But the mountains
are so many and the plains are so few that only a small part of the land
can be used for growing crops, and this makes Japan poor. Its climate is
not unlike ours in Great Britain, but the summer is hotter, and the winter
is in some parts very cold. Many of the mountains are volcanoes. Some of
these are still active, and earthquakes often take place. Sometimes these
earthquakes do terrible harm. The great earthquake of 1871 killed 10,000
people, injured 20,000, and destroyed 130,000 houses.
The highest mountain of Japan also is the most beautiful, and it is greatly
beloved by the Japanese, who regard it as a sacred height. Its name is
Fujisan, or Fusi-Yama, and it stands near the sea and the capital city
of Tokyo. It is of most beautiful shape, an almost perfect cone, and it
springs nearly 13,000 feet into the air. From the sea it forms a most
superb and majestic sight. Long before a glimpse can be caught of the shore
and the city, the traveller sees the lofty peak, crowned with a glittering
crest of snow, rising in lonely majesty, with no hint of the land on which
it rests. The Japanese have a great love of natural beauty, and they adore
Fujisan. Their artists are never tired of painting it, and pictures of it
are to be found in the most distant parts of the land.
CHAPTER II
BOYS AND GIRLS IN JAPAN
In no country in the world do children have a happier childhood than in
Japan. Their parents are devoted to them, and the children are always good.
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