No. 308.
Mr. Bingham to Mr. Evarts.
Legation of
the United States,
Tokei,
Japan, September 2, 1879. (Received
September 29.)
No. 956.]
Sir: General Grant being about to quit Japan for
the United States, it pleased His Majesty the Emperor to give a farewell
audience to the General and Mrs. Grant and their suite on Saturday, the 30th
ultimo, at the imperial palace. I, too, had the honor to be present.
Herewith I inclose copies of the report of the audience and of the addresses
made on the occasion by General Grant, His Majesty the Emperor, Her Majesty
the Empress, Mrs. Grant, and by myself, as published in the Japan Daily
Herald of the 1st instant.
A final reception will be given this evening in honor of General Grant at the
palace Enryoquan, in which the Emperor has entertained his distinguished
guest during his sojourn in this city. On to-morrow General Grant and family
sail for the United States per the American mail steamer Tokio. I inclose
herewith a statement of the arrangements made for the transfer of the
General from, the palace to the ship, as published in the Japan Herald of
the 1st instant. I do not hesitate to say that no such imperial and popular
reception as that given to General Grant by His Majesty and His Majesty’s
ministers and people was ever before given in this empire, to any foreign
visitor.
It is a pleasure to note that our naval officers in these waters, our
consuls, and our citizens resident in Japan have also shown due courtesy and
consideration to General Grant.
It is not to be doubted that the extraordinary attentions shown to our
illustrious citizen were shown alike in honor of the ex-President and of the
government and people of the United States of America.
You will observe that the Emperor in his address to General Grant expresses
the hope that “America and Japan, being near neighbors, * * * will become
more and more closely connected with each other as time goes on,” and that
His Majesty “cordially wishes” that his illustrious guest “may on his return
home” find our “nation in peace and prosperity.”
The Emperor and people of Japan look with a confiding trust to our government
and people.
I have, &c.,
[Page 686]
[Inclosure 1, in No. 956.—Extract from the
Japan Daily Herald of September 1, 1879.]
General Grant’s final interview with His Majesty the
Mikado.
Monday, September 1,
1879.
On Saturday afternoon, General Grant and party took their leave of the
Emperor. General Grant, Mrs. Grant, Colonel Grant, and Mr. Young left
the palace of Euryoquan at half past two, in state carriages, escorted
by a company of cavalry. The party was accompanied by Mr. Bingham,
United States minister; also, by Prince Date and Mr. Yoshida. The
cortege reached the palace shortly after three, and was received with,
military honors. General Grant, on descending, was met by the prime
minister and foreign minister and the minister of the household, and was
escorted to the audience chamber, where the Emperor, the Empress, and
the Imperial Princes were waiting. On entering, the Emperor advanced and
shook hands cordially with General and Mrs. Grant. General Grant then
said:
“Your Majesty: I come to take my leave and to
thank you, the officers of your government and the people of Japan, for
the great hospitality and kindness I have received at the hands of all
during my most pleasant visit to this country. I have now been two
months in Tokei and the surrounding neighborhood, and two previous weeks
in the more southerly part of the country. It affords me great
satisfaction to say that during all this stay and all my visiting I have
not witnessed one discourtesy towards myself, nor a single unpleasant
sight. Everywhere there seems to be the greatest contentment among the
people; and while no signs of great individual wealth exist, no absolute
poverty is visible. This is in striking and pleasing contrast with
almost every other country I have visited. I leave Japan greatly
impressed with the possibilities and probabilities of her future. She
has a fertile soil, one half of it not yet cultivated to man’s use,
great undeveloped mineral resources, numerous and fine harbors, an
extensive seacoast, abounding in fish of an almost endless variety, and,
above all, an industrious, ingenious, contented, and frugal population.
With all these, nothing is wanted to insure great progress, except wise
discretion by the government, peace at home and abroad, and
non-interference in the internal and domestic affairs of the country by
the outside nations.
“It is the sincere desire of your guest to see Japan realize all possible
strength and greatness, to see her as independent of foreign rule or
dictation as any western nation now is, and to see affairs so directed
by her as to command the respect of the civilized world. In saying this,
I believe I reflect the sentiments of the great majority of my
countrymen.
“I now take my leave, without expectation of ever again having the
opportunity of visiting Japan, but with the assurance that pleasant
recollections of my present visit will not vanish while my life lasts.
That Your Majesty may long reign over a prosperous and contented people
and enjoy every blessing is my sincere prayer.”
To this address His Majesty the Emperor responded. His Majesty’s reply,
which was translated by Mr. Ishibashi, was as follows:
“Your visit has given us so much satisfaction and pleasure that
we can only lament that the time for your departure has come. We
regret also that the heat of the season, and the presence of the
epidemic, have prevented several of your proposed visits to
different places. In the meantime, however, we have greatly
enjoyed the pleasure of frequent interviews with you, and the
cordial expressions which you have just addressed to us, in
taking your leave, have given us great additional satisfaction.
America and Japan, being near neighbors, separated by an ocean
only, will become more and more closely connected with each
other as time goes on. It is gratifying to feel assured that
your visit to our empire, which enabled us to form very pleasant
personal acquaintance with each other, will facilitate and
strengthen the friendly relations that have heretofore happily
existed between the two countries. And now we cordially wish you
a safe and pleasant voyage home, and that you will, on your
return home, find your nation in peace and prosperity, and that
you and your family may enjoy long life and happiness.”
The Emperor read his address in a clear tone. When he had finished the
Empress, addressing herself to Mrs. Grant, said she had rejoiced in Mrs.
Grant’s presence in Japan, but feared that the unusually warm weather
and the pestilence may have interfered with her pleasure. Mrs. Grant
answered that her visit had more than realized her anticipations; that
she had enjoyed every hour of the trip, and hoped she might have in her
own country an opportunity of acknowledging and reciprocating the
hospitality she had received in Japan.
His Majesty, addressing himself to Mr. Bingham, hoped the minister was
well. Mr. Bingham said:
“I thank Your Majesty for your kind inquiry. I desire, on behalf
of the President of the United States and of the government and
people I represent, to express our
[Page 687]
profound appreciation of the kindness and
the honor shown by Your Majesty and your people to our
illustrious citizen.”
His Majesty bowed his thanks, and shaking hands with General Grant and
Mrs. Grant, the ceremony came to an end.
[Inclosure 2 in No. 956.—Extract from Japan
Daily Herald of September 1.]
General Grant will receive on Tuesday evening, at 8.30, at the palace of
Euryoquan. There will be fireworks and a fête, and at the close a
special train will return to Yokohama.
On Wednesday morning he will leave Tokei in a special train, accompanied
by high officials of the Japanese Government and the American minister,
and go to the Admiralty pier, where he will be received by Admiral
Patterson, and embark on the City of Tokio, which will sail as soon as
the general goes on board. The American men-of-war in the harbor will
man yards and fire twenty-one guns, according to the regulations
prescribed in the American statutes for honoring an Ex-President of the
United States. The Japanese fort and ships will fire salutes. The
general will go to San Francisco, and spend some weeks on the Pacific
coast, possibly returning as far as the Sandwich Islands. We believe the
visit to Australia was at one time contemplated, but has been
abandoned.
