A suggestion was made in the Japanese Press, a few days ago, that a matter of grave importance, not bearing a political character, has been under discussion among the Elder Statesmen and Baron Hatano, the Minister of the Imperial Household. It now turns out, says the "Japan Chronicle," that the matter refers to a revision of the Imperial House Law, in compliance with the wishes of the Firperor, and that the proposal was to be the subject of debate at a conference of the members of the Imperial Families yesterday (8th in stant). It is proposed, according to rumour, that the Imperial Housé- hold Law should be so revised that the relegation of members of the Imperial Families to the pverage may be more widely applied than at present.
The Law provides for three cases where members Imperial Families cin be relegated to the peerage, and these cases are, first, when an Imperial Prince is made a peer with a new name, with the sanction of the Emperor; secondly, when an Imperial Prince becomes the heir to a peer with the Imperial sanction; and thirdly, when an Imperial Prince is deprive ed of his privileges as such on account of misbehaviour, It is considered that the Imperie] Household will come to find it difficult properly to maintain the ever-increasing mem-hors of the Families with its resources, which are by no means inexhaustible, while the matter must also furnish the various Imperial Families, who generally practise commendable thrift.in the conduct of family matters, with food for serious consideration, The Emperor was not slow to appreciate this contingency, and has come to the conclusion, it is alleged, that the basic principles governing the Imperial Household Law must undergo a change along the lines that the provision referring to the relegation of Imperial Princes to the peerage might be more liberally applied to those Princes who are not Heirs to their respective Families.
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.