diff options
| -rw-r--r-- | .gitattributes | 4 | ||||
| -rw-r--r-- | LICENSE.txt | 11 | ||||
| -rw-r--r-- | README.md | 2 | ||||
| -rw-r--r-- | old/55939-0.txt | 3127 | ||||
| -rw-r--r-- | old/55939-0.zip | bin | 64885 -> 0 bytes | |||
| -rw-r--r-- | old/55939-h.zip | bin | 496393 -> 0 bytes | |||
| -rw-r--r-- | old/55939-h/55939-h.htm | 4850 | ||||
| -rw-r--r-- | old/55939-h/images/cover.jpg | bin | 51422 -> 0 bytes | |||
| -rw-r--r-- | old/55939-h/images/i_022f.jpg | bin | 67001 -> 0 bytes | |||
| -rw-r--r-- | old/55939-h/images/i_040f.jpg | bin | 59133 -> 0 bytes | |||
| -rw-r--r-- | old/55939-h/images/i_056f.jpg | bin | 53890 -> 0 bytes | |||
| -rw-r--r-- | old/55939-h/images/i_090f.jpg | bin | 56577 -> 0 bytes | |||
| -rw-r--r-- | old/55939-h/images/i_120f.jpg | bin | 61918 -> 0 bytes | |||
| -rw-r--r-- | old/55939-h/images/i_158a.jpg | bin | 27891 -> 0 bytes | |||
| -rw-r--r-- | old/55939-h/images/i_158b.jpg | bin | 33524 -> 0 bytes | |||
| -rw-r--r-- | old/55939-h/images/i_159a.jpg | bin | 24417 -> 0 bytes | |||
| -rw-r--r-- | old/55939-h/images/i_159b.jpg | bin | 29009 -> 0 bytes | |||
| -rw-r--r-- | old/55939-h/images/i_160a.jpg | bin | 29915 -> 0 bytes | |||
| -rw-r--r-- | old/55939-h/images/i_160b.jpg | bin | 31857 -> 0 bytes | |||
| -rw-r--r-- | old/55939-h/images/i_frontis.jpg | bin | 74962 -> 0 bytes | |||
| -rw-r--r-- | old/55939-h/images/i_title.jpg | bin | 33165 -> 0 bytes |
21 files changed, 17 insertions, 7977 deletions
diff --git a/.gitattributes b/.gitattributes new file mode 100644 index 0000000..d7b82bc --- /dev/null +++ b/.gitattributes @@ -0,0 +1,4 @@ +*.txt text eol=lf +*.htm text eol=lf +*.html text eol=lf +*.md text eol=lf diff --git a/LICENSE.txt b/LICENSE.txt new file mode 100644 index 0000000..6312041 --- /dev/null +++ b/LICENSE.txt @@ -0,0 +1,11 @@ +This eBook, including all associated images, markup, improvements, +metadata, and any other content or labor, has been confirmed to be +in the PUBLIC DOMAIN IN THE UNITED STATES. + +Procedures for determining public domain status are described in +the "Copyright How-To" at https://www.gutenberg.org. + +No investigation has been made concerning possible copyrights in +jurisdictions other than the United States. Anyone seeking to utilize +this eBook outside of the United States should confirm copyright +status under the laws that apply to them. diff --git a/README.md b/README.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000..7cd696d --- /dev/null +++ b/README.md @@ -0,0 +1,2 @@ +Project Gutenberg (https://www.gutenberg.org) public repository for +eBook #55939 (https://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/55939) diff --git a/old/55939-0.txt b/old/55939-0.txt deleted file mode 100644 index 2e20f64..0000000 --- a/old/55939-0.txt +++ /dev/null @@ -1,3127 +0,0 @@ -The Project Gutenberg EBook of When I Was a Boy in Japan, by Sakae Shioya - -This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere in the United States and most -other parts of the world at no cost and with almost no restrictions -whatsoever. You may copy it, give it away or re-use it under the terms of -the Project Gutenberg License included with this eBook or online at -www.gutenberg.org. If you are not located in the United States, you'll have -to check the laws of the country where you are located before using this ebook. - -Title: When I Was a Boy in Japan - -Author: Sakae Shioya - -Release Date: November 11, 2017 [EBook #55939] - -Language: English - -Character set encoding: UTF-8 - -*** START OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK WHEN I WAS A BOY IN JAPAN *** - - - - -Produced by MFR, David E. Brown, and the Online Distributed -Proofreading Team at http://www.pgdp.net (This file was -produced from images generously made available by The -Internet Archive) - - - - - - - - - -[Illustration: SHIO YA SAKAE] - - - - - WHEN I WAS A BOY - IN JAPAN - - BY - SAKAE SHIOYA - - _ILLUSTRATED FROM PHOTOGRAPHS_ - - [Illustration] - - BOSTON - LOTHROP, LEE & SHEPARD CO. - - - - - Published, August, 1906. - - - COPYRIGHT, 1906, BY LOTHROP, LEE & SHEPARD CO. - - - _All Rights Reserved._ - - - WHEN I WAS A BOY IN JAPAN. - - - Norwood Press - Berwick & Smith Co. - Norwood, Mass., U. S. A. - - - - -PREFACE - - -Japanese boys have not been introduced very much to their little -American friends, and the purpose of this book is to provide an -introduction by telling some of the experiences which are common to -most Japanese boys of the present time, together with some account of -the customs and manners belonging to their life. I can at least claim -that the story is told as it could be only by one who had actually -lived the life that is portrayed. I have endeavored to hold the -interest of my young readers by bringing in more or less of amusement. -The little girl companion is introduced to widen the interest and add -somewhat more of the story element than would otherwise be present. The -sketches composing the various chapters are necessarily disconnected, -but they form a series of pictures, priceless at least to the author, -which foreign eyes have seldom been allowed to see. - - SAKAE SHIOYA. - - YALE UNIVERSITY, 1905. - - - - -CONTENTS - - - CHAPTER I.: MY INFANCY. - How I Looked--My Name--Walking--In Tea Season--My - Toys--“Kidnapped”--O-dango 9 - - CHAPTER II.: AT HOME. - Introduction--Dinner--Rice--Turning to Cows--A Bamboo - Dragon-fly--A Watermelon Lantern--On a Rainy Evening--The - Story of a Badger 23 - - CHAPTER III.: THE VILLAGE SCHOOL. - A Mimic School--Preparations--The School--How Classes Are - Conducted--Out of Tune--A Moral Story--School - Discipline--Playthings--“Knife Sense” 35 - - CHAPTER IV.: IN TOKYO. - Where We Settled--A Police Stand--Stores--“Broadway”-- - Illumination--The Foreign Settlement 51 - - CHAPTER V.: MY NEW SCHOOL. - Tomo-chan--The Men with Wens--A Curious Punishment--How I - Experienced It--Kotoro-Kotoro 62 - - CHAPTER VI.: CHINESE EDUCATION. - My Chinese Teacher--How I Was Taught--Versification--My - Uncle--Clam Fishing--A Flatfish 76 - - CHAPTER VII.: AN EVENING FÊTE. - My Father--His Love for Potted Trees--A Local Fête--Show - Booths--Goldfish Booths--Singing Insects--How a Potted Tree - Was Bought 91 - - CHAPTER VIII.: SUMMER DAYS. - A Swimming School--How I Was Taught to Swim--Diving--The Old - Home Week--Return of the Departed Souls--Visiting the Ancestral - Graves--The Memorable Night--A Village Dance 102 - - CHAPTER IX.: THE ENGLISH SCHOOL. - A Night at the Dormitory--Beginning English--Grammar-- - Pronunciation--School Moved--Mother’s Love 114 - - CHAPTER X.: A BOY ASTRONOMER. - What I Intended to Be--My Aun View--My Parents’ Approval--My - Uncle’s Enthusiasm--The Total Eclipse of the Sun 128 - - CHAPTER XI.: IN THE SUBURBS. - A Novel Experiment--Removal--Our New - House--Angling--Tomo-chan’s Visit 143 - - - - -ILLUSTRATIONS - - - PAGE - - SAKAE SHIOYA _Portrait Frontispiece_ - - A JAPANESE HOUSE 22 - - A JAPANESE SCHOOL SCENE 40 - - THE JAPANESE “BROADWAY” 56 - - A TYPICAL JAPANESE STREET 90 - - A JAPANESE SCHOOL OF THE PRESENT DAY 120 - - - - -WHEN I WAS A BOY IN JAPAN - - - - -CHAPTER I - -MY INFANCY - - How I Looked--My Name--Walking--In Tea Season--My - Toys--“Kidnapped”--O-dango. - - -I suppose I don’t need to tell you exactly, my little friends, when -and where I was born, because Japanese names are rather hard for you -to remember, and