The daily exchange. [volume] (Baltimore, Md.) 1858-1861, 1858-11-17
From the London Times.l
THE DkNECI NErnn n,,

In the interval between signing the treaty Of
Ilen-sin and setting its details at Shanghai and
.h Lora EIgln utilities his leisure by visit to
tne Islands OF the Japanese Empire, and, within
TWO months OF the accomplishment of the treaty.
with China, sends US home an unlocked for or 81
any rate, an unhoped for, treaty with Japan Moth
ing could nave been more apparently homeless than
the attainment of any such object We had M
ground ofquarrel with the Japanese even cause Of
complaint against them; and we were even ny
ana oy our own recent act, forbidden to ask
LOT any new privileges Admiral Sir James Ster-
nng-a name which in future generations when the
history in theseseas has been truly written
VIII cal! glow into the face of every Englishman
Tau, IN 1904, made treaty whereby he obtained
the great concession that Enlish ships of war might
go into two ports to water; and in return for this
great privilege the English undertook to respect
the monopoly of the Dutch and never to seek to al
Ter Inc treaty then granted.
The only excuse which Lord EIpin could bora
under these circumstances, to go to the Jananese
court, was to present steam yacht, which as an
acknowledgement of the Stirling treaty, the admi-
rally had sent out to the Emperor But inasmucb
as this yacht was confded to the admiral and NOT
to Lord Elgin and under strict instructions to de-
liver it up at the distant port of Nagasaki the Yacht
it soon appeared that the present of pleasure
yacht to Japanese Emperor is like the present of
a pair of spectacles to blind man, the first and
most fundamental law of the empire being, that the
spiritual and temporal emperors of Japan shall
never pass the outer gates of their palaceS With
curious felicity we had thus hit on the only nova
BILE thing in the whole world which an Emneror of
Japan could have no chance. not only of ever using
but also of ever seeing. The admiral fndinr no
one at Nagasaki able to receive this present and
perhaps little disguised with the ridiculous nos
ton his instructions, and the character of his pre
sent placed him in, handed over .stbe Emneror,5 70
LORD Elgln and went his way towards Canton. Our
ambassador errant was cow, probably to his great
satisfaction, left alone to his own devices with two
steamers OF war, and gunboat guard, and his
| little toy steamer, the name of which was now in
changed he
"Dragon," as bait, or bride, or peace offering.
| Fortune favored the boldness of the enterprise,
and American astuteness helped Lord Elgin
| reached Nagasaki on the Sd of August, and found
no one there but some japanese underlinps and
some Dutch officials, who naturally gave him
small hopes. Thence he went staggering through
one OF the tremendous gales that vex these seas TO
! the wretched harbor of Smoda where tho Amcri
cans are in power and at this place he for the first
time discovered the workings of the echoes of his
own doings on the Peiho. 1t seems that as soon as
the Tiensin treaty was arranged, the American
commodore rushed off to Japan to take ADVANTAGE
of the CONSERVATION certain to be created by the
first news of recent events in the Peiho. 1t was
smarty imagined. He found at Simoda. the
American Consul General Just returned from led
do, whittier he had been upon a six months mis-
sion, vainly importuning for some commercial
privileges. The commodore Immediately took him
on board his ponderous steamer, the Powbattan
and steered right away for Kanagawa, a station
well known to the American men of war since Com
modere Perry's time, about fifteen miles
below The capital city of Jeddo. Terrible
stories and frightful antcipations had, for some
hme possessed the minds of the Japanese ,Japan
like other countries of ancient institutions
has its conservative and progressive parties
The Prince OF Borlngo had stood stoutly for the an
clent japanese constitution and no foreign compet-
tion But when the American ship of war appear-
ed, and when the American version of the warlike
operations in China circulated a strong FEELING
gained ground in favor of the progressive parties
Prince Boringo retired, and Prince Bitsu took his
place. Under the new Administration Mr.. Harris
the Consul-General was admitted to an interview
with the Emperor ports were opened, and CONNER
cal tariffs agreed upon pretty much as is set forth
In the statement we borrow from the North China
Herald. When Lord Elgiu arrived at Simoda he
found Mr. Harris in high spirits at having compile
Tea I'M: treaty, ana the precedent gave him OPP
must here-having recently spoken in terms of com
plant to our American friends for sending their sill
iiest men upon important embasses-acknowledge
that Mr. Harris acted throughout these transactions
with frankness and courtesy worthy of the repre-
sentative of a great friendly power. Mr. Harris
acted like a man who was strong in his own
knowledge of the interests of his country Lord
Elgin departed at for the anchorage below the
capital, where he found the American and also the
Russian war steamers. The neutrals had been uuick
to scent the game from aar; they had run a race
against us to gather not only the spois won bv our
arms, but even the contributions to be exacted by
terror of deeds. Beyond this anchorage of
kanagawa were rocks and whirlpools, and peris in
Vulnerable all faithfully deposed to by japanese
utation of being confident, and not unreasonabiy
confident, in his own seamanship believed in none
OF these things. Steaming over the anchorage he
held on up the Bay of Jeddo, and, stimulated bv
the sight of Jeddo city, which slowly unrolled itself
in the northwest angle of the gulf, he pursued his
course, undeterred by full gale of wind, until he
could cast anchor within gunshot of series of well
constructed batteries, which run across the shoals
| facing portion of the city. Lord Elgin's well
judged confidence in his captain was thus rewarded
by position which, considering he had to deal with
Asiatics, insured his success. 1t was bold move
made at timely moment, for he could have done
nothing at distance.
Since Mr.. Harris obtained his treaty there had
been reactonary movement in Jeddo, directed by
the independent Princes and hereditary mobiles
They had ousted the Minister who signed the treaty
and Prince Boringo ruled again. But the appari-
ton OF the British steam frigates Furious and Re-
trlbuton, intruding upon the sacred seclusion
of the capital, spread CONSERVATION throughout the
camp of the obstructives. We made no menaces
and used no threats, but we fear there was some
thing like the pressure of force which was not
altogether moral put upon these gentle Japanese
Our excuse must be that, if the Americans had
obtained concessions npon the strength of the terror
created by the of the lion it would have been
hard that the lion should get nothing on his own ac-
count. We need not tell how Lord Elgin went on
shore in due state and lived in gaudy temple, and
negotiated for fourteen DAYS, and visited MANY
parts OF that mighty city of Jeddo, with its two
million OF inhabitants and its hundred square miles
OF habtations; the result has been treaty which
gives us all we can require for the present 1t gives
us free commercial access to an interesting and
amiabe people, to a charming region in beautiful
climate, and to country rich in Goals and min