Name: First Japanese Visitor to USA Describes American Life // 1860 Tokugawa Embassy // Primary Source
Uploaded: 2025-03-23T03:39:29.000Z
Duration: 17 min 32 s
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Basic passive voice

The year after I reached Yedo, the sixth year of Ansai, there was established the so-called Treaty of the Five Nations, and the port of Yokohama was formally opened for trade with foreign countries.

One day I went to Yokohama for sightseeing.

There was nothing of the town of Yokohama then, a few temporary dwellings had been erected here and there as posts for the foreign trade, and in these the pioneer merchants were living and showing their wares.

To my disappointment, when I tried to speak with them, no one seemed to understand me at all, nor was I able to understand anything spoken by anyone of the foreigners I met.

Neither could I read anything of the signboards over the shops, nor the labels on the bottles which they had for sale.

There was not a single recognisable word in any of the inscriptions or in any speech.

It might have been English or French for what I knew.

On the very next day after returning from Yokohama, I took up a new aim in my life and determined to begin the study of English.

But needless to say, there was no teacher of English then in Yedo.

I found after enquiring around there was an interpreter named Moriyama Takachiro who had been called from Nagasaki to help in the negotiation proceedings of the new treaty.

I heard that this man knew some English, though his speciality was Dutch.

I went at once to Moriyama's house and implored him to teach me English.

At that time a young lad had reached Yedo from Nagasaki.

We heard that he knew some English and we tried to get some pronunciation from him.

Then occasionally there were shipwrecked Japanese fishermen who were brought back by foreign ships.

These poor men had formerly, by government degree, not been permitted to re-enter this land.

But after the new policy of open ports came into effect, they were allowed to return home.

Whenever we heard of any such men, we called on them at their lodgings and asked them to give us any English they knew.

In truth, Dutch and English were both strange languages written sideways of the same origin.

Our knowledge of Dutch could be applied directly to English.

Our one-time fear was a groundless illusion.

The year after I was settled in Yedo, the 6th year of Ansai, the government of the Shogun made a great decision to send a ship of war to the United States, an enterprise never before attempted since the foundation of the Empire.

On this ship I was to have the good fortune of visiting America.

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Though it had been called a warship, the vessel was a very small sailing craft, equipped with an auxiliary steam engine of 100 horsepower, which was used for manoeuvring in and out of harbours.

In the open sea, she must depend entirely on sail.

The government had purchased her from the Dutch for 25,000 riyu a few years before and had named her the Kanrin Maru.

This voyage of Kanrin Maru was an epoch-making adventure of our nation.

Every member of the crew was determined to take the ship across unassisted by a foreigner.

It seems to me now that the reason for granting my wish to go on the boat so easily must have been that such an unusual enterprise as the voyage was to be, there were not many volunteers.

No sooner did we get out into the open sea that we ran into storms and continued to have rough weather all the way across.

In the rocking ship, a quiet, dignified meal was impossible, so I used to pile my rice in my purloined bowl and pour soup and everything over it, take it to the side of the cabin and eat standing up.

For a whole month we saw nothing but the waves and the clouds.

Once we sighted a sailboat said to be an American vessel carrying Chinese workmen over to America, that was the only thing we saw during the voyage.

The four or five American sailors on our ship were found to be using more water than they One of the officers told Captain Brook about it and the latter replied instantly.

You may shoot any seaman found wasting water.

Any such person is guilty of general treason to the ship.

Our water supply was thus made to hold out and we, with the entire crew of 96 men, were able to reach land at San Francisco after 37 days.

I am willing to admit my pride in this accomplishment for Japan.

It was not until the sixth year of Kei that a steam ship was seen for the first time.

It was only in the second year of Ansai that we began to study navigation from the Dutch in Nagasaki.

By 1860 the science was sufficiently understood to enable us to sail a ship across the Pacific.

This means that about seven years after the first sight of a steam ship, after only about five years of practice, the Japanese people made a trans-Pacific crossing without help from foreign experts.

I think we can, without undue pride, boast before the world of this courage and skill.

Our welcome on shore was certainly worthy of a friendly people.

They did everything for us and they could not have done more.

The feeling on their part must have been like that of a teacher receiving his old pupil several years after graduation, for it was their Commodore Perry who had effected the opening of our country eight years before, and now here we were on our first visit to America.

As soon as we came on shore, we found we were to be driven off in carriages to a hotel.

While we were resting in the hotel, city officials and various dignitaries came to offer entertainment.

We were given quarters in the official residence of the Navy Station on Mare Island.

Our hosts knew that we Japanese were accustomed to different diets, so they arranged that our food, instead of being served, should be prepared by our own cook in the quarters allotted to us.

But the officials, being very kind and desiring to satisfy their Japanese love for seafood, sent fish every day.

Also, on learning the Japanese custom of bathing frequently, they had baths prepared daily.

This generous treatment in every way brought to mind an old expression of ours.

As if our host had put us on the palm of his hand to see that we lacked nothing.

On our part, there were many confusing and embarrassing moments, for we were quite ignorant of the customs and habits of American life.

For instance, we were very surprised even by the carriages as part of our very first experiences.

On seeing a vehicle with horses attached to it, we should easily have guessed what it was.

But really, we did not identify our mode of conveyance until the door had been opened, we were seated inside, and the horses had started off.

Then we realised we were riding in a carriage behind horses.

All of us wore the usual pair of swords at our sides and the hemp sandals.

So attired, we were taken to the modern hotel.

There we noticed, covering the interior, the valuable carpets and rugs, which in Japan only the more wealthy could buy from the importer's shop at so much a square inch to make purses and tobacco pouches with.

Here the carpet was laid over an entire room, something quite astounding, and upon this costly fabric walked our hosts, wearing the shoes with which they had come in from the streets.

Immediately, bottles were brought in, suddenly an explosion, the popping of champagne.

When the glasses were passed around, we noticed strange fragments floating in them.

Hardly did we expect to find ice in the warm spring weather.

Some of the party swallowed these floating particles, others expelled them suddenly, others bravely chewed them.

This was an adventure, finding out that they were ice.

I wanted to have a smoke, but seeing no tobacco tray, such as in Japan is placed before the smoker, to hold the burning charcoal brazier and the bamboo ash receiver, I took a light from the open fireplace.

Perhaps there was an ash tray and a box of matches on the table, but I did not recognise them as such.

I finished my smoke, but finding no ash receiver, I took out some of the tissue paper which we carried in place of handkerchiefs and, wrapping the ashes in it, crushed them very carefully and placed the ball in my sleeve.

After a while, I took out the paper to have another smoke.

Some wisps of smoke were trickling from my sleeve.

The light that I had thought I had crushed out was quietly setting me afire.

After all these embarrassing incidents, I thought I could well sympathise with the Japanese bride.

Her new family, whom the bride has never met before, welcome her, tell her to make herself at home and do everything to make her comfortable.

One laughs with her, another engages her in conversation, all happy with the new addition to the family.

In the midst of all this, the bride has to sit, trying to look pleasant, but in her efforts, she goes on making mistakes and blushes every time.

Before leaving Japan, I, the independent soul, a carefree student who could look the world in the face, had feared nothing.

But on arriving in America, I was turned suddenly into a shy, self-conscious, blushing bride.

The contrast was indeed funny, even to myself.

One evening, our host had said that some ladies and gentlemen were having a dance party and they would be glad for us to attend it.

To our dismay, we could not quite make out what they were doing.