Papers Relating to the Foreign Relations of the United States, Transmitted to Congress, With the Annual Message of the President, December 3, 1877

No. 204.
Mr. Bingham to Mr. Evarts.

United States Legation,
Tokei, Japan, July 24, 1877. (Received August 18.)

No. 597.]

Sir: In the Japan Weekly Mail (Yokohama) of the 7th instant, there appeared a full translation of the memorial of the Risshisha (association) of Tosa, which, bearing the name of Kataoka Kiukichi, a representative of that society, was presented to His Imperial Japanese Majesty, on the 14th ultimo, at Kiôto, and it is reported was rejected and returned. The paper seems to me valuable for the facts of recent political history which it contains, and also an account of the reasons which it presents for a change of the existing government of Japan.

You will observe that the memorial attributes the internal strife of the empire to “the fact that His Majesty’s ministers exercise a power solely despotic, the administration being carried on entirely without reference to the opinion of the nation.”

There is much in the paper which cannot fail to interest you, especially the reforms demanded, and heretofore favored by His Majesty by imperial decree of April 14, 1875, transmitted by me to the Department. (See my No. 219, April 20, 1875.) It seems to me that the utterance made in this paper, that “in order to advance the public welfare public opinion must be allowed free expression,” is very significant, and sooner or later will command the attention of the Emperor and his people.

Among the grievances complained of you will notice the failure of the government to obtain a revision of existing treaties.

Without intending to express an opinion of the justice of the complaints, or of the wisdom or propriety of the reforms set forth in the memorial, I have the honor to submit it for the information of the Department.

I have, &c.,

JNO. A. BINGHAM.

[Inclosure.]

the memorial of the risshisha.

[From the Japan Weekly Mail, July 7, 1877.]

With greatest reverence we present to His Majesty the Mikado this, our most humble memorial.

Shortly after your accession to the throne, the daimios yielded up their territorial rights, their provinces being placed under a central government. The feudal system was thus entirely abolished and the whole country united under one emperor. Laws were re-enacted; the army, navy, and system of police were established; schools were instituted; the postal system regulated; railways and telegraphs inaugurated.

The rapidity with which this country has advanced in civilization is unparalleled in the history of the world; so powerful has the nation apparently become, that it may seem to many as though little remains to place it on a level with European and American powers. But in reality our position is far otherwise. Internal strife, and disaffection among the agricultural classes and the samurai, keep the country in a state of constant uneasiness, while we cannot claim to exercise an external influence equal to foreign powers. Neither the government nor the people are freed from anxiety for a single day. It is our opinion that all these evils arise from the fact that Your Majesty’s ministers exercise a power solely despotic, the administration being carried on entirely without reference to the opinion of the nation.

We will not recount the various events that have taken place in other countries in ancient times which bear out our opinion, but will merely refer to what has passed in your own land since Your Majesty favored us by taking the reins of government.

The cause of the downfall of the Bakufu is solely attributable to the tyranny of ministers and to their oppressing the people, instead of considering their wishes. Zealous patriots arose in all parts of the country to overthrow the Bakufu. In vain did it fulminate laws and mete out inhuman punishments in order to crush these patriotic spirits. They had yet to learn that tyranny and oppression cannot be relied on for safety as a support; that the united will of a nation cannot be overcome, but will achieve its aim in the end. Thus the power of the Bakufu naturally waned, and was at last utterly overthrown by the efforts of the patriots it had relentlessly persecuted.

When Your Majesty came to the throne, the han were still powerful, and the foundations of the government were not firmly laid. But Your Majesty took an oath before the gods that you would administer the government in accordance with the just will of the nation. In order to ascertain the popular feeling as to the best means to be pursued to put the affairs of the country in order, representatives of the various han were summoned to Tokiô, and after due deliberation it was decided that the daimios should return to the throne the domains which they had held for hundreds of years. This decision was duly carried into effect, and the former lords of the lands were appointed governors (chiji) of the provinces which, up to that time, they had been in the habit of governing independently.

Your Majesty’s Government, not regarding this step as sufficient to consolidate its power, divided the country into fu, han, and ken, thus centralizing the power of the administration in the capital by abolishing the chiji of the han, and replacing them by governors of ken. This is the first step we took toward civilization.

Why did these changes take place? Because the will of a people will have its own way, as surely as water runs down hill. It becomes irresistible. The people have never spoken harshly of the measures which converted han into ken, or which gave heimin equal rights with samurai, because they accord with the national sense of right. It is clear, then, that the oath of the Emperor should be strictly observed, and a representative assembly established in order that the people may have a voice in the affairs of the nation, and that they may aid the ministry in promoting the welfare of their country.

