In his truly remarkable Memorial to the Emperor he pointed out that no such revolution as that which had just taken place had ever previously occurred since the creation of Japan. The Memorial was dated March 1868, and in alluding to it here my endeavour is to give precedence to the Minister’s first great effort in the direction of progress, and with which it is inevitable that his name should be for ever associated. Okubo proceeded in his Memorial to argue that the time was peculiarly opportune for the fulfilment of the great undertaking of restoring the ancient constitution of the Ten-shi’s realms, a task which he held had only been half accomplished by the defeat at Fushimi of the Bakufu’s forces. “If,” he wrote, “the Imperial Court should seek only a temporary advantage, instead of insuring permanent tranquillity, we shall have a repetition of the old thing, like the rise of the Ashikaga after the destruction of the Hojo. We shall be rid of one traitor only to have another arise. The most pressing of your Majesty’s pressing duties at the present moment is not to look at the Empire only, and judge solely by appearances, but to consider carefully the actual state of the whole world,—to reform the inveterate and slothful habits induced during hundreds of years,—to give union to the nation,—so that the whole Empire shall be moved to tears of gratitude, and both high and low appreciate the blessing of having a Sovereign in whom they can place their trust.” The memorialist went on to recommend very strongly a transfer of the Capital to Osaka, as being the fittest place for the conduct of foreign relations, for enriching the country and strengthening its military powers, for adopting successful means of offence and defence, and for establishing an army and navy. He was anxious that the young Emperor, then only in his sixteenth year, should set out on the journey to Osaka without loss of time. But there were cogent reasons why the new organisation should be centred in the city that had for centuries been the recognised headquarters of the executive, and Tokio, the present capital, was ultimately fixed upon as the future seat of the Central Administration.