JAPAN JAKL. 



215 



dit ion to which, lie receives presents from the terri- 

 torial princes, who govern the provinces. Each of 

 these princes possess an hereditary sovereignty in his 

 own province; he receives the revenue without giving 

 an account to the emperor, and defrays the expenses 

 of his court and his army, repairs the highways, and, 

 in short, provides for all public expenditures ; but, in 

 token of his dependence, he is obliged to spend six 

 months every year at the court at Jeddo, where his 

 wives and children Jive in a kind of captivity, as hos- 

 tages and pledges of his fidelity. 



The religion of the Japanese is of Hindoo origin. 

 This is true of the older sect of the Siutos, as well as 

 of the more modern one of Budso or Fo, which came 

 from China. Besides these sects, there are others, 

 more or less resembling them. The people worship 

 a great number of inferior divinities, whose statues 

 are placed in the temples of the great deities. The 

 numerous clergy, and the monks and nuns, who live 

 in a multitude of monasteries, are under the dairi. 

 The Hindoo religion has nowhere been more 

 disfigured by superstition and subsequent additions 

 than in Japan. The Siuto or Confucius sect, a 

 philosophical sect, resembles the sect of the learned 

 in China, and despises the folly of the popular 

 belief. 



The army of the Japanese consists, in time of 

 peace, of 100,000 men, besides 20,000 horsemen, 

 clad in armour ; the infantry are protected only by 

 helmets ; their arms, bows, muskets, sabres and 

 daggers, are excellent ; they have very heavy can- 

 non, but are even less skilful in the use of them 

 than the Chinese. The single princes maintain, 

 besides, 368,000 infantry and 33,000 cavalry. The 

 navy is insignificant. The dairi formerly had large 

 fleets, and large vessels of cedar ; but now the 

 Japanese vessels are small, at most ninety feet long, 

 like the Chinese. In war, the Japanese display 

 much courage, which is inflamed by martial songs 

 and stories. 



The Japanese are well situated for commerce. 

 Formerly their ships covered the neighbouring seas ; 

 and before the arrival of the Europeans, they carried 

 on a considerable trade, and an extensive navigation ; 

 they had, for example, visited the north-west coast 

 of America, beyond Beering's straits, farther than 

 the European navigators ; they visited China and 

 the East Indies as far as Bengal. After it had 

 begun to be feared that foreigners would overthrow 

 the state, and pervert the morals of the natives, all 

 foreign commerce and navigation were prohibited. 

 Their silk and cotton cloths, their porcelain wares, 

 and their lackered tin ware, with raised flowers 

 or figures (japanned ware), are well known, and in 

 much demand as articles of commerce ; their steel- 

 work is excellent, especially their swords and other 

 arms, the exportation of which is strictly forbidden. 



Respecting the history of Japan, see Thunberg's 

 Travels (from the Swedish, London, 1795), and 

 Kampfer's History of Japan (translated from the 

 manuscripts into English, London, 1728). Compare, 

 also, Golownin's Narrative of his Imprisonment in 

 Japan, 1811 13 (London, 1817), Abel Re'mnsat's 

 Memoires sur la Dynastic regnante des Djogouns, 

 Souverains du Japan (Paris, 1820), which Titsingh, 

 who was fourteen years Dutch resident at Nanga- 

 sacki, compiled from Japanese originals. The 

 Siemens de la Grammaire Japonaise (from the 

 Portuguese manuscript of father Rodriguez. Nanga- 

 sacki, 1604), traduits du Portug. par Landresse, 

 expliqv.es par Ab. Rcmusat Paris. 1825), is preferable 

 to the Japanese grammars of Alvarez and Collado. 



* The following notice appeared iu the newspapers in 

 i;i ; " Doctor Siebold the resident of the king of the 



JAPANESE CYCLE AND ^ERA. See Epoch. 



JAPANNING is the art of varnishing in colours. 

 All substances that are dry and rigid, or not too 

 flexible, as woods, metals, leather, and paper pre- 

 pared, admit of being japanned. Wood and metals 

 require no other preparation than to have their 

 surfaces perfectly even and clean ; but leather should 

 be securely stretched, either on frames or on board?, 

 as its bending would crack and force off the varnish. 

 Paper should be treated in the same manner, and 

 have a previous strong coat of size ; but it is rarely 

 japanned, till converted into papier mache, or 

 wrought into such a form that its flexibility is lost. 

 The article to be japanned is first brushed over with 

 two or three coats of seed lac varnish, to form the 

 priming. It is then covered with varnish, previously 

 mixed with a pigment of the tint desired. This is 

 called the ground colour', and, if the subject is to 

 exhibit a design, the objects are painted upon it in 

 colours mixed with varnish, and used in the same 

 manner as for oil painting. The whole is then 

 covered with additional coats of transparent varnish, 

 and all that remains to be done is to dry and polish 

 it. Japanning requires to be executed in warm 

 apartments, and the articles are warmed before the 

 varnish is applied to them. One coat of varnish 

 also must be dry before another is laid on. Ovens 

 are employed to hasten the drying of the work. The 

 same pigments which are employed in oil or water 

 answer also in varnish. For painting figures, shell 

 lac varnish is considered best, and easiest to work ; 

 it is therefore employed, in most cases, where its 

 colour permits. For the lightest colours, mastich 

 varnish is employed, unless the fineness of the work 

 admits, or its durability requires the use of copal dis- 

 solved in alcohol. 



JAPHETH, a Hebrew word, signifying beautifully 

 producing, is the name of the third son of Noah. 

 His descendants, according to Genesis, x. 5. peopled 

 the isles of the Gentiles. This is supposed to mean 

 Southern Europe, and thus Japheth is considered the 

 ancestor of the European race, and is believed to have 

 been the same who is called by the Greeks Japetos. 

 According to Herbelot's Bibliot. Orient., the Ara- 

 bians give to Japheth eleven sons, who became 

 founders of as many Asiatic tribes. 



JARED ; a son of Mehalaleel's, the father of 

 Enoch. He reached the age of 962 years, according 

 to Genesis, v. 20. 



JARL, in the early history of the northern 

 European kingdoms ; the lieutenants or governors, 

 appointed by the kings over each province. At a 

 later period, only one jarl was appointed in each 

 kingdom, and the title of duke given him, as was the 

 case in Sweden, for instance, in 1163. In Norway, 

 after 1308, during the reign of Hacon VII. this 

 dignity was conferred only on the earls of" Orkney 



Netherlands in Japan, has transmitted a work to the 

 Asiatic Society of Paris, on the origin of the Japanese, 

 &c., containing, in an abridged form, the result of his 

 researches during the last four years. The doctor wishes 

 it to be published at the expense of the society, with nott-t 

 and a critical preface. He writes, also, that he lias col- 

 lected the largest library of books which he believes was 

 ever formed in Japan; it consists of more than I..OH 

 volumes. His zoological museum contains more than 3000 

 specimens, and his botanical collection about 2000 species, 

 in upwards of UOOO specimens. Assisted by his colleague, 

 doctor Burger, he has also formed a complete mineralo- 

 gical collection. He has visited the most remarkable 

 cities, determined their latitude and longitude, and 

 measured the height of several mountains. He has also 

 established a botanical garden ttt Uezima, at the expense 

 of the government of the Netherlands, in which there are 

 now more than 1200 plants cultivated. The doctor has 

 also presented to the king of Prance a collection of plants in 

 domestic use in Japan, which he considers to be well 

 adapted for the climate of the south of France." 



