8 



THE ECONOMIC PLANTS OF JAPAN. 



From the northern point of Yezo (45. 30° N.) to the 

 southern point of Kiushiu, these islands extend over 

 about fifteen degrees of latitude. It will thus be seen 

 that the range of temperature must be considerable. 

 In the north the winters are severe, the snow-fall deep 

 and the summers comparatively cool ; in the south, 

 sub-tropical products of all kinds thrive to perfection, 

 the climatic conditions corresponding nearly to those of 

 Florida and Key West. It will also be seen that Japan 

 is not a tropical country, a notion not uncommon in 

 America. It is, however, true that owing to the in- 

 sular character of the country the winter climate is 

 much ameliorated, especially on the Pacific coast, where 

 this amelioration is still greater under the influence of 

 the Japan current, and that for this reason many 

 plants are hardy and flourish in Japan on latitudes 

 farther north than they do in America east of the 

 Rockies. But the reverse is true if we compare Japan 

 with western Europe. It will then be found that lines 

 of equal temperature will strike Europe in latitudes much 

 farther north than they do in Japan, To give an idea 

 of the temperature and rain-fall at some of the extreme 

 points I take the following figures from an official pub- 

 lication (Resume Statistique de L' Empire du Japan) for 

 the year 1886. Sappora is in the western part of Yezo ; 

 Tokio on the east coast of central Japan ; Kanazawa is 

 nearly opposite Tokio, on the coast of the sea of Japan, 

 and Nagasaki on the western coast of Kiushiu : 



Japan, the maps give us but little information. From 

 north to south, the interior of the country is one jumble 

 of volcanic mountains, with only here and there a plain 

 suited to agriculture. Many of the mountains are still 

 active volcanoes. They can scarcely be said to be 

 arranged in chains, for they are piled together in more 

 or less closely connected groups, which occupy about 

 seven-tenths of the whole area of the empire. The 

 peaks are not high, compared with continental moun- 

 tains. Fuji-sau, an extinct volcano southwest of Tokio, 

 and the highest peak in the country, measures 12,365 

 feet, and a few others approach 10,000 feet, but the 

 great majority will range from 5,000 to 6,000 feet in 

 height. They are, for the most part, covered with 

 vegetation to their summits, and under these jungles of 

 vines and evergreens leap and roar numerous and noisy 

 torrents into the picturesque valleys below, where the 

 people tame them to turn mills and irrigate rice fields on 

 their course to the sea. Though the scenery is not of the 

 grandest, such as may be found in the Rockies, the 





TEMPKRATURE, F. 



hes. 







Maximum. 



Date. 



Minimum. 



Date. 



Rainfall, inc 



No. of Rain' 

 Days. 



Sappora .... 

 Tokio . . . 

 Kanazawa . . 

 Nagasaki . . . 



90.8 

 97.8 

 98.2 

 95-1 



July 21 

 " 14 



Aug. 2 

 " 11 



■ ~9 

 X19.2 

 X23.9 

 X23.2 1 



Jan. 24 

 Feb. 3 

 Jan. 14 

 " 13 



38.4 

 50.8 

 102.8 

 86.7 



157 

 129 

 204 

 178 



The temperature 

 fell below zero at 

 Sappora. At the 

 other places, it will 

 be noticed, the cli- 

 mate is not severe- 

 The p r e c i p itation, 

 which is everywhere 

 abundant, is greatest 

 on the west coast, 

 where, at Kanazawa, 

 it amounts to over 100 

 inches. The snow- 

 fall is also greatest 

 along the west coast 

 and in the north. At 

 Tokio the snow is 

 light and only re- 

 mains on the ground 

 three or four days 

 usually, except in 

 shaded places. 



In regard to the top- 

 ographical features of 



Fig. I. The Island Empire. 



