− | ''Yoriki'' were [[samurai]] officials in the service of a magistrate (''[[bugyo|bugyô]]'') and ranking above the ''[[doshin|dôshin]]''. About fifty ''yoriki'' were active in [[Edo]], and answered to the Edo City Magistrates (''Edo [[machi bugyo|machi bugyô]]'').<ref>Katô Takashi, "Governing Edo," in James McClain (ed.), ''Edo & Paris'', Cornell University Press (1994), 51.</ref> | + | ''Yoriki'' were constables responsible for patrolling the streets of [[Edo]], alongside ''[[doshin|dôshin]]'' (patrolmen), who were their subordinates. About fifty ''yoriki'' were active in [[Edo]], and answered to the Edo City Magistrates (''Edo [[machi bugyo|machi bugyô]]''). Though in theory ''yoriki'' were appointed to their position for a single lifetime only, these positions quickly came to be passed down in a hereditary manner.<ref>Katô Takashi, "Governing Edo," in James McClain (ed.), ''Edo & Paris'', Cornell University Press (1994), 51.</ref> |