Sutemi Chinda

Sutemi Chinda came from Hirosaki and studied at Tōō Gijuku before traveling to Indiana with Aimaro Satō. He graduated from Indiana Asbury University in 1881. His subsequent diplomatic career included service in San Francisco, Brazil, and Germany before his appointment to Washington. Satō, his fellow student and later fellow ambassador, became his brother-in-law. ^{1, 2, 3}

In Washington, Chinda protested California’s 1913 alien land law. His submissions argued that restrictions on Japanese residents’ property rights conflicted with the protections established by the 1911 treaty. ⁴

The posting also coincided with Tokyo’s gift of flowering cherry trees to Washington. On March 27, 1912, Chinda’s wife and First Lady Helen Taft planted the first two Yoshino trees beside the Tidal Basin. ⁵

Chinda moved to the London embassy in 1916 and represented Japan at the Paris Peace Conference in 1919. He subsequently joined the Privy Council and accompanied Crown Prince Hirohito on his European journey. His final service was as grand chamberlain to the emperor; he died in January 1929. ^{1, 3}