The Hawaiian gazette. [volume] (Honolulu [Oahu, Hawaii]) 1865-1918, 1899-06-09
A REMARKABLE INCIDENT.

uuis Ito ana Count lnOuye many times.
On a visit to the old city of kyoto.
Marquis Ito told them one evening the
story OF his, and Count lnouye's, mis-
fortunes in reaching England nearly
twenty years before, and before the
civil war which destroyed the old con-
dition of things in Japan. Both of
them belonged to the former Satsuma
clan, and the head OF 1t determined to
find out the sources of the British
power by visiting London. He select
ed these two men. and they were fur-
nished with letters of credit on Eng
fish bankers. They went to Nagasah
and took passage from that port. In
the April number of the Windsor Mag
azine, Mr.. Frazer, who has recently
recently heard the story from Marquis
Ito. repeats it. The Marquis said:
well, our chief decided that lnou
We and myself should go to England
TO learn navigation, so that on our re-
turn our knowledge would be useful
In ousting the foreigners from Japan.
We two young fellows accordingly
went to Nagasaki for the purpose OF
getting passage to England. The
only word of English we knew was
navigation We went into the Office
of the company. and when the man in
charge asked what we wanted, all we
could say was navigation" Every
thing seemed all right, and away on
board the vessel we went. But what
was our surprise on finding that in
stead Of being passengers we had been
shipped as common sailors. All
through the voyage we had TO scrub
the decks and work just the same as
the others. The English sailors found
out we had money, and 1t was soon
Eamblcd away from us. Not all, for
we kept two dollars carefully slowed
away in an old stocking for emergen-
cies. Well, at last we got to London.
but nobody was there to meet us. The
ship was tied up. everybody cleared
on, and we were left alone. We got
very hungry, but as we knew no Eng
lish we did not know what to do If
we went on shore. However, hunger
made us decide that one of us must
20 and buy something somehow, so
we tossed up who it should be. The
lot fell on lnouye.'
"Yes," said Count Inouye; Il was
never more frightened in my life than
On that wet night when | set foot In
London and started of with one OF
the dollars in my hand to buy food.
had to be very careful SO as to know
my way back. found a bakers shop,
no In | went and pointed to a loaf OF
bread. or course ! could not speak,
but I held out the dollar to show my
Willingness to pay, and do you know,
that Englishman kept the dollar and
gave me no change. Anyway | got
hack to Ito all right, and we ate that
bread like wolves. Next day some of
our friends came to look for MS and
away we went. We were in London
about a year"
"And did you learn much navigation
In that time?" | asked.
NO" said Count Inonye, mot very
much: but We kept our eyes open. and
we came to the conclusion that 1t was
all nonsense for Japan to keep foreign
ers at arms length"
The Marquis. as well rs Count In
ouye. stated, after relating the incl
dent to the King and his suite that
their visit TO London had a strong in
fiuence on the course OF events in
Japan. Had they remained at home,
they would not have comprehended
the enormous commercial and militia
ny power of Great Britain. As they
looked at the great fleets of commerce
arriving at and departing from Lon
don, and they gradually realized the
stupendous financial power Of the Brit
ish people, they could come TO but one
conclusion, namely, that Japan must
cast aside the old traditions, and take
ON new form OF national life. 1t was
not the mobiles of Japan, but the men
of the clans who reconstructed Japan.
Marquis Ito and Count Inouye were
representative men of the clans. Count
Inouye Is one of the ablest statesmen
in Japan, while Marquis Ito is the wis
est politician
The singular and comprehensive
ability shown by the japanese Govern
ment In reconstructing the political in
stitutlons Of Japan is due in a large
measure to the practical knowledge
obtained by these men, who were COM
PEELED by a mistake TO work their way
TO London In the forecastle Of a ship.