YOKOHAMA SOCIETY, OFFICIAL AND UNOFFICIAL (1862)
THREE years had now elapsed since the opening of the country to foreign
trade in consequence of the Treaties of 1858, and a considerable number
of merchants had settled at the ports of Nagasaki and Yokohama.
Hakodaté, however, offered then, as now, few attractions to mercantile
enterprise, and being far removed from the political centre, shared very
slightly in the uneasy feeling which prevailed elsewhere. At Nagasaki
most of the territorial nobles of Western Japan had establishments
whither they sent for sale the rice and other produce received in
payment of tribute from the peasants, and their retainers came into
frequent contact with foreigners, whose houses they visited for the
purchase of arms, gunpowder and steamers. Some sort of friendly feeling
thus sprang up, which was increased by the American missionaries who
gave instruction in English to younger members of this class, and
imparted to them liberal ideas which had no small influence on the
subsequent course of events. At Yokohama, however, the foreign merchants
had chiefly to do with a class of adventurers, destitute of capital and
ignorant of commerce. Broken contracts and fraud were by no means
uncommon. Foreigners made large advances to men of straw for the
purchase of merchandise which was never delivered, or ordered
manufactures from home on the account of men who, if the market fell,
refused to accept the goods that would now bring them in only a loss.
Raw silk was adulterated with sand or fastened with heavy paper ties,
and every separate skein had to be carefully inspected before payment,
while the tea could not be trusted to be as good as the sample. Now and
then a Japanese dealer would get paid out in kind, but the balance of
wrong-doing was greatly against the native, and the conviction that
Japanese was a synonym for dishonest trader became so firmly seated in
the minds of foreigners that it was impossible for any friendly feeling
to exist.
The Custom House officials were in the highest degree corrupt, and
demanded ever-increasing bribes from the foreigners who sought to elude
the import duties. One of the worst abuses was the importation of large
quantities of wines, beer, spirits and stores, for which exemption from
the payment of duty was claimed as goods intended for "personal use."
The local administration was carried on by a large staff of officials
established at the Custom House. There were two Bugiô, or Governors; two
Kumi-gashira, or Vice-Governors; two Metsuké, whose function was that of
keeping an eye on the doings of the others; a number of Shirabé-yaku, or
Directors; and Jô-yaku, or chief clerks, besides a host of scribes,
interpreters, tidewaiters and policemen, in black or green robes. Dutch
was the common medium of communication both orally and in writing, for
English was as yet scarcely studied by the natives, and the foreigners
who could speak Japanese might be counted on the fingers of one hand.
Yet all knew a little. A sort of bastard language had been invented for
the uses of trade, in which the Malay words _peggi_ and _sarampan_
played a great part, and with the addition of _anata_ and _arimasu_
every one fancied himself competent to settle the terms of a complicated
transaction. In this new tongue all the rich variety of Japanese speech,
by which the relative social position of the speakers is indicated, and
the intricate inflexion of the verbs, were conspicuous by their absence.
Outside the settlements it was of course not understood, and its use by
Europeans must have contributed not a little to the contempt for the
"barbarian" which was characteristic of the native attitude towards
foreigners.
By virtue of the treaties Kanagawa had been at first fixed upon for the
residence of Europeans, but, lying on the Tôkaidô, or principal highway
between Yedo and Kiôto, it was only too well calculated to afford
occasion for collision between the armed followers of the Japanese
nobles and the foreign settlers. Early in the day the Tycoon's
government sought to avoid this difficulty by erecting a Custom House
and rows of wooden bungalows at the fishing village of Yokohama, across
the shallow bay to the south. Some of the foreign representatives, more
intent upon enforcing Treaty provisions than desirous of meeting the
convenience of the native officials and the European merchants, strongly
opposed this arrangement, but the practical advantages of proximity to
the anchorage and personal security won the favour of the merchants, and
Yokohama became recognised as the port. Long after, and perhaps to this
day, the foreign consuls continued to date their official reports from
Kanagawa, though they were safely ensconced at the rival site, where a
town of 100,000 inhabitants now exists, and curious stories are told of
the difference in freight that used to be earned on goods shipped from
Europe to Yokohama or Kanagawa as the case might be.
