The narrative of a Japanese; what he has seen and the people he has met in the course of the last forty years./Chapter 5
July. In the course of this month we heard of the murder of President Lincoln, and of the attack on Mr. Seward, Secretary of State, in Washington. Upon receipt of this intelligence, I at once wrote to Mr. Seward, tendering my sincere condolence to him, and through him to President Lincoln's family. In reply I received the following autograph letter.
My dear Mr Heco,
I have just received
your letter of the 31st of July and
I thank you for remembering
me among the troubled concerns
yet in the midst of the pleasing
? of your far away native
Home. Our father in Heaven
has allowed our country to
be afflicted, but He has never–
theless remembered mercy, and
He has been pleased to visit
me with trials, but he has
graciously enabled me to
pass through them. Let us in
all things submit ourselves to
his will. He is omniscient and
omnipotent, we are blind and
powerless.
Faithfully your friend
William H. Seward
Joseph Heco Esquire
Kanagawa
? of ?
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November, 1865. This month has witnessed a great commotion in the Port, caused mainly by some of the peculiarities of extra-territoriality. A certain English dry-goods dealer had an American employé named G., whom he suspected of pilfering. The dealer invoked the authority of his Consul, and G. was illegally arrested and lodged in the English jail. So the employé brought an action for false imprisonment against the dealer,—in the English Court, of course. In this case the American Consul, who happened to be the only American lawyer in Yokohama, was Counsel for the plaintiff. This led to the local English paper making some very caustic comments on G.'s character, and these comments in their turn led to a severe cow-hiding, which G. inflicted on the Editor with much gusto in front of the Club-house on the Bund. Thereupon the Editor brought an action for assault and battery against the said G. in the American Court, where the American Consul, G.'s lawyer, was now his judge. In the course of the case the English community seemed to be filled with the greatest animosity against the defendant and the Court, and several summoned as witnesses refused to answer pertinent questions put by G. as well as by the Court. On the 23rd inst. the following verdict was given, after the quotation and discussion of English and American decisions on similar cases:—
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“The Court finds a verdict for the Plaintiff, and orders the Defendant to pay into this Court damages in the sum of 6 1/4 cents, and it is ordered, adjudged, and decreed by the Court that the defendant further pay costs to the Plaintiff in a sum equal to his damages recovered and that the balance be paid by the Plaintiff. And the Clerk of the Court will so enter up the judgment in the record of the Court. This is approved by all the Assessors.”
This decision, as might have been expected, gave rise to a regular commotion among the non-American portion of the foreign community. Public meetings were held and much correspondence passed between the various Consuls. But in the course of the month the whole matter blew over in smoke.
In the month of June, 1866, the Revision of the Tariff had been concluded. In one of the clauses it was stipulated that a Bonded Warehouse should be established. As the Japanese Authorities in Yokohama did not know what this meant, the Governor sent Mayor Miyamoto to me to find out. So I explained to the Mayor and wrote out a history of the institution and of the purposes it was meant to serve. In return for this service the Governor wished to nominate me to a post in the new Bonded Warehouse in the American Department, for it had
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been arranged that French, English, Dutch, and Americans should each with the Governor's concurrence choose one of their own countrymen to conduct the business in this newly-established institution. But when the Governor tried to push my nomination, he found that the American Chargé d'Affaires had already appointed a personal friend of his own to the post. Thus, I was again shoved out of a lucrative employment which the highest authority at Kanagawa had intended to reward me with in recognition of what services I had rendered him. However, he sent Mayor Miyamoto to me with a letter explaining the circumstances, and with a fine present of two large porcelain vases and a splendid lacquered cabinet.
November 25th. This morning, about 9 o'clock, a fire broke out. There was a strong S.W. wind blowing, and before it the flames ran rapidly right and left from the pork-shop on the swamp cause-way, where it had its origin. It was not till 5 p.m. that the wind fell and the conflagration was stayed. The entire portion of the Yoshiwara, one-half of the whole Japanese town, and about one-fourth of the Foreign Settlement were burned to the ground.
