The Birmingham age-herald., 1913-11-23

eventually come when we can dispense
with 1t. As for us we do not want war
with any nation and most certainly not
with our old friend, the United States
Prince Yamagata objected, as many of
the Japanese do, to being put in a spe-
cial class on account of his yellow skin.
mad asked him as to the yellow peril
and whether China and Japan were COM
bining to conquer the world. He renlied
that there was no such thing as the vel
low peril and there was no radical diff
ference in the minds of the east and the
west. I'VE have the same ambitions rs
to the betterment of mankind and of the
world, and there is no reason why YOU
should set us off by ourselves.'
One of the greatest losses that Japan
has ever sustained IN it's great rlen
was the assassination of Prince Ito in
Manchuria by fanatic Corean about
year after l had had this talk with
famagata. Ito was the LII Hung Chang
Oh Japan. He stood to the old mikado
as Prince Otto Won Bismarck did to
'he ola Kaiser Wilhelm, and he wss
one OF the great organizing and con-
structive statesmen of the empire He
was boy at the time that Japan was
opened to foreigners. and he told me
now he and Count Innouye ran away
TO England to study the secret of for
eisn military and naval supremacy. He
saio that they We're made to work their
passage as common sailorr. and told
me now when they were landed In
London and were wandering about tha
streets hungry and not knowing where
TO go his boy friend Innouye laid down
siiVer dollar on the counter of a
BAKERY ana picked up a loaf of bread,
expecting to get some change back.
The baker. who saw they were for
eigners, put the dollar into his till and
motioned them to go on. 1t was the
last dollar they had and they walked
about for some time before they found
the English business house to which
money had been forwarded for them
AT that place they had credit of
$4,000 and this enabled them to spena
the year or more In England after
which they went back to Japan and
NN NS etcot men Win WnOm they
were connected that there was no use
in the nation trying to fight the Brit
ish This was not welcome news and
some of the high blooded Japanese
Sosht of that day tried to assasinate
them as they left the council to go home.
The effect of their news confirmed the
opinion of the princes that they must
have modern civilization in Japan. and
that was part of the beginning of
the Japan of today.
1t was little later that the EN-
peror was transformed from a puppet
into live acting monarch, and then
Ito became a leading figure He was
soon made a member of the cabinet of
the mikado and became one of his chief
advisers. He continued so throughout
his life, and had a great deal to do
with making Japan what she is now
With other things, Ito introduced our
banking system into Japan. He came L,
the United States and studied modern
finance here in the treasury department
at Washington He told me he was very
grateful to our government for the facil-
ties it gave him. He said this was when
General Grant was President and George
S. Boutwell, Secretary of the Treasury.
In that talk Prince Ito said:
II shall always be a friend of the United
States. and I believe that the best ele-
ment of our people have the greatest
friendship for your nation"