Its 57 essays continue to celebrate the life and work of the men and women who played roles in a variety of spheres in t
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BRITAIN & JAPAN:
BIOGRAPHICAL PORTRAITS VOLUME IX
In Celebration
On the occasion of the publication of the ninth volume of Britain & Japan: Biographical Portraits the Japan Society and Publishers welcome this opportunity to celebrate the life and work of Sir Hugh Cortazzi, GCMG, in the year of his ninetieth birthday (2014) – this also being the fifth volume of the Britain & Japan series he has compiled and edited. Previously Britain’s Ambassador to Japan (1980-1984) and Chairman of the Japan Society (1985-1995), Sir Hugh has published extensively on Japan, including Isles of Gold: Antique Maps of Japan (1983), The Japanese Achievement (1990), his memoir Japan and Back and Places Elsewhere ( 1998) and The Thames and I: Two Years at Oxford (translation of Crown Prince Naruhito’s memoir, 2006). He has also recently published The Growing Power of Japan, 1967-1972: Analysis and Assessments from John Pilcher and the British Embassy, Tokyo, and is currently compiling Volume X of the Britain and Japan series.
BRITAIN & JAPAN:
Biographical Portraits VOLUME IX
Compiled and Edited by HUGH CORTAZZI
JAPAN SOCIETY PAPERBACK EDITION Not for resale BRITAIN & JAPAN: BIOGRAPHICAL PORTRAITS,VOL. IX Compiled and Edited by Hugh Cortazzi First published 2015 by RENAISSANCE BOOKS PO Box 219 Folkestone Kent CT20 2WP Renaissance Books is an imprint of Global Books Ltd ISBN 978-1-898823-11-7 ISBN 978-1-898823-27-8 [eBook] © The Japan Society 2015 All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reprinted, reproduced, translated, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise, or in any information storage or retrieval system, without prior written permission in writing from the Publishers.
SPECIAL THANKS The Publishers and the Chairman and Council of the Japan Society wish to express their sincere thanks to the following for their support in the making of this book: The Great-Britain Sasakawa Foundation; Sir Hugh Cortazzi, GCMG; The Japan Foundation
British Library Cataloguing in Publication Data A catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library
Set in Bembo 11 on 11.5 pt by Dataworks. Printed and bound in England by CPI Antony Rowe Ltd.
Contents Introduction by Hugh Cortazzi List of Contributors Index of Biographical Portraits in Japan Society Volumes
xi xix xxii
PART I: JAPAN IN BRITAIN THINGS JAPANESE
1. 2.
3.
4.
5. 6.
The Great Japan Exhibition, 1981–1982 NICOLAS MACLEAN Haiku in the British Isles: A Tale of Acceptance and Non-acceptance DAVID COBB Japanese Gardens and the Japanese Garden Society in the UK GRAHAM HARDMAN Three Ages of British Kendo: The Introduction of a Unique Sporting and Cultural Activity PAUL BUDDEN The Nippon Club, 1881–2014 SETSUO KATO Japan and Ye Sette of Odd Volumes and London’s Thirteen Club in the 1890s HUGH CORTAZZI
1
15
28
39 54
66
PART II: BRITAIN IN JAPAN TRADE
7. 8.
British Week in Tokyo, 1969 BEN THORNE EXPO ’70 at Osaka: A British View JOHN PILCHER
v
77 89
CONTENTS
9.
The British Export Marketing Centre and the Promotion of British Exports from 1972 PAUL DIMOND 10. Scotch Whisky in Japan STUART JACK
95 110
BRITISH ACTIVITIES
11. Mountaineering in Japan: British Pioneers and the Pre-war Japanese Alpine Club HAMISH ION 12. Cricket in Late Edo and Meiji Japan MIKE GALBRAITH 13. Introduction of Football from Britain into Nineteenth-century Japan: Rugby Football and Soccer MIKE GALBRAITH 14. Freemasonry in Japan PAULINE CHAKMAKJIAN
123 135
148 161
MISSIONARIES
15. Christ Church, Yokohama, and its First Incumbent: Michael Buckworth Bailey, 1862–1872 HAMISH ION 16. British Bible Societies and the Translation of the Bible into Japanese in the Nineteenth Century HAMISH ION 17. Bishop Kenneth Sansbury (1905–1993): College Lecturer and Chaplain AUDREY SANSBURY TALKS
173
185
197
MUSIC, DRAMA AND FILM
18. John William Fenton (1831–1890) and the Japanese National Anthem Kimigayo AKIRA IMAMURA 19. Britain and Japan: Musical Exchanges before World War II AKIRA IMAMURA vi
207
226
CONTENTS
20. Kazuo Kikuta (1908-1973), Japanese Impresario and Lover of Charles Dickens: A Personal Memoir NOBUKO ALBERY 21. Kawakita Nagamasa (1903–1981) and Kawakita Kashiko (1908-1993): Film Ambassadors GORDON DANIELS 22. Sessue Hayakawa (1886-1973): International Film Star NORIMASA MORITA
236
245 258
EPISODE
23. The Return of Japan’s Lost Telescope after 400 Years SEAN CURTIN
271
PAINTERS
24. Ella Du Cane (1874-1943): Watercolourist TONI HUBERMAN 25. Alfred Parsons, RA, PRWS (1847-1920) and the Japanese Watercolour Movement TOSHIO WATANABE
277
284
JOURNALISTS
26. R.V.C. Bodley (‘Bodley of Arabia’) (1892-1970): Soldier, Adventurer, Journalist and Writer in Japan, 1933–1934 BILL SNELL 27. Norman Macrae (1921–2010): Pioneering Journalist of The Economist on Japanese Affairs BILL EMMOTT AND ADRIAN WOOLRIDGE
297
309
JAPANESE WOMEN PIONEERS
28. Yamamoto Yao (1875-1955) and Japanese Nursing GORDON DANIELS ¯ e Sumi (1875-1948) and Domestic Science in Japan 29. O HIROKO TOMIDA vii
319 331
CONTENTS
PART III: SCHOLARS AND WRITERS JAPANESE
30. Yanaihara Tadao (1893-1961) and His Tour of Britain, 1920-1921 SUSAN TOWNSEND 31. Ichikawa Sanki (1886-1970): Expert in English Philology and Literature SAITO YOSHIFUMI 32. Michio Morishima (1923–2004): An Economist Made in Japan JANET HUNTER 33. Honma Hisao (1886–1981): Expert on Oscar Wilde YOKO HIRATA 34. Shimamura Ho¯getsu (1871-1918): Pioneer of Shingeki (Western-style Theatre) in Japan NORIMASA MORITA 35. Muto¯ Cho¯zo¯ (1881–1942), and A Short History of Anglo-Japanese Relations ELEANOR ROBINSON 36. Yanada Senji (1906–1972): Teacher of Japanese at SOAS SADAO OBA AND ANNE KANEKO 37. Sakurai Jo¯ji, (1858-1939): Leading Chemist and No¯ Drama Specialist YOSHIYUKI KIKUCHI
345
357
368 381
395
406
413
425
BRITISH
38. Edward Divers (1837–1912) and Robert William Atkinson (1850–1929): Influential Teachers of Chemistry in Meiji Japan YOSHIYUKI KIKUCHI 39. Edward Vivian Gatenby, CBE (1892–1955): Distinguished Teacher of English as a Foreign Language PAUL SNOWDEN 40. Wolf Mendl (1926-1999): Leading Scholar in the Field of International Relations IAN NISH viii
439
451
465
CONTENTS
41. John Sargent: Respected Geographer of Japan VARIOUS 42. Grace James (1882-1965) and Mrs T.H. (Kate) James (1845-1928): Writers of Children’s Stories NOBORU KOYAMA
469
472
PART IV: POLITICIANS AND OFFICIALS JAPANESE
43. Kato¯ Hiroharu (1870–1939) and Japan’s Last Foreign-built Cruiser IAN NISH 44. Fukuda Takeo (1905-1995): Japanese Prime Minister who Spent Three Years in London EIJI SEKI AND HUGH CORTAZZI 45. Shirasu Jiro¯ (1902–1985): A Complicated and Enigmatic Personality EIICHIRO TOKUMOTO [TR.HUGH CORTAZZI]
481
492
502
BRITISH OFFICERS
46. Sir Henry Keppel (1809–1904): ‘Probably the Most Universally Popular Naval Commander Ever Sent by England to the East’ ROBERT MORTON 47. Major C.A.L. Yate VC (1872-1914): A Gallant British Officer and Admirer of Japan YAHYA SHAIGIYA-ABDELSAMAD
513
524
BRITISH JUDGES AND A DIPLOMAT
48. Sir Nicholas John Hannen (1842-1900): Judge of the British Court for Japan CHRISTOPHER ROBERTS 49. Robert Anderson Mowat (1843–1925): Judge of the British Court for Japan, 1891–1897 CHRISTOPHER ROBERTS 50. Sir Francis Bertie (1844–1919): Key Figure in Framing the Anglo-Japanese Alliance THOMAS G. OTTE ix
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555
CONTENTS
BRITISH POLITICAL FIGURES
51. Lord Granville (1815–1891): A Pragmatist at the Foreign Office ANDREW COBBING 52. Arthur Balfour (1848–1930): A Skilled Politician Managing the Emergence of Japan as a Great Power IAN NISH 53. Sir John Simon (1873–1959) and ‘This Manchurian Briar Patch’ ANTONY BEST 54. Lord Halifax (1881–1959): A Reassessment of British Far Eastern Policy, 1938–1941 ANTONY BEST 55. Sir Anthony Eden (1897–1977): Managing the Challenge of Anglo-Japanese Relations, 1936–1955 ANTONY BEST 56. Ernest Bevin (1881-1951) and British Policies towards Occupied Japan, 1945–1952 ROGER BUCKLEY 57. Margaret Thatcher (1925–2013): Pragmatist Who Radically Improved Britain’s Image in Japan and Successfully Promoted Japanese Manufacturing Investment in Britain HUGH CORTAZZI Index
571
584
595
609
620
631
644
661
JAPANESE NAMES
Japanese names in the texts of biographical portraits are given in the Japanese order except where the English order has been used by authors of books or where the individual has become generally known by his name in the English order. Long vowels have been marked with a macron, except for common words, such as daimyo and place names such as Tokyo, which have entered the English language. x
Introduction
This is the ninth volume in the series Britain and Japan: Biographical Portraits. The first volume so titled was published in 1994 and followed a volume entitled Britain and Japan 1959–1991, Themes and Personalities, published by the Japan Society to mark the Society’s centenary and the Japan Festival in the UK. Related volumes are British Envoys in Japan 1859–1971, Japanese Envoys in Britain 1862–1964 and Japan Experiences: Fifty Years One Hundred Views, Post-War Japan through British Eyes. All these volumes aim to shed light on aspects of the relations between Britain and Japan and the personalities who played interesting and significant roles in the relationship. The life and work of the men and women named in these volumes deserve to be recorded and remembered. When read together they give a picture, even if inevitably a partial one, of important facets of modern history and Anglo-Japanese institutions. They shed light on a number of controversial issues and remind us of the successes and failures of our fellow-countrymen. When as chairman of the Japan Society in 1990 I proposed the first of these volumes as part of the Japan Festival in Britain, designed to mark the centenary of the founding of the Society, I saw the volume produced at that time as a one-off memorial volume. But Ian Nish, to whose scholarship and enthusiasm I owe a real debt of gratitude, recognized, as I did, that there were other individuals and themes, which deserved to be described and discussed. The volumes grew out of our interest in the history of two countries so far apart but so closely interconnected. New names and themes kept on occurring to us. The problem was never one of shortage of people or themes. It was rather to find contributors with the time and willingness to do the necessary research and writing. We could not offer contributors anything except a promise of publication and a copy of the book when published. The large number of contributors, who continue to accept these ungenerous terms, shows how much interest these volumes have created. I am most grateful to David Warren, Chairman of the Trustees of the Japan Society and former British ambassador in Tokyo, for much valuable advice and assistance in the compilation and editing of this latest volume. xi
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When I was reviewing the contributions which I had collected for this volume, I realized that there were still many gaps in our coverage and I had no difficulty in compiling a longish list of themes and people for a future Volume X in the series and perhaps for other volumes thereafter.
Relations between Britain and Japan since the end of the war are of course very different from what they were between the 1858 Treaties and the end of the Pacific War. But there are many aspects of postwar relations, especially commercial, economic and cultural as well as political, which deserve study and comment. We can still learn from the mistakes, which we, our predecessors and successors, have made. An important element in our relations has been the Japanese presence here in Britain and Japanese influence on our culture. We had included in past volumes accounts of important Japanese companies, which had established branches in London in the early Meiji period such as the Yokohama Specie Bank, Nippon Yu¯sen Kaisha and Mitsui and Company. We had also in Volume VI devoted space to Japanese entrepreneurs such as Morita Akio and Honda So¯ichiro¯ who had been pioneers of productive investment in Britain and to Nissan (and Toyota) whose investments in car production in Britain had a seminal effect on the British economy. But much more could and should be related about Japanese investments in Britain and in particular the contribution which Japanese banks and securities companies have made to the prosperity of the City of London in the last few decades. Accordingly, this volume begins in Part I with five essays devoted to some of the cultural elements and institutional aspects of what, for want of a better term, I have called ‘Japan in Britain’. The first chapter in this section is a description of the Great Japan Exhibition at the Royal Academy in 1980–1981. As Nicolas Maclean explains this was the most impressive exhibition of Japanese art ever held in Britain. It was difficult and expensive to organize but was deservedly popular and did much to spread appreciation of Japanese culture. Japanese poems are probably mainly known through the translations of Arthur Waley, but haiku, the short Japanese poem (5,7, 5 syllables), have a significant literary following here. Poets and others interested in this poetic form have established the British Haiku Society as David Cobb explains in an essay in this section. Another aspect of Japanese culture, which has aroused significant interest in Britain is the Japanese garden in its various forms and styles. As Graham Hardman notes in his essay a significant number of Japanese gardens are to be found in British towns and the countryside and the Japanese Garden Society, which produces an excellent xii
INTRODUCTION
quarterly journal entitled Shakkei, has branches in different parts of the country. Previous volumes have included accounts of the lives and contests of practitioners of the arts of Judo (Jujutsu). For this volume Paul Budden has contributed an account of the introduction and development of the Japanese martial art of Kendo. The Nippon Club, as Setsuo Kato explains in his account of its history, was established in 1881 and has provided the Japanese community in London not only with a place to meet and exchange views but has contributed significantly to the welfare of Japanese residents by making arrangements for medical treatment from Japanese doctors but also by organizing schools. This section ends with an account by me of two groups of British people in ‘Ye Sette of Odd Volumes’ and ‘The Thirteen Club’, who in the 1890s indulged their curiosity in things Japanese. Part II ‘Britain in Japan’ begins with a section devoted to aspects of post-war trade relations. This is a theme, which deserves further detailed study. In 1969 the British put a huge effort into an attempt to penetrate the Japanese market for British goods. The British embassy was the prime organizer with the full support of the Board of Trade in London and the British National Export Council in organizing a British Week in Tokyo. As Ben Thorne, who headed the British Week office in Tokyo, describes in his account of this major export promotion effort, this was the largest such British promotion ever staged. While EXPO ’70 was not a trade event it was an occasion in which participating countries could demonstrate their achievements and accordingly had an economic spin-off. The dispatch, which the then British ambassador to Japan, Sir John Pilcher, wrote about EXPO ’70 is a witty tour de force and includes some perceptive comments on Japan of that time. The British Week in 1969 required sustained follow-up action to ensure that Japanese companies and consumers were aware of the products which Britain was producing and that British companies were not deterred from trying to penetrate the Japanese market because of a perception of Japanese non-tariff barriers. This in due course led, as Paul Dimond explains, to the establishment in 1972 of the British Export Marketing Centre in Tokyo as a bridgehead into the Japanese market. One important British export, which faced various protectionist barriers, was Scotch whisky. Stuart Jack, who was an active participant in the struggles to ensure a ‘level playing field’ in Japan for Scotch whisky, outlines the problems and how they were eventually largely overcome. A section entitled ‘British Activities’ begins with an essay by Hamish Ion on Mountaineering in Japan in whose development British pioneers initially at least had a significant role. xiii
BRITAIN & JAPAN: BIOGRAPHICAL PORTRAITS VOLUME IX
Previous volumes have contained accounts of sports, which were imported into Japan, initially at least, from Britain. These included football, rugby and soccer, golf, tennis, rowing and horse racing, but not until this volume has anything been said about the quintessentially British sport of Cricket. As Mike Galbraith explains, cricket was a popular pastime for members of the British communities in Yokohama and Kobe during the Meiji period, although it was never really taken up by Japanese. Mike Galbraith has also discovered more information about the origins of football in Japan as he explains in another essay. Freemasonry was brought to Japan initially from Britain and, as Pauline Chakmakjian describes, a number of masonic lodges were established in Japan in the Meiji period. Protestant Christian missionaries who came to Japan in the Meiji era were largely from Britain and North America. While the number of their converts was limited their influence was significant. Essays on some of the British missionaries have appeared in earlier volumes. Here Hamish Ion, who has become the expert in this field of studies, writes about Christ Church, Yokohama and its first incumbent Michael Buckworth Bailey who was a very peculiar clergyman, and British Bible Societies and nineteenthcentury translations of the Bible into Japanese. The third item in this section is a biographical portrait of Kenneth Sansbury who was chaplain to the British embassy in Tokyo in the years leading up to the Pacific War. The next section headed ‘Music, Drama and Film’ begins with an account of the life of John William Fenton by Akira Imamura. Fenton came to Japan as a member of a military band and composed the music, or the first version, of the Japanese National Anthem Kimi ga Yo. The fact that the anthem owed so much to music by a British bandsman is not well known in either Britain or Japan. Akira Imamura has also contributed an account of musical exchanges before the Second World War in which he explains how some popular songs from Britain were adopted as Japanese lyrics. The next item, a personal memoir by Nobuko Albery, is a tribute to Kazuo Kikuta, who loved the novels of Charles Dickens and brought to Japan such musicals as Oliver. Two chapters are devoted to important figures in the history of cinema. The first by Gordon Daniels deals with Mr and Mrs Kawakita who made a major contribution to the promotion of Japanese films in Britain. The second is an account of Sessue Hayakawa, Japan’s first international film star who had many fans in Britain in his heyday in the 1920s. 2013 marked the 400th anniversary of the arrival in Japan of the first British trade mission to Japan led by John Saris who brought with him a fine hand-made telescope demonstrating the skills and xiv
INTRODUCTION
scientific knowledge of British craftsmen. Sadly, the original has vanished but a replica was made to mark the anniversary and presented to Japan to underline the importance of scientific exchanges between the two countries. A number of British painters visited Japan in the Meiji period and their paintings of Japan helped British people to appreciate Japanese scenery. One painter not covered in earlier volumes is Ella du Cane about whom Toni Huberman has contributed a portrait to this volume. Toshio Watanabe has written a study of Alfred Parsons who promoted watercolour painting and Western concepts of depicting nature, landscape and flowers. British journalists have reported on Japan over the years with varying degrees of perspicacity. Some like R.V.C. Bodley an ex soldier and adventurer about whom Bill Snell has written an account were ‘odd balls’. Norman Macrae of The Economist, whose portrait has been vividly drawn by Bill Emmott and Adrian Wooldridge, had a seminal influence on British attitudes towards Japan in the 1960s when Japan was racing to catch up with the advanced economies. Two Japanese women pioneers who had close connections with Britain before the Second World War are covered in the next section. Yamamoto Yao about whom Gordon Daniels has written was a leading Japanese nurse who was a member of a Japanese medical mission which came to Britain during the First World War and helped with some of the many wounded in the battles in France and at Gallipoli. Oe Sumi about whom Hiroko Tomida has contributed a portrait studied domestic science in Britain and pioneered the teaching of domestic science in Japan. Part III covers ‘Scholars and Writers’. The first section is devoted to Japanese scholars. Susan Townsend has contributed a portrait of Yanaihara Tadao, who became president of Tokyo University after the end of the Pacific War. He made an extensive tour of Britain in 1920–21 and became an expert on colonialism. Ichikawa Sanki, about whom Yoshifumi Saito has written, was one of Japan’s foremost English scholars who acquired a formidable knowledge of English literature. Michio Morishima, described by Janet Hunter as an economist made in Japan, became an eminent professor of economics at the London School of Economics. Honma Hisao, about whom Yoko Hirata has written, was the Japanese expert on Oscar Wilde. Shimamura Ho¯getsu who is portrayed by Norimasa Morita became fascinated with theatre in Britain and introduced into Japan what came to be called Shingeki. Muto Chozo, the subject of a portrait by Eleanor Robinson wrote the first history of Anglo-Japanese relations. xv
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Yanada Senji, about whose life and work in Britain Sadao Oba and Anne Kaneko have written, taught Japanese at the School of Oriental and African Studies (SOAS) during and after the Second World War. He was a conscientious teacher who faced the dilemma of choosing between the country of his birth and the country of his adoption. Sakurai Jo¯ji, the subject of a portrait by Yoshiyuki Kikuchi, was a pioneering Japanese chemist who became a leader in Japanese science in the years before the Second World War. The section devoted to ‘British Scholars’ begins with an account also by Yoshiyuki Kikuchi of two British chemists, Edward Divers and Robert William Anderson who taught in Japan in the Meiji period. They made a significant contribution to the study of chemistry in Japan as it began to adopt Western science. Edward Gatenby, about whose life Paul Snowden has contributed a portrait, was a pioneer in the teaching of English as a foreign language. He and A.S. Hornby, who also worked in Japan and whose portrait was penned by Paul Snowden in volume VIII in this series, were two of the three editors of the Oxford Advanced Learner’s Dictionary and carried forward the pioneering work of Harold E. Palmer whose life was described in Volume IV by Richard Smith and Imura Motomichi. Wolf Mendl and John Sargent were scholars whose contribution to our understanding of modern Japan should not be forgotten. Wolf Mendl, the subject of a portrait by Ian Nish, specialized in international relations. John Sargent was a leading geographer of Japan who taught and researched at the School of Oriental and African Studies in London. Grace and Kate James who are the subject of a study by Noboru Koyama were writers of children’s stories and popularized Japanese fairy stories. ‘Politicians and Officials’ have in the past been covered in the opening part of the volume. Here they have been moved to the final section. This is not intended to denigrate their importance, but rather to emphasize that the relationship between Britain and Japan was much wider than the sphere of politicians and officials. The first section comprises portraits of three Japanese who had close connections with Britain. Kato¯ Hiroharu, who is described by Ian Nish, was a Japanese admiral who served as naval attaché in London. His friendly feelings towards Britain were dissipated following the ending of the Anglo-Japanese Alliance. Fukuda Takeo, who is described by Eiji Seki and me, was a Japanese prime minister who spent three years in London during his time as an official of the ministry of finance. Like a number of other Japanese politicians of the late twentieth century he admired Margaret Thatcher. xvi
INTRODUCTION
Shirasu Jiro, whom Eiichiro Tokumoto describes as a complicated and enigmatic personality, enjoyed his time at Cambridge in the 1920s and took on some of the characteristics of the English pre-war upper class. He was a protégé of Yoshida Shigeru and pulled many strings in politics and commerce. In the next section two very different British officers are described. Sir Henry Keppel was a distinguished British Admiral. While his involvement with Japan was relatively short it covered the crucial years, which saw the end of the bakufu and the beginning of the Meiji period. Major Yate, about whom Yahya Shaigiya-Abdelsamad has contributed a portrait, was a British army officer who studied Japanese and was an observer in the Russo-Japanese War of 1904–5. Serving in France in 1914 he was awarded the Victoria Cross for conspicuous gallantry. He became a prisoner of war, but died in circumstances, which are clarified by the author. Sir Nicholas Hannen and R. A. Mowat were British judges of the consular courts, which operated under extraterritoriality until 1899. Their lives are described By Christopher Roberts who has become the leading expert on the operation of extraterritoriality in Japan. This volume contains a portrait of only one British Official, Sir Francis Bertie by Thomas Otte. Bertie never came anywhere near Japan but played an important role in the drafting of the first Anglo-Japanese Alliance. The seven ‘British Political Figures’ who feature in the final section of this volume span over a century from the early 1870s to the late 1980s. Lord Granville, whose work on Anglo-Japanese relations is described by Andrew Cobbing, was a conscientious foreign secretary who in relations with Japan relied on the advice of the British minister in Tokyo, Sir Harry Parkes. It fell to him to deal with the important Iwakura Mission, which Andrew Cobbing described in volume VIII in this series. Arthur Balfour, whose role in the Anglo-Japanese context is explained by Ian Nish, became a mediator in the fraught relations between Japan and China at the Versailles Peace Conference. He was content to see the Anglo-Japanese Alliance lapse in 1921. The next three portraits are by Antony Best who has made detailed studies of the events leading up to the Second World War. His first portrait is of Sir John Simon, to whom as foreign secretary the task of dealing with Japan over Manchuria inevitably fell. His failure to take effective measures to stem Japanese aggression tarnished his reputation. Lord Halifax is popularly associated with the appeasement policies of Neville Chamberlain but as Antony Best explains Halifax xvii
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who took a highly moral approach to foreign affairs ‘was naturally disinclined to take a sympathetic view of Japanese aggression in China. Thus, the common themes of his time at the Foreign Office are his efforts to do more for China and to try to take as tough a stand as circumstances allowed during crises with the Japanese.’ Sir Anthony Eden’s ‘view of Japan was cold at best and overtly hostile at worst’. His son was killed while serving in Burma. Nevertheless, he realized that in the post-war world ‘Britain could not afford, against the background of the Cold War, to leave Japan isolated lest it fall into the communist orbit.’ It fell to Ernest Bevin as foreign secretary to deal with policies towards Japan in the occupation and the drafting of the Peace Treaty with Japan. Inevitably, as Roger Buckley in his essay in this volume points out, Japan could not be a top priority for the foreign secretary as the Cold War developed. Relations with the United States were of paramount importance. Nevertheless, Bevin and the foreign office ‘achieved some decent measure of success in their occupation policies’ but the war had fundamentally undermined British power and prestige in the Far East and Britain could no longer play an imperial role. The last chapter is an attempt by me to assess Margaret Thatcher’s role in the development of Anglo-Japanese relations in the 1980s. As I point out she ‘made a significant contribution to relations between Britain and Japan. She recognized Japan’s post-war economic achievements, urged the Japanese to open up their market and promoted British exports to Japan.’
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List of Contributors Abdelsamad, Yahya Shaigiya, former research student in Japanese modern history at Kyoto University, Graduate School of Law and Letters, Internal Audit Analyst at Millennium Hedge Fund, New York. Albery, Nobuko, (Lady), writer and novelist, widow of the late Sir Donald Albery. Best, Antony, (Dr), senior lecturer in International History at the London School of Economics (LSE). Buckley, Roger, historian and writer, formerly Professor at the International Christian University, Tokyo. Budden, Paul, Kendo expert and teacher who has studied, researched and practised martial arts for over fifty years. Chakmakjian, Pauline (MA), an independent lecturer, member of the board of trustees of the Japan Society from 2008 to 2014. Cobb, David, educational writer of EFL books, founded the British Haiku Society in 1990. His own published haiku have been honoured with a variety of awards. Cobbing, Andrew, (Dr), Associate Professor in Japanese History, University of Nottingham. Cortazzi, Hugh, (Sir, GCMG) British ambassador to Japan 1980– 1984, chairman Japan Society 1985–1995. Curtin, J. Sean, commentator and writer on Japan, former academic with an interest in Sino-Japanese relations and Japanese politics. Daniels, Gordon, (Dr), former Reader in Japanese History, University of Sheffield. Dimond, Paul (CMG), former British ambassador to the Philippines and commercial counsellor in Tokyo. Emmott, Bill, former deputy editor of The Economist, author and journalist. Galbraith, Mike, President of Interworld Ltd, historian and writer covering Meiji Japan, especially early history of Western sports and info-communications technology. Hardman, Graham, garden designer, former chairman of the Japanese Garden Society. Hirata Yoko, (Dr), former professor at Chuo University, researching European influence on Japanese social and literary ideals during early twentieth century.
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Huberman, Toni, has written and researched on Anglo-Japanese personalities. Hunter, Janet, (Dr), Professor in economic history, London School of Economics (LSE). Imamura Akira, formerly Minister at the Japanese Embassy in London, now deputy Japanese Ambassador in Australia. Ion, Hamish, (Dr), Professor of History, Royal Military College of Canada. Jack, Stuart, (CVO), formerly Governor of the Cayman Islands and Minister in the British Embassy in Tokyo. Kaneko, Anne, translator, former editor of Japan Society Proceedings. Kato Setsuo, journalist, General Committee, Nippon Club. Kikuchi Yoshiyuki, historian of science, associate professor ‘Science and Society’ Program, The Graduate University for Advanced Studies (Sokendai), Hayama, Japan. Koyama Noboru, Head of Japanese Department, Cambridge University Library. Maclean, Nicolas, (CMG), businessman, former banker, co-chairman of Japan400. Morton, Robert, Professor at Chuo University, Tokyo and former President of the Asiatic Society of Japan. Nish, Ian (CBE, Dr), Emeritus Professor of International History at the London School of Economics (LSE). Oba Sadao, retired businessman who has researched Anglo-Japanese relations, author of The Japanese War, Japan Library, 1995. Otte, Thomas, (Dr), Professor of Diplomatic History, University of East Anglia (UEA). Pilcher, John (Sir, GCMG), deceased, British Ambassador to Japan, 1967–1972, twice chairman of the Japan Society. Roberts, Chris, (Dr), retired solicitor, author of The British Courts and Extraterritoriality in Japan 1859–1899, Global Oriental, 2014. Robinson, Eleanor, Associate Professor, Osaka University. Saito Yoshifumi, (Dr), Professor of Education at the University of Tokyo, has been working on a wide range of fields including English stylistics, literary theory, translation, and English language teaching. Sansbury-Talks, Audrey, author of A Tale of Two Japans: Ten Years to Pearl Harbor, Book Guild Publishing, 2010, Japanese edition Seikokai Shuppan, 2013. Seki Eiji, former Japanese Ambassador and historian. Snell, Bill, Private researcher and military historian. Snowden, Paul, Waseda University, Tokyo, lexicographer and author. Thorne, Ben (CMG, MBE), retired official of Board of Trade, diplomat and businessman. xx
LIST OF CONTRIBUTORS
Tokumoto Eiichiro, author and historian, former Reuters Correspondent. Tomida Hiroko, (Dr), lecturer at school of East Asian Studies, University of Sheffield, research fellow at School of Asian Studies, University of Edinburgh, currently teaching at Waseda University. Townsend, Susan, Associate Professor of Japanese History at the University of Nottingham, specializes in the intellectual history of Japan in the 1920s and 1930s, published monographs on Yanaihara Tadao and Miki Kiyoshi. Watanabe Toshio, Art historian, Professor of History of Art and Design at the University of the Arts in London. Wooldridge, Adrian, Schumpeter management columnist of The Economist.
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Index of Biographical Portraits and Memoirs in Japan Society Volumes ABBREVIATIONS: Britain & Japan, 1859-1991: Themes and Personalities, Routledge, 1991 Britain & Japan: Biographical Portraits Volume I, Japan Library, 1994 Britain & Japan: Biographical Portraits, Volume II, Japan Library, 1997 Britain &Japan: Biographical Portraits, Volume III, Japan Library, 1999 Britain & Japan: Biographical Portraits, Volume IV, Japan Library, 2002 Britain & Japan: Biographical Portraits, Volume V, Global Oriental, 2004 Britain & Japan: Biographical Portraits, Volume VI, Global Oriental, 2007 Britain & Japan: Biographical Portraits, Volume VII. Global Oriental, 2010 Britain & Japan: Biographical Portraits, Volume VIII, Global Oriental, 2013 Britain & Japan: Biographical Portraits, Volume IX, Renaissance Books 2015 British Envoys in Japan, 1859-1972 Global Oriental, 2004 Japanese Envoys in Britain, 1862-1964 Global Oriental, 2007 Japan Experiences, Fifty Years, One Hundred Views Post-War Japan Through British Eyes Japan Library, 2001 Abraham, Catain A.J. RN Adams, Sir Francis Ottiwell Alcock, Sir Rutherford Allen, G.C. Allen, Louis Anderson, William Anzai Tatsuo (in Three Great Japanese Translators of Shakespeare) Aoki Shu¯zo¯
xxii
Hugh Cortazzi Hugh Cortazzi Sarah Metzger Court Phillida Purvis James Rawlins Peter Milward Ian Nish
T&P I II III IV V VI VII VIII IX B.ENV J.ENV EXP EXP VII II and B.ENV T&P V and EXP V V J.ENV III
BIOGRAPHICAL PORTRAITS AND MEMOIRS IN JAPAN SOCIETY VOLUMES
Architecture, Changing Perceptions of Japanese Ariyoshi Yoshiya Armstrong Vickers Arnold, Sir Edwin Asakai Koichiro Ashton-Gwatkin, Frank Aso Kazuko Aston, W.G. Atkinson, Robert William Ayrton, Professor W.E. Baba Tatsui Baker, Kathleen Drew Baker, Kenneth Baker-Bates, Merrick Balfour, Arthur Barr, Dugald Barrett, Mike Barrington, Sir Nicholas Batchelor, John Bates, Paul Bates, Peter Baty, Dr Thomas Beasley, William Beatles in Japan, The Report on Beatles in Japan Bertie, Sir Francis Bethell, Ernest Thomas Bevin, Ernest Bickersteth, Bishop Edward (with Shaw, Alexander C.) Bird, Isabells Blacker, Carmen Blakiston, Thomas Wright Bland, J.O.P. Blunden, Edmund Blyth, R.H. Bodley, R.V.C. Bottrall, Ronald Bowes, James Lord
Anna Basham Hugh Cortazzi Marie Conte-Helm Carmen Blacker Tomoki Kuniyoshi Ian Nish Phillida Purvis Peter Kornicki Yoshiyuki Kikuchi Ian Ruxton Helen Ballhatchet John Baker and Frances Biggs
Ian Nish
Hugh Cortazzi
Martin Gornall Ian Nish Gordon Daniels, Robert Whitaker Dudley Cheke Thomas Otte Chin-Sok Chong Roger Buckley Hamish Ion Pat Barr Peter Kornicki Hugh Cortazzi Antony Best Adrian Pinnington Bill Snell Nicole Coolidge Rousmaniere
Bownas, Geoffrey Boxer, Charles James Cummins Boyd, Sir John (with Julia, Lady Boyd)
xxiii
VII III I IV J.ENV I (also in EXP) III T&P, B.ENV IX IV T&P VI EXP EXP IX EXP EXP EXP II EXP EXP V VII and EXP VI
IX VIII IX III I VII and EXP III VII EXP I IX EXP VI EXP IV EXP
BRITAIN & JAPAN: BIOGRAPHICAL PORTRAITS VOLUME IX
Bradley, Clive Brammall, Edwin (Lord) Field Marshal Brangwyn, Frank Brinkley, Captain Francis Britain and Japan: Musical Exchanges before World War II British Bible Societies and the Translation of the Bible into Japanese in theNineteenth Century British Export Marketing Centre and the Promotion of British Exports from 1972, The British Week in Tokyo, 1969 Britten, Benjamin (Lord) Britton, Dorothy (Lady Bouchier) Britton, Frank Broughton, Captain Brown, Albert (in Nippon Yu¯sen Kaisha (NYK)) Buckley, Roger Bull, George Bunting, Isaac Burton, W.K. Bush, Lewis Businessmen, Japanese, in the U.K. Busk, Douglas (in Memoir of Tokyo December 1941) Butler, R.A. (with Lord Hamkey) Byas, Hugh Calthrop, Lt. Col. R.F. Campbell White, Martin Cane, Ella Du Carter, Angela Casson, Sir Hugh Ceadel, Eric Chamberlain, Austen and Neville Chamberlain, Basil Hall Chichibu, Prince and Princess Chinda Sutemi Chino Yoshitoki and the Daiwa Foundation Cholmondeley, Lionel Berners
EXP EXP Libby Horner J.E. Hoare Akira Imamura
VII III IX
Hamish Ion
IX
Paul Dimond
IX
Ben Thorne Jason James
Dorothy Bouchier (Britton) J.E. Hoare Hiroyuki Takeno
Prue James Olive Checkland Sadao Oba
Antony Best Peter O’Connor Sebastian Dobson Toni Huberman Roger Buckley Peter Kornicki Antony Best Richard Bowring Dorothy Britton Ian Nish Nick Clegg Hamish Ion
xxiv
IX VIII See also EXP EXP VI III V EXP EXP VII IV EXP II VII V VI VIII EXP IX VI EXP V and EXP VII T&P V J.ENV V VI II
BIOGRAPHICAL PORTRAITS AND MEMOIRS IN JAPAN SOCIETY VOLUMES
Christ Church, Yokohama (18621872), and its First Incumbent Michael Buckworth Bailey Churchill, Winston Clark, Kenneth (Lord) Clive, Sir Robert Close, Reginald Comfort, Ernest Commercial Treaty, Anglo-Japanese
Hamish Ion
Eiji Seki Antony Best
J.E. Hoare Robin Gray and Sosuke Hanaoka Commonwealth War Graves Cemetery Len Harrop at Yokohama Conder, Josiah, (as architect) Dallas Finn Conder, Josiah, (on Japanese landscape Toshio Watanabe gardening) Connors, Lesley Conroy, Timothy or Taid or Taig Peter O’Connor Consular Service, Britain’s Japan J.E. Hoare Consular Service, British consuls in the J.E. Hoare Japanese Empire Conyngham Greene (see Greene) Corner, John Carmen Blacker Cornes, Frederick Peter. N. Davies Cornwall Legh, Mary Helena Shigeru Nakamura Cortazzi, Sir Hugh Cousins, James David Burleigh Cox, James Melville Hugh Cortazzi Craigie, Sir Robert Antony Best Cricket in Late Edo and Meiji Mike Galbraith Japan Crown Prince Akihito (in Britain) Hugh Cortazzi Crown Prince Hitohito (in Britain) Ian Nish (See also Showa Emperor’s state visit) Curzon, Lord Ian Nish Daniels, Otome and Frank Dean, Colonel Peter Dening, Sir Esler
Ron Dore
Dening, Walter Dickins, F.V. Divers, Edward Dore, Ronald Douglas, Archibald (Naval Mission) Duckenfield, Ron Dunn, Charles J.
Hamish Ion Peter Kornicki Yoshiyuki Kikuchi
Roger Buckley
Ian Gow Koji Hoashi Hugh Cortazzi
xxv
IX
VI EXP IV EXP VI II Appendix I (a) V T&P VIII EXP V II and B ENV VIII
V V VIII EXP VII VIII I and B.ENV IX V II V I EXP T&P and B.ENV VII III IX EXP III VIII VIII
BRITAIN & JAPAN: BIOGRAPHICAL PORTRAITS VOLUME IX
Dyer, Henry
Olive Checkland
III
Eden, Sir Anthony Edwardes, Arthur Eguchi Takayuki Eliot, Sir Charles
Antony Best Antony Best Edna Read Neal Dennis Smith
IX III III T&P and B.ENV EXP EXP EXP EXP EXP IV I
Ellingworth, Dick (R.H.) Elstob, Eric Elston, Chris Emery, Fre Emmott, W. G. Empson, William Engineers, Japanese, in Britain before 1914 Enright, Dennis Everest, Philip Ewing, James Alfred Exhibition, Japan-British, of 1910 Expo ’70, Osaka Fakes, Neville Faulds, Henry Fenton, John William Festing, Field Marshal Sir Francis W. Figgess, Sir John Fisher, Charles Alfred Fisher, Admiral Sir John Fleming, Ian Football (Soccer), British Links with Japanese Football (Rugby) (see Rugby) Forrest, Gail Forrest, Captain Mike R.N. Fortune, Robert (in Early Plant Collectors in Japan) Franks, Augustus Wollaston Fraser, Duncan Fraser, G.S. Fraser, Hugh Freemasonry in Japan Freeth, Florence May Fukuda Takeo
John Haffenden Olive Checkland Russell Greenwood Neil Pedlar Ayako Hotta-Lister John Pilcher
EXP IV IX VIII
Ian Nish Akira Imamura Yahya ShahgiyaAbdelsamad Hugh Cortazzi Gordon Daniels John Chapman John Hatcher Derek Bleakley
III and EXP VIII V VI VII
Amanda Herries
EXP EXP IV
Nicole Coolidge Rousmaniere Eileen Fraser Hugh Cortazzi Pauline Chakmakjian Rob Freeth Eiji Seki and Hugh Cortazi
xxvi
V and EXP EXP III I IX
VI EXP V and EXP IV and B.ENV IX VII IX
BIOGRAPHICAL PORTRAITS AND MEMOIRS IN JAPAN SOCIETY VOLUMES
Fukuda Tsuneari (in Three Great Peter Milward Japanese Translators of Shakespeare) Fukuzawa Yukichi (Finances of a Norio Tamaki Japanese Moderniser) Garden designers, Early Japanese…in Britain and Ireland Gardner, Kenneth Gascoigne, Sir Alvary Gatenby, Edward Vivian Gauntlett, G. E. L. Giffard, Sir Sydney Gintaro Gold Standard, Japan’s adoption of and London Money Markets, Golf (see Groom, Arthur Hesketh) Gomersall, Lydia (Lady Gommersall) Gordon, Elizabeth Anna Gorman, George Gowland, William Granville, Lord Graves, British in other parts of Japan
Jill Raggett Yu-Ying Brown Peter Lowe Paul Snowden Saiko Gauntlett Peter Brunning Norio Tamaki
Noboru Koyama Drborah MacFarlane Simon Kaner Andrew Cobbing Phillida Purvis
Great Japan Exhibition, 1981-82, The Greene, Sir W. Conyngham Grey, Sir Edward Groom, Arthur Hesketh Gubbins, J. H. Guest, Harry
Nicolas MacLean Peter Lowe Ian Nish Angus Lockyer Ian Nish
Haiku in the British Isles: A Tale of Acceptance and Non-Acceptance Halifax, Lord Hamilton, General Sir Ian Hand, Peter Hankey, Lord (with R.A.Butler) Hannen, Sir Nicholas John Hara Bushõ Harmswoth, Alfred (Lord Northcliffe) Hart, Ernest Hasegawa Nyozekan Hawley, Frank Hayashi Gonsuke Hayashi Tadasu Haylock, John Healey, Denis (Lord) Hearn, Lafcadio
David Cobb Antony Best Peter Kornicki Antony Best Christopher Roberts Hugh Cortazzi Peter O’Connor Noboru Koyama Ayako Hotta-Lister Manabu Yokoyama Harumi Goto-Shibata Ian Nish
Paul Murray
xxvii
V III
VII VII and EXP I and B.ENV IX VI EXP VII I
EXP VIII VIII VI IX Appendix II (c) V IX IV and B.ENV VIII VII II and B.ENV EXP IX IX VII EXP V IX VIII VII VIII V V J.ENV and V T&P and J.ENV EXP EXP II
BRITAIN & JAPAN: BIOGRAPHICAL PORTRAITS VOLUME IX
Heaslett, Bishop Samuel Heath, Sir Edward Hendry, Joy Henry, George Hewitt, Peter Hitch, Brian Hockney, David Hodgson, Ralph Holme, Charles Honda So¯ichiro Honma Hisao Hornby, Alfred Sydney Hornel, E.A. Horse Racing Horsley, William HSBC (Pioneers in Japan 1866-1900) Hudson, Sue Huish, Marcus Humphreys, Christmas Hunter, Janet
Hamish Ion Hugh Cortazzi Ayako Ono Merrick Baker-Bates
John Hatcher Toni Huberman Hugh Cortazzi Yoko Hirata Paul Snowden Ayako Ono Roger Buckley Edwin Green Hideko Numata Carmen Blacker
V VI EXP VIII IV EXP EXP V VI VI IX VIII VIII VII EXP V EXP V II EXP
Ichikawa Sanki Inagaki Manjiro Inoue Kaoru Inoue Masaru Inouye Katsunosuke Introduction of Football from Britain into Nineteenth-century Japan Ito Hirobumi (in Britain) Itoh Eikichi and Itoh Rosa Hideko Iwakura Tomomi
Saito Yoshifumi Noboru Koyama Andrew Cobbing Yumiyo Yamamoto Ian Nish Mike Galbraith Andrew Cobbing Keiko Itoh Andrew Cobbing
III VIII VIII
James, Grace James, John Mathews James, Mrs T.H. (Kate) James, Thomas (in Nippon Yu¯sen Kaisha (NYK)) Japan and Ye Sette of Odd Volumes and London’s Thirteen Club in the 1890s Japan Chronicle Japan Society, History of Japanese Embassy in London and its buildings Japanese Gardens and the Japanese Garden Society in the UK Jenkyn, Patrick (Lord) Jerram, Admiral Sir Martyn
Noburu Koyama Sebastian Dobson Noburu Koyama Hiroyuki Takeno
IX VIII IX V
xxviii
Hugh Cortazzi Peter O’Connor Hugh Cortazzi Shozo Kadota Graham Hardman
John Chapman
IX VI VII II J.ENV V IX
IX IV T&P J.ENV IX EXP VII
BIOGRAPHICAL PORTRAITS AND MEMOIRS IN JAPAN SOCIETY VOLUMES
Johnson, Sarah Journalists, British, in Meiji Japan Judo Pioneers Kaneko, Anne Kano Hisaakira Kazuo Kikuta Kato Hiraharu Kato¯ Takaaki Kawakita Nagamasa Kawanabe Kyo¯sai Kawase Masataka Keith, Elizabeth Kennard, Edward Allington (in Japan Chronicle) Kennedy, John Russell Kennedy, Malcolm Keppel, Sir Henry Keswick, William Kikuchi Dairoku Killearn, Lord (see Lampson, Sir Miles) Kinch, Edward King, Francis Kirkup, James Kiuchi Kyo¯zo¯ (British training for Japanese engineers) Knott, Cargill Gilston Koestler, Arthur Koizumi Gunji Komura Ju¯taro¯ Ko¯ri Torahiko Kornicki, Peter Kurihara Chûji
J.E. Hoare Richard Bowen
Keiko Itoh Nobuko Albery Ian Nish Ian Nish Gordon Daniels Olive Checkland Ayako-Hotta-Lister Dorothy Bouchier Peter O’Connor
EXP III IX IX J.ENV, IV IX III J.ENV VI IV
Peter O’Connor John Pardoe Robert Morton J.E. Hoare Noboru Koyama
V T&P IX IV V
Erico Kumazawa
VII EXP VIII T&P
David Burleigh Janet Hunter Paul Kabrna Richard Bowen Ian Nish Norimasa Morita Libby Horner
Lampson, Sir Miles Large, Dick (Richard) Lascelles, Sir Daniel
David Steeds
Lawyers, British, in Japan 1859-99 Leach, Bernard and the Mingei Movement Lean, David Leggett, Trevor Price
Chris Roberts Hugh Cortazzi
Liberty, Lasenby Lindley, Sir Francis Littler, Sir Geolffrey
EXP I V
Hugh Cortazzi
Norimasa Morita Anthony Dunne and Richard Bowen Sonia Ashmore Ian Nish
xxix
VII EXP IV J.ENV and V VII EXP VIII VII EXP B.ENV (See also EXP) VIII I VIII IV IV IV and B.ENV EXP
BRITAIN & JAPAN: BIOGRAPHICAL PORTRAITS VOLUME IX
Lloyd, Arthur Longford, Joseph Lowe, Peter
Hamish Ion Ian Ruxton Ian Nish
MacDonald, Sir Claude MacDonald, Malcolm Macrae, Norman
Ian Nish John Weste Bill Emmott and Adrian Woolridge Janet Hunter Ian Nish Phillida Purvis Carmen Blacker Noboru Koyama
Maejima Hisoka Makino Shinken (Nobuaki) Malins, Philip Markino, Yoshio Marriages, Three Meiji Martin, Peter Maruyama Masao Matsudaira Tsuneo Matsui Keishiro Matsubayashi Tsuranosuke Matsukata Kõjirõ Matsukata Masayoshi (see Gold Standard, Japan’s Adoption of) Matsumoto Shunichi Maugham, Somerset Mayall, Sir Lees McCallum, Graham McCaul, Sister Ethel McGreevey,Adrian Mendl, Wolf Menpes, Mortimer Luddington Michio Morishima Minakata Kumagusu Minami Teisuke (in Three Meiji Marriages) Mingei movement (in Bernard Leach and) Missionaries, British, in Meiji Japan Mitford, A.B. Mitsui in London Miyazawa Kiichi Morel, Edward Mori Arinori Morita Akio Morland, Sir Oscar Morris, Ivan Morris, John (with Orwell, George and BBC) Morrison, Arthur
xxx
Rikki Kersten Ian Nish Tadashi Kuramatsu Shinya Maezaki Libby Horner
Takahiko Tanaka John Hatcher
Gordon Daniels Ian Nish Sonia Ashmore Janet Hunter Carmen Blacker Noboru Koyama Hugh Cortazzi Helen Ballhatchet Robert Morton Sadao Oba Arthur Stockwin Yoshiko Morita Anthony Cobbing Hugh Cortazzi John Whitehead Nobuko Albery Neil Pedlar Noboru Koyama
VII VI VIII I and B.ENV VII IX I VIII VII I IV EXP VI J.ENV I J.ENV V VIII VIII
J.ENV VI EXP EXP VII EXP IX VIII IX I IV I I VIII V VIII II J.ENV IV VI B.ENV and EXP IV III and EXP VII
BIOGRAPHICAL PORTRAITS AND MEMOIRS IN JAPAN SOCIETY VOLUMES
Morrison, G.E. Mountaineering in Japan Mowat, Robert Anderson Munro, Gordon Muto¯ Cho¯zo¯ Mutsu Family Naish, John Nakai Hiromu Nakai Yoshigusu (see Gold Standard, Japan’s Adoption of) Nakamura Masanao (Keiu) Natsume Sõseki (see Sõseki) Naylor, Martin Neale, Lt Col St John Nichols, Robert Ninagawa Yukio Nippon Club, 1881–2014, The Nippon Yu¯sen Kaisha (NYK) Nish, Ian Nishi Haruhiko Nishiwaki Junzaburo¯ Nissan and the British Motor Vehicle Industry Nissan: History of a Negotiation Nitobe Inazo Noguchi Yone Northcliffe (see Harmsworth, Alfred) Novelists, Japan’s Post-war Occupied Japan through the eyes of British Journalists O’Conroy see Conroy Odajima Yu¯shi (in Three Great Japanese Translators of Shakespeare) ¯ e Sumi O Ohno Katsumi Okada, Sumie Oliphant, Laurence O’Neill, Patrick Geoffrey Orwell, George (with Morris, John and BBC) Otsuka Hisao Ozaki Saburo (in Three Meiji Marriages) Ozaki Yukio
Antony Best Hamish Ion Christopher Roberts Jane Wilkinson Eleanor Robinson Ian Mutsu
VIII IX IX I IX II
Eleanor Robinson
EXP VII
Akiko Ohta
Hugh Cortazzi George Hughes Daniel Gallimore Setsuo Kato Hiroyuki Takeno Ian Nish Norimasu Morita Christopher Madeley Robin Mountfield Ian Nish Norimasa Morita
IV EXP B.ENV V III IX V EXP J.ENV V VI VI VI VIII
Sydney Giffard
II
Roger Buckley
I
Peter Milward Hiroko Tomida Eiji Seki Carmen Blacker Phillida Purvis Neil Pedlar Eiri Saitõ Noboru Koyama Fujiko Hara
xxxi
IV IX J.ENV (quoted in) EXP II VIII III VIII IV V
BRITAIN & JAPAN: BIOGRAPHICAL PORTRAITS VOLUME IX
Pakenham, Captain (later Admiral) W.C. Palmer, Harold E.
John Chapman Richard C. Smith and Imura Motomichi Jiro Higuchi Hugh Cortazzi Hugh Cortazzi Toshio Watanabe Ann Trotter C.Maddeley
Palmer, Henry Spencer Parker, Sir Peter Parkes, Sir Harry Parsons, Alfred Patrick, William Donald (Lord) Penniall, Albert James Perry, Sir Michael Pfeiffer, Susanne Piggott, Sir F.T. (and Maj. Gen F.S.G.) Piggott, Maj. Gen F.S.G. Pilcher, Sir John Pinnell, Alan Plant Collectors in Japan, Early Plomer, William Plunkett, Sir Francis Ponsonby-Fane, Richard Ponting, Herbert George Potter, Beatrix Powell, Anthony Powers, David Purvis, Christopher Purvis, Phillida
Carmen Blacker Antony Best Hugh Cortazzi Amanda Herries Louis Allen Hugh Cortazzi Dorothy Britton Terry Bennett George Wallace
Radbourne, Lew Rattler, HMS, Loss of Redman, Sir Vere Reed, Sir Edward Return of Japan’s Lost Telescope after 400 Years, The Riddell, Hannah Ridsdale, Sir Julian Ripley, Eddie Robertson-Scott, J.W. Robinson, Basil Robinson, Peter Roll, Eric Rosebery, Lord Rothschild, Edmund Rowing (as a sport-see Strange, F.W.) Royal Alliance: Court Diplomacy Royal Visits to Japan in the Meiji Period
xxxii
Hugh Cortazzi Hugh Cortazzi Hugh Cortazzi Sean Curtin Julia Boyd Dugald Barr Mari Nakami Yahya Abdelsamad Martin Gordon Ian Nish Jun Kochi Antony Best Hugh Cortazzi
V IV IV VI and EXP I and B.ENV IX VIII III EXP EXP T&P and EXP VIII III and B.ENV EXP IV T&P IV and B.ENV II IV VIII EXP EXP EXP EXP EXP V II (also EXP) VII IX II VII and EXP EXP II V EXP VI VII EXP VIII VI II
BIOGRAPHICAL PORTRAITS AND MEMOIRS IN JAPAN SOCIETY VOLUMES
Rugby Football in Japan Rundall, Sir Francis Russell Cotes, Sir Merton and Anne Russell, Bertrand Russo-Japanese War, British Naval and Military Observers
Alison Nish Hugh Cortazzi Shaun Garner Toshihiko Miura Philip Towle
Saitõ Makoto Saitõ Takeshi Sakurai Jo¯ji Salisbury, Lord Sameshima Naonobu in J.Envoys 1862-72 Sannomiya Yoshitane (in Three Meiji Marriages) Sansbury, Bishop Kenneth Sansom, Sir George
Tadashi Kuramatsu Hisaaki Yamanouchi Yoshiyuki Kikuchi Thomas. G. Otte Hugh Cortazzi
Audrey Sansbury Talks Gordon Daniels
Sargent, John Satow, Sir Ernest
Various Peter Kornicki
Satow, Sir Ernest as Minister in Tokyo (See also Japan Consular correspondence in Satow’s papers in supplement to bibliography in VIII) Scotch Whisky in Japan Scott, Sir Robert Heatlie Scott-Stokes, Henry Sempill, Lord Sessue Hayakawa Shakespeare, Three Great Japanese Translators of Shand, Alexander Alan
Ian Ruxton
Shaw, Alexander Croft (with Bickersteth, Edward) Shaw, George Bernard Shigemitsu, Mamoru Shimamura Ho¯getsu Shirasu Jiro¯ Showa Emperor (His State Visit to Britain) Simon, Sir John Sitwell, Sacheverell Sladen, Douglas Soseki, Natsume (and the PreRaphaelites)
Noboru Koyama
Stuart Jack Peter Lowe Antony Best Norimasa Morita Peter Milward Olive Checkland and Norio Tamaki Hamish Ion Bernard F. Dukore Antony Best Norimasa Morita Eiichiro Tokumoto Hugh Cortazzi Antony Best Hugh Cortazzi Sammy Tsunematsu
xxxiii
III B.ENV and EXP VII VII III
III VIII IX VIII J.ENV IV IX T&P and B.ENV IX T&P and B.ENV IV and B.ENV
IX VII EXP IV IX V II III VII J.ENV and II IX IX VI IX EXP VIII III
BRITAIN & JAPAN: BIOGRAPHICAL PORTRAITS VOLUME IX
Spender, Sir Stephen Spring Rice, Sir Cecil Stains, Ian, de Stephenson, Commander (later Admiral Sir Henry) in Loss of HMS Rattler Stopes, Marie Storry, Richard Strange, F.W (and the introduction into Japan of Rowing as a sport) Suematsu Kencho¯ Summers, James Sutherland, William B. Sutton, Frederick William Swan, Peter Swire, John Samuel Takahashi Korekiyo (see Gold Standard, Japan’s Adoption of) Takaki Kanehiro Taki Handa
Ian Nish Hugh Cortazzi
Carmen Blacker Ian Nish Jun Kochi Ian Ruxton Noboru Koyama Monika Bincsik Sebastian Dobson Charlotte Bleasdale
Jerry K Matsumura Jill Raggett, Yuka Kajihara-Nolan & Jason Nolan Tani Yukio (see Judo Pioneers) Richard Bowen Tatsuno Kingo Ian Ruxton Tattooists and the British Royal Family Noboru Koyama Tennis, (British contribution to Tennis Keiko Itoh in Japan) Terashima Munenori Andrew Cobbing Thatcher, Margaret Hugh Cortazzi Thorne, Ben Three Ages of British Kendo: The Paul Budden Introduction of a Unique Sporting and Cultural Activity Thurley, Keith Nicholas MacLean Thwaite, Anthony Tilley, Sir John Harumi Goto-Shibata Tiltman, Hessell Roger Buckley To¯go¯ Heihachiro¯ Kiyoshi Ikeda Tokyo, December 1941, a memoir Douglas Busk Tomimoto Kenkichi Hugh Cortazzi Tomlin, Frederick Toynbee, Arnold Louis Turner Toyoda Sho¯ichiro Toyoda Sho¯ichiro Tracy, Honor Trench, Hon. Henry Le Poer Hugh Cortazzi Trenchard, Hugh (Lord)
xxxiv
EXP VII EXP V
T&P V and EXP VIII V III VIII IV EXP IV
V VIII
V VII VI VIII J.ENV and V IX EXP IX
VII EXP IV and B.ENV V and EXP I VII VIII EXP VII VI EXP B.ENV EXP
BIOGRAPHICAL PORTRAITS AND MEMOIRS IN JAPAN SOCIETY VOLUMES
Tsubouchi Sho¯yo¯ Tuck, Captain Oswald Tuohy, Frank Tyndale, Walter
Brian Powell Sue Jarvis David Burleigh Toni Huberman
Ueno Kagenori
Andrew Cobbing and Inozuka Takaaki Libby Horner Douglas Farnie Sebastian Dobson Hugh Cortazzi
Urushibara Mokuchu¯ Utley, Freda Utsunomiya Tarõ Uyeno Yutaka Van der Post, Sir Laurens Veitch, John Gould (in Early Plant Collectors in Japan) Waley, Arthur Warner, Simone (Lady Warner) Waters, T.P. Webb, Sydney and Beatrice Wedderburn, Gren Wells Coates Weston, Walter Whitehead, Carolyn (Lady Whitehead) Whitehead, Sir John Wilford, Sir Michael Wilkinson, Ann Wilkinson, David Wilkinson, Sir Hiram Shaw Williamson, Bill Wingate, Michael Wirgman, Charles Wood, Christopher Woolf, Virginia Wright, Sir David Wright, Edward William Barton (in Judo Pioneers) Yamamoto Yao Yamanaka Sadajirõ Yamanashi Katsunoshin (Admiral) Yamao Yo¯zo¯ Yanada Senji Yanaihara Tadao Yate VC, Major C.A.L.
Amanda Herries
Philip Harries Neil Jackson Colin Holmes Anna Basham Hamish Ion
Chris Roberts
John Clark Noriko Kubota Richard Bowen
Gordon Daniels Monden Sonoko Haruko Fukuda Andrew Cobbing Sadao Oba and Anne Kaneko Susan Townsend Yahya ShaigiyaAbdelsamad
xxxv
T&P V VI VIII J.ENV VII IV VIII VI EXP IV
T&P EXP VII T&P EXP VII T&P EXP EXP EXP EXP EXP VIII EXP EXP T&P EXP VIII EXP V
IX VIII T&P VII IX IX IX
BRITAIN & JAPAN: BIOGRAPHICAL PORTRAITS VOLUME IX
Yokohama Foreign General Cemetery Yokohama Specie bank in London Yoshida Ken’ichi Yoshida Shigeru Yoshida Shigeru, Visit to London as Prime Minister in 1954 Yoshimoto Tadasu Young, David (Lord) Young, Morgan (in Japan Chronicle) Young, Robert (in Japan Chronicle)
xxxvi
Geraldine Wilcox Keiko Itoh Norimasa Morita Ian Nish Hugh Cortazzi Noboru Koyama Peter O’Connor
Appendix II (a) V V VI J.ENV II VI V EXP IV IV
PART I: JAPAN IN BRITAIN sTHINGS JAPANESE s 1
The Great Japan Exhibition, 1981–1982 NICOLAS MACLEAN
INTRODUCTION
‘The Great Japan Exhibition: Art of the Edo Period 1600–1868’, held at the Royal Academy of Arts in Piccadilly from 24 October 1981 to 21 February 1982,1 was a significant and unprecedented event in UK-Japanese cultural relations. According to the Royal Academy’s Annual Report of 1982 it was the most comprehensive exhibition ever devoted to its subject, even in Japan itself. With a budget of over £2m in Britain alone, (much more including Japanese expenses), and installation costs of over £400,000, the exhibition was the most expensive ever organized by the Royal Academy. In spite of misfortunes such as transport strikes and serious disruption caused by snow, over 523,000 paid visits to the exhibition took place.2 This was one of the highest attendances ever achieved in the history of the Royal Academy. The exhibition, which attracted extensive media coverage, even achieved a small surplus for the Royal Academy of £18,000. 1
BRITAIN & JAPAN: BIOGRAPHICAL PORTRAITS VOLUME IX
Many observers had feared that because of the complexity and cost of the exhibition it could never be mounted. The economic climate in Britain at the time was particularly difficult. BACKGROUND
This was not the first exhibition of Japanese art in Britain. After the success of a small exhibition of Japanese arts and crafts at an exhibition in Pall Mall in 1854 Sir Rutherford Alcock, the first British minister to Japan, had arranged for some Japanese art objects to be displayed at the international exhibition held in London in 1862.3 The Japan-British Exhibition of 1910 displayed an extensive range of Japanese art as well as commercial and industrial products.4 The International Exhibition of Chinese Art at The Royal Academy (28 November 1935–7 March 1936) had proved so popular that several new China-focused faculties were established at British universities largely as a result. The Royal Academy had hoped to follow the success of the Chinese exhibition with a similar major Japan exhibition, but the deteriorating international situation put a stop to this. In 1973/74 the Royal Academy put on an exhibition focused on China’s early dynasties up to and including the Yuan Dynasty (The Genius of China: An Exhibition of Archaeological Finds of the People’s Republic of China, 29 September 1973–23 January 1974). This had proved very popular and led to discussions about holding a Japanese exhibition of comparable quality. In his preface to The Great Japan Exhibition’s catalogue Sir Hugh Casson, the president of the Royal Academy, wrote: It has long been the ambition of the Royal Academy to stage a truly worthy exhibition of Japanese art. The difficulties of realizing such a project have always been daunting and at times seemed almost insurmountable. In 1977 however, encouraged by the enormous success of the Chinese Exhibition held three years before, we decided to have a serious try to realize our dream. A meeting was called to discuss with Professor William Watson – who had masterminded the Chinese Exhibition – what was to be the concept and how it could best be achieved. The aim was quickly agreed. It was to be something more spectacular than just an exhibition of Japanese Art Treasures – but something of a quality and scale that had never been attempted before, even in Japan. With the help of our advisory scholars we decided to concentrate upon the art of the Edo period between 1600 and 1868 when Japan was closed to the outside world and developed a highly individual society of its own – shown in such a way that the fascinating development and characteristics of that society could easily be understood by the visitor.
2
THE GREAT JAPAN EXHIBITION, 1981–1982
Formal and successful contacts were established with the Japanese Ambassador in London and shortly afterwards I visited Japan with Professor Watson. Our proposals were received by our Japanese colleagues with the greatest interest, but also with some scepticism as to whether so ambitious a plan could ever be realized. The difficulties (not only financial) were immense. The Japanese guard their culture with an admirable jealousy and many of the greatest works of art, particularly the great paintings on screens and sliding doors, are of a fragility, which makes any Western painting seem hardy in comparison. Yet all were agreed that unless major masterpieces of Japanese painting could be obtained the essential point of the exhibition would be invalidated. Our hope after all was to make the names of the great painters of Japan, Korin, Sotatsu, Okyo, Rosetsu and others as famous in England as the great printmakers, Utamaro, Hokusai and Hiroshige. PLANNING AND PREPARATION
The Royal Academy wanted to achieve a significant artistic success, which would help it extend its coverage of the world’s great cultures. Professor Watson, director of the Percival David Foundation, University of London, who had been appointed as curator of the exhibition, determined to achieve the highest quality exhibits. He was assisted by a small academic committee consisting of Lawrence Smith, keeper of Oriental Antiquities at the British Museum and Dr Oliver Impey, assistant keeper, Department of Eastern Art, Ashmolean Museum, Oxford. They were later joined by Joe Earle, assistant keeper, Far Eastern Department, Victoria & Albert Museum.5 The committee wanted to be innovative in their exploration of Japanese history during the period of Japan’s virtual closure to the Western world from 1638 to 1853 and to explain the true roots of modern Japan, thus disproving the then prevalent myth that Japan had only succeeded in the twentieth century by copying. The most serious problem was funding. Both the private and public sectors were under great pressure and many academicians thought it unwise for the Royal Academy, which was proud of its tradition of not asking for, or receiving, a public subsidy, to contemplate trying to raise funds for such a blockbuster exhibition. The Royal Academy accordingly decided to set up a high-level policy committee, comprising some of the ‘great and the good’, including Sir Denis Hamilton, then editor-in-chief and chairman of Times Newspapers Limited, who had co-sponsored Professor Watson’s Chinese exhibition at the Royal Academy.6
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The academic committee prepared a wish-list including some National Treasures and many Important Cultural Objects, the top two categories listed in the inventory of Japan’s national heritage by the Agency for Cultural Affairs (Bunkacho), which was responsible to the Ministry of Education, Science and Culture. This list, which was presented to the Bunkacho through the Japanese embassy in London and the foreign ministry, was startlingly ambitious. At the same time the credibility of the British demands was called into question by the fact that Times Newspapers had turned down sponsorship, and no willing sponsors or donors had been identified. Although the Japanese economy was resurgent, the Japanese authorities remained cautious, and some doubted the benefit to Japan of portraying what seemed to them an old and hackneyed image rather than that of the modern high-tech Japan. They were not persuaded by the argument that the British public would be more interested in Japan’s rich and colourful cultural roots and that the new high-tech Japan could come later. The impasse was unblocked by the agreement of Midland Bank, which had taken over Samuel Montagu, a firm of merchant bankers, where I was then an assistant director, to act as prime sponsor of the exhibition.7 Midland Bank, now part of HSBC, became prime sponsor, underwriting the exhibition against any loss as lead underwriter to the tune of £125,000, although they insisted that everything possible should be done to ensure that the Royal Academy should at least break even. They wanted a sponsorship group of other British companies interested in Japan to be formed with £100,000 underwriting stakes. After other British sponsors proved reluctant to engage, Midland agreed to take the front-end risk, so that additional sponsors would only by drawn on if losses of over £125,000 were incurred. Midland Bank then made a further gesture, offering to pay £125,000 to the Royal Academy immediately on an interest free basis to assist the cash flow of the exhibition. The impasse had, however, still not been unblocked, as the Japanese had not yet accepted the British proposal. Geoffrey Taylor of Midland Bank and I were invited to join the policy committee and I was appointed coordinator8 for the exhibition.9 The then Japanese Ambassador in London, Kato¯ Tadao,10 was a firm supporter from the beginning and had been encouraged by the enthusiasm for the project shown by Hugh Cortazzi, (later Sir Hugh), then deputy under-secretary in the Foreign and Commonwealth Office and from 1980 to 1984 British ambassador to Japan. Showa Shell Sekiyu KK became the second sponsor. Other sponsors were John Swire & Sons, Overseas Containers Limited and The Observer, Britain’s oldest Sunday newspaper.11
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His Imperial Highness The Crown Prince of Japan and His Royal Highness The Prince of Wales agreed to become joint patrons. A Committee of Honour was also established and included the two Prime Ministers: Suzuki Zenko and Margaret Thatcher.12 Parallel policy and executive committees were formed in Japan. The Japan Foundation13 agreed to cover local costs in Japan and part of certain shared costs such as air transport. Some works of art were considered too fragile or too precious to be allowed to travel. The conservation sub-committee had to take important early decisions on the conditions of light, heat and humidity required to preserve the art objects and as far as possible to simulate Japanese conditions. Works on paper were especially fragile.14 As Japan tends to be much more humid than Britain, there were debates on ways to reproduce appropriately moist conditions.15 The British Government indemnified the exhibition under the National Heritage Act 1980, in case of claims by lenders. The Japanese insisted early on that 80% of the exhibits could only be displayed for two months due to conservation concerns. Losing over a week in late December for the changeover would add to costs and reduce revenue, although the Christmas period was normally one of the quietest. A few exhibits had to be changed each month. However, the Japanese insistence on having a permanent team of over ten Japanese curators meant that the specialist manpower was on hand for changing exhibits.16 A further issue was design. The Royal Academy had asked the Japanese side to provide a designer, and the Japan Foundation chose the renowned architect Kurokawa Kisho. He understood traditional Edo Japan well, but wanted to make a modernist statement.17 As Kurokawa was mainly an architect, he brought with him a designer, Awazu Kiyoshi. Together they put forward a nezu-iro scheme in grey felt as the background for all objects to be displayed.18 Some of Kurokawa’s more grandiose ideas were vetoed by the finance sub-committee. There was much concern that the exhibition might never be built on time, as Japanese architects usually draw specifications more broadly than British workmen were used to. So a leading British architect, Alan Irvine, was appointed by the Royal Academy in order to bridge the cultural differences. He got on well with Kurokawa, and with the help of excellent exhibition construction by the regular Royal Academy contractor Ivor Heal the exhibition was ready on time and looked magnificent. The Academic Committee were concerned by the lack of a really superstar item. At last a star item was found on a visit to Japan – a tiger painted by Nagasawa Rosetsu on sliding doors in a temple in Kushimoto at the tip of the Kii peninsula.
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This was designated as an ‘Important Cultural Property’ and therefore special permission had to be obtained for it to be exhibited.19 The Great Japan Exhibition’s ‘star’ exhibit, which was eventually displayed on merchandised mugs and thousands of postcards, was one of the exhibition’s most memorable and immediately accessible examples of the skill, humanity, and humour of Japanese art.20 Other ‘star’ items included eight vibrant and colourful paintings by Itõ Jakuchu, which were so striking that all eight were made into posters for the exhibition. These came from the Imperial collections. In the event merchandise yielded a significant profit for the exhibition budget of over £100,000.21 Costs inevitably rose for such a prestigious exhibition and there were repeated fears that the whole exhibition might have to be cancelled. The security and safety of the objects to be borrowed were paramount. Fortunately Dawson International, the Scottish cashmere company, agreed to pledge £100,000 in the name of their subsidiary Pringle of Scotland.22 British Airways agreed to take on the role of sole carrier, which reduced costs by some £60,000 while Grand Metropolitan Hotels agreed to accommodate all the Japanese curators and other visiting officials at the five star Britannia Hotel in Grosvenor Square saving about another £50,000. In the final year before the exhibition opened an excellent educational programme including school visits to the exhibition was planned.23 6
THE GREAT JAPAN EXHIBITION, 1981–1982
Two paintings by Ito Jakuchu: Domestic fowl and chrysanthemum by a stream
THE EXHIBITION
Exhibits included fine examples of painting, calligraphy, ceramics, embroidered textiles, sculpture, lacquer, armour, sword blades and mounts, furniture, even scientific and musical instruments. There were also good examples of the wood-block prints, books and albums, inro and netsuke typical of the Edo Period and already well known in Britain. These latter were described as the minor arts, and it was undoubtedly the major arts such as the paintings, ceramics and textiles that were to prove a revelation to the British public. The paintings in particular made the greatest impact and broke new ground in European consciousness. Leading art critics commented favourably on the way The Great Japan Exhibition portrayed room by room, in a logical, chronological sequence, the changing decades of artistic development during the Edo Period, following two introductory Momoyama period galleries (1568–1600). At the start was art strongly influenced by Confucianism and in part Chinese painting traditions, moving through the splendour 7
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of the Genroku period of the late seventeenth century, to examples of the impact of the Dutch learning (Rangaku) with Western style paintings and use of perspective. Galleries 3 and 4 focused on Early Edo (1600–1687), galleries 5 to 7 on High Edo (1688–1750), galleries 8 and 9 on Middle Edo (1751–1803) and galleries 10 and 11 on Late Edo (1804–1868). The lecture room had a special section on entertainment, including some erotica, and the architecture room covered the theme ‘town and country’. In the central hall the brilliant silk Noh costumes formed a pièce de résistance. The exhibition was opened by HIH Princess Chichibu and HRH Princess Alexandra. Princess Chichibu24 commented on the magnitude and beauty of the exhibition. In all, there were 112 different lenders, all but six from Japan. Great credit is due to the Bunkacho and their associates and to the Japan Foundation, who must have overcome countless hurdles in Japan to allow the historic success of The Great Japan Exhibition to be achieved.25 THE CATALOGUE
Every one of the 500 or so items had to be minutely described for the Catalogue. Despite the high-cost strategy ninety-six fine colour pages, printed in Italy, were included in the catalogue. The catalogue was published by the Royal Academy in association with Weidenfeld and Nicolson and remains a valuable introduction to the art of the Edo period. As well as all the exhibition’s art objects, the catalogue contained a number of prefaces and explanatory essays.26 The price of the catalogue was kept down to ensure that the exhibition had a long-term impact. This caused some problems.27 RELATED EVENTS: THE JAPAN IN BRITAIN PROGRAMME
A programme of roughly 300 events around the United Kingdom, linked to The Great Japan Exhibition, was organized28 both to help increase the focus on Japan during the exhibition and to maximize attendance. ASSESSMENT
The Japan Foundation had taken a far-sighted strategic decision to concentrate a disproportionate amount of its global 1981/82 budget on the United Kingdom and in particular on the exhibition project, in order to achieve a breakthrough in understanding. In his preface to the catalogue Hayashi Kentaro¯, President of The Japan Foundation, wrote that he had been deeply impressed to read of the great zeal with which British people had sought to understand 8
THE GREAT JAPAN EXHIBITION, 1981–1982
things Japanese over seventy years earlier through The Japan-British Exhibition of 1910, whose press coverage he had been reviewing. He hoped that similar enthusiasm would help the British people understand Japan better through the insights into a period in recent Japanese history when almost every phase of economic and cultural life was shaped by the values of the Japanese people themselves dominated by the two-and-a-half centuries of virtual isolation. It had been in the Edo Period that the foundations were laid for Japan’s later economic and technological development in the late nineteenth and the whole of the twentieth century. Many VIPs at national and local level visited the exhibition and were as moved by it as Kenneth Clark, the great art historian, had been by the 1910 exhibition. Former Prime Minister Edward Heath acted as tour guide round the exhibition for the weekly television arts programme presented by Barry Norman and watched by millions. The Mayor of Gillingham in Kent brought a delegation. His town had been the birthplace of William Adams, the first Englishman in Japan (Miura Anjin), in 1564. Princess Chichibu’s father, the then Ambassador Matsudaira Tsuneo, had unveiled a memorial clock tower to Adams in Gillingham in 1934.29 Press coverage was almost without exception laudatory, although some commentators inconsistently criticized the Japanese for leaving a huge burden of sponsorship on the shoulders of British companies when Japanese companies were displacing the British on many world markets. In their view The Great Japan Exhibition and related Japan in Britain Programme had transformed Japan’s previously negative image in Britain. They seemed generally unaware of the huge budget expended by the Japan Foundation on the exhibition’s many preparatory costs in Japan. Nor did they seem to recognize the value to Britain to be derived in the future from a more balanced partnership. The Great Japan Exhibition cannot claim all the credit for the improvement in the climate of opinion that followed nor for the increase in Japanese studies in Britain, including study in specialist areas such as arts education, but it undoubtedly made a difference and acted as a catalyst. The business sponsors had shown great courage and wisdom in backing the project at a time of rising unemployment at home and heightened economic woes. Yet in turn the change of atmosphere from one of complaining about Japan to one of learning about Japan and seeking partnerships laid useful cultural foundations for the significant increase in Japanese direct investment in Britain during the 1980s.30 It also provided cultural backing for the continuing efforts to expand British exports to Japan through, for example, the ‘Opportunity Japan’ and ‘Priority Japan’ campaigns. 9
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The Great Japan Exhibition opened many eyes to some of the great achievements of Japanese art and culture.31 ENDNOTES 1
2
3
4
5
6
7
There was a break from 20 to 28 December when four-fifths of the objects were exchanged for similar pieces of comparable quality. (Some very fragile items had to be exchanged every four weeks.) Total attendance was considerably more thanks to multiple visits by Friends of the Royal Academy, who were not counted in that total. See chapter I in Japan in Late Victorian London: The Japanese Village in Knightsbridge and the Mikado, 1885, Sir Hugh Cortazzi, Sainsbury Institute, Norwich, 2009. See for instance Commerce and Culture at the 1910 Japan-British Exhibition: Centenary Perspectives, edited by Ayako Hotta-Lister and Ian Nish, Global Oriental, 2013 Other important academicians involved in the project were Frederick Gore RA, Chairman of the Royal Academy’s exhibitions committee, and still more frequently since he was then treasurer of the Royal Academy and Roger de Grey RA, who later served as President. These were the academicians who served on the twenty-seven-man UK policy committee for the project, a top-level committee that met less frequently than the eighteen-person UK executive committee. The UK policy committee was chaired by Sir Hugh Casson, with Norman Rosenthal as secretary. The UK executive committee was chaired by Sidney Hutchison, with Annette Bradshaw, Norman Rosenthal’s chief assistant in the RA’s exhibitions office as secretary. The Japanese side later set up a fourteen-man policy committee and a thirteen-person executive committee. Other senior members of the Royal Academy’s staff who served on the executive committee, in addition to Sidney Hutchison, Norman Rosenthal and Annette Bradshaw, were Laurie Bray, registrar, Griselda Hamilton-Baillie, assistant secretary (public relations), Kenneth J. Tanner, comptroller, Trevor Clark, bursar, and Denis Serjeant, surveyor. Roger de Grey RA was the only academician to serve on the executive Committee In addition to the Royal Academy members mentioned above, the policy committee was expanded to include the Earl of Drogheda, Sir John Figgess, Sir John Keswick, Roderick MacFarquhar, Sir John Pilcher, Sir Julian Ridsdale MP, chairman of the British Japanese parliamentary group, Dr (now Sir) David Wilson, director of the British Museum, and Sir Philip de Zulueta. The policy committee was also joined by the head of Cultural Relations Department at the Foreign and Commonwealth Office, John Morgan, later Sir John, succeeded by J.E.C. Macrae closer to the opening of the exhibition. Sir John Figgess, a member of the policy committee and a keen collector of oriental art, (see biographical portrait by Sir Hugh Cortazzi in Britain and Japan: Biographical Portraits, volume III, edited by J.E. Hoare, Japan Library, 1999) who had served as Britain’s Commissioner General for the Osaka World Exposition in 1970, spoke to me about the 10
THE GREAT JAPAN EXHIBITION, 1981–1982
8
9
10
11
12
Royal Academy’s project. He said that he felt it shameful for Britain to keep going cap in hand to the Japanese asking for money. I was already involved in politics and in free-lance cultural and educational diplomacy outside my work in project finance as an assistant director at the investment bank Samuel Montagu. I had been interested in Japan since the 1960s and had travelled there frequently on business since 1976. I knew that Midland Bank, which had bought Samuel Montagu, had recently opened a branch in Tokyo, and I thought that there might be a mutual interest with the Royal Academy, if sponsorship could raise the bank’s profile in Japan and help build useful relationships. Figgess soon arranged an exploratory meeting with Sir Hugh Casson at the Royal Academy, after which I discussed the possibility of sponsorship with Geoffrey Taylor, Director and Deputy Chief Executive of Midland Bank Group and with Managing Director, John Harris. They quickly saw the potential business benefits of the proposal, but insisted that I should micro-manage the Midland Bank’s commitment. The bank had never before sponsored any similar project, let alone on that scale. Taylor’s adviser Brian Quinn, managing director of Visnews Limited, also joined the policy committee. Alan Macdonald, manager, press and external affairs at Midland Bank International, and I joined the executive committee. Sub-committees were formed for the catalogue, for conservation, for content and design, for finance, for merchandise, for publicity, and eventually for the sponsors, once the consortium was completed. Only Norman Rosenthal and I served on all of these, though not on the academic committee, which usually maintained fierce independence. Professor Watson chaired the sub-committees for the catalogue and for content and design, Lawrence Smith the sub-committee for conservation, Brian Quinn the sub-committee for finance, Laurie Bray the sub-committee for merchandise, Griselda Hamilton-Baillie the sub-committee for publicity, and Christopher Hammond, a director of Midland Bank International, the sponsors’ committee. Some academics wanted the dates 1600–1867 or 1603–1867 or 1615–1868. However, 1600–1868 won through on the third vote, as it sounded crisper and more memorable and 1600 marked the start of Anglo-Japanese relations. This was the year in which William Adams, the English pilot of the Dutch ship Liefde, arrived in Japan. Support was also given on the Japanese side by among others Hanabusa Masamichi, (later ambassador to Italy), Mrs Aso Kazuko and Nagayama Osamu. The policy committee was expanded to include Tom Ross for Shell, Graham McCallum, director of John Swire, Antony Butterwick, director of OCL, and Brian Nicholson, joint managing director of The Observer. Other members of the committee of honour were the two Foreign Ministers: Sonoda Sunao and Lord Carrington, the two Ambassadors: Fujiyama Naraichi and Sir Hugh Cortazzi, the Commissioner of the Bunkacho, Sano Bunichirõ, and Sir Hugh Casson, PRA, and the two principal funders: Hayashi Kentaro¯, President of The Japan Foundation, and Sir David Barran, Chairman of Midland Bank Limited. 11
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13
14
15
16
17
18
19
Its staff who steered through this decision and later implemented it included Date Kuniyoshi, managing director, Tanaka Tetsuo, executive director, Inoue Masaru, head, Arts Department, Iseki Masaaki, head, Exhibition Division, Amemiya Natsuo, director, London Office, Sue Henny, assistant head, London Office, and Ogo Hayato and Inai Miyoko, from the Arts Department. Some had to be exposed to no more than 50 lumen, compared to the maximum for others of 150 lumen. The British were used to silica gel and the Japanese to nikka pellets. Sensible compromises were generally agreed. Board and lodging for the curators had been estimated far too low in early budgets. Increasing numbers of budget items proved to have been under-estimated. The previous complex, blockbuster exhibitions co-sponsored by Times Newspapers turned out to have been managed by an outside specialist company, Carlton Cleve, rather than by the Royal Academy. When the British side explored the idea of having a traditional, red Shinto shrine gateway (torii) in the Burlington House courtyard (provided the learned societies who share that space agreed), Kurokawa insisted that it must be an avant-garde aluminium arch, squared off rather than gracefully leaning inward. The British side therefore restricted Kurokawa’s domain to the inside of the Royal Academy, and late in the day it was through a British initiative working through personal friends in Japan that stylish traditional temple lanterns with large Japanese characters painted on them were commissioned in Kyoto and flown to London in time to cover the whole of the Piccadilly façade. This persuasively advertised the attractions awaiting visitors to the exhibition, and these lanterns looked still more beautiful at night, being visible from Constitution Hill and Hyde Park Corner. Their presence contributed significantly to the attendance figures. There were disagreements as to the optimum height at which objects should be displayed, in the expectation that the exhibition might sometimes be very crowded. (On the last day there were 10,000 visitors and the daily average was often around 5,000.) Kurokawa had to be convinced to take into account that the average visitor in Britain would be taller than what he was used to. Another skirmish was when a British proposal to make the logo for the exhibition a traditional Edo Period mon or heraldic family crest was vetoed by Kurokawa as showing traditional Japan in a clichéd way. So Awazu cleverly took a detail from one ¯ kyo’s screens of the great paintings to be displayed, a sprig of pine from O of ‘Pines in Snow’, and that became the logo. The background to how this ‘star attraction was found is as follows. Lawrence Smith, Norman Rosenthal and I set out for Japan in ‘golden week’. Smith arranged for the group of three to stay with friends of his in the small town of Kushimoto in Wakayama Prefecture at the southern tip of the Kii Peninsular. Nagasawa Rosetsu had painted amazing sliding doors, for the local Zen temple of Muryõji. The three of us spent several days in Kushimoto. Our hosts, hereditary guardians of the temple, kindly showed us the sliding doors several times. 12
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20
21
22
23
24
25
26
The wonderful, playful and even cuddly tiger took our breath away. The tiger, an Important Cultural Property, had never travelled abroad, even to the great Berlin or Washington exhibitions, although it was undoubtedly one of Rosetsu’s masterpieces. On his return to London, Lawrence Smith tentatively raised with his friends in Kushimoto the possibility of the tiger becoming the star exhibit for the exhibition. With full support from its owners, who expressed their gratitude for the lighthouse built by the British at the tip of the Kii peninsula during the Meiji Period, which had saved many lives, the loan was agreed and approved by the Bunkacho. Because it had never travelled before and was not restrictively listed, the Royal Academy was allowed to display it for both halves of the exhibition, which made sound commercial sense. Lady Casson, Griselda Hamilton-Baillie and other members of the sixteen-person merchandise sub-committee were keen to achieve high sales revenues but in keeping with the prestigious image of the Royal Academy. Several potential suppliers of merchandise for the exhibition shop could only show the sub-committee samples of rather tacky, low grade goods, but Christina Smith, then known as ‘the Queen of Covent Garden’ and with a successful shop in that area selling Japanese goods, guided the Royal Academy and masterminded an outstandingly stylish retail operation for The Great Japan Exhibition. It was not only the mugs with Rosetsu’s lovable black and white tiger which became best-sellers. John Waterton, Group Marketing Director of Dawson International, joined the Policy Committee and Gordon Farquharson and Jeannie Fraser-Allen from Pringle of Scotland the Sponsors’ Committee. A children’s book linked to the exhibition Journey into Japan 1600–1868 was published by Paul Norbury publications. She asked me as exhibition coordinator for the sponsors ‘How did you all do it? It would have been impossible to bring all these different lenders together in Japan.’ The names of the main Japanese organizers should be remembered: Sasaki Johei, associate professor, Kyoto University (now head of the Kyoto National Museum), Suzuki Tomoya, director, restoration technique research department, Tokyo National Research Institute of Cultural Properties, (as many objects lent first had to be restored), and from the Fine Arts Division of the Bunkacho Hiroi Yuichi, chief researcher on applied arts, Washizuka Hiromitsu, chief researcher on sculpture, Shinbo Tohru and Yamamoto Nobuyoshi, chief researchers on Cultural Property, also at strategic level Nishikawa Kyotaro, director of the Fine Arts Division, Kitamura Tetsuro, councillor on Cultural Properties, Furumura Sumiichi, director-general, Cultural Properties Protection Department, Yamanaka Masahiro, deputy commissioner, all at the Bunkacho. The catalogue contained prefaces by the President of The Japan Foundation and the President of The Royal Academy, a foreword by me (then called Nicolas Wolfers) as exhibition coordinator for the sponsors, essays on ‘Edo Japan: politics and foreign relations’ by Professor W.G. Beasley, 13
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27
28
29
30
31
on ‘Society and economy in the Edo period’ by Professor Bito Masahide, and on ‘Art in Momoyama and Edo’ by Professor William Watson. It also had a table of Japanese Historical Periods and of Era Names (nengo) of the Momoyama and Edo periods, a bibliography, a glossary, an index of artists and an index of lenders. I was able to obtain a grant worth around £50,000 from the Osaka Banpaku Kinen, the Commemorative Association for the Japan World Exposition of 1970 (Expo’ 70). A further contribution to production costs was kindly made by the Metropolitan Center for Far Eastern Art Studies, as well as by the Yoshida Foundation. This was coordinated by Beth Borchardt of Midland Bank, and the RA printed linked programme leaflets. Twentieth Century Fox asked me to advise them on the promotion of Kurosawa’s new film Kagemusha, set in the Momoyama Period, whose launch coincided with the exhibition, as did that of the film of James Clavell’s Shogun, based on the arrival of William Adams in Japan in 1600 and his subsequent adventures in what was to become the first year of the Edo Period. With the help of Sir John Pilcher and others I was also able to arrange sponsorship by Robert Fleming of a gala week of Kabuki at Sadler’s Wells Theatre, coinciding with the opening of The Great Japan Exhibition. The star and director of the touring company, which visited Britain, was the leading Kabuki actor Ennosuke whom the Japan Foundation described to me as ‘the Robert Redford of Japan’. As a result of the visit to the exhibition Mayor Harry Blease decided to set up the first sister city links between Britain and Japan, which was carried through in April 1982 with the signature of twinning agreements in Yokosuka and Ito, and which are still actively sustained on both sides. This twinning provided a good model for others that have followed. On a micro-historical scale several schools, inspired by Mary-Anne Stevens’ Education Programme at the RA, established extra-curricular Japan Prizes in the wake of The Great Japan Exhibition in order to sustain interest among pupils in a major country too little covered in any regular part of the curriculum. This initiative was further expanded ten years later during the 1991/92 Japan Festival and through the Japan Festival Education Trust, now incorporated into the Japan Society. The BBC also decided to research and broadcast an excellent series for schools introducing Japan. There were even radio taster courses on the Japanese language. Some newspapers spoke of Japanophilia, Japanmania, or a new Japan Wave reminiscent of late nineteenth century and 1910 enthusiasm. Some British cartoonists illustrated this to good effect courtesy of Hokusai. The 1910 exhibition is commemorated by the almost full-sized gateway of the Imperial Messenger (chokushi-mon) in Kew Gardens presented by the Kyoto Traders Association. It would in my view be fitting if the Great Japan exhibition were one day to be commemorated by a traditional Edo style Shinto gateway or torii, nearby in Kew Gardens.
14
2
Haiku in the British Isles: A Tale of Acceptance and Non-acceptance DAVID COBB
FIRST ENCOUNTERS WITH THE FORM
Lafcadio Hearn (1850–1904, native of the British Isles who took Japanese citizenship) and Basil Hall Chamberlain (1850–1935, English Japanese scholar), both writing around the turn of the twentieth century, are thought to be the first to introduce readers in the British Isles to the Japanese haiku. Both employed the older term hokku, rather than ‘haiku’; not a mistake, as the Japanese reformist Masaoki Shiki had only recently preferred the use of ‘haiku’. But they did miss a mark by describing the hokku as ‘the Japanese epigram’. Hearn offers ‘a small selection of hokku’ in his Kwaidan - Stories and Studies of Strange Things (1904); and it is very much as ‘strange things’ he presents these minimalist poems to us. He could use them, he thought, to illustrate ‘Japanese interest in the aesthetic side of the subject’ of butterflies. He has no real belief that the hokku might ever catch on as a form practised by Western poets:
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The taste for Japanese poetry of the epigrammatic sort is a taste that must be slowly acquired; and it is only by degrees, after patient study, that the possibilities of such composition can be fairly estimated. Hasty criticism has declared that to put forward any serious claim on behalf of seventeen syllables ‘would be absurd’.
A hundred years later, James Fenton, Professor of Poetry at Oxford, writing in An Introduction to English Poetry, was still finding the idea of assimilation absurd: The most familiar form of syllabic verse is the haiku, borrowed from the Japanese, in which the poem adds up to seventeen syllables divided into three lines of five, seven and five syllables respectively. To me this seems like an oriental tradition which, however enthusiastically adopted (particularly in schools, I find), is unlikely to have an equivalent effect in the West. A bit like the tea ceremony.
This essay will seek to convince the reader that Fenton’s opinion is far from the truth. Lafcadio Hearn’s versions take the form of a single sentence of prose, not formally presented as a monostich. The tone is distinctly elegiac and he uses conventions that today’s English haiku poet would consider bad taste: projection (pathetic fallacy); exclamation marks – Hearn even imposes them on his transliterations of Japanese haiku; capital letters at the start of each line; ‘stagey’ interjections such as ‘ah!’ and ‘oh!’ Kaga no tori Cho¯ wo urayama Metsuki kana! ‘Ah, the sad expression in the eyes of that caged bird! – envying the butterfly!’
Hearn interprets haiku for his readers, inserting extra information or syntactical devices that are not explicit in the Japanese originals. The following with an ‘open simile’ is an example: Nugi-kakuru Haori sugata no Kocho¯ kana! ‘Like a haori being taken off – that is the shape of a butterfly!’
We may find little in what Hearn and Chamberlain have to say that will enthuse or inform the contemporary writer of English-language haiku. Yet we may be grateful to these pioneers for distinguishing the 16
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worth of the form, as well as the ingenuity and sensitivity needed to compose haiku. INFLUENCES AT THE START OF THE TWENTIETH CENTURY
It is not clear whether Hearn’s and Basil Hall Chamberlain’s writings were known to Ezra Pound (1885–1973, American poet who became virtually an adoptive European). But, among his group of poetic friends in London, Pound heatedly discussed the virtues of the Japanese aesthetic and how they might reinvigorate English poetry. Pound made frequent trips to Paris, e.g. in 1910, and maybe it was there he discovered something of this aesthetic, perhaps intuiting it from Impressionist paintings. Japonisme was everywhere. As Vincent Van Gogh wrote to his sister (1888): ‘I have no need for Japanese art, for I always tell myself that I am here in Japan, and that consequently I have only to open my eyes.’ Pound’s enthusiasm was the impetus for the Imagist Movement. The movement was short-lived (its heyday 1912–1915) but left as its monument the Imagist Manifesto. Imagists signed up to these principles: 1. Direct treatment of the thing, whether subjective or objective. 2. Using absolutely no word that does not contribute to the presentation. 3. As regards rhythm, composing in the sequence of the musical phrase, not in the sequence of a metronome. 4. Choosing content freely. 5. Allowing images to speak for themselves, not ‘telling’.
These are principles today’s poets writing haiku in English have encapsulated in their own shorthand: ‘directness’, ‘brevity’, ‘presence’, ‘using the language and idioms of everyday speech’, ‘avoiding flagrant poetic expressions’, ‘showing, not telling’.
Ezra Pound 17
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William Carlos Williams
Pound also invented the term ‘super-positioning’; one imagines he had read somewhere about the Japanese technique of kireji. He was proposing a form of juxtaposition which allows two phrases, set side by side, to be appreciated not only in their own right, but also in tandem, when contact between them may yield other impressions, possibly as a result of ‘lateral intuition’. He illustrated his principle with a rare haiku that is now hallowed in English haiku history: In a Station of the Metro (1913) The apparition of these faces in the crowd; Petals on a wet, black bough.
Pound did not call this a haiku; today’s haiku poets might think it is in the spirit of haiku but not a model of how one should be made. They might convert it into a three-liner by incorporating the title as the first line (titles are anathema anyway); they would eliminate the punctuation. But the principle of ‘super-positioning’ is still inspirational. Pound found a disciple in William Carlos Williams (American, 1881–1963) with whom he discussed Imagism. By the early 1920s Williams was applying Imagistic principles, and adding his own maxims to the Manifesto: 1. No ideas but in things 2. The invisibility of the poet 3. Use of the ‘montage’ effect. A MISSED OPPORTUNITY?
It may surprise us that Imagism did not immediately result in a surge of haiku composition. The outbreak of the Great War in 1914 turned poets’ attention elsewhere. War poets found it appropriate to 18
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R.H. Blyth
demolish the inglorious idea of dulce et decorum est pro patria mori by employing the same metrical forms. The poet Edward Thomas, who owned a copy of Lafcadio Hearn’s Japanese Letters, and had published a memoir about Hearn, was one who fell in Flanders. When the war ended, T.S. Eliot ushered in Modernism with The Waste Land. We cannot name any poets of distinction in the British Isles who engaged seriously, or even frivolously, with haiku between the two World Wars. THE ‘DELAYED COMING’ AFTER THE SECOND WORLD WAR
Reginald Horace Blyth1 (1898–1964) born in Leyton, England, known universally as R.H. Blyth, teacher of English literature in Japan from 1925 until his death) is likely to have attended the biweekly poetry readings at the Poetry Bookshop in London’s West End where the Imagists gathered. It is amazing that it was during Blyth’s captivity as an enemy alien during the Second World War that he wrote many of the books that refuelled interest in Japanese poetry in the 1960s. In 1942 Blyth had published Zen in English Literature and Oriental Classics. The same year he was interned, but allowed access to his library so that even in captivity he was able to continue work on his four-volume Haiku, which appeared in serial fashion 1949 to 1952. The two-volume History of Haiku followed in 1963. In the final chapter of its second volume Blyth mused; ‘the last development in the history of haiku is one which nobody foresaw – the writing of haiku outside Japan, not in the Japanese language.’ Though ‘the haiku form is a simple and yet deeply “natural” form’, he foresaw that, like other forms borrowed by English poetry in the past, it would necessarily undergo changes as it was indigenized. The need for this 19
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was finally recognized by the Japanese themselves, in the Matsuyama Declaration of 1999, signed by leading scholar-poets, including Arima Akito, sometime Japanese Minister of Education and Culture, himself an acclaimed poet; Kaneko Tohta, the ‘grand old man’ of Japanese haiku; and Ueda Makoto, Professor Emeritus at Stanford, USA. The Declaration begins: ‘Haiku is a part of world literature. It is now on the verge of broadening the possibilities of a rich array of poetic forms in the world.’ The authors of the Declaration actually envisage a situation in which haiku from other countries and cultures may help to rescue Japanese haiku from stagnation. In Britain, Blyth’s books were reviewed in a dignified way by The Times Literary Supplement. In North America, poets of the Beat Movement (1958–1962), foremost of all Jack Kerouac, embraced them as revelations of a new way of life. Blyth’s insistence on the connection between haiku and Zen Buddhism, first appearing in Zen in English Classics, had a powerful attraction for people already gripped by existentialism. Blyth prized ‘artlessness’, a quality he found exemplified by Wordsworth’s Lucy Poems. This proved to be a mixed virtue: artlessness has been confused with ‘action writing’ and ‘stream of consciousness’, with work left unpolished. As a British poetry critic put it, writing in a personal letter in 1988: At the time haiku was most popular in GB and the USA, the end of the 60s and start of the 70s, poets who weren’t poets really thought that the writer’s notebook … could be passed off as art if cropped down to seventeen-syllable lengths.
Yet even Kerouac is recorded as saying, ‘haiku is best reworked and revised’. (An opinion that Basho¯ shared, by the way.) It has taken some haikuists in the British Isles until quite recently to throw off the shackles of ‘first thoughts, best thoughts’, a belief that haiku should be left untouched just as they entered the consciousness. In 1964 the well-known English poet, W.H. Auden (1907–1973) also drew attention to the relevance of haiku as a literary expression of life in the post-Holocaust, post-Hiroshima world. He was entrusted by Swedish editors to make English versions of Vägmärken from the diaries of Dag Hammarskjöld, then late UN SecretaryGeneral, which had been published in his native Swedish just the year before. In his gratuitous foreword to the Faber edition (entitled Markings) Auden describes this collection as: An historical document of the first importance as an account – and I cannot myself recall another – of the attempt by a professional man of action to unite in one life the Via Activa and the Via Contemplativa. 20
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For Auden, as for many English poets since, form was the mainstay and essence of haiku: ‘… the number of syllables in any one line is optional, but the sum total of the three must always be seventeen.’ English lexicographers also have unfortunately concentrated almost exclusively on form, a typical definition being ‘Haiku: a poem in an unrhymed verse form of three lines containing 5, 7 and 5 syllables respectively.’ If a lexicographer ventures further into saying anything at all about content and attitude, it is likely to be that haiku is ‘a form of nature poetry’, which is seriously misleading. Nowadays one finds a better understood description of haiku on Wikipedia. Having more lasting influence than Auden, one guesses, but not more than the dictionaries, were the series of poetry anthologies, Junior Voices and Voices, edited by Geoffrey Summerfield, published by Penguin between 1968 and 1970. These contained both haiku translated from Japanese and original English haiku and were popular in British schools. The passage of haiku into the British classroom was indeed facilitated by mention of haiku in the National Curriculum at the Keystage 3 level (roughly speaking, ten to thirteen year-olds.) The value of this was sometimes diminished by teachers introducing the haiku to much younger pupils, seizing on the opportunity to train them to recognize syllables. Still, most children do appreciate haiku and enjoy them. For many it proves to be their first successful attempt at creative writing and occasionally, despite the child’s lack of maturity, their haiku reveal the instinctive wisdom of a child’s mind. Awareness of haiku in the British Isles has undoubtedly increased decade on decade. Anyone who has any interest in poetry at all will have heard of haiku, though some may have an uncertain apprehension of its characteristics. Evidence of this assimilation of haiku into the poetic mainstream has been the frequency with which contemporary poets of different styles and intentions have found qualities in haiku that resonate with their own creative directions or have been used for their own purposes: its directness and brevity; as a starting point for experiments with syllabic poetry; using its three-line form as a template for short stanzas (‘building bricks’) to construct imagistic poems. In various ways haiku appear, which are not overtly haiku, while other poems, referring to themselves as haiku, are from most points of view not haiku at all. Poets as diverse as Tom Raworth, Anthony Thwaite, Ken Smith, Seamus Heaney, Thom Gunn, Paul Muldoon, Alan Brownjohn, Alec Finlay and many others have written poems with a clear and acknowledged relationship to haiku, whether in spirit or in form or both; though in many cases there has been an adaptation to serve the needs of their own creative intentions and style. In this respect the 21
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haiku is no different from the sonnet or ballad in being re-thought for different purposes or according to individual impulses. There are also poets who, less reverentially, have engaged with their understanding of some aspects of the qualities of haiku for humorous or satirical effect. The economy and terseness of haiku lends itself rather too conveniently to aphorisms, epithets and ironic observations. Gavin Ewart, with his often bawdy three-line squibs, published in The Complete Little Ones (1986), provides an example here: Creation Myth Haiku After the First Night the Sun kissed the Moon: ‘Darling, You were wonderful!’
And Wendy Cope, reputed to hold haiku in serious regard, is also facetious in her Strugnell’s Haiku of 1986: November evening: The moon is up, rooks settle, The pubs are open.
Such non-haiku in haiku form are typically written in strict 5–7–5 syllables so as to be recognized as haiku. However, most serious writers of haiku have felt that the attempt to find an equivalent of the 17-syllable form of the Japanese original is not the guiding principle of haiku and prefer to find compact and flowing solutions to writing a poignant poem, true to the haiku spirit and its traditions, but with the music and accented cadence that is native to English. Many thousands of haiku are written in the British Isles each year, varying from those published in specialised haiku hard-copy magazines to on-line sites and web outlets run by individual editors with varying backgrounds and commitments to haiku poetry. There are also those that have fallen into the contemporary domain of the ‘tweet’ and the ‘sound bite’ where it seems any random thought cut up into three lines gets to be called a haiku. The readiness with which the haiku has been taken up as a vehicle for very ephemeral sentiments, trivial witticisms and ironic comments is at least a testament to the degree to which public awareness, if not understanding, of haiku has spread. MOBILIZATION AND RESURGENCE
In an atmosphere of uncertainty about what haiku was and how an English language equivalent might be generated, a small group of 22
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enthusiasts gathered together in 1990. It was a correspondent in Japan, Nagayama Mokuo, who tipped the architects of this movement off that a Haiku Society had existed since 1968 in America (HSA); and was it not time for the British Isles to follow this example? So the HSA were asked whether they had any members living in the UK. Yes, they had one: Dee Evetts, British by birth, normally resident in North America, but just now on holiday in the UK. In a country pub (once again in Essex) Evetts met David Cobb, they grilled each other about their respective understandings of haiku, and agreed on a call to muster, via leaflets placed in the Poetry Library, London, and notices posted in various poetry journals. The response was startling. Within six months some forty or fifty persons had assembled as the ‘Haiku Interest Group’. Clearly, some more formal organization was called for; one with a constitution, financed by subscriptions, having charitable status so the public would know it was bona fide. And thus in 1990 the British Haiku Society (BHS) was set up. A quarterly membership magazine was launched – Blithe Spirit, so named by its first president for a mixture of reasons: a salute to R.H. Blyth; a salute to poetry via Shelley’s poem To a Skylark (‘Hail to thee, blithe spirit!); by inference proposing a cheerful season-word to characterise our activities. Blithe Spirit has since published twenty-five volumes of four issues a year. This first president of BHS (1990–1997) was James Kirkup,2 wellknown as a haiku-poet in Japan, where he taught English literature, but as we were shortly to learn, not highly regarded as a haiku writer anywhere else. ‘The only success I’ve had with haiku in England,’ he wrote, ‘has been in John Foster’s OUP children’s poetry anthologies.’ The reason Evetts proposed him for office was that he had recently read an article in a Tokyo newspaper, in which Kirkup asserted the British did not understand haiku and therefore would never form a haiku society. Evetts challenged Kirkup to prove himself wrong! Members of the fledgling BHS were a motley crew and so it has remained. Mark Rutter, writing as editor of Blithe Spirit in 2009, describes us well: English-language poets have come to haiku along different paths. For some the haiku is primarily a form of spiritual discipline, others come to haiku as a way of rejuvenating nature poetry. Still others are attracted to the brevity and down-to-earthiness of the form, or by the way it invites the reader to participate in the unfolding of meaning. Some prize the haiku for its attention to the momentary, or for the Zen-inspired ethos of the ego-less look. For others, the haiku movement is a kind of avant-garde, forging a new poetic language by adopting aesthetic ideas from another culture, and for still others haiku is an alternative to poetry altogether. 23
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From the outset it seemed necessary for the BHS to defend the borders of haiku from lack of sympathy and understanding. Some unifying description of haiku seemed desirable. Was this to follow the strict rules operating in yuki teikei circles? Or the much looser dispensation allowed by that Japanese friend of English haiku, Sato¯ Kazuo, who edited a weekly column for the English edition of Mainichi Shimbun newspaper in Tokyo? Understandably, any attempt to devise an absolute ‘consensus’ proved intractable, but after a number of revisions the Society arrived at a text that has broad agreement: English Haiku – a Composite View. (This may be read on the BHS website, www.britishhaikusociety. org.uk) The BHS has settled down to an average annual membership just in excess of 250 members, with some turn-over of new members replacing inevitable wastage. The total will have been thousands over twenty-five years. In addition, we have knowledge of a large number of haiku enthusiasts who feel no need to join the Society. The BHS constitution commits it to ‘the appreciation, creation and dissemination of the literary form known as haiku’, by means of publications, meetings, seminars, newsletters and public events, including contests; to researching the genre and its kindred forms (i.e. senryu¯, haibun, renga); and there is a commitment to reach out to similar haiku bodies, both at home and abroad. With the passage of time BHS has acquired functions well beyond serving its actual membership. It has become a resource of expertise, authority even, to which have turned editors of journals and newspapers, radio and TV presenters, librarians, organizers of festivals (e.g. matsuri ), publishing houses, museums and art galleries, individual artists, workers in glass and fabrics, calligraphers, paper makers, composers looking for texts to set to music, bookshops, the Embassy of Japan, staff and students of creative writing courses, carers for the mentally vulnerable, therapists. On one occasion it was asked by a magazine to introduce Americans convicted of murder and on ‘death row’ to haiku. In 2001, the Librarian of the Poetry Library, London, wrote that: The blossoming of haiku in Britain over ten years has got a lot to do with the work of the British Haiku Society and the influence of its magazine. It is the authority on haiku in Britain today and we constantly recommend it.