The foreign settlement, for greater security, was surrounded on the land
side by wide canals, across which bridges were thrown, while ingress and
egress were controlled by strong guards of soldiers placed there with
the double object of excluding dangerous characters and levying a tax on
the supplies introduced from the surrounding country. At first land was
given away freely to all applicants, some of whom were employés of the
different consulates. These latter afterwards sold their lots to new
arrivals bent upon commercial pursuits, and thus pocketed gains to which
they had no shadow of a right. When further additions were afterwards
made to the "settlement," precautions were taken which effectually
prevented any one, whether merchant or official, from obtaining land
without paying an adequate price. Later on, title-deeds were made out,
by which the ground was conveyed to the holders, their heirs,
administrators, executors and assigns, thus creating a form of property
new to English experience, which purported to be at once real and
personal. Streets were laid out with but little thought of the general
convenience, and slight provision for the future. The day of wheeled
carriages had not dawned upon Japan. It was sufficient if space were
left for handcarts, and the most important Japanese commercial town of
the future was thus condemned in perpetuity to inconveniences of
traffic, the like of which can be best appreciated by those who knew the
central parts of business London fifty years ago, or the successive
capitals of the Italian kingdom when they were raised to that rank.
Architectural ambition at first was contented with simple wooden
bungalows, and in the latter part of 1862 there were not more than half
a dozen two-storied buildings in the foreign portion of the town.
Behind the settlement lay a newly filled-in tract of ground known as the
"swamp," still unoccupied except by a racecourse track, and in the rear
of this again, across a foul marsh, were conspicuous the flimsy
buildings of the Yoshiwara, euphemistically described by a noble Duke
from his place in Parliament as an "establishment for the education of
young ladies," and where a colonial bishop, to the intense amusement of
the younger and more irreverent of the foreign community, had innocently
left his visiting-card upon the elderly female who presided over the
pleasures of the place. But in those days all the residents were young.
Two churches, however, had already been erected, by Catholics and
Protestants respectively, and a foreign cemetery had been set apart on
the outside of the settlement. The health enjoyed by the European and
American inhabitants was such that the only occupants of the
burial-ground were some Russian officers and two Dutch merchant
captains, who had fallen victims to the deadly and mistaken patriotism
of Japanese _samurai_ (two-sworded men). No one had yet succumbed to
disease in that beautiful sunny climate.
The foreign community of Yokohama of that day was somewhat extravagantly
described by an English diplomat as "the scum of Europe." No doubt there
was a fair sprinkling of men who, suddenly relieved from the restraints
which social opinion places upon their class at home, and exposed to the
temptations of Eastern life, did not conduct themselves with the strict
propriety of students at a theological college. That they were really
worse than their co-equals elsewhere is unlikely. But in a small
community, where the actions of everyone are semi-public and concealment
is not regarded as an object of first-rate importance, the vices that
elsewhere pass unnoticed become prominent to the eyes of those who are
not exposed to the same temptations. There were also not a few who came
there without much capital to make a livelihood, or, if possible,
something more, and hastened to the attainment of their object without
being troubled with much scruple. And the difficulty which soon
presented itself of obtaining a sufficiency of native coin in exchange
for the silver dollar of Eastern commerce was the cause of extravagant
demands being presented to the Japanese Treasury. But the compromise
eventually arrived at, by which the merchant had to buy his _ichibus_ in
the open market, while the official obtained the equivalent of his
salary, and often much more, in native coin nearly weight for weight of
his "Mexicans," was to the minds of all unprejudiced persons a far
greater scandal. Detractors said that the advantages thus given to
Ministers, Consuls, sailors and soldiers was a bribe to induce their
compliance with violation of treaty stipulations to the prejudice of
their non-official countrymen; but this is unfair. It was the result of
false theories as to the nature and function of money, and personal
interest worked against a conversion to views more in accordance with
the principles of political economy.
The fact, however, remains, that in September 1862 the current rate of
exchange was 214 _ichibus_ for 100 dollars, though the latter were
really exchangeable for 311 _ichibus_ according to the Treaty. Each
diplomatic or consular establishment was allowed to exchange monthly a
certain number of dollars, supposed to represent the total salaries of
the staff, and other government charges, thirteen _ichibus_ per $100
being deducted for coinage. An official whose salary was $100 received
298 _ichibus_, the surplus of which over his bazaar expenses he
proceeded to change back into dollars; but practically he received
$139.25, or a profit of nearly 40 per cent. The gains of a Minister
whose salary was £3000 a year it may easily be seen were very large.
