JAPAN. 



3G9 



and decide the case on hand." This watchful 

 system is no dead letter ; it is sharply felt by 

 officials of every grade. The rewards of virtue 

 which the magistrate may bestow, the punish- 

 ment of vice he may inflict, are next enumer- 

 ated, the latter list exhibiting strange refine- 

 ments in cruelty, terminal words "and so on" 

 giving officials the power to apply any supple- 

 mentary torture they may happen to fancy. 

 These punishments are: 1st, branding; 2d, 

 splitting the nose ; 3d, banishment ; 4th, trans- 

 portation; 5th, strangulation; 6th, imprison- 

 ment; 7th, decapitation, and exposure of the 

 head; 8th, crucifixion and transfixion; 9th, 

 burning; 10th, decapitation; "and so on." 

 But the infliction of the severe punishments 

 of tying a criminal's legs to two oxen and driv- 

 ing them in different directions, and of boiling 

 in oil, is not within the power of the Shdgun 

 (i. e., Tycoon), and is, therefore, we presume, a 

 prerogative of the Emperor. 



The maintenance of the standing army is 

 made to devolve on the government of the dif- 

 ferent provinces. Each province is compelled 

 to furnish soldiers in proportion to the quan- 

 tity of rice grown within its boundaries, wheth- 

 er on public or private properties. "For 

 1,000 kokus of rice five cavalry-men may be 

 required; for 10,000, 50 men; for 50,000, 250 

 men; for 100,000, 500 men; for 200,000, 1,000 

 men. One thousand horsemen form an army, 

 and 3,000 form three complete armies. The 

 commander -in -chief takes command of the 

 whole. The second in command takes com- 

 mand of two armies. The third in command 

 is the leader of one army." 



The persons of members of the imperial 

 family are considered sacred, and a death 

 among them ranks as a public misfortune. 

 " The departure from life of the Emperor, the 

 imperial sire, the imperial spouse, or any of 

 the imperial blood relations, are occasions of 

 profound darkness, and great and ominous 

 calamity for the whole empire." 



.The Japanese have already far outstripped 

 the Chinese in progress toward Western civili- 

 zation. The Government has troops uniformed 

 and armed with the latest improved breech- 

 loading guns. The naval vessels are well armed. 

 A hospital has been built at Hioga, and is in 

 charge of an American surgeon, and is open 

 to foreigners. Light-houses are built and light- 

 ed, and a light-ship is being equipped, to be 

 stationed off Treaty Point. The coal-mines 

 are successfully worked, and supply foreign 

 vessels with coal, while the Chinese refuse to 

 allow foreigners to mine coal. 



On January 6, 1869, a new era in the for- 

 eign political intercourse with Japan com- 

 menced. On that day the Mikado, or Emperor, 

 emerged from his normal state of seclusion, 

 and, disregarding the time-honored tradition 

 which forbids the "barbarian" to gaze on his 

 "sacred countenance," received in state the 

 foreign ministers residing at Yeddo, and ex- 

 hibited an earnest desire to maintain peaceful 

 VOL. ix. 24. A 



relations. The ports of Yeddo and Negata 

 were opened to foreigners, and Yeddo made 

 the official residence of the Mikado, and the 

 permanent capital of the Japanese empire. 

 The trade with foreigners has been increasing 

 since the opening of the first ports. The fol- 

 lowing figures will give some estimate of the 

 trade of Hioga for the year 1868 : 



Total number of vessels arrived, 190 ; ton- 

 nage, 116,917 of w hich number 64 were Amer- 

 ican, with an aggregate tonnage of 73,195*; 

 English, 111, with 39,186 tons; other coun- 

 tries, 15. 



The total value of imports for the same time 

 amounted to $4,710,214; of which $822,404 

 came direct from foreign ports. The total value 

 of exports amounted to $1,561,090; of which 

 $388,096 was direct to foreign countries, and 

 a large proportion of the rest also went to 

 foreign countries, but was first shipped to 

 Yokohama. For instance, the value of the silk 

 export alone that is, including silkworms' 

 eggs amounted to $749,044, and the tea to 

 $309,025. Altogether this is a very healthy 

 showing, and whether Kobe supersedes Yoko- 

 hama or not, we may confidently expect that 

 her trade will foot up in a couple of years to a 

 very considerable amount. 



An Austrian naval and diplomatic expedition 

 visited Japan in the fall. Very flattering ac- 

 counts have been received of the reception it 

 met from the imperial court and its officers, 

 and from the foreign diplomatic agents and 

 merchants. The points of a draft of a com- 

 mercial treaty, which placed Austria on the 

 same footing with the most favored nations, 

 were agreed upon within less than ten days. 

 The treaty was signed on the 18th of October, 

 the anniversary of the departure of the expe- 

 dition from Trieste. Among the most remark- 

 able incidents of the mission was that of the 

 ceremonial audience with the Mikado, who 

 took this opportunity to give the admiral" a 

 letter for the Emperor of Austria, which was 

 written with his own hand. This is the more 

 noticeable, because it is the first instance of a 

 Japanese ruler dispatching an autograph letter 

 to a foreign sovereign. In Yeddo a brilliant 

 reception was given the embassy by the Jap- 

 anese minister in a place splendidly fitted up 

 for this occasion. The uncle of the Mikado, a 

 leader in affairs of state, was present. As this 

 prince had never before dined with Europeans, 

 he suffered himself to be instructed for the oc- 

 casion by Herr Alexander von Siebold in the 

 use of the knife and fork. 



Besides the expensive gifts of Austrian arti- 

 cles of manufacture, which were brought to 

 the Mikado by the embassy, specimen proofs 

 of the publications of the Academy of Science 

 of Vienna, printed on the imperial press, were 

 given to the high schools in Yeddo, and at- 

 tracted the particular attention of Japanese 

 statesmen and scholars. At the same time an 

 exposition of Austrian goods took place at the 

 port of Yokohama, which was not only much 