BHS has a policy of taking part in a number of joint ventures with haiku societies in other countries, and has welcomed participants from other countries as guests at events in the UK. Even so, to imply that the BHS has been the sole vehicle for the increased interest in haiku is incorrect. BHS members are scattered 24
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far and wide – one in seven does not actually reside in the British Isles – so requests are handled in a variety of ways: the BHS committee may call for interested volunteers to take them in hand. Individuals may approach the BHS with a proposal and the committee will endorse it, advertise it in its newsletter, perhaps give it some material support. The Society actively encourages individual members, or groups of members, to organize local readings or workshops; it may assist with a display of books, reference materials, audio-visual aids. A good example of BHS collaboration with an independent provider is the White Peak/Dark Peak project (2012–2013), billed as ‘Britain’s largest public artwork’, commissioned by Derbyshire Arts Development Group and realized by the independent artist, Alec Finlay. For this to succeed a very large number of haiku writers were required, each assigned to a particular location in the Peak District National Park where he/she was set to compose a solo renga based on experience of walking the terrain. Such a force might have been hard to mobilize if Finlay and BHS had not been intimate. A list of events and activities of BHS (examples only, not a full list) is contained in Appendix I to this paper. A selected list of relevant books and papers is contained in Appendix II APPENDIX I. EVENTS AND ACTIVITIES OF BHS
(a) Under BHS auspices -
-
-
information tents at Japan Festival events, also various national and regional festivals. readings and lectures: John Keats Bicentenary, including lecture by James Kirkup on Keats and Basho¯; jointly with SOAS, lectures celebrating 300th Anniversary of Basho¯’s death; Swansea Festival of Japanese Arts. contributions to National Poetry Day in the UK: international celebration, with Eurotunnel sponsorship, involving haiku poets from seven countries, reading on both sides of the Channel on the same day, also composing haiku ‘under the sea’. workshops at Ledbury Poetry Festival, Alnwick Cherry Blossom Matsuri. aids for teachers: The Haiku Kit, 1,500 copies supplied, two-thirds of them free of charge.. conferences, usually with public readings: contests: assistance with Japan Airlines schools contests; James W Hackett Haiku Awards, 1991–2008, Nobuyuki Yuasa International Haibun Contest, 2002–2004, BHS International Haibun Contest, 2005–2008, amalgamated in 2012 as British Haiku Awards. public exhibitions: Signposts to Haiku - poster display on loan to libraries, colleges, museums collaboration with haiku associations abroad: BHS participants at international conferences in Belgium, Germany, the Netherlands, Romania, Sweden, USA. The Haiku Kit (see above) adopted by Haiku Society 25
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-
of America as part of their package for teachers, also translated by local haiku associations in the Netherlands, New Zealand and Romania; Anglo-French Haiku Festival, Folkestone, with haiku banner display along the esplanade. consultations by media: BBC Radio 4 feature by Stephen Fry on Brevity; adjudication of entries to BBC World Service for haiku on the subject of ‘landing on Mars.’ cross-media collaboration: Haiku and Glass, BHS poets paired with glass artists to produce an exhibition seen at four museums across the UK.
(b) Involving individual BHS members or non-members. -
-
lecture for Scottish Japan Society. newspaper articles: to launch The Times national haiku contest, resulting in 7,500 entries. Also Daily Telegraph. workshops: Poetry School, London, weekend course led by David Cobb; Alec Finlay’s mobile ‘renga platform’. ‘haiku trail’ and associated workshops, Garden Festival Wales, also at Canterbury Matsuri. ‘haiku poet in residence’, King’s Lynn Festival, Bedfordshire Poetry Festival. aids for teachers: In the Moonlight a Worm, on-line teaching suggestions by George Marsh. media presence: programmes by Stephen Henry Gill for BBC Radio 3, illustrating the value of season words (kigo) in classical Japanese haiku; BBC Radio live recording of workshop by BHS North of England group.. cross-media collaboration: 36 Views of King’s College Chapel, Tony Eva’s photographs captioned with Graham High’s haiku. contests: Welsh Academy’s 1991 Cardiff International Haiku Competition (1,000+ entries, all winners members of BHS) special interest groups: Red Sangha, organisers Ken Jones & James Norton.
All of the above have made serious contributions to the indigenisation of haiku in the British Isles and the work goes one. In 2015, the British Haiku Society will celebrate its first quarter century. APPENDIX II SELECT RELEVANT PUBLICATIONS
(a) Published by BHS J. Kirkup et al. (ed.) The Haiku Hundred, Iron Press, 1992. (First ever haiku collection to be published in UK, selected from 5,000 entries to contest organised by BHS.) D. Cobb (ed.) with introduction by James Kirkup and bibliography by S.H. Gill: The Genius of Haiku - readings from R. H. Blyth, BHS, 1994. (Some 2,000 copies sold.) M. Lucas: Stepping Stones - a way into haiku (vol. 1 of BHS Literary Studies Series), 2007. G. High (ed.) Barbed Wire Blossoms - the Museum of Haiku Literature Award Anthology, 1992–2011. 26
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BHS, 2012. (b) Published by individual BHS members or non-members G. Bownas & A. Thwaite: The Penguin Book of Japanese Verse (anthology), Penguin, 1964. D. Cobb & M. Lucas: The Iron Book of British Haiku (anthology), Iron Press, 1998. N. Jenkins, K. Jones and L. Rees: Another Country: Haiku Poetry from Wales (anthology), Gomer, 2011. L. Stryk & K. Bailey (eds.): The Acorn Book of Contemporary Haiku (anthology), Acorn, 2000. A. Finlay (ed.) Atoms of Delight: an anthology of Scottish haiku and short poems, Pocketbooks, 2000. D. Cobb (ed.) The British Museum Haiku (anthology of Japanese haiku), British Museum Press, 2002. J. Barlow & M. Lucas (eds.) The New Haiku (anthology), Snapshot Press, 2002. J. Hardy (ed.) Haiku Poetry Ancient and Modern (anthology), MQP, 2002. D. Cobb (ed.) The Humours of Haiku (anthology), Iron Press, 2012. D. King and D. Webb (eds.) Time Haiku (magazine, founded by Erica Facey, 1994.) M. Lucas, F. Schofield et al. (eds.) Presence (haiku magazine, since 1996.) K. Bailey (ed.): Haiku Quarterly, later HQ, from 1990, evolving into a magazine of ‘short poetry. B. Tasker (ed.): Bare Bones (haiku magazine), 1992–1995. J. Barlow (ed.): Snapshots (haiku magazine), 1998–2006. F. Henderson (ed): Haiku Scotland newsletter and website (currently suspended.) Haiku Ireland (website newsletter at www.haikuireland.org since 2005.) C. Stewart Jones (ed.) Notes from the Gean (haiku website.) -----------------------------------------ENDNOTES 1
2
A biographical portrait of R.H. Blyth by Adrian Pinnington was published in Britain and Japan: Biographical Portraits, Volume I, ed. Ian Nish, Japan Library, 1994. A biographical portrait of James Kirkup, by David Burleigh was published in Britain and Japan: Biographical Porraits, volume VIII, ed. Hugh Cortazzi, Global Oriental, 2013.
27
3
Japanese Gardens and the Japanese Garden Society in the UK GRAHAM HARDMAN
Japanese Garden at Tatton Park
INTRODUCTION
2013 was the 20th anniversary of the Japanese Garden Society. This biographical portrait describes the Society, the way the Society has developed and how it has increasingly sought to use gardens as a way of fostering and developing relationships between the UK and Japan and introducing the British public to Japanese culture through gardens. Now in its 21st year and with some 600 members, the Society is run entirely by volunteers and two years ago became a charity with the aim of providing education to the public on all aspects of Japanese gardens. The story of the Society is set against a brief history of Japanese gardens in the UK. THE JAPANESE GARDEN SOCIETY – ORIGINS
The idea came from a group of landscape architecture students at Manchester University in early 1993. One mature student in 28
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particular, Dr David Hackett had been fascinated by the Japanese Garden (with a capital ‘G’ to distinguish the art form from individual Japanese gardens). Following this interest and while based in Cardiff, he won a travelling scholarship from the Welsh Arts Council to study the dry gardens of Japan. With a base in the Department of Forestry at the University of Kyoto he worked with a Japanese Garden designer, visiting gardens in Tokyo, Kyoto and Nara. On return, and following a travelling exhibition of his photographic study of Japanese gardens, David enrolled on a post-graduate Landscape Design course at Manchester University to learn the techniques that would enable him to work in this medium. The tutor at Manchester, David Baldwin was also interested in Japanese gardens and used to take students to study the Japanese garden at Tatton Park. David Hackett had the idea of forming a society for anyone with an interest in Japanese Gardens, ably supported by David Baldwin and Sam Youd, Head Gardener at Tatton Park. After a series of exploratory meetings a notice was placed in an article in the Daily Telegraph for a meeting entitled ‘1993 Conference on Japanese Gardens’, to be held at Tatton Park on 3 July. There were over a hundred attendees from all over the country and the idea of forming a Society was given public approval. Interest in things Japanese and gardens in particular had grown partly at least as a result of the successful and wide-ranging Japan Festival in Britain held in 1991. As part of the festival a Kyoto Garden had been built in Holland Park. This had been sponsored by the Kyoto Chamber of Commerce and opened by the Prince of Wales and the Crown Prince of Japan who were the royal patrons of the festival. But this was by no means the only Japanese garden in Britain. Japanese gardens had been built in Britain in the Victorian era and had been popularized by the Japanese Gardens at the 1910 Japan British Exhibition at Shepherds Bush. One of the key decisions made at the launch meeting was that it should produce a Journal, the idea being proposed by Robert Ketchell. He also proposed the brilliant and very apt title ‘Shakkei’ – borrowed landscape. Prior to the launch meeting Sir Hugh Cortazzi was invited to become Honorary President. EARLY DAYS
For the first two years Society meetings were held in different locations around the country, but with relatively modest attendances due to the travel distances involved. Membership levels dropped, so in 1995 a significant change in organization was made. It was agreed 29
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Kyoto Garden, Holland Park
that meetings would be organized and run on a regional basis, leaving a national committee focussing on overall management of membership, finance and so on. Interest and enthusiasm ensured that the Society overcame these early difficulties. In 2014 there were six regional groups in the South East, Midlands, South West, North West, Yorkshire and Humber and Scotland.
30
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GOING PUBLIC
Perhaps the most significant, if gradual, change has been the way that the Society has engaged more with the general public. At first this was by volunteers mounting small exhibition stands and display gardens at Garden Shows and Japan Days. A step change came when Robert Ketchell built a large Show garden at the RHS Hampton Court Flower Show in 1996, constructed with the help of Japan Garden Society (JCS) members. This was followed in 2001 by a small garden at the RHS Tatton Park Flower Show designed by the author, then by two Gold medal winning gardens designed by Maureen Busby at Hampton Court in 2002 and Chelsea Flower Show in 2004. As the Society became more prominent as a result of these Show gardens, particularly at Chelsea, closer links with other Japan-related organizations were developed, including the Embassy of Japan, the Japan Society and the Sainsbury Institute for the Study of Japanese Arts and Cultures (SISJAC), based in Norwich. The Society was granted Charitable status in 2010. This carried with it an increased responsibility to fulfil the aim of educating the public in all aspects of Japanese gardens. A travelling exhibition about Japanese gardens in the UK entitled ‘Visions of Paradise’, designed and curated by members of the Society was created. It has been shown at several significant locations around the UK, including the Embassy of Japan in 2010, followed by Tatton Hall in Cheshire, Norwich Cathedral, the Garden Museum in London, Chiddingstone Castle in Kent, and the Bath Royal Literary and Scientific Institute. Further venues are being sought in order to reach a wider public. Coupled with the exhibition the Society produced an extensive catalogue, which acts as a stand-alone book on the subject of Japanese gardens in the UK, entitled Visions of Paradise (copies of this booklet can be ordered from the JGS). JGS GARDENS
One of the most significant elements of the work of members of the JGS has been the design and creation of new and permanent Japanese gardens in Britain. Some of these are in public places open all the time; others have been in places used by the public such as a Japanese centre in Cambridge, hospices and a nursing home. The Society decided in 2004 to assist Birmingham Botanical Gardens following a request from their Curator with the design and construction of a renovated Japanese Courtyard. This was a turning point for the Society as it signalled a shift from building Show gardens, ultimately rather ephemeral in nature, to permanent ones. Increasingly the committee of the Society felt that the time was right to develop its reputation as an authority on Japanese gardens. 31
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This would clearly take a number of years and would require significant voluntary effort from the membership, particularly from experienced designers. The garden at Birmingham Botanical Gardens was very well received and was opened by the Japanese Ambassador in May 2005. Following that a completely new garden was designed and constructed by members of Northwest region at Walkden Gardens in Sale (South Manchester). This was opened in 2006 by the Japanese Ambassador, hosted by the Mayor of Trafford. The Northwest team have gone on to build two gardens at Willowbrook hospice in St Helens and in December 2013 were constructing a garden for Bury hospice in Lancashire. In 2010 they formed the core of the team which built the garden at Norwich cathedral sponsored by the Sainsbury Institute for the Study of Japanese Arts and Cultures (SISJAC). Further gardens have recently been designed and constructed by the Society at the Kaetsu Centre in Cambridge and at Hatch Mill Nursing Home in Farnham, Surrey. JGS members have also become involved in the maintenance of public gardens, in the Midlands at Danescourt Cemetery in Wolverhampton and Hammersmith Park in London (originally built as part of the 1910 Japan-British Exhibition). They have also contributed to the maintenance of gardens constructed by the Society including the rooftop garden at Great Ormond Street Hospital, designed by Maureen Busby, although this is not open to the public. One of the ways the Society celebrated its 20th anniversary was the construction of a large garden at the RHS Tatton Park Flower Show (designed by the author and awarded a Gold medal). This was sponsored by Bury Hospice on the understanding that after the Show a Japanese garden would be built for them, re-using plants and materials from the Show garden. That work was due to be be completed in the spring of 2014. VISITING GARDENS IN JAPAN
One of the first actions of the newly formed Society in 1993 was to start planning for a visit to Kyoto. This took place in November 1994 with over thirty members in the party. This set the pattern for what has become a regular feature of the Society’s activities, a tour every eighteen months alternating between spring and autumn. To date thirteen tours have been organized, with increasingly ambitious itineraries. Some 200 gardens have been visited in places as far away as Chiran in the south of Kyushu and Nikko to the north of Tokyo and most areas inbetween. Increasingly the Society has been developing contacts in Japan to arrange visits to gardens unknown to the public in Britain, some of 32
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which require special permission to visit. The Society has been greatly assisted in this by Professor Fukuhara of Osaka University of Art and Design. He has been involved as a designer in several gardens in the UK, notably the landscape garden at Kew and the Chelsea Gold and Best-in-Show garden of 2001 which is now part of the National Botanic Garden of Wales. One of the Society’s aims is to introduce people not only to Japanese gardens but to the culture and people of Japan. EDUCATION AND PUBLICITY
For a number of years members of the JGS have been giving lectures on various aspects of Japanese gardens to public audiences. The author for instance gave a lecture in Tokyo in 2013 to the Asiatic Society of Japan on Japanese gardens in the UK. As well as a website (www.jgs.org.uk) the Society has a Facebook page which gives up to the minute information on Society activities and volunteer involvement in various gardens around the country. All Society meetings are open to the public, information being available on the website and Facebook. From its inception the Japanese Garden Society has produced a high quality quarterly journal, Shakkei. In recent years this has developed to cover all manner of Japanese garden related topics, with contributions from members and academics in the UK, the Netherlands and Japan. Copies are sent to members in other countries including the USA, Denmark, France, Australia and Japan. Back copies of the journal, including the Society’s 20th anniversary edition of Shakkei, covering the history of the Society and its development, are available from the Honorary Secretary of the Society. CONCLUSION
The Japanese Garden Society was formed at a time when Japanese gardens had become fashionable in the UK. Its continued existence and success is due to the energy and enthusiasm of its members. JAPANESE GARDENS IN THE UK
Early Gardens Japanese-style gardens have been built in Britain since shortly after the Meiji restoration. A boom in private garden building preceded the First World War but only a few of these gardens are still preserved and can be visited today. A few gardens were built after 1918 but interest declined and during the Second World War and afterwards many disappeared. 33
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Jill Raggett has written of this early period:1 There were a variety of motivations and influences in the creation of Japanese-style gardens in Britain, including new plant introductions and aspects of Japanese art; however, the major inspiration for these gardens came from travellers visiting Japan, and the desire for a garden as a fashionable addition to an estate or commercial enterprise.
Many of these gardens showed little clear understanding of the underlying principles of Japanese design and were more concerned with showing off exotic artefacts and plants. The demand for such items was met by enterprising Japanese companies which recognized the potential of a burgeoning export market. A good example is Compton Acres in Dorset, an interesting garden in a nice setting but full of all manner of Japanese and other Asian ornamentation. All these early gardens were privately owned and were not intended as public gardens. In 1893 Landscape Gardening in Japan had been published by Josiah Conder, a young Scottish architect, who had travelled to Japan to teach architecture at the Imperial University in 1877. This book, the first in English available to a western audience, soon became very popular and has had a seminal influence on garden designers in Britain. Toshio Watanabe2 in an article about Josiah Conder (1852–1920) declared: This book tries to introduce and analyse the Japanese garden, but at the same time it also acts as an introductory manual on how to design such a garden.
Many Japanese gardens built in Britain after its publication were to some extent inspired by Conder’s writings, although not necessarily the direct source of their design. Jill Raggett has written:3 Conder was an influential writer on Japanese gardens and though it is a challenge to find primary evidence for direct ‘cause and effect’, such evidence has been discovered for a number of early Japanesestyle gardens, either through the annotation of Conder’s work at Cowden [in Scotland], and copying at Newstead Abbey; or through the emulation of designs as at Bitchet Green, Kent; or as inspiration when his publications are to be found in the collections of those who created gardens such as the library of Tatton Park, Cheshire. THE GARDENS OF THE JAPAN-BRITISH EXHIBITION OF 19104
The Japan-British Exhibition at White City in 1910 attracted an impressive 8 million visitors in the six-month period of the 34
JAPANESE GARDENS AND THE JAPANESE GARDEN SOCIETY IN THE UK
exhibition out of a UK population of 42 million at the time. Within the exhibition site there were two large show gardens. This was the first time that the general British public had seen Japanese gardens.5 It is interesting to consider what visitors saw. Show gardens, we know from today’s RHS Garden Shows, do not necessarily represent real gardens. Postcards of the gardens from the exhibition suggest that to some extent they were being used as a marketing opportunity for Japanese garden products as they contained many lanterns, water basins, bridges, bamboo screens, tea houses and the like. Consequently these two gardens contained rather more artefacts than a garden in Japan, setting the scene for British interpretations of Japanese gardens along those lines for several years to come. JAPANESE DESIGNERS
Only a few wealthy patrons could afford to employ Japanese designers and a team of landscape gardeners who could ensure that the gardens with which they were associated reflected the Japanese spirit. Jill Raggett has noted:6 Some creators of Japanese-style gardens were keen to attempt the challenging task of making accurate representations of Japanese gardens and so there were opportunities for Japanese artists and garden designers to provide consultations and designs thus allowing the incorporation of symbolism and cultural references which many critics felt the gardens lacked.
She also commented:7 The work of Taki Handa (and later J. Suzuki) at Cowden Castle (1907), Perthshire; of Seyemon Kusumoto’s involvement, from 1923, at Cheynes (Cottered) (1906), Hertfordshire, and finally the designs of J. Suzuki at The Node (c.1930), Hertfordshire, and possibly at Trewince (1935), Cornwall, were examples of much stronger and convincing designs. RENEWED INTEREST IN JAPANESE GARDENS
In the latter part of the twentieth century interest in Japanese gardens and Japanese design in general began to re-emerge and became very fashionable. Robert Ketchell has commented:8 … as with the developing demand for stylish, low maintenance gardens, more and more garden creators began to incorporate ideas from Japan into Western gardens. 35
BRITAIN & JAPAN: BIOGRAPHICAL PORTRAITS VOLUME IX
Since 1990 many new Japanese-style gardens have been built in public places, some popular ones being the Kyoto garden at Holland Park in London, the Japanese landscape at Kew Gardens, the Zen garden at the Museum of Religion in Glasgow, all three designed by Japanese landscapers. The dry garden at Norwich Cathedral, designed by the author and Robert Ketchell and built in 2010 by members of the Japanese Garden Society for the Sainsbury Institute has been well received. In the opinion of the author the garden at Danescourt Cemetery in Wolverhampton, designed by Peter Bridge is particularly successful as a dry landscape garden. The Japanese Garden Society has added to this list of Japanese gardens (see above). Most of these recent public gardens are smaller and less ambitious than the earlier private gardens and often are built as ‘dry’ gardens in karesansui (literally dry mountain and water) style. Despite increased knowledge of Japanese culture and design, it has to be said that these recent gardens still show varying degrees of success in capturing the spirit of Japan. Many private gardens too have been built in recent years, often capturing the spirit of Japan more successfully than some of the gardens in public places. In many cases the owner had a particularly good knowledge of gardens in Japan and had the resources to ensure a high quality result. Increasingly, designers are creating gardens using Japanese design principles that are not intended to look authentically Japanese but nevertheless carry many of the characteristic feelings generated by a Japanese garden. The work of Robert Ketchell at the Momotaro garden at Spalding or the tea garden at Le Manoir aux Quat’Saisons are good examples. Interest in and awareness of Japanese gardens is probably stronger than ever and the number of Japanese style gardens in the UK is increasing all the time. CULTURAL BORROWING
Borrowing ideas from Japanese garden culture raises many interesting questions. Robert Ketchell has observed:9 Much of the development of a gardener in Japan, apart from basic horticultural skills, involves a training of the eye. To see plants and rocks as dynamic sculptural forms, to develop a sensitivity to the layout of the garden’s components is fundamental. This way of viewing the garden is one of the significant distinguishing features between the two garden cultures. 36
JAPANESE GARDENS AND THE JAPANESE GARDEN SOCIETY IN THE UK
In Japan, gardens are expressions of the notion of Paradise, manifested as idealized landscapes. As landscape gardens they are therefore quite different from most British gardens, where the focus may be on formal arrangement, displays of colourful flowers, or the informality of ‘cottage gardens’. Recreating this idea of Paradise, Japanese-style, in a UK setting is not as easy as it might seem. Our architecture is completely different so matching the garden to buildings becomes a challenge. Our climate is different enough from that in Japan to make using the same plant material difficult or sometimes impossible. Our nursery industry is not geared to producing large ready-shaped trees and shrubs as is the case in Japan. Equally important is that our cultural attitude towards garden maintenance differs greatly from that in Japan, not to mention our lack of specialist skills required. Japanese gardens, whether traditional or modern in style, are very dependent for their success on the meticulous maintenance that such gardens would receive in Japan. The experience of the Japanese Garden Society is that some public Japanese-style gardens suffer in this regard. This seems to be due in part to limited financial resources, but often a lack of understanding of the relevant skills required, resulting in a fear of doing anything in case it is the wrong thing. As a consequence some members of the Japanese Garden Society have been offering skilled maintenance advice and practical help to selected public gardens on a voluntary basis. The aim is to improve the garden’s appearance and to provide a learning environment for developing the skills of the garden staff concerned. An example is the garden at Danescourt Cemetery in Wolverhampton, which the local council found too daunting to maintain, so did very little other than keep it tidy. Shrubs and trees were left unpruned leading to a rather overgrown appearance after ten years, far from what the designer wanted. Over the last three years the garden has been transformed and has won several awards. By working in such gardens, the Society aims to help the local garden staff to develop appropriate skills and have confidence to use them, hopefully ensuring the garden’s longterm future. ENDNOTES 1
2
3
Britain and Japan: Biographical Portraits volume VII (Shadowy Figures: Japanese Garden Designers in Britain and Ireland; p. 501) Article about Josiah Conder (1852–1920) by Toshio Watanabe in Britain and Japan: Biographical Portraits, volume VIII, 2013. Shakkei, Volume 20 No 1 Summer 2013; Crushing Earthquake Demons and Inspiring Garden Makers – The influence of Josiah Conder (1852– 1920) and his writing; p. 29).
37
BRITAIN & JAPAN: BIOGRAPHICAL PORTRAITS VOLUME IX
4
5
6
7 8
9
See article by Jill Raggett entitled ‘The Japanese Gardens: Stars of the Show’ in Commerce and Culture at the 1910 Japan-British Exhibition Centenary Perspectives edited by Ayako Hotta-Lister & Ian Nish, Global Oriental, 2013. See Commerce and Culture at the 1910 Japan-British Exhibition, eds Ayako Hotta-Lister and Ian Nish, Global Oriental, 2013. Britain and Japan: Biographical Portraits VII; Shadowy Figures: Early Japanese Garden Designers in Britain and Ireland; p. 502 Visions of Paradise – the Japanese garden in the UK; Interpretations p. 42 Visions of Paradise – the Japanese garden in the UK; Decline and Resurgence – introduction; p. 50 Visions of Paradise – the Japanese garden in the UK; Cultural Borrowing (introduction); p. 56i
38
4
Three Ages of British Kendo¯: The Introduction of a Unique Sporting and Cultural Activity PAUL BUDDEN
Drawn by Samuel Begg for the Illustrated London News1
The ancient art of kendo¯ has been studied and practised throughout Japan for centuries and has spread worldwide. BEGINNINGS IN BRITAIN
The Royal armouries possess Samurai armours sent as gifts in 1613 by Tokugawa Hidetada to James I, via John Saris. However the first public reference to Japanese Kendo¯ armour was in a Liverpool Mercury Newspaper advertisement dated 12 December 1865:
39
BRITAIN & JAPAN: BIOGRAPHICAL PORTRAITS VOLUME IX
WITHOUT RESERVE On Thursday next, the 14th instant, at Two o’clock, at the Brokers Office. Colonial-buildings 36, Dale-street, 200 Open Japanese FANS, A Quality IVORY CURIOSITIES, A Suit of Japanese FENCING ARMOUR, A Quality LEATHER, PAPER, Ac, Ac. For further particulars apply to MALCOM GREAME & C0., 36, Dale-street. In 1862 the Japanese had sent their first official representatives to Europe, since first contact in the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries. At the World Fair in Paris in 1867 the arts and artifacts in the Japanese exhibition aroused great interest. Fascination in things Japanese continued to rise culminating in 1885 with the opening of the Japanese village in Knightsbridge London.2 At Tannaker Buhicrosan’s Japanese Village in Knightsbridge, according to pictorial records and newspaper articles of the time, there were
40
¯ THREE AGES OF BRITISH KENDO
daily demonstrations of ‘Kendo¯ often described as ‘Fencing and Single Stick Exercise’ (see image taken from a flyer for the village) and Sumo a form of Japanese wrestling. The London Standard Saturday 10 January 1885 Yesterday a numerous party were invited to a private inspection, and after lunch were entertained with an exhibition of Japanese fencing, wrestling, and dancing in the theatre attached to the Village. The fencing with bamboo canes, between two athletes, padded and wearing wire masks, caused considerable amusement and the performers certainly displayed considerable adroitness. The wrestling was rather slow and, according to English notions of the exercise, extremely Tame.
It is probable that there had been displays of kendo¯ at the International Health exhibition of 1884 as according to the BKA History ‘The fencing, as those who saw the display of masks, pads, gloves and bamboo swords sent from Tokyo gymnasium to the Health Exhibition’.3 ¯ IN BRITAIN THE DEVELOPMENT OF KENDO
According to a newspaper article of 23 May 1898, the crew of the Japanese imperial navy cruiser Takasago presented a Tyneside audience with an ‘entertainment’ that included kendo¯. British newspaper archives of the time report further displays of kendo¯ performed by crews of visiting Japanese ships. Many of Japan’s first naval vessels were built in British yards and a close relationship developed between the Royal Navy and the Japanese navy both before and following the first Anglo-Japanese Alliance of 1902. In Victorian Britain fencing had fallen into decline. Killing someone in a duel was seen as murder; in 1844 an act of Parliament denied army widows a pension if their husband died as the result of a duel and it was only through the efforts of such people as Alfred Hutton and Egerton Castle that serious knowledge of British swordsmanship was retained. Japan was in a similar situation in that the long tradition of ‘the sword’ was being lost. The popularity of kendo¯ had declined in Japan after the Meiji Restoration in 1868 and the abolition in 1876 of the right of samurai to carry swords. The tradition was probably saved partly by Sakakibara Kenichi, who had formed a fencing company of redundant samurai and from 1873 had given exhibitions of swordsmanship and martial arts for the general public. Kendo¯ and fencing could no longer be regarded as utilitarian activities; so they had to become sport, entertainment or education. Kendo¯ was seen as contributing to the development of character and so used sporting type competition in order to assist the process. 41
BRITAIN & JAPAN: BIOGRAPHICAL PORTRAITS VOLUME IX
Prior to the formation in 1895 of the Dai-Nippon Butokukai as the main governing body for martial arts in Japan, Japanese swordsmanship was traditionally referred to as kenjutsu and the sporting form as gekken. The term kendo¯ was adopted in 1920. Similarly judo¯, another of the Japanese martial arts, had been called ju¯jutsu or jujitsu. Interest in judo¯ developed in Britain in the late nineteenth century and a judo¯ demonstration was given at the first dinner of the Japan Society in London in 1892. Kano Jigoro¯,4 who developed ju¯jutsu as judo¯, and his students at the Kodokan were active and effective in promoting judo¯ amongst non-Japanese. In 1909 Kano was appointed to the International Olympic Committee. The educational value of kendo¯ and judo¯ was eventually recognized and they became part of the Japanese school curriculum in 1911. Edward William Barton Wright,5 an engineer who, whilst working in Kobe in the mid eighteen nineties, had studied ju¯jutsu was instrumental in bringing the sport to London. Returning to England in 1898 Wright set up a School of Arms in Shaftesbury Avenue London where boxing, fencing, wrestling and savate (French kickboxing), were taught. With the arrival in 1900 of Tani Yukio, ju¯jutsu was added. Before Tani arrived Wright had developed a fighting system, which he called Bartitsu. This was actually no more than ju¯jutsu with a few added features. Bartitsu might have been forgotten had it not been for Conan Doyle writing about it in The Adventure of the Empty House, 1903, in which Sherlock Holmes explains his victory over Professor Moriarty in their struggle at Reichenbach Falls was by the use of ‘Baritsu’, a possible misspelling. Apart from teaching at his school, Wright wanted his Japanese employees to perform on the music hall circuit ‘taking on all comers’. Tani’s brother and Yamamoto S disagreed and returned to Japan. Wright then brought in Uyenishi Sadakazu, who had no objection to appearing on the boards. Together Tani and Uyenishi caused a sensation, beating those of any weight or ability. Uyenishi was trained in kenjutsu and ju¯jutsu, and in 1901 started the Anglo Japanese Ju¯jutsu and Martial Arts Association. After both he and Tani Yukio left Barton Wright in 1902 he opened his own club ‘the School of Japanese Self Defence’ in 1903 at 31 Golden Square, London. Uyenishi’s Anglo Japanese Associations continued and, although Uyenishi returned to Japan in 1908, it remains the oldest Ju¯do¯ and Martial Arts Association in the UK. He left his Golden Square club in the charge of his senior student, William Garrud, whose 1914 book The Complete Ju¯jitsuan became a standard reference book. His wife, Edith Garrud, went on to establish ju¯jutsu classes for members of the militant suffragette movement and for the personal bodyguard of Emily (Emmeline) Pankhurst, its leader. 42
¯ THREE AGES OF BRITISH KENDO
Francis James Norman,6 a former British cavalryman, who taught at the Naval Academy in Etajima from 1888, studied ju¯jutsu and kenjutsu as well as sumo and Japanese military history. After his return to London in November 1905 he gave demonstrations of ju¯jutsu and kenjutsu at the Marlborough Hall Polytechnic in Regent Street. Instructors present included: ‘Kanaya, Tani, Miyake, Fujisake, Eida, Miss Roberts, F.J. Norman, Sergeant-Major Betts, and some pupils from the Japanese School of Ju-jitsu, 305 Oxford Street’. Ju¯jutsu and kenjutsu were expounded in Norman’s short book: The Fighting Man of Japan-the training and exercises of the Samurai, published in 1905, which records the time when kendo¯ and ju¯do¯ were still in their formative stages. Koizumi Gunji,7 who was to play an important role in promoting in Britain the Japanese martial arts of judo¯ and kendo¯, which he had begun at the age of twelve, arrived in Wales in 1906. On his arrival in England in 1909 Mishiku Kaoru quickly took over the running of the Anglo Japanese Ju¯jutsu and Martial Arts Association at its new venue in Strathmore Gardens, London. Mishiku, who was a graduate of the Sekai Butokukai (the premier Martial Arts University of Japan) and a master of ju¯do¯, ju¯jutsu and kendo¯, employed various Japanese teachers at the club. In 1918 Koizumi started the Budokwai Ju¯do¯ Club in London. He thought that the promotion of ju¯jutsu and kenjutsu might help his adopted country writing:8 I hope that rendering my service in promoting such training would be a means of pacifying my conscience, which was pricked by the fact that we Japanese, especially students, had been the recipients of the kindness, hospitality and generously bestowed by the people of this country, without making any tangible return.
Kendo¯ demonstrations were held at cultural evenings as well as at training sessions. At these evenings, in addition to kendo¯ demonstrations, lectures were given on Japanese poetry, Buddhism, history, wood block prints and exhibitions were held of paintings by resident Japanese artists such as Yoshio Markino.9 Because of the strange noises and crashes that came from the building, it became the custom to invite the neighbours to these lectures and other events to show how odd but harmless the members were. Many years later The Budokwai Bulletin describing the early days of the Society recorded an occasion when, ‘... anxious neighbours, horrified by the thuds and shrieks and fearing someone was being tortured, hastily summoned the police’. One lecture was devoted to the art of the kiai (a type of shout) used in kendo¯. The first Budokwai display was held at the club in Lower Grosvenor Place, Victoria in 1918. The second Budokwai demonstration took 43
BRITAIN & JAPAN: BIOGRAPHICAL PORTRAITS VOLUME IX
place at the Aeolian Hall in London in 1919 and it became an annual event. The programme illustrated in the picture shows that the 1919 display was chaired by Gerald Ames, a well-known actor of the time and Olympic fencer. He had taken part in the 1912 Olympic Games in Stockholm and was described by Richard Bowen as ‘an international fencer, who seems to have taken an interest in the Budokwai, no doubt because of the Kendo¯’. Ames went so far as to urge the reintroduction of duelling: If you take a lady out to supper and some cad of a man takes it in his head to annoy her with insolent staring, she has no redress and you have no method of punishing him. If duelling were recognised and practiced in England today, that kind of thing could be stopped and a lady could walk out without fearing the insolent advances and attentions of the cads who infest our streets today.
Although one of the leading lights of British fencing at the outset of the twentieth century, Ames was better known on the stage and as one of the early stars of British cinema. He appeared in and directed over sixty silent movies. Visiting kendo¯ master Sonobe Masatada gave the opening address at Aeolian Hall in London on 31 May 1919, and demonstrated aspects of Kendo¯, nabebuta (the use of saucepan lids in self-defence), kusarigama (chain and sickle) and nito (the use of two swords). Sonobe was the husband of Sonobe Hideo a famous naginata (halberd), teacher. The naginata display at the Aeolean, however, was demonstrated by a Mme Hino Yoshiko who was in London with her husband at that time who also took part in the kendo¯ display. It is recorded that twenty-six shillings were spent on the saucepan lids used in the nabebuta versus sword display. Komai Gonnosuke10 gave a talk at the event on the Japanese concept of bushido (the way of the warrior). Komai, who arrived in 1913, married an Englishwoman, a classical dancer. Later he took up silk-screen painting but was best known as a poet and author. He was also a practising member of the Bu¯dokwai. Members of the Bu¯dokwai demonstrated ju¯do¯, the modernized form of Ju¯-jutsu. The first woman (shown in the Samuel Begg illustration) to join the Budokwai in April 1919 was Katherine Cooper-White, who became member number 60. G.G. Vereker,11 British Men’s épée Champion 1913 and Gerald Ames demonstrated foil and épée. In 1920 Kano Jigoro, who can be considered the founder of modern judo¯ visited the Budokwai and Koizumi and Tani agreed to change completely to the Ko¯do¯kan ju¯do¯ system. According to Budokwai records a number of kendo¯ displays by members of the 44
¯ THREE AGES OF BRITISH KENDO
Anglo Japanese Ju¯jutsu and Martial Arts Association took place in 1923. In the following year the famous Japanese film star Hayakawa Sessue, best known in Britain for his performance in Bridge on the River Kwai,12 gave a display of kendo¯ at the Budokwai’s annual demonstration at the Stadium Club in High Holborn. In the following years up to the beginning of the Second World War the Bu¯dokwai and the Anglo Japanese Ju¯jutsu and Martial Arts Association, which was renamed the Anglo Japanese Ju¯do¯ Club by Mishiku in 1929, continued to promote ju¯do¯ and also teach kendo¯. Its kendo¯ instructor from 1931 was Okamoto Yoshitomo. In 1930 R.A. Lidstone, who had first seen a demonstration of kendo¯ in New Zealand by Japanese navy men, began to study kendo¯. As he made steady progress in 1936 he was promoted to the 6th grade (kyu¯). In 1937 he was selected to take part in a kendo¯ demonstration for Prince Chichibu13 at a garden party in his honour at the Hurlingham Sport Club, in Fulham London. Kendo¯ demonstrations in 1936 were filmed by Pathé News. Okamoto Yoshitomo and Kudzutani Arataro¯ demonstrated Japanese sword techniques at the Holborn Stadium. In the following year demonstrations of Japanese sword techniques were given at the Anglo Japanese Ju¯do¯ Club by Mishiku and Okamoto. The war years for the most part brought an end to the practice of Japanese martial arts at the clubs. Following the war Mishiku, who died in 1972, worked hard to rebuild the Anglo Japanese Ju¯do¯ Club, which moved to Sandycombe Road in Kew. The Budokwai also reconvened moving to its current location in South Kensington in 1954. ¯ EMERGES FROM THE SHADOW OF JU ¯ DO ¯ KENDO
After the War kendo¯ continued to be practised at the Judo¯ clubs but it lacked in any real structure. Most of the time it [kendo¯] was just the Ju¯do¯ guys putting on some kendo¯ armour to have a bash, According to renowned ju¯do¯ teacher Bill Stopps:14 I had started kendo¯ and bought a couple of kits from Harry Johnson, paying four pounds, I used to train in Kensington, probably the Evening Institute around Gorborne Road, but after a while the kendo¯ got boring and I used to get headaches.
This ‘loose tradition’ continued until Otani Tomio the eldest son of judo¯ master Otani Masutaro¯, who came to Britain in 1919, began to practise kendo¯ on a daily basis with martial arts master Abe Kenshiro¯ who had just arrived in England. In 1957 Roald Knutsen discovered three kendo¯ armours at the London Ju¯do¯ Society in Vauxhall, and begins to study kendo¯. A typescript copy of R. A. Lidstone’s book An Introduction to Kendo¯ the Art 45
BRITAIN & JAPAN: BIOGRAPHICAL PORTRAITS VOLUME IX
of Japanese Swordsmanship was lent to him at the Royal Armouries, where he was studying, by a colleague Harry Russell Robinson. Robinson also introduced him to Lidstone. His initial interest in kendo¯ had been sparked by F.J. Norman’s book of 1905, which he had read when he was fourteen. Knutsen met R.A. Lidstone in the following year at the London Ju¯do¯ Society, now the ‘informal’ Shinto Ryu¯ Kendo¯ Club and they started to practise kendo¯ together. Ju¯do¯ was accepted as an Olympic sport in 1960 and the 1964 games were awarded to Tokyo. The first ‘kendo¯ only’ club in Britain opened in 1961. This was the Acton Kendo¯ Kyu¯shinkan, which was formed under the auspices of the British Kendo¯ Council. It had Otani Tomio as ‘National Coach’. Throughout the 1960’s Otani offered kendo¯ at locations around the country. He ran three clubs in London and provided information on kendo¯ through articles in various journals. One of these was in ‘The Japanese fighting arts’ edited by John Goodbody15 with photographs by Brendan Monks. This article, written when kendo¯ in Britain was still floundering in its infancy, demonstrates the depth of his understanding of kendo¯ and includes clear explanations of both the technical terms and kendo¯ philosophy. A rival organization, the British Kendo¯ Association (BKA), was set up in 1962. The BKA was developed through the persistent efforts of Roald Knutsen, his wife Patricia, R.A. Lidstone and others including Dr Benjamin H Hazard in America. Osaki Shintaro¯ arrived in England. A student of Dr. Itoh Kyoitsu, a prominent figure in the Zen Nippon Kendo¯ Renmei, the new authority for kendo¯ in Japan (now referred to as the All Japan Kendo¯ Federation). Staying with the Knutsen family whilst studying at college, he added greatly to the development of the BKA. A demonstration of kendo¯ was included in the opening ceremony of the Tokyo Olympics in 1964. Kendo¯ masters Saimura Goro¯ and Mochida Moriji performed Nihon kendo¯ no kata (Japanese sword techniques). The BKA was accorded a high level of support from the Zen Nippon Kendo¯ Renmei and the Japanese Embassy in London. R. A. Lidstone was appointed the first chairman of the associa¯ shu¯ Kendo¯ Renmei, the forerunner to tion. The statutes for the O the European Kendo¯ Federation, were formulated in 1966 and in the same year Roald Knutsen started the Nenriki Kendo¯ Club at the Elephant and Castle in London. The Nenriki Kendo¯ Club named by Dr Itoh Kyoitsu and endorsed by the Zen Nippon Kendo¯ Renmei was officially opened in 1967. Among the sixty or so who attended the opening were Sir Frank and Lady Bowden and Captain Yoshimura Goro¯, the Japanese Naval Attaché in London. R.A. Lidstone acted as master of ceremonies. 46
¯ THREE AGES OF BRITISH KENDO
Prominent Japanese teachers of kendo¯ made official and private visits to London, some of whom have remained in Britain. The first meet¯ shu¯ Kendo¯ Renmei confirming the statutes of the assoing of the O ciation took place in Brussels in January of the same year. Sir Frank Bowden, who was greatly interested in Japan, became a future president of the BKA and a vice-president of the Japan Society; He was awarded in 2000 the Order of the Rising Sun, with Golden Rays and Rosette, by the Emperor of Japan. The previous year was also marked by separate visits from Japanese kendo¯ masters Ozawa Takashi, Ohtaki Goro¯ and Matsumoto Toshio to the Nenriki and Butokukan club in Brighton. In May1968 the first European Kendo¯ Championship was held in Paris. The following year an official delegation led by the kendo¯ master Takizawa Ko¯zo¯ came from Japan to Europe to discuss the European Kendo¯ Federation. The death that year of R.A. Lidstone sadly left a ‘power’ vacuum within the BKA. A British team took part in the World Kendo¯ Championships in Japan in April 1970. An official BKA delegation led by Roald Knutsen attended the Championship events. A schism among British kendo¯ enthusiasts occurred in 1973 culminating in Roald Knutsen resigning from the BKA. This was the result of differences of opinion and personality clashes. Following his resignation Roald Knutsen formed a new kendo¯ association called the BKR or British Kendo¯ Renmei with the aim of providing an alternative choice for kendo¯ students who were more interested in practising and developing their understanding of the traditional arts and ways of Japanese martial culture than in treating kendo¯ primarily as a competitive sport. The BKA remains as the governing body for kendo¯, iaido¯16 and jo¯do¯17 and is recognised by the All Japan Kendo¯ Federation as founder members of the European and International Kendo¯ Federations. Its objectives are: to foster and develop the practise and spirit of kendo¯, iaido¯ and jo¯do¯ on traditional lines; to organise, regulate and promote on a national and international basis; to represent the UK internationally; to regulate the promotion of members to higher degrees. The BKR, the Dai Nippon Butokukai and various other independent groups continue to follow similar objectives under their own autonomy. Every year a memorial competition is held in commemoration of R.A. Lidstone, who died at the age of seventy-four on 10 October 1969 whilst practising kendo¯ at the Nenriki Kendo¯ Club. The event both honours his great contribution to British kendo¯ and celebrates his lifelong dedication to his art. It is a fitting tribute to a remarkable man. I attach as appendices tributes to Roald Knutsen, in recognition of his great achievement in establishing kendo¯ in its own right, and to R.A. Lidstone, as the inspirational and guiding figure in the promotion of kendo¯ in Britain. 47
BRITAIN & JAPAN: BIOGRAPHICAL PORTRAITS VOLUME IX
APPENDIX I
Roald Knutsen (1933) was born in Hertfordshire of Anglo-Norwegian parents. Educated at The Perse School, Cambridge and Watford Grammar School. After studying art and design he served as a regular in the Intelligence Corps This was followed by a successful career in graphic design, choreographing complex medieval combat sequences for a computer film project in England and the USA, studying arms and armour at the Royal Armouries and writing. For the past halfcentury he has practised traditional Japanese sword related arts under a succession of famous Japanese masters being awarded a senior master’s licence, the instructor status of Renshi and a commemorative Menjo - certificate marking the Meiji Centenary in 1968. He has researched and written extensively about the Japanese warrior traditions and aspects of Japanese history. Without his determination kendo¯ might not have emerged and be where it is today; the three kendo¯ armours might also still be sitting undisturbed in the cupboard at the London Jo¯do¯ Society. Books by Roald Knutsen: Japanese Polearms (1963) Rediscovering Budo (2004) Japanese Spears, co-authored with his wife Patricia (2004) Sun Tzu and the Art of Medieval Japanese Warfare (2006) Tengu (2011) Tales of Enshin, the Reluctant Samurai (2012) Tales of the Samurai (2012) APPENDIX II
Ronald Alexander Lidstone (1895–1969). 48
¯ THREE AGES OF BRITISH KENDO
The New Zealand, Newspaper NZ Truth, Issue 1040, 31 October 1925: ‘A MAN in his time plays many parts’ said the poet. Such a one is Ronald Alexander Lidstone now at Auckland. Young in appearance, there’s many a man would give something to have seen what he has, or travelled as much. His pie of life is full of meat. Trained for mercantile marine at Osbourne and Dartmouth he became a Lieutenant in the Navy in the Big War, and was on the Marlborough in the Battle of Jutland. Later he went to ‘Gay Paree’, and followed the alluring profession of the light fantastic. Incidentally he polished up his knowledge of the fencing art. A master of the foil, sabre single stick and quarterstaff, he can hold his own with any man. In New Zealand’s first film, Rewi’s Last Stand, he took the part of Von Tempsky with singular success.
As a Naval Cadet aged sixteen, he was introduced to ‘swordplay’ and for the remainder of his life fencing, arms and armour were to be the greatest of his many interests. He competed three times at the Royal Navy and Military Tournament from 1911 to 1914. His books on fencing although out of print remain the authoritative treatise on the subject and his book, Bloody Bayonets became a handbook for the armed forces during World War II. He was also the author of the first book written in English on kendo¯. Lidstone first saw kendo¯ in Auckland, New Zealand, where he was living in 1926. The crew of the Japanese Naval ship Iwate put on a show of Japanese martial arts. He was impressed by the kendo¯ display and this would also have a lasting effect on him throughout his life. After the First World War, where he saw action at the Battle of Jutland, he taught fencing and acrobatics at the Old Vic and other theatres in and outside of London, making a name for himself as a director of stage and film fights. During this time he met his wife Isolde a professional dancer. Together they ‘trod the boards’ as the successful Adagio – (acrobatic) dancing duo ‘Isolde and Alexis’. In 1924 they emigrated to New Zealand on the chance of a position for R.A. running a Timber Mill. Unfortunately this came to nothing and struggling financially he took a job as a ‘Sports Master’ in charge of physical fitness. He also taught fencing, physical culture and dancing together with Isolde. They also toured again as ‘Isolde and Alexis’. He worked on the first silent film made in New Zealand Rewi’s Last Stand as fight Arranger and as the main character using the name Charles Alexis. This would also later be his ‘pen name’. In 1926 they moved to Sydney in Australia opening a dance and fencing studio. But their real dream was to return home and in 1928 when an aunt died leaving a small legacy they were able to book their passage ‘home’. 49
BRITAIN & JAPAN: BIOGRAPHICAL PORTRAITS VOLUME IX
On their return R.A. took up kendo¯ at the Anglo Japanese Ju¯jutsu and Martial Arts Association in London, continuing to practise until the Second World War, when he was conscripted into the RAF and promoted to Squadron Leader. Towards the end of the war, he was concerned with the handing over to the British of a number of American Air Force bases, for which he was granted the temporary rank of Wing Commander. After the War R.A. retired from kendo¯ for some fifteen years, only restarting after meeting with Roald Knutsen in 1958. With the assistance of other kendo¯ students, they founded the BKA in 1964. R.A. Lidstone was awarded kendo¯ grades (kyu¯ and dan – student & master degrees) in 1936, 1962 and 1967. He was granted Renshi – ‘instructor status’ in 1969 by the Zen Nippon Kendo¯ Renmei, in recognition of his great contribution to kendo¯; this was to have been conferred in Japan, but his poor health made this impossible and it had to be awarded posthumously in 1970 following his untimely death. Books by R A Lidstone: STUDIES IN SYMBOLOGY: R A Lidstone (1926) The Symbology of the Crucifix & the Tarot Symbology & the Types of Man Symbology of the initiations & the Tarot Symbology of the Number 12 The Art of Fencing: A Practical Manual for Foil Épée and Sabre (1930) Bloody Bayonets: The Complete Guide to Bayonet Fighting (1942) Fencing: A Practical Treatise on Foil, Épée, Sabre (1952) An Introduction to Kendo¯ the Art of Japanese Swordsmanship: Charles Alexis. Photographs by Alan R. Menzies. (Drawings by Roald M. Knutsen). (1964) Schools and Masters of Fencing: From the Middle Ages to the Eighteenth Century by Egerton Castle. Edited and Forward: R.A. Lidstone (1969) R A Lidstone Filmography: 1925. Rewi’s Last Stand - Fight Director, 1953. Knights of the Round Table. Starring Robert Taylor & Ava Gardner. – Fight Director. 1954. Men of Sherwood Forest. Starring Don Taylor. – Fight Director. 1955. The Dark Avenger. Starring Errol Flynn. – Fight Director Acting: 1925. Rewi’s Last Stand. Character: Von Tempskey. Television: 1956–1957. The Adventures of Sir Lancelot. Starring William Russell. – Master at arms 50
¯ THREE AGES OF BRITISH KENDO
1955–1959. Robin Hood. Starring Richard Greene. – Fight Director 1959. ITV Play of the Week – Stunt arranger. 1963. As You Like It – Wrestling coordinator Theatre: 1949–1963. The Old Vic, Saddlers Wells, Covent Garden, Citizen’s Theatre Glasgow, Saville Theatre – Fight Director. 1969. Founder member of the Society of British Fight Directors. Dance: 1919–1936. As half of the professional ‘Adagio’ dance duo ‘Isolde and Alexis’ Performances ‘Notwithstanding’ the Café de Paris in London, the London Coliseum and a tour of South Africa in 1923 REFERENCES AND BACKGROUND SOURCES
Alex Bennet: F.J. Norman. The Fighting Man of Japan: the training and exercises of the Samurai The BKA The BKR Douglas Lloyd Jenkins ‘Samuel Begg’ John Bowen, the personal records of his late brother Richard Bowen ‘Ju¯do¯ history’ The Budokwai ‘Ju¯do¯ history records’ Pathe News The British Library ‘Posters of the Japanese Village’ The British Newspaper Archive Wikipedia ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
Terry Holt, Roald and Pat Knutsen, the Lidstone Family, Ian Parker Dodd, Matsuda Kazuyo, For their invaluable information, generous assistance and great kindness. ENDNOTES 1
2
Samuel Begg, born in London 1854, emigrated to New Zealand. and spent much of the remainder of the nineteenth century, there as well as in Australia, before returning to England attaining a position as an illustrator for the Illustrated London News. Described as ‘perhaps the finest black and white artist of his age’ and yet also representing ‘the worst features’ of late nineteenth century illustrators, being perhaps too photographic in presentation. For a description of the village and information about Tannaker Buhicrosan see Japan in Late Victorian London: The Japanese Village in Knightsbridge and the Mikado, 1885 by Sir Hugh Cortazzi, Sainsbury Institute for the Study of Japanese Arts and Cultures (SISJAC), Norwich, 2009
51
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3
According to a ‘Catalogue with Explanatory notes of the Exhibits from the Department of Education, Empire of Japan, In the International Health and Education Exhibition, held in London, 1884. By order of the Minister of Education, SEICHI TEJIMA, Commissioner, Director of Tokio Educational Museum and Attaché Superieur of the Department of Agriculture and Commerce. Department of Education, Tokio, Japan. London September 1884 Class XXXIX. Special Apparatus for Physical Training in Schools, Gymnasia, Apparatus for Exercise, Drill, etc. (15.) Set of Fencing Apparatus. (16.) Sketch, representing Fencing Exercises. (17.) Set of Apparatus for Archery Practice, (18.) Sketch, representing Archery Practice. (19.) Sketch, representing Exercises in ‘Jiujitsu’ (kind of wrestling).
4
5 6
7
8
9
10
These arts (Fencing, Archery and Jiujitsu) were considered as an essential part of military training for a samurai (knight). As they afford opportunities for splendid physical exercises, they have been revived in some schools. See Nos. 16, 18, and 19, to get an idea of exercises in these arts. No. 18 represents the Archery practice of olden times. It is possible that the equipment from the Health Exhibition ended up with Tannaker Buhicrosan who used it at the Japanese Village. See ‘Ju¯do¯ Pioneers’ by Richard Bowen in Britain and Japan: Biographical Portraits Volume V, ed. Hugh Cortazzi, Global Oriental, 2004. See ‘Ju¯do¯ Pioneers’ note 2. Alex Bennett is a scholar, teacher, translator, writer, coach and active competitor in the martial arts. He holds two PhDs in studies related to bu¯do, has achieved seventh dan in kendo¯ and fifth dan in naginata, lives in Japan and is the author of several books about kendo¯ including the reissue of FJ Norman’s book, The Fighting Man of Japan: the training and exercises of the Samurai, in which he did a new introduction in 2003. ISBN 9784907009045 See biographical portrait by Richard Bowen in Britain and Japan: Biographical Portraits, Volume IV, ed. Hugh Cortazzi, Japan Library 2002. The Budokwai Website: ‘Its Roots and Early History And Some Other Early Matters’. See also the personal writings of the late Richard (Dickie) Bowen, British Judo¯ pioneer, who was a 4th Dan and Vice-president of the Budokwai, e.g.100 Years of Judo¯ in Great Britain. There are further notes not included in the book, which are on file in the Richard Bowen Archive in Bath University. See biographical portrait of Yoshio Markino by Carmen Blacker in Britain and Japan: Biographical Portraits, volume I, ed. Ian Nish, Japan Library 1994. Mentioned on pages 317/8 of Richard Bowen’s essay on Koizumi Gunji (see note 4)
52
¯ THREE AGES OF BRITISH KENDO
11
12
13
14
15
16
17
Sir George Gordon Vereker was later to become British Ambassador to Finland 1940–1941. See portrait of David Lean by Norimasa Morita in Britain and Japan: Biographical Portraits, volume VIII, ed, Hugh Cortazzi, Global Oriental, 2013 See biographical portrait of Prince and Princess Chichibu by Dorothy Britton in Britain and Japan: Biographical Portraits, Volume V ed. Hugh Cortazzi, Global Oriental, 2004. Bill Stopps was a renowned ju¯do¯ teacher and the first personal assistant to judo¯ master Masutaro¯ Otani from 1947. The quote is from the ‘Judo¯ Forum’ and is based on a rough transcript from a tape received by the British Judo¯ Council from Bill Stopps in July 1993. John Goodbody was for many years chief sports writer for The Times and has covered every Olympics since 1964. The publication quoted is The Japanese Fighting Arts 1967, printed by the Garden City Press Ltd, Letchworth Herts. Library of Congress Catalogue Number: 69–12801. Brendan Monks is a photographer and sports picture editor at the Daily Mail. Iaido¯ is a modern Japanese martial art/sport. Iaido¯ is associated with the smooth, controlled movements of drawing the sword from its scabbard or saya, striking or cutting an ‘imaginary’ opponent, removing blood from the blade, and then replacing the sword in the scabbard Jodo meaning ‘the way of the jo¯, is a Japanese martial art using a short staff four feet two inches (1.27 metres) long or jo and is strongly focused upon defence against the Japanese sword.
53
5
Nippon Club (1881–2014) SETSUO KATO1
ORIGINS
The Nippon Club is almost certainly the oldest Japanese institution in London other than the Japanese legation which was established in 1872 by Terashima Munenori.2 The Nippon Club can trace its origins to 1881 when about twenty to thirty Japanese living in London gathered together monthly at a restaurant in the Strand. They discussed political and economic issues and helped each other to overcome the difficulties which they faced in a strange land. On some occasions they invited guests to speak. They called these meetings ‘London Nipponjinkai’ (London Japanese Club). There were three major players involved in establishing the Nipponjinkai and looking after Japanese interests in London. These were Mitsui & Co.,3 the Yokohama Specie Bank4 and Nippon Yu¯sen Kaisha (NYK).5 These three trading, banking and shipping companies were Japan’s first major companies to establish roots in London. The three companies still chair the present Nippon Club in rotation. In 1888 the Japanese Consul in London Sonoda Kokichi and his wife invited Nipponjinkai members to their house (46 Holland Road W14) to meet there rather than in a restaurant. From then on the Nipponjinkai regularly met there until Ozaki Saburo’s6 wife offered her place in Bayswater. In 1893 there were aroud forty members of Nipponjinkai while there were 116 Japanese living in London at that time. Following the revision in 1894 of the Anglo-Japanese Treaty of Amity and Commerce 1858 (Nichiei-Tsu¯sho¯ J¯oyaku 1858) and the Sino-Japanese War of 1894–1895 Anglo-Japanese trade began to expand and following the conclusion of the first Anglo-Japanese Alliance (Nichiei Do¯mei) in 1902 relations between the two countries became closer while increased numbers of Japanese businesses became established in London. 54
NIPPON CLUB (1881–2014)
In 1904 the Nipponjinkai decided to establish a club house where members could meet fellow members at any time. With support from Japanese bankers, they leased a building in Covent Garden (39 King Street WC2) and opened their first club house with a lounge, meeting rooms, library and a restaurant. Genuine Japanese cuisine, such as special grilled eels, Dover sole sashimi, prawn tempura, pickled daikon were served in the restaurant. Although private, this must have been the first Japanese restaurant in London except one at the International Health Exhibition7 in 1884 where a temporary Japanese restaurant was staged during the exhibition. By now there were some seventy members of the club. Following the Russo-Japanese War (1904–1905) Japan became increasingly recognized as an important world power and trade with Britain expanded significantly. In 1906 total trade exceeded 123 million yen which was four times the volume recorded in 1893. More Japanese banks, trading companies and shipping companies set up offices in London and the number of Japanese living in London reached 276. The Covent Garden club house soon became too small and in 1912 the club moved to new premises at 76–78 Mortimer Street W1. The premises were bigger and the rent was £500 a year for a seven year lease. By then, membership of Nipponjinkai had topped a hundred. On 21 July of that year the new club house was officially opened by Mr Kato¯ Takaaki, the Japanese ambassador8 who was also the honorary Chairman of the Nipponjinkai. The tradition of the Japanese ambassador being the honorary chairman of Nipponjinkai still continues to the present day. During the First World War between 1914 and 1918 there was a significant increase in Japanese exports to Europe. In 1919 trade between Japan and Britain had increased to 229 million yen. A GENTLEMAN’S CLUB
The premises at Mortimer Street subsequently became too small to house all the members and various activities. The general committee decided to seek bigger premises in central London. In 1919 they bought a building at No. 3 Cavendish Square, W1, just behind Oxford Circus, for £15,000 with a 999 year lease. It was a fourstorey building with a basement and attics. The club house consisted of a lounge, reading room, meeting room, games room, bar, dining room and billiards room. In addition there was guest and staff accommodation. On 20 October 1919 the club house was opened as the Nipponjinkai Club House but was usually called Nippon Club House. By then there were more than 1500 Japanese nationals living in London and membership of Nipponjinkai had risen to 400. 55
BRITAIN & JAPAN: BIOGRAPHICAL PORTRAITS VOLUME IX
The club house was managed like an English gentleman’s club. Membership was strictly limited to top Japanese figures such as diplomats, professionals and businessmen. In order to become a member a Japanese had to be recommended by other members to
Nippon Club, 3 Cavendish Square 56
NIPPON CLUB (1881–2014)
join and although there were nearly 2,000 Japanese living in London in the 1920s membership was limited to 400. Non-members were only admitted when accompanied by a member. The club house was used for meetings, dining and pleasure. Many notable Japanese businessmen, diplomats, scholars, admirals, politicians and even a few prime ministers passed through the club when they were in London. The club house was open daily from 11 o’clock in the morning till midnight except on Mondays when the club was closed. Members were entitled to bring up to six guests at a time. They enjoyed Japanese cuisine in the dining room, playing billiards, reading Japanese books and newspapers. British guests were often invited for drinks and meals. However, there were strict rules about use of the club house. For instance it was not permitted to bring alcohol into the club. There was a bar in the house which was opened between 12 noon and 3 pm and again between 5 pm and 11 pm on weekdays and between 1:30 pm and 2:30 pm, 6 pm and 9 pm on Sundays and Bank Holidays. Tips for staff were not permitted. These rules ensured that the Nippon club house had a good reputation among British people. GOOD ANGLO-JAPANESE RELATIONS
After the First World War Anglo-Japanese relations were friendly and Japanese living and working in London had a good time. The Japanese community were proud of their Nippon club house. Bilateral trade flourished, the numbers of Japanese companies operating in Britain doubled and Japanese residents significantly increased in number. One resident at the time, Mr Taoka Yahei, commented ‘Anglo-Japanese relations have never been as good as at present and the British people are so friendly toward Japan and the Japanese.’ In May 1920 the Japanese Crown Prince Hirohito, during his official visit to Britain, visited9 the Nippon club house and donated £700 to the club. The Nippon club house was well-maintained because of donations from visitors and from members leaving London. THE SECOND WORLD WAR
The deterioration in Anglo-Japanese relation in the latter half of 1930s, the fears of Japanese competition in textiles and other manufactured goods and British concerns about Japanese advance into Manchuria and China complicated the lives of members of the Japanese community. When the Chinese Embassy in London began a campaign against Japan, Nipponjinkai members together with the Japanese Embassy set up a special committee to counter this campaign and explain Japan’s situation and intentions. 57
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Following the beginning of the Second World War in 1939 and Japan’s support for Germany, the Japanese community in Britain had a difficult time. Many Japanese businesses were closed and businessmen were sent home. By 1940 membership of the Nipponjinkai had dropped to 187. Following German air raids on London some Japanese families were evacuated to High Wycombe. In November 1940, the majority of Japanese residents (mostly businessmen and their families) left Britain by the Japanese evacuation ship Fushimi-Maru from Galway, Ireland, and only a handful of Japanese men were left in London to look after Japanese interests. In 1941 when Japan declared war against Britain the Nippon club house was seized by the British Government as enemy property. The club house was put under Swiss management. After the war, Japan was forced, in accordance with the terms of the San Francisco Peace Treaty of 1951, to give up all its properties outside Japan. The Nippon club house, although it was not owned by the Japanese Government and was registered as a British establishment, was not exempted. There were two different Japanese societies in London before the War. One was the Nipponjinkai which was an elite Japanese society consisting of top businessmen, diplomats, scholars and professionals and the other was the Do¯ho¯kai (residents club). Dohokai was for Japanese nationals who lived and worked in Britain as permanent residents. Members were Ryokan proprietors, shop-owners and shop-keepers, chefs, gardeners, actors, hairdressers, wives of British husbands and others who were not sent by companies. They regularly met and helped each other. They looked after the Japanese graveyard in Hendon Cemetery which still exists today. Both groups ceased to exist and Japanese nationals living in Britain were interned on the Isle of Man. NEW NIPPON CLUB
The Japanese economy gradually recovered. In 1951 a Japanese Government office was set up in London and the Anglo-Japanese Trade Repayment Agreement was signed. In 1952 the Peace Treaty with Japan came into force and the Japanese embassy was re-established in London. Japanese nationals were once more allowed to visit Britain. NYK re-opened a European shipping route and the Bank of Tokyo in place of the Yokohama Specie Bank established a London branch. Other Japanese banks, trading houses and insurance companies followed. In 1955 there were 401 Japanese residents in London. They were mostly London representatives of Japanese companies. Because of Japan’s role in the war many of them encountered hostility from British people and had difficulty finding accommodation. 58
NIPPON CLUB (1881–2014)
Chinese restaurants sometimes refused to serve them when they found that their customers were Japanese. Mr Oba Sadao, businessman and historian, who came to London as a representative of a trading company in 1954 recalled that the atmosphere in London towards the Japanese was hostile and as a result Japanese living in London were keeping a low profile. There were no Japanese restaurants or food shops at that time and there was an obvious lack of premises where Japanese could go and relax. Mr Satake Tamekichi, who used to run a small hotel near Marble Arch for Japanese nationals before the war, returned to London and invited Japanese businessmen to his home in Belsize Park where they could enjoy home cooking. They talked about reviving the pre-war Nippon club house. Representatives from NYK, the Bank of Tokyo and Mitsui & Co. who had been the leading members of the pre-war Nipponjinkai, searched for a suitable building. In 1960 they found appropriate premises in Chelsea (13 Chelsea Embankment, SW3), a Victorian era building beside the Thames costing £50,000. The lounge, library, bar and office were on the ground floor. On the first floor there was a big dining room and on the third floor there were meeting rooms and private dining rooms. Mr Satake Tamekichi became the manager of the club house. Named the Nippon Club, the first chairman was Mr Matsudaira Ichiro¯ from the Bank of Tokyo and Ambassador Ohno Katsumi10 was the honorary chairman. The membership consisted of fifty corporate members and 250 individual members. There were hardly any Japanese restaurants in London at that time and the Nippon Club dining room was the place to enjoy Japanese cuisine. Mr Kondo Shigeru, who ran Momo restaurant in Ealing in 2014, was a manager of the Nippon club restaurant. He recalls: Nippon Club was a prestigious club and the atmosphere was elegant and dignified but at the same time relaxed and comfortable. There were three very good chefs, Mr Shibuya, Mr Watanabe and Mr Iwasa in the restaurant, which was always busy with members. Food was very good and very reasonable because the Nippon Club was not a profit-making organization. Many members entertained their business clients here and families dined at weekends. MEDICAL CLINIC
In 1961 the Nippon club set up a welfare committee with the aim of establishing various welfare services for members, including the provision of medical advice from Japanese doctors, children’s education in Japanese and some leisure activities. Four Japanese medical doctors who were researching at British universities at that time were asked 59
BRITAIN & JAPAN: BIOGRAPHICAL PORTRAITS VOLUME IX
to give medical consultations to members. Those doctors were not allowed to practise in Britain, but they understood the differences in treatment between the two countries and gave valuable advice. The Japanese really wanted to have Japanese doctors in London not only because of the language problem, but because of the differences in treatment and medical practice. There had been a medical clinic with a Japanese doctor and even a Japanese dentist in London before the war. By now there were over 1,000 Japanese living in Britain compared with only a few hundred before the war. The problem of recognition of medical qualifications was not unique to Britain. There was a mirror problem affecting the British community in Japan. The basic issue was one of recognition of medical qualifications by the British Medical Association (BMA) in Britain and by the Japan Medical Association (JMA) in Japan. Both were essentially conservative organizations and in effect closed shops. They were determined to insist that only those who qualified under their rules and regulations should be regarded as qualified. The British and Japanese governments were eventually forced to confront this problem. Eventually after tortuous negotiations between the British Embassy in Tokyo and the Japanese Ministry of Foreign Affairs in Tokyo a compromise was reached in 1964,11 which set a precedent for the future. The JMA was induced to grant a licence to practice for foreign patients in the Kansai to a Dr Barraclough. In return a Japanese doctor was allowed by the BMA to treat Japanese patients in London. In 1965 the Nippon Club Clinic opened in Golders Green, North London, where a big Japanese community existed. Dr Asai Eiichiro¯ from the Japanese Red Cross Hospital was appointed as the first doctor. In the first year the clinic treated some 1,100 patients and did general medical check-ups on over 1,000 members and their families. In 1974 the number of Japanese residents in Britain exceeded 5,000 and the Nippon Club opened a second clinic in Sutton with another Japanese doctor. The Japanese clinics in London looked after Japanese patients living in Britain as well as Japanese living in the Middle East and Africa where the medical system was less advanced and there were no Japanese medical doctors. Dr Asai served for five years and Dr Ishii took over and worked till 1975. Both doctors were from the Japanese Red Cross Hospital, but in 1975 the Red Cross Hospital decided to expand its facilities in Tokyo and needed more doctors. As a result the Nippon Club had to look elsewhere for doctors. In 2014 the Nippon Club maintained two clinics, one in North London (St Johns Wood) and the other in South London (Wimbledon) staffed by three Japanese doctors from Jikeikai University. They were treating a total of over 10,000 patients every year. 60
NIPPON CLUB (1881–2014)
JAPANESE SCHOOL
The welfare committee of the Nippon Club was asked to investigate the feasibility of establishing a Japanese school in London. Some members were concerned that their children attending local schools would forget the Japanese language and also fall behind Japanese educational standards. In 1964 the Nippon Club conducted a survey of their members on whether a Japanese school was necessary. About half of those who replied seriously wanted to have Japanese education facilities in London. In 1965 the Nippon Club set up ‘Nihongokai’ (Japanese language club) with seventy-five members and started teaching Japanese language. Classes were held every Saturday morning for two hours in the Convent of Our Lady of Sion (Chepstow Villas, W11). The classes were divided into three groups, the first elementary school, the second elementary school and middle school. The classes were taught by Mr Nomoto Kikuo and others. The Japanese population in Britain and the number of children were growing. The Nihongokai had started with fifty-seven pupils in 1965 but increased to ninety-five in 1967 and 120 in 1968. Three classes became seven classes and the higher age classes moved to the annex of the Japanese embassy. Pupils numbers further increased from 125 in 1970 to 350 in 1973 and to 470 in 1974. Classes had to be held in many different schools and other premises. In 1975 the Nippon Club had applied to the Japanese Education Ministry and the British Ministry of Education for permission to open a Japanese day school in London. In 1976 Japanese School Ltd. was established and a school building (Gloucester Avenue, Camden NW1) was purchased. In October 1976 the Japanese day school and the Japanese Saturday school were officially launched. The headmaster and teachers came from Japan. In the 1980s the number of Japanese pupils increased still further and the Camden School became too small. In 1987 the Japanese School moved from Camden Town to Acton (Creffield Road, Acton W3). In 2014 the Japanese School had around 430 pupils in the day school and 1,200 in the Saturday schools. The Saturday schools were divided into three schools in Acton, Finchley and Croydon. The Nippon Club remains the key organization behind the Japanese School in London. Its management committee meets every month to discuss the arrangements for the school. NEWSLETTER BIG BEN
It is not clear whether the Nipponjinkai had any kind of bulletins or newsletters. When the Nippon Club started after the war, it published a small hand-written mimeograph newsletter edited by Jiji 61
BRITAIN & JAPAN: BIOGRAPHICAL PORTRAITS VOLUME IX
Press London. It reported the various activities of the club and had special feature stories, such as about the Hendon Japanese graveyard, the internment camp on the Isle of Man during the war and the opening of the Nippon Club clinic in Golders Green. In the 1970s Nippon Club Newsletters were published as a page in Living in Europe, the Japanese community newspaper published by OCS (Overseas Courier Services Ltd.). Unfortunately both the mimeograph bulletins and the Living in Europe have totally disappeared. However, in 1980 the Nippon Club started publishing an official newsletter called Big Ben. Big Ben covers not only the club’s activities, but various features and topics useful for Japanese residents in Britain, plus news of the Japanese society in Britain and various Japan-related events. Unlike its predecessors, the entire volumes of Big Ben were kept in the Nippon Club and in the Japanese Embassy Library. Big Ben is published every other month and celebrated its 200th issue in July 2012. Big Ben is in the Japanese language and originally was typeset by photo typesetter. As digital technology has advanced, many organizations including Big Ben have moved to online publishing. As a freelance journalist I have been involved in contributing articles to Big Ben since 1983 and have been the editor since 2003. Big Ben represents the Nippon Club and the Nippon Club reflects the Japanese community in Britain. NIPPON CLUB’S DIFFERENT PREMISES
When the post-war Nippon Club started in 1960, the only Japanese restaurant was that in the Nippon Club. However, as the number of Japanese in London grew in the 1970s, more Japanese restaurants opened and the Nippon Club restaurant began to face financial difficulties. New Japanese restaurants were concentrated in the City and West End near Japanese businesses. Chelsea was rather out of the way for the Japanese community and the restaurant gradually lost its customers. In 1977 the Nippon Club decided to close down the restaurant and in 1978, the club house in Chelsea was sold. The responsibilities of the Nippon Club for running the medical clinics, managing the Japanese school and for other activities, however, remained and office space was still needed. Mitsubishi Corporation accordingly gave the Nippon Club temporary office space in their building in the City. Later the Nippon Club had a small office in Royal London House (16 Finsbury Circus EC2), then in Hambro House (Vintners Place EC4) in 1981 and then in Prince Rupert House (64 Queen St EC4) in 1988. The monthly general committee meetings were held in the chairman’s company office while other committee meetings were held in the offices of member companies. In the 1990s the 62
NIPPON CLUB (1881–2014)
Lounge in Samuel House at 6 St Albans Street SW1 (1995–2014)
Japanese bubble economy had burst and Japanese companies were reluctant to spend money on non-profit making activities. Some members, however, wanted a club house with meeting rooms and a lounge where members could meet or learn languages and enjoy cultural events. They declared that without a club house it could not be called a club. In 1995 the Nippon Club moved to Samuel House (6 St Albans Street, Piccadilly SW1). Although it was not very large, Samuel House had three meeting rooms, a lounge and a library. Members could hire a meeting room, enjoy coffee and tea with friends, watch Japanese TV or read Japanese newspapers in their club. Samuel House was just three minute’s walk from Piccadilly Circus. All the committee meetings were held there. The Nippon Club organized its own English and French language courses and held seminars for members. The Nippon Club again functioned properly as a club from 1995 to 2014. But London property prices were rising and Samuel House cost £185,000 a year.12 Apart from paying for Samuel House the Nippon Club had to pay other big rents for the North Clinic (St. John and St. Elizabeth Hospital) and the South Clinic (Parkside Hospital). The club accordingly decided in 2014 to move out of central London. New much smaller premises were found in Southwark (5–11 Lavington St SE1) but the club could at least provide a lounge and meeting rooms. 63
BRITAIN & JAPAN: BIOGRAPHICAL PORTRAITS VOLUME IX
The Nippon Club’s income is dependent on the membership fee. The club cannot expect in the future any significant increase in membership. The number of Nippon Club members has in fact hardly increased over the last decade. The membership mostly consists of Japanese corporations and Japanese businessmen. Although the number of Japanese living in Britain has been slightly increasing, the Japanese corporate sector may be decreasing. This is partly due to the Japanese economic recession and partly due to the shift of Japanese economic strategy toward Asia. The Nippon Club in 2014 maintains its traditional roles of promoting the welfare of its members, their health and the education of their children. It remains at the centre of the Japanese community in Britain. REFERENCE: London Nipponjinkai Album 1921 Mr. Sadao Oba ‘The 100th Anniversary of Nippon Club’ (Big Ben 1985– 1987) ENDNOTES 1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
Setsuo Kato, journalist, member of general committee and editor of Big Ben, Nippon Club. See Japanese Envoys in Britain 1862–1964 ed. Ian Nish, Global Oriental, 2007. See Mitsui in London by Sadao Oba in Britain and Japan: Biographical Portraits, ed. Hugh Cortazzi, volume V, Global Oriental, 2004. See Yokohama Specie Bank in London by Keiko Itoh, in Britain and Japan: Biographical Portraits, ed. Hugh Cortazzi, volume V, Global Oriental, 2004. See Nippon Yu¯sen Kaisha (NYK) by Hiroyuki Takeno, in Britain and Japan: Biographical Portraits, ed. Hugh Cortazzi, volume V, Global Oriental, 2004. See Ozaki Saburo¯ (in Thee Meiji Marriages) by Noboru Koyama in Britain and Japan: Biographical Portraits, ed. Hugh Cortazzi, volume IV, Japan Library, 2002. See pages 7 and 8 of Japan in Late Victorian London: The Japanese Village in Knightsbridge and the Mikado, 1885, by Sir Hugh Cortazzi, Sainsbury Institute, Norwich, 2009. See biographical portrait by Ian Nish in Britain and Japan: Biographical Portraits, volume IV, ed. Hugh Cortazzi, Japan Library, 2002 and Japanese Envoys, ed. Ian Nish, Global Oriental, 2007. Nipponjinkai made an official album to commemorate the Royal visit to the Club House. As there are hardly any documents or reference left about Nipponjinkai before the Second World War, this album is a rare and precious document. A portrait of Ohno Katsumi by Eiji Seki is contained in Japanese Envoys in Britain 1862–1964, ed. Ian Nish, Global Oriental, 2007 64
NIPPON CLUB (1881–2014)
11
12
The account given here is based on the memory of Sir Hugh Cortazzi, the editor of this volume. He recalls meetings in Tokyo when he was first secretary in the British embassy in Tokyo with Yamazaki Toshio, later ambassador in London, but then head of the British Commonwealth Section (Eirempoka) in the Gaimusho. Yamazaki had to deal through the Ministry of Health and Welfare with the JMA. Hugh Cortazzi had to deal through the Foreign Office and the Ministry of Health with the BMA. He recalls that In Japan during the allied occupation between 1945 and 1952 a numnber of foreign doctors had been registered in Japan without having to pass Japanese medical examinations in Japanese. After the occupation ended these licences were not revoked, The Tokyo Medical Clinic in the Masonic Building at Shiba, which included a small number of foreign qualified doctors including a New Zealand doctor Dr Derek Fair and the American Dr Milton Morton and the dental surgeon Dr Besford, were allowed to continue to provide medical services to foreigners in Tokyo. There were also a few other qualified foreign doctors such as the German doctor Eitel who were also allowed to practise. But the JMA decided that in future only doctors, who had passed their qualifications in examinations written in the Japanese language would in future be allowed to practise in Japan. The American Seventh Day Adventists had their own hospital and as they trained staff in Japanese (including the Japanese scholar Dr Nelson) were willing to take examinations in Japanese. But, as foreign qualified doctors in Japan aged, the British communities in Japan were likely to face a situation in which they would not have adequate access to foreign qualified doctors. Comprising £93,000 Rent, £47,000 Service Charge and £45,000 Council Tax.
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6
Japan and Ye Sette of Odd Volumes and The Thirteen Club in the 1890s HUGH CORTAZZI
The Japan Society founded in 1891 was not the only organization which showed an interest in Japan in the 1890s. Ye Sette of Odd Volumes was much favoured by some of the founders of the Japan Society of London. It in turn may well have influenced the Thirteen Club of London to hold a Japan-themed dinner. YE SETTE OF ODD VOLUMES
‘Ye Sette of Odd Volumes’ was a late Victorian dining club with a whimsical name and to modern eyes a contrived set of ceremonies and titles. Members were called ‘His Oddship Brother’. Toni Huberman in her biographical portrait of Charles Holme (Britain and Japan: Biographical Portraits, Volume VI, p. 257) wrote: ‘One could say that without Ye Sette of Odd Volumes the Japan Society might never have existed. Ye Sette was ostensibly a gentleman’s club, without benefit of a club house. Originally founded by the publisher Bernard Quaritch and a group of friends in 1878, it seems to have been an excuse for a
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good dinner once a month, and the company of congenial friends.’ They were expected to contribute and read papers on topics of possible interest to other members. These were privately printed in a series called ‘Opuscula’. Ye Sette of Odd Volumes held a dinner on Friday 3 June 1892 at Limmer’s Hotel in London which had a Japanese theme. This was the 146th meeting of Ye Sette with His Oddship, Brother William Murrell, in the Chair. According to The Year-Boke [sic] of the Sette of Odd Volumes for 1892–1893 one of the guests invited by Edward Heron-Allen, ‘Vice-President and Necromancer’ was Oscar Wilde. The menu was:
The artist for the menu was said to be Issai. The versified chronicle of the evening began: Again the ODD VOLUMES assembled, Correctly got up to a man, Prepared to discuss, with hors d’oeuvres, THE ART OF OLD Japan. We drank to the Queen; we boasted What wonderful guests we had got; And then in a batch they were toasted, 67
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And served up, hot and hot. O, the Inros of Old Japan! Kakimonos [sic] of Old Japan! How instructive to hear the OLD VOLUMES, On the ART OF OLD Japan! His Oddship asked Captain Kawara (I’ve named him as near as I can), To respond for the civilization And Culture of newest Japan He spoke with aplomb and conviction, His speech very much seemed to please; But pray don’t ask me to report it, For I don’t understand Japanese. O, the Culture of newest Japan! Civilization of newest Japan! The Japs aere out-Europing Europe, I fear in their newest Japan!
One of the speakers was Marcus Huish (1843–1921), managing director of The Fine Art Society, a founding member of the Japan Society, art critic and historian.1 The chronicler wrote: Brother Huish lectured sagely On beautiful things Japanese, And told us our duffers in England Could never do things like these! He showed us wonderful pictures By artists of old Japan; Netsukas [sic], sword hilts, lacquered boxes, And, more than remember I can, O, those wonderful things Japanese! These beautiful things Japanese! We have wallowed in civilization Too long to make things like these.
Another verse read: Then there followed a learned discussion, Brother HOLME, Brother EAST, ERNEST HART, Like so many Japanese lanterns, Beamed softly on Japanese art, Alma Tadema, too, like a lighthouse, Stood up and declared that the Japs
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Had delivered our souls from convention, A very fine plume in their caps, But by this time the Brethren had fed, Drunk their wine, and were thinking of bed, And ‘twould take me too long at the end of my song, To chronicle all that was said.
The chronicler ended with these lines: And the ART OF OLD Japan, O, the ART OF OLD Japan! They dreamed that night, the ODD VOLUMES, Of curios, and Old Japan.
Brother Holme mentioned above was Charles Holme (1848–1923), the founder of the Studio.2 He had joined Ye Sette in 1886 and read a paper to the Sette at Willis’s Rooms on Friday, 6 January 1888 on the theme ‘New Year’s Day in Japan’. This was privately printed in the ‘Opuscula’ series in 133 copies and issued to the member of the society as No, XVII:
(Cover)
(Frontispiece)
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Holme began in non-PC terms as follows: ‘Show the niggers up’ said, some years ago, a wealthy English manufacture, when told that a party of Japanese gentlemen – members and servants of the Japanese Government – had called at his invitation to visit his factory; ‘show the niggers up,’ said he. The expression was certainly a significative [sic] one – significative of the state of ignorant indifference and gross selfconceit with which the Briton has so often, and with so much reason, been taxed. Everything that is strange and novel to John Bull he regards, at first, as outlandish and heathenish; and it is only after long years when the error of his views has, over and over again, been demonstrated, that he begins to shift his ground and to look with tardy respect on the subjects of his former ridicule. The introduction of young Japan to John Bull is, as we all know, comparatively a recent one. The remarkable Revolution which, but a short time ago, changed the conditions of life in Japan – overthrowing the exclusive system of feudalism which for so many years obtained here, and substituting a more liberal form of government – has led to a train of consequences by which the Empire of the ‘Rising Sun,’ with its quaint old-world customs, is brought into bonds of communion with the vaunted civilization of Europe and America.
After a ponderous introduction in similar vein Holme described some of the features of New Year festivities in Japan. He ended with some animadversions on drink: Although it is reported that one may get comfortably drunk on warm saki, the Japanese beer or spirit, I do not think that it turns out such thorough-going topers as does English beer or rum. Whether the Japanese are any the better or any the worse for this inferiority in food and drink, it is not necessary for me now to discourse upon; but it is quite certain that in all the most refined pleasures and customs associated with this time of year, they are our equals if not our superiors.
The end piece is this engraving:
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Charles Holme had given an earlier paper on Japanese games. I have not been able to trace this but it is mentioned in the Year-boke of the Sette, no. 3 (1890–1891), p. 23: His Oddship [Holme] read a paper on Indoor Games of Japan, illustrating his observations by showing some of the curious card games, the game of chess, the game of ‘Go’, and ‘Scent’ and ‘Shell’ games as played in that country.
There is a reference in the minutes of the meeting of 6 June 1890, when the paper was read, of permission being given for it to be published and ‘copiously illustrated’, but it never was. The minutes record: ‘It is not saying too much that this paper could not have been written by anyone else out of Japan. The President [Holme] was surrounded by most of the Japanese experts in this country.’ Charles Holme was not the only member of the club to read a paper on a Japanese theme. After dinner at Limmer’s hotel on the occasion of the Ladies Night on Friday, 1 November 1895, Paul Bevan, M.A. described as ‘READY RECKONER, Treasurer and sometime Secretary of Ye Sette of Odd Volumes’, read a paper on Harmonies in Japanese Music. This was printed as No XLI in 1898. He began by listing three reasons for his paper. The first was ‘the command of His Oddship – He who must be obeyed.’ The second was ‘the fascination of the subject for me, to whom the study of Japanese music has always been a source of unmixed pleasure’. Thirdly ‘The opportunity of trotting out a hobby before one of one of the most critical and distinguished audiences.’ His object was ‘to interest without instructing’ his audience. He compared the development of music in Japan and ancient Greece. He noted that ‘the musical scale in Japan consists of a minor scale with a flat second’, and added ‘This scale may not be the same as our system as far as vibrations are concerned, but it is identical with our diatonic and chromatic scale.’ He commented on ‘the similarity of scheme followed in the opera-dramas of Japan and the opera-dramas of Richard Wagner.’ At the end of his paper he introduced some Japanese music beginning with Kimi-ga-yo, the Japanese National Anthem.3 Another piece he included was Miya Sama ‘the war song of the Imperial Army (1867–1868), (not the song included with the same title in Gilbert and Sullivan’s operetta). A third paper entitled ‘Ye Magick Mirrour of Old Japan’ was read before the Sette on Friday, 2 December 1892 by Dr Sylvanus P. Thompson FRS described as ‘Magnetizer to the Sette of Odd Volumes’. Only ninety-seven copies of this volume were printed privately. The Year-Boke said of this lecture:
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It was a brilliant success, all the experiments excellently performed, and all the explanations lucid. Even the most recalcitrant mirrors were moved to repentance under the discipline of his ‘Knee-drill,’ and revealed their most secret designs in the beam of his lime-light.
Professor Ayrton,4 who had taught physics in Japan Gave an amusing account of his difficulties in passing the French Custom House with a batch of Magic Mirrours which he had bought from Japan. He was forced to appeal from the Custom House officials to the Minister; and only succeeded in escaping a heavy duty by assuring him that, instead of merely casting reflections upon a screen, he should have to cast reflections upon the French Government in the papers. He highly complimented Brother SILVANUS upon the success of his lecture and experiments, as also did Professor Anderson, Professor Robert Austin and Brother HOLME.
Ye Magick Mirrour of Old Japan No XXX privately printed Opuscula by Silvanus P.Thompson, Magnetizer to the Sette of Odd Volumes had this image next to the title page:
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The author began by noting that according to travellers to Japan ‘mirror-worship’ was ‘one of its forms of primitive religion’. The mirror was ‘the emblem of light’ and was enshrined at Ise. Japanese mirrors were invariably made of metal. Some Japanese mirrors were reputed to be, ‘capable of reflecting, in a beam of light that falls on their face, the pattern which they carry on their back.’ The ‘magical’ quality of Japanese mirrors was due to the fact that: The surface over the thick parts is flatter (less convex, or even actually slightly concave) than the surface over the thin parts. Using a large convex lens to converge sunlight that had been reflected from a mirror, they [the experimenters] showed that by merely altering the distance of the screen on which on which the image was received they could make the image either positive or negative at will; a result impossible on any other hypothesis than that of curvatures of surface.
Professor Ayrton as quoted by the author concluded that: The magic of the Eastern mirror results from no subtle trick on the part of the maker, from no inlaying of other metal, or hardening of portions by stamping, but merely arises from the natural property possessed by thin bronze of buckling under a bending stress, so as to remain strained in the opposite direction after the stress is removed.5
Arthur Lazenby Liberty6 was President of the Sette, ‘His Oddship, Craftsman to the Sette’, in the twenty-eighth year of the Sette 1905–1906. (See the Year-Boke [sic] for that year). Although he does not seem to have read a paper to Ye Sette, The Year-Boke included a copy of an ‘album’ of tributes to Liberty ‘in grateful remembrance of his genial reign’. This included contributions from Charles Holme described as ‘Pilgrim’, Arthur Diosy described as ‘Interpreter’ [Diosy claimed inaccurately that he had founded the Japan Society], Alfred East, described as ‘Landscape Painter’. THE LONDON THIRTEEN CLUB
The London Thirteen Club held its annual dinner in 1895 at the King’s Hall, Holborn Restaurant on 13 March 1895. It had a Japanese theme and after the toast to the Queen and the Royal Family a toast was proposed to The Mikado of Japan with the words ‘Nippon Kotei Heika no Gokenko to Banzai wo Shikushi Masu’:
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The programme was as follows:
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According to a note on the internet ascribed to ‘Sir Norris’ the London Thirteen Club was formed in October 1889 by a group of London journalists. ‘It’s one aim was to educate people against their “slavery to superstition”.’ At its annual dinners the guests sat at one of thirteen tables, each seating thirteen, in room number thirteen. The meal consisted of thirteen courses which were served by cross-eyed waiters. ‘Whilst the guests ate, they would liberally spill salt and continue to break as many superstitions as they could. This culminated in speeches and toasts and finally the guests would run around smashing mirrors and getting drunk.’ At its peak the club counted among its members numerous Members of Parliament and peers. Oscar Wilde and the Prince of Wales refused to join. Oscar Wilde wrote: ‘I love superstitions. They are the colour element of thought and imagination. They are the opponents of common sense. The aim of your society seems dreadful.’ After the beginning of the twentieth century the popularity of the club waned but ‘at least twenty-four annual dinners were held up to January 1906.’ The hall, where the ‘Japanese’ dinner on 14 March 1895 under the chairmanship of Mr Frank Williams was held, was, according to another report, ‘prettily decorated by Mr R. Isayama with Japanese lanterns and scrolls, peacocks’ feathers, counterfeit presentments of black cats and owls, and other things of evil omen’. On the tables there were miniature skulls and skeletons and saltsellars [sic] shaped to resemble coffins. In passing from the reception room to the dining room all had to walk under a ladder. A Mr R. Germain explained that ‘Japan was one of the most superstitious countries in the world.’ ‘However, to show that there was no international ill-feeling, the gathering cordially drank the Mikado’s health.’ ‘Towards the close of the feast the guests were offered glasses of “saqui” [sic]. But they did not all drink it, for “saqui” is an acquired taste.’ ENDNOTES 1
2
3 4
5
6
See biographical portrait by Hideko Numata in volume V of Britain and Japan: Biographical Portraits, edited Hugh Cortazzi, Global Oriental, 2005. See biographical portrait by Toni Huberman in volume VI of Britain and Japan: Biographical Portraits, edited by Hugh Cortazzi, Global Oriental, 2007. See chapter in this volume on Fenton by Akira Imamura in this volume. See biographical portrait by Ian Ruxton in volume IV of Britain and Japan: Biographical portraits, edited by Hugh Cortazzi, Global Oriental, 2002 A copy of the paper is held in the rare books section of Cambridge University Library (S718.01 See biographical portrait by Sonia Ashmore in Britain and Japan: Biographical Portraits Volume IV
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PART II: BRITAIN IN JAPAN sTRADE s
7
British Week in Tokyo, 19691 BEN THORNE
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(Stills from a news reel produced by British Pathé)
INTRODUCTION
The British week held in Tokyo from 26 September 1969 was a successful example of official efforts to promote British exports to the growing Japanese market in the 1960s. The Week was the result of sustained cooperation and work in both London and Tokyo. In London the Board of Trade and the British National Export Council’s Asia Committee sought and obtained the cooperation of British firms who were already exporting to Japan and persuaded many others to try the market. In Tokyo the British embassy worked closely with the British Chamber of Commerce and Industry and with British and Japanese firms in Tokyo to make the week a success. The Board of Trade spent a large part of their budget for trade promotion in the preparation and organization of the events, which were held during British Week. They provided a British Week office under me to work with the commercial department of the embassy where Hugh Cortazzi was the commercial counsellor. The Queen’s sister Princess Margaret supported by her husband Lord Snowdon opened the Week with maximum publicity.
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LEAD UP
The British embassy in Tokyo, especially after the success of Prime Minister Ikeda Hayato’s successful double the Income policies in the late 1950s, had consistently drawn attention to the prodigious growth of Japanese industry and the increasing potential of the Japanese market. This coincided with a renewed emphasis on trade promotion work in the diplomatic service. Sir Francis Rundall, British ambassador from 1963 to 1967,2 recommended the strengthening of the commercial department and urged that greater resources should be devoted to trade promotion in Japan. His recommendations were endorsed in London and Hugh Cortazzi was appointed commercial counsellor in 1966 with a brief to expand trade promotion efforts in parallel with continuing attempts to persuade the Japanese authorities in the Ministry of International Trade and Industry (MITI) to reduce obstacles to imports and liberalize Japanese trade in the wake of the revised Anglo-Japanese Commercial Treaty of 1962.3 Britain sought greater opportunities for British exports in both capital and consumer goods. Because the obstacles to imports of consumer goods were thought to be greater than for capital goods and because of the wide variety of potential exporters of consumer goods it was decided to concentrate some of the available resources on consumer products. One of the prime objectives in mounting British Week was to open a few more cracks in the protective structure in a way that could not be seen as hostile or offensive. The British wanted to provide a window of interest on both British products and way of life for ordinary Japanese people still starved of opportunities to travel. The main markets for foreign consumer goods at that time were the Japanese department stores, especially the huge stores in Tokyo and Osaka, which sold almost everything from household goods to foodstuffs and drink. The commercial department of the embassy had managed to persuade the rival Mitsukoshi and Seibu stores to hold simultaneous British promotions in 1967. These were considered to have been successful in developing awareness of what Britain had to offer over and above the staples of whisky and woollen cloth, which were still subject to quota restrictions. A successful British Week had been held in Hong Kong in 1967. This had been organized by a small staff and me. The Board of Trade in conjunction with the British embassy in Tokyo decided that the best way to expand interest in the Japanese market among British exporters and Japanese consumers would be to hold a British Week in Tokyo in 1969. The Board of Trade agreed to second me to Tokyo to run the British Week office there.
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I arrived in Tokyo in 1968. The British Week office, which was established outside the Embassy near Hibiya in central Tokyo, comprised Japanese speaking second secretaries from the embassy Bob Irving and John MacDonald plus Denis King, an experienced Board of Trade officer of equivalent second secretary rank. Several Japanese female staff were recruited to run the office and a couple of retired Japanese businessmen as interpreters and contact men. Later I was able to recruit a highly competent public relations manager, Tom Hara, who brought with him his own small team of staff. At the crucial final stages when the whole embassy became involved in the preparations for British Week two more young second secretaries from the Embassy (Prince William of Gloucester who was later killed in an aircraft accident and John Dearlove) were engaged almost full time on the vast complex of the royal programme. At that time the commercial department under Hugh Cortazzi comprised a section under John Whitehead, then first secretary, dealing with commercial and economic relations with the Japanese authorities and a trade promotion section under Alan Harvey, first secretary. PREPARATIONS
In Japan the embassy needed the cooperation of the Japanese authorities both in central and local government. The embassy worked hard to persuade them and Japanese business organizations such as the Keidanren that British Week deserved their active support. Prime Minister Satô Eisaku agreed to give the proposal his blessing and this helped to open doors. When it was announced that the Week would be opened by Princess Margaret, members of the Imperial Family, in particular Princess Chichibu, began to take an interest in what we were doing. As many of the products Britain wanted to sell especially woollen cloth, whisky and foodstuffs such as biscuits and cheese needed permits the economic section of the commercial department had to work particularly hard to get the necessary permits from MITI and the Ministry of Agriculture. In June 1969 ‘a bold and imaginative offer’ was made to the Japanese which provided for the freeing of all Anglo-Japanese trade in the early 1970s. Unfortunately the Japanese response was ‘dilatory, unimaginative and rather negative’.4 But we managed to persuade the Japanese to grant extra quotas which enabled the department stores to sell increased quantities of British goods still subject to Japanese import and tariff restrictions. The success of British Week depended on getting as many British exporters interested and involved. This task became the responsibility of the British National Export Council (BNEC)’s Asia Committee 80
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where Michael Montague (later Lord Montague), Chairman of Valor, was an enthusiastic and active chairman. He was at first suspicious of the diplomats who, he thought, lacked commercial experience. But the commercial department and the British Week office soon won his backing by outdoing members of the committee by their enthusiasm and dedication to the success of the project. Michael Montague was ably supported by Norman Wood, a director of Associated British Foods, who was chairman of one of the Committee’s sub groups, that for the large and diverse food and drink sector. In the year or so running up to British Week almost weekly trade missions organized by trade associations or chambers of commerce visited Japan under the auspices of the Board of Trade and BNEC. These had to be briefed and serviced by the embassy and the British Week office with tailored individual programmes especially for individuals and companies new to the market. Receptions to introduce British and Japanese businessmen to one another were organized and each mission was given a briefing about Japan by the ambassador Sir John Pilcher. As part of the necessary briefing the embassy and the Board of Trade put together a series of pamphlets published under the title Trading with Japan. These covered such diverse topics as how to do business in Japan, the role of Japanese department stores and trading companies and patents and trade marks. An essential part of the preparations was persuading the heads of the competing department stores to take part in what was to be a Tokyo wide promotion. Most preferred to go it alone and wanted exclusivity. This meant that Hugh Cortazzi and I had to undertake many time consuming and often frustrating rounds of calls to persuade them that it was in their interest to cooperate and to accept the exhibitions prepared for them and provided virtually free of charge by Fairs and Promotions branch of the Board of Trade. Having got the store’s agreement in principle to take part the various departmental buyers had to be persuaded to buy sufficient British goods to justify the expense of the exhibitions and to make a success of British Week. Their foreign goods buying arrangements were at this stage rather rudimentary. The so-called ‘Foreign Managers’ were in theory responsible for dealing with all foreign suppliers, but they had little authority and even less knowledge of the merchandise for which they were responsible. We had to get past these people to talk to the real decision makers. Gradually agreements were reached with each store for purchasing targets, exhibition themes and contents, supplies of point of sale material and a host of other details. In the end every major department store in Tokyo agreed to take part. Towards the end there was some quite vicious in-fighting over which store should have which 81
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exhibition and which store should receive the first royal visit since that would get most if not all of the TV coverage. Among the key stores in 1969 were Mitsukoshi and Seibu who had held British store promotions in 1967. The Embassy had developed a good working relationship with Sakakura, the president of Mitsukoshi and with Mori Takao the leading executive of Seibu. Two store presidents Itoh, president of Matsuzakaya, and Kosaka, president of the smaller but prestigious Komatsu store nearby on Ginza, had both lived in Britain (Kosaka had a British wife). The large and powerful Hankyu¯ Group, which has its main store in Osaka and was not then as prominent in Tokyo as it is now, did not learn of the bandwagon that was building up in Tokyo until almost all the negotiations including the schedules for the programme of store visits by Princess Margaret were complete. When President Noda of Hankyu¯ heard that his Tokyo branch would be the only major Store not to be visited by Princess Margaret he was very upset. It had to be explained to the store management that the visits were based on promises of additional buying. In order to save the face of the President and Hankyu¯ collectively, we were told that the sky was the limit. The only possible slot in the Royal programme was for about fifteen minutes on a Monday morning when Hankyu¯ were shut for their weekly closure. President Noda negotiated with his staff unions and decided to open the store on closing day. This must have been very costly for the store but face was saved and an excellent and productive relationship was developed with Hankyu¯ who later held annual British fairs at their main store in Osaka. CAPITAL GOODS
The embassy and the Board of Trade did not want Britain to be seen solely or primarily as an exporter of consumer goods. So the trade promotion section of the Commercial department of the Embassy, the Board of Trade and the scientific instrument manufacturers organized an exhibition of British medical and scientific instruments in the Science Museum in the Kita no Maru Park. SUPPORTING EVENTS
In addition to the exhibitions, which had to be put together for the different department stores competing for the most appealing attractions, designed to tempt customers into the stores a centrepiece exhibition was planned by the Central Office of Information (COI). It was called ‘Britain in Tokyo’ and was to be the flagship or centrepiece of the whole Week. For this event the Nihon Budokan, the headquarters and spiritual home of Japanese martial arts, especially judo, was selected. It is a fine building situated in the Kita no Maru 82
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Park, close to the Science Museum and the Imperial Palace. It took a great deal of effort to persuade the owners to allow their building with its hallowed and special floor (dohyô ) to be used for the first time for non-martial purposes. A temporary load-bearing floor had to be built so that nothing would touch the dohyô. That was very expensive but the end result was an exhibition, tracing Britain’s relations with Japan and including a scaled down replica of Nelson’s column and a Lord Nelson pub. The Budokan exhibition attracted large numbers of visitors including many members of the Imperial Family. A special visit was arranged for the Emperor. The PR spin-off was immense. With the aim of ensuring that the whole of Tokyo knew that the British were in town, the ‘star turn’ was intended to be the appearance on the streets of Tokyo of eight London buses. The famous double decker red Routemasters were then as they still are a tourist attraction. But they were not designed for operation in Japan as we soon discovered. The buses did not comply with any of the Japanese regulations for public service vehicles and we wanted them to trundle round Tokyo full of passengers. Worst of all, they were too high for a standard bridge and were liable to foul the tram power lines that were thick above Tokyo’s main thoroughfares in those days. Our special events manager, Denis King, trod every yard of the routes which the buses would travel including the journey they would have to make from Yokohama, where they would be unloaded, to central Tokyo, where they would be deployed, a matter of 20 kilometres or so. He marched with a carefully cut pole before him measuring the clearance under every obstruction until he had verified safe passage for all their movements.5 But there were other obstacles. Import clearance had to be negotiated with Japanese Customs who took up an uncompromising stance. They declared that the vehicles were illegal and could not be imported. Members of the British Week Office had a series of frustrating meetings with Japanese customs in an effort to persuade them to agree a special and temporary exemption for the buses. At one meeting they faced more than thirty customs officials who broke off for calisthenics at intervals signaled by the ringing of a bell. We were never quite sure whether their object was to help or obstruct. Finally a Japanese compromise was found. The Customs ruled that import could be permitted because these were not primarily public transport vehicles but mobile advertising units! Special banners were quickly devised and draped over the buses to justify this ruling. Much of the credit for the final successful outcome, not only on buses but on venues for the equally popular five military bands and on matters like street decorations, was due to Mr Ishikawa, the head of the external liaison office of Tokyo Metropolitan Government where the Governor Minobe was supportive of our efforts. 83
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The organization of a series of Fashion Spectaculars at Toranomon Hall on a paid basis also involved difficult negotiations. At that time in Japan such choreographed events were unknown and it was difficult to make the management see why they should alter time honoured procedures. For example they had seats in central positions that were always used for Imperial Family members but we knew that our Imperial guests would see next to nothing from there. It was not until a few hours before the dress rehearsal that the management said we could remove a section of the front row and install comfortable armchairs! We never did persuade them that the glittering reception planned for the premiere show should take place in the foyer and they forced us to move all of the guests up several floors in slow and cramped lifts, a most frustrating and temper-fraying experience. Notwithstanding these behind-the-scenes tensions the fashion shows were a huge success both with the audiences and with the media so that this week long series of shows was a launch pad for British fashion in Japan. Two Royal Navy Ships were anchored at Harumi pier in Tokyo during British Week. One HMS Stromness carried a defence sales exhibition open to invited guests. The Royal Navy hosted a grand party for selected VIPs. In all there were over sixty individual events ranging from a major Henry Moore exhibition at the Museum of Modern Art to a City of London Pavilion in Hibiya Park; a Highland Games jointly sponsored by McVitie’s biscuits and the Seibu department store (which helped to sell about a year’s stock of biscuits in ten days); soccer and rugby matches; major sales of fine art, antiques and jewelry (including the first Sotheby’s auction in Japan) worth some £2.5 million altogether; a Miss Tokyo Stores beauty contest (another first in Japan) allied to a visit by Miss London Stores; the premiere in Japan of the film Battle of Britain, a choice that raised some qualms but which was received uncontroversially; eight major and five lesser cultural exhibitions in the major Department Stores which were seen by some 2.5 million of the 12.5 million people who passed through those stores during the exhibition period. One near disaster occurred when one of Japan’s largest printers told us at the eleventh hour that they could not deliver the one million print run of the give-away public programme. However after a great deal of agro somehow face was saved and the programmes were delivered to the department stores and other outlets at the last moment. Without them nobody in Tokyo would have known where to go to see what. BRITISH WEEK AND THE ROYAL VISITORS
The opening ceremony was held at the National Theatre on Friday morning 26 September. The Princesses Chichibu and Margaret, 84
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Ohira Masayoshi, Minister of Trade and Industry, Dr Ryokichi Minobe, governor of Tokyo, Lord Snowdon, Sir John Pilcher, the British ambassador, Montague of BNEC and others were seated on the stage. After a few brief speeches of greeting Princess Margaret rose and declared British Week open. The Royal Marines played suitable music outside and the trumpeters blew a special fanfare inside. The eight London buses were drawn up with military precision on the forecourt ready to transport the several hundred core guests direct to the opening of the ‘Britain in Tokyo’ exhibition about a kilometre away. As the guests emerged they saw a huge model of our logo, the British Week box, open to allow 3,000 special balloons to soar into the sky. Then it was on to the Budokan where Princess Margaret performed another opening and toured the exhibition giving us some good TV coverage.6 Her next appointment was a luncheon at the Okura Hotel for members of the Committee of Honour for British Week (this was the only time they met formally). Princess Margaret and Lord Snowdon kept up the pace working hard during nine frenetic days. Princess Margaret kept her promise to visit every department store that had pledged purchasing support. Altogether she visited fourteen major stores spending up to forty-five minutes in each and she and Lord Snowdon between them also spent time at some dozen or so speciality shops and various minor supporting exhibitions. In between, they managed to attend a lunch for the Japan British Society, a white tie dinner at the Embassy followed by a reception for 250 who could not be accommodated at the dinner, the Gala Fashion Show at Toranomon Hall and a Loyal Societies Ball with over 500 guests at the Hilton Hotel. Although this British Week officially opened on Friday 26 September Princess Margaret and Lord Snowdon had arrived in Japan by normal BA flight on Saturday 20 September, being met by the Ambassador and Princess Chichibu and, after a day’s rest, embarked on a maelstrom of engagements, some British Week oriented and some more formal. On Monday morning they began by meeting the Embassy staff, then dropped into the Henry Moore exhibition for half an hour en route to the Palace where they made a formal call on the Emperor and Empress followed by a Court Luncheon attended by fifty guests. After a short pitstop at the Embassy to divest themselves of their formal clothes, they had tea with Princess Chichibu at the Akasaka Detached Palace before dashing back to attend an informal cocktail party at the Embassy where they were under the scrutiny of the Press. Then they dined formally with Prime Minister Sato¯ Eisaku at his official residence. Next day they were off to Kyoto by the ‘bullet’ train before 9.00 am where they did the statutory two days Sightseeing before, on Thursday, popping in to visit the British Pavilion on the Japan Expo site at Osaka which would, 85
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in 1970, be the next British venture in capturing Japanese hearts and minds. Then they travelled direct to Tokyo where that evening they attended the so-called ‘Principal British Week Reception’ at the Okura Hotel. There were 3,000 invited guests who had to fight to get there through traffic jams and several hundred gatecrashers mingled with long crocodiles of ticket bearers. It all worked out well enough. Finally, Princess Margaret and Lord Snowdon attended the Premiere of Battle of Britain before returning late to the Embassy. The ambassador and Lady Pilcher looked after the Royal Couple7 and their other VIP visitors with unfailing courtesy and urbanity. There was only one contretemps. This occurred after the Royal visit was over and was provoked by the pompous and self-important Lord Mayor of London who tried to throw his weight about without having done his homework. RESULTS
The short-term results obtained from British Week were impressive enough in terms of extra sales and new exporters introduced to the market. The following statistical summary illustrates the achievements: PARTICIPANTS /VISITORS/SALES
19 Dept. Stores, 12.6 million, Yen 1.86 billion 17 Supermarkets, N/a, 352 Specialty/Small Shops, N/a,
(£194m) N/a N/a
EVENTS/VISITORS
Dept. Store Cultural Exhibitions, Band Concerts, ‘Britain in Tokyo’ Exhibition, City of London Pavilion, London Bus Passengers, Hi-Fi/Home Appliances Show, Soccer & Rugby Games, Highland Games, Fashion Spectaculars, London Philharmonic/ Festival Ballet/ Julian Bream Concerts, Visitors to HM Ships,
2.5 million 150,000 120,000 90,000 56,000 50,000 40,000 30,000 25,000 18,000 10,000
PUBLICITY COVERAGE
Press Cuttings, TV News Items,
2,600 6
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The real impact, however, was in the long-term effect on commercial relations between our two countries. The policy makers in London became aware that there were solid business benefits to be obtained in Japan and when, in 1973, the time was ripe for a further effort to widen the breach in Japanese protectionist attitudes it was possible to wheedle funds out of them. British Week was a catalyst marking the beginning of a burgeoning business relationship that has grown steadily and metamorphosed several times. From simple uncomplicated roots largely in branded consumer goods sold through old-established merchant houses, both British and Japanese, and retailed almost entirely by the great department stores of Japan, the relationship expanded during the early seventies into technical and industrial trade as well as the arts. Exports of British consumer goods in the nine months up to British Week rose by about 52 per cent and total exports to Japan rose by 34.6 per cent in comparison with the same period in 19688. Although the British Week Office team was dismantled quickly as soon as the tidying of loose ends was done, much of its know-how remained available within the embassy commercial department. In particular the understanding of the inner workings of the department stores was a tool that could be used to construct an ongoing series of promotional partnerships for many years to come. The commercial department’s relationship with Fairs & Promotions Branch remained close and eventually led to expanded participation in Japanese trade fairs. At the time Japan’s trade fair sector was rather weak and there were many areas in which segregation was practised. A glaring example was for many years that imported vehicles could not be exhibited in the Tokyo Motor Show. And when, reluctantly, the curtain was lifted it was only to the extent of allocating one small and not very attractive hall to display imports. So the expansion of British participation in fairs of all kinds was a slow and irregular movement partly because of barriers and partly because the Japanese fairs mostly were not of international standard. ENDNOTES 1
2
3
See also despatch from Sir John Pilcher about British Week in The Growing Power of Japan, 1967–1972, ed. Hugh Cortazzi, Renaissance Books, 2015. See portrait of Sir Francis Rundall by Hugh Cortazzi in British Envoys in Japan (1859–1972), Global Oriental 2004 See essays on the Anglo-Japanese Commercial Treaty by Robin Gray and Sosuke Hanaoka in Britain and Japan: Biographical Portraits, volume II edited by Ian Nish, Japan Library 1997.
