asano  Company  is  the  oldest 
Portland  cement  manufacturing  concern  in 
the    Empire. 


The  industry  was  actually  founded  by  the 
Japanese  Government  in  1871,  when  what  is 
now  the  Asano  factory  was  started  in  Tokyo, 
and  was  maintained  as  a  State  enterprise  for 
some  years.  In  1883  Mr.  Soichiro  Asano, 
who  is  one  of  the  pioneers  of  the  industrial 
independence  of  Japan,  took  over  the  factory 
from  the  Government,  he  having  recognised 
the  necessity,  from  the  point  of  view  of 
national  economy,  of  the  manufacture  of 
cement,  and  he  set  himself  the  task  of  improv- 
ing the  methods  of  manufacture,  and  of 
widely  developing  the  industry.  The  very 
latest  methods  were  adobted  in  the  Asano 
factor>'  and  experts  were  sent  abroad  to  study 
the  processes  in  different  countries.  The  result 
of  this  initial  work  was  such  that  by  1892  the 
factory  was  producing  a  far  larger  quantity 
than  ever  before  and  the  popularity  of  the 
home-made  article  was  so  pronounced,  both 
locally  and  abroad,  that  in  order  to  meet  the 
rapidly  increasing  demand  for  the  Asano 
product  branch  works  were  established  at 
Moji. 

In  1898  the  Asano  factory  was  converted 
into  the  Asano  Cement  Company,  a  partner- 
ship concern,  in  order  that  the  operations 
might  be  further  extended.  This  partnership 
was  reorganised  into  a  joint-stock  company  in 
1913,  and  Mr.  Taijiro  Asano,  one  of  the 
directors  of  the  new  concern,  was,  for  the 
fourth  time,  sent  to  Europe  and  America, 
accompanied  by  a  staff  of  experts,  to  investi- 
gate the  industry  in  those  countries.  In  the 
year  1914  the  capital  was  increased  to  Yen 
7,000,000  in  order  to  build  the  works  at 
Kawasaki,  and  this  move,  following  on 
the  erection  of  a  factory  in  Taiwan,  gave  the 
company  a  commanding  position  in  the 
cement  business.  A  further  development 
took  place  in  1915,  when  the  ever-increasing 
demand  for  the  company's  products,  and  the 
general  prosperity  of  the  big  concern,  led  to 
the  amalgamation  of  the  Hokkaido  Cement 
Works  with  the  Asano  Portland  Cement 
Company,  the  former  works  being  continued 
as  a  branch  of  the  main  company,  after  being 
remodelled  and  improved  to  permit  of  them 
turning  out  a  larger  quantity  and  better 
quality  of  cement  than  before.  The  general 
activity  in  the  whole  economic  condition  of 
Japan,  consequent  upon  an  era  of  great  pros- 
perity, finally  led  to  a  further  capitalisation 
in  191 7,  when  the  capital  was  fixed  at  Yen 
15,000,000.  This  increase  has  enabled  the 
company  to  undertake  the  enlargement  and 
remodelling  of  its  five  works,  and  has  also 
given  it  a  reserve  of  working  capital  with 
which  to  exploit  the  market  in  all  directions. 
To-day  the  Asano  Portland  Cement  Co.,  Ltd., 
is  in  a  highly  flourishing  condition,  and  the 
success  achieved  by  Mr.  Asano  in  his  forty 
years  of  hard  work  and  enterprise  is  recog- 


'W- 


:«:-'-;! 


It:  &iJ.a 


SUZl-KI   CEMENT   COMPANY:      INTERIOR    VIEW,    SHOWING    PART   OF    THE    PLANT— ROTARY    KILNS  —  GENERAL    VIEW   OF    THE    FACTORY 


IHE    SHINAGAWA    FIRE    BRU  K    cciMl'ANY,  LTD.:      GENERAL    VIEWS   OK    TUl-:    loKVcl    AND    OSAKA    WORKS 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


605 


nised  and  appreciated  liy  all  who  understand 
what  it  means  to  Japan. 

The  Asano  Portland  Cement  is  made  from 
the  best  of  raw  materials,  and  the  consensus 
of  opinion  in  the  trade  is  that  it  is  of  excellent 
quality  and  liberally  exceeds  all  standard 
specifications.  Its  reputation  is  well  estab- 
lished and  it  is  known  as  one  of  the  highest 
grades  of  Portland  cement  ever  put  on  the 
market,  its  quality  being  superior,  though 
its  price  is  no  higher  than  those  of  ordinary 
cements. 

As  stated  above,  the  company  has  five 
large  works,  the  head  office  and  No.  i  factor}' 
being  at  Fukagawa,  Tokyo.  The  branch 
offices  and  works  are  as  follows:  Shirakizaki, 
Moji;  Kamiiso,  Toshima,  Hokkaido;  Takao, 
Formosa  (Taiwan);  Kawasaki,  Kanagawa 
Ken.  Sub-branch  offices  are  maintained  at 
Satumabori,  Osaka;  A.sahimachi,  Niigata; 
Taihoku,  Formosa;  Seoul,  Korea;  and 
Kiimachi,  Dairen.  The  works  of  the  com- 
pany are  most  modern  in  their  construction, 
and  the  machinery  is  of  the  latest  pattern, 
constantly  being  improved,  to  enable  the 
company  to  manufacture  under  the  most 
economic  and  practical  systems.  Skilled 
engineers  and  analysts  are  in  charge,  and 
the  marketing  of  the  products  is  in  the  Iiands 
of  business  experts  whose  experience  of  the 
trade  in  all  its  branches  is  admitted  to  be 
second  to  none.  It  is  almost  unnecessary 
to  say  that  such  an  enterprise  has  received 
the  fullest  endorsement  from  the  Govern- 
ment and  the  big  constructing  and  engineer- 
ing concerns  in  Japan.  The  Asano  brand 
of  cement  is  used  by  the  Army,  Na\'y,  and 
Railway  Departments,  and  the  various 
harljour  and  water  works,  it  being  specially 
recommended  by  engineers  for  sea  water 
constructions.  The  cement  is  used  largely 
throughout  the  entire  East  and  is  also 
exported  to  the  Philippines,  India,  Australia 
and  elsewhere.  It  may  be  interesting  to 
those  in  the  trade  to  read  the  following 
results  of  tests  made  of  Asano  Portland 
Cement: 

No.  I.  Fineness  :  Residue  on  a  sieve  of 
5,776  meshes  per  square  inch,  0.5  per  cent; 
residue  on  a  sieve  of  32,400  meshes  per 
square  inch,   13.0  per  cent. 

No.  2.  Time  of  setting:  Initial  setting, 
not  less  than  one  hour;  final  setting,  not 
more  than  ten  hours. 

No.  3.  Expansion  oj  neat  cement:  By 
the  Le  Chatelier  apparatus,  3  mm. 

No.  4.  Soundness:  Normal,  boiling,  tests, 
etc.,  no  sign  of  cracking,  crumbling,  or 
warping. 

No.  .=;.     Specific   gravity:     3.12. 

No.  6.  Tensile  strength:  Neat  briquettes, 
700  pounds  per  square  inch  (7  days);  800 
pounds   per   square   inch    (28    days).     Sand 


briquettes  (iC.-f-3S.),  270  pounds  per  square 
inch  (7  days);  350  pounds  per  square  inch 
(28  days). 

CHKMICAI.     ANALYSIS 

Per  cent 

Loss  on  ignition 1 .50 

Insoluble  residue 0.20 

Silica 22 .  20 

Alumina 7 .  00 

Ferric  Oxide 3-50 

Lime 62 .  50  . 

Magnesia i .  00 

Sulphuric  anhydride i ,  20 

The  annual  output  of  the  various  works 
of  the  A.sano  Portland  Cement  Co.,  Ltd.,  is 
over  6,700,000  barrels.  The  worthy  founder 
of  this  great  enterprise  is  still  actively  at 
the  head  of  the  concern  as  President,  and  the 
General  Manager  is  Mr.  Taijiro  Asano. 
The  staff  comprises  some  of  the  best  business 
and  manufacturing  men  in  Japan,  and  as 
may  be  gathered  from  the  foregoing  descrip- 
tion of  the  enterprise,  the  activities  of  the 
Asano  Portland  Cement  Co.,  Ltd.,  furnish 
employment  for  an  enormous  number  of 
hands.  It  is  truly  an  undertaking  of  first 
rate  national  importance. 

SUZUKI  CEMENT  COMP.\NY 
The  Messrs.  Suzuki  Brothers  have  been 
in  the  Portland  Cement  manufacturing  indus- 
try since  1890,  and  are  well  known  through- 
out Japan  for  the  important  part  they  have 
played  in  the  development  of  the  trade. 
Their  works  at  Saruyecho,  Fukagawa-ku, 
in  the  outskirts  of  Tokyo,  are  among  the 
largest  and  best  equipped  in  the  country, 
and  the  output  of  the  plant  ranks  very  high 
in  the  estimation  of  engineers  and  con- 
tractors. The  business  was  founded  by 
Mr.  Sahci  Suzuki  in  1890,  when  he  bought 
the  Saruyecho  factory  from  the  Nippon 
Cement  Co.,  Ltd.  This  factory  had  been 
established  some  time  before  Mr.  .Suzuki 
acquired  it,  but  it  was  not  very  successful 
until  he  made  it  his  individual  undertaking 
and  developed  its  plant  and  output  along 
modern  lines.  For  some  years  Mr.  Suzuki 
conducted  the  factory  as  a  private  concern, 
but  in  1904  the  business  was  transformed 
into  a  joint-name  company,  under  which 
it  is  at  present  run.  The  company  went 
in  for  extensive  improvements  and  wider 
development,  the  machinery  being  brought 
up  to  date  in  all  respects.  A  complete 
reorganisation  took  place  during  191 5-1 91 6 
when  the  company  established  the  rotary 
kiln  system  to  meet  the  requirements  of 
the  time,  and  changed  the  entire  plant  and 
machinery  in  accordance  with  the  latest 
ideas.  The  Suzuki  Cement  Company  now 
has  an  annual  production  of  200,000  barrels 
of  cement,  but  with  an  enlargement  of  the 


plant,  which  is  under  contemplation,  it  is 
hoped  to  increase  the  annual  output  to 
500,000   barrels. 

The  factory  at  Saruyecho  produces  Port- 
land Cement  by  the  most  approved  methods, 
employing  such  plant  as  the  rotary  kiln,  a 
clinker  cooler,  three  crushers,  four  edge- 
runners,  three  ring  roll  mills,  two  vertical 
bore  mills,  seven  tube  mill,  a  Kent  mill 
and  four  air-selectors,  besides  three  New 
Ago  sieves  and  clay  and  coal  dryers.  In 
addition  to  the  cement  factory,  the  company 
has  a  plant  for  barrel-making,  situated  at 
Higashi,  Ogibashi-machi,  Fukagawa-ku.  The 
area  covered  by  the  factories,  godowns,  etc., 
is  4,557  tstibo,  and  the  buildings  are  all  of 
modern  construction,  consisting  of  steel 
frame,  brick,  and  wood,  the  main  factory 
being  a  three-story  structure.  The  partners 
in  the  company  are:  Messrs.  Mosuke  Suzuki, 
Kozo  Suzuki,  Keizo  Suzuki,  Yasuo  Suzuki, 
and  Seiemon  Ayabe.  Mr.  Mosuke  Suzuki 
is  the  President  and  Messrs.  Kozo  and  Keizo 
Suzuki  are  the  Managing  Directors,  while 
Mr.  Yoshii,  Chief  Engineer  to  the  company, 
conducts  the  whole  process  of  manufacture. 
The  company's  product  is  consumed  in 
Japan,  and  is  in  strong  demand  for  public 
works,  for  reinforced  concrete  specialties,  and 
for  general  engineering  purposes. 

THE      SHINAGAWA     FIRE     BRICK     CO., 
LIMITED 

The  manufacture  of  fire  bricks  is  an 
ancient  industry  in  Japan,  naturally  arising 
out  of  the  many  arts  and  crafts  which  are 
dependent  upon  kilns  for  their  completion, 
as,  for  instance,  in  the  case  of  porcelain  and 
pottery.  But  the  credit  for  the  introduc- 
tion of  the  industry  on  a  large  scale,  and 
for  purely  commercial  purposes  belongs  to 
the  Shinagawa  Fire  Brick  Co.,  Ltd.  It 
was  in  1875  that  Mr.  Katsuzo  Nishimura 
founded  the  business,  and  he  had  with  him 
at  that  time  Mr.  Masayoshi  Yamanouchi, 
who  is  to-day  Managing  Director  of  the 
Shinagawa  Fire  Brick  Co.,  Ltd.  These 
two  gentlemen  may  be  said  to  be  among 
the  pioneers  of  what  has  now  become  an 
enormous  industry.  For  many  years  Mr. 
Nishimura  carried  on  his  works  as  a  private 
concern,  always  adopting  new  ideas  and 
modernising  his  plant  as  necessity  required. 
Naturally  the  development  of  other  indus- 
tries, and  the  general  expansion  of  Japan's 
manufactures,  offered  every  advantage  to 
the  concern,  but  nevertheless  the  founders 
of  the  business  did  not  find  conditions  easy, 
and  it  was  their  energy  and  determination 
that  made  them  so  successful.  Mr.  Nishi- 
mura's  private  interests  were  taken  over 
by  a  company  in  June,  1900,  and  three 
years  later  the  concern  was  made  a  limited 


V  - 


\\^^<\ 


OSAKA    BRICK    AND   CEMENT   COMPANY,  LIMITED:      HEAD    OFFICE — KISHIWADA  FACTORY  —  GENERAL    VIEW   OF    OHAMA    WORKS,    SAKAI    CITY  — 

INTERIOR    VIEW    OF    GRAPHITE    CRUCIBLE    WORKS    AT    SHIJO,    KYOTO 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


607 


liability    company    with    a    cai)ital    of    Yen 
2,000,000.      Since    that    time    the    company 
has  been  conspicuously  successful,  and  its  de- 
velopment has  been  rapid.     From  its    start 
in  a  small  way,  the  business  has  grown  to 
such   an   extent   that   no   fewer   than   seven 
factories  are.  now  engaged   under  the  com- 
pany's direction  in  the  manufacture  of  all 
kinds  of  bricks.     The  head  office  and  works 
of    the    company     are    at     Kitashinagawa, 
Ebara-gori,  Tokyo  Prefecture.     The  follow- 
ing   are    the   branches   and    works:     Osaka 
Works,      Kizumishima-machi,      Minami-ku, 
Osaka;    Inbe  Works,  Inbe-machi,  Wakegun, 
Okayama     Prefecture;         Yumoto     Works, 
Yumoto-mura,    Ishikigun,    Fukushima    Pre- 
fecture;    Taira    No.    i    Works,    and    Taira 
No.  2  Works,  Tairamachi,  Ishikigun,  Fuku- 
shima  Prefecture,   and   Akai   Works,   Akai- 
mura,     Ishikigun,     Fukushima     Prefecture. 
These  works  are  all  modern  in  every  sense. 
The  buildings  are  of  stone  or  wood,  and  the 
plant  is  up  to  date,  efficient,  and  economical. 
Bricks   are    made    from    the    best  materials 
and  are  produced  in  direct  burning  round 
kilns,  square  kilns,  and  gas  kilns.     In  this 
connection  it  may  be  said  that  Japan  has 
a  plentiful  supply  of  the  right  kinds  of  fire 
bricks  for  all  purposes,  and  the  product  of 
the  Shinagawa  Fire  Brick  Co.,  Ltd.,  is  very 
highly  regarded  by  all  experts.     The  com- 
pany's   works     produce    about     50,000,000 
bricks   of   different    kinds   per   annum,    and 
employment   is   given   to   2,500   hands.     In 
recent  years  the  demand  for  fire  bricks  has 
greatly  increased,  and  not  only  is  the  Shina- 
gawa Fire  Brick  Co.,  Ltd.,  patronised  locally 
by  the  copper,  iron,  zinc,  and  steel  works, 
gas   works  and   all  kinds   of   chemical   and 
electrical  works  and  general  manufacturers, 
but  their  foreign  markets,  in  the  past  two 
or  three  years,  have  been  greatly  extended 
in     China,     Southern     Islands,     India,     and 
Australia.     The  company  is  continually  in 
receipt  of  large  orders  from  abroad,  which 
shows  how  substantial  the  enterprise  is,  and 
that  the  praise  bestowed  on  the  product  as 
being  matchless  in  the  Orient  in  name  and 
fact,    is    well    founded.     Mr.    Yamanouchi, 
Managing   Director  of  this  important  con- 
cern, has  had  over  forty  years'  experience. 
A   few   years   after   joining   Mr.    Nishimura 
he  was  appointed   Manager  of  the  original 
works,   and   his   service   with   the   company 
has  been  devoted  to  improving  the  factories, 
keeping  the  plant  up  to  date,  and  develop- 
ing sources  of  the  very  best  material.     Mr. 
Yamanouchi's    service    to    this    important 
branch     of     Japanese     industry     has     been 
recognised  all  over  Japan,  and  on  September 
28,   191 1,  he  was  rewarded  by  the  Govern- 
ment for  his  long  service  and  skilful  manage- 
ment   of    the    industry    he    controls.     The 


DETAIL    OF   CARVING    ON    A    TEMPLE 


principal  officers  of  the  Shinagawa  Fire 
Brick  Company,  Ltd.,  are:  Managing 
Director,  Mr.  M.  M.  Yamanouchi;  Directors, 
Messrs.  Y.  Fujimura,  C.  Yasojima,  N.  Nishi- 
mura, E.  Toyoshima,  and  T.  Matsui;  Audi- 
tors, Messrs.  S.  Urushi  and  R.  Takamatsu. 

THE     OSAKA    BRICK    AND    CE.MENT    CO., 
LIMITED 

The  history  of  industrial  undertakings  in 
Japan  is  not  only  remarkably  interestin<?,  but 
it  is  full  of  surprises  to  the  student  of  the 
country's  phenomenal  development.  In  the 
case  of  the  Osaka  Yogyo  Kabushiki  Kaisha, 
or  Osaka  Brick  and  Cement  Co.,  Ltd.,  one 
finds  not  only  that  a  small  concern,  started 
originally  to  make  acid  bottles,  has  increased 
its  capital  seven  hundred  fold,  and  has 
gone  in  for  the  manufacture  of  all  classes  of 
articles  that  might  be  expected  to  fall  within 
the  sphere  of  its  activities,  but  it  is  also 
engaged  in  cement  manufacture  and  ship- 
building on  a  large  scale.  In  January,  1882, 
this  concern  was  known  as  the  Sulphuric 
Acid  Bottle  Co.,  the  purpose  for  which  it  was 
originally  formed  being  to  make  earthenware 
vessels,  more  or  less  on  the  old  lines  of  manu- 
facture. The  capital  then  was  Yen  10,000. 
The  change  in  the  name  took  place  in  1887, 
when  the  capital  was  increased  to  Yen  40,000, 
and  the  manufacture  of  bricks  was  the  only 
activity.  From  that  date,  however,  the 
company  has  never  looked  back.  Factory 
after  factory  was  established  as  regular 
increases  in  the  capital  took  place.  In  the 
one  year  from  February',  1906,  to  February, 
1907,  the  capital  was  raised  from  Yen  180,000 


to  Yen  860,000  and  soon  to  Yen  1,000,000, 
finally  reaching  Yen  7,000,000  in  1917,  an 
increase  of  seven  hundred  times  the  original 
amount.  Throughout  this  period  the  range 
of  operations  of  the  company  also  extended. 
It  is  to-day  producing  one-fourth  of  the  total 
number  of  common  red  bricks  manufactured 
in  Japan,  and  has  an  output  of  140,000,000 
bricks  per  annum.  The  kilns  operated  by 
this  company  are  of  their  own  device  and  have 
been  patented.  The  bricks  are  produced 
entirely  by  machinery  under  a  process  which, 
it  is  claimed,  renders  them  less  absorbent  of 
water,  and  far  more  durable  than  other  bricks. 
A  great  advantage  enjoyed  by  this  company 
in  the  conduct  of  its  factories  is  that  each  is 
adjacent  to  a  port  or  a  railway  and,  therefore, 
the  cost  of  transportation  on  raw  material 
and  the  finished  products  is  reduced.  Brick- 
making  is  only  one  of  the  acitivities  of  this 
enterprising  company.  In  the  Okajima 
factory,  cement  making  is  being  carried  on, 
and  when  the  plant  is  enlarged  as  planned  the 
works  will  have  an  annual  output  of  700,000 
barrels.  Crucibles  are  also  being  made  at  the 
Shichijo  and  Mukomachi  works,  and  when 
the  purchase  of  the  Kyoto  Graphite  Crucible 
Co.,  Ltd.,  is  effected  as  arranged,  the  company 
anticipates  a  production  of  1,300,000  sets  a 
month,  and  expects  to  supply  a  large  portion 
of  the  requirements  of  the  Imperial  Army 
and  Nay>%  as  well  as  to  carry  on  a  large  export 
trade.  Futhermore,  the  company  makes 
fire  bricks  (8,000,000  pieces  per  annum),  all 
classes  of  house  tiles  (7,000,000  pieces  per 
annum),  and  various  other  lines  associated 
w-ith  earthenware  products,  such  as  terra  cotta. 


f"- 


SAKUKA   CKMENT   CO.,    LTD.:      LARGE    REINFORCED   CONCRETE   CHIMNEY   OF    SUITA    HREWERY  —  OFFICES   OF     THE     "OSAKA     ASAHI     SHIMBUN"- 

PREMISES   OF   THE    ORIENTAL    SPINNING   CO.,  LTD.,  OSAKA — BRIDGE    IN    MINOMO    PARK. 

ALL   CONSTRUCTED    WITH    SAKURA   CEMENT 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


609 


To  carry  on  its  operations  the  company 
already  owns  several  ships,  and  it  is  now 
laying  down  berths  in  the  Kizugawa  factory 
to  construct  steamers  of  considerable  freight 
capacity.  Three  berths  are  already  under 
construction  and  it  is  expected  to  turn  out 
from  this  one  yard  about  20,000  tons  of  ships 
before  the  end  of  1918,  the  vessels  designed 
being  of  about  2,000  tons.  When  that  pro- 
gramme is  completed  this  company  will  lay 
down  berths  for  ships  up  to  8,000  tons' 
capacity  each.  Such  a  scheme,  it  may  safely 
be  said,  has  never  yet  been  carried  out  by  any 
other  concern  in  this  line  of  business,  but  as 
the  company  is  already  a  large  designer  of 
engineering  projects,  and  a  contractor  for  civil 
engineering,  its  plans  for  a  big  future  as  a  ship- 
builder should  certainly  prove  successful.  For 
the  first  half  of  1917  the  Osaka  Brick  and 
Cement  Co.,  Ltd.,  realised  a  net  profit  of  Yen 
1,072,789.  From  this  sum  Yen  600,000  was 
set  aside  as  a  special  fund  to  carry  out  con- 
templated extensions;  Yen  292,500  was  paid 
in  dividends,  representing  30  per  cent  per 
annum,  a  bonus  of  Yen  100,000  was  paid  to 
the  staff  and  workmen  in  commemoration  of 
the  35th  anniversary  of  the  company,  and 
other  amounts  were  distributed,  leaving  Yen 
20,016  to  be  carried  forward.  The  head 
office  of  the  company  is  at  Dojiraa,  Kita-ku, 
Osaka,  and  there  are  11  factories  or  works. 
The  ground  owned  and  occupied  by  the  com- 
pany is  228,404  tsubo,  and  the  factory 
buildings  cover  an  area  of  20,609  tsubo.  The 
principal  officers  of  the  company  are:  Direct- 
ors, Messrs.  R.  Isono  (President),  K.  Hirooka, 
S.  Otaka,  J.  Tabata,  and  T.  Hiyoshi.  The 
Auditors  are  Messrs.  T.  Nagao,  T.  Naka,  and 
C.  Tsuji.  It  is  confidently  expected  by  the 
Directors  that  when  the  new  works  planned 
are  in  full  operation  the  profits  will  be  for 
each  half-year,  as  follows:  From  cement- 
making.  Yen  700,000;  from  crucibles.  Yen 
161,000;  and  from  shipbuilding,  Yen  1,700,- 
000,  these  figures  being  in  addition  to  the 
profits  accruing  from  brick-making  and  other 
activities. 

SAKURA  CEMENT  CO.,  LI.MITED 
The  manufacture  of  Portland  cement  has 
become  a  very  important  industry  in  Japan. 
There  are  a  number  of  large  companies 
producing  an  excellent  quality  of  cement,  and 
not  only  is  the  local  demand  entirely  supplied, 
but  a  valuable  export  trade  with  foreign  coun- 
tries is  being  done.  Occupying  a  prominent 
position  among  the  cement  manufacturing 
concerns  is  the  Sakura  Cement  Co.,  Ltd.  In 
many  respects  this  company  is  far  ahead  of 
the  others,  particularly  in  its  splendid  mod- 
em equipment  of  labour-saving  appUances. 
The  Sakura  Cement  Co.,  Ltd.,  was  estab- 
lished in  April,  1907,  and  a  year  later  its  first 


factory  was  opened  at  the  Osaka  Constructed 
Harbour,  formerly  known  as  Blockuard 
Harbour.  The  manufacture  and  sale  of 
cement  for  the  local  market  proved  an 
immediate  success,  which  is  not  surprising 
considering  the  rapid  development  of  Osaka, 
and  in  May,  191 3,  the  company  opened  its 
export  department,  from  which  time  the  real 
prosperity  of  the  enterprise  must  be  dated. 
A  vigourous  policy  of  expansion  and  improve- 
ment was  entered  upon.  The  most  modern 
type  of  rotary  kiln,  aero-pulverizer,  self- 
recording  electrical  pyrometer  and  similar 
plant  was  installed,  and  by  June,  1914,  the 
first  factory  had  been  entirely  reorganised 
and  improved,  the  new  plant  being  put  in 
ahead  of  any  other  cement  factory  in  the 
country.  The  company  then  established 
other  factories,  and  in  No.  2  factory  the 
rotary  kiln,  125  feet  by  10  feet  in  diameter,  is 
said  to  be  the  largest  of  its  kind  in  Japan. 
There  are  other  mechanical  appliances,  such 
as  the  aero-pulverizer  and  self-recording 
pyrometer,  which  are  not  to  be  found  in  any 
other  cement  works.  In  May,  1916,  a  big 
limestone  field  was  purchased  at  Toku-ura, 
Oita  Prefecture.  This  field  is  over  140,000 
tsubo  in  extent,  where  the  lime  has  been 
exposed.  With  such  a  valuable  source  of  raw 
material,  the  Sakura  Cement  Company  lost 
no  time  in  establishing  a  second  factory,  right 
on  the  spot,  and  equipped  it  in  a  manner  by 
no  means  inferior  to  the  equipment  at  No.  I 
factory.  The  company's  own  patented  raw 
material  crusher,  and  manufacttu'ed  cement 
crusher  were  installed,  together  with  the  huge 
rotary  kiln  referred  to  above.  Both  factories 
are  most  advantageously  located  for  effective 
and  economical  production  of  cement.  No.  i 
being  so  close  to  the  harbour  permits  of  easy 
transportation  for  incoming  raw  materials, 
and  enables  the  export  operations  of  the 
company  to  be  carried  on  readily,  while  No.  2, 
being  in  the  centre  of  a  great  lime-producing 
field,  and  also  adjacent  to  the  port  of  Moji, 
also  makes  transportation  and  production 
very  cheap.  The  factories  have  an  area 
respectively  of  15,587  tsubo  and  5,000  tsubo. 
Electricity  and  steam  are  employed  at  No.  i 
factory,  and  electricity  at  No.  2. 

The  limestone  and  clay  used  are  produced 
in  lyo,  Kii,  Harima,  Kwaji,  and  Bungo 
provinces.  The  company's  method  of  manu- 
facture is  to  crush  the  clay  and  limestone  in 
stipulated  quantities,  pulverizing  it  in  a  Kent 
mill,  and  then  sending  it  on  to  a  tube  mill 
where  it  is  reduced  to  very  fine  powder.  The 
mixture  is  then  treated  in  the  rotarj'  kilns. 
Each  factory  is  complete  with  all  modern 
machinery,  and  No.  2  factory  has  an  aerial 
tramway  for  the  conveyance  of  raw  material, 
etc.  Physical  and  chemical  laboratories 
are  established  at  each  factory  for  testing  the 


cement  and  for  other  purposes  incidental  to 
the  manufacture  of  a  high-grade  product  of 
uniform  quality.  Specialities  in  the  Sakura 
Cement  Company's  system  of  manufacture 
are  the  use  of  a  variable  speed  electric  motor 
for  the  operation  of  revolving  the  kilns;  the 
u.se  of  the  aero-pulverizer  for  crushing  the 
limestone  into  powder  as  the  process  of 
manufacture  proceeds,  thus  obviating  the 
necessity  for  storing  powdered  limestone  and 
preventing  the  danger  of  fire  arising  from 
such  a  source,  and  the  use  of  the  radiating 
pyrometer  which  permits  of  burning  the 
mixture  at  a  definite  degree  of  heat,  thus 
rendering  the  product  uniform  throughout. 
Further  guarantees  of  the  even  quality  of  the 
company's  product  are  the  tests  which  are 
continually  being  made  in  the  laboratories, 
and  which  result  in  the  maintenance  of  a 
high  standard  which  has  won  for  the  Sakura 
Cement  the  highest  reputation  at  home  and 
abroad.  Among  the  awards  won  by  the 
Sakura  Cement  Co.,  Ltd.,  are  the  following: 
Silver  medal  at  the  Third  Domestic  Products 
Exhibition,  May,  191 1 ;  silver  medal  at  the 
Japan  Furnace  Products  Exhibition,  Septem- 
ber, 191 1 ;  silver  medal  at  the  Osaka  Trades 
Exhibition  in  1916,  and  various  other  silver 
and  bronze  medals. 

The  company  employs  a  technical  staff  of 
60,  and  about  260  workmen,  the  two  factories 
having  a  combined  output  at  present  of  450,- 
000  casks  per  annum.  Sakura  Cement  has 
been  used  by  the  following  enterprises  or 
companies:  Imperial  Theatre,  Tokyo,  Osaka 
Asahi  Shimbun,  Mitsubishi  Co.  (Osaka 
branch  building),  Sumitomo  head  office, 
Kawasaki  Bank  (Kobe),  Osaka  Electric 
Light  Co.  (Head  office  building),  Toyo 
Spinning  Co.,  Ltd.,  Kyoto  Electric  Light  Co., 
and  many  others.  The  Sakura  Cement  is 
sold  all  over  Japan  and  is  largely  exported  to 
British  India,  the  Straits  Settlements,  the 
Dutch  Indies,  the  Philippines,  Australia, 
French  India,  Siam,  China,  South  Africa, 
Manchuria  and  elsewhere.  The  head  office  of 
the  Sakura  Cement  Co.,  Ltd.,  is  at  Constructed 
Harbour,  Nishiku,  Osaka,  and  there  are  branch 
business  offices  at  No.  3  Funadaikumachi, 
Dojima,  Kitaku,  Osaka,  and  at  No.  6  Honzai- 
mokucho,    Nichome,   Nihonbashi-ku,  Tokyo. 

The  company  has  a  capital  of  Yen  800,000, 
with  reserves  of  Yen  59,300.  The  President 
is  Mr.  T.  Hiraga.  Other  Directors  are  Mr. 
M.  Sakamoto  (Managing  Director)  and  Dr. 
K.  Watanabe.  The  Auditors  are  Messrs. 
K.  Hiro-Oka  and  K.  Kakuma. 

IVVAKI       CEMENT      KABUSHIKI       KAISHA 
(the  IWAKI  CEMENT  CO.,  LTD.) 

Owing  to  the  boom  in  the  Japanese  market 
as  a  consequence  of  the  European  war,  the 
cement    manufacturing    industry    has    also 


6io 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


CAPTAINS    OF    INDUSTRY 

d)  W.  H.  Kendrick,  Manager,  Lycett  Saddle  Co.  —  (2)  C.  Amano,  President,  Japan  Musical  Instrument  Manufacturing  Co.  —  (3)  K. 
Hara,  President,  Takasago  Life  Insurance  Co.,  Ltd.;  President,  Takasago  Industry  Co.,  Ltd.,  and  President,  Nippon  Yusi  K.  K. — 
(4)  Tadahiro  Tasaki,  Partner,  Mitatsuchi  Rubber  Manufacturing  Co.  —  (5)  Nagakuni  Tasaki,  Partner,  Mitatsuchi  Rubber  Manu- 
facturing Co.  —  (6)  HiDET.^TSu  TsucHiYA,  Partner,  Mitatsuchi  Rubber  Manufacturing  Co.  —  (7)  The  Late  Tada.\tsu  Tasaki,  One  of 
the  Founders  of  the  Mitatsuchi  Rubber  Manufacturing  Co.  —  (8)  Takuma  Ito,  Managing  Director,  Japan  Hide  and  Leather  Co.,  Ltd. — 
(9)  Taijiro  Asano,  Director  and  General  Manager,  Asano  Portland  Cement  Co.,  Ltd. ^(10)  Kintaro  Hattori,  Proprietor,  K.  Hattori 
&  Co.,  Tokyo,  and  President,  Seikosha  Watch  and  Clock  Manufacturing  Co.,  Tokyo  —  (11)  G.  Matsukata,  President,  Tokyo  Gas  and 
Electric  Industry  Co. —  (12)  T.  Otani,  Managing  Director,  Tokyo  Itagami  Kaisha,  Ltd.  —  (13)  N.  Haseg.\wa,  Managing  Director, 
Takasago  Industry  Co.,  Ltd.  —  (14)  M.  Yamada,  President,  Tokyo  Rope  Manufacturing  Co.,  Ltd.  —  (15)  K.  Makoshi,  President,  Denki 
Kagaku  Kogyo  Kaisha,  Ltd.,  and  Dai  Nippon  Brewery  Co.,  Ltd.  —  (16)  T.  Nomura,  Managing  Director,  Oriental  Timber  Creosoting 
Co.,  Ltd.  — (17)  T.  Shoda,  Managing  Director,  Nisshin  Seifun  K.  K.  —  (18)  G.  Yonei,  President,  K.  K.  Meidi-ya— (19)  S.  Osawa, 
President  and  Managing  Director,  Japan  Shoe  and  Boot  Manufacturing  Co.  — (21)  T.  Y.wawa,  Proprietor,  T.  Yazawa  &  Co. — 
(22)  Clifford  Wilkinson,  Managing  Director,  The  ClifTord-Wilkinson  Tansan  Mineral  Water  Co.,  Ltd. 


I'RESENT-DAY        IMPRESSIONS        OF        JAPAN 


6ll 


shown  an  unprecedented  activity  within  the 
past  year  or  so.  The  Iwaki  Cement  Co.  is 
one  of  the  two,  among  many  corporations 
connected  with  the  industry,  which  have 
made  most  progress,  especially  in  the  eastern 
and  northeastern  districts  of  Japan. 

The  Iwaki  Cement  Co.,  Ltd.,  was  estab- 
lished inNovember,  1907, andis  comparatively 
of  new  birth  from  the  viewpoint  of  the  cement 
industry  in  Japan.  It  was  organised  at  the 
time  when  there  took  place  a  fundamental 
reform  in  the  method  of  cement  manufacture 
in  Japan.  The  company  installed  the 
machines  most  up-to-date  in  Europe  and 
America,  and  the  two  kilns  now  in  use  are  of 
the  revolving  system,  "rotary  kilns,"  one 
being  100  feet  in  length  and  the  other  125  feet. 

Under  the  most  systematic  and  scientific 
method,  the  quality  of  the  product  is  remark- 
ably excellent  and  uniform.  Moreover,  the 
increase  in  efficiency  of  work,  as  well  as  the 
shortening  of  the  process  of  labour,  has 
resulted  in  a  considerable  decrease  in  the 
cost  of  production.  The  foundation  of  the 
institution  is  getting  more  and  more  stable, 
because  of  the  rare  capability  of  the  manage- 
ment. In  these  circumstances,  even  in  the 
time  of  depression  in  the  cement  industry 
(1913-14),  the  company  did  not  fail  in  adding 
an  apiiropriate  amount  to  the  reserve  fund  or 
in  paying  dividends.  The  total  sum  of  the 
profit  for  the  fiscal  term  ended  June  30,  191 7, 
amounted  to  50  per  cent  of  the  paid-up 
capital,  a  fact  which  could  not  be  founil  in  tlie 
record  of  any  similar  undertaking. 

Since  the  revolving  kiln  was  first  introduced 
by  Mr.  Ransom,  the  inventor,  in  England  in 


1885,  an  improved  machine  for  use  in  manu- 
facturing cement  has  been  introduced  in  the 
United  States,  where  it  has  been  in  practical 
use.  And  it  must  be  noted  that  though  at 
present  almost  all  the  cement  manufacturers 
in  Japan  are  profiting  by  the  use  of  this  epoch- 
making  machine,  it  was,  in  fact,  the  Iwaki 
Cement  Co.  which  first  adopted  it  in  Japan 
and  succeeded  in  its  practical  use. 

In  describing  the  process  of  industry  of  the 
company  in  detail,  the  first  thing  done  is  to 
crush  the  limestone,  the  raw  material  for  the 


manufacture  of  cement,  with  a  crusher;  then 
it  is  made  into  powder  by  means  of  a  "com- 
minutor."  The  clay  is  crushed  with  a  rotary 
crusher  before  it  is  dried  with  a  revolving 
desiccator.  After  the  clay  is  thus  dried,  and 
made  into  powder  by  means  of  an  emery  mill, 
it  is  mixed  up  with  an  automatic  steelyard; 
then  it  is  reduced  to  finer  powder  with  a  tube 
mill,  and  this  i)Owder  is  poured  into  a  rotary 
kiln  installed  with  a  gentle  gradient  from  the 
top. 

From  the  bottom  of  the  rotary  kiln  jiure 


VIEWS   OF    THE    FACTORY    OF    THE    IWAKI    CEMENT   CO.,    LTD. 


Term 

Paid-up 
Capit.\l 

Profit 

Percentage 

Yen 

Yen 

2nd  half-year,  1915 

1st  half-year,  1916 

2nd  half-3-ear,  1916 

1st  half-year,  1917 

646,000 
646,000 
646,000 
850,000 

54.53" 

93.751 

203,230 

2 1 1 , 1 63 

16.9 
29.0 
63.1 
49-7 

coal,  which  is  first  crushed  with  a  roll-jaw 
crusher  and  then  made  into  powder  by  means 
of  a  Griffin  mill,  a  Fuller  mill,  and  a  selector, 
is  blown  into  the  kiln  with  an  electric  blower. 
The  limestone  and  clay  on  the  upper  part  of 
the  kiln  gradually  fall  down  through  the  tube. 
When  they  reach  the  bottom  they  are  melted 
and  the  liquid  is  conveyed  into  a  cooling 
machine,  where  it  is  made  into  clinker.     The 


DisiPosAL    OF    Promt 


Term 

Amount 

Brought 

Over  from 

Preceding 

Half-year 

AND 

Profit 

Rede.mption 

Reserve 
Fund 

Bonus 

Dividends 

Rate 

Amount 
Carried 
Forward 
TO  Ne.xt 
Half-year 

Yen 

Yen 

Yen 

Yen 

Yen 

Per  cent 

Yen 

2nd  half-year,  1915 

1st  half-year,  1916 

and  half-year,  191 6 

1st  half-year,  191 7 

'19.7.54 
116,166 
240,097 
3"3.i-2i 

10,000 
20,000 
50,000 
50,000 

7-500 
20,000 
28,000 
28,500 

4,000 

7,000 

12,000 

12,000 

25,840 
32.300 
58,140 
85,000 

.08 
.  10 
.18 
.20 

22,414 
36,866 

91,957 
127,621 

6l2 


PRESENT-DAY        I   M    I'  K  IC  S  S  I  O  N  S        OF        J  A  1'  A  N 


TENJINBASHI    BRIDGE,    FROM    SHIN-NANIWA-BASHI    BRIDGE,    OSAKA 


clinker  is  again  reduced  to  powder  with  a 
comminutor,  tube  mill.  Fuller  mill,  and  a 
selector,  and  finally  this  powder  is  packed 
into    barrels. 

The  company's  factory  is  situated  in  front 
of  the  Yotsukura  Station  on  the  Joban  Rail- 
way Line  in  the  northeastern  part  of  Japan. 
The  capital  is  at  present  850,000  yen,  and 
the  company  employs  600  workers.  The 
daily  output  is  1,000  barrels,  totalling  over 
350,000  barrels  per  annum.  Limestone,  the 
principal  raw  material,  is  transported  from 
the  Yakuki  copper  mine,  six  miles  away,  and 
clay  from  the  neighboiu-hood  of  the  factor\', 
both  by  means  of  the  Tamamura  aerial  cable 
and  a  light  railway.  As  the  factory  is  located 
near  the  Iwaki  coal-pits,  the  supply  of  coal  is 
very  convenient. 

The  quality  of  the  cement  produced  from 
the  factory  is  far  superior  to  w'hat  is  pre- 
scribed by  the  Department  of  Agriculture  and 
Commerce,  so  that  it  is  enjoying  a  high 
reputation  among  consumers.  The  head- 
quarters of  the  business  is  at  No.  23  Yama- 
shita-cho,  Kyobashi-ku,  Tokyo,  where  Mr. 
K.  Omiya,  one  of  the  Directors,  manages  the 
business,  while  the  works  is  under  the  manage- 
ment of .  Mr.  M.  Okada.  There  is  also  a 
branch  office  in  Yokohama.  The  product  of 
the  company  is  chiefly  consumed  in  the 
eastern,  northeastern,  and  Shinyetsu  districts, 
for  railway  construction,  harbour  works, 
hydraulic  electrical  undertakings,  water- 
works, and  drainage,  bridges,  steel-framed 
concrete  buildings,  etc.  The  works  is  said 
to  be  a  model  one  in  Japan  and  is  much 
frequented   by   professional   engineers. 


The  Board  of  Directors  consists  of  Messrs. 
N.  Yoshinaga,  K.  Abe,  S  Iwasaki,  R.  Okano, 
and  K.  Omiya,  and  Messrs.  H.  Muto,  O.  Kida, 
and  R.   Ota  are  Auditors. 

The  tables  on  the  preceding  page  show 
the  company's  profit  within  the  last  two  years. 
Profit  rate  is  compared  with  paid-up  capital 

LACQUER  INDUSTRY 

On  account  of  its  high  excellence  of  form, 
design,  and  execution  Japanese  lacquer  may  be 


said  to  hokl  first  place  among  the  art  indus- 
tries of  the  nation,  and  will  be  so  treated  under 
the  head  of  Arts  and  Crafts. 

The  manufacture  of  lacquer  as  an  in- 
dustry has  suffered  from  excess  of  output 
and  decrease  of  export,  the  latter  being  due 
chiefly  to  the  use  of  cheap  Chinese  lacquer 
and  imperfect  preparation  of  the  wood,  which 
is  fata!  when  the  goods  reach  a  drier  climate. 
Cardboard  imitations  from  Germany  have 
also  come  into  competition.  About  two- 
thirds  of  the  lacquer  juice  used  in  Japan  comes 
from  China,  and  being  obtained  from  wild 
trees  and  crudely  refined,  is  always  inferior  to 
the  Japanese  variety.  The  most  common 
ohjccts  in  lacquer  ware  are  rice  and  soup 
bowls,  traj's,  cake  boxes,  glove  boxes,  and 
various  household  utensils,  as  well  as  cabinet 
and  ornamental  objects  of  exquisite  finish 
and  design. 

There  are  some  thirty  kinds  of  plain, 
metallic,  and  coloured  lacquer,  each  with 
different  names  and  slightlj'  differing  in 
appearance,  gold  lacquer,  plain  and  red  or 
brown  being  the  more  popular,  and  the 
articles  and  designs  are  infinite  in  variety. 
The  beautiful  deep  red  of  the  Luchu  lacquer 
is  also  famous.  The  great  centres  of  the 
nidustry  are  at  Wajima  and  Yamashiro  in 
Ishikaw-a,  which  are  famous  for  good  work, 
as  are  also  Kuroe,  Takamatsu,  and  Shizuoka. 
Lacquer  is  now  finding  increased  demand  for 
finishing  cars  and  carriages,  as  well  as  for 
coating  bottoms  of  w'arships.  The  annual 
output  is  valued  at  10,000,000  yen,  of  which 
about  1,000,000  yen  represents  exports. 
(See  also  Arts  and  Crafts  Section  of  this 
volume.) 


DOTO.NBORI    RIVER   AT   OSAKA.       THE    VIEW    FROM    VEBISU-BASHI    BRIDGE 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


613 


SILK   INDUSTRY 

Japan's  natural  advantage  in  having  a 
climate  favourable  to  the  mulberry  tree  and 
the  roaring  of  the  silkworm  marks  her  out  for 
a  silk-producing  country,  while  her  long 
experience  in  sericulture  and  silk  weaving, 
together  with  a  native  deftness  for  delicate 
tasks  on  the  part  of  the  people,  renders  her 
still  further  well  adapted  to  this  industry. 
Having  devoted  her  attention  to  silk  for  more 
than  fourteen  centuries,  the  industry  is 
naturally  Japan's  largest  and  most  important 
enterprise.  Japan  is  the  largest  exporter  of 
raw  silk  in  the  world.  By  raw  silk  is  meant 
the  fibre  unwound  from  the  cocoons  and  reeled 
into  hanks.  While  the  Japanese  are  experts 
in  reeling  .silk  they  have  made  little  attempt 
at  thrown  silk,  consequently  most  of  the  out- 
put is  exported  raw.  Spun  silk,  in  contrast 
with  thrown  silk,  is  made  from  silk  waste, 
much  as  yam  is  made  from  wool,  and  exported 
from  Japan  to  weavers  in  Europe  and 
America.  The  most  important  of  Japan's 
woven  silks  is  known  as  habutai,  an  undyed 
material  used  chiefly  for  ladies'  blouses,  and 
turned  out  by  Japan  of  a  quality  and  at  a 
figure  with  which  no  other  country  can  com- 
pete. Handkerchiefs,  taffetas,  crepes  and 
other  goods  are  also  made,  their  market  being 
chiefly  in  the  Orient.  Among  the  more 
lovely  of  Japan's  silk  productions  is  what  is 
known  as  brocade  and  silk  tapestry,  at  which 
Japanese  artists  are  unrivalled.  Notwith- 
standing the  stead)'  increase  of  wages  among 
silk  workers,  Japan  still  produces  silk  goods 
cheaper  than  any  of  her  rivals.  Although 
the  Government  has  inspectors  and  silk 
conditioning  houses  the  output  is  still  often 
irregular  in  both  quantity  and  quality,  but  no 
doubt  in  time  a  greater  uniformity  will  be 
attained.  The, annual  output  of  raw  silk  is 
over  184,000,000  yen  in  value,  and  woven 
goods  have  an  annual  value  of  123,000,000. 
The  number  of  persons  connected  with  the 
production  of  siUc  is  well  over  one  and  a  half 
millions,  and  the  chief  centres  of  production 
are  in  the  districts  of  Shinshu  and  Koshu. 
(The  importance  of  this  industry  warrants 
a  separate  article,  to  which  the  reader  is 
referred.) 

OTHER  INDUSTRIES 

Matches  first  began  to  be  made  in  Japan 
in  1875.  As  the  people  had  so  long  been 
accustomed  to  producing  fire  from  flint  and 
steel,  there  was  considerable  prejudice  to  be 
overcome  in  introducing  what  was  regarded 
as  "hell-fire,"  as  they  regarded  the  sulphur 
match.  After  an  indifferent  historj'  of  ten 
years  there  was  a  sudden  revival  in  the 
industry,  with  a  rapid  increase  of  factories 
and  an  output  of  over  15,000,000  yen  in 
annual  value.     Tlie  centre  of  the  industrv  is 


around  Osaka,  [iroducing  over  go  per  cent  of 
the  total,  the  varieties  being  chiefly  safety 
matches,  phosphorus,  sulphur,  and  phos- 
phorus sulphide.  More  than  85  per  cent  of 
the  output  is  exported,  chiefly  to  China, 
Hongkong,  British  India,  the  Dutch  Indies, 
the  Straits  Settlements,  Siam,  and  the  United 
States,  the  annual  value  being  over  23,000,000 
yen.  Technically,  Japanese  matches  need 
improvement  in  some  respects,  the  box  and 
splints  being  weak,  while  the  heads  are  easily 
affected  by  dampness.  It  is  on  the  strength 
of  cheapness  that  Japanese  matches  compete 
so  well  with  Western  products,  being  45  per 
cent  cheaper  in  the  markets  of  Asia. 

The  paper-making  industry  is  making 
remarkable  progress  of  late.  Two  processes 
are  carried  on,  one  by  hand  and  the  other 
the  regular  machine-made  paper.  More  than 
150,000  people  are  engaged  in  turning  out 
paper  by  the  old  methods  of  hand  filtering, 
the  annual  output  having  a  value  of  over 
20,000,000  yen.  The  machine  filtering  pro- 
cess started  in  1872  with  the  establishment  of 
the  Oji  Paper  Mill,  and  there  are  now  several 
companies,  which  produce  a  total  valued  at 
over  44,000,000  yen  annually,  with  an  export 
value  of  about  3,000,000  yen.  For  foreign 
paper  Japan  has  been  accustomed  to  get  pulp 
from  Norway  and  vSweden,  but  since  the  war 
she  has  been  creating  wood  pulp  industries 
in  the  forests  of  Saghalien  with  promise  of 
abundant  supply.  But  imports  of  paper 
still  total  over  3,000,000  yen  a  year. 

Soap  making  is  another  industry  that  has 
made  remarkable  progress  in  recent  years. 
The  largest  factories  are  the  Marumiya  and 
Kwao  works  in  Tokyo,  and  the  Hagiwara  and 
Haruki  factories  in  Osaka,  with  one  large 
foreign  factory,  that  established  by  Messrs. 
Lever  Brothers  of  Port  Sunlight,  with  a 
capital  of  3,000,000  yen,  which  has  no  equal 
in  Japan  for  completeness  of  equipment  and 
excellence  in  quality  of  output.  The  value 
of  the  annual  output  of  soap  in  Japan  is  about 
4,500,000  yen  for  toilet  and  2,500,000  for 
other  soaps,  exports  of  both  totalling  some- 
thing over  1,000,000  yen.  Imports  of  soap 
amount  to  about  200,000  yen  a  year,  of  which 
more  than  half  is  laundry  soap.  Most  of  the 
exports  go  to  China  and  Manchuria,  as  well 
as  to  the  South  Seas.  There  is  a  good  deal  of 
complaint  as  to  the  abnormal  percentage  of 
flour  used  in  Japanese  soaps,  but  the  Govern- 
ment is  now  exercising  close  supervision  and 
the  amount  of  adulteration  is  to  be  limited. 
Celluloid  manufacture  began  in  Japan  in 
1908  under  the  auspices  of  the  Mitsu  Bishi 
Company,  with  a  capital  of  1,200,000,  and 
another  factory,  established  by  the  Mitsui 
Bussan  Kaisha,  with  a  capital  of  2,000,000 
yen.  These  concerns  turn  out  about  5,000 
pounds  a  year,  but  owing  to  technical  defects 


the  results  have  not  been  quite  satisfactory 
in  spite  of  unique  advantages  as  to  camphor 
supply.  Naturally  the  war  lent  great 
impetus  to  the  manufacture  of  this  article  in 
Japan. 

Artificial  fertilizers  have  come  to  occupy  an 
important  place  in  the  national  economy  of 
Japan.  For  centiunes  the  land  was  manured 
with  ordure  from  the  cities  and  towns  as  well 
as  with  composite,  green  manure,  and  fish 
maniu-e,  but  in  recent  years  artificial  fertilizer 
has  come  into  use,  the  production  having 
trebled  in  the  last  ten  years.  The  annual 
production  is  now  as  follows:  Animal  origin, 
10,562,000  yen;  vegetable  origin,  11,977,000 
yen;  mineral  origin,  16,314,000  yen;  com- 
posite, 17,481,000  yen;  or  a  total  of  56,389,000 
yen   annually. 

Fish  oil  is  taken  chiefly  from  the  whale, 
the  herring,  and  the  sardine  and  is  used  more 
abroad  than  at  home,  where  it  is  usually  used 
in  cooking  only.  Methods  of  extraction  are 
still  crude,  foreign  manufactures  being  able  to 
get  almost  twice  as  much  oil  from  the  same 
quantity  of  fish  meat  as  the  Japanese  do. 
The  annual  output  is  about  48,000,000  gallons 
of  sardine  oil,  valued  at  over  1,000,000  yen; 
3,500,000  gallons  of  herring  oil,  valued  at 
about  216,000  yen;  2,500,000  gallons  of  whale 
oil,  valued  at  about  255,000  yen;  of  other  fish 
oils,  more  than  a  million  yen  worth  is  pro- 
duced, the  total  fish  oil  output  for  the  year 
representing  a  value  of  more  than  2,000,000 
yen. 

Osaka  is  the  centre  of  the  glassware 
industry,  where  the  output  is  equal  to  about 
6,000,000  yen  a  year,  the  chief  manufactures 
being  bottles  and  sheet  glass,  the  latter  having 
already  driven  imports  out  of  the  market,  yet 
the  total  import  of  glass  of  every  description 
is  still  over  5,000,000  yen  annually. 

The  button  industry  is  making  great  head- 
way in  Japan,  the  annual  production  being 
now  equal  to  over  2,000,000  yen  a  year, 
exports  going  for  the  most  part  to  England, 
Germany,  and  France,  especially  shell 
buttons,  while  for  metal  buttons  China  is  the 
principal  customer.  Most  of  the  shells  for 
buttons  come  from  southern  Japan  and  from 
the  South  Seas.  (See  the  article  on  the  Button 
Industry,  in  Section  XIII.) 

Factories  for  making  watches  and  clocks 
first  appeared  in  Japan  as  early  as  1887,  and 
by  191 3  numbered  as  many  as  seventeen,  the 
chief  establishments  being  the  Seikosha,  the 
Ishiwara,  and  the  Yamada,  the  latter  two 
making  the  cases  and  importing  the  works. 
The  Seikosha  is  by  far  the  largest  and  most 
important  establishment,  employing  about  a 
thousand  hands  and  turning  out  200,000 
standing  clocks,  100,000  wall  clocks,  and 
80,000  watches  a  year,  at  a  total  value  of 
about    900,000   yen.     Those   who     formerly 


40 


6i4 


PRESENT-DAY        IMPRESSIONS        OF        JAPAN 


purchased  cheap  timepieces  from  Germany 
have  recently  turned  their  attention  to  Japan 
as  a  source  of  supply. 

Since  the  introduction  of  electricity  the  gas 
industry  in  Japan  has  been  suffering  some 
reverses  but  is  still  thriving,  though  stocks 
have  fallen  below  par.  Efforts  are  being 
made  to  push  gas  as  a  means  of  heating  and 
to  increase  the  business  in  l^y-products.  The 
following  are  the  gas  statistics  for  the  year 
1914:  Xumber  of  lamps,  1,833,610;  heating 
installations,  768,066;  motor  installations, 
2,018;  cubic  feet  produced,  5,644,854,000. 
The  gas  industry  is  chiefly  in  private  hands, 
in  contrast  to  electric  enterprise,  which  tends 
to  become  a  municipal  undertaking.  In  1914 
Japan  had  75  gas  works,  representing  a 
capital  of  68,521,000  yen,  with  about  6.000 
miles  of  piping,  the  capital  invested  increasing 
to  over  80,000,000  in  191 7.  The  gas  is 
principally  from  coal,  acetylene  being  still 
negligible  in  amount. 

No  industry  has  made  more  rapid  develop- 
ment than  that  of  electricity.     During  the 


four  years  from  1910  to  19 14  the  number  of 
plants  increased  from  164,  with  125,731  kilo- 
watts, to  290.  with  411,017  kilowatts,  while 
1 22  new  plants  are  under  construction.  TIic 
above  are  for  .supplying  power  only.  Taking 
all  the  electric  undertakings  into  considera- 
tion, there  are  1,940  plants  with  a  total  of 
715,969  kilowatts.  About  5,614,000  horse- 
power is  being  generated  by  water,  supplying 
2,330,000  kilowatts.  This  subject  will  be 
found  more  fully  treated  under  the  head  of 
electric    enterprises. 

Tlie  sugar  industry  is  carried  on  for  the 
most  part  in  the  Luchu  Islands  and  in  For- 
mosa, the  latter  island  now  producing  about 
one-quarter  per  acre  that  of  Java.  Sugar 
refining  with  up-to-date  equipment  did  not 
begin  in  Japan  until  1895,  since  when  several 
companies  have  been  established,  making  fa- 
vourable progress  under  rebate  duties  on  raw 
imports  by  government  concession.  The  av- 
erage consumption  of  sugar  in  Japan  is  about 
,S, 500,000,000  pounds  a  year,  a  little  over 
ten  pounds  per  head,  while  the  annual  pro- 


duction is  about  140,000,000  pounds  in 
Japan  proper,  with  484,000,000  pounds  from 
Formosa  and  245,000,000  pounds  from 
abroad.  The  exports  of  sugar  total  over 
132,000,000  pounds  a  year.  (See  separate 
article  on  Sugar,  Section  LII.) 

Flour  milling  started  in  Japan  in  1878,  but 
did  not  acquire  a  position  of  importance 
until  1897.  The  home  supply  of  wheat  is 
deficient,  amounting  to  no  more  than  25,- 
000,000  bushels  a  year,  of  which  some 
10,000,000  are  used  for  soy  making,  so  that 
the  amount  of  wheat  available  for  milling 
is  only  about  15,000,000  bushels  annually. 
As  no  less  than  20,000,000  bushels  are 
required  to  produce  the  15,000,000  sacks 
turned  out  from  Japanese  mills  every  year, 
large  imports  have  to  be  brought  from  the 
United  States,  Canada,  and  Australia. 
Most  of  the  flour  output  is  of  second  grade, 
the  best  flour  being  still  imported  from  the 
United  States,  amounting  in  value  to 
over  1,500,000  yen  annually.  The  total 
annual    production    of    flour   is    now    about 


SCENE   IN   THE    SHOPPING   DISTRICT  OF   OS.'VKA    (HIRAN0-M.\CHI) 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


615 


600,000,000  pounds,  valued  at  over  37,- 
000,000   yen. 

The  production  of  peppermint  has  been 
making  progress  of  late,  cultivation  being 
carried  on  chiefly  in  Hokkaido.  The  annual 
output  is  about  170,000,000  pounds,  valued 
at  about  2,500,000  yen,  of  which  a  quantity 
worth  about  1,500,000  yen  is  exported. 

Rubber  manufactures  are  limited  to 
tires,  tubes,  and  piping,  working  on  a  capital 
of  some  3,500,000  yen,  but  competition  is 
keen  and  as  yet  the  sujiply  exceeds  the 
demand. 

The  vegetable  wax  industry  has  declined 
in  late  years,  but  recently  there  have  been 
signs  of  recovery  owing  to  a  revival  of  the 
demand  from  abroad.  The  total  annual 
output  is  valued  at  over  2,000,000  yen,  the 
value  of  exports  being  over   1,000,000  yen. 

Vegetable  oils  are  extracted  chiefly  from 
rape  seed,  sesame,  cotton,  linseed,  and 
camillia,  the  total  annual  output  being 
worth   about    16,500,000   yen. 


Vegetable  indigo,  which  before  the  war 
with  Russia  amounted  to  80,000,000  pounds 
a  year,  was  superseded  by  artificial  indigo 
from  Germany.  But  the  European  war 
having  stopped  imports,  the  natural  indigo 
crop  has  been  revived,  producing  now  about 
12,000,000  pounds  a  year,  valued  at  1,232,- 
223  yen. 

Straw,  chip,  and  hemp  braids  have  in- 
creasing demand  both  at  home  and  abroad 
for  making  hats,  the  principal  centres  of 
the  industry  being  at  Okayama  and  Kagawa 
for  straw,  and  Tokyo  and  Yamaguchi  for 
chip  braid.  Tlie  annual  production  of  straw 
and  chip  braid  is  about  1,650,000  yen  in 
value,  of  which  some  1,000,000  yen'  worth 
is  exported.  Hemp  braid  has  also  witnessed 
considerable  development  of  late  and  the 
annual  exportation  is  now  valued  at  over 
11,000,000  yen. 

The  manufacture  of  figured  and  fancy 
matting  made  great  progress  so  long  as  it 
was  on  the  free  list  of  imports  in  the  United 


States.  After  the  imposition  of  duty  in 
1897  exports  from  Japan  declined  and  now 
amount  in  value  to  from  three  to  five  millions 
a  year.  The  matting  is  made  from  a  reed, 
with  coarse  cotton  thread  as  a  warp.  Though 
the  exports  to  America  have  declined,  they 
appear  to  be  increasing  to  England,  the 
European  continent,  and  the  South  Seas. 
The  annual  production  is  valued  at  about 
8,000,000  yen. 

The  trade  in  hides,  leather,  and  furs  is 
very  prosperous  in  Japan,  where  the  demand 
for  leather  goods  has  abnormally  increased 
in  recent  years.  The  high  protective  tariff 
of  more  thaii  15  yen  per  100  kin  on  leather 
has  made  the  domestic  manufacturer  prac- 
tically independent,  assisted  further  by  free 
trade  in  hides.  Most  of  the  leather  is  con- 
sumed in  the  making  of  trunks,  bags,  and 
bo.xes,  as  well  as  boots.  The  chief  furs  are 
those  of  seals,  sea-otters,  foxes,  and  weasels, 
which  are  more  exported  than  used  at 
home.      The   total  leather  output  of  Japan 


BO.^RD   OF    DIRECTORS   ASD   .\UDITORS   OF   THE    FUJI    PAPER    MILLS   COMPANY,    LIMITED 

(Upper  Row,  Left  to  Right)  Mr.  Y.  Anamidzu,  Director — Mr.  N.  Koyama.  Director — Mr.  Y.  Hirose,  Director.  (Middle  Row)  Mr. 
S.  KuBOTA,  Managing  Director — Mr.  R.  Hara,  President — Mr.  T.  Takahashi,  Managing  Director.  (Lower  Row)  Mr.  S.  Yanai, 
Auditor  —  Mr.  H.  Ishida,  Auditor  —  Mr.  H.  Sato,  Auditor. 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


6l7 


is    now    valued    at    about  9,000,000  yen  a 
year. 

The  making  of  hosiery  is  quite  a  new 
Japanese  industry,  with  its  principal  centre 
at  Osaka,  and  large  exports  to  British  India, 
China,  and  the  South  Seas,  amounting  to 
over  14,000,000  yen  annually.  For  finer 
goods,  however,  Japan  has  to  depend  on 
England,  from  wliich  she  still  imports  goods 
to  the  value  of  about   150,000  ven  a  vear. 


e.xtent  of  some  4,000,000  yen  a  year,  exports 
amounting  to  over  1,000,000  yen  annually, 
going  chiefly  to  the  United  States  and 
England. 

Hair-brushes,  nail-brushes,  and  tooth- 
brushes are  produced  in  increasing  quanti- 
ties in  Osaka  and  vicinity,  the  output  being 
worth  about  4,000,000  a  year,  of  which  some 
3,500,000  yen'  worth  is  exported,  mostly  to 
the   United   States.     The  bristles  come  for 


and  munitions,  while  some  of  the  more 
important  industries,  like  silk  and  cotton, 
have  witnessed  considerable  expansion.  The 
Government  is  at  the  same  time  carefully 
investigating  the  possibilities  of  industrial 
extension,  and  commissioners  of  trade  are 
sent  abroad  to  supply  information  as  to 
markets.  Having  changed  from  a  borrow- 
ing to  a  lending  country  during  the  war, 
Japan  believes  more  than  ever  in  her  indus. 


FUJI    PAPER    MILLS   CO.,    LTD.:       F.\CTORY    .NO.    2,    LOCATED   AT    SHIZUOK.\ 


Tinned  goods  consist  chiefly  of  beef,  crabs, 
and  fruit,  \'alued  at  over  5,500,000  yen 
annually,  and  are  exported  to  the  value  of 
about  3,500,000  yen. 

Isinglass  finds  increasing  export  to  Europe 
and  America  for  jam-making  purposes,  the 
total  production  being  some  4,500,000 
pounds,  valued  at  1,833,000  yen,  of  which 
about  2,500,000  pounds  are  exported,  at 
a  value  of  some   1,150,000  yen. 

There  is  an  enormous  output  of  umbrellas 
in  Japan,  valued  at  4,000,000  yen  annually, 
of  which  Osaka  produces  most.  The  exports 
are  chiefly  to  China,  valued  at  over  1 ,500,000 
a  year,  with  handles  to  the  value  of  about 
120,000  yen. 

Toy  making  is  also  a  great  industry  in 
Japan,    toys    being    now    produced    to    the 


the  most  part  from  China,  Germany,  and 
Australia,  and  the  bone  from  America, 
Australia,  and  Siam. 

Munition  works  in  the  past  have  been 
under  Government  auspices,  but  the  demand 
created  by  the  European  war  caused  the 
establishment  of  numerous  private  enter- 
prises of  this  nature,  of  which  there  are  at 
present  about  1,260,  employing  some  80,000 
hands.  The  great  Japan  Steel  Works  was 
established  at  Muroran  in  191 1,  and  this 
and  the  Kur^  naval  arsenal  are  the  only 
places  in  the  Far  East  capable  of  casting 
ordnance  or  shells  of  heavy  calibre. 

It  will  thus  be  seen  that  among  the  more 
prosperous  of  Japan's  minor  industries  are 
those  producing  chemicals,  electric  apparatus, 
sheet  glass,   toys,   porcelain,  matches,  flour. 


trial  future.  That  her  policy  may  create 
keen  competition  with  British  industry  need 
not  necessarily  prove  to  be  the  case,  especially 
if  Japan  is  encouraged  in  the  direction  of 
taking  the  place  formerly  occupied  by 
Germany  in  the  industrial  world  of  East 
Asia.  Industrially  Japan  is  still  in  her 
youth,  but  it  is  youth  of  great  vigour  and 
promise,  and  as  she  is  heir  to  the  world's 
experience  and  has  the  untiring  interest 
and  assistance  of  the  Imperial  Government, 
she  naturally  anticipates  a  great  future. 

THE  FUJI  PAPER  MILLS  CO.,  LIMITED 
The  Fuji  Paper  Mills  Co.,  Ltd.,  obtained 
permission  for  the  formation  of  the  com- 
pany in  November,  1887,  with  a  capital  of 
Yen    250,000.     The    head    office    was    then 


6i8 


P  R  K  S  E  N  T  -  D  A  Y        IMPRESSIONS        OF        JAPAN 


PANORAMIC    VIEW   OF    GENERAL    FACTORY    OF    TOKYO   ITAGAMI    KAISHA, 


located  at  No.  i  Sanjukkenbori,  Itchome, 
Kyobashi-ku,  Tokyo,  and  the  mill  was 
erected  at  Iriyamase,  Takaoka-mura,  Fuji- 
gori,  Shizuoka  Prefecture,  the  site  being 
at  the  foot  of  the  famous  Mount  Fuji.  A 
water  turbine  was  installed  at  one  of  the 
streams  coming  from  the  foot  of  the  moun- 
tain, and  power  was  thus  obtained  for  the 
mill,  the  company  being  the  first  in  Japan 
to  utilise  w'ater  power  on  a  somewhat  large 
scale.  The  manufacture  of  paper  was 
started  in  January,  1890.  At  that  time 
the  art  of  paper-making  was  still  in  its 
infancy  in  Japan,  and  the  market  was 
almost  entirely  supplied  with  foreign-made 
paper,  but  with  a  regular  output  by  the 
Fuji  Paper  Mills,  Ltd.,  the  local  demands 
were  gradually  met.  In  March,  1 891,  the 
Takaoka  Mill,  which  was  the  first  to  make 
mechanical  pulp  in  Japan,  commenced  the 
manufacture  of  newsprint  paper  (zaragami), 
this  also  being  the  first  time  it  was  produced 
in  the  country.  From  this  time,  the  prog- 
ress of  Western  civilisation,  and  the  develop- 
ment of  the  printing  art  in  Japan,  enhanced 
the  demand  for  foreign  paper,  and  to  meet 
this  requirement  the  Fuji  Paper  Mills  Co., 
Ltd.,  increased  its  capital  to  Yen  1,000,000 
in  1894.  This  was  followed  by  a  further 
increase  to  Yen  1,500,000  in  1896,  and  the 
second  and  third  mills  were  erected. 


In  1899  the  company  began  the  export 
of  its  products  to  China.  Later  on  (in  1906) 
a  factory  in  Hokkaido  was  purchased  to 
constitute  the  company's  fourth  mill,  but 
work  there  has  now  been  suspended.  Then 
the  fifth  and  sixth  factories  were  erected  in 
Hokkaido,  and  the  eighth  factory  in  Fuji- 
gori  was  built.  In  March,  1907,  the  Nippon 
Paper  Manufacturing  Co.,  Ltd.,  was  amal- 
gamated, and  the  capital  was  thus  increased 
to  Yen  10,000,000.  The  Noda  Paper  Fac- 
tory, in  Hyogo  Prefecture,  was  purchased 
in  November,  1915,  and  the  Fuji  Paper 
Mills  Co.,  Ltd.,  thus  owned  eight  factories 
in  Japan.  Further  extensions  of  the  com- 
pany's operations  followed.  One  important 
step  of  the  extensions  was  the  amalgamation 
of  the  Asaliigawa  Hydro-electric  Power  Co., 
Ltd.,  Hokkaido,  the  capital  being  increased 
to  Yen  10,500,000,  and  the  Fuji  Paper  Mills 
Co.,  Ltd.,  then  began  the  supply  of  electric 
light  and  power  to  cities  and  villages,  in 
addition  to  its  own  activities. 

Since  the  outbreak  of  war  in  Europe  not 
only  has  the  supply  of  foreign  paper  been 
stopped,  but  the  demand  for  Japanese-made 
paper  has  considerably  increased  at  home 
and  abroad.  To  meet  the  increased  demands 
the  company  has  eflfected  improvements  all 
round  in  its  machineries  and  installations,  as 
well  as  turning  out  a  much  better  quality 


of  paper.  In  this  connection  there  has 
been  an  addition  to  the  number  of  machines, 
an  enlargement  of  the  motive  power,  and 
a  general  increase  in  the  productive  capacity 
of  the  mills.  These  developments  necessi- 
tated still  further  capital  and  in  April,  191 7, 
the  sum  was  raised  to  Yen  21,000,000. 
making  the  Fuji  Paper  Mills  Co.,  Ltd.,  the 
largest  concern  of  its  kind  in  Japan.  The 
company  can  turn  out  any  kind  of  paper, 
such  as  ordinary  printing  paper,  newsprint 
paper,  packing  paper,  cardboard,  prospec- 
tus paper,  white  and  coloured  prints,  etc. 
The  range  of  products  and  their  quality 
are  excelled  by  none,  and  equalled  by  few. 
The  sulphide  pulp  factory  and  the  186-inch 
paper-making  machines — the  biggest  and  the 
newest  machines  in  Japan  —  which  are  now 
under  construction,  are  to  be  in  operation 
by  the  latter  half  of  191 8,  and  in  case  the 
hydro-electric  power  generating  stations  now 
under  constniction  in  Hokkaido  be  com- 
pleted, power  aggregating  20,000  horse- 
power is  expected  to  be  available.  A  staff 
of  600  experts  and  officials,  as  well  as  about 
3,000  workmen,  are  employed  by  the  Fuji 
Paper  Mills  Co.,  Ltd.  The  yearly  output 
of  the  company's  mills  totals  in  value  about 
Yen  20,000,000,  the  products  being  sold  not 
only  in  Japan,  but  in  Australia,  India, 
China,  Korea  and  elsewhere.     Following  are 


PRESENT-DAY        IMPRESSIONS        OF        JAPAN 


619 


LIMITED    (TOKYO   STRAWBOARD   CO.,    LTD.),    AT   SENJU-MACHI,    TOKYO 


the  principal  officials  of  tlie  company: 
Directors,  Mr.  R.  Hara  (President),  Messrs. 
S.  Kubota  and  T.  Takahashi  (Managing 
Directors),  Y.  Hirose,  N.  Koyama,  and  Y. 
Anamidzu;  Auditors,  Messrs.  S.  Yanai, 
H.  Sato,  and  H.  Ishida. 

THE  TOKYO  ITAGAMI  KAISHA,  LIMITED 

The  Tokv'o  Itagami  Kabushiki  Kaisha,  or 
Tokyo  Strawboard  Co.,  Ltd.,  is  an  old 
established  and  well  developed  industrial 
concern,  holding  a  prominent  position  in 
the  important  strawboard  manufacturing 
industry  of  Japan,  and  also  catering  largely 
to  the  rapidly  developing  market  for  Japa- 
nese products  from  pulp  and  other  paper- 
making  materials.  This  joint-stock  com- 
pany was  founded  in  1886  for  the  purpose  of 
manufacturing  strawboard,  and  was  capital- 
ised at  Yen  170,000.00.  At  that  time  the 
factory  at  Minami  Senju-machi  was  equipped 
with  an  85-inch  Fourdrinier  paper  machine, 
with  a  capacity'  of  about  400  tons  per  month. 
With  this  modest  machine  the  Tokyo  Itagami 
Kaisha  became  the  pioneer  of  the  Japanese 
strawboard  industry,  which  has  since  reached 
enomious  proportions.  From  its  inception 
the  enterprise  was  successful,  and  such  prog- 
ress was  made  that  in  1896  the  capital  was 
increased  to  Yen  500,000.00,  and  a  new 
Fourdrinier  no-inch  machine  was  added  to 


the  plant,  with  a  view  to  the  manufacture 
of  printing  papers.  This  machine  gave  the 
factory  a  capacity  in  this  particular  product 
of  600,000  pounds  per  month.  Of  more 
recent  years  the  development  of  the  company 
and  the  increase  of  its  production  have  been 
remarkable.  In  1907  the  capital  was  again 
increased,  this  time  to  Yen  1,500,000.00,  and 
further  developments  of  the  plant  followed. 
A  70-inch  cylinder  machine  for  the  making 
of  strawboard  was  installed,  with  a  capacity 
of  500  tons  per  month,  and  at  the  same  time 
the  first  machine  was  reconstructed  to  fit 
it  for  the  manufacture  of  printing  paper,  for 
which  the  market  was  strong.  In  1917  an 
85-inch  single  cylinder  machine  was  installed 
for  the  making  of  tissue  paper,  and  the 
factory'  output  in  this  line  was  increased  to 
about  250,000  pounds  per  month.  At  the 
time  of  writing  the  annual  output  of  the 
factory  is  7,000  tons  of  strawboard  and 
approximately  15,000,000  pounds  of  print- 
ing paper,  tissue  paper,  etc.  A  steady 
policy  of  expansion  has  been  pursued  all 
along,  and  the  management  of  the  company 
has  always  kept  in  mind  the  wisdom  of 
producing  the  very  best  goods.  As  a  result 
of  this,  a  sound  export  business  has  been 
built  up.  The  Tokyo  Itagami  Kaisha  ships 
strawboard  to  Shanghai,  Tientsin,  and  Hong- 
kong, in  China;    Bombay,  Calcutta,  Sydney, 


Melbourne,  the  United  States  and  elsewhere, 
besides  supplying  a  large  quantity  for  the 
local  market.  The  specialty  of  the  company 
in  the  manufacture  of  printing  papers  is  the 
production  of  a  large  output  for  books, 
though  writing  papers  and  wrappings  are 
also  turned  out.  These  lines  are  sold  locally 
and  are  exported  to  Russia,  China,  India 
and  other  foreign  markets.  The  strawboard 
is  manufactured  from  the  domestic  rice 
straw.  Writing  and  other  papers  are  made 
from  Scandinavian  and  Saghalien  chemical 
wood  pulp,  domestic  cotton  rags,  and  ground 
pulp  for  different  lines. 

The  works  of  the  Tokyo  Itagami  Kaisha, 
Ltd.,  cover  a  very  large  extent  of  ground 
at  Minami  Senju-machi.  The  buildings  are 
for  the  most  part  of  modern  construction, 
and  are  well  equipped.  Power  is  generated 
for  the  various  machines  by  steam  engines 
of  1,500  horsepower  and  electric  motors 
generating  500  horsepower  in  aU.  The 
staff  consists  of  40  experts,  clerks,  etc.,  and 
m  the  factories  500  men  and  women  find 
employment.  The  officers  of  the  company 
are  as  follows:  Managing  Director,  Mr. 
Tokio  Otani;  Directors,  Messrs.  Soichiro 
Asano,  Rinnosuke  Yamanaka,  Tadashi  Mi- 
yama,  and  Ryosuke  Suzuki;  Auditors, 
Messrs.  Kwanichi  Ito  and  Yasubei  Konishi, 
with   Mr.    Shichibei   Ishikawa   as    Manager 


THE   DUNLOP   RUBBER   COMPANY    (FAR    EAST),    LIMITED:      THE    KOBE    WORKS   AND    EMPLOYEES  —  THE    EUROPEAN    STAFF    AND 

FAR    EASTERN    BRANCH    MANAGERS 


V    ,V         !i^i^rl^gf>^ 


NIPPONOPHONE   COMPANY,   LIMITED:      THE    KAWASAKI    PREMISES- THE    GENERAL   OFFICE  -  SCENE    IN   THE    PACKING   AND    SHIPPING 

DEPARTMENT — WORKMEN   AND   THE    SHOP 


622 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


GENERAL    VIEW    OF   THE    FACTORY    OF    THE 


The  following  is  the  balance  sheet  of  the  com- 
pany for  the  half-year  ended  May  31,  19 17. 
Included  in  the  valuation  of  buildings  is 
the  sum  of  Yen  50,000,  which  was  redeemed 
out  of  profits  during  the  half-year  under 
review.     A    further    sum    of    Yen     100,000 


was    paid    off    on    machinery    and    utensils 
account   out   of  profits  in  the  same  period. 

THE  DUNLOP  RUBBER  CO.,  LIMITED 

One  of  the  greatest  of  British  industrial 
companies,  the  Dunlop  Rubber  Co.,  Ltd.,  is 


Ll\bilities 

Yen 

Capital 1 ,500,000.00 

Reserves 268,267.00 

The  Hypothec  Bank  of  Japan. . .  231,743.30 

Bills  payable 151,094.72 

Unpaid  account 1 17,484.95 

Brought  from  last  account 40,905.84 

Profit  for  the  current  half-year.  .  189,495.48 

Total 2,498,991.29 


Assets 

Yen 

Uncalled  capital 500,000.00 

Land 67,774.95 

Buildings 169,364.56 

Machinery  and  utensils 709,542.17 

Raw  materials,  etc.,  in  store.  .  .  .  435,139.40 

Manufactures 82,291.53 

Bills  receivable  and  outstanding 

accounts 477,301 .55 

Deposits  and  cash  in  hand 29,721.00 

Premium  not  yet  expired 1,918.46 

Temporary  payment 25,937.67 

Tola! 2,498,991.29 


well  represented  in  Japan,  having  established 
a  factory  at  Wakinohama,  Kob6,  some  years 
ago.  The  works  and  plant  are  readily  ad- 
mitted to  be  the  most  up-to-date  and  best 
equipped  in  the  Far  East,  and  the  operations 
of  the  company  are  of  corresponding  mag- 
nitude, over  1,000  Japanese  work  people 
being  employed  under  the  superintendence 
of  a  large  staff  of  European  experts.  That 
this  is  so,  is  in  keeping  with  the  history  of 
the  famous  Dunlop  Company,  which  was  the 
pioneer  of  the  pneumatic  tyre  industry, 
the  original  patents  having  been  granted  to 
Mr.  Dunlop,  the  inventor,  in  1888.  The 
record  of  the  enterprise  since  that  time  is 
one  of  the  most  interesting  in  the  history 
of  British  industrialism,  huge  amounts  of 
capital  having  been  invested  in  the  business 
to  give  it  the  world-commanding  position 
it  occupies  to-day.  Branches  of  the  company 
have  been  established  throughout  the  world, 
and  it  was  only  in  July,  1917,  that  the 
capital  of  the  parent  company  was  raised 
from  £3,000,000  to  £6,000,000,  to  pemiit  of 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


623 


MITATSUCHI    GUM    SEIZO    GOMEI    KAISHA,    TOKYO 


further  extensions,  and  to  allow  the  company 
to  finance  the  purchase  of  the  immense 
stocks  of  material  it  must  have  on  hand. 
Some  idea  of  the  extent  of  the  operations 
of  the  Dunlop  Rubber  Co.,  Ltd.,  may  be 
gathered  from  the  statement  made  by  the 
"Motor  Export  Trader,"  that  in  solid  tyres 
alone,  the  variation  is  so  great  that  stocks 
must  be  on  hand  to  meet  any  sudden 
demand  for  any  one  of  between  250  and 
300  different  sorts.  The  Dunlop  stock 
was  valued  in  July,  1917,  at  £2,250,- 
000,  most  of  it  manufactured  material. 

The  Kobe  factory  and  office  are  the  manu- 
facturing and  distributing  centres  respec- 
tively for  the  Far  East,  and  the  organisation 
to  handle  such  a  vast  extent  of  territory  is 
a  large  and  experienced  staff.  The  company 
acts  as  contractor  to  the  Japanese  Imperial 
Military  and  Naval  Arsenals,  supplying 
them  with  electric,  marine,  and  general 
rubber  goods.  The  motor  and  cycle  tyre 
trade  is  growing  yearly  and  the  company's 
goods  in  these  lines  enjoy  a  favourable 
reputation  in   the   Orient.     There  is  also  a 


demand  for  Dunlop  Solid  Band  tyres  for 
heavy  commercial  vehicles,  carriage  tyring, 
pneumatic  and  solid  rikisha  tyres,  and  motor- 
cycle tyres.  The  excellence  of  the  company's 
rubber  goods  for  chemical  and  surgical 
purposes  is  appreciated  the  world  over,  and 
these  lines  enjoy  a  well-merited  and  ever- 
increasing  demand  in  Japan  and  elsewhere. 

THE      MITATSUCHI      GU.\I      SEIZO     GOMEI 
KAISHA 

An  old  established  and  flourishing  industry 
is  that  controlled  by  the  Mitatsuchi  Rubber 
iVlanufacturing  Company,  at  Honjo-ku,  To- 
kyo. This  company  is  perhaps  the  largest 
manufacturer  of  rubber  articles  in  Japan,  and 
its  business  is  constantly  expanding.  The  busi- 
ness was  founded  on  December  2, 1886,  so  that 
with  over  thirty  years'  experience,  it  is  not  sur- 
prising to  learn  that  the  Mitatsuchi  Company 
is  producing  goods  of  the  highest  quality,  not 
only  in  strong  demand  in  the  local  markets, 
but  eagerly  sought  for  abroad.  The  Mitat- 
suchi Gum  Seizo  Gomei  Kaisha  was  founded 
by  the  late  Mr.  Tadaatsu  Tasaki,  associated 


with  the  present  partners,  Messrs.  Hidetatsu 
Tsuchiya,  Tadahiro  Tasaki,  and  Nagakuni 
Tasaki.  Like  most  new  industries  in  Japan, 
this  one  had  to  encounter  many  difficulties 
in  the  early  days  of  its  history,  but  the 
partners  persevered  and  have  had  the  satis- 
faction of  seeing  the  business  grow  to  a 
high  state  of  prosperity.  To-day  the  two 
factories  of  the  Mitatsuchi  Company  are 
turning  out  all  classes  of  gum,  ebonite,  and 
gutta  percha  manufactured  goods.  Among 
the  principal  lines  are  rubber  balls  for  tennis 
and  other  games,  rubber  shoes,  rubber  dolls, 
toys,  hose,  rubber  plates  for  electrical  apd 
mechanical  engineering,  telephonic,  railway 
and  marine  use,  rubber  tyres,  erasers,  and 
so  forth,  the  output  covering  pretty  well 
every  line  for  which  there  is  any  demand. 
The  company  has  exported  some  large 
orders  to  England,  Canada,  Australia,  India 
and  elsewhere,  and  the  most  favourable 
reports  have  been  received  regarding  the 
quality  and  durability  of  the  goods.  The 
company  supplied  all  the  requirements  of 
the  East  Indian  Railway  Co.,  Calcutta,  and 


624 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


received  a  highly  complimentary  report  on 
the  satisfactory  nature  of  the  work  done. 
The  works  of  the  Mitatsuchi  Gum  Seizo 
Gomei  Kaisha  incUide  two  factories,  the  main 
works  being  at  Narihiracho,  Nakago,  Honjo- 
ku,  Tokyo,  and  the  branch  factory  at  Shimo- 
hiraimura,  Komatsugawa-machi,  Tokyo-fu. 
These  works  cover  an  area  of  3,919  tsuho, 
and  consist  of  brick,  concrete,  and  wooden 
buildings,  the  factory  at  Honjo-ku  being  a 
modern  four-storied  building.  The  plant 
installed  at  the  works  comprises  the  latest 
and  best  machinery,  including  washing  mills, 
mixing  mills,  calendars,  crackers,  tubing 
machines,  vulcanisers  and  vulcanising  presses, 
patent  rubber  ball-making  machines,  hose- 
making  machines,  etc.  The  motive  power  is 
both  steam  and  electricity.  The  factories 
give  emplojTTient  to  430  men  and  306  girls, 
and  the  annual  wages  bill  is  well  over  Yen 
170,000.     The  capital  of  the  Mitatsuchi  Gum 


Seizo  Gomei  Kaisha  is  Yen  80,000.00  (full\' 
paid  up)  and  the  reserves  total  Yen  1,050,000. 
With  an  annual  output  valued  at  Yen  1,500,- 
000.00,  it  can  be  seen  that  this  company  has 
made  a  distinct  success  of  the  rubber-manu- 
facturing business  in  Japan. 

THE  NIPPONOPHONE  COMP.\NY,  LLMITED 
The  history  of  the  Nipponophone  Com- 
pany, Ltd.,  furnishes  an  interesting  idea  of 
the  growth  and  development  of  such  enter- 
prises as  might  be  justly  regarded  as  entirely 
foreign  to  Japan  in  their  origin,  but  which, 
nevertheless,  by  foresight  and  energy,  and  a 
sound  judgment  as  to  the  needs  and  require- 
ments of  the  country,  can  be  established  and 
carried  through  to  success.  In  this  particular 
case  the  opportunity  to  add  such  an  industry 
to  the  rapidly  increasing  number  in  Japan 
was  recognised  and  grasped  by  an  American, 
Mr.  F.  W.  Home,  of  Yokohama.     An  investi- 


t.f""'!'"'/!'' 


PREPARING    THE   HEMP   FOR    USE    IN    THE    MANUFACTURE    OF    HEMP    BRAID 


gation  of  the  phonograph  and  record  business 
revealed  to  him  that  little  or  nothing  was 
being  done  to  popularise  the  invention  among 
the  Japanese,  although  there  was  every 
evidence  that  the  people  were  as  keen  as  those 
of  other  countries  to  avail  themselves  of  the 
phonograph.  Mr.  Home  accordingly  founded 
the  Japan-American  Phonograph  Manu- 
facturing Company  in  1908,  with  a  capital  of 
Yen  250,000,  being  assisted  by  a  number  of 
American  and  British  friends  in  Yokohama. 
The  manufacture  of  phonographs  was  entered 
upon  the  following  year.  Up  to  this  time 
(1909),  machines  and  records  were  imported 
to  the  number  of  approximately  87,000  in  the 
year.  The  price  was  very  high,  and  the 
number  of  Japanese  songs  recorded  was  few, 
owing  to  the  large  expense  to  foreign  com- 
panies of  sending  their  experts  to  Japan  to 
make  records.  There  was  only  one  firm 
dealing  exclusively  in  records,  and  the  number 
of  people  deriving  employment  from  the 
business  was  only  twenty-two.  The  records 
could  be  enjoyed  solely  by  the  wealthier 
classes,  and  this  fact,  combined  with  the 
limited  extent  to  which  Japanese  musical 
tastes  were  being  catered  for,  gave  the  Japan- 
American  Phonograph  Manufacturing  Com- 
pany its  great  chance.  During  the  first  year 
of  operation  190,000  records  were  made, 
giving  employment  to  150  people  in  the 
manufacturing  department,  and  103  in  the 
sales.  Next  year  the  output  increased  to 
340,000,  and  the  factory  employees  numbered 
210,  while  the  sales  department  engaged  the 
services  of  150.  Due  to  the  great  reduction 
in  price  of  the  locally  made  records,  and  the 
recording  of  national  songs  and  popular  airs, 
the  development  of  the  company's  business 
was  very  rapid.  In  191 1,  530,000  records 
were  made,  the  manufacture  giving  work  to 
366  artisans,  and  the  sales  to  200,  besides 
which  1 06  shopkeepers  in  various  parts  of  the 
country  were  selhng  the  company's  product. 
During  191 1  the  Copyright  Bureau  allowed 
the  registration  of  copyright  to  the  authors  of 
records  originally  recorded  in  Japan.  This 
gave  great  impetus  to  the  business,  as  by  such 
protection  the  manufacturers  now  con- 
sidered it  safe  to  invest  large  sums  of  money 
in  order  to  record  the  best  known  artists  and 
purchase  the  copyright.  Accordingly  a  large 
number  of  records  was  taken  this  year,  the 
result  being  that  the  national  songs  were 
introduced  throughout  the  length  and  breadth 
of  the  land  on  the  gramophone,  recording  the 
voices  of  the  leading  artists  for  posterity,  and 
still  further  popularising  the  instrument. 
The  number  of  records  turned  out  in  1912 
jumped  to  the  phenomenal  figure  of  1,300,000, 
and  17,000  phonographs  were  manufactured. 
During  this  year  the  manufacturing  and 
selling  companies  amalgamated,  and  the  joint 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


625 


THE   JAPAN    MUSICAL    INSTRUMENT    MANUFACTURING   CO.,    LTD.:      THE    WORKSHOPS    AND    GENERAL    VIEW   OF   THE    FACTORY 


enterprise  became  the  Nipponophone  Com- 
pany, its  capital  being  increased  to  Yen 
1,000,000.  At  this  time  there  were  branches 
throughout  Japan,  and  the  agencies  opened 
numbered   350. 

The  Nipponophone  Company  has  its 
executive  office  at  70-C,  Yokohama.  The 
Directors  are  Mr.  F.  W.  Home,  President 
(also  President  of  the  F.  W.  Home  Co.) ;  Mr. 
J.  R.  Geary,  Vice-President  (Vice-President 
of  the  Tokyo  Ek'ctric  Co.);  Mr.  H.  A.  Ens- 
worth,  Treasurer  (Manager  of  The  Standard 
Oil  Co.  of  New  York);  Mr.  F.  H.  Bugbird 
(Manager  for  Messrs  Jardine,  Matheson  & 
Co.);  and  Mr.  R.  F.  Moss  (Consulting 
Engineer  of  American  Trading  Co.,  Tokyo). 
The  company  has  sent  home  aU  of  the  original 
foreign  experts,  and  the  operations  are  carried 
on  by  the  General  Manager,  Mr.  J.  A. 
Rabbitt,  while  the  works  are  managed  by 
the  Japanese  Engineer,  Mr.  K.  Fukushima. 
Shareholders  number  about  80,  most  of  whom 
are  Europeans,  though  about  20  per  cent  are 
the  company's  agents  in  the  provinces. 

The  works  are  situated  on  the  banks  of  the 
Rokugo  River,  the  area  covered  being  8,100 


istibo.  There  are  two  groups  of .  buildings, 
one  for  the  factory  and  the  second  for  the 
reception  of  the  finished  products.  In  the 
latter  the  offices  of  the  Nipponophone  Com- 
pany are  located.  The  motive  power  of 
the  works  is  steam,  developed  by  two  125 
horsepower  boilers,  serving  one  engine  of  125 
horsepower  and  two  others  of  45  horsepower 
each.  The  buildings  are  brick,  of  the  most 
modern  construction,  with  the  latest  fire 
protection  equipment.  The  machinery  is 
automatic,  of  the  most  recent  American  type. 
The  workmen  at  present  number  310,  but  this 
force  will  be  shortly  increased  as  the  company 
intends  to  bring  out  new  phonographs  for 
o.\port  to  take  the  place  of  German  goods, 
which  were  formerly  sold  in  the  Oriental 
markets.  Many  of  the  workmen  are  specially 
skilled  in  their  craft,  having  been  in  the  com- 
pany's service  for  years.  Most  of  the  raw 
material  is  purchased  abroad  and  is  divided 
into  two  classifications,  one  for  machines,  and 
one  for  records.  Materials  for  phonographs 
comprise  special  rolled  steel,  sheet  brass, 
cedar,  etc.,  and  for  records  claj's  are  required, 
as  well  as  gum,  glue,  zinc,  talcum  and  other 


powders.  Part  of  these  requirements  are  now 
being  met  in  the  local  markets.  The  Nippono- 
phone instrument  is  cased  in  a  handsome 
cabinet,  constructed  of  selected  wood,  highly 
finished  and  specially  seasoned  and  treated  to 
stand  climatic  conditions.  The  motor  mech- 
anism is  the  spring  motor,  delicately  adjusted, 
and  tested,  all  the  mechanism  being  con- 
structed in  the  company's  works.  The 
records  at  present  being  made  are  mostly  of 
the  double-face  type  with  sound  waves  on 
either  side.  The  retail  price  is  Yen  1.50.  By 
its  liberal  treatment  of  its  agents,  the  company 
has  firmly  estabUshed  the  keenest  interest  in 
the  handling  of  its  high  quality  goods. 
Phonograph  machines  range  in  price  from 
Yen  15.00  to  yen  150.00,  but  the  most  popular 
type  is  that  retailing  in  the  market  for  about 
Yen  25.00.  The  Nipponophone  Company 
holds  the  original  patent  in  Japan  for  the 
hornless  model,  and  popular  taste  is  gradually 
changing  in  favour  of  this  machine.  The 
company  is  also  engaged  in  the  manufacture 
of  steel  wood  screws,  electric  insulation  sup- 
plies, machine  tools  and  accessories,  phono- 
graph and  other  needles,  ice  cream  freezers, 


626 


PRESENT-DAY        l.MI'RKSSIONS        OF        JAPAN 


etc.  In  addition  to  its  branches  in  Japan 
proper,  the  company  also  has  branches  in 
Taiwan,  Dairen,  and  China.  Honours  have 
been  won  by  the  company  at  expositions 
as  follows:  Gold  medal  from  the  Colonial 
E.xposition;  gold  medal  from  the  Summer 
Fair  of  Yamato  Shimbun;  first  prize  from  the 
Summer  Fair;  gold  medal  from  the  Indus- 
trial Exposition  held  at  Kokugikwan;  gold 
medal  from  the  Summer  Fair  at  Osaka  Nip- 
posha;  letter  of  thanks  from  the  Katei  Haku- 
rankwai;  gold  medal  from  the  Nihon  Jitsugyo 
Fair;  gold  medal  from  the  Industrial  Ex- 
position at  Yokohama;  letter  of  thanks  frorfi 
the  Children's  Fair;  copper  medal  from  the 
Taisho  Exposition,  and  letter  of  thanks  from 
the  Jido  Hakurankwai. 

THE   JAPAN    MUSICAL    INSTRUMENT 

MANUFACTURING    CO., 

LIMITED 

Before  entering  upon  a  description  of 
the  operations  of  this  important  company, 
which  was  the  pioneer  of  a  new  industry' 
for  Japan,  it  will  be  interesting  to  recite 
the  history  of  the  late  Mr.  Torakusu  Yamaha, 
the  founder  of  the  company.  By  doing  so 
one  is  enabled  to  present  the  reader  with 
the  story  of  the  introduction  of  foreign 
musical  instruments  in  Japan,  and  describe 
the  development  of  their  use,  leading  up 
to  the  establishment  of  the  industry  of  the 
manufacture  in  Japan  of  organs,  pianos, 
and  other  instruments. 

The  late  Mr.  Yamaha  was  a  Samurai  of 
the  Tokugawa  Clan,  born  in  the  Province 
of  Kii.     After  the  Restoration  ho  came  to 


Hamamatsu,  and  started  in  business  as  a 
wood  worker,  watch,  clock,  and  surgical 
instrument  maker,  etc.  From  boyhood  he 
had  a  gift  for  music,  and  played  most  instru- 
ments remarkably  well,  though  he  was  never 
tutored  in  music.  He  was  a  particularly 
good  player  of  samisen  (the  Japanese  three- 
stringed  musical  instrument),  although  he 
always  maintained  that  he  could  only  play 
those  instnmients  which  he  himself  made. 
About  1S84  Mr.  Yamaha  first  became 
acquainted  with  the  intricacies  of  foreign 
musical  instruments.  At  that  time  there 
was  an  organ  at  the  Hamamatsu  Elementary 
School.  The  inst:Tjment  got  out  of  order, 
and  nobody  could  rectify  the  fault,  all  being 
mystified  at  its  complicated  mechanism. 
Mr.  Higushi,  a  member  of  the  Committee 
for  Education,  consulted  Mr.  Yamaha  and 
invited  him  to  try  to  put  the  organ  in  order, 
an  honour  which  the  father  of  a  new  indus- 
try duly  appreciated.  He  tried  his  hand 
at  the  foreign  instrument,  and  succeeded 
in  effecting  the  necessary  repairs  and  adjust- 
ments. Mr.  Yamaha  then  gave  considerable 
thought  to  the  whole  question  of  the  manu- 
facture and  repair  of  foreign  musical  instru- 
ments, rightly  arguing  in  his  own  mind  that 
as  the  importance  of  such  instruments  and 
music  was  recognised  by  the  States,  especially 
for  use  in  schools  as  an  aid  to  education,  it 
was  a  most  regrettable  thing  that  Japan 
was  not  able  to  manufacture  for  herself,  or 
even  to  repair,  the  instruments  needed. 
Mr.  Yamaha  was  influenced  by  many  con- 
siderations to  decide  that  the  moment  was 
opportune    for    starting    such    an    industry. 


METHOD   OF    SUN-DRYING    PAPER    EMPLOYED   IN    A    SMALL    F.\CTORY 


W'itli  tills  resolution  before  him  Mr. 
Yamaha  started  building  an  organ  in  1885, 
at  which  time  he  was  thirty-five  years  of 
age.  It  was  an  ambitious  undertaking, 
beset  with  difficulties,  for  there  was  no  one 
from  whom  he  could  receive  instniction,  no 
materials  to  work  on,  and  no  tools  to  work 
witli.  He  ■  received  some  assistance  from 
the  late  Mr.  Kisaburo  Kawai,  and  after 
much  trouble  built  an  organ,  following  as 
closely  as  he  could  models  of  similar  instru- 
ments which  he  had  inspected.  Mr.  Yamaha 
took  his  organ  to  the  Musical  Investigation 
Committee  of  the  Education  Department, 
which  was  the  forerunner  of  the  present 
Tokyo  Musical  College.  Mr.  Shuji  Izawa, 
who  was  the  Chairman  of  the  Committee 
at  that  time,  had  the  Japanese-made  organ 
carefully  examined  by  specialists  and  the 
decision  was  that,  though  in  all  details  as 
to  construction,  shape,  etc.,  the  result  of 
Mr.  Yamaha's  work  was  the  same  as  the 
foreign  instrument,  the  organ  was  all  out 
of  tone,  and  could  not  be  used  at  all.  With 
such  a  verdict  Mr.  Yamaha  was  not  at  all 
discouraged.  He  entered  himself  as  a 
student  of  the  musical  school,  and  called  on 
many  musicians  to  implore  their  advice  and 
assistance  in  the  scheme  that  was  ever  in 
his  mind.  As  the  pioneer  of  a  new  industry 
his  position  was  not  a  happy  one.  He  had 
no  workmen,  little  or  no  experience,  and 
owing  to  the  difficult  economic  conditions 
he  could  not  find  any  one  to  support  him 
financially  in  his  work.  His  only  friend  and 
backer  was  Mr.  Kawai,  who  ga\-e  him  what 
support  and  encouragement  he  could,  so 
that  Mr.  Yamaha  could  devote  himself  to 
study  and  investigation. 

Success  came  to  Mr.  Yamaha  after  some 
time,  when  at  last  he  produced  an  organ  in 
which  the  tones  were  right.  This  success 
created  some  interest  on  the  part  of  the 
public,  and  in  1889  a  jomt-stock  company 
was  formed  with  a  capital  of  Yen  30,000. 
Even  so,  progress  was  slow.  The  company 
had  many  ups  and  downs,  and  sometimes 
the  business  passed  into  individual  hands. 
However,  the  determination  of  Mr.  Yamaha 
swept  away  all  obstacles.  Organs  were 
built  in  increasing  number,  each  one  better 
in  quality,  and  sales  were  made  in  China. 
In  1894  some  organs  were  exported  to  Eng- 
land and  there  the  intrinsic  value  of  the 
instrument  was  recognised.  In  1897  the 
concern  was  reorganised  as  a  limited  liability 
company  with  a  capital  of  Yen  120,000, 
under  the  name  of  the  Japan  Mu.sical  Instru- 
ment Manufacturing  Co.,  Ltd.  Subsequently 
the  capital  was  several  times  increased  and 
to-day  it  stands  at  Yen  1,200,000.  Mean- 
while, in  1900,  the  manufacture  of  pianos 
was  begun.     In  1903  the  Woodwork  Depart- 


PLANT    OF    THE    TOKYO    ROPE   MFG.   CO.,  LTD.:      (;ENER.\L   VIEW   OF   THE   FUKAGAWA   FACTORY,   TOKYO  —  THE   KOKURA   F.\CTORY- 
POWER    PLANT   .\T   KOKURA    FACTORY — GENERAL    VIEW   OF    THE    TSUKIJIMA    F.-^CTORY.    TOKYO 


628 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


nicnt  was  greatly  enlarged  and  two  years 
later  the  company,  which  up  to  now  had 
always  imported  the  parts  of  the  organs  and 
pianos  known  as  the  "action,"  began  manu- 
facturing for  its  own  requirements.  The 
process  of  veneering  was  started  in  191 1,  and 
in  the  same  year  the  Accessories  Department 
was  established,  and  the  manufacture  of 
musical  toys  was  entered  upon. 

The  Russo-Japanese  War  produced  an 
economic  crisis  which  badly  affected  the 
company,  and  the  Boxer  Rebellion  in  China 
in  1900  also  meant  a  great  loss  of  business, 
which  had  been  brisk  up  to  this  time.  The 
financial  arrangements  of  the  Japan  Musical 
Instrument  Manufacturing  Co.,  Ltd.,  did 
not  work  smoothly,  and  conditions  were 
bad  until  Mr.  Yamaha  induced  Mr.  Chiyo- 
maru  Amano  to  join  the  company  and 
restore  its  financial  standing.  Mr.  Amano 
agreed,  and  devoted  himself  to  the  improve- 
ment of  the  company's  business  affairs, 
leaving  Mr.  Yamaha  free  to  attend  to  im- 
provements on  the  manufacturing  side  of 
the  company.  By  their  joint  exertions  the 
affairs  of  the  company  were  again  placed 
on  a  sound  and  healthy  basis.  Mr.  Yamaha 
was  obliged  to  resign  in  August,  1916,  owing 
to  illness,  which  led  to  his  demise  some  time 
later.  Since  then  Mr.  Amano  as  President  of 
the  Japan  Musical  Instnmient  Manufacturing 
Co.,  Ltd.,  has  gone  on  with  the  work  of  im- 
proving the  quality  of  the  company's  manu- 
factures, and  enlarging  the  sales,  at  the  same 
time  starting  the  manufacture  of  harmonicas, 
machinery  for  which  was  invented  by  the 
company's  experts.  This  new  industry  is  a 
big  thing  for  Japan.  Formerly  the  manufac- 
ture and  sale  of  harmonicas  for  Japan  was  a 
monopoly  of  Hohner,  of  Germany.  Judging 
by  the  recent  bright  conditions  which  have 
attended  the  operations  of  the  company, 
its  future  is  now  assured. 

About  65  per  cent  of  the  pianos  made  by 
the  company  are  sold  in  Japan  and  the 
balance  are  exported,  principally  to  Australia, 
though  they  are  also  shipped  to  Singapore, 
the  South  Seas,  South  America,  and  China. 
The  harmonicas  are  exported  chiefly  to 
England,  being  for  local  use.  The  manu- 
facture of  organs  represents  only  about  30 
per  cent  of  the  operations  of  the  company, 
although  this  was  the  original  industry. 
The  majority  of  the  instruments  are  sold 
in  Japan,  though  there  is  a  large  export 
business,  chiefly  to  Australia  and  India. 
The  Woodwork  and  Musical  Toys  Depart- 
ments manufacture  principally  for  local 
sales,  though  there  is  some  degree  of  export 
trade  with  Australia,  America,  and  India. 

The  head  office  and  factory  are  situated 
at  Hamamatsu.  There  are  also  branches 
located  at  Tokyo  and    Dairen. 


THE  TOKYO  ROPE    MANUFACTURING  CO., 
LIMITED 

The  Tokyo  Rope  Manufacturing  Com- 
pany, Limited,  is  the  oldest  manufacturer 
in  Japan,  having  started  the  industry  of 
hemp  rope  making  by  machinery  in  1887. 
Among  the  founders  of  this  concern,  which 
may  justly  claim  to  be  the  pioneer  of  a  new 
industry  in  Japan,  were  such  well  known 
business  men  as  Messrs.  E.  Shibusawa, 
S.  Asano,  T.  Masuda,  M.  Yamada,  and  the 
late  O.  Watanabe.  With  the  small  initial 
capital  of  Yen  70,000,  the  company  estab- 
lished one  small  factory  and  entered  upon 
the  production  of  hemp  rope,  later  on  develop- 
ing the  plant  extensively  and  including  in 
the  production  such  lines  as  steel  wire  rope, 
etc.  In  this  latter  branch  of  industry  the 
company  rightly  claims  to  be  the  pioneer 
manufacturer  in  the  Far  East.  The  steady 
progress  of  the  Tokyo  Rope  Manufacturing 
Co.,  Ltd.,  necessitated  new  factories  and 
additional  plant,  and  new  works  were  erected 
at  Tokyo,  Hyogo,  and  Kokura,  the  capital 
being  increased  from  time  to  time  to  admit 
of  these  expansions.  To-day  the  company 
owns  seven  works,  namely,  two  for  hemp 
rope  making,  three  for  wire  rope,  and  two 
for  steel.  The  wire  rope  works  are  equipped 
with  wire  drawing  mills,  patenting  or  temper- 
ing furnaci',  galvanising  plants,  and  other 
necessary  machines  and  up-to-date  appliances 
for  producing  steel  wires  and  laying  them  in 
ropes.  In  these  works  there  are  also  com- 
plete equipments  for  the  testing  of  wire  and 
ropes,  and  laboratories  for  making  microscop- 


ical and  other  examinations  of  the  structure 
of  the  steel  employed.  In  order  to  be  assured 
that  every  coil  of  wire  is  fully  up  to  the 
highest  standards,  the  most  stringent  tests 
are  made  before  the  wire  is  used  in  the  ropes. 
The  hemp  rope  works  are  replete  with 
machines  of  the  most  improved  type  for 
making  all  kinds  of  hemp  and  cotton  ropes 
and  cords.  There  are  also  rope  works  of 
great  length,  so  that  if  ropes  made  by  that 
method  are  preferred  to  those  of  ordinary 
make,  they  can  be  turned  out  to  order.  At 
the  steel  works,  hea\'y  steel  castings  are 
made,  as  well  as  forgings,  steel  bars,  wire 
rods,  rope  fittings,  etc.  As  proof  of  the 
entirely  modern  methods  under  which  the 
Tolvyo  Rope  Manufacturing  Co.,  Ltd.,  is 
working  and  as  evidence  of  the  quality 
of  its  products,  it  is  only  necessary  to  say 
that  the  company  are  rope  and  steel  makers 
approved  by  Lloyds,  after  the  most  severe 
tests,  and  that  they  are  also  contractors  on 
the  approved  lists  of  the  Imperial  Army  and 
Navy. 

The  head  office  of  the  company  is  at 
Sanjukkenbori,  Kyobashi,  Tokyo.  The  steel 
wire  rope  works  are  situated  at  Fukagawa, 
Tokyo,  Susaki,  Tokyo,  and  Yamagoshi-cho, 
Kokura.  The  wire  mill  is  at  Oshima-cho, 
Tokyo.  The  hemp  rope  works  are  estab- 
lished at  Tsukishima,  Tokyo,  and  Hyogo, 
Kobe,  and  the  steel  works  are  at  Oshima-cho, 
Tokyo,  and  Konomi-machi,  Kokura.  These 
various  plants  and  works  cover  a  total  area  of 
103,545  Isiibo,  and  employment  is  found  for 
about  4,400  hands.     Apart  from  the  large 


TEA    PICKERS    ON   A    PLANT.\TION   .\T    SHIZUOKA 


H 
C 
W 

z 
o 

n 
o 


41 


630 


P  R  E  S  E  N  T  -  n  A  ^•        IMPRESSIONS        OF        JAPAN 


bird's-eye    view   of    the    factory    of   the    south    seas   fibre   industry   CO.,    LTD.,    AT   SAKAI 


local  trade  which  the  company  is  doing, 
especially  since  the  great  development  in  the 
mercantile  marine  has  taken  place,  a  large 
portion  of  the  products  are  shipped  abroad, 
and  in  this  connection  the  company  will 
always  welcome  trial  orders,  which  are 
assured  of  the  best  attention,  and  the  earliest 
delivery  possible.  The  capital  of  the  Tokyo 
Rope  Manufacturing  Co.,  Ltd.,  is  now  6,000,- 
000  yen,  and  the  reserve  fund  is  2,225,000  yen. 
The  foreign  business  of  the  company  is 
handled  by  the  many  branches  throughout 
the  world  of  the  Mitsui  Bussan  Kaisha  and 
Okura  &  Co.  Following  are  the  principal 
oflBcers  of  the  company:  Chairman  of  Direc- 
tors, Mr.  M.  Yamada;  Managing  Directors, 
Messrs.  M.  Tomura  and  H.  Akamatsu; 
Directors,  Baron  K.  Okura  and  Messrs. 
S.  Asano,  T.  Miyama,  and  K.  Fujikura; 
Auditors,  Messrs.  S.  Watanabe  and  S. 
Makihara. 

THE     YOKOHAMA     ROPE     MANUFACTUR- 
ING   CO.,    LIMITED 

The  Yokohama  Seiko  Kabushiki  Kaisha 
was  founded  in  March,  191 1,  by  Messrs. 
Masao     Onishi,     President     and     Director, 


Hikosuke  Ishizuka,  Managing  Director,  and 
Kanematsu  Enokishita,  Director  and  General 
Manager.  Originally  the  capital  was  Yen 
500,000,  but  this  has  since  been  increased  to 
Yen  1,000,000.  From  the  outset  there  was  a 
strong  demand  for  the  company's  products, 
and  as  time  passed  the  plant  was  adapted  for 
the  manufacture  of  all  classes  of  rope,  for 
ships  and  general  use.  Manila  rope  was  first 
made  in  March,  1912,  and  white  hemp  rope, 
tarred  rope,  and  wire  rope,  as  well  as  ordinary 
wire,  were  turned  out  from  May,  19 14.  The 
Yokohama  Rope  Manufacturing  Company's 
jilant  is  established  at  No.  1408,  Kanagawa- 
machi,  and  there  is  a  branch  at  No.  29, 
Kitanom-machi,  Satsuma-bori,  Nishi-ku,  Osa- 
ka. The  main  factory  site  has  an  area  of  about 
10,000  tsubo  and  the  building  covers  about 
7,500  tsubo.  Brick,  reinforced  concrete,  and 
timber  have  been  used  in  the  construction, 
and  it  is  hardly  necessary  to  say  that  the 
machinery  and  plant  is  entirely  modern. 
Apart  from  the  staff  of  60  e.xperts  and  clerks, 
the  company  employs  about  1,200  workmen, 
and  pays  annually  in  salaries  and  wages  over 
Yen  300,000.  The  output  of  the  factory  is 
valued  at  Yen  8,000,000  per  annum.     It  is 


interesting  to  know  that  the  Yokohama  Rope 
Manufacturing  Co.,  Ltd.,  was  included  in  the 
approved  list  of  manufacturers  by  the 
Imperial  Japanese  Navy  as  far  back  as  1914, 
when  it  had  been  in  existence  only  a  couple  of 
years.  Furthermore,  its  product  and  manu- 
facturing arrangements  were  recognised  to  be 
excellent,  and  were  approved  by  the  world's 
authority,  Lloyds,  who  included  the  factory 
in  their  approved  list  in  1917,  after  the 
necessary  severe  tests.  The  quality  of  the 
company's  manufactures  is  admitted  by  all 
engaged  in  shipping,  mining,  fishing  and 
similar  industries,  and  it  is  not  surprising  to 
learn  that  the  factory  is  continuously  working 
at  high  pressure  to  supply  orders,  a.  large 
number  of  which  have  been  received  from  the 
Russian  Government.  The  principal  officers 
of  the  Yokohama  Rope  Manufacturing  Co., 
Ltd.,  are:  Directors,  Messrs.  Masao  Onishi, 
(President);  Hikosuke  Ishizuka  (Managing 
Director),  Baron  Naotake  Ando,  Toji  Maru- 
oka,  Tokunosake  Takahashi,  Kanematsu 
Enokishita  (General  Manager),  and  Keizo 
Nagamine.  The  Auditors  are  Messrs 
Kuranosuke  Kimura,  Konosuke  Otani,  and 
Heibei    Sakazaki. 


I.--  -.  ' 


.'-i. 


i'^_ 


~a 


/z 


^' 

/  / 

/ 

/> 

il  ii.-^Trr-^ 

i'»l*»i»»=™:, 

|Br_j; 

f^ 


1^'  ■<> 


/ 


THE  JAPAN   HIDE    AND   LEATHER   CO.,  LTD.:      OSAKA   FACTORY  —  iOKVU    F.M:T0RV  —  SHANGHAI    F.\CTORV  —  TIENTSIN    FACTORY 


632 


PRESENT-DAY        IN[PRKSSIONS        OF        JAPAN 


THE       SOUTH      SEAS      FIBRE      INDUSTRY 
COMPANY,     LIMITED 

Mk.  Matazo  Kita,  President  of  the  Nanyo 
Sen-i  Kogyo  Kabushiki  Kaisha  (South  Seas 
Fibre  Industry  Company,  Ltd.)  has  the  dis- 
tinction of  having  developed  another  addition 
to  the  industrial  enterprises  of  Japan,  and 
what  he  has  done  with  the  opening  up  of  the 
manufacturing  business  he  now  controls  is 
indicative  of  the  energy  with  which  some 
Japanese  business  men  readily  exploit  new 
ideas. 

The  history  of  the  Nanj'o  Sen-i  Kogyo 
Kabushiki  Kaisha  dates  from  the  time  when 
the  Imperial  Government  took  possession  of 
the  Caroline  Islands,  which  were  wrested 
from  Germany  shortly  after  Japan  entered  the 
Alliance  against  the  Central  Powers.  Investi- 
gations were  at  once  started  to  determine  the 
resources  of  the  islands,  and  in  October.  1915, 
Mr.  Kita  despatched  his  representatives  to 
see  what  opportunities  there  might  be  for 
trade.  The  island  of  Ponape  in  the  East 
Carolines  was  reported  to  be  prolific  in  callao 
trees,  and  experts  under  Mr  Kita's  direction 
went  thoroughly  into  the  question  of  utilising 
the  fibre  of  these  trees  It  may  here  be 
remarked  that  the  fibrous  nature  of  the  callao 
tree  was  already  well  known  to  all  those 
interested  in  the  manufacture  of  ropes  and 
strong  textiles,  and  the  plenitude  of  the  trees 
in  the  South  Seaswas  also  common  knowledge. 
Up  to  the  time  experts  went  into  the  matter 
for  Mr.  Kita  it  was  not  known,  however,  how 
to  treat  the  fibre,  and  consequently  the  callao 
tree  as  a  source  of  supply  was  disregarded. 
Mr.  Kita's  investigations  resulted  in  the 
discovery  and  patenting  of  a  process  of  a 
chemical  nature,  for  handling  the  callao  tree 
fibre,  and  preparing  it  for  rope  and  cloth 
making,  to  supersede  hemp  and  flax.  There- 
upon Mr.  Kita  applied  for  and  obtained  a 
lease  of  about  24,000,000  tsubo  of  land  at 
Ponape,  and  in  the  early  part  of  191 7  formed 
the  Nanyo  Sen-i  Kogyo  Kabushiki  Kaisha, 
with  a  capital  of  Yen  1,000,000.  By  this 
action  another  very  important  industry  was 
established  for  Japan. 

The  company  is  now  fully  engaged  in  the 
cultivation  and  production  of  callao  and  other 
fibres,  as  well  as  in  the  purchase,  sale,  and 
manufacture  of  raw  materials  obtained  from 
the  leased  land  and  other  areas.  The  factory- 
has  been  established  in  Japan,  at  Minato-cho, 
a  suburb  of  Sakai'  City,  near  Osaka.  Exten- 
sive arrangements  have  been  made  at  Ponape 
for  the  gathering  of  the  raw  material,  the 
company  having  about  500  Japanese  and 
native  employees  at  work,  tending  the  trees, 
stripping  the  bark,  and  in  other  ways  hand- 
ling the  fibre  product,  which  is  then  shipped 
to  Japan  for  treatment  in  the  factories.  In 
the    latter    there    are    about    500    workmen 


engaged  in  the  manufacture  of  ropes  and  the 
spinning  and  weaving  of  various  kinds  of 
cloth.  For  these  purposes  spinning  and  rope- 
making  machines,  built  in  Japan,  or  imported 
from  IDngland  and  the  United  States,  arc  used, 
the  motive  power  being  electricity.  It  has 
been  demonstrated  that  the  fibre  makes 
excellent  ropes,  and  has  the  great  and  uncom- 
mon advantage  that  when  dipped  in  water  it 
becomes  tougher.  The  rapid  expanse  of  the 
shij)])ing  industry  has  brought  about  a  general 
condition  of  activity  in  the  rope  and  sail 
making  trades,  and  it  may  be  said  that  the 
inauguration  of  the  industry  of  the  Nanyo 
Sen-i  Kogyo  Kabushiki  Kaisha  was  a  most 
timely  one.  It  has  meant  the  opening  up  of  a 
hitherto  neglected  source  of  raw  materials, 
reasonably  close  to  a  large  manufacturing 
centre  and  the  production  of  ropes  and  other 
material  at  a  much  lower  cost  than  is  the  case 
with  the  use  of  other  fibres,  such  as  hemp,  etc. 
The  factories  are  turning  out  about  30,000 
pounds  of  rope  and  cloth  fibre  a  day,  and  the 
business  is  still  in  its  infancy. 

The  head  office  of  the  company  is  at  No.  2 
Higashi  Horikawacho,  Kita-ku,  Osaka.  The 
Board  of  Directors  consists  of  Messrs  M. 
Kita  (President),  R.  Hanta,  S.  Nango, 
S.  Tsukaguchi,  and  (Auditors)  Messrs.  A. 
Yamada  and  T.  Matsumura,  and  K.  Hashi- 
moto, Manager. 

THE      JAPAN     HIDE     AND     LEATHER     CO., 
LIMITED 

This  is  the  pioneer  enterprise  in  the 
tanning  industr}'  of  Japan,  and  to  it  is  due 
a  great  deal  of  credit  for  having  materially 
helped  to  make  the  boot  and  shoe  and 
kindred  trades  in  the  country  less  dependent 
upon  foreign  leather.  The  Japan  Hide  and 
Leather  Co.,  Ltd.,  was  organised  in  1907, 
with  a  capital  of  Yen  2,500,000  (all  of  which 
has  been  paid  up),  the  promoters  being  well 
known  men  in  the  boot  and  shoe  industry, 
or  men  equally  well  known  in  commercial 
circles.  The  tanning  of  locally  produced 
and  imported  hides  was  at  once  entered 
upon,  and  the  company  has  now  made  such 
progress  that  it  is  well  able  to  compete  in 
all  ways  with  imported  prepared  leather, 
and  to  meet  a  large  measure  of  the  entire 
domestic  demand.  The  most  of  the  com- 
pany's products  find  their  way  to  the  Army 
and  Navy,  but  in  addition,  the  reputation 
of  the  company  is  so  high  that  there  is  a 
ready  sale  for  its  sole  leather  and  beltings 
throughout  Japan.  Moreover,  since  the 
outbreak  of  the  world  war,  the  Japan  Hide 
and  Leather  Co.,  Ltd.,  has  received  a  large 
order  from  the  Russian  Government,  and 
an  export  trade  in  other  directions  appears 
certain   for  the  near  future. 


The  company  has  two  factories  in  Japan, 
one  at  Senju-machi,  in  the  suburbs  of  Tokyo, 
and  the  other  at  Funadc-machi,  Minami-ku, 
Osaka,  There  is  also  a  factory  at  Ikeda, 
Tokachi  Province,  Hokkaido,  where  tannic 
extract  for  the  use  of  the  tanning  works  is 
exclusively  manufactured.  Now  that  the 
business  of  the  company  has  become  so 
solid,  the  company  has  found  it  an  urgent 
necessity  to  turn  to  China  for  an  expansion 
of  enterprise,  and  a  few  years  ago  a  new 
tannery  was  opened  at  Shi-ka-wei  on  the 
outskirts  of  Shanghai.  Very  recently  the 
Yu-Tsin  Tannery  Co.  was  established  in 
Tientsin,  with  a  capital  of  Yen  1,000,000, 
with  the  cooperation  of  Japanese  and  Chinese 
business  men.  This  new  establishment  is 
practically  a  branch  of  the  Japan  Hide  and 
Leather  Co.,  Ltd.,  the  outlook  for  whose 
trade  in  China  is  very  prosperous.  Specially 
keen  attention  has  been  paid  by  the  company 
to  preparing  good  leather  for  soles;  and 
beltings  and  kid  leathers  are  also  specialties 
of  the  Japan  Hide  and  Leather  Co.,  Ltd. 
The  "Phcenix  Brand"  products  of  the  com- 
pany's tanneries  enjoy  a  world-wide  reputa- 
tion for  their  strong  and  enduring  quality. 
This  brand  is  claimed  to  be  in  no  way  inferior 
to  foreign  goods,  and  orders  from  abroad 
are  regularly  coming  in,  the  foreign  and 
domestic  demands  causing  the  directors 
some  anxiety  on  account  of  the  difficulty  of 
getting  skilled  labour.  The  demand  for 
beltings  is  showing  a  pronounced  increase, 
and  special  attention  has  been  given  to  this 
department  of  the  industry,  with  the  result 
that  the  company  has  been  able  to  produce 
an  abundant  quantity  of  belting  of  excellent 
quality  for  home  consumption.  Many  tan- 
ners in  Japan  have  hitherto  failed  to  produce 
a  good  kid  leather,  but  the  Japan  Hide  and 
Leather  Co.,  Ltd.,  has  overcome  all  diffi- 
culties in  this  direction,  and  by  its  painstaking 
efforts  has  been  able  to  produce  a  kid  leather 
almost  equal  to  any  foreign  article. 

In  the  factories  of  the  company  a  first- 
class  and  thoroughly  modern  plant  is  in- 
stalled, some  seventy  machines  being  in  use. 
The  number  of  hands  employed  is  over  one 
thousand,  of  both  sexes,  and  the  annual  out- 
put averages,  under  present  conditions, 
700,000  sides  of  leather  for  domestic  con- 
sumption alone.  If  the  works  could  be 
run  at  their  full  capacity,  given  a  proper 
supply  of  competent  labour,  this  output 
could  be  increased  about  ten  times.  The 
Chairman  of  the  Board  of  Directors  of  the 
company  is  Baron  K.  Okura,  and  the  Manag- 
ing Director  is  Mr.  T.  Ito.  Many  other 
prominent  business  men  are  interested  in  the 
concern.  Some  idea  of  the  financial  stability 
of  the  company  may  be  gathered  from  the 
fact  that  its  reserve  fund  is  over  Yen  1,600,- 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


633 


THE   JAPAN    SHOE   AND    BOOT    MANUFACTURING   CO.,    LTD.:      (lEFT)    MAIN    F.\CTORY,    SENJU-M.\CHI,    TOKYO — TSUKIJIMA    F.ACTORY 


000.  Of  the  future  of  the  company,  there 
is  no  reason  to  doubt  that  it  is  singularly 
promising. 

THE     JAPAN     SHOE     AND     BOOT      MANU- 
FACTURING    CO.,    LIMITED 

This  company,  which  is  known  under  its 
Japanese  title  as  the  Nippon  Seika  Kaisha, 
is  one  of  the  commercial  enterprises  of  which 
those  who  wish  to  see  Japan's  complete 
economic  independence  of  foreign  imports 
of  the  ordinary  necessities  of  life,  are  justly 
proud.  It  is  a  powerful  company,  and  its 
success  is  an  evidence  of  the  capacity  for 
organisation  and  handling  of  big  enterprises 
which  the  modern  business  men  of  Japan 
exhibit.  The  company  was  formed  in  1902 
by  the  amalgamation  of  the  four  shoe  works, 
the  Sakura-gumi,  Okura-gumi,  Fukushima 
Gomei  Kaisha,  and  the  Tokyo  Leather  Manu- 
facturing Company.  The  first  of  these  four 
works,  the  Sakura-gumi,  had  long  been 
known  as  the  largest  and  most  complete 
factory  of  its  kind,  and  had  been  regarded 
as  a  model  concern,  such  a  reputation  having 
been  earned  by  the  skilful  management  of  the 


late  Mr.  Katsuzo  Nishimura  and  Mr.  Scizo 
Osawa  Up  to  the  date  of  amalgamation 
the  four  companies  had  been  keen  competi- 
tors, the  rivalry  being  almost  of  a  suicidal 
nature.  The  unwisdom  of  this  competition, 
when  the  industry  in  Japan  needed  all  the 
organisation  and  control  it  could  receive,  was 
apparent  to  men  like  Messrs.  Nishimura 
and  Osawa,  and  they  induced  the  directorates 
of  the  four  companies  to  agree  to  an  amalga- 
mation, which  was  effected.  The  result 
was  satisfactory  in  the  highest  degree  and 
the  development  of  the  industry  under  the 
control  of  the  new  Nippon  Seika  Kaisha  was 
remarkable.  The  company  has  now  become 
the  first  and  most  important  enterprise  of 
its  kind  in  the  Orient,  and  its  works  are 
producing  shoes  not  inferior  to  any  foreign 
make,  and  certainly  entirely  satisfactory  to 
the  shoe  manufacturing  world  of  Japan.  In 
point  of  durability  the  company's  products 
stand  far  above  others,  and  for  this  reason, 
during  the  Russo-Japanese  War,  the  com- 
pany received  a  very  large  order  from  the 
Army  and  Navy,  and  after  the  war  the 
Government    awarded    to    the    enterprise   a 


letter  of  merit  for  its  valuable  services  to 
the  Nation. 

Apart  from  its  wide  local  market,  the 
Nippon  Seika  Kaisha  is  now  receiving  large 
orders  for  shoes  from  Russia,  England,  and 
all  other  parts  of  the  world,  showing  that 
the  article  is  at  least  the  equal  in  point  of 
cheapness,  workmanship,  and  durability,  of 
the  shoes  made  elsewhere. 

The  Directors  of  the  Japan  Shoe  and  Boot 
Manufacturing  Co.,  Ltd.,  are  always  active 
in  the  introduction  of  new  machines,  and 
improved  methods  of  manufacture.  Prog- 
ress, and  the  ready  adoption  of  new  ideas 
are  the  order  of  the  day  in  the  works,  and 
the  result  is  seen  in  the  high  quality  of  the 
products  of  the  plant.  The  equipment  con- 
sists of  500  German  shoe-making  machines 
and  50  American  machines,  which  give  the 
factories  a  daily  output  of  5,000  pairs  of 
shoes,  the  annual  product  of  the  works  being 
valued  at  Yen  2,000,000.  Of  this  large 
output  a  good  portion  goes  to  the  Army  and 
Navy,  but  as  stated  above,  the  company  is 
now  entering  foreign  markets.  The  Directors 
are  noted  for  their  keen  interest  in  making 


634 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


the  Nippon  Seika  Kaisha  the  most  successful 
enterprise  of  its  kind  ever  inaugurated  in 
Japan.  They  are  not  yet  satisfied  with  the 
success  that  has  attended  their  work,  al- 
though the  company  has  received  every 
evidence,  in  the  shape  of  honours  and  awards 
from  expositions  at  home  and  abroad,  of 
its  sound  standing  and  the  excellence  of  its 
products.  The  driving  force  of  the  enter- 
prise is  Mr.  Seizo  Osawa,  the  President  and 
foimder  of  the  company.  This  gentleman 
was  bom  in  1850  in  Chiba  Prefecture.  He 
entered  the  service  of  the  Sakura-gumi  in 
1872,  and  rose  to  be  Vice-President  of  that 
concern  in  1897.  For  his  services  in  bringing 
about  the  amalgamation  which  resulted  in 
the  present  large  company,  Mr.  Osawa  was 
made  President  of  the  group.  In  1907  he 
was  appointed  Chairman  of  the  Shoemakers' 
Union,  and  he  is  also  Vice-President  of  the 
Japan  Leather  Company.  These  honours 
are  fitting  in  the  case  of  a  man  who  has  done 


so  much  for  the  industry.  At  the  time  Mr. 
Osawa  became  associated  with  it,  shoe- 
making  was  looked  down  upon  as  an  occu- 
pation somewhat  inferior  to  others,  but  the 
situation  is  now  changed  and  the  business 
is  one  of  the  most  lucrative  in  the  country. 
The  Japan  Shoe  and  Boot  Manufacturing 
Co.,  Ltd.,  is  to  be  congratulated,  as  is  also 
the  entire  industrial  circle  of  Japan,  upon 
having  produced  a  business  man  of  Mr. 
Osawa's  great  ability.  The  President  of 
the  company  has  very  able  assistance  in 
the  person  of  the  Managing  Director,  Mr. 
Kakutaro  Yamagishi.  Mr.  Osawa's  un- 
daunted spirit  and  his  diligent  fostering  of 
the  business,  and  Mr.  Yamagishi's  executive 
control  of  the  organisation,  together  with 
the  skill  he  exercises  in  the  management 
of  his  large  staff  and  many  scores  of  work- 
men, are  undoubtedly  the  two  principal 
agencies  contributing  to  the  success  of  the 
company. 


Since  its  inauguration  the  company  has 
had  to  double  its  capital  as  the  operations 
extended.  The  amount  now  stands  at  Yen 
600,000,  all  fully  paid  up,  and  there  is  a 
legal  reserve  of  Yen  150,000.  In  addition 
to  the  two  principal  officers  referred  to 
above,  the  officers  of  the  company  are 
as  follows:  Directors,  Messrs.  Toyochiyo 
Maehida,  Kinzaburo  Kata,  and  Takuma  Ito; 
Auditors  are  Messrs.  Kihachiro  Okura  and 
Naoshi    Nishimura. 

THE     KUH.\R,\     .MINING     COMPANY, 
LIMITED 

Elsewhere  the  history  and  the  scope  of 
the  operations  of  this  powerful  corporation 
are  given  at  some  length,  but  it  is  necessary 
here  to  make  some  reference  to  recent 
developments  in  the  company's  enterprise, 
mainly  as  they  aflfect  the  rapidly  develop- 
ing shipping  industrv'  of  Japan. 


HEAD   OII-ICE   OF    THE    KUHAR.\    MINING   COMPANY,  LIMITED,    OSAKA 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


635 


'l"he  Kuhara  Company  is  famous  for  its 
bold  schemes,  and  it  is  not  surprising,  there- 
fore, to  learn  that  when  the  project  of 
shipbuilding  was  given  attention,  the  Kuliara 
interests  should  plan  to  launch  out  on  the 
industry  on  a  very  large  scale.  A  subsidiary 
corporation  has  been  formed  with  a  sub- 
stantial capital,  and  a  first-class  site  of  close 
on  to  one  million  Isiibo  has  been  purchased 
at  Kudamatsu  in  Yamaguchi  Prefecture, 
near  Shimonoscki.  Mr.  Fusanosuke  Kuhara 
intends  to  make  the  works  a  second  Vickers 
yard,  after  the  model  of  the  famous  British 
concern.  Not  only  will  shipbuilding  be 
carried  on  on  a  vigourous  scale,  but  there 
will  also  be  steel  and  machine  works,  second 
to  none  in  Japan.  As  planned,  the  new 
enterprise  will  give  rise  to  a  new  industrial 
town,  and  already  all  preparations  have 
been  made  to  provide  quarters  for  the  work- 
men, and  to  furnish  various  institutions  for 
their   betterment. 

It  is  generally  recognised  that  such  an 
undertaking  will  create  a  new  and  very 
valuable  industrial  asset  for  Japan.  Mr. 
Kuhara,  though  only  thirty  years  of  age,  is 


counted  one  of  the  wealthiest  men  in  Japan. 
He  is  well  supijorted  by  a  highly  (|ualified 
directorate  and  technical  staff.  Mr.  Chozo 
Koike,  former  director  of  the  political  bureau 
in  the  Foreign  Office,  is  General  Manager  for 
the  company.  The  Director  at  Osaka  is 
Mr.  K.  Takenouchi.  The  head  office  of 
the  Kuhara  Company  is  at  No.  14  Nakano- 
shima,  Nichome,  Kita-ku,  Osaka.  (See 
also  page  470.) 

FURUKAWA  &  CO.,  LIMITED,  OSAKA 
As  Tokyo  has  been  for  more  than  three 
hundred  years  the  greatest  political  centre 
of  Japan,  Osaka  has  been  almost  since  time 
immemorial  the  industrial  and  commercial 
metropolis  of  the  Island  Empire.  This 
general  statement  applies  equally  to  the 
metal  trade  as  to  all  other  departments  of 
commerce  and  industry,  and  an  examination 
of  a  geological  map  of  Japan  demonstrates 
at  a  glance  the  reason  for  this.  Clustering 
around  Osaka  we  find  the  principal  mines 
of  the  country,  and  the  ore  derived  from  these 
workings  has  always  been  sent  into  the 
metropolis     to     be    smelted     and    refined. 


Thus  in  Osaka,  in  the  shogunate  era,  many 
small  works  sprang  up.  The  situation  has 
not  been  materially  altered  with  the  progress 
of  time,  for  even  at  present  Osaka  contains 
most  of  the  big  smelting  and  refining  works, 
and  it  is  noted  also  as  the  centre  of  the  lead- 
ing metal  and  mining  corporation  of  Japan, 
namely,  the  Furukawa  Co.,  Ltd.,  which  has 
its  main  offices  in  the  city. 

The  Furukawa  Gomei  Kaisha,  however, 
was  founded  in  Tokyo,  because  the  famous 
Ashio  Copper  Mine  is  situated  near  the 
capital.  The  founder  of  the  business  was  so 
successful  that  he  became  known  as  the 
"Copper  King,"  and  this  appellation  has 
with  all  justification  been  applied  to  the 
principals  of  the  big  corporation  down  to 
the  present  time.  Nevertheless,  Furukawa 
could  not  overlook  the  centre  of  the  metal 
trade  in  the  south,  and  consequently  in  the 
Spring  of  1904  the  Osaka  branch  was  estab- 
lished to  meet  the  great  demand  for  metal 
which  was  stimulated  by  the  Russo-Japanese 
War.  Favoured  by  time  and  geographical 
situation,  and  directed  by  experienced  men, 
under  a  broad  and  progressive  policy,  Furu- 


1^ 


.■■« 


tURUKAVVA   &   CO.,    LTD.:      S.    S.    "  SANNO    MARU  "    AND    S.    S.    "  KAIWO    MARL',"    OWNED    BY    THE   COMPANY 


636 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


kawa  &  Co.,  Ltd.,  Osaka,  have  developed 
their  business  by  leaps  and  bounds,  as  the 
following  figures  relating  to  the  proceeds  of 
sales  from  the  date  of  foundation  will  show: 


ments:  (i)  Metal  Department;  (2)  Coal 
Department;  (3)  Electric  Wire  Department; 
(4)  Ore  Department,  and  (5)  Department  of 
General  Affairs. 


THE    IMPERIAL   CUSTOM    HOUSE,    YOKOHAMA 


Year 

\'ai,ue  of  Product 

Yen 

1905 

700,000 

1906 

900,000 

1907 

1 ,600,000 

1908 

1,700,000 

1909 

2,600,000 

IQIO 

3,700,000 

191  I 

4,700,000 

iyi2 

8,400,000 

1913 

8,600,000 

1914 

7,500,000 

1913 

11,000,000 

1 9 1 6 

28,000,000 

IIH7 

40,000,000 

The  Osaka  branch  of  Furukawa  &  Co., 
Ltd..  is  at  present  under  the  able  manage- 
ment of  Mr.  Reinosuke  Suga,  and  everybody 
under  him  is  working  in  perfect  unison  to 
produce  the  finest  results  for  the  corporation. 
The  trading  territory  of  the  branch  extends 
from  Shizuoka  and  Toyama  Prefectures  in  the 
north,  to  Okayama  and  Tottori  Prefectures 
in  the  south,  including  the  island  of  Shikoku. 
Besides  the  domestic  trade,  the  branch  makes 
purchases  of  every  class  of  metal  and  metal 
products  for  all  branches,  representatives, 
and  agents  throughout  the  world,  the  most 
important  of  which  are  at  Shanghai,  Hong- 
kong, Dairen,  London,  Petrograd,  Hankow, 
Harbin,  New  York,  Bombay,  Calcutta,  and 
Moscow.  The  organisation  of  the  corpora- 
tion is  divided  into  the  five  following  depart- 


The  principal  lines  dealt  with  by  the 
Metal  Department  are  every  sort  of  metal, 
such  as  Furukawa  cathodes,  electro  ingots 
"Marugata,"  best  selected  and  other  brands 
of  Japanese  copper;  copper,  brass,  and  yellow 
metal  manufactures,  as  sheets,  ribbon,  rods, 
bars;  other  metals  and  their  by-products; 
several  kinds  of  bullion,  pure  silver,  antimony, 
lead,  tin  spelter,  and  sulphate  of  copper. 
Besides  dealing  with  all  these  metals,  the 
department  makes  purchases  of  crude  copper 
and  ores  for  the  Furukawa  works  at  Amas- 
gasaki.  These  w'orks  are  located  about  five 
miles  from  Osaka  at  the  city  of  Amagasaki, 
and  are  under  the  management  of  Mr.  Suga. 
They  cover  an  area  of  about  four  acres  and 
there  are  approximately  two  hundred  and 
twenty  employees.  The  principal  product 
of  the  works  is  refined  copper  ingots,  the 
output  being  about  15,000,000  pounds  per 
annum.  Besides  copper  refining,  these  works 
carry  out  lead  refining  and  copper  and  iron 
wire  drawing. 

The  Coal  Department  deals  with  the 
products  of  the  Furukawa  collieries,  such  as 
Shiogashira,  Shakanoo,  Dai-ni  Shakanoo, 
Shin  Shakanoo,  Shimoyaniada,  and  Yoshima. 
It  also  represents  as  sole  agent  the  Taisho 
Mining  Co.,  whose  principal  collieries  are 
Arate,  Sensui,  and  Muda.  In  the  course  of 
a  year  the  department  deals  with  over 
2,000,000  tons  of  coal.  Shiogashira  and 
Shakanoo  coal  is  of  a  black,  bituminous 
nature,  comparatively  free  of  sulphur  and 
caking  well.  Therefore  these  coals  have  a 
high    reputation    as    the    best    for   smithies, 


locomotives,   and   iron   works,   their  reputa- 
tion  having  extended   widely  at  home  and 
aliroad.     Shin    and    Dai-ni    Shakanoo    and 
Sensui  coals  are  best  adapted  for  the  pro- 
duction   of   gas   and    coke,    while   those   of 
Shimoyamada,  Yoshima,  Arate,  and  Naka- 
zuru    are    highly    combustible,    and    conse- 
quently are  reputed  to  be  the  best  for  various 
uses  in  factories.     As  the  principal  collieries 
owned    by    Furukawa    are    scattered    over 
Kyushu  Island,  the  Furukawa  Gomel  Kaisha 
founded  a  branch  at  Moji,  one  of  the  greatest 
centres  of  the  coal  trade  in  Japan,  to  supply 
coal  to  ships  and  to  the  factories  around  the 
city      The  Moji  branch,  however,  also  deals 
in  all  lines,  the  same  as  the  Osaka  branch. 
The  Electric  Wire  Department  deals  with 
all  classes  of  wires  and  cables  produced  by 
the  Furukawa  Nikko  Works  and  the  Yoko- 
hama  Electric   Wire   Works.     Furukawa   & 
Co.,  Ltd.,  were  the  first  to  establish  copper 
wire   works   in   Japan,   and   by   degrees   the 
superior  quality  of  its  products  was  recognised 
throughout  the  domestic  and  foreign  markets. 
As  the  demand  grew  tremendously  the  wire 
works,  together  with  the  copper  refinery,  had 
to  be  removed  from  Tokyo  to  Nikko,  where 
a   large  factory   was   estabHshed   and   fitted 
throughout    with    modern    machinery    and 
appliances.     Now  the  products  of  the  Nikko 
Works  are   claimed   to   be  equal  in  appear- 
ance and  quality  to  those  manufactured  in 
Europe  and  America.     These  works  furnish 
more  than  eighty  per  cent  of  the  domestic 
demand  and  export  a  considerable  amount 
to  China  and  Europe.     The  principal  articles 
which  are  manufactured  at  the  Nikko  Works 
are  Furukawa  bare  wires  and  cables.     The 
works    are    especially  famous   at   home  and 
abroad   for   their   production   of   round   and 
grooved     trolley     wires.     This     department 
also    deals    with    the    manufactures    of    the 
Yokohama  Electric  Wire  Works,  for  whom 
Furukawa  Gomel  Kaisha  act  as  sole  agents. 
The    Yokohama    Electric    Wire    Works    are 
the   leading   and   pioneer   maunfacturers   of 
insulated    electric   wires   and   cables   in   the 
Far    East.     The    articles    manufactured    at 
these  works  are  magnet  wires,  weatherproof 
wire  and  cables,  flexible  cords,  thin  vulcan- 
ised flexibles,   standard  vulcanised  fiexibles, 
rubber    insulated     wires    and    cables,     lead 
enclosed  and  armoured  insulated  wires  and 
cables,     submarine     cables,     telephone     and 
telegraph  wires  and  cables,  paper  insulated 
cables,  specially  insulated  wires  and  cables, 
cable    accessories,    and    lead    tubing.     They 
are  reputed  to  be  of  first  grade  quality  and 
moderate  in   price.     The   majority  of  insu- 
lated wires  used  by  the  Japanese  Army  and 
Navy,     the     Communication     Department, 
the   Railway   Board,   and  other   public  and 
private  establishments,  are  manufactured  by 


'it 


!l 


§ 


1 

1 

<   ■  I.    '- 

t  ! 

1  1 

\[ 
r 

i 
t 

i 

u^ 


M.._-J 


K.    HATTORI    &   CO.;      SCENE    IN    THE   TOKYO    FACTORY THE    TOKYO    SHOP  —  THE    METAL    PRESS    DEPARTMENT 


638 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


the  Yokohama  Electric  Wire  and  Calilc 
Works. 

The  business  of  the  Ore  Department  of 
Furukawa,  Osaka,  may  be  divided  into  three 
parts:  that  is,  first,  the  selHng  of  the  ore 
produced  in  Furukawa's  mines,  such  as 
Innai  gold  and  silver  ore,  Kune  copper  and 
iron  pyrite  ore,  Daira  zinc  ore,  and  Furokura 
copper  ore;  second,  the  department  acts 
as  a  broker  of  ore  produced  in  the  mines 
owned  by  other  parts;  third,  the  furnishing 
of  material  to  the  Midzushima  Smelting 
Works.  We  must  in  this  connection  touch 
briefly  on  the  Midzushima  Smelting  Works. 
These  works  were  established  on  the  island 
off  the  port  of  Tamashima,  Okayama  Pre- 
fecture, just  after  the  Chino- Japanese  War, 
and  passing  through  several  hands,  fell  into 
Furukawa's  management  in  August,  1914. 
The  amount  of  copper  ore  consumed  by  the 
works  exceeds  200,000  tons  per  annum,  and 
after  the  extension,  now  going  on,  is  com- 
pleted, the  ore  consumed  will  reach  300,000 
tons. 

There  is  also  the  Furukawa  Shipping 
Office,    Sakaye    Machi,    Kobe.     This    office 


uses  the  ships  owned  and  chartered  by 
Furukawa  Gomel  Kaisha,  and  assists  in 
facilitating  the  export  trade  of  Tokyo  and 
Osaka. 

As  mentioned  above,  the  market  for 
Furukawa  Gomel  Kaisha,  Osaka,  is  extend- 
ing all  over  the  world,  and  consequently 
the  prospect  of  the  concern  is  the  brightest 
possible.  To  meet  the  expected  great 
development,  a  new  up-to-date  building  is 
nearly  completed  on  a  site  only  a  minute's 
distance  from  Umcda  Station. 

K.  HATTORI  &  CO. 
Like  other  countries,  Japan  furnishes 
many  instances  of  the  growth  of  large  enter- 
prises from  very  humble  beginnings,  and 
the  history  of  its  industrial  development 
[jrovidcs  niunerous  examples  of  the  rise  to 
fortune  and  fame  of  men  of  the  right  spirit. 
Nevertheless,  the  story  of  Mr.  Kintaro 
Hattori's  rise  from__the  position  of  an  office 
boy  to  the  head  of  one  of  the  greatest  clock 
and  watch  making  concerns  in  the  world, 
is  not  easy  to  parallel.  The  business  of 
K.  Hattori  &  Co.  is  well  known  to  all  visitors 


to  Jajmn,  for  there  is  no  more  attractive 
place  in  the  famous  Ginza  of  Tokyo  than 
the  great  watch  and  jewellery  shop  which 
occupies  a  commanding  position.  The  name 
of  the  firm  is  also  well  known  throughout 
the  East,  but  the  origin  of  the  business,  and 
Mr.  Hattori's  own  life  story,  are  not  so 
familiar  to  those  who  see  to-day  only  the 
great  success  he  has  achieved.  The  famous 
Hattori  watch  and  clock  works  are  the  crea- 
tion of  one  man.  As  a  boy,  Mr.  Hattori 
was  so  poor,  and  his  father  so  helpless,  that 
the  future  man  of  business  could  not  be 
educated,  and  often  went  hungry,  yet  to-day 
he  controls  an  industry  that  represents  a 
fortune  of  Yen   12,000,000. 

Mr.  Hattori's  father  was  a  native  of  the 
Province  of  Owari,  and  in  the  Kei-o  era 
came  to  Yedo,  as  Tokyo  was  then  known. 
He  failed  in  business,  and  was  compelled 
to  sell  second-hand  goods  in  the  streets, 
plying  a  precarious  trade  in  front  of  the 
spot  where  his  son's  famous  shop  now  stands. 
So  poor  was  the  family  that  the  father  had 
to  send  his  son  out,  without  any  education, 
to  earn  his  living  when  he  was  twelve  years 


VOliOHAMA   VIEWED   FROM   THE   MEMORI.iL    TOWER,    LOOKING    TOWARD    TIlE    BLIJFF 


TOKYO   GAS   AND    ELECTRIC   INDUSTRIAL   CO.,  LTD.:      THE   FOUNDRY  —  THK    MACHINE    SHOP  —  niRD's-EYE    VIEW    OK    THE    FACTORY  —  A    SCENE 
IN   THE   LAMP-MAKING  SHOP WORKMEN   ENGAGED   AT   THE   FINISHING   AND    SORTING   OF   LAMP   PARTS 


640 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


of  age.     The  boy  was  sent  as  office  boy,  or 
apprentice,    to    a    foreign    goods    store    at 
Hachikan-cho.     Young  Kintaro  Hattori  de- 
termined to  improve  his  position  and  help 
his  father.     Opposite  where   he   worked   as 
office  boy  there  was  a  watchmaker's  shop. 
The  future  successful  business  man  realised 
that  it  required  a  great  deal  of  capital  to 
open  a  foreign  goods  store,  but  little  was 
required,  beyond  skill  at  his  calling,   for  a 
man  to  be  a  watch  repairer.     That  he  decided 
to  be,  and  he  spent  all  his  spare  time  with 
Kobayashi,  the  watchmaker.     At  the  age  of 
fifteen  the  boy  left  the  foreign  goods  store 
and  entered  the  service  of  Kameda,  a  watch- 
maker   of     Kamimaki-cho,     Nihonbashi-ku. 
There  he  was  first  ordered  to  act  as  a  child's 
nurse,    and    when    he    had    leisure    he    was 
allowed    to    learn    to    repair    watches.     At 
night  he  studied  Japanese,  and  endeavoiu-ed 
to    educate    himself.     He    gradually    made 
some    progress,    but    the    difficulty    of    his 
struggle    may    be    imagined    from    the    fact 
that  once,  when  he  needed  a  book  costing 
about    25    sen,    neither    he    nor    his    father 
could    provide    such    a    paltry    sum.     The 
intensity  of  the  struggle  only  increased  the 
boy's     determination     to     make     headway. 
He     worked     hard     at     repairing     watches. 
From  the  ages  of  eighteen  to  twenty-two  he 
saved  by  dint  of  hard  work  and  self-denial 
the  small  sum  of  Yen  150,  and  this  he  in- 
vested in  a  small  shop  at  Unemecho,  Kyo- 
bashi-ku.     The  store  was  tiny,  the  business 
was  new,  the  customers  were  few,  and  the 
earnings    small.     Accordingly,    Mr.    Hattori 
went    round    at    night    visiting    the    street 
sellers  at  Kakigaracho  and  Ningyocho,  and 
such  places,  and  bought  broken  old  watches 
which  he  repaired   and   sold.     In   this  way 
he  worked  night  and  day  to  save  the  sum  of 
Yen  1,200  in  two  years.     Unfortunately  a  fire 
broke  out  in  the  neighbourhood  of  Mr.  Hat- 
tori's  store  in  1 883,  and  it  was  destroyed.     Not 
discouraged  by  this  he  again  started  at  Kobi- 
kicho  Gochome,  and  worked  harder  than  ever. 
In  1887  Mr.  Hattori  removed  to  Ginza,  his 
business  having  grown  in  a  fairly  satisfactory 
manner.     A  temporary  workshop  was  started 
in  May,  1892,  at  Ishiwaramachi,  Honjo,  and 
the  trade  name  of  Seikosha  was  adopted,  which 
afterwards    became    famous.     The    locality 
was,    however,    crowded    with   houses,    and 
Mr.  Hattori  was  not  permitted  to  install  a 
motor    engine    for    his    machinery,    so    the 
follow-ing  year  the  factory  was  removed  to 
Yanagishimacho.     Here    Mr.    Hattori    was 
able  to  install  an  eight  horse-power  engine, 
and  went  in  for  the  manufacture  of  clocks. 
The  demand  for  the  Hattori  products  began 
to  increase,   and  presently  the  factory  was 
making    clocks    and    exporting    to     China. 
More    modem    machinery    being    necessary, 


Mr.  Hattori  imported  an  automatic  plant 
from  Europe  and  America,  and  used  it, 
together  with  machines  of  his  own  design. 
The  manufacture  of  watches  was  commenced 
in  1895,  and  the  next  development,  a  few 
years  later,  was  the  making  of  nickel  alarm 
clocks. 

To  follow  the  history  of  the  Hattori 
Company  farther  is  hardly  necessary,  because 
it  has  been  a  continuous  triumph  of  success, 
the  works  expanding  year  by  year  in  keep- 
ing with  the  development  of  trade.  Mr. 
Hattori's  enterprise  has  practically  meant  the 
stoppage  of  the  importation  of  foreign-made 
clocks,  especially  the  cheap  German  article. 
He  has  made  Japan  patronise  another  home 
industry  b}'  turning  out  clocks  and  watches 
of  the  highest  grade  of  workmanship,  and 
he  has  built  up  a  considerable  export  trade 
with  India  and  China.  In  1916  the  number 
of  watches  and  clocks  turned  out  at  the 
Hattori  works  was  over  800,000.  In  1899 
Mr.  Hattori  visited  Europe  and  America  to 
study  the  industry  in  which  he  is  such  a 
prominent  leader.  This  visit  was  repeated 
in  1906  and  as  a  result  of  it  the  most  modern 
machinery  was  imported  and  the  works  so 
extended  and  improved  as  to  permit  of  the 
carrying  out  of  the  most  delicate  work  on 
the  widest  possible  scale.  More  than  1,500 
workmen  are  engaged,  and  the  office  and 
sales  staff  comprises  over  100  hands.  Mr. 
Hattori  is  now  planning  to  maintain  his 
export  trade  after  the  declaration  of  peace. 
Expansion  while  the  war  is  on  and  while 
the  import  of  such  materials  as  must  come 
from  Europe  and  the  United  States  is  rather 
difficult,  but  the  Hattori  watches  and  clocks 
are  so  popular  wherever  they  are  known 
that  it  is  hardly  likely  that  there  will  be 
any  falling  off  in  the  demand.  There  is 
more  likely  to  be  an  increase  under  the 
easier  conditions  of  peace  time.  Mr.  Hattori 
is  now  fifty-nine  years  of  age,  and  all  who 
know  the  hard  struggle  he  had  in  his  early 
days  heartily  congratulate  him  on  the 
success  of  his  great  enterprise. 

TOKYO   GAS   AND   ELECTRIC   INDUSTRIAL 
COMPANY,    LIMITED 

This  enterprise  is  one  that  covers  a  far 
wider  field  of  industrial  manxifactures  than 
the  title  of  the  company  implies,  the  original 
purpose  of  the  Tokyo  Gas  and  Electric 
Industrial  Co.,  Ltd.,  having  been  consider- 
ably broadened  in  keeping  with  the  remark- 
able economic  development  of  Japan  since 
the  outbreak  of  the  war.  The  company  was 
organised  in  August,  1910,  by  the  late  Mr. 
T.  Tokuhisa,  formerly  Governor  of  the  Saga 
Prefecture,  assisted  by  some  of  the  leading 
financiers  of  Tokyo.  At  this  time  there  was 
a   strong   development  in  the  gas  industry 


in  Japan  and  the  promoters  of  the  company 
had  in  view  the  manufacture  of  gas  mantles, 
fittings,  and  other  apparatus,  as  well  as 
contracting  for  the  erection  of  gas-making 
plants  and  works,  etc.  Before  the  founda- 
tion of  the  new  enterprise  could  be  consoli- 
dated Mr.  Tokuhisa  died,  and  the  under- 
taking came  to  a  standstill.  Mr.  G.  Mat- 
sukata,  fifth  son  of  the  famous  Genro  Marquis 
Matsukata,  was  unanimously  elected  Presi- 
dent of  the  company  in  succession  to  Mr. 
Tokuhisa,  and  devoting  himself  energetically 
to  the  furtherance  of  the  company's  interests, 
he  overcame  many  difficulties  and  put  the 
industry  on  a  sound  basis.  Mr.  Matsukata 
introduced  new  departments,  such  as,  for 
instance,  the  manufacture  of  enamelled  iron- 
ware, and  proceeded  to  open  up  new  markets 
for  the  company's  products,  both  at  home 
and  abroad.  From  that  time  the  company 
has  made  slow  but  steady  improvement. 
Its  operations  have  been  widely  extended,  as 
will  be  shown  later.  The  quahty  of  its 
products  has  been  improved,  and  the  excel- 
lent reputation  it  has  won  has  brought  its 
goods  into  great  demand  for  home  use  and 
also  in  the  United  Kingdom,  America,  China, 
India,  and  the  South  Seas. 

The  Tokyo  Gas  and  Electric  Industrial 
Co.,  Ltd.,  possesses  five  factories  at  Honjo- 
ku,  Tokyo.  No.  i,  where  gas  mantles  are 
made,  covers  192  tsubo.  The  power  is 
electricity,  conveyed  to  33  different  machines. 
Employment  is  given  in  this  factory-  to  two 
expert  engineers  and  166  hands,  the  majority 
of  them  women.  The  second  factory,  or 
machine  shop,  covers  531  tsubo.  Motors 
developing  122  horse-power  operate  no  fewer 
than  472  machines,  and  the  staff  comprises 
27  engineers,  supervising  the  work  of  549  men 
and  114  women.  The  enamelled  ironware 
factory  extends  over  377  tsubo  and  employs 
94  men  and  6  women.  The  fourth  factory, 
for  finishing  gas  meters,  covers  80  tsubo 
and  employs  2  engineers  and  36  labourers. 
In  the  fifth  factory,  which  is  used  for  gal- 
vanising work,  and  covers  150  tsubo,  I 
engineer  and  53  labourers  are  at  work. 
The  gas  mantles  turned  out  by  the  company 
have  won  high  distinction  in  all  the  markets 
of  the  world.  The  defect  with  most  mantles 
is  that  those  for  strong  candle  power  con- 
■  sume  much  gas  and  still  are  not  durable, 
while  those  that  are  comparatively  durable 
are  not  adaptable  to  high  candle  power. 
This  difficulty  is  claimed  to  have  been  over- 
come by  the  company,  which  is  turning  out 
a  mantle  that  is  not  only  durable,  whether 
made  of  silk,  ramie,  or  cotton,  but  is  adapt- 
able for  stronger  candle  power  than  those 
of  any  other  make.  In  the  production  of 
enamelled  ironware  the  Tokyo  Gas  and 
Electric  Industrial  Co.,  Ltd.,  is  without  rival 


P  R  E  S  E  N  T  -  U  A  Y        IMPRESSIONS        OF        JAPAN 


641 


GENERAL    VIEW   OF    THE    PLANT   OF    THE    YASUDA    NAIL    WORKS    (yASUDA    SEITEI   JO),    AT    YEDAMITSU,    NEAR    MOJI. 
(notice   the    NUMBER   OF   INDUSTRIES    SPRINGING    UP    IN    THIS   DISTRICT) 


among  the  many  makers  of  this  ware  in 
Japan.  The  industry  has  been  developed  on 
a  very  large  scale  by  the  company,  which  is 
especially  noted  for  its  acid-proof  and  heat- 
proof goods,  and  for  its  baths,  tank-coils, 
cast  pans,  etc.  With  the  development  of 
the  chemical  industry  of  Japan  this  depart- 
ment of  the  company's  activities  has  a  very 
bright  future.  Gas  meters  are  being  made 
in  large  quantity,  and  it  is  evidence  of  the 
quality  and  accuracy  of  the  company's 
product  that  the  Central  Weights  and 
Measures  Testing  Bureau  use  the  Tokyo 
Company's  meter  as  a  standard.  The 
machine  shop  is  among  the  best  equipped 
in  Japan,  as  also  its  labour  is  among  the 
most  skilled.  Recently  the  Imperial  mili- 
tary authorities  were  astounded  to  find  that 
an  order  placed  with  the  company  for  over 
a  thousand  ammunition-testing  appliances 
was  turned  out  in  less  than  two  months 

The  success  which  has  been  achieved  by 
the  Tokyo  Gas  and  Electric  Industrial  Co., 
Ltd.,  has  led  the  directors  to  embark  on  a 
much  wider  scheme  of  manufactures.  The 
capital  of  the  company  is  to  be  increased, 
and  the  plants  extended  to  enable  the  factories 
to  turn  out  motor  cars,  meters,  and  measur- 
ing appliances  of  various  kinds,  and  military 
ordnance  requirements.  The  automobile 
industry  is  to  be  taken  up  in  diflferent  stages, 
the  idea  of  the  company  being  to  turn  out  a 
car  suited  to  local  needs,  and  to  educate  its 
workmen  along  these  lines:  First,  all  parts 
will  be  imported  from  abroad,  and  will  be 


assembled  in  the  factory  and  sold  as  complete 
cars;  second,  the  raw  materials  for  parts  will 
be  imported  and  will  be  finished  in  the  factory 
and  from  them  the  cars  will  be  constructed, 
and  third,  all  material  will  be  produced  in 
Japan,  so  that  a  car  will  be  made  complete. 
The  first  productions  will  be  freight  trucks 
and  military  automobiles.  There  is  urgent 
need  in  Japan  for  freight  trucks  and  military 
machines,  and  it  is  certain  that  the  company's 
enterprise  in  supplying  the  deficiency  will 
meet  with  the  hearty  approval  of  the  Govern- 
ment and  the  Military  Department.  A 
bright  future  also  lies  before  the  industry  of 
making  various  meters.  Japan  is  so  rapidly 
developing  her  economic  independence  in 
other  lines,  particularly  in  shipbuilding, 
locomotive  construction  and  so  on,  that  the 
company  has  decided  that  many  accessory 
parts,  such  as  meters  and  gauges,  now  almost 
entirely  imported,  can  be  manufactured 
locally  with  profit.  Already  the  ordnance 
department  of  the  company  is  in  operation, 
but  no  new  capital  has  as  yet  been  put  into  it. 
.The  company  has  merely  taken  advantage  of 
its  surplus  plant  and  power  to  enter  upon 
munition  making,  etc.,  as  a  side  line.  Orders 
have  been  received  from  Russia  and  quite  an 
extensive  trade  has  already  been  developed. 
It  is  felt,  after  the  lessons  of  the  great  war, 
that  Japan  can  very  well  do  with  some  private 
manufacturing  plants  to  supplement  the  work 
of  the  national  arsenals,  and  the  Tokyo  Com- 
pany has  entered  on  this  work  with  a  view 
to  wide  ex])ansion  in  the  not  distant  future. 


It  is  generally  recognised  that  the  enter- 
prise of  the  Tokyo  Gas  and  Electric  Industrial 
Co.,  Ltd.,  is  a  model  one  in  many  respects. 
The  aim  of  President  Matsukata  is  to  avoid 
useless  competition  with  other  concerns,  but 
to  supply  deficiencies  in  the  general  industrial 
field,  or  to  support  Government  enterprise 
with  private  plants.  For  this  reason  the 
Tokyo  Company  will  rarely  be  found  dujili- 
cating  the  products  of  other  factories.  The 
whole  plant  is  run  with  the  idea  of  being 
available  for  national  needs  at  any  time.  So 
far,  the  company  has  succeeded  financially 
to  a  satisfactory  extent,  and  the  directors 
have  no  doubt  of  substantial  development 
after  the  war  and  the  maintenance  of  divi- 
dends at  20  per  cent  per  annum.  The  head 
office  of  the  Tokyo  Gas  and  Electric  Indus- 
trial Co.,  Ltd.,  is  at  Narihira-cho,  Nakanogo, 
Honjo-ku,  Tok-yo.  It  is  to  remove  presently 
to  Otemachi,  Kojimachi-ku,  Tokyo,  and  the 
branch  factory  is  to  be  built  in  Omori  (a  sub- 
urb of  Tokyo). 

YASUDA  NAIL  WORKS 
The  history  of  the  Yasuda  Nail  Works  is 
an  interesting  record  of  difficulties  overcome, 
and  of  success  achieved  in  the  face  of  most 
discouraging  conditions.  The  scheme  first 
occurred  to  Mr.  Yasuda  in  1894,  when,  as  a 
result  of  the  Sino- Japanese  War,  the  coun- 
try's trade  returns  presented  an  unusually 
unsatisfactory   balance. 

The  situation,  redundant  with  opportun- 
ities to  a  far-sighted  man,  appealed  at  once 


I 


a' 


^^ggyrj 


.'.-"i:!:  ,AiT"i 


A 


NISSHIN    SEIFUN    KABUSHIKI    KAISHA    (nISSHIN  FLOUR  MILLS,   LIMITED):     VIEW   OF   THE   BIG   MILLS   AT  TATEBAYASHI  —  SECOND   FLOUR   MILL 

AT    MITO— THE    LABORATORY INTERIOR  VIEW   OF   THE   MILL   AT   TATEBAYASHI  —  THOUSANDS   OF    SACKS   OF   FLOUR   IN    ONE 

OF    THE    CODOWNS— ANOTHER   INTERIOR   VIEW   OF    THE    MILLING   PLANT   AT   TATEBAYASHI 


THE  DAIRI   FLOUR  MILL  CO.,  LTD.:      VIEWS  OF  THE  MILL  AT  DAIRI,   NEAR  MOJI  — BUSY   SCENE  IN  DAIRI  OFFICE 


644 


P  R  E  S  E  N  T  -  I)  A  V 


I  M   1'  R  !■:  S  S  I  O  N  S 


O  F 


J   A  1'  A  N 


to  Mr.  Yasuda  both  from  a  commercial  and 
patriotic  point  of  view,  since  it  was  obvious 
that  whatever  could  be  done  to  correct  the 
balance  of  trade,  even  to  a  small  extent, 
would  be  useful,  and  probably  profitable. 

Wire  nails  were  at  this  time  being  imported 
to  Japan  at  an  average  rate  of  220,000  kegs 
per  annum,  there  being  no  manufacturer  of 
this  commodity  in  the  country.  Mr.  Yasuda 
decided  to  install  a  factory  to  produce  at  least 
50  per  cent  of  this  quantity,  and  in  1895  des- 
patched a  representative  to  Europe  to  make 
an  exhaustive  study  of  the  industry.  This 
task  did  not,  however,  prove  easy  of  accom- 
plishment, as  neither  European  nor  American 
manufacturers  were  at  all  attracted  by  the 
possibility  of  foreign  production  and  the 
consequent  loss  of  an  important  market ; 
hence  the  representative  found  it  impossible 
to  obtain  admittance  to  the  factories.  Noth- 
ing daunted,  Mr.  Yasuda  purchased  4,000 
tstibo  of  ground  in  1896  and  building  opera- 
tions proceeded  with  such  celerity  that  in 
September  of  the  year  following  the  factory 
was  complete.  An  American  nail-specialist 
was  engaged  to  set  up  and  install  the  machines, 
which  were  completed  under  his  direction  by 
November.  In  the  vSpring  of  igo8  the  first 
products  of  the  factory  were  placed  on  the 
market,  but  it  was  only  then  that  the  real 
obstacles  began  to  accumulate.  Consumers 
long  accustomed  to  the  foreign  product  were 
extremely  skeptical  and,  no  doubt  with 
reason,  criticised  the  Yasuda  Nail  as  not  ujj 
to  the  foreign  standard.  Again,  residents  in 
the  neighbourhood  of  the  w'orks,  unaccus- 
tomed to  the  proximity  of  a  big  manufactur- 
ing plant,  and  the  natural  disadvantages  in 
the  form  of  noise,  waste  deposits,  etc.,  were 
quite  naturally  moved  to  very  vigourous 
opposition. 

Despite  this  generally  unsatisfactory  situa- 
tion—  which,  however,  improved  somewhat 
with  time  —  operations  continued  and  an 
addition  was  made  to  the  works  which 
necessitated  the  installation  of  an  additional 
200  machines.  Within  a  week  of  the  com- 
pletion of  the  extensions  the  factory  caught 
fire  and  was  completely  demolished.  It 
speaks  wonders  for  the  determined  spirit 
which  actuated  the  founder  that  by  May  of 
1 90 1  a  new  factory,  complete  in  every  respect, 
stood  upon  the  ruins  of  the  old,  and  work 
proceeded. 

It  was  now  that  the  foreign  manufacturers 
began  to  take  a  hand  in  the  opposition.  A 
heavy  duty  was  placed  on  all  the  raw  material 
exported  to  Japan  for  the  manufacture  of 
nails,  with  the  result  that  the  factory  was 
quite  unable  to  compete,  and  was  forced  to 
close  down  in  1902.  In  1906  the  Government 
made  known  its  decision  to  manufacture  wire- 
rod  for  local  consumption  at  reasonable  rates. 


WASHING    D.\Y    U.N     IHE    TU.Nli    RIVER 

and  it  may  best  be  imagined  with  what 
unmixed  satisfaction  this  intelligence  was 
received  by  the  company. 

The  plant  was  rapidly  overhauled  and  in 
July,  1907,  abundantly  supplied  with  wire- 
rod,  recommenced  operations,  and  this  time 
with  considerable  success.  In  191 1  a  branch 
factory  was  completed  at  Yedamitsu,  Kyu- 
shu, and  within  a  year  this  was  also  working 
hard  to  meet  the  ever-increasing  demands. 
Mr.  Ma^-eda,  the  General  Manager  of  the 
works,  was  appointed  in  the  dark  days  of 
1897  to  the  position  which  he  still  holds,  and 
the  fact  that  with  Mr.  Z.  Yasuda,  the  Presi- 
dent, he  has  successfully  guided  the  industry 
to  its  present  prosperous  condition,  should 
point  to  future  development  and  success  as  a 
foregone  conclusion. 

THE    NISSHIN    FLOUR    MILLS,    LIMITED 

It  is  only  of  recent  years  that  flour-milling 
has  been  conducted  on  any  large  or  modern 
scale  in  Japan.  Milling  in  the  old  days  was 
done  in  a  crude  way,  water  mills  in  the  coun- 
try turning  out  flour  of  an  inferior  quality, 
and  when  the  demand  arose  for  white  bread, 
foreign  flour  was  imported  to  the  value  of 
some  Yen  10,000,000  annually.  In  1900  one 
of  the  first  modem  mills  was  erected  at 
Tatebayashi  town.  Gumma  Prefecture.  The 
initial  capital  was  Yen  60,000,  afterwards 
increased  to  Yen  600,000.  This  mill  was 
owned  by  the  Tatebayashi  Flour  Mill  Com- 
pany. In  March,  1907,  a  company  was 
promoted  in  Yokohama,  with  a  capital  of  Yen 


1 ,000,000,  and  a  mill  was  started  at  the  port. 
This  was  the  inception  of  the  present  industry 
of  the  Nisshin  Flour  Mills,  Ltd.,  the  biggest 
concern  of  its  kind  in  Japan.  Work  on  the 
Yokohama  mill  was  completed  in  January, 
1908,  and  2,000  bags  of  flour  were  produced 
daily.  In  the  meantime,  however,  the  Yoko- 
hama company  had  bought  out  the  Tatebay- 
ashi Company,  and  the  capital  of  the  joint 
concern  was  made  Yen  1,600,000.  At  the 
same  time  the  head  office  of  the  company  was 
removed  to  Tokyo.  A  year  or  so  later  the 
Dai  Nippon  Flour  Milling  Co.,  Ltd.,  was  also 
brought  into  the  amalgamation,  and  its  plant 
at  Utsunomiya  was  added  to  the  productive 
capacity.  With  these  amalgamations  the 
Nisshin  Flour  Mills,  Ltd.,  was  fairly  started 
as  a  big  industrial  organisation,  and  since 
then  the  company  has  extended  in  all  direc- 
tions, until  to-day  it  owns  mills  at  five  centres, 
and  has  a  very  large  output.  In  December, 
19 1 7,  the  capital  of  the  concern  w'as  raised  to 
Yen  4,000,000.  The  factory  at  Xagoya  was 
completed  in  October,  1914,  and  the  manu- 
facture of  flour  under  the  German  system  was 
started  there,  the  other  mills  using  the 
American  system.  Since  the  outbreak  of 
the  war,  the  business  of  the  company  has 
increased  to  such  an  extent  that  the  capital 
had  to  be  increased  to  Yen  4,000,000,  as  stated 
above,  and  new  plants  were  installed.  At 
present  the  Nisshin  Flour  Mills,  Ltd.,  are 
operating  mills  at  Tatebayashi,  Yokohama, 
Utsunomiya,  Nagoya,  and  Mito.  These 
plants  are  running  day  and  night,  and  have  a 
production  of  16,000  bags  of  flour  a  day. 

All  these  plants  are  quite  modem  in  con- 
struction and  in  system  of  operation.  The 
mills  are  of  the  AUis-Chalmers  pattern,  and 
are  driven  by  electricity.  In  facilities  for 
handling  and  discharging  of  incoming  wheat 
shipments  and  outgoing  flour  and  other 
products,  the  Nisshin  Flour  Mills,  Ltd.,  are 
strictly  up  to  date.  The  Mito  Mill,  for 
instance,  has  railway  tracks  laid  to  the  mill 
doors,  and  the  wheat  is  automatically  weighed 
as  it  leaves  the  trucks,  and  is  handled  by 
electric  cranes,  making  delivery  ver\-  rapid 
and  economical.  This  mill  is  in  charge  of 
Mr.  I.  Morita.  The  mills,  as  a  whole,  are  of 
wood  or  stone,  and  generally  are  five  stories 
high,  with  large  two-story  godowns  attached 
for  storage  purposes.  About  3C0  hands  are 
employed  in  addition  to  the  technical  staff, 
chemists  and  others.  The  company  pays 
salaries  amounting  to  Yen  155,619  per  annum, 
while  the  wages  bill  runs  to  Yen  103,192. 
Working  at  full  capacity  the  company  can 
turn  out  5,200,000  bags  of  flour  a  year,  and 
1,200,000  bags  of  bran.  Prior  to  the  war  the 
wheat  was  mainly  imported  from  America 
and  Australia,  but  that  trade  has  now  been 
suspended    and    the    company    has    had    to 


ASAHI    GLASS   COMPANY,  LIMITED:      NO.  3    FACTORY   AT   TSURUMI THE   COMPANY'S    PRIVATE   FIRE    BRICK   FACTORY NO.  2    F.^CTORY, 

NEAR   MOJI,    KYUSHU IMPORTANT   MOND    GAS- PRODUCING    PLANT   INSTALLED   IN   CONNECTION   WITH   THE   COMPANY'S 

WORKS   AT    KYUSHU  —  THE   COMPANY'S    PRIVATE    SODA    FACTORY 


42 


iNl 


••4        i;l 


ASAHI   GLASS  COMPANY,  LIMITED:     (LEFT   TO   RIGHT)    BOX-MAKING   DEPARTMENT RAW    MATERIAL    READY    FOR   THE    FURNACE 

TRANSFERRING   GLASS  CYLINDERS   TO    FLATTENING   OVENS — -PACKING   DEPARTMENT — BLOWING   DEPARTMENT 

—  LADLING    MOLTEN   GLASS   FROM    FURNACES 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


647 


develop  other  sources  of  supply.  The  output 
of  the  mills  goes  a  long  way  to  meet  the 
domestic  demand  for  flour,  but  in  addition  a 
large  export  trade  is  being  done  with  China, 
Manchuria,  the  Straits  Settlements,  the  Philip- 
pines, and  the  South  Sea  Islands.  The 
company  has  been  very  successful  from  a 
financial  point  of  view.  There  was  a  tem- 
porary set-back  in  the  market  when  it  was 
rumoured  that  Germany  was  suing  for  peace, 
but  since  then  contracts  for  export  have  been 
stronger  than  ever,  and  the  supply  of  flour  is 
not  equal  to  the  demand.  Prices  of  flour 
rose  in  keeping  with  the  increase  in  the  price 
of  rice,  and  bran  and  other  by-products 
followed. 

The  balance  sheet  available  shows  that  the 
Nisshin  Flour  Mills,  Ltd.,  realised  a  profit 
for  the  half-year  of  Yen  234,170.10.  This, 
together  with  the  sum  of  Yen  79,115.16, 
brought  forward  from  the  previous  term,  was 
distributed  as  follows:  Added  to  reserve.  Yen 
15,000;  to  equalisation  of  dividends  fund, 
Yen  50,000;  to  staff  pension  fund.  Yen  5,000; 
bonus,  Yen  23,000;  dividend  at  15  per  cent 
per  annum,  Yen  98,720;  special  dividend 
(3  per  cent).  Yen  24,680;  carried  forward. 
Yen  96,885.26.  The  head  office  of  the 
Nisshin  Flour  Mills,  Ltd.,  is  at  Koamicho, 
Nihonbashi-ku,  Tokyo.  The  principal  officers 
of  the  company  are:  Directors,  Messrs.  K. 
Nezu  (President),  T.  Shoda  (Managing 
Director),  K.  Kimura,  K.  Matsushita,  T. 
Nagara,  T.  Ishijima;  Auditors,  Messrs.  K. 
Mogi,  N.  Aoki,  and  J.  Muramatsu. 

DAIRI     FLOUR    MILL,    LIMITED      (kABUS- 
HIKI    KAISHA    DAIRI    SEIFUNSHO) 

Whatever  the  detractors  of  Japan  and  the 
Japanese  business  man  may  assert,  they  can 
not  but  recognise  the  universal  spirit  of  enter- 
prise which  dominates  the  country  to-day, 
and  which  has  done  so  much  to  enable  the 
Japanese  to  grasp  the  opportunity  presented 
by  the  Great  War. 

From  the  various  articles  descriptive  of  the 
many  huge  undertakings  of  the  firm  of 
Suzuki  &  Co.,  appearing  in  different  sections 
of  this  volume,  it  will  be  seen  that  there  are 
few  departments  of  trade  and  industry  in 
which  they  have  not  important  financial  in- 
terests. 

The  Dairi  Mill  is  but  one  of  similar  enter- 
prises operated  by  the  company;  but,  since  it 
is  the  largest  and  perhaps  the  most  successful 
in  Japan,  some  details  will  be  of  interest. 
Located  at  Dairi,  a  few  miles  from  the  port  of 
Mogi,  the  fine  six-story  white  brick  main 
structure  of  the  mill,  with  its  numerous  well 
constructed  godowns,  power  station,  macaroni 
and  vermicelli  factory  adjoining,  looms  up 
imposingly  on  the  shores  of  the  Inland  Sea, 
where  it  narrows  to  approach  the  ports  of 


Mogi  and  Shimonoseki.  Together  with  the 
Kob^  Steel  Works,  the  Dai-Nippon  Seito 
K.  K.,  the  Imperial  Brewery,  the  Dairi 
Electric  Wire  Works,  and  other  adjoining 
enterprises,  it  can  not  but  symbolise  for  the 
new  arrival  the  Spirit  of  Modem  Japan. 

The  Dairi  Flour  Mill  was  established  in 
191 1  and  was  successful  from  the  inception 
to  such  an  extent  that  by  19 15  the  demand 
was  well  ahead  of  the  output.  Catastrophy 
overtook  the  mil!  at  this  time,  however,  in  the 
form  of  fire  which  practically  gutted  the 
main  building  and  a  number  of  the  ware- 
houses. This  was  regarded  more  as  a  blessing 
in  disguise  than  any  depressing  misfortune, 
for  before  the  end  of  igi6  a  new  mill,  in  all 
respects  better  and  of  greater  capacity,  stood 
upon  the  ruins  of  the  old.  The  present  mill 
covers  an  area  of  350  tsubo  and  the  numerous 
warehouses  5,000  tsubo.  There  is  a  small 
macaroni  and  vermicelli  factory  occupying 
200  Isuho,  whilst  the  power  plant,  boiler 
house,  etc.,  generating  1,500  horse -power, 
and  other  miscellaneous  structtu-es  cover  an 
additional  500  tsubo.  The  machinery  and 
installations  are  all  imported  from  England 
and  America  and  include  all  the  latest  devices 
and  most  approved  types  of  flour  milling 
machinery. 

A  considerable  portion  of  the  raw  material 
is  of  local  production,  but  large  quantities  are 
also  imported  from  Manchuria  and  Chosen. 
The  total  quantity  of  grain  annually  milled 
represents  3,474,100  bushels,  and  the  product 
is  4,270,000  bags  of  flour,  apart  from  by-pro- 
ducts. The  total  value  of  the  output, 
including  by-products,  is  valued  at  Yen 
16,000,000. 

