JAPAN. 



617 



Jspu. Miaco may be considered the seat of the arts and 

 N< T""' sciences. Its population has been rated at about 

 400,000 souls, and that of the capital at half a million. 

 We do not vouch for the accuracy of this computation. 

 There are from SO to 40 other cities, of which the 

 greatest part are flourishing, and of considerable ex- 

 tent. 



Edifee*. The imperial palace, and edifices of the nobility, 



seem almost to rival in splendour those of China. The 

 saloon of the hundred mats is 600 feet long by 300 

 broad. Cedar, camphor, and other precious woods, are 

 employed in the pillars and ceilings. 



p K . - : The public roads are constructed and kept with great 



! ud care. They are made very broad, with a ditch on each 

 rdhng. f j ( l e to carry oft" the water ; and are frequently border- 

 ed with hedges, which sometimes are formed of the 

 tea-shrub. Posts are regularly erected to indicate the 

 miles, which are all measured from the capital, and al- 

 so to direct the traTeller at every cross road. At the 

 time when the princes of the country make their an- 

 nual journey to the court, the roads are freed from eve- 

 ry kind of dirt, sprinkled with water in hot weather, 

 and sometimes even swept with brooms. In travelling 

 on these roads, it is the rule for all who are going to- 

 wards the capital to keep to the left, and for those who 

 move in an opposite direction to take the right ; or ra- 

 ther for each passenger to keep always to the side on 

 his left hand. The roads are more easily preserved in 

 so good a state, as no wheel-carriage* are used in the 

 country for travelling, except a few carts near the ca- 

 pital, which are confined to one side of the highway ; 

 and the hones are commonly provided with straw co- 

 vers to their feet, instead of iron shoes. The poorer 

 rlisnri travel on foot, and others either on horseback or in 

 palankeen*. Several persons, and sometime* a whole fa- 

 mily, are mounted on one hone. In such cases, the 

 man sits on the saddle with his legs extended forwards on 

 each side of the horse's neck, and the rest of* the party 

 are carried in basket* on each side, while a person walks 

 before to lead the animal. The palankeens, or Kan- 

 goes and Norimons as they are called in Japan, are of 

 various sue* ; but the better kind are so Urge, that the 

 traveller may lie down, or sit at his ea*e, on stuffed mat- 

 trasses and cushion*. There are windows in the sides, 

 and various conveniences within these vehicles. The 

 pole by which they are carried passes along the roof, 

 and is borne on the shoulders of the bearers, who ge- 

 nerally keep time by a song, and travel at the rate of a 

 league in toe hour, or ten leagues in the day. When 

 any of the grandees is going to court through the strxU 

 of the capita], it is the fashion for his bearers to carry 

 the pole aloft on their hands, and to move at the ut- 

 most speed in their power. 



As we have no certain data on which to estimate the 

 population of the Japanese empire, we feel more at a 

 toss on this branch of our subject than any other. Some 

 hold China to be a (air standard of reference for Japan, 

 and accordingly assign 30,000,000 as the proportionate 

 amount. Other* are content to rate the population at 

 little more than half of this estimate ; yet, as all tra- 

 vellers agree in stating that an overflowing population 

 is seen moving about Die streets and highways, we must 

 reckon Japan one of the most populous countries, in 

 proportion to the extent of surface, in the world. The 

 acne difficulty occurs in stating the military force of 

 the kingdom. Some compute the army at 400,000 

 men, we know not how correctly. According to our 

 idn of a navy, the Japanese may be said to have 

 ! The arm* of the military consist of bows and 



VOL. Xi. PAST II. 



Vil.ury 



I . 



arrows, scymitars and halberU. Their bows are large, 

 and the arrows of great length ; and the soldier, in dis- 

 charging them, places himself with one knee upor. the 

 ground. The scymitar is their chief weapon, and is 

 worn by all except the peasantry. The blade is about 

 a yard in length, and slightly curved ; so excellently 

 tempered, that they are said to cut a large iron nail 

 asunder, without their edge being turned, and are con- 

 sidered by the Japanese as the most valuable part of 

 their property. They make little use of fire-arms, and 

 the few muskets seen in the country appear to be chief- 

 ly employed in salutes. Of military tactics they are 

 entirely ignorant ; but courage, fortitude, and love of 

 their country, have hitherto sufficed to preserve their 

 independence, and to repel more than one foreign in- 

 vasion of their territories. 



The revenues yielded by the different provinces are 

 stated to amount to 283* tons of gold, or (at 10,000 

 sterling per ton), to 28,3*0,000 sterling. The empe- 

 ror, however, only benefits by the revenue of the five 

 provinces of his own fief or government. But, as be- 

 fore mentioned, he is entitled to two thirds of each 

 mine that is opened ; and he is said to possess a large 

 treasure, disposed in chests containing each 1000 tads. 



From the genius of their government, and jealousy 

 of foreign interference, it does not appear that the Ja- 

 panese have any external political relations. Their most 

 natural allies would be the Chinese ; yet it is certain 

 that they do not treat even the Chinese merchants, who 

 frequent the harbour of Nangasaky, with much cere- 

 mony and respect ; and the Dutch at Japan seem to be 

 reconciled to mortification, without gaining any ade- 

 quate compensation by traffic. Though these last have 

 been established at Japan about two centuries, their 

 trade has declined, instead of having increased ; and as 

 we have no right to infer want of vigilance on the part 

 of the Dutch in watching over their commercial inter- 

 ests, we must suppose, either that they have nothing 

 to offer the Japanese worth their acceptance, or that 

 these latter are not to be seduced, by any means, to 

 make an inconsiderate surrender, or depart from their 

 maxims of state. When we reflect how often the inde- 

 pendence of nations is sacrificed to commercial tolera- 

 tion, we must give the Japanese rulers credit for great 

 prudence in their councils. The chief articles which the 

 Dutch carry to Japan are bullion, European cloths, silks, 

 spices, printed linens, sugar, sapan wood, tin, ivory, 

 tortoise-shell, homs of the sea unicorn, which last is 

 highly valued by the Japanese as a medicine. But, as 

 before stated, they are restricted to the dispatch of two 

 ships annually from Batavia. The cargoes of 13 ships 

 between 1 74 and 1 793 inclusive, amounted to 3,534,52 1 

 florins. The returns made from Batavia to Japan dur- 

 ing the same period, which consisted principally of 

 copper and camphor, amounted to 2,764,879 florins. 



'1 lie Chinese send annually 12 ships from Ningpo, 

 (or Simfo, a* it is called by the Japanese,) five of which 

 arrive in June and sail in October ; the other seven ar- 

 rive in December, and sail in March or April. They im- 

 port chiefly sugar, ivory, tin plates, lead, silk stuffs, &c. 

 They export copper, camphor, japanned wares, gold 

 thread, buffalo horns, sowaas (an artificial metal) paint- 

 ed and coloured paper, umbrellas, and particularly the 

 dye-fish, used as a medicine in China. Besides these, 

 a kind of sea plant, and large dried mussels, called a;ca- 

 hy, considered a great delicacy. Each Chinese vessel, 

 or junk, being about equal to a ship of 400 tons, it 

 would appear that their cargoes must be very consi- 

 derable ; yet Krusenatern remarks, that two ships of 

 41 



.T/ipan. 



Revenues. 



Political rr- 

 lations. 



Commercikl 



:. . 



Dutch com- 

 merce. 



ChineK 



commerce. 



