The Joseon Prince Went To America And Didn’t Return – 76



< Lee Kang and the US-Japan Gentleman’s Agreement (2) >

“Hello Secretary of State Elihu Root.”

While Ito Hirobumi was racking his brain and searching for a breakthrough the Foreign Ministry staff on the mainland moved across the Pacific to San Francisco.

To discuss the US-Japan Gentleman’s Agreement with US federal government diplomats.

“Nice to meet you Minister of Foreign Affairs Takahara.”

Secretary of State Root squinted his eyes as he looked over each member of the Japanese diplomatic corps visiting San Francisco.

Because it seemed like their composition had changed a lot.

‘Is it because of what happened back then?’

Root speculated that the current composition was due to Lee Kang’s famous speech at the Hague Peace Conference.

Because none of the elite Japanese diplomats who had been dispatched as special envoys at that time were present.

‘International public opinion has become quite bad but was it really necessary to replace all the leaders ahead of the summit?’

The Japanese cabinet included Satoshi Honjo who was a special envoy and Tadasu Hayashi who was a foreign minister.

The diplomatic line has been completely replaced.

Root recalled the advantage and shook hands with Japanese diplomats.

“I heard you came here right after Foreign Minister Takahara took office?”

“Yes that’s right.”

“You must be tired. If you keep marching like this you won’t have any strength left.”

“It’s nothing. I can handle this much.”

“Hey isn’t it a big deal? Crossing the Atlantic Ocean is hard enough but crossing the vast Pacific Ocean is even harder.”

“….”

“Okay let’s take a seat first. You must be very tired since you came from far away.”

Elihu Root was very friendly to Japan.

Like most Americans of the time he was a Wapanese.

Perhaps because of this Root was quite considerate of Japanese diplomats.

“Mr. Secretary of State.”

“Yes go ahead.”

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“I would like to have a brief informal conversation before the formal meeting.”

“Ah… I see that’s because of some of the newly added provisions. Let’s do that. I’ll take the staff out for a moment.”

Takahara spoke English quite well.

That’s why he was able to converse freely with Root without an interpreter.

Suddenly-

The conference room door closes.

Now only Takahara and Root remain inside.

“Sir I heard that the U.S. Congress… passed a new immigration law.”

Takahara approached Root a little closer and whispered softly.

Root nodded in agreement to Takahara’s question.

“Yes the new immigration bill just passed the House.”

“What do you think will happen to the Senate?”

The United States is a bicameral system.

That’s why Takahara asked Root about the Senate’s intentions.

“It looks a little precarious looking at the way it’s going but it looks like it will pass in the Senate as well.”

Foreign Minister Takahara carefully trailed off and brought up the main topic.

“Is this a law regarding new citizenship for Asian immigrants? That’s the main point of this immigration law.”

“Yes. If the law passes it will make it much more difficult for Asian immigrants to obtain U.S. citizenship.”

“okay.”

Root explained the purpose of this immigration law by slightly revealing his disgust for the Qing people.

“Think back to the last San Francisco earthquake. What kind of crimes did the Qing people commit then? The new law was created to prevent previous atrocities in advance. Oh… Foreign Minister Takahara don’t worry too much. This immigration law revision will not affect the Japanese at all.”

Root emphasized again that Japanese people are different.

Because he was Japanese.

Because it was thought that among Orientals only the Japanese were civilized it was thought that the Chinese and the Japanese should be distinguished.

“Secretary Root I heard something that may surprise you.”

“What are you talking about?”

“It is said that Koreans as well as Japanese are included in the exception clause.”

“ah….”

Root nodded in agreement.

“That’s right. It’s not very pleasant but it’s happening. The image of Koreans has improved so much these days. I personally expressed my opposition to the president but it didn’t go over well.”

Japan has been lobbying extensively on the international stage.

U.S. Secretary of State Ruth was also among those targeted.

“Heh heh…..”

“It may not seem like a good choice but what can we do? That’s what the members of Congress and the President want.”

Unlike Japan democracy was very well established in the United States.

In other words since the separation of powers was so thorough Root thought it was inevitable.

Of course Takahara who was Japanese could not understand this American way of thinking.

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“This is a big deal. I wonder what President Roosevelt was going to do when low-quality Koreans came rushing in like a tidal wave….”

“That’s what I’m saying.”

Root like Roosevelt had a high opinion of Japan.

But other than that it was a completely different path.

For example he was friendly with Wall Street extremely conservative and a believer in elitism.

That was the route I had taken so I was very dissatisfied with President Roosevelt’s recent actions.

“Don’t worry too much. Even though the federal government is binding on us with laws our country is a federal state in which the states exercise their own self-government.”

Root persuaded Takahara with the following example.

“Even in Hawaii alone they have been blocking new immigration of Koreans for the past two years. If Koreans are a nuisance as Foreign Minister Takahara claims then the governors of each state will take care of blocking their immigration.”

okay.