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4
5
6
7
8
British embassy Tokyo annual report for 1969 dated 1 January 1970 and signed by D. R. Ashe, minister in the embassy in the absence of the ambassador. The report commented that following the visit to Tokyo for British Week made by Anthony Crosland, President of the Board of Trade and the subsequent visit to Britain in October 1969 by Ohira Masayoshi, the Japanese Minister of International Trade and Industry, ‘The Japanese are beginning to recognize the psychological value of the proposed settlement with us.’ He did not speak a word of Japanese. So he was accompanied by one of the Japanese local staff who could explain what he was doing and was not completely mad. One unrehearsed incident occurred in the Lord Nelson pub where some unruly British journalists tried to get a picture of Princess Margaret drinking in the bar. Instead, they got a picture of me trying to stop them! It appeared as ‘Frock coated British diplomats interfere with journalists doing their job’ or some such caption although the Japanese papers took the line of criticizing the offending British journalists. The annual report from Tokyo (see endnote 3) commented that ‘The Week would have been a success in its own right, but the extent of the success would unquestionably have been much reduced but for the personality and charm of Princess Margaret and her husband.’ Tokyo annual report for 1969 paragraph 9 noted that these figures ‘compared with an increase in Japanese imports of approximately 14.2 per cent and brought our share of Japanese imports to 2.2 per cent’.
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EXPO ’70 at Osaka: A British View JOHN PILCHER
INTRODUCTORY NOTE BY HUGH CORTAZZI
I gave a brief account of British participation in EXPO ’70 in my biographical portrait of Sir John Figgess, the British Commissioner for the Expo, in Britain and Japan: Biographical Portraits, Volume III, edited by J.E. Hoare, Japan Library, 1999. Some reminiscences of ladies, who helped in the British pavilion, (Lesley Connor, Lydia Gomersall, Janet Hunter and Anne Kaneko), and of Peter Martin, who was British Council representative in Kyoto at the time, were included in Japan Experiences, Fifty Years, One Hundred Views, PostWar Japan through British Eyes, edited and compiled by me, Japan Library, 2001. The account, which Sir John Pilcher sent to Michael Stewart, the Foreign Secretary, in a despatch of March 1970, 89
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is reproduced below. It is perceptive and amusing and deserves to be preserved for posterity. Sir,
26 March 1970
OSAKA EXPO ’70: A FIRST IMPRESSION
I have the honour to record that the International Exhibition at Osaka, known as ‘Expo ‘70’, duly opened its doors on the gusty, snowy morning of Saturday, the 14th of March, 1970. 2. Its motto is ‘progress’ and ‘harmony’. The sententious, of whom there are many in Japan, maintain that this means the marriage of occidental progress with the oriental concept of harmony and are deducing great principles therefrom. To treat it thus, I submit, is to fall into the Germanic error of reading transcendental truths into Mozart’s ‘Magic Flute’ and of failing to recognize in it the inconsequential Viennese pantomime transformed by genius. This is basically a fun fair with touches of near genius. 3. From what I have so far been able to see, if there is progress to record at Expo ’70, it may perhaps be in the happy direction of humour. It forces the question: can it be that the Japanese are at last beginning to be able to laugh at themselves? That would indeed be progress and at a timely moment when their economic might is about to burst upon the world. 4. If there is any harmony to be descried, it seems to me to be found, not in any Confucian sense, but in its very reverse: namely in the remarkably high level of insanity, shown by all the best exhibitors. 5. Most surprising of all to me is that the Japanese themselves deliberately set the pattern of this lunacy. Their greatest architect Kenzo Tange, whose Roman Catholic cathedral in Tokyo is the masterpiece of contemporary Japanese building, combined with a roguish artist, Taro Okamoto, to create the central focal point of the whole exhibition: the Festival Plaza. 6. Here a giant rectangular roof, itself a tangle of contorted tubes, floats in the air: a fantastic structural achievement. There dangle from it – for shere [sic.] fun – useless gadgets, the very caricature and ‘reductio ad absurdum’ of contemporary factory contrivance. 7. Through this monstrous and intentional nonsense rises up and protrudes the Tower of the Sun. This strange conceit reveals on one side a grinning face of the sun in Aztec mood, set about with benign green rays; on the other side it shows a leering, lecherous grimace. The whole is topped askew by a brazen insect visage, by turns of surprised malignity or ingenuous vacuity. 8. This whole contraption has been held by the humourless to represent the vital principle and very spirit of the universe itself. 90
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Mercifully – and surprisingly – its author deflated this nonsense by stating roundly that he wished only to create something both ‘fabulous’ and ‘absurd’; something in short to cheer up this drab world. He has succeeded in his aim and to my eye, together with Tange’s mock factory roof, set the tone for the whole Expo. 9. The opening ceremony rubbed in the joke. Beneath the grinning face of the Tower of the Sun and staring at the jangled complexity of steel above their heads sat in solemn array – in the perishing cold – the entire establishment of Japan. It was perhaps kindly meant that the grinning rather than the leering face of the Sun should stare down upon her erstwhile (?) terrestrial progeny, His Majesty the Emperor. 10. Was it a coincidence that he in his turn, despite the illustrious ancestry here so mockingly portrayed, was precluded by the constitution even from opening the exhibition, since the experts decreed that to do so would have been a political act? In this scene of expectant hilarity His Majesty could only read therefore a message of goodwill; one sentence of Sitwellian [sic.] length. 11. The Crown Prince it was who pressed the button that set the lunacy in motion. No political act that, it would seem. Here symbolically enough the young took charge and filled the space with milling merriment. Even the ghastly robot with blinding electronic flashes disgorged from joints – from which belched clouds of sweet vapours – a girls’ band, a drum majorette. With deafening noise and cannonades and against a background of humour – of the fabulous and absurd – the huge fun fair burst into life. 12. Perhaps the designers of most nations almost sensed the juvenile spirit of fun that would prevail. Certain it is that so many of their creations are in harmony with the general mood. Thus to add a surrealist touch most seem, in order to oblige presumably the minority passenger by ‘plane, to have chosen some mythical spot in the air from which their creation should best be viewed. 13. From above in the sky I am willing to believe that the Japanese set of pavilions does look just like the the five petals of the sweet scented plum (prunus mume), which form the exhibition’s emblem. But ‘what heart could have thought you? – past our devisal (O filigree petal!)’. (Actually the petals were born of Tange’s exuberant sense of fun.) The mortal on the ground can see only five large gasometers, five giant drums or, if you will, five bandboxes suspended in the air. 14. True at night, illuminated in different colours, they have a certain charm and even gaiety. Moreover to shoot up into a bandbox by rapidly moving stair to the top is certainly an uncommon experience; to wander gently down inside the drum through static scenes of Japan’s past has merit. There, flourish for ever plastic gardens, where no leaf withers and no gardener treads. 91
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15. Even the Central Office of Information, from which no insanity could possibly – it goes without saying – emanate, have produced a sober contribution in nearly the same vein. Not a bandbox certainly, but a tailor’s flat cardboard box of considerable dimensions, suspended from four vermilion gantries. The squashed superstructure of some giant ship with cranes at rest? 16. No moving staircase rushes viewers up; they proceed appropriately by staid gangway as into the belly of some stranded dirigible. But here too the viewer is treated for good measure to a vast Union Jack atop the box. The terrestrial being, however, is at least led on by the splendid calligraphy from the hand of the erudite Governor of Osaka, proclaiming unmistakably in huge vermilion characters: ‘Britain’. 17. Even the Soviets follow the pattern. A gigantic swirling wall, white on one side and red on the other rises to a tower, which easily dominates the entire scene. Yet the purpose of the whole huge structure baffles the tripper on the land; it reveals itself at once to one aloft as no less than a blow-up of a giant’s hammer and sickle. 18. The United States, on the other hand, more sober even than ourselves, eschew the fashion altogether, but in their way they contrive to achieve the very ultimate in absurdity in an exhibition: they have no outward visible presence whatsoever, whether from air or land. Theirs is the flattened top of some vast, white mushroom, just ripe to burst up through the sod. An almost invisible rump to oppose to the sky-piercing Soviet flamboyance: the low posture with a vengeance. The mystery is how to delve down to the halls beneath this incipient fungus. Once below, all is sweetness and light and straight forward, static showmanship. 19. The Australians are unashamedly lunatic in more conventional, fun fair style, yet they pose a problem of interpretation: is their effort a vast, concrete kangaroo’s tail, holding, just clear of the ground, a dustbin lid? Not according to them: they prefer to interpret their curving concrete mass as the fine, lacy outline of Hokusai’s wave in the famous print. In this case, presumably, it is about to break and shatter the lid in its grip. 20. The French do their best with sparkling puffballs, but two countries easily oertop [sic.] the rest and come out joint first in the lunatic stakes: none other than the staid Swiss and our own worthy Canadian cousins. Both have cocked a snook at functionalism – indeed at any form of rationality. 21. The Swiss put their money on a vast, spreading metal tree, bearing as sole fruit an apparent infinity of electric light bulbs. Perhaps this may evoke to some the shimmering heights of snowy peaks. It has been held by the more fanciful to symbolize scientific precision. 92
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22. There can be little doubt that the Canadian contribution is a monument of some significance to delirium tremens. Four quadrilateral pyramids, cased on their three outer sides in looking glass, frame a pond, over which rotate glass parasols, streaked with waving bands of colours. On the drab, cold opening day, the psychodellic [sic.] reflections cheered the heart. The full effects of this inspired insanity must await the scorching rays of the July sun: the refractions then should awaken the dead. 23. As to the contents I have so far seen, these range predictably from surrealist juxtaposition (New England tomb stones and weather vanes with moon capsules and lunar rock in the American pavilion) to straight rollicking noisy show-biz (favoured by the Soviets). The terror of the ‘static’ and the ‘trad’ lead those with real treasures to offer (among them ourselves and the French) towards the original, the restless and the fussy – for fear of seeming corny and as old as they are? In the end, the pavilions with simple single intent (the Portuguese to show their historic ties with Japan; the Ceylonese to display one single sapphire; Hong Kong to attract tourists or the Nepalese to permit the viewer to contemplate in peace the majesty of the Himalayas), despite their lack of technique and perhaps dull approach, may come to please the most. 24. The Expo is vast. It embraces two museums of real significance; masterpieces (some from Britain) can there be seen in rare and illuminating company. Specialised pavilions, from electronics to pepsicola, may yield great revelations to the connoisseur. The full gamut would take ten days at least to evaluate. I have so far only seen what two exhausting days can disclose. 25. Much nonsense and a great deal of ‘high sentaunce’ [sic.] will be written about it all. It certainly marks a stage in Japanese rehabilitation in their own eyes. There will be much irritating selfcongratulation, even disquisitions on the essential supremacy of the oriental spirit (so disquieting to those who remember this Leitmotif of the fevered, mystic nationalism of the ‘30s). But pride is in place. 26. After my brief visits, it does represent to me a great achievement, from which some hope can be derived and, of course, some despair. The hope derives from the fact that their disciplined, serious, head-boy-in-the-class people have actually dared to create the fabulous and the absurd for their own entertainment and edification. The whole school and university population of Japan will see this and it will set a lighter trend. This might even result in a more balanced, more humourous [sic.] outlook. 27. The despair lies in the fact that the success of this gigantic fun fair will encourage those vulgar ‘disneylands’[sic.] and ‘paradises’, which are already eating up the fair face of the land, as disastrously as the economic miracle spawns corroding factories. An American 93
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lady of the blue-rinsed widow type, asked me in one of the most beautiful, secluded and rarefied of Kyoto gardens ‘don’t you just feel you are in Disneyland?’ She sensed more sooth than she knew; under the impetus of Expo, it may soon become a disneyland and in plastic at that. 28. There is little evidence throughout of that elegant synthesis of east and west, which has been the ideal of thoughtful Japanese and of which there are rare and beautiful examples even amid the brashness of modern Tokyo. At Expo, the traditional is too slavish; the much photographed pagoda an outrageous pastiche. Only Matsushita (the giant electric concern) dares to be ‘astringent’: the essential Japanese aesthetic quality. The tone is sheer enjoyment, the accent on the juvenile. I would not expect any profound influence on taste. Only with luck some wider appreciation of the outside world and a lighter, more healthy mood. 29. How do we come off in all this? It almost stands to reason that we are neither fabulous, nor yet absurd; but neither are we bold enough to adopt the simple, the straightforward and the static. The three that combine these qualities, the Japanese, the Americans and the Soviets, are likely to win popularity. Nor do we entice the greedy by inviting restaurants, like Belgium, Portugal or Hong Kong; there is not even a British pub. Perhaps in the long run our ‘architect’s building’, well seen from one of the main entrances, and our serious intent (normally so valued in Japan) will come to wear well. Staid? Respectable? Why not? We shall certainly get our fill of visitors (so far 16% of the total) and are popularly rated in the first five in point of interest. 30. In short, this is a fun fair with foreign peep shows of educative value for the Japanese young, now in unprecedentedly unbuttoned mood. One vast joke? Was it planned as such? As Arthur Waley might have said, I would suppose so: I would hope so. It would be rash to go further than that. I have the honour to be, With the highest respect, Sir, Your obedient servant, [signed] John Pilcher
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The British Export Marketing Centre and the Promotion of British Exports to Japan from 1972 PAUL DIMOND
FOUNDATIONS
This portrait is of the generation of individuals who built the structure for promoting British business in Japan in the early 1970s. Principal among them were a group of British officials in Tokyo and London, many motivated by their positive experience of working at the Tokyo embassy. But a number of inspired British businessmen (few British businesswomen in Tokyo in those days) and increasingly supportive Japanese businessmen and officials were much involved. Collectively they and their supporting teams, too many to mention here, left a legacy on which their successors built well into the twentyfirst century. This became a crossover time when the management of trade promotion gained British Government attention as a top priority alongside traditional, broader trade policy (much of which itself migrated to the European Commission after Britain’s joining the EEC in 1973). Through the increasing scale of its operations as well as innovation in its work, the commercial department of the Tokyo embassy over that period came to be recognized alongside the Foreign Office posts at Düsseldorf and New York as benchmarks for advancing trade promotion practice, combined with the emerging, further new focus on inward investment promotion. For much of the 1960s to 1980s protectionism and trade friction between Japan and the US and Europe meant that managed trade tended to dominate the bilateral trading relationships. Quotas, high tariffs and non-tariff barriers restricted Japanese imports from the UK and voluntary trade agreements limited Japanese exports. But from the mid-1960s the British embassy at Tokyo increased the pace and strength of effort to encourage British business to pay attention to 95
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the fast developing Japanese domestic market. Hugh Cortazzi (later Sir Hugh and ambassador to Japan) drove much of this as commercial counsellor in the second half of the 1960s. He had been recalled to Tokyo in 1966 by the ambassador, Sir Francis Rundall, after less than a year since he completed his assignment as head of chancery. Hugh Cortazzi was supported on the economic side of the embassy by John Whitehead (later Sir John) and David Wright (later Sir David), both also subsequent ambassadors at Tokyo, and on the commercial side by Alan Harvey and a growing number of Foreign Office former Japanese language students and locally engaged Japanese commercial officers and commercial assistants, many of whom went on to serve the embassy loyally for several decades. There was a massive effort in the full-scale and highly successful British Week in Tokyo in 1969 directed by Ben Thorne. He had been an early recruit in the post-War Board of Trade, served twice in India, then in the Gold Coast and Nigeria before successfully running an earlier British engineering exhibition in the 1966 Hong Kong British Week. He was appointed to run the Tokyo Week by Jasper Cross, the DTI under-secretary in charge of trade promotion. The British Week story has been covered elsewhere in this volume. Hugh Cortazzi has recorded in Japan and Back1 the support he received from Sir John Pilcher, Rundall’s successor, despite his unfamiliarity with trade and economic issues. After British Week, attention shifted to Expo ’70 in Osaka, where Sir John Figgess,2 former information counsellor at Tokyo, was commissioner-general at the highly effective British Pavilion, whose purpose was not primarily commercial but which served well to boost a modern and positive image of Britain. The deputy to Sir John was Bill Bentley (later Sir William) and Alex McMillan of the DTI was involved in the construction and operation of the pavilion. Building on the 1960s groundwork, the year from Autumn 1972 to Autumn 1973 saw momentum grow significantly through a new, formative period of closer British effort to grasp the opportunities. Much of the subsequent British export promotion towards Japan through the British Overseas Trade Board, British Trade International and UK Trade and Investment stems from this time and Ben Thorne was a key figure in this formative period. The early plans focused on the concept of a British trade centre in Tokyo. STRUCTURE
The idea of a British trade centre had however been discussed for some time in the British Embassy and the British Chamber of Commerce in Tokyo. A 1972 note by Alan Harvey, first secretary commercial of the British embassy, recalled his memorandum of February 1970 96
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recommending a down-town trade centre. Harvey’s memorandum demonstrates the forward thinking of the embassy’s commercial department over that period. Groundwork for the 1970 memorandum had also involved HRH The Prince William of Gloucester, then serving as second secretary at the embassy, before his tragic subsequent death in a flying accident. Tom Harris, a principal from the DTI (later Sir Tom), was also serving in the embassy and reporting to London on the model of the US Trade Center, seen as a professional organization focused on capital goods. The embassy did support UK firms at Japanese trade fairs, such as the machine tool fair in Osaka in 1971, but foreign participation in such fairs was still the exception. At the first meeting of the new British Export Board (soon after re-named the British Overseas Trade Board, BOTB) in January 1972, chaired by Lord Thorneycroft, Jan Lewando, chairman of Carrington-Viyella (and later Sir Jan), drew attention to proposals for such a centre. This was prompted by closer examination of the concept at the British Chamber of Commerce in Tokyo, who were in touch with the newly formed BOTB’s Japan Trade Advisory Board, led by Geoffrey Nichols of Rotaprint. Japan received much attention at further Board meetings in the first half of the year, with discussion of Japan’s own market-oriented export promotion methods, the work of the Japan Trade Advisory Group and the strengthening of the DTI’s own commercial relations and exports division through the bringing in of Tom Harris. DTI officials worked intensively on the concept of a trade centre over the year. Tom Harris wrote to Alan Harvey in August 19723 that there was a push for a rapid study for a centre, but despite a great deal of scepticism to be overcome in London he hoped that the BOTB would give its blessing (one senior DTI official later regarded the proposed expenditure as madness). Critical impetus to the concept was given after the first visit of a British Prime Minister to Japan in September 1972. He was under much political pressure at home to clamp down on growing imports from Japan. But he was accompanied on his flight to Tokyo by Peter Wakefield (later Sir Peter), the commercial minister in Tokyo, who used the opportunity to argue that such pressures were best met by a reinvigorated UK export promotion effort. During his visit Edward Heath4 focused closely on the state of commercial relations between the two countries, expressing to Prime Minister Tanaka Kakuei the hope that, as Japanese commercial policy took effect on lines Tanaka had indicated, the Japanese ‘would be able to drink Scotch whisky as cheaply as Bourbon and other drinks, and that they would be able to clothe themselves cheaply in the best English woollens’5 (see footnote 3). The Japanese Prime Minister’s response was that this could be put into effect ‘step by step as appropriate’ (prompting the British note-taker to observe that the term 97
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used by Tanaka was ‘danteiteki’, hardly, it might have been thought, any sort of firm undertaking). Tanaka did however add that this was a ‘favourite Japanese dream and also the policy of the Liberal Democratic Party’. The British Prime Minister also referred to the Lockheed 1011, as he understood that Japanese airlines would need a wide fuselage aircraft and ‘Japan could help their British and American friends by buying this aircraft with the RB211 engine, the quietist in the world’. All Nippon Airlines did of course later buy the 1011, but a scandal of major proportions enveloped Lockheed, Marubeni, Prime Minister Tanaka and the Japanese and US Governments. Edward Heath’s meeting with a group of Japanese industrialists revealed Japanese business opinion at the time. Chairman Nagano of Nippon Steel proposed a Japanese purchasing mission to the United Kingdom, an idea welcomed by the Prime Minister. Chairman Hashimoto of Mitsui and Company suggested that British importers should look at the market among younger people in Japan, who did ‘not seem to be enthusiastic about British products. British channels of selling to the Japanese tended to be too rigid and not large enough, Mitsui would be glad to act as selling agents for British products.’ This view from a major Japanese general trading company reflected much discussion at that time about the success of the British trading companies that had a number of British principals among their brands. Reporting on the Heath visit, the Asahi Shimbun remarked that the Prime Minister had been a salesman for British products, even mentioning a number of specific company brands, and noted the astonishment (‘akiregao’) of some business leaders that the British Prime Minister should do this, reminiscent of President de Gaulle’s infamous quip about Prime Minister Ikeda as a transistor radio salesman. On his return to London, Heath maintained a close watch on developments over Japan. He told the House of Commons that he was convinced that the relationship between Japan and the other industrialized nations was of fundamental importance for world prosperity and stability. In a substantive discussion at the Board’s September meeting Sir Max Brown, the secretary for trade at the DTI (later permanent secretary) noted that MITI were putting pressure on Japanese trading companies to increase their imports of British goods. The Board saw success as more likely from direct involvement of British firms and thought that a trade centre in Tokyo would need considerable support from British industry and back-up organization within the DTI, Lord Thorneycroft summing up that while caution was needed an estimates provision for such a centre should be retained. A feasibility study on a trade centre was commissioned. Its authors were Tom Harris and Ben Thorne, working to Jasper Cross and 98
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representing the commercial relations and exports policy division and the fairs and promotions Branch respectively. Their study drew direct lessons from the US experience in Tokyo, Harris visiting Washington to hear from the American trade officials and visiting the US trade center in London. The study was completed in December. Having consulted widely among British businessmen and Japanese agents in Japan, trade associations and firms in Britain, as well as the ambassador and his staff at Tokyo, this highly focused study concluded though the cost of export promotion was high their survey had shown that British industry believed that a trade centre could help achieve more than doubling of UK exports from about £160m that year. The proposal outlined, modelled on the US experience, was for a centre as the venue for a series of eight to ten specialist trade shows annually, targeted on specific sectors. The thinking in the Embassy was that Japanese trade fairs, even if labelled as international, were not well enough developed as places for British industrial goods and high technology exporters. While the British Week had significantly boosted consumer goods, with a fair momentum of department stores wanting to hold their own regular British promotions (notably Mitsukoshi and Takashimaya in Tokyo, Hankyu¯ in Osaka), there was a concern that British industrial goods firms lacked the appropriate windows. Officials realized that to generate support from British business there would have to be an enhanced package of market information describing the opportunities as Japan began to open up her markets to foreign penetration. Preparation for each planned, specialist exhibition would therefore involve the commissioning of detailed market research. Outline costs were based on a leading candidate, the Pola Aoyama Building at Aoyama 1-chome, seen as a one of the best possible locations. The premises offered 1,175 sq metres of ground floor space at a rent of £100,508 a year, plus a repayable capital loan of £609,165. The official report to the BOTB recommending a centre rehearsed the argument that the equivalent of much of the cost would be spent anyway on an expanded trade promotion effort in Japan and the additional costs would be justified by the economic desirability of mounting a greater volume of exhibitions, with additional market impact and the psychological drive that a centre would implant on the export promotion programme as a whole. At its November 1972 meeting, Lord Thorneycroft told his BOTB colleagues that Edward Heath had asked about the appointment of a ‘Mr Japan’ to co-ordinate and promote UK trade with Japan. The Board view on balance was that an industrialist should be appointed rather than a civil servant but the important thing was to get the right man. The next month, the Board was told of the appointment of 99
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Peter Wakefield (later Sir Peter) in this role, on his return from his post as commercial minister at Tokyo. At the same meeting, Jasper Cross (secretary) presented the working party paper on the establishment of a British trade centre. The Board discussed the likely high cost but agreed that this had to be accepted if a serious effort was to be made in the Japanese market. It was noted that the Prime Minister was among supporters of the idea. The Board recalled the failure of the New York trade centre as a static exhibition, whereas Tokyo would be for a series of trade promotions targeted at different market sectors. The plan was endorsed. BOTB chief executive Jimmy Rooke added that the Board should be closely involved with arrangements for the proposed Japanese mission to be sent to the UK. Heath wrote a personal minute to the secretary of state for trade and industry in December emphasizing the essential nature of the UK effort to make progress in the Japanese market and again on 1 January 1973 asked to be informed at regular intervals. Heath was determined to see both the Tokyo and London ends of the operation established to his satisfaction and maintained strong interest in both Japan and China, ahead of his time at that level.6 In January 1973, the plans for the trade centre and for the appointment of Peter Wakefield as special adviser on Japan to the BOTB were announced to parliament and at a BOTB press conference given by Sir Geoffrey Howe, the minister for trade and consumer affairs and BOTB president, together with Geoffrey Nichols, who noted that apart from the Tokyo trade centre, sight had not been lost of the potential for Britain also in Osaka and traditional export promotion activity was also being stepped up. By the time of the February 1973 Board, the exports to Japan unit had been set up in the DTI, Harris as its first officer, terms had been agreed for Ben Thorne, nominated as the director-designate of what was to be called the British Export Marketing Centre (BEMC), Peter Wakefield was to take up his new post in London in April and the inward mission would arrive in March. MATSUO TAIICHIRO
In 1973 the key figure emerged on the Japanese side of Matsuo Taiichirõ, then Vice-President of the Marubeni Corporation. Matsuo had earlier served as an official at the Ministry of International Trade and Industry (MITI). In 1972 he had been deputy leader of a senior Marubeni mission sent to China, following the normalization of Sino-Japanese relations and an invitation from the International Trade Promotion Committee of China, so was a natural choice when the next year MITI decided to despatch its first import promotion mission to the United Kingdom. This large mission, comprising 100
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businessmen from the general trading companies, department stores, and industrial companies as well as MITI officials and Miyoshi Masaya of the Keidanren (Federation of Economic organizations), started in London and visited most major UK cities, delivering the message that the Japanese market was open for business. Following the Heath talks with businessmen in Tokyo the previous year, their expectation was to meet a wider range of competent British manufacturers and exporters wishing to market their products in Japan. The mission met chambers of commerce and was well feted at civic events in the Edinburgh and Cardiff castles. Before the despatch of the mission, Sir Fred Warner, ambassador in Tokyo, had warned the Foreign Office that its handling presented a tough assignment for the officials involved, as Matsuo himself started as a sharp critic of UK industry. There was a risk of harmful failure. The Mission’s consumer goods group reported that there was already quite good knowledge of British competence among the Japanese department stores and textile importers. The machinery group of general trading companies visited Leeds, Glasgow, Manchester and Birmingham as well as London. They reported good prospects for medical and anti-pollution equipment. They were disappointed by the apparent ignorance of the Japanese market shown by many of the firms they met. They were impressed by a number of medium-sized machinery manufacturers but felt that their representation in Japan needed improvement. No specific group covered motor cars, but Mission leader Matsuo saw British Leyland privately (Marubeni were distributors), Lord Stokes and the secretary of state for trade and industry. The mission were critical of the British performance exporting cars to Japan, as UK exports were falling as overall imports were rising. Matsuo identified supply problems, particularly of Jaguars, delivery delays and frequent price increases. On his return to Tokyo, Matsuo saw the ambassador, who immediately reported in a telegram to the foreign secretary that ‘a fantastic job’ had been done on the Mission and that its members’ attitude had become favourable and helpful. A Financial Times editorial on the mission concluded that British industry must be prepared to give Japan a much higher place in its order of priorities. The political nature of the mission justified a subsequent report from Sir Fred Warner in which he noted the mission’s conclusions of bright prospects for British consumer goods but the need for better market research and re-examination of agency arrangements by British manufacturers to expand sales of high technology and industrial goods. Sir Fred saw the mission’s final report as giving insight into Japanese attitudes towards British goods and as indicating Japanese understanding of the need to buy more from Britain. He described as unjustified Japanese criticism of the British trading houses in Japan, this reflecting 101
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rivalry between these Japanese and British commercial houses. He commented that ‘the British principal gets the agent he deserves’ and urged new examination of distribution arrangements by British firms seeking in-depth sales. The ambassador placed on record his impression that the opportunity afforded to Matsuo to explain his country’s trade policies and market conditions was highly appreciated and that Matsuo himself had returned well disposed. Those who knew Matsuo later saw him as an outstandingly good and a candid friend of Britain, with a loyalty to this special relationship that has proved a lasting legacy.7 Privately, the Japanese mission members may have been well impressed by evidence of increasing zeal around the UK regions for inward investment from Japan, more so than by any deeply convincing palette of a hitherto undiscovered British Mittelstand. But overall the Mission was a clear success in drawing British business attention to opportunities in Japan and in providing a backdrop to the later opening of the British Export Marketing Centre in Tokyo. Matsuo observed that contrary to what they had expected the Mission members had been convinced that the British economy was set for steady growth (this was of course before the global effects of the first oil crisis in the autumn of 1973). In his report to MITI Matsuo had quickly espoused the concept of the establishment of a permanent structure of Japanese businessmen in Tokyo who could advise and assist new-to-market British companies, all with MITI support. Thus was established the British Market Council (a translation from the Eikoku Shijõ Kyõgikai), a body that since served to encourage the trade promotion staff of the British embassy’s commercial department. Matsuo became its Chairman, a role he retained for many years. The BMC’s 40th anniversary was marked in 2013. THE BRITISH EXPORT MARKETING CENTRE AT THE POLA AOYAMA BUILDING
Intensive preparatory work for the British Export Marketing Centre was done in 1973 by Ben Thorne as centre director and commercial counsellor, responsible to Hamish McGhie, the new commercial and economic minister, strongly supported by Bill Pearce, the ex-Royal Navy head of the fairs branch. The Centre in Aoyamadori was opened by HRH The Duke of Kent in September 1973, with an initial programme of specialist exhibitions covering marine equipment, furniture and welding equipment. In its first year, other shows included metrology and tooling, medical equipment, food and drink and avionics. British industry responded to the opportunity with enthusiasm, despite the three-day working week and industrial 102
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slow-down in the wake of the oil crisis. The central role of the exports to Japan unit supporting Peter Wakefield in London was to stimulate business interest in Japan and support for the Centre programme. The Unit served as the back-up to the British Export Marketing Centre and counselled individual British firms. In the first year of the new structure, the Unit was central to over twenty major conferences and seminars on marketing in Japan, held in London but also around the country including industrial centres as varied as Newcastle and Solihull. A co-ordinated programme was developed based on initial discussion with the relevant trade association, the commissioning of market research from specialist research firms in Tokyo and then the planning of the exhibition. This pattern continued for several years. The exports to Japan unit was itself a unique, market-focused office within the DTI staffed by Japanese-speaking officers rotated from the Embassy’s commercial department, an unprecedented system for any overseas market, lending high credibility to the Government’s approach among exporters. It remained in place for many years and turned out to be a precursor to later market branches set up to support other key developing overseas markets. Under Ben Thorne’s direction, the operations of the Centre were run by his deputy, Alex McMillan, who had returned to Japan as principal information officer from the fairs and promotions branch of the DTI, with Lydia Parry (later Lady Gomersall), Jim Ivins and a small team of dedicated Japanese staff, one of whom, Hariyama Chieko, subsequently moved into the embassy’s commercial department as a trade fair specialist and commercial officer (Honorary MBE in 2001). The Centre’s publicity work was outsourced to Tom Hara, a former such contractor for the British Week. Sylvia Thorne characteristically supported the whole programme with hospitality for the endless stream of British exhibitors. Back in London, at a meeting with the minister for trade, Eric Deakins, in August 1974 to discuss export promotion, Lord Thorneycroft referred to various attempts made to address specific problems for industrial involvement ‘such as the Exports to Japan Unit which had been a great success’. In the BOTB promotional programme plan for 1975/76, £1m was allocated for promotional activity in Japan, 10% of the global total, compared with £2.5m for West Germany, £1.2m for the USA and £1.1m for France. Exports to Japan in 1974 reached £319m. The BOTB budget for 1976/77 showed Japan still at £0.86m, of a total of £12.1m, with the other three traditional markets at roughly the same level. In the ten years from 1973, the effort put into Japan in terms of ministerial and official time, and of tailoring initiatives to the particular needs of the market, was unique in the second half of the twentieth century. Notably after the change of government in 1974, UK-Japan 103
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trade relations were seen as of two inter-related halves of vigorous export promotion and the voluntary restraint on Japanese exports in sensitive areas. It was easier to persuade some ministers that the approach on Japan was acceptable when it contained both elements, this remaining true to some extent after Mrs Thatcher took over, until the inflow of inward investment from Japan gained traction. The game changed later with the weakening of the Japanese economy but the Japanese Government continued to promote imports and later direct investment into Japan to the present day. The Export Marketing Centre went on to run a series of professionally focused exhibitions for several years. It proved to be a unique instrument in the history of British trade promotion overseas. In the early years following the UK’s accession to the Treaty of Rome, there was much discussion at the department of trade about the lack of a common European Community policy towards Japan, the sense in 1975 being that the system of voluntary restraint agreements was the most effective way of coping with disruptive import difficulty, for other Member States as well as the UK.8 The focus for the Embassy at Tokyo in 1975 was the State Visit, during which HRH The Duke of Edinburgh visited the Centre during a marine equipment show. Reviewing that year, the new ambassador Sir Michael Wilford reported on the very great success of the State Visit. He also gave credit to British exporters for their effort in a difficult, recessional year for trade. In a separate report to London he also noted the determination, optimism and resilience of the British businessmen he met at the BEMC, who did not seem unduly worried by non-tariff barriers and just got on with the job. By 1977, Thorne reflected that there had been forty-one major exhibitions in the Centre since 1973, with 696 participating companies and 45,000 Japanese business visitors. Technical exhibitions included the aerospace, medical, oceanic and offshore industries, lasers and electro-optics, and consumer goods involved carpets, furniture, toys and audio equipment (as Japanese audiophiles in Akihabara took passionately to high fidelity British audio equipment, especially speakers). A year later, the embassy’s commercial department noted that fifty-two private British exhibitions had also been held. Over these years, some star products launched at the Centre included RollsRoyce’s Camargue, JCB’s excavator, Gordon Russell’s furniture. The value of products sold as a direct result of Centre exhibitions was difficult to assess, especially of technical, industrial goods, whose marketing campaigns by their nature took a long time to fruition. But in 1978, the Embassy assessed that 60% of the British exhibitors since the BEMC opening had sold £40m, as a direct contribution to British trade, with much more in indirect benefits. In 1977, UK exports of goods to Japan had reached £469m, a rise of 31% over 1976. 104
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Since the global oil crisis of 1973–74, Japan’s economy had been set back, but by September 1978 there were renewed signs of a wealthier Japan again under pressure to increase imports, as she had been in the early 1970s. Government-led export promotion was nevertheless far from easy: much of British industry was itself still badly managed and uncompetitive. Over these years, the work of the exports to Japan unit was closely integrated with the BEMC programme. Also in late 1976 the Japan task force, a result of a Keidanren mission earlier in the year, was established linking the Japanese business community in London with the British effort to promote exports and third country co-operation. A Task Force meeting in early 1979 co-chaired by John Field of the EJU (formerly in the Embassy and later minister there) and Mitsubishi representative Yamada noted the success of a further Matsuo mission to promote imports, including a very friendly meeting with the Prime Minister. The mission had reported that industrial relations in the UK were not as bad as they had feared, the UK was likely to become self-sufficient in energy and British technology was high in certain areas like medical equipment, some sectors of engineering and computer software. Later that year, officials in the CRE questioned the continuing value of the task force but John Field and Geoffrey Nichols argued forcefully that its abandonment would endanger UK interests. It continued into the early 1980s, chaired by John MacDonald (formerly in the Embassy and involved in the British Week) and Mitsubishi representative Morohashi (who also became a towering figure in bilateral relations as chairman of Mitsubishi and of the British Market Council after Matsuo). Ben Thorne remained in Tokyo until early 1979. After Hamish McGhie’s departure from Tokyo, Thorne had assumed more of the traditional role of managing the embassy’s commercial department, with McMillan running the Centre operations. Thorne was succeeded by his embassy deputy, Merrick Baker-Bates. The Japanese authorities had meanwhile taken some steps to open trade fairs at the Harumi fairgrounds to international participation. The BEMC became involved in supporting UK firms there, giving them the opportunity to compete directly with others in their sector. The US Trade Center moved to the newly built Japanese Governmentsponsored import promotion facilities at Sunshine City in Ikebukuro, organized by the (since renamed) Manufactured Imports and Investment Promotion Organization (MIPRO) set up by MITI and the private sector. The British decided to move too, closing the Aoyamadori Centre in 1980. Meanwhile, the bilateral trade deficit grew, a result of Japan’s phenomenal success in industrial quality. Soon after his return to Tokyo as ambassador, Sir Hugh Cortazzi sent to the Department of Trade in London new embassy papers on trade and commercial work, 105
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the result of analysis by John Whitehead, now minister, and Merrick Baker-Bates. Sir Hugh noted that pockets of protectionism still existed in Japan, even though the scene had changed since 1970, when large parts of the economy had been protected. By now, motor-cars and electronics had become super-competitive in Japan and there was less technology buying. The Embassy’s paper showed thirty-eight people engaged on export promotion work at the Embassy and the BEMC, at an overall cost of around £850,000 a year, with 5.3% of the BOTB’s budget. Japanese statistics showed that the UK share of the manufactured imports market had actually fallen. Sir Hugh noted that after the intensive years of trade promotion and missionary work there were fewer good, new-to-market firms to introduce and recruitment was harder. Better capital good companies had come to do well, ICI and Spirax Sarco, who had exhibited at the BEMC, reporting good business. The BEMC programme had become biased towards consumer goods and while every effort should be made to ensure maximum use, its activity should be reviewed in 1981. Replying to Cortazzi’s report, John Caines, chief executive of the BOTB (later Sir John), wrote that he had told John Whitehead, visiting London, that the BOTB accepted the embassy’s analysis and had to consider whether the Japanese market – political considerations notwithstanding – continued to merit a disproportionately large share of expenditure. He was clear that a decision to close could well eventually be economically right but would have political reverberations. He noted that the EJU work was in line with plans for a new Exports to Europe Branch. In October 1981 Japan sent a high level economic mission to Europe under Keidanren Chairman Inayama. Unable to meet him, Prime Minister Thatcher wrote to Inayama expressing the serious European concern over concentrated Japanese exports and low imports of manufactures, welcoming Prime Minister Tanaka’s earlier statement recognizing this. Minister of trade Peter Rees met Inayama, welcoming the latter’s perception of the need to resolve the issues through co-operation and referring to a list of twenty points to be addressed. Rees observed to Inayama that lest his mission feel that everything was being expected of the Japanese side ‘all of the diplomats in our Tokyo embassy’ spoke Japanese and the 1973 opening of the BEMC had been a venture unparalleled in any other industrial country. Interestingly, one of the twenty points requested Japanese companies to invest in European companies manufacturing high technology products to assist in their importation into Japan. END AND LEGACY
As foreshadowed in the 1980 exchange with the BOTB, the unique life of the BEMC in Aoyamadori and then at Ikebukuro came to 106
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an end in the early 1980s. It had served its purpose well, in the process raising the UK business image in Japan and setting the scene for a new era of export promotion activity driven by the embassy, together with the British Chamber of Commerce and with the back-up of the DTI’s exports to Japan unit and the Foreign Office. The success of the BEMC and EJU operations should not be exaggerated in any sense that they instantly re-doubled UK exports: UK visible exports to Japan in the years 1978 to 1982 averaged around £600m, reaching £800m in 1983, £925m in 1984 and £1,012m in 1985. Nor did the effort stop the UK from embarking on a policy of voluntary restraint by Japanese exporters over the next decade. But it helped a generation of British new-to-market exporters to grasp the challenges of marketing in Japan, recognizing that if they could meet the high quality of demand from industrial customers in Japan their products would be of world class. And it helped to avoid the worst protectionist politics of formal UK import quotas. The message conveyed to Japanese industry was that the UK was undertaking a serious effort. Sony’s investment in Wales9 was followed by the rest of the electronics industry that came to the UK. In the mid-1970s, the Japan Automobile Manufacturers Association (JAMA) visited the UK to inspect the British automotive parts industry. Despite the negative hangover of the earlier industrial turmoil they were impressed by what they saw on the factory floor. A follow-up exhibition at the BEMC was supported by JAMA. Nissan’s later decision10 to invest in British manufacturing sprang from this time, then came the Honda11 collaboration with British Leyland and Toyota’s12 decision to invest in Derby. The renaissance of the British motor-car industry was in progress. Subsequent ambassadors Sir Sydney Giffard, Sir John Whitehead, Sir John Boyd, Sir David Wright, Sir Stephen Gomersall, Sir Graham Fry, Sir David Warren and from late 2012 Tim Hitchens were unequivocal in their support for and engagement in trade promotion, making a unique story in modern British diplomacy (Fry and Warren had both been members of the Embassy’s commercial department). The detailed trade programmes were conducted by the subsequent commercial counsellors, James Hodge 1982–86 (later Sir James), Melville Guest 1986–89, Paul Dimond 1989–93, David Warren 1993–98 (later ambassador), Peter Batemen 1998–2002, Jane Owen 2002–06, David Cairns 2006–10 and Sue Kinoshita from 2010, the work of the commercial department maturing further through three successive, special campaigns on the Japan, Opportunity Japan, Priority Japan and Action Japan, leading to re-focussed policy under UK Trade and Investment. At the London end, the supportive role for many years of Sir Michael Perry, former chairman of Nippon Lever 1981–83, chairman of Unilever 1992–96 and chairman of the 107
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Japan Trade Group in London 1991–99, could not be overstated. In all over twenty Knights of the Realm were involved, a full set of Commanders, Companions, Officers and Members of the Orders. Many Japanese businessmen and officials who contributed outstanding service supporting the British export effort have also been recognized by HM The Queen through Honorary Awards. This portrait tells the collective case story of the people who created a unique structure in British commercial activity overseas. ENDNOTES 1
2
3 4
5
Japan and Back and Places Elsewhere, by Hugh Cortazzi, Global Oriental, 1998 A biographical portrait of John Figgess by Hugh Cortazzi is contained in Britain and Japan: Biographical Portraits, volume III, ed. J.E Hoare, Japan Library 1999. National Archives, BT 241/2635 See also ‘Edward Heath (1916–2005): The First Visit of a British Prime Minister to Japan’ by Hugh Cortazzi in Britain and Japan: Biographical Portraits, volume VI, ed. Hugh Cortazzi, Global Oriental, 2007. Wool cloth had long featured in the British context of managed trade. The National Wool Textile Export Corporation of Bradford (NWTEC) was originally formed in 1941, confirmed by Parliament in 1950 with a statutory levy to support its trade promotion (the then Mr Harold Macmillan, MP for Bromley, supported the Government’s move with a tribute to the industry still ‘in private hands’). The UK was the world’s largest exporter of wool textiles in the late ‘50s. As early as 1957, the Corporation had complained to the Board of Trade about the Japanese Government’s dilatoriness in the renewal of bilateral trade agreements providing for the import licensing of wool cloth and yarn. British exports to Japan of all wool and worsted yarn and manufactures were worth nearly £7m then, Japan being the UK’s fourth market after Canada, West Germany and the US. Although the Corporation was expressing concern about the competitive impact of Italian and Japanese exports on the UK’s traditional markets, in Japan the UK was able to hold on to 90% of the import market on grounds of quality and what the Corporation described as ‘snob appeal’. In what was described as a gigantic exercise in public relations, the Corporation staged a major exhibit at the British Trade Fair in Tokyo in 1965, attended by HRH Princess Alexandra and Her Imperial Highness Princess Chichibu. By 1972, Japan had become easily the largest market for UK woven woollen and worsted fabrics, worth £9m. The Corporation undertook a TV advertising campaign with their partners, the Japan Textiles Importers Association (JTIA), reaching 23m viewers, and a survey indicated that 50% of professional and managerial Japanese men had suits made of British cloth. So it may not be so surprising that the Prime Ministers had focused on the subject. In 1973, such cloth exports to Japan rose to over £20m and this was now the dominant overseas market. In meetings with members of the Matsuo Mission however the Corporation 108
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6
7
8
9
10
11
12
had raised the continuing issue of a minimum specific duty in Japan that was an obstacle to increasing the UK performance in the medium and less expensive segments of the market. Availing itself of the BEMC, the NWTEC held a prestige exhibition in September 1974, following a national tailors’ competition for window dressing, a formula that lasted biennially for ten years. That year, the export figure reached £29m, declined to £15m in 1976, by 1978 rose again to £28m, to £38m in 1979, then levelled around £30m annually in the first half of the ‘80s before reaching £43m in 1985 and 1986. Peter Ackroyd had meanwhile become the Corporation’s Senior Promotions Executive, later Assistant Director and Director, finally leaving in 2008 after the ending of the industry levy. Over many of the earlier years Yagi Tsuruzõ was the JTIA President and a familiar figure to the visitors from Bradford. (OBE in 1977). In 1985, the JTIA was however voicing criticism of what it saw as falling standards in the UK performance in design and fashion image; the Italian suppliers were making strong inroads through their design flair and flexibility over order minima. Heath later became an adviser to the Praemium Imperiale in Japan. But, perhaps in contrast to some perceptions, he also had the human touch. During his 1972 visit he dropped by the desk of the youngest Japanese girl working at the British Embassy, Kon Kazuko (awarded an MBE in 2001), and shared part of her bento¯ lunch, a piece of Prince melon, learning about the bento¯ culture. They met again later at the BEMC. He became President of Marubeni in 1975 and Chairman from 1981 to 1987. In 1996 he was appointed an Honorary Knight Commander of the Order of the British Empire (KBE) in recognition of his exceptional role in supporting British-Japanese business relations. Miyoshi Masaya went on to become President and Director-General of the Keidanren. At Marubeni, Taida Hideya, head of the Corporation’s London company, followed dynamically in Matsuo’s footsteps, becoming Senior Vice-President at Marubeni, Executive Director at the Japan Foundation Center for Global Partnership and over many years a participant in the UK-Japan 21st Century Group, and receiving an Honorary CBE in 2002. BT 241/2511 Christopher Roberts, Department of Trade, letter to the FCO of 11 November 1975. A biographical portrait of Morita Akio of Sony by Hugh Cortazzi was included in Britain and Japan: Biographical Portraits, volume VI, ed. Hugh Cortazzi, Global Oriental, 2007. A detailed account of the Nissan negotiations by Sir Robin Mountfield is contained in Britain and Japan: Biographical Portraits, volume VI, ed. Hugh Cortazzi, Global Oriental, 2007. A biographical portrait of Honda Sõichirõ by Hugh Cortazzi is contained in Britain and Japan: Biographical Portraits, volume VI, ed. Hugh Cortazzi, Global Oriental, 2007. See memoir by Toyoda Shõichirõ ‘Toyota and Britain’ in Britain and Japan: Biographical Portraits, volume VI, ed. Hugh Cortazzi, Global Oriental, 2007.
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Scotch Whisky in Japan STUART JACK ‘Thae curst horse-leeches o’ th’ Excise, Wha mak the whisky stells their prize!’ ‘Scotch Drink’ by Robert Burns, 1786 INTRODUCTION
The Excise or the taxman has for centuries had an enormous influence over the fortunes of the whisky industry. Debates about the level of taxation continue to this day in Britain and elsewhere, although maybe not with the strength of feeling and vituperative language used more than 200 years ago by Robert Burns (who, ironically, was himself to become an excise man). Tax on alcoholic beverages is a major source of revenue for governments in both the UK and Japan. But people can and do argue how much that tax should be. Particularly difficult for industry to accept are discriminatory taxes which favour competing products. That was the situation Scotch whisky faced in Japan when this issue rose to prominence in the mid-1980s. This chapter1 charts the way this problem was tackled, with a large degree of success. It is a case study in how industry, the European Communities (EC as was, now the European Union) and individual member states can work together, and in how strong political leadership and day to day diplomacy can further commercial interests. It also demonstrates how the good underlying bilateral relationship between the UK and Japan, in particular at prime ministerial level, helped to provide a constructive framework within which a difficult issue could be resolved. THE POLITICAL AND ECONOMIC CONTEXT
After the Second World War ended British economic recovery was slow. British industries feared copying of designs and ‘unfair competition’ from Japanese firms, which were struggling to revive. 110
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Protectionist pressures were strong in both countries and British trade with Japan was impeded. But it became clear that, as Prime Minister Ikeda’s ‘double the income’ policies of the early 1960s looked likely to succeed, Japanese exports would grow quickly and Japan could become an important market for Britain. After eight years of negotiations Japan and the United Kingdom had concluded in November 1962 a revised Treaty of Commerce and Navigation. This came into force in 1963 and the principles of the GATT (the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade) were to apply to trade between both countries, but two protocols attached to the treaty ensured that both sides could keep some restraints on imports. One of the products on which Japan continued to maintain a quota was Scotch whisky. This meant that until Scotch whisky imports were liberalized in January 1971 there had to be annual negotiations on quotas. Throughout the 1960s the British side pressed hard for increased quotas for Scotch, which was seen as a key product in penetrating and developing the Japanese market for British consumer goods (see separate chapter in this volume on British Week in Tokyo 1969). Japanese import quota restrictions on Scotch whisky were not, of course, the only obstacle which British industry faced in the Japanese market. But the problems facing Scotch whisky exporters came to dominate and symbolize British frustrations over the apparently closed nature of the Japanese market in an era of rising general concern about the economic threat from Japan.2 When I was first secretary (trade policy) in the British embassy in Tokyo from 1985 to 1989 unfair treatment of Scotch whisky was the most prominent trade issue facing British exports in Japan and the one which took up the most time of British ministers and the British embassy. At times it was occupying 30–40% of my time. Scotch was a product, which people in both countries could relate to, and it was deeply ingrained in the Scottish and British identity. Similarly on the Japanese side there were political and emotional connotations around sho¯chu¯, the native Japanese spirit, which was seen as threatened by any tax reform in favour of Scotch whisky. By 1985 the UK had three main trade issues with Japan (apart from voluntary restraint agreements on Japanese exports, which continued to expand in coverage): whisky, legal services (getting agreement for English law firms to operate in Japan), and financial services (in particular seats for British firms on the Tokyo Stock Exchange). During the 1980s there were four Japanese Prime Ministers from the Liberal Democratic Party, Suzuki Zenko¯, Nakasone Yasuhiro¯, Takeshita Noboru and Kaifu Toshiki. They had a good deal of respect for the British Prime Minister, Margaret Thatcher. The major domestic issue in Japanese politics were plans to undertake major 111
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tax reform and in particular to introduce a consumption (sales) tax, which clearly also had implications for alcoholic beverages. There were signs, particularly under Nakasone, that Japan wanted to play more of an international role beyond just trade. Japan was already a major aid donor with some of it beginning to go to countries of strategic importance for the West. To the background of a difficult period of the Cold War, Western leaders, including Mrs Thatcher in Britain, welcomed a greater role for Japan. Another important factor, which influenced British policy towards Japan, was Japanese investment, particularly in the UK’s ailing car industry. But these considerations did not prevent British Ministers from taking a tough line on trade issues.3 WHISKY IN JAPAN
The relationship between Britain and Japan in respect of whisky goes back almost a hundred years. Millions of Japanese will learn of this history in 2014, as NHK’s popular daily drama series will be about the father of the Japanese whisky industry, Taketsuru Masataka4 and his Scottish wife, Jessie Roberta. By the 1980s Japan was of considerable importance for the Scotch whisky industry, and exports of whisky had a major place in UK trade with Japan. In 1985 the value of Scotch whisky exports to Japan was £59 million, making Japan the industry’s third largest export market and making Scotch whisky the second largest UK export to Japan. Around a third was bulk whisky sold to the Japanese industry, which blended it into Japanese whiskies. This continued to grow but the volume of bottled Scotch had declined by almost half since 1949. This was attributed, at least in part, to the discriminatory tax and duty regime which protected the Japanese whisky and spirits industries and prevented the growth of Scotch whisky’s market share. The Japanese industry was therefore both a major competitor and, for some parts of the Scotch industry, a major customer.5 There were two big companies (as still today), Suntory and Nikka, and a number of smaller producers who mostly made cheaper ‘whiskies’. THE ‘PARALLELS’ PROBLEM
Prominently displayed for many years in my Japanese brother-inlaw’s sitting room was a magnum of Johnny Walker Black received from one of his clients. This and other premium brands of blended scotch were seen as valuable gifts in the two gift-giving seasons in Japan. Standard blends were also used as gifts and had a major place in bars, but not in the take-home trade, which was dominated by cheaper Japanese ‘whiskies’ such as Suntory Red. It was important for the whisky producers and their approved importers to maintain the cachet, which went with a stable high price. 112
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Commercially the problem of most concern to the industry in the mid-1980s was not actually tax but parallel imports. Scotch whisky was reaching Japan via third countries and being sold at lower prices, undermining the market positioning of Scotch, taking free advantage of the advertising efforts of the official importers, and reducing the profitability of the product. The industry lobbied the British Government and the European Commission (who formally had responsibility for trade relations with Japan) to take this matter up with the Japanese. There was some sympathy in the Department of Trade in London and in the British embassy in Tokyo for the industry case, but not universally in Whitehall. The European Commission, however, would have no truck with it, seeing proposals for certificates of origin specifically for Japan, while supposedly aimed at counterfeit Scotch emanating from elsewhere in Asia (a real issue but not a significant one in Japan), as a ruse to suppress the parallel trade. In the eyes of both the Commission and the Japanese authorities any action against parallels would be anti-competitive. The industry had two other major issues with Japan: rates of import duty and liquor tax. A third, whisky look-alikes, was also to become important. IMPORT TARIFFS
The Japanese import tariff on bottled Scotch was over seven times the duty levied on Japanese whisky entering the EC. It was also significantly higher than the tariff on American and Canadian whiskies. Under pressure from the US and Europe to open up its market Japan undertook a series of reductions in import tariffs. That included Scotch whisky: the tariff was reduced in 1985 by between 18 and 26%, however still leaving a higher rate than for American bourbon and rye whiskies. LIQUOR TAX
Liquor tax had much more effect on the price of whisky than import duty and became the main focus of a campaign jointly conducted by the Scotch Whisky Association, The European Business Council in Tokyo (representing European businesses active in Japan), the British government, and the European Commission. A leaflet issued by the Scotch Whisky Association (SWA) in October 1986 sums up what is quite a complicated tax regime and its impact on the prospects for Scotch: ‘Whisky’ is taxed in Japan in a way, which is unique amongst all the developed countries of the world. Whereas in the EC ‘whisky’ 113
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(regardless of origin) is taxed on the basis of its alcoholic content, in Japan ‘whisky’ is divided into three ‘grades’. This generates three sharply defined product categories with very different tax levels and thus sharply different retail prices. Scotch whisky is automatically classified in the top ‘grade’. This means that it pays 7 times the rate of tax on Japanese ‘Second’ grade whisky and twice the rate on Japanese ‘First’ grade whisky. Moreover, Scotch whisky pays significantly more tax than other Japanese spirits. For example, the minimum tax rate for Scotch whisky is over 40 times the rate of tax on certain Japanese sho¯chu¯… [Together with the high import duties the effect is that] …Scotch whisky is denied (a) the opportunity to compete on equal terms with Japanese ‘First’ and ‘Second’ grade whiskies, which account for 50% of the Japanese whisky market, and (b) access to the valuable take-home market which accounts for 60% of consumption.
In addition to three grades of whisky with different rates of specific tax (based on volume) there was also an ad valorem tax (based on price), which applied to the more expensive whiskies.6 EFFORTS TO ADDRESS TRADE BARRIERS TO SCOTCH WHISKY UP TO EARLY 1985
British Ministers raised Scotch whisky with their Japanese counterparts on numerous occasions from 1968 onwards. Prime Minister Edward Heath brought up the subject with Prime Minister Tanaka Kakuei during his visit to Japan in 1972. In these contacts the focus seems to have been first on quota liberalization and then on import duty rather than liquor tax. The briefing for Mrs Thatcher’s visit to Japan in 1982 (see separate chapter in this volume on Margaret Thatcher and Japan) only mentions the issue in passing and she does not seem to have raised it. As late as early 1985 several other market access issues featured more prominently in British trade policy towards Japan (for example tobacco, pig meat). Visiting UK Cabinet Minister Norman Tebbit did raise the taxation issue briefly in April 1985, but it was not on his list of points to make when he saw the Japanese prime minister. But by May 1986 Mrs Thatcher was firmly focused on the issue, raising it with Prime Minister Nakasone. It was to remain in her sights for the next three years. THE CAMPAIGN GETS UNDER WAY
The Scotch Whisky Association decided to launch a campaign in 1985, supported actively by the liquor committee of the European Business Council in Tokyo, led by Mark Bedingham. They pursued their campaign with determination and skill and were prepared to 114
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devote considerable time and resources, including the employment of a public relations firm (Burson Marstellar). The EC and the British Government were ready to be firm with Japan on trade issues, and this was one issue which involved blatant discrimination and had media appeal (‘The Whisky War’ was an inevitable headline). The prospect of major tax reform in Japan also provided an obvious opportunity to improve matters but was also potentially a threat of an even worse regime. Although Japanese liquor taxation was essentially a one product (Scotch whisky) and one country issue (the UK) aspects of it affected cognac and Irish whiskey, and action to tackle the issue garnered wide support in the Council of Ministers of the EC, who shared a general frustration with the state of trade relations with Japan. The SWA were also able to mobilize support from the US and Canada through the International Federation of Wines and Spirits, and the SWA’s Director General, Bill Bewsher, led a lobbying mission to Japan in October 1986 which included representatives of the spirits industries of France, Germany, Italy, Ireland, Canada and the USA. The internationalization of the issue clearly had an impact in Japan. The starting objective set by the SWA and agreed by the British Government and the EC was a level playing field for imported and domestic spirits. This required abolition of the grading system for whisky, a single rate of tax for all domestic and imported spirits (as in the UK), and a single rate of import duty based on alcoholic content. The highest priority was a single rate of tax for all whiskies, and therefore abolition of the grading system and the mixture of specific and ad valorem taxes. HOW THE CAMPAIGN WAS PURSUED
The full toolkit of trade policy and diplomacy was used. The starting point was close coordination with the industry in the UK, Brussels and Tokyo. At times there were different views on tactics and even some in the industry who thought the whole focus wrong. But there was widespread agreement on both objectives and tactics. Much of our activity was aimed at, drip by drip, raising awareness of the issue in Japan and gaining acceptance that something had to be done about it. Whisky taxation became a fixture in virtually all high-level contacts, which the British Government and the European Commission had with Japan. That included Mrs Thatcher’s contacts with successive Japanese Prime Ministers through both face-to-face meetings and correspondence. The British ambassador, the economic counsellor (Stephen Gomersall, later ambassador) and I tracked Japanese thinking closely 115
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and sought every opportunity to explain our case for fairer treatment. This meant principally contact with Japanese officialdom, in particular the Ministry of Finance and its National Tax Agency (with whose Liquor Tax Division I developed a close working relationship) and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. We also spoke to the Ministry of International Trade and Industry (MITI) and the Keidanren (the principal business organization), getting across the point that the whisky issue had acquired a symbolic importance, which resonated across the whole of our bilateral economic relationship. We briefed the Japanese media, making good use of our Japanese language skills, and, together with representatives of the industry, succeeded in getting a lot of coverage.7 The EC delegation in Tokyo was also active and coordination with us worked well.8 The range of diplomatic and media-focussed approaches was to be used throughout the campaign with excellent support from the industry. JAPANESE ATTITUDES
We soon achieved a degree of understanding and even sympathy from Japanese officials. That was true even of the Ministry of Finance and the National Tax Agency, whose responsibilities included protecting tax revenue and the interests of the Japanese industry. But they, of course, had to be receptive to the countervailing pressures from the various sectors of the Japanese liquor industry and their political supporters. The situation with the Japanese whisky industry was complicated. The major producers, Suntory and Nikka, had a shared interest with us in some respects (abolition of the ad valorem tax, lower overall rates and a narrowing of the tax advantages of sho¯chu¯ would help them). But these companies were also the main competitors for bottled Scotch whisky in all sectors of the market, and might lose out if their dominance of the take-home trade was dented by more competitive Scotch. The smaller Japanese whisky producers who depended on the cheaper end of the market were certainly at risk. I saw no harm in talking with Suntory in particular, who sought contact with us. But Bill Bewsher of the SWA was against any dealings with them on the part of his association and we too felt constrained from much contact (we had some). While Saji, the Chairman of Suntory and of the Japanese whisky trade association, clearly had some influence with the Japanese Government, the main blockage to achievement of our objectives lay elsewhere. There was nervousness9 among the saké brewers about the possible implications of major changes to liquor tax, not that whisky was 116
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seen as a major competitor. This was an influential lobby, with close connections to a lot of Japanese politicians including in particular Takeshita Noboru, who was Minister of Finance and then Prime Minister at key stages in this saga. The real problem was the sho¯chu¯ industry and its formidable political protector, Yamanaka Sadanori. A single rate of tax for spirits or even a substantial narrowing of the differential in tax rates would hit the 600 small producers of B-type sho¯chu¯, mostly located in southern Kyushu and Okinawa. Yamanaka represented that part of Kyushu in the Diet. He had a key position as chair of the LDP Tax Affairs Council, and, while most policy was still made by officials, major tax changes were one area where the politicians and in particular Yamanaka (sometimes known as ‘Mr Tax’) held sway. On one occasion he told us bluntly to forget the National Tax Agency – he personally would decide the fate of liquor tax. My friends in the Agency confirmed that to be the case. We decided not to shun him but rather maintain contact. He eventually accepted that we had a genuine issue, which we had to address together, doubtless helped by his admiration for Mrs Thatcher and by what happened in the GATT. THE GATT
One development helped to bring the matter to a head and provide a powerful context in which we could lobby and negotiate a solution. The EC Foreign Affairs Council, at our urging, decided in 1986 to lodge a complaint with the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT). The GATT, predecessor to the World Trade Organization, was the main multilateral trade body to which all major western trading nations were a party, including Japan. A GATT panel was set up to investigate, chaired by Ambassador Tello from Mexico. The panel’s report adopted by the GATT Council in November 1987 found that Japanese liquor taxation was ‘discriminatory and inconsistent with Article III of the GATT’ (which prohibits internal taxes that discriminate against imported products in favour of domestic products). Japan (including even Yamanaka of the LDP) accepted that the tax had to be changed. We inevitably wanted full implementation of the GATT findings as quickly as possible. For understandable reasons the Japanese Government wanted to make any changes to the Liquor Tax at the same time as the major reforms which would introduce a consumption tax. That is what was to happen on 1 April 1989. More important than timing was how far the GATT findings would be implemented, in other words the content of the new tax regime. Japan accepted quickly that there should be a single rate of 117
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tax for all whiskies despite concern for the smaller domestic producers of ‘Second Grade’. In December 1987 the ruling Liberal Democratic Party decided that the grading system for whisky and the ad valorem tax should be abolished; and, without specifying by how much, that differences in tax rates for different spirits should be narrowed, including through a rise in the tax on sho¯chu¯. The discussion turned to the precise tax rates and in particular the differential with sho¯chu¯, which a senior Japanese Ministry of Finance official described to us as a ‘terrible political issue’ for his Ministry. Japanese officials recognized that Japan had to respect the GATT finding but Japanese politicians were adamant that the differentials10 could not be abolished altogether, at least not quickly. In domestic political terms it was not possible to allow a lot of small sho¯chu¯ producers to go bankrupt.11 The British Government and the EC asked that they be consulted as Japan worked out the exact shape of the new tax regime. In January 1988 the Foreign Secretary, Sir Geoffrey Howe, raised the matter with every Minister he met during a visit to Tokyo. The Japanese were warned that Liquor Tax would be the top issue when Prime Minister Takeshita came to the UK in May; and that the matter would, if necessary, be raised in the Economic Summit in Toronto in June. The European Commission gave the Japanese similar messages. At this key stage contacts between the two Prime Ministers played a decisive role. Without revealing any details Takeshita gave a personal undertaking in London that he would find a satisfactory solution. This was followed by an exchange of letters between the two Prime Ministers. Takeshita conveyed his ‘personal decision’ later in May: there would be a 45% reduction in the rate of tax applicable to Scotch Whisky and a 75% increase in the rate for sho¯chu¯, reducing the whisky/sho¯chu¯ differential from 40:1 to 13:1 (or to 7.5:1 if the different alcoholic content was taken into account).12 Even this modest narrowing of the differential had clearly involved great efforts by Takeshita, including in particular with Yamanaka. Having consulted the SWA the British Government and the EC decided to welcome the Japanese plan. But they noted that it did not represent full implementation of the GATT finding and that the continuing differentials would need to be kept under review. With these caveats Mrs Thatcher told her Japanese counterpart that his plan was a ‘very positive response’, and the President of the European Commission Jacques Delors told Takeshita it was ‘a good step in the right direction’. The tax changes were passed by the Diet in November 1988 for implementation in April 1989. So in the end the Scotch Whisky Association, the British Government and the EC were prepared to compromise provided that a single rate of tax for all whiskies was adopted no later than the 118
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following tax year. A single rate for all spirits, including sho¯chu¯, would remain a longer-term aim. If the remaining differentials became a problem the issue could be sent back to the GATT. CIRCUMVENTION OF THE TAX CHANGES: WHISKY LOOK-ALIKES
Problems quickly arose. We had been concerned for a while that a new, fairer regime might be circumvented if Japanese companies launched whisky look-alike products which were classified as ‘other spirits’ or ‘sho¯chu¯’ and therefore benefited from much lower tax rates. I had conveyed this to the National Tax Agency, who had undertaken to prevent any circumvention. This concern nevertheless proved to be more than theoretical. In June 1988 a new sho¯chu¯ called Jun Legend came onto the market. The label was mostly in English and said that it was made from barley and aged in wooden barrels. In October another was launched called ‘Kami no kawa’, which, despite this time a Japanese name, was described as an ‘international spirit aged for 3 years in oak casks’. Both products lay midway between whisky and sho¯chu¯ in colour and taste. We made stronger representations at various levels, threatening to return to the GATT. I found myself having to negotiate official guidelines to be issued by the National Tax Agency, covering names, labelling and advertising. The most bizarre, if also one of the most important, parts of this was agreeing on an acceptable colour. The deputy director of the Liquor Tax Division and I sat around a table with several bottles of liquid with various shades of yellow and straw colours, haggling over which was the darkest acceptable. Not exactly very scientific, though what we agreed was later expressed more technically as a colour density of 0.19. It was lighter than Scotch whisky. Despite these guidelines more look-alike products appeared. One I recall was called Kentucky Age, presumably more aimed at American whiskey than Scotch. As I left Tokyo this issue was still rumbling on. Secretary of State for Scotland Malcolm Rifkind raised it in Tokyo in September and Mrs Thatcher did so with Prime Minister Kaifu in the same month. ENCOURAGING INITIAL EXPORT FIGURES
We had nevertheless achieved a much better tax regime for Scotch whisky. It was now for the individual companies to decide how to exploit that, whether by going for the mass market or concentrating on the premium gift market, in other words whether to go for volume or high profit margins. The first signs were good. According to 119
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SWA figures exports to Japan were up 39% in the first half of 1989, and according to Japan’s National Tax Agency imports were up 32% by volume and 68% by value. HOW DO THESE EVENTS LOOK NOW?
The Japanese liquor market has changed a lot in the last twenty-five years. The British Government and the British embassy in Tokyo kept on the case, and there were further improvements in the duty and tax regime13 (though the SWA still has some concerns about Japanese regulations14). But the market for Scotch whisky did not grow as hoped. This was in part due to Japan’s ‘lost decade’ of economic stagnation, to a drop in the gift-giving tradition, and to investment by sho¯chu¯ producers in new products, some of which still adopt some of Scotch’s clothes (if not as blatantly as the first look-alikes). Japanese whisky distillers have also gone for growth, and the share of the whisky market taken by imports has fallen in recent years.15 Exports of Scotch to Japan reached £177 million in 1990 but were down to £59.5 million in 2013. That said Japan still remains an important market (the 16th largest export market for Scotch whisky). Single malt whisky exports have risen 186% since 1990 to £18.9 million in 2013.16 THE WIDER SIGNIFICANCE
While the significance of Japan as an individual market for Scotch whisky has declined over the last twenty years the precedent set in the GATT case has had much wider-reaching effects. It has aided the industry in similar discriminatory cases with Korea, Chile and the Philippines and has established a basis for ensuring that fair treatment of spirits is included in future trading regimes such as Free Trade Agreements, which the EU might negotiate. ENDNOTES 1
2
I am grateful to the Foreign & Commonwealth Office for enabling me to refresh my memory and check my facts and to the Scotch Whisky Association for helping me to bring the story up to date and to understand the wider significance of what we did together in the 1980s. My thanks also go to Sir Hugh Cortazzi for his advice and in particular for his insights into the historical context. The ‘Japan problem’ – the fear that Japan would dominate many sectors of the world economy – seriously exercised governments and business organizations in the US and Europe. This led to protectionist moves and, in the case of the UK in particular, voluntary restraint agreements under which Japan agreed to limit exports of cars, machine tools, etc. But it also led to interest in lessons, which could be learned from Japan, 120
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3
4
5
6
7
8 9
10
11
12
including through inward investment by Japanese manufacturers. Both sides of this issue were captured in many books and articles, some of which made an impact on policy makers and wider opinion, notably Ezra Vogel: Japan as No.1, Harvard 1979. Others, some very alarmist, included Marvin Wolf: The Japanese Conspiracy, Their Plot to Dominate Industry World-Wide, Empire Books 1983; and Clyde Prestowitz: Trading Places, How America Allowed Japan to Take the Lead, Tuttle 1988. The British Government was unhappy with Japan’s approach to the Falklands Islands. But, when Mrs Thatcher visited Japan in 1982, she decided not to be publicly critical of the Japanese Government because she wanted to develop a closer political relationship. The Nissan investment was also a priority. But she still talked tough about the trade imbalance. See Olive Checkland: Japanese Whisky, Scotch Blend: The Story of Masataka Taketsuru, His Scottish Wife and the Japanese Whisky Industry, Scottish Cultural Press, Edinburgh, 1998 Japanese companies have also become significant investors in Scottish distilleries. The large Tomatin distillery near Inverness was purchased in 1985 by Takara Shu¯zo¯ and Okura & Co. Acquisitions by Nikka and Suntory followed. As of 1988, before changes were made, tax rates per litre were (Yen): premium special grade whisky 4057 (typically), standard special grade whisky 2098, first grade whisky 1011, second grade whisky 296, sho¯chu¯ A 79, sho¯chu¯ B 51, other spirits 362. Scotch whisky fell into the two higher tax brackets, as did some Japanese whiskies. An interview with me on the subject was even the lead item on the NHK TV evening news. We even had a campaign tie in EC blue with whisky bottles. It was not only the saké brewers who had a good deal of nervousness. That is how I felt when I was asked to address the annual convention of the Japan Saké Brewers’ Association. But I seemed to get across the point that we were not attacking them and to my pleasant surprise I got a warm reception. As well as whisky and sho¯chu¯ there was also a different rate for other spirits such as gin, which was also lower than for whisky. While these latter beverages were also competitors for Scotch whisky and the ultimate aim was a single rate of tax on all spirits based on alcoholic content, the SWA was not so immediately concerned about them as gin, vodka and rum were not widely drunk in Japan. A rise in the price of sho¯chu¯ would adversely affect consumers while a reduction in the price of scotch and higher grade Japanese whisky would benefit them. But I do not recall Japanese officials and politicians saying much about consumer interests; their concern was for producers. This was typical of the time. The tax on Scotch whisky was to be reduced from Yen 2098 or more to Yen 1150 a litre (the latter now becoming the single rate for all whiskies). Sho¯chu¯ A was to rise from Yen 79 to Yen 137; and sho¯chu¯ B from Yen 51 to Yen 89.
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13
14
15
16
In a quick survey on a visit to Japan in February 2014 I found standard Scotch generally priced competitively with a modest premium over rival Japanese whiskies. The SWA is calling for legislation requiring lot codes on goods as in the EU; is seeking recognition of Scotch whisky as a geographical indication; and has concerns about Japanese additives regulations. While Scotch whisky has remained a premium product with a global reputation some Japanese whiskies are now getting international recognition, winning two out of the six main categories in the 2013 World Whiskies Awards. When I was again in Tokyo, as minister in the British embassy, from 1999 to 2003 I observed these trends. I had by then myself acquired a taste for Scotch single malts and found Tokyo a good place to find rare ones. At one stage I had a collection of sixty, which was a draw for some of the Japanese I entertained.
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Mountaineering in Japan: British Pioneers and the Pre-war Japanese Alpine Club HAMISH ION
Okuhotaka-dake (ᅏⓄ㜞ጪ, 3190 metres) and other peaks taken from Taisho-ike (ᄢᱜᳰ), Kamiko¯chi (㜞), 1 October 20131
INTRODUCTION
The famous Imperial Hotel at Kamiko¯chi (㜞Ꮲ࿖ࡎ࠹࡞) opened in 1933 and like Banff Springs Hotel or Chateau Lake Louise in the Canadian Rockies was designed to allow guests to marvel at the mountains from a base of comfort. The opening of the Imperial Hotel also demonstrated to the foreign tourist or visiting dignitary that the appeal of Japan was not restricted only to its temples, gardens, geisha and modern cities but also extended to the beauty of its mountains and alpine flora. British mountaineers had a significant influence on the development of climbing as a leisure sport in Japan and on Japanese climbers associated with the Japanese Alpine Club (ᣣᧄጊጪળ, 123
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Nihon Sangakkai). The shadow of Walter Weston (1860–1940)2 looms large over the first years of the Alpine Club and the early Japanese leaders in it owed much to him not only in Japan itself but also in being a conduit for them to the British Alpine Club and the Swiss Alps. The direct influence of British climbers declined after 1923 but indirect influence continued. The ideas of John Ruskin (1819–1900) about the mountains struck a responsive chord with the Japanese. Walter Weston ended a newspaper article on ‘The Ascent of Kaigane san’ in November 1902 with a quotation from Ruskin: ‘The mountains seem to have been built for the human race, as at once their schools and cathedral: full of treasures of illuminated manuscript for the scholar, kindly in simple lessons for the worker, quiet in pale cloisters for the thinker, glorious in holiness for the worshipper.’3 Weston made many references to Ruskin in his writings on Japan. He even called Shiga Shigetaka (1863–1927),4 the author of Nihon Fukeiron (ᣣᧄ㘑᥊⺰, Japanese Landscape) and the second honorary member of the Japanese Alpine Club after Weston, the ‘Japanese Ruskin’.5 Kojima Kyu¯ta (Usui, 1873–1948), one of the founders of the Japan Alpine Club, was greatly influenced by an appendix to Nihon Fukeiron which led him to climb Yarigatake in 19026 (only to find that Weston had already climbed it as early as 1894). In 1918 Weston lamented that the writings of Shiga and Kojima were not translated into English for ‘the suggestive and poetic descriptions of Shiga “Juko¯” and the fascinating and artistic writings on mountain art and mountain ascents by Kojima “Usui,” should be hidden from the enjoyment of the English-speaking mountain-brotherhood is a deprivation as yet unrealized, it is true, but only too real.’7 The love of nature and the mountains was something that all could share and transcended cultural barriers. THE SHADOW OF WESTON
More than any one else in the late nineteenth and early twentieth century through his four books, many articles and presentations, Weston internationalized the Japanese Alps by bringing them to the attention of the Western mountaineering world and the general reading public. Weston’s own crowning feat in scaling the Ho¯o¯zan obelisk (㡅ಪጊ, 2841 m) in the summer of 1904 is captured in Fukada Kyu¯ya’s bestselling Nihon Hyaku Meizan (100 Mountains of Japan).8 Undoubtedly, such a mention also helps to account for Weston’s enduring fame in Japan and the appeal of his writings in translation to a Japanese audience who were flattered that the Japanese mountains were compared favourably with those of Europe. Weston’s appreciation of Japan, the beauty of its alpine nature, and its mountain people resonated with the 124
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early members of the Nihon Sangakkai9 who took advantage of the burgeoning railway network to escape into the mountains from their urban jobs or school studies on the weekends and holidays. Weston’s friendship with Okano Kinjiro¯ (1874–1958) and Kojima Kyu¯ta not only influenced them in the formation of the Nihon Sangakkai, but also led to the translation of Weston’s books, of which Nihon Arupusu To¯zan to Tanken (Mountaineering and Exploration in the Japanese Alps) had an enormous impact on the mountaineering world of Japan.10 Although Weston was back in England at the time that the Nihon Sangakkai was formally created by seven Japanese friends in October 1905, Weston had had extensive conversations with Kojima, Okano, Takeda Hisayoshi (1883–1972) and others since 1903 about the formation of a Japanese Alpine Club based on the British Alpine Club model. Takeda pointed to the importance of one particular meeting that he, Kojima, Okano, and Takano Takazo¯ (1884–1964) had with Weston over a meal at the Oriental Palace Hotel in Yokohama in March 1905 prior to Weston’s return to England that coming May.11 Weston, once back in England, helped to introduce the Japanese Alpine Club to the leading figures of the British Alpine Club. Foreigners in Japan certainly welcomed the formation of the Nihon Sangakkai for within a year of its foundation there were eleven foreign members (not all of them English) of whom two Alfred E. Webb and W.T. Gray of St. Andrew’s Missionary Brotherhood were Anglican clergymen but the rest, apart from Louis Bridel and Henry L. Fardel who were university teachers, were businessmen in Yokohama, Tokyo and Kobe.12 Of the first eleven, two would be killed in the Great Kanto¯ Earthquake; Fardel and Rothwell C. Bowden of the Standard Oil Company died in Yokohama.13 Plenty of foreigners including Mrs Frances E. Weston, Mrs Emily S. Elwin, Miss N. M. Hall and Miss P. Bunscombe (the latter two women missionaries introduced by Kondo¯ Shigekichi (1883–1969) who had studied at Glasgow University and Takano Takazo¯) joined before 1923. In the twenty-two years between 1923 and 1945, the Nihon Sangakkai hyakunenshi points out that the period of militarism in Japan made the entry of foreigners into the Japanese Alpine Club rare.14 Only some thirteen new foreign members joined the Club between 1923 and 1941 of whom seven had British connections including C.H. Archer of the British Consulate in Tokyo and Herbert A. Macrae of the British embassy, C.R. Agar of the Yorkshire Insurance Company, and John Morris (1896–1980).15 In December 1942, two years after Weston’s death, the War did not prevent the Weston Relief from being put up at Kamiko¯chi, a place Weston had confidently predicted would become Japan’s Zermatt. Soon after the end of the War, on 14 June 1947 the first Weston Matsuri (⑂) was held in front of the Relief to mark the 125
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beginning of the climbing season in the Northern Japanese Alps, and two days later on 16 June the first Weston Memorial Lecture was given in Matsumoto.16 Weston’s writings, personal example, and the Japanese memory of him can be seen to transcend the bitterness of the war years and to link post-War Alpine Japan with the gentler and positive world of beginnings of Japanese mountaineering in the late Meiji and Taisho¯ eras. Weston represents the pinnacle of British influence on the development of Japanese climbing as a leisure sport. There could only be one Weston in the pantheon of climbing heroes and heroines in the history of the Nihon Sangakkai. He was not the first or the last Briton to influence Japanese climbing but the golden age of British mountaineering pioneers ended with the Great Kanto¯ Earthquake in 1923, although Walton17 was actively scrambling about the mountains in Japan and Taiwan into the early 1930s and its twilight perhaps continued until John Morris was evacuated from Japan in 1942. Valerie R. Hamilton has looked at the activities of British mountaineering pioneers before the foundation of the Nihon Sangakkai.18 The achievement of the early British pioneers is clearly seen in the first geological surveys, explorations, and travels of the interior of Japan including its mountains made by British officials like Sir Ernest Satow (1843–1929), and his friend and Royal Marine officer then in Japanese service, Albert George Sidney Hawes (1842–1897) or individual oyatoi like William Gowland19 (1842–1922), who is credited with giving the name Japanese Alps to the Japanese mountains,20 and was the first foreigner to climb Yarigatake (3,180 m) in 1877, John Milne21 (1850–1913), the mining engineer and seismologist, and Robert William Atkinson22 (1850–1929), who taught chemistry at the Kaisei Gakko in Tokyo. More than anything, it is the writings of the first British pioneers about the Japanese mountains that were important.23 Perhaps the most immediately influential of these, before Weston’s writings, were the guide books, which were not only useful to the peripatetic Westerner but also to urban Japanese in introducing the hinterland to them. The most important of these guidebooks is that associated with Satow and Hawes. This led to the ‘indispensable Murray’,24 which Basil Hall Chamberlain (1850–1935) and his best friend, William B. Mason (1853–1923) later edited and to which Weston began to contribute in the 1890s.25 If the guidebooks and other writings were an abiding legacy of the British interest in the Japanese Alps and mountaineering, one of the most important elements of the Nihon Sangakkai was its journal, Sangaku whose first issue appeared in April 1906. The journal carried a few English language articles including some by Weston, Murray Walton, T.H.R. Shaw of Butterfield and Swire, Shanghai, Oswald White of the British Consulate, Osaka and others associated with 126
MOUNTAINEERING IN JAPAN: BRITISH PIONEERS AND THE PRE-WAR
the Western climbing community in Kobe. After the First World War, H.E. Daunt, the self-styled ‘Bell Goat’, and leader of so-called Mountain Goats of Kobe, and editor of their journal Inaka, edited the English language supplement of Sangaku.26 Some of the Inaka climbing accounts were reprinted in Sangaku including those of J.G.S. Gausden, the self-styled ‘Flying Goat’, and the American, Otis Manchester Poole, the ‘Rocky Goat’. Walton and Daunt represent a second and younger generation of British climbers. Daunt knew Weston and re-climbed all the peaks in the Japanese Alps that Weston had earlier climbed and many more mountains including ones in Korea and Kamchatka. Daunt and the ‘Mountain Goats’ were clearly a very sporting and jolly group of people but they were serious about climbing and enjoying the alpine inaka, and they were pleased to be numbered among the members of the Nihon Sangakkai. The trouble was (and Weston and his fellow climbers were clearly aware of it) that the Japanese Alps were not as high as the peaks in Europe or even in the Canadian Rockies. Nevertheless, the challenge for climbers is not necessarily the height of the mountain but finding new and different routes up it. In March 1922 Maki Yu¯ko¯, Matsukata Saburo¯ and others from Keio27 and Gakushuin Universities climbing clubs made the first winter ascent of Yarigatake (3,180 m).28 This feat in itself showed that Japanese climbers were quickly advancing from leisurely climbs and hikes that characterized many of Weston’s early forays into much more challenging and technical climbing. Winter climbing with the added difficulties posed by cold, snow and increased darkness brought out the ‘samurai spirit’ among Japanese climbers, and set the Japanese apart from the early British pioneers in the Japanese Alps. This first winter ascent of Yarigatake also underlined the importance of University and school climbing clubs in the development of the sport in Japan.29 David A. Feldman has expertly described the dare devilish activities of Hokkaido¯ University Alpine Club in winter climbing in the mountains of Hokkaido¯ during the inter-war period.30 Winter climbing brought with it the combination of climbing and skiing,31 but also the other combinations of rock and snow climbing. As the example of Frances E. Weston who climbed with her husband in Japan after 1902 but also in Canada and the European Alps showed, mountaineering was not restricted to men. In the summer of 1915 the novelist Naito¯ Chiyoko (1893–1925) became the first Japanese woman in recent times to climb Yarigatake.32 By the 1920s the number of peaks in Japan, North and South America and Europe that had not been scaled were few, but Japanese climbers were already following in the toeholds of British and other Western mountaineers in those regions and would also become 127
BRITAIN & JAPAN: BIOGRAPHICAL PORTRAITS VOLUME IX
involved in the conquest of the high Himalayan summits before the opening of the Second World War. Yet the explosion of Japanese interest in mountaineering which followed the formation of the Japanese Alpine Club in 190533 does not detract from the contribution made by Weston and early British pioneers who helped open the Japanese Alps and drew Japanese attention to the world’s alpine playgrounds during the golden age for British pioneers before 1923. This came to an end with the dislocation caused by the Great Kanto¯ Earthquake and the departure in 1924 of Daunt from Kobe, which meant an end to the publishing of Inaka and an end to the English supplement to Sangaku. It is true that some keen British climbers remained in Japan among whom Walton was one of the most prominent but their direct influence on Japanese climbing was on the decline. Japanese mountaineering had already reached such a stage of development and growing technical sophistication that such influence was no longer needed. BEYOND JAPAN INTO THE EUROPEAN ALPS AND THE ROCKIES
Even as Gowland, Satow, Hawes and the others were beginning to explore the Japanese Alps, Japanese climbers were beginning to venture into the Swiss Alps. As early as 1887 Tanaka Akamaru (1869–1944) who was studying at the University of Geneva at the time climbed the Pizzo Centrale (2,999 m) mastiff from St. Gotthard Pass.34 Among those foreigners who were familiar with climbing in this region of Switzerland were Alfred E. Webb, an SPG missionary who replaced Weston as the missionary attached to St. Andrew’s Church, Yokohama in 1905, and Louis Bridel, a French climber who later taught at Tokyo Imperial University Law Faculty. Both were among the first foreign members of the Nihon Sangakkai. In August 1909 Endo¯ Sho¯tsugi became the first Japanese to climb over 4000 m when he ascended Mount Rainier (4392 m) in the northwest United States. In August 1910 Kaga Sho¯taro¯ became the first Japanese to climb over four thousand metres in the Alps when he climbed the Jungfrau (4158 m).35 In January 1914 Tsujimura Isuke (1887–1923) climbed the Jungfrau and Mönch in wintertime, and in August together with Kondo¯ Shigekichi climbed Schreckhorn (4078 m) in the Bernese Alps but they were hurt in an avalanche on the way down.36 Tsujimura kept a diary of his Swiss climbs which was published in Sangaku. In 1919 Kojima climbed Mount Shasta (4317 m) in northern California. The Japanese were not alone in enjoying climbing in the Bernese Oberland. In 1920 Sangaku published an article, which described a climbing holiday Walter and Frances Weston had taken in Oberland in August and September 128
MOUNTAINEERING IN JAPAN: BRITISH PIONEERS AND THE PRE-WAR
1911 a ‘region already known to the J.A.C. through the travels of Messrs. Kondo¯, Tsujimura, Kaga and other Japanese climbers’.37 The Westons climbed Schilthorn (2973 m) and the Gspaltenhorn (3436 m) among other mountains in Bern canton. Walter Weston had provided introductions to the British Alpine Club to many of the first Japanese climbing in the Swiss Alps. After the First World War this included Maki Yu¯ko¯ (Aritsune, 1894–1989), who was helped by Weston when he came to London in 1919.38 In 1920 Maki climbed the Wetterhorn and Mönch. In September 1921 he made the first ascent of the Eiger (3975 m) by the Mittellegigrat (northeast ridge). In 1924 Maki together with J. Percy Farrar (1857–1929), a former President of the British Alpine Club and a member of its Everest Committee and Frank Smythe (1900–1949), who later make his name as Himalaya climber, made a critical appraisal of the unclimbed north face of the Fiescherhorn identifying a line which was later used by a Swiss group in 1926. In 1926 Maki climbed the Matterhorn, which had first climbed by a Japanese in 1920. Maki was not only well connected in terms of knowing British mountaineers but also Japanese ones for he climbed with Prince Chichibu39 (1902–1953). Maki’s climbing was not restricted to the European Alps because he led an important expedition to Canada. In July 1925 a Keio¯-Gakushu¯in climbing team led by Maki under the patronage of Prince Chichibu reached the summit of Mt. Alberta (3,619 m),40 the last major peak in the Canadian Rockies not previously scaled. The Japanese left an ice axe on the summit, which was retrieved when the second ascent of the mountain was made by a Canadian team in 1948. As well as European Alps and the Rockies, Japanese climbers were interested in climbing in Taiwan and Korea. In November 1926 the Taiwan Alpine Club was formed, and the high mountains on the Pacific side of the island, long neglected because of security concerns with aboriginal unrest, attracting climbers. In 1934 the Korean mountain Hakuto¯san (Paektusan, ⊕㗡ጊ, 2744 m) was ascended in winter. In November 1936 a Rikkyo¯ University team made the first ascent of Nanda Kot (6867 m) in the Himalayas.41 Interest in the Himalayas was sparked when John Morris with the help of the Japanese Foreign Office and Yoshida Shigeru came out in 1938 to teach English at Keio¯ Gijuku and at Dai Ichi Ko¯to Gakko¯. Morris had been a member of the 1922 and 1936 British Everest Expeditions involved in transport and logistics.42 In Japan he gave inspiring lectures on his Himalayan experiences according to Nakamura Junkazu, one of the contributors to the Nihon Sangakkai hyakunenshi who heard him speak on the Himalayas when he was a high school student.43 129
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MANASLU AND THE HIMALAYAS
It was only after the Second World War and the end of the Allied Occupation of Japan that Japanese climbers came back to the Himalayas. In 1953 the Academic Alpine Club of Kyoto took on the challenge of Annapurna IV (7525 m). Just as British efforts in the Himalayas concentrated on Everest, Japanese efforts came to be concentrated on Manaslu (8125 m). As Fukuta Kyu¯ya points out ‘conquest of one of the Himalaya’s eight-thousanders was more than just a mountain-climbing feat that ranked with any in the world; it gave impetus to a series of Japanese mountaineering expeditions around the world that gradually increased in number and scope’.44 The first two Japanese expeditions to Manaslu in 1952 and 1953 failed to achieve success, but in 1956 a Japanese Alpine Club team led by Maki Yuko¯ reached the summit. This success gave Japanese climbers the confidence to take on all the great mountaineering challenges in the Himalayas and in other parts of the world in Peruvian and Bolivian Andes; in Alaska and New Zealand, and Oceania. The conquest of Manaslu demonstrated decisively that Japan produced world-class climbers equal to the best from any country. Before and after the 1930s, Matsukata Saburo¯ (1899–1973) who had been Vice-President of the Nihon Sangakkai during the early 1930s and became President in 1946 had been influenced by the example of the British Alpine Club, and after the War the British example continued to influence Matsukata’s policy for the Japanese Club.45 His successors as President, Takeda Hisayoshi, Ernest Satow’s botanist son and founder member of the Japanese Alpine Club,46 and Maki Yu¯ko¯, also tried to continue on Matsukata’s policy. The problem was that ‘Club Life’ had disappeared during the War, and was difficult to revive. The decline of British influence on Japanese mountain climbing can be illustrated by the fact in the first sixty years since the War of the seventy foreign members of the Japan Alpine Club only four have been British, while there have been twenty-five Americans, sixteen Koreans, five Taiwanese. Many of those foreigners who became members were important as leaders in climbing expeditions in the Himalayas and in Korea.47 Among the two post-War Italian members was Fosco Maraini (1912–2004), the photographer, writer and, like John Morris, a Himalaya climber who like Weston saw the mountains as part of Japan’s spirit. It is this appreciation and the emphasis on the importance of the role of nature in the life of Japan that remains one of the lasting legacies of contribution of the early British mountaineering pioneers. Be it watching the sunrise from the summit of Helvellyn (950 m) or the sunset over the Northern Alps at Kamiko¯chi, the mountains bring out qualities that transcend cultural and political differences between peoples and that is, perhaps, why Weston’s Relief at Kamiko¯chi has an understanding smile on its face. 130
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ENDNOTES 1
2
3
4
5
6
7 8
9
On 16 August 1918 W.H. Elwin, a Church Missionary Society (CMS) missionary working among the Chinese students in Tokyo, and W.H. Murray Walton (1890–1980), a CMS missionary specializing in newspaper evangelism, climbed from the peak of Yarigatake (᭶ࡩጪ, 3,180 m) to the Hotaka peaks in ten hours and twenty five minutes. See W.H. Elwin, letter 20 August 1918, in Sangaku (ጊጪ, Mountain): The Journal of the Japan Alpine Club (English Supplement), vol. XIII 1918 no. 1, p. 19. See also W.H. Elwin, ‘Peaks and Ridge Climbing in the Japanese Alps,’ in Sangaku ,Taisho¯ 7: 11 (1919), pp. 7–9; see also in the same issue, W.H.M. Walton, ‘From Yarigatake to Hodaka,’ pp. 9–12. Walter Weston was a Cambridge graduate and first proved his ability as an Alpine climber in the Swiss Alps, scaling the Matterhorn and other peaks between 1886 and 1887. He was in Japan between 1888 and 1895 as a Church Missionary Society (CMS) clerical missionary in Japan first at Kumamoto then Kobe, where his chief work was catering to the spiritual needs of the British community. He first climbed in the central Honshu¯ mountains in the summer of 1891. He was again in Japan between 1902 and 1905 as the missionary priest at St. Andrew’s Church, Yokohama (ᮮᵿ⡛ࠕࡦ࠺ᢎળ). He returned to Japan for a third time in 1911, serving as chaplain to the English congregation at Christ Church, Yokohama and finally leaving Japan in 1915. For a short study of Weston, see A.H. Ion, ‘Mountain High and Valley Low: Walter Weston (1861–1940) and Japan,’ in Sir Hugh Cortazzi and Gordon Daniels, eds., Britain and Japan 1859–1991: Themes and Personalities (London and New York: Routledge, 1991), pp. 94–106. See also Hamish Ion, ‘In The Mountain Greenery: Early Western Climbers in the Japanese Alps and Beyond,’ Japan Society Proceedings 2013, forthcoming. Walter Weston, ‘The Ascent of Kaigane San,’ The Japan Weekly Mail, 1 November 1902. For a study of Shiga Shigetaka, see Masako Gavin, ‘The Forgotten Enlightener Shiga Shigetaka(1863–1927): Educating for a New Japan,’ http://epublications.bond,.edu.au/hss_pubs/235. It is of interest that Shiga wrote the forward to Walter Weston, The Playground of the Far East (London: John Murray, 1918), pp. ix-x. Walter Weston, A Wayfarer in Unfamiliar Japan (London: Metheun &Co., 1925), p. 59. See also Miyashita Keizo¯, Nihon Arupusu: Mitate no Bunkashi (The Japanese Alps: The Opinion of Literary History) (Tokyo: Misuzu Shobo, 1997), pp. 15–16, pp. 20–25. Ibid., p. 17. It is said that Shiga’s description of Yarigatake that so impressed Kojima owed much to a similar description in Satow and Hawes, Handbook for Travellers in Central & Northern Japan. Weston, Playground of the Far East, p. 320. Fukada Kyu¯ya, Nihon Hyaku Meizan (100 Mountains of Japan) (Tokyo: Shincho¯sha, 2004 edition), pp. 412–414. Okamura Yukiko has suggested four reasons why Weston’s memory has not faded in Japan. First, Weston was the pioneer in the mountaineering and exploration of the entire Japanese Alps. Second, he wrote the first 131
BRITAIN & JAPAN: BIOGRAPHICAL PORTRAITS VOLUME IX
10
11
12
13
14 15
16 17
18
19
20
books in The Japanese Alps and Playground of the Far East that introduced the Japanese Alps to the world. Third, he introduced mountaineering as a sport into Japan. Fourth and finally, Weston had a special affinity with Japanese people. There were many foreigners who introduced things Japanese to the outside world, but Okamura thought that there were not many foreigners like Weston who truly liked Japan and Japanese people from beginning to end of his dealings with Japan. See Okamura Yukiko, ‘Yakusha atogaki [Translator’s Afterword]’ in Wesuton, Nihon Arupusu: Tosan to tanken (Mountaineering and Exploration in the Japanese Alps), (Okamura Yukiko, trans,) (Tokyo: Heibonsha, 1997 edition) pp. 362–367, pp. 362–363. Mizuno Tsutomu, ‘Kaisetsu: Nihon kindai to¯zan no ishizue to natta yama koten’ (Commentary: The classic of the mountains which became the cornerstone of modern Japanese mountaineering) in Wesuton, Nihon Arupusu: Tosan to tanken, pp. 373–381, p. 374. Takeda Hisayoshi, ‘Nihon Sangakkai seiritsu zengo¯ (Before and After the Establishment of the Japanese Alpine Club)’ Sangaku, volume LXI, 1966, pp. 5–14, pp. 10–11. For a list of foreign members, their work affiliations, etc., see Nihon Sangakkai Hyakunenshi Hensan Iinkai Hen, Nihon Sangakkai hyakunenshi (Centennial History of the Japanese Alpine Club) (Tokyo: Nihon Sangakkai, 2007), 2 volumes, volume one, pp. 161–166. For the importance of the Great Kanto¯ Earthquake and names of foreign Japanese Alpine Club members killed, see ibid., volume one, p. 167. Ibid., volume one, p. 167. Ibid., volume one, pp. 163–164. An account of John Morris in Japan (together with George Orwell and the BBC) by Neil Pedlar is contained in Britain and Japan: Biographical Portraits, Volume III, ed. J.E. Hoare, Japan Library, 1999. Ibid., volume two, pp. A 28, A 30. Canon Murray Walton was in Japan from 1916 until 1932. See W.H. Murray Walton, Scrambles in Japan and Formosa (London: Edward Arnold, 1934). The book is dedicated to his children of whom one, Kevin Walton (1918–2009) used the climbing skills learnt in Japan to rescue a colleague in Antarctica in 1946 and received the Albert Medal as a result. Valerie R. Hamilton, ‘Nihon Sangakkai seiritsu zenshi: Gaorando, Shiga Shigetaka, Wesuton, Kojima Kyu¯ta,’ (Before the Formation of the Japanese Alpine Club: Gowland, Shiga Shigetaka, Weston, Kojima Kyu¯ta) in Nihon Sangakkai hyakunenshi, volume two, pp. 55–76. For a useful study of early British writers on the Japanese mountains, see Sho¯da Motoo, ‘Ijintachi no Nihon Arupusu’ (The Japanese Alps of Foreigners), Sansho no Kenkyu¯, 35, 1990. A biographical portrait of William Gowland by Simon Kaner is contained in Britain and Japan: Biographical Portraits, Volume Vi, ed. Hugh Cortazzi, Global Oriental, 2007. In the 1881 Handbook for Travellers in Central & Northern Japan edited by Satow and Hawes, William Gowland who worked for the Imperial Mint in Osaka wrote a short account of some of the higher peaks of the Hida-Shinshu range and suggested that they ‘might perhaps be termed 132
MOUNTAINEERING IN JAPAN: BRITISH PIONEERS AND THE PRE-WAR
21
22 23
24 25
26
27
28 29
30
31 32
the Japanese Alps’. See Walter Weston, ‘Of the Origin of the Term The Japanese Alps,’ Sangaku: The Journal of the Japan Alpine Club: English Supplement, volume XIII, 1919, no. 2, pp.17–18, p. 17. When Weston came out to Japan for the second time in 1902 and began to explore with his wife, Frances Weston, the mountains of Shinshu and Koshu, he gave them the name ‘The Southern Japanese Alps’ to distinguish them from the ranges of Hida-Shinshu, which he began to call the ‘Northern Japanese Alps.’ See John Milne, Father of Modern Seismology by Herbert-Gustar and O.A. Nott, Paul Norbury Publications, Tenterden 1986 See separate biographical portrait in this volume by Y. Kikuchi. Among the earliest to go into some detail about the Japanese mountains is William Gray Dixon, The Land of the Morning: An Account of Japan and its people based on a Four years’ Residence in that Country; Including Travels into the Remotest Parts of the Interior (Edinburgh: James Gemmell, 1882), especially Chapter 14. Dixon in the summer of 1879 took a trip with R.W. Atkinson and a Japanese colleague, Nakazawa, to explore and climb Yatsuga-take (ࠤጪ, 2899 meters) Haku-san (⊕ጊ, 2677 meters) and Tateyama (┙ጊ, 3015 m). See Weston, ‘The Ascent of Kaigane San.’ Ernest Mason Satow and Lieutenant A. G. S. Hawes, Handbook for Trav¯ zaka, and ellers in Central & Northern Japan: Being a Guide to To¯ kio, O Other Cities: The Most Interesting Parts of the Main Island between Ko¯be and Awomori with Ascents of the Principal Mountains and Descriptions of Temples, Historical Notes and Legends (Yokohama: Kelly & Co., 1881); a second expanded edition was produced in 1884, the third edition came out in 1891 as one of the Murray handbook for travellers series with a new editor, Basil Hall Chamberlain, A Handbook for Travellers in Japan (London: John Murray, 1891) and reached its ninth edition in 1913. Daunt, an Anglo-Australian who worked for the Vacuum Oil Company in Kobe, lived in Japan, 1894–1896, 1904–1909, 1910–1924. He was an enthusiastic golfer and in the off-season a keen climber. Inaka or Reminiscences of Rokkosan and Other Rocks. Collected and compiled by the Bell Goat Member of the Alpine Club, Member of the Japan Alpine Club, Member of the Alpine Club of Canada, Member of the Ancient Order of Mountain Goats, etc. etc. etc. was published in Kobe between 1915 and 1924, 18 issues in all. Inaka carried accounts by Daunt and his Kobe friends of their ‘scalps’, successful climbs and even some articles of general interest. Keio¯ Gijuku Alpine Club was founded in 1915 with Maki as one of its founding members, see Nihon Sangakkai hyakunenshi, volume one, p. 95. Ibid., volume two, A 18. For the development of university and school mountaineering clubs, see ibid., volume two, pp. 103–124. David A. Feldman, ‘Mounting Modernization: Itakura Katsunobu, the Hokkaido¯ University Alpine Club and Mountaineering in Pre-War Hokkaido¯,’ The Asia Pacific Journal, 42, (2009), 1–09. Nihon Sangakkai hyakunenshi, volume one, pp. 94–95. Ibid, volume two, A 16. 133
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33
34 35 36 37
38 39
40 41
42
43 44 45 46
47
While seven had founded the Nihon Sangakkai, by the end of 1906 it had 390 members, and by 1926 a 1000, and in 1941 2000. In 2004 it had 14,000 members. Nihon Sangakkai hyakunenshi, volume one, p. 158. For both Endo¯ and Kaga’s climbs see ibid., volume two, A 14. Ibid. volume two, A 16. Walter Weston, ‘In the Playground of Europe’, Sangaku, volume XV, 1920, no. 1, pp. 1–12, p.1. Ibid., volume one, p. 306. A biographical portrait of Prince and Princess Chichibu by Dorothy Britton is contained in Britain and Japan: Biographical Portraits, Volume V, Global Oriental, 2004. Nihon Sangakkai hyakunenshi, volume two, A 20. Fukata (Fukada) Kyu¯ta, ‘After Manaslu: Postwar Japanese Mountaineering Expeditions, Sangaku, volume LXI, 1966, pp. 1–11, p. 1. See Wade Davis, Into the Silence: The Great War, Mallory, and the Conquest of Everest (Toronto: Vintage Canada Edition, 2012). Nihon Sangakkai hyakunenshi, volume one, p. 168. Fukata, ‘After Manaslu,’ p.1. Nihon Sangakkai hyakunenshi, volume one, p. 121. Ibid., volume one, p. 154. Takeda shared with his father a love of climbing and flora. Ibid., volume 1, pp. 170–171.
