Page:Brinkley - Japan - Volume 3.djvu/262

Rh remained for the Shōgun except to resign. He adopted that course, submitting to the sovereign two addresses; in one of which Prince Keiki was recommended as his successor; in the other, the necessity of ratifying the treaties was set forth in strong terms. The Court, however, shrank from the responsibiHties involved in accepting this resignation. Answer was made to the Shōgun that the treaties had the Imperial assent and that the Shōgun was empowered to deal with them, but that since they contained many objectionable provisions, steps must be taken to revise them, after consultation with the feudatories, and that, under no circumstances, should Hyōgō and Osaka be opened. It was an impracticable compromise, but the Shōgun lacked courage to reject it. His ministers conceded the tariff changes proposed by the Foreign Representatives and further promised that Hyōgō would be opened speedily. The Representatives therefore sailed away with a pleasant consciousness of success. They had come in their war-ships to propose a friendly exchange, the conditions being that in return for remitting two million dollars of an indemnity excessive from the outset they should obtain three important concessions. They went away having obtained two of the concessions and without having remitted a dollar of the indemnity.

The Shōgun was now free to prosecute his