December 25th. In the course of this month I have been preparing to leave Yokohama for Nagasaki, since my friend F. is leaving for home
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and has asked me to take charge of his business in the Southern Treaty Port. The steamer Hiogo (late Fukien ), chartered by the Japanese Government, was leaving for Nagasaki, and on my application for a passage, the Governor of Kanagawa offered me a free passage in her to my destination.
December 29th. Arrived at Hiōgo, where we found a little foreign steamer (the Emperor ) at anchor, though the port is not yet open to foreign trade. We were told that she was “prospecting.” She was commanded by Capt. J. M. James and owned by Glover & Co. of Nagasaki.
January 3rd, 1867. Arrived at Nagasaki, and was met by my friend's boat as we entered the harbour. While at dinner that evening my friend told me that the course of business in Nagasaki at that time was somewhat peculiar. The various neighbouring Daimio were now all eager to adapt themselves to the new order of things and to acquire steamers, sailing ships, guns and munitions of war generally. For this purpose, as well as to acquire Western knowledge, their agents and officials were literally flocking into the town. The largest traders in the place were their agents. When any of their special officials came to Nagasaki, they would lodge with these agents during their stay. Every foreign house had its native clerks, whose duty it was to call on these agents
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and officials and find out what these latter had come for. They made a point of inviting the officials in question to tiffin or dinner at their employers' houses, where they were well entertained, and where in some instances, they received valuable presents. Hence resulted business and large contracts. But the foreign trader had to be very careful to see to it that he stood well with the Japanese agents of the Daimio, inasmuch as these gentlemen were the main-spring of the whole system of trade.
January 5th. My friend F. and myself called on the U.S. Consul, and I registered myself as an American citizen in the Consulate in the usual way.
January 22nd. A stranger called upon me and introduced himself as Mr. Motono Shuzo, an officer of the Prince of Hizen. He brought me a present of a brace of ducks, and said that he was sent by his Prince to ask me to visit him in his capital of Saga. He said that if I accepted the invitation the Prince would send his steamer to meet me at Mogi, a place distant some 7 miles from Nagasaki. He told me that the Prince's desire to see me was inspired by the fact that he wished to learn all he could about foreign countries and their institutions, for it was absolutely necessary for all Daimio to be accurately informed about them in these transition times and in the present unsettled state of the country. He went on to say
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that Satsuma, Chōshiu, and Tosa had combined for some occult purpose—most likely for the overthrow of the Shōgun's power, while the Shōgun had various Daimio in his service all intently watching to see what course would be adopted by Hizen, Higo, Aki, and Kaga, the largest Daimio, who meanwhile were neutral. Under these circumstances the Prince of Hizen was very eager to learn all he could about foreign progress in arms, ships, warfare and civilization generally. I at once accepted the invitation, saying that I should be most glad to give his Prince all the information I could. Mr. Motono had just said that he would return and bring the steamer to Mogi for me, when F. came into the room and asked what we were talking about. When I told him, he at once expressed a wish to accompany me to see the capital of Hizen. But my new friend thought it impossible for any foreigner to visit his country then, upon which I told him that F. was my intimate friend, that he was shortly after going home for good, and that it was my particular wish to shew him the place. “Very well,” replied Motono san, “I will consult my Prince when I return to Saga and let you know by letter.” And thereupon he took his leave.
February 4th. To-day through another Hizen officer I got a letter from Mr. Motono telling me
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that if I could come without the foreigner, I ought to come overland at once, but if my foreign friend must accompany me I had better postpone my visit for sometime inasmuch as the Prince was to leave for Kioto in a fortnight, and would call on us on his way up to the Capital.
