In the late nineteenth century, Japanese agricultural laborers had normally borrowed so much from their employers that they were entirely dependent on them. Despite this, the employers were unable to use the services of such laborers whenever they wanted. Evidence of why this was so can be found through examining the case of the Tsukamoto family, a rich farming family of Hatta village in Sennan, Osaka. Many Hatta inhabitants were debtors of the Tsukamoto, and such people were hired by them as daily agricultural laborers. But villagers indebted to the family, including agricultural laborers, would often band together to demand debt reduction. This makes it clear that if the family had tried to hire day laborers whenever it suited them by using threats about debt payment, they would have been considered hostile by the inhabitants. However, since the head of the family was also the headman of the village, the Tsukamoto also had the responsibility of preserving order. They were therefore unable to use the services of day labourers whenever it suited them for fear that village inhabitants would disrupt the peace.
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