{"collection":"myth-cosmogony","full_text_available":true,"graph_url":"https://unchartedknowledge.5gfusion.net/v2/api/page/gutenberg_4018/graph","html_url":"https://unchartedknowledge.5gfusion.net/v2/page/gutenberg_4018","id":"gutenberg_4018","license":"Public Domain (US)","rights_basis":"gutenberg_metadata_copyright_false","source":"gutenberg","source_url":"https://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/4018","summary":null,"tags":["Category: Mythology, Legends & Folklore","Category: Short Stories","Children's Myths, Fairy Tales, etc.","Fairy tales","Fairy tales -- Japan","Folklore","Folklore -- Japan"],"text":"Japanese Fairy Tales\n\nCOMPILED BY\n\nby Yei Theodora Ozaki\n\nProfusely Illustrated by Japanese Artists\n\n\nContents\n\n PREFACE\n JAPANESE FAIRY TALES\n MY LORD BAG OF RICE\n THE TONGUE-CUT SPARROW\n THE STORY OF URASHIMA TARO, THE FISHER LAD\n THE FARMER AND THE BADGER\n THE \u201cSHINANSHA,\u201d OR THE SOUTH POINTING CARRIAGE\n THE ADVENTURES OF KINTARO, THE GOLDEN BOY\n THE STORY OF PRINCESS HASE. A STORY OF OLD JAPAN\n THE STORY OF THE MAN WHO DID NOT WISH TO DIE\n THE BAMBOO-CUTTER AND THE MOON-CHILD\n THE MIRROR OF MATSUYAMA A STORY OF OLD JAPAN\n THE GOBLIN OF ADACHIGAHARA\n THE SAGACIOUS MONKEY AND THE BOAR\n THE HAPPY HUNTER AND THE SKILLFUL FISHER\n THE STORY OF THE OLD MAN WHO MADE WITHERED TREES TO FLOWER\n THE JELLY FISH AND THE MONKEY\n THE QUARREL OF THE MONKEY AND THE CRAB\n THE WHITE HARE AND THE CROCODILES\n THE STORY OF PRINCE YAMATO TAKE\n MOMOTARO, OR THE STORY OF THE SON OF A PEACH\n THE OGRE OF RASHOMON\n HOW AN OLD MAN LOST HIS WEN\n THE STONES OF FIVE COLORS AND THE EMPRESS JOKWA. AN OLD CHINESE STORY\n\n\n\n\nTO\nELEANOR MARION-CRAWFORD.\n\nI DEDICATE THIS BOOK TO YOU AND TO THE SWEET CHILD-FRIENDSHIP THAT YOU\nGAVE ME IN THE DAYS SPENT WITH YOU BY THE SOUTHERN SEA, WHEN YOU USED\nTO LISTEN WITH UNFEIGNED PLEASURE TO THESE FAIRY STORIES FROM FAR\nJAPAN. MAY THEY NOW REMIND YOU OF MY CHANGELESS LOVE AND REMEMBRANCE.\n\nY. T. O.\nTokio, 1908.\n\n\n\n\nPREFACE\n\n\nThis collection of Japanese fairy tales is the outcome of a suggestion\nmade to me indirectly through a friend by Mr. Andrew Lang. They have\nbeen translated from the modern version written by Sadanami Sanjin.\nThese stories are not literal translations, and though the Japanese\nstory and all quaint Japanese expressions have been faithfully\npreserved, they have been told more with the view to interest young\nreaders of the West than the technical student of folk-lore.\n\nGrateful acknowledgment is due to Mr. Y. Yasuoka, Miss Fusa Okamoto, my\nbrother Nobumori Ozaki, Dr. Yoshihiro Takaki, and Miss Kameko Yamao,\nwho have helped me with translations.\n\nThe story which I have named \u201cThe Story of the Man who did not Wish to\nDie\u201d is taken from a little book written a hundred years ago by one\nShinsui Tamenaga. It is named Chosei Furo, or \u201cLongevity.\u201d \u201cThe\nBamboo-cutter and the Moon-child\u201d is taken from the classic \u201cTaketari\nMonogatari,\u201d and is NOT classed by the Japanese among their fairy\ntales, though it really belongs to this class of literature.\n\nThe pictures were drawn by Mr. Kakuzo Fujiyama, a Tokio artist.\n\nIn telling these stories in English I have followed my fancy in adding\nsuch touches of local color or description as they seemed to need or as\npleased me, and in one or two instances I have gathered in an incident\nfrom another version. At all times, among my friends, both young and\nold, English or American, I have always found eager listeners to the\nbeautiful legends and fairy tales of Japan, and in telling them I have\nalso found that they were still unknown to the vast majority, and this\nhas encouraged me to write them for the children of the West.\n\nY. T. O.\nTokio, 1908.\n\n\n\n\nJAPANESE FAIRY TALES\n\n\n\n\nMY LORD BAG OF RICE\n\n\nLong, long ago there lived, in Japan a brave warrior known to all as\nTawara Toda, or \u201cMy Lord Bag of Rice.\u201d His true name was Fujiwara\nHidesato, and there is a very interesting story of how he came to\nchange his name.\n\nOne day he sallied forth in search of adventures, for he had the nature\nof a warrior and could not bear to be idle. So he buckled on his two\nswords, took his huge bow, much taller than himself, in his hand, and\nslinging his quiver on his back started out. He had not gone far when\nhe came to the bridge of Seta-no-Karashi spanning one end of the\nbeautiful Lake Biwa. No sooner had he set foot on the bridge than he\nsaw lying right across his path a huge serpent-dragon. Its body was so\nbig that it looked like the trunk of a large pine tree and it took up\nthe whole width of the bridge. One of its huge claws rested on the\nparapet of one side of the bridge, while its tail lay right against the\nother. The monster seemed to be asleep, and as it breathed, fire and\nsmoke came out of its nostrils.\n\nAt first Hidesato could not help feeling alarmed at the sight of this\nhorrible reptile lying in his path, for he must either turn back or\nwalk right over its body. He was a brave man, however, and putting\naside all fear went forward dauntlessly. Crunch, crunch! he stepped now\non the dragon\u2019s body, now between its coils, and without even one\nglance backward he went on his way.\n\nHe had only gone a few steps when he heard some one calling him from\nbehind. On turning back he was much surprised to see that the monster\ndragon had entirely disappeared and in its place was a strange-looking\nman, who was bowing most ceremoniously to the ground. His red hair\nstreamed over his shoulders and was surmounted by a crown in the shape\nof a dragon\u2019s head, and his sea-green dress was patterned with shells.\nHidesato knew at once that this was no ordinary mortal and he wondered\nmuch at the strange occurrence. Where had the dragon gone in such a\nshort space of time? Or had it transformed itself into this man, and\nwhat did the whole thing mean? While these thoughts passed through his\nmind he had come up to the man on the bridge and now addressed him:\n\n\u201cWas it you that called me just now?\u201d\n\n\u201cYes, it was I,\u201d answered the man: \u201cI have an earnest request to make\nto you. Do you think you can grant it to me?\u201d\n\n\u201cIf it is in my power to do so I will,\u201d answered Hidesato, \u201cbut first\ntell me who you are?\u201d\n\n\u201cI am the Dragon King of the Lake, and my home is in these waters just\nunder this bridge.\u201d\n\n\u201cAnd what is it you have to ask of me?\u201d said Hidesato.\n\n\u201cI want you to kill my mortal enemy the centipede, who lives on the\nmountain beyond,\u201d and the Dragon King pointed to a high peak on the\nopposite shore of the lake.\n\n\u201cI have lived now for many years in this lake and I have a large family\nof children and grand-children. For some time past we have lived in\nterror, for a monster centipede has discovered our home, and night\nafter night it comes and carries off one of my family. I am powerless\nto save them. If it goes on much longer like this, not only shall I\nlose all my children, but I myself must fall a victim to the monster. I\nam, therefore, very unhappy, and in my extremity I determined to ask\nthe help of a human being. For many days with this intention I have\nwaited on the bridge in the shape of the horrible serpent-dragon that\nyou saw, in the hope that some strong brave man would come along. But\nall who came this way, as soon as they saw me were terrified and ran\naway as fast as they could. You are the first man I have found able to\nlook at me without fear, so I knew at once that you were a man of great\ncourage. I beg you to have pity upon me. Will you not help me and kill\nmy enemy the centipede?\u201d\n\nHidesato felt very sorry for the Dragon King on hearing his story, and\nreadily promised to do what he could to help him. The warrior asked\nwhere the centipede lived, so that he might attack the creature at\nonce. The Dragon King replied that its home was on the mountain Mikami,\nbut that as it came every night at a certain hour to the palace of the\nlake, it would be better to wait till then. So Hidesato was conducted\nto the palace of the Dragon King, under the bridge. Strange to say, as\nhe followed his host downwards the waters parted to let them pass, and\nhis clothes did not even feel damp as he passed through the flood.\nNever had Hidesato seen anything so beautiful as this palace built of\nwhite marble beneath the lake. He had often heard of the Sea King\u2019s\npalace at the bottom of the sea, where all the servants and retainers\nwere salt-water fishes, but here was a magnificent building in the\nheart of Lake Biwa. The dainty goldfishes, red carp, and silvery trout,\nwaited upon the Dragon King and his guest.\n\nHidesato was astonished at the feast that was spread for him. The\ndishes were crystallized lotus leaves and flowers, and the chopsticks\nwere of the rarest ebony. As soon as they sat down, the sliding doors\nopened and ten lovely goldfish dancers came out, and behind them\nfollowed ten red-carp musicians with the koto and the samisen. Thus the\nhours flew by till midnight, and the beautiful music and dancing had\nbanished all thoughts of the centipede. The Dragon King was about to\npledge the warrior in a fresh cup of wine when the palace was suddenly\nshaken by a tramp, tramp! as if a mighty army had begun to march not\nfar away.\n\nHidesato and his host both rose to their feet and rushed to the\nbalcony, and the warrior saw on the opposite mountain two great balls\nof glowing fire coming nearer and nearer. The Dragon King stood by the\nwarrior\u2019s side trembling with fear.\n\n\u201cThe centipede! The centipede! Those two balls of fire are its eyes. It\nis coming for its prey! Now is the time to kill it.\u201d\n\nHidesato looked where his host pointed, and, in the dim light of the\nstarlit evening, behind the two balls of fire he saw the long body of\nan enormous centipede winding round the mountains, and the light in its\nhundred feet glowed like so many distant lanterns moving slowly towards\nthe shore.\n\nHidesato showed not the least sign of fear. He tried to calm the Dragon\nKing.\n\n\u201cDon\u2019t be afraid. I shall surely kill the centipede. Just bring me my\nbow and arrows.\u201d\n\nThe Dragon King did as he was bid, and the warrior noticed that he had\nonly three arrows left in his quiver. He took the bow, and fitting an\narrow to the notch, took careful aim and let fly.\n\nThe arrow hit the centipede right in the middle of its head, but\ninstead of penetrating, it glanced off harmless and fell to the ground.\n\nNothing daunted, Hidesato took another arrow, fitted it to the notch of\nthe bow and let fly. Again the arrow hit the mark, it struck the\ncentipede right in the middle of its head, only to glance off and fall\nto the ground. The centipede was invulnerable to weapons! When the\nDragon King saw that even this brave warrior\u2019s arrows were powerless to\nkill the centipede, he lost heart and began to tremble with fear.\n\nThe warrior saw that he had now only one arrow left in his quiver, and\nif this one failed he could not kill the centipede. He looked across\nthe waters. The huge reptile had wound its horrid body seven times\nround the mountain and would soon come down to the lake. Nearer and\nnearer gleamed fireballs of eyes, and the light of its hundred feet\nbegan to throw reflections in the still waters of the lake.\n\nThen suddenly the warrior remembered that he had heard that human\nsaliva was deadly to centipedes. But this was no ordinary centipede.\nThis was so monstrous that even to think of such a creature made one\ncreep with horror. Hidesato determined to try his last chance. So\ntaking his last arrow and first putting the end of it in his mouth, he\nfitted the notch to his bow, took careful aim once more and let fly.\n\nThis time the arrow again hit the centipede right in the middle of its\nhead, but instead of glancing off harmlessly as before, it struck home\nto the creature\u2019s brain. Then with a convulsive shudder the serpentine\nbody stopped moving, and the fiery light of its great eyes and hundred\nfeet darkened to a dull glare like the sunset of a stormy day, and then\nwent out in blackness. A great darkness now overspread the heavens, the\nthunder rolled and the lightning flashed, and the wind roared in fury,\nand it seemed as if the world were coming to an end. The Dragon King\nand his children and retainers all crouched in different parts of the\npalace, frightened to death, for the building was shaken to its\nfoundation. At last the dreadful night was over. Day dawned beautiful\nand clear. The centipede was gone from the mountain.\n\nThen Hidesato called to the Dragon King to come out with him on the\nbalcony, for the centipede was dead and he had nothing more to fear.\n\nThen all the inhabitants of the palace came out with joy, and Hidesato\npointed to the lake. There lay the body of the dead centipede floating\non the water, which was dyed red with its blood.\n\nThe gratitude of the Dragon King knew no bounds. The whole family came\nand bowed down before the warrior, calling him their preserver and the\nbravest warrior in all Japan.\n\nAnother feast was prepared, more sumptuous than the first. All kinds of\nfish, prepared in every imaginable way, raw, stewed, boiled and\nroasted, served on coral trays and crystal dishes, were put before him,\nand the wine was the best that Hidesato had ever tasted in his life. To\nadd to the beauty of everything the sun shone brightly, the lake\nglittered like a liquid diamond, and the palace was a thousand times\nmore beautiful by day than by night.\n\nHis host tried to persuade the warrior to stay a few days, but Hidesato\ninsisted on going home, saying that he had now finished what he had\ncome to do, and must return. The Dragon King and his family were all\nvery sorry to have him leave so soon, but since he would go they begged\nhim to accept a few small presents (so they said) in token of their\ngratitude to him for delivering them forever from their horrible enemy\nthe centipede.\n\nAs the warrior stood in the porch taking leave, a train of fish was\nsuddenly transformed into a retinue of men, all wearing ceremonial\nrobes and dragon\u2019s crowns on their heads to show that they were\nservants of the great Dragon King. The presents that they carried were\nas follows:\n\nFirst, a large bronze bell.\nSecond, a bag of rice.\nThird, a roll of silk.\nFourth, a cooking pot.\nFifth, a bell.\n\n\nHidesato did not want to accept all these presents, but as the Dragon\nKing insisted, he could not well refuse.\n\nThe Dragon King himself accompanied the warrior as far as the bridge,\nand then took leave of him with many bows and good wishes, leaving the\nprocession of servants to accompany Hidesato to his house with the\npresents.\n\nThe warrior\u2019s household and servants had been very much concerned when\nthey found that he did not return the night before, but they finally\nconcluded that he had been kept by the violent storm and had taken\nshelter somewhere. When the servants on the watch for his return caught\nsight of him they called to every one that he was approaching, and the\nwhole household turned out to meet him, wondering much what the retinue\nof men, bearing presents and banners, that followed him, could mean.\n\nAs soon as the Dragon King\u2019s retainers had put down the presents they\nvanished, and Hidesato told all that had happened to him.\n\nThe presents which he had received from the grateful Dragon King were\nfound to be of magic power. The bell only was ordinary, and as Hidesato\nhad no use for it he presented it to the temple near by, where it was\nhung up, to boom out the hour of day over the surrounding neighborhood.\n\nThe single bag of rice, however much was taken from it day after day\nfor the meals of the knight and his whole family, never grew less\u2014the\nsupply in the bag was inexhaustible.\n\nThe roll of silk, too, never grew shorter, though time after time long\npieces were cut off to make the warrior a new suit of clothes to go to\nCourt in at the New Year.\n\nThe cooking pot was wonderful, too. No matter what was put into it, it\ncooked deliciously whatever was wanted without any firing\u2014truly a very\neconomical saucepan.\n\nThe fame of Hidesato\u2019s fortune spread far and wide, and as there was no\nneed for him to spend money on rice or silk or firing, he became very\nrich and prosperous, and was henceforth known as My Lord Bag of Rice.\n\n\n\n\nTHE TONGUE-CUT SPARROW\n\n\nLong, long ago in Japan there lived an old man and his wife. The old\nman was a good, kind-hearted, hard-working old fellow, but his wife was\na regular cross-patch, who spoiled the happiness of her home by her\nscolding tongue. She was always grumbling about something from morning\nto night. The old man had for a long time ceased to take any notice of\nher crossness. He was out most of the day at work in the fields, and as\nhe had no child, for his amusement when he came home, he kept a tame\nsparrow. He loved the little bird just as much as if she had been his\nchild.\n\nWhen he came back at night after his hard day\u2019s work in the open air it\nwas his only pleasure to pet the sparrow, to talk to her and to teach\nher little tricks, which she learned very quickly. The old man would\nopen her cage and let her fly about the room, and they would play\ntogether. Then when supper-time came, he always saved some tit-bits\nfrom his meal with which to feed his little bird.\n\nNow one day the old man went out to chop wood in the forest, and the\nold woman stopped at home to wash clothes. The day before, she had made\nsome starch, and now when she came to look for it, it was all gone; the\nbowl which she had filled full yesterday was quite empty.\n\nWhile she was wondering who could have used or stolen the starch, down\nflew the pet sparrow, and bowing her little feathered head\u2014a trick\nwhich she had been taught by her master\u2014the pretty bird chirped and\nsaid:\n\n\u201cIt is I who have taken the starch. I thought it was some food put out\nfor me in that basin, and I ate it all. If I have made a mistake I beg\nyou to forgive me! tweet, tweet, tweet!\u201d\n\nYou see from this that the sparrow was a truthful bird, and the old\nwoman ought to have been willing to forgive her at once when she asked\nher pardon so nicely. But not so.\n\nThe old woman had never loved the sparrow, and had often quarreled with\nher husband for keeping what she called a dirty bird about the house,\nsaying that it only made extra work for her. Now she was only too\ndelighted to have some cause of complaint against the pet. She scolded\nand even cursed the poor little bird for her bad behavior, and not\ncontent with using these harsh, unfeeling words, in a fit of rage she\nseized the sparrow\u2014who all this time had spread out her wings and bowed\nher head before the old woman, to show how sorry she was\u2014and fetched\nthe scissors and cut off the poor little bird\u2019s tongue.\n\n\u201cI suppose you took my starch with that tongue! Now you may see what it\nis like to go without it!\u201d And with these dreadful words she drove the\nbird away, not caring in the least what might happen to it and without\nthe smallest pity for its suffering, so unkind was she!\n\nThe old woman, after she had driven the sparrow away, made some more\nrice-paste, grumbling all the time at the trouble, and after starching\nall her clothes, spread the things on boards to dry in the sun, instead\nof ironing them as they do in England.\n\nIn the evening the old man came home. As usual, on the way back he\nlooked forward to the time when he should reach his gate and see his\npet come flying and chirping to meet him, ruffling out her feathers to\nshow her joy, and at last coming to rest on his shoulder. But to-night\nthe old man was very disappointed, for not even the shadow of his dear\nsparrow was to be seen.\n\nHe quickened his steps, hastily drew off his straw sandals, and stepped\non to the veranda. Still no sparrow was to be seen. He now felt sure\nthat his wife, in one of her cross tempers, had shut the sparrow up in\nits cage. So he called her and said anxiously:\n\n\u201cWhere is Suzume San (Miss Sparrow) today?\u201d\n\nThe old woman pretended not to know at first, and answered:\n\n\u201cYour sparrow? I am sure I don\u2019t know. Now I come to think of it, I\nhaven\u2019t seen her all the afternoon. I shouldn\u2019t wonder if the\nungrateful bird had flown away and left you after all your petting!\u201d\n\nBut at last, when the old man gave her no peace, but asked her again\nand again, insisting that she must know what had happened to his pet,\nshe confessed all. She told him crossly how the sparrow had eaten the\nrice-paste she had specially made for starching her clothes, and how\nwhen the sparrow had confessed to what she had done, in great anger she\nhad taken her scissors and cut out her tongue, and how finally she had\ndriven the bird away and forbidden her to return to the house again.\n\nThen the old woman showed her husband the sparrow\u2019s tongue, saying:\n\n\u201cHere is the tongue I cut off! Horrid little bird, why did it eat all\nmy starch?\u201d\n\n\u201cHow could you be so cruel? Oh! how could you so cruel?\u201d was all that\nthe old man could answer. He was too kind-hearted to punish his be\nshrew of a wife, but he was terribly distressed at what had happened to\nhis poor little sparrow.\n\n\u201cWhat a dreadful misfortune for my poor Suzume San to lose her tongue!\u201d\nhe said to himself. \u201cShe won\u2019t be able to chirp any more, and surely\nthe pain of the cutting of it out in that rough way must have made her\nill! Is there nothing to be done?\u201d\n\nThe old man shed many tears after his cross wife had gone to sleep.\nWhile he wiped away the tears with the sleeve of his cotton robe, a\nbright thought comforted him: he would go and look for the sparrow on\nthe morrow. Having decided this he was able to go to sleep at last.\n\nThe next morning he rose early, as soon as ever the day broke, and\nsnatching a hasty breakfast, started out over the hills and through the\nwoods, stopping at every clump of bamboos to cry:\n\n\u201cWhere, oh where does my tongue-cut sparrow stay? Where, oh where, does\nmy tongue-cut sparrow stay!\u201d\n\nHe never stopped to rest for his noonday meal, and it was far on in the\nafternoon when he found himself near a large bamboo wood. Bamboo groves\nare the favorite haunts of sparrows, and there sure enough at the edge\nof the wood he saw his own dear sparrow waiting to welcome him. He\ncould hardly believe his eyes for joy, and ran forward quickly to greet\nher. She bowed her little head and went through a number of the tricks\nher master had taught her, to show her pleasure at seeing her old\nfriend again, and, wonderful to relate, she could talk as of old. The\nold man told her how sorry he was for all that had happened, and\ninquired after her tongue, wondering how she could speak so well\nwithout it. Then the sparrow opened her beak and showed him that a new\ntongue had grown in place of the old one, and begged him not to think\nany more about the past, for she was quite well now. Then the old man\nknew that his sparrow was a fairy, and no common bird. It would be\ndifficult to exaggerate the old man\u2019s rejoicing now. He forgot all his\ntroubles, he forgot even how tired he was, for he had found his lost\nsparrow, and instead of being ill and without a tongue as he had feared\nand expected to find her, she was well and happy and with a new tongue,\nand without a sign of the ill-treatment she had received from his wife.\nAnd above all she was a fairy.\n\nThe sparrow asked him to follow her, and flying before him she led him\nto a beautiful house in the heart of the bamboo grove. The old man was\nutterly astonished when he entered the house to find what a beautiful\nplace it was. It was built of the whitest wood, the soft cream-colored\nmats which took the place of carpets were the finest he had ever seen,\nand the cushions that the sparrow brought out for him to sit on were\nmade of the finest silk and crape. Beautiful vases and lacquer boxes\nadorned the tokonoma[1] of every room.\n\n[1] An alcove where precious objects are displayed.\n\n\nThe sparrow led the old man to the place of honor, and then, taking her\nplace at a humble distance, she thanked him with many polite bows for\nall the kindness he had shown her for many long years.\n\nThen the Lady Sparrow, as we will now call her, introduced all her\nfamily to the old man. This done, her daughters, robed in dainty crape\ngowns, brought in on beautiful old-fashioned trays a feast of all kinds\nof delicious foods, till the old man began to think he must be\ndreaming. In the middle of the dinner some of the sparrow\u2019s daughters\nperformed a wonderful dance, called the \u201csuzume-odori\u201d or the\n\u201cSparrow\u2019s dance,\u201d to amuse the guest.\n\nNever had the old man enjoyed himself so much. The hours flew by too\nquickly in this lovely spot, with all these fairy sparrows to wait upon\nhim and to feast him and to dance before him.\n\nBut the night came on and the darkness reminded him that he had a long\nway to go and must think about taking his leave and return home. He\nthanked his kind hostess for her splendid entertainment, and begged her\nfor his sake to forget all she had suffered at the hands of his cross\nold wife. He told the Lady Sparrow that it was a great comfort and\nhappiness to him to find her in such a beautiful home and to know that\nshe wanted for nothing. It was his anxiety to know how she fared and\nwhat had really happened to her that had led him to seek her. Now he\nknew that all was well he could return home with a light heart. If ever\nshe wanted him for anything she had only to send for him and he would\ncome at once.\n\nThe Lady Sparrow begged him to stay and rest several days and enjoy the\nchange, but the old man said he must return to his old wife\u2014who would\nprobably be cross at his not coming home at the usual time\u2014and to his\nwork, and there-fore, much as he wished to do so, he could not accept\nher kind invitation. But now that he knew where the Lady Sparrow lived\nhe would come to see her whenever he had the time.\n\nWhen the Lady Sparrow saw that she could not persuade the old man to\nstay longer, she gave an order to some of her servants, and they at\nonce brought in two boxes, one large and the other small. These were\nplaced before the old man, and the Lady Sparrow asked him to choose\nwhichever he liked for a present, which she wished to give him.\n\nThe old man could not refuse this kind proposal, and he chose the\nsmaller box, saying:\n\n\u201cI am now too old and feeble to carry the big and heavy box. As you are\nso kind as to say that I may take whichever I like, I will choose the\nsmall one, which will be easier for me to carry.\u201d\n\nThen the sparrows all helped him put it on his back and went to the\ngate to see him off, bidding him good-by with many bows and entreating\nhim to come again whenever he had the time. Thus the old man and his\npet sparrow separated quite happily, the sparrow showing not the least\nill-will for all the unkindness she had suffered at the hands of the\nold wife. Indeed, she only felt sorrow for the old man who had to put\nup with it all his life.\n\nWhen the old man reached home he found his wife even crosser than\nusual, for it was late on in the night and she had been waiting up for\nhim for a long time.\n\n\u201cWhere have you been all this time?\u201d she asked in a big voice. \u201cWhy do\nyou come back so late?\u201d\n\nThe old man tried to pacify her by showing her the box of presents he\nhad brought back with him, and then he told her of all that had\nhappened to him, and how wonderfully he had been entertained at the\nsparrow\u2019s house.\n\n\u201cNow let us see what is in the box,\u201d said the old man, not giving her\ntime to grumble again. \u201cYou must help me open it.\u201d And they both sat\ndown before the box and opened it.\n\nTo their utter astonishment they found the box filled to the brim with\ngold and silver coins and many other precious things. The mats of their\nlittle cottage fairly glittered as they took out the things one by one\nand put them down and handled them over and over again. The old man was\noverjoyed at the sight of the riches that were now his. Beyond his\nbrightest expectations was the sparrow\u2019s gift, which would enable him\nto give up work and live in ease and comfort the rest of his days.\n\nHe said: \u201cThanks to my good little sparrow! Thanks to my good little\nsparrow!\u201d many times.\n\nBut the old woman, after the first moments of surprise and satisfaction\nat the sight of the gold and silver were over, could not suppress the\ngreed of her wicked nature. She now began to reproach the old man for\nnot having brought home the big box of presents, for in the innocence\nof his heart he had told her how he had refused the large box of\npresents which the sparrows had offered him, preferring the smaller one\nbecause it was light and easy to carry home.\n\n\u201cYou silly old man,\u201d said she, \u201cWhy did you not bring the large box?\nJust think what we have lost. We might have had twice as much silver\nand gold as this. You are certainly an old fool!\u201d she screamed, and\nthen went to bed as angry as she could be.\n\nThe old man now wished that he had said nothing about the big box, but\nit was too late; the greedy old woman, not contented with the good luck\nwhich had so unexpectedly befallen them and which she so little\ndeserved, made up her mind, if possible, to get more.\n\nEarly the next morning she got up and made the old man describe the way\nto the sparrow\u2019s house. When he saw what was in her mind he tried to\nkeep her from going, but it was useless. She would not listen to one\nword he said. It is strange that the old woman did not feel ashamed of\ngoing to see the sparrow after the cruel way she had treated her in\ncutting off her tongue in a fit of rage. But her greed to get the big\nbox made her forget everything else. It did not even enter her thoughts\nthat the sparrows might be angry with her\u2014as, indeed, they were\u2014and\nmight punish her for what she had done.\n\nEver since the Lady Sparrow had returned home in the sad plight in\nwhich they had first found her, weeping and bleeding from the mouth,\nher whole family and relations had done little else but speak of the\ncruelty of the old woman. \u201cHow could she,\u201d they asked each other,\n\u201cinflict such a heavy punishment for such a trifling offense as that of\neating some rice-paste by mistake?\u201d They all loved the old man who was\nso kind and good and patient under all his troubles, but the old woman\nthey hated, and they determined, if ever they had the chance, to punish\nher as she deserved. They had not long to wait.\n\nAfter walking for some hours the old woman had at last found the bamboo\ngrove which she had made her husband carefully describe, and now she\nstood before it crying out:\n\n\u201cWhere is the tongue-cut sparrow\u2019s house? Where is the tongue-cut\nsparrow\u2019s house?\u201d\n\nAt last she saw the eaves of the house peeping out from amongst the\nbamboo foliage. She hastened to the door and knocked loudly.\n\nWhen the servants told the Lady Sparrow that her old mistress was at\nthe door asking to see her, she was somewhat surprised at the\nunexpected visit, after all that had taken place, and she wondered not\na little at the boldness of the old woman in venturing to come to the\nhouse. The Lady Sparrow, however, was a polite bird, and so she went\nout to greet the old woman, remembering that she had once been her\nmistress.\n\nThe old woman intended, however, to waste no time in words, she went\nright to the point, without the least shame, and said:\n\n\u201cYou need not trouble to entertain me as you did my old man. I have\ncome myself to get the box which he so stupidly left behind. I shall\nsoon take my leave if you will give me the big box\u2014that is all I want!\u201d\n\nThe Lady Sparrow at once consented, and told her servants to bring out\nthe big box. The old woman eagerly seized it and hoisted it on her\nback, and without even stopping to thank the Lady Sparrow began to\nhurry homewards.\n\nThe box was so heavy that she could not walk fast, much less run, as\nshe would have liked to do, so anxious was she to get home and see what\nwas inside the box, but she had often to sit down and rest herself by\nthe way.\n\nWhile she was staggering along under the heavy load, her desire to open\nthe box became too great to be resisted. She could wait no longer, for\nshe supposed this big box to be full of gold and silver and precious\njewels like the small one her husband had received.\n\nAt last this greedy and selfish old woman put down the box by the\nwayside and opened it carefully, expecting to gloat her eyes on a mine\nof wealth. What she saw, however, so terrified her that she nearly lost\nher senses. As soon as she lifted the lid, a number of horrible and\nfrightful looking demons bounced out of the box and surrounded her as\nif they intended to kill her. Not even in nightmares had she ever seen\nsuch horrible creatures as her much-coveted box contained. A demon with\none huge eye right in the middle of its forehead came and glared at\nher, monsters with gaping mouths looked as if they would devour her, a\nhuge snake coiled and hissed about her, and a big frog hopped and\ncroaked towards her.\n\nThe old woman had never been so frightened in her life, and ran from\nthe spot as fast as her quaking legs would carry her, glad to escape\nalive. When she reached home she fell to the floor and told her husband\nwith tears all that had happened to her, and how she had been nearly\nkilled by the demons in the box.\n\nThen she began to blame the sparrow, but the old man stopped her at\nonce, saying:\n\n\u201cDon\u2019t blame the sparrow, it is your wickedness which has at last met\nwith its reward. I only hope this may be a lesson to you in the\nfuture!\u201d\n\nThe old woman said nothing more, and from that day she repented of her\ncross, unkind ways, and by degrees became a good old woman, so that her\nhusband hardly knew her to be the same person, and they spent their\nlast days together happily, free from want or care, spending carefully\nthe treasure the old man had received from his pet, the tongue-cut\nsparrow.\n\n\n\n\nTHE STORY OF URASHIMA TARO, THE FISHER LAD\n\n\nLong, long ago in the province of Tango there lived on the shore of\nJapan in the little fishing village of Mizu-no-ye a young fisherman\nnamed Urashima Taro. His father had been a fisherman before him, and\nhis skill had more than doubly descended to his son, for Urashima was\nthe most skillful fisher in all that country side, and could catch more\nBonito and Tai in a day than his comrades could in a week.\n\nBut in the little fishing village, more than for being a clever fisher\nof the sea was he known for his kind heart. In his whole life he had\nnever hurt anything, either great or small, and when a boy, his\ncompanions had always laughed at him, for he would never join with them\nin teasing animals, but always tried to keep them from this cruel\nsport.\n\nOne soft summer twilight he was going home at the end of a day\u2019s\nfishing when he came upon a group of children. They were all screaming\nand talking at the tops of their voices, and seemed to be in a state of\ngreat excitement about something, and on his going up to them to see\nwhat was the matter he saw that they were tormenting a tortoise. First\none boy pulled it this way, then another boy pulled it that way, while\na third child beat it with a stick, and the fourth hammered its shell\nwith a stone.\n\nNow Urashima felt very sorry for the poor tortoise and made up his mind\nto rescue it. He spoke to the boys:\n\n\u201cLook here, boys, you are treating that poor tortoise so badly that it\nwill soon die!\u201d\n\nThe boys, who were all of an age when children seem to delight in being\ncruel to animals, took no notice of Urashima\u2019s gentle reproof, but went\non teasing it as before. One of the older boys answered:\n\n\u201cWho cares whether it lives or dies? We do not. Here, boys, go on, go\non!\u201d\n\nAnd they began to treat the poor tortoise more cruelly than ever.\nUrashima waited a moment, turning over in his mind what would be the\nbest way to deal with the boys. He would try to persuade them to give\nthe tortoise up to him, so he smiled at them and said:\n\n\u201cI am sure you are all good, kind boys! Now won\u2019t you give me the\ntortoise? I should like to have it so much!\u201d\n\n\u201cNo, we won\u2019t give you the tortoise,\u201d said one of the boys. \u201cWhy should\nwe? We caught it ourselves.\u201d\n\n\u201cWhat you say is true,\u201d said Urashima, \u201cbut I do not ask you to give it\nto me for nothing. I will give you some money for it\u2014in other words,\nthe Ojisan (Uncle) will buy it of you. Won\u2019t that do for you, my boys?\u201d\nHe held up the money to them, strung on a piece of string through a\nhole in the center of each coin. \u201cLook, boys, you can buy anything you\nlike with this money. You can do much more with this money than you can\nwith that poor tortoise. See what good boys you are to listen to me.\u201d\n\nThe boys were not bad boys at all, they were only mischievous, and as\nUrashima spoke they were won by his kind smile and gentle words and\nbegan \u201cto be of his spirit,\u201d as they say in Japan. Gradually they all\ncame up to him, the ringleader of the little band holding out the\ntortoise to him.\n\n\u201cVery well, Ojisan, we will give you the tortoise if you will give us\nthe money!\u201d And Urashima took the tortoise and gave the money to the\nboys, who, calling to each other, scampered away and were soon out of\nsight.\n\nThen Urashima stroked the tortoise\u2019s back, saying as he did so:\n\n\u201cOh, you poor thing! Poor thing!\u2014there, there! you are safe now! They\nsay that a stork lives for a thousand years, but the tortoise for ten\nthousand years. You have the longest life of any creature in this\nworld, and you were in great danger of having that precious life cut\nshort by those cruel boys. Luckily I was passing by and saved you, and\nso life is still yours. Now I am going to take you back to your home,\nthe sea, at once. Do not let yourself be caught again, for there might\nbe no one to save you next time!\u201d\n\nAll the time that the kind fisherman was speaking he was walking\nquickly to the shore and out upon the rocks; then putting the tortoise\ninto the water he watched the animal disappear, and turned homewards\nhimself, for he was tired and the sun had set.\n\nThe next morning Urashima went out as usual in his boat. The weather\nwas fine and the sea and sky were both blue and soft in the tender haze\nof the summer morning. Urashima got into his boat and dreamily pushed\nout to sea, throwing his line as he did so. He soon passed the other\nfishing boats and left them behind him till they were lost to sight in\nthe distance, and his boat drifted further and further out upon the\nblue waters. Somehow, he knew not why, he felt unusually happy that\nmorning; and he could not help wishing that, like the tortoise he set\nfree the day before, he had thousands of years to live instead of his\nown short span of human life.\n\nHe was suddenly startled from his reverie by hearing his own name\ncalled:\n\n\u201cUrashima, Urashima!\u201d\n\nClear as a bell and soft as the summer wind the name floated over the\nsea.\n\nHe stood up and looked in every direction, thinking that one of the\nother boats had overtaken him, but gaze as he might over the wide\nexpanse of water, near or far there was no sign of a boat, so the voice\ncould not have come from any human being.\n\nStartled, and wondering who or what it was that had called him so\nclearly, he looked in all directions round about him and saw that\nwithout his knowing it a tortoise had come to the side of the boat.\nUrashima saw with surprise that it was the very tortoise he had rescued\nthe day before.\n\n\u201cWell, Mr. Tortoise,\u201d said Urashima, \u201cwas it you who called my name\njust now?\u201d\n\nThe tortoise nodded its head several times and said:\n\n\u201cYes, it was I. Yesterday in your honorable shadow (o kage sama de) my\nlife was saved, and I have come to offer you my thanks and to tell you\nhow grateful I am for your kindness to me.\u201d\n\n\u201cIndeed,\u201d said Urashima, \u201cthat is very polite of you. Come up into the\nboat. I would offer you a smoke, but as you are a tortoise doubtless\nyou do not smoke,\u201d and the fisherman laughed at the joke.\n\n\u201cHe-he-he-he!\u201d laughed the tortoise; \u201csake (rice wine) is my favorite\nrefreshment, but I do not care for tobacco.\u201d\n\n\u201cIndeed,\u201d said Urashima, \u201cI regret very much that I have no \u201csake\u201d in\nmy boat to offer you, but come up and dry your back in the\nsun\u2014tortoises always love to do that.\u201d\n\nSo the tortoise climbed into the boat, the fisherman helping him, and\nafter an exchange of complimentary speeches the tortoise said:\n\n\u201cHave you ever seen Rin Gin, the Palace of the Dragon King of the Sea,\nUrashima?\u201d\n\nThe fisherman shook his head and replied; \u201cNo; year after year the sea\nhas been my home, but though I have often heard of the Dragon King\u2019s\nrealm under the sea I have never yet set eyes on that wonderful place.\nIt must be very far away, if it exists at all!\u201d\n\n\u201cIs that really so? You have never seen the Sea King\u2019s Palace? Then you\nhave missed seeing one of the most wonderful sights in the whole\nuniverse. It is far away at the bottom of the sea, but if I take you\nthere we shall soon reach the place. If you would like to see the Sea\nKing\u2019s land I will be your guide.\u201d\n\n\u201cI should like to go there, certainly, and you are very kind to think\nof taking me, but you must remember that I am only a poor mortal and\nhave not the power of swimming like a sea creature such as you are\u2014\u201d\n\nBefore the fisherman could say more the tortoise stopped him, saying:\n\n\u201cWhat? You need not swim yourself. If you will ride on my back I will\ntake you without any trouble on your part.\u201d\n\n\u201cBut,\u201d said Urashima, \u201chow is it possible for me to ride on your small\nback?\u201d\n\n\u201cIt may seem absurd to you, but I assure you that you can do so. Try at\nonce! Just come and get on my back, and see if it is as impossible as\nyou think!\u201d\n\nAs the tortoise finished speaking, Urashima looked at its shell, and\nstrange to say he saw that the creature had suddenly grown so big that\na man could easily sit on its back.\n\n\u201cThis is strange indeed!\u201d said Urashima; \u201cthen. Mr. Tortoise, with your\nkind permission I will get on your back. Dokoisho!\u201d[2] he exclaimed as\nhe jumped on.\n\n[2] \u201cAll right\u201d (only used by lower classes).\n\n\nThe tortoise, with an unmoved face, as if this strange proceeding were\nquite an ordinary event, said:\n\n\u201cNow we will set out at our leisure,\u201d and with these words he leapt\ninto the sea with Urashima on his back. Down through the water the\ntortoise dived. For a long time these two strange companions rode\nthrough the sea. Urashima never grew tired, nor his clothes moist with\nthe water. At last, far away in the distance a magnificent gate\nappeared, and behind the gate, the long, sloping roofs of a palace on\nthe horizon.\n\n\u201cYa,\u201d exclaimed Urashima. \u201cThat looks like the gate of some large\npalace just appearing! Mr. Tortoise, can you tell what that place is we\ncan now see?\u201d\n\n\u201cThat is the great gate of the Rin Gin Palace, the large roof that you\nsee behind the gate is the Sea King\u2019s Palace itself.\u201d\n\n\u201cThen we have at last come to the realm of the Sea King and to his\nPalace,\u201d said Urashima.\n\n\u201cYes, indeed,\u201d answered the tortoise, \u201cand don\u2019t you think we have come\nvery quickly?\u201d And while he was speaking the tortoise reached the side\nof the gate. \u201cAnd here we are, and you must please walk from here.\u201d\n\nThe tortoise now went in front, and speaking to the gatekeeper, said:\n\n\u201cThis is Urashima Taro, from the country of Japan. I have had the honor\nof bringing him as a visitor to this kingdom. Please show him the way.\u201d\n\nThen the gatekeeper, who was a fish, at once led the way through the\ngate before them.\n\nThe red bream, the flounder, the sole, the cuttlefish, and all the\nchief vassals of the Dragon King of the Sea now came out with courtly\nbows to welcome the stranger.\n\n\u201cUrashima Sama, Urashima Sama! welcome to the Sea Palace, the home of\nthe Dragon King of the Sea. Thrice welcome are you, having come from\nsuch a distant country. And you, Mr. Tortoise, we are greatly indebted\nto you for all your trouble in bringing Urashima here.\u201d Then, turning\nagain to Urashima, they said, \u201cPlease follow us this way,\u201d and from\nhere the whole band of fishes became his guides.\n\nUrashima, being only a poor fisher lad, did not know how to behave in a\npalace; but, strange though it was all to him, he did not feel ashamed\nor embarrassed, but followed his kind guides quite calmly where they\nled to the inner palace. When he reached the portals a beautiful\nPrincess with her attendant maidens came out to welcome him. She was\nmore beautiful than any human being, and was robed in flowing garments\nof red and soft green like the under side of a wave, and golden threads\nglimmered through the folds of her gown. Her lovely black hair streamed\nover her shoulders in the fashion of a king\u2019s daughter many hundreds of\nyears ago, and when she spoke her voice sounded like music over the\nwater. Urashima was lost in wonder while he looked upon her, and he\ncould not speak. Then he remembered that he ought to bow, but before he\ncould make a low obeisance the Princess took him by the hand and led\nhim to a beautiful hall, and to the seat of honor at the upper end, and\nbade him be seated.\n\n\u201cUrashima Taro, it gives me the highest pleasure to welcome you to my\nfather\u2019s kingdom,\u201d said the Princess. \u201cYesterday you set free a\ntortoise, and I have sent for you to thank you for saving my life, for\nI was that tortoise. Now if you like you shall live here forever in the\nland of eternal youth, where summer never dies and where sorrow never\ncomes, and I will be your bride if you will, and we will live together\nhappily forever afterwards!\u201d\n\nAnd as Urashima listened to her sweet words and gazed upon her lovely\nface his heart was filled with a great wonder and joy, and he answered\nher, wondering if it was not all a dream:\n\n\u201cThank you a thousand times for your kind speech. There is nothing I\ncould wish for more than to be permitted to stay here with you in this\nbeautiful land, of which I have often heard, but have never seen to\nthis day. Beyond all words, this is the most wonderful place I have\never seen.\u201d\n\nWhile he was speaking a train of fishes appeared, all dressed in\nceremonial, trailing garments. One by one, silently and with stately\nsteps, they entered the hall, bearing on coral trays delicacies of fish\nand seaweed, such as no one can dream of, and this wondrous feast was\nset before the bride and bridegroom. The bridal was celebrated with\ndazzling splendor, and in the Sea King\u2019s realm there was great\nrejoicing. As soon as the young pair had pledged themselves in the\nwedding cup of wine, three times three, music was played, and songs\nwere sung, and fishes with silver scales and golden tails stepped in\nfrom the waves and danced. Urashima enjoyed himself with all his heart.\nNever in his whole life had he sat down to such a marvelous feast.\n\nWhen the feast was over the Princes asked the bridegroom if he would\nlike to walk through the palace and see all there was to be seen. Then\nthe happy fisherman, following his bride, the Sea King\u2019s daughter, was\nshown all the wonders of that enchanted land where youth and joy go\nhand in hand and neither time nor age can touch them. The palace was\nbuilt of coral and adorned with pearls, and the beauties and wonders of\nthe place were so great that the tongue fails to describe them.