The New York herald., 1922-01-15

feudal system ana centralIzo III au1not-
ity In Tokio7
1--WE expected to shed blood TO do II"
heard Iwakura, the Prime Minister.
say; but It was a peaceful revolution.
The genius Of Yamagata provided first
a national army-something unknown
for many centuries---to be welded out
OF 800 feudal contingents.
I was In FukuI. at the other end of
the main island. when in July. 1871. tho
news came. brought. from Toxic by run
ner. that military career was open
to all. even to the sons Of the dcspised
merchant class, lowest of all In the
social scale. A month later I was In
vited by the damio and his court to
witness the parade of the first hastily
enrolled regiment of husky young peas
ants and street men. Eight hundred
ragamuftins. militarily equipped by the
imperial Government, marched by In
homemade or American slop shop clothes.
Half Of them had probably never seen
foreign clothes except on my back. Some
had on woman's clothing with black eve
ming dress coats. Other uniforms were
equally incongruous.
1t was the ubiquitous incessantly IN
dustrious. lightning Drained Yamagata
who transformed mob into one of the
most superb fighting machines on the
planet. The crop from the sowing Of
this modern Cadmus was as sudden in
its growth as II from dragons teeth.
Six weeks moro and ON October 1,
1871, was a guest In the castle hall
when the feudal lord Matsudaira bade
farewell to his three thousand knightly
retaincrs. In an eloquent, noble speech
he bade them transfer their hereditary
loyalty Of millennium to the Emperor.
He left Fukui to be private citizen
and then to go forth and step down un-
armed to the social level Of the trader.
Japan was unified. as no nation on
earth was. Bushido became the ideal, the
praxis Of the common soldier. 1t was like
comforting titles Of nobility on millions.
Against the swordsmen Of Satsuma,
led by Saigo. in 1877. Yamagata's peas
ant army won after a seven months
campaign and 10000 casualties. In the
approved ancient style Saigo. the leader,
and his devoted last three hundred COM
mitted hara-kiri.
after Saigo. no feared rival" was
the thought OF Japan's executive COM
mittee, Iwakura, Olsubo. Okuma. Ito and
Yamagata. They put Off the Inevitable
wars with China--which Saigo wanted
in 1S74--and Russia. until sure Of win
ming, and then they won. With a pub
lie school army led by Yamagata. with
every man able to read and write, there
was slight risk. Brains and valor were
combined. The victories OF Japan In
1895 and 1905 did not surprise those
who knew and predicted success.
why take up further space to tell
about these young men. who began their
career as boys In 1850 and pre- Perry
days? I have named only a few. The
world knows their deeds. Yoshida,
Yokoi. Okubo. Ito. Iwakura, Okuma, TIA
gaki were assassinated or attacked !:
Matsugata. Lord Of Finance. survives.
From the arrival homo from the Occi-
dent in 1851 Of Nakamura and Fuku-
zawa two political parties formed. one
for the evolution OF government after
English and American principles, the
other based on more materialistic and
Prussian ideas When the constitution
Of 1889 was formed in conclave under Ito.
OF Germanized mind, such disappointed
men as Olsuma, vcrbeci's star pupil Of
the '60s. must have felt like committing
hara-kiri. The military aristocrats,
headed by Yamagata, re5oiced. After
thirty-hve years Of agitation the tide
seems now to be turning.
For more than fifty years. then, these
men-reckoned together as tho f1fty-five
creators. and nearly all Of whom ] saw
often In formative days and with many
OF whom tall1ed-educated. Influenced
and directed the Milsado as boy and
man. They did not call him Emperor
in those days. In spite OF Constitution.
Dict. external forms OF democracy, with
consummate ability and untiring zeal,
they were the builders and rulers OF
Japan.
For about twenty years past. even in
moro or less nominal retirement, their
word has been law and their voice po-
tent. as tho Gcnro--men grown old in
the service OF the State.
But now. as General Sherman used
to say, New measures. new men,
There Will be many mourners-secretly
rejoicing-as the Genro pass into his
tory. They served well and bravely
their generation. but better day Is
dawning. eo