Japan’s House of Peers
Among its 373 members only 57 sit by hereditary right; namely, 14 Princes of the Blood, 13 Princes, and 30 Marquises. Among the remaining members, 150 are elected by the Counts, Viscounts, and Barons, 121 are Imperial nominees,—that is to say, men who have earned distinction by eminent services or attainments,—and 45 represent the highest tax-payers in the prefectures.
The Political Parties of Japan[216]
The idea of popular representation in the government of Japan may be said to have had its birth with the Restoration, although some thoughtful men had been turning their minds in that direction at an earlier date. His Imperial Majesty the present Emperor, in his oath on the occasion of his succession to the throne, made known his enlightened desire that men should meet in council from all parts of the country and all affairs of state be determined in accordance with public opinion. This pronouncement may be regarded as the starting-point of the movement for parliamentary representation. The germ of the present House of Peers and House of Representatives is found in the Gi-sei, a department of the government which was organized as early as June, 1868. The Kō-gi-jō, which was opened in the following year, was representative, not of the people, but of the governing authorities in the various localities. The members of the Sa-In, which replaced the Kō-gi-jō (or Shūgi-in) in September, 1871, were nominated by the Emperor and the council of state.
The history of political parties in Japan may conveniently be divided into four periods: (1) From the Restoration up to 1882, while as yet they were in embryo; (2) from the year 1882, when they for the first time took actual shape, until 1888; (3) from the organization of the Daidō-Danketsu in 1887 until 1898; (4) the period since the amalgamation of the two strongest parties to form the constitutional party in 1898.
During the early seventies discussion went on regarding the advisability of the formation of a popular assembly. In 1874 was formed the first political society, the Aikoku-tō, or patriotic society, from which later sprang the Liberal Party (Jiyu-tō). In the previous year a division had taken place in the ranks of the higher officials of the government. The one party was composed of those who desired rapid progress in domestic matters and a vigorous foreign policy; the other desired steady progress at home and conciliation abroad. The latter party retained control of the government, and the former went into opposition. Among the most important of the radical party was Itagaki of Kōchi Prefecture. He organized the first local society, and devoted himself constantly to the attainment of his end of bringing about parliamentary institutions in the country. We thus have Kōchi, and later on Hizen, working for the extension of the power of the people, while the government was in the main conducted by Satsuma and Chōshū men.
The agitation for popular representation, although checked for a time by the Satsuma Rebellion, gained strength in 1879 and 1880, and the government became convinced that the question could not longer be postponed. On the 12th of October, 1881, the Emperor promulgated the famous ordinance in which the promise was given that a parliament should actually be established in 1890. As a preparatory measure, Itō, in company with a number of junior officials, was despatched to Europe early in 1882 to study the political systems of the West. The promise of a parliament served to give a more definite purpose to the various political associations, and the year 1882 saw the formal organization of the three parties which, under various names, have continued almost uninterruptedly to occupy the field until the present time. The Jiyu-tō was the first organized, although not the first to be properly registered as a political association.
It is noticeable that the utterances of the various political parties when they first came into existence present in the main no features of a distinctive nature. All put forth excellent doctrines, but usually of extreme vagueness. The same characteristic has been noticeable throughout their history except when some temporary question of urgency has arisen. This is no doubt the reason why the grouping has constantly changed, one merging into another, and secessions occurring without apparent cause. 1883 and the following years saw a falling off in the interest in political parties,—doubtless a natural result of the over excitement which had just preceded, and of the apparent certainty of a parliament after 1890. The interest in politics and in parties revived, however, as the date assigned for the granting of the constitution approached.
Since the opening of the first Diet, the efforts of the parties have in general been directed towards the securing of control of the administration,—the establishment of parliamentary government. Except during the period of the war with China, when all party differences were for the time set aside, the parties have all been in more or less constant opposition to the government. Until within the last year or two, however, no party has possessed for any considerable length of time an absolute majority of the membership of the Lower House, sufficient to enable it to control the votes of that body. Political parties have now become a distinct power in the land which no statesman can afford entirely to neglect. From small and unruly beginnings, they have gradually progressed in influence and in organization. As by degrees they have been getting rid of their unruly and dangerous elements, and learning to a greater extent the lesson of responsibility, they have more and more gained the popular confidence. Possessing practically the power of the purse,—for in the Diet the House of Representatives has the first say as to the details of the budget presented by the government,—they have always to be reckoned with....
That there have been no distinct and well-defined party issues may be traced to the fact that feudalism gave place so suddenly to a modern state of society. The leaders of thought and those who have taken up the work of national rejuvenation have all been men of progressive tendencies. That the parties have frequently opposed the government in cases where opposition for its own sake has been the only recognizable principle cannot be denied. It must be remembered that they have all along been struggling for a share in the administration. The political parties have well illustrated the intensely democratic character of the Japanese people side by side with marked reverence for the Emperor. The desire for equality and the revolt against the controlling influence of a narrow coterie has all along been exhibited....
I[217] may perhaps take this opportunity to mention two characteristics of Japanese political parties which have impressed themselves upon me in the course of my own, as yet comparatively slight, study of the politics of this country. As in so many other aspects of Japanese life, so also in politics, I think we can see a curious blending of Old Japan with the very latest and most advanced which the West has to offer. It was a remark of the most influential, if not the greatest, English political philosopher of the nineteenth century, John Stuart Mill, that, even if we could be assured that an autocrat, an all-powerful individual ruler, would govern more wisely than a popular government, we ought, nevertheless, to prefer the popular government for the educative effect which the effort to govern produces upon the people.
Now it will be found that there has been very much conscious or unconscious following of this idea in the progress of popular government in Japan. In marked contrast to the history of popular government in the West, where parliaments have been forced on the government from below for the protection of popular rights, popular representation has been granted from above in this country, and the people have grown up to it, or are in process of growing. The truth of this is not affected by the fact that contest between rival clans has been an ever controlling factor in the domestic politics of the country since Restoration days. The agitation of the parties has been not so much directed against the measures of the government as against the fact that the government is not controlled by the representatives of the people.
