Part 4

The gong struck for the end of a forty-five minutes’ period as we left these rooms and the girls rushed out to the playground with all the excitement of such times at home. The playground is much too small. It had a tennis court where the girls were striking wildly at a tethered ball, an amusement they seemed much to enjoy. There is a fine gymnasium with the omnipresent piano, and here the marching and physical exercises are practised. The kindergarten department playground has piles of sand for the little folks, and they begin their engineering and their landscape gardening in the bright sunshine there. In the halls we saw two ping-pong tables, and certainly the physical side of the young ladies’ training is not neglected. The auditorium is spacious, and here are held the overflow recitations occasionally. We saw a class in ethics file in, their faces alive with youth and happiness, a charming ethical picture! As we were passing one door a group of these eager beings emerged, and our guide informed us that the tall young lady was Admiral Togo’s daughter.

Four hours a week are given to foreign languages, and French or English may be selected. German is not taught to the girls. We were particularly entertained in the history class. The young ladies were as intent as their master, who told them in impassioned language of that impassioned epoch of the French revolution. “Danton and Robespierre,” how strange those names sounded so far away, mingled with the hurrying voice of the speaker! The revenge of the years on evil, how far-reaching! In the English class we heard some very creditable rendering of English verse by the girls, and the charm of Tennyson’s “Idylls of the King” lost nothing on those pretty lips. The Knight Sir Lancelot and the maid Elaine and all their chivalric woes and their exquisite love story was dainty enough in its new setting. We saw the cooking class at work and the little maids frying fish and preparing the lunch that was to be served at the long table in the airy dining-room which opens into the garden. For myself I was willing to try the cooking, however indigestible, after seeing the cooks. The teacher was an old Japanese gentleman who was as cool, apparently, with these too many “cooks spoiling the broth” as a young chef would not be, patience being the supreme qualification for a cook, as for a Cabinet Minister.

We found the kindergarten department, after all, the most alluring, for the rooms here were more attractive and the little pupils passingly dear. They sang so sweetly and played so charmingly in the wee garden and came running about us with all the abandonment of childhood and the laughter of fairies that we were captives to education at once.

If we could have one of those baby companions as a seat mate we would be willing to go over the whole course again, beset with the terrors of examinations and failure marks as it was.

The teachers of the Peeress’ School are specialists and have received the training of many lands. We had a cosy chat in the director’s study, and he amusingly informed us in very idiomatic English as a beginning “that as he had arrived only a day before us he did not know much more than we about the school.” This admission was certainly promising of great good to the school, as wisdom is not hasty in its judgments, nor rash in its methods.

Looking into that face which bears the beauty of refinement and culture to an eminent degree, as well as that soul light, without which all education is vain and all teachers worse than vain, we felt that in the hands of a man associated for more than twenty years with the education of the youth of Japan, Mr. Gentaro Matsumoto, the future of the Peeress’ School might be even brighter than its past.

KANEKO

The subject of this chapter is one of the forces,--which unobtrusively and unostentatiously is not only felt in Japan, but in the world. He is a world man. In order to pass into this category of world men, a great deal is required, and process is always of intense interest to humanity,--which from the lowest to the highest is aspiring to be felt.

Chosen to represent in the Great Exposition the country of which his proudest boast is to be a son, he combines those distinguished attainments, which a long past of services well rendered have given in turn, and is not only a fine example of Modern Japan at its present moment of leadership, but is also a man of the world,--moulded by the best scholarship of the last century, and while working to-day in the formation and perfecting of his own government, his thought has the catholicity of a statesman and embraces the interests of every land as well.

Born at an epoch when his country was just awakening to the modern struggle,--born out of the provincial life, which is always the best preparation for city life, because it is more serious, more profound, and more far-reaching in its thought than that of a metropolis, as it is more introspective; he came as a very young man to be the adopted foster son of our great republic, and with singular Oriental astuteness, read into its pages of history and life, its secrets of growth and progress, as well as its defects and limitations; he rose through all the grades of a city public school, that unrivaled training for life, entered our proudest university, the synonym of culture, of the humanities of that aristocracy of thought which separates and differentiates men, far more than lineage,--and came out of it to mingle in the affairs of men, a democrat, progressive, man of action, incorporating in his ideals and work the best influences of the past, but an ardent lover of the future, a believer in better days and things, a belief which he has kept to this hour.

Kentaro Kaneko was born in Fukuoka, Chikuzen, Western Japan,--noted for its chivalry, its warriors, and also for its learning. Its Daimyo was Marquis Kurada, one of the greatest nobles of the land, the grandfather of the present Vice-President of the House, and this man took a special interest in Viscount Kaneko, and it was through his influence that as a boy he was sent to Tokyo to study, and later to Boston, where he began his education in the Boston public schools. From these schools be entered Harvard Law School and graduated, returning to his own country after eight years, and was soon appointed by Prince Ito Secretary of the State Council, and was in the next year appointed private secretary to Prime Minister Ito, and launched on the arduous labors of making the draft of Japan’s future Constitution.

