ABSTRACT
It would be an extremely interesting line of research to follow out the history of the development of the house in Japan. Mr. Satow claims that the ancient Japanese Rituals are "the oldest specimens of ancient indigenous Japanese literature extant, excepting only perhaps the poetry contained in the 'Kojiki' and 'Nihongi;'". Within the house were mats of sedge, skin, and silk, and ornamental screens to protect the sleepers from draughts of air. The castles had back gates, side gates, and other gates. Some of these gates, at least, had a roof-like structure above, as we read in the "Kojiki," "Come under the metal gate; we will stand till the rain stops." In the ancient Japanese Rituals, Mr. Satow finds that the rafters projected upward beyond the ridge-pole of the roof crossing each other, — as is seen in the roofs of modern Shin-to temples.
