Japan: From the Japanese Government History

by Unknown

Owing to the insular nature of the country, the area of the empire, exclusive of the half of Sakhalin, which is perhaps as much as 12,000 square miles, little exceeds 161,000 square miles, or slightly larger than the area of the British Isles. More than half of this superficies is comprised in the main island. The coastline of the fourteen larger islands and archipelagoes, again excepting Sakhalin, stretches to a length of 13,500 miles. Little indented, the coast along the Sea of Japan offers few bays or promontories; but the Pacific and the China Sea coasts are broken into innumerable capes and inlets, and abound in good harbors.

The country is mountainous, and has little flat land. Two systems of mountain chains extend north to south and east to west, each having numerous branches. The highlands of the empire are the two provinces of Shinano and Kai, situated in the center of the main island. At the boundary of Kai and Suruga stands Fujisan, or Mount Fuji, capped with perpetual snows, its summit rising to 12,300 feet above the sea level. Its position as the loftiest peak in the country has been lost by the acquisition of Formosa, which contains Mount Morrison, now called Mount Niitaka, the altitude of which is not less than 14,200 feet. The mountains of the main island are for the most part volcanic, the active volcanoes numbering 170, and the ranges that comprise them stretch across the extent of the country. Mines and mineral springs consequently abound. Frequency of earthquakes also results from the abundance of volcanoes. Minor shocks average from thirty or forty to several hundreds annually, and of severe shocks history shows that there have been some two or three in each century, entailing sometimes a frightful destruction of life and property.

From the general configuration of the country it follows that great rivers with long courses are few, but numerous streams of lesser magnitude traverse all parts of the empire, affording excellent facilities for drainage and irrigation. Many of the larger of these are even navigable. The Ishikari River in Hokkaidō, with a length of 407 miles, is the longest in the empire, followed by the Shinano, in the main island, about 240 miles long. Nor is the land richer in extensive plains than in great streams. Valleys lying deep in the bosoms of the hills, plateaus along the margins of the great rivers, gentle slopes at the foot of mountain ranges, or stretches by the seashore, are the only comparatively level places to be seen. The Ishikari Moor, bordering the Ishikari River in Hokkaidō, is perhaps the most extensive. Its soil is rich, and it abounds in timber and verdure. Other well-known plains in the north lie along the course of the Tokachi River and by the seashore at Kushiro and Nemuro. Passing to the main island, we find, in the northeasterly section, the Ōshū plateau, traversed by the Kitakami and Abukuma Rivers, and extending over the provinces of Rikuchū, Rikuzen, Iwashiro, and Iwaki. There, too, the soil is rich, and fruitful lands cover a wide area. In the central section the valley of the Tone River forms the Hasshū plain of the Kwantō, spreading into the four provinces of Musashi, Kōzuke, Hitachi, and Shimōsa. Thickly populated and highly fertile, this plain is the most extensive in the main island. Next in order of magnitude comes the valley of the Kiso River, forming a part of the provinces of Mino and Owari, and making one great cultivated field. The Echigo plain, along the lower waters of the Shinano River, is the most extensive of all the littoral plains of Japan. For the rest, very wide plains exist in Kinai, along the banks of the Yodo and Yamato Rivers; while in Shikoku, the most extensive flat-lands are found along the course of the Yoshino River, and in Kiushū the lands by the banks of the Chikugo down to the Ariyake seabeach give to the provinces of Chikugo and Hizen a broad area of irrigated fields.

The main island of Japan, being situated in the temperate zone, enjoys, for the most part, a medium degree of temperature. But the climate of the empire is much varied, owing to the elongated shape of the country, which extends over nearly thirty degrees of latitude, to the great differences of altitude that characterize the surface of the land, and also to the action of a warm and a cold current that flow past its shores. Thus, in the northern part of Hokkaidō and in the Chishima Islands the snow never disappears, the sea freezes in winter, and sleet and fogs prevail. On the other hand, in the southern district, as well as in the Riukiū and Ogaswara groups, the heat is very great, and neither snow nor ice is seen in winter. In the central parts, again, the temperature varies according to the elevation of the land, and the configuration of the mountains and seas. As for Formosa, it is partly situated within the tropical zone, and the two extremes of the entire island are recorded to be 96° and 41° Fahrenheit.

The warm ocean current, known as the Kuro-shiwo or Black Stream, from the deep somber color it displays in cloudy weather, rises from the distant Equator, and possesses an average temperature of 81° Fahrenheit in summer. Immediately after leaving the Equator it travels along the eastern coast of China, and thence passing northward, approaches the coast of Kiushū, where it bifurcates. The branch stream enters the Sea of Japan, and flows to the north; the principal stream passes by the southern coast of Shikoku and the main island, until it reaches the north of Cape Inubō in Shimōsa, where it again bifurcates, a branch turning northward, and the current itself traveling in a northeastern direction until it leaves the main island. In consequence, perhaps, of the heat received from this warm current, all the provinces of Kiushū, Shikoku, Sanyō-dō and Tōkai-dō seldom see snow. There is also a cold stream called the Oya-jiwo, of which the average summer temperature is as low as 37°. Its source is in the Sea of Okhotsk, whence it passes through the Kurile Islands, and flowing by Hokkaidō and the east coast of the northern section of the main island, reaches the neighborhood of Cape Inubō, where it disappears. Situated in a high degree of latitude, Hokkaidō and the northern part of the main island, being further exposed to the influence of this cold stream, have a severe climate. The snow lies there in masses for many days and the winter is long.

