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No one can guarantee, under such circumstances, who will be the
victor and who the vanquished in the end. But there is an evil
habit which has become almost a custom among our viceroys and
governors which, however, must be eradicated at all costs. For
instance, whenever these high officials have had on their hands
cases of international dispute, all their actions seem to be
guided by the belief in their breasts that such cases would
eventually be 'amicably arranged.' These words seem never to be
out of their thoughts: hence, when matters do come to a crisis,
they, of course, find themselves utterly unprepared to resist any
hostile aggressions on the part of the foreigner. We, indeed,
consider this the most serious failure in the duty which the
highest provincial authorities owe to the throne, and we now find
it incumbent upon ourselves to censure such conduct in the most
severe terms.
"It is our special command, therefore, that should any high
official find himself so hard pressed by circumstances that
nothing short of war would settle matters, he is expected to set
himself resolutely to work out his duty to this end. Or, perhaps,
it would be that war has already actually been declared; under
such circumstances there is no possible chance of the imperial
government consenting to an immediate conference for the
restoration of peace. It behooves, therefore, that our viceroys,
governors, and commanders-in-chief throughout the whole empire
unite forces and act together without distinction or
particularizing of jurisdictions so as to present a combined
front to the enemy, exhorting and encouraging their officers and
soldiers in person to fight for the preservation of their homes
and native soil from the encroaching footsteps of the foreign
aggressor
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