By the 1890s Japan had a national currency, a national taxation system, a bicameral legislature, and a formal constitution that protected the rights and duties of the Japanese and established the rule of law.
This meant that the central government could raise funds for a range of public infrastructure projects.
The government could build a national railway and construct ‘model factories’ for entrepreneurs and the business community to imitate and develop.
The first stretch of railway, from Tokyo to nearby Yokohama, was completed in 1872, and within 20 years nearly 2,500 kilometers of track had been laid.
National taxation created a modern economic system and led to widespread social change
Railways brought the outlying regions of Japan into the national economy
Growth of factories led to greater urbanization and radically transformed the lives of millions of Japanese.