With Commodore Perry to Japan : the journal of William Speiden Jr., 1852-1855 /edited by John A. Wolter, David A. Ranzan, and John J. McDonough.

"With Commodore Perry to Japan offers a personal account of Commodore Matthew Calbraith Perry's expedition to Japan through the eyes of a sixteen-year-old purser's clerk of the USS Mississippi. The documentary edition, endorsed by the National Historic Publications & Records Commission, provides excellent coverage of both the political mission of the Perry expedition, the opening of relations with Japan, and of the social history of a naval warship as well. Also included are fifty-five illustrations ranging from hand drawn, pen-and-ink scenes of everyday life sketched by Speiden and other members of the crew to exquisitely detailed pith paintings by Chinese artists."--Provided by the publisher.