experience--men who had seen the
American envoy and his squadron, equipped with all the contrivances
for killing men and devastating the country. These men knew too well
that resistance to the foreigners was futile and perilous.

Thus was the country early divided into two clearly defined parties,
the Jo-i[4] party and the Kai-Koku party.

Meanwhile, the autumn and winter of 1853 passed. The spring of 1854
soon came, and with it the intractable "barbarians." Let us hear the
author of Genje Yume Monogatari relate the return of Perry and the
great discussion that ensued at the court of Yedo:

"Early in 1854 Commodore Perry returned, and the question of acceding
to his demands was again hotly debated. The old prince of Mito was
opposed to it, and contended that the admission of foreigners
into Japan would ruin it. 'At first,' said he, 'they will give us
philosophical instruments, machinery and other curiosities; will take
ignorant people in, and, trade being their chief object, they will
manage bit by bit to impoverish the country, after which they will
treat us just as they like--perhaps behave with the greatest rudeness
and insult us, and end by swallowing up Japan. If we do not drive them
away now we shall never have another opportunity. If we now resort to
a dilatory method of proceeding we shall regret it afterwards when it
will be of no use.'

"The officials (of the Shogun), however, argued otherwise and
said: 'If we try to drive them away they will immediately commence
hostilities, and then we shall be obliged to fight. If we once get
into a dispute we shall have an enemy to fight who will not be easily
disposed of. He does not care how long a time he must spend over it,
but he will come with myriads of men-of-war and surround our shores
completely; he will capture our junks and blockade our ports, and
deprive us of all hope of protecting our coasts. However large a
number of ships we might destroy, he is so accustomed to that sort
of thing that he would not care in the least. Even supposing that our
troops were animated by patriotic zeal in the commencement of the war,
after they had been fighting for several years their patriotic zeal
would naturally become relaxed, the soldiers would become fatigued,
and for this we should have to thank ourselves. Soldiers who have
distinguished themselves are rewarded by grants of land, or else
you attack and seize the enemy's territory and that becomes your own
property;