Author: Hashizume Kan'ichi.
Title: [Sekai Shobai Orai Hoi].
Description: Tokyo 1873 [Meiji 6]. 180x120mm publisher's wrapper, missing the title label; 23 double folded leaves; one double page and numerous small illustrations throughout. A rather good copy. ¶ Hashizume made a specialty of handbooks and vocabularies introducing the Japanese to the notion of international trade trade and western languages in the early Meiji period. In 1871 he published a handy Japanese-English vocabulary of world trade for Japanese merchants dealing with westerners and in 1873 followed up with two companion works. This one, as I understand it, concentrates on sales.

Keywords: social sciences economics language linguistics dictionaries handbooks c19th Japan progress trade Asia reform meiji