A Handbook of Modern JapanClement, Ernest W. (Ernest Wilson)
History
A Handbook of Modern Japan
Clement, Ernest W. (Ernest Wilson)
Japan
In 1901, however, thousands of foreigners of many nationalities
travelled and resided in Japan; and thousands of Japanese were
travelling and residing in many parts of the globe. Foreign vessels,
flying many different flags, freely entered the harbors of Japan;
and Japanese ships conducted freight and passenger services to Asia,
Australasia, America, and Europe. The figures of the small amount of
the foreign trade of Nagasaki in 1801 are not at hand; but the exports
and imports of Japan for 1901 amounted respectively to 252,349,543
_yen_ and 255,816,645 _yen_.
A Japanese of 1801 would have travelled, if he were one of the common
people, by foot, and, if he were of sufficient rank or wealth, by
_norimono_, or _kago_, or on horseback. The Japanese of 1901 might
continue to travel by foot, and, in mountainous districts, might still
use the _kago_; but they might also travel by _jinrikisha_, horse-car,
stage, steam-car, steamboat, horse and carriage, electric car, and
bicycle. The letter of 1801 was despatched by courier or relays of
couriers; that of 1901 by mail, and communication by telegraph and
telephone was becoming more and more common. There were over 3,600
miles of railway, 9,500 miles of telegraph, and, in Tōkyō alone,
over 6,000 telephones. An electric railway was actually disturbing
and desecrating the hallowed precincts of Kyōto, once sacred to the
Emperor. And even His Majesty’s Palace in Tōkyō had been put into
telephonic and telegraphic communication with the rest of the city and
even of the world.
Nor was travel throughout the empire itself free and unimpeded to all
in 1801. The country was split up into feudal fiefs, of which each lord
was intensely jealous of other lords and had to act on the defensive.
Every traveller was under considerable surveillance, and had to be able
to give a strict account of himself; and many “barriers” were erected
where travellers were challenged by guards. The large places where the
lords lived were walled towns, entered by gates carefully guarded by
sentinels. In Kyōto and Yedo the palaces of the Emperor and the Shōgun
were protected by moats and gateway. But in 1901 those historic castles
and gateways had mostly crumbled into ruins or been destroyed in war,
or demolished by the hands of coolies working under the direction of
the Board of Public Works or the Bureau of Street Improvements.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
Reviews
Reviews
No reviews yet
Be the first to share your thoughts on this work.
Elsewhere in the archive
Join the Discussion
Join the discussion
Sign in to leave a comment or review.
Sign InorCreate an account