VIII

Commerce and industry--Old methods of communication--Roads and

ships--How they have been improved--Railways, post, telegraphs, and

telephones--Progress of the financial system--The Satsuma war--The Bank

of Japan--The National banks--The monetary system one of the causes of

Japan's success--Further remarks on the military reforms--Evolution of

the mode of fighting--All reforms at much cost of blood and money--The

cause of the Satsuma war--Saigo the Elder--Social condition of Japan

to-day--Evolution of legislation--Chinese jurisprudence--The Japanese

are not good correspondents--My future--An operatic singer--Japanese

stages--Danjiuro and Irving--The old school and the new one--Kawakami

and Sada Yakko--The opera _Maritana_--The end of the dream

I was still in the same incongruous group of people, and carrying on a

conversation on the same lines. Though the subjects were rather

technical, they seemed to have interested the people who took part in

the discussion, because they relate to the important part of our

history, wherein the foundation-stone, so to say, of Modern Japan was

laid.

--'I suppose, 'said one of the group, 'your country had to take much

pains in encouraging commerce and industry to attain the stage you have

reached.'

'Well,' I replied, 'we could not do anything which resembled a

protective system if we wished, because we were bound by the treaties

forced upon us, whereby our custom-house duties, all prefixed, could not

exceed five per cent. _ad valorem_; but as far as it lay in the

competence of our Government and people, we did all in our power. You

cannot imagine what money, what time, and what labour we have had to

waste in many ways, because there were many things which we tried and in

which we failed. What we have achieved is insignificant, but it is the

result of all those exertions. By the bye, the question of the revision

of the old treaties was a long protracted subject of our diplomacy and

politics through which we had to struggle. It wrecked several

ministries. One minister for foreign affairs, Count Okuma, lost one of

his legs and only miraculously escaped death, in consequence of having

been inclined to accept terms of revision which the people considered

insufficient and irreconcilable with national dignity. The aim of the

revision was to regain the tariff as well as judicial autonomy. America

had shown very early its inclination to accede to our demand. Italy also

showed a similar inclination. But on the whole the matter proved very

difficult. About ten years ago Great Britain took the lead in

recognising the justice of our demand, other powers followed England's

example, and thus the revision was at last effected. That revision

restored to us our judicial autonomy completely. You must, however,

remember that the tariff autonomy has not yet been entirely restored to

us, for we are still bound by one-sided conventional tariffs. But I must

now return to the original thread of my discourse. You have already seen

that we were hampered by the treaties, but in spite of that we have

taken every pains to promote our commerce and industry, without falling

into the error of over-interfering or being officious.'

--'And you have made wonderful progress in your commerce in a

comparatively short time,' said another.

--'Well, not wonderful,' I answered; 'but it is a fact that our

commerce has increased from a few million yen to some six hundred

million yen. That is something. I will add a word more. It is a mistake

to suppose that the stage we have attained is the mere result of natural

growth. We must venture to ask for sympathetic appreciation of our

endeavour. Some Western people appear to entertain a sort of

apprehension in regard to the growth of our commerce and industry, and

even show a desire to check our progress. It would be very hard lines

for us, for our conviction is that the growth of our commerce and

industry can only be beneficial reciprocally to others as well as to

ourselves; and, moreover, what is after all our commerce and industry

when compared with that of the Western peoples?'

--'I quite sympathise with you on that point,' said one.

--'Thank you!' I said, and continued. 'Some foreigners speak of our

commercial probity very disparagingly. I admit there were some

shortcomings, but I deny that the faults were wholly ours. You know that

the greater bulk of our Japanese commerce is done in Japan itself by the

Western merchants who come out there. If we were always cheating them,

and they were always blameless, why should they continue to trade with

us and make such great increase of commerce in a comparatively short

space of time? It is my opinion that the blame attached to the

commercial probity of the Japanese merchant has far less foundation than

the reality warrants. A good deal of the blame, I think, is a hearsay,

originally circulated by interested persons and innocently magnified by

others. Time was when our merchants wellnigh revolted against oppressive

dealings of foreign merchants out there, and tried to export direct to

foreign countries, but then want of capital and experience stood in

their way as a barrier. On the whole, I am satisfied with the progress

our commerce has made, as well as with the fact that its volume has

increased in spite of the war, though we must endeavour to still further

it.'

--'That your country will have to do,' said another; 'but will you tell

me the condition of the communications of the country at the time of the

abolition of the feudal system, and the improvements you have made since

then?'

--'The means of communication,' I replied, 'were not good in those days.

We are surrounded by seas on all sides, but we were unable to make the

fullest use of the water, because the building of large ships was

prohibited for centuries, and therefore our ships had much difficulty in

navigating the eastern coasts, as well as the Japan Sea, especially in

winter. They often had to remain several months in some port on their

route. On the land, roads were not good, they were often badly made on

purpose by the different lords for the defence of their territories.

Thus, even where a straight road could be made on flat land, it was

purposely made high up on the hills in a winding way. Rivers were often

left bridgeless where bridges could easily have been constructed.

Foreign visitors may think our roads even now bad when compared with

those of the Western civilised countries; but in our eyes our present

roads are beyond any comparison with those of some thirty or forty years

ago. This also means that our central Government, as well as our local

governments, had to take much pains and spend much money in the matter.

We had also to encourage the building of large ships, both steam and

sailing vessels. We have built many lighthouses round the country for

the benefit of the navigation of foreign ships as well as for our own.'

--'What of the railways, telegraph, and telephone lines?' asked one.

