D+Matsukata+Masayoshi+Jin+Sim+Chloe+Song



__**Slogans (the ones he actually/may have used):**__

It is very likely that Masayoshi used one (if not both) of the following slogans during his life as a government official.
 * Fukoku kyōhei:** This slogan translates to "Enrich the country, strengthen the military." This was the core and founding idea for most leaders during the Meiji period. It required reforms be made to assimilate Japan to Western cultures, which Masayoshi indeed did during his life time. Masayoshi made several financial reforms that especially regarded taxation, and his idea of //fukoku kyohei// can be clearly seen.
 * //Sonnō jōi//**: This slogan translates to "Revere the emperor, expel the barbarians," and this was the fundamental concept during the Meiji period. It is especially likely that Masayoshi used this slogan because he attended //Zoshikan//, a strictly Confucian school that especially emphasized the loyalty to the emperor.

__**General facts about his life:**__
 * Born as a //samurai// in Kagoshima Province
 * He was sent to Nagasaki - study western science, mathematics and surveying
 * Attended a Confuician Satsuma school called //Zonshikan//, which emphasized loyalty to emperor.
 * Purchased a ship available in Nagasaki for use in the coming conflict (between Satsuma and the Tokugawa, Matsukata).
 * Name of the ship: Kasuga
 * Kasuga did become a warship; fought in the //Boshin War// against the Tokugawa ships
 * Greatly influenced economy of Japan
 * Settled the economic inflation with the //"Matsukata Deflation"//
 * Established the Bank of Japan in 1882.
 * Served as finance minister for 18 years and as Prime Minister for 2 years until his death.

__**How did he try to modernize Japan?:**__
 * At the time of the Meiji Restoration he helped maintain order in Nagasaki after the collapse of the Tokugawa bakufu
 * Matsukata instituted a number of reforms
 * Began work on drafting laws for the Land Tax Reform of 1873-1881
 * a taxpayer paid taxes with money instead of rice
 * taxes were calculated based on the price of estates, not the amount of the agricultural product produced, and
 * tax rates were fixed at 3% of the value of estates and an estate holder was obliged to pay those taxes.

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