894.00/423
The Ambassador in Japan (Grew) to the Secretary of State
[Received July 16.]
Sir: During recent years it has become apparent to foreign observers of conditions and tendencies in Japan that there has been a gradual decline in discipline in the country, this decline being especially noticeable among the younger Army and Navy officers and among the students in the higher schools and universities. In the Meiji era and extending into the reign of the Emperor Taisho,16 the standard of discipline in Japan was very high. The nation then was faced with a tremendous task—that of adapting Western civilization to Japan in order to preserve the national existence—and the spirit of sacrifice carried the nation willingly into submission to an unusually rigorous discipline. From absolute loyalty to the Emperor down through the various grades of obedience to authority, the nation maintained a level of unquestioning discipline which excited the admiration of the world. Since the Great War, however, there has been a gradual deterioration in obedience to authority, culminating recently in a series of incidents which drew the attention of students of Japan to the changed conditions.
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These incidents cannot be directly ascribed to a deterioration of discipline in the Army and Navy; the basic causes lay much deeper and are due to the general discontent among the military and naval forces with the civil authority and with the high Army and Navy commands, which they feel are too cautious and too subservient to the civil authority. The fact that the incidents could occur, however, and that the younger officers could so far forget their duties to the civil authorities and to their own high officials as to take direct action in accordance with their own views, shows plainly the extent to which discipline in the Army, and to a smaller extent in the Navy, has deteriorated. This evidence of the decline of discipline attracted much attention in the extraordinary session of the Diet held in the early part of June, 1932, and numerous interpellations were addressed to the Ministers of War and Navy on the subject. Because of the severe criticism of the discipline in the Army, Lieutenant-General Sadao Araki, the Minister of War, felt constrained to apologize for the actions of his subordinates—a practically unheard-of proceeding in Japan. Addressing the House of Peers, he stated that— [Page 698]
“Among other things, I thought the Army ought to act as the mainstay of the nation, and I pledged my word with my colleagues that we will concentrate our efforts to live up to the duty of the Imperial Army, however dissatisfied we may be with the various phases of social conditions both in this country and abroad.
“Despite all our efforts to this end, the deplorable incident occurred unexpectedly (the assassination of Premier Inukai by young Army officers), to the great consternation of the public. In this connection, we sincerely regret that eleven military cadets were found to be involved in this incident. Having been in the position to supervise these cadets, we feel ashamed of ourselves and tender our sincere apology for the incident.
“Needless to say, assassination is not permissible for any reason. It can even be said, the fact that men belonging to the Imperial Army perpetrated such an act undermines the prestige of the Imperial Army.”
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Perhaps the principal cause of the decline of discipline in modern Japan, however, is the corruption in high places, which has naturally tended to kill much of the innate Japanese respect for authority. Since the Great War the civil authority has for a large part of the time been in the hands of party politicians, who, to an even greater extent than is true in other countries, place their own welfare and that of their parties before the welfare of the nation. They are subservient to the dictates of the great financial interests, who manipulate legislation for their own benefit. A striking example of this was the supposedly deliberate smashing of the Minseito Cabinet in December last, in order that the Seiyukai party might come into power and replace the gold embargo, thus depressing the yen and making millions for their financial friends who had sold yen and bought dollars. Such exhibitions of corruption can only end in an entire loss of respect for the civil authority, and with loss of respect naturally goes a decline of discipline. High Army and Navy officials, moreover, sometimes join with the party politicians in their intrigues, thus becoming tarred with the same brush and causing a deterioration of respect and discipline in their services.
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Japan today is again faced with extremely serious problems—more serious than any which have arisen since those of the period of the Restoration. Both internally and in its foreign relations the nation is confronted with problems which may have far-reaching effects upon the future progress of the country. The nation again needs strong leaders, such as those who arose after the Restoration, who will impose upon the people higher standards of discipline and of service to the nation. No such leaders are in sight at present—certainly not [Page 699] among the young men who are leading the nation into bankruptcy and into international isolation. In the meantime the unrest and discontent with present conditions in Japan are steadily deepening.
Respectfully yours,
- 1912–1926.↩