Richard Henry Brunton

“ Still if we consider that this country lays claim to a history of upwards of two thousand years, during the whole of which time it has been inhabited by the same intelligent race which at present occupy it, and if we compare the evidences of constructive ability to be seen in Japan with what may be seen in almost any other part of the civilized word, it is impossible to resist the conclusion that the subject has never received that attention to which it is justly entitled, and that in consequence there has been an utter want of progress in Japan in the art of building. ”

“ The exigencies of the people are such that, in the absence of any regulations to the contrary, they do not hesitate to cut the wood at all seasons, or when they receive an order for it. Wood full of sap is therefore as common in the market as seasoned wood, and perhaps it is not until after some years that the quality of timber purchased is made evident by the decomposed sap oozing out of it like a black, tarry liquid. ”

“ But while the Pelasgi themselves gradually improved and adopted the use of square stones laid on a flat bed, while in later years the ancient Romans gave a further impetus to the science and have left such specimens of their skill and knowledge of the properties of materials as their aqueducts and great roads, the Japanese have not moved; they still employ the same crude systems of building in stone, and are still ignorant of the most rudimentary principles of this branch of constructive art. The old Roman arch which marks an era in the history of building has no place in Japan. ”

“ A curious system of building retaining walls, sea walls, or the face walls for any embankment or cutting, is so general throughout Japan that one is almost led to believe that the people had discovered some peculiar merit in it, although it is patently in contradiction to all our received notions of masonry. ”

“ The woods generally used for building purposes in the southern parts of the country are not very varied. There is a great variety of very excellent woods in the island of Yezo, but these have not yet been introduced into this part of Japan. Kiaké is the commonest hard wood and is, generally speaking, a very serviceable timber. If cut when ripe, and at the proper season, the good qualities will last for centuries, proof of which is shewn in the older temples in the country, but there are great varieties of quality and it requires a very practised eye to pick out the good from the bad. ”

“ Whatever may have been the causes for the want of attention which has been paid to building, there can be no doubt of the great aptitude and ingenuity of the people, and that, after a few years of well-directed education, they will give good proofs of their ability to master all the intricacies of construction as now understood in all civilized countries. ”

“ Thus the frightful loss of life and limb were as much to be attributed to the ignorance and imperfection displayed in the domestic architecture of the people, as to the unhappy natural condition of their country as regards earthquakes.” A very striking example of the advantage of solid construction over lightness and want of strength was seen not many years ago at Manila, when an earthquake levelled almost the entire town and left the Stone Lighthouse at the harbour, which is a column of masonry of great height, standing by itself perfectly unharmed. ”

“ From the vast and handsome edifices which may be seen in most countries in Europe liable to earthquakes, we may conclude that their inhabitants have acknowledged the correctness of this principle, and it cannot therefore be urged on sound grounds that it is owing to the liability of Japan to earthquakes that its people have never desired or made an effort to build other than wooden houses or to make these of any but of the most flimsy description. ”

“ Whereas on the other hand, a stone erection need not he more than ordinarily massive to make it capable of resisting any shock not of extraordinary violence. But in stone houses it is absolutely necessary that the masonry should be executed in a proper manner, the great point to which attention must be given being that a perfect bond is maintained throughout the entire building. ”

“ That earthquakes are prevalent throughout the whole of Japan is a fact which, in the minds of many, has affected the whole system of building in Japan, and has prevented the development of the native talent for construction. This is looked upon as sufficient reason for the absence of stone erections or buildings of solidity and durability. But if earthquakes have exercised this influence over the Japanese mind, the people have been influenced by false premises ”

“ The various pieces composing the image are not fitted together in a very finished manner, but the cement keeps the joints perfectly tight and close. The whole construction is one which shows great skill and original genius in the mixure of the metals and in the methods of casting them, and it is further one which will, no doubt, be a source of pride and gratification to the Japanese people for many centuries to come. ”

“ The construction of the houses is of an extremely fragile and temporary nature. The structures consist of wooden uprights resting generally on rough, round stones. These support the roof, the main beams of which are formed of very large timbers put in their place in their natural state, and without being squared or cleaned. The covering to the roof consists either of thatch, of tiles, or of shingles alone, and in putting these on the workmen are very expert. There are no diagonal struts between the uprights in the frame of the house, and no other means adopted to strengthen or stiffen it. ”

“ The principle of hydraulic cement is, however, known to the Japanese, and a substance which is formed by a mixture of lime and clay is often used by gardeners as a lining for fish ponds, and for other purposes, but the process of mixture is either defective or the materials used are not good, because although the cement hardens under water to some extent, it does not harden sufficiently and it further cracks and falls to pieces when exposed to frost. ”

“ The general poverty of the people and their extremely simple habits may account for the simplicity of their dwellings, and as their habits become more refined and luxurious it is very probable that the internal comforts of their houses will also improve. Six hundred years ago the dwellings of the English were constructed in the roughest manner of wood and clay. The inmates ate and slept in one room and privacy was perfectly unknown. ”

“ The use of mortar dates from the period of the invention of the Roman Arch some centuries before Christ, and was commonly used by the Romans of those days; but even up to the present day, after some years of education by foreigners, Japanese workmen will persist in laying stones on top of one another without any substance between them to fill up irregularities or to cement one to the other. Solidity in their masonry is not considered necessary and the beds or joints of the stones are not made flat or even. ”

