Kiyoto
Sept. 4, 1879
In my last letter to Mrs. Hardy I slightly mentioned of some difficulty I was encountering. It was not very easy matter to write out without some consideration and I have been thus far compelled to postpone it, because when I returned from my missionary tour to a portion of Kushiu Island I was mostly used up on account of my exposure to an intense heat there. When I fairly commenced my labor there, number of telegraphic despatches came and informed me that I must return home as soon as possible to attend some grave matter just happening between us and our government. To my great regret I was obliged to give up my work there and hurried back homeward. Now I must inform you about the difficulty just hanging upon my shoulders. But I trust you will never be discouraged. I am fully convinced that the Lord has designed me to bear all sort of trials and difficulties for extending his glorious kingdom in my beloved country. No matter how heavy the cross may be I am ready to bear. But what I fear is, that I could not picture out to you our present critical condition so that you could fully understand our present impending difficulty as well as our pressing want. It may require a long narration if I undertake to explain to you how the present difficulty has been originated, but in order to save time I will write it out in a briefest possible way.
When I undertook to start our school in the city of Kiyoto I was rather compelled by law to ask permission from the Central Government, both for establishing it and for employing foreign teachers in it. Here you must know that foreigners are not allowed to remain in an interior city like Kiyoto unless they are employed by natives, either real or nominal. As my American friends gave me money to start a school, and the American Board agreed to furnish me Missionary teachers, I was naturally necessitated to assume a position of its proprietorship. My written application for the school was first presented to the educational department by the approval of the Kiyoto Governor. But it was against the regulation of the said department to employ regular missionaries as teachers, both in the public and private schools. It was my first obstacle to encounter with. But through Mr. Tanaka's special favor, I received a permission to invite Rev. J. D. Davis to enter into this interior city, the ancient and sacred capital of Japan. When it was done I rejoicingly said "Miraculous."
When we had fairly started our school we began to preach the gospel in a quiet, possible way. But the truth spoken in a private room became known throughout the city. It caused a great alarm among the priests in this region. The living gospel seemed to them a terrible thunderbolt. They got up a big meeting and presented their united application to the Kiyoto Governor to stop our preaching altogether. Then the governor summoned me to his office and requested me not to preach any more in my house. But I asked him, if a friend of mine comes to my house and inquires after a truth, would his Excellency intend to compel me not to give any reply to the inquirer? His reply was negative. Then I asked him again, if two, three or ten, or even one hundred friends come and ask me something of the Christian truth, has His Excellency any power to stop me not to tell them of it? He said no. Then said I, if he has no power to stop me I can keep up my preaching in my house. Finding that I was such a stiff-necked fellow he has ever met with, he simply charged me not to teach the Bible in our school. But the Bible became the unmovable foundation of our school. It has been taught ever since without ceasing, even throughout many succeeding darkest periods.
When one battle was won, another battle followed, then another --still another. It may be God's will that we should fight good fights and win a great victory in distant future days. A rumor was, that our Governor reported to the Central Government that I have started my school with a pretence of education, but my real design was to promote Christianity in this Empire.
Just about that time I presented applications for Miss [Julia] Wilson and [H. Frances] Parmelee to enter into Kiyoto. It was refused without giving me any reason for it. I believe it was refused on account of that report. The next report of our Governor was that although I am a nominal employer of those foreign teachers the reverse is true. I am employed by them by receiving annual salary from them. Hence the school held by my name is not a native Institution but a foreign. Since it is sustained by the annual grant of the American Board, it is the Board's Institution. Since this report was made to the foreign department our situation became much endangered. The Minister of the said Department has been even trying to stop the entry of our missionaries into Kiyoto. When Mr. D. W. Learned's first term of the passport was nearly out, in the last winter, I applied for the second passport. Everything seemed to me dark and hopeless. Yet my only hope was in the Lord. I know surely that a permission could not be got if I take an ordinary course. "To make a bold strike" was my inspiration.