The rainfall is heavy in summer and light in winter. It is greatest along the coasts washed by the Pacific Ocean and the Sea of Japan, and least in the central portions of the country along the two coasts of the Inland Sea, as well as in the northern end of the main island. Hokkaidō has an average fall.

Rich soil, a genial climate, and a sufficient rainfall produce luxuriant vegetation. Cultivated fields and gardens succeed each other for wide areas. The extraordinary position of the islands stretching from north to south also adds greatly to the variety of vegetation. Thus in Kiushū and Shikoku are to be seen thick, verdant forests abounding in giant trees. Sugar-canes, tobacco, and cotton, find a soil congenial to their growth. The cocoa, the banyan tree, the banana and their congeners flourish in the Riukiū and Ogasawara Islands. In short, the general aspect is tropical. Passing thence to the central districts, great varieties of plant life are found. The pine (pinus densiflora and pinus massoniana), oak (quercus dentata), hi-no-ki (thuya obtusca), sugi (cryptomeria japonica), camphor and bamboo grow in the woods; while the mulberry, tea plant, lacquer tree, millet, the five cereals, vegetables, and various kinds of fruits are seen in the fields and gardens. Finally, even in the cold and little cultivated Hokkaidō, its fruitful soil and luxuriant vegetation invite agriculture.

The forms of animal life are also much varied. Among domestic animals are the ox, the horse, the pig, the dog, and the cat; while the more important wild animals are the hog, the deer, the hare, the fox, the badger, and the monkey. Ferocious beasts and noxious reptiles are limited to the bear of the northern districts and the habu (a kind of snake) of Riukiū. In the waters that lave the Hokkaidō coasts sea-otters and fur-seals abound; whales frequent the seas in the north and those adjacent to Shikoku and Kiushū; and along all the coasts fish and crustaceans are found in such abundance that they more than suffice for the ordinary food of the inhabitants. Of birds there is great abundance, some possessing beautiful plumage, others melodious notes, and others being suitable for food. To the last mentioned class belong barn-door fowls and ducks. Among insects, the silk-worm is largely reared throughout the main island, the climate and soil being peculiarly suited for the purpose.

Although the country has no mountains of exceptional altitude or rivers of extraordinary length, the conditions of climate and soil are such that not one of the mountains is without woods nor one of the rivers without limpid water. So well distributed, too, are the highlands and streams, that places of beauty are everywhere to be found in the interior, and owing to the configuration of the coasts as well as to the number of islets, gems of scenic loveliness abound by the seaside in all the provinces. Moreover, in addition to wealth of natural charms, numerous shrines and temples of note exist in the choice districts of the main island, so that architectural, glyptic, pictorial, and horticultural beauties supplement the attractions of the scenery. The main island is richest in places of note, and Kinai and its neighborhood are the most favored parts of the main island in this respect. From 794 A. D., when the Emperor Kwammu made Kyōto his capital, until the Emperor Mutsuhito moved to Tōkyō, a period of over eleven centuries, Kyōto remained the imperial seat of government. Hence it offers numbers of historical relics, and is further happy in the possession of scenic beauties attractive at all seasons of the year. Separated from Kyōto by a range of hills is the largest lake in the empire, Lake Biwa, noted for the Ōmi-hakkei which have ever been the theme of poets and the inspiration of painters. At a distance of nearly twenty-five miles from Kyōto is Nara, the imperial residence during a large part of the eighth century. Nara abounds in things historical, the most noteworthy being the shrine of Kasuga and the Temple of Hōriuji, places nobly planned and naturally lovely. Tōdaiji, a large temple erected by the Emperor Shōmu, is more than a thousand years old, and contains the celebrated Great Image of Buddha. The cherries of Mount Yoshino and the plums of Tsukigase, displays of bloom that have no peers elsewhere in the country, are in the same province as Nara. Farther west the face of the Inland Sea between Shikoku and Sanyō-dō is strewn with hundreds of little islands whose shining white sands and green pine-trees combine to make a beautiful picture. Among spots renowned for exquisite seascapes may be mentioned Waka-no-ura in Kii, the Sumiyoshi beach in Settsu, Suma-no-ura, the Maiko beach, and Akashi-no-ura in Harima, and Itsukushima in Aki. The last-named place is a small island close to the seashore, composed almost entirely of fantastically shaped cliffs and strange rocks. On it stands a gracefully modeled shrine said to have been built by Taira-no-Ki-yomori of the twelfth century, the hall and veranda of which seem to float on the surface of the water. The singular combination of water effect and architecture and the loveliness of the whole view suggests an enchanted abode of fairies.

In Kiushū, Yabakei is renowned for its landscape, and the Usajingū shrine for its architecture. Still more celebrated is Ama-no-Hashidate in San-indō. Here a sandy promontory completely covered with pine-trees stretches far into the sea, offering a scene of beauty and making with Matsushima and Itsukushima the three most celebrated views in Japan.