For over a century, The Transactions of the Asiatic Society of Japan has been one of the leading scholarly publications focused on the history, culture, and society of Japan. Its informative articles and insightful analysis have helped shape the field of Japanese studies and have made this journal an essential resource for anyone interested in the country's rich and complex past. This work has been selected by scholars as being culturally important, and is part of the knowledge base of civilization as we know it. This work is in the "public domain in the United States of America, and possibly other nations. Within the United States, you may freely copy and distribute this work, as no entity (individual or corporate) has a copyright on the body of the work. Scholars believe, and we concur, that this work is important enough to be preserved, reproduced, and made generally available to the public. We appreciate your support of the preservation process, and thank you for being an important part of keeping this knowledge alive and relevant.