The Meiji Constitution in Practice: The First Diet

The problem of historical explanation is presently engaging the deep interest of philosophers of history. Accepting the view that writing history partakes of the artistic in that the same material may be used, with controls, to support different conclusions, we will attempt to reevaluate certain premises on the early nature of parliamentary government under the Meiji Constitution. To facilitate the discussion, however, we should first present the traditional views on the development of parliamentary government prior to and soon after the promulgation of the Meiji Constitution.