134
12
Cricket in Late Edo and Meiji Japan MIKE GALBRAITH
INTRODUCTION
A cricket match, played in 1863 in ‘curious circumstances’1 in Yokohama is the first documented game of cricket in Japan. It is
Courtesy of Marylebone Cricket Club (MCC), London Photo 1: Yokohama team in Japan’s first ever cricket match in1863 135
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also the first recorded game in Japan involving a major western team sport. The 1863 cricket match was played between a Yokohama team captained by a Scotsman, James Campbell Fraser, and a Royal Navy XI from the warships in the harbour including the flagship HMS Euryalus. The 16 April 1908 issue of the magazine Cricket2 has a lengthy account of the game. According to the article3 ‘a filled-in swamp at the back, but inside the settlement, furnished a mud cricket ground’. The article has lots of background but no scorecard and no information about the actual game except that the Navy gave Yokohama ‘a jolly good licking’.4 Photographs of the two 1863 teams show that there was no shortage of cricket bats. Most of the bats were probably supplied by the cricket-loving naval officers, who would have found it much easier to bring their cricket equipment with them to the Far East than any businessman or traveller. No date is given but Fraser refers to ‘a certain day’, which may well have been 25 June 1863. This was the date proclaimed in an order in the name of the shogun for the killing of foreigners who had not left the country before then. The expression ‘curious circumstances’ refers to the fact that marines guarded the ground and that the players carried guns.5 Fraser wrote that ‘they played with their revolvers on, ready for any emergency. It was a most novel sensation for the wicket keeper, as he carried his revolver backwards and forwards from wicket to wicket and placed it behind the stumps. Fortunately, no attack took place either on that day or afterwards.’ Tension was very high in Yokohama in 1863 and had been so since the murder of Charles Lenox Richardson a few miles outside of Yokohama while riding with friends in September 1862. The British government had demanded compensation for the attack on its citizens both from the Shogun and from the daimyo of the Satsuma fief whose samurai was responsible for the attack. Several warships had gathered in Yokohama to back up the demands with force if necessary but the shogun’s officials kept prevaricating while Satsuma flatly dismissed the demands. The Yokohama team included, in addition to Fraser, W.H. Smith – later well known as Public Spirited Smith – and Charles Rickerby, Yokohama’s first bank manager and afterwards a writer, editor and owner of newspapers. Cricketing officers from RN ships visiting Yokohama played a key role in Yokohama cricket life throughout the settlement’s first decades as a Treaty Port. Other cricket players came from the British garrison which was stationed in Yokohama between 1864 and 1874 and which numbered at one time over one thousand officers and men. They were divided between two camps on the Bluff 136
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above Yokohama. After the troops finally left in 1874, visiting ships provided teams or players to local teams. They were often supported by ships’ bands which greatly contributed to making cricket matches major social events. The first reference to cricket being played in Japan after 1863 is a newspaper report dated 12 November 1864, which starts: ‘The following matches have been played on the “Turf”, between the Camps of the XX and the Royal Marines.’ This playing space was also called the Valley. The first of the two matches was between ‘The officers of H.B.M.’s Fleet and the Garrison’ with the latter winning fairly comfortably while the second was between the ‘Garrison’ and the ‘Civilians’. The XXth regiment’s bowlers dispatched the fleet’s batsmen twice for a total just 62 runs. The army batsmen scored 116 in their first innings to win by 54 runs without having to bat again. The navy team included officers from HMS Euryalus and HMS Leopard (at least one had also played in the first match in 1863). The core of the ‘Garrison’ team came from the 2nd battalion of the XXth regiment. The main body had arrived 14 July 1864 to support the vanguard that landed in January. It included a number of good cricketers and their team proved to be difficult to beat. Playing under the name of the XXth or the ‘Garrison’ (when their number included RM (Royal Marines) and/or players from other units like the RE and RA), they seem to have usually beaten both the Royal Navy team and the civilian team. The XXth’s outstanding all rounder players were Captains John Aldridge, Charles Chatfield, and Charles Rochefort, and Lieut. Thomas Lakin. In the aforementioned game Lakin took five wickets in the first innings and Aldridge seven in the second innings while Rochefort scored the most runs. JAMES PENDER MOLLISON
The XXth left Japan in 1866 and were replaced by the IXth, which was in turn replaced by the Xth regiment in 1868. The Xth’s stay in Japan coincided with the earliest days of the Yokohama Cricket Club (YCC) which was established in mid-1868 with James Pender Mollison (1844–1931) being the main founder and driving force. Mollison6 was from the Glasgow area and he had played for the Caledonian Cricket Club before coming out to the Hong Kong in 1864. Within a short time he was working in Shanghai as a tea taster and played three seasons of cricket there with the highlight being Shanghai’s victory in the second ‘Interport’ match against Hong Kong in May 1867. In his article ‘Interesting Reminiscences’ (published in 1909), Mollison writes about cricket in Japan before his arrival: ‘My first question was, “What do you do in the way of cricket?” “Practically 137
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nothing,” was the reply, “because there was no ground.” Occasional matches had been played I was told, as far back as 1864, on the camp parade-ground..,’ he continued. ‘I have some recollections, too, of hearing that Hope’s Inlet was more than once made use of for a game, while it is certain that matches were played on what was known as the Swamp … with only a hardened footpath as the wicket pitch.’ In a speech given in 1909, Mollison said that one of his first thoughts on arriving in Yokohama to live was ‘the making of a cricket ground and the formation of a cricket club’. The young Mollison was determined to get the rights to a piece of land, turf it and try to create a real cricket ground to match those in Shanghai and Hong Kong. FOUNDING OF THE YOKOHAMA CRICKET CLUB
The meeting, which established the Yokohama Cricket Club (YCC), is said to have been held in Mollison’s dining room presumably at No. 48 Yokohama. Six people including Mollison are recorded as being present: E.D. Murray, a Scot, became the treasurer. The only Englishman present was Ernest Price, a tea taster at Walsh & Hall, who was made the secretary. The other three were Everett Frazier, a successful American businessman of Scottish descent, James Henry Scott from the famous shipbuilding family of John Scott & Co. based at Greenock near Glasgow and working for Butterfield & Swire and George Hamilton, also from near Glasgow, who worked with Mollison in J.C. Fraser & Co. Price proved to be Mollison’s ‘enthusiastic coadjutor’. ‘Together we obtained permission from the prefectural government (Kencho¯) to clear and turf some 60 yards square somewhere near 265, on the middle of what was known as the New Swamp,’ wrote Mollison. This ground was called the ‘Swamp Ground’. Two things that stand out about the people at the founding meeting are the strong Scottish, indeed Glasgow, connections, and the fact that they had nearly all lived or were living in Shanghai. It seems odd that Mollison invited none of the players from Yokohama’s 1863 team like Charles Rickerby, the banker turned publisher and writer, or W.H. Smith, to join that foundation meeting. Perhaps this accounts for the absence of any report about the founding of the cricket club. The first probable reference in the local papers to the YCC was a short article in October 1868 that ‘a cricket match between a local club and the officers of the garrison resulted in a draw, a fall of rain preventing completion of the match’. All the equipment for cricket matches was stored at, and had to be collected from, No. 48. After they finished playing, they carried everything back to No. 48 and then apparently drank ‘copious jugs of claret’. The games were usually two innings affairs lasting as long as two or more days and the matches were played on weekdays. ‘To begin 138
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with, we had no telegrams to worry us and only two mails a month,’ Mollison wrote around forty years later. In July 1869 HMS Rodney and HMS Ocean played two cricket matches during their stay in Yokohama. The first was between the gunroom officers of these two ships and HMS Ocean won by six wickets after two innings. Around two weeks later a remarkable cricket match was played between a naval eleven and the shore team, which included Mollison but relied heavily on the cricketing talent of the Xth regiment, which had just replaced the XXth regiment. The match ended up as a tie with the former team scoring 89 and 126 and the latter 127 and 88. The Japan Times commented that the shore eleven ‘ought to have won and would have done so had not their eagerness to secure the victory caused the last two players to attempt an almost impossible run’. The two last batsmen were run out. In September 1869 a Royal Navy squadron with Captain H.R.H. the Duke of Edinburgh7 – Queen Victoria’s second eldest son Alfred – serving on HMS Galatea visited Yokohama. The YCC played the Army and Navy with the core of the latter team being the cricketers from the Xth regiment. The YCC scored 110 in its first innings in reply to the opposition’s 155 and was 33 for 4 in the second innings chasing 195 to win when the match was declared over. In October 1869 HMS Ocean moved to Kobe, which had been opened to foreigners at the beginning of that year. While there the ship played a key role in the start of cricket in that port playing three matches and proving too good in the end for the Kobe team. Days after winning the first match, enthusiastic Kobe cricketers, including Arthur Hesketh Groom8 who was captain, rushed to found the Kobe Cricket Club but interest waned after they were well beaten in the last two games and failed to find a long-term ground. ‘We had some good cricket up to 1870–1871, chiefly against the officers of the Xth Regiment who were a keen cricketing lot,’ wrote Mollison. Detailed match reports survive relating to two games played between the YCC and the Xth in 1871 with both sides winning one game. Scoring runs does not seem to have been easy and bowlers bowled a lot of wides. After 13 overs of the first innings of the first game, the YCC had managed to score only sixteen runs and of those 10 were from wides and at least one a leg bye! Mollison9 appears to have been a good opening bowler taking many wickets. However, he did bowl a lot of wides although not as many as some of the Xth’s bowlers. In around 1872 the authorities decided to raise the level of the ‘Swamp Ground’ to develop the land and they asked the club to remove their turf. Fortunately, at about the same time the large park (now called Yokohama Ko¯en) was being laid out by Richard Henry Brunton,10 and the YCC managed to get permission to lay out a 139
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handsome 120 square metre cricket ground in the very centre of the park and to surround it by a fence. The Royal Marines, having been strengthened on the departure of the Xth regiment, had a good cricket team in the period up to their departure in 1874. The first match of the 1873 season was the Royal Marines vs The Settlement; the latter’s batsmen struggled against the good bowling and fielding of the Marines. In May 1873 HMS Iron Duke visited Yokohama and its cricketers participated in a match between the YCC and an Iron Duke and ‘Garrison Eleven’ on the new YCC ground. The newspaper report on a game in November, which also involved the officers of HMS Iron Duke, conveys the atmosphere at a typical game: At 10 o’clock this morning (11th last), the weather was so unpropitious that it almost seemed as though the return match – the second of the season – United Services vs. Settlement, would lapse for the day. Shortly after, however, the rain cleared off, and at 11.40 a.m. a start was made. The ground was in fair order, although very heavy, as might have been expected. There was but a small attendance of spectators, and at the commencement, no ladies. As the day wore on, however, the sky looked more promising, the marquee, which had been erected for their accommodation, was availed of by a few of the fair sex. The Band of the Iron Duke was not present until 5 o’clock.
A single storey clubhouse was built in 1875 and the club hired a Mr C. Yoshiwara, who was to work for the club for forty years, as the groundsman and manager. Until 1876 the YCC was simply managed by the honorary secretary with annual general meetings (AGM) held in the Grand Hotel each March. In the AGM for 1876 it was agreed that the club should henceforth be managed by a committee of five and the rules were altered to permit non-resident naval and military officers and visitors to be eligible to become honorary members Not long after this, annual awards started to be made at the AGM for those with the best bowling and batting averages. Most cricket matches consisted of the same YCC members divided into two teams in a variety of ways but the biggest games were against visiting Royal Navy ships and squadrons,11 and Tokyo plus visitors.12 An attempt to establish an independent cricket club in Tokyo in 1884 failed mainly due to the inability to find a ground. FROM YCC TO YC&AC
With the football, baseball and athletics clubs paying annual dues to use the cricket club’s facilities and members having to pay subscriptions 140
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to each club if they wanted to do all sports, it was inevitable that there should be a call to have a single club under one management charging a single subscription fee. In the 1883 season it was only possible to arrange five cricket matches suggesting that cricket was losing its popularity. The Yokohama Cricket & Athletic Club was created at a Special General Meeting of the Yokohama Cricket Club called on 7 April 1884 by the football club on an initiative led by Edgar Abbott. The incentive for the members to agree to the amalgamation was the promise of $310 in donations, which would be used to enlarge the ground and improve the pavilion. At the end of the meeting the Consular Court Judge Nicolas Hannen13 was elected president and a committee of ten was formed including Abbott who was the captain of cricket. YOKOHAMA-KOBE MATCHES
The first Interport14 cricket match took place in Kobe on 13–14 November 1884 was not a serious affair. A.H. Groom, who captained Kobe in at least one of their first ever matches, was now captain of the YC&AC team which had only five regular members – Groom, Duff, Murray, Griffiths and Kenny – and four who had barely seen a cricket bat. In the first match Kobe batted first and A.W. Gillingham was bowled by the first ball. One other batsman in each side was bowled first ball in both innings, but Kobe won by 7 wickets and won the second match by 77 runs. Finding eleven cricketers ready to play ‘away’ for several days was difficult and it wasn’t until 1888 that the next ‘Interport’ could be arranged – in Kobe. This time the YC&AC sent a full team including Mollison and Abbott and won both matches. The next year, again in Kobe, the KCC won the first match by a single run and the second by 49 runs.
Courtesy of National Diet Library, Japan Photo 2: Kobe batting in 1884 cricket ‘Interport’ with YC&AC players wearing heavy sweaters with matching peaked Pierrot hats due to the cold 141
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Courtesy of National Diet Library, Japan Photo 3: YC&AC ground and new pavilion decorated for ‘Interport’ Week in 1903
The Kobe Cricket Festival in 1893 included another ‘Interport’ match, which the YC&AC won by an innings and 124 runs, but this was only one element in the festival of which the main feature was participation of the Shanghai Cricket Club. The first ever international cricket match on Japanese soil then took place – Japan vs China. The result was declared a draw with Japan scoring 190 and 45 for 1 wicket and China 148. Capt. Dumbelton (76 not out) and C.M. Firth (26) were the only China batsmen to reach double figures and save the reputation of the team. In the final match, Kobe beat Shanghai by an innings and 7 runs. In the evenings two concerts and a dance were held making the festival a key social event rather than just a sporting occasion. A new two-storey pavilion was built and opened in spring 1899 but it was destroyed by fire on 14 February 1901. It was rebuilt and declared open at the annual meeting on 2 April 1902. The cricket festival in 1909, during which the 23rd cricket ‘Interport’ was celebrated, was probably the high-water mark of the club. The club’s pavilion and ground were decorated with flags and banners. The YC&AC team had only one player who had played in the first ‘Interport’ – the stalwart wicket keeper Charles Murray Duff – while the Kobe team fielded two players whose fathers played in the 1884 game. The YC&AC, the underdogs, batted first in 1909 and were shattered by the bowling of H.R. Nichols who became the first ‘Interport’ player to take 10 wickets in an innings. Kobe’s first innings started out well but then fell to pieces and they were all out for 97, only 12 more than the YC&AC. YC&AC didn’t fare much better in the second innings and reached 73 for 8 at the end of play on the first day. There was a final turn in fortune on the second day and, in the end the YC&AC was narrowly victorious by just 6 runs. The YC&AC had one of the finest cricket grounds in the East, but the YC&AC was facing the probability of imminent extinction. 142
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As the YC&AC cricketers played their matches, the world around them was changing. Two key developments were the end of extraterritoriality in Japan in 1899 and the growth in Yokohama’s population from around 30,000 in the mid-1870s to around 400,000 in 1909. More and more Japanese people were playing and watching sports, especially baseball, and joining sports clubs. J.P. Mollison and his colleagues believed that they had been granted the rights to use the cricket ground in perpetuity and didn’t pay much heed to the warning signs, such as the idea mooted in 1907 by the governor of Kanagawa prefecture, Sufu Ko¯hei, that the land should be turned into a public garden. Even when Sufu wrote to the club stating that the ten-year lease would not be renewed when it expired on 28 July 1909, Mollison thought the British government would sort things out for them. A protest15 against the proposal by the governor was delivered five days before the deadline, but had no effect.16 There was a growing feeling amongst both Japanese municipal officials and the Japanese public that the governor’s plan to spend over 20,000 yen to turn the beautiful well-kept cricket ground into a landscaped garden and to spend another 20,000 yen to create a new sports ground in another part of the same park was pointless, especially when the local government was short of funds. Club officials called for help from the British ambassador, Sir Claude MacDonald, who then visited Governor Sufu. The governor, perhaps feeling the heat a little, put forward the idea of creating a new sports field in a corner of Yokohama Park, which could be used upon request by Japanese and also foreigners, provided that the latter withdraw their protest. An extraordinary general meeting of some 200 club members was held on 1 November 1909 in the cricket pavilion with club president Dr Edwin Wheeler presiding. Wheeler read a letter from Sir Claude MacDonald in which the ambassador advised that the protest should be withdrawn.17 Mollison made a spirited speech emphasizing the heritage bequeathed to them by the early pioneers of the community. He said that ‘it was the bounden duty of every young man in the place to spare every effort to preserve it’. H.V. Henson in response argued that the club’s position on the lease was untenable and that the protest ‘would serve no useful purpose, but would cause considerable ill-feeling’. He urged that the protest be withdrawn. On a show of hands, 30 voted in favour of withdrawing the protest and 67 against, with the rest abstaining. A rising tide was, however, running against Mollison’s position. At a second extraordinary general meeting held on 22 November the decision of the earlier meeting was overturned by 104 votes to 48 despite an emotional last-ditch appeal by Mollison.18 143
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YC&AC IN LIMBO
After numerous meetings the municipal assembly finally adopted governor Sufu’s plan and the cricket ground was opened to the general public. While the club continued to use the old ground it had to apply for permission to do so on each occasion. The club had lost all its assets and its morale, prestige and membership were under threat.19 The consensus within the club was that it had to find a new ground for its exclusive use. The municipal government then agreed on a plan for the completion by the autumn of 1911 of a sports ground in the southern corner of Yokohama Park, but there were doubts about whether the area was adequate for use as a cricket ground. The YC&AC would still have to make applications every time it wanted to use the new ground, although fortunately the municipal authority decided against charging every time it was used. The first cricket match on the new recreation ground was played against ‘the Fleet’ on 10 October 1911. The Japan Weekly Mail described it as ‘the first indulgence in the sport which the local club has had for nearly two years’. On 22 and 23 October the final cricket ‘Interport’ match of the Meiji period was played there. Kobe batted first and managed only 89 runs. In its first inning Yokohama scored 139. Then F.S.G. Piggott20 took 6 wickets as he demolished Kobe in their second innings for just 35 leaving the YC&AC victors by an innings and 12 runs. The event21 was followed by the usual grand dinner at the Grand Hotel. In total, twenty-four ‘Interports’ were played between Yokohama and Kobe during the Meiji period with the YC&AC winning fifteen, the KCC seven and the other two matches being draws. In 1912 a suitable piece of land was found in Yaguchidai and Sigmund Isaacs, who was elected president at AGM held in April 1912, moved quickly to raise 65,000 yen in funds through donations, noninterest bearing debentures and a loan from the Hong Kong Shanghai Bank. At an Extraordinary General Meeting on 26 June the club was dissolved and a new legal entity, recognized under Japanese law, was created with a modified name – the ‘Cricket’ in the old name was changed to ‘Country’. The new YC&AC was registered on 4 July and the purchase and registration of the new ground was completed on 12 July. The new grounds were officially opened on 6 June 1914. CRICKET PLAYED BY JAPANESE
There is evidence of cricket being introduced to Japanese students by their foreign teachers during the 1870s but interest doesn’t appear to have lasted long. Physical exercise was compulsory for around one hour a day in several colleges but cricket doesn’t lend itself to such short sessions. The Imperial College of Engineering had what 144
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was called a ‘cricket ground’ in Toranomon.22 When Kaisei Gakko¯, which also became part of present University of Tokyo was first opened around 1877, cricket and baseball were both played but not for long.23 In the YCC’s accounts for 1878, there is a record of a payment from Captain Frank Brinkley24 for ‘sundry gear sold to the Naval College, Tokio’, which suggests Brinkley may have tried to promote cricket at the college. In the curriculum at the Imperial College of Engineering for 1879 cricket appears in a list of games to be introduced ‘at a later date’. It seems likely that even the cricketloving teachers, like F.W. Strange,25 judged that cricket matches lasted too long to incorporate into their curricula. ENDNOTES 1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
These words come from the entry in the Harrow School Register for James Campbell Fraser: ‘captained the Yokohama side in a cricket match (Yokohama Vs. The Fleet), played under curious circumstances at Yokohama’. Article was based mainly on papers and photographs sent by Fraser to the Marylebone Cricket Club (MCC). The photographs in the possession of MCC today include a framed photograph of the Yokohama team with ‘First Cricket Match Played in Japan, 1863’ written on the mounting. The names of all the players are given and a photograph of each of the teams survives and even a third 1863 cricket photograph has also been found that may show the match in progress. These photos are the earliest photos of cricket in Japan and among the very oldest of cricket in Asia. The words of Admiral Sir Albert Hastings Markham, who played for the Royal Navy team in that match at the age of twenty-two. The article quotes Admiral Sir Albert Hastings Markham as writing ‘It is, I suppose, the only match on record in which the players had to be armed.’ Mollison first arrived in Japan in January 1867 and stayed a month apparently sorting out a job with J.C. Fraser & Co. This company was owned by the same Fraser who captained Yokohama in 1863 and was located at No. 48 just behind Yokohama’s Main Street. Fraser and his family left Japan in early March 1868 and Mollison is recorded as landing from Shanghai at the beginning of April after a nine-month visit to his home country. For an account of the visit by the Duke of Edinburgh see ‘Royal Visits to Japan in the Meiji Period’ by Hugh Cortazzi in Britain and Japan: Biographical Portraits, Volume II, ed. Ian Nish, Japan Library 1997. A biographical portrait of A.H. Groom by Angus Lockyer is contained in Britain and Japan: Biographical Portraits, Volume VII, ed. Hugh Cortazzi, Global Oriental, 2010. Batting number four or five, Mollison doesn’t seem to have been a big-hitter like Evan James Fraser, the younger Rugby School-educated brother of J.C. Fraser but he was clearly difficult to get out. For the Xth, 145
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10
11
12
13
14
Captains Ernest Berger and Robert Stammers were both excellent with both bat and ball while Lieut. George Hood was a successful bowler. The YCC’s best bowlers besides Mollison during the 1870s and 1880s were Dr Edwin Wheeler and Edgar Abbott. Wheeler also usually opened the batting while Abbott recorded the highest individual score in the Yokohama – 146. Other long-term stalwart all-rounders were George Hamilton, James Dodds, Charles Murray Duff and William Sutter. See for instance Brunton, Richard Henry, Building Japan, 1868–1876, Japan Library, 1991 An example of the impact of one of the Flying Squadrons was the visit in October 1881 by HMS Inconstant, HMS Cleopatra, HMS Carysfort, HMS Tourmaline and HMS Bacchante on which Queen Victoria’s grandsons Prince Arthur and Prince George (later King George V) were serving as midshipmen. On 30 October the YCC beat the officers of the squadron in a one innings match with the latter scoring 73 runs to the former’s 95. On 1 November the squadron sailed to Kobe where its cricket team defeated the Kobe Cricket Club. Games in October 1881 between the YCC and ‘Visitors, Fleet and Tokio’ were notable for the participation of Isaac Donnithorne Walker (1844– 1898) who was the youngest of the famous seven cricketing Walker brothers and one of the most famous cricketers of his day. A newspaper report of the first match praised his ‘beautifully played innings’ of 56 not out and said ‘his cutting and the way he played the balls were a great treat to lovers of the game’. The Visitors score of 99 was not enough to overhaul the YCC’s earlier innings of 132 during which Walker also bowled without getting a wicket in his unique underarm style around half the overs from one end of the pitch largely due to his late arrival. Frederick William Strange also played well for the visiting team bowling throughout the innings and taking 6 wickets for 44 runs. If he hadn’t been run out for 7, his team might have prevailed. Another visitor player was F.H. Trevethick, the grandson of the famous Cornish inventor. Strange and Trevethick were keen and talented cricketers who often played for or against the YCC. Trevithick is recorded as making the longest hit on the cricket ground: a hit to pitch of 140 yards. I.D. Walker also played a second game called YCC vs Visitors and Navy in which the Tokio members like Strange and Trevethick did not play. Walker again opened the batting but was ‘singularly unlucky’ to be bowled out for a duck by W.B. Thomson who took 6 wickets in total. Remarkably, Walker was permitted to bat again at No. 7 as a substitute for a missing player but could only score 10 runs not out before his team were all out for 63. This time Walker’s bowling was effective and he took six wickets. Only C.M. Duff got to double figures but the YCC managed to scramble to 65 and win by 2 runs. A portrait of Hannen by Br Dr Christopher Roberts is contained in this volume. ‘Interports’ were played in a variety of sports between the main international ports in the Far East and began with the Hong Kong vs Shanghai cricket Interport of 1866.
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15 16
17
18
19
20
21
22
23
24
25
Proposed by J.C. Carey, then British consul-general in Yokohama. Mollison couldn’t describe his despair as eloquently as Waseda University professor Abe Isoo. ‘To turn a piece of ground which as the result of years of toil and care has been rendered into one of the finest cricket grounds in the East into a mere Public Garden would not only seem to be sacrilegious, it would be most unbusiness-like on the part of the Municipality.’ It also became known that J.C. Hall, then consul general in Yokohama, had been ordered by MacDonald to desist from advising the YC&AC. Mollison began his speech: ‘It is once more my privilege to endeavour to uphold what I honestly believe to be the rights to the use of the present cricket ground acquired by the early pioneers of the Settlement’ he began. Referring to the resolution calling for withdrawal of the protest he declared: ‘What shall we do with it, gentlemen? Throw it out, of course, and consign the list of adherents to the waste-paper basket, to which it rightly belongs – (applause) – rather than be handed down to posterity as evidence of one of the blackest incidents in the history of Yokohama.’ It was even difficult to get members to pay their dues, as many members doubted the value of being a member of a ‘club with no ground’. F.S.G. Piggott was the son of Sir Francis Taylor Piggott, who was legal adviser to the Japanese government. See ‘The Two Piggotts’ by Carmen Blacker in Britain and Japan 1859–1991, Themes and Personalities, ed. Hugh Cortazzi and Gordon Daniels, Routledge, 1991 and biographical portrait of Maj. Gen F.S.G. Piggott by Antony Best in Britain and Japan: Biographical Portraits, Volume VIII, ed. Hugh Cortazzi, Global Oriental, 2013. According to the Japan Weekly Mail, ‘with the victory of the home side last Tuesday the clouds that have overhung Yokohama cricket for the last year or so may be said to have broken’. Kyu¯ Ko¯bu Daigakko¯ no Shiryo¯ (Documents relating to the Old Engineering College), 1955. Stated by Miyaka Setsu, one of Kaisei Gakko¯’s first students, in 1946 account mentioned in Kuriketo Kenkyu¯ Josetsu (Research into History of Cricket) by Professor Makoto Yamada of Kobe City University of Foreign Studies, 1982. Frank Brinkley played for Hong Kong in the 1867 cricket ‘Interport’ in Shanghai in which Mollison starred. A biographical portrait of Brinkley by J.E. Hoare is contained in Britain and Japan: Biographical Portraits, Volume III, ed. J.E. Hoare, 1999. See ‘F.W. Strange and Rowing as a Sport in Japan’ by Jun Ko¯chi in Britain and Japan: Biographical Portraits, Volume VIII, ed. Hugh Cortazzi, Global Oriental, 2013
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Introduction of Football from Britain into Nineteenth-century Japan: Rugby Football and Soccer MIKE GALBRAITH Rugby football and soccer/football have already been covered separately in this Biographical Portraits series, namely by Alison Nish’s ‘British Contribution to the Development of Rugby Football in Japan 1874–1998’ in Biographical Portraits volume III and Derek Bleakley’s ‘British Links with Japanese Football’ in volume VII. My research has revealed that versions of rugby football1 were being played regularly season after season by talented non-Japanese players in Japan from much earlier than was believed and that there were talented Japanese players playing in the UK before the sport was introduced to Keio¯ University students. For most of the period the sport being played in Yokohama and Kobe was simply referred to as ‘football’2 with its rules determined by the local club. Soccer3/association football as we know it today was still in its infancy and there is no evidence of it being played in Japan until the 1880s. Then in the early and mid-1890s it actually eclipsed rugby football – so much so that rugby stopped being played for a while and soccer itself was simply referred to as ‘football.’ ORIGINS OF RUGBY IN JAPAN
It is widely believed that rugby football4 started in Japan in 1899 when Tanaka Ginnosuke and Edward Bramwell Clarke introduced the sport to Japanese students in Keio¯ University. However, the reality is that rugby has been played in some form almost continuously for longer in Japan than in almost every major rugby playing country outside of the British Isles and Australia. The earliest evidence of football in Japan is in a 1908 Sydney newspaper article5 reporting how Admiral Sir Harry Rawson (1843–1910), then governor of New South Wales, ‘recalled play148
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ing in the first cricket match played in Japan in 1863, a remarkable feature of which was the fact that half the players were playing football’.6 One can only surmise that perhaps a number of batsmen on both sides were enthusiastically playing with a football when not actually batting or after the cricket match finished. The oldest reference to football in early Yokohama newspapers is dated 26 January 1866.7 In a multi-topic news section of the Japan Times called ‘THE WEEK’ the following appeared: More than forty names have been put down as willing to support a Foot ball Club and a meeting to arrange the ways and means will be held we are told this afternoon (Friday 26th Ins.) There will be no difficulty getting a ground to play upon and as we happen to have two or three Rugby and Winchester men in the Community, that we may be certain that we shall have really good scientific play. It has been objected that it is difficult for men to play the game with temper and without serious accident. We deny both positions. The game is played a good deal in the north of England by men and though we are inclined to think that ‘hacking’ should be interdicted, we see no reason why this fine, healthful game should not be played as well in Yokohama as in Yorkshire.8
At the bottom of the next column in a section called ‘LOCAL’ there is an independent story entitled ‘YOKOHAMA FOOT BALL CLUB’ describing what happened in the meeting starting at 2 pm: Captains Blount and Rochfort of the 2nd XX Regt., Lord W. Kerr, Mr Dare and Mr R.E. Price were elected to a Committee to determine the rules, Mr Baker was elected Honourary Secretary, and Mr Monk was appointed Honorary Treasurer. Asia’s first football club was thus founded not in Hong Kong, Singapore, Shanghai or India but in Yokohama which barely six years before was a small sleepy fishing village with no foreign residents. The reasons are Yokohama’s winter climate and the stationing of over 800 mainly young soldiers of the 2nd Battalion, XXth regiment together with several companies of marines and other units in three ‘camps’ on the Bluff above Yokohama in 1864 to protect the foreign community following the Namamugi Incident of 1862. The strong naval presence in those years meant that sometimes the number British military personnel in Yokohama temporarily more than doubled. Another key factor was the presence of many young officers educated at Britain’s football-playing public schools. This greatly helped to overcome the fundamental obstacle to starting a ‘football’ club – you needed forty men (later on thirty) to play a game. The sport was not an easy one for beginners to play and the rules differed from school to school back home. Hence the problem about deciding the rules. 9 149
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The rules committee of five formed in 1866 included Capt. Charles Rochfort and Capt. Richard Blount of the XXth regiment, and naval officer Lord Walter Talbot Kerr, son of the 7th Marquess of Lothian, who went on to become the last Naval First Lord of the Admiralty. Blount belonged to a leading English Catholic family while Rochfort inherited one of Ireland’s largest estates. Rochfort had been at Cheltenham College where he was in the ‘Classical Football XX’, while Blount and Kerr had been, respectively, at Downside and Radley schools. Unfortunately, not long after the high-powered foundation meeting, the XXth regiment was replaced by the 3nd Battalion, IXth, which in turn was replaced by the 1st Battalion, Xth regiment. It seems that football was not as popular with these regiments although the Royal Marines Light Infantry (RM), who outnumbered other units in the final period before they departed, formed their own football team. Meanwhile, Kerr’s ship left Japanese waters in mid-1866. One catalyst in the development of football in Yokohama was the arrival of George Hamilton (1845–1929) who had been at Rugby School, where, in 1823, William Webb Ellis supposedly first ran forward carrying the ball thus creating the sport of rugby. He might be the Old Rugbean referred to in the above-mentioned 1866 article but the first real evidence of him being in Japan is of his being a cofounder of the Yokohama Cricket Club (YCC) in mid-1868 with the principal founder being J.P. Mollison (1845–1931) (see article in this volume about ‘Cricket in late Edo and Meiji Japan’). Mollison and Hamilton were both from the Glasgow area in Scotland, the same age and both also good at cricket. Mollison described Hamilton as the ‘captain of the Yokohama Rugby Team’ and they both worked in the same company – J.C. Fraser & Co. Hamilton played football in Yokohama until at least 1884. Another Scottish Rugby School alumnus, Evan James Fraser, who was the younger brother of J.C. Fraser, joined them in 1870 staying for about eight years. Fraser, like Hamilton, was an excellent all-round sportsman.10 Another superb young sportsman, Englishman Edgar Abbott (1850–1890), who had been at Marlborough College, arrived in about 1869.11 These three young men formed the core of the football club alongside Mollison himself, Dr E. Wheeler, H.J. Abell, Capt. A. Hill RM, George Melhuish, J. Dodds, the Dare brothers, the Vivanti brothers, and the consular officials John Gubbins12 and Joseph Longford.13 Some continued playing for many years. At first the club’s games were played in the aforementioned camps on the Bluff, especially on the main Parade Ground, and also on the Swamp Ground at the back of the settlement. After the completion in 1873 of the park that is now Yokohama Ko¯en, the football matches were played on the cricket ground in the centre of the park during the football season. 150
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Mollison stated that in around 1870 ‘Racing, Rowing, Cricket, Football and Athletics all flourished like the proverbial baytree’ but no evidence has been found in the local newspapers that football was actually played until the start of the 1870 season, after which there are occasional and mostly brief stories about some of the football games being played. In December 1870 it was reported that ‘The dry and frosty weather having set in, football has been started, and promises to be fairly kept up during the winter.’14 The start (and end) of the football season were often recorded in such a way. On 20 February 1872 the ‘return’ match between the Services15 and the Settlement was played. ‘The sides were very fairly matched; but eventually the Services proved too heavy for the civilians, who were defeated by three goals to none.’16 In December 1872 there was a report that ‘A CHALLENGE has been received by the Yokohama Football Club from the foreign community in Yedo17 to play a match, on the Swamp. The challenge will be accepted, the date fixed being the 7th proximo.’ Later the same month the Royal Marines were reported to have defeated the same ‘Yedo team’ by three goals to zero on the Parade Ground. After the departure of the last of the marines in 1875, and the sharp reduction of the naval presence, games against ‘foreign’ teams were fewer. Club members divided into two teams based on different criteria. The Talls vs the Shorts and the Ojisans [oldies] vs the Wakaihitos [youngsters] are examples. However, the most passionately contested games were those invoking nationality like Scotland vs World and English vs Scots. The report on the first game of the 1873 season on 26 November offers the best evidence that the football played in Yokohama was being played at least partly according to Rugby School rules: ‘Mr. Abbott having caught the ball made a good run through his opponents and, with a fine drop kick, scored a goal for the Settlement.’ On 13 December 1873, the Japan Weekly Mail covered the drawn ‘English Vs the Scotch and Irish’ match played the previous day, reporting that: ‘Mr. Gubbins “dribbled” the ball capitally and Mr. Abbott played half-back in excellent form; Messrs. Hamilton, Abell, Hill and E. Fraser were conspicuous amongst the forward players; while Messrs. Melhuish, Dare and Wheeler were also equally most useful…’ It added that the next game would be ‘the return match of “The Services and The Settlement” the following Wednesday’ and contained a comment about how the game was played: ‘Of course with the rules of the game as played out here there were many scrimmages18 and consequently much time was lost.’ Two weeks later there was a similar match: ‘English (White jerseys) versus Scotch and Irish (Stripes) – resulted in a draw. Though 151
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Courtesy of Mike Galbraith: 1874 Illustration ‘Football in Yokohama’.
well-contested throughout, at the wind up neither side had succeeded in securing a score and it would be difficult to award the palm of excellence to the play of either.’19 The following illustration entitled ‘Football in Yokohama’, published in April 1874 in The Graphic magazine and later in Harper’s Weekly, was most probably based on one or both of these games. Indeed, the Harper’s Weekly caption states ‘this sketch represents a foot-ball match between Englishmen and Scotchmen near the city of Yokohama in Japan’. The accompanying paragraph in The Graphic ignores the actual game and focuses on the idea that ‘There is a British colony at Yokohama, Japan and they have introduced the mysteries of football to the Far East’ and called Yokohama’s multi-sports ground ‘a local Lillie Bridge,20 under the shadow of the lovely snow-mountain Fusiyama’. Five things stand out: (1) The flag with the letters YFC (Could a B be hidden by a furl?) clearly indicating the existence of the club; (2) Many spectators, including kimono-clad women; (3) Man wearing a tassled cap is surely the club captain – Hamilton. If that is so, then the team wearing striped shirts are the Scots; (4) In that case, the small man facing the viewer on the right is surely the English halfback – Abbott; and (5) A ‘scrimmage’ is taking place showing clearly this is not a soccer match. In 1874 a football match between the Royal Marines and the United Service was reported on, being played, most unusually, 152
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in the summer on 27 June. On 19 November of the same year twenty players21 held a meeting22 to form a ‘club’. Hamilton was voted to chair the meeting and J. Leckie proposed and Longford seconded the formation of the ‘Yokohama Foot-ball Association’. A committee of three was appointed to ‘draw up the necessary rules, etc.’. Perhaps most importantly, a subscription was then set ‘after some discussion’ at two dollars per year. The previous existence of the club is referred to in the abovementioned December 1872 article so why did they make a new club? It is possible that the YCC was requesting fees to use its new ground and that the football players decided that they too needed to be organized formally like the YCC and chose to start again from scratch. They may have chosen the word ‘Association’ because there was more than one team in Yokohama. Three of the founder members, Capt. Hill and Lieuts. Sandwith and Drury, were members of the Royal Marines team. For 1875 there is an announcement in the Japan Gazette on 29 November that the Yokohama Foot-ball Association will hold a meeting the next day at 5:30 pm in the United Club and not long after there is a report23 of a ‘football’ match – the Scotch vs. the World – played on the afternoon of 11 December, which was won by the latter with ‘Mr. Jeyes, by a good kick, securing the only goal of the afternoon.’ The same paper reports another game – ‘Residents vs. Non-residents’ – on January 8 1876. It ‘was won by the former, after the best-contested game of the season, by one goal to nothing. Mr. Hamilton made the successful kick.’ The 21 December 1876 issue of the Japan Gazette announces a ‘foot-ball’ game the following afternoon against ‘Yedo and H.M’s. S Modeste’ and lists the fifteen players on each side. 24 The 11 January 1877 edition of the same newspaper reported a return match that ‘resulted in favour of the latter, the Settlement thus suffering their first defeat of the season.’ The Japan Weekly Mail gave more coverage than usual to the 1878– 1879 season. In November 1878, it reported that ‘…football supersedes cricket on our recreation ground. One match, that of “Talls” versus “Shorts” came off on Saturday last. The game was well contested and ended in favour of the “Talls”, who scored one goal and a touch-down, to the “Shorts” one goal. Another, “Scotland” versus “The Settlement”, is being played on the Cricket Ground, this afternoon.’ The writer then describes how ‘the game as played here is of a very mild form’ and “tempting of Providence” for grown men to play’ and, furthermore, ‘appears foolhardy, and it is never a matter of surprise when we hear of a broken leg or collar-bone’. A match report25 for a Yokohama Vs. Tokio and the Fleet match played on the cricket ground at four o’clock on the afternoon of 153
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7 December of the same year is unique in the first half of the Meiji period for listing the shirts colours and the names of most the players.26 The article also describes how ‘The visitors got a goal in about a quarter of an hour, and the rest of the afternoon passing without any achievement on either side, victory remained with Tokio and the Fleet.’ The annual general meeting ‘with limited attendance’ held at the Grand Hotel on 10 November 1880 gives a rare insight into the rules they followed and the games themselves. Hamilton chaired the meeting and ‘said it was a matter of much gratification to learn from the report that the club was in a flourishing condition’. After the election of Dare, Maxwell and Wood to be the Committee ‘a discussion took place on the proposal by Mr. Wood to modify the rule that allows handling the ball as, last season, some of the matches were nothing but a series of dropkicks throughout the game. After the rejection of an amendment proposed by Mr. Dare, that running or drop-kicking should only be allowed in cases of a fair catch, the original proposal that drop-kicks should be allowable from a clean catch, or from the first bound of the ball, no handling or knocking on being permissible, was carried.’27 On 8 March 1884 the final rugby match of the season between the ‘Ojisans’ and the ‘Wakai-hitos’ was covered in the local press28 in a description that could almost fit present day games: ‘The former had the advantage of the wind during the first half of the game and scored a goal and two tries against one try obtained by the “Wakai-hitos” just before half time. Unfortunately for the latter, the wind somewhat dropped after ends were changed, and although they pinned their opponents at times, no further tries were scored by them. Just before time was called Durrant scored a third try for the “Oji-sans”, after taking the ball nearly the length of the ground. The game ended therefore in a win for the early settlers by one goal, dropped by Sutter, and three tries, obtained by Durrant (2), and Hamilton (1), to one try obtained by Baggallay.’ The article concluded: ‘The club may be congratulated on having had a very successful season, notwithstanding that no foreign matches could be arranged.’ The following month the football club, led by Abbott and supported by Hamilton, organized and led the initiative that merged the cricket, rugby, athletics and tennis clubs to form the YC&AC (Yokohama Cricket and Athletic Club) that survives today although the word ‘Cricket’ in the name changed to ‘Country’ in 1912. This also means that the club founded in 1866 is directly linked to today’s YC&AC rugby club. Football seemed to be flourishing but it was soon struggling as the long-term stalwarts began to retire and, partly as a result, the captain of football William Sutter had so much trouble gathering players that he decided to switch codes to association football as fewer players 154
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were required. It was in 1884 that Sutter, in collaboration with one of the Vivanti brothers (A. Vivanti?) first started to try to promote soccer. In 1885 a revised set of rules was issued based on Association Football ‘as only eleven players are required’. The March 1888 report on the state of ‘football’ presented at the YC&AC’s AGM was not optimistic despite the fact that the first soccer Interport had just been played the previous month: ‘This (“football”) seems to be dying out in Yokohama, and a challenge from Kobe was accepted more for the honor of the club of the Club than because of any real interest shown in the game by members; however, after strenuous efforts a team was got together and played well and was only beaten after a hardly contested game.’ The initiative for the first soccer ‘Interport’ came from Kobe. Although Kobe had a much smaller foreign settlement than Yokohama, the men there also seem to have liked football as the following comment in the Hiogo Shipping List in 1878 indicates: ‘Football continues to be a favorite game and the present season shows no falling off in the number of players. No serious accidents have occurred up to date.’ The first recorded games in Kobe were held in February and March 1871 when the Hiogo News mentions three games being played but comments that the first one, on 11 February, was not well attended. The first soccer ‘Interport’ was also the first real competitive soccer match in Japan. Its success led to regular soccer ‘interports’ and the near abandonment of rugby in Yokohama for several years. The report on ‘football’ in the 1889 YC&AC AGM illustrates clearly just how much both rugby and association football struggled at this time: ‘A good Match under Rugby Rules was played against the fleet at the beginning of the Season, but the old difficulty of getting men accustomed to the Rugby Game to play under Association Rules, and vice versa, then asserted itself, and coupled with the fact that there are really few keen football players among the Members, rendered it impossible for another Match to be got up.’ 29 In the 1897 YC&AC AGM the ‘football’ section reported that ‘Two Rugby Games against the fleet were played early in the season, the Navy, by their combined play proving stronger on both occasions. It must be added, however, that years have passed since Rugby was played in Yokohama, and the second game proved that Yokohama with more practice could soon hold their own.’ Meanwhile, the soccer team had played nine games against ships in the harbour (winning five and losing three) besides winning the ‘Interport’. These words are clear evidence that the football being played in Yokohama prior to the start of soccer was considered to be rugby rather than soccer by those living in Yokohama at the time. The late 1890s saw the revival of rugby in Yokohama although it was not until Xmas day 1902 that the YC&AC rugby team could 155
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start their own ‘Interport’ matches against Kobe. Rugby was not to be eclipsed again by soccer in Japan for nearly a century. JAPANESE WHO PLAYED RUGBY BEFORE 1899 IN THE UK
The magazine of University College School, London noted the following about a 3rd XV vs ‘any XV chosen from the School’ match played in October 1872: ‘Bell, Lindfield, Webster, and Kikuchi deserve mention for the School.’ The schoolboy Kikuchi grew up to become Baron Kikuchi Dairoku. From the following year both the Imperial Naval College and the Imperial College of Engineering (ICE) in Japan employed foreign professors and instructors, and there is evidence that football was played, especially in the latter which had a ‘football ground’ in Toranomon.30 ‘The frequency of sickness among the students and their generally delicate physique, demanded greater attention to outdoor exercise. For this end a football club was started. Different members of the foreign staff took part in the games…’ wrote William Gray Dixon,31 who taught at ICE in the late 1870s. Contemporary documents state
Dr Takaki Yoshihiro (front right) with St. Thomas’ Hospital Rugby Team mates, 1895 156
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that the ‘football’ was played according to simplified rules32 but do not mention any connection with ‘association football’ and since the Naval College and the Engineering College were not located far from each other, had numerous British staff, and started around the same time, it seems reasonable to suppose that the ‘football’ taught to the Japanese students in both institutions was similar. The Meiji period saw many Japanese studying in Britain and a few played rugby. Dr Takaki Yoshihiro,33 who studied medicine at King’s College, London from 1892 and then spent around five years at St. Thomas’s Hospital from 1894, stands out from the rest. The writer found some records for the year 1898 where he appears twice playing full games for the hospital’s 1st XV – once as full back and once as a forward. This was one of England’s oldest clubs and had two teams with many fixtures against leading clubs. Its 1898 squad included two England players. Dr Takaki later became the first chairman of the Japan Rugby Football Union (JRFU). The aforementioned Tanaka Ginnosuke played for both his school and Trinity Hall, Cambridge. His 1892 school report34 states: ‘Conscientious forward. At his best in the scrum. Struggled hard both in and out of touch [sic]. Should use his feet more.’ Nabeshima Naomitsu, the 12th head of the Saga clan, is said to have also played rugby while at Cambridge between 1895 and 1897. According to a 1905 Japan Society lecture35 in London ‘N. Nabeshima played half-back in the Rugby football team of Gonville and Caius College. His contemporaries tell of him that he was one of the nimblest and smartest of the “halves”, and threw into the game all the fierce zeal that its mimic warfare prompted. He would execute a little war-dance on his own account when his side scored a goal.’ Unfortunately, the college has no evidence of him playing rugby. ENDNOTES 1
What was simply called ‘football’ during most of this period in Yokohama in Japan would not have been recognizable as being clearly either rugby or soccer today. No version of the rules they played by has yet been discovered although a meeting held in 1880, when the rule regarding handling of the ball was modified, throws some light on the issue. In the UK both the games of rugby and soccer grew out of the sport called ‘football’ that developed in schools like Rugby School, Durham School, Charterhouse, Harrow, Eton and Winchester College with each originally having its own rules. When open clubs were formed, the biggest problem was to decide the rules to play by. It was to try to solve this problem that a group of the leading clubs in the London area met to form the Football Association (FA) in late 1863. In the final meeting to decide the rules the voting outlawed general handling of the ball 157
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2
3 4
5 6
7
8
whereupon those who considered handling the ball to be a key feature of the game quit the association leaving the name ‘football’ behind them. In this writer’s opinion the football games played in Yokohama were a version of the Rugby School rules that was modified from time to time, as in 1880, and that this version was simply called ‘football’. When association football appears in the 1880s, the newspapers refer to it with expressions like playing ‘football by association rules’ and when rugby union style football ceases for some years in the early 1890s, then soccer is simply referred to as ‘football’ until the time when rugby is restarted in the later 1890s and the words ‘rugby rules’ and ‘association rules’ have to be used to differentiate the two games. Accordingly, he believes there was no association football played in Yokohama (and possibly Kobe too) until the mid- to late 1880s. The word ‘soccer’ is derived from the word ‘association’. It was rare for reports in newspapers on football to give the sport a special box:
Sydney Morning Herald, 3 June 1908. This took place before the founding of the Football Association (FA) in Britain. This was six years and five days before the birth nearby of E.B. Clarke who is generally credited, alongside Tanaka Ginnosuke, with having introduced rugby to Japan – in 1899! The rules for football in any club in this period were decided by a committee of club members and this statement suggests that the rules of the Yokohama club were going to be based on either Rugby School rules or Winchester College rules or a combination of both. However, the committee members were alumni of Radley, Downside, Cheltenham 158
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9
10
11
12
13
14 15
16 17 18
19 20
21
22
College with the last playing Rugby School-style football. According to Simon Drakeford, author of a book on rugby in Shanghai called It’s a Rough Game but Good Sport (2014) about the Shanghai Football Club, established in 1867, alumni from Eton and Charterhouse strongly influenced the rules of football in the club with Charterhouse rules, which did not permit handling, ending up dominant so that the game played in Shanghai was closer to soccer. The reference to Yorkshire is worth noting because it was there that rugby football became very popular among ordinary factory workers and farm labourers for the first time – this led to the desire to pay the best players and ultimately to the schism between rugby union and rugby league in 1895. This was only a problem in rugby football because association football had one basic set of rules finalized in December 1863. Hamilton and E. Fraser attained sporting immortality in Yokohama in 1871 by rowing in the four that dramatically defeated the highly favoured Kobe four in the first ever ‘Interport’ in Japan. Hamilton was the stroke and in 1909 Mollison called him ‘The father of rowing in Yokohama.’ Nearly twenty years after Abbott’s death Mollison remembered him as excellent at all sports and thought ‘his name still holds the Yokohama record for the 100 yards’. ‘At football he was quite in the front rank, and first class at cricket,’ wrote Mollison in an article ‘Interesting Reminiscences’ (published in 1909). A biographical portrait of J.H. Gubbins by Ian Nish is contained in Britain and Japan: Biographical Portraits, Volume II, ed. Ian Nish, Japan Library 1997 A biographical portrait of Joseph Longford by Ian Ruxton is contained in Britain and Japan: Biographical Portraits, Volume VI, Global Oriental, 2007 Japan Weekly Mail, 24 February 1872 The Services team was made up of British military personnel and civil servants including diplomats such as Longford and Gubbins. Japan Weekly Mail Edo, now Tokyo Scrimmages were different from modern ‘scrums’. In a scrimmage each team tried to use its weight, power and technques such as hacking to move the ball forwards towards the goal line of their opponents. Japan Gazette, 23 December 1873 Lillie Bridge was a sports ground in London used between 1867 and 1888 for a number of major sports events including cricket, football and athletics. The second FA Cup final was played there in March 1873 after a competition involved just sixteen teams (only fourteen actually played games) and was watched by about 3,000. This offers a glimpse of the status of soccer in the same year. ‘The following gentlemen were present: Capt. Hill, Lieuts. Sandwith and Drury R.M.; Messrs. J.J. Dare, Tyler, C.P. Hall, A. Vivanti, H. Vivanti, F. Beato, J. Dodds, Melhuish, Abell, Longford, Davidson, Leckie, Hamilton, Barlow, Greey, and Jeyes.’ Japan Gazette, 20 November 1874. 159
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23 24
25 26
27 28 29 30
31 32
33
34 35
30 December 1875 issue of the N.C. Herald and S.C. & C. Gazette The Yokohama team included Hamilton and Mollison as well as F. Kilby, F. Vivanti, A.H. Smith, H.A. Touse, A.H. Dare, L.F. Lewis, J. Walter, C.P. Hall, J.D. Hutchison, H.O. Jeyes, H.B. Jones, Lilburne, and F. Walker. Japan Weekly Mail, 7 December 1878. ‘Tokio and Fleet – Blue and White – Messrs. Strange, Trevithick, Ward, McClatchie, Kuchler, Marrable, Claridge, A. Vivanti, Daniells, Brown, Stevens, Lieut. Bradley and others. Yokohama – Black and ScarletMessrs. Frischling, Haskell, Hall, Hutchinson, Lilburn, Milne, Playfair, Smith, Towse, F. Vivanti, Wood, Walter, Fraser, Powys, Suther, Snow., Henson and A. H. Dare.’ Japan Weekly Mail, 13 November 1880 Japan Weekly Mail. Ibid. Kyu¯ Ko¯bu Daigakko¯ no Shiryo¯ (Documents relating to the Old Engineering College), 1955. The Land of the Morning: an Account of Japan and its People. Kyu¯ Ko¯bu Daigakko¯ no Shiryo¯ (Documents relating to the Old Engineering College), 1955. He was son of Takaki Kanehiro who studied at St Thomas’s in the 1870s, For an account of him see Jerry Matsumura’s biographical portrait in Britain and Japan: Biographical Portraits, volume V ed. Hugh Cortazzi, Global Oriental 2004. Tanaka attended Leys School in Cambridge as did N. Nabeshima. Japan Society, London: Transactions and Proceedings 1906, Vol. 1.
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14
Freemasonry in Japan PAULINE CHAKMAKJIAN
Relatively little is known about freemasonry in Japan. Freemasonry is a fraternity that encourages moral improvement by introspection organized for its members through a hierarchy of quasispiritual rituals known as degrees. The British system of freemasonry has particularly emphasized charitable giving. THE EARLY HISTORY OF FREEMASONRY IN JAPAN
Freemasonry first came to Japan through the Dutch and the British. The first Japanese nationals to become freemasons were initiated in the Netherlands in 1864. Tsuda Shinichiro¯ and Nishi Shusuki, who later took the names Tsuda Mamichi (1829–1903) and Nishi Amane (1829–97), were two researchers from the Imperial School of Culture who came to the University of Leiden, to study political science, constitutional law and economics. Their tutor was Professor Simon Vissering, who was also a freemason, a member of La Vertu Lodge No 7 of Leiden. He encouraged Tsuda and Nishi to become freemasons, and they were initiated in La Vertu lodge late in 1864. At roughly the 161
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same time the first meetings of Masonic lodges in Japan were taking place in Yokohama. Sphinx Lodge No 263 (IC) was a travelling military lodge, associated with the 2nd Battalion of the Lancashire Fusiliers and warranted by the Grand Lodge of Ireland. From 1865 onwards, permission was given for other British lodges to be formed in cities such as Yokohama, Kobe and Osaka which, under the terms of the 1858 Treaties, were ports where Britain had extra-territorial rights. The first lodge founded under the English Constitution was Yokohama Lodge No 1092, which held its first meeting on 26 June 1866. Others, under both the English and Scottish constitutions, gradually followed, and in 1868, with the help of Sir Harry Parkes, the Japanese government granted a plot for the building of a Masonic Hall, which was completely destroyed by the Great Kanto Earthquake of 1923. A new temple, on the Bluff in Yokohama, was dedicated on 12 February 1927. This was built with funds sent from the United Grand Lodge of England, on condition that the property should be owned and controlled by lodges working under the English Constitution. When extra-territoriality was abolished in 1899, according to the law freemasonry became technically illegal. However, a gentleman’s agreement was established by which the Japanese authorities would not interfere in the affairs of the freemasons on condition that Japanese citizens would not be recruited as members. In the few instances where initiations of Japanese nationals did occur during the existence of this informal arrangement, these took place outside Japan in countries where the individual Japanese had been posted. For example, early in 1903, Viscount Hayashi Tadasu,1 Japanese ambassador in London, was initiated in Empire Lodge No. 2018 during a meeting of freemasons in Piccadilly. While he was the first prominent Japanese in England to be initiated, he was not the very first. The first Japanese national to have been initiated in England was a Philip Takeichi Hayashi of the ‘Imperial Japanese Navy’ whose initiation took place on 6 February 1886 in the Percy Lodge No.1427 in Newcastle upon Tyne.2 In the 1930s freemasonry in Japan faced growing opposition as Japan became allied with Nazi Germany. When war broke out following the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor, the Japanese authorities confiscated items belonging to the lodges which went into recess. The Japanese, like the Germans, took a keen interest in masonic activities because they viewed the organization as conspiratorial and suspicious. Indeed, some freemasons were arrested for spying, interrogated about freemasonry, imprisoned, tortured and tried.3 After the Japanese surrender in 1945 freemasonry in Japan was revived. General Douglas MacArthur, Supreme Commander of the Allied Armed Forces, who was himself an influential freemason encouraged freemasonry among the Japanese. 162
FREEMASONRY IN JAPAN
FREEMASONRY DURING THE ALLIED OCCUPATION OF JAPAN
General MacArthur’s entry into freemasonry was unusual. While the practice has had different prerequisites throughout the various jurisdictions of freemasonry, a procedure known as ‘making a mason at sight’ has occurred on occasions. This special dispensation was executed only in very exceptional circumstances during which a Grand Master, or occasionally a less prominent member within the masonic hierarchy, would grant automatic masonic membership to an outstanding man. Perhaps the best-known British example is that of Lord Brougham, the nineteenth century Lord Chancellor, well-known as a lawyer, reformer and politician, and a noted orator, wit and eccentric, who was granted this special masonic dispensation, albeit before he became famous. (During a youthful tour of the Outer Hebrides in 1799, Henry Brougham decided on a whim to attend a masonic lodge at Stornoway on the island of Harris and was effectively made a mason at sight by the Master of Fortrose Lodge No. 135.) MacArthur’s entry into Freemasonry was more formal but in much the same manner. He was made a mason at sight in the Philippines on 17 January 1936, and became a member of Manila Lodge No. 1. He also entered the Scottish Rite and eventually received the thirty-third-degree.4 A man with the psychological attributes of MacArthur essentially filled the chief masonic goal, which is the pursuit of greatness/perfection of the self in tandem with a strong sense of self and spirituality. The Great Architect of the Universe within freemasonry is not a composite or a pagan god, but a term applicable to the way in which each freemason interprets God. It is a symbolic representation of the ideal one aspires to of oneself following the example of the Supreme Being of one’s personal faith: i.e., it is a state of perfection that the freemason is attempting to emulate and come as near to as possible.5 For the more modest man yet unaware of this release of his own potential for greatness, the masonic goal is unknown to him and therefore, must be reached in slow steps through the degrees. MacArthur had no such qualms. It is the convergence of those masonic ideals innate in such a man as MacArthur that can have a significant influence on third parties. Sometimes this influence is bad as in MacArthur’s arguably poor command in the Philippines as a result of his inflated ego. However, at other times, it can be a source for good, as was the case of MacArthur’s hope to instill Western values as expressed through freemasonry in the hope that this would help in the rehabilitation of Japan followings its humiliating surrender in 1945. An important part of MacArthur’s plans for post-war Japan was to reconfigure the spirituality of the Japanese. The first step towards this goal was the nullification of the indigenous belief in the divinity of the Emperor. 163
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THE GRAND LODGE OF JAPAN
Following the Japanese surrender, some lodges slowly re-opened and MacArthur rescinded the ban on Japanese nationals becoming freemasons. The ideals of freemasonry have similarities with concepts such as democracy and the ethical teachings of Christianity, which MacArthur wished the Japanese people to adopt. MacArthur may not have been aware that when he convinced important Japanese to become freemasons he was copying the English eighteenth-century model by using elites in Japanese society to achieve his objectives. After the Showa emperor’s uncle, Prince Higashikuni, became Japanese prime minister, he was encouraged to become a freemason.6 After the war had ended the previously existing masonic lodges gradually resumed their activities. From 1950 onwards, a number of new lodges were founded by the Grand Lodge of the Philippines, some of which began to admit Japanese nationals. Then, in March 1957, a Grand Lodge of Japan was constituted under whose auspices most masonic activities in Japan are now conducted. PROBLEMS PREVENTING THE GROWTH OF FREEMASONRY IN JAPAN
Imperial Patronage: An Opportunity Lost. In England freemasonry was one of the most successful of the eighteenth-century clubs and societies which mushroomed during the pre-Enlightenment and the Enlightenment periods. This was primarily because its founders successfully used the patronage and leadership of aristocrats and princes to promote freemasonry.7 Hamill explains, ‘Desaguliers has been credited with introducing the aristocracy and men of intellect into the craft, and the presence of a nobleman as grand master brought freemasonry to the notice of the public.’8 The tradition continues today with HRH The Duke of Kent as Grand Master. When Prince Higashikuni and a few other Japanese were made freemasons in 1950, the Showa emperor became interested. Michael A. Rivisto, Master of Tokyo Masonic Lodge, who was largely responsible for purchasing the Suiko¯sha (Imperial Japanese Naval Officers’ Club) to establish a masonic headquarters in Tokyo (now the site of the Grand Lodge of Japan/Tokyo Masonic Building), was subsequently invited to the Imperial Palace to explain Freemasonry to the Emperor.9 Unfortunately, Rivisto was concurrently charged by the US military and the Japanese authorities with black marketing and illegal currency transactions. This resulted in the withdrawal of his invitation to the Palace, his deportation, and charges being preferred against him for un-masonic conduct, which 164
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eventually led to his expulsion from the Craft.10 Therefore, while the patronage of a member of the Imperial Family or the Imperial Household Agency would be most beneficial and greatly desired as a sign of imperial interest in the Craft in Japan, it is unlikely that as a result of this past scandal it will be forthcoming.11 Language Barrier: Slows or Prevents Japanese Participation Of the approximately 2,300 freemasons in Japan at present, the majority of members are Anglo-Americans or Europeans and there are only around 500 Japanese. This arises from the fact that masonic lodges in Japan were originally established to serve as meeting places for Westerners and later lodges were established predominantly on or near American air bases. The original lodges were subordinate to the Grand Lodges of England, Scotland and Ireland, and later American-controlled Grand Lodges, hence the lodge language was English. Although ritual books were translated into Japanese after the formation of the Grand Lodge of Japan, a systematic amalgamation of the use of the two languages never took place and the language barrier has continued. It is not clear to an outside observer whether the language barrier has been maintained in order to control the quality or calibre of the incoming Japanese members. It is noteworthy that many of the Japanese members are educated, prominent social figures including presidents of the Tokyo Lion’s Club and Rotary Club as well as a number of successful businessmen. The mixture of social classes amongst the Japanese members is not as great as in other countries. Of the approximately twenty masonic lodges under the Grand Lodge of Japan, only a few are Japanese speaking such as Tori Masonic Lodge No. 6 located in Nagoya, Tokyo Yuai Lodge No. 11 (‘Lodge of Brotherly Love’), which is based at the headquarters of the Grand Lodge of Japan located in Tokyo, Hokkaido Lodge No. 17 in Chitose, and Wakkanai Centennial Lodge No. 21 in Sapporo.12 This does not exclude other lodges, such as Kyoto Masonic Lodge No. 5 as being Japanese-speaking, but Yuai, for example, attracts a large number of ethnically Japanese members due to its emphasis on the use of the Japanese language. It might be sensible for the Grand Lodge of Japan to consider altering the primary lodge language from English to Japanese, or at the very least, to transform the lodges into bilingual entities. Any candidate for initiation probably experiences some degree of anxiety during the ritual at having to recall answers in the catechistic ceremony. A Japanese candidate, who must learn and recall such things in a language that is not his native tongue, faces a particular ordeal. If lodges were to become bilingual entities, freemasonry would be open to a larger number of Japanese men of good 165
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character since fluency in English is more familiar to Japanese who are either highly educated or engaged in commerce. The conversion of the primary lodge language from English to Japanese would not cause great inconvenience to non-Japanese freemasons as foreigners living and working in Japan ought to be able to speak and understand Japanese. Unfavourable Impression of Freemasonry Based on personal interviews I have the impression that freemasonry is regarded by those in Japanese society who have heard of the fraternity as an organization somewhat akin to a religious cult. Even today, there are perceptions within the Japanese public that the fraternity has some relationship with the Jewish people. It seems probable that this stems from the 1930s anti-masonic propaganda which alleged that freemasons were involved with a Jewish conspiracy to dominate the world. Far from being secretive, the Grand Lodge of Japan is remarkably open in nature. Its website provides information on freemasonry in general and freemasonry in Japan in great detail. Annual events, which are open to the general public, take place on its premises. The Grand Lodge of Japan is blessed with a small yet charming garden behind its premises where an annual hana mi is held at the end of March around the time of their Annual Communications meeting. This event is open to non-masons by leave of the events coordinator of Tokyo Masonic Lodge No. 2. Another event is the Grand Lodge of Japan’s annual Children’s Festival, usually held during the third week of May. This is a festival open to the general public, but specifically organized for children from various orphanages, child and maternal associations. I attended the thirtieth Masonic Children’s Festival on 22 May 2005 and noted that the event is American in nature with some masons dressed as clowns to amuse the children mixed with other various American and Japanese entertainments. Incompatibility with Initiation Requirements To become a freemason, a candidate must believe in a Supreme Being (The Great Architect of the Universe) and swear to this belief upon the Volume of Sacred Law of his individual faith. Due to the nature of belief systems indigenous to and adopted by the Japanese as well as the customs associated with them, the question of incompatibility with the fundamental initiation requirements for membership to freemasonry arises. This issue with ritual is the most serious problem not only to recruitment of prospective Japanese candidates, but also raises the question of whether initiations of such candidates are regulated in accordance with traditional, Western masonic procedure.
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Lack of Research-Orientated Freemasons & Non-Masons One of the strongest assets of the United Grand Lodge of England is the Library & Museum housed within its premises containing both well-preserved older documents concerning freemasonry in the whole of the United Kingdom as well as contemporary works on the subject. The United Grand Lodge of England has opened its doors to the wider public. It organizes guided tours, allows access to the library’s rich resources, and welcomes both masons and non-masons to participate in research into freemasonry. This has led to some useful academic research and intellectual exchanges. This openness was a response to public suspicion of the activities of freemasonry as a result of its perceived exaggerated emphasis on privacy. The freemasons of England are better able to pursue a policy of openness because they have been in existence far longer than the Grand Lodge of Japan and thus possess and generate literature on freemasonry. They also have a very much larger membership pool and have more resources which can be used for the maintenance of the cultural treasures in the Library & Museum. With the exception of a handful of freemasons falling under the jurisdiction of the Grand Lodge of Japan, the majority of members are not particularly interested in research into freemasonry. Freemasonry has existed in England for such a long period that individual freemasons, certain groups of freemasons such as Quatuor Coronati Lodge (AQC), and individual non-masons have developed a curiosity in both its history and historiography. By contrast, the history of the Grand Lodge of Japan spans only nearly sixty years and it is difficult to produce innovative research on its history and activities. Moreover, the possibilities of research into the history of freemasonry in Japan prior to the formation of the Grand Lodge are very limited since many records were lost during the Great Kanto Earthquake in 1923 and during the Second World War. The termination of the Chater-Cosmo Transactions has been most unfortunate for masonic research in East Asia. The just over a dozen volumes of this publication that were printed provide the reader with well-researched histories and wide-ranging essays on aspects of freemasonry in China, Taiwan, Japan and the several countries within South-East Asia. The publication used to be edited and printed in Hong Kong under the District Grand Lodge of Hong Kong and The Far East; it apparently ceased due to a lack of articles being contributed as well as financial constraints.
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¯ JIN TOKYO MASONIC ASSOCIATION (TMA) ZAIDAN HO
Objectives Zaidan Ho¯jin is the Japanese legal entity assumed by a charitable foundation, and the TMA is the charitable arm of freemasonry in Japan. The original body was founded as Shu¯kyo¯ Ho¯jin Tokyo Masonic Lodge Association in 1950 under the supervision of the Ministry of Education. According to the TMA Office Manager, there are no records for this original association and there appears to have been no meaningful activities during the period of its existence from 1950 to 1955.13 On 23 December 1955, this original association was approved to operate as Zaidan Ho¯jin Tokyo Masonic Association (TMA) now under the supervision of the Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare. Since 1981, The Grand Lodge of Japan itself has been within the premises of the Tokyo Masonic Building. The body is now under the supervision of the War Victims’ Relief Bureau at the Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare. TMA, a corporate body formed for charitable purposes, is solely responsible for the charitable work of freemasonry in Japan. The Grand Lodge of Japan itself was involved in charitable activities only between 1966 and 1975. A document has been preserved which provides a list of charitable causes and the expenditure on each for the years 1966, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1974 and 1975. The causes range from being medical in nature (particularly related to the eye and ophthalmology) to assistance for widows, orphans and handicapped children to donations to schools, scholarships and fire victims.14 Chapter 2, Article 3 of the ‘Act of Endowment’ for TMA states: ‘The object of this association shall be to promote, encourage and practise the true teachings of charity and benevolence, to assist the feeble, guide the blind, raise the downtrodden, shelter the orphan, support the Government, respect the principles and revere the ordinances of religion, inculcate morality, protect chastity, promote learning, love man, fear God and implore His mercy and hope for happiness.’15 Activities Between 1955 and 1981 before TMA was housed in the Tokyo Masonic Building, a number of sponsored or supported projects were established to coincide with the objective declared in The Act of Endowment. Though these are too numerous to describe here, they included donations to hospitals, orphanages, disaster-relief causes for both Japanese and overseas natural disasters, libraries and the Japanese Red Cross.16 Occasionally, certain activities would be reported in the press. From 1956 to 1958, The Japan Times reported the donations 168
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to the Hokkaido Cold Weather Damage Relief Fund (1956), the Children’s Milk Fund (1957) and the Flood Victims’ Winter Fund (1958).17 With the exception of 1961, during which the Ears for the Deaf Fund was reported, The Japan Times reported the annual donations to the Crippled Children’s Fund from 1960 to 1976 and from 1976 to 1981 it reported donations to the Wheelchair Fund.18 Moreover, between 1957 and 1965, the Asahi Evening News reported annual donations to the Christmas Cheer Fund in addition to a couple of other donations to flood relief and fire funds.19 Other regular annual donations by TMA are made to The Toy Library, the Christian Children’s Fund, and the Sri Lanka Eye Donation Society. The Toy Library, a programme dedicated to helping retarded and handicapped children generally between two and ten years of age is operated by volunteer groups. Volunteer workers teach each child how to play with a particular toy, and if the child shows interest in the toy, they lend the toy to the child with the only obligation being that the parent and child return with the toy in about a month for another session.20 Since 1986, TMA has also worked closely with the Christian Children’s Fund not only to support one hundred children worldwide but also to participate in donating to several special projects such as slum clearance as well as water and agricultural development.21 Additionally, TMA is supportive of the Sri Lanka Eye Donation Society by sponsoring two eye collection centres with a target of 450 pairs of eyes per year.22 Since it has been in the Tokyo Masonic Building, the charitable activities of TMA between 1982 and the present have increased in terms of the depth and variety of donations to various causes in addition to the above mentioned annual programmes. TMA has expanded its support of handicapped persons to more aged people through more scholarships, summer camps, the Japan Guide Dog Association, and arts and sporting events. Within hospitals, TMA aids the work of ‘CliniClowns’. Originally started in Holland, CliniClowns are professional clowns who cheer up sick children. TMA is also supportive of programmes to help the handicapped open and operate small community shops and restaurants at local communities in Japan as well as women’s shelters to protect those who have suffered from domestic violence in addition to women from the Philippines, Thailand, etc. who had been coerced into prostitution. Of all these good works, perhaps the most praiseworthy are TMA’s donations for organ transplants. In Japan, organ transplants are not available for children between 0–15 years of age; it is necessary for them to travel overseas in order to receive transplants. Therefore, TMA makes donations for such children to travel to America and other countries in order to receive the transplants.23 Since 2004, the Board of Trustees has published semi-annual newsletters to provide 169
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information on the activities of the TMA. The types of activities to which TMA makes donations are: s Homes for handicapped individuals, child protection homes and youth support centres s Organizations that support and promote self-independence of the handicapped including: s small community workshops, work training centres, day-care centres, etc. s Independent living centres for the disabled s Masonic fund to donate welfare vehicles and automotive wheelchairs s Support of medical treatment fee for children suffering from difficult diseases s Support of charitable activities of masonic groups, for refugees and the feeble s Charitable projects overseas s Support of various NPOs and volunteer activities to promote the welfare of the handicapped, sports events for the disabled as well as a college scholarship fund for handicapped students and children in protection homes s Support of disaster relief victims.24 THE FUTURE OF TMA
In recent years, the annual amount of donations TMA provides each year has been approximately ¥120,000,000 ($1.2 million, or roughly £600,000) consistently ranking the Association around one-hundredth place amongst the 26,000 charitable foundations in the whole of Japan.25 TMA possesses an internal property business that generates revenue in order to accomplish this admirable performance. Due to very recent reforms of Japan’s public interest corporation system, TMA has had to plan some changes to maintain its status as a charitable foundation. It is interesting to note the apparent influence of the British charity system on Japanese society in that the outline of the PBC Reform Laws states: ‘…the Charitable Status Recognition Committee, which might be a Japanese version of the Charity Commission for England & Wales in [the] UK…’26 Thus, just as freemasonry was brought to Japan from the United Kingdom, so too shall its charitable aims and objectives be spread more throughout Japan. ENDNOTES 1
2
A biographical portrait of Hayashi Tadasu by Ian Nish is contained in Britain and Japan: Themes and Personalities 1859–1991, ed. Hugh Cortazz and Gordon Daniels, Routledge 1991 and in Japanese Envoys in Britain 1862–1964, ed. Ian Nish, Global Oriental, 2007. J.M. Hamill: ‘Attachment A’ (1996) of Y. Washizu: “Anti-Masonry in Japan – Past and Present”, in AQC vol. 107 (1994). 170
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3 4
5
6 7 8 9 10 11
12
13
14
15
16
17
For a full account see Washizu, op. cit. On 17 January 1936, General Douglas MacArthur was made a mason at sight in Manila by the Grand Master of the Grand Lodge of the Philippines, MW Samuel Hawthorne. MacArthur joined Manila Lodge No.1 and subsequently entered the Scottish Rite. On 19 October 1937, he was coroneted Honorary 33rd Degree at the American Embassy in Tokyo. P. Chakmakjian: ‘Seeking Enlightenment: Initiation and Ritual of Oriental Candidates’, in The Canonbury Papers, vol. 4 (2007), p. 129. T.W. Fripp: Japan - History of Freemasonry (1961), p. 57. P. Clark: British Clubs and Societies (2000), p. 327. J. Hamill: The Craft, (1986), p. 42. J.L. Johnston: Japan’s Freemasonry (1990), p. 40. C. Haffner: The Craft in The East (revised edn. 1988), pp. 304–306. In contrast with Britain, where freemasonry retained the support of the nobility and royalty, and the Grand Master for England and Wales has been either noble or royal, the imperial family does not support Freemasonry in Japan. The Imperial Household’s roles and actions are of course more controlled by the Imperial Household Agency than their British counterparts. The imperial family cannot be openly associated with any religious organization and cannot extend patronage to any religious group except palace Shinto, which is defined as the private religion of that family. However, informal ties with various religious entities do exist and the Imperial Household Agency could be approached if the nature of Freemasonry - that it is not a religion, is sponsored by royalty in various countries, and engages in praiseworthy social and cultural activities - were to be clarified. Who would be best placed to approach the Imperial Household Agency? The Higashikuni family, one of the former ‘collateral families’ of Japan (from the system developed in the Kamakura period, and abolished after the Second World War, in which an emperor’s son not destined to succeed him was established as the head of a collateral princely family with the right to ascend the throne if the main line failed to produce an heir), were by 1945 the collateral family closest to the emperor, and the first Higashikuni Prince, Naruhiko, was the most senior Japanese to become a freemason. While the family is no longer under the jurisdiction of the Imperial Household Agency, it still has close relations with the imperial family, and might be well-placed to undertake this role. T. Wangelin: ‘Freemasonry and Modern Japanese History’, in Tokyo Masonic Lodge No. 2, paper 2 (2007), p. 4. H. Takenaka: Correspondence with the author, (Letter dated 10 April 2007). Document (A), TMA Office, Charitable activities of the Grand Lodge of Japan 1966–1975. Act of Endowment for Zaidan Hojin Tokyo Masonic Kyokai: Chapter 2, Article 3, p. 1. TMA: “Donations, since organization of Tokyo Masonic Association”, pp. 1–7. Ibid. pp. 1 & 2. 171
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18 19 20 21 22 23
24
25
26
Ibid. pp. 2–7. Ibid. pp. 1–3. Ibid. p. 10. Ibid. p. 12. Ibid. p. 14. H. Takenaka: Office Manager, TMA. Information on the charitable and financial aspects of TMA was obtained through personal interview and documents presented at the interview on 11 October 2007. While material in addition to the details presented in this paper was provided during the interview, the author cannot disclose certain information that is deemed confidential by the Board of Trustees. The Board has approved all information presented in this paper for publication. TMA: ‘Basic Principles of the Charitable Plan for the Fiscal Year of 2007 (Proposal), pp. 1–2. H. Takenaka: Office Manager, TMA. Personal interview, 11 October 2007. M. Miyakawa: The Outline of Three PBC Reform Related Laws (English Trans. Summary), p. 1. Mr Miyakawa is Executive Vice President of The Japan Association of Charitable Organizations.
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sMISSIONARIES s
15
Christ Church, Yokohama, and its First Incumbent: Michael Buckworth Bailey, 1862–1872 HAMISH ION
Bailey and a group of yaconin
INTRODUCTION
The historical records of Christ Church,1 the first Protestant Church in Yokohama, which opened its doors on 18 October 1863 at no. 105 in the treaty settlement, have suffered2 from natural and man-made disasters. The Church has stood on top of Yokohama Bluff across the road from the main entrance of the Yokohama Foreign General Cemetery since 1901. This paper investigates the first ten years or so in the life of this Church when Michael Buckworth Bailey (1827–1899),3 was the British Consular Chaplain from his arrival in Yokohama in the summer of 1862 to his departure in March 1872.
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Bailey was a colourful, controversial and prickly character often at odds with other foreigners in Yokohama, but also a figure, flawed though he clearly was, who deserves greater recognition than he has received hitherto. Before discussing Bailey it is necessary to describe the efforts made to create Christ Church. ESTABLISHMENT OF CHRIST CHURCH
As early as the spring of 1860 when Bishop George Smith (1815– 1871) of Victoria (Hong Kong) was visiting, the British community in Yokohama had held a meeting and found that they had sufficient funds both to build a church and to pay a clergyman £600. They had asked for Smith’s help in obtaining ‘the usual assistance of [the British] Government’.4 Surprisingly, Smith did nothing to support this initiative. The real momentum for what would become Christ Church came at a public meeting chaired by William Keswick (1834–1912) of Jardine Matheson held on 28 August 1860, ‘to concert measures to obtain a place of public worship capable of accommodating the community of this Port’.5 A Yokohama Church committee was formed by Keswick and three others, which reported to a general meeting of the foreign community on 4 September 1860 that it was impossible to rent a suitable building and recommended the purchase of land in the New Concession and the building of a Church on it. Further, the committee thought, ‘the permanent requirements of the Settlement will be best met by the establishment of an Episcopal Chapel under the auspices of the Church of England and the British Government’. The Committee asked for the power to negotiate with the British consul for the purchase of a piece of land, and to raise a building loan of $3000 at an interest of 10% per annum, which was estimated to be the combined cost of the land and a Church building. The cost of the loan would be defrayed from the ordinary income of the Church, which would come from subscriptions, pew rents and the sale of sittings. The committee also estimated that the annual expenses of the Church would be $3000 including the salary of a regular chaplain and the interest on the building loan. It was understood that the British government would contribute half of those expenses. The other $1500 would be raised by subscription from among the British community (in its annual subvention to the Church, the British government would only match the amount of money subscribed by British citizens). There was no difficulty in raising the money for the building loan and some $1615 was quickly subscribed toward annual expenses. However, some initial difficulties had to be overcome. The British consul felt slighted because his cooperation had not been requested earlier, and declined to help the committee to make a 174
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formal application to the Japanese government for a piece of land. This quickly changed, however, when the British minister was approached. Lord John Russell at the foreign office was also seen to be in favour, and the Foreign Office organized the selection process for the chaplain whose salary would be £600 a year guaranteed for three years as well as a residence at a rent of £40 a year. The Yokohama Church Establishment Trustees also provided for the chaplain’s outfit and passage from England to Yokohama. 6 By late December 1861 Frank Howard Vyse (1828–1891), the British consul, had in his possession a sum of $1000 which belonged to the foreign community as it represented a surplus upon the receipt of sale of lots in the New Concession. This sum Vyse wanted to use to help build the Church.7 The American consul in Kanagawa, General Eben M. Dorr, objected to the use of such money to build a Church of England church as it would shut out any missionary or countrymen who were not British and of different religious persuasion from benefitting from this money. Dorr suggested that $1000 should be split into three equal parts and given to the three consuls (American, British and French) to allow them to erect a place of public worship of his own nationality.8 This was not viewed as a good idea. It took some time for the church to be built. It was not until 18 October 1863 that Christ Church was opened for church services. The chaplain, Michael Buckworth Bailey, arrived in the summer of 1862, and was among those who expressed thanks to Vyse for his actions in the aftermath of the Richardson Incident. 9 Before the opening of Christ Church, divine service was conducted every Sunday at eleven in the private parlour of Vyse’s residence or at other times in the courtroom of the British consulate.10 Bailey also performed other religious services. In October 1862 he married Augusta S. Fisher, the adopted daughter of Colonel George S. Fisher, the American consul, to John Allmand, Jr. at the American consulate.11 When completed, the church building lacked architectural beauty as a professional architect had not designed it, and the Japanese workmen had some difficulty in interpreting the Western-style plans. However, the nave was 46 feet long and 30 feet wide, the chancel was 14 feet, and it was large enough to accommodate a congregation of 300 to 350.12 Efforts were made to beautify the inside. Bailey himself had some skill as a carpenter. More importantly, in early 1864 at the first annual statutory meeting of the British Episcopal Church Society held at the British consulate, it was noted that visitors to Yokohama had donated a harmonium, and that Vyse had given the church stove, and two of his consular colleagues, Richard Eusden and Marcus Flowers, had provided the font and the lectern respectively.13 At Christmas time, it was decorated in a pleasing manner with flowers 175
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and greenery. In 1865 The Japan Times reported ‘Japan is singular rich in evergreens and its climate, comparatively mild, allows also the introduction into floral decoration of many plants which are exotic in England,’ and together with holly, ivy and fir, the bright berries of the Aucuba Japonica, the deep crimson of camellias and various colours of chrysanthemums and bamboo fronds were used to good effect.14 While it was well decorated at Christmas, the exterior of the church did not have an ecclesiastical appearance, and on entering the building it was reported at the end of 1870 ‘the feeling that it is a Church would hardly be aroused, were it not for the Church Furniture, showing that this latter and the fabric were not designed at the same time nor by the same individual’.15 Already in 1866 there had been talk of building a new church but the cost was estimated at $30,000. It was pointed out that ‘the experience so dearly purchased in Shanghai has taught Yokohama a lesson as to any speculative efforts in Church building, and though considering the number of Foreign Residents, our average congregation on Sundays equals that at Shanghai, we have been glad to find that in Yokohama there has been a decided reluctance in incurring in church matters expenses which could not be readily met, and which could not be expected to receive the sanction of the Home Government.’16 Those at Christ Church compared themselves to their Anglican counterparts in Shanghai. Yokohama, while not a colony, was still part of a British imperial maritime world, one of a network of British ports and garrisons that included Singapore, Hong Kong and Shanghai, which connected East Asia to the other British interests in the Indian Ocean region, Australasia and beyond. At the end of 1870 The Japan Weekly Mail reported that there was a desire for expanding the church building.17 It was argued that the church had outgrown its accommodation, and with pews taken up by the diplomatic community and others set aside for visiting merchant marines, there was a shortage of pews and seats that could be bought by members of the congregation. An extension to the church could also be used to allow for some outside design changes to give Christ Church a more ecclesiastical look. However, the size of the Christ Church congregation became a matter of concern when it was announced that a Union Church for the foreign community in Yokohama was going to be formed. In late December 1871, The Japan Weekly Mail came out strongly against forming a Union Church on the grounds that there were already one Roman Catholic and three Protestant chapels in Yokohama. It feared that a new church would cause a further falling away of the congregation at Christ Church and so put its financial future in jeopardy. The newspaper reported that Christ Church was finding it difficult to make ends meet. The newspaper noted ‘while the Foreign Office 176
CHRIST CHURCH, YOKOHAMA, AND ITS FIRST INCUMBENT
has, we presume, no intention of withdrawing its grant, it assuredly will not increase it, and as its value depends upon the amount derivable from the pew rents, it is of great importance that these should not be allowed to fall off.’18 A new Union Church would draw members away from Christ Church. It was pointed out that the cost of living in Yokohama was very expensive and ‘none of us would wish to see our pastor in circumstances necessitating more attention to the petty cares of life than is compatible with the discharge of his pastoral duties towards his congregation.’19 It went on to argue that even though the Yokohama chaplaincy was not a rich prize, it still ‘should not be less than a comfortable and proper provision for a man drawn from that substantial class which chiefly supplies the clergy of the Church of England. We all look to our clergyman being a gentleman, it is more than probable that he will be a married man, and while we hold that prudence, frugality, and moderation should eminently distinguish a clergyman, it is quite inconsistent with the traditions of eastern settlements that their pastors should be in harsh and narrow circumstances.’20 While Bailey fitted the mould of being a university graduate and possibly able to pass as a gentleman, he was weighed down by the need to support a large family. MICHAEL BUCKWORTH BAILEY
Bailey came from a missionary family having been born at Cottayam, Travancore in India. He had attended school in Dewsbury, Yorkshire, and was admitted as a sizar at Sidney Sussex College, Cambridge in 1850, receiving his BA in 1854. He was ordained a deacon the same year, and elevated to priest by the Bishop of Rochester in 1856. From 1854 to 1856 he had been curate at St. Mary’s, North Mymms, Hertfordshire, and between 1856 and 1861 he had held other curacies.21 He was not a missionary to the Japanese and so is not included among the ranks of the first missionaries in Japan. Despite that, he was not only a Christian presence in Yokohama for a considerable number of years, but was also a colourful, if controversial, character in sharp contrast to many of his austere, if not drab, American non-Conformist counterparts. Harold S. Williams, the energetic Australian scribe of amusing and mildly indiscreet tales of foreigners in Mikadoland found that Bailey’s antics provided him with good copy.22 The response to Bailey, when he first arrived in Yokohama, however, was positive. In early August 1862 William Willis, then attached as a medical doctor to the British legation, wrote to his brother that Bailey had recently arrived and ‘he seems a good sort of unaffected man I heard him preach a short sermon last Sunday which I believe has pleased the community very fairly.’23 Mrs James Curtis Hepburn (1818–1906), the wife of the American Presbyterian lay 177
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medical missionary and lexicographer, did not care for the Episcopal form of worship, but she liked Bailey’s sermons, which she considered excellent and most evangelical.24 In his Christmas sermon in 1865 Bailey called on the Christ Church congregation ‘on behalf of distressed British subjects who find themselves at this far away point of earth, stranded without the means of livelihood or of returning to lands where work is to be got.’25 The Christ Church congregation showed their esteem for Bailey and his services in 1865 ‘by requesting his acceptance, on Christmas morning, of a substantial Christmas gift’, which The Japan Times thought ‘was well-deserved’.26 There was a difference, however, between Bailey the priest who gave good sermons and Bailey the private family man. Hugh Cortazzi has suggested, ‘Bailey seems to have been a difficult and unpleasant fellow’ who was known to have ‘whipped his servants and on one occasion put them in sacks to prevent them from running away. But the community seems to have put up with him perhaps out of pity for his wife and children.’27 At the time of their arrival, Willis noted Mrs Bailey was pregnant for the fourth time, and that the Bailey children ‘are noisy & ill-reared’.28 By the time the Baileys left they had nine children.29 In a community that relished scandal, Mrs Bailey, ‘the parson’s wife’ as Willis referred to her, describing her as ‘a good-natured cook like woman’ ran foul of the community in late 1863 when she touted the looks and artistic accomplishments of her sister, a Miss Davis, who was coming out to Japan, and in doing so ‘set all the ladies of the place dead against her before ever she arrived, and I assure you we have got some smart ones amongst us, and all the gentlemen of the place on the qui vive expecting a beautiful accomplished young lady with all the possible and impossible charms in the world.’30 Part of the problem for Bailey, his wife and family was that they lived a fish bowl existence under the scrutiny of a foreign community that seemingly loved to gossip. Arthur Collins Maclay (1853–1930), the son of an American Methodist Episcopal missionary, later noted the Westerners in Yokohama thought, ‘a bitter controversy between the chaplain and the community upon some trifling church affair, is an invigorating species of diversion that appears to have peculiar charms, and is devoutly encouraged on all possible occasions.’31 Yet Bailey is remembered for publishing a Japanese language paper, Bankoku Shimbunshi (ਁ࿖ᣂ⡞⚕ which aimed to ‘acquaint Japanese with the affairs of all nations’ and lasted for a full two years and five months after 1867.32 It was not altogether enthusiastically endorsed by The Japan Times’ Overland Mail, which noted perceptively ‘a newspaper was started in the spring by the Consular Chaplain, the Revd. M.B. Bailey, printed in the vernacular, from which we anticipated some good; but it is badly conducted and, however profitable 178
CHRIST CHURCH, YOKOHAMA, AND ITS FIRST INCUMBENT
its advertisements may prove to its proprietor, it appears to contain very little information likely to be of service to the Japanese’33 In 1867 the Bankoku Shimbunshi was running ten advertisements per issue.34 Given his large family, Bailey was probably motivated by the possibility of running the newspaper at a profit. Bailey was also known for his horticultural activities. Together with (Lt.) William H. Smith (who was an active member of the Christ Church congregation), he created a garden (eventually named ‘Bailey’s Garden’) in which varieties of European and American vegetables were introduced into Japan. Smith was involved in raising pigs with Bailey.35 With a growing family, it was understandable that Bailey would be interested in agricultural pursuits that would lessen his living expenses. As the consular chaplain Bailey’s spiritual responsibilities also extended to the British garrison in Yokohama. In late September 1865 the troopship HMS Adventure arrived in Yokohama from Hong Kong with an officer and 22 rank and file, 55 women and 78 children, dependents of members of the 2nd Battalion/XX Regiment (Lancashire Regiment), which had been part of the British garrison in Yokohama since January 1864 as well as well as 4 officers and 150 rank and file, 5 women and 8 children belonging to 2nd Battalion, 11 Regiment (Devonshire Regiment). 36 A considerable number of the new arrivals were sick because of the unhealthy conditions in Hong Kong. Apparently, little effort was made by the British military authorities in Yokohama to take care of the sick or even to see that transportation, comforts and rations were available for the newcomers when landed. For some three months during the summer, sickness and mortality had been very high among the Hong Kong garrison and its military hospitals and medical staff overstretched. While health conditions in Hong Kong were going from bad to worse, The Japan Herald was ‘astounded to find on enquiry, that during this state of things in Hongkong, nearly all the heads of departments are absent, and in Yokohama, grumbling at its dullness and enjoying the itziboo exchange.’37 The heads of department included the General Officer Commanding in China, and the Principal Medical and Sanitary Officer of HM forces in China. This was a serious charge because it suggested that these officers were in Japan because they could make a profit out of the exchange rate and were neglecting their professional responsibilities to the troops they commanded in Hong Kong. Bailey became involved because he defended the actions of Major-General P.M.N. Guy and other officers in looking after the sick when they arrived in Yokohama. The Japan Herald viciously attacked Bailey as misrepresenting the facts when he wrote to the Herald.38 At the time the XX Regiment was leaving Japan, General Guy ordered Dr Woodward, a military doctor in Yokohama, to read an apology 179
BRITAIN & JAPAN: BIOGRAPHICAL PORTRAITS VOLUME IX
before the officers and heads of departments of the Garrison for unfounded charges brought by him against Bailey.39 Controversy followed him. He took R.P. Bridgens (1819–1891), the American building contractor to the American consular court over defamation of character.40 At another time, he was censored for not being present at burials. His relations with the Church committee and the organist were often not good. It would appear also that Bailey followed questionable bookkeeping practices, which contributed to his leaving Christ Church to return home. Bailey himself put a better face on his departure. In January 1873 Bailey, now back in England, explained that he had received a leave of absence from F.O. Adams, British chargé d’affaires in Japan, in late November 1871 to return to England after ten years of continuous service as consular chaplain in Yokohama because of ill-health.41 He had not been able to leave Yokohama until March 1872, however, because his wife was seriously ill, and, did not, in fact, reach England until November (having been delayed at one point six weeks after leaving Yokohama). Another reason for the sheer length of time that it took to get back to England was that the Baileys had been recommended for health reasons to return via the Cape.42 The Foreign Office was sympathetic to the extent that they awarded him a pension of £68 10s 11d per year.43 After he left Japan, Bailey was curate of Hampstead 1874 to 1875, and then curate of Stoke Newington between 1875 and 1898. In 1898 he became Rector of Cold Norton, Essex but he died on 6 December 1899. He published a hymnal and helped with the publication of a parishioner’s memoir of the hemp industry. The ten years that he had spent in Japan probably represented the most exciting years of his life. CHRIST CHURCH AFTER BAILEY
Bailey’s immediate successor was Edward Syle, who is better-known than Bailey as a result of his long and distinguished career as Protestant Episcopal missionary in China prior to coming to Japan, his teaching career at the Kaisei Gakko¯ (the forerunner of Tokyo Imperial University) in Tokyo after he left Christ Church, and his connections to the embryonic Asiatic Society of Japan. However, by the time Syle took up his post Christ Church was facing financial difficulties. In early January 1873 a Church Meeting learnt that 9 whole pews at $90 each and 128 sittings let at $20 had produced an income of $3370 ($2245.50 was deemed to come from British Residents’ subscriptions, but even so the British Government grant for 1871 was only $1513.41, $600 less than amount raised by those who were British subjects which it was supposed to match). As the chaplain’s salary in 1872 was $3,294.12, the Church was deeply reliant on the 180
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British government grant. There seemed to be little enthusiasm for an increase in the charges for pews and sittings. 44 It was the government grant that made Christ Church a viable institution. In early January 1874, The Japan Weekly Mail reported that the government had paid £800 (£400 per annum for 1873 and 1874) and given notice that its grant in aid would cease.45 With the end of the government support grant so went Syle. Syle had a one year contract as acting incumbent which ended on 31 March 1873, but he continued without a renewed arrangement at a rate of pay of $275 a month. Christ Church had only sufficient funds to pay him until the end of March 1874.46 After that the Church could no longer afford a permanent chaplain. William Frederick Henry Garratt served for a time as chaplain and in 1877 he performed a Japanese language marriage service between a foreigner and a Japanese woman. W.B. Wright, one of the two pioneer SPG missionaries, gave Japanese language services at Christ Church for the benefit of Japanese students. This latter activity is seen as the beginning of St. Andrew’s Church, Yokohama, which was a Church for Japanese, while Christ Church remained for foreigners.47 It was not until 1880 when Edward Champneys Irwine was appointed chaplain that Christ Church was able to find a permanent cleric, one who stayed for twenty-one years.48 Irwine was the last chaplain to preside over the original church in the Treaty Settlement. On Trinity Sunday, 2 June 1901, a new red brick Church was consecrated on the Bluff on a site just within the fence of South Camp and just within the Colonel’s Gate, one of the gates to what had been the barracks of the British forces guarding the Yokohama Settlement prior to 1875. In 1901 the Church moved to a new building designed by Josiah Conder at Yamate no. 234. That church was destroyed in the 1923 Earthquake.49 In May 1931 a new Christ Church built in the style of an English country church was consecrated but it was badly damaged in the bombing raid on Yokohama on 29 May 1945. During much of the War the church building had been used as a storage facility for the Japanese Naval Hospital in Yokohama.50 At Easter 1947 the restored church reopened for services as the Yamate Kyo¯kai with the English language Christ Church congregation holding their services in the now Japanese Anglican church building. And so it continues to the present. ENDNOTES 1
Eric Witham Casson, The Church on Colonel’s Corner: Christ Church, Yokohama, 1862–1962 (Yokohama: Christ Church, Yokohama, 1962). All filed records of the first sixty years of Christ Church in Yokohama were destroyed in the earthquake and fire of 1923. See acknowledgements. For a brief historical sketch of Yokohama Christ Church, see Nihon Kirisutokyô Henshû Iinkai, Nihon Kirisutokyô Rekishi Daijiten 181
BRITAIN & JAPAN: BIOGRAPHICAL PORTRAITS VOLUME IX
2
3
4 5
6
7 8
9 10
11 12 13 14 15
16 17
(Tokyo: Kyôbunkan, 1988) (hereafter cited as NKRD), p. 1466. See also Yokohama Yamate Seikôkai 50 Nenshi Henshû Iinkai, Shû ni kansha: Nihon Seikôkai Yokohama Yamate Seikôkai gojûnen shi Give Praise to the Lord: The Fifty Year History of the Nippon Seikôkai’s Yokohama Yamate Anglican Church) (Yokohama: Nippon Seikôkai Yokohama Seikôkai, 1998), p.19. Christ Church was the second Anglican Church in Japan, the first was the English Church at no. 11 (Higashiyamate) in the Nagasaki Treaty Settlement which was opened in October 1862. See Brian Burke-Gaffney, Nagasaki: The British Experience, 1854–1945 (Folkestone: Global Oriental, 2009), p. 33. See also Nippon Seikôkai Yokohama Kyôku Rekishi Henshû Iinkai, Mina ni yorite: Yokohama Kyôku 125 nen no ayumi In His Name: 125 Years of the Diocese of Yokohama) (Tokyo: Seikôkai Shuppan, 1998), (hereafter cited as Yokohama Kyôku 125 nen no ayumi) p. 28. Segawa Yoshio, ‘Yokohama no Seiko¯kai’, (Yokohama’s Seiko¯kai (Anglican Churches) in Yokohama Purotesutantoshi Kenkyu¯kai hen, Yokohama Kirsutokyo¯ Bunkashi, (The Cultural History of Yokohama Christianity) (Yokohama: Yu¯rindo¯, 1992), pp. 100–103, p. 100. For a brief biographical note on Bailey in Japan, see NKRD, p. 1267. See also Nippon Seiko¯kai Rekishi Henshu¯ Iinkai, Nippon Seiko¯kai hyakunenshi, (The Centennial History of the Nippon Seiko¯kai) (Tokyo: Nippon Seiko¯kai Kyo¯muin Bunsho Kyoku, 1959), p. 87. The Japan Herald (hereafter cited TJH), 22 November 1862. TJH, 25 January 1862. Unless otherwise noted, the information in the rest of this paragraph comes from this issue. TJH, 21 December 1861, see printed letter, Russell to Alcock, 26 June 1861. See also Foreign Office (hereafter cited FO) 46/26 Minutes on Summary of Letter from Rev. M. Buckworth Bailey to Hammond, 23 December 1861; FO 46/26 Hammond to Bailey, 9 January 1862. TJH, 21 December 1861. TJH, 21 December 1861. See printed letter, Dorr to Vyse, 24 November 1861. General Dorr was concerned with looking after the interests of American missionaries who were planning to build their own Chapel. See Hamish Ion, American Missionaries, Christian Oyatoi and Japan 1859–73 (Vancouver: University of British Columbia Press, 2009), pp. 52–54. See supplement to TJH, 20 September 1862. See, for instance, notice in TJH, 8 February 1862, notice in TJH, 27 September 1862. See, married notice, TJH, 25 October 1862. TJH, 24 October 1863. TJH, 23 January 1864. TJT, 29 December 1865. TJWM, Church Accommodation, 3 December 1870. Unless otherwise indicated all quotations and information in this paragraph comes from here. Ibid. See, Church Accommodation, The Japan Weekly Mail (hereafter cited as TJWM), 3 December 1870. 182
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18 19 20 21
22
23
24
25 26 27
28
29 30
31
32
See, Union Church, TJWM, 23 December 1871. Ibid. Ibid. See J. A. Venn, Alumni Cantabrigienses: A Bibliographical List of All Known Students, Graduates and Holders of Office at the University of Cambridge, from Earliest Times to 1900, Part II From 1752 to 1900, volume 1: Abbey to Challis (Cambridge: At the University Press, 1940), p. 118. Harold S. Williams, Foreigners in Mikadoland (Rutland, Vermont and Tokyo: Charles E. Tuttle, 1963), pp. 132–139. See also Neil Pedlar, The Imported Pioneers: Westerners Who Helped Build Modern Japan (Sandgate, Folkestone, Kent: Japan Library Ltd., 1990), pp. 85–87. Willis to George Willis, 4 August 1862, Willis Papers, Bun 44–2, Yokohama Kaiko¯ Shiryo¯kan. See also page 56 of Dr Willis in Japan British Medical Pioneer 1862–1877, Hugh Cortazzi, Athlone Press, 1985. Ion, American Missionaries, p. 55, citing Clara Hepburn to Lowrie, 16 March 1864, Presbyterian Church Board of Foreign Missions Japan, microfilm reel 104. TJT, 29 December 1865. £40 to £50 was raised. Ibid. Hugh Cortazzi, Victorians in Japan: In and around the Treaty Ports (London: The Athlone Press, 1987), p. 78. See also Cortazzi, Dr Willis in Japan, 1862–1877: British Medical Pioneer (London: Athlone Press, 1985). Willis to George Willis, 4 August 1862, Willis Papers, Bun 44–2, Yokohama Kaiko¯ Shiryo¯kan. FO 46/171, Bailey to Hammond, 6 January 1873. Willis to George Willis, 17 December 1863, Willis Papers, Bun 44–5, Yokohama Kaiko¯ Shiryo¯kan. Cortazzi has pointed out that Miss Davis got drunk at a ball in 1865 and was sick over herself and other people. See Cortazzi, Victorians in Japan, p. 77. Arthur Collins Maclay, A Budget of Letters from Japan: Reminiscences of Work and Travel in Japan (New York: A.C. Armstrong, 1886), p. 29. James L. Huffman, Creating a Public: People and Press in Meiji Japan (Honolulu: University of Hawai’i Press, 1997), p. 410, note 84. Peter Kornicki also noted that this newspaper ‘was produced by an English clergyman in 1867–69 and was widely distributed from Hakodate to Nagasaki’, but like Joseph Heco’s early Kaigai shinbun (ᶏᄖᣂ⡞, the first private Japanese language newspaper published between 1865 and 1866, it did not prove a success, Peter Kornicki, The Book in Japan: A Cultural History from the Beginnings to the Nineteenth Century (Honolulu: University of Hawai’i Press Paperback, 2001), p. 66. Grace Fox goes into a little more detail about the content of the Bankoku Shimbunshi, see Grace Fox, Britain and Japan 1858–1883 (Oxford: Clarendon Press, 1969), pp. 440–41. See also James Hoare, ‘British Journalists in Meiji Japan’, in Ian Nish, ed., Britain and Japan: Biographical Portraits (Folkestone, Kent: Japan Library, 1974), pp. 20–32, especially p. 30–31. Bailey’s newspaper should not be confused with John Reddie Black (1827–1880)’s Japanese language paper Bankoku Shimbun which was published briefly in 1876 and led to the British ban on British subjects publishing in Japanese.ޓ 183
BRITAIN & JAPAN: BIOGRAPHICAL PORTRAITS VOLUME IX
33
34 35
36 37
38 39 40
41 42 43 44 45 46 47 48 49 50
The Japan Times’ Overland Mail (hereafter cited as TJTOM), review for the year 1867, 29 January 1868. Huffman, Creating a Public, p. 180. Bailey wrote about the garden in Bankoku Shimbunshi, vol. 3, 1867. In 1893 the garden was commemorated with the establishment at Yamate 52 of ‘Bailey’s Garden’. See Yokohama Kaiko¯ Shiryo¯ Fukyu¯ Kyokai, Yokohama mono no hajime ko¯ (Thoughts on the Beginning of Things Yokohama) (Yokohama: Yokohama Shiryo¯kan Fukyu¯ Kyo¯kai, 2003) p. 20, pp. 52–53. These gardens provided the residents of the Yokohama Foreign Settlement with most of their European vegetables. See Williams, Foreigners in Mikadoland, p. 133. For W. H. Smith, ‘Public Spirited’ Smith, see Williams, The Foreign Settlements in Japan (Rutland, Vt.: Charles E. Tuttle, 1972), pp. 222–224. Smith also started a Western laundry, see TJT, 10 November 1865, advertisement Washing Establishment, no. 131 Lower Concession. TJH, 23 September 1865. Ibid. See also TJT, 22 September 1865. See also Yokohama Kaiko¯ Shiryo¯kan, Shiryo¯ de tadoru Meiji Ishin ki no Yokohama Eibu chu¯ton gun (Materials tracing the British and French Occupation Forces in Yokohama During the Meiji Restoration Period) (Yokohama: Yokohama Kaiko¯ Shiryo¯kan Fukyu¯ Kyo¯kai, 1994), p. 61. TJH, 14 October 1865. TJT, 19 May 1866. See Williams, ‘The Energetic Rev. Buckworth Bailey’, pp. 134–36. For Bridgens, see Yokohama mono no hajime ko¯,p. 105. FO 46/171, Bailey to Hammond, 6 January 1873. Ibid. FO 46/171 Hammond to Bailey, 31 March 1873. See, Church Meeting, TJWM, 4 January 1873. See, Christ Church, TJWM, 3 January 1874. See, Episcopal Church Meeting, TJMl, 10 February 1874. NKRDJ, p. 1467. See also Yokohama Kyôku 125 nen no ayumi, p. 29. Casson, The Church on Colonel’s Corner, p. 8. Yokohama mono no hajime ko¯, p. 172. Shû no kansha: Nihon Seikôkai Yokohama Yamate Seikôkai gojûnenshi, p. 21.
