FOREIGN TRADE UP TO OPENING OF COUNTRY. 519 



finding support in Manila and returning to Japan with Spanish 

 ships without his (lyeyasu's) permission. To the numerous re- 

 presentations with respect to the Christian sect which the governor 

 and others had made to him, he could not agree. " It is in no 

 wise agreeable to our best interests that your faith be preached 

 and disseminated in Japan, and if your Highness desires to main- 

 tain friendship with the rulers of Japan and with me, I beg you to 

 agree to my wishes and to do nothing displeasing to me." It is 

 plainly seen from this energetic language that lyeyasu was already 

 firmly determined to strenuously oppose the spread of Christianity. 

 Only once, as is seen in what follows, do we find him friendly dis- 

 posed towards Christianity, but this might have been expected from 

 his earlier expressions. 



In the year 1608 — the " Memorials of the Empire of Japan " tell 

 us, according to Th. Rundall — the ship was wrecked in which the 

 Governor General of the Philippines, Rodrigo de Vivero y Velasco, 

 was returning from Manila to Spain, via Acapulco. This was on 

 the east coast of Hondo, in latitude 35^^° N. The crew and Don 

 Rodrigo saved only their lives, but were hospitably received by 

 the Japanese, and provided with every necessity. The Governor 

 General in particular received on all sides a great friendliness cor- 

 responding to his rank, especially at the court in Yeddo, and also 

 at Shidzuoka in Suruga, whither lyeyasu had withdrawn in 1605, 

 although still retaining the guidance of national affairs. 



Everything was restored to the Spaniards that could be saved 

 from the wreck, although according to law and custom the Japan- 

 ese government possessed full jurisdiction over stranded goods. 

 In Shidzuoka Don Rodrigo laid three requests before the ex- 

 Shogun, viz. : — 



1. That lyeyasu would extend his protection to foreign priests 

 and their missions. 



2. That he would continue in maintaining friendly relations with 

 the king of Spain. 



3. That he would forbid the Dutch, being rebels and pirates, to 

 sojourn in his country. 



lyeyasu expressed to Don Rodrigo his satisfaction that, although 

 stripped of all his possessions, he had sought nothing for himself, 

 but everything for his king and his religion. He w^as prepared to 

 grant the first two petitions, not the third, having pledged his word 

 to the Dutch and allowed them to trade in his country under the 

 same conditions as other foreigners. 



lyeyasu requested from the king of Spain, through Don Rodrigo, 

 fifty miners experienced in the silver mining of New Spain, his 

 own being unable to extract half the precious metal existing in the 

 mines. He dismissed him in the friendliest manner. The object 

 of Don Rodrigo's next journey was " Meako " (Kioto), where the 

 governor, by order of his master, made him acquainted with every- 

 thing worthy of notice. Thus Don Rodrigo saw among other 



