Tetsunosuke Tomita

Image: Collection of Shinfuku-ji Temple (Provided by Sendai City Museum)

In 1874, Tetsunosuke Tomita, the Vice-Consul in New York, returned to Japan temporarily to get married and held his wedding ceremony at the home of Yukichi Fukuzawa. His bride was Nui, the eldest daughter of Seikei Sugita. Nui was the great-granddaughter of Genpaku Sugita, a pioneer of Rangaku (Western Studies), and the Sugita family had been a lineage of Rangaku scholars and physicians for generations. A marriage contract was exchanged during the ceremony. Following the signatures of the couple, the contract was signed by Yukichi Fukuzawa as the go-between (gyoreinin) and Arinori Mori (later Minister of Education), who was Tomita's superior, as a witness. While Fukuzawa's spirit and practice of gender equality in marriage are well-known, Mori also developed a theory of monogamy in the journal "Meiroku Zasshi." The ideologies of those who attended the ceremony culminated in this marriage contract. Four months later, Mori also married and exchanged a similar marriage contract, which Fukuzawa signed as a witness. This ceremony was reported in newspapers and heralded as Japan's first contract marriage, so it is possible that Tomita's wedding was indeed the very first. Given the circumstances of the ceremony, it is believed that Fukuzawa was the one who brought Tomita and Nui together.

The Tomita family was of high-ranking samurai lineage in the Sendai Domain, known as "chakusa," with a stipend of 2,000 koku. Tetsunosuke Tomita was born in 1835 as the fourth son of Saneyasu. He was described as having a "naturally strong constitution and a clear mind," with a "competitive spirit that, once he said something, he would see it through to the end" ("Sendai Sentetsu Ijin-roku"). After going to Edo and becoming a student at Rintaro (Kaishu) Katsu's Hyokai-juku, he was ordered to accompany Katsu's son, Koroku, to study in the United States. According to Saburo Takagi of the Shonai Domain, who was also chosen to go, they felt as if they were "ascending to heaven" upon hearing the news, and their joy was "beyond imagination, as they were to be among the very first students to study in the West" ("Takagi Saburo-o Shoden"). Shindayu Owarashi, a Sendai Domain official who worked hard to secure Tomita's study abroad and a tuition allowance of 1,000 ryo per year, was a close friend of Fukuzawa, so the relationship between Fukuzawa and Tomita may have begun even before Tomita left for America.

Katsu's party departed Yokohama Port on the Colorado in July 1867. The Sendai Domain also sent two boys, including Wakijiro Takahashi (later Korekiyo, the 7th Governor of the Bank of Japan and Prime Minister), who boarded as lower-class passengers. Tomita looked after them, giving them food from the first-class cabin and pocket money, but Takahashi spent the money on alcohol, even using the other boy's share. Tomita was so furious that he scolded him, saying, "You should go home on this ship!" and it reportedly took "about three days of visiting him for his anger to finally subside" ("Takahashi Korekiyo Jiden"). Katsu's party began studying English in Boston, but within a year, news of the collapse of the Shogunate arrived. Tomita and Takagi, unable to stand by, rescued Takahashi—who had been sold into near-slavery in San Francisco—and returned to Japan temporarily. When the two visited Katsu upon their return, they were reprimanded, with Katsu saying, "Returning so lightly goes greatly against my wishes" ("Sendai Sentetsu Ijin-roku"), and Katsu recorded his "regret after their return" in his diary ("Kaishu Nikki"). Consequently, they were immediately sent back to study again with private funds provided by Katsu. Upon returning to the U.S., Tomita enrolled in a business college in Newark. The principal, W.C. Whitney, allowed Tomita, whose English was insufficient, to board at his home, where his wife Anna taught him English.

In 1871, Arinori Mori was appointed as the first diplomatic envoy (Junior Commissioner/Minister) to the United States, and the following year, the Iwakura Mission arrived. On this occasion, Tomita was recruited as a government diplomat. A letter to Owarashi dated April 5, 1873, conveys his appointment as Vice-Consul in New York, stating, "I have recently been ordered to serve in New York as something called a Vice-Consul."