It  is  an  interesting  fact  that  the  Blue  and 
Red  Diamond  Flours,  the  special  product  of 
the  Dairi  Mill,  find  a  ready  market  through- 
out the  Far  East  and,  also,  so  far  afield  as 
Europe  and  South  America. 

If  any  further  guarantee  of  quality  repre- 
sented by  the  demand  is  required,  the 
company  can  show  many  gold  and  silver 
exhibition  awards  as  a  tangible  proof  of  the 
great  and  universal  success  achieved,  but 
they  regard  as  more  important  the  Imperial 
command,  with  which  they  were  honoured  in 
191 7,  to  supply  the  Japanese  forces  during 
the  annual  manoeuvres. 


ASAHI    GLASS    CO., 
TOKYO 


LIMITED, 


M.\NY  attempts  have  been  made  to  manu- 
facture window  glass  in  Japan,  but  prior  to 
the  war  with  very  little  success.  The  Asahi 
Glass  Company,  Ltd.,  was  founded  in  1907 
with  this  object,  and  after  a  very  consider- 
able loss  of  time  and  heavy  experimental 
expenditure  succeeded  in  manufacturing  glass 
of  an  inferior  grade. 


However,  steady  progress  was  made  and 
by  1 9 14  the  company  had  succeeded  in  pro- 
ducing a  very  good  ciuality  of  window  glass 
which  found  a  ready  sale.  As  if  to  make 
amends  for  the  difficulties  of  the  past,  the 
total  importation  from  countries  like  Belgium, 
whose  previous  hold  on  the  trade  almost 
amounted  to  a  monopoly,  was  completely 
cut  off,  with  the  result  that  the  Asahi  Com- 
pany was  immediately  inundated  with  orders 
from  all  parts  of  the  world. 

The  company  has  three  factories  located 
at  Tobata  and  Yedamitsu  (Kyushu)  and 
Tsurumi,  near  Tokyo,  each  producing  240,- 
000  cases  annually,  and  a  smaller  factory  at 
Amagasaki,  near  Kobe,  with  an  annual  pro- 
duction of  120,000  cases.  Stated  in  other 
terms,  the  foiu-  factories  combined  at  present 
manufacture  about  85,000,000  square  feet 
of  window  glass  in  five  grades,  as  is  the  case 
with  the  Belgian  glass.  The  silica  sand  is 
imported  from  Indo-China.  Independence, 
as  far  as  raw  materials  are  concerned,  is 
achieved  by  the  company  running  its  own 
large  factories  for  the  supply  of  soda  and 
fire  bricks. 

Important  experiments  are  now  being 
carried  out,  too,  for  the  manufacture  of 
plate  and  show  glass  of  every  description. 
A  considerable  export  trade  is  at  present 
being  done  to  China,  India,  Australia,  South 
America,  and  South  Africa,  through  the 
following  firms:  Tamate  &  Co.  (Japan, 
Formosa,  Korea,  and  South  Seas),  Mitsubishi 
Co.  (China  and  Vladivostock,  Europe  and 
Africa),  Nosawa  Gumi  (Australia,  India, 
South  America,   Canada,  and  Siberia). 

The  President  of  the  company  is  Toshiya 
Iwasaki,  Esq. 

NIPPON     PAINT     MANUFACTURING     CO., 
LIMITED 

An  exceedingly  interesting  story  of  the 
origin  and  development  of  the  paint  manu- 
facturing industry  in  Japan  is  to  be  found  in 
the  history  of  the  Nippon  Company,  which  is 
tile  premier  concern  of  its  kind  in  the  Empire. 
Moreover,  the  story  is  indicative  of  the  energy 
and  determination  which  so  many  of  the 
pioneers  of  Japan's  secondary  industries  have 
displayed  in  overcoming  great  difficulties,  not 
the  least  of  which  have  been  popular  prejudice 
in  favoiu-  of  imported  articles.  The  history 
of  the  Nippon  Paint  Manufacturing  Com- 
pany, Limited,  is  practically  the  entire 
historj'  of  the  industry  in  Japan,  and  therefore 
there  is  every  justification  for  giving  it  at 
fairly  fuU  length. 

In  1874  two  courses  of  working  and  refin- 
ing were  pro\'ided  in  the  Kaisei-gakko,  the 
present  Tokyo  Imperial  LTniversity,  with  a 
view  to  the  diffusion  of  the  science  of  manu- 
facturing throughout  the  country.     Several 


fea3i|: 


r  J'  >: 



MR.   T.   TASAKA,    PRESIDENT,    NIPPON    PAINT   MFG.    CO.,  LTD.:      TWO   GENER.\L    VIEWS   OF    FACTORY    OF    NIPPON    PAINT   MFG.   CO.,    LTD. 

AT   MINAMI-SHINAGAWA,    TOKYO 


PRESENT-DAY        I  M   P  R  I<:  S  S  I  O  N  S        OF        JAPAN 


649 


_* 


VIEW    OF   OSAKA,    SHOWINC.    THE   TOSABORI-UAWA    KIVER    WITH    THE    YODOYA    BRIDGE    IN    THE    FOREGROUND 


foreigners  were  engaged  as  instructors. 
Among  the  assistant  professors  was  Mr. 
Haruta  Motegi,  who,  conceiving  the  idea 
that  paint  manufacturing  might  be  made  a 
native  industry,  established  a  private  refin- 
ery on  a  small  scale,  and  in  the  intervals 
of  his  official  duties  devoted  himself  to  the 
study  of  the  subject.  He  was  assisted  by 
his  brother,  Mr.  Jujiro  Motegi,  who  attended 
to  the  preparation  of  zinc  white  and  one  or 
two  other  useful  pigments.  In  the  course 
of  this  work  he  had  to  make  the  chemicals 
and  provide  the  materials  for  furnace- 
building,  as  these  latter  could  not  be  pur- 
chased in  the  market  at  the  time.  Despite 
the  difficulties  with  which  the  project  he 
had  in  mind  was  beset,  he  recognised  the 
commercial  possibilities  which  lay  before 
him  and  his  brother,  if  success  should  attend 
their  efforts.  Mr.  Haruta  Motegi  unfor- 
tunately died  at  an  early  age,  leaving  his 
scientific  researches  uncompleted.  Nothing 
daunted,  Mr.  Jujiro  Motegi,  with  firm  energy, 
pushed  on  with  his  work,  determined  to 
carry  out  his  brother's  will,  until  at  last,  in 
1881,  he  succeeded,  after  seven  years  of 
hard  and  at  times  discouraging  effort,  in 
finishing  his  studies  and  in  organising  the 
Komei-Sha.  This  small  syndicate  was 
formed  with  the  help  of  two  or  three  persons 
who  were  sufficiently  interested  in  the  work 
to  invest  the  necessary  capital  in  the  small 
initial  enterprise.  A  factory  was  established 
at  Mita,  Tokj'o,  and  the  manufacture  of 
paints  was  entered  upon.  In  those  days, 
however,  both  the  Government  and  the 
people  were  under  the  fascination  of  imported 


goods,  and  looked  askance  at  any  attempt 
to  meet  needs  by  local  effort,  as  they  also 
hesitated  to  buy  local  products,  so  that  both 
manufacturer  and  merchant  experienced 
many  discouragements  in  trying  to  carry  on 
business.  While  the  public  in  general  took 
no  notice  of  the  new  industry  which  the 
Komei-Sha,  as  the  concern  was  then  known, 
had  given  to  Japan,  Mr.  Heikichi  Nakagawa, 
painter-in-chief  of  the  Na\'y  Department, 
realising  the  importance  of  the  new  enter- 
prise, with  the  permission  of  Count  Kawa- 
mura,  the  then  Minister  of  the  Navy,  every 
day  visited  the  works  in  his  spare  hours  and 
directed  the  process  of  paint  manufacture. 
At  his  suggestion  the  new  factory  turned  out 
a  very  useful  kind  of  composite  paint  intended 
for  warships.  By  such  friendly  interest  the 
company  was  encouraged  to  proceed  on  its 
precarious  career  as  a  manufacturer  in  a 
new  line  of  industry.  Under  such  powerful 
patronage  some  progress  was  being  made, 
when  unfortunately,  in  June,  1885,  the  com- 
pany's works  were  entirely  destroyed  by 
fire.  Not  discouraged  by  this  blow  even, 
the  directors  set  to  work  to  reestablish  the 
industrj'.  In  the  following  year  they  had 
collected  enough  capital  to  make  a  fresh 
start,  this  time  with  a  good  deal  of  experi- 
ence to  help  them,  with  a  new  kind  of  furnace 
and  better  methods.  The  work  of  the  com- 
pany had  by  now  become  better  known  and 
with  the  demand  increasing  for  paints,  the 
Komei-Sha  turned  out  an  annual  production 
worth  Yen  30,000.  This  success  so  delighted 
the  directors  that  the  occasion  was  celebrated 
with  a  feast.     In   1886,  when  the  Imperial 


Palace  was  rebuilt,  the  Komei-Sha  presented 
the  Imperial  Household  Department  with 
its  paints,  and  afterwards  the  gift  was 
acknowledged  by  the  presentation  of  a 
silver  cup  to  the  company.  Then  the 
Komei-Sha  went  in  for  a  good  deal  of  propa- 
ganda to  popularise  its  goods,  making  dis- 
plays at  various  exhibitions,  and  on  every 
occasion,  in  competition  with  similar  goods, 
the  paints  of  the  Komei-Sha  were  adjudged 
to  be  the  best  of  their  kind,  and  certainly 
not  inferior  to  the  imported  article.  The 
long  fight  for  public  recognition  was  prac- 
tically won,  and  the  business  showed  a 
sudden  increase.  In  the  war  of  1894-5  the 
demand  for  the  paint  was  so  great  that, 
though  the  plant  was  worked  to  its  utmost 
capacity,  the  demand  could  not  be  met,  and 
so  the  Komei-Goshi-Kaisha  was  organised, 
with  a  capital  of  Yen  100,000.  The  works 
were  removed  from  Mita  to  Shinagawa- 
machi,  Ebara-gori,  the  general  equipment 
and  plant  being  renewed  at  the  same  time. 
With  an  increased  capacity  the  company  had 
to  look  for  new  outlets  for  its  paints,  and 
with  the  idea  of  enUsting  the  interest  of  the 
Railway  Board,  in  addition  to  the  Navy 
Department,  an  application  was  made  for 
the  use  of  the  locally  made  article  for  rail- 
way work.  This  was  refused,  the  fact  being 
that  the  railway  authorities  had  not  then 
heard  of  the  existence  of  the  company  and 
its  works.  The  railways  were  then  asked 
to  use  the  paint  for  repair  purposes,  and  this 
met  with  the  reply  that  the  department 
was  not  bound  to  test  the  Komei  Gomel 
Kaisha  product  at  the  risk  of  damaging  the 


650 


PRESENT-DAY        IMlMiESSIONS        OF        JAPAN 


cars!  This  prejudice  was  broken  down  three 
years  later,  after  persistent  effort,  and  the 
paint  was  found  to  be  quite  satisfactory. 
The  same  result  was  experienced  in  every 
new  direction  w'here  the  company  could 
overcome  the  demand  for  the  imported 
article,  and  in  all  cases  it  was  admitted  after 
fair  trial  that  the  locally  manufactured 
paint  was  in  no  way  inferior  to  the  foreign 
products.  Such  a  history  will  indicate  what 
a  difficult  task  it  was  to  establish  and  popu- 
larise a  local  concern,  but  after  the  ground 
had  been  well  broken,  the  Komei  Goshi 
Kaisha  found  its  path  easy  and  progress  was 
rapid.  In  1897,  not  long  after  the  estab- 
lishment of  the  gomei  kaisha,  or  limited 
partnership,  the  directors  doubled  the  capital 
to  Yen  200,000,  and  organised  a  joint-stock 
company  under  the  present  name  of  the 
Nippon  Paint  Manufacturing  Company, 
Limited. 

Further  rapid  progress  was  made  and 
honours  and  decorations  came  readily  to 
the  company  for  the  excellence  of  its  prod- 
ucts. The  capital  was  again  increased  to 
Yen  500,000  in  1905,  and  works  were  estab- 
lished also  at  Osaka.  During  the  war  with 
Russia  the  special  services  rendered  by  the 
company  were  so  highly  thought  of  that  a 
certificate  of  merit  was  conferred  on  it  by 
the  Bureau  of  Decorations.  The  press  of 
orders  became  so  great  that  in  1907  the 
capital  was  increased  to  Yen  1,500,000,  and 
the  works  were  further  enlarged.  In  191 1 
the  founder  of  the  company,  Mr.  Jugiro 
Motcgi,  had  conferred  upon  him  the  Medal 
for  Merit  with  a  green  cordon,  the  Imperial 
decree  accompanying  the  award  reciting  at 
length,  and  in  the  highest  terms  of  praise, 
the  splendid  work  which  he  had  done  for 
the    manufacturing    industries    of    Japan. 

In  19 1 7  the  company  received  the  sanction 
of  its  proprietary  for  its  scheme  of  increas- 
ing its  capital  from  Yen  1,500,000  to  Yen 
5,000,000,  by  the  issue  of  60,000  new  shares 
to  the  original  shareholders  and  the  rest  to 
the  company's  employees  or  the  general 
public. 

In  conclusion,  it  need  only  be  said  that 
the  Nippon  Paint  Manufacturing  Company, 
Limited,  is  in  a  highly  flourishing  condition 
to-day,  and  its  annual  production  is  always 
on  the  increase.  The  works  have  a  capacity 
for  an  annual  output  valued  at  Yen  8,000,000, 
and  though  the  product  was  once  thought 
so  little  of  in  official  circles,  the  company 
is  now  supplying  paints  to  the  Navy,  the 
Government  Railways,  the  South  Manchuria 
Railway,  the  Imperial  Government  arse- 
nals, the  Nippon  Yusen  Kaisha,  the  Osaka 
Shosen  Kaisha,  the  Mitsubishi  Dockyard, 
the  Kawasaki  Dockyard,  and  to  scores  of 
other    great    enterprises,    all    of    which,   it 


may  be  taken  for  granted,  have  tested  to 
the  full  the  quality  of  the  product  and 
have  found  it  to  be  all  that  is  desired. 
Not  only  are  the  ever-growing  domestic 
demands  practically  all  met  with  the  prod- 
ucts of  the  company,  but  exports  are 
also  made  extensively  to  India,  Russia, 
Australia,  and  the  South  Sea  Islands,  in 
addition  to  all  Chinese  and  other  Far 
Eastern  ports,  from  which  points  large  or- 
ders are  received  by  the  company,  testi- 
fying to  the  high  qualities  of  its  products. 
The  founder  of  the  industry  is  now  Director 
of   the   great   enterprise. 

K.  TAKEUCHI  SAFE  COMPANY 
It  would  be  surprising  did  not  the  Japanese 
business  community,  along  with  their  prog- 
ress in  all  other  directions,  recognise  the 
necessity  for  the  best  class  of  protection 
against  theft  and  fire,  and  to  that  end  sup- 


port such  an  industry  as  that  of  the  K. 
Takeuchi  Safe  Company,  which  has  earned 
a  high  reputation  for  its  safes  and  strong 
rooms.  This  company  is  manufacturing  on 
an  extensive  scale,  and  has  been  principally 
responsible  for  the  entire  installation  of 
safes  and  similar  protection  in  most  of  the 
large  offices  in  Tokyo,  and  other  important 
business  centres.  The  business  was  founded 
in  June,  1867,  by  Mr.  Zenjiro  Takeuchi,  who 
was,  indeed,  the  first  maker  of  modem  safes 
in  Japan.  With  the  remodelling  of  all 
Japanese  ideas  of  business,  and  the  recon- 
struction of  offices,  there  was  a  steady  de- 
mand for  strong  rooms  and  safes,  and  Mr. 
Takeuchi's  enterprise  found  ready  support, 
so  much  so,  that  the  plant  w-as  several  times 
increased,  and  finally,  in  191 1,  the  business 
was  transformed  into  that  of  a  joint-stock 
company,  with  a  capital  of  Yen  300,000. 
Up  to  this  stage  attention  had  been  mainly 


ilr 


PREMISES   OF    T.'iKElCHl    SAFE   COMPANY 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


651 


centred  on  the  manufacture  of  safes  by  hand, 
but  the  company,  backed  up  by  its  lengthy 
experience  and  its  skilled  workers,  was  now 
able  to  import  the  best  machinery,  and  the 
manufacture  of  strong  room  doors  and  vaults 
was  entered  upon,  the  demand  increasing  by 
leaps  and  bounds.  The  Takeuchi  model 
safe  combines  the  best  features  of  the  highest 
class  of  product  in  England,  America,  and 
Germany.  The  use  of  machinery  and  the 
large  output  has  enabled  the  Takeuchi  Com- 
pany to  turn  out  much  better  and  cheaper 
safes  than  those  which  are  made  partly  by 
machinery  and  partly  by  manual  labour. 
In  the  Orient  the  Takeuchi  Safe  is  considered 
the  ideal  product.  In  Japan  the  number  of 
customers,  or  applicants  for  safes,  is  counted 
by  tens  of  thousands,  and  the  company  has 
also  developed  a  substantial  export  trade 
with  China,  Siam,  India,  Australia,  and  the 
South  Sea  islands.  As  a  matter  of  fact,  the 
demand  for  the  Takeuchi  Safe  always  ex- 
ceeds the  supply.  To  give  some  idea  of  the 
support  which  the  Takeuchi  Safe  Company 
has  received  from  the  big  business  enter- 
prises of  Japan,  it  may  be  stated  that  it 
has  supplied  142  safes  to  the  Bank  of  Japan, 


37  to  the  head  office  and  branches  of  the 
Yokohama  Specie  Bank,  59  to  the  Bank  of 
Taiwan,  57  to  the  First  Bank,  46  to  the 
Sumitomo  Bank,  46  to  the  Bank  of  Chosen, 
and  many  safes  to  the  Industrial,  Hypothec, 
Fifteenth,  Mitsui,  the  Third  Bank  and  oth- 
ers. In  addition,  the  company  has  supplied 
safes  to  the  palace  of  the  Heir  Apparent, 
and  to  Prince  Takeda.  To  give  a  complete 
list  of  important  customers  of  the  company 
is  impossible  in  limited  space.  Business  peo- 
ple generally  have  expressed  their  approval  of 
the  Takeuchi  Safe,  which  is  regarded  as  the 
l^est  article  manufactured  in  Japan.  The 
Takeuchi  Safe  Company  undoubtedly  has 
a   bright  future  before  it. 

LEVER  BROTHERS  (jAPAN),  LIMITED 
Lever  Brothers  (Japan),  Ltd.,  is  an  asso- 
ciated company  of  Lever  Brothers,  Limited, 
England,  formed  for  the  purpose  of  develop- 
ing their  trade  in  Japan.  For  many  years 
the  English  house  exported  to  Japan,  but  in 
191 1  it  was  decided  to  erect  works  in  Japan, 
and  land  was  selected  at  Tori-Shinden,  the 
site  of  the  present  factory.  The  area  of  the 
factory    site    is   49,599   tsiilio,  situated  near 


the  entrance  to  the  Amagasaki  River.  The 
capital  of  the  Japan  company  is  Yen  3,000,- 
000.  There  are  offices  in  Kob(5,  Osaka,  and 
Tokyo.  The  company  manufactures  soaps 
of  all  kinds,  both  laundry  and  toilet.  It 
also  operates  oil  mills  and  produces  soya 
bean  oil,  and  copra  oil  on  a  large  scale,  in 
addition  to  being  the  largest  producer  and 
refiner  of  glycerine  in  Japan. 

At  the  works  at  Tori-Shinden,  the  average 
number  of  employees  is  over  400,  and  there 
is  a  large  staff  in  connection  with  the  office 
and  sales  department.  With  the  exception 
of  the  directors  and  heads  of  departments, 
the  staff  is  entirely  Japanese. 

THE  LYCETT  SADDLE  CO. 
This  company,  which  is  an  offshoot  of 
the  Lycett  Saddle  and  Motor  Accessories 
Co.,  Ltd.,  of  Birmingham,  England,  was 
established  at  Kobd,  Japan,  in  191 2  by  Mr. 
Edward  Lycett,  and  in  a  comparatively 
short  space  of  time  has  built  up  a  substantial 
industry  in  the  manufacture  of  cycle  saddles. 
The  bicycle  building  industry  itself  is  a  fairly 
large  one  in  Japan,  and  that  there  is  full 
scope  for  the  operations  of  such  a  concern 


-  .^^ . 


LYCETT   SADDLE    CO.:      BIRD's-EYE    VIEW   OF   THE    \V(iRKS   .\T    KOBE  —  INTERIOR    VIEW   OF    THE    WORKS 


6.S2 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


TOTARO   YAZAWA    SHOTEN: 


KOBE    PREMISES   AND    GODOWXS  —  REAR   VIEW    OF    MR.    YAZAWA  S   FIXE    \1LLA    AT    SHIOYA 
THE   HOKKAIDO    BRANCH THE    PRIVATE   OFFICE 


as  the  Lycett  Saddle  Company  is  seen  in 
the  volume  of  that  company's  output,  which 
amounts  to  over  70,000  cycle  saddles  per 
annum.  The  capital  of  the  company  •  is 
Yen  100,000.  A  modem  factory  has  been 
established  at  Xo.  158  Wakinohame,  2 
chome,  Kob6,  covering  an  area  of  650  tsuho. 
The  building  contains  a  full  equipment  of 
spring-making  machinery,  and  plant  of 
various  kinds  for  leather-working.  The 
motive  power  is  electricity.  About  fifty 
hands  are  employed.  To  carry  on  the  work 
much  of  the  raw  material,  mainly  sheet  steel 
and  wire,  is  imported.  The  saddles  are 
sold  principally  in  the  local  market  to  cycle 
and  motorcjxle  builders,  and  an  export 
trade  is  also  done  with  Australia,  India, 
China,   Java,   the   Straits   Settlements,   and 


the  Philippines.  The  business  is  managed 
by  Mr.  W.  H.  Kendrick.  In  Australia  the 
Lycett  Saddle  Company  is  represented  by 
Mr.  James  ThomeU,  G.  P.  O.  Box  882, 
Sydney.  The  postal  address  of  the  company 
is  P.  O.  Box  217,  Sannomiya,  Kob6,  Japan. 

TOTARO  YAZAWA  &  CO. 
This  firm  is  well  known  throughout  Japan 
and  abroad  for  its  important  dealings  in 
menthol  crystals  and  peppermint  oil,  the 
manufacture  and  sale  of  which  have  been 
specialties  of  Totaro  Yazawa  &  Co.  for 
many  years.  The  business  was  founded  in 
1893  by  Mr.  Totaro  Yazawa,  who  is  still 
principal  of  the  firm,  and  through  his  efforts 
a  large  enterprise  has  been  developed,  not 
only  in  the  two  special  lines  noted  above, 


but  in  general  transactions  in  natural  prod- 
ucts of  Japan  for  export  to  foreign  countries. 
Mr.  Yazawa's  trade  operations  represent 
something  like  a  total  value  of  Yen  2,000,000 
per  annum,  shipments  being  made  to  Europe, 
the  United  States,  China,  and  the  South 
Sea  islands. 

The  firm  has  its  own  factory,  which  covers 
an  area  of  about  500  tstibo,  the  building  being 
a  two-story  brick  structure,  equipped  with 
modem  plant,  driven  by  steam.  Employees 
number  100.  There  are  also  branches  at 
Nokkeushi-machi,  Kitami,  Hokkaido,  and 
at  Nayoromachi,  Teshio  Province,  Hokkaido. 
The  head  office  and  main  godowns  of  the 
firm  are  at  No.  7  Hachimandori,  Itchome, 
Kobe.  Totaro  Yazawa  &  Co.  have  valuable 
connections  in  many  foreign  countries. 


KOBE,    AS    SEEN    IN    A    PANORAMA 


XXXVIII.    The  City  of  Kobe 


10CATED  on  a  natural  harljour  at 
the  head  of  the  beautiful  Inland 
-^  Sea,  the  site  running  some  five 
miles  along  the  sea  front,  and  with  a  series 
of  fair  green  hills  rising  behind,  Kobe  is 
superbly  situated  alike  for  residence,  indus- 
try, and  trade.  The  city  slopes  up  along 
the  plain  between  the  hills  and  the  sea,  the 
upper  portion  rising  sufficiently  high  to 
divide  the  town  into  what  might  be  called 
the  Bluff,  the  houses  descending  in  a  row 
of  terraces  to  the  Bund.  Protected  by  the 
highlands  on  the  north  and  open  to  the  sea 
from  the  south,  Kobe  has  a  delightful 
climate,  seldom  suffering  from  extremes  of 
heat  or  cold.  The  view  from  the  summit 
of  the  hills  behind  the  city  is  delightful,  with 
the  island  of  Awaji  toward  the  Pacific,  and 
the  blue  mountains  of  Shikoku  beyond. 
The  central  line  of  the  Imperial  Govern- 
ment Railway  passes  through  Kobe,  con- 
necting it  with  all  the  important  cities  north 
and  south,  while  an  electric  tramway  runs 
to  Osaka.  Kobe  is  also  a  convenient  start- 
ing-point for  Tsuruga,  the  port   connecting 


with  Vladivostock  and  the  Trans-Siberian 
route,  only  eighteen  days  to  London.  All 
the  great  steamship  lines  call  at  Kob^,  with 
passenger  service  to  Europe,  America,  South 
America,  China,  and  Australia,  while  big 
British  freight  carriers  and  native  coasting 
vessels  are  always  to  be  seen  in  the 
harbour. 

In  early  days  the  chief  centre  was  Hyogo, 
Kobe  being  an  insignificant  hamlet  in  which 
no  one  took  any  interest  until  it  was  desig- 
nated as  a  settlement  for  foreigners.  And 
thus  at  the  outset  there  were  Hyogo  and 
Kob6,  just  as  at  the  northern  port  there  were 
Kanagawa  and  Yokohama.  Hyogo  figures 
in  Japanese  history  until  lost  in  the  ages  of 
myth,  the  port  having  the  distinction  of 
receiving  imperial  personages  who  are  said 
to  have  landed  there,  and  even  gods  and 
goddesses.  In  ancient  times  the  numerous 
embassies  despatched  from  China  to  the 
Court  of  Japan  always  landed  at  Hyogo. 
In  1161  the  famous  Kiyomori  constructed  a 
better  harbour  at  Hyogo,  with  the  idea  of 
promoting   foreign   commerce,   and  in    1 1 80 


he  endeavoured  to  have  the  national  capital 
removed  to  Fukuhara  in  the  same  vicinity. 
In  1336,  when  Ashikaga  Takauji  came  to 
attack  the  imperial  forces,  he  made  Hyogo 
his  point  of  strategic  advantage,  defeating 
Kusonoki  Masashige,  who  died  on  the  banks 
of  the  Minatogawa.  Hideyoshi  made  the 
place  his  chief  naval  port,  and  in  modem 
times,  when  Japan  was  opened  to  foreign 
intercourse,  Hyogo  was  named  as  one  of 
the  open  ports  With  the  advent  of  foreign- 
ers, the  centre  of  business  gradually  shifted 
toward  the  foreign  settlement  at  KobS,  the 
site  being  much  better  adapted  to  trade  and 
affording  better  harbour  facilities  than  its 
near  neighbour,  and  soon  the  development 
was  such  that  the  two  places  merged  into 
one.  At  the  time  when  the  first  foreigners 
came  to  Kobe  it  was  a  hamlet  of  a  few 
hundred  people,  while  Hyogo  was  a  place 
of  20,000  persons  as  far  back  as  1 78 1,  but 
after  the  influx  of  foreigners  began  and 
population  gravitated  toward  Kob^,  the 
increase  was  so  rapid  that  in  fifty  years  it 
had  grown  to  over  400,000.     To-day  it  is 


■'^ 


FROM    THE    HILLS    ABOVE    THE    PORT 


not  less  than  450,000,  of  whom  some  3,000 
are  foreigners,  the  British  ninnbering  some 
500. 

The  city  of  Kobe,  hke  other  municipalities 
of  modern  Japan,  has  its  mayor  and  city 
council,  who  manage  the  affairs  of  the  corpo- 
ration. It  is  also  the  seat  of  the  central 
government  of  the  prefecture,  and  some  of 
the  more  famous  men  of  Japan  have  held 
office  there,  including  the  late  Prince  Ito. 
The  annual  revenue  of  the  city  is  about 
Yen  5,000,000,  and  the  expenditure  some- 
thing over  "Yen  4,500,000.  Kobe  has  no 
foreign  debt,  but  liabilities  contracted  in 
connection  with  the  putting  in  of  a  modern 
system  of  waterworks  amount  to  over 
Yen  22,500,000,  which  sum  is  to  be  paid  off 
by  1949.  The  water  supply  is  the  only  city 
undertaking,  however,  as  electric  lighting, 
urban  tramways,  and  gas  works  are  all  left 
to  private  enterprise,  while  the  reconstruc- 
tion of  the  harbour  now  going  on  is  under- 
taken by  the  State.  Thus  the  municipality 
is  relieved  from  burdens  which  at  times  seem 
to  lie  heavily  on  cities  like  Kyoto  and  Osaka. 
The  water  system  is  not  adequate  to  the 
needs  of  the  rapidly  growing  population  and 
expensive  extensions  have  been  undertaken, 
involving  an    outlay   of   over  Yen    11,000,- 


000,  of  which  some  2,500,000  has  been  con- 
tributed from  the  State  treasury.  Although 
the  harbour  works  have  been  undertaken  by 
the  State  the  city  has  to  contribute  over 
Yen  3,000,000  out  of  a  total  of  Yen  12,740,000. 
When  the  harbour  works  are  completed 
as  they  soon  will  be,  Kobe  will  have  one  of 
the  finest  harbours  in  the  world.  This 
undertaking  has  been  more  fully  described 
in  the  article  on  Harbours  and  Shipping 
(Section  XI).  Needless  to  say  Kobe 
harbour  is  one  of  the  busiest  in  the  Orient. 
Most  of  the  passengers  reaching  Japan  from 
the  European  route  land  at  Kobe,  and  pro- 
ceed northward  by  train.  The  total  annual 
tonnage  for  Kob^  is  over  7,000,000,  and  the 
number  of  ships  calling  at  the  port  about 
3,000.  The  chief  shipping  companies  are 
the  Nippon  Yusen  Kaisha  and  the  Osaka 
Shoscn  Kaisha,  as  well  as  the  various  foreign 
companies. 

The  commerce  of  Kobe  has  also  witnessed 
marvellous  development  in  recent  years. 
As  a  great  part  of  the  enormous  manufactur- 
ing output  from  Osaka  is  exported  through 
Kobe  and  a  considerable  portion  of  the  raw 
cotton  imports  for  these  manufactures  comes 
into  Japan  by  way  of  Kobe,  the  volume  of 
foreign  trade  is  increased  to  an  extent  that 


is  out  of  all  proportion  to  Kobe's  own  impor- 
tance as  an  industrial  and  commercial  centre, 
though  in  this  respect  the  city's  significance  is 
not  small.  While  the  largest  item  of  export 
from  Yokohama  is  silk,  the  exports  from  Kobe 
are  of  a  greatly  varied  character  Cotton 
yarn  is  the  largest  and  next  comes  copper. 
Other  important  items  are  rice,  camphor, 
matting,  tea,  porcelain,  sugar,  and  others 
numerous  beyond  mention.  Among  the 
more  important  imports  are  raw  cotton, 
woollen  cloths,  machinery,  dyes,  and  kero- 
sene. The  significance  of  Kobe  as  a  port  in 
foreign  trade  may  be  seen  by  a  study  of 
the  following  table,  showing  the  progress  of 
imports  and  exports  in  totals  ever>'  five 
years  since  1878. 


Total  Imports  and  Exports 

Year 

Yen 

1878 

12,531,500 

1883 

12,961,800 

1888 

42,972,000 

1893 

62,263,000 

1898 

198,253,000 

1908 

245.052,000 

1913 

449,482,000 

1917 

466,814,000 

656 


I'  K  K  S  E  N  T  -  D  A  Y        IMPRESSIONS        O  E        J   A  PAN 


Of  the  total  of  exports  and  imports  Brit- 
ish firms  handled  an  increasing  percentage, 
in  spite  of  the  agitation  for  direct  trade. 
A  great  portion  of  the  exports  from 
Kob^  goes  to  China,  Hongkong,  British 
India,  France,  England,  and  the  United 
States. 

As  a  manufacturing  and  industrial  centre 
Kobe  is  also  fast  coming  into  prominence. 
Besides  the  great  Mitsu  Bishi  and  Kawa- 
saki dock>-ards,  employing  between  them 
more  than  4,000  mechanics,  there  is  the  large 
cotton  mill  of  the  Kanegafuchi  Company, 
with  over  3,000  hands,  one  of  the  model 
factories  of  the  Far  East.  In  addition  to 
these  great  and  prosperous  establishments, 
there  are  big  flour  mills  with  a  capacity  of 
1,000  barrels  and  4,000  sacks  a  day;  and  the 
Kobe  Steel  Works,  engaged  in  engineering 
enterprises,  as  well  as  a  sugar  refinery  of 
considerable  output.  The  manufacture  of 
matches  has  reached  the  height  of  its  pros- 
perity in  Kobe,  the  factories  employing  over 
5,000  hands.  Of  enterprises  on  a  smaller 
scale  space  does  not  permit  us  to  speak,  but 
there  are  enough  to  show  that  Kobe  is  quite 
as  enterprising  in  industry  as  she  is  in 
commerce    and    shipping. 


THE    BUND,    KOBE 


Educationally  Kobe  is  well  provided, 
having  some  32  primary  schools,  15  kinder- 
gartens, 5  girls'  high  schools,  6  commercial, 
and  2  middle  schools.  There  are  also  some 
excellent  mission  schools,  like  the  Kwansei 


College,  and  the  Kobe  Ladies'  College,  under 
the  auspices  of  American  mission  boards. 
There  is  a  public  library  visited  by  some 
5o,ooo  persons  annually.  As  to  pleasure 
resorts  and  places  of  interest  Kob^  has  the 


SANNOMIYA    STREET,    KOBE 


I>  k  R  S  E  N  T  -  I:)  A  V        IMPRESSIONS       OF       JAPAN 


657 


usual  quota  apportioiu'd  to  the  typical  Japa- 
nese city.  The  tram  lines  run  out  to  Sunia, 
a  pretty  watering  place  on  the  Inland  Sea. 
The  Ikuta  shrine  marks  the  spot  in  Kob6 
wh.ere  fierce  battles  raged  long  ago,  while  a 
famous  monument  at  the  Minatogawa  shrine 
shows  where  the  noted  loyalist,  Kusonoki 
Masashigd,  fell  in  defence  of  the  Imperial 
House.     Kobe  has  many  fine  parks  and  public 


J.  L.  THO.MPSON  &  CO. 
The  business  conducted  under  the  trade 
name  of  J.  L.  Thompson  &  Co.  was  estab- 
lished soon  after  the  opening  of  the  port  of 
Kob6  to  foreigners  in  1868.  With  the  de\-el- 
opment  of  Kobe  as  a  commercial  centre,  the 
firm  steadily  grew,  and  to-day,  besides  its 
retail  chemists  and  druggist's  store,  has  an 
aerated  water  factory,  and  maintains  import 


magazines  may  be  obtained.  The  jiroducts 
of  the  firm's  aerated  water  factory  are  well 
known  throughout  Japan,  and  are  supplied 
to  the  leading  clubs  and  hotels,  as  well  as  to 
the  dining  cars  on  the  Imperial  Japanese 
Government  Railways,  the  railways  of  Korea, 
and  the  South  Manchuria  line,  and  the  steam- 
ers of  the  Nippon  Yusen  Kaisha.  In  the 
Import  Department,  J.  L.  Thompson  &  Co. 


*ifi*A4^1.#^ 


^!Sl 


I 


zu  L 


^ijaaBega>',-f5iiC-j^  I  i"wiiiiii~Mmi'wr>'.e.j.. 


J.    L.    THOMPSON    &    CO.:    A   CORNER    IN    THE    WELL-STOCKED    KOBE    STORE-— THE    KOBE    PREMISES 


gardens,  from  which  beautiful  views  may  be 
had  of  the  picturesque  environs  of  the  city. 
The  summering  place  known  as  Rokkosan  is 
only  a  short  distance  from  the  town  up  among 
the  hills,  the  trip  being  rather  stiff.  The 
Nunobiki  Waterfall  at  the  upper  end  of  the 
city  shows  where  the  city  water  supply  comes 
from.  Nearby  is  the  famous  bottling  place, 
known  as  Hirano  Water,  and  another  called 
Tansan.  In  the  Suwayama  Park  stands  a 
monument  in  memory  of  the  French  astrono- 
mer who  surveyed  the  transit  of  Venus  from 
this  site  in  1874,  while  southward  along  the 
coast  are  the  scenes  of  battles  long  ago 
between  the  Heik^  and  the  Genji  clans.  At 
Maiko  is  an  imperial  villa. 


and  export  departments.  The  retail  depart- 
ment is  always  in  charge  of  a  fully  qualified 
chemist,  who  has  passed  the  examinations  of 
the  Pharmaceutical  Society  of  Great  Britain, 
and  prescriptions  are  dispensed  only  by 
qualified  men.  A  large  and  varied  stock  of 
English,  American,  and  Continental  drugs, 
medical  preparations,  perfumes,  toilet  articles, 
etc.,  is  carried,  and  the  attractive  store  at 
No.  3  Kaigan-dori,  Itchome, .  lacks  nothing 
requisite  to  make  it  one  of  the  very  best  drug 
stores  to  be  found  in  the  Orient.  J.  L. 
Thompson  &  Co.  also  sell  tobacco,  pipes,  and 
all  smokers'  necessaries,  and  there  is  also  a 
book  and  stationery  department  where  the 
latest    novels    and   English   and   American 


handle  their  own  imports  of  foreign  drugs, 
chemicals,  and  medical  preparations,  which 
are  supplied  to  Japanese  hospitals  and  the 
medical  profession  generally.  The  firm  is 
the  agent  for  Japan  for  Genatosan,  Ltd.,  the 
purchasers  and  makers  of  "Sanatogen,"  and 
for  Messrs.  Oppenheimer  Son  &  Co.,  Ltd.,  of 
London,  and  Messrs.  Comar  of  Paris.  Japan 
has  lately  developed  a  flourishing  industry  in 
high-grade  glassware,  surgical  instruments, 
chemicals,  etc.,  and  it  is  mainly  these  lines 
which  J.  L.  Thompson  &  Co.  handle  in  their 
Export  Department.  The  firm  exports  glass 
bottles,  chemical  glassware,  and  glass  manu- 
factures of  all  descriptions,  also  surgical 
instruments,   rubber    goods,  leather    goods. 


658 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


SAKAVEMACHI,    KOBE 


Japanese  chemicals,  and  all  manufactures 
connected  with  the  chemist's  and  aerated 
water  trades. 

The  Senior  Partner  in  the  firm  is  Mr.  T.W. 
Franklin,  who  took  over  the  business  from 
Mr.  J.  L.  Thompson  some  years  ago.  The 
Managing  Partner  is  Mr.  H.  J.  Griffiths,  who 
entered  the  service  of  the  firm  eleven  years 
ago,  became  Manager  in  19 12,  and  was 
admitted  to  partnership  in  1915.  J.  L. 
Thompson  &  Co.  employ  four  European  and 
thirty-five   Japanese   assistants- 

THE      CLIFFORD-WILKINSON      TANSAN 
MINERAL   WATER    CO.,    LIMITED 

"Tansan"  is  a  word  of  mystic  sound,  heard 
by  travellers  on  their  way  to  Japan,  immedi- 
ately they  board  the  steamer  that  is  to  take 
them  to  the  Land  of  the  Chrysanthemum. 
The  word  ceases  to  mystify  very  quickly,  for 
it  is  discovered  to  be  the  name  of  a  mineral 
water,  a  popular  favourite  with  every  one  who 
has  lived  in,  or  has  visited  Japan,  as  indeed, 
it  is  now  almost  as  well  known  abroad. 
Tansan  is  served  on  all  vessels  that  call  at 
Japan,  and  throughout  the  Orient  it  is  uni- 
versally accepted  as  the  mineral  water  for  all 
mixed  drinks,  just  as  in  other  parts  of  the 
world  one  calls  for  Apollinaris,  Perrier,  or 
similar  waters.  Though  there  are  many 
waters  sold  as  Tansan,  there  is  only  one 
genuine,  and  that  is  the  product  of  the  spring 
at  Takaradzuka,  near  Kobe,  owned  by  the 
Clifford-Wilkinson  Tansan  Mineral  Water 
Co.,  Ltd.  The  story  of  the  discovery  of  this 
spring  by  Mr.  Clifford-Wilkinson,  an  English- 
man, has  been  quaintly  told  by  the  "Japan 
Aerated  Water  Trade  Review,"  which  relates 


that  Mr.  Wilkinson  was  accustomed  to  go 
hunting  in  the  green  wooded  mountains, 
"and  to  bathe  in  the  bright  and  mild  sun-light, 
and  to  breathe  his  chestful,  the  pure  and 
sweet  air."  The  historian  of  the  paper 
referred  to  goes  on  to  say  that  one  day,  when 
out  hunting,  Mr.  Wilkinson  felt  a  terrible 
thirst.  So  he  asked  his  follower  to  take  out 
the  whiskey  bottle,  but  the  native  follower, 
not  only  could  not  produce  a  drop  from  the 
bottle,  but  was  also  speechless  from  drunken- 
ness. Then  Mr.  Wilkinson  had  to  quench  his 
thirst  from  a  nearby  spring  which  gushed  out 


of  a  fissure  of  rocks.  He  was  fairly  surprised 
with  its  deliciousness  and  cried  unconsciously, 
"Oh,  this  is  the  very  Nature's  own  beverage, 
pure,  fresh,  and  sparkling,  gushing  out  of  the 
depths  of  volcanic  rock  in  the  characteristic 
strata  of  the  Land  of  the  Rising  Siin."  No 
doubt  this  is  poetic  imagination,  but  it  is  quite 
true  that  Mr.  Wilkinson  was  deeply  impressed 
with  the  excellence  of  the  mineral  spring 
water,  and  his  discovery  became  the  origin  of 
an  enterprise  which,  to-day,  is  of  immense 
proportions,  and  of  first  rate  importance  in 
the  industries  of  Japan. 

There  was  no  question  of  the  purity  of  the 
supply,  the  Tansan  spring  issuing  from  the 
mountainside  at  a  source  that  could  not  be 
contaminated,  and  the  water  filtering  through 
many  strata  of  volcanic  rock  from  which  it 
derives  its  mineral  properties.  By  analysis 
it  was  learned  that  the  water  was  exception- 
ally rich  in  all  the  mineral  ingredients  that 
constitute  a  natural  spa  water  of  medicinal 
value.  The  actual  mineral  properties  of  Tan- 
san, disclosed  by  careful  analyses  conducted 
in  London,  revealed  the  following:  Chloride  of 
sodium,  14.26;  chloride  of  potassium,  14.93; 
sulphate  of  calcium,  0.95;  carbonate  of  cal- 
cium, 5.92;  carbonate  of  magnesium,  0.64; 
iron  carbonate,  0.21;  and  silica,  2.86.  Later 
on  it  was  discovered  by  Professor  Kenzo 
Hattori,  of  the  Medical  Department  of  the 
Tokyo  Imperial  University,  that  Tansan  was 
also  exceptionally  rich  in  radium.  Professor 
Hattori  confirmed  the  opinion,  long  held  by 
others,  that  the  peculiar  properties  of  Tansan 
must  be  attributed  to  radio-activity,  and  he 
demonstrated  that  the  water  gave  a  radium 
emanation    of    31     mache    per    litre    at    17 


A    STREET    SCENE,    KOBE 


\\,- 


',-'■ 


iSi 


66o 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


KIYOMACHI,    OR    FOREIGN    BUSINESS    SECTION 


centigrade.  Xo  other  water  of  this  class  has 
been  found  to  give  a  greater  emanation  than 
17  mache. 

Long  before  these  scientific  evidences  of  the 
high  value  of  Tansan  mineral  water  were  made 
known,  the  product  of  the  spring  discovered 
by  Mr.  Wilkinson  had  been  bottled  and  sold 


throughout  Japan,  the  public  readily  accept- 
ing the  water  as  one  of  the  most  palatable  and 
refreshing  ever  placed  on  the  market.  Mr. 
Wilkinson  put  the  bottling  and  sale  of  the 
water  on  a  commercial  basis  by  forming  a 
company,  many  years  ago,  and  since  that 
time   Tansan     has   been    sold   in   enormous 


quantities,  not  only  in  Japan,  but  through- 
out the  world.  The  spring  yields  about 
40,000,000  pints  per  annum,  and  the  present 
output  of  the  bottling  w'Orks  is  appro.xi- 
mately  30,000  pint  bottles  daily.  The  bot- 
tling works,  close  to  the  spring,  cover 
about  4  acres,  and  a  large  number  of  persons 
are  employed  in  handling  the  output  and 
despatching  it  to  the  warehouses  of  the  com- 
pany. On  many  occasions  parties  of  medical 
men  and  scientists  have  visited  the  works, 
and  Mr.  Wilkinson  has  received  many  tributes 
at  their  hands  to  the  care  and  attention  which 
his  company  devotes  to  the  handling  and 
bottUng  of  the  water  in  order  to  ensure  that 
the  public  shall  receive  a  wholesome  and  pure 
mineral  water.  It  is  interesting  to  note,  also, 
that  the  value  of  Tansan  has  been  appre- 
ciated to  such  a  high  degree  by  the  medical 
fraternity  of  the  United  States,  that  in  the 
last  few  years  a  memorial,  signed  by  over  200 
physicians  and  surgeons,  was  presented  to 
the  Sixty-first  Congress,  asking  that  the  im- 
port duty  on  Tansan  should  be  removed,  ow- 
ing to  its  exceptional  purity  and  its  real  value 
in  medical  therapeutics. 

Tansan  is  being  sold  in  all  parts  of  the  world 
through  a  large  number  of  the  best  merchant 
houses,  selected  as  agents  of  the  Clifford- 
Wilkinson  Tansan  Mineral  Water  Co.,  Ltd. 
The  head  office  of  the  company  is  at  Kobe, 
Japan. 


SUWAYAMA    PARK,    KOBE 


XXXIX.    Imports  and  Exports 


(Kobe  and  Osaka  Section*) 


KOBE  BUSINESS  FIRMS 

SUZUKI    &    CO. 

THERE  are  certain  great  mercantile 
houses  in  Japan  which  are  organ- 
ised on  the  Hnes  of  the  most 
prominent  European  or  American  trading 
companies,  being  divided  into  a  number  of 
departments,  covering  a  vast  variety 
of  interests,  and  having  branches  scattered 
throughout  the  world.  These  Japanese 
houses  have  done  more  than  any  other 
agency  not  only  to  develop  the  foreign 
trade  of  the  Empire,  but  to  promote  and 
foster  great  domestic  industries,  by  utilising 
their  influence,  and  frequently  their  capital, 
to  develop  natural  resources  and  find  out- 
lets for  the  products.  Such  a  house  is  that 
of  Messrs.  Suzuki  &  Co.,  of  Kobe.  To 
give  in  detail  the  activities  of  this  firm  is 
hardly  possible  within  limited  scope,  but  it 
is  sufficient  to  say  that  it  is  associated  in  a 
score  of  different  ways  with  the  commerce 
and  industrial  interests  of  Japan.  Messrs. 
Suzuki  &  Co.  are  general  merchants,  im- 
porters and  exporters,  manufacturers,  ship 
owners'  agents,  brokers,  financiers,  etc. 
They  have  offices  in  New  York  and  London, 
as  well  as  in  many  other  centres  of  commercial 
importance  in  difTerent  parts  of  the  world, 
and  there  is  hardly  any  department  of 
*  See  Page  20.3. 


Japan's  commerce  which  they  do  not  include 
in  their  widely  diversified  and  skilfully 
developed  business. 

The  firm  was  established  in  1887.  Among 
their  imports  are  sugar,  rice,  wheat,  flour, 
cotton,  wool,  nitrate  of  soda,  fertiUzers,  iron, 
steel,  shijibuilding  and  railway  materials, 
machinery,  metals,  ores,  timbers,  chemicals, 
etc.  The  main  lines  of  export  are  sugar, 
brown  and  polished  rice,  beans,  peas  and 
other  agricultural  products,  potato  starch, 
vegetable  wax,  isinglass,  rape  oil,  peanut 
oil,  copper,  antimony,  spelter,  sulphur,  super- 
phosphate, cement,  coal,  salt,  timber,  and 
other  Japanese  produce,  and  manufactures 
turned  out  in  their  own  factories  or  by 
subsidiary  companies.  The  internal  organ- 
isation of  Messrs.  Suzuki  &  Co.  consists  of 
many  difTerent  departments,  each  concen- 
trating on  a  special  branch  of  trade  and  com- 
merce, or  industrial  activity.  For  instance, 
the  Industrial  Department  deals  with  the 
firm's  interests  in  camphor  and  menthol 
refineries,  fish  and  vegetable  oil,  and  chemical 
works,  rice  mills,  an  alcohol  distillery,  and 
coal  mines.  The  Shipping  Department  alone 
is  a  most  important  and  active  branch.  It 
embraces  the  direction  of  such  concerns  as 
the  Teikoku  Steamship  Company,  Ltd., 
which  now  has  under  construction  nineteen 
vessels  of  from  5,000  to   11,000  tons  dead- 


weight capacity,  besides  the  Toba  Ship- 
building Co.,  Ltd.,  and  the  Harima  Dock- 
yard Company,  Ltd.,  for  both  of  which 
Messrs.  Suzuki  &  Co.  are  the  Managing 
Agents.  Perhaps  if  there  is  set  out  the  list 
of  concerns  for  which  Messrs.  Suzuki  &  Co. 
stand  largely  responsible,  either  as  Manag- 
ing Agents  or  as  the  Selling  Agents,  or  in 
other  capacities,  some  idea  will  be  gained  of 
the  enormous  influence  which  the  firm  wields 
in  the  realm  of  Japan's  commerce  and  indus- 
try. Apart  from  the  shipping  interests 
mentioned  above,  Messrs.  Suzuki  &  Co.  are 
Managing  Agents  for  the  following:  Kobe 
Steel  Works,  Ltd.,  which  manufactures  steel 
castings  and  forgings  to  Admiralty  and 
Lloyd's  requirements,  rolling  mills,  plates, 
angles,  bars,  twist  drills,  machine  tools, 
steam  engines,  pumps  and  other  machine 
plants;  the  South  Manchuria  Produce  Com- 
pany, Ltd.,  largest  and  most  up-to-date  bean 
oil  mills;  the  Nippon  Metals  Company, 
Ltd.,  which  produces  zinc,  electrolytic  copper, 
antimony,  etc.;  the  Teikoku  Brewery  Co., 
Ltd.;  the  Dairi  Flour  Mills  Co.,  Ltd.;  Sapporo 
Flour  Mills  Co.,  Ltd.;  Wood  DistilUng  Co., 
Ltd.;  Giran  Colonization  Co.,  Ltd.;  Nippon 
Alcohol  Distilling  Co.,  Ltd.;  Formosa  Salt 
Co.,  Ltd.;  Sanyo  Iron  Works,  Osaka; 
Taisho  Life  Insurance  Co.,  Ltd.;  Toyo 
Marine  Insurance  Co.,  Ltd.;    Toyo  Match 


43 


THE    KOBfe    OFFICES    OF    SUZUKI    &   COMPANY 


'                             '  •['     '•■ 

:'■■;         A 

1  WP 

ni     "^ 

"if 

1^^'" 

'    ^p^ 

lit 


JARlUNh,     MAIHESOX    &    CO.,    I, Til.:    A    CORNER    OF    THE    KOUE    OKFICE THE    OKER  hs    .\.\1-)    (..OLloWNS    A 1     KUHE  

A    SCENE    IN    THE   STRAWBKAID   GODOWN 


664 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


Company,  Ltd.;  Nippon  Celluloid  and 
Artificial  Silk  Company;  Azuma  Industrial 
Co.,  Ltd.,  and  the  Saga  Cotton  Spinning 
Company,  Ltd.  What  such  a  formidable 
list  of  enterprises  means  is  perhaps  best 
imderstood  by  those  who  know  Japan  well, 
and  realise  what  a  vast  industrial  field  is 
covered  by  Messrs.  Suzuki  &  Co.  Further- 
more, they  are  the  agents  for  the  Arisan 
Government  Wood  Mills,  of  Formosa,  pro- 
ducing the  famous  "Hinoki"  and  other 
Formosan  timbers;  the  Shantung  Govern- 
ment Mining  Bureau,  Tsingtau,  which  pro- 
duces anthracite  coal;  the  Dai-Xippon 
Sugar  Manufacturing  Co.,  Ltd.,  Japan  and 
Formosa;  the  Toyo  Sugar  Manufacturing 
Co.,  Ltd.,  and  the  Ensuiko  Sugar  Company, 
Ltd. 

Messrs.  Suzuki  &  Company's  business  has 
natiu-ally  developed  to  a  remarkable  degree 
during  the  war,  seeing  that  they  are  in  a 
position,  scarcely  equalled  bj'  anj'  one  else, 
to  handle  and  ship  any  quantities  of  much 
needed  products,  natural  and  manufactured, 
that  are  called  for  by  foreign  countries.  The 
premises  of  the  firm  cover  a  large  area  at 
Kob6,  but  the  expansion  of  the  business  has 
necessitated  the  construction  of  new  offices 
and  warehouses.  The  site  for  these  has  been 
secured  in  the  foreign  concession  at  Kobe, 
and  a  magnificent  building  of  huge  propor- 
tions is  now  being  erected.  The  London 
office  of  Messrs.  Suzuki  &  Co.  is  at  29  Minc- 
ing Lane,  and  the  New  York  office  is  at  220 
Broadway.  Other  branches  are  at  Seattle, 
Petrograd,  Vladivostock.  Singapore.  Cal- 
cutta, Bombay,  Hanoi,  Hongkong,  Shanghai, 
Tsingtau,  Hankow,  Dairen.  Keijo  and  Fusan 
(Korea),  Taipeh,  Tainan,  and  Takao  (For- 
mosa), Tokj-o,  Osaka,  Nagoj'a,  Yokohama, 
Dairi,  Moji,  Shimonoseki,  Otaru,  Hakodate, 
Sapporo,  and  Asahigawa.  The  Senior  Part- 
ner of  the  firm  is  Madame  Yone  Suzuki  and 
it  is  a  tribute  to  the  magnificent  work  she 
has  done  in  the  development  of  Japan's 
foreign  trade  that  she  was  recently  decorated 
by  the  Emperor  with  the  Green  Ribbon. 
The  Co-Partners  of  this  great  business  are 
Messrs.  F.  Yanajida  and  N.  Kaneko.  The 
Managers  are  Messrs.  B.  Nishikawa  and 
S.   Mori,     (See  index  for  other  pages.) 

JARDINE,     M.\THESON      &     CO.,     LIMITED 

This  famous  old  merchant  house  has  been 
represented  at  Kobe  since  1876,  when  a 
branch  was  established  there  to  handle  the 
ordinary'  shipping  and  agency  business  of 
the  firm,  and  to  deal  in  those  special  lines 
for  which  Koh6  is  the  natural  trading  centre. 
Messrs.  Jardine,  Matheson  &  Co.,  Ltd.,  own 
an  excellent  business  site  at  No.  83  Kyo- 
machi,  Kob^.  The  premises  comprise  a 
handsome  two-story  office  building  in  which 


KOBE    OFFICES   OWNED    BY   W.    M.    STRACHAN  &   CO.,    LTD. 


there  are  fifteen  commodious  rooms,  and 
behind  the  office  building  are  a  four-story 
godown  and  two  two-storj'  godowns,  cover- 
ing a  total  area  of  600  tsiibo. 

The  company  carries  on  the  representation 
at  Kobe  of  a  large  number  ■  of  shipping 
companies,  insurance  concerns,  and  Far 
Eastern  banks,  and  generally  operates  as 
an  import  and  export  merchant.  Among 
the  shipping  companies  for  which  Messrs. 
Jardine,  Matheson  &  Co.,  Ltd.,  are  the 
agents  at  Kobe  are  the  Indo-China,  the 
Glen  and  the  Waterhouse  Steamship  Lines. 
Insurance  agencies  comprise  those  for  the 
Hongkong  Fire  Insurance  Co.,  Ltd.,  the 
Canton  Insurance  Co.,  Ltd.,  the  Royal 
Insurance  Co.,  Ltd.  Special  lines  of  trade 
comprise  straw  and  hemp  braids,  hats,  etc., 
these  goods  being  handled  in  special  depart- 
ments. The  company  exports  to  all  parts 
of  the  world.  Mr.  C.  Chicken  is  the  Man- 
ager of  the  Kobe  branch.  The  staff  consists 
of  seven  Europeans  and  there  are  about 
forty  Japanese  employees.     (See  index.) 

\V.    .M.    STRACHAN    &    CO.,    LIMITED 

In  dealing  with  the  foreign  business  houses 
of  Kobe  mention  must  be  made  of  the 
activities  in  this  important  commercial  centre 
of  Japan  of  the  branch  of  Messrs.  W.  M. 
Strachan  &  Co.,  Ltd.  The  history  and 
development  of  the  company  is  fully  given 
in  the  Yokohama  section  of  this  work,  and 
reference  is  there  made  to  the  Kob6  branch, 
which  was  established  in  1884.  A  large 
volume  of  the  export  trade  of  this  house  is 
handled  from  Kobe,  which  is  the  natural  base 
for  the  assembl}-  and  despatch  of  many 
natural   and   manufactured    products   which 


come  from  such  places  as  Kyoto,  Nagoya, 
and  contiguous  industrial  districts.  Kobe 
is  also  the  principal  port,  especially  in  view 
of  the  proximity  of  such  a  great  manufactur- 
ing city  as  Osaka,  for  the  import  of  raw 
materials  of  different  kinds  intended  for  some 
of  the  foremost  Japanese  textile  and  manu- 
facturing concerns.  W.  M.  Strachan  & 
Co.,  Ltd.,  therefore  handle  at  the  Kobe 
branch  such  exports  as  buttons,  brushes, 
straw  braid,  hemp  tagal,  hats,  mattings,  etc., 
and  import  cotton,  wool,  metals,  leather, 
machiner\',  essential  oils,  and  products  of 
foreign  countries. 

The  office  of  the  company  is  at  No.  i 
Kaigan-dori,  Kobe,  where  an  extensive 
business  site  is  occupied.  On  the  com- 
pound there  are  four  godowns,  of  which 
three  are  two-story  modem  buildings,  accom- 
modating a  large  and  valuable  stock,  or 
serv'ing  for  purposes  of  inspection,  packing, 
and  so  on.  At  Kobe  an  extensive  insurance 
business  is  also  transacted,  Strachan  &  Co., 
Ltd.,  being  agents  for  the  following  fire 
insurance  companies:  Northern  Assurance 
Co.,  Ltd.,  Queen  Insurance  Co.,  Ltd., 
Phoenix  Assurance  Co.,  Ltd.,  Guardian 
Assurance  Co.,  Ltd.,  and  London  and 
Lancashire  Insurance  Co.,  Ltd.  Marine 
insurance  agencies  held  by  the  company 
are:  London  and  Provincial  Marine  and 
General  Insurance  Co.,  Ltd.,  Phoenix  Marine 
Assurance  Co.,  Ltd.,  Sea  Insurance  Co.,  Ltd., 
Federal  Insurance  Co.,  Ltd.,  and  the  Royal 
Exchange  Assurance  Corporation. 

The  Manager  of  the  branch  is  Mr.  E.  B.  S. 
Edwards,  and  the  heads  of  the  various 
departments  are:  Mr.  R.  F.  Stephen,  Act- 
ing Manager  Imports  Department;  Mr.  W.  G. 


^^ 


DODWELL    &    CO.,    LTD.:      THE    KOb6    OFFICES    AND    TWO    SCENES  IN   THE    STRAWBRAID   GODOWN 


666 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


Fox,  Manager  Exports  Department;  Mr. 
W.  \\niite,  Imports  Department,  and  Mr. 
J.  Y.  Miller,  Insurance  Department.  Apart 
from  the  European  staff  which  numbers 
seven,  there  are  four  Chinese  and  twenty- 
seven  Japanese  clerks  and  assistants.  (Sec 
also  page  242.) 


DODWELL    &    CO.,    LIMITED 

The  origin  and  history  of  the  extensive 
business  now  conducted  throughout  the 
Orient  by  Messrs.  Dodwell  &  Co.,  Ltd., 
whose  headquarters  are  at  St.  Mary  A.xe, 
London,  is  given  in  full  in  the  Yokohama 
section  of  this  W'ork.  It  is  sufficient  to  say, 
b}'  way  of  introduction  to  the  operations 
conducted  through  the  Kobe  branch  of  the 
company,  that  the  business  had  its  genesis 
in  the  early  days  of  the  China  trade  when 
it  was  under  the  control  of  Messrs.  Adamson, 
Bell  &  Co.  That  firm  went  out  of  business 
in  1 89 1,  and  its  interests  were  taken  over 
by  Messrs.  Dodwell,  Carlill  &  Co.,  the  part- 
nership interests  of  those  gentlemen  being 
merged  in  a  limited  liability  company  in 
1899.     Trade  with  Japan  was  started  under 


the  old  concern  in  1K77,  wht-n  the  Yokohama 
branch  was  opened. 

The  Kob6  branch  of  Messrs.  Dodwell  & 
Co.,  Ltd.,  transacts  a  large  volume  of  busi- 
ness as  shippers,  charterers,  fire  and  marine 
insurance  brokers,  and  as  coal  contractors, 
apart  from  an  extensive  import  and  export 
trade.  The  company  has  the  representation 
of  a  number  of  well  known  manufacturers 
in  Great  Britain  and  the  United  States,  as 
well  as  the  agency  for  several  shipping  com- 
panies and  insurance  organisations.  Two  of 
the  best  known  commercial  lines  are  the  sole 
agencies  for  the  Underwood  Typewriter  and 
the  Overland  Motor  Car.  Imports  and 
exports  comprise  generally  those  lines  which 
are  best  handled  at  Kobe.  Principal  among 
the  imports  are  piece  goods,  metals,  machin- 
ery, shells,  Underwood  typewriters,  anti- 
fouling  paints,  cutch,  resin,  paints,  varnishes 
and  oils,  chemicals,  leather,  motor  cars,  as 
well  as  a  wide  range  of  other  general  merchan- 
dise. Exports  comprise  coals,  strawbraid, 
underwear,  towels,  produce,  fertilizers,  tea 
and  rubber  chests,  oils,  matches,  flour, 
chemicals,  gunny  tares  and  bagging,  bottles 
and  general  glassware,  straw  en\-elopes,  rugs, 


electric  fittings,  bronze  powder,  earthen- 
ware, and  Japanese  manufactured  articles 
and   merchandise  of  all   descriptions. 

Messrs.  Dodwell  &  Co.,  Ltd.,  trade  with 
practically  all  parts  of  the  world.  They 
have  their  own  offices  at  London,  New  York. 
San  Francisco,  Seattle,  Tacoma,  Victoria, 
Vancouver,  Hongkong,  Canton,  Shanghai, 
Hankow,  and  Foochow.  The  capital  of  the 
company  is  £200,000,  and  the  directorate 
comprises:  Messrs.  George  B.  Dodwell, 
A.  J.  H.  Cariill,  Fred  Dodwell,  Stanley 
Dodwell,  Alec  Stewart,  George  J.  Melhuish, 
T.  M.  Dermer,  F.  D'lffanger,  and  H.  A.  J. 
Macray.  Mr.  J.  P.  Warren  is  the  Manager 
of  the  Koh6  branch,  which  is  located  at  No. 
82    Kyo-machi.     (See    also    page    243.) 

FINDL.W,    RICHARDSON     &    CO.,    LI.MITED 

The  commercial  interests  of  Great  Britain 
have  been  well  served  in  the  Far  East  by  a 
number  of  substantial  old  mercantile  houses, 
whose  records  from  the  pioneering  days 
onward  make  interesting  reading,  and  whose 
steady  growth  and  high  reputation  have 
done  more  than  anything  else  to  impress  on 


FINDLAY,    RICHARDSON    &   CO.    LTD..       (aBOVE)    THE    EXPORT    DEPOT —  (LEFT)    THE    MAIN    GODOWN — THE    KOBE    GODOWNS    AND   OFFICES 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


667 


REPRESENTATIVE    BRITISH    RESIDENTS   OF    KOBE 

(Upper  Row,  Left  to  Right)  C.  Chicken,  KoW  Agent  for  Jardine,  Matheson  &  Co.,  Ltd. — J.  McArthur,  Acting  Agent  at  Kobe  for 
the  Hongkong  &  Shanghai  Banking  Corporation.  (Middle  Row)  J.  B.  Suttor,  Trade  Commissioner  of  New  South  Wales,  in  the  Far 
East  —  Ralph  G.  E.  Forster,  Esq.,  British  Consul-General  at  Kobe  —  James  Marshall,  Resident  Partner  for  Japan,  Findlay, 
Richardson  &  Co.,  Ltd.  (Lower  Row)  E.  B.  S.  Edwards,  Manager  of  Kobe  Branch,  W.  M.  vStrachan  &  Co.,  Ltd.  —  The  Late  E.  H. 
Hunter,  Founder  of  the  Osaka  Iron  Works  and  of  E.  H.  Hunter  &  Co.  —  Alf.  Woolley,  Chief  Agent  for  Japan  of  the  Peninsular  & 
Oriental  Steam  Navigation  Co. 


those  with  whom  they  have  so  long  been 
in  trade  relationship,  what  the  dignity  and 
prestige  of  British  commerce  really  means. 
Such  a  house  is  that  of  Messrs.  Findlay, 
Richardson  &  Co.,  Ltd.,  which  has  passed 
its  jubilee  as  a  trading  concern  in  Japan. 
This  old  business  was  originally  established 
in  Glasgow,  where  the  head  office  still  is, 
but  the  name  has  been  so  long  associated 
with  the  trade  of  the  Far  East  that  with  all 
justification  it  is  regarded  almost  entirely 
as  a  product  of  the  adventurous  and  enter- 
prising spirit  of  the  early  days,  when  the 
foundations  of  so  many  houses  in  which  the 
British  trading  communities  rightly  take 
pride,  were  well  and  truly  laid.  But  Yoko- 
hama was  not  the  place  of  origin  of  Messrs. 
Findlay,  Richardson's  Oriental  business. 
The  first  connection  with  the  Far  East  took 


place  in  the  Philippines,  over  eighty  years 
ago,  when  the  firm  opened  a  branch  at 
Manila  under  the  trade  name  of  Findlay, 
Richardson  &  Co.,  as  distinguished  from 
Richardson,  Findlay  &  Co.,  which  was  the 
style  in  Glasgow  up  to  1909.  In  those  days 
the  firm  was  engaged  principally  in  the 
import  of  Manchester  cottons,  and  in  the 
export  of  hemp,  sugar,  indigo,  coffee,  cigars, 
etc.,  to  the  United  Kingdom  and  the  L^nitcd 
States. 

In  1866  the  firm  turned  its  attention  to 
Japan,  then  in  the  first  stages  of  the  develop- 
ment of  its  foreign  trade,  so  that  Messrs. 
Findlay,  Richardson  &  Co.  may  well  be 
regarded  as  pioneers  in  this  field.  They 
opened  a  branch  at  No.  7  Bund,  Yokohama, 
and  a  few  years  later  acquired  the  premises 
which  they  now  occupy  at  No.  6,  where  the 


offices  and  extensive  godowns  are  situated. 
The  gentlemen  connected  with  the  opening 
in  Japan  were  Messrs.  R.  V.  Graham,  Robert 
Johnstone,  and  C.  G.  Buchanan-Dunlop, 
whose  names  are  still  well  remembered  by 
the  older  trading  community.  In  the  early 
days  of  the  Yokohama  branch  the  principal 
import  trade  was  in  Manchester  j'ams  and 
cotton  textiles,  and  later  on  it  was  interested 
in  the  export  of  raw  silk  to  the  London  and 
Lyons  markets,  and  in  the  shipment  of  tea 
to  the  United  States.  The  business  in  tea 
was,  however,  taken  over  in  1883  by  two  of 
the  firm's  assistants,  Messrs.  Bernard  and 
Wood,  and  later  on  the  export  of  silk  was 
gradually  discontinued,  leaving  the  old  firm 
almost  entirely  an  importing  house.  Its 
transactions  were  of  an  extensive  nature 
among    the    private   traders,    and   in    more 


4 


668 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


recent  years  it  has  enjoyed  a  fair  share  of 
Government  business.  The  main  lines  of 
import  were  Manchester  and  Bradford  tex- 
tiles, and  Messrs.  Findlay,  Richardson  & 
Co.'s  old  established  "chops"  of  the.se  goods 
are  still  to  be  seen  in  the  domestic  markets. 
It  is  an  interesting  fact,  also,  that  some  of 
the  firm's  standard  qualities  have  been 
adopted  as  models  for  the  Japanese  manu- 
facturers to  copy,  which,  although  in  a  sense 
a  compliment,  is  not  altogether  a  welcome 
one,  meaning  as  it  does  a  gradually  decreas- 
ing demand  for  the  imported  genuine  goods. 
Throughout  this  long  period  the  firm  never 
deviated  from  the  old  conservative  ideas  of 
commercial  integrity.  The  business  was 
extended  steadily,  and  a  reputation  won  and 
maintained.  In  many  lines,  which  have 
since  entirely  disappeared  owing  to  Japan's 
rapid  economic  and  industrial  development, 
Messrs.  Findlay,  Richardson  &  Co.  were 
the  pioneers  and  the  largest  importers. 

In  1909  the  firm  was  transformed  into  a 
private  limited  liability  company  with  a 
capital  of  £150,000.  It  was  then  arranged 
that  the  company  should  trade  as  Findlay, 
Richardson  &  Co.,  Ltd.,  at  its  head  office. 
No.  34  West  George  Street,  Glasgow,  and 
at  its  branches  at  Manila  and  Iloilo,  in  the 


Philippines,  and  at  Yokohama  and  Kobi5. 
The  branch  at  Kob6  had  been  opened  in 
1889.  A  branch  was  also  opened  at  Hankow, 
China,  in  1914.  Up  to  a  few  years  ago 
Messrs.  Findlay,  Richardson  &  Co.,  Ltd., 
devoted  themselves  to  the  import  side  of 
business  in  Japan,  apart  from  insurance 
agenc5^  but  following  the  trend  of  the  times, 
which  has  been  to  lessen  imports,  the  com- 
pany opened  an  export  department,  and 
this  branch  of  the  business,  under  special 
attention,  has  been  developed  in  a  highly 
satisfactory  manner.  The  principal  lines 
of  export  are:  Habutai,  crepe  de  Chine,  silk 
shirtings,  and  every  class  of  silk  and  cotton 
piece  goods;  made-up  articles  of  apparel, 
consisting  of  silk,  cotton,  and  wool;  muslin 
de  laine  and  Japanese  flannel;  hats,  caps, 
and  hosiery;  boots,  shoes,  slippers,  and 
laces;  shell,  bone,  and  press  buttons;  para- 
sols, umbrellas,  and  fittings  thereof;  leather 
attache  cases,  suit  cases,  bags,  etc.;  Akebi 
baskets,  matting,  screens.  Thermos  flasks, 
fountain  pens,  pencils,  antimony,  enamel  and 
lacquer  ware;  manufactures  of  brass,  bronze, 
and  copper,  including  gas  and  electrical 
fittings  of  every  description;  gas  radiators 
and  mantles,  safes,  cash  boxes,  surgical  and 
dental  instruments,  lead  and  tin  foil;  chem- 


icals and  chemical  apparatus;  peppermint 
oil  and  menthol  crystals;  hemp  and  cotton 
canvas  and  twines;  hemp  and  wire  ropes; 
tea  chests,  momi  chests,  3-ply  boards; 
writing,  news,  and  printing  paper  and  straw- 
boards;  hemp  braid,  glass,  china,  porce- 
lain and  cloisonne-ware;  cement,  tiles,  bricks, 
and  fire  clay,  and  all  classes  of  Japanese 
products  and  manufactures.  The  principal 
countries  of  export  are  the  United  King- 
dom, Australia,  India,  Burmah,  China,  the 
Philippines,  New  Zealand,  and  the  United 
States. 

Messrs.  Findlay,  Richardson  &  Co.,  Ltd., 
are  agents  for  the  North  British  and  Mercan- 
tile Insurance  Company,  and  are  settling 
agents  for  the  Standard,  Union  Marine, 
Atlantic  Mutual,  and  other  marine  insur- 
ance companies.  The  present  head  of  the 
company  is  Mr.  R.  E.  Findlay.  Other 
Directors  are  Mr.  James  Marshall,  who  is 
the  registered  representative  of  the  company, 
residing  at  Kobe,  and  Mr.  W.  G.  Crum. 
Mr.  Norman  A.  Black,  one  of  the  Directors, 
was  killed  in  France  during  the  war.  At 
Yokohama,  Mr.  A.  H.  Cole  Watson  is  the 
representative  of  the  company,  having  joined 
the  business  in  1884  shortly  after  his  arri\-al 
in  Yokohama. 


Lt4, 


PREMISES    OF    THE    INTERNATIONAL   TRADING   CORPOR.^TION,    LIMITED,    AT    KOBE 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


669 


ENTERPRISING    BUSINESS    MEN    OP    KOBE    AND    OSAKA 

(Upper  Row,  Left  to  Right)  Mr.  M.  Naruse,  Sole  Partner,  Seiko  Shokai  —  Mr.  T.  Owi,  Proprietor,  Owi  &  Co.,  Kob^.  (Middle  Row) 
Mr.  Chojiro  Ito,  Ex-Member  House  of  Peers,  Proprietor,  Ito  &  Co.,  Kobe  —  Mr.  S.  Tamura,  President  of  Kobe  Chamber  of  Com- 
merce—  Mr.  K.  IwAi,  President,  Iwai  &  Co.,  Ltd.  (Lower  Row)  Mr.  M.  HiRA,  Manager,  Owi  &  Co.  —  Mr.  Motora  Making,  Presi- 
dent, Shogyo  Kos  Hinsho  (Mercantile  Agency)  —  Mr.  K.  Hashimoto,  Manager,  Nanyoseni  Kogyo  Kabushiki  Kaisha 


THE    INTERNATIONAL    TRADING    CORPO- 
RATION,   LIMITED 

The  foreign  trade  of  Japan  has  grown  to 
such  enormous  proportions  in  the  last  few 
years  as  to  require  the  formation  of  many 
new  organisations  to  handle  it,  and  it  is 
interesting  to  note  that  some  of  these  con- 
cerns, such  as  the  International  Trading 
Corporation,  Ltd.,  are  strongly  capitalised, 
in  order  that  the  foreign  markets  may  be 
properly  developed  along  the  lines  that 
have  proved  so  successful.  This  particvilar 
corporation  came  into  existence  on  July  i, 
1917,  establishing  its  head  office  at  Osaka, 
and  at  once  opening  branches  in  such  impor- 
tant centres  of  foreign  trade  as  Kob^,  Yoko- 
hama, and  Tokyo,  while  at  the  same  time 
forming   extensive   connections   abroad. 

The  International  Trading  Corporation, 
Ltd.,  conducts  a  general  import  and  export 
business.      Specialties     among     its     imports 


are  such  lines  as  chemicals  and  drugs,  dyes 
and  colours,  lumber,  machinery  and  tools, 
motor  cars,  metals  and  metal  goods  of  all 
descriptions,  nitrate  of  soda  and  other  ferti- 
lizers, paper  mill  supplies,  paper  and  pulp, 
wool,  cotton,  and  linen  goods,  etc.  The 
principal  exports  are  braids,  brushes,  buttons, 
cement,  chemicals  and  drugs,  copper,  cotton 
goods,  curios,  drawn  thread  work,  glassware, 
hats,  lumber,  matches,  metal  manufactures 
of  various  kinds,  paper,  general  produce,  raw 
silk,  silk  piece  goods,  rice,  sulphur,  super- 
phosphate, tinned  goods,  and  so  on. 

The  capital  of  the  company  is  Yen  2,000,- 
000.  Mr.  Matazo  Kita  is  the  President, 
Mr.  Kintaro  Sugiyama,  Managing  Director, 
and  the  other  principal  officers  are  Messrs. 
D.  H.  Blake,  Atsushi  Yamada  (Directors), 
and  Saburo  Nango  and  Gisaku  Takigawa 
(Auditors).  Mr.  Jisaburo  Nishimura  is  the 
General    Manager.     Inquiries    addressed   to 


the  head  office  of  the  International  Trading 
Corporation,  Ltd.,  at  No.  2  Nichome,  Dojima 
Hamadori,  Kita-ku,  Osaka,  or  to  the  branches 
at  No.  122  Mayemachi-dori,  Kobe,  and  No. 
225  Yamashitacho,  Yokohama,  will  receive 
immediate  attention. 

AMERICAN  TRADING  CO.MPANY 
Foremost  among  the  large  foreign  mer- 
cantile houses  in  Japan  is  the  American 
Trading  Company,  which  has  been  estab- 
lished a  good  many  years,  and  transacts  a 
large  volume  of  business  as  general  merchants, 
engineers,  steamship  and  insurance  agents, 
etc.  The  head  office  for  Japan  is  at  No.  99 
Kita-machi,  Kobe,  and  branches  are  located 
at  Yokohama  and  Tokyo,  with  warehouses 
at  Ono.  The  President  of  the  company  is 
Mr.  James  R.  Morse,  and  the  Vice-President 
and  General  Manager  for  China,  Japan,  and 
the  Philippines  is  Mr.  D.  H.  Blake.     As  is 


670 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


f^     •< 


•-«!?» 


9 

tail 

1 

p 

^T 

1  ^ 

p 

'.'1           1 

ii 

,^^ 

% 

1 

^ 

J.    WITKOWSKI    &    CO.,    LTD.:    (UPPER)    THE    INSPECTION"    .\ND    P.\CKING    OF    STRA\VBR.\ID —  (LEFT    TO    RIGHT)    THE    BUTTON    DEP.ARTMENT - 

K    VIEW    OF    THE    STR.WVBR.MD    GODOWN 


well  known,  the  American  Trading  Company 
is  a  world-wide  concern,  having  its  head 
office  at  Xew  York,  and  branches  in  London, 
San  Francisco,  Tacoma,  Sydney,  Buenos 
Aires,  Rio  de  Janeiro,  Martinique,  Havana, 
Shanghai,  Manila,  and  Port  Elizabeth. 
Among  the  agencies  held  by  the  company 
for  Japan  are  the  following:  Brunner  Mond 
&  Company  (Crescent  Brand  Chemicals); 
Scott  &•  Browne,  Ltd.  (Scott's  Emulsion); 
George  H.  Morrill  Co.  (Inks);  A.  B.  Flem- 
ing &  Co.,  Ltd.  (Inks);  C.  B.  Cottrell  & 
Sons  Co.  (Printing  Pres.ses);  Elliot  &  Co., 
Ltd.  (Printing  Presses);  National  Cash 
Register  Co.,  Dayton,  Ohio;  Remington 
Typewriter  Co.;  Toledo  Computing  Scale 
Co.;  John  Deere  Plow  Co.;  AlHs-Chalmcrs 
Co.  (Electrical  Power,  Hydraulic,  Flour 
Mill,  Saw  Mill,  Mining  Machinery,  etc.); 
Alsop  Process  Co.  (Electric  Breeching  Equip- 
ment): Brown  Portable  Elevator  Co.  (Port- 
able Elevators);  Erie  City  Iron  Works 
(Steam  Engines  and  Boilers);  Herbert 
Morris,  Ltd.  (Pulley  Blocks,  Cranes,  etc.); 
Ingersoll  Rand  Co.  (Compressors,  Rock 
Drills,    Pneumatic   Tools);     Link    Belt    Co. 


(Conveying  Machinery,  etc.);  McCronway 
&  Torley  Co.  (Janney  Automatic  Car  Cou- 
plings, etc.);  Otis  Elevator  Co.  (Freight 
and  Passenger  Elevators) ;  T.  L.  Smith  Co. 
(Concrete  Mixers);  Trussed  Concrete  Steel 
Co.  (Kahn  System  of  Reinforced  Concrete); 
United  Shoe  Machine  Co.  (Shoe-making 
Machinery) ;  United  Cigarette  Machine  Co. 
(Cigarette-making  Machinerj');  Henry  R. 
Worthington  (Pumps,  Condensers,  etc.); 
York  Manufacturing  Co.  (Refrigerating  and 
Ice  Plants) ;  J.  &  C.  Wilson  Manufacturing 
Co.  (Steel  Doors  and  Shutters);  South 
British  Insurance  Co.,  Ltd.,  Liverpool  and 
London  and  Globe  Insurance  Co.,  Ltd. 
Shipping  Agencies:  American  and  Oriental 
Line;    Caldwell  &  Co.,  New  York. 

J.  WITKOWSKI  &  CO.,  LIIIITED 
Messrs.  J.  Witkowski  &  Co.,  Ltd.,  of 
Kobe,  Yokohama,  Nagoya,  and  New  York 
have  the  representation  for  Japan  of  many 
of  the  most  famous  manufacturing  concerns 
whose  products  are  still  imported  to  Japan 
in  very  large  quantities,  despite  the  great 
strides  that  the  Japanese  have  undoubtedly 


made  of  late  3'ears  in  their  own  productive 
industries.  While  it  is  the  experience  of 
most  of  the  old  foreign  importing  houses 
that  imports  to  Japan  have  been  displaced 
by  the  locally  manufactured  goods,  this  is 
not  the  case  with  the  lines  handled  by  Wit- 
kowski &  Co.,  Ltd.  They  are  still  doing  a 
very  large  import  business,  their  principal 
agencies  being  the  following:  Borden's  Con- 
densed Milk  Sales  Co.,  Inc.,  of  New  York; 
California  .  Packing  Association,  San  Fran- 
cisco; Schwob  Freres  &  Co.,  Chaxix  de 
Fonds,  Switzerland  (watch  manufacturers); 
A.  &  F.  Pears,  Ltd.,  London;  John  Gosnell 
&  Co.,  Ltd.,  London;  the  Crown  Perfumery 
Co.,  London;  Chas.  Southwell  &  Co., 
London;  J.  S.  Fry  &  Sons,  Ltd.,  Bristol; 
Maconochie  Bros.,  Ltd.,  London;  and  G. 
Preller  &  Co.,  Bordeaux.  The  products  of 
these  companies  of  world-wide  repute  are 
distributed  all  over  Japan  by  Witkowski 
&  Co.,  Ltd.,  through  their  distributing 
agencies. 

As  exporters  this  company  occupies  just 
as  prominent  a  position.  From  their  Kob^ 
branch   they  ship  matting,   matches,   china- 


i 


i 


? 


ro  DEMSTIIEM- 


1  lave  b 
jcturd  joods,  te  ^ 
lines  katiiW  by  *■ 
Tliey2tesi*mE» 
isiiiBi,  their  prijcipal 
iowing:  Borden's  Con- 

I.,  Inc.,  of  Xw*'': 


5  &  to,  Cl»«  1« 


tie  Crow 


S  Co., 

&So.s,WJ«*'' 
tj  lonta;  >rf  ''■ 
S0.  Tie  prod"* »' 

Japa.by»»'* 

OCCBpiS  )' 


Ml 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


671 


ware,  glassware,  brushes,  curios,  fancy  goods, 
toys,  cotton  towels,  socks  and  underwear, 
buttons,  hem]),  chip  and  straw  braids,  straw 
and  Panama  hats,  and  general  merchandise 
and  sundries.  The  main  lines  handled  from 
Yokohama  are  silks,  drawn-thread  work, 
curios,  toys,  fancy  goods,  general  produce, 
etc.  E.xtensive  offices  and  godowns  are 
maintained  at  Kobd,  Yokohama,  and  Nagoya, 
which  are  the  chief  centres  of  the  export 
trade.  The  Managing  Director  of  the  com- 
pany is  Mr.  Henri  Blum,  and  the  other 
Directors  are  Messrs.  L.  Meyer  and  L. 
Lazarus.       (See  also  page  253.) 

BIRCH,  KIRBY  &  CO.,  Ll.MITED 
The  Japan  branch  of  Messrs.  Birch, 
Kirby  &  Co.,  Ltd.,  the  well  known  British 
merchant  house,  was  established  at  KobS 
in  1899,  and  has  since  been  developed  to 
large  proportions,  the  company  not  only 
dealing  in  their  specialties  of  machinery 
and  hardware  generally,  but  also  operating 
in  most  of  the  lines  that  comprise  the  import 
and  export  trade  of  Japan.     Principal  among 


the  imports,  which  mainly  come  from  the 
United  Kingdom  and  America,  arc  machin- 
ery, mill  accessories,  navigational  instru- 
ments, ships'  fittings,  and  all  descriptions  of 
metals  and  metal  manufactures,  scientific 
instruments,  steam  and  hydraulic  packings, 
paints,  oils,  and  varnishes,  wire  ropes  and 
miscellaneous  goods.  Exports  comprise  a 
large  variety  of  Japanese  manufactures  in 
hardware,  such  as  machine  tools,  electrical 
supplies,  produce,  mill  supplies,  metal  and 
metal  manufactures,  chemicals,  acids,  plant- 
ers' supplies,  glassware,  porcelain,  paper, 
brushware,  engineers'  supplies,  packings, 
oils  and  manufactured  goods  in  general. 
Messrs.  Birch,  Kirby  &  Co.,  Ltd.,  export  to 
the  United  Kingdom,  the  United  States, 
Russia,  India,  Java,  Siam,  China,  the  Philip- 
pines, the  Federated  Malay  Settlements,  and 
Australia. 

The  company's  office  and  warehouses  in 
Japan  are  located  at  No.  31  Akashi-machi, 
Kob^.  Mr.  S.  F.  Gillum  is  the  Manager. 
Messrs.  Birch,  Kirby  &  Co.,  Ltd.,  have  their 
head   office   in    London   under  the   manage- 


ment of  Mes.srs.  John  Birch  &  Co.,  Ltd.,  No. 
2  London  Wall  Buildings,  London  E.  C. 
Tlie  Directorate  of  the  company  comprises 
Mr.  Montagu  Sharpe,  Chairman;  Mr.  John 
Stuart  Horner,  Managing  Director;  Mr 
Maures  Horner,  Director,  and  Mr.  Arthur 
Hoare,    London    Manager. 

STRONG    &    CO. 

This  British  firm  was  established  in 
London  in  1866,  and  opened  business  in 
Japan  in  1878,  the  length  of  its  experience 
in  Eastern  markets,  and  the  extent  of  its 
operations,  making  it  one  of  the  oldest  and 
best  known  foreign  firms  in  Japan  and 
adjacent  countries.  Mr.  Edwin  Strong  of 
London  is  the  Managing  Director.  Messrs. 
Strong  &  Co.  do  a  general  export  business, 
shipping  to  all  markets  of  the  world,  but 
particularly  to  England  and  America.  They 
do  not  handle  imports. 

The  main  office  is  at  No.  96  Higashi-machi, 
Kobe,  where  the  firm  has  a  large,  well  built 
brick  building.  The  site  is  an  excellent  one, 
facing  the  public  recreation  gardens  in  front, 


THE    PICTURESQUE    KOB^    OFFICES    OF    BIRCH,    KIRBY    &    CO.,    LTD. 


fl 


"!r 


^ 


s: 


1^ 


I  13^1 


iH 


m 


1^',— ^^ 


-^u 


STRONG    &    COMPANY;      SCENE    IN    A    COTTON    WASTE    GODOWN  —  A    MATTlNt.    INSPECTION    (.ODOUN  — THE    RITTON    DEPARTMENT - 

THE    STRAWBRAID    AND    PANAMA    HAT   DEPARTMENT 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


673 


and  with  spacious  private  gardens  to  tlie 
side.  It  extends  from  Higashi-machi  to 
Yedo-machi,  with  a  frontage  of  85  feet  and 
a  depth  of  170  feet.  The  offices  face  Higashi- 
machi,  and  this  portion  of  the  building  is 
two-storied  w-ith  a  floor  space  of  7,200  square 
feet.  The  building  is  in  a  typical  Japanese 
setting,  but  once  inside  the  front  door  the 
visitor  enters  an  atmosphere  that  is  Occi- 
dental in  every  way,  the  rattle  of  typewriters, 
the  bustling  of  employees,  and  the  general 
air  of  activity  giving  every  evidence  of  work 
at  high  pressure.  And  such  is  the  ca.se,  for 
the  firm  transacts  a  very  large  volume  of 
business,  and  the  modern  business  problems 
of  the  Orient  are  met  with  the  same  organisa- 
tion, application,  and  general  methods  that 
obtain  in  London  or  New  York.  The 
foreign  stafT  includes  ten  Europeans  and 
Americans,  supervising  the  native  personnel 
of  nearly  a  hundred  employees. 

From  the  back  of  the  offices  to  Yedo- 
machi  is  the  main  warehouse,  which  is  of 
three  stories,  with  a  floor  area  of  17,000 
square  feet.  There  is  also  a  glass-roofed 
inspection  compound  of  15,000  square  feet, 
where  goods  are  readily  laid  out  and  efTec- 
tively  inspected  in  any  weather.  At  Ono, 
three  minutes'  rikisha  ride  from  the  Foreign 
Settlement,  there  is  another  spacious  office 
and  twelve  godowns,  where  Strong  &  Co. 
handle  their  more  bulky  merchandise.  The 
floor  space  available  here  is  nearly  50,000 
square  feet. 

A  glance  at  the  illustrations  will  show  the 
Button  Department  of  the  firm.  In  this 
line  Strong  &  Co.  are  pioneers;  originally  it 
was  their  main  line  of  business,  but  with 
the  development  of  Japanese  industries 
generally  the  firm  took  up  other  departments 
of  trade.  Nevertheless,  they  are  still  special- 
ists in  the  button  export  business,  and  have 
this  article  under  their  control  from  the  time 
the  shells  leave  the  islands  of  the  South 
Pacific,  until  the  buttons  are  in  the  hands 
of  their  consignees  in  London,  New  York, 
and  elsewhere 

The  Fine  Arts  and  Curio  Department  of 
Strong  &  Co.  has  the  reputation  of  having 
handled  some  of  the  greatest  art  treasures 
that  have  left  Japan,  and  so  rich  and 
varied  is  the  stock  that  the  packing  section 
of  this  department  looks  more  like  an  art 
exhibition  than  an  ordinary  commercial 
warehouse. 

The  firm  are  large  shippers  of  hat  plaits  of 
all  kinds,  including  straw  braid,  chip  braid, 
and  hemp  braid.  Their  Panama  Hat  De- 
partment is  the  subject  of  one  of  the  interest- 
ing illustrations,  and  the  casual  observer  is 
induced  to  wonder  whether  there  are  heads 
enough  in  the  Occident  for  all  the  hats  show  n 
in    the   course   of    inspection    and    packing. 


These  hats  come  to  Japan  from  parts  as 
remote  as  Formosa  and  the  Loochoo  Islands, 
and  as  an  instance  of  the  detail  work  required 
in  the  carrying  on  of  this  trade,  it  may  be 
mentioned  that  before  being  graded  and 
packed  each  separate  hat  passes  through  the 
hands  of  a  series  of  inspectors,  who  determine 
its  quality,  dimensions,  shape,  etc.  This 
careful  handling  calls  for  the  large  inspecting 
staff  shown  in  the  illustration. 

Cotton  waste  is  another  article  in  which 
Strong  &  Co.  were  pioneers.  With  the 
growth  of  the  spinning  industry,  which  has 
converted  Osaka  into  a  second  Manchester, 
and  Kobe  into  another  Liverpool,  this  line 
has  expanded  considerabl)'.  It  takes  seven 
spacious  godowns  to  accommodate  the  army 
of  women  who  pick  and  sort  the  waste 
received  by  Strong  &  Co.  from  the  mills. 
The  hydraulic  press  employed  for  baling  the 
waste  is  the  most  powerful  of  its  kind  in 
Kob^.  At  present  this  department  is  work- 
ing night  and  day,  "doing  its  bit"  in  feeding 
the  munition  w^orks  of  the  Allies  with  the 
basic  ingredient  of  explosives. 

In  matting  and  floor  coverings  generally. 
Strong  &  Co.  claim  to  rank  first,  and  they 
may  be  justly  proud  of  their  splendid  plant 
for  handling  this  article.  The  inspection 
room,  nearly  300  feet  long  and  20  feet  wide, 
is  roofed  with  glass  and  curtained  like  an 
artist's  studio.  Thousands  of  tons  of  floor 
coverings  go  through  this  plant  in  the  course 
of  a  year.  This  department  also  handles 
grass  rugs,  which  have  become  such  a  pop- 
ular floor  covering.  Many  looms  turn  out 
grass  rugs  in  various  parts  of  Japan,  but  the 
articles  handled  by  Strong  &  Co.,  who  are 
not  satisfied  with  anything  but  the  best,  are 
grass  rugs  made  from  the  only  power  looms 
in  Japan,  and  are  not  the  uneven  product 
of  the  hand  looms,  which  turn  out  the 
bulk  of  the  rugs  shipped. 

In  their  Hosiery  Department,  Strong  & 
Co.  have  paid  special  attention  to  gloves, 
and  have  organised  their  own  plant  for 
cutting  and  finishing  according  to  the  latest 
Western  factory  practice.  It  is  the  boast  of 
the  firm  that  the  gloves  they  ship  are  not 
inferior  to  the  products  of  England  and 
America.  This  excellence  prasupposes  special- 
ists. Strong  &  Co.'s  glove  superintendent, 
for  instance,  has  been  in  this  trade  since  a 
boy,  having  worked  at  the  industry  in 
practically  every  glove-making  country  in 
the   world. 

In  Soft  Goods,  Strong  &  Co.'s  growing 
capacity  has  more  than  kept  pace  with  the 
growth  of  the  textile  industries  in  Japan. 
Their  inspecting  rooms  show  the  variety  in 
the  output  of  the  Japanese  mills,  for  side 
by  side,  ready  for  packing,  may  be  found 
high  grade  underwear  for  the  English  market. 


next  to  the  brilliant  colours  and  bright 
stripes  for  the  South  Sea  Islands.  The  bulk 
of  the  porcelain  shipped  from  Japan  comes 
from  the  Nagoya  district,  and  with  their 
usual  enterprise,  Strong  &  Co.  have  their  own 
office  in  that  porcelain  centre,  thus  bringing 
their  connections  abroad  one  step  nearer 
the  producing  market. 

The  General  Manager  for  Japan  is  Mr. 
H.  O.  Hereford,  stationed  at  Kob6.  Mr. 
Hereford  has  had  seventeen  years'  experience 
in  Japan,  and  has  been  in  general  charge  of 
the  interests  of  Strong  &  Co.  for  over  ten 
years.  A  firm  believer  in  modern  business 
methods,  he  has  built  up  an  organisation  to 
be  proud  of.  Though  a  busy  man,  Mr. 
Hereford  still  finds  time  for  many  civic 
interests,  and  has  served  as  hospital  director, 
and  on  important  Kobe  committees  at 
various  times. 

SHEWAN,    TOMES    &    CO. 

The  firm  of  Shewan,  Tomes  &  Co.,  of 
Hongkong,  Canton,  Shanghai,  Tientsin, 
Kob^,  Yunnanfu,  London,  and  New  York, 
is  an  example  of  the  widespread  nature  of 
the  business  in  which  the  large  modern 
houses  operating  throughout  the  Orient  are 
engaged.  The  head  office  organisation  not 
only  represents  important  shipping  interests, 
and  acts  as  agent  for  several  insurance 
companies,  but  conducts  a  number  of  indus- 
trial enterprises,  besides  transacting  a  general 
business  as  import  and  export  merchants. 
The  Japan  branch  of  the  business  has  been 
established  many  years,  with  headquarters 
at  Kob^.  Under  the  control  of  the  local 
manager  are  not  only  the  general  agencies 
for  shipping  and  insurance,  which  the  firm 
holds,  but  a  multiplicity  of  other  enter- 
prises peculiar  to  Japan.  One  important 
branch  of  business  in  which  they  special- 
ise is  the  manufacture  of  white  morai 
pine  boxes  for  packing  case-oil,  tea,  and 
rubber. 

Messrs.  Shewan,  Tomes  &  Co.  are  im- 
porters of  machinery  and  mill  supplies, 
piece  goods,  etc.,  and  they  handle  for  export 
such  lines  as  mats,  matting,  jute,  cotton, 
and  wool  rugs,  matches,  match  splints,  oil, 
tea  and  rubber  box  shooks,  chemicals,  elec- 
trical supplies,  curios,  and  general  produce. 
Imports  are  derived  mainly  from  the  United 
Kingdom,  the  United  States,  -Australia,  and 
China,  and  the  exports  go  to  the  United 
Kingdom,  the  United  States,  Canada,  South 
America,  Australia,  South  Africa,  India, 
Egypt,  China,  and  elsewhere. 

Mr.  J.  A.  Young  is  Manager  of  the 
Kobe  branch,  which  is  located  at  No.  74.-A 
Kyomachi,  Kobe,  and  Mr.  C.  J.  Williams 
is   the   Manager  of  the  Export  Department. 


sHbWAN,     iuMK>    i:    LO.:        IHh     KUlU',     I'KliMIM-.^ MAILIM.    IN  sl'liL  1  ION    IN     IHh    (..IJUUW  N 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


675 


WEI.l.-KNOWN    FOREIGN    MERCHANTS    OF    KOBE 

(Left  to  Right,  Upper  Row)  R.  F.  Stephen,  Acting  Manager,  Imports  Dept.,  W.  M.  Strachan  &  Co.,  Ltd. — Peter  Fr.aser,  Sole 
Partner,  Peter  Fraser  &  Co.  —  S.  E.  Giles  —  H.  O.  Hereford,  Manager,  Strong  &  Co. — W.  G.  Fox,  Manager,  Exports  Dept.,  W.  M. 
Strachan  &  Co.,  Ltd.  (Middle  Row)  P.  H.  McKay,  Sole  Partner,  McKay  &  Co.  —  L.  L.\zarus,  Director,  J.  Witkowski  &  Co.,  Ltd. — 
L.  Meyer,  Director,  J.  Witkowski  &  Co.,  Ltd.  —  Douglas  Cox,  Resident  Partner  in  Japan  for  Land  &  Cox.  (Lower  Centre)  Henri 
Blum,  President,  J.  Witkowski  &  Co.,  Ltd.  (Lower  Row)  G.  Lazzara,  Managing  Partner,  Lazzara,  Homberg  &  Co. — M.  Thieck,  Managing 
Partner,  Lazzara,  Homberg  &  Co.  —  E.  Homberg,  Managing  Partner,  Lazzara,  Homberg  &  Co.  —  E.  A.  Herrera,  Partner,  Lazzara, 
Homberg  &  Co.;  also  Consul-General  for  Spain  and  Vicc-Consul  for  Italy. 


WINKEL  &  GEDDE,  LIMITED 
A  HIGHLY  important  development  of 
modern  commerce  has  been  the  organisa- 
tion of  what  are  known  as  associated  houses, 
that  is,  concerns  whose  operations  link  up, 
the  one  with  the  other,  to  cover  practically 
the  whole  world,  and  to  act  for  each  other. 
Those  houses  place  their  entire  buying  and 
selling  organisations  at  the  disposal  of  the 
members  of  the  combination,  and  when  the 
necessity  arises  the  combined  capital  is 
available.  The  advantages  of  such  a  system 
are  apparent,  and  business  association 
with  one  member  house,  necessarily  means 
for  the  customer  that  he  is  Unked  up  with 
any  market  in  which  he  desires  his  principal 
to  operate  for  him.  The  Danish  firm  of 
Messrs.  Winkel  &  Gedde,  Ltd.,  is  the  first 


house  in  the  East,  established  by  this  com- 
bination of  export  and  import  companies. 
The  headquarters  of  the  association  are  in 
Copenhagen,  which  is  also  the  headquarters 
of  Messrs.  Winkel  &  Gedde,  Ltd.  At  the 
back  of  this  association  is  a  very  considerable 
capital,  and  its  member,  or  associate,  houses 
are  located  as  follows:  London,  Paris,  Genoa, 
Moscow,  Copenhagen,  Stockholm,  Chris- 
tiania,  Cairo,  New  York,  Buenos  Ayres, 
Rio  de  Janeiro,  and  other  commercial  centres 
of  importance.  Each  associate  house,  in  its 
turn,  has  its  branches  scattered  throughout 
the  countries  in  which  it  specially  operates. 
Winkel  &  Gedde,  Ltd.,  were  established 
in  Japan  in  19 16,  not  to  participate  in  what 
may  be  called  "war  business,"  but  as  a  per- 
manent trading  concern.     The)'  are  general 


exporters  and  importers,  handling  all  classes 
of  goods,  raw  material,  as  well  as  the  manu- 
factured articles.  They  have  unique  con- 
nections aU  over  the  world  and  through  their 
associate  houses  they  can  either  sell  Japanese 
products  to  any  country,  or  purchase  for 
this  market  any  goods  that  may  be  called 
for.  The  head  office  for  Japan  is  at  Kobe, 
where  the  business  is  under  the  management 
of  Mr.  O.  Gedde. 

E.  H.  HUNTER  &  CO. 
In  the  earh"  seventies,  Mr.  E.  H.  Hunter, 
a  native  of  Londonderry,  Ireland,  established 
the  business  which  bears  his  name,  and  which 
has  grown  into  one  of  the  largest  foreign 
concerns  in  Japan.  Mr.  Hunter  arrived  in 
Yokohama  from  Australia  in  1867,  and  went 


THE    MOSCOW    OFFICES    OF    THE    ASSOCIATE    RUSSIAN    COMPANY    OF    WINKEL    &    GEDDE,    LIMITED 


1    i 


"  1 

II  -■ 


II  •■• 


1  ;; 


'■•' . 

'  II  ■ 

'  I' 


^i 


.1 


^il 


TI^P^ 


4' 


E.    H.    HUNTER   &   CO.:      HEAD    OFFICE    AT    OSAKA  —  PREMISES   OF    NIHON    SEIMAI   SEIFUN   KAISHA 


44 


678 


P  R  E  S  E  N  T  -  n  A  \'        IMPRESSIONS        OF        JAPAN 


to  Kob6  the  following  year,  at  the  time  of  the 
opening  of  that  port  to  foreign  trade.  He 
was  not  in  Kob^  very  long  before  he  became 
interested  in  the  shipbuilding  industry,  which 
gave  promise  of  considerable  development, 
and  some  years  later  he  established  the 
Osaka  Iron  Works,  which  has  grown  into 
one  of  Japan's  most  important  shipbuilding 
concerns.  This  enterprise  remained  the  sole 
property  of  the  Hunter  family  until  it  was 
converted  into  a  limited  liability  company 
in  1914.  Mr.  Hunter  was  also  the  pioneer 
of  the  foreign  rice  trade,  and  himself  erected 
the  Nippon  Seimai  Mills  at  Hyogo,  with 
which  the  firm  of  E.  H.  Hunter  &  Co.  still 
has  a  close   connection. 

The  firm's  many  activities  include  those 
of  import  and  export  merchants.  They 
handle  general  lines,  especially  -materials 
for  shipbuilding,  cotton  spinning  and  other 
machinery,  and,  furthermore,  are  largely 
interested  in  the  Indian  cotton  trade,  seUing 
direct  to  the  principal  mills.  They  are 
large  importers  of  timber,  mainly  Oregon 
pine,  and  teak,  and  have  their  own  yard 
and  basin  at  Sangenya,  Osaka.  E.  H. 
Hunter  &  Co.  are  also  exporters  of  rice,  both 
polished  and  raw,  and  "Hunter's  No.  i 
Polished"  commands  a  premium  on  the 
London  market.  Produce  of  all  kinds,  and 
general  merchandise  is  shipped  by  the  firm 
to  all  parts  of  the  world. 

Mr.  E.  H.  Hunter  retired  from  business 
in  1 91 6,  but  the  operations  of  the  firm  are 
directed  by  his  son,  Mr.  R.  Hunter,  who  had 
been  his  partner  for  many  years.  Mr.  R. 
Hunter's  business  interests  are  varied  and 
widespread.  He  is  the  President  of  the 
Osaka  Marine  &  Fire  Insurance  Co.,  Ltd.,  a 
Director  of  the  Osaka  Iron  Works,  is  on  the 
Board  of  the  Osaka  Shosen  Kaisha,  and  is 
associated  generally  with  the  commerce  and 
industry  of  Japan. 

As  stated  above,  Mr.  E.  H.  Hunter  was 
the  founder  of  the  Osaka  Iron  Works.  In 
addition,  he  was  the  pioneer  of  many  other 
enterprises,  and  has  always  been  a  good 
friend  of  the  Japanese.  To  show  apprecia- 
tion of  Mr.  Hunter's  energy  and  enterprise, 
the  Directorate  of  the  Osaka  Iron  Works, 
with  the  approval  of  the  shareholders,  have 
erected  a  statue  to  Mr.  Hunter.  The 
unveiling  took  place  in  191 5.  The  hand- 
some bronze  figure  of  the  pioneer  of  ship- 
building, stands  appropriately  in  the  grounds 
of  the  Osaka  Iron  Works  Company's  new 
works  at  Sakurajima.  It  was  executed  by 
Mr.  Sotokichi  Aoki,  teacher  at  the  Technical 
School  at  Ishikawa-ken,  with  the  assistance 
of  Mr.  Saburo  Yoshida,  a  graduate  of  the 
Tokyo  Fine  Arts  Academy.  This  statue  is 
the  only  one  ever  erected  in  honour  of  a 
foreigner  of  the  present  day. 


CHINA    AND    JAPAN   TRADING    COMPANY. 
LIMITED 

To   treat   fully    of   the   development   and 
extent  of  the  operations  of  the  China  and 
Japan   Trading   Company,    Limited,    would 
necessitate  going  far  back   into  the  history 
of    foreign    trade    in    the    Far    East.     This 
company  has  been  established  in  the  trade 
between  the  Orient  and  America  and  Europe 
for  over  fifty  years,  and  was  incorporated 
in   the  State  of  New  York  in   1876.     The 
name  frequently  occurs  in  the  early  history 
of  trade  with  Japan,   the  company  having 
been    among    the    pioneer    importing    and 
exporting  concerns  in  Yokohama  and  other 
ports,    at    a    time    when    little    or    no    idea 
was  held  of  the  subsequent  development  of 
Japan  as  a  great  commercial  country.     The 
company   was  one   of  the   first  and   largest 
importers    of    American    cotton,    and    still 
carries  on  this  business,  though  necessarily 
on  a  smaller  scale  since  the  introduction  of 
large  quantities  of  Indian  and  other  cotton. 
It  was  originally  agent  for  the  Standard  Oil 
Company   and   established   the   business   of 
that  concern  in  Japan  before  the  Standard 
Oil   people  opened  their  own   offices.     The 
China  and  Japan  Trading  Company,  Limited, 
is  also  one  of  the  best  known  houses  on  the 
Osaka  and  Kobe  markets  for  metals  of  all 
descriptions.     It  is  sole  ageirt  for  the  Selby 
Smelting  and   Lead  Co.,   of  San  Francisco, 
California,  and  for  the  Consolidated  Mining 
&   Smelting    Co.,    of   Canada,    Ltd.,    Traill, 
B.  C,  whose  pig  lead  is  handled  exclusively 
by   the   company  in   the  Japanese  market. 
Other  sole  agencies  are  those  of  the  Northern 
Aluminium  Co.,  Ltd.,   of  Canada,   and  the 
Aluminium    Company   of   America,    two   of 
the  largest  producers  of  this  metal  in  the 
world.     Large    yearly    sales    of    aluminium 
ingots  are  made  to  the  Japanese  factories, 
which  in  turn  make  up  the  metal  in  various 
articles  for  export  to  India,  the  Dutch  East 
Indies,  AustraUa,  the  South  Sea  Islands,  etc. 
The   business   has   grown   enormously   since 
the   commencement   of   the   war,    owing   to 
the   stoppage   of   supplies   of   utensils   from 
Europe.     A  large  quantity  of  aluminium  is 
also  used  for  the  manufacture  of  shell  fuses 
for    the    Russian    armies.     Aluminium    foils 
for  cards  on  which  buttons  are  mounted,    is 
another  well  developed  branch  of  the  trade, 
the  consumption  having  largely  increased  in 
consequence   of   the   difficulty   of   obtaining 
tin  foil,  etc.     The  company  imports  nickel 
in  cakes,  cubes,  shot,  etc.;   pig  iron,  pig  tin, 
and    spelter.     Business    in    the    latter    line 
largely  died  out  after  the  stoppage  of  imports 
from  Europe,  and  smelting  is  now  being  done 
in  Japan  from  Australian,  Chinese,  and  local 
ores.     Heavy   quantities  of  steel  and  iron, 
steel  plates,  sheets,  galvanized  sheets,  wire. 


nails,  etc.,  and  all  sorts  of  construction 
material,  are  handled,  and  the  company  is 
licensed  by  the  Japanese  Government  to 
import  and  deal  in  high  explosives,  ammuni- 
tion, and  fire  arms.  Dynamite,  gelignite, 
gelatin,  blasting  powder,  and  gunpowder, 
used  for  mining  and  for  railroad  construc- 
tion through  the  mountainous  districts,  are 
imported  under  this  license,  and  the  company 
has  its  own  special  magazines  for  the  storage 
of  such  explosives.  Extensive  connections 
have  been  formed  by  the  China  and  Japan 
Trading  Company,  Limited,  with  all  the 
tanneries  and  leather  factories  in  the  various 
districts.  These  factories  are  supplied 
through  the  agency  of  the  company  with 
machinery  and  plant  for  tanning  and  leather 
working,  and  also  with  tannin  preparations 
such  as  cutch,  Argentine  quebracho,  sumac, 
chestnut  extracts,  and  so  on.  Owing  to 
the  large  orders  placed  in  Japan  by  Russia 
for  boots  and  leather  articles  of  various 
kinds,  this  trade  has  increased  tremendously, 
and  the  quality  of  Japanese  tanned  leather 
has  improved  very  greatly  of  late  years. 
The  company  is  the  sole  agent  for  Turner 
Bros.,  Ltd.,  of  Rochdale,  Lancashire,  England, 
War  Office  and  Admiralty  contractors,  sup- 
pliers of  asbestos  goods  of  every  description. 
A  large  import  of  crude  asbestos,  asbestos 
fibre  and  yarns  for  manufacture  in  Japan  of 
asbestos  packings  and  materials  is  handled 
by  the   company. 

To  mention  some  other  lines  of  activity 
on  the  part  of  this  old  established  concern , 
it  may  be  said  that  the  China  and  Japan 
Trading  Company,  Limited,  is  an  importer 
of  sago  flour  from  the  Straits  Settlements 
and  corn  starches  from  America  for  supply- 
ing to  the  various  textile  mills  in  Japan  for 
sizing  purposes.  There  is  also  a  special 
department  for  handling  paints,  varnishes, 
insulating  varnishes,  ships'  paints,  and  anti- 
fouling  compositions,  the  company  holding 
the  exclusive  agencies  for  the  Continental 
Varnish  Co.,  of  Newark,  New  Jersey,  and 
the  Woolsey  Paint  &  Colour  Co.,  of  Jersey 
City,  specialising  in  copper  paints  for  the 
bottoms  of  wooden  ships  and  wooden  craft 
of  all  descriptions.  The  company  is  also 
sole  agent  for  the  Anglo-French  Nickel  Co., 
of  Swansea,  Wales,  manufacturers  of  pre- 
pared oxide  of  cobalt,  grey  and  black,  which 
is  imported  in  large  quantities  and  supplied 
to  the  manufacturers  of  porcelain  and  enamel 
ware  all  over  Japan.  Liquid  gold,  enamels, 
and  colours  of  all  kinds  for  the  ceramic 
industry  are  another  important  line  The 
company  is  the  sole  selling  agent  for  the 
New  York  and  New  Jersey  Lubricant  Co.'s 
well  known  "Gear  Brand"  of  non-fluid  oils, 
only  introduced  into  Japan  within  the  last 
four  years,  and  in  spite  of  the  competition 


-ii:m',Mi.iy'B'i'Ji^'Ai,i)..yi^.i<.vi,.y;^iii.^,ii,i>..ii.ii^ 


■v 

! 

A 

<\_ 

\ 
1 

,  jr 
!i- 

']'       ; 

1 

!    ,! 

il) 

!       ; 

1      '^ 
1    ; 

1  :> 

-i 

I      ■  i 

_.^i 

CHINA    AND    JAi-AN     IKADiNC   COMPANY.    LIU.:       IHh    KiiUh    l.i  JlmW  N.-.  —  THE    K(lHb    iiilUh--.  IIU,    ulllLb-->   AM)    i.uljuU.Nn    Al    usAKA 


68o 


P  R  K  S  K  N  T  -  n  A  V        I   M   T  R  E  S  S  I  O  N  S 


o  i<- 


J  A   I'  A  N 


of  long-established  lubricants,  these  lines 
have  made  immense  strides  in  the  favour 
of  the  Japanese  works  and  mills  engineers. 
A  special  department  exists  for  the  handling 
of  drugs  and  chemicals  and  essential  oils, 
and  the  company  imports  practically  every 
drug  that  has  ever  been  marketed  from  all 
parts  of  the  world,  wherever  produced. 
Chemicals  are  also  imported  for  the  labora- 
tories and  dispensaries,  as  well  as  for  com- 
mercial purposes,  the  main  lines  of  the  latter 
being  clilorate  of  potash  and  phosphorus 
for  the  match  trade,  cyanide  for  mining 
purposes,  caustic  soda,  bichromate  of  potash 
and  soda.  The  China  and  Japan  Trading 
Company,  Limited,  also  markets  the  well 
known  products  of  the  Fellows  Medical  Co., 
of  New  York,  and  Lanman  &  Kemps  Florida 
water.  Other  imports  are  general  lines  such 
as  tools,  ropes,  and  shipchandlers'  stores. 

Among  the  exports  of  the  company  are 
refined  antimony,  copper,  potato  starch,  rice 
starch,  wheaten  starch,  cotton  \fam  waste, 
vegetable  and  fish  oils  of  all  kinds,  matches, 
sulphur,  and  sundry  Japanese  manufactures. 
These  are  shipped  to  Europe,  America,  and 
other  parts  of  the  world.  Cotton  yams  and 
textiles  manufactured  in  Japan  are  exported 
to  China.  Since  the  reduction  in  supphes 
from  Europe,  owing  to  the  war,  Japan  is 
manufacturing  many  drugs  which  were  pre- 


viousl}'  imported  and  is  not  only  supplying  her 
own  domestic  requirements,  but  is  also  export- 
ing largely  such  items  as  iodides,  iodoform, 
naphthalene,  acetic  acid,  cafi'eine,  copper  sul- 
phate and  chlorate  of  potash,  all  of  which  the 
China  and  Japan  Trading  Comj^anv,  Limited, 
ships. 

A  further  department  of  activity  on  the 
part  of  this  company  is  insurance,  agencies 
being  held  for  the  Sun  Insurance  Office  of 
London  (established  1710),  and  the  Phoenix 
Assurance  Company,  Ltd.,  of  London,  (or 
both  fire  and  marine  business.  The  busi- 
ness of  this  v/ell  organised  company  is 
extending  year  by  year.  There  has  been  a 
dropping  off  in  certain  lines,  owing  to  the 
war,  and  the  changes  in  the  industrial  and 
economic  situation  of  Japan,  but  other 
avenues  of  trade  have  been  opened  up  in 
their  place,  and  bid  fair  to  develop  satis- 
factorily  and   remain   permanent. 

The  head  office  and  directorate  of  the 
China  and  Japan  Trading  Company,  Limited, 
is  at  No.  80  Maiden  Lane,  New  York,  and 
branches  are  maintained  at  London  and 
Manchester,  England;  Shanghai,  China; 
Yokohama,  Kob6,  and  Osaka,  Japan.  The 
Kobe  branch  of  the  company,  with  extensive 
offices  and  godowns,  is  at  No.  88  Naka 
Machi  in  the  former  foreign  concession  of 
Kobe,  and  at  No.  20  Nakanoshima,  Osaka. 


'J'he  Koh6  branch  operates  through  the 
south  of  Japan,  that  is,  all  the  business  south 
of  Nagoya,  and  in  the  Hondo  Islands,  and 
also  Kyushu  and  Shikoku.  Business  in  the 
districts  north  of  Nagoya  is  cared  for  by  the 
Yokohama  branch  of  the  company.  Mr. 
Darwin  R.  Aldridge  is  the  President  of  the 
company. 

IWAI  &  CO.,  LI.MITED 
This  import  and  export  business  was 
established  in  1898  as  a  personal  proprietary, 
the  founder  being  Mr.  Katsujiro  Iwai,  who 
was  one  of  the  originators  of  direct  foreign 
trade  from  Osaka.  Mr.  Iwai  had  had  con- 
siderable experience  in  all  lines  of  Japa- 
nese produce  and  manufactured  goods,  and 
though  the  capital  employed  to  start  with 
was  the  comparatively  small  sum  of  Yen 
20,000,  the  business  was  almost  immediately 
successful,  and  since  then  had  grown  to  verj' 
large  proportions.  From  a  private  firm,  the 
enterprise  was  changed  into  a  limited  lia- 
bilit\'  company  some  years  ago,  the  present 
capital  being  Yen  2,000,000,  and  the  reserv^es 
Yen  925,000.  Iwai  &  Co.,  Ltd.,  carry  on  a 
varied  business  as  importers,  exporters,  and 
general  merchants.  The  head  office  is  at 
No.  43,  4-chome,  Kitahama,  Higashi-ku, 
Osaka.  There  are  branches  and  factories 
at    Osaka,    Kobe,    Tokyo,    Yokohama,    and 


VIEW   OF   OSAK.A    SOlTHW.\RD    IKOM    THE    ROOF    OF    MITSUKOSHI,    SHOWING    HIG.ASHI-KU    .AND    MIN.\MI-Kr    IN    THE    DIST.\NCE 


P  R  K  S  E  N  T  -  i:)  A  Y        IMPRESSIONS        OF        JAPAN 


68 1 


THE   FINE    KOBE    OFFICES   AND   GODOWNS   OF    IWAI    &    CO.,    LTD. 


Fukin  in  Japan,  and  foreign  branches  at 
New  York,  Shanghai,  and  Hankow,  with  an 
agency  in  London.  Among  the  principal 
imports  are  sheet  steel,  bars,  angles,  joists, 
and  similar  metal  manufactures  for  ship- 
building or  general  construction  work,  sheet 
zinc,  tin  plates,  lead,  iron  scrap  and  billets, 
sheet  tin  and  tin  ingots,  glass,  wool,  wool 
tops,  pulp,  paper  and  general  textiles, 
chernicals,  drugs,  and  dyes.  Exports  com- 
prise general  produce,  such  as  peas,  beans, 
rice,  vegetable  oils,  manufactured  metals  and 
hardware  (galvanized  sheet  steel,  zinc  slabs, 
antimony,  etc.),  straw,  chip  and  hemp  braids, 
Panama  hats,  habutai  (piece  goods  and  hand- 
kerchiefs), raw  silk,  cotton  piece  goods,  cel- 
luloid and  celluloid  articles,  matches,  acetic 
acid,  window  glass,  timber,  and  a  host  of  other 
lines.  Raw  materials  required  for  the  com- 
pany's factories  are  imported  from  America, 
Europe,  and  China,  and  the  export  trade  is 
mainly  directed  to  America,  Europe,  China, 
AustraKa,  British  India,  Java  and  other 
islands  in  the   South  Seas. 


When  the  company  was  formed,  the 
stock  was  mainly  taken  up  by  Mr.  Iwai 
and  his  relatives,  and  the  interest  of  the 
employees  was  cared  for  by  the  distribution  of 
a  quantity  of  the  shares  among  the  heads 
of  the  various  departments.  The  principal 
officers  of  Iwai  &  Co.,  Ltd.,  are:  President 
Director,  Mr.  Katsujiro  Iwai;  Chief  Manag- 
ing Director,  Mr.  Yuzuru  Yasuno;  Managing 
Directors,  Messrs.  Toyoji  Iwai  and  Yaichiro 
Fukuzawa:  Director,  Mr.  Umetaro  Iwai, 
and  Auditors,  Messrs.  Washitaro  Naga- 
shima  and  Tametaro  Imoto.  The  head  office 
building  is  a  fine  brick  and  stone  edifice. 
Iwai  &  Co.,  Ltd.,  give  employment  to  about 
two  hundred  assistants  and  workmen. 

CHO.  ITO  &  CO. 
Despite  the  fact  that  this  firm  was  only 
established  in  May,  19 1 6,  it  has  already 
attained  to  a  commanding  position  in  busi- 
ness circles  in  the  west  of  Japan,  and  ranks 
in  financial  importance  with  such  large 
concerns  as  Suzuki  &  Co.  and  others.     Not 


only  does  the  firm  do  a  considerable  foreign 
trade  in  imports  and  exports,  but  it  has  been 
developed  along  the  right  lines,  embracing 
in  its  operations  such  important  interests 
as  mining,  shipping,  manufacturing,  and 
financing. 

The  founder  of  the  firm  is  Mr  Chozo  Ito, 
brother  of  Mr.  Chojiro  Ito,  ex-member  of 
the  House  of  Peers,  and  one  of  the  richest 
landowners  and  highest  taxpayers  in  Japan. 
Through  the  family  connections  Messrs. 
Cho.  Ito  iS:  Co.  therefore  have  unlimited 
financial  backing  and  influence,  and  it  is 
not  surprising  that  they  have  developed 
such  a  remarkably  strong  position  in  the 
course  of  two  years.  Mr.  Chozo  Ito  was 
bom  in  1887,  at  Imaichi,  Harima.  He  was 
graduated  from  the  Kobe  Commercial  Col- 
lege in  191  o  and -took  the  professional  course 
of  the  Tokv'O  Commercial  College,  from 
which  he  was  graduated  in  191 2.  From 
1913  to  19 1 5  he  served  in  the  Army  and 
obtained  his  commission  as  sub-lieutenant. 
Shortly    after    leaving    military    service   he 


THE    PICTURESQUE    RESIMENCK    I  >i-    MR.    C.    ITO,    PRESIDENT  OF   CHO.    ITO   &    CO.  —  THE    l'KI\AIl'    UFllCK    <-lF    MK,    CHO.    ITU 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


683 


started  on  his  business  career,  and  soon 
attracted  attention  as  one  of  the  most 
brilliant  of  the  modern  younger  commercial 
men.  When  he  founded  Cho.  Ito  &  Co.  it 
was  realised  that  Mr.  Ito  had  realised  his 
great  opportunity.  His  keen  observation 
had  noted  the  effects  of  the  world  war,  and 
he  saw  many  lines  in  which  business  enter- 
prise could  be  profitably  directed.  In  form- 
ing Cho.  Ito  &  Co.,  he  called  a  number  of 
capable  and  experienced  business  men  around 
him,  and  within  one  year  he  had  placed  the 
firm  in  a  very  proud  position  as  the  leading 
trading  concern  in  Kob^.  Mr.  Chozo  Ito  is 
also  the  Managing  Partner  of  the  Ito  Trust 
and  Finance  Company,  a  director  of  the  Tai- 
sho  Steamship  Company,  director  of  the  Ocean 
Transport  Company,  director  of  the  Japan 
Spun  Silk  Mill,  and  director  of  the  Japan  Oil 
Manufacturing  Co.,  of  the  Japan  Asbestos 
Slate  Manufacturing  Co.,  of  the  Peninsular 
Rubber  Estate  and  Finance  Co.,  and  of  the 
Sanjuhachi  Bank.  Furthermore,  he  is  one 
of  the  principal  stockholders  of  the  Toa  Cru- 
cible and  Graphite  Company  and  also  the 
owner  of  a  number  of  copper,  tungsten,  and 
graphite  mines.  Even  if  it  be  admitted  that 
Mr.  Ito  has  had  a  splendid  training  in  the 
science  of  modern  business,  it  must  be  realised 
that  for  a  man  scarcely  thirty  years  of  age 
to  hold  so  many  responsible  positions,  while 
at  the  same  time  directing  a  vast  enter- 
prise like  Cho.  Ito  &  Co.,  speaks  volumes 
for  the  capability  and  business  acumen  of 
the  man. 

Messrs.  Cho.  Ito  &  Co.'s  business  is 
divided  into  well  organised  departments. 
The  Trade  Department  principally  engages 
in  the  direct  import  and  export  of  general 
merchandise,  manufactures,  and  produce. 
The  main  lines  are  mineral  ores,  metals,  and 
metal  wares,  cereals  and  other  natural 
produce,  oils,  chemicals,  camphor,  skins, 
hides  and  leather,  cotton  yarn  and  cotton 
piece  goods,  woollen  goods,  raw  silk,  silk 
goods,  sugar,  gunny  bags,  and  curios.  The 
monthly  value  of  the  goods  handled  by  this 
department  reaches  over  Yen  3,000,000. 
Trade  is  conducted  through  direct  branches 
in  Russia,  China,  the  South  Seas,  and  America 
and  through  despatch  offices  which  are 
situated  at  Tientsin,  Shanghai,  Harbin, 
Changchun,  Osaka,  and  Seoul.  Arrange- 
ments are  now  being  made  to  establish 
branches  at  London  and  New  York. 

Mining  Dep.\rtment.  Through  this  de- 
partment such  Unes  as  copper,  graphite, 
tungsten,  molybden,  and  coal  are  handled. 
The  department  also  has  under  its  control 
the  firm's  own  mine  at  Kaina,  Tokushima 
Prefecture,  and  also  some  fifty  or  sixty 
properties  in  which  Messrs.  Cho.  Ito  &  Co. 
have  the  mining  rights. 


Shipping  Department.  In  this  section  of 
the  business,  the  sale,  purchase,  and  charter- 
ing of  ships  is  conducted.  Messrs.  Cho. 
Ito  &  Co.  have  three  vessels  of  a  tonnage 
of  7,000  under  construction,  and  have 
charters  over  six  vessels  of  a  total  of  27,000 
tons,  which  are  engaged  in  the  trade  with 
North  America.  It  is  planned  to  establish 
a  Machinery  Department  at  an  early  date. 
Messrs.  Cho.  Ita  &■  Co.  also  own  the  follow- 


with  other  countries.  The  business  was 
founded  by  Mr.  S.  E.  Giles,  an  Englishman, 
who  came  to  Japan  over  sixteen  years  ago 
to  join  a  British  firm,  of  whose  Kobd  office 
he  subsequently  took  entire  charge.  In 
1908  Mr.  Giles  started  as  a  merchant  on 
his  own  account,  and,  with  considerable 
experience  at  his  command,  as  well  as  a 
wide  knowledge  of  the  requirements  of 
foreign  buyers,   he  quickly  realised  a  large 


^m 

I'^m 

i 
4 

1 

Si. 

p^T'. 

^^^NHp  iS^                     vXIl^'BB^?' 

IM 

^■:xm 

5i3¥i^^' 

5^yH^>:  Mi^»;^ii 

H^Hv      I 

"ffl(n?(%-fV9 

111 

m^ 

N^^-'U- 

> 

1 

1 P  1 

^i^trf*^'^ 

'J 

scenes   on    the   JOHORE    estate    of    the    peninsular   rubber   &    FINANCE   CO.,    LTD. 

(cho.    ito   &   CO.) 


ing  concerns:  (A)  The  Ito  Kigyo  Goshi 
Kaisha,  with  a  capital  of  Yen  1,000,000, 
which  is  a  financial  organisation  for  the 
accommodation  of  industries  and  businesses 
with  funds,  and  for  the  sale,  purchase,  and 
acceptance  of  bonds,  etc.,  as  well  as  for 
investment  in  business.  (B)  The  Toa 
Crucible  and  Graphite  Co.,  Ltd.,  with  a 
capital  of  Yen  500,000,  engaged  in  mining 
graphite  and  the  manufacture  of  crucibles. 
This  company  has  an  extensive  graphite 
field  at  Heiando,  Korea,  and  a  big  factory 
at  Imamiya,  Osaka.  (C)  The  Hanto  Gomu 
Kigyo  Kabushiki  Kaisha,  with  a  capital  of 
Yen  1,000,000,  which  has  a  rubber  planta- 
tion of  2,000  acres  in  Johore,  Federated 
Malay  Settlements.  (D)  The  Takuma  Sys- 
tem Boiler  Manufacturing  Co.,  which  manu- 
factures boilers  under  the  Takuma  system. 
The  head  office  of  Messrs.  Cho.  Ito  &  Co. 
is  at  No.  33  Kitanagasa-dori,  4-chome,  Kobe. 

S.    E.    GILES 
This  firm  was  established  in  1908  in  the 
business   of   import   and   export   merchants, 
and    has    steadily    expanded    its    operations 


measure  of  success.  In  1913  the  present 
premises  at  No.  58  Naniwa  Machi,  Kob^, 
were  acquired,  and  were  considerably  en- 
larged to  meet  requirements.  At  present 
the  business  occupies  the  whole  of  the 
three-storied  building  (with  a  newly  built 
three-storied  brick  godown  at  the  rear),  in 
addition  to  which  a  separate  department 
is  accommodated  at  No.  4  Isogamidori, 
i-chome,  Kobe,  where  the  firm  has  a  two- 
storied  building  with  spacious  brick  godowns 
for  the  transaction  of  the  Australasian  busi- 
ness. In  1916  Mr.  Giles  took  over  the  busi- 
ness (of  about  twenty  years'  standing)  of 
the  late  Mr.  John  F.  Duff,  including  the 
entire  staff  and  the  premises  at  Isogamidori, 
Ono,  where  the  Australasian  import  and 
export  department  is  conducted.  Mr.  Giles 
is  one  of  the  largest  shippers  to  South  Africa 
and  Australasia,  and  has  also  been  shipping 
to  Europe.  He  is  now  paying  attention  to 
America,  Russia,  India,  China,  and,  in  fact, 
every  part  of  the  world  where  a  market  is 
likely  to  be  found  for  the  various  lines  he 
handles.  Each  of  the  departments  in  this 
business  is  managed  by  a  foreigner,  who  is 


.tM 


1£ 


I     ■  1 


HI 


S.    E.    GILES;    KOBE    STAI-r    AND    OFFICES — INSPECTION    OF    MATTING  —  EXAMINATION    OF    BLANKETS   FOR    EXPORT — BRANCH    OFFICE 

AT  ISOGAMIDORI,    KOBE — -A   CORNER  IN   THE    STRAWBRAID    GODOWN 


P  R  E  S  E  N    r  -  D  A  Y        IMPRESSIONS        OF        JAPAN 


68.S 


OWI   &   CO.:      GENERAL    VIEW    ol-    THE    lAClOKY    AT   SAKAI,    OSAKA-FU  —  VIEWS   OK    THE    HEAD   OFFICE    AND    CODoWNS,    KOBE 


ably  assisted  by  an  expert  native  staff,  in 
close  touch  with  the  market.  All  goods  are 
subjected  to  a  rigourous  examination  by 
Japanese  inspectors  and  the  foreigner  in 
charge  of  the  department  before  shipment. 

The  Floor  Coverings  Department  of  the 
firm  handles  matting  and  matting  rugs, 
straw,  rush  and  grass  mats,  cotton,  woollen, 
and  jute  carpets  and  rugs,  rag  rugs,  and 
every  description  of  Japanese-made  floor 
coverings,  stencilled  and  woven.  The  men 
in  this  department  specialise  in  their  own 
lines,  and  complete  satisfaction  to  customers 
is   therefore   assured. 

In  the  Braid  and  Hat  Department  Mr. 
Giles  is  specially  fortunate  in  having  at 
his  service  men  who  have  been  thoroughly 
trained — nay,  born — in  the  business.  Man 
being  only  human  is  liable  to  make  mistakes 
occasionally  in  the  selection  and  inspection 
of  goods,  but  thanks  to  the  skill  and  experi- 
ence of  the  staff  in  this  department,  such 
risks  are  reduced  to  a  minimum.  As  the 
name  suggests,  the  department  deals  in 
straw,  chip  and  hemp  braids,  and  all  kinds 
of  hats  such  as  imitation  Panama,  straw,  etc. 


In  the  Cotton  Goods  Department  some  of 
the  lines  handled  are:  singlets,  underpants, 
socks,  gloves,  table  cloths,  serviettes,  doyleys, 
towels,  sheetings,  counterpanes,  bedspreads, 
drawn  thread  work,  crepe  piece  and  made-up 
goods,  shirts,  pyjamas,  kimonos,  jackets, 
gowns,  suits,  dress  material,  curtains,  thread, 
crochet  cotton,  yarn,  waste,  and  all  kinds 
of  hosiery  goods. 

The  Silk  Department  handles  silk  in  piece 
and  made-up  goods,  such  as  handkerchiefs, 
shirts,  pyjamas,  suits,  dress  goods,  kimonos, 
gowns,  ladies'  underwear,  silk  socks  and 
stockings,  yarn,  and  every  description  of 
manufactured  goods. 

Exports  through  the  Produce  Department 
include  timber,  rice,  beans,  peanuts,  peas, 
superphosphates,  camphor,  bamboo  poles, 
straw  envelopes,  ginger,  broom  rushes,  rope, 
twine,  chemicals,  etc. 

Besides  the  lines  already  mentioned  Mr. 
Giles  has  a  department  for  handling  sundry 
goods  such  as  baskets,  suit  cases,  blinds, 
brushes,  porcelain,  glassware,  paper  goods, 
toys,  screens,  furniture,  vacuum  flasks, 
leather   bags   and    purses,    cotton   and   jute 


webbing,  umbrellas,  sunshades,  walking 
sticks,  gas  mantles,  tennis  racquets,  station- 
ery, penknives,  pencils,  penholders,  lacquer 
ware,  antimony  ware,  brassware,  bronze 
ware,  enamel  ware,  cutlery,  window  glass, 
art  curios,  wire  and  wire  nails,  electric  light 
fittings,  chemicals  and  chemists'  supplies, 
medical  an(;l  surgical  instruments,  metal 
goods,  bicycle  accessories,  buttons  and  press 
studs,  and  every  description  of  Japanese 
manufactures. 

The  Australasian  Department  deals  with 
ail  export  and  import  business  with  AustraUa, 
New  Zealand,  etc.,  and  the  Russian  Depart- 
ment is  worked  in  conjunction  with  Mr. 
G.  K.  Kahn  of  Vladivostock,  Dairen,  Harbin, 
and  Moscow,  transacting  all  classes  of  export 
and  import  business  with  Russia  and  Man- 
churia. 

Besides  the  export  business,  Mr.  Giles  is 
interested  in  the  import  into  Japan  of 
asbestos,  wool,  rice,  Manchurian  produce, 
beans,  bean  cake,  metals,  waste  rubber, 
bones,  bristles,  horns,  hoofs,  skins,  etc.,  and 
in  addition  to  these  he  is  prepared  to  take 
up  any  new  lines  on  receipt  of  enquiries.     As 


686 

r 


PRESENT-DAV   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


LAND  &  cox:   SCENE  IN  THE  STRAW  HAT  GODOWN  —  PREPARING  GOODS  FOR  EXPORT  IN  THE  GENERAL  FANCY  GOODS  DEPARTMENT 


may  be  gathered  from  the  above  Mr.  Giles 
transacts  a  widely  varied  business,  calling 
for  experience  and  close  study  of  the  different 
markets  and  commercial  conditions  generally, 
for  its  successful  operation.  That  Mr.  Giles 
possesses  the  confidence  of  tlie  Japanese,  and 
is  regarded  as  a  sound  business  man,  is 
illustrated  by  the  fact  that  he  was  for  some 
time  Honorary  Adviser  to  the  Mayor  of 
Kob^.  The  post  office  address  of  the  firm 
is  P.  O.  Box  No.  192,  Kobe;  telegraphic 
address  "Giles"  Kobe,  codes,  A.  B.  C.  5th, 
Western  Union  and  Bentley's.  Reference, 
the  Hongkong  &  Shanghai  Banking  Corpo- 
ration. 

McKAY    &    CO. 

McKay  &  Co.  of  Kob6,  Japan,  was 
started  as  a  merchant  commission  house 
in  1897,  the  business  originally  being  mainly 
confined  to  the  export  of  mattings,  porce- 
lains, and  toys  to  the  American  market. 
As  the  industries  of  Japan  developed  to 
permit  of  the  export  of  other  lines  of  produce 
and  manufacture,  Messrs.  McKay  &  Co. 
extended  their  markets  to  Europe,  Australia, 


New  Zealand  and  elsewhere.  To-day  they 
ship  to  practically  any  point  in  the  world 
where  Japanese  goods  are  in  demand,  and 
handle  such  lines  as  mattings,  rugs  of  ever}' 
description,  toys,  curios,  glassware,  silks, 
cotton  goods,  porcelains,  aU  kinds  of  natural 
produce,  drugs  (both  crude  and  manufac- 
tured), and  in  fact,  every  manufacture  of 
the  manj'  Japanese  industries  which  the 
outer  world  needs.  The  firm  executes 
orders  on  a  commission  basis,  buying  to 
the  best  advantage  in  the  centres  of  pro- 
duction, shipping  under  the  best  conditions, 
and  conducting  a  thorough  inspection  of  all 
articles  before  shipment,  thus  giving  com- 
plete satisfaction  to  the  buyer.  McKay  & 
Co.  have  special  facilities  for  handling  many 
varieties  of  mattings,  and  employ  a  number 
of  expert  workmen  in  this  department  of 
native  industry.  They  have  extensive  go- 
downs  and  inspection  compounds  adjacent 
to  the  head  office  which  is  at  No.  49  Harima- 
machi,  Kob6.  Sample  offices  are  maintained 
by  the  fimi  at  No  1 170  Broadway,  New 
York.  Intending  purchasers  are  invited  to 
write  for  samples  and  prices. 


OWI  &  CO.,  OSAKA  AND  KOBE 
Since  the  time  of  the  predecessor  of  Mr. 
T.  Owi,  Owi  &  Co.,  Osaka,  have  been  large 
manufacturers  of  all  kinds  of  glassware, 
especially  of  glass  bangles,  on  an  enormous 
scale.  Mr.  T.  Owi  entered  upon  export 
business  in  September,  191 3,  when  he  estab- 
lished Owi  &  Co.,  Kobe,  under  the  super- 
vision of  his  partner  and  the  general  manager, 
Mr.  M.  Hira,  who  has  over  thirty  years' 
experience  in  the  export  trade  of  Japan, 
particularly  in  manufactured  goods  and 
natural  produce.  Owi  &  Co.  have  offices 
and  godowns  in  Kob6,  and  their  factories 
are  at  Sakai,  Osaka-fu.  The  land  and 
buildings,  which  cover  156  tstibo  in  Kob^, 
are  their  own  property,  and  on  the  site  of 
the  Kobe  office,  at  59  Naniwa-Machi,  Kobe, 
a  handsome  three-storied  building  has  been 
erected.  Owi  &  Co.  confine  their  business 
almost  entirely  to  exports,  handling  a  large 
volume  of  trade,  including  the  products  of 
their  own  factories.  Their  main  lines  are 
agricultural  produce,  metals,  fish  oils,  isin- 
glass, starch,  ginger,  peanuts,  bleaching 
powder,    caustic    soda,    camphor,    menthol, 


:  m  ii  II  nr  II  rrii  n  n  !i  rr  rr  i  r  i  i 


I 


m--M>. 


MCKAY   &   CO.:      A    IlNi:    IIIM'IW    UF    PORCELAIN    FROM    THE   FIRM's    NAGOYA    SHOWROOMS  —  A    SCENE    IN    THE    MATTING    GODOWN- 
STENCILLING    IN    THE    MATTING    GODOWN  —  PACKING    PORCELAIN    WARE    AT   THE    NAGOYA   GODOWNS 


688 


PRESENT-  n  A   V        1   M   P   K  i;  S  S  I  O  N  S        OF        JAPAN 


vegetable  wax,  sulphur,  and  chemicals. 
The  manufactured  goods  dealt  in  for  export 
are  cotton  piece  goods,  singlets,  towels, 
socks,  blankets,  and  sundries  such  as  but- 
tons, brushes,  electric  w'are,  glassware, 
mattings,  matches,  porcelain,  writing  and 
printing  papers,  rugs,  straw  and  chip  braids, 
tea  chests  and  so  on.  A  competent  staff  of 
departmental  heads  is  employed,  and  the 
general  employees  number  thirty.     An  exten- 


special  attention  to  one  or  two  branches  of 
the  export  trade,  in  which  they  have  been 
conspicuously  successful.  These  are  the  hat 
and  button  industries.  Since  the  founda- 
tion of  the  firm  they  have  been  among  the 
three  largest  shippers  of  hats  made  in  Japan 
under  their  own  direction,  and  they  are 
probably  the  largest  shippers  of  buttons,  a 
trade  which  has  developed  to  a  remarkable 
extent  in  the  last  few  years.     Messrs.  Land 


tageous  position  for  obtaining  the  highest 
prices  for  the  dealers  in,  and  users  of  the 
shell.  The  large  and  experienced  staff  of 
the  firm  enables  them  to  handle  any  volume 
of  business,  and  the  extent  of  their  opera- 
tions permits  them  to  quote  the  lowest  prices 
available  for  goods  for  export  abroad.  It 
has  always  been  the  policy  of  the  firm  to 
pay  cash  immediately  on  delivery  of  goods 
by  the  various  suppliers,  thus  instilling  con- 


KOBli    OFFICES   AND   GODOWNS   OK    PETER    FRASER   &   CO. 


sive  overseas  trade  is  done  with  British 
India,  Australia,  South  Africa,  the  United 
States,  and  Canada.  Mr.  T.  Owi  is  the 
principal  of  the  firm.  This  firm  has  developed 
a  healthy  business  in  less  than  five  years 
and  enjoys  a  commendably  high  reputation 
in   the   trading    community. 

LAND  &  COX 
This  firm  of  commission  agents,  and 
import  and  export  merchants,  was  formed 
on  January  I,  19 15,  and  with  a  lengthy 
experience  of  trade  in  Japan,  and  the  require- 
ments of  foreign  markets,  on  the  part  of  its 
principals,  it  has  developed  an  extensive 
business.     Messrs.  Land  &  Cox  have  given 


&  Cox  handle  annually  an  enormous  quan- 
tity of  buttons  of  all  kinds,  shipping  them 
extensively  to  all  parts  of  the  world,  but 
principally  to  the  United  States,  which  is 
also  the  largest  market  for  hats.  In  general 
export  lines  the  firm  handles  extensively 
such  items  as  brushes,  toys,  glassware, 
porcelain,  copper  and  brass  ware,  leather 
goods,  straw,  chip,  and  hemp  braids,  and 
general  produce. 

Messrs.  Land  &  Cox  are  also  interested 
in  imports  to  Japan,  the  principal  line  being 
Trocas  shell,  used  for  making  buttons. 
They  are  particularly  well  placed  for  hand- 
ling consignments  of  shell,  as  their  large 
button  business  gives  them  the  most  advan- 


fidence  in  the  stability  of  the  concern,  and 
inducing  dealers  to  quote  the  lowest  prices 
for   their  products. 

Included  in  the  various  business  opera- 
tions of  Messrs.  Land  &  Cox  is  the  agency 
for  the  Palatine  Insurance  Co.,  Ltd. 

Mr.  Douglas  Cox,  Managing  Partner  of 
the  firm's  business  in  Japan,  was  bom  at 
Luton,  England,  in  1881.  He  came  to  Japan 
in  1903  and  entered  the  ser\-ice  of  Messrs. 
Strome  &  Co.  of  Yokohama  and  Kobe.  He 
was  Manager  for  that  firm,  and  later  for 
Messrs.  Strome  &  Co.,  Ltd.,  from  January, 
1906,  until  he  formed  a  partnership  with 
Mr.  David  Land  in  January,  1915.  The 
new  firm  took  over  the  business  of  Messrs. 


!•  U   K  S  E  N  T  -  D  A  V 


I   M   P  k  K  S  S  I  O  N  S 


O  \- 


1  A   \>  A  N 


689 


J.    M.    MACDONALD   &    CO.:     THE    HAT    DEPARTMENT  —  VIEW    IN    THE   COMPOUND 


Strome  &  Co.,  Ltd.,  at  Kobe.  It  may  be 
said  that  Mr.  Cox  was  brought  up  in  the 
straw  braid  and  hat  business,  and  his  general 
knowledge  of  the  export  trade  of  Japan  is 
extensive  and  sound.  Mr.  David  Land  is 
in  charge  of  the  firm's  office  in  New  York. 
The  address  of  Messrs.  Land  &  Cox  is  P.  O. 
Box  112,  Kobe.  Their  bankers  are  the 
Hongkong  &  Shanghai  Banking  Corporation 
and  the  Chartered  Bank  of  India,  AustraHa, 
and   China. 

PETER  FRASER  &  CO. 
The  business  of  Messrs.  Peter  Fraser  & 
Co.  of  Kobe  has  been  established  about  ten 
years,  and  was  founded  by  Mr.  Fraser,  who 
has  had  twenty  years'  experience  of  the 
Japanese  export  trade,  and  the  different 
manufacturing  industries  in  whose  products 
his  firm  specialises.  In  addition  to  the 
regular  lines  which  are  generally  handled 
by  the  foreign  export  merchants,  this  firm 
has  several  departments,  under  expert  buyers, 
dealing  exclusively  in  such  manufactures  and 
products  as  the  following:  (.4)  Engineers' 
supplies    in    brass,    copper,    and    zinc    rods, 


tubes,  sheets,  etc.;  valves,  fittings,  castings, 
sheet  lead,  lead  pipes,  cotton  waste,  crucibles, 
machine-tools,  brass-foundry,  electrical  fit- 
tings, wires,  cables,  etc.  (B)  Rubber  estates' 
supplies  such  as  tapping  knives,  latex  cups, 
latex  coagulating  pans,  porcelain  coagulating- 
tank  fittings,  acetic  acid,  rubber  machines, 
momi  and  veneer  cases.  (C)  Porcelain,  glass- 
ware, and  enamelled  ware  of  all  kinds,  gas 
and  electric-light  fittings  and  industrial 
chemicals.  {D}  Cotton  blankets,  counter- 
panes, towels,  underwear,  crepes,  etc.  There 
is  also  a  department  entirely  devoted  to 
floor  coverings  in  jute,  cotton,  wool,  and 
rush  material.  Peter  Fraser  &  Co.  are  the 
sole  selling-agents  for  the  celebrated  "Dixie" 
(seagrass)  rugs  and  runners,  which  are  the 
most  artistic,  hygienic,  and  economical  rugs 
on  the  market.  For  many  years  the  firm 
has  devoted  special  attention  to  the  brush 
business,  and  Peter  Fraser  &  Co.  export  in 
large  quantities  tooth  and  hair  brushes, 
military  and  cloth  brushes,  and  numerous 
household  lines  in  brushware  generally. 
The  firm  has  extensive  offices  and  godowiis 
at  No.   1 13  Kita-machi,  Kobe,  the  premises 


being  among  the  finest  and  most  commodious 
in  the  former  Foreign  Settlement,  neverthe- 
less the  business  has  expanded  to  such  an 
extent  that  to  meet  the  steadily  increasing 
requirements  of  their  connections,  they  are 
now  increasing  their  personnel  and  securing 
additional  office  and  warehouse  accommo- 
dation. The  firm's  bankers  are  the  Hong- 
kong &  Shanghai  Banking  Corporation. 

J.    M.    MACDONALD    &    CO. 

This  company  was  established  on  January 
I,  1916,  and  took  over  at  that  time  the  entire 
organisation  and  general  export  business  of 
Messrs.  Smith,  Baker  Company,  who  with 
their  predecessors,  Messrs.  Smith,  Baker  & 
Co.,  had  been  established  in  Japan  as  far 
back  as  1868.  Mr.  J.  M.  Macdonald,  the 
proprietor  of  J.  M.  Macdonald  &  Co.,  was 
connected  with  the  earlier  companies  for 
more  than  thirteen  years  and  was  their 
Manager  for  Japan. 

Messrs.  J.  M.  Macdonald  &  Co.  maintain 
offices  and  godowns  at  Kob^,  Osaka,  and 
Yokohama,  and  carry  on  a  large  general 
export  business  from   Japan,  maintaining  a 


690 


PBESENT-DAY 


1  M 


k  !<:  S  S  I  O  N  S       O  V       JAPAN 


competent  staff  of  inspectors  in  their  various 
lines  of  mercliandise 

In  addition,  the  firm  are  agents  at  Osaka 
and  Kob6  for  the  South  British  Insurance 
Co.,  Ltd.,  both  Fire  and  Marine  Depart- 
ments, and  for  the  Guardian  Assurance  Co., 
Ltd.,  Fire  Department.  They  also  act  as 
marine  settling  agents  for  the  Guardian 
Assurance  Co.,  Ltd.,  Marine  Department, 
the  Eastern  United  Assurance  Corporation, 
and  the  Farmers  Co-operative  Insurance 
Association  of  New  Zealand,   Ltd. 

ISRAEL  &  OPPENHEIMER,  LIMITED 
This  is  one  of  the  important  and  active 
foreign  companies  that  have  realised  the 
strength  of  Japan  as  a  field  for  investment 
in  manirfacturing  enterprise,  and  have  con- 
tributed largely  to  the  development  of  indus- 
tries that  may  be  considered  natural  to  the 
country,  but  only  requiring  foreign  direction 
and  modem  methods  to  put  them  on  a  proper 
footing.  Messrs.  Israel  &  Oppenheimer, 
Ltd.,  are  known  in  commercial  circles  as 
general  merchants  and  commission  agents 
in  Japanese  goods,  but  apart  from  their 
activities  as  merchants,  they  also  direct  very 
valuable  industrial  enterprises  covering  the 
manufacture  of  buttons,  hosiery,  brushes, 
etc.  The  company  is  a  London  organisa- 
tion of  many  years'  standing.  It  was 
formed  into  a  limited  liability  concern  on 
February  26,  1912,  with  a  capital  of  £51,250, 
and  formally  registered  in  Japan  the  same 
year,  establishing  its  head  office  for  Japan 
at  Kob^,  and  forming  a  branch  at  Yokohama, 
with  foreign  branches  and  agencies  scattered 
throughout  the  world.  The  company  turned 
its  attention  specially  to  certain  lines  for 
which  there  was  a  strong  foreign  demand, 
and  among  these  may  be  mentioned  its 
development  of  the  button-making  trade, 
and  the  glove  and  hosiery  industries.  Apart 
from  these  special  features  of  the  company's 
operations,  Messrs.  Israel  &  Oppenheimer, 
Ltd.,  handle  practically  all  lines  of  Japanese 
products  and  manufactures  for  which  there 
is  a  foreign  demand.  They  are  kept  closely 
in  touch  with  overseas  requirements  through 
their  representatives  abroad,  and  it  is  hardly- 
necessary  to  add  that  the  business  has  been 
developed  in  a  highly  satisfactory  manner. 
The  company  exports  large  quantities  of 
buttons,  gloves,  brushes,  hosiery,  silks, 
chinaware,  lacquer  ware,  fancy  goods,  etc. 
Shipments  are  regularly  made  to  England, 
France,  Italy,  Switzerland,  Spain,  Holland, 
Russia,  the  United  States,  Canada,  New 
Zealand,  AustraUa,  South  Africa,  Egypt  and 
elsewhere.  The  head  office  for  Japan  of 
Messrs.  Israel  &  Oppenheimer,  Ltd.,  is  at 
98  Yedo  Machi,  Kobe,  where  the  offices 
and   godowns   are   situated.     The   godowns 


cover  an  area  of  9,000  square  feet,  and  the 
ofiices,  2,000  square  feet.  Godowns  and 
offices  at  Yokohama  are  at  No.  242  and 
No.  75  D,  respectively.  All  the  buildings 
are  of  stone.  The  Kob6  staff  comprises 
ninety  hands,  and  that  at  Yokohama,  twenty. 
Mr.  E.  Ott  is  the  General  Manager  for 
Japan.  The  foreign  branches  of  the  com- 
pany are:  London  (head  office);  No.  314 
Notre  Dame  West,  Montreal,  Canada;  No.  37 
WelHngton  St.  West,  Toronto,  Canada,  and 
New  York  City.  Agents  for  Messrs.  Israel  &■ 
Oppenheimer,  Ltd., are:  Zurich  (Switzerland), 
Mr.  E.  F.  Koch;  Milan  (Italy),  Mr.  E. 
Pfau,  and  Paris,  Mr.  E.  Rosenberg. 

The  principals  of  the  company  are  the 
following  Directors:  Messrs.  A.  Israel, 
R.  Oppenheimer,  B.  S.  Godfrey,  and  E.  A. 
Baines  (London  head  office),  H.  Fiedler 
(Canada  head  office,  Montreal),  F.  F.  Bowe 
(United  States  head  office,  New  York),  and 
E.   Ott   (Japan  head  office,   Kob^). 

LAZZAR.\,    ROMBERG    &    CO. 

The  business  of  this  well  known  firm 
comprises  the  amalgamation,  as  from  the 
beginning  of  1918,  of  the  interests  of  two  old 
established  concerns,  and  the  combination 
of  operations  formerly  very  closely  allied  by 
friendly  relations.  Messrs.  Lazzara,  Rom- 
berg &  Co.  trade  as  manufacturers,  general 
merchants,   importers,   and   exporters. 

The  former  firm  of  G.  Lazzara  &  Co. 
(Italian)  was  established  ten  years  ago  by 
Messrs.  G.  Lazzara  and  E.  A.  Herrera. 
Mr.  Lazzara  came  from  Italy  in  1905  to 
develop  the  coral  trade.  He  established 
himself  in  business  with  the  aid  of  his  friend, 
Mr.  Herrera  (a  brother  of  Colonel  Herrera, 
Military  Attache  to  the  Spanish  Embassy 
in  Tokyo).  The  firm  of  E.  Homberg  &  Co. 
(French)  was  estabhshed  first  by  Mr.  M. 
Thieck,  head  accountant  from  1906  of  an 
important  French  firm,  which  closed  in  1911, 
owing  to  the  general  depression  of  trade  at 
that  period.  Mr.  E.  Homberg  came  to  Japan 
in  1913.  He  is  related  to  the  French  family 
of  financiers,  so  well  known  in  America  since 
the  floating  of  the  French-American  Loan, 
when  Mr.  O.  Homberg  went  to  the  United 
States  to  conduct  the  negotiations  for  that 
undertaking.  Messrs.  Thieck  and  Homberg 
entered  into  partnership,  but  had  scarcely 
developed  a  prosperous  business  when  the 
war  broke  out,  and  both  partners  were  called 
to  the  colours  and  left  Kob^  for  France  at 
once,  entrusting  their  interests  and  the  full 
management  of  their  business  to  their  friends, 
Messrs.  G.  Lazzara  &  Co.,  with  whom  they 
had  had  the  most  intimate  relations.  A  few 
months  later,  as  Mr.  Lazzara  had  to  leave 
for  Italy  on  business,  and  in  response  to 
his  country's  call,  the  whole  burden  of  the 


combined  interests  fell  on  Mr.  Herrera. 
After  three  years'  strenuous  efforts  and  hard 
work  for  both  firms,  the  relationship  of  the 
two  concerns  became  so  close  that  it  was 
decided  (on  the  return  of  Messrs.  Thieck 
and  Homberg,  both  wounded  and  unfit  for 
further  military  service)  to  amalgamate  the 
two  businesses  under  the  present  name  of 
Lazzara,  Homberg  &  Co.,  the  partners  being 
Messrs.  G.  Lazzara,  E.  A.  Herrera,  E.  Hom- 
berg, and  M.  Thieck.  Mr.  Homberg  served 
in  the  French  Army  as  a  sergeant  in  the 
Black  Troops,  and  Mr.  Thieck,  who  was 
twice  seriously  wounded  in  action,  was  pro- 
moted to  officer's  rank  in  the  Dare-Devils 
Battalion. 

The  amalgamation  of  the  two  concerns 
is  the  result  of  the  unity  of  management  of 
Mr.  Herrera  for  nearly  four  years,  during 
which  period  were  developed  the  valuable 
interests  so  closely  connecting  both  firms. 
The  capital  of  the  combined  firm  is  Yen 
1,000,000.  They  have  godowns  and  factories 
at  Kob^,  Osaka,  Tokyo,  and  Aomori,  and 
branches  in  Manila,  New  York,  Milan,  Paris, 
and  Shanghai.  Principal  Unes  of  imports 
are  chemicals,  coffee,  hemp,  copra,  old  iron, 
rape-seed,  linseed,  ivory,  cotton,  elemi  gum, 
gum  olibanum,  pepper,  lumber,  cotton  seeds, 
wax  hides,  old  rubber,  gum  tragacanth, 
cloves  Phembo,  cloves  Zanzibar,  casein,  senna 
leaves,  nux  vomica,  gingeli  seed,  castor  seed, 
ground  nuts,  oils,  tin  plates,  machinery, 
etc.  Exports  comprise  all  classes  of  Japa- 
nese metal  manufactures  such  as  copper  and 
brass  ingots,  electrolytic  copper,  copper  wire, 
brass  and  iron  wire,  and  aluminium  ware; 
glassware,  enamelled  ware,  brass  ware, 
nickel  ware,  camphor,  chemicals,  caustic 
soda,  copper  sulphate,  iron  sulphate,  resin, 
starches  of  all  sorts,  bleaching  powder, 
fertilizers,  sulphate  of  ammonia,  and  super- 
phosphates. Other  lines  are  cotton  piece 
goods,  silk  goods,  raw  silk,  silk  yam,  cotton 
yarn,  hosiery,  matches,  celluloid  goods, 
porcelain,  hemp  ropes,  rubber  goods,  cement, 
tea  chests,  leather  goods,  paper  strawboard, 
toys,  bent  wood  furniture,  dried  ginger, 
and  a  whole  host  of  sundry  lines.  These 
exports  go  principall)'  to  France,  Italy,  the 
Philippines,  Indo-China,  Russia,  Africa, 
Egypt,  America,  China,  the  Straits  Settle- 
ments, Java  and  elsewhere. 

Besides  their  business  in  Japan,  Messrs. 
Lazzara,  Homberg  &  Co.  are  carrying  on 
various  departmental  concerns  in  India  and 
other  countries,  under  various  firm  names, 
which  establishments  afford  them  ready 
facilities  for  business  in  other  markets.  The 
firm  cultivates  first-class  connections  only, 
amongst  which  is  included  the  O'Brien 
Trading  Co.  of  New  York.  Their  agents  in 
other    countries    are    as    follows:     Bombay, 


(  ■ 

!  i"  "i 

Ll   ly 

''  ill  +; 
II  i 

■\    11  * 

/      X// 

MESSRS.    ISRAEL    \-    ( IPPENHKIMEK,    I.TU.:      A    SCENE   IN    IHE    oLuVb    Uht'AK  IME.NT  —  WORKERS    IN     lllE    IIIITUN    UEPARTMENI 

VIEW   OF    THE    KOBfe    OFFICES 


SfPliiiPiiiliiliiiili^^ 


1.A//AKA,    HOMBERG   &    CO.:      THE    KCiHl'.    iilinl.^    AMi    MAI- 


P  It  K  S  E  N  T  -  n  A  ^•        IMPRESSIONS        OF        JAPAN 


693 


Messrs.  Mithabhoy  Nathoo;  Calcutta,  Messrs. 
Singh,  Sarkar  &  Co.;  Colombo,  Messrs.  E.  G. 
Adamally  &  Co.,  and  Rangoon,  Messrs.  Y. 
A.  Gany  &  Co.  A  clerical  staff  of  over  a 
hundred  is  employed  by  Messrs.  Lazzara, 
Romberg  &  Co.  Their  present  offices  having 
become  too  small  for  the  rapidly  developed 
business,  arrangements  are  being  made  for 
erection  of  a  four- storied  building,  with 
underground  warehouse,  on  a  piece  of  land 
measuring  200  tsubo.  This  land  is  the  prop- 
erty of  the  firm  and  is  located  in  the  most 
central  part  of  the  business  area  of  Kobe. 
The  firm  banks  with,  and  conducts  most  of 
its  foreign  operations  through,  the  Yokohama 
Specie  Bank.  In  the  business  world  the 
trade  mark  "309,"  on  the  exports  of  Messrs. 
Lazzara,  Romberg  &  Co.,  is  generally  well 
known  as  a  brand  of  quality.  The  postal 
address  of  the  firm  is  No.  309  Sannomiyacho, 
Ichome,   Kobe. 

THE      UNION      IMPORTING      &      EXPORT- 
ING   CO.,    LIMITED 

This  company  conducts  an  extensive  im- 
port and  export  business  from  its  head  office 
at  26  Naniwa-Machi,  Kob^,  and  through  its 


various  branches  and  agencies  throughout 
Japan  and  abroad,  besides  being  closely 
associated  through  a  sister  company  with 
the  shipping  interests  of  Japan.  The  staple 
lines  of  the  Union  Importing  &  Exporting 
Co.,  Ltd.,  are  iron  and  steel,  machinery, 
chemic.'xls,  crucibles,  silk  and  cotton  goods, 
natural  products,  animal  and  vegetable  oils, 
ores  and  all  kinds  of  industrial  materials. 
Associated  with  the  Toyo  Shosen  S.  S.  Co., 
this  enterprising  concern  runs  the  steamers 
Snelnro-maru,  Nawa-mani,  and  Nireiian- 
maru  in  home  waters. 

The  Union  Importing  &  Exporting  Co., 
Ltd.,  has  its  own  warehouses  at  Tokyo, 
Yokohama,  Kobe,  Changchun,  Vladivostock, 
and  San  Francisco.  Its  branches  and 
agencies  are  established  at  Tokyo,  Osaka, 
Dairen,  Hongkong,  Shanghai,  Harbin,  Chang- 
chun, Vladivostock,  Moscow,  Petrograd, 
Odessa,  Bombay,  Calcutta,  Marseilles,  New- 
York,  Chicago,  San  Francisco,  Seattle, 
Vancouver,  Manila,  Sydney,  and  Melbourne. 

MIYABE    &    SUYETAKA 
Although  of  comparatively  recent  origin 
the   gomei    kaisha,    or    partnership    firm   of 


Miyabe  &  Suyetaka,  has  rapidly  taken  its 
place  among  the  important  importing  and 
exporting  concerns  of  Kobd,  and  its  name 
is  well  known  in  the  foreign  business  com- 
munity. The  partnership  was  established 
in  1 91 6  by  Messrs.  S.  Miyabe,  of  Yokohama, 
and  K.  Suyetaka  and  N.  Imamura  of  Kob6. 
The  head  office  is  in  Yokohama,  and  branch 
offices  have  been  opened  at  Kob6  and  Nagoya. 
Practically  all  lines  of  imports  and  exports 
are  handled,  principal  among  the  exported 
items  being  the  following:  porcelains,  shell 
buttons,  brushes,  paper,  cotton  yarn  waste, 
carpets,  fans,  silk  goods,  straw  and  chip 
braids,  hemp  braids,  Panama  hats,  pepper- 
mint crystals  and  oil,  camphor,  vegetable 
wax,  isinglass,  Japanese  furs,  all  kinds  of 
Japanese  curios  and  art  goods,  and  general 
produce.  These  lines  are  shipped  to  the 
United  States,  Great  Britain  and  her  colonies 
and  elsewhere,  the  firm  having  connections 
and  representatives  throughout  the  principal 
foreign  countries.  In  return,  Messrs.  Miyabe 
and  Suyetaka  import  iron,  steel,  and  general 
merchandise. 

The    management   of    the    business   is   in 
capable  and  experienced  hands,  the  selection 


THE    UNION    IMPORTING    AND    EXPORTING   CO.,    LTD.:      A    CORNER    IN    THE    KODE    OFFICES  —  THE    SIAFF    .\T    KOHE 


45 


694 


PRESENT-DAY        I  M   1>  R  l".  S  S  I  O  N  S        OF        JAPAN 


KOBE    OFFICES   AND   GODOWNS   OF    MIVABE    &    SLVETAKA 


and  jjurchase  of  goods  for  customers 
being  made  in  the  different  centres  by 
the  partners,  who  give  their  personal  atten- 
tion to  all  details.  A  large  trade  is  being 
done,  and  the  future  of  the  firm  is  con- 
sidered very  bright. 

KYOSHIN-YOKO 

A  LARGE  volume  of  the  export  trade  of 
Japan  in  cereals  and  general  produce  is 
done  by  this  firm  of  importers  and  exporters, 
and  in  the  course  of  the  last  few  years  their 
operations  have  been  extended  very  widely 
throughout  Siberia  and  Russia.  The  Kyoshin- 
Yoko  was  established  at  Kobe  in  1901  by 
Air.  Kisaku  Daiko,  who  is  now  President  of 
the  concern.  Among  the  imports  handled 
by  the  firm  are  chemicals,  steel,  iron,  metal 
ware  generallj',  hides,  leather,  fats,  and  other 
raw  products  brought  from  Russia,  America, 
and  other  countries.  The  exports  comprise 
rice,  beans,  peas,  seeds,  oils,  bean  cake  and 
all  kinds  of  grain.  A  rice  mill  has  been 
established  at  Vladivostock,  and  there  is 
also  a  warehouse  and  branch  office  at  that 
centre.     Other     branches     are     at     Harbin, 


KYOSHIN-YOKO:   THE    KOBE    OFFICE  —  GIRLS   ENGAGED   IN    PICKING    BEANS 


PRESENT-  i:)  AY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


695 


IManchuria;  Fusan,  Korea;  Moscow,  Russia, 
and  at  Blagowcschcnsk  and  Habarousk, 
Siberia.  Russia  and  Siberia  are  perhaps 
the  best  markets  for  the  Kyoshin-Yoko,  but 
the  firm  also  exports  largely  to  the  United 
States,  Canada,  and  elsewhere.  The  head 
office  of  the  firm  is  at  4-chome,  Sakae-machi, 
Kobe,  Japan.  Mr.  Konosuke  Iwahashi  is 
the  General   Manager. 

E.    YOSHID.\ 

This  firm  was  established  in  the  Sjiring 
of  1917  by  Mr.  E.  Yoshida,  at  Isobedori, 
in  the  eastern  part  of  Kob^  City.  Mr. 
Yoshida  has  had  a  lengthy  experience  in 
the  export  and  import  business,  and  his 
knowledge  of  the  trade  in  certain  special 
lines,  particularly  Japanese  produce,  is 
admitted  to  be  wide  and  extensive.  Not- 
withstanding the  short  time  the  concern 
has  been  in  business  the  results  of  its  opera- 
tions have  exceeded  even  Mr.  Yoshida's 
anticipations,  and  its  operations  have  been 
developed  in  a  remarkable  degree.  Branches 
have  been  opened  at  Yokohama  and  Otaru, 
and  relations  have  been  established  with  the 
principal  countries  to  which  Japanese  goods 
are  exported.  Mr.  Yoshida  exports  rice, 
bean,  animal  and  vegetable  oils,  antimony, 
copper,  cotton  waste,  straw,  chip,  and  hemp 
braids,  and  curios,  and  imports  iron  and  steel, 
bones,  copra,  coconut  oil,  tin,  chemicals, 
drugs,  dyestuffs,  etc.  Exports  go  principally 
to  the  United  States,  but  Mr.  Yoshida  is 
now  opening  up  business  with  sundry  goods 
to  South  Africa,  South  America,  and  Scandi- 
navia. Raw  products,  such  as  rubber,  are 
being  imported  from  the  Straits  Settlements 
and  the  South  Seas,  and  an  extensive  trade 
in  Japanese  produce  is  done  with  London. 
The  extent  of  these  transactions  is  steadily 
on  the  increase.  In  all  these  lines  Mr. 
Yoshida  is  thoroughly  experienced,  and  is 
noteworthy  for  his  careful  handling  of  such 
items  as  chemicals,  dyestuffs,  and  piece  goods. 
Another  special  feature  of  the  firm's  opera- 
tions is  that  in  cases  where  it  receives  offers 
for  lines  it  has  not  previously  handled,  it 
gives  the  closest  attention  to  the  trade  so 
affected,  and  when  the  intricacies  of  the 
business  arc  thoroughly  mastered,  the  order 
is  accepted  and  carried  through  with  the 
most  scrupulous  care.  It  speaks  well  for 
the  thorough  methods  of  Mr.  Yoshida  that 
he  has  established  the  best  of  relations  with 
the  various  dealers.  The  head  office  of  this 
enterprising  firm  is  at  No.  3  Isobedori, 
Ichome,   Kob6,  Japan. 

THE    SHIMIDZU    GOMEI    KAISHA 

Operating  largely  in  the  foreign  export 
trade  of  Japan  is  the  Shimidzu  Gomel 
Kaisha,    one    of   the   oldest   importing   and 


THE    PICTURESQUE    KOBE    OFFICES   OF   E.    YOSHIDA 


exporting  firms  of  Kobe.  The  business  was 
established  in  1884  by  Mr.  A.  Greppi, 
and  was  maintained  under  the  trade  name 
of  A.  Greppi  &  Co.  for  a  number  of  years 
prior  to  its  reorganisation  as  a  gomei  kaisha 
under  Japanese  law.  Mr.  Greppi  is  still 
associated  with  the  concern  as  its  principal, 
and  the  partners  are  Messrs.  Shimidzu  Masu 
and  O.  Bruell.  The  General  Managers  are 
Messrs.  S.  Tedzuka  and  H.  Maeda.  With 
a  capital  of  Yen  150,000,  the  Shimidzu 
Gomei  Kaisha  is  a  sound  and  stable  con- 
cern, well  able  to  carry  on  a  general  import 
and  export  business  covering  the  markets  of 
the  world.  The  special  lines  dealt  in  for  ex- 
port to  such  countries  as  England,  France,  the 
United  States,  Australia,  South  Africa  and 
elsewhere,  are:  hosiery,  underwear,  blankets, 
shawls,  towels,  silks,  crockery,  chemicals, 
hardware,  brushes,  carpets,  matting,  glass- 
ware, buttons,  beads,  basketware,  curios  and 


fancy  goods  of  every  description.  The  head 
office  of  the  Shimidzu  Gomei  Kaisha  is  at 
Isogamidori  Itchome,  Kobe,  where  the 
offices  and  godowns  cover  an  area  of  350 
Isubo.  From  fifty  to  a  hundred  hands  are 
employed,  according  to  the  season  of  the 
trade. 

TSURUTANI  GOMEI  KAISHA 

Mr.  Chugoro  Tsurutani,  founder  and 
principal  of  the  firm  which  bears  his  name, 
is  one  of  the  business  men  of  Kobe  who  may 
rightly  claim  to  ha\-e  taken  a  large  part  in 
the  development  of  the  foreign  trade  of 
Japan.  He  entered  into  business  on  his 
own  account  in  June,  1898,  as  an  exporter, 
and  was  not  satisfied  merely  to  receive 
reports  of  conditions  in  foreign  markets,  but 
has  made  several  trips  abroad  to  study  trade 
requirements,  and  get  closely  in  touch  with 
the    ideas   of   his   foreign    customers.     The 


696 


P  R  E  S  E  N  T  -  D  A  ^         IMPRESSIONS        OF        JAPAN 


PAINTING   THE    PORCELAIN 


result  of  this  special  effort  to  catei  for  the 
trade  between  Japan   and   other  countries, 


has    given     Mr.     Tsurutani    an    experience 
second  to  none  in  the  export  business,  and 


as  a  consequence  tlie  firm's  connections  are 
extensive  and  vakiable.  There  is  hardly  an 
order  of  any  kind  that  can  not  be  carried 
out  with  entire  satisfaction,  and  the  Tsurutani 
Gomei  Kaisha,  by  speciahsing  in  certain 
lines,  has  built  up  a  high  reputation  abroad. 
This  is  particularly  so  with  porcelain.  Mr. 
Tsurutani  has  arranged  contracts  with  such 
well  known  manufacturers  as  the  Shofu 
Porcelain  Co.  of  Nagoya  and  the  Nippon 
Ironstone  China  Co.  of  Kanazawa,  for  their 
output.  This  is  shipped  in  large  quantities 
under  the  firm's  own  guarantee  of  the  highest 
quality,   low  price,  and  prompt  delivery. 

Messrs.  Tsurutani  &  Co.  have  their  own 
factory  for  the  jjroduction  of  silk  goods, 
embroideries  and  similar  lines,  and  the  lines 
liandled  are  noted  for  their  special  qualities. 
Electrical  instruments,  insulators,  etc.,  are 
manufactured  and  handled  by  the  firm  under 
contract  with  the  Shofu  Porcelain  Co.  and 
the  Osaka  Electrical  Machine  Manufactur- 
ing Co.  of  Osaka.  The  principal  exports  of 
Tsurutani  &  Co.  are  as  follows:  cotton  and 
silk  goods,  porcelains,  metal  wares,  matches, 
electric  manufactures  of  all  descriptions, 
enamel  wares,  hardware  generally,   and  all 


KOBE    PREMISES    OK    SHIMIDZU    GOMEI    KAISHA 


I'  R  K  S  !•:  N  T  -  I)  A  Y        I   M   I'  I<  K  S  S  I  O  N  S        O  F        J  A  P  A  N 


697 


kinds  of  natural  produce.  These  are  shipped 
extensively  to  the  United  States,  Canada, 
France,  Australia,  India,  the  Straits  Settle- 
ments, and  China.  The  head  office  of  the 
Tsuriitani  Gomci  Kaisha  is  at  No.  33  Naka- 
machi,  Kob6.  There  are  branch  offices  at 
Yokohama,  Shanghai,  and  Hongkong.  The 
capital  of  the  firm  is  Yen  50,000  at  present, 
but  it  is  proposcti  to  increase  this  sum 
to  Yen  250,000  in  June,  191S. 

C.  CROWTHER  &  CO. 

In  classifying  the  export  trade  of  Japan, 
it  has  been  customary  to  distinguish  the 
various  trades  as  Silk,  Tea,  Matting,  and 
Curios.  The  appellation  of  "Curio"  shipper 
docs  not  of  necessity  indicate  that  only 
antiques  and  art  curios  are  being  handled — 
the  term  is  applied  to  shippers  of  almost 
every  conceivable  class  of  manufactured 
goods. 

The  firm  of  Messrs.  C.  Crowther  &  Com- 
pany have  been  working  as  "Curio"  shippers 
for  twenty  years,  during  which  period  they 
have  built  up  a  very  wide  connection  — 
their  shipments  going  to  Great  Britain, 
France,   the  United  States,   Australia,   New 


CARRYING    PORCELAIN   TO   THE    KILN 


Zealand,    British    India,    the   Straits   Settle- 
ments,   and    the    Netherlands    Indies.     Mr. 


C.  Crowther,  who  had  been  engaged  in  art 
work,     including     stained-glass     and     other 


THE    KOBE    OFFICE    OF    B.    ORNSTEIN    &   CO. 


698 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


decorative  materials,  came  to  Japan  in  1894 
as  art  and  curio  buyer  for  Messrs.  A.  A. 
Vantine  &  Company,  and  after  a  period  of 
work  for  this  well-known  New  York  firm, 
opened  in  his  own  name  and  interest  a 
general  export  and  import  business.  Asso- 
ciated with  Mr.  C.  Crowther  is  his  son, 
Mr.  J.  P.  Crowther. 

This  firm  is  shipping  to  a  group  of  the 
principal  department  stores  in  the  largest 
cities  of  the  United  States  (including  Messrs. 
Gimbel  Brothers,  New  York,  Philadelphia, 
and  Milwaukee;  The  Emporium,  San 
Francisco;  The  Joseph  Home  Company, 
Pittsburgh;  The  J.  L.  Hudson  Company, 
Detroit;  B.  Nugent  &  Brother,  St.  Louis; 
William  Taylor,  Son  &  Company,  Cleveland; 
The  R.  H.  White  Company,  Boston),  as  also 
to  several  wholesale  importers  in  New 
York,  St.  Louis,  Chicago,  and  other  centres. 
This  firm  are  also  agents  for  Messrs. 
Selfridge  &  Company,  Limited,  London. 

Shipments  to  the  States  include  silk, 
mattings,  carpets,  Panama  hats,  straw 
braids,  fans,  brushes,  baskets,  metal  ware, 
toys,  and  several  lines  of  natural  produce; 
to  British  India,  cotton  goods  (such  as 
singlets,  towels,  etc.)  are  shipped  in  large 
quantities;  to  Great  Britain,  straw  braids, 
hats,  baskets,  etc.;  to  Australia,  shipments 
include  electrical  goods  and  a  very  wide 
range  of  manufactured  lines;  to  France, 
straw  braids,  and  novelties;  to  Java,  cotton 
goods,   hardware,   etc. 

In  addition  to  the  manufactured  goods 
generally  classed  as  curios,  Messrs.  C. 
Crowther  &  Co.  are  also  called  upon  for 
examples  of  modern  and  antique  Japanese 


f  ii^:  :'■'  v»-T^ 


TSURUTANI    &   CO.: 


PREPARING   CURIOS    FOR    EXPORT  IN    THE    FIRM  S   GODOWN- 
THE    KOBE    OFFICE 


art  productions  —  in  which  both  senior  and 
junior  members  of  the  firm  are  particularly 
interested   and   well   informed. 

In  addition  to  exporting,  this  firm  does  a 
considerable  business  in  imports.     For  many 


4  ^^sm^. 


i*i 


PORCELAIN    AS    IT   COMES   FROM    THE    KILN 


years  the  interests  of  Messrs.  Lever  Brothers, 
Limited,  were  in  their  care,  and  during  the 
erection  of  the  Lever  Works  in  Japan  Mr. 
C.  Crowther's  services  were  retained  as 
adviser. 

The  firm  has  an  influential  position  in 
Japan  as  Resident  Representative  for  several 
prominent  manufacturers,  including  Messrs. 
Johnson  &  Sons,  Limited,  Manufacturing 
Chemists,  London;  John  J.  Griffin  &  Sons, 
Limited;  The  Gem  Dr>'  Plate  Company, 
Limited,  London;  Cadbury  Brothers,  Lim- 
ited, Bournville;  The  Frasmic  Company, 
Limited,  Warrington;  Yardley  &  Company, 
Limited,  London;  Marks  &  Cohn,  Birming- 
ham; Robert  H.  Foerderer,  Incorporated, 
Philadelphia;  Swallow'  &  Ariell,  Limited, 
Melbourne,  and  others. 

As  a  long-time  resident  of  Kobe,  Mr.  C. 
Crowther  takes  considerable  interest  in  local 
institutions,  being  especially  active  on  the 
committees  of  the  International  Hospital, 
of  the  Kobe  Regatta  and  Athletic  Club, 
and  of  the  Kobe  Amateur  Dramatic  Club, 
of  which  latter  he  is  President. 

Photography  is  Mr.  C.  Crowther's  hobby 
and  he  uses  his  skill  in  this  art  for  the  raising 
of  funds  for  charitable  institutions,  and  has 
sent  good  donations  to  the  British  National 
Relief   Fund.     His   attention    is   at    present 


PRESENT-DAY        I   M   1'  R  IC  S  S  I  O  N  S        OF        JAPAN 


699 


OKURA   &   CO.,    LTD.:     THE   OS.\K.\   OFFICE  —  THE   KOBE    PREMISES 


given  to  the  St.  Dunstan's  Hospital  for 
Blinded  Soldiers  and  to  the  American  Red 
Cross  Society.  Mr.  Crowther's  work  is 
recognised  as  of  the  advanced  school  of 
photography,  and  among  the  honours  con- 
ferred have  been  a  Fellowship  of  The  Royal 
Photographic  Society  of  Great  Britain  and 
the  highest  award  for  portraiture  in  the 
Toronto   (1917)   Salon. 