This was not all. The balance of the monthly quota of _ichibus_ was then
reconverted into dollars, the amount due to the official chest was
deducted, and the profit then divided among the staff in proportion to
their salaries. On a nominally small income it was consequently possible
to live well, keep a pony and drink champagne. As time went on, the
number of _ichibus_ thus put into circulation increased, and the rate of
exchange eventually declined to par. Then and only then the system was
abandoned. Where the money came from that was thus transferred to the
pockets of officials can be best explained by those who are versed in
economical questions. For my own part, I cannot look back on that period
without shame, and my only excuse, which is perhaps of little worth in
the court of history, is that I was at the bottom of the ladder, and
received the proportion paid to me by those who were in charge of the
business.
A few words may be devoted to describing the Yokohama society of those
days. There were few ladies in the settlement. Japan was a long way from
Europe, with no regular steam communication, and the lives of foreigners
were supposed to be not very safe at the hands of the arm-bearing
classes. The two great China firms of Jardine, Matheson & Co. and Dent &
Co. were of course represented. The latter came down with a crash a year
or two after my arrival. Fletcher & Co., another important Shanghai
firm, had a branch, and so had Barnet & Co., both now long forgotten.
Most of the remainder were Japan firms, amongst whom Aspinall, Cornes &
Co., Macpherson, Marshall & Co., were the foremost English, and Walsh,
Hall & Co., the leading American firms. Germans, French and Dutch were
considered of "no account." Money was abundant, or seemed to be, every
one kept a pony or two, and champagne flowed freely at frequent
convivial entertainments. Races were held in the spring and autumn, and
"real" horses competed in some of the events. A favourite Sunday's
excursion was the ride along the Tôkaidô to Kawasaki for tiffin, and
back again toward evening. Longer outings were to Kanazawa, Kamakura and
Enoshima; but anyone who had ventured as far as Hachiôji or Hakoné,
which were beyond the Treaty limits, was regarded as a bold, adventurous
spirit. The privilege of travelling beyond a distance of 25 miles from
Yokohama was reserved to the diplomatic representatives of foreign
powers, and Yedo could be visited only in the disguise of a member of
one of the legations, with the permission of its head. Such favours were
regarded with extreme jealousy by those who were debarred by
circumstances from obtaining them, and loud murmurs were heard that it
was the Minister's duty to invite his countrymen to the capital, and
give them board and lodging, irrespective of the shape which their
private relations with him might have assumed. Then, and perhaps even
yet, there existed a theory that public servants were practically the
servants of the extremely small section of the public that inhabited
Yokohama, and when the servants failed to comply with the wishes of
their employers they were naturally and rightly abused--behind their
backs.
So strong was the hostility excited in the breasts of the
English-Scotch-Irish portion of the community by the unlucky phrase,
"scum of Europe," that no member of either legation or consulate of
their country was allowed admittance into the Yokohama Club, composed
chiefly of British merchants; and this feeling lasted until the year
1865 brought about a permanent change in the representation of Great
Britain. The excuse for such relations between the British residents and
one who ought to have been the leader of the small society, is to be
found in the comparative youthfulness and ignorance of the world which
characterised the former. The experience of men and manners which saves
the dwellers in Little Peddlington from believing that others are
deliberately plotting to inflict insults on them is seldom attained
before middle life, especially when Little Peddlington happens to be
located in an Eastern land where the mind's growth comes to a
standstill, and a man's age is virtually to be reckoned by the years
actually spent in the mother country. For all purposes of mental and
moral development the time passed on the opposite side of the world must
be left out of the calculation.
It was agreed in the Treaties that Yedo should be the residence of the
foreign diplomatic representatives, and four Buddhist monasteries had,
in accordance with Japanese custom, been assigned to the representatives
of the four chief powers--Great Britain, France, Holland and the United
States. Sir R. Alcock[1] occupied Tô-zen-ji, in the suburb of Takanawa;
M. de Graef van Polsbrock lived in Chô-ô-ji, a little nearer the city;
then came Sai-kai-ji, the residence of M. Duchesne de Bellecourt; and
Mr. Harris had settled down at Zem-puku-ji in Azabu. But a series of
alarming occurrences had caused the European portion of the diplomatic
body to transfer their quarters to Yokohama, and the American Minister
alone held out, declaring his confidence in the good faith of the
Japanese Government and their ability to protect him. In September of
1862 he had already been replaced by General Pruyn, who followed the
example of his predecessor, until eventually driven out of the capital
by a fire which destroyed his house, whether purely accidental or
maliciously contrived. The English legation in 1861 had been the object
of a murderous attack in which the Secretary, Mr. Laurence Oliphant, and
Mr. G. C. Morrison were wounded. The assailants were principally
retainers of the Daimiô of Mito, but others belonging to various clans
were concerned in the affair, and some of these are still living. Sir R.
