unction was not
lost on the people, and general disarming of the agricultural and the
artisan classes marked the success of Hideyoshi's policy. It is on
record that he himself actually joined in the manual labour of
dragging stones and timbers into position, and that, clad in hempen
garments, he led the labourers' chorus of "Kiyari."

THE JURAKU-TEI

In the year 1586, the Emperor Okimachi resigned the throne to his
grandson, Go-Yozei. Like Nobunaga, Hideyoshi was essentially loyal to
the Imperial Court. He not only provided for the renovation of the
shrines of Ise, but also built a palace for the retiring Emperor's
use. On the 11th of the seventh month of 1585, he was appointed
regant (kwampaku), and on the 13th of the same month he proceeded to
the Court to render thanks. He himself, however, was without a
residence in the capital, and to remedy that deficiency he built a
palace called Juraku-tei (Mansion of Pleasure) which, according to
the accounts transmitted by historians, was an edifice of exceptional
magnificence. Thus, the Taikoki (Annals of the Taiko) speak of "gates
guarded by iron pillars and copper doors; of high towers which shone
like stars in the sky; of roof-tiles which roared in the wind, and of
golden dragons which sang songs among the clouds." Nothing now
remains of all this grandeur except some of the gates and other
decorative parts of the structure, which were given to the builders
of the temples of Hongwan-ji after the destruction of the Juraku-tei
when Hidetsugu and his whole family died under the sword as traitors.
There can be no doubt, however, that the edifice represented every
possible feature of magnificence and refinement characteristic of the
era.

Hideyoshi took up his abode there in 1587, and at the ensuing New
Year's festival he prayed to be honoured by a visit from the Emperor.
This request was complied with during the month of May in the same
year. All the details of the ceremony were ordered in conformity with
precedents set in the times of the Ashikaga shoguns, Yoshimitsu and
Yoshimasa, but the greatly superior resources of Hideyoshi were
enlisted to give eclat to the fete. The ceremonies were spread over
five days. They included singing, dancing, couplet composing, and
present giving. The last was on a scale of unprecedented dimensions.
The presents to the Imperial household and to the Court Nobles Varied
from three hundred koku of rice to 5530 ryo of silver, and in the
case