Page:Brinkley - Japan - Volume 1.djvu/158

 the capital of the empire, was moved from one place to another twice or even thrice during the same reign, the only limit set to all these shiftings being that the five adjacent provinces occupying the waist of the main island, and known as "Gokinai," were regarded as possessing some prescriptive title to contain the seat of government, Yamato being especially honoured in that respect. A long list might be compiled of places distinguished by imperial residence during the early centuries, notable among them being Kashiwara, the capital of the Emperor Jimmu; Naniwa (now Osaka), that of the Emperor Nintoku; Otsu, that of the Emperor Tenchi; and Fujiwara, that of the Emperor Temmu. It must be noted, however, that in those ages of comparative simplicity and frugality, the seat of government was not invested with attributes of pomp and grandeur such as the haughtier conceptions of later generations prescribed. The sovereign's mode of life differed little from that of his subjects, and the transfer of his residence from place to place involved no costly or disturbing effect. But as civilisation progressed, as the population grew, as the business of administration became more complicated, as increasing intercourse with China furnished new standards for measuring the interval between ruler and ruled, and, above all, as class distinctions acquired emphasis, the character of the palace assumed magnificence proportionate to