The time has passed for talking about the change of han into ken, and of the rights of heimin and samurai. The opportunity for establishing a limited form of government on solid foundations has arrived, and the exercise of the soundest judgment is required to secure that most precious fruit of civilization, a representative assembly; yet the several members of the administration do not appear to be endowed with sufficient perception to see their opportunity; on the contrary, they seem to have resolved to act despotically, and, with willful perversion, to do only what shall please themselves, regardless of the wishes of the nation.

Despotism and oppression were the sins of the administration of the Bakufu. Its overthrow can only be regarded as a just punishment for its disrespect toward the Emperor and its oppressive treatment of the people.

Alas! the present government is following the same course. Laws have been enforced, taxes imposed, the collection of the land-tax reformed, wars declared against foreign countries, portions of the empire exchanged, solely at the caprice of several officials, without allowing public opinion to have a voice in the matter. The sacred oath taken by the Emperor on his accession to the throne has been altogether set aside.

So great is the distance that separates the government from the people, that the latter look up to it as astronomers look up to the heavens, with the greatest uncertainty. The sky seems continually obscured by threatening clouds, whose constant and terrible lightnings and thunders strike terror, if not despair, to the minds of the beholders, who tremble lest they may never see the bright beams of the sun again.

The outbreaks that have recently taken place have arisen from various causes. Those who have misunderstood the intention of the poll-tax; those who have suffered by the reform of the land-tax; those who insisted on an invasion of Corea; those who favored a return to the feudal system; those who wished the dismissal of certain officials surrounding the imperial throne; all these have fomented disturbances. If any one who in the future may write the history of the first ten years of the Meiji shall say that wars ceased not for a day, and that the country was brought to the very verge of ruin, he will fairly well describe the actual condition of affairs.

The duty of a government is to preserve peace in a country; not to interfere with the happiness of the people and to hinder them from enjoying their first rights and privileges. With these the Omnipotent has endowed men as surely as he has given them bodies and souls, and if a government, relying on its power, endeavors to prevent their full exercise, there is no reason why a people should remain passive under such oppression.

If we look into the condition of various Asiatic nations, we see that although their territory is extensive and their land fertile, the government is tyrannical and the people slavish. The latter have no control over their rights, and are separated from their rulers by a great gulf. The wants of the people do not influence the actions of the government, and so, becoming slavish, they cease to take any interest in the well-being of their country. In such a case a government cannot become upright tnor a people advanced in civilization.

Since Your Majesty’s accession to the imperial power, though great reforms have taken place and wonderful improvements have been made, yet the nation is continually plunged into civil war and the outside world treats us with contempt. Such evils are brought about by the government not paying attention to the will of the people.

First among the prevailing evils, and the one which causes us the greatest anxiety, is the action of the cabinet in imposing its own oppressive measures without in any way respecting the will of Your Imperial Majesty.

On the 14th March, 1868 (1st year of Meiji), Your Majesty, in the presence of the daimios and Kuges, swore before the gods five oaths: First, that the government should be administered in a liberal manner, and that the will of the nation should be consulted as to the management of its affairs. Secondly, that both the higher and the lower (meaning the government and the people) were to be united in the administration. Thirdly, that Your Majesty would consider the rights of the samurai and the people. Fourthly, that old and useless customs should be abolished, and that the action of the government should be progressive. Fifthly, that the wisdom of the world should be adopted to promote the dignity of the Emperor.

Again, on the 14th of April, 1875 (8th year of Meiji), Your Majesty decreed as follows, with regard to the establishment separately of the legislative, executive, and judicial bodies and the institution of a liberal form of government:

“According to our oath, we do here establish the Genro-In as the fountain head of lawgiving. We create the Daishin-In to give strength to upright judicial procedure. We likewise summon the local officials in order to take opinion on matters affecting public welfare, and so by degrees to build up a well-founded political structure for the welfare o£ our country, and we are desirous that each and every one of you should partake in its benefits.”

When Your Majesty subscribed to these oaths the people were put into a great state of joy, and on the issue of the above edict could not sufficiently praise Your Majesty’s benevolence, looking confidently for the fulfillment of the several pledges. But it seems that Your Majesty’s ministers did not choose to act in accordance with the imperial will, as before a month had elapsed they ignored it utterly. It is true that a meeting of the governors of the provinces did once take place, but in the following year Your Majesty’s journey to the north was made the excuse for not again summoning them to the capital, which ought to have been done.