He was married to the present Viscountess, the daughter of a governor of one of the Japanese provinces, and they have two daughters and a son. Viscountess Kaneko is exceptional in her graceful hospitality, a lover of home, and although she does not speak foreign languages, is said to be a brilliant conversationalist in her own, and is a real helpmate to her husband in his intellectual and social life, devoted to children and to entertaining, she has won enthusiastic appreciation from her guests by her tact and kindness. She is interested in all the best modernism.

In a recent resume of his life, we gather these details:

“In 1890 he was elected as a member of the Institute of International Law and in 1892 attended its general meeting held in Switzerland. At the meetings, he advocated reforming the Treaties then in force between Japan and foreign powers and for abolishing extraterritoriality in Japan, and after much argument and pleading, he at last succeeded in getting the Institute to pass the resolution. In 1894 he was appointed the Vice Minister of Agriculture and Commerce; in 1898 became the Minister of Agriculture and Commerce in the Ito Ministry, and then resigned the portfolio together with Prime Minister Ito. In 1899 he went over to the United States, accepting an invitation from Harvard University, where the honorary title of Doctor of Laws was conferred on him. He was the first Japanese that received the title, and the reason for conferring this singular honor upon him was announced by President Eliot at the Commencement as follows:

“Kentaro Kaneko, Harvard Bachelor of Laws, formerly Chief Secretary of the Imperial House of Peers in Japan, and Vice-Minister and Minister of Agriculture and Commerce, Life member of this House of Peers, the type of those scholars of two Hemispheres through whom West would welcome East to share in the inheritance of Hebrew religion, Greek Art, Roman Law and Nineteenth Century Science.”

In 1900, he was created a Baron in recognition of his service. Before this time, he had organized with Prince Ito a political association named Seiyu-Kwai and was appointed a member of the managing committee. When the Ito Cabinet was formed in 1900 he was appointed to the portfolio of the Minister of Justice. The next year, when the Ito Ministry resigned, he retired to a quiet life for a while. In 1904 on the declaration of war with Russia, the Viscount was ordered to proceed to the United States on a special mission and remained there for one year and a half. During that time he devoted himself to promote the best interests of his country and scarcely had a day’s rest, so that he was looked upon as uncommissioned ambassador; and it is said when the negotiation for peace was commenced at Portsmouth, he labored hard to secure a successful result, and had several interviews with President Roosevelt. In 1906 he was appointed a Privy Councillor and for his service during the war, decorated with the First Order of Merit and the Grand Cordon of the Rising Sun. In 1907, when the Order for the Organization of the Bureau of the Grand Exhibition of Japan, to be opened in 1912, was promulgated, he received the Imperial Order to be the Director of the Exhibition with all the offices and rank already conferred upon that function. In September, 1907, he was a Viscount for his service rendered for the cause of his country.

In one of our interviews with this man, whose souvenirs cover such an interesting period, we asked him for reminiscences, which he kindly gave in the genial and unstudied manner characteristic of his conversation.

“My souvenirs of England? Every day I used to go and sit in the house and listen to the debates in which Gladstone and his illustrious colleagues took part, this was in 1890, and I learned the usages from Sir Reginald Palgrave, who was the clerk of the house, the brother of the famous Prof. Palgrave of Oxford. My friendship with Herbert Spencer was a connecting link from America, for I took a letter from Mr. John Fish to him, and sending him my card, we met the following day by his invitation. At once we talked on the constitutional government of Japan and I showed him the English translation of the Constitution and we discussed questions of morality and religion. He was particularly interested in Japanese history, and evidently my explanation cleared many points he could not get right before. His face glowed with excitement. He jumped up, having an engagement at half past four, and he took me in his carriage and drove me to my hotel on his way to the “Atheneum Club.” We talked all the way and he said ‘I shall propose you as an honorary member of the Atheneum Club,’ and I was informed a week later that I was elected a member. Frequently afterward we dined there together, and on my return to Japan we corresponded. Herbert Spencer had great interest in the Orient and in collecting from there his materials for his social studies. Another friend was Lord Coolidge, Chief Justice of England. He used to entertain a great deal in his London house and there I met the celebrities. Sir Francis and Lady Jeune entertained me during the London season, and I visited with them in their country place in Newberry, meeting all the society of the day, Lord Knutsford and others. Gladstone impressed me as one of the greatest men in intellectuality, learning and the force of conviction; at that time he was out of office.

