ANCHORAGE IN THE BAY OF DRAGA. 233 



the flag-sliip, lie had commanded that not more than three persons, at one time, and those having 

 business, shouM be allowed to come on boaftl. It had heretofore been the practice of ships-of-war 

 to admit these jjcople indiscriminately to their decks. When the Columbus was in the bay of 

 Yedo, there were many hundred Japanese on board of her at one time, who partook of the 

 hospitalities of the officers without hesitation, and made themselves quite at home ; but when 

 they were spoken to about going on shore, answered by signs that it was impossible. The 

 Commodore had, therefore, pre-determined to exercise an equal degree of exclusiveness with 

 themselves, and to permit the Japanese functionaries to communicate only and directly with 

 the Susquehanna. Several of the commanders in the Japanese boats signified by signs some 

 dissatisfaction at not being permitted to come on board the ships; but the Commodore's orders 

 were strictly obeyed. 



On dropping the anchor^ another gun was heard from one of the forts on shore, and when the 

 squadron had assumed its line of anchorage, commanding with its guns the entire ranges of 

 batteries and two considerable towns, a large number of the guard-boats came from all 

 directions, evidently prepared to take their stations around the ships, as the Japanese crews 

 had a supply of provisions, water, clothing, sleeping mats^ and other requisites for a 

 long stay. The Commodore, however, had fully determined beforehand that they should not 

 thus surround the ships. They made several attempts to get alongside and on board of the 

 Saratoga; their tow-lines, with which they made fast to any part of the shi]^, were unceremo- 

 niously cast off. They attempted to climb up by the chains, but the crew was ordered to prevent 

 them, and the sight of jiikes, cutlasses, and pistols, checked them, and when they found that 

 our officers and men were very much in earnest, they desisted from their attempts to board. 



These guard-boats struck every one with admiration of the beauty of their models, which, by 

 the way, resembled in a remarkable degree that of the yacht America. They were constructed 

 of unpainted wood, with very shai-p bows, a broad beam, a slightly tapering stern, and a clean 

 run. They were propelled with great swiftness through, or rather over, the water, for they 

 seemed to skim upon its surface rather than to divide it. The crews, numbering in some of the 

 larger boats thirty or more, were tall and muscular men, whose tawny frames were naked, 

 with the exception of a cloth about their waists. Toward niglit, however, the men clothed 

 themselves with loose gowns, some of red and others of blue, with hanging sleeves, upon which 

 were white stripes meeting in an angle at the shoulders. On their backs were emblazoned 

 coats of arms, or some insignia, in black and other colors. Most of them were bareheaded and 

 showed the hair to have been shaved on the crown, while that on the sides had been allowed 

 to grow long and was worn plastered with some species of ointment and fastened up into a knot 

 on the bald spot upon the top of the head. A few, however, wore caps of bamboo, in shape like 

 a shallow basin inverted, and reminding one of Mambrino's helmet. In some of the boats the 

 men bore tall poles, surmounted by a cruciform ornament, which seemed to indicate some 

 military office. The men in authority, wore light lacquered hats, with a coat of arms in 

 front, probably signifying their official rank and position. The rowers stood to their oars, 

 which worked on pivots upon the sides of the boat near the stern, and thej^ handled them 

 with such skill and effect that they approached the ships very rapidly, shouting loudly as 

 they came. At the stern of each boat was a small flag, with three horizontal stripes in it, a 

 white one on either side, and a black one in the middle, while in many of the boats there was, 

 beside, an additional flag, with symbols upon it. One or two persons, armed each with two 

 swords at their sides^ stood in the boats, and were evidently men of rank and authority. 

 30 J 