I called on our Governor at his office and requested him to approve my application for Mr. Learned's pass, and also to speak of us favorably to the Foreign Department. He promised me to do what he can for our favor. Still, he said, the matter will depend on the Foreign Department. If the Department be all right the application will be granted, because he has already approved it. By this way I prevented his doing any more mischief against us.
Soon after that interview with him I started for Tokio to see Mr. Mori and explained to him all about our school, how it was started and how it is sustained now. I told him further that my American friends can't lay any claim upon our school, although they gave me money to start with. I am its founder and it is owned now by a Company called "the Doshisha". If it be a native Institution why can she not have a right to exist and also to provide all necessary teachers both foreign and native. His reply was, you have a right to exist and also to employ foreign teachers if you use your own fund instead of the fund of the American Board. The Foreign Department do dislike your receiving the annual aid from the American Board and depending upon it altogether. I told him that their annual aid is a free gift and we make a good use of it. Is it forbidden by the law of Japan for us to receive any aid from a foreign nation?
If it be so, our law ought also to prohibit our giving any aid to any foreign nations. As our people did send an immense quantity of rice to a famine district in China last year to save those suffering creatures, I believe we can also receive some aid from another nation for our intellectual and moral famine. That argument was just enough to bring him around to our side. Through his kindness I received the second permission for Mr. Learned by which he is entitled to remain in Kiyoto next five years.
When I made an application for Dr. Gordon's pass this summer. there was a sharp discussion between Mr. Mori and the other minister [Foreign Minister TERASHIMA Munenori]. The latter gentleman was still believing that our school is a foreign institution, and I a mere nominal proprietor and was quite unwilling to grant us a permission. Now I must inform you why he is so bitter towards us. In the first place, he is a hater of Christianity. In the second place, he is not quite clear in discriminating our situation from some native merchants who keep shops open for some foreigners outside of the foreign concession in Tokio, by using their names as the masters of the shops, although they are hired and paid by the foreigners. Such a business is strictly forbidden by the law of the Empire, yet it is done by shrewd native and foreign merchants. The minister ranks us among a class of those merchants and is ready at any time to drive our missionaries out of Kiyoto, but Mr. Mori stood up for us nobly and persuaded the minister to give us another permission.
Then he sent me a word by a friend of mine in Tokio and warned me to be cautious for the future and advised me to raise up a permanent fund for our school at once. If we have some fund to defray our annual expenses, the foreign minister shall not find any occasion to prevent us from our inviting missionaries to our school; but since it is sustained by the American Board the minister still regards it as a Board's school, and if it is proved to be so I shall be heavily punished for the pretension of my being a nominal proprietor of a foreign Institution, and our school shall be suspended at once. If such a thing happens, our school shall never be allowed to exist again and our missionaries shall be all driven out from Kiyoto. Yea, all our effort thus far put forth shall disappear like morning dews before the sun. Seeing such a dark prospect before me shall I lament like Jeremiah? No--I believe the Lord will not give us an occasion to lament if we faithfully fight under his banner. I am determined not to lament but to fight through until we conquer. May God help us, untiring soldiers. As He has thus far helped us, I trust He will continue to help us.
Our Governor often devised to stop our progress, but we have thus far providentially defeated his projects. Now we come to stand on a more critical point. If we don't defeat him at this time I fear we shall have a pretty hard uphill work. It is just time for us to put forth all our might to devise some means to keep our ground and not surrender it to our enemy's hand. Since I heard from Mr. Mori, I have been seriously thinking how to save our school from the Government's iron hand, and the only way to save us, as I believe, is to raise a permanent fund for our school. But our school has become known throughout the Empire as a Christian institution and is badly spoken against and ridiculed as a cradle of the Christian priests. Hence it is almost useless to attempt to raise a fund here. But having no fund to sustain ourselves, I fear the iron hand of our Government may sooner or later come upon us and crush us into pieces. If it be stopped, it will cause a great damage to the Christian work in Japan. A11 the unbelievers will rejoice for our downfall. Our Government shall never allow us to start it again in the interior. If it be so, what sad affair it would be.