Moreover, when the first convocation did take place, sufficient time was not allowed to discuss all the questions put before the assembly. Can it be said therefore that public opinion was allowed any expression, or that the people were in any way benefited?

With regard to the Genro-ln, its powers were curtailed and its mode of administration changed at the whim of the cabinet, so that it became essentially the same as the Sa-In.^* The Daishin-In met with the same fate directly after its establishment, and was put under the control of the judicial department. Thus were the powers of institutions that were intended to act as legislative and judicial bodies rendered void by the arbitrary will of Your Majesty’s counselors. If the imperial will be treated thus, what hope is there that the people will be permitted a voice in the government, and be allowed to unite with the official class in the administration of national affairs.

Some time ago, the ex-Sangi Soyejima Taneomi urged the establishment of a representative assembly, and the people generally agreed with his views, the lowest classes even expressing a wish to see such an assembly established. But the ministry disapproved of the idea, saying that it was too early and that the people were too ignorant. They speak as though they are the only men in the country who know anything and that all the rest are fools. Yet if they show no desire to do anything for the promotion of the welfare of the people, they are no better than the ministry of the Bakufu whose place they have taken. If this state of things is allowed to continue, when shall we get on to the real road to progress, and when will old and evil customs be abolished?

Those who have held the actual power in the government since the restoration are composed solely of men from Satsuma, Chôshiu, Tosa, and Hizen, and to serve their own interests they all play into each other’s hands. Although the ministry limits its choice of members to the four provinces referred to, surely no one will say that these alone produce men of sense. Is this acting in accordance with the oath of Your Imperial Majesty? Is this uniting the best intellect of the nation in an endeavor to promote the dignity of the Emperor?

Your Majesty’s ministers have acted directly contrary to Your Majesty’s will, which is that the people shall have a voice in matters of national administration. They have enacted such laws as the press and libel-laws, in order, by the former, to stifle all expression of public opinion, and by the latter to ensnare the people in a most obnoxious manner. Those who dare to express an opinion on the government, or who, from their position, might naturally be supposed to concern themselves in the affairs of the nation, are continually under the suspicion of the government, and are not unfrequently arrested. Imprisonment has been made the vile means of silencing all expression of public opinion, and Your Majesty’s subjects are thus kept in a constant state of alarm.

The second evil is that the management of this government is conducted in a random and confused manner.

As we have previously stated, the administration is in the hands of a few despotic officials who act without reference to the opinion or welfare of the nation. This is proof of the bad form of the government which causes all this disorder. All the positions, from the Daijo Daijin to the heads of the various departments, are filled by men who formerly possessed influence in their various ken, and who received their appointments during the confusion of the civil war. They go about from one department to another, and pretend to be perfectly acquainted with the affairs of each, but in reality they know little, if anything, about them. Witness the length of time they take to execute the simplest duties. The lower class of officials, in imitation of their superiors, treat all public matters in a similar spirit, as though they alone were personally interested in them, and in this way is the government constantly chopping and changing. The officials have probably no special aims. They are men of about equal ability, but one says “go east,” the other insists on going west, and hence a state of constant confusion. The prime minister can with difficulty hold his own. The legislative body may be called In or Kioku, but its nature remains unchanged; it is absolutely powerless. As to the executive department, when governors memorialize the central government it is very partial in its decisions, approving on the part of one governor what it would reject if coming from another governor. As for the judicial department, although it is supposed to have been founded, its workings are far from satisfactory. For instance, the question of a mere collision between two vessels cannot be decided until after several departments have been consulted, and though it is cognizant of maladministration in certain ken, it takes no steps to have the evil corrected. Such facts as corrupt officials receiving the assistance of the chiefs of their departments in carrying out their evil practices are not unknown. The cabinet ministers have all their own way. When they wish anything carried out in the several departments under their control they bring it before the cabinet, which they themselves form, and give it their own approval. When a measure is enforced which may benefit one department, but is unsuitable to another, it is subject to constant alterations. Thus, notifications are always being altered and withdrawn directly after their issue, to the great misguiding of the people. Indeed, the fickleness of the government is so well known that, when a measure is passed, the people say, “Well, it may probably remain in force thirty days;” so that the constant issue of notifications causes unending confusion. No sooner have the people become used to the working of some new regulation than it is changed, and though the lower officials must understand how extremely prejudicial all this is to the welfare of the people, yet they are compelled to obey the orders of their superiors without daring to utter a word of protest. AH this causes the people to dislike the government.

