The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1904-02-21

Tt is almost wholly mountainous. with
some magnificent peaks, notably Full
san or Fuiiyama, 1856 feet high, with
a crater 700 feet deep. The main
range Of mountains extends almost due
north and south for sixty-fiYe miles and
acts as an almost complete barrier be
tween the east and west. There are
practically no plains in the empire.
Japan has plentiful supply of wa
ter, but no great river system. The
streams are swift and often cause Sc
TiOUs foods. \ popularity of the Jap
anese nomenclature IS that the large
rivers do not always bear the same
name throughout their length.
Harbors Are Scarce.
While the coast line Of Japan is a
succession of inlets il affords but few
good harbOrs. The inlets generally lie
between bold prOmontOries and are
shallow Where deep inlets exist the
surrounding country generally is 50
mountainous rs to make access to the
interior difficult il not impossible The
Inland sea is an exception to this rule
and is much used for commerce. al
though its shail0wncss makes naviga-
ton difficult for ucean-going craft. 1t
is completely landlocked.
The minerals of the empire comprise
coal, copper. silver gold and antinony
The wild animals Of Japan include deer,
antelope, squirrels, mice. rabbits. red
faced monkeys. bats. small wolves
foxes, badgers, WeaseIs, wild boars
river otter. sea otter and two species of
bear. OF domestic animals the horse
introduced from other lands centuries
ago, is small and sCTaggy The Japan
csc dog is large and worthless The
house cat has merely d stump or no
tail at all Cattle were used for 4 long
time only for draft purposes, but the
japanese Of late years have begun 20
use milk ana butter. Pork is a favorite
article Of diet and pigs are raised eX-
tensiVely. Sheep goats and dOnkeyS
are rare, the grass Of the island not be
ing adapted to them The Japanese
crow is a large bird and is useful as a
scavenger. There are few singing birds,
the most noted being the japanese
nightingale Among other birds are the
cuckoo, pheasant, goose, duck. crane.
stOrk. ibis. heron, eagle, falcon kite.
owl. cormorant. snipe. woodcock. fly
catcher, lark, thrush, etc, 359 species in
al.
Japan has 141 known species Of but
terfly, and perhaps fifteen to twenty
times as many Of moth. There are lots
OF mosquitoes. gnats and feas but no
bedbugs. There are centipedes. grass
hoppers and ants in great abundance.
Bees. not OF the honey variety. wasps
and hornets are common. There is only
one poisonous snake the mamushi,
and it is seldom encountered. The Chi
ma and Japan seas are the richest part
of the ocean from a fisherman's stand
point containing jan abundance mack
erel. founders, sOles. turbOt, salmon.
mullet, etc. The mountain streams are
fun OF trout, and carp are kept in pri-
Vate ponds. There are many varieties
Of goldfish. The cuttlefish is a staple
article Of diet. as is also the cTayfish,
anu when a japanese gentleman gets
rich enough 10 retire he manifests his
wealth by eating great quantities OF
I Holsters. Oysters are plentiful aud the
giant salamander, long extinct every
where else, is still found in Japan.
Japan is generously covered with a
fine species Of pine and other soft
woods. while the valleys bear tropical
trees Of different kinds There are
several varieties of hard woods and a
light weed. the kiTi. much used for
boxes and sandals. Japan is entitled
to its name Of "Chryanthemum En-