When Baron Kodama--he was raised to the peerage in 1895 with a step in rank as lieutenant-general--became a member of the Cabinet there was a universal cry for bold administration, and the hopes of reformers centered on the soldier-statesman to whom they had given the name “Minister of the Axe” because of his declaration that in politics as in battle a sharp axe is better than a blunt knife. The encroachments of Russia in Manchuria and Korea turned Kodama’s energies and thoughts from politics to war, and in October of 1903, when Major-General Tamura died, he left the Cabinet to discharge the duties of assistant chief of the Head Quarter Staff, a post to which he was called not only by the voice of the people but by his comrades in arms. In this responsible and difficult position, the General has given proof of foresight and perseverance that have distinguished him throughout his career. He is a man of strong character and possesses in no small degree the indefinable quality known as personal magnetism. As a staff officer his clear head, his sound and ready judgment and his mastery of detail have been of the highest service. He has the infinite capacity for taking pains which Michael Angelo called genius. Night and day he sits at his desk attending to the multitudinous details of a great war, yet his door is never closed to a friend or even to the stranger who has any claim upon his attention. Captain Tanaka, the baron’s aide-de-camp, is a typical example of the new school. His knowledge of England is not confined to the language; it extends to our military history in its obscurest details, and his spare moments are spent in translating into Japanese the tactical books of our army. General Fukushima, Director of Military Intelligence, is a much-travelled soldier and speaks English. He journeyed alone through Siberia in 1892, and brought back valuable reports that confirmed the high opinion of his special talent. At that time he was only a lieutenant-colonel, and his fame had not gone beyond a small official circle. When he returned from Siberia he was appointed to the Staff and was sent on a mission of investigation to China, Korea, and Russia. During the Chinese war he commanded a regiment, and was afterwards made Governor of Formosa, but resigned the post in consequence of some difference of opinion on the subject of the pigtail of the nationalized Chinese. Once more he took the road, and journeyed through India, Persia, and Turkey, with eyes that saw everything, ears that heard everything, and a memory that forgot nothing. In the Boxer troubles General Fukushima was in command of the Japanese contingent that took part in the Tientsin-Pekin operations, when the Japanese troops distinguished themselves for reckless courage and perfect discipline.