(Translated from the Kinji Hioron by Japan Herald.)
A certain samurai of the former Aidzu Han, who has lately returned from Chi has told another person that a Chinese resident in Tokio has written a letter to Li Hung-chang, who is the greatest man in more than four hundred provinces, and holds the key of Mongolia and China in his hands, in the following terms "While I was in my own country, I heard that in Japan, although a small isl mere spot in the ocean, " number of able men had lately come forward, the one after the other; that there was the best understanding between her Government and her people that the latter were prosperous tthe army was strong; that' the whole country was rapidly progressing in civilization like the sun ascending the firmament from the horizon, and. that io short there was no comparison between Japan and our own declining and decaying Empire, I thore-fore thought that we ought to keep on friendly terms with her, and avoid all di pute, and this appeared also to be the me tentions of our Imperial Goverment, But when I had arrived at Japan and bad looked around me, I soon discovered that we have nothing to fear; a wide gulf separi Government from the people, and in daily more and more; the people are rably poor, the whole country it and a wail of dis cot as for her men of smoted; Soyeshim meddle in politics, The resp now two—and—, but neither of thera for anything, them are—, and of! may henceforth free yo mind from all anxiety about Japan, and do-tention to the internal affairs of With what feelings, oh our readers have you perused this letter? Wo had no time to enquire whether the report be true or not, for we wished at once to put. this letter before our countrymen as a mirror. The wide gulf that separates the Government from the people, the poverty and the distress of the latter, are just the things we have been lamenting ourselves, and in our desire to see them helped we may even have represented them as worse xy really are; nevertheless it is impossible to deny that what the Chinaman. has written in his letter.is a true picture of the state of our country, and one of which both our Government and our people ought to take note.
For several years our Government has been laboring hard to obtain a revision of the treaties, and when the United States of America consented to alter the Customs tant, which forms part of the treaty, we were full of joy and felt sure that we at last were going to succeed; but the cunning and voracious British lion bars the way, and the stone, which we with infinite fatigue had placed on the top of the hill has again rolled down in the valley, and this is merely because our country is not strong enough to compel England to consent.
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.