Ikunoshin Kadono

Image: From the collection of the Fukuzawa Memorial Center for Modern Japanese Studies

"For thirty years, although I was close to the Master, I did not gain his trust. Nor did I dare seek to gain it. I frequently opposed the Master and incurred his anger on many occasions. Upon receiving the news this day that the Master's illness is nearly hopeless, does the Master know, or know not, that there is one person in a room of a guest house in a distant foreign land, lying prostrate on a long chair, unable to stop his weeping?"

This passage, describing complex feelings toward Fukuzawa, is an excerpt from a diary written by Ikunoshin Kadono in 1898 while he was traveling in Europe.

Kiroku Hayashi, a later President, evaluated Ikunoshin Kadono as follows: "Among many teachers, he ranked first as a scholar," and he was the one who "bore the academic authority of the entire Juku on his shoulders" and was a "benefactor who built the great Keio." Kadono served as the Vice Principal of the Juku for a long time, initiating numerous institutional reforms and facing as much opposition as the number of challenges he took on. After resigning as a teacher, he entered the business world, founded many insurance companies including Chiyoda Life Insurance, served as president of each, and was a figure who laid the foundation of the insurance industry.

Ikunoshin Kadono was born in 1856 in Toba, Shima Province, as the eldest son of Toyoemon, who served as a Karo (elder) in the Toba Domain.

Toyoemon, who held a high rank within the domain, had a strong interest in learning, and Ikunoshin began studying Western subjects such as geography, physics, and Dutch from around the age of six. In 1869, at his father's recommendation, Ikunoshin went to Tokyo and entered Keio University as a student sponsored by the Toba Domain.

At the Juku at that time, there was "no relationship of teacher and student," but rather a "relationship like older and younger brothers," and they even went to yose (storytelling theaters) together. During this period, Fukuzawa was still lecturing on Wayland's "Moral Science" and "Political Economy," and Keio students attended regardless of their grade level. Fukuzawa did not just lecture on books; when there was an issue such as "whether Masujiro Enomoto would be killed or not," he would ask the Keio students, "What should be done about this?" and provide commentary on current events. It was said to be like "the feeling of listening to a speech." On the other hand, to Kadono, Fukuzawa's English seemed "arbitrary"; while his "writing" was certain, it appeared as if he was "speaking whether Westerners understood him or not." Kadono and others spent their time ambitiously, going to the British Legation in Hijirizaka on their own to learn English from cavalrymen and striving to master French.

In 1871, taking the opportunity of the move to Mita, Keio University gradually began to take the form of a school. Around the same time, Kadono became the youngest teacher. Initially, he was teased by those around him as the "Boy Teacher," but his ability was certain, and he was later admired as one of the "Three No-Sensei of the Juku" along with Sadashiro Hamano and Makizo Ashino. Yukio Ozaki evaluated Kadono, saying, "No matter what I asked, he answered promptly, and I could not stump him," and "I did not just admire him; because Mr. Kadono was a brilliant person, I thought I must use his mind as a model to develop my own academic side, and I have worked hard to implement that ever since." Sei'ichiro Takahashi also remarked, "Among the seniors of that time, the one who uttered the most certain opinions that should be listened to was, after all, Mr. Kadono." Kadono possessed English proficiency that was among the best not only within Keio but in the entire country, and it is even said that it was Kadono who translated the suffix "-tic" as "nani-nani-teki." In 1877, he was dispatched to Mitsubishi Commercial School, and in 1878 to Risshi Gakusha, where he stood at the lectern of each school along with other teachers. Furthermore, around 1880, during a period of financial difficulty for the Juku, he and Eikichi Kamada proposed reducing the salaries of young teachers like themselves and even made personal donations to save the Juku from crisis.

In 1883, he was appointed Vice Principal. Under the up-and-coming Chancellor Nobukichi Koizumi, he embarked on reforms of the examination system, making grading and passing methods stricter. However, this was met with a storm of criticism from Keio students, and in 1888, a boycott of classes lasting over ten days and a turmoil over withdrawals broke out (the Strike Incident). In the end, Fukuzawa intervened between the two parties, gathered the Keio students and staff at the Enzetsukan (Public Speaking Hall), and sought reconciliation by holding a speech and a garden party. Fukuzawa advised Kadono to take a leave of absence for about two academic terms until the problem subsided. Looking back after this incident, Kadono reflected, "I lost a great deal of trust from the Master," and "He probably thought Kadono does reckless things."

However, letters from Fukuzawa confirm that he continued to rely on Kadono thereafter, bringing various consultations to him and requesting his presence when VIPs visited the Fukuzawa residence. Nevertheless, in 1898, when Tokujirō Obata approached him about becoming President, Kadono declined, saying it was "unacceptable" because if he became President, a fight with Fukuzawa would surely occur; instead, he recommended Eikichi Kamada and expressed his desire to support him. Incidentally, while Fukuzawa evaluated Kadono as having "brilliant literary talent" from that time, in his later years he also advised him: "It is good that you understand things very well, but you oppose people's theories and say they are no good. When someone says right, you say left. Even if you do such things, there is rarely any great gain or loss. On the contrary, it only irritates people and brings no benefit at all, so I am cautioning you."

In 1890, the Juku launched the college. The original plan was researched almost entirely by Kadono alone, created mainly with reference to American curricula. Although the college was launched with great fanfare, it did not attract as many students as expected and put pressure on the management of the entire Juku. Nevertheless, it was decided that the college would continue according to Fukuzawa's wishes. Later, it was also Vice Principal Kadono who worked on the school system reform plan centered on the college.