April 12th. After introducing me to all his business connections, my friend F. has at last started in the steamer Feelong, taking with him, as had been previously arranged, Mr. Tsuge, son of the Minister of the Prince of Chikugo, and Mr. Hanabusa (Note : Now Vice-Minister of the Imperial Household), a Bizen officer. These gentlemen were going to learn the languages and customs of the West. Inasmuch as they had no government permits, their departure had to be effected with some caution. They came to my house at 9.30 p.m., where they had donned the European garments with which they had already provided themselves, and then my friend F. cut their hair and made them put on European caps. At 11.30 p.m. we sallied down to the wharf, where all the Custom-house officers seemed to be asleep. We got into our covered house-boat and sculled off to the Feelong, which was to start for Hongkong at midnight. It was a beautiful evening, quiet and still, with a pale half-moon and the sky studded with stars. When we got alongside, we learned that the only
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Customhouse officer on board was quartered in the forecastle—not in the cabin as in other Countries,—so F. conducted the two Japanese gentlemen into his private cabin in the saloon and shut the door. At 11.45 p.m. the agent came off with the mail-bags, and shortly after the Customs' official went ashore. A little after midnight the steamer left the harbour, and Messrs. Tsugé and Hanabusa got away without any one but ourselves being aware of their departure.
After F.'s departure I took sole charge of his business and carried it on till the 13th May, when I joined a certain English house at the request of one of the partners. I was to enjoy certain privileges, to be paid a salary and to receive an allowance for entertaining. Here I remained until the failure of the firm in 1870;—of which more anon.
One day Mr. M., an old gentleman of 65 years of age, asked me whether I knew any officials of the Prince who owned the Takashima Coal Mine. I said I knew several of them, among them being his produce-agent. “If so,” he said, “that is really fortunate. My absent partner has all along been anxious to get hold of that mine at any cost, inasmuch as this Takashima coal is said to be the very best in the East. Can't you contrive to make some arrangement with the Prince who owns it, through your friend, his agent?”
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I answered to the effect that he had better put in writing the suggestion he wished me to make my friend the officer; whereupon he wrote as follows:—“ Takashima would be the best spot to obtain even at a good sacrifice of money, as the quality of the coal has already been proved to be good, and the quantity raised could be trebled at an additional cost of $6,000 for engine and pumps. Would the Karo¯ (Counsellor) take for himself a yearly rent for the mineral portion of the island of, say $6,000? Our firm also paying the other Yakunin (officers) interested the same monthly or annual allowances as they now get. Matsubayashi (your friend), and his friend to have a proper lease drawn out in his own name, and assigning a half-interest to our firm. The lease to be for twenty years, renewable if desired by the renter.
“If this cannot be obtained then another place to be fixed upon the left-hand side of the harbour to be leased from the Prince of Hizen, our firm paying him one dollar per ton on the quantity shipped, the capital required being supplied by our firm and Matsubayashi in equal shares.
Besides the digging expenses in the beginning, there would be little outlay of money beyond the cost of the engine and the pumps, and when once the mine is at work there will be no outlay whatever, the cost
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of working being defrayed from the sales of coal produced.”
I showed this document to Matsubayashi (the Sambitsu Agent of the Prince of Hizen) and asked him to do his best endeavour on behalf of the firm. He remarked that it might prove difficult to get hold of Takashima, inasmuch as it was owned and managed by a relative and one of the branch houses of Hizen. “However,” he said, “I shall go and see the old Prince (Kansoko) about the affair. He is clever and quick at understanding such matter.” So he made a memorandum of the matter and left for Saga at once. The result was that within a few months things were arranged almost exactly as the firm in question had desired.
The first contract signed was something to this effect:—Matsubayashi and G. & Co. shall enter into partnership. The former to act as the Prince's agent and the two to pay a royalty of $1 for every kuré of coal taken out of the mine. All expenses to be defrayed by G. & Co. out of the sales of coal. G. & Co. to have sole direction of the working of the mine, sales of coal etc. on which account they are to receive 5 per-cent. commission. The contract to be for 15 years, renewable if desired at the end of that period. After all expenses deducted, profit or loss to be
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shared equally between Matsubayashi and G. & Co. This was the first instance in Japan of a partnership between a native and a foreigner.
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