A Study of the Origin of the Japanese State

This historic book may have numerous typos and missing text. Purchasers can download a free scanned copy of the original book (without typos) from the publisher. Not indexed. Not illustrated. 1917. Excerpt: ... CHAPTER II. RACIAL FACTORS. I. The Geographical Features of Japan. Before entering upon the consideration of the racial factors, we must observe briefly the geographical features of Japan in order to comprehend its connection with the Asiatic continent. According to the opinion of some of our geologists,1 Japan was at one time a part of the neighboring continent, and some of her islands are of volcanic origin. Many evidences have been produced by the Geological Survey, which seem to prove the soundness of this contention. Since, however, these changes must have taken place long before the dawn of Japanese civilization, they have no immediate concern for the present study. The Japan of today (except Chosen or Korea) consists of a chain of narrow islands lying along the eastern coast of Asia, and extending from latitude 21 48' N. to 500 56' N. and from longitude 1190 20' E. to 1560 32' E. The chief islands, named from north to south, are Southern Sakhalien, Hokkaido or Yezo, Hondo (the main island of Japan), Shikoku (near Osaka), Kiushiu (southwest of Hondo), and Formosa. The principal dependent archipelagoes are the Kurile islands (east of Hokkaido), Iki-Tsushima (between Kiushiu and Korea), Goto islands (west of Nagasaki), Ryukyu islands (between Kiushiu and Formosa) Bonin islands (southeast of Ryukyu islands), and Pescadores islands (between Formosa and southern China). Of these Hokkaido, Hondo, Shikoku and Kiushiu are the most important for our study. The shores of southern Japan are washed by the warm currents known as the Kuro-shiwo which come 1. Outlines of the Geology of Japan, pp. 84-85. from the South Seas, while the coasts of northern Japan are swept by the cold Arctic current. Formosa is separated from the Philippines, its southern neighbor, by...