1st March to 12th March 1872
1st. March. Evening
Nothing of mark so I will note some incidents illustrative of the chivalry which forms so
prominent a part of the Japanese character, although its manifestations are sometimes so
mingled with barbarous cruelties that it is hard to realise the existence of each
sentiments. At the close of the last war between the Mikado and the Shiogun (sic) (Tycoon)
the last stand in behalf of the latter was made in the neighbourhood of Hakodate by an
officer of high rank by an officer named Yenamoto. He was surrounded and besieged in a
fort which he held bravely against overwhelming odds. At length the besieged had consumed
all their food and water and of course all the foreigners predicted a speedy surrender.
Then began an exhibition of generous chivalry that reads like a story of knight errantry (Page 10). The Mikado’s troops
fought the besieged heartily all day and at night sent in flags of truce with plentiful
supplies of food and water! To the foreign officers engaged on the side of the Mikado, who
remonstrated against such a method of war, the Japs replied "Those inside are brave
soldiers and gentlemen. We are most ambitious to conquer them save by fighting. We will
not starve them like rats in a hole". At length the little garrison was exhausted
and surrendered to our friend Kuroda, the latter pledging himself for the life of the
leader Yenamoto. When Yenamoto, however, was delivered to the Govt. in Yedo as a prisoner,
the council was anxious to put him to death as an example, in fact, insisted on it. Kuroda
rushed before the Mikado: "Your Majesty, I have been your faithful servant. I pledged
myself that after his brave resistance at Hakodate, if he surrendered, I would ensure his
safety. I believed I could do so. But now, Your Majesty, if he is put to death my honour
is forfeited, and you will see Kuroda no more". In other words, Kuroda would have
committed the Hara Kiri had his prayer not been granted. In fact he had made all the
arrangements to do so. (Page 11) At
length, in deference to Kuroda, Yenamoto was reprieved and has lain in close confinement
ever since, or at least to within a few days. The sword always hanging over him and so
over Kuroda, for the latter feels that should his old enemy die, honour demands his
suicide. Within a few days, however, Yenamoto has been released on parole. During his
confinement, which was vigorous, he was allowed no books or writing materials. So to amuse
himself and keep his mind from giving way, he collected all the scraps of paper and little
bits of wood which on windy days were plentifully blown into his prison, and from these
rude materials, assisted by paste made from the boiled rice of his prison fare, he
constructed a large number of models of elaborate foreign machinery and manufacturing
apparatus. I have seen some of them, and considering that they were made entirely from the
memory of what he had seen and read in books, they are simply wonderful.
March 2nd. Evening
My friend better today. The usual round of professional duty in the morning and
miscellaneous work in the afternoon. I have been compiling a vocabulary of medical terms
for my own use and that of my interpreter, existing dictionaries being very faulty.
March 3rd. Evening
The steamer should certainly have been in today, but no news of her yet. Today Sunday, so
no work. (Page 12) Walked with
Jondon to visit the site of the old castle of the Tycoon, which was destroyed by fore some
15 years ago. I must visit the place again before undertaking to describe it. Dropped in
at Heeren’s late in the afternoon, as he has been slightly ailing. I believe I have
before mentioned the little Prince and Princess of Toza, who with their mother and several
attendants are installed in a part of Heeren’s house. The little Prince is a patient
of mine. The Princess and her mother dined with us today at Heeren’s table, the first
European meal they had ever regularly eaten, though from their exquisite table manners
no-one would ever have suspected it. They are both really lovely women, although the
Princess hardly entitled to be called a woman as she is only 13. After dinner I had a long
talk with the mother with the help of my pocket dictionary.
Monday 4th. March. Evening
Heavy snow storm last night and today. No news of steamer yet. Routine duties all day.
Tuesday 5th. March
I have hardly pluck enough to write a word. The steamer has arrived bringing no (Page 13) mails from east of San
Francisco owing to the unprecedented trouble with snow. It does seem pretty rough to have
our mail stopped when it comes so seldom. I can only comfort myself with the old adage
"No news, good news". Not much of a comfort either, when I reflect that it was
just as impossible for bad news to reach us as for good. I did get one letter which must
have lain over in San Francisco from the previous mail. It was from Uncle Stuart Mitchell.
Wed. March 6th. Evening
An irruption (sic) of company today. Genl. Williams and his brother, late of Washington,
and Capt. Phelps, Vice President of the P.M.S.S. Co. Williams was Deputy Commissioner of
Int. Rev. in Washington and has been engaged by the Japs to organise a revenue system for
them. He appears to be a rather favourable specimen of an active Western business man.
Mon. 8th. Morning
In order to make what I have to write this morning intelligible, I must go back to the
Toza family mentioned some days ago. The Princes of Japan have a queer habit of retiring
from their dignity at a comparatively (Page
14) youthful age, 40 to 55, when the actual title and dignities pass to the heir,
the father assuming a regency. The Prince of Toza, one of the great Dainios of Japan,
retired in this way in favour or the little prince I have before mentioned, and has
recently placed his son and daughter in the household of my friend Heeren for education
preparatory to going to America or Europe, Heeren, being a warm personal friend of the old
prince. So much by way of introduction. Perhaps I ought also to say that although Toza is
one of the voluntarily reduced Daimios he is still immensely wealthy. Well, last evening I
was dining at the house of the Consul Genl. of Portugal with my friend Shepard, Chargé
d’Affairs U.S., when about ten o’clock Heeren rode up saying that he had just
come from my house and that old Toza was reported very ill and that the family would be
very grateful if I would condescend to go out and see him (fancy me, condescending
to visit one of the great Daimios) Well, we returned to Heeren’s house, got into his
carriage, and after dispatching a messenger to Antisell for my pocket medicine case (Page 15) started for Toza’s yashiki
(palace). It is in the very farthest extremity of Yedo, and we arrived about 1
o’clock. I found two Jap physicians in attendance (illegible word) great pleasure at
my coming. As in courtesy bound before seeing the patient I enquired their diagnoses and
treatment. The first was apoplexy, the second had at least the merit that they had done no
harm, not having bled him. When I saw the Prince, I found him already reacting from the
shock, although paralysed. I could do but little, but before I left was able to say with
considerable assurance that he would probably recover almost entirely in course of time.
