Matsumae clan
Lastochkin tried yet again, this time bringing a number of extra ships. It was now 1778, and the expedition met with the Lords of Matsumae clan, the Japanese guardians of the northern borders, for the first time. They bestowed gifts upon the "samurai" lords, and asked to trade. The "samurai" informed Lastochkin's party that they did not have the authority to make such agreements on behalf of the "shōgun", but that they should return the following year. Doing so, Lastochkin's gifts were returned, forbidden to return to Hokkaido, and informed that he should inquire at Nagasaki, on the southern island of Kyūshū, and inconveniently far from Russian holdings, if he wished to trade. Latoschkin returned to Uruppu to plan his next move.