The Ottawa free trader. [volume] (Ottawa, Ill.) 1843-1916, 1852-11-13
From the London Sum- October l9
The American Japan EipciitIon--AntI-
cipatIon of Wonderful RcsuIts

The most ncxorably enforced taboo ever INDUCED
IN by tue elders among the ssvsges OF the Mar.
qussas, never tend so remarkably TO pique the
curiosity OF the more inquisitivc Here is coun.
try Of ex,raordnnry dimensions. which has been,
in political sense, to speak, Theoretically sealed
from the rest of the nations Of the earth during no
LEES prcrac,ed an interval If time than the la. 4
two centuries. 1t is at length about to be forced
into some comm uncaton with the external Mu-
ti,ude, thanks to the generous enterprise of the
United States government For it must be ob
served that the expedition which has been 90 long
talked Of, as about to proceed to Japan from the
ports Of the American republic, has been only for
while delayed not altogether abandoned The
interruption is simply attributable to that un.
lucky squnbble about the British fisheries which
appears to be undergoing the process Of an AMIGA
bl. settlement, owing to the better judgment Of
Mr.. Webster and the energetic rest luton II Lord
MSmesbury. Almost Immediately may be anti
cipateG, therefore, the intelligence that the yes
sells engaged in the undertaking already specified
have set out for their very singular place Of des.
tlnation -
1t i. impossible not to wat with peculiar eager.
ness the result Of this novel and humane enter.
prise For ourselves we look forward to that re-
suit with some such interest ms We might suppose
would be awakened among the generality Sere n
b loon to soar off to one Of the planets, under the
direction Of some experienced Hronaut. Nor can
the comparison be regarded as in any way 80 very
eXtrayagnnt, seeing that Japan is to the rest o
the world almost ~ un,roddsn a region as the
SUI face Of the moon, or Of Jupiter. Seriously
speaking, we NAV assert that We know rather
more about the inhabitants Of the FLYING ISLAND
than about the hitherto almost iuscrutable ant
nearly fabulous Japanese. Golownin, II 10 true
! l..
cal or explicit that furnished in reference to tn,
| former by Lemurl Gulliver
| The wonder is, how this ignorance could hsv,
so long survived the application Of the steam en-
I gine to the purpose Of navigation. Traveller,
have penetrated in sll directions, 1t would seem
with this solitary exception. China has beer
traversed from end to end by the Jesui,s mission
aries Basil Hall has told us all we want to know
about Loo Choo. Hermann Melville has described
| the manners and customs ~ vogue aneng the
naked exquisites Of Nukuhiva. Francis Head ha.
taken us, ~ It were on the crupper, IN n goiloI
across the Psmpas. James Ross has condnctec
us (-hivsrpg) down 10 the antarctic shores of Vic
toria Land. William Penny has induced US t,
accompany him with our teeth chattering) to thai
remote arctic strait which lies to the nor west
| the Queens Channel We have ransscked tn,
exhumed ruins of Nincveh with Austin Layard
| We have even reached, with Bayard TAYLOR, the
| golden gravel strewing the paths Of HI Dorado
A learned gentleman, named Sqnier, who by til,
way ought to bring an action against Mr. Dickens
for casting odium upon HI. patronymic, has giver
Us the topography ~ those forest ciie. Of ,h,
west, which were nourishing in marble magnifi
cence long before the first mason had carved ,
stone for the vaunttd halls OF the Mon,czumas
! Another gentleman, not less learned, named Sic
] laa IA
the Architectural Monuments VI Hindostan. ",
are familiar with tie liliputian republic OF Marine
! We are intimately acquainted with the miniature
olisarchy Of Montcgro. Nay, it was only tn,
other day that Young Lieutenant Of the Roya
Navy Of Old England, putting .purs to his horse
clambered up the activities of the Lbanus sn,
vcntureI to domestica,s himself among the drra,
chiefs Of the AnsAyr. The Right Hon Benjamin
DlNn has proceeded there already in romance
but the Hon. Frederick IIapole was there il
rcality-snd by this time, under thanks 10 tn
,rdchtigsble press Of Mr. Bently, we have bee
en-, Ted in that, as in so many other quarters be
fore I, - n, to iathom secret. which had hithert
sc.m,1 TO be altogeihs, unfathomable.
r,..,u h.,r, indeed, about the surface Of tn
,j.I,' 1aye We been conducted by that crca
Sower which SIR Dalwer Lytton has so grand,
ideallIed a. Gen. us of the Lamp eycryw her
tbecause Central Africa according to our notion
must be excluded from the category, seeing tha
on the principle Of the . sour grapes We don
want to 90 there any Ions efl-e'ery where, "
repeat, have We been ushereL' TN the north, Il
the south. IN the east and the west everywhere
but within the ocean frontiers Of Japan An
Japan, let it he remembered, is no II, tie obscur
corner OF the globe to be overlooked by reason Q
MS mslgulticance. Japan is group OF lou, larS
and nourlshng Islands J,zo, Niphou. Sikok, an,
| kiu.Slu-commandnS attention, # only for u
extent and grandeur Of its maryelously fluitfu
territories 1t comprises no less than five imperia
cltics--Jede, Sdka Meaco Okosaka, aud Manga
sakL II contains a population varously estimated
at from 100000 To actually 50,0CQ,0oo tht
general and most rational impression upon th,
subject being that It's inhabitants number US many
a. those OF the Frcnchrepubllc the foremost. among
| tho races Of the European continent Add to nj
which, It has been declared, upon authority, that
the capital of the Japanese is more popuou,
than Our own monster metropolis-Golownn nc
lually talking Of 100000 AS the reputed number
Of the citizens Of Nsgasaki. 1t is to this wonder
ial empire that the civilized races OF the world
are at length about TO be formally introduced b,
means Of the gallant undertaking adventureC
upon tho democratic statesmen at Washington
sugar plums Of compliment thrown to the ia
pancsr by the great guns Of the United States
ior when We speak Of being introduced to the
mysteries Of Japan, II must be understood that
Artlesy is to be the master Of the ceremonies.
Whatever particulars have hitherto been col
lected together in reference to the sources of Ja
pan, or IN regard to the customs of the Japanese
have oaly been calculated 10 what the popular
| appetite for the marvellous, and to enhance the
phblle eagefness for some more searching and
more widely extended investigation. 1t matters
little, perhaps, to the merchant whether the peo
pie IN those quarters robe themselves At funeral
in white by way Of mourning whether the ad.
vance oi pregnancy among their women is marked
by the wearing OF red Grape scarf; or whether
they distinguish their more honored guests by the
presentation of plate Ot snakes deliberately
stcwed and adroltly seasoned Such eccentrci.
ties are recorded OF them, no doubt, but that
matters little To the princes of trade either Mt
New York or Manchester. Possibly, moreover,
II may be considvred rs u circumstance Of moment
only in the more recondl.s contemplatons of Mr.
Wakley, in his capacity As thu coroner Of Middle.
-.x that the young gentlemen Of Japan are IN
tho habit Of relieving themselves of the tedium of
existence through the fashionable suicide effected
BY deStsrou-ly ripping open the abdomen. Why
the young ladies' OF the same country should pre-.
sumo for u moment that they enhance their
beauty by blackening their teeth, or extreatlug
their eyebrows, may seem u question OF rival in.
port to those not wholly infatuated 10y tho vir.
tues Of Mr. Rowlands renowned OdontU, or OF his
dainty Kalydor, or still more, Of what Lord by.
H. L.. 4 A 4