Rise of Japan’s peasant assassins, the Ninja By . Larry Getlen. Published Feb. 10, 2013, 5:00 a.m. ET. Getty Images (UIG via Getty Images) (UIG via Getty Images) (Shutterstock.com) ...

19th-century Japanese print depicting peasants and rice paddies with Mt. Fuji in the background (Album/Alamy Stock Photo). During the Tokugawa era (A.D. 1603–1868), much of Japan was ruled by ...

Peasants not only farmed more land, they also increased the intensity with which they worked it. Through careful monitoring and the spread of information about cropping patterns, fertilizers, and the ...