The element of Old Japan in the political parties is seen in the nature of political allegiance. What holds the parties together is men rather than measures. In Old Japan personal allegiance to one’s feudal lord was one of the strongest feelings of the individual, and sufficed to give a distinct character to the life of the time. The most important elements of feudalism, the political and economic organization of the society which was founded upon it, have passed away, but the sentimental part remains in the personal allegiance of men to their party leaders of to-day. What would the Seiyukai have been without Prince Itō, or the Progressive party without Count Ōkuma? No doubt other leaders would be forthcoming if these were not present, the names of the parties might be retained, but the membership would almost certainly undergo enormous changes.
Army Statistics of Japan[218]
Surgeon-Major Koike, in a lecture delivered before the Medical Union in the salon of the Musical College in Uyeno, gave some interesting figures relating to the casualties in the North-China campaign as compared with the China-Japan war of 1894-1895. These will be most easily understood by putting them into tabular form.
| Total number of patients in the North-China campaign | 22,080 |
| Total number of deaths out of the above aggregate | 1,137 |
(This, of course, is exclusive of those killed in the field; it shows only the sick and wounded.)
| North-China Campaign. | China-Japan War. | |
|---|---|---|
| Percentage of deaths | 5.1 | 8.1 |
| Number of sick to each wounded man | 5.5 | 4.1 |
| Number of deaths from sickness to each death from wounds | 2.3 | 9.7 |
| Percentage of deaths among wounded men | 3.2 | 3.9 |
| Percentage of deaths among diseased men | 4.2 | 8.4 |
Return of the Hiroshima Reserve Hospital
| North-China Campaign. | |
|---|---|
| Percentage of deaths among wounded men | 2.1 |
| Percentage of deaths among sick men | 3.3 |
Comparative Figures (General)
Total percentage of deaths among wounded men:
| Satsuma Rebellion | 17.0 |
| China-Japan War | 9.7 |
| North-China Campaign | 4.6 |
Comparative Figures Showing the Percentage of Sick during the Occupation of Peking in the Winter
| Russian troops | 8.75 (typhoid, dysentery, syphilis). |
| French troops | 5.42 (typhoid, syphilis). |
| German troops | 5.33 (typhoid, syphilis, dysentery). |
| British troops | 5.22 (sunstroke, diarrhœa, dysentery, and typhoid). |
| American troops | 4.18 (dysentery, sunstroke, and syphilis). |
| Japanese troops | 2.51 (kakke and typhoid). |
Statistics of Russo-Japanese War.[219]
(Feb., 1904—May, 1905.)
| Killed on field | 43,892 |
| Wounded with colors | 145,527 |
| Died of those wounds | 9,054 |
| Sick, including wounds, accidents, etc., not received on firing-line | 162,556 |
| Died of sickness and disease | 7,433 |
| Contagious diseases | 10,565 |
| Died of contagious diseases | 4,557 |
| Killed and died from wounds | 52,946 |
| Died from all diseases | 11,992 |
Japanese Naval Increment[220]
Writing about naval increment, the “Nichi Nichi Shimbun” notes the increase of the Japanese Navy during recent years as follows:—
| Total Tonnage. | |
|---|---|
| 1897 | 100,000 |
| 1898 | 134,000 |
| 1899 | 154,000 |
| 1900 | 204,000 |
| 1901 | 232,000 |
In the immediate future, the total tonnage will be raised to the post-bellum figure of 250,000 tons.[221] Everybody agrees that Japan must not rest there. She has to keep up with the rapid additions made by other countries to their naval forces. That is not a matter of serious difficulty so far as ships are concerned: they can always be bought with money. But the men to man them is another problem. After the Restoration any number of recruits were obtainable for the army, as was natural in a country where a military feudalism had existed for centuries. The navy, however, could not be so easily supplied, maritime enterprise having been effectually checked under the Tokugawa rule. Difficulties about seamen may now be said to have been overcome. But that is not true of officers. Our contemporary here gives the following table:—
| Year. | Number of Officers and Men Actually Serving. | Total Force, Including Reserves. |
|---|---|---|
| 1895 | 14,463 | 17,140 |
| 1900 | 28,308 | 32,981 |
This shows an increment of only 100 per cent, whereas the increase of tonnage in the same time was 400 per cent.[222] The great difficulty is to get a supply of officers for the lower ranks—midshipmen and lieutenants. The only college for educating these officers is at Edajima, where not more than 600 cadets can be accommodated. There, then, a change must be effected. It will probably take the form of organizing another naval college at Yokosuka, and making arrangements that the preliminary education of candidates shall be effected in the middle schools.
Japan’s Mercantile Marine[223]
The “Tōkyō Keizai” publishes some interesting statistics bearing on the development of our mercantile marine. It was 1870 or thereabouts that the Japanese began to turn their attention to the carrying trade in the modern sense of the term, but its growth was slow until the Chinese War of 1894-1895. The following table gives the figures for the eleven years from 1892 to 1902 inclusive:
| Year. | Tons. |
|---|---|
| 1892 | 214,000 |
| 1893 | 325,000 |
| 1894 | 320,000 |
| 1895 | 386,000 |
| 1896 | 417,000 |
| 1897 | 486,000 |
| 1898 | 648,000 |
| 1899 | 796,000 |
| 1900 | 863,000 |
| 1901 | 917,000 |
| 1902 | 934,000[224] |
From the comparative statistics published by our contemporary, it is noticed that, while in 1892 our mercantile fleet was the thirteenth in the world in point of tonnage, it had risen by 1901 to the eighth position. It is interesting to observe that it is rapidly coming up to the same relative status as that occupied by our naval fleet whose position is the seventh among the navies of the world.[225]
“SHIKISHIMA” IN NAVAL REVIEW, KŌBE
Treaty of Commerce and Navigation between Japan and the United States of America
Signed at Washington, 22nd day of the 11th month, 27th year of Meiji. Ratifications exchanged at that City, 21st day of the 3rd month, 28th year of Meiji.
