Chap. XVII. 
ON OPENING NEW PORTS. 
289 
the question of our being allowed to enter the city 
of Canton, such a proceeding may plunge us into 
future and expensive wars. But the Japanese 
question is a peculiar one. The Government 
evidently felt it had committed a mistake when it 
agreed to the treaty, and would now gladly return 
to the old state of things. As its experience of 
foreigners had been confined to the Dutch at 
Desima, who had carried on their trade in one or 
two ships a year, it had no idea that merchants 
with large capitals would come in such numbers, 
and that fleets of ships would arrive to carry off 
the produce of the country. And the statements 
the Ministers now made were perfectly true ; pro- 
visions had increased in price; the people were 
getting discontented, attributing the rise in prices 
to the presence and action of foreigners, and not 
understanding or caring for free-trade and its 
future benefits. In this state of things it is not at 
all unlikely that, if the opening of the new ports 
were pressed, a rebellion might take place which 
the Government would not have the power to put 
down. 
There may be a difference of opinion as to the 
propriety of agreeing to defer the opening of 
Hiogo and Osaca, with another port on the west 
coast instead of Ne-egata, but, I think, all who 
have studied the matter must agree as to the 
necessity of not pressing, at present at least, the 
opening of Yedo. I believe, even if it were 
agreed to by the Government, it would he attended 
