The farmer and mechanic. [volume] (Raleigh, N.C.) 18??-19??, 1913-11-25

the army when l was last in Japan. /
have met all OF these men from time
to time during my travel. and have
had h-eart-to-heart talks with many
binary ability, and many who would
have made their mark in any nation
or in any government.
It was in 1903 that l had a long in
tervieW with Prince Katsura, who was
then the premier of the japanese en-
pire. He was also secretary Of the
treasury, and was doing all hat he
could to bring Japan out of it's tinan-
Lcial troubles. Prince katsura had
command of a division in the Chinese
Japanese war, and he was war air
lister during the troubles with Russia.
He told me that he did not like to be
considered a military hero. Said he:
Il am for peace, peace, always
peace It is wrong to look upon the
Japanese as consumed with a lust for
and when we fought with Russia it
was only because we could not on
orably refuse to do So"
Prince KatSura denied that there
| was any ill-feeling in Japan toward
| the United States. He sai that Japan
looked upon America as its great and
| good friend. and that it was the hope
of the government that h relations
| of the two countries would always be
friendly. He said that any war be-
tween Japan and the United States
would involve the whole world, and
what the world needed was peace
rather than war.
At hat time Prince Katsura wrote
me out a message for the United
States, and l printed a facsimile IF it
in n of my letters. l nave the origi-
nal before me. 1t consists of some
Japanese characters beautifully writ
a wide strip of white silk. It is signed
with the seal of the marquis. Trans
lated it is:
For Japan and the United States
mutual friendship and mutual har-
mony."
It was sentiments like that that
caused Katsura to lose his job. The
mob went against him, and they ter
rorlzed the emperor to such an ex.
tent that he asked Katsura to re
sign. katsura did SO and tried tt
organize a new party, a party Of peace
rather than war. TIE found, how
ever, that his war spirit and this so
cialistic element were stronger thar
he and it was for this reason that h,
withdrew from public life. He re
manned in %seclusion until his death
~" WINS "SO.
1t was at this same time hat ! me
Prince Lamagata, the great genera
and statesman. He was to japan
: what Grant was to the United States
He was the organizer Of the Japanes,
: army, and it was his military abilit,
that did much to make it one of tn
greatest fighting Of modern
! times. Yamagata deprecated the mill
tary spirit which was growing in ia
! pan. Said he:
W do not want to be considered
i a Warlike nation and we hope to con
: tinue our national life along the line
of peace. not war. Our military estab
lishmpnt has been created for defense
t and not for conquest, and we hop
a that the time will eventually com
when we can dispense with it. A
for US, we do not want war with an,
e nation, and most certainly not wit
t our old friend, the United States"
n Prince Yamagata objected, as man,
t Of the Japanese do, to being put in
S special class on o of his yello1
v skin. l had asked him as to the vel
s low peril, and whether China and ia
h pan were not combining to conque
It the world. He replied that there wa
no such thing as the yellow peril, an
# there was no radical difference in tn
Is minds Of the East and the West. "W
ir nave the same ambitions as to the bet
It terment of mankind and Of the wolt
d and there is no reason why yo,
i should set us off by ourselves.
One Of the greatest losses that ia
q pan has ever sustained in it's gres
men was the assassination OF Primo
.I Ito in Manchuria by a fanatic Korea
about a year after 1 had had this tai
- with Yamagata- Ito was the Lii Hun
Chang of Japan. He stood to the O
80 mikadO as Prince Otto Won Bismarc
L did to the old Kaiser Wilhelm. and
rs was n Of h great organizing ar
~ constructive statesmen Of the empir
"a He was a boy at the time that Japa
i was opened to foreigners, and he to-
me he and Count Innouye ran ava
e. to England to study the secret of 70
u eign military and naval supremac
d He said that they were mad to wor
IN their assag as common sailors, ar
told me how when they were lande
in London and were wandering abor