His Majesty the Emperor of Japan and the President of the United States of America being equally desirous of maintaining the relations of good understanding which happily exist between them, by extending and increasing the intercourse between their respective States, and being convinced that this object cannot better be accomplished than by revising the Treaties hitherto existing between the two countries, have resolved to complete such a revision, based upon principles of equity and mutual benefit, and, for that purpose, have named as their Plenipotentiaries, that is to say: His Majesty the Emperor of Japan, Jushii Shinichiro Kurino, of the Order of the Sacred Treasure of the Fourth Class, and the President of the United States of America, Walter Q. Gresham, Secretary of State of the United States; who, after having communicated to each other their full powers, found to be in good and due form, have agreed upon and concluded the following Articles:—
Art. I.—The subjects or citizens of each of the two High Contracting Parties shall have full liberty to enter, travel, or reside in any part of the territories of the other Contracting Party, and shall enjoy full and perfect protection for their persons and property.
They shall have free access to the Courts of Justice in pursuit and defence of their rights; they shall be at liberty equally with native subjects or citizens to choose and employ lawyers, advocates, and representatives to pursue and defend their rights before such Courts, and in all other matters connected with the administration of justice they shall enjoy all the rights and privileges enjoyed by native subjects or citizens.
In whatever relates to rights of residence and travel; to the possession of goods and effects of any kind; to the succession to personal estate, by will or otherwise, and the disposal of property of any sort and in any manner whatsoever which they may lawfully acquire, the subjects or citizens of each Contracting Party shall enjoy in the territories of the other the same privileges, liberties, and rights, and shall be subject to no higher imposts or charges in those respects than native subjects or citizens, or subjects or citizens of the most favoured nation. The subjects or citizens of each of the Contracting Parties shall enjoy in the territories of the other entire liberty of conscience, and, subject to the laws, ordinances, and regulations, shall enjoy the right of private or public exercise of their worship, and also the right of burying their respective countrymen according to their religious customs, in such suitable and convenient places as may be established and maintained for that purpose.
They shall not be compelled, under any pretext whatsoever, to pay any charges or taxes other or higher than those that are, or may be, paid by native subjects or citizens, or subjects or citizens of the most favoured nation.
The subjects or citizens of either of the Contracting Parties residing in the territories of the other shall be exempted from all compulsory military service whatsoever, whether in the army, navy, national guard, or militia; from all contribution imposed in lieu of personal service; and from all forced loans or military exactions or contributions.
Art. II.—There shall be reciprocal freedom of commerce and navigation between the territories of the two High Contracting Parties.
The subjects or citizens of each of the Contracting Parties may trade in any part of the territories of the other by wholesale or retail in all kinds of produce, manufactures, and merchandize of lawful commerce, either in person or by agents, singly or in partnerships with foreigners or native subjects or citizens; and they may there own or hire and occupy houses, manufactories, warehouses, shops, and premises which may be necessary for them, and lease land for residential and commercial purposes, conforming themselves to the laws, police and customs regulations of the country like native subjects or citizens.
They shall have liberty freely to come with their ships and cargoes to all places, ports, and rivers in the territories of the other, which are or may be opened to foreign commerce, and shall enjoy, respectively, the same treatment in matters of commerce and navigation as native subjects or citizens, or subjects or citizens of the most favoured nation without having to pay taxes, imposts, or duties, of whatever nature or under whatever denomination levied in the name or for the profit of the Government, public functionaries, private individuals, corporations, or establishments of any kind, other or greater than those paid by native subjects or citizens or subjects or citizens of the most favoured nation.
It is, however, understood that the stipulations contained in this and the preceding Article do not in any way affect the laws, ordinances, and regulations with regard to trade, the immigration of labourers, police and public security which are in force or which may hereafter be enacted in either of the two countries.
Art. III.—The dwellings, manufactories, warehouses, and shops of the subjects or citizens of each of the High Contracting Parties in the territories of the other, and all premises appertaining thereto destined for purposes of residence or commerce, shall be respected.
It shall not be allowable to proceed to make a search of, or a domiciliary visit to, such dwellings and premises, or to examine or inspect books, papers, or accounts, except under the conditions and with the forms prescribed by the laws, ordinances, and regulations for subjects or citizens of the country.
Art. IV.—No other or higher duties shall be imposed on the importation into the territories of the United States of any article, the produce or manufacture of the territories of His Majesty the Emperor of Japan, from whatever place arriving; and no other or higher duties shall be imposed on the importation into the territories of His Majesty the Emperor of Japan of any article, the produce or manufacture of the United States, from whatever place arriving than on the like article produced or manufactured in any other foreign country; nor shall any prohibition be maintained or imposed on the importation of any article, the produce or manufacture of the territories of either of the High Contracting Parties, into the territories of the other, from whatever place arriving, which shall not equally extend to the importation of the like article, being the produce or manufacture of any other country. This last provision is not applicable to the sanitary and other prohibitions occasioned by the necessity of protecting the safety of persons, or of cattle, or plants useful to agriculture.
Art. V.—No other or higher duties or charges shall be imposed in the territories of either of the High Contracting Parties on the exportation of any article to the territories of the other than such as are, or may be, payable on the exportation of the like article to any other foreign country; nor shall any prohibition be imposed on the exportation of any article from the territories of either of the two High Contracting Parties to the territories of the other which shall not equally extend to the exportation of the like article to any other country.
Art. VI.—The subjects or citizens of each of the High Contracting Parties shall enjoy in the territories of the other exemption from all transit duties, and a perfect equality of treatment with native subjects or citizens in all that relates to warehousing, bounties, and drawbacks.
Art. VII.—All articles which are or may be legally imported into the ports of the territories of His Majesty the Emperor of Japan in Japanese vessels may likewise be imported into those ports in vessels of the United States, without being liable to any other or higher duties or charges of whatever denomination than if such articles were imported in Japanese vessels; and, reciprocally, all articles which are, or may be, legally imported into the ports of the territories of the United States in vessels of the United States may likewise be imported into those ports in Japanese vessels, without being liable to any other or higher duties or charges of whatever denomination than if such articles were imported in vessels of the United States. Such reciprocal equality of treatment shall take effect without distinction, whether such articles come directly from the place of origin or from any other place.