Such important measures as the enactment of laws and the imposition of taxes are carried out by the government without due consideration, for the reason that there is no system in its administration. At the time of the restoration the officials were appointed for a term of four years only, but the regulation was merely a nominal one, never having been carried into effect.

In order to advance the public welfare, public opinion must be allowed expression, and such liberty will be the foundation of our prosperity. Be its ministers ever so wise, it is natural to a government to become despotic. With a country in such a condition as ours, how much more likely is such a state of things to come about.

The third evil is that the power of the country has been too largely concentrated in the central government. Officials who recognized perpetually the evils of feudal ism have gathered to the capital all the powers that were originally in the hands of the daimios. This power is far greater than it should he, and it seems as though the government was endeavoring to make itself as despotic as possible.

With the view of facilitating the administration of government, governors were appointed to the various ken with entire powers of jurisdiction over the people placed in their charge. But we find that the actual powers of these governors are limited to the collecting of taxes. No road, bridge, or public building can be constructed without first obtaining the approval of the central government. Thus we find the time of all local officials principally occupied in writing letters and attaching seals to documents for transmission to the central government. Their time being thus frittered away, what time have they to give to the consideration of petitions and memorials sent in to them by the people? Every fraction of the taxes has to be sent to the Okurasho, while the Naimusho must always be consulted before the most trivial matter can be carried out. Then the continual receipt of notifications from the government and the constant changing of edicts are sources of no slight amount of vexation. While, therefore, the expenditure of the local offices is strictly limited, they are called upon to perform an unlimited amount of work.

The establishing of schools and the promotion of agricultural industries are no doubt necessary and excellent, but when the ideas are carried out to an extravagant extent, at the expense of the people, the only effect is to create a great deal of ill-will.

The country has been divided up into ken, and various offices have been established in connection therewith, but they are so frequently changed, one office being divided into two or three, or several being amalgamated, that the greatest inconvenience is occasioned. The government is, in fact, always endeavoring to decrease the little power possessed by the local authorities and to concentrate it wholly in its own hands.

Last year the government issued a regulation specifying the term of service of the local officials, and placing in their hands a certain amount of responsibility in their discharge of the affairs of the ken. The authority granted them is, however, far from being sufficient, and, in order to check the power of the central government, far more freedom of action must be permitted to the local officials.

The government, in order to prove to the people that its administration is a just one toward them, should encourage the idea of popular government, and show at the same time that it can be influenced by opinion. But the action of the present government is the reverse of this, for, regardless of such considerations, it seeks only to accumulate the power in its own hands. The dwellers in the cities are rendered bankrupt and the people in the country are brought to utter poverty. These are the sad results of despotic rule.

The fourth evil is that the military system will never be placed on a proper open footing until the mode of recruiting the army is made to agree with the form of government.

General conscription and poll-taxes are not matters with which a despotic government should meddle. They can only be imposed by limited forms of government. Reforms can be more readily enforced by despotism, yet our government, despotic as it is, cannot carry out and support measures of reform. In the conducting of a limited form of administration, the people unite with the government in the management of the affairs of the country, and peace is, therefore, more likely to be preserved under such a rule than under despotism. The people under limited forms of government pay taxes in order to secure to themselves the happiness that arises from a sense of protection by the government. They hold themselves responsible for the defense of the country, and are willing to shed their blood in its cause. This proves that they understand the meaning of self-government.

But under a despotic rule the case is a very different one. The rulers possess absolute power, while the people are in a condition very grievous to be borne. Whatever little money they may possess is wrung from them by taxation. Worse than that, they may be called upon at any time to give their blood. Surely such treatment of its people by a government cannot be pleasing in the eyes of the gods who govern all. The people under this absolute rule have no responsible existence. The government does what it likes, and enlists troops on the plea of necessary defense of the Emperor. The system of general conscription can never work well unless it accords with the form of government.

Let us show how the military system at present in force was first brought about. After the restoration the military and civil duties of the samurai were abolished, and a proclamation was issued to the effect that the samurai and heimin should unite in forming an army for the defense of the nation. Regulations were published relative to the enlistment of young men throughout the country, regardless of class, for the formation of regular forces. Now, we do not hold that this system is bad, but we maintain that it is not suited to the present time, or, in other words, to the present form of government. Since the above regulations were enforced, large barracks have been built, officers dressed out in showy uniforms, the troops furnished with arms of the latest improved pattern, and everything done in splendid form. Yet we see, on the occasion of a rebellion breaking out in Kin-Siu, the imperial army finds itself very hard pressed in the engagements in Higo. Not only the whole of the regular army and reserves have to be sent down, but, finding they cannot suppress the insurrection, police forces are armed and dispatched to the seat of war, together with large numbers of samurai of various ken. Now, police were not intended to be used as soldiers in the field.

