, but to withstand the folly of trying to expel
the foreigners who by treaty with an unauthorized agent had been admitted
into the country. The Choshu leaders had also taken advantage of their
experiences in this conflict with foreigners to put their troops on a
better basis as regards arms and organization. For the first time the
privilege of the _samurai_ to do all the fighting, was disregarded, and a
division(296) of troops was formed from the common people, which was armed
with foreign muskets and drilled in the western tactics. They went by the
name of "irregular troops" (_kiheitai_), and played no small part in
rendering nugatory the efforts of the shogun to "chastise" the daimyo of
Choshu in 1865 and 1866.

Another noteworthy military event deserves mention here. Colonel Neale had
applied to his government for a military guard to protect British
interests at Yokohama. Two companies of the 20th regiment were sent from
Hongkong, and with the consent of the Japanese government took up their
residence in 1864 at barracks in the foreign settlement. They were
afterwards joined by a French contingent, and for many years they were a
familiar sight, and gave a sense of security to the nervous residents.

While these serious collisions were taking place between Japan and the
foreign powers, there was an increasing and irreconcilable animosity
developed between the Kyoto and Yedo governments. The ostensible reason,
which was put forward on all occasions, was the difference of opinion upon
the question of the foreign treaties and foreign intercourse. The Yedo
government had by the force of circumstances become practically familiar
with the views of the representatives of foreign nations, and had been
convinced that the task of expelling foreigners and returning again to the
ancient policy of seclusion was far beyond the power of Japan. On the
contrary, the court of the emperor was a hot-bed of anti-foreign sentiment
in which all the ancient prejudices of the empire naturally flourished,
and where the feudal princes who were jealous of the shogun found a ready
element in which to foment difficulties.

Two important games were in progress. Yedo was the field on which one of
these was to be decided, and the players were the representatives of the
treaty powers on the one side, and the shogun's government on the other.
Victory had already been virtually declared in favor of an open country
and foreign intercourse. The other gam