OSAKA  BUSINESS 
FIRMS 

OKURA  &  CO.,  LIMITED 
A  FULL  description  of  the  business  of 
Messrs.  Okura  &  Co.,  Ltd.,  is  given  in  the 
Tokyo  section  of  this  work.  The  Osaka 
branch  is  an  important  part  of  the  company, 
and  it  transacts  a  large  volume  of  business 
in  all  lines.  These  comprise  the  sale  of 
merchandise  generally,  commission  agencies, 
management  of  godowns,  investments,  manu- 
facturing, mining  and  other  industrial  opera- 
tions, and  general  finance.  Okura  &  Co., 
Ltd.,  import  electrical  and  other  machinery 
and  implements,  metal  manufactures,  wool, 


skins  and  hides,  fertilizers,  cotton,  etc.,  from 
Europe,  America,  Australia,  South  Africa, 
and  elsewhere,  for  domestic  consumption. 
Exports  consist  of  general  merchandise, 
produce,  and  manufactures  from  Japanese 
factories.  The  company  owns  the  Numazu 
Plank  Mill  at  Jamatsu,  Numazu,  Shizuoka 
Prefecture,  and  the  Sanyo  Iron  Works  at 
Otake  village,  Hiroshima  Prefecture.  The 
Osaka  branch  office  and  godowns  comprise 
a  two-storied  building  at  No.  28  Tsuriganecho 
Nichome,  Higashi-ku.  Other  main,  branches 
are  London,  New  York,  Sydney,  Shanghai, 
and  Tientsin.  Sixty  employees  are  stationed 
at  Osaka.     (See  also  pages  211  and  799.) 

T.\K.\T.\  &  CO. 
The  Osaka  branch  of  the  Takata  Shokai, 
or  Takata  &  Co.,  is  responsible  for  the 
transaction  of  a  large  volume  of  business 
conducted  by  this  well  known  firm.  Under 
the  direction  of  Mr.  Shin-ichi  Ishikawa, 
General  Manager  at  Osaka,  the  firm  imports 
and  exports  all  kinds  of  merchandise,  and 
particularly  handles  the  products  of  its  own 
factories.     Takata    &    Co.'s    business    was 


originally  established  in  1869  by  Mr.  Shinzo 
Takata,  who  was  one  of  the  pioneer  importers 
and  exporters  in  Japan.  After  fighting  a 
way  through  many  early  difficulties,  the 
firm  developed  an  extensive  business,  and 
to-day  Takata  &  Co.  rank  with  the  foremost 
houses  as  general  merchants  and  Govern- 
ment contractors.  During  the  Sino-Japanese 
and  Russo-Japanese  wars,  Takata  &  Co. 
rendered  invaluable  services  to  the  Govern- 
ment, for  which  Mr.  Takata,  President  of 
the  concern,  was  awarded  the  Third  Order 
of  the  Rising  Sun.  In  1909,  owing  to  the 
great  expansion  that  had  taken  place,  the 
firm  was  transformed  into  a  semi-partner- 
ship company,  the  principals  being  Mr. 
Shinzo  Takata  and  his  two  sons,  Messrs. 
Kamakichi  and  Nobujiro,  the  former  being 
Vice-President  of  the  company.  Factories 
and  works  directed  and  managed  by  Takata 
&  Co.  comprise  the  Takata  Ship  Paint 
Factory  at  Ohsakimura,  Tok>'0-fu;  the 
Yanagishima  Iron  Works,  Tokyo;  the 
Ohdera  Zinc  Refining  Works,  Fukushima- 
ken,  and  the  following  among  other  mines: 
Takata  Mine  (zinc  and  lead),  Miyagi-ken; 


700 


PRESENT-DAY        I  At  P  R  E  S  S  I  O  X  S 


n  F 


J  A  PAN 


Hiroo  Zinc  Mine,  Hokkaido;  Takakoshi 
Copper  Mine,  Tokushima-ken;  Hiyoshi 
Copper  Mine,  Okayama-ken,  and  the  Kat- 
suura  Copper  Mine,  Hyogo-ken. 

The  head  office  of  Messrs.  Takata  &  Co. 
is  situated  at  Eiraku-cho,  Nichome,  Koji- 
machi-ku,  Tokj'o.  Branch  offices  are  estab- 
lished in  Osaka  at  Nakanoshima.  Nichome, 
Kita-ku,  and  also  at  London,  New  York, 
Shanghai,  Hankow,  Dalny,  Keijo,  Taihoku, 
Yokosuka,  Yokohama,  Kobe,  Maizuru,  Kure, 
Moji,   and   Sasebo.     (See  also  page  213.) 

T.  MASrD.\  SHOTEN 
This  business,  which  is  an  important 
branch  of  the  Masuda  family  interests,  has 
been  in  existence  for  many  years,  and  is 
very  well  known  all  over  Japan  and  abroad. 
Particular  attention  has  been  paid  to  flour 
milling,  in  which  the  Masudas  have  been 
prominent  for  nearly  half  a  century,  and  the 
firm  to-day  is  doing  an  immense  trade,  not 
only  locally,  but  for  export.     The  Masuda 


Shoten,  which  is  under  the  direction  of  Mr. 
Tasaburo  Masuda,  has  the  selling  rights  for 
several  large  mills,  apart  from  its  own  plant, 
and  handles  about  300,000  bushels  of  flour 
per  annum,  representing  a  value  of  approx- 
imately Yen  3,500,000  in  this  line  alone. 
The  factory  and  godowns  cover  an  area  of 
13,000  tsiibo,  the  buildings  being  of  four 
storys.  Allis-Chalmers  plant  and  machinery 
is  employed,  the  motive  power  being  200 
horse-power.  There  is  an  expert  staff  of 
53,  and  in  addition  150  workmen  are  em- 
ployed in  various  capacities. 

As  general  merchants,  importers  and 
exporters,  and  manufacturers'  agents,  T. 
Masuda  Shoten  handle  such  import  special- 
ties as  cereals,  wheat,  beans,  rice,  sugar, 
chemicals,  drugs,  pulp,  hemp,  jute,  wool  tops, 
raw  cotton,  woollen  and  linen  yams,  metals, 
machinery,  tools,  hides  and  skins  and  tanned 
leather,  various  fertilizers,  tallow,  copra, 
rubber  and  so  on,  importing  from  Great 
Britain,    America,    India,    China,    and    the 


pS.^K.\    BR.\NCH    OF    T.^K.\TA   &    CO. 


South  Seas.  They  export  rice,  wheat,  flour 
and  all  classes  of  raw  products,  oils  and  wax, 
cotton  goods,  matches,  minerals,  chemicals 
and  drugs,  timber  and  boxes,  Portland 
cement,  fire  bricks  and  tiles,  beers,  mineral 
waters,  hemp,  chip  and  straw  braids,  and 
general  sundries.  It  is  indeed  hard  to  say 
what  T.  Masuda  Shoten  do  not  handle  in 
the  way  of  imports  and  exports.  Their 
trade  has  developed  to  a  large  extent  in  the 
course  of  the  last  few  years,  and  they  are 
continually  expanding  their  operations  in  all 
directions.  Through  other  branches  of  the 
Masuda  family  organisation,  which  is  one 
of  the  most  influential  comjnercial  concerns 
in  Japan,  the  T.  Masuda  Shoten  is  closely 
in  touch  with  every  development  of  industry- 
and  commerce,  and  enjoys  a  high  reputation. 
The  head  office  of  the  firm  is  at  Xo.  5 
Iwasaki-cho,  Nishi-ku,  Osaka.  A  warehouse 
is  established  at  Nishino-machi,  Satsuma- 
bori,  Nishi-ku,  Osaka,  and  there  are  other 
branches  at  Tokyo  and  Kobe. 

SHIM.\DA  &  CO.,  LIMITED 
There  are  many  lines  of  chemicals  and 
drugs  which  are  now  being  exported  from 
Japan,  and  generally,  it  may  be  said,  that 
since  the  outbreak  of  the  war  and  the  shut- 
ting off  of  European  supplies,  either  of  the 
raw  materials  or  the  finished  articles,  the 
Japanese  manufacturers  have  developed 
their  business  to  a  remarkable  extent. 
Prominent  among  the  concerns  particularly 
interested  in  this  trade  is  Shimada  &  Co., 
Ltd.,  known  in  Japanese  business  circles  as 
the  Kabushiki  Kaisha  Shimada  Shokai.  The 
head  office  of  this  company  is  at  No.  27, 
2-chQme,  Koraibashi,  Higashi-ku,  Osaka, 
with  an  important  branch  at  No.  6  Nichome, 
Honcho,  Nihonbashi-ku,  Tokyo.  The  com- 
pany has  its  own  factories  and  warehouses, 
and  handles  a  wide  range  of  products.  Im- 
ports come  from  England,  Sweden,  Norway, 
the  United  States,  Canada,  and  South 
America.  Imported  lines  comprise  paper 
pulp,  nitrate  of  soda,  sulphate  of  ammonia, 
caustic  soda,  soda  ash  and  chemical  stuffs 
generally.  Messrs.  Shimada  &  Co.,  Ltd., 
export  such  lines  as  foreign  and  Japanese 
paper,  and  material  for  paper-making,  alum, 
alumina  (chemically  prepared),  gum,  resin, 
sulphuric  acid,  nitric  acid,  hydrochloric 
acid,  cubic  nitre,  calcium  carbide,  artificial 
fertilizers,  veneer  chests,  and  "Star  Brand" 
farming  extracts. 

Shimada  &  Co.,  Ltd.,  have  an  extensive 
foreign  connection,  and  their  customers  are 
to  be  found  in  England,  Australia,  India,  the 
Malay  Peninsula,  China,  and  Russia.  The 
company  was  originally  established  in  1900, 
with  a  capital  of  Yen  250,000,  but  this  has 
since  been  increased  to  Yen  500,000.     Mr. 


^•mm  M 


* 

1 

1  ■ 

1          ; 

702 


PRESENT-DAY        I   M   1'  IM:  S  S  I  ()  N  S        O  K        J   A   I'  A  N 


OFFICE    PREMISES    OF    SHIMADA    &   CO.,    LIMITED 


Rintaro  Shimada  is  President  of  the  com- 
pany and  the  other  Directors  are  Messrs.  Sei- 
zaburo  Yoshitomi,  Kiichi  Yoshitomi,  Manjiro 
Orihara,  and  Tadawo  Sonoda.  The  com- 
pany employs   a   staff  of  about  fifty  hands. 

THE  EAST  INDIES  TRADING  COMPANY 
This  company,  known  in  Japanese  as  the 
To-indo  Boyeki  Kabushiki  Kaisha,  is,  as  its 
name  implies,  engaged  in  all  classes  of  trade 
with  the  East  Indies,  and  controls  a  very 
large  business  of  a  varied  nature.  The 
company  took  over  the  entire  interests  of 
the  East  Indies  Trading  Company,  Limited, 
some  time  ago,  and  at  once  enlarged  the 
capital  to  Yen  500,000,  and  extended  the 
operations  of  the  old  concern.  The  com- 
pany's head  office  is  at  No.  55  Hamadori, 
Dojima,  Kita-ku,  Osaka,  and  among  the 
various  interests  controlled  are  the  trans- 
action of  insurance  on  buildings  and  the 
export  of  cargoes  for  well-known  manu- 
facturing concerns.  Sole  agencies  are  held 
for  the  Imperial  Marine,  Fire,  and  Transport 
In.surance  Co.,  Ltd.,  and  for  the  Asahi  Glass 
Manufacturing    Co.,    Ltd.     Connections    of 


the  East  Indies  Trading  Company  have  been 
formed  in  Java  at  Semarang,  Cheribon, 
Bandoeng,  Garoet,  Blora,  Solo,  and  Djocdja; 
in  Borneo  at  Jesselton,  Bandjermassin  and 
Pontianak;  in  the  Celebes  at  Macassar, 
Menado;  in  Sumatra  at  Padang  and 
Medan;  in  the  Straits  Settlements  at  Singa- 
pore and  Penang,  and  at  Kuala  Lumpur. 
The  company  exports  monthly  about  600 
tons  of  goods,  valued  at  about  Yen  200,000, 
the  principal  articles  of  trade  being  cotton 
yam,  cotton  piece  goods,  metal  wares,  porce- 
lain, paper,  cement,  glassware,  and  rubber 
goods. 

The  principal  officers  of  the  company  are: 
President,  Mr.  T.  Hamazaki;  Directors 
Messrs.  B.  Ashimori,  A.  Watanabe,  and 
S.  Sakagami;  Manager,  Mr.  I.  Kitoh; 
Auditors,  Messrs.  H.  Mori  and  M.  Iwao; 
Advisers,  Messrs.  M.  Doi  and  T.  Takakura. 
The  President,  Mr.  T.  Hamazaki,  is  also 
President  of  the  Southern  India  Rubber 
Cultivation  Co.,  Ltd.,  and  several  other 
industrial  enterprises.  The  other  principal 
officials  are  members  of  the. Osaka  Chamber 
of  Commerce,  or  of  the  Municipal  Assembly. 


Further,  Mr.  M  Doi,  who  is  the  President 
of  the  Osaka  Chamber  of  Commerce,  and 
Mr.  T.  Takakiu-a,  who  is  President  of  the 
Kitahama  Bank,  who  are  acting  as  advisers 
to  the  East  Indies  Trading  Company,  are 
both  noted  for  their  wide  commercial  in- 
fluence and  their  business  acumen.  The 
present  paid-up  capital  of  the  company  is 
Yen  125,000,  and  the  profitable  nature  of 
the  operations  may  be  gauged  from  the 
fact  that  the  dividend  paid  for  the  period 
ended  June  30,  191 7,  was  20  per  csnt,  despite 
the  fact  that  this  covered  only  four  months' 
operations.  - 

Prior  to  March,  191 7,  when  the  trade  with 
the  South  Seas  was  opened,  the  export  of 
articles  to  the  East  Indies  had  been  very 
brisk,  and  as  a  result  cargoes  were  accumu- 
lated there.  At  this  juncture  the  question 
of  the  black  list  arose,  and  Japan's  trade 
with  the  East  Indies  was  in  a  state  of  in- 
decision for  some  time.  The  condition  of 
affairs  in  this  field  underwent  a  change 
however,  in  March,  and  a  brighter  period 
dawned.  The  company's  Manager  made  a 
tour  of  the  East  Indies,  and  investigated  the 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


703 


it. 


THE   OSAKA    OFFICE    STAFF    OF    THE    EAST   INDIES   TRADIN'G   COMPANY 


situation  thoroughly.  A  new  field  of  trad- 
ing operations  was  opened,  and  since  then 
the  company  has  received  such  a  press  of 
orders  that  it  has  had  to  deplore  the  lack 
of  cargo  space  available.  Nevertheless,  the 
East  Indies  Trading  Company  established 
another  branch  at  Batavia,  in  addition  to 
the  base  of  operations  at  Sourabaya,  and  is 
now  trading  w'ith  Singapore  and  Sumatra. 
The  import  of  rubber  from  these  latter  cen- 
tres was  started,  and  this  means  a  large 
future  development.  The  Managing  Direc- 
tor of  the  company  has  made  a  personal 
tour  throughout  the  territory  covered  by 
the  operations,  and  as  a  consequence  of  his 
report  on  the  bright  outlook  it  is  anticipated, 
at  the  time  of  writing,  that  the  company  will 
make  a  further  issue  of  capital  stock  in  order 
to  extend  its  influence.  At  the  head  office 
of  the  East  Indies  Trading  Company  a  staff 
of  eighteen  clerks  is  engaged.  In  the  des- 
patch office  at  Sourabaya  there  are  ten 
employees,  and  three  are  engaged  in  the  new 
branch  at  Batavia.  Godowns  are  main- 
tained at  Osaka  and  Kobe,  and  cover  an 
area  of  135  liiiha. 

NIPPON  TR.\DING  SOCIETY,  LIMITED 
This  concern  was  established  in  rgo8,  and 
originally  dealt  in  cotton,  cotton  yarn,  cotton 
piece  goods,  metals,  wool,  and  chemicals, 
but  an  alteration  in  its  internal  organisation 
was  made,  and  at  present  the  concern 
principally  handles  camphor,  rice,  cotton, 
cotton  yarn,  cotton  piece  goods,  and  wool. 
The  company  enjoys  a  very  large  trade  in 
camphor  for  military  and  industrial  purposes, 
and  the  export  of  this  commodity  reached  a 


value  of  Yen  2,600,000  in  1916.  Next  in 
demand  among  the  lines  handled  by  the 
company  is  rice,  both  export  and  import, 
the  quantity  dealt  in  being  very  large. 
Trading  in  cotton  is  notoriously  risky,  owing 
to  the  violent  fluctuations  in  price,  but  The 
Nippon   Trading   Society,    Limited,   handles 


annually  about  10,000,000  yen  worth,  and 
its  experience  and  skilfulness  in  the  transac- 
tions has  led  to  regular  profits.  Generally, 
American,  Indian,  Korean,  and  Chinese 
cotton  is  imported,  with  some  quantity  of 
Egyptian,  and  the  company  now  has  before 
it  a   plan  to  cultivate   some  portion  of  its 


OSAKA    PREMISES   OF    NIPPON    SHOGYO    KAISHA    (THE    NIPPON    TRADING    SOCIETY,    LTD.) 


704 


PRESENT-DAY        I   M   !'  K  !•:  S  S  I  ()  N  S        OF        JAPAN 


requirements  in  Korea.  In  cotton  piece 
goods,  too,  which  are  also  subject  to  serious 
market  changes  and  to  involve  traders  in 
loss,  this  company  is  making  regular  profits 
by  close  attention  to  the  trade. 

The  Nippon  Trading  Society,  Limited,  has 
agencies  at  London,  New  York,  Hankow, 
Shanghai,  Hongkong,  Dairen,  Tsingtao, 
Chefoo,  and  Tientsin,  and  is  now  extending 
its  sphere  of  operations  to  Manila  and  India. 
Not  only  ordinary  cotton  yam  and  piece 
goods,  but  silks,  drill,  jeans,  printings,  etc., 
are  also  dealt  in.  The  company  handles 
to  a  considerable  extent  Australian,  African, 
American,  and  Chinese  wool,  woollen  yarn, 
waste,  woollen  cloth,  etc.,  and  the  trade 
is  improving  despite  the  great  difficulties 
induced  by  the  war,  in  the  way  of  obtaining 
supplies  from  some  of  the  foreign  sources. 
The  head  office  of  The  Nippon  Trading 
Society,  Limited,  is  at  No.  3  Suyeyoshibashi- 
dori,  2-chome,   Minami-ku,   Osaka. 

TATA,  SONS  &  CO. 
An  interesting  phase  of  the  development 
of  the  present  large  volume  of  trade  between 
India  and  Japan  is  found  in  the  history  of 
the  well-known  firm  of  Messrs.  Tata,  Sons 
&  Co.,  the  prominent  Indian  merchants  of 
whose  business  Sir  Dorab  J.  Tata,  Sir  Ratan 
J.  Tata,  and  Mr.  R.  D.  Tata,  are  the  princi- 
pals. The  head  office  of  the  firm  is  at 
Bombay,  India,  where  a  large  business  has 
been  built  up  over  a  long  period  of  pro- 
gressive enterprise.  The  Japan  branch  office 
of  the  firm  was  opened  at  Kob6  in  1892, 
with  the  object  of  promoting  the  trade 
between  Japan  and  India,  particularly  in 
the  direction  of  importing  Indian  cotton  to 
supply  the  cotton  spinning  mills  in  Japan, 
then  just  coming  into  prominence.  At  this 
stage  of  Japan's  industrial  development  only 
a  limited  quantity  of  cotton  was  imported, 
and  practically  the  entire  supply,  small  as 
it  was,  came  from  China.  The  late  Mr. 
J.  N.  Tata  took  a  personal  interest  in  the 
development  of  his  firm's  business  in  Japan, 
and  worked  assiduously  to  introduce  Indian 
cotton  to  the  promising  market  of  this 
country.  Close  attention  was  given  to  the 
cotton  business  and  once  the  quality  of 
Indian  cotton  was  seen,  a  steady  increase 
in  its  importation  took  place.  The  late 
Mr.  Tata  was  instrumental  in  bringing  about 
a  combine  of  the  Japan  Cotton  Spinners' 
Association  and  the  Nippon  Yusen  Kaisha,  for 
an  exclusive  transportation  of  Indian  cotton  to 
Japan,  and  under  this  arrangement  it  was 
agreed  that  no  Indian  cotton  imported  by 
those  outside  the  combine  could  be  used  in 
the  Japanese  mills.  This  move  proved  more 
than  a  success,  justifying  the  most  sanguine 


STAFF    OF    THE    OSAKA    BRANCH    OF    T.\TA,    SONS   &    CO. 


expectations  of  its  effect  upon  the  Indian 
cotton  trade,  and  the  nucleus  of  the  highly 
important  services  of  the  Nippon  Yusen 
Kaisha  between  India  and  Japan  was  laid 
in  1895.  To-day  the  N.  Y.  K.,  and  the 
conference  liners  are  transporting  nearly 
1,800,000  bales  of  Indian  cotton  per  annum. 
Subsequently  steps  were  taken  for  the 
importation  of  Egyptian  and  American 
cotton,  and  this  also  proved  a  success. 
Messrs.  Tata,  Sons  &  Co.  therefore  have  the 
credit  of  being  the  pioneers  in  the  develop- 
ment of  more  than  one  source  of  supply, 
other  than  China,  for  the  cotton  trade  of 
Japan. 

The  firm  was  also  equally  interested  in 
the  exports  of  coal,  copper,  camphor,  and 
matches  at  the  time  of  the  combine,  but 
lately  Messrs.  Tata  &  Sons  have  confined 
their  export  operations  to  Japanese  cotton 
yarns,  piece  goods,  and  sundries,  which  are 
shipped  in  large  quantities  to  China  and 
India.  In  1912  the  Japan  head  office  of 
the  firm  was  removed  from  Kobe  to  the 
commercially  more  important  centre  of 
Osaka,  from  whence  a  general  import  and 
export  business  is  now  being  done,  chiefly 
in  the  lines  mentioned  above,  including  rice. 
Messrs.  Tata,  Sons  &  Co.  also  transact  an 
extensive  commission  business.  The  Osaka 
office  is  located  at  No.  17,  Kitahama  San- 
chome.  The  head  office  of  the  firm  is  at 
Bombay,  and  important  branch  offices  are 
maintained  at  London,  New  York,  Paris, 
Lyons,  Calcutta,  Rangoon,  Shanghai,  Kobe, 
and  Tokyo. 


The  partners  of  this  enterprising  firm  are 
Sir  Dorab  J.  Tata  at  Bombay,  Sir  Ratan  J. 
Tata,  London,  and  Mr.  R.  D.  Tata,  Paris. 
Mr.  K.  Yokoo  is  the  General  Manager  for 
Japan. 

THE    NANYO    RUBBER    PLANTATION    CO., 
LIMITED 

This  company,  known  by  its  Japanese 
title  as  the  Nanyo  Gomu  Takoshoku  Ka- 
bushiki  Kaisha.  owns  the  Langsat  Rubber 
Estate  in  the  Sultanate  of  Johore,  Federated 
Malay  States.  It  was  founded  at  Osaka  in 
May,  1916,  with  the  object  of  carrying  on  a 
rubber  and  coconut  plantation,  and  similar 
enterprises  in  the  Malay  States  and  the 
South  Sea  Islands.  The  authorised  capital 
of  the  concern  is  Yen  2,000,000  of  which 
Yen  700,000  is  fully  paid  up.  The  company's 
estate  at  Tanjong  Langsat,  near  Singapore, 
covers  2,000  acres.  Of  this  area  the  greater 
part  is  already  planted,  and  tapping  has 
started  over  500  acres,  the  present  output 
of  the  estate  being  about  80,000  pounds  of 
rubber  per  annum.  When  the  estate  is 
fully  developed  it  will  be  a  big  producer 
and  a  highly  valuable  property.  The 
principal  officers  of  the  Nanyo  Rubber 
Plantation  Co.,  Ltd.,  are:  Mr.  K.  Yokoo, 
President;  Messrs.  M.  Kita,  Y.  Ueda,  M.  P., 
T.  Hamasaki,  and  R.  Harada,  Directors; 
Messrs.  T.  Inouye,  G.  Takigama,  and  N. 
Nomura,  Auditors.  The  company's  bankers 
arc  the  Bank  of  Taiwan  and  the  Mitsui 
Bank.  The  head  office  of  the  concern  is  at 
No.  59  Nakanoshima,  Gochome,  Osaka. 


PRESnNT-DAY 


IMPRESSIONS 


OF        JAPAN 


705 


TKADIXC,    DI'PART.MENT,    MITSlUilSHl 
GOSHI    KAISHA,    OSAKA 

Bkanciihs  of  the  famous  house  of  Mitsu- 
bishi operate  to  a  great  extent  as  separate 
enterprises,  with  a  distinct  profit  and  loss 
account,  as  do  branches  of  important  Euro- 
pean and  American  enterprises;  hence  these 
details  in  addition  to  those  supplied  in  the 
Tokyo  section   of  this   volume. 

The  Trading  Department  disposes  of  the 
products  of  the  Osaka  Metallurgical  Works 
to  the  following  extent:  gold,  2  tons;  silver, 
30  tons;  electric-copper  ingots,  20,000  tons, 
and  copper  vitriol,  12,000  tons  annually. 
The  annual  sales  include  the  products  of 
the  Mitsuljishi  Iron  and  Steel  Foundry  in 
copper  and  brass  goods,  100,000  tons  of  pig 
iron  and  steel,  and  the  machinery  manu- 
factured by  the  Kobe  branch  of  the  Mitsu- 
bishi Shipbuilding  Co. 


This  ollice  also  liolds  the  sole  agency  for 
the  Kyoto  Kabushiki  Kaisha  (carbide),  the 
Nippon  Tsussohiryo  Kaisha  (cement),  and 
the  Daide  Needle  Co.,  whose  products,  in 
addition  to  the  above,  they  export  through 
the  medium  of  the  company's  branches  in 
Europe,  America,  India,  Australia,  and  the 
Far  East.  The  firm  of  Dalgety  &  Co.,  Ltd., 
of  Melbourne,  Australia,  and  Messrs.  Leon 
Ilayhoe,  Ltd.,  of  Johannesburg,  South 
Africa,  are  special  agents  of  the  Osaka 
branch. 

About  half  a  million  tons  of  coal  for 
factory  use  is  sold  through  this  branch 
annually.  Other  lines  handled  are  cereals, 
fertilizers,  cotton  and  cotton  goods,  drugs, 
all  kinds  of  oil,  paper,  and  glass,  etc. 

The  Trading  Department  is  under  the 
management  of  Mr.  Kyohei  Kato,  employ- 
ing a  staff  of  66  clerks. 


UANKINi;     DEPARTMENT,    MITSUBISHI 
C.OSHI    KAISHA,    OSAKA 

FURTHICR  details  of  this  bank,  which  is, 
as  the  title  suggests,  but  a  department  of 
the  Mitsubishi,  and  consequently  one  of  the 
soundest  financial  institutions  in  Japan,  will 
be  found  in  the  Tokyo  section  of  this  com- 
pilation. 

The  Osaka  branch  is  located  in  tlic  same 
building  as  the  Mitsubishi  Trading  Depart- 
ment, occupying  the  ground  floor,  and  carries 
a  staff  of  42  clerks,  under  the  management 
of  Mr.  Toeo  Kato. 

All  departments  of  modern  banking  are 
represented,  the  bank  being  fortunate  in 
first  class  agents  in  all  parts  of  the  world 
where  they  have  not  as  yet  established 
branches  of  their  own.  The  capital  of  the 
bank  is  Yen  15,000,000. 


^'"-—m 


OSAKA    PRF.MISES   OF    MITSUBISHI    GOSHI    KAISHA,    BANKING    AND    TRADING    DEPARTMENT 


•I  *. 


AX-, 


GRAND    STAND,    NEGISHI    IYOKOHAMA)    RACE   COURSE 


XL.    Sports  and  Recreations  in  Japan 

Golf— Yachting— Rowing— Horse  Racing— Dk am atics_ Music 


THROUGHOUT  the  Far  East,  where- 
ever  the  white  man  has  settled, 
with  the  growth  of  cities  and  towns 
and  the  building  up  of  vast  commercial  en- 
terprises, a  feature  of  life  among  the  for- 
eigners that  has  never  been  allowed  to 
rusticate,  has  been  Sports  and  Recreations. 
In  the  line  of  progression  a  small  plot  of 
groimd  and  a  hut  have  developed,  in  later 
years,  to  a  modem  field  and  club  house,  and 
if  this  is  true  of  the  Far  East  generally, 
the  country  of  Japan  has  been  no  exception 
to  the  rule.  Fifty  years  ago  in  Yokohama 
sport  in  varied  form  was  indulged  in,  but 
it  was  not  until  the  formation  of  the  Yoko- 
hama Cricket  and  Athletic  Club  that  Sport 
in  its  many  branches  was  started  on  an  ex- 
tensive scale.  A  fine  plot  of  grotmd  was 
acquired  in  what  is  now  Yokohama  Park, 
and  for  many  years  cricket,  baseball,  foot- 
ball, hockey,  etc.,  were  played  in  their 
proper  seasons,  a  fine  club  house  afford- 
ing excellent  accommodation.  In  igio 
the  Japanese  Government  took  away  this 
ground  and  the  foreign  community,  in  spite 
of  protest,  was  obliged  to  look  for  another 
field.  At  Yaguchidai,  in  the  hills  about 
fifteen  minutes  from  the  Bluff  (the  residential 
quarter  of  foreigners),  several  acres  were 
purchased  through  subscription  and  trans- 
formed into  a  large  athletic  field  that  would 
be  a  credit  to  any  city  in  the  United  States 
or  Europe.     A  fine  club  house  of  reinforced 


concrete,  with  all  modem  conveniences,  was 
built,  the  club  membership  being  over  250. 
From  May  until  October  of  each  year, 
cricket,  baseball,  and  tennis  matches  are 
held  continuously  diuing  the  week-ends, 
followed  in  the  autumn  and  winter  by 
Rugby  and  association  football  and  hockey. 
A  feature  of  club  sport  throughout  Japan  is 
the  spirit  permeating  intertown  and  inter- 
port  contests  in  practically  everj-  branch  of 
sport,  and  matches  are  also  held  in  baseball, 
football,  rowing,  and  hockey  with  Japanese 
university  and  school  teams.  A  similar 
organisation  exists  in  Kobe,  the  Kobe  Row- 
ing and  Athletic  Club  and  the  Kobe  Cricket 
Club  being  the  two  important  clubs  of  this 
nature  in  the  southem  port.  Yachting  also 
comes  under  the  activities  of  the  former  as 
well  as  tennis,  though  there  is  a  distinctive 
club  for  tennis,  as  in  Yokohama  and  Kobe. 
The  Ladies'  Lawn  Tennis  and  Croquet 
Club  is  situated  in  beautiful  gardens,  com- 
monly termed  the  "Bluff  Gardens,"  Yoko- 
hama, and  the  Tokj'O  Tennis  Club  is  about 
fifteen  minutes  from  the  station. 

GOLF 
Golf  is  a  branch  of  sport  that  has  a  large 
number  of  enthusiasts  among  foreigners  in 
Japan.  At  Yokohama  there  is  a  nine-hole 
course  in  the  hollow  formed  by  the  one-mile 
track  of  the  Nippon  Race  Club,  and  members 
desiring  to  join  the  N.  R.  C.  Golfing  Asso- 


ciation must  first  become  members  of  the 
Race  Club.  Kobe  golfers  journey  to  Rok- 
kusan,  an  elevated  resort  some  three  hours 
away,  where  a  course  of  thirty-six  holes  is 
played  upon  except  during  the  winter  months. 
The  course  is  one  of  great  variety  and  beauty, 
but  owing  to  the  difficulty  of  growing  grass 
at  Rokkusan  the  "greens"  are  of  dirt  backed 
by  banks,  and  it  takes  the  stranger  some 
time  to  become  accustomed  to  this  peculiarity 
of  an  otherwise  interesting  course.  During 
the  last  four  or  five  years  a  36-hole  course 
has  been  built  on  the  outskirts  of  Tokj'O, 
called  the  Tokyo  Golf  Club,  and  this  is 
without  doubt  the  best  course  in  Japan, 
with  plenty  of  green  fairway  and  variety  of 
interest.  A  small  golf  course  is  now  in  proc- 
ess of  construction  near  Miyanoshita  that 
promises  to  supply  a  long-felt  want  to  golfers 
visiting  this  resort. 

Y.iCHTING 
The  Treaty  Ports  forming  the  overseas 
centres  of  Japanese  commerce  w-ere  naturally 
on  the  seacoast,  and,  being  selected  for  their 
safe  anchorages,  it  was  but  natural  that 
yachtsmen  and  their  boating  comrades  made 
the  best  use  of  the  favourable  conditions, 
especiall)'  those  existing  in  Yokohama,  w'here 
a  deep-water  bay  over  one  hundred  square 
miles  in  extent,  with  several  charming  inlets, 
sheltered  harbours,  free  from  rocks  (isolated 
or  in  reefs),  without  treacherous  shoals,  and 


P  R  E  S  E  N  T  -  n  A  V        I   M    I'  R  !•:  S  S  I  O  N  S        OF        JAPAN 


707 


1.  H.  PRINCE  NAEUHISA,  KITA-SHIRAKAWA-NO-MIYA,  ACCOMPANIED  BY  H.  B.  M.  AMBASSADOR  THE  RT.  HON.  SIR  CONVNGHAM 
liREENE,  O.  C.  M.  G.,    K.  C.  B.,  ON  THE  NEGISHI  RACE  COURSE,  MAY   I6,    I9IS 


untroiibU'il  by  stn'orc  tide  races,  currents,  or 
ocean  swi'll,  invited  amateur  wind-jarnmers 
to  establish  and  develoji  one  or  more  yachting 
clubs.  The  present  (1918)  American  Consul- 
General  is  himself  an  enthusiastic  devotee  of 
yachting,  having  been  for  several  years 
Commodore  of  the  Yokohama  Yacht  Club, 
in  which  capacity  he  commanded  a  composite 
fleet  of  some  twenty  to  thirty  craft  —  from 
the  comfortable  "cruisers"  of  40  1.  \v.  1. 
and  various  rigs  down  to  the  less  pretentious 
but  perhaps  more  exciting  'larks"  and 
dinghies.  Throughout  the  summer  months, 
weekly  or  more  frequent  contests  take  place 
in  the  different  classes,  while  occasional 
holiday  cruises  for  the  larger  cabined  craft 
sweep  a  wider  field,  even  into  the  "open" 
and  along  the  neighbouring  Pacific  inlets. 
The  Japanese  can  not  understand  these 
eccentric  foreigners,  who  seem  to  find  genu- 
ine enjoyment  in  dashing  about  in  small 
half-capsising  boats.  It  seems  inconceivable 
that  otherwise  respectable  and  sane  gentle- 
men should  deliberately  do  such  uncom- 
fortable and  undignified  things,  and  although 


baseball,  tennis,  and  other  activities  have 
been  adopted  by  Japanese  college  youths 
and  the  like,  so  far  all  efforts  to  arouse  or 
create  interest  in  yachting  in  the  sons  of 
Japan  have  been  unsuccessful.  No  Cup 
Challenger  or  Defender  has  yet  arisen  in  the 
Far  East,  neither  can  expensive,  luxurious, 
speedy  record-breaking  pleasure  craft  be 
constructed  in  this  part  of  the  world,  but 
Yokohama  and  Kobe  have  a  good  seasoning  of 
more  or  less  amateur  designers  and  builders, 
who  at  times  even  venture  to  deviate  from 
the  lines  of  yacht-building  classics.  Ample 
scope  for  originality  arises  in  the  unfortunate 
fact  that  a  typhoon  of  almost  annual  occur- 
rence takes  serious  toll  of  lighter  pleasure 
craft,  and  several  new  keels  have,  therefore, 
to  be  laid  for  each  sailing  season. 

ROWING 

In  the  early  seventies  the  Yokohama 
Amateur  Rowing  Club  was  started  on  a  small 
scale.  At  the  present  time,  with  a  member- 
ship of  over  two  hundred  and  a  modest  but 
serviceable    club    house   on   the    waterfront 


next  to  the  French  Hatoba,  the  Y.  A.  R.  C. 
has  contributed  a  great  deal  to  healthy 
exercise,  particularly  among  the  younger 
generation.  The  club  also  serves  as  head- 
quarters for  the  Yokohama  Yacht  Club  as  it 
did  in  former  years  for  the  Mosquito  Yacht 
Club.  Interport  contests  are  held  annually 
with  the  K.  R.  and  A.  C,  Kobe,  which  is  a 
similar  organisation,  on  a  slightly  larger  scale, 
with  a  fine  club  house  and  tennis  courts  at 
Mirume,  not  far  from  the  port  itself. 

HORSE  RACING 
HoRSE  racing  was  first  started  on  May  2, 
1862,  under  the  auspices  of  the  Yokohama 
Race  Club,  but  the  present  Nippon  Race 
Club  course  at  Negishi  was  not  granted  to 
the  community  until  1866,  through  the  ef- 
forts of  Sir  Harry  Parkes,  the  first  races  being 
run  in  1867.  The  membership  started  with 
ninety-two,  and  though  affairs  were  con- 
ducted in  more  or  less  haphazard  manner  for 
the  first  few  years,  proper  management  later 
made  itself  felt.  The  Japanese  Government 
took  an  interest   in  and  assisted  the  club 


7o8 


P  R  F.  S  E  X  T  -  n  A  V 


IMPRESSIONS       O  E 


J  A  P  A  X 


ill 


^•^-f^^* 


r»|^^>:: 


.W^J  -^ 


;:s*«*-' 


THE    IXTERPORT   GOLF    TEAMS    (KOBE    AND   YOKOHAMA)    ON    ROKKO   MOUNT 


with  money  contributions.  Originally  the 
horses  used  for  racing  or  gj'mkhana  piu'poses 
were  hacks  or  service  animals,  but  later 
different  classes  were  established  and  China 
ponies  for  a  while  practically  superseded  the 
Japanese  pony.  In  1878  the  former  name 
was  abandoned  and  the  Nippon  Race  Club, 
in  its  present  form,  was  founded,  Messrs. 
J.  J.  Keswick,  Kennedy,  Kirkwood,  and 
General  Saigo  being  the  principal  promoters. 
With  the  building  of  a  grand  stand  and  stable 
accommodations  and  the  starting  of  licensed 
Japanese  riders,  racing  at  Yokohama  took  a 
huge  stride  forward,  and  in  April,  1886,  the 
late  Emperor  Meiji  attended  in  person. 
Ever  since,  either  the  late  Emperor,  the 
present  Emperor  (when  Crown  Prince),  or, 
as  in  recent  years,  an  Imperial  Representa- 
tive, has  attended  the  various  meetings  held 
each  spring  and  autumn,  the  "Emperor's 
Cup"  being  a  trophy  regularly  presented, 
much  valued,  and  keenly  contested.  The 
year  1888  was  a  memorable  one  as  it  marked 
the  introduction  of  the  Pari  Mutuel  in 
Japan,  which  was  responsible  for  placing 
the  club  on  a  firm  financial  basis.  Through 
dissatisfaction  in  the  class  of  ponies,  Aus- 
tralian horses  were  first  imported  in  1895, 
but  it  was  not  until  1899  that  this  was  con- 
tinued successfully.  Owing  to  abuses  in 
gambling,  sweepstakes  and  lotteries  were 
abandoned  in  1907,  and  w'ith  the  Nippon 
Race  Club  at  the  zenith  of  its  career  it  came 
as  a  great  shock  in  1908  when  the  Baseiky-oku 
(Horse  Breeding  Association)  ordered  the 
total  prohibition  of  the  Pari  Mutuel,  and 
this  step,  taking  the  main  interest  out  of 


racing  in  Japan  (there  being  several  Japanese 
clubs  at  Kaw'asaki,  Meguro,  and  Naruo), 
threatened  to  be  the  death  blow  to  any 
further  activities.  Subsidies  were  received, 
however,  from  the  Baseikyoku,  and  in  this 
way  racing  has  been  held  each  spring  and 
autumn,  but  without  the  great  interest  that 
marked  the  earlier  periods  when  gambling 
was  permitted.  During  the  last  thirty  years 
the  Nippon  Race  Club  has  done  more  than 
any  other  in  Japan  to  improve  the  breed  of 
the  native  horse.  Within  this  period  it  has 
taken  no  less  than  475  Country  Breds  and 
imported  well  over  500  Australians.  To-day 
visitors  to  a  race  meeting  in  Japan  will  find 
horses  running  which  are  the  progeny  of 
these  imported  animals,  and  the  club  may 
well  be  proud  of  the  result  achieved. 

DRAMATICS 
There  are  several  amateur  dramatic 
organisations  among  foreigners  in  Japan, 
notably  the  Amateur  Dramatic  Clubs  of 
Yokohama,  Tokyo,  and  Kobe,  numerous 
performances  being  given  each  year,  particu- 
larly at  Yokohama  and  Tokj-o.  As  early 
as  1 88 1  an  Amateur  Dramatic  Association 
was  started  in  Yokohama,  finally  amalga- 
mating with  a  similar  society  a  few  years 
later.  The  activities  of  the  present  Amateur 
Dramatic  Club  date  from  1900,  and  during 
the  last  eighteen  j'ears  this  organisation 
has  given  thirty-six  productions,  including 
several  musical  comedies,  comedies,  farces, 
etc.  Notable  among  past  productions  pre- 
sented at  the  Gaiety  Theatre  are  "San  Toy," 
"Les    Cloches    de    Comeville,"    and    "La 


Mascotte,"  all  musical  pieces,  while  "Niobe," 
"Dandy  Dick,"  "Beauty  and  the  Barge," 
"Dr.  Wake's  Patient,"  three  Barrie  plays, 
and  "Mrs.  Gorringe's  Necklace"  are  but  a 
few  of  many  successful  plays  that  have  been 
given.  The  Alliance  Frangaise,  although  a 
society  for  the  extension  of  the  French 
language,  has  given  many  dramatic  per- 
formances of  the  greatest  merit,  of  which 
the  following  may  be  mentioned:  "Le  Petit 
Caf^,"  "Une  Soiree  chez  MoUere,"  and 
"Triplepatte."  Outside  the  acti\'ities  of 
the  various  clubs,  equally  successful  plays, 
extravaganzas,  musical  revues,  etc.,  some  of 
them  original,  have  been  presented  bj'  local 
residents.  Among  the  many  amateur  per- 
formers mention  should  perhaps  be  made 
of  Mr.  G.  G.  Brady,  an  actor  of  unusual 
gifts,  whose  latest  piece  of  work  was  the 
leading  role  in  "Kismet"  in  191 7,  the  biggest 
and  most  spectacular  production  of  the 
Tokyo  Amateur  Dramatic  Club. 

MUSIC 
Music  among  the  foreign  communities 
of  Japan  has  held  an  important  place  in 
social  life,  as  is  usually  the  case  in  all  Far 
Eastern  cities,  though  it  would  seem  that 
keenness  for  the  classical  and  appreciation  of 
music  is  relegated  to  a  comparative  few,  the 
Japanese  themselves,  among  the  better  classes, 
showing  a  greater  desire  for  learning  music 
and  giving  expression  to  their  knowledge  on 
instruments  of  the  West.  At  Yokohama, 
some  fifteen  years  ago,  the  Beethoven  Society 
held  numerous  concerts  of  classical  and  cham- 
ber music,  and  even  before  this  time  the 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


709 


A  KOBE  MINSTRKL    TROUPE,   I916 


Philharmonic  and  Choral  Societies  occupied 
an  important  place  in  the  community's 
activities.  Unfortunately  their  existence  did 
not  cover  many  years,  and  though  there 
have  been  attempts  to  revive  the  interest 
that  previously  existed,  little  or  no  success 
has  attended  the  efforts  of  a  few  enthusiasts. 


At  Yokohama  numerous  concerts  are  given 
at  which  local  talent  contributes  almost 
entirely,  and  since  19 15  an  amateur  organisa- 
tion, the  Yokohama  Orchestral  vSociety, 
assisted  by  Japanese  professionals,  has  given 
an  annual  orchestral  concert  with  marked 
success,    and    promises   to   be   a   permanent 


institution.  At  Kobe  there  is  a  similar  but 
smaller  organisation,  the  Kobe  Amateur 
Orchestra,  that  gives  frequent  and  exceed- 
ingly fine  concerts.  The  Tokyo  Choral 
Society  has  an  active  membership,  and  in 
recent  years  has  given  several  oratorios 
both  at  Yokohama  and  Tokyo. 


iS 


TOMB    OF    KIYOMORI,    KOBE 


XLI.    Press  and  Periodical  Literature 

News  in  Old  Japan— Introduction  of  Modern  Journalism— Make-up  and  Content 
OF  Leading  Japanese  Newspapers— "The  Japan  Chronicle" 
—"The  Japan  Advertiser"—"  The  Japan  Gazette" 


JAPAN  is  as  well  supplied  with  news- 
papers and  magazines  to-day  as  any 
country  of  the  West.  In  the  capital 
more  than  fifty  daily  papers  are  published, 
while  the  number  printed  daily  throughout 
the  Empire  is  more  than  eight  hundred,  mth 
some  eighteen  hundred  weekly  and  monthly 
periodicals,  making  a  total  of  more  than 
twenty-seven  hundred.  Indeed,  there  is 
scarcely  a  town  of  more  than  10,000  inhabi- 
tants in  the  country  that  is  without  its  local 
journal,  and  the  larger  provincial  towns  and 
cities  are  all  well  supplied  with  journals  in 
proportion  to  the  commercial  interests  of 
the  place.  In  addition  there  are  daily  and 
weekly  publications  dealing  with  finance, 
commerce,  naval  and  military  matters, 
science,  literature,  or  religion,  to  say  nothing 
of  the  numerous  monthlies  covering  a  variety 
of  themes.  There  are  illustrated  and  comic 
papers,  and  papers  for  women  and  children, 
some  of  which  maintain  a  high  standard  but 
many  of  which  are  anything  save  edifying, 
filled  as  they  are  with  shameless  scandal 
and  gossip. 


On  the  whole  it  may  be  said  that  the 
Japanese  press  has  kept  pace  with  the  gen- 
eral progress  of  the  country.  Up  to  the 
time  of  the  war  with  China  the  daily  press 
was  anything  but  prosperous,  its  readers 
confined  to  the  more  intelligent  classes  and 
scarcely  including  any  of  the  lower  orders 
of  society;  but  with  the  spread  of  education 
and  the  growing  activity  of  social,  industrial, 
and  commercial  enterprise,  and  the  interest 
in  public  affairs  generally,  even  the  poorest 
Japanese  is  to-day  a  regular  reader  of  the 
daily  paper.  Thus  within  the  present  genera- 
tion the  nvunber  of  newspapers  has  greatly 
increased,  and  some  of  them  have  consider- 
ably improved,  certainly  in  the  enterprise 
they  display  in  news-gathering  if  not  in  the 
character  and  accuracy  of  their  contents. 
Journals  that  twenty-five  years  ago  were 
profitless  ventures  are  to-day  enjojung  a 
large  and  profitable  circulation  and  exercis- 
ing an  influence  quite  as  powerful  as  corre- 
sponding dailies  in  Occidental  cities.  It  is 
a  question  whether  the  daily  paper  has  not 
even  a  greater  influence  in  Japan  than  in 


other  countries,  since  it  is  the  sole  source  of 
knowledge  and  opinion  for  the  vast  majority 
of  the  population.  The  Japanese  possess  a 
natural  instinct  for  journalism,  both  in  their 
love  of  gossip  and  their  picturesque  way  of 
putting  things,  and  the  services  of  the  daily 
journal  are  pushed  to  the  utmost  by  all 
connected  with  its  issue.  In  politics  and 
international  aff'airs  the  influence  of  the 
daily  press  is  singularly  potent,  and  the 
profession  of  journalism  is  not  infrequently 
the  preliminary  to  a  political  career.  It 
attracts  many  of  the  best  intellects,  including 
some  university  graduates  and  leading  states- 
men, though  the  pecuniary  rewards  are 
meagre,  even  from  a  native  point  of  view; 
nor  is  the  social  status  of  the  Japanese 
journalist  on  a  par  with  that  of  leading 
European  newspaper  men.  On  arriving 
in  Japan  many  years  ago  the  writer  was 
somewhat  overcome  by  a  request  from  a 
prominent  journal  to  supply  a  daily  column 
at  the  rate  of  four  shillings  an  issue. 
Naturally  the  Japanese  press  has  elicited 
the  services    of    women,    even    in   journals 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


711 


devotid    to   politics  as  well   as   thoso  treat- 
ing  of   social   matters. 

NEWS  IN  OLD  JAPAN 
Though  journalism  in  Japan  is  essentially 
an  institution  of  Occidental  origin,  the  idea 
of  a  medium  for  the  circulation  of  news 
existed  in  old  Japan,  as  it  did  in  Europe, 
long  before  the  invention  of  the  printing 
press  and  the  rise  of  modern  journalism. 
Just  as  in  the  .sixteenth  century  the  Venetian 
Republic  had  its  gazzela,  or  treasuries  of 
news,  which  were  written  by  hand  or  printed 
from  engraven  blocks  of  wood,  so  the  Japa- 
nese authorities  of  the  Tokugawa  period 
found  means  of  keeping  officialdom  informed 
of  the  chief  events  of  the  Empire  and  the 
desires  and  intentions  of  the  administration 
by  using  scribes  and  reporters.  Thus  the 
earliest  form  of  newspaper  in  Japan  had  as 
aristocratic  an  origin  as  the  gazettes  of  old 
Venice.  Manuscript  letters  of  daily  events 
were  even  tolerated  for  private  circulation 
as  well  as  for  sale.  When  the  first  of  the 
Tokugawa  shoguns,  lyeyasu,  fought  against 


Isliida  Matsunari  in  the  famous  battle  of 
Sckigahara  in  iGoo,  the  progress  of  the  con- 
flict was  reported  daily  to  the  capital  of 
the  shogun  at  Yedo  by  a  kind  of  news  post. 
During  the  feudal  days  most  of  the  daimyo 
kept  an  official  reporter  in  the  capital,  whose 
duty  it  was  to  keep  his  master  posted  as  to 
the  chief  events  of  the  day,  and  these  rusui- 
yaku,  as  the  feudal  reporters  were  called, 
arranged  with  the  boz,  or  petty  officials  of 
the  shogun's  court,  to  keep  them  informed 
of  the  attendance  or  non-attendance  of  the 
ministers  of  the  cabinet,  and  all  other  matters 
of  significance  transpiring  from  day  to  day. 
This  was  done  on  manuscript,  and,  indeed, 
the  service  was  not  unlike  that  of  the  press 
bureaux  to  be  found  at  the  various  capitals 
of  the  world  in  modem  times.  A  digest  of 
all  official  proceedings  and  all  official  instruc- 
tions was  put  into  manuscript  form  and 
circulated  among  those  entitled  to  such 
news.  Feudal  lords  often  despatched  special 
news  collectors  to  the  shogun's  capital  to 
gather  in  detail  the  happenings  of  the  day, 
somewhat  after  the  manner  of  our  present- 


day  special  correspondents.  Such  was  the 
method  adopted  for  ascertaining  or  circu- 
lating official  news.  But  for  general  and 
popular  news  the  Japanese  had  their  gazzetas, 
or  kawaraban,  small  news  sheets  duplicated 
for  sale.  These  sheets  were  printed  from  a 
tile,  or  kawara,  in  which  the  impression  had 
been  dried.  Various  other  devices  for 
printing  the  news  came  into  use  later. 
Often  the  daily  news  sheet  was  struck  oflf 
from  a  wooden  block,  and  there  was  another 
block  made  from  hardened  paste,  known  as 
the  mochiban.  The  main  items  of  news  on 
these  popular  sheets  seem  to  have  been 
much  the  same  as  they  still  are  in  the  cheap 
daily  press  —  fires,  murders,  love-suicides, 
and  all  the  more  extraordinary  occurrences 
of  society.  When  Commodore  Perry's  fleet 
of  "black  ships"  appeared  in  Yedo  Bay  in 
1853,  a  news  extra  was  issued  informing  the 
pulilic  of  the  unprecedented  event.  The 
results  of  a  great  earthquake  were  circulated 
in  a  similar  manner.  It  was  a  great  advance 
in  the  progress  of  these  early  attempts  at 
journalism  when  the  authorities  allowed  the 


\l 


1 '''    r 


OFFICE    OF    THE    "aSAHI"    ("tHE    SUN"),    HIGOBASHI    BRIDGE    IN    THE    FOREGROUND 


712 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


publication  of  unofficial  news  sheets.  These 
were  known  as  yomiuri,  which  means  literally, 
"read  and  sell":  and  they  were  hawked 
about  the  streets  like  the  modem  newspaper 
extra,  the  seller  reading  portions  of  the  news 
aloud  and  then  inducing  hearers  to  buy  a 
copy.  The  contents  were  as  terse  as  they 
were  concise,  no  attempt  being  made  at  remark 
or  criticism  —  a  mere  statement  of  facts  only, 
without  introduction  or  inference.  Indeed, 
these  primitive  sheets  were  as  unlike  "The 
Spectator"  and  "The  Tattler"  as  feuda 
Japan    was    unlike    constitutional    England 

INTRODUCTION    OF    iMODERN 
JOURNALISM 

It  was  not  until  the  year  1861  that  any- 
thing at  all  resembling  the  form  of  a  modern 
newspaper  appeared  in  Japan.  Such  was 
the  Batavia  Shimbtin,  so  called  because  it 
consisted  mainly  of  translations  from  Dutch 
papers  published  in  Batavia.  There  was 
also  a  sheet  called  the  Chugai  Shimbtin. 
Both  of  these  ventures,  however,  appeared 
only  at  intervals  and  were  more  like  a  weekly 
or  monthly  than  a  daily  paper.  Japanese 
journalism  in  the  more  real  sense  of  the  word 
may  be  said  to  date  from  1864,  when  a 
Japanese  named  Hikozo,  who  had  been  cast 
ashore  on  the  American  coast,  returned  and 
issued  a  news  sheet  at  Yokohama,  and  though 
this  news  letter  improved  in  collaboration 
with  an  assistant  named  Kisida  Ginko,  it 
soon  ceased  to  appear.  This  publication, 
however,  was  printed  on  Japanese  paper  and 
had  ten  pages,  being  issued  tri-monthly,  and 
it  paved  the  way  for  a  more  practical 
enterprise  in  the  same  direction.  In  1867 
Fukuchi  Genichiro  started  a  newspaper 
called  the  Koko  SInmbun,  which  was  followed 
by  the  Banshoku  Shimbun  and  others,  all 
printed  from  wooden  blocks  on  native  paper 
and  coming  out  two  or  three  times  a  week. 
The  new  Government,  anxious  to  justify 
itself  in  the  eyes  of  the  samurai,  who  con- 
stituted a  powerful  political  factor  in  those 
days,  began  the  regular  pubUcation  of  a 
gazette,  called  the  Daijokwan  Nishi,  or 
Daily  Record  of  the  Council  of  State,  which 
was  printed  in  a  language  too  dignified  for 
comprehension  by  the  common  people.  This 
publication  still  continues  in  the  form  of  the 
Official  Gazette,  which  contains  not  only  every- 
thing that  appears  in  the  paper  of  the  same 
name  in  England,  but  also  verbatim  reports 
of  parliamentary  proceedings  and  full  details 
of  government  measures  and  actions.  In 
1868  the  Koho  Shimbun  took  the  side  of  the 
shogun  and  engaged  in  a  spirited  campaign 
against  the  Imperiahsts,  when  Fukuchi  was 
arrested  and  brought  to  trial,  from  which 
he  extricated  himself  with  good  grace  and 
was   acquitted;     but   the   new    Government 


after  this  ordered  the  suppression  of  all  new's- 
papers,  and  journalism  was  at  one  stroke 
wiped  off  the  face  of  the  Empire. 

The  Government  alone  now  had  authority 
to  issue  news.  The  first  newspaper  under 
such  auspices  was  started  by  Kido,  the  great 
statesman  of  the  Restoration,  in  1871,  called 
the  Shimbun  Zasshi,  or  News  Journal,  in 
which  was  printed  everything  thought  proper 
by  the  officials.  It  gave  an  account  of  a 
journey  made  by  the  Emperor  through  the 
streets  of  the  capital,  impressing  the  sim- 
plicity of  the  Imperial  entourage  in  compari- 
son with  the  imposing  grandeur  of  that  of 
the  shogun  and  its  inconvenience  to  the 
people.  In  1869  a  memorial  was  presented 
to  the  Government  by  Hosokawa  Junjiro, 
later  Marquis  Hosokawa  and  Imperial 
Chamberlain,  pointing  out  the  importance 
of  the  press  as  a  factor  in  the  life  of  all 
progressive  nations,  and  explaining  the  ways 
of  journalism  abroad.  This  had  the  desired 
effect.  In  a  few  months  the  ban  against 
unof^cial  newspapers  was  withdrawn  and 
their  publication  freely  encouraged.  There- 
upon appeared  the  first  bona  fide  daily  news- 
paper in  Japan,  the  Mainichi  Shimbun, 
still  one  of  the  leading  dailies  of  the  Empire. 
In  quick  succession  followed  the  Nichinichi 
and  the  Hochi.  The  true  journalist  is  an 
artist  as  really  as  the  poet  or  the  painter, 
and  is  devoted  to  his  art  with  a  passion  that 
neither  ill-luck  nor  money  can  sway;  and 
this  is  seen  to  be  as  true  in  Japan  as  else- 
where, for  the  names  connected  with  the 
new  dailies  of  Tokyo  were  the  same  that 
made  the  earliest  ventures  in  journalism, 
Fukuchi  and  Dempei  of  the  suppressed  Koko 
Shimbun.  Both  the  new  dailies  were  issued 
with  the  encouragement  of  the  Government, 
and  were  followed  by  others  in  Tokyo,  which 
were  established  not  only  with  the  advice 
and  assistance  of  officials,  but  with  capital 
provided  by  prominent  members  of  the 
Government.  None  of  these  early  pajiers 
entered  upon  political  discussion,  nor  tried 
to  exercise  any  political  influence.  They 
were  mere  disseminators  of  news,  sometimes 
of  rather  a  crude  type,  and  they  only  ap- 
proached politics  sufficiently  to  publish  now 
and  then  an  appeal  or  memorial  to  the 
Government,  addressed  by  men  of  impor- 
tance, urging  certain  reforms.  Such  memo- 
rials were  always  published  without  com- 
ment of  any  kind. 

A  radical  departure  from  this  policy  was 
begun  by  a  Scotchman  named  John  Black 
who  established  a  newspaper  called  the 
Nishin  Shinjishi  in  Tokj^o.  He  already  con- 
ducted an  English  journal  in  Yokohama,  but 
foreseeing  the  possibilities  of  vernacular 
journalism  he  started  the  new  venture  in  the 
capital    with    the    assistance    of    competent 


native  scholars.  Being  a  British  subject 
he  enjoyed  extraterritorial  protection  and 
felt  free  to  carry  on  his  paper  just  as  it 
would  be  done  in  London.  The  journal 
was  soon  seen  to  be  sujierior  in  all  its  features 
to  the  badly  edited  native  sheets,  containing 
as  it  did,  not  only  all  the  news  but  critical 
leading  articles  that  arrested  the  attention 
of  the  public.  The  office  of  the  Nishin 
Shinjishi,  or  Reliable  Daily  News,  became  a 
recruiting  ground  for  daily  journals  wanting 
competent  newspaper  men,  and  soon  the 
same  policy  was  adopted  by  the  leading 
vernacular  dailies  of  the  capital.  Thus  the 
Scotchman,  John  Black,  had  an  influence 
on  Japanese  journalism  that  has  really  been 
the  cause  of  its  present  progress.  About 
this  time  came  into  existence  the  Yomiuri 
and  the  Choya  and  the  Chugai.  The  great- 
est Japanese  newspapers  had  already  been 
bom,  but  journals  of  equal  integrity  and 
influence  were  still  to  appear.  Up  to  this 
time  party  journalism  did  not  exist.  But 
between  1870  and  1880  there  had  been  a 
tremendous  development  of  public  spirit 
and  of  interest  in  political  affairs.  Many 
of  the  large  numbers  of  students  sent  abroad 
for  education  were  now  returning  saturated 
with  foreign  ideas  of  constitutionalism  and 
freedom,  determined  to  make  Japan  like 
Europe  and  America.  They  engaged  In  the 
impossible  task  of  trying  to  bring  about  in 
Japan,  in  the  space  of  a  few  years,  what  it 
had  taken  centuries  to  accomplish  in  Europe. 
These  agitators  found  the  press  their  chief 
organ  of  propaganda,  and  so  aggressive  did 
the  papers  become  that  the  Government  was 
obliged  to  issue  stringent  regulations  to 
curb  the  growing  license.  It  was,  however, 
difficult  to  control  the  vernacular  press  while 
the  journal  carried  on  by  the  Scotchman 
was  free  under  the  laws  of  extraterritoriality, 
and  consequently  the  authorities  descended 
to  a  ruse  to  get  rid  of  Blaclst  He  was  offered 
a  tempting  position  as  secretary  to  a  parlia- 
ment that  did  not  exist  as  yet,  and  after  he 
had  accepted  it,  the  British  Minister  was 
prevailed  on  to  issue  an  Order  in  Council 
forbidding  British  subjects  to  engage  in 
vernacular  journalism,  and  then  the  Govern- 
ment quietly  dispensed  with  the  services  of 
Black,  his  occupation  now  gone.  A  new  law 
was  promulgated  in  1875  rigidly  circimi- 
scribing  the  liberty  of  the  press,  violations 
of  which  were  punishable  by  fine  imposed 
on  the  editor  and  the  writer  and  by  suspension 
of  the  journal  itself.  The  editors  at  first  did 
not  believe  the  Government  w-ould  enforce 
the  law,  but  they  soon  learned  their  mistake 
when  leading  editors  were  promptly  arrested 
and  sentenced  to  terms  of  imprisonment  for 
unfavourable  criticism  of  the  Government. 
Between  1875  and  1877  there  was  almost  a 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


713 


constant  procession  of  editors  and  journalists 
to  prison.  Prevented  from  sjieaking  out 
freely,  journalists  now  resorted  to  irony  and 
allegory  and  the  authorities  were  greatly 
put  to  it  to  know  how  to  deal  with  writings 
the  interpretation  of  which  was  ambiguous. 
The  daily  papers  now  also  resorted  to  the 
device  of  having  dummy  editors  to  go  to 
prison  in  place  of  the  real  editor  who  could 
not  be  spared,  a  custom  still  retained  in 
Jajian.  Some  of  these  vicarious  victims 
received  a  higher  salary  than  the  editor 
himself,  as  it  was  not  a  popular  profession. 
The  authorities  began  to  learn,  too,  the  habit 
of  buying  up  newspapers  as  the  easiest  way 
to  control  them. 

With  the  rise  of  party  politics  and  govern- 
ment journals,  came  in  a  new  press  regime 
and  a  new  class  of  journalist.  The  journal- 
istic camp  became  divided  into  what  were 
called  the  greater  and  lesser  journals,  the 
former  being  devoted  mainly  to  the  dis- 
cussion of  politics,  for  or  against  the  Govern- 
ment, and  the  latter  independent  and  popular, 
with  a  very  wide  influence.  The  0-shimhun, 
or  greater  journals,  had  few  readers  because 
they  not  only  discussed  abstruse  political 
theories,  but  they  were  printed  in  Chinese 
ideographs  which  most  of  the  common 
people  could  not  read.  Among  the  more 
important  of  them  were  the  Tokyo  Mainichi, 
the  Tokyo  Nichinichi,  and  the  Hochi.  The 
Ko-shimhnn,  on  the  other  hand,  uieAfurigana 
type  to  explain  the  ideographs,  and  printed 
stories  and  fiction  for  the  masses,  as  well  as 
woodcuts  and  spicy  news  items  that  appealed 
to  the  every-day  man.  The  leaders  in  this 
new  journalism  were  the  Yomiuri  and  the 
Miyako.  Each  class  of  journal  in  time  began 
to  imitate  the  other,  and  this  blending 
resulted  in  greatly  improving  Japanese 
journalism.  Some  of  the  leading  scholars, 
politicians,  and  publicists  of  the  day  began 
to  connect  themselves  with  daily  papers. 
The  leading  joiunals  of  Tokyo  began  to 
vie  with  one  another  in  imitating  foreign 
papers  like  those  of  London  and  New  York. 
Men  such  as  the  late  Mr.  Fukuzawa,  founder 
of  the  Keiogijuku  University,  established  the 
Jiji  Shimpo  in  1882,  which  has  ever  since 
been  regarded  as  the  greatest  paper  in  Japan. 
Many  of  the  members  of  the  Government 
were  now  men  who  had  suffered  fine  and 
imprisonment  in  connection  with  journalism, 
and  knew  how  to  sympathise  with  the  press. 
Press  laws  became  more  liberal  and  humane. 
At  present  the  press  enjoys  the  same  liberty 
in  Japan  as  in  England,  and  unfortunately 
it  too  often  takes  advantage  of  this  to  indulge 
in  the  tactics  of  the  yellow  journalism  of 
the  West.  It  was  not  until  after  the  war 
with  China  that  the  vernacular  press  of 
Japan  began  to  take  much  interest  in  foreign 


affairs,  and  now  the  influence  of  vernacular 
journalism  on  international  affairs  is  very 
great.  Sometimes,  it  is  true,  this  influence 
is  pernicious  and  seemingly  wilful  in  deception 
of  the  public  for  partisan  or  national  reasons, 
but  usually  it  is  potent  in  the  right  direction. 
Special  correspondents  are  maintained  at 
the  leading  capitals  of  the  world,  and  com- 
munications from  them  appear  regularly  in 
the  great  dailies  of  the  Empire.  The  larger 
news  associations  have  their  agents  in  Japan, 
who  send  and  receive  news  from  every  part 
of  the  world.  The  Kokusai  News  Agency 
is  a  Japanese  organisation  which  controls 
most  of  the  news  leaving  Japan,  having 
been  especially  organised  for  that  purpose. 
Japanese  business  men  have  learned  the 
value  of  advertising  and  the  income  from 
that  source  is  naturally  the  largest  revenue 
of  the  daily  journal.  The  rates  are  much 
higher  than  those  prevailing  in  Occidental 
countries,  while  the  price  of  the  papers  is 
much  less,  being  usually  about  one  sen  to 
two  and  a  half.  Extras  are  issued  in  case 
of  special  news.  The  papers  are  printed 
so  as  to  appeal  to  the  widest  circle  of  readers, 
the  ideographs  being  accompanied  by  sylla- 
bary interlineation  rendering  them  easily 
intelligible  to  the  most  unlearned  of  readers. 
The  common  items  of  news  are  written  in 
the  colloquial  as  far  as  possible,  the  classic 
written  language  being  reserved  for  the  lead- 
ing articles,  or  for  philosophic  or  technical 
subjects. 

MAKE-UP     AND     CONTENT     OF     LEADING 
JAPANESE    JOURNALS 

The  modem  Japanese  daily  paper  is  pro- 
duced on  a  revolving  press  much  after  the 
manner  of  the  great  metropolitan  papers 
abroad.  Only  in  the  more  remote  towns  do 
we  notice  now  and  then  a  news  sheet  struck 
off  from  the  old-time  hand  press.  The 
progress  in  this  direction  has  been  quite 
remarkable,  especially  when  it  is  remembered 
that  the  first  rotary  press  was  imported  by 
the  Government  Printing  Bureau  only  in 
1890,  and  the  first  paper  printed  in  this  way 
was  the  Official  Gazette.  The  Tokyo  A  said 
and  the  Jiji  Shimpo  were  the  next  to  install 
rotary  presses,  and  soon  all  the  leading 
journals  adopted  such  machines.  A  great 
drawback  is  the  absence  of  any  invention 
in  the  way  of  a  linotj'pe  machine,  which  is 
hardly  possible  on  account  of  the  numerous 
ideographs.  Illustration  is  a  prominent 
feature  of  the  modem  Japanese  journalism, 
woodcuts  having  mostly  given  way  to 
photographs,  though  there  are  still  plenty 
of  sketches  in  caricature  and  burlesque. 
The  content  of  the  Japanese  daily  is  racy 
of  the  native  soil.  Feature  journaUsm  is 
practiced  to  an  extent  unknown  elsewhere. 


All  the  'i'okyo  dailies  publish  two  serial 
stories,  one  of  present-day  life  and  one  of 
old  Japan.  Some  morning  dailies  subor- 
dinate news  and  opinions  to  such  features 
as  a  ladies'  page,  or  children's  page,  or  chats 
with  readers,  a  magazine  page,  and  so  on. 
The  editorial  views  usually  reflect  the  insta- 
bility of  public  opinion.  For  security  regard- 
ing its  opinions  every  Japanese  newspaper 
has  to  deposit  with  the  Government  a  siffh 
ranging  from  £200  downwards,  according  to 
the  size  of  the  journal  and  the  frequency  of 
its  publication,  the  authorities  drawing  from 
this  fund  whenever  penalties  are  imposed. 
Suppressions  are  frequent,  there  being  453 
cases  in  19 14,  many  of  which  related  to 
news  of  military  and  diplomatic  affairs. 
Some  of  the  causes  of  fine  or  suppression  are 
ridiculous,  such  as  printing  a  cut  of  foreign 
nude  statuary,  or  touching  upon  law  cases 
under  examination.  The  dailies  are  delivered 
at  the  door  every  morning  by  boys,  running 
with  bells  at  their  girdles. 

The  leading  Tokyo  dailies  are  the  Asahi, 
the  Jiji,  and  the  Nichinichi,  which  in  English 
would  be  The  Sun,  The  Day's  Events,  and 
Day  by  Day.  These  journals  are  larger 
and  sell  at  a  higher  price  than  the  others,  and 
have  their  regular  correspondents  in  London, 
New  York,  and  Petrograd.  They  devote 
careful  attention  to  foreign  affairs  and 
exercise  a  far-reaching  influence  on  public 
opinion,  being  equal  to  the  penny  morning 
papers  of  London.  Taking  them  separately, 
the  Asahi  is  generally  regarded  as  the  greatest 
paper  in  Japan,  though  the  Jiji  runs  a  close 
second.  It  has  the  best  cable  service,  lives 
on  its  merits  without  resort  to  sensational 
devices,  and  employs  an  erudite  and  cultured 
staff  of  writers.  The  Jiji  is  noted  for  the 
accuracy  of  its  commercial  and  financial  news 
as  well  as  for  the  ability  and  liberalism  of  its 
leading  articles.  This  paper  has  more  pages 
than  any  other  Tokj'o  daily  and  it  has  a 
very  large  circulation,  being  regarded  as 
a  clean  family  paper.  The  Nichinichi  is  a 
solid,  well-informed  journal  without  any 
distinctive  features.  It  devotes  its  first  page 
to  advertisements,  the  second  to  foreign 
telegrams,  three  to  leading  articles,  court 
and  political  news,  four  to  what  it  regards  as 
the  serious  news  of  the  day,  speeches  and  so 
on,  five  to  things  notorious  such  as  crimes, 
catastrophes,  and  sensations.  Pages  six  and 
seven  are  given  to  serial  stories,  literary 
articles,  and  dramatic  criticisms,  while  page 
eight  contains  many  columns  of  financial  and 
stock  exchange  intelligence.  There  are  no 
sporting  pages,  though  this  paper  devotes 
space  to  reporting  baseball  games  and 
Japanese  chess.  The  next  most  important 
of  the  metropolitan  dailies  is,  perhaps,  the 
Kokumin,  or  Nation,  the  distinguished  editor 


714 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


of  which  is  Mr.  Tokutomi,  also  a  famous 
novelist  and  member  of  the  House  of  Peers. 
The  editor  is  the  proprietor  of  the  paper  and 
in  its  columns  he  wields  a  strenuous  pen, 
noted  for  its  ardent  nationalism  appealing  to 
the  youth  of  the  Empire.  Apart  from  the 
editorial  writings  there  is  little  of  interest  in 
the  Kokumin,  popular  appeal  consisting  of 
exploitations  of  crime  or  baby  contests. 
Prizes  are  offered  to  those  bringing  to  light 
miscarriages  of  justice.  Numerous  editions 
of  the  paper  are  printed  and  localised  in  the 
provinces.  The  Yomiuri  is  distinctly  a  home 
paper  to  which  there  is  no  exact  parallel  in 
other  countries.  It  is  a  literary  newspaper 
that  appeals  to  women,  and  enjoys  consider- 
able popularity  among  students.  While 
giving  the  ordinary  news  of  the  day,  home 
and  foreign,  the  paper  leaves  on  one  the  im- 
pression that  news  is  only  a  disagreeable 
necessity;  and  as  soon  as  this  can  be  got  rid 
of,  the  main  attention  is  devoted  to  the 
Woman's  Page,  the  Literary  Page,  the  Page 
for  Children,  and  the  Literary  Section. 
There  are  Household  Hints  and  articles  for 
young  ladies,  and  a  personal  consultation 
column,  with  stories  such  as  are  found  in 
foreign  magazines.  The  Yomiuri  is  really  a 
daily  magazine  with  an  epitome  of  the  news. 
The  HocJti,  or  Post,  is  a  paper  for  the  masses. 
Its  editor  and  proprietor,  Mr.  Zenhachi  Miki, 
is  the  W.  R.  Hearst  of  Japan.  There  are  no 
evening  papers  in  Tokyo,  but  the  Hochi  pub- 
lishes an  evening  edition,  the  four  pages  of 
each  edition  being  sold  for  a  farthing,  dupli- 
cation being  carefully  avoided  in  the  two 
editions.  The  morning  edition  is  devoted 
chiefly  to  telegrams  and  the  news  of  the  day, 
while  the  evening  edition  deals  with  late 
cables  and  attempts  to  entertain  the  weary 
business  man  with  tales  ancient  and  modem. 
The  Hochi  is  a  party  paper  and  now  supports 
the  Kenseikai.  The  Yorozu  Cholio,  or  Ten 
Thousand  Things,  is  a  bright  and  well-made- 
up  paper  dealing  with  all  manner  of  subjects, 
making  a  feature  of  competitions,  the  latter 
mostly  of  a  literary  nature.  The  evening 
edition  has  short  comments  instead  of  lead- 
ing articles,  and  gives  a  valuable  and  concise 
summary  of  the  news.  The  Yainato,  which 
is  rather  a  sensational  sheet,  publishes  two 
editions  daily,  and  is  mostly  popular  among 
the  lower  classes.  This  paper  makes  a 
feature  of  attacking  foreign  countries  and 
publishing  shady  geisha  stories,  giving  the 
names  of  real  persons  who  have  lost  their 
hearts  to  the  fair  dancers.  Two  other  small 
papers,  the  Miyako  (Capital)  and  the 
Maiyu  (Every  Evening),  also  devote  much 
space  to  the  doings  of  the  demimonde.  Such 
papers  are  used  for  advertising  pleasure 
resorts  and  theatres.  The  Chugai  is  a  com- 
mercial and  economic  journal  which  enjoys 


a  large  circulation,  while  the  Chuo  is  an  organ 
of  the  Seiyukai  party.  Other  Tokyo  dailies 
are  the  Nippon  and  the  Sekai  which  have  no 
very  great  influence.  Osaka  has  some  daily 
journals  equal  to  anything  in  Tokj^o,  such  as 
the  Osaka  Asahi,  the  Osaka  Mainichi,  the 
Osaka  Nichinicht,  which  command  a  powerful 
influence  and  clientele.  Other  Osaka  papers 
are  the  Osaka  Jiji,  the  Osaka  Nippo,  and  the 
Osaka  Shimpo. 

A  further  feature  of  Japanese  journalism  is 
the  number  of  papers  published  by  foreigners 
in  English,  some  of  which  date  their  establish- 
ment before  many  of  the  leading  vernacular 
dailies.  The  circulation  of  papers  printed  in 
English  is  necessarily  limited  and  the  prices 
correspondingly  high.  The  oldest  foreign 
journal  is  the  Japan  Mail,  founded  by  the 
late  Captain  Brinkley  and  edited  by  him  for 
more  than  40  years;  but  since  his  death  it 
has  descended  to  comparative  insignificance. 
The  most  important  foreign  daily  now  is  the 
Japan  Chronicle,  published  in  Kobe,  Mr. 
Robert  Young  being  the  editor  and  propri- 
etor. Its  leading  articles  are  well  written 
and  its  attitude  one  of  frank  criticism.  The 
Japan  Gazette,  published  in  Yokohama,  is 
now  the  only  English  journal  in  Japan's 
greatest  port,  while  the  Japan  Advertiser, 
published  in  Tokyo,  by  an  American,  Mr. 
B.  W.  Fleisher,  is  the  most  modem  foreign 
paper  in  Japan.  The  Japan  Times,  also 
published  in  Tokyo,  is  the  only  foreign  paper 
under  Japanese  auspices,  the  editor  being 
Mr.  I.  Takahashi  and  the  management  under 
the  International  News  Agency.  The  Kobe 
Herald  is  a  small  paper  and  so  is  the  Nagasaki 
Press,  while  another  paper  in  English  is 
published  in  Seoul  by  the  Japanese,  called 
the  Seoul  Press.  It  may  be  said  that  most 
of  these  foreign  dailies  are  well  edited  and 
conducted,  and  that,  considering  the  high 
cost  of  cable  despatches,  they  peek  their 
readers  fairly  well  informed  in  relation  to 
the  outside  world. 

The  publication  of  magazines,  reviews,  and 
periodicals  devoted  to  special  subjects  has 
developed  even  to  a  greater  degree  than  that 
of  daily  newspapers,  and  there  is  scarcely 
one  department  of  scientific,  industrial,  com- 
mercial, political,  or  social  life  that  has  not 
an  organ  to  represent  it.  The  most  promi- 
nent of  the  weeklies  and  monthlies  are  de- 
voted to  commerce,  finance,  and  politics, 
followed  by  literature,  art,  medicine,  army, 
navy,  education,  religion,  and  the  world  of 
woman.  It  is  remarkable  the  number  of 
women's  magazines  that  find  support,  and 
most  of  them  are  high  class,  the  product  of 
educated  brains,  and  admirably  illustrated 
with  photographs,  lithographs,  and  colotypes 
done  in  artistic  style.  The  most  prominent 
financial    organ    is    the    Kezai    Zasshi,    or 


"Economist,"  while  the  Taiyo,  or  "Sun," 
is  one  of  the  best  of  the  monthly  reviews, 
corresponding  to  the  "Fortnightly"  or  the 
"Contemporary"  in  England.  The  Chuo 
Choron,  or  "Central  Review,"  deals  with 
general  subjects  and  is  a  popular  exponent 
of  public  opinion  of  a  radical  trend.  The 
Shin  Nippon,  or  "New  Japan,"  is  Marquis 
Okuma's  review  and  deals  in  a  trenchant 
manner  with  political  questions  and  general 
affairs,  while  the  Nippon  Oyobi  Nipponjin 
is  a  powerful  political  and  literary  fort- 
nightly. The  "Far  East,"  is  a  weekly 
published  under  foreign  auspices  in  English, 
as  is  the  "New  East,"  which  is  pubHshed 
monthly,  reviewing  Oriental  and  Occidental 
thought.  The  "Herald  of  Asia"  is  a  weekly 
in  English  under  Japanese  control,  and  the 
"Japan  Magazine,"  another  monthly  in 
English  under  Japanese  auspices,  treating  of 
things  Japanese.  The  most  famous  comic 
publication  is  "Tokyo  Puck,"  which  is  on 
the  whole  rather  a  vulgar  sheet.  The  police 
entrusted  with  the  inspection  of  periodicals 
have  an  enormous  task  in  dealing  with  the 
hundreds  of  publications  that  see  the  light 
from  month  to  month.  Those  publishing 
dangerous  thoughts  have  to  be  duly  warned 
and  if  they  persist  they  are  promptly  sup- 
pressed. 

"the  j.\pan  chronicle" 
The  Japan  Chronicle,  a  morning  journal 
published  at  Kob^,  was  established  in  1891. 
Mr.  Robert  Young,  the  founder  of  the  paper, 
came  out  to  Japan  in  1888  to  join  the  Hyogo 
News,  a  journal  established  in  1868,  when 
the  port  of  Kobe-Hyogo  was  opened  to 
foreign  trade.  He  severed  his  connection 
with  this  journal  and  started  the  Japan 
Chronicle  in  October,  1891.  This  was  the 
month  in  which  the  great  earthquake  took 
place  in  the  neighbourhood  of  Gifu,  when 
some  ten  thousand  lives  were  lost.  The  care 
and  promptitude  with  which  the  particulars 
of  this  terrible  calamity  were  reported  did 
much  to  give  the  new  journal  a  standing 
among  its  contemporaries.  A  few  years 
later — in  1894  —  the  war  with  China  broke 
out,  and  the  Chronicle  obtained  further  repu- 
tation for  the  extent  and  accuracy  of  its  war 
news.  It  was  the  Chronicle  that  gave  the 
first  intimation  of  the  impending  Japanese 
attack  on  Formosa  —  news  that  was  ridiculed 
at  the  time,  as  it  was  thought  the  Japanese 
would  confine  their  operations  to  the  north, 
but  news  which  was  found  in  due  course  to 
be  based  on  accurate  information.  In  1898 
the  Hyogo  News  came  into  the  market,  and 
was  purchased  by  Mr.  Young,  when  it  was 
converted  into  an  afternoon  journal.  A  few 
months  later  a  fire  destroyed  the  office  of 
the  Hyogo  News,  and  it  was  then  decided  to 


PRESENT-DAY        I  M   I>  I<  E  S  S  I  O  N  S        OF        JAPAN 


715 


THE   JAPAN    CHRONICLE       BUILDING,    KOBE 


incorporate  the  two  papers.  Hitherto  the 
new  journal  had  been  known  as  the  Kobe 
Chronicle,  but  shortly  after  the  incorporation 
the  name  was  changed  to  the  Japan  Chronicle, 
to  indicate  that  it  covered  a  wider  field  than 
a  mere  local  journal.  Since  then  it  has  en- 
joyed continued  prosperity. 

When  the  Chronicle  was  started  extra- 
territoriality still  prevailed  in  Japan.  The 
Chronicle  urged  that  as  Japan  had  shown 
such  great  progress  in  the  Westernisation  of 
her  institutions  it  was  only  just  that  extra- 
territoriality should  be  surrendered,  and  that 
foreigners  should  be  brought  under  Japanese 
law  but  with  the  necessary  safeguards  both 
as  regarded  the  administration  of  the  law  and 
the  protection  of  the  interests  already  set  up. 
In  1894  the  revised  Anglo- Japanese  Treaty 
was  signed,  under  which  consular  jurisdiction 
was  to  be  abandoned  after  five  years.  Un- 
fortunately the  new  treaty,  while  it  protected 


the  property  in  the  foreign  settlements  from 
heavier  taxation  than  that  already  paid, 
contained  no  safeguards  as  regards  the  ad- 
ministration of  the  law  or  the  improvement 
of  the  prisons,  the  latter  a  matter  of  much 
importance  as  the  criminal  law  is  very  wide 
in  Japan  and  bail  extremely  difficult  to 
obtain.  The  Chronicle  drew  attention  to 
these  defects,  with  the  result  that  a  memorial 
was  drawn  up  and  presented  to  the  British 
Foreign  Office  setting  forth  the  position, 
which,  though  it  had  no  diplomatic  result, 
had  influence  in  indicating  to  the  Japanese 
authorities  the  necessity  of  tact  and  caution 
in  the  transition  years,  while  impelling  the 
British  Government  to  keep  a  watchful  eye 
on  the  efTect  of  the  changes.  It  was  as  the 
result  of  articles  in  the  Chronicle  pointing 
out  that  the  imposition  of  a  house-tax  on 
settlement  property  was  an  infraction  of  the 
new  treaties  that  the  question  was  taken  up 


by  the  Governments  concerned  and  ultimately 
submitted  for  decision  to  The  Hague,  which 
upheld  the  view  originally  advocated  by 
the  Chronicle,  that  the  so-called  rents  paid 
on  the  properties  concerned  were  really  in 
the  nature  of  a  commuted  tax. 

Throughout  its  career  the  Chronicle  has 
taken  its  stand  as  a  representative  of  the 
foreign  community  as  a  whole  rather  than  of 
any  particular  nationality,  holding  that  in 
Japan  the  interests  of  foreigners  were  in  the 
main  identical;  and  when  a  few  years  ago  a 
decision  in  a  libel  suit  was  given  against  the 
Chronicle  in  a  case  where  the  Chronicle  had 
been  defending  foreigners  from  the  aspersions 
of  a  foreign  official,  afterwards  removed  by 
Iiis  Government,  the  foreign  community, 
irrespective  of  nationality,  subscribed  a  fund 
sufficient  to  indemnify  the  paper  against  the 
damages  and  costs. 

Established  at  a  time  when  Japan  was 
not  the  powerful  nation  recognised  to-day, 
and  beginning  as  an  advocate  of  an  act  of 
justice  to  Japan  in  the  matter  of  the  sur- 
render of  extraterritoriality,  the  Chronicle  has 
become  more  critical  as  time  has  shown  Japan 
to  be  inclined  to  use  her  strength  for  the 
extension  of  her  political  power  instead  of 
developing  her  own  resources  and  improving 
the  condition  of  her  people,  but,  if  its  criti- 
cisms are  somewhat  sharp,  it  endeavours  to 
be  fair  and  just,  and  has  not  hesitated  to 
support  Japan's  legitimate  claims  in  foreign 
affairs,  while  the  domestic  reforms  it  has 
advocated  have  been  as  much  in  the  interests 
of  the  Japanese  people  as  of  foreign  residents. 

"the  japan  advertiser" 
The  Japan  Advertiser  has  been  established 
about  a  quarter  of  a  century,  but  its  greatest 
progress  has  been  made  in  the  past  ten  years 
since  it  came  under  the  proprietorship  and 
management  of  Mr.  B.  W.  Fleisher.  It  was 
originally  published  in  Yokohama,  but  under 
its  present  management  was  moved  to  To- 
k-j'o,  where  it  occupies  a  commodious  build- 
ing, centrally  located,  and  well  installed  for 
newspaper   production. 

The  Advertiser  not  unjustifiably  claims  to 
be  the  leading  and  most  influential  foreign 
paper  published  in  Japan,  and  compares 
more  than  favourably  with  any  foreign  daily 
published  in  the  Far  East.  Members  of  the 
paper's  foreign  staff  are  all  trained  journalists 
from  abroad,  and  their  high  qualifications 
are  reflected  in  the  excellent  news  service 
which  the  Advertiser  furnishes,  and  the 
general  vigour  of  the  journal.  The  organisa- 
tion represents  the  most  up-to-date  journal- 
ism in  the  Far  East,  and  the  prestige  of  the 
paper  is  heightened  by  the  fact  that  the 
members  of  the  staff  are  also  correspondents 
of  newspapers  or  press  associations  abroad. 


'i6 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


The  mechanical  side  of  the  Ailvcrliser  is  as 
noteworthy  as  its  Hterary  quality.  There 
is  no  better  printed  newspaper  in  Japan,  nor, 
in  fact,  outside  of  the  great  newspaper  centres 
of  the  world. 

The  Japan  Advertiser  is  about  to  publish 
a  financial  and  economic  monthly  covering 
the  whole  of  the  Far  East.  Offices  will  be 
established  in  Tokyo,  Yokohama,  Peking, 
Shanghai,  Manila  and  elsewhere,  and  there 
will  be  representatives  and  correspondents 
in  other  parts  of  the  Orient.  The  head 
office  of  the  Advertiser  is  at  No.  iS,  Yamas- 
hita-cho,  Tokyo. 

"the  japan  gazette" 
The  Japan  Gazette  is  the  only  foreign  news- 
paper W'ith  its  headquarters  at   Yokohama. 


Its  historj'  goes  back  to  October,  1867, 
when  the  paper  was  started  by  the  late 
Mr.  J.  R.  Black,  one  of  the  pioneer 
foreign  journalists  of  Japan.  Mr.  Black 
had  previously  been  editor  of  the  old 
Herald.  The  story  of  Mr.  Black's  diffi- 
culties in  getting  his  paper  started  would 
form  an  interesting  chapter  of  the  history 
of  journalism  abroad.  There  was  then 
only  one  newspaper  press  in  town,  and 
this  was  secured  by  the  Herald.  Con- 
sequently Mr.  Black  had  to  make  shift  to 
get  the  Gazette  printed.  A  fellow  Scotsman 
made  a  press  for  him.  It  took  three  men 
to  work  it,  but  it  did  work,  and  for  some 
time  the  Gazette  was  printed  on  this  machine 
until  a  real  press  could  be  obtained  from 
China. 


The  Japan  Gazette  early  established  itself 
in  popularity  with  the  commercial  community 
of  Yokohama,  it  being  the  first  evening  paj^er 
to  publish  daily  shipping  and  market  returns. 
Its  career  has  since  been  one  of  steady  prog- 
ress, and  to-day  it  holds  a  firm  place  in  the 
estimation  of  the  entire  foreign  community 
of  Yokohama.  At  various  times  the  pro- 
prietors have  produced  historical  and  other 
publications  of  special  interest.  Associated 
with  the  Gazette  are  also  the  "Japan  Di- 
rectory," a  highly  useful  trade  publication, 
and  "Commercial  Japan,"  a  monthly  review 
of  trade,  industries,  and  economics.  Mr.  L.  D. 
Adam  is  the  Editor  of  the  Gazette,  Mr.  A.  W. 
Sherriff  being  in  charge  of  the  mechanical 
and  business  departments.  The  paper  is  pub- 
lished at  No.  10  Water  Street,  Yokohama. 


XLII.    Shipping 

(Osaka  and  Kob6  Section*) 


SHIPBUILDING 

KAWASAKI    DOCKYARD    COMPANY, 
LIMITED 

THE  student  of  the  industrial  and  man- 
ufacturing development  of  modern 
Japan  can  not  fail  to  be  impressed 
with  the  energj'  and  force,  the  courage  and 
enterprise,  business  capacity  and  organisation, 
which  have  built  up  in  the  Empire  such  huge 
concerns  as  the  Kawasaki  Dockyard  Com- 
pany, Limited.  This  is  no  phenomenon  of  war 
times,  but  is  the  growth  of  many  years, 
during  which  a  steady  policy  of  expansion, 
directed  by  the  most  capable  business  brains 
of  Japan,  has  been  followed  with  a  clear  idea 
in  view  to  establish  and  maintain  an  industry 
giving  to  the  Empire  a  measure  of  economic 
independence  that  can  not  be  assessed  even 
in  millions.  The  Kawasaki  Works  is  some- 
thing of  which  any  country  might  well  be 
proud,  as  it  is  indeed  something  imrivalled 
even  in  these  days  of  business  organisation, 
except  perhaps  in  the  oldest  shipbuilding 
centres  of  Europe.  And  as  a  matter  of  fact, 
the  Kawasaki  Company  goes  far  beyond 
many  of  the  greatest  shipbuilding  concerns 
of  the  Occident,  because,  though  its  first 
and  principal  activity  is  that  of  shipbuilding, 
it  is  also  known  throughout  the  Far  East, 
and  abroad,  as  a  huge  general  engineering 
and  constructing  enterprise,  engaging  in  a 
score  of  industries,  allied  to  iron  and  steel 
W'ork.  As,  however,  it  is  proposed  in  this 
article  to  treat  somewhat  in  detail  of  the 
different  directions  in  which  the  Kawasaki 
Dockj'ard  Company,  Limited,  operates 
through  its  various  departments,  it  is  not 
necessary  at  this  stage  to  do  more  than 
indicate  the  wide  extent  of  its  business. 
The  company  has  carried  out  some  of  the 
largest  shipbuilding  contracts  in  Japan,  and 
the  magnitude  of  its  operations  since  the 
war  began,  are  more  than  likely  to  be  ex- 
ceeded as  time  passes.  For  instance,  one 
big  deal  in  191 7  was  the  sale  of  12  cargo 
ships,  worth  Yen  50,000,000  to  Messrs. 
Furncss,  Withy  and  Company,  and  other 
British  shipping  firms,  and  the  laying  down 
of  a  programme  for  20  liners  of  g.ooo  tons 
each,  as  one  part  of  the  company's  under- 
taking  for   1918. 

The  original  works  at  Kob6  were  estab- 
lished in  May,  1870,  and  the  Kawasaki 
♦Seepage  108. 


Dockyard  Company,  Limited,  came  into 
being  in  October,  1896.  The  subsequent 
history  is  one  of  rapid  expansion  in  keeping 
with  the  industrial  development  of  Japan, 
and  the  demand  for  the  output  of  such  a 
modern  works.  The  capital  of  the  company 
has  been  enlarged  on  several  occasions,  to 
enable  the  plant  and  works  to  be  extended, 
and  to-day  it  stands  at  the  substantial  sum 
of  Yen  20,000,000,  of  which  Yen  17,500,000 
has  been  paid  up.  An  idea  of  the  prosperity 
of  the  company  may  be  gathered  from  the 
fact  that  it  has  accumulated  reserves  of 
Yen  7,484,000,  and  that  for  the  last  term 
the  dividends  were  10  per  cent,  with  a 
special  dividend  of  20  per  cent  per  annum, 
while  the  outstanding  debentures  bear  inter- 
est at  6  per  cent.  The  business  undertaken 
by  the  Kawasaki  Dockyard  Company,  Lim- 
ited, may  be  broadly  outlined  as  follows: 

1.  Construction  of,  and  repairs  to,  all 
kinds  of  warships,  passenger  and  cargo 
steamers,  sailing  ships,  dredgers,  trawlers, 
floating  docks,  etc. 

2.  Construction  of,  and  repairs  to,  all 
kinds  of  marine  and  land  machinery,  such 
as  locomotives,  boilers,  dynamos,  motors  and 
all  descriptions  of  electrical  apparatus, 
machine  tools,  etc. 

3.  Casting  and  forging  of  iron,  bronze, 
and  brass;  bridge  building,  girders,  etc.,  and 
the  manufacture  of  firearms  and  armament 
generally. 

4.  Salvage,  towing  and  marine  trans- 
portation. 

The  main  offices  and  works  are  at  Higashi 
Kawasaki-cho,  Kob^.  The  branches  will  be 
dealt  with  later.  The  total  area  of  the 
works  is  567,337  square  yards  and  the  build- 
ing area  is  164,793  square  yards.  At  the 
main  works  there  are  at  present  under  con- 
struction 12  steamers  of  9,000  tons  each, 
and  five  warships.  From  this  yard  have 
been  turned  out  the  battle  cruiser  Haruna 
(27,600  tons) ,  the  second  class  cruiser  Hirado 
(5,200  tons),  and  the  despatch  boat  Yodo 
(1,250  tons).  Other  warships,  comprising 
gun  boats,  submarines,  destroyers,  and 
torpedo  boats,  were  built  and  engined  for 
the  Imperial  Japanese  Navy.  Many  gun 
boats,  destroyers,  and  torpedo  boats  have 
also  been  constructed  for  the  Chinese  and 
Siamese  Governments,  to  say  nothing  of  a 
regular   output    of   merchant    vessels   of   all 


kinds.  From  the  same  works  a  large  number 
of  railway  locomotives,  electric  trams,  rail- 
way carriages,  brake  vans,  tenders,  goods 
vans,  etc.,  bridges  and  bridge  girders,  have 
been  supplied  to  the  Imperial  Japanese  Rail- 
ways, the  Kiang-se  Railway,  China,  and  to 
various  tramway  companies. 

The  main  works  are  divided  into  various 
departments,  as,  for  instance,  the  Ship- 
building Department,  which  comprises  join- 
ers' shops,  platers'  machine  shop,  bending 
slab  shop,  moulding  loft,  blacksmithy,  fitters' 
and  mechanics'  shop,  plumbers'  shop,  rivet 
and  bolt  making  shop,  boat  shop,  galvanis- 
ing shop,  saw  mill,  riggers'  and  sailmakers' 
and  painters'  shop;  Designing  and  Drafting 
Department;  Engine  Department  (model 
shop,  foundry,  machine  shop,  erecting  shop, 
tool  shop,  brass  shop  and  testing  house); 
Boiler  Department  (designing  and  drafting 
rooms,  construction  shop,  coppersmiths'  shop 
and  forging  shop);  Electrical  Department 
(designing  and  drafting  rooms,  constructing 
and  repairing  shops);  Docking  and  Repair- 
ing Department,  general  office,  accountant's 
office,  purchasing  office,  and  store  department. 

Some  idea  of  the  modem  nature  of  the 
plant  and  equipment  of  the  works  may  be 
gained  from  the  following  brief  description 
of  the  same.  Electricity  is  the  main  motive 
power  employed,  and  steam,  compressed  air, 
and  hydraulic  power  are  also  used.  The 
total  number  of  machines  installed  is  above 
2,500  including  the  most  powerful  and 
up-to-date  machines.  There  are  two  125- 
ton  overhead  cranes,  and  scores  of  overhead 
cranes  of  over  2- ton  lifting  power.  Three 
floating  cranes  have  a  lifting  power  respec- 
tively of  200  tons,  50  tons,  and  15  tons,  and 
there  are  numerous  locomotive  cranes,  and 
private  railway  tracks  for  facilitating  the 
transportation  of  materials  from  the  Govern- 
ment lines.  The  main  dock>'ard  has  six 
shipbuilding  berths  with  stocks  to  lay  keels 
of  up  to  35,000-ton  vessels,  besides  several 
temporary  building  stocks.  A  huge  gantry 
of  1,151  clear  inside  w-idth,  164  feet  6  inches 
in  height,  and  1,016  feet  working  length,  is 
erected  over  the  Number  4  building  stocks. 
One  graving  dock  in  Kobe  and  one  floating 
dock  of  over  35,000  tons  lifting  capacity  are 
planned  for  early  construction. 

At  the  Hiogo  Works  near  Kobe,  the  follow- 
ing is  undertaken:    Casting  of  steel  and  iron 


KAWASAKI    DOCKYARD   COMPANY:   H.    M.    S.    "hARUNA"    (27,600   TOXS) VIEW  OF   THE   MAIN   WORKS T.    S.  S.    "  VASAKA  MARU  ' 

(NIPPON    YLSEN    KAISHA   LINE,    l8,00G   TONS).      THE    SHIPS    WERE    BlILT   AT   THE    KAWASAKI   DOCKYARD 


KAWASAKI    DOCKYARD   COMPANY:    T.    S    S.    "\VAR    SAILOR"    (fI'RNESS,    WITHY    &   CO.   LINE),    I0,300   TONS  —  A   TYPE   OF   LOCOMOTIVE 
BUILT   I-OR   THE    IMPERIAL    RAILWAYS  —  RAILWAY    HRIDGE    ON   THE    OIGAWA-TOKAIDO  LINE 


720 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


water  and  gas  pipes;  turning  out  of  roinid, 
flat,  and  square  bars,  angles,  channels,  etc. ; 
construction  and  repairs  of  railway  locomo- 
tives, carriages,  and  other  rolling  stock, 
electric  tram  cars,  wheels,  axles,  and  all 
descriptions  of  railway  accessories  and  min- 
ing machinery ;  construction  of  steel  bridges 
and  gas  tanks;  manufacture  of  bridge  girders, 
and  construction  work  of  other  natures  for 
all  kinds  of  public  works  and  similar  under- 
takings. Another  branch  exists  at  Dairen, 
North  China,  where  there  is  a  dock  with  a 
cajiacity  for  vessels  of  5,500  tons,  and  yards 
and  machine  shops  for  the  construction  and 
repair  of  all  kinds  of  vessels  and  land  and 
marine  machinery.  The  number  of  foremen, 
assistant  foremen,  contract  mechanics,  and 
operatives   employed    daily   is   over   21,000. 

The  President  and  Managing  Director  of 
the  Kawasaki  Dockyard  Company,  Limited, 
is  Mr.  K.  Matsukata,  son  of  the  famous 
Marquis  Matsukata.  The  Vice-President 
and  Managing  Director  is  Mr.  Y.  Kawasaki, 
and  the  other  principal  officers  are:  Directors, 
Messrs.  T.  Nomoto,  M.  Hirose,  T.  Saka, 
Y.   Tanaka,   and   Auditor,   Mr.   T.   Tanaka. 

An  interesting  comment  on  the  Kawasaki 
Dockyard  was  contained  in  the  "Journal 
of  Commerce"  for  August  23,  1917,  which 
said: 

"Cramp's  in  Philadelphia  recently  put 
overboard  a  ten-thousand-ton  tanker  in 
slightly  less  than  six  months,  and  in  a  speech 
made  at  the  christening  an  official  of  the 
company  referred  to  it  as  a  record  in  high- 
speed construction.  Cramp's  record,  how- 
ever, did  not  include  the  time  spent  in 
assembling  the  materials,  and  the  clock  was 
stopped  when  the  ship  splashed  into  the 
Delaware.  An  additional  five  weeks  was 
consumed  in  putting  on  the  finishing  touches. 
According  to  the  steel  officials  the  two 
months  and  twenty-nine  days  occupied  in 
building  a  ten-thousand-ton  freighter  at  the 
Kobe  works  include  even,'thing  connected 
with  the  ship's  construction  except  the 
signing  of  the  contracts.  A  freighter  of 
7,800  tons  deadweight  capacity  was  recently 
launched  on  the  Clyde  four  months  and 
eleven  days  from  the  time  her  keel  was  laid, 
and  this,  so  far  as  the  records  show,  repre- 
sents a  record  in  British  shipbuilding.  The 
ten-thousand-ton  freighter  built  by  the  Kobe 
concern  (Kawasaki)  in  two  months  and 
twenty-nine  days  is  not  a  remarkable  accom- 
plishment for  this  particular  yard,  according 
to  the  steel  men.  They  declare  that  a  ship 
named  the  War  Council,  9,000  tons  dead- 
weight capacity,  was  laid  down,  launched, 
and  completed  in  exactly  three  months. 
This  established  the  record  that  was  broken 
in  the  construction  of  the  ten-thousand-ton 
freighter.     The   latter  vessel   had  not  been 


named  when  the  steel  men  left  Jajian.  Both 
these  record-breaking  vessels  are  for  British 
interests  and  there  are  nine  others  in  various 
stages   of   construction   in   the   same   yard." 

OSAKA  IRON  WORKS,  LIMITED 
The  industry  which  is  now  controlled  by 
the  Osaka  Iron  Works,  Ltd.,  originated  in 
1881  when  Mr.  E.  H.  Hunter,  a  British  sub- 
ject, started  shipbuilding  at  Osaka.  The 
magnificent  services  which  Mr.  Hunter  has 
rendered  to  Japan,  and  especially  to  the 
shipbuilding  and  steel  industries,  have  been 
cordially  recognised,  and  it  is  not  so  long 
ago  that  his  great  w-ork  in  organising  one 
of  the  largest  shipbuilding  concerns  in  the 
world  was  duly  honoured  by  the  erection 
of  his  statue  in  the  new  factory  grounds  at 
Sakurajima.  Mr.  Hunter  and  his  son 
carried  on  the  Osaka  Tekkojo,  or  Osaka 
Iron  Works,  as  their  private  business,  until 
March  18,  1914,  when  the  big  concern  was 
transformed  into  a  limited  liability  company 
with  a  capital  of  Yen  12,000,000.  Lender 
the  control  of  the  Hunter  family  the  Osaka 
Iron  Works  attained  a  position  of  great 
importance,  its  plant  and  productive  capac- 
ity being  steadily  increased  as  the  years 
went  by.  In  191 1  the  Inno-Shima  Dock 
Co.,  Ltd.,  was  purchased,  and  the  Hunter 
plant  became  one  of  the  three  largest  ship- 
building concerns  in  Japan.  After  the  trans- 
fer of  the  private  interest  to  the  joint-stock 
company,  the  business  of  the  Osaka  Iron 
Works  increased  at  a  greater  pace  than  ever. 
The  outbreak  of  the  war  set  up  a  big  demand 
for  ships,  and  when  the  company  was  work- 
ing to  its  fullest  capacity  with  orders  it  was 
soon  found  that  the  plant  at  Ajikawa  was 
too  small  to  meet  the  demand.  Those  works 
were  sold,  and  a  magnificent  site  was  pur- 
chased at  Sakurajima,  where  one  of  the 
finest  shipbuilding  plants  in  the  world  was 
installed.  By  1916  the  capacity  of  the 
yard  was  200,000  tons  of  shipping  per  annum. 
What  the  futvu-e  output  will  be  it  is  hard 
to  say.  The  company  is  working  at  the 
highest  pressure  to  fulfil  orders,  and  its 
production  is  steadily  being  increased.  In 
the  Osaka  Iron  Works  yards  all  classes  of 
vessels  are  built,  including  warships,  freight- 
ers, liners,  dredgers,  fishing  trawlers,  shallow 
draft  vessels,  and  steam  and  motor  craft  of 
all  dimensions.  The  works  also  turn  out 
locomotives,  electric  plant,  engines  and 
boilers  for  land  and  marine  use,  and  steel 
joists,  piers,  and  general  structural  steel 
work.  There  is  also  a  salvage  plant  avail- 
able at  quick  notice  for  the  relief  of  ships 
in  trouble. 

The  company  are  the  purchasers  of  the 
patents  for  Japan  of  the  Isherwood  system 
of  ship  construction,  and  they  hold  the  rights 


for  the  manufacture  of  turbines  under 
European  patents.  The  advantages  of  the 
Isherwood  system  of  construction  are  stout- 
ness, capacity  for  carrying  greater  loads 
than  other  ships,  cheapness  of  building,  and 
the  small  maintenance  expense.  Up  to  date 
twenty  ships  have  been  built  under  this 
system  and  have  been  delivered,  the  total 
tonnage  being  65,000.  Orders  are  in  hand 
for  thirty-three  more  ships  of  a  total  of 
190,000  tons,  some  of  them  being  nearly 
completed.  At  the  big  yards  there  are 
berths  for  building  seven  vessels  simultane- 
ously. The  smallest  is  373  feet  long  by  50 
feet  wide,  for  ships  of  4,000  tons,  and  the 
largest  is  560  feet  long  by  75  feet  wide,  for 
vessels  up  to  10,000  tons.  There  are  six 
docks,  three  at  Sakurajima  and  three  at  the 
Inno-shima  works.  The  smallest  will  accom- 
modate ships  of  500  tons  and  the  largest  will 
take  vessels  up  to  8,000  tons.  Sites  occupied 
by  the  company  total  an  area  of  124,695 
tsubo,  and  the  buildings,  offices,  machine 
shops,  etc.,  cover  16,478  tsubo.  In  1917 
the  Osaka  Iron  Works,  Ltd.,  turned  out 
thirty-one  ships  of  a  total  of  184,700  tons. 
They  are  now  under  special  contract  with 
the  Nippon  Kisen  Kaisha  and  the  O.  S.  K. 
to  build  respectively  80,000  tons  and  190,- 
000  tons  of  ships  annually  up  to  the  year 
1921.  Over  11,500  hands  are  employed  at 
the   company's   works. 

The  head  office  of  the  Osaka  Iron  Works, 
Ltd.,  is  at  No.  30,  Sakurajimacho,  Nishi-ku, 
Osaka.  Mr.  J.  Yamaoka,  Vice-President  of 
the  Osaka  Shosen  Kaisha,  is  the  President 
of  the  company.  The  Managing  Directors 
are  Messrs.  T.  Yamaguchi  and  R.  Kiniura. 
Mr.  R.  Hunter,  son  of  the  founder  of  the 
works,  is  also  a  Director,  and  other  members 
of  the  Board  are  Messrs.  M.  Muraki  and 
S.  Nakayama.  The  Auditors  are  Messrs. 
V.   Koga  and  Y.   Takagi. 

FUJI-NAGATA  SHIPBUILDING  YARD 
Under  its  Japanese  name  of  the  Fuji- 
nagata  Zosenjo,  this  concern  is  known  as 
one  of  the  oldest  shipbuilders  in  Japan.  The 
yard  was  started  in  1689,  and  little  more  is 
known  of  its  ancient  history.  Of  course  in 
those  far  distant  times  the  Fuji-nagata 
dockyard  turned  out  junks,  built  of  wood, 
and  most  probably  launched  warships  of 
the  period.  It  is  known  that  it  was  founded 
by  Sanjuro  Hyogoya,  who  won  Imperial 
favour.  The  yard  was  not  modernised,  of 
course,  until  the  introduction  of  European 
ideas  of  shipbuilding  in  the  Meiji  era,  but 
since  then  it  has  developed  rapidly,  and  is 
now  a  busy  hive  of  industry,  turning  out 
modern  steel  vessels  of  great  tonnage.  The 
Fuji-nagata  Zosenjo  is  one  of  the  few  yards 
enjoying  an  Imperial  subsidy,   and  though 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


723 


this  is  small,  it  indicates  the  high  esteem  in 
which  this  ancient  enterprise  is  held.  The 
old  dockyard  is  at  No.  187,  Shin-sumiya 
machi,  Nishiku,  Osaka.  Here  the  works 
and  the  yard  cover  9,513  tsubo.  Modem 
buildings  of  steel  and  wood  arc  erected  and 
the  yard  and  works  are  complete  with  all 
up-to-date  plant,  machinery,  and  launching 
facilities.  A  branch  yard  and  works,  cover- 
ing 16,770  Isubo,  are  located  at  Kitakagaya- 
shinden,  Shikitsumura,  Nishinari-gori,  Osaka- 
fu.  In  September,  191 7,  four  ships  of  a 
total  tonnage  of  12,800  were  under  construc- 
tion in  the  Fu;i-nagata  yards,  and  several 
were  launched  during  the  year.  The  yards 
turn  out  six  ships  per  annum,  and  repairs 
are  affected  to  about  one  hundred  craft  of 
different  kinds,  the  total  volume  of  business 
for  the  machine  shops  and  shipbuilding 
yards  being  valued  at  Yen  22,000,000  per 
annum.  A  staff  and  w'orkmen  to  the  number 
of  about  1,200  are  employed  all  the  year 
round,  and  the  wages  bill  runs  over  Yen 
600,000  per  annum.  In  addition  to  the  build- 
ing and  repairing  of  ships,  the  Fuji-nagata 
Shipbuilding  Yard  constructs  engines  and 
machinery  of  different  kinds,  and  also  makes 
iron  and  steel  bridges,  and  similar  structures, 
under  contract.  The  principal  imports  of 
the  concern  are  steel  plates,  steel  sections, 
bars,  tubes,  pig  iron,  machines,  and  machine 
tools,  etc.  These  are  mainly  obtained  from 
England  and  the  United  States,  though  a 
fair  supply  of  raw  material  is  derived  locally 
and  from  China. 

Mr.  Sanjuro  Nagata  is  the  proprietor  of 
the  Fuji-nagata  Zosenjo,  which  has  a  capital 
of  Yen  3,000,000. 

ONO    IRON     WORKS     AND    SHIPBUILDING 
YARD,    LIMITED 

There  are  very  few  shipbuilding  )-ards 
in  Japan  now  left  in  private  hands,  but  such 
is  the  case  with  the  Ono  Tekko  Zosenjo,  or 
Ono  Iron  Works  and  Shipbuilding  Yard, 
Ltd.,  which  is  the  private  concern  of  Mr. 
Ono,  one  of  the  best  known  and  oldest 
iron-masters  and  builders  in  Osaka.  The 
plant  is  an  extensive  one,  and  comprises 
three  dry  docks,  machine  shops,  launching 
ways,  etc.  All  classes  of  iron  and  wooden 
ships  are  constructed,  and  the  plant  also 
turns  out  steam  engines,  boilers,  all  descrip- 
tions of  castings,  and  general  steel  and  iron 
work,  besides  undertaking  the  repair  of 
ships.  The  area  occupied  by  the  Ono  Works 
covers  15,000  Isubo.  The  buildings  are  of 
wood  and  iron,  and  installed  in  the  different 
departments  are  machinery  and  appliances 
of  the  latest  type,  to  enable  the  concern  to 
carry  out  practically  any  kind  of  work. 
Steam  and  electricity  are  employed  for  power 
purposes.     There  are  1,500  employees  under 


the  direction  of  highly  qualified  technical 
experts,  over  whom  is  Mr.  T.  Ono,  the 
Oeneral  Manager.  Steel  plates,  material 
for  moulds,  pig  iron,  Oregon  pine,  teak  and 
other  requirements  of  the  shipbuilding  indus- 
try are  imported  from  Great  Britain,  the 
United  States,  India  and  elsewhere,  and 
are  utilised  in  the  works  for  the  construc- 
tion and  repair  of  vessels,  etc.  The  annual 
output  of  the  plant  is  about  15,000  tons  of 
steel,  iron  and  wooden  ships,  engines,  boilers, 
castings  and  so  on.  Work  is  principally 
carried  on  for  Japanese  customers,  but  in 
some  cases  the  Ono  Works  have  turned  out 
ships  for  Britain,  France,  Italy  and  other 
countries. 

The  head  office  and  yards  of  the  Ono 
Iron  Works  and  Shipbuilding  Yard  are  at 
Nakaguchi-machi,    Nishiku,   Osaka. 

MITSUBISHI      ZOSEN      KAISHA,      LIMITED 
(MITSUBISHI  SHIPBUILDING  CO.,  LTD.) 

The  building  of  ships  has  been,  and  is,  of 
such  vital  importance  to  the  world  of  com- 
merce, particularly  during  the  last  few  years, 
that  a  brief  description  of  the  Mitsubishi 
Dockj'ard  and  Engine  Works  of  Japan,  this 
country's  oldest  and  largest  shipbuilding 
establishment,  will  be  of  peculiar  interest. 
Founded  by  the  Shogun  Government  in 
1856,  a  few  Dutch  engineers  were  employed, 
work  being  carried  on  in  a  limited  way  for 
the  repairing  of  a  few  small  steamers  owned 
by  the  shogun.  After  the  Restoration  the 
works  passed  into  the  hands  of  the  Public 
Works  Department  and  were  largely  ex- 
tended. In  1879  a  large  dry  dock,  426  feet 
in  length,  was  constructed  at  Tategami  and 


took  over  the  establishment.  It  was  in 
1884,  on  the  abolition  of  the  Department  of 
Public  Works,  that  the  establishment  and 
subsidiary  works  connected  with  it  were 
leased  by  the  Government  to  the  Mitsubishi 
Company,  the  entire  ownership  being  ac- 
quired three  years  later.  With  progressive 
and  rapid  developments,  a  notable  step  was 
taken  in  the  opening  of  a  shipyard  at  Tate- 
gami. In  1889  the  first  iron  steamer,  of 
about  206  tons  gross,  was  built  and  named 
the  Yugawo  Marti,  followed  shortly  after  by 
three  steel  steamers  of  700  tons  each  and  in 
1895  l)y  one  of  1,592  tons,  establishing  a  new 
record   in   Japan's   shipbuilding   industry. 

Following  the  China-Japan  War  develop- 
ments came  rapidly.  In  1896  a  great  stimu- 
lus was  given  to  the  growth  of  shipping  and 
shipbuilding  by  the  enactment  of  the  Navi- 
gation Encouragement  Act  and  the  Ship- 
building Encouragement  Act.  It  was  at 
this  time  that  the  Nippon  Yusen  Kaisha 
first  organised  its  European  line  and  decided 
to  build  six  steamers  of  6,000  tons  each. 
The  construction  of  one  of  these  steamers 
was  undertaken  by  the  Mitsubishi  Company 
and  completed  in  1898.  This  was  the  first 
steamer  of  such  size  ever  built  in  Japan,  and 
from  that  time  to  the  present  day  the  history 
of  the  company  has  shown  remarkable  results 
and  the  building  of  vessels  of  ever-increasing 
size,  from  coast  steamers  to  turbine-driven 
ocean  liners  of  13,500  tons,  torpedo-boat 
destroyers  such  as  the  Kirishima,  27,500 
tons,  completed  in  April,  1915,  and  the 
Hyuga,  30,600.  The  following  table  will 
give  some  idea  of  the  work  during  fifteen 
years   from    1900. 


Year 

Vessels 

Engines 

Gross  Tons 

I.  H.  P. 

I  goo 

13 

9 

11,617 

13,519 

1901 

6 

6 

7.194 

6,236 

1902 

9 

6 

15.807 

13.336 

1903 

8 

8 

13.078 

11.463 

1904 

7 

5 

ii.«59 

12,082 

1905 

9 

/ 

12,939 

12,731 

1906 

13 

II 

10,031 

22,735 

1907 

4 

4 

7.859 

23.519 

1908 

4 

4 

23.332 

36,417 

1909 

6 

6 

45.459 

64.751 

1910 

4 

4 

21,635 

16,879 

1911 

14 

10 

21,382 

71.205 

1912 

8 

8 

12,233 

38,365 

1913 

6 

5 

20,895 

21,980 

1914 

3 

3 

22,964 

23.835 

called  No.  i  Dock,  but  since  that  date  it 
has  been  considerably  enlarged.  In  1883  a 
wooden  steamer  named  the  Kosuge  Marti, 
of  1,500  tons  gross,  was  built,  the  forerunner 
of  the  shipbuilding  industry  in  the  Island 
Empire,  though  the  real  expansion  dates 
from  the  time  when  the  Mitsubishi  Company 


The  Mitsubishi  Dockyard  and  Engine 
Works,  with  dockyards  and  engineering 
w^orks  at  Nagasaki,  Kob^,  and  Hikoshima, 
like  those  at  Barrow  or  Clydebank  in  Great 
Britain,  are  laid  out  with  the  object  of  doing 
the  maximum  amount  of  work  upon  any 
ship,  purchasing  from  outside  sources  only 


ONO    IRON    WORKS    AND    SHIPBUILDING    YARD,    LTD.:    BIRD's-EYE    VIEW    OF    THE    SHIPBUILDING    BERTHS  — LAUNCHING    OF   THE    S.    S.   '  ASAHI 
MARU"    (3,500   TONS),    NOVEMBER    I4,    I917  — S.    S.    "  KASUGA    MARU "    (2,035   TONS),    BUILT   BY   THE   FIRM  — 
S.    S.    "SAPPORO   MARU    NO.    6"   (3,500  TONS),    LAUNCHED    APRIL,    I9I7 


j^^^. 


MITSUBISHI    SHIPBUILDING   CO,   LTD.    (MITSUBISHI    ZOSEN    KAISHA,    LTD.):      SHIPBUILDING    YARD   AT    NAGASAKI  —  ENGINE    WORKS   AND 
MACHINE    SHOPS   IN   CONNECTION    WITH    THE   TATEGAMI    SHIPBUILDING    YARD    AT    NAGASAKI  —  SHIPBUILDING    YARD    AT   KOSfe 


47 


726 


PRESENT-DAY        T  ^r  P  R  E  S  S  I  O  N  S        OF        JAPAN 


materials  and  proprietary  or  patented 
articles.  Independence  of  other  establish- 
ments in  this  respect  frees  the  company 
from  danger  of  delay  in  shipbuilding,  always 
incidental  to  dependence  upon  others  for  the 
prompt  delivery  of  accessories  as  required. 
It  has  been  the  constant  effort  of  the  company 
to  keep  the  works  up-to-date  in  all  respects, 
as  well  as  in  the  thorough  efficiency  of  its 
staff  in  technical  knowledge  and  business 
methods.  To  ensure  efficiency  in  these 
respects  members  of  the  staff,  and  workmen, 
have  been  sent  to  European  engineering 
centres  to  study  modem  methods  of  con- 
struction and  organisation.  The  shipyard 
at  Tategami  can  now  undertake  the  building 
of  the  largest  vessels  and  has  six  building 
berths  ranging  from  480  feet  to  767  feet 
long,  with  an  annual  capacity  of  over  40,000 
tons.  There  are  three  graving  docks,  all 
constructed  of  granite,  and  one  slip.  No.  3 
Dock  was  opened  in  1905  and  the  enormous 
quantity  of  71,250  tons  of  water  can  be 
pumped  out  in  four  hours  at  high  tide;  at 
low  water  the  work  can  be  done  in  three 
hours  and  twenty-five  minutes.  To  accom- 
modate the  ever  increasing  size  of  ships  an 
e'itension  of  this  dock  is  now  under  contem- 


plation. Since  the  company  obtained  the 
sole  license  for  the  East  for  Parson  marine 
steam  turbines  in  1904,  the  turbine  shops 
have  been  verj'  much  extended  in  consequence 
of  the  increasing  demand  upon  them.  The 
works  have  their  own  school  on  the 
premises,  a  well-equipped  hospital,  club 
houses,   etc. 

The  works  at  Wada  Point,  Kob6,  were 
inaugurated  in  1905.  A  floating  dock  of 
7,000  tons'  lifting  capacity  was  built  by  the 
Nagasaki  l^ranch  for  use  at  Kobe,  followed 
later  by  another  floating  dock  of  12,000  tons' 
lifting  capacity.  In  addition  to  the  build- 
ing, repairing,  and  equipment  of  vessels,  the 
works  at  Kobe  are  equipped  for  making  the 
following:  water  turbines,  land  and  marine 
boilers,  dredgers,  steel  girders,  steel  build- 
ings and  various  alloys.  Located  on  the 
western  shore  of  Kobe  harbour,  the  works 
occupy  an  area  of  eighty-two  acres,  and  there 
is  ample  room  for  future  extension.  The 
various  workshops  are  splendidly  equipped, 
the  largest,  the  machine  shop,  covering 
59,436  square  feet.  The  Salvage  Depart- 
ment at  Kobe  operates  the  steamer  Arima 
Mam,  312  tons,  with  powerful  pumps  of 
3,500  tons'  capacity. 


Owing  to  the  rapid  growth  of  shipping 
in  the  Straits  of  Shimonoseki,  it  became  a 
matter  of  necessity  to  meet  the  requirements 
for  docking  facilities.  For  this  purpose  the 
dockyard  at  Hikoshima  was  built  and  com- 
pleted in  19 14.  The  dock  is  of  concrete 
and  vessels  up  to  4,000  tons  gross  can  be 
docked,  length  over  all  being  382  feet. 
Connected  with  the  dock  there  is  a  steel 
building  containing  pattern  shop,  foundries, 
machine  shops,  etc.  At  present  the  yard  is 
chiefly  occupied  in  the  docking  and  repairs 
of  ships,  machinery  and  tools,  also  electrical 
machinery,  but  has  a  promising  future  in 
building  ships. 

The  Mitsubishi  Dockyard  and  Engine 
Works  has  been  one  of  the  big  factors  in 
the  development  of  the  shipping  industry 
in  Japan,  and  much  of  the  maritime  prom- 
inence this  country  enjoys  is  due  to  those 
responsible  for  the  activities  of  this  progres- 
sive company.  Its  headciuarters  are  at 
Tokyo,  under  the  Presidency  of  Baron 
Koyata  Iwasaki,  with  Mr.  K.  Uyematsu 
as  Managing  Director.  Further  details  with 
reference  to  the  numerous  other  interests  of 
this  great  house  will  be  found  in  the  body 
of  this  volume. 


BIRD  S-EYE   VIEW    OF    THE    BUILDING    Y.\RDS    OF    THE    OSAK.\    SHIPYARD   COMPANY,    LIMITED 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


727 


OSAKA  SHIPYARD  COMPANY,  LIMITED 
This  enterprise  was  established  on  August 
I,  191 ",  bj'  Mr.  U.  Iwaki,  a  prominent 
merchant  of  Osaka,  whose  name  is  well 
known  in  connection  with  the  Iwaki  Shokai, 
a  business  which  is  doing  a  large  general 
trade.  The  company  has  a  capital  of  Yen 
5,000,000,  and  is  providing  a  new  ship- 
building yard  of  about  62,000  tsiibo,  com- 
plete with  all  modem  machinery  and  plant 
for  turning  out  aliout  100,000  tons  of  new 
ships  per  annum,  or  an  estimated  value  of 
Yen  60,000,000.  The  Osaka  Shipbuilding 
and  Iron  Works,  Ltd.,  gives  employment 
to  about  1,600  hands,  and  besides  the  con- 
struction of  ships,  it  is  engaged  in  general 
iron  and  steel  structural  work,  machinery 
making,  coal  operations,  etc.  The  office 
and  yard  are  located  at  No.  72  Izumioeho, 
Nishi-ku,  Osaka.  Mr.  U.  Iwaki  is  President 
of  the  company. 

THE  IWAKI  SHOKAI 
This  business,  which  embraces  a  number 
of  different  industries,  was  founded  by  Mr. 
Iwaki  on  October  19,  1899,  and  has  proved 
highly  successful.  The  Iwaki  Shokai  is 
engaged  in  the  shipbuilding  and  iron  trade, 
as   well   as   mining   and   coaling   operations, 


quite  apart  from  the  ordinary  business  of 
importing  and  exporting.  The  lines  of 
business  at  present  are  as  follows:  (l)  Ship- 
owners; (2)  Ship  brokers;  (3)  Shipbuild- 
ing (in  Osaka);  (4)  Shipping  agents;  (5) 
Copper  mining;  (6)  Coal  merchants;  (7) 
Exporters  and  importers  of  metals,  ship- 
building materials,  cotton  yarn,  cotton  piece 
goods,  Chinese  peanuts,  peanut  oil,  bean 
cake,  pongee  silk,  etc.;  (8)  Iron  works 
(in   Osaka) . 

The  head  and  branch  offices  are  located 
as  follows:  Head  office,  Kob^;  branches 
in  Japan,  Osaka  (Nishinagahori),  Karatsu, 
Wakamatsu;  branches  in  China,  Chef 00, 
Dairen,  Tsintau,  Tsinanfu. 

The  firm  pays  in  salaries  and  wages  the 
sum   of  over  Yen   846,000  per  annum. 

AIZAWA  SHIPYARD 
When  Mr.  Iwakichi  Aizawa  opened  his 
shipyard  in  July,  191 1,  he  could  not  have 
foreseen,  even  in  his  most  optimistic  moments, 
the  early  and  phenomenal,  not  to  say  surpris- 
ing, success  that  has  attended  the  venture, 
since  the  present  output  is  many  times  that 
of  the  initial  years,  and  the  present  capital  of 
Yen  3,500,000  represents  an  increase  of  just 
seven  hundred  per  cent. 


The  yard  located  at  Nishi-ku  on  the  out- 
skirts of  Osaka  covers  a  total  area  of  11,500 
tsubo  and  undertakes  the  construction  and 
repairs  of  all  kinds  of  modern  steamers,  the 
annual  output  at  present  being  12,500  tons, 
though  this  is  not  by  any  means  the  limit, 
and  will  doubtless  be  easily  surpassed  in  the 
coming  years,  especially  in  view  of  demands. 
Another  important  section  of  the  works  is 
devoted  to  machinery  construction,  prin- 
cipally engines,  the  annual  production  being 
equal  to  16,500  H.  p.  Bridges,  steel  and  iron 
frames  for  other  constructional  purposes  are 
also  built;  in  fact,  from  the  success  so  far 
achieved  it  will  be  seen  that  the  policy 
adopted  by  this  firm  is  distinctively  progres- 
sive. They  are  prepared  to  undertake  any 
work  that  comes  under  the  heading  of 
machinery.  Only  the  raw  products  are 
imported,  and  those  principally  from  England 
and  the  United  States. 

About  1,800  men  are  employed,  30  of  that 
number  being  fully  qualified  engineers  and 
shipbuilding  experts.  The  plant  comprises 
all  the  modem  machinery  usual  to  such 
undertakings;  indeed,  one  would  have  no 
difficulty  in  imagining  the  installation  the 
property  of  an  enterprising  Clyde  firm. 

The  offices  are  located  at  the  yard  and  are 


Vi 


BIRD  S-EYE    VIEW    OF   THE    OSAKA    WORKS   OF   THE   AIZ.\W.\    SHIPV.^RD 


MEMBERS   OF   THE   FLEET   OF   THE   OSAKA    SHOSEN   KAISHA:    SOCIAL    HALL    ON   THE    "AMERICA   MARU  " S.    S.    "  KASATO    MARU  "- 

S.    S.    "  KURENAI    MARU"— S.    S.     "MANILA   MARU  " S.    S.    "HARBIN    MARU  " S.    S.    "SEATTLE   MARU  " 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


729 


.vow    PROMINENT   IN    SHIPPING 

(Upper  Row)  Mr.  T.\tsujiro  H.\shimoto,  President,  Hashimoto  Trading  Co.;  Mr.  T.\d.\o  Okaz.\ki,  Managing  Director,  Okazaki  Bank 
and  S.  S.  Co.;  Mr.  T.  Yamamoto,  President,  Kabushiki  Kaisha  Shosho  Yoko;  Mr.  Kizo  Hashimoto,  Head  of  Shipping  Department, 
Hashimoto  Trading  Co.,  Ltd.;  Mr.  K.  Uyenishi,  President,  Uyenishi  Showkai.  (Middle  Row)  Mr.  H.  Kurasawa,  Managing  Director, 
Uchida  Trading  Co.;  Mr.  S.  Nango,  President,  Kob6  Pier  Co.,  Ltd.;  Mr.  K.  Yamashita,  President,  Yaraashita  Kisen Kabushiki  Kaisha;  Mr. 
G.  Katsuda,  President,  Katsuda  Shokai;  Mr.  Toraji  Inouye,  President,  Kabushiki  Kaisha  Tomijima  Gumi.  (Lower  Row)  Mr.  J.  Oka. 
President,  Oriental  Whaling  Co.,  Ltd.;  Mr.  K.  M.\tsuki,  Vice-President,  Yamashita  Kisen  Kabushiki  Kaisha;  Mr.  Nobunari  Uchida, 
President,  Uchida  Kisen  Kabushiki  Kaisha;  Mr.  Kentaro  Kaw.\chi,  President,  Goko  Shokai;  Mr.  T0S.ATAR0  Yamaji,  Managing  Director, 
the  Meiji  Bussan  Co.,  Ltd.,  and  the  Meidai  Kisen  Kaisha,  Ltd. 


housed  in  a  two-story  European  style  build- 
ing. The  works  occupy  eleven  galvanised 
iron  shops. 

Mr.  I.  Aizawa,  the  proprietor,  is  himself 
perhaps  the  best  explanation  of  the  success 
achieved,  inasmuch  as  he  served  fifteen  years 
in  the  Naval  Shipyard  at  Yokosuka,  and  a 
further  three  years  at  the  Kur^  Naval  Ship- 
yard, from  which  place  he  resigned  in  1906  to 
to  take  charge  of  the  shipbuilding  department 
for  the  now  famous  Osaka  Iron  Works,  where 
he  remained  until  establishing  his  present 
business.  Mr.  Daisuke  Aizawa,  the  eldest 
son  of  the  proprietor,  who  assists  in  the 
management,  also  contributes  considerable 
experience.     This  gentleman  also  served  in 


the  Naval  Shipyards  and,  further,  served  six- 
teen years  with  the  Harriman  Electric  Power 
Plant  of  Chicago  and  six  years  with  the 
LInion  Iron  Works.  Mr.  Yahei  Kanaya 
assists  in  the  management  and  has  had  a 
wide  experience  in  all  kinds  of  machinery 
and  shipbuilding.  It  is,  therefore,  not  sur- 
prising that  this  firm  can  compete  on  equal 
terms  with  European  and  American  concerns. 

SHIPPING  INDUSTRY 

THE    OSAKA    SHOSEN    K.\ISHA 

The  history  of  the  shipping  world  presents 
no  story  of  greater  or  more  rapid  progress 


than  that  of  the  Osaka  Shosen  Kabushiki 
Kaisha,  more  popularly  known  as  the  Osaka 
Shosen  Kaisha,  or  to  give  the  English  equiv- 
alent, the  Osaka  Mercantile  Steamship  Com- 
pany, Limited.  When  organised  in  1884, 
the  company  had  a  capital  of  Yen  1 ,200,000, 
and  a  Reet  of  an  aggregate  tonnage  of  only 
17,000,  though  the  ships  numbered  90, 
most  of  them  being  small  coasting  vessels. 
The  services  then  in  force  (and  they  were 
mainly  confined  to  the  Inland  Sea)  totalled 
a  mileage  of  only  8,500.  To-day  the  Osaka 
Shosen  Kaisha  has  a  fleet  of  154  steamers  of 
a  total  tonnage  of  over  416,000,  and  its 
services  cover  the  wide  world.  The  capital 
to-day  is  Yen   50,000,000.     In   all  respects 


730 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


the  company  is  the  greatest  shipping  enter- 
prise of  Japan,  as  also  it  is  one  of  the  most 
prosperous.  As  a  pioneer  of  new  trade 
routes,  the  "O.  S.  K."  has  always  led  its 
competitors. 

To  go  back  through  the  history  of  the 
Osaka  Shosen  Kaisha  is  to  trace  the  entire 
development  of  the  shipping  industry  of 
Japan.  Osaka  was  always  the  commercial 
centre  of  Japan,  and  with  the  opening  of 
the  country  to  foreign  trade  and  influence,  a 
water  transport  business  sprang  up  early  in 
the  Meiji  era  (1868-1912),  the  centre  of 
this  activity  being  Osaka,  which  commanded 
the  great  water-way  through  the  Inland  Sea. 
The  shipping  trade  was  lively,  and  attracted 
a  great  deal  of  enterprise,  the  business  reach- 
ing the  height  of  its  prosperity  at  the  time 
of  the  Satsuma  Rebellion  in  1877.  Sub- 
sequently the  trade  was  overdone.  There 
was  more  shipping  than  the  trade  conditions 
warranted,  and  the  competing  companies 
waged  a  frenzied  freight  war,  each  striving 
to  drive  out  the  other.  A  decline  in  freights 
necessarily  followed,  while  the  reckless 
nmning  of  the  ships  at  sea  brought  about 
so  many  accidents  and  other  evils,  that 
public  confidence  in  the  shipping  business 
was   entirely  lost. 

The  situation  became  so  serious  that 
the  Government  took  the  matter  in  hand, 
convinced  that  the  only  remedy  was  to 
effect  a  combination  of  all  the  competing 
ship-owners  and  incorporate  them  in  one 
concern.  To  this  end  the  formation  of  a 
joint-stock  steamship  company  was  under- 
taken, and  after  three  years  of  strenuous 
effort  the  late  Mr.  Hirose  and  other  men  of 
note  succeeded  in  bringing  together  a  large 
number  of  owners,  and  the  Osaka  Shosen 
Kabushiki  Kaisha  was  established  on  May  I, 
1884.  But  the  great  difficulties  of  the  situ- 
ation had  still  to  be  faced.  Many  owners 
did  not  join  the  combination,  but  continued 
the  freight  war.  The  steamers  taken  over 
by  the  combine  were  for  the  most  part  badly 
worn  and  scarcely  seaworthy,  and  yet  they 
represented  almost  the  whole  of  the  paid-up 
capital  of  the  Osaka  Shosen  Kaisha.  To  put 
the  fleet  in  a  proper  condition,  and  to  acquire 
new  steamers,  wa;,  the  vital  necessity  of  the 
times,  but  the  finances  of  the  company  hardly 
allowed  the  completion  of  the  work.  The 
Government  was  therefore  appealed  to  for 
assistance,  but  the  appeal  was  not  responded 
to  until  1887,  when  an  annual  subsidy,  over 
a  period  of  eight  years,  of  Yen  50,000  per 
annum  was  granted.  The  improvement  of 
the  company's  fleet  began  in  1888,  the  old 
vessels  being  gradually  replaced  by  new  ones, 
while  the  services  were  developed  and  in- 
creased, the  progressive  policy  resulting  in 


more  revenue  and  a  consequent  strengthen- 
ing of  the  company's  financial  position. 
In  1893  the  capital  of  the  O.  S.  K.  was 
increased  to  Yen  1,800,000,  which  was 
increased  by  Yen  700,000  in  the  following 
year,  preparatory  to  a  further  expansion  of 
business,  but  the  Sino-Japanese  War  inter- 
posed. The  company  placed  thirty  of  its 
vessels  at  the  disposal  of  the  Japanese 
Government  for  war  purposes,  as  on  all  such 
occasions  of  national  need  it  has  placed  its 
resources  at  the  call  of  the  Empire.  The 
conclusion  of  the  war .  and  the  annexation 
of  Formosa  gave  the  Osaka  Shosen  Kaisha 
a  new  sphere  of  operations.  A  service  was 
opened  with  Formosa,  and  at  the  same  time 
a  coasting  service  round  that  island  was 
inaugurated.  The  capital  of  the  company 
was  douliled  in  1895  and  was  further  in- 
creased to  Yen  10,000,000  in  1897,  to  meet 
the  requirements  of  the  expansion  which  was 
taking  place.  Oversea  services  had  been 
opened  between  Shanghai  and  Hankow  in 
1898,  and  between  Formosa  and  South 
China  ports  in  1899.  Meanwhile,  the  com- 
pany had  been  building  up  its  fleet  and  now 
possessed  twenty-three  newly  built  steamers 
with  a  total  tonnage  of  over  29,000.  With 
the  exception  of  the  trade  depression  which 
followed  the  Sino-Japanese  War  boom,  the 
Osaka  Shosen  Kaisha  has  experienced  an 
almost  uninterrupted  run  of  prosperity  since 
its  first  difficulties  were  overcome.  Year 
by  year  the  fleet  has  been  improved  and 
strengthened,  and  the  services  have  been 
extended.  Year  by  year  the  company's 
financial  position  has  improved,  and,  despite 
powerful  competition,  the  Osaka  Shosen 
Kaisha  stands  to-day  as  the  most  powerful 
of  Japanese  shipping  concerns.  It  has 
bought  up  and  absorbed  several  companies, 
and  while  developing  its  overseas  services 
to  the  fullest  extent  has  not  neglected  the 
coastal  trade  of  Japan.  On  several  occasions 
the  capital  of  the  big  concern  has  been 
increased  to  permit  of  extensions  in  various 
directions,  such  as  the  building  of  new 
vessels  and  the  opening  of  new  trade  lines. 
The  most  pronounced  development  has 
taken  place  since  the  Russo-Japanese  War. 
By  the  way,  it  is  interesting  to  note,  as 
indicating  the  great  strength  of  the  company 
at  that  time,  that  it  offered  seventy-three 
of  its  ships  to  the  Japanese  Government  for 
transport  and  auxiliary  naval  purposes  in 
that  war.  With  the  conclusion  of  peace  the 
Osaka  Shosen  Kaisha  resumed  its  normal 
services,  and  although  in  the  reaction  that 
followed,  there  was  a  considerable  depression 
in  the  shipping  business,  consequent  upon  a 
lowering  of  freights  and  an  over-supply  of 
ships,  the  company  maintained  its  progres- 


sive policy  and  launched  out  on  several  new 
routes,  besides  calling  up  new  capital  to 
Yen   16,500,000  in   1906. 

The  outbreak  of  the  great  European  War 
saw  no  diminution  of  the  prosperity  of  the 
O.saka  Shosen  Kaisha.  Its  ships  were 
placed  at  the  disposal  of  the  Government 
for  the  operations  against  Tsingtau,  and 
immediately  that  German  possession  fell, 
the  company  inaugurated  a  service  with  the 
new  port.  In  the  meantime  two  steamers 
were  despatched  to  Europe  as  trial  ships  of 
the  projected  European  line.  The  capital 
of  the  company  was  further  increased  to 
Yen  24,750,000  in  1914.  In  quite  another 
direction  a  new  regular  line  was  started. 
Upon  the  withdrawal  of  the  ships  from  the 
San  Francisco-Hongkong  line  by  the  Pacific 
Mail  Steamship  Company,  in  the  Summer 
of  1915,  the  Osaka  Shosen  Kaisha  inaugu- 
rated a  new  monthly  service  between  Japan 
and  San  Francisco.  The  following  year 
three  important  overseas  services  were 
started.  The  South  Seas  service  was  opened 
early  in  the  j'ear  between  Keelung  and 
Batavia.  The  service  with  Australia  was 
next  established  with  Adelaide  as  the  ter- 
minal port.  This  monthly  service  is  now 
maintained  with  three  vessels  of  4,500  tons 
type.  In  addition  to  these  two  new  and 
important  lines,  a  further  inauguration  of  a 
deep-sea  service  took  place  at  the  end  of 
the  year,  when  the  O.  S.  K.  despatched  the 
first  steamer  on  the  long  ntn  to  Buenos 
Aires,  via  Hongkong,  Singapore,  Durban, 
Capetown,  and  Rio  de  Janeiro.  In  view  of 
the  great  prospects  for  trade  between  Japan 
and  South  America,  this  new  line  promises 
well.  The  serv'ice  is  a  quarterly  one,  main- 
tained by  steamers  of  6,000  tons,  and  offer- 
ing the  best  facilities  for  traders,  as  well  as 
providing  strong  inducements  for  the  wealthy 
people  of  South  America  to  visit  Japan. 

Surveying  the  history  of  the  Osaka  Shosen 
Kaisha  it  can  not  be  denied  that  the  com- 
pany has  been  remarkably  successful,  and 
by  its  activities  has  placed  the  merchant 
marine  of  Japan  right  in  the  forefront.  The 
O.  S.  K.  fleet  is  already  one  of  the  largest 
in  the  world,  and  is  continually  being  im- 
proved and  strengthened,  giving  promise, 
with  the  well  known  progressive  policy  of 
the  company,  that  before  long  the  Osaka 
Shosen  Kaisha  will  have  very  few  rivals. 
And  the  success  achieved  is  readily  admitted 
to  be  well  deserved  by  the  company  that 
first  really  put  Japanese  shipping  on  a  sound 
and  businesslike  basis.  A  few  figures  to 
demonstrate  the  stability  of  this  great  con- 
cern will  not  be  out  of  place.  The  sub- 
scribed capital  of  the  O.  S.  K.  is  Yen  50,- 
000,000,   and   the   amount   paid   up   is   Yen 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


731 


37,625,000.  Debentures  have  been  issued 
for  Yen  5,500,000  and  the  reserves  amount 
to  Yen  15,800,000.  The  gross  receipts  of 
the  company  for  the  half-year  ended  June 
30,  1917,  were  Yen  30,793,696,  and  the  profit 
for  the  term  was  Yen  13,922,306,  plus  the 
sum  of  Yen  1,203,645  brouglit  forward  from 


dividend  of  40  per  cent  per  annum  was  paid, 
absorbing  Yen  4,681,050;  Yen  2,000,000 
was  set  aside  for  business  extension  and 
dividend  equalisation  funds;  Yen  400,000 
was  paid  as  an  extra  bonus  to  employees; 
Yen  2,500,000  was  further  written  off  for 
extra  depreciation  on  the  fleet,  and  a  balance 


Nomoto,   Ryutaro    llanta,    and    Genzaburo 
Tarao. 

THE  PENINSULAR  AND  ORIENTAL  STEAM 
NAVIGATION    COMPANY 

The  history  of  the  Peninsular  and  Oriental 
Steam   Navigation   Company,   if   written   at 


KOBE    PREMISES   OF    PENINSULAR    AND   ORIENTAL    STEAM    NAVIGATION   CO. 
THE   LUXURIOUS   FURNISHINGS   OF    AN    "m"    CLASS    P.    S:    O.    LINER 


P.    &    O.   LINER   OF    THE       M       CLASS 
THE    COMPANIONWAY    OF    AN    "m"    CLASS    P.    &    O.    LINER 


the  last  term.  After  setting  aside  Yen 
2,371,000  to  the  Insurance  and  Repair 
Funds,  and  writing  off  Yen  859,000  for 
depreciation,  placing  Yen  535,000  to  the 
Reserve  Funds  and  paying  directors  and 
auditors'  fees  amounting  to  Yen  268,000, 
there  was  available  for  distribution  Yen 
11,092,951.     Of    this    handsome    surplus    a 


of  Yen  1,511,901  was  carried  forward.  The 
officers  of  the  Osaka  Shosen  Kaisha  are  as 
follows:  President  and  Director,  Mr.  Keijiro 
Hori;  Vice-President  and  Director,  Mr. 
Juntaro  Yamaoka;  Managing  Director,  Mr. 
Rikitaro  Kafuku ;  Directors,  Messrs.  Zenyemon 
Toyoda,  Seiki  Teranishi,  Ryuzo  Tanaka, 
and   Hikotaro  Abe;   Auditors,    Messrs.  Gyo 


due  length,  would  form  a  large  and  impor- 
tant chapter  of  the  whole  history  of  the 
development  of  the  entire  Far  East  to  foreign 
trade  and  intercourse,  for  the  two  subjects 
would  be  found  inseparable.  Indeed,  it 
would  be  hard  to  say  where  the  share  of 
the  great  British  shipping  company,  in  the 
opening  up  of  the  Orient,  either  to  trade  or 


732 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


the  passenger  traffic,  ended,  so  closely  have 
its  services  been  associated  with  the  develop- 
ment of  all  that  vast  extent  of  world  surface 
east  of  Suez.  It  is  impossible  to  say  where 
the  work  began,  because  the  history-  of  the  P. 
&  C,  like  the  history  of  many  another  great 
enterprise,  is  one  of  phenomenal  growth  from 
an  easily  envisaged  humble  concern,  but 
just  what  the  expansion  and  enterprise  of 
the  company  has  meant  to  British  trade  and 
commerce,  and  the  opening  up  of  lands  that 
once  were  scarcely  known  to  Europe,  it  is 
difficult  to  define.  The  operations  of  one  of 
the  greatest  of  British  shipping  enterprises 
have  unquestionably  been  a  most  vital  factor 
in  the  directions  indicated,  and  if  in  the  course 
of  nearly  eighty  years  the  P.  &  O.  Company 
has  grown  rich  and  powerful,  and  has  become 
a  mighty  instrument  for  the  fiu-therance 
of  British  commercial  prestige,  no  one  can 
honestly  begrudge  its  success,  or  deny  that 
it  has  also  rendered  incalculable  services  to 
the  British  Empire  and  the  manifold  private 
interests  that  are  involved  in  the  sum  of  our 
Imperial  grandeur. 

The  P.  &  O.  Company  was  actually  founded 
in  1837  as  the  Peninsular  Company,  owning  a 
few  small  vessels  which  had  been  running  for 
a  year  or  two  previously  between  Falmouth 
and  Gibraltar.  The  avowed  objects  of  the 
Peninsular  Company  were  to  develop  the 
trade  between  the  United  Kingdom  and 
India,  and  in  that  plan  lay  the  idea  of  all 
that  was  to  follow  in  the  opening  up  of 
traffic  between  England,  and  the  Orient 
and  Australasia.  In  1840  a  Royal  Charter 
was  granted  to  the  newly  reorganised  con- 
cern known  as  the  Peninsular  and  Oriental 
Steam  Navigation  Company.  From  that 
date  the  extension  of  the  company's  services, 
and  its  shipbuilding  operations,  may  be  said 
to  be  typical  of  the  development  of  the 
British  mercantile  marine.  Commencing  its 
operations  with  one  or  two  vessels  of  small 
tonnage,  the  P.  &  O.  steadily  enlarged  its 
fleet,  increased  its  sailings,  and  opened  new 
services,  until  to-day  it  owns  a  fleet  of 
modem  vessels,  second  to  none  in  the  world, 
and  aggregating  a  tonnage  of  close  upon 
500,000.  Most  of  the  ships  of  the  ocean- 
going class  are  liners  ranging  from  7,000  up 
to  over  16,000  tons,  and  providing  as  fine 
a  service  for  long  voyages  as  any  ships  in 
the  world.  Furthermore,  the  P.  &  O.  Com- 
pany joined  forces  in  1914  with  the  British 
India  Steam  Navigation  Company,  the  latter 
possessing  a  tonnage  of  750,000,  and  in  1916 
with  the  New  Zealand  Shipping  Company 
and  its  subsidiary,  the  Federal  Line,  with  a 
tonnage  of  over  335,000.  In  191 7  a  further 
increase  of  tonnage  took  place  when  the 
Union  S.  S.  Company  of  New  Zealand  came 
nto    this   powerful    group.     These   amalga- 


mations, totalling  over  1,800,000  tons,  may 
be  said  to  be  in  keeping  with  the  modem 
trend  of  shipping,  and  in  harmony  with  the 
policy  developed  during  the  war  and  approved 
b}'  the  British  Government  of  organising  great 
cooperative  combines  to  strengthen  Britain's 
mercantile  shipping  by  standardising  world 
services,  and  in  other  ways  eliminating  all 
the  weaknesses  of  the  old  competitive  system. 
The  capital  of  the  Peninsular  and  Oriental 
Steam  Navigation  Company  at  the  close  of 
1916  was  £5,743,694,  paid  up,  and  debenture 
stock  totalled  £1,700,000.  Substantial  re- 
serve funds  have  been  built  up,  and  on  a 
most  conservative  estimate  the  assets  of 
the  company  were  calculated  at  £12,000,- 
000.  On  the  huge  capital  of  the  company 
a  dividend  of  two  and  one-half  per  cent  for 
the  half-year  was  paid  on  the  preferred  stock, 
and  a  dividend  of  six  per  cent  with  a  bonus 
of  six  per  cent,  on  the  deferred  stock. 

The  principal  services  maintained  by  the 
P.  &•  O.  are  a  fortnightly  mail  service  between 
England  and  the  Far  East,  and  a  fortnightly 
service  on  the  same  route  by  intermediate 
steamers;  a  fortnightly  mail  service  to  Aus- 
tralia t'ia  Colombo;  a  weekly  service  with 
Bombay  and  Calcutta;  a  service  between 
England  and  Australia  via  the  Cape,  and 
numerous  subsidiary  or  connecting  services. 
It  is  to  the  credit  of  the  P.  &  O.  that  through- 
out the  war,  despite  the  fact  that  many  of 
its  ships  have  been  taken  over  by  the  British 
Government  for  war  service,  and  that  others 
have  been  sunk,  it  has  maintained  its  sailings 
with  great  regularity,  and  has  continued  to 
give  shippers  and  passengers  the  very  best 
service  possible  under  most  trying  conditions. 

In  so  far  as  its  connection  with  Japan  is 
concerned  the  P.  &  O.  took  its  share  in  the 
pioneering  of  British  trade  interests,  and 
established  an  office  at  Yokohama  as  far 
back  as  1866.  The  old  portion  of  the  present 
buildings  at  No.  15  Bund,  is  one  of  the  land- 
marks of  the  early  history  of  the  port.  The 
Kob6  office  was  opened  in  1888.  Previously 
the  company  had  been  represented  at  what 
was  then  an  outport,  by  commercial  agents, 
but  the  growth  of  Kobe  led  to  the  opening 
of  a  direct  branch  at  No.  109  Ito  Machi, 
and  in  1902,  consequent  upon  the  elevation 
of  Kob^  to  the  position  of  the  most  important 
port  of  call  in  Japan,  the  P.  &  O.  made  the 
Kobe  branch  its  head  office.  The  Chief 
Agent  for  Japan,  Mr.  Alf  WooUey,  is  sta- 
tioned at  Kobe,  and  has  under  his  direction 
the  branch  at  Yokohama  and  the  agencies 
at  Nagasaki  and  Moji.  Mr.  WooUey  has 
had  a  lengthy  experience  in  the  service  of 
the  P.  &  O.  Company.  At  the  time  of 
writing  the  company's  liners  are  not  coming 
on  to  Japan,  owing  to  war  conditions,  but 
are  making  Shanghai  their  terminal  port  in 


the  Far  East.  What  the  post-war  arrange- 
ments may  be,  rests,  of  course,  with  the 
Directors  and  General  Management,  but  it 
is  safe  to  say  that  the  company,  which  in 
the  past  has  played  so  prominent  a  part  in 
the  exploitation  of  the  Eastern  Hemisphere 
in  Britain's  interests,  will  not  be  behind  any 
competitors  in  providing  the  most  complete 
services.  The  P.  &  O.  policy  is  a  far-sighted 
one.  Imperial  in  tone  and  vision,  as  may 
readily  be  seen  from  a  perusal  of  the  Chair- 
man's speeches  at  the  annual  meetings. 
With  the  additional  strength  which  the 
company  has  gained  by  the  absorption  of 
other  shipping  enterprises,  it  is  fairly  easy  to 
predict  for  the  P.  &  O.  a  greater  career  of 
prosperity  after  the  war  than  it  has  even 
reaUsed  in  its  splendid  past. 

YAMASHITA    STEAMSHIP    COMPANY, 
LIMITED 

The  rapid  development  of  the  Japanese 
mercantile  marine  owes  a  great  deal  to  men 
like  Mr.  Kamesaburo  Yamashita,  who  took 
a  vital  interest  in  its  upbuilding  more  than 
twenty  years  ago,  long  before  the  war  boom 
started,  and  when  to  build  and  own  ships 
w'as  a  risky  business.  Since  the  war  broke 
out  many  fortunes  have  been  made,  and 
while  all  industry  and  enterprise  is  entitled 
to  its  full  reward,  there  is  an  added  satis- 
faction in  those  cases  where  full  success  has 
come  to  the  pioneers  of  an  industry.  This 
is  so  with  Mr.  Yamashita,  who  is  now  the 
head  of  one  of  the  most  important  and  most 
highly  respected  shipping  concerns  of  Japan. 

Mr.  Yamashita  originally  started  in  busi- 
ness as  a  coal  merchant,  and  in  1894  es- 
tablished the  Yokohama  Coal  Company. 
He  was  all  along  interested  in  shipping,  but 
it  was  not  until  1903  that  he  was  able  to 
start  as  a  ship-owner.  Even  then  his  first 
effort  was  a  small  one,  one  ship  only,  the 
Kisagata  Mani,  being  run  as  a  freight  vessel. 
Steadil}',  however,  a  fleet  of  ships  was  ob- 
tained, and  in  191 1  the  business  was  ex- 
tended by  the  formation  of  the  Yamashita 
Gomei  Kaisha.  The  head  office  was  then 
in  Tokyo,  and  the  Kobe  office  was  considered 
as  a  branch.  Regular  progress  was  made, 
the  fleet  being  gradually  extended,  and  the 
operations  increased  till  the  great  develop- 
ment in  Japanese  shipping  took  place  after 
the  outbreak  of  the  European  War.  Then 
the  Yamashita  Company  realised  the  full 
tide  of  success,  and  in  May,  19 17,  it  was 
transformed  into  a  limited  liability  company, 
known  as  the  Yamashita  Steamship  Co.,  Ltd., 
with  a  capital  of  10,000,000  yen.  Even  so, 
the  control  and  direction  of  affairs,  as  from 
the  inception  of  business  in  1894,  has  re- 
mained in  the  hands  of  the  Yamashita  family, 
assisted    by    highly    experienced    and    loyal 


1 

IM 

r 

M 

m 

f 

H  . 

■ 

%'J.\ 

f4[' 

■ 

tfi 

1 

?4 

,1, 

^&, 

f  j1 

'^i 


I  l^'l 


m 


^:>  i 


v4\ 


% 


YAMASHITA    KISEN    KABUSHIKI    KAISHA:   A    SMALL    SliCTION    OF    THE   GENERAL    OFFICE,    KOBE— THE    HANDSOME    RECEPTION    ROOM 
IN    THE    KOb6    OFFICE THE    MANAGER'S    PRIVATE    OFFICE,    KOBE  —  THE    HEAD   OFFICE    BUILDING,    KOBE 


734 


PRESKNT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


staffs  and  some  of  the  most  capable  shipping 
men  in  Japan,  as  directors  of  the  large  in- 
terests involved. 

The  Yamashita  Sleamshi]i  Co.,  I^td.,  is 
engaged  in  general  shipping  business,  com- 
prising freight  carriage  on  all  ocean  routes, 
contracting  for  freight  space,  intermediary 
operations  for  the  sale,  purchase,  and  charter- 
ing of  ships,  and  so  on.  The  company  is 
the  agent  for  Shaw,  Adams  &  Co.,  London, 
and  does  a  large  insiu-ance  business  in  ordi- 
nary and  war  risks,  besides  acting  as  agents 
for  ship-owners,  arranging  charter  parties, 
etc.  Coaling  operations  are  also  carried  out 
on  a  large  scale,  the  company  being  in  a 
position  to  supply  fuel  at  any  port  at  home 
or  abroad.  The  world-wide  nature  of  the 
Y'amashita  operations  may  be  gathered  from 
the  fact  that  the  company  has  its  agents  at 
London,  New  York,  vSeattle,  San  Francisco, 
Shanghai,  Hongkong,  Singapore,  Penang, 
Calcutta,  Colombo,  Bombay,  Port  Said, 
Sydney,  Melbourne,  and  Paris.  In  London, 
Paris,  New  York,  Seattle,  and  Singapore, 
the  company  maintains  its  own  stafTs. 
The  Yamashita  Steamship  Co.,  Ltd.,  has 
won  a  deservedly  high  reputation  in  shipping 
circles,  for  its  businesslike  methods  and  for 
its  faithful  handling  of  cargoes  and  chartered 
vessels..  It  also  is  accredited  with  being 
one  of  the  oldest  and  best  experienced  con- 
cerns in  marine  transportation  and  insurance, 
its  connections  abroad  being  of  the  highest 
character.  To-day  the  company's  head 
office  is  at  No.  47  Sakayemachi,  Nichome, 
Kobe,  that  port  being  the  centre  of  the 
shipping  industry  in  the  Orient.  The 
Tokyo  branch  office  is  at  No.  22  Cofukucho, 
Nihonbashi-ku,  and  there  is  a  despatch  office 
at  No.  3114  Higashi  Honmachi,  Shichome, 
Moji.  Mr.  Kamcsaburo  Yamashita  is  Presi- 
dent of  the  company  and  the  other  Directors 
are  Messrs.  Kan-iehiro  Matsuki  (Vice- 
President),  Masasuke  Itani,  Shigeru  Hata, 
and  Buhei  Hayashi,  with  Mr.  Toyochiyo 
Machida  as  Auditor. 

The  company  owns  the  following  steamers: 

Vessel  Tons 

Teikoku  Maru 7, 300 

Yoshida  Maru  No.  2 6,820 

Yoshida  Maru  No.  3 6,800 

Itsukushima  Maru 4,800 

Komagata  Maru 4,320 

Buyo  Maru 4,200 

Bushu  Maru 4,ioo 

Asahi  Maru 4, 100 

Olaro  Maru  No.  2 4,100 

Otaru  Maru  No.  3 4, 100 

Togo  Maru 4,000 

Canton  Maru 3. 700 

Yechigo  Maru , 3,650 

Akebono  Maru 3,3^0 


Vesski. 


Tons 


Toyolomi  Maru 3,300 

Fnsan  Maru 3, 100 

Poyo  Maru 3,000 

.Sodcgaura  Maru 1,850 

This  makes  a  total  of  eighteen  ships,  with  a 
deadweight  tonnage  of  76,620.  In  addition, 
there  are  three  ships  under  constntction 
which  have  a  combined  tonnage  of  24,900 
tons.  Vessels  chartered  by  the  company 
for  various   fixed   periods  are  as  follows: 


Vessi-x  Tons 


Sliinko  Maru 

}]'ada  Maru 

Asahi  Maru 

SJwka  Maru 

Anyo  Maru 

Chiyoda  Maru .... 
Tomashima  Maru. 

Kiyo  Maru 

Takashima  Maru. 

Miyo  Maru 

Ilaryo  Maru 

Ilciwn  Maru 

Kinko  Maru 

Kalori  Maru 

Toio  Maru 

Ginsan  Maru .  . 
Fukuju  Maru .  . 

Kaiko  Maru 

Hirato  Maru 

Asozan  Maru .... 

Choko  Maru 

Masaki  Maru  .  , 
Royclsu  Maru .  . 

Jun  Maru 

Shinisu  Maru.  .  .  . 
Yetsuyo  Maru .... 
Ten-un  Maru .... 


.  4,600 
4.,Soo 
3,,S00 
3,,S00 

■  3,150 
2,350 
2,250 
2,100 

.  2,100 

■  3,3.So 
.  3,000 
.  3,000 
.  2,700 

2 ,  700 
.  2,050 

•  2,500 

■  2,350 

•  2,250 

■  2,150 
.2,100 

■  1,900 
.  1,600 

•  1 ,580 

■  1 ,500 

■  1,500 
.  1,000 

gio 


This  makes  a  total  of  twenty-seven  vessels, 
of  an  aggregate  tonnage  of  66,590. 

The  telegraphic  address  of  the  Yamashita 
Steamship  Co.,  Ltd.,  is  "Yamashita  Kobe," 
the  codes  used  being  A.  B.  C.  5th  Edition; 
A.  I.  Code,  Scott's  1906  Edition  (1909 
reprint);  Watkin's  code  and  appendix,  and 
Bentlcy's.     (See  also  page  190.) 

THE    KATSUD.\    SHOKAI 

Jap.-vn  is  justly  proud  of  her  magnificent 
merchant  marine,  which  in  these  strenuous 
days  bears  her  banner  to  the  four  corners  of 
the  earth,  and  demonstrates  to  the  world 
the  wonderful  progress  that  the  Empire  has 
made.  But  the  national  pride  in  the  great 
development  that  has  taken  place  is  merely 
the  expression  of  the  individual  pride  of  a 
few  far-seeing  determined  men,  who  years 
ago   began   the   hard   struggle   to   build   the 


merchant  marine  of  Japan,  and  who  now 
see  the  fulfilment  of  all  their  hopes  and  desires 
in  the  remarkable  prosperity  of  the  shipping 
industry,  which  by  their  efforts  alone  has 
been  made  a  source  of  national  wealth  and 
honour.  Among  such  men  Mr.  Ginjiro 
Katsuda  occupies  a  conspicuous  and  hon- 
oured position.  He  is  one  of  the  few  who 
put  his  faith  in  the  future  of  the  shipping 
business  of  Japan,  and  never  lost  it.  Through 
the  early  days,  when  to  establish  a  merchant 
marine  that  might  do  credit  to  the  Empire 
seemed  only  the  hope  of  a  dreamer;  through 
the  dark  times  of  depression,  when  all  con- 
nected with  shipping  seemed  to  be  threatened 
with  bankruptcy,  Mr.  Katsuda  has  never 
doubted  the  future  of  the  industry.  More- 
over, he  has  never  ceased  to  strive  with 
energy  and  determination  to  foster  and 
develop  it,  staking  his  fortune,  and  devoting 
all  his  business  genius  to  its  advancement. 
If  to-day  Mr.  Katsuda  is  well  rewarded  by 
his  own  success  for  his  courage  and  his 
devotion  to  his  life  work,  then  every  one  is 
ready  to  congratulate  and  thank  him,  for 
he  has  rendered  as  much  service  to  his  coun- 
try as  he  has  to  his  private  interests.  To-day 
Mr.  Katsuda  stands  a  prominent  figure  in 
the  shipping  and  commercial  world  of  Japan. 
As  the  head  of  the  Katsuda  Shokai  his  name 
is  familiar,  not  only  throughout  Japan,  but 
overseas,  as  that  of  a  patriotic,  progressive, 
and  highly  successful  merchant  prince. 

Mr.  Katsuda  was  graduated  from  the 
Aoyama  Mission  School  in  Tokyo,  and  then 
went  through  a  hard  apprenticeship  in  busi- 
ness, making  a  special  study  of  the  shipping 
industry  as  it  existed  at  that  time.  Those 
who  knew  him  at  that  period  of  his  career 
speak  of  the  diligence  and  self-sacrificing 
energy  with  which  he  applied  himself  to  the 
study  of  what  was  to  be  his  profession  in 
life.  After  considerable  experience  Mr. 
Katsuda  established  himself  in  business  on 
his  own  account  at  Kobe,  opening  as  the 
Katsuda  Shokai  in  1900.  At  that  time  it 
looked  as  though  the  shipping  business  would 
prosper  in  a  modest  way,  but  scarcely  was 
Mr.  Katsuda  fairly  started  than  the  Russo- 
Japanese  War  intervened.  The  trade  de- 
pression that  followed  that  conflict  is  one 
that  will  long  be  remembered  by  Japanese 
business  men,  and  especially  by  those  who 
had  not  had  the  opportunity  to  accumulate 
reserves  and  strengthen  themselves  in  a 
business  sense.  Not  a  few  of  Mr.  Katsuda's 
fellow  merchants  went  into  bankruptcy,  and 
the  outlook  was  generally  a  gloomy  one,  but 
Mr.  Katsuda  maintained  a  cool  and  calm 
attitude  through  the  crisis,  and  actually 
launched  out  in  new  directions.  He  chartered 
a  few  ships,  which  laid  the  foundations  of 
the  great  business  which  he  now  controls. 


"/'/"ryrrrrr'^.  ^^.rr  -'  *^'*-  '*-.^-  .^^,T^..^^.^^  w>s^ 


KAISLDA    SHOKAI:   S.    S.    "  SHINBU    MARU"    (5,243    TOXS   GROSS)— S.    S.    "  KOAN    MARU "    (3,383    TONS   GROSS)S.    S.    "  BANDAI    MARU  ' 
(4,600   TONS   gross) S.    S.    "IDE    MARU  "    (4,364   TONS   GROSS)— S.    S.    "  SAIKAI   MARU "    (3,750   TONS   GROSS) 


^•'ifwfl 


If! 


"m^.TA?^:^^5-S^^  I 


"?:=^ 


=5^^:^^=^;^-^ 


UCHIDA   STEAMSHIP   COMPANY,   LIMITED:    S.    S.    "  TAIYU    MARU  " — ELEVATION   OF   FINE    NEW    PREMISES    NOW    IN   COURSE   OF 

CONSTRUCTION   AT   KOBE 


PRESENT-DA^'        IMPRESSIONS        OF        JAPAN 


737 


The  country  recovered  its  trade  buoyancy, 
and  with  the  outbreak  of  the  great  war  Mr. 
Katsuda's  shipping  investments  began  to 
realise  for  him  all  that  he  had  hoped  for. 
From  chartering  ships,  he  went  into  the 
business  of  owning  them,  and  in  this  con- 
nection he  has  carried  through  some  record 
deals.  A  recent  transaction  on  the  part  of 
Mr.  Katsuda  is  typical  of  the  man,  and  will 
indicate  with  what  confidence  and  courage 
he  operates.  Seven  steamers  were  ordered 
from  the  Osaka  Iron  Works  for  the  Nippon 
S.  S.  Company,  to  be  launched  next  year. 
Mr.  Katsuda  approached  the  Nippon  S.  S. 
Co  with  an  offer  of  purchase.  Their  reply 
was  that  if  he  bought  the  steamers  one  by 
one  the  price  would  be  Yen  750  per  ton,  but 
if  he  would  take  the  lot  the  price  would  be 
Yen  700.  Apparently  the  idea  was  that 
Mr.  Katsuda,  though  a  rich  man,  would 
hesitate  to  pay  Yen  42,000,000  for  the  seven 
ships,  but  he  at  once  closed  with  the  offer 
and  paid  over  the  cheque  for  Yen  8,400,000, 
the  amount  of  the  deposit.  This  is  the 
biggest  deal  in  the  histor>'  of  Japanese  ship- 
ping. The  steamers  in  question  comprise 
two  vessels  of  5,000  tons  and  five  of  10,000 
tons,  a  total  of  60,000  tons.  They  are  to  be 
finished,  one  a  month,  from  June  to  Decem- 
ber, 191 8.  This  purchase  will  give  the 
Katsuda  Shokai  a  total  fleet  of  twenty 
vessels,  all  of  the  highest  class,  aggregating 
a  deadweight  of  144,435  tons.  Of  these 
twenty  vessels,  there  are  the  seven  now 
building  at  the  Osaka  Iron  Works,  and  the 
following  in  course  of  construction:  2,200 
tons,  to  be  completed  October,  191 7;  8,700 
tons,  January,  1918;  8,700  tons,  March, 
1918;  8,400  tons,  March,  1919;  and  10,000 
tons,  to  be  finished  in  August,  1918.  The 
vessels  in  commission  are:  Skimbu  Mani 
(7.735  tons);  Ide  Maru  (6,600  tons);  Shikai 
Maru  (5,850  tons) ;  Tosan  Maru  (5,800  tons) ; 
Kaifuku  Maru  (5,100  tons);  Koan  Maru 
(4,850  tons);  Yeilai  Maru  (4,400  tons),  and 
Kolchira  Maru  (4,100  tons).  In  addition  to 
this  formidable  fleet,  which  is  a  huge  growth 
from  a  few  years  ago,  the  Katsuda  Shokai 
is  now  chartering  about  twenty  vessels  of  a 
total  of  close  on  50,000  tons. 

The  Katsuda  Shokai,  besides  being  ship- 
owners, are  brokers  for  the  sale,  purchase, 
construction,  and  chartering  of  steamers,  and 
in  this  connection  their  operations  are  very 
large.  Mr.  Katsuda  has  established  a  great 
reputation  for  himself  as  a  successful  business 
man.  His  qualities  are  recognised  as  some- 
what remarkable  in  this  business  age.  He 
is  a  man  of  strict  probity,  and  strong  will,  as 
may  be  gathered  from  the  determined  manner 
in  which  he  has  forced  his  business  to  the 
front  despite  so  many  difficulties  and  through 
times  when  other  people  were  failing  in  all 


directions.  Mr.  Katsuda  is  also  noted  for 
his  generosity  and  his  public  spirit.  He  has 
all  sympathy  for  the  weak  and  unfortunate, 
and  he  is  not  a  man  to  yield  to  what  he  con- 
siders is  not  right  or  fair,  no  matter  what 
pressure  may  be  attempted  from  the  highest 
parties  in  the  land.  He  donated  a  new 
building  to  his  Alma  Mater,  the  Aoyama 
Mission  School,  when  general  contributions 
for  the  development  of  that  institution  were 
not  so  liberal  as  expected.  Mr.  Katsuda  is 
always  ready  to  devote  all  the  time  he  can 
from  a  very  busy  life  to  the  service  of  the 
public,  from  whom  he  had  earned  gratitude 
and  respect.  He  is  a  member  of  the  Munic- 
ipal Council  of  Kob^  City,  and  no  man  is 
better  fitted  for  such  a  position,  seeing  that 
he  pays  the  national  tax  on  his  interests, 
amounting  to  much  more  than  Yen  1,000,000 
per  annum,  in  addition  to  being  the  biggest 
tax-payer  in  the  Hyogo  Prefecture.  Mr. 
Katsuda  is  also  President  of  the  Katsuda 
Steamship   Company,    Limited,    of   Kobe. 

The  Katsuda  Shokai  is  one  of  the  model 
businesses  of  its  kind  and  is  a  monu- 
ment to  its  founder.  The  Manager  of  the 
concern  is  Mr.  Y.  Murata,  who  is  also  a 
Director  of  the  Katsuda  Steamship  Com- 
pany, Limited. 

THE    UCHIDA   TRADING    COMPANY, 
LIMITED 

This  company  was  founded  in  February, 
1917,  by  Mr.  Nobuya  Uchida,  already  well 
known  for  his  successful  direction  of  the 
Uchida  Steamship  Co.,  Ltd.,  which  he  es- 
tablished. Mr.  Uchida  saw  a  splendid  op- 
portunity for  general  trade  for  a  company, 
and  in  association  with  business  friends 
he  created  the  Uchida  Trading  Company, 
Limited,  with  a  capital  of  Yen  1,000,000,  of 
which  Yen  250,000  was  at  once  paid  up. 
The  new  company  established  its  head  office 
at  No.  14  Maye  Machi,  Kobe,  and  entered 
upon  the  general  business  of  importers  and 
exporters,  commission  merchants,  ships' 
agents,  and  brokers  for  the  sale,  purchase,  or 
chartering  of  vessels,  insurance  brokers,  and 
manufacturers.  A  vigourous  policy  was  in- 
augurated, and  the  rapid  development  of  the 
company's  interests  resulted  in  the  paid-up 
capital  being  raised  in  the  course  of  a  few 
months  to  Yen  500,000.  The  LTchida  Trad- 
ing Company,  Limited,  handles  all  lines  of 
metals,  steel  manufactures,  machinery,  elec- 
tric accessories,  cereals,  chemicals,  coal,  pot- 
tery, porcelains,  piece  goods,  semi-porcelains, 
and  general  merchandise.  The  principal  im- 
ports are  machinery,  metals,  steel,  chemicals, 
drugs,  electric  parts,  natural  products,  Indian 
goods,  and  general  lines.  The  exports  are 
mainly  coal,  pottery,  porcelain,  etc.,  produce 
and  general  lines.     At  the  date  of  writing 


the  necessary  buildings  for  the  company's 
godowns,  offices,  etc.,  are  under  construction. 
Branches  of  the  company  are  established 
abroad  as  follows:  The  Uchida  Trading  Co., 
Ltd.,  120  Broadway,  New  York  City,  U.  S. 
A.;  Uchida  &  Co.,  Ltd.,  463  Mills  Building, 
San  Francisco,  U.  S.  A.,  and  the  Uchida 
Trading  Co.,  Ltd.,  No.  6  Commercial  Build- 
ing, Calcutta,  India.  The  branches  in  Japan 
are  at  No.  i,  Yayesu-cho,  i  chome,  Koji- 
machi-ku,  Tokyo,  No.  40  Kitahama,  3  chome, 
Higashi-ku,  Osaka,  and  No.  3  Minami  Ot- 
sucho,  Nakaku,  Nagoya.  Mr.  Nobuya 
Uchida  is  President  of  the  company  and 
the  other  principal  officers  are  Messrs. 
Hironobu  Kurasawa,  and  Kawazoye  Tanei- 
chiro,  Managing  Directors,  and  Mr.  Naka- 
mura  Daizo,  Director. 

THE   UCHIDA  RISEN  KABUSHIKI   KAISHA 
(the  UCHIDA  STEAMSHIP  CO.,  LIMITEd) 

The  Uchida  Kisen  Kabushiki  Kaisha 
is  the  creation  of  Mr.  Nobuya  Uchida,  who 
is  associated  prominently  with  several  large 
and  important  enterprises  centred  in  Kob^. 
This  shipping  company  came  into  existence 
as  lately  as  the  end  of  1914,  but  it  has 
developed  rapidly,  and  now  takes  a  promi- 
nent place  in  the  Japanese  mercantile  marine. 
Originally  the  capital  of  the  company  was 
only  Yen  250,000,  but  owing  to  the  rapid 
expansion  of  the  company's  interests  and 
the  necessity  for  a  continual  strengthening 
of  the  fleet  to  take  care  of  all  the  transporta- 
tion offering,  the  capital  has  now  been 
increased  to  Yen  10,000,000.  The  Uchida 
fleet,  sailing  under  the  blue  and  white  house 
flag  that  has  become  so  well  known  all  over 
the  East  and  farther  abroad,  comprises  the 
following  ships:  Unkai  Maru  II,  6,300  tons, 
deadweight  capacity;  Fukui  Maru,  5,950 
tons;  Aikoku  Maru,  4,720  tons;  Taisho 
Maru,  4,500  tons;  Tailo  Maru,  4,500  tons; 
Urusan  Maru,  3,600  tons;  Kyodo  Maru  No. 
13,  2,800  tons,  and  Sorachi  Maru,  2,150  tons. 
In  addition,  the  following  vessels  are  now 
under  construction,  some  of  them  to  be 
completed  at  a  very  early  date:  Taiyu  Maru, 
8,700  tons;  Taigi  Maru,  7,000  tons;  Taimei 
Maru,  1,500  tons;  Taishin  Maru,  1,500  tons; 
Tatki  Maru,  1,200  tons,  and  five  cargo 
steamers  of  from  1,000  to  2,000.  The  total 
of  this  fleet,  in  commission  or  building,  is 
62,820  tons. 

Mr.  Uchida,  President  of  the  Uchida 
Steamship  Co.,  Ltd.,  has  as  his  co-directors 
Messrs.  Kasahara  Taneji  and  Kawazoye 
Taneichiro.  The  company's  head  office  is 
at  No.  14  Maye-machi,  Kobe.  Through  the 
Uchida  Trading  Company,  Limited,  the 
Uchida  Kisen  Kabushiki  Kaisha  is  repre- 
sented abroad  at  New  York,  San  Francisco, 
and   Calcutta. 


GOKO  SHOKAI,  LTD.:  S.  S.  "TAIYO  MARU"— THE  KOBE  PREMISES  —  A  CORNER  OF  THE  KODE  OFFICES 


PRRSENT-UAY   IMPRESSIONS    OF   JAPAN 


739 


KOBE    SHIPPIN'G    OFFICE    OF    OKAZAKI    STEAMSHIP   CO.,    LTD. — S.    S.        NISSEI    MARU,       ONE    OF   THE   COMPANY  S   SHIPS 


GOKO  SHOKAI,  LIMITED 
This  business  was  founded  in  1913  by 
Mr.  K.  Kawachi  and  his  partners  for  the 
purpose  of  engaging  in  shipping  enterprises 
generally,  and  it  is  admitted  to  have  been 
strikingly  successful,  thanks  to  the  efficient 
management  and  long  experience  in  mercan- 
tile and  shipping  alTairs  of  the  founder.  The 
head  office  of  the  partnership  was  estalilished 
at  Kobe,  and  the  firm  quickly  demonstrated 
its  pro^iressive  character  and  the  vigour  of 
its  operations  by  taking  over  the  North 
Korean  Regular  Service.  In  191 5  two  cargo 
steamers  of  the  a,ooo-ton  class,  one  of  5,300 
tons,  and  one  of  5,800  tons,  were  purchased, 
and  the  Goko  Shokai  further  firmly  estab- 
lished itself  as  a  strong  shipping  concern  by- 
disposing  of  three  vessels  at  a  favourable 
price,  and  contracting  for  newer  and  better 
types  of  steamers.  Unceasing  attention  to 
the  shipping  situation  gave  the  concern  a 
high  reputation,  and  no  difficulty  whatever 
was  experienced  in  1916  in  transforming  the 
partnership  into  a  limited  liability  company. 
The  new  company,  under  the  direction  of 
Mr.   Kawachi,   continued   the  earlier  policy 


of  expansion,  and  two  new  5,500-ton  class 
steamers,  two  of  ,^,000  tons,  one  of  1,800  tons, 
and  a  coasting  steamer  of  820  tons  were 
acquired  in  1916  and  191 7.  These  vessels 
have  been  engaged  all  over  the  Atlantic, 
Pacific,  and  Indian  Oceans.  One  vessel  was 
lost  in  1916.  Besides  the  fleet  actually  in 
commission  at  the  end  of  October,  191 7,  the 
Goko  Shokai,  Limited,  then  had  under  con- 
struction three  steamers,  one  of  which,  a 
vessel  of  6,800  tons  deadweight  capacity, 
built  under  the  Isherwood  System,  was  near 
completion.  The  company's  fleet  consists 
of  the  following  vessels: 


S.  S.  Ume  Mara  . 

5,700  tons  D. 

W. 

S.  S.  Taiyo  Maru 

5,500  tons  D. 

W. 

vS.  S.  Komakata  Maru .... 

4,320  tons  D. 

W. 

S.  S.  Satsuki  Maru 

3,200  tons  D. 

w. 

S.  S.  Ckiyoda  Maru  11.-. 

1,850  tons  D. 

w. 

S.  S.  Kotohira  JII 

1,899  tons  D. 

w. 

S.  S.  Shinsei  II 

820  tons  D. 

w. 

New  steamer  (building) . . 

6,800  tons  D. 

w. 

New  steamer  (building) . . 

2,000  tons  D. 

\v. 

New  steamer  (building) . . 

2,000  tons  D. 

w. 

