As we expected, the strongest protests were made without delay in the name of his Government by Mr. Harmand, Minister Plenipotentiary of France, who claimed that the right of extraterritoriality had been violate ed and an offence committed against the French national flag. In those days, the French enjoyed the right of extraterritoriality in Japan in virtue of a treaty between the two Governments. Consequently, a ship flying the French flag, as was the case with the Sydney, was then outside the local jurisdiction of Japan which, in conducting a search on board the Sydney and arresting there ihe three Americans, had acted in violation of the said treaty. Apologies and explanations were presented to the Quai d'Orsay by our Minister in Paris, Mr. Arasuke Sone, showing that the arrest in question was in fact a measure of legitimate defence on the part of the Japanese Govern: ment, a measure necessitated by the war with China; but the French Government was not satisfied. There followed considerable diplomatic tension and a delicate and painful atmosphere between the two countries. It was at this juncture that Mr. Louis Renault published his thesis on the litigation, which put an end to the incident, At that time, I was attached to the Japanese Legation in Paris and was attending the doctorate course in the Faculty of Laws. Among the series ot\lectures was one by Mr. Louis Renault on public international law. This famous jurist was at the time Legal Adviser to the French Ministry of Foreign Affairs as well as, Professor in the Paris Faculty of Laws. His lecture began at eight o'clock in the morning and one had to be there well before the time, for the hall was always crowded. I well remember the journey in the omnibus drawn by two horses from the Trocadero to the Quartier Latin. I used to get up at six o'clock and take only a cup of coffee for fear of being late. The city was still asleep, the streets dim and deserted, and the cold was biting.
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.