\n\nBut, to Urashima, more wonderful than the palace was the garden that\nsurrounded it. Here was to be seen at one time the scenery of the four\ndifferent seasons; the beauties of summer and winter, spring and\nautumn, were displayed to the wondering visitor at once.\n\nFirst, when he looked to the east, the plum and cherry trees were seen\nin full bloom, the nightingales sang in the pink avenues, and\nbutterflies flitted from flower to flower.\n\nLooking to the south all the trees were green in the fullness of\nsummer, and the day cicala and the night cricket chirruped loudly.\n\nLooking to the west the autumn maples were ablaze like a sunset sky,\nand the chrysanthemums were in perfection.\n\nLooking to the north the change made Urashima start, for the ground was\nsilver white with snow, and trees and bamboos were also covered with\nsnow and the pond was thick with ice.\n\nAnd each day there were new joys and new wonders for Urashima, and so\ngreat was his happiness that he forgot everything, even the home he had\nleft behind and his parents and his own country, and three days passed\nwithout his even thinking of all he had left behind. Then his mind came\nback to him and he remembered who he was, and that he did not belong to\nthis wonderful land or the Sea King\u2019s palace, and he said to himself:\n\n\u201cO dear! I must not stay on here, for I have an old father and mother\nat home. What can have happened to them all this time? How anxious they\nmust have been these days when I did not return as usual. I must go\nback at once without letting one more day pass.\u201d And he began to\nprepare for the journey in great haste.\n\nThen he went to his beautiful wife, the Princess, and bowing low before\nher he said:\n\n\u201cIndeed, I have been very happy with you for a long time, Otohime Sama\u201d\n(for that was her name), \u201cand you have been kinder to me than any words\ncan tell. But now I must say good-by. I must go back to my old\nparents.\u201d\n\nThen Otohime Sama began to weep, and said softly and sadly:\n\n\u201cIs it not well with you here, Urashima, that you wish to leave me so\nsoon? Where is the haste? Stay with me yet another day only!\u201d\n\nBut Urashima had remembered his old parents, and in Japan the duty to\nparents is stronger than everything else, stronger even than pleasure\nor love, and he would not be persuaded, but answered:\n\n\u201cIndeed, I must go. Do not think that I wish to leave you. It is not\nthat. I must go and see my old parents. Let me go for one day and I\nwill come back to you.\u201d\n\n\u201cThen,\u201d said the Princess sorrowfully, \u201cthere is nothing to be done. I\nwill send you back to-day to your father and mother, and instead of\ntrying to keep you with me one more day, I shall give you this as a\ntoken of our love\u2014please take it back with you;\u201d and she brought him a\nbeautiful lacquer box tied about with a silken cord and tassels of red\nsilk.\n\nUrashima had received so much from the Princess already that he felt\nsome compunction in taking the gift, and said:\n\n\u201cIt does not seem right for me to take yet another gift from you after\nall the many favors I have received at your hands, but because it is\nyour wish I will do so,\u201d and then he added:\n\n\u201cTell me what is this box?\u201d\n\n\u201cThat,\u201d answered the Princess \u201cis the tamate-bako (Box of the Jewel\nHand), and it contains something very precious. You must not open this\nbox, whatever happens! If you open it something dreadful will happen to\nyou! Now promise me that you will never open this box!\u201d\n\nAnd Urashima promised that he would never, never open the box whatever\nhappened.\n\nThen bidding good-by to Otohime Sama he went down to the seashore, the\nPrincess and her attendants following him, and there he found a large\ntortoise waiting for him.\n\nHe quickly mounted the creature\u2019s back and was carried away over the\nshining sea into the East. He looked back to wave his hand to Otohime\nSama till at last he could see her no more, and the land of the Sea\nKing and the roofs of the wonderful palace were lost in the far, far\ndistance. Then, with his face turned eagerly towards his own land, he\nlooked for the rising of the blue hills on the horizon before him.\n\nAt last the tortoise carried him into the bay he knew so well, and to\nthe shore from whence he had set out. He stepped on to the shore and\nlooked about him while the tortoise rode away back to the Sea King\u2019s\nrealm.\n\nBut what is the strange fear that seizes Urashima as he stands and\nlooks about him? Why does he gaze so fixedly at the people that pass\nhim by, and why do they in turn stand and look at him? The shore is the\nsame and the hills are the same, but the people that he sees walking\npast him have very different faces to those he had known so well\nbefore.\n\nWondering what it can mean he walks quickly towards his old home. Even\nthat looks different, but a house stands on the spot, and he calls out:\n\n\u201cFather, I have just returned!\u201d and he was about to enter, when he saw\na strange man coming out.\n\n\u201cPerhaps my parents have moved while I have been away, and have gone\nsomewhere else,\u201d was the fisherman\u2019s thought. Somehow he began to feel\nstrangely anxious, he could not tell why.\n\n\u201cExcuse me,\u201d said he to the man who was staring at him, \u201cbut till\nwithin the last few days I have lived in this house. My name is\nUrashima Taro. Where have my parents gone whom I left here?\u201d\n\nA very bewildered expression came over the face of the man, and, still\ngazing intently on Urashima\u2019s face, he said:\n\n\u201cWhat? Are you Urashima Taro?\u201d\n\n\u201cYes,\u201d said the fisherman, \u201cI am Urashima Taro!\u201d\n\n\u201cHa, ha!\u201d laughed the man, \u201cyou must not make such jokes. It is true\nthat once upon a time a man called Urashima Taro did live in this\nvillage, but that is a story three hundred years old. He could not\npossibly be alive now!\u201d\n\nWhen Urashima heard these strange words he was frightened, and said:\n\n\u201cPlease, please, you must not joke with me, I am greatly perplexed. I\nam really Urashima Taro, and I certainly have not lived three hundred\nyears. Till four or five days ago I lived on this spot. Tell me what I\nwant to know without more joking, please.\u201d\n\nBut the man\u2019s face grew more and more grave, and he answered:\n\n\u201cYou may or may not be Urashima Taro, I don\u2019t know. But the Urashima\nTaro of whom I have heard is a man who lived three hundred years ago.\nPerhaps you are his spirit come to revisit your old home?\u201d\n\n\u201cWhy do you mock me?\u201d said Urashima. \u201cI am no spirit! I am a living\nman\u2014do you not see my feet;\u201d and \u201cdon-don,\u201d he stamped on the ground,\nfirst with one foot and then with the other to show the man. (Japanese\nghosts have no feet.)\n\n\u201cBut Urashima Taro lived three hundred years ago, that is all I know;\nit is written in the village chronicles,\u201d persisted the man, who could\nnot believe what the fisherman said.\n\nUrashima was lost in bewilderment and trouble. He stood looking all\naround him, terribly puzzled, and, indeed, something in the appearance\nof everything was different to what he remembered before he went away,\nand the awful feeling came over him that what the man said was perhaps\ntrue. He seemed to be in a strange dream. The few days he had spent in\nthe Sea King\u2019s palace beyond the sea had not been days at all: they had\nbeen hundreds of years, and in that time his parents had died and all\nthe people he had ever known, and the village had written down his\nstory. There was no use in staying here any longer. He must get back to\nhis beautiful wife beyond the sea.\n\nHe made his way back to the beach, carrying in his hand the box which\nthe Princess had given him. But which was the way? He could not find it\nalone! Suddenly he remembered the box, the tamate-bako.\n\n\u201cThe Princess told me when she gave me the box never to open it\u2014that it\ncontained a very precious thing. But now that I have no home, now that\nI have lost everything that was dear to me here, and my heart grows\nthin with sadness, at such a time, if I open the box, surely I shall\nfind something that will help me, something that will show me the way\nback to my beautiful Princess over the sea. There is nothing else for\nme to do now. Yes, yes, I will open the box and look in!\u201d\n\nAnd so his heart consented to this act of disobedience, and he tried to\npersuade himself that he was doing the right thing in breaking his\npromise.\n\nSlowly, very slowly, he untied the red silk cord, slowly and\nwonderingly he lifted the lid of the precious box. And what did he\nfind? Strange to say only a beautiful little purple cloud rose out of\nthe box in three soft wisps. For an instant it covered his face and\nwavered over him as if loath to go, and then it floated away like vapor\nover the sea.\n\nUrashima, who had been till that moment like a strong and handsome\nyouth of twenty-four, suddenly became very, very old. His back doubled\nup with age, his hair turned snowy white, his face wrinkled and he fell\ndown dead on the beach.\n\nPoor Urashima! because of his disobedience he could never return to the\nSea King\u2019s realm or the lovely Princess beyond the sea.\n\nLittle children, never be disobedient to those who are wiser than you\nfor disobedience was the beginning of all the miseries and sorrows of\nlife.\n\n\n\n\nTHE FARMER AND THE BADGER\n\n\nLong, long ago, there lived an old farmer and his wife who had made\ntheir home in the mountains, far from any town. Their only neighbor was\na bad and malicious badger. This badger used to come out every night\nand run across to the farmer\u2019s field and spoil the vegetables and the\nrice which the farmer spent his time in carefully cultivating. The\nbadger at last grew so ruthless in his mischievous work, and did so\nmuch harm everywhere on the farm, that the good-natured farmer could\nnot stand it any longer, and determined to put a stop to it. So he lay\nin wait day after day and night after night, with a big club, hoping to\ncatch the badger, but all in vain. Then he laid traps for the wicked\nanimal.\n\nThe farmer\u2019s trouble and patience was rewarded, for one fine day on\ngoing his rounds he found the badger caught in a hole he had dug for\nthat purpose. The farmer was delighted at having caught his enemy, and\ncarried him home securely bound with rope. When he reached the house\nthe farmer said to his wife:\n\n\u201cI have at last caught the bad badger. You must keep an eye on him\nwhile I am out at work and not let him escape, because I want to make\nhim into soup to-night.\u201d\n\nSaying this, he hung the badger up to the rafters of his storehouse and\nwent out to his work in the fields. The badger was in great distress,\nfor he did not at all like the idea of being made into soup that night,\nand he thought and thought for a long time, trying to hit upon some\nplan by which he might escape. It was hard to think clearly in his\nuncomfortable position, for he had been hung upside down. Very near\nhim, at the entrance to the storehouse, looking out towards the green\nfields and the trees and the pleasant sunshine, stood the farmer\u2019s old\nwife pounding barley. She looked tired and old. Her face was seamed\nwith many wrinkles, and was as brown as leather, and every now and then\nshe stopped to wipe the perspiration which rolled down her face.\n\n\u201cDear lady,\u201d said the wily badger, \u201cyou must be very weary doing such\nheavy work in your old age. Won\u2019t you let me do that for you? My arms\nare very strong, and I could relieve you for a little while!\u201d\n\n\u201cThank you for your kindness,\u201d said the old woman, \u201cbut I cannot let\nyou do this work for me because I must not untie you, for you might\nescape if I did, and my husband would be very angry if he came home and\nfound you gone.\u201d\n\nNow, the badger is one of the most cunning of animals, and he said\nagain in a very sad, gentle, voice:\n\n\u201cYou are very unkind. You might untie me, for I promise not to try to\nescape. If you are afraid of your husband, I will let you bind me again\nbefore his return when I have finished pounding the barley. I am so\ntired and sore tied up like this. If you would only let me down for a\nfew minutes I would indeed be thankful!\u201d\n\nThe old woman had a good and simple nature, and could not think badly\nof any one. Much less did she think that the badger was only deceiving\nher in order to get away. She felt sorry, too, for the animal as she\nturned to look at him. He looked in such a sad plight hanging downwards\nfrom the ceiling by his legs, which were all tied together so tightly\nthat the rope and the knots were cutting into the skin. So in the\nkindness of her heart, and believing the creature\u2019s promise that he\nwould not run away, she untied the cord and let him down.\n\nThe old woman then gave him the wooden pestle and told him to do the\nwork for a short time while she rested. He took the pestle, but instead\nof doing the work as he was told, the badger at once sprang upon the\nold woman and knocked her down with the heavy piece of wood. He then\nkilled her and cut her up and made soup of her, and waited for the\nreturn of the old farmer. The old man worked hard in his fields all\nday, and as he worked he thought with pleasure that no more now would\nhis labor be spoiled by the destructive badger.\n\nTowards sunset he left his work and turned to go home. He was very\ntired, but the thought of the nice supper of hot badger soup awaiting\nhis return cheered him. The thought that the badger might get free and\ntake revenge on the poor old woman never once came into his mind.\n\nThe badger meanwhile assumed the old woman\u2019s form, and as soon as he\nsaw the old farmer approaching came out to greet him on the veranda of\nthe little house, saying:\n\n\u201cSo you have come back at last. I have made the badger soup and have\nbeen waiting for you for a long time.\u201d\n\nThe old farmer quickly took off his straw sandals and sat down before\nhis tiny dinner-tray. The innocent man never even dreamed that it was\nnot his wife but the badger who was waiting upon him, and asked at once\nfor the soup. Then the badger suddenly transformed himself back to his\nnatural form and cried out:\n\n\u201cYou wife-eating old man! Look out for the bones in the kitchen!\u201d\n\nLaughing loudly and derisively he escaped out of the house and ran away\nto his den in the hills. The old man was left behind alone. He could\nhardly believe what he had seen and heard. Then when he understood the\nwhole truth he was so scared and horrified that he fainted right away.\nAfter a while he came round and burst into tears. He cried loudly and\nbitterly. He rocked himself to and fro in his hopeless grief. It seemed\ntoo terrible to be real that his faithful old wife had been killed and\ncooked by the badger while he was working quietly in the fields,\nknowing nothing of what was going on at home, and congratulating\nhimself on having once for all got rid of the wicked animal who had so\noften spoiled his fields. And oh! the horrible thought; he had very\nnearly drunk the soup which the creature had made of his poor old\nwoman. \u201cOh dear, oh dear, oh dear!\u201d he wailed aloud. Now, not far away\nthere lived in the same mountain a kind, good-natured old rabbit. He\nheard the old man crying and sobbing and at once set out to see what\nwas the matter, and if there was anything he could do to help his\nneighbor. The old man told him all that had happened. When the rabbit\nheard the story he was very angry at the wicked and deceitful badger,\nand told the old man to leave everything to him and he would avenge his\nwife\u2019s death. The farmer was at last comforted, and, wiping away his\ntears, thanked the rabbit for his goodness in coming to him in his\ndistress.\n\nThe rabbit, seeing that the farmer was growing calmer, went back to his\nhome to lay his plans for the punishment of the badger.\n\nThe next day the weather was fine, and the rabbit went out to find the\nbadger. He was not to be seen in the woods or on the hillside or in the\nfields anywhere, so the rabbit went to his den and found the badger\nhiding there, for the animal had been afraid to show himself ever since\nhe had escaped from the farmer\u2019s house, for fear of the old man\u2019s\nwrath.\n\nThe rabbit called out:\n\n\u201cWhy are you not out on such a beautiful day? Come out with me, and we\nwill go and cut grass on the hills together.\u201d\n\nThe badger, never doubting but that the rabbit was his friend,\nwillingly consented to go out with him, only too glad to get away from\nthe neighborhood of the farmer and the fear of meeting him. The rabbit\nled the way miles away from their homes, out on the hills where the\ngrass grew tall and thick and sweet. They both set to work to cut down\nas much as they could carry home, to store it up for their winter\u2019s\nfood. When they had each cut down all they wanted they tied it in\nbundles and then started homewards, each carrying his bundle of grass\non his back. This time the rabbit made the badger go first.\n\nWhen they had gone a little way the rabbit took out a flint and steel,\nand, striking it over the badger\u2019s back as he stepped along in front,\nset his bundle of grass on fire. The badger heard the flint striking,\nand asked:\n\n\u201cWhat is that noise. \u2018Crack, crack\u2019?\u201d\n\n\u201cOh, that is nothing.\u201d replied the rabbit; \u201cI only said \u2018Crack, crack\u2019\nbecause this mountain is called Crackling Mountain.\u201d\n\nThe fire soon spread in the bundle of dry grass on the badger\u2019s back.\nThe badger, hearing the crackle of the burning grass, asked, \u201cWhat is\nthat?\u201d\n\n\u201cNow we have come to the \u2018Burning Mountain,\u2019\u201d answered the rabbit.\n\nBy this time the bundle was nearly burned out and all the hair had been\nburned off the badger\u2019s back. He now knew what had happened by the\nsmell of the smoke of the burning grass. Screaming with pain the badger\nran as fast as he could to his hole. The rabbit followed and found him\nlying on his bed groaning with pain.\n\n\u201cWhat an unlucky fellow you are!\u201d said the rabbit. \u201cI can\u2019t imagine how\nthis happened! I will bring you some medicine which will heal your back\nquickly!\u201d\n\nThe rabbit went away glad and smiling to think that the punishment upon\nthe badger had already begun. He hoped that the badger would die of his\nburns, for he felt that nothing could be too bad for the animal, who\nwas guilty of murdering a poor helpless old woman who had trusted him.\nHe went home and made an ointment by mixing some sauce and red pepper\ntogether.\n\nHe carried this to the badger, but before putting it on he told him\nthat it would cause him great pain, but that he must bear it patiently,\nbecause it was a very wonderful medicine for burns and scalds and such\nwounds. The badger thanked him and begged him to apply it at once. But\nno language can describe the agony of the badger as soon as the red\npepper had been pasted all over his sore back. He rolled over and over\nand howled loudly. The rabbit, looking on, felt that the farmer\u2019s wife\nwas beginning to be avenged.\n\nThe badger was in bed for about a month; but at last, in spite of the\nred pepper application, his burns healed and he got well. When the\nrabbit saw that the badger was getting well, he thought of another plan\nby which he could compass the creature\u2019s death. So he went one day to\npay the badger a visit and to congratulate him on his recovery.\n\nDuring the conversation the rabbit mentioned that he was going fishing,\nand described how pleasant fishing was when the weather was fine and\nthe sea smooth.\n\nThe badger listened with pleasure to the rabbit\u2019s account of the way he\npassed his time now, and forgot all his pains and his month\u2019s illness,\nand thought what fun it would be if he could go fishing too; so he\nasked the rabbit if he would take him the next time he went out to\nfish. This was just what the rabbit wanted, so he agreed.\n\nThen he went home and built two boats, one of wood and the other of\nclay. At last they were both finished, and as the rabbit stood and\nlooked at his work he felt that all his trouble would be well rewarded\nif his plan succeeded, and he could manage to kill the wicked badger\nnow.\n\nThe day came when the rabbit had arranged to take the badger fishing.\nHe kept the wooden boat himself and gave the badger the clay boat. The\nbadger, who knew nothing about boats, was delighted with his new boat\nand thought how kind it was of the rabbit to give it to him. They both\ngot into their boats and set out. After going some distance from the\nshore the rabbit proposed that they should try their boats and see\nwhich one could go the quickest. The badger fell in with the proposal,\nand they both set to work to row as fast as they could for some time.\nIn the middle of the race the badger found his boat going to pieces,\nfor the water now began to soften the clay. He cried out in great fear\nto the rabbit to help him. But the rabbit answered that he was avenging\nthe old woman\u2019s murder, and that this had been his intention all along,\nand that he was happy to think that the badger had at last met his\ndeserts for all his evil crimes, and was to drown with no one to help\nhim. Then he raised his oar and struck at the badger with all his\nstrength till he fell with the sinking clay boat and was seen no more.\n\nThus at last he kept his promise to the old farmer. The rabbit now\nturned and rowed shorewards, and having landed and pulled his boat upon\nthe beach, hurried back to tell the old farmer everything, and how the\nbadger, his enemy, had been killed.\n\nThe old farmer thanked him with tears in his eyes. He said that till\nnow he could never sleep at night or be at peace in the daytime,\nthinking of how his wife\u2019s death was unavenged, but from this time he\nwould be able to sleep and eat as of old. He begged the rabbit to stay\nwith him and share his home, so from this day the rabbit went to stay\nwith the old farmer and they both lived together as good friends to the\nend of their days.\n\n\n\n\nTHE \u201cSHINANSHA,\u201d OR THE SOUTH POINTING CARRIAGE\n\n\nThe compass, with its needle always pointing to the North, is quite a\ncommon thing, and no one thinks that it is remarkable now, though when\nit was first invented it must have been a wonder.\n\nNow long ago in China, there was a still more wonderful invention\ncalled the shinansha. This was a kind of chariot with the figure of a\nman on it always pointing to the South. No matter how the chariot was\nplaced the figure always wheeled about and pointed to the South.\n\nThis curious instrument was invented by Kotei, one of the three Chinese\nEmperors of the Mythological age. Kotei was the son of the Emperor\nYuhi. Before he was born his mother had a vision which foretold that\nher son would be a great man.\n\nOne summer evening she went out to walk in the meadows to seek the cool\nbreezes which blow at the end of the day and to gaze with pleasure at\nthe star-lit heavens above her. As she looked at the North Star,\nstrange to relate, it shot forth vivid flashes of lightning in every\ndirection. Soon after this her son Kotei came into the world.\n\nKotei in time grew to manhood and succeeded his father the Emperor\nYuhi. His early reign was greatly troubled by the rebel Shiyu. This\nrebel wanted to make himself King, and many were the battles which he\nfought to this end. Shiyu was a wicked magician, his head was made of\niron, and there was no man that could conquer him.\n\nAt last Kotei declared war against the rebel and led his army to\nbattle, and the two armies met on a plain called Takuroku. The Emperor\nboldly attacked the enemy, but the magician brought down a dense fog\nupon the battlefield, and while the royal army were wandering about in\nconfusion, trying to find their way, Shiyu retreated with his troops,\nlaughing at having fooled the royal army.\n\nNo matter however strong and brave the Emperor\u2019s soldiers were, the\nrebel with his magic could always escape in the end.\n\nKotei returned to his Palace, and thought and pondered deeply as to how\nhe should conquer the magician, for he was determined not to give up\nyet. After a long time he invented the shinansha with the figure of a\nman always pointing South, for there were no compasses in those days.\nWith this instrument to show him the way he need not fear the dense\nfogs raised up by the magician to confound his men.\n\nKotei again declared war against Shiyu. He placed the shinansha in\nfront of his army and led the way to the battlefield.\n\nThe battle began in earnest. The rebel was being driven backward by the\nroyal troops when he again resorted to magic, and upon his saying some\nstrange words in a loud voice, immediately a dense fog came down upon\nthe battlefield.\n\nBut this time no soldier minded the fog, not one was confused. Kotei by\npointing to the shinansha could find his way and directed the army\nwithout a single mistake. He closely pursued the rebel army and drove\nthem backward till they came to a big river. This river Kotei and his\nmen found was swollen by the floods and impossible to cross.\n\nShiyu by using his magic art quickly passed over with his army and shut\nhimself up in a fortress on the opposite bank.\n\nWhen Kotei found his march checked he was wild with disappointment, for\nhe had very nearly overtaken the rebel when the river stopped him.\n\nHe could do nothing, for there were no boats in those days, so the\nEmperor ordered his tent to be pitched in the pleasantest spot that the\nplace afforded.\n\nOne day he stepped forth from his tent and after walking about for a\nshort time he came to a pond. Here he sat down on the bank and was lost\nin thought.\n\nIt was autumn. The trees growing along the edge of the water were\nshedding their leaves, which floated hither and thither on the surface\nof the pond. By and by, Kotei\u2019s attention was attracted to a spider on\nthe brink of the water. The little insect was trying to get on to one\nof the floating leaves near by. It did so at last, and was soon\nfloating over the water to the other side of the pond.\n\nThis little incident made the clever Emperor think that he might try to\nmake something that could carry himself and his men over the river in\nthe same way that the leaf had carried over the spider. He set to work\nand persevered till he invented the first boat. When he found that it\nwas a success he set all his men to make more, and in time there were\nenough boats for the whole army.\n\nKotei now took his army across the river, and attacked Shiyu\u2019s\nheadquarters. He gained a complete victory, and so put an end to the\nwar which had troubled his country for so long.\n\nThis wise and good Emperor did not rest till he had secured peace and\nprosperity throughout his whole land. He was beloved by his subjects,\nwho now enjoyed their happiness of peace for many long years under him.\nHe spent a great deal of time in making inventions which would benefit\nhis people, and he succeeded in many besides the boat and the South\nPointing shinansha.\n\nHe had reigned about a hundred years when one day, as Kotei was looking\nupwards, the sky became suddenly red, and something came glittering\nlike gold towards the earth. As it came nearer Kotei saw that it was a\ngreat Dragon. The Dragon approached and bowed down its head before the\nEmperor. The Empress and the courtiers were so frightened that they ran\naway screaming.\n\nBut the Emperor only smiled and called to them to stop, and said:\n\n\u201cDo not be afraid. This is a messenger from Heaven. My time here is\nfinished!\u201d He then mounted the Dragon, which began to ascend towards\nthe sky.\n\nWhen the Empress and the courtiers saw this they all cried out\ntogether:\n\n\u201cWait a moment! We wish to come too.\u201d And they all ran and caught hold\nof the Dragon\u2019s beard and tried to mount him.\n\nBut it was impossible for so many people to ride on the Dragon. Several\nof them hung on to the creature\u2019s beard so that when it tried to mount\nthe hair was pulled out and they fell to the ground.\n\nMeanwhile the Empress and a few of the courtiers were safely seated on\nthe Dragon\u2019s back. The Dragon flew up so high in the heavens that in a\nshort time the inmates of the Palace, who had been left behind\ndisappointed, could see them no more.\n\nAfter some time a bow and an arrow dropped to the earth in the\ncourtyard of the Palace. They were recognized as having belonged to the\nEmperor Kotei. The courtiers took them up carefully and preserved them\nas sacred relics in the Palace.\n\n\n\n\nTHE ADVENTURES OF KINTARO, THE GOLDEN BOY\n\n\nLong, long ago there lived in Kyoto a brave soldier named Kintoki. Now\nhe fell in love with a beautiful lady and married her. Not long after\nthis, through the malice of some of his friends, he fell into disgrace\nat Court and was dismissed. This misfortune so preyed upon his mind\nthat he did not long survive his dismissal\u2014he died, leaving behind him\nhis beautiful young wife to face the world alone. Fearing her husband\u2019s\nenemies, she fled to the Ashigara Mountains as soon as her husband was\ndead, and there in the lonely forests where no one ever came except\nwoodcutters, a little boy was born to her. She called him Kintaro or\nthe Golden Boy. Now the remarkable thing about this child was his great\nstrength, and as he grew older he grew stronger and stronger, so that\nby the time he was eight years of age he was able to cut down trees as\nquickly as the woodcutters. Then his mother gave him a large ax, and he\nused to go out in the forest and help the woodcutters, who called him\n\u201cWonder-child,\u201d and his mother the \u201cOld Nurse of the Mountains,\u201d for\nthey did not know her high rank. Another favorite pastime of Kintaro\u2019s\nwas to smash up rocks and stones. You can imagine how strong he was!\n\nQuite unlike other boys, Kintaro, grew up all alone in the mountain\nwilds, and as he had no companions he made friends with all the animals\nand learned to understand them and to speak their strange talk. By\ndegrees they all grew quite tame and looked upon Kintaro as their\nmaster, and he used them as his servants and messengers. But his\nspecial retainers were the bear, the deer, the monkey and the hare.\n\nThe bear often brought her cubs for Kintaro to romp with, and when she\ncame to take them home Kintaro would get on her back and have a ride to\nher cave. He was very fond of the deer too, and would often put his\narms round the creature\u2019s neck to show that its long horns did not\nfrighten him. Great was the fun they all had together.\n\nOne day, as usual, Kintaro went up into the mountains, followed by the\nbear, the deer, the monkey, and the hare. After walking for some time\nup hill and down dale and over rough roads, they suddenly came out upon\na wide and grassy plain covered with pretty wild flowers.\n\nHere, indeed, was a nice place where they could all have a good romp\ntogether. The deer rubbed his horns against a tree for pleasure, the\nmonkey scratched his back, the hare smoothed his long ears, and the\nbear gave a grunt of satisfaction.\n\nKintaro said, \u201cHere is a place for a good game. What do you all say to\na wrestling match?\u201d\n\nThe bear being the biggest and the oldest, answered for the others:\n\n\u201cThat will be great fun,\u201d said she. \u201cI am the strongest animal, so I\nwill make the platform for the wrestlers;\u201d and she set to work with a\nwill to dig up the earth and to pat it into shape.\n\n\u201cAll right,\u201d said Kintaro, \u201cI will look on while you all wrestle with\neach other. I shall give a prize to the one who wins in each round.\u201d\n\n\u201cWhat fun! we shall all try to get the prize,\u201d said the bear.\n\nThe deer, the monkey and the hare set to work to help the bear raise\nthe platform on which they were all to wrestle. When this was finished,\nKintaro cried out:\n\n\u201cNow begin! the monkey and the hare shall open the sports and the deer\nshall be umpire. Now, Mr. Deer, you are to be umpire!\u201d\n\n\u201cHe, he!\u201d answered the deer. \u201cI will be umpire. Now, Mr. Monkey and Mr.\nHare, if you are both ready, please walk out and take your places on\nthe platform.\u201d\n\nThen the monkey and the hare both hopped out, quickly and nimbly, to\nthe wrestling platform. The deer, as umpire, stood between the two and\ncalled out:\n\n\u201cRed-back! Red-back!\u201d (this to the monkey, who has a red back in\nJapan). \u201cAre you ready?\u201d\n\nThen he turned to the hare:\n\n\u201cLong-ears! Long-ears! are you ready?\u201d\n\nBoth the little wrestlers faced each other while the deer raised a leaf\non high as signal. When he dropped the leaf the monkey and the hare\nrushed upon each other, crying \u201cYoisho, yoisho!\u201d\n\nWhile the monkey and the hare wrestled, the deer called out\nencouragingly or shouted warnings to each of them as the hare or the\nmonkey pushed each other near the edge of the platform and were in\ndanger of falling over.\n\n\u201cRed-back! Red-back! stand your ground!\u201d called out the deer.\n\n\u201cLong-ears! Long-ears! be strong, be strong\u2014don\u2019t let the monkey beat\nyou!\u201d grunted the bear.\n\nSo the monkey and the hare, encouraged by their friends, tried their\nvery hardest to beat each other. The hare at last gained on the monkey.\nThe monkey seemed to trip up, and the hare giving him a good push sent\nhim flying off the platform with a bound.\n\nThe poor monkey sat up rubbing his back, and his face was very long as\nhe screamed angrily. \u201cOh, oh! how my back hurts\u2014my back hurts me!\u201d\n\nSeeing the monkey in this plight on the ground, the deer holding his\nleaf on high said:\n\n\u201cThis round is finished\u2014the hare has won.\u201d\n\nKintaro then opened his luncheon box and taking out a rice-dumpling,\ngave it to the hare saying:\n\n\u201cHere is your prize, and you have earned, it well!\u201d\n\nNow the monkey got up looking very cross, and as they say in Japan \u201chis\nstomach stood up,\u201d for he felt that he had not been fairly beaten. So\nhe said to Kintaro and the others who were standing by:\n\n\u201cI have not been fairly beaten. My foot slipped and I tumbled. Please\ngive me another chance and let the hare wrestle with me for another\nround.\u201d\n\nThen Kintaro consenting, the hare and the monkey began to wrestle\nagain. Now, as every one knows, the monkey is a cunning animal by\nnature, and he made up his mind to get the best of the hare this time\nif it were possible. To do this, he thought that the best and surest\nway would be to get hold of the hare\u2019s long ear. This he soon managed\nto do. The hare was quite thrown off his guard by the pain of having\nhis long ear pulled so hard, and the monkey seizing his opportunity at\nlast, caught hold of one of the hare\u2019s legs and sent him sprawling in\nthe middle of the dais. The monkey was now the victor and received, a\nrice-dumpling from Kintaro, which pleased him so much that he quite\nforgot his sore back.\n\nThe deer now came up and asked the hare if he felt ready for another\nround, and if so whether he would try a round with him, and the hare\nconsenting, they both stood up to wrestle. The bear came forward as\numpire.\n\nThe deer with long horns and the hare with long ears, it must have been\nan amusing sight to those who watched this queer match. Suddenly the\ndeer went down on one of his knees, and the bear with the leaf on high\ndeclared him beaten. In this way, sometimes the one, sometimes the\nother, conquering, the little party amused themselves till they were\ntired.\n\nAt last Kintaro got up and said:\n\n\u201cThis is enough for to-day. What a nice place we have found for\nwrestling; let us come again to-morrow. Now, we will all go home. Come\nalong!\u201d So saying, Kintaro led the way while the animals followed.\n\nAfter walking some little distance they came out on the banks of a\nriver flowing through a valley. Kintaro and his four furry friends\nstood and looked about for some means of crossing. Bridge there was\nnone. The river rushed \u201cdon, don\u201d on its way. All the animals looked\nserious, wondering how they could cross the stream and get home that\nevening.\n\nKintaro, however, said:\n\n\u201cWait a moment. I will make a good bridge for you all in a few\nminutes.\u201d\n\nThe bear, the deer, the monkey and the hare looked at him to see what\nhe would do now.\n\nKintaro went from one tree to another that grew along the river bank.\nAt last he stopped in front of a very large tree that was growing at\nthe water\u2019s edge. He took hold of the trunk and pulled it with all his\nmight, once, twice, thrice! At the third pull, so great was Kintaro\u2019s\nstrength that the roots gave way, and \u201cmeri, meri\u201d (crash, crash), over\nfell the tree, forming an excellent bridge across the stream.\n\n\u201cThere,\u201d said Kintaro, \u201cwhat do you think of my bridge? It is quite\nsafe, so follow me,\u201d and he stepped across first. The four animals\nfollowed. Never had they seen any one so strong before, and they all\nexclaimed:\n\n\u201cHow strong he is! how strong he is!\u201d\n\nWhile all this was going on by the river a woodcutter, who happened to\nbe standing on a rock overlooking the stream, had seen all that passed\nbeneath him. He watched with great surprise Kintaro and his animal\ncompanions. He rubbed his eyes to be sure that he was not dreaming when\nhe saw this boy pull over a tree by the roots and throw it across the\nstream to form a bridge.\n\nThe woodcutter, for such he seemed to be by his dress, marveled at all\nhe saw, and said to himself:\n\n\u201cThis is no ordinary child. Whose son can he be? I will find out before\nthis day is done.\u201d\n\nHe hastened after the strange party and crossed the bridge behind them.\nKintaro knew nothing of all this, and little guessed that he was being\nfollowed. On reaching the other side of the river he and the animals\nseparated, they to their lairs in the woods and he to his mother, who\nwas waiting for him.\n\nAs soon as he entered the cottage, which stood like a matchbox in the\nheart of the pine-woods, he went to greet his mother, saying:\n\n\u201cOkkasan (mother), here I am!\u201d\n\n\u201cO, Kimbo!\u201d said his mother with a bright smile, glad to see her boy\nhome safe after the long day. \u201cHow late you are to-day. I feared that\nsomething had happened to you. Where have you been all the time?\u201d\n\n\u201cI took my four friends, the bear, the deer, the monkey, and the hare,\nup into the hills, and there I made them try a wrestling match, to see\nwhich was the strongest. We all enjoyed the sport, and are going to the\nsame place to-morrow to have another match.\u201d\n\n\u201cNow tell me who is the strongest of all?\u201d asked his mother, pretending\nnot to know.\n\n\u201cOh, mother,\u201d said Kintaro, \u201cdon\u2019t you know that I am the strongest?\nThere was no need for me to wrestle with any of them.\u201d\n\n\u201cBut next to you then, who is the strongest?\u201d\n\n\u201cThe bear comes next to me in strength,\u201d answered Kintaro.\n\n\u201cAnd after the bear?\u201d asked his mother again.\n\n\u201cNext to the bear it is not easy to say which is the strongest, for the\ndeer, the monkey, and the hare all seem to be as strong as each other,\u201d\nsaid Kintaro.\n\nSuddenly Kintaro and his mother were startled by a voice from outside.\n\n\u201cListen to me, little boy! Next time you go, take this old man with you\nto the wrestling match. He would like to join the sport too!\u201d\n\nIt was the old woodcutter who had followed Kintaro from the river. He\nslipped off his clogs and entered the cottage. Yama-uba and her son\nwere both taken by surprise. They looked at the intruder wonderingly\nand saw that he was some one they had never seen before.\n\n\u201cWho are you?\u201d they both exclaimed.\n\nThen the woodcutter laughed and said:\n\n\u201cIt does not matter who I am yet, but let us see who has the strongest\narm\u2014this boy or myself?\u201d\n\nThen Kintaro, who had lived all his life in the forest, answered the\nold man without any ceremony, saying:\n\n\u201cWe will have a try if you wish it, but you must not be angry whoever\nis beaten.\u201d\n\nThen Kintaro and the woodcutter both put out their right arms and\ngrasped each other\u2019s hands. For a long time Kintaro and the old man\nwrestled together in this way, each trying to bend the other\u2019s arm, but\nthe old man was very strong, and the strange pair were evenly matched.\nAt last the old man desisted, declaring it a drawn game.\n\n\u201cYou are, indeed, a very strong child. There are few men who can boast\nof the strength of my right arm!\u201d said the woodcutter. \u201cI saw you first\non the banks of the river a few hours ago, when you pulled up that\nlarge tree to make a bridge across the torrent. Hardly able to believe\nwhat I saw I followed you home. Your strength of arm, which I have just\ntried, proves what I saw this afternoon. When you are full-grown you\nwill surely be the strongest man in all Japan. It is a pity that you\nare hidden away in these wild mountains.\u201d\n\nThen he turned to Kintaro\u2019s mother:\n\n\u201cAnd you, mother, have you no thought of taking your child to the\nCapital, and of teaching him to carry a sword as befits a samurai (a\nJapanese knight)?\u201d\n\n\u201cYou are very kind to take so much interest in my son.\u201d replied the\nmother; \u201cbut he is as you see, wild and uneducated, and I fear it would\nbe very difficult to do as you say. Because of his great strength as an\ninfant I hid him away in this unknown part of the country, for he hurt\nevery one that came near him. I have often wished that I could, one\nday, see my boy a knight wearing two swords, but as we have no\ninfluential friend to introduce us at the Capital, I fear my hope will\nnever come true.\u201d\n\n\u201cYou need not trouble yourself about that. To tell you the truth I am\nno woodcutter! I am one of the great generals of Japan. My name is\nSadamitsu, and I am a vassal of the powerful Lord Minamoto-no-Raiko. He\nordered me to go round the country and look for boys who give promise\nof remarkable strength, so that they may be trained as soldiers for his\narmy. I thought that I could best do this by assuming the disguise of a\nwoodcutter. By good fortune, I have thus unexpectedly come across your\nson. Now if you really wish him to be a SAMURAI (a knight), I will take\nhim and present him to the Lord Raiko as a candidate for his service.\nWhat do you say to this?\u201d\n\nAs the kind general gradually unfolded his plan the mother\u2019s heart was\nfilled with a great joy. She saw that here was a wonderful chance of\nthe one wish of her life being fulfilled\u2014that of seeing Kintaro a\nSAMURAI before she died.\n\nBowing her head to the ground, she replied:\n\n\u201cI will then intrust my son to you if you really mean what you say.\u201d\n\nKintaro had all this time been sitting by his mother\u2019s side listening\nto what they said. When his mother finished speaking, he exclaimed:\n\n\u201cOh, joy! joy! I am to go with the general and one day I shall be a\nSAMURAI!\u201d\n\nThus Kintaro\u2019s fate was settled, and the general decided to start for\nthe Capital at once, taking Kintaro with him. It need hardly be said\nthat Yama-uba was sad at parting with her boy, for he was all that was\nleft to her. But she hid her grief with a strong face, as they say in\nJapan. She knew that it was for her boy\u2019s good that he should leave her\nnow, and she must not discourage him just as he was setting out.\nKintaro promised never to forget her, and said that as soon as he was a\nknight wearing two swords he would build her a home and take care of\nher in her old age.\n\nAll the animals, those he had tamed to serve him, the bear, the deer,\nthe monkey, and the hare, as soon as they found out that he was going\naway, came to ask if they might attend him as usual. When they learned\nthat he was going away for good they followed him to the foot of the\nmountain to see him off.\n\n\u201cKimbo,\u201d said his mother, \u201cmind and be a good boy.\u201d\n\n\u201cMr. Kintaro,\u201d said the faithful animals, \u201cwe wish you good health on\nyour travels.\u201d\n\nThen they all climbed a tree to see the last of him, and from that\nheight they watched him and his shadow gradually grow smaller and\nsmaller, till he was lost to sight.\n\nThe general Sadamitsu went on his way rejoicing at having so\nunexpectedly found such a prodigy as Kintaro.\n\nHaving arrived at their destination the general took Kintaro at once to\nhis Lord, Minamoto-no-Raiko, and told him all about Kintaro and how he\nhad found the child. Lord Raiko was delighted with the story, and\nhaving commanded Kintaro to be brought to him, made him one of his\nvassals at once.\n\nLord Raiko\u2019s army was famous for its band called \u201cThe Four Braves.\u201d\nThese warriors were chosen by himself from amongst the bravest and\nstrongest of his soldiers, and the small and well-picked band was\ndistinguished throughout the whole of Japan for the dauntless courage\nof its men.\n\nWhen Kintaro grew up to be a man his master made him the Chief of the\nFour Braves. He was by far the strongest of them all. Soon after this\nevent, news was brought to the city that a cannibal monster had taken\nup his abode not far away and that people were stricken with fear. Lord\nRaiko ordered Kintaro to the rescue. He immediately started off,\ndelighted at the prospect of trying his sword.\n\nSurprising the monster in its den, he made short work of cutting off\nits great head, which he carried back in triumph to his master.\n\nKintaro now rose to be the greatest hero of his country, and great was\nthe power and honor and wealth that came to him. He now kept his\npromise and built a comfortable home for his old mother, who lived\nhappily with him in the Capital to the end of her days.\n\nIs not this the story of a great hero?\n\n\n\n\nTHE STORY OF PRINCESS HASE.\nA STORY OF OLD JAPAN\n\n\nMany, many years ago there lived in Nara, the ancient Capital of Japan,\na wise State minister, by name Prince Toyonari Fujiwara. His wife was a\nnoble, good, and beautiful woman called Princess Murasaki (Violet).\nThey had been married by their respective families according to\nJapanese custom when very young, and had lived together happily ever\nsince. They had, however, one cause for great sorrow, for as the years\nwent by no child was born to them. This made them very unhappy, for\nthey both longed to see a child of their own who would grow up to\ngladden their old age, carry on the family name, and keep up the\nancestral rites when they were dead. The Prince and his lovely wife,\nafter long consultation and much thought, determined to make a\npilgrimage to the temple of Hase-no-Kwannon (Goddess of Mercy at Hase),\nfor they believed, according to the beautiful tradition of their\nreligion, that the Mother of Mercy, Kwannon, comes to answer the\nprayers of mortals in the form that they need the most. Surely after\nall these years of prayer she would come to them in the form of a\nbeloved child in answer to their special pilgrimage, for that was the\ngreatest need of their two lives. Everything else they had that this\nlife could give them, but it was all as nothing because the cry of\ntheir hearts was unsatisfied.\n\nSo the Prince Toyonari and his wife went to the temple of Kwannon at\nHase and stayed there for a long time, both daily offering incense and\npraying to Kwannon, the Heavenly Mother, to grant them the desire of\ntheir whole lives. And their prayer was answered.\n\nA daughter was born at last to the Princess Murasaki, and great was the\njoy of her heart. On presenting the child to her husband, they both\ndecided to call her Hase-Hime, or the Princess of Hase, because she was\nthe gift of the Kwannon at that place. They both reared her with great\ncare and tenderness, and the child grew in strength and beauty.