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than those just mentioned. The Kurile Islands at the extreme north are frigid, and have practically no animal or vegetable life; while the beautiful island of Formosa at the extreme south is half in the tropics, with a corresponding climate, and abounds in most valuable products. Marcus Island, farther out in the Pacific, has guano deposits worth working.

Japan proper is divided geographically into nine "circuits," called Gokinai, Tōkaidō, Tōsandō, Hokurikudō, Sanindō, Sanyōdō, Nankaidō, Saikaidō, Hokkaido. The word dō, which appears in all the names except the first, means "road" or "highway." Some of these appellations are not much used at present; but others are retained in various connections, especially in the names of railways, banks, companies, or schools. A common official division of the largest island (Hondo) is into Central, Northern, and Western. Japan proper was also subdivided into 85 Kuni (Province), the names of which are still retained in general use to some extent. But, for purposes of administration, the empire is divided into 3 Fu (Municipality) and 43 Ken (Prefecture), besides Yezo (or Hokkaido) and Formosa, each of which is administered as a "territory territory" or "colony." The distinction between Fu and Ken is practically one in name only. These large divisions are again divided: the former into Ku (Urban District) and Gun (Rural District); and the latter into Gun. There are also more than 50 incorporated Cities (Shi) within the Fu

and Ken.

Moreover, the Gun is subdivided into

Chō (Town) and Son (Village).

But, while the prefix "great" does not apply to Japan with reference to its extent, it is certainly appropriate to the contents of that country. Within the Empire of Japan are great mountains with grand scenery, great and magnificent temples, great cities, and a great many people. For, while the area of Japan is only one-twentieth of that of the United States, the population is about one-half as numerous. Even in the country districts the villages are almost continuous, so that it is an infrequent experience to ride a mile without seeing a habitation; and in the large cities the people are huddled very closely together. The latest official statistics, those of 1900, give the total population of Japan as 47,646,810, of whom the males exceed the females by about 600,000; and as of late years the annual increase has amounted to about 500,000, the present population (1903) may fairly be estimated at more than 49,000,000.

The number of foreigners resident in Japan in 1900 exceeded 12,000, of whom more than half were Chinese, and more than a quarter were British and American. The number of Japanese then living abroad was 123,791, of whom 90,146 were in the United States (chiefly in Hawaii), 15,829 in Korea, and 8,215 in British territory.

Japan is a mountainous country. The level ground,

1 There is a Tōkyō Shi, for instance, in Tōkyō Fu. See Appendix for lists of Kuni and Ken.

including artificial terraces, is barely 12 per cent of the area of the whole empire. A long range of high mountains runs like a backbone through the main island. The highest peak is the famous Fuji, which rises 12,365 feet above the sea-level, and is a "dormant volcano," whose last eruption occurred in 1708. Its summit is covered with snow about ten months in the year. There are several other peaks of more than 8,000 feet elevation, such as Mitake, Akashi, Shirane, Komagatake, Aso, Asama, Bandai, some of which are active volcanoes. Eruptions happen not infrequently; and earthquakes, more or less severe, registered by the seismometer, are of daily occurrence, although most of the shocks are not ordinarily perceptible. There are also several excellent hot springs, of sulphuric or other mineral quality, as at Ikao, Kusatsu, Atami, Hakone, Arima, Onsen. The mountainous character of Japan has also its pleasant features, because it furnishes means of escape from the depressing heat of summer. Karuizawa, Nikkō, Miyanoshita, Hakone, Arima, Chūzenji are the most popular summer resorts.

There are not many, or large, lakes in Japan. Lake Biwa, 50 miles long and 20 miles wide at its widest point, is the largest and most famous. Hakone Lake, the "Asiatic Loch Lomond," is beautiful, and especially noted for the reflection of Mount Fuji in its water by moonlight. Lake Chūzenji, in the Nikkō mountains, is regarded by many as "unri

1 Students of seismology should consult Professor Milne's works.

valled for beauty" and "hardly surpassed in any land."

There are many beautiful waterfalls, such as Kegon, Urami, and others in the Nikkō district, Nunobiki at Kōbe, Nachi in Kii, etc.

There are numerous rivers, short and swift; and it is these streams, which, after a rainy season, swelling and rushing impetuously down from the mountains, overflow their sandy banks and cause annually a terrible destruction of life and property. The most important rivers are the Tone, the Shinano, the Kiso, the Kitakami, the Tenryū, in the main island, and the Ishikari in Yezo. The last is the longest (about 400 miles); the next is the Shinano (almost 250 miles); but no other river comes up even to 200 miles in length. The Tenryu-gawa1 is famous for its rapids. Some of these rivers are

navigable by small steamers.

Japan, with its long and irregular coast line, is particularly rich in bays and harbors, both natural and artificial, which furnish shelter for the shipping of all kinds. The "open ports," which formerly numbered only 6 (Nagasaki, Yokohama, Hakodate, Ōsaka, Kōbe, Niigata), have reached the figure 26; and the growing foreign commerce annually demands further enlargement. Of the old ports, Niigata is of no special importance in foreign commerce; but, of the new ports, Kuchinotsu in Kyūshiu, Muroran in Yezo (Hokkaido), and especially Bakan and Moji,

1 Kawa, or gawa, in composition, means "river."

on opposite sides of the Straits of Shimonoseki, are rapidly growing. In this connection it is, perhaps, not inappropriate to make mention of the far-famed "Inland Sea," known to the Japanese as Seto-no-uchi (Between the Straits), or Seto-uchi, which lies between the main island, Shikoku and Kyūshiu.

The long coast line of Japan is a source of danger; for tidal waves occasionally spread devastation along the shore. These, with floods, earthquakes, eruptions, typhoons, and conflagrations, make a combination of calamities which annually prove very disastrous in Japan.

The country is subject to epidemics, like dysentery, smallpox, cholera, plague, and "La Grippe,' which generally prove quite fatal. In 1890, for instance, some 50,000 Japanese were attacked by cholera, and about 30,000 died; and during two seasons of the "Russian epidemic" large numbers of Japanese were carried away. In both cases the foreigners living in Japan enjoyed comparative immunity. And now, on account of the advance in medical science, more stringent quarantine, and better sanitary measures, the mortality among Japanese has been considerably diminished. This fortunate result is largely due to the efforts of such men as Dr. Kitasato, whose fame as a bacteriologist is world-wide. The zoological pests of Japan are fleas, mosquitoes, and rats, all of which are very troublesome; but modern improvements minimize the extent of their power.

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