Homeward Bound

off course. It drifted far into the Pacific Ocean. It's rudder and mast had been ripped away, leaving the ship unable to steer in any direction. For over a year, the transport ship floated aimlessly in the Pacific, It's crew growing increasingly desperate and hungry. They ended up surviving on desalinated water and by eating their cargo, the rice they've

been tasked with carrying to Ado. By the time they washed ashore on the West coast of the United States, only three crew members were left alive, including Yamamoto, who had turned fifteen during the journey. But their hardships weren't over yet Washington State hadn't yet been admitted to the Union, and the indigenous people living in the area were wary

of strangers. The Makah tribe welcomed Yamamoto and his fellow crew members at first, but after the castaways had recovered, they were enslaved before being given to John McLoughlin of the Hudson's Bay Company. McLoughlin didn't see three young men children really in dire need of help. He saw opportunity and a way to begin trade negotiations with Japan. He put them on a boat to England, where they were

to convince the monarchy to fund his endeavor. The Brits didn't bite, though they didn't see any value in furthering McLoughlin's dreams of international trade, but rather than send Yamamoto and his friends back to the US, they were shipped off to China, where they could find safe passage home from there. But just as their journey was coming to a close, fate had other ideas. They were intercepted by Carl Gutzlaff, a German missionary who worked for the British government.

He wanted them to teach him Japanese so he could bring his religion to the people there. The three survivors did as they were told, educating Carl in their tongue, before meeting an American trader who also wanted to talk to Japan about a possible trade partnership. The American promised to take them to Ado, the city that they had intended to go on their original journey. Finally, their journey would find some closure and they could return to their

families and their previous lives. Unfortunately, the trader couldn't get his ship anywhere near the country. Every time he approached the shore, cannon fire ensued, forcing him to ultimately retreat to southern China. Japan, you see, had enacted the Sakaku policy, a word meaning closed country. Anyone seeking to enter or leave was met with hostility, often resulting in death. So Yamamoto and the other crew members built new lives for

themselves in China. They worked as translators for the British government and several British companies. Yamamoto in particular, bounced around from place to place, job to job, working on ships and helping sneak Japanese castaways back home aboard Dutch and Chinese ships. Two countries not bound by the Sokoku policy, and yet, despite his work and helping others find their way to Japan, Yamamoto never took advantage of his position

to return home permanently. He did visit twice on business, but never found a place for himself like he had in China. He married two times, and with the second wife, he raised four children. As part of his work for the British government, he was a naturalized subject and took on the name John Matthew Odison before return into Singapore to live out his final years. Yamamoto died in eighteen sixty seven at just forty nine years old. His life had been cut short, but he had packed it full

of adventure. But it's not all sad. No matter where he lived or who he worked for, Yamamoto was and always would be, a Japanese citizen. He'd left behind a family, friends, people he'd loved but would never see again. His body was buried in Singapore, where he lived with his wife, but he'd been a man of two worlds. As such, it was only fitting that half of his remains should be returned home to Japan, which is exactly what happened,

but not right away. Yamamoto's remains, or half of them at least, returned in two thousand five, eighty seven years after his death, and last I checked, he has no plans to leave. The nineteen eighties were a wild time. Advances in technology brought the personal computer to the masses, as well as fear about the future. We didn't have any idea of what the Internet would bring. There was no warning about social media, and nobody was branding themselves

as an influencer. But a war was brewing, one that would bring two world powers together in a display of unity not seeing any other time in history. It began as the Cold War was ending. President Ronald Reagan and Communist leader Mikhail Gorbachev had gone back and forth in an effort to end the global arms race. The Soviet Union had promised to eliminate ballistic missiles and intermediate range

nuclear forces or i n f s from Europe. In return, the United States promised to not continue their research into strategic defense initiatives for ten years. But President Reagan wasn't interested in stopping research. While he hated the concept of mutually assured destruction, his goal was to implement his strategic defense initiative a missile defense system that would prevent a

ballistic missile attack from space. Neither side trusted the other, though, but that didn't stop either of them from working on a possible solution. The talks came to a head in September of ninety six when Garbagecheff suggested a meeting somewhere neutral where they could discuss matters in peace and perhaps

come to some kind of an agreement. Reagan agreed, and thirty days later, on October eleven, the President of the United States and the leader of the Soviet Union gathered at a house in Reikiavik, Iceland that had once been used as the British consulate, and it was there where they began negotiations. Things didn't go well at first. Garbage Jeff was described as belligerent, wanting only to discuss ending

the arms race. Reagan, on the other hand, had several problems he wanted remedied, including the Soviet invasion of Afghanistan and various human rights violations. Unable to find common ground, the two men decided to leave the house and take a walk around the property with their interpreters. The discussion they had was only heard by the people present. History tells us nothing of value was mentioned, as the summit fell apart not long after. The Cold War wouldn't end

for another five years. However, Gorbachof certainly remembered what he and the former president discussed. You see, Reagan was an avid reader, specifically of science fiction. Edgar Rice Burroughs was a favorite, but so were some contemporary authors, two of whom ended up writing policy for the president's bold new initiative.

Because Reagan saw space the way Jean Roddenberry had as the final frontier, Jerry Purnell and Larry Niven, the co authors of the nineteen seventy four bestseller The Moat in God's Eye, had been asked to join a new committee dedicated to advancing America's future technology efforts. It was called the Citizens Advisory Council on National Space Policy and was comprised of former astronauts, military personnel, scientists, and other science

fiction authors. Over the course of three days, the Citizens Advisory Council met at Niven's house, where they drafted a policy designed to combat Reagan's fears. Later, during his walk with Mr Gorbachev and reiky Vik, he brought those fears up in their conversation outside. President Reagan no longer saw Gorbachev or the Soviet Union as their ultimate enemy, and although their talks fizzled in reiky Vik, the two men understood that at some point they would need to set

aside their differences and join forces. There was another threat on the horizon, one that would require as much firepower as our planet could muster. President Reagan asked Mr gorbache Off if he would help. When the time came. Mr Gorbachof, with the help of his translator, didn't scoff or laugh or insult the President in any way. He simply turned to him and said, no doubt about it, And just what was this battle they were preparing for? And where

was that war going to take place? Nowhere? It turns out, well, nowhere on Earth, that is. They had agreed to help each other for the greater good should a new enemy arrive to threaten their safety, an enemy from outer space. I hope you've enjoyed today's guided tour of the Cabinet of Curiosities. Subscribe for free on Apple Podcasts, or learn more about the show by visiting Curiosities podcast dot com.

The show was created by me Aaron Manky in partnership with how Stuff Works, I make another award winning show called Lore, which is a podcast, book series, and television show and you can learn all about it over at the World of Lore dot come and until next time, stay curious.