\n\nWhen the little girl was five years old her mother fell dangerously ill\nand all the doctors and their medicines could not save her. A little\nbefore she breathed her last she called her daughter to her, and gently\nstroking her head, said:\n\n\u201cHase-Hime, do you know that your mother cannot live any longer? Though\nI die, you must grow up a good girl. Do your best not to give trouble\nto your nurse or any other of your family. Perhaps your father will\nmarry again and some one will fill my place as your mother. If so do\nnot grieve for me, but look upon your father\u2019s second wife as your true\nmother, and be obedient and filial to both her and your father.\nRemember when you are grown up to be submissive to those who are your\nsuperiors, and to be kind to all those who are under you. Don\u2019t forget\nthis. I die with the hope that you will grow up a model woman.\u201d\n\nHase-Hime listened in an attitude of respect while her mother spoke,\nand promised to do all that she was told. There is a proverb which says\n\u201cAs the soul is at three so it is at one hundred,\u201d and so Hase-Hime\ngrew up as her mother had wished, a good and obedient little Princess,\nthough she was now too young to understand how great was the loss of\nher mother.\n\nNot long after the death of his first wife, Prince Toyonari married\nagain, a lady of noble birth named Princess Terute. Very different in\ncharacter, alas! to the good and wise Princess Murasaki, this woman had\na cruel, bad heart. She did not love her step-daughter at all, and was\noften very unkind to the little motherless girl, saying to herself:\n\n\u201cThis is not my child! this is not my child!\u201d\n\nBut Hase-Hime bore every unkindness with patience, and even waited upon\nher step-mother kindly and obeyed her in every way and never gave any\ntrouble, just as she had been trained by her own good mother, so that\nthe Lady Terute had no cause for complaint against her.\n\nThe little Princess was very diligent, and her favorite studies were\nmusic and poetry. She would spend several hours practicing every day,\nand her father had the most proficient of masters he could find to\nteach her the koto (Japanese harp), the art of writing letters and\nverse. When she was twelve years of age she could play so beautifully\nthat she and her step-mother were summoned to the Palace to perform\nbefore the Emperor.\n\nIt was the Festival of the Cherry Flowers, and there were great\nfestivities at the Court. The Emperor threw himself into the enjoyment\nof the season, and commanded that Princess Hase should perform before\nhim on the koto, and that her mother Princess Terute should accompany\nher on the flute.\n\nThe Emperor sat on a raised dais, before which was hung a curtain of\nfinely-sliced bamboo and purple tassels, so that His Majesty might see\nall and not be seen, for no ordinary subject was allowed to look upon\nhis sacred face.\n\nHase-Hime was a skilled musician though so young, and often astonished\nher masters by her wonderful memory and talent. On this momentous\noccasion she played well. But Princess Terute, her step-mother, who was\na lazy woman and never took the trouble to practice daily, broke down\nin her accompaniment and had to request one of the Court ladies to take\nher place. This was a great disgrace, and she was furiously jealous to\nthink that she had failed where her step-daughter succeeded; and to\nmake matters worse the Emperor sent many beautiful gifts to the little\nPrincess to reward her for playing so well at the Palace.\n\nThere was also now another reason why Princess Terute hated her\nstep-daughter, for she had had the good fortune to have a son born to\nher, and in her inmost heart she kept saying:\n\n\u201cIf only Hase-Hime were not here, my son would have all the love of his\nfather.\u201d\n\nAnd never having learned to control herself, she allowed this wicked\nthought to grow into the awful desire of taking her step-daughter\u2019s\nlife.\n\nSo one day she secretly ordered some poison and poisoned some sweet\nwine. This poisoned wine she put into a bottle. Into another similar\nbottle she poured some good wine. It was the occasion of the Boys\u2019\nFestival on the fifth of May, and Hase-Hime was playing with her little\nbrother. All his toys of warriors and heroes were spread out and she\nwas telling him wonderful stories about each of them. They were both\nenjoying themselves and laughing merrily with their attendants when his\nmother entered with the two bottles of wine and some delicious cakes.\n\n\u201cYou are both so good and happy.\u201d said the wicked Princess Terute with\na smile, \u201cthat I have brought you some sweet wine as a reward\u2014and here\nare some nice cakes for my good children.\u201d\n\nAnd she filled two cups from the different bottles.\n\nHase-Hime, never dreaming of the dreadful part her step-mother was\nacting, took one of the cups of wine and gave to her little step\nbrother the other that had been poured out for him.\n\nThe wicked woman had carefully marked the poisoned bottle, but on\ncoming into the room she had grown nervous, and pouring out the wine\nhurriedly had unconsciously given the poisoned cup to her own child.\nAll this time she was anxiously watching the little Princess, but to\nher amazement no change whatever took place in the young girl\u2019s face.\nSuddenly the little boy screamed and threw himself on the floor,\ndoubled up with pain. His mother flew to him, taking the precaution to\nupset the two tiny jars of wine which she had brought into the room,\nand lifted him up. The attendants rushed for the doctor, but nothing\ncould save the child\u2014he died within the hour in his mother\u2019s arms.\nDoctors did not know much in those ancient times, and it was thought\nthat the wine had disagreed with the boy, causing convulsions of which\nhe died.\n\nThus was the wicked woman punished in losing her own child when she had\ntried to do away with her step-daughter; but instead of blaming herself\nshe began to hate Hase-Hime more than ever in the bitterness and\nwretchedness of her own heart, and she eagerly watched for an\nopportunity to do her harm, which was, however, long in coming.\n\nWhen Hase-Hime was thirteen years of age, she had already become\nmentioned as a poetess of some merit. This was an accomplishment very\nmuch cultivated by the women of old Japan and one held in high esteem.\n\nIt was the rainy season at Nara, and floods were reported every day as\ndoing damage in the neighborhood. The river Tatsuta, which flowed\nthrough the Imperial Palace grounds, was swollen to the top of its\nbanks, and the roaring of the torrents of water rushing along a narrow\nbed so disturbed the Emperor\u2019s rest day and night, that a serious\nnervous disorder was the result. An Imperial Edict was sent forth to\nall the Buddhist temples commanding the priests to offer up continuous\nprayers to Heaven to stop the noise of the flood. But this was of no\navail.\n\nThen it was whispered in Court circles that the Princess Hase, the\ndaughter of Prince Toyonari Fujiwara, second minister at Court, was the\nmost gifted poetess of the day, though still so young, and her masters\nconfirmed the report. Long ago, a beautiful and gifted maiden-poetess\nhad moved Heaven by praying in verse, had brought down rain upon a land\nfamished with drought\u2014so said the ancient biographers of the poetess\nOno-no-Komachi. If the Princess Hase were to write a poem and offer it\nin prayer, might it not stop the noise of the rushing river and remove\nthe cause of the Imperial illness? What the Court said at last reached\nthe ears of the Emperor himself, and he sent an order to the minister\nPrince Toyonari to this effect.\n\nGreat indeed was Hase-Hime\u2019s fear and astonishment when her father sent\nfor her and told her what was required of her. Heavy, indeed, was the\nduty that was laid on her young shoulders\u2014that of saving the Emperor\u2019s\nlife by the merit of her verse.\n\nAt last the day came and her poem was finished. It was written on a\nleaflet of paper heavily flecked with gold-dust. With her father and\nattendants and some of the Court officials, she proceeded to the bank\nof the roaring torrent and raising up her heart to Heaven, she read the\npoem she had composed, aloud, lifting it heavenwards in her two hands.\n\nStrange indeed it seemed to all those standing round. The waters ceased\ntheir roaring, and the river was quiet in direct answer to her prayer.\nAfter this the Emperor soon recovered his health.\n\nHis Majesty was highly pleased, and sent for her to the Palace and\nrewarded her with the rank of Chinjo\u2014that of Lieutenant-General\u2014to\ndistinguish her. From that time she was called Chinjo-hime, or the\nLieutenant-General Princess, and respected and loved by all.\n\nThere was only one person who was not pleased at Hase-Hime\u2019s success.\nThat one was her stepmother. Forever brooding over the death of her own\nchild whom she had killed when trying to poison her step-daughter, she\nhad the mortification of seeing her rise to power and honor, marked by\nImperial favor and the admiration of the whole Court. Her envy and\njealousy burned in her heart like fire. Many were the lies she carried\nto her husband about Hase-Hime, but all to no purpose. He would listen\nto none of her tales, telling her sharply that she was quite mistaken.\n\nAt last the step-mother, seizing the opportunity of her husband\u2019s\nabsence, ordered one of her old servants to take the innocent girl to\nthe Hibari Mountains, the wildest part of the country, and to kill her\nthere. She invented a dreadful story about the little Princess, saying\nthat this was the only way to prevent disgrace falling upon the\nfamily\u2014by killing her.\n\nKatoda, her vassal, was bound to obey his mistress. Anyhow, he saw that\nit would be the wisest plan to pretend obedience in the absence of the\ngirl\u2019s father, so he placed Hase-Hime in a palanquin and accompanied\nher to the most solitary place he could find in the wild district. The\npoor child knew there was no good in protesting to her unkind\nstep-mother at being sent away in this strange manner, so she went as\nshe was told.\n\nBut the old servant knew that the young Princess was quite innocent of\nall the things her step-mother had invented to him as reasons for her\noutrageous orders, and he determined to save her life. Unless he killed\nher, however, he could not return to his cruel task-mistress, so he\ndecided to stay out in the wilderness. With the help of some peasants\nhe soon built a little cottage, and having sent secretly for his wife\nto come, these two good old people did all in their power to take care\nof the now unfortunate Princess. She all the time trusted in her\nfather, knowing that as soon as he returned home and found her absent,\nhe would search for her.\n\nPrince Toyonari, after some weeks, came home, and was told by his wife\nthat his daughter Hime had done something wrong and had run away for\nfear of being punished. He was nearly ill with anxiety. Every one in\nthe house told the same story\u2014that Hase-Hime had suddenly disappeared,\nnone of them knew why or whither. For fear of scandal he kept the\nmatter quiet and searched everywhere he could think of, but all to no\npurpose.\n\nOne day, trying to forget his terrible worry, he called all his men\ntogether and told them to make ready for a several days\u2019 hunt in the\nmountains. They were soon ready and mounted, waiting at the gate for\ntheir lord. He rode hard and fast to the district of the Hibari\nMountains, a great company following him. He was soon far ahead of\nevery one, and at last found himself in a narrow picturesque valley.\n\nLooking round and admiring the scenery, he noticed a tiny house on one\nof the hills quite near, and then he distinctly heard a beautiful clear\nvoice reading aloud. Seized with curiosity as to who could be studying\nso diligently in such a lonely spot, he dismounted, and leaving his\nhorse to his groom, he walked up the hillside and approached the\ncottage. As he drew nearer his surprise increased, for he could see\nthat the reader was a beautiful girl. The cottage was wide open and she\nwas sitting facing the view. Listening attentively, he heard her\nreading the Buddhist scriptures with great devotion. More and more\ncurious, he hurried on to the tiny gate and entered the little garden,\nand looking up beheld his lost daughter Hase-Hime. She was so intent on\nwhat she was saying that she neither heard nor saw her father till he\nspoke.\n\n\u201cHase-Hime!\u201d he cried, \u201cit is you, my Hase-Hime!\u201d\n\nTaken by surprise, she could hardly realize that it was her own dear\nfather who was calling her, and for a moment she was utterly bereft of\nthe power to speak or move.\n\n\u201cMy father, my father! It is indeed you\u2014oh, my father!\u201d was all she\ncould say, and running to him she caught hold of his thick sleeve, and\nburying her face burst into a passion of tears.\n\nHer father stroked her dark hair, asking her gently to tell him all\nthat had happened, but she only wept on, and he wondered if he were not\nreally dreaming.\n\nThen the faithful old servant Katoda came out, and bowing himself to\nthe ground before his master, poured out the long tale of wrong,\ntelling him all that had happened, and how it was that he found his\ndaughter in such a wild and desolate spot with only two old servants to\ntake care of her.\n\nThe Prince\u2019s astonishment and indignation knew no bounds. He gave up\nthe hunt at once and hurried home with his daughter. One of the company\ngalloped ahead to inform the household of the glad news, and the\nstep-mother hearing what had happened, and fearful of meeting her\nhusband now that her wickedness was discovered, fled from the house and\nreturned in disgrace to her father\u2019s roof, and nothing more was heard\nof her.\n\nThe old servant Katoda was rewarded with the highest promotion in his\nmaster\u2019s service, and lived happily to the end of his days, devoted to\nthe little Princess, who never forgot that she owed her life to this\nfaithful retainer. She was no longer troubled by an unkind step-mother,\nand her days passed happily and quietly with her father.\n\nAs Prince Toyonari had no son, he adopted a younger son of one of the\nCourt nobles to be his heir, and to marry his daughter Hase-Hime, and\nin a few years the marriage took place. Hase-Hime lived to a good old\nage, and all said that she was the wisest, most devout, and most\nbeautiful mistress that had ever reigned in Prince Toyonari\u2019s ancient\nhouse. She had the joy of presenting her son, the future lord of the\nfamily, to her father just before he retired from active life.\n\nTo this day there is preserved a piece of needle-work in one of the\nBuddhist temples of Kioto. It is a beautiful piece of tapestry, with\nthe figure of Buddha embroidered in the silky threads drawn from the\nstem of the lotus. This is said to have been the work of the hands of\nthe good Princess Hase.\n\n\n\n\nTHE STORY OF THE MAN WHO DID NOT WISH TO DIE\n\n\nLong, long ago there lived a man called Sentaro. His surname meant\n\u201cMillionaire,\u201d but although he was not so rich as all that, he was\nstill very far removed from being poor. He had inherited a small\nfortune from his father and lived on this, spending his time\ncarelessly, without any serious thoughts of work, till he was about\nthirty-two years of age.\n\nOne day, without any reason whatsoever, the thought of death and\nsickness came to him. The idea of falling ill or dying made him very\nwretched.\n\n\u201cI should like to live,\u201d he said to himself, \u201ctill I am five or six\nhundred years old at least, free from all sickness. The ordinary span\nof a man\u2019s life is very short.\u201d\n\nHe wondered whether it were possible, by living simply and frugally\nhenceforth, to prolong his life as long as he wished.\n\nHe knew there were many stories in ancient history of emperors who had\nlived a thousand years, and there was a Princess of Yamato, who, it was\nsaid, lived to the age of five hundred. This was the latest story of a\nvery long life record.\n\nSentaro had often heard the tale of the Chinese King named\nShin-no-Shiko. He was one of the most able and powerful rulers in\nChinese history. He built all the large palaces, and also the famous\ngreat wall of China. He had everything in the world he could wish for,\nbut in spite of all his happiness and the luxury and the splendor of\nhis Court, the wisdom of his councilors and the glory of his reign, he\nwas miserable because he knew that one day he must die and leave it\nall.\n\nWhen Shin-no-Shiko went to bed at night, when he rose in the morning,\nas he went through his day, the thought of death was always with him.\nHe could not get away from it. Ah\u2014if only he could find the \u201cElixir of\nLife,\u201d he would be happy.\n\nThe Emperor at last called a meeting of his courtiers and asked them\nall if they could not find for him the \u201cElixir of Life\u201d of which he had\nso often read and heard.\n\nOne old courtier, Jofuku by name, said that far away across the seas\nthere was a country called Horaizan, and that certain hermits lived\nthere who possessed the secret of the \u201cElixir of Life.\u201d Whoever drank\nof this wonderful draught lived forever.\n\nThe Emperor ordered Jofuku to set out for the land of Horaizan, to find\nthe hermits, and to bring him back a phial of the magic elixir. He gave\nJofuku one of his best junks, fitted it out for him, and loaded it with\ngreat quantities of treasures and precious stones for Jofuku to take as\npresents to the hermits.\n\nJofuku sailed for the land of Horaizan, but he never returned to the\nwaiting Emperor; but ever since that time Mount Fuji has been said to\nbe the fabled Horaizan and the home of hermits who had the secret of\nthe elixir, and Jofuku has been worshiped as their patron god.\n\nNow Sentaro determined to set out to find the hermits, and if he could,\nto become one, so that he might obtain the water of perpetual life. He\nremembered that as a child he had been told that not only did these\nhermits live on Mount Fuji, but that they were said to inhabit all the\nvery high peaks.\n\nSo he left his old home to the care of his relatives, and started out\non his quest. He traveled through all the mountainous regions of the\nland, climbing to the tops of the highest peaks, but never a hermit did\nhe find.\n\nAt last, after wandering in an unknown region for many days, he met a\nhunter.\n\n\u201cCan you tell me,\u201d asked Sentaro, \u201cwhere the hermits live who have the\nElixir of Life?\u201d\n\n\u201cNo.\u201d said the hunter; \u201cI can\u2019t tell you where such hermits live, but\nthere is a notorious robber living in these parts. It is said that he\nis chief of a band of two hundred followers.\u201d\n\nThis odd answer irritated Sentaro very much, and he thought how foolish\nit was to waste more time in looking for the hermits in this way, so he\ndecided to go at once to the shrine of Jofuku, who is worshiped as the\npatron god of the hermits in the south of Japan.\n\nSentaro reached the shrine and prayed for seven days, entreating Jofuku\nto show him the way to a hermit who could give him what he wanted so\nmuch to find.\n\nAt midnight of the seventh day, as Sentaro knelt in the temple, the\ndoor of the innermost shrine flew open, and Jofuku appeared in a\nluminous cloud, and calling to Sentaro to come nearer, spoke thus:\n\n\u201cYour desire is a very selfish one and cannot be easily granted. You\nthink that you would like to become a hermit so as to find the Elixir\nof Life. Do you know how hard a hermit\u2019s life is? A hermit is only\nallowed to eat fruit and berries and the bark of pine trees; a hermit\nmust cut himself off from the world so that his heart may become as\npure as gold and free from every earthly desire. Gradually after\nfollowing these strict rules, the hermit ceases to feel hunger or cold\nor heat, and his body becomes so light that he can ride on a crane or a\ncarp, and can walk on water without getting his feet wet.\u201d\n\n\u201cYou, Sentaro, are fond of good living and of every comfort. You are\nnot even like an ordinary man, for you are exceptionally idle, and more\nsensitive to heat and cold than most people. You would never be able to\ngo barefoot or to wear only one thin dress in the winter time! Do you\nthink that you would ever have the patience or the endurance to live a\nhermit\u2019s life?\u201d\n\n\u201cIn answer to your prayer, however, I will help you in another way. I\nwill send you to the country of Perpetual Life, where death never\ncomes\u2014where the people live forever!\u201d\n\nSaying this, Jofuku put into Sentaro\u2019s hand a little crane made of\npaper, telling him to sit on its back and it would carry him there.\n\nSentaro obeyed wonderingly. The crane grew large enough for him to ride\non it with comfort. It then spread its wings, rose high in the air, and\nflew away over the mountains right out to sea.\n\nSentaro was at first quite frightened; but by degrees he grew\naccustomed to the swift flight through the air. On and on they went for\nthousands of miles. The bird never stopped for rest or food, but as it\nwas a paper bird it doubtless did not require any nourishment, and\nstrange to say, neither did Sentaro.\n\nAfter several days they reached an island. The crane flew some distance\ninland and then alighted.\n\nAs soon as Sentaro got down from the bird\u2019s back, the crane folded up\nof its own accord and flew into his pocket.\n\nNow Sentaro began to look about him wonderingly, curious to see what\nthe country of Perpetual Life was like. He walked first round about the\ncountry and then through the town. Everything was, of course, quite\nstrange, and different from his own land. But both the land and the\npeople seemed prosperous, so he decided that it would be good for him\nto stay there and took up lodgings at one of the hotels.\n\nThe proprietor was a kind man, and when Sentaro told him that he was a\nstranger and had come to live there, he promised to arrange everything\nthat was necessary with the governor of the city concerning Sentaro\u2019s\nsojourn there. He even found a house for his guest, and in this way\nSentaro obtained his great wish and became a resident in the country of\nPerpetual Life.\n\nWithin the memory of all the islanders no man had ever died there, and\nsickness was a thing unknown. Priests had come over from India and\nChina and told them of a beautiful country called Paradise, where\nhappiness and bliss and contentment fill all men\u2019s hearts, but its\ngates could only be reached by dying. This tradition was handed down\nfor ages from generation to generation\u2014but none knew exactly what death\nwas except that it led to Paradise.\n\nQuite unlike Sentaro and other ordinary people, instead of having a\ngreat dread of death, they all, both rich and poor, longed for it as\nsomething good and desirable. They were all tired of their long, long\nlives, and longed to go to the happy land of contentment called\nParadise of which the priests had told them centuries ago.\n\nAll this Sentaro soon found out by talking to the islanders. He found\nhimself, according to his ideas, in the land of Topsyturvydom.\nEverything was upside down. He had wished to escape from dying. He had\ncome to the land of Perpetual Life with great relief and joy, only to\nfind that the inhabitants themselves, doomed never to die, would\nconsider it bliss to find death.\n\nWhat he had hitherto considered poison these people ate as good food,\nand all the things to which he had been accustomed as food they\nrejected. Whenever any merchants from other countries arrived, the rich\npeople rushed to them eager to buy poisons. These they swallowed\neagerly, hoping for death to come so that they might go to Paradise.\n\nBut what were deadly poisons in other lands were without effect in this\nstrange place, and people who swallowed them with the hope of dying,\nonly found that in a short time they felt better in health instead of\nworse.\n\nVainly they tried to imagine what death could be like. The wealthy\nwould have given all their money and all their goods if they could but\nshorten their lives to two or three hundred years even. Without any\nchange to live on forever seemed to this people wearisome and sad.\n\nIn the chemist shops there was a drug which was in constant demand,\nbecause after using it for a hundred years, it was supposed to turn the\nhair slightly gray and to bring about disorders of the stomach.\n\nSentaro was astonished to find that the poisonous globe-fish was served\nup in restaurants as a delectable dish, and hawkers in the streets went\nabout selling sauces made of Spanish flies. He never saw any one ill\nafter eating these horrible things, nor did he ever see any one with as\nmuch as a cold.\n\nSentaro was delighted. He said to himself that he would never grow\ntired of living, and that he considered it profane to wish for death.\nHe was the only happy man on the island. For his part he wished to live\nthousands of years and to enjoy life. He set himself up in business,\nand for the present never even dreamed of going back to his native\nland.\n\nAs years went by, however, things did not go as smoothly as at first.\nHe had heavy losses in business, and several times some affairs went\nwrong with his neighbors. This caused him great annoyance.\n\nTime passed like the flight of an arrow for him, for he was busy from\nmorning till night. Three hundred years went by in this monotonous way,\nand then at last he began to grow tired of life in this country, and he\nlonged to see his own land and his old home. However long he lived\nhere, life would always be the same, so was it not foolish and\nwearisome to stay on here forever?\n\nSentaro, in his wish to escape from the country of Perpetual Life,\nrecollected Jofuku, who had helped him before when he was wishing to\nescape from death\u2014and he prayed to the saint to bring him back to his\nown land again.\n\nNo sooner did he pray than the paper crane popped out of his pocket.\nSentaro was amazed to see that it had remained undamaged after all\nthese years. Once more the bird grew and grew till it was large enough\nfor him to mount it. As he did so, the bird spread its wings and flew,\nswiftly out across the sea in the direction of Japan.\n\nSuch was the willfulness of the man\u2019s nature that he looked back and\nregretted all he had left behind. He tried to stop the bird in vain.\nThe crane held on its way for thousands of miles across the ocean.\n\nThen a storm came on, and the wonderful paper crane got damp, crumpled\nup, and fell into the sea. Sentaro fell with it. Very much frightened\nat the thought of being drowned, he cried out loudly to Jofuku to save\nhim. He looked round, but there was no ship in sight. He swallowed a\nquantity of sea-water, which only increased his miserable plight. While\nhe was thus struggling to keep himself afloat, he saw a monstrous shark\nswimming towards him. As it came nearer it opened its huge mouth ready\nto devour him. Sentaro was all but paralyzed with fear now that he felt\nhis end so near, and screamed out as loudly as ever he could to Jofuku\nto come and rescue him.\n\nLo, and behold, Sentaro was awakened by his own screams, to find that\nduring his long prayer he had fallen asleep before the shrine, and that\nall his extraordinary and frightful adventures had been only a wild\ndream. He was in a cold perspiration with fright, and utterly\nbewildered.\n\nSuddenly a bright light came towards him, and in the light stood a\nmessenger. The messenger held a book in his hand, and spoke to Sentaro:\n\n\u201cI am sent to you by Jofuku, who in answer to your prayer, has\npermitted you in a dream to see the land of Perpetual Life. But you\ngrew weary of living there, and begged to be allowed to return to your\nnative land so that you might die. Jofuku, so that he might try you,\nallowed you to drop into the sea, and then sent a shark to swallow you\nup. Your desire for death was not real, for even at that moment you\ncried out loudly and shouted for help.\u201d\n\n\u201cIt is also vain for you to wish to become a hermit, or to find the\nElixir of Life. These things are not for such as you\u2014your life is not\naustere enough. It is best for you to go back to your paternal home,\nand to live a good and industrious life. Never neglect to keep the\nanniversaries of your ancestors, and make it your duty to provide for\nyour children\u2019s future. Thus will you live to a good old age and be\nhappy, but give up the vain desire to escape death, for no man can do\nthat, and by this time you have surely found out that even when selfish\ndesires are granted they do not bring happiness.\u201d\n\n\u201cIn this book I give you there are many precepts good for you to\nknow\u2014if you study them, you will be guided in the way I have pointed\nout to you.\u201d\n\nThe angel disappeared as soon as he had finished speaking, and Sentaro\ntook the lesson to heart. With the book in his hand he returned to his\nold home, and giving up all his old vain wishes, tried to live a good\nand useful life and to observe the lessons taught him in the book, and\nhe and his house prospered henceforth.\n\n\n\n\nTHE BAMBOO-CUTTER AND THE MOON-CHILD\n\n\nLong, long ago, there lived an old bamboo wood-cutter. He was very poor\nand sad also, for no child had Heaven sent to cheer his old age, and in\nhis heart there was no hope of rest from work till he died and was laid\nin the quiet grave. Every morning he went forth into the woods and\nhills wherever the bamboo reared its lithe green plumes against the\nsky. When he had made his choice, he would cut down these feathers of\nthe forest, and splitting them lengthwise, or cutting them into joints,\nwould carry the bamboo wood home and make it into various articles for\nthe household, and he and his old wife gained a small livelihood by\nselling them.\n\nOne morning as usual he had gone out to his work, and having found a\nnice clump of bamboos, had set to work to cut some of them down.\nSuddenly the green grove of bamboos was flooded with a bright soft\nlight, as if the full moon had risen over the spot. Looking round in\nastonishment, he saw that the brilliance was streaming from one bamboo.\nThe old man, full of wonder, dropped his ax and went towards the light.\nOn nearer approach he saw that this soft splendor came from a hollow in\nthe green bamboo stem, and still more wonderful to behold, in the midst\nof the brilliance stood a tiny human being, only three inches in\nheight, and exquisitely beautiful in appearance.\n\n\u201cYou must be sent to be my child, for I find you here among the bamboos\nwhere lies my daily work,\u201d said the old man, and taking the little\ncreature in his hand he took it home to his wife to bring up. The tiny\ngirl was so exceedingly beautiful and so small, that the old woman put\nher into a basket to safeguard her from the least possibility of being\nhurt in any way.\n\nThe old couple were now very happy, for it had been a lifelong regret\nthat they had no children of their own, and with joy they now expended\nall the love of their old age on the little child who had come to them\nin so marvelous a manner.\n\nFrom this time on, the old man often found gold in the notches of the\nbamboos when he hewed them down and cut them up; not only gold, but\nprecious stones also, so that by degrees he became rich. He built\nhimself a fine house, and was no longer known as the poor bamboo\nwoodcutter, but as a wealthy man.\n\nThree months passed quickly away, and in that time the bamboo child\nhad, wonderful to say, become a full-grown girl, so her foster-parents\ndid up her hair and dressed her in beautiful kimonos. She was of such\nwondrous beauty that they placed her behind the screens like a\nprincess, and allowed no one to see her, waiting upon her themselves.\nIt seemed as if she were made of light, for the house was filled with a\nsoft shining, so that even in the dark of night it was like daytime.\nHer presence seemed to have a benign influence on those there. Whenever\nthe old man felt sad, he had only to look upon his foster-daughter and\nhis sorrow vanished, and he became as happy as when he was a youth.\n\nAt last the day came for the naming of their new-found child, so the\nold couple called in a celebrated name-giver, and he gave her the name\nof Princess Moonlight, because her body gave forth so much soft bright\nlight that she might have been a daughter of the Moon God.\n\nFor three days the festival was kept up with song and dance and music.\nAll the friends and relations of the old couple were present, and great\nwas their enjoyment of the festivities held to celebrate the naming of\nPrincess Moonlight. Everyone who saw her declared that there never had\nbeen seen any one so lovely; all the beauties throughout the length and\nbreadth of the land would grow pale beside her, so they said. The fame\nof the Princess\u2019s loveliness spread far and wide, and many were the\nsuitors who desired to win her hand, or even so much as to see her.\n\nSuitors from far and near posted themselves outside the house, and made\nlittle holes in the fence, in the hope of catching a glimpse of the\nPrincess as she went from one room to the other along the veranda. They\nstayed there day and night, sacrificing even their sleep for a chance\nof seeing her, but all in vain. Then they approached the house, and\ntried to speak to the old man and his wife or some of the servants, but\nnot even this was granted them.\n\nStill, in spite of all this disappointment they stayed on day after\nday, and night after night, and counted it as nothing, so great was\ntheir desire to see the Princess.\n\nAt last, however, most of the men, seeing how hopeless their quest was,\nlost heart and hope both, and returned to their homes. All except five\nKnights, whose ardor and determination, instead of waning, seemed to\nwax greater with obstacles. These five men even went without their\nmeals, and took snatches of whatever they could get brought to them, so\nthat they might always stand outside the dwelling. They stood there in\nall weathers, in sunshine and in rain.\n\nSometimes they wrote letters to the Princess, but no answer was\nvouchsafed to them. Then when letters failed to draw any reply, they\nwrote poems to her telling her of the hopeless love which kept them\nfrom sleep, from food, from rest, and even from their homes. Still\nPrinces Moonlight gave no sign of having received their verses.\n\nIn this hopeless state the winter passed. The snow and frost and the\ncold winds gradually gave place to the gentle warmth of spring. Then\nthe summer came, and the sun burned white and scorching in the heavens\nabove and on the earth beneath, and still these faithful Knights kept\nwatch and waited. At the end of these long months they called out to\nthe old bamboo-cutter and entreated him to have some mercy upon them\nand to show them the Princess, but he answered only that as he was not\nher real father he could not insist on her obeying him against her\nwishes.\n\nThe five Knights on receiving this stern answer returned to their\nseveral homes, and pondered over the best means of touching the proud\nPrincess\u2019s heart, even so much as to grant them a hearing. They took\ntheir rosaries in hand and knelt before their household shrines, and\nburned precious incense, praying to Buddha to give them their heart\u2019s\ndesire. Thus several days passed, but even so they could not rest in\ntheir homes.\n\nSo again they set out for the bamboo-cutter\u2019s house. This time the old\nman came out to see them, and they asked him to let them know if it was\nthe Princess\u2019s resolution never to see any man whatsoever, and they\nimplored him to speak for them and to tell her the greatness of their\nlove, and how long they had waited through the cold of winter and the\nheat of summer, sleepless and roofless through all weathers, without\nfood and without rest, in the ardent hope of winning her, and they were\nwilling to consider this long vigil as pleasure if she would but give\nthem one chance of pleading their cause with her.\n\nThe old man lent a willing ear to their tale of love, for in his inmost\nheart he felt sorry for these faithful suitors and would have liked to\nsee his lovely foster-daughter married to one of them. So he went in to\nPrincess Moonlight and said reverently:\n\n\u201cAlthough you have always seemed to me to be a heavenly being, yet I\nhave had the trouble of bringing you up as my own child and you have\nbeen glad of the protection of my roof. Will you refuse to do as I\nwish?\u201d\n\nThen Princess Moonlight replied that there was nothing she would not do\nfor him, that she honored and loved him as her own father, and that as\nfor herself she could not remember the time before she came to earth.\n\nThe old man listened with great joy as she spoke these dutiful words.\nThen he told her how anxious he was to see her safely and happily\nmarried before he died.\n\n\u201cI am an old man, over seventy years of age, and my end may come any\ntime now. It is necessary and right that you should see these five\nsuitors and choose one of them.\u201d\n\n\u201cOh, why,\u201d said the Princess in distress, \u201cmust I do this? I have no\nwish to marry now.\u201d\n\n\u201cI found you,\u201d answered the old man, \u201cmany years ago, when you were a\nlittle creature three inches high, in the midst of a great white light.\nThe light streamed from the bamboo in which you were hid and led me to\nyou. So I have always thought that you were more than mortal woman.\nWhile I am alive it is right for you to remain as you are if you wish\nto do so, but some day I shall cease to be and who will take care of\nyou then? Therefore I pray you to meet these five brave men one at a\ntime and make up your mind to marry one of them!\u201d\n\nThen the Princess answered that she felt sure that she was not as\nbeautiful as perhaps report made her out to be, and that even if she\nconsented to marry any one of them, not really knowing her before, his\nheart might change afterwards. So as she did not feel sure of them,\neven though her father told her they were worthy Knights, she did not\nfeel it wise to see them.\n\n\u201cAll you say is very reasonable,\u201d said the old man, \u201cbut what kind of\nmen will you consent to see? I do not call these five men who have\nwaited on you for months, light-hearted. They have stood outside this\nhouse through the winter and the summer, often denying themselves food\nand sleep so that they may win you. What more can you demand?\u201d\n\nThen Princess Moonlight said she must make further trial of their love\nbefore she would grant their request to interview her. The five\nwarriors were to prove their love by each bringing her from distant\ncountries something that she desired to possess.\n\nThat same evening the suitors arrived and began to play their flutes in\nturn, and to sing their self-composed songs telling of their great and\ntireless love. The bamboo-cutter went out to them and offered them his\nsympathy for all they had endured and all the patience they had shown\nin their desire to win his foster-daughter. Then he gave them her\nmessage, that she would consent to marry whosoever was successful in\nbringing her what she wanted. This was to test them.\n\nThe five all accepted the trial, and thought it an excellent plan, for\nit would prevent jealousy between them.\n\nPrincess Moonlight then sent word to the First Knight that she\nrequested him to bring her the stone bowl which had belonged to Buddha\nin India.\n\nThe Second Knight was asked to go to the Mountain of Horai, said to be\nsituated in the Eastern Sea, and to bring her a branch of the wonderful\ntree that grew on its summit. The roots of this tree were of silver,\nthe trunk of gold, and the branches bore as fruit white jewels.\n\nThe Third Knight was told to go to China and search for the fire-rat\nand to bring her its skin.\n\nThe Fourth Knight was told to search for the dragon that carried on its\nhead the stone radiating five colors and to bring the stone to her.\n\nThe Fifth Knight was to find the swallow which carried a shell in its\nstomach and to bring the shell to her.\n\nThe old man thought these very hard tasks and hesitated to carry the\nmessages, but the Princess would make no other conditions. So her\ncommands were issued word for word to the five men who, when they heard\nwhat was required of them, were all disheartened and disgusted at what\nseemed to them the impossibility of the tasks given them and returned\nto their own homes in despair.\n\nBut after a time, when they thought of the Princess, the love in their\nhearts revived for her, and they resolved to make an attempt to get\nwhat she desired of them.\n\nThe First Knight sent word to the Princess that he was starting out\nthat day on the quest of Buddha\u2019s bowl, and he hoped soon to bring it\nto her. But he had not the courage to go all the way to India, for in\nthose days traveling was very difficult and full of danger, so he went\nto one of the temples in Kyoto and took a stone bowl from the altar\nthere, paying the priest a large sum of money for it. He then wrapped\nit in a cloth of gold and, waiting quietly for three years, returned\nand carried it to the old man.\n\nPrincess Moonlight wondered that the Knight should have returned so\nsoon. She took the bowl from its gold wrapping, expecting it to make\nthe room full of light, but it did not shine at all, so she knew that\nit was a sham thing and not the true bowl of Buddha. She returned it at\nonce and refused to see him. The Knight threw the bowl away and\nreturned to his home in despair. He gave up now all hopes of ever\nwinning the Princess.\n\nThe Second Knight told his parents that he needed change of air for his\nhealth, for he was ashamed to tell them that love for the Princess\nMoonlight was the real cause of his leaving them. He then left his\nhome, at the same time sending word to the Princess that he was setting\nout for Mount Horai in the hope of getting her a branch of the gold and\nsilver tree which she so much wished to have. He only allowed his\nservants to accompany him half-way, and then sent them back. He reached\nthe seashore and embarked on a small ship, and after sailing away for\nthree days he landed and employed several carpenters to build him a\nhouse contrived in such a way that no one could get access to it. He\nthen shut himself up with six skilled jewelers, and endeavored to make\nsuch a gold and silver branch as he thought would satisfy the Princess\nas having come from the wonderful tree growing on Mount Horai. Every\none whom he had asked declared that Mount Horai belonged to the land of\nfable and not to fact.\n\nWhen the branch was finished, he took his journey home and tried to\nmake himself look as if he were wearied and worn out with travel. He\nput the jeweled branch into a lacquer box and carried it to the\nbamboo-cutter, begging him to present it to the Princess.\n\nThe old man was quite deceived by the travel-stained appearance of the\nKnight, and thought that he had only just returned from his long\njourney with the branch. So he tried to persuade the Princess to\nconsent to see the man. But she remained silent and looked very sad.\nThe old man began to take out the branch and praised it as a wonderful\ntreasure to be found nowhere in the whole land. Then he spoke of the\nKnight, how handsome and how brave he was to have undertaken a journey\nto so remote a place as the Mount of Horai.\n\nPrincess Moonlight took the branch in her hand and looked at it\ncarefully. She then told her foster-parent that she knew it was\nimpossible for the man to have obtained a branch from the gold and\nsilver tree growing on Mount Horai so quickly or so easily, and she was\nsorry to say she believed it artificial.\n\nThe old man then went out to the expectant Knight, who had now\napproached the house, and asked where he had found the branch. Then the\nman did not scruple to make up a long story.\n\n\u201cTwo years ago I took a ship and started in search of Mount Horai.\nAfter going before the wind for some time I reached the far Eastern\nSea. Then a great storm arose and I was tossed about for many days,\nlosing all count of the points of the compass, and finally we were\nblown ashore on an unknown island. Here I found the place inhabited by\ndemons who at one time threatened to kill and eat me. However, I\nmanaged to make friends with these horrible creatures, and they helped\nme and my sailors to repair the boat, and I set sail again. Our food\ngave out, and we suffered much from sickness on board. At last, on the\nfive-hundredth day from the day of starting, I saw far off on the\nhorizon what looked like the peak of a mountain. On nearer approach,\nthis proved to be an island, in the center of which rose a high\nmountain. I landed, and after wandering about for two or three days, I\nsaw a shining being coming towards me on the beach, holding in his\nhands a golden bowl. I went up to him and asked him if I had, by good\nchance, found the island of Mount Horai, and he answered:\u201d\n\n\u201c\u2018Yes, this is Mount Horai!\u2019\u201d\n\n\u201cWith much difficulty I climbed to the summit, here stood the golden\ntree growing with silver roots in the ground. The wonders of that\nstrange land are many, and if I began to tell you about them I could\nnever stop. In spite of my wish to stay there long, on breaking off the\nbranch I hurried back. With utmost speed it has taken me four hundred\ndays to get back, and, as you see, my clothes are still damp from\nexposure on the long sea voyage. I have not even waited to change my\nraiment, so anxious was I to bring the branch to the Princess quickly.\u201d\n\nJust at this moment the six jewelers, who had been employed on the\nmaking of the branch, but not yet paid by the Knight, arrived at the\nhouse and sent in a petition to the Princess to be paid for their\nlabor. They said that they had worked for over a thousand days making\nthe branch of gold, with its silver twigs and its jeweled fruit, that\nwas now presented to her by the Knight, but as yet they had received\nnothing in payment. So this Knight\u2019s deception was thus found out, and\nthe Princess, glad of an escape from one more importunate suitor, was\nonly too pleased to send back the branch. She called in the workmen and\nhad them paid liberally, and they went away happy. But on the way home\nthey were overtaken by the disappointed man, who beat them till they\nwere nearly dead, for letting out the secret, and they barely escaped\nwith their lives. The Knight then returned home, raging in his heart;\nand in despair of ever winning the Princess gave up society and retired\nto a solitary life among the mountains.\n\nNow the Third Knight had a friend in China, so he wrote to him to get\nthe skin of the fire-rat. The virtue of any part of this animal was\nthat no fire could harm it. He promised his friend any amount of money\nhe liked to ask if only he could get him the desired article. As soon\nas the news came that the ship on which his friend had sailed home had\ncome into port, he rode seven days on horseback to meet him. He handed\nhis friend a large sum of money, and received the fire-rat\u2019s skin. When\nhe reached home he put it carefully in a box and sent it in to the\nPrincess while he waited outside for her answer.\n\nThe bamboo-cutter took the box from the Knight and, as usual, carried\nit in to her and tried to coax her to see the Knight at once, but\nPrincess Moonlight refused, saying that she must first put the skin to\ntest by putting it into the fire. If it were the real thing it would\nnot burn. So she took off the crape wrapper and opened the box, and\nthen threw the skin into the fire. The skin crackled and burnt up at\nonce, and the Princess knew that this man also had not fulfilled his\nword. So the Third Knight failed also.\n\nNow the Fourth Knight was no more enterprising than the rest. Instead\nof starting out on the quest of the dragon bearing on its head the\nfive-color-radiating jewel, he called all his servants together and\ngave them the order to seek for it far and wide in Japan and in China,\nand he strictly forbade any of them to return till they had found it.