In the same manner, there shall be perfect equality of treatment in regard to exportation, so that the same export duties shall be paid, and the same bounties and drawbacks allowed, in the territories of either of the High Contracting Parties on the exportation of any article which is or may be legally exported therefrom, whether such exportation shall take place in Japanese vessels or in vessels of the United States, and whatever may be the place of destination, whether a port of either of the High Contracting Parties or of any third Power.
Art. VIII.—No duties of tonnage, harbour, pilotage, lighthouse, quarantine, or other similar or corresponding duties of whatever nature, or under whatever denomination levied in the name or for the profit of Government, public functionaries, private individuals, corporations, or establishments of any kind, shall be imposed in the ports of the territories of either country upon the vessels of the other country which shall not equally and under the same conditions be imposed in the like cases on national vessels in general or vessels of the most favoured nation. Such equality of treatment shall apply reciprocally to the respective vessels, from whatever port or place they may arrive, and whatever may be their place of destination.
Art. IX.—In all that regards the stationing, loading, and unloading of vessels in the ports, basins, docks, roadsteads, harbours, or rivers of the territories of the two countries, no privilege shall be granted to national vessels which shall not be equally granted to vessels of the other country; the intention of the High Contracting Parties being that in this respect also the respective vessels shall be treated on the footing of perfect equality.
Art. X.—The coasting trade of both the High Contracting Parties is excepted from the provisions of the present Treaty, and shall be regulated according to the laws, ordinances, and regulations of Japan and of the United States, respectively. It is, however, understood that Japanese subjects in the territories of the United States and citizens of the United States in the territories of His Majesty the Emperor of Japan shall enjoy in this respect the rights which are, or may be, granted under such laws, ordinances, and regulations to the subjects or citizens of any other country.
A Japanese vessel laden in a foreign country with cargo destined for two or more ports in the territories of the United States and a vessel of the United States laden in a foreign country with cargo destined for two or more ports in the territories of His Majesty the Emperor of Japan, may discharge a portion of her cargo at one port, and continue her voyage to the other port or ports of destination where foreign trade is permitted, for the purpose of landing the remainder of her original cargo there, subject always to the laws and custom-house regulations of the two countries.
The Japanese Government, however, agrees to allow vessels of the United States to continue, as heretofore, for the period of the duration of this Treaty, to carry cargo between the existing open ports of the Empire, excepting to or from the ports of Ōsaka, Niigata, and Ebisuminato.
Art. XI.—Any ship-of-war or merchant vessel of either of the High Contracting Parties which may be compelled by stress of weather, or by reason of any other distress, to take shelter in a port of the other, shall be at liberty to refit therein, to procure all necessary supplies, and to put to sea again, without paying any dues other than such as would be payable by national vessels. In case, however, the master of a merchant vessel should be under the necessity of disposing of a part of his cargo in order to defray the expenses, she shall be bound to conform to the regulations and tariffs of the place to which he may have come.
If any ship-of-war or merchant vessel of one of the High Contracting Parties should run aground or be wrecked upon the coasts of the other, the local authorities shall inform the Consul-General, Consul, Vice-Consul, or Consular Agent of the district of occurrence, or, if there be no such Consular officers, they shall inform the Consul-General, Consul, Vice-Consul, or Consular Agent of the nearest district.
All proceedings relative to the salvage of Japanese vessels wrecked or cast on shore in the territorial waters of the United States shall take place in accordance with the laws of the United States; and, reciprocally, all measures of salvage relative to vessels of the United States wrecked or cast on shore in the territorial waters of His Majesty the Emperor of Japan shall take place in accordance with the laws, ordinances, and regulations of Japan.
Such stranded or wrecked ship or vessel, and all parts thereof, and all furnitures and appurtenances belonging thereunto, and all goods and merchandize saved therefrom, including those which may have been cast into the sea, or the proceeds thereof, if sold, as well as all papers found on board such stranded or wrecked ship or vessel, shall be given up to the owners or their agents, when claimed by them. If such owners or agents are not on the spot, the same shall be delivered to the respective Consuls-General, Consuls, Vice-Consuls, or Consular Agents upon being claimed by them within the period fixed by the laws, ordinances, and regulations of the country, and such Consular officers, owners, or agents shall pay only the expenses incurred in the preservation of the property, together with the salvage or other expenses which would have been payable in the case of a wreck of a national vessel.
The goods and merchandize saved from the wreck shall be exempt from all the duties of the Customs unless cleared for consumption, in which case they shall pay the ordinary duties.
When a ship or vessel belonging to the subjects or citizens of one of the High Contracting Parties is stranded or wrecked in the territories of the other, the respective Consuls-General, Consuls, Vice-Consuls, and Consular Agents shall be authorized, in case the owner or master, or other agent of the owner, is not present, to lend their official assistance in order to afford the necessary assistance to the subjects or citizens of the respective States. The same rule shall apply in case the owner, master, or other agent is present, but requires such assistance to be given.
Art. XII.—All vessels which, according to Japanese law, are to be deemed Japanese vessels, and all vessels which, according to United States law, are to be deemed vessels of the United States, shall, for the purposes of this Treaty, be deemed Japanese vessels and vessels of the United States, respectively.
Art. XIII.—The Consuls-General, Consuls, Vice-Consular Agents of each of the High Contracting Parties, residing in the territories of the other, shall receive from the local authorities such assistance as can by law be given to them for the recovery of deserters from the vessels of their respective countries.
It is understood that this stipulation shall not apply to the subjects or citizens of the country where the desertion takes place.
Art. XIV.—The High Contracting Parties agree that, in all that concerns commerce and navigation any privilege, favour, or immunity which either High Contracting Party has actually granted, or may hereafter grant, to the Government, ships, subjects, or citizens of any other State, shall be extended to the Government, ships, subjects, or citizens of the other High Contracting Party, gratuitously, if the concession in favour of that other State shall have been gratuitous, and on the same or equivalent conditions if the concession shall have been conditional; it being their intention that the trade and navigation of each country shall be placed, in all respects, by the other on the footing of the most favoured nation.