The condition of our country may be compared to that of a house ruled over by an obstinate and avaricious steward, who allows the family a sufficiency of neither food nor clothing, and who even goes so far as to seize their possessions, beating and ill-treating them if they dare to murmur, causing to all the greatest distress. With matters going on in this way, a fire breaks out in an adjoining house, which quickly spreads to the dwelling of the steward. The family say, “Well, we have been existing without a sufficiency of food or clothing, and have been despoiled of everything we once possessed. What is the good of our making any efforts to save our own property when it has been taken away from us?” And they run out of the house, saying, “We are lucky as long as we escape with our lives,” and they take no pains to extinguish the flames.

Such an excellent institution—that is, excellent in the eyes of the government—as a poll-tax cannot be introduced in such countries as Japan. The people now consider it a cruel imposition. Like the conscription, it is only suited to constitutional forms of government, and such is the government that Japan requires. For were a popular government to be introduced, the people would get rid of their miserably slavish customs and ideas, and, feeling that they were to some extent responsible for the administration of their country’s affairs, they would interest themselves therein and become happier. They would not then deem their blood too precious to be spent in their country’s cause, a feeling of patriotism that is sadly wanting at the present time.

We are of opinion that the first step toward the formation of a limited form of government was taken when the duties of the samurai were abolished. This was done principally in the interests of the people. Unless it was the intention of forming a limited government, the object of abolishing the duties of the samurai is not apparent.

Under present circumstances the general conscription is useless, and the enormous sums spent in maintaining these forces produce fruitless results. The necessity of sending to the seat of war policemen who are only enrolled to aid in keeping civil order in peaceful times does not arise from indolence of commanders nor want of discipline among the troops, but because the people have no idea of their responsibility in the affairs of the nation, and because nothing is done to acquaint them with their duty. The using of policemen as troops, serviceable as they may be to the government in the present emergency, will not, we fear, prove a good thing in the end. Moreover it is a mighty wrong that the people should have to supply the means for carrying on war and be compelled to sacrifice their lives on behalf of a government in which they have no part nor voice.

The fifth evil is the mismanagement of the finances of the nation.

This is an evil from which all nations have for a long time had to suffer. In any country which has not a limited form of government the public are, as far as possible, kept in ignorance of the state of the exchequer. Since Your Majesty came to the throne large sums have been expended in wars, public works, and the like. We are well aware, as we see by the dismissal of officials whose services are no longer required, that all unnecessary expenses have been done away with. Accounts of expenditures are also kept. This is all well and good, but the government departments have had branch offices in certain banking establishments to which portions of the public moneys have been intrusted. This has been done without first examining the financial conditions of such establishments. But there comes a day when, the suspicions of the government being aroused, it desires to withdraw its deposits. Then it is discovered that, although the bank may sell off everything it owns, the proceeds “will not suffice to pay back one-tenth of the government money intrusted to its charge. In consequence of this, the government issued certain laws (concerning the depositories of the national funds) which were acted upon by all the fu and hen, and which, by their action, brought ruin to many a banking-house. The consequences were felt in all quarters, and the free circulation of the currency affected.

The taxes of the fu and ken are collected and sent directly to the Okurasho. This causes great scarcity of money in the country and cripples its powers of production. The government shows great activity in promoting schemes for agricultural industries, in opening up Yezo, and in establishing manufactories, but the officials appointed to take charge of such matters utterly mismanage whatever is intrusted to their care, and interfere with the just rights of the farmers and merchants. Hundreds of thousands of yen are spent in assisting certain companies or in forming new ones, but such benevolent acts of the government are confined to certain persons or associations, and in no way exercise any benefit for the public good.

The chiefs of the various departments have full powers to increase or decrease the allowance for their annual expenditure, as they can also increase or decrease the duties of their respective officers. The amount of work, therefore, done by any department depends on the amount of its allowances, instead of the expenditure being in proportion to the work actually done. The taxes represent the fruits of the people’s labor, won with great sweat and toil. The government has taxed the people enormously, but we do not see that the revenue is economically used. We see, certainly, estimates of what is apportioned each year to the several departments, but we are not shown how it is expended. Reserve funds and surplus from the annual allowances are spoken of from time to time, but their existence is very doubtful indeed.