Total  deadweight  capacity. 

34,089  tons. 

Mr.  Kawachi,  President  of  the  Goko 
Shokai,  Limited,  is  a  graduate  of  the  Imperial 
Japanese  Mercantile  Marine  School.  He 
served  for  twenty- five  years  as  Chief  Engineer 
and  Superintendent  Engineer  of  the  Nippon 
Yusen  Kaisha,  and  was  also  Shipbuilding 
Superintendent  of  the  South  Manchuria 
Railway  Co.,  Ltd.  For  his  services  during 
the  Sino- Japanese  and  Russo-Japanese  wars, 
when  he  was  engaged  in  transport  work, 
Mr.  Kawachi  was  decorated  with  the  Order 
of  Merit  of  the  fifth  class.  It  was  with  this 
experience  at  his  command  that  Mr.  Kawachi 
decided  to  establish  the  Goko  Shokai  as 
ship-owners,  ship  and  freight  brokers,  and 
engineering  surveyors,  etc. 

THE    OKAZAKI    STEAMSHIP    COMPANY, 
LIMITED 

This  is  one  of  the  pioneer  shipping  com- 
panies of  Japan  and  was  founded  by 
Mr.  Tokichi  Okazaki,  w'ho  has  had  over 
thirty  years'  experience  of  the  mercantile 
marine,  and  may  be  regarded  as  one  of  the 
[jioneers  of  the  overseas  transportation 
interests  of  Japan.     In  the  old  days  all  his 


%te 


:-?>' 


'-^^-.2^^ 


■  _^^ 

i 

kM 

1 

mj^ 

1 

^ 

^!-.^l                1 

'■\'^i                 1 

i  r^ ' 

:1  li.  i 

1 

1 

U  <lii 

gjtaill 

f*^11 

1 

FRONT    ELEVATION    OF    NEW    PREMISES   OF    HASHIMOTO   SHOJI    KAHLSHIKl    KAISHA   AT    KOBE — S.    S.    "KURAMASAN    MARU, 

ONE   OF   THE   COMPANY'S   STEAMERS 


I'  R  1^  S  K  N  T  -  D  A  ^'        IMPRESSIONS        OF        JAPAN 


741 


ships  had  the  prefix  of  "Nichi,"  so  that  they 
could  be  readily  distinguished  from  others, 
and  ships  of  the  "  Nichi  Line,"  as  it  was 
called,  were  well  known  in  British  waters, 
long  before  the  present  war  gave  such  a 
stimulus  to  Japan's  shipping  in  foreign  fields. 
Although  doing  a  substantial  business  at 
that  time,  the  Okazaki  Steamship  Co.,  Ltd., 
has  expanded  its  interests  very  widely  since 
the  war  broke  out,  its  ocean  freight  services 
including  American  as  well  as  European 
routes.  Until  a  comparatively  recent  date 
the  company  owned  thirteen  ships,  but  when 
the  great  demand  for  hulls  arose,  the  oldest 
vessels  were  sold  at  good  prices,  and 
the  proceeds  held  for  future  investment. 
At  the  time  of  writing  the  Okazaki 
Company  owns  the  following  six  vessels, 
which  have  a  tonnage  of  approximately 
18,000:  Tokai  Maru,  Nichizo  Maru,  Nissei 
Maru,  Nisshu  Maru,  Nichihoku  Maru,  and 
Nichinan   Maru. 

The  President  of  the  company  is  Mr. 
Tokichi  Okazaki,  and  the  Managing  Director 
is  his  son,  Mr.  Tadao  Okazaki.  The  head 
office  of  the  company  is  No.  56  Naniwa 
Machi,   Kob^. 


HASHIMOTO  SHOJI  KABUSHIKI  KAISHA 
A  FEATURE  of  the  industrial  expansion  of 
Japan  is  the  manner  in  which  large  com- 
mercial combinations  have  sprung  up,  having 
for  their  object  the  coordination  of  effort 
between  different  departments  of  commerce. 
At  the  head  of  this  movement  will  be  found 
some  of  the  principal  men  of  the  country, 
such,  for  instance,  as  the  Messrs.  T.  Hashi- 
moto, Sr.,  and  K.  Hashimoto.  The  former 
is  a  member  of  the  House  of  Peers  and  the 
latter,  his  brother,  is  a  member  of  the  House 
of  Representatives.  These  two  gentlemen, 
who  are  very  closely  associated  with  the 
commercial  affairs  of  Japan,  are  the  principals 
of  the  Hashimoto  Steamship  Co.,  Ltd.,  and 
many  other  organisations.  They  founded 
the  Hashimoto  Shoji  Kabushiki  Kaisha,  or 
Hashimoto  Trading  Co.,  I>td.,  by  combining 
the  activities  of  two  firms  that  had  been 
carrying  on  business  for  over  forty  years, 
the  one  at  Nagasaki  and  the  other  at  Sasebo, 
chiefly  dealing  in  ships'  supplies,  machinery 
and  materials  for  mining,  railways,  etc. 
Since  the  amalgamation  of  these  interests 
the  Hashimoto  Trading  Co.,  Ltd.,  has 
extended  its  operations  in  many  directions. 


in  keeping  with  the  expansion  of  the  circle 
of  Japan's  commercial  influence.  The  com- 
pany not  only  carries  on  the  original  bu.siness 
of  the  two  firms  refererd  to,  but  it  has 
established  a  shipping  department,  and  also 
a  department  for  the  import  and  export  of 
every  class  of  commodity  required  in  Japan, 
or  needed  by  other  countries.  The  capital 
of  the  company  is  Yen  5,000,000.  Its 
activities  comprise  the  ownership  and  man- 
agement of  steamers,  the  manufacture  of 
electrical  supplies  and  other  lines,  and  deal- 
ing in  all  kinds  of  metals,  machinery,  fire- 
bricks, chemicals,  graphite,  etc.,  for  export. 
To  mention  a  few  of  the  export  items,  they 
are,  besides  those  just  stated,  rice  and  other 
cereals,  silk  and  silk  goods,  cotton  goods, 
camphor,  natural  produce,  shell  buttons, 
porcelain,  glassware,  lacquer  ware,  hemp 
and  chip  braids,  matches,  matting,  wooden 
and  bamboo  wares,  etc.  Mr.  T.  Hashimoto, 
Sr..  President  of  the  company,  is  also  Presi- 
dent of  the  Nagasaki  Chamber  of  Commerce, 
besides  being  on  the  directorate  of  several 
other  enterprises.  His  brother,  Mr.  K. 
Hashimoto,  is  Managing  Director,  and  is 
also  President  of  the  Hashimoto  Steamship 


:~:3 


-^smm^mB^am 


S.    S.    "gEXMEI    maru"    and    S.    S.    "sENKAI    maru,"    of    the   fleet   of    UYENISHI    SHOKWAI    (UYENISHI    SHIPPING    CO.) 


48 


KOBfe    TOWA    STEAMSHIP   CO.,    LTD.:     TVl'E    OK    STKAMEK   OWNED    bV    THE   LOMTANV,    s.    s.    '    lOTAI    MARU  "  — 
THE   HEAD   OFFICE — ANOTHER   OF   THE  COMPANY'S   STEAMERS,    S.    S.    "  ASAMA   MARL" 


PRESENT-DAY    IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


743 


Company,  which  has  a  capital  of  Yen  lo,- 
000,000.  Members  of  both  families  are 
shareholders  in  the  Hashimoto  Trading  Co., 
Ltd. 

The  plans  of  the  directorate  of  this  pro- 
gressive concern  for  further  expansion  are 
by  no  means  complete.  Large  though  the 
scale  of  the  company's  present-day  opera- 
tions are,  it  is  intended  to  multiply  the 
company's  activities  and  widen  its  circle 
of  business,  as  fast  as  the  opportunity  arises. 
E.xpansion  is  the  constant  idea  of  the  direc- 
torate and  the  staffs  of  the  various  depart- 
ments. Foreign  trade  is  being  vigourously 
developed,  and  the  aim  of  the  Messrs. 
Hashimoto  is  not  only  to  extend  their  own 
commercial  influence,  but  to  assist  in  the 
expansion  of  Japan's  interests  generally. 
Their  cooperation  in  the  country's  progress 
is  already  a  valuable  factor  and  is  recognised 
by  the  commercial  community  at  large. 

THE    KOBE  TOWA    STEAMSHIP   COMPANY 
LIMITED 

This  company  is  a  development  of  the 
Tungho  and  Company  concern,  well  known 
for  its  widespread  interests  in  Manchuria. 
Tungho  and  Company  was  established  in 
1907  in  Newchvvang,  China,  and  started  a 
general  business  comprising  shipping,  the 
_  maintenance  of  godowns  and  wharves,  coal- 
ing, the  spinning  of  thread  and  cotton  yarn, 
and  the  export  of  special  Manchurian 
products.  The  business  developed  to  a 
considerable  extent  and  branches  were 
established  at  Dairen,  Lungkow,  Tsingtao, 
Kob^,  and  Osaka.  In  1913  the  shipping 
interest  of  Tungho  and  Company  w-as  made 
independent,  a  new  organisation  known  as 
the  Kob^  Towa  Steamship  Co.,  Ltd.,  being 
formed  with  a  capital  of  Yen  1,000,000.  At 
the  same  time,  the  new  concern  purchased  a 
fleet  of  ships  from  the  Gomel  Kaisha  Towa 
Koshi,  the  fleet  comprising  the  Asama  Maru 
(6,900  tons),  Towa  Maru  (4,500  tons), 
Tokei  Maru  (3,600  tons),  Toryu  Maru 
(2,850  tons),  Total  Maru  and  Toyu  Maru 
(each  5,200  tons),  Kissho  Maru  (3,200  tons), 
and  the  Longyu  Maru  (2,500  tons).  With 
such  a  fleet  of  fine  modern  ships  the  Kobe 
Towa  S.  S.  Co.,  Ltd.,  entered  upon  the 
freight  transportation  business  on  the  high 
seas  and  in  waters  adjacent  to  Japan,  and 
the  rapid  expansion  of  business  led  to  the 
increase  of  the  capital  to  Yen  10,000,000, 
and  a  further  demand  for  ships.  At  the 
present  time  the  company  has  under  con- 
struction six  freight  carriers  aggregating 
20,000  tons.  The  entire  capital  has  been 
paid  up,  and  the  company  is  in  a  strong 
financial  position,  being  supported  in  its 
directorate  by  some  of  the  best  known  men 
in  Japanese  business  circles.     The  President 


is  Mr.  K.  Kikuchi,  who  is  also  President  of 
the  Maizuru  Coal  Mining  Co.,  Ltd.,  which 
is  capitalized  at  Yen  1,000,000.  Other 
Directors  are  Messrs.  S.  Tsuda  and  M.  Toda. 
The  head  office  of  the  Kobd  Towa  Steamship 
Co.,  Ltd.,  is  at  No.  26,  Kaigan-dori,  Kob^. 

THE    TAISHO    STEAMSHIP    COMPANY, 
LIMITED 

The   prosperous   nature   of   the   Japanese 
shipping  industry  is  well  illustrated  in  the 
case    of    the    Taisho    Steamship    Company, 
Ltd.,  of  Kob6,   which  has  been  established 
less  than  two  years,  and  yet  is  making  such 
profits  as  yield  up  to  60  per  cent  on  the 
paid-up  capital.     This  company  was  founded 
in  March,  1916,  with  a  view  to  trade  in  home 
waters.     Three  small  steamers  of  less  than 
1,000   tons   each   were   purchased,    but    the 
business  turned  out  to  be  so  successful  that 
larger    ships    were    decided    upon,    and    the 
Bandai    Maru    and    Ikoma    Maru,    each    of 
over  4,500  tons,   were  acquired.     In   April, 
1917,   the  company's  capital  was  increased 
from   the  original   Yen   500,000  to  Yen    i,- 
500,000.     The   two  large   ships   were  leased 
to  a  foreign  Government  on  the  most  profit- 
able terms,  and  the  three  small  steamers  with 
which   the   company  started   its    operations 
were  sold  at  a  profit  of  Yen  580,000.     With 
the  proceeds  of  this  sale  two  new  ships,  each 
of  2,000,   were  bought,  and  were  chartered 
to  other  owners  for  use  on  safe  ocean  routes. 
The    Taisho    Steamship    Co.,    Ltd.,    is    now 
having  constructed  by  the  Osaka  Iron  Works, 
Ltd.,  a  new  freight  steamer  of  6,900  tons. 
To  carry  out  a  further  construction  policy 
the  capita]  is  to  be  increased  to  Yen  5,000,000. 
The  main  object  of  the  company  is  to  pur- 
chase or  build  ships  and  charter  them  while 
the  present   advantageous  rates  last.     This 
means  that  immediately  ships  are  leased  the 
profits  of  the  concern  can  be  readily  calcu- 
lated.    For  the  first  two  months  of  operation 
the  dividend  was   15   per  cent  per  annum. 
In  the  second  period,  covering  six  months, 
the  dividend  was  increased  jto  30  per  cent. 
The  third  period  realised  40  per  cent,  and 
it   is   anticipated   that   for   the   six   months 
ending    November   30,    1917,    the    dividend 
will   reach    60   per  cent,   with   still  another 
increase  in  the  future.     The  company  owns  a 
tonnage   of   25,600,   the  value   of   tke'  ships 
being     conservatively     estimated     at     Yen 
15,000,000,    which    is   a   large    figure    for   a 
concern  with  a  capital  of  only  Yen  1,500,000. 
It  is  confidently  anticipated  on  the  basis 
of  present  charters  that  the  revenue  of  the 
Taisho    Steamship    Co.,    Ltd.,    for    the    six 
months  ending  May  31,   1918,  will  be  Yen 
3,064,755,   and  this   will  leave  a  net  profit 
of  approximately  Yen  2,088,000.     From  the 
advances  in  prices  alone,  since  the  company 


was  formed,  the  ships  owned  show  a  profit 
on  the  books  of  over  Yen  3,000,000.  The 
prospects  of  the  Taisho  Steamship  Co.,  Ltd., 
are  exceedingly  bright.  Following  are  the 
principal  officials  of  the  company:  Managing 
Directors,  Messrs.  Y.  Fukuhara,  S.  Maye- 
kawa,  and  Y.  Tsujimura;   Directors,  Messrs. 

C.  Ito,  M.  Ishikawa,  Y.  Matsushiro,  and 
N.  Kishimoto;  Auditors,  Messrs.  C.  Ito, 
S.  Kawanishi,  and  G.  Takahi.  The  com- 
pany's fleet  to-day  comprises  the  Bankoku 
Maru  (9,400  tons  D.  W.),  Ikoma  Maru 
(4,600  tons  D.  W.),  Taki  Maru  (1,900  tons 

D.  W.),  Jun  MarU.  (1,600  tons  D.  W.), 
Fukusan  Maru  (1,400  tons  D.  W.),  and  a  new 
steamer  of  6,900  tons  under  construction.  The 
head  office  of  the  Taisho  Steamship  Co.,  Ltd., 
is  at  No.  49,  Sakayemachi,  Nichome,  Kob6. 

NISSHIN    SHIPPING     AGENCY    COMPANY, 
LIMITED 

This  company  is  closely  associated  with 
the  Taisho  Steamship  Co.,  Ltd.,  and  trans- 
acts a  large  business  as  brokers  for  the  sale 
and  purchase  of  steamers,  brokers  for  charter 
and  freight,  and  as  general  shipping  agents, 
etc.  The  Nisshin  Shipping  Agency  Co., 
Ltd.,  was  founded  in  1902,  and  its  capital 
is  Yen  50,000.  Messrs.  Y.  Fukuhara,  Y. 
Tsujimura,  and  J.  Tanaka  were  the  founders, 
and  later  on  they  were  instrumental  in  form- 
ing the  Taisho  Steamship  Co.,  Ltd.,  which 
has  been  a  highly  successful  venture.  These 
gentlemen  are  Managing  Directors  of  both 
concerns.  The  Nisshin  Shipping  Agency 
Co.,  Ltd.,  occupies  a  three-story  stone  and 
brick  building  at  No.  49  Sakayemachi, 
Nichome,  Kob6,  the  business  employing  a 
staff  of  fifteen  and  being  known  to  the 
Japanese  as  the  Nisshin  Kaiun  Shokai 
Kabushiki  Kaisha.  Agents  are  appointed 
in  London,  Christiania,  Singapore,  Hongkong, 
Shanghai,  San  Francisco,  Manila,  Sydney, 
and  Melbourne. 

AMASAKI  HONTEN 
The  family  name  of  Amasaki  is  very 
prominent  in  all  affairs  of  the  Osaka  and 
Kob^  centres.  It  is  to  the  fore  in  all  busi- 
ness and  industrial  projects,  and  is  closely 
associated  with  many  successful  under- 
takings, and  with  enterprises  of  special 
value  to  the  Japanese  Empire.  Mr.  Isaburo 
Amasaki  is  the  head  of  the  family,  and  in 
that  capacity  controls  the  various  under- 
takings which  are  so  widely  known  under 
his  name.  The  Amasaki  interests  are  purely 
under  private  ownership.  There  is  no  com- 
pany combination,  but  everything  is  directed 
from  the  Amasaki  Honten,  or  head  office  at 
Osaka.  The  business  may  be  divided  into 
four  departments.  From  the  head  office 
at    No.    175    Shimofukushima,    3rd    street, 


744 


1-  R  !•:  S  K  N  T  -  I)  A  Y 


I  M   I'  R  H  S  S  I  O  N  S 


O 


J  A  P  A  \ 


i 


NEW    KOBE    PREMISES   OF   TAISHO   KISEN    KAISHA    (TAISHO    STEAMSHIP   CO.,    LTD.) 


Kita-ku,  Osaka,  the  other  departments  are 
controlled.  The  head  office  also  handles 
the  mining  enterprises  of  the  family,  and 
attends  to  the  leasing  and  building  of  prop- 
erties and  general  direction  of  the  real 
estate. 

The  Amasaki  Steamship  Department  is 
at  No.  7  Tomiimaacho,  Kita-ku,  Osaka,  and 
has  its  branches  at  other  centres  in  Osaka, 
as  well  as  at  Kobe,  Takamatsu,  Shimonoseki, 
W'akamatsu,  Sasebo,  Nagasaki,  and  Gunsan, 
Korea,  besides  controlling  about  eighty 
agents  at  various  places.  This  department 
has  about  thirty  steamers  regularly  plying 
between  Japanese  ports  and  Korea,  and  to 
Vladivostock  and  ports  in  North  China. 
The  Amasaki  Steamship  Line  has  been  in 
existence  for  very  many  years  and  has 
rendered  excellent  service  to  Japan  in  main- 
taining regular  communication  with  Asia, 
as  well  as  serving  the  Empire  in  time  of 
need.  In  both  the  China- Japan  and  Russo- 
Japanese  wars,  the  department  placed  its 
steamers  at  the  disposal  of  the  Government 
for  naval  and  military  use.  Again,  in  the 
Japanese  operations  against  Tsingtao  in 
1915,  the  steamers  of  this  line  were  utilised 
by  the  Imperial  Navy  and  Army  Depart- 
ments, and  some  of  them  took  part  in  the 
engagements  against  the  Germans.  The 
policy  of  the  Amasaki  Steamship  Depart- 
ment is  specially  directed  toward  the  opening 
up  of  Korea.  Mails  are  carried  between 
Japan  and  Korea  without  any  remuneration 
to  the  department,  and  so  valuable  have 
been  the  services  rendered  that  Mr.  Amasaki 
was  awarded  the  Taikyoku  Decoration  of 
the  Fourth  Class  by  the  ex-Emperor  of 
Korea. 


A   CORNER   IN    THE    KOb6    OFFICES    OF    NISSHIN    KAILN    SHOK.\I    (nISSHIN    SHIPPING    AGENCY   CO.,   LTD.) 


^  T^  ^V    ^  y^r 


AMASAKI    HONTEN: 


SHiri'ING    OFFICE    OF    THE    CO.Ml'AW    AT    OSAKA  —  S.    S.        AKAGI    MARU,       TYPE    OF    THE    COMPANY  S    STEAMERS 
(this    ship  WAS   FORMERLY    A   CHINESE    GUNBOAT,    CAPTURED    BY   THE   JAPANESE)  — 
MR.    AMASAKl's    GENERAL    BUSINESS   OFFICES    AND    RESIDENCE   AT   OSAKA 


746 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


The  Amasaki  Shipbuilding  Department  is 
at  No.  7  Tomijiniacho,  Kita-ku,  Osaka. 
Iron  works,  machine  shops,  and  dockyards 
have  been  established  at  No.  52,  Honda, 
Nishi-ku.  The  shipbuilding  yards  are  at 
No.  26  Nambajima,  and  also  at  No.  155 
Shinsumiyacho,  Nishi-ku,  Osaka.  The  de- 
partment builds  and  repairs  ships  for  the 
use  of  the  Amasaki  Steamship  Department, 
and  is  also  carrying  on  an  extensive  con- 
struction work  for  ships  that  are  leased  to 
other  companies.  One  instance  of  the 
capacity  of  the  shipbuilding  department 
is  that  the  gunboat  Akagt,  which  fought 
so  bravely  at  the  Battle  of  the  Yellow  Sea 
in  the  China-Japan  War,  was  bought  by 
Mr.  Amasaki,  and  was  reconstructed  by  the 
Shipbuilding  Department.  She  was  then 
given  the  name  of  the  Akagi  Martt,  and  is 
now  plying  in  the  coastal  trade,  reminding 
the  Japanese  perpetually  of  the  bravery  of 
Commander  Sakamoto,  who  was  in  com- 
mand of  her  at  the  battle. 

The  Amasaki  Cultivation  Department  is 
at  4th  Street  Nishi,  Saikemachi,  Amagasaki 
City,  Hyogo  Prefecture.  This  department 
carries  on  a  valuable  work  of  colonisation 
and  farm  settlement.  At  present  about  740 
acres  of  land  are  leased  for  agriculture,  close 
attention  being  given  to  all  matters  per- 
taining thereto. 

Mr.  Amasaki  was  born  in  Amagasaki 
City  in  1867,  and  succeeded  to  the  family 
interests  on  the  death  of  his  father  in  1903. 
He  wasamemberof  theOsaka  City  Assembly, 
and  is  a  member  of  the  Osaka  Chamber  of 
Commerce,  a  member  of  the  House  of  Peers, 
and  holds  the  rank  of  Fourth  Merit.  Besides 
these  honours,  Mr.  Amasaki  is  a  director  of 
the  Hokoku  Fire  Insurance  Co.,  Ltd.,  the 
Yachiyo  Life  Insurance  Co.,  Auditor  for 
the  Osaka  Soda  Co.,  Ltd.,  Adviser  for  the 
Toyo  Waterworks  and  Wood  Pipe  Co.,  and 
the  Nippon  Chemical  Oil  Refining  Co.  In 
addition,  he  is  on  the  consulting  committees 
of  over  twenty  other  companies.  Mr. 
Amasaki's  private  address  is  No.  175,  Shimo- 
Fukushima,  3rd  St.,  Kita-ku,  Osaka. 

THE      JAPAN      STEAMSHIP      COMPANY, 
LIMITED 

This  is  one  of  the  Japanese  shipping  com" 
panics  which  has  come  prominently  to  the 
fore  with  the  strong  advance  in  the  marine 
interests  of  the  Empire.  The  Nippon  Kisen 
Kabushiki  Kaisha,  as  it  is  called  in  Japanese, 
was  formed  in  December,  19 15,  with  a  capital 
of  Yen  10,000,000,  the  greater  part  of  the 
capital  being  furnished  by  Mr.  F.  Kuhara, 
the  principal  of  the  Kuhara  Mining  Co., 
Ltd.  Mr.  Kuhara's  progressive  spirit  is 
well  known  in  Japan,  and  when  his  interest 
is   attached   to  any   enterprise  it  generally 


means    success.     The    following    ships    were       diary  for  the  ])urchase,  sale,  and  chartering 
built  for  the  company:  of  steamers,  as  well  as  for  freight  brokerage. 


Where  Constructed 

Name 

Tonnage 

Date  of  Launching 

Uraga  Dock 

Uraga  Maru 

3.500 

April,  1916 

Osaka  Iron  Works .                     

Yezaki  Mam 

5,200 

May,  19 16 

Osaka  Iron  Works. 

Totai  Maru 

5,200 

May,  1916 

Osaka  Iron  Works . 

Hirano  Maru 

1,830 

July,  19 16 

Osaka  Iron  Works . 

Mikage  Maru 

1,830 

Aug.,  1916 

Harima  Dock 

Misaki  Maru 

1.770 

Sept.,  1916 

Osaka  Iron  Works . 

Taki  Maru 

1,875 

April,  1917 

Osaka  Iron  Works . 

Masaki  Maru 

1.875 

May,  19 1 7 

Osaka  Iron  Works . 

Fuku  Maru 

6,800 

Aug.,  1917 

Osaka  Iron  Works 

Yaniato  Maru 

6,800 

Oct.,  1917 

This  was  a  fairly  vigourous  rate  of  con- 
struction for  a  new  company,  but  even  so, 
the  Directors  promptly  entered  into  a  con- 
tract with  the  Osaka  Iron  Works,  Ltd.,  to 
construct  60,000  tons  of  new  ships  annually 
for  five  years  from  1917.  This  in  itself 
would  soon  bring  the  Japan  Steamship  Co., 
Ltd.,  U])  among  the  leaders  in  the  shipping 
industry,  but,  not  content  with  this  progress, 
the  company  has  now  purchased  a  site  of 
1 ,240  acres  near  Kasado  Bay,  at  Kudamatsu, 
Yamaguchi  Prefectiu-e,  where  the  Kuhara 
people  have  started  a  shipbuilding  yard. 
The  construction  work  is  now  well  in  hand, 
and  materials  and  plant  have  been  pur- 
chased. The  Japan  Steamship  Co.,  Ltd., 
plans  to  lay  down  by  May,  1918,  ten 
berths  capable  of  building  vessels  of  10,000 
tons  each.  In  addition,  workshops  and 
equipment  are  being  provided  to  carry  on 
general  steel  construction  work,  and  to 
turn  out  boilers  and  engines.  When  the 
yards  and  plant  are  completed  the  company 
will  be  able  to  build  200,000  tons  of  ships 
per  annum. 

The  head  office  of  the  company  is  at 
No.  17  Harimacho,  Kobe,  and  there  is 
a  branch  office  at  No.  90  Kitahama, 
Ni-chome,  Osaka.  The  Directors  of  the 
Japan  Steamship  Co.,  Ltd.,  are:  Messrs. 
T.  Tamura  (President),  S.  Nakayama  (Man- 
aging Director),  and  K.  Takenouchi.  The 
Auditors  are  Messrs.  H.  Nishimura  and 
S.  Yamaoka. 

THE    MEIJI    BUSSAN    COMPANY,    LIMITED 

The  origin  of  this  company  dates  back  to 
January,  191 1,  when  the  Meiji  Bussan  Goshi 
Kaisha,  a  private  concern,  was  started,  to 
deal  in  coral  and  general  merchandise.  In 
August,  191 6,  the  Meiji  Bussan  Company, 
Ltd.,  was  formed,  and  took  over  the  entire 
interests  of  the  former  concern,  at  the  same 
time  extending  the  old  business  and  opening 
up  new  lines  of  activity.  The  paid-up 
capital  of  the  company  to-day  is  \'en  200,000, 
and  its  main  business  is  acting  as  interme- 


In  the  comparatively  short  time  that  the 
company  has  been  handling  this  class  of 
business  it  has  effected  the  purchase  or  sale 
of  six  vessels,  of  a  deadweight  capacity  of 
35,800  tons,  and  has  arranged  time  charters 
of  forty-five  vessels,  of  22,510  tons  dead- 
weight, including  fifteen  vessels  which  have 
still  to  be  delivered.  The  head  office  of 
the  Meiji  Bussan  Company,  Limited,  is  at 
No.  19  Kaigan-dori,  Kobe.  Mr.  Tosataro 
Yamaji  is  the  Managing  Director  of  the 
company. 

THE     MEIDAI     STEAMSHIP     CO.NHWNY, 
LIMITED 

Closely  associated  with  the  Meiji  Bussan 
Company,  Ltd.,  is  the  Meidai  Steamship 
Co.,  Ltd.,  which  is  rapidly  coming  to  the 
front  among  the  shipping  interests  of  Japan. 
The  company  was  formed  in  1916  with  a 
paid-up  capital  of  Yen  500,000,  and  at  once 
took  up  charters  of  several  ships,  besides 
placing  orders  for  the  construction  of  others. 
The  chartered  vessels  running  in  the  interests 
of  this  enterprising  young  company  are  as 
follows : 


Shinchiku  Maru 4,500  tons  D.  W. 

Asosan  Maru 2,100  tons  D.  W. 

Suki  Maru 5, 100  tons  D.  W. 

Teiko  Maru 1,800  tons  D.  W. 

Total 1,^.500  tons  D.  W. 


The  Meidai  Steamship  Co.,  Ltd.,  has 
under  construction  the  very  latest  model  of 
freighter,  to  be  known  as  the  Meidai  Maru. 
She  is  of  3,500  tons  D.  W.,  and  is  being 
built  by  the  Uraga  Dockyard  Co.,  Ltd.  In 
addition,  there  are  two  wooden  ships,  each 
of  1,600  tons  D.  W.,  under  construction,  so 
that  presently  the  company  will  have  a 
strong  fleet.  Mr.  Tosataro  Yamaji  is  the 
Managing  Director  of  the  company,  which 
has  its  office  at  No.  19  Kaigan-dori, 
Kob^. 


NIPPON    KISEN    KABUSHIKI    KAISHA    (jAPAN    STEAMSHIP   CO.,    LTD.):   THE    KOBE    OFFICES  —  VIEW    OF   THE   SITE   OF    THE    NEW 
SHIPBUILDING   YARD    AT   KUDAMATSUCHO,   YAMAGUCHI    PREFECTURE  —  THE    OSAKA   OFFICES 


PRESENT-DAY    IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


TYPE    OF    STEAMER   OWNED    BY   THE    MEIJI    BUSSAN   CO.,   LTD.,    AND    THE    MEIDAI    STEAMSHIP    CO.,   LTD. 


KABUSHIKI  KAISHA  SHOSHO  YOKO 
The  full  description  of  this  extremely- 
successful  enterprise  with  its  numerous  inter- 
ests embracing  Shipping,  Mining,  Imports 
and  Exports,  etc.,  will  be  found  in  the  Tokyo 
and  Yokohama  Shipping  Section  of  this 
volume.  The  important  and  somewhat 
different  nature  of  the  firm's  business  at 
Kobe  warrants  independent  mention. 

The  Kobe  branch  was  established  three 
years  ago  in  small  premises  which  have 
recently  given  place  to  well  appointed  and 
commodious  offices  in  the  foreign  commercial 
and  business  district  of  the  port.  The  prin- 
cipal business  is  the  importation  of  coal  from 
China,  the  product  of  the  Kailan  Mining 
Administration,  to  the  extent  of  about 
700,000  tons  annually.  Thirty-two  steamers 
chartered  by  the  Shosho  Yoko,  representing 
a  total  tonnage  of  more  than  77,000, 
are  engaged  solely  in  this  business,  and  the 
exportation  of  timber  from  Hokkaido  and 
Saghalien  on  the  return  trip.  This  timber  is 
utilised  for  construction  purposes,  but  prin- 
cipally for  mining-props. 

In  view  of  the  great  strides  made  by  the 
apaii  shipping  business,  the  Shosho  Yoko  has 


also  branched  out  into  the  shipbuilding  busi- 
ness, the  yard  being  located  at  Yoshiura,  but 
under  the  direction  of  the  Kobe  office.  This 
new  venture  has  made  excellent  progress, 
since,  although  barely  a  year  in  operation,  it 
now  employs  about  1,300  hands  and  six 
engineers. 

Two  steamers  of  1,500  tons  each  have 
already  been  launched  and  three  other  vessels 
of  an  average  of  2,000  tons  each  are  well 
advanced.  Further,  it  is  expected  that  work 
on  two  steamers  of  6,000  tons  each  will 
shortly  be  commenced.  The  capacity  of  the 
yard  is  at  present  about  20,000  tons  annually. 

The  Kobe  branch  is  under  the  management 
of  Mr.  T.  Ogawa,  with  Mr.  K.  Inaishi  as 
assistant  manager,  and  a  staff  of  eighteen 
clerks. 

As  pointed  out  in  the  other  article  on  this 
firm  (see  page  192),  Mr.  T.  Y'amamoto,  the 
senior  partner  and  founder,  is  active  in  the 
personal  supervision  of  all  his  interests 

THE    OCEAN    TRANSPORT    CO.,    LIMITED 
The    Ocean    Transport    Co.,    Ltd.,  is  at 
present    operating    a    fleet    of    23    steamers, 
representing  an  aggregate  of   150,000  tons. 


and  this  despite  the  fact  that  the  company 
has  not  yet  been  a  year  in  operation.  There 
is  an  air  of  purpose  about  the  whole  enterprise 
which  impresses,  and  if  the  reason  is  some- 
what intangible  on  the  one  hand,  there  is 
plenty  of  solid  justification  for  the  prediction 
that  it  will  "go  far"  in  the  persons  of  the 
following  directors  and  advisers:  Mr.  C.  Ito, 
whose  interests  receive  special  description 
elsewhere  in  this  publication;  Mr.  T.  Idichi, 
equally  prominently  associated  with  the 
foreign  trade  of  Japan;  Mr.  N.  Hatsui,  well 
known  in  Japanese  banking  circles,  and  Mr. 
G.  Takabe,  also  widely  known  in  legal  circles. 
The  phenomenal  success  achieved  by  Mr. 
G.  Katsuda,  special  advisor  to  the  company, 
is  dealt  with  in  one  of  the  most  interesting 
notices  of  this  Kobe  Shipping  Section. 

The  Ocean  Transport  Co.,  Ltd.,  maintains 
regular  freight  services  over  the  following 
routes:  Japan-Pacific  Service,  Kobe  and 
Yokohama  to  Seattle,  tivo  to  three  steamers 
monthly;  Kob6  and  Yokohama  to  San  Fran- 
cisco, one  steamer  monthty.  Chin.a-P.acific 
Service,  from  Dairen,  calling  at  Tientsin, 
Cliin-Wang-Tao,  Hongkong,  and  Manila,  to 
Seattle    and    San    Francisco,    one    steamer 


PRESENT-DAY        IMPRESSIONS        O  F        J   A  I'  A  N 


749 


KOBE    OFFICES   OF    KABUSHIKI    KAISHA    SHOSHO   YOKO 


monthly.  Singapore-Pacific  Service,  from 
Singapore  to  Seattle  and  San  Francisco,  three 
or  fot-ir  steamers  monthly.  Calcutta-Cev- 
LON-P.-^ciFic  Service,  from  Calcutta  and 
Colombo  to  Seattle  and  San  Francisco,  one 
steamer  monthly.  The  company  carries 
freight  only,  and  is  unique  insomuch  that  it  is 
practically  the  only  concern  thus  operating. 
The  Managing  Directors  are  Messrs.  T. 
Ishida  and  T.  Hirota,  both  of  whom  are  well 
known  experts  in  the  marine  transportation 
business,  having  had  many  years'  experi- 
ence abroad. 

THE    SOUTH    SEA    MAIL    STEAMSHIP    CO., 
LIMITED    (naNYO    YUSEN    KAISHA,  LTD.) 

This  company  was  founded  in  October, 
19 1 2,  consequently  the  founders  claim  for 
themselves  a  place  amongst  those  keen  busi- 
ness men  who  foresaw  the  future  maritime 
greatness  of  Japan  in  the  normal  times  prior 
to  the  war.  The  founders  of  the  company, 
Messrs.  K.  Oaki,  M.  Itaya,  R.  Matsumoto, 
S.  Saiki,  and  the  late  J.  Harada,  Esq.,  still 
constitute  the  Board  of  Directors,  of  course 
with  the  exception  of  Mr.  J.  Harada,  whose 
place  has  been  taken  by  his  son,  Mr.  R. 
Harada,  as  President  of  the  enterprise.    The 


capital  of  the  company  is  Yen  1,500,000,  the 
interest  on  which  is  guaranteed  by  Govern- 
ment subsidy,  though  the  following  steamers 
owned  by  them  represent  a  far  larger  sum: 
S.  S.  Rio  jun  Maru  (G.  T.,  4,731),  S.  S. 
Borneo  Maru  (G.  T.,  3,916),  S.  S.  Banri 
Maru  (G.  T.,  3,247),  and  the  S.  S.  Hokuto 
Maru  (G.  T.,  3,046). 

A  regular  three  weekly  freight  and  passen- 
ger service  is  maintained  between  Japan  and 
the  Dutch  East  Indian  ports.  On  the  out- 
ward voyage  the  steamers  leave  Kob6  for 
Sourabaya,  via  Moji,  Hongkong,  Batavia, 
and  Semarang,  and  homeward  botmd  from 
Semarang  to  Yokohama,  call  at  Macassar, 
Balikpapan,   Hongkong,  Moji,  and  Kobe. 

The  South  Sea  Mail  Steamship  Co.,  Ltd., 
is  excellently  represented  at  all  ports  of  call 
by  the  following  well  known  houses:  Yama- 
gataya  Kaisoten,  Yokohama;  Oguri  Goshi 
Kaisha,  Moji;  Dodwell  &  Co.,  Ltd.,  Hong- 
kong; Maclaine,  Watson  &  Co.,  Batavia; 
Eraser,  Eaton  &  Co.,  Sourabaya;  McNeill 
&  Co.,  Semarang;  Michael  Stephens  &  Co., 
Macassar,  and  the  Bataafsche  Petroleum 
Maatschappij  at  Balikpapan. 

The  Managing  Director  is  Mr.  R.  Matsu- 
moto, and  the  General  Manager  is  Mr.  S.  Saiki. 


MITSUBISHI    GOSHI    KAISHA,  SHIPPING 
BUREAU    (kOBE) 

The  historj'  of  this  great  enterprise,  long 
since  internationally  famous,  and  what  it 
has  done  to  aid  in  Japan's  great  struggle  for 
commercial  and  industrial  recognition,  is 
dealt  with  in  the  Tokyo  section  of  this 
book.  Although  the  Mitsubishi  has  ex- 
tensively operated  a  large  fleet  of  its 
own  steamers  for  a  number  of  years,  it 
is  only  recently  (October,  19 16)  that  it 
was  found  necessary  to  open  the  above 
Bureau. 

Eighteen  of  the  company's  own  steamers, 
a  total  tonnage  of  30,649,  are  under  the  direct 
management  of  the  Bureau,  with  an  addi- 
tional fifteen  chartered  vessels,  bringing  the 
grand  total  tonnage  up  to  56,991.  The 
whole  fleet  is  engaged  in  the  transportation 
of  coal,  general  cargo,  and  iron  ore,  from 
Tayeh,  China,  to  the  Government  iron 
foundry  at  Yamata,  Kyushu.  Various  ves- 
sels of  the  fleet  have  been  specially  con- 
structed for  the  ore-carrying  trade,  a  good 
example  of  which  is  the  Matsura  Maru, 
shown  in  the  accompanying  illustration  in 
the  process  of  unloading  with  powerful 
cranes  at  Yamata  Quay. 


750 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


^!i 


KOBE    OFFICES   OF    THE    OCEAN    TRANSPORT   CO.,    LTD. 


The  Kobe  premises,  also  shown  in  the 
illustration,  cover  a  considerable  area,  and 
are  housed  in  one  of  the  finest  buildings 
in  the  port. 

The  following  list  of  steamers  owned  by 
the  company,  ranging  from  1,000  to  4,000 
tons,  will  give  a  comprehensive  impression 
of  the  important  manner  in  which  the  ship- 
ping business  has  developed: 

Tomiura.  Maru,  Maisura  Maru,  Fukura 
Mam,  Daiya  Maru,  Wakamatsu  Maru, 
Toyora  Maru,  Kalsura  Maru,  Ichiro  Maru, 
Nagaura  Maru,  Yenoura  Maru,  Yoshiura 
Mam,  Holaka  Maru,  Jiro  Maru,  Sahuro 
Maru,  Shiro  Maru,  Goro  Maru,  Rcikiiro 
Maru,    Ilichiro    Maru. 

THE     JAPAN     MARINE     ENGINEERING     & 
SALVAGE    CO.,    LIMITED 

With  the  great  rise  in  the  shipping  in- 
dustry' of  Japan  it  is  natural  to  expect  to 
find  an  organisation  on  modem  lines  for  the 
salvaging  of  ships  that  experience  serious 
trouble,  and  such  a  concern  exists  in  the 
Nippon  Kaiji  Kogyo  Kabushiki  Kaisha,  or 
Japan  Marine  Engineering  &  Salvage  Co., 
Ltd.  This  company  was  established  through 
the  efforts  of  Captain  T.  Chiura,  one  of  the 


most  experienced  shipping  men  in  Japan. 
Captain  Chiura  was  for  over  nineteen  years 
in  the  service  of  the  Nippon  Yusen  Kaisha 
and  the  Osaka  Shosen  Kaisha  in  the  capacity 
of  Marine  Superintendent.  He  realised  the 
necessity  for  a  strong  salvage  corporation  to 
take  care  of  the  vastly  increased  volume  of 
shipping  in  Japanese  waters,  and  it  was  by 
his  efforts  that  the  company  of  which  he  is 
now  the  Managing  Director  was  organised. 
There  were,  of  course,  salvage  companies 
before  that  time,  but  the  shipping  interests 
and  underwriters  were  in  general  agreement 
that  there  was  need  for  an  amalgamation  and 
strengthening  of  the  salvage,  plants  available. 
Captain  Chiura  succeeded  in  combining  the 
plants  of  the  Messrs.  S.  Matsuda,  R.  Yama- 
shina,  and  the  Salvage  Department  of  the 
Mitsubishi  Company.  Mr.  Matsuda  had 
been  engaged  in  the  business  with  three 
salvage  vessels  and  six  crews  of  men  since 
1906.  Mr.  Yamashina's  outfit  comprised 
three  vessels  and  seven  crews,  and  had 
originated  as  far  back  as  1883.  The  Mitsu- 
bishi Salvage  Department  comprised  two 
steamers  and  crews.  By  this  combination 
the  Japan  Marine  Engineering  &  Salvage  Co., 
Ltd.,  secured  a  good  workable  plant  and  a 


large  number  of  e.\perienced  officers  and  men 
The  company  was  formed  with  a  capital  of 
Yen  5,000,000,  of  which  Yen  2,000,000  has 
been  paid  up.  The  principal  shareholders 
are  the  Nippon  Yusen  Kaisha,  Osaka  Shosen 
Kaisha,  Toyo  Kisen  Kaisha,  Nisshin  Kisen 
Kaisha,  and  several  other  well  known 
companies  and  private  ship-owners,  as  well 
as  such  representative  underwriting  concerns 
as  the  Kobe  Marine  Transport  and  Fire 
Insurance  Co.,  Ltd.,  Tokj'O  Marine  Insur- 
ance Co.,  Ltd.,  Osaka  Marine  and  Fire 
Insurance  Co.,  Ltd.,  and  the  Imperial 
Marine  Transport  and  Fire  Insurance  Co., 
Ltd. 

The  Japan  Marine  Engineering  &  Salvage 
Co.,  Ltd.,  has  eight  salvage  ships,  ranging 
from  the  Oura  Maru,  a  vessel  of  672  tons 
gross,  and  12  knots  speed,  fitted  with  wireless, 
and  rated  100  A.  i.  at  Lloyds,  down  to  the 
Hiei  Maru  of  126  tons  gross.  There  are  230 
sets  of  French  diving  apparatus,  and  54  sets 
of  English,  and  the  ships  are  fitted  with  all 
other  necessary  appliances  and  plant,  such  as 
high-powered  centrifugal,  steam  and  oil 
driven  pumps,  lighters,  anchors,  cable,  etc. 
The  employees  of  the  company  include  about 
40  engineers,  1 1 6  divers,  20  diving  carpenters. 


IKflyS-JftIi: 

1 

' 

^^■' 

1 

! 

1 

ii 

si 

i 

MITSUBISHI    GOSHI    KAISHA    SHIPPING    BUREAU,    KOBE:     SHIPPING    BUREAU    AND    BANKING    PREMISES    AT    KOBE  —  "mATSURA    MARU,"    TYPE    OF 
SPECIAL    MITSUBISHI    ORE    FREIGHTER  —  S.    S.    "tOMIURA    MARU,"    TYPE    OF    CARGO    VESSEL 


70- 


P  K  1<;  S  E  N  T  -  D  A  Y        I   M    1'  R  !•:  S  S  I  O  X  S        OF        J   A  PAN 


SOUTH    SEA    MAIL    STEAMSHIP   CO.,    LTD.    (nANYO   YUSEN    KAISHA,  LTD.):    BUILDING   IN    WHICH    THE   COMPANY'S   OFFICES    ARE   LOCATED- 

TYPE    OF    VESSEL    OWNED    BY   THE   COMPANY 


80  diving  smiths,  and  300  riggers  and  work- 
men, all  of  long  experience  in  their  work. 

Of  course,  the  best  testimony  to  the  capac- 
ity of  such  a  company  is  the  work  it  has 
already  carried  out,  and  in  this  connection 
the  Japan  Marine  Engineering  &  Salvage  Co., 
Ltd.,  can  claim  a  brilliant  record.  It  has 
worked  on  such  big  salvage  jobs  as  the  S.  S. 
Minnesota,  20,718  tons,  the  S.  S.  Dakota,  of 
similar  tonnage,  the  S.  S.  Empress  of  China, 
the  S.  S.  Tetlus,  the  Haddon  Hall,  Ctunny 
Castle,  and  Saxonia,  besides  a  score  of  other 
undertakings,  some  of  tremendous  difficulty. 

The  head  office  of  the  company  is  at 
Yedobori  Kamidori,  Nishi-ku,  Osaka.  There 
are  branches  at  Tokyo,  Moji,  Hakodate, 
and  Otaru,  and  the  company  has  as  agents 
the  Osaka  Shosen  Kaisha  at  Hongkong,  the 
Nisshin  Kisen  Kaisha  at  Shanghai,  the 
Mitsubishi  Companj^,  London  Branch,  at 
London,  and  the  Goko  Shokai  at  Kob6. 
Captain  Chiura  and  his  expert  staff  are  ready 
to  undertake  any  salvage  or  marine  work 
that  falls  within  the  scope  of  the  company. 


The  telegraphic  address  is 
and  the  codes,  A.  B.  C. 
Bentley's 


"Salvage,"  Osaka, 
5th  Edition,   and 


SHIPPING  AND  WARE- 
HOUSE COMPANIES, 
ETC. 

THE    KOBE    PIER    COMPANY,    LIMITED 

The  Kobe  Sanbashi  Kabushiki  Kaisha, 
or  Kobe  Pier  Company,  Ltd.,  was  established 
in  1884,  and  may  fairly  claim  to  be  one  of 
the  pioneers  and  present-day  leaders  in  the 
business  of  shipping,  towing,  transporting, 
stevedoring,  and  similar  work  in  the  ports  of 
Kobe  and  Osaka.  As  the  name  implies  the 
company  is  also  interested  in  the  construction 
and  management  of  wharves  and  piers, 
though  at  present  its  main  business  is  other- 
wise. It  must  be  admitted,  however,  that 
the  early  work  done  by  the  company  was  a 
decided  factor  in  the  development  of  the 
trade  of  the  Port  of  Kob^.     Shortly  after  its 


establishment  the  Kobe  Sanbashi  Kaisha 
constructed  a  pier  to  faciUtate  the  mooring 
of  steamers,  and  the  loading  and  discharging 
of  cargoes.  In  1909  this  pier  was  purchased 
by  the  Government,  but  the  pier  and  adjacent 
embankments  and  other  facilities  installed  by 
the  company  still  remained  at  the  service  of 
the  shipping  interests.  In  the  same  year  the 
company  purchased  the  Kyodo  Hikifune 
Kaisha  (Union  Tug-boat  Co.)  and  set  out 
on  a  new  record  of  activity  in  the  towage 
business.  Since  then  the  transportation  of 
cargoes  between  Kobe  and  Osaka,  as  well 
as  the  tug-boat  and  coal  lighterage  business 
between  Wakamatsu,  Kob6,  and  Osaka,  have 
been  started  and  the  business  has  developed 
to  a  very  large  extent.  Branches  were 
established  at  several  places  in  the  meantime, 
and  with  a  view  to  conducting  the  business 
of  general  marine  transportation,  stevedoring, 
and  export  and  import  in  Shanghai,  a  new 
company  was  established  under  the  control 
of  the  Kob6  Pier  Co.,  entitled  the  Shanghai 
Transportation  Company,   Ltd.,   which  now 


Nll'i'dX    KAIJI    KOGYll    KABUSHIKI    KAISHA    (jAPAN    MARINE   ENGINEERING   &    SALVAGE    CO.,  LTD.):    S.ALVAGE    STEAMER    "OLRA    MARU  ' 

—  HEAD    OFFICE    AT   OSAKA 


754 


PRESENT-DA  V    IMPRESSIONS    OF   JAPAN 


owns  a  fleet  of  5  tug-boats  and  40  lighters 
aggregating  8,000  tons. 

In  1915  the  Kobe  Pier  Company,  Ltd., 
started  in  the  shipping  business,  and  now 
has  a  tonnage  of  25,000,  including  the  vessels 
now  under  eonstruction.  The  capital  of  this 
company  is  Yen  6,000,000.  The  principal 
officials  are:  Directors,  Messrs.  S.  Nango 
(President),  K.  Yoshida,  I.  Kohdziro,  and  R. 
Godai;  Auditors,  Messrs.  R.  Kobayashi  and 
I.  Tanaka.  Mr.  K.  Matsukata  is  acting  as 
adviser  to  the  company.  Included  in  the 
fleet  of  the  company  are  five  steamers  of  a 
total  of  16,000  tons,  and  two  vessels  of  4,500 
tons  deadweight  capacity  are  under  con- 
struction. There  are  560  Hghters  of  a  ca- 
pacity in  all  of  45,000  tons,  22  steam  tug- 
boats, and  one  motor  boat.  The  head  off.ce 
of  the  Kob^  Pier  Company,  Ltd.,  is  at  No. 
16,  Kano-cho,  Rokuchome,  Koh6,  and  the 
branches  are  at  Osaka  and  Shanghai,  while 
despatch  offices  are  maintained  at  Takasago, 
Wakamatsu,  and  Tsingtao.  The  company's 
shipbuilding  yard  and  repair  works  are  at 
Osaka. 

THE    TOKIO    WAREHOUSE    COMPANY, 
LIMITED 

The  excellent  wharfage  and  cargo  storage 
accommodation  at  Kobe  provided  by  the 
Tokio  Warehouse  Company,  Limited,  is  well 
known  to  foreign  shipmasters  and  consignees, 
and  it  is  doubtful  whether  better  facilities, 
provided  by  private  enterprise,  are  to  be 
found  anywhere  in  the  East.  This  company, 
known  under  its  Japanese  title  as  the  Tokio 
Soko  Kaisha,  is  one  of  the  subsidiary  con- 
cerns of  the  great  Mitsubishi  Company.  As 
a  joint-stock  company  it  was  floated  in  1887 
in  Tokyo.  Business  expanded  year  by  year 
in  keeping  with  the  development  of  Japan's 
overseas  trade,  and  branches  were  opened, 
with  the  necessar>'  works,  at  Osaka  and 
Hyogo.  In  1896  the  Mitsu  Bishi  family  took 
up  the  whole  of  the  stock  in  the  company 
and  carried  out  further  extensions  of  the 
company's  storage  capacity,  completing  and 
improving  warehouses  and  dock  sheds,  and 
generally  reforming  the  business  methods  of 
the  concern.  The  development  of  the  busi- 
ness of  the  Tokio  Soko  Kaisha  has  been  most 
marked  at  Kobe,  since  the  purchase  of  the 
properties  of  the  Nihon  Trade  Warehouse 
Company,  and  the  starting  of  the  Kob^ 
branch  office.  In  1907  the  company  in- 
creased its  capital  fourfold,  making  the  total 
Yen  2,000,000,  and  then  commenced  new 
lines  of  activity  such  as  stevedoring,  acting 
as  landing  and  shipping  agents,  and  customs 
brokers,  in  addition  to  the  main  business  of 
warehousing  and  storing.  Under  contract 
with  the  Japan  Cotton  Merchants'  Associa- 
tion,   the   Tokio    Soko   Kaisha   constructed 


transit  .sheds,  godowns,  and  a  steel  pier  in 
the  southwestern  part  of  Kob<5  (Wada 
Compound),  for  landing  and  assorting  cotton 
imported  to  the  port  from  various  parts  of 
the  world.  In  1914  the  company  completed 
the  work  of  reclaiming  12  acres  of  land,  and 
installing  the  new  area  with  quays,  railways, 
transit  .sheds,  godowns,  etc.  This  new  site  is 
in  the  centre  of  the  harbour,  the  most  con- 
venient situation  for  transporting  imports 
and  exports,  and  for  assorting  general  import 
cargoes.  The  Kobe  branch  of  the  company 
has  under  its  direction  four  landing  and  w-arc- 
housing  premises  in  the  harbour,  viz.,  Taka- 
hama,  Wada,  Onohama,  and  Shimakami. 

The  Takahama  Compound  has  an  area  of 
25  acres,  with  a  water  frontage  of  2,544  feet 
and  a  quayage  of  2,082  feet.  The  depth 
alongside  the  wharves  at  low  tide  is  27  feet. 
Transit  sheds  occupy  7  acres  and  the  ware- 
houses (bond  and  free)  cover  7.8  acres. 
There  are  5.32  miles  of  railway  track,  eight 
3-ton  electric  cranes,  one  1 5- ton  fixed  crane, 
two  3-ton  steam  cranes,  and  two  3-ton 
floating  cranes.  The  quay  will  accommodate 
three  steamers  of  the  io,ooo-ton  class  at  the 
same  time.  The  railways  are  built  through- 
out the  length  and  breadth  of  the  compound, 
and  join  with  the  Imperial  Government  rail- 
ways in  the  Kobe  compound,  and  so  directly 
communicate  to  all  parts  of  the  country  from 
the  ship's  side. 

The  Wada  Compound  has  an  area  of 
16.5  acres,  and  a  water  frontage  of  1,896 
feet.  There  is  a  steel  pier,  600  feet  long, 
63  feet  wide,  and  with  a  depth  of  water  at 
low  tide  of  26  feet.  The  transit  sheds  cover 
5 . 5  acres  and  the  warehouses  7  acres.  There 
are  5 . 6  miles  of  railway  and  1 6  I  J^-ton 
electric  cranes.  The  steel  pier  will  accom- 
modate vessels  of  the  8,000-ton  class  on  both 
sides  at  the  same  time.  The  railways 
combine  with  the  Government  lines  in  the 
Wada  Compound,  and  offer  the  same  facil- 
ities for  transportation  of  cargoes  to  any 
part  of  the  country  as  in  the  case  of  the 
Takahama  Compound.  In  the  Shimakami 
Compound  there  are  warehouses  covering 
five  acres  and  sheds  covering  two  acres. 
These  warehouses  are  situated  close  to  the 
Hyogo  rice  and  manure  markets,  and  so  are 
very  convenient  for  the  storage  of  rice, 
cereals,  corn-cake,  etc.  The  Onohama  Com- 
pound has  bond  and  free  warehouses  cover- 
ing 2 . 4  acres.  They  are  situated  in  the 
eastern  part  of  the  city,  close  to  the  Kobe 
Customs  Compound,  and  convenient  for 
the  storage  of  import  cargo  cleared  from 
customs  and  awaiting   transaction. 

The  Kob^  branch  of  the  Tokio  Soko 
Kaisha  has  provided  a  fleet  of  steamboats 
and  barges  to  facihtate  its  landing,  shipping, 
and    general    stevedoring    business.     There 


are  twelve  steamboats,  of  a  total  tonnage 
of  400,  available  for  the  carriage  of  passengers 
or  for  towage  of  barges.  The  barges  number 
120  and  have  a  capacity  of  10,000  tons.  In 
expediting  stevedoring  and  general  shipping 
business  in  principal  ports  in  cooperation 
with  work  at  Kobe,  the  company  has 
stevedoring  departments  at  Yokohama  and 
Moji.  The  head  office  of  the  company  is 
at  No.  7  Komatsucho,  Fukagawaku,  Tokyo. 

MORI.MOTO  GOMEI  KAISHA 
In*  a  big  commercial  centre  like  Kob6, 
where  the  import  and  export  trade  is  con- 
tinually on  the  increase,  and  firms  and 
companies  engaged  in  the  trade  are  always 
in  search  of  suitable  premises  for  offices  and 
warehouses,  it  is  to  be  expected  that  there 
should  be  some  organisation  handUng  the 
leasing  of  godowns,  etc.  This  is  the  business 
of  Morimoto  Gomei  Kaisha,  a  firm  that  has 
established  a  big  business  in  the  direction 
indicated,  and  which  has  achieved  a  high 
reputation  throughout  commercial  circles  for 
the  capable  manner  in  which  it  provides  for 
the  needs  of  the  importers  and  exporters, 
both  foreign  and  Japanese.  The  business 
was  originally  founded  by  the  late  Mr. 
Rokubei  Morimoto,  in  December,  1900,  at 
which  time  only  a  few  properties  were 
handled.  Since  then  the  business  has  ex- 
tended to  a  substantial  degree,  as  may  be 
gathered  from  the  fact  that  to-day  the 
Morimoto  Gomei  Kaisha  has  under  its  con- 
trol over  210  substantial  brick  buildings, 
besides  land  and  other  properties  suitable 
for  compounds,  godowns,  and  offices.  The 
area  leased  totals  13,000  tsiibo.  Godowns 
are  situated  at  1st,  2nd,  and  3rd  streets, 
Isogamidori;  at  1st,  2nd,  and  3rd  streets, 
Hamabedori;  at  2nd  street,  Yawatadori; 
at  6th  street,  Kanomachi,  and  elsewhere,  all 
occupying  advantageous  business  sites  in 
the  best  parts  of  Kobe.  The  firm  attends 
to  the  leasing  and  management  of  properties 
and  all  other  classes  of  business  associated 
with   real   estate  interests. 

The  Morimoto  Gomei  Kaisha  has  a  capital 
of  Yen  1,000,000,  and  the  principal  officers 
are  Messrs.  Ginjiro  Morimoto,  Representa- 
tive Partner,  and  Yoshimatsu  Umeda,  Man- 
aging Partner.  The  head  office  of  the  firm 
is  at  No.  23  Motomachi-dori,  Ichome,  Kobe. 

Y.  SATO  &  CO. 
The  Goshi  Kaisha  Sato  Shoten,  or  Messrs. 
Y.  Sato  &  Co.,  was  established  in  the  year 
1890  by  Mr.  Yutaro  Sato,  who  is  still  the 
principal  of  the  firm.  Mr.  Sato  has  had  a 
lengthy  experience  of  the  shipping  business, 
and  is  regarded  as  one  of  the  best  informed 
men  regarding  the  growth  of  Kob^  as  a 
shipping  centre.     He  was  the  first  shipping 


■" 

1 

i 

KOBii;    SANBASHI    KABUSHIKI    KAISHA,    LTD.    (KOBE    PIER   CO.,    LTD.):    THE   COMPANY'S   FINE   OFFICE   PREMISES   AT   K0B6 

S.    S.    "FUKU   MARU" — A  FEW   OF   THE  COMPANY'S   NUMEROUS  TUGS  AND  LIGHTERS 


TOKIO    WAREHOUSE   CO.,    LTD.:   VIEW    OF    T.\K.\H.\M.\    WH.\RI-    .\T    KOliK  —  INTERIOR    OK    W.MIA    WAREHOUSE,    .MrlSlBISHT   CO.,    KOnfe - 
VIEW   OF   THE    TAKAHAMA   GENER.\L    GODOWNS   AT    KOBE — ^THE    WADA   COTTON    GODOWNS   AT    KOBi 


P  R  K  S  K  N  T  -  D  A  Y        I  M  P  R  I<:  S  S  I  O  N  S        OF        JAPAN 


/,■)/ 


broker  to  establish  such  a  business  in  J.-ipan, 
and  has  been  remarkably  successful  in  the 
transaction  of  a  large  volume  of  business 
involving  the  chartering  and  handling  of 
steamers,  freight  brokerage,  and  general 
agency  work.  It  is  also  interesting  to  note 
that  a  great  number  of  the  wealthy  ship- 
brokers  and  ship-owners  of  Japan  gained 
their  experience  in  Mr.  Sato's  office,  which 
was  the  training  school  for  so  many  men 
who  form  the  principal  members  of  the 
shipping  circle  of  Kob6  to-day. 

Messrs.  Y.  Sato  &  Co.  have  widespread 
foreign  connections,  and  they  represent 
some  of  the  largest  Japanese  shipping  interests 
in  the  capacity  of  intermediaries  for  charters, 
insurance,  and  so  forth.  A  special  feature 
of  the  firm's  operations  is  the  confidence 
which  has  been  developed  with  foreign  con- 
cerns, as  well  as  with  Japanese  companies. 
The  head  office  of  Y.  Sato  &  Co.  is  at  No. 
26   Naniwa-cho.   Kobe. 

THE    YAMAGUCHI    GOMEI    KAISHA 
Mr.  Takeshi  Yamaguchi,  director  of  the 
Yamaguchi  Gomel  Kaisha,   which  transacts 
a  widespread  business  in  land  and  sea  trans- 
portation, has  done  a  great  deal  to  improve 


conditions  in  this  business,  and  to  provide 
conveniences  for  the  rapid  and  economic 
carriage  of  goods  from  one  part  of  the  coun- 
try to  another.  It  is  a  business  in  which  he 
has  had  a  very  lengthy  experience,  not  only 
in  Japan,  but  in  Manchuria  and  China. 
Mr.  Yamaguchi  originally  formed  the  Nippon 
Teigyo  Kaisha,  or  Japan  Transport  Co.,  in 
April,  1896,  at  a  time  when  little  or  nothing 
was  being  done  by  forwarding  agents,  and 
the  services  of  this  system  were  a  great  boon 
to  the  many  consignors  of  small  cargoes 
throughout  the  country,  and  around  the 
coasts.  Later  on  Mr.  Yamaguchi  founded 
the  Nippon  Unso  Co.,  Ltd.,  in  Tokyo,  and 
this  business  is  now  running  and  yielding  a 
fair  profit  annually. 

The  Yamaguchi  Gomel  Kaisha  operate  as 
customs  brokers,  shipping,  landing,  and 
forwarding  agents.  The  organisation  was 
formed  in  1909  by  altering  the  organisation 
of  the  Yamaguchi  Unsotcn  (Yamaguchi 
Transport  Agency),  which  had  previously 
been  a  private  concern.  This  agency  was 
first  established  in  1893,  and  under  Mr. 
Yamaguchi's  personal  attention  developed 
into  a  very  large  business.  The  head  office 
was  in  Kob^,  with  a  branch  at  Osaka.     Many 


desi)atch  offices  were  started  in  Kob6  and 
Osaka  and  elsewhere,  and  agents  were  ap- 
pointed in  the  principal  business  centres  of 
Japan.  In  1906  the  same  business  was 
entered  upon  in  South  Manchuria,  with 
headquarters  at  Dairen,  and  later  on  des- 
patch offices  were  placed  in  Yingkao,  Muk- 
den, Tiehling,  Kaiyucn  Shih-ping-hai,  Kung- 
chuling,  Changchun,  Harbin,  and  elsewhere. 
Agents  were  appointed  at  each  station  along 
the  South  Manchuria  Railway,  and  thus  the 
Yamaguchi  Transport  Agency  established 
transport  facilities,  not  only  throughout 
Japan,  but  in  Korea,  Manchuria,  China,  and 
Russia,  always  doing  a  big  business  and 
materially  helping  the  development  of  the 
local  and  foreign  trade.  At  the  same  time 
the  agency  opened  up  a  service  by  coastal 
steamers  all  along  the  China  Coast,  and  a 
forwarding  branch  for  the  despatch  of  goods 
to  foreign  countries.  Consequently,  when 
the  private  concern  was  turned  into  a  joint- 
capital  company,  the  Yamaguchi  Gomel 
Kaisha  had  a  well  organised  business,  and 
it  must  be  admitted  that  it  has  lost  no 
opportunity  of  extending  it.  Connections 
have  been  formed  in  Tientsin,  Tsingtao, 
Shanghai,    Hongkong,    and   Hankow.     Busi- 


r 


EXTENSIVE   KOBE    GODOWNS   OF   THE    MORI.MOTO    GOMEI    KAISHA 


49 


./■ 


,  ll 


^n 


W^.^  ^ 


THE    KOBE    PREMISES   AND    OFFICE   OF    SATO    SHOTEN    (Y.    SATO   &   CO.) 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


759 


I  *  *■  nBOKX^'.'^r.ivK 


r>T!E:»j«as.^B»tan.2yi5«*T  . 


YAMAGi'c  111  \  cii.:   iiii-;  Kiiiu-;  I'Kicmises 


■THE    DAIKEN    BRANCH 


ness  has  also  been  extended  to  the  South  Sea 
Islands,  the  Straits  Settlements,  India,  and 
North  and  South  America.  Further  exten- 
sions are  now  contemplated. 

The  Directors  of  the  Yamaguchi  Gomel 
Kaisha  are:  Messrs.  K.  Yamaguchi  (Presi- 
dent), T.  Yamaguchi,  H.  Yamaguchi  (Master 
of  Laws),  and  H.  Yamaguchi.  The  head 
office  of  the  company  is  at  Sakaecho,  3rd 
Street,  Kobe,  and  branch  offices  are  at 
Tomijimacho,  Osaka,  at  Kambudori,  ist 
Street,  Dairen,  and  East  2nd  district, 
Changchun. 

MIKAMI  &  CO. 
This  firm  was  established  by  Mr.  T. 
Mikami,  at  Kob6,  in  1890,  and  has  won  an 
excellent  reputation  throughout  Japan  and 
abroad  for  the  sound  and  progressive  con- 
duct of  its  widely  varied  and  important 
business.  Mr.  Mikami  himself  is  noted  for 
his  broad  vision.  He  has  not  been  satisfied 
to  confine  his  business  interests  solely  to 
Japan,  or  to  one  restricted  line  of  activity. 


but  has  launched  out  on  many  enterprises, 
all  of  which  have  been  substantially  and 
successfully  developed.  The  firm's  busi- 
ness is  conducted  through  three  departments, 
viz.:  (A)  Shipping  Department,  (B)  Ship- 
liroking  Department,  and  (C)  Estate  and 
Mining  Department.  Messrs.  Mikami  &- 
Co.  own  and  control  a  number  of  ships,  and 
the  direction  of  this  phase  of  their  operations 
rests  with  "A  Department."  In  "Depart- 
ment B,"  which  constitutes  the  main  busi- 
ness of  the  firm,  all  classes  of  freight,  ship- 
ping, and  other  brokerage  associated  with 
the  mercantile  marine  is  transacted.  This 
department  is  splendidly  organised,  and 
Mikami  &  Co.  are  particularly  well  known 
throughout  the  entire  business  community 
for  the  trustworthiness  and  despatch  with 
which  their  commissions  are  executed.  The 
third  department  governs  all  the  mining, 
farming,  and  general  agricultural  interests 
with  which  the  firm  is  associated.  Mr. 
Alikami  is  largely  concerned  with  such  enter- 
prises,  in   which  he  has  invested  to  a  con- 


siderable extent.  The  firm  largely  controls 
the  Kankow  Mining  Company,  the  Koyanose 
Coal  Company,  the  Fukuho  Agricultural 
Enterprise  Company,  which  holds  consider- 
able pasturage  properties  in  Hokkaido 
and  Korea,  the  Tokiwa  Gold  Mining  Com- 
pany and  the  Daido  Antimony  Company, 
in  China.  Mr.  Mikami's  interests  in  China 
have  been  built  up  through  his  earnest 
endeavours  to  promote  the  most  intimate 
relationship  between  Japan  and  China, 
financially  and  economical^.  He  is  well 
known  as  an  old  friend  of  the  Chinese 
National  Party,  the  powerful  revolutionary 
party  governed  by  Dr.  Sun  yat  Sen,  ex- 
President  of  China. 

Originally  the  capital  of  the  firm  was  only 
Yen  5,000.  To-day  it  is  Yen  300,000.  No 
change  has  taken  place  in  the  constitution 
of  the  business,  which  is  still  that  of  a  joint- 
stock  concern.  The  President  and  principal 
of  the  business  is  Mr.  Toyotsune  Mikami, 
whose  co-directors  are  Dr.  S.  Mikami 
(Doctor  of  Laws)  and  Dr.  T.  Ito  (Doctor  of 


76o 


P  R  K  S  !•   N  T  -  n  A  Y        I  >r  P  R  K  S  S  I  O  \  S        OF        JAPAN 


Agriculture).  These  two  gentlemen  are  well 
qualified  to  administer  the  diversified  busi- 
ness and  special  undertakings  of  the  firm. 
The  General  Manager  for  Messrs.  Mikami 
&  Co.  is  Mr.  S.  Nishikawa.     Messrs.  Mikami 


They  also  have  correspondents  in  all 
the  ports  of  South  China,  in  Vladivostock, 
Singapore,  Seattle,  San  Francisco,  New 
York,  Lc  Havre,  Calais,  Amsterdam,  Rotter- 
dam,   Venice,    Genoa,    Sydney,    Melbourne, 


NEW    PREMISES   OF    MIK.\MI    &   CO. 


&  Co.  have  their  head  office  at  No.  8  San- 
chome,  Kaigan  Don,  Kobe,  where  the  firm 
owns  a  modem  three-story  brick  building. 
Branches  are  established  at  Osaka,  Tokyo, 
and  London.  The  firm  is  also  widely  repre- 
sented abroad.  Their  agents  in  the  United 
Kingdom  are  Messrs.  T.  G.  Beatley  &  Son, 
57,  58  Leadenhall  Street,  London,  E.  C. 
In  Paris  they  are  represented  by  Messrs. 
Beatley  et  Fils,  8  Rue  Halevy  de  I'Op^ra. 


and  other  centres  of  shipping  and  commercial 
importance. 

THE  TOMIJI.MA  GUMI  (TRANSPORTATION 
CO.),  LIMITED 
The  first  big  development  of  the  mercantile 
marine  of  Japan  took  place  in  1884,  at  which 
time  the  Osaka  Shosen  Kaisha  was  formed 
among  a  large  number  of  individual  ship- 
owners. At  that  period  the  whole  question 
of  transportation  by  sea  and  land  was  gone 


into,  and  one  result  was  the  formation  of  the 
Tomijima  Gumi  (Transportation)  Company, 
an   offspring   of  the   Osaka  Shosen   Kaisha, 
designed    to    take   care   of    the   handling   of 
cargoes  by  land.     For  many  years  this  con- 
cern  was   conducted   as  an   ordinary   trade 
association,   but   in   August,    1907,    when   it 
also  went  in  for  lighter  and  tug-boat  opera- 
tions in  connection  with  shipping,  and  for 
this  purpose  purchased  the  tugs  and  lighters 
of  the  Osaka  Shosen  Kaisha,  it  was  capitalised 
as  a  company,  and  entered  upon  a  new  and 
separate  existence  from  the  parent  concern. 
In  March,  1909,  the  Tomijima  Gumi  Com- 
pany entered  into  an  arrangement  with  the 
Railway   Department   under   which   cargoes 
can  be  handled  over  the  Government  lines 
between    the    interior    and    Hokkaido,    via 
Fushiki.     Other  expansions  of  the  company's 
service  were  regularly  made,  and  to-day  its 
system    covers    the    whole    of    Japan.     The 
Tomijima  Gumi  was  registered  as  a  limited 
liability    company   in    May,    1916,    and    its 
capital     was     raised      to     Yen     1,000,000. 
Generally     speaking,     the     history     of     the 
company   has   been   one   of   prosperity   and 
steady  growth.     To-day  there  are  14  despatch 
offices  in  Osaka,  a  branch  in  Kob6,  and  three 
despatch  offices  in  Hyogo,  as  well  as  in  other 
centres  of  traffic.     There  is  also  a  detached 
department  of  the  service  under  the  direction 
nf  Messrs.  Lever  Bros,  of  Amagasaki.     The 
main  business  of  the  Tomijima  (Transporta- 
tion Co.),  Ltd.,  consists  of  shipping  and  dis- 
charging exports  and  imports,   transporting 
cargoes    by    lighter    and    by    rail,    handling 
Imperial    Army    freight    of    various    kinds, 
besides  acting  as  Customs  clearance  agents, 
tugging  lighters  between   Osaka  and   Kob6, 
transportation  by  connecting  ships  and  rail- 
ways   with   the   main    ports,    and    handling 
Customs  papers.     Cargoes  handled   by   the 
head  and  branch  offices  reach  the  large  total 
of    3,570,000    tons    every    half-year    on    an 
average.     About    3,000    labourers    are    em- 
ployed,   and    the    company   owns   over   300 
carts,   wagons,  motor  trucks,  etc.,   for  land 
transportation,   and  about  500  lighters  and 
ten     steamboats.     The     President     of     the 
company  is  Mr.  T.  Inouye,  and  the  Managing 
Director  is  Mr.  K.  Kohno,  who  is  in  direct 
control  of  the  operations.     The  head  office  is 
at    .\o.  60    Tomijimacho,    Kita-k-u,    Osaka. 
At  the  close  of  the  half-year  ended  June  30, 
19 17,  the  assets  of  this  enterprising  concern 
were  valued  at  Yen  1,292,409.     The  profits 
for   the  half-year   were  Yen   60,458.     After 
adding  Yen  8,000  to  the  reserves,  and  paying 
an  ordinary  and  a  special  bonus  amounting 
to  Yen  15,500,  a  dividend  of  15  per  cent  per 
annum  was  declared.     As  stated,  the  capital 
of  the  Tomijima  Gumi,  Ltd.,  is  Yen  1,000,000, 
of  which  Yen  500,000  has  been  paid  up. 


THE    HEAD    OFFICE    OF   THE   TOMIJIMA    GUMI,    LTD.,    OSAKA 


THE  WAY    TO    NAKASENDO 


XLIII.  Other  Important  Towns  of  Japan 

The  Gitv  of  Wakayama  — The  City  of  Niigata  — The  City  of  Sendai— 
The  City  of  Kanazawa  — The  City  of  Hiroshima 


THE 
CITY  OF  WAKAYAMA 

WAKAYAMA  is  another  of  those  old 
cities  of  which  Japan  has  so  many, 
the  origin  of  which  dates  back  to 
the  remote  ages  of  antiquity.  The  place  first 
comes  into  prominence  in  Japanese  annals 
when  the  priests  of  the  Negoroji  Temple,  in 
the  Province  of  Kii,  united  with  the  lord  of 
Ota  Castle  in  a  scheme  to  attack  the  Castle 
of  Osaka.  On  learning  of  the  plot  Hideyoshi, 
then  in  supreme  power  at  Kyoto,  indignant 
at  this  treachery,  despatched  troops  under 
Hidenaga  Hashiba  to  defeat  the  machinations 
of  the  priests.  This  was  in  the  year  1584. 
The  army  of  Hideyoshi  poured  into  Kishu  in 
great  force,  destroyed  the  Negoro  Temple  by 
fire,  and  then  proceeded  to  sack  Ota  Castle. 


The  rebellion  being  completely  crushed, 
Hideyoshi  himself  paid  a  visit  to  the  scene 
of  decimation,  and  ordered  a  still  greater 
castle  to  be  erected  on  the  site,  naming  the 
place  Wakayama  and  making  his  son  its  first 
lord.  This  is  the  origin  of  the  present  Waka- 
yama Castle,  which  when  first  erected,  soon 
gathered  about  it  an  increasing  population, 
causing  a  large  city  to  rise.  Thus  Hideyoshi 
may  be  regarded  as  the  real  founder  of 
Wakayama,  as  before  his  time  the  place 
amounted  to  no  more  than  a  small  village. 
In  the  year  1600  Asano  Yukinaga  became 
lord  of  Wakayama  Castle,  increasing  its 
proportions  and  greatly  strengthening  its 
battlements.  Not  long  afterwards  he  was 
succeeded  by  his  younger  brother,  Nagahira, 
and  he  in  turn  by  the  lord  of  Hiroshima,  in 
1 61 9,  as  the  tenth  son  of  leyasu,  Tokugawa 


Yorinobu,  had  taken  his  former  fief.  He 
founded  the  third  of  the  great  Tokugawa 
families,  making  Wakayama  his  castle  town, 
and  having  it  thoroughly  rebuilt  with  the 
consent  of  the  shogun.  As  the  family  held 
very  exalted  rank,  being  one  of  the  three 
entitled  to  succeed  to  the  shogunate,  the 
castle  was  spared  the  demolition  suffered  by 
many  others  at  the  time  of  the  Restoration. 
The  strategic  position  of  the  city  appealed 
to  the  Tokugawa  authorities,  who  well  knew 
the  advantage  of  having  there  a  dairayo 
likely  to  keep  a  sharp  eye  on  the  lords  of 
Shikoku  and  Kyushu.  Wakayama  has  now 
passed  from  the  dignity  of  being  the  castle 
town  of  Kishu  to  that  of  the  capital  of  the 
prefecture  of  Wakayama,  being  the  fifteenth 
city  of  the  Empire,  with  a  population  of  about 
80,000  people. 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


763 


The  city  of  Wakayama  is  pleasantly 
situated  facing  the  sea,  with  the  Nagamin;? 
Hill  rising  to  the  south,  and  the  north  being 
bounded  by  the  province  of  Idzumi.  North 
of  the  city  runs  the  River  Kino  on  its  way 
to  the  sea,  while  eastward  extends  a  wide 
plain  to  the  beach.  The  city  is  thus  quite 
conveniently  situated  for  communication 
both  by  sea  and  land,  with  adequate  steam- 
ship and  railway  connections.  Among  the 
principal  buildings  of  Wakayama  are  the 
prcfectural  offices,  the  local  law  court,  and 
the  headcjuarters  of  the  32nd  Amiy  Brigade. 
The  city  has  ten  primary  schools,  a  municipal 
commercial  school,  a  girls'  art  school,  one 
normal  training  college,  one  middle  school, 
one  girls'  high  school,  a  technical  school,  and 
a  public  library.  Wakayama  has  its  mayor 
and  municipal  council,  like  other  cities,  an 
excellent  system  of  city  government  being 
maintained.  The  revenue  of  the  munici- 
pality amounts  to  about  220,000  yen  annu- 
ally, which  is  usually  sufficient  for  the  city's 
expenses.  The  large  number  of  old  samurai 
families  residing  in  Wakayama  makes  it  a 
typical  Japanese  city  and  an  attractive 
residential  centre. 

The  chief  interests  of  Wakayama,  howl 
ever,  are  industrial  and  commercial,  the 
centre  of  greatest  activity  being  toward  the 
northern  section  of  the  city.  The  largest 
product  of  the  place  is  cotton  flannel,  the 
annual  output  of  which  is  valued  at  10,000,- 
000  yen.  As  the  daimyo  of  Kishu  was  the 
first  of  the  barons  to  equip  his  troops  with 
foreign  uniforms  and  weapons,  the  place 
became  a  centre  for  weaving  material  for 
army  clothes,  which,  as  wool  was  not  to  be 
had,  were  made  of  a  coarse  cotton  duck; 
and  it  was  a  Wakayama  man,  Major-Genera- 
Tsuda,  who  first  tried  to  produce  real  army 
cloth  in  Japan,  though  it  resembled  flannel 
more  than  the  real  article.  When  the 
feudal  system  was  abolished  and  the  heredi- 
tary pensions  of  the  samurai  were  done  away, 
some  7,000  of  these  warriors  of  Kishu  found 
themselves  masterless,  and  turned  to  the 
flannel  mills  of  Major-General  Tsuda  for 
work  to  ensure  them  a  livelihood.  With 
imports  of  flannel  from  Italy,  the  cotton 
flannel  industries  of  Wakayama  were  stimu- 
lated to  keener  competition,  great  improve- 
ments were  inaugurated,  several  fine  mills 
were  established,  and  thus  was  created  the 
present  flourishing  industry  in  Wakayama. 
It  was  soon  followed  by  great  cotton  mills, 
which  are  now  also  a  conspicuous  feature  of 
the  city's  numerous  activities.  The  hosiery 
produced  at  Wakayama  is  among  the  best 
made  in  Japan,  representing  about  4,000,000 
pairs  of  socks  a  year,  valued  at  some  320,000 
yen,  and  mostly  exported  through  Osaka. 
Wakayama  also  produces  wood  finishings  in 


abundance,  as  the  mountains  of  Kishu  are 
noted  for  good  timber.  The  annual  value 
of  such  wood  productions  is  about  410,000 
yen.  The  timber  is  felled  in  the  hills  and 
floated  down  the  River  Kino  to  the  city, 
where  it  is  sawn  and  made  up  or  shipped, 
the  annual  output  being  valued  at  600,000 
yen.  There  is  also  a  large  production  of 
sake,  totalling  more  than  1,000,000  yen 
annually  in  value,  most  of  which  is  disposed 
of  in  Osaka,  Kyoto,  and  Tokyo.  Wakayama 
sake  has  a  reputation  for  delicacy  of  flavour, 
due  to  the  quality  of  the  water  procurable 
there  for  brewing.  One  of  the  most  noted 
brewing  firms  of  the  city  is  Kumakusu 
Minamikata,  whose  name  is  well  known 
abroad.  It  may  be  truly  said  that  Waka- 
yama is  one  of  the  most  prosperous  and 
industrious  cities  of  its  size  in  the  whole 
Empire,  having  no  less  than  112  industrial 
corporations  with  a  total  capital  of  some 
15,000,000  yen. 

The  three  most  alluring  attractions  of 
Wakayama  to  the  traveller  are  the  old  castle 
of  its  former  daimyo,  the  Kimii  Temple,  and 
the  entrancing  scenery  at  Waka-no-ura. 
The  castle  is  situated  on  a  picturesque  site 
known  as  Torafusuzan,  or  "the  mountain  of 
the  crouching  tiger,"  its  three-storyed  tower 
rising  serenely  among  the  lofty  old  trees  of 
the  precincts.  Lying  westward  of  the  castle 
is  Oka  Park,  its  rocky  sides  suggesting  former 
proximity  to  the  coast.  On  its  summit 
stands  a  monument  to  the  men  of  Kishu 
who  died  in  the  wars  of  the  Restoration,  and 
the  spot  affords  a  magnificent  view  of  the 
surrounding  country.  At  the  foot  of  the 
hill  in  the  park  is  the  Ho-on  Temple  where 
the  wife  of  Tokuga wa  Yorinobu  —  a  daughter 
of  the  celebrated  hero,  Kato  Kiyomasa  —  lies 
buried.  The  Renshin  Temple  was  erected 
by  the  mother  of  Yorinobu  in  1609  and  has 
examples  of  the  handwriting  of  the  lords  of 
Kishu.  Westward  of  the  city  may  still  be 
seen  the  two  ancient  pines  marking  the  spot 
where  the  garrison  of  Ota  Castle  surrendered 
to  the  forces  of  Hideyoshi,  and  were  saved 
by  thirty-six  brave  officers  and  a  general 
sacrificing  their  lives  by  committing  harakiri. 
The  Kimii  Temple  is  about  thirty  minutes 
by  electric  tram  from  the  city,  being  Number 
2  of  the  thirty-three  most  holy  places  in 
Japan.  It  was  founded  b\'  a  Chinese  mis- 
sionary named  Ikwan,  in  770  A.  D.,  the 
sacred  edifice  being  erected  to  house  an 
image  of  the  goddess  Kwannon  found  there. 
But  to  the  average  visitor  it  is  the  beautiful 
scenery  of  the  environment  that  is  the  chief 
attraction,  the  view  being  typically  Japanese 
and  one  that  any  artist  would  choose.  From 
the  height  one  gazes  away  across  a  charming 
labyrinth  of  land  and  water  until  the  eye 
rests  on  another  fair  scene,  known  as  Waka- 


no-ura,  a  sandy  peninsula,  narrow  and 
fantastically  overgrown  with  pines  and 
enclosing  a  little  bay,  of  which  poets  have 
sung  the  praises  from  time  immemorial.  A 
walk  along  the  coast  from  this  point  affords 
the  most  lovely  views  of  land  and  sea. 

THE  CITY  OF  NIIGATA 

NIIGATA,  the  capital  of  the  prefecture  of 
the  same  name,  is  situated  on  the  west 
coast  of  Japan  on  a  narrow,  sandy  strip 
of  land  between  the  River  Shinano  and  the 
sea.  It  was  one  of  the  first  ports  in  Japan 
opened  to  foreign  trade  and  is  still  the 
busiest  centre  in  the  Province  of  .Echigo, 
having  convenient  and  regular  railway  com- 
munication with  Tokyo,  and  steamship  con- 
nection with  the  coast  towns.  In  reaching 
the  city  from  the  railway  one  has  to  cross 
the  Shinano  River  by  the  great  Bandai 
Bridge,  some  2,500  feet  in  length.  Situated 
near  the  mouth  of  the  river,  Niigata  faces 
the  Sea  of  Japan,  with  extensive  sand  dunes 
protecting  its  western  side.  Thus  strung 
along  the  coast,  the  streets  running  east 
and  west  are  short,  while  those  parallel  with 
the  beach  are  correspondingly  long. 

As  Niigata -is  one  of  the  largest  ports  on 
the  coast  of  the  Japan  Sea,  it  was  greatly 
favoured  by  the  government  of  the  shogunate 
and  enjoyed  commercial  prosperity  from 
very  early  days.  When  Lord  Makino  took 
up  his  residence  there  as  head  of  the  Echigo 
clan  he  built  his  castle  at  Nagaoka,  but  did 
all  in  his  power  to  promote  the  commercial 
interests  of  Niigata,  the  citizens  of  which 
were  exempted  from  taxation  —  with  the 
hope  of  rapidly  increasing  the  population  — ■ 
and  under  such  encouragement  the  place 
experienced  great  development.  Though  the 
broad  river  and  the  great  bridge  which  spans 
it  were  formerly  regarded  as  picturesque 
advantages  to  the  city  of  Niigata,  they  are 
to-day  looked  upon  as  prejudicial  to  its 
interests,  as  it  is  inconvenient  to  have  to 
cross  the  bridge  to  connect  with  the  railway, 
while  the  bridge  itself,  being  constructed  of 
wood,  is  too  flimsy  to  be  regarded  as  a  per- 
manent structure.  In  the  old  days  the 
Shinano  River  was  a  highway  for  inland 
navigation,  but  in  recent  years  it  has  become 
silted  up  and  navigation  is  impossible.  Dredg- 
ing undertaken  to  relieve  the  situation  has 
proved  in  vain,  owing  to  the  immense  flow  of 
sand  from  the  upper  reaches  of  the  river. 

In  the  early  daj'S  it  was  supposed  that 
Niigata  would  become  the  chief  port  for 
ships  trading  with  Russia,  but  results  in 
this  direction  have  not  come  up  to  expecta- 
tions, the  route  having  been  deflected  to 
Tsuruga,  farther  south.  Still,  the  city  has 
numerous  industrial  and  commercial  activities 


r64 


P  R  E  S  E  N  T  -  I)  A   ^•        I   M    I'  R  E  S  S  I  O  N  S        OF        JAPAN 


that  make  it  an  important  centre  of  life  in 
that  part  of  the  Empire.  The  city  produces 
large  quantities  of  sulphuric  acid,  lacquer 
ware,  woven  tissues,  matting,  umbrellas,  and 
matches,  to  the  value  of  nearly  i  ,000,000  yen 
annually.  Exports  are  not  large,  as  the 
harbour  can  not  accommodate  vessels  very 
well,  and  they  have  to  anchor  in  the  roadstead 
outside.  In  case  of  high  wind  the  coast  is 
considered  dangerous,  and  then  ships  have 
to  take  refuge  in  the  harbour  of  Ebisu-minato, 
on  the  island  Of  Sado,  some  distance  away. 
It  is  evident  from  old  maps  that  the  site  now 
occupied  by  Niigata  was  eight  or  ten  miles 
out  at  sea  800  years  ago,  the  whole  surround- 
ing plain  having  become  dry  land  within 
historic  time,  partly  by  the  silting  up  of 
rivers  and  partly  by  upheaval.  The  town 
has  never  attracted  foreign  trade,  and  the 
only  foreigners  now  residing  there  are 
missionaries. 

Owing  to  the  severe  winters  on  this  coast 
of  Japan  the  snowfall  is  unusually  heavy, 
and  consequently  the  houses  at  Niigata  are 
built  differently  from  those  in  ether  regions 
of  Japan,  being  for  the  most  part  covered 
with  shingles  instead  of  tiles,  the  shingles 
often  having  stones  laid  on  them  to  prevent 
the  fierce  winds  tearing  them  off.  The 
houses  are  low,  with  gable  ends  toward  the 
street,  and  the  roofs  prolonged  beyond  the 
walls  to  keep  the  snow  from  blocking  up 
the  windows  and  from  rendering  the  side- 
walks impassable.  One  frequently  sees 
photographs  from  Niigata  sho-ning  how  the 
people  there  dig  themselves  out  after  a  big 
snowstorm  by  tunnelUng  through  the  snow. 
As  the  soil  is  so  sandy  the  willow  is  the  only 
tree  that  thrives  well  in  the  city,  but  the 
town  is  intersected  by  streams  and  canals 
necessitating  numerous  bridges,  which  add 
to  its  picturesqueness.  As  the  banks  of  the 
rivers  and  canals  are  lined  with  willow  trees, 
the  place  is  known  as  "the  City  of  Willows," 
in  which  respect  Niigata  somewhat  resembles 
Osaka. 

Niigata  carries  on  important  public  works, 
especially  of  a  riparian  nature,  and  has  good 
educational  facilities,  possessing  seven  pri- 
mary schools,  one  middle  school,  and  one 
girls'  high  school,  besides  a  commercial  school 
and  a  medical  college.  The  prefectural 
reformatory'  is  also  situated  there  and  an 
orphanage,  as  weU  as  a  school  for  the  bhnd 
and  deaf.  The  finest  buildings  are  those  of 
the  Prefectural  Office  and  the  Department 
of  Communications.  The  Hakusan  Garden 
to  the  south  of  the  city  has  many  fine  old 
pine  trees  surrounding  a  shrine  of  the  same 
name,  and  by  a.sccnding  the  hill  one  has  a 
charming  view  of  the  plain  on  one  side  and 
the  mountains  on  the  other.  This  outlook- 
was  admired   greatly  by   the   late   Emperor 


of  Japan,  who  once  visited  the  park.  The 
sailors  of  Niigata  have  a  song  which  they 
sing  on  approaching  the  port,  to  the  effect 
that  the  heart  of  the  sailor  lad  is  always 
elated  as  he  sees  the  pines  of  Hakusan  rising 
through  the  mists  of  dawn,  reminding  him 
of  happy  days  under  their  shade  with  friends 
of  now  or  long  ago.  On  the  summit  of 
Hiyoriyama  is  an  observation  tower  used 
by  shipping  agents  in  the  old  days  to  see 
when  their  vessels  were  approaching  the 
harbour,  and  the  place  now  affords  an 
excellent  view  of  the  plains  and  the  sea,  with 
Sado  Island  rising  Uke  a  purple  gem  from  the 
distant  ocean. 

In  modem  times  Niigata  is  said  to  be 
more  renowned  for  its  beautiful  women  than 
for  any  other  specialty.  The  long  bracing 
winters  there  are  said  to  so  modify  the  effect 
of  the  sun  as  to  produce  a  peculiar  complexion, 
which  the  Japanese  admire  as  white  and 
delicate;  and  this  delicacy  of  complexion, 
combined  with  a  certain  curve  of  the  neck, 
distinguishes  the  Niigata  woman  in  a  way 
that  gives  her  an  advantage  over  all  her 
sisters  in  Japan.  This  is  why  the  Niigata 
girls  are  the  most  noted  among  the  Tokyo 
geisha,  and  for  the  same  reason  the  people 
of  Niigata  are  reputed  to  be  unique  among 
Japanese  in  preferring  a  family  of  girls  to 
one  of  boys.  In  strange  contrast  to  the 
peculiar  beauty  of  the  women  of  Niigata  is 
the  uses  to  which  they  are  put  as  manual 
labourers,  being  made  hewers  of  wood  and 
drawers  of  water  to  the  community.  It  is 
quite  a  common  sight  in  Niigata  to  see  women 
pulling  a  cart-load  of  goods  along  the  street. 
And  the  women  of  Niigata  are  given  names 
quite  different  from  those  used  in  other  parts 
of  Japan,  where  female  names  are  usually 
those  of  pretty  flowers  or  objects  in  nature, 
as  "Miss  Flower,"  "Miss  Love,"  "Miss 
Snow,"  "Miss  Pine,"  and  so  on.  The 
Niigata  belles  are  caUed  by  such  names  as 
"Miss  Chin,"  "Miss  Rita,"  "Miss  Sase,"  or 
"Miss  Oso,"  which  have  a  ludicrous  sound 
in  other  parts  of  Japan.  Niigata  is  famous 
for  its  oysters,  which  one  can  have  served 
even  in  summer. 

THE  CITY  OF  SENDAI 

SENDAI,  the  largest  city  of  northern 
Japan,  some  12  hours  by  train  from 
Tokyo,  hes  on  a  level  plain  at  the  foot  of 
Mount  Aoba,  from  the  green  slopes  of  which 
one  looks  out  on  the  Pacific.  The  origin  of 
the  city  is  lost  in  the  mists  of  antiquity.  It 
is  believed,  however,  that  the  place  began  to 
assume  a  position  of  importance  when  the 
Emperor  Keitai  had  a  fortress  erected  on 
Mount  Aoba  in  507  a.  d.,  and  when  the 
Emperor   Yomei  had   a    thousand  Buddhist 


images  (Senlai)  set  up  in  the  place  in  586 
A.  D.,  the  settlement  took  its  present  name. 
Tradition  has  it  that  originally  the  site  was 
a  marshy  plain  overgrown  with  reeds, 
stretching  between  the  foot-hills  and  the 
River  Hiros6,  a  stream  that  now  meanders 
through  the  city,  and  it  is  probable  that  the 
first  settlement  of  any  importance  was  a 
garrison  of  the  castle,  placed  there  as  an 
outpost  to  prevent  incursions  of  the  savage 
Ainu.  When  Yoritomo  undertook  to  sup- 
press the  Fujiwara  family  in  the  northern 
districts  he  gave  Sendai  to  a  daimyo  named 
Chiba,  who  built  a  grand  mansion  on  Mount 
Aoba  and  made  Sendai  his  castle  town. 
Later,  especially  during  the  age  of  the  civil 
wars,  Dat6  Masamune,  the  scion  of  another 
powerful  family,  rose  and  brought  under  his 
sway  the  whole  of  the  region;  and  at  the 
beginning  of  the  Tokugawa  period  in  the 
seventeenth  century  the  Date  family  moved 
their  headquarters  to  Sendai,  when  the  town 
was  remodelled  and  became  the  greatest  city 
of  the  north,  with  more  than  three  hundred 
households  and  as  many  shrines  and  temples. 

The  Dat6  family  did  everj-thing  possible 
to  make  their  new  capital  a  place  of  com- 
mercial and  industrial  importance,  issuing 
special  regulations  for  the  protection  and 
encouragement  of  trade,  the  merchants  of 
Sendai  being  allowed  to  bring  their  goods 
direct  from  Osaka  and  Yedo,  while  the  traders 
of  other  towns  in  the  fief  had  to  suffer 
inconvenient  restrictions  in  buying  everj'thing 
from  the  wholesale  dealers  of  the  castle  town. 
Naturally  this  caused  trade  to  centre  in  the 
daimyo's  capital,  as  it  was  the  only  source 
of  merchandise.  In  return,  the  merchants 
of  Sendai  had  to  keep  up  the  streets,  with 
first-class  shops  fronting  on  them,  where  all 
kinds  of  wares  could  be  bought,  so  as  to 
supply  the  necessities  of  the  people  of  the 
town  and  of  the  surrounding  districts.  More- 
over, as  a  castle  town,  the  place  was  visited 
by  increasing  numbers  of  people  and  assumed 
an  air  of  considerable  importance. 

With  the  Restoration  of  Imperial  Govern- 
ment came  the  fall  of  the  Sendai  clan,  and 
the  castle  town  of  the  Dat^  family  began  to 
show  signs  of  decline.  The  Sendai  clan 
naturalh'  revolted  against  the  attitude  of 
Choshu  and  Satsuma  toward  the  Tokugawa 
house,  as  these  southern  daimyos  had  been 
historic  enemies  of  the  Date  family.  The 
northern  clan  was,  however,  finally  forced 
into  submission,  but,  as  a  matter  of  course, 
none  of  its  friends  were  allowed .  to  enter 
the  pubUc  services,  at  least  not  for  some 
years.  The  traders  of  Sendai,  thus  deprived 
of  the  assistance  and  patronage  of  the  clan 
government,  had  to  shift  for  themselves, 
and  a  fierce  struggle  for  existence  followed. 
The  city  gradually  declined   in   commercial 


P  R  K  S  E  N  T  -  I)  A  "S'        IMPRESSIONS        OF        JAPAN 


765 


importance,  and  the  products  of  the  place  were 
Hmited  to  a  few  efforts  in  handicraft,  such 
as  dyed  articles  of  domestic  make,  earthen- 
ware, lacquer  ware,  writing  brushes,  and 
bamboo  goods,  amounting  to  no  more  than 
some  four  and  a  half  million  yen  annually.  In 
1879  the  number  of  houses  in  Sendai  was 
only  11,500,  the  exact  number  of  the  popu- 
lation being  unknown,  but  to-day  the  number 
of  houses  has  increased  to  more  than  21,000 
and  the  population  is  well  over  100,000  — 
so  that  a  period  of  revival  and  prosperity 
has  apparently  set  m. 

Sendai,  however,  is  regarded  as  a  more 
important  town  pohtically  and  in  a  military 
sense,  than  in  the  way  of  commerce  and 
industry.  It  is  the  seat  of  the  Prefectural 
Office,  the  Sendai  Court  of  Appeal,  the  Ad- 
ministration Office  of  Communications  for 
the  northern  department  of  the  service,  and 
is  the  headquarters  of  the  Second  Army 
Division.  Educationally,  too,  Sendai  is  a 
much  more  important  centre  than  even  some 
larger  towns,  as  it  is  the  seat  of  the  Imperial 
University  of  the  North-West,  W'ith  its 
colleges  of  Science,  Engineering,  and  Medi- 
cine, and  also  of  the  Second  National  College. 
Among  the  important  mission  colleges  there 
is  the  Tohoku  Gakuin. 

As  a  centre  of  historical  and  topographical 
interest  Sendai  has  large  claims  to  the 
interest  of  the  observant  and  the  thoughtful. 
Crossing  the  big  bridge,  over  360  feet  long, 
which  spans  the  Hiros4  River,  one  wanders 
westward  over  an  ascending  road  to  the  main 
gate  of  Sendai  Castle,  now  occupied  as  the 
headquarters  of  the  Second  Army  Division. 
The  magnificent  main  gate  is  about  the  only 
remnant  of  the  ancient  castle  that  is  left,  as 
the  first  governor  of  the  place,  after  the  fall 
of  the  Tokugawa  shogun,  was  so  indignant 
at  the  opposition  of  the  Sendai  clan  that  he 
had  the  old  castle  razed  to  the  ground,  and 
what  may  have  survived  his  wrath  was 
destroyed  by  fire  in  1882.  It  is  said  that 
the  present  main  gatew-ay  was  formerly  the 
entrance  to  Hideyoshi's  mansion  at  Nagoya 
when  he  was  commander  of  the  expedition 
sent  to  Korea,  and  that  Dat6  Masamun(5 
obtained  it  and  had  it  conveyed  to  his  capital 
in  the  north  to  be  set  up  as  the  main  gate 
of  his  castle.  It  still  has  its  golden  chrysan- 
themum crests  of  twenty  petals  and  its 
paulownia  leaves,  the  crest  of  the  Tokugawa 
clan.  On  the  site  where  once  stood  the 
central  tower  of  the  castle  there  is  a  monu- 
ment in  commemoration  of  the  soldiers  who 
fell  in  the  war  with  China.  The  monument 
rises  to  a  height  of  67  feet,  and  on  the  top 
is  a  bronze  kite  measuring  22  feet  between 
the  tips  of  its  wings. 

The  ancestral  sejxilchre  of  the  Date  family 
is  at  Zuihozan,  on  the  summit  of  Kyogamin^ 


Hill,  in  the  midst  of  beautiful  [lincsand  cedars. 
Within  the  shrine  stands  a  statue  of  the 
famous  daimyo,  looking  very  grave  in  court 
dress.  In  former  times  the  tomb,  with  its 
fine  corridors,  gate,  and  sanctuary,  was  as 
grand  and  imposing  as  the  Tokugawa  tombs 
at  Nikko,  but  what  with  the  mutilation  of 
enemies  and  the  neglect  of  friends,  its  splen- 
dour has  mostly  departed.  The  spot  is  still  a 
centre  of  veneration  and  is  visited  by  the 
folk  of  Sendai. 

The  plain  of  Miyagino,  extending  from  the 
city  toward  the  sea,  is  noted  for  its  abun- 
dance of  wild  flowers  and  its  singing  insects, 
the  fame  of  which  has  been  recited  in  a  thou- 
sand songs  and  poems.  In  the  days  of  Sen- 
dai's  glory  the  Date  family  used  to  present 
annually  to  the  shogun  in  Yedo  a  singing 
grasshopper  from  this  famous  plain  of  wild 
grass  and  blossoms.  The  plain  is  now  being 
gradually  absorbed  by  radish  fields  and 
drill   grounds. 

In  a  wood  near  Miyagino  plain  is  the 
Yakusi  Temple,  which  the  Date  family  had 
reconstructed  on  a  magnificent  scale,  making 
it  one  of  the  most  impressive  sacred  edifices 
of  the  Momoyama  age.  In  a  beautiful  park 
of  fine  trees  stands  the  Ozaki  Hachiman 
shrine  in  honour  of  the  god  of  war,  where  the 
carvings  of  the  famous  master  of  the  chisel, 
Hida  Jingoro,  may  still  be  seen.  Another 
historic  spot  is  Tsutsujigaoka  Park,  a  hilly 
region  not  far  from  Sendai  on  the  plain  of 
Miyagino,  where  Yortiomo  encamped  when 
he  came  north  to  attack  Fujiwara  Yasuhira 
with  his  280,000  Kamakura  warriors.  At 
the  end  of  the  grounds  now  stands  the  bar- 
racks of  the  Fourth  Infantry  Regiment,  with 
the  local  military  preparatory  school.  An- 
other park  lies  behind  the  Hirose  River 
in  the  western  portion  of  the  city,  and  has 
many  pines  and  cherry  trees,  the  elevation 
commanding  a  fine  view  of  the  city  spread 
out  below  it. 

With  its  many  hills,  trees,  and  streams 
Sendai  is,  on  the  whole,  a  pretty  town, 
which,  on  account  of  its  culture,  is  some- 
times called  "the  Boston  of  Japan,"  as 
Kyoto,  the  old  capital,  is  called  "the 
Moscow  of  the  Empire."  In  physical  fea- 
tures and  historical  traditions  there  are 
few  towns  that  can  compare  with  Sendai, 
except,  perhaps,  Kanazawa,  in  Kaga;  for 
there,  as  nowhere  else,  can  one  study  well 
the  departed  glory  of  the  Tokugawa  regime. 
In  addition  to  its  historical  interest, 
Sendai  has  in  its  vicinity  the  lovely  Matsu- 
shima,  a  sea  of  fairy-like  islands,  one  of 
the  three  most  beautiful  spots  in  the  Em- 
pire, with  good  hotels  and  every  other 
accommodation  to  welcome  the  traveller  who 
desires  to  see  the  fairest  portions  of  the 
country. 


THE    CITY    OF 
KANAZAWA 

ONE  of  the  most  historic  old  cities  of 
Japan,  Kanazawa  is  the  largest  town 
in  the  province  of  Kaga  and  the  capital  of 
Isliikawa  Prefecture.  Built  along  the  foot- 
hills of  Mount  Matsu  with  the  Japan  Sea  in 
front  and  the  rivers  Sai  and  Asano  flowing 
through  the  town,  the  site  is  an  ideal  one. 
The  town  is  said  to  have  derived  its  name 
from  an  incident  of  ancient  times  wherein  a 
native  of  the  district,  on  finding  some  alluvial 
gold,  washed  it  in  a  pond  near  the  feudal 
castle,  after  which  it  was  called  Kanea- 
raisawa,  or  "Gold-Washing-Swamp,"  which 
finally  became  Kanazawa."  The  site  of  the 
present  city  has  been  occupied  by  the  Kana- 
zawa clan  from  the  early  part  of  the  four- 
teenth century.  By  the  year  1339  the  village 
had  over  1,000  houses  and  was  called  Ya- 
mazakimachi,  or  "  Mountain-front-village." 
About  this  time  a  Buddhist  temple  was 
erected  in  the  village  and  that  religion  became 
powerful  enough  to  rise  against  and  defeat 
the  Togashi  family  in  1469,  for  religion  had  a 
very  martial  spirit  in  those  days.  The  victory 
of  the  Hongwanji  sect  of  Buddhism  over  its 
enemies  won  for  it  the  admiration  and  support 
of  the  surrounding  population.  In  1488  de- 
fences were  erected  about  the  city  and  a 
famous  warrior  named  Chikuzen  Shimotsuna 
was  brought  from  Yamashina  in  Omi  to 
superintend  the  fortress.  The  castle  was 
named  the  "Yamao,"  on  account  of  the 
mountain.  In  1 573  the  great  Oda  Nobunaga, 
in  supreme  military  power  at  Kyoto,  sent 
his  retainer,  Morimasa  Sakuma,  to  reduce 
the  castle  at  Kanazawa  to  submission,  and 
in  1580  Sakuma  was  given  possession  of  the 
castle.  After  the  death  of  Sakuma  in  the 
battle  of  Shizugatake,  Hideyoshi,  who  had 
succeeded  Oda,  gave  Kanazawa  Castle  to 
Toshi-iye  Mayeda,  who  gave  the  stronghold 
its  present  name,  and  the  Mayeda  family 
remained  in  possession  down  to  the  Meiji 
period.  It  was  under  the  Mayeda  family 
that  the  city  became  a  place  of  great  impor- 
tance and  the  whole  surrounding  country 
experienced  unwonted  development  and 
prosperity.  The  present  head  of  the  family. 
Marquis  Toshinari  Mayeda,  a  Captain  in 
the  Imperial  Army,  still  has  his  estates  there 
with  chief  residence  in  Tokyo,  and  remains 
one  of  the  first  peers  of  the  realm. 

Indeed,  the  history  of  Kanazawa  from  the 
beginning  of  the  seventeenth  century  down 
to  the  Restoration  period  is  largely  a  history 
of  the  wise  and  admirable  management  of 
the  lords  of  Kaga,  all  of  whom  through 
succe.ssive  generations  proved  men  of  great 
ability  as  soldiers  and  statesmen.  The  pol- 
icy of  encouraging  agriculture  and  rendering 


/ 


66 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


every  possible  aid  to  the  population,  be- 
gun by  the  first  lord  of  Kaga,  was  contin- 
ued by  his  successors,  and  the  third  daimyo, 
Toshitsun^,  was  distinguished  for  his  appre- 
ciation of  literature  as  well  as  ability  in 
statesmanship  and  his  encouragement  of 
education  and  fine  art,  always  gathering 
about  him  men  of  skill  and  artistic  accom- 
plishments. The  influence  of  the  Mayeda 
family  on  the  art  and  industry  of  Kana- 
zawa  has  been  the  making  of  the  place. 
Tsunanori,  the  fifth  lord  of  Kaga,  was  so 
distinguished  as  an  administrator  that  the 
saying  became  current  in  high  places  that 
for  brilliant  administration  of  estates  Kaga 
was  first  and  Tosa  second.  When  the 
Restoration  of  Imperial  Power  was  about 
to  be  accomplished,  Keinmei,  the  fourteenth 
lord  of  Kaga,  at  once  championed  the  Imper- 
ial cause  against  the  shogun  and  sent  an  army 
against  the  opponents  of  the  new  regime, 
defeating  them  in  the  battle  of  Ou,  the 
Emperor  rewarding  him  in  a  signal  manner. 
At  the  time  of  the  fall  of  the  shogunate  in 
1869  Kanazawa  was  a  town  of  only  120 
streets,  but  after  the  abolition  of  clan  govern- 
ment the  space  occupied  by  the  retainers  of 
the  daimyo  was  taken  as  part  of  the  city  and 
the  streets  increased  to  531.  In  1873  the 
Prefectural  Office  was  estabHshed  at  Kana- 
zawa and  a  garrison  placed  there,  being  later 
succeeded  by  the  gth  Division  of  the  Impe- 
rial Army.  In  time,  Kanazawa  was  con- 
nected with  the  main  line  of  railway,  and 
schools  and  factories  rising  every-where  began 
to  indicate  the  rapid  modernisation  of  the 
city.  In  1889  the  old  village  system  of 
government  gave  way  to  the  present  munic- 
ipal system,  and  Kanazawa  became  a  real 
city  with  good  streets  and  roads  and  other 
city  improvements,  including  first-class  com- 
munications. The  city  of  Kanazawa  has 
now  38,229  households,  with  a  population  of 

137.734- 

One  of  the  most  important  products  of 
Kanazawa  is  hard  porcelain,  the  principal 
manufacturing  company  being  the  Koshitsu 
Toki  Kaisha,  working  on  a  capital  of  600,000 
yen.  The  porcelain  turned  out  by  this 
company  is  noted  for  its  art  and  durability, 
being  able  to  stand  any  temperature  and 
having  a  beautiful  white  glaze.  This  porce- 
lain is  now  an  increasing  export  of  Kanazawa. 
The  next  most  important  product  of  the  dis- 
trict is  habutai,  or  silk  piece  goods,  the 
Kosansha  Company  being  the  most  famous 
weavers  since  1887.  Beginning  with  silk 
handkerchiefs,  the  company  soon  undertook 
regular  piece  goods,  which  at  once  became 
a  specialty  of  Ishikawa  Prefecture.  At 
present  Kanazawa  is  one  of  the  most  impor- 
tant centres  in  Japan  for  light  silk  goods, 
the  annual  turnover  from  this  source  amount- 


ing to  about  6,000.000  yen.  Kanazawa  is 
also  showing  an  increasing  production  of 
metal  foil  of  all  kinds,  more  than  half  the 
output  of  Japan  coming  from  this  district, 
exports  going  chiefly  to  Siam,  India,  and 
Annam,  the  yearly  value  now  amounting 
to  some  800,000  yen.  The  hemp  braid 
industry,  too,  is  making  rapid  progress  in 
Kanazawa,  most  of  the  output  being  shipped 
through  Yokohama  dealers,  the  annual  value 
reaching  about  750,000  yen.  The  city  has 
various  other  industries,  but  those  mentioned 
are  the  most  important. 

It  would  take  up  too  much  space  to  tell 
of  all  the  interesting  places  the  tourist  might 
visit  at  Kanazawa.  The  Oyama  Jinja,  a 
Shinto  shrine  dedicated  to  the  spirits  of  the 
Mayeda  family,  is  one  of  the  most  interest- 
ing. It  is  near  the  mansion  of  Marquis 
Mayeda,  noted  for  its  beautiful  gardens. 
Kenroku  Park,  the  former  site  of  the  daimyo's 
mansion,  is  an  excellent  example  of  Japanese 
taste  in  landscape  gardening,  every  tree  and 
rock  within  the  enclosure  having  a  history. 
The  story  of  Kanazawa  Castle,  one  of  the 
greatest  fortresses  in  the  Empire,  already 
referred  to,  would  be  one  of  great  interest 
to  narrate,  as  its  ancient  walls  have  experi- 
enced stirring  times  and  passed  through 
famous  episodes  in  the  history  of  Japan.  It 
is  now  the  headquarters  for  the  Division  of 
the  Imperial  Army  stationed  there. 

It  is  in  Kanazawa  that  one  can  see  the 
famous  six-blossomed  lotus  of  matchless 
crimson  hue,  the  best  place  being  at  the 
Myoren  Pond.  A  remarkable  thing  about 
this  lotus  is  that  if  transplanted  elsewhere  it 
returns  to  but  a  single  blossom,  like  the  ordi- 
nary lotus,  thus  giving  rise  to  one  of  the  most 
interesting  botanical  questions  in  the  world 
of  science.  No  wonder  that  the  people  of  the 
district  have  a  superstitious  faith  in  its  petals, 
which  they  dry  and  use  for  medicine. 

All  around  Kanazawa  are  numerous  places 
of  historic  interest,  such  as  Nonoichi,  where 
the  old  feudal  office  used  to  be,  and  Kami- 
kanaiwamachi  near  the  mouth  of  the  Saiga wa, 
the  birthplace  of  the  famous  Gohei  Zeniya. 
On  Ishiyama  stands  the  ancient  Dai joj  i  Tem- 
ple, founded  in  1261,  and  farther  in  the  coun- 
try is  Shirayamahime  Shrine.  At  the  town 
of  Matsuto  stands  an  old  castle  of  the  same 
name,  that  has  seen  many  a  battle,  and 
at  Dangisho  is  the  beautiful  Xaruwataki 
Falls,  where  the  brave  Toshitsune  rested 
during  his  flight  from  Oshu.  On  Mount 
Tonami  was  the  ancient  barrier  between  the 
provinces,  often  mentioned  in  liistory  and 
literature.  The  Dentoji  Temple,  some  two 
miles  from  Kanazawa,  was  erected  at  the 
command  of  the  Emperor  Komei  in  1339, 
though  since  rebuilt,  and  is  under  the  pro- 
tection of  the  Mayeda  family. 


THE    CITY    OF 
HIROSHIMA 

THOUGH  the  city  of  Hiroshima  is  com- 
ing to  occupy  a  place  of  increasing 
importance  in  the  commerce  and  industry  of 
southern  Japan,  it  has  in  the  past  been  thought 
of  chiefly  as  a  strategic  position.  In  the  wars 
with  China  and  Russia  it  was  selected  as  the 
Imperial  Army  headquarters,  and  has  thus 
been  honoured  by  visits  from  His  Majesty 
the  Emperor  as  Commander-in-Chief  of  the 
national  forces.  The  Fifth  Army  Division 
is  stationed  at  Hiroshima,  and  when  war 
breaks  out  the  first  detachments  proceeding 
to  the  front  invariably  start  from  there. 
One  reason  why  the  place  is  so  strategically 
important  is  its  nearness  to  the  great  naval 
port  of  Kure,  where  transports  and  convoys 
are  always  in  readiness  for  emergency.  The 
city  is  also  near  Ujina  as  well  as  being  central- 
ly situated  for  communication  with  the 
various  army  divisions.  Hiroshima,  there- 
fore, affords  every  facility  for  naval  and 
military  transportation  when  occasion  calls. 

Situated  at  the  southern  end  of  the  Prov- 
ince of  Aki  where  the  bay  cur\-es  deeply 
inland,  the  town  is  about  a  mile  from  the 
shore.  Hiroshima  is  an  old  city,  but  did 
not  show  ver\'  marked  progress  until  the 
Meiji  era.  It  now  has  a  population  of  about 
170,000,  representing  some  40,000  families. 
Six  streams  of  meagre  proportions  flow 
through  the  town,  adding  to  its  facilities  for 
transportation  as  well  as  its  picturesqueness. 
Some  three  hundred  years  ago  whence  the 
city  dates  its  rise,  Terumoto  Mori,  of  the 
great  house  of  that  name,  and  ancestor  of 
the  present  Prince  Mori,  built  a  castle  at 
Hiroshima,  the  work  starting  in  1592  and 
reaching  completion  seven  years  later. 
Soon  people  from  various  parts  began  to 
settle  on  the  sandy  plain  outside  the  fortress, 
and  in  time  a  prosperous  city  arose.  When 
the  Mori  family  took  sides  with  Mitsunari 
Ishida  against  the  Tokugawa  clan  and  was 
defeated  in  the  great  battle  of  Sckigahara, 
the  castle  and  estates  were  confiscated  by 
the  victors,  who  go.ve  Hiroshima  to  Masanobu 
Fukushima.  He,  in  turn,  was  dismissed  for 
attempting  to  repair  the  stronghold  without 
permission  of  the  shogun,  and  so  the  castle 
passed  into  the  hands  of  Naga-akira  Asano, 
who  was  appointed  lord  of  Hiroshima  and 
whose  family  has  survived  the  twelve  inter- 
vening generations,  being  now  represented 
by  the  Marquis  Asano. 

Hiroshima  may  be  said  to  owe  much  of 
its  modem  prosperity  to  war,  for  it  was  not 
until  after  the  war  with  Cliina  that  the  city 
began  to  show  rapid  growth  in  activity  and 
population.  When  the  war  broke  out  and 
it     was     announced     that     Hiroshima     was 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


767 


chosen  as  the  Imperial  heaikiuarUTS,  reforms 
of  all  kinds  began  to  be  thoroughly  carried 
out.  The  streets  were  improved  and  a 
system  of  waterworks  was  started,  with 
sewerage  mains  laid  down,  as  the  Emperor 
and  his  retinue  of  high  personages  could  not 
be  allowed  to  sojourn  in  a  city  that  was  not 
modern  in  a  sanitary  sense.  Not  only  so, 
but  it  is  of  the  utmost  importance  that  cen- 
tres where  great  bodies  of  troops  congregate 
should  be  thoroughly  sanitary,  so  as  to  pre- 
vent disease  in  the  army.  All  these  consider- 
ations combined  to  further  the  interests  of 
Hiroshima  in  a  very  marked  degree.  The 
army  set  out  to  make  a  system  of  waterworks 
of  its  own  to  supply  pure  water  for  the 
troops,  the  task  being  accomplished  in  the 
short  space  of  six  months,  and  afterwards 
this  was  connected  with  the  city  water 
system  at  a  cost  of  640,000  yen  to  the  city. 
Hiroshima  is  now  quite  a  modern  city,  with 
all   the  usual  improvements. 

Commercially  the  significance  of  Hiroshima 
may  be  inferred  from  the  fact  that  it  has  444 
incorporated  industrial  or  other  companies 
representing  a  capital  of  19,188,000  yen,  and 
the  place  is  regarded  as  one  of  the  most 
important  distributing  centres  west  of  Osaka, 
dealing  in  general  goods,  though  manufac- 
tures are  growing.  As  the  city  is  in  direct 
communication  with  all  the  great  centres  of 
industry,  north  and  south,  it  is  expected  to 
have  a  bright  future.  One  of  the  chief 
articles  of  manufacture  is  a  coarse  cotton  cloth 
of  which  the  annual  output  is  valued  at  some 
2,000,000  yen.  Most  of  the  industrial  pro- 
ducts of  Hiroshima  are  for  home  consumption, 


including  large  quantities  of  tinned  goods, 
gela,  umbrellas,  matches,  mosquito  nets,  and 
cotton  yarns. 

Among  the  more  important  public  buildings 
of  the  city  are  the  High  Court  of  Appeal,  one 
of  the  seven  such  tribunals  in  the  Empire; 
tlie  Prefectural  Office;  the  headquarters  of  the 
Fifth  Army  Division  and  the  Ninth  Brigade; 
as  well  as  the  Higher  Normal  College,  with 
many  other  educational  institutions,  including 
a  military  preparatory  school,  two  middle 
schools,  three  girls'  high  schools,  five  primary 
and  eighteen  elementary  schools. 

Historically  the  most  interesting  spot  in 
Hiroshima  is,  of  course,  the  old  castle  and  its 
precincts,  standing  northward  toward  the 
centre  of  the  city  which  it  dominates.  The 
site  is  well  placed  at  a  point  where  six  streams 
divide  in  deltas  seaward.  The  great  walls  of 
the  fortress  measure  33,200  feet  in  circum- 
ference and  have  20  gates.  The  keep,  which 
is  72  feet  by  54  at  the  base,  tower  to  a  height 
of  108  feet  above  the  136  other  minor  emin- 
ences and  pinnacles.  As  this  stronghold  has 
never  been  destroyed  by  war  or  fire,  it 
presents  one  of  the  finest  examples  of  ancient 
castle  architecture  in  Japan.  The  head- 
quarters of  the  Fifth  Army  Division  are  in  the 
castle,  as  are  also  the  apartments  occupied  by 
the  Emperor  during  war  time.  The  plain 
solidity  of  the  castle  appeals  to  the  severity  of 
Japanese  taste,  and  consequently  the  castle  is 
admired  by  the  whole  nation. 

The  city  of  Hiroshima  has  many  beautiful 
parks,  of  which  Futaba  is  a  good  example, 
rising,  as  it  does,  through  wooded  hills, 
affording  good  views  of  landscape,  with  the 


Kanda  River  flowing  gracefully  in  front. 
The  park  is  a  scene  of  fine  trees  and  fair 
blossoms  in  season,  the  wistaria  being  espe- 
cially beautiful.  The  Nigitsu  Shrine  in  the 
park  is  an  ancient  foundation  dedicated  to  the 
spirits  of  the  ancestors  of  the  Asano  family, 
and  possesses  among  its  treasures  the  war 
drum  and  other  accoutrements  used  by 
Nagamasa  in  the  expedition  to  Korea. 
Farther  eastward  along  the  river  is  the  Shuk- 
keien  Garden,  formerly  the  site  of  the  Asano 
mansion,  but  which  is  now  open  to  the  public, 
offering  superb  views  and  exquisite  examples 
of  landscape  gardening  in  the  Japanese 
manner.  As  the  name  implies,  the  garden  is  a 
miniature  of  the  famous  West  Lake  in  China. 
From  Eba  Park,  near  the  village  of  the  same 
name,  a  fine  view  of  the  city  may  be  had,  the 
spot  being  a  favourite  resort  in  summer  on 
account  of  the  shade  trees,  as  well  as  the 
scenery.  The  Toshogu  Shrine  is  pictur- 
esquely situated  on  a  hill  approached  by  a 
flight  of  52  stone  steps,  and  is  dedicated  to 
the  shogun  lyeyasu,  being  a  thank-offering 
from  the  Asano  family  for  favours  received. 
At  the  southern  side  of  the  same  hill  stands 
the  Temmangu  Shrine,  in  memory  of  the 
famous  loyalist  and  exile,  Sugawara  Michi- 
zane,  who  is  said  to  have  gone  there  to  obtain 
a  beautiful  view  of  the  surrounding  country, 
when  on  his  way  to  banishment  in  Kyushu. 
Across  wide  fields  of  rice  waving  in  the  wind 
the  eye  dwells  pleasantly  on  the  village  of 
Eba,  near  the  sea,  with  Ujina  beyond.  In 
summer  the  hills  around  Hiroshima  are  alive 
with  people  gathering  the  wild  flowers  in 
which  this  region  aboimds. 


TOKYO    RAILWAY    STATION    AND    STATION    HOTEL 


XLIV.    Government  Railways 

Brief  History  — Railway  Nationalization  and  Its  Results  — New  Departures  Since  Railway 
Nationalization  — Some  Statistics  Showing  the  Progress  of  the  Government  Railways 


JAPAN'S  railway  schemes  date  back  to 
i86q,  in  which  year  the  Government 
decided  to  undertake  the  construction 
of  railway  lines  in  the  Empire.  In  the  next 
year  work  was  commenced  on  the  railway  line 
between  Tokj'O  and  Yokohama  in  March, 
and  on  that  between  Osaka  and  Kobe  in 
November.  The  year  1872  saw  the  opening 
to  traffic  of  the  Shinagawa- Yokohama  section 
in  May,  and  the  line  being  completed  to 
Shimbashi  in  July,  the  opening  of  the  railway 
between  Tokyo  and  Yokohama  was  cele- 
brated at  the  Shimbashi  terminus,  Tok\'o 
(the  present  Shiodome  goods  station),  in 
November  in  the  presence  of  the  Emperor 
Meiji.  This  is  the  inception  of  the  present 
far-reaching  railway  systems  of  this  country. 
The  Osaka-Kob^  line  was  opened  to  traffic  in 
May,  1874,  and  the  Kyoto-Osaka  line  in 
Februar\-,  1877,  the  present  trunk  fine,  known 
as  Tokaido  Line,  thus  gradually  developing 
from  both  ends.  Private  railway  enterprises 
were  started  in  1881  with  the  establishment 
of  the  Nippon  Railway  Company.  This 
company  set  to  work  on  the  line  between 
Ueno  (Tokyo)  and  Kumagaya  under  the 
Government  protection,  and  opened  it  to 
traffic  in  July,  1883.  Both  Government  and 
private  schemes  made  steady  progress  year 
by  year,  and,  in  May,  1887,  the  Government 
established  the  Private  Railway  Act  for 
encouraging  private  railway  enterprises  and 


endowed  them  with  such  privileges  as  expro- 
priation and  tax  exemption  of  land  for  railway 
building,  etc.  This  proved  an  immediate 
impetus  to  the  rise  of  railway  construction 
with  private  capital.  In  1888  the  San-yo 
Railway  Company  opened  to  traffic  the  Kobe- 
Himeji  section,  and  in  1889  the  Kyushu 
Railway  Company,  the  Hakata-Kurume 
section.  Thus  these  private  lines  formed  by 
degrees  the  present  trunk  Une  system  com- 
prising the  North-Eastem,  Tokaido,  San-yo, 
and  Kyushu  Lines.  One  company  came  into 
existence  after  another;  the  Kobu,  Kwansai, 
lyo,  Ryomo,  Sanuki,  and  Hokkaido  Colliery 
Railway  Companies  were  established.  After 
the  Chino-Japanese  War  the  investment  of 
private  capital  in  various  enterprises  reached 
its  zenith  and  at  the  end  of  1899  private  com- 
panies numbered  more  than  30.  This  diver- 
gent ownership  and  management  brought  in 
its  train  lack  of  systematic  working,  etc.,  and 
the  question  of  railway  nationalization  began 
to  receive  the  serious  attention  of  both  the 
Government  and  the  general  public.  At  last 
after  years  of  investigation,  the  plan  matured, 
and  the  Railway  Nationalization  Law  was 
enacted  in  March,  1906,  by  which  it  was 
decided  to  turn  over  to  Government  owner- 
ship seventeen  leading  companies  (Kobu, 
Hokkaido  Colliery,  Nippon,  Gan-etsu,  Nish- 
inari,  San-yo,  Kyushu,  Hokkaido,  Kyoto, 
Hokuetsu,   Hankwaku,   Sobu,   Boso,   Nanao, 


Tokushima,  Kwansai,  and  Sangu).  In  the 
two  years  of  1906  and  1907,  the  Government 
bought  the  lines  of  all  these  companies,  and 
the  total  Government  Unes  on  the  completion 
of  the  railway  nationalization  extended  to 
4,371  miles,  about  three  times  their  former 
length  of  1,518  miles,  while  the  invested 
capital  grew  from  Yen  170,000,000  to  Yen 
700,000,000.  Since  then,  the  construction 
of  the  Government  lines  has  been  pushed 
steadily  on,  and  even  comparatively  remote 
districts  are  being  provided  with  railway 
facilities.  At  the  end  of  1916  the  aggregate 
mileage  of  the  Imperial  Government  Railways 
reached  5,860  miles,  and  the  extension  of 
lines  since  the  nationalization  has  been  1,489 
miles.  Various  kinds  of  railways  under 
private  ownership  in  Japan  proper  at  the  end 
of  November,  191 5,  were  2,829  niiles  in  total 
length  (railways,  214  miles;  light  railways, 
1,404  miles;  urban  and  other  tramways,  1,211 
miles).  The  total  length  of  railways  in  Japan 
proper.  State-owned  and  private,  was  roughly 
8,600  miles,  and  the  aggregate  mileage  includ 
ing  Chosen,  Formosa,  Karafuto,  and  South 
Manchuria  roughly  11,000  miles.  Thus, 
Japan's  railway  development  has  been  steady 
and  significant,  and  is  all  the  more  remarkable 
in  view  of  the  geographical  nature  of  the 
islands.  Capital  invested  up  to  March,  19 14, 
was  Yen  967,001,763,  and  that  up  to  March, 
1915,    is    estimated    at    Y'en    1,010,284,563, 


P  R  E  S  E  N  T  -  ri  A  V 


I   M 


R  E  S  S  I  O  N  S 


O  F 


T  A  P  A  N 


769 


and  the  animal  net  profit  for  one  year 
ending  April,  1915,  was  Yen  54,564,532, 
while  that  down  to  April,  1916,  is  estimated  at 
Yen  60,089,087.  The  figures  showing  the 
rate  of  profit  accruing  from  the  railway  work- 
ing for  the  last  decade  are  as  follows: 

1906-1907 8.7  Per  Cent 

1907-1908 8,5  Per  Cent 

1908-1909 7.6  Per  Cent 

1909-1910 7.6  Per  Cent 

1910-191] 8,1  Per  Cent 

191 1-1912 ■ 9.0  Per  Cent 

1912-1913 8.9  Per  Cent 

1913-1914 8.4  Per  Cent 

1 9 1 4- 1 9 1 5 7.3  Per  Cent 

1915-1916 82  Per  Cent 

RAILWAY      NATIONALIZATION     AND      ITS 
RESULTS 

The  merits  resultant  from  the  railway 
nationalization  are  manifold,  and  to  explain 
the  progress  of  the  Government  Railways 
more  fully,  we  shall  point  to  the  principal 
achievements  in  detail.  One  of  the  chief 
aims  of  the  railway  nationalization  was  the 
systematic    working    by    means    of    through 


train  services,  unified  passenger  and  goods 
tariffs,  simplified  transactions  and  account- 
ings, thereby  increasing  the  efficiency  of 
service,  and  simultaneously  the  revenues 
accruing  from  it.  Train  operations  have 
been  completely  systematised  on  all  the 
main  and  branch  lines,  especially  on  the 
trunk  lines  between  Tokyo  and  Kagoshima 
and  between  Ueno  (Tokyo)  and  Kushiro. 
Passenger  fares  which  had  been  on  varied 
bases  peculiar  to  each  company  before  the 
nationalization,  were  unified  by  adjusting 
traffic  mileage  and  revising  the  scale  on  and 
after  November  i,  1907,  on  the  completion 
of  the  purchase  of  the  private  lines  in  October 
of  that  year.  In  this  revision  all  passenger 
rates  in  force  on  the  former  Government 
and  private  lines  were  taken  into  considera- 
tion, and  the  new  tariff  was  laid  down  on 
the  tapering  system  (cheaper  rates  for 
longer  journeys),  with  a  view  to  the  reduc- 
tion of  imposts  in  general.  Although  some 
steps  had  been  taken  to  revise  goods  rates 
on  the  Government  lines  except  in  Kyushu, 
consideration  of  local  conditions  and  com- 
petition prevented  the  thorough  unifying 
of    the    goods    tariffs    and    the    nationalized 


railways  continued  to  be  on  the  different 
bases  formerly  adopted  Ijy  each  company. 
The  goods  tariff  was  chiefly  local  and  highly 
differential,  but  at  last  was  thoroughly 
revised  in  October,  1912,  and  placed  on  the 
etiual  basis  almost,  on  all  the  Government 
lines.  To  sum  up  the  whole  scheme,  the 
tariff  was  generally  made  cheaper  (especially 
for  such  staple  goods  as  coal,  minerals,  fish, 
silk  cocoons,  etc.),  and  almost  uniform  on 
the  Bareme  Bel^e  with  flat-rates  instead  of 
the  former  Bareme  d,  pollers;  terminal 
charges  were  included  in  freights  and  their 
rates  lowered  for  short  hauls;  the  calcula- 
tion of  freights  simplified;  ist,  2nd,  and  3rd 
classes  applied  to  car-load  consignments 
(formerly  grouped  in  two  classes,  high  class 
and  below  3rd  class),  in  order  to  be  fair  to 
all  kinds  of  shippers;  the  fifty  km  unit  was 
replaced  by  the  ten  kin  unit  for  piece  con- 
signments according  to  kin  rates;  overland 
freights  were  calculated  through  when  the 
goods  were  conveyed  by  the  channel  steamers; 
extra  rates  for  valuable  goods  and  animals 
were  greatly  reduced.  Both  passenger  fares 
and  goods  rates  are  reckoned  through,  not 
separately  on  different  sections,  as  was  the 


F.LECTRIC    TRAIN,    IN    USE    ON    BOTH    IRBAN    AND    INTERURBAN    LINES  —  OBSERVATION   CAR,    LIMITED    E.XPRESS 


/ 


YOKOHAMA    STATION  —  KYOTO    STATION,    ESPECIALLY    BUILT   FOR    THE    IMPERIAL   CORONATION    CEREMONIES    IN    I9I5 SANNOMIYA    RAILWAY 

STATION HEAD   OFFICE    OF    THE   IMPERIAL    GOVERNMENT    RAILWAY,    TOKYO  —  THE    STATION   AT   KYOTO 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


771 


Fiscal 

Year 

Beginning 

Passenger 
Fares  per 
Passenger- 
Mile 

Goods 
Rates  per 
Ton- 
Mile 

April 

Yen 

Yen 

1 906 

•0155 

.0199 

1907 

.0149 

.0203 

iyo8 

.0142 

.0194 

1909 

.0140 

■0193 

1910 

■  0139 

.0191 

1911 

■0139 

.0194 

19 1 2 

,0138 

"1 83 

19 1 3 

■0139 

.0174 

1914 

.0138 

.0172 

1915 

.0132 

.0171 

express   locomotive    IUILT    at    KAWASAKI    DOCKYARD,    KOUE 


case  prior  to  the  nationalization.  This 
undoubtedly  has  contributed  not  a  little 
to  the  increase  of  efficiency  of  the  passenger 
and  goods  service.  The  statistics  showing 
the  progress  of  passenger-miles  and  ton- 
miles  are  as  follows: 


Fiscal 

Year 

Beginning 

Passenger- 
Miles 

Ton-   ■ 
Miles 

April 

1906 

2,294,882,361 

1,426,969,053 

1907 

2,621,434,819 

1. 545.99 1. 639 

1908 

2,743,203,558 

1,829,429,158 

1909 

2,812,329,108 

1,911,197,440 

1910 

3.038,736,966 

2,126,834,4-3 

191 1 

3,382,586,411 

2,347,871,475 

1912 

3,626,316,499 

2,691,464,174 

19 1 3 

3,690,964,619 

3,053.852.638 

1914 

3,623,743,236 

2,982,798,482 

19 1 5 

3.«56,536.966 

3.309.518,677 

The  most  significant  result  of  the  unifica- 
tion of  the  passenger  and  goods  tariffs  was 
the  general  reduction  in  fares  and  rates  on 
account  of  cheaper  rates  for  longer  journeys 
and  hauls.  The  cheapness  of  fares  and 
rates  results  naturally  in  stimulating  pro- 
ductive industries  and  is  effectual  in  multi- 
plying the  national  wealth.  The  figures 
showing  this  tendency  are  given  below. 
Cheaper  passenger  fares  are  chiefly  due  to 
the  increase  of  long-distance  travellers, 
season  and  commutation  ticket  holders,  etc. 
As  for  the  goods  rates,  they  had  gradually 
fallen  along  with  the  development  of  longer 
hauls  down  to  1912,  in  which  year  the  receipts 
fell  off  more  than  ten  per  cent  again  owing 
to    the    revision    of    the    goods    tarifT.     We 


have  reasons  to  believe  that  this  cheap 
conveyance  directly  and  indirectly  goes  far 
towards  helping  the  industrial  activities  of 
our  country  and  the  corresponding  increase 
in   the  national  wealth. 

Furthennore,  these  cheap  fares  and  rates 
are  levied  for  shorter  journeys  and  hauls 
than  those  on  foreign  railways.  The  average 
journey  per  passenger  is  2 . 4  miles  and  the 
average  haul  per  ton  is  92 . 4  miles,  accord- 
ing to  the  latest  returns  available.  When 
these  conditions  are  taken  into  consideration, 
our  railway  fares  and  rates  may  be  considered 
exceptionally   cheap. 


The  railway  nationalization  was  also 
effective  in  adjusting  differences  that  had 
existed  in  the  types  of  rolling-stock  and 
various  materials,  making  one  type  common 
to  all  the  lines  and  beneficial  for  working. 
Passenger-cars  have  been  improved  by 
degrees;  second  class  sleeping-cars  were 
inaugurated,  cushions  in  third-class  cars 
made  better,  the  highest  standard  of  accom- 
modation reached  by  the  Tokyo-Shimonoseki 
Train-de-Luxe,  etc.  Besides,  the  use  of 
larger  types  of  passenger-cars  has  made  the 
average  seating  space  much  more  roomy, 
and  warming  apparatus  has  been  installed 
as  widely  as  possible.  These  improvements 
have  enabled  the  Government  Railways  to 
warrant  the  comfort,  if  not  luxury,  of  accom- 
modation, and  encourage  tours  and  travel 
at  large,  which  results  ultimately  in  the 
provision  of  further  facilities  for  travelling. 


A    typical    scene    at   a    small    station    on    a   JAPANESE    RAILWAY 


772 


P  R  E  S  E  N  T  -  I)  A  \" 


IMPRESSIONS 


O  F 


J  A  P  A  X 


As  for  goods-wagons,  the  improvement  of 
axles  has  increased  the  loading  capacity  of 
these  wagons,  and  those  now  built  arc 
chiefly  fifteen  tons  in  capacity.  Those  cars 
with  which  faults  had  been  found,  such  as 
damaged  axles,  imperfect  construction,  etc., 
have  been  replaced  by  new  and  more  solid 
wagons.  Thus  the  loading  capacity  has 
grown  year  by  3^ear,  as  follows: 


Fiscal 

Year 

Bfginnim. 

AVER.\GE 

Loading-Capacity 
PER  Goods-Wagon 

(TONS> 

April 

1906 

7-  ^ 

1907 

7 

2 

1908 

7 

2 

1909 

/ 

,S 

1910 

7 

4 

1911 

7 

7 

1912 

8 

2 

1913 

8 

6 

1914 

-8 

9 

1915 

9 

4 

More  powerful  locomotives  have  been  put 
into  use  by  degrees  and  especially  since  191 1 
super-heater  locomotives  have  been  generally 
run  with  great  economy.  The  use  of  heavy 
locomotives  with  increased  traction-power 
has  necessitated  the  corresponding  improve- 
ment of  tracks  for  bearing  heavy  loads.  No 
doubt  heavv  locomotives  and  better  tracks 


FlSC.\L 

Year 
Beginning 

Average 
Number  of 

Average 
Lo.\D 

Cars 
PER  Train 

per  Train 
(Tons) 

April 

1907 

20  4 

71.0 

1908 

21  8 

76.9 

1909 

24  3 

90.3 

1910 

25-4 

96.3 

191 1 

24,6 

95  I 

1912 

24  .^ 

98.8 

1913 

25-1 

I03-9 

1914 

25.6 

106.7 

19 1. S 

27.1 

1 1 5  5 

mean  much  for  the  general  efficiency  of  rail- 
way traffic.  Also  the  tractive  capacity  of 
various  locomotives  has  been  systematised 
to  the  great  convenience  of  transportation, 
and  the  annual  increase  in  the  average 
number  of  cars  and  the  average  load  per 
train  has  been  remarkable. 

Besides,  refrigerator-cars  are  now  run  for 
the  conveyance  of  fresh  fish  and  meat,  etc. 
October,  191 1,  saw  the  transport  of  goods- 
wagons  between  Shimonoseki  and  Moji  for 
their   through  operation  between   the   Mail 


Island  and  Kyushu,  and  the  damage  inci- 
dental to  the  former  method  of  transship- 
ment was  entirely  got  rid  of,  making  possible 
the  through  conveyance  of  bulky  and  heavy 
goods  and  coal  and  marking  a  period  in  the 
local  traffic  conditions.  These  three  results 
—  systematic  working,  reduced  rates,  and 
adjustment  of  rolling-stock  and  materials  — 
are  the  chief  among  the  various  achievements 
of  the  nationalized  railways,  but  from  the 
financial  point  of  view,  the  following  two 
items  may  also  be  brought  forward.  One  is 
the  general  decrease  in  the  expenses  of  man- 
agement and  the  other  is  that  in  the  operat- 
ing expenditure.  As  seventeen  railway  com- 
panies creased  to  exist  on  the  railway  nation- 
alization, the  economy  of  the  salaries  of 
their  directors  and  the  staff  for  general 
affairs  and  accounting  business,  was  esti- 
mated at  Yen  970,000.  The  returns  down 
to  191 5  show  a  considerable  decrease  of 
these  managing  expenses  in  proportion  to 
the  operating  expenditure,  as  given  below. 

At  the  beginning  of  the  nationalization, 
an  economy  of  the  operating  expenditure  was 
expected  from  the  avoidance  of  clearing  busi- 
ness among  various  railways  for  through 
traffic.  Although  the  sum  to  be  thus  econo- 
mised was  then  estimated  at  Yen  170,000,  no 
statistics  are  available  to  prove  this,  but  still 
there  is  much  evidence  to  testify  that  it  has 
been    the    case. 

Also  in  the  financial  arrangement  of  the 
State,  the  Government  Railways  are  now  set 
apart  as  a  special  account,  and  all  disburse- 
ments for  construction,  working,  improve- 
ment, etc.,  are  to  be  met  by  the  receipts  and 
profit  accruing  from  railway  traffic. 

Last  but  not  least,  another  feature  of  the 
railway  nationalization  is  the  efficiency  of 
transportation  due  to  the  unobstructed 
circulation  of  the  rolling-stock  on  all  the  lines 
according  to  traffic  conditions  and  the  relative 
reduction  of  spare  cars  and  wagons.  This 
increase  of  efficiency  was  primarily  estimated 
at   10  or  20  per  cent.     Thus,  goods- wagons 


except  those  of  special  types  have  been  made 
common  to  all  the  lines  in  the  Main  Island, 
and  since  the  opening  of  wagon-crossing  on 
the  Moji-Shimonoseki  channel,  Kyushu  has 
been  included  in  the  sphere  of  circulation  of 
goods-wagons.  The  haul  of  empty  wagons, 
which  had  been  of  ver>'  frequent  necessity 
prior  to  the  nationalization,  practically 
became  unnecessary,  and  as  this  naturally 
produces  a  surplus  of  transportation  capacity, 
the  circulation  of  rolling-stock  among  several 
lines  leaves  almost  nothing  to  be  desired.  At 
the  same  time,  car  repairs  can  now  be  effected 
in  consideration  of  the  quantity  of  traffic. 
As  no  statistics  are  available  before  the 
nationalization,  we  can  not  give  evidence  to 
this  fact  by  means  of  figures. 

NEW    DEPARTURES    SINCE    RAILWAY 
NATIONALIZATION 

Since  the  railway  nationalization  the 
Government  Railways  have  made  a  point  of 
adjusting  different  systems  and  institutions, 
as  detailed  above,  and  also  left  nothing 
unturned  to  introduce  necessary  new  arrange- 
ments for  the  working  of  railway  traffic. 
Some  of  these  new  departures  are  given  in  the 
following    paragraphs. 

The  railway  lines  in  Japan  proper  are  of 
narrow  gauge,  but  the  railway  management  is 
doing  its  best  to  effect  various  innovations  in 
passenger  and  other  servicss  in  the  matter  of 
comfort,  speed,  and  safety,  as  far  as  circum- 
stancss  permit.  The  issuing  of  season  and 
commutation  tickets  on  all  sections  of  the 
Government  Railways  and  also  the  electric- 
car  and  steam  motor-car  services  in  operation 
on  some  hea\'y  traffic  sections  have  proved 
very  convenient  for  interurban  and  suburban 
travellers,  enabled  busy  citizens  to  live  in 
healthy  suburban  surroundings,  and  contri- 
buted much  to  the  development  of  the  en- 
virons of  cities  and  towns.  Also,  the  speed 
of  trains  has  been  gradually  acc8lerated  to  the 
great  convenience  of  long-distance  passengers, 
and   their  mnning  systems  systematised,  as 


Ratio  of  the 

Fiscal  Year 

0per.\ting 

Managing 

L.\tter 

Beginning 

Expenditure 

Expenditure 

TO  the 
Former 

Ajiril 

Yen 

Yen 

1906 

33,809.927 

2.379,078 

.069 

1907 

37.989.259 

1,124,902 

.030 

1908 

41,096,073 

1,078,869 

.026 

1909 

40,824,988 

969,509 

.024 

1910 

41.868,250 

1,161,527 

.028 

1911 

44.251.827 

1,311,760 

.030 

1912 

48.395.7.53 

1 ,456,400 

.030 

1913 

52,172,161 

1,360,415 

.026 

1914 

55.360.979 

1,369,091 

.025 

1915 

53,802,030 

1,181,101 

.022 

PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


773 


"fusan  shimonoseki,"  communication  steamer,  at  shimonoseki  wharf 


referred  to  above.  Through  services  on 
various  sections  have  to  a  large  extent  done 
away  with  the  necessity  of  transfer  at  junctions, 
and  through  trains  now  run  between  Ueno 
(Tokyo)  and  Aomori  via  the  Joban  Line 
(along  the  Pacific  coast)  and  via  the  Ou  Line 
(along  the  northeastern  coast  on  the  Japan  Sea), 
and  through  train  services  on  the  trunk  line 
between  Tokyo  and  Shimonoseki  have  been 
increased  in  number,  inaugurating  the  daily 
train-de-luxe  chiefly  for  the  benefit  of  through 
travellers  to  Chosen,  Manchuria,  and  farther 
afield  to  China  and  Europe.  Various  equip- 
ments in  passenger-cars  have  been  improved 
and  train  staff  increased  in  number  and 
refined  in  quality.  In  comparison  with  1910, 
the  present  train  speed  has  cut  off  about  four 
hours  west  of  Tokyo  and  more  north  of  Tokyo. 
The  passenger  fares  were  made  cheaper  on  the 
trunk  line  sections,  as  per  accompanying  table : 


and  also  for  advancing  the  last  mentioned 
expenses,  which  were  formerly  in  force  locally. 
The  great  benefit  resultant  from  these 
arrangements  can  be  statistically  testified. 
In  addition  to  these  new  departures,  the 
Government  Railways  have  been  making 
strenuous  endeavours  to  make  both  passen- 
ger and  goods  traffic  as  smooth  as  possible. 
The  principal  sections  of  lines  have  been 
doubled  and  even  quadrupled  where  neces- 
sary, bridges  and  tracks  made  solid,  and  many 
stations  renewed.  Now  the  new  buildings 
of  such  metropolitan  termini  as  Tokyo, 
Shimbashi,  and  Manseibashi,  and  the  stations 
in  Yokohama,  Kyoto,  Moji,  etc.,  form 
attractive  features  of  these  cities.  Besides, 
the  utmost  efforts  have  been  made  to 
improve  all  passenger-cars,  goods- wagons, 
and  locomotives,  as  already  mentioned. 
Although    the    expenditure    since    1908    for 


Trunk  Line 

First  Class 

Second  Class 

Third  Class 

Yen 

Yen 

Yen 

Tokyo- Aomori 

1. 91 
5- 12 

1-34 
,V8I 

0.89 
•■50 

Tokyo-Shimonoseki 

Not  only  the  Main  Island  but  both  Kyushu 
and  Hokkaido  are  now  provided  with  ex- 
press and  through  trains  running  at  high 
speed,  and  equal  degree  of  excellence  of  service 
is  now  assured  in  these  comparatively  remote 
districts. 

Among  various  latest  arrangements  for 
goods  traffic,  the  most  important  are  the 
inauguration  of  collection  on  delivery  for 
wagon  goods  and  parcels,  and  the  extension 
of  the  systems  for  paying  at  destinations 
freight     charges     and     incidental     expenses 


improvements  on  the  former  lines  amounts 
roughly  to  more  than  Yen  140,000,000,  ideal 
equipments  are  impossible  to  suit  the  ever- 
increasing  quantity  of  passenger  and  goods 
traffic.  In  the  busiest  seasons,  the  lack  of 
sufficient  transportation  capacity  hinders  the 
free  circulation  of  wagons,  and  scarcity  of 
rolling-stock  inevitably  accompanies  the  accu- 
mulation of  goods  at  various  points.  This 
is  also  true  with  passenger  traffic,  and  there 
occur  cases  of  unavoidable  overcrowding  of 
passenger-cars.     In   order  to  be  fit  for  the 


natural  expansion  of  the  national  strength  and 
discharge  their  duty  as  the  common  carriers 
to  the  fullest  extent,  it  is  of  urgent  necessity 
for  the  Government  Railways  to  spend  more 
for  the  improvement  of  the  existing  lines  and 
to  bring  their  transportation  capacity  to 
perfection.  Althougli  the  European  War  has 
impeded  the  growth  of  railway  traffic  con- 
siderably, the  normal  ratio  of  increase  of 
quantity  of  traffic  before  the  present  war  was 
about  six  per  cent  for  passengers  or  about  ten 
per  cen  t  for  goods.  After  peace  has  been  estab- 
lished and  commercial  relations  again  become 
normal,  the  said  ratio  of  increase  in  traffic,  it 
is  trusted,  will  also  return  to  its  normal  tide 
and  not  fall  off  by  any  appreciable  quantity. 


FERRY    STEAMER    BETWEEN    MAINLAND    AND 
HOKKAIDO 


50 


774 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


OBSERVATION   CAR  —  DINING   CAR  —  FIRST   CLASS    SLEEPER 


In  such  circumstances,  the  necessity  of  larger 
expenditure  for  improvements  is  undoubtedly 
worth  the  most  serious  attention  of  the  general 
public  as  well  as  the  railway  authorities. 


Passenger   and  Goods  Traffic 


Miles 

Open 

TO  Traffic 

Fiscal 

Miles 

Open  at  the 

Year 

End 

OF  THE  Year 

1892 

1,830.2 

1897 

2,768.9 

1902 

3.844-0 

1905 

4,345-8 

1908 

4.542.9 

1911 

5.044-1 

1914 

5.689.5 

1915 

5.759-0 

1916 

5,860.0 

The  extension  o£  new  hnes  into  everj'  nook 
and  comer  of  the  Empire  has  been  steadily 
pushed  on.  As  already  pointed  out,  the 
increase  of  length  of  Unes  since  the  nationali- 
zation reached  1,388  miles  at  the  end  of  1915 
and  the  capital  invested  in  them  amounted 
roughl}^  to  Yen  150,000,000.  Consequently 
more  remote  parts  of  the  Empire  have  been 


Fiscal 
Year 

P.\ssengers 

Passenger- 
Miles 

Goods  in  Tons 

Ton-Miles 

1892 

25.935.490 

572,206,013 

2,673,848 

136,500,476 

1897 

76,089,173 

1,414,985,083 

8,360,029 

409,988,854 

1902 

95,672,218 

1.767,578,228 

15.300.351 

897.083,372 

1905 

97,701,960 

2.381,339.652 

20,278,673 

1.333.378.644 

1908 

123,227,543 

2,743,203,558 

23.524.559 

1,829,429,158 

1911 

151.077.779 

3,382,586,411 

29.337.054 

2,347,871,475 

1914 

166,092,421 

3.623,743.236 

35.272,875 

2,982,798,481 

1915 

172,290,045 

3.856,536,966 

35,800,664 

3,309,518,677 

Traffic   Receipts 


FlSC.\L 

Passengers 

Goods 

Miscellaneous 

Total 

Year 

Yen 

Yl-u 

Yen 

Yen 

1892 

6,167,277 

2.527,913 

204,54s 

8,899,738 

1897 

17,083,213 

8,148,188 

611,547 

25,842,948 

1902 

28,305,010 

19,570,027 

1,607,131 

49,482,168 

1905 

34,126,740 

28,293,400 

3,839,325 

66,259,465 

1908 

41,920,361 

34.898,935 

1.063,777 

77,883,073 

1911 

50,985,660 

45.636,565 

1.510,675 

98,132,900 

1914 

55,044,167 

52,451,363 

2,429,981 

109,925,511 

1915 

57,162,227 

57,985.710 

2,646,696 

117,794,633 

1916 

64.977,652 

69,783,796 

3,260,000 

138,021,448 

PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


775 


provided  with  railway  lines,  and  even  where 
travelling  was  formerly  done  only  on  foot  or 
by  jinrikisha  and  the  conveyance  of  goods 
only  on  horseback  or  by  men,  railway  facilities 
are  enjoyed  and  travelling  and  transport  have 
been  made  much  more  economical  in  expense 
and  time.  Of  course  the  extension  of  railway 
lines  is  still  unsatisfactory,  as  is  fully  known 
to  the  public,  and  future  efforts  should  be  in 
the  direction  of  perfecting  railway  systems 
and  making  them  as  far-reaching  as  possible. 
Improvements  and  new  departures  in 
either  passenger  and  goods  traffic  are  as  out- 
lined above,  but  such  matters  as  accelerating 
train-speed,  making  trains  and  tracks  better 
appointed,  simplifying  transactions,  etc., 
still  require  much  of  the  attention  of  the  rail- 
way authorities. 

Car    and   Train    Miles 


Certain   Averages   of   Traffic   Receipts 


Fiscal 

Car-Miles 

Train-Miles 

Year 

1892 

7,587,852 

1897 
1902 

17,635,987 
29-599,664 

451,406,349 

1905 

560,527,085 

33,818,809 

1908 

771,844,901 

43,422,967 

1911 

899,629,853 

49,605,446 

1914 

1,071,026,028 

58,420,612 

•915 

1,151,358,267 

60,303,844 

Traffic   Balances 


Fiscal 

Operating 

Expenditure 

Profit 

Year 

Yen 

Yen 

1892 

4,281,516 

4,618,222 

1897 

12,413,553 

13,429,395 

1902 

23,167,002 

26,315,166 

1905 

28,857,998 

37,401,467 

1908 

41,096,073 

36,787,000 

1911 

44,251,827 

53,881,073 

1914 

55,360,979 

54,564,532 

1915 

53,802,030 

63,992,603 

1916 

58,446,176 

79,575,272 

Not  only  for  railway  communications  in  the 
Empire,  further  facilities  are  offered  by  the 
operation  of  efficient  channel  steamer  services 
between  Fusan  and  Shimonoseki  for  Japan 
proper-Chosen  connections,  between  Aomori 
and  Hakodate  for  the  Main  Island-Hokkaido 
connections,  and  other  short  launch  services, 
in  order  to  carry  out  efficiently  through 
conveyance  of  passengers  and  goods  from  or 
to  the  continent  and  between  the  different 
islands  forming  Japan  proper.  As  the  Japa- 
nese Empire  is  comparatively  small  in  area  and 
her  development  owes  much  to  the  expansion 
of  the  sphere  of  her  activity  over  the  seas,  we 
can  not  be  satisfied  with  the  progress  of  the 


Passenger 

Goods 

Receipts 

Receipts 

Receipts  per 

Receipts  per 

per  Mile 

per 

Year 

Passenger-mile 

Ton-mile 

Open 

Train-mile 

Yen 

Yen 

Yen 

Yen 

1892 

.01078 

.01852 

5,004 

I-I73 

1897 

.01207 

.01987 

10,147 

1.465 

1902 

.01600 

.02182 

13.297 

1.672 

1905 

.01436 

. 02 1 2 1 

i5„s6o 

1-959 

1 908 

.01528 

.01908 

17,259 

1.726 

191 1 

.01507 

.01944 

19,824 

1.978 

i')i4 

.01519 

.01758 

19,682 

1. 916 

1915 

.01482 

.01752 

20,560 

'  -953 

Certain   Averages   of   Operating    E.xpenditure 


Fiscal 
Year 

Operating                                  _                                      Ditto 
„                                                  Ditto                            _ 
Expenditure                               _,                              per  Passenger- 
, .         _                           per  Train-mile 
per  Mile  Open                                                                  ton-mile 

1892 

2,407 

56126 

00604 

1897 

4,874 

70388 

00680 

1902 

6,226 

78268 

00869 

1905 

6,690 

85332 

00777 

1908 

9,107 

94640 

00899 

191 1 

8,939 

89208 

00772 

1914 

9,912 

94763 

00838 

1915 

9,391 

89218 

00751 

Certain  Averages  per  Day  per  Mile 


Fiscal 
Year 

Traffic  Receipts 

Operating 
Expenditure 

Profit 

Yen 

Yen 

Yen 

1 892 

1 897 
1902 

1905 
1908 
1911 
1914 
1915 

13.710 
27.800 
36-4,30 
42.082 
47.284 
54-163 
53-923 
56-175 

6-595 
13-353 
17.058 
18.329 
24-950 
24.424 
27.156 
25-658 

7-115 
14-447 
19-372 
23-753 
22-334 
29-739 
26.767 

30.517 

Other   Statistics 


Capital  (.Approximate) 

Fiscal 

Ratio  of  Expenditure 

April  i 

Ratio   of   Profit 

Year 

TO  Receipts 

to  Capit.\l 

Yen 

1892 

.481 

80,305,294 

-057 

1897 

.480 

136,725,350 

.098 

1902 

.468 

323,445,766 

.081 

1905 

■436 

397,637,340 

.094 

1908 

-528 

706,582,633 

.052 

1911 

•451 

819,198,477 

.066 

1914 

■504 

967,001,763 

.056 

1915 

■457 

1,000,469,583 

.064 

These  figures  include  the  actual  prices  of  the  nationalized  lines. 


776 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


internal  business  alone,  but  taking  advantage 
of  the  Empire's  position  in  the  centre  of  the 
Pacific  trade  and  travel,  efforts  have  been 
incessantly  made  to  perfect  international 
through  traffic  relations  for  the  extension  of 
her  national  activities.  With  this  in  view, 
through  traffic  arrangements  have  been  of  late 
put  into  force  one  after  another.  There  are, 
on  one  hand,  the  through  booking  arrange- 
ments for  passengers  and  their  luggage  to  and 
from  those  neighbouring  lands,  such  as 
Chosen,  North  "  and  South  Manchuria, 
Russian  Maritime  Province,  China,  and 
farther  afield  to  and  from  European  Russia 
and   West    Europe   over   the    trans-Siberian 


route,  while  on  the  other,  arrangements  exist 
for  the  issuing  of  interchange  tickets  between 
Japanese  and  Chinese  ports  of  call  with  the 
chief  trans-Pacific  and  Suez  steamer  lines, 
with  a  view  to  passengers  breaking  the 
monotony  of  a  sea  voyage  by  overland  jour- 
neys. The  through  traffic  of  goods  was 
opened  in  1914  with  North  Manchuria  and 
Russian  Maritime  Province,  and  through 
conveyance  of  silk  to  European  Russia  via 
Siberia.  Thus,  to-day  the  Imperial  Japanese 
Government  Railways  are  striving  to  carry 
out  passenger  and  goods  traffic  services  most 
effectually  not  only  within  but  beyond  the 
limits  of  the  Japanese  Empire.     With  regard 


to  these  oversea  through  traffic  arrangements, 
efforts  should  be  made  in  earnest  and  the 
international  position  of  the  Japanese  Empire 
elevated  more  and  more  for  turning  her 
geographical  advantages  to  development  of 
her  economical  relations. 

SOME    STATISTICS    SHOWING    THE    PROG- 
RESS   OF    THE    GOVERNMENT 
RAILWAYS 

Figures  before  the  railway  nationaliza- 
tion are  the  total  of  those  for  the  Govern- 
ment Railways  and  the  private  railways 
nationalized.      (See  tables  on  pages  774-775. 


KI\TAI-KYO    nRIDGE,    SUO    PROVINCE 


XLV.    Posts,  Telegraphs,  Telephones, 
Roads,  Rivers,  and  Bridges 

I.     Post  Offices:  Courier  System  of  Old  Japan— Advent  of  a  Modern  Postal  System- 
Development  OF  Postal  Business.     II.     Telegraphs  and  Telephones:  Early 
Development— Telegraph  and  Telephone  Rates  and  Revenue. 
III.     Roads,  Rivers,  and  Bridges 


UXDER  the  caption  of  Communi- 
cations are  included  such  public 
utilities  as  posts,  telegraphs,  tele- 
phones, roads,  bridges,  harbours,  and  ship- 
ping. Railways  and  other  public  works 
being  under  a  different  bureau,  are  treated 
under  a  separate  heading  in  this  volume. 
The  Department  of  Communications  was 
organised  in  1885  to  take  over  the  super- 
vision of  post  offices,  telegraphs,  lighthouses, 
and  shipping,  up  to  that  time  under  the 
Department  of  Agriculture  and  Commerce, 
and  the  Department  of  Engineering  since 
abolished.  In  1891  telephones  and  electrical 
industries  came  under  the  supervision  of 
this  department,  to  which  in  1892  was  added 
the  railway  business,  and  a  year  later  the 
general  supervision  of  land  and  sea  trans- 
portation. The  department  had  now  become 
so  expanded  as  to  have  grown  unwieldy,  and 
after  the  nationalization  of  private  railways 
a  Railway  Bureau  was  created  in  1909. 


1.     POST   OFFICES 

COURIER    SYSTEM    OF    OLD   JAPAN 

Japan  claims  to  have  had  a  postal  service 
of  rudimentary  character  from  the  year 
202  A.  D.,  when  the  Empress  Jingo  invaded 
Korea,  but  little  is  known  of  either  its  mode 
or  efficiency,  save  that  after  some  fouf 
hundred  years  it  was  improved  under  the 
influence  of  ideas  borrowed  from  the  relay 
system  of  China.  The  service  was  further 
reformed  by  the  military  government  of 
Yoritomo  at  Kamakura  in  the  twelfth 
century  when  couriers  took  the  place  of 
riders,  but  during  the  strife  of  the  Ashikaga 
period  all  means  of  communication  fell  into 
abeyance.  The  Tokugawa  shoguns  had 
their  own  system  of  couriers  which  was 
inaugurated  in  1696  to  convey  official 
communications  from  the  Central  Govern- 
ment to  the  various  district  officials,  the 
letters  and  documents  being  placed  in  boxes 


and  carried  from  station  to  station,  the 
stations  being  paid  in  rice.  The  various 
daimyo  and  their  district  officials  maintained 
a  messenger  service,  the  most  notable  of 
which  was  that  of  Kii  Province,  by  which 
communications  were  carried  to  post  stations 
fifteen  miles  apart,  though  the  service  was 
strictly  limited  to  official  use.  During  the 
last  two  centuries  of  the  Tokugawa  era, 
however,  the  merchants  of  Osaka,  Kj'oto, 
and  Yedo  had  a  regular  system  of  private 
letter  carriers,  and  for  sharing  in  this  con- 
venience the  pubUc  were  glad  to  pay  high 
rates.  This  system  continued  down  to 
the  opening  of  Japan  to  Western  intercourse 
in   1868. 

ADVENT  OF  A  MODERN  POSTAL  SYSTEM 
With  the  accomplishment  of  the  Restora- 
tion of  Imperial  Government  and  the  rapid 
modernisation  of  the  country,  the  people  of 
Japan  were  glad  to  have  the  old  relay  system 


778 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS    OF   JAPAN 


A   GLIMPSE    OF    THE    CANAL    SYSTEM    OF   JAPAN 


of  couriers,  with  all  its  abuses,  give  way  to  a 
new  system  modelled  after  that  of  Western 
nations.  In  December,  1868,  a  regular  postal 
service  was  inaugurated  between  Tok>'o  and 
Kyoto,  the  service  being  extended  to  Osaka 
and  Yokohama  the  next  year.  Stamps  were 
now  used  for  the  first  time  to  mark  the  pay- 
ment of  postage  on  letters.  The  new  postal 
service  made  remarkable  progress,  soon  open- 
ing up  connections  with  Nagasaki  in  the 
south  and  Niigata  in  the  west  as  well  as 
Hakodate  in  the  north,  W'hile  the  kinds  of 
matter  carried  in  the  mails  greatly  increased, 
charges  being  calculated  according  to  dis- 
tance. In  March,  1873,  new  regulations 
were  issued  by  which  private  individuals 
were  forbidden  to  engage  in  letter-carrying, 
and  uniform  rates  of  postage  were  fixed  for 
all  places  within  the  Empire.  In  June,  1877, 
Japan  joined  the  Universal  Postal  Union  and 
organised  a  system  of  domestic  and  foreign 
mail  service  that  has  since  continued  and 
shown  unusual  development  and  efficiency. 
In  1879  the  post  offices  maintained  by 
the  various  European  Powers  in  the 
Treaty  Ports  of  Japan  were  withdrawn, 
the  British  Government  taking  the  lead, 
after  which  time  Japan  enjoyed  complete 
postal  autonomy. 

According  to  the  existing  system  there  are 
three  grades  of  post  offices  in  Japan,  known 
as  first,  second,  and  third  class  post  offices. 
First  class  post  offices  are  in  the  larger  cities 
of  the  Empire,  like  Tokyo  and  Osaka,  and 
have  the  supervision  of  offices  subordinate 
in  character,  as  well  as  over  maritime  affairs 
in   their   respective   districts.     The   chief   of 


such  offices  are  at  Tokyo,  Osaka,  Kumamoto, 
Sendai,  and  Sapporo.  The  vast  majority 
of  the  national  post  offices  are  of  the  third 
grade,  and  are  conducted  on  a  contract 
system,  an  expedient  which  the  Government 
finds   highly   economical. 

DEVELOPMENT  OF  POST.\L  BUSINESS 
The  postal  service  of  Japan  has  not  only 
shown  remarkable  development  but  has 
branched  out  into  an  extraordinary  number 
of  activities  not  usually  undertaken  by  post 
offices  in  other  countries,  such  as  the  carry- 
ing of  every  sort  of  freight  with  strict  limits 
as  to  size  and  weight,  the  collection  of  taxes 
and  bills,  the  distribution  of  advertisements, 
and  the  paying  of  pensions  and  annuities 
on  behalf  of  the  National  Treasury.  There 
is  a  special  system  for  the  collection  and 
distribution  of  New  Year  messages  and 
parcels,  these  being  collected  some  weeks 
before  the  festive  season  opens  and  held  in 
readiness  for  delivery  at  the  proper  moment, 
so  as  to  save  a  crowding  of  the  mails  and 
consequent  late  deliveries.  Mails  are  de- 
livered twelve  times  daily  in  Tokyo,  ten  times 
in  Osaka  and  Kyoto,  the  average  for  first 
class  post  offices  being  eight  times  a  day,  for 


second  class  offices  six  times  daily,  and  for 
third  class  post  offices  three  times  a  day. 
There  are  special  delivery  services  at  reduced 
rates  for  various  forms  of  mail  matter.  The 
regular  letter  postage  inland  is  3  sen  for  half 
an  ounce,  9  sen  for  special  delivery,  and  7  sen 
extra  for  registration,  while  the  charge  for 
parcels  is  remarkably  small.  No  money  is 
allowed  to  be  sent  through  the  mails,  and 
consequently  there  is  a  tremendous  business 
in  postal  money  orders,  which  have,  never- 
theless, to  be  registered,  and  so  add  7  sen 
extra  commission  to  the  postal  revenue. 
The  Japanese  post  office  does  an  important 
and  growing  business  in  savings  deposits, 
the  present  rate  being  4 . 8  per  cent  per 
annum. 

The  Japanese  postal  official  is  usually  a 
courteous  and  faithful  ser\'ant  of  the  public, 
though  there  are  sometimes  eccentricities  of 
service  and  interpretations  of  regulations  that 
astonish  the  foreigner;  and  as  for  postmen, 
considering  the  small  rate  of  wages  they 
receive,  they  are  remarkably  efficient  and 
honest,  though  not  infrequently  arrested  for 
pilfering  or  tampering  with  the  mails.  One 
sees  reports  in  the  press  of  postmen  accused 
of  throwing  away  mail  matter  when  distance 
proved  inconvenient  for  delivery,  and  of 
removing  stamps  from  letters,  a  habit  en- 
couraged by  the  custom  of  receiving  postage 
stamps  for  deposit  in  the  postal  savings 
banks.  Consequently  it  is  a  conviction  with 
most  citizens  that  letters  bearing  stamps  of 
tempting  denominations  had  better  be 
carried  to  the  nearest  post  office  rather 
than  dropped  in  the  street  box.  The  post 
office  of  Japan  maintains  a  rural  delivery 
that  is  probably  unsurpassed  in  any  other 
country,  extending  even  to  mountain 
regions  where  postmen  have  to  face  the 
risk  of  being  waylaid  by  robbers  and 
killed  for  the  sake  of  the  money  orders 
and  other  commercial  papers  that  may  be 
negotiable. 

The  growth  of  Japan's  postal  business 
may  be  seen  from  the  fact  that  in  1905  there 
were  only  4,228  post  offices,  which  increased 
to  6,932  in  1910,  while  at  present  the  number 
is  7,266,  or  one  for  about  every  7,410  of  the 
population.  The  following  table  will  indi- 
cate the  rate  of  development  in  Japan's 
postal  business  during  the  last  fifteen  years 
at  intervals  of  five   years: 


Posts 


Year 

Offices 

Miles  of 
Route 

Letters,  etc. 

Parcels 

FORER.N 

1905 
1910 

1915 

6,237 
7,086 
7,266 

61,135 
59,i3« 
54,313 

1,256,691,581 
1,526,121,284 
1,816,144,272 

13,795,163 
22,445,448 
25,473,020 

27,700,108 
50,813,704 
17,245,000 

Ssii 


'sjsenft 


\ 


'^•^^J'-sbsn^ 

''^fe  an  import,,, 
'™S  4.8  per  cent  p 

f^*lis«alvi 

ttsmwofthcpilfc 

»«<»Wtc(tntnatiescf 

'Ksteofr^tioastlial 

?«f;i«iiasiorpostiiiei, 

ail?  siHtke  mails.  Ok  I 


ai  lor  Mvei}',  and  oi  | 
'  fem  leltets,  a  haft 
castcin  of  rsceiwg  posljje  I 

"  ■  postal  savi 
— -.  -  _  i  comicfa « 
lldttrsbeario;  stamps  d  I 

M  to  k\ 

_■<::  At  talli 

the  STOl  bcJ.  The  [« 

■  -  i  nrnlfc 

,.i  inanyothal 
iiog  eva  to  fflomtaii  I 
(aaiai  hare  to  face  the  i 
myliid  by  robbers  aaJ 
aie  of  the  mooey  orii 
Hoal  papes  that  inav  k  I 


■ainijOjthert 


fit  ofios, 


iotak«!eiwMi»«'* 
k.  table  will  in*  f 


ioiingthela 


KSi 


FORSIB 


j;.? 


(00,io8 


i;,?}).""" 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


779 


II.     TELEGRAPHS  AND  TELEPHONES 

EARLY   DEVELOPMENT 

The  electric  telegraph  instrument  was 
first  brought  to  Japan  by  Commodore 
Perry  as  an  example  of  the  progress  of  inven- 
tion in  the  United  States,  and  the  first 
telegraphic  apparatus  was  set  up  in  the 
palace  of  the  Prince  of  Satsuma  in  1858, 
as  a  curiosity  and  not  for  use.  The  first 
telegraph  service  was  opened  in  Tokyo  in 
1872,  the  engineer  being  an  Englishman, 
and  to  him  and  others  of  his  race  the 
Japanese  system  owes  its  initial  success. 
So  rapid  was  the  development  that  Japan 
was  ready  to   join    the    International    Tclc- 


cables  were  laid  between  Japan  and  Formosa, 
and  opened  for  service  in  1910.  According 
to  Japan's  agreement  with  the  Great  North- 
ern Telegraph  Company  of  Denmark  that 
company  has  the  exclusive  right  of  landing 
on  Japanese  territory  in  connection  with 
international  cable  service,  and  under  these 
terms  the  Danish  company  laid  cables  be- 
tween Nagasaki  and  Shanghai,  Vladivostock 
and  Fusan:  but  the  cable  which  Japan  laid 
to  the  continent  during  the  war  with  Russia 
had  rendered  her  independent  of  foreign 
service,  and,  as  has  been  shown,  led  to  her 
taking  over  the  rights  of  the  Danish  company 
in  Korea.  The  charter  of  the  company, 
which  expired  in   191 2,  was  renewed  for  the 


PUNTING    A    MOTOR   CAR   ACROSS    A    STREAM 


Postal   Money 

Orders 

Domestic 

Foreign 

Year 

Remitted 

Paid 

Remitted 

Paid 

NcMIiER 

Value  (Yen) 

Number 

Value  (Yen) 

Number 

Value  (Yen) 

Number 

Value  (Yen) 

■905 
1910 

1915 

13.977.655 
15.551.866 
19,366,000 

155.579.340 
204,980,447 
252,862,000 

14.864,731 
16,254,843 
19.378,000 

173.504.789 
214,260,642 
252,932,000 

11,891 
23.076 
22,468 

382,076 
709,660 
933.462 

72,461 
181,362 
148,512 

6,248,159 
13,284,458 
10,361,002 

PosT.^L   Savings   Deposits 


Year 

Depositors 

Amount 
(Yen) 

Per  Capita 
(Yen) 

Depositors 
per  too  of 
Population 

1905 
1910 
1915 

4,929,189 
10,052,641 
12,928,005 

41,801,386 
127,112,097 
202,782,687 

8.48 
12.64 
15-68 

10.39 
19-65 
23.10 

graph  Convention  seven  years  later,  and 
in  1883  she  became  a  member  of  the 
International  Union  for  the  Protection  of 
Submarine  Cables.  At  the  end  of  1915 
there  were  in  Japan  108,470  miles  of  over- 
head wire,  2,223  miles  of  underground,  and 
14,688  miles  of  submarine  cable.  Morse 
instruments  are  everywhere  in  use  through- 
out Japanese  circuits.  The  accompanying 
table  shows  the  development  of  Japanese 
telegraphs   during   the  past  fifteen   years. 

As  to  Cables  it  may  be  said  that  the  service 
has  shown  remarkable  development  in  recent 
years.  A  cable  was  laid  to  Korea  in  1882, 
the  points  of  connection  being  Nagasaki 
and  Fusan  by  way  of  the  island  of  Tsushima, 
and  the  service  was  under  the  auspices  of 
the  Great  Northern  Telegraph  Company  to 
which  was  granted  a  charter  for  tliirty  years. 
After  the  annexation  of  Korea  it  was  deemed 
inexpedient  to  have  the  service  in  foreign 
hands  and  the  rights  were  amicably  trans- 
ferred to  Japan  for  a  consideration  of  Yen 
160,000,  the  portion  between  Nagasaki  and 
Hizen  having  been  transferred  in  1891  for 
Yen  85,000.     At   the   same   time   additional 


service  to  Shanghai,  and  further  negotiations 
were  opened  with  the  Great  Eastern  Tele- 
graph Company,  as  well  as  the  Danish 
company  and  China  and  Russia,  for  an 
improved  service  to  Siberia.  Work  on  this 
is  soon  to  proceed. 


In  Wireless  Telegraphy,  too,  Japan  has 
shown  rapid  developraeat.  At  first  the 
service  was  confined  to  the  Army  and 
Navy,  but  in  1906  Japan  despatched  her 
first  delegates  to  the  International  Wire- 
less Conference  at  Berlin  and  in  1908 
she  became  a  member  of  the  Interna- 
tional Wireless  Union,  which  act  was 
ratified  and  promulgated  by  Imperial  Ordi- 
nance in  June  of  the  same  year.  By 
March,  19 16,  Japan  had  sixty-four  Govern- 
ment and  nine  private  wireless  installations 
aboard  steamers,  with  nine  stations  on  shore. 
The  shore  stations  have  the  latest  equip- 
ment.     (See  table  at  foot  of  page.) 


Telegraphs 


Year 

Offices 

Lines 

Wires 

Messages 

Wireless 

1905 
1910 

1915 

2,600 
3.951 
4.936 

19,753  miles 
23,433  miles 
26,255  miles 

92,860  miles 
103,885  miles 
125,651  miles 

23,772,950 
28,185,955 
33,750,481 

7.817 
36.057 

St.\tion 

Metre 
Vibration 

Power  (Kilowatts) 

Transmission  Distance 

Ochiishi 

300:600:1800 

7  Quenched  spark 

Day  600;  Night  1,800  miles 

Choshi 

300:600:1800 

7  Quenched  spark 

Day  600;  Night  1,800  miles 

Shiozaki 

300:600:1800 

3  Quenched  spark 

Day  400;  Night  1,100  miles 

Tsunoshima 

300:600:1800 

4  (Ordinary  spark 

Day  400;  Night  1,000  miles 

Osezaki 

300:600:1800 

7  Quenched  spark 

Day  600;  Night  1,800  miles 

Shimotsui 

300 : 600 : 1 800 

4  Quenched  spark 

Day  300;  Night  1,000  miles 

Rasa 

300:600:1800 

3  Quenched  spark 

Day  450;  Night  1,300  miles 

Cape  Fuki 

300:600:  .  .  . 

4  Ordinary  spark 

Day  450;  Night  1,200  miles 

Dairen 

300:600:  .  .  . 

7  Ordinary  spark 

Day  500;  Night  1,300  miles 

78o 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


CONSTRUCTING   A    RIVER    EMBANKMENT 


The  Choshi  and  Osezaki  stations  are  under 
reconstruction,  after  which  they  will  be 
capable  of  transmission  to  a  distance  of 
1,500  nautical  miles  by  day  and  3,000 
by  night.  The  Funabashi  station,  which 
belongs  to  the  Imperial  Navy,  is  also 
open  for  public  service,  and  can  com- 
municate with  Hawaii  and  the  South  Sea 
Islands,  being  the  most  powerful  station  in 
Japan. 

The  following  table  affords  an  interest- 
ing and  instructive  comparison  between  the 


ordinary  and  the  wireless   service    in  Japan 
during    three    recent   years: 


TELEGRAPH  AND  TELEPHONE  RATES 
AND  REVENUE 

Domestic  telegrams  are  sent  in  the  kana 
s\'Uabary,  the  rate  being  20  sen  for  the  first 
15  syllables  and  5  sen  for  every  5  syllables 
or  less  over  that  number;  but  for  telegrams 
within  the  same  city  or  postal  area  the  rate 
is  reduced  to  10  sen  and  3  sen  respectively 
for  the  same  number  of  syllables,  the  address 
in  cither  case  being  free,  except  that  of  the 
sender,  and  a  reply  may  be  prepaid  accord- 
ingly. Telegraph  messages  may  also  be  sent 
in  Roman  letters  at  the  rate  of  25  sen  for 
the  first  5  words  or  less,  and  5  sen  for  each 
additional  word;  but  for  telegrams  within 
the  city  the  rate  becomes  15  sen  for  the  first 
5  words  and  3  sen  for  each  word  added,  the 
word  limit  being  fixed  at  15  letters,  excess 
of  this  being  reckoned  as  one  word  up  to 
another  15  letters  unless  more  than  one 
word  is  included.  In  groups  of  Arabic  figures 
5  or  less  count  as  one  word,  and  in  codes  the 
maximum  for  words  is  10  letters.  Urgent 
telegrams,  which  take  precedence  to  ordinary 
messages,  may  be  sent  at  three  times  the 
ordinary  rate.  Express  telegrams  may  be 
sent  to  be  forwarded  from  the  last  post 
office  by  post  or  special  courier  at  the  rate 


Ordinary  Telegrams 

Wireless 

Year 

Domestic 

Foreign 

Domestic 

Foreign 

Despatched 

Received 

Desp.atched 

Received 

1914 

1915 
1916 

33,025,000 
32,876,000 
32,898,000 

312,000 
342,000 
320,000 

351,000 
393,000 
368,000 

30,089 

31,233 
31,676 

4,058 
4,307 
4,381 

665 
767 
678 

HODZU    RAPIDS,    NEAR    KVOTO 


of  7  sen  for  postage  and  20  sen  for  a  messenger 
within  a  radius  of  8  miles,  and  25  sen  for 
each  additional  2>^  miles.  The  rate  for 
telegrams  to  Formosa  or  any  of  the  Japanese 
colonies  in  the  native  syllabary  is  30  sen  for 
the  first  15  syllables  and  5  sen  for  each 
additional  syllable  or  less,  while  messages  in 
Roman  letters  are  40  sen  for  the  first  5  words 
and  5  sen  for  each  additional  word. 

