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Acknowledgments This book owes much to the assistance and encouragement of a great many people over the course of nearly 20 years, and it is my pleasure to be able to thank them publicly. I am especially grateful to Dr. Gordon Daniels of Sheffield University, who has profoundly influenced my approach to Japanese history since his days as my thesis supervisor. Professor Matsuzawa Hiroaki of Hokkaido University has been a faithful friend and critic of my work over the years. Professor Cyril H. Powles of the University of Toronto has been exceptionally kind from the start with advice and encouragement. Professor Ota Yuzo of McGill University has, as ever, been an inspiration for hard work. Dr. Keith Neilson, my colleague at the Royal Military College of Canada, took time off from his own writing to read the entire manuscript and to offer valuable suggestions for its improvement. lowe a debt to Rev. Paul R. Sakata at the Nippon Seikokai Kyomuin in Tokyo for allowing me to use the collected historical materials at the Provincial Office and obtaining books for me during a recent trip to Japan. When I first started researching this topic in Japan, Professor James Ugawa of Rikkyo University was particularly helpful in introducing me to members of the Nippon Seikokai, including the late Matsudaira Itaro, who was a leading figure in the committee that produced the centennial history of the Nippon Seikokai. Professor Sugii Mutsuro of Doshisha University provided valuable advice about the intricacies ofJapanese Christian history. Canon Gordon Hewitt was most helpful with advice during the early stages ofresearch. The late Canon A. C. Hutchinson , the late Canon W. H. Murray Walton, Mrs. Joan K. Warren, and Miss Ellen Foss helped me with private papers. The research for this book was undertaken on three continents and in six countries. Some of the archives that I utilized, including the archives of the United Society for the Propagation of the Gospel on Tufton Street, Westminster and the Church Missionary Society on Waterloo Road, London, have recently found new homes in Oxford and Birmingham, respectively. I hope that this book helps to underline the importance of the archives of British missionary societies as a valuable source of information about Japan, Korea, and Taiwan. This book has been published with the help ofa grant from the Canadian Federation for the Humanities, using funds provided by the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada. A grant from the Arts Division of the Royal Military College of Canada funded most of the final preparation of the manuscript. I must also thank Maura Brown of Wilfrid Laurier University Press for her kind help with editorial matters. A. Hamish Ion Vll ...

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