'Not many years after the restoration we began the construction of the

railways. The line between Yokohama and Tokio was the first and most

expensive of any of the railways constructed in Japan, for, owing to the

lack of experience, we had to pay whatever price we were asked by

foreigners for the materials. The next line was one between Kobe and

Osaka, and the system has been gradually extended as the finances of the

Government have allowed. But finding that the rapid extension to every

part of the country was beyond the financial expediency of the

Government, private enterprises were encouraged, and many private

railway companies were established one after another. Thus we have two

kinds of railways, one belonging to the Government, the other belonging

to private companies. When I was Minister of Communications eight years

ago, the whole length of the railways, state and private, reached three

thousand miles. There was some talk of celebrating the occasion, but

both Matsumoto, Director of the Board of Railways, and I discountenanced

the idea, because three thousand miles of railway were nothing compared

with other advanced countries. The extension at present is between four

and five thousand miles, I think. The length is not much, but because

the country is narrow, every part of it is within easy reach of the

train. The telegraph lines belong to the Government entirely, and are

managed in conjunction with the general postal system. Soon after the

inauguration of the Imperial Government, we began to remodel the postal

system which had existed previously, and it has been gradually expanded

and improved on the European method. I can say without much diffidence

that our postal and telegraph systems may be compared in efficiency with

any country, even the most advanced in those matters. The telephone

system is comparatively new, but most of the populous towns have it, and

large towns are connected by distant telephones. Needless to say that we

have managed from the beginning to maintain the system in the hands of

the Government.'

--'The Imperial Government seems to have required much money,' said

one, 'for winding up the feudal Governments, and for introducing, side

by side, many reforms. You also mentioned that the Government had to

issue paper money. I should like to know more about how you got through

it all.'

--'We had to undergo much financial difficulty. Before the Imperial

régime gold and silver constituted practically double standards. At the

early stage of the new Government gold was adopted as the standard in

theory, but it took a long time before it came into actual operation.

The Government had to issue much paper money, and that, too,

inconvertible, hence much depreciation of the paper. The strenuous

efforts of the Government had been successful in improving the situation

when the Satsuma war broke out in 1877. The expense of that war

occasioned more issue of paper money, which caused a further

depreciation. At one time the difference between silver, which was

practically the legal tender at the time, and the paper rose to 100 :

180.

'There was another cause for the depreciation of paper money. It was

the issue of notes by the national banks, which were established in all

parts of the country after the abolition of the feudal system, and which

numbered at one time more than 150. The Government had to meet with

these difficulties, and to place the financial and economical condition

of the country on a firmer and more satisfactory basis. This the

Government began to undertake a few years after the Satsuma war, without

hindering the necessary works for the development of the national

resources. The Government decided to apply strict economy in all

branches of its administration. The money thus saved was partly used for

the redemption of the over-issued paper money, and partly to accumulate

reserve funds for making the paper currency convertible. The Bank of

Japan was established with the view of making it the sole central

economical organ of the empire. A scheme was provided for redeeming the

notes issued by the so-called national banks, and for converting those

banks into strictly private banks in due time.

'The process began in earnest in 1881; it made far quicker progress than

was contemplated; thus in 1885 the difference between the silver and the

paper money disappeared. From January 1886 the total redemption of the

paper money was begun. In 1899 the circulation of the Government paper

money and the notes of the national banks altogether ceased to exist,

the convertible notes of the Bank of Japan having taken their place. In

the same year all national banks ceased to exist, most of them having

become private banks, and a few having wound up their business. Two

years previously gold had been at last effectively adopted as the

Japanese national standard of currency, which was the realisation of the

idea cherished by the Imperial Government from the beginning.'

--'What was the nature of the national banks?' asked one; 'and have they

proved quite meaningless?'

--'The law for the establishment of those banks was promulgated soon

after the abolition of the feudal system. It was modelled after the

national banks of America. In the course of time a large number of them

came into existence in different parts of the Empire. They were private

undertakings, except that they enjoyed the privilege of issuing their

own notes, and were subject to Government superintendence. At first the

notes were to be convertible into specie, but a modification was

introduced in the law by which they could issue notes with Government

bonds as security and convertible in Government paper money. Therefore

the notes were in reality incontrovertible ones from the point of view

of hard money. Previous to that, the Government loan bonds, amounting to

one hundred and seventy million yen, were issued for the capitalisation

of the feudal lords and their retainers in consideration of their feudal

incomes, after the feudal system had been abolished. These bonds were

used widely for establishing the banks. The banks enjoyed special

privileges of issuing paper money, but in lieu of it they did good

service in encouraging and stimulating local industry and commerce, so

that we do not regret that those banks were once instituted. Besides,

they led to the foundation of the modern monetary system of Japan. You

must have observed the efficiency of the monetary system of Japan during

the Sino-Japanese war. The success of Japan in great wars is due a great

deal to that system. I mean to say that because we have that system, the

money possessed by the public could easily be made to serve public

purposes in time of emergency. Look at China: as far as individuals are

concerned, there is a far greater number of people who are richer than

the Japanese, and yet they have no sound banking system in close

connection with the state. When the Chinese deposit their money, they

prefer to do so with foreign banks. The consequence is that the

Government cannot fall back upon the wealth of private individuals.

Neither is there much likelihood of home loans being popular in China.

Of course there may be some other reasons for this. In Japan nothing but

regular taxes and dues regulated by law are levied. No illegal exaction

is or could be made. In that respect there exists a perfect

understanding between the Government and the people, who know that if

they respond to the Government call for loans their dues would be made

good in future. No such confidence and usage exist in China, still less

in any other part of the East.'

--'You told us that in the beginning of the Imperial Government, the

Imperial troops were supported at the expense of the clan governments,'

said one. 'Will you tell us a little more about it?'

