Identifier: narrativeofexped05perr (find matches)
Title: Narrative of the expedition of an American squadron to the China seas and Japan
Year: 1857 (1850s)
Authors: Perry, Matthew Calbraith, 1794-1858 Hawks, Francis L. (Francis Lister), 1798-1866
Subjects: United States Naval Expedition to Japan (1852-1854)
Publisher: New York, D. Appleton and company (etc., etc.)
Contributing Library: The Library of Congress
Digitizing Sponsor: The Library of Congress

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reached to within a short distance of the shore, these dignitaries andtheir suites disembarked in several boats and hurried to the land. An im-mense number of Japanese craft of all kinds, each with a tassel at its prowand a square striped flag at its stern, gathered about the bay. The day wasfresh and clear, and every thing had a cheerful aspect, in spite of the lin-gering wintry look of the landscape. The Commodore had made every preparation to distinguish the occasionof his second landing in Japan by all necessary parade, knowing, as he did,the importance and moral influence of such show upon so ceremonious andartificial a people as the Japanese. He had, accordingly, issued orders tothe effect that all the marines who could be spared from duty should appearon the occasion in full accoutrement, that the bands of music from the threesteamers should be present, and all the officers and sailors that could possi-bly leave. The officers were to be in undress uniform, frock coats, cap and
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<o LANDING TO NEGOTIATE. 403 epaulets, and equipped with swords and pistols. The sailors were to bearmed with muskets, cutlasses and pistols, and dressed in blue jackets andtrowsers and white frocks. The musicians were each to be supplied withcutlass and pistol, and every man of the escort provided with either musketor pistol cartridge boxes. At half-past eleven oclock the escort, consisting of about five hundredofficers, seamen and marines, fully armed, embarked in twenty-seven boats,under the command of Commander Buchanan, and forming a line abreast,pulled in good order to the shore. When the escort had landed, the ma-rines were drawn up in a hollow square, leaving a wide open space betweenthem, while the naval officers remained in a group at the wharf. The shipsboats were arranged in two separate divisions of equal numbers on eitherside of the landing, with their bows pointing in regular order from theshore. The Commodore now embarked from the Powhatan in his barge,under a salut

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