184
16
British Bible Societies and the Translation of the Bible into Japanese in the Nineteenth Century HAMISH ION The cross-denominational British and Foreign Bible Society1 was founded in 1804 with William Wilberforce as its patron to promote the wider circulation of the Christian scriptures not only in England and Wales but also overseas. Its aim was to translate and distribute the Christian Bible without note or comment in as many languages as possible.2 In 1809 in response to the Scottish enthusiasm for the formation of the BFBS and the desire to maintain a Scottish identity, various local Bible societies north of the border came together to form their own separate National Bible Society of Scotland.3 These two Societies patronized by evangelical noblemen and endowed with Georgian and Victorian wealth quickly became multinational organizations establishing overseas territories and agencies and working closely with the burgeoning British missionary movement to spread the Protestant Christian message throughout the world. Using the latest technology in printing, the extent of Bible production was enormous. In China alone, in 1899 the year’s printing exceeded 1,000,000 copies.4 Writing about India, Eugene Stock, the historian of the Church Missionary Society (CMS), noted ‘the question is often and justly put. What would the Missionary Societies do without the Bible Society? Yet it would be equally just to ask. What would the Bible Society do without Missionary Societies, which provide the living men who are the translators and revisers [of the Bible]?’5 The Bible Societies were an essential part of the worldwide missionary effort. Clearly, the BFBS was the ‘valued fellow-worker of all missions’,6 and so it would also prove to be in Japan. The Bible Societies were engaged in both supporting the translation of the Bible and its distribution through the employment of colporteurs and Bible-women, which also supplemented and benefitted 185
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the work of missionaries in the field. From their headquarters in London and Edinburgh, the two Bible Societies worked through their own European supervising agents and local Committees made up of missionaries to undertake and supervise the work of the Societies in mission field. The Bible Societies followed in the wake of the major British missionary societies coming to Japan (the CMS in 1869 and the Society for the Propagation of the Gospel in Foreign Parts (SPG) in 1873 and missionaries from the United Presbyterian Church of Scotland in 1874) with the NBSS arriving in 1875 with John Austin Thomson (1857–1897)7 as its first agent and the BFBS with Isaac John Taylor as its first agent in 1876. Playing a subordinate role to the Bible Societies were the London Religious Tract Society8 and the American Tract Society,9 organizations, which were also in the business of supporting the publication and distribution of Christian tracts but not involved directly in translation work. There was much overlap between not only the missionary personnel on Committees for the Bible Societies and the Tract Societies but also the supporters of those Societies and missionary societies. By the time the NBSS and the BFBS began work in Japan, much of the translation of the New Testament had been already undertaken10 and its translators were working closely with the American Bible Society (ABS),11 even though their first agent resident in Japan, Luther Halsey Gulick (1828–1891),12 only arrived in Japan at the beginning of 1876. Thus, the attention of the British Societies was directed toward the translation of the Old Testament. The independent work of the two British Societies only lasted a relatively short period because in 1890 the ABS joined with the BFBS and NBSS to form a representative Bible Societies committee to prevent friction and overlapping and to save the expense of separate independent establishments between the three Bible Societies. Henry Loomis (1839–1920),13 a former American Presbyterian missionary and since 1881 the agent of the ABS in Japan, was in charge of the ‘House’ in Yokohama, while the ‘Field’ with its colportage and correspondents was assigned to George Braithwaite (1861–1931),14 the BFBS agent and secretary of the new Bible Societies Committee, and to Annard, the agent of the NBSS.15 Also in the same year, the London Religious Tract Society joined forces with the American Tract Society to form a combined missionary membered Tract Societies committee to further their work in Japan.16 The translation of the Old Testament, which took place between 1876 and 1888, was completed before the triple union Bible Societies committee was formed and so allows the contributions of the two British Societies to be more clearly seen and appreciated. Furthermore, the support that the British Bible Societies gave to the Bible publishing efforts of individual British missionaries in Japan sheds 186
BRITISH BIBLE SOCIETIES AND THE TRANSLATION OF THE BIBLE
further light on missionary efforts to spread the Christian message to the Japanese. The BFBS was able to distribute 9280 copies of parts of the Bible in 1884 and this increased to 10,139 in 1886. It also bore its share of the cost of the publication of the various new portions of the Old Testament, of a pocket edition of the New Testament that was sold for 25 sen (8d), and of a corrected edition of the Standard New Testament, which was in romaji.17 Yet the effort to translate the Bible into Japanese had begun a long time before the NBSS and BFBS came to Japan. THE NEW TESTAMENT
The first steps to translating the Bible into Japanese had begun during the so-called ‘Christian Century’ in the late sixteenth and early seventeenth centuries by Portuguese Roman Catholic missionaries and their converts.18 Yet the persecution of Christians in Japan and the maritime exclusion edicts enforced by the Tokugawa Shogunate meant it was not until the early nineteenth century that the next attempts at translation are made, these from outside of Japan. The first of these was a Japanese version of the Gospel of St. John, which was published by the American Board of Commissioners for Foreign Missions (Congregationalist) in Singapore in 1837 by Karl Friederick August Gützlaff (1803–1851).19 Samuel Wells Williams (1812–1884), 20 a lay American Board missionary printer in Macao, with the help of stranded Japanese fisherman continued on this early attempt at Japanese translation and by 1839 had translated by 1839 Gospel of St. Matthew into Japanese.21 Further, Bernard Jean Bettelheim (1811–1870), the pioneer missionary of the Loochoo Naval Mission resident in Naha between 1846 and 1854, 22 who knew both Gutzlaff and Williams did manage to translate four chapters of the New Testament, the Acts of the Apostles and Romans into the Ryu¯kyu¯an languages.23 He also added a Japanese language appendix to the Chinese language translation of the Gospel of St. Luke. In 1858 this Chinese-Japanese version of St. Luke was published by the BFBS in parallel kanji and katakana in Hong Kong with 500 copies printed.24 Yet, it was the translation of the Bible into Chinese rather than these earlier attempts by Gützlaff, Williams and Bettelheim to translate it into Japanese that was more helpful to the first Protestant missionaries in Japan after 1859 as they struggled to learn Japanese, and to translate the Gospels into Japanese. The impetus for a Chinese Bible came with the formation of the British and Foreign Bible Society in 1804, and was seen as a necessary tool for missionary work in China. Robert Morrison (1782–1834),25 a Scotsman who joined the London Missionary Society and landed in Canton in 1807 began translating the Bible from 1810. As the 187
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Chinese prohibition of Christianity prevented him from propagating the Gospel among the Chinese, he worked in the translation bureau of the East India Company. By 1814 he had translated the four Gospels, and in 1815 with the assistance of William Milne (1785– 1822),26 he had begun to translate the Old Testament. In 1818 the English merchant ship, Gordon, had brought the Morrison Gospels close to Japan when it distributed copies of them to the two thousand fishermen that it came across off Uraga. In 1823 Morrison and Milne’s translation of the Old Testament was published in Malacca. When Gutzlaff visited the Ryu¯kyu¯s in 1832, he distributed copies of the Morrison translations. When Morrison died in 1834, the work of translating the Bible fell to Gutzlaff and William Henry Medhurst (1796–1857)27 for there was a need for an improved translation. In 1843 the Missionary Conference held in Hong Kong made a decision to form a translation committee chaired by Medhurst. In 1852 a full New Testament was published in Shanghai, but Bishop William Jones Boone (1811–1864),28 the Protestant Episcopal bishop, and Elijah Coleman Bridgman (1801–1861)29 both expressed their disapproval of this translation. This translation (the so-called Delegates’ Version) was challenged over the use of some terms (the so-called ‘term question’) most especially that of Theos (Ꮲ ) for God.30 From 1851 Bridgeman and Michael Simpson Cuthbertson31 worked on a new different translation with the New Testament published in 1861 and the Old Testament in 1863. The next year the combined edition of the New and Old Testament was published in Shanghai.32 It was the Bridgman and Cuthbertson version, which was the most influential Chinese Bible for those translating the Bible into Japanese in part because Hepburn and S.R. Brown who were the main early pioneers of New Testament translation in Japan had been China missionaries prior to coming to Japan and knew Bridgman.33 While this greatly aided Japan missionary translators to avoid much of the debate over what characters to use for God that had developed among China missionary translators by adopting the Chinese equivalent to God used by Bridgman and Cuthbertson for use in the Japanese Bible. Where the problems over terms arose was among Japanese converts because while the character for God (kami, ) was the same in Chinese and Japanese, its meaning was different across the cultural barrier.34 From the time that the first Protestant missionaries arrived in Japan in 1859, language study and Bible translation was a primary concern for them. In 1872 a translation committee for the translation of the New Testament was formed in Yokohama in order to coordinate inter-denominational efforts. The translation committee did not commence to meet until June 1874 by which time it included Hepburn, Brown, Daniel Crosby Greene (1843–1911), 188
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an American Board missionary, Robert Samuel Maclay (1824–1907), superintendent of the Methodist Episcopal mission, Nathan Brown (1807–1886), an American Baptist missionary, William Ball Wright (1843–1912) of the SPG and John Piper (1840–1932) of the CMS.35 Nathan Brown left the translation committee in 1876 to pursue his own independent translation,36 Maclay was absent from Yokohama for much of the latter part of the 1870s and both Wright and Piper were resident most of time in Tokyo, thus the major work of translation was carried out by Hepburn, Brown and Greene. The translation was published between August 1875 and April 1880 as various parts of the New Testament beginning with Gospel of St. Luke and ending with Revelations were completed.37 One of the difficulties that the translation committee faced was not only denominational preferences in terminology which had led to Nathan Brown’s withdrawal but also stylistic problems with the committee attempting to avoid ‘on the one hand, the quasi Chinese style, intelligible to the highly educated only, and, on the other, a vulgar colloquial, which, though easily understood (in the locality where it is indigenous), might make the Scriptures contemptible, we should choose that style which, while respected even by the so-called literati, was easy and intelligible to all classes. We thus adhered to the vernacular or pure Japanese, a style which may be called classical and in which many of the best books intended for the common reader are written.’38 What this meant, however, was there was a good deal of scope for the New Testament to be republished in different stylistic forms. In 1886 the BFBS, for instance, supported the publication in Yokohama of Hepburn’s rendering of the New Testament in romaji.39 Likewise, in 1886, the BFBS published a Baptist version of the New Testament, which had been completed by William John White (1848–1901),40 the English Baptist missionary. THE OLD TESTAMENT
In October 1876 a meeting took place in Tsukiji between four missionaries living in Tokyo, which decided that they should seek to cooperate with the translation committee in Yokohama to begin the translation of the Old Testament.41 In 1878 at a Missionary Conference held at the Union Church in Tsukiji, it was decided to form a ‘permanent committee’ with at least one member from each of the Missions operating in Japan. This permanent committee requested the BFBS and NBSS to contribute to the subsidization of the translation and publication of the Old Testament, and Isaac John Taylor, the BFBS agent in Japan, keenly supported this. The permanent committee included many of those from the New Testament translation committee including Wright, Piper, Nathan Brown, Greene, Maclay, 189
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Hepburn but also J. Hamilton Quinby (d. 1882) of the Protestant Episcopal mission, Waddell, George Cochran (1834–1901) of the Canadian Methodist mission, Jonathan Goble, the American Baptist and Frederick C. Krecker (1843–1883), the American missionary doctor.42 Hepburn was named the chairman of the Old Testament committee and Cochran, the corresponding secretary. Cochran was on the committee because of his considerable knowledge of Hebrew, and not for his knowledge of Japanese, which was not extensive. Like the earlier New Testament committee, the actual translation work devolved on a small number of members. The question of the language to be used in translation was a matter of some discussion outside of missionary circles for Basil Hall Chamberlain (1850–1935) gave a paper on ‘Suggestions for a Japanese Rendering of the Psalms’ at a meeting of the Asiatic Society of Japan in April 1880, and he translated for this presentation twelve poems of the Psalms into the socalled ‘Archaic Tongue’ dating back to the eighth century or earlier.43 However, the BFBS and the Translation Committee were concerned with uniformity of language with the New Testament, and were not about to use archaic Japanese which only a few could read. As was the case with the New Testament, the brunt of the translation work was carried out by relatively few people: Hepburn, Philip Kimball Fyson (1846–1928),44 the CMS missionary, Verbeck of the Dutch Reformed mission and David Thompson (1835–1915)45 of the American Presbyterian mission. It is very probable that they represented the most able Japanese language scholars among missionaries at that time. Other missionaries also contributed to the translation process to a lesser or greater extent including Piper, Wright, Walter Dening (1846–1913), who left the CMS in 1883, Robert Young Davidson (1846–1909) of the Scottish UPS, Clement T. Blanchet (1845–1928) of the Protestant Episcopal mission and Channing Moore Williams (1829–1910), the Protestant Episcopal bishop.46 C.M. Williams who had utilized his knowledge of Chinese to make some Japanese Bible translations including the Gospel of St. Matthew in the early 1860s when he was a missionary in Nagasaki but by 1878 turned his attention was directed toward a Japanese language Book of Common Prayer in which he was assisted by Piper and Charles Frederick Warren (1841–1899) for the Anglican missions in Japan and away from Bible translation.47 As Williams’ case illustrates individual missions had their own denominational needs for Japanese language prayer books and hymns as well as the Bible, and had to devote attention to translating them. The Old Testament, like the New, was published as its various books were translated beginning in 1882 and continuing until 1888 when the complete Old Testament was finished. Both the BFBS and the NBSS were heavily involved with the ABS in publishing either in 190
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combination or alone the various books of the Old Testament as they were translated. William Canton, the historian of the BFBS, makes much of the celebration of the publication of the complete Bible at a public meeting at the Shin Sakae Kyo¯kai in Tokyo in February 1888 when Hepburn holding the New Testament in one hand and the newly published Old Testament in the other brought the two books reverently together and declared them a ‘loving gift to Japan’ from the whole body of missionaries in Japan and the whole of the Church of Christ in America and England.48 While the missionaries took most of the credit for the translation of the Old Testament, some outstanding Japanese assisted them. Of these, Matsuyama Takayoshi (1847–1935, ᧻ጊ㜞ศ) who had been baptized by Greene in Kobe in 1874 and Takahashi Goro¯ (1856–1935, 㜞ᯅ㇢) who had been taught by S.R. Brown in Yokohama in the early 1870s were the most prominent.49 Yet two figures who would later become influential Christian leaders, Ibuka Kajinosuke (1854–1940, ᫃ᷓਯഥ) and Uemura Masahisa (1858–1925, ᬀᱜਭ) who like Takahashi had been baptized in Yokohama in the early 1870s, also helped in the translations.50 Without the assistance of these Japanese translators, the task of producing the Old Testament would have been much more difficult. In 1888 the BFBS printed over 65,000 volumes – editions of the Old Testament, small Reference New Testament and Psalms, a cheap New Testament published joined with the NBSS and ABS at a cost of ten sen (5d), the Gospel of St. John in raised type for the blind. The circulation of the BFBS stood at 37,703 copies, while the NBSS and ABS distributed between them over 111,000 copies more.51 As well as the Japanese Old Testament, the BFBS was also much involved with John Batchelor (1854–1944),52 the CMS missionary in Hokkaido¯, and published his Ainu translations of the Old Testament Book of Jonah and the New Testament Gospel of St. Matthew in 1889.53 In that year, the Bible Societies were distributing 44,785 copies of various parts of the Old and New Testament including a New Testament for the blind of which an estimated 150,000 copies were in circulation.54 While these figures were down from those of 1888, they were still a large number. The British Bible Societies were certainly making sure that the Christian Bible was circulating among the Japanese even if the British missionaries found it hard to convince many Japanese to become Christians. GLOSSARY OF JAPANESE TERMS:
British and Foreign Bible Society (ࠗࠡ࠭⡛ᦠදળ, BFBS, the Bible Society) National Bible Society of Scotland (ࠬࠦ࠶࠻ࡦ࠼⡛ᦠදળ, NBSS, Scottish Bible Society) 191
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Church Missionary Society (ࠗࠡࠬᢎળትᢎળ, CMS) Society for the Propagation of the Gospel in Foreign Parts (ࠗࠡ࠭ ᶏᄖ㖸વળ, SPG0 United Presbyterian Church of Scotland (ࠬࠦ࠶࠻ࡦ࠼৻⥌㐳 ⠧ᢎળ, UPS) London Religious Tract Society (ࡠࡦ࠼ࡦትᢎળ) and the American Tract Society (☨࿖ትᢎᦠ㘃ળ␠) American Bible Society (ࠕࡔࠞ⡛ᦠදળ, ABS) Gospel of St. Matthew (Matai fukuin den, 㚍ᄥ㖸વ) Gospel of St. Luke (Ruka den fukuinsho, 〝ട㖸ᦠ) The Acts of the Apostles (Shitogyôden, ᓤⴕવ) and Romans (Romansho,ࡠࡑᦠ) ENDNOTES 1.
2
3 4
5
6 7
8
9
For a short description of the BFBS in Japan, see Nihon Kirisutokyô Rekishi Daijiten Henshû Iinkai, Nihon Kirisutokyô Rekishi Daijiten (ᣣᧄࠠࠬ࠻ ᢎᱧผᄢౖ, Dictionary of Japanese Christian History) (Tokyo: Kyôbunkan, 1988) hereafter cited as NKRD, p. 94. See entry for British and Foreign Bible Society in Hans J. Hillerbrand, ed., The Encyclopedia of Protestantism (New York and London: Routledge, 2004), 4 volumes, volume 1, pp. 304–305. In 1804 the Bible was available in sixty-seven languages and by 2000 it has been translated into more than 2000. For a short description of the NBSS in Japan, see NKRD, p. 719. William Canton, A History of the British and Foreign Bible Society (London: John Murray, 1904–1910), 5 volumes, volume 5, p. 178. Eugene Stock, The History of the Church Missionary Society. Its Environment, Its Men and Its Work (London: Church Missionary Society, 1899), 3 volumes, volume 3, p. 478. Ibid., volume 3, p. 23. For Thomson, see NKRD, p. 853. Thomson would remain in Japan until 1889. He would later work in India. For a brief note on the London Religious Tract Society which began work in Japan in 1876 with John Piper (1840–1932), the CMS missionary and Hugh Waddell (1840–1901), the UPS missionary as the leading figures on its Japan Committee. See NKRD, p. 1532, for Piper, see NKRD, p. 1098, for Waddell, see NKRD, p. 1547. By 1874 The American Tract Society was giving money to support the translation of the New Testament. For a brief note on the American Tract Society, see NKRD, pp. 1257– 58. By 1874 The American Tract Society was giving money to support the printing and distributing of Christian literature in Japan. In the 1880s the ATS had two Committees (North and South Japan) of missionaries supervising its work in Japan, among those who were members of the 192
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10
11
12 13 14
15
16 17 18
19
20
21
North Japan Committee were Guido Verbeck (1830–1898), the American Dutch Reformed missionary, James Curtis Hepburn (1815–1911), the American Presbyterian lay missionary doctor, and Nathan Brown (1807–1886), the American Baptist missionary were actively involved in translating the New Testament and, in the case of Verbeck and Hepburn also the Old. For Verbeck, see NKRD, pp. 1246–47, for Hepburn, NKRD, pp. 1266–67, for Nathan Brown, NKRD, p. 1230. As might be expected, there was clearly overlap in personnel between missionary committees for the Bible Societies and the Tract Societies. For a brief study of the role of James Curtis Hepburn in the translation of the New Testament into Japanese, see Hamish Ion, ‘James Curtis Hepburn and the Translation of the New Testament into Japanese: A Case Study of the Impact of China on Missions Beyond Its Borders’, Social Sciences and Missions, volume 27 (2014), pp. 25–54. For a short description of the ABS in Japan, see NKRD, p. 59. The ABS was founded in New York in 1816. It had no agent in Japan until 1876 but it had already been funding the translation work of American missionaries in Japan. See also Nihon Seisho Kyo¯kai Henshu¯ Iinkai, Nihon Seisho Kyo¯kai Hyakunenshi (ᣣᧄ⡛ᦠදળ⊖ᐕผ, The Centennial History of the Japanese Bible Society) (Tokyo: Nihon Seisho Kyo¯kai, 1975), pp. 100–108, especially pp. 100–103. For Gulick, see NKRD, p. 376. For Loomis, see NKRD, p. 1510. For Braithwaite, see NKRD, p. 1248. Braithwaite, the son of Bevan Braithwaite one of the Vice-Presidents of the BFBS came out to Japan in 1886 at the age of twenty-five and would remain there for the next thirteen years. He initially came out as the assistant to Philip Kimball Fyson, the CMS missionary who was the corresponding secretary to the BFBS committee in Japan and deeply involved in the translation of the Old Testament. Canton, volume 5, pp. 200–201. See also H. Ritter, A History of Protestant Missions in Japan, translated by George E. Albrecht, revised by D. C. Greene under the editorial care of Max Christlieb (Tokyo: The Methodist Publishing House, 1898), p. 333. Ibid., p. 336. Canton, volume 5, p. 397. See Bernardin Schneider, OFM, ‘Bible Translations’ in Mark R. Mullins, ed., Handbook of Christianity in Japan (Leiden: Brill, 2003), pp. 205–226, especially pp. 205–206. For Gützlaff, see NKRD, p. 375. See Ebisawa Arimichi, Nihon no Seisho: Seisho wayaku no rekishi (ᣣᧄߩ⡛ᦠ㧦⡛ᦠ⸶ߩᱧผ, The Bible of Japan: A History of the Japanese Translation of the Bible) (Tokyo: Nihon Kirisutokyo¯dan Shuppan Kyoku, 2005 edition), pp. 107–108. For Williams, see NKRD, p. 156. In the late 1870s Williams would become the President of the American Bible Society. Ebisawa, p. 119. Samuel Robbins Brown (1810–1880), an American Dutch Reformed missionary who had lived in Williams’ home in Macao in 1839 obtained a copy of this translation from Williams when Brown on his way to Japan in 1859. See Nihon Seisho Kyôkai Hyakunenshi, p. 25. 193
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22 23 24
25
26
27
28 29 30
31
32
33
34
35
While Williams’ translation served as an aid to Brown in his own early attempts at translating Matthew’s Gospel, Brown’s copy of the Williams’ translation was lost when Brown’s house in Yokohama was burnt down in 1867. For Brown, see NKRD, pp. 1230–1231. Between 1874 and 1879 Brown was the chairman of the New Testament translation committee in Yokohama. For Bettelheim, see NKRD, p. 1262. Ebisawa, p. 126. Ibid., p. 128. See also Nihon Seisho Kyo¯kai Hyakunenshi, p. 28. When he visited Japan in 1860, Bishop George Smith of Victoria (Hong Kong) brought with him a hundred copies of Bettelheim’s Ruka den fukuinsho. See Ebisawa, p. 131. It was the general view of the American Protestant missionaries in Japan to whom Smith gave out copies of Bettelheim’s work that his translation was defective and unfit for distribution. See Ion, ‘James Curtis Hepburn and the Translation of the New Testament into Japanese’, p. 48. For Morrison, see NKRD, p. 1409. The BFBS worked closely with Morrison in publishing his Bible translation. The Shinten Seisho (ᄤ⡛ᦠ) translated by Morrison and Milne was published in Malacca in 1823, see NKRD, p. 703. For Milne, see NKRD, p. 1377. For Medhurst, see NKRD, p. 1396. As well as Chinese translation, Medhurst was interested in Japanese and as early as 1830 he had produced in Batavia an English and Japanese Vocabulary. For Boone, see NKRD, p. 1252. For Bridgman, see NKRD, p. 1242. Nihon Seisho Kyo¯kai hyakunenshi, p. 21. Bettelheim in his Ruka den fukuinsho had used the Delegates’ Version terms. In 1873 his revised versions of St. Luke and the Gospel of St. John were published posthumously in Vienna in hiragana, and in them God was translated as kami, see Ebisawa, p. 135. Eugene Stock points out that the ‘Term Question’ must have been one of the trials of Bishop John S. Burdon of Victoria’s episcopate during the 1860s and 1870s but even the Archbishop Tait of Canterbury could not find a satisfactory solution to the terminology problem. See Stock, volume 3, p. 776. See NKRD, p. 352, under kanyaku seisho (ṽ⸶⡛ᦠ, Chinese translated Bible). Ibid., p. 103. Bishop Boone went on to commission Samuel Isaac Joseph Schereschewsky (1831–1906) in 1862 to learn Beijing dialect and by 1875 Schereschewsky was able to publish the Old Testament and the Anglican Prayer Book in that dialect. For Schereschewsky, see NKRD, p. 601. Hamish Ion, American Missionaries Christian Oyatoi and Japan 1859–1873 (Vancouver: University of British Columbia Press, 2009), p. 30. See Saba Wataru, Uemura Masahisa to Sono Jidai (ᬀᱜਭߣߩᤨ ઍ, Uemura Masahisa and His Times) (Tokyo: Kyo¯bunkan, 1977 edition), 8 volumes, volume 4, pp. 6–9. For Greene, see NKRD, p. 466; for Maclay, see p. 1313, for Nathan Brown, see p. 1230; for Wright, see p. 1482. 194
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36
37
38 39 40 41
42
43
44
45 46
47
48 49
50
51
Brown had disagreed with the translation committee over the use of terms especially relating to baptism. He had completed his own translation by 1879. See Ebisawa, pp. 286–294. His Baptist colleague, Jonathan Goble (1827–1896) had as early as 1871 begun to publish parts of the New Testament, see NKRD, pp. 536–537. See Saba, volume 4, pp. 103–110. In 1878 the ABS, for instance, produced a pocket sized volume one of the Scriptures in Japanese and Chinese printed in Yokohama, which received the recommendation of the leading Christian of the time, Nakamura Masanao (1832–1891), see volume 4, pp. 98–101. For Nakamura, see NKRD, p. 998. Saba, volume 4, p. 107. Ibid., p. 54. For White, see NKRD, pp. 1296–1297. See also Ebisawa, pp. 294–301. Ebisawa, p. 258. These missionaries were David Thompson (1835– 1915), the American Presbyterian missionary, Piper, Waddell, and George Cochran. For Thompson, see NKRD, p. 853, and Cochran, p. 518. See Nihon Seisho Hyakunenshi, pp. 52–53. For Quinby, see NKRD, p. 445, and for Krecker, p. 471. Yuzo Ota, Basil Hall Chamberlain: A Portrait of a Japanologist (Richmond, Surrey: Japan Library, 1998), p. 45. See also Ebisawa, Nihon no Seisho, pp. 267–268. Fyson had been born in Bury St. Edmonds and had attended Christ Church College, Cambridge University. He had come out to Japan in 1874, and in 1875 had gone to Niigata as the resident CMS missionary and remained there until 1882. In that year, he was called to Tokyo to take part in the translation of the Old Testament. In 1897 he became the Bishop of Hokkaidô. See NKRD, p. 1185. For Thompson, see NKRD, p. 853. For Dening, see NKRD, p. 900 and biographical portrait by Hamish Ion in Britain and Japan: Biographical Portraits, Volume VII, ed. Hugh Cortazzi, Global Oriental, 2010; for Davidson, see p. 896, for Blanchet, see p. 1235, and for Williams, see p. 155. See also Ebisawa, pp. 273–274, and for a list of translators and dates of publication, see pp, 279–282. Grace Fox notes that Fyson prepared the translation of Joshua and the Ten Commandants with notes. Piper translated the books of Jonah, Haggai and Malachi, and separately wrote a Japanese Reference New Testament for the NBSS as well as a Life of Christ. Davidson prepared as translation of 2 Kings. Dening produced a Hymn Book of ninety hymns. See Grace Fox, Britain and Japan 1858–1883 (Oxford: Clarendon Press, 1969), p. 527. Ebisawa, pp. 139–145, especially p. 144. The Nippon Seiko¯kai Prayer Book was published in 1888. For Warren, see NKRD, p. 1548. Warren also published a Scripture Catechism. Canton, volume 5, p. 199. For Matsuyama, see NKRD, p. 1333, and Takahashi, p. 827. See Ebisawa, Nihon no Seisho, pp. 212–220. For Ibuka, see NKRD, p. 130, for Uemura, see NKRD, p. 165. See also Ebisawa, pp. 274–277. Canton, volume 5, p. 401. 195
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52
53
54
For Batchelor, see NKRD, pp. 1117–1118. For Batchelor’s writings on Ainu language and vocabulary, see A. Hamish Ion, The Cross and the Rising Sun, Volume 2: The British Protestant Missionary Movement in Japan, Korea and Taiwan, 1865–1945 (Waterloo, Ontario: Wilfrid Laurier University Press, 1993), pp. 112–113. See also biographical portrait of John Batchelor by Hugh Cortazzi in Britain and Japan: Biographical Portraits, Volume II, ed. Ian Nish, Japan Library 1997. Ebisawa, p. 327. The Bible Societies committee after 1890 would continue to publish Batchelor’s Ainu translations of various Gospels through the 1890s culminating in the 1897 publication of the complete New Testament in Ainu. This had been translated by Batchelor out of the Greek for the Bible Societies Committee for Japan, and was published in Japan by Yokohama Bunsha, the Christian Publishing House. See also Canton, volume 5, p. 407. Canton, volume 5, p. 417.
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Bishop Kenneth Sansbury (1905–1993): College Lecturer and Chaplain AUDREY SANSBURY TALKS
BACKGROUND
Kenneth Sansbury was born in London and educated at St. Paul’s School, from where he won a Scholarship to Peterhouse College, Cambridge. For his first year he studied Classics before switching to Theology, in which he gained a double First. He went on to train for the priesthood at Westcott House in Cambridge. It was while he was still a student at Cambridge that he applied to the Society for the Propagation of the Gospel (SPG) to become a missionary in Japan. He was inspired to do this by attending a missionary rally at which Bishop Joseph Motoda, the first Japanese Bishop of Tokyo, was one of the speakers. Bishop Motoda made clear that while the expectation was that the Nippon Sei Ko¯ Kai (NSKK), the Anglican Church in Japan, would become independent of overseas support in due course, it was as yet a very young church and was not yet ready to stand on its own feet. He therefore appealed 197
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for missionaries to come from England and Kenneth responded to that call. Though Kenneth had been accepted for missionary work in Japan he could not set out until he had been ordained, first as a deacon and then as a priest, and had completed one curacy in England. He served his curacy at Dulwich Common between 1928 and 1931 and in July 1931 he married Ethelreda Wamsley, who was a fellow student at Cambridge and whom he had first met at a missionary breakfast there. Kenneth and Ethelreda expected to sail for Japan by the end of the year, but England came off the Gold Standard in the autumn of 1931 and Bishop Matsui, Bishop Motoda’s successor, sent a telegram to say that no further staff should come from England until that situation was resolved. So Kenneth was found a temporary curacy in Wimbledon and it was not until the spring of 1932 that Kenneth and Ethelreda set sail for Yokohama. It was as they passed through Shanghai that they saw some of the repercussions of Japan’s invasion of Manchuria, which had begun in the previous September. As they passed Woosung they saw the site of forts overlooking the bay, which the Chinese had built and which the Japanese had now destroyed, and in the crowded district of Chapei they saw the devastation caused by Japanese bombing. THE FIRST FIVE YEARS – 1932–1937
For their first two years in Japan they lived far from the centre of any military or political activity. The plan was that Kenneth should become a lecturer at the Shingakuin, a theological college for the training of Japanese priests to serve in the NSKK. But first both Kenneth and Ethelreda had to study the language, for the two principal Anglican missionary societies, SPG – more high church – and CMS (Church Missionary Society) – more low church – required their staff to reach an adequate standard in Japanese in order to serve in the country. One possibility would have been to attend a language school in Tokyo, but instead the Bishop of South Tokyo, Bishop Heaslett,1 proposed that they should go to Numazu, a coastal town in the Izu Peninsula, where there was a Japanese-style house available and where they could study the language with a tutor and absorb something of the culture around them. Their tutor announced: ‘I shall now teach you one daily manner.’2 So each day he would describe to them one Japanese custom and teach them the conversation used in that context. He also began to teach them the characters. Every few months they were examined. The exam papers were sent from a language school in Tokyo. There was also an oral exam, conducted jointly by their tutor and an external examiner. They began to make progress and after a few months 198
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Kenneth was asked to conduct a Japanese service in the church in Numazu. He attempted this with some trepidation, but afterwards their tutor wrote to Bishop Heaslett to say it was so well done he might have thought it was a Japanese taking the service. Kenneth sent a copy of this letter to his parents but urged them not to take this appraisal at face value.3 Meanwhile, almost from the beginning, Kenneth became chaplain to the English church in Tokyo, St. Andrew’s Church in Shiba. So Kenneth would go up to Tokyo for two weekends each month and Ethelreda would accompany him for at least one of those weekends. This was a congenial arrangement, for there were no other Westerners in Numazu and they were spending almost all their time in studying a difficult language. As Kenneth said: ‘It is going to be a long time before one is any real use in this land of involved sentences and complicated thought forms!’4 So he was glad to be given responsibility for a congregation where a lack of Japanese was no barrier. Moreover, the people who attended St. Andrew’s formed an interesting group. For the most part they were professional people and many had a wide experience of working and travelling in other countries. And though they were all English speaking, they were not all British citizens, but included, at one time or another, citizens of Japan, America, Holland, Denmark and former citizens of Russia. The Chairmanship of the Church Council was held in alternate years by the British ambassador and the minister of the Canadian Legation and in the church special services were held to mark state occasions. The first such service that Kenneth was responsible for was the Armistice Commemoration Service in 1932. But for services which attracted large congregations the English St. Andrew’s Church was really too small, so although the service to mark the death of George V was held there, those to mark George V’s Silver Jubilee and George VI’s Coronation were held in the Japanese St. Andrew’s Church which stood in the same compound and which was distinctly larger. In the spring of 1934 the time came for Kenneth to move to his new post as lecturer at the Shingakuin (the Central Theological College). So Kenneth and Ethelreda moved to Ikebukuro with their baby son. The Shingakuin was officially the theological department of Rikkyo¯ (St. Paul’s University) but in practice the Shingakuin was a separate college with a Japanese Principal and a staff of three Japanese and three Western lecturers. The other two Western members of staff were Larry Rose, an American, and soon Stanley Woodward, who was a second-generation CMS missionary, for his father had been a missionary in Japan before the 1914–1918 war. All three were married with young families. 199
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The Shingakuin was unlike theological colleges in England or America in one respect, for at the Shingakuin the students were all undergraduates. Kenneth believed this should be changed: I feel the theological college should be made postgraduate. It would mean a longer course, but it would mean less overwork. At present the students have about 26 hours of lectures a week and in addition go all over Tokyo and sometimes further afield on Sundays to help with the services. Is it any wonder that one or two break down every year and that more than one has had to go to a sanatorium, suffering from TB – that dreaded complaint that attacks so many in Japan?5
Kenneth found his early terms at the college very busy. He had nine hours’ lecturing a week and had to provide fairly detailed outlines of his lectures for the students, to help them over the difficulty of hearing the lectures in English. Three hours of lectures were on Greek: ‘Picture me an Englishman this morning helping Japanese lads to translate from Greek into their own tongue! It is a bit hard!’6 But he had other commitments as well as his work at the college: on Sundays he went to Shiba to take the English services at St. Andrew’s Church; once a month he made the three and a half hour journey to give oversight to a new Japanese church in Kofu; and always there was language study. By the summer of 1937 it was time for Kenneth and Ethelreda to return to England on furlough. The five years they had spent in Japan formed part of what has been called in Japan kurai tanima or ‘dark valley’, the ‘dark valley’ that was to lead from Japan’s invasion of Manchuria in September 1931 to the attack on Pearl Harbor in December 1941. They had sailed for Japan as a newly married couple just a few months after the invasion of Manchuria. Now, on 3 July 1937, they set sail for England with two small children and another on the way, and only four days later the first shots were fired in what was to be war between Japan and China. FURLOUGH AND BEYOND – 1937–1941
Kenneth was not always with the family while in England, for being on furlough did not mean having a year’s holiday but involved travel round the country on deputation work, speaking, preaching and attending conferences. Now that war had broken out in China, there was much hostile coverage of Japanese aggression in the English press. Audiences wanted to know how the Japanese themselves viewed events in China and whether they ever questioned the actions of their military. Kenneth explained that the Japanese public saw only a heavily censored press. They knew nothing of the unceasing provocation by their troops in North China, of the deliberate attempt to undermine 200
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China’s financial stability through smuggling, of the iniquities of the traffic in drugs. All they heard was of continual incidents in North China, for which the Chinese were always responsible, of the ‘insincerity’ of the Nanking government, of the ominous spread of Communism. For the Japanese people, therefore, the war was a holy war to rescue the suffering Chinese people from rulers so wickedly proCommunist and anti-Japanese and to bring the whole of Asia under the beneficent rule of their divine Emperor, ‘The Four Corners of the World under One Roof’. The Japanese government’s promotion of religious patriotism inevitably raised problems for Japanese Christians. Kenneth explained that Christians were a tiny minority – less than half of one per cent of the population – and that they were subject to all the same propaganda as their fellow citizens. They too felt loyalty to their country and found no conflict between their Christian faith and the idea of a special vocation for Japan in the twentieth century. They were ready to go to the utmost limit, therefore, in meeting government requirements, in bowing to the Emperor’s portrait and in attendance at Shinto shrines. In fact, there was a growing feeling among both priests and laity that it was possible to have a Japanese Christianity, a synthesis of all that was unique in the Japanese character with all that was most acceptable in the Christian religion.7 This nationalist spirit was leading in the churches to a reaction against Western influence and a desire for Japanese control. Although the majority of clergy might be Japanese, much church funding and leadership still came from the West. But now Western missionaries were finding doors closing against them. The leadership was passing into Japanese hands and the daily pastoral work was more and more being undertaken by Japanese clergy. The missionary as a foreigner was held to be unable to understand the present situation. His advice was not encouraged and his criticisms, if expressed, were bitterly resented. A few of the senior clergy – by reason of their long service and their personal and official authority – could exercise a little influence. But generally the power of foreign missionaries to alter attitudes within the churches was nil. In these circumstances should Kenneth return to Japan after furlough? And if he did so in what role? For the last three years his lecturing at the Shingakuin had been his primary work. In addition, he had taken the services at the English church of St. Andrew’s Church in Shiba, while once a month he had given oversight to the new Japanese church in Kofu. Now his principal work could no longer be among the Japanese. At this point a decision was taken to revive the position of chaplain at the British embassy in Tokyo and Kenneth was offered the post. This could be combined with his work as chaplain at St. Andrew’s 201
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Church in Shiba, so that his English chaplaincy work would become his principal role. Meanwhile his work as lecturer at the theological college could continue, although in a more limited way, while his oversight of the Japanese church in Kofu would cease altogether. Perhaps the position of chaplain at the British embassy was revived in order to give Kenneth an adequate reason to return to Japan, for there had been no such chaplain since 1922. Certainly Bishop Heaslett was eager that he should return and urged him to overcome his misgivings: ‘I hope you will remember that in your position as Chaplain to the Embassy you would be fully protected and be able to carry on your work under circumstances where it would be difficult for an ordinary person to work. You would have diplomatic privileges.’8 So Kenneth accepted these new conditions and returned to Japan with his family in the summer of 1938. Japan had now been at war in China for more than a year and was feeling increasingly isolated in the world. Two crises in the NSKK could already have led to missionaries having to withdraw from Japan. The first took place on 5 October 1937, when a meeting was held in the Royal Albert Hall to protest against Japanese bombing of civilian targets in China. The Archbishop of Canterbury took the chair and this was taken as proof that Britain favoured the Chinese cause and was hostile to Japanese aspirations in China. Bishop Matsui exploded: ‘This is the end of our connection with the English church!’ Bishop Heaslett calmed the atmosphere by saying: ‘We English missionaries are only here to help you. As soon as you wish it we will go.’ It seemed that day could not be long. The second was the Synod of the NSKK held in Kyoto in May 1938. The crucial business was the passing of a resolution in relation to the war. The first draft was for the NSKK to give a straight expression of gratitude to the troops for their actions in China. It became clear that this would not be accepted by the foreign bishops. Eventually all sections agreed on a resolution which expressed emotion at the gallantry of the Japanese troops, urged the need for increased loyalty to the Emperor and expressed sympathy with the Chinese people, and especially with Chinese Christians. It seemed that the time for a showdown was not yet, but in returning to Japan in August 1938, Kenneth and Ethelreda knew they were returning to a very uncertain future. The final blow for foreign missions in Japan came two years later, in August 1940. Kenneth wrote: ‘By the act of arresting and intimidating the Japanese leaders of the Salvation Army all mission work of all churches came, in mid-August, to the last scenes in the drama of Christian missions from foreign sources in Japan.’9 All Christian churches were now under suspicion. Anti-British and anti-Christian posters appeared outside churches and warnings to ‘Beware 202
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of silver-tongued Japanese, who are under the influence of foreigners. They may very easily be spies.’ Missionaries met with the same friendship as ever from their people, but were asked not to visit them, for every visit would be followed by a call from detectives and unpleasant questioning. The Salvation Army, with its military name and titles and uniforms, incurred special suspicion. It was compelled to change its name, forego foreign funding and dismiss its foreign workers.10 At the end of September Japan signed the Tripartite Pact with Germany and Italy and the situation for foreigners in the country became increasingly precarious. It was clear that the NSKK would soon receive attention and so the Japanese bishops approached the authorities to ask on what terms it would be allowed to continue its work. The answer was that no foreigners should hold positions of authority in the church and no foreign funds should be accepted for its support. As a result all the foreign bishops resigned in October 1940 and oversight of the whole church was entrusted to five Japanese bishops. As for the foreign priests, some were retired, some kept on in very uncertain circumstances. The three foreign staff at the Shingakuin, Larry Rose, Stanley Woodward and Kenneth were told they could not remain after the end of the academic year in March 1941. For Kenneth’s part, he felt it was an act of grace that he, who was tarred with the embassy brush, was allowed to stay at all. Yet the scope of their teaching was now restricted, for new legislation stated that foreigners could no longer teach anything relating to thought and specifically not religion. Kenneth wrote: It must be recognized that while for us and the missionary societies the qestion of what place, if any, will be available for the foreign worker in Japan in the future is a matter of immediate concern, for most Japanese Christians it is already a closed issue. It was settled in August and we are little more, in their eyes, than the relics of an age that is now over, waiting only for the final adjustments before we disappear from the scene.11
Another matter of immediate concern was the official demand for a union of the Christian churches, to come into effect before 17 October, which marked the 2,600th anniversary of the founding of the Japanese Empire. Some of the Protestant churches were ready to unite rather than dissipate their resources as at present. The Roman Catholic and Orthodox churches would not, but what of the NSKK? They were small in comparison with the combined Protestant churches, but had a distinct, more Catholic, tradition. So they refused and tried to carry on as a hidden church without government permission. On 25 October 1940 all British subjects were advised by the Embassy that they should leave Japan as soon as possible, while they 203
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were still free to choose their own ship and destination. Meanwhile, there was less and less to do at the Shingakuin. This was partly because of the laws the government had passed preventing foreigners from teaching anything relating to thought and partly because the number of students was diminishing and would inevitably continue to diminish almost to nothing. So in December the Woodward family and the Rose family sailed for America, while Kenneth and his family moved away from the college into a house in the compound of St. Andrew’s Church. Kenneth continued to teach New Testament Greek at the Shingakuin but his relationship with the students could be little more than formal. His principal role was now to serve and help, as best he could, an anxious and unsettled British community. As Kenneth’s time in Japan drew to a close, a reception was held at the British embassy in Tokyo: ‘A Farewell Reception in honour of the Rev. C.K. Sansbury, Chaplain of H.B.M. Embassy and St. Andrew’s Church, Tokyo, and Mrs. Sansbury, on their departure from Japan, May 2nd 1941.’ A small book in the Japanese style commemorates the occasion. On the folding card pages are the signatures of all those present. On the first page is that of Sir Robert Craigie, the ambassador, and on the facing page the signatures of three bishops, Bishop Heaslett (British), Bishop Matsui (Japanese) and Bishop Reifsnider (American).12 So Kenneth and Ethelreda and their three children sailed from Yokohama for Seattle and Vancouver on the Hie Maru, the last Japanese ship to cross the Pacific in the summer of 1941. RETURN TO THE EAST
It would be eighteen years before Kenneth and Ethelreda returned to Japan. During the war Kenneth served as a chaplain in the Canadian Air Force and was posted to England, to bomber stations in Lincolnshire and Yorkshire. After the war he became Warden (Principal) of the Bishop’s Hostel, a theological college in Lincoln, and then of St. Augustine’s College, Canterbury, the Central College of the Anglican Communion. In 1959 the NSKK celebrated the centenary of the arrival in Japan of the first Protestant missionaries. Archbishop Geoffrey Fisher arranged to make a tour through Asian countries, culminating in a visit to Japan to attend the celebrations. As Kenneth was also invited to Japan, the Archbishop suggested that he should accompany him as his chaplain. So on 22 March, Archbishop and Mrs Fisher, together with Kenneth and Ethelreda, set off on a 20,000 mile journey through Pakistan, India, Singapore, Hong Kong to Japan and Korea. For the NSKK the destruction of war had been great, but now there were signs of recovery. Rikkyo¯ had survived, but the Shingakuin had been destroyed by bombs, as had the house where Kenneth and 204
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his family had lived. Now the Shingakuin had resumed its work in new premises. In Shiba both the Japanese and the English St. Andrew’s Churches had been burnt to the ground. Now a new St. Andrew’s Church for Japanese congregations had been built and St. Alban’s, a church for English-speaking, mainly American, congregations had been built. In his address, Bishop Yashiro, the Presiding Bishop of the NSKK, acknowledged the dark night through which both the Church and the nation had travelled: Now, as I stand here with you all to celebrate this great occasion of the Centenary of the commencement of Protestant missionary work in this country, on this day of April 8, in the year 1959, I should like to say with you, ‘Be thankful. Today I am still alive.’13
A new bishop was required for Singapore and Malaya. The position was offered to Kenneth and Archbishop Fisher urged him to accept. Kenneth agreed, though not without misgivings, as it seemed late to appoint an Englishman to that position. So Kenneth became the last English Bishop of Singapore and Malaya from 1961 until 1966. From Singapore he was once again able to visit Japan and to meet once more friends and former students, many of them now in senior positions in the Church. Kenneth returned to England in 1966 to become General Secretary of the British Council of Churches before finally moving to Norwich in 1973. Kenneth had gone to Japan as a young man in 1932 and might have expected to stay there for the rest of his career, but the war intervened and his life took a different course. Yet both Kenneth and Ethelreda retained a deep love of Japan. In his final report from Japan, written in October 1940, Kenneth reflected on almost eight years spent in the country: It has been a great privilege to serve in a land so beautiful, among a people so naturally kind and courteous…It is indeed a sad day for those who have admired Japan’s fine achievements to see the disastrous course she is now following.14
It was a great joy to both Kenneth and Ethelreda to return to Japan in 1959, to meet old friends, and to see both the church and the nation on the way to recovery. ENDNOTES All personal letters are in the keeping of the author. All letters and reports sent to SPG are in the SPG archives in the Rhodes House Library in Oxford. 205
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1
2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10
11 12 13 14
A biographical portrait of Bishop Heaslett by Hamish Ion is contained in Britain and Japan: Biographical Portraits, volume V, Global Oriental, 2004. Letter of 11 June 1932. Letter of 22 September 1932. Letter of 3 November 1932. Letter of August 1934. Letter of 4 May 1934. SPG Archives 1938: (address at monthly meeting of SPG). SPG archives, CKS letter accompanying annual report to SPG 10 October 1940. Onward: ‘A survey of the mission field in war-time’ (SPG report for 1940, p. 20). CSK annual report to SPG 10 October 1940. In the keeping of the author. From the author’s typescript copy of Bishop Yashiro’s address. CKS annual report to SPG 10 October 1940.
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sMUSIC, DRAMA AND FILM s
18
John William Fenton (1831–1890) and The Japanese National Anthem Kimigayo AKIRA IMAMURA
INTRODUCTION
John William Fenton (1831–1890) was the bandmaster of a British Army regiment, stationed in Yokohama in the early Meiji period. He was the first person to teach wind instruments to a Japanese military band and is regarded in Japan as ‘the father of wind band’. Fenton continued his instruction as one of the many British advisers who were employed by the Japanese Imperial Navy. It was the beginning of the systematic education in Western music, and part of a wider effort to introduce the naval system modelled after the British. He even taught Western music to the musicians of the Imperial Court, who had played traditional court music for nearly a thousand years. Fenton is also known as a composer of the first version of the Japanese national anthem, Kimigayo. He brought to the Japanese the concept
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of a national anthem when the Meiji government was struggling to establish a centralized nation state. Fenton was the first person to teach the Japanese Western music in a systematic manner. He was a pioneer in musical exchanges between Japan and Britain and thus played a critical role in the introduction of Western music to Japan. A wind band arrived for the first time in Japan on board the Dutch ship Palembang in Nagasaki in 1844. It was followed by the band which accompanied Commodore Perry when he landed in Kurihama (approx. 30 km south of Yokohama) in 1853. Japanese artists made detailed illustrations of various Western wind instruments used by the band members. In the following year the first British naval flotilla under Rear Admiral Sir John Stirling arrived in Nagasaki; they made for the shore in six rowing boats, led by a band that played a medley of English airs, concluding when they finally landed with God Save The Queen. This was almost certainly the first time British music was played in Japan.1 Alarmed, by the increasing number of visits by foreign military vessels, the Tokugawa Shogunate (Bakufu) felt the need to modernize its own navy. The Naval Training Institute, with Dutch instructors, opened in Nagasaki in 1855. Signal calls, using military drums, were included in the curriculum. The Japanese trainees were said to have practised the instrument enthusiastically. Although the Institute was closed in 1859, this prepared the ground for the introduction of fife and drum bands attached to the armed forces. In the West, fife and drum bands were gradually being replaced by more sophisticated wind bands, but they were still in use in many regiments which were visiting Japan. Indeed, the instruments were easier for the Japanese to learn. Following the decision by the Bakufu to open Yokohama to foreign trade in 1859, samurai from loyalist domains such as Satsuma and Cho¯shu¯, who were opposed to the opening, made life hazardous for the expatriates stationed in a foreign trading community in the port. Hostility reached its peak in 1862, when a British merchant was killed by Satsuma samurai in the so-called Namamugi incident. In response, Britain and France established small garrisons in Yokohama to protect their citizens. Informal contacts with the foreign troops increased the pace of westernization of the armed forces in both Bakufu and various domains, including the spread of fife and drum bands. As one of the first British troops to be stationed in Yokohama a large group of Royal Marines arrived in 1864. It was accompanied by a fife and drum band. Contrary to their expectation the troops were met by friendly local people. An officer of the Marines described the landing scene: The landing was witnessed with great curiosity, and as we marched up to our future camp, headed by the drum and fife band, a large crowd 208
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of Europeans and Japs [sic], including many dear little musmees (girls), accompanied us, many of them afterwards to become good friends of the ‘danizans’ (masters).2
Later in the same year the 20th Regiment of Foot arrived in Yokohama as the first fully-fledged British ground forces. This time it was accompanied by a wind band. The Bakufu, initially reluctant to accept the presence of foreign forces, nevertheless, took the opportunity to seek military advice from the British. There is no record of any formal training in wind instruments but it is certain that members of Japanese fife and drum bands watched how wind instruments were played by the British. In 1866, in one of the first Japan-British joint exercises in Yokohama, both troops marched together with the Bakufu’s fife and drum band and British wind band playing in turn. In the following year the Bakufu made an official request to the British to send naval instructors including three buglers and drummers. The beginning of the civil war in Japan and collapse of the Bakufu in the beginning of 1868 thwarted this scheme.3 Meanwhile, in August 1863 HMS Euryalus led a British fleet to Kagoshima, the capital of Satsuma domain in the southern island of Kyushu, to demand compensation and the trial of the perpetrators of the Namamugi incident. The refusal to accept these demands led to the bombardment of Kagoshima by the British. Satsuma samurai had heard the band on board the Euryalus playing before the attack. After the battle Satsuma recognized British military superiority and decided to purchase battleships from Britain. They went on to model their troops, including their fife and drum band, after the British army. In January 1868 on the eve of the civil war which led to the overthrow of the Bakufu and the Meiji Restoration, the fifteen-year-old Emperor Meiji inspected his troops, assembled from loyalist domains, at the Imperial Palace in Kyoto. The Satsuma troops stood out in their British-style uniforms and paraded with their fife and drum band. During the civil war they were heard playing so-called Ishin Ma¯chi (the Restoration March) as they advanced eastwards after the Bakufu forces. The march had a uniquely Japanese melody, but a Western military rhythm. FROM DRUMMER BOY TO BANDMASTER
John William Fenton was born 12 March 1831, in Charles Fort in Kinsale, Ireland, to John and Judith Fenton.4 His father, a native of Brechin in Forfarshire (Angus), Scotland, was a colour sergeant of the 65th Regiment of Foot, stationed at the Fort. Fenton’s father remained in the Fort with the reserve company at the time of Fenton’s birth, but joined the rest of the regiment in the West Indies, later that 209
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year. He took his wife with him and probably his baby son. At this time colour sergeants were allowed to take their families abroad, but their new life in the Caribbean was suddenly disrupted. Fenton’s father died at Tortola, British Virgin Islands, in July, 1833. The cause of death is not known, but during this period the regiment lost about one quarter of its numbers from tropical fevers.5 The orphaned boy followed in his father’s footsteps. He enlisted in April 1842 in Winchester as a boy soldier in the 25th (King’s Own Borderers) Regiment of Foot; he was only eleven years old. In May, Fenton was transferred, on the ship Repulse, to Madras to join the regiment’s main unit, which was arriving there from Cape Colony. It was a widespread practice at that time for the military to enlist under-age boys especially from sons of soldiers. Since the widow of a soldier during these years did not receive a pension, regiments often felt a moral responsibility to look after the ‘sons of the brave’.6 A constant shortage of young soldiers was an additional reason for enlisting young boys. This may explain why, in Fenton’s military records, three years were added to his age, although drummers could be legitimately recruited at a very young age.7 In fact, Fenton was appointed as a drummer during 1844–45. ‘Drummer’ was a general name for a member of the band, no matter what instrument he played. So it is quite likely that Fenton learned not only how to play drums but also other instruments such as fifes and bugles. After being promoted to sergeant in 1854 when he was twentytwo, Fenton completed thirteen years of service in India and returned to England the next year. The regiment settled in Manchester and then moved to Dover. Fenton probably met his future wife during these years. A John William Fenton married Anne Maria Jewell in January 1858.8 If this record is correct, then it was a last minute marriage before Fenton left for his next posting to Gibraltar. Anne Maria would have been left behind as not all sergeants were allowed to take their wives abroad. Fenton spent four years in Gibraltar and then moved to Malta in 1862. During his tour in the Mediterranean Fenton was active in the regimental band and at the end of 1862 the regiment decided to send him to the Royal Military School of Music at Kneller Hall near London. The School was opened in 1857 after an embarrassing incident during the Crimean War, when a massed band played God Save The Queen in a variety of arrangements and in different keys. At Kneller Hall Fenton received intensive lessons for eighteen months. In those days pupils practised three-and-a-half hours in the morning and two-and-a-half hours in the afternoon followed by another practice until seven o’clock. At the end of the term they had to pass exams on sight-reading and sight-singing, harmonization and composition, instrumentation, conducting and had to be able to play 210
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every instrument in a wind band. The instructors were selected from first-rate performers with a strong background in classical music. At school concerts, students played familiar pieces by Mozart, Handel and other composers.9 In 1864 Fenton successfully graduated from the school and became a part of the new generation of specially trained bandmasters. In August he was transferred to the First Battalion of the 10th (North Lincoln) Regiment of Foot. Next month he was sent to Cape Colony, on the ship Copenhagen, to join the regiment. This time he took his wife with him. During their stay in Cape Colony the Fentons adopted Jessie Woods. Jessie, born in 1863, was probably the child of one of Fenton’s fellow soldiers. At the end of 1867, after an ‘uneventful’ three years in Cape Colony, the First Battalion was ordered to Yokohama. By this time Fenton was a well-experienced career bandmaster who would become an ideal teacher for the Japanese.10 FENTON MEETS THE SATSUMA BAND
In April 1868 Fenton and his family, along with twenty members of the band, arrived in Yokohama on HMS Tamar, together with his battalion, under the command of Lieutenant-Colonel Henry Radford Norman. The battalion was part of a British/French force sent to ensure the safety of the foreign settlement during the ongoing civil war. After landing, Fenton’s battalion settled in the barracks on the Bluff. The barracks could accommodate more than a thousand troops and commanded a view of the harbour. Fenton lived with his family in the married quarters. Fenton’s battalion, headed by his band, often paraded on the streets. The splendid sound of the wind instruments must have attracted local people’s attention. In a woodblock print by Hiroshige II British troops are depicted marching along the street at the foot of the Bluff where the residence of the British Minister also stood at that time. The man leading the band is thought to be Fenton. He was a tall man of 5 feet 11½ inches. A rare photograph from those years shows him with long and narrow sideburns and a small moustache on his square face.11 In addition to their military duties Fenton’s band performed for entertainment, reflecting the versatile nature of wind band. Twice every week they appeared in front of the Officer’s Mess house, and once a week at the bandstand in the Public Gardens on the Bluff. They also played during various events, such as the balls, amateur entertainments, horse races and regattas enjoyed by the foreign settlers. When the British Minister, Sir Harry Parkes, left Japan on home leave, they played ‘Home! Sweet Home!’ at the harbour to bid him farewell.12 211
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In April 1869, when the civil war was finally coming to an end with the victory of the new Meiji Government, a Satsuma samurai, Kimotsuki Kanehiro was sent to learn British military training methods from Lieutenant-Colonel Norman. One day Kimotsuki saw Fenton’s band playing during a local street parade. Kimotsuki said later in an interview: In those days our bands played drums and fifes that sounded like ‘hugh-don-don’. But theirs, using a number of instruments I had never seen, played cheerfully, interestingly and bravely. I felt that it brings a large benefit in raising the spirit of the troops let alone it establishes the pace. I could not resist the desire for seeing our troops to play like this. So with the introduction of the Commander I asked the bandmaster [Fenton] to provide instructions. We selected twenty [sic] young samurai with ‘even teeth’ from our domain’s regiments in Kagoshima […] led by Kawamura Yoju¯ro¯ [Kawamura Sumiyoshi, future Minister of the Imperial Navy] and Nozu Shichizaemon [Nozu Shizuo, commander of the battalion of the Satsuma band] […] and dispatched them to Yokohama.13
In September of that year thirty-two members of the fife and drum band of Satsuma, arrived in Yokohama and started practising at Myo¯ko¯ji Temple, which they used as a training camp. Without any wind instruments, Fenton began teaching movements in field exercises and signal calls for bugles. He also taught how to read and write Western music scores. It was the beginning of systematic education in Western music theory. On the other hand, their costume was still very Japanese; they no longer had samurai topknots but still wore a Japanese sword. According to one pupil they wore haori – a Japanese half-coat, with Western buttons, momohiki – a Japanese workman’s trouser rolled-up to the knee and zo¯ri, straw sandals.14 A local English magazine The Far East, dated 16 July 1870, published a photograph showing more than twenty members of the Satsuma band lined up at Myo¯ko¯ji Temple. In this picture they can be seen holding fifes and bugles and carrying drums. It was a group of very young men; the youngest was, like Fenton when he first enlisted, just twelve and the oldest was twenty-seven years of age. In the picture, they wear neat Western jacket, trousers and a hat. John Reddie Black, the editor of the magazine, wrote: […] these youths […] are living in this temple […] and receiving instruction twice a day from Mr. Fenton. They have made such progress already, that they read and write music well. Their books were shown to us, and the ruling and copying, all done by themselves, were equal to the best of our manuscript books. They play all the bugle calls, well. They play easy tunes on the fife remarkably well 212
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[…] The drummers were still better up to the mark […] some of the youth have quite the appearance of gentlemen, and all remarkably intelligent and good-humoured […] They ordinarily practise in their Japanese clothes; but the moment it was proposed by their master that they should dress themselves in their uniforms for a picture, than two of the buglers sounded the call to ‘dress’, and […] in ten minutes all were in their places […] playing away as cheerfully as possible […] For this band, instruments of all kind used in military bands, […] have been ordered from Messrs. Distin [a dealer], of London. They are daily expected. And within three months of their arrival, Mr. Fenton expects his pupils will be fit for public performances of easy music.15
The members of the band must have been excited to receive at the end of July brand new instruments made by Besson & Co. The instruments included cornet, euphonium, French horn, trumpet, trombone, B-flat bass and E-flat basses (tubas), alto horn, flügelhorn, piccolo, B-flat and E-flat clarinets and bass clarinets. It was a set of instruments for a fully-fledged military band. After the arrival of the instruments Fenton came to the temple to give lessons, twice in the morning and twice in the afternoon. The pupils practised very hard and quickly developed their skills. Already in September they played at ‘an evening fete’ in the Public Gardens on the Bluff.16 By October, as Fenton had predicted, they were good enough to play before the Emperor during a military exercise at Etchu¯jima Training Field; the piece they played was the new national anthem, Kimigayo, which Fenton had composed. Nishi Kenzo¯, the bandmaster of the Satsuma band said, in a later interview that, after the performance, in His Majesty’s presence, the whole band felt a sense of great joy and the commander of the Satsuma band’s battalion, Nozu Shizuo, was extremely satisfied.17 The band members returned to Kagoshima at the end of the year. They received an award from the daimyo of Satsuma, Shimazu Tadayoshi, on their ‘graduation’. The local people, who heard the sound of wind instruments for the first time, mimicked the sound ‘He-fu-ha ototon [papa], he-fu-ha okkahan [mama].’18 Young people were attracted by the band music and the membership doubled. However, without their instructor, they could only play, over and over again, the same four or five tunes that Fenton had taught them. Such songs as God Save The Queen, Lincolnshire Poacher (quick march of the 10th Foot) and Kimigayo, echoed throughout this rural town once bombed by the British.19 MYSTERY SURROUNDING THE FIRST KIMIGAYO
There are several contradictory stories about who chose the verse Kimigayo and when and how Fenton wrote the music for it. According 213
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to Kimotsuki Kanehiro he asked Fenton to teach the pupils music that ‘celebrates our Emperor’. Fenton told Kimotsuki that the verse should not be British, but Japanese. Then Kimotsuki remembered the old poem Kimigayo and explained the verse to Fenton. Fenton approved it, as it was a poem of celebration, and immediately set it to music.20 Kimigayo is a tanka poem consisting of thirty-two syllables by an anonymous author from the Kokinshu¯, a famous tenth century anthology. It was well known and was often cited in classical literature and sung to various melodies; it was regarded simply as a celebration of the long reign of the lord and not as a national anthem. Basil Hall Chamberlain, British scholar who was employed by the Japanese Imperial Navy and later became a prominent Japanologist, made the following translation. Thousands of years of happy reign be thine; Rule on, my lord, until what are pebbles now By ages united to mighty rocks shall grow Whose venerable sides the moss doth line.21
Kimotsuki’s account, however, has been disputed. If it is correct, then Fenton must have written the music to Kimigayo before November 1869, when Kimotsuki left Yokohama. This seems consistent with a document preserved in the Imperial Navy archives, which states that Fenton’s Kimigayo was performed for the first time in the presence of the Emperor in May 1870 in Komabano, Tokyo.22 However, Nakamura Suketsune, one of Fenton’s best pupils and future bandmaster of the Imperial Navy, asserted that Kimigayo was written by Fenton after the arrival of the wind instruments from London in July 1870. According to Nakamura, before the arrival of the instruments they had used scores for fifes for the performance in the presence of the Emperor.23 Fenton’s score of Kimigayo was written in the key of E-flat, which is out of the range of the fife, indicating that he intended the work for wind band. This raises serious doubts about the truth of Kimotsuki’s account; if it is incorrect, the score, used during the performance in May 1870, was most probably a melody for the fifes and not Kimigayo written for wind band. ¯ yama Iwao, who was the comGeneral of the Imperial Army O mander of the artillery of the Satsuma army at that time, was recorded by his adjutant as recollecting that Fenton had asked Egawa, one of his pupils, if Japan had a national anthem like European nations.24 When the pupil replied no, Fenton argued that a country should have its national anthem and told Egawa that, if he could bring him an appropriate verse, then he, Fenton, would write music for it. The ¯ yama, who was meeting with issue was brought to the attention of O 214
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the commander of the Satsuma band’s battalion, Nozu Shizuo, and ¯ sako Sadakiyo. Both told O ¯ yama that a counsellor of the domain, O national anthem should be based on an old song rather than a new ¯ yama said that a verse poem. Referring to God Save The King [sic] O which prays for the prosperity and long length of the Emperor’s reign should be adopted. Then he suggested his favorite poem Kimigayo. ¯ yama left for Europe at the end of August 1870, so this meeting O must have taken place by then. ¯ yama, Nozu, as a comIt seems likely that, after the meeting with O mander of the Satsuma band’s battalion, summoned the bandmaster, Nishi Kenzo¯. According to Nishi’s later interview, Nozu instructed Nishi to ask Fenton to write the music for Kimigayo.25 Nozu ordered Nishi to play the piece two weeks later during the exercise at Etchu¯jima Training Field. Nishi met Fenton with the Satsuma interpreter Harada Munesuke. Having listened to Nishi, Fenton told him that, if he could have studied Japanese music for a couple of months, then he could have composed a ‘well-tuned’ piece. As it was, there were only two weeks left, so Fenton, without any knowledge of Japanese music or language, told Nishi that he would simply arrange thirty-two notes in ‘an interesting way’. The exercise was held in early October 1870, so the meeting between Nishi and Fenton must have taken place some¯ yama’s time in September, which seems to have been shortly after O ¯ meeting with Nozu. Nishi’s story and the story of Oyama seem to match well with each other in terms of their sequence and substance despite the fact that they were told independently. Nishi was recalling events half a century after they had happened but, as a person who understood music, his account seems to capture Fenton’s embarrassment when he was told about this ‘mission impossible’. Another version of the story goes that, in 1869, Fenton asked the interpreter Harada what his band should play, as a Japanese national anthem, on the occasion of the visit of Prince Alfred, Duke of Edinburgh,26 to Japan, in August that year. Harada, who was helping the preparations for the visit, following the suggestion of one of his colleagues, sang in front of Fenton one of the traditional Japanese melodies of Kimigayo. It was often sung in his native Satsuma with accompaniment of the local version of traditional lute biwa. Fenton quickly transcribed it.27 This story does not seem credible, because the finished work, by Fenton, used the Western major scale and had no trace of Japanese traditional music. In addition, the music was too simple for Fenton’s experienced band. Fenton would have composed a more complicated piece for his own band. As a matter of fact, the piece consisted almost entirely of minims. Fenton’s harmonization was also simple. It may be a reflection of his limited ability, but most probably it was composed for his fledgling pupils. Fenton knew that they could not play difficult music with so little time for practice. 215
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Despite its simplicity it was a graceful piece of music. Critics pointed out that the words, the intonation, and the meaning of the verse did not sit well with the melody. This certainly came from Fenton’s lack of understanding of the Japanese language. However, as long as it was performed as an instrumental piece, it was acceptable, and it was in use until 1880, when it was finally revised. Fenton himself left no account of the circumstances in which he had to write this anthem. The only clue seems to be a score sheet of Kimigayo, hand-written by Fenton himself, which was found, almost fifty years later, in an archive of the Ministry of the Imperial Household.28 Fenton wrote ‘Japanese National Hymn’ on the top of the score sheet. It was a score for horn, which strongly suggests that it was written after the arrival of the wind instruments in the summer of 1870. FENTON AS AN ‘OYATOI GAIKOKUJIN’ OF THE NAVY
In March 1871, the Satsuma band, having been expanded into two groups, left Kagoshima for Tokyo. They accompanied the newly created Goshinpei, the guards of the Emperor who now resided in Tokyo. Fenton, being close by in Yokohama, must have been delighted to see his former pupils again. One of the few records of their public appearance during this period was the second performance of Kimigayo in the presence of the Emperor in August at the Hama Rikyu¯ Palace.29 The Meiji Government, accelerating reform, abolished the domain system and started to establish a centralized army and navy. This led to the disbandment of the Satsuma band and its reorganization into the army and navy military bands. Earlier, Kawamura Sumiyoshi, head of the Naval Academy at that time, asked Fenton to become an instructor of the navy band. Kawamura knew that the future navy would be in need of a number of British advisers as it was to introduce the British naval system (on the other hand, the army was to introduce the French system but the army band fell behind because for several years it could not find a French instructor). Fenton, aware that his battalion was soon to leave Japan, faced a difficult choice. To make matters worse, his wife Anne Maria died in May. She was buried in the foreigners’ cemetery in Yokohama. That summer Fenton was discharged from the British Army at his own request after twentynine years of service and signed a contract with the newly created Japanese navy becoming one of the ‘oyatoi gaikokujin’ (employed foreigners) of the Meiji Government.30 He would be followed by other British instructors, including thirty-four advisers led by a Royal Navy officer, Sir Archibald Lucius Douglas,31 who arrived in 1873 to teach at the Academy. 216
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The new navy band consisted of forty musicians; ten came from his former Satsuma band, including Nakamura Suketsune, who was appointed as the bandmaster. By 1873 the number of his pupils had increased to about seventy and, two years later, numbered 150 players, including fife and drum band members of the Marines. Fenton wrote the scores by hand for each of his students, often working till late into the evening. Former pupils recalled that Fenton was shortsighted and had to bend over when he read a score. The noise the members made was so great that one of the foreigners employed by the navy, who lived next to the practice hall, complained to the Academy that he could not study because of the sounds they made ‘from early morning to late evening’.32 Owing to Fenton’s diligence, and the hard work of the pupils, the bands made significant progress and their repertoire expanded to include even some opera excerpts. The navy valued Fenton highly, and his contract was extended several times. His salary increased, as well. When he was in the British army he received 3s 5d per day, around $26 a month. In the Japanese navy his initial monthly salary was already $200 and later increased to $230. He was allotted government quarters, from where he commuted by horse. In 1872 Fenton married Jane Pilkington, an American musician, who came to Japan with her brother Albert, an English teacher, who was also employed by the navy. In 1874 when the Naval Academy had the honour to receive the Emperor, on the Naval Commemoration Day, both Fenton and his brother-in-law, together with Douglas and his team, were present.33 As modernization and Westernization of society advanced, requests to perform Western-style music increased. Military bands were still virtually the only source of Western music. Bookings included performances in front of the Emperor during the opening ceremony of the first railway between Shimbashi and Yokohama in 1872 and at the dinner reception, on the occasion of His Majesty’s Birthday, at the State Guest House, the following year. The latter occasion was especially significant because it was the first time the Imperial Court served Western food and played Western music. For nearly a thousand years the reijin musicians, attached to the court, had played gagaku, ancient music for the court rituals. In 1874 they were instructed to study Western music under Fenton and Nakamura. Among the young talented reijin pupils were Oku Yoshiisa and Hayashi Hirosue, who were to later revise Fenton’s Kimigayo. As professionally trained musicians, reijin quickly acquired the skill and played various Western tunes. They played Fenton’s Kimigayo regularly including a performance during the Emperor’s Birthday reception in 1879.34 In spring 1877 Fenton’s nine-year stay in Japan came to an end. Initially the navy wanted to extend his contract for another year. 217
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However, in the beginning of that year a rebellion, led by Saigo Takamori, a powerful figure from Satsuma, who left the Meiji Government over differences about modernization, broke out. Kawamura, now Vice Minister of the Navy, was at the battlefield commanding the government forces against the rebels. The navy, wanting to extend Fenton’s contract, telegraphed Kawamura, who unexpectedly said there was no further need for Fenton’s services. He might well have been too preoccupied with the war, or concerned about the contract’s financial implications. In March the navy and the Ministry of the Imperial Household invited Fenton and his family to a farewell dinner. They gave the Fentons, in thanks for all he had done, a porcelain vase and some lengths of silk.35 In April the Fentons left Japan for the United States, his wife’s home country, on the ship The City of Tokyo. He recalled his happy days in Japan in a moving letter he wrote to Kawamura the next year: Tiskilwa, Illinois United States of America July 19th, 1878 To His Excellency, Kawamura, (Sangi) [position higher than minister], and Minister of the Japanese Imperial Navy Dear Sir, It is now many months since I left Japan, and I long to hear all about my good friends there, especially my Band pupils. I learn by the Newspapers that the Civil War [the Satsuma Rebellion] has ended and I hope that none of my friends have suffered through its devastating effects. My health is now fully restored and I am quite ready to return to my duties, should your Government be willing to employ me. Should your Excellency see an opportunity of again making use of my service I shall be very glad to return to Japan where I spent so many happy days. My Wife and Daughter join me in kind remembrances to yourself and friends. Your Excellencies, obedient servant and friend John W. Fenton Professor of music36 Unfortunately, the navy, despite the end of the war, had to decline Fenton’s offer as it had already decided to employ a German teacher, Franz Eckert, as his successor. 218
JOHN WILLIAM FENTON (1831-1890)
In 1880 Fenton was back in Britain, serving once again in the military, as Sergeant Trumpeter, an equivalent of local bandmaster, in Forfar and Kincardine Artillery Militia (later the 5th Brigade of the Scottish Division of the Royal Artillery) stationed in Montrose, Scotland. It was the regiment in which his father once served in the early 1800s. The Militia was a non-professional army consisting of locally recruited temporary soldiers. In peace-time they were ordinary citizens except that they engaged in military training several weeks in a year. Fenton was one of a small number of permanent staff who trained them. Apart from official training Fenton’s band played during the sports day of the regiment as well as for military funeral processions. They also played during such social activities as the opening of an exhibition. Fenton volunteered to be one of the regular judges in a local band competition. Fenton seemed to be enjoying his retired life teaching young people while living with his family.37 Fenton was discharged in March 1883 and returned to the US. After a long illness he died in Santa Cruz, California, 28 April 1890. In a photograph, which was preserved at Kneller Hall and published for the first time for this book, he sits on a chair in a black coat with a small gentle smile on his face.38 FENTON’S LEGACY
Fenton’s activities in Japan had a wide and long-lasting impact on the introduction of Western music. First and foremost, he laid the foundation of the Western-style military band. Fenton’s bands fulfilled both military assignments and a social role successfully. The first overseas service of the navy band was in 1874 on board the battleship Ryu¯jo¯ when she visited China to negotiate a settlement of the Taiwan Expedition. It was sent to the battlefield for the first time on board the flagship Matsushima during the Sino-Japanese War of 1894–95. In 1902 after the conclusion of the Anglo-Japanese Alliance the bandmaster Nakamura Suketsune led his band on a visit to Britain on the battleship Asama to participate in the Fleet Review on the occasion of the coronation of King Edward VII. His band played both European and Japanese pieces such as a march from Tannhäuser and Echigojishi, a song from kabuki.39 This was the first time that a Japanese military band was sent abroad on a peace-time mission. The bands expanded their repertoire further during these years to reflect the changing social life of Japan. They incorporated string sections into their line-up and began playing orchestral pieces at public events. Many people heard Western classical music for the first time played by musicians trained in military bands. For lighter entertainment, they transcribed various Japanese songs to Western scores and 219
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performed them for the military as well as the general public. After retirement some of the former band members started private bands, which performed at company and school ceremonies as well as at dance halls. Secondly, Fenton raised the first generation of composers of Western-style music in Japan. He was the first person to teach the Japanese Western music theory in a systematic manner. He drew on his Kneller Hall training, and used textbooks, including System of Music by Charles Mandel, professor of music theory and later music director of his Alma Mater.40 Mandel’s textbook, which was intended for military band beginners, covered Western-style notation, harmony, code progression and simple compositions of quadrilles, marches and waltzes. Several talented band members and reijin musicians, taught by Fenton, became composers of Western-style music with Japanese verses and themes. One of Fenton’s talented students Tanaka Hozumi, who joined the navy band in 1873, composed the first Japanese waltz Utsukushiki Tennen (Beauty of Nature), which became famous through performances by street musicians. Some of the reijin pupils, such as Ue Sanemichi, having studied under Fenton, participated in the work of the Music Research Institute of the Ministry of Education established in 1879. Ue wrote Western-style school songs such as Ichigatsu Ichijitsu (The New Year’s Day) which is sung to this day. Their songs were successful because they did not imitate Western music, but rather wrote melancholy melodies suited to Japanese sentimentalism using Western music vocabulary. Thirdly, Fenton brought to Japan the concept of the national anthem. Before the Meiji Restoration Japanese people had a strong sense of belonging to one’s domain rather than to the nation. Fenton’s initiative helped in its own way the government’s effort to transform people’s identity and create a new sense of the nation state. Fenton’s approval of the verse served the aim of national integration centred around the Emperor. Here the British national anthem was used as a reference. Although it was revised, Fenton’s Kimigayo, the first Western-style song ever written for Japanese verse, was used during the most critical years for the government to establish its legitimacy and authority. It is noteworthy that Fenton made the suggestion that a national anthem should be written in the style of traditional music of that country. Fenton might even have been willing to help the Japanese in revising his Kimigayo along these lines. As a matter of fact, when Nakamura Suketsune made a proposal to the navy in 1876, in which Fenton’s Kimigayo should be revised in the style of court music, Fenton was supposed to transcribe, for the verse Kimigayo, the traditional melody which two people from the navy would have learnt at the Ministry of the Imperial Household.41 By this time 220
JOHN WILLIAM FENTON (1831-1890)
Nakamura had become an instructor for court musicians to teach Western music, and it may have led him to consider the possibility of court music transcribed by a British bandmaster. Historians have regarded Nakamura’s proposal as a criticism of Fenton. But Nakamura must have consulted with Fenton when he included him in this revision process. Fenton probably agreed to Nakamura’s plan, because it was in line with his original idea of a national anthem based on a traditional melody; Fenton’s contact with the court musicians would also have led him to appreciate the need for the revision. Contrary to the conventional view that Fenton’s Kimigayo was totally discarded, as a result of the revision, recent research shows that the basic rhythm and part of its melody were preserved.42 Due to the Satsuma Rebellion of 1877 Nakamura’s proposal was implemented only in 1880 after Fenton had left Japan. Without him the revised version was written by Fenton’s former pupils from the court, Oku Yoshiisa and Hayashi Hirosue. This new version of Kimigayo used, as Nakamura suggested in his proposal, the ichikotsu cho¯ scale, typical of gagaku. At the same time, some of Fenton’s rhythm and melody can still be heard. The new version retained the predominance of minims and passages of Fenton’s original, where the word and the music matched. While being Fenton’s pupils, Oku and Hayashi played his version of Kimigayo on many occasions. They must have understood the process proposed by Nakamura as a revision rather than a creation. We do not know whether Fenton knew the fate of his Kimigayo or not, but the new version, ‘a joint work’ of the teacher and his pupils, was played in front of the Emperor, for his birthday reception, that year. Fenton’s Kimigayo is, however, not lost in oblivion. It is played every year at Myo¯ko¯ji Temple at a concert, commemorating the birth of Japanese band music. In 2008 his wife’s descendants were invited and the band of the Japanese Ground Self Defence Force performed the piece to pay tribute to ‘the father of wind band’ of Japan.43 ACKNOWLEDGEMNTS I wish to thank Akiyama Toshio, Honorary President of the Japanese Band Directors’ Association, Tsukahara Yasuko, Professor of Tokyo University of the Arts, Major (Retd) Roger Swift of Royal Military School of Music, Adrian Wilkinson of Lincolnshire Archives and Susan Jeffreys for their generous help and advice. The views expressed are my own and should not be taken as official Japanese government policy. BIBLIOGRAPHY
Abe Kan’ichi ed., Burasu Bando no Shakaishi (Social History of Brass Bands), Tokyo, Seikyu¯-sha, 2001. 221
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Akiyama Toshio, Nihon Suiso¯gaku no Chichi William Fenton wo Otte (Following the Life of the Father of Japan’s Wind Band William Fenton), Ongaku Bunka no So¯zo¯, Vol.52, Tokyo, 2009, pp. 44–6. Black, John Reddie, Young Japan: Yokohama and Yedo Vol.1–2, London, Trubner & Company, 1881. Farmer, Henry George, History of the Royal Artillery Band 1762–1953, London, Royal Artillery Institution, 1954. Higgins, R.T. ed., Records of King’s Own Borderers or Old Edinburgh Regiment, London, Chapman and Hall, 1873. Holmes, Richard, Soldiers: Army Lives and Loyalties From Redcoats to Dusty Warriors, London, HarperPress, 2011. Imperial Navy records, K¯obun Ruisan, K¯obun Biko¯, K¯obun Gensho and H¯orei Zensho, The National Institute for Defence Studies, Ministry of Defence, Tokyo. Koyama Sakunosuke, Kokka Kimigayo no Yurai (The Origin of the National Anthem Kimigayo), Tokyo, 1941. Lee, Albert, The History of the Tenth Foot, Aldershot, Gale & Polden, 1911. Nakamura Rihei, Y¯ogaku Do¯nyu¯ Sha no Kiseki (The Paths of Pioneers in Introducing Western Music), Tokyo, To¯suishobo¯, 1993, pp. 67–126. The National Archives of Japan, Kaigun Gungakutai Enkaku Shiryo¯ (Materials on the History of Navy Band), Tokyo, 1887 (Japan Centre for Asian Historical Records (JACAR) Ref A07090089600). Odagiri Nobuo, Kokka Kimigayo Ko¯ wa (Discourse on National Anthem Kimigayo), Tokyo, Kyo¯eki-sho¯sha Shoten, 1929. Shinohara Hiroshi, Nihon Kaigun Oyatoi Gaikoku Jin, Tokyo, Chu¯o¯ko¯ronsha, 1988. Tsukahara Yasuko, Ju¯kyu¯ Seiki no Nihon ni okeru Seiyo¯ Ongaku no Juyo¯ (Introduction of Western Music in 19th Century Japan), Tokyo, Tagashuppan, 1993, pp. 160–240. Turner, Gordon and Turner, Alwyn, The Trumpets will Sound, the Story of the Royal Military School of Music, Kneller Hall, Tunfridge Wells, Parapress, 1996. Turner, Gordon and Turner, Alwyn, The History of British Military Bands, Vol.1 & 2, Staplehurst, Spellmount,1994. Wada Shinjiro¯, Kimigayo to Banzai (Kimigayo and Banzai), Tokyo, Ko¯fu¯kan Shoten,1932. ENDNOTES 1
2
3
4
Pamela Statham-Drew, James Stirling: Admiral and Founding Governor of Western Australia, Crawley, University of Australia Press, 2003, p. 475. William Henry Poyntz, Per Mare, Per Terram: Reminiscences of Thirty-two Years’ Military, Naval, and Constabulary Service, London, Economic Print. & Publishing Company, 1892, p. 214. For the joint exercise see Black, Vol.1, p. 413. For British advisers see, Grace Foxx, Britain and Japan 1858–1883, Oxford, Clarendon Press, 1969, pp. 254–5 and Shinohara. Fenton’s date of birth 12 March 1831 was established by Akiyama through the inscription of Fenton’s grave in Santa Cruz, California. 222
JOHN WILLIAM FENTON (1831-1890)
5
6
7
8
9 10
11
12
13
14 15 16 17
18 19 20 21 22 23
There is a record of his baptism at St Multose church in Kinsale dated 10 April 1831, which seems to support the birth date on the inscription. I have found an entry in General Register Office Regimental Birth Indices (vol.1261, p. 1) indicating that Fenton was born exactly two years earlier (12 March 1829) and was baptized on 12 April 1829. However, I was not able to find the baptismal record that supports this. The fact that this GRO record was made several years after Fenton’s birth by an officer in the 25th foot suggests that Fenton already had certain connections with the regiment before he enlisted and the record may be distorted in favour of his early enlistment, although army pension record assumes that he was even born one more year earlier. See notes 6, 7 and 37 below. For the birth and death of Fenton’s father see The National Archives (TNA), WO12/7403. See also L.C. Broughton ed., Memoirs of the 65th Regiment 1st Battn., The York & Lancaster Regt., 1756–1913, London, William Clowes & Sons, 1914. The reason for joining the 25th foot is unclear but his mother might have received some kind of assistance from the regiment which was also in the West Indies when the father died. Another guess is that Fenton might have returned to Scotland where his father’s relatives lived and the 25th recruited regularly. TNA, WO12/4192–4212. Fenton’s pension record WO97/1954 treats him as though he was born in 1828. Marriage record of 13 January 1858 in Ashton under Lyne, Lancashire, England. England & Wales Marriages, 1538–1940 [in database on-line at Ancestry.com]. Fenton was allowed on the married role (married establishment) in July 1864 (WO12/2806). See Turner and Turner (1996), pp. 15–40. TNA, WO12/ 2800–2808. For Jessie Woods’ birth see GRO Regimental Birth Indices, Vol.970, page 1. Lincolnshire county council archives. Catalogue title Copy photograph of sergeants of the 1st Battn of the 10th Foot at the Bluff Camp, Yokohama, July 1871. The Far East, Yokohama, 1 July 1871 and The Japan Weekly Mail, Yokohama, 27 May 1871. Kimotsuki’s interview in Nisshu¯ Shimbun, 3 November 1905, quoted in Koyama, pp. 52–6. Author’s translation. Takasaki Yoshiyuki’s interview quoted in Odagiri, pp. 8–9. The Far East, 16 July 1870. Black, Vol.2, p. 293. Nishi’s interview in Kagoshima Shimbun, 8–11 January 1919, quoted in Koyama, pp. 38–44. Ibid. p. 41 The Far East, 1 July 1871. Kimotsuki’s interview in Koyama, p. 54. Quoted in Wada. Kaigun Gungakutai Enkaku Shiryo¯ . Nakamura’s letter to Koyama dated 20 October 1912 (?) in Koyama, p. 61, and his letter to Abe Sueisa (date unknown) in Odagiri, p. 17. 223
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24
25 26
27
28
29 30
31
32
33
34 35
36 37
38
39
40
41
¯ yama’s story recorded by his adjutant Hayashida Yoshitaro¯ in a letter O to Wada dated 9 October 1912 quoted in Wada, pp. 55–8. See also ¯ yama Iwao (Field Marshal O ¯ yama Iwao), Inotani So¯goro¯, Gensui O Tokyo, Senryu¯do¯, 1930, pp. 26–8 and pp. 35–51. Nishi’s interview quoted in Koyama, p. 40. For an account of the visit by the Duke of Edinburgh to Japan see ‘Royal Visits to Japan in the Meiji Period’ by Hugh Cortazzi in Britain and Japan: Biographical Portraits, volume II, ed.Ian Nish, Japan Library, 1997, pp. 80–4. Sawa Kannojo¯, Kaigun Nanaju¯-nen Shidan (Navy’s Seventy Years’ History), Tokyo, Bunseido¯shisha, 1942, pp. 339–43. Tamura Torazo¯, Kimigayo no Raireki oyobi sono Toriatsukai ho¯ (The Origin of Kimigayo and its Treatment), Kyo¯iku Kenkyu¯, 176, Tokyo, Dainippon Tosho, 1918. Nishi’s interview in Koyama, p. 41. For Fenton’s contract with the navy see JACAR Ref.C09090537000 in K¯obun Ruisan Vol.36, 1871. For an account of the naval mission led by Archibald Douglas see the chapter by Ian Gow in Britain and Japan: Biographical Portraits, volume III, ed J.E. Hoare, Japan Library, 1999, pp. 144–57. For Fenton’s hard work described in navy record on renewal of the contract see Kaigun Gungakutai Enkaku Shiryo¯ quoted in Wada, p. 146. For complaints by Dutch naval officer H.K. Koning see JACAR Ref. C09111258600 in Ko¯ bun Ruisan Vol.1, 1873. For Fenton’s marriage with Jane Pilkington see TNA FO345/34. For Naval Commemoration day see Ho¯ rei Zensho (7 January 1874) quoted in Wada, p. 146. Wada, p. 114. For Kawamura’s telegraph see JACAR Ref. C09112375500 in K o¯ bun Ruisan, Vol.25, 1877. For gifts to Fenton see JACAR Ref.C06090634900 in Ko¯ bun Biko¯, Vol. 24, 1877. JACAR Ref.C09101265400 in Ko¯ bun Gensho, Vol.62, 1878. TNA, WO16/672. For Fenton’s activities in Montrose see articles in Dundee Courie, 24 August 1880, 10 January and 23 July 1881, 21 April and 22 June 1882. Fenton lived with his wife Jane and two adopted daughters on 18 George Street. See 1881 census record in www. scotlandspeople.gov.uk. According to the record Fenton was fifty, which suggests that he was born in 1831. Photograph from a photo album preserved at Kneller Hall. Fenton’s photograph is used with kind permission of the School. His middle initial is misspelled. A British newspaper article quoted in Nakamura’s diary dated 18 June 1902 in Gakusui Kai ed., Kaigun Gungakutai (The Navy Band), p. 33, Tokyo, Kokusho Kanko¯ Kai, 1984. Charles Mandel, Mandel’s System of Music, London, Boosey & Co., 1869. Fenton donated four copies of this book to the Academy just before he left Japan. See JACAR Ref. C09100213700 in Ko¯ bun Gensho Vol.34, 1877. Koyama, pp. 123–7. 224
JOHN WILLIAM FENTON (1831-1890)
42
43
Herrman Gottschewski, Hoiku sho¯ka and the melody of Japanese national anthem Kimi ga yo, To¯ yo¯ Ongaku Kenkyu¯, no.68, Tokyo, To¯yo¯ Ongaku Gakkai (The Society for Research in Asiatic Music), 2003. Akiyama’s research on the fate of Fenton, after he left Japan, led to the contact with Fenton’s second wife Jane Pilkington’s descendants in the US, who helped Akiyama in his research. Akiyama’s interview in Daily Telegraph on 2 March 2006 ‘Japanese seek family of bandsman Fenton’, caught their eye. Akiyama invited the descendants to this concert.
225
19
Britain and Japan: Exchanges in Music before the Second World War AKIRA IMAMURA
INTRODUCTION
As related in my portrait of John William Fenton in this volume British music was first played in Japan by a military band, which arrived in Nagasaki in 1854. From then on the military became the main source of Western music in nineteenth century Japan. This was closely related to the modernization priorities of the Meiji Government. After the military the next priority for the Meiji leaders was education and schools. As they sought to create a national system of education, music was temporarily left to one side because of a lack of consensus on what should be taught. British vocal music provided a solution in a unique way. SCOTTISH FOLK TUNES IN JAPANESE SCHOOLS
During its visit to Britain in 1872 the famous mission led by Iwakura Tomomi made a stop at a school in London during a music lesson. The official record of the mission described in detail how children were learning the basics of music through the clapping of their hands under the teacher’s instructions.1 But this had little impact on music education in Japan. Luther Whiting Mason, an American music educator, who had been invited to Japan by Isawa Shuji, played a leading role in early music education in Japan. Isawa was one of Mason’s former pupils who had become head of the newly established Music Research Institute of the Ministry of Education. Isawa was looking for suitable songs for Japanese school children as his Ministry considered that most traditional Japanese songs were sung at drinking parties or theatrical performances and were thus ‘unhealthy’ for children. Mason and Isawa decided to include as many ‘healthy’ foreign songs 226
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as possible in their first music textbook published in 1882. Of its thirty-three songs five were British. They were Auld Lang Syne, The Bluebells of Scotland, Ye Banks and Braes, The Land o’the Leal and Glorious Apollo. With the exception of the last piece, which was written by an eighteenth century English composer Samuel Webbe, all the others were Scottish folk tunes.2 Mason proposed the inclusion of these Scottish folk tunes not only because he had been active in Boston, where British cultural influence was still strong, but also because he apparently found certain similarities between Scottish and Japanese traditional songs. The local English newspaper The Japan Weekly Mail wrote in 1880 when Mason first arrived in Japan: This gentleman [Mason] has already set to foreign music several of the Japanese national songs and has devoted some time during the last two years to the study of the sounds of the Japanese language and their adaptability to the foreign scale of music. […] Such foreign songs as may be found suitable will be translated into Japanese and the native repertory will also be drawn upon; and its best songs set to music on the European scale. The first work will be to find how many pure melodies exist in Japan, founded upon the five-tone scale (for Mr Mason has discovered that the Japanese scale contains five tones only, being deficient of the fourth and seventh of the Italian gamut).3
Mason noticed that the pentatonic scale consisting of C, D, E, G, A (later called in Japan yo-na-nuki scale or scale without the fourth and seventh notes) was often used in Japanese traditional folk tunes or children’s songs. It was also common in Scottish folk music and Mason may have thought it would sound familiar to the Japanese. In fact, these songs were very much in tune with Japanese sentimentalism and even after Mason left Japan, Scottish songs, which used this scale, such as Comin’ Thro’ The Rye and Annie Laurie were included in subsequent textbooks. Many of them indeed became part of the singing repertory of Japanese people. The Ministry saw music as a tool to teach children ethical values and employed famous writers to write ‘proper’ lyrics rather than directly translating the original text. Thus Auld Lang Syne was changed into a song about a farewell by schoolmates who had studied hard even under the light of fireflies in the evening. It was given a new title Hotaru no Hikari, or Glow of a Firefly and became a traditional song at graduation ceremonies in Japan. Comin’ Thro’ The Rye was transformed into a song about feeling homesick (the sentimental feeling of being far away from home and family). Glorious Apollo, a famous glee, was sung to Kimigayo, although it was soon discarded because there was already another melody written by court musicians 227
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to the same verse. At the same time other songs by English composers such as O Come All Ye Faithful and Home! Sweet Home!, which were included in the later textbooks, retained the original themes. Many of the songs remained popular even in the post-war period and Home! Sweet Home! Was selected in 2006 by the Agency for Cultural Affairs as one of the 100 Songs of Japan. Mason and Isawa’s eclectic experiment was less successful at this stage in producing new Japanese songs with proper lyrics set to a European scale. There were only two Japanese songs written in this way in the first textbook. The number of such songs, many of which were written by court musicians who studied Western music, increased gradually in subsequent years but with a few exceptions they are not sung nowadays. Songs with more enduring value began to appear in 1900s when a new generation of composers, such as Taki Rentaro¯ and Yamada Ko¯saku, who mastered Western music theory and classical tradition, emerged. ¯ AND JAPONISME IN MUSIC KAWAKAMI OTOJIRO
Japanese music at first seemed dissonant to the British. Ernest Satow in his A Diplomat in Japan gave one of the earliest accounts of the impression of Japanese music on Western ears. When he heard in 1867 the sounds of the shamisen, the traditional three string lute, which accompanied Japanese dance, he wrote; ‘it takes a long apprenticeship to accustom the European ear to music constructed with a set of intervals that are different enough from ours to make nine-tenth of the note seem out of tune’.4 People in London had a similar impression when they heard the music that accompanied one of the first shows by professional entertainers from Japan. While praising the performance by Matsui Gensui’s troupe of top spinners at St. Martin’s Hall in 1867, The Times wrote ‘the hilarity thus promoted was qualified only by a dismal accompaniment, played on the musical instruments of Japan’.5 After these first encounters there was a sharp rise of interest in Europe in Japanese culture. This came to be termed Japonisme. Although Japanese fine art and artifacts were the prime sources of Japonisme, music did have a part in its popularity through its role in the performing arts. When the Japanese Village was opened in 1885 in London there was a small theatre, which showed Japanese dance accompanied by shamisen music, probably similar to what Satow had heard, but this time the impression created was slightly better. The Illustrated London News wrote; ‘a sound of barbaric, but not discordant, music comes in single notes from the annexe, where vocal and instrumental performance is going on’.6 The famous operetta The Mikado, premiered in the same year was composed in the style of 228
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Western music but contained one Japanese song, Miya Sama Miya Sama.7 William Gilbert used it when the Mikado entered as if it were the Japanese national anthem.8 In fact it was a military song sung by the Emperor’s soldiers during the civil war in 1868. The similarly popular production of a Japanese theme play, The Geisha, A Story of a Tea-house by Sidney Jones also contained a Japanese song Chon Kina, which was often sung in Japan in those years during geisha parties. Despite their lack of authenticity as real Japanese music these works prepared audiences for hearing Japanese music played during professional theatrical performances by Japanese actors. In 1900 Kawakami Otojiro¯ (1864–1911) and his troupe came to London at the height of Japonisme in Europe. This was the first Japanese professional theatre company ever to visit Britain. After becoming famous in Japan by singing Oppekepe Bushi, a rap-like political satire, Kawakami launched his own troupe in 1891. He called his style Shinpa (the New School), as compared to kabuki, which according to him was the old school. Nevertheless during their first tour to the West they put on shows, which were in fact simplified kabuki derived from classical works with an emphasis on dance and action with limited dialogue. The music was the same as kabuki music nagauta, which used shamisen and Japanese drums, except that there were fewer musicians. At first the Coronet Theatre at Notting Hill Gate where they performed was half empty, but gradually they attracted the attention of theatregoers. One critic wrote; ‘[the public] became aware of the fact that a miniature comedy and tragedy of rare delicacy and charm, as naïf as they were beautiful, could be seen […] in the prosaic neighbourhood of Notting Hill’.9 The audience was charmed by the elegant dance of Otojiro¯’s wife and former geisha, Sadayakko, especially her death scene at the end of The Geisha and the Night based on the famous classics Musume Do¯jo¯ji and Saya-ate. Henri Louis Bischoffsheim, a wealthy banker living in Mayfair, wanted the troupe to perform during one of his receptions for London’s high society. Arthur Diosy, one of the founders of the Japan Society, acting as an intermediary, arranged this for one evening when the guest of honour was Edward, the Prince of Wales. There was thunderous applause after Sadayakko collapsed into her lover’s arm in the finale. Otojiro¯ and Sadayakko were presented to the prince and had a brief conversation.10 Many traditional genres in Japanese music, including nagauta, were incidental or narrative music, which can best be appreciated when played as an integral part of a play. After more than thirty years from the first encounters with Japanese music the British audience was finally given the opportunity to hear such music and enjoyed the experience. 229
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FREDERIC GAISBERG AND THE RECORDING OF JAPANESE MUSIC
The beginning of the twentieth century saw the emergence of sound recording technology suitable for mass production.11 Frederic William Gaisberg (1873–1951) of London’s Gramophone Company was the first recording engineer to make recordings of Japanese music using this technology. The earliest recording is of a performance by the Kawakami troupe during the Paris Exposition of 1900, which the troupe visited after London. The discs were sold in Europe until 1903 but were lost until they were rediscovered in 1995 in the EMI (successor of the Gramophone Company) archive. These oldest existing recordings of Japanese music were made into CD sets. They included not only a scene from The Geisha and the Night but also an adapted version of The Merchant of Venice, which they ‘improvised’ during the tour.12 Gaisberg’s visit to Tokyo in 1903 resulted in more extensive recording of Japanese music. He settled in a hotel room, which became his recording studio, with the equipment that he had brought from London. He wrote in his diary during the audition: Wed 4th [February, 1903]. […] We made some 54 records. Japanese music is simply too horrible, but funny to relate, Europeans who have been long in the country profess to really enjoy it, and say that there is more in the music & acting than casual observer would believe […] Friday 13th. I am beginning to like their music a little. Today we had a Geisha band, and to see these little women with big European band instruments was the funniest thing imaginable. This band plays both on Japanese & European instruments. I took a photograph of them.13
During his stay in Japan Gaisberg eventually recorded 273 discs covering the following genres: gagaku (court music) yo¯kyoku (music of no¯h theatre) kyo¯gen (comic theatre played between no¯h acts) tokiwazu, gidayu¯, kiyomoto (various sub-genres of narrative music jo¯ruri) nagauta (music of kabuki) dodoitsu, kappore (various sub-genres of zokkyoku music played for entertainment during drinking party and vaudeville) sankyoku (ensemble music played by shamisen, koto and shakuhachi) ro¯kyoku (narrative singing began in Meiji-era often accompanied by shamisen) rakugo (comical storytelling), kowairo (art of voice imitation), shigin (reciting of poems with distinctive intonation) Western-style band music. 230
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These were all traditional genres except for a geisha band. This was Azuma Fujin Ongaku Renchu¯, a women only Western-style wind band, which was still a rare phenomenon. Henry James Black, the son of John Reddie Black, a Scottish born publisher in Yokohama, assisted Gaisberg in selecting the traditional genres for recording. Henry Black was the first foreign rakugo-ka (comical storyteller) and Gaisberg made a recording of him performing in Japanese. Gaisberg’s recordings in Japan were successful in capturing Japanese traditional music and performing arts in their entirety just before Western influence started to be felt. This made the recordings of immense historical value. In 1907, production of disc and gramophone records started in Japan. The first record label Nipponophone Co. Ltd (Nihon Chikuonki Sho¯kai) was established three years later with technical assistance from UK Columbia Gramophone Company. With the advance of modernization the Japanese recording industry grew further creating a sophisticated and appreciative audience. Gaisberg himself never went back to Japan to see these developments, but reminiscing about his visit to Japan in his autobiography published in 1942 he wrote: I had already met signs of the great transition from Oriental to Western music that was to take place in Japan and surprise the world thirty years later. But I could hardly foresee that a European musician like Heifetz would one day give a series of twelve recitals in a month to sold out houses, or that 100,000 records of Beethoven’s Ninth Symphony would be bought by Japanese gramophone enthusiasts.14 FUJIWARA YOSHIE AND CHANGING JAPAN-UK RELATIONS
According to one observer, the Anglo-Japanese Alliance of 1902 was ‘the object in many quarters of music hall and comic opera jest rather than of serious political analysis’.15 Such attitudes changed when the Russo-Japanese War started in 1904. Leo Dryden, known as ‘Kipling of the Halls’, sang For Freedom and Japan in support of Britain’s ally Japan.16 Jingoism had become a favourite theme for some music hall singers like Dryden. As Japan emerged as the victor in the war the Japanese government sent a Western-style military band to the JapanBritish Exhibition in Shepherd’s Bush in 1910 to boost its image as a great power, although kabuki and other traditional entertainments were also brought to amuse the public.17 Meanwhile, British comic opera traditions influenced Japan in the first decades of the twentieth century. The American born impresario Maurice Bandmann (1873–1922) took his Bandman Theatre Company to Japan twelve times between 1906 and 1921. Based in Calcutta the company recruited artists from England and toured the Middle East, South-East Asia and the Far East. The Japanese audience 231
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Fujiwara Yoshie
enjoyed the latest works of Edwardian musical comedy such as A Chinese Honeymoon (1901), The Arcadians (1909) and Betty (1914).18 They made a significant impact on fledgling Japanese comic opera artists who initiated the Asakusa Opera Movement in Tokyo after the First World War. Fujiwara Yoshie (1898–1976) was a tenor who started his career in Asakusa during these years. He was the illegitimate child of Neil B. Reid, a Scottish merchant, and a geisha from Osaka. Reid was stationed in Shimonoseki as head of the subsidiary of Holme, Ringer and Company. Fujiwara’s early life was like a roller-coaster.19 After playing some minor roles in Asakusa, he went to Italy in 1920 to study opera. He quickly spent all the money his father had sent him and moved to his friend’s house in London. Earning a living by singing at cafés he was introduced to Yoshida Shigeru, the future Prime Minister, who at that time was a First Secretary at the Embassy of Japan. In 1921 Yoshida organized for Fujiwara his first recital at the Langham Hotel. His songs, including the masterpiece Ko¯jo¯ no Tsuki by Taki Rentaro¯, were well received by the journalists and music critics invited by Yoshida. After he returned to Japan Fujiwara became famous through his singing of both opera arias and popular tunes. As a successful singer he revisited London almost every two years during the 1920s. The following is an account by a journalist of his London concert in 1926: Though London has heard a Japanese prima donna admirably fill the role of Madam Butterfly, Japanese singers, especially men, who can make an appeal to Western ears, were very rare. The singer, Mr Fujiwara, had a very great success on this his first appearance in this country [sic]. He sang mostly Italian songs but gave several English songs with perfect sympathy.20
Although the journalist was not impressed by his Japanese songs Fujiwara knew that they always received the biggest applause from 232
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a British audience. In April 1928 Fujiwara sang seven Japanese songs at the Royal Albert Hall (the others were five Italian opera excerpts). Of these seven songs six were written or arranged by Taki Rentaro¯ and Yamada Ko¯saku, who both came from the Western classical music tradition.21 The only exception was a ryu¯ko¯ka song titled Hoko wo Osamete by Nakayama Shimpei. Ryu¯ko¯ka, literally popular song, was a new genre emerged in the late 1920s. While they were based on Western music theory many of them used yona-nuki scale to reflect the melancholic mood of ordinary people. Ryu¯ko¯ka songs were intended to achieve commercial success through mass sales of record discs. Hoko wo Osamete was one of Fujiwara’s hits of 1928. In the 1930s as American influenced jazz-style songs grew popular in Japan direct musical interaction with the UK weakened. This was compounded by the deterioration in political relations between the two countries. Even Fujiwara at the request of the authorities had recorded a song about the Japanese military action in Manchuria. In May 1938, one year after the war with China had started, he visited London and again met Yoshida Shigeru, who was then Japanese Ambassador in London. Yoshida invited Fujiwara to a reception at his residence, where Fujiwara sang nine songs to the five hundred guests, including six cabinet members and Mrs Chamberlain, the wife of the Prime Minister. Again his Japanese songs received the biggest applause. On the next day when Fujiwara came to bid farewell Yoshida told him ‘Your country will be in a big trouble if you continue what you are doing now.’22 The following year the Japanese Government commissioned Benjamin Britten to write a piece for the 2600th anniversary of Imperial Dynasty scheduled for 1940. We do not know why this pacifist composer was selected, but his Sinfonia da Requiem was turned down because its mood was considered inappropriate for the celebrations. This episode left bitter feelings on both sides.23 Several month after Japan declared war against the US and Britain in December 1941 Fujiwara and his opera colleagues were sent to the Chinese front to entertain Japanese soldiers. At home the authorities banned restaurants and shops from playing ‘enemy’s music’ and selling records imported from these countries. The 1943 decree banned more than one thousand records including such British titles as Londonderry Air, Sussex by the Sea, Lo! Hear the Gentle Lark and In a Chinese Temple Garden. Ironically, the fact that the decree complained about the continuous violations of previous bans showed that there had been strong demand for these records. Interestingly, the decree exempted Japanese versions of such songs as Home! Sweet Home! and Last Rose of Summer saying that they were ‘digested in a Japanese way in a long period of time and blended into Japanese life’.24 These songs had been first included in school textbooks in the 1880s retaining original themes and have been popular ever since. 233
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The Japanese version of Last Rose of Summer was apparently recorded twelve times between 1928 and 1940. The exemptions in the decree demonstrated that these songs had evoked much the same sentiments among Japanese and British people alike. ENDNOTES 1
2
3 4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
13
14
15
¯ Kairan Jikki Dai Nihen, Kume Kunitake, Tokumei Zenken Taishi Bei O Tokyo, Hakubun-sha, 1878. (The Iwakura Embassy, 1871–1873 : A True Account of the Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary’s Journal of Observation Through the United States of America and Europe, Volume 2, Princeton, Princeton University Press, 2002, p. 96.) Ministry of Education, Sho¯gaku Sho¯ka Shohen (Elementary School Songs: Book One), Tokyo, 1882. Of thirty-three songs the number of British songs was the second largest after six German ones if we exclude thirteen elementary études Mason selected from the textbook he compiled in Boston. The Japan Weekly Mail, Yokohama, 6 March 1880. Ernest Satow, A Diplomat in Japan, London, Seely, Service & Co, 1921. (Reprinted by Stone Bridge Press, 2006, p. 200.) The Times, 14 February 1867, quoted in Andrew Cobbing, The Japanese Discovery of Victorian Britain, Oxon, Routledge, 1998, p. 111. The Illustrated London News, 21 February 1885, quoted in Hugh Cortazzi, Japan in Late Victorian London; The Japanese Village in Knightsbridge and the Mikado, 1885, Norwich, Sainsbury Institute for the Study of Japanese Arts and Cultures, 2009, p. 15. Michael Beckerman, The Sword on the Wall: Japanese Elements and Their Significance in ‘The Mikado’, The Musical Quarterly, Vol.73, No.3, Oxford, Oxford University Press, 1989, pp.303–19. William Gilbert, The Story of The Mikado, London, Daniel O’connor, 1921, p. 92. Osman Edwards, Japanese Plays And Playfellows, London, Heinemann, 1901, p. 66. Lesley Downer, Madame Sadayakko the geisha who seduced the West, London, Review, pp. 166–8. In 1888 German-born American Emile Berliner invented flat record discs suitable for mass production and established the Gramophone Company in London in 1897. Gaisberg who initially worked for Berliner was sent to London to become a recording engineer of the company. J. Scott Miller, Dispossessed Melodies, Recordings of the Kawakami Theater Troupe, Monumenta Nipponica, Vol.53, No.2, Tokyo, Sophia University, Summer, 1998, pp. 225–35. Jerrold Northrop Moor, A Voice in Time: the Gramophone of Fred Gaisberg 1873–1951, London, Hamilton, 1976, p. 82 Frederic W. Gaisberg, The Music goes Round, New York, Macmillan, 1942, p. 61 David Steels, Anglo-Japanese Relations, 1902–1923: a Marriage of Convenience, The History of Anglo-Japanese Relations 1600–2000, Volume I:
234
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The Political-Diplomatic Dimension, 1600–1930, edited by Ian Nish and Yoichi Kibata, London, Palgrave Macmillan, 2000, p. 197. 16 Although I was not able to find the lyrics of this song there is a brief reference to it in Terry Hallet, Bristol’s Forgotten Empire, Westbury, Wiltshire, The Badger Press, 2000, p. 44. For the jingoism of some of the music hall songs see Chapter 7 of Dave Russell, Popular Music in England 1840–1914: A Social History, second edition, Manchester, Manchester University Press, 1997. 17 Official Guide, Japan-British Exhibition, Derby & London, Bemrose & Sons, 1910, pp. 84 and 92. 18 Masui Keiji, Nippon Opera Shi˜1952 (History of Japanese Opera up to 1952), Tokyo, Suiyo¯ -sha, 2003, p. 56 and pp. 456–61. 19 Fujiwra Yoshie, Uta ni Iki Koi ni Iki (I lived for art, I lived for love), Tokyo, Bungei Shunjyu¯, 1967. 20 Derby Daily Telegraph, 14 January 1926. The prima donna referred here was most likely Miura Tamaki. 21 The Royal Albert Hall archives. The six songs were Ko¯jo¯ no Tsuki by Taki Rentaro¯ , Kane ga Narimasu by Yamada Ko¯ saku, traditional folk tunes Oki no Kamome and Magouta arranged by Yamada and children’s songs Karasu to Suzume and Chidori also arranged by Yamada. 22 Fujiwara, p. 189. 23 See the chapter on Benjamin Britten by Jason James in Britain and Japan: Biographical Portraits Volume VIII edited by Hugh Cortazzi, London, Global Oriental, 2013. 24 Cabinet Information Bureau, Shu¯ho¯ (Weekly Report), No.328, Tokyo, 27 January 1943, p. 16. (The views expressed are my own and should not be taken as official Japanese government policy.)
