— 4 — 



there is a very small number of landowner, who do not put themselves to the actual cultivation of 

 field. 



III. AGRICULTURAL LAND AND ITS CONDITION. 



Area of Agricultural Land. — Japan, as stated at the outset, is narrow, but long in configuration, 

 and there run through her great and tangled mountain-chains. In consequences, there are few 

 large plains ; yet open fields are found almost everywhere along rivers or coasts and are fully 

 exploited as arable land. The area of land under cultivation amounts to about 6,000,000 cho ; in 

 other words, 15 per cent, of the total area of the countr}-. Of the acreage, about a half is taken 

 up by paddy field and another equal portion by upland field. Besides these two kinds of farm, 

 there are some fields, which are set aside for grazing and other purposes, and which cover an area 

 of about 2,000,000 cho. Again, of the land under cultivation, what is worked by its owner is almost 

 equal, in area, to what is tended by tenant. 



Utilisation of Agricultural Land. — Below is given a brief explanation of the utilisation of 

 agricultural land of various descriptions : — 



{a) Paddy Fields. — Paddy fields are, of course, for the raising of rice and are filled with water 

 in the summer season. Rice being the staple food of the Japanese, its cultivation is comparatively 

 profitable, and almost every piece of field, so far as it is provided with ample irrigation facility, is 

 developed as paddy field. Under the circumstances, the paddy field is generally twice or thrice 



