Papers Relating to the Foreign Relations of the United States, Transmitted to Congress, With the Annual Message of the President, December 3, 1877
No. 187.
Mr. Bingham to Mr. Fish.
Tokei Japan, January 16, 1877. (Received February 19.)
Sir: There has recently been made by His Majesty the Emperor of Japan, an order for the reduction of the internal taxes and public expenditure. Inclosed herewith are translations as published in the Japan Weekly Mail, Yokohama, of the 13th instant, in duplicate, of the notifications issued by his excellency Sanjô, prime minister, in obedience to the Emperor’s order, and also copies of the imperial decrees. (Inclosure 1.) The aggregate reduction of taxes thus ordered is estimated at $8,000,000 per annum. To reduce the expenditures correspondingly, some sixteen thousand government employés have been dismissed, and the salaries of the officials retained have been greatly reduced. This action of His Majesty is hailed by the people as evidence of his regard for their welfare, and has called forth, in the Japanese journals, much approving comment. I inclose herewith a translation from the Nichi-Nichi Shimbun of one of the articles on the subject. (Inclosure 2.)
I have, &c.,
Notification No. 1.
It is hereby made known that in accordance with the decree of His Imperial Majesty the Mikado, the land-tax throughout the country from and after this date is reduced to 2½ percent, on the value of the land.
Prime Minister.
imperial decree.
Almost immediately after the restoration, duties of a novel nature, and many needful improvements, were undertaken by the government, both at home and abroad, which, necessarily, greatly increased the national expenditure. The burden of this fell upon the people, and was hard to be borne, for which reason we ordered that the mode of taxation should be remodeled and settled at 3 per cent, on the value of the land, thinking thus to afford relief to our people. But having recently visited various parts of our dominion, we have carefully observed the agricultural population, and sympathizing with their condition, have determined to still further reduce the land-tax to 2½ per cent, on the value of the land. We therefore order all officials to act in accordance with our will, and to be as economical as possible in the public expenditure.
Notification No. 2.
His Imperial Majesty the Mikado having decreed that the land-tax should be reduced, and that as much economy as possible should be observed in the expenditure, it is hereby declared that the tax for local purposes to be levied upon the people, as made known by notification No. 272, issued in July, 1873, must not exceed one-fifth of the amount of the land-tax.
Prime Minister.
Some one has well said that in order to regulate expenses superfluous officers should be discharged, and to do this, needless business should be stopped; and that without stopping needless business the required regulation or adjustment of outlay cannot be made. This saying is applicable to a case in hand. His Majesty the Emperor, solicitous for the welfare of his subjects, has, as the first governmental act of the year, by his proclamation, reduced the direct taxes one-sixth, and has directed all the officials to carry out his wishes by reducing needless expenses everywhere. The officials have all obediently accepted the mandate, and are now about to address themselves to the work of retrenchment; and we of the people regard the royal favor with profound feelings of gratitude, and look around to see where the work of retrenchment will begin.
We have heard it said that by this act of the Emperor the amount paid into the finance department yearly will be reduced 8,000,000 yen ($8,000,000). When this reduction is made the amount paid out yearly by the finance department must be reduced correspondingly to make the outlay and income equal. But how to make the required reduction in outlay is a most difficult question, which the officers of that department must set themselves to solve. Doubtlessly the government long ago contemplated making this reduction in expenses, and for years past has been conducting its affairs as economically as possible.
It is not for us to understand the purposes of the government thus early in making this reduction, yet a variety of opinions are expressed by those who discuss the matter publicly as to the manner in which it should be made. Some say the number of officials should be reduced; others, that their salary should be reduced; others that the business of the departments and sections should be united; others that the fixed appropriation of each department should be reduced, by which means, it is said, the reduction of 8,000,000 yen could be made without difficulty. True, we know the reduction could, indeed, be made in the manner indicated, but we do not know whether or not the object of making the reduction would be thereby attained. The reduction of expenses without regard to whether the business of the government is carried on or not, is not economy, but niggardliness, and to stop the business of the government through niggardliness is certainly not the object of the reduction.
In regulating the expenses of the government the ordinary economist easily falls into the mistake of the old Taicoon’s government by undertaking first of all to reduce expenses by dismissing men from service. Then, whenever an order was issued to economize, the officers dismissed were seen to knit their brows and ask one another in distress, “Why does our lord so love to economize?” “Why does he bring us to such a condition that parents and children, husbands and wives, must be separated?” Do those who advocate this kind of reduction now propose to follow this bad precedent? If the officials are too numerous now, as they were in the time of the Taicoon, this is the fault of those who at first created superfluous offices and filled them, and not the fault of those who now fill those offices.
