Perry, brother of Oliver Hazard Perry, the
hero of Lake Erie, succeeded to his mission. He was invested with
extraordinary naval and diplomatic powers, his immediate object being to
establish a coaling-station in Japan. On November 24, 1852, he sailed
from Norfolk with the Mississippi, leaving other ships to follow as soon
as ready. With his squadron he entered the Bay of Tokio (then called
Yedo) in July, 1853, causing great commotion among the inhabitants of
the Japanese capital, who mistook his appearance for a hostile approach.
It required both firmness and tact on Perry's part to open friendly
communication and present his proposals; but he succeeded in doing so
much, and then, saying that in the following spring he would come for an
answer, he withdrew to China. In February, 1854, he returned to Tokio
with a fleet of eight vessels. After some parley, the Japanese
authorities agreed to a conference at Kanagawa, a seaport adjoining
Yokohama. Of the negotiations that followed and the treaty in which they
resulted, the following pages tell, and Commodore Perry's own account is
the best record of his distinguished service not only to his own country
and Japan, but likewise to the civilized world.
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