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Kazuo Kikuta (1908–1973), Japanese Impressario and Lover of Charles Dickens: A Personal Memoir NOBUKO ALBERY
Kazuo Kikuta was my boss at To¯ho¯ Theatre Company from 1963 till his death in 1973. I consider him an unsung hero, who helped to save Japan from urban unrest and the Japanese from despairing in those bleak post-war years, and also as someone, whose enduring love of Dickens – Oliver Twist in particular – paved the way for the later influx of the made-in-UK musicals to Japan. By the time I graduated from New York University’s theatre arts department in 1963, returned to Tokyo and asked for a job with To¯ho¯, Kikuta Kazuo had long been a national icon for the popular commercial theatre, as opposed to the state subsidized theatres; he was not only an implausibly prolific playwright (he is reputed to have written one thousand and several hundred original and adapted plays, in his prime ten full-length plays a year), theatre producer, director, infallible talent scout but also managing director of To¯ho¯’s Theatre Department, part of the colossal Hankyu¯-To¯ho¯ concern. 236
KAZUO KIKUTA (1908-1973)
Hankyu¯ owned numerous companies ranging from thriving Hankyu¯ Railways, Hankyu¯ department stores, an internationally known division for production and distribution of films, the world’s unique unmarried females only Takarazuka Revue Theatre with its ever increasing fanatic fans, a nation-wide chain of cinema houses, a music publishing house, costume and backstage production units, etc. Kikuta, who did not own a single share in To¯ho¯-Hankyu¯ concern, was a respected member of the Hankyu¯-To¯ho¯ board of directors. His position was secured solely by his inexhaustible talent and hard work. When he declared that he wished to buy the exorbitantly priced Japanese language rights to My Fair Lady, his conservative, risk-averse colleagues on the board were horrified and hostile; but the meek, diminutive man with a moustache, blinking his beady eyes behind mushroom-thick circular glasses stood firm. When the first ‘imported’ Broadway musical, directed by Kikuta, opened in late 1963, it was an instant, resounding success; people slept outside the box office to buy returned tickets. Had it not been for My Fair Lady’s impressive success and Kikuta’s determination to go on introducing Broadway plays and musicals, I would not have been engaged to represent him in New York at such a young age and so soon after my graduation. Citing the strict exchange control law then in force and the fact that his theatre department had no income in hard currencies as did the film department with a string of Kurosawa masterpieces, Kikuta offered me a monthly salary of 9,000 yen (at the time 25 US dollars), paid in yen to my father, adding: ‘Earn your living by arubaito (Arbeit) and work for us in your spare time. Now, get me Kiss Me Kate.’ Kiss Me Kate was followed by The Sound of Music, The King and I, Oklahoma, South of Pacific, Miracle Worker, Fiddler on the Roof, and others, (all in my spare time, for 9,000 yen a month which my father received). Then, hours after midnight in New York and late in the afternoon in Tokyo, Kikuta, whom everyone from stage-door keepers to every Minister of Culture addressed as ‘Sensei’, was on the line himself and said without preamble: ‘I love Dickens, you know?’ All Japan knew. Abandoned in Manchuria aged four months in 1908, he had led the most pitiably precarious childhood, passed on from one foster parent to another from Manchuria to Formosa and finally to Kobe, where from age twelve he had been sent to various shops as an apprentice and begun writing poems at night. When he was seventeen he fled to Tokyo and worked in a printer’s shop, where he had the luck of meeting a well-known poet, Sato¯ Hachiro¯, who saw the boy’s talent, took him in as an all-purpose house-boy, lodged and fed him, and found him a job as copier of scripts for a theatre company, who put on popular comedies, two new plays each month, 237
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in a now-defunct theatre inside Asakusa Park in Tokyo’s popular quarters. The war came, he went on writing, some seventy full length plays (several of his artistically highest quality works were written under the B29 air raids), many of which, inescapably, were to promote patriotic wartime fervour. After the defeat, fearing arrest and prison as a war criminal, he boldly reported himself to CIE (Civil Information and Education) instead of hiding in the remote countryside. To a certain Mr Keith in charge of performing arts he said: ‘I wrote on my own volition many pro-war plays. No one forced me. I wanted Japan to win. I’m asked to write new plays; I must know before accepting the offer if I’ll be arrested as a war criminal or not.’ Mr Keith slapped him on the back and said: ‘Go on writing. Good luck!’ Not the sort of reception imaginable from a Japanese military censorship officer. Kikuta later wrote that he had staggered out of the GHQ building with tears pouring down his face. CIE then asked him to write a nightly, prime-time 15-minute soap-opera. This was at a time when the CIE censorship was particularly vigilant; at the Kabuki theatre and elsewhere, revenge attacks, hara-kiri, and other scenes of atrocity every mention of the emperor, the occupation army, jeeps, GIs’ misconducts, etc. were strictly prohibited. But this new radio drama was intended to call the public’s charitable attention to the hundreds of thousands of war-orphans sleeping under the raised railway trucks in big cities and often turning into petty thieves and pickpockets. Kikuta wrote about a band of orphans and homeless men and women, the latter mostly ‘panpan’ – prostitutes – who survived the cruel daily hardship thanks to their optimism, comradeship and a tough but endearing insouciance. Each evening in those hungry, penurious years, every family lucky enough to still possess a functioning radio gathered round the radio, often inviting the neighbours whose radios like much else had been destroyed in the air-raids, and, so long as there was no electricity breakdown, listened. I can still recall the nightly expectant silence around the black Bakelite radio laid on the tatami floor, with my grandmother, mother, my younger sisters and myself. How we would listen, laugh, weep and at the end of the evening’s episode, feeling either cheered or mollified, hum the catchy theme music: ‘The bells are ringing, kin-kon-kaan!’ A perfectly Japanesey sentimental melodrama, you might say; and perhaps it was. But, whenever I read about savage looting and bloodshed in today’s European urban jungles on hot summer nights or in the aftermath of some anti-government uprisings in Africa, I recall my early childhood years and cannot help asking if the nightly fifteen minutes of kitschy but potent emotion we shared with Kikuta’s street urchins and kind-hearted panpans and their not-quite-so-evil under238
KAZUO KIKUTA (1908-1973)
world sweethearts did not contribute significantly to a relatively peaceful post-war transition in Japan. Returning to the midnight ‘phone call, after declaring point-blank his love of Dickens, Kikuta added: ‘I’m told there’s a musical based on Oliver Twist in London. I want it to open the new Imperial Theatre. Find the producer and ask him to send Oliver! with a British cast and staff to Tokyo.’ This was a tall order if there ever was one. In 1965, the new Imperial Theatre was still a huge, appallingly expensive building site not far from the Imperial Palace. The original West End producer, Donald Albery, reputedly haughty and difficult, did not reply to my repeated requests to consider our proposal – it was decades before the Japanese yen could win credibility and buy up Manhattan’s landmark buildings. Not only the Hankyu¯-To¯ho¯ executives but also even Kikuta’s devoted staff doubted if a musical spoken and sung in English with super-titles could attract enough audience to fill the 1900-seat house for a long-run of over two months. This had never been tried before in Tokyo, where the programme had always changed each month. His assistants and stage managers were worried, anxious about how to cope with some fifteen child-actors and their mothers or chaperons, let alone the adult cast of thirty-one, a musical conductor, a stage manager and a technical supervisor from London. Last but not least Oliver was not a Broadway musical comedy but a musical made in England and based on Dickens’ grim story about orphans, thugs and pickpockets. Kikuta took no notice. He took it for granted that his wish would be carried out, and went on writing, writing for both To¯ho¯’s and Takarazuka’s productions, incarcerated in a hotel room guarded by his faithful adjutants, each play lasting over three hours in order to satisfy the Japanese audience used to a Kabuki performance which lasts half a day, ‘Oliver! to Japan? Japan is too far away!’ was the unenthusiastic reaction from the original English producer, when he finally agreed to meet me on his brief visit to New York in order to buy Man of la Mancha for one of the five theatres he managed in London’s West End. I was not a little offended by his geographic imperialism as if Hong Kong were the last recognizable eastern limit, but with Kikuta’s dream depending on this snooty gentleman, I persisted with the tenacity of a bulldog. In the end, the producer, who had fought hard against the notoriously finicky British censorship and put on Waiting for Godot back in 1955, conceded: ‘I’m always more interested in a new venture…besides at present I’m asked to run a bankrupt ballet company (The Festival Ballet, now the National Ballet). But, if you and your boss can come to Venice in February, I am rather stranded there for a week putting on Swan Lake at the Fenice Theatre…’ 239
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Kikuta and I slept through most of the first-night performance of the Festival Ballet’s Swan Lake, to which we had been invited on our arrival, but wide awake during the lengthy meetings with the Albery contingent the next day, interrupted by frequent urgent calls from the Fenice’s antiquated backstage, and finally what we called ‘a package deal’ was in principle agreed upon. We then flew to Tel Aviv to obtain for free Sean Kenny’s most audaciously innovative stage set, which on the other hand required a nightmarish technical precision in building. The set had been built in London for Habima Theatre and shipped to Tel Aviv ‘bonded’ – meaning untaxed. Therefore after the run of the show the Israeli impresario of Oliver!, a famous war veteran was obliged to destroy it or throw it into the sea in the presence of the customs officers. Though the set was in the end built in Tokyo, the visit was memorable; for there we attended an emotionally charged Fiddler on the Roof performed in Hebrew, and afterwards we met Marlene Dietrich whose one-woman show was also being presented by the same Oliver! and Fiddler producer. Meanwhile, despite his deteriorating health due to diabetes and overwork, Kikuta was like an engine running at maximum revolutions. While he was overseeing the completion of the Imperial Theatre, he had another wild idea: to put Gone with the Wind on stage. I knocked on the door of Miss Kay Brown, the wiliest of the veteran showbiz agents in America, who to her lasting glory had persuaded David Selznick to turn Margaret Mitchell’s novel into a film and discovered Audrey Hepburn. She was also a lifelong trusted agent for Arthur Miller and Ingrid Bergman. She guffawed hearing my proposal. ‘Honey, the MGM contract is as tall as you. There’s nothing that isn’t covered, from lipstick to airplane. Stage rights? Forget it!’ Before giving up on Kikuta’s dream, I pressed for a response. Some days later Miss Brown rang to say: ‘Well, I never! Tell your Mister Kikoota the highest-paid Park Avenue lawyers forgot to include stage rights.’ Then, she asked: ‘But how are you going to burn Atlanta on stage, eh?’ Miss Brown did not know that To¯ho¯ Film owned four studios, which had produced the famous monster films with spectacular special effects, Gozilla and Mozilla monster series. To recreate burning Atlanta would pose no problem, especially with the latest state-of-theart technical equipment installed at the Imperial with many turntables and three stage-lifts. Kikuta, locked up in a downtown hotel room, produced the stage version of Gone with the Wind in two parts, each lasting over three hours, requiring a cast of 150, including children, on-stage musicians, horse riders and trainers. Before the opening on 3 November 1966 of Part One, which ended with Scarlett’s famous line in front of her beloved Tara in ruin: ‘I’ll never starve again!’ 240
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the entire run had been sold out, and at each performance the jam-packed audience cried copiously into their handkerchiefs, most probably thinking back on the war-devastated homes of their own in 1945. Obviously, Gone with the Wind’s run ought to be prolonged, but Oliver! had been contracted and scheduled to follow Part One. As Kikuta fretted and the box office telephone lines overheated with the calls for tickets, good luck would have it, Oliver! encountered a major obstacle and had to be postponed, allowing Gone with the Wind (Part 1 followed by Part 2, then the combined endurance performances of both 1 and 2) to become the unprecedented long run in the entire theatre history of Japan. The nightmare with any Oliver! production is its inescapable need for child actors; and for Tokyo it was the British labour law on children, which, even with the installation of classes by native Englishspeaking teachers inside the Imperial Theatre for the duration of the rehearsals and run, made it impossible to employ British children. At once both London and Tokyo told me to find two Oliver boys, one Artful Dodger and one Bet and a dozen Workhouse boys as quickly as possible in America! Even in America it was not simple: the Broadway agents specializing in child-actors could offer them, they said, but for some complex legal reasons, they ought to be auditioned and the finalists signed up in the State of New Jersey. After this major hiccup, another unforeseen event took place: November 1967, the pound sterling was devalued by 14.3%. Why did this affect the Oliver! production in Tokyo? While discussing the method of payments I suggested quite casually, almost flippantly, to both Donald Albery and his young lawyer: ‘It’s the first time our accountants have had to change yen into pounds sterling. Why don’t we put the agreed total amount into US dollars? No one wants yen, everyone wants dollars.’ ‘Well… why not, after all…?’ the two gentlemen said to each other lackadaisically, and soon with the final contractual sum expressed in US dollars, the contract was signed and sealed. Oliver! opened on the Boy’s Day holiday, 5 May 1968. The guest of honour was Prince Hiro, aged six, today the Crown Prince. As soon as the curtain rose on the Workhouse scene with the boys waiting for their watery soup, the then British ambassador, Sir John Pilcher, seated in the first row centre of the balcony beside the tiny boy-prince, whispered urgently to me, who had been told to sit behind the imperial group. ‘Cushion! He can’t see a thing!’ It took the whole scene of Food, glorious food to find one battered, not too clean cushion from the stage-door keeper’s cubby hole; it was quite a spectacle to see this filthy cushion passed from one reverential hand to the other till it satisfactorily settled under the imperial 241
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heir’s bottom. The little prince himself had asked to meet the two Oliver actor-boys after the show and their photographs were on the first page of all papers the next morning. This publicity coup, aided by the enthusiastic word of mouth, packed the Imperial Theatre at every performance; and with not a penny’s subsidy from any quarters, what everyone had predicted as a potential loss-maker broke even in the end. From this time on, Japanese impresarios began watching London’s West End as attentively as Broadway, and over a decade later a series of musicals created in London such as Cats, Les Miserables, Phantom of the Opera, and Miss Saigon began arriving in Japan. Simultaneous with the Oliver! triumph, after years of haggling and disputing, To¯ho¯ and Kikuta obtained from the brother of the author, Mr Stephen Mitchell of Atlanta, the world-wide exclusive rights to present Gone with the Wind as a musical, written by Kikuta himself and set to music by Harold Rome, entitled Scarlett. He ought to have been the happiest man, his career at its zenith – in truth he was wasting away: his diabetes was wreaking havoc with his already fragile health; sleepless nights locked up inside the Imperial Hotel room with his staff in order to finish the Scarlett script were followed by myriad duties and responsibilities as the head of To¯ho¯ Theatre during the day. He battled on, uncomplaining, though he appeared shrunken, his emblematic round goggles appearing too much of a burden to carry, and often slightly tottering. Scarlett the musical, opened at the Imperial Theatre on the auspicious second New Year’s Day of 1970. The high quality of the production, directed and choreographed by Joe Layton impressed both the critics and the audience. Despite the fact that the lengthy two parts had to be condensed into one evening of just over three hours, Kikuta’s version assisted by the music was both compact and moving. After the success in Tokyo of Scarlett Kikuta was no doubt dreaming of Broadway as its next venue… Unfortunately, the American producer who had planned to open Scarlett in Atlanta before bringing it to Broadway failed to raise the necessary funds. But a veteran London producer, Harold Fielding, came forward and signed the contract to present it at Drury Lane Theatre. Encouraged, Kikuta at once started working on his own grand musical on the life of the most celebrated ukiyoe painter of the eighteenth century, Utamaro. Scarlett with the English cast and staff opened on 3 May 1972, three days after his own Utamaro in Tokyo. A week later Kikuta arrived in London to see his baby at the legendary theatre. Accompanying Kikuta to the Drury Lane Theatre left me with one of the most painful memories of my life. He was disappointed by the London cast, especially the strident and tough leading actresses with no feminine tenderness. But this was nothing compared to 242
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the humiliation he had to suffer when he could not find in the programme his name as original book writer, whilst the English version, credited to Horton Foote, was exactly how it had been written by Kikuta, except for a few cuts made in some dialogues in order not to provoke racial friction. ‘Apparently,’ he said in a magazine interview shortly after his disheartening Drury Lane visit, ‘my name was eliminated at a meeting held in New York on the programme credits with all the agents and lawyers representing the creative team. In Japan, the matter would have been dealt differently, in a more conciliatory manner, striving for a consensus. Westerners are self-asserting, fighting tooth and nail for their rights and interests.’ Kikuta died just a year later, and when at last Scarlett was presented in America, his name was duly credited but he never saw it. The popularity of musicals, both imported and homemade, went on rising after Kikuta’s death. Our rival production company, Gekidan Shiki, produced Cats and made a huge success of it; it was only natural that they began negotiating the rights to Les Miserables with Cameron Mackintosh, who had also co-produced Cats. Just then, after a period of inertia following Kikuta’s death, To¯ho¯ suddenly woke up and wanted to present Les Miserables, exactly the kind of work Kikuta would have loved. I was asked to intervene and secure the Japanese right for To¯ho¯. Cameron, having started his career as an assistant stage-manager in the first provincial tour of Oliver! and who adored the work, had heard much about the immense success, both artistically and financially, of its British version at the Imperial Theatre in Tokyo in 1968; this helped the delicate negotiation to achieve its desired result. Cameron particularly appreciated To¯ho¯’s professional integrity, handed down by Kikuta, in never succumbing to the cost-cutting method of using taped music to accompany the singers and dancers on stage, which our rival Shiki invariably did. With months of painstaking preparations with a large team of British specialists in stage mechanism, sound and lighting engineering, costumes and wigs, all lavishly welcomed at To¯ho¯’s cost, Les Miserables opened at the Imperial in 1987 and has played to date over 2,000 performances, always to a packed, copiously weeping (Japanese spectators love weeping) and cheering house. The AngloJapanese working relationship on and off stage and the balance sheets on both sides having been so mutually pleasing and beneficial that when Cameron opened Miss Saigon in London, there was no question that To¯ho¯ should produce it in Tokyo and tour the production to Osaka, Fukuoka, Sendai, and farther on. Since then, whenever a new worthy production opens in the West End, either To¯ho¯ or another company puts it on in Japan, and the trend persists. 243
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What would Mr Kikuta have thought of the theatre in Japan today, I often wonder. He died before decades of recession sapped creative courage, forbade risk-taking and forced the producers to import tried-and-tested, safe products, which are mostly re-staged by the deputies of the original directors or choreographers, thus neglecting home-grown talent. The trend of reviving past successes denies young new playwrights the opportunity to have their work put on. No wonder the theatre-going public dwindles and as a result, desperate producers bring in ephemerally well-known stars and mini-talents onto stage, such as TV chat-show comedians, fashion models turned pop singers, and the like, only to further damage the level of the performance. The vicious cycle goes on. It was Mr Kikuta, who half a century ago opened the flood gates of Western musical theatre with My Fair Lady and avidly devoured and learned from presenting and directing Western musicals. But he would not have drowned himself in the sea of imported plays and musicals for so long. Moreover he never stopped writing his own original full-length straight plays, which, in the absence of good new plays, are often revived to popular acclaim. They have – what the young playwrights today whose claim to fame is shockability and novelty lack – human empathy between the audience and the characters on stage. One of his most beloved plays (four hours long with never a dull moment nor five minutes without roar of laughter or some lachrymal joy) Madam Greed has as its heroine the most niggardly and rapacious tough old hag who runs a dosshouse, peopled with a blind masseuse, a yakuza-gigolo, a well-born fortune-tellingprostitute, an ex-university professor fallen on hard times, a jobless Korean cook, a recently fired section-chief … the lower depth of Osaka. And yet, the audience goes home cheered, less stressed, feeling friendly towards the world and men. During his life he was affectionately likened to ‘Sincerity and Compassion wearing a moustache and round goggles.’ A befitting epitaph.
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Kawakita Nagamasa (1903–1981) and Kawakita Kashiko (1908–1993): Film Ambassadors GORDON DANIELS
INTRODUCTION
Before the Second World War no Japanese films were shown in British cinemas. At this time British connoisseurs of international cinema had only a single opportunity of seeing a Japanese production; when the London Film Society included Kinugasa Teinosuke’s ‘A Page of Madness’ (Kurutta Ippeiji) in one of its programmes.1 Between 1931 and 1937 a small number of British films were distributed in Japan but they were a minor presence amid the large numbers of American, German and French features which were seen in Tokyo. Following the Second World War major Japanese films finally entered Britain, and their high reputation, contributed greatly to the renewal of Japanese cultural prestige. High quality British films also re-appeared on Japanese screens.
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In the history of Anglo-Japanese film relations a single couple, Kawakita Nagamasa and his wife Kashiko, were outstanding intermediaries influencing Anglo-Japanese cinematic exchanges for half a century. KAWAKITA NAGAMASA (1903–81)
The Early Years Kawakita Nagamasa was born in Yotsuya, Tokyo on 30 April 1903. His father, Daijiro¯ , was an artillery captain in the Imperial Army, and his mother, Ko¯ , had been head of the Imperial Women’s College (Teikoku Joshi Senmon Gakko¯). In his life Nagamasa was to have many international experiences; the first was in 1906 when the whole family moved to Northern China. His father, who favoured Asian solidarity and admired Chinese traditional culture, had accepted a lecturing post at a Chinese military academy. Within less than a year the family returned to Tokyo, but Daijiro¯ soon travelled to Beijing alone to begin teaching at an elite Chinese officer training school. On 1 August 1908 the family received news that Daijiro¯ had been assassinated by elements in the Japanese Army, perhaps because he had developed close relations with his Chinese colleagues.2 These early associations with China were to remain influences on Nagamasa throughout his early adult life. In 1918 while still a middle school student, he visited China alone, and decided to begin the serious study of Chinese language and culture. In 1921 he graduated from middle school, and began studying Chinese in Tokyo; he then travelled to Beijing and made further study of Chinese, hoping to enter Beijing University. He was soon admitted, but in some respects University life proved a sad disappointment. Nagamasa had hoped to make a large number of Chinese friends but amid the anti-Japanese emotions which followed the Versailles peace settlement, this proved impossible. In Beijing he next formed links with a young German aristocrat Baron von Stettinkron who encouraged him to visit Germany to study German language and thought. It was a propitious time for a Japanese to visit Germany as high inflation and favourable exchange rates had made living costs low for foreign visitors. In April 1923 Nagamasa left Yokohama on a German cargo vessel, and with the Baron’s help found accommodation in Lingen near the Dutch border. His experiences of life in Germany were of sympathetic friendship, and this friendship had a lasting influence on Nagamasa’s links with Germany and German culture. One particular experience in Germany was to shape his international outlook and the direction of his future career. On seeing a production of the opera, Madam 246
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Butterfly in Hamburg he reflected seriously on Western perceptions of Japan. If the costumes, make-up and deportment of the performers were an indication of European views of Japan they were clearly inaccurate. Not only were such inaccuracies in need of correction, but also at a time when foreign travel could only be experienced by a small elite the new medium of film appeared the most effective means of promoting understanding between East and West.3 At the age of twenty-one Nagamasa returned to Japan to carry out his military service. He was posted to the Japanese colony of Korea where he enjoyed speaking Chinese to immigrants resident near his base. He left the army in 1926 as a corporal. Two years later aged only twenty-six, he took a major step towards his ambition of promoting international understanding through film. ¯ WA THE CREATION OF TO
In October 1928, with two employees and a small office in the Kaijo¯ Building in Marunouchi, Nagamasa established the To¯wa Trading Company to begin the import of foreign films, with an emphasis on films from Europe. He had conceived the name To¯wa (the characters for East [to¯] and harmony [wa]) to symbolize his ideal, and to provide a name which would be easy for foreigners to pronounce and remember. Soon the company’s correspondence with foreign countries required the appointment of a secretary familiar with Western typing. A press advertisement produced an outstanding candidate, already quite skilled in English, Takeuchi Kashiko, who Nagamasa later married on the anniversary of the company’s foundation (see below). Takeuchi Kashiko was already a committed film enthusiast. In March 1929 Nagamasa travelled to Germany on the first of what were to be frequent visits to Europe, to view and select films for showing in Japan. INTRODUCTION OF GERMAN, FRENCH AND BRITISH FILMS
By 1931 To¯wa was not only introducing films of high quality to Japan but one silent German film Asphalt became a popular hit in Tokyo.4 At this time Nagamasa visited Europe each spring, viewed and selected films, and each autumn launched his new selections in Japan. The first British film selected and shown by To¯wa was the drama The Informer, shown in 1931. However some fourteen German films were shown in the same season. So far Japanese diplomacy and politics had had no significant influence on To¯wa’s activities but Japan’s expansion in Manchuria in 1931 began to intensify domestic political controls and the fear of foreign spies. In March 1932 Nagamasa was suspected of spying and 247
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taken to Police Headquarters. His contacts with foreign countries and knowledge of foreign languages were probably the main source of suspicion. Finally after four weeks of questioning he was released. In view of the strain which his wife had suffered in these weeks she now began to accompany him on visits to Europe. In July 1934 they travelled to Berlin via Italy and then visited Paris, London, Budapest, Vienna and Prague. In forty-three days they viewed 171 films. For the first time a significant number of British films were selected. These reflected the Kawakitas’ broad ranging taste, which embraced popular musicals, such as Chu-Chin-Chow and Blossom Time, Hitchcock’s thriller The Man Who Knew Too Much, and Flaherty’s austere documentary Man of Aran. However in Japan none of these films received the high praise accorded to major French works. KAWAKITA AND INTERNATIONAL FILM PROJECTS
Parallel to Kawakita’s interest in European films was his wish to promote Japanese films in the West. To¯wa had largely failed in this endeavour so it was perhaps natural that Nagamasa saw a joint Japanese-German production as a means of bringing Japanese cinema to international attention. Japan’s anti-Comintern Pact with Nazi Germany, in 1935, and Nagamasa’s long standing connections with Germany also combined to draw him into this ‘national policy’ project. In early 1936 Kawakita helped to invite the successful German director of alpine films, Dr Arnold Fanck, to Japan to shoot a feature film to promote German-Japanese understanding.5 From the beginning the project was plagued with difficulties; more specifically the conflicting views of Fanck and his Japanese co-director Itami Mansaku were a constant problem. This friction led to two distinct versions of the film being produced. Nevertheless this production The New Land received great publicity and attracted large audiences in Berlin and Tokyo. Kawakita and his wife travelled to Berlin for the opening; and the Tokyo premiere was attended by many foreign diplomats in evening dress. But critics were far from impressed. The American Robert Florey wrote ‘If a Japanese producer as well educated and continental as Nagamasa Kawakita wants to produce a picture to be shown the world over he should choose either a .... Kabuki play....or a subject known to all countries.’6 Even Japanese critics were far from sympathetic. In 1937 the Japanese army’s advance across China led Kawakita to develop a new international project; a Sino-Japanese collaboration. Given the depth of Chinese hostility to Japanese expansion this was extremely difficult to realize. Distinguished Chinese actors were unwilling to cooperate, and to use Japanese actors to play Chinese roles was incompatible with the seriousness of Kawakita’s intentions. 248
KAWAKITA NAGAMASA (1903-1981) AND KAWAKITA KASHIKO (1908-1993)
The film was directed by Suzuki Shigeyoshi and was entitled The Road to Peace in the Orient. Relatively unknown Chinese nationals played most of the leading roles. The film depicted the experiences of two Chinese farmers fleeing the dangers of the current war. Ultimately they discovered the kindly nature of Japanese soldiers, and their hostility to Japan was converted into respect and friendship.7 When the film was shown in Tokyo in March 1938 it proved a box office failure. The film may have been, as its publicity stated ‘The first motion picture under joint Japanese-Chinese sponsorship’ which combined ‘actual scenes taken during the fighting’ with ‘beautiful North China scenes and locations’ but it hardly suited the jingoistic atmosphere in Tokyo.8 In China anti-Japanese feeling was so potent that the film was virtually ignored. The failure of this Sino-Japanese venture probably shaped Kawakita’s attitude to cinema policy in occupied China. He believed in ‘a cinema of the Chinese, by the Chinese, for the Chinese’9 with no overt Japanese propaganda content. As a result he accepted the Japanese Army’s request for help on cinema policy, but only on condition that he had total freedom of action. Perhaps there was no other Japanese as well qualified as Kawakita for this role. He was fluent in Mandarin and had immense experience of Chinese attitudes and behaviour. In June 1939 he established a ‘national policy’ company – the China Motion Picture Company (Zhonghua), based in Nanking and Shanghai. This new agency would provide money and film stock to copy films, approved by Japanese censors, for showing in occupied areas. In 1940 following the creation of the pro-Japanese Chinese Government in Nanking, the company became a joint Sino-Japanese enterprise with Kawakita as de facto head. Criticism levelled at Kawakita at the Conference of Japanese Mainland Cinema in July 1942 sugests that he was thought to be over sympathetic to Chinese views.10 There were even rumours that hard line Japanese might assassinate him. Kawakita, his wife and daughter lived in Shanghai throughout most of the war and in September 1944 he was decorated by the pro-Japanese Nanking Government. However, with Japan’s defeat in August 1945 he was rapidly removed from his position of power and privilege. The Chinese Nationalists took over the company, which he had created and in April 1946 he joined vast numbers of Japanese in returning to Japan. POST-WAR
After Japan’s defeat the Allied occupation forces were determined to act against all who had played an important role in Japanese occupied areas, and in November 1947 Kawakita was purged from activity in the Japanese film industry. 249
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Although Kawakita had been absent from Japan throughout the war, German films, particularly the Nazi works of Leni Reifenstahl, had been imported until 1942.11 Now the importation of films from Germany was totally forbidden. Nevertheless Kawakita soon returned to political respectability. In October 1950 he was freed from the allied purge, and in March 1951 a new To¯wa company was formed with Kawakita as its head. Although Japan still remained under allied occupation, Kawakita was now able to re-visit the West for the first time since 1938. On this occasion he visited Los Angeles, New York, Paris and London. In London he was warmly received by Sir Alexander Korda of London Films. Kawakita was transported by Rolls-Royce and was the first Japanese to be allowed to stay at the Savoy Hotel after the Second World War. Finally he experienced the Cannes Film Festival, for the first time. This was perhaps the climax of his tour. British films constituted five of the eight films, which he selected for Japanese cinemas. These included The Jungle Book, The Thief of Baghdad, and the 1948 version of Anna Karenina starring Vivian Leigh and Ralph Richardson. In June Kawakita’s restored prestige was evident in his appointment to the film section of Ministry of Trade and Industry’s Industrial Rationalization Council. In the following year he became head of the newly formed Foreign Film Import Association, which determined the allocation of imported films among Japanese companies.12 Despite the misfortunes associated with Kawakita’s previous, international productions he remained committed to the concept of binational projects. In 1953 he invited Joseph von Sternberg, director of the legendary Blue Angel to Japan to direct a film based on a wartime incident The Saga of Anatahan. Like Kawakita’s earlier international productions it was scarcely an artistic success. Von Sternberg’s powers were failing and he could not communicate effectively with his Japanese staff. When complete, the film attracted few patrons and was soon forgotten. Two years later Kawakita participated in yet another international production; this was a film of the opera Madam Butterfly with Italian singers. It was certainly an improvement on the theatre production he had seen in his youth, but its success was limited. In addition to his role as a producer Kawakita continued to encourage the importation of European films. In pre-war years British films had had a minor place in To¯wa selections, but in the post-war years the works of Carol Reed and David Lean were seen as artistically important. The Third Man, The Fallen Idol, The Sound Barrier and The Man Between were all shown in Tokyo but in the mid-1950s To¯wa imported some British films of questionable quality; even Hammer Films Dracula reached Japanese screens.13 250
KAWAKITA NAGAMASA (1903-1981) AND KAWAKITA KASHIKO (1908-1993)
By the late 1950s and early 1960s Kawakita had become a symbol of the internationalism of the Japanese film industry. He often headed Japanese delegations attending major film festivals in Europe and the Americas. In 1958, 1960, 1961, 1963 and 1966 he participated in the Venice festival and on other occasions led Japanese groups to Cannes and Acapulco. Later, as the cold war eased he was leader of the Japanese group at the Moscow Film Festival. In 1970 following a cultural agreement between Tokyo and Moscow he was the Japanese Government’s representative at a festival of Japanese films in the Soviet capital. Yet perhaps the most significant Kawakita initiative in these years was the creation in November 1961 of the Japan Art Theatre Guild Company (ATG). In a sense this new organization aimed to revive Kawakita’s pre-war ideals, the showing of European films of artistic quality. This was an important ambition, which was partially fulfilled. Films by Jean Cocteau, Francois Truffaut and Ingmar Bergman were distributed and pre-war Soviet films by Eisenstein were shown in Japan for the first time. ATG also encouraged the distribution of works by radical new Japanese directors such as Oshima Nagisa.14 As film festivals proliferated and became symbols of Asian states striving for cultural prestige, Kawakita had new opportunities to represent Japan. In 1972 he headed a delegation to Teheran and in 1973 to Singapore. Foreign governments and cultural agencies increasingly rewarded Kawakita with prizes, acknowledging his international cultural role. These included decorations from French, German, American and Italian organizations. Kawakita’s achievements were also recognized at home with prizes from the Japanese Film PEN Club and the Tokyo Film Journalists Association. Finally in January 1981 President Marcos of the Philippines rewarded Kawakita with the Golden Eagle as one of the ten world figures who had contributed most to the art and industry of film.15 On a visit to California in the spring of 1981 Kawakita became ill and cancelled a visit to New York. He died in Tokyo on 24 May. Kawakita had contributed significantly to the introduction of distinguished British films to Japan. In London The National Film Theatre’s January 1982 season of Japanese films was dedicated to his memory. KAWAKITA KASHIKO (1908–1993) Early Years
Kawakita Kashiko (née Takeuchi) was born in Osaka on 21 March 1908. Within three months her parents had moved to Tokyo. This was the beginning of a distinctly nomadic childhood. Her parents moved repeatedly and Kashiko was compelled to change school ten times. During these travels she experienced life in Yokohama, Dairen 251
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in Manchuria and Akita in northern Honshu. Despite the difficulties of adjusting to different schools, she enjoyed extensive travels with her parents. The great shrines of Izumo and Ise and the picturesque coastline at Matsushima remained long remembered features of these journeys. Finally in her sixth school year the family settled in Yokohama and Kashiko entered the Ferris Girls School, which had been founded by Canadian missionaries. Not only did the staff include numerous teachers from North America but also all the school’s textbooks were in English. At the age of fifteen Kashiko experienced the loss of her father in the Great Kanto Earthquake, but the head of the Ferris School and other teachers sympathized with her in this family crisis. When she entered the school’s advanced course the school head paid her fees, and helped her with additional English teaching, outside school hours.16 EMPLOYMENT AND MARRIAGE
Kashiko had literary and theatrical ambitions but as she was now responsible for supporting her mother and sisters these ideas had to be put aside. She taught English at the local YMCA and in return received instruction in English literature, shorthand and typing. When she was twenty a friend suggested a secretarial career, and a teacher passed her an advertisement from the English language newspaper The Japan Advertiser. This was for a position in the newly formed To¯wa Trading Company. Kashiko applied, was interviewed in the Yu¯sen Building in Marunouchi, and was appointed. In January 1929 she began work but had no clear idea of the scope of the company’s activities. A few days later she met the young head of the company, Kawakita Nagamasa. He was smartly dressed, but following his years abroad his Japanese was far from perfect. When she learnt that To¯wa imported films from Germany and France she was highly delighted, as she was already an enthusiast for European films. Among her favourites were Nanook of the North, Doctor Caligari and Hamlet. To¯wa had arranged to import Dr Arnold Fanck’s film of the 1928 Winter Olympics, and Lotte Reiniger’s silhouette feature The Adventures of Prince Achmed but it was still a very small enterprise. As a result Kashiko was not only Kawakita’s secretary; she helped with accounts, publicity and the transport of films. On some occasions she accompanied Kawakita to restaurants and cinemas and in October 1929 they married. From the beginning they worked long hours, and with their common devotion to the art of film they formed a remarkable partnership. At a time when American films were dominant in the Japanese market To¯wa’s enthusiasm for European films was somewhat adventurous, but the critical and popular acclaim for the silent German film Asphalt, in 1930, suggested a promising future.17 252
KAWAKITA NAGAMASA (1903-1981) AND KAWAKITA KASHIKO (1908-1993)
TRAVEL TO EUROPE
In 1932 the Kawakitas enjoyed a second honeymoon when they travelled to Europe together for the first time. Travelling by the Okazaki-maru they made tourist visits in Ceylon, Aden and Cairo. After disembarking in Naples they toured Pompeii, Venice, Florence and the Swiss lakes before arriving in Berlin for intensive work. Often they viewed eight films in a single day. On seeing the film Mädchen in Uniform, by a relatively unknown female director, she was profoundly impressed, while her husband remained indifferent. Although their assessments differed Nagamasa finally agreed that, as a ‘honeymoon gift’; the film would be shown in Tokyo. In February 1933 it proved an artistic and commercial triumph.18 Kashiko’s judgement had been proved to be remarkably perceptive. During their visit to Germany the Kawakitas attempted to promote Japanese films, but German audiences seemed insensitive when confronted with works from a distinctly different culture. On later visits to Europe Kashiko and her husband also visited Paris and London and jointly selected entertainment films such as The Congress Dances and more artistic works by René Clair, Julien Duvivier and Alfred Hitchcock. Their selections were often highly praised in Japanese film magazines. INTERNATIONAL PRODUCTIONS
In 1937 following the joint Japanese-German production of The New Earth the Kawakitas visited Berlin, with the film’s star Hara Setsuko, for its official opening. They attended other showings in Munich, Hamburg, Cologne, Dusseldorf and Leipzig before visiting Paris where Kashiko viewed and selected films. They crossed the Atlantic on the Queen Mary and strangely, saw Soviet films, for the first time, in New York. It was on their return journey to Japan that they learnt of the beginnings of Sino-Japanese warfare. By November Nagamasa had embarked on his Sino-Japanese reconciliation film The Road to Peace in the Orient and Kashiko travelled to China to help in the casting process. In 1938 they made their last pre-war visit to Europe. They hoped to promote their China reconciliation film, now re-titled Dawn. More importantly they presented the war film Five Scouts at the Venice Film Festival. It received the Minister of Education’s Prize, the first Japanese film to have success in an international festival.19 THE WAR YEARS
In 1939 Nagamasa moved to China, while Kashiko, now pregnant, remained in Tokyo. On 1 February 1940 her only child Kazuko was born in St. Luke’s Hospital. Kazuko’s name (based on the character for ‘peace’) was said to reflect a hope for peace in China.20 Soon 253
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after, Kashiko joined her husband in Shanghai. When her daughter reached the age to enter Kindergarten she was placed among Chinese children under a Chinese supervisor. As the war situation deteriorated Kashiko and her daughter were evacuated to Beijing. Even after Japan’s defeat Beijing citizens appeared to remain friendly, and in February 1946 Kashiko and her daughter returned to Japan. Two months later her husband followed. Of the journey Kashiko recalled ‘We were taken back by boat...there were a thousand people packed into an American landing craft...Kazuko was seriously ill as were a lot of the other children on board. I asked the Captain to let the children go up on deck. I think it saved their lives...The journey took four days but it felt like a year.’21 POST-WAR ACTIVITIES
The family now lived with Kashiko’s mother and sister in Kamakura. During the years when Nagamasa was purged from film activity their financial situation was difficult. Kashiko now tried to revive To¯wa’s activities and discovered their old film stocks, which she wheeled through the streets on a wooden cart to the re-opened office.22 In April 1952 the allied occupation of Japan formally ended, and in the following year Sir Alexander Korda, the head of London Films, sought to develop the personal and business relationship which he had already formed with the Kawakitas. He invited Kashiko and her daughter to London to enjoy the Coronation celebrations. Like other guests of London Films they watched the procession from a balcony in Piccadilly. Soon after they flew to Berlin to meet Nagamasa who was attending the film festival. As at Venice and Cannes a Japanese film won a major prize and Kashiko concluded that international film festivals were the best means of promoting the achievements of Japanese cinema. In 1955 Britain had a new significance for Kashiko and her family. After graduating from middle school in Tokyo, Kazuko wished to move to England to continue her education. This was far from easy as overseas education was not permitted without a guarantor in the country concerned. For a second time Sir Alexander Korda proved helpful, agreeing to act as Kazuko’s guarantor. Kazuko studied at the Legat School in Tunbridge Wells, a boarding school noted for its international character and the teaching of music and ballet. In April Kashiko and her daughter arrived at the school and Kazuko received intensive English language training. Soon after a friend declared that Kazuko spoke ‘snobbish Oxford English’.23 Kashiko wished to remain close to her daughter and collect information on the contemporary European film industry, so she rented a flat in London. This was an opportunity to view foreign films in 254
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London cinemas and use the research facilities at The British Film Institute. She also attended showings at the National Film Theatre. Kashiko quickly used the connections which she made at the British Film Institute to begin discussion of the promotion of Japanese film showings at the National Film Theatre. 1955 was the last year in which London Films issued the works of Carol Reed and David Lean and in January 1956 Sir Alexander Korda died ending an important relationship. Later in the year Kashiko attended the Venice Film Festival as films by Ichikawa Kon and Mizoguchi were being presented. European expressions of sadness at the news of Mizoguchi’s death indicated how much Westerners admired the outstanding work of major Japanese directors. From Venice Kashiko moved to festivals in Berlin and Cannes. For the first time Kashiko was selected as a festival judge. This was not only an indication of the high regard in which she was held, but from this time on she was appointed as a judge at virtually every significant film festival across the world. As a result her contacts with the most distinguished producers and directors became more frequent and significant. One English director whom she met frequently was the controversial innovator Lindsey Anderson. During her extended stay in London Kashiko frequently conversed with a series of important figures linked to The British Film Institute including Gavin Lambert, Lindsey Anderson and Derek Prowse, the Sunday Times film critic. They suggested more showings of Japanese films particularly of the works of directors who were highly regarded in Japan, but almost unknown in Europe. Following these suggestions Kashiko organized a season of Japanese films – ‘A Light in the Japanese Window’ at the new National Film Theatre. This season was later described as ‘one of the most important and influential seasons ever presented’ on the South Bank, ‘the first major presentation of Japanese cinema in Europe and one which helped to reveal to the West the vast riches of Japanese film art.’ This 1957 film season included fifteen works which Kawakita Kashiko had largely selected, and for the first time gave British audiences an opportunity to see Ozu’s masterpiece Tokyo Story, Ichikawa’s Burmese Harp and Mizoguchi’s Tales of Chikamatsu. The season was not only a critical success but it led to contracts being signed with British, French, German and Italian distributors. Kashiko later wrote that this was ‘the first attempt ever made for the Japanese cinema’. Many other similar seasons were to follow in the 1960s and 1970s but she continued to regard this pioneering event as a watershed in the European appreciation of Japanese films. In later years Ozu, Mizoguchi and others were given even more ambitious seasons and ‘Madam Kawakita’, as many Westerners termed her, was a crucial creative figure in all these events. Some later seasons were linked with the Japan Society of New York and the Cinématheque in Paris but the British Film 255
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Institute continued to have a major place in Kashiko’s affections and activities. However glamorous events in France and Italy might be, she always returned to the annual London Film Festival. What was the secret of Kawakita Kashiko’s broad ranging success in the field of cinema? Most remarkable was her interlocking concern for film in Japan and overseas. Her contacts with the British Film Institute and the National Film Theatre – with their excellent collections persuaded her that some similar film library was needed in Tokyo. Without such an institution, her plan to mount multiple Japanese film seasons overseas would probably have been rendered impractical. In 1960 she established the Japan Film Library Council, and as its chief executive led the movement to establish a national film centre. Using her excellent contacts with the film industry and government officials, in 1970, she succeeded in creating a national film centre linked to the National Museum of Modern Art.24 This was to give greater strength to the policy of using Japanese films to promote international cultural relations. Alongside her leadership of the film library movement she devoted considerable energy to her husband’s plan to establish the Art Theatre Guild (ATG) to encourage the showing of high quality films from abroad, and from independent Japanese directors. In some cases ATG provided significant funding for the production of films by Hani Susumu and Yoshida Yoshishige.25 From 1974 she cooperated with Takano Etsuko, manager of the Iwanami Hall to create the Equipe de Cinema, an organization to exhibit little known foreign films. Following the death of her husband in 1981 the Japan Film Library Council was re-named the Kawakita Memorial Institute. Kashiko also became head of the Kawakita Film Culture Foundation.26 Her achievements were recognized by the Japanese Government which awarded her both the Purple Ribbon Medal and the Order of The Sacred Treasure, Third Class. She was also decorated by numerous private organizations; receiving the Kikuchi Kan Prize, the Asahi Prize and the Mainichi Film Concours Prize. Her creative successes in Japan were particularly impressive as often she spent half a year abroad as judge and organizer at European film festivals. Her remarkable efforts overseas were acknowledged by private and government bodies in France, Italy and the Soviet Union. One particular feature of her international activity was her distinct visual identity, being always dressed in kimono, and manifesting the restrained manner of a Japanese of her generation.27 Her knowledge of foreign languages helped her to move smoothly among film specialists in both Europe and North America. In Britain as elsewhere experts admired her almost limitless knowledge of film, and her refined sense of judgement. Across the world she was appreciated as a totally reliable partner in many co-operative ventures. Above all it was her total 256
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commitment to the art of film which made her trusted and admired. Her activities enriched relations between Britain and Japan throughout the post-war years. She died in Tokyo on 27 July 1993. ENDNOTES 1
2
3 4 5 6
7
8 9
10 11 12 13 14 15 16
17 18 19 20 21
22 23 24
25
26
27
The British Film Institute magazine Sight and Sound provided surprisingly detailed coverage of film developments relating to Japan in the pre-war and early wartime years. To¯wa To¯ho¯ Kabushiki Kaisha; To¯wa no 60nen sho¯ (hibaihin) Tokyo 1988. This publication reprints thirty articles by Kawakita Nagamasa – ‘Watakushi no Rirekisho’ which originally appeared in the Nihon Keizai Shimbun between 3 April and 2 May 1980. Article number 2 (4 April 1980) covers the assassination. ‘Watakushi no Rirekisho’ Article number 6, 8 April 1980. ‘Watakushi no Rirekisho’ Article number 9, 11 April 1980. ‘Watakushi no Rirekisho’ Article number 17, 19 April 1980. Kokusai Bunka Shinko¯kai: Cinema Yearbook of Japan, 1938 Tokyo, 1938, Robert Florey ‘Impression of Japanese Pictures’ p. 55. Peter B. High: The Imperial Screen, Japanese Film Culture in the Fifteen Years War, 1931–1945, University of Wisconsin Press, Madison and London, 2003 p. 277. Cinema Yearbook of Japan 1938 p. 75. Peter B. High The Imperial Screen p. 277. Poshek Fu, Between Shanghai and Hong Kong, The Politics of Chinese Cinemas, Stanford University Press, Stanford, California, 2003. p. 97. Poshek Fu, Between Shanghai and Hong Kong pp. 99 and 108. To¯wa no 60-nen sho¯ p. 188. To¯wa no 60-nen sho¯ p. 63. To¯wa no 60-nen sho¯ p. 188. To¯wa no 60-nen sho¯ p. 63. To¯wa no 60-nen sho¯ p. 64. Kawakita Kashiko; Eigahitosujini Nihon Tosho Centre Tokyo 1997. pp. 12–13 Eigahitosujini p. 23 Eigahitosujini pp. 29–31 Eigahitosujini p. 48 Eigahitosujini p. 52 Kashiko Kawakita Obituary by David Robinson. The Guardian 9 August 1993 Ibid. Eigahitosujini p. 68. Eigahitosujini pp. 259–64 and ‘Japan Film Library Council’ The Economist vol. 291 30 June 1984 p. 78. Donald Richie, A Hundred Years of Japanese Film, Kodansha, Tokyo and New York 2001. p. 212. Jasper Sharp Historical Dictionary of Japanese Cinema Scarecrow Press, Toronto and Plymouth UK 2011 p. 127. See Kinema Junpo No. 1514 August 2008. pp. 145–9 – appreciations of Kawakita Kashiko by Sato Tadao and Takano Etsuko. 257
22
Sessue Hayakawa (1886–1973): International Film Star NORIMASA MORITA
INTRODUCTION
Sessue Hayakawa was the first Japanese to become an international film star. He spent much of his life in the USA and France but he also lived in Britain between November 1923 and May 1924. During his stay he appeared at the London Coliseum and in a Royal Command Performance, made a theatrical tour in England and starred in two films. He became well known not only to British cinema fans but also to ordinary British people following his success with the film The Cheat (see below). On his arrival at Victoria Station he could not get into his Rolls Royce because the crowd of fans rushed onto the platform: the same happened in Liverpool when he arrived there on tour. His fans stalked him wherever he went in England. EARLY LIFE
Hayakawa Kintarõ was born on 10 June 1886 as the youngest of the six children of Yoichiro¯, a fishing fleet owner, and Kane, in a fishing village called Senda situated at the tip of the Bo¯so¯ peninsula 258
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facing the Pacific Ocean. After attending the local primary school in 1901 he entered Kaijo¯ School, a preparatory school for the Navy. He dreamt of one day becoming an admiral. After graduating from middle school Hayakawa took the examinations for the Japanese navy and passed in academic subjects. Just before the physical examination he had an accident. While playing dare with his friends during the school holidays, and diving deep in the sea, he split his eardrum. He did not see a doctor immediately, as his father thought it would be weak and effeminate for a man to seek medical assistance for a ‘minor’ injury; the ruptured eardrum suppurated badly. He failed the physical test and spent the next four years in despair. Kintaro¯ was an impressionable young man. The suicide of Fujimura Misao, a young philosophy student, who threw himself into the Kegon Falls, was sensationally reported in popular newspapers and his death was glorified and romanticized among young people. Hayakawa’s conservative father had instilled into him the concept of ritual suicide for any shameful act. One night Hayakawa entered the family warehouse with an ancestral sword, locked the door and tried to disembowel himself in front of a portrait of Admiral To¯go¯. The family dog noticed that something extraordinary had happened and howled and whined until members of the family rescued him. USA AND HOLLYWOOD
It is not clear why Hayakawa decided to go to the USA or what he wanted to do there. However, when an American steamship, the Dakota, went aground off the Chikura coast near Hayakawa’s hometown, he helped to rescue the crew and passengers. He then told his family of his intention of going to find work in the USA. His elder brother, who had worked in San Francisco, and a neighbour, who had returned from there, may have influenced his decision. As the youngest son, he had little prospect of taking over the family business and he had no concrete plans for the future after his hopes of joining the Navy had been dashed.1 Hayakawa set off from Yokohama for Seattle on 10 July 1907 despite strong opposition from his father. Without sufficient funds to enter university Hayakawa had to earn his living by menial work in and around San Francisco. Although he claimed in his autobiography and in interviews that he graduated from the University of Chicago, in fact he only took two courses at its Home Study Department, a correspondence department, between November 1908 and December 1909.2 During this time he was working as a waiter for a Southern Pacific Railroad restaurant. While living a hand-to-mouth existence in California for over six years Hayakawa became involved in theatrical activities, writing 259
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scripts for local Japanese theatrical troupes and appearing on stage as an actor. He was discovered by Thomas H. Ince, the head of the New York Motion Picture Co (NYMP), through the recommendation of Aoki Tsuru (his future wife and co-star in many films) and was employed as a scriptwriter for NYMP. His version of Melchior Lengyel’s Typhoon, a popular spy drama at the time of the ‘yellow peril’ had caught Ince’s attention. When the play was made into a film by NYMP, he played the lead role and was credited as Sessue Hayakawa, his stage name.3 Sessue Hayakawa’s first appearance as a leading actor was in a movie called The Secret Sin, but this was not released till after The Typhoon proved to be a success. During the filming of The Typhoon, Sessue married Aoki Tsuru, Kawakami Otojiro¯’s neice and a star actress of Thomas Ince’s NYMP. It was through Cecil B. DeMille’s The Cheat that overnight he became a movie superstar and one of the greatest matinee idols of the time. At the same time he came to be regarded as a national traitor among Japanese expatriates in the USA. In the film, Sessue played the role of a predatory art dealer who burns his brand on the shoulder of a society lady, Fannie Mae, when it became clear that she could not return the money she owed him. The enigmatic and sensuous beauty of this oriental actor violating and cruelly dominating a Caucasian woman mesmerized Western female audiences.4 Although it was only his second film for Famous Players-Lasky (later Paramount), he went on to become one of the best paid actors in Hollywood, along with Charlie Chaplin, Douglas Fairbanks Jr. and Rudolf Valentino, earning $5,000 a week by 1915. However, the film and the three Japanese actors who appeared in it, particularly Sessue, infuriated Japanese immigrants in the USA. Soon after it opened in Los Angeles, Japanese-language newspapers published in California accused Sessue of betraying his country and helping ‘to create the impression that the Japanese are an evil race’. The 24 December issue of the Rafu Shinpo¯ accused Sessue of ‘total stupidity or madness’ and branded him as a national traitor.5 Other Japanese language newspapers agreed that Sessue had disgraced the Japanese people by appearing in The Cheat and had heightened anti-Japanese feeling among Americans. They denounced Sessue not Cecil B. DeMille, the maker of the film. A ‘press conference’ was held on 27 December in which he tried to justify his decision by claiming: ‘He did complain that the Japanese character he played was too evil, but he was told not to worry because any scenes found excessively provocative, sensational, or immoral would be removed by the censor’; but ‘no scene was cut and as a result my reputation as a star actor was greatly defiled’.6 However, the criticism in the media did not abate and he had to write an open letter published in the Rafu Shinpo¯7 apologizing for his misjudgment. 260
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Despite this apology he remained very unpopular in the Japanese community and a series of boycott movements continued for months and several assassination groups threatened to kill him. The budget for The Cheat was a modest $17,000 and the box-office takings were expected to be around $100,000, but the actual boxoffice revenue from domestic sales alone reached nearly $1 million. In France, the film was received with enthusiasm and was regarded as a work of art. Colette, the famous French writer, was excited by the film and wrote: In Paris this week, a movie theatre has become an art school. A film and two of its principal actors are showing us what surprising innovations, what emotion, what natural and well-designed lighting can add to cinematic fiction. Every evening, writers, painters, composers, and dramatists come and come again to sit, contemplate, and comment, in low voices, like pupils.8
The film was not exported to Japan until 1923.9 Hayakawa became one of the highest paid actors in the United States, earning $1 million per year, and he appeared in a large number of romantic dramas. The castle, which he purchased at the corner of Argyle and Franklin Avenues in Hollywood and which was called ‘The Glengarry’,10 had thirty-two bedrooms and a hall large enough to accommodate 250 people for a dance party and 600 guests for a cocktail party. Sessue and Tsuru had large parties almost every weekend, inviting not only filmmakers and movie stars, but also artists, politicians and businessmen. Chaplin frequently dropped by on his way to his film studios and Valentino was also a frequent visitor.11 Despite the large salaries and bonuses he received Sessue did not renew his contract with Famous Players-Lasky. Instead he set up his own production company, Haworth Pictures, following an offer of an investment of $1 million from James Patrick Connery, a mining millionaire. He was fed up with being typecast as an exotic and mysterious oriental character. Haworth Pictures made distribution agreements with Robertson-Cole, an Anglo-American firm, and the French Pathé, and made films on Japanese and oriental themes for the international market. In four years the company made twenty-two films. Sessue managed the firm, which had a 300-strong workforce. He starred in almost all its films and occasionally supervised the editing.12 In 1911, the appendicitis from which he had been suffering for some time became acute and he was rushed to hospital for an emergency operation.13 A few days before he first noticed the pain in his appendix it had been wrongly reported in Japan that his wife, Tsuru, had attempted suicide out of jealousy and hysteria. The Rafu Shinpo¯ 261
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denied the reported suicide attempt, describing the Hayakawas as a happy family and suggesting that somebody must have sent the Japanese media a false story. Sessue had for some time suspected that someone in Robertson-Cole Co., which was then a main shareholder of his new company, Hayakawa Feature Play Co., was scheming to assassinate him so that Robertson-Cole Co. could take over the company as well as receive a massive insurance payout. In the climatic earthquake scene in The Vermillion Pencil a pagoda mined with dynamite had been designed to fall away from Sessue. However, during the filming, the pagoda fell on him. He only escaped from this life-threatening ‘accident’, because the set designer, who made the devices, had warned him to be careful about the pagoda tumbling down towards him.14 It is not clear whether this was really an attempted assassination or a story he invented. However, he was genuinely worried about the worsening racial discrimination and intensifying harassment of Japanese in the USA. New legislation restricting the rights of Japanese residents particularly upset him. In California Japanese were regarded as ‘aliens’, who were ‘racially’ ineligible for naturalization and denied the privilege of owning land.15 In an interview published in the January 1929 issue of the Motion Picture Magazine he explained that he had dropped out of pictures because of many ‘irritations’.16 These must have been the main reasons for his decision to close his company and leave Hollywood for the East Coast and then Europe. At a St. Patrick’s Day party in 1922, Sessue announced his departure from Hollywood: The Land Law has already been passed. A group of people had gone around my house shouting through a megaphone ‘pass the Land Law’. I still remember the roar. Japanese had tomatoes thrown at them in the street. I was almost killed during filming. In this kind of environment I cannot stay one more day. I am saying goodbye to Hollywood as of today.17
In the same year, for the first time since his departure fifteen years before, Sessue returned to Japan with his wife. The Japanese reception was a mixed one: for many it was a hero’s return as he was the first Japanese who had made such a success in Hollywood and had become a movie star considered as great as Rudolf Valentino and Charlie Chaplin; but for many Japanese he was a traitor and an instrument of racists because he appeared in The Cheat, the quintessential ‘anti-Japanese’ film. He had little intention of staying on in Japan for any length of time and soon returned to the USA, but not to Hollywood. He tried to be an actor on the stage in the East Coast. There was much less anti-Japanese feeling there than on the West Coast. 262
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Moreover Japonisme was a fad in New York and Boston and anything Japanese was sought after. Having started to work for the theatre, however, Sessue found it not as easy as he had expected to be a stage actor. He had little or no previous experience as a stage actor and he had not only to learn his part but also to speak his lines in English. Although Sessue later survived the transition from silent films to talkies, countless silent actors vanished, because their voices were not attractive, their English accents were not acceptable, or their acting style was not suitable for talkies. FRANCE AND BRITAIN
In 1923 Sessue jumped at the offer from the French Vandal-Delac Studios of a leading role in its film La Bataille, which was about the defeat of the Russian fleet by the Japanese Navy in the battle of Tsushima. Sessue arrived in Paris on 28 July 1923 to an enthusiastic welcome. He and his wife stayed for two years and during this time he appeared in six films in France and England. In Paris Sessue played the principal role in a short drama, or more precisely a vaudeville act, at the Casino de Paris, one of the well-known music halls. Although the drama in which he featured, The Knee of the God, was a trite one, it turned out to be very popular and became a long running piece in Paris. While Sessue was in Paris, a group of English theatrical notables visited him with a letter of invitation to appear in a Royal Command Performance. He was delighted, but he was still contracted to appear at the Casino de Paris. The English delegation managed to negotiate his release from the contract and the Hayakawas left Paris arriving in London via Dover on 12 November. Sessue was welcomed at Victoria Station by enthusiastic fans, who had come to know of him through his film performances. For the Command Performance, Sir William Archer, a Scottish drama critic, who was best known for his play, The Green Goddess, was commissioned to write a one-act play for Sessue, but it was not completed by the time he arrived in London. So for three weeks Sessue instead performed at the London Coliseum in Knee of the God, the piece which had been popular in Paris. The Command Performance was held on 13 December at the same theatre in the presence of King George V and Queen Mary. The acts included the Royal Albert Hall Orchestra, Bobbie Hind and his all-British Sonata Band, a performance of a single dramatic sketch, The Discovery Room, with Tom Walls, Ralph Lynn and Tommy Handley, a comic piece by Billy Merson and others, and Sir William Archer’s Samurai with Sessue, Lewis Gilbert, Ann Trevor, Lola Karsavina, and Dora de Winton.18 The setting for The Samurai is Russia after the Russo-Japanese War. A young Japanese man named Kamitani is hoping to avenge 263
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his father who was killed by a Russian military officer during the war. He is now a diplomat and comes to know a Russian count and general called Korsakov and falls in love with his daughter. Through their relationship Kamitani discovers that Korsakov was the man who had killed his father in a cowardly manner. On the night of a carnival he challenges Korsakov and in the duel he slays him. His lover Barbara tries to enter the room where the duel has taken place but the door is locked. Hearing her crying Kamitani commits hara-kiri. It is a silly story but such exotic motifs as revenge, a sense of filial duty, honour and hara-kiri interested audiences and Sessue’s kabuki-style performance and actions seem to have greatly entertained them. A reception was held on the day after the Command Performance and was attended by the Prince of Wales, later King Edward VIII. Sessue wrote in his autobiography that he was very much impressed with the Prince’s witticisms and sense of humour.19 When it became his turn to give an after-dinner speech, he tried to crack a joke following the Prince’s precedent by saying, ‘an optimist looks and sees the ring [of a doughnut] but a pessimist only sees the hole.’20 He was hurt that the room remained dead silent. He was later told that English doughnuts had no holes. Sessue stayed on in the UK for some seven months and took the play on tour as well as continuing to perform between tours in London. His British fans, dignitaries, socialites and Japanese expatriates welcomed him wherever he went. He was frequently entertained in clubs, invited to parties where he learned of the sexual and moral licentiousness of upper-class and upper-middle class British, taken to play golf in Scotland, and followed around by female fans. The Hayakawas rented a house in South Kensington and entertained guests living in the UK and visitors from Japan. Sir Oswald Stoll was an Australian-born British theatre manager and the co-founder of the Stoll-Moss theatre company; he also owned the London Coliseum and hosted the 1923 Command Performance. He ran Stoll Pictures; one of the leading British production companies in the silent era, and in 1920 had purchased an aeroplane factory in Cricklewood, which he converted into film studios. Sessue played a lead role in two films produced by Stoll Pictures, directed by A.E. Coleby and filmed at Cricklewood Studios. The Great Prince Shan is based on E. Philipp Oppenheim’s spy story. Sessue was cast as Prince Shan. An imaginary European nation, which fears an also imaginary Asian nation as a rising power, sends spies to the latter. Prince Shan’s man, Immelman, is one of these spies. The prince visits Europe for the negotiation of the treaty, which Immelman had drafted and which threatened to disturb international peace. During his visit he falls in love with Lady Maggie Trent, also a spy. La Belle Nita, Prince Shan’s dancer, played by Aoki Tsuru, becomes 264
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jealous of his liaison with Maggie and tries to separate them, but to no avail. Immelman presses his superior to sign the treaty but the prince discovers his plot and leaves Europe declaring that he has no intention of jeopardizing world peace and saying goodbye to Maggie. In the film Sessue not only played the title role, but also helped A.E. Colby in casting and costume. Rekishi Shashin, a photo magazine, printed in its May 1924 issue21 a picture of Sessue auditioning Japanese extras at Cricklewood Studios. He is said to have checked the kimonos for their authenticity and advised the director about how they should be worn. In Sen Yan’s Devotion Sessue played the title role of Sen Yan. It is an adventure film set in an exotic land. He is a young prince and the heir to the dying king, but has to prove his bravery by regaining the secret documents guarded by a multiple-limbed fire god. He sets off on his quest with his wife, played by Tsuru, and travels to the sacred temple to retrieve the documents. Sessue later wrote in his autobiographies that he did not remember these two films at all and misnames The Great Prince Shan calling it The Illustrious Prince. He also recorded some details of filming at Cricklewood noting that the English crew had to stop filming at four o’clock on the dot to drink tea, just as cricket players retire for tea and that thick fog frequently interrupted filming. After nearly a year in Britain the Hayakawas returned to France, where he starred in a film, J’ai tué!, and resumed his vaudeville act at the Casino de Paris. When the filming finished, they took a long holiday, travelling to Norway and then Southern Europe and Greece. At the end of their holiday they settled in the Hotel Negresco in Nice and Sessue drove to Monte Carlo every night for gambling. He claims in his autobiographies that one evening he played against the Duke of Westminster, Andre Gustav Citroen, the founder of the French motor company, a pair of wealthy Greeks and a South American Coffee King. He ended up playing only against the Duke. According to Sessue’s account, ‘the Duke was an inveterate gambler, and a shrewd one … played as if his life depended upon his winning’.22 By the time Sessue decided to call it a day his losses had amounted to five million francs, but he left the casino after buying a round of champagne. The following morning he was woken up by a phone call from the Japanese embassy in Paris: they had received news that the bruised and battered body of a Japanese had been found under the Monte Carlo high cliffs and feared that it might be his corpse. Some biographers dismiss this as fictitious. USA, JAPAN, FRANCE AGAIN
After the Hayakawas left France in July 1925 they settled in New York, renting a house in Long Island and an apartment near 265
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Broadway, from where Sessue went to the performance of Love City, a popular play transferred from Berlin. However, by this time, Sessue’s popularity and reputation were in steady decline. His theatrical career did not take off even after the minor success of Love City and he spent the next four years taking his shows on tour in the USA and Canada, writing a novel, and running a Kendo club in New York. The first Hollywood film in which he starred after he had left for Europe was a Warner Brothers short piece called The Man who Laughed the Last (1929), a twenty minutes film version of his vaudeville act. It was his comeback film and his first talkie. However, Sessue was already passé. He was forty years old and although he was still handsome he needed more than good looks to survive in Hollywood. It was not until 1931 that he returned to Hollywood. Thereafter he stayed away until after the Second World War. By the time he returned to Japan in the early 1930s, few Japanese knew that Sessue had once been seen as a Hollywood film star who had disgraced his own country by appearing in a notoriously racist film The Cheat. Instead he was now respected as a Japanese who became a superstar in the USA. Nevertheless, his popularity in Japan as a movie star did not rise as high as in the West. In the West his fame had been established by his performance in The Cheat but this film had aroused a furore in Japan. Accordingly he was happy to accept a foreign offer when he was invited to France to appear in Max Ophuls’ Yoshiwara. The film is set in the red light district of Tokyo, and it is a story about a woman who is forced to be a high-class prostitute to support her younger brother, and her relationship with a Russian naval officer. Sessue plays the role of the rickshaw driver and military spy, who is also in love with the heroine. The woman is arrested for hiding the secret documents, which are entrusted to her by the Russian officer because of a tip from the rickshaw driver. She is executed by firing squad despite the desperate efforts of the Russian to rescue her.23 This film upset the Japanese authorities and its screening was banned. The way in which the Yoshiwara was presented in the film was found objectionable. Life in the Yoshiwara is depicted as despicable and the women working in it were shown as virtual slaves.24 Sessue was yet again, along with Tanaka Michiko, a Paris-based opera singer, accused by the Japanese media of being a traitor and enemy of imperial Japan. Sessue did not return to Japan during the Second World War, seeing in Paris the German troops marching into the Champs-Élysées and the city being liberated; he left his wife, Tsuru, and three children in Japan. While he was in Paris, Tsuru was raising Sessue’s children in financial and psychological difficulties in pre-war and wartime Japan. She could speak Japanese but could not read and write well; 266
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the eldest son was the illegitimate child of Sessue and an American actress, and the two daughters had been born between Sessue and a geisha. It is not clear why he continued to remain in Paris without returning to Japan to join his family, especially when there was very little work for him there. He appeared in only nine films in twelve years while he was in France. POST-WAR
In 1949 Humphrey Bogart, who was a great fan of Sessue, invited him to Hollywood again and wanted him to co-star in a film, which he was producing. In the early morning of New Year’s Day 1949 he returned to New York for the first time in sixteen years and appeared in an American film after twenty years’ absence from the American screen. Tokyo Joe, a kind of sequel to Casablanca, is set in Tokyo but was shot in Colombia Pictures studios, with Sessue as Baron Kimura, the villainous former head of the Japanese secret police. He starred in one more film before returning to Japan playing in Three Came Home the role of Colonel Suga, the head of a Japanese PoW camp. After the filming, Sessue met Nagata Masaichi, the President of Daiei Picture Co., who later became the producer of Kenji Mizoguchi’s Ugetsu (Silver Lion at the Venice Film Festival) and Teinosuke Kinugasa’s Gate of Hell (Grand Prix at the Cannes Film Festival) and was invited to work for his studios as an actor. Although Sessue was an international star, he had featured in only a handful of Japanese films, which were made in the pre-war period. By the time he returned to Japan for good in 1949, he was already sixty-three years old. Accordingly the roles offered to him were minor ones. The only occasions, in which he shined as a movie actor, were when he worked for foreign film directors. He played the minor but interesting role of a police chief in Samuel Fuller’s House of Bamboo alongside Robert Stack, the later television star of the Untouchable series, Robert Ryan and another Japanese international star, Yoshiko Yamaguchi. The plot of The House of Bamboo is full of contradictions and the film is a mishmash of cultural misunderstandings. In the film a wooden bathtub is placed in the middle of a bedroom, nobody takes off shoes, and Japanese women show no sexual inhibitions. However, Sessue played the role with great dignity and authority. In 1957 Sam Spiegel, an Austrian-born independent film producer, gave Sessue the script for Bridge on the River Kwai to be directed by David Lean, but he did not like it because he had no sympathy for the role of Colonel Saito, whose part he was assigned to play. Fortunately his wife who saw great potential in the script induced him to change his mind. He later gave what was probably his best 267
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performance in his fifty-five year career in films. He was nominated for the ‘Best Supporting Actor’ award in the Academy Awards of that year despite the fact that David Lean found Sessue a hopeless actor and during filming in Sri Lanka reduced Sessue to tears.25 He survived Tsuru by twelve years and after her death married Azuma Hideo, thirty-eight years younger than himself. He carried on working even after he turned eighty, but he retired from acting in 1968. Sho¯hei Imamura’s Profound Desires of Gods was the last film in which he appeared. He died on 23 November 1973 at the age of eighty-seven. His name is now engraved on the Hollywood Walk of Fame. ENDNOTES 1
2
3
4
5
6 7
8
9
10
11
12
Sessue Hayakawa, Zen Showed me the Way, London: George Allen and Unwin, 1961, p. 76. Toriumi Yoshiro¯, ‘Hayakawa Hayakawa,’ Sankei Shinbun, 22 July 1998, ¯ ba Toshio¯, Hayakawa Hayakawa: Bo¯so¯ ga Unda Kokusai Haiyû, NagarO eyama: Ron Shobo¯, 2012, p. 55. Sessue is a combination of setsu (snow) and shu¯ (sandbank) and he chose this name because Saigo¯ Takamori, a Japanese popular hero, had the pseudonym Nanshu¯ (southern sandbank). He initially wanted to use Hokushu (north sandbank), but as this stage name was already taken by somebody else, he went for Setsu (snow)-Shu¯ because it was associated with hoku (north) Miyao Daisuke, Sessue Hayakawa: Silent Cinema and Transnational Stardom, Durham: Duke University Press, 2007. Rafu Shinpo¯ (Los Angeles News), 24 December 1915. Quoted by Toriumi, ibid., p. 90. Ibid., p. 92. Rufu Shinpo¯, ‘I deeply regret that The Cheat in which I starred happened to hurt all my compatriots and I will do my best not to repeat the same mistake and implicate others in trouble.’ translation mine, 29 December 1915. Quoted by Toriumi, ibid., p. 93. Colette, ‘Cinema: The Cheat,’ Excelsior, 7 August 1916. Translated in Abel, French Film Theory and Criticism: A History and Anthology, 1907– 1939. Vol. 1: 1907–1929, ed. Richard Abel, Princeton, N.J.: Princeton University Press, 1993. Murakami Yukiko, Yellow Face: Hollywood Eiga ni Miru Ajiajin no Sho¯zo¯, Tokyo: Asahi Shinbun, 1993. Cecilia Rusmussen, ‘Hollywood Castles and Curious “Cures”,’ Los Angeles Times, 18 March 1996. The millionaire doctor who originally built it, had had it copied from his wife’s ancestral home in Inverness, Scotland. Miyao Daisuke, Sessue Hayakawa: Silent Cinema and Transnational Stardom, Durham, N.C.: Duke University Press, 2007. The exact number of films produced by Haworth Pictures is not known, because some films must have been lost. 268
SESSUE HAYAKAWA (1886–1973)
13 14
15
16
17
18
19
20 21 22 23
24
25
Reported on the front page of the Los Angeles Examiner on 9 April 1921. Sessue Hayakawa, Zen Showed Me the Way: … to peace, happiness and tranquility, London; George Allen and Unwin, pp. 154–5. Dudley O. McGovney, ‘The Anti-Japanese Land Laws of California and Ten Other States,’ California Law Review, Vol. 35, Issue 1, March 1947, pp. 7–8. Kevin Brownlow, Behind the Mask of Innocence, London: Jonathan Cape, 1990, p. 351. One of the irritations he revealed was the racial insults he had received from the head of Robertson-Cole, who was the co-owner of Hayakawa Feature Play Co., and who owed him $90,000. Nakagawa Orie, Sessue!: Sekai wo Miryo¯ shita Nihonjin Star Hayakawa Sessue, Tokyo: Ko¯dansha, 2012, p. 165. The Royal Variety Performance homepage: http://www.eabf.org.uk/ royal-variety-performance/archive/1920s/1923 Sessue Hayakawa, Hayakawa Sessue: Musha Shugyo¯ Sekai wo Yuku, Tokyo: Nihon Tosho Centre, 1999, pp. 124–5. Sessue Hayakawa, Zen Showed me the Way, op. cit., p. 175. Rekishi Shasin, Rekishi Shashin Kai, May 1924. Zen Showed me the Way, op. cit., p. 178. Alexander Jacoby, ‘Yoshiwara: Max Ophuls in the Empire of Passion,’ CineAction, Spring, 2002. Cecilia Segawa Seigle, Yoshiwara--the Glittering World of the Japanese Courtesan, Honolulu: Hawaii University Press, 1993, p. 11. ‘Japanese authorities had objected to the film in 1937 because it displayed the Yoshiwara quarter at its worst before the eyes of foreign viewers.’ The details are discussed in my article on David Lean for Britain and Japan: Biographical Portraits vol. VIII
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sEPISODE s
23
The Return of Japan’s Lost Telescope after 400 Years SEAN CURTIN
The world debut of the new telescope at Hatfield House
Four centuries ago King James I gave Japan its very first telescope; at the time this was a cutting-edge piece of technology. Sadly, the original telescope has been lost, but as part of the 2013 Japan400 celebrations to mark four centuries since the first official encounter, a new telescope was constructed using traditional methods and materials. The idea of restoring a lost symbolic artefact has deep cultural roots in English mythology and literature stretching back to the Arthurian legends. The story of the original telescope begins in April 1611, when the East India Company ship the Clove, under the command of Captain John Saris,1 left England and set sail for Japan. The mission was made up of three ships, of which only the Clove went all the way to Japan. Saris’ commission was to go to Yemen and the Spice Islands first, primarily to seek trade, and then to Japan, if possible. Because his first two ports of call were not especially successful, Saris had every incentive to go on to Japan. After a dangerous sea voyage lasting more than two years, the Clove arrived in Japanese waters in June 1613.2 271
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This was a daring mission to what was then the edge of the known world. It is believed that the Earl of Salisbury, a close adviser and Chief Minister to King James, supervised the complex task of sending the Clove, the first British vessel, to Japan and organizing the dispatch of the telescope, which was the most advanced scientific instrument on the planet at the time.3 After an arduous sea voyage, Saris eventually landed at Hirado, located in modern day Nagasaki Prefecture.4 Here he was warmly greeted by the local ruler, Matsura Ho¯in, the daimyo of Hirado. Matsura helped ensure the telescope’s safe passage to Japan’s ruler, Tokugawa Ieyasu. With the aid of William Adams, who had arrived in Japan in April 1600 as pilot on a Dutch ship, Saris was able to initiate the first official contacts. On 8 September 1613, Saris had an audience with Tokugawa Ieyasu, the influential retired Shogun. He handed over a letter from King James and several gifts, including Japan’s first ever telescope, a device, which had just been invented in Europe. The spyglass brought by Saris was the first to leave Europe for any destination, as well as the first ever sent to Asia. To the people of the time, the telescope was a fabulous piece of technology and an impressive gift. The surviving written Japanese texts describing the telescope are contradictory; so we have no real idea what it was actually like. As 2013 was the four hundredth anniversary of the first JapanBritish formal contacts it was decided that a new telescope should be made and presented to Japan to mark and celebrate the occasion.5 The new instrument was painstakingly created over a year by Ian Poyser, one of Britain’s foremost craftsmen in the field of traditional brass telescope construction. Having recreated such a potent historic symbol from the genesis of the Japan-British relationship, a fitting location and occasion had to be found for the presentation of the telescope. Monday 9 September 2013, almost four hundred years to the day from the original presentation, was selected. Hatfield House, built by the 1st Earl of Salisbury, who helped organize its dispatch to Japan, was chosen as the venue. Two direct descendants of key 1613 dramatis personae were present at the ceremony: these were the Marquis of Salisbury, descendant of the 1st Earl of Salisbury, and Mr Akira Matsura, descendant of the daimyo of Hirado, where the Clove had landed 400 year ago.6 At a lunch to celebrate the creation of the new telescope7 it was announced that the beautifully crafted instrument was to be a gift to the Japanese people from Japan400 as a symbol of Anglo-Japanese exchanges in culture, diplomacy and trade as well as the long-standing and mutual cooperation in science and technology. Later that same day, the telescope was exhibited at the Tower of London, where the Shogun’s gift to King James, a magnificent suit 272
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of Japanese armour, was also on display. This was a well-attended gathering and was comprehensively covered by the media. As there was still a good deal of work to be done to complete the telescope it was returned to the workshop of expert craftsman and telescope maker Ian Poyser, located in the Welsh hamlet of Ystrad Meurig. As many people wanted to see the instrument it was placed on display at the ‘Two Cultures United by Tea’ event organized by Japan400 and held at the Banqueting House in Whitehall on Sunday 15 September 2013.8 At this spacious location many people were able to admire it and the general impression of the gleaming brass device was very favourable. On 17 January 2014, Japan400 and the University of Cambridge organized a seminar entitled ‘From King James’s Telescope to the Present and the Future: the Japan-British partnership in science and technology’ at Jesus College, Cambridge.8 Among the distinguished academic participants was Lord Rees FRS, Astronomer Royal.9 The main focus of the day-long seminar was on Japan-British partnerships in scientific instruments and global science and technology over the 400 years since King James initiated official ties by presenting the original silver-gilt spyglass to Tokugawa Ieyasu.10 After the conference there was a dinner11 in honour of the departing telescope, which was placed in a prominent position. The meal was held in one of the oldest parts of the college, which was built on the site of a twelfth-century Benedictine nunnery.12 This ancient venue gave the proceedings an almost spiritual quality evoking the Bible passage, ‘Rejoice with me; for I have found the piece which I had lost’ (St. Luke 15:9, King James Version). After its farewell party, the next phase of the telescope’s life began with its departure to Japan, arranged by Japan400. Once it arrived in Japan, it was initially put on display at the British embassy in Tokyo. It remained there for several months. It subsequently toured a number of Japanese cities with strong British historical connections, before finally coming to rest in Shizuoka City. The telescope will be a key part of the Ieyasu400 celebrations, which will commemorate the life of the great Japanese leader Tokugawa Ieyasu, who died in June 1616. The telescope will eventually be placed on permanent display in a specially reconstructed tower of Sunpu Castle in Shizuoka City. This impressive structure is being built for Ieyasu400 and should be ready by 2015. ENDNOTES 1
2
John Saris was Commander of the 8th East India Company voyage, and as such held a post much more senior than that of a ship’s captain. Saris’ journals were published in 1900, as ‘The Voyage of Captain John Saris to Japan, 1613’, edited by British scholar, diplomat and Japanologist 273
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3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
Sir Ernest M. Satow. Saris died in 1643 and is buried at All Saints Church, Fulham, London. We assume Salisbury was involved with the Clove’s dispatch preparations, but there is no clear historic evidence to show this. The East India Company would have done a majority of the work, although Salisbury would have been the most likely person to have ensured the King’s cooperation as well as arranged the royal letter and gifts, which included the telescope. Saris opened a trading post and factory in Hirado, which he subsequently handed over to his colleague Richard Cocks upon departing in December 1613. Cocks managed the trading post for almost a decade before he was recalled by the British East India Company. Thanks to the vision of the Japan400 co-chairs, Professor Timon Screech and Nicolas Maclean CMG, along with the very generous funding for the project by Robin Maynard MBE who is a permanent resident of Japan and honorary member of the British Chamber of Commerce and Industry. When the two present day direct descendants of key 1613 dramatis personae met for the first time at Hatfield House, a brief silence spread across the crowded room until the Marquess of Salisbury warmly shook Mr Matsura’s hand and declared, ‘I think it’s about time we met.’ Mr Matsura responded, ‘I hope the next 400 years will be even more successful than the first.’ Those who also attended the celebratory lunch held at Hatfield House on Monday 9 September included Mr Miyajima Akio, Minister Plenipotentiary of the Japanese Embassy, Mr Hanyu Yuichiro, Director of the Japan Local Government Centre, Mr Hanaoka Takaaki, Secretary General of the Japanese Chamber of Commerce and Industry in the UK, Professor Hiramatsu Ko¯zo¯, Director of the Japan Society for the Promotion of Science, and Mr Sean Curtin, Director of the Japan Matsuri. The First Astronomer Royal, John Flamsteed, nominated in 1675, spent some time at Jesus College and his portrait is on display in the Master’s Lodge. In September 1670, Flamsteed entered his name as an undergraduate at Jesus College, but never appears to have taken up full residence. Speakers at the ‘From King James’s Telescope to the Present and the Future’ seminar held at the Jesus College, Cambridge on 17 January 2014 included Professor Roberto Cipolla, Fellow of Jesus College, Professor Eileen Reeves from Princeton University, Sir Peter Williams, former Chairman of Oxford Instruments, Professor Ian White, Master of Jesus College, Professor Paul Alexander of Jesus College, Professor Iida Fumiya from ETH, Zurich, and Professor David Cope of Clare Hall, and former Director of the Parliamentary Office of Science and Technology. This conference was sponsored by the Great Britain Sasakawa Foundation and Toshiba of Europe. The conference sponsors were represented by Mr Noguchi Koshi, Vice President-Corporate Government and External Relations, Toshiba of Europe Limited, Dr Asai Hironori, Deputy Managing Director, Cambridge Research Laboratory, Toshiba 274
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11
12
Research Europe Limited, and Professor Roberto Cipolla FREng, Managing Director, Cambridge Research Laboratory, and by the Earl of St. Andrews, Chairman of the Great Britain Sasakawa Foundation and by Mr Stephen McEnally, Chief Executive, Great Britain Sasakawa Foundation. The dinner was attended by many of the conference speakers, representatives of the sponsors along with the generous funder of the restoration project Robin Maynard MBE and his wife Midori. Professor Lynn Gladden, the University’s Pro-Vice Chancellor for Research, gave the main after dinner speech, several others also spoke including Robin Maynard. This ancient venue gave the proceedings an almost spiritual quality evoking the Bible passage, ‘Rejoice with me; for I have found the piece which I had lost’ (St. Luke 15:9, King James Version).
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Ella Du Cane (1874–1943) – Watercolourist TONI HUBERMAN
INTRODUCTION
Ella Mary Du Cane was a watercolourist, most notably of flowers and gardens. Many of her paintings were used to illustrate the pages of A & C Black’s popular colour books, with text often written by her sister Florence. In particular, Ella was admired for her depiction of Japanese flowers and gardens, which she painted with great exuberance. She was an inspiration to others at a time when Japanese gardens were very fashionable in the West, and when not many westerners had actually been to Japan. She helped to popularize the Japanese garden, introducing it to a wider audience. She was born in Hobart, Tasmania, the third daughter of politician and then-Governor of Tasmania, Sir Charles Du Cane. Soon after she was born the Du Cane family returned to England, where Ella grew up in Braxted Park, Essex, the family estate. Ella’s mother was Georgiana Susan Copley, daughter of Lord Lyndhurst (1772–1863), three times Lord Chancellor under Prime 277
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Ministers George Canning, the Viscount Goderich, the Duke of Wellington and Sir Robert Peel. Her maternal great grandfather was the American portraitist John Singleton Copley (1738–1815). She had no formal training as a painter, apart from ‘a few lessons in drawing and perspective’ from her governess, and one or two lessons from the painter Sir James Linton (1840–1916),1 but her talent, and knowledge of, and enthusiasm for, gardens, together with her family connections, brought private commissions and invitations to visit the rich and titled, and with it came commercial success. EARLY CAREER
The Royal Family were early admirers, particularly Queen Victoria and the Prince of Wales. Between 1895 and 1898 the Queen herself commissioned and purchased no fewer than twenty-six watercolours, including paintings of the gardens at Windsor, Frogmore and Osborne. Several views of Osborne were given to the Empress Frederick (Victoria’s eldest daughter), the Queen referring to Ella as ‘a very talented young Lady’.2 Both the Queen and the Prince of Wales visited her exhibitions at Graves’ Galleries in Pall Mall, and later, when the Prince was king (Edward VII), he continued to purchase a number of paintings himself.3 Ella first exhibited at the Annual Exhibition of the Royal Institute of Painters in Water Colours in 1893, and appeared at regular intervals at the Graves’ Galleries, the Fine Art Society, and the Modern Gallery. By 1898 she was exhibiting her pictures of Leopold de Rothschild’s home at Ascott House in Buckinghamshire, his waterlily pond at Gunnersbury, and Lord Carrington’s seat at Gwydyr Castle. Commissions inevitably followed from other owners of stately homes: at Crichel, Broughton Castle, Blickling, Hinchinbrooke, Haddon Cottage, Cawdor Castle, Hartrigg, Carberry, Drummond Castle, and Lady Kenmare’s gardens near Killarney. Her paintings appealed to a romantic, late Victorian-early Edwardian sensibility. In 1908 she exhibited with Helen Allingham, and although Helen Allingham was the more established artist, one could say that Ella was the more adventurous in her choice of location. While Allingham painted the cottages and gardens of England, Ella Du Cane ventured overseas. After the death of her father in 1889, and from a very young age, Ella and one of her sisters, usually Florence, travelled abroad unchaperoned. This ‘wild and gifted pair’ not only explored the usual European destinations (Italy, Belgium, Holland, France), but ventured farther afield to Algeria, the Canary Islands and Madeira.4 She spent six months in the West Indies and made two visits to Japan, the first around 1904, and then again in 1907. Both visits to Japan resulted in exhibitions (at Graves’ Galleries and the Fine Art 278
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Society), and two books: the colour book The Flowers and Gardens of Japan and Peeps at Many Lands and Cities: Japan. TRAVELS
There is a considerable history of independent, wealthy British spinsters, unfettered by husbands and children, travelling the globe at this time. Many, like Isabella Bird (1831–1904), and Ella Christie (1861–1949) wrote about their experiences. Constance Cumming (1837–1924) and Marianne North (1830–1890) both wrote and painted. Ella Du Cane has left no written account of her travels. She painted, and left the writing to others. Her sister’s accounts are devoid of personal experience beyond the topographical. The only recorded account we have of her own adventures is of her encounter with Isabella Robertson Christie (known as Ella). Ella Christie was a formidable traveller. She was the first British woman to travel to Khiva (then semi-independent, now in Uzbekistan), and one of the first women to become a Fellow of the Royal Geographical Society (in 1913). Her book, Through Khiva to Golden Samarkand: The remarkable story of a woman’s adventurous journey alone through the deserts of central Asia to the heart of Turkestan, is an account of her journey across Central Asia.5 In 1907 Christie and her sister Lady Alice King Stewart visited Japan. They met the Du Cane sisters (‘so artistic and know exactly the places to take one to’) at Yaami’s Hotel in Kyoto, one of the popular meeting places for Europeans visiting Japan.6 Finding a kindred spirit in Ella Du Cane (‘one of the few women one can travel with’),7 the two Ellas, accompanied only by a ‘native boy’ (‘he comes for four shillings a day, finding his own food and lodging’), set out on a walking tour around Mount Fuji. 8 It is the only time when Christie is known to have trekked with a companion other than her maid. It bonded their friendship. As did Ella Du Cane’s ‘magnificent tea-basket’, which included a pan for making toasted cheese.9 The country appeared to be readying for war, with soldiers on manoeuvres, and Christie bemoaned the fact that they had to ‘sleep in a native inn full of noisy dirty creatures in Army uniform who fed like puppy dogs and joked with the maids’.10 Both Ellas were obviously prepared to put up with a great deal of discomfort for the pleasure of seeing enormous camphor trees, deutzias, camellias, hydrangeas, tiny roses, and bamboos. Their second night found them at a local inn in a room bare of furniture with only a brazier and a spittoon, the floor apparently heated by the bubbling waters of the sulphur springs – to a temperature of 107°F. But the mountain views were ‘quite superb’.11 279
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JAPANESE GARDENS
Inspired by the gardens she visited, and by Ella Du Cane’s paintings, Christie went home to Scotland and created her own Japanese garden. With advice from Josiah Conder, whose Landscape Gardening in Japan was then the bible of Japanese garden-lovers,12 she brought a Japanese gardener, Handa Taki, to create her garden at Cowden Castle, in the foothills of the Ochils.13 ‘For six weeks she toiled and planned, while [...] apparently shapeless mounds arose, and stones were sought for [...] and placed in the natural orthodox groupings.’14 The marshy field was drained and a lake formed. Cherry trees and azaleas were planted in the shadow of the ‘misty mountain’ beyond; stone lanterns and red lacquered torii were strategically placed. Du Cane visited and approved. The garden still survives today and is now on Historic Scotland’s Inventory of Gardens and Designed Landscapes. Du Cane created her own garden at Beacon Hill House, where she lived for many years, and she created her mother’s garden at nearby ‘Mountains’, the dower house of Braxted Park near Maldon where the family moved in 1919. The only Japanese garden she ever designed herself was in a ploughed field at ‘Mountains’. This she decorated with ornaments and plants brought back from Japan, including Iris ensata from the then-famous Hori-Kiri gardens in Tokyo. Kathryn Bradley-Hole, writing in 2004, noted that the Japanese garden, as such, no longer existed, although candelabra primulas, irises and knotweed (‘not so welcome’), all part of the original planting, had survived.15 It was remarked that ‘as a practical gardener, [Ella] has at least this much in common with her methods of painting, that she goes for the masses. Her plants are massed, her colours are massed. To that extent her garden is a painter’s garden’.16 And this exuberance of massed colour was what appealed to her many admirers. One such was Marguérite Mary Baroness Van Brienen van de Groote Lindt (1871–1939), who is responsible for the Japanese garden at Clingendael in The Hague. It still exists and is now a national heritage-listed garden. It was laid out around 1915, and has similarities with the ‘Peace Garden’ created for the Japan-British Exhibition of 1910. The Baroness visited the Exhibition in London, and travelled to Japan the following year in 1911. There she acquired many of the garden ornaments considered to make up a Japanese garden, including stone lanterns, a stone bridge, a standing and a sitting Jizõ, and two red bridges. And she knew the Du Cane sisters. They were frequent guests at Clingendael. There is a suggestion that the Baroness met the Du Canes some time after the garden was actually laid out, and that 280
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The Flowers and Gardens of Japan was used not to create the garden, but later to help evoke the right atmosphere.17 Her illustrations were more likely a source of inspiration rather than a source of practical advice. Much the same can be said of Leopold de Rothschild’s garden at Gunnersbury. James Hudson, considered one of the leading gardeners of his day, was responsible for overseeing the creation of the Japanese garden at Gunnersbury, the first de Rothschild garden in England, and considered one of the most celebrated ‘Japanese’ gardens in the country. The Japanese Ambassador when he visited is reported as saying, ‘Marvellous! We have nothing like it in Japan’.18 Hudson mentions going to see the exhibition of Ella’s Japanese paintings in 1904.19 Although the garden had actually been more or less completed several years before, Ella’s paintings may have inspired the later detailed planning of the garden. After Leopold de Rothschild died in 1917 the estate was broken up and later the local authorities purchased a large section which in 1926 was created into a public park. There is now a plan to regenerate the park, which includes restoring the Japanese garden. BOOK ILLUSTRATOR
Ella’s main claim to fame is through her book illustrations. She was one of many artists who illustrated the A & C Black colour books of the early twentieth century. Illustration was always regarded more highly than text, and for that Ella was well equipped to appeal to readers of the time. The Italian Lakes (1905) was the first, with text by Richard Bagot, a novelist better known for his many books and articles on Italy. Other A & C Black books followed her world travels: The Flowers and Gardens of Japan (1907), The Flowers and Gardens of Madeira (1909), The Canary Islands (1911), Banks of the Nile (1913), Great Steamship Lines: The P & O (1913), Lake Como (1915), The Nile Watercolours (1920), and Egypt (1931). Of these Japan was the most popular destination, and Ella’s slim volume on Japan (1907), with text by John Finnemore, in the ‘Peeps at Many Lands and Cities’ series, was by far the most popular. It was reprinted ten times between 1907 and 1930. While some were guarded in their enthusiasm for her efforts (the Manchester Guardian grudgingly suggested that her watercolours of the Canary Islands were ‘not unsuccessful’),20 The Observer described the book as ‘charming’ and Ella ‘fearless in the use of pure colour’.21 Her use of colour was often referred to. Of Italian Lakes it was said that: ‘her brightly coloured illustrations catch the warmth and charm of the scenery’, although adding the proviso ‘without perhaps capturing its grandeur’.22 And even when the subject was not botanical 281
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Ella saw vivid blooms. In the shoe bazaar in Cairo, she depicted red shoes hanging in cascades like so many heavily-laden branches of a flowering tree.23 JAPAN-BRITISH EXHIBITION OF 1910
In the early days of Europe’s love affair with Japanese gardens, architect Josiah Conder’s Landscape Gardening in Japan (1893) was one of the main sources of information. The 1910 Japan-British Exhibition was an opportunity for westerners to view the real thing. The two main, specially designed, landscape gardens, the ‘Garden of Peace’ and the ‘Garden of the Floating Islands’ were created by Ozawa Keijiro¯ and were the most authentic large-scale Japanese gardens seen in Britain by the general public up to that time.24 The Exhibition was intended to promote Japan’s public image in the west, promote greater understanding of its culture and traditions, increase trade and celebrate the Anglo-Japanese Alliance, which had been signed in 1902. In the event it was an enormous success in Britain, with over eight million visitors in six months. And Ella’s painting of ‘Wistaria, Kyomidzu’ [sic], which had been the frontispiece of The Flowers and Gardens of Japan, illustrated the front cover of the official catalogue for the exhibition. The publisher A & C Black also produced four sets of full-colour postcards, twentyfour images in all, of Ella’s paintings from the book, which were sold at the exhibition. Without a doubt, Ella’s view of Japan reinforced the popular public image of how they saw the country. Ella once remarked that ‘one day I am going to write a book on gardens’.25 Sadly she never did. She died at Mountains in 1943, age sixty-nine, of unknown causes. ENDNOTES 1
2
3 4
5 6
7 8 9 10
Alice Stronach, ‘A Painter of Gardens: An Interview with Miss Ella Du Cane’, The Girl’s Realm (August 1902), 775–81 (p. 777). Delia Millar, ‘Ella Mary Du Cane (1874–1943)’, in The Victorian Watercolours and Drawings in the Collection of Her Majesty the Queen (London: Philip Wilson, 1995), p. 284. Stronach, p. 780. Mark Griffiths, The Lotus Quest (London: Chatto & Windus: 2009), p. 93. (London: Seeley, Service, 1925). Averil Stewart, Alicella: A Memoir of Alice King Stewart and Ella Christie (London: John Murray, 1955), p. 203. Stewart, p. 206. Stewart, p. 203. Stewart, p. 207. Stewart, p.206. 282
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11 12 13
14
15
16
17
18 19
20 21 22
23
24
25
Stewart, p. 207. (Yokohama: Kelly & Walsh: 1893). Handa Taki is the subject of a biographical portrait by Jill Raggett,Yuka Kajihara and Jason Nolan in Britain and Japan: Biographical Portraits, Vol. VIII, ed. Hugh Cortazzi (Global Oriental, 2013). Ella Christie, Alice King Stewart, A Long Look at Life by Two Victorians (London: Seeley, Service: 1940), pp. 234–35. Kathryn Bradley-Hole, Lost Gardens of England: From the archives of Country Life (London: Aurum Press, 2004), p. 119. Christopher Hussey, ‘Country homes and gardens old and new: Beacon Hill, Essex. The residence of Miss Ella Du Cane’, Country Life, 2 May 1925, 692–98 (p. 692). Christopher Thacker, The History of Gardens (London: Croom Helm, 1979), p. 78, referred to in Wybe Kuitert, ‘Japonaiserie in London and The Hague: A History of the Japanese Gardens at Shepherd’s Bush (1910) and Clingendael (c. 1915)’, Garden History, Winter 2002, 221–38 (n. 23). Bradley-Hole, p. 90. James Hudson, ‘A Japanese Garden in England’, Journal of Royal Horticultural Society, 32 (1907), 2–10 (p. 2). Manchester Guardian, 19 December 1911. The Observer, 10 December 1911. Colin Inman, The A & C Black Colour Books: A Collector’s Guide and Bibliography 1900–1930 (London: Werner Shaw, 1990), pp. 36, 38. John A. Todd, The Banks of the Nile (London: A & C Black, 1913), frontispiece. Jill Raggett, ‘The Japanese Gardens: Stars of the Show’, in Commerce and Culture at the 1910 Japan-British Exhibition: Centenary Perspectives, ed. by Ayako Hotta-Lister & Ian Nish (Leiden, Boston: Global Oriental, 2013), pp. 177–88 (p. 177). Stronach, p 781. See also Alison Redfoot, ‘Victorian Watercolorist Ella Du Cane: A study in resistance and compliance of gender stereotypes, the professional art world, Orientalism, and the interpretation of Japanese gardens for British Society’ (unpublished master’s thesis, California State University at Long Beach, 2011).
