ANCIENT JAPAN. 311 



the English, under Captain Soris, of the " Clove," in 

 1613, at Firando ; but they soon left again, and did 

 not return until much later. It was the news of the 

 treaty with the court of Pekin, in 1858, extorted ])y 

 Lord Elgin at the cannon's mouth, which, after all 

 arguments had hitherto failed, had the effect of 

 bringing the Tycoon and the Damios to their senses ; 

 and, at last, after a great many difficulties had been 

 raised and patiently combated by Sir Rutherford 

 Alcock, a treaty was signed, by which Yokohama was 

 assigned to foreigners foi- the purposes of trade, and 

 no country in the world has ever made such rapid 

 strides in civilization as Japan since that memorable 

 date. 



Considering the strictly exclusive policy pursued 

 by the Japanese Government up to that time, admit- 

 ting no foreigners to their shore, the peculiar con- 

 stitution of their State machinery, and the cruel 

 laws by which the people were tortured and executed 

 for trivial offences, it is surprising how everything 

 has undergone so complete a change within a lapse 

 of ten to twenty years : — the very form of govern- 

 ment of this day bears no resemblance to that befoi-e 

 1858. The Mikado, now not only the sole, visible, 

 and most active and sagacious ruler of Japan, was 

 then the sad and wretched nominal king residing at 



