Page:Brinkley - Japan - Volume 2.djvu/206

 The next stage of development had its origin in the usurpation of high offices of State by great families, who encroached upon the Imperial prerogatives, and appropriated, as hereditary perquisites, posts which should have remained in the gift of the sovereign. The Fujiwara clan, taking all the civil offices, resided in the capital, whereas the military posts fell to the lot of the Taira and the Minamoto, who, settling in the provinces, and being thus required to guard the outlying districts and to quell rebellions, found it expedient to surround themselves with men who made soldiering a profession. These latter, in their turn, copying the customs of their superiors, transmitted their functions to their sons, so that there grew up in the shadow of the great houses a number of military families interested in maintaining the power and promoting the prosperity of the masters from whom they derived their own privileges and emoluments. At the close of the eighth century, stubborn insurrections on the part of the autochthons gave new importance to the soldier. The conscription list had to be greatly increased, and it came to be a recognised principle that every stalwart man should bear arms, every weakling become a bread-winner. Thus for the first time the distinction between "soldier" and "working-man" received official recognition, and, in consequence of the circumstances attending the distinction, a measure of