Alcock had consequently removed to Yokohama, where the strong guard
placed by the Japanese government at the entrances to the town and the
foreign men-of-war in the harbour offered sufficient guarantees for
safety. On his quitting Japan for a term of leave early in 1862, his
locum-tenens, Colonel Neale, not believing in a danger of which he had
no experience, brought the legation back to Tô-zen-ji. But he had no
sooner installed himself there than an event occurred which led him to
change his opinion. This was nothing less than the murder of the sentry
who stood at his bedroom door and of a corporal on his rounds, at the
hands of one of the Japanese guard, in revenge for an insult offered to
him, it is said, by the youngest member of the staff, a heedless boy of
fifteen or sixteen. So the British Legation packed up their archives and
hastened back to Yokohama, where they installed themselves in a house
that stood on the site of the present Grand Hotel. This building
belonged to an Englishman named Hoey, who was murdered in his bed in
1870, apparently from motives of private revenge. The foreign consuls
were all stationed at Yokohama with the exception of the American
consul, Colonel Fisher, who remained at Kanagawa. Mr. Harris, it is
said, would never admit that Yokohama could be rightfully substituted
for Kanagawa, the town mentioned in the Treaty, and would not permit his
consul to reside there. He even carried his opposition so far as to
declare that he never would countenance the change of settlement, and
carried out his vow by leaving Japan without having set foot in
Yokohama.
[1] It would be inconvenient to observe chronological exactness
in matters of official rank or title, which in the case of
most individuals are subject to progression. I shall speak
therefore of persons by the titles they bore at the latest
portion of the period covered by these reminiscences.
At the time of my arrival there, Colonel Neale, an old warrior who had
seen service with the Spanish Legion commanded by Sir de Lacy Evans, and
who, gossip said, regarded Sir R. Alcock, formerly attached to the
Marine Brigade of Portugal in the quality of surgeon, with no friendly
feelings, was Secretary of Legation, and consequently chargé d'affaires
in the absence of his chief. He had great command of his pen, and
composed most drastic Notes to the Japanese Government, some of which
have been printed by my friend, Mr. F. O. Adams in his _History of
Japan_. He had previously been consul at Varna and Belgrade, and
consequently had a sufficient experience of the system known as
"extra-territoriality," which in most non-Christian countries of the
East exempts Europeans from the operations of the local law. In stature
considerably less than the average Englishman, he wore a heavy grey
moustache, and thin wisps of grizzled hair wandered about his forehead.
His temper was sour and suspicious. Of his political capacity there is
not much to be said, except that he did not understand the circumstances
amongst which he was thrown, as his despatches sufficiently indicate,
well-written and incisive as they are. But this is only an example of
the fact that power of speech with tongue or pen is not a measure of a
man's fitness for the conduct of affairs. In his jovial moments he
easily unbent, and would entertain his companions with snatches of
operas of which he carried a large assortment in his memory.
At this period he was about fifty-five, and probably already affected
with the beginnings of the disease which carried him off a few years
later at Quito.
The second in rank was the so-called Japanese Secretary. He was neither
a native of Japan nor had he any knowledge of the language, so that the
title must be understood as signifying "secretary in charge of
correspondence with the Japanese Government." At our mission in China
there is always an official who bears the corresponding title of Chinese
Secretary, but there the post has always been held by a scholar. Dutch
was the only European language of which the Japanese knew anything, and
therefore when the Foreign Office came to provide a staff of officials
for the consular establishment, they sought high and low for Englishmen
acquainted with that recondite tongue. Four were at last discovered, one
of whom was first appointed interpreter to the legation and afterwards
accorded the higher title. Part of his salary was expressly granted by
way of remuneration for instructing the student-interpreters in the
language of the country, and consequently could not be said to be
earned. He retained his office for eight years, when a consulate became
vacant, and the opportunity was at once seized of "kicking him up the
ladder." All the domestic virtues were his, and of actively bad
qualities he showed no trace.
