attempts made by civilized nations to open commerce with Japan; and, in
the following tabular view, these may be seen at a glance, and thus, by
showing what efforts were simultaneous, we may facilitate, perhaps, the
understanding of the subject as a whole.
Y EAR. PORTUGUESE. DUTCH. ENGLISH. RUSSIAN. UNITED STATES.
1643-45..
1550.........
1597.........
1600.........
First landing...
Christianity in-
Persecution of
Christianity
begins........
1609......... License to trade
1613......... Saris reaches
License to trade
Factory at Fi-
1623.........
1636.........
1639......... Expelled from
Japan............
to renew trade
Assist in persecuting
native
1641......... Sent to Dezima
1673........ Attempt again
to renew
1791......... “ Argonaut's ” f u -
1792.........
1803......... “ Frederick's” at-
1804......... Resanoff’s mis-
1807......... Descent on Ku-
1808......... “ Phcetoris” visit
under Pellew
1811......... Captivity of
Captain Gol-
1813......... Defeat Raffles’ Sir. S. Raffles’
1814....... Defeat Raffles’ Attempt repeat-
1818......... Gordon’s at-
1837......... “ Morrison’s ”
visit............
Com. Biddle’s
visit...............
Glynn, in the
Preble...........
Com. Perry’s
visit..............
1846.........
1849.........
1852.........
SECTION VI.
PROGRESS IN INDUSTRIAL ARTS, AND EXTENT OE CIVILIZATION IN
JAPAN.
T h e J a p a n e s e a re a n ex ce edingly in d u s trio u s a n d ingenious people, an d
in c e rta in m a n u fa c tu re s a re su rp a ss ed by no n a tio n .
Metals.—They work well in iron, copper, gold, and silver, and, indeed,
in all the metals they have. Of iron, it is supposed the supply afforded by
their country is not large; still they have extracted the metal from such
ores as they possess, and wrought it into shape. Copper is very abundant,
and they understand perfectly well the mode of treating the ore, and preparing
the metal for market or for manufactures. Gold also exists, and
probably to an extent as yet undeveloped; the deposits are likely, we think,
to prove large on further and scientific exploration. At any rate, there does
not seem now to be any scarcity of it for the purposes to which they apply
it. They have silver mines which they work. They know, too, how to
make some combinations of metals which produce a beautiful effect. Thun-
berg tells us that they work with great skill in what they call sowas. This
, is a mixture of gold and copper, which they color with tousche, or ink,
making it a fine blue or black, by an art unknown among Europeans. They
make steel, and temper their sword-blades admirably. Clocks and watches
are also made by them, but in these they are not entitled to the merit of
invention; they have copied from European models. The same may be
said of their astronomical instruments; they make very well the metallic
portions of telescopes, &c., and buy mirror glasses from the Dutch, which
they grind into suitable lenses. They also manufacture excellent metallic
mirrors; and Golownin says, he saw carpenters’ and cabinet-makers’ tools,
particularly saws, made in Japan, quite equal to any English tools of a
similar kind. They are exceedingly quick in observing any improvement
brought in among them by foreigners, soon make themselves masters of it,
and copy it with great skill and exactness. They are very expert in carving
metal, and can cast metal statues. Their copper coinage is well stamped,
for they are good die-sinkers; and several of their operations in metal are
carried on in very large and well-ordered manufactories.
Wood.—No people work better than they can in wood and bamboo, and
they possess one art in which they excel the world. This is in lacquering
wood work. Other nations have attempted for years, but without success,
to equal them in this department. In this operation they select the finest
wood of fir or cedar to be covered with varnish. They get the gum from
which they prepare the varnish from the rhus vemix—a tree that is abun