then I don’t want to disclose my age. Suffice it to -say that I was once a baby like all of you and my birthplace was about -a day’s journey from Tokyo, the capital of Japan. I wish I could have -observed myself and noted down every funny thing I did when very small, -as the guardian angel, who is said to be standing by every cradle, will -surely do. But when my memory began to be serviceable, I was well on -in my infancy, and if I were to rely on that only, I should have to -skip over a considerable length of time. How I should dislike to do -this! So, my little friends, let me construct this chapter out of bits -of things my mamma used to tell me now and then. - -When I was born, my father was away. Grandma was very proud to have a -boy for the first-born, and at once wrote him a letter saying that a -son was born to him and that he was like--and then she wrote two large -circles, meaning that I was very, very plump. Do you know how a plump -Japanese baby looks? I have often wondered myself, and have many a -time watched a baby taking a bath. Let us suppose him to be one year -old and about to be put into warm water in a wooden tub. His chin is -dimple-cleft, his cheeks ripe as an apple, and his limbs are but a -continuation of his fat trunk. And how jolly the elfin is! After the -queer expression he has shown on being dipped has passed away and he -realizes what he is about, he will make many quick bows--really, I -assure you, to show his thanks for the trouble of washing him. At this, -mother, sister, and the maid assisting them give a burst of laughter, -when, with a scream of immense delight, he will strike his fists into -the water, causing a panic among the well-clad and not-ready-to-get-wet -attendants. With royal indifference, however, he will then try to push -his fist into his mouth, and not grumbling at all over his ill-success, -he will set about telling a story with his everlasting mum-mum. Now he -is taken out and laid on a towel. Glowing red, how he will move his -arms and legs like an overturned turtle! Well, that is how I looked, I -am very sure. - -In Japan, in christening a child, we follow the principle of “A good -name is better than rich ointment.” I was named Sakae, which in the -hierographic Chinese characters represents fire burning on a stand. The -idea of illumination will perhaps suggest itself to you at once, and -indeed, it means glory or thrift. And my well-wishing parents named me -so, that I might thrive and be a glory to my family. So I was bound to -be good, wasn’t I? A bad boy with a good name would be very much like a -monkey with a silk hat on. - -Now begins my walking. Now and then mamma or grandma would train me, -taking my hands and singing: - - “Anyo wa o-jozu, - Korobu wa o-heta.” - -But my secret delight--so I judge--was to stand by myself, clinging to -the convenient checkered frames of paper screens, which covered the -whole length of the veranda. When I went from one side to the other, at -first without being noticed--of course walking like a crab--and then -suddenly being discovered with a shout of admiration, I used to come -down with a bump, which, however, never hurt me--I was so plump, you -know. I must describe here a sort of ceremony, or rather an ordeal, I -had to pass through when I was fairly able to stand and walk without -any help. For this I must begin with my house. - -My house stood on the outskirts of the town, where the land rose to a -low hill and was covered with tea-plants. We owned a part of it hedged -in by criptomerias. - -We were not regular tea dealers, but we used to have an exciting -time in the season preparing our crop. Lots of red-cheeked country -girls would come to pick the leaves, and it was a sight to see them -working. With their heads nicely wrapped with pieces of white and -blue cloth, jetting out of the green ocean of tea-leaves, they would -sing peculiarly effective country songs, mostly in solos with a short -refrain in chorus. But they were not having a concert, and if you -should step in among them, they would make a hero of you, those girls. -And then we had also a good many young men working at tea-heaters. - -Here they likewise sang snatches of songs, but their principal business -was to roll up steamed leaves and dry them over the fire. But when -work is combined with fun, it is a great temptation for a boy, and I, -a lad of five or six, I remember, would have a share among them, and, -standing on a high stool by a heater and baring my right shoulder like -the rest, would join more in a refrain than in rolling the leaves. - -But I was going to tell you about the ceremony I had to pass through, -wasn’t I? Well, it happened, or rather somebody especially arranged it -so, I suspect, that I should have it just at the time of this great -excitement. The ceremony itself is like this. They take a child fairly -able to walk, load him with some heavy thing, and place him in a sort -of a large basket shaped like the blade of a shovel. Now let him walk. -The basket will rock under him, the load is too heavy for him, and he -will fall down. - -If he does, it is taken for granted that he has in that one act had all -the falls that he would otherwise meet in his later life. So, if he -appears too strong to stumble, he will be shaken down by some roguish -hands before he gets out of it. - -I was to go through this before august spectators--country girls. -They liked to see me plump, because some of them were even more plump -than I. At any rate, from everywhere they saluted me as “Bot’chan,” -“Bot’chan.” If I had returned every salute by looking this way and -that, I should have broken my neck. But it was customary to make a bow -anyway, and I was ordered by my mamma to do so. On this occasion I -made two snap bows with my chin, which excited laughter. Now a basket -was produced, a brand-new one, I remember, and I was loaded with some -heavy rice cake. I stood up, however, like Master Peachling of our -fairy-tale, who is said to have surprised his adopted mother by rising -in his bathtub on the very day of his birth! I was then placed in the -basket and made to walk. - -I looked intently at the basket, not because it was new, but because it -gave me a queer motion, the ups and downs of a boat, a new sensation -to me, anyway. Attracted, however, by the merry voices of the crowd, -I looked at them, and suddenly, being pleased with so many smiling -faces, raised a cry of delight, when down I came with a loud noise. A -roar of laughter broke out with the clapping of hands. The noise buried -my surprise and I also clapped my hands without knowing who was being -cheered. - -As the first-born of the house, I must have had lots of playthings. But -there were two things I remember as clear as the day. One was a sword, -all wood, however. As the son of a samurai, I should have had to serve -my lord under the old régime and stake my life and honor on the two -blades of steel. And so even if the good old days were gone, something -to remind us of them was kept and made a plaything of. But really, I -liked my wooden sword. The other thing was a horse--a hobby-horse, I -mean. I don’t know just how many horses I had, but I wanted any number -of them. I had some pictures, but they were all of horses. If not, I -would not accept the presents. And with these two kinds of treasures I -enjoyed most