On coming into the capital from the country one is struck with the vast difference there is between the wealth of the former and the wretched poverty of the latter. It seems as though all money had collected in the capital and ceased to circulate in the country. The nation is greatly troubled on account of this, but it is only because the government keeps everything secret from the people. Although it shows them tables of expenditure, it never lets them see the real accounts as to how such expenditure is conducted.

With whom does Your Imperial Majesty consult with reference to the manner in which the expenses of war, cost of public works, the foreign and native loans, and such like, shall be met? If the people get no return in increased happiness for the taxes they pay, there must be some great mismanagement of the finances.

The sixth is the present system of collecting the land-taxes, which constitutes an oppression too great to be borne by the people.

It is the duty of a government to watch over the people, to govern the country with a sole view to their welfare; and to enable them to do this it is necessary that taxes should be levied. Should the government rightly perform its duties, the people will readily acknowledge their obligations. A proper administration can only be secured through the adoption of constitutional government, and when this takes place many existent evils will be done away. But under a despotic government the people are kept, as it were, slaves. It imposes taxes at will. It boasts of its benevolence, but in reality the people are stripped of their rights and properties, and no heed is paid to their complaints. Owing to feudal influences, the method of collecting taxes has differed in nearly every province, and the issue of the edict providing for a general reform of the land-taxes, by which all the land in the country was to be taxed equally, caused great joy among Your Majesty’s subjects. But the officials in their haste to carry this into effect caused a vast amount of inconvenience to the farmers, who were compelled to leave the cultivation of their lands, and set to work to survey the ground, prepare maps, do this thing and that thing, while the officials insisted on the taxes being paid before the value of the land was properly settled and apportioned. Thus the good intentions of Your Majesty in issuing this proclamation have been entirely frustrated by the conduct of Your Majesty’s officials.

The government introduces many reforms which are good in themselves, but are totally unsuited to its present despotic form, and which results in much evil instead of the good they are intended to produce. When they saw the imperial decree of the 4th January, 1877, the people’s suspicions were again aroused. People pay taxes in order to promote their own happiness, and if they feel secure of this they pay willingly; but how does the government propose to collect taxes before the value of the land has been settled? The imperial decree is a good one in intention, but not in practice, for the government can at its pleasure increase or decrease the taxation. The farming class, who are the most peaceable of men, could not see the necessity of all this haste in the change of method of collecting the land-tax, and, pressed beyond endurance, rose in arms against the government, deeming it better that the old mode should exist rather than that they should be put to such hardships as the speedy reform involved. Surely this was not the wish of Your Imperial Majesty.

The seventh evil is the method pursued by the government in equalizing the rights of the samurai and the common people.

The samurai of Japan form a class that has existed since the Middle Ages. They were controlled by feudal lords, and their spirit of patriotism, though confined to their own provinces, was noble. They possessed great virtues. They hated the idea of disgrace, they were faithful to their lords, and they interested themselves in the administration of the affairs of their respective han. The lord of a province and his chief advisers were restrained from acts of oppression by the watchfulness of the samurai of the han, who could compel their feudal lord to transfer his duties to another member of his house or enforce the resignation of an official. Since Your Majesty took the power of the administration into your hands, the feudal system has been abolished, and the samurai are no longer required. But the samurai still retained their rank and a certain portion of their rights, in consideration of their being superior to the common people in education and knowledge. Steps should therefore be taken to render the people, by education, the equal of the samurai, so that they may be able to take the same interest in the affairs of their country, and advance in happiness. This is the will of Your Imperial Majesty.

But not only are the people prevented from taking any part in the government, but the effort is made to bring the samurai down to the same slavish level as the lower classes. No matter how cruel or deceptive the edicts of their rulers may be, they are expected to make no remonstrance. A great mistake has been made in endeavoring to lower the samurai to the level of the common people. Encouragement should have been given to the latter to raise themselves to the level of the samurai. Instead of this, the government has acted in a directly contrary manner. Great consideration should be given to this question. The samurai have always taken part in the administration of affairs of their various han since the commencement of feudal times; their minds have thus been familiarized with political matters, and they are not content to be deprived of all their prerogatives. Although their services may be no longer required, their minds remain unchanged. It is owing to this that nearly all the insurrections that have taken place since the restoration have been caused by the samurai. To raise a rebellion is undoubtedly wrong, but that the samurai should be driven to do so is certainly due to some mismanagement on the part of the government.

