This historic book may have numerous typos and missing text. Purchasers can usually download a free scanned copy of the original book (without typos) from the publisher. Not indexed. Not illustrated. 1859 edition. Excerpt: ...a native of Holland, had acquired a knowledge of the Japanese language; and as many of the natives speak Dutch, good feeling was promoted by an interchange of little acts of kindness and consideration. Time wore at first very heavily with the two residents, and many long months passed before the face of a European gladdened their sight. Meantime the Dutch duly reported at Nangasaki, and, for purposes of their own, exaggerated the force and misrepresented the objects of the Allies in China. The Dutch superinteudent, Mr Donker Curtius, thought to make great capital out of the alarm thus created in Japan, and obtain fresh concessions for Holland by a new treaty of commerce, and so maintain for her that priority of position which her exclusive monopoly for two centuries perhaps persuaded him she had a right to. Mr Harris, at the same time, was desirous to obtain like advantages for America; and in the autumn of 1857, by way of playing off one against the other, the two diplomatists were allowed to proceed to Yedo, there to make their respective representations. It was when this journey was undertaken that Mr Harris saw the motive of the Japanese in placing his countrymen at Simoda; for such was the truly Alpine nature of the country traversed before he reached the Gulf of Yedo, that any attempt of the Americans to penetrate by force into the interior must have resulted in the destruction of those who engaged in such a project. During the six months the Consul was in Yedo, nothing could exceed the kindness and care he experienced. He lived at the imperial charge, special dishes were often sent him from the palace, and when from some cause there was an alarm in the city, a strong guard was sent to patrol the neighbourhood of his abode. It will...

Excerpt from A Cruise in Japanese Waters WE left the north of China, and sailed from the im portant city of Tientsin, bearing the cheering intelli gence to Shanghai of a treaty of peace having been concluded between the Empires of Great Britain and China, and of the advent of a great era in the history of the latter nation. Henceforth, thanks to allied arms and allied diplomacy, China was open to the enterprise of the missionary, traveller, or merchant, and the ships of England might not only visit her seaboard and enter her harbours, but were at liberty to penetrate to her farthest borders, by means of that noble stream, the Yang-tsi - Keang, which ows by and through her rich est, and hitherto most secluded, provinces. Many other valuable concessions were made but the above-men tioned were those most fraught with change to the Central Land, and with promise to British interests. About the Publisher Forgotten Books publishes hundreds of thousands of rare and classic books. Find more at www.forgottenbooks.com This book is a reproduction of an important historical work. Forgotten Books uses state-of-the-art technology to digitally reconstruct the work, preserving the original format whilst repairing imperfections present in the aged copy. In rare cases, an imperfection in the original, such as a blemish or missing page, may be replicated in our edition. We do, however, repair the vast majority of imperfections successfully; any imperfections that remain are intentionally left to preserve the state of such historical works."

In the years following Japan's long period of self-imposed isolation from the world, Japan developed a new relationship with the West, and especially with Britain, where relations grew to be particularly close. The Japanese, embarrassed by their perceived comparative backwardness, looked to the West to learn modern industrial techniques, including the design and engineering skills which underpinned them. At the same time, taking great pride in their own culture, they exhibited and sold high quality products of traditional Japanese craftsmanship in the West, stimulating a thirst for, and appreciation of, Japanese arts and crafts. This book examines the two-way bridge-building cultural exchange which took place between Japan and Britain in the years after 1859 and into the early years of the twentieth century. Topics covered include architecture, industrial design, prints, painting and photographs, together with a consideration of Japanese government policy, the Japan-Britain Exhibition of 1910, and commercial spin-offs. In addition, there are case studies of key individuals who were particularly influential in fostering British-Japanese cultural bridges in this period.