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Alfred Parsons, RA, PRWS (1847–1920) and the Japanese Watercolour Movement TOSHIO WATANABE
INTRODUCTION
Alfred William Parsons was an English painter, illustrator and garden designer, who is now only marginally remembered in Britain, but played a catalytic role in the flowering of Japanese watercolour painting during the late nineteenth and early twentieth century. Parsons was born in Beckington, Somerset, in 1847.1 In 1862 when he was fifteen, he toured to France, Switzerland and Italy. Around 1865 he moved to London and attended South Kensington Schools in the evenings. Initially he worked as a clerk in the Post Office, but in 1867 gave up this post and concentrated on his career as an artist. He started to exhibit regularly at the Royal Academy from 1871 onwards. He became an Associate of the Royal Academy of Arts in 1897 and then a full Academician in 1911. In 1887 his 284
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Alfred Parsons, When Nature Painted All things Gay, oil on canvas, exhibited 1887, Tate Gallery
oil painting When Nature Painted All Things Gay was bought for the nation through Chantry Bequest2 selection. He painted a number of such oil paintings, but he was better known as a watercolourist. In 1914 he became the President of the Royal Watercolour Society, which was founded in 1804 and is the oldest watercolour society in the world. He continued in this post until his death in 1920. Apart from the Royal Academy and the Royal Watercolour Society he was a member of many societies and showed at numerous exhibiting organizations, among others the Art Workers Guild, Dudley Art Society, the Grosvenor Gallery, the Fine Art Society, Dowdeswell & Dowdeswell and the New English Art Club. He also exhibited internationally, e.g. in Tokyo (1892), St. Louis (1904), Christchurch (New Zealand, 1906–1907), Rome (1911) and New York (1916). 3 Parsons had an extensive network of friends and acquaintances,4 which included artists and designers, such as Sir Lawrence Alma-Tadema, Sir Edward Burne-Jones, Sir Luke Fildes, Paul César Helleu, Lord Leighton, William Morris, Arthur Rackham, Linley Sambourne, John Singer Sargent, Marcus Stone, James McNeill Whistler and William Robinson and writers such as Henry James, Vernon Lee and Okakura Kakuzo¯. He even carried out the floral decoration for the dinner given by the friends of Alma-Tadema in honour of Alma-Tadema’s knighthood in 1899.5 His network was unusually varied ranging from conservative painters such as 285
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Alma-Tadema or Fildes to radical designers such as Morris or Robinson. His activities included membership of the Alpine Club, the Arts Club, the Beefsteak Club, the Royal Horticultural Society, the Reform Club and the Athenaeum. Parsons was also successful as an illustrator and garden designer. As an illustrator his contributions to periodicals, such as the American Harper’s Magazine and William Robinson’s famous magazine, The Garden, are particularly important. Parsons also provided illustrations for books such as The Wild Garden (2nd ed. 1881) or The English Flower Garden (editions 1883–1933).6 Robinson’s writings were instrumental in moving British gardening away from geometrical regimented-type to a more irregular and natural look, such as the English cottage garden or the wild garden. It was Parsons who provided the crucial illustrations to Robinson’s writings, which directly visualized Robinson’s theory. Parsons knew a good deal about horticulture even before he met Robinson.7 So it wasn’t long before he tried his hand at garden design. Robinson said that Parsons’ dual interest in art and horticulture were the two skills required to be a landscape gardener. 8 He designed gardens 9 for a number of important clients, such as the garden at Clouds in East Knoyle in Wiltshire, which became a gathering point of the social group the Souls or the garden of the Arts and Crafts model house Whightwick Manor in Wolverhampton. VISIT TO JAPAN
Parsons traveled to Japan in 1892 staying some nine months from March to December. He published a travelogue in Harper’s Magazine, which then came out as a book Notes in Japan in 1896.10 This is a detailed day-to-day account of his travel,11 but compared to other books covering their travels in Japan by British authors of the time, Parsons devoted an unusual amount of space to Japanese plants. He did not seem interested in Japanese history or even art. Again and again he focused on plants. Once back in London in 1893 he showed the watercolours he had painted in Japan at the Fine Art Society. The exhibition Landscapes & Flowers in Japan included about a hundred paintings. Although he was well disposed towards the Japanese, he was not an outright Japanophile. Back in London, he counted among his friends such Japanophiles as Whistler and Alma-Tadema (a Vice-President of the Japan Society), but he did not seem to be greatly influenced by Japanese taste. In his book he does discuss at one point the nature of Japanese art, but the discussion gives the impression that Japanese art was not something he wished to emulate in any way. 12 When he was in Tokyo he had organized at the Tokyo School of Fine Art an exhibition of about a hundred watercolours. 286
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The paintings exhibited were probably more or less the same paintings as the ones he showed at the Fine Art Society. The Tokyo School of Fine Art at that time shunned Westernstyle painting and according to the art historian Tanita Hiroyuki,13 Okakura Kakuzo¯ (1862–1913), the scholar and art critic who had founded the school, may have intended by putting on the exhibition to mitigate the criticism levelled against the School that it ignored Western-style painting. NOTIONS OF ‘NATURE’ AND ‘LANDSCAPE’ DURING THE EDO PERIOD IN JAPAN
In order to understand the impact of Parsons’ art in Japan, it is necessary to examine the Japanese art scene at the time, in particular the development of notions such as ‘nature’ or ‘landscape’ in modern Japan and the role of watercolour painting in this debate. Terms such as ‘nature’14 are contingent on historical conditions.15 Shizen is now the usual translation of the English term nature, but this became common currency among the Japanese only during the second half of the nineteenth century and as such it is associated with modernity.16 Previously other terms, such as tenchi, banyu¯, banbutsu, shinrabansho¯, zo¯ka or tennen as well as shizen were used to indicate allinclusiveness, i.e. humans as part of and not separate from nature. In the West nature was often thought of, particularly by the Romantics, as being separate and in opposition to human activities. As Yanabu Akira has shown, such a seemingly simple and selfevident term ‘nature’ has an astonishingly complex history. He wrote a book on how this single term came to represent nature in Japan. From his and other studies it is clear that the term shizen existed earlier, but it was only during the Meiji period that it was accepted as the Japanese translation of ‘nature’. 17 The concept of nature in the Edo period has several strands. One strand focused on meisho, famous places. The concept of meisho is said to have originated in utamakura, places with poetical and also often with religious associations, where many poems were composed over many years.18 Though the focus of many of the poems may be nature itself, the main characteristic of meisho is their dependence on these poems, i.e. on human activities. A meisho cannot stand on its own as nature; it needs the involvement of a human hand, such as a poem or a painting. Another strand is what I might call anti-meisho, where nature and its depiction is not primarily related to cultural, especially poetic, associations, but is more scientific and often purely descriptive. Those who were supporters of this strand conducted scientific expeditions rather than visited meisho to wallow in poetic atmosphere. 287
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One Edo period debate crystallized the two contrasting approaches to nature and the meaning of ‘landscape’. Furukawa Kosho¯ken (1726–1807) was a widely travelled geographer, but disapproved of the Itsukushima Shrine being designated as one of the most famous landscapes in Japan.19 In his book Saiyu¯zakki (Travel Notes from Western Japan) of 1783, he agreed that the shrine was worthy of its designation. However, he asked what would happen if the shrine and the corridors were removed. Man-made elements, the shrine and the corridors, were major contributing factors for making Itsukushima one of the three most famous landscapes. But, if the main criterion was natural landscape without added human elements, he could cite on the basis of his journeys round Japan many more beautiful landscapes than the island of Itsukushima. Kosho¯ken questioned the theory of meisho ideology and excluded the human factor when judging landscapes. His thinking, which is more akin to the Western approach to nature, reflects a more scientific approach based on value judgments gained through first hand evidence. Another contemporary geographer, Sugae Masumi (1754–1829) presented an alternative view. In 1815 Masumi criticized Kosho¯ken as lacking in sympathy for the people living at these places and also lacking in cultural insight.20 Masumi’s point was that the human contribution was vital to any assessment of a place and a landscape. The folklorist Miyamoto Tsuneichi has made perceptive comparisons of the two Edo period geographers.21 Miyamoto regarded Kosho¯ken as a top-down, slightly cooler and detached but meticulous observer, whereas Masumi was a more hands-on person, mingling with local people.22 At this time Kosho¯ken’s concept of nature was clearly a minority view whereas Masumi’s wish to give due weight to human factors in evaluating a landscape was the majority view. The increasing ease of travel combined with the explosion of popular travel-related publications promoted meisho as one of the prime representations of nature and landscape in Edo Japan. However the achievements of prominent geographers, such as Ino¯ Tadataka or Mamiya Rinzo¯, show that scientific exploration of natural landscape was also growing rapidly. Precise scientific observation detached from human factors could also be found in many of the paintings of nature (hakubutsuzufu). The introduction of landscape painting (fu¯keiga) from the West during the Meiji period has been much discussed. Fu¯keiga differed from traditional types of Japanese landscape paintings such as, shiki-e or sansuiga. However, the less idealistic and more naturalistic landscape paintings of the Meiji period were not inspired solely by the European concept of landscape painting. The introduction of Western ideas of nature accelerated the development of what I have called the anti-meisho trend already existing in Japan. 288
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NOTIONS OF ‘NATURE’ AND ‘LANDSCAPE’ DURING MEIJI PERIOD JAPAN
Antonio Fontanesi (1818–1882), appointed as Professor of Painting at the Ko¯bu Art School in 1876, was instrumental in promoting Western style landscape painting. Although he only stayed in Japan for about two years, his Japanese students endorsed the antimeisho agenda. Koyama Sho¯taro¯’s kanbun (Chinese text) manuscript ‘Yu¯kyo¯roku’ (A record of rambles in the valleys), which depicts a sketching trip he conducted with his fellow students including Asai Chu¯, one of the most gifted modern landscape painters of the Meiji period, shows the attitude of Fontanesi’s students towards nature.23 They spent their time wandering about admiring ordinary rural scenes. They were not sketching meisho and they almost seemed to be avoiding meisho. The attitudes of Fontanesi’s students to nature and landscape were ground breaking, but they were still within the anti-meisho tradition continued from the Edo period. Some of the Meiji Western-style painters displayed great interest in the Western way of depicting landscape. Painters, such as Takahashi Yuichi (1828–1894) or Kamei Takejiro¯ (d. 1879) experimented with a more objective type of landscape painting concentrating on weather, light and naturalistic clouds. Another clear sign in the pages of Koyama’s ‘Yu¯kyo¯roku’ of a more modern way of looking at nature was that climbing mountains was regarded as sport.24 Mountains were no longer to be seen as sacred places or inspirations for writing poems. They were places where young men from Tokyo could enjoy their leisure. Koyama’s manuscript indicates that the specific context of a particular place was not important. This was clearly an anti-meisho attitude. This way of looking afresh at the Japanese landscape was continued by the artists of the Watercolour Movement, many of whom were keen mountaineers and also belonged to the [Japan] Alpine Club founded in 1905. (Please see in this context the article by Hamish Ion in this volume on ‘Mountaineering in Japan: British Pioneers and the pre-war Japanese Alpine Club’.) One of the founders and the first President of this Club, Kojima Usui (1873–1948), was a close friend of many of the artists of the Watercolour Movement. He was also an admirer of the writings on nature of the famous British art critic and writer, John Ruskin (1819–1900) who had an extraordinary impact on Japanese cultural life at the time.25 The concept of nature propounded by Ruskin enchanted many Japanese artists and writers and introduced a new aesthetic vision of nature, which combined art, religious sentiment and science. It was different from either the transcendental and 289
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idealistic vision of the sansui painting or the popular meisho depiction of the ukiyo-e prints, but much closer to the anti-meisho tradition dating from the Edo period. As with many other cultural phenomena of modern Japan, the modern concept of nature is not a clear break from that of the previous Edo period, but rather a modified continuation. THE JAPANESE WATERCOLOUR MOVEMENT
Watercolour painting lacked the high status of oil painting both in Japan and the West. Even in Britain where it received the highest accolade as an art form compared to other Western countries, it had second-class status within art institutions and public exhibitions. Fontanesi was primarily employed to teach oil painting in Japan but he also taught watercolour painting. Fontanesi made another important contribution to the history of Western-style painting in Japan by bringing a large quantity of authentic painting material from Europe including watercolour materials.26 In 1877, however, Ito¯ Fujibei opened his shop Sairyo¯ho¯ selling Whatman paper and Winsor and Newton paints. The record of Fontanesi’s curriculum is patchy and it does not seem to have included watercolour painting as a distinct component. Some of his students such as Koyama Sho¯taro¯ and particularly Asai Chu¯ produced fine watercolours. However, for the Western-style painters of this generation watercolour painting remained secondary to oil painting. The situation changed radically with the publication of the 1901 book, Suisaiga no Shiori (A guidebook to watercolour painting), which was a ‘how-to’ book on watercolour and became an instant ¯ shita To¯jiro¯ (1870–1917), was an artist who bestseller. The author, O became the guru of Japanese watercolour. This book was highly ¯ shita user-friendly and was aimed at the amateur. Rather unwisely O wrote that anybody with problems could write to him personally and that he would give advice, an offer taken up by many from all over ¯ shita also started to publish a magazine, Mizue, literJapan. In 1905 O ally ‘water painting’, which became one of the most influential art magazines in Japan. At the time it was the most important forum for discussions of watercolour in Japan. Most of the paintings produced by the artists of the watercolour movement were landscapes. Many depicted the mountains of the Japan Alps and many were also members of the Japan Alpine Club. The significance of this lies in the fact that the new enthusiasm for mountaineering was part of the modern perception of landscape. The concept of mountaineering is fundamentally different not only from the view of nature as simply a locus for literary associations, but also as an objective 290
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of pilgrimage. Mountaineering as a recreational pursuit or hobby was a product of the modernization of Japan. The artists of the watercolour ¯ shita To¯jiro¯, Miyake Kokki, Maruyama Banka and movement, such as O Yoshida Hiroshi, provided a new vision of the Japanese landscape as peaceful alpine scenery devoid of literary or religious associations. They not only found new subjects for landscape painting, but also a refreshing naturalism. This attracted some contemporary writers who were also exploring a new vision of nature. Major writers, such as Shimazaki To¯son, Tokutomi Roka, or Kunikida Doppo were not interested in meisho, the famous places, but in a more anonymous landscape, observing the subtle effects of light, rain, mist, etc. on nature. IMPACT OF PARSONS’ WATERCOURS IN JAPAN
The Western-style oil painters in Japan also painted some landscapes, but these were mostly urban landscapes and often used just as a backdrop to figurative compositions, whereas for watercolour painters, landscape and especially rural and alpine landscapes were core subjects. A key reason for this was that their aesthetics were focused on British rather than French models. For the artists of the watercolour movement, England provided the authentic models, history and theory. Winsor and Newton paints were the best, Turner was the greatest watercolourist and Ruskin was the theorist who supported Turner and propounded the theory of nature, which became so influential in Japan. London now attracted Japanese painters, such as Miyake Kokki, Minami Kunzo¯, Shirataki Ikunosuke, Ishikawa Kinichiro¯ and Makino Yoshio. Towards the end of the nineteenth century, gradually two groups of Western-style painters were forming: one the Paris-oriented oil painters and the other the Londonoriented watercolourists. Since the mid-nineteenth century a number of amateur painters from Britain and North America had visited Japan showing varying degrees of competence in watercolour. Between 1889 and 1892 three British professional artists visited Japan: Alfred East (1849–1913) in 1889, John Varley Jr. (1850–1933) between 1890 and 1891 and Alfred Parsons in 1892. East, who was later knighted and became the President of the Royal Society of British Artists, is probably the best-known artist among these three. Varley Jr. is now more or less completely forgotten.27 East gave a major lecture at the Meiji Art Society, when he showed some of his own paintings. Varley Jr. and Parsons organized exhibitions and showed a greater number of examples of their watercolours. These exhibitions were of great importance for the Japanese watercolourists. The response was out of all proportions to the reputations of these British artists back home. Miyake Kokki (1874–1954), who 291
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later became a major watercolourist, gave his impression of Varley’s exhibition at Jikei Hospital, which he saw in 1891: When I saw this [exhibition], suddenly I felt that the entrance to the world I should be entering opened in front of my eyes. Varley’s paintings from nature consisted of watercolours and oil paintings, but, for whatever reason, for me it was the watercolour paintings which became glowing flames spreading to my heart.28
This was written when he was still an art student. It is clear that he had been tormented by the daily copying duties, which a strict art teacher had demanded. From this time onwards he secretly practised his watercolour skills. After this teacher died he studied under a more liberal teacher who taught him oil painting concentrating on figure paintings. However, he continued to practise plein air watercolours. In 1892 he learnt with excitement that an exhibition of watercolours by an Englishman was being held at the art school in Ueno. After seeing the exhibition he confessed that: I lost my interest in life drawing completely, was mostly absent from the morning [art] class and fervently immersed myself only in watercolours from nature. 29
He now clearly recognized the superiority of Parsons to Varley Jr. and praised Parsons’ watercolour skills as almost superhuman.
Alfred Parsons, Autumn Grass on the Hakone Hills, watercolour on paper, c.1892, Ko¯riyama City Museum of Art 292
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An issue, which has not been discussed adequately, is Parsons virtuosity. His watercolours are highly finished compared to earlier ¯ shita’s comgeneration British watercolours. Tanita has referred to O ment that he was amazed that such fine work could be done even with watercolour.30 The crucial point here is the recognition by the future leader of the watercolour movement in Japan that watercolour could produce works, which compared favourably with oil painting. Parsons had shown by exhibiting his virtuoso watercolours what Japanese artists could aspire to produce. Tanita tended to underplay the importance of Parsons’ exhibition. However, he himself acknowledged that this exhibition did change the trend of watercolour from something light and witty to dense and detailed. Tanita also mentioned that the artist Nakamura Fusetsu wrote that as a result of Parsons’ influence painting trees and flowers became fashionable.31 Parsons’ impact continued even after his return to Britain as the translations of his book Notes in Japan published in 1896 was serialized in the art magazine Mizue from the first issue of 1905 to 1909. 32 This was the most important periodical for the watercolourists in Japan at the time and the prominence given to his writings in these pages further enhanced Parsons’ position within Japanese watercolourists. Tanita33 criticized previous scholarship as just repeating the memoirs of these Japanese watercolourists ad nauseam without checking what the British painters saw and painted in Japan and also what the Japanese artists actually saw in Parsons and gained from him. After tracing Parsons’ itinerary, Tanita stated that Parsons had no intention of depicting either exotic natural features or a modernizing Meiji Japan. He further contended that Parsons concentrated on flowers, but not with an emphasis on individual flowers but more on flowers within the context of a landscape. This was a crucial point. Tanita argued that Miyake agonized over how to copy nature as it is and that he found through Parsons’ examples a way to do this in watercolour, which was different from the technique used in oil painting. Tanita concluded that for Parsons the Japanese landscape provided an Arcadian dream, thus not the real nature. Oriental and occidental elements could be found in Parsons’ watercolours, but they never interacted with one other. Tanita’s conclusions while carefully considered seem unduly pessimistic. He contended that Parsons wanted to see in Japan an Arcadia which was still uncontaminated by the Western civilization. Many Europeans at that time indeed seemed to see Japan as a primitive paradise.34 However, what makes it more complicated is that Parsons applied the same Arcadian idealism to his paintings of British landscape. The novelist and friend Henry James even described Parsons’ paintings as representing ‘happy England’.35 293
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Miyake saw, in British landscape watercolours by Varley and Parsons, paintings, which depicted the landscape as it was in front of the artist. Miyake repeatedly wrote in his memoir that at this time what he really loved to do was ‘sketching’ landscapes. The Japanese word he used was ‘shasei’, which means literally ‘copying living’, i.e. plein air painting in front of the landscape. He contrasted this with that of figure painting, also ‘copying living’, but this time a human model not a landscape. The landscapes he painted were largely of the anti-meisho type. The focus was not on the features with cultural associations, but on the nature, which the artist with a brush in hand saw in front of him. This was the point when the Edo-period anti-meisho tradition and the Ruskinian landscape tradition came together. Miyake probably could not see the more or less escapist Arcadian inference in Parsons’ works,36 but his watercolours provided encouragement for the Japanese watercolourists by its virtuosity and as an independent medium, which was separate from the hitherto domineering oil painting. Thus Parsons made more or less inadvertently a major contribution to the modernization of Japanese landscape painting, which was pioneered by the artists of the watercolour movement. As a postscript it should be noted that this concept of modern landscape watercolour painting was exported by one of the most Anglophone watercolourists, Ishikawa Kinichiro¯ to Taiwan, which was incorporated into Japan after the Sino-Japanese War of 1894– 1895. Despite the colonial nature of his position, Ishikawa seemed to have been a benign teacher much loved by his pupils. ENDNOTES 1
2
3 4 5 6
7 8 9
The most detailed account on Parsons is Nicole Milette’s PhD ‘Landscape Painter as Landscape Gardener: the Case of Alfred Parsons, RA’, University of York, 1997. She has kindly given me a copy of her threevolume thesis and I am indebted to her for most of Parsons’ biographical details. See also her website http://www.nicolemilette.com/alfredparsons.html. This was established in 1877 using funds bequeathed by Sir Francis Chantry for this purpose. Milette PhD, p. 403. Milette PhD, passim, esp. Appendix 7.29 Chronology, pp. 490–517. Ibid., p. 509. For a detailed list of Parsons’ contributions for this book see ibid., pp. 415–17. Ibid., 109. Ibid. Ibid., 237–41. This is for the partnership Parsons and Partridge. Milette’s list of landscape gardening commissions between 1899 and 1913 number as many as seventy. 294
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10
11
12 13 14
15
16
17
18
19
20
21 22 23
24 25 26
Alfred Parsons, Notes in Japan, New York: Harper and Brothers, 1896. A facsimile is available at . For a discussion of the detailed itinerary see Hiroyuki Tanita, ‘Ko¯sasuru ryo¯yo¯ no manazashi – Arufureddo Pâsonzu to Meiji no suisaiga’ (Crossed gazes of Orient and Occident – Alfred Parsons and Meiji watercolour painting). In Ko¯ji Kawamoto and Masaie Matsumura (eds.), Vikutoriacho¯ to Higashiajia (Victorian Britain and East Asia), Kyoto: Shibunkaku Shuppan, 2006, 75–84. This is the best and most thoughtful analysis of Parsons impact on the Japanese watercolour movement. Parsons, Notes in Japan, 101–103. Tanita, ‘Ko¯sasuru ryo¯yo¯ no manazashi’. See Toshio Watanabe, gen. ed., Ruskin in Japan 1890–1940: Nature for art, art for life, Cogito: Tokyo, 1997 and Toshio Watanabe, ‘The Establishment of the Concept of Nature in Modern Japan’, in Sensing Nature: Rethinking of the Japanese Perception of Nature, Tokyo: Mori Museum of Art, 2010, 185–182. The following three sections are a précis of the arguments expressed in these publications. Pamela J. Asquith and Arne Kalland, Japanese Images of Nature: Cultural Perspectives, Richmond, Surrey: Curzon, 1997, 7. Akira Yanabu, Honyaku no shiso¯ (The ideology of translation), paperback, ed. (1st ed. 1977), Tokyo: Chikuma Shobo¯, 1995. Yanabu, Honyaku. Takahito Momokawa, ‘Kokugakusha no shizenkan’ (The idea of nature by Kokugakusha), in Shuntaro¯ Ito¯ (ed.), Nihonjin no shizenkan (The idea of nature by the Japanese), Tokyo: Kawade Shobo¯ Shinsha, 1995, 231–62; 234. Momokawa furthers the argument by highlighting shizen’s multiple meaning, which included that of ‘nature’, which led this term to be chosen to represent the translations of ‘nature’ in modern Japan. Sadami Suzuki, ‘Nihon kindai bungaku ni miru shizenkan ¾ sono hensen no gaiyo¯’, in Shuntaro¯ Ito¯ (ed.), Nihonjin no shizenkan (The idea of nature by the Japanese), Tokyo: Kawade Shobo¯ Shinsha, 1995, 371– 94; 382. Seiichi Hasegawa, Ushinawareta keikan ¾ meisho ga kataru Edo jidai (The lost landscape: Edo period through famous places), Tolyo: Yoshikawa Ko¯bunkan, 1996, 18–20. Ibid., 23. Here the source is given as ‘Kubota no ochiba’ (Fallen leaves at Kubota) but this should be ‘Kubota no ochibo’ (Gleanings of Kubota). Tsuneichi Miyamoto, Sugae Masumi, Tokyo: Miraisha, 1980, 93–120. Ibid., 97. Shigeru Aoki, Shizen o utsusu (To copy nature), Tokyo: Iwanami Shoten, 1996, 53–4. Ibid., 54. See Watanabe, Ruskin in Japan. Masaaki Izeki, Gaka Fontanêji (The painter Fonatanesi), Tokyo: Chu¯o¯ko¯ron Bijutsu Shuppan, 1984, 159. Shigeru Aoki, Fontane¯ji to Ko¯bu Bijutsu Gakko¯ (Fontanesi and the Technical College of Art School), Tokyo: Shibunndo¯, 1978, 30.
295
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27
28
29 30 31 32 33 34
35
36
Hiroto Kan-no, ‘Three British Watercolourists in Meiji Japan’ (translated by Toshio Watanabe). In Watanabe (gen. ed.), Ruskin in Japan, 368–71. Kokki, Miyake, Omoiizurumama (As I remembered), Tokyo: Ko¯daisha, 1938, 58. Ibid., 70. Tanita, ‘Ko¯sasuru ryo¯yo¯ no manazashi’, 92. Ibid. For the details of the publication list in Mizue, see ibid., 109, note 8. Tanita, ‘Ko¯sasuru ryo¯yo¯ no manazashi’. This is in fact not an unusual viewpoint and was analysed by Elisa Evett in her book The Critical Reception of Japanese Art in Late Nineteenth Century Europe, Ann Arbor: UMI Research Press, 1982. Henry James, Picture and Text, New York: Harpers and Brothers, 1893, 79–91; 79. Parsons designed James’s gardens at Lamb House, Rye, East Sussex. See Milette PhD, 240. For the discussion of Parsons paintings as representing English characteristics, see Anne Helmreich, The English Garden and National Identity: The Competing styles of Garden Design, 1870–1914, Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2002, 31–8.
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26
R.V.C. Bodley (‘Bodley of Arabia’) (1892–1970): Soldier, Adventurer, Journalist and Writer in Japan, 1933–1934 WILLIAM SNELL
BEFORE GOING TO JAPAN
Ronald Courtenay Bodley’s father was the barrister and Oxford historian John Edward Courtenay (J.E.C.) Bodley (1853–1925), author of France (1898) and a descendent of Miles Bodley, brother of Sir Thomas Bodley (1545–1613), ambassador of Elizabeth I and founder of the Bodleian Library. Called to the bar at the age of twenty-one, John Bodley later became private secretary to the Liberal and reformist politician Sir Charles Dilke (1843–1911), although his career came to an end when Dilke was involved in a
297
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divorce scandal in 1885.1 In 1891 he married Evelyn Frances,2 the daughter of John Bell of Rushpool Hall, Yorkshire, and they had two sons: Ronald Victor Courtenay, and the future artist Josselin Reginald Courtenay Bodley (1893–1974), and a daughter, Ava (1896–1974).3 Ronald Victor was born in Paris on 3 March 1892. As the author himself put it: ‘I was born on a raw March afternoon in Paris, the city of the glorious unforeseen, the centre of beautiful nonsense and of the grimmest reality.’4 Educated at Eton,5 he was a contemporary of Osbert Sitwell and Aldous Huxley (and the Irish-born diplomat and writer Shane Leslie, later Sir John Randolph Leslie (1885–1971) who would subsequently write favourable reviews of his books). Instead of following in his father’s footsteps and going to Oxford he chose a military career, one which he himself acknowledged to have been against his temperament.6 After attending the Royal Military Academy at Sandhurst he was commissioned into the King’s Royal Rifle Corps and spent three years in India ‘where I played polo, and hunted, and explored in the Himalayas as well as doing some soldiering’ before the outbreak of the First World War. A lieutenant in the 60th Rifles in September 19147 he served in France where, in 1917, he suffered a breakdown as a consequence of being gassed.8 Bodley recorded this time in his memoir Indiscretions of a Young Man, published in 1931. He apparently reached the rank of colonel while in France, but in later life stylized himself as either ‘Major’ or ‘Colonel’ Bodley. Bodley married Ruth Mary Elizabeth Stapleton-Bretherton (15 March 1897–1956) in April 1917.9 However, the marriage later failed despite the birth of a son,10 Mark,11 later a Lieutenant in the Royal Armoured Corps Royal Scots Greys (2nd Dragoons) who was killed in Libya in December 1942, and to whom he dedicated what became perhaps his best known book, Wind in the Sahara (1944). After four years on the Western Front and the armistice in November 1918 Bodley was recruited for his French language skills12 as assistant military attaché at the British embassy in Paris, where he attended the Versailles Peace Conference.13 Following the signing of the eponymous Treaty he wrote that: …while Paris was dancing itself into a frenzy of unforeseeing merriment….I could not help feeling that out there to the north-east millions of men lay rotting beneath the mud of a great devastated area, and that reparations, to say nothing of the future of Europe, would not in any way be settled by a peace treaty which no government was strong enough to enforce. But no one thought of this, and we danced on, as it were, on a floor supported by corpses, but without hearing the crunching of bones.14 298
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It was at this point that Bodley’s cousin, the explorer and writer Gertrude Bell (1868–1926), apparently introduced him to ‘Ted’ (T.E.) Lawrence, later known as ‘Lawrence of Arabia’, who advised him to go and live with the Arabs. Thus began his self-confessed ‘long spell of vagabondage’.15 Bodley stayed in North Africa (mainly Algiers) for seven years, detaching himself completely from all ties with his homeland, making a Bedouin tent his home, wearing Arab clothes and practising the Moslem faith. Yet the actual truth behind his motivation for travelling to North Africa remains uncertain, as he gave a somewhat more prosaic account in Indiscretions of a Young Man16 of how he became a sub bank-manager at Barclays in Algiers, where he introduced his sister to her first husband Ralph Wigram (‘an Eton friend of mine’ who had been first secretary at the British embassy in Paris). Bodley settled down in Algeria (a place which became ‘a sort of spiritual home for me’17) and in 1927, at the oasis of Laghouat he entered into his second marriage,18 to an Australian woman called Beatrice (‘Betty’) Clare Lambe of Sydney, New South Wales, who happened to be touring North Africa and who is certainly the person referred to in the dedication to his 1934 book Indiscreet Travels East.19 The long interlude in Algeria gave Bodley the opportunity to pursue his ambition to pursue his career as an author. He had begun writing early in life, no doubt influenced by his scholar father,20 with poetry at Eton, writing for a cadet magazine at Sandhurst, and cowriting skits while in India. Encouraged by the publisher Michael Joseph he wrote Algeria from Within (1927) while ensconced at the oasis of Laghouat, the success of which astonished him: ‘I didn’t anticipate the reviews which the Press gave me’ he later recalled in Indiscretions of a Young Man. ‘I was compared with Lawrence and Doughty, my prose was unexpectedly likened to the paintings of Manet...’. The would-be author soon became disillusioned. Bodley’s first novel, Jasmina (1927), evidently sold well, going into a second edition, but he did not receive any remuneration from it. Opal Fire (1928, which had originally been titled The Sadist21) did considerably worse and was ‘hardly noticed at all’. This did not deter him: ‘I shall continue writing, in the belief that it is only by persevering that one succeeds and rises above the level of others.’22 BODLEY IN JAPAN
Perhaps one consequence of the popularity achieved by Algeria from Within was Bodley’s later employment as a journalist in the Dutch Indies, China and Japan, working as special correspondent 299
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for the London Sphere23 and the Australian Advertiser. In this capacity he travelled through the Japanese mandated islands of the Pacific, visiting the Mariana Islands, the Carolines, and the Marshall islands, which he recorded in Indiscreet Travels East. He arrived in Japan via China, and he remarked on the contrast between dirty and disorderly China and the ‘cheerful clockwork’ of Japan. The Gaimusho (the Japanese Foreign Ministry), operating under the guise of the Japan Tourist Bureau, knew in advance what Bodley and other foreign journalists intended to do. They were eager to pamper to him. The result was that he became an inadvertent apologist for the Manchurian invasion and occupation of Korea. In the 1930s, to reduce increasingly hostile suspicion surrounding the Japanese invasion of Micronesia and Japan’s intentions there, the government ‘if only to delay a buildup of American military and naval forces in the Pacific’,24 granted permission for foreign observers to visit the islands. ‘The Japanese expectation was that these persons would convey their impressions to reading publics in the West that Japan had undertaken no aggressive preparations in the Pacific.’ Bodley was not alone in being duped.25 During this time he visited Saipan and Tinian and other islands of the Japanese Mandates in a carefully orchestrated tour organized by the Gaimusho. In an article for the Central Queensland Herald he asserted that ‘no stretch of imagination would lead to the wildest scaremongering to suggest that there are naval bases here or at any other islands of the mandated territories’.26 After being shipwrecked on leaving Tinian, he was rescued and along with other survivors transported first to Yap and then Palau. ‘Those who believe the Japanese to be arrogant, foreignhating bullies,’ he commented, ‘have never taken the trouble to test the Japanese character and find out that it is just the opposite.’27 Bodley would later back-peddle on the stance he took as a journalist while in Japan. In The Quest (1947), which Bodley classified as neither ‘autobiography’ nor ‘travel’ literature but ‘Adventure…Mild adventure? Philosophic adventure?’,28 and in which he claimed to make ‘a deliberate attempt to explain the Chinese and the Japanese and the Malays and show them as I really believe them to be’ he refuted many of the previous assertions he had made in A Japanese Omelette (1933). This was published in Japan and was based on observations made during a year’s peregrinations there, in Korea, Manchukuo and the mandated islands of the South Seas. One reviewer, despite lauding Bodley’s enthusiasm for his topic, pointed out that the book ‘has not very much that is new to tell us’ and Bodley ‘too frequently mars his writing by carelessness in construction, faults in grammar and frequent labouring of the obvious’.29 300
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Regarding the invasion of Manchuria he now asserted that it was part of a ‘project of Asiatic domination’30 and that, having made up his mind to find out what was going on in the region, he persuaded the Japanese authorities to give him a permit to visit there. ‘After all, I was a correspondent of a reputable British weekly [The Sphere] and had a reasonable excuse to go where news was.’31 He went on to take a pro-Anglo-American stance: ‘I have no doubt that if, during this autumn of 1931, a strong Anglo-American fleet had appeared off Dairen, accompanied by a strongly worded Anglo-American protest to Tokyo, the Japanese would have climbed down… and renounced the Manchurian adventure…’32 Bodley also explained how the Japanese came via their inferiority complex to detest the white foreigner: ‘They had always felt the white man was looking down on them, was patronizing them, was thinking of them as a backward, uncivilized race, as a kind of ex-pupil. A desire had thus been bred for reprisal…’33 Bodley described how, while staying at the Imperial Hotel, ‘I know my room was searched every day while I was out, that every sheet of paper I tore up was pasted together and studied, and that my mail went through many hands outside the post office before it reached me. In fact, the Japanese made little pretence about it.’34 He suspected that the Japanese were suspicious that he was exchanging diplomatic secrets with his brother-in-law at the Foreign Office in 301
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London, but defended his former pro-Japanese journalism and the accusation that he was a dupe of the Gaimusho35 (which, alas, he undoubtedly was):36 By using a little tact I had succeeded where many journalists had failed. I had also made several enemies among the older reporters who had been long in Japan and never obtained any favours. A few of these tried to discredit me by suggesting that my articles were propaganda. Not one of them appreciated that, even in Japan, one did not catch flies with vinegar or obtain favours with sour looks and threats.37
However, one other significant consequence of Bodley’s sojourn in Japan was that he also found himself asked to teach at the oldest private Japanese university, where he was given the opportunity to ‘have a thorough insight into the methods of teaching the Japanese University student, which surprised me more than anything else in Japan’. In A Japanese Omelette, he wrote: A friend of mine who taught English at Keio¯ University in Tokyo wished to go home on holiday, but such an eventuality not being reckoned for in the terms of his contract and the authorized vacation not giving him sufficient time to make the journey there and back, he asked me to fill his place for five months.38
This ‘friend’, wanted to take a holiday but feared that his job would be at risk. ‘“But what do you teach?” I asked. I thought I had better find out if it was A B C or elegiac poetry.’ “English literature of the late eighteenth-century,” he replied. “I’ve left the books you’ll need at your hotel. And don’t fuss. All you’ve got to do is go to the university at eight o’clock tomorrow morning. The dean’ll tell you what to do”.39
Thus was Bodley thrust into the role of ‘professor’. He confessed that he found this ‘strange’ given his varied career thus far; but ‘being of an inquisitive nature and not suffering from self-consciousness’ he agreed to take on the request.40 He would stay at Keio¯ for nine months. After a brief summary of the education system in Japan, Bodley wrote: ‘I never discovered how the Japanese selected their foreign instructors. I suspect that it was done by personal recommendation. The competition for lectureships was fierce. And the most qualified to fill vacancies were not always appointed.’41 He went on to recount that: The dean told me nothing! He met me in the Common Room of the university, went through the usual formal Japanese greetings, took 302
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me to a classroom, and introduced me to forty young men in black uniforms. He said a few introductory words and left. Knowing not a word of Japanese, I had no idea whether he had told the class that I was an eminent professor, to be respected as a man of learning, or just another beachcombing English teacher from the bar of the Imperial Hotel. Neither did my pupils give any indications. They just sat there like a row of dummies.
Bodley observed that life at the university was ‘peaceful and, from my point of view, interesting…. My pupils had to wear this black uniform with the college crest engraved on brass buttons and embroidered on the front of the cap. The Keio¯ crest was represented by a pair of crossed pen nibs!’ He adds, ‘…on the whole, these young men were extremely apt pupils. I wished that I might have had their ability to stroll into foreign bookshops in Tokyo and browse through English and French and German literature with an occasional glance into Chinese classics.’42 Bodley remarked on the Spartan curriculum which meant that ‘My pupils had to devote their attention to sixteen different subjects a week, which included English, French, German, Chinese, Economics, Law or Literature, Logic, Mathematics, Philosophy, History of Europe, Asia and Japan, Ethics etc., so that by the end of a day’s work the muddle in the mind of a student, who had been, “learning” for seven consecutive hours, must have been as mixed up as eggs in an omelette.’43 He concluded: I shall always be glad that I had that experience at Keio¯. It taught me more about the Japanese than a lifetime of a businessman or diplomat or journalist in Japan. It taught me to like and to understand partially these Japanese young men. It again gave me the idea that if the General Koisos44 and company were liquidated and replaced by Dairen Rotarians and some of my professional colleagues at Keio¯ Japan might be a good place in which to live.45
Bodley also gave an account of having attended the funeral of Admiral To¯go¯, but makes no mention of his ‘authorized biography’ of To¯go¯ (Jarrolds, 1935)46 for the writing of which he was evidently allowed access to private as well as official records, and in which Bodley portrayed Japan as a first-class modern power. However, given that he admitted to having known no Japanese one wonders how much of the biography was actually written by Bodley? As he admitted, ‘I cannot read Japanese, I know little about Japanese literature but I have learnt much about this country and its people through conversation with men who could speak my language, and the teaching of English in Japan.’47 Apart from the biography of To¯go¯, Bodley also cooperated in the production of a minor textbook, a collection of stories by Conan 303
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Doyle called Round the Red Lamp; stories of medical life (Tokyo: Arai Sho¯ten, 1934) with Hori Eishiro¯ (1874–1963), professor of English at Keio¯ from 1916 on,48 who provided the notes. Bodley went next to America, travelling to San Francisco on the Chichibu Maru with author and journalist Virginia Cowles (1910–1983).49 Bodley ended his recollections of his stay in Japan ambivalently. He was ‘depressed’ at having to leave the country: ‘The taxi drivers who had exasperated me by their senseless driving, the coolies on the quay who exploited foreign visitors, the prying customhouse officials, and the insolent little policemen looked like familiar friends. I wanted to shake them by the hand and thank them for their hospitality…’50 He described the sendoff he received ‘one of those gusty, drizzling mornings of the Japanese autumn when the rain caresses the wayfarer with soaking kisses’ the decks ‘seething with damp men and women in kimonos and clogs, and I could hardly find the people who had come to see me go’ but they included his ‘three foreign colleagues from Keio¯’ and ‘a troop of Japanese from all walks of life’, ‘white-haired Mr Nakatsuchi’ of the Hokuseido Press who had been instrumental in the publication of A Japanese Omelette, ‘impassive Mr Takaku’ of the Gaimusho, ‘round-faced Professor Kodama’,51 the English-speaking Economics professor from Keio¯ who had befriended him, and ‘students who I had taught. All kinds of unexpected men and women were there to say sayonara.’ The siren of the Chichibu Maru gave a final blast as the vessel slipped her moorings and began easing away from the pier. ‘Banzai! Banzai!’ burst out menacingly exultant from serried ranks of Japanese on shore, as if they would force their personalities on me forever. The streamers were being played out. Soon they became taut and, one by one, broke. Professor Kodama’s face glistened behind his huge spectacles and faded with the crowd.52 AFTER JAPAN
Bodley was in California when war broke out in September 1939.53 Rejected as being too old for service (and having seemingly been sued for divorce by his second wife, Betty), when Britain declared war on Germany he was in Biarritz with Lorna Hearst,54 then wife of George Randolph Hearst, the eldest son of the businessman and publishing tycoon William Randolph Hearst, where they were working on a play together: ‘Whereas in 1914 every patriotic cell in me had sprung into action at the declaration of war and my only fear had been that I that I should not get to the front in time for the fighting, I now felt dull and dispirited. The whole thing seemed childish and futile…’55 When Germany invaded France, Lorna Hearst managed to get back to 304
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America by ship from Bordeaux56 while Bodley stayed for some time with his mother and American stepfather near Bayonne. They refused to leave and so Bodley, along with three British women, made their escape by car, and with the help of an old Etonian friend who worked at the British embassy in Madrid and was able to get them transit visas, they crossed the border into Spain. From there Bodley ended up in Lisbon, Portugal, eventually reaching the US where he began to make money as a lecturer and tried to kick-start his writing career. In October 1948 Bodley was in Hollywood, where he had ended up after the war working as a scriptwriter. Now known as ‘Ronnie’ to his friends he was among the thirty-five or so scriptwriters (including F. Scott Fitzgerald) who worked over three years on A Yank at Oxford (1938), one of a cycle of pro-British films produced in Hollywood before the United States’ entry into the war in December 1941.57 He was most definitely involved in the preliminary screen adaptation of Regency, the D.L. Murray novel about an independent British noblewoman, which was intended to be a showcase for Charles Chaplin’s protégée and later wife Paulette Goddard, her second starring role under Chaplin’s direction. It was around this time in an interview for the New Yorker magazine that he was perhaps first referred to as ‘Bodley of Arabia’.58 In addition, Bodley was involved in several literary projects, including one with Gertrude Vanderbilt Whitney, which alas, like other collaborations, came to nothing. 59 In November 1949 Bodley married an American divorcee, Harriet Moseley,60 but this marriage did not last either. He tried his hand at scriptwriting, playwriting and yet again as a novelist, but his book The Gay Deserters (1945), a satire on the foreign émigrés (‘war guests’) who escaped the war to live in the US, was not well received.61 It is not clear when Bodley returned to England. Apart from a 1969 article in the Sunday Times co-written with his brother, on his father’s connection with Dilke,62 it appears that Bodley wrote virtually nothing toward the end of his life. He died at the age of seventyeight on 26 May 1970, at Birtley House, a nursing home in Bramley, near Guildford, Surrey.63 ENDNOTES 1
2 3
R.V.C. Bodley, Indiscretions of a Young Man, (London: H. Shaylor, 1931), pp. 8–9 [hereafter cited as Indiscretions…]. See also ‘The Man who Insulted King Edward’ by J.E.C. Bodley and R.V.C. Bodley, The Sunday Times (London, England), Sunday, 5 January 1969; p. 21; Issue 7597. They divorced in 1908. Ava married first Ralph Follett Wigram (1890–1936) and after his death John Anderson, 1st Viscount Waverly (1882–1958) in 1941. He became Lord Privy Seal with responsibility for air-raid precautions in the Second World War, and the Anderson Shelter was named after him. 305
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4 5
6 7 8 9
10
11
12 13
14 15 16 17 18 19
20
21
22
Indiscretions…, p. 251. ‘I hated some of the time at Eton and I enjoyed most of the rest… The majority of the boys regarded me as a bit odd…’ Indiscretions…, p. 25. Indiscretions…, p. 46. The London Gazette Issue 29000, 8 December 1914, p. 13. Indiscretions…, p. 93. ‘Court & Society’, The Sunday Times (London, England), Sunday, 22 April 1917; Issue 4907, p. 10: ‘Major R V C Bodley, M.C. & 5th Rifles, and Miss Ruth Stapelton-Bretherton, daughter of Major F. Stapleton-Bretherton, of Wheler Lodge, Husband’s Bosworth, Rugby, are being married on the 30th, and the bride-elect and her mother are at 13, Park Place, St James’s. Major Bodley is son of a clever Oxford man, Mr. J. Bodley, author of a brilliant book on modern France. The Stepleton-Brethertons are a Catholic line, related to several families adhering to the Old Faith. An aunt of Miss Ruth Stapelton-Betherton is wife of count Gebhard Blücher-vonWalstadt, eldest son of the late Prince Blücher, who lived at Herm, Channel Islands. Her mother belongs to Lord Mowbray and Strouton’s family and as Major Stalepton-Bretherton is related to the Petres and the Granard Forbeses the marriage will be an important event in most Catholic circles.’ Clarice Stasz, The Vanderbilt Women: Dynasty of Wealth, Glamour, and Tragedy (London: St. Martin’s Press, 1991), p.336. See Indiscretions…, p. 103. David Dutton ed., Paris 1918: the war diary of the British ambassador Edward George Villiers Stanley Derby (Earl of), the 17th Earl of Derby (Liverpool University Press, 2001), p. 163. Bodley received the Croix de Chevalier (The London Gazette Issue 31222 (7 March 1919), p. 2) and had conferred upon him the Order of Carol I. by the King of Romania, (Supplement to the London Gazette Issue 31812 published 5 March 1920, p. 2874. Flight into Portugal (London: Jarrolds, 1941), p.14. Flight into Portugal, p. 17. Indiscretions…, p. 223 ff. Indiscretions…, p. 209. Indiscretions…, p. 241. ‘To BETTY, My constant companion during these three years of travel.’ See also The Singapore Free Press and Mercantile Advertiser (1884–1942), 2 May 1927, p. 9: ‘A marriage has been arranged between Major R. V. C. Bodley, M.C., late 60th Rifles, of Laghouat, Southern Algeria, and Miss Beatrice Clare Lambe, daughter of the late Mr. and Mrs. Harry Lambe, of Batavia, Java, and Sydney. New South Wales.’ Although In Search of Serenity is dedicated ‘To My Mother, whose encouragement when I was very young led me to become a writer.’ ‘The theory on which the novel is based is that many women…are Sadists by instinct, and that they deliberately and for their own pleasure make men suffer to a greater degree morally than if they employed instruments of torture.’ (!) Indiscretions…, p. 231. Indiscretions…, p. 236. 306
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23
24
25 26 27
28 29
30 31 32 33 34 35
36
37 38
39 40
The Sphere: The Empire’s Illustrated Weekly was a British newspaper, published by London Illustrated Newspapers Ltd. weekly from 27 January 1900 until the closure of the paper on 27 June 1964. It covered general news stories from the UK and around the world; much of the overseas news features were reported in detail as the title was targeted at British citizens living in the colonies. Mark R. Peattie, Nan’yo¯: the rise and fall of the Japanese in Micronesia, 1885–1945. (Honolulu: University of Hawaii Press, 1988), p. 245. Peattie, pp. 246–7. ‘From Our Canberra Correspondent’ (Thursday 1 March 1934), p. 21. In an earlier article for the Burra Record, dated 5 April 1933 (p. 4), he wrote ‘People talk a lot about the arrogance of the Japanese and his hatred of the foreigner, but I do not agree with this sweeping assertion. Personally I have always met with the greatest courtesy and consideration from the Japanese…’ The Quest, p. ix ‘New Books and Reprints.’ Times Literary Supplement [London, England] 12 April 1934: 263+. Times Literary Supplement Historical Archive. Web. 6 March 2014. The Quest, p. 206. The Quest, p. 207. The Quest, p. 213. The Quest, p. 216. The Quest, p. 231. See for example ‘Merrily through Manchukuo’ in Contemporary Japan, 1 no 5 (April 1933): 667–72, later recycled as a chapter in Indiscreet Travels East. Peattie, p. 209: ‘It is easy to criticize these writers for naivety or being duped, but…. there were several stages in the transformation of the mandates for military purposes.’ The Quest, p. 261. A Japanese Omelette: a British writer’s impressions on the Japanese Empire (Hokuseido, 1933), p.157. Who this colleague was remains a mystery but it may have been Oxford-educated John H. Burbank, who was professor of English Literature there from 1932 to 1934. In The Quest (p. 324) he writes: ‘I had a friend who was a professor of English at Keio¯ University in Tokyo, which was the second most important establishment of learning in Japan. The Imperial University, I believe, ranked first. This friend belonged to the better class of foreign professor in that he had degrees and every qualification to teach. This, however, did not make his job any safer than one held by an ex-gas-station employee, if he absented himself for any length of time.’ The Quest, pp. 325–6. In Indiscreet Travels East (1934) in a section on ‘Teaching English to Japanese University Students’ he repeats much of what he recorded in A Japanese Omelette (especially from Chapter XVI: ‘The Education of the Japanese with Special Reference to the Teaching of English’) of taking over for a friend at ‘a Tokyo university’ (which later became misunderstood as ‘Tokyo University’). 307
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41 42 43 44
45 46
47 48
49
50 51
52 53 54
55 56 57
58
59
60
61
62
63
The Quest, p. 323. The Quest, p. 333. A Japanese Omelette, p. 161. General Koiso Kuniaki (1880–1950) succeeded Genera To¯jo¯ Hideki as prime minister of Japan from July 1944 to April 1945. Condemned as a war criminal he died in prison. The Quest, p. 335. Translated into German: Admiral To¯go¯: Leben eines Helden, Aufstieg einer Nation von R.V.C. Bodley [deutsch von Theodor Lucke]. F. A. Herbig Verlagsbuchhandlung, 1936. A Japanese Omelette, p.169. See Koudansha Nihonjin Meidai Jiten ␠⺣⻠ޟᣣᧄੱฬᄢㄉౖޠ (Tokyo: Kodansha 2009), p. 1696. ‘I have never known a way of thinking which appealed to me as much as Virginia’s. I often wish that my life had continued with hers. But it didn’t…. I have a suspicion that Virginia had a quest like mine.’ The Quest, p. 361. The Quest, p. 362. ‘...one of my ex-colleagues at Keio¯. He was a jovial professor of economics called Kodama who had travelled a good deal and spoke good English.’ The Quest, p. 347. The Kodama referred to is most likely the H. Kodama who provided the biographical and historical notes for Leaders of the Meiji restoration in America, edited originally under the title ‘The Japanese in America’, by Charles Lanman; re-edited by Y. Okamura (Tokyo: Hokuseido, 1931), but I have been unable to obtain any further information about him. The Quest, p. 364. Flight into Portugal, p. 13. With whom Bodley had collaborated on a biography of his cousin Gertude Bell. Flight into Portugal, p. 18. Flight into Portugal, p. 19. Mark H. Glancy, When Hollywood loved Britain: The Hollywood ‘British’ film 1939–45 (Manchester U.P., 1999), p. 83. The New Yorker: ‘The Talk of the Town’ talk story by Janet Flanner, Russell Maloney, and Eugene Kinkead, 27 February, 1943. Clarice Stasz, The Vanderbilt Women: Dynasty of Wealth, Glamour, and Tragedy (London: St. Martin’s Press, 1991), p.336. Portland Press Herald (20 November 1949), p. 46. She is mentioned in the introduction to his self-improvement book In Search of Serenity (1955)… Although I have not been able to ascertain when they divorced she seemingly remarried in 1969. ‘’Tempest-tost” Guests of U.S.A.: The Gay Deserters, by R.V.C. Bodley,’ by Robert Pick in The Saturday Review (24 November 1945), p. 32. ‘The Man who Insulted King Edward,’ J.E.C. Bodley and R.V.C. Bodley The Sunday Times (Sunday, 5 January 1969), p. 21; Issue 7597. See The London Gazette (26 November 1970) Issue 13034. He is described as ‘Colonel in H.M. Army (retired).’
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Norman Macrae (1921–2010): Pioneering Journalist of The Economist on Japanese Affairs BILL EMMOTT AND ADRIAN WOOLRIDGE
INTRODUCTION
When one of the co-authors of this essay1 was based in Japan as the Tokyo correspondent of The Economist during the 1980s, he would of course from time to time receive visitors from head office, and they would expect an itinerary of meetings to be laid on for them. There weren’t then as many visitors as a correspondent would receive today, for the appetite to fly via Anchorage in two lengthy legs was not strong, but the visitors did come, and it wasn’t always easy to arrange meetings as the appreciation at that time in Japanese institutions of this internationally minded but then fairly small-circulation British publication was limited. One visitor, however, needed no introduction and virtually no help in getting doors to open for him, beyond simply passing on the news that he was on his way. That visitor was Norman Macrae. He was deputy editor of The Economist but, unusually perhaps given Japanese protocols, the easy reception for him had little to do with his status or function. It was strictly personal. The best illustration of 309
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this came from the very top of the governmental ladder. During all this correspondent’s time in Tokyo, the then prime minister, Nakasone Yasuhiro, would understandably meet foreign correspondents in groups rather than singly. Except when Macrae visited. Suddenly, the doors of the Kantei (prime minister’s office) swung open, and your co-author was able to stride through them as Norman’s bagcarrier for a special interview with Prime Minister Nakasone. Why? Norman Macrae spoke no Japanese and had never lived in Japan. He wasn’t an easy person for even fluent English-speakers among Japanese officials to understand, for he tended to talk rapidly and had an endearing, but sometimes baffling, habit of laughing at his own, generally self-deprecatory, jokes part-way through telling them. And yet Japanese officials did want to listen to him, to meet him, but above all to help him. For in 1962 and repeatedly thereafter he had shown himself to be an extraordinarily shrewd, even pioneering western interpreter of what was going on in the Japanese economy, and through The Economist a powerful and influential communicator of the new Japanese reality to the rest of the world. And that reputation had turned also, among those senior Japanese who knew him well, into a reputation as an Englishman to listen to about what was really going on in the world. Macrae’s first journey to Japan for that pioneering interpretation took even longer than the flights via Anchorage did during the 1980s. He arrived by ship, having sailed from San Francisco, following a land journey through the United States. Indeed, he used to joke to colleagues that the ‘survey’, later published as a short book, called Consider Japan, which in 1962 sealed his global repute as a journalist and made him famous in Japan had in fact been written during the voyage across the Pacific before he even arrived, leaving him time simply to enjoy himself once he landed at Yokohama. It wasn’t true, of course, as a reading of Consider Japan immediately shows: the article is full of first-hand observations especially from factories and business generally. Most tellingly, in a Mitsubishi factory he came across a British machine-tool salesman who told him that Japanese workers were getting three times as much out of their machines as were their better paid British counterparts, a point which acted for him – or at least for his readers, for one suspects he already knew this before finding the anecdote – as a sort of ‘eureka’ moment. For his joke about writing the survey on the ship from San Francisco did contain a clue as to why Macrae was able to perceive what he did despite being neither a Japanologist nor even a resident. That clue lies in his combination of irreverent detachment and the greater faith he always had in data, especially comparative data, than in conventional wisdoms of any kind. He came from no club or alumni
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group, had no particular allegiances to any political party, and in fact throughout his journalistic career was never much of a person for making powerful friends or what is now called networking. What he will have done during that long voyage across the Pacific was to pore over statistics, and to read all the views and analyses he could find in print of what was going on in Japan. And on that basis he did what in subsequent decades he also did repeatedly on other subjects, which was to form a clear view of where he thought the facts indicated that Japan was heading – which, in 1962, was that a country most Westerners regarded as synonymous with making knick-knacks and knock-offs, as a country crushed by wartime bombing and defeat, would soon become an industrial power-house, one from which countries such as Britain needed to learn, rather than the other way round. To illustrate, here are some of his conclusions in Consider Japan, conclusions which shook the complacency of especially his British readers, living as they were in a period in which their then prime minister, Harold Macmillan, had five years earlier claimed that ‘most of our people have never had it so good’: Moreover, we are talking here not only of a trailblazing pioneer for Asia; we are dealing with a story that has by now deep implications for Europe as well. From the welter of remarkable sets of figures about modern Japan, British readers should first pick out two. First, of the babies who were born in the year after General Doolittle’s bombs first fell on Tokyo, so far as one can see from the available educational statistics, only just over 40% left school at the minimum leaving age of 15 in 1958; another 45 percent or so stayed on at high school until 18; and more than another 10 per cent are currently passing through college or university. The equivalent figures in Britain were over 60 per cent leaving school at 15, around 30% at 16 to 18, and only 7 per cent going on to college or university. Moreover the bias of later education in Japan is much more heavily technical, and their big firms train skilled workers more assiduously and deliberately than most of their rivals in Britain. Those Englishmen who think of Japan as a backward country of adaptable but unskilled labour are talking nowadays through their hats… Secondly, investment in productive capital equipment in Japanese industry in recent years…seems to have been about one-third larger than equivalent investment in Britain…This new generation of more skilled Japanese is moving into factories where entrepreneurs are currently putting behind each one of them in the larger factories a greater force of new and modern capital equipment per head than is being put behind their rather less educated and less well trained contemporaries in Britain; in a few years’ time, on present trends, logic would suggest that they could beat us competitively in a much wider field than most people in Britain at present begin to imagine…
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That article, together with a follow-up pair of long studies on the country’s progress published in The Economist in 1967 called ‘The Risen Sun’, made Macrae a celebrated figure in Japan, not so much in the wider public but rather among policy makers and senior officials. On his retirement from The Economist in 1988 it was fitting that, in a ceremony in London shared with Professor Ronald Dore, he was honoured by the emperor with the Order of the Rising Sun. WHO WAS HE?
In Japan he had become a celebrated figure. Yet when Norman Macrae died on 11 June 2010, aged eighty-nine, no major British newspaper published an obituary of him. You could blame The Economist’s tradition of anonymity; you could blame the extraordinary modesty of the man himself who, if you tried to take his photo, would duck down and giggle, convinced that no one could possibly be interested in him. It is, though, quite astonishing, for the truth is that Macrae was one of the intellectual giants of post-war Britain: one of the very few journalists who could bear comparison with the best brains of his time. Like Milton Friedman, he applied free-market principles to public services such as education and council housing. Like Daniel Bell, he charted the shift from the industrial to the post-industrial society. And like Peter Drucker he illuminated the internal workings of companies, the organizations that drove the West’s prosperity and guaranteed its freedoms. He kept the flame of free-market thinking burning during the long night of collectivism. He predicted the collapse of the Soviet Union, at a time when the CIA was obsessed by Russia’s growing strength, and foresaw the privatization of industry, when other intellectuals were celebrating the triumph of the ‘mixed economy’. Having been the first western journalist to ‘discover’ Japan and its post-war success, Norman was also the first journalist to ‘discover’ the Internet. In 1984 he wrote another survey arguing that life was about to be transformed by ‘terminals’, which would give users access to giant databases. He predicted that the 1973 energy shock would eventually lead to a surge in the supply of energy. He also dismissed the Club of Rome’s prediction that the world was about to run out of food as arrant nonsense. The Economist was fortunate that Norman decided to park his formidable intellect at 25 St James’s Street. During his almost forty years there – twenty-three of them, from 1965 to 1988, as deputy editor – he did more than anyone else to provide the intellectual originality of what he liked to describe as ‘the world’s favourite viewspaper’.
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He constantly enlivened editorial meetings with proposals to allow Disneyworld to run the West’s cities or to move the British government from London to York. Roy Jenkins, among the most intellectual of Labour Party cabinet ministers in the 1960s and 1970s, later Chancellor of Oxford University, rightly described him as the ‘epitome of the internal spirit of The Economist’. He could be a brutal editor and a savage critic of flabby ideas. He altered colleagues’ copy with abandon. But he was greatly liked, generous with his time and amiable in conversation. He was also a loyal company man, never allowing his growing renown to go to his head. He frequently slept in his office, his large frame heaped on the floor, and sweated blood to correct errant facts as well as to expunge creeping heresy. More than anyone else, he made sure that The Economist was not blown off course by the winds of ideological fashion or becalmed in routine reporting. But if The Economist was lucky to find Norman, he was lucky to find The Economist. His website poses a question at the end of each of his essays: ‘Brilliant? Batty?’ and invites readers to join the fray. His undoubted eccentricity was partly a matter of personal style. The words tumbled out in an incoherent jumble interrupted by heaving shoulders and gales of cackling laughter. His handwriting was such a scrawl that only one person in the world, his loyal secretary, Elizabeth Methold, could decipher it – and she could perform this miracle only by holding the script at arm’s length, half-shutting her eyes and (in her words) going into a trance. The eccentricity extended to his writing. As his writing on Japan had shown, Norman was a punctilious student of statistics. But he was quite happy to illustrate a 1969 article on American productivity with the assertion that a time-and-motion study of housewives at the kitchen sink would ‘almost certainly find’ that the average American housewife was twice as efficient as the average British one. Why? Because the American housewife was capable of instinctively working out in her head, for each chore, ‘some rough approximation of what modern businessmen call a critical path analysis’. The Economist provided him with the ideal mixture of freedom and discipline. He could travel to any corner of the world he fancied to produce lengthy reports on anything he wished, from the state of America to the future of mankind. Many of these special reports became books, just as Consider Japan had. But he was reined in when he got a bit too wild – as when he advocated writing a cover leader championing a nasal spray to ‘cure’ homosexuals (who, he thought, were driven that way by their aversion to the smell of their mothers). He was passed over three times for the editorship. But, in truth, he was in exactly the right position.
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THE CRYSTAL BALL
His greatest gift was his uncanny ability to predict the future. But the problem with the future is that it eventually arrives. Visions that are called from the ‘vasty’ deep become reality. Ideas that were once pooh-poohed as outlandish become commonplace, which means that people forget where they originated, or else start to claim them as their own. ‘Nobody listened, then everybody did,’ Norman wrote ruefully in a 1991 article called ‘A future history of privatization, 1992–2022’. To grasp his prescience, it is necessary to return to an era when today’s commonplaces were heresies. During much of the post-war period the market was ‘out’ and the benevolent state was ‘in’. Public intellectuals such as Kenneth Galbraith argued that the age of the entrepreneur had given way to the age of the giant corporation. Practical politicians poured money into British Steel and the Concorde project. The market meant chaos and unemployment; industrial policy meant smooth growth and jobs for all. Norman saw this as a recipe for flabby politics and failed economics. In 1954 he coined the term ‘Butskellism’ to describe the portmanteau politics of the Conservative British Chancellor of the Exchequer, R.A. Butler, and a Labour predecessor, Hugh Gaitskell. Throughout the Butskellite era he relentlessly documented the failures of industrial policy and government planning – and yet yelped with excitement when, in Japan, he found both planning and policy that worked, because, he felt, they were cases of the government working hand in hand with private initiative and the market, rather than trying to impose itself on it. This makes it sound as if Norman was nothing more than a prophet of the new right. But the truth, as his Japanese enthusiasm showed, is more complicated – and, as befits the man, more idiosyncratic. Even while he embraced the market on micro-economic policy, he remained more or less a Keynesian on macroeconomic policy until the late 1970s. He was a firm believer in pumping up demand with deficit spending and holding down inflation with incomes policy. No deficit was too big and no incomes policy too hopeless. He greeted the first macroeconomic flushes of Reaganism and Thatcherism with sceptical editorials before finally admitting that he had been wrong. It was perhaps the only time he was not ahead of the debate. Norman also had no time for social conservatism. He worried about broken families and out-of-wedlock births, but entirely from a utilitarian rather than a moral point of view. He dismissed the religious right as vigorously as he dismissed feminists and environmentalists (‘both simple and psychotic Americans have too often been dominated by religious liars’). He argued that one of man’s greatest problems in the coming years would be growing life-expectancy – 314
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and advocated a ‘system of planned death’ to deal with it. In a survey of America in 1975 he predicted that euthanasia would soon be as acceptable as abortion: ‘It will not be at all surprising if there is in some quite near decade-and-a-half a similarly swift and equally civilized dash to acceptance of killing off old codgers (by then, like me) as there has been, in so short a twinkling, towards the more emotive act of killing unborn babies.’ IN STALIN’S RUSSIA
Why did Norman think as he did? Why did he reject the post-war consensus about the virtues of government? And why did he keep his distance from a new right that embraced so many of his ideas? Part of the answer lies in his personality. Norman was, as previously observed, an extraordinarily self-contained figure. He seldom used his telephone to call people, preferring to sit in his office poring over statistics. He had few doubts about the rightness of his opinions. Once he had an idea in his head he pushed it to its logical conclusion – and if he was proved wrong he simply shifted to another idea, which he pursued with equal certainty. Richard Holt Hutton, an early editor of The Economist in Victorian times once wrote of his more famous successor, Walter Bagehot, and his ‘dash and doubt’. Norman was just dash. But his outlook was also shaped by his odd adolescence. His father was a British consul in Moscow in 1935–38, and Norman’s summer holidays from school were spent there at the height of Stalin’s purges. He saw members of the embassy staff – including maids his own age – disappearing, probably to be shot. Before and after his posting to Moscow his father also had jobs in Nazi-dominated Europe. Many of his family’s Jewish friends were terrorized and later slaughtered. When he left school in 1941, Norman wrote later: My first job was a public-sector one, with public-sector productivity, as a teenager supposed to throw bombs about as an RAF navigator, creating a slum in the heart of the continent. By the time I got there, the Russians were coming in from the other side. All the politicians, including Churchill and Roosevelt, told us these were fine liberating democrats. And of course I knew from those school summer holidays so briefly before that those were astonishing lies. That has given me one advantage in my 40 years as a newspaperman. I have never since then believed a word either politicians or public relations officers have said.
Norman’s early experiences did not just sour him to politicians. They soured him to collectivism in all its many varieties. He had no time for the government-worshipping intellectuals he found when he studied economics at Cambridge in 1945–47. He loathed the femi315
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nists and black-power activists he came across in America in the late 1960s and 1970s, smelling in their affection for group rights and their willingness to use intimidation the same intolerance he had smelt in Europe in the 1930s and 1940s. He took his children on trips to Eastern Europe in order to teach them the difference between freedom and tyranny. He seldom missed an opportunity to champion the ‘hard hats’ over the ‘soft heads’. Norman’s case for market capitalism did not rest merely on its ability to create wealth, but on its capacity to advance individual freedom. He was almost as critical of big-company capitalism as he was of big-government socialism. In a 1976 survey on ‘The coming entrepreneurial revolution’ he argued that big business was as doomed as big government. Hierarchical managers sitting in their skyscrapers could no longer arrange how brainworkers should best use their imaginations. The future lay with small firms that could exploit individual creativity and with bigger firms that could split themselves into small centres and encourage competition between them. Norman’s critique of the welfare state was inspired by a similar belief in individualism. He pointed out that the market had produced a remarkable equalization in people’s lives. Rich and poor had access to the same consumer goods – the same television programmes, the same comfortable armchairs, the same plethora of goods in supermarkets, which were spreading from the suburbs to the slums. As he wrote, in 1945 the average Englishman had only one pair of trousers; by the swinging 1960s he had access not only to lots of pairs of (tight) trousers but also to holidays in the sun and cheap mortgages. The great exception to this story of equalization was the state. The state distributed its largesse disproportionately to the rich – exactly the opposite of what was supposed to happen – allowing them to end up with better schools and better health services. It also trapped the poorest in poverty, in sink estates with lousy schools and soaring crime and in public-sector jobs with little prospect of long-term prosperity. Norman argued that the only way to change this was to empower individuals – to allow them to own their own homes, through privatization, and to choose their own schools, through vouchers. Give power to the state and you end up with self-serving interest groups. Give power to the individual and you apply the same creative ingenuity to public services as companies have long done to the invention of washing powder. Norman’s belief in individualism also drove his enthusiasm for technology. This enthusiasm provoked widespread mirth at The Economist. The man who predicted the rise of the internet in 1984 and preached the virtues of telecommuting in articles on almost anything was by far the most incompetent member of the staff when it 316
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came to using new (or not so new) inventions. In battles with the office fax machine he usually came off worse. It was rumoured that paper clips baffled him. The staff were amazed when the pioneering Atex computerized publishing system was introduced in 1982 and Norman revealed that he could actually type. But as a techno-visionary he had few equals. He predicted a world in which ‘books, files, television programmes, computer information and telecommunications will merge’ – in which people could explore the world’s knowledge repositories at a touch of a button, and in which readers would have access to custom-made newspapers paid for by targeted advertising (in typical fashion, he imagined this newspaper emerging from a fax machine at the back of the television). He saw that this revolution would have huge implications for the balance of power. Giant organizations such as governments and companies would lose their comparative advantage. Entrepreneurs would be empowered. Taxpayers would flee the coop and telecommute from rural villages – thus putting more pressure on governments to give up their powers and start serving people rather than bossing them about. The last clue to Norman was that he was a consummate newspaperman. In print – or indeed on the lecture podium – the cackling incoherence of his speech simply vanished, and he was invariably lucid and frequently amusing, even coruscating. (A similar stylishness could be seen on the tennis court, where the immobility of middle age did nothing to inhibit a well-aimed slice that flummoxed younger and nimbler players.) He was one of the best word-coiners of his generation, producing ‘intrapreneurship’ and ‘telecommuting’ (the coinage of ‘privatization’ and ‘Eurocrat’ is disputed). He littered his prose with memorable phrases. Milton Friedman was ‘the maddening gnome of Chicago’. American ghettoes exhibited ‘public squalor amid private non-affluence’. In diagnosing the failure of British firms to get the most out of computers, he likened them to ‘former slum dwellers who, when promoted into being council-house tenants, tended to keep coal in the bath’. In championing the virtues of entrepreneurship and people working in small teams, he pointed out that ‘Jesus Christ tried 12, and that proved one too many.’ Everything he wrote was compulsively readable – partly because he mixed battiness with brilliance and partly because he came at everything from such unexpected angles. His 1975 survey of ‘America’s third century’ started by posing a surprising public-policy quandary: Our children will probably ‘progressively’ be able to order their babies with the shape and strength and level of intelligence that they choose, as well as alter existing human beings so as to insert artificial intelligence, retune brains, change personality, modify moods, control behaviour. 317
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That raised troubling ethical issues, which would, he said, be best decided by a world that was shaped by America rather than ‘the inexperienced Japanese’. He was thus no sentimentalist: having ‘considered’ or ‘discovered’ Japan he did not become rosy-eyed about it, as so many Japan hands did. He admired it for what it had achieved, for how it had grasped the realities of the time, notably in the 1960s, 70s and 80s, but also saw it as it was: an economic powerhouse but not a political power-house, and moreover an economic power-house whose success depended on continued adaptation to how realities were changing. AN ETERNAL OPTIMIST
Even so, for all his interest in the rest of the world, Macrae was a very English figure. His ideas were rooted in the English liberalism of the nineteenth century – a liberalism that celebrated the individual over the collective, progress over reaction, free thought over superstition. This set him against both the ‘over-government’ that had triumphed in his youth and the religious conservatism that prospered under Reaganism. But it also turned him into an irrepressible optimist. Few people since Bagehot and Macaulay have been so convinced that life is getting better, and that it will get better still if only a few doltish politicians can be elbowed out of the way. This commitment to classical liberalism ensures that much of his work continues to sing. Norman devoted his energies to two of the most ephemeral bits of journalism – opinionated leaders and lengthy exercises in futurology. Yet a remarkable amount of what he wrote remains relevant today. His 1975 survey on America’s 200th birthday, in which he chastises the Democrats for flirting with the Fabian cult of government expertise, conservatives for flirting with religious extremism, and business for underinvesting in innovation, might easily be a portrait of Barack Obama’s America. Big government has been on the march for much of the past decade. The Beijing consensus celebrates the alliance of big government and big companies. Much of the public sector has resisted the power of vouchers and internal markets. The battle that Norman fought for so long has still not been won. ENDNOTES 1
This essay encompasses material from ‘The unacknowledged giant’ Adrian Wooldridge’s tribute to Norman Macrae, which appeared on 27 June 2010. This is reproduced with kind permission of The Economist
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Yamamoto Yao (1875–1955) and Japanese Nursing GORDON DANIELS
INTRODUCTION
In the late nineteenth century Japanese leaders often saw British power, technology and social organization as objects of admiration and emulation. However, in the field of Red Cross military nursing Japan could claim to have overtaken Britain by the first years of the twentieth century. In this process the career of a pioneer nurse, Yamamoto Yao, illustrates Japanese achievements, and the significant role of the Japanese Red Cross in Anglo-Japanese relations during the First World War.1 The Satsuma rebellion of 1877 was the final samurai challenge to the modern Japanese state. It also saw the beginnings of organized humanitarian activity, influenced by the Red Cross movement in Europe. During the Satsuma conflict the Saga statesman Sano Tsunetami, who had admired Red Cross displays at exhibitions in Europe, established
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the Hakuaisha (Philanthropic Society) to provide medical aid for the wounded of Government and rebel forces. In this he was supported by Imperial Prince Arisugawa, the commander of the Government army. After the defeat of the Satsuma rebels the Hakuaisha continued its activities, and in 1886 established a hospital and headquarters in Tokyo. In the same year the Japanese Government acceded to the Geneva Convention and a year later the Hakuaisha was renamed the Japanese Red Cross Society.2 In its early years the Hakuaisha had been an overwhelmingly male organization, but by 1890 the Ladies Volunteer Nursing Association had been established, and the Red Cross had begun an organized programme of professional training for female nurses.3 These developments represented a significant change in Japanese ideas of women’s possible role in time of war. As a result of the humane professionalism of Japanese nurses during the Russo-Japanese conflict the international reputation of the Japanese Red Cross rose rapidly. Many Japanese now realized the political gains to be made from international activity. Soon Japanese nurses began to participate in the meetings of the International Council of Nurses; a body created and dominated by female nurses from Europe, North America and Australasia. Two Japanese nurses, with male chaperones, attended the 1909 I.C.N. conference in Westminster, and presented a report on Japanese conditions.4 By this time the Anglo-Japanese Alliance was well established and it was relatively easy for these Japanese nurses to develop contacts with the British nursing profession. YAMAMOTO YAO – EARLY CAREER
Yamamoto Yao was born on 5 June 1875. Like many early nurses she came from a formerly samurai family, and in an atmosphere of national aspiration, sought a career combining patriotic and medical service. In January 1894 she entered the Red Cross Nurse Training Centre in her home city, Hiroshima. With the outbreak of the Sino-Japanese War in August large numbers of wounded were brought to the Army Reserve Hospital in Hiroshima and Yamamoto was transferred there to begin work. At this stage her training was far from complete, but in 1896 she was one of the first young women to be selected as an ‘exemplary student’ to continue her nursing studies at the main Red Cross Hospital in Tokyo. She graduated as a fully qualified nurse in April 1900. Yamamoto worked in Tokyo until the summer when she returned to Hiroshima to serve in a new emergency.5 During the anti-foreign Boxer Rebellion in North China significant numbers of Japanese and Europeans were wounded, and transported by Japanese Red Cross ships to hospitals in Hiroshima. Yamamoto played an outstanding role in their treatment, and following her skilled care of 320
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French citizens received a gold medal from the French Government. Four years later she treated large numbers of wounded during the Russo-Japanese War, and at the age of thirty became head nurse in the Hiroshima Army Reserve Hospital.6 In 1912 Yamamoto’s high reputation in Japanese nursing circles was evident when she was selected to head a small delegation, which attended the conference in Cologne of the International Council of Nurses. Yamamoto presented a report on ‘The past and present situation of nursing training in Japan’.7 Japanese participation in such international conferences may suggest that nursing leaders in Japan and the West had similar aims, but politically they had very different objectives. For Japanese nurses such as Yamamoto the aim of participating in conferences was the acquisition of knowledge and the promotion of national prestige. In contrast leading Western nurses saw nursing organizations and conferences as a new means to promote the cause of female suffrage. When delegates arrived at the Cologne conference building they received greetings from the German Women’s Suffrage Association, as well as medical societies. In addition the conference passed a resolution declaring ‘adherence to the principle of woman suffrage’.8 It seems certain that Yamamoto and her Japanese colleagues gave no support to such policies, as there was no significant government or popular support for female suffrage in Japan at this time.9 Following the Cologne conference Yamamoto and her colleagues travelled to England to meet British nurses and to study nursing training at the Nightingale House Training School at St. Thomas’ Hospital. However the visit to England had a further purpose, to publicize the Japanese Red Cross in a major allied country. During September they travelled with a journalist from The British Journal of Nursing to East Wellow in Hampshire, nominally to lay flowers on the grave of Florence Nightingale. At the grave they laid a ‘wreath of heather, white Mary lilies and asparagus fern’ and a ribbon with the words ‘Japanese Red Cross’ and the names Yamamoto, Hagiwara and Watatani. A Japanese male interpreter accompanied the three nurses so that they could easily convey information to British journalists. Miss Hagiwara, speaking for the group, mentioned nurses’ active service in the Sino-Japanese War, the creation of a Nightingale award for outstanding Japanese nurses and a Florence Nightingale memorial meeting in Tokyo attended by ‘Princesses of the Blood Royal, Peeresses, other members of the aristocracy and over 300 Red Cross nurses’.10 IN THE FIRST WORLD WAR 1914–1918
After returning to work in the main Tokyo Red Cross Hospital Yamamoto’s reputation continued to rise, and the outbreak of 321
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the First World War brought her greater influence and distinction. As Britain’s ally Japan declared war on Germany on 23 August 1914. Soon after the Okuma cabinet informed the Japanese Red Cross that it wished to send Red Cross Relief groups to the three allies Britain, France and Russia. Of these three Japan’s alliance partner, Britain was clearly the most significant. Each relief group would consist of approximately twenty female nurses, two male doctors, an interpreter and an administrator. Yamamoto was to be one of the two head nurses of the group, which was to serve in Britain.11 The second head nurse Kiyooka Shige, had had similar training in Tokyo and had treated wounded men during the Russo-Japanese War. In view of the major role, which the two head nurses were to play in England, it seems very likely that they had a significant influence in the choice of the remaining nurses. Great care was taken in the selection process, and nursing expertise, foreign language knowledge and strength of character were all evaluated in making the final choice. The selected group was broadly representative of Japan’s regions including nurses from Hokkaido, Honshu, Kyushu and Shikoku, as well as from national headquarters. The two male doctors were experienced and well qualified; the senior one, Tsuzuki Jiro¯ had served in the Imperial Navy while his deputy, Oshima Tsuneyoshi had studied at Kyoto Imperial University and in Germany.12 The great importance of the mission for Japanese prestige is clear from the detailed preparations, which were made for the enterprise. Among these perhaps the most revealing was the briefing speech given by Baron Ozawa, the Deputy Chairman of the Red Cross Society on 1 December 1914.13 Addressing the group who would travel to Britain he presented detailed information, much of which would have been familiar to Yamamoto, from her visit to London in 1912. Ozawa noted that the British Red Cross, unlike its Japanese equivalent, did not have a mass membership and that its recently recruited volunteer nurses were far less well trained than Yamamoto and her fellow professionals. Yamamoto already had considerable international experience and would certainly have agreed with Ozawa that it was important to avoid striking attitudes of Japanese superiority, or of teacher-like arrogance. Ozawa appears to have been aware of the impressive training of nurses at Nightingale House, which Yamamoto had witnessed, and both would have known of recent improvements in British Red Cross organization following the outbreak of war. Yamamoto would also have shared Ozawa’s assessment of the British women’s suffrage movement; in pre-war days it had been militant and violent, but since the declaration of war it had abandoned its attacks on museums and public buildings. With her closeness to the Red Cross leadership she would have endorsed Ozawa’s advice to nurses to beware of attempts by suffragettes to influence them, and, as Japanese women, 322
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to ignore their blandishments.14 Yamamoto and the entire group would have shared Ozawa’s hope that their mission to Britain would be a great success – not only for the reputation of the Japanese Red Cross but for that of Japan. Yamamoto’s awareness of the national and international significance of the mission would have been further reinforced on 11 December when the British ambassador Sir William Conyngham Green invited Yamamoto and other members of the Red Cross group to lunch at the British embassy in Tokyo.15 The mission travelled to Britain via the Pacific, the United States and the Atlantic, and throughout this lengthy journey the patriotic and international importance of its activities was repeatedly demonstrated. On their departure from Shimbashi station on 19 December the British ambassador, his wife, the leaders of the Japanese Red Cross, and many Red Cross employees waved farewell. From Yokohama they travelled by the NYK liner Shunyo¯-maru, and on arrival in Hawaii, they were greeted and entertained by the Japanese consul.16 The party arrived at San Francisco on 4 January 1914. Again they received special treatment and were met by the Japanese and British consuls, local Red Cross leaders, journalists and members of the Japanese community. The travellers only stayed one night in the city but they were taken on a tour of major hospitals and local beauty spots. It took Yamamoto and her colleagues a further six days to cross the continent by rail. They stopped in Omaha and Chicago and visited the Niagara Falls. At significant cities they were greeted by consular staff and representatives of Japanese clubs and societies. Yamamoto was an enthusiastic photographer and her album contains images of this trans-continental travel.17 On their arrival in New York both American and Japanese hospitality was grander and even more elaborate. During the two days the mission spent in the city it was taken to the Mount Zion Hospital, with its excellent nursing facilities, the headquarters of the American Nurses Association, and the Rockefeller Research Institute, where they met the distinguished Japanese bacteriologist Noguchi Hideyo. The Japanese consul general invited them to dinner and the Japan Society of New York organized a grand luncheon at the Astor Hotel. The executive director of the American Red Cross travelled specially from Washington to attend.18 The Japanese Red Cross and its humanitarian virtues were praised. American journalists visited the nurses at their hotel and took photographs; the appearance of the smartly uniformed nurses helped to reshape some journalists’ views of the contemporary Japanese woman. Although the European war was the essential reason for Yamamoto’s travels it had scarcely seemed a reality during most of her American experience. However, on 13 January 1915 the party boarded the White Star liner Megantic, and soon after the realities of war became apparent. The liner’s lights were blacked out to avoid possible attack. 323
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Yamamoto and her companions arrived at Liverpool on 22 January 1915.19 Here, for the first time the military nature of the mission became obvious. The most distinguished member of the reception committee was the Surgeon General of the British Army, Sir Benjamin Franklin. A secretary from the Japanese embassy was present as were representatives of local civic societies and journalists from The Times and local newspapers.20 Yamamoto and Kiyooka were presented with bouquets and the party’s interpreter, Otsuka Naotaro¯, spoke of the long professional training of Red Cross nurses and the personal sacrifices they were making in leaving Japan to work in Britain. On their arrival at Euston Station they were welcomed by Ambassador Inouye Katsunosuke, representatives of the British Red Cross and a large numbers of Japanese citizens. For the next few days the Japanese group were accommodated in the luxurious Russell Hotel in Bloomsbury. On their first evening a formal reception was held, and Mr Bonar, a Japanese speaking diplomat was introduced as the British liaison officer. He read an address of welcome from Lord Kitchener21 and arrangements for the coming week were explained. Before they left Japan the mission members had been informed that they were to work at the new prefabricated Red Cross Hospital at Netley near Southampton. Now it was announced that their accommodation at the hospital had not been completed. As a result they would spend the coming week enjoying a mixture of medical tourism, general sightseeing and aristocratic socializing; all to be financed by the British Red Cross. It is possible that facilities at Netley were not ready but perhaps the Japanese mission was of such importance that a grand gesture of hospitality was required. After all, the Japanese mission was to provide its medical services, and some medical supplies, free of charge. Yamamoto participated in numerous activities, which were organized for the whole group, but on some significant occasions she joined Kiyooka and the male members of the mission on special high level visits. On 23 January this inner group visited the Japanese embassy, the Japanese consulate, and the headquarters of the British Red Cross to report the mission’s safe arrival to London.22 When the entire party went to the Drury Lane Theatre to see the pantomime ‘Sleeping Beauty’ the orchestra played the Japanese national anthem and the audience rose to its feet. Among the busy visits to Windsor, Eton and major military hospitals, one social event had particular importance. On 29 January Yamamoto and the entire mission were invited to Marlborough House for an audience with Queen Alexandra, the President of the British Red Cross.23 Finally on 31 January 1915, after over forty days of travel and hospitality, the Red Cross mission proceeded to Netley to begin work. To aid smooth communication and efficient working Yamamoto 324
YAMAMOTO YAO (1875–1955) AND JAPANESE NURSING
and her companions were accompanied by the liaison officer Bonar who was to remain with them for several weeks. Although the Japanese nurses were warmly greeted at the Red Cross hospital they were soon put to work. Two wards were put under Japanese control but as the British lacked adequate numbers of fully trained nurses; it seemed best to distribute most of the highly skilled Japanese across the hospital. This also promoted a further objective – the integration of British and Japanese medical personnel. Yamamoto and all her colleagues were to take their meals in the dining hall with their British opposite numbers.24 Apparently there were no concessions to Japanese taste. Another aspect of Anglo-Japanese co-operation was the British attempt to improve the English proficiency of the visitors. Bi-lingual glossaries of important medical terms were presented to Yamamoto and her fellow nurses, and leisure hours were frequently used for language learning. With the passage of time the Japanese nurses were said to have become significantly more fluent in English. In medical work the Japanese followed English methods, but in one respect they added a particular Japanese skill. They often used massage – which was popular, and was often requested by patients. For Yamamoto the experience of treating large numbers of seriously wounded men was familiar, but the multi-national character of the patients at Netley may have come as a surprise. In addition to French speaking soldiers from Canada and Belgium there were also large numbers of Indian wounded.25 The stoicism of Indian patients was much admired but communication with them was often difficult. Japanese nurses were evidently surprised by the events, which the hospital authorities arranged to raise patient morale. Variety artists appearing in Southampton theatres often performed at Netley, something without parallel in Japanese hospitals. The Japanese had arrived in the midst of the English winter and British administrators feared that cold and damp might bring sickness to them. As a countermeasure they distributed winter boots to the visiting nurses.26 In the summer of 1915 Netley faced a major medical crisis. So far the Japanese had helped to treat a regular flow of patients from the battlefields of northern France. Now the allied landings in the Dardanelles produced a new flow of patients. These included not only wounded men but also significant numbers suffering with infectious diseases. On one occasion over two hundred wounded men arrived at very short notice. By late autumn these pressures had led to seven wards being placed under Japanese management. In view of Yamamoto’s status and experience it is likely that she was given a senior position in one of the Japanese controlled wards.27 One feature of the Netley Red Cross Hospital, which must have impressed Yamamoto was its great dependence on voluntary donations. Wards were often funded by donors in Canada and Australia, as 325
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well as by wealthy individuals and societies in Britain. This dependence led to a continuous stream of interested visitors, whose favourable reports helped encourage the donation of new funds for buildings and expensive equipment. There were also important Japanese visitors such as Ambassador Inouye whose appearance demonstrated the importance which the Japanese Government attached to the work of Yamamoto and her fellow nurses. Visits from members of the British royal family further indicated official support for the Japanese presence. Of all these visits perhaps the most significant was that of Queen Alexandra on 23 August.28 As a head nurse Yamamoto played a particularly prominent role on this occasion. The special importance of this visit is clear from the numerous photographs which were taken and the subsequent creation of an oil painting based upon them, still preserved in Red Cross Headquarters in Tokyo. When the Okuma Cabinet had decided to send medical aid to Britain no one could know how long the European war might last and how numerous British casualties would be. Furthermore the provision of medical services to Britain would be relatively costly. Initially no clear decision had been reached on the length of time the mission would remain in England. However, in 1915 the Japanese Red Cross had come to the view that the mission should return to Japan after six months service, i.e. at the end of July. When British Red Cross leaders learnt of this decision they were deeply unhappy and they suggested to the Foreign Secretary that the Japanese be asked to postpone their return. With the sympathetic assistance of Ambassador Inouye it was eventually agreed that the Japanese would remain until the end of 1915. Without doubt the care provided by Yamamoto and her colleagues was much appreciated by wounded men and their families. This was evident from letters of thanks and small gifts, which the nurses received. However Yamamoto appears to have been ever conscious of broader matters of public relations. She remained an enthusiastic photographer and passed photographs on to British officials in the hospital. Her high status and professionalism were also conveyed by the impressive printed name slips, which she used in sending short messages and greetings to others.29 Yamamoto and her fellow nurses had a surprising degree of contact with local people outside the confines of the Netley Red Cross Hospital. They were often invited to tea at prosperous houses in the locality. In 1915 the mission made two visits to the grave of Florence Nightingale where flowers were laid and photographs taken which were reproduced in the Japanese Red Cross Magazine Hakuai in Tokyo. The most striking Anglo-Japanese celebration took place on 15 November 1915, when what was inaccurately termed the ‘Coronation’ of Japan’s new Emperor (the Taisho Emperor) was 326
YAMAMOTO YAO (1875–1955) AND JAPANESE NURSING
commemorated at Netley.30 The British authorities cooperated fully in these festivities, which included the display of many Japanese flags in the public rooms of the hospital. There were also festive meals and musical events, and the Japanese nurses who were allowed a holiday were taken by car to visit Bournemouth. By December as the end of the mission’s service was approaching, the ceremonial aspect of its activities became increasingly prominent. On 15 December the two male doctors, along with Yamamoto and Kiyooka visited Buckingham Palace to be received by King George V and Queen Mary. In recognition of their services at Netley the two doctors were made Companions of the Order of St. Michael and St. George; the two nurses were awarded the Royal Red Cross first class. Yamamoto and Kiyooka were probably the first Japanese women to be decorated by a British monarch.31 On 17 December the whole mission visited Lady Wolverton, a member of the Netley Red Cross Hospital Committee, and were then taken to the Mansion House for a luncheon organized by the Lord Mayor, Sir Charles Wakefield.32 This was a large-scale event attended by the Japanese Ambassador, and leaders of the British Red Cross and the nursing profession. In his speech the Lord Mayor emphasized that the mission’s work, as well as a Japanese gift of medical supplies, was much appreciated. He added that men treated by the Japanese Red Cross nurses would have memories of kindness which would remain long after the mission had returned home. After lunch Yamamoto and her colleagues were taken to Marlborough House for a final audience with Queen Alexandra. The mission was presented with an illuminated address of thanks, framed in wood from HMS Victory.33 The nurses were presented with brooches in the form of a Red Cross. Yamamoto and the mission enjoyed further festivities in late December including a grand ‘At Home’ party for the Japanese on 30 December organized by the Commandant of the Red Cross Hospital, Sir Warren Crooke-Lawless. On this occasion appreciation of the nurses’ work was expressed in lines in a farewell song – ‘The sisters have endeared themselves to everyone in Camp. They are charming little followers of “The Lady with the Lamp”.’34 When they left Netley for the last time on 1 January 1916 they were cheered by a large crowd of hospital staff and patients, many waving hats and flags.35 During their final weeks in England they continued to receive official Japanese hospitality. Ambassador Inouye met them on their arrival, and they were invited to a farewell gathering at the embassy.36 Friends from the Netley hospital assisted them in making important visits to St. Thomas’ Hospital and the London Hospital, the latter already famous for its links with Edith Cavell. Their final public appearance was on 12 January when they were the focus of 327
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a meeting of the Japan Society. The mission’s interpreter Otsuka Naotaro¯ read a paper describing their work in England, noting that in total they had contributed to the treatment of 2,553 patients. The nurses gave a demonstration of their bandaging skills. In a discussion, which followed, Sir Wyndham Murray stated that after speaking to ‘five or six hundred men’ he had concluded that the Japanese nurses ‘were devoted in their care for the wounded’.37 The mission left London on the NYK liner Fushimi on 24 January. The serious war situation had led NYK to abandon the Mediterranean route, and the mission returned via Capetown, Colombo, Hong Kong and Shanghai. They finally reached Kobe on 21 March. Yamamoto’s experiences on arriving in Japan confirmed the highly official nature of the mission’s activities. Not only were the party met by Red Cross and military officials at the port, they were guided by members of the Kyoto Red Cross branch to the Emperor Meiji’s tomb to pay their respects.38 At each major railway stations en route to Tokyo Red Cross members assembled to show their support. When they arrived in Tokyo station they were greeted by the British ambassador, leaders of the Japanese Red Cross, and crowds of family members.39 Photographs were taken and the head of the Japanese Red Cross Viscount Hanabusa welcomed them. On the next day there were longer speeches and the mission was finally dissolved.40 CONCLUSION
In the years after her work in Britain Yamamoto continued to carry out major work and gain prestige for the Japanese Red Cross. In 1920 the headquarters of the International Red Cross in Geneva initiated the award of the Florence Nightingale Medal for distinguished nurses of any nationality. By this time Yamamoto was deputy head nurse in the Tokyo Red Cross Hospital, and she had an outstanding record of treating the wounded in four Asian and European conflicts. She had also established a network of contacts with leading nurses in the West. In view of these impressive achievements the Japanese Red Cross recommended her for the Nightingale award, and she was successful.41 She was one of the first three Japanese nurses to receive such international recognition. Throughout the interwar and wartime years she occupied leading positions in the Japanese Red Cross, rising to be the sixth woman to be head nurse at the Tokyo Red Cross Hospital. Yamamoto was renowned as an administrator and an educator, always seeking improved methods of treatment and training.42 During the Pacific War when resources were inadequate and Red Cross ideals compromised she remained an important advocate for Japanese nursing, calling for greater help and support. She died in 1955. Her grave is in Isehara near Tokyo. 328
YAMAMOTO YAO (1875–1955) AND JAPANESE NURSING
Yamamoto Yao (second from left) after receiving Nightingale medal.
Throughout much of her career Yamamoto was a leader in her profession. For a short time she was a significant figure in Anglo-Japanese relations. She treated large numbers of British and allied soldiers and was one of the first Japanese women to promote Japan’s reputation overseas effectively. Yamamoto symbolized the rise of modern nursing in Japan, but politically she remained distant from advocates of women’s suffrage both at home and abroad. ENDNOTES 1
2
3 4
5 6 7 8
No biography of Yamamoto Yao exists but the following summaries are valuable – Yamamoto Yao ‘Keireki’ and ‘Suisen no Konkyo’ (undated). Japanese Red Cross Society Headquarters, Tokyo; and ‘Yamamoto Yao’ in Kango Kyo¯iku 41/8. 2000 p. 590. The early years of her career are described in Nihon Sekiju¯jishashi Zokko¯ Vol. 1. (Tokyo. 1929) pp. 270–27. Nihon Sekiju¯jisha: Nihon Sekiju¯jisha So¯ritsu 125 Shu¯nen Kinenten 1877– 2002 (Tokyo 2002) p. 19. Ibid., pp. 23–4. Daisy Caroline Bridges, A History of the International Council of Nurses, 1899–1964 (London, 1967) p. 30. Nihon Sekiju¯jishashi Zokko¯ Vol. 1 (Tokyo. 1929) p. 271. Yamamoto Yao ‘Keireki’ (undated). ‘Yamamoto Yao’ in Kango Kyo¯iku 41/8, 2000, p. 590. Daisy Caroline Bridges, A History of the International Council of Nurses, p. 37 and p. 41. 329
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9
10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17
18
19 20 21 22 23 24 25
26 27
28
29
30 31 32
33 34
35 36 37
38 39 40 41 42
The Magazine Seito¯, founded in 1911, and seen as a key publication in the women’s movement took little interest in suffrage at this time. The British Journal of Nursing, 14 September 1912, pp. 213–14. see ‘Eikoku Kyu¯gohan...’ Hakuai No 330, 10 December 1914, p. 8. Ibid., pp. 4–5. Ibid., pp. 3–7. Ibid., p. 6. Nihon Sekiju¯jishashi Zokko¯ Vol. 1, p. 409. Ibid p.411 and Hakuai No 334, 10 February 1915, pp. 12–13. Yamamoto’s photographic albums are available in the Japanese Red Cross Headquarters, Tokyo. A photograph of the Astor Hotel luncheon (12 January 1915) appeared in Hakuai No 335, 10 March 1915; see also Nihon Sekiju¯jishashi Zokko¯ Vol. 1 p. 411. ‘Japanese Aid for Our Wounded’ The Times, 23 January 1915. Nihon Sekiju¯jishashi Zokko¯ Vol. 1, p. 413. Ibid., p. 413. Hakuai No 335, 10 March 1915, p. 19. Nihon Sekiju¯jishashi Zokko¯ Vol. 1, p. 415. Ibid., p. 418. ‘At present there are 145 British, 8 foreign invalids, 6 Belgians and 240 Indians at Netley Hospital’, The Red Cross, February 1915, p. 26. Nihon Sekiju¯jishashi Zokko¯ Vol. 1, p. 419. Dr J. Suzuki ‘The Japan Red Cross Mission to England’ Japan Society, London, Transactions and Proceedings Vol.14, 1915–1916, p. 3. Queen Alexandra’s engagement diary records a surprise visit to Netley Red Cross Hospital on Monday 23 August 1915 (Royal Archives, Windsor). See Lady Crooke-Lawless’s Scrapbook (Military Medical Museum, Aldershot). Hakuai No. 345, 10 January 1916, p. 12. Court Circular, 15 December 1915. ‘Programme of Reception of the Japanese Red Cross Mission by the British Red Cross Society, in London on Friday December 17 1915’ (Royal Archives, Windsor). Hakuai No 351, 10 July 1916, p. 10. Typescript in Lady Crooke-Lawless’s Scrapbook (Military Medical Museum, Aldershot). Hakuai No. 347, 10 March 1916, p. 5. Hakuai No. 347, 10 March 1916, p. 7. Dr J. Suzuki ‘The Japan Red Cross Mission to England’ Japan Society, London, Transactions and Proceedings Vol.14, p. 34. Hakuai No. 348, 10 April 1916 p.10 See photographs in Hakuai No. 348, and item on p. 10. Hakuai No. 348, pp. 10–11. Nihon Sakiju¯jisha So¯ritsu 125 Shu¯nen Kinenten, 1877–2002, p. 39. Yamamoto Yao ‘Keireki’, p. 2.