A wise man once said that as long as a man has plenty to do he is not likely to commit evil, but idleness is certain to lead to crime. The real cause of the samurai of Saga, Kumamoto, Hagi, and Satsuma taking up arms against the government is that they had nothing to do but brood over their grievances. This country cannot be coerced into tranquillity by means of oppression until the race of samurai has died out of the land. The government may exult over its conquests, but the country is weakened every time that it achieves a victory over its own people.

This is the present condition of Japan. Public opinion is in no way consulted. Efforts are made to hold both the samurai and the heimin in absolute slavery. They are granted no political rights. They have no control over their own welfare. What does His Majesty suppose is the cause of all this misery?

The eighth evil is the mismanagement of foreign affairs.

As Japan has not a constitutional form of government, the people cannot enjoy peace and happiness. Neither does a country so governed obtain its just rights from nations with whom it may be in intercourse. For such errors the people hold a government responsible. There have been four mistakes committed with regard to foreign affairs— the Formosan expedition; the Corean affair; the cession of Sagahlien; and the revision of the treaties; with all of these the honor of our country is intimately concerned, as well as the happiness of the nation. Our people knew that Corea is a country with which Japan has had intercourse from the most ancient times. Suddenly the intercourse was broken off, and when we sent an envoy thither he was befooled and all his proposals rejected. Not only were the Coreans insulting, but they threatened hostile resistance. It was proposed to send a second envoy to remonstrate against the treatment of the former one, but the government suddenly changed its views, and nothing further was done. The people when they learned this became enraged, and their feelings found vent in the rebellion of the samurai of Saga. No sooner was this suppressed than sudden orders were issued for a hostile expedition against Formosa. The reason for the government’s undertaking this was perfectly incomprehensible to the people. What kind of race are the Formosans? They are under no king or emperor, but are ruled by some savage chief. They are cannibals, and such a set of savages are not worthy of being spoken of. Corea is different. It has an established government with which we have been on terms of friendly intercourse from times long past. How comes it that our government asked no explanation for a national insult from a country like Corea with an established government, and yet sent a hostile expedition against such a barbarous island as Formosa? The reason assigned was that the Formosans had been guilty of murdering some shipwrecked sailors from Loo-Choo. Now the nationality of the Loo-Chooans has not yet been settled, as it remains undecided whether they are subjects of Japan or China. The nationality of the Formosans was also not known, as it was uncertain whether the whole or only a part of the island of Formosa belonged to China. The expense of these expeditions was immense, but on that point we will say no more here.

We will take it for granted that Loo-Choo was supposed to be under the dominion of Japan, and that for this reason we sent the expedition to Formosa, giving rise to trouble between us and China. In order that the country might suffer no disgrace, the people took up the cause in a most zealous spirit; but the government sent an envoy to China; and on payment by the Chinese Government of the indemnity of five hundred thousand taels, all the troops were withdrawn from Formosa and sent back to Japan. Our forces, therefore, neither succeeded in acquiring Formosa, nor in proving that the sovereignty over the Loo-Choo Islands pertains to Japan and to Japan alone.

An indemnity of five hundred thousand taels, and nothing else, is not sufficient to make thirty millions of our countrymen believe that the government had accomplished any great object, or to make it clear to the eyes of the world that to obtain this was the object of the expedition.

The Kokua affair took place shortly after. Before it was certainly ascertained whether the act of firing upon the Japanese vessel of war was committed by order of the Corean Government, or only by some one opposed to the government, an envoy was dispatched, demanding an immediate explanation. Now, it is wholly inexplicable to us why the government did not demand an explanation when the Coreans openly insulted our envoy and treated Japan with contempt, when it is so ready to demand reparation for a shot fired against a vessel of war, not by order of the government, hut by the governor of some fort. In which was the honor of the country most concerned? Yet the government took no notice of the former case, while it was greatly exercised over the latter. An ambassador was sent, the main object of his mission being identical with that of the first envoy, the renewing of friendly and commercial intercourse. The people are perplexed to know why what was deemed wrong in the first instance should be thought right two years later.

But this is not all. It is natural to every one to resist any claims that may be made on his property, and no one who had been improperly deprived of one portion of his property would of his own free will receive for it another portion. We will proceed to expose the mismanagement of the government in the Sagahlien question.