--'Under the Shogunate,' I answered, 'the feudal lords had to support

their own troops, even when they were ordered to send them out

somewhere. This was the duty they had to render in return for the tenure

of land. Just before the battle of Fushimi, Satsuma and some other clans

had their troops stationed in Kioto. Chosiu, which on all sides had come

triumphantly out of the war against the attacking forces of the

Shogunate, also sent some troops to Kioto; not indeed by order of the

Shogun, but rather against it. These troops were all supported by their

clan governments. After the battle of Fushimi, the troops of the Satcho

and other clans which had become Imperialists, were ordered to the front

in the North-Eastern provinces. They now fought as Imperial troops under

the "brocade banners," which was the emblematic banner used solely by

the Imperial forces, and much reverenced by the Japanese in general,

because with us those who fought against those banners had been, and

were at all times, universally stigmatised as disloyal subjects. The

leaders of those troops were generally commissioned by the Imperial

Government. The cohesion of the troops of different clans in one

direction was maintained by a generalissimo, who was a high court noble,

assisted by a certain number of staff officers, specially appointed by

the Imperial Government. In that manner, troops of different clans

fought for the cause of the Imperial Government. After the war, the

troops of some of the clans were still used for the Imperial purposes,

whilst others of them were all sent home. The future of the military

system was, however, a great problem. Immediately after the war, the

present Marshal, Marquis Yamagata, who was the leader of the Chosiu

troops in the province of Echigo, visited Europe, together with Saigo

the younger. On his return to Japan, he advocated the adoption of the

European system of universal service. He succeeded in his advocacy, and

in 1870 regulations were promulgated relating to the subject, by which

the system was experimentally put in force in five provinces in the

vicinity of Kioto; and the system was made universal and more complete

soon after the total abolition of the feudal system. It has undergone

further improvement from time to time, until we have come into

possession of the army which the world has come to see during the

present war. I may add, that in the earlier parts of the new

organisation, many French officers were engaged to instruct our men and

officers in different ways, and afterwards some German officers were

similarly engaged, as you know.'

'Can you roughly explain,' said one, 'the evolution of your modes of

fighting before it reached the efficiency of the present day?'

--'It has been pretty much the same as yours,' I answered. 'Putting

aside the remote antiquity, I will briefly tell you how it has been

since the commencement of the chivalric period. The sword was always our

chief weapon of honour, that you know very well. Then bows and arrows

were also regarded as honourable weapons, so much so, that the families

which made military affairs their constant occupation were called "the

houses of bows and arrows," The phrase "bow-handlers" came to signify

"leaders." Thus when the famous Takeda Shingen, towards the end of the

sixteenth century, spoke of Iyeyasu, his junior contemporary, as "the

first bow-handler of the Tokai provinces," he meant by the phrase "first

bow-handler" a general of great ability. The spear which was used by the

leaders was also held in high esteem. Thus "distinction at the point of

the spear" was a phrase commonly used to denote distinguished deeds of

warriors. "The seven spears of Shizugatake" is a phrase constantly used

by people at large. It refers to the gallant fighting of the seven

famous captains of Hideyoshi at the battle of Shizugatake. They all used

spears. The Naginata was a weapon with a long curved blade, with a

handle a little shorter than that of a spear: it was considered a proper

weapon for women and monks, and was not, therefore, looked upon as being

so honourable as a spear for ordinary warriors to use. The decisive

battles were necessarily hand-to-hand combats. There was even

time-honoured heraldic etiquette, that when two combatants were about to

fight they announced their names and positions, etc., to each other. I

believe a somewhat similar custom existed in Europe also. Warriors of

position considered it a disgrace to be killed or captured by "nameless

common soldiers," as they were called. The hand-to-hand combat, being

the chief feature of battle, it was natural that a person who had

overcome an enemy of greater distinction or of higher rank was regarded

as having done a correspondingly greater action; hence the custom of

bringing back the enemies' heads by the combatants, and submitting them

to the inspection of their leaders, came into existence, and in the

sixteenth and seventeenth centuries, the modes of such inspections had

become an elaborate part of the heraldic ceremonies. The measure of the

boxes in which the heads were put, the manner in which to place them and

how to take them out, what attitude to be assumed by the one who

submitted the heads for inspection, and what composure the one who

inspected should assume, and what glance he should give to the head--all

these matters had fine and minute rules, though when taking place on the

actual spot at a hasty hour, much of the formality was necessarily

simplified.'

--'How was it with the firearms?' asked one.

