Papers Relating to Foreign Affairs, Accompanying the Annual Message of the President to the Third Session of the Fortieth Congress
Mr. Van Valkenburgh to Mr. Seward.
Sir: I have the honor to transmit herewith inclosure No. 1, copy of the demand of the minister of France upon the Mikado’s government for the murder of eleven French sailors by retainers of Toda, the subject-matter of my dispatch No. 25 of the 11th ultimo, at which date the tenor of this demand had only been verbally communicated to me.
From inclosure No. 2, herewith, you will perceive that the ex-Prince of Toda lost no time in expressing his regret at the occurrence, and it is no doubt due to the influence of this ex-Prince that the Mikado’s government was enabled to act with vigor in obtaining the satisfaction demanded, which was promptly rendered.
I transmit inclosure No. 3, copy of the report of the execution of the criminals. The money indemnity, I have been informed, was paid, and the French demand in every particular complied with.
I have the honor to be, sir, very respectfully, your most obedient servant,
Hon. William H. Seward, Secretary of State, Washington, D. C.
Note addressed by the minister plenipotentiary of his Majesty the Emperor of the French, to the government of his Majesty the Mikado.
In satisfaction of the abominable assault committed against French sailors on the 8th March, at Sakai, by retainers of Tosa, the minister of France, in the name of the government of the Emperor, demands from the government of his Majesty the Mikado the adoption of the following measures:
1. Within three days from the receipt of this letter at Kioto, the two officers who commanded at Sakai on behalf of the Daimio of Tosa, and all those who participated in the assassination of the French sailors, shall he executed at Sakai in the presence of the Japanese authorities, and of a detachment of the naval division. The Karos of the Daimio of Tosa at Osaka shall witness the execution.
2. An indemnity of $150,000 shall be paid on behalf of the Daimio of Tosa to the French government, the interest of which fund to be applied towards the support of the families of the officer and the men who were murdered.
3. The Prince of the blood, prime minister for foreign affairs of the court of Kioto, shall come on board the Venus to offer to the representative of France and to the commander of the naval division the apologies of his government.
4. The Daimio Prince of Tosa shall in person appear on board the Venus to express his regrets and his apology for the abominable conduct of his men at Sakai.
5. Until further notice, the troops of this Daimio shall not be permitted to pass through or to be stationed in the ports opened to the foreigners.
The minister of France insists upon the full execution of these measures in the briefest possible space of time, when he will be pleased to renew with the Japanese government the relations of peace and good will so unfortunately interrupted.
Mr. Farkes to Count de la Tour, Mr. Van Valkenburgh, and Baron Brandt.
Sirs: I have the honor to forward for your information copy of a report I have received from Mr. Mitford, second secretary of this legation, of the manner in which the intelligence of the Sakai massacre was received at Kioto, and particularly of the marked anxiety shown by the retired Prince of Tosa to express sorrow for this barbarous act.
[Page 712]It appears to me that I should not hesitate to meet the wish of that Prince to make his feelings known to the foreign representatives, as his conduct in this respect strongly contrasts with that of the Prince of Bizen in the case of the outrage committed by his retainers, and it will occur to you that the foreign representatives attached an unfavorable importance to the silence of the latter Daimio.
I have the honor to be, sirs, your most obedient, humble servant,
His Excellency the Count de la Tour.
His Excellency General Van Valkenburgh.
His Excellency the Baron Brandt.
Mr. Mitford to Mr. Parkes.
Sir: Having been at Kioto, and a guest in the palace of the ex-Prince of Tosa at the time when the news of the Sakai murders, arrived, I have the honor to inform you that not only the Prince and his advisers, but the representatives of several other clans have expressed to me the utmost horror at the outrage; which feeling, they have assured me, is shared by high and low throughout the capital.
A very short dispatch, announcing in general terms that an affray had taken place between some Frenchmen and the guard of Sakai supplied by the Prince of Tosa, reached Kioto at noon on the 9th instant, and caused great anxiety in the palace of the ex-Prince and in the foreign department, with two of the principal members of which I happened to be when the dispatch was delivered.
The following day full details arrived. The unanimous expressions of good feeling on the part of the fellow-clansmen of the murderers, and the assurances on the part of their superiors that so far from screening them they would bring every guilty man to justice, were very satisfactory, as affording a proof that the crime was not encouraged or countenanced by the military class, who regarded it as the act of a set of lawless ruffians, who were a disgrace to the nation and must be suppressed.
The same evening (10th) a Kugé of high rank arrived at the Tosa Palace, having been sent by the Mikado to convey to the ex-Prince a severe personal reprimand, together with the expression of his Majesty’s displeasure with the whole clan.
