The Fire-Fly's Lovers: And Other Fairy Tales of Old Japan

William Elliot Griffis (1843-1928) served in the Union Army during the Civil War, then graduated from Rutgers University in 1869. He was a tutor for Taro Kusakabe, which opened up a world of opportunity for him in Japan. In 1870, he was invited to reorganize Japanese schools by Matsudaira Yoshinaga. Between 1870-74, Griffis taught science, wrote English language primers, and was an intermediary between the United States and Japan. He returned to the United States to complete his studies at ...