After traveling to Europe as a member of a mission, Fukuzawa was employed by the Shogunate and served in the Foreign Affairs Translation Bureau. There, he worked alongside Gentan Sugita and Renkei Sugita on the translation of diplomatic documents. Gentan was originally from a family of physicians in the Owari Domain but had been adopted into the main Sugita family to succeed as head of the house. Meanwhile, Seikei, Nui's father from a branch of the Sugita family, was a leading Rangaku scholar alongside Koan Ogata at the time, but he passed away early due to poor health. As a result, the Sugita family welcomed Renkei as an adopted son to marry the eldest daughter, Nui. In the "Drafts of Bakumatsu Diplomatic Document Translations" included in the "Complete Works of Yukichi Fukuzawa," there are records of documents where Fukuzawa, Gentan, and Renkei worked together as translators or reviewers. It was also during this period that a manuscript of Genpaku Sugita's "Rangaku Kotohajime" (The Beginnings of Western Studies), which was thought to have been destroyed by fire, was discovered at a street stall. Fukuzawa encouraged Renkei to publish it, saying, "The 'Rangaku Kotohajime' of your house is a treasure for our community of scholars" ("Preface to the Second Edition of Rangaku Kotohajime"), and he bore the publication costs. "Rangaku Kotohajime" was published in 1869, but a year later, Renkei died of pulmonary tuberculosis at the young age of 26, despite the nursing care of Gentan and Nui. Later, when a medical school was established at Keio University, Gentan, who had become a surrogate parent to Nui, served as the head of its clinic.

With Fukuzawa, who had such deep ties to the Sugita family, acting as the go-between, Tomita and Nui held their wedding on October 4. Tomita was 38 years old. After the ceremony, the couple went on a honeymoon to Enoshima, and it is said that Fukuzawa saw them off part of the way on horseback. Their married life began in the back rooms of the Fukuzawa residence. In a marriage report sent to Owarashi from there, Tomita expressed his joy, saying, "Through the mediation of Fukuzawa and other friends, I have obtained the finest lady in Tokyo."

Arinori Mori, who served as a witness, had developed an interest in education systems while in the U.S. and advocated for the necessity of establishing commercial schools. This is thought to have been a collaborative concept with Tomita, who had studied at a business college. Although a "Notification of the Establishment of a Commercial Training Institute" was accepted through Mori's efforts, the project saw little progress until Tomita's marriage provided a turning point. On November 1, "at the request of both Mori and Tomita," Fukuzawa wrote "The Purpose of Establishing a Commercial School" and published it as a pamphlet. Fukuzawa argued for its necessity, stating, "In an era of fighting through trade, one cannot compete with foreigners without studying commercial laws."

Tomita had to return to his post in New York just a few days later. Nui, who had just married, remained in Japan, as Tomita wrote in the aforementioned letter to Owarashi: "It is inconvenient to take her to the U.S. at this time, as I wish to avoid the excessive travel expenses." For a while, she was looked after at the Fukuzawa residence. Nui recalled, "The Professor was a truly diligent person; he would grind a mortar of rice every morning and even clean the kitchen himself. We sometimes had meals together." In letters to Tomita in the U.S., Fukuzawa reported on Nui's well-being, writing things like "Your lady is in good spirits" (Letter 189).

In Fukuzawa's prospectus, he wrote, "Mr. Whitney, a Master of Commerce from the United States, has long desired to come to Japan to teach commercial law." Tomita's mentor in the U.S., Whitney, came to Japan with his family in August 1875 and lived at Arinori Mori's residence. It was Nui who moved from the Fukuzawa residence to this building to look after the family. In "Clara's Meiji Diary," written by the eldest daughter Clara, who arrived in Japan at age 14, Nui appears almost daily until Tomita's return and her departure from the Whitney household, described as "a truly refined and beautiful lady from the upper class."

