“On January 16, after receipt of the last Japanese proposals, the Russian Imperial Government at once proceeded to examine them. On January 25 Mr. Kurino, the Japanese Minister at St. Petersburg, in reply to his inquiry, was informed that the Czar had intrusted the consideration of these proposals to a special conference, which was to meet on January 28, and that his Majesty’s decision would probably not be given before February 2.[670] On the last-named date the Czar gave orders to prepare a draft of definite instructions for the Russian Minister at Tokio on the basis of the deliberations of the special conference. On the day following, three telegrams were dispatched to Viceroy Alexieff, containing the full text of a draft statement, the reasons which prompted the Russian Government in making some modifications in the Japanese proposals, and the general instructions for the Russian Minister at Tokio concerning the presentation of the reply to the Japanese Government. In order to save time, identical telegrams were sent direct to Baron Rosen. “On February 4, forty-eight hours before the receipt of the news of the rupture of diplomatic relations by Japan, Count Lamsdorff notified the Japanese Minister of the dispatch to Baron Rosen of the Russian proposals in reply to the Japanese note.[671] On February 5, a message arrived from the Viceroy stating that he had heard from the Baron that the latter had received the Russian reply. On the 6th, at four o’clock in the afternoon, the Japanese Minister, quite unexpectedly, handed to the Russian Minister of Foreign Affairs two notes, the first of which notified the rupture of negotiations on the pretext that Russia was evading a reply[672] to the Japanese proposals, while the second announced the breaking off of diplomatic relations, and added that the Japanese Minister, with the staff of the Legation, would leave St. Petersburg on the 10th. These notes were accompanied by a private letter from the Japanese Minister to Count Lamsdorff, in which the hope was expressed that the rupture of diplomatic relations would be confined to as short a time as possible. “On the same day, Admiral Alexieff, Baron Rosen, and all the Russian Representatives in Peking, Tokio, and the capitals of the great Powers were informed by urgent telegrams of the rupture of diplomatic relations with Japan and the issue of our Imperial order for the withdrawal of the Russian Legation from Tokio. The said circular dispatch laid the responsibility of all consequences that might ensue on the Japanese Government.[673]