Book Description

Excerpt from The Loyal Ronins, an Historical Romance, Translated From the Japanese The brilliant display made by Japan at the International Exhibition at Philadelphia gave an impetus to the interest already excited among Western nations concerning Japanese art, and from that time the subject has commanded the wonder and admiration of the world. Indeed, at no distant period, the names of Hokusai and of the Kano Brothers are destined, like those of Raphael and Hogarth, to become household words in every American and European family. The literature of a people and their works of art are signs by which the student is enabled to learn the degree of civilization and refinement attained by a nation, and it cannot be denied that the Japanese, who have achieved so much in art, possess a literature of no mean order. Foremost in the ranks of her celebrated writers are Bakin and Tamenaga, and the Western world, which has already acknowledged the genius of Hokusai and of the Kano Brothers, will not fail to appreciate the wit and pathos to be found in the writings of the authors whose names I have quoted. About the Publisher Forgotten Books publishes hundreds of thousands of rare and classic books. Find more at www.forgottenbooks.com This book is a reproduction of an important historical work. Forgotten Books uses state-of-the-art technology to digitally reconstruct the work, preserving the original format whilst repairing imperfections present in the aged copy. In rare cases, an imperfection in the original, such as a blemish or missing page, may be replicated in our edition. We do, however, repair the vast majority of imperfections successfully; any imperfections that remain are intentionally left to preserve the state of such historical works.