Art. XV.—Each of the High Contracting Parties may appoint Consuls-General, Consuls, Vice-Consuls, Pro-Consuls, and Consular Agents, in all the ports, cities, and places of the other except in those where it may not be convenient to recognize such officers.
This exception, however, shall not be made in regard to one of the High Contracting Parties without being made likewise in regard to every other Power.
The Consuls-General, Consuls, Vice-Consuls, Pro-Consuls, and Consular Agents may exercise all functions, and shall enjoy all privileges, exemptions, and immunities which are, or may hereafter be, granted to Consular officers of the most favoured nation.
Art. XVI.—The subjects or citizens of each of the High Contracting Parties shall enjoy in the territories of the other the same protection as native subjects or citizens in regard to patents, trademarks, and designs, upon fulfilment of the formalities prescribed by law.
Art. XVII.—The High Contracting Parties agree to the following arrangement:—
The several Foreign Settlements in Japan shall, from the date this Treaty comes into force, be incorporated with the respective Japanese communes, and shall thenceforth form part of the general municipal system of Japan. The competent Japanese authorities shall thereupon assume all municipal obligations and duties in respect thereof, and the common funds and property, if any, belonging to such Settlements shall at the same time be transferred to the said Japanese authorities.
When such incorporation takes place, existing leases in perpetuity upon which property is now held in the said Settlements shall be confirmed, and no conditions whatever other than those contained in such existing leases shall be imposed in respect of such property. It is, however, understood that the Consular Authorities mentioned in the same are in all cases to be replaced by the Japanese Authorities. All lands which may previously have been granted by the Japanese Government free of rent for the public purposes of the said Settlements shall, subject to the right of eminent domain, be permanently reserved free of all taxes and charges for the public purposes for which they were originally set apart.
Art. XVIII.—The present Treaty shall, from the date it comes into force, be substituted in place of the Treaty of Peace and Amity concluded on the 3rd day of the 3rd month of the 7th year of Kayei corresponding to the 31st day of March, 1854; the Treaty of Amity and Commerce concluded on the 19th day of the 6th month of the 5th year of Ansei, corresponding to the 29th day of July, 1858; the Tariff Convention concluded on the 13th day of the 5th month of the 2nd year of Keio, corresponding to the 25th day of June, 1866; the Convention concluded on the 25th day of the 7th month of the 11th year of Meiji, corresponding to the 25th day of July, 1878, and all Arrangements and Agreements subsidiary thereto concluded or existing between the High Contracting Parties, and from the same date such Treaties, Conventions, Arrangements, and Agreements shall cease to be binding, and in consequence, the jurisdiction then exercised by Courts of the United States in Japan and all the exceptional privileges, exemptions, and immunities then enjoyed by citizens of the United States as a part of, or appurtenant to, such jurisdiction, shall absolutely and without notice cease and determine, and thereafter all such jurisdiction shall be assumed and exercised by Japanese Courts.
Art. XIX.—This Treaty shall go into operation on the 17th day of July, 1899, and shall remain in force for the period of twelve years from that date.
Either High Contracting Party shall have the right, at any time after eleven years shall have elapsed from the date it goes into operation, to give notice to the other of its intention to terminate the same, and at the expiration of twelve months after such notice is given this Treaty shall wholly cease and determine.
Art. XX.—This Treaty shall be ratified and the ratifications thereof shall be exchanged at Tokyo or Washington as soon as possible, and not later than six months after its signature.
In witness whereof, the respective Plenipotentiaries have signed the present Treaty in duplicate and have thereunto affixed their seals.
Done at the City of Washington the 22nd day of the 11th month of the 27th year of Meiji, corresponding to the 22nd day of November in the eighteen hundred and ninety-fourth year of the Christian era.
(Signed) Shinichiro Kurino. (L. S.)
Walter Q. Gresham. (L. S.)
[Amendment to the Foregoing Treaty Proposed by the Government of the United States of America and Ratified with the Treaty.]
Art. XIX.—Clause 2, after the word “time” insert the word “thereafter” and strike out all after the word “time” down to and including the word “operation,” so that the clause will read: “Either High Contracting Party shall have the right, at any time thereafter, to give notice to the other of its intention to terminate the same, and at the expiration of twelve months after such notice is given this Treaty shall wholly cease and determine.”
Protocol
The Government of His Majesty the Emperor of Japan and the Government of the United States of America, deeming it advisable in the interests of both Countries to regulate certain special matters of mutual concern, apart from the Treaty of Commerce and Navigation signed this day, have, through their respective Plenipotentiaries, agreed upon the following stipulations:—
1.—It is agreed by the Contracting Parties that one month after the exchange of the ratifications of the Treaty of Commerce and Navigation signed this day, the Import Tariff now in operation in Japan in respect of goods and merchandize imported into Japan by the citizens of the United States shall cease to be binding. From the same date the General Statutory Tariff of Japan, shall, subject to the provisions of Article IX. of the Treaty of March 31, 1854, at present subsisting between the Contracting Parties, so long as said Treaty remains in force, and thereafter, subject to the provisions of Article IV. and Article XIV., of the Treaty signed this day, be applicable to goods and merchandize, being the growth, produce, or manufacture of the territories of the United States upon importation into Japan.
But nothing contained in this Protocol shall be held to limit or qualify the right of the Japanese Government to restrict or to prohibit the importation of adulterated drugs, medicines, food, or beverages; indecent or obscene prints, paintings, books, cards, lithographic or other engravings, photographs or any other indecent or obscene articles; articles in violation of patent, trademark, or copyright laws of Japan; or any other article which for sanitary reasons or in view of public security or morals, might offer any danger.
2.—The Japanese Government, pending the opening of the country to citizens of the United States, agrees to extend the existing passport system in such a manner as to allow citizens of the United States, on the production of a certificate of recommendation from the Representative of the United States at Tōkiō, or from any of the Consuls of the United States at the open ports in Japan, to obtain upon application passports available for any part of the country and for any period not exceeding twelve months, from the Imperial Japanese Foreign Office in Tōkiō, or from the Chief Authorities in the Prefecture in which an open port is situated, it being understood that the existing Rules and Regulations governing citizens of the United States who visit the interior of the Empire are to be maintained.
