Japanese Leaders of To-day.

Waimate Daily Advertiser, Volume III, Issue 139, 10 December 1901, Page 1

Japanese Leaders of To-day.

Amongst the men who have made New Japan the most famous are Marquis Ito, now visiting the Czar, and Count Inouye. These two are life-long friends, the Damon and Pythias of Japanese history. la their buy hood they were anti* foreigners, and Inouye helped to burn down the British Legation, hot while still youths they decided that the only way to master the foreigner was to understand him* So, though the law forbade Japanese to leave their country, they got themselves smuggled on to a Scotch vessel, and finally reached London. On their return they reappeared in a now light as pro-British, and ift consequence Inouye was almost cut to pieces, and afterwards starved for three days, while Ito was hidden from assassins by a dancing girl, who afterwards became his wife. At the pro-tent day Ito embodies the spirit of Japan. It was he who persuaded the Emperor to introduce foreign dress at Court on the ground that native dress would cause them to be treated as Asiatics* Inouye has founded the “ Constitu* tional Political Association,” whoso object is to get together a number of men who will support the Imperial policy and the constitution* Another public man, only less remarkable than these two, is Count Okuma, the head of the progressive party. In his youth he, managed to get from some missionaries a history of England, and another of the United States, and from the time he had read them he deter* mined to put an end to the feudal system in Japan, and to unite all the provinces under the sole authority of the Emperor. Like Ito and Inouye he suffered persecution. Ho was twice im* prisoned, had three attempts made on his life, and lost one leg through the explosion of a bomb thrown into his carriage. Okuma has founded schools for special studies, helped to found a women’* national university, and established the Osama mint. Baron Iwasald is a man of another type, the repre* sentative of Japanese industry and finance, the combined Roth* child, Vanderbilt, and Rockefeller of his country. It was under his auspices that the Nippon Yusen Kaisha —one of whose agencies flourishes in Christchurch—sent out its steamships all over the world. At Takashama, Iwasiki has established a model industrial settlement on hia coalfields, whera 5000 girls and women are employed* A free lunch is supplied to them from a large soup-house near the mines, and after work is over they are required to take a hot bath, and put on fresh clothes before going home to the little Japanese cottages built for them on a plateau away from the smoke and grime. The settlement is drained and managed on European sanitary methods, Iwasaki is manager of tbs Mitsu Bishi Company which has lately bought the Government docks. He is also a large shareholder in railways and mines* president of the Bank of Japan, a peer, and a member of the Upper House, and altogether the busiest man in'hia country.