191 A ''Valedictory Address'' 



strangers, common laborers as well as members of the 

 well-to-do classes. The many souvenirs presented in 

 accordance with the open-hearted Japanese custom 

 naturally varied much in character and value, but we 

 prized them all for the engaging spirit of which they 

 were everywhere the expression. 



A final and interesting episode occurred as we were Soothsayer 

 waiting for the boat. This was a visit to the famous "^^^^^'^ 

 philosopher and soothsayer, Kayemon Takashima, a 

 very wise old man with ideas of his own, locally known 

 as a wizard. Cabinet ministers, I was told, were 

 accustomed to seek his advice at critical times, and 

 Prince Ito once said to him: "As a prophet you 

 are an old humbug, but you have a long head.'* 



During a seven years' imprisonment for the legal- 

 istic crime of selling Japanese gold to foreigners he 

 wrote the six volumes of "Takashima's Wisdom." A 

 copy of this voluminous work, presented to me by 

 the author, rests in the library of Stanford Univer- 

 sity, available to Japanese students. 



On leaving Japan I was asked to give to the 

 papers what they called "a valedictory address." 

 In this I set forth our thanks for the courtesies 

 and friendly services we had received, expressing my 

 kindly feeling for the people and adding, by request, 

 a little political advice. The substance of the latter 

 may be implied in the following quotation: 



No nation was ever able to maintain at the same time a great 

 army, a great navy, a vigorous foreign policy, a great debt, and 

 the prosperity of the people. Two of the five may be held for 

 the time and occasionally three, never more. 



c 401 n 



