The gradual decline of the Yoshiwara thoughout the 19th century can be attributed to a several factors. First was an economic necessity to cater to a larger base of clients among the masses, which generally entailed a lowering of standards to remain solvent. By the time of the Meiji Restoration in 1868, all but one of the prestigious large houses had dissolved into small and low-class brothels little different from the unlicensed Edo quarters. The flood of new male residents into the newly designated capital of Tokyo after 1868 also compelled the new government to place previously semilicensed areas on the same legal status as the Yoshiwara to meet demand. In addition, the government decided in 1868 to enforce a 10% tax on the quarter. In this climate, the Yoshiwara found it difficult to maintain its former glory and increasingly took on a gaudy look that was the antithesis to the ideals of tsû and hari.