mark, Sweden, and Norway, Switzerland and Peru. All of these go into effect to-morrow, except those with France and Austria, which are deferred until August 4. With most of these countries Japan had treaty relations before, but they were crude and unsatisfactory. "In bringing about the new system of treaties Japan naturally feels most friendly toward the United States, because she always has shown a most sympathetic interest in Japan's de-. sire to adopt modern methods and to deal on even terms with the rest of the world." The Government of His Majesty, the Emperor of Japan, and the Government of the United States of America, deeming it advisable in the interests of both countries to regulate certain special matters of mutual concern, apart from the Treaty of Commerce and Navigation signed this day, have, through their respective Plenipotentiaries, agreed upon the following stipulations: 1. It is agreed by the contracting parties that one month after the exchange of the ratifications of the Treaty of Commerce and Navigation signed this day, the Import Tariff now in operation in Japan in respect of goods and merchandise imported into Japan by the citizens of the United States shall cease to be binding. From the same date the General Statutory Tariff of Japan shall, subject to the provisions of Article IX. of the treaty of March 31, 1854, at present subsisting between the contracting parties, so long as said treaty remains in force, and thereafter, subject to the provisions of Article IV. and Article XIV. of the treaty signed this day, be applicable to goods and merchandise, being the growth, produce or manufacture of the territories of the United States upon importation into Japan. But nothing contained in this Protocol shall be held to limit or qualify the right of the Japanese Government to restrict or to prohibit the importation of adulterated drugs, medicines, food or beverages; indecent or obscene prints, paintings, books, cards, lithographic or other engravings, photographs or any other indecent or obscene articles, articles in violation of patent, trade-mark, or copyright laws of Japan; or any other article which, for sanitary reasons, or in view of public safety or morals, might offer any danger. 2. The Japanese Government, pending the opening of the country to citizens of the United States, agrees to extend the existing passport system in such a manner as to allow citizens of the United States, on the production of a certificate of recommendation from the Representative of the United States at Tokio, or from any of the Consuls of the United States at the open ports in Japan, to obtain, upon application, passports available for any part of the country and for any period not exceeding twelve months, from the Imperial Japanese foreign office in Tokio, or from the chief authorities in the prefecture in which an open port is situated, it being understood that the existing rules and regulations governing citizens of the United States who visit the interior of the Empire are to be maintained. 3. The undersigned Plenipotentiaries have agreed that this Protocol shall be submitted to the two high contracting parties at the same time as the Treaty of Commerce and Navigation signed this day, and that when the said treaty is ratified, the agreements contained in the Protocol shall also equally be considered as approved, without the necessity of a further formal ratification. It is agreed that this Protocol shall terminate at the same time the said treaty ceases to be binding. In witness whereof the representative Plenipotentiaries have signed the same and have affixed thereto their seals. Done at Washington, the 22d.day of the eleventh month of the twenty-seventh year of Meiji, corresponding to the 22d November, in the eighteen hundred and ninety-fourth year of the Christian era. (Signed) SHINICHIRO KURINO, (L. S.) Speech of the United States Minister ON THE USE OF THE ENGLISH LANGUAGE IN JAPAN, In the Conference of all Nations. "Mr. Hubbard, in reply to the delegate of France, observed that he did not propose to occupy the time of the Conference with an elaborate discussion of the various points involved in the important question under discussion. There was one point, however, which was beyond dispute, namely, that the official language of the courts, which it was proposed to institute would of course be Japanese. The other point of next importance to this was the proposal that English, as the language of most general use in Japan, should be the foreign language adopted by those courts. His honorable colleagues, the delegates of Great Britian and Russia had already called attention to the wide diffusion of the use of the English language in Japan, and the practical arguments thus brought forward for the adoption of English as the language of the courts were strengthened by reference to the statistics of foreign population in Japan. The number of British subjects resident in Japan in 1885 was 1,124, and of American citizens, 475. Later estimates placed the number of the latter at not less than 600; but, taking the statistics of 1885 as a guide, it was clear that there were at least 1,599 English-speaking people in Japan, while the total resident population of European nationality, other than English, amounted to only 789. If the floating population of each nationality, in the shape of annual visitors, were taken into account, it would be found that the proportion of foreigners of American and British nationality to that of foreigners of all other European nationalities was more than two to one. Moreover, the statistics of the year 1885 showed that during that year 27,996 British, and 5,206 American merchant seaman had visited Japan; while the total number of merchant seamen of other European nationality who had visited Japan during the same year was only 8,466. These were striking facts which spoke for themselves. "His honorable colleague, the delegate of France, had laid stress on the argument that it would be difficult for Englishspeaking judges to administer laws based upon European models. There was, Mr. Hubbard thought, a practical answer which disposed of this argument. One of the most important States of the American Union, Louisiana, was for years a portion of the French dominions, and was French in population, in laws, and in feeling. Since its incorporation into the Union, although French had not ceased to be the language of a large number of the people, and although its laws were based on the Code Napoleon, those laws had been administered by English-speaking judges, and English had been the language of the courts and of the State administration. The case of Texas, another of the United States, furnished a like illustration. While under the government of Mexico, Spanish was the language of the people of that State, and the whole legislative system was based on the Spanish model. But in spite of the fact that Spanish was still widely spoken, and that the system of laws was Spanish, especially those relating to landed |