“ As a sea wall it may have this advantage that a wave striking the stones from without acts like driving a wedge home, but it possess this great defect that it does not afford solidity or strength which is the great disederatum in any construction exposed to the force of waves. ”

“ It is also thought to be very lasting and is always used in erections which are intended to be durable. Sungi is a kind of cedar and grows in large quantities throughout the whole of Japan. There are many qualities of sungi, the best being almost as good in appearance as shinoki: it is however much cheaper. Sungi is principally used in the dwelling houses of the people which are only desired to be of an ordinary description. A cheaper wood which is used for more temporary erections is matsu, a sort of pine. ”

“ But when we come to the higher branches of carpentry, such as the arrangement of various beams so that they will be best adapted to bear the strains which are likely to come upon them, or a combination of timbers which will form a stiff, strong, and reliable structure, or the selection of the proper size of wood to stand the different strains which it will have to bear, then we find the Japanese very deficient. ”

“ During six months of the year in the greater part of Japan the weather is such as to require properly shut-up houses with good fires, and although during the other six months considerable heat prevails, it cannot be said that the style of building is at all suitable for the climate of the country. ”

“ A lime plaster is made which is tolerably efficient, and is formed by mixing lime with boiled seaweed. But in plastering a house the first coat consists of mud, generally procured from the bottom of some sluggish stream, the second coat of the same substance, this time mixed with sand presumably to harden it, and the lime plaster is then put on as the third coat, but so extremely thin that it is merely a veneer to the mud below it. ”

“ No objection is ever made on account of earthquakes, and on these grounds I am of opinion that at all events the present race have not that dread of earthquakes which would lead them to eschew solid constructions, and we must seek at some other source the reasons for the want of progress in the art of builing.
The whole country is subject to earthquakes, and there is hardly an island or a province of Japan that has not at some time or other suffered from their effects. ”

“ The span of each opening never exceeds 40 feet and generally is not more than 30 feet. One of the longest bridges in Yedo is at Yae tai and has 24 spans of 30 feet each.
The Japanese seem always to have been alive to the necessities for a plentiful and pure supply of fresh water. Yedo has had its water-works for many years, and the native town of Yokohama will also very soon be supplied with water in the same manner. The source of supply for both places is the River Tame-gawa and the fountain-head is about 13 miles distant from each place. ”

“ But, while the country, as is abundantly shewn above, is liable to very severe and an increasing number of earthquakes, the system of construction in the buildings has not been well devised to withstand such visitations. The more solidity and weight in a building and the greater its inertia, the less liable it is to derangement from a sudden movement of its foundations ”

“ There are many temples in Japan from 200 to 300 years old, such as Shiba in Yedo which is 270 years old, and the wood used in them is still fresh and sound. A very fine modern specimen exists at Naruto about 30 miles to the North East of Yedo which is much thought of, and which was only built 18 years ago, but neither do the principles nor the details of its construction differ in any way from the ordinary specimens. ”

“ The roof is formed in a similar manner to the ordinary dwelling house roofs, but the wood in the beams is generally of kiaké and of great size. The roofs, are generally thatched with the hark of the shinoki tree, or with a grass named kai-a which is put on to a thickness of, at times, three feet, in some instances they are covered with sheet copper, and in the case of the smaller temples, tiles are often used. ”

“ Through the courtesy of certain Japanese officials I have been put in possession of some information, which I have every reason to believe to be correct, regarding the destructive earthquakes which have occurred. From this I gather that the country is becoming more and more liable to them and that they have steadily increased in number during the last few centuries. Thus there was but one destructive earthquake in the 5th century, which happened in the year 415; none other is known to have occurred till the 10th century ”

“ The carpenters do not seem to have any appreciation of the disposition of strains in any framework, and where enormous timbers are placed they may be found resting on and sustained by beams not one quarter the size they should be. In their bridges the same incongruities may be observed; thus beams, which if properly fastened would form a tie and be a great support to the structure, may be observed secured in their places by wooden keys about one inch square which are not much stronger than a match. The workmen, however, are very skilful in the use of their tools. ”

“ Those parts of Japan most subject to earthquakes are, strange to say, the vicinities of the two capitals. Thus out of the 43 severe earthquakes which have taken place during the last 600 years, 9 have occurred at Kioto and 13 at Yedo. The province of Echingo is next in numbers and has had four earthquakes. Yezo has been visited twice, as also Diwa and the neighbourhood of Fusiyama—while Nagasaki, Sado, Sendai, &c. have only suffered from one disturbance. ”

“ In the means of internal communication the country is sadly deficient, and as these may be taken as the measure of a nation’s advance in civilization it seems remarkable that so little has been done by the present progressive race of Japanese to improve them. The roads throughout the country have not been formed with the intention of wheeled vehicles being used on them. ”

“ There is also a stone of white appearance much employed, but it is of little use except for the very questionable expedient adopted by foreigners here which makes it take the place of tiles and plaster as the outside casing for the walls of their wooden houses. The only really serviceable stones at present used in this neighbourhood are got from Idzu about 80 miles distant.
The stone erections which have been executed in Japan are very unimportant. ”