国旗と国歌を尊重する「普通の国」の国民になろう。
Gentlemen!
I would like to express my sincere gratitude to all of
you, ladies and gentlemen, for the warm hospitality we have received everywhere
since our arrival as envoys, and especially for the special welcome reception
you held this evening. I would like to express my deepest gratitude to the
citizens of Japan for their generosity.
I think this evening is a good opportunity for me to
give you an overview of the many reforms that have been implemented in Japan.
This is because apart from us, it seems that there are very few Japanese people
in the region who have accurate knowledge of the situation in our country.
Although the United States was the first country to do
so, friendships with the great powers with which Japan has concluded treaties
are being promoted, and commercial relations based on mutual understanding are
increasing.
At the behest of His Majesty the Emperor, this envoy
will endeavor to protect the rights and interests of you and our people, and at
the same time, we hope that in the future the bonds between the peoples of
Japan and Japan will become even closer. We will strive to further promote
mutual understanding, and I am confident that we will further communicate our
intentions.
By reading, listening, and observing foreign countries,
our people have acquired a general knowledge of the polities, manners, and
customs existing in most foreign countries. Nowadays, foreign customs and
manners are understood throughout Japan. The most ardent hope of our government
and people today is to reach the highest point of civilization enjoyed by the
developed nations.
With this purpose in mind, we have adopted an army,
navy, science, and educational system, and with the development of foreign
trade, a wide range of knowledge has freely flowed into our country.
Improvements in our country have been rapid in terms of material civilization,
and the spiritual improvement of our people has been even greater. The wisest
men of our country, after careful observation, have arrived at this opinion in
unison. For thousands of years, while our country was subjected to absolute obedience
under tyranny, our people lived without knowing freedom of thought.
With material improvement, they came to know that there
were privileges that had not been granted to them for many years. Although
there was a civil war associated with this, it was only a temporary event. The
feudal lords (Daimios) of our country voluntarily surrendered their titles, and
their voluntary actions were accepted by the new government. It was disposed of
within a year without shedding any blood.
These remarkable results were achieved through
collaboration between the government and the people, who are now moving
together on a peaceful path toward progress. Was there any country in the
Middle Ages that was able to break out of its feudal system without going
through war?
These achievements prove that spiritual progress in
Japan has surpassed material improvement. I also sincerely hope that by
promoting girls' education, our country will naturally develop even more
superior intelligence in the future. It is from this perspective that girls
from our country are already visiting your country and starting to study.
Japan cannot yet be proud of its creative ability, but
in view of the history of civilized countries that take experience as their
master, we hope to take advantage of others, avoid shortcomings, and thereby
acquire practical wisdom. I'm here.
Less than a year ago, when I visited Washington to
examine your fiscal system, I received valuable assistance from senior
officials in your Treasury Department. I have sincerely reported what I have
learned to our government, and many of the recommendations have already been
adopted and many have been put into action. Even in the Ministry of Industry,
which is under my jurisdiction, the speed of progress is truly remarkable.
Railways were built on both the east and west sides of
the empire, and communications lines were stretched across hundreds of miles
across the empire, reaching almost a thousand miles within a few months.
Lighthouses are now being built one after another along the coasts of our
country, and shipyards are also actively operating. All of these facilities
foster the civilization of our country, and we are deeply grateful to your
country and other great powers.
Our greatest hope, both as envoys and as individuals,
is to return home with materials that will be useful to our beloved country and
that will contribute to its permanent material and intellectual progress.
While we have an obligation to protect the rights and
interests of our people, our role is to promote trade. We hope to create a
solid foundation for further development.
As a citizen of a large trading nation that is trying
to do great things by participating in the new era of trade in the Pacific
Ocean that is about to unfold, Japan would like to promote wholehearted
cooperation with your country. With the fruits of your latest inventions and
accumulated knowledge, we may be able to accomplish in days what your ancestors
took years to accomplish. In these days of concentrated precious opportunities,
we have no time to spare. Therefore, Japan desperately desires rapid development.
The dotted red dot in the center of our flag no longer
looks like the sealing wax that sealed an empire, but the future is effectively
its original design: forward and upward like the rising sun. Let us be a symbol
of the noble spirit of the world, and a symbol of our desire to move forward to
the next level with the civilized nations of the world.