The Books Which Have Been Written Of Late Years About Japan Have
Either Been Compiled From Official Records, Or Have Contained The
Sketchy Impressions Of Passing Travellers. Of The Inner Life Of The
Japanese The World At Large Knows But Little: Their Religion, Their
Superstitions, Their Ways Of Thought, The Hidden Springs By Which They
Move--All These Are As Yet Mysteries. Nor Is This To Be Wondered At.
The First Western Men Who Came In Contact With Japan--I Am Speaking
Not Of The Old Dutch And Portuguese Traders And Priests, But Of The
Diplomatists And Merchants Of Eleven Years Ago--Met With A Cold
Reception. Above All Things, The Native Government Threw Obstacles In
The Way Of Any Inquiry Into Their Language, Literature, And History.
