The Role of the Meiji Government in Early Meiji Economy

The early years of Meiji were a crucial time for the fragile new government, but the ambitious young government officials wasted no time in constructing the infrastructure that would lay the foundation for independent (public) contributions to Meiji modernization.

These government contributions were quite significant and varied. One of the most notable of these contributions was the planning and construction of a railway from Yokohama to Tokyo, and from Osaka to Kobe. The Yokohama line was finished and opened in 1872 with a grand ceremony featuring the Emperor himself. The Osaka line would open several years later in 1877. 1889 saw the opening of the Tokaido Trunk Line, a major railway line running down the old Sankin Kotai highway. This major new line allowed for ideal travel past all the old post towns that began modernization in Tokugawa Japan.

Before the Yokohama line even opened, however, the government had begun another venture; telegraph service from Tokyo to Yokohama. Service began in 1870, and later expanded to other cities in a relatively short period of time. The first telegraph lines were finished surprisingly quickly as they were commissioned, built, and finished all within the same year. A year later would see the opening of Tokaido highway post offices. The government decided on starting a postal system, and established offices along the Tokaido posts and in major cities for residents to begin sending letters and money orders. 1872, a year after the postal system was in full effect, the new Meiji government created a national bank to handle the national currency of "yen" that had been put into place in 1871. The creation of a national currency and national bans to handle it began the effort to sort out the variety of different currencies that had been exchanged up until that point.

The last of the early Meiji contributions was the establishment of a telephone system in 1890. The first telephone line ran between Tokyo and Yokohama; however, by 1900 telephone service was present in at least 50 cities throughout the country (McClain, 2002).

The contributions, although already present in the West, were extremely important for Japan's goal of modernization and shaking the chains of their treaties with the West. The infrastructure put into place allowed commerce and entrepreneurial ventures to flourish. With more resources available, businesses could more easily communicate and grow. This meant economic growth for Japan as a whole. Additionally, such infrastructure as that previously mentioned, served to instill confidence in the government and the country by the public. At the same time, it sent a signal to the West about Japan's advancement and inclusion in the international arena.

Without the governmental involvement in economic growth it is highly implausible that Japan could have achieved the same level of modernity. It is implausible that the public would have taken the steps in economic involvement that they did; and it is unlikely that businesses would have been able to grow and flourish as they did. While economic growth may be credited to private ventures, it was governmental involvement which laid the foundation for that level of growth and involvement.

McClain, J. (2002). Japan: A Modern History. Norton and Company, Inc. New York, NY.