42 SOCIAL SCIENTIST The landlords were the leaders at all levels, particularly in the burakus. Although often related through blood relationship with other buraku members., these "bosses'5 felt themselves superior to the ordinary farmers.8 As one scholar noted,, the general assembly of buraku members was not the organ of democratic expression of the members' will, but rather a means through which the upper class controlled the group.9 "Free labour for the community", a kind of corvee., was organised by the landlords mainly for their own benefit, and frequently formed a heavy burden for the less privileged members of the buraku.10 Although dominating figures arose almost everywhere, the situation in the buraku was complicated by the fact that the dividing line between landlords, small farmers and tenants was generally not clearcut. Many tenants were part-owners of very small plots and many landlords were relatively small., so that they almost approximated a farmer-operator. Differences were often not very outspoken and the distribution of buraku members on the ascribed local status ladder was quite gradual. Effects of the War Sometimes external events/tended to upset or modify the existing system. World War I, in particular., benefited the landlords substantially. Land prices went up and landowners had many opportunities for profitable speculation., while small farmers lost their lands through indebtedness, which was partly a result of war time inflation. Absentee landlordism increased and tenant farmers were forced to pay higher rents in kind. This went to such an extent that tenants often had insufficient rice for their own survival. The result was the last and largest spontaneous peasant revolts called the "pre-industrial riots9',11 the Rice Riots of 1918 that spread to more than 30 prefectures and lasted 42 days. During the First World War, rapid industrialisation increased employment opportunities resulting in an outflow of people from the rural areas towards industry.12 This improved the bargaining position of the peasantry. Owing to the relative shortage of labour they were able to threaten the landlords with non-cultivation of the land if they did not accept a reduction in rent. Since experiments by the landlords to cultivate with machinery proved less profitable than the traditional tenant cultivation, they often had to give in to these demands. The influence of people who had worked in industry was strongly felt soon after the war when industry passed through a severe crisiss. Many workers were dismissed and returned to their already overcrowded villages. Tension increased rapidly since the backward conditions in which tenants generally lived were more acutely felt by those who returned. The organising experience they had gained in industry was soon applied to bargaining for better tenancy conditions.