In the margins of the memoranda in the archives at Brussels, someone has added in a careful hand, a few
French words epitomizing the gist of the argument in the text, such as tolerance, circulation libre de
personnes, etc… All the items appear in the memorandum of the meeting between Lambermont and
Iwakura. On comparison Lambermont appears to reiterate many of the viewpoints already voiced by
Granville. Lambermont had probably studied the British position very carefully in anticipation of his
interview with Iwakura. From the British memoranda we learn that Iwakura had told Lord Granville that he
was not charged with expressing the views of the Japanese government on the subject of treaty revision but
only with ascertaining the views held on it by the British government. The British minister could scarcely
conceal his exasperation at the noncommittal stance of his Japanese guest. At the second meeting of 27
November, the moot question of extraterritoriality and consular courts was broached. Lord Granville
insisted on the necessity to ensure that British citizens got a fair trial. He adumbrated the possibility of
following the experiment the British had set up in Egypt. There they had allowed Egyptian tribunals to
administer the law in civil cases. If the experiment were to succeed, it would be tried in criminal cases also.
If the mood that transpires from these records is anywhere near a faithful reflection of what was actually
being said, then we cannot but conclude that the official contacts between the Japanese envoys and the
representatives of the British government were rather unpleasant.