The  first  Telephone  service  was  opened  in 
Japan  in  and  between  Tokyo  and  Yokohama 
in  1890,  and  a  long-distance  service  was 
inaugurated  seven  years  later,  extending  to 
Osaka,  350  miles  away.  At  first  the  develop- 
ment was  slow,  as  the  Japanese  did  not 
appear  to  appreciate  the  convenience  of  such 
means  of  communication,  and  special  pains 
had  to  be  taken  by  the  authorities  to  invite 
the  interest  of  subscribers.  It  was  not  long, 
however,  before  the  demand  for  telephones 
was  much  greater  than  the  Government 
could  supply,  and  even  still  the  number  of 
applications  for  installations  is  many  thou- 
sands more  than  the  officials  can  overtake 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


781 


At  the  end  of  March,  1915,  the  demand  in 
excess  of  supply  was  140,000,  and  several 
thousand  more  applicants  have  been  added 
since.  As  each  applicant  has  to  deposit  15 
yen  with  his  application  the  Government  is 
enabled  to  have  the  use  of  over  2,000,000 
yen  a  year  without  interest,  while  telephone 
brokers  do  a  large  and  questionable  business 
by  securing  premiums  from  applicants  willing 
to  pay  from  400  to  800  yen  for  transfer  of 
privilege  for  prior  installation.  The  Govern- 
ment in  1909  started  the  custom  of  putting 
in  telephones  first  for  those  willing  to  pay 
premiums  of  from  150  to  185  \en.  Indeed, 
this  aspect  of  the  telephone  business  in  Japan 
amounts  to  a  public  scandal,  made  possible 
only  because  the  business  is  a  Government 
monopoly,  as  any  private  company  would 
fill  the  applications  in  short  order.  The 
annual  fee  for  telephone  connection  is  36 
yen  as  a  minimum,  the  maximum  charge 
being  66  yen  according  to  place.  Automatic 
stations  are  situated  at  convenient  places 
along  the  streets  in  cities,  where  messages 
may  be  sent  by  dropping  5  sen  in  the 
slot.  The  exchanges  are  served  by  girls, 
as  abroad,  and  the  wages  are  scarcely 
sufficient  for  support.  But  the  telephone 
in  Japan,  like  the  post  office,  is  a 
money-making  institution  for  the  Govern- 
ment, and  every  interest  has  to  be  sub- 
servient to  that  end.  While  profits  from 
such  public  utilities  in  other  countries  where 
they  are  monopolies  arc  usually  small, 
in   Japan   they   are   large,   and   in    the   post 


A    BUSY    SCENE    ON    A    RIVER 


office  department  the  profit  is  especially 
large.  The  first  table  below  will  illustrate 
the  growth  of  Japan's  telephone  activity 
during  fifteen  years  at  intervals  of  five 
years. 

The  total  of  Japan's  revenue  and  expenses 
from  posts,  telegraphs,  and  telephones  for 
fifteen  years  at  intervals  of  five  years  may 
be  seen  from  the  following  tables: 


III.  ROADS,  RIVERS,  AND  BRIDGES 
In  old  Japan  the  building  of  roads  and 
bridges  was  not  encouraged,  particularly  in 
the  vicinity  of  boundaries  between  daimyo 
dominions,  where  access  was  blocked  or 
rendered  uninviting  by  barriers  for  the  strict 
examination  of  travellers.  With  the  open- 
ing of  the  country  to  modern  ways  the  new 
Government    undertook    the    promotion    of 


Telephones 


Year 

Offices 

Automatic 

Twines 

Wires 

Exchanges 

Appar.\tiis 

Subscribers 

Messages 

1905 
1910 

1915 

197 
1,141 
2,404 

143 
382 
679 

3,2'\S 

5.-'^>^7 
7.44.T 

1 37.55^ 
269,238 

539,992 

374 
1,454 
3.135 

37.160 
141.895 
234.988 

35.52^ 
102,626 
211,540 

150,171,687 

423.339,467 
1,045,042,902 

Receipts 


Year 

Ordinary 

Mail 

Parcels 

Money 
Orders 

Savings 

Deposits 

Telegrams 

Telephones 

Tot.\l 

Yen 

Yen 

Yen 

Yen 

Yen 

Yen 

Yen 

1905 
1910 

1915 

16,285,000 
20,417,000 
23,747,000 

2,430,000 
3,369,000 
3,893,000 

1,216,000 
1,439,000 
1,676,000 

31,000 
220,000 
551,000 

8,873,000 

8,914,000 

10,281,000 

3,  II  1,000 

9,117,000 

14,759,000 

3 1 ,859,000 
43,479,000 
54,908,000 

Expenses 


Year 

Ordinary 

Mail 

Parcels 

Money 
(Droers 

Sa\ings 
Deposits 

Telegrams 

Telephones 

Total 

Yen 

Yen 

Yen 

Yen 

Yen 

Yen 

Yen 

1905 
1910 

1915 

7,767,000 

9,793,000 

10,486,000 

2,090,000 
2,692,000 
2,916,000 

673,000 
700,000 
741,000 

849,000 
1,303,000 
1,492,000 

5,985,000 
6,279,000 
7,170,000 

1,179,000 
2,136,000 
3,585,000 

18,545,000 
22,605,000 
26,392,000 

782 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


A  JAPANESE  BRIDGE  OF  THE  OLD  STYLE,  AT  SHIMOGAMO 


road  construction  as  far  as  possible,  though 
as  yet  this  side  of  Japan's  development  has 
not  at  all  kept  pace  with  her  progress  in 
other  directions,  and  the  roads  of  the  nation 
are  in  a  poor  way  compared  with  other 
countries,  most  of  them  being  not  only  ill- 
made  but  too  narrow  for  modern  vehicles. 
The  roads  of  Japan  are  divided  into  three 
classes:  national,  provincial,  and  village 
roads.  The  national  roads  are  those  leading 
from  the  capital  to  the  open  ports,  the  Grand 
Shrine  at  Ise,  the  headquarters  of  the  army 
divisions,  naval  stations,  and  prefectural 
offices,  including  connecting  roads.  The 
width  of  national  roads  must  be  eighteen  feet, 
or  forty-two  feet  between  banks  or  fences. 
Provincial  roads  are  those  leading  from  the 
prefectural  offices  to  the  district  offices,  or 
these  connecting  towns  and  busy  ports. 
Such   highways   must   be   from    twenty-four 


to  thirty  feet  wide.  The  village  roads  con- 
nect the  minor  sections  of  districts  or  lead 
to  local  shrines  or  temples.  There  is  no 
regulation  as  to  width,  and  many  of  these 
roads  are  mere  paths.  Expenses  for  the 
upkeep  of  national  and  provincial  roads  have 
to  be  borne  by  the  Prefectural  Treasury, 
while  the  various  towns  and  villages  arc 
responsible  for  the  repair  of  the  roads  and 
paths  concerning  them.  The  total  mileage 
of  national  roads  is  6,436.8;  provincial  roads, 
22,936.63,  and  village  roads  have  a  mileage 
of  267,699.3.  Owing  to  the  enormous  num- 
ber of  streams  in  Japan  bridges  and  culverts 
exceed  in  number  those  of  most  other  coun- 
tries. On  the  above  mileage  of  roads  there 
are  no  less  than  312,761  bridges,  of  which 
267  are  of  iron,  66,639  of  stone,  132,265  of 
wood,  and  the  rest  are  of  earth  or  are  pontoon 
bridges.     The    average    annual    expenditure 


on  roads  in  Japan  is  about  15,000,000  yen, 
and  some  4,000,000  yen  is  spent  on  bridges, 
the  total,  including  sundry  engineering 
expenses,  coming  to  over  22,000,000  yen 
annually.  The  aggregate  of  expense  for 
engineering  operations  in  connection  with 
roads,  bridges,  rivers,  and  riparian  work  is 
over  43,000,000  yen  a  year. 

The  rivers  of  Japan  require  a  great  deal 
of  attention  and  expense,  owing  to  frequency 
of  floods.  During  the  last  1,300  years  there 
have  been  some  426  destructive  inundations, 
or  one  every  three  years,  with  consequent 
entailment  of  enormous  outlay  on  dredging 
of  waterways  and  repairing  of  embankments. 
One  of  the  most  destructive  of  these  floods 
occurred  in  1896,  causing  damage  to  the 
extent  of  138,000,000  yen,  though  the  flood 
of  1910  was  scarcely  less  destructive.  Losses 
of  human  life  from  floods  during  the  past 
thirty-five  years  have  totalled  23,677  persons. 
By  the  River  Control  Law  of  1896  the  Gov- 
ernment attempted  to  make  a  determined 
effort  to  provide  still  greater  safeguards 
against  destructive  floods  by  a  system  of 
hydraulic  engineering,  each  local  government 
being  responsible  for  the  streams  under  its 
jurisdiction,  the  State  to  assist  in  cases 
manifestly  too  expensive  for  local  finance. 
Since  then  25  rivers  and  36  tributaries  have 
received  attention  at  an  average  annual 
outlay  of  about  3,000,000  yen  by  the  Govern- 
ment and  some  10,000,000  by  prefectures, 
the  total  last  reported  being  12,840,568  yen 
for  the  year.  To  avoid  further  devastation 
from  floods  the  authorities  are  pushing 
riparian  schemes  to  completion  with  great 
expedition.  At  present  65  rivers  are  in- 
cluded in  the  Government's  plans,  of 
which  20  are  to  be  finished  in  18  years' 
time  at  a  cost  of  180,000,000  yen,  for 
which  the  sum  of  10,000,000  yen  is  to  be 
set  apart  annually,  with  a  further  equal 
amount  to  be  expended  for  the  prevention 
of   landslides. 


THE    ADMINISTRATION    OFFICES    OF    THE    IMPERIAL    GOVERNMENT    MONOPOLIES    BUREAU,    TOKYO 

XLVI.    Government  Monopolies 

The  Tobacco  Monopoly— The  Salt  Monopoly  — The  Camphor  Monopoly— The  Opium 

Monopoly— Commercial  Notices 


THOUGH  the  Imperial  Government 
of  Japan  engages  in  numerous 
undertakings,  such  as  conducting 
a  printing  bureau,  military  and  naval  arsen- 
als, steel  works,  dockyards,  woollen  mills, 
and  State  railways,  to  say  nothing  of  tele- 
graphs and  telephones,  only  tobacco,  salt, 
camphor,  and  opium  are  called  Government 
monopolies.  Of  course,  telegraphs  and  tele- 
phones must  be  regarded  as  Government 
monopolies  in  the  most  absolute  sense,  since 
no  private  lines  are  suffered  to  exist,  much  to 
the  inefficiency  of  the  service  and  the  con- 
stant inconvenience  and  complaint  of  the 
public.  The  same  may  be  said  of  the  State 
railways,  as  private  lines  can  not  be  con- 
structed without  Government  permission, 
which  is  never  given  except  for  light  railways 
and  then  only  when  there  is  no  possibility 
of  competition  with  Government  lines. 
Many  applications  for  the  building  of  rail- 
ways are  rejected  annually,  and  the  respec- 
tive districts  thus  deprived  of  railway  service, 
because  the  utility  is  a  national  monopoly. 
Recently  the  Government  refused  permission 


to  a  private  company  to  construct  an  electric 
railway  between  Tokyo  and  Osaka,  which 
would  tap  much  new  territory,  simply  for 
the  reason  that  the  contemplated  line  would 
afford  more  rapid  transit  than  the  State  lines 
to  the  south,  and  thus  result  possibly  in  some 
loss  of  revenue  to  the  Government.  In  spite 
of  the  enormous  sums  annually  expended  on 
railway  extension  and  improvement,  the 
public  is  loud  in  complaint  against  the  in- 
adequacy and  inefficiency  of  the  service. 
Freight  constantly  lies  piled  up  to  congestion 
at  way  stations,  and  passengers  have  to 
stand  during  a  whole  journey  for  want  of 
proper    accommodation. 

In  respect  to  industrial  monopolies  such 
as  weaving  and  steel  manufacture,  the 
Government  pursues  quite  a  different  policy, 
encouraging  every  possible  competition.  It 
is  clear  that  the  authorities  entertain  a 
double  purpose  in  their  adoption  of  monop- 
olies and  State  undertakings.  Primarily  the 
motive  was  for  administrative  expediency 
and  the  improvement  of  nascent  industries 
by   providing   models,    a   secondary    motive 


being  to  increase  national  revenue.  In  most 
cases,  however,  the  motives  have  been  taking 
a  reversed  order,  and  considerations  of  in- 
creased revenue  have  predominated.  The 
list  of  Government  enterprises  was  com- 
paratively unimportant  up  to  the  year  1 891 
when  there  was  a  remarkable  and  sudden 
increase,  and  the  policy  was  further  empha- 
sised after  the  war  with  China  in  1895, 
actuated  by  a  desire  for  mcreased  revenue. 
But  the  establishment  of  the  Government 
steel  works  at  Wakamatsu  in  1897  was  not 
so  much  a  profit-making  venture  as  to  inaug- 
urate the  home  manufacture  of  ship-con- 
struction material  and  render  the  nation 
independent  in  time  of  emergency.  The 
steel  works,  however,  which  was  started  at 
an  outlay  of  37,000,000  yen,  to  which  12,- 
000,000  yen  more  was  added  in  1911,  have 
been  running  at  a  loss,  the  total  of  which 
already  amounts  to  1,500,000  yen.  The 
tobacco  monopoly,  which  came  into  force 
in  January,  1898,  was  obviously  for  reasons 
of  revenue.  The  camphor  monopoly  was 
adopted   in    the    same    year,    ostensibly    to 


784 


PRESENT-DAY    IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


T.  KANOH,   DIRECTOR  GENERAL    OF    THE    IMPE- 
RIAL JAPANESE   GOVERNMENT   MONOPOLIES 

protect  the  industry  in  Formosa,  but  doubtless 
in  reality  for  financial  reasons  as  well.  After 
the  close  of  the  war  with  Russia  the  tobacco 
monopoly  was  extended  and  made  complete 
over  the  cultivation  of  the  plant.  In  July, 
1904,  the  manufacture  of  cigars  and  cigarettes 
was  included,  and  in  April,  1905,  cut  tobacco 
was  made  a  Government  undertaking. 
Salt  became  a  Government  monopoly  in 
June,  1905,  in  spite  of  the  protests  of  the 
public,  which  have  ever  since  continued. 
The  monopoly  has  added  much  to  the 
Imperial  Treasury,  even  if  the  people  have 
had  to  pay  more  for  one  of  the  prime  neces- 
sities of  life.  Salt  monopoly  is  known  in 
Japan  as  one  of  the  three  bad  taxes,  the  other 
two  being  the  taxes  on  transit  and  textiles. 
The  three  monopolies  of  salt,  tobacco,  and 
camphor  are  directly  under  the  Department 
of  Finance,  and  are  managed  by  the  Govern- 
ment Monopoly  Bureau,  while  opium  is 
confined  to  Formosa  and  is  under  the  juris- 
diction of  the  colonial  administration  there. 
But  salt  and  tobacco,  as  well  as  camphor, 
are  carried  on  as  monopolies  in  Formosa  as 
well  as  in  Japan,  and  salt,  ginseng,  and  to- 
bacco in  Korea  as  well.  As  the  monopoly 
statistics  for  the  three  different  fields  of 
operation  are  kept  separately  by  the  Govern- 
ment, and  only  those  for  Japan  proper  are 
in  any  degree  adequate  as  to  details,  it  is 
difficult  to  cover  this  side  of  the  subject  in  a 
satisfactory  manner.  It  may  be  mentioned 
further  that  after  Japan  concluded  peace 
with  Russia  without  indemnity  in  1906,  a 
considerable  increase  of  revenue  was  impera- 
tive, to  obviate  which  the  seventeen  private 
railway    Unes   of    the    Empire,    representing 


some  2,823  miles,  were  nationalised  at  a  cost 
of  484,639,584  yen  and  the  railway  business 
made  a  separate  financial  venture,  now 
bringing  in  a  profit  of  some  60,000,000  yen 
a  year.  Thus  from  State  undertakings  and 
monopolies  the  Government  has  greatly 
increased  its  annual  revenue,  though  the 
general  opinion  in  Japan  is  that  the  national 
income  has  been  enhanced  at  the  expense 
of  efficiency  in  public  service.  The  country 
pays  more  for  an  inferior  service  than  it  did 
under  private  auspices  for  a  superior  one, 
especially  in  regard  to  public  utility  indus- 
tries. The  following  figures  represent  a 
comparative  table  of  profits  for  the  three 
Government  monopolies  in  Japan  [proper 
for  the  last  ten  years: 


a  ban,  which  continued  from  1609  to  161 5, 
was  placed  on  the  importation  and  cultivation 
of  tobacco,  when  the  habit  of  its  use  was 
found  to  have  become  so  ingrained  in  the 
])eople  that  they  could  not  abandon  it,  the 
l)an  being  more  observed  in  the  breach  than 
the  observance;  and  finally  the  prohibition 
was  removed.  Indeed,  Japan  still  looks 
upon  the  tobacco  habit  as  being  as  inveterate 
as  the  social  evil,  and  regulates  its  quality 
and  sale  much  in  the  same  way. 

The  first  devotees  of  the  weed  in  Japan 
smoked  a  cigar  introduced  by  the  Protuguese, 
but  it  was  not  long  before  the  pipe  was 
adopted  and  preferred.  The  first  vendors  of 
tobacco  did  not  sell  it  cut  and  ready  for  use, 
nor  yet  in  figs,  but  in  the  dry  leaf,  the  smoker 


Profits  on    Monopolies 


Profits  on 

Profits  from 

Profits  from 

Tobacco 

S.ALT 

Camphor 

Total 

Year 

Monopoly 

Monopoly 

Monopoly 

Yen 

Yen 

Yen 

Yen 

1907 

35,607,902 

I3.^97.«46 

278,225 

49.183.973 

1908 

49,304,569 

11,892,826 

221,714 

61,419,149 

1909 

47,267,571 

11,134,120 

47,691 

58,449,382 

1910 

50,936,126 

1 1,060,131 

93,.SI7 

62,089,574 

1911 

51,315,884 

11,840,312 

1 79,903 

63,326,099 

UJ12 

55,630,888 

10,254,805 

129,825 

66,015,518 

H)I3 

58,649,647 

10,570,894 

76,882 

69,597.423 

I9I4 

50,021,995 

4,796,475 

230,775* 

54,697,115 

I9I3 

60,167,986 

10,773,575 

72„S08 

70,913,869 

I9I6 

58,802,746 

S,95i,,i36 

49,248 

67,803,330 

*  Loss 

As  to  monopolies  in  the  colonies,  Korea 
makes  about  2,500,000  yen  a  year  on  tobacco, 
500,000  on  salt,  and  1,000,000  on  ginseng; 
while  in  Formosa  profits  on  the  salt  monopoly 
amount  to  about  2,000,000  yen  a  year,  on 
tobacco  about  4,000,000  yen,  and  on  opium 
some  6,000,000  yen,  with  about  6,000,000 
more  for  camphor. 

THE  TOBACCO  MONOPOLY 
The  tobacco  plant  was  first  brought  to 
Japan  by  the  Spanish  from  Manila  in  the 
middle  of  the  sixteenth  century,  not  very 
long  after  it  had  been  introduced  into  Europe. 
The  Japanese  in  Nagasaki,  where  the  weed 
first  appeared,  took  to  the  smoking  habit 
with  zest,  and  some  years  later  (about  1592) 
steps  were  taken  to  introduce  the  cultivation 
of  the  plant.  In  the  time  of  the  early 
Tokugawa  shoguns,  however,  the  smoking 
habit  came  to  be  recognised  as  an  evil 
threatening  the  health  of  the  nation,  and  the 
authorities  in  Japan,  like  the  worthy  King 
James  of  England,  expressed  the  opinion 
that  turning  the  human  mouth  into  a  smoke 
funnel  was  a  useless  as  well  as  a  filthy  habit, 
unbecoming  a  civihsed  people.    Consequently 


being  obliged  to  take  it  home  and  cut  it  for 
himself.  The  business  so  developed  that 
dealers  began  to  adapt  themselves  to  the 
demand  of  the  times  and  offered  to  cut  all 
tobacco  purchased  from  them.  By  the 
middle  of  the  seventeenth  century  tobacco 
smoking  became  universal  in  Japan,  and  it 
still  is  so.  Wherever  one  goes,  even  to  the 
remotest  section  of  the  Empire,  the  pipe  and 
the  cigarette  are  in  evidence  among  all  classes 
and  both  sexes,  though,  needless  to  say,  it  is 
more  common  among  men.  The  diminutive 
pipe,  holding  but  a  pinch,  three  pipefuls  mak- 
ing a  smoke,  is  fast  giving  way  to  the  cigarette 
of  the  Monopoly  Bureau,  of  which  there  are 
various  brands  representing  as  many  qualities. 
Foreign  pipes  and  cigars  are  used  by  a  few 
only.  The  Japanese  may  be  regarded  as 
among  the  most  inveterate  smokers  of  the 
world,  though  the  quantity  and  strength  of 
the  tobacco  consumed  can  not  be  said  to  com- 
pare with  consumption  in  Western  countries. 
The  native  pipe  is  comparatively  harmless 
and  the  weed  in  the  native  cigarette  is  much 
milder  than  foreign  tobacco.  The  annual 
consumption  of  tobacco  in  Japan  is  on  the 
increase  and  soon  the  mind  of  the  nation  will 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


785 


A    TOBACCO    FARM 


very  few  cigars.  The  work  is  done  mostly 
by  girls,  and  the  total  output  in  cigarettes  is 
about  7,000,000,000  a  year.  There  are  some 
fifty  offices  of  the  Monopoly  Bureau  through- 
out the  Empire  for  the  supplying  of  retail 
dealers  with  tobacco.  The  duty  on  imported 
tobacco  is  now  250  per  cent,  which,  of  course, 
is  prohibitive,  though  there  is  a  good  deal  of 
smuggling.  The  table  below  shows  the 
amount  and  value  of  tobacco  handled  by 
the  Monopoly  Bureau  every  five  years  during 
the  last  fifteen  years. 

In  addition,  there  are  some  70,000  acres 
under  tobacco  cultivation  in  Korea,  which 
bring  in  an  annual  revenue  of  about  2,500,- 
000  yen,  while  in  Formosa  the  annual  out- 
put is  about  2,000,000  pounds,  valued  at 
over  7,500,000  yen. 

THE    SALT    MONOPOLY 
In  Japan  salt  refining  is  an  industry  of 
great  antiquity  and  much  importance.     One 


be  as  much  under  the  influence  of  nicotine  as 
are  some  Western  countries.  How  far  this 
may  militate  against  the  interests  of  the 
Japanese  race  is  for  scientists  to  say.  There 
is  no  doubt  that  it  is  already  making  its 
effects  felt  on  the  mental  development  of  the 
young.  If  a  boy  is  behind  his  classmates  in 
the  public  schools  of  Japan,  it  may  usually 
be  attributed  to  the  cigarette  habit. 

For  the  first  three  hundred  years  after  the 
introduction  of  smoking  most  of  the  tobacco 
consumed  in  Japan  was  grown  at  home,  but 
with  the  opening  of  the  country  to  foreign 
trade  at  the  beginning  of  the  Meiji  period, 
large  imports  arrived  from  abroad  in  the 
shape  of  cigars,  cigarettes,  and  cut  tobacco. 
Foreign  manufactures  soon  saw  in  Japan  an 
excellent  field  for  enterprise,  and  in  time  the 
Government  decided  that  if  the  tobacco  busi- 
ness was  going  to  prove  so  profitable  it  might 
as  well  be  used  to  increase  the  revenue  of  the 
State.  Moreover,  the  foreign  dealers  were 
instilling  in  the  people  a  taste  for  the  strong 
tobacco  of  the  West;  and  the  quality  used 
should  be  supervised  by  proper  authority. 
Accordingly,  in  1896,  the  business  was 
declared  a  Government  monopoly  and  put 
into  operation  in  1898  by  buying  up  the  native 
and  foreign  tobacco  factories,  the  regulations 
being  revised  in  1891.  During  the  first  six 
or  seven  years  of  the  monopoly  the  profits  did 
not  exceed  7,000,000  yen  annually,  but  by 
1903  they  arose  to  15,000,000  yen,  and  now 
they  amount  to  nearly  60,000,000  yen  a  year. 

The  most  important  centres  of  tobacco 
cultivation  in  Japan  are  around  Kokobu  in 
the  Province  of  Satsuma,  Nagasaki  in  Hizen, 
Yoshino  in  Yamato,  and  Hatano  in  Sagami. 
Lovers  of  the  weed  profess  to  find  quite  a 
different  flavour  in  the  leaf  produced  in  each 


Year 

Area 
Cultivated 

Production 

Cost 

V.-^LUE    OF 

Imported 
Tobacco 

Profits  on 

Sale  of 

Manufactured 

Tobacco 

Acres 

Pounds 

Yen 

Yen 

Yen 

1906 
191 1 
1916 

81,985 
60,933 
90,327 

94,907,501 

73,894,326 

105,279,158 

8,166,922 

8,091,569 

14.116,612 

1,595,100 

44,856 

789,297 

33,602,057 
51,315,884 
58,802,746 

of  the  districts  named,  while  foreign  tobacco 
to  the  Japanese  taste  is  also  very  different, 
and  even  repugnant  to  some  native  smokers. 
On  the  other  hand  foreigners,  as  a  rule,  have 
no  relish  for  Japanese  tobacco.  The  native 
tobacco,  however,  is  of  fair  quality,  and  yeUow 
American  varieties  are  also  cultivated.  The 
Monopoly  Bureau  imports  all  kinds  of  foreign 
tobacco,  some  of  which  is  made  up  into  cigars, 
cigarettes,  and  cut  tobacco  and  some  is  mixed 
with  the  native  leaf  to  represent  the  various 
brands  sold  by  the  Bureau.  The  native  leaf 
is  pulverized  to  look  like  brown  hair  and  sold 
for  use  in  the  tiny  metal  pipes  used  by  the 
Japanese.  The  bowl  and  mouthpiece  of  the 
native  pipe  are  of  metal,  connected  by  a  bam- 
boo stem  which  is  changed,  when  it  becomes 
too  strong,  by  a  pipe-cleaner,  who  goes  his 
daily  rounds  shouting  his  services  along  the 
street.  The  Government  supervises  the  cul- 
tivation of  the  plant  in  the  fields  as  well  as 
the  varieties  selected  for  manufacture,  the 
farmers  being  obliged  to  sell  all  the  crop  to  the 
Monopoly  Bureau  for  a  fixed  price.  The 
Monopoly  Bureau  now  has  23  well  equipped 
factories  in  various  centres  throughout  the 
Empire,  some  of  the  finest  being  in  Tokyo  and 
Osaka,  where  millions  of  cartons  of  cigarettes 
and  cut  tobacco  are  turned  out  annually,  but 


learns  from  Japanese  history  that  in  ancient 
times  an  inland  enemy  could  be  exhausted  by 
being  deprived  of  access  to  the  sea,  and  thus 
cut  off  from  a  supply  of  salt,  and  one  of  the 
most  famous  heroes  of  the  nation  obtained 
an  immortal  reputation  for  magnanimity  by 
allowing  non-combatant  enemies  to  have  salt 
in  time  of  war.  The  salt  is  produced  almost 
exclusively  from  the  evaporation  of  brine, 
rock  salt  being  very  rare.  Throughout  the 
Empire  generally  the  process  is  carried  on  by 
artificial  heating,  but  in  Formosa  and  other 
latitudes  of  high  temperature  evaporation  is 
left  to  the  sun's  rays.  The  Japanese  method 
of  salt  refining  has  remained  unchanged  for 
ages  and  consists  of  building  a  low  circular 
wall  on  the  foreshore  where  the  sea  water  is 
retained  until  it  partially  evaporates,  after 
which  the  mixture  of  brine  and  sand  is 
removed  and  the  process  of  evaporation  com- 
pleted in  pans  over  a  fire.  The  districts  along 
the  Inland  Sea  of  Japan  form  the  main  centres 
of  production.  In  Japan  proper  salt  has  been 
a  Government  Monopoly  since  1905,  but  it 
has  been  a  monopoly  in  Formosa  since  Japan's 
occupation  of  the  island.  As  has  already 
been  mentioned,  the  salt  monopoly  has  from 
the  first  been  a  constant  theme  of  public 
opprobrium,  owing  to  the  increased  price  of 


786 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


the  article.  In  the  first  year  of  application 
the  profits  of  the  monopoly  amounted  to  1 1  ,- 
998,012  yen,  and  in  1908  to  24,652,674  yen, 
since  when  the  annual  profits  have  decreased 
on  account  of  criticism  compelling  a  reduc- 
tion of  price,  and  in  1917  the  profit  from  salt 
reached  only  8,951,336  yen  on  an  output  of 
over  one  billion  pounds.  The  Government 
has  model  salt  refineries  at  various  places, 
the  most  inportant  being  those  at  Chiba 
and  Hiroshima.  The  accompanying  table 
gives  the  details  of  salt  production  and  sale 
in  Japan  at  intervals  of  five  years  during 
the  last  fifteen  years. 

The  annual  production  of  salt  in  Formosa  is 
240,000,000  pounds,  of  which  about  180,000,- 
000  pounds  are  brought  to  Japan;  and  in 
Korea  there  is  a  yearly  output  of  325,000,000 


.\    TYPE    OF    S.\LT    FIELD 

pounds,  all  of  which  is  consumed  in  the  pen- 
insula, while  the  production  of  salt  in  Japan's 
leased  territory  of  Kwantung  is  about  136,- 
407,900  pounds  annually.  The  value  of  the 
salt  produced  in  the  colonies  and  the  profits 
on  sales  thereof  are  not  given  in  any  official 
statistics  available.  It  is  safe,  however,  to 
conclude  that  the  profits  are  at  least  equal  to 
those  on  the  same  quantity  of  salt  in  Japan 
proper. 

THE  CAMPHOR  MONOPOLY 
Originally  the  camphor  monopoly  applied 
only  to  Formosa,  where  the  great  camphor 
forests  are,  but  the  price  of  the  article  was  so 
greatly  influenced  by  development  of  the 
manufacture  of  camphor  in  Japan  proper  that 
the  monopoly  was  extended  in   1903  to  the 


S.ALT  Monopoly  Production  .\nd  Profits 


Year 

Area  of 
Salt-Pans 

Annu.\l 
Production 

V.\LUE 

Profits 

Acres 

Pounds 

Yen 

Yen 

1906 
1911 
1916 

20,483 
15-233 
14,765 

1,255,081,644 
1,261,589,367 
1,357,569,164 

9,718,062 
10,243,485 
11,904,123 

11,998,012 

11,060,131 

8,951,336 

whole  Empire.  The  amount  produced  in 
Japan  is  still  insignificant,  however,  as  com- 
pared with  the  output  in  Formosa,  and  since 
the  main  object  is  to  increase  the  industry  in 
the  island  colony,  there  has  been  little  pro- 
gress in  the  rest  of  the  country,  the  profits 
amounting  to  scarcely  over  50,000  yen  a  year, 
while  in  Formosa  the  profits  reach  nearly 
6,000,000  yen.  As  to  the  progress  of  camphor 
cultivation  and  manufacture  in  Formosa,  it 
will  be  found  partially  treated  in  the  chapter 
on  that  island  in  this  volume;  but  it  may  be 
added  in  this  connection  that  the  Monopoly 
Bureau  is  pursuing  a  policy  of  extensive 
afforestation  in  camphor  trees  in  Formosa, 
more  than  half  a  million  having  already  been 
set  out,  replanting  some  3,000  acres.  The 
plans  of  the  Government,  however,  contem- 
plate the  reafforestation  of  some  50,000  acres 
by  the  year  1923,  at  an  outlay  of  some  50,000 
yen  annually.  The  great  importance  of 
camphor  afforestation  will  be  seen  when  the 
rate  at  which  mature  trees  are  being  felled  is 
borne  in  mind,  as  well  as  the  fact  that  the 
camphor  tree  does  not  yield  well  before  the 
age  of  60  years.  Trees  of  not  less  than  100 
years  of  age  now  number  something  below 
12,000,000,  the  forest  resources  in  sight  beinu 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


787 


equal  to  a  yield  of  about  33,000,000  pounds  of 
crude  camphor  and  24,000,000  pounds  of 
camphor  oil.  Japanese  chemists  are  experi- 
menting at  trying  to  extract  camphor  from 
the  twigs  and  leaves  of  the  camphor  tree,  but 
so  far  without  much  success. 

Japan  now  supplies  about  one -half  of 
the  10,000,000  pounds  of  camphor  annually 
consumed  by  the  world,  nearly  all  of  it 
coming  from  Formosa.  In  production  of 
camphor  Japan's  only  rival  is  southern  China, 
but  the  quality  obtained  there  is  very  crude. 
Some  years  ago  Japan  thought  that  she 
would  be  able  to  command  the  camphor 
markets  of  the  world,  especially  as  the  sub- 
stance was  coming  into  increasing  use  in  the 
manufacture  of  celluloid,  rubber  goods,  balls, 
and  combs,  as  well  as  in  the  manufacture 
of  gunpowder  and  medicine,  but  the  appear- 
ance of  synthetic  camphor  altered  the 
prospects  considerably.  Experiments,  too, 
have  shown  that  the  camphor  tree  can 
flourish  in  numerous  other  countries,  though 
it  will  take  years  yet  for  plantations  to  reach 
the  yielding  age.  For  some  time  yet  Japan 
will,  therefore,  remain  the  main  source  of 
supply.  The  conditions  prevailing  in  For- 
mosa when  Japan  took  over  the  island  from 
China  necessitated  the  serious  attention  of 
the  Government,  as  the  Chinese  had  been 
most  reckless  in  cutting  down  camphor 
trees,  and  the  value  of  the  forests  was  gravely 
impaired.  Some  of  the  more  productive 
regions,  too,  were  in  possession  of  the  savage 
tribes  of  the  island,  and  work  could  not  be 
undertaken  without  military  protection.    The 


CAMPHOR    MANUFACTURING    WORKS 


number  of  reforms  carried  out  and  the  great 
improvement  inaugurated  in  the  extracting  of 
camphor  would  be  too  numerous  to  mention. 
The  Monopoly  Bureau  used  to  dispose  of 
its  camphor  in  foreign  markets  throiigh  the 
British  firm  of  Messrs.  Samuel  &  Samuel, 
which  has  branches  in  the  Far  East,  but  in 
1908  the  Government  became  its  own  agent, 
and  now  Japan  conducts  the  business  in 
London  on  her  own  account  or  through  the 
Mitsui  Company. 


ONE    OF    THE    MACHINE    AND    WORK    ROOMS,    IMPERIAL    TOBACCO    MONOPOLY 


The  table  on  the  next  page  gives  the 
production  and  value  of  camphor  in  Japan 
proper  at  intervals  of  five  years  for  fifteen 
recent  years. 

In  Formosa  the  annual  production  of 
crude  camphor  is  about  4,500,000  pounds, 
valued  at  1,463,000  yen;  and  of  crude 
camphor  oil  6,288,876  pounds,  valued  at 
about  1,100,000  yen,  the  total  profits  in 
1916  being  5,808,000  yen. 

THE  OPIUM  MONOPOLY 
This  monopoly  is  confined  altogether  to 
Formosa  as  the  use  of  the  drug  for  any  but 
medical  purposes  is  prohibited  in  Japan 
proper.  The  subject  will  be  found  treated 
from  an  administrative  point  of  view  more 
fully  in  the  chapter  on  Formosa  elsewhere 
in  this  volume.  The  monopoly  was  under- 
taken professedly  for  the  purpose  of  controll- 
ing the  victims  of  the  opium  habit  of  whom 
there  were  immense  numbers  when  the 
colony  came  under  Japan's  jurisdiction. 
The  policy  of  the  Government  has  been 
gradually  to  reduce  the  number  of  smokers 
until  the  habit  is  completely  eradicated  on 
the  island.  Every  habitual  user  of  opium 
was  required  to  prove  the  fact  and  then  take 
out  a  license  for  the  consumption  of  the 
drug.  It  was  supposed  that  if  no  licenses 
were  issued  to  new  applicants  after  the  total 
number  of  users  were  so  supplied  that  in 
time  the  number  would  naturally  decline  as 
the  older  victims  died  off.  It  was  decided 
to  establish  a  factory  under  Government 
control  for  the  manufacture  of  opium  doses, 
as  the  Chinese  had  done,  with,  however, 
certain  important  improvements.     As  a  result 


788 


PRESENT-DAY   I-MPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


CIGARETTE-MAKIXG    MACHINES,    IMPERI.VL    GOVERNMENT    MONOPOLY 

of  the  policy  of  gradual  prohibition  which 
came  into  force  in  1896  the  number  of  licensed 
opium  smokers  has  decreased  from  169,064 
in  1900  to  some  75,000  at  present.  In  1906 
the  amount  of  opium  imported  by  the 
authorities  was  446,667  pounds,  at  a  cost 
of  3,371,789  yen,  from  which  a  profit  of 
4,205,830  yen  was  made.  At  present  the 
annual  value  of  imports  of  opium  is  2,190,897 
yen,    which    is    made    into    something    over 


3,000,000  ounces  of  the  drug  and  sold  at  a 
profit  of  something  over  6,000,000  yen;  but 
in  recent  years  the  statistics  as  to  profits 
and  sale  of  opium  officially  published  have 
not  been  very  definite. 

THE  DAI  NIPPON  SALT  COMPANY, 
LIMITED 
This  great  company,  known  under  its 
Japanese  title  as  the  Dai  Nippon  Engyo 
Kabushiki  Kaisha,  is  associated  with  the 
Taiwan  Engyo  Kabushiki  Kaisha,  in  han- 
dling the  bulk  of  the  salt  trade  of  Japan. 
It  was  organised  in  September,  1903,  with 
the  comparatively  small  capital  of  Yen 
50,000,  which-  has  since  been  increased  at 
different  times  to  the  large  figure  of  Yen 
4,950,000  at  which  it  stands  to-day.  The 
company  is  entirely  engaged  in  the  production 
of  salt,  which  is  collected  at  Kantoshiu, 
South  Manchuria,  and  there  is  refined  and 
treated  for  sale  in  the  markets  of  Japan  and 
elsewhere.  The  annual  production  is  over 
150,000,000  pounds.  Mr.  Kenechi  Fujita 
is  President  of  the  Dai  Nippon  Engj'o  and 
also  of  the  Taiwan  Engyo.  The  other 
principal  officers  of  the  company  are:   Direc- 


SEtTION    OF    THE    MITSUBISHI    BUILDING    WHERE    UFEiCES    OCCUPIED    BY    THE    DAI    NIPPON 
ENGYO    KABUSHIKI    KAISHA    (DAI    NIPPON    SALT   CO.,    LTD.)    ARE   LOCATED 


tors,  Messrs.  Rinsaburo  Imanishi,  Matakichi 
Ida,  M.  Hamada,  Eizo  Nagasaki,  Seizo 
Matsubara,  J.  Aoki,  I.  Furuki,  Kihei  Miwa, 
K.  Watanabe,  K.  Usami,  and  Mr.  Kato. 
The  head  office  of  the  company  is  at  Xo.  30 
Kambu-dori,  Dairen,  with  branches  at 
Tokyo  and  Kobe. 

THE    TAIWAN    ENGYO    K,\BUSHIKI 
KAISHA 

Associated  with  the  Dai  Nippon  Engyo 
Kabushiki  Kaisha  is  the  Taiwan  Salt  Com- 
]_)any.  Limited,  which  was  established  in 
March,  1909,  as  a  limited  liability  concern 
with  a  capital  of  Yen  3,000,000.  This  com- 
pany is  a  selling  organisation,  and  does  not 
manufacture  salt.  The  product  is  princi- 
pally imported  from  Taiwan  (Formosa), 
and  is  refined  and  put  on  the  market.  Mr. 
Fujita  is  Managing  Director  and  the  Board 
also  comprises  Messrs.  Hatasaburo  Hanai, 
Kihei  Miwa,  Yoshio  Kawai,  Torataro  Kira- 
mori,  I.  Furuki,  I.  Aoki,  Kunji  Usami,  and  Hoji 
Isemura.  The  head  office  of  the  company 
is  at  No.  I,  Yuraku-cho  Itchome,  Kojimachi- 
ku,  Tokyo,  and  there  is  a  branch  office  at 
Xo.    I,    Higashi    Kawasaki-machi,    Kob^. 


A    BUSY    SCENE    AT    THE    FERRY,    KARATO-MACHI,    SHIMONOSEKI 


XLVII.    Cities  of  Moji  and  Shimonoseki 


SITUATED  on  pleasant  sites  just  op- 
posite each  other,  the  two  cities  of  Moji 
and  Shimonoseki  may  be  conveniently 
considered  under  one  heading.  At  the  extreme 
south  of  the  main  island  of  Japan  runs  the 
narrow  strait  that  separates  Honshu  from 
Kyushu,  opening  the  way  into  the  beautiful 
Inland  Sea.  On  either  side  of  this  charming 
stretch  of  water  stand  the  cities  of  Moji  and 
Shimonoseki,  the  former  on  the  Kyushu  side 
and  the  latter  in  Honshu.  Being  ports  of  call 
for  steamers  coming  from  China  and  the 
southern  route,  all  travellers  have  to  pass 
through  this  strait  and  no  doubt  the  two  cities 
are  already  familiar  to  many  readers.  The 
two  places  have  always  been  important  sta- 
tions between  the  ferry  landings  for  travellers 
proceeding  from  one  island  to  the  other,  but 
it  is  only  in  recent  years  that  they  have  attained 
to  importance  in  foreign  trade  and  sea  com- 
munications. 

Shimonoseki  is  situated  along  the  shores 
ot  the  Hayatomo  Channel,  protected  from 
high  winds  by  lofty  hills  on  the  north,  while 
to  the  westward  lies  Hiroshima  Island, 
serving  to  check  the  sea  breaking  in  from 
the  outside.  The  harbour  is  deep  and 
commodious,  though  sometimes  troubled 
by  winds.  .  As  long  as  Shimonoseki  was  a 
mere  ferry  station  it  showed  no  remarkable 
growth,  but  after  it  became  a  port  of  depart- 
ure for  China  and  Korea  for  the  Imperial 
Government  railways  the  place  began  to 
make  rapid  development.  The  present  popu- 
lation of  the  city  is  about  73,000,  which  is 
fast  increasing,  though  of  late  there  has 
ajjpeared  a  tendency  for  population  to  drift 


toward  the  rival  city  across  the  strait.  It 
remains,  however,  the  chief  port  of  departure 
for  Korea. 

The  volume  of  trade  passing  through 
Shimonoseki  has  been  showing  a  favourable 
increase  in  recent  years,  the  total  for  the 
year  being  at  present  in  the  vicinity  of  1,000,- 
000  yen,  while  imports  represent  about 
75,000  yen,  as  most  of  the  imports  enter 
Japan  through  Kob6  or  Yokohama.  So 
long  as  the  big  liners  of  the  Nippon  Yusen 
Kaisha  have  a  base  there,  as  well  as  the 
numerous  trawlers  from  neighbouring  fish- 
ing grounds,  the  place  will  no  doubt  continue 
to  hold  its  own.  The  fisheries  are  quite 
extensive,  representing  some  160  boats, 
employing  nearly  2,000  hands  and  taking  an 
annual  catch  valued  at  about  7,000,000  yen. 

The  city  has  the  usual  appointments  of  a 
Japanese  town  which  has  not  yet  approached 
the  stage  of  complete  modernisation.  Some 
foreign  firms  have  offices  there,  most  of  them 
British,  and  the  city  has  a  good  foreign  hotel. 
There  are  also  the  usual  schools,  city  offices, 
and  municipal  government. 

The  environment  of  Shimonoseki  is  full 
of  historic  memories,  as  near  by  is  the  famous 
plain  of  Dannoura,  extending  along  the 
highway  leading  to  the  town  of  Chofu,  where 
was  fought  the  great  battle  which  resulted 
in  the  final  overthrow  of  the  Heike  clan,  the 
remnants  of  whom  the  Genji  warriors  forced 
over  the  cliff  into  the  sea.  The  view  from 
here,  with  the  hills  of  Hino  behind  and  the 
sea  in  front,  is  charming  in  the  extreme, 
The  big  crabs  found  in  these  waters  are 
known   as  Heik^  because  of   the   semblance 


of  their  backs  to  a  human  face,  it  being 
supposed  that  the  drowned  Heike  warriors 
assumed  this  form  of  existence.  In  the 
disaster  that  befell  the  Heike  clan  the 
Emperor  Antoku  perished,  and  a  shrine  was 
erected  at  the  foot  of  Mount  Beni-ishi  to 
the  honour  of  the  Imperial  spirit,  known  as 
the  Akamanomiya;  and  the  tombs  of  the 
Heike  leaders  are  in  the  same  grove,  though 
the  inscriptions  are  now  hardly  legible.  A 
peculiar  feature  of  the  annual  festival  at 
this  shrine  is  the  custom  of  having  the  pro- 
ceedings opened  by  the  gay  ladies  of  the 
district,  who  march  out  in  the  picturesque 
robes  of  their  calling,  and  after  they  retire 
the  place  is  declared  opan  to  the  public. 
The  custom  is  said  to  have  had  its  origin  in 
the  misfortune  that  befell  the  women  of  the 
Heike  lords,  who  when  left  without  pro- 
tectors, had  no  resort  but  to  become  denizens 
of  the  gay  quarters  of  the  town,  the  citizens, 
however,  treating  them  with  great  sympathy 
and  respect  owing  to  their  unhappy  lot,  so 
that  in  spite  of  their  calling  they  never  lost 
their  high  social  position,  entitling  them  to 
be  the  first  visitors  to  the  shrine  festival. 

Near  the  mausoleum  of  the  Emperor 
Antoku  stands  the  Shumpanro  Hotel,  noted 
as  the  scene  of  the  negotiations  between 
Japan  and  China  in  1895.  bringing  the  war 
to  a  peaceful  conclusion.  The  chairs  used 
by  Prince  Ito  and  Li  Hung-Chang  are  still 
preserved  there.  From  .this  hotel  a  beautiful 
view  of  the  picturesque  neighbourhood  may 
be  had,  including  the  mountain  ranges  of  the 
Seto  Channel.  The  Injouji  Temple,  where 
Li  Hung-Chang  stayed  while  in  Shimonoseki, 


51 


790 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


and  where  he  was  treated  by  a  surgeon  after 
the  attempt  on  his  Ufe  by  an  assassin,  is 
also  in  this  vicinity,  witli  pleasant  views  and 
surroundings.  There  are  various  other 
temples  and  shrines  of  historic  or  antiquarian 
interest  for  those  who  care  for  such  things. 
Tsunakidani  is  a  beautiful  valley  lying  be- 
hind the  city  whence  one  gets  an  entrancing 
view  of  the  mountains  and  the  sea.  As 
Shimonoseki  is  in  a  strongly  fortified  zone 
all  photographing  and  sketching  are  strictly 
prohibited,  and  one  of  the  misfortunes  which 
frequently  happens  to  the  unwary  visitor 
ashore  is  to  have  his  camera  confiscated. 

Proceeding  across  the  strait  to  Moji,  one 
is  in  a  city  which  in  ancient  times  was  re- 
gardedas  the  gateway  to  Kyushu,  where  all 


travellers  were  carefully  examined.  During 
the  middle  ages  it  was  no  more  than  a  small 
fishing  village,  but  after  the  beginning  of 
the  Meiji  era  Baron  Yasuba,  the  Governor 
of  Fukuoka,  began  to  promote  the  interests 
of  the  place  as  an  important  place  of  anchor- 
age for  ships  and  for  trade  purposes,  and 
finally  a  harbour  was  constructed.  In  the 
thirty  years  that  have  since  elapsed  remark- 
able changes  have  taken  place  in  favour  of 
Moji,  and  it  is  now  a  close  rival  of  Nagasaki 
as  a  port  of  call  for  steamers  either  to  trans- 
fer passengers  and  freight  of  to  coal.  The 
present  population  of  Moji  is  about  100,000, 
but  it  is  growing  so  rapidly  that  soon  it  will 
become' one  .of  the  greatest  cities  of  Kyushu. 
In  the  past  few  years  the  rate  of  increase  in 


population  has  been  much  greater  in  Moji 
than  in  Kob6  or  Yokohama.  Owing  to  its 
excellent  harbour,  quite  protected  by  noble 
hills,  Moji  is  well  suited  to  accommodate 
shipping. 

The  growth  and  prosperity  of  Moji  have 
been  greatly  fostered  by  the  coal  trade,  there 
being  an  immense  output  from  the  mines  of 
Kyushu,  many  of  which  are  in  this  vicinity. 
Moji  also  rivals  Nagasaki  as  the  most  impor- 
tant centre  of  distribution  for  Kyushu.  The 
imports  formerly  going  in  through  the  more 
southern  port  have  now  been  largely  de- 
flected toward  Moji.  Rice,  which  forms 
almost  three-fourths  of  the  stock  in  the 
Tokyo  market,  is  nearly  all  exported  through 
Moji,  the  volume  amounting  to  more  than 


(Left)  A.  Hills,  Manager  at  Shimonoseki  for  Jardine,  Matheson  &  Co.,  Ltd.  (Upper)  E.  H.  Holmes,  British  Counsel  at  Shimonoseki. 
(Lower)  H.  Sykes  Thompson,  Manager  at  Shimonoseki  for  Samuel  Samuel  &  Co.,  Ltd.  (Right)  R.  McKenzie,  Manager  at 
Shimonoseki  for  Wuriu  Shokwai  (Holme,  Ringer  &  Co.) 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


791 


PROMINENT    KYUSHU    BUSINESS    MEN 


(Upper  Row,  Left  to  Right)  Mr.  Shimpei  Higasa,  Managing  Director,  Kyushu  Electric  Wire  Manufacturing  Co.,  Ltd.  —  Mr.  S. 
Nakamura,  President,  S.  Nakamura  &  Co.,  Ltd.  —  Mr.  S.  Sawayama,  Vice-President,  Nagasaki  Chamber  of  Commerce.  (Lower  Row) 
Mr.  K.  Akiyama,  Manager,  Sugar  Manufacturing  Co.  of  Japan,  Dairi  — Mr.  L  Sumida,  President  and  Managing  Director,  Teikoku 
Brewery  Co.,  Ltd.  —  Mr.  K.  Nagami,  President,  Eighteenth  Bank,  Ltd. 


one  million  tons  a  year.  Already  this  port 
has  begun  to  attract  the  attention  of  the 
whole  Empire  as  a  centre  of  great  commercial 
and  industrial  possibilities.  Ten  years  ago 
the  total  of  exports  from  Moji  amounted 
in  value  to  15,469,415  yen,  while  imports 
totalled  18,703,121  yen,  or  an  aggregate  of 
34,172,526  yen;  and  to-day  the  annual 
exports  from  Moji  amount  in  value  to  18,- 
604,378  yen,  with  23,200,794  for  imports,  or 
a  total  of  41,815,172  yen.  Naturally  the 
largest  item  in  exports  is  coal,  but  refined 
sugar,  cotton  yarn  and  other  staples  are  also 
large.  Though  the  figures  are  as  yet  insig- 
nificant in  comparison  with  Kobe  and  Yoko- 
hama, they  nevertheless  indicate  what  an 
important  place  Moji  will  continue  to  occupy 
in  the  commercial  and  industrial  life  of  the 
nation.  One  of  the  most  important  indus- 
tries of  Moji  is  the  making  of  cement. 


The  environs  of  Moji  are  not  so  rich  in 
historic  interest  as  those  oT  Shimorioseki  or 
even  the  average  Japanese  city,  but  the 
scenery,  especially  at  the  foot  of  Mount 
Sankaku,  is  picturesque,  there  being  a  park 
there  presented  by  the  late  Emperor  of 
Japan  in  memory  of  his  visit  to  the  city  to 
review  the  troops,  while  on  the  summit  of 
Mount  Furuki  stands  a  castle  the  possession 
of  which  in  feudal  days  was  frequently 
contested  by  rival  daimyo.  The  place  is 
now  an  important  fortress  in  connection 
with  the  defences  of  the  Inland  Sea.  On  the 
Fudetate  Hill  is  a  shrine,  known  as  the 
Koso  Hachimangu,  dating  from  870  a.  d. 
The  stones  paving  the  court  are  said  to  have 
been  the  anchors  of  tribute  boats  that  came 
from  Korea,  while  the  image  in  the  shrine  is 
reputed  to  bear  the  armour  worn  by  the  Em- 
press Jingo   during  her  expedition  to  Korea. 


Between  Moji  and  Shimonoseki  the  Gov- 
ernment ferry  runs  regularly,  meeting  all 
trains  and  making  sharp  connections,  and 
the  two  cities  form  important  bases  for  all 
travellers  touring  that  part  of  the  Empire. 

SAMUEL  SAMUEL  &  CO.,  LIMITED 
This  well  known  old  house  occupies  a 
unique  position  in  the  foreign  trade  and 
commerce  of  Japan  because,  more  than  any 
other  concern,  it  has  always  been  in  the 
closest  relationship  with  the  Japanese  Gov- 
ernment, and  with  the  Governments  of  the 
Allied  Powers.  In  the  early  daj's  of  foreign 
trade  in  Japan,  Messrs.  Samuel  Samuel  & 
Co.  were  practically  the  purchasing  agents 
and  financiers  of  the  Imperial  Government, 
their  close  connection  with  the  London  money 
market,  and  with  influential  circles  generally 
through  the  agency  of  Messrs.  M.  Samuels 


SAMUEL    SAMUEL    &    CO.,    LTD.:      THREE    VIEWS    OF    THE    FIRM'S    BUNKERING    OPERATIONS    AT    MOJI    AND    SHIMONOSEKI  — 
H.    SYKES    THOMPSON,    MANAGER  —  PORTION    OF    THE    FIRM's    HUGE    COAL    STOCKS    AT    MOJI 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


793 


/I  \  *llf 

1 

/        ;  ■  1 

N  1      '  \ 

J^BH 

y 

HOSOYE    BAY,    SHIMONOSEKI 


&  Co.,  giving  them  special  facilities  for  carry- 
ing through  important  transactions.  With 
the  development  of  Japan's  own  financial 
and  economic  resources  the  necessity  ceased 
to  exist  for  some  of  the  functions  which  the 
old  firm  had  been  fulfilling,  and  greater 
attention  was  then  devoted  to  ordinary 
trade  lines,  though  Messrs.  Samuel  Samuel 
&  Co.  have  never  lost  that  intimate  relation- 
ship with  the  Japanese  and  other  Govern- 
ments that  was  the  special  feature  of  their 
earlier  history. 

The  old  firm  became  a  limited  liability 
company  some  years  ago,  and  both  prior 
to  that  change  and  since,  the  record  of  the 
house  has  been  one  of  constant  progress 
and  increasing  prestige.  Branches  are  main- 
tained at  such  important  centres  as  Tokyo, 
Osaka,  Yokohama,  Kob6,  Moji,  and  Taipeh 
(Formosa).  Business  transacted  varies  only 
according  to  the  special  trade  lines  at  each 
place.  The  company  holds  a  large  number 
of  very  important  agencies,  and  deals  exten- 
sively in  practically  every  item  which  makes 
up  the  sum  of  import  and  export  trade  in 
Japan.  The  Shimonoseki  (Moji)  branch, 
with  which  we  are  now  dealing,  has  made  a 
special  feature  of  the  coal  business,  apart 
from  the  general  shipping  and  other  agencies 
and  import  and  export  operations.  Coal 
is  largely  exported  by  the  company  to 
Hongkong,  Saigon,  Manila,  Colombo,  Singa- 
pore, Java  and  elsewhere.  For  several  j-ears 
prior  to  the  war  Messrs.  Samuel  Samuel  & 
Co.,  Ltd.,  held  the  contract  for  the  G.  I.  P. 
Railways  of  India,  and  shipped  coal  to  Bom- 
bay. The  company  is  probably  the  largest 
foreign    bunkering    concern    in    Shimonoseki 


(Moji)  and  Karatsu,  and  through  the  London 
agents,  Messrs.  M.  Samuels  &  Co.,  of  25-27 
Bishopsgate,  E.  C,  contracts  are  in  force 
with  the  principal  British  and  Continental 
steamship  owners  for  bunkers.  The  com- 
pany also  holds  contracts  with  the  British 
and  Italian  Governments.  The  Bunkering 
Department  of  the  company  holds  the  time 
record  for  loading  8,000  tons  of  bunkers  in 
Moji  harbour,  as  well  as  the  record  for  having 
loaded  the  largest  cargo  of  coal  ever  des- 
patched from  Moji. 


Reverting  to  the  fact  that  Messrs.  Samuel 
Samuel  &  Co.,  Ltd.,  are  in  such  close  con- 
tact with  various  governments,  it  may  be 
mentioned  that  the  company  has  carried  out 
some  important  commissions  during  the  war. 
All  the  steam  trawlers  purchased  by  His 
Excellency  the  Governor  of  Ceylon  were 
obtained  through  the  company  by  H.  B.  M. 
Embassy  in  Tokyo,  and  the  Italian  Govern- 
ment also  entrusted  the  entire  purchase  of 
their  requirements,  which  included  fifty- 
three  vessels  for  mine  sweeping  in  the 
Mediterranean,  to  Messrs.  Samuel  Samuel 
&  Co.,  Ltd.  In  the  Shipping  Department 
Messrs.  Samuel  Samuel  &  Co.,  Ltd.,  are 
agents  at  Moji  and  Karatsu  for  the  Royal 
Mail  Steam  Packet  Company,  now  working 
in  conjunction  with  the  Glen  Line  of  steamers, 
maintaining  a  regular  service  in  peace  times 
between  London  and  the  Far  East.  Other 
shipping  agencies  include  those  of  Messrs. 
Furness,  Withy  &  Co.,  Ltd.,  the  Swedish 
East  Asiatic  Company,  Danish  East  Asiatic 
Company,  Asiatic  Navigation  Co.,  Ltd., 
the  Hogarth  Shipping  Co.,  Ltd.,  the  Anglo- 
Saxon  Petroleum  Co.,  Ltd.,  and  the  British 
India  Steam  Navigation  Co.,  Ltd.,  at  Misumi. 

Samuel  Samuel  &  Co.,  Ltd.,  represent  the 
International  Banking  Corporation  of  New 
York,  and  the  Bureau  Veritas  (International 
Register  of  Shipping).  In  insurance  they 
are  settling  agents  for  the  Fireman's  Fund 
Insurance  Co.  of  San  Francisco,  for  the 
Marine  North  China  Insurance  Co.,  Ltd., 
and  for  the  Liverpool  &  London  &  Globe 
Insurance  Co.  A  general  import  trade  is 
done,   the  main  lines  being  wire  rope,  iron 


^^k. 


SAKINO.M.-VCHI,     SHIMONOSEKI 


794 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


THE    SHIMONOSEKI    OFFICES    OF    AKITA    SHOKAI 


bars,  bundles,  plates,  angles,  rape  seed  cake, 
bone  meal,  paints,  ships'  stores,  etc.  The 
company  holds  the  agency  for  Messrs.  D.  & 
H.  Haggie,  of  Sunderland,  whose  wire  ropes 
have  a  wide  reputation  throughout  the 
principal  collieries  of  Kyushu.  Another 
valuable  agency  is  that  of  Zocus  ship  paints. 
Messrs.  Thomas  Cook  &  Sons  are  represented 
at  Moji  and  Shimonoseki  by  the  company. 
That  the  branch  is  of  first  rate  importance 
is  evidenced  by  the  fact  that  the  turnover 
for  the  year  1916  was  over  Yen  in,ooo,ooo. 
Mr.  H.  Sykes  Thompson,  who  has  been 
with  Messrs.  Samuel  Samuel  &  Co.,  Ltd., 
for 'fourteen  years,  is  Manager  at  Moji,  a 
position  he  has  held  for  ten  years  past. 
The  telegraphic  address  for  the  offices  at 
Shimonoseki,  Karatsu,  and  Misume  is 
"Orgomanes"   Shimonoseki. 

AKITA    &•    CO.,    SHIMONOSEKI 

Mr.  Toranosuke  Akita,  who  directs  the 

many  different  interests  which  are  comprised 

under  the  name  of  the  Akita  Shokai,   well 

deserves  the  title  of  being  one  of  the  most 


successful  business  men  in  Japan,  as  he  cer- 
tainly is  the  leader  in  financial  and  commer- 
cial circles  in  Yamaguchi  Prefecture,  of  which 
Shimonoseki  is  the  centre.  This  gentleman 
was  born  at  Fujiyama-mura,  in  18-5,  and  on 
the  completion  of  his  education  launched  out 
on  a  business  career  which  has  been  conspic- 
uously brilliant.  He  was  early  attracted  to 
the  possibilities  of  the  shipping  industry, 
and  commenced  operations  in  this  direction 
in  1905,  when  he  chartered  a  foreign  steamer 
and  opened  up  a  new  line  of  trade  between 
Japan  and  China.  This  initial  move  was  a 
success,  and  shortly  afterwards  the  Akita 
Shokai  was  organised. 

The  firm  does  a  general  business  in  ship- 
ping, trading,  mining,  colonisation  and 
development  schemes,  fishing  and  lumber 
industries,  besides  acting  as  agent  and  broker 
for  various  marine,  fire,  and  life  insurance 
companies.  Moreover,  the  firm  is  engaged  in 
the  manufacture  and  sale  of  the  Akita  system 
of  fire  extinguishers.  The  development  of 
this  widely  varied  business  may  be  traced  in 
the  following  way:  In  1906  Mr.  Akita  com- 


menced a  general  shipping  business,  employ- 
ing steamers  on  the  Inland  Sea  and  in  the 
coast  trade  of  Japan.  A  number  of  vessels 
have  been  purchased  at  various  times  since 
then,  and  the  firm  has  made  every  effort  to 
improve  the  trade  and  transportation  facilities 
with  Mancliuria  and  China,  while  at  the  same 
time  the  Chosen  and  Taiwan  routes  have  not 
been  neglected.  In  1909  Mr.  Akita  bought 
up  the  Shimonoseki  Post  Office  pier,  and 
by  improving  the  structure  he  was  able  to 
provide  much  better  facilities  for  the  embar- 
kation of  the  travelling  public.  The  follow- 
ing year  the  proprietor  of  this  rapidly 
expanding  business  leased  some  land  at 
Chinkaiwan,  and  built  a  number  of  houses. 
In  191 1  the  business  was  transformed  into  a 
goshi  kaisha  with  a  capital  of  Yen  300,000, 
and  Mr.  Akita  continued  to  direct  affairs  as 
President  of  the  new  organisation.  Since 
191 2  the  firm  has  bought  forest  lands  at 
Osaba-mura,  and  the  lumber  has  been  mar- 
keted, while  at  the  same  time  a  rich  tract  of 
territory  lias  been  improved  by  the  building 
of  roads,  and  reclaiming  of  lands,  which  are 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


795 


later   on    to   be   put   undcT   rice  cultivation. 

Mishima  Colliery  near  Osaba-mura,  and  the 

Tsukikuma  Colliery  in  Fukuoka  Prefecture, 

are  also  owned  by  the  Akita  Shokai.     Since 

1913  the  firm  has  invested  largely  in  mining 
in  Chosen,  where  valuable  leases  have  been 
acquired  from  the  Government,  and  opera- 
tions are  in  force  for  producing  gold,  silver, 
copper,  tungsten,  iron,  zinc,  and  graphite.     In 

1914  the  firm  was  successful  in  securing  the 
transfer  of  a  lumber  mill  from  the  South  Man- 
churia Railway  Company.  This  mill  was  for- 
merly worked  by  the  Russian  Government, 
but  when  it  came  into  the  hands  of  the  Akita 
Shokai  it  was  renamed  the  Dairen  Lumber 
Mill,  and  its  direction  was  placed  under  the 
Dairen  branch  of  the  firm.  The  same  year 
the  firm  established  a  branch  at  Tientsin,  and 
Mr.  Akita  organised  the  Tientsin  Warehouse 
Co.,  Ltd.,  of  which  he  is  the  largest  share- 
holder, and  his  brother  is  Managing  Director. 
At  the  request  of  the  shareholders  of  the 
Kwanmon  Marine  Products  Co.,  Ltd.,  Mr. 
Akita  took  over  the  presidency  of  that  concern 
in  Februarj',  1914,  and  reorganised  it,  raising 


the  company  to  a  prosperous  condition,  and 
enabling  it  to  achieve  new  records  in  trawl 
fishing  in  Japan.  This  company  has  since 
sold  eight  trawling  vessels  to  the  French  and 
Italian  Governments.  These  vessels  were 
delivered  at  Port  Said  and  the  transaction  was 
the  first  of  its  kind  carried  out  in  Japan.  To 
complete  the  record  of  a  very  busy  and 
successful  life,  it  should  be  mentioned  that  in 
191 5  Mr.  Akita  invented  a  highly  successful 
powder  fire  extinguisher,  which  is  being  manu- 
factured and  sold  extensively. 

Mr.  Akita  is  associated  with  a  large  number 
of  companies  and  industries.  He  is  President 
of  the  Shimonoseki  Billbroker  Bank,  Ltd., 
President  of  the  Tsingtao  Flour  Mill  Co.,  Ltd. 
(capital  Yen  500,000),  President  of  the 
Kwanmon  Commercial  Co.,  Ltd.,  President 
of  the  Akita  Steamship  and  Fishery  Associa- 
tion, Director  of  the  Kyodo  Transportation 
Co.  Ltd.,  and  of  several  other  companies, 
member  of  the  Shimonoseki  City  Assembly, 
committeeman  of  the  Chamber  of  Commerce, 
member  of  the  Business  Tax  Investigation 
Association,  and  a  member  of  the  House  of 


Representatives.  He  has  always  been  noted 
for  his  keen  interest  in  public  affairs  and  for 
his  liberal  support  of  educational  movements. 

JARDINE,  MATHESON  &  CO.,  LIMITED 
Messrs.  Jardine,  Matheson  &  Co.,  Ltd., 
are  strongly  represented  in  every  important 
trading  centre  throughout  the  Far  East. 
Shimonoseki  is  no  exception  to  this  statement, 
for  here  the  company  occupies  a  prominent 
position  in  general  trade,  and  especially  in  the 
shipping  and  coal  business.  The  branch  was 
opened  in  1900  to  attend  to  the  various 
agencies  held  by  Jardine,  Matheson  &  Co., 
Ltd.,  and  to  do  business  in  coal,  rice,  fiour, 
bean  cake,  machinery,  etc.  The  volume  of 
trade  rapidly  increased,  and  the  company  pur- 
chased a  business  site,  centrally  located  on 
the  water  front,  close  to  the  Customs  House, 
and  in  1905  erected  a  three-story  brick 
building  for  offices  and  residential  quarters, 
with  a  commodious  two-storied  godown 
behind. 

Business  is  constantly  increasing,  and  the 
operations  of  Jardine,  Matheson  &  Co.,  Ltd., 


fw 


111 


"^~ 

,  1 

i 

1 

r- 

i 
j 

?':                                                            ' 

::                       :     s 

'~~  -                                             ■                 : 

;:                                               i 

- 

H — — ^ 

(upper)  s.   s.  "war  prince,"  being  coaled  at  moji  by  jardine,  matheson  &  CO.,  LTD.     (lower)  offices  and  godowns 

OF    jardine,    matheson    &   CO.,    LTD.,    SHIMONOSEKI 


796 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


SHIMONOSEKI    PREMISES    OF    T.    YUASA    &   COMPANY 


now  consist,  in  addition  to  the  trade  lines 
mentioned  above,  of  large  transactions  in 
coal,  which  is  shipped  as  bunkers,  or  ex- 
ported as  cargo  to  various  southern  ports. 
The  company  has  supplied  coal  for  its  own 
hne,  the  Ellerman  &  Bucknall  S.  S.  Co.,  and 
allied  lines,  Andrew  Weir  &  Co.,  etc.,  with 
both  bunker  and  cargo  coal  for  several  years 
past.  Since  the  war  Jardine,  Matheson  & 
Co.,  Ltd.,  have  done  a  large  business 
with  the  British  Government  in  cargo  and 
bunker  coal,  supplied  to  the  numerous  new 
ships  built  in  Japan  and  requisitioned. 

The  company  represents  the  Watcrhouse 
Steamship  Lines,  Bombay-Burmah  Trading 
Corporation  (teak),"  New  York  Lubricating 
Oil  Co.,  Hongkong  &■  Shanghai  Banking 
Corporation,  and  the  companies  for  which 
Jardine,  Matheson  &  Co.,  Ltd.,  act  as  general 
agents  and  managers  in  China.  Mr.  A.  Hills 
is  the  company's  Manager  at  Shimonoseki. 

T.    YUASA    &    CO. 
Messrs.  T.  Yuasa  &  Co.  occupy  a  prom- 
inent position  in  the  trade  of  western  Japan, 
Manchuria,  and  Chosen.     The  iirm  has  been 
established  for  many  years,  and  though  for 


a  long  period  its  operations  were  mainly 
confined  to  Kob^,  business  was  extended  to 
new  spheres  immediately  the  opportunity 
arose.  An  instance  of  this  progressive  spirit 
on  the  part  of  Messrs.  T.  Yuasa  &  Co.  is  to 
be  foimd  in  the  fact  that  they  were  amongst 
the  first  Japanese  merchants  to  open  a 
branch  in  Dairen,  immediately  upon  the 
conclusion  of  the  Russo-Japanese  War. 

This  firm  does  a  general  business  as  im- 
porters and  exporters,  handling  practically 
every  line  of  merchandise.  Imports  com- 
prise flour,  hardware,  sugar,  cotton,  gunny 
bags,  etc.,  from  abroad,  and  large  quantities 
of  agricultural  produce  from  Manchuria, 
jirominent  amongst  which  are  soya  beans, 
bean  oil,  seed  cake,  and  so  on.  The  head 
office  of  Messrs.  T.  Yuasa  &  Co.  is  at  Kobe, 
and  there  are  branches  at  Shimonoseki, 
Dairen,  and  in  every  important  centre 
throughout   Japan    and    adjacent    countries. 

HOLME,  RINGER  &  CO.  (WURIU  SHOKWAl) 
This  firm  has  been  established  in  Shimono- 
seki for  over  twenty-eight  years,  and  is  one 
of  the  best  known  concerns  engaged  in  the 
general    shipping    business    in    southwestern 


Japan.  Messrs.  Holme,  Ringer  &  Co.'s 
Shimonoseki  office  is  almost  universallj' 
known  as  the  Wuriu  Shokwai,  their  Japanese 
title.  They  are  chartering  brokers,  coal 
exporters,  importers  of  metal  goods  and 
other  merchandise,  insurance  agents,  both 
fire  and  marine,  and  shipping  agents,  the 
business  transacted  being  practically  all  that 
is  incidental  to  a  general  merchant  house  in 
a  busy  shipping  centre. 

Messrs.  Holme,  Ringer  &  Co.  are  agents 
at  Shimonoseki  for  the  Chartered  Bank  of 
India,  Australia,  and  China.  They  are 
Lloyd's  agents,  and  also  represent  the  London 
Salvage  Association.  Among  the  shipping 
agencies  held  by  the  firm  are  the  following: 
Bank  Line,  Ltd.,  Asiatic  Steam  Na\-igation 
Co.,  the  "Ben"  Line  of  Steamers,  Canadian 
Pacific  Ocean  Services,  Ltd.,  China  Naviga- 
tion Co.,  Cie  des  Messageries  Maritimes, 
Java-China-Japan  Line,  Norwegian,  Africa 
and  AustraUan  Line,  Northern  S.  S.  Co. 
(Petrograd),  Ocean  S.  S.  Co.  (A.  Holt  &  Co.), 
Pacific  Mail  S.  S.  Co.,  and  the  Royal  Mail 
Steam  Packet  Co.   (Pacific  scr\-ices). 

Business  is  transacted  in  Moji  and  adjoin- 
ing centres.     The  firm  is  engaged  in  the  coal 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


797 


trade  to  a  large  extent,  and  contracts  for 
coaling  locally  and  abroad.  The  office  is 
at  No.  27  Nishinabc-cho,  Shimonoseki.  Mr. 
R.  McKcnzic  is  Manager  in  Shimonoseki 
for  the  firm  in  whose  service  he  has  spent 
sixteen  years,  four  of  which  have  been  as 
director  of  the  interests  of  Messrs.  Holme, 
Ringer  &  Co.  at  Shimonoseki.  The  head 
office  is  in  Nagasaki. 

KYUSHU    ELECTRIC    RAILWAY    CO., 
LIMITED 

Moji  and  Nagasaki,  the  largest  ports  of  the 
island  of  Kyushu,  are  principally  notable  as 
coaling  stations,  and  consequently  it  has  been 
customary  to  regard  the  whole  territory  which 
feeds  them  as  important  only  from  its  pro- 
ductivity in  this  direction. 

A  little  thought  points  to  the  natural  devel- 
opment to  be  expected  from  an  inexhaustable 
supply  of  cheap  fuel  to  be  the  growth  of 
industries.  Prior  to  19 14  the  opening  up  of 
new  industrial  ventures  proceeded  steadily, 
but  the  last  three  years  have  witnessed  a 
marked  acceleration  in  the  increase  in 
the   number  of   tall   chimneys. 


It  was  with  the  idea  of  being  an  important 
factor  to  the  industrial  development  of  the 
island  that  the  Koushu  Electric  Railway  Co. 
was  formed  ten  years  ago  (1908),  and  if  during 
the  first  years  the  promoters  were  forced  to 
exercise  some  patience,  they  are  more  than 
rewarded  by  the  pressure  under  which  they 
work  to-day,  in  order  to  supply  demands,  all 
on  the  increase,  for  more  power.  All  the 
industries,  such  as  the  Imperial  Brewery,  the 
Kob6  Steel  Works,  the  Dia-Nippon  Sugar 
Manufacturing  Company's  Dairi  Refinery, 
the  Kyushu  Electric  Wire  Company,  de- 
scribed in  this  volume,  and  numerous  other 
concerns  that  have  been  established  in  rapid 
succession  at  Dairi,  Kokura,  Tobata,  Yawata, 
Kurazaki,  Orio,  etc.,  and  other  towns  of 
northern  Kyushu,  are  suppKed  to  a  greater 
or  less  extent  by  this  power  plant,  with  the 
result  that  the  present  installation  of  23,000 
K.  W.  is  found  quite  inadequate.  At  the 
time  of  this  writing  a  further  10,000 
K.  W.  is  being  added,  increasing  the  power 
to  60,000  H.  P.,  which  will  in  the  near  fu- 
ture   be    further  augmented  to  80,000  H.  P. 


With  regard  to  the  tramway  service,  the 
company  has  in  operation  at  present  21  miles 
of  line  between  the  port  of  Moji  and  Orio,  to 
which  an  addition  of  3  miles  is  at  present 
under  construction,  linking  up  Tobata  and 
Yawata.  As  an  indication  of  the  growth  in 
the  passenger  traffic  of  the  line,  it  may  be 
stated  that  the  increase  in  the  number  of 
passengers,  transported  during  the  last  half  of 
191 7  was  just  38  per  cent  in  advance  of  the 
number  carried  during  the  same  period  of 
191 6.  The  lighting  service  which  is  univer- 
sally admitted  admirable,  has  also  felt  the 
development  which  must  be  attributable  to 
the  growth  of  industries  and  consequently  of 
population,  insomuch  as  the  company  has 
been  called  upon  to  supply  fights,  increasing 
at  the  rate  of  20,000  per  annum  during  the  past 
eight  years.  Undoubtedly  the  coal  supply 
would  have  guaranteed  the  industrial  great- 
ness of  Kyushu,  but  that  the  Kyushu  Electric 
Company,  by  augmenting  and  cheapening 
the  supply  of  power  in  the  form  of  electricity, 
has  done  yeoman  service,  is  imiversally 
agreed.     The   company  is  also   operating   a 


WIRIU    SHOKWAI    (holme,    RINGER    S:   CO.^ 


THE    "war    dame"    being   COALED    BY    THE    COMPANY    FOR   THE    ADMIRALTY- 
THE   company's   OFFICE 


r 


M 


KYUSHU    ELECTRIC    RAILWAY   CO.,    LTD.:      BIRD's-EYE    VIEW   OF   THE    WORKS,    SHOWING   CHEMICAL    PLANT   ON    THE   LEFT  — 

A    PORTION    OF   THE   33,000    KILOWATT    PLANT 


PRESENT-DAY        IMPRESSIONS        OF        JAPAN 


799 


A  BREEZY  DAY  OFF  SHORE,  MOJI 


chemical  works  for  the  production  of  potas- 
sium chloride,  located  in  close  proximity  to 
the  power  station.  The  annual  product  of 
the  works — at  present  30,000  kegs  of  112 
pounds  each — is  of  a  superior  grade,  and  finds 
a  ready  home  and  foreign  market.  Electrical 
goods  are  also  manufactured. 

The  original  capital  of  the  company,  Yen 
1,000,000,  was  augumented  in  1910  to  Yen 
3,150,000,  in  1914  to  Yen  6,300,000,  and 
finally  to  Yen  16,000,000,  the  present  figure. 
The  area  covered  by  the  enterprise,  including 
power  plant,  chemical  works,  car  sheds,  yards, 
etc.,  is  about  twenty  thousand  tsubo.  Gen- 
erating stations  are  established  at  seven 
important  points  of  the  service.  The  officers 
of  the  company  are:  Messrs.  K.  Matsukata 
(President),  Y.  Tomiyasu,  T.  Yamaguchi, 
M.  Seno,  I.  Obata,  K.  Ozone  (Directors), 
and  M.  Matsumoto  (Director  and  General 
Manager). 

OKURA    GUMI 

The  Kyushu  branch  of  Okura  Gumi, 
located  at  Moji,  does  an  extensive  business 
in  the  importation  of  all  kinds  of  industrial 
machinery,  for  the  installation  of  the  numer- 
ous plants  that  are  everywhere  springing  up 
throughout  northern  Kyushu.  Metals  of 
all  descriptions,  in  bulk  and  manufactured 
form,  as  well  as  the  mineral  products  of  the 
island,  are  handled  very  extensively.  It  is 
the  policy  of  the  house  to  prepare  for  every 
demand  in  their  particular  line,  so  that  it 
may  be  taken  for  granted  that  everything 
which  comes  under  the  heading  of  Hardware, 
in  the  widest  sense  of  the  word,  is  handled  by 
them.  Readers  are  recommended  to  refer  to 
the  Tokyo  Import  and  Export  Section  of  this 
volume,  which  supplies  further  interesting  de- 
tails on  the  history  of  the  firm.  (See  pags  211.) 


GOSHI  KAISHA  TOMOEGUMI 
GosHi  Kaisha  Tomoegumi  started  in  the 
general  shipping  business,  principally  broker- 
age, etc.,  fifteen  years  ago  and  came  in,  dur- 
ing the  recent  boom,  for  a  considerable  share 
of  the  general  success.  In  19 16  the  concern 
was  turned  into  a  partnership,  and  will  in 
the  near  future  undergo  a  further  change  to 
emerge  a  limited  company.  The  firm  pre- 
viously owned  four  steamers,  which  they 
sold,  engaging  in  the  business  of  chartering. 


About  fifteen  steamers  are  at  present  under 
charter  to  the  firm,  of  which  ten  are  sub- 
chartered,  and  the  remainder,  plying  to  all 
parts  of  the  world,  they  maintain  in  their 
own  service.  They  also  own  a  large  colliery, 
situated  at  Yokoshima,  employing  about 
five  hundred  people.  The  annual  output 
is  70,000  tons,  which,  however,  represents 
only  one-third  of  the  coal  annually  sold  by 
them.  In  this  connection  it  is  important 
to  note  that  they  do  a  considerable  business 


MOJI    OFFICE    OF    OKURA   GUMI 


COSHI    KAISHA    I(  IMHEl.l  Ml :      lil  SY    SCENE    IN   THE   HEAD   OFFICE    AT   MOJI  —   OFFICES   AT   WAKAMATSU  —  OFFICES   AT   SHIMONOSEKI 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


80 1 


in  the  coaling  of  steamers.  Branches  of  the 
Goshi  Kaisha  Tomocgumi  are  maintained 
at  Kob^,  Osalca,  Shimonoscki,  and  Waka- 
matsu,  whilst  at  the  latter  place  they  have  a 
coke  manufacturing  plant. 

Mr.  K.  Nakano,  the  President  and  General 
Manager,  enjoys  an  enviable  reputation  in 
Japan,  and  is  a  committee  member  of  the 
Coal  Merchants'  Guild  of  Kyushu.  He  is 
also  interested  in  the  ferry  companies  that 
ply  between  the  two  ports  of  Mogi  and 
Shimonoscki,  and  is  the  founder  of  the  New 
Mercantile  Steamship  Company,  which  will 
shortly  commence  operations.  Mr.  S.  Na- 
kano, brother  of  the  above  named  gentleman, 
is  a  partner,  active  as  Vice-President  and 
Assistant  Manager. 

NAKAMURA  &  CO.,  LIMITED 
Perhaps  one  of  the  most  interesting 
figures  in  the  high  commercial  circles  of 
Japan  to-day  is  Mr.  S.  Nakamura,  President 
of  the  Kabushiki  Kaisha  Nakamura  Gumi, 
or  Nakamura  &  Co.,  Ltd.  Mr.  Nakamura 
figures  prominently  amongst  those  fortunate 
individuals  who,  having  taken  opportunity 
firmly  by  the  forelock,  find  themselves  pos- 
sessed of  more  millions  of  yen  than  they,  in 
the  majority  of  cases,  know  exactly  what  to 
do  with.  Mr.  Nakamura  is  not,  however,  a 
narikin,"  the  term  which  is  apphed  in 
Japan  to  the  more  recent  of  the  millionaires. 
A  glance  at  his  most  interesting  career  will 
show  that  Mr.  Nakamura  is  one  of  the  sound- 
est business  men,  and  that  the  foundation  of 
his  great  success  and  fortune  was  laid  long 
before  the  war. 

Under  the  business  title  of  the  Goshi 
Kwaisha  Nakamura  Gumi,  the  original  firm 
came  into  existence  in  1904  with  the  very 
small  capital  of  Yen  150,  and,  it  may  be 
assumed  from  results,  a  large  fund  of  deter- 
mination. The  firm  started  operations  in 
Manchuria,  while  the  war  with  Russia  was 
still  raging,  the  business  comprising  the 
chartering  of  lighters  and  freight  transpor- 
tation for  the  Government.  There  was  then 
a  small  office  in  a  single  room  at  Dairen. 
From  such  a  small  start  Mr.  Nakamura  went 
on  in  the  transportation  business,  steadily 
progressing,  and  strengthening  his  position, 
investing  profits  in  the  business,  and  develop- 
ing an  organisation  ready  to  cope  with  any 
commercial  situation.  Space  does  not  per- 
mit of  our  dealing  with  the  successive  steps 
taken  by  the  firm.  Suffice  it  to  say  that 
prior  to  the  outbreak  of  the  European  War 
Mr.  Nakamura  was  running  steamers  of  his 
own,  and  the  success  which  enabled  him  to 
establish  the  present  company,  with  a  capital 
of  Yen  6,000,000,  and  to  embark  on  many 
other  enterprises  involving  a  much  larger 
amount  of  capital,  was  merely  the  result  of 


the  foundations  so  firmly  laid  in  the  past. 
At  the  time  of  writing  Nakamura  &  Co., 
Ltd.,  have  about  nine  vessels  in  service,  but 
the  building  programme  provides  for  a 
number  of  new  steamers,  which  will  bring 
the  total  of  the  fleet  up  to  about  38,000  tons 
by  March,  1918.  Some  of  the  new  steamers 
are  being  constructed  in  the  company's 
own  yard,  recently  established  at  Chin- 
nampo.  Chosen.     At  present  the   operations 


uiKin  him  obligations  of  a  public  nature, 
which  hi-  meets  in  a  whole-hearted  manner, 
hoping  to  be  able  to  inspire  other  men  of 
wealth  to  emulate  his  example.  The  port 
of  Hakata,  some  fifty  miles  southwest  of 
Moji,  is  the  scene  of  one  of  Mr.  Nakamura's 
most  interesting  public  undertakings.  The 
work  in  hand  comprises  the  construction  of 
a  harbour  which  will  involve  the  outlay  of 
Yen  40,000,000,  the  work  to  take  a  number 


A    STREET    SCENE    IN    MOJI 


of  this  yard  are  restrictetl  to  the  construction 
of  steamers  up  to  about  1,000  tons,  but  this 
limit  will  naturally  be  raised  witliin  a  reason- 
able period  and  upon  the  installation  of  the 
plant  now  on  order.  At  the  Moji  and  other 
branches  the  company  undertakes  the  coal 
business,  the  volume  of  trade  being  about 
1,000,000  tons  per  annum. 

Mr.  Nakamura  is  now  establishing  a  de- 
partment for  general  import  and  export 
business,  and  is  sending  a  representative  to 
Europe  who  will  make  the  necessary  foreign 
connections  to  ensure  the  success  of  this  new 
enterprise.  Branch  offices  are  established 
at  Keijo,  Heijo  (or  Pinyan),  Chinnampo, 
which  is  the  present  head  office,  Wakamatsu, 
Osaka,  Tokyo,  and  Kobe.  In  the  latter  port 
very  commodious  and  imposing  office  prem- 
ises have  been  purchased,  and  by  the  time 
this  volume  is  issued,  the  company's  head 
office  will  have  been  removed  from  Chin- 
nampo to  the  new  building  at  Kobe. 

It  is  Mr.  Nakamura's  conviction  that  the 
acquisition  of  his  huge  fortune  has  imposed 


of  years.  Mr.  Nakamura  formed  a  special 
company  for  this  undertaking,  and  took 
up  a  large  majority  of  the  shares  in  the 
capital  of  Yen  3,000,000.  The  first  part  of 
the  undertaking  calls  for  an  expenditure  of 
Yen  5,000,000.  Additional  capital  will  be 
raised  as  required.  The  inauguration  cere- 
mony of  the  first  stage  of  the  work  wiU  take 
place  in  October,  1 91 8,  and  the  second  stage 
will,  in  all  probability,  see  completion  with 
the  end  of  192 1.  Dredging  operations  are  now 
in  progress,  and  the  harbour  will  accommo- 
date ships  of  5,000  tons  to  begin  with.  A 
small  scale  dockyard  for  repair  work  has 
been  installed.  This  will  be  sufficient  to  meet 
all  requirements  in  the  immediate  future, 
but  it  can  be  enlarged  as  occasion  demands. 
As  a  port,  Hakata,  located  between  Moji 
and  Nagasaki,  in  spite  of  its  100,000  inhabi- 
tants, and  the  very  great  natural  advantages 
which  inspired  Mr.  Nakamura  to  undertake 
its  development,  has  no  great  commercial 
importance  to-day.  The  development  of 
Kyushu  Island,  which  the  Government  con- 


NAKAMLRA   &   CO.,    LTD.:     IRON   WORKS   AND   SHIP   YARD    AT   CHINNAMPO,   CHOSEN — ^SMOKELESS   CO.\L   LOADING   DEPOT   AT   CHINNAMPO- 
OFFICES   AT   MOJI  —  TYPE   OF   THE   COMPANY'S    STE.\MERS  —  OFFICES    AT   TOKYO  —  OFFICES    AT    KOBE 


^^ 


1  ■ 

1 

Sj 

+ 

1 

n 

J 

FOUR  VIEWS  OF  THE  HARBOUR  WORKS  AT  HAKATA 


8o4 


PRESENT-DAV   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


templates,  the  establishment  of  new  indus- 
tries and  the  exploitation  of  the  mineral 
resources,  are  what  Mr.  Nakamura  has  in 
mind,  but  it  will  be  understood  that  under 
the  most  favourable  conditions,  and  even 
given  times  of  phenomenal  development,  this 
gentleman  will  have  long  to  wait  before  there 
is  even  the  smallest  return  on  the  enormous 
sum  of  capital  invested.  The  element  of 
risk  is  so  great  that  the  scheme  would  not 
attract  any  capitalist  who  was  not  inspired 
with  the  highest  ideals,  and  the  utmost 
confidence  in  the  future  greatness  of  Japan. 
Another  project  which  Mr.  Nakamura 
has  taken  up  in  a  pubUc  spirit  is  the  estab- 
lishment of  a  large  experimental  chemical 
laboratory,  which  he  has  endowed  with  Yen 
3,000,000  for  ten  years.  Impressed  with  the 
difficulties  under  which  research  work  has 
been  carried  out  in  Japan,  Mr.  Nakamura 
established  this  laboratory,  which  is  specially 
equipped  in  all  details.  It  is  divided  into 
six  departments  of  investigation,  each  under 
the  direction  of  a  scientist  who  has  graduated 
from  Tokyo  or  some  other  University,  as- 
sisted   by    keenly    interested    students    and 


graduates.  The  results  of  the  work  done  in 
this  laboratory  will  be  developed  com- 
mercially. 

Throughout  his  business  operations,  Mr. 
Nakamura  employs  about  four  hundred 
clerks  and  a  much  larger  nimibcr  of  labourers. 
Apart  from  the  undertakings  already  men- 
tioned, the  principal  of  the  company  has 
many  other  interests  in  Japan  and  abroad, 
among  which  may  be  mentioned  rubber 
estates  in  the  Malay  peninsula.  It  will  not 
be  necessary  to  add  that  there  are  few  more 
alert  or  energetic  personalities  in  Japan 
to-day  than  Mr.  S.   Nakamura. 

YAMASHITA  COAL  CO.,  LTD.,  MOJI 
No  name  is  better  known  throughout  Jap- 
anese shipping  circles,  or  in  connection  with 
the  coal  trade,  than  that  of  Mr.  Yamashita, 
whose  interests  are  very  extensive.  Mr. 
Yamashita  has  been  engaged  in  the  coal  trade 
for  close  on  a  quarter  of  a  century,  and  his 
position  in  the  shipping  industry  is  equally  as 
pronounced.  The  Yamashita  Coal  Co.,  Ltd., 
is  one  of  the  concerns  under  his  control,  and 
the  extent  of  its  operations  are  so  great  that 


it  is  rightly  considered  the  leader  in  thj  entire 
business  in  the  East.  The  company  controls 
seven  collieries  in  Japan,  the  output  of  which 
is  noted  for  its  excellent  quahty  for  steam  and 
general  purposes,  and  for  its  moderate  price. 
The  Yamashita  Coal  Co.,  Ltd.,  engages 
extensively  in  coaling  operations  not  only  at 
Moji,  but  at  various  other  ports,  where  ships 
are  supplied  with  bunkers,  or  cargoes  are 
loaded  for  export.  It  may  well  be  imagined 
that  a  company  with  such  a  lengthy  experi- 
ence in  the  trade  is  in  a  position  to  load  and 
discharge  coal  with  great  rapidity.  The  plant 
employed  is  second  to  none,  and  the  company 
takes  pride  in  the  satisfaction  which  has  been 
expressed  in  shipping  circles  generally  over 
the  work  carried  out  under  contract.  The 
head  office  of  the  company  is  at  No.  22 
Gofukucho,  Tokyo.  The  Moji  branch  office 
is  at  Higashi  Hon-cho,  Shichome,  Moji,  and 
is  under  the  management  of  Mr.  S.  Nakai. 
There  are  also  branches  at  Yokohama,  Osaka, 
Wakamatsu,  Otaru,  Nagoya,  Naoyetsu,  and 
Muroran.  The  cable  address  of  the  company 
is  "Yamashita,"  codes  used  being  A.  I.,  and 
A.  B.  C.  .sth  Edition. 


YAMASHITA   COAL    COMPANY,    LIMITED:      S.    S.    "NAM    SANti,"    LOADING    A    CARGO   OF   CO.\L    FOR   THE    BRITISH    ADMIRALTY — ■ 

THE   firm's    proposed    NEW   OFFICES   .\T   MOJI 


ENTRANCE  TO  NAGASAKI  HARBOUR 


XLVIII.    The  City  of  Nagasaki 


IN  one  sense  Nagasaki  should  be  better 
known  to  the  Western  world  than  any 
other  city  in  Japan,  for  it  was  one  of  the 
earliest  ports  visited  by  foreigners  and  the 
only  place  in  which  they  were  allowed  to 
settle  and  trade  after  Japan  was  isolated  in 
the  seventeenth  century.  The  small  fishing 
village  that  for  centuries  occupied  the  fore- 
shore now  represented  by  the  imposing 
waterfront  of  Nagasaki  began  to  assume  the 
proportions  of  a  growing  town  when  Yoritomo 
granted  to  Nagasaki  Kataro  the  valley  known 
as  Fukae-no-ura  in  the  thirteenth  century, 
the  town  that  emerged  taking  the  name  of  its 
master.  Situated  on  a  narrow  bay  indenting 
a  peninsula  which  juts  out  from  the  southern 
part  of  the  island  of  Kyushu,  and  surrounded 
on  three  sides  by  steep,  green  hills,  no  more 
beautiful  site  for  a  city  could  be  imagined. 
The  area  of  the  valley  where  the  settlement 
lies  is  about  six  square  miles  in  extent.  The 
harbour  is  an  ideal  one,  deep  and  well  shel- 
tered, affording  safe  anchorage  to  shipping  of 
all  sizes,  and  proving  a  place  of  refuge  to  many 
a  storm-driven  vessel  escaping  from  distress 
in  the  typhoon-swept  waters  of  the  south. 
It  was  under  stress  of  weather  that  the  first 
foreign  ship  visited  Nagasaki,  a  Portuguese 
merchant  vessel  which  sailed  into  the  harbour 
in  the  year  1570,  remained  for  a  time  trading 
with  the  people,  and  was  so  pleased  with 
the  results  that  subsequently  repeated  visits 
were  made  by  foreign  ships  bent  on  trade. 
After  Nagasaki  became  a  regular  port  of  call 
for  Portuguese  ships  trading  in  the  Far  East, 


the  Spanish  found  it  out  and  began  to  arrive, 
and  in  time  the  Dutch  and  English,  the  latter 
establishing  their  "factory"  at  Hirado,  some 
distance  away. 

In  Nagasaki  the  Jesuit  fathers  found  their 
earliest  and  most  loyal  converts  to  the 
Christain  faith,  and  when  the  banner  of  bar- 
barous persecution  was  later  unfurled  against 
the  disciples  of  the  Nazarene,  the  Nagasaki 
members  of  the  Church  showed  themselves  to 
be  of  the  stuff  of  which  martyrs  are  made, 
many  of  them,  men,  women,  and  children, 
going  gladly  to  crucifixion  rather  than  trample 
on  the  cross  as  a  sign  of  their  retraction  of 
their  new-found  faith.  The  monuments  of  this 
persecution  may  still  be  seen  in  the  Roman 
Catholic  Cathedral  at  Nagasaki.  And  that 
the  blood  of  the  martyrs  was  in  this  case,  at 
least,  the  seed  of  the  Church,  may  be  seen 
from  the  fact  that  nearly  300  years  after  the 
faith  was  supposed  to  have  been  completely 
eradicated  from  the  soil  of  Japan,  Christians 
were  still  found  at  the  village  of  Urakami, 
near  Nagasaki,  when  the  missionaries  return- 
ed in  response  to  the  opening  of  Japan  to 
foreign  intercourse  in  the  nineteenth  century. 

Before  the  outbreak  of  persecution,  how- 
ever, the  foreigners  at  Nagasaki  did  a  pros- 
perous trade,  and  the  feudal  lord  of  the 
district  did  not  hesitate  to  traffic  with  them, 
even  to  the  borrowing  of  large  sums  of  money, 
which  afterwards  he  proved  unable  to  repay. 
The  daimyo  of  the  time  had  constant  conflicts 
with  one  another,  and  money  was  necessary 
to  their  numerous  military  campaigns.     As 


the  foreigners  were  the  only  source  of  foreign 
arms  and  ammunition,  they  were  doubly 
welcomed  by  the  warriors  and  their  services 
often  sought  in  equipping  military  forces. 
When  the  daimyo  of  Nagasaki  was  unable  to 
meet  his  financial  obUgations  incurred  with 
the  foreigners,  he  conceded  them  favours  in 
regard  to  trade  instead,  together  with  rights 
to  carry  on  religious  propaganda.  About 
these  latter  the  Buddhists  raised  such  a  storm 
of  opposition  that  later  a  petition  from  the 
officials  at  Nagasaki  asked  Hideyoshi,  then 
the  veritable  ruler  of  the  country,  to  prohibit 
the  foreign  religion.  This  is  regarded  by 
some  as  the  beginning  of  the  official  aversion 
to  the  Christian  religion  in  Japan,  but  the 
causes  must  not  be  forgotten.  These  the 
Japanese  assert  to  have  been  the  suspicion 
raised  by  the  foreigners  as  to  the  motives  of 
their  countries  in  sending  them  to  Japan, 
which  were  believed  to  be  political  and  a 
menace  to  the  independence  of  the  Empire. 
It  can  not  be  overlooked,  however,  that  the  first 
petition  against  the  new  religion  from  Naga- 
saki was  due  to  Buddhist  jealousy  and  to  the 
debts  which  the  feudal  lord  was  unable  to  meet, 
while  Hideyoshi's  ready  response  to  the  appeal 
and  his  subsequent  launching  of  cruel  per- 
secutions must  be  ascribed  in  a  large  meas- 
ure, not  so  much  to  religious  convictions, 
as  to  his  hatred  of  the  missionaries  who 
opposed  the  nefarious  traffic  of  his  agents  in 
trj'ing  to  collect  among  the  Christian  families 
beautiful  girls  for  his  harem.  Although 
Hideyoshi  forbade  the  teaching  of  Christianity 


52 


8o6 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


at  Nagasaki,  the  believers  continued  to 
increase,  and  the  more  they  increased  the 
more  sternly  did  they  refuse  to  insult  the 
crucifix.  On  one  occasion  Hideyoshi  had  25 
leading  Christians,  13  Japanese  and  12  for- 
eigners, marched  through  the  country-  under 
appalling  agony  and  then  publicly  cnicified 
at  Nagasaki  as  a  warning  to  the  faithful. 
But  all  this  proved  to  no  purpose,  for  the  new 
religion  had  taken  root  and  continued  to  grow 
until  after  more  than  a  hundred  years  of  the 
most  persistent  and  cruel  persecution  the  last 
Christian  was  supposed  to  have  been  swept 
from  Japanese  soil. 

While  the  authorities  at  Nagasaki  had  such 
an  aversion  to  the  religion  of  the  foreigners, 
for  the  reasons  just  given,  on  the  other  hand 
they  did  all  they  could  to  encourage  foreign 
trade.  By  the  year  1613  we  find  that  as 
many  as  120  European  vessels  entered  the 
port  of  Nagasaki  annually.  As  foreigners 
were  banished  from  other  parts  of  Japan  in 
the  middle  of  the  seventeenth  century  they 
began  to  settle  in  Nagasaki,  most  of  them 
Portuguese,  Spanish,  and  Dutch.  The  latter, 
unable  to  endure  the  keen  competition  that 
rose  with  the  others,  circulated  all  sorts  of 
defamatory  stories  about  the  Spanish  and 
Portuguese  and  their  countries,  w-hich  the 
Japanese  authorities  came  in  time  to  believe, 
until  this  and  the  religious  propaganda  of  the 
missionaries  became  an  excuse  for  banishing 
all  foreigners  from  Japan  except  the  Dutch 
and  Chinese,  the  former  being  subjected  to 
the  most  humiliating  conditions  in  their  con- 
finement to  the  little  island  of  Deshima  at 
Nagasaki.  As  the  Christians  refused  to 
abandon  their  religion  after  the  banishment 
of  their  leaders,  the  persecution  waxed  radi- 
cally severe,  and  in  1637  they  arose  in  rebel- 
lion, taking  refuge  in  a  castle  at  Shimabara 
not  far  from  Nagasaki,  but  they  were  finally 
subdued  and  put  to  the  sword.  In  the  Dutch 
settlement  at  Nagasaki  there   were  always 


H.\MANO-MACHI,    PRINCIPAL    SHOPPING 
THOROUGHFARE    OF    NAGASAKI 

men  of  some  scientific  attainments,  like 
Kcempfer  and  von  Siebold,  who  did  much  to 
make  Japan  known  in  Europe,  while  the  more 
intelligent  of  the  Japanese  used  the  Dutch 
"factory"  as  a  window  through  which  they 
might  see  Europe  and  obtain  something  of 
Western  knowledge.  It  is  not  too  much  to  say 
that  during  the  two  hundred  years  of  Japan's 
isolation  from  the  Western  world,  she  received 
sufficient  of  Occidental  knowledge  through 
the  Dutch  at  Nagasaki  to  prepare  her  in  some 
measure  for  the  subsequent  opening  of  the 
country  to  modern  civilisation  and  inter- 
course. Indeed,  there  is  no  city  in  Japan 
that  has  had  a  greater  influence  on  the  civili- 
sation of  the  country  than  Nagasaki,  having 
Ijeen  for  centuries  the  one  opening  through 
which  a  knowledge  of  science,  art,  and  civili- 
sation could  filter  in  from  China  and  the 
nations  of  the  West. 

The  principal  articles  of  trade  during  the 
Dutch  occupancy  of  Deshima  were  European 
textiles,  especially  woollen  blankets  and  other 
cloths,  sugar,  medicines,  cinnabar,  hides, 
leather,  and  perfumes,  to  say  nothing  of 
muskets,  cannon,  and  powder;  while  the  chief 
items  of  export  were  dried  fish  to  China, 
especially  beche-de-mer,  awabi,  and  sharks'  fins, 
as    well    as    ginseng    and    earthenware.     To 


Europe  went  porcelain,  silk,  gold  and  lacquer 
ware.  During  the  period  of  seclusion  the 
people  of  Nagasaki  longed  for  greater  liberties 
in  regard  to  foreign  trade,  but  the  authorities 
were  adamant,  and  no  Japanese  ship  was 
allowed  to  navigate  the  high  seas  or  touch  at 
a  foreign  port.  Any  one  attempting  to  go 
abroad  was  immediately  decapitated.  Such 
was  the  state  of  affairs  when,  in  1804,  a 
Russian  frigate  one  day  suddenly  sailed  into 
Nagasaki  harbour  without  leave  or  license; 
and  in  1808  a  British  gunboat  followed  a 
Dutch  ship  into  Nagasaki,  England  being 
then  at  war  with  Holland.  Prom  this  time 
foreign  ships  began  to  appear  along  the  coasts 
of  Japan  with  impunity,  though  some  of  the 
sailors  cast  away  on  the  shores  of  the  country 
were  cruelly  treated,  leading  the  American 
Government  to  despatch  a  mission  under 
Commodore  Perry,  in  1853,  to  demand  a 
treaty  of  comity  and  intercourse,  which  he 
succeeded  in  doing,  and  then  Japan  and 
Nagasaki  were  once  more  open  to  the 
world. 

After  the  opening  of  the  country  the  chief 
centre  of  foreign  trade  was  at  Yokohama  and 
later  at  Kobe,  so  that  the  commercial  progress 
of  Nagasaki  was  somewhat  slow.  When  the 
Imperial  Government  established  a  custom 
house  at  Nagasaki  in  1873  the  progress  of 
trade  became  more  marked,  though  it  never 
assumed  a  position  of  abnormal  importance, 
as  in  recent  years  Nagasaki  has  not  been  able 
to  hold  its  own  against  ports  like  Moji  and 
Shimonoseki.  During  the  wars  with  China 
and  Russia  there  was,  however,  a  remarkable 
expansion  of  trade  and  great  activity  in 
munitions  at  Nagasaki,  which,  of  course, 
could  not  be  expected  to  continue.  As  trade 
began  to  withdraw  to  more  conveniently 
situated  ports,  the  population  also  declined. 
Ten  years  ago  the  population  of  Nagasaki 
was  173,000;  now  it  is  not  more  than 
162,000,     including    some     1,200    foreigners. 


TWO   ASPECTS   OF    THE    PORT    AND    HARBOUR    OF    NAGASAKI 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


807 


A    BEAUTIFUL    EUROPEAN    RESIDENCE    AT    NAGASAKI 

The  following    table  shows  the  progress   of      more   than  1,200   hands   being   available  on 
trade  at  an  inter\-al  of  five  years:  short   notice,   capable   of   putting   on   board 


Year 

Exports 

Imports 

Total 

Yen 

Yen 

Yen 

1910 
19 1 5 

3.303,959 
4,639,673 

8,918,907 
7,829,518 

12,222,866 
12,469,191 

It  may  be  said  that  at  present  Nagasaki  is 
just  holding  its  own  in  trade  and  no  more. 
The  principal  exports  are  dried  fish  of  various 
kinds,  rice,  sweet  potatoes,  mushrooms,  tea, 
coal,  charcoal,  wax  and  vegetable  oil,  paper 
and  porcelain,  while  imports  are  for  the  most 
part  cereals,  beans,  cotton,  petroleum,  iron, 
and  machinery. 

Industrially,  Nagasaki  must  remain  an 
important  section  of  the  Japanese  Empire, 
for  the  sake  of  the  great  Mitsubishi  Dock- 
yards and  for  the  immense  coal  mines  in  the 
vicinity,  if  for  no  other  reason.  The  docks 
and  shipbuilding  yards  of  the  Mitsubishi  Com- 
pany are  described  elsewhere  in  this  volume 
and  need  not  receive  extended  notice  here. 
It  is  sufficient  to  say  that  they  can  accom- 
modate the  largest  steamers ;  and  the  biggest 
battleships  and  merchant  vessels  have  been 
launched  from  the  Mitsubishi  yards,  more 
than  10,000  skilled  mechanics  being  employed 
in  the  works.  At  the  mouth  of  Nagasaki 
harbour  are  the  famous  Takashima  mines, 
producing  an  immense  tonnage  annually,  and 
supplying  the  more  than  6,500,000  tons  of 
shipping  that  annually  enter  the  port  of 
Nagasaki,  as  well  as  exporting  large  quan- 
tities. The  coaUng  of  ships  is  done  by  women 
passing  small  baskets  from  hand   to  hand, 


about  640  tons  an  hour.  The  sight  is  indeed 
something  to  see. 

In  domestic  industries  of  various  kinds  the 
Nagasaki  folk  are  noted  for  their  skill  and 
craftsmanship.  One  of  the  most  famous 
products  of  the  place  is  tortoise-shell  ware, 
the  raw  material  being  imported  from  the 
southern  seas.  In  this  ware  such  articles  as 
cigar  and  cigarette  cases,  toilet  boxes,  hair- 
pins, combs,  ship-models,  and  toys  are  turned 
out  in  great  quantities  and  are  masterpieces 
of  art.  Embroidery  is  another  art  in  which 
Nagasaki  excels,  while  the  lacquer  ware, 
umbrellas,  and  fans  made  there  have  a  large 
sale. 

As  a  city  of  pleasure  and  beauty,  Nagasaki 
ranks  high  among  the  resorts  of  Japan. 
People  from  China,  India,  and  the  Philippines 
frequently  take  refuge  there  in  the  hot  season, 
as  the  climate  is  mild  the  year  around,  never 
suffering  from  extremes  of  temperature.  The 
average  temperature  at  the  port  is  15.7  above 
zero  Centigrade,  the  maximum  being  36.7 
above,  and  the  minimum  5.2  below  zero. 
The  winding,  hilly  streets  of  many  parts  of 
the  town  are  inconvenient  to  the  delicate  and 
the  aged,  but  add  greatly  to  the  picturesque- 
ness  and  beauty  of  the  situation  and  outlook. 
Tramways  and  motor  car  services,  however. 


relieve  the  pedestrian  of  the  strenuous  exer- 
tions of  the  old  days,  while  there  is  railway 
and  steamboat  communication  with  every 
part  of  the  Empire.  There  are  also  good 
foreign  hotels  for  the  accommodation  of  those 
making  a  long  stay.  The  city  is  well  lighted 
by  electricity  and  kept  in  a  good  state  of 
sanitation,  while  a  modern  waterworks  system 
supplies  the  inhabitants  with  pure  mountain 
water.  The  great  banks  are  well  represented, 
the  most  important  being  the  Yokohama 
Specie  Bank,  the  Hongkong  &  Shanghai 
Banking  Corporation,  and  the  Japanese 
banks.  The  city  is  well  provided  with  educa- 
tional institutions,  having  a  Government 
Higher  .School  of  Commerce,  a  city  commer- 
cial school,  with  secondary  and  primary 
schools  for  both  sexes,  to  say  nothing  of  two 
fine  mission  colleges  for  men  and  women. 

The  historical  associations  of  an  old  city 
like  Nagasaki  are  too  numerous  for  extended 
notice.  One  of  the  most  famous  places  is 
Osuwa  Temple  on  the  heights  overlooking  the 
city,  possessing  relics  associating  it  with  the 
persecutions  of  the  Christians.  The  Kunichi 
Odori,  or  Nine  Days'  Dance,  is  a  festival 
peculiar  to  this  temple  and  wonderful  to 
behold.  The  Roman  Catholic  cathedral  in 
Nagasaki  and  the.  church  at  Urakami  are 
interesting  objects,  bringing  back  memories 
of  the  past.  There  are  few  cities  that  have 
more  charming  environments  and  walks  than 
Nagasaki.  The  trip  over  to  Mogi  is  one 
abounding  in  landscape  scenes  one  can  never 
forget.  Across  the  Bay  of  Shimabara  is  the 
Unsen  Spa,  where  many  spend  the  summer 
months,  with  the  great  volcano  dominating 
all.  One  inconvenience  to  travellers  is  that 
Nagasaki  lies  in  a  military  zone  and  photo- 


8o8 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


HOLME,    RINGER    &    CO.:    THE    OFFICES    AT    NAGASAKI  —  THE    FIRM's    PRIVATE    LAUNCH 


graphing  or  sketching  will  get  into  trouble 
those  who  insist  on  picturing  their  impressions. 

HOLME,  RINGER  &  CO. 
To  the  traveller  and  merchant  of  the  Far 
East  the  name  of  Holme,  Ringer  is  almost 
synonymous  for  that  of  the  port,  so  intimately 
associated  is  its  history  with  Nagasaki. 
The  firm  will  celebrate  its  fiftieth  anniversary 
on  November  and  of  this  year  (1918),  and 
has,  therefore,  the  unique  record  of  being 
the  sole  representative  of  foreign  trade  in 
this  centre  for  half  a  century,  during  which 
period  it  has  been  connected  with  the  various 
progressive  commercial  and  industrial  move- 
ments to  a  most  interesting  degree,  and, 
indeed,  is  responsible  for  the  inception  of 
many.  As  an  example,  it  is  interesting  to 
note  that  the  firm  started  the  whaling  indus- 
try of  Japan,  and  fifteen  years  later  operated 
the  first  steam  trawler  equipped  with  harpoon 
guns,  etc.  Messrs.  Holme,  Ringer  were  so 
successful  in  this  business  that  it  was  not 
long  before  a  large  number  of  small  whaling 
companies  came  into  existence,  which  through 
over-competition  were  forced  to  amalgamate 


into  the  present  Oriental  Whaling  Co.  of 
Osaka,  described  elsewhere  in  this  volume. 

A  considerable  quantity  of  tea  was  at  one 
time  exported  by  this  firm,  which  fact  is  of 
interest  when  it  is  remembered  that  the  first 
tea  exported  from  Japan  went  through  Naga- 
saki. 

Prior  to  the  war,  Messrs.  Holme,  Ringer 
&  Co.  carried  large  stocks  of  Cardiff  coal 
for  supplying  steamers.  This  business  is 
still  carried  on  extensively  with  the  use  of 
the  local  output. 

The  firm's  business  premises  at  Nagasaki 
are  located  on  the  Bund  and  cover  a  con- 
siderable area.  The  offices  and  godowns  are 
excellently  appointed  and  employ  a  staff' 
of  about  fifty  clerks  in  the  various  depart- 
ments, which  comprise  Banking,  Insurance, 
Shipping,  Coaling,  Import,  Exports,  Real 
Estate,  etc.  Branches  are  estal^lished  at 
Shimonoseki  and  Fusan  and  a  short,  interest- 
ing article  on  the  former  appears  in  connec- 
tion with  the  description  of  the  Port  of 
Shimonoseki. 

The  following  list  of  well  known  firms  for 
which  Messrs.  Holme,  Ringer  &  Co.  act  as 


agents  will  serve  as  an  index  to  the  important 
position  this  house  occupies  not  alone  in 
Japanese,  but  in  Far  Eastern  trade: 

Banque  de  I'lndo-Chine;  Chartered  Bank 
of  India,  Australia,  and  China;  Comptoir 
National  d'Escompte  de  Paris;  Thos.  Cook 
&  Sons;  International  Banking  Corporation; 
National  Bank  of  China ;  Deutsche  Asiatische 
Bank.  {Steamship  companies):  American  Asi- 
atic S.  S.  Co.;  American  and  Oriental  Line; 
Auchen  Steam  Shipping  Co.,  Ltd.;  Barber 
&  Co.'s  Line  of  steamers;  Charles  Barrie  & 
Son  (Den  Line,  etc.);  Ben  Line  of  steamers; 
British  India  Steam  Navigation  Co. ;  Burrell 
&-  Son  (Strath  Line);  Canadian  Pacific 
Railway  Co.'s  S.  S.  Line;  China  Mutual 
Steam  Navigation  Co.,  Ltd.;  China  Navi- 
gation Company,  Ltd.;  Compania  Trans- 
atlantica;  Compania  Genl.  de  Tabacos  de 
Filipinas;  East  Asiatic  vSteamship  Co.; 
Eastern  and  Australian  S.  S.  Co.;  Camillo 
Eitzen  &  Co.;  H.  Fredriksen;  Furness, 
Withy  &  Co..  Ltd.  (Gulf  Line);  Gow, 
Harrison  &  Co.;  Greenshields,  Covvie  &  Co. 
(Knight  Line);  Houlder,  Middleton  &  Co.; 
M.  Jebsen;  MenzeU  &  Co.;   Cie  des  Messager- 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


809 


ies   Maritimes;     Mogul    Line    of    Steamers; 
Northern  S.  S.  Co.,  Ltd.   (St.  Petersburg); 
Ocean   Steamship   Co.,    Ltd.;     Pacific   Mail 
Steamship    Co.;     Peninsular    and    Oriental 
S.    N.    Co.;     Prince    Line,    Ltd.;     Rankin, 
Gilmour  &   Co.,   Ltd.;    Royal  Mail   Steam 
Packet    Co.;     Russian    East    Asiatic    Co.; 
Russian  Steam  Navigation  &  Trading  Co.; 
Shire    Line   of    Steamers,    Ltd.;     Steamship 
Co.  "Ocean,"  Ltd.  (Odessa);   G.  M.  Steeves 
&   Co.;     Swedish   East   Asiatic   Co.;     Toyo 
Kisen  Kaisha,  Ltd.;    Turner,  Brightman  & 
Co.;    John  Warrack  &   Co.;    Watts,  Watts 
&  Co.,  Ltd.;   Andrew  Weir  &  Co.'s  Lines  of 
steamers  (Bank  Line,  etc.);   West  Hartlepool 
S.    N.    Co.,    Ltd.      (Insurance    companies): 
Aachen  Munich  Fire  Insurance  Co.;    Baloise 
Transport   Insurance   Co.,   Ltd.;    Board   of 
Underwriters  of  New  York;    China  Mutual 
Life  Insurance  Co.,  Ltd.;   Commercial  Union 
Assurance  Co.,  Ltd.;    Equitable  Life  Assur- 
ance Society  of  U.  S.  A.;    Helvetia  General 
Insurance  Co.,  Ltd.;    Law  Union  Insiu-ance 
Co.,  Ltd.;    Liverpool  Underwriters  Associa- 
tion;    Lloyds    (London);     London    Salvage 
Association;  Mannheim  Insurance  Company; 
Marine   Insurance   Co.;     Marine   Insurance 
Co.  of  Liverpool;    National  Board  of  Marine 
Underwriters,  N.  Y.;    Neuchateloise  Trans- 
port  Insurance   Co.,    Ltd.;    Nordische  Ver- 
sichenmgs-Gesellschaft;     North   British   and 
Mercantile  Ins.  Co.;   North  China  Insurance 
Co.;      Norwich    Union    Insurance    Society; 
Royal     E,\change    Assurance     Corporation; 
Royal   Insurance  Co. ;     S.   British   Fire  and 
Marine  Insurance  Co.,  N.  Z.;   Sun  Insurance 
Office;    Swiss  National  Insurance  Co.,  Ltd.; 
Switzerland    General    Insurance    Co.,    Ltd.; 
Tokyo  Marine  Insurance  Co.     Ltd.;   Union 
Insiu-ance  Society  of  Canton,  Ltd.;  Yangtze 
Insurance  Association,  Ltd. 

The  present  partners  are  Mr.  Sydney 
Ringer,  the  senior  partner,  who  is  in  charge  of 
the  business  at  Nagasaki,  and  Mr.  Frederick 
Ringer,  who  travels  considerably  in  the 
interests  of  the  firm.  Mr.  S.  Ringer  is  a 
graduate  of  St.  Paul's  College,  London,  and 
Mr.  F.  Ringer  of  the  Edinburgh  Academy. 
Both  gentlemen  are  keenly  interested  in  sport. 

Messrs.  Holme,  Ringer  are  the  owners  of  a 
number  of  lighters,  also  fine  steam  and 
electric  launches.  They  are  large  holders 
of  both  business  and  residential  property  in 
Nagasaki  and  it  may  be  added  that  the  firm 
is  the  centre  of  those  organisations  which 
have  given  this  small  community  so  honour- 
able a  position  amongst  the  supporters  of 
war  charities. 


.t 


■-«.■-!■    . 


HEAD    OFFICE    OF    THE    EIGHTEENTH    B.\NK,    LTD.,    NAGASAKI 


was  founded  in  1872,  or  within  a  few  years 
of  the  organisation  of  the  national  finance, 
and  was  the  first  institution  of  its  kind  in 
Kyushu. 

Naturally,  it  was  some  time  before  the 
bank  took  its  present  form;  at  its  inception 
amounting  to  little  more  than  a  general  loan 
business,  the  whole  of  the  capital  of  Yen 
50,000  being  subscribed  by  the  late  Messrs. 
Matsuda  and  Nagami  (the  latter  gentleman's 
place  being  taken  at  his  death  by  his  son, 
Mr.  K.  Nagami,  now  the  President  of  the 
institution).  The  founders,  it  may  be  ob- 
served, showed  considerable  courage  and 
enterprise,  as  it  was  no  unusual  thing  in  those 
early  days  for  the  Government  to  arbitrarily 
requisition  money  wherever  it  could  be  found, 
in  addition  to  which  there  was  no   law   of 


any  description  protecting  wealth,  hence 
merchants  made  it  a  rule  to  hide  their 
savings,  well  satisfied  if  they  could  retain  the 
principal. 

In  1877  the  concern  assumed  the  title  of 
the  Eighteenth  National  Bank,  and  in  the 
twenty  years  that  followed  the  development 
continued  steadily,  new  shares  being  issued 
until,  in  1897,  the  capital  stood  at  Yen 
1,000,000.  At  this  stage  it  was  decided  to 
alter  the  name  of  the  bank  to  the  Eighteenth 
Bank,  Ltd.  In  the  next  two  years  rapid 
progress  was  witnessed  and  the  capital 
doubled,  whilst  in  1906  a  further  augmenta- 
tion raised  it  to  Yen  3,000,000. 

To-day  the  capital  of  the  bank  is  Yen 
5,000,000,  and  the  sphere  of  its  operations 
has  been  greatly  increased  by  the  establish- 


THE    EIGHTEENTH    B.\NK,    LI.MITED 
(kABUSHIKI  kaisha  Jl'HACHI  GINKO) 

The  Eighteenth  Bank,  one  of  the  oldest 
established   banks  in  the  Japanese  Empire, 


SCENE    IN    THE    NATIONAL    PARK    OF    .MATSUSHIMA 


8 10 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


SAWAYAMA    SHOKAI:    NEW    NAGASAKI    PREMISES    IN    COURSE    OF    CONSTRUCTION 


ment  of  branches  at  Osaka  (two  branches), 
Kumamoto,  Sasebo,  Izuhara,  Keijo  (Seoul), 
Jinsen  (Chemulpo),  Fusan,  Gensen,  and  other 
centres,  bringing  the  total  to  seventeen. 

The  Eighteenth  Bank,  Ltd.,  acts  as  the 
Kyushu  agent  of  the  Bank  of  Japan,  the 
Hypothec  Bank  of  Japan,  and  the  Industrial 
Bank  of  Japan,  which  important  institutions 
are  described  and  illustrated  in  the  Tok>'o 
Banking  Section  of  this  volume.  All  the 
departments  usual  to  the  modem  banking 
establishment  are  operated  by  the  bank, 
including  deposits,   loans,   discount  of  bills, 


remittances,  collections,  purchase  and  sale 
of  securities,  letters  of  credit,  etc.  The 
fact  that  the  bank  is  represented  in  over 
two  thousand  cities  throughout  the  world 
will  emphasise  the  fact  that  it  commands 
all  facilities. 

The  officers  of  the  bank  are:  Kanji  Naga- 
mi,  Esq.,  President;  Yeizo  Matsuda,  Esq., 
Vice-President;  Messrs  Moritaro  Takahashi, 
Takajiro  Adachi,  and  Seiichi  Matsuda, 
Directors;  Messrs.  Wabei  Takami,  Soichiro 
Fujise,  and  Matasubiu-o  Yamada,  Auditors. 
The  Manager  is  Mr.  Tsunekichi  Mori. 


SA\VAYAM.\    SHOKAI 

This  firm  is  among  the  oldest  estabhshed 
concerns  in  Japan,  having  been  founded  by  the 
father  of  the  present  proprietor  forty  years 
ago — in  1878.  The  business  was  at  first 
restricted  to  local  trading  but  was  later  ex- 
panded, principally  in  the  export  of  volcanic 
ash  from  Karatsu  to  the  Japan  mainland, 
Dairen,  etc.  This  ash  is  an  excellent  sub- 
stitute for  cement,  especially  valuable  in 
the  construction  of  roads,  pavements, 
wharves,  docks,  etc.,  and  was  extensively 
used   in    the   ports  and   towns   of    Kjiishu. 

Mr.  Sawayama  later  acquired  two  steam- 
ers, averaging  about  3,000  tons,  one  of  which 
is  chartered,  and  the  other  maintained  on 
service  between  Japan  and  the  South  Sea 
Islands.  A  considerable  export  trade  is  at 
present  done  with  the  islands,  and  it  is  Mr. 
Sawayama's  policy  to  develop  this  business 
as  much  as  possible.  The  firm  supplies 
water  to  steamers  for  which  purpose  it  owns 
a  large  w-ater  boat,  also  about  thirty- five 
lighters  for  cargo  transportation. 

Branches  are  maintained  at  Kobe,  under 
the  management  of  Mr.  Sawayama's  eldest 
son,  and  at  Fusan,  under  the  management 
of  the  second  son.  Fine  premises  are  at 
present  under  construction  at  Nagasaki  on  a 
most  attractive  site  near  the  Bund.  Mr. 
Sawayama  is  also  interested  in  other  enter- 
prises and  is  on  the  directorate  of  the  Oriental 
Ice  Works  of  Nagasaki.  For  seventeen 
years  this  gentleman  has  served  on  the  com- 
mittee of  the  Nagasaki  Chamber  of  Com- 
merce, and  for  the  last  twelve  as  Vice- 
President    of   that    institution. 


SOUTH    MANCHURIA    RAILWAY   COMPANY,    LIMITED:      BRIDGE    OVER   THE    HUM   RIVER    NEAR    MUKDEN  —  WORKSHOPS    AT    SHAK.\KOU,    NEAR 
DAIREN TRAINS  AT   THE    CHANGCHUN    STATION RAILWAY    STATION    AND    STATION    HOTEL    AT   MUKDEN 


PANORAMIC    VIEW    OF    PART    OF    DAIREN   CITY    (dALNY),    ALSO    SHOWING    DAlREN    BAY. 

JAPAN'S   COLONIAL   EMPIRE 

XLIX.    Province  of  Kwantung 

How  Acquired  — Area,  Population,  and  Government  — Agriculture,  Industry,  and  Trade- 
Finance  AND  Banking  — Education  — Communications  — Dairen  — Commercial  Notices 


THE  Province  of  Kwantung,  in  Man- 
churia, came  under  Japan's  juris- 
diction as  a  result  of  the  war  with 
Russia,  in  1905.  It  will  be  remembered  that 
after  the  war  with  China,  in  1895,  Japan 
forced  from  that  country  a  lease  of  the  Liao- 
tung  Peninsula,  with  Port  Arthur  as  the 
centre,  but  owing  to  the  interference  of 
Germany,  France,  and  Russia,  Japan  was 
obliged  to  restore  the  territory  to  China. 
Shortly  afterwards  relations  between  China 
and  certain  European  Powers  brought  about 
unexpected  changes,  the  most  startling  of 
which  was  the  leasing  of  Port  Arthur  and 
Dairen  to  Russia.  As  Japan  considered  this 
frought  with  danger  to  her  national  existence 
she  made  repeated  efforts  by  friendly  negotia- 
tions to  remove  the  menace.  The  attitude 
of  Russia,  however,  was  averse  to  Japan's 
policy,  and  when  every  means  that  patience 
and  diplomacy  could  command  had  been 
exhausted,  Japan  felt  compelled  to  resort  to 
arms.  At  the  Portsmouth  Peace  Conference 
which  terminated  the  war  with  Russia,  the 
Treaty  of  Peace  signed  between  the  two 
countries  gave  Japan  the  former  rights  held 
by  Russia  in  Manchuria.  The  terms,  as 
regards  China,  were  confirmed  by  the  Treaty 
of  Pckin,  concluded  in  December,  1905, 
wherein  China  formally  recognised  Japan's 
new  position.  According  to  the  treaty 
between  Japan  and  Russia,  signed  at  Ports- 
mouth, the  two  countries  agreed  to  withdraw 
the  railway  guards  placed  in  Manchuria  to 


protect  the  lives  and  property  of  foreigners, 
as  soon  as  China  was  able  efficiently  to  under- 
take this  duty;  and  further,  that  the  military 
railway  built  during  the  war  between  Antung 
and  the  borders  of  Korea  and  Mukden  was  to 
be  under  Japanese  management  for  fifteen 
years  from  the  time  of  its  completion  of  equip- 
ment for  public  service,  for  the  transportation 
of  goods  of  all  nations.  By  this  treaty  Japan 
obtained  possession  of  the  southern  part  of 
the  Manchuria  railway  and  of  the  territory 
which  had  been  leased  from  China  by  Russia. 
Japan  regards  the  position  acquired  by  her  in 
that  part  of  China  as  essential  to  her  self- 
protection  and  the  maintenance  of  peace  in 
the  Far  East,  as  well  as  entirely  innocent  of 
any  aggressive  meaning.  She  has  not,  of 
course,  been  able  to  attain  so  predominant  a 
position  in  one  of  the  more  important  prov- 
inces of  China  without  arousing  a  good  deal 
of  suspicion  in  that  country  as  well  as  abroad. 
But  the  unpolitical  nature  of  Japan's  position 
in  Manchuria  is  being  constantly  emphasised 
by  Japanese  officials,  who  proclaim  their 
country  as  holding  this  favoured  position  as 
the  champion  of  the  Powers  for  the  preserva- 
tion of  the  "open  door"  in  China,  while  at  the 
same  time  assuring  the  world  that  Japan  is  in 
no  way  taking  undue  advantage  of  her  unique 
opportunity.  That  Japan  intends  to  remain 
in  possession  of  Kwantung,  however,  is 
clear,  from  the  fact  that  the  present  lease 
which  was  drawn  to  expire  in  1923,  has  been 
extended  to  1997,  China  being  forced  to  ac- 


quiesce in  the  matter  on  account  of  financial 
considerations. 

AREA,  POPUL.\TION,  AND  GOVERNMENT 
The  Province  of  Kwantung  forms  the  most 
southern  part  of  the  Liaotung  Peninsula,  and 
covers  an  area  of  some  1,312  square  miles, 
extending  between  121°  50'  and  122°  33'  East 
Longitude  on  the  one  side,  and  38°  40'  and 
39°  30'  North  Latitude  on  the  other,  including 
40  small  islands  along  the  coast.  The  total 
population  of  the  territory  in  1916  was  540,- 
845,  of  which  number  490,431  were  Chinese, 
50,262  Japanese,  and  142  foreigners.  If  the 
population  of  the  railway  zone  be  included, 
the  total  will  reach  595,594.  The  largest 
cities  are  Dairen  (Dalny)  with  a  population 
of  57,000,  Port  Arthur  with  18,000,  and 
Kinchou   with   about  9,000. 

Having  thus  become  responsible  for  South 
Manchuria,  Japan  organised  the  Kwantung 
Government  for  its  administration,  whilst  for 
its  economic  development  special  importance 
was  attached  to  the  railway  system,  on  the 
effective  working  of  which  the  success  of  her 
policy  was  supposed  to  depend.  Even  now, 
after  more  than  ten  years  of  occupation,  the 
South  Manchuria  Railway  may  be  said  to 
form  Japan's  main  source  of  activity  within 
the  territory  and  to  control  nearly  all  its 
interests.  An  administration  office  for  the 
Province  of  Kwantung  was  immediately 
established  after  the  transfer  of  the  territory 
was  completed,   and   also  an   office   for  the 


TAKEN    FROM    THE    ROOF    GARDEN   OF    THE    SOUTH    MANCHURIA    RAILWAY    COMPANY'S    YAMATO    HOTEL 


management  of  the  South  Manchuria  Rail- 
way, the  latter  to  be  more  or  less  under 
supervision  of  the  Government  office.  The 
Kwantung  Government  has  the  administra- 
tion of  the  leased  territory,  as  well  as  the 
protection  and  control  of  districts  adjacent 
to  the  railway  lines  transferred  from  Russia. 
Kwantung  was  at  first  placed  under 
military  control,  but  after  order  was  duly 
restored  the  administration  was  discharged 
by  a  Governor-General,  who  presides  over  the 
civil  government.  According  to  the  Imperial 
Ordinances  relating  to  the  Government- 
General,  however,  issued  on  September  i, 
1906,  the  office  must  always  be  filled  by  an 
officer  of  the  Imperial  Army  with  the  rank  of 
lieutenant-general  or  full  general;  so  that  the 
government  is  still  more  or  less  military  in 
nature.  The  Governor-General  has  under  him 
not  only  the  administration  of  the  province 
but  command  of  the  troops  guarding  it,  and 
he  is  subject  only  to  the  Minister  of  Foreign 
Affairs  in  regard  to  civil  administration,  and 
the  army  authorities  in  Tokyo  as  regards 
military  matters.  He  is  authorised  under 
special  commission  to  conduct  negotiations 
with  the  Chinese  authorities.  The  Governor- 
General  may  issue  punitive  ordinances  inflict- 
ing penalties  of  not  more  than  one  year's 
imprisonment  and  a  fine  of  not  more  than  200 
yen.  Thus  the  office  of  Governor-General 
consists  of  two  departments — Civil  and 
Military.  The  Civil  Administration  Depart- 
ment comprises  such  sections  as  General 
Affairs,  Police  and  Law  Courts,  Finance, 
Engineering,  Education,  Communications, 
Public  Health,  Marine,  and  so  on,  and  it 
exercises  its  powers  mainly  through  branch 
offices,  sub-branches,  as  well  as  district  and 
village  offices.  The  chief  administration 
offices  are  at  Port  Arthiu-  and  Dairen.  The 
control  of  land  along  the  railway  zone  is  in 


charge  of  the  police,  while  Japanese  consuls  in 
South  Manchuria  act  as  commissioners  for 
the  Kwantung  Government.  Provisions  for 
the  judicial  administration  of  the  province  do 
not  differ  materially  from  those  in  Japan, 
except  that  deference  is  sometimes  made  to 
Chinese  customs.  Local  courts  are  invested 
with  all  the  rights  of  judgment  in  civil  and 
penal  cases  which  do  not  come  under  the  local 
administration  offices,  but  appeals  may  be 
made  to  the  High  Court  against  the  latter  or 
against  the  local  court.  The  Russian  prisons 
were  taken  over  and  improved  by  the  new 
administration. 

AGRICULTURE,    INDUSTRY,    AND    TRADE 

Land  in  the  Province  of  Kwantung  is 
generally  adapted  to  agriculture,  especially  in 
the  districts  around  Chinchou,  with  consider- 
able recent  development  around  Port  Arthur 
and  Dairen.  The  total  area  of  arable  land 
in  the  province  is  about  245,000  acres,  or  less 
than  23  per  cent  of  the  whole  area,  and  the 
number  of  farmers  is  about  350,000.  The 
chief  agricultural  products  are  maize,  Indian 
millet  (which  the  natives  call  kaoliang), 
Italian  millet,  soya  beans,  rice,  wheat,  buck- 
wheat, and  vegetables  In  foreign  trade  the 
soya  bean  is  coming  to  play  an  increasing  part, 
the  annual  export  amounting  to  over  8,000,- 
000  tons,  of  which  some  50  per  cent  goes  to 
Europe.  These  figures  represent  all  Man- 
churia, but  a  large  part  of  the  crop,  as  well  as 
of  the  beancake  and  bean  oil,  passes  through 
Dairen.  Grapes  are  also  successfully  culti- 
vated, and  the  Government  experimental 
station  is  promoting  the  growth  of  pears, 
peaches,  cherries,  and  apples.  Stock-farming 
and  poultry-raising  are  yet  in  a  nascent  stage 
but  showing  considerable  development,  the 
chief  animals  being  horses,  cattle,  mules, 
asses,  goats,  sheep,  pigs,  and  poultry.     Seri- 


culture is  being  encouraged,  but  is  making 
only  slow  progress.  Forest  resources  are  poor 
owing  to  denudation,  but  the  administration 
is  doing  everything  possible  to  promote 
afforestation,  planting  out  some  10,000,000 
seedlings  annually.  As  the  Province  of 
Kwantung  faces  the  Yellow  Sea  on  the  one 
side  and  the  Gulf  of  Pechili  on  the  other, 
fishing  resources  are  rich  There  are  over 
18,000  fishermen  and  some  4,000  boats  now 
engaged,  the  annual  catch  being  valued  at 
over  500,000  yen  for  natives  and  300,000  for 
Japanese.     The  best  fish  are  tai  and  cod. 

Among  the  more  important  industries  of 
the  province  is  the  making  of  bean  oil,  while 
beancake  manufacture  is  fast  increasing. 
The  old-fashioned  oil  presses  formerly  used 
by  the  Chinese  are,  under  Japanese  auspices, 
fast  giving  way  to  modern  hydraulic,  steam, 
or  electric  presses,  which  secure  a  far  greater 
percentage  of  oil.  The  more  than  70  factories 
now  in  operation  make  over  80,000,000 
pounds  of  bean  oil  and  20,000,000  pieces  of 
beancake  annually.  The  brewing  or  distilling 
of  spirits  from  Indian  millet  is  another  grow- 
ing industry,  though  as  yet  on  a  small  scale, 
while  soy-making  is  fast  increasing.  The 
manufacture  of  brick  promises  to  become  a 
growing  and  profitable  industry,  as  is  also  the 
making  of  roof-tiles.  Lime  and  oyster-shell 
works  are  doing  a  good  business,  and  there  is 
a  good  outlook  for  cement.  Glass  works  under 
Japanese  auspices  have  sprung  up  in  various 
towns,  and  there  is  a  large  number  of  flour 
mills,  though  the  industrj'  seems  stationary. 
The  match  industry  is  making  remarkable 
headway,  and  also  tobacco  industries.  The 
salt  fields  of  the  province  have  been  repaired 
.by  the  Japanese  and  the  output  greatly 
increased,  the  quality  being  far  superior  to 
that  produced  in  Japan.  The  mining  enter- 
prises of  Kwantung  appear  to  be  making  but 


8i4 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


indifferent  development.  Gold,  alluvial  gold, 
iron,  coal,  and  building  stone  are  the  chief 
minerals,  but  are  found  in  no  very  paying 
quantities.  Three  gold  mines  and  one  coal 
mine  are  being  worked  by  Japanese,  but  none 
of  them  have  advanced  beyond  an  experi- 
mental stage.  An  asbestos  mine  at  Hoshang- 
tun  is  said  to  offer  rich  deposits. 

The  import  and  export  trade  of  Kwantung 
has  made  remarkable  progress  since  Japan 
took  over  the  territory,  the  main  expansion 
being  in  the  direction  of  Japan  herself,  which 
stands  for  more  than  one-half  of  the  total 
trade.  In  accordance  with  the  agreement 
concluded  in  June,  1907,  between  Japan  and 
China  respecting  the  estabUshment  of  a  mari- 
time custom  house  at  Dairen,  it  was  decided  to 
make  the  whole  leased  territory  a  free  zone. 
That  is  to  say,  goods  brought  by  sea  to  Dairen 
are  subject  to  import  duties  only  when  they 
cross  the  boundary  of  the  leased  territory  into 
China,  and  those  coming  from  China  into  the 
leased  territory  pay  export  duties  only  when 
they  are  exported  from  Dairen.  For  the 
collection  of  these  import  and  export  duties  a 
custom  house  imder  the  control  of  the  Chinese 
Government  was  estabUshed  at  Dairen  on 
July  I,  1907.  The  value  of  the  various 
commodities  exported  and  imported  through 
Dairen  (Dalny)  in  191 5  was  as  shown  in 
table  below. 

Owing  to  the  extent  of  boundan,-  line  be- 
tween the  leased  territory  and  China  it  is  very 
difficult  for  the  Chinese  authorities  to  prevent 
smuggling  of  goods  across  the  line,  and  as 
these  goods  enter  Kwantung  duty  free  they 
can  undersell  all  competitors  in  China. 

FINANCE  AND  BANKING 
The  expenses  of  the  Kwantung  Govern- 
ment were,  from  the  time  of  Japan's  occupa- 
tion, defrayed  from  the  extraordinary  war 
fund,  but  after  the  closing  of  that  account 
the  annual  expenditure  of  the  Kwantung 
Government  was  placed  under  a  special 
account,  the  principle  of  which  was  to  make 
revenue  meet  expenditure  as  far  as  possible 
and  make  up  deficits  from  the  national 
treasiu-y.  The  expenses  of  local  administra- 
tion are  met  for  the  most  part  by  local  revenue 
so  as  to  impress  vi\adly  on  the  population  the 
connection  between  the  benefits  they  enjoy 


and  the  burden  they  bear  financially.  With 
this  end  in  view  the  expenses  of  education, 
finance,  sanitation,  encouragement  of  indus- 
try, building,  engineering,  reUef  work,  and 
pubhc  works  are  met  from  local  business  and 
miscellaneous  taxes.  The  revenue  for  191 7 
was  as  follows: 

Revenue 

Ordinar\- :  Yen 

Taxes 269,000 

Public     undertakings     and     State 

property 1,734,207 

Stamp  receipts 94.581 

Miscellaneous  receipts 62,192 

Total 2,159,980 

Extraordinary: 

Sales  of  State  property 28,784 

Surplus  from  preceding  year 287,306 

National  Treasury  Grant 2,007,000 

Total 2,323,090 

Grand  Total   4,483,070 

Expenditure 
Ordinary:  Yen 

Kwantung  Government 550,605 

Law  courts  and  prisons 141,223 

Police 867,598 

Education 440,948 

Communications. . 1,065,71 1 

Marine  Bureau 80,269 

Miscellaneous  expenses 22,023 

Reserve  funds 120,000 

Total 3,288,377 

Extraordinan,-: 

Various  undertakings 934.693 

Land  investigation 100,000 

Investigation  of  industry 10,000 

Local  expenses  deficit 150,000 

Total 1,194,693 

Grand  Total   4,483,070 

The  silver  currency  system  prevailing  in 
the  province  Japan  has  replaced  by  a  gold 
standard,  but  silver  and  gold  are  alike  now 
used.  In  the  principal  transactions  of  trade, 
convertible  notes  of  the  Bank  of  Japan  are 
largely  used,  as  well  as  (imtil  recently)  the 
notes  of  the  Dairen  branch  of  the  Yokohama 
Specie  Bank.     Tliis  power  is  now  held  by  the 


E.XPORTS 

Imports 

ToT.\L 

Yen 

Yen 

Yen 

28,117,309 

428,889 

20,247,130 

2,174.355 
5,798,892 

18,071,820 
1,263,340 

14,960,883 

796,310 

4.597.739 

46,189,129 

1,692,229 

3S, 208,01  3 

Chosen                                       

China                            

TTnnpWonp    India   Australia 

2,970,665 
10,396,631 

"Ptirone   America  and  Others 

Total 

56,766,575 

39,690,092 

96,456,667 

Bank  of  Chosen  which  established  the  Dairen 
branch  in  1913.  (See  report  of  Bank  of 
Chosen.)  With  the  rapid  development  of 
business,  credit  institutions  have  increased, 
the  Seiryu  Bank  establishing  a  branch  in 
Dairen  in  1909,  and  the  Taishin  Bank  a 
branch  the  following  year.  The  industries 
that  chiefly  benefit  by  the  facilities  afforded 
by  the  banks,  particularlj'  the  Bank  of  Chosen 
and  the  Yokohama  Specie  Bank,  are  cotton 
yam,  cotton  cloth,  sugar,  matches,  cement, 
beer,  marine  products,  and  timber.  The 
Government  at  first  provided  the  Yokohama 
Specie  Bank  w'ith  a  sum  of  3,000,000  yen  at 
two  per  cent,  or  some  such  low  rate  of  interest, 
which  enabled  the  bank  to  extend  accom- 
modations in  Kwantung  at  rates  much  le.ss 
than  other  banks,  thus  bringing  down  the 
loan  rate  from  ten  to  five  per  cent.  Com- 
plaints have  been  raised,  more  especially  by 
foreigners,  against  these  trade  advantages 
thus  conferred  on  the  Japanese  in  Manchxma, 
enabling  them  to  undersell  their  competitors, 
but  the  Japanese  deny  that  there  is  any 
discrimination.  Besides  the  banks  named, 
there  are  the  Dairen  Savings  Bank,  the 
Russo- Asiatic  Bank,  the  Chugoku  Bank,  and 
the  Tatsunokuchi  Bank. 

THE  BANK  OF  CHOSEN,  D.\IREN  BRANCH 
The  Bank  of  Chosen,  which  is  the  central 
bank  of  the  Peninsula  of  Chosen,  has  14 
branches  in  Manchuria,  located  in  the 
following  places:  Dairen,  Antung,  Mukden, 
Newchwang,  Port  Arthur,  Liaoyang,  Tieh- 
ling,  Changchun,  Szupingchieh,  Kaiyuan, 
Harbin,  Fuchiatien,  Lungchingtsun,  and 
Kirin.  These  places  are  all  important  in  one 
way  or  another,  but  as  the  port  of  Dairen  is 
by  far  the  most  important,  it  is  in  the  branch 
there  that  the  General  Manager  of  all  Man- 
churian  branches  of  the  bank  is  stationed. 
The  position  is  now  filled  by  Mr.  S.  Ohta, 
who  is  also  a  director  of  the  bank. 

For  many  years,  the  bank  played  a  very 
important  role  in  the  financial  affairs  of  Man- 
churia, its  bank  notes  circulating  far  and  wide 
over  the  country,  and  its  branches  doing  good 
and  prosperous  business  with  local  govern- 
ments, as  well  as  with  indi\'idual  merchants, 
whose  confidence  in  the  bank  was  ever  grow- 
ing. But  the  most  remarkable  change  in  the 
status  of  the  bank  in  Manchuria  took  place 
only  recently,  when  its  bank  notes  were  made 
the  sole  legal  tender  throughout  Kwantung 
Province  and  the  South  Manchuria  Railway 
Zone,  along  which  almost  all  the  important 
commercial  centres  of  Manchuria  are  located, 
and  all  the  gold  notes  of  the  Yokohama 
Specie  Bank  in  circulation  were  transferred 
to  the  bank.  Besides,  the  bank  was  entrusted 
by  the  Government  of  Japan  with  the  hand- 
ling of  its  Treasury  business  in  Manchuria. 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


815 


In  short,  it  has  come  to  enjoy  much  the  same 
position  as  it  does  in  Chosen,  that  is,  that  of 
the  Central  Bank.  As  a  result,  the  total 
circulation  of  the  Bank  of  Chosen  notes  in 
Manchuria,  until  recently  about  Yen  6,000,- 
000,  has  now  increased  to  Yen  10,000,000  or 
more. 

The  growing  importance  in  the  world  trade 
of  the  port  of  Dairen,  coupled  with  the  gaining 
influence  of  the  Bank  of  Chosen  all  over 
Manchuria,  through  its  numerous  branches, 
has  made  the  Dairen  branch  of  the  bank  the 
most  important  financial  institution  in  that 
vast  land.  A  recent  statement  of  this  impor- 
tant branch  office  of  the  Bank  of  Chosen 
gives  its  advances  at  Yen  10,090,000,  and  its 
deposits  at  Yen  4,334,000.  An  idea  of  its 
growth  and  a  conception  of  the  important 
position  it  holds  in  banking  in  that  city  may 
be  gained  from  the  following  interesting  facts: 

At  the  end  of  1913  the  branch  had  five 
per  cent  of  the  deposits  of  all  the  banks  in 
Dairen,  and  13  per  cent  of  the  total  ad- 
vances made,  but  at  the  end  of  June,  1917, 


DINING   CAR    ON    SOUTH    MANCHURIA    RAILWAY 


the  deposits  were  36  per  cent  of  the  total 
and  the  advances  represented  44  per  cent  of 
the  total. 


The  business  of  the  bank  has  developed  to 
such  an  extent  that  the  present  premises  in 
Dairen   have   been   found   much    too   small. 


t 


^B  1 1 II 


(lower)    present    PREMISES    OF    THE    BANK    OF    CHOSEN,    DAIREN.       (UPPER)    MAGNIFICENT    NEW    BUILDING    NOW    IN 

COURSE    OF    ERECTION    BY    THE    BANK    OF    CHOSEN 


8i6 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


DAIREN    PREMISES    OF    THE    YOKOHAMA    SPECIE    BANK 


Accordingly  a  new  site  was  obtained  near 
Ohiroba,  at  a  cost  of  Yen  500,000,  and  there 
is  now  in  course  of  erection  a  magnificent 
building,  covering  an  area  of  800  tsnbo,  which 
will  undoubtedly  add  much  to  the  beauty  and 
splendour  of  Dairen.  The  staff  of  the  bank 
numbers  30,  but  when  the  new  building  is 
complete,  and  the  general  enlargement  of 
operations  takes  place,  a  staff  of  over  70  will 
be  employed. 

Mr.  S.  Ohta  is  General  Manager  for  all 
the  branches  in  Manchuria.  Mr.  M.  Hashi- 
moto is  Manager  of  the  Dairen  branch, 
and  the  Sub-Managers  are  Messrs.  H.  Kura- 
tomi  and  T.  Kurihara.  The  head  office  of  the 
Baixk  of  Chosen  is  at  Seoul.  Mr.  S.  Minobe 
is  the  Governor  and  the  Directors  are: 
Messrs.  T.  MLshima,  Y.  Kimura,  and  S.  Ohta; 
Auditors,  Messrs.  C.  Ito  and  K.  Hattori. 
Foreign  correspondent  banks  are:  London, 
the  London  City  &  Midland  Bank,  Ltd.,  and 
the  Bank  of  Taiwan,  Ltd.;  New  York,  the 
Guaranty  Trust  Company  of  New  York,  and 
the  National  Bank  of  Commerce;  Petrograd, 
Banque  de  Commerce  de  I'Azoff-Don.  The 
cable  address  is  "Chosenbank." 


THE  YOKOHAMA  SPECIE  BANK,  LIXHTED, 
DAIREN 

The  influence,  and  the  enormous  extent  of 
the  operations  of  the  Yokohama  Specie  Bank, 
Limited,  would  make  it  indeed  surprising  if 
we  did  not  find  this  famous  institution  well 
represented  in  the  progress  and  development 
of  Manchuria.  Branches  of  the  bank  are 
established  at  every  important  business 
centre,  and  owing  to  the  special  facilities 
enjoyed  the  Yokohama  Specie  Bank,  Limited, 
is  doing  a  great  deal  to  further  general 
business  interests   throughout   the  territory. 

The  Dairen  and  other  Manchurian  branches 
were  opened  at  the  conclusion  of  the  Russo- 
Japanese  War,  especially  to  help  in  the  colonial 
development.  The  bank  is  authorised  by  the 
Japanese  Government  to  issue  notes,  which 
greatly  facilitate  business  transactions.  Be- 
sides the  exportation  of  agricultural  products, 
which  is  the  most  important  business  in  this 
territory,  the  Yokohama  Specie  Bank,  Lim- 
ited, finances  the  importation  of  several  kinds 
of  goods  especially  required  in  Manchuria, 
and  also  does  a  general  banking  business.     In 


fact,  one  can  hardly  overlook  the  efforts  which 
this  institution  has  made  over  a  long  period 
of  years,  when  speaking  of  the  wonderful  de- 
velopments that  have  taken  place  in  agricul- 
ture and  industry  in  Manchuria. 

When  first  established  at  Dairen  the  bank 
was  located  at  No.  66,  Kambu-dori,  but  to-day 
the  premises  are  at  No.  i  Oyama-dori,  where 
there  is  a  new  and  handsome  building  of  three 
stories,  specially  constructed  for  the  bank. 
This  building  covers  a  site  of  about  300  Isuho, 
and  is  constructed  on  the  most  modern  prin- 
ciples. The  Dairen  branch  employs  a  staff 
of  50  clerks.  The  Manager  is  Mr.  Kunio 
Inouye,  and  the  Sub-Managers  are  Messrs. 
Hideshige  Kashiwagi  and  Kanji  Yano.  As 
stated  in  the  general  article  dealing  with  the 
Yokohama  Specie  Bank,  Limited,  which  ap- 
pears in  another  section  of  this  work  (page 
102),  the  capital  of  the  bank  is  Yen  48,- 
600,000,  of  which  Yen  36,000,000  is  paid 
up.     The  reserves  total  Yen  22,100,000. 

BANK    OF    CHINA,    DAIREN 
The    leading    financial   institution   of   the 
Chinese    Republic   is   the  Government  con- 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


817 


trolled  organisation,  the  Bank  of  China,  whicli 
was  established  by  Imperial  decree  in  1897, 
and  first  opened  at  Shanghai.  Later  on  the 
head  office  was  removed  to  Peking.  The 
Bank  of  China  has  extended  its  operations 
all  over  China  proper,  and  is  now  strongly 
represented  throughout  Manchuria,  having 
branches  in  all  the  principal  cities  and  other 
commercial  centres.  The  branch  at  Dairen  is 
an  excellent  example,  both  as  regards  the  elab- 
orate premises  and  the  general  organisation, 
of  the  progressive  policy  of  the  institution 

The  Dairen  branch  was  opened  four  years 
ago,  though  the  business  then  taken  up  had 
really  been  established  some  four  or  five  years 
previously  by  the  Tai  Ching  Bank,  which  was 
amalgamated  by  the  Bank  of  China.  Mr. 
Chang  Chen  Chang,  Manager  of  the  Dairen 
branch,  is  a  graduate  of  the  Commercial 
College  of  Waseda  University,  Tokyo.  He 
was  for  some  years  Professor  of  the  Japanese 
Language  at  the  Military  College,  Peking, 
prior  to  entering  the  service  of  the  Bank  of 
China,  and  assuming  his  important  position 
at  Dairen.  Mr.  Chang  is  assisted  by  a  staff 
of  fifteen  clerks.  The  bank  does  a  general 
business,  and  is  highly  regarded  by  all  sections 
of  the  business  community  at  Dairen. 

EDUCATION 

The  Governor-General  has  done  a  good 
deal  for  the  promotion  of  Education  in  the 
province,  establishing  primary  schools  in 
various  districts  and  special  schools  in  the 
larger  centres.  Schools  are  maintained  both  for 
Japanese  and  Chinese,  and,  in  addition,  there 
are  those  maintained  by  the  South  Manchuria 
Railway  Company.  The  principal  statistics 
for  education  in  the  province  are  as  follows: 


THE    BANK   OF   CHINA,    DAIREN    (dALNY) 


Government  itself.  After  Japan  took  over 
the  railway  from  Russia  it  was  transformed 
into  a  semi-private  concern  with  a  capital  of 
200,000,000  yen,  divided  into  a  million  shares 
of  200  yen  each,  half  of  the  capital  to  be  held 
by  the  company  and  the  other  half  by  the 
Japanese  Government,  the  capital  repre- 
sented by  the  company  to  be  taken  up  by 
Chinese  and  Japanese  subjects,  of  which  sum 
60,000,000  yen  have  so  far  been  called  up. 
The  Government  guaranteed  a  profit  of  six  per 
cent  on  the  paid-up  capital  for  fifteen  years, 
claiming  no  dividend  on  its  own  shares  when 
the  profit  is  not  up  to  six  per  cent.     The 


Institutions 

Primary  schools  in  Kwantung 

Primary  schools  along  railway 

Port  Arthur  Technical  School 

Kwantung  Middle  School 

Port  Arthur  Giris'  High  School 


Number 

Staff 

Pupils 

10 

loS 

4.1^7 

17 

103 

2,618 

100 

219 

40 

441 

18 

i.'^o 

In  addition  to  the  above  schools,  there  are 
many  primary  institutions  under  joint 
auspices  of  Chinese  and  Japanese.  The 
schools  under  Japanese  control  are  carried  on 
in  the  same  way  as  those  in  Japan,  except 
that  attendance  is  not  compulsory,  and  in  the 
schools  for  Chinese  the  Japanese  language  is 
taught  as  a  foreign  tongue. 

COMMUNICATIONS 
In  the  Province  of  Kwantung  and  South 
Manchuria  generally,  the  South  Manchuria 
Railway  and  its  enterprises  absorb  all  inter- 
ests, throwing  in  the  shade  even  the  Civil 


Government  has  made  itself  responsible  with- 
in a  limit  of  100,000,000  yen  for  the  payment 
of  interest  if  necessarj^  or  of  principal,  or  of 
debentures  issued  with  the  consent  of  the 
Government.  In  1913  the  South  Manchuria 
Railway  Company  was  able  to  pay  a  dividend 
of  seven  per  cent,  and  in  the  following  year 
eight  per  cent,  from  which  period  the  com- 
pany has  been  paying  the  Government  two 
per  cent  on  its  shares.  Recently  the  policy 
of  the  Tokyo  Government  has  been  to  bring 
the  South  Manchuria  Railway  more  closely 
into  touch  with  the  railways  and  Government 
of  Korea,  a  complete  change  of  officials  having 


taken  place  for  this  purpose.  The  question 
is  whether  the  unification  of  the  railway 
systems  of  the  two  provinces  will  eventually 
mean  a  unification  of  the  provinces  them- 
selves. 

It  would  be  impossible  in  any  short  space 
to  give  an  adequate  account  of  the  enterprises 
carried  on  by  the  South  Manchuria  Railway. 
The  company  has  control  of  over  60,000,000 
tsubo  of  land  in  Manchuria,  and  all  not  used 
by  itself  or  by  the  Government  is  let  out  in 
farm  lots  or  building  lots,  more  than  12,000,- 
000  tsubo  being  already  so  disposed  of.  Besides 
the  usual  railway  business  the  company  has 
launched  out  in  various  other  important 
enterprises,  such  as  harbour  work,  coal  mines, 
gas  works,  electric  plants,  and  hotels.  The 
railway  system  itself  is  an  immense  one,  con- 
sisting of  the  main  line,  440  miles  in  length, 
from  Dairen  to  Chungchun,  with  a  branch  of 
47  miles  to  Port  Arthur,  one  of  13  miles  to 
Yingkow,one  of  30  miles  to  the  Fushun  mines, 
and  the  Mukden-Antung  line  of  170  miles,  — 
687  miles  in  all.  The  line  is  of  standard  gauge 
and  furnished  with  the  latest  equipment  in 
rolling  stock  and  passenger  service,  and  is 
now  the  most  important  route  between  Japan 
and  Russia,  its  international  through  service 
being  of  the  very  best.  The  company  runs  a 
regular  steamer  service  between  Dairen  and 
Shanghai  by  way  of  Tsingtau,  as  well  as  to 
South  China.  The  harbour  works  completed 
by  the  company  at  Dairen,  including  fine 
quays  and  breakwaters,  are  models  of  their 
kind.  The  collieries  operated  by  the  South 
Manchuria  Railway  Company  include  the 
famous  Fushun  and  Yentai  mines,  with  an  out- 
put at  present  of  some  2,500,000  tons  a  year. 


pi 


li:      ii 


'■I 


■■'\ 


(I 


--      •   J    -^'..4 


SOLIU    MANCHURIA    RAILWAY    COJirANY,    I.IMIIED;      ERLL  HON    SHOP   AT    SHAKAKOU,    NEAR   DAIREN  —  YALU    RAILWAY    BRIDGE,    3,097    FEET  LONG 
CONNECTING    MANCHURIA    AND    KOREA    OVER   THE    RIVER    YALU — ELECTRIC    WORKS    AT   DAIREN 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


819 


DR.     KUNISAWA,     DIRECTOR-IN-CHIEF     OF    THE 

SOUTH    MANCHURIA    RAILWAY   COMPANY, 

LIMITED 


The  Fushun  coal  fields  lie  22  miles  east  of  Muk- 
den and  extend  for  12  miles  along  the  Hum 
River,  with  a  deposit  of  from  80  to  175  feet  in 
-thickness,  the  average  being  1 30  feet,  a  conserv- 
ative estimate  of  the  whole  being  800,000,000 
tons.  The  five  pits  now  in  operation  do  not 
take  out  more  than  6,000  tons  daily.  The 
Yentai  mines  lie  east  of  Liaoyang,  the  seams 
being  much  thinner  than  the  Fushun  mines, 
and  the  daily  output  is  not  more  than  200  tons. 
The  South  Manchuria  Railway  Company  has 
established  electric  power  stations  at  Dairen, 
Mukden,  Changchun,  Antung,  Fushun,  and 
Tentai,  and  runs  electric  cars  at  Dairen  and 
Fushun.  Its  gas  works  at  Dairen  and  Fushun 
produce  over  100,000,000  cubic  feet  annually, 
with  much  coke  and  coal  tar.  The  com- 
pany's fine  hotels  at  Dairen,  Port  Arthur, 
Mukden,  and  Changchun  provide  model 
accommodation  for  travellers  along  its  lines. 
It  also  maintains  14  hospitals,  17  primary 
schools,  10  Chinese  schools,  28  business 
schools,  9  girls'  schools  and  a  medical  and  a 
technical  school,  as  well  as  a  teachers'  training 
institute,  to  say  nothing  of  its  experimental 
stations  and  waterworks.  The  table  given 
on  this  page  will  indicate  the  extent  of  the 
company's  business  in  igi6. 

Mention  must  also  be  made  of  the  new 
railway  line  recently  completed  by  Japan 
and  China,  as  a  joint  enterprise,  between 
Changchun,  the  northern  limit  of  the  South 
Manchuria  Railway,  and  Kirin,  a  distance 
of  79  miles,  with  12  stations  and  making  a 
journey  of  six  hours.  The  Japanese  share  of 
the  expense  of  construction,  amounting  to 
2,250,000  yen,  was  borne  by  the  South  Man- 
churia Railway  Company,  and  is  repayable 


Item 


Railway  service , 
Shipping   , 
Mining .  .  , 

Harbours  and  piers .  . 
Local  undertakings . 

Hotels 

Electric  undertakings 

Gas 

Others 

General  affairs 

Interest 

Debt  charge 

Total 

Profits  .  .  .  . 


Receipts 


Yen 


23 

I 

12 


894,000 
,226,000 
,648,000 
,292,000 
,517,000 
235,000 
,160,000 
244,000 
190,000 

380,000 


43,786,000 


E.xpense 


Yen 


8,174,000 

1,220,000 

10,640,000 

1,921,000 

2,491,000 

283,000 

723,000 

1 34,000 

70 1 ,000 

3,174,000 

6,244,000 


3,S,70.S.ooo 


8,081,000 


by  China  twenty-five  years  from  the  date  of 
opening.  The  South  Manchuria  Railway 
Zone  is  guarded  by  Japanese  troops  and 
special  railway  guards.  One  division  is 
stationed  as  a  garrison  at  Liaoyang,  the  term 
of  service  being  two  years,  when  it  is  suc- 
ceeded by  another  division  from  Japan. 
Sixteen  independent  battalions  act  as  inde- 
pendent guards  along  the  line  of  railway, 
each  composed  of  21  officers  and  617  rank 
and  file,  all  under  control  of  the  Department 
of  Communications.  The  headquarters  of 
the  various  l^attalions  are  Liaoyang,  Tiehling, 
Liutszton,  Port  Arthur,  and  Haicheng. 

With  Japan's  occupation  of  the  province, 
post  and  telegraph  offices  began  to  increase, 
rising  from  94  in  1906  to  over  200  in  ten  years' 
time.     At  first  the  various  stations  along  the 


railway  were  authorised  to  receive  and  des- 
patch mails  and  telegrams,  and  in  the  mean- 
time regular  postoffices  were  established  at 
leading  centres  like  Dairen  and  Port  Arthur. 
Mails  are  carried  by  rail  routes  and  water 
routes  and  by  ordinary  road  routes.  The 
mileage  of  mail  routes  by  railway  is  about 
6,855;  by  waterway,  5,800;  and  by  ordinary 
roads,  710,000  miles.  The  leading  post 
offices  in  Kwantung  can  transact  all  the  usual 
business  of  international  post  and  parcel  ser- 
vices, as  well  as  the  usual  telegraph  service. 
The  telegraph  lines  extend  through  all  the 
more  important  sections  of  Kwantung,  as 
well  as  along  the  whole  length  of  the  South 
Manchuria  Railway,  with  a  wireless  service  on 
the  coast.  The  telephone  service  is  not  so 
universal   as    the    telegraph    but    it   is    fast 


aM!iiMMa&aMffi<J8WM!M8B!a.^Jliiillllia 


h  U  i 


HEAD    OFFICE    OF    THE    SOUTH    MANCHURIA    RAILWAY    COMPANY,    DAIREN 


SOUIH    MANCHIKIA    RAILWAY  COMPANY,   LIMITED:      lE.N-WHEhL    lYfE  LOCOMOTIVE  BUILT  FOR   IHE   FRENCH   INDO-CHINA   RAILWAY  —  TKN-WHEEL 
TYPE   LOCOMOTIVE    BUILT   FOR    USE    ON   THE   COMPANY'S    OWN   LINE ENGINE    ERECTING    SHOP THE    SAW    MILL  —  THE    MACHINE    SHOP 


I'KESENT-DAY        IMPRESSIONS        OF        JAPAN 


821 


^Mmw^^V 


S.    S.    "  SAKAKI    MARU,"    ONE    OF    THE    SOUTH    MANCHURIA    RAILWAY    COMPANY'S 
DAIREN-TSINGTAO-SHANGHAI    MAIL    AND    PASSENGER   LINERS 


increasing,  the  chief  cities  being  already  con- 
nected. The  progress  of  shipping  in  the 
jjrovince  has  been  remarkable  since  the 
Japanese  occupation,  the  total  entries  at 
Dairen  for  steamers  being  nearly  2,000  a  year, 
representing  a  tonnage  of  nearly  3,000,000; 
and  for  Port  Arthur  about  300  steamers,  with 
a  tonnage  of  about  300,000.  The  number  of 
boats  and  sailing  vessels  is,  of  course,  far 
greater,  but  of  less  tonnage,  that  for  Dairen 
being  3,000  with  a  tonnage  of  some  35,000, 
and  for  Port  Arthur,  815  sailing  vessels  repre- 
senting an  aggregate  tonnage  of  6,000. 

DAIREN   (DALNY) 

THE  Port  and  City  of  Dairen  is  one  of 
the  most  modern  creations  under  for- 
eign influence  in  Asia,  its  history  going  back 
less  than  twenty  years.  Until  the  Kwantung 
Peninsula  was  leased  to  Russia,  Dairen  was 
only  a  fishing  village  known  to  the  Chinese 
as  Ching-ni-wa.     The  location  is  on  th?  Bay 


(Left,  Upper)  Mr.  IM.  Kawahe,  President,  Bank  of  Dairen.  (Left,  Lower)  Mr.  TsuNEO  Suzuki,  President,  Dairen  Oil  and  Fat 
Industry  Co.,  Ltd.  (Centre)  Mr.  Y.  Tanuma,  President,  Dairen  Kisen  Kabushiki  Kaisha.  (Right,  Upper)  Mr.  K.  Inouve,  Manager, 
Yokohama  Specie  Bank.     (Right,  Lower)    Mr.  Y.  Iwato,  General  Manager,  Kawasaki  Dockyard  Co.,  Ltd.,  Dairen 


53 


822 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


SCENE    ON    DAIREN    WHARF 


of  Victoria,  a  small  indentation  in  the  larger 
Bay  of  Dairen,  which  in  turn  is  an  inlet  of 
the  Yellow  Sea.  As  a  site  for  a  port  Ching- 
ni-wa  impressed  the  Russians,  and  they  fixed 
on  it  as  the  terminus  of  the  railway  through 
Manchuria.  They  decided  in  1896  to  make 
the  place  a  commercial  entrepot,  and  began  to 
extend  the  railway  through  South  Manchuria 
to  Lushun  and  Dairen,  giving  the  latter 
place  the  name  of  Dalny. 

Regardless  of  expenditure  the  Russians 
succeeded  in  conjuring  up  a  new  city,  and 
1898  saw  the  completion  of  the  foundation 
works  of  the  modem  port  and  town.  Before 
Dairen  could  be  completed  according  to 
Russian  plans,  the  Russo-Japanese  War  broke 
out,  and  after  the  Battle  of  Nan-shan,  the 
Russians  retreated  to  Port  Arthur,  leaving 
the  new  city  for  a  time  in  the  hands  of  robbers 
and  wreckers,  who  did  a  great  deal  of  damage 
before  the  Japanese  formally  entered  into 
possession.  When  peace  was  declared  and 
the  Kwantung  Peninsula  came  under  Japa- 
nese control,  the  work  of  repairing  and  com- 
pleting the  city  of  Dairen  was  taken  in  hand, 
and  is  now  practically  completed.  The 
Japanese  have  followed  the  original  Russian 
plans,  and  Dairen  may  now  be  said  to  repre- 
sent a  modem  and  well  designed  city.  It  is 
divided  into  Chinese  and  foreign  quarters, 
the  divisional  strip  of  land  I^eing  set  aside 
and  used  as  a  public  park. 


From  its  excellent  geographical  location 
Dairen  was  destined  to  become  a  great 
commercial  centre,  and  the  expectations  of 
the  Russian  founders  of  the  city  have  been 
fully  realised  by  the  Japanese.  The  port 
being  the  terminus  of  the  railway  system  of 
the  South  Manchuria  Company,  receives  the 
great  bulk  of  the  ever  increasing  traffic  in 
Manchurian  produce,  as  also  it  is  the  point  of 
entry  for  the  bulk  of  the  imports  from  Japan 
and  farther  afield.  It  is  the  distributing 
centre  for  an  immense  territory,  and  also 
constitutes  an  important  point  in  the  trans- 
continental railway  system,  the  .South  Man- 
churia Railway  Company  having  established 
a  steamer  service  with  Shanghai  and  Tsingtao, 
which  brings  those  cities,  as  well  as  Peking, 
two  days,  in  point  of  time,  closer  to  London, 
via  Siberia.  Opened  to  foreign  trade  in 
September,  1904,  Dairen  at  once  became  a 
centre  of  exploitation  of  the  vast  natural 
resources  of  Manchuria,  the  Japanese  mer- 
chants and  foreign  firms  rapidly  establishing 
themselves  in  the  new  port  and  extending 
their  operations  inland.  The  population  of 
Dairen  can  only  be  estimated,  in  the  absence 
of  recent  official  figures,  but  it  may  safely  be 
set  at  about  57,000,  of  whom  the  bulk  are 
Japanese.  There  is  quite  a  numerous  com- 
munity of  Europeans,  mainly  consisting  of 
representatives  and  the  staffs  of  firms  that 
have  opened  branches  in  the  port. 


Though  the  official  headquarters  of  the 
Kwantung  Government  are  at  Lushun, 
Dairen  is  the  real  administrative  centre  and 
business  entrepot  of  the  peninsula,  and  has 
many  attractive  public  buildings,  such  as  the 
Civil  Administration  Office,  Post  and  Tele- 
graph Bureau,  Marine  Bureau,  Agricultural 
Experimental  Station,  Waterworks  Office, 
Meteorological  Station  and  so  on.  The 
South  Manchuria  Railway  Company  has 
established  very  extensive  works,  in  which 
practically  all  the  locomotives  and  rolling 
stock  for  the  Chosen  and  Manchurian  lines 
are  constructed.  There  are  also  numerous 
factory  buildings,  such  as  cotton  mills  and 
vegetable  oil  factories.  The  city  is  well  laid 
out  and  quite  attractive  in  its  general  appear- 
ance, the  authorities  maintaining  close  watch 
over  sanitation  and  similar  public  services. 
An  electric  tramway  system,  modem  in  every 
respect,  exists,  and  all  the  conveniences  of  a 
big  city  are  available.  Mention  must  be 
made  of  the  Y'amato  Hotel,  a  magnificent 
structure,  conducted  by  the  railway  company, 
built  and  fiunished  in  the  most  elaborate  style. 

The  railway  lines  running  into  the  city 
separate  the  grounds  owned  by  the  Govern- 
ment, from  those  owned  by  the  railway 
company.  The  railway  is  spanned  by  a 
handsome  steel  bridge,  known  as  Nippon- 
Ijashi,  which  cost  about  Yen  150,000.  Dairen 
railway  station  stands  by  the  southwest  side 


PRESENT-DAY        IMPRESSIONS 


OF        JAPAN 


823 


of  this  bridge,  which,  with  the  great  square 
which  stands  at  the  end  of  a  road  running 
southeast,  constitute  two  centres  from  which 
the  main  streets  of  the  city  radiate.  A 
number  of  the  large  Japanese  commercial 
houses  have  their  branches  in  Dairen,  as  well 
as  a  few  of  the  principal  British  and  other 
firms  doing  business  in  the  Far  East.  The 
head  office  of  the  South  Manchuria  Railway 
Company  and  the  Go\'ernment  offices  are 
splendid  structures. 

Public  institutions  of  the  port,  other  than 
those  already  mentioned,  are  the  three 
Japanese  Government  schools,  the  Dairen 
Commercial  School,  maintained  by  the 
Presbyterian  Mission,  the  Girls'  Art  School, 
the  Municipal  Offices,  Chamber  of  Commerce 
and  so  on.  There  are  three  journals  pub- 
lished in  the  Japanese  language.  In  Dairen 
all  the  principal  business  and  private  houses, 
as  well  as  hotels,  public  offices,  etc.,  are 
connected  by  telephone.  There  are  tele- 
phones for  public  use  at  all  the  post  offices, 
as  well  as  in  automatic  telephone  stands  at 
the  principal  centres  of  the  city.  The  cur- 
rency of  Dairen  is  the  Japanese,  nominally  a 
gold  standard,  but  actually  paper  money, 
and  this  circulates  freely  throughout  the 
Kwantung   Peninsula. 

Dairen  is  screened  from  the  cold  northern 
continental  blasts  by  ranges  of  high  hills,  and 
it  also  faces  the  Yellow  Sea.  Its  climate  is, 
therefore,  milder  than  that  of  any  other  part 
of  Manchuria  or  North  China,  the  thermom- 
eter, even  in  mid-winter  (January-February) 
seldom  falling  below  6  degrees  below  zero 
(centigrade),  while  in  summer  it  hardly  ever 
rises  above  25  degrees  (centigrade).  Dairen 
is  essentially  an  ice-free  port,  even  in  the 
extremes  of  cold  weather.  The  cleanliness 
and  general  sanitation  of  the  port  is  in  the 
hands  of  a  capable  administrative  body. 

The  harbour  works  of  Dairen  have  been 
planned  and  carried  out  on  an  extensive  scale, 
the  first  step  having  been  the  reclamation  of 
a  long  stretch  of  swamp  land  on  the  coast, 
northeast  from  the  centre  of  the  new  town. 
Two  wharves  have  been  completed.  The 
first,  known  as  the  East  Pier,  lies  at  the 
east  end  of  the  town.  Nearby  is  the  second, 
known  as  the  Great  Pier,  i  ,960  feet  long,  and 
with  a  depth  of  28  feet  of  water  —  sufficient 
for  ships  of  over  10,000  tons.  The  total 
length  of  anchorage  provided  is  8,445  feet. 
Railway  tracks  run  along  each  pier,  greatly 
facilitating  transportation.  Warehouses, 
cranes,  and  all  modern  harbour  facilities  are 
provided.  On  the  west  of  the  Great  Pier  and 
at  right  angles  to  it,  there  is  the  Third  Pier, 
which  divides  the  Inner  from  the  Outer 
Harbour.  At  its  extremity  a  breakwater 
1,221  feet  long  has  been  built,  and  work  is 
now    proceeding   on   a   second   similar,    but 


Y.'i.\l.\G.AT.\-DORI,    M.\IN    BUSINESS   THOROUGHF.ARE   OF    D.AIREN  —  OKU-MACHI-DORI,  ONE    OF 
THE   IMPOSING    BOULEVARDS  —  OYAMA    STREET   AS    VIEWED    FROM    NIPPON    BASHI 


824 


PRESENT-DAY    IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


YAMATO   HOTEL,    DAIREN,    ONE   OF    THE   CHAIN    OF    HOTELS   OWNED   AND    RUN    BY    THE    SOUTH    MANCHIRL^    RAILWAY   COMPANY SOUTH 

MANCHURIA    RAILWAY    ELECTRIC    PARK,    DAIREN,    THE   CHIEF    PLEASURE    RESORT   OF    THE   CITY  —  SCENE    IN    NORTH    PARK,    DAIREN 


longer,  structure,  to  give  greater  protection 
t-o  the  anchorages.  As  a  shipping  centre, 
Dairen  is  always  very  busy,  and  for  a  port 
only  twenty  years  old,  it  must  be  con- 
sidered remarkably  well  developed. 

The  industrial  character  of  Dairen  is 
rapidly  becoming  emphasised.  The  port 
affords  great  facilities  for  the  effective  work- 
ing of  factories,  and  in  recent  years  many  new 
and  substantial  industries  have  sprung  up. 
In  themselves,  the  extensive  works  of  the 
South  Manchuria  Railway  Company  con- 
stitute a  very  important  industry,  a  small 
town  having  sprung  up  around  the  new  works, 
which  cover  an  area  of  over  400  acres,  and 
give  employment  to  close  on  2,500  hands. 
Associated  with  the  works  are  a  library, 
meeting-hall,  school,  hospital  and  similar 
institutions  for  the  welfare  of  the  employees. 
Then  there  are  the  electrical  works,  from 
which  the  city  derives  its  light  and  power, 
and  the  railway  company's  up-to-date  gas 
works.  The  oil  industry  of  Manchuria 
practically  centres  in  Dairen,  and  many 
important  factories  have  been  established  to 


treat  the  soya  bean,  and  extract  other  vege- 
table oils  and  by-products.  Behind  this 
important  industry  the  administration  of  the 
South  Manchuria  Railway  Company  has  put 
all  its  influence  and  energy,  and  the  output  is 
rapidly  increasing.  There  are  at  least  half  a 
dozen  strong  brick  companies  in  operation, 
and  the  output  of  bricks  probably  reaches 
20,000,000  per  annum.  Lime  and  oyster- 
shell  ashes  are  also  produced  in  large  quan- 
tities. 

Closely  adjacent  to  Dairen  there  are 
good  farm  lands  within  the  jurisdiction  of  the 
Dairen  Civil  Administration  Office,  and  on 
these  the  greater  part  of  the  vegetables, 
fruits,  and  similar  food  products  consumed 
in  Dairen,  are  produced.  There  is  also  a 
growing  rice  production,  near  the  port,  and 
colonisation  projects  of  a  substantial  nature 
will  doubtless  soon  transform  all  arable  lands 
of  the  peninsula  into  rich  farms. 

Dairen  does  not  present  any  special  features 
of  old  historical  interest,  but  it  is  the  starting 
point  for  tourists  who  wish  to  visit  the  scenes 
of    the    Russo-Japanese  War.      Lushun,    or 


Port  Arthur,  can  be  visited  in  a  da^-  from 
Dairen,  and  has  always  proved  a  centre  of 
attraction,  the  famous  fortress  being  almost 
exactly  in  the  same  condition  as  when  it 
surrendered  to  the  Japanese  after  the  long 
siege. 

CORNABE,    ECKFORD    &    CO.,    DAIREN 

Established  at  Chefoo,  in  1864,  the  firm 
of  Cornabe,  Eckford  &  Co.,  importers, 
exporters,  general  merchants,  and  agents, 
has  extended  its  operations  throughout  North 
China,  and  may  justly  claim  the  position  of 
being  one  of  the  leading  foreign  concerns  in 
this  important  territory. 

The  Dairen  branch,  which  is  at  present 
under  review,  was  opened  in  1906,  which  goes 
to  show  that  the  firm  lost  no  time,  after  the 
termination  of  hostilities  between  Japan  and 
Russia,  in  establishing  their  business  interests 
in  this  centre.  A  large  measure  of  success  has 
attended  this  important  branch,  which  is  now 
housed  in  a  fine  white  glazed  brick  structure, 
covering  about  1,000  square  feet,  and  occupy- 
ing one  of  the  most  valuable  sites  on  Yama- 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


825 


gata-dori,  a  few  paces  from  Dairen's  central 
square.  The  branch  is  under  the  direction  of 
Mr.  F.  Larkins,  who  is  assisted  by  two  other 
Europeans.  Business  is  conducted  under  the 
methods  followed  by  foreign  firms  throughout 
China,  a  Chinese  compradore  and  a  staff  of 
Chinese  clerks  being  employed.  In  common 
with  other  firms  of  the  port,  Comabe,  Eckford 
&  Co.  handle  soya  beans,  and  the  by-products 
of  the  beans,  together  with  various  seeds  and 
cereals.  Imports  cover  practically  all  the 
usual  lines,  with  railway  requisites  and 
machinery  as  a  specialty. 

The  following  list  of  important  shipjjing 
and  insurance  companies,  for  whom  Cornabe, 
Eckford  &  Co.  are  agents,  will  indicate  the 
nature  and  volume  of  the  business  transacted 
in  these  two  departments:  P.  &  O.  S.  N.  Co., 
Glen  Line  of  Steamers,  East  Asiatic  Line 
of  Steamers,  Russian  Asiatic  Company  Line  of 
Steamers,  Swedish  Asiatic  Company  Line 
of  Steamers,  Indo-China  S.  N.  Co.,  Ltd.,  Gar- 
land Steamship  Corporation,  Lloyds,  London, 
Hongkong  Fire  Insurance  Co.,  Ltd.,  Canton 
Insurance  Office,  Ltd.,  Royal  Insurance  Co., 


Ltd.,  Sun  Fire  Office,  Yangtsze  Insurance 
Association,  Ltd.,  Hongkong  &  Shanghai 
Banking  Corporation,  British-American  To- 
bacco Co.,  Ltd.,  British  Cigarette  Co.,  Ltd., 
American  Asiatic  S.  S.  Co.,  and  the  Cie 
Messageries  Maritimes. 