The family and retainers (retainers no longer in the strict sense of the term, but
gathering round from affection) overwhelmed me with thanks, especially one magnificent
fellow, formerly Toza’s 1st Officer, now president of the Jap Parliament. We got back
to Heeren’s at ˝ past 4, and turned in. I am to go out regularly to see the Prince.
I wish it were not as far. But then in all probability a very handsome present will be my
fee, for no doctor among the Japs charges regular fees.
(Page 16)
March 8th. EveningMarch 9th. Evening
Today being the 1st of the Japanese month, and a holiday, I went with two or three friends
to see the grave of the "forty seven Ronins", one of the historic places of
Japan whose story, shortly told, is as follows: Takumi no Kami, about 220 years ago, was a
prominent Daimio if Japan. He was to be presented at Court with some peculiar ceremonies,
to learn which he was placed, as the custom was, under the tuition of another lord named
Kotsuke no Suke, a grasping, ill tempered and supercilious man. Kotsuke, dissatisfied with
the presents made him by Takumi, insulted and degraded his pupil till Takumi, irritated
beyond endurance, attacked Kotsuke even in the precincts of the palace, and slightly
wounded him, a crime for which he was compelled to commit Hara Kiri. Now, among the
retainers of Takumi were forty seven men of all ages, who, led by one Oisha, formed a
league for the purpose of avenging their master’s death. Kotsuke, however, kept such
a force of guards on duty that it was impossible for several years for them to accomplish
their purpose. In order to divert suspicion, Oisha, the leader of the conspirators,
heretofore a remarkably steady and virtuous man, affected to plaunge and did plunge into
the wildest debauchery, even going so far as to send away his wife (Page 17) and children. When Kotsuke heard of this he
concluded that all projects of revenge were given up and neglected his former precautions.
And now let me explain the meaning of the term "Ronins". The term literally
means "Wave men who are masterless, tossed about by circumstances like the waves of
the sea". Men who have either lost the prince to whom they were retainers or desired
to release him from any responsibility for their acts became "Ronins", carrying
a certificate of the fact upon their persons. Well, at length the devoted forty seven
forced their way into Kotsuke’s presence and in deference to his rank invited him to
commit Hara Kiri, which he refused to do. They cut of his head and taking it with them
repaires to Senkakufi or Spring Hill Temple, in one of the suburbs of Yedo, where, having
washed Kotsuke’s head in a well and deposited it upon the grave of their master, they
calmly awaited the sentence of their crime, meanwhile arranging with the priests of the
temple that they should be buried together with their master. The sentence was that they
all commit Hara Kiri, which they did, and now rest in a small enclosure near the grave of
Takumi. After they were buried a man from the province of Satsuma, who had grossly
insulted the chief of the Ronins, Oisha, when he was drunk, came and struck with remorse
killed himself upon the grave of Oisha, and was buried with the rest by the priests (Page 18) who still exhibit the armour
worn by the Ronins which was made by themselves to avert suspicion, and also some handsome
carved bas reliefs of the 47. The tombs themselves are in one of the loveliest spots in
Yedo, and like most Japanese graves are marked by simple upright stones unaccompanied by a
mound.
I dined at the Kaisafo or University tonight and while we were sitting with our cigars
after dinner we were startled by an earthquake which was quite violent and lasted about a
minute and a half, an unusually long time. I forgot to mention that on the morning of the
6th we had a slight shock.
March 10th. Evening
Sunday. No events today.
March 11th. Evening
Saw today a wonderful specimen of manufacture natural history, much more remarkable than
the now well known Japanese mermaids. It was brought to me by a man who valued it at
$50.00. At first glance it much resembled one of the smaller of the Peruvian mummies which
are found buried in pots. In fact I was inclined to think that some curiosity loving Jap
had brought it from America. A closer inspection, however, showed (Page 19) that the whole figure, about the size of a child
of six years old, had been covered with coarse reddish hair now worn off in many places.
The skull was that of an intellectual child but had been dented deeply upon the crown The
teeth and hands were those of a monkey, and the feet those of a child. The skeleton as
seen through the dried integuments was perfectly human. Convinced that it was an imposture
I examined with the utmost care, at last taking a magnifying glass and soon found traces
of the joining of the false skin used in the structure. I am quite positive that it was
made by taking the body of a child, probably prepared for the purpose, inserting the teeth
and affixing the hands of a large monkey, and covering the whole with calf skin. The
deception was admirably done, however, and had I not used a magnifying glass I should not
have detected it. Several gentlemen who had examined it were inclined to accept it as a
veritable specimen of Darwin’s missing ling. I would have bought the thing had the
price been less exorbitant. I shall endeavour to have it photographed.
(Page 20)
March 12th. 72