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Vivien Maron
Dr. Hino
GPS 320 12 PM
26 February 2016
A Secret Plan to Help Japans Economy by Honda Toshiaki
Toshiaki has two main suggestions that could help Japans economy
prosper: adapting and familiarizing Japanese sailors with mathematics,
physics and navigation techniques, and colonization of Japanese islands.
Both suggestions could have had a tremendous impact on the Japanese
economy and help stabilize prices of their trading goods, such as rice, and
build an infrastructure that would help Japan compete with European powers.
At the time, Japanese ships always have to skirt along the shore, and
can navigate only by using landmarks mountains or islands within visible
range (Toshiaki). This is a problem, because sometimes the weather gets
rough and ships can change course drastically very fast, where sailors would
not be able to see or identify foreign landmarks. As a result, many sailors
died each year, and valuable goods perished. This had several negative
consequences; rice prices were not stable, because the supply fluctuated
based on successful or unsuccessful transport to the destination, money was
lost for the perished or lost goods, sailors lives were lost, which resulted in
less sailors, and a smaller workforce. All these consequences had a negative
impact on Japans economy, which is why Japan was inferior compared to
European powers. If the Japanese were to adapt mathematics, physics and

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new navigation techniques, all the negative consequences mentioned above
could be drastically reduced, which would stabilize the Japanese economy
and make it a recognizable trading power and an economically prospering
country.
The second suggestions Toshiaki made was colonization of Japanese
islands. Toshiaki even outlines a step by step plan on how to colonize nearby
islands successfully. This would have several benefits for Japan; but first, in
order to do so, Japan needs to embrace European ideas, such as
mathematics, physics, and navigation techniques to successfully colonize.
Once that is done, Japan could colonize territories and islands that have
different goods. This would be beneficial for Japan, because it would acquire
additional workers, a higher quantity of goods that are more diverse, and
expanding its Japanese territory, which would help Japan be recognized as an
economic power in the world. All of this would be very beneficial for the
Japanese economy, because Japan itself would have more goods, so the
Japanese people would have more diverse foods, and therefore are more
steady food supply, which would help workers become more efficient and
therefore help prosper the Japanese economy even further. Also, Japan would
have more diverse goods they could offer to other trading partners, which
could bring Japan further income and make Japan a richer country.
Overall, Toshiaki makes valid points that could help Japan prosper and
be recognized as a trading power. The key to Japans success would be
knowledge in several different areas, including physics, mathematics,

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navigation techniques, shipping, commerce, economics, and government
reform. If Japanese government officials were to learn about these things,
they could easily be implemented with very positive economic outcomes for
Japan, which would not only benefit its officials and make Japanese a richer
country, but also its citizens. Japanese citizens would have a stable and rich
economy ensuring happiness of the Japanese people.

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Works Cited
Toshiaki, Honda. "A Secret Plan of Government." 1798. Worlds Together,
Worlds Apart: A
Companion Reader. Vol. 2. W. W. Norton, 2010. 198-203. Print.