SAMURAI WILLIAM
The Englishman Who Opened Japan
Chapter One
AT THE COURT OF BUNCO
No one had ever seen such strange-looking
men. They had big noses, giant mustaches,
and wore puffed and padded pantaloons. They
also seemed to have little understanding of Japanese
etiquette and manners. To the little crowd of onlookers gathered
on Funai's quayside, these three seafarers appeared to have
come from another world.
Their ship had been blown to Japan by the "great and impetuous
tempest" that was playing out its last dance on the waters offshore.
It was rare for junks to cross the East China Sea, and the
arrival of this sea-battered vessel quickly attracted the attention
of Funai's governor. He made his way to the port where the
strangers-speaking through Chinese interpreters-explained that
they "came from another land, named Portugal, which was at the
further end of the world."
The governor was unsure how to react, and sent a message to
the local ruler, the lord of Bungo, with news of their arrival. His
lordship ordered that the men should be summarily executed, and
he sen ... read full excerpt from: Samurai William: The Englishman Who Opened Japan ebook
