Custer chronicle. [volume] (Custer City, Black Hills, D.T. [S.D.]) 1880-1890, 1886-03-27
THE JAPAN OF d
A Nation That Has Become Civil
tied Through the Influence Of the
TTnit1d ltofaa-

"A NaLlO0 I06C E6B 60COm0 OWL
tied Through the Influence Of the
United States.
The following translation of an ar
ticle in The Jill Shmpo, q leading
newspaper Of Japan, appears in a re.
cent issue of the Boston Herald: at
was hundreds of years ago that Japan
and western nations first became aware
of each others existence. OF all west
ern nations, the one which held the
most friendly intercourse with US in
the old time was Holland. Indeed,
u part Of Nagasaki was for a long
time the seat of commerce between
Dutch and japanese merchants. While
our intercourse with the Dutch was
thus going On, the knowledge of u
countrymen regarding the conditions
of European countries made a con-
siderable advance, and not a few
scholars among our higher class were
enabled to obtain, through Dutch
books, tolerably accurate information
in regard to things taking place in the
outer world. That such a thing was
possible in the country which was firm
ly addicted to tho Oriental policy of
seclusion was q benefit which we owe
entirely to the Dutch people.
Thirty years ago Commodore
Perry, Of the United States, came into
the bay of Yeddo at the head OF an
American feet and forced the govern
ment of Japan to enter into the treaty
OF peace and comm cree with the gov
eminent Of the United States. Since
this event u foreign intercourse has
assumed a new feature. All the civil
lied nations of the world came, one
after another. to Jul country. and fol-
lowed the example of the United
States. In addition to Nagasaki, four
new ports were opened to foreign COM
merce. And as foreign intercourse
was growing more and more active,
we became dissatisfied with simply re-
ceiving foreign visitors at home, so
many OF our countrymen left Japan,
Travelled through Europe and America,
observed the condition of the civilized
people, and at once became envious of
them. We all said to ourselves:
They are men as well as we; if they
could be a civilized people, why could
WI notP' Then we started to revolu-
tionize the whole affairs of our coun-
try, and began a determined effort to
originate a new civilized nation in the
east.
"The form and principle of our gov
eminent. II military organization,
educational system, art, commerce, in
dustry. agriculture, have been chang
cd and improved. The result of all
u efforts during these years of re-
formation is the creation of the pres
emit empire of Japan. There are many
countries that maintain their indie
pendence in the eastern world. But is
there any among them whose success
in adopting the western civilization
can at all compare with oursp IL is an
unmistakable tact that the civilization
of Japan ranks far above that Of any
other country in Asia. Nay, except
ing a few of the most civilized coun-
tries in Europe and America. there is
not a nation in the wide world to which
we have to yield one step in the mat
ter Of progress and development. Even
those nations in South America which
consist OF descendants and emigrants
of the Europeans are, we believe,
hardly in the same state OF civilization
AS we are. These facts evidently add
q great deal TO the credit of our coun-
try. Being not entirely free from
vanity, common to all mankind, we,
the Japanese, can not but feel satisfied
TO soc the whole world being astonish-
ed by the progress we have accom-
plished. And when we further reflect
chat all this pleasant experience of
ours Is the result of the first opening
Of our country by the United States,
our respect and affection toward the
Americans become especially strong.
''Our admiration of the United
States is very great. not only because
she was the leader of all other powers
in introducing the new civilization
into Our country, but also because her
behavior toward as during the last
thirty years has always been upright
and honest, and she has proved with
her words and actions that she is not
mean enough, as is the case Of all other
western powers, to turn the dis
advantage of others to her own benefit.
Although she once joined England and
France in ~extorting from US a certain
sum of money as an indemnify yet
afterward. when she found out that
she had been wrong, she at once re-
turned to US her share of that plumber,
and thus showed to the world that she
is not backward in correcting mistakes.
In addition to these two causes for
which we particularly admire and love
the United States, there IS yet another
one. That is, of all the western coun-
tries the United States is nearest to
Japan. We can cross the Pacific now
adays in u fortnight. Horcc, we think
of the Americans as our n~eighbors. In
the presence of such favorable circun-
stances, it is 40 wonder that the inter-
course 6eiweon the United States and
Japan is growing more and more in
innate as the time advances.