Amidst this new momentum, Kadono traveled to Europe from 1898 to the following year to inspect further educational improvements. The diary at the beginning of this article was written precisely during this time. After returning to Japan, Kadono implemented a new college system reform plan that removed the boundaries between departments (faculties) and allowed students to freely choose subjects according to their own goals. It was created with the philosophy that students entering society could be active after graduation with free will and a spirit of independence, but the demand for a departmental system remained strong, and unable to gain the understanding of those around him, it was abolished after one year. On the other hand, the system of sending students abroad for the purpose of training the school's own teachers was an achievement of Kadono's proposal at that time. Additionally, Kadono was involved in the compilation of the "Shūshin Yōryō: Fukuzawa's Moral Code" and took on the task of giving lectures nationwide, working energetically within Keio until Fukuzawa passed away.

After the death of Fukuzawa, the Juku established a new system with Kamada remaining as President, Tokujirō Obata as the Head of the Corporation (Shato), and Kadono as the Vice Head (Fuku-shato) concurrently serving as Vice Principal. However, the following year in 1902, when Reisuke Kitagawa took office as the Juku Superintendent (Jukukan), complaints from Keio students overflowed. The state where the areas of responsibility for President Kamada, Vice Principal Kadono, and Superintendent Kitagawa were ambiguous was ridiculed and criticized as a "triumvirate." In response to this, Kadono resigned as Vice Principal and retired from being a teacher at the Juku altogether.

Kadono turned his attention to the life insurance business, which few Keio University alumni were engaged in at the time, and immediately planned a business venture with Kitagawa, who had also left the Juku. Insurance was a business that Fukuzawa had introduced to the world ahead of others as "guarantee" in "Things Western (Seiyō Jijō)," and it was also a business where it was easy to demonstrate academic knowledge. After a one-year preparation period, Chiyoda Life Insurance was founded in 1904 as a mutual company that did not prioritize profit, and Kadono became its president.

At the time of its founding, it was supported by the enrollment of many Keio University alumni and was even called the "Juku's company." Eventually, it gained trust through the economic boom of the Russo-Japanese War and its response to the Great Kanto Earthquake, rising to second place in the industry by 1928. Ryōzō Hiranuma evaluated it as follows: "I believe Chiyoda Life became what it did because there were many capable executives, but one reason is that it is a great manifestation of the collective gratitude of Keio University toward Mr. Kadono. Keio University became what it is today because there was a person as academically great as Mr. Kadono under Fukuzawa-sensei, and I think the circle of gratitude for that manifested in Chiyoda Life." In addition to Chiyoda Life, Kadono founded Dai-ichi Kikan Steam Boiler Insurance in 1908, Nippon Conscription Insurance in 1911, Chiyoda Fire Insurance in 1913, and Chitose Fire and Marine Insurance in 1920, serving concurrently as president of each. Kadono's achievements in the insurance industry were recognized after his death by the Griffith Insurance Education Foundation in the United States, and he was inducted into the Insurance Hall of Fame in 1983.

In addition to the insurance business, he showed a significant presence in Japan, serving as a director of Mitsui Trust in 1880 and being appointed as a member of the House of Peers by imperial command in 1932. Furthermore, he showed care for his hometown, Toba, by donating books to children and establishing a scholarship system. In 1943, after his death, the "Aikei Scholarship Society" (Aikei being a pen name punning on Kadono's initials I.K.) was established by his bereaved family in accordance with Ikunoshin's wishes. To date, it has provided scholarships and commemorative gifts to over a thousand children and donated approximately 25,000 books to elementary and junior high schools.

Even after resigning as Vice Principal and Councilor, Kadono did not withhold his support for the Juku. He served as Vice Head of the Corporation and Trustee for a long time, and was respected as one of the oldest members of the Keio Gijuku Shachu until he passed away at the age of 82. In 1922 (upon President Kamada's resignation) and 1927 (when President Koizumi went to the U.S.), he also served as the Acting President.

Furthermore, he continued his support financially, making a large donation upon the establishment of the School of Medicine in 1916 and donating the executive bonus he received on the 15th anniversary of Chiyoda Life in 1919. Additionally, he served as chairman of both Kojunsha and Jiji Shinpo-sha, two of Fukuzawa's three major enterprises, and at Jiji Shinpo-sha, he invested a large amount of his private fortune for reconstruction during the management crisis of 1928.

In a memorial tribute from Takuzo Itakura, Kadono was described as having a "stubborn disposition" and being a "terrible contrarian," yet he made it his creed to "strive to care for the school as long as I have strength in my life." This was because of the sentiment entrusted to him by none other than Fukuzawa. One day after Fukuzawa recovered from his first major illness, he earnestly told Kadono, "One thing I ask of you is that nowadays there are not many people who will devote their entire lives to caring for the school, so I am asking you. Will you not care for it from now on without ever looking away?"

In the first half of the diary mentioned at the beginning, which said, "I did not gain the Master's trust. Nor did I dare seek to gain it," it is also written: "I cannot stop my mourning. Looking back, when we parted at the Master's residence in Azabu a few months ago, he saw me to the door and, like a father to a son, cautioned me to be careful of the heat of the Indian Ocean and the cold of Northern Europe and to take care of myself; that face and that voice are still clearly present in my ears and eyes." Although Kadono had complex feelings toward Fukuzawa, one can feel that his relationship with Fukuzawa, connected at the depths of his heart, was also deep and firm. (All quotations of Kadono and those around him in this article are based on the "Collection of Achievements of Mr. Ikunoshin Kadono.")