Manjiro was saved by the John Howland, an American ship. He was only fourteen years old. Whitfield, the captain of the ship, liked Manjiro very much. He gave him name “John” after the ship. The ship arrived in Hawaii. Everything was new to Manjiro - beds, knives, forks, everything.
Manjiro learned English by ear. He had a very good ear, so he learned English very quickly. After he came back to Japan, he wrote a book about English. In this book he showed how to read each word in Katakana. For example, wara was for “water” and koshichan was for “question.”
Two years later, the captain took Manjiro to his home in Massachusetts. Manjiro went to elementary school, and he learned to read and write English. After he finished school in 1846, he went to sea.
He missed his mother all the time. He ofter watched the sea and thought of his dear mother. He wanted to go back to Japan, but he didn't have enough money.
The year 1849 is famous for the “Gold Rush.” Thousands of people went to California. Manjiro was among then. In two months he saved a lot of money.
Manjiro wanted to go back to Tosa, but he was afraid to do so. In those days Japan's doors were closed to other countries. So he went to Okinawa first. In 1852, he went back to his hometown at last.
The next year some American ships came to Uraga. Only Manjiro knew about America. Only he could speak English. The Tokugawa Government called him to Edo.
In 1860 the Government sent some messengers to the United States. Yukichi Fukuzawa was one of them. Manjiro, now a samurai, went with them as interpreter.
The ships arrived in San Francisco. The Japanese messengers very warmly welcomed. Manjiro spoke English very well. American people were very surprised at his English.
In San Francisco, Manjiro bought a Webster's dictionary. Manjiro also bought a camera for his wife and a sewing machine for his mother.
More than one hundred years ago, Manjiro went to school in the United Stats and learned English. He made friends with many Americans. He was a bridge between Japan and America.
