Last week, we talked about how to be a good ancestor. This week we have examples of two good ancestors. We said that good ancestors have virtues that they pass on to future generations and that they try to pass on their story by recording it in some way. Many of us have an interesting story but few of us have a life filled with adventure. What John Manjiro accomplished in ten years of his youth and for the rest of his life is astounding!

         Most of my information comes from a book of words, paintings and sketches, some by Manjiro, that tell about his experience. This book is one of four that was created with the help of Japanese artists in the years following John's return to Japan. Some of the artwork consists of Manjiro's hand written letters in English to Captain Whitfield. We heard Manjiro's basic story. Let us get a sense of the early time line.

         In 1841, Manjiro is marooned with four other men on a remote island 400 miles off the coast of Japan. After five months, the men are rescued by CaptainWhitfield of the John Howland whaling ship. We heard that John was a particularly keen observer of sailing and whaling and a quick learner of English. When they reached Hawaii, four of the men chose to stay and were treated kindly by the American official and the Hawaiian king. Manjiro accepted Captain Whitfield's invitation to go to Fairhaven with him.

         In 1843, they arrive in New Bedford and John began his education at the school house.

         In 1843 to 1845, John attended the School of Math, Navigation, and Surveying at 42 Spring Street, while also helping on the Whitfield family farm on Sconticut Neck Road in Captain Whitfield's absence.

         In 1846, Manjiro was offered a job on the whaling ship, the Franklin.

         In 1849, he returned to New Bedford with a little money earned from the three-year whaling trip. Manjiro then heard of the discovery of gold in California and he decided to try his luck.

         In 1850, he worked his way on a lumber ship from New Bedford to San Francisco and from there he found his way to the gold mines. With $600 in gold, he was determined to return to Japan with his friends. (I am impressed that this was precisely the amount of money that Henry Huttleston Rogers-benefactor of this church-took with him to the Pennsylvania Oil Fields 20 years later!)

         In 1851, Manjiro arrived in Okinawa with two of his friends from Hawaii. This was just ten years since he had been marooned!

         John Manjiro's intelligence and skill were great but his character, caring, and creativity were even greater. Manjiro endeared himself not only to the Whitfields but to everyone who came to know him. The Delanos were very fond of him as were all of his teachers and his fellow students.

         You've heard the story of how Captain Whitfield ended up in this congregation-because two other churches wouldn't allow Manjiro to sit with the family. How fortunate we were to have wise church ancestors!

         Manjiro had qualities about him that many others admired. When he took a job on the ship called The Franklin in 1846, Mrs. Whitfield gave him a letter of introduction to a family friend, the Reverend Samuel Damon in Honolulu, Hawaii. Rev. Damon was the chaplain of the Seaman's Friend Society and he published a newspaper for seamen called "The Friend." We also know about Manjiro's adventures from this newsletter. In Hawaii, Manjiro heard that one of his friends had died and two of them had tried to return to Japan but found that people were afraid of them. The captain of the ship had feared for their lives and persuaded them to return to Hawaii. Manjiro was determined to find a way for them all to return home to Japan.

         On the return voyage, the captain of the Franklin became mentally ill. The crew had to elect a new Captain. Manjiro received 50% of the vote. This was a remarkable vote of confidence in the ability of this 21 year old sailor! The other candidate, Isaac Akin, was selected captain only because he was older and Manjiro was promoted to First Mate. People described Manjiro as courageous, competent, honest, straightforward and with a strong sense of gratitude toward all who had helped him. Here is an excerpt from one of the many letters he sent to Captain Whitfield. This one is from Honolulu, dated October 30, 1848:

         ". . . . O captain how can I forget your kindness, when can I pay for your fatherly treatment? THANK GOD ten thousand times and never will [I] forget your name. . . . Give my best respects to all your friends and your kind neighbors and my affectionate regards to your wife, Aunt Amelia, and Mr. Bonney's family. Tell them what quarter of the world I am in. I can never forget the kindness they have done to me. It is hard for me to join words together and therefore I come to a close. John Mung."

         This was typical of letters he wrote to everyone he knew.

         When he returned to Hawaii with his money earned in the gold field, he paid for two of his three friends to return to Japan. The third wanted to stay in Honolulu.

         They chose to go to Okinawa in hopes it would be safer than Japan proper. They were interrogated for almost 1-1/2 years. Sometimes the interrogations were friendly and sometimes very harsh. We have to realize that Japan had been closed to all foreigners for 200 years (except Dutch traders, it seems and also Chinese in the outer islands). Eventually, they were released to return to their families. Manjiro served wherever he could do some good. The good student became a teacher of navigation, shipbuilding, mathematics, geography, English, and American culture and history. He was instrumental in facilitating communication between Japanese officials and Commodore Perry for trade purposes. Manjiro was given samurai status and became a professor at what is now Tokyo University. In all of this, he found time to captain a whaling ship and go on a three-year voyage. And he managed visits to America and of course to the Whitfield family.

         John Manjiro was so much more. He was a good person. He inspired generations of his family to maintain contact with Captain Whitmore's family and other friends. Manjiro is much more famous in Japan than here.

         John Manjiro was a gift to us all-to Americans and to his own countrymen. The stranger brought us the gift of himself. Later generations of his family referred to Captain Whitmore as a Good Samaritan, like the parable in the Bible. Manjiro, too, was a Good Samaritan to his friends who he took back to Japan with him. It is reported that he gave food, money, and medicine to beggars and he treated them with respect. This earned him disapproval in high places but he used his gentle way of explaining to deter resentment.

         Beyond John Manjiro, we must give our sincere thanks to our Japanese sister city members who are continuing the good work of peace and friendship that he began. We are particularly thankful to Gerry and Ayako Rooney and their supporters for their steadfast efforts to nurture the relationships. It was gratifying to witness Gerry receive recognition for this work from the Japanese government.

         Dear Japanese friends, may you be blessed for your commitment of friendship between our two cities. We began by singing a song of friendship. Let us end by singing of the kind of world we are building together. May John Manjiro and Captain Whitfield be our admirable ancestors who have shown us the way to peace and friendship across our nations. May we follow their example.

References

The following have informed and inspired this sermon:

Bernard, Donald R. The Life and Times of John Manjiro, New York and others: McGraw-Hill, Inc. 1992.

Kaneko, Hisakazu. Manjiro: The Man Who Discovered America, Boston: Houghton Mifflin Company, 1956.

Rosenbach Museum and Library, Philadelphia & Japanese Culture Center of Hawaii. Nakahama Manjiro's Hyosen Kiryaku: A Companion Book, 1999-2000