HECO, Joseph.

Inquire · Offered by Peter Harrington

The Narrative of a Japanese; First edition. Shipwrecked as a teenager in 1850 and rescued by an American vessel, Heco was taken to the United States, where he became the first Japanese person to be naturalized as an American citizen. Heco (born Hamada Hikozo, 1835-1897) joined the Eiriki-Maru at the age of 13 with his stepfather for a sightseeing tour, but the ship was dismasted in a Pacific storm. Seventeen survivors were rescued by the American freighter Auckland and taken to San Francisco. After living in America and learning English, he returned to Japan in the early years of the Meiji Restoration and worked as an interpreter, translator, and intermediary between Japanese and foreign officials, including as an an interpreter at the US consulate in Kanagawa. The Narrative traces his early life in Tokushima, his years in America, and his subsequent career. It also records his visits to Hawai'i, including a stop at Hilo in 1852 and later stays in Honolulu in 1858 to 1859, where he observed the Hawaiian legislature in session. This is among the earliest published accounts of the islands and the California Gold Rush period by a Japanese traveller.Heco wrote diaries in English from as early as he was able. He released the first volume of his English-language edition in 1892 and engaged Hijikata Hisaakira, the future governor of the Bank of Japan, to translate it into Japanese in 1893. The second volume in English was was released in 1895, but for unknown reasons it was never tr

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