Would you persuade the gentlemen of the Board to grant us a portion of that big fund they have recently received into their hand? Is it their idea to enlarge the work? But could they be without an alarm when you inform them of our present critical condition? I believe our missionaries have not apprehended it though I have told them of it. It may be hard for them to understand our delicate situation. Doubtless none of them have written to the Board about it, so I fear the gentlemen of the Board may not be ready to give us their right hand to help us. If they don't give us a permanent fund, I fear our school shall be stopped and our missionaries shall be driven out from Kiyoto. What serious damage would it be. Could the gentlemen of the Board stand and see us perishing without any fellow sympathy? Could they be so conservative as not to give us a permanent fund because the policy of the Board is against it, or the majority does not allow it? In a time of need it may be desirable for them to create a new law in order to carry out God's work boldly. If they don't listen to you, please tell them that I will not cease to beg for it, for without it our dear Christian school shall sooner or later be stopped.
It is time for them to consider whether they would make a bold attack or retreat. If they don't understand what I am aiming at for extending God's work in Japan, I will try to write to them and if they be still incredulous I will come to Boston to explain it more clearly than I could write out. Furthermore if they would not give us a desired fund (at least $100,000) I will try to present my petition to wealthy individuals in the States. If I fail to get some satisfactory fund, I will become a public beggar to go around from city to city to beg for our school. Would the gentlemen of the Board give me an approval of it? In my situation I would not cease begging so long as I can either use my tongue or my pen. For Christ's sake, and for my country's sake I will become a loudly crying beggar.
I dare not affort [sic] to lose an Institution like ours which has thus far prospered and has been so miraculously saved through many critical periods.
In this connection I must mention the standard of our school. Our people are making a bold strike in educational affairs. The government institution of learning as well as some private schools are advancing above us. If we do not strive to improve we shall be left in lower strata of educational system, and fail to lay hold of the best class of students. Our good missionary friends have thus far tried to teach the Bible too much and neglected scientific teaching. Numbers of promising boys were much disappointed and have left us to go to the schools in Tokyo, where they will have no Christian influence. We can't afford to lose these promising ones. We must tie them to our school by giving them a thorough, higher, and professional as well as Christian education. This, if I mistake not, is the keynote of success for Christian effort in Japan. Unless the missionaries find this keynote their work will be largely wasted and fruitless. To my great disappointment some missionaries do not take pains enough to adapt themselves to our way in this important respect. Hence they are getting quite unpopular and cannot get along with the natives quite smoothly. A chief reason is that they are still Americans. Their habits, ideas, and imagination are all American. What Americans regard as good the natives may despise. Something honorable in America is regarded dishonorable here. Petty troubles arise now and then between them and our Christians. They want to get too many foreign reinforcements instead of raising up native workers by their own hand. They cannot talk as the natives can. They cannot go about from home to home as well as the natives can. They cannot bear heat of the day as well as the natives can. They cannot live in a cheap rented house so patiently as the natives can. Their work should be a high spiritual brain-work. They should raise up the spokesmen instead of speaking themselves. If I were in the place of Dr. Clark I should put all my effort in founding a strong Christian university in Japan, in order to raise up Christian ministers, Christian physicians, Christian statesmen, and even Christian merchants. Christians must not be charged with being ignoramuses, or we shall not get the respect of the people. We shall be ridiculed for our ignorance as well as for our faith. It is well for us to remember and practice our Saviour's words, "be wise as serpents." Try to send out choice men, men of the New Testament spirit, of broad education and strong character, possessing the power of adaptability. It is absolutely necessary for us to keep apace with other schools, or even higher than those in order to make our school most attractive. I must earnestly beg you and the gentlemen of the Board to give us a fund to save the life of the Kiyoto Mission, and also to raise our educational standard so as to make our school, the centre of the Christian power and Christian influence. May God help you to see our present critical condition as well as our most pressing want. May God make you a mighty instrumentality to save us from the power of darkness. May God bless you and bless the gentlemen of the American Board.
Your grateful child,
Joseph H. Neesima