Everyday Life in Traditional Japan. Charles Dunn
Читать онлайн книгу.
in the functions of the officials, so that a description of the system in Edo will serve for the whole country.
By 1631 this system had been built up to the pattern that was to persist throughout the period. First, there were two machi-bugyō, “town magistrates,” who between them combined what would now be the functions of chief of police, judge and mayor. They did not, however, divide these functions between themselves, but each performed them all, being on duty for a month and off duty for the next. They were known as the North and the South. This sort of duplication was typical of the Shogun’s government: in his patient preoccupation with self-preservation he tried by every means to ensure that no possible rival gained enough power to overthrow him. Each of the two magistrates was a check on the other and neither had all the resources of his office in his own hand. Both had to sign reports submitted to the government, and one result of the dual system was that individual enterprise was hampered. However, as the population of Edo increased with the tendency of people to move in from the country whenever they could, the duties of the magistrate grew more onerous, and he was glad to make full use of his month off duty to catch up with all the reports and inquiries relating to his last month on duty. Every day the magistrate on duty went to the Castle, arriving by 10 o’clock in the morning, and not leaving until about 2 o’clock. His business was with the Senior Councilors, four, or sometimes five, officials who headed the administration and were responsible to the Shogun for a wide range of affairs. He would report to them any action he had taken and receive their orders.
The post of Edo magistrate was reserved for retainers of the Shogun with the low rating of 500 koku, but it carried with it an allowance of 3,000 koku. The court rank that went with the position was equal to that of some daimyō, and another indication of its importance is that outstanding holders of other posts that were technically equal in status were sometimes transferred to that of Edo magistrate. His life was a busy one, for on his return to his office he would have to deal with the accumulation of paper work and other routine matters. He was not only responsible for the policing of Edo, but also dealt with civil disputes and issued travel passes. He did not, however, have to deal with samurai and priests, for whom there were special officials. These he would meet three times a month when, with the Senior Councilors and others, they would form a sort of high court to deal with the more serious cases.
Each magistrate had immediately under him 25 yoriki or assistant magistrates. They too were samurai, direct retainers of the Shogun, with a rating of 200 koku. Yoriki who were employed in other departments would normally receive personal appointments and not have hereditary entry into their positions, but those who worked for the Edo magistrates in practice followed their fathers and grandfathers into their profession, entering a sort of apprenticeship at the age of 13 or thereabouts. This strong family tradition meant that the yoriki really knew their Edo, and they clearly formed the permanent cadre of experience and knowledge that the magistrate himself, especially when newly appointed, would rely on for the day-to-day running of his office. The yoriki had no hope of promotion, and lived all together in the same quarters. They thus formed a tight group, cut off by their profession and class from the townsmen with whom they were in daily contact, and also discriminated against by their superiors, for their work debarred them from entering the Castle, for fear that they would bring in contamination because of their connection with death when criminals were executed—even though the actual execution was carried out by “non-humans.” The yoriki have the reputation of having been very proud of their appearance, with hair kept very neat, and always wearing two swords, with hakama and haori. It is probable that their official income was augmented by substantial gifts from daimyō, in return for looking after their retainers when they got drunk and disorderly.
(18) Yoriki (left) and dōshin with a female prisoner, weeping at her misfortune.
Still lower-grade samurai, known as dōshin, “companions,” worked under the yoriki, and each magistrate had 120 of them (18). They too tended to be a closely-knit hereditary group. Their income was 30 bales of rice, and they too received gifts from the daimyō, very often a haori with his crest on it, so that, since a dōshin might get them from several daimyō, he had to be careful to put on the right one when making a call at the residence of one of his benefactors. Two points should be noted about these gifts: firstly, gifts of clothing have been customary for at least 1,000 years in Japan, and until well into the present century it was still normal to give such a present to one’s maid at the New Year; secondly, while the giving of such gifts might well be counted as bribery in modern times, traditional Japan was a world in which the superior and the official expected to receive them as a right, and although the receipt of a gift involved some obligation, this could immediately be forgotten in the course of official duty.
The dōshin maintained an individual style of dress, for although they were classed as samurai, they wore only one sword, and no hakama, and did not don the more formal dress even on ceremonial occasions, thus distinguishing themselves from the normal run of samurai. The dōshin formed the lowest rank of peace officer, and it was they that patrolled the streets of Edo, carrying as their symbol of office the jitte, the steel wand with a hook (19), the purpose of which was to catch the blade of the sword or knife of an attacker. The dōshin did not seek to conceal his identity, but rather resembled a uniformed officer on the beat. Edo was divided into four patrols, which meant a good deal of ground to cover. He took with him two or three assistants and called at the various watch-points that were sited in the subdivisions, manned by a representative of the local residents’ association. Should there be any investigation to be made, he would send in his assistants with local men to make an arrest, not actually participating himself unless absolutely necessary. The assistants of the dōshin were townsfolk employed by him, and they too carried the jitte as their symbol of authority; however, to a large extent, they were the eyes and ears of the police, as they also acted as informers.
In a society like that of traditional Japan, where the principle of the inequality of human beings was accepted, every effort was made to preserve the life and safety of those of superior rank. The operation of the police force was along these lines, and most of the physical effort was put out by the assistants to the dōshin, and it would take a very serious incident to bring in the yoriki. There was a certain amount of specialized equipment available to the dōshin and his men for use in catching a suspect. Against the sword attack there was either the jitte, or a weighted steel chain (19) that wrapped itself round the blade. Four ladders on their sides could be used to box in a criminal, and long staves furnished with spikes and barbs could be used to inflict minor injury and wear him out, while keeping him too far away to use a sword. The first principle was that a suspect must be taken alive, and at the earliest possible moment he was secured with ropes; the tying up of prisoners was brought to a fine art of speed and security. If ever it was deemed necessary to call out the yoriki, he would go to the scene on horseback, with chain body amour beneath his kimono, and protection for hands and arms, and on his head a flat lacquered or iron-plated helmet: he would direct operations from a safe distance, and only ride in and use his lance to incapacitate the criminal if all else failed.
(19) Jitte: various types of jitte, chains, and handcuffs.
Once the arrest had been made, the prisoner was taken off to the office of the magistrate on duty. The Edo jail was in Denmacho, and dangerous criminals would be lodged there immediately, with a warrant from the magistrate, while less dangerous ones could be detained at the magistrate’s office. With the prisoner in detention, the next stage in the process of administering justice was to persuade him to confess to his crime, for this was a prerequisite of punishment, especially when this involved execution. Basically, this was probably founded on principles of justice, to avoid punishing the innocent; confession is still, of course, preferred by the courts of many countries. (The Anglo-Saxon concept that a case should be decided on the evidence, and that a man