--'The use of firearms in Japan,' I answered, 'dates back only about

three and a half centuries. A Portuguese trading-vessel which arrived in

1543 at the islands of Tanegashima, off the southern coasts of Kiusiu,

is reputed to have brought a few firearms, and it is said they were the

first firearms introduced into Japan, and that they served as a model to

us for making others. Hence the name "Tanegashima" had come to signify

sometimes "firearms" even down to our own time. A few years afterwards

more Portuguese ships arrived at the province of Bungo, in Kiusiu, and

brought with them more firearms. At the time a great deal of foreign

trade was carried on in that province by Chinese and Portuguese

trading-ships. Otomo, the prince of the province, even became a

Christian convert, and it is said that he was one of the converted

feudal lords who sent missions to Rome. Repute gives it that those

firearms were brought by the missionaries, and the prince took his first

fancy to them on account of their bringing such useful weapons. In no

time the manufacture and use of firearms made their way into many parts

of the country. It is said that at the war of Nagasino, which was fought

in 1575 between Takeda on one side and Oda and Tokugawa on the other,

there were three thousand firearms on the latter side, which seems to

have been the war in which the largest number of firearms was used. Of

course, the firearms of those days were all matchlocks, and, moreover,

they were not considered arms of honour. Firearm companies were formed

of the commonest soldiers, and generally used for skirmishes before the

commencement of regular fighting. Cannon were also known soon after the

introduction of ordinary firearms, but they do not seem to have been

much in use. As a matter of fact, before much improvement had been made

in the use of firearms, peace returned, and lasted over two hundred

years, so that we had little more than matchlocks, which were chiefly

used for shooting game. Since the latter part of the eighteenth century,

when the Western ships began to appear on the Far Eastern seas, the

"coast defence question" had aroused public attention, and the necessity

for having strong firearms presented itself. Cannon began to be cast and

ordinary guns also, by the different feudal lords. It was then that the

bells in most of the temples in most provinces were confiscated, to be

thrown into the furnace and recast as, cannon. Perhaps you know that the

Japanese temple bells are many times bigger than those ordinarily used

in the Western churches and temples. They have no tongues, but are

sounded by a large wooden pendulum suspended close to them. The sound,

therefore, is deep and sonorous, quite different from the tinkling noise

of the Western bells. Those bells used to report certain hours of the

day, and it was a charm, especially in country parts, in the midst of

nature, to listen to their soft clang. Those chimes were favourite

themes in poetry, but most localities are now deprived of that charm for

the reason I have just given. As time went on, the Western guns of

modern type began to make their way into the country. They were commonly

known as the "bayoneted guns." They were a rude kind of gun compared

with the modern ones, and, of course, not breach-loaders. In those days

the making of guns was not much advanced, even in Europe itself. When

the English squadron bombarded Kagoshima, the English ships fared rather

badly. They had anchored too near the fortress, in defiance of our

cannon, and one ship left behind her anchor in trying to escape the

firing from the land. Our skill in casting guns and cannon was not much

advanced then, and yet, as one may perceive, we were on the road to

success. Looking back in general at the changes in the mode of fighting,

the latter days of the Tokugawa régime was the great epoch. It was then

that war recommenced, after more than two centuries of peace, and its

mode had entirely changed from that of times gone by, and the notion of

single combat was totally discarded. At present no one remembers bows

and arrows, except perhaps for sporty and still less spears. Swords,

indeed, we still value, but rather as a reminiscence of old times, and

not as an effective weapon. We have made many new guns and cannon,

improved on the Western models, and they are our weapons of to-day.'

--'And all those reforms,' said one, 'in polity, in finance, in the army

and navy, were effected with the perfect concord of the whole nation,

without a hitch?'

'Not exactly. On broad lines the bulk of the people was with the

Government and followed its lead. But we reaped all these fruits at much

expense of blood and money. You could not but expect to see among the

people at large some who did not exactly approve the methods pursued by

the Government. To them the policy of the Government sometimes appeared

too radical and hazardous, and thus one group or another showed from

time to time their dissent. In those days when people were determined to

assume a dissenting attitude, it generally took the shape of physical

force, in other word, "revolt." Chosiu itself had had two such revolts,

but they had been easily crushed. Chosiu had had a civil strife before

the restoration, and in consequence the elements of political

differences within the clan had been almost thoroughly unified. Most of

its able men devoted their services to the Imperial Government. The old

territory of the clan was one of the prefectures which thoroughly

submitted to the Imperial administration with perfect confidence, from

the very moment when the feudal system was abolished, so much so, that

the first governor despatched there by the Imperial Government was

originally a retainer of the Shogunate and had fought against the

Imperialists. The revolters had therefore not much sympathy from the

people, nor had they any means, guns, or ammunition, to turn to their

advantage against the Imperialists, and yet it shows that even the

Chosiu men themselves were unable to get on altogether harmoniously. The

saddest and the gravest case, however, was that of the Satsuma war,

which took place in 1877. It was only after that war that the

progressive administration of the new Government was placed on a firm

and solid basis, and the surviving influence of the old feudal time

disappeared altogether.'

--'Since your explanation has reached as far as that stage,' said one,

'I am anxious to know something about the real cause and circumstances

which occasioned that war.'

--'It requires some explanation,' I replied. 'You already know that

Satsuma was one of the few most powerful clans. Its history and

organisation were different from other clans. And also, unlike Chosiu,

it had not had an outbreak of civil strife within the clan before the

Restoration period. Its clansmen fought many battles, but it never had

any occasion to form voluntary bands as did Chosiu, and therefore it had

had no opportunity of observing that the troops recruited from all

classes were equal, if not superior, to the Samurai troops. The two

greatest statesmen of the clan were Saigo the elder, and Okubo, but as I

have indicated already, they differed in the course of their career, as

well as in their natural propensity. Saigo had been a devout Imperialist

from the beginning, and there were several romantic episodes about his

life. Once, in despair, he, together with an Imperialist monk, jumped

into the sea. He was rescued, and had to spend years on an island in

banishment. Okubo always played the part of a politician. His

imperialism had not become quite marked and decisive until almost within

the last few years preceding the Restoration. Naturally, therefore,

there were in Satsuma some men who were more partial to Saigo and others

more inclined to Okubo. There was another group of men, differing from

both, namely, the partisans of the real father of the Prince of Satsuma.

The late Prince of Satsuma, the predecessor and uncle of the prince in

question, had been an able and enlightened man, almost unparalleled by

any of the contemporary feudal lords. He had had much leaning towards

Western enlightenment. An incident is told of his strength of character

in regard to the visit of a Dutchman whom he had invited to Kagoshima,

the capital of Satsuma. He went to the port and rode with him side by

side back to his residence. At the time an anti-foreign spirit was still

strong among the Samurai, and by his riding side by side with the

Dutchman he intimated that if the Satsuma Samurai were determined to

attack the foreigner, they must also at the same time attack him.'

--'But stop,' said one, 'was not the time you are speaking of before the

bombardment of Kagoshima and Simonoseki? I have always understood that

Satsuma and Chosiu were fierce anti-foreign clans.'