\n\nHis numerous retainers and servants started out in different\ndirections, with no intention, however, of obeying what they considered\nan impossible order. They simply took a holiday, went to pleasant\ncountry places together, and grumbled at their master\u2019s\nunreasonableness.\n\nThe Knight meanwhile, thinking that his retainers could not fail to\nfind the jewel, repaired to his house, and fitted it up beautifully for\nthe reception of the Princess, he felt so sure of winning her.\n\nOne year passed away in weary waiting, and still his men did not return\nwith the dragon-jewel. The Knight became desperate. He could wait no\nlonger, so taking with him only two men he hired a ship and commanded\nthe captain to go in search of the dragon; the captain and the sailors\nrefused to undertake what they said was an absurd search, but the\nKnight compelled them at last to put out to sea.\n\nWhen they had been but a few days out they encountered a great storm\nwhich lasted so long that, by the time its fury abated, the Knight had\ndetermined to give up the hunt of the dragon. They were at last blown\non shore, for navigation was primitive in those days. Worn out with his\ntravels and anxiety, the fourth suitor gave himself up to rest. He had\ncaught a very heavy cold, and had to go to bed with a swollen face.\n\nThe governor of the place, hearing of his plight, sent messengers with\na letter inviting him to his house. While he was there thinking over\nall his troubles, his love for the Princess turned to anger, and he\nblamed her for all the hardships he had undergone. He thought that it\nwas quite probable she had wished to kill him so that she might be rid\nof him, and in order to carry out her wish had sent him upon his\nimpossible quest.\n\nAt this point all the servants he had sent out to find the jewel came\nto see him, and were surprised to find praise instead of displeasure\nawaiting them. Their master told them that he was heartily sick of\nadventure, and said that he never intended to go near the Princess\u2019s\nhouse again in the future.\n\nLike all the rest, the Fifth Knight failed in his quest\u2014he could not\nfind the swallow\u2019s shell.\n\nBy this time the fame of Princess Moonlight\u2019s beauty had reached the\nears of the Emperor, and he sent one of the Court ladies to see if she\nwere really as lovely as report said; if so he would summon her to the\nPalace and make her one of the ladies-in-waiting.\n\nWhen the Court lady arrived, in spite of her father\u2019s entreaties,\nPrincess Moonlight refused to see her. The Imperial messenger insisted,\nsaying it was the Emperor\u2019s order. Then Princess Moonlight told the old\nman that if she was forced to go to the Palace in obedience to the\nEmperor\u2019s order, she would vanish from the earth.\n\nWhen the Emperor was told of her persistence in refusing to obey his\nsummons, and that if pressed to obey she would disappear altogether\nfrom sight, he determined to go and see her. So he planned to go on a\nhunting excursion in the neighborhood of the bamboo-cutter\u2019s house, and\nsee the Princess himself. He sent word to the old man of his intention,\nand he received consent to the scheme. The next day the Emperor set out\nwith his retinue, which he soon managed to outride. He found the\nbamboo-cutter\u2019s house and dismounted. He then entered the house and\nwent straight to where the Princess was sitting with her attendant\nmaidens.\n\nNever had he seen any one so wonderfully beautiful, and he could not\nbut look at her, for she was more lovely than any human being as she\nshone in her own soft radiance. When Princess Moonlight became aware\nthat a stranger was looking at her she tried to escape from the room,\nbut the Emperor caught her and begged her to listen to what he had to\nsay. Her only answer was to hide her face in her sleeves.\n\nThe Emperor fell deeply in love with her, and begged her to come to the\nCourt, where he would give her a position of honor and everything she\ncould wish for. He was about to send for one of the Imperial palanquins\nto take her back with him at once, saying that her grace and beauty\nshould adorn a Court, and not be hidden in a bamboo-cutter\u2019s cottage.\n\nBut the Princess stopped him. She said that if she were forced to go to\nthe Palace she would turn at once into a shadow, and even as she spoke\nshe began to lose her form. Her figure faded from his sight while he\nlooked.\n\nThe Emperor then promised to leave her free if only she would resume\nher former shape, which she did.\n\nIt was now time for him to return, for his retinue would be wondering\nwhat had happened to their Royal master when they missed him for so\nlong. So he bade her good-by, and left the house with a sad heart.\nPrincess Moonlight was for him the most beautiful woman in the world;\nall others were dark beside her, and he thought of her night and day.\nHis Majesty now spent much of his time in writing poems, telling her of\nhis love and devotion, and sent them to her, and though she refused to\nsee him again she answered with many verses of her own composing, which\ntold him gently and kindly that she could never marry any one on this\nearth. These little songs always gave him pleasure.\n\nAt this time her foster-parents noticed that night after night the\nPrincess would sit on her balcony and gaze for hours at the moon, in a\nspirit of the deepest dejection, ending always in a burst of tears. One\nnight the old man found her thus weeping as if her heart were broken,\nand he besought her to tell him the reason of her sorrow.\n\nWith many tears she told him that he had guessed rightly when he\nsupposed her not to belong to this world\u2014that she had in truth come\nfrom the moon, and that her time on earth would soon be over. On the\nfifteenth day of that very month of August her friends from the moon\nwould come to fetch her, and she would have to return. Her parents were\nboth there, but having spent a lifetime on the earth she had forgotten\nthem, and also the moon-world to which she belonged. It made her weep,\nshe said, to think of leaving her kind foster-parents, and the home\nwhere she had been happy for so long.\n\nWhen her attendants heard this they were very sad, and could not eat or\ndrink for sadness at the thought that the Princess was so soon to leave\nthem.\n\nThe Emperor, as soon as the news was carried to him, sent messengers to\nthe house to find out if the report were true or not.\n\nThe old bamboo-cutter went out to meet the Imperial messengers. The\nlast few days of sorrow had told upon the old man; he had aged greatly,\nand looked much more than his seventy years. Weeping bitterly, he told\nthem that the report was only too true, but he intended, however, to\nmake prisoners of the envoys from the moon, and to do all he could to\nprevent the Princess from being carried back.\n\nThe men returned and told His Majesty all that had passed. On the\nfifteenth day of that month the Emperor sent a guard of two thousand\nwarriors to watch the house. One thousand stationed themselves on the\nroof, another thousand kept watch round all the entrances of the house.\nAll were well trained archers, with bows and arrows. The bamboo-cutter\nand his wife hid Princess Moonlight in an inner room.\n\nThe old man gave orders that no one was to sleep that night, all in the\nhouse were to keep a strict watch, and be ready to protect the\nPrincess. With these precautions, and the help of the Emperor\u2019s\nmen-at-arms, he hoped to withstand the moon-messengers, but the\nPrincess told him that all these measures to keep her would be useless,\nand that when her people came for her nothing whatever could prevent\nthem from carrying out their purpose. Even the Emperors men would be\npowerless. Then she added with tears that she was very, very sorry to\nleave him and his wife, whom she had learned to love as her parents,\nthat if she could do as she liked she would stay with them in their old\nage, and try to make some return for all the love and kindness they had\nshowered upon her during all her earthly life.\n\nThe night wore on! The yellow harvest moon rose high in the heavens,\nflooding the world asleep with her golden light. Silence reigned over\nthe pine and the bamboo forests, and on the roof where the thousand\nmen-at-arms waited.\n\nThen the night grew gray towards the dawn and all hoped that the danger\nwas over\u2014that Princess Moonlight would not have to leave them after\nall. Then suddenly the watchers saw a cloud form round the moon\u2014and\nwhile they looked this cloud began to roll earthwards. Nearer and\nnearer it came, and every one saw with dismay that its course lay\ntowards the house.\n\nIn a short time the sky was entirely obscured, till at last the cloud\nlay over the dwelling only ten feet off the ground. In the midst of the\ncloud there stood a flying chariot, and in the chariot a band of\nluminous beings. One amongst them who looked like a king and appeared\nto be the chief stepped out of the chariot, and, poised in air, called\nto the old man to come out.\n\n\u201cThe time has come,\u201d he said, \u201cfor Princess Moonlight to return to the\nmoon from whence she came. She committed a grave fault, and as a\npunishment was sent to live down here for a time. We know what good\ncare you have taken of the Princess, and we have rewarded you for this\nand have sent you wealth and prosperity. We put the gold in the bamboos\nfor you to find.\u201d\n\n\u201cI have brought up this Princess for twenty years and never once has\nshe done a wrong thing, therefore the lady you are seeking cannot be\nthis one,\u201d said the old man. \u201cI pray you to look elsewhere.\u201d\n\nThen the messenger called aloud, saying:\n\n\u201cPrincess Moonlight, come out from this lowly dwelling. Rest not here\nanother moment.\u201d\n\nAt these words the screens of the Princess\u2019s room slid open of their\nown accord, revealing the Princess shining in her own radiance, bright\nand wonderful and full of beauty.\n\nThe messenger led her forth and placed her in the chariot. She looked\nback, and saw with pity the deep sorrow of the old man. She spoke to\nhim many comforting words, and told him that it was not her will to\nleave him and that he must always think of her when looking at the\nmoon.\n\nThe bamboo-cutter implored to be allowed to accompany her, but this was\nnot allowed. The Princess took off her embroidered outer garment and\ngave it to him as a keepsake.\n\nOne of the moon beings in the chariot held a wonderful coat of wings,\nanother had a phial full of the Elixir of Life which was given the\nPrincess to drink. She swallowed a little and was about to give the\nrest to the old man, but she was prevented from doing so.\n\nThe robe of wings was about to be put upon her shoulders, but she said:\n\n\u201cWait a little. I must not forget my good friend the Emperor. I must\nwrite him once more to say good-by while still in this human form.\u201d\n\nIn spite of the impatience of the messengers and charioteers she kept\nthem waiting while she wrote. She placed the phial of the Elixir of\nLife with the letter, and, giving them to the old man, she asked him to\ndeliver them to the Emperor.\n\nThen the chariot began to roll heavenwards towards the moon, and as\nthey all gazed with tearful eyes at the receding Princess, the dawn\nbroke, and in the rosy light of day the moon-chariot and all in it were\nlost amongst the fleecy clouds that were now wafted across the sky on\nthe wings of the morning wind.\n\nPrincess Moonlight\u2019s letter was carried to the Palace. His Majesty was\nafraid to touch the Elixir of Life, so he sent it with the letter to\nthe top of the most sacred mountain in the land. Mount Fuji, and there\nthe Royal emissaries burnt it on the summit at sunrise. So to this day\npeople say there is smoke to be seen rising from the top of Mount Fuji\nto the clouds.\n\n\n\n\nTHE MIRROR OF MATSUYAMA\nA STORY OF OLD JAPAN\n\n\nLong years ago in old Japan there lived in the Province of Echigo, a\nvery remote part of Japan even in these days, a man and his wife. When\nthis story begins they had been married for some years and were blessed\nwith one little daughter. She was the joy and pride of both their\nlives, and in her they stored an endless source of happiness for their\nold age.\n\nWhat golden letter days in their memory were these that had marked her\ngrowing up from babyhood; the visit to the temple when she was just\nthirty days old, her proud mother carrying her, robed in ceremonial\nkimono, to be put under the patronage of the family\u2019s household god;\nthen her first dolls festival, when her parents gave her a set of dolls\nand their miniature belongings, to be added to as year succeeded year;\nand perhaps the most important occasion of all, on her third birthday,\nwhen her first OBI (broad brocade sash) of scarlet and gold was tied\nround her small waist, a sign that she had crossed the threshold of\ngirlhood and left infancy behind. Now that she was seven years of age,\nand had learned to talk and to wait upon her parents in those several\nlittle ways so dear to the hearts of fond parents, their cup of\nhappiness seemed full. There could not be found in the whole of the\nIsland Empire a happier little family.\n\nOne day there was much excitement in the home, for the father had been\nsuddenly summoned to the capital on business. In these days of railways\nand jinrickshas and other rapid modes of traveling, it is difficult to\nrealize what such a journey as that from Matsuyama to Kyoto meant. The\nroads were rough and bad, and ordinary people had to walk every step of\nthe way, whether the distance were one hundred or several hundred\nmiles. Indeed, in those days it was as great an undertaking to go up to\nthe capital as it is for a Japanese to make a voyage to Europe now.\n\nSo the wife was very anxious while she helped her husband get ready for\nthe long journey, knowing what an arduous task lay before him. Vainly\nshe wished that she could accompany him, but the distance was too great\nfor the mother and child to go, and besides that, it was the wife\u2019s\nduty to take care of the home.\n\nAll was ready at last, and the husband stood in the porch with his\nlittle family round him.\n\n\u201cDo not be anxious, I will come back soon,\u201d said the man. \u201cWhile I am\naway take care of everything, and especially of our little daughter.\u201d\n\n\u201cYes, we shall be all right\u2014but you\u2014you must take care of yourself and\ndelay not a day in coming back to us,\u201d said the wife, while the tears\nfell like rain from her eyes.\n\nThe little girl was the only one to smile, for she was ignorant of the\nsorrow of parting, and did not know that going to the capital was at\nall different from walking to the next village, which her father did\nvery often. She ran to his side, and caught hold of his long sleeve to\nkeep him a moment.\n\n\u201cFather, I will be very good while I am waiting for you to come back,\nso please bring me a present.\u201d\n\nAs the father turned to take a last look at his weeping wife and\nsmiling, eager child, he felt as if some one were pulling him back by\nthe hair, so hard was it for him to leave them behind, for they had\nnever been separated before. But he knew that he must go, for the call\nwas imperative. With a great effort he ceased to think, and resolutely\nturning away he went quickly down the little garden and out through the\ngate. His wife, catching up the child in her arms, ran as far as the\ngate, and watched him as he went down the road between the pines till\nhe was lost in the haze of the distance and all she could see was his\nquaint peaked hat, and at last that vanished too.\n\n\u201cNow father has gone, you and I must take care of everything till he\ncomes back,\u201d said the mother, as she made her way back to the house.\n\n\u201cYes, I will be very good,\u201d said the child, nodding her head, \u201cand when\nfather comes home please tell him how good I have been, and then\nperhaps he will give me a present.\u201d\n\n\u201cFather is sure to bring you something that you want very much. I know,\nfor I asked him to bring you a doll. You must think of father every\nday, and pray for a safe journey till he comes back.\u201d\n\n\u201cO, yes, when he comes home again how happy I shall be,\u201d said the\nchild, clapping her hands, and her face growing bright with joy at the\nglad thought. It seemed to the mother as she looked at the child\u2019s face\nthat her love for her grew deeper and deeper.\n\nThen she set to work to make the winter clothes for the three of them.\nShe set up her simple wooden spinning-wheel and spun the thread before\nshe began to weave the stuffs. In the intervals of her work she\ndirected the little girl\u2019s games and taught her to read the old stories\nof her country. Thus did the wife find consolation in work during the\nlonely days of her husband\u2019s absence. While the time was thus slipping\nquickly by in the quiet home, the husband finished his business and\nreturned.\n\nIt would have been difficult for any one who did not know the man well\nto recognize him. He had traveled day after day, exposed to all\nweathers, for about a month altogether, and was sunburnt to bronze, but\nhis fond wife and child knew him at a glance, and flew to meet him from\neither side, each catching hold of one of his sleeves in their eager\ngreeting. Both the man and his wife rejoiced to find each other well.\nIt seemed a very long time to all till\u2014the mother and child helping\u2014his\nstraw sandals were untied, his large umbrella hat taken off, and he was\nagain in their midst in the old familiar sitting-room that had been so\nempty while he was away.\n\nAs soon as they had sat down on the white mats, the father opened a\nbamboo basket that he had brought in with him, and took out a beautiful\ndoll and a lacquer box full of cakes.\n\n\u201cHere,\u201d he said to the little girl, \u201cis a present for you. It is a\nprize for taking care of mother and the house so well while I was\naway.\u201d\n\n\u201cThank you,\u201d said the child, as she bowed her head to the ground, and\nthen put out her hand just like a little maple leaf with its eager\nwide-spread fingers to take the doll and the box, both of which, coming\nfrom the capital, were prettier than anything she had ever seen. No\nwords can tell how delighted the little girl was\u2014her face seemed as if\nit would melt with joy, and she had no eyes and no thought for anything\nelse.\n\nAgain the husband dived into the basket, and brought out this time a\nsquare wooden box, carefully tied up with red and white string, and\nhanding it to his wife, said:\n\n\u201cAnd this is for you.\u201d\n\nThe wife took the box, and opening it carefully took out a metal disk\nwith a handle attached. One side was bright and shining like a crystal,\nand the other was covered with raised figures of pine-trees and storks,\nwhich had been carved out of its smooth surface in lifelike reality.\nNever had she seen such a thing in her life, for she had been born and\nbred in the rural province of Echigo. She gazed into the shining disk,\nand looking up with surprise and wonder pictured on her face, she said:\n\n\u201cI see somebody looking at me in this round thing! What is it that you\nhave given me?\u201d\n\nThe husband laughed and said:\n\n\u201cWhy, it is your own face that you see. What I have brought you is\ncalled a mirror, and whoever looks into its clear surface can see their\nown form reflected there. Although there are none to be found in this\nout of the way place, yet they have been in use in the capital from the\nmost ancient times. There the mirror is considered a very necessary\nrequisite for a woman to possess. There is an old proverb that \u2018As the\nsword is the soul of a samurai, so is the mirror the soul of a woman,\u2019\nand according to popular tradition, a woman\u2019s mirror is an index to her\nown heart\u2014if she keeps it bright and clear, so is her heart pure and\ngood. It is also one of the treasures that form the insignia of the\nEmperor. So you must lay great store by your mirror, and use it\ncarefully.\u201d\n\nThe wife listened to all her husband told her, and was pleased at\nlearning so much that was new to her. She was still more pleased at the\nprecious gift\u2014his token of remembrance while he had been away.\n\n\u201cIf the mirror represents my soul, I shall certainly treasure it as a\nvaluable possession, and never will I use it carelessly.\u201d Saying so,\nshe lifted it as high as her forehead, in grateful acknowledgment of\nthe gift, and then shut it up in its box and put it away.\n\nThe wife saw that her husband was very tired, and set about serving the\nevening meal and making everything as comfortable as she could for him.\nIt seemed to the little family as if they had not known what true\nhappiness was before, so glad were they to be together again, and this\nevening the father had much to tell of his journey and of all he had\nseen at the great capital.\n\nTime passed away in the peaceful home, and the parents saw their\nfondest hopes realized as their daughter grew from childhood into a\nbeautiful girl of sixteen. As a gem of priceless value is held in its\nproud owner\u2019s hand, so had they reared her with unceasing love and\ncare: and now their pains were more than doubly rewarded. What a\ncomfort she was to her mother as she went about the house taking her\npart in the housekeeping, and how proud her father was of her, for she\ndaily reminded him of her mother when he had first married her.\n\nBut, alas! in this world nothing lasts forever. Even the moon is not\nalways perfect in shape, but loses its roundness with time, and flowers\nbloom and then fade. So at last the happiness of this family was broken\nup by a great sorrow. The good and gentle wife and mother was one day\ntaken ill.\n\nIn the first days of her illness the father and daughter thought that\nit was only a cold, and were not particularly anxious. But the days\nwent by and still the mother did not get better; she only grew worse,\nand the doctor was puzzled, for in spite of all he did the poor woman\ngrew weaker day by day. The father and daughter were stricken with\ngrief, and day or night the girl never left her mother\u2019s side. But in\nspite of all their efforts the woman\u2019s life was not to be saved.\n\nOne day as the girl sat near her mother\u2019s bed, trying to hide with a\ncheery smile the gnawing trouble at her heart, the mother roused\nherself and taking her daughter\u2019s hand, gazed earnestly and lovingly\ninto her eyes. Her breath was labored and she spoke with difficulty:\n\n\u201cMy daughter. I am sure that nothing can save me now. When I am dead,\npromise me to take care of your dear father and to try to be a good and\ndutiful woman.\u201d\n\n\u201cOh, mother,\u201d said the girl as the tears rushed to her eyes, \u201cyou must\nnot say such things. All you have to do is to make haste and get\nwell\u2014that will bring the greatest happiness to father and myself.\u201d\n\n\u201cYes, I know, and it is a comfort to me in my last days to know how\ngreatly you long for me to get better, but it is not to be. Do not look\nso sorrowful, for it was so ordained in my previous state of existence\nthat I should die in this life just at this time; knowing this, I am\nquite resigned to my fate. And now I have something to give you whereby\nto remember me when I am gone.\u201d\n\nPutting her hand out, she took from the side of the pillow a square\nwooden box tied up with a silken cord and tassels. Undoing this very\ncarefully, she took out of the box the mirror that her husband had\ngiven her years ago.\n\n\u201cWhen you were still a little child your father went up to the capital\nand brought me back as a present this treasure; it is called a mirror.\nThis I give you before I die. If, after I have ceased to be in this\nlife, you are lonely and long to see me sometimes, then take out this\nmirror and in the clear and shining surface you will always see me\u2014so\nwill you be able to meet with me often and tell me all your heart; and\nthough I shall not be able to speak, I shall understand and sympathize\nwith you, whatever may happen to you in the future.\u201d With these words\nthe dying woman handed the mirror to her daughter.\n\nThe mind of the good mother seemed to be now at rest, and sinking back\nwithout another word her spirit passed quietly away that day.\n\nThe bereaved father and daughter were wild with grief, and they\nabandoned themselves to their bitter sorrow. They felt it to be\nimpossible to take leave of the loved woman who till now had filled\ntheir whole lives and to commit her body to the earth. But this frantic\nburst of grief passed, and then they took possession of their own\nhearts again, crushed though they were in resignation. In spite of this\nthe daughter\u2019s life seemed to her desolate. Her love for her dead\nmother did not grow less with time, and so keen was her remembrance,\nthat everything in daily life, even the falling of the rain and the\nblowing of the wind, reminded her of her mother\u2019s death and of all that\nthey had loved and shared together. One day when her father was out,\nand she was fulfilling her household duties alone, her loneliness and\nsorrow seemed more than she could bear. She threw herself down in her\nmother\u2019s room and wept as if her heart would break. Poor child, she\nlonged just for one glimpse of the loved face, one sound of the voice\ncalling her pet name, or for one moment\u2019s forgetfulness of the aching\nvoid in her heart. Suddenly she sat up. Her mother\u2019s last words had\nrung through her memory hitherto dulled by grief.\n\n\u201cOh! my mother told me when she gave me the mirror as a parting gift,\nthat whenever I looked into it I should be able to meet her\u2014to see her.\nI had nearly forgotten her last words\u2014how stupid I am; I will get the\nmirror now and see if it can possibly be true!\u201d\n\nShe dried her eyes quickly, and going to the cupboard took out the box\nthat contained the mirror, her heart beating with expectation as she\nlifted the mirror out and gazed into its smooth face. Behold, her\nmother\u2019s words were true! In the round mirror before her she saw her\nmother\u2019s face; but, oh, the joyful surprise! It was not her mother thin\nand wasted by illness, but the young and beautiful woman as she\nremembered her far back in the days of her own earliest childhood. It\nseemed to the girl that the face in the mirror must soon speak, almost\nthat she heard the voice of her mother telling her again to grow up a\ngood woman and a dutiful daughter, so earnestly did the eyes in the\nmirror look back into her own.\n\n\u201cIt is certainly my mother\u2019s soul that I see. She knows how miserable I\nam without her and she has come to comfort me. Whenever I long to see\nher she will meet me here; how grateful I ought to be!\u201d\n\nAnd from this time the weight of sorrow was greatly lightened for her\nyoung heart. Every morning, to gather strength for the day\u2019s duties\nbefore her, and every evening, for consolation before she lay down to\nrest, did the young girl take out the mirror and gaze at the reflection\nwhich in the simplicity of her innocent heart she believed to be her\nmother\u2019s soul. Daily she grew in the likeness of her dead mother\u2019s\ncharacter, and was gentle and kind to all, and a dutiful daughter to\nher father.\n\nA year spent in mourning had thus passed away in the little household,\nwhen, by the advice of his relations, the man married again, and the\ndaughter now found herself under the authority of a step-mother. It was\na trying position; but her days spent in the recollection of her own\nbeloved mother, and of trying to be what that mother would wish her to\nbe, had made the young girl docile and patient, and she now determined\nto be filial and dutiful to her father\u2019s wife, in all respects.\nEverything went on apparently smoothly in the family for some time\nunder the new regime; there were no winds or waves of discord to ruffle\nthe surface of every-day life, and the father was content.\n\nBut it is a woman\u2019s danger to be petty and mean, and step-mothers are\nproverbial all the world over, and this one\u2019s heart was not as her\nfirst smiles were. As the days and weeks grew into months, the\nstep-mother began to treat the motherless girl unkindly and to try and\ncome between the father and child.\n\nSometimes she went to her husband and complained of her step-daughter\u2019s\nbehavior, but the father knowing that this was to be expected, took no\nnotice of her ill-natured complaints. Instead of lessening his\naffection for his daughter, as the woman desired, her grumblings only\nmade him think of her the more. The woman soon saw that he began to\nshow more concern for his lonely child than before. This did not please\nher at all, and she began to turn over in her mind how she could, by\nsome means or other, drive her step-child out of the house. So crooked\ndid the woman\u2019s heart become.\n\nShe watched the girl carefully, and one day peeping into her room in\nthe early morning, she thought she discovered a grave enough sin of\nwhich to accuse the child to her father. The woman herself was a little\nfrightened too at what she had seen.\n\nSo she went at once to her husband, and wiping away some false tears\nshe said in a sad voice:\n\n\u201cPlease give me permission to leave you today.\u201d\n\nThe man was completely taken by surprise at the suddenness of her\nrequest, and wondered whatever was the matter.\n\n\u201cDo you find it so disagreeable,\u201d he asked, \u201cin my house, that you can\nstay no longer?\u201d\n\n\u201cNo! no! it has nothing to do with you\u2014even in my dreams I have never\nthought that I wished to leave your side; but if I go on living here I\nam in danger of losing my life, so I think it best for all concerned\nthat you should allow me to go home!\u201d\n\nAnd the woman began to weep afresh. Her husband, distressed to see her\nso unhappy, and thinking that he could not have heard aright, said:\n\n\u201cTell me what you mean! How is your life in danger here?\u201d\n\n\u201cI will tell you since you ask me. Your daughter dislikes me as her\nstep-mother. For some time past she has shut herself up in her room\nmorning and evening, and looking in as I pass by, I am convinced that\nshe has made an image of me and is trying to kill me by magic art,\ncursing me daily. It is not safe for me to stay here, such being the\ncase; indeed, indeed, I must go away, we cannot live under the same\nroof any more.\u201d\n\nThe husband listened to the dreadful tale, but he could not believe his\ngentle daughter guilty of such an evil act. He knew that by popular\nsuperstition people believed that one person could cause the gradual\ndeath of another by making an image of the hated one and cursing it\ndaily; but where had his young daughter learned such knowledge?\u2014the\nthing was impossible. Yet he remembered having noticed that his\ndaughter stayed much in her room of late and kept herself away from\nevery one, even when visitors came to the house. Putting this fact\ntogether with his wife\u2019s alarm, he thought that there might be\nsomething to account for the strange story.\n\nHis heart was torn between doubting his wife and trusting his child,\nand he knew not what to do. He decided to go at once to his daughter\nand try to find out the truth. Comforting his wife and assuring her\nthat her fears were groundless, he glided quietly to his daughter\u2019s\nroom.\n\nThe girl had for a long time past been very unhappy. She had tried by\namiability and obedience to show her goodwill and to mollify the new\nwife, and to break down that wall of prejudice and misunderstanding\nthat she knew generally stood between step-parents and their\nstep-children. But she soon found that her efforts were in vain. The\nstep-mother never trusted her, and seemed to misinterpret all her\nactions, and the poor child knew very well that she often carried\nunkind and untrue tales to her father. She could not help comparing her\npresent unhappy condition with the time when her own mother was alive\nonly a little more than a year ago\u2014so great a change in this short\ntime! Morning and evening she wept over the remembrance. Whenever she\ncould she went to her room, and sliding the screens to, took out the\nmirror and gazed, as she thought, at her mother\u2019s face. It was the only\ncomfort that she had in these wretched days.\n\nHer father found her occupied in this way. Pushing aside the fusama, he\nsaw her bending over something or other very intently. Looking over her\nshoulder, to see who was entering her room, the girl was surprised to\nsee her father, for he generally sent for her when he wished to speak\nto her. She was also confused at being found looking at the mirror, for\nshe had never told any one of her mother\u2019s last promise, but had kept\nit as the sacred secret of her heart. So before turning to her father\nshe slipped the mirror into her long sleeve. Her father noting her\nconfusion, and her act of hiding something, said in a severe manner:\n\n\u201cDaughter, what are you doing here? And what is that that you have\nhidden in your sleeve?\u201d\n\nThe girl was frightened by her father\u2019s severity. Never had he spoken\nto her in such a tone. Her confusion changed to apprehension, her color\nfrom scarlet to white. She sat dumb and shamefaced, unable to reply.\n\nAppearances were certainly against her; the young girl looked guilty,\nand the father thinking that perhaps after all what his wife had told\nhim was true, spoke angrily:\n\n\u201cThen, is it really true that you are daily cursing your step-mother\nand praying for her death? Have you forgotten what I told you, that\nalthough she is your step-mother you must be obedient and loyal to her?\nWhat evil spirit has taken possession of your heart that you should be\nso wicked? You have certainly changed, my daughter! What has made you\nso disobedient and unfaithful?\u201d\n\nAnd the father\u2019s eyes filled with sudden tears to think that he should\nhave to upbraid his daughter in this way.\n\nShe on her part did not know what he meant, for she had never heard of\nthe superstition that by praying over an image it is possible to cause\nthe death of a hated person. But she saw that she must speak and clear\nherself somehow. She loved her father dearly, and could not bear the\nidea of his anger. She put out her hand on his knee deprecatingly:\n\n\u201cFather! father! do not say such dreadful things to me. I am still your\nobedient child. Indeed, I am. However stupid I may be, I should never\nbe able to curse any one who belonged to you, much less pray for the\ndeath of one you love. Surely some one has been telling you lies, and\nyou are dazed, and you know not what you say\u2014or some evil spirit has\ntaken possession of YOUR heart. As for me I do not know\u2014no, not so much\nas a dew-drop, of the evil thing of which you accuse me.\u201d\n\nBut the father remembered that she had hidden something away when he\nfirst entered the room, and even this earnest protest did not satisfy\nhim. He wished to clear up his doubts once for all.\n\n\u201cThen why are you always alone in your room these days? And tell me\nwhat is that that you have hidden in your sleeve\u2014show it to me at\nonce.\u201d\n\nThen the daughter, though shy of confessing how she had cherished her\nmother\u2019s memory, saw that she must tell her father all in order to\nclear herself. So she slipped the mirror out from her long sleeve and\nlaid it before him.\n\n\u201cThis,\u201d she said, \u201cis what you saw me looking at just now.\u201d\n\n\u201cWhy,\u201d he said in great surprise, \u201cthis is the mirror that I brought as\na gift to your mother when I went up to the capital many years ago! And\nso you have kept it all this time? Now, why do you spend so much of\nyour time before this mirror?\u201d\n\nThen she told him of her mother\u2019s last words, and of how she had\npromised to meet her child whenever she looked into the glass. But\nstill the father could not understand the simplicity of his daughter\u2019s\ncharacter in not knowing that what she saw reflected in the mirror was\nin reality her own face, and not that of her mother.\n\n\u201cWhat do you mean?\u201d he asked. \u201cI do not understand how you can meet the\nsoul of your lost mother by looking in this mirror?\u201d\n\n\u201cIt is indeed true,\u201d said the girl: \u201cand if you don\u2019t believe what I\nsay, look for yourself,\u201d and she placed the mirror before her. There,\nlooking back from the smooth metal disk, was her own sweet face. She\npointed to the reflection seriously:\n\n\u201cDo you doubt me still?\u201d she asked earnestly, looking up into his face.\n\nWith an exclamation of sudden understanding the father smote his two\nhands together.\n\n\u201cHow stupid I am! At last I understand. Your face is as like your\nmother\u2019s as the two sides of a melon\u2014thus you have looked at the\nreflection of your face all this time, thinking that you were brought\nface to face with your lost mother! You are truly a faithful child. It\nseems at first a stupid thing to have done, but it is not really so, It\nshows how deep has been your filial piety, and how innocent your heart.\nLiving in constant remembrance of your lost mother has helped you to\ngrow like her in character. How clever it was of her to tell you to do\nthis. I admire and respect you, my daughter, and I am ashamed to think\nthat for one instant I believed your suspicious step-mother\u2019s story and\nsuspected you of evil, and came with the intention of scolding you\nseverely, while all this time you have been so true and good. Before\nyou I have no countenance left, and I beg you to forgive me.\u201d\n\nAnd here the father wept. He thought of how lonely the poor girl must\nhave been, and of all that she must have suffered under her\nstep-mother\u2019s treatment. His daughter steadfastly keeping her faith and\nsimplicity in the midst of such adverse circumstances\u2014bearing all her\ntroubles with so much patience and amiability\u2014made him compare her to\nthe lotus which rears its blossom of dazzling beauty out of the slime\nand mud of the moats and ponds, fitting emblem of a heart which keeps\nitself unsullied while passing through the world.\n\nThe step-mother, anxious to know what would happen, had all this while\nbeen standing outside the room. She had grown interested, and had\ngradually pushed the sliding screen back till she could see all that\nwent on. At this moment she suddenly entered the room, and dropping to\nthe mats, she bowed her head over her outspread hands before her\nstep-daughter.\n\n\u201cI am ashamed! I am ashamed!\u201d she exclaimed in broken tones. \u201cI did not\nknow what a filial child you were. Through no fault of yours, but with\na step-mother\u2019s jealous heart, I have disliked you all the time. Hating\nyou so much myself, it was but natural that I should think you\nreciprocated the feeling, and thus when I saw you retire so often to\nyour room I followed you, and when I saw you gaze daily into the mirror\nfor long intervals, I concluded that you had found out how I disliked\nyou, and that you were out of revenge trying to take my life by magic\nart. As long as I live I shall never forget the wrong I have done you\nin so misjudging you, and in causing your father to suspect you. From\nthis day I throw away my old and wicked heart, and in its place I put a\nnew one, clean and full of repentance. I shall think of you as a child\nthat I have borne myself. I shall love and cherish you with all my\nheart, and thus try to make up for all the unhappiness I have caused\nyou. Therefore, please throw into the water all that has gone before,\nand give me, I beg of you, some of the filial love that you have\nhitherto given to your own lost mother.\u201d\n\nThus did the unkind step-mother humble herself and ask forgiveness of\nthe girl she had so wronged.\n\nSuch was the sweetness of the girl\u2019s disposition that she willingly\nforgave her step-mother, and never bore a moment\u2019s resentment or malice\ntowards her afterwards. The father saw by his wife\u2019s face that she was\ntruly sorry for the past, and was greatly relieved to see the terrible\nmisunderstanding wiped out of remembrance by both the wrong-doer and\nthe wronged.\n\nFrom this time on, the three lived together as happily as fish in\nwater. No such trouble ever darkened the home again, and the young girl\ngradually forgot that year of unhappiness in the tender love and care\nthat her step-mother now bestowed on her. Her patience and goodness\nwere rewarded at last.\n\n\n\n\nTHE GOBLIN OF ADACHIGAHARA\n\n\nLong, long ago there was a large plain called Adachigahara, in the\nprovince of Mutsu in Japan. This place was said to be haunted by a\ncannibal goblin who took the form of an old woman. From time to time\nmany travelers disappeared and were never heard of more, and the old\nwomen round the charcoal braziers in the evenings, and the girls\nwashing the household rice at the wells in the mornings, whispered\ndreadful stories of how the missing folk had been lured to the goblin\u2019s\ncottage and devoured, for the goblin lived only on human flesh. No one\ndared to venture near the haunted spot after sunset, and all those who\ncould, avoided it in the daytime, and travelers were warned of the\ndreaded place.\n\nOne day as the sun was setting, a priest came to the plain. He was a\nbelated traveler, and his robe showed that he was a Buddhist pilgrim\nwalking from shrine to shrine to pray for some blessing or to crave for\nforgiveness of sins. He had apparently lost his way, and as it was late\nhe met no one who could show him the road or warn him of the haunted\nspot.\n\nHe had walked the whole day and was now tired and hungry, and the\nevenings were chilly, for it was late autumn, and he began to be very\nanxious to find some house where he could obtain a night\u2019s lodging. He\nfound himself lost in the midst of the large plain, and looked about in\nvain for some sign of human habitation.\n\nAt last, after wandering about for some hours, he saw a clump of trees\nin the distance, and through the trees he caught sight of the glimmer\nof a single ray of light. He exclaimed with joy:\n\n\u201cOh. surely that is some cottage where I can get a night\u2019s lodging!\u201d\n\nKeeping the light before his eyes he dragged his weary, aching feet as\nquickly as he could towards the spot, and soon came to a\nmiserable-looking little cottage. As he drew near he saw that it was in\na tumble-down condition, the bamboo fence was broken and weeds and\ngrass pushed their way through the gaps. The paper screens which serve\nas windows and doors in Japan were full of holes, and the posts of the\nhouse were bent with age and seemed scarcely able to support the old\nthatched roof. The hut was open, and by the light of an old lantern an\nold woman sat industriously spinning.\n\nThe pilgrim called to her across the bamboo fence and said:\n\n\u201cO Baa San (old woman), good evening! I am a traveler! Please excuse\nme, but I have lost my way and do not know what to do, for I have\nnowhere to rest to-night. I beg you to be good enough to let me spend\nthe night under your roof.\u201d\n\nThe old woman as soon as she heard herself spoken to stopped spinning,\nrose from her seat and approached the intruder.\n\n\u201cI am very sorry for you. You must indeed be distressed to have lost\nyour way in such a lonely spot so late at night. Unfortunately I cannot\nput you up, for I have no bed to offer you, and no accommodation\nwhatsoever for a guest in this poor place!\u201d\n\n\u201cOh, that does not matter,\u201d said the priest; \u201call I want is a shelter\nunder some roof for the night, and if you will be good enough just to\nlet me lie on the kitchen floor I shall be grateful. I am too tired to\nwalk further to-night, so I hope you will not refuse me, otherwise I\nshall have to sleep out on the cold plain.\u201d And in this way he pressed\nthe old woman to let him stay.\n\nShe seemed very reluctant, but at last she said:\n\n\u201cVery well, I will let you stay here. I can offer you a very poor\nwelcome only, but come in now and I will make a fire, for the night is\ncold.\u201d\n\nThe pilgrim was only too glad to do as he was told. He took off his\nsandals and entered the hut. The old woman then brought some sticks of\nwood and lit the fire, and bade her guest draw near and warm himself.\n\n\u201cYou must be hungry after your long tramp,\u201d said the old woman. \u201cI will\ngo and cook some supper for you.\u201d She then went to the kitchen to cook\nsome rice.\n\nAfter the priest had finished his supper the old woman sat down by the\nfire-place, and they talked together for a long time. The pilgrim\nthought to himself that he had been very lucky to come across such a\nkind, hospitable old woman. At last the wood gave out, and as the fire\ndied slowly down he began to shiver with cold just as he had done when\nhe arrived.\n\n\u201cI see you are cold,\u201d said the old woman; \u201cI will go out and gather\nsome wood, for we have used it all. You must stay and take care of the\nhouse while I am gone.\u201d\n\n\u201cNo, no,\u201d said the pilgrim, \u201clet me go instead, for you are old, and I\ncannot think of letting you go out to get wood for me this cold night!\u201d\n\nThe old woman shook her head and said:\n\n\u201cYou must stay quietly here, for you are my guest.\u201d Then she left him\nand went out.\n\nIn a minute she came back and said:\n\n\u201cYou must sit where you are and not move, and whatever happens don\u2019t go\nnear or look into the inner room. Now mind what I tell you!\u201d\n\n\u201cIf you tell me not to go near the back room, of course I won\u2019t,\u201d said\nthe priest, rather bewildered.\n\nThe old woman then went out again, and the priest was left alone. The\nfire had died out, and the only light in the hut was that of a dim\nlantern. For the first time that night he began to feel that he was in\na weird place, and the old woman\u2019s words, \u201cWhatever you do don\u2019t peep\ninto the back room,\u201d aroused his curiosity and his fear.\n\nWhat hidden thing could be in that room that she did not wish him to\nsee? For some time the remembrance of his promise to the old woman kept\nhim still, but at last he could no longer resist his curiosity to peep\ninto the forbidden place.\n\nHe got up and began to move slowly towards the back room. Then the\nthought that the old woman would be very angry with him if he disobeyed\nher made him come back to his place by the fireside.\n\nAs the minutes went slowly by and the old woman did not return, he\nbegan to feel more and more frightened, and to wonder what dreadful\nsecret was in the room behind him. He must find out.\n\n\u201cShe will not know that I have looked unless I tell her. I will just\nhave a peep before she comes back,\u201d said the man to himself.\n\nWith these words he got up on his feet (for he had been sitting all\nthis time in Japanese fashion with his feet under him) and stealthily\ncrept towards the forbidden spot. With trembling hands he pushed back\nthe sliding door and looked in. What he saw froze the blood in his\nveins. The room was full of dead men\u2019s bones and the walls were\nsplashed and the floor was covered with human blood. In one corner\nskull upon skull rose to the ceiling, in another was a heap of arm\nbones, in another a heap of leg bones. The sickening smell made him\nfaint. He fell backwards with horror, and for some time lay in a heap\nwith fright on the floor, a pitiful sight. He trembled all over and his\nteeth chattered, and he could hardly crawl away from the dreadful spot.\n\n\u201cHow horrible!\u201d he cried out. \u201cWhat awful den have I come to in my\ntravels? May Buddha help me or I am lost. Is it possible that that kind\nold woman is really the cannibal goblin? When she comes back she will\nshow herself in her true character and eat me up at one mouthful!