3.—The undersigned Plenipotentiaries have agreed that this Protocol shall be submitted to the two High Contracting Parties at the same time as the Treaty of Commerce and Navigation signed this day, and that when the said Treaty is ratified the agreements contained in the Protocol shall also equally be considered as approved, without the necessity of a further formal ratification.
It is agreed that this Protocol shall terminate at the same time the said Treaty ceases to be binding.
In witness whereof the respective Plenipotentiaries have signed the same and have affixed thereto their seals.
Done at Washington the 22nd day of the 11th month of the 27th year of Meiji, corresponding to the 22nd November, in the eighteen hundred and ninety-fourth year of the Christian era.
(Signed) Shinichiro Kurino. (L. S.)
Walter Q. Gresham. (L. S.)
Imperial Rescript on the New Treaties
Governing Our realm by the abiding aid of Our ancestors’ achievements, which have enabled Us to secure the prosperity of Our people at home and to establish relations of close amity with the nations abroad, it is a source of heartfelt gratification to Us that, in the sequel of exhaustive planning and repeated negotiations, an agreement has been come to with the Powers, and the revision of the Treaties, Our long cherished aim, is to-day on the eve of becoming an accomplished fact; a result which, while it adds materially to the responsibilities of Our empire, will greatly strengthen the basis of Our friendship with foreign countries.
It is Our earnest wish that Our subjects, whose devoted loyalty in the discharge of their duties is conspicuous, should enter earnestly into Our sentiments in this matter, and, in compliance with the great policy of opening the country, should all unite with one heart to associate cordially with the peoples from afar, thus maintaining the character of the nation and enhancing the prestige of the empire.
In view of the responsibilities that devolve upon Us in giving effect to the new Treaties, it is Our will that Our Ministers of State, acting on Our behalf, should instruct Our officials of all classes to observe the utmost circumspection in the management of affairs, to the end that subjects and strangers alike may enjoy equal privileges and advantages, and that, every source of dissatisfaction being avoided, relations of peace and amity with all nations may be strengthened and consolidated in perpetuity.
(Imperial Sign Manual.)
(Signatures of all the Cabinet Ministers.)
(Dated) June 30th, 1899.
Schools in Japan[226]
The latest returns compiled by the educational authorities show that education in Japan is in a satisfactory condition. For instance the percentage of the children newly admitted to primary schools throughout the country out of every 100 of those who had attained the school-going age last month [March, 1903] was 93.78 for boys, 81.08 for girls, and 88.05 for boys and girls together, which show respectively an increase of 3.23, 9.18, and 6.38 against the figures for last year. Again, the different schools throughout the country totalled 29,335, while the teachers totalled 110,104, the attendance 5,265,006, and the graduates 911,621, representing respectively an increase of 473; 11,977; 339,333; and 112,737 as compared with the figures for the preceding year. [In 1909-10, these totals were 34,659; 172,228; 7,170,470; and 899,288.]
NUMBER OF SCHOOLS, ETC. IN JAPAN IN 1900-1901.[227]
By the government establishments are meant all institutions under the control of the Department of Education.
Statistical items relating to the Higher Normal School for Females are included among those for the Higher Normal School, and those relating to the three institutes for the training of technical teachers among those for technical schools.
| No. of Schools. | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Gov. | Public. | Private. | Total. | |
| Elementary schools | 2 | 26,485 | 369 | 26,856 |
| Blind and dumb schools | 1 | 1 | 9 | 11 |
| Normal schools | .. | 52 | ... | 52 |
| Higher normal schools | 2 | ... | ... | 2 |
| Middle schools | 1 | 183 | 34 | 218 |
| Higher female schools | 1 | 44 | 7 | 52 |
| Higher schools | 7 | ... | ... | 7 |
| Imperial universities | 2 | ... | ... | 2 |
| Special schools | 3 | 4 | 41 | 48 |
| Technical schools | 9 | 265 | 23 | 297 |
| Miscellaneous schools | .. | 122 | 1,195 | 1,317 |
| Total | 28 | 27,156 | 1,678 | 28,862 |
| 1899 | 27 | 27,051 | 1,639 | 28,717 |
| 1898 | 22 | 26,799 | 1,600 | 28,421 |
| 1897 | 22 | 26,753 | 1,677 | 28,452 |
| 1896 | 21 | 26,621 | 1,762 | 28,404 |
| Instructors and Teachers. | ||||
| Gov. | Public. | Private. | Total. | |
| Elementary schools | 31 | 91,767 | 1,101 | 92,899 |
| Blind and dumb schools | 15 | 15 | 25 | 55 |
| Normal schools | ... | 958 | ... | 958 |
| Higher normal schools | 110 | ... | ... | 110 |
| Middle schools | 22 | 3,067 | 659 | 3,748 |
| Higher female schools | 19 | 525 | 114 | 658 |
| Higher schools | 345 | ... | ... | 345 |
| Imperial universities | 291 | ... | ... | 291 |
| Special schools | 128 | 81 | 734 | 943 |
| Technical schools | 238 | 1,382 | 137 | 1,757 |
| Miscellaneous schools | ... | 90 | 4,273 | 4,363 |
| Total | 1,199 | 97,885 | 7,043 | 106,127 |
| 1899 | 1,128 | 92,286 | 6,692 | 100,106 |
| 1898 | 983 | 86,634 | 5,346 | 92,963 |
| 1897 | 913 | 81,632 | 5,310 | 87,855 |
| 1896 | 785 | 77,720 | 5,509 | 84,014 |
| Students and Pupils. | ||||
| Gov. | Public. | Private. | Total. | |
| Elementary schools | 1,124 | 4,622,930 | 59,544 | 4,683,598 |
| Blind and dumb schools | 231 | 196 | 194 | 621 |