The problem is California.

Takahara thought about this and put aside his thoughts on federal immigration law.

“Do you have any further personal questions?”

“yes.”

“Then would you like to talk about the gentleman’s agreement that we are about to conclude?”

After Takahara agreed Root called the staff back into the conference room.

since.

The United States and Japan began to negotiate face-to-face.

* * *

Japan voluntarily regulates Japanese people going to the United States.

Instead the United States provides loans.

These two sentences are the main contents of the Japan-US Gentleman’s Agreement.

but.

Another detail that was added to the previously discussed discussion was the point of contention.

“Secretary Root I think the content regarding Gando has changed a bit from what we discussed last time.”

“Yes that’s what happened.”

Root looked troubled.

“These days… public opinion in Washington is not good. There are voices that are starting to arise that we should be wary of returning to the country.”

Root sighed indicating that he was not particularly pleased with the atmosphere in Washington.

“I am trying to appease them but it is not easy.”

“Why is that? Is it because of Germany and Russia?”

“That’s right. And didn’t you send troops to Gando last time? The two countries are mentioning this and putting pressure on us the United States.”

Takahara snapped making a face that showed he didn’t like it.

“So are you recommending that our troops withdraw from Gando?”

“Yes. If that doesn’t come first it’s probably going to be difficult to provide additional loans.”

Takahara made a bewildered expression.

“You recognize it as Joseon territory but you cannot station our troops there? Doesn’t that mean we have to be an empty shell with no substance?”

“Minister of Foreign Affairs Takahara.”

Root took the Katsura-Taft Agreement document out of his briefcase and placed it on the table between them.

“Do you remember two years ago when we made a secret agreement between the Philippines and Joseon?”

Then he pushed this towards Takahara.

“The territory of Joseon that you claimed at that time was clearly the Korean Peninsula and its adjacent islands. We looked into the etymology of the Korean Peninsula. Usually the border was set between Amnok and Duman.”

This is a question that includes Gando.

There are only two.

This is what Root emphasized.

“It was our fault for not knowing exactly where Joseon territory ended but didn’t you also make a mistake?”

Root sighed and persuaded Takahara.

“Let’s not fight over a small piece of land. Isn’t your country still suffering from the aftereffects of the Russo-Japanese War? To overcome this you will desperately need our help.”

Also known as dollar diplomacy.

The American form of diplomacy that began with Theodore came to fruition during the Taft era.

In the history that changed because of Lee Kang dollar diplomacy was blossoming even faster.

This is because Lee Kang-yi revealed Japan’s weaknesses to the United States one by one.

America puts its own interests first.

No matter how much they are called ‘pro-Japanese’ unlike Joseon it means ‘America first’.

That is why Roosevelt did not just let the information that Lee Kang gave him rot away.

“Please give me a moment.”

“All right.”

Takahara made a resentful expression and tried to analyze where things went wrong.

Since it was something that required time he requested a recess and discussed the relevant subject with his staff members whom he brought along.

“What do you think?”

“It’s frustrating but we desperately need their loans.”

The economic situation in the home country is also like that.

We also had to consider the situation of the Government-General of Korea which was suffering from the righteous army.

“But if we do that…”

Gando could easily become a den of Koreans.

This means that it will be difficult for the Japanese military to enter and exit Gando.

What would happen if we crossed over to Hamgyeong Province at night attacked the Japanese army and then returned to Gando during the day?

This is something that is already happening frequently in the Primorsky region.

It was a future that the Japanese military did not want to even imagine as the front line was expanding.

“Is tomorrow a problem? I’m going to starve to death right now.”

“I know that too.”

“Your Majesty this agreement is a gentleman’s agreement. You must take note of this.”

The gentleman’s agreement is not ‘legally’ binding.

An agreement that is no different from an MOU in terms of business-to-business transactions.

of course.

If you don’t keep your promise your relationship with the other party you signed the agreement with will deteriorate rapidly.

“Are you saying that we should put out the urgent fire first?”

“Yes.”

Takahara’s lifeline was not that strong.

The previous foreign minister was cut off because of Lee Kang.

Since he hasn’t even cleaned up his predecessor’s mess yet he also doesn’t know when or how he will be fired.

If only to solidify his political position this agreement had to be concluded successfully.

‘I’m sure the Prime Minister will protect you.’

Hardliners will certainly object.

Because it’s a matter of defeating the military.

However the current prime minister is the moderate Saionji.

No matter how much Katsura Taro who signed the Katsura-Taft Agreement objects if the current Prime Minister Saionji supports Takahara it is a failure.

“Let’s go back to the negotiating table.”

Takahara returned to the negotiating table with his fists clenched.

After that he accepted whatever the United States wanted.

* * *

“Hello Your Highness.”

When the United States and Japan were in the midst of discussing the Gentleman’s Agreement.