The  head  office  at  Chefoo  is  under  the 
direction  of  Mr.  Vy-vyan  Eckford,  son  of  the 
founder  of  the  business.  His  staflf  comprises 
seven  Europeans,  and  the  business  also  em- 
ploys many  Chinese  clerks  and  officials.  At 
Chefoo  all  North  China  products  are  handled, 
but  main  attention  is  given  to  such  lines  as 
strawbraids,  silk,  and  bristles  for  brush- 
making.  The  firm  has  exceptionally  large 
and  well  built  godowns  at  Chefoo,  undoubt- 
edly the  best  in  the  port,  where  imports  and 
exports  are  inspected  and  in  other  ways 
dealt  with.  The  head  office  handles  the 
agencies  of  the  Chartered  Bank  of  India, 
Australia,  and  China,  Mercantile  Bank  of 
China,  Ltd.,  Commercial  Bank  of  London, 
Ltd.  Shipping  agencies  comprise  the  follow- 
ing: Indo-China  Steam  Navigation  Co., 
Nippon   Yusen   Kaisha,    Eastern   Australian 


S.  S.  Co.,  Ltd.,  P.  &  O.  S.  N.  Co.,  Cie  Mes- 
sageries Maritimes,  Toyo  Kisen  Kaisha, 
Mogul  Line  of  Steamers,  Canadian  Pacific 
Railway  Co.,  Shire  Line  of  Steamers,  Union 
Line  of  Steamers,  Indra  Line,  Ben  Line,  and 
Glen  Line.  In  the  Insurance  Department 
the  firm  represents  the  following  companies: 
(Fire)  Royal  Insurance  Co.,  Ltd.,  Hongkong 
Fire  Insurance  Co.,  Ltd.,  London  &  Lan- 
cashire Fire  Insurance  Co.,  Imperial  Fire 
Office,  Sun  Insurance  Office,  and  General 
Accident,  Fire  and  Life  Assurance  Corpora- 
tion; (Life)  Standard  Life  Assurance  Co., 
Sun  Life  Assurance  Co.  of  Canada;  (Marine) 
Canton  Insurance  Office,  Ltd.,  Yangtsze 
Insurance  Association,  Ltd.,  South  British 
Marine  Insurance  Co.,  Ltd.,  of  New  Zealand, 
Germanic,  and  International  Lloyds. 

Cornabe,  Eckford  &  Co.  are  also  repre- 
sentatives at  Chefoo  of  the  Hokee  Lighter 
Company,  Whatai  Filature,  British-American 
Tobacco  Co.,  Ltd.,  Green  Lsland  Cement  Co., 
Ltd.,  Hongkong  Rope  Manufacturing  Co., 
Ltd.,  and  the  Vacuum  Oil  Co. 

There  are   branches  also  at   Wei-hai-Wei 


CORNABE,    ECKFORD   &   COMPANY'S    FINE    PREMISES   ON  YAMAGATA-DORI,    DAIREN 


826 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


PREMISES   OF   THE   FIRM    OF    F.    J.    BARDENS,    DAI  KEN 


and  Tsingtao.  At  the  latter  place  the  firm 
has  a  staff  of  three  Europeans,  and  the  branch 
may  be  expected  to  play  an  important  part 
in  the  commercial  development  of  the  port, 
which  is  likely  to  be  the  centre  of  consider- 
able interest  during  the  next  few  years. 
Comabe,  Eckford  &  Co.  are  represented 
abroad  in  practically  every  important  com- 
mercial centre  of  the  world,  which  fifty  years 
of  experience  of  the  trade  with  China  has 
been  made  the  legitimate  sphere  of  the 
firm's  operations.  This  old  firm  was  orig- 
inally founded  by  the  late  Mr.  W.  A.  Comabe, 
Andrew  Millar  Eckford,  since  deceased, 
joining  the  firm  some  years  later.  Its 
development  has  kept  pace  with  the  growth 
of  foreign  trading  interests  in  North  China, 
and  its  history  is  interwoven  with  that  of 
the  entire  territory,  in  so  far  as  its  commer- 
cial expansion  is  concerned. 

F.    J.    BARDENS,    DAIREX 
In   Far   Eastern   countries  it  is   usual   to 
find  certain  names  of  foreign  firms  insepar- 
ably linked   with   the   progress   and  history 


of  trading  centres,  or  territories,  and  when 
the  pioneer  work  of  those  areas  is  being  dis- 
cussed, a  spirit  of  justice  and  a  desire  to  give 
credit  to  whom  credit  is  due,  invariably  lead 
to  the  mention  of  the  man,  or  men,  who  first 
broke  ground  for  the  foreign  trader.  In 
point  of  years,  the  foreign  trade  with  Man- 
churia is  not  so  old,  but  to  appreciate  the 
nature  of  the  pioneer  work  of  even  fifteen 
years  ago,  one  has  to  understand  the  imsettled 
conditions  that  prevailed  then,  and  the 
dangers  and  difficulties  attendant  on  the 
effort  to  transact  business  in  a  distracted 
country.  Manchurian  history,  so  far  as 
the  European  trader  is  concerned,  includes 
the  Russo-Japanese  War,  when  the  entire 
countr)'  was  in  the  throes  of  a  desperate 
struggle,  and  a  period  when  reconstruction 
and  adjustment  were  going  on.  Throughout 
these  strenuous  times,  the  business  now 
directed  by  Mr.  F.  J.  Hardens,  was  carried  on. 
Mr.  Hardens  was  the  first  foreigner  to 
establish  a  business  in  Dairen,  and  is  rightly 
regarded  as  the  pioneer  of  trade  there.  He 
located  in  the  port  immediatelj'  the  Russo- 


Japanese  War  was  ended  and  some  time 
before  Dairen  w-as  opened  to  foreign  trade 
by  the  Japanese  at  the  conclusion  of  the 
struggle.  Mr.  Hardens  brought  to  Dairen 
with  him  a  ripe  experience  of  Oriental  busi- 
ness affairs,  and  a  capacity  for  business 
acquired  in  a  very  good  school.  He  was  for 
seven  years  in  the  London  office  of  Messrs. 
Samuel  Samuel  &  Co.,  Ltd.,  and  in  1887 
came  East  for  that  concern,  sen-ing  as 
manager  of  the  Kobe  office  until  he  entered 
on  business  for  himself,  and  blazed  the  trail 
in  Manchuria.  The  business  established  by 
him  at  Dairen  was  for  some  years  absorbed 
by  Messrs.  Bush  Bros.,  for  whom  Mr. 
Hardens  continued  to  act  as  Managing 
Director,  but  in  1910  he  again  took  over  the 
interests  of  the  concern,  and  since  then  has 
been  sole  proprietor  of  the  business.  Mr. 
Hardens  is  trading  as  a  general  merchant, 
importer,  and  exporter,  and  holds  several 
valuable  agencies.  Prior  to  the  war  the 
principal  lines  handled  were  drugs,  hospital 
appliances,  and  explosives.  The  latter  is 
still  the  leading  feature  of  the  business,  but 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


827 


drugs  and  similar  lines  have  been  largely 
replaced  by  wines  and  spirits,  soap  essences 
and  so  on.  The  firm  has  the  agencies  for 
W.  &  A.  Gilbey,  Ltd.,  London  (wines  and 
spirits),  and  W.  J.  Bush  &  Co.,  Ltd.  (soap 
essences).  Other  important  items  of  trade 
are  Colman's  products  (mustard,  other  con- 
diments, starch,  etc.),  Cadbury's  cocoa  and 
chocolate.  Lever  Brothers  soaps,  etc.,  and 
Bradford  woollens.  Mr.  Hardens  has  the- 
agencies  for  the  Robert  Dollar  Steamship 
Line  and  Lumber  Company,  and  for  Carna- 


A    Bl.!SV    SCENE    IN    THE    D.\IREN   OFFICE    OF    MITSUI    BUSS.\N    K.\ISHA 


MR.    F.    J.    DARDENS 


principal  of  the  business  under  review  is  a 
Devonshire  man.  Mr.  Hardens  has  two 
sons  in  the  trenches,  the  eldest  of  whom  was 
in  charge  of  the  Tsingtao  office  prior  to  leav- 
ing for  active  service. 

MITSUI    BUSSAN    KAISHA,    LIMITED, 

DAIREN 
Knowing  the  vigourous  and  progressive 
policy  of  the  Mitsui  Bussan  Kaisha,  Ltd., 
it  creates  no  surprise  to  learn  that  the  com- 
pany is  strongly  represented  in  Manchuria 
and  is  taking  a  most  prominent  part  in  the 
industrial  and  economic  development  of  that 
vast    territory.     The    Mitsui    Bussan    head 


office  is  at  Tokyo.  Headquarters  for  Man- 
churia have  been  established  at  No.  126 
Yamagata-dori,  Dairen,  where  the  company 
has  fine  offices  and  extensive  godowns,  all 
under  the  direction  of  Mr.  N.  Nodaira. 
Branches  are  also  established  at  Antung, 
Feng-ticn  (Mukden),  Kirin,  Newchwang, 
Tiehling,  Changchun,  Harbin,  Kung-chu- 
ling,  Shan-hai-Kwan,  Chin-chow-fu,  Kai- 
yuan,  Liao  Yuan,  Szu-Ping-chieh,  Vladivos- 
tock,  and  all  main  stations  on  the  Chinese 
Eastern  Railway  Line. 

The  Mitsui  Bussan  Kaisha,  Ltd.,  holds 
the  agencies  for  Dairen  and  other  ports  of 
the  EUerman  &  Hucknall  Steamship  Co.  and 


tion  Condensed  Milk.  The  Insurance  De- 
partment handles  the  agency  work  of  the 
following  important  offices:  The  Eagle  and 
British  Dominions  Insurance  Co.,  Ltd.,  the 
Yorkshire  Fire  Insurance  Co.,  Ltd.,  and  the 
New  Zealand  Insurance  Co.,  Ltd. 

The  offices  of  the  firm  are  located  on 
Yamagata-dori,  and,  as  will  be  seen  from  the 
illustration,  are  up  to  date  in  all  respects. 
Naturally,  for  the  storage  of  explosives  Mr. 
Hardens  has  magazines,  located  on  the  out- 
skirts of  the  city.  They  are  specially  con- 
structed, of  the  very  latest  design  for  such  a 
purpose.  There  is  a  branch  of  the  business 
at  Tsingtao.  That  Mr.  Hardens  has  experi- 
enced such  gratifying  success  during  the  past 
decade  may  no  doubt  be  attributed  to  the 
great  esteem  in  which  he  is  held  by  all  sections 
of  the  community,  European  and  Japanese. 
Mr.  Hardens,  it  is  interesting  to  note,  speaks 
and  writes  Japanese,  and  the  value  of  such 
an  accomplishment  to  a  business  man  in 
Manchuria  can  not  be  over-estimated.     The 


BAGS   OF    THE    FAMOUS    .SOYA    BEANS    AWAITING    SHIPMENT    AT   DAIREN    WHARF 


A    ': 
i^ 


SUZUKI    &    CO.:      THE    firm's    new    premises BEAN   OIL   MILL    OF    THE    LATEST   TYPE,    AT    DAIREN 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


829 


thu  Nippon  Yviscn  Kaisha,  Ltd.  In  the 
Insurance  Department  the  following  com- 
panies arc  represented:  Chiyoda  Fire  Insur- 
ance Co.,  Ltd.,  KoW  Marine,  Transit  and 
Fire  Insurance  Co.,  Ltd.,  Kyodo  Fire  Insur- 
ance Co.,  Ltd.,  Meiji  Fire  Insurance  Co., 
Ltd  ,  Nippon  Fire  Insurance  Co.,  Ltd., 
Osaka  Marine  and  Fire  Insurance  Co.,  Ltd., 
Tokyo  Fire  Insurance  Co.,  Ltd.,  Tokyo 
Marine  Insurance  Co.,  Ltd.,  and  the  Yoko- 
hama Fire,  Marine,  Transit  and  Fidelity 
Insurance  Co.,  Ltd.  Three  very  important 
trading  agencies  are  those  for  the  Onoda 
Cement  Co.,  Ltd.,  the  Hokuman  Flour 
Mills  Co.,  Ltd.,  and  the  Texas  Oil  Company. 
The  Dairen  and  other  branches  in  Man- 
churia do  a  large  import  and  export  trade, 
handling  practically  all  lines  of  natural 
produce,  etc.,  and  general  merchandise. 

SUZUKI    &    CO.,    DAIREN 

Amongst  the  Japanese  firms  whose  names 

are     familiar     throughout     the     world     are 

Suzuki    &    Co.,     whose    operations    extend 

throughout    Japan    and    its    territories,    and 


are  equally  important  all  over  China  and  in 
foreign  commercial  centres.  There  would 
appear  to  be  no  branch  of  industry  and  com- 
merce in  Japan  to-day  with  which  this 
powerful  house  is  not  connected  in  some 
important  degree.  It  is,  therefore,  no 
surprise  to  find  that  in  Manchuria  one  of 
the  most  important  vegetable  oil  mills  is 
operated  by  Suzuki  &  Co.,  nor  to  notice 
that  the  firm's  Dairen  building  is  amongst 
the  most  imposing  premises  in  this  city  of 
fine  structures. 

The  oil  mill  located  at  Jijiko,  near  Dairen, 
employs  a  staff  of  forty  for  the  direction  of 
the  coolie  labour,  and  consumes  about  three 
hundred  tons  of  bulk  beans  a  day.  The 
soya  bean  is  principally  dealt  with,  but  the 
firm  also  specialises  in  the  refining  of  crude 
oils,  both  fish  and  vegetable,  and  produces 
fatty  acids  and  glycerine.  The  oil  is  ex- 
ported to  the  United  States,  and  the  bean 
cake  to  Japan  and  the  South  Sea  Islands. 
It  is  interesting  to  note  that  the  Suzuki  Oil 
Mill  was  once  the  property  of  the  South 
Manchuria  Railway,    but    did    not    produce 


in  those  days  more  than  50  per  cent  of  the 
present  output.  The  Dairen  branch  of  the 
firm  was  opened  in  1909,  and  is  at  present 
under  the  direction  of  Mr.  Y.  Nishikawa, 
who  has  been  with  the  firm  for  ten  years, 
and  was  appointed  Manager  at  Dairen  in 
1915.  The  new  premises  at  Yamagata-dori 
comprise  a  fine  structure  of  red  brick  and 
granite,  erected  on  a  site  which  measures 
400  tsubo.  A  staff  of  eighty  clerks  handle 
the  extensive  business  transacted.  Exports 
dealt  with  by  the  Dairen  branch  of  Suzuki 
&  Co.  include,  as  has  been  indicated,  bean 
and  other  vegetable  and  fish  oils  and  by- 
products, bean  cake,  hemp  seed,  and  cereals. 
Imports  mainly  consist  of  piece  goods,  cotton 
yarn,  sugar,  iron  and  steel  and  machinery, 
matches,  gunny  bags,  lumber,  flour  and  other 
sundries.  Amongst  the  important  companies 
represented  by  the  firm  are  the  South  Man- 
churian  Products  Company,  which  is  really 
a  department  of  Suzuki  &  Co.,  having  its 
head  office  at  Dairen;  the  Imperial  Steam- 
ship Co.,  another  Suzuki  enterprise  with 
head    office    at    Kobe  ;     the   Tokvo    Marine 


MIPPON    nRlDCE    OVER    SOUTH    M.-\NCHURIA    R.\ILW.AY,    D-^IREN 


830 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


DAIREN    OIL    AND    FAT    INDUSTRY    CO.,    LTD.:      THE    LABORATORY    AND    TWO    VIEWS    OF    THE    F.\CTORY 


Insurance  Co.,  Ltd.,  the  Kobe  Marine,  Fire, 
and  Transport  Insurance  Co.,  Ltd.,  the  Sun 
Fire  Office  of  London,  the  Kanagawa  Electric 
Co.  of  Tokyo,  the  Taisho  Life  Insurance 
Co.,  the  Teikoku  Beer  Brewery  Co.,  and  the 
New  Zealand  Insurance  Co.,  Ltd. 

The  head  office  of  Messrs.  Suzuki  &  Co. 
is  at  Kobe.  There  are  branches  at  Osaka, 
Nagoya,  Yokohama,  Tokyo,  Dairi,  Moji, 
Shimonoseki,  Otaru,  Hakodate,  Sapporo  and 
Asahigawa,  Fusan,  Seoul,  Taipeh,  Tainan, 
and  Takao.  Abroad  the  firm  has  its  own 
London  office  at  No.  29  Mincing  Lane,  and 
a  New  York  office  at  No.  220  Broadway. 
Other  foreign  branches  are  at  Seattle,  Petro- 
grad,  Vladivostock,  Singapore,  Calcutta,  Bom- 
bay, Hanoi,  Hongkong,  Shanghai,  Tsintao, 
Chinan,  Tientsin,  Hankow,  Harbin,  and 
Changchun.  The  senior  partner  of  the  firm 
is  Madame  Yone  Suzuki,  who  has  been 
decorated  by  the  Emperor  of  Japan  with  the 
Green  Ribbon,  for  the  splendid  work  she  has 
done  in  the  development  of  Japan's  foreign 
trade.  The  Manager  of  the  Kobe  head  office 
is  Mr.  B.  Nishikawa,  and  the  co-partners  in 
this  great  business  are  Messrs.  F.  Yanagida 
and  N.  Kaneko. 


DAIREN    OIL    AND    FAT  INDUSTRY  CO., 
I.I.MITED 

Bean  oil  is  produced  in  Manchuria  on  a 
very  large  scale,  the  export  from  the  port 
of  Dairen  alone  amounting  to  over  100,000 
tons  per  annum.  Yet,  despite  the  fact  that 
this  enormous  production  has  been  going  on 
for  a  number  of  years,  there  was  no  oil  and 
fat  industry,  dealing  with  the  raw  product 
and  converting  it  into  commercial  uses,  until 
the  formation  of  the  Dairen  Oil  and  Fat 
Industry  Co.,  Ltd.,  took  place.  The  neces- 
sity for  such  an  industry  was  first  seriously 
realised  by  the  directors  of  the  South  Man- 
churia Railway  Company,  and  investiga- 
tions were  started  in  the  Central  Laboratory 
of  that  company,  to  discover  a  method  for 
hardening  the  bean  oil.  A  process  was  per- 
fected by  Messrs.  Suzuki  and  Okada,  both 
masters  of  physics.  Experiments  were  con- 
ducted by  these  chemists  for  about  a  year, 
and  it  was  demonstrated  that  by  their  process 
the  bean  oil  could  be  profitably  treated  for 
oils  and  fatty  essences.  When  the  question 
of  commercialising  the  process  came  up, 
President  Nakamura  of  the  South  Man- 
churia Railway  Company  thought   it  would 


prove  much  better  to  establish  a  joint-stock 
company,  than  to  make  the  industry  another 
monopoly  of  the  railway  administration. 

Accordingly,  on  January  17,  1916,  Messrs. 
R.  Kawamura,  Y.  Kubo,  K.  Yasuda,  J. 
Tochinai,  Y.  Suzuki,  D.  Iwao,  K.  Ishimoto, 
Y.  Aioi,  and  H.  Nagahama  held  a  promoters' 
meeting  and  it  was  decided  to  start  the 
Dairen  Oil  and  Fat  Industry  Co.,  Ltd.,  with 
a  capital  of  Yen  1,000,000,  one-quarter  of 
which  should  be  paid  up  at  once.  Out  of 
the  total  of  20,000  shares  it  was  agreed  that 
7,000  should  be  allotted  to  the  South  Man- 
churia Railway  Company,  10,000  should  be 
taken  up  by  the  promoters,  and  the  balance 
should  be  available  to  the  public.  The  pro- 
moters' anticipation  of  public  interest  in  the 
new  industry  was  sadly  at  fault,  for  when  the 
applications  came  in  it  was  found  that  instead 
of  3,000  shares  being  wanted,  the  public 
applied  for  153  times  that  number!  With 
such  a  bright  prospect  the  company  was  duly 
formed  on  April  26,  1916,  the  following 
gentlemen  constituting  the  directorate: 
Messrs.  Y.  Suzuki,  representing  the  rail- 
way company,  K.  Ishimoto,  Y.  Aioi,  Y. 
Kubo,     K.     Yasuda.      The     Auditors    were 


PRESENT-DAY        I  M   P  R  I-:  S  S  I  O  N  S        OF        JAPAN 


831 


Messrs.  R.  Kawamura  and  H.  \agahama. 
A  parcel  of  ground  of  about  3,000  tstibo 
was  selected  in  Dairen  and  the  building  of  a 
factory  was  at  once  started,  the  manufacture 
of  the  machinery  being  undertaken  at  the 
same  time  at  the  works  of  the  South  Man- 
cliuria  Railway  Co.,  at  the  mouth  of  the 
Sha-ho.  By  September,  1916,  the  following 
buildings  had  been  completed:  A  brick  fac- 
tory, covering  336  tsubo;  steam  boiler  house, 
covering  34  tsubo;  hydrogen  generating  room 
of  brick,  covering  28  tsubo,  and  offices  and 
godown  of  brick,  covering  180  tsubo.  In 
the  following  month  plant  and  machinery 
was  installed  comprising  hydrogen  generat- 
ing furnace  and  storage  tank,  intermediate 
manufacturing  equipment,  original  oil  refin- 
ing plant,  oil  and  fat  hardening  machinery, 
oil  and  fat  decomposing  chamber,  glycerine 
extracting  and  glycerine  vaporising  machin- 
ery, stearine  distilling  plant,  and  glycerine 
distilling  plant.  A  trial  of  the  equipment 
was  held  in  October,  and  in  November,  19 16, 


less  than  si.x  months  after  the  company  was 
formed,  work  actually  commenced.  Owing, 
however,  to  the  shortage  of  water  that  season, 
the  output  of  the  factory  could  not  be  brought 
up  to  expectations  at  that  stage.  Once  over 
the  initial  difficulties  the  plant  and  arrange- 
ments ran  smoothly,  and  at  present  the 
monthly  output  of  the  factory  is  as  follows: 
80  tons  of  hardened  oil,  20  tons  of  stearine, 
5  tons  of  glycerine,  and  30  tons  of  olein. 
The  enlargement  of  the  plant,  which  was 
started  in  August,  1917,  is  expected  to  be 
completed  in  February,  1918,  when  it  is 
hoped  to  increase  the  monthly  output  to 
the  following  figures:  250  tons  of  hardened 
oil,  60  tons  of  stearine,  9  tons  of  glycerine, 
and  30  tons  of  olein.  The  company  owns 
the  following  patents:  No.  27,066,  for  oil 
hardening  process;  No.  29,697,  method  of 
manufacturing  intermediator  for  adding 
hydrogen;  No.  29,696,  hardened  oil  filtering 
arrangement;  No.  30,643,  method  for  decom- 
posing lime,  and  No.  38,964,  process  for  pro- 


ducing soap  fats  from  oil.  These  patents 
have  been  secured  for  inventions  of  Director 
Suzuki  and  Chief  Specialist  Okada. 

The  principal  officers  of  the  Dairen  Oil 
and  Fat  Industry  Co.,  Ltd.,  are:  Directors, 
Messrs.  Y.  Suzuki,  K.  Ishimoto,  and  Y. 
Aioi.  Mr.  D.  Iwao  is  the  Manager,  Mr.  T. 
Okada,  Chief  Specialist,  and  Mr.  S.  Sato  is 
the  Auditor. 

M.  KAWABE,  DAIREN 
Mr.  Kavv.^be  is  very  closely  associated  in 
a  number  of  ways  with  the  entire  commerce 
and  industry  of  Manchuria,  and  he  has,  for 
many  years,  been  prominently  concerned  in 
the  development  of  all  trading  interests. 
His  business  interests  are  wide  and  varied, 
and  in  view  of  this  fact  it  is  natural  to  find 
him  regarded  in  Dairen  as  one  of  the  leaders 
of  Japanese  and  foreign  commerce.  The 
business  in  which  Mr.  Kawabe  is  most  closely 
concerned  is  the  old  established  shipping 
house    which    was    formerly    Sung,    Mow   & 


SCENE    ON    THE    MIKDEX  -  .ANTING    LINE    OF    THE    SOUTH    M.ANCHIRI.A    RAIl.W.W 


"^i?¥ 


Mil 


PREMISES    OP    DAIREN    GINKO DAIREN    PREMISES    OF    SUNG,    MOW    &    CO. 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


833 


Co.  This  concern  was  founded  in  1902  in 
Yingkow,  and  besides  conducting  the  general 
'business  of  shipping  agents,  the  firm  pur- 
chased three  steamers  and  started  a  line  of 
regular  freight  and  passenger  transportation 
between  Manchuria  and  Japan.  This  was, 
in  fact,  the  first  shipping  company  established 
in  Manchuria. 

After  the  Russo-Japanese  War  the  business 
of  handling  railway  cargoes  was  commenced. 
In  1905  the  Dairen  despatch  office,  which 
had  been  in  existence  some  time,  was  made 
the  head  office  of  the  firm,  and  since  then, 
maritime  transportation  has  been  exclusively 
transacted.  In  igio  the  North  China 
Steamship  Company  came  into  existence, 
and  regular  navigation  between  Antung- 
Hien,  Tientsin,  Yingkow  and  Lungkow,  and 
Dairen  was  started,  the  new  company  having 
nine  steamers.  The  whole  business  was, 
however,  transferred  to  the  Manchurian 
Railway  Co.,  at  the  lattei's  request.  There- 
upon the  Dairen  Steamship  Company,  which 
includes  the  old  Sung,  Mow  Company's 
interests,    was    started    by    Mr.    Kawabe. 


To-day  that  company  holds  a  prominent 
position  as  a  maritime  transport  organisation. 
Mr.  Kawabe,  leader  of  the  shipping  inter- 
ests of  Manchuria,  is  also  in  the  forefront 
of  banking.  He  is  President  of  the  Dairen 
Ginko,  an  institution  with  a  capital  of  Yen 
1,000,000,  and  deposits  of  over  Yen  2,000,000. 
The  Dairen  Bank  is  doing  valuable  work  in 
accommodating  local  business  interests  with 
necessary  funds.  Mr.  Kawabe  is  a  member 
of  the  Dairen  City  Assembly,  member  of 
the  Dairen  Chamber  of  Commerce,  Vice- 
President  of  the  Dairen  Marine  Association, 
and  Auditor  to  the  Dairen  Sencho  Kaisha 
(silver  exchange). 

USUI  &  CO.,  DAIREN 
Mr.  K.  Usui,  principal  of  the  Goshi  Kaisha 
Usui  Yoko,  or  K.  Usui  &  Co.,  is  one  of  the 
very  earliest  pioneers  of  commerce  and 
industry  in  the  port  of  Dairen.  He  estab- 
lished himself  in  business  there  in  1905  at  the 
close  of  the  Russo-Japanese  War,  and  by 
enterprise  and  determination  has  made  his 
undertaking   a    distinct   success.     Mr.    Usui 


practically  taught  the  soya  bean  oil  business 
to  the  Chinese.  When  he  started  operations 
there  were  only  about  500  retailers  of  the 
beans,  but  to-day  the  industry  is  one  of  the 
staples  of  Manchuria  and  gives  employment 
to  at  least  50,000  Japanese  alone. 

Messrs.  Usui  &  Co.  do  a  general  trade  in 
Manchurian  products,  specialising  in  soya 
beans,  oil  and  cake,  which  are  exported  to 
Japan  and  to  Europe.  The  extent  of  the 
business  is  something  of  which  Mr.  Usui  is 
proud,  and  he  hopes  to  be  able  to  open  up 
foreign  connections  and  still  further  develop 
his  important  interests.  The  office  of  the 
firm  is  situated  at  No.  9  Kanbu-dori,  Itchome, 
Dairen.  The  cable  address  is  "Usuiyoko," 
codes  used  being  A.  B.  C.  5th  edition  and 
Western  Union. 

KAWASAKI    DOCKYARD    CO.,   LIMITED, 
DAIREN  BRANCH 

The  greatest  engineering  concern  in  the 
Far  East  is  the  Kawasaki  Dockyard  Co.,  Ltd., 
the  famous  Japanese  shipbuilding  organisa- 
tion, which  has  its  main  works  at  Kobe,  and 


PREMISES   OF    USUI    &   CO.,    DAIREN 


834 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


carries  out  a  gigantic  programme  of  ship 
construction,  as  well  as  general  work.  This 
company  established  a  branch  yard  and  works 
at  Dairen  as  far  back  as  1906,  immediately 
after  the  Russo-Japanese  War,  and  has 
developed  the  plant  as  rapidly  as  the  needs  of 
the  time  have  called  for.  The  dock  and 
building  yards  are,  in  fact,  the  only  ones  in 
North  China,  and  they  certainly  are  a  credit 
to  the  company,  and  speak  volumes  for  its 
enterprise.  A  total  area  of  15,839  tsuho  is 
utilised  for  the  dock  and  works.  The  dock 
measures  52  feet  wide  by  440  feet  long,  with  a 
depth  of  over  20  feet  on  the  sill.  Men  of  war, 
or  merchant  ships  up  to  6,000  tons,  can  be 
accommodated,  and  there  is  a  complete  ecjuip- 
ment  for  their  repair.  The  shipbuilding 
yard  is  capable  of  constructing  ships  up  to 
2,000  tons,  and  the  machine  shops,  boiler 
foundry,  etc.,  can  turn  out  engines  and  boilers, 
and  other  machinery  for  a  similar  class  of 
vessel.  It  is  planned  to  install  Lloyds  survey- 
ing machinery  and  testing  plant  at  an  early 
date.     (See    also    page  717.) 


DAIREN    KISEN    KAISHA 

This  company  was  established  in  February, 
1915,  and  it  may  be  said  without  hesitation 
that  it  has  rendered  extremely  valuable 
service  to  the  entire  trading  community  of 
Manchuria  and  North  China,  by  inaugurating 
and  maintaining  fast  and  regular  services 
between  the  various  ports.  Without  such 
transportation  facilities  business  in  the  entire 
area  would  never  have  developed  to  the  extent 
that  has  been  the  case,  and  all  credit  is  there- 
fore due  to  the  enterprise  of  those  who 
founded  the  Dairen  Kisen  Kaisha. 

Regular  steamer  services  are  maintained 
by  the  company  as  follows: 

Dairen-Tientsin-Antung  Line,  six  times  a 
month. 

Dairen-Tsingtao  Line,  five  times  a  month. 

Dairen-LungkowLine,  seven  times  a  month. 

Dairen-Shanghai  Line,  four  times  a  month. 

The  company's  fleet  comprises  the  follow- 
ing: S.  S.  Ryitsho-Maru,  2,880  tons;  S.  S. 
Taisho-Marii,  2,580  tons;  S.  S.  Kojun-Maru, 
2,180  tons;  S.  S.  Hakushin-Maru,  1,480  tons; 


S.  S.  Isshin-Maru,  1,450  tons;  S.  S.  Tencho- 
Marii,  1,300  tons;  S.  S.  Saitsii-Maru,  1,100 
tons;  S.  S.  Ryohei-  Maru,  800  tons;  S.  S. 
Risai-Maru,  700  tons. 

The  head  office  of  the  Dairen  Steamship 
Co.,  Ltd.,  is  at  No.  50  Yamagata-dori,  Dairen. 
There  are  branches  at  Tientsin,  Antung, 
Tsingtao,  and  Kobe,  and  agencies  at  Shang- 
hai, Chefoo,  Lungkow,  and  Port  Arthur. 
The  registered  cable  address  is  "Daiki." 
Mr.  Y.  Tanuma  is  President  of  the  company 
which  has  a  capital  of  Yen  2,000,000.  Mr. 
T.  Tsukamoto  is  Director  and  General  Man- 
ager. Both  these  gentlemen  have  had 
considerable  experience  in  shipping,  and  they 
are  regarded  as  authorities  on  the  develop- 
ment of  trade  relations  between  Manchuria 
and  Japan  and  China. 

T.    YUASA    &    CO. 

Elsewhere  in  this  volume  the  operations 

of  this  important  house  are  described  at  some 

length,  so  that  in  dealing  with  the  Dairen 

branch  of  Messrs.  T.  Yuasa  &  Co.  it  is  not 


VIEW    OF    THE    PREMISES    OF    THE    KAWASAKI    DOCKYARD    CO.,    LTD.,    DAIREN 


-  > 
X  C 

n 

w  a 
o  > 

>     : 

*    1 

c 


:  ^ 

a  > 
Z  n 

>  ^ 

C   H 

O 

z 

o 


836 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


PREMISES   OF    T.    YUASA    &    CO.,    DAIREN 


necessary  to  do  more  than  explain  the  main 
features  of  the  extensive  and  vahiable  busi- 
ness which  is  transacted  in  Manchuria. 

The  branch  was  established  as  soon  as  the 
port  was  opened  to  trade  at  the  conclusion  of 
the  Russo-Japanese  War,  but,  as  will  readily 
be  understood,  the  business  was  on  a  much 
more  modest  scale  than  at  present.  In  fact, 
the  great  expansion  that  has  taken  place 
would  be  a  surprise  to  those  who  knew  the 
business  in  those  early  days.  Much  of  the 
success  achieved  has  undoubtedly  been  due 
to  Mr.  T.  Kawai,  who  has  been  with  the  firm 
for  fourteen  years,  and  has  managed  the 
Dairen  branch  since  its  inception.  The 
present  fine  offices  cover  about  lOO  Isubo,  and, 
in  addition,  the  site  owned  by  the  firm 
includes  an  area  of  500  tsubo  fronting  on 
Dairen's  best  thoroughfare,  Yamagata-dori. 
As  will  be  seen  from  the  illustrations,  the 
office  premises  are  of  the  most  modern 
description. 

Messrs.  Yuasa  &  Co.  handle  large  quan- 
tities of  cereals,  soya  beans,  etc.  Manchurian 
products  do  not  cover  a  wide  range,  and  like 
other  firms,  Yuasa  &  Co.  find  their  business 
limited  to  cereals  principally,  of  which  the 


soya  bean  and  its  by-products  is  the  most 
important.  They  handle  large  quantities  of 
beans,  oils,  seed  cake,  etc.,  for  export.  Prin- 
cipal among  the  imports  are  flour,  hardware, 
sugar,  cotton  yarn,  cotton  cloth,  gunny  bags, 
matches,  lubricating  oils,  roofing  paper,  etc. 
The  firm  is  also  doing  a  substantial  business 
as  agents  for  various  concerns,  one  of  which 
is  the  Paraffine  Paint  Company  of  San 
Francisco.  A  new  department,  which  the 
firm  has  been  studying  for  some  time,  is 
the  trade  in  furs  and  skins.  In  addition  to 
their  export,  Messrs.  Yuasa  &  Co.  propose  to 
start  a  curing  and  tanning  house.  Visitors 
to  Mukden  and  other  Manchurian  fur  centres 
will  have  remarked  that  there  is  much  to  be 
done  in  the  way  of  curing  and  preparation  of 
skins  and  furs,  and  there  can  be  little  doubt 
that  Messrs.  Yuasa  &  Co.  will  develop  an 
important  business  in  this  department. 

The  head  office  is  at  Kobe,  branches 
being  located  in  all  important  centres 
throughout  Japan  and  the  adjoining  countries. 

THOMPSON,    HANN.\.M    &    CO. 
This   well-known  British   merchant  house 
has  been   established  in  Dairen  since   191 1, 


when  the  partners,  Messrs.  Frank  Delano 
Thompson  and  C.  H.  G.  Hannam,  entered 
into  the  trade  in  Manchurian  produce,  their 
operations  then  being  confined  largely  to  the 
export  of  soya  beans,  soya  oil,  and  various 
cereals.  Both  partners  are  British  born,  and 
have  had  considerable  experience  of  market 
ahd  trade  conditions  throughout  the  Far 
East,  having  been  in  the  service  of  well-known 
firms  engaged  in  shipping,  insurance,  etc., 
before  entering  upon  business  for  their  own 
account. 

Prior  to  the  war  the  principal  markets  of 
the  firm  were  London,  Antwerp,  Amsterdam, 
and  Christiania,  the  United  States,  up  to  the 
outbreak  of  the  war,  not  being  a  large  con- 
sumer of  oil  or  other  Manchurian  specialties 
in  which  Messrs.  Thompson,  Hannam  &  Co 
deal.  The  business  has  now  developed  into 
a  general  import  and  export  trade,  the  firm 
being  particularly  interested  in  Java  alcohol, 
Calcutta  gunnies,  coffee,  metals,  chemicals 
and  drugs,  teak,  etc.  A  tin-making  plant  has 
also  been  added  to  the  firm's  operations. 
This  factory  is  capable  of  turning  out  4,000 
bean  oil  cans  daily.  Under  contemplation 
is    the   installation    of  a  barrel-  and   drum- 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


837 


BANK    OF   CHOSEN:      MUKDEN    BRANCH    AT    SHOSEIKVVAN,    MUKDEN  —  THE    SUB-BRANCH    AT 

SHINSHIGAI,    MUKDEN 


making  plant,  which  will  be  laid  down  when 
normal  times  return.  The  firm  is  the  only 
European  member  of  the  Dairen  Produce 
Exchange,  Mr.  Thompson,  who  has  had  many 
years'  experience  in  Mincing  Lane,  Ceylon, 
China,  and  Japan,  being  a  daily  attendant 
at  the  market. 

Messrs.  Thompson,  Hannam  &  Co.  are 
prepared  to  buy  or  sell  Manchurian  produce 
on  a  commission  of  one  per  cent  on  F.  O.  B. 
prices,  and  this  covers  all  charges  for  packing, 


loading,  sampling,  and  care.  The  firm  has 
its  own  forwarding,  shipping,  and  packing 
department,  and  controls  several  godowns 
where  goods  can  be  stored  and  insured.  The 
finn  represents  several  shipping  companies, 
including  the  Dodwell,  Barber  and  "Ben" 
lines.  Messrs.  Thompson,  Hannam  &  Co. 
are  general  agents  for  the  Manchuria  Manu- 
facturing Co.,  and  also  represent  several 
insurance  companies.  Their  London  agents 
are    Messrs.    H.    D.    Thompson    &    Co.,    21 


Cullum  St.,  Penchurch  St.,  London.  They 
represent,  among  other  houses,  Messrs. 
Nichol  &  Lyons.  Ltd.,  of  Kob^. 

BANK  OF  CHOSEN,  MUKDEN  BRANCH 
In  dealing  with  the  history  of  the  Bank 
of  Chosen  in  a  separate  article,  we  have 
shown  how  rapidly  this  institution  has 
extended  its  operations,  and  what  an  impor- 
tant part  it  is  taking  in  the  development  of 
Manchuria.  The  bank  has  done  a  great 
deal  to  stabilise  the  monetary  system  in  that 
territory,  and  its  notes  are  now  circulated 
widely.  The  Chinese  have  reposed  the 
utmost  confidence  in  the  bank,  and  there  is 
no  question  that  this  fact  has  been  due  to 
the  broad  and  healthy  policy  of  the  directors, 
and  the  splendid  efforts  which  the  branch 
managers  have  made  to  foster  and  assist 
all  local  industries. 

When  the  Bank  of  Chosen  came  into 
existence  as  the  old  Bank  of  Korea,  in  1909, 
it  took  over  a  branch  of  the  Dai-Ichi  Ginko, 
which  had  been  established  at  Antung. 
The  Mukden  branch  was  established  in 
July,  1913,  and  is  the  second  oldest  branch 
in  Manchuria.  Mr.  H.  Konishi  is  the  Man- 
ager. Some  indication  of  the  growth  of  the 
business  in  Mukden  is  given  by  the  fact 
that  the  bank  has  recently  opened  a  sub- 
branch  in  the  new  section  of  the  city,  and 
this  is  a  great  convenience  to  business  men. 
(See  index  for  other  references.) 


54 


THE    RAILWAY   BRIDGE    OVER    THE    YALU    RIVER    AT    AXTUXG,   3,098    FEET   IN   LENGTH 

JAPAN'S   COLONIAL  EMPIRE 

L.   Chosen  (Korea) 

Ancient  Relations  with  Japan— Modern  Relations  with  Japan  — The  Annexation  of  Korea 

BY  Japan  — Reforms  Inaugurated  — Modern  Regime— Area  and  Population— Forests 

AND  Fisheries —  Agriculture  and  Industry— Commercial  Notices— Minerals 

AND  Mines  — Trade   and  Commerce  — Commercial  Notices  — Communica- 

TiONS— Finance  and  Banking— Banking  and  Currency— Commercial 

Notices  — Education  — Keijo  (Seoul) —  Commercial  Notices 


KIJREA,  known  to  the  Japanese  as 
Chosen,  the  country  being  anciently 
so  designated,  is  now  an  integral 
part  of  the  Empire  of  Japan,  and  the  nation's 
largest  and  most  important  colony.  How 
the  ancient  Hermit  Kingdom  came  to  pass 
under  Japan's  jurisdiction  forms  an  interest- 
ing study  in  the  rise  and  fall  of  nations,  as 
well  as  an  excellent  illustration  of  the  fate 
of  races  neglecting  the  fundamentals  of  pro- 
gressive civilisation.  A  thousand  years  ago 
Korea  was  Japan's  teacher  in  art,  literature, 
and  government.  To-day  she  lies  in  the 
dust  of  ignorance  and  incompetence  at  the 
feet  of  her  old-time  pupil,  at  once  a  warning 
and  an  example  to  overconfidence  and  con- 
ceit, as  well  as  of  the  dangers  of  parasitic 
officialdom  and  abounding  superstition. 
Whether  the  fate  of  Korea  was  one  that 
Japan  welcomed  is  not  a  question  that  here 
needs  to  be  considered  —  most  nations  stand 
ready  to  take  the  territorial  accretions  that 
fall  in  their  way,  —  but  historj'  affords  ample 


evidence  of  Japan's  more  than  casual  inter- 
est in  the  peninsula  from  even  the  remotest 
period.  In  the  first  centuries  of  the  Christian 
era,  Korea  was  divided  into  three  kingdoms, 
known  as  Shiragi,  Kudara,  and  Mimana, 
and  constant  disputes  between  these  tribal 
dynasties  gave  Japan  every  chance  to  inter- 
fere, as  she  was  frequently  appealed  to  for 
aid  by  one  or  the  other  of  the  belligerents. 
In  return  for  aid  thus  given  she  usually 
exacted  tribute,  which  gave  her  the  position 
nominally  of  suzerain.  As  peace  was  resumed 
and  the  Korean  kingdoms  began  once  more 
to  prosper,  they  assumed  an  attitude  of 
independence  toward  their  Yamato  neighbour 
across  the  straits,  which  usually  aroused  the 
ire  of  the  Island  Empire.  It  is  probable  that 
during  the  early  period  of  Japanese  history 
the  coastal  inhabitants  of  both  countries 
preyed  ceaselessly  on  each  other,  creating 
a  race  of  sea  pirates  as  bold  and  terrible  as 
the  Vikings  of  Europe  in  the  same  period. 
After  the  dawn  of  authentic  historj'  in  Japan 


we  have  mention  of  rebellions  against  imperial 
authority  among  the  later  settlements  from 
the  continent,  instigated  often  by  Korean 
influence,  and  the  Japanese  were  more  than 
once  driven  to  lead  an  expedition  into  the 
peninsula  in  retaliation.  One  of  the  most 
noted  of  these  reprisals  was  the  invasion  of 
Korea  by  the  Empress  Jingo  in  the  second 
century  A.  D.,  when  the  kingdoms  of  Shiragi 
and  Kudara  were  obliged  to  surrender  and 
pay  tribute  to  Japan.  The  Japanese  claim 
that  from  then  down  to  the  sixth  century, 
Mra,  at  the  head  of  Chinghai  Bay,  in  Korea, 
was  held  by  them.  Though  piracy  con- 
tinued, no  mention  is  made  of  further  moles- 
tation of  Korea  until  the  year  1592,  when 
Hideyoshi,  the  Napoleon  of  Japan,  having 
subdued  all  the  recalcitrant  daimyo  of  the 
Empire,  wished  to  extend  the  glory  of  his 
arms  abroad,  and  decided  on  an  invasion  of 
Korea,  purely  to  satisfy  the  lust  of  conquest, 
as  some  Japanese  historians  admit.  Land- 
ing somewhere  near  Chinghai  Bay,  after  the 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


839 


example  of  the  Empress  Jingo,  the  troo]K 
of  Hideyoshi  attacked  the  Koreans,  and  for 
the  next  eight  years  plundered  and  over- 
ran the  kingdoms  of  the  peninsula,  until 
finally  the  people  in  despair  invited  the 
intervention  of  China.  Some  twenty  years 
later  Korea  was  subjected  to  a  similar 
process  of  plunder  by  China,  and  it  is  said 
the  country  never  subsequently  recovered 
from  the  effect  of  these  two  disasters. 
After  the  death  of  Hideyoshi,  Japan  and 
Korea  enjoyed  peaceful  intercourse,  and 
the  Tokugawa  shoguns,  anxious  to  main- 
tain their  long-continued  peace  as  the  only 
means  of  retaining  the  shogunate,  had  an 
embassy  from  Korea  come  to  Kyoto  once  a 
year  for  a  mutual  exchange  of  felicitations. 
Owing  to  impecuniosity,  the  later  shoguns 
had  the  place  of  meeting  transferred  to  the 
island  of  Tsushima,  where  the  feudal  lord 
there  received  the  Korean  deputies  on 
behalf  of  the  shogun. 

MODERN    RELATIONS    WITH    JAPAN 
Thus  peaceful  relations  were  maintained 
between  the  two  countries  until  the  Restora- 
tion of  Imperial  Power  in  Japan  in   1868, 
when    an    incident    occurred    which    nearly 
caused  war.     The  new  Japanese  Government, 
in    courteously    informing    the    Government 
of  Korea  of  the  change  that  had  taken  place 
in    Japan,    used    certain    expressions    which 
seemed  to  the  Koreans  to  claim  a  position 
higher   than   even   the   Emperor   of   China. 
The  Koreans  officially  refused  to  receive  the 
letter  containing  such  claims,  and  returned 
it  to  those  that  brought  it,  with  affirmations  of 
surprise  and  resentment  at  what  they  regarded 
as     an    unwarranted     usurpation    of  power 
and  dignity.     The  Japanese  authorities  were 
naturally  much  displeased  at  the  attitude  of 
Korea,  and  had  it  not  been  that  wiser  coun- 
sels prevailed,  the  incident  would  have  led 
to  hostilities.     At  that  time  Japan  was  not 
ready  for  military  adventures  abroad,   and 
so  the  matter  was  allowed  to  drop.     The 
policy  of  peace,  however,  was  not  approved 
by  some  of  the   more   important  Japanese 
statesmen,     including     the    famous    General 
Saigo,  who  at  once  resigned  from  the  Govern- 
ment and  retired  to  his  native  place,  deter- 
mined   to    overthrow    a    cabinet    which    he 
regarded    as    having    suffered    Japan    to    be 
insulted.     This  led  to  the  Satsuma  Rebellion 
some  years  later,  when  Saigo  commanded  a 
rising  against  the   Imperial   forces  and   was 
finally  defeated. 

In  1876  the  first  treaty  of  amity  and  com- 
merce was  signed  between  Japan  and  Korea, 
in  which  Korea  was  referred  to  as  an  inde- 
pendent kingdom  having  equal  rights  with 
the  Empire  of  Japan.  This  was  probably 
done   to   remove,   if  possible,   the   shadowy 


M.\RSH.\L   COUNT   YOSHIMICHI    H.\SEGAWA, 
GOVERNOR-GENER.^L    OF   CHOSEN 

claim  of  China  to  suzerainty  over  the  penin- 
sula.    China  desired  to  maintain  the  fiction 
of  Korean  independence  while  evading  the 
responsibility    of    her    alleged    protectorate. 
Japan  was  determined  to  have  it  either  one 
way    or    the    other:     either    China    should 
assume  a  formal  protectorate  and  be  respon- 
sible for  Korea,  or  she  should  recognise  the 
complete  independence  of  Korea.     Her  deter- 
mination to  do  neither  finally  brought  her 
into  a  clash  with  Japan  in  1895.     In  accord- 
ance  with   the   new   treaty   with    Korea,    a 
Japanese  Legation  was  estabUshed  at  Seoul 
in  1877.     For  the  next  five  years  the  relations 
with    Japan    ran    smoothly,     though    anti- 
foreign   factions  in  the  Korean  administra- 
tion showed  a  growing  danger  which  came 
to  a  head  when  the  old  army  incompetents 
were    being    replaced    by    modern    recruits 
under  Japanese  instructors,  the  former  ris- 
ing in  mutiny,  killing  the  paymaster  of  the 
forces,  and  setting  fire  to  the  Japanese  lega- 
tion.    The  Japanese  Minister  and  his  staff 
escaped,  at  last  reaching  the  seacoast  with 
great  hardship,   where  the  party  embarked 
in  a  small  boat  and  were  finally  rescued  by 
a  British  gunboat.     The  father  of  the  Korean 
king,    to    whose    intrigues    the    anti-foreign 
policy    was    due,    now    resumed    office    and 
enjoyed  a  temporary  restoration  of  power. 
Knowing  that  Japan  would  be  likely  to  be 
aroused    to    resent    the    treatment    of    her 
Minister  at  Seoul  and  probably  take  action, 
China   despatched   General    Ma   with   4,000 
trooijs,  supported  by  a  naval  squadron,   to 
Seoul.     The  leaders   of   the   recent   disturb- 
ances were  taken  prisoners,  the  questionable 


elements  removed  from  the  government,  the 
father  of  the  Korean  King  taken  to  China 
and  Yuan  Shikai  appointed  Regent-General 
to  maintain  order  and  reform  the  adminis- 
tration.    The  presence  of  a  Chinese  official 
in  Seoul  gave  cause  for  offence  to  those  who 
desired  an  independent  Korea;    and  as  the 
Queen  seemed   to   rely   on   Yuan   Shikai  to 
strengthen  her  position  against  Japan,  the 
dissatisfied  elements  turned  to  the  latter  for 
sympathy.     At  the  close  of  1884  a  Korean 
named   Kim   Gyokkun  led  a  conspiracy   to 
annihilate  the  whole  government  at  a  banquet 
of  the  ministers  to  celebrate  the  inauguration 
of  the  Korean  postal  service.     The  conspir- 
ators claim  that  the  Japanese  countenanced 
the  plot,  but  there  is  now  no  way  of  proving 
this.     It  seems  that  the  plot  proved  partially 
abortive,  and  in  the  midst  of  the  distiu-bance 
the  King   of    Korea    sent   to    the   Japanese 
legation  for  troops  to  guard  his  person,  two 
companies    of    infantry    being    despatched. 
The     palace     was    besieged    by    the    4,000 
Chinese   soldiers    under   Yuan    Shikai,    and 
against  such  superior  forces  the  two  Japanese 
companies  could  do  nothing.     The  King  and 
Queen  ultimately  fled  to  the  Chinese  camp, 
and  the  Japanese  Legation,  followed  by  the 
Japanese    residents    in    Seoul,     escaped    to 
Chemulpo.     Much     damage    was    done    to 
Japanese  property  and  many  Japanese  lives 
were   lost.     Some   of   the   conspirators   took 
refuge  in  Japan,  and  those  unable  to  escape 
were  put  to  death. 

Japan  was  not  yet  ready  to  cross  swords 
with  China;  and  so  an  agreement  was  signed 
between  them  in  1885  in  which  both  countries 
agreed  to  withdraw  their  troops  from  Korea 
on  the  condition  that  when  the  necessity 
arose  for  one  of  the  contracting  parties  to 
despatch  troops  thither,  previous  notice 
should  be  given  to  the  other.  Thus,  while 
both  parties  seemed  to  be  placed  on  an  equal 
footing  in  Korea,  the  ascendancy  really 
remained  with  China,  and  the  arrangement 
could  not  hope  for  permanence.  For  the 
next  ten  years  Japan  and  China  were  con- 
stantly at  variance  over  affairs  in  the  penin- 
sula. Matters  came  to  a  crisis,  however,  in 
1894,  when  a  Korean  assassin  murdered  the 
conspirator,  Kim  Gyokkun,  while  he  was  on  a 
visit  from  Japan  to  Shanghai,  the  murderer 
being  given  honours  by  the  Chinese  author- 
ities. At  the  same  time  China  determined  to 
assert  her  suzerainty  over  Korea,  despatched 
troops  to  Seoul  under  pretence  of  helping  the 
King  to  suppress  an  insurrection,  and  Japan 
adopted  a  similar  measure,  nominally  to 
protect  her  subjects  in  the  Korean  capital. 
While  negotiations  were  pending  between  the 
two  governments,  Captain  Togo,  now  Admi- 
ral Count  Togo,  on  July  29,  1894,  met  a 
Chinese   transport   loaded   with  troops  and 


840 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


challenged  licr  to  surrender.  Upon  refusal  to 
do  so  she  was  sunk,  1,000  out  of  the  1,200 
on  board  losing  their  lives.  This  brought  on 
the  China- Japan  War  in  which  the  Chinese 
suzerainty  of  Korea  ended;  but  as  Russia 
soon  after  took  China's  place,  the  problem 
of  Korea  was  not  yet  ended. 

THE    ANNEXATION    OF    KOREA    BY 
JAPAN 

By  the  treaty  of  Shimonoseki,  April  14, 
1895,  China  ceded  Formosa  to  Japan  and 
recognised  the  independence  of  Korea. 
Japanese  advisers  were  engaged  to  reform  the 
Korean  administration,  but  their  work  was 
rendered  difficult  by  constant  political 
intrigues,  until  finally  they  were  dismissed. 
Russia  now,  instead  of  China,  became  the 
disturbing  factor  at  Seoul.  Forcing  Japan  to 
withdraw  from  the  Liaotung  Peninsula  that 
China  had  agreed  to  let  her  occupy,  Russia  a 
few  years  later  leased  the  same  territory  her- 
self, and  from  that  time  war  with  Japan  was 
certain.  Feeling  secure  under  the  wings  of  a 
great  country  like  Russia,  the  Queen  of  Korea 
engaged  in  all  sorts  of  intrigues  against 
Japanese  interests,  while  Russia,  both  in 
Korea  and  Manchuria,  strengthened  her 
forces  and  assumed  a  more  menacing  attitude 
to  Japan.  Finally  a  conspiracy  was  formed 
for  the  assassination  of  the  Queen  of  Korea, 
when  the  palace  was  attacked  and  she  was 
done  to  death.  The  plot  was  alleged  to 
have  had  the  sanction  of  the  Japanese 
Minister,  Viscount  Miura,  and  he  was  brought 
to  trial  before  a  Japanese  court,  charged  with 
the  crime;  but  the  Court  found  that  while  he 
was  a  party  to  it,  he  did  not  actually  take 
part  in  the  murder,  and  so  acquitted  him. 
This  episode  turned  the  Koreans  all  the  more 
towards  Russia  for  protection;  and  thus 
matters  went  from  bad  to  worse  until  open 
conflict  broke  out  between  Japan  and  Russia, 
when  the  peninsula  was  saved  from  becoming 
a  Russian  province,  as  ten  years  before  it  was 
saved  from  becoming  a  province  of  China. 
Even  now,  had  the  Koreans  possessed  the 
slightest  capacity  for  self-government,  they 
might  have  succeeded  in  retaining  their 
independence.  Up  to  this  time  Japan's 
treaties  with  Korea  guaranteed  the  independ- 
ence of  the  country  from  foreign  aggression 
on  condition  that  the  Korean  Government 
take  Japan's  advice  as  to  administrative 
improvements,  but  after  the  war  with  Russia 
Japan  felt  it  essential  that  she  should  have 
control  of  Korea's  foreign  relations,  for  which 
purpose  she  established  a  residency-general 
at  Seoul,  at  the  same  time  pledging  herself 
to  maintain  the  welfare  and  dignity  of  the 
Korean  Throne.  In  1907  the  administrative 
authority  of  Korea  was  transferred  to  Japan 
and  the  country  made  a  suzerain  State.     The 


GREEN    HILL    OF     KAZAN 


Korean  Government  was  to  be  guided  by  the 
Japanese  Resident-General  in  all  matters  re- 
lating to  administrative  reform,  and  obtain 
his  approval  of  all  laws  and  measures  of  im- 
portance, as  well  as  receive  his  consent  to  the 
nomination  or  dismissal  of  all  high  officials 
and  to  appoint  to  public  posts  in  Korea  any 
Japanese  recommended  by  him.  These  con- 
ditions went  on  for  three  years,  during  which 
Prince  Ito,  the  first  Resident-General,  and 
Viscount  Son6,  his  successor,  managed  to 
carry  out  an  exhaustive  reform  of  affairs  in 
Korea.     But  all  these  reforms  were  paving 


the  way  for  Japan's  absorption  of  the  country 
into  her  own  Empire.  It  was  evident  to 
Japan,  oven  before  the  death  of  Prince  Ito, 
that  the  office  of  the  residency-general  could 
only  be  transitional,  and  when  Count  Terau- 
chi  became  resident-general  in  1910  he  at  once 
proceeded  to  bring  about  the  formal  annex- 
ation of  the  peninsula  to  Japan.  The  coun- 
try was  then  placed  under  a  governor-general 
and  the  royal  family  given  the  rank  of 
princes,  with  provision  for  their  maintenance. 
In  taking  over  Korea,  Japan  pledged  the 
extension  to  the   country  of  all  her  existing 


VIEW  OF  CHEMULPO  HARBOUR 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


841 


KWANNON    PEAKS, 


KONGO-SAN  SHISHO-HO    (CRYSTAL    PEAKS),    KONGO-SAN 

A    VIEW    FROM    THE    TOP    OF    BANBUTSU-SO,    KONGO-SAN 


treaties,  as  far  as  possible,  including  all  priv- 
ileges granted  by  her  to  foreign  residents  in 
Japan  and  protection  under  Japanese  juris- 
diction of  legally  acquired  rights  of  such. 
Japan,  furthermore,  promised  to  maintain  the 
existing  Korean  tariflf  for  a  period  of  ten 
years,  and  for  the  same  period  to  continue 
maritime  trade  between  Korean  and  Japanese 
ports  by  vessels  of  the  Powers  having  treaties 
with  Japan.  The  pledge  with  regard  to  the 
tariff  has  since  been  considerably  modified, 
as  will  appear  under  the  heading  of  Trade  in 
Korea.  Perhaps  the  most  remarkable  thing 
about  the  annexation  of  Korea  is  the  myste- 
rious acquiescence  of  the  United  States,  in 
the  face  of  her  treaty  with  Korea  pledging 
the  country's  independence,  and  of  England, 
acquiescing  in  the  extinction  of  her  territo- 
rial rights  without  a  word. 

Thus  Japan's  frontier  is  no  longer  the 
inviolable  sea,  but  now  extends  far  into  the 
continent  of  East  Asia,  and  is  destined,  as 
some  believe,  and  as  many  Japanese  desire, 
to  extend  ultimately  into  China.  How  Japan 
is  facing  her  new  responsibilities  toward  East 
Asia  is  a  subject  of  great  international  inter- 


est. Her  foreign  policy  at  present  involves 
a  predominant  interest  in  China,  Korea  and 
Manchuria  being  used  as  bases  of  operation 
for  a  defence  of  this  policy,  as  well  as  the 
safeguarding  of  China  from  foreign  aggres- 
sion. China,  like  Korea,  is  to  be  allowed  to 
go  her  own  way  and  save  herself  if  she  can, 
but  not  by  the  help  of  any  Western  nation. 
If  loss  of  independence  eventually  becomes 
inevitable,  China  must  look  to  Japan  for  help, 
as  Japan  will  permit  the  interference  of  no 
third  party.  Thus  Japan  is  determined  that 
if  the  fate  of  Korea  should  befall  China,  to 
Japan  rather  than  to  any  Western  nation 
shall  be  given  the  jurisdiction  over  that 
country.  Japan  believes  that  China  in  the 
hands  of  any  alien  Power  would  threaten 
Japan's  own  independence,  and  to  prevent 
this  no  degree  of  sacrifice  will  be  too  great. 
Japan's  aims,  methods,  and  the  results  of 
her  administration  in  Korea  will  now  be  more 
fully  discussed. 

REFORMS    INAUGURATED 
From  the  time  that  Japan  assumed  pro- 
tective   responsibility    in    Korea    after    the 


conclusion  of  peace  with  Russia  in  1905,  she 
began  to  take  the  management  of  Korean 
officialdom  into  her  own  hands.  The  Japa- 
nese Residency-General  was  established  at 
Seoul  in  1906  under  Prince  Ito,  and  the 
various  Japanese  consulates  in  Korea  virtu- 
ally became  offices  of  the  new  regime.  The 
numerous  treaties  and  agreements  in  the 
course  of  Japan's  relations  with  Korea  might 
be  more  truly  termed  proclamations  or  orders 
in  council  of  the  Japanese  Government,  since 
the  Korean  authorities  had  no  choice  but  to 
acquiesce  in  them.  On  the  score  of  main- 
taining the  welfare  and  dignity  of  the  Royal 
House  of  Korea,  one  of  the  first  acts  of  the 
Resident-General  was  to  separate  the  func- 
tions of  the  State  and  of  the  Court,  since  the 
chronic  conditions  of  political  corruption 
with  which  the  Court  was  infected,  influenced 
all  the  government  administration.  The 
palace  precincts  were  rid  of  the  tribes  of 
fortune-tellers,  necromancers,  and  sorcerers 
that  infested  it  and  the  coterie  of  disreputable 
court  ladies  scattered.  Superfluous  offices, 
bribes,  confiscations  and  other  abuses  of 
power  were  abolished.     Japanese  were  placed 


842 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


in  all  important  offices  to  ensure  thoroughness 
of  reform  and  efficiency  of  execution. 

Needless  to  say  this  interference  and  reform 
was  anything  but  acceptable  to  the  Koreans, 
especially  to  the  Royal  Court,  and  the  King 
abdicated  in  1907,  living  in  confinement,  and 
was  succeeded  by  his  son.  To  impress  the 
public  with  the  beneficent  nature  of  the  new 
regime  and  its  reforms,  the  new  King  and 
the  Resident-General  made  a  royal  progress 
throughout  the  country,  bestowing  gifts 
instead  of  exacting  them,  as  was  the  former 
custom,  while  the  presence  of  the  King  and 
Resident-General  together  on  the  same  mis- 
sion was  intended  to  convince  the  masses 
of  the  acquiescence  of  the  Royal  Court  in 
Japan's  policy.  The  next  step  was  to  take 
the  young  Crown  Prince  away  from  his 
parents  and  send  him  to  Japan  to  receive 
a  modern  education,  though  doubtless  the 
Koreans  at  first  regarded  this  act  as  making 
the  young  prince  a  hostage  for  their  good 
behaviour.  The  Residency-General  now  took 
over  the  management  of  all  crown  lands,  the 
matter  being  transferred  to  the  Finance 
Department.  Investigations  w-ere  carried 
out  as  to  the  legitimacy  and  adjustment  of 
royal  debts,  amounting  to  more  than  one 
million  yen.  Considerable  expenses  were 
saved  not  only  by  the  dismissal  of  hundreds 
of  useless  court  officials  but  by  the  reduction 
of  court  ceremonies  from  792  to  201  annually. 

Investigation  and  reform  mercilessly  pro- 
ceeded from  the  royal  court  down  to  the 
general  administration  of  the  State,  where 
unnecessary  or  incompetent  officials  were 
dispensed  with  and  the  salaries  of  those 
retained  raised  above  the  point  of  former 
temptations  to  bribery.  The  salaries  of  all 
Japanese  officials  were  made  not  only  higher 
than  those  of  natives  of  the  same  rank,  but 
some  thirty  per  cent  higher  than  the  same 
officials  receive  in  Japan  proper,  on  the  score 
that  it  is  difficult  to  get  competent  officers 
to  accept  office  outside  the  home  land. 
Gradually  the  powers  with  regard  to  taxation 
and  jurisdiction  of  the  provincial  governors 
were  transferred  to  the  Central  Government 
under  the  Resident-General,  and  administra- 
tive districts  were  left  little  local  autonomy, 
the  functions  of  governors,  prefects,  and 
magistrates  being  limited  to  putting  into 
effect  laws,  ordinances,  and  instructions 
issued  by  the  Central  Government.  The 
courts  of  justice,  which  were  largely  courts 
of  corniption  and  bribery,  .were  now  brought 
under  the  scheme  of  reform,  the  regulations 
for  civil  and  criminal  procedure  being  entirely 
revised  and  special  codes  promulgated,  with 
improvement  of  prisons.  A  proper  police 
force  was  now  for  the  first  time  organised, 
numbering  over  5,000,  as  well  as  a  force  of 
gendarmerie  for  the  more  distant  districts,  to 


A    STREET    IN  JINSEN    (CHEMULPO) 


the  terror  of  the  local  inhabitants.  Naturally 
the  change  was  unacceptable  to  large  sections 
of  the  population,  and  rebellion  and  brig- 
andage began  to  prevail  in  many  places,  all 
of  which  was  put  down  with  a  severe  and 
relentless  hand.  Much  criticism  had  been 
made  regarding  this  period  of  the  new  admin- 
istration, especially  in  respect  to  its  alleged 
ruthlessness,  but  the  Japanese  deny  that 
extreme  measures  were  resorted  to  more  than 
was  necessary.  Roads,  bridges,  and  rail- 
ways were   also  included  in  the   scheme   of 


reform  leading  up  to  the  annexation  of  the 
peninsula. 

MODERN  REGIME 
After  the  annexation  of  Korea  the 
Resident-General  became  the  Governor- 
General,  and  was  invested  with  power  of 
almost  absolute  government  over  the  whole 
country.  He  is  in  command  of  the  army 
and  navy  under  direct  control  of  the  Emperor 
of  Japan,  and  within  the  sphere  assigned  to 
him  commands  the  defences  of  the  colony. 


ANOTHER    STREET    SCENE    IN   JINSEN    (CHEMULPO) 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


843 


DIAMOND    MOUNTAIN    SEA,    KONGO 


The  Governor-General  also  supervises  all 
the  political  affairs  of  Korea  and  has  the 
right  to  appeal  to  the  Emperor  for  sanction 
through  the  Minister  of  Home  Affairs  and 
the  Premier  of  Japan.  In  these  duties  the 
Governor-General  has  the  assistance  and 
advice  of  the  Director  of  Political  Affairs. 
The  office  of  the  Governor-General  is  divided 
into  five  departments:  Internal  Affairs, 
Finance,  Agriculture,  Commerce  and  In- 
dustry, and  Justice,  under  the  management 
of  directors,  councillors,  and  thirty-six  com- 
missioners. In  addition  to  numerous  tech- 
nical experts  and  clerks,  there  are  officials 
of  affiliated  bureaux  connected  with  the 
central  council,  the  railway  and  the  Depart- 
ment of  Communications. 

The  whole  peninsula  is  divided  into  thirteen 
prefectures,  the  governors  of  which  are  all 
Japanese,  except  five.  The  central  council 
is  an  advisory  body  of  fifteen,  twenty  coun- 
cillors and  thirty-five  others,  who  deliberate 
on    matters    submitted    bv    the    Governor- 


General.  The  members  of  this  body  are 
appointed  by  the  Imperial  cabinet  in  Tokyo 
on  the  nomination  of  the  Governor-General 
from  among  Koreans  who  have  held  minis- 
terial office  under  former  governments,  but 
the  president  of  the  council  is  always  the 
Director  of  Political  Affairs.  The  fifteen 
official  advisers  alone  have  the  right  of  voting 
at  meetings  of  the  central  council. 

The  former  King  of  Korea  now  takes  the 
title  His  Imperial  Highness  Prince  Yi,  and 
the  son  is  known  as  Prince  Yi,  Junior.  The 
royal  family  of  Korea  receive  the  same  treat- 
ment as  princes  of  the  blood  in  Japan,  and 
an  annuity  of  1,500,000  yen.  Some  seventy- 
five  distinguished  Koreans,  including  five 
members  of  the  royal  family,  have  been 
granted  the  rank  of  peers,  making  five 
marquises,  three  counts,  twenty-two  vis- 
counts, and  forty-five  barons,  and  have  been 
given  lump  sums  of  from  200,000  to  50,000 
yen,  according  to  rank. 

The  peninsula  is  now  garrisoned  b}'  two 


divisions  of  the  Imperial  Army,  with  head- 
quarters at  Pingyang  near  the  capital,  884 
Japanese  and  3,130  native  police,  together 
with  a  large  force  of  gendarmerie,  the  total 
forces  being  over  14,000,  or  one  policeman  to 
each  six  square  miles.  A  new  naval  station 
has  been  established  at  Chinghai  Bay,  where 
some  8,000,000  yen  in  improvements  is  being 
expended. 

Korean  courts  of  law  come  under  the 
direct  control  of  the  Governor-General. 
There  are  eight  district  courts  with  71 
branch  courts,  three  courts  of  appeal  and  a 
supreme  court,  with  197  judges,  of  whom  160 
are  Koreans;  64  public  procurators,  of  whom 
54  are  Korean ;  as  well  as  various  clerks  and 
interpreters.  The  total  number  of  cases 
coming  before  Korean  courts  in  1914  was 
211,235,  of  which  17,819  were  criminal  suits. 
The  number  of  convicts  in  Korean  prisons 
is  9,474,  of  whom  534  are  females. 

That  the  entire  judicial  system  of  the 
country  should  be  subject  to  the  Governor- 
General  is  not  regarded  as  conducive  to 
impartial  justice,  as  apparently  unlimited 
discretion  is  allowed  to  procurators  and 
police.  The  most  conspicuous  example  of 
what  might  be  regarded  as  a  miscarriage  of 
justice  occurred  in  19 15  when  123  men,  most 
of  them  Christian  pastors  and  teachers  and 
students,  were  arrested  and  made  to  implicate 
themselves,  under  torture  inflicted  by  the 
poHce,  in  a  conspiracy  to  assassinate  the 
Governor-General.  On  the  confessions  forced 
from  them  by  torture,  as  they  openly  testi- 
fied in  court,  105  of  these  victims  were 
sentenced  to  various  terms  of  penal  servitude. 
The  case  was  appealed  to  a  higher  court, 
when  the  number  of  convictions  were  re- 
duced to  six,  which  an  appeal  to  the  Supreme 
Court  confirmed.  As  the  six  victims  finally 
condemned  were  sentenced  on  the  same  evi- 
dence as  those  who  had  been  convicted  at  the 
first  court  and  acquitted  at  the  second  court, 
the  judicial  system  of  Korea  may  be  said  to 
have  ignored  the  charges  of  torture  against 
the  police  and  sentenced  to  penal  servitude 
six  men  against  whom  there  was  no  evidence 
of  guilt  save  confessions  extorted  by  torture. 
As  the  victims  were  mostly  Christians  the  case 
attracted  the  attention  of  the  world.  Some 
of  the  foreign  missionaries  in  Korea  were 
openly  accused  in  court  of  being  accomplices 
to  the  alleged  conspiracy,  and  yet  they  were 
not  permitted  to  take  their  stand  in  court 
and  prov'e  their  innocence,  which  was  every- 
where regarded  as  a  further  miscarriage  of 
justice.  It  will  take  some  time  before  the 
administration  in  Korea  is  able  to  free  itself 
from  the  suspicions  thus  aroused  and  to 
remove  the  discredit  brought  upon  it  by  this 
remarkable  attitude  of  its  judiciary  in  the 
episode  mentioned. 


844 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


A  great  deal  of  fault  is  also  found  with  the 
practice  of  keeping  the  Koreans  under  a 
system  of  military  government,  and  always 
ha\nng  the  Governor-General  an  officer  of 
the  army.  Exception  is  taken  to  the  military 
system  in  Korea  by  even  Japanese  leaders 
of  thought  themselves,  as  not  likely  to  win 
the  confidence  of  the  Korean  people  who  still 
see  nothing  good  in  their  Japanese  overlords. 
The  policy  of  terror  pursued  during  the  early 
stages  of  Japan's  regime  in  Korea  has  never 
been  forgotten,  and  it  is  only  by  the  greatest 
tact  and  consideration  that  the  people  can 
be  persuaded  that  their  masters  mean  them 
good 

AREA  AND  POPULATION 
Bounded  on  three  sides  by  the  sea,  Korea 
forms  one  of  the  largest  peninsulas  of  East 
Asia,  having  an  area  of  about  18,130  square 
miles  and  a  coast  line  extending  close  upon 
1,700  miles,  with  various  islands  scattered 
here  and  there,  particularly  to  the  southwest. 
The  official  survey  of  the  country  is  not  yet 
complete,  but  the  Government  is  expending 
a  sum  of  some  15,000000  yen  on  it,  to  be 
laid  out  during  a  period  of  seven  years. 
Towards  the  north  and  east  the  peninsula 
is  mountainous,  the  elevations  being  chiefly 
devoid  of  trees,  though  the  banks  of  the  rivers 
Yalu  and  Tumen  have  some  valuable  timber. 


The  region  known  as  Diamond  Mountain  is 
particularly  picturesque,  its  admirable  scen- 
ery attracting  numerous  tourists  from  year 
to  year. 

The  total  population  of  Korea  is  officially 
stated  as  17,519,864  in  the  year  1916,  of 
which  8,415,913  are  females.  In  addition, 
there  is  a  Japanese  population  of  about 
300,000,  with  some  18.000  foreigners,  of 
whom  over  16,000  are  Chinese.  The  annual 
births  of  the  peninsula  are  over  450,000,  of 
which  about  4,500  are  still-bom.  Deaths 
number  about  275,000  annually.  The  annual 
number  of  marriages  is  232,000,  of  which 
nearly  10,000  experience  divorce  annually. 
The  largest  centres  of  population  are  Seoul 
with  about  230,000,  and  Fusan  with  over 
1 1 1 ,000,  none  of  the  other  cities  reaching 
50,000.  The  Japanese  population  is  fast 
increasing  in  the  colony  and  in  a  few  years 
will  wield  a  predominating  influence,  especial- 
ly as  the  Japanese  language  is  being  imposed 
on  the  Koreans. 

FORESTS  AND  FISHERIES 
For  centuries  before  Japan's  occupation 
of  Korea  no  care  was  taken  of  forests  and 
consequently  more  than  75  per  cent  of  the 
forest  area  of  the  country  has  been  ruthlessly 
destroyed  by  fire  and  the  axe  of  the  woodman. 
Areas  properly  regarded  as  forests  still  cover 


some  27,000,000  acres,  however,  or  about  40 
per  cent  of  the  total  area  of  the  country. 
The  species  of  tree  most  important  are  pine, 
birch,  oak,  and  walnut,  with  others  indige- 
nous to  the  Orient.  The  absence  of  trees  in 
the  more  inhabited  portions  of  Korea,  how- 
ever, is  a  tremendous  handicap  to  the  prog- 
ress of  the  country,  as  there  is  no  material 
for  fire-wood  and  the  construction  of  houses, 
while  the  general  deforestation  also  injures 
agriculture.  The  Government  has  estab- 
lished a  model  forestry  station  and  ntu-sery 
gardens  under  supervision  of  Japanese 
experts,  and  every  effort  is  being  made  to 
replant  the  bare  hills  and  mountains  through- 
out the  country.  A  special  course  in  forestry 
has  been  added  to  the  Agricultural  and 
Industrial  Model  Station  at  Suwun,  the 
graduates  from  which  are  employed  by  the 
Government  at  various  forestry  stations.  A 
Bureau  of  Forestry  has  been  established  and 
special  legislation  has  been  directed  toward 
the  protection  of  forests,  while  conditions  in 
the  interest  of  forests  are  made  upon  the 
sale  or  lease  of  public  lands.  The  custom  of 
observing  Arbour  Day  has  been  inaugurated, 
which  results  in  the  planting  of  some  15,- 
000,000  young  trees  annually,  while  the 
yearly  planting  of  trees  by  the  Forestry 
Bureau  amounts  to  over  35,000,000  more. 
The  valuable  timber  forests  along  the  Yalu 


FUSAN    FISHERIES 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


845 


FISH    MARKET,    FUSAN 


River  are  being  carefully  exploited  by  the 
Japanese,  great  quantities  of  fine  trees  being 
brought  to  the  home  market  every  year. 
The  Government's  timber  stations  on  the 
Yalu  and  the  Tumen  Rivers  command  a 
forest  acreage  of  about  4,410,000,  yielding 
more  than  half  a  million  yens'  worth  of  timber 
annually,  and  over  a  million  yen  in  value 
of  sawn  lumber.  The  most  important  trees 
exploited  are  pine,  spruce,  white  fir,  oak, 
birch,  lime,  ash,  yew,  elm,  poplar,  and  cherry. 
The  fishing  industry  of  Korea  brings  a  rich 
return  since  the  introduction  by  Japanese 
fishermen  of  methods  more  skilful  than  those 
previously  adopted  by  the  natives.  The 
latter  resorted  only  to  catching  fish  near  the 
coast  with  crude  appliances,  but  now  they 
vie  with  the  Japanese  in  deep-sea  fishing. 
As  many  as  one  hundred  species  of  marine 
animals  are  secured  for  food  or  to  supply  raw 
material,  including  fish,  shells,  and  seaweeds 
used  in  the  making  of  gelatine.  An  official 
department  deals  with  the  marine  products 
by  way  of  inspection,  research,  and  pisci- 
culture, about  3,000,000  young  salmon  and 
2,000,000  young  trout  being  set  free  in  the 
rivers  annually.  Lobster  basins  have  been 
constructed  in  large  numbers  and  a  good  deal 
of  money  spent  on  experimental  work.  The 
13,851  Korean  boats  in  operation  have  an 
annual  catch  valued  at  over  Yen  6,000,000  in 
round  numbers,  while  the  6,01 1  Japanese 
boats  take  fish  to  the  value  of  Yen  5,500,000, 
almost  twice  the  value,  per  boat,  of  the  native 
craft.  The  main  lines  of  fishing  industry  are 
in  cod,  guchi,  and  herring,  but  sardine, 
yellowtail,  shark,  perch,  and  whale  are  also 
taken  in  Korean  waters. 


AGRICULTURE  AND  INDUSTRY 

Korea  being  almost  wholly  an  agricultural 
country,  farming  is  naturally  the  most 
important  industry.  The  farms  are  on  a 
very  small  scale  and  owned  mostly  by  land- 
lords. The  Government  has  taken  an  active 
and  intelligent  interest  in  agriculture,  encour- 
aging the  utilisation  of  the  waste  lands, 
estimated  to  cover  some  66  per  cent  of  the 
arable  area  of  the  country,  the  existence  of 
which  is  attributable  to  lack  of  trees  and  the 
ravages  of  floods  in  the  absence  of  embank- 
ments, drainage,  and  irrigation.  For  the 
promotion  of  more  intensified  agricultural 
industry  the  Government  has  taken  shares  in 
the  Oriental  Development  Company,  a  Japa- 
nese concern  aiming  to  furnish  settlers,  farm- 
ers, and  others  in  Korea  with  funds.  Reports 
that  the  tendency  of  the  company  is  to  absorb 
and  exploit  lands  formerly  held  by  Koreans 
are  not  confirmed  by  the  Japanese  author- 
ities, but  nearly  4,000  Japanese  have  already 
taken  up  land  in  Korea,  representing  an  acre- 
age of  320,000  and  a  value  of  Yen  20,000,000. 
The  model  farms  started  by  the  Government 
for  the  promotion  of  cereal  cultivation  and 
other  staple  agricultural  industries,  as  well  as 
the  raising  of  poultry,  live  stock,  and  silk, 
have  done  much  in  this  direction,  the  distribu- 
tion of  plants  and  seeds  from  these  stations, 
and  of  agricultural  implements  and  machin- 
ery, greatly  assisting  the  ignorant  peasantry 
towards  modern  methods  of  production. 
Special  attention  is  being  devoted  by  the 
Government  to  the  promotion  of  sericulture, 
liberal  subsidies  being  granted  to  associations 
for  this  purpose.     The  progress  of  the  silk 


industry  may  be  seen  from   the  fact  that 
77,000  sheets  of  eggs  in  1910  grew  to  203,780 
sheets    in    1913,    whilst    the    production    of 
cocoons  has  nearly  trebled  and  the  area  of 
mulberry    plantations    more    than    doubled. 
The  model  farm  experiments  in  the  cultiva- 
tion of  rice,  hemp,  tobacco,  sugar  beets,  the 
raising  of  cattle  and  in   the  chemistry  and 
bacteriology    of    agriculture,    have    all    lent 
remarkable  impetus  to  these  industries.    En- 
couraging results  have  also  been  obtained  in 
the   improvement  of   fruit   trees  and   vines, 
chiefly  apple,  grape,  chestnut,  walnut,  pear, 
persimmon,  and  peach.    Cotton  planting  in- 
creased from  120  acres  in  1908  to  63,000  acres 
in  1913,  the  production  now  being  about  50,- 
000,000  pounds  annually,  though  of  a  coarser 
fibre  than  Indian  or  American  cotton.     Plans 
are  being  put  into  operation  to  increase  the 
acreage  under  cotton  to  250,000.    Ramie  and 
hemp  are  also  cultivated  extensively  in  vari- 
ous provinces.     Rice,  of  course,  is  the  staple 
food  of  Korea,  supplemented  by  wheat,  barley, 
and  red  beans.   Under  Government  inspection 
of   output  rice  is  being  brought  to  a  higher 
standard,  but  as  yet  no  more  than  seven  and  a 
half  out  of  a  total  production  of  750,000,000 
bushels  is  of  improved  quality.     The  annual 
crop  of  wheat  and  barley  amounts  to  about 
30,000,000    bushels,    beans     16,000,000,    and 
millet   17,000,000.     Upon  the  yield  of  beans 
much  of  the  Korean  farmer's  financial  condi- 
tion depends,  as  this  is  one  of  the  most  im- 
portant exports  to  Japan,  where  it  is  used  for 
making  soy,  oil,  and  soap.     At  present  the 
crop  reaches   only  12   bushels   of  beans  per 
acre  and  the  annual  value  is  only  some  Yen 
5,000,000.     Tobacco  cultivation  is  carried  on 
chiefly  in  the  southern   districts   where,  not- 
withstanding great  improvements  introduced 
by  the  authorities,  the   annual    crop   is   not 
worth  more  than  Yen  3,000,000,  and  does  not 
begin  to  meet  the  domestic  demand  which  con- 
sumes some  Yen  8,000,000  in  value  annually. 
The  growing  of  ginseng,  a  medical  root  highly 
valued   by    the   Koreans   and    Chinese,  is   a 
Government  monoply,  bringing  in  some  Yen 
2,500,000  of  revenue  every  year.    Live  stock  is 
raised  as  a  by-product  of  agriculture,  cattle, 
horses,  goats,  and  pigs  being  found  everywhere 
in  the  country.    Korean  cattle  are  valued  for 
their  size  and  their  beef,  and  large  numbers 
are  exported  to  Japan  and  Russia.     Though 
efforts  have  been  made  at  improvement  of 
breeds  no  apparent  increase  has  taken   place. 
In    1913   cattle  numbered   1,211,000;    horses 
50,650;     donkeys    13,225;    mules    802;    pigs 
761,186;  goats  10,456;  fowls  about  5,000,000. 
When   Korea   was   taken   over   by  Japan 
native  industries  were  in  rather  a  primitive 
condition.     Even   ceramics  and  weaving,  in 
which  Korea  at  one  time  had  been  the  teacher 
of  Japan,  were  fallen  into  neglect  and  decay. 


846 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


MARKET    AT    TAIKVU,    THE    LARGEST    IN   CHOSEN 


Apart  from  the  little  that  was  done  in  the  way 
of  weaving,  paper  making,  tanning,  knitting, 
metal  and  bamboo  work,  there  were  no 
special  industries  to  speak  of.  The  Koreans, 
however,  are  very  deft  with  the  hands,  as 
may  be  seen  from  their  ancient  fabrics  and 
other  works  of  art,  and  all  that  is  necessary 
to  improve  the  industrial  output  of  the  penin- 
sula is  leadership  and  education.  To  encour- 
age the  further  development  of  industry  the 
Government  has  established  training  and 
technical  schools,  printing  offices  and  brick 
factories.  The  principal  industries  carried 
on  by  Japanese  in  Korea  are  rice-cleaning, 
iron  works,  brick  and  tile  making,  electric 
enterprises,  lumbering,  brewing,  and  tanning, 
with  an  annual  output  valued  at  some 
Yen  28,000,000,  employing  17,000  hands,  of 
whom  13,000  are  natives.  In  1915  the  13 
electric  companies  in  Korea  had  a  capital  of 
Yen    10,850,000,  and   were  generating  8,100 


kilowatts,  the  largest  concern  being  the  Seoul 
Electric  Company,  with  a  capital  of  Yen  6,- 
000,000,  supplying  power  for  street  railways 
as  well  as  current  for  illumination.  The 
total  capital  invested  in  enterprises  in  Korea 
in  1915  is  shown  in  table  below. 

The  principal  industrial  products  of  Korea 
at  present  are  textile  fabrics,  paper,  pottery, 
metal  ware,  manufactured  tobacco,  brewed 
drinks,  and  leather,  most  of  which  are  under 
Japanese  auspices.  Few  of  the  native  indus- 
tries are  on  a  large  scale,  all  being  carried  on 
as  subsidiary  house  industries,  and  the  output 
is  quite  insignificant,  and  unequal  to  the 
home  demand.  Under  Government  encour- 
agement some  of  the  notable  arts  and  crafts 
that  flourished  in  ancient  Korea  show  some 
signs  of  revival,  especially  in  such  lines  as 
weaving,  silk,  and  paper.  Wages  in  Korea 
are  very  low,  being  not  much  more  than  half 
what  they  are  in  Japan. 


Class 


Agricultural  companies .  .  . 

Industrial  companies 

Commercial  companies.  .  . 
Transportation  companies 
Others 

Total 


Number 

Capital 

Paid  ii> 

Yen 

Yen 

21 

14,223,000 

12,208,233 

42 

7,501,300 

3,133,728 

1 1 1 

27.379,520 

18,827,465 

21 

4,086,500 

2,025,500 

14 

2,796,800 

2,396,455 

209 

56,977,120 

3«,59i.,S8i 

THE    ORIENTAL    DEVELOP.MENT 
COMPANY,    LIMITED 

The  Oriental  Development  Company  was 
organised  on  the  twenty-eighth  of  Decem- 
ber, 1908,  about  two  years  previous  to 
the  annexation  of  Korea  to  the  Empire  of 
Japan,  by  virture  of  special  laws  of  Japan 
and  Korea  respectively,  with  a  view  to  open- 
ing up  the  natiu-al  resources  of  the  peninsula 
under  the  auspices  of  both  Governments  and 
with  their  cooperation,  not  only  to  facilitate 
the  mutual  economic  expansions,  but  also  to 
promote  the  welfare  of  the  two  countries  in 
common. 

In  consideration  of  the  nature  and  func- 
tions of  the  company,  the  Government  of 
Japan  has  granted  to  the  company  a  subsidy 
of  Yen  300,000  per  annum,  for  the  period  of 
eight  years  since  its  formation,  and  also  the 
privilege  of  issuing  debentures,  guaranteed 
by  the  Government  to  the  extent  of  ten  times 
the  amount  of  its  paid-up  capital. 

The  principal  officials  of  the  company  were 
newly  appointed,  in  October,  19 16,  by  the 
Government  as  follows:  President,  Mr.  Yeizo 
Ishizuka;  Administrators,  Viscount  Naohira 
Matsutaira  and  Messrs.  Tsunero  Kawakami 
and  Umekichi  Takase;  Supervisors,  Messrs. 
Tokuzo  Shima,  Gennosuke  Fukumoto,  and 
Chyo-Chintai. 

The  law  regulating  the  comjiany  was  also 
revised     in     July,     1917,     introducing    very 


TOYO   TAKUSHOKU    KABUSHIKI    KAISHA    (tHE    ORIENTAL    DEVELOPMENT   CO.,    LTD.):       VIEW     OF    FARM     LAND    AND      RICE   FIELDS — LAYING    AN 
IRRIG.\TION    PIPE   LINE — TWO    VIEWS    SHOWING    TANGIBLE    PROOF   OF   THE   COMPANY'S   SUCCESS  — THE    HEAD   OFFICE    AT    SEOUL 


848 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


important  modification  towards  expansion 
along  the  lines  of  business  in  kind  and  degree, 
with  a  view  to  meeting  the  needs  of  the  time. 

The  following  are  the  capitulations  of  the 
general  features  of  the  company  under  the 
new  regime: 

(i).  The  object  of  the  company  is  to 
engage  in  development  enterprises  in  Chosen 
and  foreign  countries,  such  business  as  fur- 
nishing development  funds  or  others,  estab- 
lishing its  head  office  in  Tokyo,  and  branches 
or  sub-branches  in  Seoul,  Mukden,  and  any 
other  convenient  places. 

(2).  The  company  carries  on  the  following 
business:  (a)  Furnishing  funds  necessary  for 
development;  (6)  Agriculture,  irrigation 
works,  and  the  acquisition  of,  working  and 
disposition  of,  lands  necessary  for  develop- 
ment; (c)  Invitation  and  distribution  of 
settlers  necessary  for  development;  (d) 
Construction,  sale  or  purchase  and  lease  or 
rent  of  buildings  necessary  for  development; 
(e)  Furnishing  settlers  or  farmers  with  articles 
necessary  for  development;  (/)  Working  and 
managing  lands  entrusted  to  the  company; 
(g)     Enterprises  necessary  for  development. 

(3).  The  Government  has  granted  the 
immunity  to  the  company,  besides  the  sub- 
sidy which  was  completed  in  191 6,  exempting 
it  from  all  dividends  to  be  made  on  60,000 
Government  shares,  for  the  period  of  anothei 
eight  years  from  and  on  the  first  of  April,  1917. 

The  sphere  of  operations  of  the  company 
has  been  thus  far  extended  beyond  Chosen, 
covering,  at  present,  the  greater  part  of 
South  Manchuria  and  East  Mongoha  in 
China,  as  well  as  overseas  in  the  South. 
Nevertheless,  the  centre  of  the  company's 
economic  activity  rests  in  Chosen,  with  the 
resources  of  73,000  hectares  of  cultivated  land 
consisting  mainly  of  rice  fields,  and  with  the 
loans  above  10,000,000  yen  in  total  which 
were  made  to  farmers.  Agricultural  and 
Industrial  Banks,  and  other  public  or  private 
corporations,  etc. ;  besides  the  amount  of 
2,750,000  yen  being  furnished  to  15,000 
settlers,  of  2,900  families  all  together,  as 
the  cost  of  allotted  lands  and  settlement 
expenses  by  the  end  of  the  year  191 7.  Rec- 
lamation and  irrigation  schemes  have  been 
projected  and  worked  on  a  large  scale, 
bringing  waste  land  into  cultivation  for  rice, 
the  staple  product  of  the  Orient.  Affor- 
estation, including  a  bamboo  plantation,  has 
also  been  carried  out  with  much  success. 

The  Seoul  branch  manages  and  controls 
the  business  operations  in  the  peninsula, 
equipped  with  sub-branches  in  several  im- 
portant localities,  under  the  supervision  of 
Mr.  Kawakami,  the  Resident  Administrator 
of  Chosen  and  Director  of  the  Working 
Department  of  the  company. 


A    SCENE    IN    .\    M.\RKET    PL.\CE,     SHOWING    S.\MPLES    OF    GR.AIN    DISPL.WED    IX    STR.\W    TR.WS 


The  Mukden  and  Dairen  branches,  both 
of  which  were  set  up  quite  recently,  are 
very  busily  engaged  in  the  lines  of  business, 
especially  in  the  supplying  of  development 
funds,  under  the  supervision  of  Mr.  Takase, 
the  Resident  Administrator  in  China  and 
Director  of  the  Banking  Department  of  the 
company. 

The  Tokyo  head  office  superintends  the 
business  affairs  of  the  company  in  general, 
under  the  presidency  of  Mr.  Ishizuka,  aided 
by  Viscount  Matsutaira,  the  Administrator 
in  Tokyo  and  Director  of  the  General  Affairs 
Department  of  the  company,  and  by  the 
two  other  administrators  above  mentioned. 

The  company  is  now  operating  with  a 
capital  of  10,000,000  yen,  fully  paid  up, 
and  with  a  fund  of  37,000,000  yen  raised  by 
debentures  in  home  financial  circles  and  in 
Paris.  The  business  conducted  by  the  com- 
pany is  in  a  new  economic  field,  and  of  a 
highly  complicated  nature,  yet  so  efficient 
are  their  methods  that  they  are  realising 
in  a  marked  degree  the  special  mission  for 
which  they  are  organised,  namely,  the  devel- 
opment of  agriculture  and  industries. 

FUJII     IN'DUSTRI.\L    DEVELOP.MENT     CO., 
LIMITED 

A  GRE.\T  deal  of  the  credit  for  the  rapid 
growth  and  improvement  of  the  industries 
and  the  general  economic  situation  of  Chosen 
is  due  to  the  splendid  manner  in  which  cer- 
tain of  the  big  development  and  colonisation 
companies  have  taken  hold  of  the  problem 
of  enhancing   the   natural   resources   of   the 


country.  An  instance  of  such  work  is  to  be 
found  in  the  record  of  the  Fujii  Kogyo 
Kabushiki  Kaisha,  or  Fujii  Industrial  Devel- 
opment Co.,  Ltd. 

This  organisation  was  promoted  by  Mr. 
Kantaro  Fujii,  who  has  taken  the  greatest 
interest  in  the  development  of  Chosen  ever 
since  he  has  been  in  the  country.  Mr. 
Fujii  has  always  been  specially  interested  in 
the  opening  up  of  a  large  tract  of  land 
which  stretches  from  Ryugamno,  near  the 
mouth  of  the  River  Yalu,  to  Rikaho,  via 
Jikoho,  and  this  is  now  the  scene  of  his 
company's  extensive  operations.  This  area 
is  known  to  be  fertile,  but  before  it  could  be 
put  to  any  use,  the  water  difficulty  had  to 
be  solved,  and  much  embankment  and  similar 
work  undertaken.  Given  a  sufficiency  of 
water  for  irrigation  purposes,  the  area  is 
estimated  to  be  capable  of  producing  seven 
kokii  of  unhulled  rice  per  300  Isuho.  Mr. 
Fujii  took  up  the  question  of  irrigating  this 
tract  of  country.  He  formed  the  Rinyeki 
Water  Utility  Association,  and  had  all  plans 
completed  by  June,  1911.  At  this  time  he 
was  also  the  Managing  Partner  of  the  Fuji- 
moto  Goshi  Kaisha.  Mr.  Fujii  realised  that 
as  the  water  difficulty  had  been  met,  the 
next  step  was  to  proceed  with  throwing  the 
land  open  for  farm  and  pasture.  In  June, 
1912,  the  agricultural  quarters  of  the  Fuji- 
moto  Goshi  Kaisha  were  established  at 
Zenhoku,  and  Mr.  Fujii  then  made  a  close 
investigation  of  the  agricultural  possibilities 
of  the  area  referred  to  above.  Finding  it 
to  be  a  promising  district  for  the  growing  of 
rice,  under  proper  management,  he  applied 


'                  /  ', 

SHIN-BANBUTSUSO,    KONGO-SAN  —  VIEW   OF   HIHO-BAKU,    KONGO-SAN-BANSOTEI    (REST   HOUSE),    BANBUTSUSO,    KONGO-SAN  —  BANSO-DAKI 
(fall)    in    BANBUTSUSO    (ROCK    OF    MYRIAD    ASPECTS),    KONGO-SAN — KIMENGAN,    KONGO-SAN 


850 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


FUJII    KOGYO    KABUSHIKI    KAISHA:    (LEFT   TO    RIGHT)    ONE    OF   THE    FIRST   CROPS — -PORTION    OF    THE    SEA    WALL   CONSTRUCTED    DY    THE 
COMPANY  —  PLANTING    RICE    ON    REDEEMED     LAND.      (LOWER   CENTRE)    CONSTRUCTION    WORK    ON 
IRRIGATION    CANAL  —  AN    IRRIGATION    CANAL THE    SEA    WALL 


for  and  secured  a  lease  from  the  Govern- 
ment General  of  Chosen  of  about  21,000,000 
tsiibo  of  land,  approximately  17,157  acres. 
Work  in  the  direction  of  irrigating  the 
tract,  constructing  embankments,  and  gener- 
ally improving  the  area  was  started  in  June, 
1914.  It  was  found  that  even  the  pre- 
liminary work  of  constructing  the  main 
embankments  along  the  river  called  for  a 
large  amount  of  capital,  and  the  company 
was  reorganised  as  a  joint -stock  concern, 
Mr.  Fujii  being  joined  in  his  big  undertaking 
by  Messrs.  Ukon  of  Osaka,  and  Kawakami 
of  Yechigo.  The  name  of  the  concern  was 
then  changed  to  its  present  title  of  the  Fujii 
Industrial  Development  Co.,  Ltd.,  and  the 
capital  was  fixed  at  Yen  1,000,000.  Then 
the  work  of  constructing  the  main  embank- 
ments was  fairly  put  in  hand.  This  work 
called  for  an  extraordinary  number  of  labour- 
ers, and  it  was  found  that  as  the  embankment 
work  was  greatly  affected  by  the  rise  and 
fall  of  the  tide  along  the  seashore  at  the 
mouth  of  the  River  Yalu,  dredgers  were 
required.     The    Osaka    Iron    Works,    Ltd., 


built  two  Priestman  dredgers  for  the  com- 
pany, and  on  their  arrival  one  was  set 
up  at  Seikoko,  and  the  other  at  Shishito. 
Under- this  arrangement  the  work  was  started 
from  both  ends  at  once  and  proceeded  toward 
the  centre.  Embankments  of  a  total  length  of 
six  and  one-half  miles  were  completed,  and 
a  spacious  area  for  rice  cultiv-ation  was 
ready  by  the  end  of   1915. 

Meanwhile  an  association  called  the 
Taisho  Water  LUilisation  Association,  of 
which  Mr.  Fujii  is  also  the  President,  pro- 
ceeded energetically  with  the  work  of  supply- 
ing water  to  the  reclaimed  ground.  Still, 
the  undertaking  for  both  companies  was  of 
such  a  vast  and  expansive  nature  that  they 
had  to  apply  to  the  Oriental  Development 
Co.,  Ltd.,  for  funds.  The  application  was 
granted  and  the  work  once  more  proceeded 
with  energj',  the  area  controlled  by  the 
Fujii  Industrial  Development  Co.,  Ltd.,  now 
being  well  supplied  with  water,  and  all 
arrangements  being  completed  to  make  it 
available  for  settlement.  The  work  actually 
carried  out,  or  to  be  completed,   comprises 


the  construction  of  dykes  or  embankments 
along  the  seacoast  near  the  mouth  of  the 
River  Yalu,  to  dredge  out  the  shallow  swamp 
lands  and  convert  them  into  rice  fields  or 
grass  lands;  to  construct  main  and  sub- 
sidiary canals  for  conveying  water  to  the 
fields,  and  to  build  roads  and  other  con- 
veniences for  farmers. 

It  is  planned  to  cultivate  the  grass-grown 
tracts  in  1918,  to  open  up  fields  in  the  dredged 
portions  in  1919,  and  in  1920  the  w-hole  of 
the  remaining  portions  are  to  be  prepared  for 
cultivation.  The  company  intends  to  plant 
rice  exclusively.  Three  kinds  will  be  grown, 
viz.,  Sekiyama,  Shirahige,  and  Kameno-o. 
It  is  anticipated  that  the  land  will  yield  about 
7  koku  per  300  Isubo,  and  as  the  net  area 
available  for  rice  fields  is  about  10,500,000 
Isubo,  the  yield  will  be  worth,  at  Yen  5  per 
koku,  even  taking  the  average  at  5  koku  per 
300  tsubo,  Yen  875,000.  The  project  is  a 
big  one,  but  it  is  felt  that  it  will  prove  highly 
successful  and  will  amply  repay  Mr.  Fujii 
and  his  supporters  for  the  great  enterprise 
they  have  shown. 


PRESENT-UAY 


IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


851 


MINERALS  AND   MINES 
Korea   is   remarkably   rich    in    minerals, 
chiefly  gold,  iron,  graphite,  and  anthracite, 
together  with  silver,  zinc,  copper,  lead,  coal, 
and    tungsten    ore.     The    gold    mines    were 
formerly    exploited    chiefly     by    foreigners, 
but    since    annexation    the    Japanese    have 
commenced  prospecting  and  every  year  shows 
increasing  in,vestments  in  gold  mining  enter- 
liriscs.     The  number  of  gold  mining  conces- 
sions at  the  end  of  191 3  was  189,  exclusive  of 
placer   mines.     One   of   the   leading   foreign 
companies     is     the     Oriental     Consolidated 
Mining  Company,  an  American  corporation 
with    concessions   in    the    Pyongon    district, 
working  on  a  capital  of  10,000,000  yen  and 
having  an  annual  output  valued  at  3,300,000 
yen,  or  10  yen  per  ton.     Another  American 
lirm  is  the  Seoul   Mining  Company,   which 
takes    out    ore    to    the    value    of    1,500,000 
annually.     The     northern     portion     of     the 
])eninsula    is    richest    in    mineral    deposits. 
Since    191 1    an   official   mineral   survey   has 
been  going  on  and  reports  are  issued  to  those 
interested    in    mining.     In    addition    to   the 
minerals  already  named  the  reports  indicate 
possibiUties     of     chromium,     molybdenum, 
mercury,   mica,   asbestos,   and  talc,   as  well 
as  marble  and  building  stone,  and  also  potters' 
clay   of   good    quality.     Some   of   the   more 
important  of  the  Japanese  mining  firms  have 
installed   metallurgical   plant.s,   such   as   the 
Mitsu   Bishi  iron   foundry  at   Kenjiho,   the 
Kuhara  gold-recovery  plant  at  Chinnampo, 
the  Government  reserve  plant  supplying  in 
part  its  Wakamatsu  iron  works,  the  works 
for  iron  ore  from  Sainei  and  Inritsu  in  the 
Kokai    district,    and   another   for   ore   from 
Kaisei    owned    by    the    Mitsui    firm.     The 
Meiji    Mining    Company    works    the    coal 
deposits  at  Anshu,  the  Furukawa  Company 
the  gold  mines  of  Kijo,  the  Fujita  Company 
owns  the  zinc  mines  at  Neihen,  and  there 
are  several  other  Japanese  companies.     The 
iron   ores   of   Ennyul   and    Chailong   in    the 
Province  of  Wanhai  average  from  52  to  55 
per    cent    iron,    with   manganese    1 .  70    and 
1 .  30  per  cent  respectively,  together  with  a 
little  silicon,  sulphur,  and  phosphorus.     One 
of  the  most  important  iron  mines  is  being 
worked  by  the  Okura  Company  at  Angaku 
on  the  Talong  River.     Out  of  a  total  of  1,080 
mining  permits,  612  are  in  Japanese  hands, 
369  in  Korean,  and  51   are  joint  companies 
of   Korean    and    Japanese,    the    Americans 
holding  31  concessions  and  the  British  five. 
The  total  output  of  iron  in  Korea  amounts  to 
no   more   than    170,000   tons   annually,   the 
whole  of  which  is  taken  by  the  Government 
iron  works  at  Wakamatsu  in  Japan.     The 
copper  mines  are  chiefly  at  Kapsan  in  the 
South  Hamkyong  Province.     The  principal 
company  is  American,    its  ores  yielding   11 


1907 

1909 

1911 

1913 

MlNER.\L 

Yen 

Yen 

Yen 

Yen 

Gold                                     

2,508,197 
84,589 

7,200 
15,528 
13,178 

4.428 

3.109,733 

166,164 

526,969 

4,096 

42,385 

2,737 
327,613 
181,574 
225,864 

4,438,838 

12,499 

591,618 

7,118 

38,378 

230,210 

684 

162,988 

169,065 

539,497 

63 

5.639,437 

Gold  ore             

74,218 

970,205 

Silver            

18,237 

Gold  and  silver  ore 

Gold  and  copper  ore 

Copper  ore 

Iron  ore 

(iranhite                               -  .  . 

372,063 

3,300 

216,406 

238,920 

Coal     

574.526 

Various 

3,100 

Total                 

2,633,120 

4,587,135 

6,190,958 

8,1 10,412 

per  cent  copper.  Graphite,  discovered  in 
1906,  is  of  a  clayey  nature  with  from  70  to  80 
per  cent  carbon,  a  minimum  of  35  per  cent  in 
scaly  graphite  and  96  per  cent  as  a  maximum. 
The  quality  is  inferior  to  that  of  Ceylon  and 
India,  but  the  output  is  valued  at  about 
200,000  yen  a  year.  The  Pyonyang  coal 
mines  are  owned  by  the  Government,  turning 
out  an  anthracite  of  from  85  to  90  per  cent 
carbon  to  the  amount  of  about  150,000  tons 
a  year.  Mica  is  now  being  mined  at  Tan- 
chon.  Salt,  which  for  centuries  had  been 
obtained  by  boiling  sea-water,  is  now  made 
by  evaporating  the  brine  in  pans,  as  a  monop- 
oly of  the  Government.  The  output  is  about 
25,000  tons  a  year,  and  there  is  brisk  com- 
petition with  the  cheap  salt  of  China.  The 
table  above  shows  the  important  develop- 
ment that  has  taken  place  on  the  mining  field 
in  Korea  from  1907  up  to  the  date  of  the 
latest  available  returns. 

TRADE  AND  COMMERCE 
Since  the  annexation  of  Korea  to  Japan  the 
foreign  trade  of  the  peninsula  has  witnessed 
considerable  expansion,  though  the  balance 
of  trade  will  probably  remain  unfavourable 
for  many  years  to  come.  Up  to  the  time  of 
the  war  with  Russia  the  total  volume  of 
Korea's  foreign  trade  did  not  amount  to  more 
than  20,000,000  yen  annually.  It  increased 
rapidly  after  the  war,  and  in  1910  reached  a 
total  of  over  70,000,000  yen,  of  which  30,000,- 
000  yen  represented  exports.  In  1915  the 
foreign  trade  of  Korea  had  grown  to  108,691,- 
682  yen,  of  which  49,492,325  yen  represented 
exports  and  59,199,357  imports,  an  increase  of 


44  per  cent  in  exports  and  of  about  six  per 
cent  in  imports,  over  the  previous  year.  The 
excess  of  imports,  however,  need  not  be 
regarded  so  pessimistically  as  if  there  were  no 
compensations  .such  as  an  excess  of  exports  in 
gold  bullion  annually  amounting  to  over 
10,000,000  yen.  The  table  below  indi- 
cates the  progress  of  exports  and  imports 
in  Korea  For  fifteen  years  at  intervals  of 
five  years. 

The  chief  exports  from  Korea,  in  order  of 
their  value,  are  rice  and  beans,  which  are  by 
far  the  largest,  amounting  to  7,524,879  yen 
and  5,215,609  yen  in  value,  respectively,  in 
1916;  and  next  come  hides,  which  total  over 
1,000,000  yen.  Raw  ginned  cotton,  fish,  and 
iron  ore  follow  in  value,  with  ginseng,  timber, 
barley,  wheat,  live  stock,  paper.salt,  fertilizer, 
dried  fish,  and  copper  next  in  order.  Among 
the  principal  imports  are  cotton  sheetings, 
cotton  yarn,  grass-cloths,  kerosene,  sugar, 
flours,  coal  and  coke,  timber,  machinery, 
silk  piece  goods,  tobacco,  sake,  paper,  straw 
bags,  rope,  and  matting.  The  remarkable 
increase  of  exports  in  recent  years  is  due  to 
rapid  development  of  mineral  products, 
especially  coal,  iron  ore,  and  graphite,  as  well 
as  in  rice,  beans,  and  ginseng  under  Govern- 
ment encouragement. 

As  to  distribution  of  trade,  of  course  that 
with  Japan  is  naturally  of  first  importance,  and 
that  with  China  of  considerable  importance, 
Asiatic  Russia,  Great  Britain,  and  the  United 
States  coming  next.  In  1915  the  commod- 
ities exported  to  and  imported  from  Japan 
were  valued  at  40,900,828  yen  and  41,535,102 
yen,  respectively.     Those  to  China  equalled 


Ye.\r 

Exports 

Imports 

Excess 
Imports 

Gold  Coins  and  Bullion 

Yen 

Yen 

Yen 

Exports 

l.M  PORTS 

1905 
1910 

1915 

7.916,571 
19.913,843 
49,492,325 

32,971.852 
39,781,7,56 
.59,199.357 

25,055,281 

19,867,913 

9,707.032 

5,206,805 

8,833,629 

11  ,,366,587 

500,000 

20,111 

852 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


5,599,280  yen,  and  for  imports  8,022,188  yen. 
Korea's  trade  with  various  countries  during 
the  last  fifteen  j-ears  may  be  seen  from  the 
accompanying  table,  recorded  at  intervals 
of  five  years. 

Although  the  import  trade  with  Europe  and 
America  seems  on  the  decline  or  barely  hold- 
ing its  own,  it  has  to  be  remembered  that  only 
in  recent  years  has  any  serious  attempt  been 
made  to  dififerentiate  between  the  origins  of 
imports.  American  and  European  imports 
entering  Korea  by  way  of  Japan  or  China 
were  often  credited  to  the  last  two  countries. 
Since  1907,  however,  the  Customs  Bureau  has 
endeavoured  to  classify  returns  of  trade  as 
far  as  possible  according  to  country  of  origin. 
The  commerce  of  Korea  as  yet  affords  but 
little  evidence  of  that  interplay  of  interna- 
tional economic  forces  seen  in  all  countries 
susceptible  to  the  influence  of  world-wide 
industrial  and  commercial  conditions  because 
they  have  taken  a  place  in  the  ranks  of 
international  trade.  Each  year,  however, 
renders  this  reflection  more  distinct  in  the 
trade  of  Korea,  though  the  increased  tariff 
may  have  some  adverse  effect  on  the  policy 
of  the  "open  door." 


1905 

1910 

1915 

Country 

E.XPORTS 

I.MPORTS 

Exports 

Imports 

Exports 

Imports 

Vlh 

Yen 

Yen 

Yen 

Yen 

Y.n 

Japan 

China.. 

5,611,925 
2,276,693 

21,633 
6,320 

24,041,216 

6,463,042 

110,772 

369,997 

15,378,643 

3,025,836 

1,155.357 

24.719 

156 

12,972 

25,348,083 

3,845,274 

17,970 

6,226,524 

96,039 

488,281 

120,976 

3,204,668 

434,939 

40,900,829 

5,599,280 

2,903,641 

12,185 

1,823 

41.535,102 
8,022,188 

Asiatic  Russia. . 
Great  Britain .  . 
France 

107,106 

4,279,512 

69,814 

191,034 

61,919 

3.933.840 

998,842 

Germanv 

Belgium 

8,013 
1,978,812 

United  States .  . 
Other  countries 

304,867 
",293 

32,.-523 

42,243 

Total 

7,916,571 

32,971,852 

19,913,843 

39,782,754 

49,492,324 

59.199.357 

MITSUI    BUSSAN    KAISH.\, 
SEOUL 


LIMITED, 


The  great  Mitsui  Bussan  Kaisha  is  strongly 
represented  in  all  departments  of  commerce 
and  industrj'  in  Chosen,  its  interests  ha\'ing 
been  established  there  eighteen  years  ago. 
At  that  time  the  Korean  Government  con- 
trolled the  peninsula,  but  as  the  affairs  of 
state  were  in  a  confused  condition,  there  was 
practically  no  control,  and  Japanese  influence 


not  having  yet  extended  over  any  large 
sphere,  there  was  no  guarantee  either  for  the 
property  or  the  lives  of  the  Japanese  engaged 
in  business.  It  may  be  imagined  that  com- 
merce and  industr>'  were  carried  on  under 
great  disabilities,  and  business  transactions 
generally  were  uncertain  and  at  the  best  of 
times,   most  difficult. 

Fortunately    the    Mitsui    Bussan    Kaisha 
had  a  strong  and  capable  man  as  its  Chosen 


SEOUL    PREMISES    OF    MITSUI    BUSSAN    K.^ISH.\ 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


S53 


Manager.  This  was  Mr.  Daigoro  Kure,  who 
kept  clear  of  the  tide  of  unrest  and  political 
turmoil,  and  ap])lying  himself  to  the  com- 
pany's interests  with  ardour  and  fortitude, 
established  the  Seoul  business  on  a  sound 
basis.  Eighteen  years  have  now  gone  by. 
Successive  managers  have  been  Messrs.  Y. 
Koizumi,  S.  Odagaki,  C.  Asano  and  others, 
the  head  of  the  Chosen  business  to-day  being 
Mr.  Seizo  Takano.  Throughout  the  com- 
pany's business  career  in  Seoul,  ample  capital 
and  capable  staffs,  wisely  directed  by  sound 
and  experienced  managers,  have  developed  a 
most  prosperous  business.  At  the  present 
time  the  Mitsui  Bussan  Kaisha  organisation  in 
Chosen  includes  despatch  offices  at  Fusan, 
Jinsen,  Gunsan,  Shingishu,  and  Chinnampo. 
Business  is  being  conducted  on  a  large  scale, 
smoothly  and  energetically. 

The  Mitsui  Bussan  Kaisha  does  a  general 
import  and  export  trade  and  agency  business. 
Among  the  principal  lines  dealt  with  are: 
Mineral   ores,   fertilizers,  cereals,  machinery. 


timber,  cotton  yarn  and  piece  goods,  coal, 
cement,  and  explosives.  There  is  a  shipping 
department,  and  a  department  for  insurance. 
The  company  holds  the  sole  agency  for  the 
Onoda  Cement  Company,  and  is  also  agent 
for  the  Tokyo  Marine  Insurance  Co.,  Ltd., 
Nobel's  E.xplosives  Co.  (Glasgow,  Scotland), 
the  Dai  Nippon  Artificial  Fertilizer  Co.,  Ltd., 
and  the  Oriental  Spinning  Co.,  Ltd.  The 
direction  and  transaction  of  the  Company's 
business  operations  in  Chosen  are  carried  on 
by  Messrs.  N.  Kasahara,  Y.  Amano,  T. 
Igarashi,  K.  Nomura,  C.  Nogami,  T.  Tejima, 
S.  Homma,  and  M.  Tanaka,  heads  of  depart- 
ments; K.  Doki  (in  charge  of  the  Jinsen  office), 
T.  Kobayashi  (chief  of  the  Fusan  office),  and 
.S.   Wakimura    (chief  of  the  Gunsan  office). 

TOWNSEND    &    CO. 

The  business  conducted  by  this  firm  is  the 

oldest  established  foreign  interest  in  Chosen 

(Korea).     It   was   originally  founded   under 

the  firm  name  of  Morse,  Townsend  &  Co., 


importers  and  general  agents,  and  after  hav- 
ing been  in  existence  for  a  number  of  years 
prior  to  1894,  't  became  known  as  Townsend 
&  Co.,  the  present  principal,  Mr.  W.  D.  Towns- 
end,  having  purchased  the  interests  of  Mr. 
Morse.  Over  a  long  period  of  time  and 
through  the  many  political  changes  which 
have  taken  i)lace  in  Korea,  the  business  has 
steadily  developed,  and  is  now  highly  success- 
ful, the  firm's  operations  being  associated 
with  the  most  active  commercial  expansion 
of  the  country.  Townsend  &  Co.  were  for 
many  years  agents  for  Korea  for  the  Standard 
Oil  Company  of  New  York.  This  agency 
was,  however,  taken  over  in  1909  when  the 
Standard  Oil  Company  established  their  own 
offices  in  Korea. 

At  present,  Townsend  &  Co.  are  agents  for 
the  following:  Hongkong  &  Shanghai  Bank- 
ing Corporation,  Nobel's  Explosives  Co.,  Ltd., 
Glasgow,  British-American  Tobacco  Co., 
Ltd.,  Commercial  Union  .'Vssurance  Co.,  Ltd., 
Hongkong  Fire  Insurance  Co.,   Ltd.,  China 


TOWNSEND    &    company:      THE    PICTURESQUE    OLD    KORE.\N    OFFICE    BUILDING    .^ND    THE    FIR.m's    ST.\FF 


55 


854 


P  R  !•:  S  E  N  T  -  D  A  Y        IMPRESSIONS        OF        JAPAN 


PORTION'    OF    GARAGE    AND    OFFICE    OF    J.    H.    MOKKIS    &    CO.,    sEOLL 


Traders  Insurance  Co.,  Ltd.,  Oriental  Con- 
solidated Mining  Co.,  China  Sugar  Refining 
Co.,  Ltd.,  The  Seoul  Mining  Company,  The 
Chiksan  Mining  Company,  the  "Glen"  Line 
of  Steanier.s,  Pacific  Mail  Steamship  Com- 
pany, and  the  "Prince"  Line  of  Steamers. 

Apart  from  other  interests  the  firm  owns  a 
rice-cleaning  mill,  which  is  leased  to  Japanese. 
Mr.  W.  D.  Townsend  is  a  director  of  the 
Chiksan  Mining  Company,  which  is  conduct- 
ing mining  operations  for  both  quartz  and 
placer  gold.  The  firm's  Manager  is  Mr. 
J.  D.  Atkinson. 

J.  H.  MORRIS  &  CO.,  SEOUL 
There  are  a  number  of  enterprises,  the 
directors  of  which  look  back  with  pride  to  a 
long  business  experience,  and  rightly  regard 
themselves  as  the  pioneers  in  the  commercial 
development  of  Japan  and  its  oversea  pos- 
sessions.    Two    decades    have    made    great 


changes  in  Japan,  and  if  business  men  there 
may  speak  of  the  problems  that  presented 
themselves,  what  must  have  been  the  diffi- 
culties encountered  in  Chosen,  when  only 
to-day  is  any  sign  of  progress  dimly  visible? 
Work  in  connection  with  the  Seoul  tram- 
ways took  Mr.  J.  H.  Morris  to  the  country 
in  1898,  and  after  completing  that  work  he 
remained  to  install  the  waterworks  system. 
Later  on  Mr.  Morris  was  prominently  asso- 
ciated with  the  mining  industry,  and  for 
many  years  enjoyed  well  merited  success. 
In  19x4  all  Mr.  Ivlorris's  many  years  of 
hard  work  went  for  nothing,  as  he  was  de- 
frauded by  a  partner  and  was  practically 
ruined.  Undismayed  by  such  misfortune  he 
established  the  business  which  he  now  con- 
trols, and  that  it  should  have  achieved 
success  so  pronounced  and  gratifying,  speaks 
volumes  for  the  spirit  and  enterprise  of  the 
proprietor.     The  principal  lines  of  business 


conducted  by  J.  H.  Morris  &  Co.  are  dealing 
in  electrical  supplies,  lighting  installations, 
large  and  small,  pumps  and  mining  plant 
installations,  and  automobiles  and  motor 
cycles  as  a  special  department.  Mr.  Morris 
is  the  sole  representative  in  Korea  for  the 
famous  Overland  Car,  and  the  equally 
famous  Indian  Motor  Cycle.  A  completely 
equipped  repair  and  overhaul  shop  is  main- 
tained under  the  supervision  of  a  thoroughly 
experienced   American   mechanic. 

Some  surprise  may  be  expressed  that  there 
should  be  such  a  demand  for  cars  in  so  new 
and  undeveloped  a  country  as  Chosen,  but 
what  is  at  once  the  secret  of  the  success 
enjoyed  by  Mr.  Morris,  and  the  great  interest 
he  personally  finds  in  the  business,  is  the 
fact  that  he  is  creating  the  demand.  The 
railway  service  of  the  country,  as  far  as  it 
goes,  is  excellent,  but  where  the  railway  does 
not    go,    transportation    is    furnished    ver\' 


PRKSENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


^55 


largely  by  means  of  motor  bus  service,  for 
the  operation  of  which  various  small  com- 
panies are  springing  up  in  all  parts  of  the 
country.  This  scheme  originated  with  Mr. 
Morris,  as  did  also  the  idea  of  attaching  a 
fire  hose  reel  to  the  chassis  of  a  motor  car, 
for  fire-fighting  purposes  in  the  city.  When 
it  was  found  that  the  improvised  fire  motor 
hose  reel  could  get  to  the  scene  of  a  confla- 
gration and  be  playing  on  the  fire  some  time 
before  the  old  horse  reel  put  in  an  appearance, 
Mr.  Morris's  contrivance  soon  found  a  ready 
sale  with  the  municipality.  Morris  &  Co. 
also  represent  the  Canadian  Pacific  Railway 
and  Canadian  Pacific  Ocean  Services,  as 
well  as  the  Oliver  Typewriter  Co. 

The  offices  and  warehouse  of  the  firm  are 
well  constructed  premises  covering  an  area 
of  about  660  square  feet,  the  land  and  build- 
ing being  the  property  of  Mr.  Morris.  A 
staff  of  five  clekrs  is  employed.  The  future 
development  of  the  business  will  not  neces- 
sarily maintain  its  present  form,  though 
doubtless  cars,  pumps,  electrical  apparatus, 
and  machinery  generally  will  continue  to 
be  its  specialties.  Chosen  is  destined  to 
become  a  fertile  field  for  the  foreign  manu- 
facturer, progress  and  enterprise  being  now 
visible  in  many  directions,  and   the  happy 


reputation  which  Mr.  Morris  has  built  up 
for  himself,  particularly  in  the  direction  of 
overcoming  difficulties,  should  make  him  a 
desirable  representative  of  foreign  interests. 

KYOYEKI    SH.\    TR.MJING    CO.,   I.I.MITEI), 
SEOUL 

The  Kyoyeki  vSha  Trading  Co.,  Ltd.,  has 
assumed  a  position  of  first  rate  importance  in 
the  general  trade  of  Chosen  and  Manchuria, 
and  is  rapidly  expanding  into  one  of  the 
biggest  concerns  in  the  peninsula.  The 
business  was  started  in  1908  as  a  part- 
nership between  Mr.  S.  Boku,  the  present 
President,  and  Mr.  K.  Nishihara,  who  acted 
as  advisor  on  trade  affairs.  At  that  time  the 
principal  line  of  business  was  the  trade  in 
cotton  and  cotton  piece  goods,  the  firm  acting 
as  sales  agents  for  the  Fuji  Gas  Spinning  Co., 
Ltd. 

In  191 5  the  private  interests  of  the  partner- 
ship were  transferred  to  a  joint-stock  com- 
pany which  was  formed  at  the  instigation  of 
Mr.  Boku,  with  an  initial  capital  of  Yen 
500,000,  of  which  Yen  250,000  has  been  paid 
up.  Messrs.  Ito  &  Co.,  the  well  known 
merchant  house  of  Osaka,  are  the  biggest 
shareholders,  and  are  considered  as  the 
company's    branch    in    Japan    proper.     The 


principal  lines  now  dealt  with  arc  agricultural 
produce  such  as  beans  and  other  cereals, 
which  are  exported  to  Japan  and  elsewhere, 
and  cotton  piece  goods,  and  hides  and  skins. 
The  company  has  adojjted  a  vigourous  policy 
which  will  lead  to  rapid  expansion  in  the  near 
future,  particularly  in  Manchuria,  where  a 
special  trade  is  to  be  opened  up  with  the 
products  of  the  Fuji  Gas  Spinning  Co.,  Ltd., 
and  of  the  Kanegafuchi  Spinning  Co.,  Ltd., 
with  which  the  Kyoyeki  Sha  is  closely  con- 
nected. A  small  steamer  owned  by  the 
company  is  now  plying  regularly  between 
Fusan  and  Osaka,  carrying  goods  for  account 
of  the  concern. 

The  head  offices  of  the  Kyoyeki  Sha  Trad- 
ing Co.,  Ltd.,  are  situated  right  in  the  centre 
of  Seoul  and  occupy  an  area  of  280  Isubo. 
The  building  is  a  modern  red  brick  structure, 
with  spacious  godowns  attached.  Special 
arrangements  have  been  completed  for  han- 
dling raw  hides,  which  are  to  be  exported 
principally  to  Italy.  These  are  branches 
of  the  business  at  Harbin,  Changchun, 
Mukden,  Chemulph,  Gensan,  Joshin,  Fusan, 
and  Antung.  Employees  number  about  150. 
Mr.  S.  Boku  is  the  Chairman  of  the  board 
of  Directors.  Other  principal  officers  are: 
Messrs.    S.    Tanaka    (Managing    Director), 


PREMISES    OF    KYOYEKI    SH,\    TR.\DING   CO.,    UTD.,    SEOCl, 


8.S6 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


CONNECTING    STEAMER    OF   CHOSEN    RAILWAYS    AT    FUSAN    PIER 


Messrs.  C.  Ito,  J.  Sai,  and  K.  Tsutsui 
(Directors),  Messrs.  K.  Sai,  G.  Kin,  and 
S.  Cho  (Auditors),  Mr.  T.  Takenaka 
(Manager),  and  Mr.  K,  Nishiliara  (Adviser). 
For  the  year  ended  January  26,  1917,  the 
Kyoyeki  Sha  Trading  Co.,  Ltd.  realised  a 
profit  of  10  per  cent,  but  it  is  confidently 
expected  that  the  next  dividend  will  be  18 
per  cent.  In  the  1917  balance  sheet  the 
assets  were  shown  as  Yen  2,227,592,  the 
profit  available  for  distribution  then  being 
Yen  59,741,80.  Of  this  sum  Yen  25,000 
was  placed  to  reserve  funds,  a  bonus  of  Yen 
6,000  was  awarded,  Yen  25000  was  dis- 
tributed in  dividends,  and  the  balance  was 
carried  forward.  The  head  office  of  the 
company  is  at  No.  13,  Nandaimon-dori. 
Nichomc,  Seoul. 

SUZUKI  &  CO.,  SEOUL 
The  Seoul  branch  of  this  famovis  Japanese 
firm  was  established  in  191 5  by  the  present 
manager,  Mr.  Koyama,  under  whose  juris- 
diction come  also  the  other  branches  in 
Chosen,  viz.,  Fusan,  Chinnampo,  and  Gensan, 
and  also  the  firm's,  pulp  mill  at  Kuppo  and 
the  cotton  mill  at  Taikyu. 

The  offices  of  Messrs.  Suzuki  &  Co.  are 
located  in  the  centre  of  the  business  district 
of  Seoul,  and  attached  to  them  are  commodi- 
ous godowns,  etc.  A  vigourous  policy  of 
expansion  is  being  pursued  and  in  this  con- 
nection the  visitor  to  Fusan  will  notice  that 
there  the  firm  has  under  construction  fine 


new  buildings  in  which  the  handling  of  cargoes 
at  the  port  will  be  greatly  facilitated.  Messrs. 
vSuzuki  &  Co.  conducted  a  general  merchan- 
dise and  agency  business.  Their  principal 
lines  are  cotton,  matches,  caustic  soda,  and 
beer,  the  firm  having  the  sole  agency  for  the 
Imperial  Beer  Co.  of  Shimonoseki.  They 
are  also  agents  for  the  Dai  Nippon  Salt  Co., 
the  Kanto  Sanso  Chemical  Company  (which 
is  dealt  with  fully,  elsewhere  in  this  volume), 
the  Oriental  Marine  Insurance  Company, 
and  the  Hohden  Oil  Company.  Some  idea 
of  the  extent  of  the  operations  of  the  cotton 


mill  which  the  firm  owns  at  Taikyu 
may  be  gathered  from  the  fact  that  supplies 
of  raw  cotton  to  the  annual  value  of  Yen 
1,500,000  are  required  to  maintain  it  in 
operation. 

In  the  mining  industry  of  Chosen,  Messrs. 
Suzuki  &  Co.  are  also  prominent  operators. 
They  own  an  ore  selecting  and  treatment 
plant  at  Rorvoshin,  near  Seoul.  A  specially 
constructed  compound  which  covers  20,000 
Isiibo  and  cost  over  Yen  200,000  is  utilised 
for  the  selection  of  the  various  grades  of  ore. 
At  these  works  the  firm  handles  over  1,500 


Year 

Mileage 

Passengers 
Carried 

Fares 

Goods 
Carried 

Revenue 

Yen 

Tuns 

Yen 

1912 
1913 
1914 
1915 
igi6 

767.48 
836.40 
966.55 
99342 
1 ,006.40 

2,429,687 
4,399,022 

4,995,441 
4,768,251 
5,040,471 

2,508,111 
3,257,726 

3,494,097 
3,308,130 
3,562,620 

1,063,111 
1,105,362 
1,388,915 
1,386,614 
1,656,640 

1,937,429 
2,083,462 
2,356,172 
2,553,623 
3,122,680 

Money  Orders  and  Savings  Banks 


Issued 

Paid 

Item 

NUMHER 

Amount 

Number 

A.M(.IUNT 

Yen 

Yen 

Domestic  orders. . 

1,434,705 
2,090 

870,75' 

31,636,622 

62,705 

8,045,265 

926,187 
2,546 

26,068,669 

Foreign  orders .  . 

I  ■i7,o6o 

Savings  deposits. ...        ... 

PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


857 


Account 

1914 

1915 

1916 

1917 

Yen 

Yen 

Yen 

Yen 

Ordinary  Revenue: 

Taxes 

Land  Tax 

Rural  House  Tax 

L'rban  House  Tax  .  . 
Liquor  Tax. 
'J'ol^acco  Tax 

Mining  Tax 

Customs  Duties 
Tonnage  Dues .  .  - 
Income  Tax 

13,903,623 

''.979,730 

761.141 

156, 026 

444.925 
379,957 

24(),C),S2 

4,.So6,673 
86,773 

16,685,250 

10,100,940 

781,118 

209,350 

477,020 

740,419 

365,102 

3,893,064 

87,412 

17,121,1 16 
9,838,760 

737,789 
198,227 
408,719 
900,448 
270,437 
4,641,837 
91,708 

16,684,928 

9,899,377 
777,282 
222,195 
693,286 
813,726 
290,224 

3,721,762 

78,190 

161,9^2 

Miscellaneous  Taxes 
Stamp  Receipts .  . 

State  Lands 

Government  Enterprises  and  l'ri>i)erlv. 

Waterworks 

Government  Printing  Bureau .... 

Pyengyang  Mining  Station 

Postal,  Telegraph,  and  Telephone 
Services 

Railway  Receipts 

Other  Receipts 

Miscellaneous  Receipts 

3'N,4'6 
1,718,680 

1,171,304 

Li,940,934 

311,495 

319,206 

•'<65,322 

3,135,867 

7,851,626 

613,002 

1,457,418 

30,824 
1,857,915 
1,549,266 

14,749,791 
352,069 

345,984 
1,299,929 

3,149,588 

7,734,260 

850,116 

1,867,961 

33,191 

1,715,923 

1,521,423 

18,616,671 

460,566 

413,465 

1,432,410 

3.738,021 

10,177,059 

801,586 

2,395,150 

26,954 

2,402,787 

1,520.857 

20,098,385 

436,655 

387,200 

1 ,460,960 

3,738,060 

10,149,039 

854,669 

3,926,471 

Extraordinary: 

Sales  of  State  Property 

Loans  Received 

Loans  for  Public  Works .  .                     . 

297,165 
1  1,103,112 

10,000,000 

10,345,669 

75,548 
7,640,871 

8,634,327 

10,585,000 

National  Treasury  Grant.  , 
Surplus  of  Preceding  Year 

9,000,000 
9,639,004 

8,000,000 
2,149,451 

7,000,000 
702,372 

Ordinary  Expenditure: 

Korean  Royal  Family 

Government-General 

Courts  and  Prisons .  . 

Police  Expenses 

Local  Administration                       

Pyengyang  Mining  Station 
Communications 
Railway  Expenses 
Interest  on  Loans 
Reserve  Fund 

1,500,000 
2,824,216 
2,486,790 
3,266,483 

4,033,258 
524,096 

755,644 

3,347,54" 
6,282,341 
2„568,7,V5 

.1,101,122 

1,500,000 
2,982,907 
2,455,449 
3,370,374 
4  103,505 
553,720 
779,588 
3,570,300 
6,500,119 
4.751,910 

1,500,000 

3,245,279 
2,588,022 

3,317,076 
4,166,475 
592,673 
775,692 
3,685,168 
7,718,726 

3,894,183 
1 ,000,000 
4,310,871 

1,500,00" 
3,300,673 
2,724,269 
3,314,472 
4,273,901 
595,573 
785,751 
3,775,843 
7,690,455 
5,01 1,606 
1 ,000,000 

Other  Expenses . 

1,709,878 

3,100,612 

Extraordinary ; 

392,795 
1,103,966 
2,466,074 

2,729,034 
106,975 
1,267,256 
4,670,071 
8.469,387 
558,706 

245,884 
1,102,827 

3,074,939 
3,283,528 
780,000 
1,324,651 
4,227,592 
7,321,953 
1,460,711 

237,222 
1,104,429 

3,596,903 

3,216,156 

64,000 

1,398,636 

3,237,034 
7,580,000 

1,644,858 

232,59" 

Assistant  Gendarmes. . 
Cadastral  Surveys.  .  . 
Subsidies.  . 
Grants 

1,104,429 

3,785,164 

3,050,608 

64,000 

1,084,087 

Public  Works 

3,202,512 

RniKvav  Construction   etc 

8,390,000 

Ollit'i*  KxDcnses              

1,862,453 

Ions  of  ore  per  month.  The  degree  of  con- 
fidence which  Messrs.  Suzuki  &  Co.  enjoy  is 
evidenced  by  the  fact  that  they  have  been 
appointed  wholesale  agents  for  cereals, 
grain,  and  other  products,  acting  on  behalf 
of  the  Government  General  of  Chosen. 
Their  godown  at  Chinnampo  covers  i.,500 
tsubc. 

Mr.  Koyama,  tlie  Manager  for  the  firm 
at  Seoul,  has  been  in  the  service  of  Messrs. 
Suzuki  &  Co.  for  many  years,  and  the  Chosen 
business  is  showing  gratifying  progress 
under  his  management. 

COMMUNICATIONS 
The  first  railway  in  Korea  was  the  line 
between  Inchyong  and  Seoul  opened  in  1900; 
the  line  from  Seoul  to  Fusan  was  completed 
in  1904,  and  to  Wiju  in  1906.  These  lines, 
started  under  private  companies,  were  pur- 
chased by  the  Government  in  1906  at  a  cost 
of  20,084,537  yen.  The  extension  from 
Seoul  to  the  Yalu  River,  a  distance  of  585 
miles,  was  begun,  and,  together  with  the 
branches  to  Wasan  and  Kinjipho,  was  com- 
pleted during  the  war  with  Russia.  In  191 1 
the  magnificent  bridge  over  the  Yalu  River, 
3,098  feet  long,  was  fini.shed  at  a  cost  of 
1,500,000  yen;  and  now  the  whole  length  of 
the  peninsula  is  traversed  by  a  great  trunk 
line  connecting  Fusan  in  the  south  with 
Antung  on  the  right  bank  of  the  Yalu  in  the 
north,  the  total  length,  including  branches, 
reaching  1,006.5'  miles.  Branch  lines  run 
from  Yongdupho  on  the  Seoul-Fusan  route 
to  the  port  of  Inchyong,  from  Samrangjin 
to  Masampo,  from  Hoangjin  on  the  Seoul- 
Wiju  line  to  Kenjipho,  from  Pyengyang  to 
Chinnampo,  from  Thaijon  to  Mokpho,  known 
as  the  Honan  line,  which  is  175  miles  long, 
with  a  sub-branch  from  Liri  to  Kansan,  com- 
pleted in  1914.  The  Seoul-Wonsan  line,  138 
miles  long,  runs  from  Yongsan  to  Wonsan, 
and  was  also  completed  in  1914,  while  the 
Hamgyong  line,  a  branch  of  the  Wonsan- 
Yongheng  section,  has  recently  been  opened 
for  traflfie.  The  main  line  traversing  Korea 
is  broad  gauge  and  provided  with  the  latest 
equipment  in  rolling  stock,  having  finer  trains 
than  are  to  be  seen  in  Japan  proper.  This 
line  now  forms  the  shortest  and  most  com- 
fortable route  between  Europe  and  East 
Asia.  The  Railway  Bureau  has  good  hotels 
••It  Fusan  and  Wiju,  whilst  at  Seoul  the 
Chosen  Hotel  is  one  of  the  finest  in  the  Far 
East.  The  picturesque  tourist  resort  known 
as  Diamond  Mountain  is  well  provided 
with  hotels.  About  130,000,000  yen  has 
been  expended  by  Japan  in  the  iinprovement 
and  extension  of  railways  in  Korea  The 
first  table  on  the  preceding  page  shows  the 
expansion  of  railways  and  traffic  in  Korea 
during  five  recent  years. 


'  ^H  B  H  aH" 


4- 


a. 


«d? 


BANK    OF   chosen:      THE    SF.Oin,    PEE\fISES TIIF    B  WKTNr;   CHA^rnER  —  A    RErEPTION    ROOM 


PRKSENT-DA^-        IMPRESSIONS        OF       JAPAN 


859 


MR.  S.  MINOBE,    PRESIDENT   ANIJ    DIRECTOR 
OF    THE    BANK   OK   CHOSEN 


Much  has  also  Ijcen  done  to  improve 
communications  b)-  the  extension  and  con- 
struction of  highways  in  the  peninsula,  over 
12,000  miles  being  so  effected  in  the  last 
five  years,  but  the  progress  of  tramways  is 
yet  remarkably  slow. 

In  regard  to  posts,  telegraphs,  and  tele- 
phones the  same  principles  of  progress  have 
been  pursued  as  in  the  case  of  railways, 
though  no  very  definite  statistics  arc  avail- 
able. The  following  are  the  official  figures 
for  the  year  1916:    Number  of  post  offices, 


MR.    T.    MlslllMA,    UIKI-XIOR    OF    THE    BANK 
OF    CHOSEN 


.Si(>;  miles  of  route,  19,730;  letters  and 
papers,  177,816,121;  parcels  handled,  2,677, - 
901 ;  telegraph  offices,  590;  length  of  lines, 
4,914  miles;  length  of  wires,  13,760  miles; 
number  of  messages  annually,  4,691,693; 
number  of  telephones,  494;  length  of  lines, 
2,875  niiles;  length  of  wires,  21,350;  number 
of  messages,  39,344,905. 

Considerable  work  has  been  done  in  the  way 
ijf  improving  rivers  and  harbours  in  Korea, 
])rincipaUy  at  Pusan,  Jinsen,  Heijo,  and 
C'hinnampo.  The  tonnage  of  vessels  entering 
Korean  ports  has  increased  from  2,000,624 
in  1905,  with  9,949  ships,  to  4,076,983  in 
1913,  with  9,980  ships,  of  which  4,187  were 
steamers  representing  an  aggregate  tonnage 
of   3,942,120. 

FINANCE  AND  BANKING 
Previous  to  Japan's  assumption  of  her 
protectorate  over  Korea  in  1907  the  finances 
of  the  country  were  in  rather  a  deplorable 
condition,  extravagance  and  inefficiency  being 
as  prominent  features  of  the  fiscal  as  they 
were  of  the  Government  administration 
generally.  A  financial  adviser  from  Japan 
had  been  engaged  by  the  Korean  authorities 
in  1904,  opening  a  way  for  economic  adjust- 
ment, but  his  advice  was  not  wholly  adopted. 
After  1910  a  radical  transformation  of  the 
country's  fiscal  system  was  inaugurated  and 
some  attempt  was  made  to  balance  revenue 
and  expenditure.  To  enable  the  Korean 
Government  to  meet  the  deficit  in  its  budget 
the  Government  of  Japan,  previous  to  annex- 
ation in  1910,  advanced  the  sum  of  104,000,- 
000  yen  from  the  Imperial  Treasury,  of  which 
14,200,000  yen  was  in  the  shape  of  loans  free 
of  interest. 

The  most  of  this  loan  was  expended  on 
the  reformation  of  the  judicial  system  of  the 
kingdom.  After  annexation  the  ordinary 
expenditure  of  the  country  was  met  by  ordi- 
nary revenue,  extraordinary  outlay,  such  as 
expenses  for  military  forces,  railway  exten- 
sion and  so  on,  being  covered  by  loans  or 
grants  from  the  Imperial  Treasury.  These 
advances  amounted  to  12,350,000  yen  in 
191 1  and  1912,  to  10,000,000  yen  in  1913, 
9,000,000  yen  in  1914,  and  8,000,000  yen 
in  1915. 

Japan's  policy  is  to  have  Korea  independ- 
ent financially  by  the  year  1919.  The 
Iiossibility  of  realising  this  ambition  is 
indicated  by  the  fact  that  every  year  since 
annexation  of  the  peninsula  has  witnessed 
an  increase  of  revenue,  while  the  initial 
expenses  of  the  new  administration  may  lie 
expected  to  decrease  with  time.  In  1907 
the  total  revenue  was  only  about  17,000,000 
yen.  Two  years  later  it  arose  to  29,000,000 
yen,  including  some  advances  from  the 
Imperial    Treasury,     In    1912    the    revenue 


MH.    V.    KIMIRA,    DIRECTOR   OF    THE    BANK 
OF   CHOSEN 


increased  to  52,000,000  yen,  and  it  is  now 
over  59,000,000  yen.  Revenue  and  expendi- 
ture from  19 1 4  will  be  seen  from  the  tables 
on  a  preceding  page. 

It  is  apparent  from  the  above  tables  that 
a  considerable  proportion  of  the  revenue 
comes  from  taxes,  duties,  and  Government 
undertakings,  while  a  large  amount  of  the 
expenses  is  on  the  development  and  improve- 
ment of  the  resources  of  the  country,  such 
as  railways,  riparian  work,  and  agriculture. 


MR.  S.  OHTA,  DIRECTOR  OF  THE  BANK 
OF  CHOSEN 


860 


PRESENT-DAY 


I>[PRESSIONS        OF 


j   A  P  A  N 


The  financial  condition  of  the  country  is 
undoubtedly  improving  under  the  new  regime. 
The  national  debt  of  Korea,  incurred  mostly 
for  purposes  of  financial  adjustment,  and  for 
internal  improvements,  now  totals  65.657,000 
yen. 

BANKING  AND  CURRENCY 
Up  to  the  year  1904  Korea  had  no  banks 
of  its  own,  but  the  First  Bank  of  Tokyo, 
which  opened  an  office  in  Seoul  in  1878, 
received  from  the  Government  of  Korea 
and  the  Home  Government  permission  to 
issue  convertible  notes,  and  in  1905  it  was 
authorised  to  perform  the  functions  of  a 
central  bank.  As  a  result  of  the  country's 
financial  expansion,  however,  it  soon  became 
necessary  to  provide  more  extensive  facilities, 
and  steps  were  taken  in  August,  1909,  to 
establish  the  Bank  of  Korea,  to  be  the  mone- 
taryorganof  the  peninsula.  In  the  November 
following,  the  new  bank  took  over  the  duties 
formerly  devolving  on  the  First  Bank.  The 
Bank  of  Korea  opened  with  a  capital  of 
10,000,000  yen,  and  a  loan  of  1.230,000  yen 
from  the  Government,  and  established  branch 
offices  at  fifteen  places  of  importance.  After 
the  annexation  of  the  peninsula  the  name  of 
this  bank  was  changed  to  the  Bank  of 
Chosen.  While  performing  all  the  functions 
of  a  central  bank,  the  Bank  of  Chosen 
carries  on  a  regular  banking  business,  and 
has  branches  in  Tokyo,  Mukden,  Dairen, 
Chengchun  and  other  parts  of  China.  In 
1906  regulations  for  the  inauguration  of 
agricultural  and  industrial  banks  were 
brought  into  operation,  and  such  banks 
were  established  in  various  important  places, 
their  business  being  to  make  long-term  loans 
for  the  promotion  of  agriculture  and  indvistry, 
at  the  same  time  carrying  on  ordinary  bank- 
ing business.  Owing  to  the  increased  demand 
for  economic  facilities  the  agricultural  and 
industrial  banks  were  later  amalgamated, 
greatly  aiding  the  circulation  of  capital. 
In  1915  the  number  of  head  offices  of  such 
banks  was  six,  with  a  total  capital  of  4,059,- 
980  yen,  including  loans  from  the  Govern- 
ment amounting  to  some  330,000  yen.  After 
the  financial  adjustment  of  1904  the  only 
ordinary-  banks  in  Korea  were  the  Ten-ichi 
and  the  Haisong  banks,  which,  with  inade- 
quate capital  and  defective  administration, 
were  on  the  point  of  bankruptcy.  But  the 
Government  recognising  the  need  of  banks, 
appointed  Japanese  managers  and  advanced 
capital  to  the  banks,  improving  their  pros- 
pects greatly.  In  1906  several  Korean 
financiers  united  in  organising  the  Kan-ichi 
Bank  in  Seoul,  independently  of  Government 
assistance.  Japanese  ordinary  banks  in 
Korea  are  the  First  Bank,  the  Eighteenth 
Bank,   the  One   Hundred   and   Third   Bank, 


the  Suwo  Bank,  the  Mitsuyo,  and  the 
Shichisei  Bank.  In  addition  to  the  banks 
indicated  there  are  numerous  local  monetary 
circulation  associations  for  the  purpose  of 
facilitating  the  circulation  of  money  among 
the  agricultural  classes  and  promoting  their 
economic  development.  Members  of  these 
associations  must  be  persons  who  have  re- 
sided not  less  than  one  year  within  the  dis- 
trict and  are  engaged  in  agricultural  pursuits 
and  earning  an  independent  livelihood  there- 
by. Each  association  has  a  fund  of  10,000 
yen  granted  by  the  Government,  and  this, 
together  with  deposits,  loans,  and  contribu- 
tions of  its  members,  is  employed  in  accom- 
modating farmers  who  wish  to  purchase  seed, 
manure,  and  agricultural  implements.  The 
associations  also  act  as  agents  to  receive 
deposits  for  banks  The  number  of  thcsc' 
associations  at  the  end  of  1915  was  240,  with 
an  aggregate  membership  of  69,279,  contri- 
buting 849,490  5-en,  possessing  reserves  of 
5,'?i,859  yen,  deposits  of  277  124  yen,  advanc- 
ing 2,095,141  yen  in  loans,  and  as  agents 
of  banks  receiving  269,023  yen. 

Through  the  long  years  of  Korean  history 
the  coinage  system  of  the  country  underwent 
many  changes,  and  after  annexation  the  old 
system  was  suspended  with  a  view  to  uni- 
fication of  Korean  coinage  with  that  of 
Japan.  The  current  subsidiary  coins  of 
Korea  were  withdrawn  from  circulation  as 
they  came  into  the  hands  of  the  Government 
and  sent  to  the  mint  to  be  melted  down,  until 
they  were  gradually  replaced  by  the  sub- 
sidiary coins  of  the  Empire.  To  promote  the 
process  of  replacing  native  by  Japanese  coins, 
some  500,000  yen  in  small  coins  was  sent 
from  the  National  Treasury  to  the  Bank  of 
Chosen,  and  thence  distributed  among  the 
agricultural  and  industrial  banks  and  the 
monetary  associations.  At  the  end  of  19 15 
current  coins  circulating  in  Korea  amounted 
to  4,757,121  yen  in  Japanese  currency,  and 
1,809,909  yen  in  old  Korean  currency,  while 
the  banknote  circulation  of  the  Bank  of 
Chosen  reached  34,387,520  yen,  the  capital 
now  standing  at  Yon  20,000,000. 

THE  BANK  OF  CHOSEN,  SEOUL 
It  would  be  almost  impossible,  in  any 
effective  survey  of  the  commercial,  industrial, 
or  general  economic  development  of  the 
territory  of  Chosen,  to  exaggerate  the  vitalh- 
important  part  which  has  been  played  by 
the  Bank  of  Chosen.  This  institution  may 
be  fairly  described  as  the  State  or  National 
Bank  of;  this  portion  of  the  Japanese  Empire. 
It  is  not  only  a  Government-controlled  bank, 
l^iut  its  sphere  of  influence  and  its  general 
policy  are  at  once  wider,  and  depart  more 
sharply  from  the  common  performance  of 
the  functions  of  banking,  than  those  of  any 


.MR.    CHO   CHIN    r.\I,    I'KEslUENT   OF   CHOSEN 
COMMERCIAL    B.\NK,    LTD. 

other  bank  operating  in  the  peninsula  or 
contiguous  territory.  Tlie  Bank  of  Chosen 
is  to  that  country  what  the  Bank  of  Japan 
is  to  Japan  proper 

As  it  stands  to-day  the  institution  under 
review  is  the  matured  development  of  a  clear- 
sighted policy  which  was  laid  down  many 
years  ago,  and  which  has  been  pursued 
undeviatingly.  Prior  to  the  formal  estab- 
lishment of  the  bank,  functions  of  a  central 
bank  in  the  old  independent  Korea  were 
performed  by  the  Seoul  branch  of  the  Dai 
Ichi  Ginko,  a  famous  Japanese  bank.  The 
Dai  Ichi  Ginko  under  Government  super- 
vision issued  bank  notes,  undertook  currency 
reform,  handled  Treasury  money,  and 
rendered  various  other  services  required  by 
the  Government.  In  1907  a  treaty  was 
concluded  between  Korea  and  Japan  whereby 
Japanese  officials  were  taken  into  the  ser\dce 
of  the  Korean  Government.  Reforms  were 
introduced  in  the  general  administration  of 
affairs,  and  a  great  expansion  of  the  financial 
and  economic  power  of  the  country  was 
witnessed.  It  was  then  that  the  need  for  a 
regularly  organised  central  bank  was  most 
acutely  felt.  The  idea  found  expression  in 
an  arrangement  entered  into  first  between  the 
Dai  Ichi  Ginko  and  the  Korean  Government, 
and  later  in  negotiations  between  the  Korean 
and  Japanese  Governments.  The  outcome 
of  these  negotiations  was  the  passing  of  the 
Bank  of  Korea  Act,  while  all  the  business 
pertaining  to  the  establishment  of  the  pro- 
posed institution  was  left  to  the  Government 
of  Japan.     In  August,  1909,  a  committee  to 


P  R  !<:  S  E  N  T  -  n  A  V        IMPRESSIONS        O  I"        JAPAN 


86i 


undertake  the  organisation  of  the  Bank  of 
Korea  was  appointed  l^y  the  Japanese  (jovern- 
nu'nt,  and  ineluded  the  Governor  of  the  Bank 
of  Japan  and  the  Viee-Minister  of  Finance 
for  Korea.  In  the  same  month  sliares  were 
issued  for  pubhe  subseription.  The  result 
was  something  extraordinary,  for  though  the 
appHeation  list  was  to  have  been  open  for 
seven  days,  it  had  to  be  closed  at  one  o'clock 
p.  M.  on  the  first  day  it  was  opened,  the  public 
lodging  applications  for  20,352,374  shares,  as 
against  the  69,600  which  were  to  be  allotted. 
Shares  were  finally  distributed  to  the  appli- 
cants pro  rata  to  their  applications,  the 
Japanese  and  Korean  Imperial  Households 
each  receiving  i  ,000  sliares. 

With  the  coming  into  existence  of  the  Bank 
of  Korea  all  the  branches  of  the  Dai  IchiGinko 
in  Korea  and  Manchuria,  as  well  as  its  busi- 
ness and  personnel,  witli  the  exception  of 
those  in  Seoul  and  Fusan,  were  transferred  to 
the  new  institution,  which  consequently 
started  operations  with  thirteen  branch 
offices,  a  going  business,  and  a  well  trained 
staff.  A  year  later  Korea  was  annexed  to 
Japan,  and  the  bank  was  renamed  the  Bank 
of  Chosen,  new  legislation  being  framed  to 
accomplish  this  change  and  to  legalise  all 
transactions  that  had  been  entered  upon 
under  the  old  regime.  In  the  year  of  annexa- 
tion, 1910,  the  total  trade  of  Chosen  was 
valued  at  Yen  59,696,599.  In  1916  the  trade 
had  risen  to  a  value  of  Yen  131,258,739.  In 
19 10  Chosen  had  only  145  companies  with  a 
paid-up  capita!  of  Yen   10,230,903,   whereas 


in  1916  there  were  222  companies  with  a  paid- 
up  capital  of  Yen  44,014,410.  In  the  same 
period  l)ank  deposits  expanded  from  Yen 
I**i355>670  to  Yen  43,716,741,  and  advances 
from  Yen  30,691,677  to  Yen  70,456,738. 
These  figures,  though  not  of  impressive 
magnitude,  nevertheless  indicate  a  vigourous 
development  in  the  economic  condition  of 
Chosen,  and  they  suggest  what  an  important 
Ijart  has  been  filled  by  an  institution  of  a 
semi-governmental  nature  like  the  Bank  of 
Chosen.  When  the  bank  came  into  existence 
the  work  of  coinage  reform  was  going  on,  and 
the  Bank  of  Chosen  had  to  complete  it, 
besides  undertaking  the  financing  of  the  needs 
of  the  Government  and  of  the  various  munici- 
palities in  the  direction  of  carrrying  out  public 
works.  New  enterprises  were  springing  up, 
and  the  most  worthy  of  them  were  accom- 
modated with  funds.  The  financial  problem 
in  the  first  few  years  was  not  by  any  means  a 
simple  one,  and  frequently  owing  to  economic 
depressions  and  other  causes  the  directorate 
Iind  to  face  most  anxious  situations.  How- 
ever, in  course  of  time,  the  industrial  develop- 
ment of  the  country  established  a  balance  of 
trade  more  favourable  to  banking  generally, 
and  the  anxious  period  was  over. 

At  this  stage  the  Bank  of  Chosen  turned 
its  attention  to  Manchuria,  where  it  has 
carried  out  the  same  policy  which  had  proved 
successful  in  Chosen.  Branches  were  estab- 
lished in  the  important  centres,  and  a  general 
banking  business  was  entered  upon.  Mone- 
tary   conditions    in     Manchuria    were    not 


FINE    SEOUL    PKEMISES    OF    CHOSEN    COMMERCIAL    B.\NK,    LTD. 


satisfactory,  but  the  Bank  of  Chosen  has 
rectified  a  good  deal  of  the  trouble  by  encour- 
aging the  circulation  of  gold  notes,  and 
fractional  notes  to  provide  the  country  with 
subsidiary  monies  on  a  gold  basis.  It  is 
interesting  to  note  that  more  recently  in 
Japan  proper  this  practice  has  been  followed 
to  reheve  the  shortage  of  small  money,  due  to 
the  high  price  of  silver.  The  Bank  of  Chosen 
has  also  estaljlished  branches  in  Japan  proper, 
and  as  a  member  of  the  syndicate  of  large 
banks  it  has  taken  part  in  all  the  great  loans 
of  national  importance  that  have  been  floated 
of  recent  years.  Moreover,  the  bank  has 
taken  its  place  in  international  finance,  now 
having  a  foreign  department  at  the  head 
ofiice.  All  this  has  resulted  in  an  enlarge- 
ment of  business,  and  a  consequent  demand 
for  more  capital.  This  situation  was  met  at 
the  general  meeting  of  shareholders  in 
Februar)',  1917,  when  the  directors'  proposal 
to  increase  the  capital  from  Yen  10,000,000 
to  Yen  20,000,000  was  passed  unanimously. 
The  prestige  which  the  Bank  of  Chosen  has 
won  was  again  demonstrated  when  the  new 
shares,  offered  at  a  premium,  were  over- 
subscribed for  three  times. 

It  is  hardly  necessary  to  go  into  details  of 
the  bank's  operations.  What  has  been 
written  will  convey  a  general  idea  of  the 
organisation,  stability,  and  influence  of  the 
institution.  The  directorate  is  a  very  care- 
fully chosen  body  of  men.  The  Governor  is 
appointed  by  the  Government  of  Japan,  and 
the  directors  are  appointed  by  the  Governor- 
General  of  Chosen  from  among  twice  their 
number  nominated  at  a  general  meeting  of  the 
shareholders.  These  officials  at  present  are: 
Governor,  Mr.  S.  Minobe;  Directors,  Messrs. 
T.  Mishima,  Y.  Kimura,  and  S.  Ohta; 
Auditors,  Messrs.  C.  Ito  and  K.  Hattori. 
As  the  State  Bank  of  Chosen  it  will  be  of 
interest  to  say  that  in  19 16  the  Bank  of 
Chosen  handled  Government  funds  to  the 
total  of  Yen  710,934,502.  Financially  the 
institution  has  been  a  pronounced  success. 
A  dividend  of  seven  per  cent  has  been  paid 
for  the  past  three  years,  and  the  reserves 
total  well  over  Yen  1,500,000,  a  result  which 
must  be  considered  satisfactory  in  view  of  the 
short  while  the  bank  has  been  in  existence. 

Branches  of  the  Bank  of  Chosen  exist  at 
the  following  centres:  Chosen  —  Seoul  (head 
office),  Chemulpo,  Pyeng-Yang,  Wonson, 
Taiku.  Chinnampo,  Mokpo,  Kunsan,  Masan, 
Fusan,  Ranam,  Shinwiju,  and  Hoilyong. 
Manchuria  —  Antung,  Mukden,  Tiehling, 
Liaoyang,  Port  Arthur,  Dairen,  Changchun, 
Szupingchieh,  Kaiyuan,  Harbin,  Yingkow 
(Newchwang),  Fuchiatien,  Yongchongchon, 
and  Kirin.  Japan  —  Tokyo,  Osaka,  and 
Kobe.     (See  also  pages  109,  814,  and  837.) 


862 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   J  A  I'  AN 


A    VIEW    OF    KEIJO    (SEOUL),    NEAR    THE    CHOSEN    HOTEL 


CHOSEN    COMMERCIAL  BANK,  LIMITED 

This  institution  claims  the  distinction  of 
being  the  oldest  bank  established  in  Korea. 
It  was  founded  in  1899,  and  was  originally 
known  as  the  Taikan  Tcn-ichi  Bank,  Limited. 
The  bank  was  given  the  privilege  of  issuing 
convertible  currency,  and  for  some  years 
enjoyed  considerable  prosperity.  Later  on, 
however,  when  the  general  conditions  of  the 
countrv  led  to  the  complete  dislocation  of 
business  and  induced  a  panic,  the  Taikan 
Ten-ichi  Bank  was  compelled  to  close  its 
doors  during  a  period  of  reconstruction.  On 
reopening  the  bank  applied  for  and  obtained 
a  Government  loan,  and  a  Japanese  banker 
was  appointed  on  the  recommendation  of  the 
Government,  to  manage  affairs.  Thereafter  a 
progressive  policy  was  followed,  aimed  at  es- 
tablishing banking  business  on  a  sound  basis. 

After  the  annexation  of  Korea  by  Japan, 
the  name  of  the  institution  was  altered  to  the 
Chosen  Commercial  Bank,  Limited,  and 
besides  ordinary  banking  business  the  bank 
constructed  godowns  and  is  now  doing  a 
large  and  flourishing  business  in  this  class 
of  investment.  In  April,  1917,  the  capital 
w-as  increased  to  Yen  1,000,000,  but  this 
amount  still  being  inadequate  for  the  bank's 
transactions,  it  is  now  proposed  to  raise  the 
capital  to  Yen  5,000,000.  The  Chosen  Com- 
mercial Bank,  Limited,  is  fulfilling  many  im- 
portant functions  in  connection  with  the 
commerce  and  industry  of  the  country. 
It  is  under  Government  protection  and 
supervision  and  is  a  stable  institution.  Mr. 
Cho   Chin   Tai,    the  President  of  the   l)ank, 


is  at  the  head  of  Korean  business  men,  and  is 
prominently  associated  as  a  director,  or  in 
other  capacities,  with  several  other  banks  and 
companies.  It  is  due  to  Mr.  Cho  that  a 
great  deal  of  the  prosperity  witnessed  in 
Chosen   to-daj'   has   been   realised. 

EDUCATION 

Prior   to   Japan's   protectorate   and   final 

annexation  of  Korea,   there  was  very  little 

in  the  way  of  systematic  education  in  the 

country.     Village     school     masters     taught 


Korean  boys  domestic  etiquette,  writing  andl 
reading    of    Chinese    ideographs,    while    the] 
more   intelligent   classes   sent   their   sons   toj 
complete  their  education  in  Chinese  classicsl 
at  the  Confucian  school  in  Seoul.     The  only 
education    worthy    of    the   name   was    that 
received    in    the    mission    schools    kept    by 
foreigners    who    brought    with    them    some 
principles  of  educational   reform,   but   until 
the    inauguration    of    common    schools    and 
normal   training   colleges   by    the   Japanese, 
education  was  never  looked  upon  as  a  matter 


BRASS    BOWLS    1-OK    S.\LE    IN    TllE    MARKET    PL.\CE 


^^ 


SCENES   IN    KEIJO    (SEOUL):      SHOKO    STREET— NANDAIMON    STREET KOKAMON    STREET 


864 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS 


O  V 


A  I'  A  N 


CHOSEN    HOTEL,    SEOUL 


of  public  interest.  The  reform  of  education 
among  a  subject  population,  as  suspiciously 
inclined  as  the  Koreans,  has  been  no  easy 
task:  and  the  progress  of  the  new  system 
has  not  been  made  easier,  if  not  rendered 
futile,  by  the  Government's  insistence  on 
all  instruction  being  given  in  the  Japanese 
language,  whicli,  of  course,  none  of  the 
children  understand.  The  amount  of  in- 
struction given  depends,  therefore,  on  the 
ability  of  the  teacher  to  make  himself  under- 
sttind  through  translation,  as  well  as  on  the 
progress  of  the  pupils  in  the  imposed  language. 
This  imposition  of  a  foreign  language  on  the 
native  population  to  the  extent  of  making 
the  education  of  the  rising  generation  depend 
on  acquiring  it,  represents  a  more  vigourous 
policy  than  was  adopted  by  the  ancient 
Romans  on  their  subject  peoples.  Not  only 
so,  but  the  regulations  with  regard  to  edu- 
cation seem  to  be  aimed  at  depriving  mission 
schools  of  the  right  to  educate  Korean 
children,  for  they  are  forbidden  to  use  their 
school  buildings  for  the  teaching  of  religion, 
the  very  purpose  for  which  the  buildings 
were  erected.  In  fact,  no  school  is  permitted 
at  all  unless  it  conforms  strictly  to  Govern- 
ment regulations.  This  placing  of  all  private 
schools  under  the  administrative  control  of 
the  Government-General  is  a  great  handicap 
to  missionary  work  as  well  as  to  education, 
crippling,  as  it  does,  the  five  hundred  mission 
schools  of  the  peninsula,  and  is  evidently 
based  on  the  official  conviction  that  foreign 
schools  do  not  hasten  Korean  subserviency 
to  Japanese  rule. 

Under  the  new  regulations  for  the  reform 
of  education  in  Korea,  primary  schools  were 
completely  reorganised,  a  modern  Japanese 
normal  school  replaced  the  old  Hansong 
normal  school  founded  in  1895,  the  High 
School  of  Hansong  became  a  Middle  School, 
the  Japanese  Language  School  of  Pyongyang 


became  a  High  School,  and  a  foreign  language 
school  was  created  in  1906.  Schools  for  the 
blind,  a  law  school,  three  girls'  higher  schools, 
several  industrial  and  commercial  schools, 
were  in  operation  by  the  year  1913,  when  the 
Seoul  Academy  was  also  reorganised.  Be- 
sides the  above  mentioned  Government 
institutions,  some  1,200  private  schools  still 
flourish,  including  village  schools.  Medical 
education,  too,  has  made  some  progress,  the 
training  school  having  140  students  and  39 
Japanese  instructors.  Public  elementary 
schools,  as  well  as  higher  schools  for  Japanese 
children,  have  also  been  organised  to  the 
number  of  some  315,  with  1,223  teachers 
and  about  35,000  pupils,  while  Government 
schools  number  487,  with  2,345  teachers  and 
67,367  pupils. 

Expenditure    on    education    in    Korea    is 


over  Yen  1,500,000  annually.  The  Govern- 
ment provides  the  school  books,  which  are 
lompiled  with  a  view  to  making  the  Koreans 
loyal  citizens  of  Japan,  and  therefore  not 
very  popular.  Special  attention  is  devoted 
lo  medical  education,  as  it  has  been  obvious 
to  the  Government  that  through  hospitals 
the  foreign  missionaries  exercise  a  most 
potent  influence  over  the  Koreans.  Conse- 
(juently  the  authorities  have  started  labora- 
tories, isolation  hospitals,  and  means  for  the 
prevention  of  disease  and  the  promotion  of 
hygiene.  Hospitals  now  number  more  than 
18,  with  some  480  physicians,  and  more  than 
400,000  patients  are  treated  annually. 
Inspection  of  meat,  street  sanitation,  and 
improved  water  systems  for  cities  have  been 
inaugurated,  and  everything  possible  done  to 
remove  the  causes  of  ill  health. 

In  Korea,  as  in  Japan,  all  faiths  are  free 
and  equal,  but  the  Government's  deter- 
mination to  separate  religion  and  education 
is  much  more  stem  than  at  home.  The 
cult  of  Confucianism  finds  favour  mostly 
among  the  upper  classes,  as  in  Japan;  while 
Buddhism  is  more  popular  among  the 
common  people.  Between  the  two  comes 
Christianity,  which  is  increasingly  popular 
among  all  classes.  The  French  Roman 
Catholic  Mission  was  the  first  to  invade 
Korea,  arriving  as  early  as  1836,  Protestant 
missionaries  not  appearing  until  1884.  The 
missions  of  the  American  Presbyterian  and 
Methodist  churches  are  the  most  progressive, 
followed  by  the  Methodists  and  Presbyterians 
of  Canada  and  Australia  and  the  Cluu'ch  of 
England.  .  Foreign  missionaries  of  the  Meth- 
odist and  Presbyterian  churches  number 
306,  with  1,292  native  pastors  and  workers, 
2,477      churches,      and      203,973     converts. 


LOBBY  OF  THE  CHOSEN  HOTEL  SEOUL 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


865 


KEIJO    (SEOUL)    POST    OFFICE 


Statistics  for  other  missions  are  not  given. 
The  educational  work  done  by  the  mission- 
aries in  Korea,  already  alluded  to,  is  of  wide 
influence  and  imijortance.  With  the  policy 
of  the  present  Government-General,  however, 
all  education  in  time  must  inevitably  pass 
under  Government  auspices. 

KEIJO  (SEOUL) 

SINCE  the  annexation  of  Korea  to 
Japan,  the  ancient  capital  of  Seoul  has 
been  known  as  Keijo,  or  Kei)-jo,  and  while 
it    has    lost    little    of    its     old     interest     as 


a  quaint  old  Oriental  city,  it  has  been  greatly 
modernised  under  Japanese  influence,  and 
as  a  city,  it  is  much  improved. 

Keijo  lies  in  latitude  37  35'  north  and 
longitude  127  East.  It  is  situated  almost  in 
the  centre  of  the  Province  of  Keiki,  and  is 
the  commercial  and  political  capital  of 
Chosen,  or  Korea.  The  city  lies  on  a  fairly 
level  plain  with  the  lofty  range  of  the  Hokkan- 
zan,  or  Pukhan  Mountains,  to  the  north  and 
the  tranquil  Kan  River  to  the  south.  As 
in  the  case  of  most  old  cities  on  the  mainland, 
Keijo  is  surrounded  by  a  crenelated  wall, 
originally    erected    for    defensive    purposes. 


SKATING    ON    THE    RIVER    K.\N,    NE.\R    RYUSA.N 


about  seven  miles  long,  and  from  ten  to 
twenty  feet  high.  This  wall  is  pierced  by 
eight  gateways,  of  which  the  largest  are  the 
IS'andaimon,  or  Great  South  Gate,  and 
Todaimon,  or  Great  East  Gate.  The  esti- 
mated population  is  about  300,000,  of  whom 
close  oh  60,000  arc  Japanese,  with  a  small 
sjjrinkling  of  Eurojjcan  peoples.  The  princi- 
pal native  street  is  Shoro  (Bell  Street),  and 
the  most  flourishing  Japanese  and  foreign 
street  is'Hon-rnachi  (Main  Street). 

Keijo'  is  in  railway  comniunication  with 
Fusan  to  the  southeast,  from  which  port  all 
traffic  with  Japan  is  maintained,  the  steamer 
journey  across  to  Shimonoseki  occupying 
about  fourteen  hours.  On  the  east  the  port 
of  Jinsen  is  connected  with  Keijo  by  rail, 
and  to  the  northeast  runs  the  main  line  of 
the  railway,  forming  connection  with  the 
South  Manchuria  Company's  system,  and 
constituting  an  important  link  in  the  trans- 
continental route  to  Petrograd  and  Ostend. 
Reference  has  been  made  to  the  changed 
aspect  of  Seoul  under  Japanese  influence. 
Old  Seoul  was  always  noted  for  its  squalor 
and  general  dilapidation.  For  centuries  it 
was  the  home  of  the  King,  or  Emperor  of 
Korea,  and  around  the  court  grew  up  a 
horde  of  parasites  and  exploiters,  who  cared 
more  for  an  easy  life  than  they  did  for  the 
betterment  of  the  city.  The  Japanese  have 
made  the  city  the  seat  of  the  Government- 
General  of  Chosen,  and  have  erected  fine 
administrative  buildings,  besides  giving  Keijo 
a  greater  commercial  aspect,  and  generally 
improving  the  architecture  and  condition  of 
the  place.  A  destructive  fire  of  some  years 
ago  was  also  not  an  unmixed  disaster,  for 
it  led  to  the  re-building  of  a  considerable 
portion  of  Keijo.  Sanitation  has  also  been 
imjiroved,  and  to-day  Keijo  can  offer  attrac- 
tions to  the  visitor  more  substantial  than  old 
ruins  and  offensive  conditions. 

It  is  not  fair  to  give  all  the  credit  for 
modernising  Keijo  to  the  Japanese,  because 
prior  to  their  control  of  Korea,  the  city  was 
beginning  to  show  some  signs  of  progress. 
.\n  electric  tramway  system  was  installed 
some  eighteen  years  ago  by  an  American 
firm.  This  was  transferred  to  the  Keijo 
Electric  Company  a  few  j'ears  back,  and  is 
now  operated  along  improved  lines.  The 
total  extent  of  track  is  fourteen  miles. 
Modem  hotels  have  been  erected.  The  best 
is  the  Chosen  Hotel,  managed  by  the  Chosen 
Railways  Administration.  The  ground  in 
which  this  splendid  structure  stands  originally 
fonned  part  of  the  precincts  of  "The  Temple 
of  Heav'en." 

Keijo  as  a  city  of  importance  in  Oriental 
history'  dates  back  to  about  1394,  when  it 
became  the  capital  of  the  kings  of  Korea,  who 
in  later  years  elected  to  be  styled  emperors. 


itha-i : 


M 


Ml 


Ni'       V       X--        v'        V.'      \T  ^ 


KEIJO    ELECTRIC   CO..    LXn.r      THE    GAS-PRODUCING    PLANT  —  VIEW    OF   THE    POWER    STATION  —  THE   TRAM    CAR    SHED 


P  R  E  S  E  N  T  -  II  A  V        IMPRESSIONS        OF        JAPAN 


867 


%:j) 


DAIDO-MON    GATE,    KEIJO 

The  city  was  founded  as  the  capital  of 
Korea  on  the  rise  of  the  Li  dynasty.  The 
first  of  this  line  of  kings  built  the  Keifuku 
Palace,  and  when  this  was  ready  the  seat  of 
Government  was  removed  to  Keijo.  In 
1396  the  work  of  building  the  walls  was 
commenced,  the  king  requisitioning  the 
services  of  200,000  men  for  the  w-ork.  For- 
tresses and  other  defensive  works  were  also 
built,  but  as  the  glory  of  the  Korean  Kingdom 
departed  the  whole  place  fell  into  a  state  of 
disrepair.  The  Li  dynasty  lasted  till  Korea 
was  incorporated  in  the  Japanese  Empire, 
when  the  Emperor  and  the  Imperial  Family 
were  pensioned  off.  Most  of  the  ancient 
buildings,  such  as  palaces  and  public  struc- 
tures, have  been  turned  into  museums,  where- 
in are  to  be  found  much  in  the  way  of  art 
treasiu-es,  paintings,  porcelain  ware,  and  so 
on.  There  are  many  show  places  of  particu- 
lar historical  and  general  interest,  and 
undoubtedly  some  of  them  possess  great 
architectural  beauty  and  grandeur.  The 
Keifuku-kyu  is  a  case  in  point.  This  com- 
prises a  number  of  buildings  erected  in  1850 
by  the  despotic  regent.  Tai-in-kun,  who 
impressed    workmen    into    his    service    and 


NANDAIMON-DOKI,    KEIJO    (sEOI'L) 


NANDAI-MON    (sOUTH    GATE),    KEIJO 


secured  the  necessary  funds  for  his  house- 
building by  extortion.  This  palace  stands 
on  the  grounds  of  an  ancient  palace  which 
was  fired  by  the  Koreans  in  1592  before  they 
fled  from  the  Japanese  who  had  invaded  the 
country,  and  captured  Seoul. 

Keijo  contains  a  large  number  of  public 
buildings  erected  by  the  Japanese.  There 
are  also  the  consulates  of  the  Allied  and  neu- 
tral Governments,  and  many  fine  commercial 
structures.  The  Keijo  Commercial  Museum 
is  a  feature  of  the  strong  eff'ort  being  made  b}' 
the  Japanese  to  instill  commercial  ideas  into 
the  minds  of  the  Koreans.  Admission  is  free, 
and  the  visitors  may  see  a  fine  display  of 
sample  products  of  the  agricultural,  fishing, 
mining,  and  other  industries.  As  a  commer- 
cial centre  Keijo  is  yet  backward,  as  compared 
with  the  larger  cities  of  Japan  and  China,  but 
with  the  effective  development  of  the  resources 
of  the  country,  there  is  no  reason  to  doubt 
that  it  will  yet  take  its  place  amongst  the 
great  cities  of  the  Orient. 

KEIJO    ELECTRIC    CO.,  LIMITED 
This  is  a  Japanese  company,  having  its 
head  office  at  No.  16  Shinyemon-cho,  Nihon- 


bashi-ku,  Tokyo,  and  with  branches  through- 
out the  most  important  centres  of  Chosen. 
The  company  was  established  in  1908  with  a 
capital  of  Yen  3,000,000.  In  the  following 
year  the  Kambi  Electric  Co.  was  bought  up, 
and  the  name  of  the  combined  concern 
became  the  Nikkan  Gas  Electric  Co.,  Ltd., 
business  being  conducted  at  Seoul.  The 
Bazan  branch  was  opened  in  191 1,  and  the 
following  year  that  at  Chinkai  was  started. 
The  Jinsen  Electric  Company  was  bought 
out  in  1912,  and  the  new  works  gave  the 
company  its  fourth  branch.  In  1 91 5  the 
name  of  the  company  was  changed  to  its 
present  title,  viz.,  the  Keijo  (Seoul)  Electric 
Co.,  Ltd.  Thus  through  these  successive 
changes  the  company  has  gone  on  expanding, 
and  increasing  its  capital,  which  to-day  is 
Yen  9,000,000,  divided  into  180,000  shares. 
The  Keijo  Electric  Co.,  Ltd.,  engages  in  the 
suijply  of  electric  light  and  power  for  all 
purposes,  the  supply  of  coal  gas,  power  for 
electric  tramways,  sale  of  coke  and  coal  tar, 
and  sulphate  of  ammonia.  Some  idea  of  the 
extent  of  the  company's  operations  may  be 
gathered  from  the  following  figures:  Electric 
lights  supplied  —  Seoul,  83,407 ;  Jinsen,  1 0,744 ; 


868 


PRESENT-DAY        I  M  P  R  E  S  S  I  O  N  .S        OF        JAPAN 


Bazan,  2,556;  Chinkai,  3,313;  total,  100,020. 
Electric  power  supplied — Seoul,  1,502  horse- 
power; Jinsen,  596  horsepower;  total  2,098. 
Gas  supplied  —  Seoul,  11,379  lights,  and  8,882 
items  for  heating  purposes.  The  company  op- 
erates 16.23  miles  of  electric  tramways.  Its 
output  of  coke  for  the  six  months  from 
January  to  June  30,  1917,  was  2,618.25  tons. 
In  the  same  period  the  works  produced 
1,097.94  tons  of  coal  tar,  and  16  tons  of  sul- 
phate of  ammonia.  A  lucrative  business,  which 
is  rapidly  increasing,  is  enjoyed  by  the  com- 
pany for  its  by-products  such  as  coke,  coal  tar, 
and  sulphate  of  ammonia.  Coke  is  demanded 
by  several  factories.  Coal  tar  is  supplied  to 
the  Korean  Administration  Board  for  road- 
making  use,  and  sulphate  of  ammonia  finds  a 
ready  sale  throughout  Manchuria  as  a 
fertilizer. 

The  principal  officials  of  the  Keijo  Electric 
Co.,  Ltd.,  are:  Directors,  Messrs.  Shintaro 
Ohashi  (President),  Sei-i  Oka  (Managing 
Director),  Naoharu  Shiraishi,  Tahei  Yama- 
guchi,  Inki  Pak,  Kan-ichi  Ito,  and  Dembei 
Shimogo;  Auditors,  Messrs.  Michitsugu  Hira- 


sawa,  Michihiko  Nishimura,  and  Gentaro 
Hagiwara.  The  accompanying  balance  sheet 
will  show  the  prosperous  condition  of  the 
company. 

The  gross  profit  available  at  tlie  end  <jf  the 
period   under   review    was   Yen    378,923.34, 


which  was  distributed  as  follows:  To  Reser\-e 
fund.  Yen  18,000;  special  reserve,  Yen  15,000; 
employees'  retirement  fund,  Yen  3,000; 
bonus.  Yen  10,000;  dividend  at  9  per  cent 
per  annum.  Yen  286,875,  leaving  a  balance 
to  carry  forward  of  Yen  45,148.34. 


