A Handbook of Modern Japan

by Ernest W. Clement

In June, 1909, Prince Itō resigned his position as Resident-General in Korea, and was succeeded by Viscount Sone, who had been Vice-Resident-General. In July, the administration of justice and prisons was transferred to the Resident-General. In October, Prince Itō was assassinated at Harbin by a Korean fanatic; and, in December, an unsuccessful attempt was made at Seoul upon the life of the Korean Prime Minister by another fanatic. Prince Itō, as the greatest statesman of Modern Japan, was especially honored with a most elaborate state funeral.

The year 1909 was also marked by a Semi-Centennial Conference, held in Tōkyō, October 5-10, to commemorate the beginning of Christian missions in New Japan. It was “the first national conference in which the Japanese and missionaries coöperated on an equal footing”; it marked “the emergence of the Japanese Church from infancy to youth; from the stigma of being an alien parasite to the acknowledged status of an indigenous institution”; and marked the waning of missionary domination and the rapid assumption of control by Japanese Christians. Thus it was a real epoch-making event in the history of the Christian movement in Japan.

STATESMEN OF NEW JAPAN
MARQUIS KATSURA AND PRINCE ITŌ

A large party of representative Japanese business men started in the fall of 1909 for a trip to the United States, and returned in the spring of 1910. The courteous treatment and generous hospitality extended to them in their hurried tour across the country were highly appreciated. The trip afforded an excellent opportunity to ascertain that the true sentiments of the best Americans are friendly to Japan.

Viscount Sone, Resident-General in Korea, having been compelled, on account of dangerous illness, to return to Japan, resigned his post, and died September 13, 1910. He was succeeded by General Viscount Terauchi, Minister of War, who carried through the plan of annexation, which was formally announced on August 29, 1910. This “passing of Korea” is a truly unfortunate but inevitable occurrence. It was a practical impossibility for Korea, in her peculiar geographical position, to maintain political independence. The “Poland of the Far East” was destined, not to partition, but to absorption by Russia, or China, or Japan; and she has fallen to the lot of the one best able to improve her condition.

The year 1910 was also marked by the discovery of an anarchist plot against the sacred person of the Emperor. Several were arrested as conspirators, of whom a few were acquitted, a few were condemned to imprisonment for terms of years, but twelve were condemned to death and executed (in 1911).

It was in July, 1911, that the term of the revised treaties (which had gone into effect in 1899) expired, and entirely new treaties were negotiated with all the powers. As these treaties included no limitations upon the commercial autonomy of Japan, they marked the “end of her extra-territorial embarrassments.” And, in particular, the new treaty with the United States omitted the objectionable provision of the old treaty (see Appendix), in accordance with which it was permissible for the United States to limit the immigration of Japanese. This delicate question was left to a “gentleman’s agreement,” whereby the Japanese Government would exercise the utmost care concerning granting passports to Japanese to travel to the United States.

The Anglo-Japanese Alliance was again revised in 1911 and renewed for a term of ten years. The most significant point in this revision was a provision inserted, in view of the probability at that time of an Anglo-American Arbitration Treaty, that nothing should entail upon either “contracting party an obligation to go to war with the Power with whom such treaty of arbitration is in force.” This was accomplished before the death of Marquis Komura, who thus lived long enough to see this increased influence of that alliance in the original negotiation of which he played a most important part.

That year was also distinguished by the generous Imperial donation of 1,500,000 yen to start a fund for the relief of the sick poor. This contribution was supplemented by gifts from all over the Empire, until the fund has reached a total of about 25,000,000 yen. And to administer properly this large amount, a society called “Saiseikwai” has been organized, with an Imperial Prince as Honorary President.