of my childhood days, the sword slantingly on my side, and -the horse, which I fancied trotting, under me, while I shouted “Haiyo! -haiyo!” - -Although I had my own name, people called me “Bot’chan,” as I have -said, because it is a general term of endearment, and papa and mamma -would call me “Bô” or “Bôya.” Among those who addressed me thus, I -remember very well one middle-aged woman who often came to steal me -from mamma, and by whom I was only too glad to be stolen. - -We had a long veranda facing the garden, on which I passed most of -my days. There I rode on my hobby-horse or played with my little dog -Shiro, who would go through all sorts of tricks for a morsel of nice -things. Suddenly my laugh would cease and nothing of me would be heard. -Wondering what the matter was, mamma would open the paper screen -to see, and lo! not a shadow of me was to be seen. Even Shiro had -disappeared. Attacked with a feeling something akin to horror, she used -to picture--so I imagine--a winged tengu (a Japanese harpy) swooping -down and carrying me away to some distant hill. But soon finding -recent steps of clogs on the ground, coming to and receding from the -veranda, she would nod and smile at the trick. She knew that I had been -kidnapped by a good soul! - -Now I want to give you some reasons why I liked this woman. First of -all, it was because she always carried me on her back. The only way to -appreciate what it is to be tall, would be to be a grown-up man and -a small child at the same time. And that is exactly the feeling that -I had. I could see lots of curious things over the forbidden hedges. -I could even see things over the house-tops; they were all one-story, -and built low, though. In a word, I always felt while on her back like -a wee pig who had first toddled out into a wide, wide world. And then -she would carry me through town. What life there was! After crossing -a bridge which spanned the stream, coming from the beautiful lake on -the north and going a little way along a row of pine-trees, we would -come on a flock of ducks and geese on their way to the water. What a -noise they made,--quack, quack! Then we would begin inspecting rows -of houses, open to the street and in which all sorts of things were -sold. Men, women, and children, as well as dogs, seemed to be very much -occupied. Then I would spy some horses laden with straw bags and wood. -Real horses they were, but I was rather disappointed to find them so -big and their appearance not half so good as in my pictures. My faith -in them always began to shake a little bit, but still I used to persist -in thinking that my hobby-horses and pictures were nearer the reality -than those we met on the street. And wasn’t it curious that my belief -was at last substantiated by seeing a Shetland pony in America after -some twenty years? Ah, that was exactly what I had in mind! - -Then I would hear a merry prattle on a drum--_terent-tenten, -terent-tenten_. Ah, here would come boy acrobats dressed in something -like girls’ gymnasium suits, with a small mask of a lion’s head with a -plume on it, on their heads. A funny sort of boy, I thought, but on my -woman’s giving them some pennies, they would perform all sorts of feats -which interested me never so much. The woman used to shake me to make -sure that I was not dead, as I kept very quiet, watching. - -The woman’s house was just behind the street, and she was sure to -take me there. Here was another reason why I liked her very much. -She seemed to know just what I wanted. She would set me on the sunny -veranda and bring me some nice o-dango (rice dumpling). This she made -herself, and it was prepared just to my liking, covered well with soy -and baked deliciously. I was in clover if I only had that! - -I will describe one of my visits, which will well represent them all. -The day was calm and bright, and while we were feasting--she had some -of the good things, too--her pussy sat on one end of the veranda and -was finishing her toilet in the sun. Even the sparrows in this peaceful -weather forgot that they were birds of air, and fell from the trees and -were wrestling noisily on the ground. Only the pussy’s move broke up -their sport. By this time we were very near the end of our business. -Turning from the sparrows, my woman glanced at me and sat for a moment -transfixed with the awful sight I presented. There I was with my -cheeks and nose all besmeared with brown soy, stretching my sticky -hands in a helpless attitude, and licking my mouth by way of variation. -She now broke into laughter and was scrambling on the floor, weak with -merriment. But my mute appeal was too eloquent; indeed, I was all ready -to shed tears with an utter sense of helplessness when she hastened to -bring a wet towel and wipe my face and hands clean and nice, with, -“Oh, my poor Bot’chan!” - -[Illustration: A JAPANESE HOUSE.] - - - - -CHAPTER II - -AT HOME - - Introduction--Dinner--Rice--Turning to Cows--A Bamboo Dragon-fly--A - Watermelon Lantern--On a Rainy Evening--The Story of a Badger. - - -Our family consisted of father, mother, grandmother, and two children -besides myself, at the time when I was six years old. I don’t remember -exactly what business my father was in, but my impression is that he -had no particular one. He had been trained for the old samurai and -devoted most of his youthful days to fencing, riding, and archery. -But by the time he had come of age, that training was of no use to -him professionally, because, as quickly as you can turn the palm of -your hand, Japan went through a wonderful change from the old feudal -régime to the era of new civilization. So my father, and many, many -others like him, were just in mid-air, so to speak, being thrown out of -their proper sphere, but unable to settle as yet to the solid ground -and adapt themselves to new ways. My mother came also of the samurai -stock, and, like most of her class, kept in her cabinet a small sword -beautifully ornamented in gold work, with which she was ready to defend -her honor whenever obliged to. But far from being mannish, she was -as meek as a lamb, and was devoted to my father and her children. My -grandmother was of a retiring nature and I cannot draw her very much -into my narrative. But she was very good to everybody, and her daily -work, so far as I can remember, was to take a walk around the farm -every morning. She was so regular in this habit that I cannot think -of her without associating her with the scent of the dewy morning and -with the green of the field which stretched before her. She died not -many years after, but I often wonder if she is really dead. To me -she is still living, and what the great poet said of Lucy Gray sounds -peculiarly true in her case, too. - - “--Yet some maintain that to this day - She is a living child; - That you may see sweet Lucy Gray - Upon the lonesome wild. - - “O’er rough and smooth she trips along, - And never looks behind; - And sings a solitary song - That whistles in the wind.” - -Only you would have to make Lucy seventy years old to fit my -grandmother. - -The introduction being over, let us attend a dinner, or rather -give attention to a description of one. We do not eat at one large -dining-table with chairs around it. We each have a separate small table -about a foot and a half square, all lacquered red, green, or black, and -sit before it on our heels. A rice bucket, a teapot, some saucers, a -bottle of soy, and so forth, are all placed near some one who is to -specially serve us. We used to sit in two rows, father and grandmother -facing each other, mother next to father, with the young sister -opposite my brother and myself. The younger children usually sit next -to some older person who can help them in eating. No grace was said, -but I always bowed to my elders before I began with “itadakimasu” (I -take this with thanks), which I sometimes said when I was very hungry, -as a good excuse and signal to start eating before the others. - -Rice is our staple food and an almost reverential attitude toward it -as the sustainer of our life is entertained by the people. And I was -told time and again not to waste it. Once a maid, so my mother used to -tell me, was very careless in cleaning rice before it was cooked. She -dropped lots of grains on the stone floor under the sink day after day, -and never stopped to pick them up. One day, when she wanted to clean -the floor, she was frightened half to death by finding there ever so -many white serpents straining their necks at her. She really fainted -when the goddess of the kitchen appeared to her in her trance and bade -her to take all those white serpents in a basket and wash them clean. -As she came to herself, she did as she was told, trembling with horror -at touching such vile things, some of which, indeed, would try to coil -themselves around her hands. But as the last pailful of water was -poured on them, lo! what were serpents a moment ago were now all turned -into nice grains of rice ready to be boiled. Now if there is one thing -in the world I hate, it is a serpent; the mere mention of it makes my -flesh creep. So you see I took care to pitch every grain of boiled rice -into my mouth with my chop-sticks before I left my table. - -Another story was told me concerning the meal. The Japanese teach home -discipline by stories, you know. This was a short one, being merely -the statement that if anybody lies down on the floor soon after he -has eaten his meal, he will turn into a cow. Now a number of times I -had found cows chewing their cuds while stretched upon the ground. So -I thought, in my childish mind, that there must be some mysterious -connection between each of the three in the order as they stand: -eating--lying down--cow. So, naturally, I avoided the second process, -and, after eating, immediately ran out-of-doors to see what our man, -Kichi, was doing. - -Kichi worked on our little farm, and I usually found him cleaning his -implements after the day’s work. We were great friends, and he used -to present me with toys of his own making, which were very simple but -indeed a marvel to me. Once he picked up a piece of bamboo and made a -chip of it about a twelfth of an inch thick, a third of an inch wide, -and three inches and a half long. Then he sliced obliquely one-half -of one side and the other half of the same side in the opposite -direction, so that the edges might be made thin. He also bored a small -hole in the middle and put in a stick about twice as thick as a hairpin -and about four inches long, the sliced side being down. He then cut off -the projecting end of the stick, when it was tight in the chip. The -dragon-fly was now ready to take flight. He took the stick between his -palms and gave a twist, when lo! it flew away up in the air. - -I was delighted with the toy, and tried several times to make it fly. -But when I used all my force and gave it a good long twist, why, it -took such a successful flight that it hit the edge of the comb of our -straw roof and stuck there, never to come down. I was very sorry at -that, but Kichi laughed at the feat the dragon-fly had performed, and -said that the maker was so skilful that the toy turned out to be a real -living thing! It was perched there for the night. Well, I admired his -skill very much, but did not want to lose my toy in that way. So I -made him promise me to make another the next day, reminding him not to -put too much skill in it. - -It was summer, the season of watermelons. We had a small melon patch -and an ample supply of the fruit. Here was a chance for Kichi to try -his skill again. One evening he took a pretty round melon and scooped -the inside out so as to put in a lighted candle. So far this was -very ordinary. He scraped the inner part until the rind was fairly -transparent, and then cut a mouth, a nose, and eyes with eyebrows -sticking out like pins. He then painted them so that when the candle -was lighted a monster of a melon was produced. How triumphant a boy -would feel in possessing such a thing! I hung it on the veranda that -evening when the room was weirdly lighted by one or two greenish paper -lanterns, and watched it with my folks. I expressed my admiration for -Kichi’s skill, and with boyish fondness for exaggeration mentioned -the fact that a toy dragon-fly of his making had really turned out -to be a living thing. All laughed, but of course I made an effort to -be serious. But no sooner were we silent than, without the slightest -hint, the melon angrily dropped down with a crash. I screamed, but, -being assured of its safety, I approached it and found the skull of -the monster was badly fractured, in fact, one piece of it flying some -twenty feet out in the garden. The next morning I took the first -opportunity to tell Kichi that his toy was so skilfully made that it -sought death of its own accord. - -Well, I started to tell what I did evenings, but when it was wet I -had a very tedious time. Nothing is more dismal to a boy than a rainy -day. To lie down was to become a cow. So one rainy evening I opened -the screen, and, standing, looked out at the rain. But this was no -fun. The only alternative was to go to one of the rooms. Now there -is no chair in a Japanese house, and to sit over one’s heels is too -ceremonial, not to say a bit trying, even for a Japanese child. So -my legs unconsciously collapsed, and there I was lying on my back, -singing aloud some songs I had learned. Presently I began to look at -the unpainted ceiling, and traced the grain. And is it not wonderful -that out of knots and veins of wood you can make figures of some living -things? Yes, I traced a man’s face, one eye much larger than the other. -Then, I had a cat. Now I began to trace a big one with a V-shaped face. -A cow! The idea ran through me with the swiftness of lightning, and -the next moment I sprang to my feet and shook myself to see if I had -undergone any transformation. Luckily, I was all right. But to make the -thing sure, I felt of my forehead carefully to see if anything hard was -coming out of it. - -The room now lost its attraction. And I ran away to the room where my -grandmother was. Opening the screen, I said: - -“Grandma!” - -“Well, Bô?” - -“May I come in? I want you to tell me the story of a badger, grandma.” - -I was never tired of hearing the same stories over and over again from -my grandmother. There was at some distance a tall tree, shooting up -like an arrow to the sky, which was visible from a window of her room. -It was there that the badger of her story liked to climb. One early -evening he was there with the cover of an iron pot, which he made with -his magic power appear like a misty moon. Now a farmer, who was still -working in the field, chanced to see it, and was surprised to find -that it was already so late. He could tell the hour from the position -of the moon, you know. So he made haste to finish his work, and was -going home, when another moon, the real one this time, peeped out of -the wood near by. The badger, however, had too much faith in his art -to withdraw his mock moon, and held it there to rival the newly risen -one. The farmer was astonished to find two moons at the same time, but -he was not slow to see which was real. He smiled at the trick of the -badger, and now wanted to outwit him. He approached the tree stealthily -and shook it with all his might. The badger was not prepared for this. -Losing his balance, he dropped down to the ground, moon and all, and -had to run for his life, for the farmer was right after him with his -hoe. - -I laughed and grandma laughed, too, over her own story, when the paper -screen was suddenly brightened. - -“The badger’s moon!” I cried, and climbed up to my grandmother. - -“Yes, I am a badger,” said a voice, as the door was opened. And there -stood my mother with a paper lantern she had brought for the room. - - - - -CHAPTER III - -THE VILLAGE SCHOOL - - A Mimic School--Preparations--The School--How Classes - Are Conducted--Out of Tune--A Moral Story--School - Discipline--Playthings--“Knife Sense.” - - -At the age of six I was sent to school. For some time before the -fall opening, I was filled with excitement and curiosity and looked -forward to the day with great impatience. As our neighbors were few and -scattered and I did not have many playmates, I wondered how I should -feel on coming in contact with so many boys, most of whom were older -than I. And then there was study. I had a faint idea what a learned -scholar such as Confucius was, and felt as if a plunge into school a -day or two would half convert me into that obscure ideal. Weeks before, -I insisted on having a mimic school at home to prepare myself a little -for the august event, and with my mother as teacher I learned the -numerals and the forty-eight letters of the Japanese alphabet by heart. -I wished to do just as I would at school, and so I used to go outdoors -and with measured steps approach the porch. Entering the house, I sat -down before a table and bowed reverentially. When my mother was there -before me, I cheerfully began to study, well, for five minutes or so, -but when I found her not quite ready I was mercilessly thrown out of -humor, and only her exaggerated bows for apology would induce me to dry -my sorrowful tears. - -The few days before the opening of the school were taken for my -preparation. I needed copy-books, a slate, an abacus, which is a frame -strung with wires on which are wooden beads to be moved in counting -and reckoning, and a small writing-box, containing a stone ink-well, -a cake of India ink, a china water-vessel, and brushes. I must have -also a round lunch set, the three pieces of which can be piled one -upon another like a miniature pagoda, and then, when empty, be put one -within another to reduce the size. A pair of chop-sticks went with -the set of course. Now all must be purchased new as if everything had -a new start. And then a new school suit was procured together with a -navy cap. These were all ready a day before, and were exhibited on the -alcove. - -My younger brother was possessed of the school mania at the sight of -these last, and insisted that he would have his set, too. And so mimic -ones were procured, and these formed a second row together with his -holiday suit. - -And then came the night before I was to go. I played the part of a -watch-dog by sleeping right near my property. In fact, I went to bed -early, but I could not sleep till after everybody had retired for -the night. And then I dreamed that my abacus stood up, its beads -chattering on how to start the trip in the morning. It was joined by -the copy-book, made of soft, Japanese paper, which parted hither and -thither in walking, as a lady’s skirt,--a Japanese lady’s, I mean. The -chairman was my navy cap. I did not know how they decided, but they -must have come to a peaceful agreement, as they were found, when I -awoke in the morning, exactly in the same place, lying quiet. - -The next morning I set out with my father for the school. The faces of -every one in the house were at the door looking at me. I made every -effort to be dignified in walking, but could not help looking back just -once, when my face relaxed into a smile, and I felt suddenly very shy. -But as I heard my younger brother struggling to get away from my mother -to follow me, I hastened my steps to turn round a corner of the road. - -The school was a low, dark-looking building, with paper-screened -windows all around like a broad white belt, and with a spacious porch -with dusty shelves to leave clogs on. When we arrived, we were led into -a side room, where we met the master or principal, and soon my father -returned home, leaving me to his care. I felt somewhat lonesome with -strangers all around, but kept myself as cool as possible, which effort -was very much like stopping a leak with the hands. A slight neglect -would bring something misty into my eyes. But now all the boys--and -girls, too, in the other room--came into one large room. Some forty of -the older ones and fifteen of those who had newly entered took their -seats, the older ones glancing curiously at the newcomers. But we were -all in back seats and so were not annoyed with looks that would have -been felt piercing us from behind. The desk I was assigned to was a -miserable one; not only was it besmeared with ink ages old, but cuts -were made here and there as if it were a well-fought battleground. But -I did not feel ashamed to sit there, as I thought that this was a kind -of place in which a Confucius was to be brought up. - -Looking awhile on what was going on, I found the boys were divided into -three classes. The method of teaching was curious; one class alone -was allowed to have a reading lesson, while the other two were having -writing or arithmetic, that is, the teaching was so arranged that what -one class was doing might not disturb the others. I was struck, even in -my boyish mind, with the happy method, and learned the first lesson in -management. And then reading was done partly in unison with the master, -in a singsong style, and the effect was pleasing, if it was not very -loud. The class in arithmetic, on the other hand, sent out a pattering -noise of pencils on the slates, which in a confused mass would form -an overtone of the orchestra. A writing lesson taken in the midst of -such a company was never tiresome. Indeed, anything out of tune would -send the whole house into laughter, and such things were constantly -happening. - -[Illustration: A JAPANESE SCHOOL SCENE.] - -I was not slow in becoming acquainted with the boys. As I went into the -playground for the first time, I felt rather awkward to find nobody to -play with. But soon two boys whom I knew thrust themselves before me -and uncovered their heads. And from that moment the playground became -a place of great interest to me. Two friends grew into five, eight, -ten, and fifteen, and in three days I felt as if I possessed the whole -ground. - -As things grew more familiar, I found almost every boy was striving -a little bit