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The death of the Mikado will evoke no change in Japan's domestic policies or her foreign relations. Mutsuhilto's reign of forty-four years was an era of extraordinary national development, but the Emperor's personal share in the notable historic process was probably not a very important one. An absolute monarch in theory, the Mikado exerted less direct influence upon public affairs than most constitutional rulers of Europe. He did not so much rule through other men as he was used by them. The established native tradition looks upon the Emperor as the source of a spiritual authority which is translated into action by professional statesmen and warriors.