\u201d\n\nWith these words his strength came back to him and, snatching up his\nhat and staff, he rushed out of the house as fast as his legs could\ncarry him. Out into the night he ran, his one thought to get as far as\nhe could from the goblin\u2019s haunt. He had not gone far when he heard\nsteps behind him and a voice crying: \u201cStop! stop!\u201d\n\nHe ran on, redoubling his speed, pretending not to hear. As he ran he\nheard the steps behind him come nearer and nearer, and at last he\nrecognized the old woman\u2019s voice which grew louder and louder as she\ncame nearer.\n\n\u201cStop! stop, you wicked man, why did you look into the forbidden room?\u201d\n\nThe priest quite forgot how tired he was and his feet flew over the\nground faster than ever. Fear gave him strength, for he knew that if\nthe goblin caught him he would soon be one of her victims. With all his\nheart he repeated the prayer to Buddha:\n\n\u201cNamu Amida Butsu, Namu Amida Butsu.\u201d\n\nAnd after him rushed the dreadful old hag, her hair flying in the wind,\nand her face changing with rage into the demon that she was. In her\nhand she carried a large blood-stained knife, and she still shrieked\nafter him, \u201cStop! stop!\u201d\n\nAt last, when the priest felt he could run no more, the dawn broke, and\nwith the darkness of night the goblin vanished and he was safe. The\npriest now knew that he had met the Goblin of Adachigahara, the story\nof whom he had often heard but never believed to be true. He felt that\nhe owed his wonderful escape to the protection of Buddha to whom he had\nprayed for help, so he took out his rosary and bowing his head as the\nsun rose he said his prayers and made his thanksgiving earnestly. He\nthen set forward for another part of the country, only too glad to\nleave the haunted plain behind him.\n\n\n\n\nTHE SAGACIOUS MONKEY AND THE BOAR\n\n\nLong, long ago, there lived in the province of Shinshin in Japan, a\ntraveling monkey-man, who earned his living by taking round a monkey\nand showing off the animal\u2019s tricks.\n\nOne evening the man came home in a very bad temper and told his wife to\nsend for the butcher the next morning.\n\nThe wife was very bewildered and asked her husband:\n\n\u201cWhy do you wish me to send for the butcher?\u201d\n\n\u201cIt\u2019s no use taking that monkey round any longer, he\u2019s too old and\nforgets his tricks. I beat him with my stick all I know how, but he\nwon\u2019t dance properly. I must now sell him to the butcher and make what\nmoney out of him I can. There is nothing else to be done.\u201d\n\nThe woman felt very sorry for the poor little animal, and pleaded for\nher husband to spare the monkey, but her pleading was all in vain, the\nman was determined to sell him to the butcher.\n\nNow the monkey was in the next room and overheard every word of the\nconversation. He soon understood that he was to be killed, and he said\nto himself:\n\n\u201cBarbarous, indeed, is my master! Here I have served him faithfully for\nyears, and instead of allowing me to end my days comfortably and in\npeace, he is going to let me be cut up by the butcher, and my poor body\nis to be roasted and stewed and eaten? Woe is me! What am I to do. Ah!\na bright thought has struck me! There is, I know, a wild boar living in\nthe forest near by. I have often heard tell of his wisdom. Perhaps if I\ngo to him and tell him the strait I am in he will give me his counsel.\nI will go and try.\u201d\n\nThere was no time to lose. The monkey slipped out of the house and ran\nas quickly as he could to the forest to find the boar. The boar was at\nhome, and the monkey began his tale of woe at once.\n\n\u201cGood Mr. Boar, I have heard of your excellent wisdom. I am in great\ntrouble, you alone can help me. I have grown old in the service of my\nmaster, and because I cannot dance properly now he intends to sell me\nto the butcher. What do you advise me to do? I know how clever you\nare!\u201d\n\nThe boar was pleased at the flattery and determined to help the monkey.\nHe thought for a little while and then said:\n\n\u201cHasn\u2019t your master a baby?\u201d\n\n\u201cOh, yes,\u201d said the monkey, \u201che has one infant son.\u201d\n\n\u201cDoesn\u2019t it lie by the door in the morning when your mistress begins\nthe work of the day? Well, I will come round early and when I see my\nopportunity I will seize the child and run off with it.\u201d\n\n\u201cWhat then?\u201d said the monkey.\n\n\u201cWhy the mother will be in a tremendous scare, and before your master\nand mistress know what to do, you must run after me and rescue the\nchild and take it home safely to its parents, and you will see that\nwhen the butcher comes they won\u2019t have the heart to sell you.\u201d\n\nThe monkey thanked the boar many times and then went home. He did not\nsleep much that night, as you may imagine, for thinking of the morrow.\nHis life depended on whether the boar\u2019s plan succeeded or not. He was\nthe first up, waiting anxiously for what was to happen. It seemed to\nhim a very long time before his master\u2019s wife began to move about and\nopen the shutters to let in the light of day. Then all happened as the\nboar had planned. The mother placed her child near the porch as usual\nwhile she tidied up the house and got her breakfast ready.\n\nThe child was crooning happily in the morning sunlight, dabbing on the\nmats at the play of light and shadow. Suddenly there was a noise in the\nporch and a loud cry from the child. The mother ran out from the\nkitchen to the spot, only just in time to see the boar disappearing\nthrough the gate with her child in its clutch. She flung out her hands\nwith a loud cry of despair and rushed into the inner room where her\nhusband was still sleeping soundly.\n\nHe sat up slowly and rubbed his eyes, and crossly demanded what his\nwife was making all that noise about. By the time that the man was\nalive to what had happened, and they both got outside the gate, the\nboar had got well away, but they saw the monkey running after the thief\nas hard as his legs would carry him.\n\nBoth the man and wife were moved to admiration at the plucky conduct of\nthe sagacious monkey, and their gratitude knew no bounds when the\nfaithful monkey brought the child safely back to their arms.\n\n\u201cThere!\u201d said the wife. \u201cThis is the animal you want to kill\u2014if the\nmonkey hadn\u2019t been here we should have lost our child forever.\u201d\n\n\u201cYou are right, wife, for once,\u201d said the man as he carried the child\ninto the house. \u201cYou may send the butcher back when he comes, and now\ngive us all a good breakfast and the monkey too.\u201d\n\nWhen the butcher arrived he was sent away with an order for some boar\u2019s\nmeat for the evening dinner, and the monkey was petted and lived the\nrest of his days in peace, nor did his master ever strike him again.\n\n\n\n\nTHE HAPPY HUNTER AND THE SKILLFUL FISHER\n\n\nLong, long ago Japan was governed by Hohodemi, the fourth Mikoto (or\nAugustness) in descent from the illustrious Amaterasu, the Sun Goddess.\nHe was not only as handsome as his ancestress was beautiful, but he was\nalso very strong and brave, and was famous for being the greatest\nhunter in the land. Because of his matchless skill as a hunter, he was\ncalled \u201cYama-sachi-hiko\u201d or \u201cThe Happy Hunter of the Mountains.\u201d\n\nHis elder brother was a very skillful fisher, and as he far surpassed\nall rivals in fishing, he was named \u201cUmi-sachi-hiko\u201d or the \u201cSkillful\nFisher of the Sea.\u201d The brothers thus led happy lives, thoroughly\nenjoying their respective occupations, and the days passed quickly and\npleasantly while each pursued his own way, the one hunting and the\nother fishing.\n\nOne day the Happy Hunter came to his brother, the Skillful Fisher, and\nsaid:\n\n\u201cWell, my brother, I see you go to the sea every day with your fishing\nrod in your hand, and when you return you come laden with fish. And as\nfor me, it is my pleasure to take my bow and arrow and to hunt the wild\nanimals up the mountains and down in the valleys. For a long time we\nhave each followed our favorite occupation, so that now we must both be\ntired, you of your fishing and I of my hunting. Would it not be wise\nfor us to make a change? Will you try hunting in the mountains and I\nwill go and fish in the sea?\u201d\n\nThe Skillful Fisher listened in silence to his brother, and for a\nmoment was thoughtful, but at last he answered:\n\n\u201cO yes, why not? Your idea is not a bad one at all. Give me your bow\nand arrow and I will set out at once for the mountains and hunt for\ngame.\u201d\n\nSo the matter was settled by this talk, and the two brothers each\nstarted out to try the other\u2019s occupation, little dreaming of all that\nwould happen. It was very unwise of them, for the Happy Hunter knew\nnothing of fishing, and the Skillful Fisher, who was bad tempered, knew\nas much about hunting.\n\nThe Happy Hunter took his brother\u2019s much-prized fishing hook and rod\nand went down to the seashore and sat down on the rocks. He baited his\nhook and then threw it into the sea clumsily. He sat and gazed at the\nlittle float bobbing up and down in the water, and longed for a good\nfish to come and be caught. Every time the buoy moved a little he\npulled up his rod, but there was never a fish at the end of it, only\nthe hook and the bait. If he had known how to fish properly, he would\nhave been able to catch plenty of fish, but although he was the\ngreatest hunter in the land he could not help being the most bungling\nfisher.\n\nThe whole day passed in this way, while he sat on the rocks holding the\nfishing rod and waiting in vain for his luck to turn. At last the day\nbegan to darken, and the evening came; still he had caught not a single\nfish. Drawing up his line for the last time before going home, he found\nthat he had lost his hook without even knowing when he had dropped it.\n\nHe now began to feel extremely anxious, for he knew that his brother\nwould be angry at his having lost his hook, for, it being his only one,\nhe valued it above all other things. The Happy Hunter now set to work\nto look among the rocks and on the sand for the lost hook, and while he\nwas searching to and fro, his brother, the Skillful Fisher, arrived on\nthe scene. He had failed to find any game while hunting that day, and\nwas not only in a bad temper, but looked fearfully cross. When he saw\nthe Happy Hunter searching about on the shore he knew that something\nmust have gone wrong, so he said at once:\n\n\u201cWhat are you doing, my brother?\u201d\n\nThe Happy Hunter went forward timidly, for he feared his brother\u2019s\nanger, and said:\n\n\u201cOh, my brother, I have indeed done badly.\u201d\n\n\u201cWhat is the matter?\u2014what have you done?\u201d asked the elder brother\nimpatiently.\n\n\u201cI have lost your precious fishing hook\u2014\u201d\n\nWhile he was still speaking his brother stopped him, and cried out\nfiercely:\n\n\u201cLost my hook! It is just what I expected. For this reason, when you\nfirst proposed your plan of changing over our occupations I was really\nagainst it, but you seemed to wish it so much that I gave in and\nallowed you to do as you wished. The mistake of our trying unfamiliar\ntasks is soon seen! And you have done badly. I will not return you your\nbow and arrow till you have found my hook. Look to it that you find it\nand return it to me quickly.\u201d\n\nThe Happy Hunter felt that he was to blame for all that had come to\npass, and bore his brother\u2019s scornful scolding with humility and\npatience. He hunted everywhere for the hook most diligently, but it was\nnowhere to be found. He was at last obliged to give up all hope of\nfinding it. He then went home, and in desperation broke his beloved\nsword into pieces and made five hundred hooks out of it.\n\nHe took these to his angry brother and offered them to him, asking his\nforgiveness, and begging him to accept them in the place of the one he\nhad lost for him. It was useless; his brother would not listen to him,\nmuch less grant his request.\n\nThe Happy Hunter then made another five hundred hooks, and again took\nthem to his brother, beseeching him to pardon him.\n\n\u201cThough you make a million hooks,\u201d said the Skillful Fisher, shaking\nhis head, \u201cthey are of no use to me. I cannot forgive you unless you\nbring me back my own hook.\u201d\n\nNothing would appease the anger of the Skillful Fisher, for he had a\nbad disposition, and had always hated his brother because of his\nvirtues, and now with the excuse of the lost fishing hook he planned to\nkill him and to usurp his place as ruler of Japan. The Happy Hunter\nknew all this full well, but he could say nothing, for being the\nyounger he owed his elder brother obedience; so he returned to the\nseashore and once more began to look for the missing hook. He was much\ncast down, for he had lost all hope of ever finding his brother\u2019s hook\nnow. While he stood on the beach, lost in perplexity and wondering what\nhe had best do next, an old man suddenly appeared carrying a stick in\nhis hand. The Happy Hunter afterwards remembered that he did not see\nfrom whence the old man came, neither did he know how he was there\u2014he\nhappened to look up and saw the old man coming towards him.\n\n\u201cYou are Hohodemi, the Augustness, sometimes called the Happy Hunter,\nare you not?\u201d asked the old man. \u201cWhat are you doing alone in such a\nplace?\u201d\n\n\u201cYes, I am he,\u201d answered the unhappy young man. \u201cUnfortunately, while\nfishing I lost my brother\u2019s precious fishing hook. I have hunted this\nshore all over, but alas! I cannot find it, and I am very troubled, for\nmy brother won\u2019t forgive me till I restore it to him. But who are you?\u201d\n\n\u201cMy name is Shiwozuchino Okina, and I live near by on this shore. I am\nsorry to hear what misfortune has befallen you. You must indeed be\nanxious. But if I tell you what I think, the hook is nowhere here\u2014it is\neither at the bottom of the sea or in the body of some fish who has\nswallowed it, and for this reason, though you spend your whole life in\nlooking for it here, you will never find it.\u201d\n\n\u201cThen what can I do?\u201d asked the distressed man.\n\n\u201cYou had better go down to Ryn Gu and tell Ryn Jin, the Dragon King of\nthe Sea, what your trouble is and ask him to find the hook for you. I\nthink that would be the best way.\u201d\n\n\u201cYour idea is a splendid one,\u201d said the Happy Hunter, \u201cbut I fear I\ncannot get to the Sea King\u2019s realm, for I have always heard that it is\nsituated at the bottom of the sea.\u201d\n\n\u201cOh, there will be no difficulty about your getting there,\u201d said the\nold man; \u201cI can soon make something for you to ride on through the\nsea.\u201d\n\n\u201cThank you,\u201d said the Happy Hunter, \u201cI shall be very grateful to you if\nyou will be so kind.\u201d\n\nThe old man at once set to work, and soon made a basket and offered it\nto the Happy Hunter. He received it with joy, and taking it to the\nwater, mounted it, and prepared to start. He bade good by to the kind\nold man who had helped him so much, and told him that he would\ncertainly reward him as soon as he found his hook and could return to\nJapan without fear of his brother\u2019s anger. The old man pointed out the\ndirection he must take, and told him how to reach the realm of Ryn Gu,\nand watched him ride out to sea on the basket, which resembled a small\nboat.\n\nThe Happy Hunter made all the haste he could, riding on the basket\nwhich had been given him by his friend. His queer boat seemed to go\nthrough the water of its own accord, and the distance was much shorter\nthan he had expected, for in a few hours he caught sight of the gate\nand the roof of the Sea King\u2019s Palace. And what a large place it was,\nwith its numberless sloping roofs and gables, its huge gateways, and\nits gray stone walls! He soon landed, and leaving his basket on the\nbeach, he walked up to the large gateway. The pillars of the gate were\nmade of beautiful red coral, and the gate itself was adorned with\nglittering gems of all kinds. Large katsura trees overshadowed it. Our\nhero had often heard of the wonders of the Sea King\u2019s Palace beneath\nthe sea, but all the stories he had ever heard fell short of the\nreality which he now saw for the first time.\n\nThe Happy Hunter would have liked to enter the gate there and then, but\nhe saw that it was fast closed, and also that there was no one about\nwhom he could ask to open it for him, so he stopped to think what he\nshould do. In the shade of the trees before the gate he noticed a well\nfull of fresh spring water. Surely some one would come out to draw\nwater from the well some time, he thought. Then he climbed into the\ntree overhanging the well, and seated himself to rest on one of the\nbranches, and waited for what might happen. Ere long he saw the huge\ngate swing open, and two beautiful women came out. Now the Mikoto\n(Augustness) had always heard that Ryn Gu was the realm of the Dragon\nKing under the Sea, and had naturally supposed that the place was\ninhabited by dragons and similar terrible creatures, so that when he\nsaw these two lovely princesses, whose beauty would be rare even in the\nworld from which he had just come, he was exceedingly surprised, and\nwondered what it could mean.\n\nHe said not a word, however, but silently gazed at them through the\nfoliage of the trees, waiting to see what they would do. He saw that in\ntheir hands they carried golden buckets. Slowly and gracefully in their\ntrailing garments they approached the well, standing in the shade of\nthe katsura trees, and were about to draw water, all unknowing of the\nstranger who was watching them, for the Happy Hunter was quite hidden\namong the branches of the tree where he had posted himself.\n\nAs the two ladies leaned over the side of the well to let down their\ngolden buckets, which they did every day in the year, they saw\nreflected in the deep still water the face of a handsome youth gazing\nat them from amidst the branches of the tree in whose shade they stood.\nNever before had they seen the face of mortal man; they were\nfrightened, and drew back quickly with their golden buckets in their\nhands. Their curiosity, however, soon gave them courage, and they\nglanced timidly upwards to see the cause of the unusual reflection, and\nthen they beheld the Happy Hunter sitting in the tree looking down at\nthem with surprise and admiration. They gazed at him face to face, but\ntheir tongues were still with wonder and could not find a word to say\nto him.\n\nWhen the Mikoto saw that he was discovered, he sprang down lightly from\nthe tree and said:\n\n\u201cI am a traveler, and as I was very thirsty I came to the well in the\nhopes of quenching my thirst, but I could find no bucket with which to\ndraw the water. So I climbed into the tree, much vexed, and waited for\nsome one to come. Just at that moment, while I was thirstily and\nimpatiently waiting, you noble ladies appeared, as if in answer to my\ngreat need. Therefore I pray you of your mercy give me some water to\ndrink, for I am a thirsty traveler in a strange land.\u201d\n\nHis dignity and graciousness overruled their timidity, and bowing in\nsilence they both once more approached the well, and letting down their\ngolden buckets drew up some water and poured it into a jeweled cup and\noffered it to the stranger.\n\nHe received it from them with both hands, raising it to the height of\nhis forehead in token of high respect and pleasure, and then drank the\nwater quickly, for his thirst was great. When he had finished his long\ndraught he set the cup down on the edge of the well, and drawing his\nshort sword he cut off one of the strange curved jewels (magatama), a\nnecklace of which hung round his neck and fell over his breast. He\nplaced the jewel in the cup and returned it to them, and said, bowing\ndeeply:\n\n\u201cThis is a token of my thanks!\u201d\n\nThe two ladies took the cup, and looking into it to see what he had put\ninside\u2014for they did not yet know what it was\u2014they gave a start of\nsurprise, for there lay a beautiful gem at the bottom of the cup.\n\n\u201cNo ordinary mortal would give away a jewel so freely. Will you not\nhonor us by telling us who you are?\u201d said the elder damsel.\n\n\u201cCertainly,\u201d said the Happy Hunter, \u201cI am Hohodemi, the fourth Mikoto,\nalso called in Japan, the Happy Hunter.\u201d\n\n\u201cAre you indeed Hohodemi, the grandson of Amaterasu, the Sun Goddess?\u201d\nasked the damsel who had spoken first. \u201cI am the eldest daughter of Ryn\nJin, the King of the Sea, and my name is Princess Tayotama.\u201d\n\n\u201cAnd,\u201d said the younger maiden, who at last found her tongue, \u201cI am her\nsister, the Princess Tamayori.\u201d\n\n\u201cAre you indeed the daughters of Ryn Jin, the King of the Sea? I cannot\ntell you how glad I am to meet you,\u201d said the Happy Hunter. And without\nwaiting for them to reply he went on:\n\n\u201cThe other day I went fishing with my brother\u2019s hook and dropped it,\nhow, I am sure I can\u2019t tell. As my brother prizes his fishing hook\nabove all his other possessions, this is the greatest calamity that\ncould have befallen me. Unless I find it again I can never hope to win\nmy brother\u2019s forgiveness, for he is very angry at what I have done. I\nhave searched for it many, many times, but I cannot find it, therefore\nI am much troubled. While I was hunting for the hook, in great\ndistress, I met a wise old man, and he told me that the best thing I\ncould do was to come to Ryn Gu, and to Ryn Jin, the Dragon King of the\nSea, and ask him to help me. This kind old man also showed me how to\ncome. Now you know how it is I am here and why. I want to ask Ryn Jin,\nif he knows where the lost hook is. Will you be so kind as to take me\nto your father? And do you think he will see me?\u201d asked the Happy\nHunter anxiously.\n\nPrincess Tayotama listened to this long story, and then said:\n\n\u201cNot only is it easy for you to see my father, but he will be much\npleased to meet you. I am sure he will say that good fortune has\nbefallen him, that so great and noble a man as you, the grandson of\nAmaterasu, should come down to the bottom of the sea.\u201d And then turning\nto her younger sister, she said:\n\n\u201cDo you not think so, Tamayori?\u201d\n\n\u201cYes, indeed,\u201d answered the Princess Tamayori, in her sweet voice. \u201cAs\nyou say, we can know no greater honor than to welcome the Mikoto to our\nhome.\u201d\n\n\u201cThen I ask you to be so kind as to lead the way,\u201d said the Happy\nHunter.\n\n\u201cCondescend to enter, Mikoto (Augustness),\u201d said both the sisters, and\nbowing low, they led him through the gate.\n\nThe younger Princess left her sister to take charge of the Happy\nHunter, and going faster than they, she reached the Sea King\u2019s Palace\nfirst, and running quickly to her father\u2019s room, she told him of all\nthat had happened to them at the gate, and that her sister was even now\nbringing the Augustness to him. The Dragon King of the Sea was much\nsurprised at the news, for it was but seldom, perhaps only once in\nseveral hundred years, that the Sea King\u2019s Palace was visited by\nmortals.\n\nRyn Jin at once clapped his hands and summoned all his courtiers and\nthe servants of the Palace, and the chief fish of the sea together, and\nsolemnly told them that the grandson of the Sun Goddess, Amaterasu, was\ncoming to the Palace, and that they must be very ceremonious and polite\nin serving the august visitor. He then ordered them all to the entrance\nof the Palace to welcome the Happy Hunter.\n\nRyn Jin then dressed himself in his robes of ceremony, and went out to\nwelcome him. In a few moments the Princess Tayotama and the Happy\nHunter reached the entrance, and the Sea King and his wife bowed to the\nground and thanked him for the honor he did them in coming to see them.\nThe Sea King then led the Happy Hunter to the guest room, and placing\nhim in the uppermost seat, he bowed respectfully before him, and said:\n\n\u201cI am Ryn Jin, the Dragon King of the Sea, and this is my wife.\nCondescend to remember us forever!\u201d\n\n\u201cAre you indeed Ryn Jin, the King of the Sea, of whom I have so often\nheard?\u201d answered the Happy Hunter, saluting his host most\nceremoniously. \u201cI must apologize for all the trouble I am giving you by\nmy unexpected visit.\u201d And he bowed again, and thanked the Sea King.\n\n\u201cYou need not thank me,\u201d said Ryn Jin. \u201cIt is I who must thank you for\ncoming. Although the Sea Palace is a poor place, as you see, I shall be\nhighly honored if you will make us a long visit.\u201d\n\nThere was much gladness between the Sea King and the Happy Hunter, and\nthey sat and talked for a long time. At last the Sea King clapped his\nhands, and then a huge retinue of fishes appeared, all robed in\nceremonial garments, and bearing in their fins various trays on which\nall kinds of sea delicacies were served. A great feast was now spread\nbefore the King and his Royal guest. All the fishes-in-waiting were\nchosen from amongst the finest fish in the sea, so you can imagine what\na wonderful array of sea creatures it was that waited upon the Happy\nHunter that day. All in the Palace tried to do their best to please him\nand to show him that he was a much honored guest. During the long\nrepast, which lasted for hours, Ryn Jin commanded his daughters to play\nsome music, and the two Princesses came in and performed on the KOTO\n(the Japanese harp), and sang and danced in turns. The time passed so\npleasantly that the Happy Hunter seemed to forget his trouble and why\nhe had come at all to the Sea King\u2019s Realm, and he gave himself up to\nthe enjoyment of this wonderful place, the land of fairy fishes! Who\nhas ever heard of such a marvelous place? But the Mikoto soon\nremembered what had brought him to Ryn Gu, and said to his host:\n\n\u201cPerhaps your daughters have told you, King Ryn Jin, that I have come\nhere to try and recover my brother\u2019s fishing hook, which I lost while\nfishing the other day. May I ask you to be so kind as to inquire of all\nyour subjects if any of them have seen a fishing hook lost in the sea?\u201d\n\n\u201cCertainly,\u201d said the obliging Sea King, \u201cI will immediately summon\nthem all here and ask them.\u201d\n\nAs soon as he had issued his command, the octopus, the cuttlefish, the\nbonito, the oxtail fish, the eel, the jelly fish, the shrimp, and the\nplaice, and many other fishes of all kinds came in and sat down before\nRyn Jin their King, and arranged themselves and their fins in order.\nThen the Sea King said solemnly:\n\n\u201cOur visitor who is sitting before you all is the august grandson of\nAmaterasu. His name is Hohodemi, the fourth Augustness, and he is also\ncalled the Happy Hunter of the Mountains. While he was fishing the\nother day upon the shore of Japan, some one robbed him of his brother\u2019s\nfishing hook. He has come all this way down to the bottom of the sea to\nour Kingdom because he thought that one of you fishes may have taken\nthe hook from him in mischievous play. If any of you have done so you\nmust immediately return it, or if any of you know who the thief is you\nmust at once tell us his name and where he is now.\u201d\n\nAll the fishes were taken by surprise when they heard these words, and\ncould say nothing for some time. They sat looking at each other and at\nthe Dragon King. At last the cuttlefish came forward and said:\n\n\u201cI think the TAI (the red bream) must be the thief who has stolen the\nhook!\u201d\n\n\u201cWhere is your proof?\u201d asked the King.\n\n\u201cSince yesterday evening the TAI has not been able to eat anything, and\nhe seems to be suffering from a bad throat! For this reason I think the\nhook may be in his throat. You had better send for him at once!\u201d\n\nAll the fish agreed to this, and said:\n\n\u201cIt is certainly strange that the TAI is the only fish who has not\nobeyed your summons. Will you send for him and inquire into the matter.\nThen our innocence will be proved.\u201d\n\n\u201cYes,\u201d said the Sea King, \u201cit is strange that the TAI has not come, for\nhe ought to be the first to be here. Send for him at once!\u201d\n\nWithout waiting for the King\u2019s order the cuttlefish had already started\nfor the TAI\u2019S dwelling, and he now returned, bringing the TAI with him.\nHe led him before the King.\n\nThe TAI sat there looking frightened and ill. He certainly was in pain,\nfor his usually red face was pale, and his eyes were nearly closed and\nlooked but half their usual size.\n\n\u201cAnswer, O TAI!\u201d cried the Sea King, \u201cwhy did you not come in answer to\nmy summons today?\u201d\n\n\u201cI have been ill since yesterday,\u201d answered the TAI; \u201cthat is why I\ncould not come.\u201d\n\n\u201cDon\u2019t say another word!\u201d cried out Ryn Jin angrily. \u201cYour illness is\nthe punishment of the gods for stealing the Mikoto\u2019s hook.\u201d\n\n\u201cIt is only too true!\u201d said the TAI; \u201cthe hook is still in my throat,\nand all my efforts to get it out have been useless. I can\u2019t eat, and I\ncan scarcely breathe, and each moment I feel that it will choke me, and\nsometimes it gives me great pain. I had no intention of stealing the\nMikoto\u2019s hook. I heedlessly snapped at the bait which I saw in the\nwater, and the hook came off and stuck in my throat. So I hope you will\npardon me.\u201d\n\nThe cuttlefish now came forward, and said to the King:\n\n\u201cWhat I said was right. You see the hook still sticks in the TAI\u2019S\nthroat. I hope to be able to pull it out in the presence of the Mikoto,\nand then we can return it to him safely!\u201d\n\n\u201cO please make haste and pull it out!\u201d cried the TAI, pitifully, for he\nfelt the pains in his throat coming on again; \u201cI do so want to return\nthe hook to the Mikoto.\u201d\n\n\u201cAll right, TAI SAN,\u201d said his friend the cuttlefish, and then opening\nthe TAI\u2019S mouth as wide as he could and putting one of his feelers down\nthe TAI\u2019S throat, he quickly and easily drew the hook out of the\nsufferer\u2019s large mouth. He then washed it and brought it to the King.\n\nRyn Jin took the hook from his subject, and then respectfully returned\nit to the Happy Hunter (the Mikoto or Augustness, the fishes called\nhim), who was overjoyed at getting back his hook. He thanked Ryn Jin\nmany times, his face beaming with gratitude, and said that he owed the\nhappy ending of his quest to the Sea King\u2019s wise authority and\nkindness.\n\nRyn Jin now desired to punish the TAI, but the Happy Hunter begged him\nnot to do so; since his lost hook was thus happily recovered he did not\nwish to make more trouble for the poor TAI. It was indeed the TAI who\nhad taken the hook, but he had already suffered enough for his fault,\nif fault it could be called. What had been done was done in\nheedlessness and not by intention. The Happy Hunter said he blamed\nhimself; if he had understood how to fish properly he would never have\nlost his hook, and therefore all this trouble had been caused in the\nfirst place by his trying to do something which he did not know how to\ndo. So he begged the Sea King to forgive his subject.\n\nWho could resist the pleading of so wise and compassionate a judge? Ryn\nJin forgave his subject at once at the request of his august guest. The\nTAI was so glad that he shook his fins for joy, and he and all the\nother fish went out from the presence of their King, praising the\nvirtues of the Happy Hunter.\n\nNow that the hook was found the Happy Hunter had nothing to keep him in\nRyn Gu, and he was anxious to get back to his own kingdom and to make\npeace with his angry brother, the Skillful Fisher; but the Sea King,\nwho had learnt to love him and would fain have kept him as a son,\nbegged him not to go so soon, but to make the Sea Palace his home as\nlong as ever he liked. While the Happy Hunter was still hesitating, the\ntwo lovely Princesses, Tayotama and Tamayori, came, and with the\nsweetest of bows and voices joined with their father in pressing him to\nstay, so that without seeming ungracious he could not say them \u201cNay,\u201d\nand was obliged to stay on for some time.\n\nBetween the Sea Realm and the Earth there was no difference in the\nnight of time, and the Happy Hunter found that three years went\nfleeting quickly by in this delightful land. The years pass swiftly\nwhen any one is truly happy. But though the wonders of that enchanted\nland seemed to be new every day, and though the Sea King\u2019s kindness\nseemed rather to increase than to grow less with time, the Happy Hunter\ngrew more and more homesick as the days passed, and he could not\nrepress a great anxiety to know what had happened to his home and his\ncountry and his brother while he had been away.\n\nSo at last he went to the Sea King and said:\n\n\u201cMy stay with you here has been most happy and I am very grateful to\nyou for all your kindness to me, but I govern Japan, and, delightful as\nthis place is, I cannot absent myself forever from my country. I must\nalso return the fishing hook to my brother and ask his forgiveness for\nhaving deprived him of it for so long. I am indeed very sorry to part\nfrom you, but this time it cannot be helped. With your gracious\npermission, I will take my leave to-day. I hope to make you another\nvisit some day. Please give up the idea of my staying longer now.\u201d\n\nKing Ryn Jin was overcome with sorrow at the thought that he must lose\nhis friend who had made a great diversion in the Palace of the Sea, and\nhis tears fell fast as he answered:\n\n\u201cWe are indeed very sorry to part with you, Mikoto, for we have enjoyed\nyour stay with us very much. You have been a noble and honored guest\nand we have heartily made you welcome. I quite understand that as you\ngovern Japan you ought to be there and not here, and that it is vain\nfor us to try and keep you longer with us, much as we would like to\nhave you stay. I hope you will not forget us. Strange circumstances\nhave brought us together and I trust the friendship thus begun between\nthe Land and the Sea will last and grow stronger than it has ever been\nbefore.\u201d\n\nWhen the Sea King had finished speaking he turned to his two daughters\nand bade them bring him the two Tide-Jewels of the Sea. The two\nPrincesses bowed low, rose and glided out of the hall. In a few minutes\nthey returned, each one carrying in her hands a flashing gem which\nfilled the room with light. As the Happy Hunter looked at them he\nwondered what they could be. The Sea King took them from his daughters\nand said to his guest:\n\n\u201cThese two valuable talismans we have inherited from our ancestors from\ntime immemorial. We now give them to you as a parting gift in token of\nour great affection for you. These two gems are called the nanjiu and\nthe kanjiu.\u201d\n\nThe Happy Hunter bowed low to the ground and said:\n\n\u201cI can never thank you enough for all your kindness to me. And now will\nyou add one more favor to the rest and tell me what these jewels are\nand what I am to do with them?\u201d\n\n\u201cThe nanjiu,\u201d answered the Sea King, \u201cis also called the Jewel of the\nFlood Tide, and whoever holds it in his possession can command the sea\nto roll in and to flood the land at any time that he wills. The kanjiu\nis also called the Jewel of the Ebbing Tide, and this gem controls the\nsea and the waves thereof, and will cause even a tidal wave to recede.\u201d\n\nThen Ryn Jin showed his friend how to use the talismans one by one and\nhanded them to him. The Happy Hunter was very glad to have these two\nwonderful gems, the Jewel of the Flood Tide and the Jewel of the Ebbing\nTide, to take back with him, for he felt that they would preserve him\nin case of danger from enemies at any time. After thanking his kind\nhost again and again, he prepared to depart. The Sea King and the two\nPrincesses, Tayotama and Tamayori, and all the inmates of the Palace,\ncame out to say \u201cGood-by,\u201d and before the sound of the last farewell\nhad died away the Happy Hunter passed out from under the gateway, past\nthe well of happy memory standing in the shade of the great KATSURA\ntrees on his way to the beach.\n\nHere he found, instead of the queer basket on which he had come to the\nRealm of Ryn Gu, a large crocodile waiting for him. Never had he seen\nsuch a huge creature. It measured eight fathoms in length from the tip\nof its tail to the end of its long mouth. The Sea King had ordered the\nmonster to carry the Happy Hunter back to Japan. Like the wonderful\nbasket which Shiwozuchino Okina had made, it could travel faster than\nany steamboat, and in this strange way, riding on the back of a\ncrocodile, the Happy Hunter returned to his own land.\n\nAs soon as the crocodile landed him, the Happy Hunter hastened to tell\nthe Skillful Fisher of his safe return. He then gave him back the\nfishing hook which had been found in the mouth of the TAI and which had\nbeen the cause of so much trouble between them. He earnestly begged his\nbrother\u2019s forgiveness, telling him all that had happened to him in the\nSea King\u2019s Palace and what wonderful adventures had led to the finding\nof the hook.\n\nNow the Skillful Fisher had used the lost hook as an excuse for driving\nhis brother out of the country. When his brother had left him that day\nthree years ago, and had not returned, he had been very glad in his\nevil heart and had at once usurped his brother\u2019s place as ruler of the\nland, and had become powerful and rich. Now in the midst of enjoying\nwhat did not belong to him, and hoping that his brother might never\nreturn to claim his rights, quite unexpectedly there stood the Happy\nHunter before him.\n\nThe Skillful Fisher feigned forgiveness, for he could make no more\nexcuses for sending his brother away again, but in his heart he was\nvery angry and hated his brother more and more, till at last he could\nno longer bear the sight of him day after day, and planned and watched\nfor an opportunity to kill him.\n\nOne day when the Happy Hunter was walking in the rice fields his\nbrother followed him with a dagger. The Happy Hunter knew that his\nbrother was following him to kill him, and he felt that now, in this\nhour of great danger, was the time to use the Jewels of the Flow and\nEbb of the Tide and prove whether what the Sea King had told him was\ntrue or not.\n\nSo he took out the Jewel of the Flood Tide from the bosom of his dress\nand raised it to his forehead. Instantly over the fields and over the\nfarms the sea came rolling in wave upon wave till it reached the spot\nwhere his brother was standing. The Skillful Fisher stood amazed and\nterrified to see what was happening. In another minute he was\nstruggling in the water and calling on his brother to save him from\ndrowning.\n\nThe Happy Hunter had a kind heart and could not bear the sight of his\nbrother\u2019s distress. He at once put back the Jewel of the Flood Tide and\ntook out the Jewel of the Ebb Tide. No sooner did he hold it up as high\nas his forehead than the sea ran back and back, and ere long the\ntossing rolling floods had vanished, and the farms and fields and dry\nland appeared as before.\n\nThe Skillful Fisher was very frightened at the peril of death in which\nhe had stood, and was greatly impressed by the wonderful things he had\nseen his brother do. He learned now that he was making a fatal mistake\nto set himself against his brother, younger than he thought he was, for\nhe now had become so powerful that the sea would flow in and the tide\nebb at his word of command. So he humbled himself before the Happy\nHunter and asked him to forgive him all the wrong he had done him. The\nSkillful Fisher promised to restore his brother to his rights and also\nswore that though the Happy Hunter was the younger brother and owed him\nallegiance by right of birth, that he, the Skillful Fisher, would exalt\nhim as his superior and bow before him as Lord of all Japan.\n\nThen the Happy Hunter said that he would forgive his brother if he\nwould throw into the receding tide all his evil ways. The Skillful\nFisher promised and there was peace between the two brothers. From this\ntime he kept his word and became a good man and a kind brother.\n\nThe Happy Hunter now ruled his Kingdom without being disturbed by\nfamily strife, and there was peace in Japan for a long, long time.\nAbove all the treasures in his house he prized the wonderful Jewels of\nthe Flow and Ebb of the Tide which had been given him by Ryn Jin, the\nDragon King of the Sea.\n\nThis is the congratulatory ending of the Happy Hunter and the Skillful\nFisher.\n\n\n\n\nTHE STORY OF THE OLD MAN WHO MADE WITHERED TREES TO FLOWER\n\n\nLong, long ago there lived an old man and his wife who supported\nthemselves by cultivating a small plot of land. Their life had been a\nvery happy and peaceful one save for one great sorrow, and this was\nthey had no child. Their only pet was a dog named Shiro, and on him\nthey lavished all the affection of their old age. Indeed, they loved\nhim so much that whenever they had anything nice to eat they denied\nthemselves to give it to Shiro. Now Shiro means \u201cwhite,\u201d and he was so\ncalled because of his color. He was a real Japanese dog, and very like\na small wolf in appearance.\n\nThe happiest hour of the day both for the old man and his dog was when\nthe man returned from his work in the field, and having finished his\nfrugal supper of rice and vegetables, would take what he had saved from\nthe meal out to the little veranda that ran round the cottage. Sure\nenough, Shiro was waiting for his master and the evening tit-bit. Then\nthe old man said \u201cChin, chin!\u201d and Shiro sat up and begged, and his\nmaster gave him the food. Next door to this good old couple there lived\nanother old man and his wife who were both wicked and cruel, and who\nhated their good neighbors and the dog Shiro with all their might.\nWhenever Shiro happened to look into their kitchen they at once kicked\nhim or threw something at him, sometimes even wounding him.\n\nOne day Shiro was heard barking for a long time in the field at the\nback of his master\u2019s house. The old man, thinking that perhaps some\nbirds were attacking the corn, hurried out to see what was the matter.\nAs soon as Shiro saw his master he ran to meet him, wagging his tail,\nand, seizing the end of his kimono, dragged him under a large yenoki\ntree. Here he began to dig very industriously with his paws, yelping\nwith joy all the time. The old man, unable to understand what it all\nmeant, stood looking on in bewilderment. But Shiro went on barking and\ndigging with all his might.\n\nThe thought that something might be hidden beneath the tree, and that\nthe dog had scented it, at last struck the old man. He ran back to the\nhouse, fetched his spade and began to dig the ground at that spot. What\nwas his astonishment when, after digging for some time, he came upon a\nheap of old and valuable coins, and the deeper he dug the more gold\ncoins did he find. So intent was the old man on his work that he never\nsaw the cross face of his neighbor peering at him through the bamboo\nhedge. At last all the gold coins lay shining on the ground. Shiro sat\nby erect with pride and looking fondly at his master as if to say, \u201cYou\nsee, though only a dog, I can make some return for all the kindness you\nshow me.\u201d\n\nThe old man ran in to call his wife, and together they carried home the\ntreasure. Thus in one day the poor old man became rich. His gratitude\nto the faithful dog knew no bounds, and he loved and petted him more\nthan ever, if that were possible.\n\nThe cross old neighbor, attracted by Shiro\u2019s barking, had been an\nunseen and envious witness of the finding of the treasure. He began to\nthink that he, too, would like to find a fortune. So a few days later\nhe called at the old man\u2019s house and very ceremoniously asked\npermission to borrow Shiro for a short time.\n\nShiro\u2019s master thought this a strange request, because he knew quite\nwell that not only did his neighbor not love his pet dog, but that he\nnever lost an opportunity of striking and tormenting him whenever the\ndog crossed his path. But the good old man was too kind-hearted to\nrefuse his neighbor, so he consented to lend the dog on condition that\nhe should be taken great care of.\n\nThe wicked old man returned to his home with an evil smile on his face,\nand told his wife how he had succeeded in his crafty intentions. He\nthen took his spade and hastened to his own field, forcing the\nunwilling Shiro to follow him. As soon as he reached a yenoki tree, he\nsaid to the dog, threateningly:\n\n\u201cIf there were gold coins under your master\u2019s tree, there must also be\ngold coins under my tree. You must find them for me! Where are they?\nWhere? Where?\u201d\n\nAnd catching hold of Shiro\u2019s neck he held the dog\u2019s head to the ground,\nso that Shiro began to scratch and dig in order to free himself from\nthe horrid old man\u2019s grasp.\n\nThe old man was very pleased when he saw the dog begin to scratch and\ndig, for he at once supposed that some gold coins lay buried under his\ntree as well as under his neighbor\u2019s, and that the dog had scented them\nas before; so pushing Shiro away he began to dig himself, but there was\nnothing to be found. As he went on digging a foul smell was noticeable,\nand he at last came upon a refuse heap.\n\nThe old man\u2019s disgust can be imagined. This soon gave way to anger. He\nhad seen his neighbor\u2019s good fortune, and hoping for the same luck\nhimself, he had borrowed the dog Shiro; and now, just as he seemed on\nthe point of finding what he sought, only a horrid smelling refuse heap\nhad rewarded him for a morning\u2019s digging. Instead of blaming his own\ngreed for his disappointment, he blamed the poor dog. He seized his\nspade, and with all his strength struck Shiro and killed him on the\nspot. He then threw the dog\u2019s body into the hole which he had dug in\nthe hope of finding a treasure of gold coins, and covered it over with\nthe earth. Then he returned to the house, telling no one, not even his\nwife, what he had done.\n\nAfter waiting several days, as the dog Shiro did not return, his master\nbegan to grow anxious. Day after day went by and the good old man\nwaited in vain. Then he went to his neighbor and asked him to give him\nback his dog. Without any shame or hesitation, the wicked neighbor\nanswered that he had killed Shiro because of his bad behavior. At this\ndreadful news Shiro\u2019s master wept many sad and bitter tears. Great\nindeed, was his woful surprise, but he was too good and gentle to\nreproach his bad neighbor. Learning that Shiro was buried under the\nyenoki tree in the field, he asked the old man to give him the tree, in\nremembrance of his poor dog Shiro.\n\nEven the cross old neighbor could not refuse such a simple request, so\nhe consented to give the old man the tree under which Shiro lay buried.\nShiro\u2019s master then cut the tree down and carried it home. Out of the\ntrunk he made a mortar. In this his wife put some rice, and he began to\npound it with the intention of making a festival to the memory of his\ndog Shiro.\n\nA strange thing happened! His wife put the rice into the mortar, and no\nsooner had he begun to pound it to make the cakes, than it began to\nincrease in quantity gradually till it was about five times the\noriginal amount, and the cakes were turned out of the mortar as if an\ninvisible hand were at work.\n\nWhen the old man and his wife saw this, they understood that it was a\nreward to them from Shiro for their faithful love to him. They tasted\nthe cakes and found them nicer than any other food. So from this time\nthey never troubled about food, for they lived upon the cakes with\nwhich the mortar never ceased to supply them.\n\nThe greedy neighbor, hearing of this new piece of good luck, was filled\nwith envy as before, and called on the old man and asked leave to\nborrow the wonderful mortar for a short time, pretending that he, too,\nsorrowed for the death of Shiro, and wished to make cakes for a\nfestival to the dog\u2019s memory.\n\nThe old man did not in the least wish to lend it to his cruel neighbor,\nbut he was too kind to refuse. So the envious man carried home the\nmortar, but he never brought it back.