Japan and the Japanese

ENGLISH ATTEMPT ON DESIMA. 457
from an old carpet which I had by me. Thus we provided for our
wants as well as we could. There was no distinction among us.
Every one who had saved anything, threw it into the common stock,
and we thus lived under a literal community of goods."
Great was the delight of our disconsolate director, when, in the
spring of 1813, two vessels appeared in the offing of Nagasaki, dis-
playing the Dutch flag, and making the private signals agreed upon
in 1809. A letter was brought on shore, announcing the arrival
from Batavia of Heer Waardenaar, Doeff 's predecessor as director,
to act as warehouse master, of Heer Cassa, to succeed Doeff as
director, and of three assistants or clerks. A Japanese officer and
one of the Dutch clerks were sent on board. The Japanese speedily
returned, saying that he had recognized Waardenaar, who had de-
clined, however, to deliver his papers except to Doeff personally, and
that all the officers spoke English, whence he concluded that the
ships must be chartered Americans. Doeff went on board, and was
received by Waardenaar with such evident embarrassment, that Doeff
declined to open the package of papers which he presented, except,
at Desima, whither he was accompanied by Waardenaar. This
package being opened was found to contain a paper signed " Raffles,
Lieutenant-governor of Java and its Dependencies," appointing
Waardenaar and a Dr. Ainslie commissioners in Japan. In reply
to his question, " Who is Raffles?" Doeff learned that Holland had
been annexed to France, and Java occupied by the English. But
the annexation of Holland to France, Doeff patriotically refused to
believe, and, in spite of all the efforts of Waardenaar to shake his
resolution, he declined obedience to an order coming from a colony
in hostile occupation.
His mind thus made up, Doeff called in the Japanese interpreters,
and communicated to them the true state of the case. Alarmed for
their own safety, they made to Waardenaar frightful representations
of the probable massacre of the crews and burning of the ves-
Eols, should this secret go any further, especially considering the
hostile feelings towards the English, excited by the proceedings of
the Phaeton in 1808 ; and finally the commissioners were persuaded
to enter into an arrangement by which Doeff was to remain as direc-
tor, and was to proceed to dispose of the cargoes as usual, first pay
ing out :f the proceeds the debt which, since 1807, the factory had
39