The administrative affairs of the empire are discharged by a
minister-president of state, and a number of the ministers of state. The
ministers of state as they stand at present are: (1) The Interior. (2)
The Foreign. (3) Finance. (4) War. (5) Navy. (6) Justice. (7)
Communications. (8) Education. (9) Commerce and Agriculture. The chiefs
of these ministries, viz., the ministers of state, form the cabinet
under the presidency of the minister-president. The system and actual
working of the cabinet is similar to those of the advanced Western
nations. A cabinet meeting is held usually once a week, and important
affairs of state are discussed therein. The cabinet as a body is
responsible to the emperor for those affairs, though each minister has
great latitude of action in matters which fall exclusively within the
sphere of his ministry. There are many matters which do not require
personal discussion. These are circulated among the ministers in the
form of documents for their signature. Matters discussed or considered
in document by the ministers, and which require Imperial sanction are
submitted to the emperor by documents, or personally explained to his
majesty by the minister-president or other ministers as the case may be;
but when very important matters are discussed in the cabinet, it is
always in the actual presence of the emperor. There is a minister for
the Imperial household, but neither he nor his ministry have anything to
do with state affairs, _i.e._ politics; consequently, the minister of
the Imperial household is not a member of the cabinet.
There is a Privy Council, which consists of a president, vice-president,
and about two dozen councillors, and these form the supreme consultative
council of the emperor. It discusses and considers important state
affairs when it is commanded by the emperor to present its views on any
given matter.
The Ministry of Justice has control of the administrative sections of
judicial affairs, but law courts have their distinctive organisation,
and the judges are quite independent of administrative interference.
They are appointed for life and can be dismissed only for grave causes
indicated by law.
Besides the War Ministry, there is a General Staff Office, and in
addition to the Naval Ministry there is the Naval General Staff Office.
The demarcation of the spheres of their competency is that
administrative affairs relating to the army and navy are controlled by
the ministries, and those relating to technical and strategic matters,
or such like, are controlled by the staff office. Both staff offices
have a chief and a vice-chief. They are naturally not members of the
cabinet. In time of war a special Imperial headquarters under the direct
control of the emperor is constituted.
All officials in Government service have before their appointments to
undergo a requisite examination, except when the appointment is for the
position of the Ministership of State.