On the following morning the ex-Prince, who was so ill as to be unable to leave his bed, sent to beg me to visit him. I did so, and remained with him nearly two hours. The Prince declared to me his detestation of the crime of which his followers had been guilty, and as I was about to return to Osaka that evening, he requested me to convey to the French minister and foreign representatives the following message, which I took down from the Prince’s own mouth:
“Although I am without precise information, I am aware that the affair of Sakai was most wrong and unjustifiable. It is an affair of which I certainly had not the slightest cognizance. My own wish has been to entertain friendly relations with foreigners. The act of violence which my retainers have committed has caused me to feel deeply ashamed. I am aware that foreign nations must feel grievously incensed. It hurts me to think that my people should have interfered with the Mikado in his projects for civilizing the country. I pray that Tosa alone, and not the whole country, may be rendered responsible for this act. I have been prevented by illness from going to Osaka to punish the offenders myself, but I have sent two of my Karos, with three officers of rank, to represent me, taking with them one hundred and sixty men, (Samurai,) with orders to deliver up to justice the guilty men. I beg you to communicate the expression of my sentiments to the French minister in particular, and to the foreign representatives in general. Although the punishment of the criminals is a matter for the government of the country to deal with, I am anxious that the thoughts of my heart should be made known to the French minister and to the other representatives.”
I promised the ex-Prince to deliver this message, and in fulfillment of my pledge I have the honor to request that you will be so good, should you see no objection to taking such a course, as to communicate it to your colleagues.
The ex-Prince further begged that I would let it be known as widely as possible that he and his advisers were profoundly horrified by what had occurred.
At a second interview, which I had with the ex-Prince a few hours later, he again spoke in the same sense.
I have, &c.,
Sir Harry S. Parkes, K. C. B.
[Untitled]
Sir: In pursuance of the authority conferred upon me by yourself and the minister of France on board of the Venus, on learning that, contrary to the agreement, the Japanese had notified the lieutenant in command of the forces landed that the execution would not take place on the wharf, but in a temple at some distance from the landing-place, and that it would only be witnessed by officers, I proceeded to Sakai to arrange this matter, in order that the reparation might be rendered during that day. It was half-past 3 o’clock p. m. when I landed. I found our men waiting—the people kept back and quiet—and also Mr. Godoi, whom I at once informed that I had come to witness the execution, and that I intended only to take a few men with me. Perceiving that only ten marines were preparing to accompany me, he requested me to take twenty men, and I then left with him, and accompanied by Lieutenant Blot, of the Venus, Interpreter Van du Noo, and Midshipman Lorimer, of the Dupleix.
I left instructions for the remaining forces to wait, under the orders of Ensign Humann; to embark at the first sign of excitement among the people, and for the armed boats, under the orders of Lieutenant de Tesson and Ensign Paris, to take position so as to cover with their howitzers the return of the men to the boats.
Mr. Godoi led the way, and took us to a large pagoda, at a distance of more than one mile from the landing-place, after passing through the town and through immense crowds of people, who were perfectly silent.
The preparations had all been made, and a place had been reserved for us on a sort of platform next to another one occupied by the Japanese authorities, whom Mr. Godoi joined after leaving an interpreter with us.
Soon the execution began; each man was beheaded on a place just opposite to us. Great excitement prevailed when the first two officers were executed; but this gradually calmed down, and then the most profound silence reigned in its stead. It was soon very evident, in my opinion, that the Japanese government was fully resolved to carry out their engagement to the end.
Meanwhile it was getting late; the weather was threatening, and I deemed it important to join the boats again, so that our men might be aboard before dark. To demand the postponement to the next day of the execution of the men that remained did not appear practicable. I determined, therefore, as soon as the eleventh head should have fallen, to inform Mr. Godoi that in view of the manner in which the engagement had been kept, I begged him to suspend the execution until I could have communicated with the minister of France, who I hoped would be pleased to consent that the men remaining should be placed at the disposal of the Japanese government, with the view of a commutation of sentence.
As soon as this determination was made known Mr. Godoi, all the assistants, and particularly the Japanese officer who presided at this mournful ceremony, appeared greatly moved. The latter, however, requested me, in case the slightest doubt existed in my mind in regard to the French minister’s decision, to allow justice to follow its course, as everything was ready and the men were prepared to die, and at all events to let him know as soon as possible. I then requested Mr. Godoi to accompany me on board the Venus to bring the answer back; and we then all left the pagoda, passed through the town without scarcely meeting any one, as we were not expected at that hour.
Everything had remained quiet at the wharf. The men got into their boats; the order was given to return to the ship. You are aware that it was pitch dark and the sea quite rough when I arrived on board your ship in the steam launch with Mr. Godoi.
The foregoing is a statement of this afternoon’s proceedings. I am aware I have assumed a grave responsibility by interrupting the course of reparation demanded by the minister of France; but I think I did my duty towards my country by assuring the return on board of all the men under my command, when the blood of the criminals had freely flown, and by showing to the Japanese that while we are strong enough to obtain what is due to us at any time of our own choosing, we are also prepared to meet their desire to maintain good relations with us by an exhibition of moderation on our part.
I have the honor, &c.,