\n\nSeveral days passed, and Shiro\u2019s master waited in vain for the mortar,\nso he went to call on the borrower, and asked him to be good enough to\nreturn the mortar if he had finished with it. He found him sitting by a\nbig fire made of pieces of wood. On the ground lay what looked very\nmuch like pieces of a broken mortar. In answer to the old man\u2019s\ninquiry, the wicked neighbor answered haughtily:\n\n\u201cHave you come to ask me for your mortar? I broke it to pieces, and now\nI am making a fire of the wood, for when I tried to pound cakes in it\nonly some horrid smelling stuff came out.\u201d\n\nThe good old man said:\n\n\u201cI am very sorry for that. It is a great pity you did not ask me for\nthe cakes if you wanted them. I would have given you as many as ever\nyou wanted. Now please give me the ashes of the mortar, as I wish to\nkeep them in remembrance of my dog.\u201d\n\nThe neighbor consented at once, and the old man carried home a basket\nfull of ashes.\n\nNot long after this the old man accidentally scattered some of the\nashes made by the burning of the mortar on the trees of his garden. A\nwonderful thing happened!\n\nIt was late in autumn and all the trees had shed their leaves, but no\nsooner did the ashes touch their branches than the cherry trees, the\nplum trees, and all other blossoming shrubs burst into bloom, so that\nthe old man\u2019s garden was suddenly transformed into a beautiful picture\nof spring. The old man\u2019s delight knew no bounds, and he carefully\npreserved the remaining ashes.\n\nThe story of the old man\u2019s garden spread far and wide, and people from\nfar and near came to see the wonderful sight.\n\nOne day, soon after this, the old man heard some one knocking at his\ndoor, and going to the porch to see who it was he was surprised to see\na Knight standing there. This Knight told him that he was a retainer of\na great Daimio (Earl); that one of the favorite cherry trees in this\nnobleman\u2019s garden had withered, and that though every one in his\nservice had tried all manner of means to revive it, none took effect.\nThe Knight was sore perplexed when he saw what great displeasure the\nloss of his favorite cherry tree caused the Daimio. At this point,\nfortunately, they had heard that there was a wonderful old man who\ncould make withered trees to blossom, and that his Lord had sent him to\nask the old man to come to him.\n\n\u201cAnd,\u201d added the Knight, \u201cI shall be very much obliged if you will come\nat once.\u201d\n\nThe good old man was greatly surprised at what he heard, but\nrespectfully followed the Knight to the nobleman\u2019s Palace.\n\nThe Daimio, who had been impatiently awaiting the old man\u2019s coming, as\nsoon as he saw him asked him at once:\n\n\u201cAre you the old man who can make withered trees flower even out of\nseason?\u201d\n\nThe old man made an obeisance, and replied:\n\n\u201cI am that old man!\u201d\n\nThen the Daimio said:\n\n\u201cYou must make that dead cherry tree in my garden blossom again by\nmeans of your famous ashes. I shall look on.\u201d\n\nThen they all went into the garden\u2014the Daimio and his retainers and the\nladies-in waiting, who carried the Daimio\u2019s sword.\n\nThe old man now tucked up his kimono and made ready to climb the tree.\nSaying \u201cExcuse me,\u201d he took the pot of ashes which he had brought with\nhim, and began to climb the tree, every one watching his movements with\ngreat interest.\n\nAt last he climbed to the spot where the tree divided into two great\nbranches, and taking up his position here, the old man sat down and\nscattered the ashes right and left all over the branches and twigs.\n\nWonderful, indeed, was the result! The withered tree at once burst into\nfull bloom! The Daimio was so transported with joy that he looked as if\nhe would go mad. He rose to his feet and spread out his fan, calling\nthe old man down from the tree. He himself gave the old man a wine cup\nfilled with the best SAKE, and rewarded him with much silver and gold\nand many other precious things. The Daimio ordered that henceforth the\nold man should call himself by the name of Hana-Saka-Jijii, or \u201cThe Old\nMan who makes the Trees to Blossom,\u201d and that henceforth all were to\nrecognize him by this name, and he sent him home with great honor.\n\nThe wicked neighbor, as before, heard of the good old man\u2019s fortune,\nand of all that had so auspiciously befallen him, and he could not\nsuppress all the envy and jealousy that filled his heart. He called to\nmind how he had failed in his attempt to find the gold coins, and then\nin making the magic cakes; this time surely he must succeed if he\nimitated the old man, who made withered trees to flower simply by\nsprinkling ashes on them. This would be the simplest task of all.\n\nSo he set to work and gathered together all the ashes which remained in\nthe fire-place from the burning of the wonderful mortar. Then he set\nout in the hope of finding some great man to employ him, calling out\nloudly as he went along:\n\n\u201cHere comes the wonderful man who can make withered trees blossom! Here\ncomes the old man who can make dead trees blossom!\u201d\n\nThe Daimio in his Palace heard this cry, and said:\n\n\u201cThat must be the Hana-Saka-Jijii passing. I have nothing to do to-day.\nLet him try his art again; it will amuse me to look on.\u201d\n\nSo the retainers went out and brought in the impostor before their\nLord. The satisfaction of false old man can now be imagined.\n\nBut the Daimio looking at him, thought it strange that he was not at\nall like the old man he had seen before, so he asked him:\n\n\u201cAre you the man whom I named Hana-Saka-Jijii?\u201d\n\nAnd the envious neighbor answered with a lie:\n\n\u201cYes, my Lord!\u201d\n\n\u201cThat is strange!\u201d said the Daimio. \u201cI thought there was only one\nHana-Saka-Jijii in the world! Has he now some disciples?\u201d\n\n\u201cI am the true Hana-Saka-Jijii. The one who came to you before was only\nmy disciple!\u201d replied the old man again.\n\n\u201cThen you must be more skillful than the other. Try what you can do and\nlet me see!\u201d\n\nThe envious neighbor, with the Daimio and his Court following, then\nwent into the garden, and approaching a dead tree, took out a handful\nof the ashes which he carried with him, and scattered them over the\ntree.\n\nBut not only did the tree not burst into flower, but not even a bud\ncame forth. Thinking that he had not used enough ashes, the old man\ntook handfuls and again sprinkled them over the withered tree. But all\nto no effect. After trying several times, the ashes were blown into the\nDaimio\u2019s eyes. This made him very angry, and he ordered his retainers\nto arrest the false Hana-Saka-Jijii at once and put him in prison for\nan impostor. From this imprisonment the wicked old man was never freed.\nThus did he meet with punishment at last for all his evil doings.\n\nThe good old man, however, with the treasure of gold coins which Shiro\nhad found for him, and with all the gold and the silver which the\nDaimio had showered on him, became a rich and prosperous man in his old\nage, and lived a long and happy life, beloved and respected by all.\n\n\n\n\nTHE JELLY FISH AND THE MONKEY\n\n\nLong, long ago, in old Japan, the Kingdom of the Sea was governed by a\nwonderful King. He was called Rin Jin, or the Dragon King of the Sea.\nHis power was immense, for he was the ruler of all sea creatures both\ngreat and small, and in his keeping were the Jewels of the Ebb and Flow\nof the Tide. The Jewel of the Ebbing Tide when thrown into the ocean\ncaused the sea to recede from the land, and the Jewel of the Flowing\nTide made the waves to rise mountains high and to flow in upon the\nshore like a tidal wave.\n\nThe Palace of Rin Jin was at the bottom of the sea, and was so\nbeautiful that no one has ever seen anything like it even in dreams.\nThe walls were of coral, the roof of jadestone and chrysoprase, and the\nfloors were of the finest mother-of-pearl. But the Dragon King, in\nspite of his wide-spreading Kingdom, his beautiful Palace and all its\nwonders, and his power which none disputed throughout the whole sea,\nwas not at all happy, for he reigned alone. At last he thought that if\nhe married he would not only be happier, but also more powerful. So he\ndecided to take a wife. Calling all his fish retainers together, he\nchose several of them as ambassadors to go through the sea and seek for\na young Dragon Princess who would be his bride.\n\nAt last they returned to the Palace bringing with them a lovely young\ndragon. Her scales were of glittering green like the wings of summer\nbeetles, her eyes threw out glances of fire, and she was dressed in\ngorgeous robes. All the jewels of the sea worked in with embroidery\nadorned them.\n\nThe King fell in love with her at once, and the wedding ceremony was\ncelebrated with great splendor. Every living thing in the sea, from the\ngreat whales down to the little shrimps, came in shoals to offer their\ncongratulations to the bride and bridegroom and to wish them a long and\nprosperous life. Never had there been such an assemblage or such gay\nfestivities in the Fish-World before. The train of bearers who carried\nthe bride\u2019s possessions to her new home seemed to reach across the\nwaves from one end of the sea to the other. Each fish carried a\nphosphorescent lantern and was dressed in ceremonial robes, gleaming\nblue and pink and silver; and the waves as they rose and fell and broke\nthat night seemed to be rolling masses of white and green fire, for the\nphosphorus shone with double brilliancy in honor of the event.\n\nNow for a time the Dragon King and his bride lived very happily. They\nloved each other dearly, and the bridegroom day after day took delight\nin showing his bride all the wonders and treasures of his coral Palace,\nand she was never tired of wandering with him through its vast halls\nand gardens. Life seemed to them both like a long summer\u2019s day.\n\nTwo months passed in this happy way, and then the Dragon Queen fell ill\nand was obliged to stay in bed. The King was sorely troubled when he\nsaw his precious bride so ill, and at once sent for the fish doctor to\ncome and give her some medicine. He gave special orders to the servants\nto nurse her carefully and to wait upon her with diligence, but in\nspite of all the nurses\u2019 assiduous care and the medicine that the\ndoctor prescribed, the young Queen showed no signs of recovery, but\ngrew daily worse.\n\nThen the Dragon King interviewed the doctor and blamed him for not\ncuring the Queen. The doctor was alarmed at Rin Jin\u2019s evident\ndispleasure, and excused his want of skill by saying that although he\nknew the right kind of medicine to give the invalid, it was impossible\nto find it in the sea.\n\n\u201cDo you mean to tell me that you can\u2019t get the medicine here?\u201d asked\nthe Dragon King.\n\n\u201cIt is just as you say!\u201d said the doctor.\n\n\u201cTell me what it is you want for the Queen?\u201d demanded Rin Jin.\n\n\u201cI want the liver of a live monkey!\u201d answered the doctor.\n\n\u201cThe liver of a live monkey! Of course that will be most difficult to\nget,\u201d said the King.\n\n\u201cIf we could only get that for the Queen, Her Majesty would soon\nrecover,\u201d said the doctor.\n\n\u201cVery well, that decides it; we MUST get it somehow or other. But where\nare we most likely to find a monkey?\u201d asked the King.\n\nThen the doctor told the Dragon King that some distance to the south\nthere was a Monkey Island where a great many monkeys lived.\n\n\u201cIf only you could capture one of these monkeys?\u201d said the doctor.\n\n\u201cHow can any of my people capture a monkey?\u201d said the Dragon King,\ngreatly puzzled. \u201cThe monkeys live on dry land, while we live in the\nwater; and out of our element we are quite powerless! I don\u2019t see what\nwe can do!\u201d\n\n\u201cThat has been my difficulty too,\u201d said the doctor. \u201cBut amongst your\ninnumerable servants you surely can find one who can go on shore for\nthat express purpose!\u201d\n\n\u201cSomething must be done,\u201d said the King, and calling his chief steward\nhe consulted him on the matter.\n\nThe chief steward thought for some time, and then, as if struck by a\nsudden thought, said joyfully:\n\n\u201cI know what we must do! There is the kurage (jelly fish). He is\ncertainly ugly to look at, but he is proud of being able to walk on\nland with his four legs like a tortoise. Let us send him to the Island\nof Monkeys to catch one.\u201d\n\nThe jelly fish was then summoned to the King\u2019s presence, and was told\nby His Majesty what was required of him.\n\nThe jelly fish, on being told of the unexpected mission which was to be\nintrusted to him, looked very troubled, and said that he had never been\nto the island in question, and as he had never had any experience in\ncatching monkeys he was afraid that he would not be able to get one.\n\n\u201cWell,\u201d said the chief steward, \u201cif you depend on your strength or\ndexterity you will never catch a monkey. The only way is to play a\ntrick on one!\u201d\n\n\u201cHow can I play a trick on a monkey? I don\u2019t know how to do it,\u201d said\nthe perplexed jelly fish.\n\n\u201cThis is what you must do,\u201d said the wily chief steward. \u201cWhen you\napproach the Island of Monkeys and meet some of them, you must try to\nget very friendly with one. Tell him that you are a servant of the\nDragon King, and invite him to come and visit you and see the Dragon\nKing\u2019s Palace. Try and describe to him as vividly as you can the\ngrandeur of the Palace and the wonders of the sea so as to arouse his\ncuriosity and make him long to see it all!\u201d\n\n\u201cBut how am I to get the monkey here? You know monkeys don\u2019t swim?\u201d\nsaid the reluctant jelly fish.\n\n\u201cYou must carry him on your back. What is the use of your shell if you\ncan\u2019t do that!\u201d said the chief steward.\n\n\u201cWon\u2019t he be very heavy?\u201d queried kurage again.\n\n\u201cYou mustn\u2019t mind that, for you are working for the Dragon King,\u201d\nreplied the chief steward.\n\n\u201cI will do my best then,\u201d said the jelly fish, and he swam away from\nthe Palace and started off towards the Monkey Island. Swimming swiftly\nhe reached his destination in a few hours, and landed by a convenient\nwave upon the shore. On looking round he saw not far away a big\npine-tree with drooping branches and on one of those branches was just\nwhat he was looking for\u2014a live monkey.\n\n\u201cI\u2019m in luck!\u201d thought the jelly fish. \u201cNow I must flatter the creature\nand try to entice him to come back with me to the Palace, and my part\nwill be done!\u201d\n\nSo the jelly fish slowly walked towards the pine-tree. In those ancient\ndays the jelly fish had four legs and a hard shell like a tortoise.\nWhen he got to the pine-tree he raised his voice and said:\n\n\u201cHow do you do, Mr. Monkey? Isn\u2019t it a lovely day?\u201d\n\n\u201cA very fine day,\u201d answered the monkey from the tree. \u201cI have never\nseen you in this part of the world before. Where have you come from and\nwhat is your name?\u201d\n\n\u201cMy name is kurage or jelly fish. I am one of the servants of the\nDragon King. I have heard so much of your beautiful island that I have\ncome on purpose to see it,\u201d answered the jelly fish.\n\n\u201cI am very glad to see you,\u201d said the monkey.\n\n\u201cBy the bye,\u201d said the jelly fish, \u201chave you ever seen the Palace of\nthe Dragon King of the Sea where I live?\u201d\n\n\u201cI have often heard of it, but I have never seen it!\u201d answered the\nmonkey.\n\n\u201cThen you ought most surely to come. It is a great pity for you to go\nthrough life without seeing it. The beauty of the Palace is beyond all\ndescription\u2014it is certainly to my mind the most lovely place in the\nworld,\u201d said the jelly fish.\n\n\u201cIs it so beautiful as all that?\u201d asked the monkey in astonishment.\n\nThen the jelly fish saw his chance, and went on describing to the best\nof his ability the beauty and grandeur of the Sea King\u2019s Palace, and\nthe wonders of the garden with its curious trees of white, pink and red\ncoral, and the still more curious fruits like great jewels hanging on\nthe branches. The monkey grew more and more interested, and as he\nlistened he came down the tree step by step so as not to lose a word of\nthe wonderful story.\n\n\u201cI have got him at last!\u201d thought the jelly fish, but aloud he said:\n\n\u201cMr. Monkey. I must now go back. As you have never seen the Palace of\nthe Dragon King, won\u2019t you avail yourself of this splendid opportunity\nby coming with me? I shall then be able to act as guide and show you\nall the sights of the sea, which will be even more wonderful to you\u2014a\nland-lubber.\u201d\n\n\u201cI should love to go,\u201d said the monkey, \u201cbut how am I to cross the\nwater! I can\u2019t swim, as you surely know!\u201d\n\n\u201cThere is no difficulty about that. I can carry you on my back.\u201d\n\n\u201cThat will be troubling you too much,\u201d said the monkey.\n\n\u201cI can do it quite easily. I am stronger than I look, so you needn\u2019t\nhesitate,\u201d said the jelly fish, and taking the monkey on his back he\nstepped into the sea.\n\n\u201cKeep very still, Mr. monkey,\u201d said the jelly fish. \u201cYou mustn\u2019t fall\ninto the sea; I am responsible for your safe arrival at the King\u2019s\nPalace.\u201d\n\n\u201cPlease don\u2019t go so fast, or I am sure I shall fall off,\u201d said the\nmonkey.\n\nThus they went along, the jelly fish skimming through the waves with\nthe monkey sitting on his back. When they were about half-way, the\njelly fish, who knew very little of anatomy, began to wonder if the\nmonkey had his liver with him or not!\n\n\u201cMr. Monkey, tell me, have you such a thing as a liver with you?\u201d\n\nThe monkey was very much surprised at this queer question, and asked\nwhat the jelly fish wanted with a liver.\n\n\u201cThat is the most important thing of all,\u201d said the stupid jelly fish,\n\u201cso as soon as I recollected it, I asked you if you had yours with\nyou?\u201d\n\n\u201cWhy is my liver so important to you?\u201d asked the monkey.\n\n\u201cOh! you will learn the reason later,\u201d said the jelly fish.\n\nThe monkey grew more and more curious and suspicious, and urged the\njelly fish to tell him for what his liver was wanted, and ended up by\nappealing to his hearer\u2019s feelings by saying that he was very troubled\nat what he had been told.\n\nThen the jelly fish, seeing how anxious the monkey looked, was sorry\nfor him, and told him everything. How the Dragon Queen had fallen ill,\nand how the doctor had said that only the liver of a live monkey would\ncure her, and how the Dragon King had sent him to find one.\n\n\u201cNow I have done as I was told, and as soon as we arrive at the Palace\nthe doctor will want your liver, so I feel sorry for you!\u201d said the\nsilly jelly fish.\n\nThe poor monkey was horrified when he learnt all this, and very angry\nat the trick played upon him. He trembled with fear at the thought of\nwhat was in store for him.\n\nBut the monkey was a clever animal, and he thought it the wisest plan\nnot to show any sign of the fear he felt, so he tried to calm himself\nand to think of some way by which he might escape.\n\n\u201cThe doctor means to cut me open and then take my liver out! Why I\nshall die!\u201d thought the monkey. At last a bright thought struck him, so\nhe said quite cheerfully to the jelly fish:\n\n\u201cWhat a pity it was, Mr. Jelly Fish, that you did not speak of this\nbefore we left the island!\u201d\n\n\u201cIf I had told why I wanted you to accompany me you would certainly\nhave refused to come,\u201d answered the jelly fish.\n\n\u201cYou are quite mistaken,\u201d said the monkey. \u201cMonkeys can very well spare\na liver or two, especially when it is wanted for the Dragon Queen of\nthe Sea. If I had only guessed of what you were in need. I should have\npresented you with one without waiting to be asked. I have several\nlivers. But the greatest pity is, that as you did not speak in time, I\nhave left all my livers hanging on the pine-tree.\u201d\n\n\u201cHave you left your liver behind you?\u201d asked the jelly fish.\n\n\u201cYes,\u201d said the cunning monkey, \u201cduring the daytime I usually leave my\nliver hanging up on the branch of a tree, as it is very much in the way\nwhen I am climbing about from tree to tree. To-day, listening to your\ninteresting conversation, I quite forgot it, and left it behind when I\ncame off with you. If only you had spoken in time I should have\nremembered it, and should have brought it along with me!\u201d\n\nThe jelly fish was very disappointed when he heard this, for he\nbelieved every word the monkey said. The monkey was of no good without\na liver. Finally the jelly fish stopped and told the monkey so.\n\n\u201cWell,\u201d said the monkey, \u201cthat is soon remedied. I am really sorry to\nthink of all your trouble; but if you will only take me back to the\nplace where you found me, I shall soon be able to get my liver.\u201d\n\nThe jelly fish did not at all like the idea of going all the way back\nto the island again; but the monkey assured him that if he would be so\nkind as to take him back he would get his very best liver, and bring it\nwith him the next time. Thus persuaded, the jelly fish turned his\ncourse towards the Monkey Island once more.\n\nNo sooner had the jelly fish reached the shore than the sly monkey\nlanded, and getting up into the pine-tree where the jelly fish had\nfirst seen him, he cut several capers amongst the branches with joy at\nbeing safe home again, and then looking down at the jelly fish said:\n\n\u201cSo many thanks for all the trouble you have taken! Please present my\ncompliments to the Dragon King on your return!\u201d\n\nThe jelly fish wondered at this speech and the mocking tone in which it\nwas uttered. Then he asked the monkey if it wasn\u2019t his intention to\ncome with him at once after getting his liver.\n\nThe monkey replied laughingly that he couldn\u2019t afford to lose his\nliver: it was too precious.\n\n\u201cBut remember your promise!\u201d pleaded the jelly fish, now very\ndiscouraged.\n\n\u201cThat promise was false, and anyhow it is now broken!\u201d answered the\nmonkey. Then he began to jeer at the jelly fish and told him that he\nhad been deceiving him the whole time; that he had no wish to lose his\nlife, which he certainly would have done had he gone on to the Sea\nKing\u2019s Palace to the old doctor waiting for him, instead of persuading\nthe jelly fish to return under false pretenses.\n\n\u201cOf course, I won\u2019t GIVE you my liver, but come and get it if you can!\u201d\nadded the monkey mockingly from the tree.\n\nThere was nothing for the jelly fish to do now but to repent of his\nstupidity, and to return to the Dragon King of the Sea and to confess\nhis failure, so he started sadly and slowly to swim back. The last\nthing he heard as he glided away, leaving the island behind him, was\nthe monkey laughing at him.\n\nMeanwhile the Dragon King, the doctor, the chief steward, and all the\nservants were waiting impatiently for the return of the jelly fish.\nWhen they caught sight of him approaching the Palace, they hailed him\nwith delight. They began to thank him profusely for all the trouble he\nhad taken in going to Monkey Island, and then they asked him where the\nmonkey was.\n\nNow the day of reckoning had come for the jelly fish. He quaked all\nover as he told his story. How he had brought the monkey halfway over\nthe sea, and then had stupidly let out the secret of his commission;\nhow the monkey had deceived him by making him believe that he had left\nhis liver behind him.\n\nThe Dragon King\u2019s wrath was great, and he at once gave orders that the\njelly fish was to be severely punished. The punishment was a horrible\none. All the bones were to be drawn out from his living body, and he\nwas to be beaten with sticks.\n\nThe poor jelly fish, humiliated and horrified beyond all words, cried\nout for pardon. But the Dragon King\u2019s order had to be obeyed. The\nservants of the Palace forthwith each brought out a stick and\nsurrounded the jelly fish, and after pulling out his bones they beat\nhim to a flat pulp, and then took him out beyond the Palace gates and\nthrew him into the water. Here he was left to suffer and repent his\nfoolish chattering, and to grow accustomed to his new state of\nbonelessness.\n\nFrom this story it is evident that in former times the jelly fish once\nhad a shell and bones something like a tortoise, but, ever since the\nDragon King\u2019s sentence was carried out on the ancestor of the jelly\nfishes, his descendants have all been soft and boneless just as you see\nthem to-day thrown up by the waves high upon the shores of Japan.\n\n\n\n\nTHE QUARREL OF THE MONKEY AND THE CRAB\n\n\nLong, long ago, one bright autumn day in Japan, it happened, that a\npink-faced monkey and a yellow crab were playing together along the\nbank of a river. As they were running about, the crab found a\nrice-dumpling and the monkey a persimmon-seed.\n\nThe crab picked up the rice-dumpling and showed it to the monkey,\nsaying:\n\n\u201cLook what a nice thing I have found!\u201d\n\nThen the monkey held up his persimmon-seed and said:\n\n\u201cI also have found something good! Look!\u201d\n\nNow though the monkey is always very fond of persimmon fruit, he had no\nuse for the seed he had just found. The persimmon-seed is as hard and\nuneatable as a stone. He, therefore, in his greedy nature, felt very\nenvious of the crab\u2019s nice dumpling, and he proposed an exchange. The\ncrab naturally did not see why he should give up his prize for a hard\nstone-like seed, and would not consent to the monkey\u2019s proposition.\n\nThen the cunning monkey began to persuade the crab, saying:\n\n\u201cHow unwise you are not to think of the future! Your rice-dumpling can\nbe eaten now, and is certainly much bigger than my seed; but if you sow\nthis seed in the ground it will soon grow and become a great tree in a\nfew years, and bear an abundance of fine ripe persimmons year after\nyear. If only I could show it to you then with the yellow fruit hanging\non its branches! Of course, if you don\u2019t believe me I shall sow it\nmyself; though I am sure, later on, you will be very sorry that you did\nnot take my advice.\u201d\n\nThe simple-minded crab could not resist the monkey\u2019s clever persuasion.\nHe at last gave in and consented to the monkey\u2019s proposal, and the\nexchange was made. The greedy monkey soon gobbled up the dumpling, and\nwith great reluctance gave up the persimmon-seed to the crab. He would\nhave liked to keep that too, but he was afraid of making the crab angry\nand of being pinched by his sharp scissor-like claws. They then\nseparated, the monkey going home to his forest trees and the crab to\nhis stones along the river-side. As soon as the crab reached home he\nput the persimmon-seed in the ground as the monkey had told him.\n\nIn the following spring the crab was delighted to see the shoot of a\nyoung tree push its way up through the ground. Each year it grew\nbigger, till at last it blossomed one spring, and in the following\nautumn bore some fine large persimmons. Among the broad smooth green\nleaves the fruit hung like golden balls, and as they ripened they\nmellowed to a deep orange. It was the little crab\u2019s pleasure to go out\nday by day and sit in the sun and put out his long eyes in the same way\nas a snail puts out its horn, and watch the persimmons ripening to\nperfection.\n\n\u201cHow delicious they will be to eat!\u201d he said to himself.\n\nAt last, one day, he knew the persimmons must be quite ripe and he\nwanted very much to taste one. He made several attempts to climb the\ntree, in the vain hope of reaching one of the beautiful persimmons\nhanging above him; but he failed each time, for a crab\u2019s legs are not\nmade for climbing trees but only for running along the ground and over\nstones, both of which he can do most cleverly. In his dilemma he\nthought of his old playmate the monkey, who, he knew, could climb trees\nbetter than any one else in the world. He determined to ask the monkey\nto help him, and set out to find him.\n\nRunning crab-fashion up the stony river bank, over the pathways into\nthe shadowy forest, the crab at last found the monkey taking an\nafternoon nap in his favorite pine-tree, with his tail curled tight\naround a branch to prevent him from falling off in his dreams. He was\nsoon wide awake, however, when he heard himself called, and eagerly\nlistening to what the crab told him. When he heard that the seed which\nhe had long ago exchanged for a rice-dumpling had grown into a tree and\nwas now bearing good fruit, he was delighted, for he at once devised a\ncunning plan which would give him all the persimmons for himself.\n\nHe consented to go with the crab to pick the fruit for him. When they\nboth reached the spot, the monkey was astonished to see what a fine\ntree had sprung from the seed, and with what a number of ripe\npersimmons the branches were loaded.\n\nHe quickly climbed the tree and began to pluck and eat, as fast as he\ncould, one persimmon after another. Each time he chose the best and\nripest he could find, and went on eating till he could eat no more. Not\none would he give to the poor hungry crab waiting below, and when he\nhad finished there was little but the hard, unripe fruit left.\n\nYou can imagine the feelings of the poor crab after waiting patiently,\nfor so long as he had done, for the tree to grow and the fruit to\nripen, when he saw the monkey devouring all the good persimmons. He was\nso disappointed that he ran round and round the tree calling to the\nmonkey to remember his promise. The monkey at first took no notice of\nthe crab\u2019s complaints, but at last he picked out the hardest, greenest\npersimmon he could find and aimed it at the crab\u2019s head. The persimmon\nis as hard as stone when it is unripe. The monkey\u2019s missile struck home\nand the crab was sorely hurt by the blow. Again and again, as fast as\nhe could pick them, the monkey pulled off the hard persimmons and threw\nthem at the defenseless crab till he dropped dead, covered with wounds\nall over his body. There he lay a pitiful sight at the foot of the tree\nhe had himself planted.\n\nWhen the wicked monkey saw that he had killed the crab he ran away from\nthe spot as fast as he could, in fear and trembling, like a coward as\nhe was.\n\nNow the crab had a son who had been playing with a friend not far from\nthe spot where this sad work had taken place. On the way home he came\nacross his father dead, in a most dreadful condition\u2014his head was\nsmashed and his shell broken in several places, and around his body lay\nthe unripe persimmons which had done their deadly work. At this\ndreadful sight the poor young crab sat down and wept.\n\nBut when he had wept for some time he told himself that this crying\nwould do no good; it was his duty to avenge his father\u2019s murder, and\nthis he determined to do. He looked about for some clue which would\nlead him to discover the murderer. Looking up at the tree he noticed\nthat the best fruit had gone, and that all around lay bits of peel and\nnumerous seeds strewn on the ground as well as the unripe persimmons\nwhich had evidently been thrown at his father. Then he understood that\nthe monkey was the murderer, for he now remembered that his father had\nonce told him the story of the rice-dumpling and the persimmon-seed.\nThe young crab knew that monkeys liked persimmons above all other\nfruit, and he felt sure that his greed for the coveted fruit had been\nthe cause of the old crab\u2019s death. Alas!\n\nHe at first thought of going to attack the monkey at once, for he\nburned with rage. Second thoughts, however, told him that this was\nuseless, for the monkey was an old and cunning animal and would be hard\nto overcome. He must meet cunning with cunning and ask some of his\nfriends to help him, for he knew it would be quite out of his power to\nkill him alone.\n\nThe young crab set out at once to call on the mortar, his father\u2019s old\nfriend, and told him of all that had happened. He besought the mortar\nwith tears to help him avenge his father\u2019s death. The mortar was very\nsorry when he heard the woful tale and promised at once to help the\nyoung crab punish the monkey to death. He warned him that he must be\nvery careful in what he did, for the monkey was a strong and cunning\nenemy. The mortar now sent to fetch the bee and the chestnut (also the\ncrab\u2019s old friends) to consult them about the matter. In a short time\nthe bee and the chestnut arrived. When they were told all the details\nof the old crab\u2019s death and of the monkey\u2019s wickedness and greed, they\nboth gladly consented to help the young crab in his revenge.\n\nAfter talking for a long time as to the ways and means of carrying out\ntheir plans they separated, and Mr. Mortar went home with the young\ncrab to help him bury his poor father.\n\nWhile all this was taking place the monkey was congratulating himself\n(as the wicked often do before their punishment comes upon them) on all\nhe had done so neatly. He thought it quite a fine thing that he had\nrobbed his friend of all his ripe persimmons and then that he had\nkilled him. Still, smile as hard as he might, he could not banish\naltogether the fear of the consequences should his evil deeds be\ndiscovered. IF he were found out (and he told himself that this could\nnot be for he had escaped unseen) the crab\u2019s family would be sure to\nbear him hatred and seek to take revenge on him. So he would not go\nout, and kept himself at home for several days. He found this kind of\nlife, however, extremely dull, accustomed as he was to the free life of\nthe woods, and at last he said:\n\n\u201cNo one knows that it was I who killed the crab! I am sure that the old\nthing breathed his last before I left him. Dead crabs have no mouths!\nWho is there to tell that I am the murderer? Since no one knows, what\nis the use of shutting myself up and brooding over the matter? What is\ndone cannot be undone!\u201d\n\nWith this he wandered out into the crab settlement and crept about as\nslyly as possible near the crab\u2019s house and tried to hear the\nneighbors\u2019 gossip round about. He wanted to find out what the crabs\nwere saving about their chief\u2019s death, for the old crab had been the\nchief of the tribe. But he heard nothing and said to himself:\n\n\u201cThey are all such fools that they don\u2019t know and don\u2019t care who\nmurdered their chief!\u201d\n\nLittle did he know in his so-called \u201cmonkey\u2019s wisdom\u201d that this seeming\nunconcern was part of the young crab\u2019s plan. He purposely pretended not\nto know who killed his father, and also to believe that he had met his\ndeath through his own fault. By this means he could the better keep\nsecret the revenge on the monkey, which he was meditating.\n\nSo the monkey returned home from his walk quite content. He told\nhimself he had nothing now to fear.\n\nOne fine day, when the monkey was sitting at home, he was surprised by\nthe appearance of a messenger from the young crab. While he was\nwondering what this might mean, the messenger bowed before him and\nsaid:\n\n\u201cI have been sent by my master to inform you that his father died the\nother day in falling from a persimmon tree while trying to climb the\ntree after fruit. This, being the seventh day, is the first anniversary\nafter his death, and my master has prepared a little festival in his\nfather\u2019s honor, and bids you come to participate in it as you were one\nof his best friends. My master hopes you will honor his house with your\nkind visit.\u201d\n\nWhen the monkey heard these words he rejoiced in his inmost heart, for\nall his fears of being suspected were now at rest. He could not guess\nthat a plot had just been set in motion against him. He pretended to be\nvery surprised at the news of the crab\u2019s death, and said:\n\n\u201cI am, indeed, very sorry to hear of your chief\u2019s death. We were great\nfriends as you know. I remember that we once exchanged a rice-dumpling\nfor a persimmon-seed. It grieves me much to think that that seed was in\nthe end the cause of his death. I accept your kind invitation with many\nthanks. I shall be delighted to do honor to my poor old friend!\u201d And he\nscrewed some false tears from his eyes.\n\nThe messenger laughed inwardly and thought, \u201cThe wicked monkey is now\ndropping false tears, but within a short time he shall shed real ones.\u201d\nBut aloud he thanked the monkey politely and went home.\n\nWhen he had gone, the wicked monkey laughed aloud at what he thought\nwas the young crab\u2019s innocence, and without the least feeling began to\nlook forward to the feast to be held that day in honor of the dead\ncrab, to which he had been invited. He changed his dress and set out\nsolemnly to visit the young crab.\n\nHe found all the members of the crab\u2019s family and his relatives waiting\nto receive and welcome him. As soon as the bows of meeting were over\nthey led him to a hall. Here the young chief mourner came to receive\nhim. Expressions of condolence and thanks were exchanged between them,\nand then they all sat down to a luxurious feast and entertained the\nmonkey as the guest of honor.\n\nThe feast over, he was next invited to the tea-ceremony room to drink a\ncup of tea. When the young crab had conducted the monkey to the tearoom\nhe left him and retired. Time passed and still he did not return. At\nlast the monkey became impatient. He said to himself:\n\n\u201cThis tea ceremony is always a very slow affair. I am tired of waiting\nso long. I am very thirsty after drinking so much sake at the dinner!\u201d\n\nHe then approached the charcoal fire-place and began to pour out some\nhot water from the kettle boiling there, when something burst out from\nthe ashes with a great pop and hit the monkey right in the neck. It was\nthe chestnut, one of the crab\u2019s friends, who had hidden himself in the\nfireplace. The monkey, taken by surprise, jumped backward, and then\nstarted to run out of the room.\n\nThe bee, who was hiding outside the screens, now flew out and stung him\non the cheek. The monkey was in great pain, his neck was burned by the\nchestnut and his face badly stung by the bee, but he ran on screaming\nand chattering with rage.\n\nNow the stone mortar had hidden himself with several other stones on\nthe top of the crab\u2019s gate, and as the monkey ran underneath, the\nmortar and all fell down on the top of the monkey\u2019s head. Was it\npossible for the monkey to bear the weight of the mortar falling on him\nfrom the top of the gate? He lay crushed and in great pain, quite\nunable to get up. As he lay there helpless the young crab came up, and,\nholding his great claw scissors over the monkey, he said:\n\n\u201cDo you now remember that you murdered my father?\u201d\n\n\u201cThen you\u2014are\u2014my\u2014enemy?\u201d gasped the monkey brokenly.\n\n\u201cOf course,\u201d said the young crab.\n\n\u201cIt\u2014was\u2014your\u2014father\u2019s\u2014fault\u2014not\u2014mine!\u201d gasped the unrepentant monkey.\n\n\u201cCan you still lie? I will soon put an end to your breath!\u201d and with\nthat he cut off the monkey\u2019s head with his pitcher claws. Thus the\nwicked monkey met his well-merited punishment, and the young crab\navenged his father\u2019s death.\n\nThis is the end of the story of the monkey, the crab, and the\npersimmon-seed.\n\n\n\n\nTHE WHITE HARE AND THE CROCODILES\n\n\nLong, long ago, when all the animals could talk, there lived in the\nprovince of Inaba in Japan, a little white hare. His home was on the\nisland of Oki, and just across the sea was the mainland of Inaba.\n\nNow the hare wanted very much to cross over to Inaba. Day after day he\nwould go out and sit on the shore and look longingly over the water in\nthe direction of Inaba, and day after day he hoped to find some way of\ngetting across.\n\nOne day as usual, the hare was standing on the beach, looking towards\nthe mainland across the water, when he saw a great crocodile swimming\nnear the island.\n\n\u201cThis is very lucky!\u201d thought the hare. \u201cNow I shall be able to get my\nwish. I will ask the crocodile to carry me across the sea!\u201d\n\nBut he was doubtful whether the crocodile would consent to do what\nwanted. So he thought instead of asking a favor he would try to get\nwhat he wanted by a trick.\n\nSo with a loud voice he called to the crocodile, and said:\n\n\u201cOh, Mr. Crocodile, isn\u2019t it a lovely day?\u201d\n\nThe crocodile, who had come out all by itself that day to enjoy the\nbright sunshine, was just beginning to feel a bit lonely when the\nhare\u2019s cheerful greeting broke the silence. The crocodile swam nearer\nthe shore, very pleased to hear some one speak.\n\n\u201cI wonder who it was that spoke to me just now! Was it you, Mr. Hare?\nYou must be very lonely all by yourself!\u201d\n\n\u201cOh, no, I am not at all lonely,\u201d said the hare, \u201cbut as it was such a\nfine day I came out here to enjoy myself. Won\u2019t you stop and play with\nme a little while?\u201d\n\nThe crocodile came out of the sea and sat on the shore, and the two\nplayed together for some time. Then the hare said:\n\n\u201cMr. Crocodile, you live in the sea and I live on this island, and we\ndo not often meet, so I know very little about you. Tell me, do you\nthink the number of your company is greater than mine?\u201d\n\n\u201cOf course, there are more crocodiles than hares,\u201d answered the\ncrocodile. \u201cCan you not see that for yourself? You live on this small\nisland, while I live in the sea, which spreads through all parts of the\nworld, so if I call together all the crocodiles who dwell in the sea\nyou hares will be as nothing compared to us!\u201d The crocodile was very\nconceited.\n\nThe hare, who meant to play a trick on the crocodile, said:\n\n\u201cDo you think it possible for you to call up enough crocodiles to form\na line from this island across the sea to Inaba?\u201d\n\nThe crocodile thought for a moment and then answered:\n\n\u201cOf course, it is possible.\u201d\n\n\u201cThen do try,\u201d said the artful hare, \u201cand I will count the number from\nhere!\u201d\n\nThe crocodile, who was very simple-minded, and who hadn\u2019t the least\nidea that the hare intended to play a trick on him, agreed to do what\nthe hare asked, and said:\n\n\u201cWait a little while I go back into the sea and call my company\ntogether!\u201d\n\nThe crocodile plunged into the sea and was gone for some time. The\nhare, meanwhile, waited patiently on the shore. At last the crocodile\nappeared, bringing with him a large number of other crocodiles.\n\n\u201cLook, Mr. Hare!\u201d said the crocodile, \u201cit is nothing for my friends to\nform a line between here and Inaba. There are enough crocodiles to\nstretch from here even as far as China or India. Did you ever see so\nmany crocodiles?\u201d\n\nThen the whole company of crocodiles arranged themselves in the water\nso as to form a bridge between the Island of Oki and the mainland of\nInaba. When the hare saw the bridge of crocodiles, he said:\n\n\u201cHow splendid! I did not believe this was possible. Now let me count\nyou all! To do this, however, with your permission, I must walk over on\nyour backs to the other side, so please be so good as not to move, or\nelse I shall fall into the sea and be drowned!\u201d\n\nSo the hare hopped off the island on to the strange bridge of\ncrocodiles, counting as he jumped from one crocodile\u2019s back to the\nother:\n\n\u201cPlease keep quite still, or I shall not be able to count. One, two,\nthree, four, five, six, seven, eight, nine\u2014\u201d\n\nThus the cunning hare walked right across to the mainland of Inaba. Not\ncontent with getting his wish, he began to jeer at the crocodiles\ninstead of thanking them, and said, as he leapt off the last one\u2019s\nback:\n\n\u201cOh! you stupid crocodiles, now I have done with you!\u201d\n\nAnd he was just about to run away as fast as he could. But he did not\nescape so easily, for so soon as the crocodiles understood that this\nwas a trick played upon them by the hare so as to enable him to cross\nthe sea, and that the hare was now laughing at them for their\nstupidity, they became furiously angry and made up their minds to take\nrevenge. So some of them ran after the hare and caught him. Then they\nall surrounded the poor little animal and pulled out all his fur. He\ncried out loudly and entreated them to spare him, but with each tuft of\nfur they pulled out they said:\n\n\u201cServe you right!\u201d\n\nWhen the crocodiles had pulled out the last bit of fur, they threw the\npoor hare on the beach, and all swam away laughing at what they had\ndone.\n\nThe hare was now in a pitiful plight, all his beautiful white fur had\nbeen pulled out, and his bare little body was quivering with pain and\nbleeding all over. He could hardly move, and all he could do was to lie\non the beach quite helpless and weep over the misfortune that had\nbefallen him. Notwithstanding that it was his own fault that had\nbrought all this misery and suffering upon the white hare of Inaba, any\none seeing the poor little creature could not help feeling sorry for\nhim in his sad condition, for the crocodiles had been very cruel in\ntheir revenge.\n\nJust at this time a number of men, who looked like King\u2019s sons,\nhappened to pass by, and seeing the hare lying on the beach crying,\nstopped and asked what was the matter.\n\nThe hare lifted up his head from between his paws, and answered them,\nsaying:\n\n\u201cI had a fight with some crocodiles, but I was beaten, and they pulled\nout all my fur and left me to suffer here\u2014that is why I am crying.\u201d\n\nNow one of these young men had a bad and spiteful disposition. But he\nfeigned kindness, and said to the hare:\n\n\u201cI feel very sorry for you. If you will only try it, I know of a remedy\nwhich will cure your sore body. Go and bathe yourself in the sea, and\nthen come and sit in the wind. This will make your fur grow again, and\nyou will be just as you were before.\u201d\n\nThen all the young men passed on. The hare was very pleased, thinking\nthat he had found a cure. He went and bathed in the sea and then came\nout and sat where the wind could blow upon him.\n\nBut as the wind blew and dried him, his skin became drawn and hardened,\nand the salt increased the pain so much that he rolled on the sand in\nhis agony and cried aloud.\n\nJust then another King\u2019s son passed by, carrying a great bag on his\nback. He saw the hare, and stopped and asked why he was crying so\nloudly.\n\nBut the poor hare, remembering that he had been deceived by one very\nlike the man who now spoke to him, did not answer, but continued to\ncry.\n\nBut this man had a kind heart, and looked at the hare very pityingly,\nand said:\n\n\u201cYou poor thing! I see that your fur is all pulled out and that your\nskin is quite bare. Who can have treated you so cruelly?\u201d\n\nWhen the hare heard these kind words he felt very grateful to the man,\nand encouraged by his gentle manner the hare told him all that had\nbefallen him. The little animal hid nothing from his friend, but told\nhim frankly how he had played a trick on the crocodiles and how he had\ncome across the bridge they had made, thinking that he wished to count\ntheir number: how he had jeered at them for their stupidity, and then\nhow the crocodiles had revenged themselves on him. Then he went on to\nsay how he had been deceived by a party of men who looked very like his\nkind friend: and the hare ended his long tale of woe by begging the man\nto give him some medicine that would cure him and make his fur grow\nagain.\n\nWhen the hare had finished his story, the man was full of pity towards\nhim, and said:\n\n\u201cI am very sorry for all you have suffered, but remember, it was only\nthe consequence of the deceit you practiced on the crocodiles.