--'Yes, it was before those bombardments. The Prince of Satsuma, whom

I have just spoken of, died somewhere about 1860. I do not remember the

exact date. It is true those two clans were anti-foreign towards the

latter days of the Tokugawa régime, but it does not follow that they had

always been the same. The acceleration of the idea was much due to the

circumstances of the time, which require explanation. At the time of

that prince, he and his government had shown much inclination towards

Western intercourse. As a matter of fact, it is even said some trade was

secretly carried on between Satsuma and the Dutchmen at an island in the

Southern Sea. The old bottles marked Soy, which one sometimes finds in

Holland, are said to have been the bottles which contained our Shoyu and

to have been imported into Holland at that time. Even Chosiu was not at

first so fierce an anti-foreign clan as it became later on. The Prince

of Chosiu had a few medical retainers who were well versed in the Dutch

language. He used to collect information about Europe from them. They

even translated for him some European extracts, and compiled them into

the form of a periodical pamphlet, which may be said to have been the

very beginning of the Japanese newspapers. He was one of the few feudal

lords who first introduced the system of vaccination in their territory.

He established a glass factory in his province. He also made experiments

in the art of photography. All this took place before the bombardment of

Simonoseki. It is, therefore, wrong to suppose that either Satsuma or

Chosiu knew nothing of the West before they were bombarded. Besides, the

fault which had originated the bombardment of Kagoshima lay in reality

in the miscalculation which had been shown by an Anglo-Saxon.

Nevertheless, we had to pay the indemnity all the same, in addition to

having been bombarded. But to return to my subject. The Prince of

Satsuma, who died somewhere about 1860, as I have just told you, had no

heir of his own, and was succeeded by the young son of his brother, whom

he had adopted. That brother was the famous Shimazu-Saburo, who acted as

regent for the young prince. For that reason, he also exercised much

influence in the clan, and at one time played the part of the real ruler

of Satsuma. His character, however, differed very much from that of his

deceased brother. He was also a man of ability, but rather conservative,

and his sympathy was not much with the sweeping reforms of Japan on

European lines. He sometimes held office in the new Imperial Government,

but spent more of his time in retirement in Satsuma. Saigo the elder,

also was not a man who cared to toil in ordinary administrative affairs,

and after the cabinet crisis in 1873 on the Corean question, he retired

to Kagoshima. From all this you can see that there remained in Satsuma

strong conservative element, which could not be looked upon as a

negligible quantity. As a matter of fact, Satsuma was the only locality

where the Imperial Government found it not expedient to enforce

rigorously all the new progressive measures, which it did in all other

localities. Unlike Chosiu, the governor and his subordinates, though

officially nominated by the central Government, were men belonging to

the province and sharing those conservative sentiments, and therefore at

heart not the faithful executors of the will of the central Government.

At last the province rose in revolt against the central Government in

1877.

--'To detail the matter a little further,' I continued, 'when Saigo

retired to Kagoshima in 1873, many of his admirers and followers,

especially those in the army, also resigned their offices, and retired

to Satsuma, whilst many others, including Saigo the younger, namely the

brother of the elder Saigo, remained in the service of the Government

with Okubo. Thus Satsuma men were practically divided into two parties,

many near relatives and friends having taken different sides. As time

went on the distance between them became greater and greater. In Satsuma

the so-called private schools were organised in different parts of the

province by the chief followers of Saigo the elder, though he himself

mostly indulged in hunting. Those schools in reality were utilised for

gathering together young men to serve latent designs of the organisers.

It is a doubtful point of history how far Saigo himself was cognisant of

those matters, but one thing is certain, that he did not exactly

discourage them. When some time back Yamagata mooted the proposal for

the universal service system, Saigo, who was then fulfilling an

important position in the army, was persuaded to agree. Again, when the

final abolition of the feudal system was decided upon, he joined the

cabinet almost for that special purpose, and his weight went a long way

in achieving that aim. It has always remained doubtful whether Shimazu

Saburo was in accord with the scheme, but the matter was carried out by

Okubo and Saigo in conjunction with influential statesmen of other

clans. Hence we can see that Saigo was also in the main on the lines of

progressive policy. It may, however, be presumed that, intelligent and

well educated as he was in the Oriental sense, he had not any deep

insight into the European civilisation. Besides, his personal character

and proclivity were not exactly fit to appreciate radical changes, which

to him must have appeared somewhat frivolous. Then, too, after his

retirement to Kagoshima, many governmental measures were often

misrepresented to him as the result of thoughtless actions of Okubo and

others, and it was also possible that many personal scandalous

misrepresentations were made about those in power. Hence it is to be

presumed that Saigo also felt some desirability of modifying the trend

of the national policy. When, therefore, his followers committed an act

which was irreconcilable with the peaceful observation of the laws of

the land and which soon assumed attitudes of revolt, Saigo became their

head without any overt action and almost as a result of the natural

course of events. The revolters numbered forty-five thousand.

Individually, Saigo was the most popular man in the whole empire. The

Imperial army at the time did not number much more than the revolters.

