barriers of Japan's isolation without any need of
treaties or conventions." Thus, when the American commodore returned
in the following February with ten ships and crews numbering two
thousand, he easily obtained a treaty by which Japan promised kind
treatment to shipwrecked sailors; permission to foreign vessels to
obtain stores and provisions within her territory, and an engagement
that American vessels might anchor in the ports of Shimoda and
Hakata. Much has been written about Perry's judicious display of
force and about his sagacious tact in dealing with the Japanese, but
it may be doubted whether the consequences of his exploit did not
invest its methods with extravagant lustre.

TREATIES OF COMMERCE

Russia, Holland, and England speedily obtained treaties similar to
that concluded by Commodore Perry in 1854. These, however, were not
commercial conventions. It was reserved for Mr. Townsend Harris,
American consul-general in Japan, to open the country to trade.
Arriving in August, 1856, he concluded in March, 1857, a treaty
securing to United States citizens the right of permanent residence
at Shimoda and Hakodate, as well as that of carrying on trade at
Nagasaki and establishing consular jurisdiction. Nevertheless,
nothing worthy to be called commercial intercourse was allowed by the
Bakufu, and it was not until Mr. Harris, with infinite patience and
tact, had gone to Yedo alter ten months' delay that he secured the
opening of ports other than Nagasaki to international commerce. In
this achievement he was assisted by Hotta Masamutsu, successor to the
great Masahiro, and, like most of his colleagues, a sincere advocate
of opening the country.

Japan has been much blamed for her reluctance in this matter, but
when we recall the danger to which the Yedo administration was
exposed by its own weakness, and when we observe that a strong
sentiment was growing up in favour of abolishing the dual form of
government, we can easily appreciate that to sanction commercial
relations might well have shaken the Bakufu to their foundations. It
was possible to construe the Perry convention and the first Harris
convention as mere acts of benevolence towards strangers, but a
commercial treaty would not have lent itself to any such
construction. We cannot wonder that the shogun's ministers hesitated
to take an apparently suicidal step. They again consulted the
feudatories and again received an almost unanimously unfavourable
ans