For a long time past, Japan has neglected to give proper attention to the protection of the northern portion of her dominion. In the time of the Bakufu, even the children knew that Saghalien and the Kuriles belonged to Japan. But the Russians have come down below the fiftieth degree to hunt, and have commenced to devour our country.

After the restoration, when the Kaitakushi was established, enormous sums of money were spent in opening up the northern islands, promoting education, establishing agricultural industries and farming institutions, founding and laying out schools and towns. The nation looked forward to the portion of Saghalien which had been occupied by the Russians again becoming the property of Japan. Instead of this the whole island has been taken from us. What good, then, has the Kaitakushi done, and what benefit have we gained from all the money spent on a place which a treaty has taken from us?

Loo-Choo constitutes a Japanese han. Our troops are garrisoned there; the post-office and a branch of the Naimusho have been established there; but both the King and people of Loo-Choo are endeavoring to free themselves from the authority of Japan. China is endeavoring to do the same with Loo-Choo as Russia has done with Sagahlien. If China succeeds, our territory will gradually decrease, and with it our power.

Let us turn to the question of the revision of foreign treaties. When the appointed time had arrived, ambassadors, with a large number of subordinate officials, numbering in all about one hundred, were sent to the various treaty powers, and returned without having accomplished any object but the spending of a vast amount of money. This caused foreigners to regard us with contempt. The Japanese people, in their rage, say that all this arose from the action of an irresponsible government.

The above eight evils that we have mentioned all arise from the despotic rule of a government which, refusing to consult the public welfare in carrying out its administration, becomes confused. This is very clear and cannot be denied. Hence it arises that the government and the people are continually opposed, and there is no single day when universal peace prevails.

Since the commencement of the Kiu-Siu rebellion, the whole of the naval and military forces have been sent to the south, the treasury is exhausted, and the government is putting forth all its power to keep back the insurgents. Now, although the government should put down the rebellion, what will it benefit the people? Nothing at all. More than that; when it has suppressed this rebellion, it is likely to turn all its power against objects of its hate. Examples of this have not been wanting in ancient and modern times. Under such circumstances all men of intelligence, all those who stand up for the rights and liberties of the people, would be looked upon as its enemies, and measures be taken against them accordingly. Thus the government would become the same as the Tokugawa administration previous to its final dissolution.

When the Bakufu interfered with the rights of the people, the latter grew more and more determined, and though one might fail in his endeavor to oppose the government, others arose, and so after much blood had been shed the present administration was established.

If a betto in riding a horse pulls too hard upon the bit, in order to escape from the pain the animal will commence to kick and bite. Does not this apply to the treatment of mankind?

Suppose that the nation were to bring forward the five oaths of Your Imperial Majesty, and Your Majesty’s decree for the establishment of a constitutional form of government, and demand the government to give an explanation why it had not acted in accordance therewith, how could they answer, or what excuse would avail Your Majesty before the gods?

Suppose that at the present time a foreign power were to declare war against the country, what could Your Majesty do? It is such considerations that cause us the deepest anxiety.

By this our memorial Your Imperial Majesty will be able to judge which of the acts of Your Majesty and of Your Majesty’s ministers are right and which are wrong. The ministry acts as though it were not in the least degree responsible for any acts done in Your Majesty’s name. Should ruin fall upon our country in consequence of such acts, the members of the ministry can only be degraded, while all the blame will be imputed to Your Majesty, and the people will be called upon to undergo terrible hardships.

Nothing could more tend to the well-being of the country than for Your Majesty to put an end to all despotic and oppressive measures and to consult public opinion in the conduct of the government. To this end a representative assembly should be established, so that the government may become constitutional in form. The people would then become more interested and zealous in looking after the affairs of the country, public opinion will find expression, and despotism and confusion cease. The nation would advance in civilization; wealth would accumulate in the country; troubles from within and contempt from without would cease, and the happiness of Your Imperial Majesty and of Your Majesty’s subjects will be secured.

Your Imperial Majesty’s oaths at the time of your ascent to the throne and the imperial edict of the 14th April, 1874, prove that it is the wish of Your Majesty that the people should have a voice in the administration and that a constitutional form of government should be established. The people rejoice greatly at learning that such is Your Imperial Majesty’s wish.

We hope that Your Imperial Majesty will not be led astray by the words of others, but approve of this our memorial, in acting in accordance with which happiness may be secured to Japan.

KATAOKA KENKICHI,

Representative of the Risshisna. Kochi Ken (Tosa).

June, 1877.

1. This was an institution which was abolished when the Genro-ln was created.