| Normal schools | ... | 15,639 | ... | 15,639 |
| Higher normal schools | 803 | ... | ... | 803 |
| Middle schools | 321 | 64,051 | 13,943 | 78,315 |
| Higher female schools | 306 | 9,746 | 1,932 | 11,984 |
| Higher schoolS | 5,684 | ... | ... | 5,684 |
| Imperial universities | 3,240 | ... | ... | 3,240 |
| Special schools | 968 | 1,447 | 10,985 | 13,400 |
| Technical schools | 1,730 | 23,599 | 2,126 | 27,455 |
| Miscellaneous schools | ... | 4,817 | 80,117 | 84,934 |
| Total | 14,407 | 4,742,425 | 168,841 | 4,925,673 |
| 1899 | 13,230 | 4,339,490 | 160,614 | 4,513,334 |
| 1898 | 11,788 | 4,086,323 | 149,230 | 4,247,341 |
| 1897 | 10,839 | 4,005,164 | 152,714 | 4,168,717 |
| 1896 | 9,321 | 3,872,794 | 148,858 | 4,030,973 |
| Graduates. | ||||
| Gov. | Public. | Private. | Total. | |
| Elementary schools | 318 | 736,907 | 8,580 | 745,805 |
| Blind and dumb schools | 14 | 8 | 12 | 34 |
| Normal schools | ... | 7,323 | ... | 7,323 |
| Higher normal schools | 180 | ... | ... | 180 |
| Middle schools | 40 | 5,584 | 2,163 | 7,787 |
| Higher female schools | 91 | 1,832 | 637 | 2,560 |
| Higher schools | 1,019 | ... | ... | 1,019 |
| Imperial universities | 633 | ... | ... | 633 |
| Special schools | 138 | 210 | 1,687 | 2,035 |
| Technical schools | 349 | 4,406 | 249 | 5,004 |
| Miscellaneous schools | ... | 721 | 15,783 | 16,504 |
| Total | 2,782 | 756,991 | 29,111 | 788,884 |
| 1899 | 2,454 | 655,112 | 27,201 | 684,767 |
| 1898 | 2,129 | 600,528 | 23,486 | 626,143 |
| 1897 | 2,146 | 550,738 | 20,912 | 573,796 |
| 1896 | 1,819 | 507,969 | 20,419 | 530,207 |
Japan’s University for Women[228]
The most remarkable occurrence in Japan in the opening year of the Twentieth Century was the establishment of a University for Women. What does this mean? It means that the Twentieth Century is to be the century for women in Japan and perhaps in other parts of the Orient, just as the Nineteenth Century was the century for women in the Occident. This new University will be the centre of woman’s activity, social, educational, economical (and perhaps political?), in the future in Japan.
About ten years ago Mr. Naruse began to think about establishing a university for girls and went to America to inspect female institutions of learning. There he spent three years going about from place to place, and thus made a thorough observation and study of colleges for women in the United States of America. In 1894 he was encouraged to start the enterprise, in which his special friends were such men as Marquis Itō, Marquis Saionji, Counts Ōkuma and Itagaki, and Baron Utsumi, then Mayor of Ōsaka, now Home Minister.
Among the first promoters of the enterprise were well-to-do persons of Ōsaka, such as Mr. Dogura and Mrs. Hiroöka (of the Mitsui family). The idea was, and still is, to secure 300,000 yen, of which half should be used for property and half for endowment. It was also decided not to begin to build unless at least 100,000 yen had been raised. The money was obtained quite rapidly; and in this Mr. Naruse’s skill and tact were remarkable. Many not in sympathy with the idea of higher female education (like Baron Katō, ex-President of the Imperial University), were won over by Mr. Naruse’s presentation of the cause.
The problem of location was thoroughly discussed in Ōsaka, and at last it was unanimously agreed that Tōkyō, being the capital, was the most convenient place, because the institution was not local, for either Ōsaka or Tōkyō alone, but was national, for all Japan.
The faculty number forty-six in all, among whom are several professors of the Imperial University. The President is, of course, Mr. Naruse; and the Dean is Professor S. Aso, a Dōshisha alumnus. There are also several ladies; and it is the purpose to have as many lady teachers as possible.
There are three departments in the University course:
1. Department of Domestic Science.
2. Department of Japanese Literature.
3. Department of English Literature.
In the first department the greater part of the time is devoted to various branches of Applied and Domestic Science; in the second and third departments the largest number of hours is given up to Japanese and English respectively. Ethics, Sociology, Psychology, Education (including Child-Study) and Calisthenics are required studies in all departments; and Drawing, Music, and Science of Teaching, are electives in all cases.
The boarding-department includes seven “Houses,” each with a matron and a head cook. The girls live just as at home, and take turns in cooking.
This school is not, of course, to be compared with foreign universities, or the Imperial University; nor is it a copy of other universities; but it is intended to make this university just suited to the needs of the time and the social conditions of Japanese women. The standard will be gradually elevated. In the system of female education, it is a university, at least in germ.
It is the purpose as soon as possible to increase the number of courses; to add, for instance, pedagogy (including sociology, psychology, etc.), music, science, art, and calisthenics. It is intended also to extend the preparatory course downward, so that it shall include, not a Kōtō Gakkō only as at present, but also a Shō Gakkō (Grammar School) and a kindergarten. Thus the system of female education will be complete in all its grades: from three to six in the kindergarten; six years in the grammar school; five years in the secondary school (Kōtō Jō Gakkō); three years in the university; with a post-graduate course of three years. Then surely the institution will be worthy to be called a university.