to be out of tune. When singsong reading was going on, -pupils echoing responsively the teacher’s voice, some wild boy would -suddenly redouble his effort with gusto, and his voice, like that of a -strangled chicken, would soar away up, to the great merriment of the -rest. And then often a boy, whose mind was occupied with a hundred -and one things except the book, engaged in some sly communication -with another, unconscious of the teacher’s approach, when he would -literally jump into the air as the master’s whip descended sharply -on his desk. We sat by twos on benches, and when one boy saw his -companion carelessly perching on the end of the bench, just right for -experimenting the principle of the lever, he would not miss a moment -to stand up, presumably to ask some question. But no sooner had he -called to the teacher, than the other fellow would shoot down to the -floor with a cry, and the bench come back with a tremendous noise. But -this was not all. When the boys could not find a pretense to make a -noise, they would stealthily paint their faces with writing brushes. -Two touches would be enough to grow a thick mustache curling up to -the ears. When the teacher faced a dozen of those mustache-wearing -boys who were unable to efface their naughty acts as quickly as they -had committed them, he could do nothing but to burst into undignified -laughter. - -One day a strange method of discipline was instituted. The teacher -must have been at a loss to bring the urchins to behave well. It was -the last hour, the only hour, I think, the boys kept quiet. They did -so partly because the course bore the great name of ethics, but more -because moral stories were told. And the boys did not care whether the -stories were moral or not, as long as they were interesting. Here is -one of the twenty-four Chinese stories that teach filial duty: - -There was once a boy by the name of Ching who had an old mother. He was -a good boy, and did what he could to please her. The mother, however, -often asked for things hard to get. One day in winter she wanted some -carp for her dinner. It was very cold, and the lake where Ching used to -fish was all frozen. What could he do? He, however, went to the lake, -looked about the place to find out where the ice was not thick, and, -baring himself about his stomach, lay flat to thaw it. It was a very -difficult thing to do, but at last the ice gave way, and to his great -joy, from the crevice thus made, a big carp jumped out into the air. So -he could satisfy his mother’s want. - -Not only the boys who listened intently, but also the teacher, got -interested as the story grew to the climax, and the latter would -gesticulate and eventually impersonate the dutiful boy, showing -surprise at seeing a carp jumping ten feet into the air. This called -forth laughter which was meant for applause. But the teacher soon came -to himself and called silence. One day, after telling this story, he -said that it was yet half an hour before the time to close, but he -would dismiss us. “But,” he continued, “you can go only one by one, -beginning with those who are quiet and good. This is to train you for -your orderly conduct in study-hours, and if any one cannot keep quiet, -even for half an hour, he shall stay in his place till he can do so.” -This was a severe test. An early dismissal, even of five minutes before -the time, had a special charm for boys, but to-day we could march out -half an hour earlier. And then what a lovely day it was in autumn! The -warm sun was bright, and the trees were ablaze with golden leaves. -Persimmons were waiting for us to climb up and feast on them. After -a moment the boys were as still as night. One by one a “good” boy -was called to leave; they went like lambs to the door, but no sooner -were they out, than some stamped on the stairs noisily and shouted -and laughed on the green, which act showed that the teacher did not -always pick the right ones. I naturally waited my turn with impatience. -I thought I was a pretty good boy. At least I had Confucius for my -ideal, and those who had it were not many. I never did mischief, except -once, and that was really an accident. I dropped my lunch-box in my -arithmetic class, and chased it, as it had rolled off quite a distance. -Half the school laughed at me, and that was all. I was now musing on my -ill-luck when a call came to me at last. It was still a quarter of an -hour before closing time, and I thought the teacher knew me, after all. - -Within a month after I entered the school, I made a new discovery as -to a schoolboy’s equipments. I had thought that they consisted only -of books, copy-books, an abacus, and such things. But these form only -a half of them. The other half are hidden to view: they are in the -pockets, or in the sleeves, I should have said. During the recess a -strong cord will come out and also a top about two and a half inches in -diameter, and with an iron ring a quarter of an inch thick. A Japanese -top is a mad thing. When it sings out of the hands and hits that of -the opponent, sending it off crippled, it makes you feel very happy. -Another thing is a sling. It is as old as the time of David, but it -was perfectly new to me. When a pebble shoots out and vanishes in the -air, you feel as though you were able to hit a kite circling away up in -the sky. And another thing! It is a knife, the broad-bladed one. With -it they cut a piece one and a half feet long out of a thick branch of -a tree and sharpen one end of it. Selecting a piece of soft ground, -the boys in turn drive in their own pieces and try to knock over the -others. The game depends much on one’s strength and the kind of wood -one selects. But there is a pleasure in possessing a cruel branch that -will knock off three or four pieces at a blow. Oh, for a knife and a -top! I thought. I disclosed the matter to my mother, who thought a -top was all right and bought me one. But as for the knife, she gave -me a small one, fit only to sharpen a pencil with. I felt ashamed (I -blush to confess, though) even to show it to my schoolmates. If I had -had money, I would have given my all just for a knife. But money was -a mean thing; the possession of it was the root of all evil--so it -was thought, and, indeed, I was penniless. But I must have a decent -knife--decent among boys. If I could only get one I would give my -Confucius for it. - -One day I saw my Kichi--we had kept up our meeting ever since. I talked -to him about a knife. He did not tell me how I could get one because -I talked only about what the possession of a good knife would mean to -a boy. It was a rather general remark, but I disliked to go right to -the point. It would be too much to presume on his kindness, you know. -And then I rather wanted him to offer. He, however, produced his own -favorite knife and cut a thick piece of deal right away to show how -sharp it was. Well, I thought he had a knife sense, anyway. So I kept -talking about it day after day, and each time I talked of it he showed -me his, and tried it on a piece of wood. - -One day there was a town festival and in the evening I was allowed to -go with Kichi to see it. Kichi’s manner that night was very strange; -he appeared as if he had a chestful of gold. He asked me in a fatherly -manner what I liked, and said he could buy me all the booths if I -wished