Tobata Seiichi's “Thought” in Postwar Period : Why Did he Refuse to Take Office as the Minister for Agriculture and Forestry?

Abstract

  “Thought” means “hope” for the future as well as “reflection” on the past. In this sense, “thought” is not short but long-term one.

  A Japanese scholar refused to take office as the Minister for Agriculture and Forestry in 1946. He was the first scholar that had adopted modern economics to Japanese agriculture. His name is Seiichi Tobata.

  In my view, “Tobata's refusal” had so close a relation to his economic “thought.” This paper intends to discuss that point, to which so far very few seem to have paid serious attention, as follows. In the first section, I raise the question of why Tobata refused to take office as the Minister. In the second section, I traced the process of the affair “Tobata's refusal.” In the third and fourth section, I mainly analyzed Tobata's own papers written in 1946. In the last section, I showed my opinion about the relation between “Tobata's refusal” and his economic “thought.”

  Finally, my thanks to Sasakawa Scientific Research Grant from The Japan Science Society. They gave the opportunity to work on my study and write this paper.