It was a most critical time for the Government, which only succeeded in

suppressing the rebels after many sanguinary battles. It is well worth

remembering that in the case of the Satsuma men, many near relatives and

close friends had to fight one against the other, because a large number

of them was on the side of the Government as well. Casual observers of

the outside world may say it was barbarous that such people should fight

one against the other, but such is often the case when a nation

undergoes a great change. I may reiterate that it was a very critical

time for Japan, for if the rebels had been victorious, there was a grave

fear that the progressive policy would have been seriously hindered and

a military despotism would have reigned in the country. It was

absolutely necessary to crush the rebels at the point of the bayonet,

however great and popular Saigo might have been and however meritorious

his antecedents. I for one have some consolation in saying that I have

done some little service to my country by being the first to formulate

and publish the views of the situation I have just spoken of, and to

lead the public opinion in that direction, before any other dared to do

so. I received several threatening letters at the time, but suffered no

actual attack. Towards the latter part of that war I was on the

battlefield, and was one of the few who assisted at the last hour in

washing Saigo's head, which had been found and dug up. The head had been

buried hastily in a small ditch by one of his captains, who, when Saigo

had been fatally wounded in the last battle, cut it off at his own

request, while the fray was still raging, to prevent it falling into the

hands of the enemy. I remember there were present Marshal Yamagata,

Marshal Oyama, and General Nozu.'

--'What had become of Shimazu Saburo at the time of the war?' asked

another.

--'He was in Kagoshima,' I answered, 'but he kept aloof together with

some devoted followers: the rebels also seem to have preferred to leave

him alone. In the course of years he died a natural and honourable

death, to the great regret of the emperor and the nation. Okubo was

assassinated a few years after the war by a small group of young men who

had been zealous supporters of Saigo. Taking into consideration all that

I have related, you will clearly see that the present-day Japan has by

no means been built upon a bed of roses.'

--'How does the social condition of Japan stand at present?' asked

another; 'from the political point of view, for instance, who is the

ruling class?'

--'The social condition of Japan,' I answered, 'is satisfactory. We

have aristocracy and commons, as you know, but no class animosity. The

distance between them is not great. The commercial class also is making

its influence felt: many people who formerly belonged to a class which

despised business occupation are now engaged in business. The official

positions are occupied almost all by men of ability belonging mostly to

the middle class. Almost none of the old nobles occupy any official

positions. You must have heard many statesmen and generals called by

some titles of nobility, but they are only new nobility, given by the

emperor for meritorious services rendered to the new Imperial

Government, and therefore their modes of thought and their inclinations

are not far different from that of the ordinary people at large. All the

Government officials and officers of the army and navy are taken by

examination without any distinction of class or locality, and therefore

young men belonging to any class of society or to any province have

equal chance. It is true that immediately after the restoration some

powerful clans, especially that of Satcho, exercised more influence in

political circles, but it was only natural as the results of the great

change. Even at this moment there are several statesmen, who originally

belonged to those clans, who exercise great influence: it is because

their services to the country have been great, and consequently they

enjoy greater prestige. In the army and navy, also, the majority of the

generals of the higher class are in a similar manner men who have risen

from those clans. With the rest, the clannish landmarks are already

almost indistinguishable; even amongst those of the highest positions

the disappearance of the clannish traces must be only a question of

time, for most of the personages occupying those positions are already

far advanced in age. It is not, therefore, fair for some foreigners to

say that the Satcho men placed themselves in the place of the Shogunate.

As a matter of fact, the Satcho statesmen themselves have introduced

many important regulations for giving equal chances to every class and

province. Then, again, what is most worth noticing is perhaps the fact

that all public affairs are governed by laws and regulations, and not by

any arbitrary will; so much so, that in some instances people think that

there are too many laws and regulations. On the whole, I approve the

present system, as every one must, because it leaves no room for class

or bureaucratic oppression.'

--'Can you explain,' said one, 'how all those psychological changes have

been brought about? People in the West have always thought that the

Orientals little cared for laws and regulations, their modes of

government being based upon customs and traditions.'

--'You may think so,' I answered; 'if you take the generality of the

Orientals, but it is not the case with Modern Japan. Even in China the

matter was never exactly as you have just said. China has always been

wanting in the matter of civil law. But there is one particular feature

worth noticing. In the same way as the Romans were rich in the notions

of civil law, the Chinese were rich in the ideas of criminal law. I do

not, of course, say their system was good from the Western point of

view, but in its way it had very good jurisprudence and codes, which

were handed down with some necessary modifications from dynasty to

dynasty. They knew the importance of separating ethics from

jurisprudence for more than a dozen centuries, namely, from the Tang

dynasty, when a very good criminal code, which was an improvement and

enlargement upon that o£ the preceding dynasty, was enacted. Thus, for

instance, torture is looked upon by the Occidentals simply as barbarous,

but it has its _raison d'être_ in the Chinese jurisprudence. According

to that jurisprudence, no person is to be punished on mere

circumstantial evidence, or on the words of witnesses, unless the

prisoner himself makes confession of his guilt. The act of confession is

technically called the "completion of self-acknowledgment." The object

of this is to make sure that no innocent person shall ever be punished.

In some cases, if punishments be inflicted, despite the prisoner's

strong protest of innocence, on mere circumstantial evidence, or on the

evidence of witnesses, great injustice may be done, as was well

illustrated in the Beck incident, which recently created so great a

sensation in England. Torture is resorted to only in the case where,

although the evidence is conclusive, yet the prisoner obstinately

refuses to acknowledge his guilt. In other words, the application of

torture is only to be resorted to in order that a prisoner whose guilt

is quite evident might not be allowed to escape unpunished merely

because he obstinately refuses to confess. The _raison d'être_ of the

torture, therefore, is not so bad as casual observers imagine. The blame

of the method lies in its abuse. We Japanese once followed that

jurisprudence, but have given it up because it is liable to

misapplication, and we have adopted the European system of judgment by

evidence, not because we believed in the infallibility of that system,

but because we believed that less injustice would be committed by that

system than the other. China has also been very rich in codes of

governmental organisation, not indeed in the Western style of

constitutional laws; but still, from a literary point of view, they are

all very good. Now to return to our subject. If Japan were a country

which had not known the usefulness of laws and regulations, and yet had

begun to imitate the methods of European legislation with success as she

has done, such a result might indeed be a matter of some amazement. She

had, however, had much experience in making laws and regulations during

the ancient Imperial régime when we had frequent intercourse with the

Tang dynasty of China, and therefore, when we began to formulate new

legislation on Western lines, it was only necessary to grasp the spirit

as to the method, and to make some modification in form of what we had

done previously. And besides, scholars well acquainted with the Chinese

codes were not wanting, and their ability was ready to be utilised for

new legislation.'