him to. I never felt so happy as then. I thought my patience had -conquered him at last. And to make a long story short, I came to own a -splendid knife, better than any other boy’s at the school! That night I -slept with it under the pillow. - -The next morning the first thing I did was to go to thank Kichi. - -“Hello, Kichi,” I shouted. “Thank you very much for the knife.” - -“Oh, good morning, Bot’chan. Let me see your knife,” he said. “But I am -sorry that I played a joke on you last night. It was your mother who -paid for it. You must go and thank her for it.” - -“Well, never!” I gasped. But being told how she handed him the money -when we started, I gave him a slap--a mild one, though--on his face -and ran immediately to my mother, thinking that after all she had -something more than a mere knife sense. - - - - -CHAPTER IV - -IN TOKYO - - Where We Settled--A Police - Stand--Stores--“Broadway”--Illumination--The Foreign Settlement. - - -About two years after I entered the village school I had to leave it -for good and all. My father, as I have said, was in mid-air between the -heaven of old Japan and the prosaic earth of the new institution. He -would fain have remained there, had he had a pillar of gold to support -him. And it is wonderful to see how this glittering pillar does support -one in almost any place. It was a very serious matter for him to launch -in the new current without any helpful equipment. But he had to do it, -and made up his mind to try his fortune at the very centre of the new -civilization, Tokyo. And so one day we said good-by to our friends -who came to see us off, and started for the capital. “Parting is such -sweet sorrow,” as the poet sang, but I hardly remember now whether I -shed tears or not. As I, however, look back to the day, I cannot but be -grateful for the new move, for the immeasurable benefit it brought at -least to us children. - -In Tokyo we settled very near where my aunt lived. The street was -by no means in a noisy quarter, but I can hardly think of anywhere -in the city which was so well situated for being in contact with so -many places of interest, at least for a boy just from the country. It -was near to the “Broadway” of Tokyo, and just as near to the foreign -settlement and to the railroad station, the only one of the kind in the -city in those days. And if I wanted a touch of the old order of things, -there was a big temple, a block on the east, which made its presence -known to the forgetful people by striking a big bell every evening. I -cannot say they rang the bell, because the bells at Buddhist temples -do not chime, but boom. They are so big--bigger than a siege-gun. I -liked the sound very much, as it brought to me like a dream the vision -of a hillside sleeping under the setting sun. But I must not forget to -mention a large piece of grassy ground very near us, where we could -romp, fly kites, or play at a tug-of-war. - -Now the first thing I did when I came to the new place was to -familiarize myself with the neighborhood for the sake of running -errands, or just to keep myself informed. First I started eastward and -turned the corner to the left, where I found a wee bit of a house, or -rather a box, six feet by nine, where two policemen were stationed. It -was the first time I had ever seen any of them, and I thought they were -a queer sort of people, who looked at me suspiciously whenever I looked -at them in that way. But I thought as long as I did not do anything -wrong, they would have no reason for coming at me. I also had great -faith that if a thief should break into our house, they would soon come -to our help. So I made several trials to see how quickly I could cover -the distance to give them notice. They must have thought me a strange -boy as I came panting to the police stand and stopped short to look at -the clock inside. - -A little beyond began the market. First a grocery store, then a fish -stall, a bean-cake shop, and so on. I remember that the house I most -frequented was a sweet potato store. I could get five or six nice hot -baked pieces for a penny. And how I liked them! At regular intervals -fresh ones were ready and we waited for them, falling into a line. -When we got as much as we wanted, we would run a race lest they -should get too cold. At the end of the street, just opposite a tall -fire-ladder, standing erect and with a bell on the top, was a big meat -store. Beef, pork, everything, they had, and sometimes I found a bill -posted saying, “Mountain Whale, To-day.” Whatever that might be, I -never cared to eat such doubtful things. You never tried sea-horse or -sea-elephant, did you? - -Then, going in another direction from my house, I made my way to -“Broadway.” I first crossed a bridge which spanned a canal and came -to an object of much interest. It was a telegraph-pole. I was never -able to count the wires on it unless I did it by the help of a -multiplication table, as there were so many of them, coming from all -parts of the country to the central station. A strange thing about -them was that they sang. When I put my ear to the pole, even on a -windless day, I could hear a number of soft voices wailing, as it were. -I thought they must come from messages running on the wires, many of -which were indeed too sad to describe. And then there was something -which made me think that boys in that vicinity had a very hard -time. Many a time I saw kites with warriors’ faces painted on them, -entangled in the wires. The faces which looked heroic, now seemed only -grinning furiously for agony! But I must not be musing on such things, -for if I did not take care in that crowded thoroughfare, a jinrikisha -man would come dashing from behind with “Heigh, there!” which took the -breath out of a country boy. - -[Illustration: THE JAPANESE “BROADWAY.”] - -Broadway was built after a foreign style,--I don’t know which -country’s, though. There were sidewalks with willow-trees,--and there -are no sidewalks in ordinary Japanese roads,--and brick houses, two -stories high, and with no basement. Horse-cars were running, but they -would not be on the track after ten in the evening. Many jinrikishas -were running, too, and some half a dozen of them were waiting for -customers at each corner. But not a shadow of a cab was to be seen -anywhere. To tell the truth, I never thought of finding one then, its -existence in the world being unknown to me at that time. There were a -good many wonders in store for me in the shops, and I never grew -tired of inspecting them. One curious thing was that here and there -at the notion stores boys were playing hand-organs, probably to draw -customers in. So I thought, anyway, and every time I passed I obliged -them awhile by listening to their music. As I strolled on, I came -across a sign with “Shiruko” in large letters on it. Shiruko is a sort -of pudding, made of sweet bean sauce and rice dumpling, and served hot. -To be sure, it made my mouth water, but I went on reading a bill over -the wall. There were twelve varieties of shiruko, it said, styled after -the names of the months, and any one who could finish eating all of -them at one time, would get a prize besides the return of the price! -How I wished that I had a big stomach! - -The sight of Broadway was prettier in the evening, when the sidewalks -would be lined with hundreds of stalls. I shall