Fukuzawa also looked after the Whitney family, inviting them to his home, giving them gifts, and visiting them on horseback. Clara wrote, "I respect the Professor because he is always kind to us. He is a strong, manly person who has translated many useful books into Japanese." Another person who socialized with the Whitney family and even built a new house for them within his own estate for a time was Tomita's mentor, Kaishu Katsu. As a later development, Clara married Katsu's third son, Umetaro, and Clara's brother Willis purchased land from Katsu to open Akasaka Hospital, serving as a doctor and pastor to promote Japan-U.S. friendship.

The Commercial Training Institute opened in September 1875. After the institute became the Tokyo Commercial School, Tomita served as a councilor for the school for about ten years, contributing to the survival of the institution that is today Hitotsubashi University.

Tomita returned from the U.S. in October 1876, but two years later, he again left Nui behind to serve as a first secretary in London for about two and a half years. Upon returning to Japan, Tomita became a Senior Secretary of the Treasury in October 1881, shifting his stage of activity from diplomacy to finance. During this period, immediately following the Political Crisis of 1881, he became a member of the founding committee of the Bank of Japan under Finance Minister Masayoshi Matsukata, who held the real power in the Ministry of Finance. He engaged in dozens of discussions with Shigetoshi Yoshihara, the Junior Vice Minister of Finance, and others (Matsukata and Yoshihara were from the former Satsuma Domain). When the Bank of Japan opened in October 1882, Yoshihara became the first Governor and Tomita the Vice Governor. However, because Yoshihara was often ill and unable to come to work, Tomita managed the bank's affairs as the de facto Governor and handled communications with the government. When Yoshihara died in office, Tomita was appointed the second Governor of the Bank of Japan. Upon receiving the offer, Tomita refrained from an immediate answer and visited Kaishu Katsu to seek his opinion.

In Katsu's diary, "Kaishu Nikki," Tomita's name appears frequently starting from the first entry on September 19, 1866, and especially after his return from the U.S. Most entries simply record the name "Tetsunosuke Tomita," suggesting that Tomita visited his mentor casually. However, the record for February 5, 1888, goes beyond just his name, stating, "Regarding his career, I have written a letter to Masayoshi Matsukata to convey my thoughts," revealing Katsu's efforts to support Tomita's appointment as Governor.

During his term, Tomita engaged in active monetary policies, such as flexible changes to the official discount rate. However, he clashed with Matsukata over the issue of funding for the Yokohama Specie Bank and resigned as Governor (effectively a dismissal). A month before the resignation, Fukuzawa wrote in a letter to Hikojiro Nakamigawa, "It seems Tomita has also offended Matsukata" (Letter 1097), showing that Fukuzawa was concerned about the situation just before it happened.

It can be said that Tomita built the foundation of the Bank of Japan through his seven years as Vice Governor and Governor. However, Tomita himself recalled the time by saying, "The calamities of slander and jealousy reached the point of attacking me" (Tomita's memoir "The Circumstances of Resignation" in "The Forgotten Former BOJ Governor: A Biography of Tetsunosuke Tomita"). Tomita's abilities and the new knowledge he gained through his long life abroad were irreplaceable, and he was recruited by Arinori Mori and others who valued them, but there were limits to his advancement. The pressure from the Satcho (Satsuma-Choshu) clique against Tomita, who was from the "enemy of the court" (Sendai Domain) and had unexpectedly become Governor, must have been unbearable for him.

After resigning as Governor, Tomita served as the Governor of Tokyo Prefecture, a member of the House of Peers, and a director for many companies. In his later years, his family life remained harmonious. Because he made large donations whenever requested by Sendai-related causes, his household finances were not wealthy, and he reportedly lived a frugal life. Tomita passed away in February 1916, watched over by his family. The Asahi Shimbun reporting the news described him as "solemn in character and a staunch adherent to democratic principles until the end." When he left the Bank of Japan, the government intended to grant him 50,000 yen in recognition of his service, but Tomita reportedly declined, saying, "Receiving a reward without merit sets a bad precedent" ("Sendai Sentetsu Ijin-roku").