\u201d\n\n\u201cI know,\u201d answered the sorrowful hare, \u201cbut I have repented and made up\nmy mind never to use deceit again, so I beg you to show me how I may\ncure my sore body and make the fur grow again.\u201d\n\n\u201cThen I will tell you of a good remedy,\u201d said the man. \u201cFirst go and\nbathe well in that pond over there and try to wash all the salt from\nyour body. Then pick some of those kaba flowers that are growing near\nthe edge of the water, spread them on the ground and roll yourself on\nthem. If you do this the pollen will cause your fur to grow again, and\nyou will be quite well in a little while.\u201d\n\nThe hare was very glad to be told what to do, so kindly. He crawled to\nthe pond pointed out to him, bathed well in it, and then picked the\nkaba flowers growing near the water, and rolled himself on them.\n\nTo his amazement, even while he was doing this, he saw his nice white\nfur growing again, the pain ceased, and he felt just as he had done\nbefore all his misfortunes.\n\nThe hare was overjoyed at his quick recovery, and went hopping joyfully\ntowards the young man who had so helped him, and kneeling down at his\nfeet, said:\n\n\u201cI cannot express my thanks for all you have done for me! It is my\nearnest wish to do something for you in return. Please tell me who you\nare?\u201d\n\n\u201cI am no King\u2019s son as you think me. I am a fairy, and my name is\nOkuni-nushi-no-Mikoto,\u201d answered the man, \u201cand those beings who passed\nhere before me are my brothers. They have heard of a beautiful Princess\ncalled Yakami who lives in this province of Inaba, and they are on\ntheir way to find her and to ask her to marry one of them. But on this\nexpedition I am only an attendant, so I am walking behind them with\nthis great big bag on my back.\u201d\n\nThe hare humbled himself before this great fairy Okuni-nushi-no-Mikoto,\nwhom many in that part of the land worshiped as a god.\n\n\u201cOh, I did not know that you were Okuni-nushi-no-Mikoto. How kind you\nhave been to me! It is impossible to believe that that unkind fellow\nwho sent me to bathe in the sea is one of your brothers. I am quite\nsure that the Princess, whom your brothers have gone to seek, will\nrefuse to be the bride of any of them, and will prefer you for your\ngoodness of heart. I am quite sure that you will win her heart without\nintending to do so, and she will ask to be your bride.\u201d\n\nOkuni-nushi-no-Mikoto took no notice of what the hare said, but bidding\nthe little animal goodby, went on his way quickly and soon overtook his\nbrothers. He found them just entering the Princess\u2019s gate.\n\nJust as the hare had said, the Princess could not be persuaded to\nbecome the bride of any of the brothers, but when she looked at the\nkind brother\u2019s face she went straight up to him and said:\n\n\u201cTo you I give myself,\u201d and so they were married.\n\nThis is the end of the story. Okuni-nushi-no-Mikoto is worshiped by the\npeople in some parts of Japan, as a god, and the hare has become famous\nas \u201cThe White Hare of Inaba.\u201d But what became of the crocodiles nobody\nknows.\n\n\n\n\nTHE STORY OF PRINCE YAMATO TAKE\n\n\nThe insignia of the great Japanese Empire is composed of three\ntreasures which have been considered sacred, and guarded with jealous\ncare from time immemorial. These are the Yatano-no-Kagami or the Mirror\nof Yata, the Yasakami-no-Magatama or the Jewel of Yasakami, and the\nMurakumo-no-Tsurugi or the Sword of Murakumo.\n\nOf these three treasures of the Empire, the sword of Murakumo,\nafterwards known as Kusanagi-no-Tsrugugi, or the grass-cleaving sword,\nis considered the most precious and most highly to be honored, for it\nis the symbol of strength to this nation of warriors and the talisman\nof invincibility for the Emperor, while he holds it sacred in the\nshrine of his ancestors.\n\nNearly two thousand years ago this sword was kept at the shrines of\nIte, the temples dedicated to the worship of Amaterasu, the great and\nbeautiful Sun Goddess from whom the Japanese Emperors are said to be\ndescended.\n\nThere is a story of knightly adventure and daring which explains why\nthe name of the sword was changed from that of Murakumo to Kasanagi,\nwhich means grass clearing.\n\nOnce, many, many years ago, there was born a son to the Emperor Keiko,\nthe twelfth in descent from the great Jimmu, the founder of the\nJapanese dynasty. This Prince was the second son of the Emperor Keiko,\nand he was named Yamato. From his childhood he proved himself to be of\nremarkable strength, wisdom and courage, and his father noticed with\npride that he gave promise of great things, and he loved him even more\nthan he did his elder son.\n\nNow when Prince Yamato had grown to manhood (in the olden days of\nJapanese history, a boy was considered to have reached man\u2019s estate at\nthe early age of sixteen) the realm was much troubled by a band of\noutlaws whose chiefs were two brothers, Kumaso and Takeru. These rebels\nseemed to delight in rebelling against the King, in breaking the laws\nand defying all authority.\n\nAt last King Keiko ordered his younger son Prince Yamato to subdue the\nbrigands and, if possible, to rid the land of their evil lives. Prince\nYamato was only sixteen years of age, he had but reached his manhood\naccording to the law, yet though he was such a youth in years he\npossessed the dauntless spirit of a warrior of fuller age and knew not\nwhat fear was. Even then there was no man who could rival him for\ncourage and bold deeds, and he received his father\u2019s command with great\njoy.\n\nHe at once made ready to start, and great was the stir in the precincts\nof the Palace as he and his trusty followers gathered together and\nprepared for the expedition, and polished up their armor and donned it.\nBefore he left his father\u2019s Court he went to pray at the shrine of Ise\nand to take leave of his aunt the Princess Yamato, for his heart was\nsomewhat heavy at the thought of the dangers he had to face, and he\nfelt that he needed the protection of his ancestress, Amaterasu, the\nSun Goddess. The Princess his aunt came out to give him glad welcome,\nand congratulated him on being trusted with so great a mission by his\nfather the King. She then gave him one of her gorgeous robes as a\nkeepsake to go with him and to bring him good luck, saying that it\nwould surely be of service to him on this adventure. She then wished\nhim all success in his undertaking and bade him good speed.\n\nThe young Prince bowed low before his aunt, and received her gracious\ngift with much pleasure and many respectful bows.\n\n\u201cI will now set out,\u201d said the Prince, and returning to the Palace he\nput himself at the head of his troops. Thus cheered by his aunt\u2019s\nblessing, he felt ready for all that might befall, and marching through\nthe land he went down to the Southern Island of Kiushiu, the home of\nthe brigands.\n\nBefore many days had passed he reached the Southern Island, and then\nslowly but surely made his way to the head-quarters of the chiefs\nKumaso and Takeru. He now met with great difficulties, for he found the\ncountry exceedingly wild and rough. The mountains were high and steep,\nthe valleys dark and deep, and huge trees and bowlders of rock blocked\nup the road and stopped the progress of his army. It was all but\nimpossible to go on.\n\nThough the Prince was but a youth he had the wisdom of years, and,\nseeing that it was vain to try and lead his men further, he said to\nhimself:\n\n\u201cTo attempt to fight a battle in this impassable country unknown to my\nmen only makes my task harder. We cannot clear the roads and fight as\nwell. It is wiser for me to resort to stratagem and come upon my\nenemies unawares. In that way I may be able to kill them without much\nexertion.\u201d\n\nSo he now bade his army halt by the way. His wife, the Princess\nOtotachibana, had accompanied him, and he bade her bring him the robe\nhis aunt the priestess of Ise had given him, and to help him attire\nhimself as a woman. With her help he put on the robe, and let his hair\ndown till it flowed over his shoulders. Ototachibana then brought him\nher comb, which he put in his black tresses, and then adorned himself\nwith strings of strange jewels just as you see in the picture. When he\nhad finished his unusual toilet, Ototachibana brought him her mirror.\nHe smiled as he gazed at himself\u2014the disguise was so perfect.\n\nHe hardly knew himself, so changed was he. All traces of the warrior\nhad disappeared, and in the shining surface only a beautiful lady\nlooked back at him.\n\nThus completely disguised, he set out for the enemy\u2019s camp alone. In\nthe folds of his silk gown, next his strong heart, was hidden a sharp\ndagger.\n\nThe two chiefs Kumaso and Takeru wore sitting in their tent, resting in\nthe cool of the evening, when the Prince approached. They were talking\nof the news which had recently been carried to them, that the King\u2019s\nson had entered their country with a large army determined to\nexterminate their band. They had both heard of the young warrior\u2019s\nrenown, and for the first time in their wicked lives they felt afraid.\nIn a pause in their talk they happened to look up, and saw through the\ndoor of the tent a beautiful woman robed in sumptuous garments coming\ntowards them. Like an apparition of loveliness she appeared in the soft\ntwilight. Little did they dream that it was their enemy whose coming\nthey so dreaded who now stood before them in this disguise.\n\n\u201cWhat a beautiful woman! Where has she come from?\u201d said the astonished\nKumaso, forgetting war and council and everything as he looked at the\ngentle intruder.\n\nHe beckoned to the disguised Prince and bade him sit down and serve\nthem with wine. Yamato Take felt his heart swell with a fierce glee for\nhe now knew that his plan would succeed. However, he dissembled\ncleverly, and putting on a sweet air of shyness he approached the rebel\nchief with slow steps and eyes glancing like a frightened deer. Charmed\nto distraction by the girl\u2019s loveliness Kumaso drank cup after cup of\nwine for the pleasure of seeing her pour it out for him, till at last\nhe was quite overcome with the quantity he had drunk.\n\nThis was the moment for which the brave Prince had been waiting.\nFlinging down the wine jar, he seized the tipsy and astonished Kumaso\nand quickly stabbed him to death with the dagger which he had secretly\ncarried hidden in his breast.\n\nTakeru, the brigand\u2019s brother, was terror-struck as soon as he saw what\nwas happening and tried to escape, but Prince Yamato was too quick for\nhim. Ere he could reach the tent door the Prince was at his heel, his\ngarments were clutched by a hand of iron, and a dagger flashed before\nhis eyes and he lay stabbed to the earth, dying but not yet dead.\n\n\u201cWait one moment!\u201d gasped the brigand painfully, and he seized the\nPrince\u2019s hand.\n\nYamato relaxed his hold somewhat and said.\n\n\u201cWhy should I pause, thou villain?\u201d\n\nThe brigand raised himself fearfully and said:\n\n\u201cTell me from whence you come, and whom I have the honor of addressing?\nHitherto I believed that my dead brother and I were the strongest men\nin the land, and that there was no one who could overcome us. Alone you\nhave ventured into our stronghold, alone you have attacked and killed\nus! Surely you are more than mortal?\u201d\n\nThen the young Prince answered with a proud smile:\u2014\u201cI am the son of the\nKing and my name is Yamato, and I have been sent by my father as the\navenger of evil to bring death to all rebels! No longer shall robbery\nand murder hold my people in terror!\u201d and he held the dagger dripping\nred above the rebel\u2019s head.\n\n\u201cAh,\u201d gasped the dying man with a great effort, \u201cI have often heard of\nyou. You are indeed a strong man to have so easily overcome us. Allow\nme to give you a new name. From henceforth you shall be known as Yamato\nTake. Our title I bequeath to you as the bravest man in Yamato.\u201d\n\nAnd with these noble words, Takeru fell back and died.\n\nThe Prince having thus successfully put an end to his father\u2019s enemies\nin the world, was prepared to return to the capital. On the way back he\npassed through the province of Idum. Here he met with another outlaw\nnamed Idzumo Takeru who he knew had done much harm in the land. He\nagain resorted to stratagem, and feigned friendship with the rebel\nunder an assumed name. Having done this he made a sword of wood and\njammed it tightly in the shaft of his own strong sword. This he\npurposedly buckled to his side and wore on every occasion when he\nexpected to meet the third robber Takeru.\n\nHe now invited Takeru to the bank of the River Hinokawa, and persuaded\nhim to try a swim with him in the cool refreshing waters of the river.\n\nAs it was a hot summer\u2019s day, the rebel was nothing loath to take a\nplunge in the river, while his enemy was still swimming down the stream\nthe Prince turned back and landed with all possible haste. Unperceived,\nhe managed to change swords, putting his wooden one in place of the\nkeen steel sword of Takeru.\n\nKnowing nothing of this, the brigand came up to the bank shortly. As\nsoon as he had landed and donned his clothes, the Prince came forward\nand asked him to cross swords with him to prove his skill, saying:\n\n\u201cLet us two prove which is the better swordsman of the two!\u201d\n\nThe robber agreed with delight, feeling certain of victory, for he was\nfamous as a fencer in his province and he did not know who his\nadversary was. He seized quickly what he thought was his sword and\nstood on guard to defend himself. Alas! for the rebel the sword was the\nwooden one of the young Prince and in vain Takeru tried to unsheathe\nit\u2014it was jammed fast, not all his exerted strength could move it. Even\nif his efforts had been successful the sword would have been of no use\nto him for it was of wood. Yamato Take saw that his enemy was in his\npower, and swinging high the sword he had taken from Takeru he brought\nit down with great might and dexterity and cut off the robber\u2019s head.\n\nIn this way, sometimes by using his wisdom and sometimes by using his\nbodily strength, and at other times by resorting to craftiness, which\nwas as much esteemed in those days as it is despised in these, he\nprevailed against all the King\u2019s foes one by one, and brought peace and\nrest to the land and the people.\n\nWhen he returned to the capital the King praised him for his brave\ndeeds, and held a feast in the Palace in honor of his safe coming home\nand presented him with many rare gifts. From this time forth the King\nloved him more than ever and would not let Yamato Take go from his\nside, for he said that his son was now as precious to him as one of his\narms.\n\nBut the Prince was not allowed to live an idle life long. When he was\nabout thirty years old, news was brought that the Ainu race, the\naborigines of the islands of Japan, who had been conquered and pushed\nnorthwards by the Japanese, had rebelled in the Eastern provinces, and\nleaving the vicinity which had been allotted to them were causing great\ntrouble in the land. The King decided that it was necessary to send an\narmy to do battle with them and bring them to reason. But who was to\nlead the men?\n\nPrince Yamato Take at once offered to go and bring the newly arisen\nrebels into subjection. Now as the King loved the Prince dearly, and\ncould not bear to have him go out of his sight even for the length of\none day, he was of course very loath to send him on his dangerous\nexpedition. But in the whole army there was no warrior so strong or so\nbrave as the Prince his son, so that His Majesty, unable to do\notherwise, reluctantly complied with Yamato\u2019s wish.\n\nWhen the time came for the Prince to start, the King gave him a spear\ncalled the Eight-Arms-Length-Spear of the Holly Tree (the handle was\nprobably made from the wood of the holly tree), and ordered him to set\nout to subjugate the Eastern Barbarians as the Ainu were then called.\n\nThe Eight-Arms-Length-Spear of the Holly Tree of those old days, was\nprized by warriors just as much as the Standard or Banner is valued by\na regiment in these modern days, when given by the King to his soldiers\non the occasion of setting out for war.\n\nThe Prince respectfully and with great reverence received the King\u2019s\nspear, and leaving the capital, marched with his army to the East. On\nhis way he visited first of all the temples of Ise for worship, and his\naunt the Princess of Yamato and High Priestess came out to greet him.\nShe it was who had given him her robe which had proved such a boon to\nhim before in helping him to overcome and slay the brigands of the\nWest.\n\nHe told her all that had happened to him, and of the great part her\nkeepsake had played in the success of his previous undertaking, and\nthanked her very heartily. When she heard that he was starting out once\nagain to do battle with his father\u2019s enemies, she went into the temple,\nand reappeared bearing a sword and a beautiful bag which she had made\nherself, and which was full of flints, which in those times people used\ninstead of matches for making fire. These she presented to him as a\nparting gift.\n\nThe sword was the sword of Murakumo, one of the three sacred treasures\nwhich comprise the insignia of the Imperial House of Japan. No more\nauspicious talisman of luck and success could she have given her\nnephew, and she bade him use it in the hour of his greatest need.\n\nYamato Take now bade farewell to his aunt, and once more placing\nhimself at the head of his men he marched to the farthest East through\nthe province of Owari, and then he reached the province of Suruga. Here\nthe governor welcomed the Prince right heartily and entertained him\nroyally with many feasts. When these were over, the governor told his\nguest that his country was famous for its fine deer, and proposed a\ndeer hunt for the Prince\u2019s amusement. The Prince was utterly deceived\nby the cordiality of his host, which was all feigned, and gladly\nconsented to join in the hunt.\n\nThe governor then led the Prince to a wild and extensive plain where\nthe grass grew high and in great abundance. Quite ignorant that the\ngovernor had laid a trap for him with the desire to compass his death,\nthe Prince began to ride hard and hunt down the deer, when all of a\nsudden to his amazement he saw flames and smoke bursting out from the\nbush in front of him. Realizing his danger he tried to retreat, but no\nsooner did he turn his horse in the opposite direction than he saw that\neven there the prairie was on fire. At the same time the grass on his\nleft and right burst into flames, and these began to spread swiftly\ntowards him on all sides. He looked round for a chance of escape. There\nwas none. He was surrounded by fire.\n\n\u201cThis deer hunt was then only a cunning trick of the enemy!\u201d said the\nPrince, looking round on the flames and the smoke that crackled and\nrolled in towards him on every side. \u201cWhat a fool I was to be lured\ninto this trap like a wild beast!\u201d and he ground his teeth with rage as\nhe thought of the governor\u2019s smiling treachery.\n\nDangerous as was his situation now, the Prince was not in the least\nconfounded. In his dire extremity he remembered the gifts his aunt had\ngiven him when they parted, and it seemed to him as if she must, with\nprophetic foresight, have divined this hour of need. He coolly opened\nthe flint-bag that his aunt had given him and set fire to the grass\nnear him. Then drawing the sword of Murakumo from its sheath he set to\nwork to cut down the grass on either side of him with all speed. He\ndetermined to die, if that were necessary, fighting for his life and\nnot standing still waiting for death to come to him.\n\nStrange to say the wind began to change and to blow from the opposite\ndirection, and the fiercest portion of the burning bush which had\nhitherto threatened to come upon him was now blown right away from him,\nand the Prince, without even a scratch on his body or a single hair\nburned, lived to tell the tale of his wonderful escape, while the wind\nrising to a gale overtook the governor, and he was burned to death in\nthe flames he had set alight to kill Yamato Take.\n\nNow the Prince ascribed his escape entirely to the virtue of the sword\nof Murakumo, and to the protection of Amaterasu, the Sun Goddess of\nIse, who controls the wind and all the elements and insures the safety\nof all who pray to her in the hour of danger. Lifting the precious\nsword he raised it above his head many times in token of his great\nrespect, and as he did this he re-named it Kusanagi-no-Tsurugi or the\nGrass-Cleaving Sword, and the place where he set fire to the grass\nround him and escaped from death in the burning prairie, he called\nYaidzu. To this day there is a spot along the great Tokaido railway\nnamed Yaidzu, which is said to be the very place where this thrilling\nevent took place.\n\nThus did the brave Prince Yamato Take escape out of the snare laid for\nhim by his enemy. He was full of resource and courage, and finally\noutwitted and subdued all his foes. Leaving Yaidzu he marched eastward,\nand came to the shore at Idzu from whence he wished to cross to\nKadzusa.\n\nIn these dangers and adventures he had been followed by his faithful\nloving wife the Princess Ototachibana. For his sake she counted the\nweariness of the long journeys and the dangers of war as nothing, and\nher love for her warrior husband was so great that she felt well repaid\nfor all her wanderings if she could but hand him his sword when he\nsallied forth to battle, or minister to his wants when he returned\nweary to the camp.\n\nBut the heart of the Prince was full of war and conquest and he cared\nlittle for the faithful Ototachibana. From long exposure in traveling,\nand from care and grief at her lord\u2019s coldness to her, her beauty had\nfaded, and her ivory skin was burnt brown by the sun, and the Prince\ntold her one day that her place was in the Palace behind the screens at\nhome and not with him upon the warpath. But in spite of rebuffs and\nindifference on her husband\u2019s part, Ototachibana could not find it in\nher heart to leave him. But perhaps it would have been better for her\nif she had done so, for on the way to Idzu, when they came to Owari,\nher heart was well-nigh broken.\n\nHere dwelt in a Palace shaded by pine-trees and approached by imposing\ngates, the Princess Miyadzu, beautiful as the cherry blossom in the\nblushing dawn of a spring morning. Her garments were dainty and bright,\nand her skin was white as snow, for she had never known what it was to\nbe weary along the path of duty or to walk in the heat of a summer\u2019s\nsun. And the Prince was ashamed of his sunburnt wife in her\ntravel-stained garments, and bade her remain behind while he went to\nvisit the Princess Miyadzu. Day after day he spent hours in the gardens\nand the Palace of his new friend, thinking only of his pleasure, and\ncaring little for his poor wife who remained behind to weep in the tent\nat the misery which had come into her life. Yet she was so faithful a\nwife, and her character so patient, that she never allowed a reproach\nto escape her lips, or a frown to mar the sweet sadness of her face,\nand she was ever ready with a smile to welcome her husband back or\nusher him forth wherever he went.\n\nAt last the day came when the Prince Yamato Take must depart for Idzu\nand cross over the sea to Kadzusa, and he bade his wife follow in his\nretinue as an attendant while he went to take a ceremonious farewell of\nthe Princess Miyadzu. She came out to greet him dressed in gorgeous\nrobes, and she seemed more beautiful than ever, and when Yamato Take\nsaw her he forgot his wife, his duty, and everything except the joy of\nthe idle present, and swore that he would return to Owari and marry her\nwhen the war was over. And as he looked up when he had said these words\nhe met the large almond eyes of Ototachibana fixed full upon him in\nunspeakable sadness and wonder, and he knew that he had done wrong, but\nhe hardened his heart and rode on, caring little for the pain he had\ncaused her.\n\nWhen they reached the seashore at Idzu his men sought for boats in\nwhich to cross the straits to Kadzusa, but it was difficult to find\nboats enough to allow all the soldiers to embark. Then the Prince stood\non the beach, and in the pride of his strength he scoffed and said:\n\n\u201cThis is not the sea! This is only a brook! Why do you men want so many\nboats? I could jump this if I would.\u201d\n\nWhen at last they had all embarked and were fairly on their way across\nthe straits, the sky suddenly clouded and a great storm arose. The\nwaves rose mountains high, the wind howled, the lightning flashed and\nthe thunder rolled, and the boat which held Ototachibana and the Prince\nand his men was tossed from crest to crest of the rolling waves, till\nit seemed that every moment must be their last and that they must all\nbe swallowed up in the angry sea. For Kin Jin, the Dragon King of the\nSea, had heard Yamato Take jeer, and had raised this terrible storm in\nanger, to show the scoffing Prince how awful the sea could be though it\ndid but look like a brook.\n\nThe terrified crew lowered the sails and looked after the rudder, and\nworked for their dear lives\u2019 sake, but all in vain\u2014the storm only\nseemed to increase in violence, and all gave themselves up for lost.\nThen the faithful Ototachibana rose, and forgetting all the grief that\nher husband had caused her, forgetting even that he had wearied of her,\nin the one great desire of her love to save him, she determined to\nsacrifice her life to rescue him from death if it were possible.\n\nWhile the waves dashed over the ship and the wind whirled round them in\nfury she stood up and said:\n\n\u201cSurely all this has come because the Prince has angered Rin Jin, the\nGod of the Sea, by his jesting. If so, I, Ototachibana, will appease\nthe wrath of the Sea God who desires nothing less than my husband\u2019s\nlife!\u201d\n\nThen addressing the sea she said:\n\n\u201cI will take the place of His Augustness, Yamato Take. I will now cast\nmyself into your outraged depths, giving my life for his. Therefore\nhear me and bring him safely to the shore of Kadzusa.\u201d\n\nWith these words she leaped quickly into the boisterous sea, and the\nwaves soon whirled her away and she was lost to sight. Strange to say,\nthe storm ceased at once, and the sea became as calm and smooth as the\nmatting on which the astonished onlookers were sitting. The gods of the\nsea were now appeased, and the weather cleared and the sun shone as on\na summer\u2019s day.\n\nYamato Take soon reached the opposite shore and landed safely, even as\nhis wife Ototachibana had prayed. His prowess in war was marvelous, and\nhe succeeded after some time in conquering the Eastern Barbarians, the\nAinu.\n\nHe ascribed his safe landing wholly to the faithfulness of his wife,\nwho had so willingly and lovingly sacrificed herself in the hour of his\nutmost peril. His heart was softened at the remembrance of her, and he\nnever allowed her to pass from his thoughts even for a moment. Too late\nhad he learned to esteem the goodness of her heart and the greatness of\nher love for him.\n\nAs he was returning on his homeward way he came to the high pass of the\nUsui Toge, and here he stood and gazed at the wonderful prospect\nbeneath him. The country, from this great elevation, all lay open to\nhis sight, a vast panorama of mountain and plain and forest, with\nrivers winding like silver ribbons through the land; then far off he\nsaw the distant sea, which shimmered like a luminous mist in the great\ndistance, where Ototachibana had given her life for him, and as he\nturned towards it he stretched out his arms, and thinking of her love\nwhich he had scorned and his faithlessness to her, his heart burst out\ninto a sorrowful and bitter cry:\n\n\u201cAzuma, Azuma, Ya!\u201d (Oh! my wife, my wife!) And to this day there is a\ndistrict in Tokio called Azuma, which commemorates the words of Prince\nYamato Take, and the place where his faithful wife leapt into the sea\nto save him is still pointed out. So, though in life the Princess\nOtotachibana was unhappy, history keeps her memory green, and the story\nof her unselfishness and heroic death will never pass away.\n\nYamato Take had now fulfilled all his father\u2019s orders, he had subdued\nall rebels, and rid the land of all robbers and enemies to the peace,\nand his renown was great, for in the whole land there was no one who\ncould stand up against him, he was so strong in battle and wise in\ncouncil.\n\nHe was about to return straight for home by the way he had come, when\nthe thought struck him that he would find it more interesting to take\nanother route, so he passed through the province of Owari and came to\nthe province of Omi.\n\nWhen the Prince reached Omi he found the people in a state of great\nexcitement and fear. In many houses as he passed along he saw the signs\nof mourning and heard loud lamentations. On inquiring the cause of this\nhe was told that a terrible monster had appeared in the mountains, who\ndaily came down from thence and made raids on the villages, devouring\nwhoever he could seize. Many homes had been made desolate and the men\nwere afraid to go out to their daily work in the fields, or the women\nto go to the rivers to wash their rice.\n\nWhen Yamato Take heard this his wrath was kindled, and he said\nfiercely:\n\n\u201cFrom the western end of Kiushiu to the eastern corner of Yezo I have\nsubdued all the King\u2019s enemies\u2014there is no one who dares to break the\nlaws or to rebel against the King. It is indeed a matter for wonder\nthat here in this place, so near the capital, a wicked monster has\ndared to take up his abode and be the terror of the King\u2019s subjects.\nNot long shall it find pleasure in devouring innocent folk. I will\nstart out and kill it at once.\u201d\n\nWith these words he set out for the Ibuki Mountain, where the monster\nwas said to live. He climbed up a good distance, when all of a sudden,\nat a winding in the path, a monster serpent appeared before him and\nstopped the way.\n\n\u201cThis must be the monster,\u201d said the Prince; \u201cI do not need my sword\nfor a serpent. I can kill him with my hands.\u201d\n\nHe thereupon sprang upon the serpent and tried to strangle it to death\nwith his bare arms. It was not long before his prodigious strength\ngained the mastery and the serpent lay dead at his feet. Now a sudden\ndarkness came over the mountain and rain began to fall, so that for the\ngloom and the rain the Prince could hardly see which way to take. In a\nshort time, however, while he was groping his way down the pass, the\nweather cleared, and our brave hero was able to make his way quickly\ndown the mountain.\n\nWhen he got back he began to feel ill and to have burning pains in his\nfeet, so he knew that the serpent had poisoned him. So great was his\nsuffering that he could hardly move, much less walk, so he had himself\ncarried to a place in the mountains famous for its hot mineral springs,\nwhich rose bubbling out of the earth, and almost boiling from the\nvolcanic fires beneath.\n\nYamato Take bathed daily in these waters, and gradually he felt his\nstrength come again, and the pains left him, till at last one day he\nfound with great joy that he was quite recovered. He now hastened to\nthe temples of Ise, where you will remember that he prayed before\nundertaking this long expedition. His aunt, priestess of the shrine,\nwho had blessed him on his setting out, now came to welcome him back.\nHe told her of the many dangers he had encountered and of how\nmarvelously his life had been preserved through all\u2014and she praised his\ncourage and his warrior\u2019s prowess, and then putting on her most\nmagnificent robes she returned thanks to their ancestress the Sun\nGoddess Amaterasu, to whose protection they both ascribed the Prince\u2019s\nwonderful preservation.\n\nHere ends the story of Prince Yamato Take of Japan.\n\n\n\n\nMOMOTARO, OR THE STORY OF THE SON OF A PEACH\n\n\nLong, long ago there lived, an old man and an old woman; they were\npeasants, and had to work hard to earn their daily rice. The old man\nused to go and cut grass for the farmers around, and while he was gone\nthe old woman, his wife, did the work of the house and worked in their\nown little rice field.\n\nOne day the old man went to the hills as usual to cut grass and the old\nwoman took some clothes to the river to wash.\n\nIt was nearly summer, and the country was very beautiful to see in its\nfresh greenness as the two old people went on their way to work. The\ngrass on the banks of the river looked like emerald velvet, and the\npussy willows along the edge of the water were shaking out their soft\ntassels.\n\nThe breezes blew and ruffled the smooth surface of the water into\nwavelets, and passing on touched the cheeks of the old couple who, for\nsome reason they could not explain, felt very happy that morning.\n\nThe old woman at last found a nice spot by the river bank and put her\nbasket down. Then she set to work to wash the clothes; she took them\none by one out of the basket and washed them in the river and rubbed\nthem on the stones. The water was as clear as crystal, and she could\nsee the tiny fish swimming to and fro, and the pebbles at the bottom.\n\nAs she was busy washing her clothes a great peach came bumping down the\nstream. The old woman looked up from her work and saw this large peach.\nShe was sixty years of age, yet in all her life she had never seen such\na big peach as this.\n\n\u201cHow delicious that peach must be!\u201d she said to herself. \u201cI must\ncertainly get it and take it home to my old man.\u201d\n\nShe stretched out her arm to try and get it, but it was quite out of\nher reach. She looked about for a stick, but there was not one to be\nseen, and if she went to look for one she would lose the peach.\n\nStopping a moment to think what she would do, she remembered an old\ncharm-verse. Now she began to clap her hands to keep time to the\nrolling of the peach down stream, and while she clapped she sang this\nsong:\n\n\u201cDistant water is bitter,\nThe near water is sweet;\nPass by the distant water\nAnd come into the sweet.\u201d\n\n\nStrange to say, as soon as she began to repeat this little song the\npeach began to come nearer and nearer the bank where the old woman was\nstanding, till at last it stopped just in front of her so that she was\nable to take it up in her hands. The old woman was delighted. She could\nnot go on with her work, so happy and excited was she, so she put all\nthe clothes back in her bamboo basket, and with the basket on her back\nand the peach in her hand she hurried homewards.\n\nIt seemed a very long time to her to wait till her husband returned.\nThe old man at last came back as the sun was setting, with a big bundle\nof grass on his back\u2014so big that he was almost hidden and she could\nhardly see him. He seemed very tired and used the scythe for a walking\nstick, leaning on it as he walked along.\n\nAs soon as the old woman saw him she called out:\n\n\u201cO Fii San! (old man) I have been waiting for you to come home for such\na long time to-day!\u201d\n\n\u201cWhat is the matter? Why are you so impatient?\u201d asked the old man,\nwondering at her unusual eagerness. \u201cHas anything happened while I have\nbeen away?\u201d\n\n\u201cOh, no!\u201d answered the old woman, \u201cnothing has happened, only I have\nfound a nice present for you!\u201d\n\n\u201cThat is good,\u201d said the old man. He then washed his feet in a basin of\nwater and stepped up to the veranda.\n\nThe old woman now ran into the little room and brought out from the\ncupboard the big peach. It felt even heavier than before. She held it\nup to him, saying:\n\n\u201cJust look at this! Did you ever see such a large peach in all your\nlife?\u201d\n\nWhen the old man looked at the peach he was greatly astonished and\nsaid:\n\n\u201cThis is indeed the largest peach I have ever seen! Wherever did you\nbuy it?\u201d\n\n\u201cI did not buy it,\u201d answered the old woman. \u201cI found it in the river\nwhere I was washing.\u201d And she told him the whole story.\n\n\u201cI am very glad that you have found it. Let us eat it now, for I am\nhungry,\u201d said the O Fii San.\n\nHe brought out the kitchen knife, and, placing the peach on a board,\nwas about to cut it when, wonderful to tell, the peach split in two of\nitself and a clear voice said:\n\n\u201cWait a bit, old man!\u201d and out stepped a beautiful little child.\n\nThe old man and his wife were both so astonished at what they saw that\nthey fell to the ground. The child spoke again:\n\n\u201cDon\u2019t be afraid. I am no demon or fairy. I will tell you the truth.\nHeaven has had compassion on you. Every day and every night you have\nlamented that you had no child. Your cry has been heard and I am sent\nto be the son of your old age!\u201d\n\nOn hearing this the old man and his wife were very happy. They had\ncried night and day for sorrow at having no child to help them in their\nlonely old age, and now that their prayer was answered they were so\nlost with joy that they did not know where to put their hands or their\nfeet. First the old man took the child up in his arms, and then the old\nwoman did the same; and they named him MOMOTARO, OR SON OF A PEACH,\nbecause he had come out of a peach.\n\nThe years passed quickly by and the child grew to be fifteen years of\nage. He was taller and far stronger than any other boys of his own age,\nhe had a handsome face and a heart full of courage, and he was very\nwise for his years. The old couple\u2019s pleasure was very great when they\nlooked at him, for he was just what they thought a hero ought to be\nlike.\n\nOne day Momotaro came to his foster-father and said solemnly:\n\n\u201cFather, by a strange chance we have become father and son. Your\ngoodness to me has been higher than the mountain grasses which it was\nyour daily work to cut, and deeper than the river where my mother\nwashes the clothes. I do not know how to thank you enough.\u201d\n\n\u201cWhy,\u201d answered the old man, \u201cit is a matter of course that a father\nshould bring up his son. When you are older it will be your turn to\ntake care of us, so after all there will be no profit or loss between\nus\u2014all will be equal. Indeed, I am rather surprised that you should\nthank me in this way!\u201d and the old man looked bothered.\n\n\u201cI hope you will be patient with me,\u201d said Momotaro; \u201cbut before I\nbegin to pay back your goodness to me I have a request to make which I\nhope you will grant me above everything else.\u201d\n\n\u201cI will let you do whatever you wish, for you are quite different to\nall other boys!\u201d\n\n\u201cThen let me go away at once!\u201d\n\n\u201cWhat do you say? Do you wish to leave your old father and mother and\ngo away from your old home?\u201d\n\n\u201cI will surely come back again, if you let me go now!\u201d\n\n\u201cWhere are you going?\u201d\n\n\u201cYou must think it strange that I want to go away,\u201d said Momotaro,\n\u201cbecause I have not yet told you my reason. Far away from here to the\nnortheast of Japan there is an island in the sea. This island is the\nstronghold of a band of devils. I have often heard how they invade this\nland, kill and rob the people, and carry off all they can find. They\nare not only very wicked but they are disloyal to our Emperor and\ndisobey his laws. They are also cannibals, for they kill and eat some\nof the poor people who are so unfortunate as to fall into their hands.\nThese devils are very hateful beings. I must go and conquer them and\nbring back all the plunder of which they have robbed this land. It is\nfor this reason that I want to go away for a short time!\u201d\n\nThe old man was much surprised at hearing all this from a mere boy of\nfifteen. He thought it best to let the boy go. He was strong and\nfearless, and besides all this, the old man knew he was no common\nchild, for he had been sent to them as a gift from Heaven, and he felt\nquite sure that the devils would be powerless to harm him.\n\n\u201cAll you say is very interesting, Momotaro,\u201d said the old man. \u201cI will\nnot hinder you in your determination. You may go if you wish. Go to the\nisland as soon as ever you like and destroy the demons and bring peace\nto the land.\u201d\n\n\u201cThank you, for all your kindness,\u201d said Momotaro, who began to get\nready to go that very day. He was full of courage and did not know what\nfear was.\n\nThe old man and woman at once set to work to pound rice in the kitchen\nmortar to make cakes for Momotaro to take with him on his journey.\n\nAt last the cakes were made and Momotaro was ready to start on his long\njourney.\n\nParting is always sad. So it was now. The eyes of the two old people\nwere filled with tears and their voices trembled as they said:\n\n\u201cGo with all care and speed. We expect you back victorious!\u201d\n\nMomotaro was very sorry to leave his old parents (though he knew he was\ncoming back as soon as he could), for he thought of how lonely they\nwould be while he was away. But he said \u201cGood-by!\u201d quite bravely.\n\n\u201cI am going now. Take good care of yourselves while I am away.\nGood-by!\u201d And he stepped quickly out of the house. In silence the eyes\nof Momotaro and his parents met in farewell.\n\nMomotaro now hurried on his way till it was midday. He began to feel\nhungry, so he opened his bag and took out one of the rice-cakes and sat\ndown under a tree by the side of the road to eat it. While he was thus\nhaving his lunch a dog almost as large as a colt came running out from\nthe high grass. He made straight for Momotaro, and showing his teeth,\nsaid in a fierce way:\n\n\u201cYou are a rude man to pass my field without asking permission first.\nIf you leave me all the cakes you have in your bag you may go;\notherwise I will bite you till I kill you!\u201d\n\nMomotaro only laughed scornfully:\n\n\u201cWhat is that you are saying? Do you know who I am? I am Momotaro, and\nI am on my way to subdue the devils in their island stronghold in the\nnortheast of Japan. If you try to stop me on my way there I will cut\nyou in two from the head downwards!\u201d\n\nThe dog\u2019s manner at once changed. His tail dropped between his legs,\nand coming near he bowed so low that his forehead touched the ground.\n\n\u201cWhat do I hear? The name of Momotaro? Are you indeed Momotaro? I have\noften heard of your great strength. Not knowing who you were I have\nbehaved in a very stupid way. Will you please pardon my rudeness? Are\nyou indeed on your way to invade the Island of Devils? If you will take\nsuch a rude fellow with you as one of your followers, I shall be very\ngrateful to you.\u201d\n\n\u201cI think I can take you with me if you wish to go,\u201d said Momotaro.\n\n\u201cThank you!\u201d said the dog. \u201cBy the way, I am very very hungry. Will you\ngive me one of the cakes you are carrying?\u201d\n\n\u201cThis is the best kind of cake there is in Japan,\u201d said Momotaro. \u201cI\ncannot spare you a whole one; I will give you half of one.\u201d\n\n\u201cThank you very much,\u201d said the dog, taking the piece thrown to him.\n\nThen Momotaro got up and the dog followed. For a long time they walked\nover the hills and through the valleys. As they were going along an\nanimal came down from a tree a little ahead of them. The creature soon\ncame up to Momotaro and said:\n\n\u201cGood morning, Momotaro! You are welcome in this part of the country.\nWill you allow me to go with you?\u201d\n\nThe dog answered jealously:\n\n\u201cMomotaro already has a dog to accompany him. Of what use is a monkey\nlike you in battle? We are on our way to fight the devils! Get away!\u201d\n\nThe dog and the monkey began to quarrel and bite, for these two animals\nalways hate each other.\n\n\u201cNow, don\u2019t quarrel!\u201d said Momotaro, putting himself between them.\n\u201cWait a moment, dog!\u201d\n\n\u201cIt is not at all dignified for you to have such a creature as that\nfollowing you!\u201d said the dog.\n\n\u201cWhat do you know about it?\u201d asked Momotaro; and pushing aside the dog,\nhe spoke to the monkey:\n\n\u201cWho are you?\u201d\n\n\u201cI am a monkey living in these hills,\u201d replied the monkey. \u201cI heard of\nyour expedition to the Island of Devils, and I have come to go with\nyou. Nothing will please me more than to follow you!\u201d\n\n\u201cDo you really wish to go to the Island of Devils and fight with me?\u201d\n\n\u201cYes, sir,\u201d replied the monkey.\n\n\u201cI admire your courage,\u201d said Momotaro. \u201cHere is a piece of one of my\nfine rice-cakes. Come along!\u201d\n\nSo the monkey joined Momotaro. The dog and the monkey did not get on\nwell together. They were always snapping at each other as they went\nalong, and always wanting to have a fight. This made Momotaro very\ncross, and at last he sent the dog on ahead with a flag and put the\nmonkey behind with a sword, and he placed himself between them with a\nwar-fan, which is made of iron.\n\nBy and by they came to a large field. Here a bird flew down and\nalighted on the ground just in front of the little party. It was the\nmost beautiful bird Momotaro had ever seen. On its body were five\ndifferent robes of feathers and its head was covered with a scarlet\ncap.\n\nThe dog at once ran at the bird and tried to seize and kill it. But the\nbird struck out its spurs and flew at the dog\u2019s tail, and the fight\nwent hard with both.\n\nMomotaro, as he looked on, could not help admiring the bird; it showed\nso much spirit in the fight. It would certainly make a good fighter.\n\nMomotaro went up to the two combatants, and holding the dog back, said\nto the bird:\n\n\u201cYou rascal! you are hindering my journey. Surrender at once, and I\nwill take you with me. If you don\u2019t I will set this dog to bite your\nhead off!\u201d\n\nThen the bird surrendered at once, and begged to be taken into\nMomotaro\u2019s company.\n\n\u201cI do not know what excuse to offer for quarreling with the dog, your\nservant, but I did not see you. I am a miserable bird called a\npheasant. It is very generous of you to pardon my rudeness and to take\nme with you. Please allow me to follow you behind the dog and the\nmonkey!\u201d\n\n\u201cI congratulate you on surrendering so soon,\u201d said Momotaro, smiling.\n\u201cCome and join us in our raid on the devils.\u201d\n\n\u201cAre you going to take this bird with you also?\u201d asked the dog,\ninterrupting.\n\n\u201cWhy do you ask such an unnecessary question? Didn\u2019t you hear what I\nsaid? I take the bird with me because I wish to!\u201d\n\n\u201cHumph!\u201d said the dog.\n\nThen Momotaro stood and gave this order:\n\n\u201cNow all of you must listen to me. The first thing necessary in an army\nis harmony. It is a wise saying which says that \u2018Advantage on earth is\nbetter than advantage in Heaven!\u2019 Union amongst ourselves is better\nthan any earthly gain. When we are not at peace amongst ourselves it is\nno easy thing to subdue an enemy. From now, you three, the dog, the\nmonkey and the pheasant, must be friends with one mind. The one who\nfirst begins a quarrel will be discharged on the spot!\u201d\n\nAll the three promised not to quarrel. The pheasant was now made a\nmember of Momotaro\u2019s suite, and received half a cake.\n\nMomotaro\u2019s influence was so great that the three became good friends,\nand hurried onwards with him as their leader.\n\nHurrying on day after day they at last came out upon the shore of the\nNorth-Eastern Sea. There was nothing to be seen as far as the\nhorizon\u2014not a sign of any island. All that broke the stillness was the\nrolling of the waves upon the shore.\n\nNow, the dog and the monkey and the pheasant had come very bravely all\nthe way through the long valleys and over the hills, but they had never\nseen the sea before, and for the first time since they set out they\nwere bewildered and gazed at each other in silence. How were they to\ncross the water and get to the Island of Devils?