--'It would be very interesting,' said one, 'if we could obtain a new

book which would scientifically treat of the history of the evolution of

all those great changes which have taken place. Really, we know little

concerning Japan.'

--'That may be,' I answered, 'but there are several books, especially in

English, from which one can gather a good deal of information on Japan,

though they are not always correct to our eyes. The French are the

people who interest themselves the least in such matters, and yet

complain that they are without any information.'

--'I do not care,' he replied, 'for those unscientific books. I am

anxious that a good, scientific, and authentic book on those points

should be written at first hand by some competent Japanese.'

Here a compatriot of mine turned to me, and said privately that the

gentleman who had just made the above remark was one who could not be

persuaded to believe that Western civilisation had taken root in Japan,

and who did not until recently believe that Japan could cope with the

Russians. His reason was not on account of any bias against Japan, but

because he could not believe Western civilisation could be transplanted

to an exotic soil in so short a time, as in the case of Japan. He had

only recently begun to think otherwise, after close observation of the

progress of the war, and therefore wished to know the true history of

the evolution of all the important changes which had taken place in our

country.

--'Now you gentlemen have had enough time,' said a lady. 'It is our turn

now. I suppose, baron, you will be going home before long, when the war

comes to an end. Shall you also be like some of the Japanese I have had

the pleasure of knowing? I mean to say that the Japanese are, as a rule,

pleasant enough and friendly enough while with us, but after they have

gone back to their country we seldom hear from them. But when they

happen to revisit this part of the world, they return to us and are as

pleasant and friendly as before, as though nothing had happened in the

interval.'

--'Ah! I understand. I am afraid I shall be like them. We Japanese are

not good correspondents. In that respect I think the English are the

best. It seems writing letters is a part of their pleasure. They write

so many letters even in the midst of hasty travelling. Our heads somehow

seem heavy when it comes to the task of letter-writing. When we go back

to Japan, unless we are engaged in some offices where foreign languages

are needed, we have no occasion to think or to write in them, and we

soon forget the thread of the foreign style of thought and tongue, and,

therefore, it is difficult even to find good dicta for writing a simple

letter. Remember, moreover, there is nothing so difficult as writing

simple letters; especially is it so with us Japanese. Then, again, the

paper, ink, and pens which we use for our own writing are totally

different from yours, and they are useless for writing Occidental

characters. Therefore, when we think of writing a letter to an

Occidental friend, we might find the ink-bottle quite dry, nibs quite

rotten, and the sheets of writing paper may be wanting, and perhaps we

should have to send for them all anew. The spelling of quite common

words may not be at our command, and if we just wished to refer to a

dictionary, we should perhaps find that it had been mislaid somewhere

among the heaps of Japanese books, or perhaps had been taken away

altogether by a young student. Such being the case, you can well imagine

that the Japanese cannot be very good correspondents if they wished. The

fact that they do not write letters does not show that they do not

remember old friendships, and therefore, if they happen to revisit the

West, they would be, as you say, as friendly and pleasant as though

nothing had happened in the interval.'

--'That explains the matter very well,' said she. 'I am sure you will be

like one of those, especially as you will have so much to do for your

country, perhaps in some busy office in the Government.'

--'You are quite right in the first part of your observation. I have no

reputation for being a good correspondent. Perhaps you know that the

great Marlborough always felt much difficulty in writing letters. He

used to say that he would sooner fight a great battle, and with more

ease, than write a letter of fifteen lines to his wife, so you will see

I have some consolation, because even amongst the English there are

those who are not particularly fond of writing letters. As to the second

part of your observation, you are wrong. I have no desire to seek

office. I do not care for the hustle and bustle of the world. I prefer

to spend my time calmly and quietly in the midst of nature, and

therefore, after my return to Japan, you will hear of me no more. If you

ever happen to hear of me, it will only be when some grave and

exceptional circumstance of my country requires my service, whereby I

may be obliged to sacrifice my own inclination. But I must now say

"exit."'

So saying, I left the group. On my way back home, I dropped into the

coffee-room of an hotel and met there accidentally a rich young

Scandinavian artist, whom I had met before, when once staying at that

hotel. He was with two ladies, an operatic singer and her mother, both

of whom were American by birth. From their appearance, and from what I

have since heard, they belonged to a well-to-do family. She had taken to

her present profession rather on account of a natural gift for singing

than from any necessity. Her mother had come over to Paris for a short

time to visit her daughter and was staying at the hotel. Through the

Scandinavian we soon came to know each other, and as we took coffee

together we had some conversation, which naturally turned on the

Japanese stage. In the course of the conversation, I furnished them with

a number of details in connection with the subject in answer to their

questions:

'On our stage some actors act female parts, as was the case with

the European stage from the Greeks down to recent centuries in

Modern Europe. With us, however, unlike your ancient stage,

grown-up actors, not necessarily youths, act all important female

parts, and yet they imitate real females so well, that it is

regarded as almost a marvel. They have a peculiar method of making

use of certain muscles and bones which make their movements

resemble those of women. It requires much training from boyhood,

and that is the reason why the female characters of the new school,

of which I shall speak presently, are not so realistic as those of

the old school. Our best actors are those who can act well both

male and female characters, but naturally there are some who are

more fitted than others for acting female parts. Shikwan is one of

the best actors at this moment. I read recently a letter written by

a New York lady, while on a visit to Japan, who is reputed a great

patron of the stage. It was addressed to Shikwan, and sent,

together with a bouquet. In it she says that it was almost amazing

to her to have seen him acting the part of a great warrior and soon

after the part of a delicate and noble lady, and that she

considered him the first actor in the world. I think there is a

great deal of truth in her remarks. Most foreigners who first visit

our theatre can hardly be made to believe that the female

characters are actually acted by males. The architectural

peculiarities of our stage are:--_First_, the greater part of it is

a large, round, movable platform on pivots, and is used to great

advantage for "decorative properties" as well as for the acting.

