g, about 20 ft. across and 5 ft. deep, designed as an honourable
place for the portraits of the Emperor and Empress, which are solemnly
exposed to view on Imperial birthdays[117].

Apart from a local spirit of pride and emulation and a belief in
education, one of the reasons for the building of new schools and
adding to old ones is to be found in the recent extension of the
period of compulsory attendance. It used to be from six to ten years
of age; it is now from six to twelve. The visitor to Japan usually
under-estimates the ages of children because they are so small.
Japanese boys grow suddenly from about fifteen to sixteen.

In the whole of this county, with a population of 35,000, there were,
I learnt at the county offices, 22 elementary schools with 36 branch
schools, 3 secondary schools and 17 winter schools. Within the same
area there were 46 Buddhist temples with about 60 priests, and 125
Shinto shrines with 11 priests.

The chief police officer, in chatting with me, mentioned that, out of
71 charges of theft, only 47 were proceeded with. When charges were
not proceeded with it was either because restitution had been made or
the chief constable had exercised his discretion and dismissed the
offender with a reprimand. When transgressors are dismissed with a
reprimand an eye is kept on them for a year. As the Japanese are in
considerable awe of their police, I have no doubt that, as was
explained to me, those who have lapsed into evil-doing, but are
released from custody with a warning, may "tremble and correct their
conduct." In the whole county in a year 14,400 admonitions were given
at 14 police stations. The noteworthy thing in the criminal
statistics is the small proportion of crime against women and
children.

The fact that the county was in a remote part of Japan may be held,
perhaps, to account for the fact that there were in it, I was assured,
only 14 geisha and 8 women known to be of immoral character. All of
them were living in the town and they were said to be chiefly
patronised by commercial travellers and imported labourers. I was told
that there were pre-nuptial relations between many young men and young
women. Two undoubted authorities in the district agreed that they
could not answer for the chastity of any young men before marriage or
of "as many as 10 per cent." of the young women. In an effort to save
the reputation of their daughters, fathers sometimes register
illegitimate children as t