Warera no Hattenchi Mekishiko [Japanese Mexico Immigration Guide]

Tokyo: Japan Colonial News Agency, 1930. Good.. [4],8,214,[4]pp., plus twenty-eight pages of photographic plates. Original printed wrappers. Minor wear and dust-soiling, light staining, spine ends a bit chipped. Light even toning to text. Ex-library, with several stamps and stickers, and the card envelope affixed to the rear flyleaf. An informative, well illustrated, and rare promotional immigration and travel guide written for the Japanese community encouraging resettlement in Mexico during the Great Depression. The author wrote the book after returning to Japan after spending seven years in Mexico. The work includes chapters on Mexican history, its geography, climate, transportation, city life, politics, industrial economy, advice on immigration, agricultural opportunities, bumper crops (tomatoes, coffee, cotton, and more), livestock raising, mining and petroleum opportunities, commerce and trade, finance and money, Mexican laws, regulations for Japanese physicians working in Mexico, and more. The author dedicates one chapter to his story as a Mexican peddler. Part of the latter portion of the work is organized as a travel guide to Mexico, with information on the distribution of Japanese residents living in the country, consulates, and so forth. Another latter chapter highlights a dozen Japanese immigrants who have thrived in Mexico, described here as "successful Mexicans." The final chapter is a directory of Japanese nationals residing in Mexico, organized by state. The text is supplemented with dozens of photographs reproduced on almost thirty pages of plates interspersed throughout the work. The images picture Mexico City, various landscapes, historical and religious sites, industrial locations, several Japanese businesses in Mexico, some shots of indigenous Mexicans, and more. A wide-ranging and helpful guide to potential Japanese immigrants to Old Mexico, with numerous informative illustrations and a wealth of information on Japanese immigrants already living there. We could locate no other copies of this work. (Inventory #: 5540)