Bushido in Its Formative Period*
BUSHIDO IN ITS FORMATIVE PERIOD* By TASUKE KAwAKAMI Lecturer of ~conomic Histor~' I In ancient Japan, where the clan system had been in force for many centuries, it had been customary for the chieftain of each clan, when he received Imperial orders ' for mobilization, to master the able -bodied members of his clan and lead them to war. By the Revolution of Taikwa ~(4~ in 646 A. D., however, the clan systern was abolished, and the clansmen were scattered. The Imperial Court, thereupon, adopted a system of conscription and drew soldiers in this way from the former clans, though it was not till sixty years later when the Taih~ Code ~~ ~~ ~~ ~~ was enacted in 701 A. D. that detailed regulations regarding conscription were definitely laid down. The Code of Taih~ was modelled after the Chinese legislation of T'ang dynasty, and naturally the new conscription system also followed more or less closely that of T'ang dynasty. It provided, as did the T'ang system, that a garrison (gueedale ~~:~l, which literally means a corps) be stationed in every two or three countries (k~ri ~1~), that soldiers be called out by turns so that they might be given military drill, and at the same time be placed on duty to guard the district. Also following the T'ang model, Iiability to military service extended to men from twenty to sixty years of age. When entering the barracks, newly enrolled soldiers had to bring with them their food, their arms, and even miscellaneous articles that were necessary during marches. But exemptions from military service IA'ere of such wide range that not only those who had court rank or official duties were wholly exempted, but those who were in any degree well off had some means or other to escape military service, which was thus in reality a duty exclusively of the poorer class of people.
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