Japan and the Japanese

KUSSIAN EMBASSY. 449
uO which Hagendorp, who held a high offici.il position, would not
have been likely to be mistaken.*
The next circumstance of importance mentioned by Doeff was the
arrival in October, 1804, in the harbor of Nagasaki, of a Russian
vessel, commanded by Captain Krusenstern, and having on board
Count Resanoff, sent as ambassador from the Czar, in somewhat
late prosecution of the negotiation commenced by Laxman in 1792.
This vessel brought back a number of shipwrecked Japanese,! and
her coming had been notified to the governor of Nagasaki, through
the medium of the Dutch authorities at Batavia and Desima.
There are two Russian narratives of this expedition, one by Kru-
senstern, the other by Langsdorff, who was attached to the embassy.
Both ascribe the failure of the mission to the jealous opposition of
the Dutch. Doeff, on the contrary, insists that he did everything
he could for by this time he was director to aid the Russians,
and that they had only to blame their own obstinacy in refusing to
yield to the demands of the Japanese.
The dispute began upon the very first boarding of the Russian
ship, on which occasion the Japanese officers took the Dutch director
with them. Resanoff consented to give up his powder, but
Insisted upon retaining his arms ; he also refused those prostra-
tions which the boarding-officers demanded as representatives
of the emperor. These points were referred to Jedo ; but, mean-
time (Doeff says, through his solicitations), the ship with the arms on
board was permitted to anchor. The Dutch and Russians were
allowed to pass the first evening together, but afterwards they were
jealously separated, though they contrived to keep up an occasional
intercourse through the connivance of the interpreters. The annual
ship from Batavia, this year Dutch, then at Desima, was removed
to anther and distant berth. When she left, no letters were
allowed to be sent by the Russians, except a bare despatch, first
* Krusenstern, in his narrative of the Russian embassy cf Resanoff (as to
which see next paragraph of the text), speaks of the List expedition of Stew-
art as fitted out by some English merchants in Calcutta, and gives to tha
captain the name oi'Torey. Very likely he had both names.
t The whole party consisted of fifteen, but of these only five, and those the
most worthless, were willing to return home. The others preferred to remain
in Siberia.
38*