“In 1892 I revisited London, and arrived the very day Lord Salisbury went out and Gladstone’s cabinet came in. Among its members Mr. James Brace was my particular friend. I met him often in London and in the United States in 1904, when he was invited to give lectures to the Alumni at Harvard.

“When in England I met many Oxford and Cambridge men. What impressed me as admirable in England was the English quiet, contented life. In Japan politically we are aristocratic, but in all the social relations we are democratic. The wife educates our servants to be really interested in their duties. We, the Japanese, are not very rich, we do not count the men by their money, but by their worth; any man is admitted to the best society who is worthy of it. Japan is the most deceptive country externally; you scarcely meet a single lady, or gentleman in the street, so you do not meet them on the cars or the parks. A Japanese lady sends for her goods to the house, a promiscuous crowd alone meets you so that you rarely come in contact with the well-bred people of the country. So it is also the undesirable people who go to America, oftentimes either in misfortune financially through the fault of others, he is preparing himself by an industrious life in a foreign country, and often he is trying to retrieve his life or that of his family. Hotel boys and servants come back and take useful places here, the better for their experience.

“Among the great men who moulded my ideals in America, I wanted to study the religious institutions and influence in the United States, so I went to all the churches while in Boston, Roman Catholic, Congregational, Swedenborgian, Episcopalian, Baptist, and Parker’s Memorial, and met all classes of preachers, theologians, and ethical teachers. I was in public school in Boston in 1872, when the public school was at its best. That gave me the strong force to come back into the battle of life, and from the mingling with negroes and emigrants, I learned life. I knew Longfellow and Holmes and spent two summers with him at Beverly Farm. Robert C. Winthrop was also my friend, and was also a great help to me. Through his kindness, Judge Holmes gave me more material to cultivate my mind perhaps than any other American. President Eliot was of course an inspiration and two of my pleasantest memories are visits to James G. Blaine at Bar Harbor and President Cleveland at “Gray Gables”.”

In closing, as the sun was setting over Tokio and filling the vast salle of the Exposition Administration offices with twilight, the delicate and earnest face of the speaker flashed now with humor, now with seriousness and pathos as he spoke of the present relation of Japan and America, serious it is, when loose tongues speak of that most awful thing,--war. “We try to weigh the past, present and future, and we are sure that soon the temporary strain will be relieved,” said the earnest voice,--“ever since the restoration in 1868 America has been our friend and we remember it; it has been a friendship cemented with our growth.”

EXPOSITION NOTES

A jinriksha ride through the picturesque streets of Tokyo about two to two and a half miles from Shimbashi Station brings you to the Aoyama Parade ground, which, with the Imperial Park forms the site of the Exposition of 1912. From corners of the grounds and a temporary station, trains will leave for and come from all parts of the Empire. This place, now perfectly bare, will show the result of Japanese genius and invention in a short time. On one side is the park of the Crown Prince’s palace, and at another corner is a military university, which will be removed. The ground here is high and the air very fresh and invigorating, as it is in an open part of the city, and it will remain a permanent park after the Exposition. The work on the ground begins early in 1908.

Tokyo alone is most interesting in its street sights; the children at their games, a baby asleep in the shop, a lovely vision, two old people weighed down with their burdens, pilgrims in quaint garb, the boys and girls returning from school with knapsacks full of books, arms over each others’ shoulders, bright-eyed girls out for amusement or to pay visits, the big milk carts and street vendors, the portable kitchens, around which some are taking an evening meal, the flower wagons, the horses with their bright accoutrements, the strange calls, the pathetic blind beggars, all mingle in the city’s drama! The road from the parade ground is lined with parks and villas, passing we see many gay singing children. We go through the deeper lanes and hedges to the park which we enter by an avenue of truly imperial trees, pine trees, and groves also of maples and shrubs, 120 acres, rented from the Imperial household, paths of delightful vistas, mystery and woods full of charm, a sylvan paradise, hilly, rolling, full of possibilities of gardening, near Tokyo Bay.

Dr. Fukuichi, the chief engineer of Japan, is the Chairman of the Committee for the buildings and is now engaged on the plans. The gardening and electricity, each best authority, has been appointed. Mr. Fuwa is the Director of the Imperial Horticultural department and is the chairman of the Committee on Gardening. The buildings will be unique,--five departments, education, science, electricity, manufactory.

The Governments of the world have been requested to build in the style of their own country. Viscount Kaneko emphasizes that every nation should incorporate its own architecture in the structures. “We hope,” thus he says, “that our ideas of architecture will be revolutionized.” There will be large hotels constructed in different cities of Japan and many new ones in Tokyo, as the houses already here are by no means adequate.

