The Morris County chronicle. [volume] (Morristown, N.J.) 1877-1915, 1907-05-21
.KUROKI FETED IN NEW YORK
Good Feeling Between Japan and
America Keynote of Speeches.
Admiral Dewey and Others Pay Trib-
ute to the Warrior and His Ma
tons Great Rise in Civilization.

New York City.-General Baron
Tamemoto Kuroki, of Japan, who has
been undergoing severe initiation
into American customs for the last
few weeks got the final degree-an
American banquet. The joint com
mittee of Japanese residents and
Americans gave this honor to the WIS.,
iting soldier at the Hotel Aston
Being unconversant with our Ian
guage, the General missed what is
usually the characteristic feature of
the great American banquet, the ora
tory, but he sat unruffied and smooth
proved under the speakers dias in
the banquet hall and toyed with his
cigar while the flow of words was at
its full. Nobody could have read Ku-
roki's face to be indicative of else
but the most absorbed interest. The
General possesses to the full limit
that admirable Japanese characters
tic of assumed absorption.
There were almost 500 people sit
ting about the tables in the grand
ballroom at o'clock. The guest list
included the names of all the prom
inent Japanese Of New York and the
surrounding cities, diplomats and
members of legation stats from
Washington, American men and wom-
en- prominent in the business and So
cial life of New York Admiral
George Dewey was ex-officio toast
master of the evening because of his
headship on the American committee
of reception, but the Admiral was
modest beyond precedent and he
spoke only briefly, allowing John H.
Finley, president of the College of the
City of New York, to do the yeoman
work
Hailed as the Greece of the modern
world and her statesmen likened to
Lincoln, GLADSTONE and Bismarck,
Japan was enthusiastically cheered
as Americas great sister nation.
Not the least opportunity was lost
to acclaim every achievement of the
Japanese Nearly every speaker gave
Japan full credit for having achieved
a civilization of her own.
Returning thanks for the compli-
ments heaped upon them, the distin-
guished guests paid pretty tribute to
American women, whom Viscount
Aoki described as "the handsomest
in the world"
The health of the President of the
United State and the Emperor of
Japan was drunk standing, while the
Japanese anthem was sung 1t came
to an end with tremendous Ban
zai, started by the Japanese them
selves-a wild, ecstatic cry compare
Bile to nothing in the world-and
taken up by an the Americans pres
ent and carried along until it died
out in long, fervent American cheer
that caused the glassware on the
tables to rattle.
The cheer was begun anew when
Dewey, introduced by DR.. Finlay,
mounted the platform. He blushed
in acknowledged of the innova-
ton and saluted with dignity the en-
thusiastic Japanese who leaped to
their feet, particularly the men from
the ships, and hurled a series of
"Banzais" at the hero of Manila His
speech was brief but graceful
II wish" said Dewey, ito tender
hearty greeting and welcome to the
distinguished guest from that coun-
try with which our relations have al
ways been so sympathetic and cor
dial, and which have remained I'M
changed since that day when Japan
chose us as her earliest friend"
Among the speakers besides the
Admiral were: Oscar S. Straus, Sec
rotary of the Department of Com
merce and Labor; Viscount S. Aoki.
Ambassador from Japan to the United
States; Major-General Frederick D.
Grant, General Baron T. Kuroki,
Rear-Admiral Joseph B. Coghlan,
Vice-Admiral G. Ijuin, the Rev. DR..
Charles E. Jefferson, Jacob G. Schur-
man, president of Cornell University,
and the Rev. DR.. S. Parkes Cadman