ARTICLE I.—The Imperial governments of Japan and Russia definitely recognize the sovereignty and entire independence of Korea, and mutually engage to abstain from all direct interference in the affairs of that country. ARTICLE II.—Desiring to remove every possible cause of misunderstanding in the future, the Imperial governments of Japan and Russia mutually engage not to take any measure regarding the nomination of military instructors and financial advisers without having previously arrived at a mutual accord on the subject. ARTICLE III.—In view of the great development of the commercial and industrial enterprise of Japan in Korea, as also the considerable number of Japanese subjects residing in that country, the Russian Imperial Government shall not impede the development of commercial and industrial relations between Japan and Korea. Five days later—namely, on August 30th—Marquis Ito, who was visiting in Korea, and had been cordially received by the Emperor and invited to dine with him, publicly reaffirmed the policy for which His Imperial Majesty of Japan and he himself, as His Majesty’s subject, wished to be responsible, in a speech delivered at a dinner given at the Foreign Office. On that occasion the Marquis spoke as follows: YOUR EXCELLENCIES AND GENTLEMEN: I thank you sincerely for the kind words in which the Acting Minister of Foreign Affairs has just addressed me on your behalf, but at the same time I am constrained to say that I do not deserve the high compliments which he chose to confer upon me. Allow me to avail myself of the present opportunity to say a few words concerning the attitude of Japan toward this country. You doubtless know that in 1873 a group of Japanese statesmen advocated the despatch of a punitive expedition to Korea, a proposal to which I was uncompromisingly opposed from the outset, because I deemed such a war not only uncalled for, but contrary to the principles of humanity. You may imagine the magnitude of the excitement occasioned by this question, when I tell you that the split which it caused in the ranks of the Japanese statesmen led to a tremendous civil war a few years afterward. The point to which I wish to direct your attention is that His Imperial Japanese Majesty’s Government did not hesitate to reject what it considered to be an unjust proposal even at such gigantic risk.