THE LINK IS WRONG! THIS IS THE RIGHT LINK: http://www.marylain.net/prova/Baricco.txt Sorry...

It sounds like word for word from either a text book or someones essay. It also sounds like the person who it is not english rather speaks english as a second language. Also if you change those words it will deminish what the essay was really about for the person who wrote it.

At one time, Japan was really on the other side of the world. It was a land made of islands, and for two hundred years it had been completely isolated from the rest of humankind, refusing any contact with the continent and forbidding any foreigners to enter. The Chinese coast was almost two hundred miles away, but an imperial decree provided to make it much more remote, prohibiting the construction on the whole island of boats with more than one mast. Moreover the law, according to a somehow enlightened logic, did not forbid emigration but condemned to death anyone who tried to come back. The Chinese, Dutch and English merchants repeatedly tried to break that absurd isolation, but they only obtained a frail and dangerous smuggling network. They gained a little money, many troubles and some legends and goods to be sold in ports in the evening. Where they failed, the Americans, thanks to the force of their weapons, succeeded. In July, 1853, Commodore Matthew C. Perry arrived in Yokohama Bay with a modern steamship fleet and delivered to the Japanese an ultimatum that “hoped” for the opening up of the island to foreigners. The Japanese had never seen a ship that could go on the sea against the wind. The sea around this island, the commodore declared with a certain solemnity, is from today on much less deep. http://jakemcpherson.googlepages.com/home

Ok, I have done a more idiomatic version, while trying to preserve as much of the original wording as possible. There are still things which would need to be changed if publication was the aim, but an editor would need to consult the writer. At one time Japan really was on the other side of the world. It was a land made up of separate islands, and for two hundred years it had been completely isolated from the rest of humankind, refusing any contact with the mainland and forbidding entry to foreigners. The Chinese coast was almost two hundred miles away, but a imperial decree reinforced Japan's remoteness by prohibiting the construction of boats with more than one mast. Moreover the law, with what might be considered an enlightened logic, did not forbid emigration, but condemned to death anyone who tried to come back. Chinese, Dutch and English merchants repeatedly tried to break that isolation, but only succeeded in maintaining a frail and dangerous smuggling network. They gained a little money, much trouble, some legends and goods to be sold in ports in the evening. Where they failed, the Americans, thanks to the force of their weapons, succeeded. In July, 1853, Commodore Matthew C. Perry arrived in Yokohama Bay with a modern steamship fleet and delivered to the Japanese an ultimatum that “hoped” for the opening up of the island to foreigners. The Japanese had never seen a ship that could sail against the wind. "The sea around this island," the Commodore declared with a certain solemnity, "is from now on much less deep".