“The International Exposition,” said Viscount Kaneko, “as far as I have seen in Europe and America, have been too large in extent and scope, so that as a rule it is too great for any one to grasp as the exhibits are over-full, and might be described as ‘too much of a muchness.’ Neither the eyes nor the ears can take in the magnitude, so you are dumb and numb, and you come out overawed by the detail. The extent and magnitude have defeated often their object: too much paltry stuff, and show and display, not realizing the educational purpose, have become rather a sight-seeing scheme.

“This was said of Paris and of St. Louis, and I have heard from different sources, commissioners, executives, both European and American, express this feeling, and so at this juncture of world’s fairs, I think the organizers are thinking to lessen the extent and magnitude and thereby to make the exposition compact, systematic, and effective.

“I believe that in the future the world’s fairs will be lessened in size and in indiscriminate exhibits. That is my idea, which I hope to incorporate in the coming exposition. We mean to emphasize to the world that in the grandeur of the buildings we cannot compete with Europe and America, and also Japan cannot show anything of electricity, manufacturing or machinery, and we cannot give any lesson to the world either, in going ahead of other nations in the ensemble;--we hardly hope to show much of overwhelming value on any line to the world, as it is the first International Exhibition in the Orient. Consequently we expect to make the Asiatic exhibit the special point; we want to exhibit all the products of Asia and the Indian Archipelago, the Philippines, Sumatra, Borneo, Java, Australia, New Zealand, and Formosa, and so we will have the first Asiatic expression of commerce on so large a scale, showing unity of language, racial features, religion and customs, for we can collect from all those peoples and realize a unifying of the Oriental Nations, and enlighten the world as to the Oriental essence, thought, ideals,--past and future. This is our aim.

“Next, we expect to make Tokyo the centre from Tokyo then, expanding in the radii of Nikko and Sendai in the north, and in the south Nagoya, Nara, and Kyoto, and farther down south Shimonoseki and the Island of Kyushu, and thus the whole country will be thrown open to the people as an exhibition ground. All the temples will be open to the western visitors, and every corner and every mountain and all the scenery will form a part of the Exposition grounds, and thus we expect to show to the Western peoples the manners, customs and life of the Japanese, and show them also, not only in public, but at home. Thus also by interchange of ideas between the Japanese and Western nations, they will come to a better understanding of each other for mutual benefit, so many misunderstandings between the East and the West may be corrected and also it will bring about a “rapprochement” of sympathy and interest, and in this manner we will contribute something to the world’s commerce, diplomacy and civilization. These are the general lines along which we shall move and we expect to organize.

“We wish the exposition also to serve in statecraft. Formerly the Sovereigns and Ministers negotiated the diplomacy of a nation in secret conclaves, but within the last fifty years this has been changed. Now the people hold the power. If we can bring a better understanding between the Orient and Occident by the means of a friendly rivalry of an Exposition, the ends of civilization will be met and progress will be served.

“Japan is considered the leading artistic nation of the Orient, but the nations of the world have not seen Japanese art arranged in order. Now we expect to have an exposition of Japanese ancient art, arranged chronologically, and also according to schools, covering a period of 1,500 years, after the introduction of Indian religion and Chinese philosophy into Japan. This period will be divided into eight periods of Japanese artistic history, and each period will show the characteristic arts of painting, bronze and pottery, and lacquer, and so forth, and will show characteristic ideas and instincts of the Japanese people. Thus the whole history of Japanese art will be brought down to the modern age.

“These are only a few details of the forthcoming Exposition which will, we trust, bring the East and West into greater unity.”

BARON TAKAHASHI

In the two great branches of state craft, diplomacy and finance, it is interesting to see the interchange of qualities and the intellectual dominance of each is usually thought to be most marked, still there have been men of rare human qualities, who were financiers and diplomats as well.

Baron Takahashi unquestionably belongs to this class who weave, as do certain scientists, a romance of facts or more justly speaking comprehend the intense humanness of dollars and cents.

Five times he has crossed the ocean to visit America on commercial missions and brought back a fund of observation, as well as more material baggage. He has put his finger on the pulse of Wall street and discovered some of the causes of its fitful and erratic pulsations, and has even after bearing the tremendous financial burden of a country in its hour of extreme need come out with the vigor and the magnetic vitality of a man of the future, not of the past.

We thought of Necker at once and the cheerful Latin optimism seemed in the speaker and in his person.

“Japan has not yet recovered as we know from the late war, and she requires foreign capital, we must look to the world’s markets for it. Unfortunately for us we must wait for our loans until the affairs of other countries are on a better basis or rather in a less fluctuating condition than they are to-day. I believe that if men of capital will continue to invest in my country, it will be to their advantage and I am also desirous for the mutual good of both, that these investments be as safe as possible and in this I have been and will be an intermediary.