Bal.\nce  to  June   30,    191 7 


Assets 

Ll.\B[LITIES 

Yun 

Yen 

Unpaid  capital 2,250,000.00 

Business  establishment 6,942,501.58 

Business  suspense  account 12,320.42 

Goods  in  warehouses 343,201.06 

Drafts- received. 2,088.50 

Capital 9,000,000.00 

Reser\-e  fund 131,000.00 

Special  reserves 129,000.00 

Employees'  retirement  fund 2,510.80 

Unpaid  dividends 7,  807.56 

Money  temporarily  paid 4,201.11 

Money  to  be  collected 206,954.29 

Guarantee  money  for  contracts. .  14,731.00 
Guarantee  monev  for  personaltv     38,990.09 

Securities 366.00 

Commodities  in  guarantee i  ,075.00 

Money  temporarily  received.  .  .  .         1,356.19 

Money  not  }-et  paid 148,499.74 

Brought  forward  from  last  term.      33,121.56 

Cash  on  hand 26,735.00 

Profit  for  the  term 344,901.78 

Total Yen  9,851,918.72 

Total Yen  9,851,918.72 

THE    NEW    GOVERNMENT    OEiaCES    AT    TAIl'EH 

JAPAN'S   COLONIAL   EMPIRE 

LI.    Taiwan  (Formosa) 


History  — Area,  Physical  Features,  and  Population— Administration  — Finance— Commerce 
AND  Trade— Industry  — Communications  — Education  — Commercial  Notices 


FORMOSA,  called  Taiwan  by  the  Chi- 
nese and  Japanese,  is  Japan's  south- 
ernmost colony,  ceded  to  her  by 
China  after  the  war  with  that  country  in 
1895.  The  island  was  known  to  the  Chinese 
from  at  least  the  seventh  century,  though 
they  did  not  attempt  to  colonise  it  until  eight 
or  nine  hundred  years  later.  Owing  to  the 
hostile  tribes,  mostly  of  Malayan  stock,  who 
inhabited  it,  the  Chinese  settlements  on  the 
island  were  never  quite  successful.  The  first 
Europeans  to  reach  the  island  were  the  Portu- 
guese, who  were  so  struck  by  its  pleasing 
appearance  rising  above  the  blue  sea  that 
they  called  it  Formosa,  that  is,  The  Beaiiliful, 
a  name  it  has  borne  to  Europeans  ever  since. 
The  Spanish,  Dutch,  English,  and  Japanese 
all,  in  turn,  gained  a  footing  on  the  island 
during  the  seventeenth  century,  but  each 
failed  to  hold  it.  The  Dutch,  however,  did 
most  for  the  civilising  of  the  place,  for,  during 
the  forty  years  of  their  occupation,  while 
repaying  themselves  abundantly  in  a  pecu- 
niary way,  they  tried  in  some  measure  to 
educate'  and  enlighten  the  savages,  even 
"educating  the  women,"  as  a  Japanese  writer 
naively  puts  it.  In  the  middle  of  the  seven- 
teenth   century    tlierc    (U'osc    a    remarkable 


adventurer  named  Koxinga,  called  Kaku- 
senya  by  the  Japanese,  the  son  of  a  Chinese 
pirate  by  a  Japanese  mother,  who  drove  out 
the  Europeans  and  established  a  dynasty 
lasting  from  1662  to  1683,  when  it  was  .sub- 
dued by  the  Manchu  invaders  who  had 
recently  established  themselves  on  the  Throne 
of  China.  For  the  succeeding  280  years 
Formosa  remained  a  part  of  the  Chinese 
Empire,  whose  people  with  their  accustomed 
industry  digged  and  sowed  and  planted,  doing 
what  they  could  to  civilise  the  inhabitants, 
their  efforts  for  the  most  part  being  a  failure. 
Japan  made  a  descent  on  the  island  in  1874 
to  punish  the  savages  for  murdering  some 
fishermen  of  Luchu  who  had  been  cast  ashore 
on  Formosa,  an  astute  stroke  of  policy  which 
helped  to  substantiate  the  hitherto  doubtful 
claim  of  Japan  to  the  archipelago  of  Luchu. 
China  did  her  best  to  establish  an  effective 
rule  in  Formosa,  but  her  administration  was 
never  successful  and  constant  raids  by  the  sav- 
ages discouraged  settlement  save  in  the  coast 
towns  and  villages,  the  best  part  of  the 
island  being  abandoned  to  the  wild  tribes. 
The  Pckin  Govenuncnt  regarded  Taiwan  as 
a  thorn  in  the  flesh,  an  insoluble  problem, 
and  was  greatly  relieved  when  Japan  asked 


for  the  island  as  part  of  her  indemnity  after 
the  war  of  1894.  Those  who  have  read  the 
memoirs  of  Li  Hung-Chang,  who  represented 
China  during  the  peace  negotiations  at 
Shimonoseki,  will  remember  how  delighted 
he  was,  and  never  so  surprised  in  his  hfe,  when 
he  found  that  Prince  Ito,  the  Japanese  envoy, 
really  wanted  Taiwan.  While  the  shrewd 
Chinese  statesman  pretended  to  hesitate,  he 
admits  that  he  was  trembling  within  lest 
Japan  should  change  her  mind  before  the 
cession  of  the  island  was  accomplished. 
From  this  it  can  be  easily  imagined  that 
Japan  had  no  easy  task  on  her  hands  in  taking 
over  this  island  of  savages  and  undertaking 
to  establish  upon  it  Imperial  rule. 

AREA,    PHYSICAL   FE.'i.TURES,    AND 
POPULATION 

Taiwan  consists  of  the  island  of  Formosa, 
the  Hokoto  Islands,  called  by  the  Europeans, 
the  Pescadores,  and  several  smaller  islands 
lying  off  the  coast  of  the  main  island.  The 
total  area  of  the  main  island  is  13,911  square 
miles,  and  of  all  the  islands  comprising  the 
colony,  13,944  square  miles.  Taiwan  is  about 
264  miles  in  length  and  from  60  to  80  broad, 
lying    between   21°   45'   and    25°  38'   North 


56 


870 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


latitude,  and  120°  2'  and  122°  6'  East  longi- 
tude. The  Tropic  of  Cancer  divides  the 
island  about  the  middle.  The  western  coast 
is  a  low  alluvial  plain,  some  20  miles  broad 
at  its  widest,  covered  by  tea  and  sugar 
plantations  and  agricultural  settlements. 
The  remainder  of  the  island  is  mountainous 
except  the  fertile  plain  of  Giran  on  the  east 
coast,  and  some  highly  productive  valleys  in 
the  neighbourhood  of  Kwarenko  and  Pinan, 
as  well  as  the  plain  of  Ako  in  the  south. 
From  north  to  south  the  island  is  traversed 
by  a  range  of  mountains  of  considerable 
elevation,  with  parallel  ranges  sloping  toward 
the  west  until  merging  in  the  fertile  undulat- 
ing plain  already  mentioned.  The  mountains 
break  oflf  in  steep  precipitous  clifTs  on  the 
east  coast,  some  of  which  rise  7,000  feet  sheer 
from  the  sea.  Among  the  higher  mountain 
peaks  of  Taiwan  are  Mount  Sylvia,  13,000 
feet,  and  Mount  Niitaka,  14,500  feet,  with 
the  volcanic  peak  known  as  Daiton,  3,500 
feet  in  the  north,  round  which  are  numerous 
hot  springs.  The  mountains  ■  are  clothed  in 
virgin  forests  and  scantily  peopled  by  the 
savage  aborigines  of  whom  there  are  several 
tribes,  speaking  as  many  dialects,  mutually 
imintelligible,  and  often  engaged  in  inter- 
necine strife.  Some  tribes,  especially  those 
in  the  north,  are  headhunters,  and  every 
youth  has  to  produce  one  human  head  as  a 
trophy  before  he  is  permitted  to  marry. 
Operations  against  these  hostile  tribes  are 
constantly  under  way,  and  the  guard  lines 
are  being  pushed  steadily  forward,  yet  after 
more  than  twenty-five  years  of  occupation 


GENERAL  BARON  TEIBI  ANDO,  GOVERNOR- 
GENERAL  OF  FORMOSA 

and  warfare  Japan  has  not  succeeded  in 
bringing  all  the  savages  under  her  jurisdiction. 
(This  subject  will  be  more  fully  treated  under 
the  head  of  Administration.)  The  rivers  of 
Taiwan  are  small  and  swift,  and  in  the  rainy 
season  and  during  typhoons  are  subject  to 
destructive  floods.  Along  a  coastline  of  more 
than  700  miles  there  are  few  bays,  except  the 
harbours  of  Keelung  and  Tamsui  in  the  north 
and  Takao  in  the  south,  and  even  in  these  the 


anchorages  have  to  be  greatly  improved. 
The  temperature  of  the  island  is  naturally 
very  high,  seldom  falling  below  90°  f.  A 
northeastern  monsoon  brings  a  heavy  rainfall 
in  the  north  during  the  winter  months,  while 
a  southwest  monsoon  causes  heavy  precipita- 
tion in  the  south  in  summer.  The  total 
annual  rainfall  at  Taihoku  (Taipeh),  the 
capital,  was  2,030  mm.  in  1917,  with  185 
days   of   wet  weather. 

The  total  population  of  Taiwan  in  191 7 
"'as  3,752,710,  or  about  168  to  the  square 
mile.  Of  the  total  population,  133,937  are 
Japanese;  Formosans  of  Chinese  and  mixed 
blood  numbered  3,265,169;  foreigners,  19,- 
164;  savage  aborigines,  125,283,  though  the 
latter  figure  must  be  taken  as  very  uncertain. 
The  annual  births  recorded  number  145,000 
to  87,000  deaths.  There  are  eleven  cities  of 
over  10,000  inhabitants,  the  largest  by  far 
being  Taihoku  (Taipeh)  with  about  100,000, 
Keelung  coming  next  with  19,000,  and  the 
rest  all  smaller.  The  aborigines  are  divided 
into  northern  and  southern  tribes,  living  in 
672  communities.  The  northern  tribes  are 
the  most  savage,  the  southern  being  more 
amenable  to  civilisation.  Life  in  the  less 
settled  parts  of  Taiwan  continues  to  suffer 
from  raids  of  the  aborigines.  In  1912  as 
many  as  65 1  police  were  killed  and  886 
wounded  in  these  raids,  while  the  number  of 
noncombatants  killed  was  816,  with  889 
wounded.  Savages  who  cominit  murder,  or 
are  taken  as  inciters  of  insurrection,  are 
always  executed.  Sometimes  in  one  year 
several  himdred  are  apprehended  and  sen- 


SHIKANOSUKI    NIIMOTO,    ESQ.,    ACTING    DIRECTOR,    FORMOSA    GOVERNMENT    RAILWAYS  —  HIROSHI    SHIMOMURA,    ESQ.. 
OF   FORMOSA SAGATARO    KAKU,    ESQ.,    OF    FORMOSA    GOVERNMENT   MONOPOLIES    BUREAU 


CIVIL    GOVERNOR 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


871 


■ l{  «  ,V 


"  /') 


&% 

STREET   SCENES    IN    TAIPEH:     HOKUMANKOGAI    AND   JHONANGAI 


tenced  to  death  for  promoting  rebellion. 
As  the  savages  occupy  the  most  inaccessible 
mountain  fastnesses  it  is  as  dangerous  as  it 
is  difficult  to  pursue  them.  The  barrier 
running  along  the  frontier  between  savagery 
and  civilisation  is  guarded  by  5,339  men,  of 
whom  2,246  are  natives  and  3,083  are  Japa- 
nese police  officers,  covering  in  all  a  distance 
of  360  miles,  280  miles  of  which  are  protected 
by  charged  barbed  wire,  from  nine  batteries 
placed  at  strategic  points.  In  the  seven 
years  dating  from  191  o  the  Government 
spent  some  1,600,000  yen  on  the  subjugation 
of  the  savages,  9,750,000  on  the  guard  zone, 
and  5,134,000  on  active  warfare  against  them. 
The  total  outlay  on  accovmt  of  the  aborig- 
ines, however,  was  over  20,000,000  yen. 
There  were  four  general  campaigns  in  all. 
The  first  one,  from  May  to  October,  1910, 
against  the  Gorgan  tribe  in  the  south,  in 
which  4,000  police  and  troops  took  part; 
the  second  campaign  against  the  Moricowan 
tribe  in  mid-Taiwan,  lasting  through  August 
and  September,  191 1 ;  and  in  July,  1913,  an 
expedition   carried   out   against   the  Kinagli 


in  the  north  with  a  military  force  of  3,700. 
The  fourth  and  largest  campaign  was  that 
carried  out  against  the  Tarco  tribe  by  12,000 
troops  from  May  to  August,  1914.  This 
tribe,  which  numbers  more  than  10,000, 
occupies  the  central  mountain  range  opposite 
Kwarenko  on  the  east  coast.  By  these  and 
other  minor  campaigns  against  the  aborigines 
some  551  tribes,  representing  about  116,744 
individuals,  have  been  brought  into  subjec- 
tion. It  is  reported  by  the  officials  that 
there  are  121  tribes,  comprising  some  13,000 
persons,  yet  to  be  dealt  with.  As  no  reliable 
estimate  of  the  number  of  savages  has  yet 
been  reached,  the  figures  named  can  only 
lie  taken  as  approximate  with  reference  to 
the  number  of  savages  yet  untouched  by 
Japanese  rule.  Like  the  proverbial  grain  of 
salt  on  the  bird's  tail,  if  the  authorities  could 
get  near  enough  to  number  the  savages,  their 
capture  would  be  easy.  However,  after  a 
long  and  ugly  history,  consisting  mainly  of 
a  series  of  horrors,  with  bloodshed,  plague, 
liattle,  murder,  sudden  death,  and  exploita- 
tion,   the   unhappy   natives   of   the    "island 


beautiful"  may  soon  see  the  light  of  better 
days,  though  the  hatred  which  the  natives 
bear  their  conquerors  will  take  many  a  year 
to  abate.  Complaints  as  to  the  wisdom  and 
alleged  inhumanity  of  Japan's  way  of  dealing 
with  the  aborigines  of  Taiwan  wiU  be  found 
more  critically  treated  under  the  subject  of 
the  island  judiciary. 

ADMINISTR.\TION 
The  central  organ  of  the  Taiwan  Govern- 
ment is  the  office  of  the  governor-general  of 
the  colony,  whose  headquarters  are  at 
Taihoku,  the  administration  covering  the 
adjacent  islands  as  well.  The  governor- 
general  carries  on  his  administration  chiefly 
through  provincial  organs,  such  as  provincial 
chiefs  and  their  subordinate  officers,  as  well 
as  through  district,  town,  and  village  head- 
men, together  with  numerous  special  offices, 
some  of  which  are  temporary  and  others 
permanent,  including  law  courts,  procurator's 
office,  railway  department,  monopoly  bureau, 
public  works  department,  departments  of 
manufactures,     customs,     education,    police 


872 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


MOUNT    NIITAKA,    KAGI    DISTRICT,    FORMOSA 

and  prisons,  communications,  harbours,  ship- 
ping, and  agriculture.  The  governor-general 
of  the  colony  is  always  an  army  officer,  and 
the  general  tone  of  the  administration  is 
military.  Perhaps  this  is  necessary  in  a 
country  where  law  and  order  never  prevailed 
before  Japan's  occupation.  The  inhabitants 
of  the  island,  being  for  the  most  part  descend- 
ants of  rebels  and  robbers  taking  refuge  on 
the  island  from  the  Chinese  coast,  are 
admittedly  a  difficult  race  to  govern.  But 
the  conviction  of  many  who  have  made  a 
study  of  the  subject  is  that  government  of  a 
less  military  nature  and  more  under  the 
control  of  the  home  authorities  would  be 
better  adapted  to  the  pacification  of  the 
rebellious  element.  Such  was  the  nature  of 
the  first  government  of  the  island  under  the 
late  General  Count  Kodama.  Until  he 
assumed  office  in  1898  and  undertook  the 
task  of  governing  them,  the  people  of  Taiwan 
had  never  really  been  controlled.  The 
progress  of  the  colony  under  his  rule  was 
remarkably  rapid  and  humane.  He  found 
practically  no  government,  savages  and 
insurgents  committing  depredations  unmo- 
lested, infectious  diseases  rife,  only  a  few 
miles  of  wretched  railway  service,  and  no 
good  harbours.  During  his  ten  years  of 
administration  he  reclaimed  thousands  of 
acres  of  land  formerly  overrun  by  savages, 
opened  up  productive  sugar  plantations  and 
forest  industries,  reorganised  the  communi- 
cations of  the  island,  and  established  a 
modern  system  of  sanitation,  at  the  same 
time  offering  every  encouragement  to 
colonisation.  The  Government  adopted  a 
system  of  financial  assistance  to  nascent 
industries,  the  establishment  of  model  in- 
stitutions and  a  lengthy  programme  of  public 
works,  including  railway  extension,  irriga- 
tion, road  construction  and  a  monopoly 
of  salt,  opium,  camphor,  and  tobacco. 
Governor-General  Kodama  departed  leaving 
behind  him  a  lasting  memory  of  Splendid 
service. 


His  successor.  General  Sakuma,  introduced 
ten  years  of  stem  administration  that  has 
attracted  severe  comment  from  many  quar- 
ters, especially  as  regards  his  method  of 
dealing  with  the  aboriginal  races.  So  averse 
to  his  rule  were  the  savages  that  they  arose 
in  almost  constant  insurrection.  The  Koda- 
ma administration  had  adopted  a  policj'  of 
not  rushing  the  subjugation  of  the  tribes,  but 
his  successor  reversed  this  for  a  programme  of 
subjugation  by  force,  involving  a  total  outlay 
of  21,000,000  yen,  with  very  harsh  results 
that  can  hardly  be  said  to  have  justified  the 
losses  in  men  and  money.  He  succeeded, 
however,  in  extracting  from  the  aborigines 
some  27,000  firearms,  as  well  as  killing  a 
great  many  persons,  and  the  administration 
claimed  to  have  for  the  most  part  crushed 
their  antagonism.  The  peaceful  means  which 
the  administration  of  Governor-General 
Sakuma  subsequently  sought  to  adopt  were 
negatived  by  the  strong  measures  by  which 
he  had  already  created  terror  and  hatred 
among  the  tribes.  Reports  of  torture  and 
other  cruelties  to  the  natives  are  alleged 
untrue  by  the  officials  of  the  colony,  who 
declare  that  only  the  weapons  and  modes 
of  legitimate  warfare  were  used,  but  inde- 
pendent reports  to  the  contrary  circulate 
and  are  believed  by  responsible  persons. 

The  present  Governor-General,  General 
Baron  Ando,  is  a  man  of  excellent  and 
intelligent  character,  with  high  ideals  as  to 
the  treatment  of  native  races,  but  the 
highest  officials  are  not  always  able  to  control 
the  deeds  of  those  below  them.     He  has  had 


no  easy  task  to  follow  his  predecessor  and 
make  sonic  attempt  at  appeasing  the  savages 
by  the  adoption  of  a  more  educative  policy. 
Some  of  the  more  recent  uprisings  of  the 
Taiwan  aborigines  have  been  due  to  the 
pernicious  influence  of  unruly  elements  on 
the  opposite  Chinese  coast.  Between  1907 
and  1915  there  were  eight  raids  from  the 
mainland.  The  raid  in  1915  was  the  gravest, 
when  Ra  Fukusei,  a  rebel  chief,  conspired 
with  500  aborigines  to  attack  the  Govern- 
ment offices  at  Taihoku  (Taipeh),  the  plot 
being  detected  before  it  was  too  late.  In 
1 91 5  another  insurrection  broke  out,  when 
15  Japanese  were  killed.  By  the  aid  of 
troops  1,413  of  the  rebels  were  arrested  and 
866  sentenced  to  execution,  but  the  sen- 
tences of  all  save  95  were  commuted  under 
amnesty  on  account  of  the  Imperial  coro- 
nation. 

FINANCE 
When  Taiwan  came  under  the  civil  ad- 
ministration of  Japan  in  1896  a  policy  was 
adopted  looking  to  the  financial  independence 
of  the  island.  At  first  revenue  was  supple- 
mented by  grants  from  the  National  Treas- 
ury, but  the  rapid  progress  of  the  colony 
rendered  such  grants  less  necessary  year  by 
year  imtil  the  amount  fell  from  6,940,000 
yen  in  1897  to  2,500,000  in  1904,  and  to  only 
700,000  in  1910,  since  when  no  grant  has 
been  necessary.  Thus  not  only  has  the 
island  become  independent  financially  but 
its  finances  have  expanded  from  a  budget 
of  10,000,000  yen  in  1897  to  about  40,000,000 


BRIDGE    OVER   THE    KATANSUI    KEI,    AKO    DISTRICT,    FOR.MOSA 


PRESENT-DAY        I  M   1'   k  E  S  S  I  O  N  S        OF        JAPAN 


873 


in  1917.  Undertakings  such  as  land  read- 
justment, waterworks,  harbour  construction, 
and  railway  extension,  however,  were  paid 
for  by  jjublic  loans  amounting  to  some 
32,000,000  yen,  aided  to  some  extent  by 
increase  of  ordinary  revenue.  Public  under- 
takings contemplating  an  outlay  of  some 
38,900,000  yen  are  still  under  way,  financed 
so  far  by  the  Bank  of  Taiwan,  to  be  supple- 
mented by  temporary  loans.  The  following 
table  gives  the  revenue  and  expenditure  of 
Taiwan  at  three  periods  separated  by  five 
years  for  the  sake  of  comparison: 


To  maintain  the  revenue  of  the  colony 
almost  every  species  of  taxation  is  resorted 
to,  especially  for  local  purposes,  including 
taxes  on  tea,  sugar,  sake,  mining,  registration, 
clearance  fees,  textile  fabrics,  customs,  ton- 
nage dues,  house  tax,  business  tax,  and  so  on. 
There  is  much  complaint  among  the  natives 
regarding  official  imposts,  labour  often  being 
requisitioned  to  the  great  inconvenience  of 
the  victims. 

When  Japan  took  over  the  administration 
of  the  island  there  were  no  banking  facilities 
of  any  account  in  Taiwan.     Owing  to  the 


Revenue 


Expenditure 


Sources 


Ordinary : 
Administration  office . 

Judicial  courts 

Local  government . . . . 

Police 

Prisons 

Hospitals 

Custom  houses 

Government  railways 

Communications 

Monopoly  Bureau ... 
Loan  redemption .  . 
Other  expenses 

Total 

Extraordinary : 
Special  undertakings . 

Public  works 

Aids  to  industries. . . 

Subsidies 

Other  expenses 

Total 


1907 


Yen 


775.186 
371,895 

593,429 

350,080 

495.232 

297,371 

277,851 

1,441,152 

1,195,626 

8,790,914 

2.239.77' 
2,731,166 


19,559,673 

2,686,593 

3,290,426 

525,076 

783,500 

754,485 


27,599,753 


1912 


Yen 


1.287,590 
464.302 
940,025 

516,030 
490,428 
330,697 
3.558,362 
1,525,069 
9.158,851 
3,109,568 
4,306,849 


25.687.771 

2,936,685 

7,918,353 
1,560,426 
1,032,233 
8,053,108 


Sources 

1907 

1912 

1917 

Yen 

Yen 

Yen 

Ordinary: 

5,794,855 
2,142,077 

18,389 
20,092,725 

579,695 

4,045 

218,332 

13,464,482 

6,947.154 

Tonnage  dues 

Public  undertakings  and  State  property .... 
Stamp  receipts 

29,166 

24,729,654 

4,002,832 

3, .347 

301,438 

28,484,479 

1.037.5.30 

4.024 

1,266,734 

Miscellaneous  receipts 

Total 

Extraordinary : 

Sales  of  State  property 

Subsidv  from  National  Treasury 

28,850,118 

87,688 
1 ,000,000 

42,530,919 
119,064 

37,739.921 
502,231 

Loans 

3.427.143 
14,218,594 

137 

1,550,000 

188,703 

48 

Surplus  of  preceding  year 

Miscellaneous  receipts 

5,357.968 

Total 

35.295.774 

60,295,857 

39,980,903 

47,188,576 


191; 


Yen 


1.279,931 

456,984 
947.984 

544.812 

579.174 

311.327 

3.410,535 

1,560,607 

10,511,611 

4.071.399 
7,968,516 


31,642,880 

1,550,000 

4.092.503 
842,821 

1,450,864 
401,835 


39,980,903 


SCENES    ON    BANANA    AND    PINEAPPLE 
PLANTATIONS,    FORMOSA 

rapid  development  of  industry  and  commerce 
a  special  bank  was  established,  called  the 
Bank  of  Taiwan,  in  1899,  which  became  the 
central  bank  of  the  colony,  commencing  with 
a  capital  of  5,000,000  yen,  recently  increased 
to  20,000,000  yen.  The  bank  is  empowered 
to  issue  convertible  notes  on  a  gold  basis, 
and  has  fifteen  branches,  and  eleven  sub- 
branch  offices  in  the  island  and  elsewhere. 
In  addition,  there  are  also  the  Thirty-fourth 
Bank,  the  Taiwan  Commercial  and  Industrial 
Bank,  the  Kagi  Bank,  the  Shoka  Bank,  and 
the  Niitaka  Bank,  with  branches  in  the 
more  important  centres  of  population,  which 
give  great  assistance  to  the  people.  Taiwan 
also  has  some  fifty-eight  credit  associations 
for  supplying  financial  accommodation  to  the 
rural  settlements.  The  ancient  custom  of 
the  island  in  hoarding  coin  is  fast  disappear- 
ing, and  bank  deposits  are  consequently 
increasing.  In  191 1  the  coinage  of  the  island 
became  uniform  with  that  of  the  Empire. 

COMMERCE  AND  TRADE 
No  phase  of  Japan's  connection  with  the 
island  of  Taiwan  has  been  more  encourag- 
ing, perhaps,  than  the  development  of  trade 
that  has  marked  the  course  of  her  adininis- 
tration,  especially  with  Japan  herself.  The 
various  enterprises  set  on  foot  by  the  Govern- 
ment, the  regular  steamship  services  opened, 
and  the  increase  of  colonisation  have  all 
tended  to  enhance  the  interests  of  commerce 
in  an  unprecedented  manner.  In  1900  the 
total  foreign  trade  of  the  island  was  about 
21,000,000  yen  in  value,  and  some  16,000,000 
yen  with  Japan  proper,  or  about  37,000,000 
yen  in  all.     In  1910  it  rose  to  over  32,000,000 


874 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


with  foreign  countries  and  78,000,000  yen 
with  Japan,  a  total  of  1 10,000,000  yen. 
In  19 1 5  the  trade  of  Taiwan  with  foreign 
countries  amounted  to  28,000,000  yen  and 
100,700,000  yen  with  Japan,  or  a  total  of 
some  130,000,000  yen,  the  distribution  being 
as  follows: 


The  cultivation  of  sugar  cane  has  shown 
remarkable  development  and  is  now  one  of 
the  most  promising  industries  of  the  colony. 
Thirty-si.\  big  mills  with  the  latest  machinery 
are  turning  out  some  500,000,000  pounds  of 
sugar  annually,  reducing  imports  of  this 
article     from     Java.     Industries     in     sweet 


Countries 


Japan 

United  States 

China 

Great  Britain 

Dutch  East  Indies 

British  India 

Hongkong 

Annam  and  French  India 

Asiatic  Russia 

France 

Germany 

Turkey 

Australia 

Other  countries 


Exports 


Yen 


60, 
6 

4. 


,192,896 
,180,053 

,994.324 
931,763 

.968,378 
257-932 
583,748 


Imports 


Yen 


24.542 
338,308 


60,691 
90,539 


40,587,492 

761,518 

20,688 

711,949 
170,266 

1,677,823 

20,688 

46,622 

2,414 

13,484 

105,806 

32,686 

11,117 


The  chief  exports  in  order  of  value  are 
tea,  camphor,  rice,  flax,  jute,  hemp,  lung- 
wort, sugar,  coal,  and  turmeric,  while  the 
principal  imports  are  opium,  tobacco,  kero- 
sene, timber,  paper  and  paper  foils,  shirtings, 
cottons  and  Italians,  grass  cloth,  oil  cake, 
tea  seed,  packing  mats,  flour,  rice,  and  rails. 
It  is  only  too  apparent  that  while  trade 
with  Japan  increases  that  with  other  countries 
declines  or  remains  stationary,  trade  on  the 
whole,  however,  leaving  a  favourable  balance 
to  the  colony. 

INDUSTRY 
The  main  industries  of  the  island  are  in 
tea,  sugar,  agriculture,  and  the  development 
of  forest  products.  The  climate  and  soil 
of  Taiwan  are  thoroughly  adapted  to  agri- 
culture, which  the  authorities  are  doing 
everything  possible  to  encourage.  The  grad- 
ual reduction  of  the  savages  has  brought 
larger  and  larger  areas  under  cultivation, 
while  the  Goverrmient  system  of  irrigation 
is  greatly  increasing  the  fertility  of  the  land 
as  well  as  making  more  land  available.  Rice 
grows  abundantly  in  any  part  of  the  island 
where  there  is  a  sufficient  supply  of  water. 
Two  crops  can  be  raised  annually,  the  total 
crop  of  the  island  being  about  25,000,000 
bushels,  most  of  which  is  exported  to  Japan. 
The  area  imder  rice  is  constantly  increasing, 
which,  with  improved  water  resources  and 
the  use  of  artificial  fertilizer,  promises  a 
large  increase  of  crop.  The  tea  plantations 
in  the  north  are  also  extending,  the  varieties 
gro\VTi  being  Oolong  and  Pouchong,  with  an 
annual  crop  valued  at  about  7,000,000  yen. 


potatoes,  beans,  peas,  jute,  hemp,  indigo, 
and  Hve-stock  are  fast  increasing.  The 
forest  regions  of  the  island  abound  in  valuable 
timber  of  various  kinds,  especially  in  the 
Arisan  hills,  and  already  Formosan  lumber 
is  taking  an  important  place  in  the  markets 
of  the  East.  The  camphor  tree  takes  first 
rank  in  economy,  the  exploitation  thereof 
being  a  Government  monopoly,  bringing  in 
considerable  revenue.  The  most  important 
mineral  products  are  gold,  silver,  alluvial 
gold,  copper,  coal,  petroleum,  sulphur,  and 
phosphorus,  most  of  which  are  produced  in 
the  north  of  the  island.  The  mineral  out- 
put in  191 5  was  as  foUovvs: 


MOTOJIRO    T.\K-\T.\,    ESQ.,    DIRECTOR   OF    THE 

BUREAU    OF    INDUSTRIES,    GOVERNMENT 

OF    FORMOSA 


\'ictims  and  to  no  others,  so  as  to  allow  the 
users  of  the  drug  to  disappear  gradually 
and  no  new  smokers  to  be  Ucensed.  During 
the  years  from  1900  to  1914,  for  example, 
the  decrease  in  the  number  of  opium-smokers 
was  92,069.  Complaints  have  been  made 
that  the  decrease  of  victims  is  not  sufficiently 
rapid  owing  to  carelessness  or  conniving  in 
issuing  licenses  to  new  smokers.  The  mo- 
nopoly being  very  profitable,  there  is,  of 
course,  a  temptation  to  encourage  rather 
than  discourage  the  use  of  the  drug,  but  it 
can  hardly  be  said  that  such  encouragement 
is  official.     The  amount  annually  imported 


Minerals 

A.MOLNT 

Vau  E 

Yen 

Gold                                        

56,203  oz. 
279,368  tons 

1,482  m.  tons 
662,461  gals. 

2,294,050 

Coal                                

1,459,478 

CoDoer                               

1,051,604 

Petroleum                              

83,470 

As  already  indicated,  opium,  salt,  camphor, 
and  tobacco  are  monopolies  carried  on  by 
the  Government.  When  Japan  took  over 
the  colony  opium-smoking  was  prohibited,  as 
well  as  the  importation  of  the  drug,  but  to 
accommodate  the  confirmed  victims  of  the 
habit  who  could  not  survive  a  sudden  depri- 
vation of  their  pipes,  the  Government  estab- 
lished a  factory  for  making  opium  doses  to  be 
sold  only  by  licensed  vendors  and  to  persons 
having  Government  license  to  smoke  opium. 
The  idea  was  to  issue  licenses  only  to  habitual 


by  the  Government  shows  a  gradual  decline 
from  a  value  of  3,371,759  in  1906  to  2,190,897 
yen  in  19 1 5  Perhaps  the  regulations  of  the 
Government  for  the  prevention  of  opium- 
smoking  are  to  some  extent  nullified  b)-  the 
number  of  opium  dens  and  their  \-ictims  to 
be  seen  in  the  various  towns  where  Chinese 
congregate. 

The  salt  industry  has  been  greatly  de- 
veloped in  the  island  tmder  Government 
auspices,  as  well  as  improved  in  quality,  the 
total  area  now  tmder  salt  fields  being  over 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


875 


BUMBUGAI,    TAIPEH  —  FUZENGAI,    TAIPEH  —  FUGOGAI,    TAIPEH,    SHOWING    THE    STATION    HOTEL 
ON    THE    RIGHT  AND    THE    MUSEUM    IN    THE    DISTANCE 


5,000  acres,  yielding  some  160,000,000  pounds 
of  evaporated  salt  annually.  While  the 
monopoly  improves  the  quality  it  increases 
the  price  of  the  salt  beyond  what  it  ought 
to  be.  The  camphor  industry  is  one  of  the 
most  profitable  of  the  Government  under- 
takings, as  the  chemical  is  used  in  the  manu- 
facture of  celluloid,  drugs,  anticeptics,  and 
in  India  for  making  incense.  Several  private 
companies  arc  now  promoting  camjihor 
afforestation  in  Taiwan.  The  climate  of  the 
island  is  verj'  favourable  to  the  cultivation 
of  tobacco,  the  plant  being  made  cliiefly  into 
cigarettes  and  cut  tobacco  for  native  con- 
sumption. The  annual  output  is  about 
1,600,000  pounds,  which  supplies  only  one- 


third  of  the  total  demand  of  the  colony,  the 
shortage  being  imported  from  Japan.  The 
tobacco  industry  is  still  capable  of  much 
greater  development.  The  total  income  of 
the  Government  from  its  monopolies  in 
Formosa  must  be  well  over  10,000,000  yen, 
since  the  expenditure  of  the  Monopoly 
Bureau  is  above  that  sum. 

Such  industries  as  indigo-growing,  hemp 
weaving,  and  the  manufacture  of  paper  from 
bamboo  fibre  are  making  headway,  while 
the  Mitsu  Bishi  paper  mill  is  now  turning 
out  a  good  quality  of  India  paper  from  wood 
fibre.  The  manufacture  of  imitation  Pana- 
ma hats  is  also  coming  to  be  an  important 
industry'.     Marine  industries  are  progressing 


though  still  carried  on  in  rather  a  primitive 
way.  There  are  some  hundreds  of  acres  of 
oyster  hatcheries,  while  deep  sea  and  coast 
fisheries  reach  an  annual  value  of  about 
1,500,000  yen,  with  some  300,000  yen  more 
for  prepared  fish  products. 

COMMUNICATIONS 
No  sooner  had  Japan  established  her 
administration  in  Taiwan  than  she  planned  a 
trunk  line  of  railway  traversing  the  island 
from  north  to  soutli  so  as  to  connect  the  ports 
of  Keclung  and  Takao,  a  length  of  247  miles, 
to  open  up  the  heart  of  the  country'  to  coloni- 
sation and  industry.  The  line  was  completed 
in   1908  by  reconstructing  and  utilising  the 


tl 


876 


P  K  I-:  S  E  N  T  -  D  A  Y 


I  M   I>  R  E  S  S  I   O  \  S 


O  K 


J  A  P  A  N 


REPRESENTATIVE   JAPANESE    AND    FOREIGN    BUSINESS    MEN    OF    TAIPEH 

(Left)  Mr.  C.  Baraclough,  Manager  for  Jardine,  Matheson  &  Co.,  Ltd.  (Upper  Row,  Left  to  Right)  Mr.  H.  W.  Rowbottom,  Manager 
for  Samuel  Samuel  &  Co.,  Ltd.  —  Mr.  Tetsutaro  Sakurai,  President,  Bank  of  Taiwan,  Ltd.  —  Mr.  George  Beebe,  Manager  for  Carter, 
Macy  &  Co.  (Lower  Row)  President  Kimura,  of  the  Commercial  and  Industrial  Bank  of  Taiwan  —  Mr.  KojURO  Nakagawa,  Vice-President, 
Bank  of  Taiwan,   Ltd. — Mr.   T.   Hir.\taka,   Manager  for  Suzuki  &  Co.     (Right)  Mr.  Fred  B.  Marshall,  Senior  Partner,  Tait  &  Co. 


63  miles  laid  by  the  Chinese  Government,  the 
total  cost  being  28,800,000  yen,  raised  by 
public  loan.  The  Une  runs  through  the 
important  towns  of  Taihoku,  Taichu,  and 
Tainan,  the  great  rice,  sugar,  tea,  and  mining 
districts,  and  has  completely  transformed  the 
social  and  economic  conditions  of  the  island. 
There  is  a  branch  railway  from  Taihoku  to 
Tamsui,  133  miles  long,  and  another  from 
Takao  through  Kukyokudo  to  Ako,  a  distance 
of  15.8  miles.  The  Keelung-Taihoku  portion 
is  being  double-tracked.  The  Taito  line  on 
the  east  coast  of  the  island  is  now  midcr  con- 
struction at  an  estimated  cost  of  4,257,000 
yen.  It  nins  between  Kwarenko  and  Pinan, 
and  about  two-thirds  of  the  line  is  already 
open  for  traffic.  Including  trunk  and  branch 
lines,  the  total  mileage  of  railways  in  Taiwan 
is  now  318.  The  number  of  passengers 
carried  during  the  last  year  was  5,412,308, 
and  the  receipts  from  the  1,144,553  tons  of 
freight  were  4,728,510  yen.  In  addition  to 
the  Government  lines,  there  are  numerous 
private  railways  for  the  convenience  of  the 
sugar  planters,  the  total  mileage  of  which  is 
964,  carrying  1,111,797  passengers  and  137,- 
019  tons  of  freight  annually,  together  with 
1,576,624  tons  of  freight  for  the  owners  them- 
selves. The  annual  earnings  of  these  light 
railways  in  1914  was  388,467  yen.     Extensive 


tracks  for  hand-pushed  cars  arc  also  in  use, 
reaching  a  total  mileage  of  636,  carrying 
3.691,757  passengers  and  365,200,000  pounds 
of  freight  on  an  annual  revenueof  957,728  yen. 

The  steamer  services  between  Taiwan  and 
Japan  proper  are  regular  and  excellent,  the 
lines  being  subsidised  by  the  Government. 
The  chief  services  are  under  the  auspices  of 
the  Nippon  Yusen  Kaisha  and  the  Osaka 
Shosen  Kaisha,  some  of  whose  boats  running 
to  Formosa  are  over  6,000  tons,  and  call  at 
Shanghai  and  Dairen.  Lack  of  natural  ports 
and  harbours  has  been  a  great  inconvenience 
to  shipping  in  Taiwan,  but  the  Government 
of  the  island  is  going  to  immense  outlay  to 
remedy  this  defect  by  constructing  fine  har- 
bour works  at  Keelung  and  Takao,  the 
former  to  cost  9,000,000  and  tlic  latter 
4,733,000  yen.  There  is  also  a  big  traffic  by 
small   steamers,    sailing    vessels,   and   junks. 

Before  Japan's  occupation  of  the  island 
there  was  no  postal  system.  The  first  service 
of  the  kind  began  with  the  field  service 
organised  by  the  Japanese  army  after  its 
occupation  of  Hokoto  in  1895,  and  the  field 
post  offices  and  telephones  then  established 
came  under  the  civil  administration  after  the 
ceding  of  the  island  to  Japan.  The  present 
post  and  telegraph  system  of  Taiwan  is  the 
same   as   in   Japan   proper.  •   The    telephone 


system  at  Taihoku  (Taipeh)  is  underground. 
The  following  figures  will  show  the  business 
done   by  the  Taiwan  post  offices    in    1915: 

Number  of  offices 158 

Length  of  postal  routes 7,665  miles 

Number  of  letters  and  post  cards  .34,929,042 

Number  of  parcels 522,766 

Number  of  telegrams 1,835,904 

Length  of  wires 2,608  miles 

Telephone  offices 139 

Length  of  wires 12,387  miles 

Telephone  messages 20,162,355 

Domestic  money  orders  issued 647,709 

Value 11,888,139  yen 

Domestic  money  orders  paid 360,171 

Value 8,238,896  yen 

Foreign  money  orders  issued 402 

Value 13,189  yen 

Foreign  money  orders  paid 225 

Value 9,614  yen 

Number  of  postal  savings  depositors.  147,607 
Amount  of  deposits 2,545,370  yen 

The  wireless  telegraph  station  at  Fukikaku 
communicates  with  Japan,  transmitting  450 
miles  by  day  and  1,200  at  night.  There  is  a 
submarine  cable  from  Tamsui  to  Nagasaki, 
a  distance  of  672  miles. 

EDUCATION 
The  new  administration  in  Taiwan  soon 
established  a  system  of  education  adapted  to 


OOLONG  TEA  GARDENS,  FORMOSA 


ItANK    OF    TAIWAN,    LIMITED:      BRANCH    AT    KEELUNG  — HEAD    OFFICE    OF    THE    BANK   AT    TAIPEH,    TAIWAN    (FORMOSA)  —  BRANCH    AT 

KAGI BRANCH    AT    KARENKO 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


879 


the  special  needs  of  the  colony, chiefly  aiming 
at  ecfucating  the  natives  in  the  language  and 
customs  of  their  new  masters.  A  language 
school  was  opened  at  Taihoku  in  1896,  and  a 
public  school  system  put  into  operation  in 
1898  for  the  education  of  native  Formosans, 
and  a  primary  school  for  Japanese  children. 
In  1902  a  noniial  school  was  opened  for  the 
training  of  teachers,  and  later  a  middle  school 
and  a  girls'  high  school  at  Taihoku,  with 
various  technical,  medical  and  other  schools 
with  experimental  stations  for  promotion  of 
industrial  education.  The  basis  of  education 
is  much  the  same  as  in  Japan,  except  for  the 
emphasis  laid  on  acquaintance  with  the 
Japanese  language  on  the  part  of  native 
children.  Besides  the  primary  and  public 
schools  for  natives  and  Japanese,  there  are 
schools  for  the  children  of  aborigines  in  wliich 
courses  in  agriculture  and  handicraft  are 
given  in  addition  to  the  usual  subjects. 
There  arc  kindergartens  at  Taihoku,  Taichu, 
and  Tainan.  The  Middle  school  at  Taihoku 
(Taipeh)  is  quite  an  institution,  with  a  fine 
staff  of  teachers,  including  some  foreigners, 
and  a  dormitory  for  students.  The  Taihoku 
Industrial  Institute  trains  students  in  the 
various  arts  and  crafts  most  needed  in 
the  colony.  The  following  are  the  school 
statistics  in  Taiwan  for  the  year  1914: 


out  reason  that  this  tea  is  frequently  referred 
to  as  the  "Tea  of  All  Teas." 

Foniiosa  Black  Tea  is  also  produced  in  the 
island,  and,  like  the  Oolong,  contains  a  very 
small  percentage  of  tannin  It  is  of  a  high 
quality  and  rich  flavour,  being  much  appre- 
ciated wherever  it  has  been  introduced. 

Among  the  ini])ortant  firms  engaged  in  the 
export  of  the  Formosan  teas  are  the  following: 
Messrs.  Jardine,  Matheson  &  Co.,  Ltd., 
Mitsui  &■  Co.,  Boyd  &  Co.,  Tait  &  Co., 
Nozawa  &  Co.,  J.  C.  Whitney  &  Co.,  and 
Carter,  Macy  &  Co.,  principally  handling  the 
Oolong  brand,  and  the  Nippon  Taiwan  Tea 
Co.,  Ltd.,  of  Ampeichin,  Toyen  District 
exporting  "Black  Tea." 

It  can  be  truthfully  remarked  that  the  tea 
driiil;er  who  has  not  yet  sampled  Formosa 
Oolong  Tea  will  be  agreealily  surprised  and 
should  not  hestitate  to  give  it  an  early  trial. 

THE  BANK  OF  TAIWAN,  LIMITED 
The  Bank  of  Taiwan,  Limited  (Kabushiki 
Kaisha  Taiwan  Ginko),  is  under  the  direct  con- 
trol of  the  Imperial  Government  of  Japan,  and 
was  foniied  by  the  promulgation  of  a  special 
law  in  1 899  to  operate  primarily  as  the  Colo- 
nial Bank  of  Formosa  and  to  afford  special 
financial  facilities  for  the  encouragement  of 
industry  and  trade  throughout  the  island. 


Schools 

Elementary  schools  for  Japanese 
Public  schools  for  Formosans.  .  . 

Middle  school 

Girls'  higher  school 

Language  school 

Others 

Native  private  schools 


Number 

Teachers 

Pupils 

94 

3«5 

10,380 

268 

1,345 

,54.969 

I 

25 

623 

I 

2.^ 

341 

I 

Si 

1,949 

14 

120 

1 ,039 

576 

5*^9 

17,284 

FORMOSA  OOLONG  TEA 
Of  recent  years  "Formosa  Oolong  Tea," 
one  of  the  principal  products  of  the  Island  of 
Formosa,  long  highly  esteemed  by  connois- 
seurs, has  also  gained  a  very  considerable 
reputation  in  both  England  and  America. 
In  its  cup  quality  it  combines  naturally  some 
of  the  best  and  most  essential  qualities  of  the 
"black"  and  "green"  teas,  and  has,  in  addi- 
tion, a  peculiarly  fine  flavour  and  delicate 
fragrance.  Unlike  many  other  teas,  it  has  a 
percentage  of  tannin  which  is  exceptionally 
small.  Moreover,  it  is  free  from  effects 
injurious  to  the  health,  even  in  the  case  of 
the  most  devoted  drinker;  indeed,  it  is  found 
to  steady  the  nerves  and  infuse  vigour. 

As  a  blender,  the  Formosa  Oolong  Tea  may 
be  said  to  stand  alone,  and  when  mixed  with 
the  "green"  and  "black"  teas  it  has  a  most 
refining  effect,  imparting  to  them  a  touch  of 
its  own  deUcious  fla\'our,  and  making  for 
general  improvement.     Hence  it  is  not  with- 


One  of  the  first  important  tasks  undertaken 
was  the  adjustment  of  the  monetary  system, 
then  in  almost  complete  disorder,  with  a 
naturally  adverse  effect  on  the  growth  of 
trade.  The  financing  of  industries  by  the 
bank  at  very  reasonable  rates  had  the  immedi- 
ate effect  of  lowering  the  price  of  money 
throughout  the  island,  and  the  trade  returns 
quickly  testified  to  the  benefit  conferred. 

The  development  of  the  gold  industry  and 
the  perfection  of  the  irrigation  system  may 
be  numbered  among  the  achievements  of  this 
institution;  indeed,  it  is  often  truthfully 
observed  that  there  are  few  branches  of 
Formosan  industry'  which  do  not  owe  their 
present  success  to  the  helpful  aid  of  this  bank. 

A  network  of  branches  have  been  opened 
throughout  the  island  at  the  following  points: 
Ako,  Giran,  Kagi,  Karenko,  Keelung,  Mak- 
ung,  Pinan,  Shinchiku,  Taichu,  Tainan,  Tai- 
peh, Takow,  Tamsui,  antl  Toen,  for  it  will  be 
understood  that  as  a  Government  concern 


SUSPENSION    BRIDGE   AT    DOJO,    NANTO 
DISTRICT,    FORMOSA 

the  bank  enjoys  many  privileges  in  which 
other  banks  do  not  participate,  especially  as 
the  sole  "Bank  of  Issue."  All  departments 
of  modern  banking  are  in  operation,  particu- 
larly foreign  exchange,  for  which,  through  the 
medium  of  its  foreign  branches  at  Shanghai, 
Hankow,  Hongkong,  Canton,  Kiukiang, 
Foochow,  Amoy,  and  Swatow  (China), 
Batavia,  Semarang,  and  Sourabaya  (Java), 
Bangkok,  Singapore,  Bombay,  London,  and 
New  York,  and  a  long  Ust  of  representatives, 
the  bank  has  special  facilities. 

The  present  capital  is  Yen  30,000,000, 
which  places  the  bank  weU  to  the  fore  among 
the  important  financial  institutions  of  Japan. 

In  Japan  proper  branches  are  maintained 
at  Tokyo,  where  new  and  imposing  premises 
have  recently  been  completed,  Yokohama, 
Osaka,  Kobe,  and  Moji.  Further  details  are 
given  in  connection  with  the  bank  in  the 
Tokyo  Banking  Section  of  this  volume.  The 
officers  of  the  bank  are:  President,  Mr. 
Tetsutaro  Sakurai,  Vice-President,  Mr. 
Kojuro  Nakagawa,  and  Directors,  Messrs. 
lyetoshi  Sada,  Kyoroku  Yamanari,  and 
Shingo  Minami. 


A    PICTURESQUE    WATERFALL 


88o 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


note  that  the  bank  acts  for  the  Government 
for  the  collection  of  taxes  in  the  Gairan, 
Shinchiku,  Ako,  and  Karenko  Prefectures. 

That  the  bank  stands  in  high  favour  is 
evident  from  the  fact  that  since  its  inception 
it  has  paid  a  ten  per  cent  dividend. 

The  following  gentlemen  form  the  Board 
of  Directors:  Messrs.  K.  Kimura  (President), 
J.  Muramatsu,  H.  Yamashita,  T.  Arai, 
K.  Kaneko  (Directors),  G.  Tanase,  K. 
Komatsu,  Ran  Ko  Sen,  M.  Koga,  So  Un  Yei, 
and  Kan  Tetsu  Kyo  (Auditors). 

SUZUKI  &  COMPANY 
In  Formosa  Messrs.  Suzuki  &  Co.  seem  to 
have  found  an  ideal  field  for  the  exceptionally 
enterprising  spirit  which  is  so  evident  in  all 
their  undertakings.  In  the  sugar  business 
alone  they  have  124,950  acres  under  cultiva- 
tion, divided  among  their  three  mills  located 
at  Shinchiku,  at  Chureki,  and  at  Taiko.  A 
further  3,675  acres  is  cultivated  for  the  pro- 
duction of  hemp  and  lemon  grass.  Their 
mining  interests  include  coal,  copper,  and  iron 
ore,  which  is  in  part  e.xported  and  partly 
supplied  to  the  company's  iron  works  for  the 
manufacture  of  sugar  milling  machinery, 
shipbuilding  machines,  parts,  etc.  In  lumber 
an  important  business  is  done  both  as  regards 
the  exportation  of  the  timbers  to  Japan  and 
other  parts  of  the  Far  East,  and  the  milling 
and  preparation  for  local  consumption.  At 
the  port  of  Takao  in  the  south  of  the  island 
they  are  at  present  installing  an  important 
shipbuilding  plant,  which,  operated  in  con- 
nection with  the  iron  works  and  lumber  mills, 
will  doubtless  achieve  the  success  which 
characterises  everything  they  touch. 


TAIPEH    OFFICES    OF    THE    THIRTY-FOURTH    BANK 


COMMERCIAL    AND    INDUSTRIAL    BANK 
OF    TAIWAN 

In  a  colony  like  Formosa,  where  a  benevo- 
lent Administration  endows  the  working  man 
with  opportunities  to  acquire  capital  sufficient 
to  start  in  a  modest  way  on  liis  own  account, 
the  savings  bank  is  admittedly  a  most  nec- 
essary institution.  Tliis  essential  feature 
was,  prior  to  1910,  supplied  somewhat  inad- 
equately by  the  Taiwan  Savings  Bank,  ab- 
sorbed in  the  formation  of  the  Commercial 
and  Industrial  Bank  of  Taiwan.  The  new 
bank  has  a  capital  of  Yen  1,150,000  with 
Yen  750,000  paid  up,  and  operates  primarily 
as  a  "peoples'  bank,"  affording  facilities  for 
the  small  depositor  and  accommodation  in 
the  form  of  loans  to  the  merchant  and  farm- 
er in  a  small  way  of  business. 

The  head  office  is  centrally  located  in 
Taipeh  and  branches  are  maintained  at  Kee- 
lung,  Giran,  Shinchiku,  Taichu,  Tainan, 
Takao,  Ako,  Karenko,  Rato,  Byoriku,  Hozan, 
and  Toko.      Incidentally  it  is  interesting  to 


HEAD    OFFICE    OF    THE    COMMERCIAL    AND    INDUSTRIAL    BANK    OF    TAIWAN,    TAIPEH 


SUZUKI    &    CO.:      UNLOADING   CANE    FOR    THE   COMPANY'S   MILLS  —  ONE    OF    THE    NUMEROUS   PROPERTIES    UNDER   CULTIVATION    FOR    THE 

PRODUCTION   OF    SUGAR,    LEMON-GRASS,    HEMP,    ETC. CLEARING    LAND    FOR   CULTIVATION  —  THE    CHUREKI    SUGAR 

MILL A   CORNER    IN    THE    TAIPEH    OFFICE 


882 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


PREMISES    OF    MESSRS.    JARDINE,    MATHESON    &    CO.,    LTD.,    .\T    DAITOTEI 


The  Taipeh  office  is  under  the  direct  juris- 
diction of  the  head  office  at  Kobe,  but  controls 
the  sub-branches  located  throughout  the 
island  at  Keelung,  Chureki,  Taiko,  Kagi, 
Tainan.  Takao,  also  the  offices  at  Amoy, 
Swatow,  and  Foochow,  China.  The  com- 
bined office  staffs  of  these  branches  number 
about  300  clerks,  wliilst  in  their  various 
enterprises  in  Formosa  the  company  employs 
over  3,000  labourers,  and  a  large  number  of 
engineers  and  experts. 

As  agents  for  the  Dairi  Flour  Mill,  Ltd., 
the  Kobe  Steel  Works,  the  Imperial  Brewerj-, 
Ltd.,  the  Kanto  Sanso  K.  K.  (chemicals  and 
fertilizers),  the  Sugar  Manufacturing  Co.  of 
Japan,  the  Tokyo  Marine  Insurance  Co., 
and  a  number  of  other  enterprises,  the  busi- 


ness of  the  Taipeh  branch,  in  this  connection 
alone,  will  be  understood  to  reach  considerable 
proportions. 

The  manager  at  Taipeh  and  principal 
representative  for  Formosa  is  Mr.  T.  Hira- 
taka,  who  has  served  with  the  company  for 
a  period  of  eleven  years. 

(See  index  for  other  references.) 

J.\RUIXE,    .M.\THESON    &    CO., 
LI.MITED 

A  MORE  detailed  description  of  the  opera- 
tions of  this  most  important  of  British  firms 
in  the  Far  East,  of  the  foundation  of  the 
enterprise  by  Dr.  William  Jardine,  Mr.  James 
Matheson  (afterwards  Sir  James  Matheson, 
Bart.,  of  the  Lews),  and  Mr.  Hollingworth 


Magniac,  as  far  back  as  1832,  will  be  found 
elsewhere  in  this  volume. 

The  principal  business  of  the  Formosan 
branch  is  the  exportation  of  tea,  which  has 
grown  to  very  considerable  proportions  since 
the  estabhshment  of  the  branch  in  1 89 1, 
prior  to  which  date  the  business  was  carried 
on  through  intermediaries. 

The  staff  quarters,  offices,  and  godowns, 
located  on  the  banks  of  the  Tamsue  River, 
cover  a  considerable  area  and  are  of  a  ramb- 
ling character,  though  strongly  constructed 
to  withstand  the  ravages  of  typhoons,  which 
occasionally  cause  the  flooding  of  the  river. 
All  the  firing  and  other  important  processes 
are  undertaken  on  the  premises,  for  which 
purpose  a  staff  of  about  forty-five  is  employed 


884 


P  R  E  S  E  N    r  -  n  A  Y        IMPRESSIONS        OF        JAPAN 


in  the  season,  as  well  as  a  large  numljcr  of 
coolies. 

Insurance  is  written  as  agents  for  the 
Hongkong  Fire  Insurance  Co.,  Ltd.,  the 
Canton  Insurance  Co.,  Alliance  Insurance 
Co.  of  London,  and  the  New  Zealand  Fire 
Insurance  Co. 

In  shipping,  an  important  business  is  also 
carried  on  as  the  agents  of  the  Canadian 
Pacific  Ocean  Services,  China  Mutual  Steam 
Navigation  Co.,  Ltd.  (New  York  Service) 
(India  line  of  steamers,  Indo-China  S.  N.  Co., 
Ltd.),  and  other  companies  represented  by 
the  head  office. 

Mr.  C.  Baraclough  is  at  present  Manager 
at  Taipeh,  and  is  assisted  by  two  European 
tea  experts. 

(See  index  for  other  references.) 


SAMUEL   SAMUEL    &    CO. 

From  the  notice  descriptive  of  the  firm 
of  Messrs.  Samuel  Samuel  &  Co.,  Ltd.,  con- 
tained in  the  Yokohama  Import  and  Export 
Section  of  this  compilation,  it  will  be  seen 
that  the  operations  of  the  company  in  Japan 
cover  a  very  wide  field,  apart  from  their 
great  interests  in  other  parts  of  the  world. 

The  branch  at  Taipeh,  established  in  1901, 
is  primarily  important  as  representing  the 
following  well  known  companies:  Hongkong 
&  Shanghai  Banking  Corporation;  Douglas 
Steamship  Co.,  Ltd.;  Messageries  Mari- 
times;  Java-China- Japan  Line;  Ocean  Steam- 
ship Co.,  Ltd.;  China  Mutual  S.  N.  Cc,  Ltd.: 
Chargeurs  Reunis;  The  Swedish  East 
Asiatic  Co.,  Ltd.,  Gothenberg;  The  East 
Asiatic     Co.,     Ltd.,     Copenhagen;      Union 


Insurance  Society  of  Canton,  Ltd.;  Alliance 
Assurance  Co.,  Ltd.  (Marine  Dep't.);  Com- 
mercial Union  Assurance  Co.,  Ltd.;  Law 
Union  &  Rock  Insurance  Co.,  Ltd.;  Liver- 
pool &  London  &  Globe  Insurance  Co.,  Ltd.; 
Sun  Insurance  Office;  New  Zealand  Insur- 
ance Co.,  Ltd.;  Royal  Exchange  Assurance 
Corporation;  Manufacturers  Life  Insurance 
Co.;  New  York  Life  Insurance  Co.;  The 
Royal  Mail  Steamers,  and  The  Blue  Funnel 
Line. 

Very  large  cargoes  of  tea  are  annually 
shipped,  as  well  as  other  important  Formosan 
products.  Further,  it  is  important  to  note 
that  this  is  the  only  foreign  company  doing 
an  import  business  to  the  island.  Formerly 
they  were  the  sole  agents  for  the  Camphor 
Monopoly,  and  may  be  regarded  as  mainly 


TAIT    &    C0M1'.\NY:       premises    at   DAITOTEI,    TAIl'EH,    TAIWAN SCENE    IN    THE    TEA    ROOM 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


885 


instrumental  in  building  this  business,  which 
in  their  hands  jjrow  to  considerable  dimen- 
sions. 

From  the  accompanying  illustration  the 
offices  and  staff  quarters  will  be  seen  to  be 
of  a  most  ui)-to-date  type.  They  cover,  in 
connection  with  two  long  and  spacious  go- 
downs,  about  1,500  isubo. 

Mr.  H.  W.  Rowbottom  is  the  present 
Manager  at  Tai])eh,  assisted  by  a  staff  of 
fourteen  clerks,  and  two  European  assistants. 
Sul)-branches  are  maintained  at  Keelung 
and  Takow.      (See  also  pages  245  and  791.) 

TAIT    &    CO. 

A  HISTORY  of  the  port  of  Amoy  which 
omitted  imjiortant  reference  to  the  finn  of 
Tait  &  Co.  would  be  incomplete,  insomuch 
as  this  business  was  founded  in  1846,  or 
within  four  j'ears  of  the  signing  of  the  Treaty 
of  Nanking,  and  within  five  years  of  the  ac- 
tual occupation  of  the  port  by  the  British.  In 
1H45  the  British  garrison  was  withdrawn  and 
the  small  group  of  British  merchants  left  to 
their  own  resources. 

Tait  &  Co.  had  come  to  China  to  stay  and 
neither  the  rising  of  the  insurgents  under 
Huang   Teu-mei,    Huang   Wei,    and    Magay 


(Ma-kin),  in  1853 — the  first  signs  of  unrest 
experienced  in  the  port  in  connection  with 
the  Taiping  Rebellion  —  nor  the  stirring 
events  of  1857-62,  during  the  second  Anglo- 
Chinese  war,  had  the  effect  of  deterring 
James  Tait,  the  founder  of  the  business,  from 
pursuing  his  policy  as  a  pioneer  of  British 
trade.  The  founder  has  been  dead  for  many 
years  and  the  business  has  passed  into  the 
hands  of  worthy  successors  in  the  persons 
of  Mr.  Fred  B.  Marshall,  the  senior  part- 
ner,  and   Mr.   W.  Wilson. 

The  principal  business  of  tlie  firm  to-day 
is  the  exportation  of  Formosa  tea  to  Great 
Britain  and  her  colonies  and  to  America,  for 
which  purpose  offices  were  first  established 
in  Formosa  in  the  early  sixties  —  first  at  the 
port  of  Tamsue,  and  later  removed  to  Dai- 
totei,  a  suburb  of  Taipeh.  Mr.  F.  B.  Marshall 
takes  charge  in  Formosa,  and  in  the  season 
employs  a  staff  of  about  45  assistants  and 
from  150  to  200  coolies  for  picking,  packing, 
etc.,  according  to  the  amount  of  tea  handled. 
The  crop  naturally  varies  with  the  season, 
but  is  seldom  far  from  the  100,000  (half 
chests  of  40  pounds)  mark,  and,  indeed,  has 
risen  upon  occasion  to  as  much  as  103,000 
for  the  year. 


Mr.  Marshall  joined  the  firm  of  Tait  &  Co. 
in  1886,  having  served  the  intervening  six 
years  since  the  completion  of  his  education 
with  the  old  London  tea  firm  of  Messrs. 
Peek,  Winch  &  Co.  (now  Peek  Bros.).  His 
experience  of  Formosa  dates  from  practically 
this  period;  hence  his  opinions,  expressed  at 
various  times  in  interesting  contributions  to 
the  trade  journals,  are  of  special  significance. 
Mr.  Marshall  draws  attention  to  the  value 
of  the  Oolong  tea  as  a  blender,  opining  that 
there  is  no  tea  produced  to-day  in  any  part 
of  the  world  that  can  not  be  more  or  less 
improved  by  a  proportionate  addition  of  the 
Formosa  product.  Although  the  leaf  meets 
all  the  requirements  of  the  market  and  is 
held  in  high  esteem  wherever  it  has  been 
introduced,  this  gentleman  believes  that 
there  is  still  room  for  improvement,  which 
will  be  realised  when  the  production  is  placed 
on  a  large  scale  ^  in  other  words,  in  large  and 
properly  organised  gardens  as  opposed  to 
cultivation  by  the  small  holder. 

Tea  is  not,  however,  the  sole  interest  of 
Tait  &  Co.  in  Formosa,  as  under  the  title 
of  the  Takki  Gomi  Kaisha  (to  comply  with 
Japanese  mining  regulations)  they  are  the 
owners  of  a  coal  and  a  sulphur  mine,  both  in 


OFFICES   AND   CODOWNS    OF    MESSRS.    BOYD    &   COMP.WY    AT    DAITOTEI,    TAIPEH.    TAIWAN    (FORMOSA) 


.57 


886 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


operation — the  latter  producing  as  much  as 
2,000  tons  annually  in  times  of  brisk  demand. 

The  head  office  at  Amoy  is  one  of  the 
finest  office  premises  of  the  port  and  is  under 
the  direction  of  Mr.  Wilson.  The  principal 
business  is  shipping,  as  the  agents  of  the 
P.  O.  Steamship  Co. ;  banking,  as  the  agents 
of  the  Chartered  Bank  of  India,  Australia, 
and  China,  and  the  sale  of  oil  as  the  agents 
of  the  Texas  Oil  Co.  This  latter  agency 
they  hold  for  both  Foochow  and  Amoy, 
where  they  have  appointed  numerous  agents 
with  very  satisfactory  results.  Mr.  W. 
Wilson  is  at  present  the  President  of  the 
Kulangsu  Municipal  Council  and  Consul 
for  Belgium  and  Norway,  in  which  latter 
capacity  his  ser\-ices  are  particularly  valuable 
on  account  of  his  knowledge  of  the  Chinese 
language,  several  dialects  of  which  he  speaks 
with  fluency. 

Old  China  residents  will  remember  Mr. 
Marshall  as  an  enthusiastic  sportsman,  as 
he  takes  a  keen  interest  in  all  branches  of 
sport,  especially  racing,  having  on  various 
occasions  ridden  his  own  ponies  at  the 
Amoy  meetings.  The  accompanying  illus- 
trations will  give  some  idea  of  the  Daitotei 
offices  and  staff  quarters.  Mr.  Marshall 
also  owns  an  attractive  residence  at  Shrin,  a 
few  miles  from  Taipeh,  where  he  has  cul- 
tivated beautiful  surroundings. 

BOYD    &    CO. 

It  is  with  a  sense  of  satisfaction  that  one 
finds  a  pioneer  business  like  that  of  Boyd  & 
Co.,  established  for  a  half  centurs-  in  the  tea 
trade  of  Formosa,  and  for  a  much  longer 
period  in  Amoy,  China,  as  general  merchants, 
adapting  itself  to  all  the  innovations  and 
changes  of  time,  with  a  keenness  that  guar- 
antees its  long  continued  future  success. 

The  principals  in  the  business  to-day  are 
Mr.  W.  S.  Orr,  who  takes  charge  in  London; 
Mr.  J.  S.  Fenwick,  the  resident  partner  at  the 
head  office  at  Amoy,  and  Mr.  E.  Thomas, 
senior  partner,  who  manages  the  Formosa 
interests. 

Practically  all  the  tea  handled  by  the  firm, 
an  average  conservatively  estimated  at  about 
70,000  half  chests  (of  40  pounds)  annually,  is 
disposed  of  in  the  United  States  through  the 
medium  of  Messrs.  Robinson  &  Woodworth 
of  Boston,  Mass.,  and  Mr.  Charles  de  Cor- 
doba, their  New  York  agent.  The  book- 
keeping, engagement  and  direction  of  tea 
pickers  and  other  coolie  labour,  numbering 
in  the  season  as  man)'  as  200  hands,  is  con- 
trolled by  a  comprador  department — a  sys- 
tem found  satisfactory  throughout  China  in 
all  the  kading  foreign  hongs.  The  general 
supervision,  inspection  of  the  leaf,  weighing, 
etc.,  is  in  the  hands  of  European  experts, 
under  Mr.  Thomas,  who  has  had  26  years' 


-1 


T.\IPEH    BR.\NCH    OFFICE    OF    THE    FIJIT.^    MINING    CO.,    LTD. 


experience  in  Formosa  teas.  He  is  one 
of  the  few  remaining  foreigners  who  were 
doing  business  in  the  country  when  it  was 
still  part  of  the  Chinese  Empire. 

The  Taipeh  premises  at  Daitotei,  on  the 
Banks  of  the  Tamsui  River,  cover  a  consider- 
able area,  are  well  installed,  and  very  strongly 
constructed  —  an  essential  feature  in  view-  of 
the  devastating  typhoons  which  occasionally 
visit  the  island  and  cause  the  flooding  of  the 
river,  with  considerable  damage  to  the  prop- 
ertj'  on  its  banks. 

Messrs.  Boyd  &  Co.  occupy  fine  offices  at 
Amoy,  where,  as  agents  for  the  Kailan 
Mining  Administration,  the  principal  business 
is  the  bunkering  of  steamers  and  the  sale  of 
coal.  They  also  do  a  considerable  insurance 
and  banking  business  as  agents  for  the 
China  Mutual  Life  and  the  Mercantile  Bank. 
The  principal  agencies  of  the  Formosa 
office  are  the  China  Mutual  Life,  the  Eller- 
man  Line  of  Steamers,  Alessrs.  Dodwell's 
Steamers,  and  Lloyds  and  the  London 
Salvage  Association  for  both  Formosa  and 
Amoy. 

CARTER,  .M.\CY  &  CO.\IP,\NV 
The  firm  of  Carter,  Macy  &  Company 
has  been  engaged  in  the  tea  business  for 
many  years,  having  commenced  operatiors 
in  1850  as  Wliitlock,  Kellogg  &  Carter. 
In  1916  the  American  International  Corpor- 
ation  acquired   a  controlling  interest  in  the 


newly  organised  firm  of  Carter,  Macy  & 
Company,  Incorporated,  which  at  the  time 
was  doing  the  largest  tea  business  in  the 
United  States. 

The  company  as  now  organised  represents 
a  complete  cycle  in  the  tea  trade.  It  has 
its  own  buj'ing  organisation,  warehouses, 
packing  plants,  and  shipping  facilities  in 
every  country  where  tea  is  grown,  from 
Ceylon  to  Japan,  backed  up  by  a  purchasing 
and  trans-shipping  office  in  London  and 
warehouses  and  distributing  stations  through- 
out the  United  States.  In  Canada  the  dis- 
tributing house  of  John  Duncan  &  Company, 
Limited,  of  Montreal,  is  controlled  by  Carter, 
Macy  &  Company,  Incorporated. 

In  Formosa,  a  factory  and  staff  of  Chinese, 
and  godowns  for  handling  stocks  are  main- 
tained at  Taipeh,  under  the  management  of 
Mr.  George  S.  Beebe.  Until  1899  the 
firm's  requirements  in  Formosa  Oolong  Tea 
were  supplied  through  local  commission 
houses,  when  it  was  decided  to  establish 
its  own  buying  branch.  In  that  season 
2,200,000  pounds  were  shipped,  since  which 
time  the  business  has  increased  materially — 
finally  during  a  series  of  years  reaching  the 
largest  average  total  of  any  of  the  exporting 
houses,  with  a  maximum  of  4,000,000  pounds. 

THE    FUJITA    MINING    CO.,    LIMITED 
The  Fujita   Mining   Co.,    Ltd.,   operating 
prior  to  1917  as  the  Fujita  Gumi  with  head 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


887 


PREFECTURAL   OFFICE,    TAIPEH,    CONSTRUCTED    BY    GOSHI    KAISHA    SAWAI    GUMI 


office  at  Osaka  and  the  Formosa  branch  at 
Taipeh,  has  been  interested  in  the  develop- 
ment of  the  Formosa  mining  properties  since 
Japan  took  over  the  island  at  the  conclusion 
of  the  Sino-Japanese  War.  One  of  the  first 
properties  to  come  into  their  hands  was  the 
Tanho  Gold  Mine  in  i8g6,  which  is  still 
being  ver\'  successfully  operated. 

Quite  apart  from  the  usual  financial  uncer- 
tainty which  is  always  understood  to  exist, 
the  exploitation  of  mining  properties  in  the 
island  has  been  a  most  hazardous  business, 
as  the  aborigines  inhabiting  the  mountain 
ranges  of  the  interior  are  not  even  to  this  day 
entirely  subjugated,  and  formerly  constituted 
a  great  menace  to  the  safety  of  the  mining 
exploration  parties  sent  out  by  the  company. 

Their  depradations  grew  so  serious,  indeed, 
that  the  Government  was  moved  some  years 
ago  to  teach  them  a  sharp  lesson,  which  had  a 
salutary  effect.     It  is  interesting  to  note  as  a 


natural  corollary  that  recently  the  company's 
engineers  were  rewarded  for  the  many  hard- 
ships they  had  been  forced  to  endure,  by  the 
discovery  of  a  number  of  important  exposed 
copper  reefs.  Just  how  this  property  will 
develop  it  is  impossible  to  say,  inasmuch  as 
the  mining  business  in  Formosa  is  still  in  its 
infancy. 

The  mining  concessions  held  by  the  com- 
pany at  present  include  gold  (quartz  and 
placer),  silver,  copper,  kerosene  oil,  and 
coal,  and  cover  a  total  area  of  nearly  10,- 
000,000  tsubo,  whilst  the  concessions  applied 
for  and  which  will  in  all  probability  be 
granted,  represent  more  than  eleven  times 
this  area.  (See  Page  477,  Mines  and  Min- 
erals Section,  Fujita  Gumi.) 

SAWAI   GUMI 

The  head  office  of  this  firm  of  Civil  Engi- 
neers and  General  Contractors  is  located  at 


No.  3  Nakanoshima,  4-chome,  Kita-ku, 
Osaka,  and  the  Formosa  branch  at  No.  9 
Fuchumachi,  i-chome,  Taihoku  (Taipeh), 
Formosa.  The  business,  under  the  direction 
of  Mr.  T.  Sawai,  President,  and  Messrs. 
C.  Mori  and  K.  Omuro,  Directors,  was 
established  in  1897,  and  has  played  a  very 
important  part  in  bringing  about  the  change 
that  is  so  noticeable  in  the  business  district 
of  Osaka,  and  in  the  constructing  of  the 
many  beautiful  public  buildings  of  Taihoku 
(Taipeh). 

All  kinds  of  constructional  work  is  imder- 
taken,  including  railways,  waterworks  and 
harbour  improvements,  roads,  reclamation 
and  tunnel  work,  garrisons,  schools,  factories, 
etc.  The  fact  that  the  contracts  handled 
by  the  firm  up  to  the  year  191 7  represent 
a  sum  total  equivalent  to  Yen  26,360,000, 
gives  some  idea  of  the  volume  of  the  opera- 
tions of  the  Sawai  Gumi. 


MAGNIFICENT   CANE    ON    THE    PLANTATION    OF   THE    IMPERIAL    SUGAR   CO.,    LTD.,    AT    MANTOROKl',    FORMOSA 

LII.    JAPAN'S  Sugar  Industry 

SuGAK  Production  in  Japan  Proper— Sugar  Production  in  Formosa— Commercial  Notices 


IT  is  not  too  much  to  say  that  sugar 
cultivation  and  refining  are  among  the 
most  flourishing  and  profitable  indus- 
tries of  Japan.  With  the  exception  of  minor 
plantations  in  the  Luchu  Islands,  KjTashu, 
and  Shikoku,  the  greater  part  of  the  industry 
is  carried  on  in  Formosa  where  sugar  cane 
thrives  abundantly.  Beet-root  for  the  pro- 
duction of  sugar  has  not  yet  been  introduced 
into  Japan,  but  in  Manchuria  a  Japanese 
company  has  recently  invested  1,500,000 
yen  in  sugar-beet  cultivation. 

Sugar  cane  has  been  cultivated  in  Japan 
proper  since  the  year  1600,  when  it  was 
introduced  into  the  islands  of  Oshima  and 
Okinawa,  where  the  cUmate  is  more  or  less 
tropical.  Oshima  is  an  island  just  off  the 
coast  of  Kagoshima,  and  Okinawa  is  one 
of  the  Luchu  group.  In  1730  the  plantation 
of  sugar  cane  was  begun  in  Kagawa  in  the 
island  of  Shikoku,  where  the  first  refineries 


were  also  opened.  The  output  from  these 
various  centres  of  cultivation,  however,  is 
small  compared  with  the  crop  in  Formosa, 
which  is  already  the  main  supplier  of  sugar 
to  Japan,  and  may  soon  rival  Java  and 
Queensland,  though,  as  yet,  the  crop  per 
acre  is  no  more  than  half  what  it  is  in 
these  countries.  For  many  years  a  striking 
feature  of  the  sugar  industry  in  Japan  was 
the  small  quantity  raised  in  comparison 
with  the  amount  imported.  From  1890  to 
1894  the  percentage  imported  was  as  high  as 
95  per  cent.  The  proportion  of  imports  to 
domestic  production  is  still  considerable,  but 
since  most  of  the  imports  now  come  from 
Fonnosa  the  nation's  increasing  independence 
of  foreign  imports  of  sugar  is  apparent. 
The  table  on  the  following  page  will  show 
the  relation  between  production  and  im- 
ports in  Japan  proper  during  five  recent 
years,    namely,     191 1     to    1915,    inclusive. 


Most  of  Japan's  imports  of  raw  sugar  used 
to  come  from  Java,  with  smaller  quantities 
from  the  Philippines,  Hongkong,  and  the 
United  States,  but,  as  will  be  seen  from  the 
table  refered  to,  imports  are  fast  decreasing  on 
account  of  the  abundant  supply  from  For- 
mosa. It  is  further  apparent  that  Japan's 
exports  of  lefined  sugar  increased  enormously 
during  the  late  war,  most  of  the  cargo  going 
to  China,  Manchuria,  Korea,  and  Hongkong. 

Up-to-date  sugar  refining  equipment  did 
not  appear  in  Japan  until  1895,  when  the 
Yaeyama  Sugar  Refining  Company  was 
organised;  and  this  was  followed  a  few 
months  later  by  the  Nippon  Sugar  Refining 
Company,  and  subsequently  the  Dai  Nippon 
and  similar  companies  were  started,  the 
centres  of  operation  being  at  Kob^,  Nagoya, 
and  Yokohama.  The  crude  sugar  for  these 
refineries  at  first  came  chiefly  from  Java 
The  nominal  duty  on  raw  material  was  pu 


PRESENT-1)AY        IMPRESSIONS        OF        JAPAN 


889 


Sugar   Production   in  Japan   Proper   (In  Pounds) 


\'  I'  A  K 


i<;i  I 

11)12 

1914 
191 5 


Production 
IX  Japan 


152,800,000 
1 36,586,000 
146,382,000 
182,796,000 
167,880,000 


Imports 
FROM  Abroad 


175,274,000 
303,095,000 
725,068,000 
459,224,000 
276,963,000 


From 
Formosa 


533,827,000 
335,480,000 
140,377,000 
303,712,000 
464,902,000 


Total 


861,901 ,000 
775,151,000 
1,01 1,877,000 
944,732,000 
909,748,000 


Exports 


Consumption 
IN  Japan 


102,700,000 
111,180,000 
225,117,000 
175,098,000 
156,527,000 


759.197.000 
653,984,000 
786,706,000 
770,635,000 
753,118,000 


Value  of  Japan's  Imports  and  Exports  of  Sugar   (In  Yen) 


Year 

Imports 

Exports 

Raw  SroAR 

Refined 

Refined 

1912 

15,951.023 

69,682 

«.477,253 

1913 

36,548,996 

203,054 

15.831.330 

1914 

21,540,105 

138.529 

12,382,809 

1915 

14,794,102 

7.992 

11,803,785 

1916 

12,956,676 

21,379 

16,421,738 

at  20.4  sen  per  cwt.,  but  as  a  good  rebate 
was  allowed  by  way  of  subsidy  in  view  of 
the  conventional  tariff  on  refined  sugar,  the 
rcfuierics  were  in  a  highly  favourable  position. 

SUGAR  PRODUCTION  IN  FORMOSA 
When  Japan  took  over  the  island  of 
Formosa  from  China  in  1895  the  sugar 
industry  was  in  a  sadly  neglected  condition, 
as  the  natives  had  been  allowed  to  carry  on 
cultivation  according  to  primitive  and  anti- 
quated methods  which  ran  out  the  land. 
The  new  rulers,  finding  that  sugar  plantations 
yielded  a  far  better  profit  than  rice  cultiva- 
tion, determined  not  only  to  make  that  the 
staple  industry  of  the  country,  but  to  improve 
the  growth  and  extend  the  area  under  culti- 
vation. Owing  to  the  increased  yield  of  rice 
per  acre  it  was  found  possible  to  convert 
large  tracts  of  paddy  fields  into  sugar  plan- 
tations, the  crops,  of  course,  being  raised  in 
proper  alternation  with  others;  and  it  has 
now  become  a  settled  policy  of  the  authorities 
to  devote  as  small  an  area  of  land  to  rice  as 
is  capable  of  supplying  the  needs  of  the 
population. 

As  the  production  of  sugar  in  Japan 
proper  is  so  meagre  compared  with  the  annual 
consumption,  which  amounts  to  over  700,- 
000,000  pounds,  great  interest  is  taken  in  :i 
more  intensive  and  extensive  cultivation  of 
cane  in  Formosa,  where  the  rapidly  increasing 
output  is  expected  soon  to  render  Japan 
quite  independent  of  foreign  imports.  With 
so  large  a  market  at  her  doors  Formosa  is 
undoubtedlj'  destined  to  play  an  ever  more 
important  part  in  the  sugar  trade. 

Since  Japan's  introduction  of  modern 
methods   of   cultivation   and   manufacturing 


in  Formosa,  progress  has  been  very  rapid. 
Erection  of  the  old  buffalo  type  of  sugar  mill 
was  prohibited  and  modern  machinery  insti- 
tuted, a  change  amply  justified  by  the  results. 
The  new  sugar  mills  established  were  equipped 
with  tlie  latest  machinery  from  the  United 
States.  At  first  such  radical  measures  of 
reform  naturally  provoked  a  great  deal  of 
sharp  criticism  and  some  positive  opposition 
from  the  owners  of  the  native  factories,  but 
the  natives  have  gradually  come  to  see  that 
their  real  interests  lie  in  adopting  modern 
methods.  It  is  not  necessary  to  contend 
that  the  new  regime  in  sugar  production  was 
enforced  without  some  degree  of  injustice  in 
certain  cases,  that,  perhaps,  being  unavoid- 
able. But  if  injustice  sometimes  crept  in, 
it  was  chiefly  because  the  Government,  in 
order  to  hasten  the  progress  of  the  industry 
by  attracting  capital,  encouraged  the  for- 
mation of  big  sugar  companies  to  undertake 
the  growing  of  cane  on  a  large  scale. 

Foremost  among  the  Japanese  concerns  to 
begin    exploitation    of   the   Formosan    sugar 


1»4 


irrigation  works,  taichu  district 


plantations  was  the  Taiwan  Sugar  Refining 
Company,  originally  composed  of  a  group  of 
Japanese  millionaires,  the  company  being  sub- 
sequently amalgamated  with  others.     Then  a 
Sugar  Guild  was  organised,  which  practically 
controlled  the  industry  like  a  Trust.     This 
gave  rise  to  serious  abuses  and  consequent 
criticism.     It  is,   however,   the  tendency  of 
firms  engaged  in  the  same  business  to  com- 
bine in  this  way  for  mutual  profit  and  pro- 
tection,  in  all  parts  of  the  world,  and  this 
tendency  is  but  illustrative  of  the  slow  and 
silent  economic  changes  that  are  everywhere 
modifying    social    conditions.       The    Sugar 
Guild  has  enabled  the  planters  to  unite  with 
regard  to  trade  and  thus  command  a  better 
price   for  their  sugar  in  the  foreign  market. 
To  improve   cultivation   of   the   cane   the 
authorities  took  over  absolute  control  of  the 
industry   and   introduced   new   shoots   from 
abroad,  with  conspicuous  success.     Lahaina 
cuttings  were  found  to  flourish,  and  the  Rose 
bamboo   from   Hawaii   also   thrives   weU   in 
Formosa.     In   1902  other  experiments  were 
made  with  new  species  from  Java  and  Aus- 
tralia,   and   compulsory   measures   were   en- 
forced,   as    in    Java.     In     1905    the    sugar 
industry  in  Formosa  was  placed  under  the 
strict  supervision  of  Government  authority 
and  thence  for  some  years  every  official  pro- 
tection    was    extended     to    the    enterprise. 
Sugar  production  was  backed  up  financially 
to  the  extent  of  90  per  cent  of  the  value  of 
Java  sugar  imported  into  Japan.     The  rate 
was  subsequently  reduced  to  50  per  cent,  as 
the  industry  attained  a  prosperity  sufficient 
to  dispense  with  such  high  protection,  and 
the  natives  no  longer  required  costly  inter- 
ference   to    compel    proper    cultivation    and 
production    of   cane.     Once   the   profit   was 
apparent  the  work  was  enthusiastically  sup- 
ported by  the  people.     The  native  species 
of  cane  has  now  so  declined  in  favour  that 
no  further  effort  is  needed  to  encourage  the 
cultivation  of  the  better  plants. 

With  this  rapid  improvement  of  species 
has  come  an  extension  of  areas  under  culti- 
vation. In  1908  there  were  68,645  acres 
under  cane,  and  of  these  28,055  'were  planted 
with  native  varieties,  and  the  remainder  with 
improved  and  imported  canes.  By  19 10  the 
total  area  had  increased  to  162,108  acres,  of 
which  24,081  were  bearing  indigenous  plants. 
The  yield  per  acre,  too,  had  increased  by 
about  13  per  cent,  and  there  was  an  improve- 
ment of  nearly  five  per  cent  in  the  amount 
of  sugar  extracted  from  the  cane.  The  area 
at  present  under  cultivation  is  over  281,890 
acres,  yielding  more  than  700,000,000  pounds 
of  sugar  a  year.  Of  the  total  production, 
over  450,000,000  pounds  are  exported  to 
Japan  and  the  rest  used  at  home  or  sent 
abroad.     The     following     table     gives     the 


890 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


annual  production  of  sugar  in  Formosa  for  shoots  from  Java,  Hawaii,  Louisiana,  and 
five  recent  years,  together  with  the  value  of  Cuba  and  keeping  a  stock  always  in  the 
amounts    exported    for    the     same    period:       Government    nursery  of   60   acres,    is   doing 


Year 

Sugar  Produced 

Exports 

Pounds 

Yen 

1912 

1913 
1914 

1915 
igi6 

390,108,323 
155,532,326 
335,038,958 
463,261,864 
713,896,437 

1,719,396 

8 

342,292 
11,317,643 

The  annual  production  for  191 7  is  dis- 
tributed among  the  various  sugar  com- 
panies   operating    in    Formosa,    as    foUows: 


a   great   deal    toward  remedying   this    evil. 

Japanese  sugar  is  not  equal  in  quality  to 

American    sugar,     being     soft     and     damp. 


Name  of  Company 

Taiwan  Sugar  Refining  Company 

Oriental  Sugar  Refining  Company 

Meiji  Sugar  Refining  Company 

Ensuiko  Sugar  Refining  Company 

Dai  Nippon  SugarRefining  Company 

Taihoku  Sugar  Refining  Company 

Niitaka  Sugar  Refining  Company 

Rinhongen  (Native) 

Shinko  Sugar  Refining   Company 

Tainan  Sugar  Refining   Company 

Taito 

Total 


Pounds 


219,' 

145, 
120, 
122 

91 

81, 

66, 

39, 

13, 

19, 


970,000 
867,000 
534,000 
,670,000 
334,000 
34,000 
700,000 
300,000 
060,000 
334,000 
867,000 


923,870,000 


Marked  as  has  been  the  progress  of  sugar 
production  in  Formosa  in  recent  years,  it  is 
still  far  behind  the  rate  reached  in  Java  in 
some  essential  particulars.  The  yield  of 
cane  and  of  centrifugals  in  Java  is  yet  about 
three  times  per  area  what  it  is  in  Formosa, 
yielding  about  1,500  piculs  to  450  in  For- 
mosa, though  the  percentage  of  centrifugals  is- 
nearly  the  same.  The  difference  is  due  to 
better  irrigation  of  the  cane  fields  in  Java 
and  to  a  more  systematic  leaving  of  the  land 
fallow,  whereas  in  Formosa  the  land  is  pushed 
to  its  utmost  limit  of  production,  and  irri- 
gation is  inadequate.  Wages  in  Java,  too, 
are  only  about  6d  a  day  against  lod  in  For- 
mosa. On  the  other  hand,  Formosa  has  the 
advantage  of  improved  canes  and  a  pro- 
tective tariff  of  Yen  3.10  per  picul. 

Formosan  sugar  refineries  for  centrifugals 
now  number  36,  capable  of  turning  out  over 
27,000  tons  a  year.  These  are  owned  by 
ten  companies,  capitalised  at  over  80,000,000 
yen. 

Injury  from  insects  and  other  parasites  has 
already  begun  to  attract  the  attention  of  the 
planters  and  the  authorities  in  Formosa. 
The  difficulty  is  believed  to  arise  from  degen- 
eration of  the  root  and  an  abuse  of  the  fertihty 
of  the  soil.  But  the  Government  policy  of 
regularly  introducing  improved  and  vigourous 


and     lial-ile     to     cake,     and     also      having 
apparently  less  sweetening  power. 


TAIW.^N  SUGAR  MANUFACTURING 
COMPANY,  LIMITED 
This  company,  known  throughout  the  Far 
East  as  the  Taiwan  Seito  Kabushiki  Kaisha, 
is  one  of  the  big  enterprises  which  have  sprung 
from  Japan's  colonial  expansion.  It  is  the 
leading  factor  in  the  sugar  industry  of  Taiwan 
(Formosa),  and  from  a  small  beginning,  has 
grown  into  a  huge  corporation,  absorbing 
several  smaller  concerns,  and  to  a  very  large 
extent  controlling  the  sugar  market  of  Japan 
and  the  Orient.  The  Taiwan  Seito  Kabushiki 
Kaisha  was  originally  formed  on  December 
10,  1900,  with  a  capital  of  Yen  1,000,000, 
half  of  which  was  paid  up.  The  sugar  market 
in  Japan  then  offered  every  inducement  for 
such  an  enterprise,  as  apart  from  the  small 
output  of  some  of  the  southern  islands,  Japan 
was  entirely  dependent  on  foreign-grown 
sugar,  and  necessarily  upon  foreign  sugar 
companies.  Formosa  was  an  ideal  sugar 
country  and  any  Japanese  company  that 
could  handle  the  product  of  that  island  was 
almost  certain  of  success  in  the  big  market  at 
home.  Mr.  Tozaburo  Suzuki,  President  of 
the  newly  formed  company,  and  Mr.  Teijiro 
Yamamoto,  Manager,  were  sent  to  Taiwan  to 
inspect  the  sugar  fields  in  the  Provinces  of 
Tainan  and  Ako,  and  to  inquire  into  the 
question  of  erecting  a  factory  to  cnish  cane. 
They  decided  to  make  a  start  with  a  small 
factory  capable  of  crvishing  about  250  tons  of 
cane  a  day,  and  the  work  of  erection  was  put 
in  hand.  It  was  the  original  plan  of  the  pro- 
moters of  the  Taiwan  Seito  Kabushiki  Kaisha 


THE    TAIWAN    SUGAR   COMPANY  S    AKO    MILL,    THE 
A   CAPACITY    OF    THIRTY-FIVE    HU 


LARGEST    IN    THE    JAPANESE    EMPIRE, 
NDRED    TONS    OF    CANE    A    DAY 


WITH 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


891 


ONE    OF  THE    LARGEST    STEAM    PLOUGHS   IN    JAPAN,    ON    THE    KOHEKIRIN    FARM    OF    THE    TAIWAN    SUGAR    MANUFACTURING    CO., 
(TAIWAN    SEITO    KABUSHIKI    KAISHA) — KOHEKIRIN    MILL CANE    STACKS    AT    THE    KOHEKIRIN    MILL 


to  purchase  cane  from  the  farmers  in  the 
island,  but  this  idea  was  abandoned  as  it  was 
found  to  be  more  profitable  to  purchase  land 
and  grow  the  necessar>'  supplies.  The  new 
project  was  put  before  a  large  meeting  of 
shareholders  held  on  January  5,  1901,  and  it 
was  resohed  to  call  up  the  balance  of  the 
capital,  m.,Yen  500,000,  and  devote  the  money 
to  the  purchase  of  land.  Land  totalling  in 
area  more  than  a  thousand  cho  (approximately 
2,450  acres),  was  then  purchased.  This  land 
was  cleared  and  planted,  but  the  attempt  of 
the  company  to  provide  its  own  cane  was  not, 
at  first,  satisfactory,  owing  to  seeds  of  poor 
quality  and  the  lack  of  workmen  through  the 
prevalence  of  fever.  Furthermore,  the  com- 
pany's enterprise  was  a  dangerous  one,  as  the 
factory  was  always  liable  to  be  attacked  by 
the  bandits.  After  a  very  difficult  initial 
period,  the  factory  was  erected  and  the  pro- 
duction of  cane  became  regular.  The  cession 
of  the  island  to  Japan  as  a  result  of  the  war 
with  China  led  to  a  marked  improvement  in 
conditions.  In  August,  1906,  it  was  decided 
to  increase  the  capital  to  Yen  5,000,000,  and 
one  factory  after  the  other  was  erected.     The 


success  achieved  by  the  Tiawan  Seito  Kabu- 
shiki  Kaisha  directed  attention  to  the  profit- 
able nature  of  sugar  production,  and  one  by 
one  other  companies  came  into  the  field. 
The  Daito  Sugar  Manufacturing  Company 
was  established  at  Ako,  with  a  capital  of  Yen 
5,000,000,  the  majority  of  the  shares  in  the 
new  enterprise  being  taken  up  by  the  share- 
holders in  the  Taiwan  Company.  The 
amalgamation  of  the  two  companies  took 
place  in  April,  1908,  and  9,000  of  the  shares 
in  the  joint  stock  of  Yen  10,000,000  were 
taken  up  by  the  Imperial  Household  Depart- 
ment. The  reorganised  concern  bought  out 
the  Taiwan  Sugar  Manufacturing  Company 
in  August  of  the  following  year.  Subse- 
quently the  English  company  known  as  the 
Formosa  Sugar  and  Development  Company, 
which  had  a  capacity  for  850  tons  of  cane, 
and  Bain  &  Company's  factory  of  300  tons, 
were  acquired.  Another  amalgamation  was 
that  of  the  Kob^  Sugar  Manufacturing  Co., 
which  was  bought  out  in  December,  191 1,  for 
Yen  950,000.  By  purchase  and  amalgama- 
tion of  these  various  interests,  the  Taiwan 
Sugar  Manufacturing  Co.,  Ltd.,  became  the 


powerful  organisation  it  is  to-day.  Eleven 
years  after  its  formation  the  company's  out- 
put reached  1,210,000  piculs.  This  was  not 
only  then  sufficient  to  meet  the  domestic 
demand  of  Japan,  but  an  export  trade  was 
entered  upon.  However,  severe  storms 
visited  the  cane  fields  of  Formosa  in  191 1  and 
the  following  year,  and  the  output  of  crude 
sugar  was  seriously  decreased.  In  July,  1914, 
the  Taiwan  Company  amalgamated  with  the 
Horisha  Sugar  Manufacturing  Co.,  and  in 
September,  19 16,  with  the  Taihoku  Sugar 
Manufacturing  Co. 

The  situation  to-day  of  the  Taiwan  Sugar 
Manufacturing  Co.,  Ltd.,  is  that  it  owns  and 
operates  ten  factories  or  mills  for  the  produc- 
tion of  crude  sugar.  These  mills  are  nearly 
all  in  southern  Formosa;  one  is  in  the  centre 
and  one  in  the  north  of  the  island.  The  com- 
pany's mill  at  Ako  is  the  largest  in  the 
Japanese  Empire,  and  has  a  capacity  of  3,500 
tons  of  cane  a  day.  In  addition,  there  are  two 
alcohol  distilleries  in  the  southern  part  of 
Taiwan,  and  two  refineries  at  Kob6,  where 
the  crude  product  is  prepared  for  the  domestic 
and  foreign  markets.     The  company  actually 


892 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


owns  sugar  lands  totalling  15,000  cho,ov  about 
36,500  acres.  It  has  a  railway  of  its  own 
construction  for  handling  cane,  over  400  miles 
of  rail  being  laid,  and  in  addition  there  are 
lighters,  launches,  and  other  plant.  At  present 
the  sugar  output  of  Formosa,  besides  the 
native  sugar,  is  about  400,000  tons,  produced 
by  twelve  companies.  The  Taiwan  Sugar 
Manufacturing  Co.,  Ltd.,  alone  turns  out 
120,000  tons  per  annum,  representing  about 
30  per  cent  of  the  total,  and  it  produces  half 
the  total  of  alcohol  used  in  Japan,  so  that  it 
may  well  be  considered  the  largest  sugar 
manufacturing  concern  in  the  Far  East. 

The  development  of  the  company  has 
necessarily  meant  frequent  and  substantial 
increases  in  its  capital.  This  has  risen  from 
Yen  1,000,000  in  1900  to  Yen  29,800,000, 
divided  into  596,000  shares  of  Yen  50  each. 
During  the  year  ended  March  31,  1917,  the 
gross  receipts  were  Yen  20,995,863  for  nine 
months.  The  substantial  sum  of  Yen  3,557,- 
000  was  written  off  for  depreciation,  and  the 
gross  profit  remained  Yen  5,100,806.  An 
ordinary  dividend  of  12  per  cent  was  paid, 
followed  by  two  special  dividends  of  eight  and 
three  per  cent,   respectively,  the  total  thus 


distributed  being  Yen  3,552,880.  The  reserves 
total  Yen  5,159,650.  Mr.  Shiro  Fujita  is  the 
Chairman  of  the  Board  of  Directors.  Other 
members  are:  Messrs.  Teijiro  Yamamoto 
(Senior  Managing  Director),  Tadamichi 
Takechi  (Managing  Director),  Taro  Masuda 
(Managing  Director),  and  Tamiyoshi  Zushi 
and  Jitaro  Maruta  (Directors).  The  Auditors 
are  Messrs.  Kichibei  Murai,  Kinsaburo 
Kada,  and  Robert  W.  Irwin,  Jr.  Mr. 
Takashi  Masuda  is  adviser  to  the  company. 
The  sale  of  the  products  of  the  Taiwan  Sugar 
Manufacturing  Co.,  Ltd.,  is  in  the  hands  of 
the  Mitsui  Bussan  Kabushiki  Kaisha  as  sole 
agent.  Enquiries  regarding  the  Taiwan  Sugar 
Manufacturing  Co.,  Ltd.,  should  be  directed 
to  their  Tokyo  head  office,  22  Honkoku-cho, 
Nihonbashi-ku,  Tokyo;  and  if  in  connection 
with  the  sale  of  sugar  or  alcohol,  to  the  Mitsui 
Bussan  Kabushiki  Kaisha  or  their  branch 
offices. 

THE    ORIENTAL    SUGAR    MANUFACTUR- 
ING   COMPANY 

Nothing  has  done  more  for  the  prosperity 
and  general  development  of  Japan's  greatest 
island  colony  than  big  corporations  like  the 


Oriental  Sugar  Manufacturing  Company, 
whose  large  investments  and  intensive 
industries  have  been  a  marked  feature  of 
modem  progress  in  Formosa.  The  island 
has  long  been  noted  for  its  plantations  of 
sugar  cane,  but  since  coming  under  the  re- 
gime of  Japan  it  has  become  one  of  the  great- 
est sugar-producing  countries  in  the  world. 
Situated  in  about  the  same  latitude  as 
Cuba  and  Hawaii,  the  climate  is  excellently 
adapted  to  the  cultivation  of  sugar  cane. 
Even  under  the  rule  of  China  sugar  was  the 
most  important  crop  of  the  island.  With  the 
improved  methods  of  cultivation  and  manu- 
facture introduced  by  Japan,  the  annual  out- 
put of  sugar  has  been  enormously  increased 
until  now  the  home  demand  of  the  Empire 
has  been  almost  fully  met,  imports  from  Java 
have  been  almost  stopped,  and  large  quan- 
tities of  Japanese  sugar  are  being  annually 
exported. 

Among  the  foremost  sugar  fimis  in  Formosa 
is  the  Oriental  Sugar  Manufacturing  Com- 
pany. Established  in  1907  with  a  capital  of 
5,000,000  yen,  the  company  at  once  began 
planting  and  cultivating  on  an  extensive 
scale,  turning  out  some   1,000  tons  of  sugar 


NANSEl    FACTORY,    FORMOS.\,    OF    THE    ORIENTAL    SUG\K    M.\NUF.\CTURING    COMPANY 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


893 


HOKKO    I-A(  TORY    OF    THE    ORIENTAL    SUGAR    MANUFACTURING   COMPANY    OF    FORMOSA 


the  first  year  and  2,000  tons  the  next,  a  rate 
it  has  since  pretty  well  maintained.  A  year 
after  its  organisation  the  profits  of  the  com- 
]jany  were  673,300  yen  on  an  income  of  over 
2,000,000  yen.  The  superior  equipment  of 
the  Oriental  Sugar  Manufacturing  Company 
and  its  extensive  operations  enabled  it  to 
absorb  several  of  the  minor  and  less  efficient 
sugar  companies  doing  business  on  the  island. 
The  Toroku  Sugar  Company  was  taken  into 
the  firm  in  1914,  increasing  the  capital  by 
1,200,000  yen,  and  several  other  companies 
followed  in  1915.  The  Hokko  Sugar  Com- 
pany, with  a  capital  of  1,500,000  yen,  and  the 
'I'amaki  Sugar  Company,  possessing  a  capital 
of  6,615,000  yen,  were  absorbed  in  1916, 
bringing  the  total  subscribed  capital  of  the 
Oriental  Sugar  Manufacturing  Company  up 
to  11,750,000  yen,  and  the  paid-up  capital 
to  7,962,000  yen,  with  a  reserve  fund  of 
2,403,000  yen,  the  company  paying  an  annual 
dividend  of  over  14  per  cent. 

The  Oriental  Sugar  Manufacturing  Com- 
pany has  extensive  plantations  and  large 
mills  equipped  with  the  most  up-to-date 
machinery  and  is  prepared  to  supply  orders 
for  any  quantity  of  sugar.  Its  plantations 
are  situated  in  the  most  favourable  portion 
of  the  island  and  promise  considerable 
extension  as  well  as  increased  crops.  The 
following  are  the  present  officers  of  the  com- 
pany, to  whom  it  owes  much  of  its  phenom- 
enal success:  Totaro  Shimosaka,  Esq.  (Presi- 
dent); Goro  Matsukata,  Esq.,  Kusuya 
Komatsu,  Esq.,  Kenchi  Fujita,  Esq.,  Sho- 
kuma  Matsukata,  Esq.,  Rihei  Hyuga,  Esq., 
Retsu  Oka,  Esq.,  Shoji  Ishikawa,  Esq., 
Toshiro    Tamura,     Esq.     (Directors).      The 


head  office  is  at  Nanseisho,  Kagi,  Formosa, 
and  the  Tokyo  office  is  located  at  No.  21 
Mitsu   Bishi   Building,   Marunouchi,  Tokyo 

MEIJI  SEITO  KABUSHIKI  KAISHA 
This  company,  known  under  its  English 
title  of  the  Meiji  Sugar  Manufacturing  Co., 
Ltd.,  is  one  of  the  very  active  and  most 
efficient  of  Japanese  industrial  organisations. 
The  reserve  fund  of  the  company  was  aug- 
mented TO  Yen  7,000,000  within  twelve  years 
from  its  inauguration,  against  the  paid-up 
capital  of  Yen  8,925,000,  thus  increasing  its 
rate  of  dividend  from  12  per  cent  in  1909  to 
26  per  cent  in  19 17.  The  hands  employed, 
including  clerical  staffs  and  labourers,  exceed 
1,000.  It  was  formally  established  in  De- 
cember, 1906,  by  its  late  President,  Mr.  Z. 
Ogawa,  who  was  associated  in  the  organisa- 
tion of  the  concern  with  the  present  Presi- 
dent, Mr.  H.  Soma,  Baron  M.  Takei,  and 
Messrs.  Y.  Usui,  S.  Uemura,  and  N.  Yama- 
moto,  who  are  members  of  the  present  Board 
of  Directors.  Besides  these  gentlemen. 
Baron  E.  Shibusawa,  Baron  I.  Morimura, 
the  late  Mr.  M.  Asada,  and  about  twenty 
other  prominent  business  men  in  Japan,  were 
concerned  in  the  formation  of  the  new  enter- 
prise. All  the  stock  was  subscribed  by  the 
promoters  and  their  friends,  and  the  general 
public  were  not  called  upon  to  provide  one 
yen  of  the  initial  capital  of  Yen  5,000,000. 
The  first  enterprise  of  the  new  company  was 
the  manufacture  of  raw  sugar  in  Formosa, 
where  a  factory  was  opened  at  Shoro  in 
DecemlxT,  1908,  with  a  capacity  of  750  tons 
of  cane  a  day.  The  Santaw  factory  (with 
a  capacity    of    1,000    tons)   was  established 


in  November,  1910.  The  demand  for  the 
company's  products  was  so  marked  that 
even  these  new  factories  were  not  sufficient 
for  the  needs  of  the  market  in  Japan  where 
the  industry  was  particularly  active,  and  so 
the  Meiji  Sugar  Company  added  the  Soya 
factory  at  Tainan  in  January,  1912,  with  an 
output  of  1,000  tons  a  day.  Simultaneously 
with  this  rapid  expansion  of  their  operations, 
the  directors  recognised  the  necessity  for 
sugar-refining  plants,  and  in  January,  1912, 
an  amalgamation  was  effected  with  the  Yoko- 
hama Sugar  Refining  Co.  The  capital  of 
the  new  organisation  was  increased  to  Yen 
10,000,000,  and  the  refining  of  raw  sugar 
was  begun  at  the  Kawasaki  Refinery, 
Kanagawa  Prefecture,  which  had  an  output 
of  200  tons  of  refined  sugar  a  day.  From 
the  inception  of  the  Meiji  Sugar  Manufactur- 
ing Company  the  directors  had  before  them 
a  steady  expansion  of  the  company's  opera- 
tions, in  keeping  with  the  development  of 
the  sugar  industrv'.  They  succeeded  in  July, 
1913,  in  amalgamating  the  Chuo  Sugar  Manu- 
facturing Co.,  at  Nan  to,  Formosa,  and  thus 
secured  the  Nanto  Factory  with  its  capacity 
for  750  tons  a  day.  At  the  same  time  the 
capital  was  increased  to  Yen  12,000,000.  A 
big  oversea  trade  was  developed  at  this  stage 
and  the  Kawasaki  Refinery  being  insufficient 
to  meet  demands,  the  company  established 
the  Tobata  Refinery  in  Fukuoka  Prefecture, 
in  July,  1916,  with  a  capacity  for  100  tons 
a  day.  Besides  the  factories  mentioned,  the 
Meiji  Sugar  Manufacturing  Company  entered 
upon  the  manufacture  of  by-products  and 
is  now  turning  out  at  Santaw  large  quantities 
of  alcohol  from  molasses.  The  Kawasaki 
Refinery  is  also  producing  cube  sugar  and 
candy,  and  is  being  prepared  for  the  manu- 
facture of  powdered  sugar.  The  present 
manufacturing  capacity  of  the  factories  is  as 
follows:  Raw  sugar,  3,500  tons  a  day; 
refined  sugar,  300  tons  a  day;  alcohol,  about 
280,000  gallons  per  annum.  The  company 
also  contemplates  extensions  in  other  direc- 
tions, mainly  in  the  manufacture  of  con- 
fectionery and  condensed  milk.  The  follow- 
ing is  the  present  Board  of  Directors  of  this 
company:  President,  Mr.  H.  Soma;  Man- 
aging Directors,  Messrs.  T.  Takagi  and  K. 
Arishima;  Directors,  Messrs.  Z.  Ogawa, 
Y.  Usui,  S.  Uemura,  Baron  M.  Takei,  Messrs. 
H.  Chiba  and  S.  Tanii;  Auditors,  Messrs.  N. 
Yamamoto,  Y.  Kawahara,  and  K.  Morimura. 
The  Tokyo  office  of  the  company  is  at  No.  1 
Yuraku-cho,  Kojimachi-ku,  Tokj'o. 

IMPERIAL  SUGAR  CO.,  LIMITED 

Although  established  a  little  more  than 

seven   years,   the   Teikoku   Seito   Kabushiki 

Kaisha,   or   Imperial  Sugar  Co.,   Ltd.,   now 

holds  a  position  of  first  importance  in  the 


894 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


T 


IMPERIAL    SUGAR    CO.,    LTD.:      THE    MILL    IN    FORMOSA  —  THE    REFINERY    AT    KOBE 


sugar  industry  of  Japan,  its  various  proper- 
ties and  interests  being  wide-spread  and  of 
considerable  value.  The  founders  of  the 
company  were  Messrs.  Kobei  Abe,  Hidezane 
Yamashita,  and  Shokuma  Matsukata.  At 
its  inception  on  October  30,  19 10,  the  com- 
pany had  a  capital  of  Yen  5,000,000,  but  the 
sum  has  since  been  raised  to  Yen  15,000,000. 
The  company  is  engaged  in  all  branches  of 
the  sugar  business,  which  includes  the  pro- 
duction of  raw  sugar,  and  the  processes  of 
refining,  and  the  treatment  of  by-products 
such  as  alcohol,  etc.  Furthermore,  the 
Imperial  Sugar  Co.,  Ltd.,  is  actively  asso- 
ciated with  the  transportation  business 
between  Japan  proper  and  Formosa,  and  by 
the  use  of  its  extensive  railways  in  Formosa, 
carries  on  a  large  traffic  with  freight  and 
passengers. 

The  Imperial  Sugar  Co.,  Ltd.,  has  five 
raw  sugar  mills  in  Formosa.  They  are 
situated  as  follows:  No.  I  and  2  factories 
at  Taichu;  No.  3  at  Tanshiken,  Taichu; 
No.  4  at  Suidensho,  Shinchiku,  and  No.  5 
at  Sankatutensho,  Shinchiku.  There  are 
alcohol  factories  at  Taichu   and   Suidensho, 


in  the  Shinchiku  District  of  Formosa,  and 
a  large  and  well  equipped  refinery  at  Higashi- 
Shirike  Village,  Hyogo,  Kob^.  The  output 
for  several  years  past  has  been  as  follows: 


Shinchiku  line  has  four  locomotives  and  216 
cars.  The  company  also  lias  10  passenger 
cars,  16  luggage  cars  (covered-in),  and  4 
uncovered    cars    for    the    transportation    of 


Year 

Raw  Sugar 

Refined  Sugar 

Alcohol 

191 1 

1 12,419.95  piculs 
205,517.00  piculs 
281,984.49  piculs 
610,734.13  piculs 
656,704.00  piculs 

1914 

191 5 
1916 
1917 

600,000  piculs 
600,000  piculs 

3,665  koku 
7,000  koku 

The  figures  for  19 17  arc  estimated  on  the 
basis  of  previous  years.  The  several  factories 
mentioned  above  have  a  productive  capacity 
of  2,500  tons  of  cane  a  day.  The  Imperial 
Sugar  Co.,  Ltd.,  owns  the  following  railways 
in  connection  with  its  properties  in  Formosa: 
37.4  miles  of  line  for  Taichu  Factory;  1 7. 1 
miles. for  the  Shinchiku  Factory,  and  i  mile 
23  chains  for  the  Tanshiken  Factory.  The 
rolling  stock  employed  in  connection  with 
the  Taichu  Factory  railway  comprises  9 
locomotives  and  570  freight  cars,  while  the 


passengers  and  general  merchandise,  luggage, 
etc.  Passenger  traffic  and  general  goods 
conveyance  for  the  public  is  handled  over  a 
distance  of  10.3  miles  of  line  between  Taichu 
and  Mantoroku,  and  there  is  also  a  service  by 
hand-push  railway  for  a  further  distance  of 
27.7  miles.  For  ocean  transport  the  Imperial 
Sugar  Co.,  Ltd.,  has  three  vessels,  one  of 
them  being  3,000  tons,  and  also  has  under 
construction  two  other  steamers  of  handy  size. 
Following  are  the  principal  officers  of 
this   enterprising    company:     Mr.    Shokuma 


PRESENT-DAY    IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


895 


A    PRIMITIVE    SPADE 


Matsukata,  President  and  Managing  Director; 
Mr.  Seisa  Makiyama,  Managing  Director, 
Messrs.  Konosuke  Abe,  Rinrjosuke  Yama- 
naka,  Seitaro  Yamaguchi,  Gunnosuke  Saku- 
rai,.  Tomio  Matsuoka,  and  Tahei  Mayekawa, 
Directors.     The  head  office  of  the  company 


is  at  No.  14  Taichu,  Formosa,  and  the  Tokyo 
branch  office  is  at  No.  i.  Ginza  Shichome, 
Kyobashi-ku,  Tokyo.  The  Imperial  Sugar 
Co.,  Ltd.,  has  had  a  prosperous  career,  and 
its  future  is  exceedingly  bright.  What  a 
substantial  concern  it  is  may  be  gathered  from 


Assets 


Yen 

Capital  unpaid 2,250,000.00 

Ground 968,263.38 

Buildings ,  ,  1,168,383.67 

Railways 1,502,769.17 

Ships 2,910,000.00 

Machinery 2,928,453.14 

Furniture  and  tools 75,523.24 

Cattle  in  use 6.937-75 

Works  not  yet  completed 75,752.72 

Goods  in  storage 576,171.38 

Deposit  with  bank ...  542,444.79 

Guarantee  money  for  contract .  .       15,337-95 

Money  deposited 28,535.00 

Securities 8,187.50 

Drafts  received 136,919.32 

Money  lent 443,704.85 

Fertilizers  lent 263,046.51 

Cost  of  ground  to  be  billed 386,954.64 

Money  temporarily  paid 223,677.72 

Money  not  yet  received 2,071.12 

Articles  shipped  out .  .  75,604.00 

At  other  stores 210,119.22 

Manufactured  articles ^57,o55-3i 

Semi-manufactured  articles 86,682.00 

Raw  material  for  refined  sugar.  .    610,791.19 
Agriculture    account    for    next 

fiscal  year 1,202,248.43 

Cash  on  hand 10,191.28 


Liabilities 


Yen 

Capital  paid .  .  7,500,000.00 

Legal  reserve .  .     270,000.00 

Special  reserve 450,000.00 

Employees'  pension  fund 53,500.00 

Reserve  for  stafT 56,676.53 

Guarantee  money  deposited.  .  .  ._      2,905.70 

Drafts  payable 6,315,362.80 

Loans 700,000.00 

Money  temporarily  received.  .  .  .       57,014.71 

Dividends  unpaid 1,357.60 

Moneys  unpaid .     231,154.82 

Taxes  unpaid 157,025.68 

Tokyo  despatch-office 142,189.13 

Brought  from  last  period 396,113.06 

Profit  during  this  period 1,413,278.25 

a  study  of  the  accompanying  balance  sheet, 
for  the  six  months  ended  September  30,  1917. 
The  company's  profit  referred  to  above 
was  distributed  as  follows:  To  legal  reserve. 
Yen  70,000;  to  special  reser\'e,  Yen  100,000; 
to  employees'  pension  fund,  Yen  15,000; 
to  property  repayment  fund.  Yen  200,000; 
bonus,  Yen  100,000;  to  dividend.  Yen  315,000 
(12  per  annum);  to  special  dividend.  Yen 
472,500  (18  per  annum);  carried  forward, 
Yen    437,891.31;    total.    Yen    1,710,391.31. 


THE  SUGAR  MANUFACTURING  CO.  OF 
JAPAN,  LTD.  (dAI  NIPPON  SEITO 
KABUSHIKI    KAISHa) 

The  company  was  brought  into  existence 
more  than  twenty-two  years  ago  (January, 
1896),  under  the  name  of  the  Nippon  Seisito 
Kabushiki  Kaisha,  Ltd.  (Nippon  Refined 
Sugar  Co.,  Ltd.),  with  the  modest  capitalisa- 
tion of  300,000  yen.  This  capital,  following 
the  gradual  extension  of  business,  had  soon 
to  be  greatly  increased,  and  in  November, 
1906,  when  the  company  was  amalgamated 
with  the  Nippon  Seito  Kabushiki  Kaisha  in 
Osaka,  it  commanded  a  capital  of  12,000,000 
yen.  The  companj'  then  assumed  its  present 
title.  In  August  of  the  following  year,  the 
Dairi  Sugar  Refinery  was  purchased  by  the 
company,  an  accession  to  its  properties  that 
gave  it  the  premier  position  in  the  trade  and 
securely  laid  the  foundation  of  the  sugar 
refinery  industry  in  Japan. 

In  1908  a  raw  sugar  mill  was  established 
in  Gokenseki,  Kagi  Prefecture,  Formosa,  to 
which  was  added  a  second  mill  in  1911,  this 
being  part  of  a  plan  to  secure  independence 
in  the  source  of  supply  of  raw  material. 

When  No.  I  and  No.  1 1  refineries,  both  in 
Tokyo,  and  those  in  Osaka  and  at  Dairi  are 
combined,  the  company  has  a  daily  manu- 
facturing capacity  of  over  850  tons  (estimat- 
ing day  and  night  shifts  of  twenty-four 
hours),  in  addition  to  which  provision  is 
made  for  the  manufactiu-e  of  rock  candies 
and  alcohol  in  Tokyo  and  cube  sugar  in 
Osaka.  There  are  two  raw  sugar  mills  in 
Formosa,  which  turn  out  2,200  tons  of  raw- 
sugar  per  twenty-four  hours.  The  districts 
supplying  raw  materials  actually  cover  an 
area   of   over   60,000  ko    (i  ko   equals  about 


FLIGHT    OF    STONE    STEPS    AT    MAYASAN 


nl' 


f 


ft    ' 


^^ 


% 


s 


i 


^ 


-^mmw^msi- 


i 
i 


■■C  - 
Zr 


■'i- 


1 


^ShV!^  /' 


^rf 


THE    SUGAR    MANIFACTIRING    CO.    OF   JAPAN,    LTD.,    DAIRI    REFINERY:      VIEW    SHOWING    TRANSPORTATION    FACILITIES 
BY    LAND    AND    SEA,    THE    REAR    OF    THE    WORKS    AT    DAIRI    (mOJI)- — FRONT    VIEW    OF    THE    SAME    WORKS 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


897 


(Upper  Row,  Left  to  Right)  Mr.  H.  Soma,  President,  Meiji  Seito  Kabushiki  Kaisha  —  Mr.  Shiro  Fujita,  Chairman  Board  of  Directors, 
Taiwan  Seito  Kabushiki  Kaisha  —  Mr.  S.  Matsuk.\ta,  President,  Imperial  Sugar  Co.,  Ltd.  (Lower  Row,  Left  to  Right)  Mr.  Teijiro 
Yamamoto,  Senior  Managing  Director,  Taiwan  Seito  Kabushiki  Kaisha  —  Mr.  Tadamichi  Takechi,  Managing  Director,  Taiwan  Seito 
Kabushiki  Kaisha  —  Mr.  Taro  Masuda,  Managing  Director,  Taiwan  Seito  Kabushiki  Kaisha 


three  acres),  of  which  2,000  ko  are  sugar 
cane  plantations  in  the  possession  of  the 
company.  More  than  one  hundred  and 
eleven  miles  of  railways  have  been  con- 
structed in  these  districts  for  the  exclusive 
use  of  the  company;  indeed,  in  the  vastness  of 
its  undertakings  and  the  completeness  of  its 
various  plants  and  business  organisation,  the 
company  ranks  amongst  the  most  important 
in  the  East.  Owing  to  the  superiority  of 
quality,  and  to  the  care  bestowed  upon 
packing,  weighing,  etc.,  the  products  of  the 
company  have  secured  a  wide  market  both 
at  home  and  abroad. 

The  present  capital  of  the  company  stands 
at  Yen  18,000,000.  The  following  gentlemen 
form  the  Board  of  Directors:  Raita  Fuji- 
yama, Esq.,  President  (also  President  of  the 
Tokyo  Chamber  of  Commerce);  Managing 
Directors,  Messrs.  Nagayuki  Takayawa  and 
Yoshitatsu  Izawa;  Directors,  Messrs.  Seizo 
Xakamura,  Shaku  Hoshino,  and  Yoshiaki 
Haniamoto;  Auditors,  Messrs.  Yoshio  Sasu- 
da  and  Naoyoshi  Ounabara. 


THE  SUGAR  MANUFACTURING  CO.  OF 
JAPAN,  DAIRI  REFINERY  (dAI  NIPPON 
SEITO  KABUSHIKI  KAISHA,  DAIRI  KOJO) 

The  Dairi  refinery  referred  to  in  the  pre- 
ceding notice  is  one  of  the  most  important 
installations  of  the  kind  in  Japan.  A  few 
details  about  it  will  therefore  be  of  interest. 

The  refinery  covers  the  unusually  large 
area  of  35,000  tsuho  and  is  located  on  the 
shores  of  the  Inland  Sea  within  about  ten 
minutes' electric  car  ride  of  the  port  of  Moji. 
The  buildings  will  be  seen  from  the  accom- 
panying illustrations  to  be  of  a  most  imposing 
description,  and  include,  besides  the  main 
works,  twenty-five  godowns  ranged  along 
the  shore  to  facilitate  shipments.  .  Water 
is  supplied  for  the  use  of  the  refineiy  from  a 
private  reservoir  which  has  a  superficies  of 
.5,870  tsubo. 

With  regard  to  the  installations,  it  is 
interesting  to  note  that  the  major  portion 
of  the  machines  bear  the  name  plates  of  well 
known  European  and  American  engineers. 
Power     is     derived     from      two     powerful 


steam  engines  supplied  by  Harvie  &  Co., 
with  Bab'cock  &  Wilcox  boilers,  two  General 
Electric  Company  dynamos,  and  four  electric 
motors. 

The  raw  material  is  imported  from  Java, 
Manila,  and  Cuba,  and  the  product  in  refined 
sugar  is  exported  to  China,  the  South  Sea 
islands,  India,  and  Russia,  through  the 
medium  of  the  following  well  known  firms, 
the  specially  appointed  agents  of  the  com- 
pany: Mitsui  Bussan  Kaisha,  Suzuki  Shoten, 
Yuasa  Shoten,  Fukuwaya  Co.,  Okura  Gumi, 
and  Abe  Shoten. 

The  refinery,  which  gives  employment  to 
250  labourers  and  50  clerks,  has  a  daily 
capacity  of  350  tons.  The  annual  production 
at  present  amounts  to  1,274,000  piculs, 
valued  at  Yen  17,090,400,  of  which  China 
consumes  the  greater  part,  the  company 
having  paid  special  attention  to  the  require- 
ments of  that  market. 

The  General  Manager  of  the  refinery  is 
Mr.  Konosuke  Akiyama,  who  has  been  with 
the  company  for  a  number  of  years. 


JAPAN'S  COLONIAL  EMPIRE 


LIII.    Karafuto  (Japanese  Saghalien) 

History  — Area,  Physical  Features,  and  Population  — Commerce  and  Industry- 
Communications— Administration  AND  Finance 


Karafuto,  japan's  northernmost 
colony,  forms  the  southern  half  of 
-  the  island  of  Saghalien  below  the 
fiftieth  degree  of  latitude.  When  this  por- 
tion of  the  island  was  ceded  to  Japan  by 
Russia  at  the  Portsmouth  Peace  Conference 
in  1905,  Japan,  it  is  said,  desired  the  inter- 
national boundary  to  be  placed  along  the 
fiftieth  parallel  of  latitude  because  the 
cherry  does  not  bloom  north  of  that  limit. 
The  name  Karafulo  means  "land  at  the 
extremity  of  China,"  and  signifies  that  when 
first  known  to  the  Japanese  they  supposed 
it  to  be  part  of  the  Chinese  mainland. 

HISTORY 
The  history  of  Saghalien  is  too  remote  for 
present  investigation,  but  there  is  frequent 
mention  of  it  in  Chinese  and  Japanese  docu- 
ments of  the  seventeenth  century.  As  early 
as  1 65 1  a  Japanese  expedition  touched  at  the 
island  and  made  a  map  of  the  southern 
portion.  A  second  expedition  under  a 
samurai  named  Wada  visited  the  island  in 
1764,  and  another  one  under  Niida,  in  1785, 
which  indicates  the  interest  then  taken  in 
the  place  by  the  Japanese.  As  already 
mentioned,  the  fact  that  from  the  beginning 
the  Japanese  called  it  Karafuto  shows  that 


they  mistook  it  for  a  peninsula  jutting  from 
the  Chinese  littoral,  an  idea  that  even  in 
Europe  prevailed  down  to  the  eighteenth 
century,  when  La  Perouse  determined  its 
insular  character,  having  circumnavigated 
the  island  in  1787.  Although  the  Japanese 
supposed  it  to  belong  to  China  they  always 
regarded  it  as  rightly  a  part  of  their  own 
Empire,  the  ancient  policy  of  the  country 
being  to  gain  control  of  all  frontiers.  Con- 
sequently, expeditions  were  constantly  des- 
patched to  the  island  by  the  Japanese  author- 
ities with  the  hope  of  supplanting  China. 
Under  the  auspices  of  the  Tokugawa  sho- 
gunate  a  party  was  organised  for  the  explora- 
tion of  Saghalien  in  1785,  led  by  a  gentleman 
-named  Matsudaira,  a  dignitary  of  Yedo, 
and  this  expedition  was  followed  by  another 
in  1789  and  by  still  others  in  1801  and  1808. 
By  this  time,  however,  the  Russians  had 
come  upon  the  scene,  with  consequent 
liitter  rivalry  between  the  two  races. 

From  1807  onward  Russia  began  to  estab- 
lish a  penal  colony  on  the  island,  and  in 
1853  she  built  Fort  Dui  for  the  protection  of 
her  fur  hunters  there.  This  aroused  the 
Japanese  to  action,  and  in  1855  the  Yedo 
government  decided  to  take  direct  control 
of  Saghalien.     In   1868   Kanosuk^  Okamoto 


was  appointed  governor  of  the  island,  and 
he  went  over  to  the  town  of  Odomari  and 
opened  an  office  there  for  the  administration 
of  the  territory.  Subsequently,  however,  it 
was  decided  to  administer  the  affairs  of 
the  island  from  the  Government  Office 
in  Hokkaido.  The  Japanese  settlements  in 
Karafuto  at  this  time  were  chiefly  engaged 
in  exploiting  the  fisheries  and  to  some  extent 
the  agriculture  of  the  place,  with  steady 
increase  of  settlement  and  occupation  towards 
the  south.  As  large  deposits  of  coal  were 
discovered  in  the  interior  of  the  island,  the 
interest  of  both  countries  increased  to  appre- 
hension, and  Russia  began  to  oppose  the 
Japanese  settlements,  with  constant  quarrels 
between  the  rival  races.  This  was  intolerable 
to  Japan,  and  so  in  1863  the  Japanese  em- 
bassy sent  to  Europe  was  charged  with  a 
mission  to  Russia  to  negotiate  concerning 
the  boundary  question  in  Saghalien.  Russia 
was  wilHng  to  allow  Japan's  occupation  of 
the  southern  part  of  the  island  provided  the 
boundary  was  delimited  to  the  forty-eighth 
degree  of  latitude,  but  Japan  insisted  on 
the  fiftieth  being  named.  It  was  agreed  to 
leave  the  adjustment  of  the  question  to  a 
further  conference  the  following  year,  but 
the  outbreak  of  civil  war  in  Japan  prevented 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


899 


the  shogun  fulfilling  the  agreement.  Vice- 
AdmiralEnomotowas  despatched  on  a  special 
mission  to  Russia  in  1874  to  settle  the  bound- 
ary question  respecting  Saghalien,  but  his 
efforts  were  in  vain.  In  1875  Russia  suddenly 
assumed  possession  of  the  whole  i.sland,  offer- 
ing Japan  the  Kuriles  in  return  for  her  interest. 
Japan  was  not  at  that  time  prepared  to  resist 
the  projjosal,  as  she  had  no  navy  worth 
speaking  of.  Thus  the  question  was  allowed 
to  stand  until  the  war  with  Russia,  in  1904, 
when  Japan  again  occupied  Saghalien  and 
finally  succeeded  in  retaining  the  southern 
portion,  extending  some  295  miles  north, 
according  to  the  terms  of  the  treaty  of 
Portsmouth.  The  work  of  delimiting  the 
international  boundary  was  completed  in 
1907  by  delegates  representing  Japan  and 
Russia. 

AREA,   PHYSICAL  FEATURES,    AND 
POPULATION 

A  LONG  narrow  island  bordering  the 
eastern  shores  of  the  Russian  littoral,  Sagha- 
lien is  some  630  miles  in  length  from  north 
to  south,  its  least  width  being  17  miles  and 
its  greatest  93  miles.  The  total  area  of  the 
island  is  about  29,100  square  miles,  with  some 
99  villages  and  4,715  settlements.  The 
Japanese  pcrtion  of  the  island,  however, 
comprises  only  13,254  square  miles  of  area, 
the  territory  lying  between  141°  51'  and  144° 
55'  East  Longitude;  and  extending  45°  54' 
to  50°  o'  North  Latitude.  The  eastern  coast 
is  washed, by  the  Sea  of  Okhotsk,  and  the 
western  coast  faces  Siberia,  from  which  it  is 
separated  by  a  narrow  strait.  The  southern 
extremity  of  the  island  forks  into  two  arms 
embracing  the  Bay  of  Aniwa,  the  points  being 
separated  from  Hokkaido  by  the  Soya 
Strait,  46  miles  across. 

The  portion  of  the  island  occupied  by 
Japan  is  comparatively  level.  Two  ranges 
of  mountains  extend  north  and  south,  but 
the  greatest  elevation,  near  the  northern 
international  boundary,  does  not  exceed 
4,000  feet  above  sea  level.  Between  the 
two  ranges  lies  a  low  plain,  through  which 
slowly  flow  the  rivers  Horonai,  Naibuchi, 
Suzuya,  and  Rutaka.  Karafuto  is  popularly 
supposed  to  be  a  land  of  snow  and  ice,  but 
this  is  by  no  means  the  case,  even  in  winter, 
for  the  climate  is  not  uniform  owing  to  geo- 
graphical position  and  ocean  currents.  The 
average  annual  temperature  is  about  38°  F. 
at  Mauka,  and  29°  F.  at  Shikita.  The 
minimum  in  January  falls  to  40°  F.  below 
zero,  while  the  maximum  rises  to  91°  F.  in 
August.  The  flora  and  fauna  of  the  island 
are  remarkably  rich.  The  central  zone  of 
the  mountain  slopes  is  covered  with  a  fine 
growth  of  coniferous  timber,  while  the  still 
more  elevated  regions  are  clothed  in  season 


with  .splendid  Alpine  flora.  The  most  im- 
portant trees  are  pine,  larch,  and  birch  but 
lliere  are  many  others.  According  to  the 
official  survey  completed  in  1910,  the  forest 
area  covers  nearly  8,000,000  acres,  of  which 
some  5,000,000  acres  arc  given  to  coniferous 
trees,  rich  in  excellent  timber  and  material 
for  wood  pulp.  Of  the  mineral  resources  of 
Karafuto  the  most  important  is  coal,  found 
in  abundance  in  a  series  of  seams  from  two 
to  five  feet  thick  generally  but  in  some  places 
reaching  a  thickness  of  fifty  feet.  The  coal 
is  of  excellent  quality,  like  the  Hokkaido 
coal,  with  very  little  sulphur  and  yielding 
60  per  cent  coke,  as  well  as  giving  very  little 
ash.  Alluvial  gold  has  also  been  discovered 
in  promising  quantities  along  the  river  beds, 
especially  in  those  descending  from  the  high- 
lands of  Tohoku  and  Shiretoko.  Iron  pyrites 
is  found  in  large  quantities  in  the  Notoro 
Peninsula,  while  oil  wells  have  been  found 
in  the  neighbourhood  of  Tokombo  and  Arakoi, 
on  the  western  coast,  as  well  as  at  Aushi 
and  Notasamu,  where  the  petroleum  de- 
posits cover  an  extensive  area.  Prospecting 
for  gold,  silver,  and  copper  ores  is  being 
steadily  carried  on  by  influential  firms 
engaged  in  the  mining  industry,  and  there 
is  every  reason  to  expect  important  develop- 
ments in  this  direction.  The  principal  coal 
regions  are  around  Horonai,  Seitonai,  Nai- 
buchi, Tomariori,  Fusetaki,  Notoro,  and 
Shiretoko,  some  mines  covering  an  area  of 
sixty  miles.  Amber  has  been  found  along 
the  east  coast.  The  fisheries  have  so  far 
been  looked  upon  as  the  greatest  resources 
of  Japan's  most  northerly  colony,  as  they 
have  been  more  exploited  and  the  financial 
returns  have  been  more  direct,  but  the 
mineral  and  agricultural  resources  of  the 
island  are  equally  great  if  properly  developed, 
to  say  nothing  of  the  forest  resources  which 
seem  almost  inexhaustible. 

The  development  of  agriculture  depends 
chiefly  on  population.  The  population  of 
Karafuto  as  yet  is  not  large,  being  no  more 
than  51,730  in  all.  During  a  busy  fishing 
season  it  rises  to  a  much  higher  number, 
declining  to  the  normal  again  after  the 
summer  is  over.  Of  the  total  population, 
some  3,000  are  Gilyaks,  with  800  Orotshones, 
2,200  Ainu,  and  100  Tunguses.  With  the 
increase  of  colonisation  the  aborigines  are 
gradually  dwindling,  chiefly  on  account  of 
inebriety,  some  villages  having  literally  drunk 
themselves  to  death.  The  rest  of  the  popu- 
lation is  made  up  of  Japanese,  Koreans, 
Chinese,  and  Russians,  the  Japanese  largely 
predominating,  with  a  total  of  over  44,000. 
The  large  number  of  Russians  who  formerly 
inhabited  the  southern  part  of  the  island, 
removed  after  its  cession  to  Japan,  only  those 
too  poor  to  remove  remaining.     The  Japa- 


nese government  has  been  using  every 
inducement  to  promote  a  rapid  colonisation 
of  the  island,  but  the  process  is  still  very 
slow.  Owing  to  the  natural  dread  of  cold 
which  every  Japanese  has,  immigration  is 
small.  Before  Russia  assumed  possession  of 
the  whole  island  in  1875,  the  Japanese  colony 
in  the  south  numbered  some  480  persons, 
most  of  whom  departed  with  the  Russian 
occupation.  Russia  turned  the  island  into 
a  penal  settlement,  allowing  the  convicts  to 
take  up  land  and  intermarry,  and  by  this 
means  a  considerable  portion  of  the  arable 
land  was  brought  under  cultivation.  The 
convicts  usually  tried  to  escape  to  Siberia 
with  every  opportunity,  and  consequently 
the  settlements  did  not  steadily  increase. 
On  the  island  being  restored  to  Japan,  the 
Imperial  Government  made  careful  investi- 
gation as  to  the  best  means  of  promoting 
colonisation,  and  a  definite  system  of  encour- 
agement was  adopted,  especially  with  a  view 
to  development  of  agriculture.  Extensive 
areas  of  land  were  opened  up  for  settlement 
at  low  rent  and  under  official  encouragement 
and  protection.  Yet  the  numlier  of  families 
induced  to  migrate  to  the  colony  has  not 
been  more  than  six  or  seven  hundred  annually 
since  1906,  or  about  17,000  in  all,  cultivating 
about  12,000  acres  out  of  nearly  a  million 
available.  Considerable  numbers  of  these, 
however,  engage  in  fishing  and  trade.  There 
is  no  reason  why  the  island  should  not  become 
a  great  agricultural  country  if  properly 
settled.  Barley,  rye,  wheat,  oats  and  other 
northern  cereals  grow  well,  to  say  nothing-of 
all  kinds  of  vegetables,  while  experiments  in 
fruit-growing  have  been  very  satisfactory. 
The  country  abounds  in  wild  berries  and  other 
fruits  of  various  kinds,  including  nuts. 
Moreover,  the  possibilities  of  stock-farming 
are  infinite.  The  total  output  of  grains  and 
vegetables  so  far,  however,  does  not  amount 
in  value  to  more  than  500,000  yen  a  year. 

COMIIERCE  AND  INDUSTRY 
Although  the  commerce  and  industry  of 
Karafuto  are  still  in  a  nascent  state  the 
possibilities  of  development  are  great.  The 
experimental  stations  and  other  organisations 
established  by  the  Government  for  the  pro- 
motion of  industry  and  the  general  develop- 
ment of  the  rich  natural  resources  of  the 
island,  together  with  a  steady  improvement 
in  communications,  are  doing  much  for  the 
extension  of  industry  and  trade.  During  the 
winter  season,  when  communication  with 
the  rest  of  the  Empire  is  interrupted  for 
three  months,  trade  is  necessarily  inactive 
and  business  generally  dull.  But  the  volume 
of  trade  multiplies  in  proportion  to  the 
progress  of  colonisation  and  the  development 
of     industry.     Imports     now     total     about 


goo 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


5,000,000  yen  a  year  in  value,  and  exports 
some  4,000,000.  Imports  consist  mainly  of 
rice,  salt,  tobacco,  matting,  oats,  kerosene, 
bean  paste,  and  sake,  while  the  principal 
exports  are  herring,  timber,  fish  guano, 
canned  crab  and  sardines,  and  dried  cod. 
After  the  opening  of  navigation  in  April 
and  May  comes  the  busiest  trade  season, 
and  preparation  for  winter  leads  to  a  further 
revival  of  trade  in  the  months  of  September 
and  October. 

The  fisheries  are  still  by  far  the  most 
important  industries  of  the  island.  Special 
licenses  for  seine  fishing  are  issued  for  exclu- 
sive grounds  to  those  agreeing  to  carry  on 
the  industry  for  a  certain  number  of  years, 
while  other  licenses  are  allotted  by  tender. 
Special  license  grounds  number  40  on  the 
east  coast  and  14  on  the  west  coast,  and  those 
open  to  bidders  number  870  on  the  east  and 
433  on  the  west.  For  the  protection  of 
breeding  certain  waters  are  closed  to  fishing. 
The  principal  varieties  of  fish  are  herring, 
cod,  salmon,  sardine,  trout,  and  flat  fish. 
Next  in  importance  to  the  herring  fisheries 
come  those  of  trout  and  salmon,  the  means 
adopted  being  for  the  most  part  stationary 
nets.  Hitherto  most  of  the  herring  catch 
was  made  into  fertilizer,  but  recently  the 
Government  has  introduced  the  salted- 
herring  industry.  A  Government  experi- 
mental .fishery  station  has  been  estabUshed 
on  the  western  coast,  where  everjrthing  in 
relation  to  the  industry  can  be  learned.  The 
rapid  development  of  the  tinned  crab  indus- 
try in  recent  years  is  especially  significant. 
Whales  abound  along  the  coasts  of  the  island 
and  the  industry  is  also  undergoing  steady 
development,  the  catch  being  about  sixty 
annually.  Ten  miles  off  the  coast  lies  the 
famous  Seal  Island,  where  vast  herds  of  fur 
seals  breed.  A  Government  agent  always 
remains  on  the  island  for  the  protection  of 
the  seals,  which  at  present  must  not  be 
exploited. 

Industries  in  forest  products  are  also  mak- 
ing rapid  development.  Four  big  saw  mills 
with  Western  machinery  are  turning  out 
great  quantities  of  all  kinds  of  lumber,  but 
the  development  as  yet  does  not  at  all 
approach  the  possibilities.  A  Government 
factory  was  opened  in  191 1  for  utilising  the 
broad-leaved  trees,  and  now  produces  char- 
coal, calcium  acetate,  wood  tar,  and  methyl 
by  the  Mayer  distillation  machines,  the 
white  birch  being  the  chief  material.  Great 
pulp  mills  have  also  been  erected  and  are 
meeting  the  immense  demand  created  for 
this  material  by  the  European  war.  The 
Mitsui  Bussan  Kaisha's  plant,  erected  at  a 
cost  of  more  than  1,000,000  yen,  turns  out 
20,000,000  pounds  of  pulp  a  year.  The 
Okawa  pulp  mill  expects  to  produce  an  equal 


annual  turnout.  Resources  in  turpentine  oil 
and  resin  are  also  immense.  Forest  re- 
sources in  furs  are  large,  the  principal  animals 
being  sable,  otter,  fox,  bear,  reindeer,  musk 
deer,  squirrel,  sea  lion,  seal,  and  rabbit. 
Some  5,000  skins  are  taken  annually,  amount- 
ing in  value  to  about  50,000  yen. 

COMMUNICATIONS 

The  first  railways  constructed  in  Karafuto 
were  temporary  light  tracks  for  military 
]iurposes,  running  twenty-six  miles  between 
Otomari  and  Toyohara  and  built  in  1906. 
With  the  abolition  of  military  government 
in  1907,  this  line  was  thrown  open  to  general 
traffic,  and  subsequently  branches  were 
built.  The  increasing  traffic,  as  well  as  the 
importance  of  having  a  regular  railway, 
caused  the  authorities  to  reconstruct  the 
line  in  1910,  making  the  gauge  3  feet  6  inches, 
the  same  as  the  railways  in  Japan  proper. 
Karafuto  now  has  a  Une  of  57  miles  and  58 
chains  running  between  the  two  most  impor- 
tant towns  of  the  colony  and  touching  some 
of  the  more  important  settlements  and  mines. 
The  rolling  stock  comprises  6  modem  loco- 
motives, 70  cars  with  a  capacity  of  48,600 
tons,  together  with  18  passenger  coaches 
capable  of  carrying  484  persons. 

In  shipping,  Karafuto  has  a  coasting  service 
as  well  as  a  regular  line  between  the  colony 
and  Japan  proper.  One  line  of  coasting 
steamers  serves  the  east  shore  and  another 
the  west  shore,  both  lines  being  owned  by 
one  company,  which  receives  an  annual 
subsidy  from  the  Government.  The  steam- 
ers used  are  not  above  150  tons.  The  line 
nmning  to  Japan  also  receives  a  subsidy 
from  the  Government.  They  belong  to  the 
Nippon  Yusen  Kaisha  and  maintain  a  regular 
service  between  the  island  and  Japan.  There 
are  numerous  other  steamers  plying  between 
Japan  and  the  island  ports,  carrying  freight 
and  especially  coal  and  timber.  The  annual 
number  of  ships  entering  the  ports  of  Kara- 
futo is  over  2,000,  representing  a  total 
tonnage  of  over   1,000,000. 

When  Japan  took  over  the  island  there 
was  but  one  road,  which  connected  Otomari 
and  Toyohara,  but  the  Government  has 
opened  up  several  important  new  roads 
since,  the  one  between  Toyohara  and  Mauka 
over  the  western  mountain  range  making 
communication  by  sledge  possible  even  in 
winter  Minor  roads  leading  to  important 
towns  and  \'illages  have  also  been  opened, 
with  numerous  bridges  where  formerly  there 
were  none.  Toyohara,  called  Vladimirovska 
under  the  Russian  regime,  is  the  capital, 
with  a  population  of  about  8,000,  and  situ- 
ated on  the  Suyuza  plain  about  twenty-five 
miles  north  of  Otomari,  surrounded  by  some 
of  the  most  promising  districts  for  colonisa- 


tion. At  this  town  are  the  principal  offices 
of  the  Karafuto  Administration,  and  roads 
branch  off  to  all  the  more  important  surround- 
ing districts  and  villages.  Here  also  are  the 
headquarters  of  the  Karafuto  garrison,  the 
local  courts,  hospital,  and  post  office,  as 
well  as  the  prison.  Mauka  on  the  west 
coast  has  been  an  important  fishing  station 
ever  since  the  Russian  occupation.  There 
are  other  rising  towns  in  the  vicinity,  especial- 
ly Kitanoyoshi  and  Shikiki.  Otomari  is  the 
most  important  town  in  the  south.  None 
of  the  towns  have  very  good  harbours  but 
safe  anchorage  is  possible. 

Post  and  telegraph  offices  have  been 
established  at  all  the  important  towns  and 
villages,  and  extensions  are  steadily  going 
on.  The  first  postal  service  was  that  of  the 
military  field  system,  the  ordinary  mail 
service  being  opened  in  1906.  Telegraph 
service  is  available  at  all  post  offices,  as  in 
Japan  proper.  Telephones  have  been  intro- 
duced into  the  principal  towns  only,  some 
289  already  being  installed,  with  numerous 
unfulfilled  applications  for  more.  There  are 
thirty-four  post  and  telegraph  offices  in  all, 
and  cable  communication  with  Japan  and 
Russia. 

.\DMINISTRATION  AND  FINANCE 
When  Japan  forcibly  assumed  occupation 
of  Saghalien  in  1905  the  administration  was 
established  on  a  militarj'  basis  with  the  head 
office  at  Otomari,  then  called  Karsakov. 
The  only  purpose  of  the  administration  at 
that  time  was  to  secure  protection  for  the 
troops  and  peace  and  order  among  the 
inhabitants.  General  Nambu,  as  chief  in 
command  of  the  army  of  occupation,  was 
appointed  Military  Governor,  and  assumed 
the  responsibilities  of  civil  administration 
until  a  regular  civil  Administration  Office 
was  opened  in  April,  1907.  The  Governor 
of  Karafuto  acts  under  the  Minister  of  Home 
Affairs  in  Tokyo,  and  has  under  supervision 
the  posts,  telegraphs,  customs,  banking,  and 
judiciary  of  the  colony.  He  has  under  him  a 
large  staff  of  minor  officials  to  look  after  the 
various  departments  of  his  administration. 
In  addition  to  the  head  office  of  the  Adminis- 
tration there  are  branch  offices  at  Otomari 
and  Mauka,  each  with  its  chief  and  a  staff 
of  assistants.  Courts  have  been  established 
for  the  enforcement  of  the  laws  of  the  Empire, 
special  deference  being  made  to  certain  local 
customs  as  far  as  seems  desirable. 

The  expenses  of  the  military  adminis- 
tration of  Karafuto  were  defrayed  from  the 
special  account  for  extraordinary  military- 
outlay,  and  from  a  local  fund  comprising 
sundry  receipts  under  the  military  occupa- 
tion. With  the  establishment  of  a  regular 
civil    administration    in    1906    revenue    and 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


901 


expenditure  were  brought  under  llie  juris- 
dietion  of  the  Department  of  Home  Affairs. 
To  enhance  tlie  defieient  re\-enue  of  the 
colony  a  fixed  grant  was  made  annually 
from  the  National  Treasury,  supplemented 
liy  taxes  and  imposts,  the  taxes  being  chiefly 
I )!!  houses  and  business  and  in  no  case  heavy. 
Tlr.'  accompanying  table  represents  the 
riA-enue  and  expenditure  of  the  colony  for 
the  year    1917. 

Schools  have  been  established  to  the 
number  of  99,  of  which  4  are  public  and  the 
rest  private,  with  some  8,000  pupils  in 
attendance. 


Revenue 

Ordinary-:  Yen 

Taxes 193,098 

Public  undertakings,  etc 793.5<'5 

Licenses  and  fees 562,903 

Stamp  receipts 62,510 

Miscellaneous  receipts I4i694 

Extraordinary: 

Sales  of  State  property 1 79,696 

National  Treasury  Grant 293,575 

Surplus  of  preceding  year 1 13,415 

Miscellaneous  receipts 5,163 

Total 2,218,559 


E.XPENDITURE 

Ordinary :  Yen 

Administration  of  Karafuto 1,187,642 

Reserve  fund 30,000 

Other  expenses 8,000 


Extraordinary: 

Expenses  of  State  management .  .  73,220 

Building  and  engineering 310,544 

Colonisation 409, 1 53 

Special  undertakings 200,000 

Total 2,218,559 


58 


A    DRINKING    BOUT    IN    AN    AINV    VILLAGE 

LIV.    The  Ainu 


By   the   Venerable   Archdeacon  JOHN   BATCHELOR 


THE  race  of  people  now  to  be  found 
only  in  Hokkaido  and  Saghalien 
and  which  knows  itself  by  the  de- 
signation Ainu,  is  not  so  well  known  among 
the  nations  of  the  earth  as  many  other 
families  of  men.  This  is  by  no  means  be- 
cause nothing  has  been  written  about  them, 
for,  indeed,  hundreds  of  books  and  pamphlets 
.dealing  with  them  are  in  existence.  The 
vast  majority  of  these,  however,  are  in  the 
Japanese  language  and  therefore  sealed  to 
the  general  European  and  American  reader, 
while  others  are  in  Russian  and  some  in 
French,  English,  and  German.  Chamber- 
Iain,  in  the  first  volume  of  the  "  Memoirs 
of  the  Imperial  University  of  Japan,"  gives 
a  list  of  465  such  publications,  while,  since 
that  volume  was  published  in  the  year  1887, 
many  other  works  have  appeared.  If,  there- 
fore, little  is  generally  known  of  this  interest- 
ing and  now  fast  disappearing  people,  "the 
reason  must  be  sought,"  as  Chamberlain  so 
well  puts  it,  "in  the  remoteness  of  the  sub- 
ject from  topics  of  general  interest,"  rather 
than  elsewhere. 

I  have  by  me  an  extraordinary  book 
written  by  Mr.  A.  H.  Savage  Landor  entitled 
"Alone  with  the  Hairy  .Ainu,"  and  published 


in  1893.  I  was  away  in  England  for  a  rest 
when  Mr.  Landor  came  to  be  a/one  with  his 
"hairy"  ones,  and  so  missed  the  honour  of 
meeting  him.  He  occupied  my  little  room, 
nine  feet  by  six,  built  in  the  northeast  corner 
of  Chief  Penri's  hut,  while  he  was  at  Piratori, 
and  Penri  and  others  had  a  good  deal  to  tell 
me  about  him  when  I  returned  the  following 
year.  After  a  very  long  experience  among 
this  people  I  feel  bound  to  remark  that  I  have 
never  seen  a  more  imaginative  and  distorted 
account  of  this  race  than  is  recorded  in  that 
book.  I  read  and  translated  parts  of  it  to 
the  Ainu  themselves  and  showed  them  their 
pictures.  After  hearing  and  seeing,  the  old 
men  gravely  remarked,  "Whatever  Ainu  can 
he  be  describing?  His  Ainu  evidently  do  not 
belong  to  Yezo!"  They  were  greatly  inter- 
ested and  roared  with  laughter  at  the  splendid 
caricatures  in  the  book.  On  account  of  Mr. 
Landor's  undoubtedly  great  artistic  gifts 
Penri  spoke  of  him  as  the  "Demon"  (Nitne 
Kumiii),  but  whether  by  way  of  compliment 
or  in  disapprobation  I  was  unable  to  discover. 
Chief  Penri  died  in  19 10  at  the  age  of  eighty- 
five  years.  The  accompanying  portrait  of 
him  was  made  thirty-five  years  ago.  He 
dressed  in  Japanese  clothing  for  the  occasion. 


When  he  died,  being  the  old  man  of  the  family, 
his  house  was  duly  burnt  down  according 
to  Ainu  superstition  and    custom,    and   my 


THE    VENERAULE    AKCHDH.\CON    JOHN 

li.MX  IIHLOK,     AKTER    FORTY    YEARS    AMONG 

THE    AINU 


P  R  K  S  V.  N  T  -  1)  A  Y        IMPRESSIONS        O  !•        JAPAN 


903 


CHIEF    I'ENRl 

own  room  also  went  up  in  smoke  with  it! 
Like  many  other  old  customs  I  found  in  vogue 
among  the  Ainu  forty  years  ago,  this  one  also 
has  now  practically  died  out. 

Penri  was  a  fine  man  and  full  of  humour. 
1  always  stayed  with  him  when  in  Piratori 
and  he  accompanied  me  with  pleasure  in 
most  of  my  journeys  among  his  people.  He 
was  my  first  teacher  of  the  Ainu  language. 
He  was  very  fond  of  Japanese  sake,  as,  indeed, 
nearly  all  the  Ainu  are.  He  was  not  a  native 
of  Piratori  nor  was  he  the  real  Amu  chief. 
He  came  from  Shum-un-kot  and  was  appointed 
head  of  Piratori  by  the  Japanese  authorities. 
He  formerly  had  several  wives,  one  of  whom 
attempted  to  commit  suicide.  I  am  afraid 
his  family  relations  were  not  of  the  happiest 
nature.  He  was  very  self-righteous  and  he 
told  me  he  expected  to  have  a  very  high 
position  in  heaven  when  he  got  there!  He 
had  no  confession  to  make  of  sin  or  wrong- 
doing, and  had  no  thought  of  seeking  pardon 
from  his  gods. 


.'\niong  modern  books  on  Ainu  matters  I 
should  recommend  for  light  reading,  Miss 
I.sabella  Bird's  "Unbeaten  Tracts  in  Japan" 
(1885);  "Life  with  Trans-Siberian  Savages," 
l)y  B.  Douglas  Howmd,  M.  A.  (1893);  "The 
Ainu  Group  at  the  St.  Louis  Exposition" 
(1904),  by  Professor  Frederick  Starr;  and  for 
a  very  full  account  of  the  people  in  every 
department  of  their  life  I  must  recommend 
my  own  books,  but  especially  that  on  "'i"hf 
Ainu  and  Their  Folk-lore"  (1901).  Many 
references  are  made  to  the  Ainu  by  Dr.  Neil 
Gordon  Munro  in  his  "Prehistoric  Japan" 
(1908),  a  book  which  I  heartily  recommend 
to  all  students  of  ancient  Japan. 

The  Ainu  of  forty  years  ago  were  in  some 
respects  superior  to  those  of  the  present  day. 
Their  love  for  strong  drink  has  ruined  them. 
Had  they  been  protected  by  prohibition,  say- 
forty  or  fifty  years  ago,  the  race  would  have 
been  by  now  as  great  an  asset  to  this  Empire 
as  the  Maoris  of  New  Zealand  are  to  the 
British  Empire,  and  had  they  been  allowed 
the  same  all-round  advantages  as  regards 
education  that  the  Japanese  have,  they  would 
have  been  as  great  an  ornament.  On  the 
preceding  page  the  reader  may  see  the  Ainu 
at  a  drinking  bout,  the  men  seated  in  front 
and  the  women  behind,  the  latter  receiving 
just  so  much  of  the  drink  as  their  lords  think 
fit  to  spare  them.  The  crowns  the  men  wear 
are  not  regal,  but,  like  the  dresses,  ceremonial. 
It  is  quite  likely,  too,  that  the  carved  heads 
on  the  crowns  have  a  totemistic  import.  It 
will  be  seen  that  the  old  swords  are  of  a 
northern,  or  Manchurian,  type.  The  man 
standing  has  a  foreign  hat,  the  mat  is  Ainu, 
and  the  tubs  are  of  Japanese  lacquer.  The 
men  sit  cross-legged,  but  the  women  sit  upon 
the    knees. 

The  name  Ainu,  by  which  this  race  knows 
itself,  is  still  applied  to  themselves  only.  A 
Japanese  is  called  Shisam,  while  a  European 
or   American   is   called    Fure-Shisam.     Ainu 


AN     AINT     Dili: 

is  derived  from  a  word  meaning  "think,"  so 
that  Ainu  is  "thinker."  It  is  also  of  interest 
to  note  that  the  word  ramat,  "soul,"  has  the 
root  meaning  of  "mind,"  "intellect."  For 
many  years  the  Ainu  have  been  called  by 
their  smoother-skinned  Japanese  neighbours, 
Aino,  which  is  wrongly  said  to  be  a  corruption 
of  Ai-no-ko,  Japanese  for  "children  of  the 
middle"  or  "bred-between,"  that  is  to  say, 
bred  from  man  and  beast.  Some  Japanese 
say  the  name  Ainu  is  just  Inu,  which  means 
"dog"  in  Japanese.  The  Ainu  themselves, 
however,  think  their  ancestors  were  descended 
from  one  named  Aioina,  whoever  he  may 
have  been,  whose  name  is  sometimes  heard  in 
prayer.  Further  than  this  we  are  unable  to 
go  at  present,  for  the  Ainu  have  no  literatiu-e 
to  help  us  and  Japanese  works  shed  no  light 
on  the  matter,  while  the  present-day  Ainu 
are  utterly  unreliable  on  ancient  customs  and 
lore. 

That  the  Ainu  were  in  Japan  many  years 
before  the  Japanese  arrived  here  is  well 
attested  by  the  oldest  Japanese  books, 
namely,  the  Kojiki  or  Records  of  Ancient 
Matters  (712  A.  D.),  and  the  Nihongi  or 
Chronicles  of  Japan  (720  A.  n.).  The  Records 
speak  of  them  as  tsuchi-gumo,  "earth-spiders," 


AN    AIM'    VILI,.\GE — CHIEF    PENRI  S    IILT 


904 


P  R  E  S  E  N  T  -  D  A  ^■        IMPRESSIONS        OF        JAPAN 


AINU    !K11:M»    mi-     I  UK    I.AM    GENERATION 

but  this  designation  is  really  a  simple  cor- 
ruption of  the  Ainu  word  toche-guru,  which 
means  nothing  but  "earth-house-peoplc," 
"pit-dwellers."  That  the  Ainu  formerly 
Uved  in  pits  is  a  well  known  fact.  There  are 
grounds  for  believing,  as  Dr.  jMunro  so  clearly 
shows,  that  there  were  other  "pit"  or  "cave 
dwellers"  in  this  Empire  besides  the  Ainu. 
Certain  it  is  that  the  Ainu  were  not  the  only 
inhabitants  in  Japan  prior  to  the  Japanese, 
for  we  are  expressly  told  that  when  the  First 
Emperor,  Jimmu  Tenno  Sama,  arrived  in  this 
Empire  he  encountered  various  "barbarian 
tribes,  the  most  fierce  of  whom  were  the 
Ainu."  Some  would  have  us  believe  that 
prior  to  the  Ainu  there  was,  particularly'  in 
Yezo,  a  race  of  dwarfs  inhabiting  the  island, 
who  were  called  Koropok-guru.  But  that 
they  were  dwarfs  is  not  proven, — there  is  no 
evidence  at  all.    Koropok-guru  means  "people- 


below,"  "below"  referring  to  locality.  It  is 
cqui\-alent  to  "pit-dwellers,"  and  the  pit- 
dwellers  were  Ainu,  and  they  can  not  be 
called  dwarfs.  The  place  names  are  Ainu, 
and  the  exhumed  bones  and  flint  implements 
and  pottery  are  Ainu  also. 

Although  the  oldest  books  speak  of  the 
Ainu  as  Tsuchi-gumo,  yet  later  Japanese  pub- 
lications call  them  Ebisu  and  Emishi,  but 
these  only  mean  "barbarians."  In  olden 
times  they  were  a  very  warlike  people,  though 
they  are  mild  and  gentle  enough  now.  The 
Ancient  Records  tell  of  the  massacre  of  eighty 
of  their  chiefs  while  sitting  at  a  feast  to  which 
they  had  been  invited.  In  the  north  of  Japan 
there  may  be  seen  many  barrows,  or  mounds, 
containing  great  heaps  of  the  bones  of  Ainu 
slain  in  battle.  It  was  not  till  after  855  A.  D., 
when  the  Ainu  were  much  weakened  by  inter- 
necine strife,  that  they  were  eventually  sub- 
dued. Indeed,  the  year  878  a.  d.  is  given  as 
the  year  of  their  final  subjugation.  Though 
formerly  very  numerous  the  Ainu  now  number 
but  18,674  souls,  9,019  being  males  and  9,655 
females.  In  1876  they  numbered  19,456 
111  Hokkaido  (Yezo),  and  about  2,000  in  Sag- 
lialien.  Many  of  those  now  registered  as 
.\inu  are  pure  Japanese,  while  the  half-breeds 
are  very  numerous.  It  may  now,  indeed, 
practically  be  said  that  the  race,  as  Ainu,  does 
not  exist.  The  Ainu  do  not  bear  many 
children  and,  to  keep  up  the  families,  they 
adopt  Japanese  babies  and  register  them  as 
Ainu.  I  know  of  one  Ainu  school  where 
quite  one-third  of  the  scholars,  though  called 
Ainu  and  counted  as  such,  are  pure  Japanese 
children.  Thus  are  their  numbers  kept  up. 
In  some  places  there  is  a  great  deal  of  con- 
sumption among  them  and  this  dire  disease 
carries  ofiF  many. 

The  Ainu  have  been  called  "dull"  and 
"stupid."  Certainly  they  have  not  had 
the  advantages  of  travel  and  education  and 
competition  that  many  other  races  have  had 
to  make  them  sharp.  It  is  evident  also 
that  the  Japanese  consider  them  to  be  lack- 
ing in  brain  power.  Indeed,  an  order  has 
gone  forth  that  Ainu  children  shall  enter 
school  at  an  age  one  year  older  than  Japanese 
children  and  remain  at  school  only  four 
years  instead  of  six!  It  is  evidently  the 
opinion  of  the  Japanese  educational  authori- 
ties that  the  Ainu  are  weak  in  intellect. 
Still,  we  have  had  good  results  from  those 
whom  we  ourselves  have  sent  to  school  in 
Sapporo  and  Tokyo,  and  we  see  no  lack  of 
brain  power  in  such. 

The  Ainu  were  once  widely  distributed, 
geographical  nomenclature  showing  clearly 
that  they  were  formerly  scattered  throughout 
the  whole  of  Japan.  Thus,  for  example,  the 
name  Fuji  (in  Mount  Fuji)  is  the  Ainu  name 
for   "fire"   when  being  worshipped,   though 


WOMEN    POUNDIM,    MILLET — AINU    MAX   .\ND 

WOMAN.      THE    ORNAMENTS    WORN    BY  THE 

WOMAN    ARE    OF    MANCHURIAN    ORIGIN 

when  spoken  of  generally  "fire"  is  always 
ahe.  Fuji  is  the  goddess  of  fire,  and  Fuji  no 
Yama  is  "dormant  volcano."  Nolo  is  really 
"Cape  Blunt,"  Musashi  is  "  Surf -place," 
and  so  on  ad  infinitum.  There  are  also 
Ainu  names  of  places  in  Siberia,  as  Tomsk 
and  Enise  and  Kota  testify.  We  are  also 
informed  that  there  are  grounds  for  the 
belief  that  the  present-day  Ainu  are  con- 
nected with  the  ancient  cave  dwellers  of 
Europe.  The  ground  for  this  idea  is  the 
fact  that  the  conical  shaped  skull  and 
flattened  tibia  are  identical.  The  Ainu 
language  is  of  an  Arj-an  type  both  as  regards 
vocabularj'  and  grammar.  Pildzuski  tells 
us  that  the  Ainu  spoken  in  Saghalien  is  of  an 
older  type  than  that  current  in  Yezo,  thus 
indicating  that  the  Ainu  came  from  the  north. 
Some  of  the  idioms  of  the  language  also  show 
a   northern  rather  than  a  southern  habitat 


I'  R  1<:  S  E  N  T  -  D  A  Y        IMPRESSIONS        OF        JAPAN 


905 


A   WELL   TATT(">l-.ll    WclMAN 

When  I  first  came  to  live  with  the  Ainu 
the  thing  which  impressed  mc  most  was 
their  abundant  black  hair,  carefully  parted 
in  the  middle  and  falling  in  tresses  to  the 
shoulders  where  it  was  cut  in  a  crescent  shape 
behind.  The  people  love  wavy,  curly  hair 
and  call  it  Kamui  otop,  "the  hair  of  the  gods." 
But  now  the  men  cut  their  hair  and  the 
younger  women  follow  the  Japanese  custom 
of  allowing  theirs  to  grow.  Some  have  hair 
reaching  to  the  waist,  others  to  the  knees, 
while  a  few  have  it  so  long  that  when  let 
down  it  touches  the  ground.  There  are 
several  superstitions  connected  with  the  hair. 
Formerly  to  cut  the  hair  too  short  meant 
shortening  one's  life;  to  allow  another  to  get 
any  of  it  meant  bewitching;  to  bury  the  hair 
of  another  person  meant  to  kill  him  by 
degrees.  The  men  remind  one  much  of  the 
Russian  Mujik.  Though  as  a  rule  quite  hairy, 
there  are  many  among  the  men  who  have 
very  little  hair  on  the  breast,  arms,  and  legs. 

The  most  remarkable  thing  which  struck 
me  about  the  women  was  the  tattooed  lips, 
hands,  and  arms,  and,  in  some  instances,  the 
forehead  as  well.  It  is  said  to  be  a  very 
ancient  habit  and  no  one  can  now  tell  us 
about  the  origin  of  the  custom.  Its  old 
name  was  Anchi-piri,  "black-stone  marks," 
the  "black-stone"  being  either  coal  or  ob- 
sidian, and  this  takes  us  back  to  the  stone 
age,  which  is  not  so  far  away.  It  is  now  done 
with  Japanese  knives.  The  process  is  begun 
when  a  child  is  about  five  years  of  age  and  is 
not  finished  till  she  is  cither  married  or 
betrothed.     It  is  bluish-black,  to  get  which 


colour  soot  which  has  collected  on  the 
bottom  of  a  pot  is  rubbed  into  the  cut  place 
which  is  afterwards  washed  with  a  dye 
obtained  by  steeping  the  bark  of  a  tree  in 
hot  water.  The  tattoo  may  be  regarded 
as  a  kind  of  wedding  ring.  The  custom  has 
now  been  forbidden  by  the  authorities.  The 
colour  of  the  eyes  varies.  In  some  it  is 
black,  in  others  grey,  and  in  others  nut-brown. 
The  voice  of  the  women  is  soft  and  musical 
excepting  when  angry.  I  have  always  found 
them  kind  and  courteous,  and  so  honest 
that  during  all  the  years  I  have  been  among 
them  I  have  never  lost  anything.  They  eat 
of  the  same  food  as  the  men  and  at  the 
same  time,  and  laugh  and  chat  meanwhile. 
The  women  rise  early  and  go  early  to  bed. 
They  do  all  the  household  work,  cook,  make 
cloth,  sew,  pound  the  millet,  draw  the  water, 
and  so  forth.  And,  withal,  they  are  very 
happy  when  their  spouses  are  not  drinking. 

The  clothes  I  found  the  Ainu  wearing  were 
made  chiefly  from  the  inner  bark  of  elms 
and  the  skins  of  such  animals  as  deer,  bears, 
dogs,  foxes,  and  racoons.  The  process  of 
weaving  cloth  from  elm  bark  was  a  long  one, 
and  very  little,  indeed,  is  made  now,  Japanese 
material  having  superseded  it.  Some  of  the 
fibre  was  steeped  in  a  decoction  of  bark  to 
make  it  last  longer  and  withstand  the  wet 
weather  better.  This  gave  it  a  brown  or 
buff  colour.  They  also  wore  leggings  made 
of  fur,  and  boots  made  out  of  salmon  and 
other  skins. 

The  Ainu  were  formerly  fish  and  meat 
eaters  and  cultivated  very  small  patches  of 
ground.  Each  family  catered  for  itself  and 
had   its   own    plot   for   millet,    peas,    beans. 


■"^■■■**»»^-->  ■■i<*.^j 


-i^iSSBlm- ..—-.-«  j-ri^T;' 


i->,f^^' 


WOMEN     AND     GIRL     CARRYING     WOOD WO- 
MAN  WEAVING   CLOTH 


AN    EMBROIDERED    DRESS    SUCH    AS    IS    W-QRN 
BY    THE    AINU    PEOPLE 

potatoes,  cabbages,  pumpkins  and  other 
vegetables.  These  were  stored  in  the  family 
storehouse.  Flesh  and  fish  were  hung  up 
in  the  roof,  where  they  got  well  smoked. 
The  women  were  usually  very  happy  while 
pounding  their  millet  and  sometimes  three 
or  four  would  join  in  this  work  and  have  a 
good  time.  The  giris  were  kept  very  busy 
nursing  the  babies,  which  they  carried  slung 
from  the  forehead  and  resting  on  the  back, 
in  drawing  water,  working  in  the  gardens, 
or  fetching  wood. 

Ainu  dwellings  are  not  very  large  and  may 
be  distinguished  from  Japanese  houses  by 
the  thatch  on  the  roof,  which  consists  of 
several  layers  of  straw  so  superimposed  as 
to  form  a  series  of  ridges.  They  are  not  at 
all  warm  in  the  winter  as  the  cold  wind 
rushes  through  the  reed  walls  at  a  great 
rate  when  it  blows.  It  is  also  very  trying 
to  one's  eyes  to  stay  in  them  as  there  are 
no  chimneys  to  carry  off  the  smoke.  Among 
the  mountain  Ainu  of  Yezo  the  villages  con- 
sisted of  a  row  of  huts  on  one  side  of  the  path 
and  a  row  of  small  family  storehouses  on  the 
other.  The  Saghalien  Ainu  were  more  com- 
munal and  had  their  common  village  store- 
houses for  grain,  fish,  and  flesh.  Both  Yezo 
and  SaghaUen  Ainu  produced  fire  by  friction. 

It  is  a  fact  that  the  Ainu  have  no  temples 
yet  it  is  also  eminently  true  that  they  are  a 
verj-  reUgious  people.  They  are  also  obsessed 
by  that  disease  of  religion  which  we  term 
superstition.  In  one  illustration  may  be 
seen  a  seive  and  sickle  set  up  on  high.  These 
are  so  set  up  as  fetiches  and  are  used  to  per- 
suade the  gods  to  send  fine  weather  after 
too  much  rain.  The  east  end  of  every  hut, 
— and  there  one  may  see  numerous  shavings 


9o6 


P  R  E  S  E  N  T  -  I)  A  V 


IMPRESSIONS 


O  F 


J  A  P  A  N 


^^ 


ii»*i&:&*:2>j*^&i*? 


AN    AIXL'    STOREHorsE  -  A  SIEVE  AND  A  REAP- 
ING   HOOK    SET    UP    AS    FETICHES  TO 
CALL    FORTH    FAIR    WEATHER 

and  fetiches  set  up,  both  inside  and  out, — 
is  the  family  temple,  and  every  Ainu  man  is 


the  priest  of  his  household.  The  men  alone 
perform  most  of  the  worship,  and  the  women 
are  sent  with  libations  as  offerings  to  the 
ancestors.  The  people  have  a  strong  belief  in 
a  future  life  where  each  person  is  to  receive 
cither  reward  or  punishment  according  to 
the  deeds  done  in  the  body  here  on  earth. 
The  wands  shown  in  another  illustration  of 
the  eastern  end  of  a  hut  are  called  Inao, 
which  means  "message-bearers."  Prayer  is 
.said  before  them,  libations  are  poured  out 
to  them,  and  they  are  then  sent  with  mes- 
sages, some  to  heaven  and  some  to  hell,  as 
the  case  may  be.  They  are  not  gods  but 
messengers. 

When  I  first  went  among  them  I  found 
that  the  Ainu  ideas  concerning  death  were 
jiurely  animistic  in  nature.  Thus,  according 
to  them,  the  dead  did  not  die  entirely,  that 
is  to  say,  as  soon  as  the  breath  was  out  of 
the  body,  but  their  spiritual  entity  continued 
in  this  world,  particularly  about  the  grave 
and  the  former  home,  for  quite  a  long  time 
after  the  event  we  term  death  had  taken 
])lace.  For  so  long  a  time  as  there  was  a 
single  atom  of  the  material  body  remaining 
undissolved,  there  was  supposed  to  be  a 
perfectly  intelligent  and  personal  particle  of 
the  anima  hovering  round  and  in  it,  in  the 
process  of  escape.  And  this  was  not  only 
capable  of  locomotion,  but  of  exercising  a 
direct  influence  upon  the  living  for  good  or 
ill.  Thus  it  came  about  that  when  I  once 
\"entured  too  near  a  grave  I  had  to  be  puri- 
fied by  having  water  sprinkled  over  my 
person  and  to  submit  to  a  brushing  down 
with  spray  wood.  Although  these  disin- 
carnated  spirits  were  eventually  supposed  to 
take  their  departure  hence,  yet  they  were 
also  supposed  to  return  to  earth  at  times. 
Moreover,  when  they  left  the  body  they 
were   thought   to   possess    more   knowledge. 


CELEBRATION    OF      A     BEAR     FESTIVAL     IN    AX 
AINU    VILLAGE 

more  power,  and  far  mightier  faculties  than 
when  in  the  body.  And  they  never  forgot 
the  past.  The  Ainu  worship  a  very  great 
number  of  things,  —  gods,  godlings,  and 
demons, — in  heaven,  earth,  under  the  earth, 
and  in  the  rivers  and  seas.  The  Creator  of 
all  comes  first,  then  the  sun,  after  that  the 
fire,  then  male  and  female  progenitors  of  the 
family,  then  the  various  objects  of  nature, 
the    presiding    daimoncs    of    rivers,    springs. 


TWO    VERY    OLD    WOMEN  —  A    SPOT    AT    THE    EASTERN    END    OF    A    HUT,    SHOWING    A    BEAST's    SKULL    SET    UP     FOR    WORSHIP 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


907 


lakes,  mountains,  valleys,  trees,  animals, 
birds,  fishes,  and  objects  innumerable. 
Moreover,  there  are  also  multitudes  of  de- 
mons to  be  propitiated.  Every  kind  of  bird, 
from  the  tiny  wren  to  the  great  eagle,  is 
worshipped  when  killed.  Food  it  offered  to 
its  spirit  and  libations  poured  out  before 
it.  When  offered  ceremonially  the  process 
is  called  lyomande,  "a  sending  away." 
Fishes  also,  from  the  sprat  up  to  the  whale, 
are  "sent  away"  on  occasion,  particularly 
salmons,  sword-fish,  and  whales.  Every  kind 
of  animal,  also,  is  "sent  away,"  from  the 
mouse  up  to  the  bear.  Dogs  also  are  so 
treated.     Taken  altogether,  Ainu  religion  is 


a    very    serious    affair   and   has   large    and 
intricate  ramifications. 

After  fire-worship,  which  includes  in  it 
the  worship  of  the  ancestors,  bear-worship 
is  the  chief  act  of  worship,  for  poor  Bruin 
is  cruelly  killed  by  inches,  so  to  speak,  in 
sacrifice,  and  then  eaten.  This  is  a  great 
festival,  the  underlying  principle  of  which 
seems  to  be  a  notion  of  kinship,  in  which 
all  thoroughly  enjoy  themselves  with  dancing. 
Much  sake  is  dnmk,  many  cakes  eaten,  the 
bear's  flesh  partaken  of,  and  his  soup  drunk. 
It  is  a  cruel,  degrading  and  drunken,  noisy 
revel,*  and  the  authorities  ought,  in  the 
writer's  opinion,  to  put  a  stop  to  the  practice. 


I  have  seen  tiny  cubs  brought  up  at  the 
breasts  of  Ainu  women  till  they  could  eat. 
After  this  they  are  kept  in  cages,  such  as 
will  be  seen  in  the  accompanying  illustration, 
till  the  time  for  sacrifice  comes  round. 

The  Ainu  has  been  a  fine,  hardy  race  in 
bygone  years,  and  it  seems  to  the  writer 
to  be  a  very  great  pity  that  the  more  intel- 
lectual Japanese  have  not  done  something 
to  preserve  them,  even  as  an  ofif-set  for 
occupying  their  country. 


*  For  a  full  account  of  Ainu  religion  I  must  refer  the 
reader  to  "Ttie  Ainu  and  Their  Folklore."  pages  446  — 
594,  and  to  my  article  in  Hastings'  "Dictionary  o£ 
Ethics  and  Religion." 


raii.Y,aitrifciKiiriii»aiirrnririr  - 


A    BEAR    CUB    IN    A   CAGE    BEING    FATTENED    FOR    A 
SACRIFICIAL    FEAST 


i'   I'   '!    il   I'  I'    !l   II   I!  !'   "  1^   I!    li    li'li   ■'   ^1'!''   II'!!'!?   |l   I!    I!   '■   !'  :i  f;    n"!i    IN!  !'  !,  V   i!  II    II    ,:   11'    r 


FUJI-SAN    AT    DUSK 


LV.    Biographical  Notes 


A  KIYAMA,  GENZO,  LL.  B.,  among  the 
/^  best  known  of  distinguished  Japanese 
U.  ^  lawyers,  and  one  who  enjoys  a  high 
reputation  among  the  foreign  business  com- 
munity. Is  in  general  practi  ce  as  an  advocate, 
attorney,  and  counsellor  at  law,  conveyancer,  . 
and  patent  agent.  He  is  perhaps  best  known 
as  corporation  lawyer,  being  retained  as  ad- 
viser to  such  important  concerns  as  the  Stand- 
ard Oil  Company  of  New  York,  the  Pacific 
Mail  Steamship  Company,  the  American 
Trading  Company,  and  the  Deutsch  Asiatische 
Bank.  Bom  at  Kakegawa,  Totomi  Province, 
in  August,  1859,  the  eldest  son  of  Toshio 
Akiyama,  a  samurai  of  the  Kakegawa  clan. 
He  studied  Chinese  and  Japanese  classics  at 
the  school  of  his  feudal  lord,  and  later  entered 
the  Law  College  of  the  Tokyo  Imperial 
University  from  which  he  was  graduated  in 
1879.  He  was  appointed  a  Probationary 
Judge  immediately  after  his  graduation  and 
in  1882  he  was  made  the  full  Judge  and  was 
appointed  President  of  the  Nagasaki  District 
Court.  Some  years  later,  he  was  transferred 
to  the  Yokohama  District  Court  as  Presi- 
dent of  that  tribunal,  and  finally,  in  1898,  he 
became  Judge  of  the  Supreme  Court  in 
Tokyo.  Retired  from  the  bench  to  enter 
upon  private  practice,  and  specialised  in 
legal  affairs  as  they  affect  foreign  corpora- 
tions.    He  is  a  member  of  the  Yokohama 


Chamber  of  Commerce.  Mr.  Akiyama's 
head  office  is  at  No.  15,  Uneme-cho,  Kyo- 
bashi-ku,  Tokyo,  and  he  has  branch  offices  at 
No.  75  Yamashita-cho,  Yokohama,  and  at 
No.  28  Nakayamate-dori,  4th  Street,  Kob^. 

Akiyama,  Saneyuki,  Rear  Admiral,  Com- 
mander of  the  Second  Torpedo  Boat  Flotilla 
since  December,  1916.  Born  March  20,  1868, 
in  Ehime-ken,  youngest  brother  of  General 
Kouko  Akiyama.  Graduated  from  the  Naval 
Academy,  1890.  Commander  in  1904;  Cap- 
tain in  1908;  Rear  Admiral,  December,  1913. 
Occupied  successively  the  posts  of  Instructor 
of  the  Naval  College,  Staflf  of  the  First 
Squadron,  of  the  Combined  Squadron,  Vice- 
Captain  of  the  Mikasa,  Captain  of  Akilsushii, 
Otoioa,  Hashidate,  Izumo,  Ibiiki,  Japanese 
warships;  Staff  of  the  Naval  Staff  Office. 
Was  ordered  to  America,  June,  1897;  went 
to  London,  December,  1899.  Promoted  to 
the  Directorship  of  the  Military  Affairs 
Bureau  of  the  Naval  Department,  April, 
19 14.  Again  went  to  London  on  a  military 
commission  in  June  of  the  same  year.  On 
his  return,  December,  1916,  appointed  to  the 
present  post.  Played  a  splendid  part  in  the 
Russo-Japanese  War  as  a  member  of  Admiral 
Togo's  staff.  Was  decorated  with  the  Order 
of  the  Rising  Sun  and  the  Third  Class  of  the 
Golden  Kite  for  his  military  service. 

Ariyoshi,    Chuichi,   Governor   of   Kana- 


gawa-ken.  Born  June,  1873,  in  Kyoto- fu, 
eldest  son  of  Sanshichi  Ariyoshi.  Married 
Hisae,  eldest  daughter  of  Taro  Sadahiro. 
Graduated  from  the  Law  College  of  the 
Tokyo  Imperial  University,  July,  1896. 
Passed  the  Higher  Civil  Service  Examination, 
November,  1896.  Appointed  Councillor  of 
Shimane-ken;  afterward  held  the  posts  of 
Councillor  of  Hyogo-ken  and  Home  Depart- 
ment. Visited  Europe,  October,  1907.  Ap- 
pointed Governor  of  Chiba-ken,  March,  1908; 
Secretary-General  to  Resident-General  of 
Korea,  July,  1910;  Director  of  the  General 
Administration  Affairs;  Governor  of  Miya- 
zaki-ken  in  19 11;  transferred  to  the  present 
post  in  August,  1915. 

Asano,  Soichiro,  President  of  the  Toyo 
Steamship  Company  and  of  the  Asano 
Cement  Company,  etc.  Born  March,  1848, 
in  Toyama  City,  eldest  son  of  Taijun  Asano. 
Married  Saku,  second  daughter  of  Choemon 
Suzuki  of  Tochigi-ken.  He  early  came  up  to 
Tokyo  and  established  himself  as  a  coal 
merchant,  encountering  many  hardships. 
Later  organised  the  Asano  Cement  Works  in 
Fukagawa,  Tokyo,  which  has  operated  very 
prosperously  ever  since.  In  1886  estab- 
lished a  shipping  and  transportation  business 
under  the  title  of  Toyo  Steamship  Company. 
Opened  up  a  direct  steamship  service  between 
Japan     and     South     America.     Established 


P  R  E  S  E  N  T  -  D  A  V        IMPRESSIONS        OF        JAPAN 


9oy 


Asano  Shipbuilding  Yard,  1916.  In  addition 
to  the  companies  above  mentioned,  he  is 
connected  with  the  Tokyo  Gas,  the  Ishikari 
Coal  Comjiany,  the  Tokyo  Steel  Foundry, 
the  Imperial  Theatre  Company,  the  Imperial 
Hotel,  Tokyo  Cardboard  Manufacturing 
Company,  Tokyo  Artificial  Manure  Com- 
l)any,  and  several  other  companies.  Deco- 
rated with  the  Third  Order  of  Merit  for  his 
services  during  the  Russo-Ja]3anese  War. 

