Geography Reference
In-Depth Information
(96) Night watchman going on his rounds with his clappers.
One of the measures that had been brought in to control the gangs had been the setting
up in 1645 of gates to the various areas of Edo. The local inhabitants' organizations had to
provide gatekeepers, and at ten o'clock the barriers were closed for the night. This meant
thatpeoplecouldmoveaboutintheirimmediateneighborhood,butcouldnotgomorethan
a few hundred yards away from home. The gates opened again at dawn.
It was not possible to leave these gates unattended because, in the case of fire, they had
to be opened. There is a famous story about a girl called O'Shichi, a greengrocer's daugh-
ter,whofellinlovewithayoungpriestwhenherfamilytookrefugeinhistempleafterfire
had destroyed their home. After her return, her longing to meet him again led her to start
another fire, so that the gates should be opened and he could come to her. Unfortunately,
she was arrested, and later burned for arson.
From 1600 to 1866 there were some 20 large fires and three big earthquakes, not to
mention fires that damaged the Castle and not the town. The three most serious fires were
those of 1657 (in which 108,000 persons died and half the city was laid waste), 1772 (star-
