July 14.—Bright and beautiful day. Much activity and preparation for the landing; boats being lowered away, percussion-caps distributed, and twenty rounds of ball-cartridges delivered to each man; officers rigging in undress uniforms, and arming mostly with cutlasses and Colt’s six-shooters. Quartermasters fastening American ensigns on pikes. General orders received early in the morning. The Susquehanna and Mississippi will anchor in the position assigned them. The Plymouth will retain her present position, and the Saratoga to get into her berth if possible, but not to get out of range of the forts and town. The ships will watch the proceedings on shore, having their guns primed and pointed, and their remaining boats alongside, with arms in them, ready in a moment to shove ashore, if the commanding officers think there is need of them. The boats which carry the officers, sailors, and marines on shore, are all to have anchors, and after landing their respective crews, are to haul off about fifty feet from shore and anchor, keeping their men at their arms and watching the proceedings on shore, and if they are called on shore the officers of the boats will land with all but two men, who are to be left as boat-keepers; bread and water in the boats. At daybreak the Susquehanna and Mississippi steam-frigates tripped their anchors, dropped down, and anchored immediately across the entrance of the bay where we were to land, to protect and cover the landing, having springs on their cables, that their broadside of guns might be trained on the shore. The sloop-of-war Plymouth commanded the town of Uraga, and the Saratoga, that of Humai, and the forts surrounding it. At nine o’clock, our boats armed and manned, went alongside of the flag-ship, where were the boats of the Saratoga and Plymouth. After some delay the boats moved ashore. The captain of the Susquehanna and officers, leading; Captain Walker of the Saratoga and officers next, then the Mississippi’s boats, in the first of which I was, under Lieutenant Taylor. Following in line came the remaining boats of all the ships, with sailors, marines, two bands, &c.
The place selected by the Japanese for the delivery of the letter, was a bay of some mile and a quarter in depth, surrounded by an amphitheatre of bold hills, its entrance being narrow, and defended by forts on either side. At the head of this bay, following the line of a crescent beach of black and white sand, ankle-deep, is the town of Gorihama. In the distance, with its veil of blue, and patches of snow, towering up fifteen thousand feet, shone the extinct volcano of Foogee. The boats, as they pulled in, presented a fine sight; the “flower-flag,” as the Chinese call it, waving gracefully from the stern of each boat; the bright muskets shining in the sun, and the epaulettes glistening. The landing was done in fine order, and with great promptitude, under the command of Major Zeilen, of the marine corps. Each man, as the boat touched the beach, jumped ashore, and took his proper place in line, which, when formed, presented a bold front, notwithstanding officers and men all told, it scarcely exceeded four hundred men; and encircling them a few paces in rear, and as far as one could see, on either hand, in horse-shoe form, were Japanese troops, who had been collected there for the occasion, armed with spears and bows, long bayonet brass-mounted muskets, and matchlocks, with ready fuses, coiled on their right arms. In their front, equi-distant, sat their officers on stools, armed with two swords. Near by, not very large, were a number of horses richly caparisoned about the head, and with gaudy housings, belonging to the officers. Extending all around were canvass curtains supported by stakes driven in the ground, with different insignias painted on the front, and festooned with blue cords and tassels; at the termination of each one floated the colored flag of each particular prince, whose men were present. The shining and gilded lacquered broadbrims of the Japanese; the varied costumes, brilliant colors, flapping flags, and curtain enclosures, all overhung by a dense green of trees, as the eye took them in, made one think that he had come to be a spectator of some joust or tourney. The Japanese say they had five thousand men present, but I hardly think there were as many, unless some were hid in the town, whose houses in our direction were concealed behind temporary walls of thatching straw.
A salute of thirteen guns from the flag-ship, which caused some little stir among the Japanese troops, who did not seem exactly to understand it, announced that the commodore and his immediate suite had left, in his barge, for shore. In a little while he landed on a small jutty, made of rice-straw and sand, passing through a street formed of his own officers, to his place in line, when the squadron band struck up “Hail Columbia” in a style, and with a force that made the Japanese open their ears (they may have to listen to it again), and the hills around sent each note of “Hail Columbia” back again. “Hail Columbia” never sounded better. The column of escort with the marines in front, a stalwart sailor with the broad pennant; commodore and staff; suite of officers; boxes containing president’s letter, &c.; two men over six feet high, each, with pikes upon which American ensigns were fastened, with revolving rifles slung across their shoulders; sailors with bronzed muskets; Mississippi’s band, &c.; and marines then marched to the building for the ceremony; shown the way by two Japanese officials. The sailors were in blue trousers and white frocks, prettily bisected with the slings of their cartridge boxes, and wore blue cloth caps, with bands of red, white, and blue, ornamented with thirteen stars in white. The marines were in full uniform. The room of ceremony was reached by passing through a small canopied court; enclosed with primitive landscape screens, the floor of which was covered with matting. The place of audience was a room in a thatched building, limited in space, and entirely open in the direction of the court, ornamented with gauze curtains as drapery. At the back of the room were representations of shrubbery, and of cranes wheeling in flight over it, while on the two remaining sides, were hung large blue flags, having in the centre one large and eight smaller satellite representations. Overhead you looked up to thatching, and each rafter was marked with Japanese characters, as if the building had been originally constructed at some other place, probably at Yedo, and sent down for erection. On the left of the room as you entered by ascending one step, was seated the chief Japanese functionary, appointed by the emperor to receive the president’s letter, the prince of Idzoo; beside him was the prince of the province of Iwami; behind him quite a number of two-sworded mandarins. The chief man was attired in a maroon silk robe, with an over-garment of red, blue cloth socks, with places left for the great toe. On the back of the red over-garment, were figures worked in white, some resembling cornucopias. His suite were attired in the same manner with slight exceptions. On the other side of the room were placed ornamental chairs, with well-designed arm-rests, in which were seated Commodore Perry and suite.
Dr. Williams, of Canton, was present as interpreter of the Japanese language; although his services were not called into requisition. Mr. A. L. C. Portman, the commodore’s clerk, as it was most agreeable to the Japanese, acted as interpreter in the Dutch language. The floor of the chamber was covered with mats, having spread over them in the centre of the room, cloths resembling red felt blankets, indifferently dyed. After the manner of the Japanese, two interpreters were in attendance on the prince, one of them squatted on the floor near our interpreter, partially facing the chief and another (Kayama Yesaimon, governor of Uraga) on his haunches immediately in front of him. Midway, in rear of the room, was placed a brightly-lacquered red chest, resting upon eight feet, with its deep and projecting lid, confined by tasselled cords of blue. The gilt ornamental design in front resembled the rose of the Gothic style. The officers of the ships occupied the court facing the platform.
Everything being announced ready, and obeisance interchanged between the prince and commodore, beautiful rosewood-boxes, hinged, clamped, and clasped with gold, having inscriptions with German-text letters, let in with gold on their tops, which had been carried by side-boys, were then brought in, and displayed upon the chest. Mr. Portman opened them to assure the Japanese of the presence of the letters; and the interpreter was directed to inform the prince, which was done, one interpreter whispering to the other, that in the boxes were also translations of our president’s letter, in Dutch and Chinese. The credentials from the emperor empowering the prince of Idzoo to receive the letter, were then handed over by the prince, and taken charge of by the flag-lieutenant, having been duly examined the day before on shipboard. The letter of the president was as follows:—
MILLARD FILLMORE,
President of the United States of America,
To his Imperial Majesty,
THE EMPEROR OF JAPAN.
Great and Good Friend!