In addition to the above, there exists in various European languages a considerable mass of translations from the Japanese, published either separately or in magazines and journals of learned societies, of which it may be said—
"Sunt bona, sunt quædam mediocria, sunt mala plura."
The more important have been indicated in the body of this work, and it is believed that little inconvenience will be caused by the omission of all reference to the remainder. Those who wish to prosecute their researches further in this direction will find the means of doing so in Mr. Fr. von Wenckstern's comprehensive and useful, though not particularly accurate, Bibliography of the Japanese Empire (1895). A Catalogue of Japanese Books and Manuscripts in the British Museum, by Mr. R. K. Douglas, is also useful for reference.
The contributions of the Japanese themselves to the materials for a history of their literature are naturally much more important than anything which has been written by Europeans. The labours of Mabuchi and his greater pupil Motoöri have been already noticed, and good work has been done by a multitude of native editors and commentators towards clearing up the obscurity which even to Japanese surrounds many of their older authors. Nothing, however, which deserves the name of a History of Literature appeared until 1890, when Messrs. Mikami Sanji and Takatsu Kuwasaburo, of the Imperial University of Tokio, brought out their Nippon Bungakushi, which is by far the most valuable work on this subject. The critical judgments of the authors may not always commend themselves to Europeans, but they have succeeded in setting forth the leading facts of the history of their literature in a clear, methodical manner. I gladly acknowledge my very considerable obligations to their work.
A history of fiction, entitled Shōsetsu Shikō, by Sekine Masanao (1890), should also be mentioned.
The most useful bibliography in the Japanese language is the Gunsho Ichiran, by Ozaki Masayoshi, six volumes (1801), and the best biographical dictionary is a bulky work by a number of authors, entitled Dai Nippon Jimmei Jisho (1886). A list of other works of this class may be found in the article in Appleton's Cyclopædia already referred to.
Monographs on Hakuseki, Sorai, Chikamatsu, and other eminent authors, have been lately published, and a good deal is being done at
