"The Commodore, with the captain of the fleet and Commanders Buchanan, Lee, and Walker, then passed down the line of the marines and artillerymen, when the procession was immediately formed. First came two field-pieces, under the command of Lieutenant Bent, each having above it the American ensign, and immediately preceded by the master of the Susquehanna, (Mr. Bennet,) with Mr. Williams and Dr. Bettelheim, the interpreters. Next followed the band of the Mississippi with a company of marines, under command of Major Zeilin. The Commodore followed then in a sedan chair, which had been manufactured for the nonce, by the carpenter on board the ship. It was emphatically a dignified vehicle, as became the occasion, large and stately, deeply indebted to paint and putty, not quite as polished as a turnout from Newark or Longacre, but, on the whole, decidedly a feature in the procession, though its hangings of red and blue were not of the finest. At all events, it was the most imposing sedan the Lew Chewans ever saw. It was borne by eight Chinese coolies, four relieving each other alternately. On each side of it marched a marine as body guard, while a handsome boy had been selected as a page, who, with a Chinese steward, were the immediate personal attendants.
Captain Adams, Lieutenant Contee, and Mr. Perry, followed the sedan. Next appeared six coolies bearing the presents designed for the prince and queen dowager, and guarded by a file of marines. Then came the officers of the expedition, headed by Captains Buchanan, Lee, and Sinclair, followed by their servants. Next were the band of the Susquehanna, and a company of marines closed the procession, which in numbers amounted to some two hundred or more.
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They [the natives] did not manifest the smallest apprehension, notwithstanding the presence of the marines under arms, and evidently were pleasantly exited by the spectacle before them.
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On arriving at the entrance [of Shuri castle], the artillery and marines were drawn up in line, and the Commodore and his suite walked past them into the castle or palace; the troops presented arms, the ensigns were lowered, and the band played "Hail Columbia.
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Boat exercise in the harbor formed also part of the occupation of the several crews; while the marines were on shore, drilling under the charge of their officers."
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After all the other boats had gone, the Commodore set out in his barge, and on his arrival the marines were found, under arms, and in line, under a grove of trees by the road-side, near the landing.
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They gave the name of the place as Piño. Mr. Heine took a sketch of it, and astonished the natives, some forty of fifty of whom had collected to look at us, by firing at a mark with his rifle.