Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1907-12-05

photo Copyright by Peter A. juicy. New York }
to restrictive legislation as, to emigration
to the United States. Bot this state
ment is discounted on account of the
Hochis well-known connection with the
emigration companies.
Baron Takahira is at present Japanese
ambassador to Italy, and was formerly
Japanese minister to Washington. to
which post he was appointed in 1909, at
which time Aok was minister of foreign
connected with the foreign office since
1876, when he was a Translator. From
1879 till 1884 he was secretary of lega-
ton at Washington. In 1891 he was con-
sui general at New York.
Kogoro Takahra who is to succeed
Viscount Aoki as Japanese ambassador
to the United States, was formerly min
lister at Washington. He was appointed
to that post in August, 1900. and served
until December. 1908. During his charge
at the capital his time was occupied with
the most important Japanese matters of
diplomacy.
At the time of his arrival the Boxer
troubles were just beginning to engage
the attention of the powers. Then came
the Japa nese- Russian difficulty and the
war. Takahira played an important part
in the arduous work of bringing about
the peace negotiations at Portsmouth.
He himself served as one of the japanese
plenipotentiaries at the conference. and
did much to bring the peace negotiations
to a successful issue.
The career of Ambassador Takahira is
the account of a lifetime devoted to di-
plomacy. He has served his emperor in
many capitals. He was educated in To-
kio. At tWenty-one he entered the diplo-
matte service as student attache. After
an apprenticeship of three years he be-
came attache and in 1881 secretary of le-
cation at Washington, where he was
finally promoted to charge d'affaires. In
1883 he served at home as secretary of
the foreign office. Sent to Korea in 1885,
he labored at that important japanese
diplomatic post for four years. His next
appointment abroad brought him 70 this
country as consul general of New York in
1892.
Shortly he was dispatched to Europe as
minister to Holland and Denmark 1888
94), to Italy 1S94-95) and to Austria and
Switzerland GS96-ml.
1t was following this European service
that he was selected in 1900 to return to
this country, when the Boxer disturb
ances in China made it imperative for
Japan to be represented here by a man
thoroughly familiar with this country.
During his service as minister at Wash
ington the sentiment between the two
countries was marked by an increasing
mutual sympathy, of which Minister
Takahira was the foremost exponent; but
after the news of the Russo-Japanese
peace terms was published in Japan in
1903 there arose among the Japanese a
wave of anti-American sentiment, with
the belief that this country had urged
upon Japan nravorable terms
1t was rumored at the time of Taxa
hira's departure, in December, 1905, that
this -eactionary sentiment had brought
about his recall. He himself in bidding
farewell to his American friends Decem-
ber &, 1905 assigned to his departure an
other reason. II am going home" he
said. ION leave of absence obtained two
and a half yeas ago, of which I was not
able to avail myself, until now, for OBJ
viouS reasons.
1t was thought. and the departing min
ister admitted, that it was unlikely, de-
spite his success and popularity here
that he would eve return.
Kogoro Takahira personally is re-
markable man, aside from his diplomatic
record He IS of the short. but sturdy
Japanese type. with the burly physique
that is associated with japanese soldiers
His tastes and recreations, oddly enough
are all literary. A student not only of
Japanese and Chinese. he has mastered
the literature of most of the countries in
which he has soiourned. He married
KiyO Nshiyama of Toxic in 1887 His
wife was one of the earliest women grad
yates of the European schools in Japan
ese. She was one of the first Japanese
women, likewise to become known in
society abroad as Europeanized jap
anese.