20 AGRICULTURE AND FORESTRY. 



have never been more prominent than in colonization affairs, as 

 the latest European political history shows. Courage, intelligence, 

 self-confidence, and perseverance in hard work, even in the face of 

 misfortune — these are the qualities through which free, independent 

 men have founded colonies and made them prosper. And if 

 Governments have helped to this end, it was only by temporary, 

 prudent backing, but never by taking matters into their own hands 

 and thus crippling the individual forces at work. 



And just as the Kaitakushi was extravagant, planless, and incon- 

 sistent in its operations, so many another bureau acted in its sphere. 

 Thus, in 1874, American cows were brought to Kioto-fu and put 

 up in buildings over a gravel soil, on the river-bank, in a place 

 where there was no such thing as pasturage far and wide, and to 

 which fodder had to be brought, with great labour, from a distance. 

 The same administration had heard about the advantages of flax- 

 culture, a thing unknown in Japan. The requisite flax-seed was 

 immediately procured from a European and an attempt made 

 with it. The flax grew finely on the piece of land chosen for it in 

 Kioto, as I can testify. But when it had formed capsules and was 

 ready for the harvest, there was no one who gave it the necessary 

 attention and performed the labours that were now necessary. The 

 flax ripened on its stalks and went to ruin with its bast. 



Many a reader of these lines will recall the notorious ''' model 

 farm " in Shimosa ; but I do not care to refer here to all the 

 examples of such perverted attempts to elevate agriculture. The 

 right way for the Government, instead of taking everything into 

 its own hands, would have been to encourage the inclination of 

 foreigners to try farming in Japan, to turn over to them for a term 

 of years State lands free of taxes, or for a moderate rent, and permit 

 them to make their experiments. Had these succeeded, they could 

 have served as patterns for the people, and have excited them to 

 imitation ; had they failed, the country would not have had to pay 

 the costs. 



But all such considerations were thrown into the background by 

 a fear that concessions to foreigners for the pursuit of agriculture 

 might injure the Japanese and lead to entanglements. 



In 1867, and therefore towards the end of the Shogun govern- 

 ment, and at its behoof, a German farmer, named R. Gartner, had 

 established a model farm on Yezo and, two years later, taken it up 

 on his own account. " Augustenfelde," as he called the estate, 

 soon developed, under Gartner's circumspect, capable oversight, 

 into a really model establishment, perfectly adapted to farming 

 under local conditions. But this did not last long. Scarcely was 

 the new Government organized and established, before it bought in 

 this estate, paying a good round sum for it, and that was the end 

 of its prosperity. Yezo remained, to use Gartner's own words, " a 

 large, rich house, whose owners, like swallows, live only on its out- 

 side, in a state of extraordinary wretchedness." Its inhabitants 