I was meeting with politicians and reporters in Washington.

“Representative Wilbur is here too. Where are the other brothers?”

“My younger brother is currently conducting research so I am here alone.”

“I see. So the three of you including your younger brother at the research institute and the prince here are jointly running the Light & Lee company?”

“Yes.”

While I was in Washington I called on the Wright brothers.

The reason Wright & Lee is currently unable to deliver airplanes to the U.S. military is because of false rumors about the Wright brothers.

I tried to untangle the tangled threads by contacting the press.

“Representative Light. Please take this opportunity to explain the horror story about you to our readers.”

“I don’t know where to start with this story.”

Wilbur glanced at my face then exchanged glances with the reporter again.

‘Just do as you memorized… just as I taught you.’

I quietly cheered Wilbur on from the side.

“So… everything the Smithsonian Institution claims is false?”

“To be precise Samuel Langley a former executive lied to the association claiming that my technology was his own.”

I ordered from Wilbur.

Instead of fighting the association Langley should narrow the issue down to the Wright brothers themselves.

“That liar has caused me to fall out with the Smithsonian. You don’t know how much I’ve suffered. He spread false rumors and almost ruined Wright & Lee. The demonstration flight was a success but no further orders came in all because of his instigation.”

There are many reasons why we should not turn the association into an enemy.

The Smithsonian is an organization with quite a long history.

‘If you specifically attack one person instead of the association… you can easily restore your relationship with the association later.’

When public opinion turns sympathetic to the Wright brothers the Society will extend a helping hand as if it had never done so before.

Because it’s Langley’s fault not yours.

‘And Langley is dead.’

How long will the dead executive’s influence last in the association?

As we slowly start to unfollow the Smithsonian will also reach out to us.

‘Now is the time. Cry.’

The juice is sure to win.

Wilbur Wright shed tears.

Of course he didn’t show any excessive behavior.

Just wiping away tears.

I think this is just right.

“Oh I’m sorry. Thinking back on that time I can’t control my emotions.”

Men in this day and age must be strong.

It is not right to shed tears in front of others.

That’s why it can be a good weapon in negotiations.

“Ahem… The atmosphere is getting awkward. I’ll get up now.”

That’s why I tried to leave quickly.

So that I can have an interview with the reporter alone.

“Reporter James. Please take care of me.”

“Oh Prince. I will meet you and talk to you separately next time.”

“Yes. I will send someone to reschedule the appointment within a few days.”

“Then see you next time.”

As I stood up to go outside Wilbur continued to wipe away tears as if he was overcome with emotion.

I glanced back at him and quickly ran out.

* * *

“i look forward to.”

“No. I ask you to do better.”

I met with several senators who were maintaining a neutral stance on immigration passage.

“Do you have anything else to say?”

“Well I think this will be enough.”

From helping my nephew land a job at my financial firm in New York.

Even a deal to allocate land for an airplane factory to be built in the East to the district.

A variety of conditions were discussed at the negotiating table.

‘Add to what’s already there.’

Some selfish congressmen always waste time like this.

They won’t pass the bill until they get what they want.

It’s the same now as it was then.

“Boss the immigration bill has been passed.”

Unusually all Southern Democrats voted against it.

This is because even the Japanese insisted on blocking the immigration of all Asians.

‘Wilson should never be president.’

yet again.

I got the feeling that the Democratic Party members of this era were not compatible.

I stretched as I left the assembly.

‘Ellis too… seems to be working hard on writing good articles about Joseon.’

Before leaving the White House Ellis approached me and apologized.

I said there was someone else who should apologize for this.

“You insulted my mother. You committed the atrocity of climbing up on the stone tomb in front of her tomb.”

I listed in detail the misdeeds Ellis had committed in Joseon.

In particular he emphasized what happened at Hongneung the tomb of Queen Min.

This is because Ellis’ past history of losing her biological mother when she was young came to mind.

“I didn’t know that hill-like thing was your mother’s grave. I’m sorry again.”

At this Ellis blushed and asked for my forgiveness again.

So I advised him to stop just saying sorry and show it with actions.

The result is the newspaper editorial I hold in my hands.

As I expected Ellis granted my wish.

‘I guess you still have a conscience.’

The unfollowing is almost over.

I bought all the companies I needed.

Is it because I worked hard every day?

The year 1907 was also just coming to an end.

“Boss when are you going back to San Francisco?”

“Can’t we go back soon? It’s too cold here.”

I know.

Winters in the East are so harsh.

It’s colder than usual probably because it’s the 1900s and global warming hasn’t progressed yet.

“I see. I was planning on going back west anyway.”

“Are you serious? Wow!”

then.

I was planning on going west to interview new family members anyway.

“Go to sleep. Hurry up.”

“Yes boss!”

< Lee Kang and the US-Japan Gentleman’s Agreement (2) > End