GEOGRAPHICAL AND STATISTICAL.
391
The principal articles of export from Japan to Great Britain in the year 1874, were rice, of the value of £233,899; and tobacco, of the value of £79,620. The staple article of British imports into Japan consists of cotton goods, the value of which was £626,556 in 1874. Besides cotton manufactures, the British imports consisted chiefly of iron, wrought and unwrought, of the value of £217,287, and of woollen fabrics of the value of £136,196 in the year 1874.
By treaties made with a number of foreign Governments-with the United States in March, 1854; with Great Britain in October, 1854; with Russia and the Netherlands in 1855; with France, in 1859; with Portugal, in 1860; with Prussia and the Zollve- rein, in 1861; with Switzerland, in 1864; with Italy, in 1866; and with Denmark, in 1867-the Japanese ports of Kanagawa, Nagasaki, Hiogo-Osaka, Hakodate, and the city of Yedo-containing a population of 780,621, according to an enumeration taken in 1875-were thrown open to foreign commerce.
The first line of railway, from Yokohama to Yedo, 17 miles long, was opened for traffic on the 12th of June, 1875, and other lines were in progress at that date.
The ports of Hiogo-Osaka, Nagasaki, and Hakodate, are connected with each other, and with Europe, by lines of telegraphs.
The post-office carried 17,095,842 letters in the year 1874. There were 3,244. post-offices in Japan at the end of 1874.
Money, Weights, and Measures.
The money, weights, and measures in common use at the open ports of Japan, and the British equivalents, are:-
Money.
The Ichibu (silver), average rate of exchange.
The Yen, or Dollar
18. 4 d. 48. Od.
The gold yen, the unit of account, differs, as to the quantity of gold contained in it, from the quantity of gold contained in the standard gold dollar of the United States by a reduction of only about three-tenths of one per cent. The yen contains of fine gold precisely one gramme and a half, and being of nine-tenths fineness, weight just one gramme and two-thirds. Consequently, a deca-gramme of gold of the ordinary standard of nine-tenths fineness is equivalent in value exactly to six yens.
The Chinese system of taking money only for its strict metal value, and using it indiscriminately, either whole or in pieces, obtains also in Japan; but, unlike the Chinese, the Japanese have national coins. These coins were made out of the country until the latter part of 1870, when the government purchased at Hongkong the com- plete machinery of a mint, manufactured in England, and set it up at Osaka, in a building constructed for the purpose. The new coinage issued from this mint consists of gold 10, 5, and 2 dollar pieces, equal to Mexican dollars in shape, weight, and fineness; of silver dollars, and 50, 20, and 5 cents; besides copper 1 and cents and 1 mil, the latter said to be the smallest modern coin. They are made of iron, copper, silver and gold, and an alloy of gold and silver, and are of different shapes-rectan- gular, square, circular, and oval. According to a report of the Master of the Mint, addressed to the Minister of Finance, there were imported into Japan, during the year ending July 31st, 1872, for the use of the mint 858,226 ounces of gold for coinage, or about £3,000,000, and 4,767,175 ounces of silver, or about £1,192,000. The total number of gold pieces struck during the same year was 2,190,256, valued at $14,488,981; and that of silver pi ces 13,313,722, valued at $5,689,685, being a total of 15,503,978 pieces, valued at $20,178,666. There is also a paper currency, consisting of banknotes of one-quarter, one-half, and one Riô.
Weights and Measures.
The Picul, or ton... The Kin
=133 lbs. avoirdupois.
160 momme.................. 1 lbs. avoirdupois.
The Shaku 10 sun...
The Ri – 36 chộ.
Ri=
11 inches.
2 miles.
It is stated to be the intention of the Government to introduce into Japan at an early period a new system of weights and measures based on the decimal system of
France.