英語訳
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Toyohashi City Historical Discourse (Imperial Restoration and Yoshida Domain) 604
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How could this be the dying wish of Tōshō-gū (Tokugawa Ieyasu)? If so, then seizing the opportunity to take the initiative and renouncing power in one morning - what could this be if not a wise decision?
Question: Then will political power increasingly return to the Imperial Court, or will it return to the bakufu?
Answer: If the allegiance of the various domains lies with the Imperial Court, then even the bakufu should return to the Court; if it lies with the bakufu, then even imperial rule should return to the bakufu.
Secretly considering: Recently, while the names of sovereign and subject between Court and bakufu have become proper, the master-servant relationship between bakufu and domains remains undefined. The debate over nomenclature has become vigorous, but the reality of direct retainers versus indirect retainers remains unclear. Originally, the Three Domains and other hereditary retainers were vassals within the single Tokugawa domain, in the same position as Yoshikawa of Chōshū and Katakura of Sendai. However, once Tōshō-gū unified the realm, he made them stand shoulder to shoulder with the Five Houses and other distinguished outside lords through guest protocol, adding the character "lord" to the Three Domains, and sometimes having domain holders use humble titles. In general, estimating the names within the domain of daimyo and direct retainers above and below ten thousand koku, first treating vassals with guest protocol, and consequently treating guest-retainers with subject protocol. From the time when he used this indefinite status and unclear reality to win over the realm, through several hundred years of peace that followed, education gradually developed, debates arose about emperors, lords, royal authority, hegemony, and feudalism, with military virtue and civil education alternately rising and declining. Particularly with foreign relations, debates about proper status could not help but arise. This too is natural in the changing times. Now the shogun, being wise and having long observed the changing circumstances, has already corrected the proper relationship between Court and bakufu and demonstrated the great justice of restoring government and renouncing authority. Therefore, the Three Domains and other originally vassal members must temporarily resign from court, return to their domains, and anew observe their actual status as indirect retainers. This too follows the principle of superiors influencing subordinates - natural human sentiment. If so, even the outside lords were mostly originally servants of the Ashikaga, Oda, Toyotomi and others, and since submitting to the Tokugawa house for several hundred years, they have already observed sovereign-subject protocol on equal terms with hereditary retainers, receiving many additional fiefs with particularly deep obligations. Until now, because the bakufu avoided the great ceremony of revering the emperor and expelling barbarians, and domestic and foreign policies seemed confused, and primarily because there was no initiative from hereditary retainers, there were naturally those who remained silent observers. But this time, for the first time being moved by sincere intentions, and particularly detesting the violent extremism of Satsuma and Chōshū, they cannot help but gradually unite and align with the guidance of hereditary retainers. This too is natural given the circumstances. Originally, Tōshō-gū served the Oda with one province, belonged to the Toyotomi with three provinces, and was transferred to eight provinces. At that time, among the outside lords, others probably understood the situation similarly - namely, comparable to the Five Houses of guest protocol. However, if it was a matter of the Kan'ei submissions, not all comparisons would be appropriate. Setting aside those Five Houses for now, even among the others, those who prioritize overall circumstances and forget obligations
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Publisher and Printing House: Sanyō Printing Partnership Company, 48 Kōya-chō, Toyohashi City. Editor: Nakanishi Kenzō Publisher and Printer: Kuno [■]kichi
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Sanyō Newspaper No. 4,706 Supplement (Published June 30, Taishō 3 [1914])
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have precedent among outside lords. They should not necessarily adhere strictly to obligations, but should prioritize the direction of circumstances. Those who are hereditary retainers should not focus on unity among various petty hereditary retainers, but should concentrate on inducing the allegiance of outside lords.
In the end, there is no conclusion other than establishing the foundation for unifying the full strength of the imperial nation through the path of no distinction between Court and bakufu, unity of civil and military, and fairness and righteousness.
Secretly considering: The current situation in the world has each nation strong and sharing borders across thousands of miles. The imperial nation's independent authority and virtue have shone across the four seas for nearly thousands of years, but temporarily receiving humiliation from them and becoming troubled and weak was initially due to long peace and the abandonment of military preparation. However, it ultimately comes down to the strength of major domains, the tail being too big to wag, creating a situation of both Court and bakufu existing, with political power not emerging in one direction. Indeed, they once made calculations saying: "Now here is a bundle of firewood. We want to break it, but as a bundle it cannot be accomplished. First, while keeping it bundled, shake it temporarily and wait for the binding rope to become tight or loose - if tight, the bundle will break; if loose, the cord will slacken. Gradually select the pieces that are easier to break from within, first breaking one piece by hand, then using what is broken to attack and break its companions. The hand doesn't hurt and strength is easily applied. After breaking them all, rebundle and apply our national seal," and so forth. Therefore, territorial division and strife is their great fortune and our great misfortune. Moreover, there is great misfortune - the above metaphor is probably the strategy of Britain and France. The one who wants to make Britain and France exert great effort, then in one stroke replace their national seal and use it for one's own cooking fuel, is probably Russia. Alas, now there are strong above the strong, and it is a fearsome world where the strong devour the weak. The so-called strong should not be limited to military power alone - wisdom, benevolence, and courage come first. Those who are people of the imperial nation now, regardless of high or low status, regardless of great or small, must abandon internal resentments, consider external threats, endure small matters without disrupting great plans, reform the source of territorial division and strife, and think of the foundation of harmony and unity. Should they seize upon petty matters of submission and resistance, treading the path of stubborn partiality, once the entire imperial nation falls into the foreign threat's firewood-breaking scheme, then without distinction of Court or bakufu, hereditary or outside, all alike will become the food and provisions of dog and sheep servants, and gnashing one's teeth will be of no avail. Therefore, if now the source of territorial division and strife is reformed and the foundation of harmony and unity is considered, though the beginning of strife and debates of stubborn attachment may arise, the reality of territorial division stops at the power of the tail being too big. From now on, there is nothing better than abandoning debates of right and wrong, reducing the power of the big tail, making the head sufficient to control the tail and the tail sufficient to protect the head, and establishing the foundation of the entire imperial nation. Long ago, after Tōshō-gū [established/pacified] the realm
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Toyohashi City Historical Discourse (Imperial Restoration and Yoshida Domain) 605