\n\nMomotaro soon saw that they were daunted by the sight of the sea, and\nto try them he spoke loudly and roughly:\n\n\u201cWhy do you hesitate? Are you afraid of the sea? Oh! what cowards you\nare! It is impossible to take such weak creatures as you with me to\nfight the demons. It will be far better for me to go alone. I discharge\nyou all at once!\u201d\n\nThe three animals were taken aback at this sharp reproof, and clung to\nMomotaro\u2019s sleeve, begging him not to send them away.\n\n\u201cPlease, Momotaro!\u201d said the dog.\n\n\u201cWe have come thus far!\u201d said the monkey.\n\n\u201cIt is inhuman to leave us here!\u201d said the pheasant.\n\n\u201cWe are not at all afraid of the sea,\u201d said the monkey again.\n\n\u201cPlease do take us with you,\u201d said the pheasant.\n\n\u201cDo please,\u201d said the dog.\n\nThey had now gained a little courage, so Momotaro said:\n\n\u201cWell, then, I will take you with me, but be careful!\u201d\n\nMomotaro now got a small ship, and they all got on board. The wind and\nweather were fair, and the ship went like an arrow over the sea. It was\nthe first time they had ever been on the water, and so at first the\ndog, the monkey and the pheasant were frightened at the waves and the\nrolling of the vessel, but by degrees they grew accustomed to the water\nand were quite happy again. Every day they paced the deck of their\nlittle ship, eagerly looking out for the demons\u2019 island.\n\nWhen they grew tired of this, they told each other stories of all their\nexploits of which they were proud, and then played games together; and\nMomotaro found much to amuse him in listening to the three animals and\nwatching their antics, and in this way he forgot that the way was long\nand that he was tired of the voyage and of doing nothing. He longed to\nbe at work killing the monsters who had done so much harm in his\ncountry.\n\nAs the wind blew in their favor and they met no storms the ship made a\nquick voyage, and one day when the sun was shining brightly a sight of\nland rewarded the four watchers at the bow.\n\nMomotaro knew at once that what they saw was the devils\u2019 stronghold. On\nthe top of the precipitous shore, looking out to sea, was a large\ncastle. Now that his enterprise was close at hand, he was deep in\nthought with his head leaning on his hands, wondering how he should\nbegin the attack. His three followers watched him, waiting for orders.\nAt last he called to the pheasant:\n\n\u201cIt is a great advantage for us to have you with us.\u201d said Momotaro to\nthe bird, \u201cfor you have good wings. Fly at once to the castle and\nengage the demons to fight. We will follow you.\u201d\n\nThe pheasant at once obeyed. He flew off from the ship beating the air\ngladly with his wings. The bird soon reached the island and took up his\nposition on the roof in the middle of the castle, calling out loudly:\n\n\u201cAll you devils listen to me! The great Japanese general Momotaro has\ncome to fight you and to take your stronghold from you. If you wish to\nsave your lives surrender at once, and in token of your submission you\nmust break off the horns that grow on your forehead. If you do not\nsurrender at once, but make up your mind to fight, we, the pheasant,\nthe dog and the monkey, will kill you all by biting and tearing you to\ndeath!\u201d\n\nThe horned demons looking up and only seeing a pheasant, laughed and\nsaid:\n\n\u201cA wild pheasant, indeed! It is ridiculous to hear such words from a\nmean thing like you. Wait till you get a blow from one of our iron\nbars!\u201d\n\nVery angry, indeed, were the devils. They shook their horns and their\nshocks of red hair fiercely, and rushed to put on tiger skin trousers\nto make themselves look more terrible. They then brought out great iron\nbars and ran to where the pheasant perched over their heads, and tried\nto knock him down. The pheasant flew to one side to escape the blow,\nand then attacked the head of first one and then another demon. He flew\nround and round them, beating the air with his wings so fiercely and\nceaselessly, that the devils began to wonder whether they had to fight\none or many more birds.\n\nIn the meantime, Momotaro had brought his ship to land. As they had\napproached, he saw that the shore was like a precipice, and that the\nlarge castle was surrounded by high walls and large iron gates and was\nstrongly fortified.\n\nMomotaro landed, and with the hope of finding some way of entrance,\nwalked up the path towards the top, followed by the monkey and the dog.\nThey soon came upon two beautiful damsels washing clothes in a stream.\nMomotaro saw that the clothes were blood-stained, and that as the two\nmaidens washed, the tears were falling fast down their cheeks. He\nstopped and spoke to them:\n\n\u201cWho are you, and why do you weep?\u201d\n\n\u201cWe are captives of the Demon King. We were carried away from our homes\nto this island, and though we are the daughters of Daimios (Lords), we\nare obliged to be his servants, and one day he will kill us\u201d\u2014and the\nmaidens held up the blood-stained clothes\u2014\u201cand eat us, and there is no\none to help us!\u201d\n\nAnd their tears burst out afresh at this horrible thought.\n\n\u201cI will rescue you,\u201d said Momotaro. \u201cDo not weep any more, only show me\nhow I may get into the castle.\u201d\n\nThen the two ladies led the way and showed Momotaro a little back door\nin the lowest part of the castle wall\u2014so small that Momotaro could\nhardly crawl in.\n\nThe pheasant, who was all this time fighting hard, saw Momotaro and his\nlittle band rush in at the back.\n\nMomotaro\u2019s onslaught was so furious that the devils could not stand\nagainst him. At first their foe had been a single bird, the pheasant,\nbut now that Momotaro and the dog and the monkey had arrived they were\nbewildered, for the four enemies fought like a hundred, so strong were\nthey. Some of the devils fell off the parapet of the castle and were\ndashed to pieces on the rocks beneath; others fell into the sea and\nwere drowned; many were beaten to death by the three animals.\n\nThe chief of the devils at last was the only one left. He made up his\nmind to surrender, for he knew that his enemy was stronger than mortal\nman.\n\nHe came up humbly to Momotaro and threw down his iron bar, and kneeling\ndown at the victor\u2019s feet he broke off the horns on his head in token\nof submission, for they were the sign of his strength and power.\n\n\u201cI am afraid of you,\u201d he said meekly. \u201cI cannot stand against you. I\nwill give you all the treasure hidden in this castle if you will spare\nmy life!\u201d\n\nMomotaro laughed.\n\n\u201cIt is not like you, big devil, to beg for mercy, is it? I cannot spare\nyour wicked life, however much you beg, for you have killed and\ntortured many people and robbed our country for many years.\u201d\n\nThen Momotaro tied the devil chief up and gave him into the monkey\u2019s\ncharge. Having done this, he went into all the rooms of the castle and\nset the prisoners free and gathered together all the treasure he found.\n\nThe dog and the pheasant carried home the plunder, and thus Momotaro\nreturned triumphantly to his home, taking with him the devil chief as a\ncaptive.\n\nThe two poor damsels, daughters of Daimios, and others whom the wicked\ndemon had carried off to be his slaves, were taken safely to their own\nhomes and delivered to their parents.\n\nThe whole country made a hero of Momotaro on his triumphant return, and\nrejoiced that the country was now freed from the robber devils who had\nbeen a terror of the land for a long time.\n\nThe old couple\u2019s joy was greater than ever, and the treasure Momotaro\nhad brought home with him enabled them to live in peace and plenty to\nthe end of their days.\n\n\n\n\nTHE OGRE OF RASHOMON\n\n\nLong, long ago in Kyoto, the people of the city were terrified by\naccounts of a dreadful ogre, who, it was said, haunted the Gate of\nRashomon at twilight and seized whoever passed by. The missing victims\nwere never seen again, so it was whispered that the ogre was a horrible\ncannibal, who not only killed the unhappy victims but ate them also.\nNow everybody in the town and neighborhood was in great fear, and no\none durst venture out after sunset near the Gate of Rashomon.\n\nNow at this time there lived in Kyoto a general named Raiko, who had\nmade himself famous for his brave deeds. Some time before this he made\nthe country ring with his name, for he had attacked Oeyama, where a\nband of ogres lived with their chief, who instead of wine drank the\nblood of human beings. He had routed them all and cut off the head of\nthe chief monster.\n\nThis brave warrior was always followed by a band of faithful knights.\nIn this band there were five knights of great valor. One evening as the\nfive knights sat at a feast quaffing SAKE in their rice bowls and\neating all kinds of fish, raw, and stewed, and broiled, and toasting\neach other\u2019s healths and exploits, the first knight, Hojo, said to the\nothers:\n\n\u201cHave you all heard the rumor that every evening after sunset there\ncomes an ogre to the Gate of Rashomon, and that he seizes all who pass\nby?\u201d\n\nThe second knight, Watanabe, answered him, saying:\n\n\u201cDo not talk such nonsense! All the ogres were killed by our chief\nRaiko at Oeyama! It cannot be true, because even if any ogres did\nescape from that great killing they would not dare to show themselves\nin this city, for they know that our brave master would at once attack\nthem if he knew that any of them were still alive!\u201d\n\n\u201cThen do you disbelieve what I say, and think that I am telling you a\nfalsehood?\u201d\n\n\u201cNo, I do not think that you are telling a lie,\u201d said Watanabe; \u201cbut\nyou have heard some old woman\u2019s story which is not worth believing.\u201d\n\n\u201cThen the best plan is to prove what I say, by going there yourself and\nfinding out yourself whether it is true or not,\u201d said Hojo.\n\nWatanabe, the second knight, could not bear the thought that his\ncompanion should believe he was afraid, so he answered quickly:\n\n\u201cOf course, I will go at once and find out for myself!\u201d\n\nSo Watanabe at once got ready to go\u2014he buckled on his long sword and\nput on a coat of armor, and tied on his large helmet. When he was ready\nto start he said to the others:\n\n\u201cGive me something so that I can prove I have been there!\u201d\n\nThen one of the men got a roll of writing paper and his box of Indian\nink and brushes, and the four comrades wrote their names on a piece of\npaper.\n\n\u201cI will take this,\u201d said Watanabe, \u201cand put it on the Gate of Rashomon,\nso to-morrow morning will you all go and look at it? I may be able to\ncatch an ogre or two by then!\u201d and he mounted his horse and rode off\ngallantly.\n\nIt was a very dark night, and there was neither moon nor star to light\nWatanabe on his way. To make the darkness worse a storm came on, the\nrain fell heavily and the wind howled like wolves in the mountains. Any\nordinary man would have trembled at the thought of going out of doors,\nbut Watanabe was a brave warrior and dauntless, and his honor and word\nwere at stake, so he sped on into the night, while his companions\nlistened to the sound of his horse\u2019s hoofs dying away in the distance,\nthen shut the sliding shutters close and gathered round the charcoal\nfire and wondered what would happen\u2014and whether their comrade would\nencounter one of those horrible Oni.\n\nAt last Watanabe reached the Gate of Rashomon, but peer as he might\nthrough the darkness he could see no sign of an ogre.\n\n\u201cIt is just as I thought,\u201d said Watanabe to himself; \u201cthere are\ncertainly no ogres here; it is only an old woman\u2019s story. I will stick\nthis paper on the gate so that the others can see I have been here when\nthey come to-morrow, and then I will take my way home and laugh at them\nall.\u201d\n\nHe fastened the piece of paper, signed by all his four companions, on\nthe gate, and then turned his horse\u2019s head towards home.\n\nAs he did so he became aware that some one was behind him, and at the\nsame time a voice called out to him to wait. Then his helmet was seized\nfrom the back. \u201cWho are you?\u201d said Watanabe fearlessly. He then put out\nhis hand and groped around to find out who or what it was that held him\nby the helmet. As he did so he touched something that felt like an\narm\u2014it was covered with hair and as big round as the trunk of a tree!\n\nWatanabe knew at once that this was the arm of an ogre, so he drew his\nsword and cut at it fiercely.\n\nThere was a loud yell of pain, and then the ogre dashed in front of the\nwarrior.\n\nWatanabe\u2019s eyes grew large with wonder, for he saw that the ogre was\ntaller than the great gate, his eyes were flashing like mirrors in the\nsunlight, and his huge mouth was wide open, and as the monster\nbreathed, flames of fire shot out of his mouth.\n\nThe ogre thought to terrify his foe, but Watanabe never flinched. He\nattacked the ogre with all his strength, and thus they fought face to\nface for a long time. At last the ogre, finding that he could neither\nfrighten nor beat Watanabe and that he might himself be beaten, took to\nflight. But Watanabe, determined not to let the monster escape, put\nspurs to his horse and gave chase.\n\nBut though the knight rode very fast the ogre ran faster, and to his\ndisappointment he found himself unable to overtake the monster, who was\ngradually lost to sight.\n\nWatanabe returned to the gate where the fierce fight had taken place,\nand got down from his horse. As he did so he stumbled upon something\nlying on the ground.\n\nStooping to pick it up he found that it was one of the ogre\u2019s huge arms\nwhich he must have slashed off in the fight. His joy was great at\nhaving secured such a prize, for this was the best of all proofs of his\nadventure with the ogre. So he took it up carefully and carried it home\nas a trophy of his victory.\n\nWhen he got back, he showed the arm to his comrades, who one and all\ncalled him the hero of their band and gave him a great feast. His\nwonderful deed was soon noised abroad in Kyoto, and people from far and\nnear came to see the ogre\u2019s arm.\n\nWatanabe now began to grow uneasy as to how he should keep the arm in\nsafety, for he knew that the ogre to whom it belonged was still alive.\nHe felt sure that one day or other, as soon as the ogre got over his\nscare, he would come to try to get his arm back again. Watanabe\ntherefore had a box made of the strongest wood and banded with iron. In\nthis he placed the arm, and then he sealed down the heavy lid, refusing\nto open it for anyone. He kept the box in his own room and took charge\nof it himself, never allowing it out of his sight.\n\nNow one night he heard some one knocking at the porch, asking for\nadmittance.\n\nWhen the servant went to the door to see who it was, there was only an\nold woman, very respectable in appearance. On being asked who she was\nand what was her business, the old woman replied with a smile that she\nhad been nurse to the master of the house when he was a little baby. If\nthe lord of the house were at home she begged to be allowed to see him.\n\nThe servant left the old woman at the door and went to tell his master\nthat his old nurse had come to see him. Watanabe thought it strange\nthat she should come at that time of night, but at the thought of his\nold nurse, who had been like a foster-mother to him and whom he had not\nseen for a long time, a very tender feeling sprang up for her in his\nheart. He ordered the servant to show her in.\n\nThe old woman was ushered into the room, and after the customary bows\nand greetings were over, she said:\n\n\u201cMaster, the report of your brave fight with the ogre at the Gate of\nRashomon is so widely known that even your poor old nurse has heard of\nit. Is it really true, what every one says, that you cut off one of the\nogre\u2019s arms? If you did, your deed is highly to be praised!\u201d\n\n\u201cI was very disappointed,\u201d said Watanabe, \u201cthat I was not able take the\nmonster captive, which was what I wished to do, instead of only cutting\noff an arm!\u201d\n\n\u201cI am very proud to think,\u201d answered the old woman, \u201cthat my master was\nso brave as to dare to cut off an ogre\u2019s arm. There is nothing that can\nbe compared to your courage. Before I die it is the great wish of my\nlife to see this arm,\u201d she added pleadingly.\n\n\u201cNo,\u201d said Watanabe, \u201cI am sorry, but I cannot grant your request.\u201d\n\n\u201cBut why?\u201d asked the old woman.\n\n\u201cBecause,\u201d replied Watanabe, \u201cogres are very revengeful creatures, and\nif I open the box there is no telling but that the ogre may suddenly\nappear and carry off his arm. I have had a box made on purpose with a\nvery strong lid, and in this box I keep the ogre\u2019s arm secure; and I\nnever show it to any one, whatever happens.\u201d\n\n\u201cYour precaution is very reasonable,\u201d said the old woman. \u201cBut I am\nyour old nurse, so surely you will not refuse to show ME the arm. I\nhave only just heard of your brave act, and not being able to wait till\nthe morning I came at once to ask you to show it to me.\u201d\n\nWatanabe was very troubled at the old woman\u2019s pleading, but he still\npersisted in refusing. Then the old woman said:\n\n\u201cDo you suspect me of being a spy sent by the ogre?\u201d\n\n\u201cNo, of course I do not suspect you of being the ogre\u2019s spy, for you\nare my old nurse,\u201d answered Watanabe.\n\n\u201cThen you cannot surely refuse to show me the arm any longer.\u201d\nentreated the old woman; \u201cfor it is the great wish of my heart to see\nfor once in my life the arm of an ogre!\u201d\n\nWatanabe could not hold out in his refusal any longer, so he gave in at\nlast, saying:\n\n\u201cThen I will show you the ogre\u2019s arm, since you so earnestly wish to\nsee it. Come, follow me!\u201d and he led the way to his own room, the old\nwoman following.\n\nWhen they were both in the room Watanabe shut the door carefully, and\nthen going towards a big box which stood in a corner of the room, he\ntook off the heavy lid. He then called to the old woman to come near\nand look in, for he never took the arm out of the box.\n\n\u201cWhat is it like? Let me have a good look at it,\u201d said the old nurse,\nwith a joyful face.\n\nShe came nearer and nearer, as if she were afraid, till she stood right\nagainst the box. Suddenly she plunged her hand into the box and seized\nthe arm, crying with a fearful voice which made the room shake:\n\n\u201cOh, joy! I have got my arm back again!\u201d\n\nAnd from an old woman she was suddenly transformed into the towering\nfigure of the frightful ogre!\n\nWatanabe sprang back and was unable to move for a moment, so great was\nhis astonishment; but recognizing the ogre who had attacked him at the\nGate of Rashomon, he determined with his usual courage to put an end to\nhim this time. He seized his sword, drew it out of its sheath in a\nflash, and tried to cut the ogre down.\n\nSo quick was Watanabe that the creature had a narrow escape. But the\nogre sprang up to the ceiling, and bursting through the roof,\ndisappeared in the mist and clouds.\n\nIn this way the ogre escaped with his arm. The knight gnashed his teeth\nwith disappointment, but that was all he could do. He waited in\npatience for another opportunity to dispatch the ogre. But the latter\nwas afraid of Watanabe\u2019s great strength and daring, and never troubled\nKyoto again. So once more the people of the city were able to go out\nwithout fear even at night time, and the brave deeds of Watanabe have\nnever been forgotten!\n\n\n\n\nHOW AN OLD MAN LOST HIS WEN\n\n\nMany, many years ago there lived a good old man who had a wen like a\ntennis-ball growing out of his right cheek. This lump was a great\ndisfigurement to the old man, and so annoyed him that for many years he\nspent all his time and money in trying to get rid of it. He tried\neverything he could think of. He consulted many doctors far and near,\nand took all kinds of medicines both internally and externally. But it\nwas all of no use. The lump only grew bigger and bigger till it was\nnearly as big as his face, and in despair he gave up all hopes of ever\nlosing it, and resigned himself to the thought of having to carry the\nlump on his face all his life.\n\nOne day the firewood gave out in his kitchen, so, as his wife wanted\nsome at once, the old man took his ax and set out for the woods up\namong the hills not very far from his home. It was a fine day in the\nearly autumn, and the old man enjoyed the fresh air and was in no hurry\nto get home. So the whole afternoon passed quickly while he was\nchopping wood, and he had collected a goodly pile to take back to his\nwife. When the day began to draw to a close, he turned his face\nhomewards.\n\nThe old man had not gone far on his way down the mountain pass when the\nsky clouded and rain began to fall heavily. He looked about for some\nshelter, but there was not even a charcoal-burner\u2019s hut near. At last\nhe espied a large hole in the hollow trunk of a tree. The hole was near\nthe ground, so he crept in easily, and sat down in hopes that he had\nonly been overtaken by a mountain shower, and that the weather would\nsoon clear.\n\nBut much to the old man\u2019s disappointment, instead of clearing the rain\nfell more and more heavily, and finally a heavy thunderstorm broke over\nthe mountain. The thunder roared so terrifically, and the heavens\nseemed to be so ablaze with lightning, that the old man could hardly\nbelieve himself to be alive. He thought that he must die of fright. At\nlast, however, the sky cleared, and the whole country was aglow in the\nrays of the setting sun. The old man\u2019s spirits revived when he looked\nout at the beautiful twilight, and he was about to step out from his\nstrange hiding-place in the hollow tree when the sound of what seemed\nlike the approaching steps of several people caught his ear. He at once\nthought that his friends had come to look for him, and he was delighted\nat the idea of having some jolly companions with whom to walk home. But\non looking out from the tree, what was his amazement to see, not his\nfriends, but hundreds of demons coming towards the spot. The more he\nlooked, the greater was his astonishment. Some of these demons were as\nlarge as giants, others had great big eyes out of all proportion to the\nrest of their bodies, others again had absurdly long noses, and some\nhad such big mouths that they seemed to open from ear to ear. All had\nhorns growing on their foreheads. The old man was so surprised at what\nhe saw that he lost his balance and fell out of the hollow tree.\nFortunately for him the demons did not see him, as the tree was in the\nbackground. So he picked himself up and crept back into the tree.\n\nWhile he was sitting there and wondering impatiently when he would be\nable to get home, he heard the sounds of gay music, and then some of\nthe demons began to sing.\n\n\u201cWhat are these creatures doing?\u201d said the old man to himself. \u201cI will\nlook out, it sounds very amusing.\u201d\n\nOn peeping out, the old man saw that the demon chief himself was\nactually sitting with his back against the tree in which he had taken\nrefuge, and all the other demons were sitting round, some drinking and\nsome dancing. Food and wine was spread before them on the ground, and\nthe demons were evidently having a great entertainment and enjoying\nthemselves immensely.\n\nIt made the old man laugh to see their strange antics.\n\n\u201cHow amusing this is!\u201d laughed the old man to himself \u201cI am now quite\nold, but I have never seen anything so strange in all my life.\u201d\n\nHe was so interested and excited in watching all that the demons were\ndoing, that he forgot himself and stepped out of the tree and stood\nlooking on.\n\nThe demon chief was just taking a big cup of SAKE and watching one of\nthe demons dancing. In a little while he said with a bored air:\n\n\u201cYour dance is rather monotonous. I am tired of watching it. Isn\u2019t\nthere any one amongst you all who can dance better than this fellow?\u201d\n\nNow the old man had been fond of dancing all his life, and was quite an\nexpert in the art, and he knew that he could do much better than the\ndemon.\n\n\u201cShall I go and dance before these demons and let them see what a human\nbeing can do? It may be dangerous, for if I don\u2019t please them they may\nkill me!\u201d said the old fellow to himself.\n\nHis fears, however, were soon overcome by his love of dancing. In a few\nminutes he could restrain himself no longer, and came out before the\nwhole party of demons and began to dance at once. The old man,\nrealizing that his life probably depended on whether he pleased these\nstrange creatures or not, exerted his skill and wit to the utmost.\n\nThe demons were at first very surprised to see a man so fearlessly\ntaking part in their entertainment, and then their surprise soon gave\nplace to admiration.\n\n\u201cHow strange!\u201d exclaimed the horned chief. \u201cI never saw such a skillful\ndancer before! He dances admirably!\u201d\n\nWhen the old man had finished his dance, the big demon said:\n\n\u201cThank you very much for your amusing dance. Now give us the pleasure\nof drinking a cup of wine with us,\u201d and with these words he handed him\nhis largest wine-cup.\n\nThe old man thanked him very humbly:\n\n\u201cI did not expect such kindness from your lordship. I fear I have only\ndisturbed your pleasant party by my unskillful dancing.\u201d\n\n\u201cNo, no,\u201d answered the big demon. \u201cYou must come often and dance for\nus. Your skill has given us much pleasure.\u201d\n\nThe old man thanked him again and promised to do so.\n\n\u201cThen will you come again to-morrow, old man?\u201d asked the demon.\n\n\u201cCertainly, I will,\u201d answered the old man.\n\n\u201cThen you must leave some pledge of your word with us,\u201d said the demon.\n\n\u201cWhatever you like,\u201d said the old man.\n\n\u201cNow what is the best thing he can leave with us as a pledge?\u201d asked\nthe demon, looking round.\n\nThen said one of the demon\u2019s attendants kneeling behind the chief:\n\n\u201cThe token he leaves with us must be the most important thing to him in\nhis possession. I see the old man has a wen on his right cheek. Now\nmortal men consider such a wen very fortunate. Let my lord take the\nlump from the old man\u2019s right cheek, and he will surely come to-morrow,\nif only to get that back.\u201d\n\n\u201cYou are very clever,\u201d said the demon chief, giving his horns an\napproving nod. Then he stretched out a hairy arm and claw-like hand,\nand took the great lump from the old man\u2019s right cheek. Strange to say,\nit came off as easily as a ripe plum from the tree at the demon\u2019s\ntouch, and then the merry troop of demons suddenly vanished.\n\nThe old man was lost in bewilderment by all that had happened. He\nhardly knew for some time where he was. When he came to understand what\nhad happened to him, he was delighted to find that the lump on his\nface, which had for so many years disfigured him, had really been taken\naway without any pain to himself. He put up his hand to feel if any\nscar remained, but found that his right cheek was as smooth as his\nleft.\n\nThe sun had long set, and the young moon had risen like a silver\ncrescent in the sky. The old man suddenly realized how late it was and\nbegan to hurry home. He patted his right cheek all the time, as if to\nmake sure of his good fortune in having lost the wen. He was so happy\nthat he found it impossible to walk quietly\u2014he ran and danced the whole\nway home.\n\nHe found his wife very anxious, wondering what had happened to make him\nso late. He soon told her all that had passed since he left home that\nafternoon. She was quite as happy as her husband when he showed her\nthat the ugly lump had disappeared from his face, for in her youth she\nhad prided herself on his good looks, and it had been a daily grief to\nher to see the horrid growth.\n\nNow next door to this good old couple there lived a wicked and\ndisagreeable old man. He, too, had for many years been troubled with\nthe growth of a wen on his left cheek, and he, too, had tried all\nmanner of things to get rid of it, but in vain.\n\nHe heard at once, through the servant, of his neighbor\u2019s good luck in\nlosing the lump on his face, so he called that very evening and asked\nhis friend to tell him everything that concerned the loss of it. The\ngood old man told his disagreeable neighbor all that had happened to\nhim. He described the place where he would find the hollow tree in\nwhich to hide, and advised him to be on the spot in the late afternoon\ntowards the time of sunset.\n\nThe old neighbor started out the very next afternoon, and after hunting\nabout for some time, came to the hollow tree just as his friend had\ndescribed. Here he hid himself and waited for the twilight.\n\nJust as he had been told, the band of demons came at that hour and held\na feast with dance and song. When this had gone on for some time the\nchief of the demons looked around and said:\n\n\u201cIt is now time for the old man to come as he promised us. Why doesn\u2019t\nhe come?\u201d\n\nWhen the second old man heard these words he ran out of his\nhiding-place in the tree and, kneeling down before the Oni, said:\n\n\u201cI have been waiting for a long time for you to speak!\u201d\n\n\u201cAh, you are the old man of yesterday,\u201d said the demon chief. \u201cThank\nyou for coming, you must dance for us soon.\u201d\n\nThe old man now stood up and opened his fan and began to dance. But he\nhad never learned to dance, and knew nothing about the necessary\ngestures and different positions. He thought that anything would please\nthe demons, so he just hopped about, waving his arms and stamping his\nfeet, imitating as well as he could any dancing he had ever seen.\n\nThe Oni were very dissatisfied at this exhibition, and said amongst\nthemselves:\n\n\u201cHow badly he dances to-day!\u201d\n\nThen to the old man the demon chief said:\n\n\u201cYour performance to-day is quite different from the dance of\nyesterday. We don\u2019t wish to see any more of such dancing. We will give\nyou back the pledge you left with us. You must go away at once.\u201d\n\nWith these words he took out from a fold of his dress the lump which he\nhad taken from the face of the old man who had danced so well the day\nbefore, and threw it at the right cheek of the old man who stood before\nhim. The lump immediately attached itself to his cheek as firmly as if\nit had grown there always, and all attempts to pull it off were\nuseless. The wicked old man, instead of losing the lump on his left\ncheek as he had hoped, found to his dismay that he had but added\nanother to his right cheek in his attempt to get rid of the first.\n\nHe put up first one hand and then the other to each side of his face to\nmake sure if he were not dreaming a horrible nightmare. No, sure enough\nthere was now a great wen on the right side of his face as on the left.\nThe demons had all disappeared, and there was nothing for him to do but\nto return home. He was a pitiful sight, for his face, with the two\nlarge lumps, one on each side, looked just like a Japanese gourd.\n\n\n\n\nTHE STONES OF FIVE COLORS AND THE EMPRESS JOKWA.\nAN OLD CHINESE STORY\n\n\nLong, long ago there lived a great Chinese Empress who succeeded her\nbrother the Emperor Fuki. It was the age of giants, and the Empress\nJokwa, for that was her name, was twenty-five feet high, nearly as tall\nas her brother. She was a wonderful woman, and an able ruler. There is\nan interesting story of how she mended a part of the broken heavens and\none of the terrestrial pillars which upheld the sky, both of which were\ndamaged during a rebellion raised by one of King Fuki\u2019s subjects.\n\nThe rebel\u2019s name was Kokai. He was twenty-six feet high. His body was\nentirely covered with hair, and his face was as black as iron. He was a\nwizard and a very terrible character indeed. When the Emperor Fuki\ndied, Kokai was bitten with the ambition to be Emperor of China, but\nhis plan failed, and Jokwa, the dead Emperor\u2019s sister, mounted the\nthrone. Kokai was so angry at being thwarted in his desire that he\nraised a revolt. His first act was to employ the Water Devil, who\ncaused a great flood to rush over the country. This swamped the poor\npeople out of their homes, and when the Empress Jokwa saw the plight of\nher subjects, and knew it was Kokai\u2019s fault, she declared war against\nhim.\n\nNow Jokwa, the Empress, had two young warriors called Hako and Eiko,\nand the former she made General of the front forces. Hako was delighted\nthat the Empress\u2019s choice should fall on him, and he prepared himself\nfor battle. He took up the longest lance he could find and mounted a\nred horse, and was just about to set out when he heard some one\ngalloping hard behind him and shouting:\n\n\u201cHako! Stop! The general of the front forces must be I!\u201d\n\nHe looked back and saw Eiko his comrade, riding on a white horse, in\nthe act of unsheathing a large sword to draw upon him. Hako\u2019s anger was\nkindled, and as he turned to face his rival he cried:\n\n\u201cInsolent wretch! I have been appointed by the Empress to lead the\nfront forces to battle. Do you dare to stop me?\u201d\n\n\u201cYes,\u201d answered Eiko. \u201cI ought to lead the army. It is you who should\nfollow me.\u201d\n\nAt this bold reply Hako\u2019s anger burst from a spark into a flame.\n\n\u201cDare you answer me thus? Take that,\u201d and he lunged at him with his\nlance.\n\nBut Eiko moved quickly aside, and at the same time, raising his sword,\nhe wounded the head of the General\u2019s horse. Obliged to dismount, Hako\nwas about to rush at his antagonist, when Eiko, as quick as lightning,\ntore from his breast the badge of commandership and galloped away. The\naction was so quick that Hako stood dazed, not knowing what to do.\n\nThe Empress had been a spectator of the scene, and she could not but\nadmire the quickness of the ambitious Eiko, and in order to pacify the\nrivals she determined to appoint them both to the Generalship of the\nfront army.\n\nSo Hako was made commander of the left wing of the front army, and Eiko\nof the right. One hundred thousand soldiers followed them and marched\nto put down the rebel Kokai.\n\nWithin a short time the two Generals reached the castle where Kokai had\nfortified himself. When aware of their approach, the wizard said:\n\n\u201cI will blow these two poor children away with one breath.\u201d (He little\nthought how hard he would find the fight.)\n\nWith these words Kokai seized an iron rod and mounted a black horse,\nand rushed forth like an angry tiger to meet his two foes.\n\nAs the two young warriors saw him tearing down upon them, they said to\neach other: \u201cWe must not let him escape alive,\u201d and they attacked him\nfrom the right and from the left with sword and with lance. But the\nall-powerful Kokai was not to be easily beaten\u2014he whirled his iron rod\nround like a great water-wheel, and for a long time they fought thus,\nneither side gaining nor losing. At last, to avoid the wizard\u2019s iron\nrod, Hako turned his horse too quickly; the animal\u2019s hoofs struck\nagainst a large stone, and in a fright the horse reared as straight on\nend as a screen, throwing his master to the ground.\n\nThereupon Kokai drew his three-edged sword and was about to kill the\nprostrate Hako, but before the wizard could work his wicked will the\nbrave Eiko had wheeled his horse in front of Kokai and dared him to try\nhis strength with him, and not to kill a fallen man. But Kokai was\ntired, and he did not feel inclined to face this fresh and dauntless\nyoung soldier, so suddenly wheeling his horse round, he fled from the\nfray.\n\nHako, who had been only slightly stunned, had by this time got upon his\nfeet, and he and his comrade rushed after the retreating enemy, the one\non foot and the other on horseback.\n\nKokai, seeing that he was pursued, turned upon his nearest assailant,\nwho was, of course, the mounted Eiko, and drawing forth an arrow from\nthe quiver at his back, fitted it to his bow and drew upon Eiko.\n\nAs quick as lightning the wary Eiko avoided the shaft, which only\ntouched his helmet strings, and glancing off, fell harmless against\nHako\u2019s coat of armor.\n\nThe wizard saw that both his enemies remained unscathed. He also knew\nthat there was no time to pull a second arrow before they would be upon\nhim, so to save himself he resorted to magic. He stretched forth his\nwand, and immediately a great flood arose, and Jokwa\u2019s army and her\nbrave young Generals were swept away like a falling of autumn leaves on\na stream.\n\nHako and Eiko found themselves struggling neck deep in water, and\nlooking round they saw the ferocious Kokai making towards them through\nthe water with his iron rod on high. They thought every moment that\nthey would be cut down, but they bravely struck out to swim as far as\nthey could from Kokai\u2019s reach. All of a sudden they found themselves in\nfront of what seemed to be an island rising straight out of the water.\nThey looked up, and there stood an old man with hair as white as snow,\nsmiling at them. They cried to him to help them. The old man nodded his\nhead and came down to the edge of the water. As soon as his feet\ntouched the flood it divided, and a good road appeared, to the\namazement of the drowning men, who now found themselves safe.\n\nKokai had by this time reached the island which had risen as if by a\nmiracle out of the water, and seeing his enemies thus saved he was\nfurious. He rushed through the water upon the old man, and it seemed as\nif he would surely be killed. But the old man appeared not in the least\ndismayed, and calmly awaited the wizard\u2019s onslaught.\n\nAs Kokai drew near, the old man laughed aloud merrily, and turning into\na large and beautiful white crane, flapped his wings and flew upwards\ninto the heavens.\n\nWhen Hako and Eiko saw this, they knew that their deliverer was no mere\nhuman being\u2014was perhaps a god in disguise\u2014and they hoped later on to\nfind out who the venerable old man was.\n\nIn the meantime they had retreated, and it being now the close of day,\nfor the sun was setting, both Kokai and the young warriors gave up the\nidea of fighting more that day.\n\nThat night Hako and Eiko decided that it was useless to fight against\nthe wizard Kokai, for he had supernatural powers, while they were only\nhuman. So they presented themselves before the Empress Jokwa. After a\nlong consultation, the Empress decided to ask the Fire King, Shikuyu,\nto help her against the rebel wizard and to lead her army against him.\n\nNow Shikuyu, the Fire King, lived at the South Pole. It was the only\nsafe place for him to be in, for he burnt up everything around him\nanywhere else, but it was impossible to burn up ice and snow. To look\nat he was a giant, and stood thirty feet high. His face was just like\nmarble, and his hair and beard long and as white as snow. His strength\nwas stupendous, and he was master of all fire just as Kokai was of\nwater.\n\n\u201cSurely,\u201d thought the Empress, \u201cShikuyu can conquer Kokai.\u201d So she sent\nEiko to the South Pole to beg Shikuyu to take the war against Kokai\ninto his own hands and conquer him once for all.\n\nThe Fire King, on hearing the Empress\u2019s request, smiled and said:\n\n\u201cThat is an easy matter, to be sure! It was none other than I who came\nto your rescue when you and your companion were drowning in the flood\nraised by Kokai!\u201d\n\nEiko was surprised at learning this. He thanked the Fire King for\ncoming to the rescue in their dire need, and then besought him to\nreturn with him and lead the war and defeat the wicked Kokai.\n\nShikuyu did as he was asked, and returned with Eiko to the Empress. She\nwelcomed the Fire King cordially, and at once told him why she had sent\nfor him\u2014to ask him to be the Generalissimo of her army. His reply was\nvery reassuring:\n\n\u201cDo not have any anxiety. I will certainly kill Kokai.\u201d\n\nShikuyu then placed himself at the head of thirty thousand soldiers,\nand with Hako and Eiko showing him the way, marched to the enemy\u2019s\ncastle. The Fire King knew the secret of Kokai\u2019s power, and he now told\nall the soldiers to gather a certain kind of shrub. This they burned in\nlarge quantities, and each soldier was then ordered to fill a bag full\nof the ashes thus obtained.\n\nKokai, on the other hand, in his own conceit, thought that Shikuyu was\nof inferior power to himself, and he murmured angrily:\n\n\u201cEven though you are the Fire King, I can soon extinguish you.\u201d\n\nThen he repeated an incantation, and the water-floods rose and welled\nas high as mountains. Shikuyu, not in the least frightened, ordered his\nsoldiers to scatter the ashes which he had caused them to make. Every\nman did as he was bid, and such was the power of the plant that they\nhad burned, that as soon as the ashes mingled with the water a stiff\nmud was formed, and they were all safe from drowning.\n\nNow Kokai the wizard was dismayed when he saw that the Fire King was\nsuperior in wisdom to himself, and his anger was so great that he\nrushed headlong towards the enemy.\n\nEiko rode to meet him, and the two fought together for some time. They\nwere well matched in a hand-to-hand combat. Hako, who was carefully\nwatching the fray, saw that Eiko began to tire, and fearing that his\ncompanion would be killed, he took his place.\n\nBut Kokai had tired as well, and feeling him self unable to hold out\nagainst Hako, he said artfully:\n\n\u201cYou are too magnanimous, thus to fight for your friend and run the\nrisk of being killed. I will not hurt such a good man.\u201d\n\nAnd he pretended to retreat, turning away the head of his horse. His\nintention was to throw Hako off his guard and then to wheel round and\ntake him by surprise.\n\nBut Shikuyu understood the wily wizard, and he spoke at once:\n\n\u201cYou are a coward! You cannot deceive me!\u201d\n\nSaying this, the Fire King made a sign to the unwary Hako to attack\nhim. Kokai now turned upon Shikuyu furiously, but he was tired and\nunable to fight well, and he soon received a wound in his shoulder. He\nnow broke from the fray and tried to escape in earnest.\n\nWhile the fight between their leaders had been going on the two armies\nhad stood waiting for the issue. Shikuyu now turned and bade Jokwa\u2019s\nsoldiers charge the enemy\u2019s forces. This they did, and routed them with\ngreat slaughter, and the wizard barely escaped with his life.\n\nIt was in vain that Kokai called upon the Water Devil to help him, for\nShikuyu knew the counter-charm. The wizard found that the battle was\nagainst him. Mad with pain, for his wound began to trouble him, and\nfrenzied with disappointment and fear, he dashed his head against the\nrocks of Mount Shu and died on the spot.\n\nThere was an end of the wicked Kokai, but not of trouble in the Empress\nJokwa\u2019s Kingdom, as you shall see. The force with which the wizard fell\nagainst the rocks was so great that the mountain burst, and fire rushed\nout from the earth, and one of the pillars upholding the Heavens was\nbroken so that one corner of the sky dropped till it touched the earth.\n\nShikuyu, the Fire King, took up the body of the wizard and carried it\nto the Empress Jokwa, who rejoiced greatly that her enemy was\nvanquished, and her generals victorious. She showered all manner of\ngifts and honors upon Shikuyu.\n\nBut all this time fire was bursting from the mountain broken by the\nfall of Kokai. Whole villages were destroyed, rice-fields burnt up,\nriver beds filled with the burning lava, and the homeless people were\nin great distress. So the Empress left the capital as soon as she had\nrewarded the victor Shikuyu, and journeyed with all speed to the scene\nof disaster. She found that both Heaven and earth had sustained damage,\nand the place was so dark that she had to light her lamp to find out\nthe extent of the havoc that had been wrought.\n\nHaving ascertained this, she set to work at repairs. To this end she\nordered her subjects to collect stones of five colors\u2014blue, yellow,\nred, white and black. When she had obtained these, she boiled them with\na kind of porcelain in a large caldron, and the mixture became a\nbeautiful paste, and with this she knew that she could mend the sky.\nNow all was ready.\n\nSummoning the clouds that were sailing ever so high above her head, she\nmounted them, and rode heavenwards, carrying in her hands the vase\ncontaining the paste made from the stones of five colors. She soon\nreached the corner of the sky that was broken, and applied the paste\nand mended it. Having done this, she turned her attention to the broken\npillar, and with the legs of a very large tortoise she mended it. When\nthis was finished she mounted the clouds and descended to the earth,\nhoping to find that all was now right, but to her dismay she found that\nit was still quite dark. Neither the sun shone by day nor the moon by\nnight.\n\nGreatly perplexed, she at last called a meeting of all the wise men of\nthe Kingdom, and asked their advice as to what she should do in this\ndilemma.\n\nTwo of the wisest said:\n\n\u201cThe roads of Heaven have been damaged by the late accident, and the\nSun and Moon have been obliged to stay at home. Neither the Sun could\nmake his daily journey nor the Moon her nightly one because of the bad\nroads. The Sun and Moon do not yet know that your Majesty has mended\nall that was damaged, so we will go and inform them that since you have\nrepaired them the roads are safe.\u201d\n\nThe Empress approved of what the wise men suggested, and ordered them\nto set out on their mission. But this was not easy, for the Palace of\nthe Sun and Moon was many, many hundreds of thousands of miles distant\ninto the East. If they traveled on foot they might never reach the\nplace, they would die of old age on the road. But Jokwa had recourse to\nmagic. She gave her two ambassadors wonderful chariots which could\nwhirl through the air by magic power a thousand miles per minute. They\nset out in good spirits, riding above the clouds, and after many days\nthey reached the country where the Sun and the Moon were living happily\ntogether.\n\nThe two ambassadors were granted an interview with their Majesties of\nLight and asked them why they had for so many days secluded themselves\nfrom the Universe? Did they not know that by doing so they plunged the\nworld and all its people into uttermost darkness both day and night?\n\nReplied the Sun and the Moon:\n\n\u201cSurely you know that Mount Shu has suddenly burst forth with fire, and\nthe roads of Heaven have been greatly damaged! I, the Sun, found it\nimpossible to make my daily journey along such rough roads\u2014and\ncertainly the Moon could not issue forth at night! so we both retired\ninto private life for a time.\u201d\n\nThen the two wise men bowed themselves to the ground and said:\n\n\u201cOur Empress Jokwa has already repaired the roads with the wonderful\nstones of five colors, so we beg to assure your Majesties that the\nroads are just as they were before the eruption took place.\u201d\n\nBut the Sun and the Moon still hesitated, saying that they had heard\nthat one of the pillars of Heaven had been broken as well, and they\nfeared that, even if the roads had been remade, it would still be\ndangerous for them to sally forth on their usual journeys.\n\n\u201cYou need have no anxiety about the broken pillar,\u201d said the two\nambassadors. \u201cOur Empress restored it with the legs of a great\ntortoise, and it is as firm as ever it was.\u201d\n\nThen the Sun and Moon appeared satisfied, and they both set out to try\nthe roads. They found that what the Empress\u2019s deputies had told them\nwas correct.\n\nAfter the examination of the heavenly roads, the Sun and Moon again\ngave light to the earth. All the people rejoiced greatly, and peace and\nprosperity were secured in China for a long time under the reign of the\nwise Empress Jokwa.\n\nTHE END.","title":"Japanese Fairy Tales","tradition":"myth-cosmogony","translated_text":null,"word_count":70622}