Perrysburg journal. (Perrysburg, Wood Co., O. [Ohio]) 186?-1965, 1880-02-06
Toxic, Japan.

There was disastrous conflapration
in Toxic on Dec. 26, the third in seven
years-the first in 1872 and the second
in 1876. Nearly $1,000 homes have
been destroyed, and so, 600 persons rem
dered destitute. The loss of life is put
down at about 100. y
Toxic formerly Yedo), the capitol
OF Japan, is in the eastern part of the
main island, at the head of the Bay of
Yedo, on the Sumidagawa. Its pop
ulation in 1872 was 49, ,361, including
a garrison of Z, 140 and 400 foreigners.
The city is a combination of compaetly
built and densely inhabited districts.
with intervening gardens and groves
devoted TO civil and religious uses, the
whole covering nearly sixty square
miles, the area of the built-up portion
being about twenty-eight square miles,
while one-eighth of the whole is occu-
pied by moats and canals. In the center
OF the city is the citadel, surrounded by
stone walls and a moat, outside of which
second wall incloses about three
square miles. A third system of walls
and moats incloses about five square
miles, formerly occupied by the resi-
dences OF the daimios, but now covered
with Government buildings, colleges,
schools, arsenals, barracks, foundries,
steam mills, and factories. Outside, in
the business and more densely-pop-
ulated portion, are miles of brick and
stone buildings in the European STYLE
OF architecture, and the shops are filled
with foreign wares. The streets are
wide, regular, and clean. The CITY is
10 11fl lxy ;a1, l. L
in wooden aqueducts from Tonegawa,
nine miles distant, and a part of it is
lighted with gas. For police purposes
it is divided into six principal and
ninety-six smaller districts, with sta
tions connected by telegraph, and
uniformed force of $500 men. At the
north and south ends of the city are the
cemeteries, filled with tombs and tenn
pies. There are 741 Shinto shrines, O.
179 Buddhist temples, and four Chris
tian churches. The Imperial University
has in its different faculties nearly 100
foreign instructors. The language,
normal and elementary schools are at
tended by more than $4,000 pupils. !
There are several banks, and more than
dozen daily newspapers printed, with
metal type on improved presses, and |
native capital has established cotton,
woolen, and paper mills driven by
steam, while sewing, knitting, and |
other labor-saving machines are very
common. Hundreds of horse vehicles |
and over 10000 jin-siki-sha Oman
power carriages) make the streetslively. |
Places of amusement abound; actors, |
wrestlers, story-tellers, and female |
are numerous. Foreign dress |
and manner of living have been largely
adopted, and the place presents most
of the characteristics of modern Eu-
ropean or American city. In 1854 and
1856 earthquakes occasioned an i'm
mense loss of life and property, and
there have been many very destructive /
contlagrations, owing to the former
combustible style of building and ineffi-
cient police. In 1861 the British and
French Legations were established here, |
but were soon driven away and were
not re-established till 1865. On Jan. !,
1869, the port was formally opened to
foreign travel and residence. In 1871
the entire power of the Empire was CEN
tered there.-N. Y World.