If for the purpose of reducing the number any one proposes from this time to give the work to one man which has hitherto been performed by two men, this will be [Page 340] either to make one man do two men’s work hereafter, or to admit that hitherto two, men did only one man’s work; and whose fault is this?
But even admitting that the number of officials could be reduced by dismission without difficulty, to do this without a fixed rule to regulate their multiplication hereafter would be like driving away flies from food, which would return again quickly in equal numbers. The number of officials when thus diminished, would be restored to what it was at first, before the expiration of a year, or else some compensating change would be made in their rank and pay. Is not this what we have already actually seen? Hence, though it seems reasonable that a reduction should be made by reducing the number of officials and appropriating their pay, when this is done without regard to the business that must be carried on, the object of the reduction will not be attained.
To unite the bureaus is regarded by some as the best thing to do. But only a slight saving in expenses and in the number of officers employed would be effected by uniting them. If an excessive reduction were made, time and experience would show that much necessary business must remain untransacted. The same reasoning holds good with respect to the reduction of the fixed allowance of the departments. If the reduction is made without regard to the business to be done, doubtless a reduction of not a tenth only but of a half or two-thirds even could be made; but it is not to be expected that as much business can be done this year with 1,000,000 yen as was done last year with 2,000,000. It is necessary to make a distinction as to the importance of the business to be transacted; and whoever undertakes, without doing this, to make the reduction by uniting the bureaus or by diminishing the allowance of the departments, will not attain the object for which the reduction is made.
The proper way in making the required reduction would be to distinguish between the business which is necessary and that which is not urgent, and not confound the two. The allowance of the army is fixed at 7,250,000 yen, because this amount is actually needed to meet the expenses of the military operations. When a reduction of 1,250,000 yen is made in this, so that the whole allowance is 6,000,000 yen a year, how will the necessary business be carried on? But the state of things is different when the right distinction is made between necessary business and that which is not urgent. Let the amount of the allowance be considered afterward. First of all, inquire what military service is necessary and what not necessary. The service of infantry and artillery is absolutely indispensable.
Works requiring five years for completion might be prolonged for ten years, and thus a half of the yearly expenses be saved. The erection of fortifications for the protection of the coast requiring ten years for their completion might be stopped entirely, and the coast be protected by men-of-war. This would give three kinds of service: first, necessary service, admitting of no reduction being made; second, business which might be prolonged; third, that which, not being urgent, might be stopped for the present. When this distinction is rightly made, the allowances will diminish of themselves. Bureaus and offices will be united naturally, and the number of officials will be reduced naturally in consequence; and, in fine, the real object of the reduction will be attained; and we hope soon to see the government attain this end without interrupting any business necessary to be carried on.
The department of religion and the Reishicho, or prefecture of police, have been abolished, and their business will be transacted in the Naimusho (department of interior).
| Departments. | Original amount. | Reduced amount. |
| Yen. | Yen. | |
| Sei-In | 494,000 | 300,000 |
| Genro-In | 207,000 | 150,000 |
| Gaimusho | 185,600 | 180,000 |
| Diplomatic service, &c | 548,300 | 500,000 |
| Naimusho | 3,699,812 | 2,520,000 |
| Okurasho | 1,798,600 | 1,300,000 |
| Army | 7,250,000 | 6,000,000 |
| Navy | 3,549,700 | 3,300,000 |
| Education | 1,704,800 | 1,200,000 |
| Public works | 4,900,000 | 3,000,000 |
| Imperial house | 316,000 | 280,000 |
| Land-tax bureau | 470,000 | 150,000 |
| Police | 1,195,000 | 1,000,000 |
| Kaitakushi | 1,905,616 | 1,525,660 |
The total reduction is 7,060,312 yen. The salary of officers has been diminished accordingly. Those of the first and second class retain their present salary, and pay one-fifth [Page 341] as income-tax. Those of the third class, whose salary is 280 yen a month, pay one-tenth. Those of the fourth, fifth, sixth, and seventh classes, whose monthly salary is 200, 150, 100, and 80 yen, respectively, pay one-twentieth income-tax. The officials of all the departments, from the fourth to the seventh rank, have been made first and second secretaries, and the hanninkan have all been made tohukan, of which order the highest receives 60 yen a month, the second 50, and the other inferior orders in proportion. Besides the above, it is said that ten orders of subordinate officials, without rank, have been retained.