Hawaii Holomua, Volume II, Number 27, 1 February 1894 Edition 02 — The Emperor, The Diet. And the Privy Council. [ARTICLE]

The Emperor, The Diet. And the Privy Council.

1 £iperience b«d U*d th« puhiie to «atic’i'.ite that th** Eroperor’s reply t > the Housc of lieprrsen t;itiv< s’ ncWr.-f« on the subject <-f Offici«l Discipline, wonld not be sltopetl.tr f«Tonr«l>le to either of the pariie« concerxed. AbsoInte imp*rtiiility is the Sovere'gn s first »ttribnte in juclgirg betweeu ! )i ia snbj>-cts. Wbatever topic is \ c.«rried for decision to tbe first «f the Throne, the En>jeror main- ! ti<iiis un uttitude of onbiased jr.stice. The H«use of Eej>re M-ntatives. dur:ng the present ht-si(in. h;;s l>etrayed raarked for-p>-tfulr.ess of traditions. lt h«s sh.>sn itse!f curiously laekinp in the sense of reverence towards the Throne that has alw;»vs he»-n regsrded as n domin.»nt tr>;it of Jj»parese cbaracter. Aj plt)acl.ing the Sovereign ou Iho most petty sol>ject8, it has sooght to innke His Majest}’ a Jndgeof »pjesl helween itself and the Cubinet. If gruve issnes were in question. if the House were dealmg wilh materials nt all sufi)cient to constitute an im peaelimenl of the Ministers of the Crown, there might he souie escnse for referenco to the Throne. Hut wheh the points to be determined nre tho propriety of a Minister’s dining with merchants. or of a Vice Minister’s receiving a gold watch in puhlie presentat.ou, or of a judieial prectdent being followed after tbirty ye«rs of unquestioned observanoe, or of tho Sovereign’s nnme being used in a Court of Law, as are the names of all AVestern monarcbs—whon such trivialities us these aloue are at st.ike, the Honso of Represeutatives’ constmt appoals to the Throne «mount to an atternpt to drag Ihe S«vereign down iuto the areua of ]>olitieal bickerings. and t« divest His Majesty of the respect and revereuce hitherto aecordod to him by every one of his suhjeots. We entertain no doubt that mnnv loy«l Japanese have watched lhese frivolous proceediugs vvith strong iudigna(ion, and that dissohition of the Diet on the decl«red grouiul of the Lower House’s fai(ure to appreciate its respous bility towards the throne, would havo been a thoroughly popular mcasure with a l»rge sectiou of tho naiion. Bnt His Majcsty’s present ministers mnst naturally hesitate long before havmg recourae to such « stop. They doubtlcss argue that the less heodfnl the House’s action towards the Emju?ror, the roore solicitons should His Majestv’s tr.isted statesmeu be to thrust b«ck the wavos of |ioliticaI disseusion from the foot of the throne. This conviction, we may fairly assnme, led them also to counscl iigid absence of j»artialitv iu the sovereigu’s rejdy to thc addrcss. though it did not rv>strain, and neeil not have restrained, the Privy OoanoU from exj>ressing, iu terms siugularly strong »nd unequivuc«l for such a document. empbatic disaj)j>roval of the House’s irresjH>usible levity. Neither side is awanled a comjdete victory by the Euij>en)r. The House of | llepreseutatives is distinotly re- < miuded th«t the Sovereigu recog- i 11i7.es uo right in any of his ' snbjects to iuterfcre with the I 1 exerei.se of the ImjH>rial Prerega- j 1 t.ve of aj>jH>inting and removing < I offli’ials, aud is informed by im i plication that the charges pre- 1 ferred bv it bave no validity as 1 an imj>eachment of Miuisters of < >State. On the other hand, the 1 lunguage used by thePrivy Coun- |» eil and its aj>pareut endorseuieut : e by the Sovereign lead the puklie 1 to iufer tbat &ome laxity bas been t found to exist in the Departmeut j s of Agriculture and Commeree. ! e «nd to that oxtent the «eiion of t the House of Representatives <] receives justificatiou. We must t eonleaa ib»t iheae thiogs do uot e

interpret themse!ves na clearly as migl>t be des»red. lf thec»«n<luct of « DejKirtn ect f St< te 1S scfficiently drserviop c»f censure to , e.li b r direct eo«>meut in ao ImprHa) Re*icr!pt. tten surely it m»y «lso l>e held to L »ve warran ted scme stej> m th<- part of the Hwuae of Rej>res»*nUitives. As tlie m«tter stands. tbe puklie is app»rectly invited to coiidnde that where«s officiai , disc pline does not »ttain an ( aitcgether high standaid. it is yet not low enongh to demand stroi g me«sures of ref> rm. Tbe conrse of events will perhaj>s onr.d<Le this preplexity, but »t pie»ent it looks like a compromise | l»etween exj>e»Jiency and jnstice. Of widtr imp rt.nce an>J inter 1 est in the deciaratioD coctiir.ed m tli© jtar»gr«j)b of the Rescript name!y tliat th£ apj>ointrnent and removal of Ministers of State lej>end ent rely npon tlie SoverI e;gn's pleasnre, acd th«t no in terfereuce with the excrcise of that Prerog. tive will be toler ited. In these significant words the House of Represcnt.ttives receives from the Emperor an uneqnivocal intiraation th»t its j continntd attem»)ts to makeMin isterial tenure of oflice depend npou a Parliamentary vote are a direct invasion of the Prerog tives of tbe Crown. TL«t fact, indeed. Las a!waysbeen considered a fundamental princij»le i >>f tlie Jap«nese Constitution bnt we are bv no means certain that the text of tiie Constitution will bear so rig d a renderiug. The words “The Ministers of State give advice to the Emperor and are responsible for it,” do not forbid the interj»retation th«t a jiortion, at anv r«te. of the responsibility might ultirnately Lave been held to exist tow«rds the Diet, had the House of Repiesentatives, as at preseut inspired, has demoustr.»t >-d its complete nufituess to be invested with the function of selecting and commissioning the couutry's administrators, aud the Sovereign, having that convictiou forced uj»on hiin hy j»raclieal experieuce, now pnblicly proc1aims for the Constitution a »Ufinition fatal to the j>retensious whieh tho House has bpeu at tempting to set up. It will be observed that the Rescrij>t travels beyond the im me<li:ite snbject th«t elicited it. and refers to the topic at present occnj>yiug so prominent a plaee in the nati. u's attention, natnely, the countiy’s foreign re!ations. His Majesty’s conveys to theDiet and to the pnhlie an intimation. not t > be misunderstood, that the iotention of the Cr<>wn is to eo tinne the amieaMe and progressive policy hitherto j)iirsued, md that every obstruction of such a policy must be couuted liostile to the Emperor’s purpose. The advocates of euf<>rcing the str : ct Ietter of the tre.»ties. thereby imj>osing fresh and irksome barriers on liberty of interconrse <ud cotnmerco. as well as the oj» jM>uents of mixed resideuce wiio would maintain in Jaj>ao a state of isolation inconsisteut with the universally recogu;sed principles of civilization, receive in this R<scrij>t a waming that ought to induce serious reflection. —Japan Mail.