330
29
¯ e Sumi (1875–1948) and Domestic O Science in Japan HIROKO TOMIDA
INTRODUCTION
¯ e (née Miyakawa) Sumi was a pioneer in the field of modern O domestic science in Japan. After studying in Britain, she returned to Japan and became a professor at Tokyo Joshi Ko¯to¯ Shihan Gakko¯ (Tokyo Women’s Teachers’ Training College). She laid the foundation of domestic science, further developed it, and finally established it as a significant aspect of education. She also published several textbooks, widely used in domestic-science classes in schools throughout Japan. In 1925 she founded her own private educational institution Tokyo Kasei Gakuin (Tokyo Home Economics Academy). In 1940 she was awarded the Indigo Ribbon (Ranju Ho¯sho¯) medal for her great service promoting women’s education. In the same year the Ministry of Education recognized her long service in the field of education and awarded her a prize. Although she died in 1948, her name continues to be well remembered in Japan. However, she is 331
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not well known outside Japan despite having spent nearly four years in Britain as well as travelling to other European countries and the United States. EARLY LIFE IN JAPAN
¯e Miyakawa Sumi, subsequently known by her married name O Sumi, was born on 7 September 1875 in Nagasaki, as the third child of Miyakawa Moritaro¯ and his wife Kane. Although the Miyakawa family had been peasants for many generations, Moritaro¯ gave up farming in his youth and worked for the trading company Glover and Company founded by the Scottish merchant Thomas Blake Glover.1 Through his work Moritaro¯ became acquainted with a wide range of people who later became important government officials, includ¯ kuma Shigenobu. During the Civil War (1868–1869), Glover ing O and Company supplied arms to anti-Tokugawa samurai in Satsuma and Cho¯ shu¯, who planned to overthrow the Sho¯ gunate and restore the Emperor as sovereign. Glover and Company made a huge profit during this conflict.2 However, they went bankrupt in 1870 when they could no longer sell weapons as peace had been restored. Moritaro¯ then went to Tokyo to work first for the Department of the ¯ kuma Shigenobu he soon Navy, but having been recommended by O moved to the Imperial Household Agency, where he worked as a lower-ranking official. His wife and children moved to Tokyo to join him in 1880. Although he and his wife were uneducated, they had progressive ideas and became convinced that giving their children a good education in Tokyo would enable them to make their way in life. He became a great admirer of Fukuzawa Yukichi after reading Gakumon no Susume (An Encouragement of Learning), and sent his eldest son Hyo¯ichi to Keio¯ Gijuku Yo¯chisha (Keio¯ Gijuku Elementary School), although the school was hardly appropriate for a commoner’s son because the majority of its students were sons of millionaires and peers.3 Hyo¯ichi later proceeded to the Imperial Navy Medical School to become a navy surgeon.4 The rest of Moritaro¯’s children received a good education. Moritaro¯ and his wife tried hard to economize in their daily lives to help educate their children. Although few girls proceeded to secondary school at that time, her parents encouraged her to do so. She was born with a small dark blotch near her ear, which grew into a large black birthmark as she grew older.5 Her parents agreed that nobody would want to marry her because of the mark, so they wanted to give her the best education available to women, hoping this would enable her to find a secure job to support herself as a single woman. 332
¯ E SUMI (1875–1948) AND DOMESTIC SCIENCE IN JAPAN O
Sumi studied from 1880 to 1888 at Tomoe Elementary School in Shiba, Tokyo. In 1889 she entered To¯ yo¯ Eiwa Jogakko¯ (To¯ yo¯ Eiwa Girls’ High School), a mission school established in 1884 by Martha J. Cartmell, a Methodist missionary from Canada.6 Having been surrounded by pretty girls with expensive clothes from affluent families, Sumi, a commoner’s daughter, initially felt completely out of place, and became depressed and resentful. However, she soon began to enjoy her life because foreign teachers, as dedicated Christians, showed respect and sympathy towards her and treated her as the equal of other students. For a long time Sumi, who had had very low self-esteem and a negative attitude towards her life because of her birthmark, was stimulated by the Christian belief that in the eyes of God everybody is equal. She stopped thinking about her birthmark and adopted a positive attitude. She was christened in 1891 and became actively involved with charitable services at school.7 She made a serious effort to improve her English and mastered advanced-level English. Her close contacts with foreign teachers helped to broaden her outlook. She benefitted enormously from her education at this Christian school. She graduated from the school in 1894, and returned as a mathematics teacher for junior students in January 1896. Nevertheless, Sumi who wanted to be financially independent considered studying medicine, but her brother Hyo¯ ichi, a qualified medical doctor, advised against because all medical schools at that time were virtually closed to women in Japan. He recommended her to go to Tokyo Women’s Teachers’ Training College founded in 1890, which was the only higher educational institution available to women. She was admitted to the college in 1897. Tokyo Women’s Teachers’ Training College, the predecessor of the present Ochanomizu Women’s University, was a state-funded educational institution under the control of the Ministry of Education. Its main objective was to train female secondary school teachers. Academic subjects like mathematics, Japanese, Chinese literature and English were taught. In 1897 the college was divided into two departments – humanities and science – for training more specialized teachers.8 Sumi, who had become accustomed to the free atmosphere and education at her mission school, found the rules of the state-funded college far too strict, but she met three remarkable women who had positive influence on her. They were Yamakawa Futaba, Adachi Yasuko and Yasui Tetsu, who were all teachers. She was particularly influenced by Yasui, a senior graduate from the college, who had recently returned from her studies in Britain funded by the Ministry of Education.9 Yasui’s descriptions of her life in Britain led Sumi to contemplate possible study abroad. 333
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After Sumi graduated from the college in March 1901, she volunteered to go to Okinawa to teach at Okinawa Shihan Gakko¯ Joshibu (Okinawa Women’s Teachers’ Training College). Okinawa was remote from Tokyo and was notorious for having much lower educational standards. As a result, no other student in her year wanted to work there. Having gained confidence, she worked hard teaching and promoting the importance of good education. Her impressive efforts came to the attention not only of the Okinawa governor, but also of the principal and teachers of her old college and of the Ministry of Education. SENT TO BRITAIN
In the summer 1902 Sumi was sent to Britain for three years as a state-funded student to study domestic science. She was given 1,800 yen annually towards her tuition fees and 200 yen towards her preparations for the journey.10 This was a significant achievement for a woman as at that time it was extremely rare for the government to finance a woman’s study abroad. Indeed she was the only woman among forty-eight state-funded students who were sent abroad by the Ministry of Education in 1902.11 In her autobiography Sumi noted that she had not expected this scholarship, as her exam results, apart from English, at Tokyo Women’s Teachers’ Training College had not been outstanding. The 60-year-history of Tokyo Women’s Teachers’ College since its Foundation (Tokyo Joshi Ko¯to¯ Shihan Gakko¯ 60-nen-shi) explained: Our college established a new department called ‘gikeika’ (the Department of Domestic Science) in March 1908, following the new educational guidelines introduced by the Ko¯to¯ Jogakko¯ Rei (The Girls’ High School Act) enforced in 1899. Regrettably the level of domestic science teaching here was very low. The teaching methods and curriculum needed to be considerably improved. Therefore our college recommended that our graduate, Miyakawa Sumi, should be sent as a state-funded scholar to Britain to study domestic science.12
Thanks to the outstanding English training given by native speakers of English at To¯yo¯ Eiwa Girls’ High School, Sumi had a good command of English and was by far the best student in her English classes.13 Yasui Tetsu supported Sumi as both were Christians and graduates from the same college. Other factors must also have been taken into account. Sumi had shown a good understanding of other cultures and knew how to develop relationships with Westerners, especially British people as many of her teachers were British. Her dedication to teaching, her strong will and her energy in attempting to improve her students’ manners and 334
¯ E SUMI (1875–1948) AND DOMESTIC SCIENCE IN JAPAN O
lifestyles had all been demonstrated during her sixteen-month teaching career in Okinawa, and must have been significant factors in her selection. Domestic science was a new academic subject in Japan. She was expected to master the subject and to play a significant pioneering role in developing and establishing it after her return to Japan. Sumi’s brother, Hyo¯ichi, a graduate from the Japanese Imperial Navy Medical School, who subsequently pursued medical studies in Britain for three years, was particularly helpful in providing her with essential information.14 He recommended her to contact Arakawa Minoji, the Japanese consul in London, who had looked after Hyo¯ichi. Yasui also wrote a letter of introduction addressed to Miss Hughes, the principal of the Cambridge Training College where Yasui had studied. On 18 October 1902 Sumi left Yokohama by ship. She arrived on 17 December 1902, and soon found lodgings at 21 Lexham Gardens, London. Although she wrote a short autobiography and several articles about her life, her recollections of her life in Britain were limited and incomplete. More information about her activities in Britain are contained in her official reports.15 All of these were addressed to the Minister of Education because at that time all state-funded students were obliged to write study-abroad reports regularly for their sponsor, the Ministry of Education.16 Although Sumi’s original reports have not survived at the Ministry of Education, copies survived at her old college, Tokyo Women’s Teachers’ Training College, together with her letter sent to Takamine, its principal, dated 25 August 1906. Her reports were comprehensive and are the most reliable sources of information regarding her period overseas.17 According to her first report dated 24 October 1903, she entered Bedford College, a women’s college in the University of London, on 19 January 1903.18 She studied the teaching methodology of hygiene under the supervision of a female tutor until 28 June 1903. As the college did not teach domestic science, which she had been directed to study, she also attended training courses in laundry, cookery and sewing at Shoreditch Technical Institute in London twice a week between January and July 1903.19 Meanwhile she discovered that Battersea Polytechnic was teaching domestic science, so she enrolled on a course to train teachers at the department of domestic science there on 15 September 1903. A British acquaintance, who is believed to have been Miss Hughes, advised Sumi to study more important academic subjects such as education and psychology instead of domestic science. This acquaintance regarded domestic science as nothing but cookery. Although Sumi was tempted to follow this suggestion, she stuck faithfully to her official duty of studying domestic science. 335
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At this time Battersea Polytechnic was a kind of vocational college whose main objective was to teach practical skills to local people.20 Sumi soon discovered that domestic science was a relatively new subject even in Britain, and was not treated as a mainstream academic subject. Therefore the course she took was designed to teach women from the middle class and below useful techniques of household chores. According to her final official report, she studied cookery, needlework, laundry, housewifery, hygiene, chemistry, first aid and the theory of education.21 She recalled that her course consisted of 25 percent theory and 75 percent practice, and was intended to provide the students with much practical training. This curriculum was completely different from that in Japan, which mainly focused on theory. She found the British teaching method so beneficial that she adopted it in her later teaching in Japan. She was also impressed with the excellent facilities, which the department of domestic science at Battersea Polytechnic offered to students. She was convinced that it was vital for Japanese colleges to improve their facilities, which were much inferior to those in Britain. She was also certain that improvements in apparatus would upgrade the teaching standard of the subject. She passed all the examinations in the subjects, which she had studied there, and was awarded a graduation certificate in July 1905. Her studies at Battersea Polytechnic enabled her to understand how domestic science should be taught effectively, and to master all the practical skills required for teaching the subject. She began to have a much clearer idea of how to develop domestic science in Japan. As the Japanese Ministry of Education funded her for three years, she was expected to return to Japan in summer 1905. However, her stay in Britain was extended for another year because of the RussoJapanese War (1904–1905). Taking advantage of her extended stay, in September 1905 she decided to return to academic study at Bedford College, which was a more established academic institution. She was readmitted to the department of hygiene where at her own expense she studied the Public Health Acts, physiology, chemistry, physics and bacteriology.22 She also moved into a Bedford College dormitory because she wanted to investigate the students’ dormitory life. In her fifth report, she gave the following descriptions of students’ academic and dormitory life at Bedford College: College fees and dormitory fees here are both far more expensive than those in Japan. Therefore the facilities of the college used for teaching and living are fully equipped. Students are well nourished by college meals. Apart from lectures, the college entrusts the students with their own motivation and initiative to study. They are encouraged to attend 336
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any meeting, which is considered beneficial to expand their knowledge and to elevate their mind. The laboratories are also well equipped to meet the number of students enrolled in each course. Every student is expected to do experiments. The college provides services, which help to restore the students’ minds and bodies, so everybody here is in excellent health both physically and mentally.23
She was inspired by the high standard of teaching, students’ high motivation for their studies, their excellent academic performance and the outstanding quality of the dormitories. She was impressed by her most comfortable dormitory life to such an extent that she built similar dormitories when she later founded her own private school, Tokyo Kasei Gakuin, for her Japanese female students. She passed the examinations in all compulsory subjects and was awarded a diploma by Bedford College in July 1906.24 She also passed the examination to become an inspector of public hygiene in London and obtained the necessary certificate. Bedford College provided her with intellectual stimulation (which she could not obtain at Battersea Polytechnic) and scientific academic training. It also gave her the chance to reexamine the ways in which domestic science had been taught in Britain. She was dissatisfied with the prevailing narrow approach to the subject. She believed that domestic science was not a trivial subject, covering only the practical skills of housekeeping, but had the potential to develop into a mainstream subject, contributing to the fulfilment of people’s social lives and helping a country to prosper. She became convinced that to achieve this the subject should be explored from a much wider social perspective. Thanks to her academic training at Bedford College, she found real value in learning domestic science, and resolved to devote herself to the teaching, development and establishment of the subject in Japan. Apart from her studies at Bedford College and Battersea Polytechnic, she also attended summer training programmes at Oxford University in August 1903 and Cambridge University in July 1904.25 In addition, she participated in many conferences related to subjects such as women’s education, religious education, moral education and hygiene, held in London, York, Liverpool and Keswick. Miss Hughes suggested that Sumi should become acquainted with as many British people as possible, familiarize herself with their Western ways of thinking and living, and visit many schools to observe their lessons. Miss Hughes was confident that all these activities would be far more beneficial to Sumi’s future career as a teacher in Japan than academic studies such as attending lectures and reading books. Sumi took this advice and visited domestic science schools in Leeds, Shrewsbury and Ireland, and other educational institutions 337
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including infant schools, primary schools, secondary schools and universities.26 Her visits extended to social welfare institutions such as a nursing home for the aged, an orphanage and a workhouse. She also visited museums, art galleries, hospitals and factories. She stayed at the houses of British acquaintances in Leicester and Luton; this gave her the opportunity of observing British family life. Her detailed accounts and perceptive analyses of British households, especially women’s lifestyles, were published in her book Sanbo¯ Shugi (Three Key Components to Govern Japan: Wives, Religion and Weapons) in 1911.27 Sumi became convinced that Miss Hughes’ recommendation to visit British homes was the best way to study British society and culture. She was particularly impressed by the high educational level of upper or upper-middle class women and their household management, which helped their children to grow up to be assets to Britain. She was also moved by the significant role which Christian education played in their daily lives. A public lecture which she gave in London to a women’s society on women’s and family education in Japan, gave her an initial opportunity to examine Japan from an international perspective, and to discuss the pros and cons of Japanese family education and Japanese women’ roles at home, in comparison with their British equivalents. Her European tour between August and October 1905, visiting many educational institutions in Germany, Belgium, Holland and France, was also valuable for her future teaching career in Japan. Her visits to domestic science schools in Berlin and Amsterdam and Fröbel House in Germany, which was founded in honour of Friedrich Fröbel, the leading German educationalist, specializing in children’s education, were inspirational to her.28 This tour helped her to cultivate her international awareness and to broaden her understanding of European educational systems. After her four-year stay in Britain, she left London on 18 July 1906 for Liverpool from where she sailed to New York. She traversed America by train and returned to Yokohama by the Shinano-maru from Seattle arriving on 23 August.29 TEACHING CAREER IN JAPAN
Soon after her return to Japan, she was offered a teaching post at her old college, Tokyo Women’s Teachers’ Training College. While she was away, there had been a sharp rise in the number of female students proceeding to higher education. As many of them wanted to become domestic science teachers, there was a serious shortage of lecturers who could train them.30 The popularity of the subject was closely related to the climate of the time. When Sumi left Japan, it was government policy to encourage the nation to adopt 338
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Western culture. However, during her absence this changed to the new strategy of returning to Japanese traditional culture and lifestyle. To accommodate the government’s new policy, many schools emphasized education aimed at producing ryo¯sai kenbo (a good wife and wise mother), thus making domestic science the most important subject in the curriculum for women.31 The Ministry of Education desperately needed an expert on domestic science teaching, who was capable of dealing with this demand and further developing courses, so it had high expectations of Sumi, who had studied the subject in Britain as a state-funded student.32 She noted numerous weaknesses in the condition of domestic science teaching in Japan. Compared to Britain, Japanese teachers in this field were under-qualified. Teaching in Japan was dominated by theory-based lectures with hardly any practical training.33 Consequently classrooms used for domestic science were badly equipped and were not designed for housekeeping exercises.34 She took the initiative in implementing a strategic plan to overcome these limitations. As she had found Battersea Polytechnic’s teaching methods, stressing practical training, very effective, she followed that example and insisted on considerably increasing practical training classes, which were far more useful to women’s daily domestic lives. She wanted to make the curriculum, which was very narrow in Japan, more diverse, like the British one. However, she soon noticed that the subjects offered in Britain could not be replicated in Japan.35 Japanese lifestyles were very different from European in housing, diet and dress. She had to choose subjects, which would meet a need among Japanese housewives. Some subjects such as cooking, washing, cleaning and sewing had to be modified. It became vital for her to master Japanese cuisine and Western dishes, which appealed to Japanese people, and how to wash kimono. Using her limited spare time, she went to famous restaurants and dry cleaners in Tokyo to learn such skills.36 She also saw the need for a domestic science textbook, which could become the handbook for teaching and raise standards. In 1910 she published her first textbook entitled Kaji Jisshu¯ Kyo¯kasho (Textbook for Housekeeping Exercises).37 It was solid and gave detailed instructions about cleaning, home furnishing, washing and other housework. The book marked a new era in establishing domestic science as an academic ¯ yo¯ Kaji Kyo¯kasho subject in Japan. In 1917 her second publication O (Textbook for Applied Housekeeping) appeared in two volumes.38 The book was comprehensive and was superior to her first work. It had a much wider array of topics including sewing, hygiene, cookery, clothing, home-making, childcare, household accounts, knitting, embroidery, first aid, and nursing for both sick and elderly people. She also gave many public lectures, and was a guest speaker for domestic science training programmes throughout Japan. She took 339
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up several government posts, acting as a schools inspector and a supervisor of educational programmes, and was on a certificate exam¯ e Genju, a ination board for schoolteachers. In 1915 she married O Christian widower and applied her own housekeeping theories as a married woman.39 She worked hard, and fulfilled the expectations of the Ministry of Education. Her astonishingly full activities were rewarded by unprecedented speedy promotion to a professorship at Tokyo Women’s Teachers’ Training College in February 1907. This was followed by a decoration, which gave her the official title of josei hachii (josei ranking 8th) in September of the same year. When she retired in 1925 from Tokyo Women’s Teachers’ Training College after her nineteen-year service, she was raised to the josei 4th rank. In April 1925 she founded her own private school Tokyo Kasei Gakuin (Tokyo Home Economics Academy) to popularize domestic science. She believed this to be her final mission in life. Its main educational objectives were to provide women with an advanced level of both academic and practical domestic science training, to broaden their interests, to cultivate their minds and to make preparations for their marriage which would enable them to lead a happy family life as competent housewives.40 She believed that the prosperity of Britain stemmed from good family education and the impressive skills of British wives in managing their children and households, which she attributed to women’s education. She wanted Japan to follow the British example and establish an ideal educational system to produce enlightened women with practical domestic skills. She believed that as a result they would become good wives and wise mothers who would play a significant role in creating a stable and solid family life which would lay the foundations for the success and prosperity of Japan. She asserted that domestic science was an essential subject for Japanese society. Her outstanding administrative ability, careful planning of courses with a wide selection of subjects, and successful recruitment of well-qualified teachers, all contributed to the success and prestige of her academy. Many students entered her academy to study domestic science, and many became domestic science teachers. After her death on 6 January 1948 her academy was upgraded to university status, being called Tokyo Kasei Gakuin Daigaku (Tokyo Kasei Gakuin University) and developed into a fully established women’s higher educational institution with postgraduate courses.41 CONCLUSION
Sumi began her life with few marriage or career prospects, because of her birthmark. Nevertheless she had a happy marriage and many remarkable achievements as a teacher, as the founder and principal 340
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of Tokyo Home Economics Academy, as a founder of domestic science in Japan and as a promoter of women’s education. The key to her success was her education, her parents’ teaching of self-help and diligence and above all her Christian faith. After her conversion to Christianity she developed self-confidence and a readiness to sacrifice her own interests for the common good. Having studied domestic science as a state-funded student in Britain, she realized that her mission in life was to establish and popularize domestic science as a mainstream academic subject in Japan as it was indispensable to the creation of stable homes and a prosperous country. She had a strong sense of duty and wholeheartedly devoted herself to these tasks. She had a significant impact upon Japanese women’s education, ¯ e Sumi has come to symbolespecially domestic science teaching. O ize the establishment of domestic science in the Japanese educational system.42 ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
I wish to express my gratitude to the late Professor Yoshinaga Fumi who ¯ e Sumi at Tokyo Kasei Gakuin, Mrs Hazu Yoshie closely worked with O and Mrs Kawamura Kyo¯ko, for providing me with valuable sources written ¯ e Sumi. by and about O ENDNOTES 1 ¯ e Sumi, ‘Watashi no Ayunde Kita Michi’, in Tokyo Kasei Gakuin, O ¯ e Sumi Sensei, Tokyo: Tokyo Kasei Gakuin, 1974, pp. 1–2. So¯ritsusha O For details about the life of Thomas Blake Glover, see for instance, Scottish Samurai: Thomas Blake Glover 1838–1911 by Alexander McKay, Edinburgh: Canongate Press, 1993. 2 Matsumura Yoshimoto, Meiji Bunmei Kaika no Hanabana: Nihon Ryu¯gaku¯e sei Retsuden, in Tokyo Kasei Gakuin, Tokyo Kasei Gakuin So¯ritsusha O Sumi Sensei, Tokyo: Tokyo Kasei Gakuin, 2013, pp. 22–3. 3 Keio¯ Gijuku 150-nen-shi Shiryo¯shu¯ Henshu¯ Iinkai (ed.), Keio¯ Gijuku 150-nen-shi Shiryo¯shu¯, vol. 1, Tokyo: Keio¯ Gijuku Daigaku Shuppankai, 2012; Keio¯ Gijuku, Keio¯ Gijuku Nyu¯sha Cho¯, 1863–1901, Keio¯ University Archives, Tokyo. 4 Shimizu Shinta (ed.), Kaigun Eisei Seidoshi, vol. 2, Tokyo: Kaigun Gunikai, 1930, p. 40. 5 Personal interview with Yoshinaga Fumi, 24 June 2004, Hiratsuka, Kanagawa Prefecture; Miyakawa Sumiko, ‘Mi no Toge wa Ai no Muchi’, Shinjokai, 4:10, 1912, p. 35. 6 To¯yo¯ Eiwa Jogakuin 100-nen-shi Hensan Jikko¯ Iinkai (ed.), To¯yo¯ Eiwa Jogakuin 100-nen-shi, Tokyo: To¯yo¯ Eiwa Jogakuin, 1984, pp. 136–8. To¯yo¯ Eiwa Jogakko¯ was located in Azabu, Tokyo and its initial objective was to promote women’s education in Japan. As the foundation of the school coincided with the Westernization initiated by the Meiji government, this school became popular among the daughters of the new elite. 341
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7 8 9
10 11
12
13
14
15
16
17
18
19 20
¯ e, ‘Watashi no Ayunde Kita Michi’, p. 7. O Matsumura, Meiji Bunmei Kaika no Hanabana, p. 30. On Yasui, see Aoyama Nao, Yasui Tetsu Den, Tokyo: Tokyo Joshi Daigaku Do¯so¯kai Shuppan, 1949. ¯ e, ‘Watashi no Ayunde Kita Michi’, p. 23. O Watanabe Minoru, Kindai Nihon Kaigai Ryu¯gakushi, vol. 1, Tokyo: Ko¯dansha, 1977, pp. 105–107. Tokyo Joshi Ko¯to¯ Shihan Gakko¯ (ed.), Tokyo Joshi Ko¯to¯ Shihan Gakko¯ 60-nen-shi, Tokyo: Tokyo Joshi Ko¯to¯ Shihan Gakko¯, 1934, p. 85. ¯ hama Tetsuya, O ¯ e Sumi Sensei, Tokyo: Tokyo Kasei Gakuin Ko¯enkai, O 1978, p. 79. The record of issuing Hyo¯ichi’s passport to go to Britain by the Japanese Foreign Office survives. See Gaimusho¯, Ryoken Microfilm, 23, no. 1189, 5 September 1898, Gaiko¯ Shiryo¯kan Archives, Tokyo. Her reports on her studies written between October 1903 and August 1906 included her lengthy report and diary about her European tour dated 10 October 1905. Her travel record of her return from London to Tokyo dated 25 August 1906. Her final official report after her arrival in Japan, briefly outlining her academic achievements and other activities during her four-year stay in Britain. Miyakawa Sumi, ‘Shinpo¯sho from January 1903 to October 1903’, 24 October 1903; Miyakawa, ‘Shinpo¯sho from November 1903 to July 1904’, 31 July 1904; Miyakawa, ‘Shinpo¯sho from August 1904 to December 1904’, 31 December 1904; Miyakawa, ‘Shinpo¯sho from January 1905 to July 1905’, 31 July 1905; Miyakawa, ‘Shinpo¯sho from January 1906 to July 1906’, 25 August 1906; Miyakawa, ¯ shu¯ryoko¯ Ho¯kokusho’, 10 October 1905; Miyakawa, ‘O ¯ shu¯ Ryoko¯ ‘O Nikki’, 10 October 1905; Miyakawa, ‘Kicho¯ Ryoko¯ Nikki’, 25 August 1906; Miyakawa, ‘Ryu¯gaku Shimatsusho’, 25 August 1906. Copies of all these documents are kept at Josei Bunka Centre Archives, Ochanomizu Women’s University. Each report had to include the following: the name and address of his/ her educational institution, the list of subjects studied, the sums of his/ her enrolment fee and tuition fee, his/her examination results, the names of the degree and any prize awarded to him/her, any other important information and any urgent message which he/she wanted to convey to the Ministry of Education. Monbusho¯nai Kyo¯ikushi Hensankai (ed.), Meiji Iko¯ Kyo¯iku Seido Hattatsushi, vol. 4, Tokyo: Monbusho¯, 1938, pp. 462–4. Miyakawa Sumi, ‘Kicho¯ Ontodoke’, 25 August 1906, Josei Bunka Centre Archives, Ochanomizu Women’s University. Miyakawa, ‘Shinpo¯sho from January 1903 to October 1903’. The Bedford College student entry for Sumi simply gives her date of entry, date of leaving and date of death. Bedford College Students’ Records in 1903, Bedford College Archives. Miyakawa, ‘Shinpo¯sho from January 1903 to October 1903’. On Battersea Polytechnic, see H. Arrowsmith, Pioneering in Education for the Technologies – The Story of Battersea College Technology, Guildford: University of Surrey, 1966; Arthur Sowman, ‘The Battersea Polytechnic: Department of Domestic Science’, Education, 24 March 1904, p. 289. 342
¯ E SUMI (1875–1948) AND DOMESTIC SCIENCE IN JAPAN O
21 22
23 24 25 26 27
28 29 30 31 32
33
34 35 36
37 38 39 40
41
42
Miyakawa, ‘Ryu¯gaku Shimatsusho’. Ibid., Bedford College Students’ Records in 1903. On Bedford College, see Margaret J. Tuke, A History of Bedford College for Women, 1849–1937, London: Oxford University Press, 1939, pp. 158–60. Miyakawa, ‘Shinpo¯sho from January 1906 to July 1906’. Miyakawa, ‘Ryu¯gaku Shimatsusho’. Ibid. Ibid. ¯ e Sumiko, Sanbo¯ Shugi, Tokyo: Ho¯bunkan, 1911. In Sanbo¯ Shugi, O Sumi compared British households and lifestyles with those in Japan, and demonstrated her acute analytical skills which she developed thanks to her academic training at Bedford College. ¯ shu¯ryoko¯ Ho¯kokusho’; Miyakawa, ‘O ¯ shu¯ Ryoko¯ Nikki’. Miyakawa, ‘O Miyakawa, ‘Kicho¯ Ryoko¯ Nikki’. ¯ hama, O ¯ e Sumi Sensei, p. 102. O Matsumura, Meiji Bunmei Kaika no Hanabana, p. 42. ¯ e Sumi’, Nihon Kyo¯iku Yamamoto Takaya, ‘Kyo¯iku Jinbutsu Shiwa 73: O Shinbun, 13 January 1996. Miyakawa Sumiko, ‘Kijo¯ no Kaseigaku wa Yakuni Tatanu’, Taisho¯ Fujin, 1 January 1913, pp. 58–9. ¯ e, Sanbo¯ Shugi, pp. 99–105. O ¯ e, ‘Watashi no Ayunde Kita Michi’, pp. 26–7. O Yoshinaga Fumi, ‘Kaseigaku no Haha, Ko¯seki o Tsumugu’, Nihon Keizai Shinbun, 6 October 2000. Miyakawa Sumiko, Kaji Jisshu¯ Kyo¯kasho, Tokyo: Gen Gendo¯, 1910. ¯ e Sumiko, O ¯ yo¯ Kaji Kyo¯kasho, 2 vols, Tokyo: Jitsubunkan, 1918. O ¯ e Sumi, ‘Kajika no Shimei’, Kaji Kenkyu¯, 1:3, 1920, p. 25. O Miyakawa Sumiko, ‘Katei ni Okeru Seishin Kyo¯iku’, Shinjokai, 3:3, 1909, pp. 14–16. ¯ e Sumi Sensei o Seni’, in Tokyo Kasei Gakuin, Yamaguchi Takashi, ‘O ¯ e Sumi Sensei, Tokyo: Tokyo Kasei Tokyo Kasei Gakuin So¯ritsusha: O Gakuin, 2013, pp. 4–19. Tokyo Kasei Gakuin Ko¯enkai Azumakai (ed.), Tokyo Kasei Gakuin So¯ritsu 90-shu¯nen: Shashin de Tsuzuru Gakuin no Ayumi, Tokyo: Tokyo Kasei ¯ nishi Sechi, ‘Watashi no Sonkeisuru Joshi Kyo¯ikuka: Gakuin, 2013; O ¯ e Sumi Sensei’, Bunkyo¯, no. 8, 1979, pp. 62–70. O
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PART III: SCHOLARS AND WRITERS sJAPANESE s
30
Yanaihara Tadao (1893–1961) and His Tour of Britain, 1920–1921 SUSAN C. TOWNSEND
Yanaihara Tadao (1893–1961) is probably best known for his opposition to the so-called ‘China Incident’ in 1937 and has been described as a ‘scholar, teacher, Christian, and pioneer in Japanese colonial studies’.1 He occupied the Chair of Colonial Policy at Tokyo Imperial University from 1923 until he was forced to resign in 1937 after the notorious ‘Yanaihara Incident’ caused a scandal, which rocked the academic world.2 Yanaihara resumed his teaching after the war and taught international economics at the University of Tokyo. He served as president of the University from 1951 to 1957. Yanaihara’s study of Japanese and international colonialism was the most comprehensive of its kind before the Pacific War. His thought was profoundly influenced by the internationalist and educator, Nitobe Inazo¯ (1862–1933), and the founder of the mukyo¯kai or ‘Non-church’ Christian movement, Uchimura Kanzo¯ (1861–1930). It was Uchimura who persuaded Yanaihara to convert to Christianity and, after Uchimura’s death in 1930, Yanaihara became a leading 345
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light of the Non-church movement. His far-sighted, liberal critique of Japanese colonial policy was informed by Nitobe’s humanitarian and liberal ideals as well as by Uchimura’s Christian concepts of social and international justice. His ideas and principles, however, were also shaped by his travels through the British Isles from his arrival in London in December 1920 until his departure for a tour of Europe in September 1921. This chapter charts his impressions of Britain and examines the ways in which his studies influenced his thought. LONDON LIFE
A study-tour of Europe and the United States was an essential part of the training of young graduates destined for positions within Japan’s imperial universities, but it was less common for budding academics to be sent to Britain. One of the main reasons why Yanaihara found himself in London was that in the early 1880s J.R. Seeley, Regius Professor of History in Cambridge, was partly responsible for establishing the history of empire as a defined field of study. In addition, Nitobe’s economic theories were profoundly influenced by Adam Smith’s Wealth of Nations and, indeed, Yanaihara was tasked with cataloguing Adam Smith’s library after Nitobe had it shipped to Tokyo Imperial University.3 Yanaihara spent most of his time in London studying in the Reading Room of the British Museum. He also attended lectures at Toynbee Hall and the London School of Economics. However, he was also a keen tourist and traveller and his diaries record in meticulous detail many aspects of his life in London; visits to museums, churches, art galleries, concerts and public meetings, as well as his impressions of his tour of the Celtic Fringe; Wales, Scotland and Ireland. His interests provide further evidence of the continuing influence of his great teacher, Uchimura Kanzo¯, and to some extent Yanaihara’s physical tour of the British Isles becomes a continuation of his intellectual journey in Uchimura’s footsteps beginning with a Congregationalist connection through which he secured lodgings. Uchimura himself never visited Britain and, indeed, he once commented: ‘To be sure, my Christian faith comes from New England, the home of Puritanism.’4 However, during his studies at Amherst College in Massachusetts in the 1880s, he had been influenced by Congregationalists and had developed close connections with Congregational Church pastors in Japan such as Yokoi Tokio (1857–1927) and Ebina Danjo¯ (1856–1937). All were Kumamoto Band Christians converted by the American missionary Captain L.L. Janes in Sapporo. Ebina was minister at the Hongo¯ Congregationalist Church near Tokyo Imperial University where another of Yanaihara’s teachers, Yoshino Sakuzo¯ (1878–193), was a member of the congregation.5 On 4 December 1920, 346
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the day after arriving in London, Yanaihara secured lodgings at the home of Mrs Cook, ‘The Firs’, Woodford Green. Mrs Cook was the widow of a well-known Congregationalist minister and had been recommended to Yanaihara by his friend Inoue Kajiro¯ who was then stationed in the Japanese Consulate in London.6 Yanaihara quickly settled into the routine of the Cook household. Each day at 7.30 in the morning a maid would knock on the door to wake him and at 8 o’clock breakfast was served, after which Mrs Cook would lead family prayers and read from the Bible.7 Over the duration of his stay in London, Mrs Cook, her sons Arnold and Bernard, an assortment of grandchildren, friends and fellow Congregationalists treated Yanaihara as one of the family. Indeed Mrs Cook’s granddaughter, Jean, who was around four years old at the time, referred to him as ‘Uncle Hara’. Many years later Jean recalled that ‘Uncle Hara’ presented her with a Japanese doll and a card commemorating the anniversary of the founding of the Sunday Schools of Japan.8 Woodford Green is situated in the North East of London close to Epping Forest where he would often walk with Mrs Cook’s second son Bernard. One of Yanaihara’s first excursions was to the Whitechapel area in order to register at the Alien Registry as required by law. He entered St. Jude’s Church, and was struck by the memorial to its former vicar Ernest Courtenay Carter (1858–1912) and his wife Lilian (1867–1912), the daughter of Thomas Hughes, author of Tom Brown’s Schooldays. The couple met their death on the SS Titanic on 15 April 1912, Lilian famously refusing to leave her husband when offered a place on a lifeboat. Yanaihara painstakingly copied the words of the memorial in English in full, including the epitaph: ‘Loving and pleasant in their lives / In death they were not divided.’9 The fact that Yanaihara was recently married and was painfully missing his wife, Aiko, and their two-year old son Isaku [Isaac], perhaps explains the huge impression the memorial made on him.10 The church was also famous for G.F. Watts’ mosaic ‘Time, Death and Judgment’ (1866) then situated on the western exterior wall above a fountain and this work appears to have fuelled an interest in Watts’ other religious works.11 On recalling his first impressions of this part of London, Yanaihara noted that a great number of Jews resided in the East End. It is unsurprising that, coming from a country with no history of Jewish settlement, Yanaihara should find this noteworthy, although after Japanese troops took part in the Siberian intervention in 1917, so-called ‘Jewish experts’ in Japan began to circulate the notorious Protocols of Zion. He later visited Palestine and became a champion of the Zionist cause and the right of Jews to settle in Palestine. His stance on Jewish settlement, however, grew out of a wider theory about the right of abode of all peoples as a global principle. 12 347
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Yanaihara found it remarkable that London’s museums and galleries offered free admission even to foreign tourists. He frequently visited the Natural History Museum, St. Paul’s Cathedral and the National Gallery. He was particularly interested in works of art with a religious theme and he carefully recorded his impressions of paintings such as William Holman Hunt’s ‘Light of the World’ in St. Paul’s Cathedral, and Reynolds’ ‘Holy Family’ in the National Gallery. He noted how different Reynolds’ painting was to medieval depictions of Joseph and Mary as divine, and somehow ‘unhuman’. ‘In contrast’, he exclaimed, ‘look at this painting by Reynolds!’ Joseph here is robust, healthy, thoughtful and unmistakably human. Mary is more humble village wife than queen and the family is set within a natural landscape.13 From the fleshly ‘Holy Family’ he contemplated the deep blue of Watts’ ‘Hope’ and Turner’s simple yet ‘sublime’ ‘Evening Star’. He also visited the Royal Academy of Arts to see the Exhibition of Spanish Paintings, which included many works by Goya.14 On New Year’s Day 1921 he heard Handel’s Messiah at the Albert Hall featuring the famous tenor Ben Davies, the ‘beautiful’ contralto Phyllis Lett and the soprano Ruth Vincent: ‘Great music, great sermon, great worship’ he commented. He also attended a concert in Queen’s Hall featuring Beethoven’s ‘Mount of Olives’ and ‘Mass in D’ performed by the London Choral Society. He was clearly impressed not only by the music of the Messiah, but also by the English choral tradition in Church of England worship.15 One of his first purchases in London was a gramophone player and gramophone recording of the Messiah to take back to Japan.16 He was an avid theatre-goer often accompanied by Mrs Cook and her family and friends. He saw Alice in Wonderland at the Victoria Palace Theatre, Shakespeare’s A Midsummer Night’s Dream at the Court Theatre, Sloane Square, calling it a ‘truly delightful comedy’, The Tempest at the Aldwych Theatre and Olivia a stage adaptation of Oliver Goldsmith’s The Vicar of Wakefield. He was thus very interested in the question of the Sunday opening of theatres when a discussion appeared in The Times with Canon Hon. James Adderley seeing no reason why going to theatre on Sundays should necessarily clash with Church services. On the other hand George Bernard Shaw vehemently opposed the idea. Yanaihara was surprised that a senior cleric would suggest that church services be moved so that people could both go to church and enjoy a play and suggested that it was a lazy compromise. ‘In the days before the coming of the steam train and in the age of the steam train’, wrote Yanaihara, ‘for a gentleman, Christianity is the backbone of English civilization. It is as true as ever. Ah! the Lord and the Lord’s name be praised, for his Kingdom cometh.’17 348
YANAIHARA TADAO (1893–1961) AND HIS TOUR OF BRITAIN, 1920–1921
THE LEAGUE OF NATIONS CELEBRATIONS
Yanaihara’s former tutor Nitobe Inazo¯ was appointed under-secretary general to the League of Nations from 1920 to 1926, thereafter to serve in the Institute of Pacific Relations. Yanaihara attended several meetings of the League of Nations Union while in London. On 10 January 1921 the League celebrated its first anniversary and on 12 January Yanaihara attended a mass meeting at the Albert Hall presided over by the Minister of Education H.A.L. Fisher with Lord Robert Cecil, Viscount Grey and George Barnes as the main speakers. Messages from the King and Prime Minister Lloyd George were read out to the audience to great applause. Yanaihara noted Cecil’s endorsement of the Prime Minister’s proclamation that the League proceedings should be public and transparent, and that its watchwords were ‘organize’ and ‘educate’; its task was to influence public opinion in the cause of peace. It was appropriate, therefore, that the meeting ended with a film of the Geneva Assembly showing the delegates and secretaries at work.18 However, The New York Times reported that objections to the filming on the grounds that it would be undignified had been overturned after publicity managers had pointed out that the League needed public support. While the newspaper considered the movie with its scenes of war-devastated France and armaments statistics ‘impressive enough’, the senior statesmen who were so obviously posing for the camera, clasping hands and waving hats, suffered at the hands of the cameraman.19 British newspapers such as The Times were less critical. Indeed, on the following day it reported that: ‘The film shows the outstanding delegates as they appeared while addressing the Assembly and while enjoying social intercourse in the gardens of the League’s headquarters.’20 The New York Times appears to reflect the relative distancing of the United States from the League. Yanaihara’s response was characteristically thoughtful and demonstrates his remarkable propensity for seeing beyond propaganda and questioning its meaning. He placed the League of Nations celebration within the context of events earlier in the day. In the morning he had been window-shopping in Oxford Street when an unemployed labourer approached him and asked for ‘some copper’. Having no small change apart from a shilling, he made the labourer wait in the street while he went into the Times Book Club to buy something to read so that he could give the man some change. He bitterly regretted the apparent meanness of his action: ‘What a miser I was! Loathsome! Shame!’ Afterwards he attended a lecture tour at the British Museum on Greek architecture and sculpture and then went to a performance of ‘The Beggars Opera’ at the Lyric Theatre, Hammersmith, before arriving at the Albert Hall. He wrote: ‘Unemployed – Greek architecture – “Beggars” – League of Nations 349
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– which of these is the more real in human life? Perhaps they are real or perhaps they are all vanity; castles in the air.’21 MARIE STOPES AND THE POPULATION PROBLEM
However, it was not only the cultural and spiritual dimensions of life that he was interested in. While admitting that he was an idealist, he also intensely practical and did not shrink from considering what he termed very ‘human’ questions. In 1921 Marie Stopes22 and Humphrey Verdon Roe established the first birth control clinic in the world. Shortly after arriving in London Yanaihara read three of Stopes’ books beginning with Married Love which was first published in March 1918. He was clearly fascinated by her endeavours to discuss publically what had previously been hidden. He went on to read Radiant Motherhood published in 1920 and had apparently spent New Year’s Day in the Reading Room of the British Museum reading Stopes’ manual on birth control Wise Parenthood: A Book for Married People (1918). He may have been aware that Stopes had studied at Tokyo Imperial University between August 1907 and January 1909 partly in pursuit of the first great love in her life, Fujii Kenjiro, a married botanist whom she had met while studying in Munich. Unfortunately for Stopes her love, recounted in the form of an epistolary novel Love-Letters of a Japanese (1911), was both unrequited and unconsummated.23 While Married Love provided advice on the most complete aspects of the pleasures of sexual union, Yanaihara suggested, it also emphasized that the enjoyment of pleasure came with responsibilities. In particular, he believed that we should approve of Stopes’ work because of its emphasis on the unity of the bodily and spiritual aspects of married life.24 Both before and after the war, Yanaihara was interested in women’s education and joined the Board of the New Life Movement, which was initiated in 1952 shortly after he became president of Tokyo University. The movement involved government and large economic corporations which aimed to improve the lives of ordinary people in a time of austerity and government demands for selfsacrifice as the country got back on its feet. Housewives were at the forefront of this movement and, in 1958, a special committee placed family planning at the top of a list of priority areas including ‘popularization of the ideology of family planning’ and ‘popularization of birth control and prevention of abortion’.25 For Yanaihara, while birth control was part of the solution to the jinko¯ mondai or population problem, even more important was the free movement of population which was central to his ideas about colonization.26 Although a vociferous critic of the exploitative nature of imperialism he also viewed empires more positively as a means of 350
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allowing the free movement of population, innovation and access to resources necessary for human survival.27 RACISM AND EMPIRE
Yanaihara was outraged, therefore, when on 26 January 1921 Australian journalist Keith Murdoch’s article ‘Australia Day’ appeared in The Times extolling the wide spaces and ‘national spirit’ of a land containing five million people of the ‘purest stock in the world’. According to Murdoch the notion of ‘White Australia’ and racial purity was more sacred even than its ties with Britain and the ‘White Australian Faith’ was now being threatened by Asia’s ‘teeming millions’ and Japan’s ‘constantly filling and refilling’ cradles. Murdoch asked whether Great Britain was ‘ready to stake all on the preservation of white civilization unmixed in Australia’.28 The following day The Times leader ‘Dominion Faiths’ answered: ‘If there is any doubt that Great Britain would be ready, in case of need to support Australia on this issue with all her strength, then we may say farewell, not only to Australia but also to the other Dominions; for New Zealand, South Africa, Canada, all hold the same belief with almost equal determination.’ The article chided the British people for not taking ‘the race question’ seriously since ‘we have no knowledge of the influence upon white civilization of a non-European population and no experience of the evils of mixed blood’.29 Yanaihara was naturally outraged by this last sentence. He hoped that the British Empire would not prevent the free movement of peoples from heavily populated regions into the Dominions on the grounds of colour. The notion of the ‘Australian Faith’, he remarked, turned ‘Christian Faith’ into ‘White civilization Faith’, corrupting the most basic principles of Christianity. Ideas of racial purity and talk of the evils of mixing whites and non-whites went against the Christian spirit which was based on the unity of all peoples. Talk of ‘white civilization’ was nothing more than ‘national egoism’.30 Yanaihara’s insistence on the free movement of people globally was one of the foundation stones of his theory of colonial settlement as seen in his major work Shokumin oyobi Shokumin Seisaku [Colonial People and Colonial Policy] which represented the fruits of his research in the British Museum’s Reading Room. It was largely based on the nineteenth-century classic works on colonization such as Edward Gibbon Wakefield’s View of the Art of Colonisation (1849), J.R. Seeley’s The Expansion of England (1883), George Cornewall Lewis’ Government of Dependencies (1841) and Albert Keller’s Colonization: A Study of the Founding of New Societies (1908), as well as Adam Smith’s Wealth of Nations and On Colonies (1776). It is clear that Yanaihara did not see colonisation per se as a great or even necessary 351
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evil but as a valuable means of coping with the needs of an expanding world population. He argued that: Colonization not only increases the power to support the world’s population but also makes the economic life of humanity richer. That is to say that it extends the areas of natural resources which can benefit mankind, it increases the productive power of labour and capital and causes the development of international division of labour thus encouraging diversification both quantitatively and qualitatively in the human economy and its production and consumption.31
Yanaihara’s sensitivity to white racism echoed Uchimura’s own experience of anger and disillusionment with so-called ‘White Civilization’ during a visit to the United States in 1894. Before his departure, Uchimura stated, ‘my idea of the Christian America was lofty, religious, Puritanic. I dreamed of its temples, hills, and rocks that rang with hymns and praises.’ He dismissed tales of white racism as ‘utterly impossible’.32 He was truly appalled, therefore, when he saw at first-hand the racism of white Americans towards those he called the descendants of the ‘Hamites’ – African-Americans, and towards the Chinese who were busy building the continent’s railroads. He deplored the ‘cruel and inhuman means’ by which the land was wrested from the indigenous American population whom he called ‘the copper-colored children’.33 He found little evidence of the supposed superiority of Christianity over other religions or of American society over Japanese society. VISIT TO THE CELTIC FRINGE
On 12 July 1921 Yanaihara was clearly excited (exclaiming in English: ‘Merrily, merrily, shall I go now!’34) to leave London for a tour of Wales, Ireland and Scotland. He toured North Wales mostly by ‘motor charabanc’, which took him through the beautiful Welsh passes of Aberglaslyn and Llanberis. At the time he was reading From Workhouse to Westminster: The Life Story of Will Crooks MP (1907) an inspiring story of the Christian obligation to change the lives of others, which had been recommended to him by a Mr Goodwin of the London Missionary Society.35 Despite its legends and castles, Yanaihara was not sorry to board the ferry from Holyhead. He felt relief and freedom in leaving behind the Welsh hills, which had (unusually) been scorched red by a period of drought. ‘From the hordes of Lloyd George’s worshippers,’ he wrote, ‘I have come among Sinn Feiners and the difference is huge.’36 He arrived in Dublin on 19 July 1921 at a critical historical juncture just ten days after a truce between the IRA and the British Army temporarily ended the conflict known as the Anglo-Irish War, which had begun two years previously. The poverty he witnessed in the 352
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south prompted him to research British colonial policy in Ireland and, later, to compare British policies to Japanese colonial policy in Korea.37 After just two days he travelled from Dublin to Belfast and found the contrast between these two cities remarkable. At the docks he made a note of the memorial to the sinking of the Belfast-made Titanic, but he was struck by the contrast between the prosperouslooking shops and ‘splendid thoroughfares’ of Belfast and the impoverished streets of Dublin. The divide between the two halves of the country signified by the flying of Sinn Fein and Ulster Union flags was palpable. Despite the evident riches of its shops, Yanaihara found Belfast ‘commonplace’ and had to kill time by going to see a movie while he waited to board his return ship. He disliked the people of Ulster, surmising that, ‘they are the sort of people who become rich and though they own two jackets yet they would not give one to their neighbours in the south who have none’. 38 From Belfast he arrived in Glasgow on 22 July where he visited the Cathedral and the Necropolis to see the statue of John Knox. He then walked to George Square to see its rich heritage of statues, noting in particular, Sir Walter Scott, Robert Burns, James Watt, Gladstone, Thomas Campbell, Robert Peel and David Livingstone. He spent the next month savouring the glories of the Highlands staying for a while near the ‘romantic’ Loch Katrine and Stronlacher. There he was reminded of Psalm 23, ‘The Lord is my shepherd; I shall not want/ He maketh me to lie down in green pastures.’ HOMAGE TO ENGLISH PURITANISM
He completed his tour of Britain by travelling south via the Lake District and then on to Oxford, visiting Rugby School to see the grave of Thomas Arnold and, as might be expected, also visiting Shakespeare’s Stratford-upon-Avon nearby. From Cambridge he went on what might be described as a ‘pilgrimage’ to Oliver Cromwell’s grammar school in Huntingdon, now a museum, and John Bunyan’s church in Bedford. As a young man Yanaihara had read John Bunyan’s Pilgrim’s Progress. Perhaps he identified with Bunyan’s protagonist Christian who flees the city leaving his wife and children behind after reading that it will be burned to the ground. In embracing a new and uncompromising faith, the young Yanaihara had consigned his ancestors to the flames. Calvinism dominated mukyo¯kai thinking. According to Uchimura, ‘Calvinist’ personalities such as Cromwell, Milton, Rembrandt and the Pilgrim fathers represented ‘England at its best, and America at its purest.’39 Unlike Uchimura, Yanaihara was not from samurai stock and was proud of his commoner roots. In an essay entitled ‘Persons whom I Respect’ he drew attention to the ‘common people type’, which for him was charac353
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terized by the historical figure of Oliver Cromwell. A central feature of mukyo¯kai belief is the concept of mukyo¯kai-shugisha, which can be translated as ‘mukyo¯kai believers’, but in this context is more accurately rendered as ‘mukyo¯kai personalities’. Such charismatic personalities are provided by God at certain points in history because they are able to free His spirit and restore His eminence. While today Cromwell is associated with appalling cruelty during his campaigns in Ireland, even Nitobe, a Quaker rather than a mukyo¯kai Christian, appealed for a Cromwell personality to save Japan. In 1930 he wrote: A Cromwell is badly wanted here just now. We don’t want an armed Oliver with his Ironsides to come among us. We have no use for arms. But we do need a strong and seeing man of his calibre to scatter to the winds a body of chattering old men who like to sit in a long parliament, babbling forever and settling nothing.40
Thomas Carlyle (1795–1881) was another mukyo¯kai personality and, indeed, Uchimura Kanzo¯ was flattered to be called the ‘Carlyle of Japan’.41 Yanaihara read Carlyle’s biography of Cromwell, and Cromwell was later included in a series of essays published in 1949 entitled Zoku Yo no Sonkeisuru Jinbutsu [More Personalities Whom I Respect] which also included Isaiah, Paul, Luther, and Uchimura. Yanaihara returned to London on 27 August ‘having seen many people and visited many places associated with famous historical figures’.42 On 12 September he left Britain to begin his tour of Europe. His diaries demonstrate the vigour and flexibility with which he was able to absorb new experiences, philosophies and cultures at a critical juncture in Japanese history when intellectuals were challenged by new ideas and technologies. His faith was also a peculiar blend of Western individualism and traditional Japanese ethics mediated by Uchimura’s Calvinistic Christianity and Nitobe’s idealism and humanism. These influences allowed him to mount a critique of Japanese colonial policy, which transcended Japan’s narrow national interests and ultimately to resist the thought control of the 1930s in a way which very few Japanese intellectuals felt able to do. Ref. http://historyofchristianityinjapan.wordpress.com/tag/tadaoyanaihara/ ENDNOTES 1
2
‘Dedication’ in Ramon H. Myers and Mark R. Peattie (ed.) The Japanese Colonial Empire, 1895–1945, Princeton, N. J.: Princeton University Press, 1984 On 1 October 1937 in a lecture entitled ‘Kami no Kuni’ [The Kingdom of God] he took a pacifist stand against the undeclared war in China, 354
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3 4
5
6 7
8
9 10
11
12
13 14 15 16 17
18 19
20
21 22
entreating his listeners to ‘bury our country for a while so that her ideals may live’. The president of the university and colleagues in the Law and Economics Department put pressure on him to resign. For further details of the incident and Yanaihara’s colonial writings see Susan C. Townsend, Yanaihara Tadao and Japanese Colonial Policy: Redeeming Empire, Richmond: Curzon Press, 2000 Townsend, p. 40 ¯ yama Tsunao and Ray A. Moore, ‘Uchimura Kanzo¯ at Cited in O Amherst’, in Ray A Moore (ed.) Culture and Religion in Japanese-American Relations: Essays on Uchimura Kanzo¯, 1861–1930, Ann Arbor: University of Michigan, Center for Japanese Studies, 1981, 21–33, p. 21 John F. Howes, Japan’s Modern Prophet: Uchimura Kanzo¯ 1861–1930 Vancouver: University of British Columbia, 2005, pp. 76 and 272 Letter from Yanaihara Katsu dated 13 October 1996 Yanaihara Tadao ‘Diaries’, Yanaihara Tadao Zenshu [The Complete Works of Yanaihara Tadao] ed. by Nanbara Shigeru et. al., 29 vols., Tokyo: Iwanami Shoten, 1963–5, xxviii, p. 521 I am grateful to Dr Clyde Binfield for sending me a photocopy of a letter sent to him by Mrs Jean Gill (née Cook) dated 4 April 1997. ‘Diaries,’ p. 522 Yanaihara received authorization from the university to extend his study tour until 3 March 1923 so that he could visit the United States. However, just after he arrived in New York his tour was cut short when he heard that Aiko was seriously ill in hospital. He arrived back in Tokyo on 9 February and Aiko died on 26 February 1923. ‘Nempu’ [Chronological Record], YTZ, xxix, p. 832 St. Jude’s Church has since been demolished and the Carter memorial can now be found in St. Mary the Virgin, Longcot, Oxfordshire and the mosaic in now in St. Giles-in-the-Fields church in London’s West End. See‘Shion Undo¯ nitsuite’ [On the Zionist movement], YTZ, i, pp. 541– 94. For further research on Yanaihara’s vision of global society see Nakano Ryoko, ‘Uncovering Shokumin: Yanaihara Tadao’s concept of global civil society’, Social Science Japan Journal, 9, no. 2 (October 2006), pp. 187–202. ‘Diaries,’ pp. 528–9 ‘Diaries,’ p. 523 ‘Diaries,’ pp. 583–4 Interview with Yanaihara Katsu 22 June 1995. ‘Diaries,’ pp. 553–4. ‘Sunday Opening Of Theatres’ Times [London, England] 25 January 1921: 8. The Times Digital Archive accessed 27 February 2014. ‘Diaries,’ pp. 545–6 ‘British Celebrate League’s First Year’ New York Times 13 January 1921. http://query.nytimes.com/gst/abstract.html accessed 28 January 2014 ‘The League’s First Year,’ Times [London, England] 13 January 1921: 12. The Times Digital Archive accessed 28 February 2014 ‘Diaries,’ p. 545 For an account of Marie Stopes and Japan see chapter by Carmen Blacker in Britain and Japan, 1859–1991, Themes and Personalities, ed. Hugh Cortazzi and Gordon Daniels, Routledge, 1991. 355
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23
24 25
26 27
28
29
30 31 32
33 34 35 36 37
38 39
40 41
42
‘Introduction’ Marie Stopes Married Love, ed. with an introduction and notes by Ross McKibbin Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2008, p. xi. ‘Diaries,’ p. 520 Takeda Hiroko, The Political Economy of Reproduction in Japan: Between Nation-State and Everyday Life London and New York: Routledge Curzon, 2005, pp. 130–2 See, for example,‘Jinko¯ Kajo¯ron’ [Overpopulation] YTZ, i, pp. 610–58 See, for example, ‘Sekai Keizai Hattenkatei toshite no Shokuminshi’ [The history of colonies as the development of world economies] in YTZ, iv, pp. 141–69. ‘Australia Day’ Times [London, England] 26 January 1921: 11. The Times Digital Archive, accessed 26 February 2014. ‘Dominion Faiths’ Times [London, England] 27 January 1921: 11. The Times Digital Archive, accessed 26 February 2014. ‘Diaries,’ p. 553 YTZ, i, p. 197 Uchimura Kanzo¯, ‘How I Became a Christian, out of my Diary’ in The Complete Works of Kanzo¯ Uchimura with notes and comments by Yamamoto Taijiro and Muto Yoichi, 7 vols. Tokyo: Kyobunkwan, 1971, vol. i, pp. 105–6 Uchimura, How I became a Christian,’ pp. 111–12 ‘Diaries,’ p. 629 ‘Diaries,’ p. 630. ‘Diaries,’ p. 633 For details of this comparison see Susan C. Townsend, Yanaihara Tadao and the Irish Question: a comparative analysis of the Irish and Korean questions, 1919–36,’ Irish Historical Studies, xxx:118, November 1996, 195–205 ‘Diaries,’ p. 634 Uchimura, ‘Alone with God and Me’, Complete Works of Kanzo¯ Uchimura vol. iii, p. 136 Nitobe Inazô, Editorial Jottings, vol. I, p. 98 ¯ ta Yu¯zo¯, ‘Uchimura Kanzo¯: The Carlyle of Japan’ in Ray A Moore O (ed.) Culture and Religion in Japanese-American Relations 55–69, p. 57 ‘Diaries,’ pp 649–55
356
31
Ichikawa Sanki (1886–1970): Expert in English Philology and Literature YOSHIFUMI SAITO
INTRODUCTION
Ichikawa Sanki is best known for his contribution to the development of English philology in Japan. Eibunpo¯ Kenkyu¯ [Studies in English Grammar], his most influential work published in 1912, is often eulogized as the first memorable landmark in its history. ‘Eibunpo¯ Kenkyu¯ marks the starting point of genuinely academic English philology in Japan. The latter half of the Meiji Era, in which the reputation of Saito¯ Hidesaburo¯ (1866–1929) as an English grammarian reached its peak, can be called the Saito¯ Era,’ Takanashi Kenkichi, historian of English studies in Japan, writes in his introductory review of English studies in the Taisho¯ Era, ‘so the Taisho¯ Era can be most aptly named the Ichikawa Era.’1 Eibunpo¯ Kenkyu¯ is Ichikawa’s first substantial work in the field of English philology, but the fact that it was published in the very first year of the Taisho¯ Era has tended to 357
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tempt many of his biographers to describe this small book as more significantly epoch-making than it really was, just as the symbolism of the figure 3 (san in Japanese), which recurs like a musical motif in the record of his family, has tempted some others to adopt a clear-cut tripartite structure in their accounts of his life.2 Ichikawa should be portrayed through a fuller account of the multifarious achievements he made in the fields of philology, linguistics, literary explication, specialist education, English language teaching (ELT) and translation. EARLY YEARS
Ichikawa Sanki was born in Tokyo in 1886, the second son of Ichikawa Sanken who had followed the family tradition of classical Chinese studies and calligraphy and established himself as a professional calligrapher. Sanki himself studied calligraphy and Chinese classics from early childhood under his father’s instructions and those of Sanyo¯, the eldest of the three Ichikawa brothers. He spent most of his time in this culturally refined ambience. During his elementaryschool days he gradually diverged from this family tradition to pursue his self-acquired interest in natural history by collecting plants and insects as well as in visiting museums. At the age of ten he started keeping a diary – a habit which, together with its purely descriptive style and positivist approach to facts, stayed with him for the rest of his life3 – and, at the age of eleven, he started learning English from the same elder brother. All these childhood interests, habits and pursuits by degrees moulded his scholarly character and brought him to set out on the quest for knowledge. Ichikawa’s substantial struggle with English started when he was a third-year student at the First Prefectural Junior High School, when he took to reading English books on natural history. Every Sunday he went to the Imperial Library in Ueno and borrowed such books as Insects at Home, Insects Abroad and Butterflies of North America, which he read closely, consulting a dictionary of poor quality every time he came across an unknown word. In the same year he also read Hooker’s Botany, which he bought at a secondhand bookstore in Kanda, and in his fifth year of junior high school Goodrich’s Pictorial Natural History. Thus, he was initiated into English studies through the study of natural history. This is also attested by his memory of the words he learned in those days, which include ‘petal’, ‘pollen’, ‘anther’, ‘stamen’, ‘pistil’, ‘calyx’, ‘style (in the sense of ‘a thin extension of a flower that bears the stigma’), ‘monocotyledonous’, ‘phanerogamous’ and ‘cryptogamous’.4 In March 1903, he graduated from junior high school and, in July, took the examination for entrance to the First High School, predecessor of the present College of Arts and Sciences, the University of Tokyo. Scoring rather poorly in mathematics, physics and science, 358
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but almost perfectly in English, he passed the examination. During the two-month summer vacation before entering high school, Ichikawa diligently attended Saito¯ Hidesaburo¯’s classes at his Seisoku Eigo Gakko¯ [Regular English School]. Such was his admiration for Saito¯’s elaborate system of grammatical analysis that he went so far as to copy by hand magazine articles by Saito¯ on English grammar. He continued to practise the same system, after entering high school, in analysing authentic texts in preparation for his reading classes, thereby always staying at the top of his class in English. The English books he read in class or self-study in these high-school days included J.K. Jerome’s Three Men in a Boat, Hamlet, Merchant of Venice, Yone Noguchi’s From the Eastern Sea, Blackie’s Self-Culture, Uchimura Kanzo¯’s How I Became a Christian and Japan and the Japanese, The Pilgrim’s Progress, The Bible, Max O’Rell’s John Bull and His Island, Historical Sketches, In Memoriam, David Copperfield, Richard III, and Gulliver’s Travels. He also took a foresighted interest in oral communication in English, which could be the germ of his later concern for the betterment of ELT in Japan, and tried to improve his spoken English by memorizing and reciting conversational phrases from Frederick W. Eastlake’s Anglo-Japanese Conversation and English magazines. One notable event that took place during his high-school days was his research trip to Cheju-do, an island in Southwest Korea, as interpreter to a young American naturalist named M.P. Anderson who had been involved in ‘the Duke of Bedford’s Zoological Expedition in Eastern Asia’ and commissioned to collect rare zoological specimens, mainly of mammals and birds, for the British Museum. He applied for the job in the hope of collecting insects as well as of practising oral communication in English, neither of which, however, was fully realized; bad weather and other adverse conditions prevented him from collecting as many insects as he had hoped, and the two fellow travellers were both of the same taciturn sort. At one point during the trip, Anderson said to Ichikawa, ‘You are a silent man. Worse than I.’*5 HIGHER EDUCATION AND ENGLAND
In September 1906, Ichikawa entered the College of Arts, the Imperial University of Tokyo. The reason why he chose to enroll in the Department of Linguistics, not in that of English as he had been planning, was that he felt it necessary to learn many languages in order to master the basics of language study before specializing in English. He was lucky to have John Lawrence (1850–1916) as his supervisor. He had been invited earlier the same year from the University of London to the Imperial University of Tokyo to teach English linguistics and literature at the Department of English. While belonging to the Department of Linguistics, Ichikawa was specially admitted to Dr Lawrence’s 359
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‘English Seminar’. Despite his working class background and late entrance upon an academic career, Lawrence was such a conscientious teacher and accomplished scholar, well versed in Anglo-Saxon, Gothic, Icelandic, ancient Greek and Latin, as to make Raphael von Koeber (1848–1923; philosopher), one of his colleagues at that time, say ‘it is a great credit to the College of Arts to have Dr Lawrence as a member of teaching staff’.6 In his brief memoir of Lawrence, Ichikawa asserts: ‘Among the foreigners who have ever come to Japan, no one excels him genuinely as a scholar, and it will be extremely difficult to invite a better foreign teacher to Japan in future’.7 Under Lawrence’s supervision he avowedly ‘outgrew’ Saito¯ Hidesaburo¯’s grammar study to adopt more scientific methodologies of such modern linguists and philologists as Mätzner, Stoffel, Sweet and Jespersen, and completed a graduation thesis entitled ‘A Monograph on the Historical Development of the Functions of “For”’. He was nominated as one of the honour students and awarded a silver watch from the Emperor. In 1909 he went straight on to the Graduate School of the same university, where he made remarkable progress in his language study, benefitting enormously again from Lawrence’s one-to-one tutorials. His greatest academic achievement in his postgraduate period is the publication of nineteen articles in Eigo Seinen [The Rising Generation] – ‘Such an one’, ‘The usage of “none”’, ‘Pluralization of “every”, “each”, etc.’, ‘It’s me’, ‘Split Infinitive’, ‘These kind of things’, ‘Ethical Dative’, ‘For + Accusative with Infinitive’, ‘Group Genitive’, ‘For = for want of’, ‘“whether or not” and “whether or no”’, ‘“not so … as” and “not as … as”’, ‘Intensives’, ‘Accusative of Quality’, ‘Notable usages of “and”’, ‘as still as still’, ‘In order to + substantive’, ‘The significance of “so much for”’, and ‘Ring again, etc.’ – which were later collected, with due additions and revisions, into Eibunpo¯ Kenkyu¯ (first published in 1912 by Eigo-kenkyu¯-sha and later revised by the same publisher renamed Kenkyu¯-sha). In this small book he refrained from applying the standard of prescriptive grammar to those phrases and expressions indicated by the titles of the above-mentioned articles (later the chapter titles of the book) and tried to accept and observe them purely as linguistic facts as well as to explain how they had come into being ‘with reference to the history of Old English, the comparative studies of English and other languages, or the psychology of language use’.8 To put it concisely, this book marks the shift from prescriptivism to descriptivism in the philological study of English grammar in Japan. Ten days after the publication of Eibunpo¯ Kenkyu¯, he left Japan in order to study in Britain and Germany. With the help of Dr Lawrence’s old friend W.P. Ker, an Oxford graduate and professor at University College, London, Ichikawa went to Oxford to pursue his language study. However, he was rather disappointed by the lectures he attended, as one of the letters he sent to Lawrence suggests: 360
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It is a very thankless remark, but I must confess, that Oxford lectures have begun to pall on me, inversely as Oxford is beginning to be brighter. I am fully aware of the special privilege accorded to me of studying in this historic seat of learning and as no words of mine can fitly express the delightful hours spent in the Bodleian library, but as for the lectures I think Prof Ker was after all right when he advised me not to attend lectures but rather spend my time in private study taking advantage of the special facilities elsewhere unobtainable than in England. For one thing there is no scholarly atmosphere among Oxford undergrads as you will well admit, the best part of their time being given to nothing but sports. Thus all lectures are calculated to this end, not to overtax them. As a natural consequence there is little for me to learn in the lectures.*9
While based in Oxford, later in Cambridge and London, he started actively travelling around, visiting places of interest as well as browsing among secondhand bookstores to make a good collection of language- and literature-related books and reading materials to be used in his future seminars. His concern for the prospect of future educational commitments can also be seen in one of his letters to Lawrence, written nearly a year after his arrival in England and sent from Cambridge: After a year’s stay here I can honestly confess that my practical command of the language remains the same as it was when I left Japan. If this is the case with a man who is pretty well grounded in the matter of language and who has tried his best to avoid the society of his compatriots, how much more so it would be with those who came out with but an inadequate knowledge of the language and who take their sole delight in one another’s company? Indeed the linguistic possibilities of the Japanese are very pitiable, if not entirely hopeless. The future of language teaching in Japan has many problems to solve, and I am afraid I shall have to devote much of my time and energy to making the way of English students plainer and smoother.*10
The outbreak of the First World War in 1914 prevented him from visiting Germany and forced him to rearrange his study plan. He prolonged his stay in England and, after travelling in the South of France, Italy, Greece and the United States, he returned to Japan on 25 January 1916. PROFESSORSHIP
On his return to Japan, Ichikawa was appointed to an assistant professorship in Course 2 (English literature) at the Department of English of the Imperial University of Tokyo. No sooner had he started working with John Lawrence now as his senior colleague, than the 361
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latter met with an untimely death in March that year. Ichikawa, suffering deep grief at the loss of this great mentor-colleague, had to take over all the responsibilities of the head of the department and undertake the first challenging task of examining twenty-four graduate students, among whom were Toyoda Minoru (1885–1972; historian of English studies in Japan), Kume Masao (1891–1952; novelist and dramatist) and Akutagawa Ryu¯nosuke (1892–1927; short-story writer). In the same year he married Hozumi Haruko,11 the third daughter of Hozumi Nobushige (1856–1926; jurist). He was promoted to professor in 1920. In 1923 he completed his thesis ‘On the Language of Robert Browning’s Poetry’ for which he was awarded a doctorate in literature. In the same year Saito¯ Takeshi12 joined the department as a member of the teaching staff in charge of Course 2, and Ichikawa moved to Course 1 (English philology and linguistics), in which the major subjects he taught were ‘An Introduction to English Philology and Linguistics’, ‘An Introduction to the History of English’, ‘An Introduction to English Grammar’, ‘A Seminar in English Philology and Grammar’ and ‘Reading Original Texts’. For another twentyodd years he was primarily committed to specialist education at the undergraduate as well as postgraduate levels as head of the department, while taking such important intramural posts, especially after 1935, as university senator, director of the university library, and deputy dean of the Faculty of Letters. In the classroom he was a stern teacher, quite often sharp-tongued, as is attested by some of the essays written in his memory, which tend to describe in some parts how frightening he was or how he became less so later in life. For example, Shumuta Natsuo (1906–1987; scholar of English literature), who once was his student, wrote: When I was a student, Professor Ichikawa was, above all, an extremely inapproachable, frightening teacher. Strictly speaking, the reputation of his being so had been so firmly established that I never brought myself to approach him from the beginning. When a student mispronounced a word, he had to confront the question which sprang to our professor’s lips, ‘Which high school are you from? Yamagata? Professor Katsuta [who was teaching English at Yamagata High School at that time] can’t have taught you such strange English, can he?’ After the interruption with such pungent remarks, what innocent students from local high schools could utter was just a weak quaver.13
On the other hand, some of the other memorial essays mention his quiet humour, fair treatment of students in helping them with job applications, and generosity in lending valuable books to students and donating a huge collection of books to the department, which 362
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was later to be called the ‘Ichikawa Library’. Ichikawa also played a central role in establishing the English Literary Society of the Imperial University of Tokyo in 1917, which developed, as the members of its core group got their respective jobs as university teachers in many parts of Japan, into the English Literary Society of the Imperial Universities in 1926, and further into the English Literary Society of Japan in 1929 with Ichikawa as its first president. After working for the Department of English for thirty years, he retired as professor emeritus in 1946. Surprisingly little has been recorded about how his career was affected by the Pacific War (1941–1945). One of the rare pieces of evidence to suggest how he survived this national crisis was the magazine-based battle of words, which occurred two years after his retirement, between him and Nakano Yoshio (1903–1985; scholar of English and literary critic), one of his former junior colleagues, concerning the extent to which the profession of English was guilty in staying inert before and during the war. The trigger for the battle was Nakano’s essay ‘Eigo wo Manabu Hitobito no Tameni’ [For English Learners] in The Youth’s Companion published in February 1948, where he discussed the vital role English studies should play in opening Japanese peoples’ eyes to the world and at the same time denounced all the contemporary Japanese scholars of English literature and teachers of English including himself as ‘paltry, grovelling cowards’ who kept silent when they were expected to help the nation with their expertise to understand clearly what was happening. Two months later, Ichikawa published a brief essay entitled ‘Eigo-kenkyu¯sha ni Nozomu’ [Expectations for the Students of English] in Eigo Seinen with the primary intention of providing general advice about studying English. In one part of the essay, however, he criticized Nakano’s second point by writing ‘I would leave wise readers to decide whether those who did not resist an armed robbery should unexceptionally be called “paltry, grovelling cowards”.’ Nakano, ‘taking up the gauntlet’, launched a full ad hominem attack on Ichikawa with special emphasis on the latter’s professorial aloofness from the war: My request to Mr Ichikawa is (…) that he should subject to selfreflection and public inspection what he thought and how he behaved before and during the war. Every day we see no end of children and women suffering as war victims. Just a glance at any one of them will bring home to us how impudent it is to preach such an old sermon as our ‘expectations for the students of English’.14
Ichikawa did not respond, much less accede to this request. Five years later, Nakano, greatly disappointed by the authoritarian power 363
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structure and poor working conditions at the university, took early retirement at the age of forty-nine.15 EXTRAMURAL ACTIVITIES
One of Ichikawa’s three major extramural activities which his biographers never fail to mention is the huge project for publishing the annotated editions of English classics, which finally bore fruit as Kenkyu¯-sha Eibungaku So¯sho [Kenkyu¯-sha English Classics]. Its first series (sixty volumes, 1921–1926) ‘was brought out under the joint editorship of Okakura Yoshisaburo¯ (1868–1936; scholar of English; younger brother to Okakura Tenshin Kakuzo¯) and Ichikawa Sanki, both of whom not only supervised the whole series but themselves took their share of compiling books with masterly introductions and notes’.*16 Ichikawa took charge of the annotations of King Lear, Hamlet, Julius Caesar & The Tempest (annotated and published in one volume), Antony and Cleopatra, Macbeth, Othello, The Merchant of Venice, As You Like It, Henry IV, Romeo and Juliet, A Midsummer Night’s Dream, The Canterbury Tales, The Rivals & The School for Scandal (annotated and published in one volume), The Private Papers of Henry Ryecroft, and Plays by M. Synge. Another of his major concerns was the improvement of ELT in Japan. Since he was a young student of English, he was very much interested in the oral and practical aspects of English and eager, as his letter of 28 November 1913 to Lawrence suggests, to help Japanese students to develop their English proficiency in those aspects. Therefore, when the Ministry of Education invited Harold E. Palmer (1877–1949; phonetician) in 1922 as linguistic advisor and appointed Ichikawa as one of the committee members to work with him, he was enthusiastic about helping him to implement his ‘Oral Method’17 in Japanese classrooms. Four years later, however, after witnessing classroom realities of this pedagogical innovation, he was already sceptical about its effect. In his ELT-related talk at the Conference of the Teachers of English in Tokyo in 1926, he warned the conferees of the risk of putting ‘scientific teaching methodologies’ too rigorously into classroom practice, as seen in the disproportionate emphasis on oral-method training at the sacrifice of the development of reading skills, and on the other hand pointed out the importance of their improving their own teaching skills as well as English proficiency. In 1939 he became Director of the Institute for Research in English Teaching (IRET), which had been established in 1923 with Palmer as its first Director, entrusted the post to Ishibashi Ko¯ taro¯ in 1956 and stayed with the Institute as Chair of the Executive Board. It is open to doubt whether or not he retained his initial enthusiasm about the development of ELT in Japan all 364
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this time. In his essay in the Ichikawa Sanki Memorial Issue of Eigo Seinen, Ishibashi reminisced of the time when Ichikawa, called upon to help IRET later in his life, sighed to himself, ‘Well, English language teaching again …’. 18 He was also deeply committed to the promotion of a wider international readership of Japanese classics through translation. One of his professional ambitions was to motivate Japanese scholars of English to study Japanese literature in order that many of them should be able to ‘introduce Japanese culture in its true value to the world’.19 He practised what he preached by playing a central role, for seven years before his retirement and thirteen years after that, as head of the Japanese Classics Translation Committee of the Japan Society for the Advancement of Arts and Sciences in publishing many excellent translations of Japanese classics including The Manyo¯shu¯ (1940), Japanese Noh Plays (1955) and Haikai and Haiku (1958).20 CONCLUSION
Ichikawa became the youngest member of the Japan Academy in 1939. He was awarded the National Prize for Cultural Merit in 1959 and decorated with the Second Order of the Rising Sun in 1964.21 Just a fragmentary account of his glorious career and achievements would suffice to project the picture of a hugely successful scholar, ¯ mura Kiyoshi’s eulogistic remark that which perfectly agrees with O ‘he literally dominated the field of English studies in Japan’.22 It is also true, on the other hand, that his overwhelming success in the field seemed to verge on overbearing despotism, as Nakano’s polemic essay suggests. On retiring from the Imperial University of Tokyo in 1946, Ichikawa published a brief recollection of his thirty years of service as professor, in which he expressed a hope concerning how they should be evaluated: ‘If asked “What have you done [during your service]?”, I would point to my former students, instead of my humble academic achievements, proudly saying “Look at them!”.’23 There surely are an innumerable number of people to look at, dead or alive, who proved and will prove the great value of Ichikawa’s legacy. The English Literary Society of Japan still is thriving as the largest academic group in the English-related fields, and the other institutes and organizations he established or helped establish are also playing significant roles in their respective fields. ENDNOTES 1
Nihon no Eigaku 100-nen Henshu¯bu (ed.), Nihon no Eigaku 100-nen [Hundred Years of English Studies in Japan], Tokyo: Kenkyu¯-sha, 1968, p. 9. Since most Ichikawa-related books and documents are published in 365
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2
3 4 5
6 7 8 9 10 11 12
13 14 15
16
17
18
19 20
Japan and written mostly in Japanese, this chapter takes a citation policy of translating all the Japanese passages from them without any particular notes and, on the other hand, marking those passages originally written or quoted in English with an asterisk. See, for example, Shimmura Izuru, ‘Sanki ko¯’ [a title designed to be a double-entendre pun meaning both ‘on Sanki’ and ‘on three joys’] and Inui Ryo¯ich, ‘Ichikawa Sanki Hakase Ryakuden’ [A Short Biography of Dr. Ichikawa Sanki] in Saito¯ Takeshi (ed.) Essays & Studies Presented to Dr. Sanki Ichikawa in Honour of His Sixtieth Birthday, Tokyo: Kenkyu¯-sha, respectively in Vol. I, 1946, pp. 1–5 and Vol. VI, 1954, pp. 113–35. Ichikawa Sanki, Sho¯sanrindo¯ Zuihitsu [Sho¯sanrindo¯ Essays], Tokyo: Kenkyu¯-sha, 1949, pp. 270–71. Ichikawa, ibid., pp. 175–76. For the details of his trip to Cheju-do, see Ichikawa Sanki, Konchu¯, Kotoba, Kokuminsei [Insects, Languages, and Nationalities], Tokyo: Kenkyu¯-sha, 1939, pp. 336–78. Ichikawa, ibid., p. 100. Ichikawa, ibid., p. 101. Ichikawa Sanki, ‘Inroduction’ to Eibunpo¯ Kenkyu¯ [Studies in English Grammar], Eigo-kenkyu¯-sha, 1912. Ichikawa’s letter to Lawrence (1 May 1913). See Ichikawa, 1949, p. 337. Ichikawa’s letter to Lawrence (28 November 1913). See Ichikawa 1949, p. 344. Haruko died during the Pacific War, and Ichikawa took a new wife named Fujiko. For the biographical details of Saito¯ Takeshi, see the chapter by Professor Yamanouchi Hisaaki (Ch. 47) in Cortazzi, ed., Britain & Japan: Biographical Portraits, Volume VIII, 2013, pp. 596–607. Shumuta Natsuo, ‘Danpen-teki Omoide’ [Fragmentary Memories], Eigo Seinen, July 1970. Nakano Yoshio, ‘Ichikawa Sanki-shi ni Kotaeru’ [In Response to Mr. Ichikawa], Eigo Seinen, June 1948. For further details of the Ichikawa-Nakano dispute, see Kawasumi Tetsuo, ed., Shiryo Nihon Eigaku-shi 2 – Eigo-kyo¯iku Ronso¯-shi [Selected Historical Materials Concerning English Studies in Japan: A History of ELT-Related Disputes] 1978, pp. 783–5; 819–28. Ishibashi Ko¯taro¯, et al., ‘Preface’ in The Institute for Research in Language Teaching (ed.), Collected Writings of Sanki Ichikawa, Tokyo¯: Kaitakusha, 1966. See Harold E. Palmer, The Oral Method of Teaching Languages, Cambridge: Heffer, 1921. A biographical portrait of Harold E, Palmer by Richard C. Smith and Imura Motomichi is contained in volume IV of Britain and Japan: Biographical Portraits, ed. Hugh Cortazzi, Japan Library, 2002. Ishibashi Ko¯taro¯, ‘Ichikawa-sensei to Eigo-kyoiku’ [Professor Ichikawa and English Language Teaching], Eigo Seinen, July, 1970. For the details of Ichikawa’s relation to IRET, see also Ishibashi, et al., op. cit. Ichikawa, 1949, p. 302. See Ishibashi, et al., op. cit. and Mine Takuji, ‘Yo¯kyoku, Haiku no Eiyaku’ [Translating Noh Songs and Haiku Poems into English], Eigo Seinen, July, 1970. 366
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21
22
23
Inui (1954) further mentions the Honorary Fellow of the Royal Society of Literature as one of Ichikawa’s appointments, but neither is the date of appointment specified nor the fact attested by other Ichikawa-related documents published in Japan. ¯ mura Kiyoshi, ‘Eigo-kyo¯iku no Senkaku-sha’ [Predecessors of English O Language Teaching] in Takanashi Kenkichi, et al, Eigo-kyo¯iku Mondai no Hensen [The Transition of ELT Issues], Gendai-no Eigo-kyo¯iku [Contemporary ELT], Vol. 1, 1979, pp. 163–94. Ichikawa, 1949, pp. 259–60.
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32
Michio Morishima (1923–2004): An Economist Made in Japan JANET HUNTER
INTRODUCTION
In 1942 a young first year economics student at Kyoto University, Michio Morishima, was tasked by his teacher with reading and engaging with the substantive work Value and Capital, recently published by the British economist Sir John Hicks. Reading this work, an activity later described by Morishima himself as a form of passive resistance to the wartime regime, helped to fuel a lifelong commitment to economic ideas and theories that subsequently led to Morishima’s achieving celebrity status within Japan itself, becoming one of Japan’s few internationally renowned economists in the second half of the twentieth century, and probably the closest Japan has yet come to having a Nobel prizewinner in economics.1 Yet Morishima as a child wanted to be a novelist, and was never comfortable with any narrowly defined or rigidly applied economics approach.
368
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CAREER
Morishima was born in Osaka in July 1923. Graduating from elementary school in 1936, he progressed to high school, and from there to university, but in December 1943 he was conscripted into the Imperial Japanese Navy. After a year of training he was assigned to the communications section of a combat unit in Kyu¯shu¯, where he remained to the end of the war. Finding his way home amidst the disruption and despair of a defeated Japan, he was able to resume his studies in Kyo¯to, graduating with a Bachelor of Economics degree in 1946.2 It was apparent early on that his talents in the field of mathematics and economics were unusual. Working as research assistant, lecturer and then assistant professor at his alma mater in Kyoto from 1948, at a time when Marxist economics was particularly influential, ¯ saka University as assistant professor, subsehe moved in 1951 to O quently being promoted to full professor in 1963 at the age of forty. Although he had visited China, where his father was working, as a teenager before the outbreak of the Pacific War, chances for foreign travel in early post-war Japan were slim, but Morishima was given the opportunity to study abroad at a relatively early stage, spending the years 1956–1958 as a Rockefeller Foundation Fellow in Britain and the United States. He and his new wife, Yo¯ko (formerly Tsuda Yo¯ko), a mathematics graduate of Tokyo Women’s Christian University, who had been employed by the Economics Department at the University of Osaka, left for Europe by cargo ship, and following an adventurous time passing through Egypt in the wake of the Suez Crisis, took up his fellowship initially in Oxford, where he joined Sir John Hicks’ research circle. He studied for the second year at Yale. Residence in Oxford allowed him in 1957 to attend his first international conference, of the Econometric Society, in Luxembourg.3 He returned to Oxford 1963–1964 as a Senior Visiting Fellow at All Souls College. The years 1968–1970 were spent as Visiting Professor and then Keynes Visiting Professor at the University of Essex, one of the then ‘new’ universities, and a place where Morishima was struck by the uncharacteristic youth of many of the senior managers and professors, in strong contrast to the hierarchy of age that he had experienced in Japan.4 ¯ saka University, leaving He had already in 1969 resigned from O himself temporarily without a job, but subsequently took the seminal decision to pursue his career more permanently outside Japan, accepting the offer of a tenured post in the Economics Department at the London School of Economics, which he took up in the autumn of 1970. He regarded himself as extremely lucky in the appointment, particularly given the concerns expressed over his English.5 He stayed there until his retirement in 1988, and continued to live in his house 369
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in Shenfield (Brentwood) until his death in 2004, never returning to live in Japan. After moving to England Morishima also developed a strong connection with Italy, regularly teaching in Siena during the Easter vacation. His wife Yo¯ko would drive him out to his flat in Castelnuovo using a diversity of routes through France, Switzerland, Germany and Austria. Being the driver was only one of Mrs Morishima’s many skills. She was closely involved in Morishima’s academic work, and administered not only his financial affairs, but, as he later wrote, everything else as well. He was more than ready to acknowledge his lifelong debt to her, comparing his situation to that of Marx, who, while fighting against social exploitation, exploited his own family.6 Morishima’s international reputation rests first and foremost on his contribution to the discipline of economics, as both scholar and committed teacher remembered fondly by generations of students. He was, however, much more than an academic economist. He was also an institution-builder and a public intellectual in his native country. In all these capacities, it may be suggested he made a significant contribution in the context of Britain, Japan and the interaction between the two countries. MORISHIMA AS ECONOMIST7
Michio Morishima began to publish his scholarly work in Japanese in the early 1950s. His first major book, Do¯gakuteki Keizai Riron, published in 1950, and eventually appearing in English in 1996, was evaluated by one of Morishima’s colleagues as a ‘work of breathtaking scope not attempted during this century by many other economists…mathematically advanced and theoretically sophisticated. Had it appeared in English in the early 1950s we could all have saved a lot of time. But it was not to be.’ This publication, however, was the first step in a lifetime project to construct a grand theory of the working of the capitalist economy, a truly ambitious project on a scale matched only by theorists such as Marx, Hicks, Hayek and a handful of others. The publication of Equilbrium, Stability and Growth in 1964, as well as the appearance of articles in English in leading economic journals such as the International Economic Review and Econometrica, helped Morishima rapidly to establish an international reputation as one of the world’s leading economic theorists, and brought him in 1965 the presidency of the Econometric Society. As his early reading of Hicks foreshadowed, general equilibrium theory was at the core of his thinking, and his early books offered an innovative combination of general equilibrium theory, activity analysis and broader economics. His reputation was consolidated after joining LSE through the publication of three volumes on leading nineteenth century economic 370
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thinkers – Karl Marx, Léon Walras and David Ricardo – that sought to interpret their ideas in light of modern economic theories, in the process challenging both the standard interpretations of these authors and contemporary general equilibrium theory. 8 His analysis was supported by high level mathematics, and he became renowned as a very strong mathematical economist at a time when the discipline was becoming increasingly quantitative. The scholars whose theories Morishima evaluated were subjected to rigorous scrutiny, and he was reported to have commented when introducing his book on Marx that ‘Marx’s arithmetic may have been faulty, but his sense of algebra was excellent.’ 9 However, as Desai noted, his book on Marx ‘was the first book in English to introduce Marx to a new generation of economists using a language they would understand’. Morishima’s economics output, however, went far beyond reappraising the economic ideas of the nineteenth century. In a succession of highly respected individually or jointly authored works appearing from the 1960s through to the 1990s Morishima analysed a range of issues, including theories of economic growth, the working of econometric models, and ideas of demand, value and credit. Always much more than a narrow theorist, Morishima was, as one of his colleagues observed, a scholar who used economic analysis in a practical way in order to understand how economies and societies function.10 The desire to deliver on this objective, and to tether economics theory to an understanding of the real world in all its complexity, was shown in the appearance of books such as Economic Theory of Modern Society and Economics of Industrial Society.11 During these three decades the rate, breadth and depth of Morishima’s economics output was astonishing. His intellectual trajectory was appropriately marked by his appointment as the Sir John Hicks Professor of Economics in 1982, a post established following Hicks’ donation of his Nobel Prize money to LSE. Morishima’s early publications in English drew strongly on his Japanese academic background, and in the process he brought to the attention of Western economists the scholarly contributions of Japanese economists of the 1940s, contributions that had used the shared language of mathematics but had not hitherto been internationally known. In the 1960s, prior to settling in England, he was also closely involved in bringing Western economic ideas to Japan. The willingness to incorporate perspectives from other disciplines in order to understand how individuals and enterprises interacted with and related to the societies and economies in which they functioned generated a further intercultural contribution and took Morishima’s publications in some unexpected directions. In the 1990s he oversaw the publication of a number of seminal works that had never previously appeared in English, several of them by Japanese scholars. 371
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One was Power Theory of Economics by the sociologist and economist Takata Yasuma, referred to by one scholar as ‘the Marshall of Japan’, who had taught Morishima when he was a student at Kyo¯to University. Morishima’s contribution to the discipline of economics brought him many accolades. In the late 1970s he became Foreign Honorary Fellow of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences and Foreign Honorary Member of the American Economic Association. He was elected a Fellow of the British Academy in 1981, and became a member of the Academia Europaea in 1989. He received honorary degrees from the universities of Paris (X), Siena and London, as ¯ saka University and LSE. well as emeritus professor status at both O He became an Honorary Fellow of LSE in 1991. In Japan he was in 1976 awarded the Bunka Kunsho¯ (Cultural Order of Japan),12 and while he always asked himself beforehand what plaudits of this kind meant for academic freedom, he agreed to accept the honour, not least because it came with a substantial remuneration from the Japanese government that he could use to further his broader academic objectives. Sir John Hicks remained in many respects his ‘mentor’, and Morishima was particularly pleased when Hicks telephoned him following his election to the British Academy to tell him that he had not expected when they first met that Morishima would come so far.13 In summarizing his work in later life, Morishima noted that his work had consisted of three main, interconnected strands: economic theory, the synthesis of economics and sociology, and his project on the ideas of Ricardo, Marx and Walras. He continued, he wrote, to be a mathematical economist, but one who perhaps more than most others continued to believe in the importance of observation and empirical evidence.14 Despite his reputation in the economics profession, however, Morishima was never inclined to follow too closely the accepted dictates of his discipline, and could be highly critical of academic trends. Much of his later work appeared in books rather than in the journal article form that has come to dominate economics. This, he suggested, was because many journals increasingly favoured technical articles and deep ideas were not encouraged. He expressed concern that mathematical economics had gone too far in the direction of trying to accommodate reality to theory, rather than seeking to adapt their theories to reality.15 In an article published as early as 1984, Morishima was highly critical of the ‘overuse’ of mathematics, and the ever greater injection of mathematics into an ever narrower set of ideas that failed to take account of any institutional, national or historical context. Mathematical economics, he suggested, ‘has lost all sense of balance, becoming divorced from knowledge of economic systems and economic history. There is only one medicine which 372
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will cure this malaise, and that is for theorists to make a serious effort in the direction of the institutionalization of economics, in the sense of slowing the speed of all development towards mathematization and developing economic theory in accordance with knowledge of economic organizations, industrial structure and economic history.’ He was not, however, overly optimistic about this taking place, as it seemed likely that mathematical economists would continue to produce ‘quasi-scientific’ articles to maximize the rate of return on their own human capital. His conclusion was that ‘we have in our discipline been led up the wrong path by the invisible hand of the demon, and because it takes both time and money to make an engine we are producing on a large scale “aeroplanes” which have no engine’.16 What Morishima thought about the emerging field of the new institutional economics is not clear, but it seems likely that he would at the very least have approved of its recognition that institutions matter. MORISHIMA AS INSTITUTION BUILDER
Morishima’s qualities as an academic economist – his emphasis on rigour, his concern for the development and application of analytical techniques, his interdisciplinary and strongly international perspective – were the inspiration behind his major contributions to the formation of academic institutions. His interest in the promotion of institutions and organizations to achieve specific academic objectives came early with his leading role in the appearance of a new journal, ¯ saka the International Economic Review, in which Morishima, still at O University, worked with Professor Larry Klein of the University of ¯ saka University Morishima was a key player in Pennsylvania. At O the founding of the university’s Institute for Social and Economic Research, which looked to achieving a synthesis between economics and sociology along the lines suggested by Morishima’s teacher at Kyoto University, Takata Yasuma. The Institute was in many respects the prototype of the research centre that was to be Morishima’s lasting institutional contribution in Britain, what is now the SuntoryToyota International Centres for Economics and Related Disciplines (STICERD) at LSE, an initiative which, Morishima noted, would almost certainly not have got off the ground in the absence of his receipt of the Bunka Kunsho¯.17 Morishima was closely involved with efforts to raise funds for library development at LSE in the early 1970s, at a time when raising money from the private sector, particularly in Japan, was in its infancy, initially approaching Japan Airlines.18 Other Japanese companies followed the lead of JAL, which also supported travel to London for students from Asia, and Morishima himself donated his Bunka Kunsho¯ 373
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annuity to support scholarships for graduate study. Morishima had grander plans, however, for the founding of a research centre at LSE in which researchers could work together on a range of fundamental issues related to theory, analysis and policy, and such a groundbreaking initiative required funds of a different order. This was a time at which British universities were feeling their way in the search for external philanthropic funding, and had far fewer pressures to seek such support than even ten years later. To seek such large scale funding, particularly from Japan, raised additional questions about academic independence and donor motivations. Nevertheless Morishima set off for Japan in the hope of securing donations to establish an endowment fund that would provide sufficient annual interest to support his proposed research centre. Although the Japanese economy had recovered relatively well from the Oil Shock of 1973, and was showing a good rate of growth, securing such funds was far from easy. Approaches to the Foreign Ministry and Keidanren proved fruitless, and as something of a last resort Morishima approached the president of Suntory, Saji Keizo¯, whom he did not know, but who had also been his senior at school, and had a reputation for charitable giving.19 Saji committed to ¥500 million on condition that the other ¥500 million needed was offered by another company. Morishima persuaded Toyota Eiji, the president of Toyota, to offer the other half, and the donation was formally handed over in 1978. Not all at LSE were convinced of the appropriateness of accepting such a donation, and some remained concerned about a potential threat to academic independence. Morishima was, however, highly persuasive in justifying acceptance of the donation at the School’s Academic Board, and, as noted by the then Director of LSE, Ralf Dahrendorf, addressed concerns about possible strings attached to the donation ‘by telling us that he had been to school with the donors and could therefore vouch for them. In any case, he would, if need be, keep them at bay. He commanded respect and confidence among his fellow academics and had little difficulty to persuade them.’20 Acceptance of the endowment money, which was channelled through the Japan Foundation, necessitated agreement over mission and organization. Conspicuously, the centre’s initial name was ICERD (International Centre for Economics and Related Disciplines),21 and the management board drawn from across the institution, giving public confirmation of a commitment to promoting multidisciplinary studies beyond economics alone. Significantly, too, Morishima had been explicit that the money was not being used to promote the study of Japan, although the centre has retained to this day a strong interest in Japan and a small Japanese Studies programme. The grounding belief remained, though, that any such study needed to be located in a rigorous disciplinary or interdisci374
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plinary context, and those principles have continued to characterize the research centre since its founding in 1978. Morishima acted as the first Chairman of STICERD, a role he continued to discharge until his retirement in 1988. It remained his LSE base for the rest of his life, and his frequent presence was a constant reminder of the origins of the research centre, as well as a source of pleasure to all within it. The strength of the yen in the 1970s enhanced the value of the endowment fund in the UK. Living off its interest, supplemented by other external funds and grants, and funding from Morishima himself, STICERD has consistently acted as an internal foundation for LSE research, and brought together researchers to work on a range of issues, particularly the early career scholars whom Morishima recognized were so important for the future of the universities. The many overseas visitors included a succession of top ranking Japanese economists. The work of the research centre is acknowledged to have been at the forefront of research into new concepts and theoretical approaches in economics and the social sciences more broadly, leading the way in comparative empirical studies of economies across Europe and beyond, and generating findings that have often had a major impact on policy decisions. In many respects Morishima’s example and ideals have continued to guide and permeate the work of his colleagues and successors within STICERD. BETWEEN BRITAIN AND JAPAN
Morishima’s decision at the age of forty-seven to pursue his career outside of Japan was a momentous one, and not lightly taken. It was not that he had been unable to achieve recognition in Japan. He had been appointed full professor at a top Japanese university, and had studied abroad on prestigious fellowships. He was intensely proud of being an economist ‘made in Japan’, unlike many of his contemporaries who had studied abroad, and proud of the record of many of Japan’s earlier economists. There is no doubt, however, that the decision was in substantial part associated with a degree of disillusionment with the establishment in Japan, and the limitations he felt he encountered in expressing his views. He was, in the Japanese metaphor, very much the nail that stuck up, and was unwilling to be hammered down.22 Morishima’s hallmark was his forthright expression of his opinions. He was committed to open debate and intellectual enquiry, and possessed enormous energy for scholarship and what he believed in. In later life Morishima was to comment that he felt that the main difference between Britain and Japan lay in the total freedom in Britain to express individual views, and the enjoyment of the dialectical process as a means to better outcomes. Such a freedom, he suggested, 375
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had never been established in Japan even after the establishment of a democratic system after the end of the Emperor system.23 Morishima continued, however, to visit Japan at frequent intervals, and his country of birth remained of fundamental importance to him, and in some cases a matter of profound worry. He was increasingly concerned to understand how Japan had reached what it had become, what was happening to it, and what might happen in the future. Living outside of Japan in fact stimulated him not only as an economist, but as a commentator on Japan for Western audiences, and as a commentator on both Britain and Japan for a Japanese audience. As a world-renowned economist awarded the Cultural Order of Japan (Bunka Kunsho¯) by the Japanese government, Morishima became in Japan a public intellectual whose often controversial views reached out to millions of Japanese. The range of Morishima’s more popular publications in Japanese was very wide. During the 1970s-1980s he produced comparative works on Britain and Japan, and a trenchant analysis of the Thatcher years, all of which became bestsellers. The impact of his writings was extended by his use of the radio to bring his ideas, especially on economics, to the broader public. Increasingly, though, he turned his publication activities towards an analysis of Japan and its current situation. When Morishima met the Emperor on the occasion of his receipt of the Bunka Kunsho¯, he said that while he had achieved fame as a mathematical economist, he had since his youth dreamed of being a novelist, and when the Emperor asked him what sort of a novel he would write, Morishima replied that he would write a historical novel in English on the successes and failures of Japan since the time of the Meiji Restoration.24 The book on modern Japan, when it came, however, was not fiction, but fact. The widely read Why Has Japan ‘Succeeded’?, which had started off as the Marshall lectures at Cambridge University, sought to identify the historical origins of Japanese economic growth, and the ambiguities that were often overlooked in the light of its obvious successes. It was translated into many European and Asian languages. Subsequent publications in both English and Japanese followed, showing the extent to which Morishima was highly critical of many trends in Japan’s politics and economy, profoundly concerned at what he saw as indications of a revival of militarism and right wing views, and believing strongly in the importance to Japan’s future of the broader Asian context, in particular the formation of a northeast Asian economic union. His writings and views won him both plaudits and criticism. Some applauded him for his willingness to take on accepted views and structures, and for questioning longstanding practices and assumptions. Others felt that such frank articulation of heterodox opinions in the service of open intellectual debate were at best unconstructive 376
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and inappropriate and at worst hostile and even ‘anti-Japanese’. The controversially entitled Naze Nihon wa Botsuraku Suru ka?, or Why Will Japan Collapse?, of 1999, with its depiction of a country that was collapsing from within and fated to be a third class power by 2050, seemed unlikely to find universal favour in a Japan already pessimistic in the wake of the bursting of the Bubble economy and the Asian financial crisis. MICHIO MORISHIMA – A JAPANEASE UNEASY IN JAPAN
Michio Morishima’s career trajectory after graduating was a highly unusual one for a Japanese of his generation. His extraordinary and widely recognized academic ability would seem to have naturally led to a lifelong career at one of Japan’s top universities, and the prestige and reputation that would have gone with it. Yet he not only ¯ saka universities, but subsequently took the moved from Kyoto to O unusual step of continuing his work outside Japan. At the root of these decisions were the frictions that emerged between Morishima and his teachers, colleagues and friends, frictions that in later life he admitted finding extremely difficult to write about.25 At the bottom much of this rested on disagreement over issues of principle, and how far individuals were willing to go for their principles. Morishima’s view was that individuals and societies should adhere strictly to clear principles, and act in accordance with those principles. However it was essential that individuals should have the freedom to espouse different principles. His view was that Asian countries such as Japan were inclined to push for some kind of guiding national principle that limited freedom of thought, and supported totalitarianism and the imperial regime that dominated Japan up to 1945. Not only was post-war Japan, he argued, lacking in principle, but the Japanese propensity for harmony (wa) in social interaction suppressed the open debate over issues of principle that allowed families and communi¯ saka Univerties to work properly.26 When Morishima moved to O sity, and established the Institute of Socio-Economic Research, his attempts to operate strictly in accordance with the principle of merit generated conflict with many of his colleagues. Conflict in turn made others uncomfortable, and led to Morishima’s feeling that some who agreed with him in public could then be found manoeuvring behind his back – no doubt, in many cases, in the traditional Japanese search for a workable compromise. ¯ saka UniverAs Morishima later acknowledged, the Institute at O sity was one of the most Westernized groups of academics in Japan, full of scholars who had achieved a reputation in America. If Morishima’s forthright pursuit of principle was to work anywhere, it should have been there. But the management and mode of working, 377
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he later commented, was ‘Japanese, all too Japanese’.27 At another Japanese university, he believed, it would be even worse. In general, commented the Japanese economist Suzumura Ko¯taro¯, Morishima’s consistent adherence to the principles of rationality led to his sharp criticism of fellow economists and colleagues who failed to adhere to such principles, contributing to conflictual relationships and his departure from deeply cherished institutions. ‘This also explains’, commented Suzumura, ‘ why he was much happier in England than in his own mother country.’28 Leaving Japan was not, however, by any means a straightforward decision for Morishima and provoked complex emotions. It was his country of birth, and his family was there. At the same time he believed that Britain would, by contrast with Japan, offer a more conducive environment in which he, as an individual, could stand up for what he believed in. Japanese politics, for example, he compared unfavourably with the recurrent conflict that characterized the British political system, conflict that he regarded as necessary for the finding of appropriate solutions. Although not uncritical of his country of adoption, he thought of himself as something of an Anglophile, and after more than two decades living in Britain took the view that, although the British economy had undoubtedly declined, Britain remained an advanced country in terms of welfare and the generosity shown by the country’s people towards others.29 Living in Britain, however, particularly prior to the age of the Internet, meant that Japan threatened to become progressively more remote. Books such as Britain and Japan and Thatcher’s Britain were in part an attempt to keep in touch, and after his retirement Morishima taught regularly at Japanese universities to give himself time in Japan and to maintain his knowledge of what was going on there.30 He remained committed to building bridges between the Japanese, Asian and European academic worlds, lecturing a number of times in China. His writings on Japan, while often critical, were driven in substantial part by the fact that he cared so much about it. Michio Morishima would have been the first to acknowledge that he was never an easy colleague, but he was capable of enormous kindness to individuals and unstinting generosity in supporting the careers of others. ‘Doing good for others,’ wrote one US colleague ‘was characteristic of Michio…. He gave advice and other assistance to Japanese visitors in London, extricating them from trouble that they may have encountered in a new and strange environment.’31 He could be unsparingly critical of others, but was also able to evaluate himself. He castigated academics he thought of as ‘dilettantes’, or the ‘vulgarians’ who spent their time on mundane work such as public outreach or fundraising, but later recognized that in writ378
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ing books such as Why Will Japan Collapse?’ and raising funds he himself was probably just as much of a dilettante or a vulgarian.32 He acknowledged his own impatience and the presence of an inner voice that limited his self-control.33 Nevertheless his intellectual ability and range of knowledge, as well as his commitment to principle and capacity to challenge, won him respect and affection from those who admitted that they found him at times infuriating. This respect and affection is well summarized in a comment from Ralf Dahrendorf, who worked closely with Morishima at LSE. ‘He has contributed to a subtle understanding of the culture of his country of origin as well as his country of choice. He has also been, and continues to be, a great friend, loyal and trustworthy, serious and yet always fun…. His influence extends beyond even the generously drawn boundaries of economics. He is a great social scientist, scholar, and man of culture.’ 34 As another friend, the Nobel prizewinner Amartya Sen, stated, Morishima was ‘an outstanding economist and the finest of human beings’.35 ENDNOTES 1 See e.g. the Open University of Japan’s open course video entitled ‘No¯beru Keizaigaku Sho¯ no Wasuremono’. 2 Morishima gives an account of these early years in the first volume of his autobiographical trilogy Chi ni Kokuriko no Hana Sakeba (Asahi Shinbunsha, 1997). 3 M. Morishima, Chi ni Hatarakeba Kado ga Tatsu (Asahi Shinbunsha, 1999), pp. 152–64. 4 M. Morishima, Owari Yokereba Subete Yoshi (Asahi Shinbunsha, 2001), pp. 30–2. 5 One supporter responded to these concerns with the reassuring statement that ‘Michio doesn’t speak English like we do, but he speaks English like a vicar’ (Morishima, Owari Yokereba Subete Yoshi p. 42). 6 Morishima, Chi ni Kokuriko no Hana Sakeba, pp. 14–16. Morishima, Chi ni Hatarakeba Kado ga Tatsu, p. 136. 7 An evaluation of Morishima’s contribution to economics can be found in Meghnad Desai, ‘Morishima’s Economics: an Appreciation’, in T. Atkinson, H. Glennerster & N. Stern (eds), Putting Economics to Work: Volume in Honour of Michio Morishima (London: STICERD, LSE, 2000). Much of the information in this section draws on this source. 8 Marx’s Economics (Cambridge University Press, 1973); Walras’ Economics (Cambridge University Press, 1977); Ricardo’s Economics (Cambridge University Press, 1989). 9 Reported in A. Sen, ‘The Discipline of Economics’, Economica vol.75 no.300, 2008, p. 618. 10 N. Stern, ‘Introduction’, in Atkinson et al. (eds.), Putting Economics to Work, p. 3. 11 Economic Theory of Modern Society (Cambridge University Press, 1976); Economics of Industrial Society (Cambridge University Press, 1984). 379
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12 The other 1976 recipient of the Bunka Kunsho¯ that year was the film director, Akira Kurosawa. 13 Morishima, Owari Yokereba Subete Yoshi, p. 235. 14 Morishima, Owari Yokereba Subete Yoshi, pp. 274, 287. 15 T. Negishi, ‘Michio Morishima and History: an Obituary’, European Journal of the History of Economic Thought, 12, 3, 2005. 16 Morishima, ‘The Good and Bad Uses of Mathematics’, in P.J.D. Wiles & G. Routh (eds), Economics in Disarray (Oxford: Basil Blackwell, 1984), pp. 51–73. 17 Morishima, Owari Yokereba Subete Yoshi, p. 113. 18 Morishima’s father had been an employee in the 1930s of the Japanese China Airlines, some of whose staff had subsequently been absorbed by Japan Airlines. The then president, Asada Shizuo, had graduated from Morishima’s high school a couple of years ahead of him. 19 Morishima, Owari Yokereba Subete Yoshi, p. 124. 20 Dahrendorf, ‘Preface’ in Atkinson et al. (eds), Putting Economics to Work, p. 1. 21 The names of Suntory and Toyota were later added to the title in acknowledgement of the donors, and it was renamed STICERD. 22 Deru kugi wa utareru. 23 Morishima, Chi ni Kokuriko no Hana Sakeba, p. 21. 24 Morishima, Owari Yokereba Subete Yoshi, pp. 105–106. 25 Morishima, Chi ni Hatarakeba Kado ga Tatsu, p. 1. 26 Morishima, Chi ni Hatarakeba Kado ga Tatsu, pp. 2–3. 27 The title of the section of Chi ni Hatarakeba Kado ga Tatsu in which he comments on this is entitled Nihonteki, amari ni mo Nihonteki (pp. 317ff.). 28 K. Suzumura, tribute at memorial meeting, December 2004. 29 Morishima, Owari Yokereba Subete Yoshi, pp. 311–48. 30 Morishima, Owari Yokereba Subete Yoshi, p. 361 31 Larry Klein, tribute at memorial meeting, December 2004. 32 Morishima, Owari Yokereba Subete Yoshi, p. 358. 33 Morishima, Chi ni Kokuriko no Hana Sakeba, pp. 16ff. 34 ‘Preface’, in Atkinson et al. (eds.), Putting Economics to Work, p. 2. 35 ‘The Discipline of Economics’, Economica vol.75 no.300, 2008, p. 617.
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Honma Hisao (1886–1981): Expert on Oscar Wilde YOKO HIRATA
INTRODUCTION
Honma Hisao (1886–1981), although little known in Britain, played an important role in transmitting English ideas of the late nineteenth century to Japan during the Taisho¯ Period (1912–1926). He had a long life and made important contributions in several fields. During the first half of his life, while serving as a lecturer at Waseda University, he was engaged in journalism. At one time editor in chief of Waseda Bungaku, he helped to form public opinion in social as well as literary matters. He prided himself as a translator and introducer of the thoughts of Oscar Wilde (1854–1900), Ellen Key (1849–1926) and William Morris (1834–1896). He was also a kabuki and art critic. After a one-year stay in England, he published his doctoral dissertation, Eikoku Kinsei Yuibishugi no Kenkyu¯ (A Study of Aestheticism in Modern England) in 1934. He then turned to research in the nascent field of Meiji literature where his most important contribution was the five volume work, Meiji Bungaku Shi (A History of Meiji Literature). 381
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He was also one of the initiators of the study of comparative literature in Japan. During the latter half of his life, therefore, Honma as an academic looked first outward into fin de siècle English literature, then inward to Meiji literature, and finally tried to immerse himself in the comparative study of world literature. He remained active as a scholar until his death in 1981 at the age of ninety-four. This essay focuses on Honma Hisao’s lifelong association with Oscar Wilde. BACKGROUND AND EDUCATION
Honma was born in Yonezawa City in the To¯hoku region.1 During the Edo Period, the Yonezawa domain was ruled by the Uesugi family. Since the Uesugi fought against the Tokugawa at the battle of Sekigahara in 1600, they were given the small domain of Yonezawa instead of the large and rich Echigo plain which they had previously ruled. Since the Uesugi moved with all their retainers into the small Yonezawa district, the domain was always o