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if ever given, was not formal and official. Kada’s memorial has lately been published in a separate form by Hirata Kanétané and can easily be obtained. It is a most vigorous protest against the utter neglect of Japanese learning for Chinese which had up to that time been almost universal.
It is usually stated that Kada, shortly before his death, gave orders to his pupils to destroy all his manuscripts, on the ground that they must contain many errors, and be therefore calculated to mislead students, while the good which might be in them could easily be discovered without their aid. Hirata Atsutané repeats this story, but it is stated, on the authority of Atsutané’s son Kané, tané, that the Kada family still possess several boxes full of unpublished writings of Adsumamaro. It may be doubted, however, whether they are of much actual value, seeing that their author was the first who attempted to elucidate the meaning of the ancient books, and as Atsutané says; ‘we can see from the works which Kada published during his life-time, such as his commentaries or the Manyôshiu and Jindai no maki, that he had good reason to be dissatisfied with the conclusions which be had reached.’
Kada’s views may be briefly stated as follows: “Learning is a matter in which the highest interests of the empire are involved, and no man ought to be vain enough to imagine that he is able by himself to develope it thoroughly. Nor should the student blindly adhere to the opinions of his teacher. Any one who desires to study Japanese literature, should first acquire a good knowledge of Chinese, and then pass over to the Manyôshiu, from which he may discover the ancient principles of the divine age. If he resolve bravely to love and admire antiquity, there is no reason why he should fail to acquire the ancient style in poetry as well as in other things. In ancient times, as the poet expressed only the genuine sentiments of his heart, his style was naturally straight-forward, but since the practice of writing upon subjects chosen by lot has come into vogue, the language of poetry has become ornate and the ideas
