Page:Brinkley - Japan - Volume 1.djvu/194

 and towards the close of the ninth century the post of Kwampaku (Regent) was created and made hereditary in the Fujiwara family, as the office of Prime Minister had already become. The Regent continued to officiate even when the sovereign was a major. He stood between the Throne and the nation. Every official communication must pass through his hands before reaching the Emperor. Thus the authority of the Mikado (sublime gate) practically passed to the Fujiwara.

If the responsibility of restoring the evil system of hereditary office-holding in the capital rests with the Fujiwara, the abuse, it must be admitted, had never been fully abolished in the provinces. An attempt to abolish it was made, but practical experience suggested that in the administration of remote regions, the interests of the central government, as well as those of the people, were best served by officials having permanent associations with the localities where their duties lay. Hence a provincial governor (Koku-shu), himself commissioned by the Court, received authority to appoint and remove district headmen (Gun-shi). But his nominees were generally creatures of his own, as was natural, and thus the whole province gradually passed beyond the control of the capital. In vain the Court tried to enforce its authority by means of "high constables" (chimbunshi) and inspectors (ansatsushi). These offi