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Fall 1851 (5th Year of Kaei, Year of the Rat)
Manjiro pushed up the sleeve of his kimono so it wouldn't drag in the ink. He sat on the floor in front of a low table, brush in hand. He was practicing the character for "garden," which, he thought, might as well be the same as the characters for "prison. " Since there was so often nothing else to do, he was using the time to learn to read and write his own language.