Death of Prince Ito

Pacific Press Publishing Association · Mountain View, California · Nov 24, 1909

FromSigns of the Times, Vol. 36, No. 46.

Death of Prince Ito

The assassination of Prince Ito can not be said to come as a surprise. When he overthrew the Korean kingdom, that it might be absorbed by Japan, his life was threatened by Koreans who stood well up in Korean national affairs, especially in the army. The hatred of Japan and Japanese by all Koreans is and has been well known the world over ever since the powers refused to make good the conditions of the Portsmouth treaty that the integrity of the hermit kingdom should be protected, which they agreed to do, the United States leading in promising such protection. For not standing to that promise, Special Ambassador Stevens was assassinated in the Ferry Building in San Francisco, because, as the representative of the United States, he aided Japan, so it was charged by the Korean government, in wrecking it.

But as to Prince Ito personally and as a statesman, without a doubt he was Japan’s greatest man. It was he who suggested that the empire become a constitutional monarchy and adopt occidental and European social customs and codes of laws, especially the Common Law of England, he himself writing a constitution and outlining a basis for his country’s jurisprudence. It was he who inspired building up a great navy and a great army; it was he who induced the new government to go to Europe for professional soldiers to drill the army; it was he who started a current of Japanese youth to America and Europe to attend the universities; it was he who changed the Japanese government and people from their ancient civilization to a higher and better one. Prince Ito was big enough and broad enough to see that to hope for a place in the family of nations, Japan must be modern in all things. Japan heard and heeded Ito, and as a consequence Japan a third of a century later was recognized as the greatest nation in all Asia from every view-point. Prince Ito was a giant statesman, a giant diplomat, and an accomplished scholar. His death was untimely, and a dreadful blow to the budding civilization of the Far East, and all the more is his death to be lamented because he was stricken down by the hand of an assassin. But back of it all lies the faithlessness of the nations of Europe and America to their pledge to Korea.—San Francisco News-Letter.