Approximately fifty passengers left Yokohama on board the American steamer America on March 26, 1872. Their names were listed on The Japan Weekly Mail issued on April 6, 1872. But it was difficult to identify them because of the queer romanized spelling of their Japanese names.
On investigation those passengers were able to be classified into five groups.
(1) Ex-Daimyos who were going to visit foreign countries.
(2) Students despatched by Kaitaku-shi (Reclamation Bureau of Hokkaido).
(3) Young successors to the Mitsuis, a famous family of wealth.
(4) Students despatched by Kan-no-ryo (Office of Promoting Agriculture).
(5) Officials of the Ministry of Finance.
In those days various government offices used to send their officials to foreign countries for studying, but many of them could not display their ability to the full. So the projects were not successful.
In 1873 the government changed its policy and called back most of them to Japan.
It was possible in most cases to clarify the dates of their return and the ships they boarded by looking over ' the Shipping Intelligence' on The Japan Weekly Mail.
What became of those students? Some changed their courses of life and rose up as military officers or diplomats, while many of them are remained unknown. Some of the data about them are available by looking over “The Meiji Hen-nenshi”, a collection of newspaper articles.

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This article analyzes the relationship between the Meiji government and the common people during the time of the Boshin Civil War of 1868 from the aspect of gumpu 軍夫, corvee labor levied for the purpose of military transport in Shimotsuke Province, and depicts how the new government introduced local administration mechanisms during it formative years and how the people were placed under its control. The Meiji government was able to obtain public support through various relief and education measures, enabling it to employ the forces of former han 藩, like the Kurobane and Otawara fiefs, to quell reactionary uprisings (yonaoshi 世直し). As a result, the new government was able to maintain law and order and conduct speedy military corvee enlistment, while the cooperating han were able to enlist such labor from the villages they patrolled. In addition, rule by the new government was carried out through two different chains of command : one through the Office of War and the government's militia, the other through appointed provincial governors, enabling a speedy end to the Boshin War and condensed governance polides. Even after the end of the War, the people of Shimotsuke remained effected by it through transport-related corvee labor burdens, both military and otherwise, which became the cause of the yonaoshi uprisings. However, there was no resistance to such heavy burdens even before the uprising, mainly due to promise of a 50% reduction in the yearly rice tax in exchange for gumpu services. It was this aspect of government policy, rather than its military presence or other relief measures, that won the support of the people of Shimotsuke for the new government.

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