waters, began to try to rewin entry into Japan. But the Americans were most interested of all in opening Japanese ports. Their whaling vessels frequented the North Pacific and the waters around Japan, and American clipper ships, bound for China on the great circle route across the Pacific, passed close to the shores of Japan. The Americans wanted permission for their whalers and clipper ships to enter Japanese ports to take on water and replenish their stores, and when steamships came into use, the desirability of a coaling station in Japan became obvious.
Not infrequently, also, American and European sailors were wrecked on the shores of Japan. The laws of the land decreed death for any foreigner entering the country, and although this was not always enforced, those unlucky mariners stranded in Japan who eventually got out by way of Nagasaki usually had tales to tell of extremely cruel treatment.
In the first half of the nineteenth century the Americans, English, and Russians repeatedly sent expeditions to Japan in efforts to persuade the Japanese to open their ports to foreign ships, and the Dutch urged them to accede to these demands. But Edo stood firm on its old policy. A few scholars among the native students of Western science bravely advocated the opening of Japan, but the vast majority of the people, long accustomed to isolation from the rest of the world, were bitterly opposed to permitting foreigners to enter their land. It was obvious that Japan would not voluntarily open its doors.
The American government eventually decided to delay matters no longer, but to force the doors of Japan