Statistics of Christianity in Japan[229]
Under the title, “The Present State of Christianity,” the “Tōkyō Maishū Shinshi” publishes a number of statistics culled from the Rev. D. S. Spencer’s “Tidings from Japan.” Here is the “Maishū Shinshi’s” summary of Mr. Spencer’s report:
| Missions. | Missionaries. | Native Pastors and Evangelists. | Members.[230] |
|---|---|---|---|
| Protestant | 789 | 494 | 50,512 |
| Roman Catholic | 229 | 98 | 55,824 |
| Greek Church | 4 | 152 | 27,245 |
These figures, when compared with those of ten years ago, do not, as far as the Greek Church and the Roman Catholic Church are concerned, indicate remarkable progress, but to Protestants they are on the whole encouraging. There are 23 Protestant denominations working in Japan, but the most important sects are the Congregationalists, the Presbyterians, the Episcopalians, the Methodists, and the Baptists. The statistics for the 5 principal missions are as follows:—
| Missions. | Foreign Missionaries. | Japanese Pastors. | Adult Members. | Including Children. | Baptisms Last Year. |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Congregational | 71 | 45 | 10,856 | 11,548 | 880 |
| Presbyterian | 153 | 79 | 10,156 | 11,651 | 1,213 |
| Episcopalian | 224 | 47 | 9,968 | 10,997 | 846 |
| Methodist | 233 | 125 | 9,283 | 9,711 | 1,598 |
| Baptist | 56 | 9 | 2,213 | 2,213 | 328 |
The following table gives other interesting particulars:
| Missions. | Churches. | Self-supporting Churches. | Church Property. Yen. |
|---|---|---|---|
| Congregational | 81 | 34 | 125,794 |
| Presbyterian | 71 | 23 | 218,252 |
| Episcopalian | 69 | 2 | |
| Methodist | 146 | 13 | 225,559 |
| Baptist | 30 | ||
| Missions. | Sunday-School Scholars. | Native Money Subscribed. Yen. | Amount Per Member. Yen. Sen. |
| Congregational | 6,880 | 33,791 | 3.11 |
| Presbyterian | 7,879 | 29,027 | 2.86 |
| Episcopalian | 5,524 | 15,827 | 1.59 |
| Methodist | 12,613 | 30,011 | 3.24 |
| Baptist | 3,775 | 4,283 | 1.94 |
It is calculated that if all the different kinds of property
held by the Protestant Church be included, it is worth over 1,500,000 yen.
The Catholic Church in Japan
A writer signing himself “K. M.” contributes to the “Fukuin Shimpō” an account of the methods followed by the Roman Catholics and of their work in Japan, said to have been derived from an interview with L’Abbé E. Ligneul. The following is a summary of “K. M.’s” article. (1) The revival of Roman Catholicism in Japan. This began at Nagasaki in 1865, where a church was built and when the descendants of the old Christians came forward in large numbers to welcome the arrival of foreign missionaries. Having mentioned the principal works of reference on the Roman Catholic Missions in Japan, M. Ligneul went on to speak (2) Of the present state of their churches. The following table gives the numerical strength of the mission:—
| Ecclesiastical Districts. | Converts. | Japanese Priests. | Japanese Evangelists. | Foreign Missionaries (Male). |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Tōkyō | 9,245 | 4 | 20 | 37 |
| Nagasaki | 38,160 | 27 | 180 | 31 |
| Ōsaka | 4,273 | 2 | 40 | 27 |
| Hakodate | 4,643 | 1 | 20 | 20 |
| Total | 56,321 | 34 | 260 | 115 |
The fact that comparatively little is known of the work being carried on by the Roman Catholics throughout the country is no accidental affair. It is one of the principles observed by the whole mission to refrain from the use of the methods employed by other missions for making their work known to the public generally.
The Greek Church in Japan
In the issue of the “Tserkovniya Vyedomosti” or “Church Gazette” (the official organ of the Russian Church) for March 29 (O. S.) there is a long article taken from the “Moscow Gazette” on the state of the Greek Church in Japan.
The writer says that there are now 260 congregations, one more than last year; 41 clergymen, including 1 bishop, 2 Russian clergymen (who have now left Japan—Translator), 30 Japanese clergymen, 1 Russian deacon, 7 Japanese deacons: altogether three more persons than last year; Christians 27,245 (935 more than last year); Catechists 1,214 (643 adults, 571 minors, altogether 305 more than last year); deaths 279 (18 less than last year); marriages 29 (9 more than last year); churches or preachers’ houses 174. The sum of the offerings made by the Christians in support of their church totalled 11,870 yen 41.8 sen, 4,505 yen 72.5 sen more than last year. The number of pupils in Mission schools totalled 152, 12 less than last year.
The annual meeting of clergy (Shinpin Kwaigi) of the Greek Church Mission was held in the cathedral of that mission in Tōkyō on the 15th inst. It was reported at the meeting that there were 1,037 converts last year, deaths 320; and now that the members of the church number 27,956, including 40 clergymen and 146 denkiosha (preachers or unordained evangelists and helpers).
Japan’s National Song[231]
Few Europeans have learned to detect and enjoy the subtle beauty of Japanese poetry. Fewer still, perhaps, are acquainted with the delicate charm of the little poem which, although not a hymn, takes the place in Japanese minds and hearts of the Briton’s “God Save the King,” or the American’s “My Country, ’tis of Thee.” It is sung to a native air, the custom being to sing the poem through thrice, and when thus rendered by a large and enthusiastic company it is often truly impressive. The poem itself is very old, being found in the “Manyōshiu,” which dates from about the middle of the eighth century, and its author is unknown. As originally composed, it was not addressed to the actual ruler, but in all probability to an Emperor who had gone into retirement. Now, however, it is exclusively applied to the reigning Sovereign. The poem consists of the usual number of thirty-one syllables, and runs as follows:—
Kimi ga yo wa
Chiyo ni yachiyo ni
Sazare ishi no
Iwao to narite
Koke no musu made.
So far as we are aware only two English translations have been published. One of these is by Viscount Fukuba, and, closely following the original, reads as follows:
“May our Sovereign live for thousands and ten thousands of years, until the tiny pebble becomes a moss-covered rock.”
The other, by Professor Chamberlain, is more finished but less literal than the foregoing, and is included in his excellent “Classical Poetry of the Japanese”:—
“A thousand years of happy life be thine!
Live on, My lord, till what are pebbles now,
By age united, to great rocks shall grow,
Whose venerable sides the moss doth line.”
To the above translations may be added a third by the late Dr. Gordon:—
“O Prince upon the throne!
Ten thousand years live on,
Till pebbles shall great rocks become
With moss all overgrown!”