Page:Political Condition of Japan.djvu/12

 . They used to meet monthly to discuss the subjects of political and social reform in Japan. In 1878, this social or popular movement became more active. Public speeches were delivered and pamphlets published. Frequent meetings were held and every favorable sign of progress was seen in these social phenomena. But the Japanese government began to perceive that if the popular movement was allowed to go on, the acts of their policy would be freely criticised by the people. Then they resorted to a course which was intended to discourage these enterprises. The newspapers were the first to meet with a check. Press laws and newspaper regulations were made and writers were imprisoned for a year or even three years for very slight offenses. But the government was comparatively careless as to the meetings and public speeches, because these were not at first as influential as the newspapers.

The police were given authority in 1879 to enter any meeting for public lectures. They always came by twos, even to listen to lectures on scientific subjects which they could not possibly understand, for the lecturers were usually men of good education, who had spent years studying in European schools or universities.

The second step taken by the government for the suppression of liberty of speech was a private circular issued by the head of each department to his subordinates, prohibiting all who received government salaries from making any public speech or attending any meeting of a political or scientific character. This frightened some prominent members of the society who were government employees. The Kioson Doshu consisted of more than a hundred members, but according to this regulation very few could make public speeches. I being one who was not thus debarred from making public speeches, the whole task of keeping up public lectures fell upon myself. The government, not satisfied with this measure, issued other regulations about public meetings in 1880.

The first clause of these regulations says that those who hold any public meeting concerning politics, must obtain permission from the police station of the district, after placing in the office