As.\NO,  Taijiro,  President  of  the  Hinode 
Steamship  Company,  Director  of  the  Third 
Bank,  the  Asano  Cement  Company,  the 
Formosan  Land  and  Building  Company, 
Keclung  Land  and  Building  Company,  and 
the  Keihin  Transportation  Company,  and 
Auditor  of  the  Nippon  Kyodo  Stone  Com- 
pan}'.  Born  July,  1884,  in  Tokyo,  eldest 
son  of  Soichiro  Asano,  a  leading  business 
man  in  Tokyo.  Married  daughter  of  Count 
Itagaki.  Studied  at  the  Waseda  University. 
Made  a  tour  through  Europe  and  America. 
Was  Manager  of  the  Asano  Cement  Com- 
pany. 

Chinda,  Sutemi,  Viscount  (created  191 1), 
Japanese  Ambassador  to  Washington.  Born 
at  Hirosaki,  December,  1856,  first  son  of 
samurai  of  Tsugaru  clan.  Married  Iwa,  third 
daughter  of  Yufu  Chinda.  Graduated  from 
an  American  university,  1881.  Appointed  a 
clerk  of  the  Foreign  Office,  l88g,  changing 
later  to  the  Telegraph  Section  in  the  same 
office.  Consul  at  San  Francisco,  1890; 
removed  to  the  Consulate  at  Chemulpo; 
Consul-General  at  .Shanghai,  1895;  Minister 
to  Brazil,  next  to  The  Hague,  1899- 
1900;  Envoy  Extraordinary  and  Minister 
Plenipotentiary  to  St.  Petersburg,  1900; 
Vice-Minister  of  Foreign  Affairs,  1901; 
Ambassador  to  Germany,  1908;  Ambas- 
sador to  Washington,  November,  191 1. 
Present  post,  June,  19 16.  Decorated  with 
the  Grand  Cordon  of  the  Order  of  the 
Rising  Sun. 

Den,  Kenjiro,  Baron  (created  1907). 
Member  of  the  House  of  Peers,  Minister 
of  Communications  since  October,  19 16. 
Born,  February,  1855,  in  Hiogo-ken,  son  of 
the  late  Bumbei  Den.  Married  Yasu, 
elder  daughter  of  Ankyo  Shigeno.  Studied 
Chinese  classics  while  young  under  the 
tutelage  of  Seijun  Watanabe  and  Seisai 
Kojima,  the  famous  scholars  of  the  old 
Daimyo,  and  afterwards  studied  English 
at  the  Nagoya  Foreign  Language  School 
and  other  institutions.  After  occupying 
the  post  of  Superintendent  of  Police  in  the 
prefectures  of  Kochi,  Kanagawa,  and  Sai- 
tama,  he  was  appointed  Secretary  of  the 
Department  of  Communications  in  1890, 
and  subsequently  Director-General  of  Posts 
and  Telegraphs  in  the  same  department.  In 
1895  and  again  in  1901  he  was  Vice-Minister 


of  Communications  in  the  Ito  Cabinet,  and 
also  held  the  same  post  for  the  third  time 
in  the  Katsura  Cabinet  in  1903.  He  resigned 
the  post  when  he  was  nominated  a  member 
of  the  House  of  Peers  in  1906.  Afterwards 
he  became  President  of  the  Kyushu  Colliery 
Steamship  Company.  In  1893  he  went  to 
Europe  and  America,  representing  Japan 
at  the  International  Telegraphic  Con- 
ference at  Budapest.  He  held  the  posts 
of  Councillor  of  the  Imperial  Railway  Asso- 
ciation and  of  the  Marine  Association. 
On  'the  formation  of  the  Terauchi  Cabinet 
in  December,  1916,  he  was  given  the  port- 
folio of  Communications.  He  was  created 
Baron  and  received  the  Second  Order  of 
the  Rising  Sun  in  1907  in  recognition  of 
his  meritorious  services  rendered  to  the 
State  during  the  Russo-Japanese  War.  He 
has  also  received  decorations  from  the 
Governments  of  France,  Denmark,  Austria, 
Turkey,  and  Roumania. 

Eguchi,  Ko.manosuke,  Director  of  the 
Tokyo  Stock  E.xchange,  Limited.  Born, 
I8g8,  in  Yamagata-ken,  eldest  son  of  Man- 
emon  Eguchi.  Married  eldest  daughter  of 
Seinosuke  Shoen,  of  Ibaraki-ken.  Grad- 
uated from  the  Yonezawa  Normal  School; 
studied  Chinese  classics  at  private  school 
in  Tokyo.  Went  to  China,  1879,  and  made 
a  tour  of  inspection  through  Hankow, 
.Shanghai,  Teintsin,  and  Manchuria.  Served 
in  the  Japanese  Consulate,  Shanghai,  for 
three  years;  on  his  return  home  in  1884 
entered  the  official  service  of  the  Nagasaki 
Prefectural  Office,  and  the  Department  of 
Agriculture  and  Commerce,  1888;  retired 
from  official  life,  1898,  and  became  Manager 
of  the  Tokyo  Stock  Exchange,  and,  later. 
Director.  Despatched  to  Europe  and  America 
to  investigate  the  exchange  condition  there. 
Has  published  "Exchange  in  Europe  and 
America." 

FujlTA,  Heitaro,  Junior  Fifth  Rank, 
Third  Order  of  Merit,  Baron  (succeeded 
as,  1912),  President  of  Fujita  and  Company. 
Bom,  October,  1869,  in  Osaka,  eldest  son 
of  the  late  Denzaburo  Fujita,  founder  of 
Fujitagumi.  Married  Tomi,  third  daughter 
of  Count  Akimasa  Yoshikawa.  Studied  at 
the  Keio  University.  After  his  return  home 
from  England  he  became  Vice-President  of 
the  Fujitagumi  and  besides  became  connected 
with  the  Osaka  Shosen  Kaisha,  the  Nippon 
Fire  Insurance  Company,  and  the  Nikkan 
Gas  Company.  After  his  father's  death  in 
19 1 2  he  was  ordered  to  succeed  to  the  peerage 
and  is  now  President  of  the  Fujitagumi, 
succeeding  his  father.  He  is  a  prominent 
business  man  of  Japan. 

Fujita,  Shiro,  Member  of  the  House  of 
Peers,  Lord-in- Waiting  of  the  Kinkei  Hall, 
Presiding   Director  of  the   Formosan  Sugar 


Refining  Company.  Bom,  June,  1861,  in 
Niigata-ken,  fifth  son  of  Ryuzo  Fujita. 
Married  Bun,  adopted  daughter  of  Marquis 
Inoue.  Graduated  from  the  Tokyo  Imperial 
University  in  1885.  Entered  the  Govern- 
ment service  as  attache  and  councillor  to  the 
Foreign  Department;  served  successively  in 
the  Japanese  Legations  at  Vienna  and  Berlin; 
was  appointed  private  secretary  to  the  Min- 
ister of  Communications  in  1890;  sent  to 
Vienna  as  a  representative  to  the  Interna- 
tional Postal  Conference  held  there  in  1891; 
promoted  to  Councillor  of  the  department 
upon  his  return;  Councillor  of  the  fourth 
Home  Exhibition;  promoted  to  be  Vice- 
Minister  of  Agriculture  and  Commerce,  1898; 
retired  from  the  Government  service  in  190 1, 
when  Marquis  Katsura  became  Premier; 
nominated  member  of  House  of  Peers,  190 1. 

Fujiyama,  Raita,  Chairman  of  the  Tokyo 
Chamber  of  Commerce,  President  of  the 
Dai  Nippon  Sugar  Refining  Company,  Direc- 
tor of  the  Nippon  Fire  Insurance  Company, 
the  Tokyo  Gas  Company,  the  Tokyo  Stock 
Exchange,  the  Nikkwa  Life  Insurance  Com- 
pany, the  Meiji  Brick  Manufacturing  Com- 
pany, etc.  Born  in  August  in  Saga  City,  son 
of  Kakuzaemon  Fujiyama.  Married  Mine, 
second  daughter  of  Tsunenosuke  Yegawa. 
Completed  the  course  at  the  Nagasaki  Nor- 
mal School  and  further  studied  economics  and 
politics  at  the  Keio  University,  graduating 
in  1884.  Teacher  at  Nagasaki  Normal 
School  for  a  short  time.  Elected  member, 
also  Chairman,  of  the  Nagasaki  Prefectural 
Assembly  at  twenty-five  years  of  age.  Es- 
tablished the  publication  Nagasaki  Shimbun. 
Entered  the  Mitsui  firm  and  was  appointed 
Managing  Director  of  the  Shibaura  Engineer- 
ing Works.  Organised  the  Oji  Paper  Mill 
Company  of  which  he  became  President. 
Elected  a  member  of  the  Standing  Com- 
mittee of  the  Tokyo  Chamber  of  Commerce. 
Rendered  useful  service  in  the  organisation 
of  the  Tokyo  Street  Railway  Company  and 
became  Managing  Director  of  the  same. 
Promoted  the  Shun-to  Electric  Company 
with  capital  of  1,000,000  yen  in  1903.  Ap- 
pointed Vice-President  of  the  Nippon  Fire 
Insurance  Company.  Entrusted  with  the 
readjustment  of  the  affairs  of  the  Dai  Nippon 
Sugar  Refining  Company,  the  largest  concern 
of  its  kind  in  Japan,  which  was  financially 
embarrassed;  finally  became  President  of 
the  same.  Is  a  conspicuous  figure  in  business 
circles  at  present. 

GoH,  Seinosuke,  Baron  (created  1910), 
member  of  the  House  of  Peers,  Chairman  of 
the  Board  of  Directors  of  the  Toky^o  Stock 
Exchange,  Director  of  the  Teikoku  Com- 
mercial Bank,  Special  Member  of  the  Tok>-o 
Chamber  of  Commerce.  Born,  January, 
1865,  in  Tokyo,  second  son  of  the  late  Baron 


9IO 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


SCENE    IN    UYENO    PARK,    TOKYO 


Junzo  Goh.  Studied  economics,  interna- 
tional law,  and  politics  in  Germany  and  Bel- 
gium, 1884-1891.  Was  given  official  posi- 
tion in  Department  of  Agriculture  and  Com- 
merce, recommended  by  the  late  Count 
Mutsu  (Minister  of  Agriculture  and  Com- 
merce, 1892).  Left  the  Government  service 
soon  afterward  and  took  up  present  business. 
Goto,  Shimpei,  First  Order  of  Merit, 
M.  D.,  Baron  (created  1906),  M.  H.  P., 
Minister  of  Home  Affairs  and  in  addition 
President  of  the  Imperial  Railway  Board 
since  October,  1916.  Bom,  June,  1857,  in 
Mizusawa,  Iwate-ken,  eldest  son  of  Juyemon 
Goto,  a  doctor,  and  a  grandson  of  the  famous 
patriot,  Chouei  Takano,  who  was  put  to 
death  by  the  Tokugawa  Government  a  little 
time  before  the  Restoration.  Married  Katsu, 
sister  of  Baron  Suyeyoshi  Yasuba.  Studied 
medicine  at  the  Medical  School  at  Fuku- 
shima;  graduated  from  the  University  of 
Berlin  with  the  degree  of  Doctor  of  Medicine, 
1890-1892.  At  the  early  age  of  twenty  he 
was  appointed  physician  of  the  Aichi  Prefec- 
tural  Hospital  and  was  also  one  of  the  teach- 
ing staff  of  the  Prefectural  Medical  School. 
Four  years  later  he  was  promoted  to  be  Chief 
of  the  hospital,  as  w'ell  as  the  medical  school. 
In  1883,  he  was  transferred  to  the  Depart- 
ment of  Home  Affairs  and  appointed  Acting 
Director  of  the  Sanitary  Bureau,  in  which 
capacity  he  achieved  the  important  work  of 
amelioration  of  the  medical  system  in  Japan, 
especially  that  of  social  sanitary  institutions. 


Elected  President  of  the  Central  Sanitary 
Association  and  Committee  of  the  Dai-Nip- 
pon vSanitary  Association.  Made  an  inspec- 
tion tour  of  social  sanitary  institutions  in 
Europe,  1890.  Appointed  Director  of  the 
Sanitary  Bureau  after  his  return  home  in 
1892.  When  the  famous  Soma  scandal  case 
came  up  in  1893,  he  was  arrested  on  the 
charge  of  complicity  in  it,  but  was  acquitted 
soon  after.  Subsequently  he  was  appointed 
Sanitary  Commissioner  of  the  Army  at  the 
time  of  the  Sino-Japanese  War.  When  the 
late  General  Kodama  was  sent  to  govern 
Formosa,  he  was  singled  out  (in  1897)  by  the 
General  as  the  Chief  of  the  Civil  Adminis- 
tration Birreau  of  the  colonial  government. 
Though  a  man  of  medicine  by  profession,  he 
l^ecame  by  circumstances  a  man  of  politics, 
and  it  was  in  the  administration  of  Formosa 
that  he  displayed  those  remarkable  abilities 
which  finally  brought  him  rapid  official 
promotion.  During  the  period  of  his  admin- 
istration of  the  island,  he  enforced  the  Opium 
and  Camphor  Monopoly  Law,  initiated  the 
construction  of  railways  and  roads,  and 
developed  local  industry  along  sound  lines. 
He  was  made  a  Baron  in  1906,  and  given  a 
seat  in  the  House  of  Peers.  When  the  South 
Manchuria  Railway  Company  was  estab- 
lished in  1906,  he  was  recommended  as  its 
first  president,  and  here  he  also  displayed  his 
distinguished  abilities  in  the  administration 
of  the  railway.  In  1908,  when  the  second 
Katsura  Cabinet  was  organised,  he  received 


the  portfolio  of  Communications,  which  he 
resigned  in  August,  1912.  Elected  M.  H.  P.; 
appointed  Minister  of  Communications  again 
on  the  formation  of  the  third  Katsura  Cabi- 
net, and  President  of  the  Imperial  Railway 
Board  as  an  additional  post,  December,  1912 
The  next  year  he  resigned  his  official  post 
On  the  formation  of  the  Terauchi  Cabinet, 
October.  1916,  he  was  appointed  to  his  pres 
ent  posts.  Publications:  "On  Bureaucracy' 
(translation  from  the  German) ;  "Principles of 
State  Hygienics";  "Treatise  on  Sanitary 
System";  "Common  Physiology  and  Hy- 
gienics." 

Har.\,  Kei,  M.  H.  R.,  a  leading  figure  in 
the  political  life  of  Japan,  Member  of  the 
House  of  Representatives  for  Morioka  City, 
and  leader  of  the  Seiyu  Kwai,  or  Constitu- 
tionist  partj".  Has  had  a  distinguished  career 
as  Government  official  and  statesman.  Bom 
in  Morioka  City  in  February,  1856,  and  was 
educated  at  the  Law  College  of  the  Tokj'O 
Imperial  University.  Entered  upon  the 
career  of  a  journalist  as  a  member  of  the  staff 
of  the  Hochi  Sliinbuii.  Went  to  Korea  as  a 
special  correspondent  in  1S82.  Later  entered 
the  Foreign  Office  and  was  appointed  Consul 
at  Tientsin,  China.  Thereafter  his  career 
was  cast  in  the  public  service  and  politics  of 
Japan.  Secretary  and  Charge  d'affaires  in 
Paris  in  1886.  Returning  to  Japan  he  be- 
came Private  Secretary  to  the  late  Marquis 
Inouye  when  that  gentleman  was  Minister 
for  Agriculture.     Then  he  took  the  post  of 


P  E  R  S  E  N  T  -  n  A  Y        I  M  P  R  1^:  S  S  I  O  N  S        OF        JAPAN 


911 


THE    AVENUE    OF    NIKKd 


Director  of  the  Commercial  Bureau  at  the 
Foreign  Office  under  the  then  chief,  the  late 
Count  Mutsu.  Promoted  to  Vice-Minister 
of  the  Department,  in  1895,  and  the  following 
year  was  sent  as  Minister  to  Korea.  He 
resigned  from  this  position  and  became  Chief 
Editor  of  the  Osaka  Mainichi  Shinbun.  Re- 
turning once  more  to  the  public  service  he 
succeeded  the  late  Mr.  T.  Hoshi  as  Minister 
of  Communications,  igoo-1901.  Then  he 
became  Chief  Editor  of  the  Osaka  Shimpo 
for  a  while  and  having  been  elected  as  member 
of  the  House  of  Representatives  for  his 
native  city  in  1902  he  continued  to  devote 
himself  to  affairs  of  state.  Was  Minister 
for  Home  Affairs  in  the  Saionji  Cabinet, 
1906-1908,  holding  the  same  portfolio  a 
second  time,  and  being  also  President  of  the 
Imperial  Government  Railways,  1911-1912. 
For  a  third  time  he  became  Home  Minister, 
retaining  that  office  from  February,  1913,  to 
the  following  year.  He  has  been  returned 
for  his  constituency  seven  times  since  his 
first  election.  To-day  Mr.  Hara,  by  virtue 
of  his  leadership  of  the  powerful  party  to 
which  he  belongs,  is  regarded  as  the  staunch- 
est  champion  of  the  Constitution,  and  his 
speeches  in  Parliament  are  very  closely 
followed.  For  his  long  and  valuable  services 
to  Japan,  Mr.  Hara  has  been  decorated  by  the 
Emperor  with  the  First  Class  Order  of  the 
Rising  Sun. 

H.\R.\,  RoKURO,  President  of  the  Fuji 
Paper  Mills  Company,  Director  of  the 
Yokohama  Specie  Bank  and  of  the  Imperial 
Hotel,  Limited,  Presiding  Director  of  the 
Yokohama     Dock     Company,     the     Tobu 


Railway  Company,  the  Inawashiro  Hydro- 
Electricity  Company,  Ltd.,  and  the  Taian 
Life  Insurance  Company,  and  Auditor  of 
the  Tokyo  Savings  Bank,  Ltd.  Born,  1844, 
in  Hyogo-ken,  sixth  son  of  Rokuemon 
Shindo,  of  a  well  known  family  in  Hyogo- 
ken.  Adopted  by  Joemon  Hara.  Married 
Tomi,  daughter  of  Shozaburo  Dokura  of 
Nara-ken.  While  young  he  became  the 
friend  of  Kuniomi  Hirano,  a  famous  patriot, 
and  took  part  in  the  Restoration  Movement. 
After  the  Restoration  he  went  to  Europe 
and  America  for  study  and  stayed  there 
about  seven  years.  After  his  return  he 
organised  the  Tokyo  Savings  Bank  in 
cooperation  with  Marquis  Terumasa  Ikeda 
and  Marquis  Tadasuke  Shimatsu.  Further, 
started  the  One  Hundredth  National  Bank. 
Founded  the  Imperial  Commercial  Bank 
in  1894  and  became  its  President.  President 
of  the  Yokohama  Specie  Bank,  1883— 1890. 
H.\RA,  Takashi,  President  of  Seiyu  Kwai 
party,  M.  H.  R.  Born,  February,  1854, 
at  Morioka,  younger  brother  of  Kyo  Hara. 
Married  Asa,  daughter  of  Yataro  Suga. 
Studied  at  Foreign  Languages  School  and 
Law  College.  Took  up  journalism  as  a 
member  of  the  staff  of  the  Hochi.  Went 
to  Korea  as  a  newspaper  correspondent 
with  Marquis  Inoue,  Special  Envoy,  1882. 
Entered  the  Foreign  Office  as  Consul  in 
Tientsin;  Secretary  and  Charge  d'affaires  in 
Paris,  1886.  Count  Mutsu's  Private  Secre- 
tary when  Minister  of  Agriculture  and 
Commerce.  Director  of  the  Commercial 
Bureau  at  Foreign  Office.  Promoted  to 
Vice-Minister     of     the     department,     1895. 


Minister  to  Korea,  1896.  Chief  Editor  of 
the  Osaka  Mainichi.  Succeeded  the  late 
Hoshi  as  Minister  of  Communications, 
1900— 1901.  Chief  Kditor  of  Osaka  Shimpo. 
Minister  of  Home  Department  under  the 
Saionji  Cabinet,  1906—1908.  Home  Minister 
again  and  President  of  the  Imperial  Rail- 
way Board,  1911— 1912.  Home  Minister  for 
tlie  third  time,  February,  1913,  which  post 
he  resigned,  1914. 

Hashimoto,  Keizaburo,  Second  Order  of 
Merit,  M.  H.  P.  Born,  September,  1865, 
first  son  of  Yajuro  Hashimoto,  a  samurai  of 
.\iigata-ken.  Married  Chise,  sister  of  Asa- 
taro  Yamane,  a  samurai  of  Yamaguchi-ken. 
Graduated  from  the  Law  College  of  the 
Tok>'0  Imperial  University,  1890.  Appointed 
Secretary  of  the  Privy  Council,  1892,  having 
filled  the  posts  of  Councillor  of  the  Legis- 
lative Administration  Bureau,  Secretary  of 
the  Financial  Department,  Revenue  Officer, 
Secretary  of  the  Monopoly  Bureau,  of 
several  departments;  appointed  Vice-Min- 
ister of  Agriculture  and  Commerce,  February, 
1913,  which  post  he  resigned  with  the  fall 
of  the  Cabinet  and  was  nominated  M.  H.  P. 

Heath,  Gilbert  Octavius,  was  born  in 
1873  at  Wagga  Wagga,  New  South  Wales, 
Australia,  was  educated  at  the  Sydney 
Grammar  School,  and  admitted  to  prac- 
tice by  the  Supreme  Court  of  New  South 
Wales  in  1897.  He  served  in  the  Anglo- 
Boer  War  during  1900,  and  obtained 
the  Queen's  medal  with  four  clasps.  Mr. 
Heath  came  to  Japan  early  in  1904,  and  in 
1906  he  joined  the  firm  of  Crosse  &  Yama- 
shita,  of  Kobe.  In  1907,  in  conjunction 
with  Mr.  C.  N.  Crosse,  Mr.  Heath  took 
over  the  late  Mr.  H.  C.  Litchfield's  share  of 
the  legal  business  which  the  last  named 
gentleman  had  established  some  time  prior 
to  1885,  when  Mr.  Litchfield  was  Crown 
Prosecutor  of  the  British  Consular  Court  at 
Kanagawa.  This  old  established  business 
had  grown  substantially  with  the  develop- 
ment of  the  commercial  interests  of  Yoko- 
hama, and  the  practice  of  the  new  firm, 
known  as  Crosse  &  Sawada,  was  further 
widely  extended  under  the  management  of 
Mr.  Heath.  In  1910  Dr.  C.  Vogt  was 
admitted  a  partner  and  the  business  was 
carried  on  until  early  in  19 13  as  Crosse, 
Heath  &  Vogt.  Dr.  Vogt  retired  in  1913 
and  the  firm  name  w-as  changed  to  Crosse  & 
Heath,  until  the  business  was  taken  over 
entirely  by  Mr.  Heath  at  the  beginning  of 
1916.  Mr.  Heath  conducts  a  general  law 
business,  and  conveyancing,  patent  and 
trade-mark  registration,  and  also  undertakes 
the  management  of  estates,  and  the  invest- 
ment of  funds,  etc.  The  office  address  is 
No.  75D  Yamashita-cho,  Yokohama;  postal 
address,     P.    O.    Box   No.    117,  Yokohama; 


912 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


cable  address  "Heath,"  Yokohama.  The 
London  agents  for  Mr.  Heath  are  Messrs. 
Stephenson,  Harwood  &  Co.,  31  Lombard 
St.;  Austrahan  correspondents,  Messrs.  Gar- 
land Seaborn  and  Abbott,  Bull's  Chambers, 
14  Moore  St.,  Sydney,  and  Messrs.  Gair  & 
Brahe,  Queensland  Building,  84—88  William 
St.,  Melbourne.  Mr.  Heath  is  a  Commis- 
sioner for  Affidavits  for  the  Supreme  Court 
of  New  South  Wales. 

HiRATA,  Hatsukuma,  Managing  Director 
and  General  Manager  of  the  Dai  Nippon 
Artificial  Manure  Company,  Director  of 
the  Formosan  Manure  Company,  the  Kiyoda 
Colliery  Company,  and  of  the  Tokyo  Indus- 
trial Company,  and  Auditor  of  the  Joso 
Railway  Company.  Bom,  October,  1867, 
in  Yamaguchi-ken,  eldest  son  of  Kwango 
Hayashi  and  adopted  by  the  late  Yoichiro 
Hirata.  Married  Masu,  second  daughter 
of  Hanshichi  Mitsuda.  Studied  Chinese 
classics  in  his  native  province;  came  to 
Tokj'o,  1888;  studied  mathematics  and 
bookkeeping.  Entered  the  Mitsui  Bussan 
Kaisha  and  ser^-ed  at  the  branches  of  Otaru 
and  Nagasaki  or  at  the  head  office.  Since 
then,  after  ser\'ing  as  chief  of  the  Fishery 
Department  in  Hokkaido  and  Director  of  the 
Yingkow  branch  of  the  same  firm,  trans- 
ferred to  Councillor  of  the  head  office,  1909; 
resigned  the  post  in  April,  1910,  to  enter 
the  Dai  Nippon  Artificial  Manure  Company 
as  its  General  Manager;  then  present  post. 

HoRi,  Keijiro,  President  of  the  Osaka 
Shosen  Kaisha  (Osaka  Mercantile  Marine 
Company,  Ltd.).  Bom  January,  1867,  in 
Ishikawa-ken,  eldest  son  of  Gohei  Hori,  a 
samurai.  Graduated  from  the  Law  College 
of  the  Tokyo  Imperial  University,  1893. 
Served  in  the  Osaka  Russian  Petroleum 
Company,  1893- 1895;  entered  the  service 
of  the  Osaka  Shosen  Kaisha,  Ltd.,  December, 
1895,  serving  successively  as  manager  in 
its  branches  at  Chemulpo,  Kobe,  Shanghai, 
and  Hankow,  1896-1907;  Chief  of  the 
Traffic  Section  and  Examination  Section, 
February,  1907;  Director  and  Manager, 
July,  1907;  Vice-President,  January,  191 1; 
now  President. 

Ikegami,  Shiro,  Mayor  of  Osaka  City 
since  .September,  1913.  Born,  April,  1857,  in 
Fukushima-ken,  second  son  of  Tasuke 
Ikegami,  a  samurai  of  Fukushima  clan. 
Married  Hama,  sister  of  Nyoyen  Kosuge 
of  Shizuoka.  Entered  the  service  of  the 
Metropolitan  Police  Board  as  a  policeman 
in  1877;  promoted  successively  to  be  Police 
Sergeant  of  Ishikawa  and  Kyoto  Prefectures, 
Superintendent  of  Kyoto  Prison,  Police 
Inspector  of  Kyoto  Prefecture,  Chief  of 
Police  of  Chiba,  Hyogo,  and  Osaka  Prefect- 
ures, Counsellor  of  the  Osaka  Prefectural 
Government,  then  elected  to  present  post, 


September,  1913.  Decorated  with  the  Fourth 
Order  of  Merit. 

Inabata,  Katsltaro,  President  of  the 
Osaka  Muslin  Manufacturing  Company,  Pro- 
prietor of  Inabata  Dyeing  Factory  and  the 
firm  of  Inabata  Shoten,  member  of  the  Osaka 
Chamber  of  Commerce,  etc.  Bom  October 
30,  1862,  in  Kyoto,  eldest  son  of  Risuke 
Inabata.  Married  Tomi,  third  daughter  of 
Toshige  Mori,  of  Tokyo.  Graduated  from 
the  Kyoto  Normal  School,  1877;  was  sent  to 
France  to  study  applied  chemistry  (first  at 
the  Lyons  Technical  School  and  then  at  Paris 
University) ;  studied  art  of  dyeing  at  a  dye- 
ing factory  in  France.  Represented  the  Kyoto 
Prefectural  Exhibitors  at  the  International 
Exhibition  held  in  Amsterdam,  at  the  same 
time  investigated  chemical  industry  in  Hol- 
land; returned  home  in  1884  after  investigat- 
ing the  dyeing  industry  in  England,  Germany, 
Italy,  Belgium,  Switzerland,  etc.;  appointed 
Expert  to  the  Kyoto  Prefectural  Office  in 
1884;  inaugurated  the  Kyoto  Dyeing  School 
and  became  its  President  in  1886;  appointed 
Chief  Expert  of  the  Kyoto  Woolen  Goods 
Company  in  1888;  afterward  established 
the  Inabata  Dyeing  Factory  and  became 
its  President,  the  khaki  uniforms  which 
were  so  extensively  used  during  the  Russo- 
Japanese  War  being  manufactured  by  him. 
Has  branches  in  Tokyo,  Tientsin,  etc. 
Has  several  times  been  appointed  Examiner 
to  domestic  exhibitions  and  fairs.  Decorated 
by  the  Government  of  France  with  the  Order 
of    the    Chevalier    de  la  Legion  d'Honneur. 

Inouye,  Junnosuke,  President  of  the 
Yokohama  Specie  Bank.  Bom,  March,  1869, 
in  Oita-ken,  adopted  son  of  the  late  Kwanichi 
Inouye.  Married  Chiyo,  eldest  daughter  of 
Hajime  Mori,  of  Yamaguchi-ken.  Gradu- 
ated from  the  Law  College  of  the  Tokyo 
Imperial  University.  Entered  the  service 
of  the  Bank  of  Japan;  occupied  important 
posts  as  Chief  of  the  Business  Bureau  of  the 
bank.  Made  business  tour  of  Europe  and 
America.  Vice-President  of  the  Yokohama 
Specie  Bank,  1911-1913. 

Inukai,  Takeshi,  M.  H.  R.  for  Okayama- 
kcn,  leader  of  the  Kokuminto  (National 
party).  Born,  April,  1855,  in  Okayama-ken, 
second  son  of  the  late  Genzayemon  Inukai. 
Married  Chiyo,  sister  of  Sennosuke  Mita,  of 
Tokyo.  Studied  at  Keio  University.  Be- 
came Editor  of  the  Hochi  Shimbun,  serving 
as  war  correspondent  of  the  paper  during 
the  Satsuma  Rebellion  in  1877.  In  1880 
started  the  publication  of  the  "Tokai  Eco- 
nomic Magazine"  and  strongly  advocated 
the  principle  of  trade  protection  as  opposed 
to  free  trade,  advocated  by  the  late  Ukichi 
Taguchi.  Appointed  Junior  Secretary  to  the 
Board  of  Statistics  the  following  year;  re- 
signed office  and  became  member  of  the  Con- 


stitutional Progressive  party,  organised  in 
1882;  elected  member  of  the  Tokyo-fu  Assem- 
bly same  year;  joined  the  staff  of  the  Choya 
Shimbun,  becoming  Editor.  Elected  mem- 
ber of  the  House  of  Representatives,  1890; 
occupied  the  chair  of  Minister  of  Education 
for  a  while  with  the  Okuma  Cabinet  in  l8g8; 
held  the  post  of  Chief  of  the  General  Com- 
mittee of  the  Constitutional  party  for  a 
number  of  years;  was  one  of  the  organisers 
of  the  newly  formed  Kokuminto  (National 
party)  of  which  he  is  now  leader.  One  of  the 
most  energetic  politicians  in  the  opposition 
party.  Decorated  with  the  Second  Order  of 
Merit. 

IsHii,  KiKujiRo,  First  Order  of  Merit, 
Viscount  (created  1916),  member  of  the 
House  of  Peers  (October,  1916),  Minister 
since  October,  1915.  Bom,  February,  1866, 
in  Chiba-ken,  adopted  into  Ishii  family. 
Married  Tama,  daughter  of  Tadashi  Kashi- 
mura.  Graduated  from  the  Law  College  of 
the  Tokyo  Imperial  University,  1890.  On 
graduation  passed  the  Diplomatic  Service 
Examination  and  entered  the  service  of  the 
Foreign  Department  as  Probationer;  Diplo- 
matic Attachi  in  1891 ;  Second  Class  Secretary 
of  Legation  at  Paris  in  1 893 ;  First  Class  Con- 
sul at  Chemulpo  in  1 896 ;  Second  Class  Secre- 
tary of  Legation  at  Peking  in  1898.  During 
the  Boxer  Trouble  was  among  the  besieged; 
after  peace  was  restored  was  called  back  to 
Foreign  Office  to  fill  successively  the  posts  of 
Secretary,  Chief  of  the  Section  of  Telegraphs 
in  1900,  and  then  Director  of  the  Bureau  of 
Commercial  Affairs.  Was  despatched  to 
San  Francisco  and  Vancouver  in  1907  to 
investigate  the  anti- Japanese  movements 
in  those  places.  Vice-Minister  of  the  Foreign 
Department  in  1908.  Ambassador  to  Paris, 
1912-1915.  Foreign  Minister,  1915-1916. 
Chief  of  the  Japanese  Political  Mission  to 
America,  1917. 

Itami,  Jiro,  Joint  Managing  Director  of 
the  Nippon  Yusen  Kaisha  since  January, 
191 7.  Bom  in  Tokyo,  younger  brother  of 
Baron  Haruo  Itami.  Married  Tsutae,  second 
daughter  of  Seiji  Suzuki,  of  Hyogo-ken. 
Early  entered  the  Nippon  Yusen  Kaisha  and 
was  promoted  successively  to  the  present 
post. 

Ito,  Takuma,  Standing  Director  of  the 
Nippon  Leather  Company,  Director  of  the 
Tokyo  Woolen  Manufacturing  Company  and 
of  the  Nippon  Shoes  Company,  and  Auditor 
of  the  Okura  Gumi.  Born,  September,  1869, 
in  Saijo-machi,  Ehime-ken,  third  son  of 
Haruo  Ito.  Married  Tei,  eldest  daughter  of 
Motokiyo  Isahaya,  1899.  Graduated  from 
the  College  of  Law  of  the  Tokyo  Imperial 
University,  1897,  and  studied  further  in 
England.  After  his  return  home  served 
at    the    Okura    Gumi,    1899-1909;    became 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


913 


StanriiriK  Director  of  the  Nippon  Leather 
Company  on  its  establishment. 

Ito,  Yonejiro,  Joint  Managing  Director 
of  the  Nippon  Yuscn  Kaisha.  Bom,  Decem- 
ber, 1 86 1,  in  Ehime-ken,  second  son  of 
Kihaku  Ito.  Married  Kei,  aunt  of  Sadaaki 
Ito,  of  Ehime-ken.  Early  entered  the  Nip- 
lion  Yusen  Kaisha  and  was  promoted  suc- 
cessively to  the  present  post.  Before  present 
post  was  Manager  of  the  London  branch. 

Ito,  Yoshigoro,  Baron  (created  1907), 
Vice-Admiral  (retired),  M.  H.  P.  Born 
May  5,  1858,  in  Nagano-ken,  fourth  son  of 
Kenji  Ito,  a  samurai  of  Nagano  clan.  Mar- 
ried Mari,  daughter  of  a  French  naval  officer. 
Oraduated  from  the  former  Kaigunheiga- 
kuryo  (naval  academy)  in  1876.  Midship- 
man on  board  the  Tsukuba  in  the  same  year. 
Took  part  in  the  Satsuma  Rebellion  in  1880; 
Sub-Lieutenant  in  the  following  year;  Lieu- 
tenant, 1882.  Sent  to  France  and  Germany 
to  study  gunnery,  1884-1888.  Lieutenant- 
Commander,  1886;  Chief  Gunner  of  the 
Takachiho.  Member  of  the  Naval  General 
Staff  and  Staff-Officer  of  the  Standing  Squad- 
ron in  succession.  Commander,  1890;  Sec- 
ond Captain  of  the  Hiei,  Yamato,  Katsuragi, 
and  Takachiho,  etc.  Private  Secretary  to 
the  Minister  of  the  Navy  during  the 
Japan-China  War.  Captain,  1896.  Legation 
attache  at  Paris  and  Commander  of  the 
Shikishiina  successively;  Rear  Admiral,  1900; 
Commander  of  the  Standing  Squadron ;  Chief 
of  the  Construction  Department  of  the 
Yokosuka  Naval  Station;  Commander  of  the 
Takashiki  Second  Naval  Station,  etc.  Vice- 
Admiral,  1905;  created  Baron,  1907;  invested 
with  the  Second  Order  of  the  Rising  Sun 
together  with  the  Third  Class  of  the  Golden 
Kite  in  connection  with  the  Russo-Japanese 
War. 

IwASAKi,  HiSAYA,  millionaire.  Baron  (cre- 
ated 1895),  ex-President  of  the  Mitsubishi 
Company.  Born,  1855,  in  Tokyo,  eldest 
son  of  the  late  Y.  Iwasaki,  the  founder  of  the 
Mitsubishi  firm.  Married  Shizu,  sister  of 
Viscount  Masaaki  Hoshina.  Studied  at  the 
Keio  University  and  then  at  the  Mitsubishi 
Commercial  School.  Later  went  to  the 
United  States  and  graduated  from  Penn- 
sylvania University  in  1891,  with  the  degree 
of  LL.  B.  Became  President  of  the  Mitsu- 
bishi Company  on  his  return  to  Japan. 
Was  created  Baron  in  recognition  of  the 
meritorious  services  rendered  to  the  State  by 
his  illustrious  father.  He  retired  from  the 
presidency  of  the  Mitsubishi  Company  in 
favour  of  his  younger  lirother.  Baron  K. 
Iwasaki,  in  19 16. 

Iwasaki,  Koyata,  Baron  (created  1896), 
President  of  the  Mitsubishi  Company  (since 
July  I,  1916),  Director  of  Tokyo  Warehouse 
Company,  Limited,  Yokohama  Specie  Bank, 


and  the  A.sahi  Glass  Company.  Born,  Au- 
gust, 1879,  son  of  the  late  Y.  Iwasaki.  Mar- 
ried Ko,  youngest  sister  of  Baron  Sonosuke 
Shimazu.  Educated  at  Cambridge  University. 

Kato,  Takaaki,  Viscount  (created  July, 
1916),  M.  H.  P.,  leader  of  the  Kensei-kwai 
(Constitutional  party).  Born  January  3, 
1859,  at  Sayamura  in  Aichi-ken,  adopted  into 
the  family  of  Buhachiro  Kato.  Married 
Haruji,  youngest  sister  of  Baron  Hisaya 
Iwasaki,  1886.  Graduated  from  the  Law 
College  of  Tokyo  Imperial  University  in  1 88 1 . 
Entered  business  as  a  clerk  of  the  Mitsubishi 
Company,  where  he  served  a  few  years  as 
Manager  of  the  Hokkaido  branch.  Entered 
the  Foreign  Office,  1887,  and  was  appointed 
Private  Secretary  to  Count  Okuma  (Foreign 
Minister,  1888);  transferred  to  Financial 
Department  and  promoted  to  Director  of  the 
Banking  Bureau;  later  of  the  Taxation 
Bureau;  returned  to  Foreign  Office  and  was 
appointed  Minister  Plenipotentiary  to  Eng- 
land, 1894-1899;  Minister  for  Foreign  Affairs 
under  the  Ito  Cabinet,  1900-1901 ;  elected 
member  of  the  House  of  Representatives  for 
Kochi-ken,  1902;  again  elected  for  Yokohama 
in  1903;  appointed  Foreign  Minister  under 
the  Saionji  Cabinet,  1906,  but  left  the  minis- 
try owing  to  his  opposition  to  the  Railway 
Nationalization;  Ambassador  to  Court  of 
St.  James  until  December,  191 2;  joined  the 
late  Prince  Katsura's  third  cabinet  as  Foreign 
Minister  for  the  third  time,  but  resigned  very 
soon  owing  to  the  sudden  downfall  of  the 
ministry;  organised  the  Doshikwai  with  the 
late  Prince  Katsura,  and  became  its  Presi- 
dent, 19 13;  joined  the  Okuma  Cabinet  as 
Foreign  Minister,  April,  1914,  resigning  in 
August,  1915;  elected  member  of  the  House 
of  Peers,  August,  1915. 

Kato,  Tomosaburo,  Admiral,  Minister  of 
the  Navy  since  August,  1915.  Born  Feb- 
ruary 22,  1859,  in  Hiroshima-ken.  Grad- 
uated from  the  Naval  College.  Appointed 
Second  Sub-Lieutenant,  1884;  Captain,  1899; 
Professor  of  the  Naval  Academy;  Sectional 
Chief  of  the  Naval  Affairs  Bureau  of  the 
Navy;  Chief  of  Staff  of  the  Standing  Squad- 
ron, 1902;  Chief  of  Staff  of  the  Kamimura 
Squadron;  transferred  to  that  of  the  Com- 
bined Fleet  during  the  Russo-Japanese  War; 
appointed  Vice-Minister;  appointed  Com- 
mander-in-Chief of  the  First  Squadron, 
1906;  Vice-Admiral,  1908;  was  given  the 
title  of  the  portfolio  of  the  Navy  under  the 
Okuma  Cabinet;  Vice-Admiral,  1908.  He 
was  the  right-hand  officer  of  Admiral  Togo 
and  Admiral  Kamimura  in  the  Russo- 
Japanese  War.  Took  part  in  the  Japano- 
German  War,  1914.  Decorated  with  the 
First  Order  of  the  Rising  Sun  and  Second 
Class  of  the  Golden  Kite  and  Grand  Cordon 
of  the  Rising  Sun,  for  his  services,  July,  1916. 


Kawasaki,  Suketaro,  M.  H.  R.  for 
Gifu  City,  President  of  the  Kyoto  Estate 
and  Building  Company,  Director  of  the 
Nippon  Petroleum  Company  and  the  Osaka 
Muslin  Company,  dealer  in  foreign  piece 
goods.  Born  January  13,  1873,  in  Gifu- 
ken,  son  of  Kikuo  Kawasaki.  Married 
Shiu,  sister  of  Kichisaburo  Doi.  Studied 
at  the  Kobe  English  Institute.  At  the  age 
of  twenty-four  years  he  started  himself  in 
the  foreign  piece  goods  business.  Has 
made  three  trips  abroad.  Has  a  piece 
goods  shop  in  England.  Elected  M.  H.  R. 
for  Gifu  City  and  belongs  to  the  Kensei-kwai 
(Constitutional  party). 

Kawasaki,  Yoshitaro,  President  of  the 
Kobe  Kawasaki  Bank,  Limited,  and  the 
Fukutoku  Life  Insurance  Company,  Vice- 
President  of  the  Kawasaki  Dockyard, 
Limited,  Director  of  the  Arashiyama  Electric 
Railway  Company,  Limited.  Bom  January 
7,  1869,  in  Hyogo-ken,  eldest  son  of  Jembei 
Onizuka  and  adopted  by  Shozo  Kawasaki. 
Married  Chika,  second  daughter  of  his 
adopted  father,  Shozo  Kawasaki.  Grad- 
uated at  Poughkeepsie,  New  York,  U.  S.  A. 
Since  his  return  home,  has  been  engaged 
in  his  adopted  father's  shipbuilding  business. 
(See  Osaka  and  Kobe  Shipbuilding  Section, 
this  volume.)  In  the  Russo-Japanese  War, 
1904-1905,  he  rendered  signal  services  to  the 
State  by  repairing  the  ships  of  the  Imperial 
Navy  and  executing  its  secret  orders. 
Decorated  with  the  Fourth  Order  of  Merit 
as  a  w'ar  reward. 

KiKucHi,  Kvozo,  Kogakuhakushi  (Doctor 
of  Engineering),  President  of  the  Amagasaki 
Cotton  Yam,  Limited,  Managing  Director 
of  the  Settsu  Cotton  Yam  Company, 
Limited,  Director  of  the  Nippon  Cotton 
Yam  Company,  Limited.  Bom  in  1859 
in  Ehime-ken,  third  son  of  Yasunari  Kikuchi. 
Married  Suma,  second  daughter  of  Keiyu 
Shirae  of  Nagasaki-ken.  Graduated  as 
Mechanical  Engineer  from  the  Kobu  Dai- 
gakko  (former  Government  Technical  Col- 
lege), 1885,  and  studied  cotton  spinning 
further  in  England.  Returning  home,  he 
started  in  the  same  line  of  business  and  has 
greatly  contributed  to  the  success  of  different 
cotton  spinning  companies.  Received  the 
degree  of  Kogakuhakushi  (Doctor  of  Engi- 
neering) in  February,  1915. 

KiRisHiMA,  ZoiCHi,  Head  of  the  Land 
Department  of  the  Mitsubishi  Company. 
Born  in  1864  in  Kochi-ken,  eldest  son  of 
Masachika  Kirishima,  a  samurai.  Married 
Mitsu,  youngest  sister  of  Denjiro  Hagi,  a 
samurai  of  Nagasaki.  Graduated  from  the 
Law  College,  Tokj'o  Imperial  University. 
On  graduation  entered  the  Mitsubishi  Com- 
pany and  has  been  promoted  successively 
to  his  present  post. 


914 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


1 


(I)  Mr.  M.  Nakamatsu,  Counsellor  at  Law  and  Patent  Attorney,  Tokyo.  (2)  Mr.  T.  Tokonami,  M.  H.  R. 
(3)  Mr.  TsuNEjiRO  Miyaoka,  Prominent  International  Lawyer.  (4)  Mr.  Heikichi  Ogawa,  Member  of  House  of  Rep- 
resentatives and  Counsellor  at  Law.  (5)  Mr.  Ren  Yabe,  Counsellor  at  Law  and  Patent  Attorney.  (6)  Dr.  S.  Oba, 
Counsellor  at  Law  and  Patent  Attorney.  (7)  Mr.  Genzo  Akiyama,  Counsellor  at  Law,  Tokyo.  (8)  Mr.  H.  Osaki, 
M.  H.  R. 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


915 


KiTA,  Matazo,  ManaKing  Director  of  the 
Nippon  Menkwa  Kabushiki  Kaisha  (Tlie 
Japan  Cotton  Trading  Company,  Limited). 
Horn  September  11,  1877,  at  Toriido, 
Katsuragi  -  mura,  Minami  -  Katsuragi  -  gnn, 
Xara-kcn,  third  son  of  Choshichiro  Kita. 
Married  Tei,  third  daughter  of  Bunnosuke 
Komura.  Graduated  from  the  Osaka  Higher 
Commercial  School,  1894.  On  graduation 
entered  the  Japan  Cotton  Trading  Company 
and  served  at  its  Bombay  branch  for  five 
years  following  1896;  present  post  since 
1 9 1 1 .  During  that  time  he  travelled  through 
India,  China,  Egypt,  and  America.  Beside 
the  above  mentioned  post,  he  is  Director 
of  the  Osaka  Meriyasu  Weaving  Company, 
Chairman  of  the  Japan  Cotton  Merchants' 
Union,  and  Standing  Member  of  the  Osaka 
Chamber  of  Commerce. 

KoNDO,  Rempe],  Baron  (created  191 1), 
First  Order  of  Merit,  President  of  the  Nip- 
pon Yusen  Kaisha,  Limited,  and  the  Nis- 
shin  Steamship  Company,  Director  of  the 
Kirin  Beer  Brewery  Company,  Limited, 
the  Tokyo  Marine  Insurance  Company, 
and  the  Inawashiro  Hydroelectric  Company. 
Born,  November,  1848,  in  Tokyo,  second 
son  of  Gensen  Kondo.  Married  Ju,  youngest 
sister  of  Ryohei  Toyokawa,  a  famous  busi- 
ness man.  Studied  at  the  Keiogijuku. 
Entering  the  service  of  the  Mitsubishi  firm, 
he  gained  the  confidence  of  the  late  Yataro 
Iwasaki  and  served  as  Manager  of  the  head 
office  at  Tokyo  and  of  the  branch  office  at 
Yokohama.  Rendered  great  services  in  the 
amalgamation  of  the  Mitsubishi  firm  with 
the  Kyodo  Unyu  Kaisha,  and  became  Vice- 
President  of  the  newly  formed  Nippon  Yusen 
Kaisha.  When  the  war  between  Japan 
and  China  broke  out  in  1894,  he  ably  assisted 
the  late  Mr.  Yoshikawa,  then  President  of 
the  company,  in  transportation  of  war 
materials  and  troops,  in  recognition  of  which 
he  was  rewarded  with  the  Fourth  Order  of 
Merit.  President  of  the  company  on  the 
death  of  Mr.  Yoshikawa.  Made  various 
European  and  American  trips.  Created 
Baron  and  decorated, with  Second  Order  of 
Merit  for  signal  service  in  the  development 
of  Japan's  merchant  marine. 

KuHARA,  FusANosuKE,  President  of  Ku- 
hara  Mining  Company,  Limited.  Born  June, 
i86g,  in  Yamaguchi-ken,  third  son  of 
the  late  Shozal)uro  Kuhara,  and  cousin  of 
Baron  Heitaro  Fujita.  Married  Kiyo,  sister 
of  Gisuke  Aj'ukawa,  of  Yamaguchi-ken. 
Graduated  from  Keio  University,  1889. 
On  graduation  entered  the  Morimura-gumi, 
which  post  he  resigned  soon  to  enter  the 
Fujita-gumi,  when  he  started  his  career  as  a 
clerk  at  Kosaka  Mines,  and  rose  by  succes- 
sive promotions  to  be  manager  of  the  same. 
Succeeded     to     his     father's     house,     1915; 


A   JAPANESE       GEISHA 


estabhshed  the  Kuhara  Mining  Company 
with  capital  of  Yen  10,000,000.  Is  now  a 
millionaire  of  Japan. 

Ki-sHiDA,  Manzo,  Ph.  P.,  Head  of  the 
Banking  Department  of  the  Mitsu  Bishi 
Goshi  Kaisha.  Born,  February,  1867,  in 
Tokyo,  eldest  son  of  Magosaburo  Kushida. 
Married  Fumi,  elder  sister  of  Shigezo 
Imamura.  Studied  at  the  University's 
Preparatory  School;  studied  finance  and 
economics  in  the  University  of  Pennsylvania, 
graduating  in  1890.  On  his  return  home, 
1894,  entered  the  Banking  Department  of 
Mitsu  Bishi  Goshi  Kaisha  and  served  at  the 
branches  in  Osaka  and  Kobe;  returned  to 
the  head  office,  1901,  and  occupied  the 
post  of  Sub-Manager  of  Banking  Depart- 
ment; then  present  post. 

Makoshi,  Kvohei,  President  of  the  Dai 
Nippon  Brewery  Company  and  of  the 
Ihara  and  Kasaoka  Light  Railway  Company, 
Presiding  Director  of  the  Nippon  Acetic 
Acid  Company  and  of  the  Tokyo  Hat  Com- 
pany, Director  of  the  Toho  Fire  Insurance 
Company  and  of  the  Inawashiro  Hydro- 
Electricity  Company,  Auditor  of  the  South 
Manchuria  Railway  Company,  the  Toyo- 
kawa Railway  Company,  and  the  Dairen 
Real  Estate  Company,  Member  of  the 
Tokyo  Chamber  of  Commerce.  Born, 
October,  1844,  in  Okayama-ken,  second  son 
of  Gensen  Makoshi.  Married  Kiku,  second 
daughter  of  Mambei  Kurano.  In  1873  he 
came  to  Tokyo  and  entered  the  Mitsui 
Bussan  Kaisha,  shortly  afterward  being  ap- 
pointed Manager  of  its  Yokohama  branch. 


Became  President  of  the  Nippon  Brewery 
in  1892.  When,  in  1905,  this  company  was 
amalgamated  with  the  Sapporo  and  Osaka 
Beer  Companies,  under  the  name  of  the 
Dai  Nippon  Brewery  Company,  he  was 
elected  President,  which  position  he  still 
holds.  In  1898  he  was  elected  a  member 
of  the  House  of  Representatives  for  Oka- 
yama-ken. Made  a  tour  through  Europe 
and  America  for  business  investigations  in 
191 2;  went  to  China  with  Baron  Shibusawa 
in  1913.  He  is  one  of  the  leading  business 
men  in  Japan,  and  has  been  decorated  with 
the  Fourth  Order  of  the  Rising  Sun. 

Matsui,  Keishiro,  First  Order  of  Merit, 
Ambassador  to  Paris  since  November,  1915. 
Born  March  5,  1868,  in  Osaka,  second  son 
of  Yasuzo  Matsui.  Married  Teru,  sister 
of  Shigezo  Imamura.  Graduated  from  the 
Law  College  of  Tokyo  Imperial  University, 
1889.  Appointed  Probationer  of  Foreign 
Affairs  after  graduation;  Third  Legation 
Secretary,  1893;  Second  Legation  Secretary, 
1894;  attache  to  the  Japanese  Embassy  at 
Washington,  Januar\',  1895;  First  Legation 
Secretary,  September,  1897;  served  at  the 
Japanese  Embassy  in  London,  April,  1898, 
and  at  Peking,  September,  1902;  Councillor 
of  the  Foreign  Office,  July,  1905;  Councillor 
to  the  Embassy  in  Paris,  March,  1906; 
appointed  Councillor  to  the  Embassy  at 
Washington,  March,  1906;  recalled  to  the 
Foreign  Office  to  take  up  the  post  of  Vice- 
Minister;  then  present  post. 

M.\tsukat.i,  Goro,  Si.xth  Order  of  Merit, 
Managing    Director  of    the   Oriental   Sugar 


9i6 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


Refining  Company,  Limited,  President  of 
the  Tokyo  Gas  and  Electric  Industrial 
Company,  the  Horoshima  Gas  Company, 
and  of  the  Tokiwa  Shokwai,  Director  of  the 
Tokai  Life  Insurance  Company,  and  Auditor 
of  the  Ujigawa  Electric  Company.  Born, 
April,  1871,  in  Kagoshima  City,  fifth  son  of 
Marquis  Masayoshi  Matsukata.  Married 
Kame,  second  daughter  of  Chujiro  Shibu- 
kawa.  Graduated  from  the  Law  College  of 
the  Toyko  Imperial  University  in  1896; 
studied  in  England  and  Germany,  1897— 
1901.  Since  his  return  to  Japan,  he  has 
devoted  all  his  energies  to  the  great  busi- 
ness enterprises  with  which  he  is  connected. 

Matsukata,  Kojiro,  President  of  the 
Kawasaki  Shipbuilding  Yard,  the  Kobe 
Gas  Company,  and  the  Kyushu  Electric 
Tramway  Company,  Director  of  the  Osaka 
Sirup  Manufacturing  Company.  Bom,  De- 
cember, 1895,  third  son  of  Marquis  Ma- 
sayoshi Matsukata.  Married  Yoshi-ko,  sister 
of  Viscount  Takateru  Kuki.  Graduated 
from  the  Peers'  School  and  the  Imperial 
University;  studied  in  Europe  and  America. 
Upon  return  home  became  Lecturer  of  the 
Tokyo  Imperial  University;  resigned  to 
enter  business.  Elected  M.  H.  R.  for  Kob(? 
City,  191 2. 

Matsukata,  Masayoshi,  Marquis  (Count, 
created  in  1884  and  Marquis  in  1906), 
M.  H.  p..  Privy  Councillor,  Councillor  of 
the  Bureau  of  Decorations.  Born,  February, 
1835,  in  Kagoshima,  fourth  son  of  Yenzo 
Matsukata,  a  samurai  of  Kagoshima. 
Married  Masako,  first  daughter  of  Sadayu 
Kawakami,  a  samurai  of  Kagoshima.  Is 
one  of  the  "Elder  Statesmen."  Entered 
the  Financial  Department  soon  after  the 
Restoration  and  became  Minister  of  Finance 
in  1 881;  held  the  post  over  ten  years  and 
instituted  great  reforms.  In  189 1  formed 
a  Cabinet  and  became  the  Premier  with 
additional  portfolio  of  Minister  of  Finance. 
Ministry  fell  the  following  year,  unable  to 
withstand  the  united  attacks  of  the  opposite 
parties;  was  again  Minister  of  Finance  on 
the  occasion  of  the  Japan-China  War;  was 
obliged  to  resign  his  post  in  consequence  of 
differences  of  opinion  with  the  late  Prince 
Ito,  then  Premier.  His  second  Ministry, 
1896-1897,  was  made  memorable  by  the 
establishment  of  the  gold  standard.  Was 
Financial  Minister  in  the  Yamagata  Ministry 
that  followed,  1898-1900.  In  1902  he 
travelled  through  Europe  and  America.  A 
Privy  Councillor  since  July,  1903;  President 
of  the  Japan  Red  Cross  Society  in  1903, 
which  post  he  resigned  in  19 13.  Has  been 
decorated  with  the  Order  of  the  Chrysan- 
themum and  promoted  to  the  rank  of 
Marquis  in  recognition  of  meritorious  ser- 
vices.    Publications,  "Report  on  the  Adjust- 


ment of  Paper  Currency"  (in  Japanese); 
"History  of  National  Debts  in  Japan" 
(translated  into  EngUsh);  "Report  on  the 
Post  Bellum  Financial  Administration  in 
Japan"  (translated  into  English);  "Notice 
Historique  sur  la  R(5forme  de  I'Import 
Fonder   au   Japony"    (written   in   French). 

Matsumuro,  Itasu,  Minister  of  Justice 
since  October,  1916.  Born,  January,  1852, 
in  Fukuoka-ken,  first  son  of  Shingo  Mat- 
sumuro, a  samurai  of  Fukuoka-ken.  Married 
Koto,  first  daughter  of  Tsuneyuki  Yotsuya, 
a  samurai  of  Tokyo.  Graduated  from  the 
Law  College  of  the  Tokyo  Imperial  University 
in  1884.  Appointed  Probationary  Judge, 
1884;  Judge  of  the  Tokyo  Court  of  Appeal 
in  the  same  year;  Public  Procurator  and 
Procurator  in  Chief  of  the  Nagasaki  Court 
of  Appeal,  June,  1898;  President  of  the  same 
court,  June,  1901;  Procurator-General  of 
the  Supreme  Court,  July,  1904.  In  addition, 
he  has  held  the  posts  of  President  of  the 
Administrative  Litigation  Court;  Minister 
of  Justice  under  the  second  Katsura  Cabinet, 
December,  19 12,  to  February,  1913;  Chief 
Auditor  to  the  Imperial  Household  Treasury, 
July,  1914,  to  October,  1916.  On  the  forma- 
tion of  the  Terauchi  Cabinet  he  was  appointed 
to  his  present  post.  He  was  decorated 
with  the  First  Order  of  the  Sacred  Treasure, 
in  October,  1915. 

Matsuo,  Hisao,  Director  of  the  Mousseline 
de  Laine  Spinning  and  Weaving  Company, 
Limited.  Born,  March,  1871,  in  Mie-ken, 
fourth  son  of  Kazunao  Matsuo.  Married 
Matsuko,  elder  daughter  of  Heisaku  lida, 
of  Oita-ken.  Graduated  from  the  Economic 
Course  of  the  Keio  University,  1894.  Joined 
the  staff  of  the  Jiji  Shimpo,  a  daily  paper, 
as  writer,  immediately  after  graduation; 
was  in  China  as  the  Peking  correspondent 
for  the  above  mentioned  paper,  1896- 1898; 
Manager  of  the  Osaka  branch  of  the  Jiji 
Shimposha;  Manager  of  Murai  Brothers  & 
Company,  1899;  connected  with  the  present 
company  since  1908. 

Megata,  Tanetaro,  Baron  (created 
1906),  Member  of  House  of  Peers.  Born 
July  20,  1853,  first  son  of  Kosuke  Megata, 
a  samurai.  Married  Itsu,  adopted  sister 
of  Count  Katsu.  Graduated  from  Harvard 
University;  studied  economics;  returned 
home  and  served  as  judge,  Secretary  of  the 
Financial  Department  and  the  State  Council; 
Revenue  Officer;  Councillor  of  Finance; 
Director  of  Reventie  Bureau;  Director  of 
Experimentary  Brewery  Laboratory;  went 
to  Europe  and  America  as  superintendent 
of  Government  students;  appointed  Financial 
Advisor  to  Korean  Government,  1904, 
holding  the  post  until  October,  1907,  when 
the  new  Japan-Korean  agreement  was 
concluded;  nominated  member  of  the  House 


of  Peers,  1904;  created  Baron  in  recognition 
of  meritorious  service  during  the  Russo- 
Japanese  War.  Has  been  decorated  with 
the  Second  Order  of  Merit.  Head  of 
Japanese  Commercial  Mission  to  America, 
1917-1918. 

MiSHiMA,  Yataro,  Viscount  (succeeded 
as,  1888),  Member  of  House  of  Peers, 
President  of  the  Bank  of  Japan  since  Feb- 
ruary, 1913.  Bom  April,  1867,  first  son  of 
the  late  Viscount  Michiyoshi  Mishima. 
Married  Kane-ko,  sister  of  Marquis  Taka- 
naru  Shijyo.  Studied  in  an  American 
university,  1884- 1888;  repeated  his  visit, 
1889-1892.'  Appointed  Expert  of  Hokkaido, 
1 888 ;  elected  member  of  the  House  of  Peers, 
July,  1897;  Director  of  the  Yokohama 
Specie  Bank;  promoted  to  the  presidency 
of  the  same,  191 1;  present  post  since  1913. 
Has  been  decorated  with  the  Fourth  Order 
of  the  Rising   Sun. 

MiY.AOKA,  TsuNEjiRO,  Lawyer.  Born  in 
1865  at  Osaka.  Married  Keiko,  second 
daughter  of  Ginsaku  Masaki,  a  samurai. 
Graduated  with  honors  in  law  from  the 
Tokyo  Imperial  University,  1887.  Entered 
diplomatic  service,  being  commissioned  as 
Attache  of  Legation  and  assigned  to  duties 
in  Law  Bureau  of  the  Department  of  Foreign 
Affairs,  1887.  Secretary  of  Legation  and  Jun- 
ior Councillor  of  the  department,  1889: 
Charge  d'affaires  at  Washington,  1894;  First 
Secretary  of  Legation  at  Berlin,  1 894-1900, 
part  of  that  time  acting  as  Charge  d'affaires: 
Minister  Resident  and  Senior  Councillor  of 
the  department,  1900-1906;  represented 
Japanese  Government  before  International 
Arbitral  Tribunal  of  The  Hague,  1904-1905; 
Councillor  of  Embassy  at  Washington  with 
rank  of  Minister  Plenipotentiary,  1906-1908; 
President  of  Japanese  Commission  to  In- 
ternational Opium  Conference,  1909.  Re- 
signed to  take  up  general  practice  of  law, 
1909. 

MoTONO,  Ichiro,  Viscount  (created  1916), 
Hogakuhakushi,  Foreign  Minister  since 
November,  1916.  Born,  Ferbuary,  1862, 
in  Saga-ken,  first  son  of  Seikyo  Motono,  a 
samurai  of  Saga  clan.  Married  Hisa-ko, 
elder  sister  of  Viscount  Ikizo  Nomura. 
Graduated  from  the  University  of  Lyons, 
France.  On  his  return  home  was  appointed 
translator  in  the  Foreign  Office,  1890;  then 
Councillor,  1893,  and  had  conferred  on  him 
the  degree  of  Hogakuhakushi;  private  secre- 
tary to  the  Foreign  Minister  and  Councillor 
to  the  Administrative  Bureau,  1895;  trans- 
ferred as  First  Secretary  of  Legation  at 
St.  Petersburg,  1896;  appointed  Minister- 
Resident  at  Brussels,  1898;  was  a  Junior 
Delegate  of  Japan  to  the  Peace  Conference 
held  at  The  Hague,  1899;  transferred  to  be 
Minister    at    Paris,     1901 ;    Ambassador    at 


1 

I 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


917 


Petrograd,  January,  1906.  Has  been  deco- 
rated with  the  First  Order  of  the  Grand 
Cordon  of  the  Rising  Sun.  Created  Viscount 
for  his  distinguished  services  to  the  State, 
July,  1916. 

MuRAl,  KiCHlBEi,  President  of  the  Murai 
Head  Office,  the  Murai  Bank,  and  the  Murai 
Savings  Bank,  Director  of  the  Murai  Steam- 
ship Company,  the  Murai  Coal  Mining 
Company,  the  Teikoku  Reeling  Company, 
the  Imperial  Hotel,  the  Murai  Warehouse 
Company,  Auditor  of  the  Hohden  Petroleum 
Oil  Company,  of  the  Toa  Flour  Refining 
Company,  of  the  Imperial  Theatre  Company, 
and  of  the  Formosan  Sugar  Refining  Com- 
pany. Born,  Januarj',  1864,  in  Kyoto, 
second  son  of  Yahei  Murai,  and  adopted 
by  Kichiemon  Murai,  his  uncle.  Married 
Kaoru-ko,  daughter  of  Viscount  Hinonishi. 
Went  to  America;  studied  the  manufacture 
of  cigarettes.  His  cigarettes  first  appeared 
on  the  market  in  1893;  being  extensively 
advertised  they  developed  an  important 
sale  in  Japan,  and  by  1903  had  practically 
stopped  the  import  of  foreign  cigarettes; 
also  exported  to  China  and  other  countries 
in  large  quantities.  In  1889  a  combine 
was  formed  with  the  American  Tobacco 
Compan}'  under  the  name  of  Murai  Brothers 
&  Company,  of  which  company  he  was 
elected  President  and  Director.  This  con- 
cern was  purchased  by  the  Government 
when  it  launched  the  Tobacco  Monopoly 
in  1905.  He  established  the  Murai  Bank; 
has  opened  branches  and  agencies  in  all  the 
important  commercial  centres  of  the  Empire. 
Now  interested  in  many  enterprises. 

Naito,  Hisahiro,  President  of  the  Nippon 
Kerosene  Company,  Limited,  Director  of 
Niigata  Iron  Works.  Born  July  22,  1859, 
in  Niigata-ken,  eldest  son  of  Hisayuki  Xaito. 
Married  Saga,  younger  sister  of  Shoji  Hiro- 
kawa,  o£  the  same  province.  Elected  mem- 
ber of  the  Prefectural  Assembly,  1885;  mem- 
ber House  of  Representatives,  1894;  estab- 
lished the  Nippon  Petroleum  Company, 
Limited,  1888.  While  holding  a  seat  in 
Parliament  he  went  to  Europe  to  inspect 
petroleum  industries,  commissioned  by  the 
Department  of  Agriculture  and  Commerce, 
1897;  returned  home  in  December  of  the 
same  year;  sent  to  America  by  the  same 
department,  1904;  returned  home  in  August 
of  the  same  year;  nominated  Councillor  of  the 
Japan  Grand  Exhibition,  1908.  Was  given 
a  "Blue  Ribbon  "  in  recognition  of  his  brilliant 
services,  1909. 

Nakahashi,  ToKiGORo,  Third  Order  of 
Merit,  M.  H.  R.  for  Kanazawa  City,  Presi- 
dent of  the  Ujigawa  Electric  Company, 
Limited,  President  of  the  Japan  Lime  Nitro- 
gen Company,  Limited,  Auditor  of  the  South 
Manchuria     Railway     Company,     Limited. 


Born,  1864,  in  Kanazawa,  fifth  son  of 
Soichi  Saito,  a  samurai  of  Kanawa, 
adopted  into  the  Nakahashi  family.  Mar- 
ried Etsu,  adopted  daughter  of  the  late 
Baron  Demzaburo  Fujita.  Studied  law, 
politics,  and  political  economy  at  the  Tokyo 
Imperial  University.  When  he  graduated, 
in  1886,  he  became  judge,  but  soon  was 
transferred  to  the  administrative  service  and 
contributed  to  the  development  of  industry  as 
Councillor  of  the  Agriculture  and  Commerce 
Department.  In  1889  he  was  appointed 
Councillor  of  the  Bureau  of  Legislation,  and 
visited  England,  France,  Germany,  Austria, 
Italy,  Russia,  and  North  America  as  the 
Commissioner,  and  engaged  in  investigation 
of  the  parliamentary  systems  of  Europe  and 
America.  When  he  returned  to  Japan  in 
the  following  year,  after  studying  the  consti- 
tutional governments  of  the  above  men- 
tioned countries,  the  First  Parliament  of 
the  Empire  was  about  to  be  opened,  and  he 
was  appointed  Secretary  of  the  House  of 
Representatives.  In  1 891  he  was  trans- 
ferred to  the  Department  of  Communica- 
tions, and  after  serving  as  Director  of  the 
Accounts  Bureau  and  Director  of  the  Inspec- 
tion Bureau,  he  was  promoted  to  the  post  of 
Director  of  the  Railway  Bureau.  In  1898 
he  became  the  President  of  the  Osaka  Shosen 
Kaisha  (Osaka  Mercantile  Steamship  Com- 
pany). At  that  time  the  economic  circles 
of  the  Empire  were  panic  stricken  as  a  conse- 
cjuence  of  the  Japan-China  War,  and  various 
industrial  companies  were  brought  to  the 
brink  of  ruin.  Especially  was  the  carrying 
trade  badly  depressed.  Hereupon  Mr.  Naka- 
hashi carried  out  certain  reforms  in  the 
administration  of  the  company,  and  also 
endeavoured  to  increase  its  income.  As  a 
result,  the  business  gradually  began  to 
improve.  He  also  regulated  the  old  service 
lines,  and  at  the  same  time  opened  new- 
ones.  Thus,  reforming  the  administration 
on  the  one  hand,  and  amalgamating  with 
other  companies  also  engaged  in  coast  navi- 
gation on  the  other,  the  business  was  almost 
doubled.  Since  passing  through  the  Russo- 
Japanese  War,  the  foundation  of  the  company 
has  become  more  solid,  and  the  business  has 
gone  on  expanding.  At  present  steamship 
services  of  the  company  include  Japan,  For- 
mosa, Southern  China,  Northern  China, 
Manchuria,  Korea,  Vladivostock,  Saghalien, 
and  America.  After  Mr.  Nakahashi  wit- 
nessed the  prosperity  of  the  company,  he 
resigned  the  presidency,  in  19 14.  When  the 
Uji-rivcr  Electric  Company  was  established 
in  1906,  he  was  chosen  its  President.  The 
object  of  the  company  is  to  utilize  the  water- 
power  of  Biwa,  the  largest  lake  of  Japan,  and 
to  supplj'  electric  power  to  Osaka,  Kyoto, 
and  other  large  towns  in  the  vicinity.     The 


capital  of  the  company  is  12,500,000  yen. 
The  plans  for  the  work  are  the  largest  of  their 
kind  in  Japan.  Mr.  Nakahashi  was  elected 
a  member  of  the  Osaka  Municipal  Assembly, 
and  became  its  President;  was  elected 
M.  H.  R.  for  Osaka  City  in  1912,  and  for 
Kanazawa  City  in  1916  and  1917.  Publi- 
cation: "Removal  of  the  Imperial  Capital 
to  Osaka  " 

.Naka.matsu,  Morio,  F.  R.  S.  A.,  is  one  of 
the  leading  and  best  known  authorities  in 
Japan  on  the  law  relating  to  patents,  and 
generally  regarding  industrial  matters  as 
they  affect  foreign  concerns.  His  experience 
is  a  very  lengthy  one,  and  from  the  dis- 
tinguished official  career  which  he  had  before 
entering  upon  private  practice  as  Counsellor 
at  Law  and  Patent  Attorney,  it  will  be 
seen  that  Mr.  Nakamatsu  is  particularly 
well  qualified  to  direct  the  Nakamatsu 
International  Patent  and  Law  Office  which 
he  founded.  The  subject  of  this  sketch  was 
born  in  Wakayama  Prefecture,  and  grad- 
uated from  the  Law  College  of  the  Tokyo 
Imperial  University  in  1891.  He  entered 
the  service  of  the  Government  in  the  Depart- 
ment of  Agriculture  and  Commerce,  and  was 
appointed  Secretary  of  the  Patent  Office  in 
1895.  He  served  in  this  office  for  eighteen 
years,  the  last  six  as  Director.  Mr.  Naka- 
matsu took  part  in  the  drafting  of  all  the 
legislation  relating  to  industrial  property, 
and  as  representative  of  his  Government 
he  attended  the  Technical  Congress  for  the 
unification  and  simplification  of  industrial 
property,  held  at  Berne  in  1904.  In  191 1, 
in  a  similar  capacity,  he  attended  the  Con- 
ference of  the  International  Union  for  the 
Protection  of  Industrial  Property,  held  at 
Washington.  He  resigned  his  public  position 
in  1913  and  opened  a  patent  and  law  office 
the  following  year.  Mr.  Nakamatsu  has 
therefore  had  an  intimate  knowledge  and 
great  experience  in  matters  relating  to 
industrial  property,  both  at  home  and 
abroad.  The  staff  of  the  Nakamatsu  Inter- 
national Patent  and  Law  Office  is  well 
appointed,  and  the  business  is  growing 
steadily  year  by  year.  Members  of  the 
staff  are  Messrs.  R.  Ono,  Chemical  Engineer, 
Patent  Attorney,  and  ex-Chief  Examiner 
of  the  Imperial  Patent  Office;  K.  Okada, 
Mechanical  Engineer,  Patent  Attorney,  and 
ex- Assistant  Examiner  of  the  Imperial 
Patent  Office;  S.  Yashima,  Counsellor  at 
Law  and  Patent  Attorney,  graduate  of 
the  Tokyo  Imperial  University,  and  Y. 
Ikeda,  Counsellor  at  Law  and  Patent 
Attorney,  graduate  of  the  Tokj-o  Imperial 
University. 

The  office  address  of  Mr.  Nakamatsu  is 
No.  21  Mitsubishi  Building,  Marunouchi, 
Tokyo. 


9i8 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


Nakano,  Buei,  Chairman  of  the  Tokyo 
Chamber  of  Commerce,  Chairman  of  the 
Tokyo  Municipal  Assembly,  President  of 
the  Nisshin  Life  Insurance  Company, 
Director  of  the  Ishikari  Colliery  Company, 
Limited,  and  of  the  Hakodate  Water  Power 
Electric  Company,  Limited.  Born  January 
3,  1848,  at  Takamatsu  in  Kagawa-ken, 
eldest  son  of  Kaichi  Nakano,  a  samurai. 
Married  Sen,  younger  sister  of  Nagayuki 
Shimazu,  a  samurai  of  Kagawa-ken.  Enter- 
ed the  Kagawa  Prefectural  Office  in  1872; 
an  administrative  official  of  the  Kumamoto 
Prefectural  Office  at  the  time  of  the  Saigo 
Rebellion;  then  of  the  Yamaguchi  Pre- 
fectural Office;  entered  the  Central  Govern- 
ment as  Junior  Secretary  to  the  Department 
of  Agriculture  and  Commerce,  1881 ;  resigned 
with  Count  Okuma  and  joined  Kaishinto 
(Progressive  party)  in  1888;  was  elected 
member  of  the  Prefectural  Assembly  of 
Kagawa,  his  native  place,  and  was  after- 
wards appointed  Chairman.  Began  his 
business  career  as  Vice-President  of  the 
Tokyo  Stock  Exchange,  Limited;  then 
President  of  the  Kansai  Railway  Company, 
Limited.  Was  elected  M.  H.  R.  to  the 
first  session  of  the  Imperial  Diet  in  1890; 
elected  successively  eight  times.  Filled 
important  posts  in  various  companies; 
nominated  Chairman  of  the  Tokyo  Chamber 
of  Commerce  until  191 7;  Chairman  of  Tokyo 
City  Assembly,  June,  1914.  Visited  America 
in  1909. 

Editor's  Note:  To  Mr.  Nakano  much 
of  the  success  of  this  compilation  is  due, 
inasmuch  as  he  gave  it  his  very  enthusiastic 
support  and  approval,  for  which  we  make 
grateful  acknowledgment. 

Nakashoji,  Ren,  Second  Order  of  Merit, 
M.  H.  P.,  Minister  of  Agriculture  and 
Commerce  since  October,  1916.  Born,  July, 
1866,  in  Yamaguchi-ken,  second  son  of 
Kyuryo  Nakashoji,  a  samurai.  Married 
Yae,  third  daughter  of  Asazo  Shimamoto  of 
Hyogo-ken.  Graduated  from  the  English 
Law  School  in  1882;  passed  the  Government 
examination  for  the  Bench  in  1887;  Clerk 
of  law  court;  Public  Procu.  in  1890;  Procu. 
of  the  Yokohama  District  Coiu-t,  then  of 
the  Tokyo  Court  of  Appeal;  Councillor  of 
the  Department  of  Justice;  sent  to  England 
in  1901;  Director  of  the  Bureau  of  Civil 
Engineering  in  the  Home  Department  in 
1904,  then  of  the  Police  Bureau  in  the  same 
year;  Vice-Minister  of  Communications 
until  December,  191 3;  Minister  of  Agricul- 
ture and  Commerce  from  December,  191 2, 
to  February,  19 13;  then  nominated  M.  H.  P. 

Oba,  Dr.  Shige.ma,  Jr.,  Doctor  of  Law 
and  Patent  Attorney,  holds  a  distinguished 
place  in  the  legal  system  of  Japan,  and  is 
recognised    as    an    authority    on    criminal 


jurisprudence.  He  was  born  in  Yamagata 
in  November,  1869,  a  son  of  the  late  Iwazo 
Oba,  a  samurai.  Dr.  Oba  graduated  in  the 
English  Course  of  the  Hogakuin  (now  the 
Chuo  University),  July,  1899.  Previous 
to  this  he  had  passed  the  examinations 
qualifying  him  to  practise  law  (1891),  and 
to  take  a  seat  on  the  bench  when  appointed. 
He  entered  upon  the  practice  of  his  pro- 
fession, and  in  October,  1895,  was  appointed 


He  is  an  ardent  advocate  of  the  revision  of 
the  new  Crinimal  Code  now  in  force.  He 
was  elected  a  member  of  the  House  of 
Representatives  for  Yamagata  Prefecture 
in  1915.  Dr.  Oba  has  written  extensively 
on  legal  matters,  his  most  important  works 
being,  "Fundamental  Principles  of  Criminal 
Policy,"  "Fundamental  Subjects  of  Criminal 
Policy,"  "Introduction  to  Criminal  Law," 
" The  Jury  System, "  "Method  of  Identifying 


gamman,  nikko 


a  judge,  taking  seat  in  turn  at  Osaka,  Kob^, 
and  Nagoya.  Dr.  Oba  was  a  judge  until 
1908,  when  he  was  made  Public  Procurator 
for  the  Tokyo  District  Court,  a  position 
he  held  for  three  years.  In  vSeptember, 
1905,  he  went  to  Germany  to  investigate 
the  conduct  of  public  prosecutions,  and 
while  there  he  entered  the  Law  College  of 
Muchen  University,  graduating  as  Doctor 
of  Jurisprudence  in  1907.  On  his  return 
to  Japan,  Dr.  Oba  was  appointed  Public 
Procurator  of  the  Tokyo  District  Court, 
and  Councillor  of  the  Department  of  Justice 
in  April,  1908.  He  also  served  at  the 
Bureau  of  Civil  and  Criminal  Affairs,  and 
the  Prison  Bureau.  He  was  Manager  of 
the  Legal  Investigation  Committee,  1908- 
1913,  and  obtained  the  degree  of  Hogakuha- 
kushi  (Doctor  of  Law),  March,  1913.  The 
following  month  he  was  appointed  a  judge 
of  the  Supreme  Court,  but  after  one  year's 
service  resigned  his  official  post  to  enter 
private  practice  as  Counsellor  at  Law  and 
Patent  Attorney.  Dr.  Oba  is  well  known 
for  having  introduced  the  finger-print  sys- 
tem   of    identification    in    criminal    affairs. 


Culprits,"  etc.  Dr.  Oba's  office  address  is 
No.  3  Yurakucho,  3-Chome,  Kojimachi, 
Tokyo. 

Okada,  Ryohei,  Minister  of  Education 
since  October,  1916.  Born,  May,  1864, 
in  Shizuoka-ken,  eldest  son  of  the  late 
Ryoichiro  Okada,  a  samurai  of  Kakegawa 
clan.  Married  Misao,  second  daughter  of 
Tsutomu  Ishiguro,  a  samurai  of  Shiga-ken. 
Graduated  from  the  College  of  Literature 
of  the  Tokyo  Imperial  University,  1887. 
Appointed  Professor  of  the  former  First 
Higher  Middle  School;  School  Inspector  of 
the  Department  of  Education;  Councillor 
to  the  same;  President  of  the  Yamaguchi 
Higher  Middle  School;  Secretary  of  the 
Department  of  Education;  member  of  the 
Higher  Educational  Council;  Councillor  to 
the  Department  of  Education;  Director  of 
the  Technical  Education  Bureau  of  the 
same;  Secretary-General  of  the  same;  Lord- 
in-waiting  in  the  Kinkei  Hall.  He  repre- 
sented Japan  at  the  International  Popula- 
tion and  Sanitation  Conference  held  at 
Paris,  1900;  nominated  member  House  of 
Peers,  1904;  President  of  the  Kyoto  Imperial 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


919 


University,  1907;  Vice-Minister  of  Education 
in  1908,  which  post  he  later  resigned. 

Oklra,  Kihachiro,  Second  Order  of 
Merit,  Baron  (created  December  i,  1915), 
millionaire.  President  of  the  Okura  Gumi, 
Presiding  Director  of  the  Imperial  Hotel, 
Limited,  of  the  Japan  Chemical  Industrial 
Company,  of  the  Tokai  Paper  Materials 
Company,  and  of  the  Imperial  Theatre; 
Director  of  the  Oriental  Steamship  Company, 
the  Narita  Railway  Company,  the  Tokyo 
Electric  Light  Company,  the  Koriyama 
Silk  Spinning  Company,  the  Dai- Nippon 
Beer  Brewery  Company,  the  Niitaka  Sugar 
Refining  Company,  the  Teikoku  Hemp 
Manufacturing  Company,  and  the  Tokyo 
Rope  Manufacturing  Company;  Auditor  of 
the  Japan  Shoes  Manufacturing  Company, 
the  Hokkaido  Colonization  Bank,  the  Uji- 
kawa  Electric  Company,  the  Formosan 
Bank,  etc..  Bom  September,  1837,  at 
Shibata  in  Niigata-ken,  second  son  of 
Sennosuke  Okura.  Married  Toku,  elder 
daughter  of  Tome  Mochida.  Grew  up 
under  the  parental  roof,  but  when  seventeen 
years  of  age  lost  his  parents,  and  the  next 
year  came  to  Tokyo.  Employed  by  a  grocer, 
and  after  five  years  started  business  inde- 
pendently. At  the  time  of  the  Restoration 
he  sold  arms  and  ammunition,  from  which 
he  derived  a  large  profit.  Subsequently  he 
imported  Western  arms.  Later  he  founded 
a  foreign  tailor's  shop  —  a  pioneer  in  that 
business  in  Japan.  In  1872  he  travelled 
through  Europe  and  America  to  study 
commerce  and  industry  in  the  West,  and 
opened  a  branch  office  in  London,  from 
which  ever  since  he  has  operated  an  export 
and  import  business.  In  the  Formosan 
Expedition  of  1874  and  the  Civil  War  of 
1877,  he  rendered  great  services  to  the 
Government  by  supplying  provisions  and 
other  necessaries  to  the  Imperial  forces.  In 
1880  he  went  to  America  in  order  to  regain 
the  market  for  Japanese  tea  there  and  to 
encourage  its  export,  as  our  tea  export  to 
America  was  then  decreasing  owing  to  dis- 
creditable actions  on  the  part  of  traders. 
In  this  mission  he  was  successful.  Again, 
in  1884,  he  travelled  through  Europe  and 
America  for  commercial  and  industrial 
observation.  On  his  return  he  established 
the  Engineering  Department  of  his  firm, 
and  was  contractor  to  the  Army  in  this  line 
of  work  during  the  Japan-China  and  Russo- 
Japanese  Wars.  Baron  Okura  is  one  of 
the  founders  of  the  present  Tokyo  Chamber 
of  Commerce,  in  which  for  many  years  he 
held  the  post  of  Vice-President.  In  1888  he 
contributed  a  large  sum  of  money  toward 
the  Coast  Defence  expenses  and  was  granted 
the  Court  rank  of  Junior  Fifth  Grade.  He 
made   a    donation   of   Yen    500,000    toward 


the  establishment  of  the  Okura  Commercial 
School  and  also  rendered  great  financial  aid 
in  the  inauguration  of  the  Osaka  and  the 
Seoul  Commercial  Schools.  Lately  he  has 
offered  Yen  1,000,000  to  the  Government 
as  a  relief  fund  for  poor  people,  following 
the  example  of  His  Majesty's  recent  gracious 
donation  of  the  kind.  He  has  been  decorated 
with  the  Second  Order  of  the  Sacred  Treasure 
in  recognition  of  his  meritorious  service, 
both  in  the  Japan-China  and  in  the  Russo- 
Japanese  War.  After  the  latter  war  he 
went  to  China  to  investigate  business 
conditions.  He  founded  the  Okura  Fine 
Arts  Hall.  On  the  occasion  of  the  Corona- 
tion Ceremony  of  H.  I.  M.  the  Emperor, 
December,  1915,  he  was  created  Baron. 

Olsen,  Captain  C,  well  known  in  the 
Yokohama  business  community,  and  prob- 
ably just  as  familiar  a  figure  throughout  the 
Far  East,  Captain  C.  Olsen  is  one  of  the 
interesting  types  of  foreigners  who  have 
pioneered  the  mercantile  marine  and  other 
interests  of  the  Empire.  The  subject  of 
this  sketch,  Canute  Olsen,  was  born  at 
Stavanger,  Norway,  June  21,  1 85 1.  He 
spent  the  early  years  of  his  life  at  sea  in 
sailing  ships,  and  first  came  to  Japan  in  1877. 
At  that  time  Japan  had  practically  no 
merchant  marine,  and  foreign  officers  were 
badly  wanted  for  the  few  ships  that  were 
running.  The  Mitsui  Bishi  Shipping  Com- 
pany offered  Captain  Olsen  a  position,  and 
in  1879  he  joined  that  company's  service  as 
second  officer.  He  remained  with  the 
Mitsui  Bishi  Company  until  its  amalgama- 
tion with  the  Kiodo  Uenyu  Steamship  Co., 
and  then  transferred  to  the  new  company, 
afterwards  so  well  known  as  the  Nippon 
Yusen  Kaisha,  serving  on  their  ships  as 
Chief  Officer.  He  became  a  captain  in  1890. 
During  the  Sino-Japanese  War  of  1894-5, 
Captain  Olsen  served  as  master  of  a  steamer 
engaged  in  transport  work,  etc.,  and  for  his 
distinguished  services  to  Japan  he  was 
decorated  by  the  Emperor  Meiji  with  the 
Sixth  Order  of  the  Rising  Sun.  In  1899 
Captain  Olsen  retired  from  the  service  of 
the  Nippon  Yusen  Kaisha  and  paid  a  visit 
to  Norway,  after  having  been  away  from 
his  birthplace  for  over  thirty-two  years. 
On  his  return  to  Japan  he  joined  the  Akazawa 
Copper  Mining  Company  in  1902,  and 
became  Manager  of  the  mine.  He  remained 
in  his  position  until  1904,  when  the  Europeans 
interested  in  the  property  had  to  sell  out  on 
account  of  lack  of  funds.  The  mine  is  now- 
one  of  the  richest  in  the  country,  having 
been  properly  developed  under  the  name 
of  the  Hitachi  Kozan.  Captain  Olsen  then 
established  his  present  business  as  a  marine 
and  general  surv'eyor  in  Yokohama.  He 
was    appointed    surveyor    to    the     Bureau 


Ycritas  of  Paris,  and  after  the  beginning  of 
the  present  war  he  took  over  the  inspector- 
ship of  that  institution,  also  becoming  their 
agent  in  Yokohama.  Captain  Olsen  estab- 
lished the  Japan  agency  for  the  Norske 
Lloyd  Fire  and  Marine  Insurance  Company 
of  Christiania.  He  is  also  agent  for  the 
Bergens,  Agders  and  Vidar  Insurance  Clubs 
of  Norway.  Captain  Olsen  is  married  to 
a  Japanese  lady  and  has  one  son.  His 
office  address  is  167  Yamashita-cho,  Yoko- 
hama, and  private  residence,  914  Daijingu- 
yama,  Kitagata,  Yokohama. 

OoKA,  Ikuzo,  M.  H.  R.  for  Yamaguchi- 
ken.  Born  June,  1856,  in  Yamaguchi-ken, 
eldest  son  of  the  late  lori  Ooka  of  Yamaguchi- 
ken.  Married  Yoshi,  second  daughter  of 
Matabei  Yamamoto  of  Tokyo.  Studied 
German  at  the  Medical  School  in  Nagasaki; 
studied  law  in  the  Law  School  of  the  Depart- 
ment of  Justice;  became  a  lawyer  in  1880; 
appointed  President  of  Kyoritsu  College  in 
1882;  joined  the  Progressive  party  the 
same  year;  elected  member  of  Tokyo 
Prefectural  Assembly  in  1885;  elected  mem- 
ber of  House  of  Representatives  in  1890, 
1892,  1894,  1898,  1902,  1903,  1907,  and  1912; 
established  the  Kokumin  Kyokai  with  the 
late  Marquis  Saigo  and  Viscount  Shinagawa 
in  1892;  proprietor  of  the  Chiio  Shimbun, 
1893-1910;  went  to  China  with  the  late 
Prince  Ito  in  1898;  made  an  inspection  tour 
through  Europe  and  America  in  1899;  on 
his  return  home  established  the  Seiyukawi 
under  the  presidency  of  Prince  Ito;  elected 
Chairman  of  the  Tokyo  Municipal  Council 
in  1905;  President  of  the  House  of  Repre- 
sentatives, 191 1 ;  appointed  Minister  of 
Education,  March,  1913,  but  on  the  over- 
throw of  the  Yamamoto  Cabinet,  in  con- 
sequence of  the  Naval  Scandal,  resigned  the 
next  month. 

OsAKi,  HiROYOSHi,  member  of  the  House 
of  Representatives  for  Matsuyama  City, 
besides  being  a  well  known  young  business 
man  in  Tokyo,  is  one  of  the  vital  factors  in 
Japan's  politics.  He  does  not  belong  to 
any  political  party,  and  exercises  a  vigourous 
independence  in  his  attitude  on  the  big 
questions  which  confront  the  Japanese 
politician.  His  criticism  of  the  Government 
is  striking  and  his  speeches  on  many  impor- 
tant matters  of  policy  have  attracted  Empire- 
wide  notice.  Mr.  Osaki  was  bom  in  Matsu- 
yama City  in  July,  1878,  the  son  of  Hiromasa 
Osaki.  He  graduated  in  the  political  course 
of  the  Law  College  of  the  Tokyo  Imperial 
University  in  1902,  and  then  entered  the 
service  of  the  Mitsui  Bank.  He  was 
appointed  Managing  Director  of  the  Chu- 
Nichi  Jitsugyo  Kabushiki  Kaisha  (Japan- 
China  Industrial  Development  Company, 
Ltd.)  in  August,  1913.     At  the  elections  in 


59 


920 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


April,  191 7,  Mr.  Osaki  was  returned  to  the 
House  of  Representatives  for  his  native  city. 

OsAWA,  Shozo,  Vice-President  of  the 
Japan  Leather  Company,  President  of  the 
Japan  Shoes  Manufacturing  Company. 
Bom  May,  1849,  in  Tokyo,  third  son  of 
Ruiemon  Osawa,  a  Tokj'o  samurai.  Married 
Moyo,  elder  daughter  of  Hirozo  Shindo,  a 
samurai  of  Chiba-ken. 

OsHiMA,  Ken-ichi.  Lieutenant-General, 
Minister  of  War  since  1916.  Bom  May, 
1858,  in  Gifu-ken,  eldest  son  of  the  late 
Keinoshin  Oshima,  a  samurai  of  Gifu-ken. 
Married  Isoyu,  elder  daughter  of  Yu  Shimi- 
dzu,  a  samurai  of  Aichi-ken.  Graduated 
from  the  Military  Academy,  188 1 ;  prosecuted 
his  military  studies  in  Germany  and  France, 
1 890- 1 893;  Sub- Lieutenant  of  Artillery, 
December,  1881;  Lieutenant,  May,  1885; 
Captain,  December,  1889;  Major,  December, 
1894;  Lieutenant-Colonel,  October,  1899; 
Colonel,  December,  1902;  Major-General, 
November,  1906 ;  Lieutenant-General,  August, 
1913.  Was  Chief  of  Staff  of  the  General 
Commimications  Department  and  later  Chief 
of  the  Karafuto  Delimitation  Committee  in 
the  Russo-Japanese  War.  Vice-Chief  of 
the  General  Staff  Office,  September,  1912; 
Vice-Minister,  April,  1904;  promoted  to 
Minister  of  War,  March,  1916.  Decorated 
with  the  First  Order  of  Merit  and  the  Third 
Class  of  the  Golden  Kite. 

Otani,  Kahei,  one  of  the  largest  tax- 
payers of  Kanagawa-ken ;  tea,  silk,  and 
cocoon  export  merchant;  Chairman  of  the 
Yokohama  Chamber  of  Commerce;  Chair- 
man of  the  Central  Chamber  of  the  Tea 
Traders'  Association;  President  of  the 
Yokohama  Seventy-fourth  Bank,  Limited, 
the  Yokohama  Savings  Bank,  the  Japan 
Tea  Manufacturing  Company,  and  the 
Tokiwa  Life  Insurance  Company;  Director 
of  the  Tokyo  Fire  Insurance  Companj'  and 
the  Yokohama  Wire-Telegraphic  Company; 
Auditor  of  the  Teikoku  Marine  Transporta- 
tion Fire  Insurance  Company,  the  Japan 
Hypothec  Bank,  and  the  Bank  of  Taiwan 
(Formosa).  Bom,  1844,  in  Mie-ken,  fourth 
son  of  Ichibei  Otani.  Went  to  Yokohama  in 
1862  and  engaged  chiefly  in  the  tea  export 
business;  in  1872  inaugurated  a  tea  manu- 
facturing company  and  greatly  contributed 
to  the  improvement  and  development  of 
the  industry;  in  1881  rendered  a  good 
service  in  the  readjustment  of  the  financial 
difficulties  of  the  Seventy-fourth  Bank; 
being  elected  its  President,  he  placed  the 
business  of  the  bank  on  a  sound  basis;  in 
1884  organised  the  Yokohama  Tea  Mer- 
chants' Guild  of  which  he  became  President; 
elected  Chairman  of  the  Central  Associa- 
tion of  the  United  Tea  Merchants'  Guilds, 
which  post  he  still  occupies;  elected  member 


and  afterwards  Chairman  of  the  Yokohama 
Municipal  Council;  President  of  the  Yoko- 
hama Educational  Society  since  1893; 
organised  the  Japan  Tea  Manufacturing 
Company,  becoming  its  President.  Appoint- 
ed Councillor  of  the  Japanese  Exhibits 
Business  Bureau  at  the  time  of  the  Paris 
International  Grand  Exhibition  in  1896. 
Elected  President  of  the  Yokohama  Chamber 
of  Commerce,  the  Yokohama  Conscription 
Encouragement  Society,  and  member  of 
the  Yokohama  Harboiu-  Investigation  Com- 
mittee. In  1898,  when  the  United  States 
Government  decided  to  levy  heavy  duties 
on  Japanese  tea,  he  was  elected,  w-ith  the 
unanimous  approval  of  the  tea  merchants 
in  Japan,  as  their  representative,  to  proceed 
to  America  and  lay  the  case  before  President 
McKinley.  The  mission  proving  successful, 
the  high  tariff  was  abolished  the  following 
year.  During  his  stay  in  America  he  also 
attended  the  International  Commercial  Con- 
gress held  in  Philadelphia,  representing  the 
Tokyo  and  Yokohama  Chambers  of  Com- 
merce, and  submitted  a  proposition  for  the 
rapid  construction  of  the  direct  submarine 
cable  between  Japan  and  America,  across 
the  Pacific  Ocean.  The  proposal  having 
been  eventually  adopted,  the  Pacific  Com- 
mercial Cable  Company  was  formed.  He 
returned  home  the  following  year,  after 
having  made  a  tour  through  Europe.  He 
was  decorated  with  the  Third  Order  of 
Merit  in  1907.  He  was  a  member  of  the 
party  invited  by  the  United  Chambers  of 
Commerce  of  the  Pacific  Coast  in  1909. 
In   19 10  he  travelled  in  China  and  Korea. 

Saka,  Nakasuke,  Third  Order  of  Merit, 
Governor  of  Niigata-ken.  Bom  January 
29,  1879,  in  Yamaguchi-ken,  first  son  of  the 
late  Chusuke  Saka,  a  samurai  of  Yamaguchi- 
ken.  Married  Tatsu,  first  daughter  of 
Kuwasuke  Nakao,  of  the  same  prefecture. 
Studied  law,  and  passed  the  Higher  Civil 
Service  Examination  in  1885.  Appointed 
a  subordinate  official  in  the  Home  Depart- 
ment; Probational  Public  Auditor;  Secretary 
of  the  Board  of  Auditors;  Private  Secretary 
to  the  Home  Minister,  June,  1901;  Secre- 
tary to  Aichi-ken,  November,  1904;  Com- 
missioner to  Kanagawa-ken,  July,  1906;  then 
Governor  of  Ibaraki-ken  in  October,  1908; 
Governor  of  Ishikawa-ken,  December  1912, 
April,  1914;  then  transferred  to  present 
post. 

Sato,  Aimaro,  Japanese  Ambassador  to 
Washington,  1916  and  1917.  Born  March, 
1857,  in  Aomori-ken,  second  son  of  Itsuro 
Yamanaka,  a  samurai  of  Aomori,  and 
adopted  by  Kiyoei  Sato.  Married  Yuki, 
first  daughter  of  Tsunao  Tsushima,  a  samurai 
of  Aomori-ken.  Graduated  from  an  Ameri- 
can university,  1881;  appointed  clerk  in  the 


Foreign  Office  the  same  year;  Legation 
Secretary  unattached,  1886,  and  Chief  of 
the  Telegraph  Section;  Secretary  to  the 
Legation  at  Washington,  1888;  transferred 
to  London,  1891 ;  recalled  home  and  appointed 
Chief  of  Telegraph  and  Translation  Section, 
1893;  First  Class  Secretary  to  the  Legation 
at  Paris,  1896,  and  at  Berlin,  1898;  Minister 
Resident,  1900;  accredited  to  Mexico; 
recalled  home  in  1902.  He  had  charge  of  the 
special  correspondence  business  during  the 
Russo-Japanese  War,  and  was  in  the  suite 
of  the  Peace  Plenipotentiary  at  Portsmouth, 
1905;  Envoy  Extraordinary  and  Minister 
Plenipotentiary  to  Holland,  1906;  attended 
the  Second  International  Peace  Conference 
held  at  The  Hague,  1907;  attended  the 
International  Opium  Conference  at  The 
Hague,  October,  191 1;  Ambassador  to 
Austria-Hungary,  August,  1914.  Decorated 
with  the  First  Order  of  the  Sacred  Treasure 
and  with  many  foreign  orders. 

Sato,  Tetsutaro,  V'ice-Admiral,  Pres- 
ident of  the  Naval  College  since  December, 
191 6.  Born  July  17,  1866,  in  Yamagata-ken, 
eldest  son  of  the  late  Yujiro  Hiramuki. 
Married  Aya,  sister  of  Viscount  Chosei 
Ogasawara.  Graduated  from  the  Naval 
Academy,  1887.  Appointed  Second  Sub- 
Lieutenant,  June,  1893,  and  to  the  present 
rank  of  Rear-Admiral  in  December,  1912. 
Staff  to  Standing  Squadron  and  Second 
Squadron,  Captain  of  Aso,  a  warship  of 
First  Squadron.  Sent  twice  to  Europe 
and  America.  Took  part  in  the  Sino- 
Japanese  and  the  Russo-Japanese  Wars. 
Decorated  with  the  Second  Order  of  the 
Sacred  Treasure  and  the  Third  Class  of  the 
Golden  Kite. 

Shimamura,  Hayao,  Baron  (created  July 
14,  19 16),  Vice- Admiral,  Chief  of  the  Naval 
General  Staff  since  April,  19 14.  Bom 
September,  1858,  in  Kochi,  second  son  of  the 
late  Sagohei  Shimamura,  a  samurai  of  Kochi. 
Married  Kudao,  first  daughter  of  Masa- 
hide  Kondo  of  Kochi.  Graduated  from 
the  Naval  Cadet  School,  1880;  studied 
in  England  and  Italy,  1888-1890;  Second 
Sub-Lieutenant,  November,  1883;  Lieuten- 
ant, July,  1886;  Second  Commander,  Decem- 
ber, 1894.  Was  Staff  Officer  on  board  the 
flagship  Maisushima  in  the  Japan-China 
War,  being  slightly  wounded  in  the  left  leg 
in  the  Battle  of  the  Yellow  Sea.  Commander 
soon  after,  and  attached  to  the  Naval 
Department;  Professor  at  the  Naval  Staff 
College,  1896,  and  in  the  same  year  attached 
to  the  Japanese  Legation  at  Rome;  Captain, 
1899.  Was  Commander  of  the  Suma  and 
Chief  of  Staff  to  the  Standing  Squadron  in 
the  Boxer  Trouble,  1900;  attached  to  the 
Naval  Department,  and  also  professor  at 
the     college;     Rear-Admiral,      1904.     Took 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


921 


part  in  the  Russo-Japanese  War  as  Com- 
mander of  the  Second  and  Fourth  Squadrons; 
was  Chief  of  Staff  to  Admiral  Togo;  Director 
of  the  Naval  Cadet  College,  1906;  Vice- 
Admiral,  and  President  of  the  Naval  Staff 
College,  1908;  Commander-in-Chief  of  the 
Second    Squadron,    December,    1909;    Com- 


1904,  he  was  ordered  by  the  Department  of 
Finance  and  the  Formosan  Government- 
General,  to  take  charge  of  the  investigation 
of  the  sugar  industry.  He  was  appointed 
Expert  to  the  Formosan  Sugar  Affairs 
Bureau,  and  when  the  Meiji  Sugar  Refining 
Company     was    inaugurated     in     1906,     he 


A    CHERRY    BLOSSOM    SCENE 


mander-in-Chief  of  the  Saseho  Naval  Station, 
191 1 ;  then  present  post.  Promoted  to  the 
rank  of  Vice- Admiral,  August,  1915.  He 
attended  the  Hague  Peace  Conference  in 
1907.  Was  decorated  with  the  Second  Class 
of  the  Golden  Kite  and  the  Second  Order  of 
the  Double  Rayed  Rising  Sun  for  his  services 
in  the  Russo-Japanese  War. 

Soma,  Hanji,  President  of  the  Meiji 
Sugar  Refining  Company.  Born  July,  1869, 
in  Tokyo,  younger  brother  of  Yojiro  Tanaka, 
a  samurai  of  Aichi-ken,  and  adopted  into 
the  Soma  family.  Married  Kiyoshi,  elder 
daughter  of  his  adopted  father.  Graduated 
from  the  Tokyo  Higher  Technical  College 
in  1896.  On  graduation  he  was  appointed 
Assistant  Professor  of  his  alma  mater. 
Proceeded  to  Germany  by  Government 
order  in  1900,  and  studied  various  pro- 
cesses related  to  sugar  refining  at  the  Berlin 
Higher  Technical  School  and  the  Bruns- 
wick Higher  Technical  School.  In  1901 
he  went  to  the  United  States  and  continued 
his  studies  in  matters  pertaining  to  sugar  at 
the  University  of  Michigan,  from  which  he 
was  graduated  with  the  degree  of  Master 
of  Science  in  April,  1903.  In  the  following 
June  he  returned  to  Japan  and  was  appointed 
Professor  by  his  alma  mater.     In  December, 


entered  the  firm  as  its  Managing  Director- 
He  is  also  adviser  to  the  Toroku  Sugar 
Refining  Company. 

SuDA,  TosHiNOBU,  Kogakuhakushi,  Vice- 
President  of  the  Nippon  Yusen  Kaisha. 
Born  February,  1856,  in  Miyazaki,  third 
son  of  Moshimasa  Suda,  a  samurai  of  Miya- 
zaki. Married  Aki,  first  daughter  of  Mori- 
kuni  Takarabe,  a  samurai  of  Miyazaki,  in 
1886.  Graduated  from  the  Kobu-Daigaku 
(now  the  Engineering  College  of  the  Tokyo 
Imperial  University),  in  1881.  On  his 
graduation  he  entered  the  Communications 
Department  as  Expert,  afterwards  becoming 
E.\pert  to  the  Kawasaki  Dockyard  Company. 
He  joined  the  Nippon  Yusen  Kaisha  and 
was  sent  to  England  by  the  company,  1887- 
1892.  On  his  return  to  Japan,  he  was 
transferred  to  the  Yokohama  branch,  and 
in  1898  to  the  head  office  in  Tokyo.  He 
received  the  degree  of  Kogakuhakushi  in 
1899.  He  served  as  Managing  Director 
until  November,  1915,  when  he  was  pro- 
moted to  his  present  post.  He  has  been 
decorated  with  the  Fourth  Order  of  Merit 
in  recognition  of  his  services  during  the 
Russo-Japanese   War. 

Takahashi,  KoREKivo,  Baron  (created 
1907),   ex-Minister  of  Finance,   Member  of 


House  of  Peers.  Born  July,  18,54,  '"  Sendai, 
first  son  of  Koretada  Takahashi,  a  samurai 
of  Sendai  clan.  Married  Shina,  first  daughter 
of  Kinzaemon  Harada,  a  samurai  of  Kago- 
shima.  Studied  English  at  Yokohama,  and 
was  sent  to  America  for  study  in  1867. 
Received  the  appointment  of  Assistant 
Professor  of  the  Kaisei-gakko;  then  teacher 
of  English  in  a  clan  school  in  Karatsu.  Prin- 
cipal of  the  Osaka  English  School  in  1873;  an 
official  of  Department  of  Agriculture  and 
Commerce  in  1881,  and  promoted  to  the  pres- 
idency of  the  Patent  Bureau.  This  post  he 
resigned  in  1890  and  went  to  Peru  to  exploit  a 
silver  mine,  which  was  being  defrauded  by  a 
German  swindler.  In  April,  1 891,  he 
returned  home  and  took  a  post  in  the  Bank 
of  Japan.  He  was  promoted  to  be  a  Director, 
having  charge  of  the  western  section  of  the 
bank,  in  1893.  In  1895  he  entered  the 
Yokohama  Specie  Bank  as  its  Manager, 
became  Director  in  1896,  its  Vice-President 
in  1897,  and  then  Vice-President  of  the 
Bank  of  Japan  and  President  of  the  Yoko- 
hama Specie  Bank  in  1906,  as  an  additional 
post.  He  was  Financial  Agent  for  raising 
foreign  loans  in  England  and  America,  and 
visited  those  countries  twice  on  that  impor- 
tant mission,  1904-1906.  President  of  the 
Bank  of  Japan,  June,  1911.  Accepted  the 
portfolio  of  Finance  under  the  Yamamoto 
Cabinet,  February,  191 3.  He  resigned  in 
April,  1914,  and  is  now  one  of  the  leaders 
of  the  Seiyukai  party.  He  has  been  deco- 
rated with  the  First  Order  of  Merit. 

Takarabe,  Takeshi,  Vice-Admiral,  Mem- 
ber of  the  Board  of  Admirals.  Born,  March, 
1867,  in  Miyazaki-ken,  second  son  of  Tane- 
aki  Takarabe,  a  samurai  of  Miyazaki-ken. 
Married  Ine,  first  daughter  of  Admiral  Count 
Gombei  Yamamoto.  Graduated  from  the 
Naval  Staff  College,  1892,  and  studied  in 
England.  Appointed  Commander,  Septem- 
ber, 1902;  Captain,  in  January,  1905;  Rear- 
Admiral,  in  December,  1909;  Vice-Admiral  in 
December,  1913.  Before  he  was  appointed 
to  his  present  post  he  held  successively  the 
posts  of  commander  of  the  battleship  Fuji, 
Chief  of  Staff  of  the  First  Squadron,  Director 
of  the  Temporary  Naval  Construction  De- 
partment, Vice-Minister  of  the  Navy,  and 
member  of  the  Naval  Flag  Officers'  Confer- 
ence. He  w'as  Commander  of  the  Port 
Arthur  Fort  in  1915.  Has  held  his  present 
post  since  December,  1916.  Took  part  in 
both  the  Japan-China  War  and  the  Russo- 
Japanese  War.  Has  been  decorated  with  the 
Third  Class  of  the  Golden  Kite,  the  Second 
Order  of  Merit  with  the  Cordon  of  the  Sacred 
Treasure,  and  many  foreign  orders. 

Takata,  Shinzo,  Proprietor  of  the  well- 
known  Takata  Shokai,  machine  exporters. 
Bom,  February,  1852,  in  Aikawa,  Sado,  first 


922 


PRESENT-DAY    IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


son  of  Rokuro  Takata.  Married  Tami,  elder 
sister  of  Hidematsu  Ikeda,  of  Tokyo.  Became 
a  student  interpreter  at  the  Ebisu  Custom 
House  in  1869.  Ten  years  later  he  came 
up  to  Tokyo  to  seek  his  fortune,  and  first 
became  clerk  to  a  merchant,  Tsukiji,  under 
whom  he  gained  experience  in  foreign  trade. 
In  1 88 1  he  took  over  the  business,  which  by 
his  vmtiring  perseverance  and  extreme 
prudence,  has  been  carried  to  its  present 
state  of  prosperity.  He  made  a  tour  of 
observation  in  Europe  and  America  dicing 
1887,  and  on  his  return  home  founded  the 
Takata  Shokai.  He  has  been  decorated 
with  the  Third  Order  of  Merit  for  services 
during  the  Russo-Japanese  War. 

Taked.h,  Kyosaku,  Proprietor  of  the 
Takeda  Mining  Office,  President  of  the  Kano 
Mining  Company,  Limited,  and  the  Japan 
Mining  Company,  Limited.  Bom  in  1867 
in  Yamaguchi-ken,  third  son  of  Shozo 
Isobe,  adopted  by  Toyo  Takeda.  Married 
Ichi,  elder  daughter  of  Shikataro  Fujita  of 
Osaka.  Graduated  in  Mining  and  Metal-  - 
lurgy  at  the  Tok-yo  Imperial  University  in 
1893.  Entered  the  Foitagumi  and  became 
Chief  Expert  of  the  Omori  and  the  Kosaka 
Mines;  then  present  posts. 

Takeshita,  Isamu,  Rear-Admiral,  Staff 
of  Naval  General  Staff  Office,  and  Instructor 
at  the  Naval  College.  Born  December  4, 
1869,  in  Kagoshima-ken,  second  son  of 
Sadayoshi  Yamamoto,  a  samurai  of  the  same 
prefecture.  Married  Tei,  adopted  sister  of 
Baron  Sameshima.  Graduated  from  the 
Naval  Academy.  Appointed  Second  Sub- 
Lieutenant  of  Navy  in  July,  1890;  Com- 
mander, 1907;  Captain,  191 1;  Rear-Admiral, 
June,  1913.  Held  successively  the  posts  of 
Staff  on  the  Standing  Squadron,  Naval  At- 
tache to  the  Japanese  Legation  at  Washing- 
ton, Chief  of  Staff  on  the  Second  Squadron; 
Captain  of  the  Suma,  Kasuga,  and  Iziimo 
(warships) ;  Staff  of  Naval  General  Staff 
Office;  Captain  of  Tsukuba  and  Shikishima 
(warships) ;  Chief  of  Staff  on  the  First  Squad- 
ron: then  the  present  post.  Went  to  the 
Peace  Conference  at  Portsmouth  as  Naval 
Delegate,  in  1905.  Later  he  was  despatched 
to  China  for  inspection  of  military  affairs. 
He  has  been  decorated  with  the  Third 
Order  of  Merit. 

Terauchi,  Seiki,  Count  (created  1910), 
Field-Marshal,  Premier  of  the  Cabinet  since 
October,  1916.  Bom  February  5,  1852,  in 
Yamaguchi-ken,  second  son  of  Shobei  Utada, 
a  samurai.  Married  Taki,  elder  daughter  of 
Sadao  Hasegawa  of  Shizuoka-ken.  Adopted 
by  Kanemon  Terauchi.  Studied  military 
science  in  France.  Was  appointed  Sub- 
Lieutenant  in  August,  1 871;  Lieutenant  in 
November,  1871;  Captain  in  1872;  Major  in 
1879;  Lieutenant-Colonel  and  Colonel  both 


in  1887;  Major-General  in  1892;  Lieutenant- 
General  in  I8g8;  General  in  1902;  Field- 
Marshal,  June,  1916,  Military  Attache  to  the 
legation  at  Paris,  1882— 1885;  Adjutant  and 
Private  Secretary  to  the  Minister  of  War  in 
1886;  Director  of  the  Military  Academy  in 
1887;  Chief  of  Staff  of  the  First  Army  Di- 
vision in  1 891;  Director  of  the  First  Bureau 
of  the  General  Staff  Office  in  1 892 ;  sent  abroad 
in  1896;  Commander  of  the  Third  Army 
Brigade  in  1896;  Superintendent  of  Military 
Education  in  1898;  Vice-Chief  of  the  General 
Staff  in  1900;  Minister  of  War  in  1902; 
Resident-General  of  Korea,  1910— 1916.  He 
took  part  in  the  Saigo  Rebellion  as  head  of 
a  company  of  the  Imperial  forces,  and  was 
wounded  in  the  right  arm  in  the  battle  of 
Tawarazaka.  In  the  China-Japan  War  he 
was  Supervisor  of  the  transport  service. 
He  achieved  distinction  in  the  Russo- 
Japanese  War  as  Minister  of  War,  which 
post  he  held  until  August,  191 1.  He  was 
nominated  Viscount  and  invested  with  the 
First  Order  of  Paulownia  and  the  First 
Class  of  the  Golden  Kite  as  a  war  reward. 
He  has  been  promoted  Count  in  recognition 
of  his  services  in  connection  with  the  annexa- 
tion of  Korea. 

ToKONAMi,  Takejiro,  member  of  the  House 
of  Representatives  since  1914.  for  the  Kago- 
shima  Prefecture,  has  had  a  distinguished 
career  in  the  public  and  political  life  of 
Japan.  He  was  born  in  December,  1866,  in 
Kagoshima,  the  first  son  of  the  late  Seieis 
Tokonami,  a  samurai  of  Kagoshima,  and 
married  Kiyoko,  first  daughter  of  Tsunenori 
Hashimoto,  a  samurai  of  the  same  prefecture. 
Mr.  Tokonami  graduated  from  the  Law  Col- 
lege of  the  Tokyo  Imperial  University  in 
1890.  After  serving  as  Secretary  of  the 
Finance  Department,  Secretary  of  Yamagata 
and  Niigata  Prefectures,  Governor  of  Toku- 
shima  and  Akita  Prefectures,  and  holding 
other  public  offices,  Mr.  Tokonami  was 
transferred  as  Vice-Minister  in  the  Home 
Office  in  1906.  He  made  an  official  tour  of 
investigation  in  Europe  and  America  in 
1908.  Mr.  Tokonami  filled  the  highly 
important  position  of  President  of  the 
Imperial  Government  Railways  from  Febru- 
ary, 1913,  to  April,  1914.  He  sought  election 
to  Parliament  in  1914  for  his  native  prefec- 
ture, and  was  successful  in  the  interests  of 
the  Seiyukai,  the  Constitutionalist  party. 
At  the  elections  of  April,  1917,  he  was  again 
returned  and  was  appointed  Director  of  his 
party.  Mr.  Tokonami 's  valuable  services  to 
the  Empire  have  been  recognised  by  His 
Majesty  the  Emperor,  who  has  conferred 
upon  him  the  Second  Class  Order  of  the 
Sacred  Treasure,  and  the  Second  Class  Order 
of  the  Rising  Sun.  As  an  author  Mr. 
Tokonami   is   known    widely   for   his   work. 


"Glimpses  of  Europe  and  America."  His 
address  is  14  Mikawadai-machi,  Azabu, 
Tokyo. 

Toki(;awa,Ivesato, Prince  (created  1884), 
Lord-in-Waiting  in  the  Jako  Hall,  President 
of  the  House  of  Peers,  and  President  of  the 
Peers  Club.  Bom,  July,  1863,  at  Tokyo, 
third  son  of  Y^oshiyori  Tokugawa.  Married 
Hiroko,  daughter  of  the  late  Prince  Tada- 
fusa  Konoe.  Studied  in  England  from  1877 
to  1882.  His  father  was  of  the  Tayasu 
branch  of  the  Tokugawa  family.  The  Prince 
was  adopted  as  heir  in  1868,  by  the  last  of 
the  shoguns.  After  the  Restoration  he 
became  Governor  of  Shizuoka  clan.  On 
returning  from  abroad  he  was  appointed 
Lord-in-Waiting  in  the  Jako  Hall.  M.  H.  P. 
since  1900.  President  of  the  House  of  Peers 
since  December,  1903.  When  the  Yamamoto 
Cabinet  resigned  in  1914,  H.  I.  M.  the 
Emperor  ordered  him  to  form  the  cabinet, 
but  he  did  not  accept.  He  went  abroad  on  a 
tour  of  inquiry  in  19 10.  He  is  President  of 
the  Peers  Club  and  the  Tokj-o  Charitable 
Society.     His  worn  de  plume  is  "Seigaku." 

TsuNETO,  NoRiTAKA,  Nogakuhakushi,  Pres- 
ident of  the  Rasa  Island  Phosphate  Company, 
Limited.  Bom,  January,  1857,  at  Nakatsu, 
Oita-ken,  son  of  Hanshiro  Tsuneto.  Married 
Sumi,  third  daughter  of  Yuzuru  Katsuda.  He 
received  his  education  at  the  Osaka  EngUsh 
School  and  the  Komaba  Agricultural  School, 
from  which  latter  institution  he  was  gradu- 
ated in  1 883.  He  was  appointed  Expert  to  the 
Department  of  Agriculture  and  Commerce; 
Chief  of  the  Soil  Section  of  the  Geological 
Laboratory;  Director  of  the  Fertilizer  Re- 
search Laboratory;  Professor  of  the  Morioka 
Higher  Agricultural  and  Forestry  School ;  Lec- 
turer at  the  Kagoshima  Higher  Agricultural 
and  Forestry  School;  Expert  to  the  Formosan 
Government.  He  represented  Japan  at  the 
International  Geological  Conference  held  in 
Russia  in  1896.  In  1901  he  was  sent  abroad 
on  business  connected  with  fertilizers.  He 
retired  from  official  service  ini904.  His  pub- 
lications are  as  follows:  "Nippon  Dojo  Ron" 
(Essay  on  Japanese  Soil);  "Minami  Nippon 
no  Fugen ' '  (Resources  of  Southern  Japan) ,  and 
"Statistics  of  the  Products  from  Japanese 
Soil."    He  lectures  on  Practical  Fertilization. 

TsuNODA,  Shimpei  (nom  de  plume  "Chi- 
kurei").  President  of  the  Tokyo  Chamber 
of  Commerce,  Member  of  the  Tokyo  City 
Assembly,  Director  of  the  Tokyo  Stock 
Exchange,  and  Director  of  the  Shueisha 
Printing  Company.  Born,  June,  1857,  in 
Shizuoka-ken,  second  son  of  Hikoemon 
Tsunoda  of  Shizuoka-ken.  Married  Ei, 
younger  sister  of  Chubei  Ikeda,  of  the  same 
prefecture.  Studied  law,  and  passed  the 
examination  for  the  Bar  in  1880,  after  which 
he   practised   as  a   lawyer.     He  joined  the 


PRESENT-DA  ^■    IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


923 


Kaishinto  (now  Doshikai)  in  i«84.  He  was 
chosen  Chairman  of  the  Tokyo  Lawyers 
Association  in  1898;  elected  M.  H.  R.  several 
times  since  1892;  appointed  to  the  Street 
Reform  Bureau  in  Tokyo  City  and  rendered 
good  service  toward  the  improvement  of 
streets  and  avenues.  He  has  been  decorated 
with  the  Fourth  Order  of  the  Rising  Sun 
in  connection  with  the  Russo-Japanese 
War. 

Uehara,  Yusaku,  Baron  (created  1907), 
Lieutenant-General,  Chief  of  the  Military 
General  Staff  since  December,  1915,  High 
Military  Councillor.  Born,  November,  1856, 
in  Miyazaki-ken,  second  son  of  Seizan 
Tatsuoka,  a  Miyazaki  samurai,  and  adopted 
by  Naozane  Uehara.  Married  Maki, 
daughter  of  the  late  General  Marquis  Nozu. 
Studied  military  tactics  in  France,  1881; 
appointed  Sub-Lieutenant  of  Engineers, 
December,  1879;  Lieutenant,  September, 
1882;  Captain,  June,  1885;  Major,  May, 
1 890;  Lieutenant-Colonel,  September,  1894; 
Colonel,  October,  1897;  Major-General, 
July,  1900;  Lieutenant-General,  July,  1906. 
Occupied  successively  the  posts  of  Instructor 
of  the  Military  Academy,  Chief  of  the  Fifth 
Section  of  the  General  Staff  Office,  Inspector- 
General  of  Military  Education,  Superintend- 
ent of  Engineers,  etc.  He  took  part  in 
the  Japan-China  War  as  Staff  Officer  to 
the  First  Army  and  was  Chief  of  Staff  to  the 
Fourth  Army  under  General  Nozu  during 
the  Russo-Japanese  War.  He  was  created 
Baron  and  invested  with  the  First  Order 
of  the  Rising  Sun  and  the  Second  Class  of 
the  Golden  Kite  for  his  services  in  war. 
He  was  Commander  of  the  Seventh  Army 
Division  and  of  the  Fourteenth  Army 
Division  until  April,  1902.  When  he  was 
Minister  of  War  under  the  Saionji  Cabinet 
he  proposed  to  increase  the  army  by  two 
divisions,  but  Premier  Saionji  not  conciurring 
in  this  opinion,  the  Cabinet  resigned  in 
December,  1912.  He  was  appointed  Com- 
mander of  the  Third  Army  Division, 
Inspector-General  of  Military  Education 
(19 14— December,  1915),  and  then  present 
post.  He  has  been  decorated  with  the  Grand 
Cordon  of  the  Rising  Sun  and  with  the 
First  Order  of  the  Sacred  Treasure  (October, 

1915)- 

Wada,  Toyoji,  Managing  Director  of  the 
Fujigasu  Spinning  Company,  Limited,  and 
Special  Member  of  the  Tokyo  Chamber 
of  Commerce.  Born,  November,  1861,  in 
Oita-ken,  eldest  son  of  the  late  Kunroku 
Wada,  a  samurai.  Married  Orie,  sister  of 
Chijuro  Kawabata,  an  Oita  samurai.  Gradu- 
ated from  the  Keio  University  in  1885, 
and  pursued  his  studies  in  America.  After 
returning  to  Japan  he  w'as  employed  by  the 
Nippon  Yusen  Kaisha  (Japan  Mail  Steam- 


ship Company).  Afterwards  he  accepted  a 
position  in  the  Mitsui  Bank,  being  appointed 
Sub-Manager  of  the  Yokohama  liranch. 
At  the  time  of  the  readjustment  of  the 
Kanegafuchi  Spinning  Company,  he  was 
elected  its  Manager.  Some  time  after  this 
he  transferred  to  the  Fuji  Spinning  Company 
as  Managing  Director,  in  which  post  he 
had  ample  opportunities  for  displaying  his 
rare  business  abilities.  He  is  one  of  the 
best  informed  business  men  in  Japanese 
spinning   circles. 

Yabe,  Ren,  Coimsellor  at  Law  and  Patent 
Attorney,  is  a  prominent  member  of  the 
legal  profession  in  Tokyo.  He  was  born 
September,  1872,  in  Okayama  Prefecture, 
and  is  the  adopted  son  of  Osamu  Yabe. 
He  was  graduated  from  the  Law  College  of 
Tokyo  Imperial  University  in  July,  1897, 
and  passed  the  Higher  Civil  Service  Examina- 
tion in  November  of  the  same  year.  Mr. 
Yabe  was  appointed  Comptroller  of  the 
Patent  Bureau,  and  in  addition  was  made 
Councillor  to  the  Department  of  Agriculture 
and  Commerce  in  June,  1899.  In  January, 
1 90 1,  he  was  sent  on  official  business  to 
France  and  India.  He  became  Secretary 
of  the  Department  of  Conmierce  in  February, 
1903,  but  the  same  year  he  resigned  his 
official  posts  and  opened  a  law  and  patent 
office  in  Tokyo,  where  he  has  been  practising 
ever  since.  Mr.  Yabe  has  built  up  a  large 
practice  and  his  reputation,  based  on  his 
extensive  knowledge  of  general  law  and  the 
patent  systems  of  Japan  and  foreign  coun- 
tries, is  of  the  very  highest.  His  office 
address  is  Mitsubishi  Buildings,  i  Yayesu- 
cho,   Kojimachi-ku,  Tokyo. 

Yamada,  Atsushi,  Managing  Director  of 
the  Nippon  Cotton  Company,  Limited. 
Bom  July  9,  1878,  in  Osaka,  son  of  Shin 
Yamada,  miner.  Married  Sayo-ko,  August, 
1906.  Studied  at  the  First  High  School. 
Entered  the  Nippon  Cotton  Company  in 
1897,  and  served  in  its  New  York  branch, 
July,  1901;  in  Bombay,  1907-1910;  again  in 
New  York  in  1910.  He  is  a  member  of  the 
New  York  Cotton  Exchange  and  of  the  New 
Orleans  Cotton  Exchange. 

Yamada,  Masakuni,  Managing  Director 
of  the  Tokj'o  Rope  Manufacturing  Companj', 
Limited,  and  Director  of  the  Far  Eastern 
Rubber  Company.  Bom,  May,  1848,  in 
Tokyo,  third  son  of  Chugoro  Yamada,  a 
samurai.  Married  Shu,  elder  daughter  of 
Rihei  Okada,  also  a  Tokyo  samurai.  Suc- 
ceeded his  brother,  Tamotsu  Yamada,  in 
1870.  He  was  in  the  official  service  for  a 
long  period,  and  afterward  entered  business. 

Yamagata,  Aritomo,  Prince  (created  1906), 
Field-Marshal,  Supreme  Military  Councillor, 
President  of  the  Privy  Council,  holder  of  the 
Grand    Cordon  and  the  First  Class  of  the 


Golden  Kite.  Born  April  22,  1838,  at  Hagi, 
in  Yamaguchi-ken,  eldest  son  of  the  late  Sa- 
buro  Yamagata,  a  samurai  of  Choshu  clan. 
Was  well  known  by  his  early  name,  Kyosuke. 
Educated  by  the  late  Shoin  Yoshida.  He 
fought  against  the  shogunate  army  before  the 
Restoration,  when  the  shogunate  army  at- 
tacked Choshu  clan  in  1866.  He  was  Chief 
of  Staff  of  the  Echigo  Army  of  the  Imperial 
forces,  and  tooT<  the  castle  of  Nagaoka,  and 
marching  farther  north  subjugated  entire  dis- 
tricts in  the  northeastern  provinces  in  1868. 
He  was  despatched  to  Europe  for  observation 
and  study,  1869-1870.  Vice-Minister  of  War, 
1 87 1;  Lieutenant-General  and  Minister  of 
War,  1872;  Chief  of  Staff  of  the  Imperial 
Army  during  the  Civil  War,  1877;  Chief  of 
the  General  Staff,  1878;  Minister  of  Home 
Affairs,  1882;  created  Count,  1884;  member 
of  the  Coast  Defence  Committee,  1885;  again 
Minister  of  War,  1885;  Minister  of  Agricul- 
ture and  Commerce  (in  addition),  1886;  Chief 
of  the  Fortress  Construction  Department, 
1886;  Chairman  of  the  Local  Administration 
Investigation  Committee,  1887;  ordered  to 
proceed  to  Europe,  1888;  Prime  Minister  and 
(in  addition)  Minister  of  Home  Affairs,  1889; 
Minister  of  Justice,  1892;  President  of  the 
Pri\'y  Council,  1893;  commanded  the  First 
Army  Corps  in  the  war  with  China  but  re- 
turned home  on  account  of  ill  health;  Minis- 
ter of  War  for  the  third  time,  1895.  He 
attended  the  coronation  ceremony  of  Czar 
Nicholas  and  brought  home  the  Yamagata- 
Lobanoff  Convention  in  regard  to  Korea, 
1896.  Was  created  Marquis  and  Field- 
Marshal  the  same  year,  and  Prime  Minis- 
ter again  in  1898.  In  1900  he  was  granted 
the  Grand  Cordon.  He  was  Chief  of  the 
General  Staff  during  the  Russo-Japanese 
War,  after  the  war  being  raised  to  the  rank  of 
Prince  and  decorated  with  the  First  Class  of 
the  Golden  Kite  and  the  Grand  Order  of  the 
Chrysanthemum  in  1907.  He  was  appointed 
President  of  the  Privy  Council  in  1909. 

Yamaoka,  Juntaro,  Vice-President  of  the 
Osaka  Shosen  Kwaisha  (Osaka  Mercantile 
Steamship  Company,  Limited),  Chairman  of 
the  Board  of  Directors  of  the  Osaka  Tek- 
kosho  (Osaka  Iron  Works,  Limited),  and  a 
member  of  the  Osaka  Chamber  of  Com- 
merce. Bom,  September,  1866,  in  Kana- 
zawa,  eldest  son  of  Yoshiaki  Yamaoka. 
Married  Ichi,  elder  daughter  of  Yasukich 
Taguchi.  Served  with  the  Department  of 
Communications  from  1892  to  1898,  and 
entered  the  Osaka  Shosen  Kwaisha  in  the 
latter  year.  He  was  Assistant  Secretary 
until  1899,  Secretary  from  1899  until  1907, 
Treasurer  during  the  same  period,  Manager 
of  the  Home  Services  Department  (1907- 
1908),  General  Manager  (1908-1911),  Mana- 
ging Director   (1911-1914),  and  Vice-Presi- 


924 


PRESENT-DAY   IMPRESSIONS   OF   JAPAN 


dent,  1914.  He  entered  the  Osaka  Tekkosho 
in  1914,  President  in  1914-1915,  and  Chair- 
man of  the  Board  of  Directors,  1915.  Elected 
a  member  of  the  Osaka  Chamber  of  Com- 
merce in  1913. 

Yashiro,  Rokuro,  Baron  (created  July, 
1916),  Vice-Admiral,  Commander  of  the 
Second  Squadron  since  December  13,  1915. 
Bom,  January,  i860,  in  Aichi-ken,  second 
son  of  Shoshichi  Matsuyama,  adopted  by 
Ippei  Yashiro,  in  1869.  Married  So,  elder 
daughter  of  Hosho  Ono,  a  samurai  of  Shi- 
zuoka-ken.  Educated  at  the  Naval  Academy. 
Third  Sub-Lieutenant,  June,  1885;  Com- 
mander, December,  1897;  Captain,  October, 
1901;  Rear-Admiral,  December,  1907;  Vice- 
Admiral,  191 1.  Was  successively  Adjutant 
to  the  Naval  Academy,  member  of  the 
Naval  General  Staff,  Section  Commander 
of  the  Yashima,  attache  to  the  legation  at 
St.  Petersburg,  Vice-Commander  of  the 
Yashima,  Commander  of  the  Miyako  and 
the  Asama,  attache  to  the  legation  (after- 
wards  embassy)   at   Berlin,   Commander   of 


Yokosuka  Reserve  Fleet  Squadron  and  of 
the  First  Squadron,  attache  to  the  Kure  Naval 
Station.  He  took  part  in  the  Russo-Japanese 
War  as  Commander  of  the  Yashima,  belong- 
ing to  the  Second  Squadron,  under  Vice- 
Admiral  Uryu.  He  was  Commander  of 
Maizuru  Naval  Station,  September,  1916. 
When  the  Okuma  Cabinet  was  formed  in 
May,  1914,  he  entered  it  to  hold  the  port- 
folio of  the  Navy,  which  he  resigned  in 
August,  1915.  He  was  then  appointed  to 
his  present  post.  He  has  been  decorated 
with  the  Third  Order  of  the  Rising  Sun,  the 
Third  Order  of  the  Sacred  Treasure,  and 
the  Third  Class  of  the  Golden  Kite. 

YoNEi,  Genjiro,  Proprietor  of  Yonei  Sho- 
ten.  President  of  the  Meiji  Rubber  Manu- 
facturing Company,  Managing  Director  of 
the  Kirin  Beer  Brewery  Company,  Limited, 
and  President  of  the  Meidi-ya.  Born,  Sep- 
tember, 1 86 1,  in  Okayama-ken,  second  son  of 
Nakahei  Yonei.  Married  Tsurumatsu,  also  a 
native  of  Okayama-ken.  Graduated  from  the 
Keio  University  in  1887.    After  graduation  he 


entered  the  firm  of  Meidi-ya,  grocer  and  spirit 
merchant,  the  proprietor  being  the  late  Mr. 
H.  Isono,  his  relative.  During  the  time  he 
was  with  Meidi-ya,  he  inaugurated,  in  part- 
nership with  Mr.  H.  Isono,  a  separate  im- 
port and  export  business  under  the  firm  name 
of  Isono  Shokwai,  dealing  in  machinerj',  steel 
and  iron  materials,  and  sundries.  On  the 
death  of  Mr.  Isono  in  1897,  Mr.  Yonei 
took  the  management  of  the  Isono  Showkai 
into  his  own  hands,  and  it  is  now  known  as 
Yonei  Shoten.  In  the  following  year  he 
started  the  Meiji  Rubber  Manufacturing 
Company,  of  which  he  became  President. 
When  Meidi-ya  was  changed  into  a  partner- 
ship in  1903,  he  was  elected  its  representative 
member,  and  again  when  the  partnership 
was  transformed  into  a  joint-stock  firm,  he 
became  its  President.  In  1906  he  purchased 
the  Kirin  Beer  Brewery  Company,  which 
was  then  owned  by  foreigners,  and  became 
its  President  also,  the  company  now  brew- 
ing a  million  koku  of  beer  annually.  (See 
page  569  of  this  volume  for  further  details.) 


I 


Mf  '^■ 


¥^ 


FINAL    NOTE 


IN  the  compilation  of  a  work  of  this  encyclopedic  character  it  is  highly  necessary  to  have  the 
assistance  of  valued  contributors.     As  a  perusal  of  the  book  will  show,  this  kind  of  aid  has 
been  generously  given,  and  we  have  also  received  gratifying  help  from  others  who,  by  virtue 
of  their  prominent  positions,  were  able  to  furnish  absolutely  up-to-date  data. 

First  and  foremost,  we  have  to  thank  Mr.  Gi  Nakamura,  Chief  of  the  Bureau  of  Commercial 
Affairs,  and  Mr.  Buyei  Nakano,  late  President  of  the  Tokyo  Chamber  of  Commerce,  for  the  excellent 
aid  rendered  by  them  in  the  early  stages  of  this  important  compilation.  Then,  again,  our  thanks 
are  due  to  Mr.  Shiro  Ikegami,  Mayof  of  Osaka;  Mr.  Jusajiro  Kashima,  Mayor  of  Kobe;  Mr.  Kotetsu 


Hamaoka,  President  of  the 
merce,  and  Mr.  Kahei 
Yokohama  Chamber  of 
afforded  by  them  to  study 
cial  aspects  of  their  respec- 
Finally,  we  have  to  ex- 
contributors  who  furnished 
so  diverse  and  so  informa- 
of  this  comprehensive  pub- 
following  titles:  "The  For- 
Robert  Young,  Proprietor 
"The  vSilk  Industry  of 
Shito,  Director  of  the  Imper- 
ing  House;  "Tea,"  by  Mr. 
President  of  the  J.  C.  Whit- 
"The  Progress  of  Medicine 
Kitasato,  M.  D.,  F.  R.  S., 
and  Foreign  Policy  of 
E^^ans,  Managing  Editor  of 


W.    H.    MORTON    CAMERON 


Kyoto  Chamber  of  Com- 
Otani,  President  of  the 
Commerce,  for  the  facilities 
the  industrial  and  commer- 
tive  cities. 

press  our  obligations  to  the 
us  with  the  special  articles, 
five, which  are  such  a  feature 
lication,  and  which  carry  the 
eigner  in  Japan,"  by  Mr. 
of  the  Japan  Chronicle; 
Japan,"  by  Mr.  Akira 
ial  Japanese  Silk  Condition- 
Charles  E.  Atwood,  Vice- 
ney  Company,  Chicago ; 
in  Japan,"  by  Professor  S. 
London;  "The  Diplomacy 
Japan,"  by  Mr.  D.  J. 
the  Japan  Chronicle;  "The 


Future  of  Japan,"  by  Hon.  Y.  Takegoshi,  ex-Member  of  the  House  of  Representatives;  "Constitu- 
tion and  Law  of  Japan,"  by  Dr.  J.  E.  de  Becker,  LL.  B.,  D.  C.  L. ;  "Japanese  Arts  of  Self-Defence," 
by  E.  J.  Harrison,  F.  R.  G.  S.;  "Japan  as  a  Tourist  Land,"  by  Mr.  W.  B.  Mason,  Joint  Author 
of  "Murray's  Handbook  to  Japan"  and  Corresponding  Member  for  Japan  of  the  Royal  Scottish 
Geographical  Society;  "The  Ainu,"  by  the  Ve.  Archdeacon  John  Batchelor;  "Petroleum,"  or  "The 
History  of  Oil  in  Japan,"  by  Mr.  A.  P.  Scott,  Managing  Director  of  the  Rising  Sun  Petroleum 
Company,  Limited;  "The  Rice  Industry,"  by  Professor  Shosuke  Sato,  of  Tohoku  Imperial  Uni- 
versity; "The  Patent  System,"  by  Mr.  Morio  Nakamatsu,  ex-Director  of  the  Imperial  Japanese 
Patent  Office;  "Japan's  Button  Trade,"  by  Mr.  Emile  Ott,  of  Messrs.  Israel  &:  Oppenheimer, 
Ltd.,  Kobe,  and  "A  Short  History  of  Coinage  in  Japan,"  by  Dr.  Yoshimasa  Koga,  F.  C.  S.,  Chief 
Assayer  at  the  Imperial  Japanese  Mint,  Osaka. 

The   Globe   Encyclopedl\   Co. 


« 


I 


I 


99 

II 
.80 

f9i 


587 
741 
638 


NANKO   TEMPLE,    KOUli 


Index  of  Commercial  Notices  and  Portraits 


A 

Abe  Kobei  Co 258 

Adet,  Campredon  &  Co 267 

AiKOKU  Life  Insurance  Co.,  Ltd.     .    148 

AizAWA  Shipyard 727 

Akita  &  Co 794 

Allen,  Edgar,  &  Co.,  Ltd.      .     .     .  275 

Amasaki  Honten 743 

American  Express  Co 264 

American  Trading  Co 669 

AsAHi  Glass  Co.,  Ltd 647 

AsANO  Portland  Cement  Co.,  Ltd.   .   602 
AsANO  Shipbuilding  Co.,  Ltd..      .      .   180 

B 

Babcock  &  Wilcox,  Ltd 271 

Balfour,  Arthur  &  Co.,  Ltd.  .  292 

Bank  of  China,  see  China,  Bank  of 
Bank  of  Chosen,  see  Chosen,  Bank  of 
Bank   of   Japan,   see  Japan,    Bank   of 
Bank   of   Taiwan,    Ltd.,   see   Taiwan, 
Ltd.,  Bank  of 

Bardens,  F.  J S26 

Barmont,  L.,  &  CiE 350 

Birch,  Kirby  &  Co.,  Ltd 671 

Boyd  &  Co 886 

Brett's  Pharm.\cy 201 

BucKNEY,  Arthur,  \.  W.  L  E.  E.     .   277 

G 

Carter,  i\L\cY  &  Co 886 

Chartered  Bank  of  India,  Australia, 

and  China 132 

Chichibu   Electric    Wire    Manuf.^c- 

TURING  Co.,  Ltd 595 

China  and  Japan  Trading  Co.,  Ltd.  678 

China,  Bank  of 816 

China  Mutual  Life  Insurance  Co., 

Ltd 144 

Chosen,  Bank  of       .      ,  109,  814,  837,  S6o 


Chosen  Commercial  Bank,  Ltd.  .  .  862 
Clifford-Wilkinson  Tansan  Mineral 

Water  Co.,  Ltd 658 

Commercial  and  Industrial  Bank  of 

Taiwan 880 

Cooper  &  Co 248 

Cornabe,  Eckford  &  Co 824 

Crowther,  C,  &  Co 697 

D 

Dai  Hyaku  Ginko,  see  One  Hundredth 

Bank,  Ltd. 

Dai-Ichi  Ginko,  Ltd 105 

Dai-Nippon  Brewery  Co.,  Ltd.  .   573 

Dai-Nippon  Jinzo   Hiryo   Kabushiki 

Kaisha,   see   Great  Japan   Artificial 

FertiUzer  Co.,  Ltd. 
Dai-Nippon  Kogy'o  Kabushiki  Kaisha, 

see  Great  Japan  Mining  Co.,  Ltd. 
Dai-Nippon  Salt  Co.,  Ltd.  .   788 

Dai-Nippon  Seito  Kabushiki  Kaisha, 

see    Sugar    Manufacturing     Co.     of 

Japan 

Dairen  Kisen  Kaisha 834 

Dairen   Oil   and   Fat   Industry   Co., 

Ltd 830 

Dairi  Flour  Mill,  Ltd 647 

Daisan  Ginko 120 

Davis,  Summers  &  Co 257 

Denki     Kagaku     Kogyo     Kabushiki 

Kaish.a,  see  Electro-Chemical  Indus- 
try Co.,  Ltd. 

Dick,  Kerr  &  Co.,  Ltd 279 

Dieden,  B.,  &  Co.  (illus.)  ....  234 
DoDWELL  &  Co.,  Ltd.  .  .  243,  666 
DuNLOP  Rubber  Co.,  Ltd 622 

E 

East  Indies  Tr..\ding  Co 702 

Eighteenth  Bank,  Ltd 809 

Electro-Chemical  Industry  Co.,  Ltd.  324 
Eymard,  C,  &  CiE 353 


F 

Fifteenth   National   Bank,  see  Jugo 

Ginko 
Findlay,  Richardson  &  Co.,  Ltd.     .   666 
First  Mutual  Life  Insurance  Co.    .    150 
Firth,  Thos.,  &  Sons,  Ltd.  .    290 

Formosa  Oolong  Tea 879 

Eraser,  Peter,  &  Co 689 

Fuji  Paper  Mills  Co.,  Ltd.  .  617 

Fuji  Steel  Co.,  Ltd 582 

Fujigasu  Spinning  Co.,  Ltd.    .  .  554 

Fujii   Industri.\l   Development  Co., 

'Ltd 848 

FUJIMOTO    BiLLBROKERS    BANK,    LtD.       .     526 

Fuji-nagata  Shipbuilding  Yard    .      .   720 

Fujita  Co 477,886 

Furukawa   &    Co.    (Furukawa   Gomel 

Kaisha) 470,  635 

Futabaya  &  Co 226 

G 

Gadelius  &  Co 287 

Giles,  S.  E 683 

GoKo  Shokai,  Ltd 739 

gomeikaisha  murai  bank  .  2l6 

Goodrich,  B.  F.,  Rubber  Co.  .   234 

GosHi  Kaisha  Sato  Shoten,  see  Sato, 

Y.,  &  Co. 
GosHi  Kaish.\  Tomoegumi   ....   799 
Gre.\t   Japan   Artifici.\l   Fertilizer 

Co.,  Ltd 311 

Gre.\t  Japan  Mining  Co.,  Ltd.    .      .  480 
Great  Japan  Petroleum  Mining  Co., 

Ltd 491 

H 

Hakodate  Fish  Net  Manufacturing 
and    Shipbuilders'     Supply    Co.. 

Ltd 587 

Hashimoto  Shoji  Kabushiki  Kaisha.   741 
Hattori,  K.,  &  Co 638 


928 


INDEX        OF        COMMERCIAL        NOTICES 


Healin(;,  L.  J.,  &  Co.,  Ltd.     .      .      .271 

Hellyer  &  Co 335 

Herbert,  Alfred,  Ltd 285 

Hobo,  Kondo  &  Co 222 

HoHDEN  Sekiyu  Kabushiki  Kaisha  .  489 
Hokkaido  Colonization  Bank,  Ltd..  114 
HoKOKU  Fire  Insurance  Co.,  Ltd.    .   534 

Holme,  Ringer  &  Co 796,  808 

Hongkong  &  Shanghai  Banking  Cor- 
poration      129 

Horne,  F.  W.,  Co 279 

Hunt  &  Co 337 

Hunter,  E.  H.,  &  Co 675 

Hyogo  Prefectural  Hypothec  Bank  531 
Hypothec  Bank  of  Japan,  Ltd.    .      .115 

I 

Iida  &  Co.,  Ltd.,  see  Takashimaya 
Imperi.\l  Brewery'  Co.,  Ltd.    .      .      .   573 
Imperial  Fla.x  Manufacturing  Co., 

Ltd 566 

Imperi.\l   Life   Insurance   Co.,   Ltd., 
see   Teikoku    Seimei   Hoken  Kaisha 
Imperi.\l  I\Larine  Transportation  and 
Fire  Insurance  Co.,  Ltd.     .  .   138 

Imperial  Sugar  Co.,  Ltd 893 

Imperi.\l  The.\tre,  Tokyo  .  .      .407 

Inaba  Cloisonne  Ware  Co.     .  .  443 

Industrial  Bank  of  Japan,  Ltd..      .   106 
Internation.al  Banking  Corporation 

135.  534 

Internation.\l  Trading  Corporation, 

Ltd 263,  669 

Isaacs,  S.,  &  Co 253 

Ishikawajima  Shipbuilding   and  En- 
gineering Co.,  Ltd 182 

Israel  &  Oppenheimer,  Ltd.    .      .      .  690 

iTo,  Cho.,  &  Co 681 

IwAi  &  Co.,  Ltd 251,  680 

Iwakami  &  Co 268 

IwAKi  Cement  Kabushiki  Kaisha  .  609 
Iwaki  Shokai 727 

J 

Japan   Acetic   Acid    Manufacturing 

Co.,  Ltd 326 

Japan  Advertiser,  The 715 

Japan  Arms  and  Machinery  Manu- 
facturing Co.,  Ltd 578 

Japan  Artificial  Fertilizer  Co.,  Ltd.  308 

Japan,  Bank  of 102 

Japan-China  Steamship  Co.      .      .      .188 

Japan   Chronicle,   The 714 

Japan  Cotton  Trading  Co.,  Ltd.,  see 

Nippon  Menkwa  Kabushiki  Kaisha 
Japan  Electric  Wire  &  Cable  Co., 

Ltd 598 

Japan  Gazette,   The 716 

Japan  Glycerine  Industry  Co.,  Ltd.  325 
Japan  Hide  and  Leather  Co.,  Ltd.  .  632 
Japan  Import  and  Export  Commission 

Co 263 

Japan  Mail  Steamship  Co.,  see  Nippon 

Yusen  Kaisha 
Japan  Marine   Engineering  &   Sal- 
vage Co.,  Ltd 750 

Japan  Musical  Instrument  Manu- 
facturing Co.,  Ltd 626 

Japan  Nitrogenous  Fertilizer  Co., 
Ltd.,  see  Nippon  Chisso  Hiryo  Ka- 
bushiki Kaisha 

Japan  Savings  Bank 443 

Japan  Shoe  and  Boot  Manufactur- 
ing Co.,  Ltd 633 


Japan  Steamship  Co.,  Ltd.       .      .      .   74^ 

Japan  Sulphur  Co.,  Ltd 315 

Japan  Trading  Co.,  Ltd.,  see  Nippon 

Shoji  Kaisha 
Jardine,  Matheson  &  Co.,  Ltd. 

237,  664,  795,  882 

JiNju  Life  Insurance  Co.,  Ltd.    .      .    153 

JoMO  Muslin  Co.,  Ltd 564 

JuGO  GiNKO,  Ltd 106 

K 

Kabushiki   Kaisha   Dairi   Seifunsho, 

see  Dairi  Flour  Mill,  Ltd. 
Kabushiki    Kaisha    Juhachi    Ginko, 

see  Eighteenth  Bank,  Ltd. 
Kabushiki    Kaisha    Kobe    Seikosho 

Mojl  Kojo,  see  Kob^  Steel  Works, 

Moji  Branch 
Kabushiki  Kaisha  Meidi-Ya    .      .         571 
Kabushiki  Kaisha  Shosho-Yoko    192,  748 
Kabushiki  Kaisha  Tokyo  Ginko,  see 

Tokyo  Bank,  Ltd. 

Kajima  Bank,  Ltd 517 

Kanegafuchi  Spinning  Co.,  Ltd.       .  561 
Kanto  Sanso  Kabushiki  Kaisha  .      .  321 

Katsuda  Shokai 734 

Kawabe,  M 831 

Kawakita  Electric  Co.,  Ltd.        293,  592 
Kawasaki  Dockyard  Co.,  Ltd.      717,  833 

Keane  &  Strome,  Ltd 252 

Keijo  Electric  Co.,  Ltd 867 

KiRiN  Brewery  Co.,  Ltd 569 

KisHiMOTO  Bank,  Ltd 532 

Kjellberg,  J.  A.,  &  Sons,  Ltd.     .      .   282 
Kobe   Marine   Transport   and   Fire 

Insurance  Co.,  Ltd 535 

Kobe    Okazaki    Ginko,    see    Okazaki 

Bank,  Ltd. 

Kobe  Pier  Co.,  Ltd 

Kobe  Steel  Works,  Moji  Branch 
Kobe  Towa  Steamship  Co.,  Ltd. 
Kobei,  Abe,  Co.  . 
Koike  Bank,  Ltd. 
Kuhara  Mining  Co. 

KUM.\Z.\WA,   G.,  &   Co.      . 

Kyodo  Fire  Insurance  Co, 

Kyosai  Life  Insurance  Co. 

Kyoshin-Yoko. 

Kyoto  Te.xtile  Co.,  Ltd, 

Kyoyeki  Sha  Trading  Co.,  Ltd. 

Kyushu     Densen     Seizo     Kabushiki 

Kaisha,   see  Kyushu   Electric  Wire 

Mfg.  Co.,  Ltd. 
Kyushu  Electric  Railway  Co.,  Ltd.  797 
Kyushu    Electric    Wire    Manuf.\c- 

TURiNG  Co.,  Ltd 597 


Land  &  Cox 688 

Lazzara,  Homberg  &  Co 690 

Lever  Brothers  (Japan),  Ltd.  .651 

Locomotive      Manufacturing      Co., 

Ltd 588 

Lycett  Saddle  Co 651 

M 

Macdonald,  J.  M.,  &  Co 689 

Masuda  Billbroker  Bank  .   530 

Masuda,  T.,  Shoten 700 

Masuda  &  Co 240 

Matsuyama  &  Co 228 

McKay  &  Co 686 


Meidai  Steamship  Co.,  Ltd.     .      .      .   746 
Meidi-Ya    Co.,    Ltd.,    see    Kabushiki 
Kaisha  Meidi-Ya 

Meiji  Bussan  Co.,  Ltd 746 

Meiji  Seito  Kabushiki  Kaisha  .  893 

Meiji  Trading  Co.,  Ltd 216 

Mik.\mi  &  Co 759 

Mit.\tsuchi  Gum  Seizo  Gomei  Kaisha  623 
Mitsu  Bishi  Co.  .  .  .176,  705,  723,  749 
Mitsui  Bussan  K.usha  .  164,  359,  827,  852 

MiTSUKOSHI 165 

MiYABE    &    SUYETAKA 693 

MoGi,  House  of 254 

Momijiya  Bank 128 

Morimoto  Gomei  Kaisha    ....   754 

MoRiMURA  Bank 122 

Moritani  &  Co 293 

Morris,  J.  H.,  &  Co 854 

Morrison,  James  &  Co.,  Ltd.  .  .  273 
Mousseline  Spinning  &  Weaving  Co., 

Ltd 562 

Murai   Bank,   see  Gomeikaisha  Murai 

Bank 

N 

Nakai  &  Co.,  Ltd 228 

Nakamura  &  Co.,  Ltd 801 

Naniwa  Bank,  Ltd 522 

Nanyo  Boyeki  Kaisha,  see  South  Sea 

Trading  Co.,  Ltd. 
Nanyo  Rubber  Plant.\tion  Co.,  Ltd.  704 
Nany'o  Sen-i  Kogvo  Kabushiki  Kai- 
sha, see  South  Seas  Fibre  Industry 
Co.,  Ltd. 
Nanyo  Yusen  Kaisha,  Ltd.,  see  South 

Sea  Mail  Steamship  Co.,  Ltd. 
New  Ze.^land  Insurance  Co.,  Ltd.  .   140 

Niigata  Tekkosho 588 

Nippon  Cement  Co.,  Ltd 602 

Nippon  Chisso  Hiryo  Kabushiki  Kai- 
sha     317 

Nippon    Densen    Kaisha,     Ltd.,     see 
Japan   Electric   Wire  &   Cable   Co., 
Ltd. 
Nippon  Fire  Insur.\nce  Co.,  Ltd.      .   147 
Nippon  Glycerine  Kogyo  Kabushiki 
Kaisha,  see  Japan  Glycerine  Industry 
Co.,  Ltd. 
Nippon  Kaiji  Kogyo  Kabushiki  Kai- 
sha, see  Japan  Marine  Engineering 
&  Salvage  Co.,  Ltd. 
Nippon   Kogyo   Ginko,   see   Industrial 

Bank  of  Japan,  Ltd. 
Nippon  Kwangyo  Ginko,  see  Hypothec 

Bank  of  Japan,  Ltd. 
Nippon  Menkwa  Kabushiki  Kaisha    569 

Nippon  Oil  Co.,  Ltd 487 

Nippon    Paint    Manufacturing    Co., 

Ltd 647 

Nippon     Sakusan     Seizo     Kabushiki 
Kaisha,  see  Japan  Acetic  Acid  Mfg. 
Co.,  Ltd. 
Nippon  Seika  Kaisha,  see  Japan  Shoe 

and  Boot  Mfg.  Co.,  Ltd. 
Nippon  Shoji  Kaisha,  Ltd.       .      .      .233 
Nippon  Trading  Society,  Ltd.      .     .   703 

Nippon  Yusen  Kaisha 184 

Nipponophone  Co.,  Ltd 624 

Nishiwaki  Bank,  Ltd 122 

NissHiN  Flour  Mills,  Ltd.      .      .      .644 
NissHiN    Kisen    Kaisha,    see    Japan- 
China  Steamship  Co. 
NissHiN  Shipping  Agency  Co.,  Ltd.  .   743 
Nobles'  Bank,  see  Jugo  Ginko 


INDEX        OF        COMMERCIAL        NOTICES 


929 


o 

Ocean  Transport  Co.,  Ltd.  .     .  748 

Ogura,  K.,  &   Co 220 

Ohsawa  vSeizo  Shoten 226 

Okazaki  Bank,  Ltd 528 

Okazaki  Steamship  Co.,  Ltd.  .   739 

Okura  &  Co 211,699,799 

Omi  Bank,  Ltd 519 

One  Hundredth  Bank,  Ltd.    .  .121 

Ono   Iron   Works   and   Shipbuildino 

Yard,  Ltd 723 

Ono,  M.,  &  Co.,  Inc 267 

Oriental  Creosoting  Co.,  Ltd.  .  .  364 
Oriental  Development  Co.,  Ltd.  .  846 
Oriental  Muslin  Co.,  Ltd.  552 

Oriental  Spinning  Co.,  Ltd.,  see  Toyo 

Boseki  Kabushiki  Kaisha 
Oriental    Steamship    Co.,    see    Toyo 

Kisen  Kaisha 
Oriental  Sugar  Manufacturing  Co.  892 
Oriental  Whaling  Co.,  Ltd.   .  .   370 

Ornstein,  B.,  &  Co.   (illus.)       .  .   697 

Osaka  Alkali  Co.,  Ltd 314 

Osaka  Brick  and  Cement  Co.,  Ltd.  607 
Osaka  Chemical  Fertilizer  Co.,  Ltd.  312 
Osaka    Chochiku     Ginko,  see    Osaka 

Savings  Bank,  Ltd. 
Osaka   Copper    Refining   Co.,    Ltd., 

see    Osaka    Denkibundo    Kabushiki 

Kaisha 
Osaka   Denkibundo   Kabushiki   Kai- 
sha     476 

Osaka    Dojima    Rice    and    Produce 

Exchange,  Ltd 515 

Osaka  Electric  Light  Co.,  Ltd.  .      .   590 

Osaka  Iron  Works,  Ltd 720 

Osaka  Marine  and  Fire  Insurance 

Co.,  Ltd 535 

Osaka  Mercantile  Agency  5I5 

Osaka    Mercantile    Steamship    Co., 

Ltd.,  see  Osaka  Shosen  Kaisha 
Osaka  Savings  Bank,  Ltd.       .      .      .   525 

Osaka  Shipyard  Co.,  Ltd 727 

Osaka  Shosen  Kaisha 729 

Osaka    Steel    Manuf.^cturing    Co., 

Ltd 580 

Osaka  Zinc  Mining  &  Smelting  Co., 

Ltd 476 

Owi  &  Co 686 

P 

Peninsular  and  Orient.\l  Steam  Nav- 
igation Co 731 


R 

Rasa  Island  Phosphate  Co.,  Ltd. 


308 


s 

Sakura  Cement  Co.,  Ltd 609 

Sale  &  Frazar,  Ltd 215 

Samuel  Samuel  &  Co.,  Ltd.  245,  791,  884 

Sankyo  &  Co.,  Ltd 218 

Sato,  Y.,  &  Co 754 

Sawai  Gumi 887 

Sawayama  Shokai 810 

Seiko  Shokai 580 

Settsu  and  Amagasaki  Cotton  Spin- 
ning  Co.,   see  Settsu   Spinning  and 
Weaving  Co.,  Ltd. 
Settsu   Spinning   and  Weaving   Co., 
Ltd 557 


Shewan,  Tomes  &  Co 673 

Shibakawa  &  Co 235,260 

Shimada  &  Co.,  Ltd 700 

Shimadzu  Seisakusho,  Ltd.  .   598 

Shimidzu  Gomei  Kaisha       ....   695 

Shimidzu  Trading  Co 265 

Shinagawa  Fire  Brick  Co.,  Ltd.       .  605 
Shosho-Yoko,    see    Kabushiki    Kaisha 
Shosho-Yoko 

SiBER,  Hegner  &  Co 349 

Singleton,  Benda  &  Co.,  Ltd.  .   248 

South     Manchuria    Railway    Co., 

811  el  seq. 

South  Sea  Mail  Steamship  Co.,  Ltd.  749 
South  Sea  Trading  Co.,  Ltd.  .   235 

South  Seas  Fibre  Industry  Co.,  Ltd.  632 
Southern  Pacific  Trading  Co.,  Ltd.  265 
STR.4CHAN,  W.  M.,  &  Co.,  Ltd.       242,  664 

Strong  &  Co 671 

Sugar  Manufacturing  Co.  of  Japan, 

Ltd 895,  897 

Sumitomo,  House  of.      .  .       472,  521 

Sun  Insurance  Office  of  London  .  138 
Sung,  Mow  &  Co.,  see  Kawabe,  M. 

Suzuki  Cement  Co 605 

Suzuki  &  Co.  .  222,  260,  661,  829,  856,  880 


Taisho  Steamship  Co.,  Ltd.     .  .   743 

T.\iT  &  Co 885 

Taiwan,  Bank  of,  Ltd.        .  111,879 

Taiwan  Engyo  Kabushiki  Kaisha  .  788 
Taiwan   Sugar   Manufacturing   Co., 

Ltd 890 

Taiyo  Life  Insurance  Co.,  Ltd.  .  .123 
Takasago  Kogyo  Kabushiki  Kaisha  153 
Takasago  Life  Insurance  Co.,  Ltd  .    153 

Takashimaya 355 

Tak.\ta  &  Co 213,  699 

Takeuchi,  K.,  S.afe  Co 650 

Tanaka  &  Co 219 

Tanimichi  &  Co.,  Inc 196 

Tansan    Mineral    W.\ter    Co.,    Ltd., 
see  under  Clifford-Wilkinson 

Tata,  Sons  &  Co 704 

Teikoku    Brewery    Kabushiki    Kai- 
sha, see  Imperial  Brewery  Co.,  Ltd. 
Teikoku  Seimei  Hoken  Kaisha    .      .151 

Teiyu  Bank,  Ltd 120 

Third  Bank,  Ltd.,  see  Daisan  Ginko 
Thirty-fourth  Bank,  Ltd.  517 

Thompson,  Hannam  &  Co 836 

Thompson,  J.  L.,  &  Co 657 

To-indo    Boyeki    Kabushiki    Kaisha, 

see  East  Indies  Trading  Co. 
Tokio  Warehouse  Co.,  Ltd.    .      .      .  754 

ToKiWA  &  Co.,  Ltd 230 

Tokyo  Bank,  Ltd 122 

Tokyo  Gas  and  Electric  Industrial 

Co.,  Ltd 640 

Tokyo  Ishikawajima  Zosenjo,  iff  Ishi- 
kawajima  Shipbuilding  and  Engineer- 
ing Co.,  Ltd. 
Tokyo  Itagami  Kaisha,  Ltd.    .  .619 

Tokyo  Kaiun  Kabushiki  Kaisha,  see 

Tokyo  Shipping  Co.,  Ltd. 
Tokyo  Marine  Insurance  Co.,  Ltd.  135, 534 
Tokyo  Prefectural  Hypothec  Bank, 

Ltd 117 

Tokyo  Rice  and  Produce  Exchange    127 


Tokyo  Rope  Manufacturing  Co.,  Ltd.  628 
Tokyo  Ryusan  Kabushiki   Kw.\isha, 

see  Japan  Sulphuric  Acid  Co.,  Ltd. 

Tokyo  Shipping  Co.,  Ltd 195 

Tokyo  Steel  and  Spring  Works  Co., 

Ltd 585 

Tokyo  Stock  Exchange       .  .      .125 

Tokyo    Strawboard    Co.,     Ltd.,    see 

Tokyo  Itagami  Kaisha,  Ltd. 
Tokyo  Sulphuric  Acid  Co.,   Ltd.       .  319 
Tomijima  Gumi  (Transportation  Co.), 

Ltd 760 

Tomoegumi,  Goshi  Kaisha  .  .   799 

Townsend  &  Co 853 

ToY'o  Boseki  Kabushiki  Kaisha  .      .  554 
Toyo  Chemical  Industri.\l  Co.,  Ltd.  328 

Toyo  Kisen  Kaisha 188 

Toyo  Takushoku  Kabushiki  Kaisha, 

see  Oriental  Development  Co.,  Ltd. 
Tsuboya,  C,  &  Co.   .      .  ...  226 

Tsurutani  Gomei  Kaisha    ....   695 

u 

UcHiDA    Kisen    Kabushiki  Kaisha     .  737 
Uchida     Steamship     Co.,     Ltd.,     see 

Uchida  Kisen  Kabushiki  Kaisha 

Uchida  Trading  Co.,  Ltd 737 

UjiGAWA  Electric  Co.,  Ltd.    .  .  592 

Union  Importing  &  Exporting  Co., 

Ltd 693 

Uraga  Dock  Co 184 

Usui  &  Co 833 

Uyenishi  Shokwai    (illus.)   ....  741 

V 

Varnum  Arnould  &  Co 250 

Villa,  A.  P.,  &  Bros.,  of  Japan,  Inc.  351 

w 

Whitney,  J.  C,  Co 334 

Winkel  &  Gedde,  Ltd 675 

WiTKOWSKi,  J.,  &  Co.,  Ltd.  253,  670 

WuRiu  Shokwai,  see  Holme,  Ringer  & 
Co. 

Y 

Yamaguchi  Bank,  Ltd 524 

Yamaguchi  Gomei  Kaisha  ....  757 
Yamaichi  Goshi  Kaisha  .      .      .128 

Yamashita  Co.\l  Co.,  Ltd.        .      .      .   804 
Yamashita  Kisen   Kabushiki  Kaisha 

190,  732 

Yamashita    Steamship   Co.,    Ltd.,   iee 

Yamashita  Kisen  Kabushiki  Kaisha 

Yamatake  &  Co 231 

Yasuda  Bank 118 

Yasuda  Nail  Works 641 

Yazawa,  Totaro  &  Co 652 

Yokohama  Dock  Co.,  Ltd.       .      .      .182 
Yokohama  Engine  and  Iron  Works, 

Ltd 182 

Yokohama  Fire,  Marine,  Transit  and 

Fidelity  Insurance  Co.,  Ltd.    .      .    142 
Yokohama  Nursery  Co.,  Ltd.  260 

Yokohama  Rope  Manuf.\cturing  Co., 

Ltd 630 

Yokohama  Seventy-fourth  Bank,  Ltd.  118 
Yokohama  Specie  Bank,  Ltd.         102,  816 

Yoshida,  E 695 

Yuasa,  T.,  &  Co 796,  834 


930 


INDEX 


O  F 


PORTRAITS 


INDEX    OF    PORTRAITS 


A 

Abe,  Kobei 224 

Abe,  Konosuke 224 

AiKO,  Kentatsu 520 

Akiyama,  Genzo 914 

Akiyama,  K 791 

Akivama,   Admiral   Saneyuki   ...  54 

Alston,  J 210 

Amano,  C 610 

Anamidzu,  Y 613 

Ando,  General  Barox  Teibi   .  870 

Anraku,  K 307 

AoKi,  K 178 

Arnould,  H.  M 210 

Asano,  Ryoso 169 

asano,  soichiro 169 

AsANO,  Taijiro 610 

B 

Banno,  K 520 

Baraclough,  C 876 

Bardens,  F.  J 827 

Barmont,  L 353 

Batchelor,  Ve.   Archdeacon  John  .  902 

Beebe,  George 876 

Blum,  Henri 675 

Brusewitz,  L 273 

Buckney,  Arthur 273 

Bugbird,  F.  H 210 

c 

Chalmers,  Hon.  A.  M 210 

Chicken,  C 667 

Chinda,  Viscount  Sutemi    ....  62 

Cho  Chin  Tax,  Mr 860 

Cox,  Douglas 675 

D 

Davis,  E.  C 210 

Den,  Baron  Kenjiro 84 

E 

Edwards,  E.  B.  S 667 

Eguchi,  Komanosoke 165 

Eguchi,  Sadaye 178 

Ensworth,  H.  a 210 

Eymard,  Cesar 333 

Eymard,  Charles 353 

Eymard,  Claude 353 

F 

Forster,  R.\lph  G.  E 667 

Fox,  W.  G 675 

Fraser,  Peter 675 

Frazar,  E.  W 273 

Fujii,  Shigeta 578 

Fujii,  Terugoro 578 

FujiMOTo,  S 307 

Fujita,  H 479 

Fujita,  Shiro 897 

Fujiyama,  Raita 163 

Fukuhara,  a 133 

Funasaka,  H 442 

Fushiminomiya,  H.  I.  H.  Field  Mar- 
shal  Prince   Sadanaru  ....  8 


G 

Gadelius,  K 273 

Giles,  S.  E 675 

Goh,  Baron  Seinosuke 165 

Goto,  Baron  Shimpei 84 

Greene,    His    E.xcellency    the    Rt. 
Hon.  Sir  Conyngham 64 

H 

Hara,  K 610 

Hara,  R .   615 

Hara,  Takashi opp.  80,  87 

Harada,  Shinji 178 

Harris,  A.  R 135 

Hasegawa,  N 610 

Hasegawa,  Tetsutaro 307 

Hasegawa,    Marshal    Count    Yoshi- 

MicHi         839 

Hashi.moto,  K 669 

Hashimoto,   Keizaburo 479 

Hashimoto,  Kizo 729 

Hashimoto,  Sennosuke         ....   479 

Hashimoto,  Tatsujiro 729 

H.\tano,  Viscount  Yoshinao    ...       9 

Hattori,  Kintaro 610 

He.\ling,  L.  J 273 

Hellyer,  Arthur  T 337 

Hellyer,  Frederick 337 

Hellyer,  Harold  J 337 

Hellyer,  Walter 337 

Hereford,  H.  O 675 

Herrera,  E.  a 675 

HiGASA,  Shimpei 791 

Hills,  A 790 

Hira,  M 669 

Hiraga,  T 520 

HiRAGA,    ToKUTARO 224 

HiRAO,    M 538 

HiRATA,    H 307 

HiRATAKA,    T 876 

HiROSE,  C 126 

HiRosE,  Y 615 

Holmes,  E.  H 790 

Homberg,  E 675 

HoRi,  K 169 

Horne,  F.  W 273 

Hoshino,  S 578 

Hoshino,  Y 520 

Hume,  H.  S 210 

Hunt,  H.  R 337 

Hunter,  E.  H.,     the    late   ....   667 

I 

Ikebukuro,  H 154 

Ikeda,  Kenzo 93 

Ikegami,  Shiro 511 

Inabata,  K.^tsutaro 551 

Inouye,  J 91 

Inouye,  K 821 

Inouye,  Tor.\ji 729 

Inukai,  Takeshi 87 

Irving,  A.  E 520 

Isaacs,  S 210 

IsAKA,  T 135 

ISHIDA,    H 615 

IsHii,  Viscount  K 63 


Ishikawa,  U 307 

Itami,  J 169 

Ito,  Chojiro 669 

Ito,  Denshichi 551 

Ito,  Takuma 610 

Ito,  Baron  Y 578 

Ito,  Y.         169 

Iwai,  K 669 

Iwasaki,  Baron  Hisaya  .  .  .178 
Iwasaki,  Baron  Koyata  .  .  .178 
Iw.\TO,  Y 821 

K 

Kaku,  Sagataro 870 

Kami,  Yuzo 442 

Kamiryo,  J 307 

Kanda,  Raizo        126 

Kaninnomiya,  H.  I.  H.  Prince  Koto- 

HITO 9 

Kanoh,  T 784 

Kato,  Viscount  Takaaki  ....  87 
Kato,  Admiral  Tomosaburo,  opp.   80,  84 

Katow,  S 307 

Katsuda,  G 729 

Kawabe,  M 821 

Kawachi,  Kentaro 729 

Kawakita,  Y 578 

Kawasaki,  Hajime 135 

Kawasaki,  S 351 

Kawasaki,  Y 169 

Kendrick,  W.  H 610 

KiKucHi,  Dr.  Kyozo 551 

Kimura,  Mr 876 

Kimura,  Kusuyata 178 

Kimura,  Y 859 

Kinbara,  Y 551 

KiRISHIMA,    SHOICHI I78 

KiTA,  M 551 

K1TAS.A.T0,  Prof.  S 410 

KoHZEVAR,  R.  E 210 

Koike,  K 93 

KojiMA,  Hidekichi 307 

Kondo,  Baron  R 169 

Konishi,  K 578 

kono,  sunao 135 

KoRo,  Seisuke 224 

Koyama,  N 615 

Kubota,  S.             615 

Kuhara,  Fusanosuke 479 

Kumazawa,  G 224 

KUNISAWA,    Dr 819 

KURACHI,    MaSAO 135 

kurasawa,  h 729 

Kushida,  Manzo 178 

L 

Lazarus,  L 675 

Lazzara,  G 675 

Lefroy,  a.  J.  S 273 

Longmire,  J.  D 210 

M 

Making,  Motora 669 

Makoshi,  K 610 

M.iLIGNY,    C.    E 135 

Marsh.all,  Fred  B 876 


INDEX        OF        PORTRAITS 


931 


Marshall,  James 667 

Masuda,  Taro ^97 

Matsui,  His  Excellency  Keishiro         62 

Matsukata,  G (>io 

Matsukata,  K 169 

Matsukata,  Masao 520 

Matsukata,  Marquis  Masayoshi.     86,91 

Matsukata,  -S 897 

Matsuki,  K 729 

Matsumuro,  Dr.  Itasu 84 

Matsuo,  Hisao 551 

Matsuyama,  S 224 

Mayekawa,  Tahee 165 

McArthur,  J 667 

McKay,  P.  H 675 

McKenzie,  R 790 

Megata,  Baron 62 

Metcalf,  H.  E 273 

Meyer,  L 675 

MiKi,  S 538 

Minobe,  Shunkichi,  III 859 

MiSHIMA,    T 859 

MisHiMA,  Viscount  Y 91 

MiYAOKA,    TSUNEJIRO 914 

MizuKosHi,  R 93 

MizuNO,  Dr.  Rentaro 84 

MoGi,  S 224 

Mori,  K 93 

Morimi'ra,  Baron  1 93 

MoRiTANi,  G 224 

Morris,  Hon.  Roland  S 66 

Moss,  W.  Stanley 273 

Mourasse,  Dr.  Haruo 135 

MuRAi,  K 162 

N 

Nagami,  K 791 

Naito,  Hisahiro 479 

Nakagawa,  a 578 

Nakagawa,  Kojuro 876 

Nakahashi,  Tokugoro    .  opp.  80,  307 

Nakai,  S 224 

Nakamatsu,  M 914 

Nakamura,  S 791 

Nakaxe,  T 126 

Nakano,  Buei 162 

Nakashima,  K 169 

Nakashoji,  Ren 84 

Nango,  S 729 

Naruse,  M 669 

Niimoto,  Shikanosuki 870 

Nishiwaki,  Seizaburo 135 

Noda,  Utaro opp.  90 

NoGUCHi,  Mr 307 

Nomura,  T 610 

o 

Oba,  Dr.  S 914 

Ogawa,  Heikichi        914 

Ogawa,  M 224 

Ogura,  Kyubei 224 

Ohsawa,  Seizo 224 

Ohta,  S 859 

Oi,  B 307 

Oka,  J 729 

Okada,  Dr.  Ryohei 84 

Okazaki,  Tadao 729 

Ok.\zaki,  Tokichi 538 

Okuma,  Marquis  Shigenobu     ...     86 

Okura,  Baron  K 162 

Ono,  K 353 


Ono,  M i3,S 

Ono,  Dr.  Y 93 

OoKA,  Ikuzo 87 

Osaki,  H 914 

OSAWA,  S 610 

OsHiMA,  Lieut. -Gen.  Kenichi  .84 

Otani,  G 442 

Otani,  J 538 

Otani,  Kahei 337 

Otani,  T 610 

Owi,  T 669 

P 

Perry,  Commodore  Matthew  C.         .     77 
PooLE,  O.  M 210 

R 

Regnaitlt,  His  Excellency  M.  Eugene 

Louis  Georges 67 

Rowbottom,  H.  W 876 

s 

Saionji,    Marquis    Kimmochi   ...  86 

Saito,  Shigetake        ...  93 

Saka,  Nakasuke 479 

Sakano,  T 578 

SaKURAI,   TeTSUTARO  ...         1X2,  876 

Salisbury,  Dr.  Edward       .  418 

Sasaki,  Y 93 

Sashida,  Yoshio 126 

Sato,  Aimaro 62 

Sato,  H 615 

Sato,    Vice-Admir.al    Tetsutaro   .  54 

Saway'ama,  S.        791 

ScHENCK,  W.  Egbert 273 

Scott,  A.  P 210 

Shibusawa,  Baron  Eiiuchi  .      .  204 

Shidachi,  T 93 

Shim.\dzu,  Genzo 442 

Shimadzu,  T 442 

Shimamura,  Admir.\l  Baron  H.     .      .     54 

Shimidzu,  H .    135 

Shimidzu,  T .   224 

Shimomura,  Hiroshi 870 

Shimura,  G 93 

Shinkai,  E 126 

Shiohara,  M 224 

Shiota,  T 178 

Sho,  Seijiro 178 

Shoda,  T 610 

Soma,  H 897 

Stephen,  R.  F 675 

SuDA,  Dr.  T 169 

Sugino,  K 126 

Sugiyama,  K 224 

Sumida,  1 791 

suttor,  j.  b 667 

Suzuki,  Tsuneo 821 

T 

T.AJIMA,    N 578 

Tajiri,  Viscount  Inajiro     ....   157 
Takahashi,  Baron  K.     .  opp.  80,  87 

Tak.\h.\shi,  T 615 

Takamine,  Dr.  Jokichi 224 

Takarabe,  Vice-Admir.\l  Takeshi      .     54 

Takata,  Motojiro 874 

Tak.\ta,  S 162 

Takechi,  Tadamichi 897 

Takeda,  K 479 

Takeshita,  Vice-Admir.\l  Isamu    .      .     54 
Tamura,  S 669 


Tanaka,   Lieut.-Gen.   Giichi   .      .   opp.  80 

Tanaka,  M 224 

Tanaka,  S 538 

Tanaka,  Y 307 

Tanimura,  Ichitaro 520 

Tanuma,  Y 821 

Tarao,  G 538 

Tasaka,  T 648 

Tasaki,  Nagakuni 610 

Tasaki,  Tadaatsu,  the  late  ....   610 

Tasaki,  Tadahiro 610 

Terauchi,     Field     Marshal     Count 

Masakata 84,  540 

Thieck,  M 675 

Thompson,  H.  Sykes  .      .      790,  792 

Thompson,  J 273  ■ 

Togo,  Admiral 53 

Tokonami,  T opp.  80,  914 

Tokugawa,  Prince  Iyes.\to      ...     87 

Tsuchiya,  Hidetatsu 610 

Tsuda,  K 578 

TsuNETO,  Dr.  N 307 

Tsunoda,  Shimpei 165 

u 

UcHiDA,  Viscount  Kosai  .        opp.  80 

Uchida,  Nobunari 729 

Uehara,  General  Baron  Y.    .      .      .49 

Uyematsu,  T 178 

Uyenishi,  K 729 

V 

Varnum,  R.  M 210 

w 

Wada,  T 551 

Ward,  F.  W.  R 210 

Watanabe,  T 578 

Watson,  A.  H.  Cole 210 

Wilkinson,  Clifford 610 

Woolley,  Alf 667 

Wright,  R.  T 210 

Y 

Yabe,  Ren 914 

Yamada,  A 307 

Yamada,  a 551 

Yamada,  M 610 

Yamada,  M.,  the  late 307 

Yamagata,  Field  Marsh.\l  Prince  49,  86 

Yamaguchi,  K 520 

Yam.\guchi,  M 224 

Yamaguchi,  Unosuke 165 

Yam.^ji,  Tosataro 729 

Yamamoto,  K 224 

Yamamoto,  T 729 

Yamamoto,  Tatsuo    ...        opp.  80 

Yamamoto,  Teijiro 897 

Yamanari,  Kyoroku 112 

Yamaoka,  J 169 

Yamashita,  K 729 

Yanai,  S 615 

Yano,  T 135 

Yashiro,  Vice-Admiral  Baron  Rokuro     54 

Yasuda,  Z 93 

Yasuda,  Zengoro 135 

Yazawa,  T 610 

Yokota,  Y 520 

Yonei,  G 610 

Young,  Robert 412 

z 

Zahn,  M 353 


cf 


^) 


0 


University  of  California 

SOUTHERN  REGIONAL  LIBRARY  FACILITY 

305  De  Neve  Drive  -  Parking  Lot  17  •   Box  951388 

LOS  ANGELES,  CALIFORNIA  90095-1388 

Return  this  material  to  the  library  from  which  it  was  borrowed. 


^JOb  379  4692 


UC  SOUTHERN  REGIONAL  LIBRARV  FACIU|Y 


D  000  985  497  7