_Secondly_, we have the so-called "flower ways" on both sides of

the stalls. They can also be used with great effectiveness for some

kinds of acting, though it would be rather difficult to have them

in the European style of stage building. It is, however, a very

common mistake of most Europeans to think we have no actresses. We

have actresses as well as actors, only they form different and

separate companies, and it is only seldom and of recent date that

they act together. Danjiuro was the greatest actor we have had in

recent centuries. Kikugoro and then Sadanji came next They were

regarded as "the trio," but all three have died within the last few

years. We do not think we shall have the same talent again for many

years to come. A Garrick, a Henry Irving, or a Sarah Bernhardt is

not a production of every generation. Danjiuro in particular was

accounted, even by Occidental visitors, among the few of the

greatest actors of the world. Curiously enough there was much

resemblance between the personal character and style of acting of

Danjiuro and Sir Henry Irving. The _forte_ of Danjiuro was

historical representations, and so it was with Irving. Danjiuro

acted more in spirit, that is to say, with as little action and

rhetoric as possible, but with more suppressed but visible emotion.

When he began this style of acting in his younger days, he was not

popular at first: people thought he lacked theatrical display, but

he soon succeeded in manifesting his great ability. Not only did he

work out his own way, but he elevated the public taste. He also

much improved the social and moral tone of his profession by the

force of his character. In all these respects, I think there was

much resemblance between him and Sir Henry Irving. The old stage,

however, is hampered by much conventionality which is not entirely

suited to modern taste. This has brought forward the new school.

Oto Kawakami, the husband of Sada-Yakko, was the pioneer of that

school. Sada-Yakko, who is known very well to the Occidentals, and

is highly appreciated by them, is no more than a gifted amateur,

who joined her husband's company through his influence. In Japan it

is called the "student plays," because actors belonging to that

school are mostly students. In the early days of that school, plays

acted by its actors were little else than mere charades, of the

most comical nature, even when the meaning was grave. As time went

on, they have become more and more skilful, so that eventually

something has been produced worth seeing, more especially because

they are not hampered by any old conventionality or tradition. They

can produce on the stage any incident which they deem worth

showing, and they can introduce any innovation which the old school

would not dare to do. Besides, these actors being students

themselves, they have one advantage of having more educational

intelligence than the greater number of the actors belonging to the

old school. There is, therefore, much hope for the future in the

new school, and it is making rapid progress, so much so, that its

influence is being reflected on the old school.'

During the conversation, I was asked by the gentleman to witness the

young singer's performance, in which request the ladies joined. I had no

other course than to accept. Time in Dreamland flies fast, and I soon

found myself at one of the Operas together with the Scandinavian

gentleman; and there, to my surprise, I found the young singer was a

_prima donna_. The act was _Maritana_; she acted the male part of Don

Cæsar. The performance went on splendidly, and Act II. was reached. I

happened to know the following declamation by Don Cæsar, and when she

sang it I was thrilled, because each word sounded as though uttered by

our own heroes of times gone by:

'Ah! per pietà, signor, non raddoppiate

L'aspro mio duol! Almen mi fosse dato

Per grazia di morir come un soldato!

Come sul campo il milite

Pugnando suol morir,

Concedi a me da libero

Soldato i di finir!

Tosto l'acciar fulmineo

Decida omai di me!

Dirà ciascuno, il misero

Da prode morto egli è,

Dirà ciascuno, il misero

Da prode morto egli è

Da prode morto egli è.

Se di mia stirpe l'ultimo,

Rampollo in me sen'va,

Degli avi degno il povero

Don Cesare morrà.

Se freddo avel marmoreo

Non si concede a me,

Mi basta sol che dicano:

"Da prode morto egli è."'

'Ah! spare, oh spare my ancient name

From such foul disgrace--one boon,

It is the last I shall ask thee,

'Tis to die, e'en like a soldier.

Yes! let me like a soldier fall,

Upon some open plain,

This breast expanding for the ball

To blot out ev'ry stain.

Brave manly hearts confer my doom,

That gentler ones may tell,

Howe'er forgot, unknown my tomb,

I like a soldier fell,

Howe'er forgot, unknown my tomb,

I like a soldier fell,

I like a soldier fell.

I only ask of that proud race,

Which ends its blaze in me,

To die the last, and not disgrace

Its ancient chivalry.

Tho' o'er my clay no banner wave,

Nor trumpet requiem swell,

Enough, they murmur o'er my grave,

"He like a soldier fell."'

The curtain fell: my companion asked me if I would like to see the stage

room of the singer. I assented, we passed through the Green Room, and

entered her room, where she was sitting on a chair, her mother with her.

After an exchange of a few words, she plucked a few blossoms from a

branch of orchids in a vase on the table near her, and put them into my

button-hole, saying, 'Allow me,' and then, plucking some more, similarly

favoured my companion. At that moment the stage-bell rang, and as I

thought we were dashing out of the room and down the stairs, I awoke,

and saw my young secretary standing before me. He said: 'The dinner-bell

has rung; you have slept very long.'