Next to this gentleman came a First Assistant, sociable and
accomplished, musical, artistic and speaking many languages beside his
own, but no lover of hard work. In his hands the accounts fell eighteen
months in arrear, and the registers of correspondence were a couple of
years behind hand. It was his function to preside over the chancery, and
he left it to his successor in a condition which the latter aptly
compared to that of an "Aegean stable." He was the sort of man who is
always known among his friends by his Christian name, and no higher
tribute to personal qualities is possible. In the course of time he
became a consul, and retired from the service at an early age, carrying
with him the regrets and good wishes of everybody who knew him.
In the legation staff there were also included two doctors, who at the
same time discharged the functions of Assistants in the chancery. One of
them shortly quitted the service, and set up in Yokohama as a general
practitioner, to retire with a competent fortune after but a few years.
The other merits more extended notice, on account both of his character
and public services of every kind. I mean my life-long friend, William
Willis. Perhaps no other man ever exhibited in a greater measure the
quality which we are wont to call conscientiousness, whether in his
private relations or in the discharge of his duties. Those who have had
the fortune to profit by his medical or surgical aid, feel that no man
could be more tender or sympathetic towards a patient. He was devoted to
his profession, and lost no opportunity of extending his experience. In
those days a doctor had frequently to encounter personal risks such as
fall to the lot of few civilians; he exposed himself freely, in order to
succour the wounded. In the chancery his services were indispensable. He
it was who "swept the 'Aegean stable,'" arranged the archives in order,
and brought the register up to date. Always on the spot when he was
wanted, an indefatigable worker, and unswervingly loyal to his chief.
After nine years service he was promoted to be a vice-consul, but by
this time the Japanese had become so impressed with his value as a
surgeon and physician that they begged him to accept a salary more than
four times what he received from the Foreign Office, and he went where
his great qualities were likely to be of more use than in trying petty
police cases and drawing up trade reports of a city which never had any
foreign commerce. His gigantic stature made him conspicuous among all
the Europeans who have resided in Japan since the ports were opened, and
when I first knew him he was hardly five and twenty years of age. A man
endowed with an untiring power of application, accurate memory for words
and things, and brimful of good stories from the three kingdoms. Big men
are big-hearted, and he was no exception. We shall come across him again
repeatedly in the course of these reminiscences, and for the present
these few words must suffice.
Besides these, the legation staff included Russell Brooke Robertson and
myself, as student-interpreters.
Last, but not least, were the officers of the mounted escort and
infantry guard. The latter was commanded by Lieut. Price of the 67th
Regiment, and was soon replaced by fifty marines under the command of a
man widely known in the service to which he belonged as
"Public-spirited" Smith. I shall say more of him later on. The cavalry
escort consisted of a dozen men from the Military Train, a corps which
went by the honorary title of "Pig-drivers," and at their head was a
lieutenant, a good, harmless sort of fellow, whose only weakness was for
fine uniforms and showy horses. Not being learned in the extremely
complicated subject of military costume, full dress, half dress, and
undress, I cannot say what it was that he had adopted for himself, but
it was whispered about that he had been audacious enough to assume the
insignia of a field-officer, which is undoubtedly a serious offence
against discipline. However that may be, the blaze of gold which
decorated his person was wonderful to behold, and on at least one
occasion, when we were going in solemn procession to an audience of the
Tycoon, caused him to be mistaken for the Envoy by the Japanese
officials, who gave him the salutes that rightfully belonged to his less
conspicuously adorned diplomatic chief. To determine whether the
pleasure derived from this confusion of persons by the one outweighed
the mortification which might not unnaturally have been felt by the
other would have required a delicate moral balance, which was not
available at the moment; but judging from the relative scale of the two
men in other points of character, I am inclined to infer that the good
preponderated largely over the evil, and that applying consequently the
criterion so unfairly attributed to the utilitarians by their opponents,
we must arrive at the provisional conclusion that the lieutenant's
uniform was highly virtuous and worthy of the applause of mankind.
But it is time to quit this gossiping tone and speak of more serious
matters.