have occasion to -describe them later, and so let me now mention one thing which I -never remember without a smile. It was an illumination on a holiday -evening--not of the whole street, but of only one building, and that of -two stories, I remember. It was a newspaper office. And as newspapers -are always giving us something new, this building, I think, awoke one -morning to give us what was very new at that time. It girdled itself -just once with an iron pipe half an inch in diameter, which twisted -itself into some characters in the front, and awaited a holiday -evening. The paper advertised that everybody should come to see how -they were going to celebrate the holiday evening. So the whole city -turned out, and all my folks, too. Hand-organs in the stores around -began a concert, and people waited with their mouths open. The time -came, and lights were seen running from both ends like serpents, -closing up in the centre. Wonder of wonders! “DAILY NEWS OFFICE” in -gaslight appeared! - -I must tell you one more adventure I had, and that was an excursion -into the foreign settlement. As I came to the city I met with a -foreigner once in a while. I wondered how I should feel if I but -plunged into their crowd and spoke with them, if possible. So one day, -with a curious mind, I started for the place where the foreigners lived -together, about a mile from my home. As I neared the settlement I made -several discoveries. First, the houses looked very prim and square, -straight up and down, painted white, or in some light color. When -viewed from a distance they looked as if they were so many gravestones -in a temple yard. Unfortunately, it was the only comparison that -occurred to a country boy. As I looked again, I found out another fact. -That was, that while Japanese houses were nestling under the trees, -foreign houses were above them. In fact, there was nothing more than -low bushes around the houses. So my conclusion was that foreigners -lived in gravestone-like houses, and did not like tall trees, being -tall themselves, perhaps. As I entered a street I found everything -just contrary to my expectation. Streets were deserted instead of -being thronged; only one or two people and a dog were seen crossing. -I went on, when, as luck would have it, I neared a Catholic temple -from which two men, or women,--I could not distinguish which,--dressed -in black, with hoods of the same color, came! How dismal, I thought, -and immediately took to my heels till I came to another part of the -street where the houses faced the sea. I wanted to see a boy or a girl, -anyway, if I could not find a crowd. As I looked I saw something white -at one of the gates, and what was my delight when I found it to be a -little girl! I approached her, but not very near, as we could not talk -to each other. I just kept at an admiring distance. I stood there, one -eye on her and the other on the sea, lest I should drive her in by -looking at her with both my eyes, and began to examine her. What a -pretty creature she was! With her face white as a lily and her cheeks -pink as a cherry flower, she stood there watching me. Her light hair -was parted, a blue ribbon being tied on one side like a butterfly. She -had on a white muslin dress with a belt to match the ribbon, but what -was my astonishment to find that I could not see any dress beyond her -knees! I could not believe it at first, but the dress stopped short -there, and the slender legs, covered with something black,--I did not -care what,--were shooting out. Might not some malicious person have cut -it so? “Oh, please, for mercy’s sake, cover them,” was my thought. “I -don’t care if you have a long dress, the skirt trailing on the ground.” -But was I mistaken in my standard of criticism? I looked at myself, -and, sure enough, my kimono reached down to my feet! - - - - -CHAPTER V - -MY NEW SCHOOL - - Tomo-chan--The Men with Wens--A Curious Punishment--How I - Experienced It--Kotoro-kotoro. - - -Of course I attended another school as soon as we were settled. And -every morning I went with my Tomo-chan. - -But I must tell you who Tomo-chan was. She--yes, _she_--was the adopted -daughter of my aunt, of about the same age as I, and in the same class -at school. I wish I had space enough to tell you how she came to be -adopted, but I shall have to be contented just with telling you that -the main cause of her becoming a member of my aunt’s family was all -through me. Aunty had no child, but she had found how lovely a child -is, even if he be mischievous, through my short visit two years before, -which I have had no occasion to tell you about. Now one of the first -principles in physics says that nature abhors a vacuum. This means that -it is unnatural for a place to have nothing in it. I had gone back: who -was to fill my place? So Tomo-chan, a better and certainly prettier -child than I, slipped into my shoes. - -Aunty wished us to be good friends. So I called on her every morning -on my way to school, and in the afternoon we went over our lesson -together. Arithmetic was not very hard for me, and so I helped her over -pitfalls of calculation, while she did the same for me with reading. -Girls remember very well, but do not care to reason things out, it -seems. And indeed, Tomo-chan remembered even the number of mistakes I -made in reading. Now what one can do in half a day, two can accomplish -in half an hour, was the philosophy that came to me from our case; for -our drudgery was over in no time, and we were going through Tomo-chan’s -treasure of nice pictures and books of fairy-tales. There was a -picture in one of the books of an old man with a wen on his cheek, -dancing before a crowd of demons and goblins. “Look here, what is -this?” I asked. She laughed at the picture and would not tell me about -it till she had thoroughly enjoyed laughing. That is the way of a girl. -But with “O dear!” she started thus: - -“One day, this old man with a wen happened to fall into a crowd of -those ugly monsters, and was made to dance. He danced very well, and so -was asked to come again the next day. The goblins wanted something for -a pledge for his keeping his word and so removed the wen from the man’s -cheek. The old man was very glad to part with it, and went home, when -he met another man with a wen.” She turned the leaf to show another -picture. This time the new man was dancing before the weird crowd. -“You see, this man was told how he could remove his wen, and is now -showing his skill before them to induce them to ask for the pledge. But -he did not have any practice at all in dancing and so was just jumping -round. And the goblins got angry over his deceit, and sent him back -with the wen that the old man had left.” Turning the leaf, “Here he is -with wens on both his cheeks!” - -She laughed again, and I could not help laughing with her, too. At this -moment some one was coming up the stairs. - -“Why, is this the way you study your lesson?” - -It was aunty who entered the room as she said: “I am surprised at you.” -And she laid down a tray with a teapot and cups and a dish of cakes on -it. The sight made us happy all at once, and Tomo-chan explained to her -how soon we had finished our study. - -“Why, Ei-chan helped me in arithmetic, so we finished a long, long time -ago.” - -“Well, Ei-chan is a good boy, isn’t he?” said aunty. Boys feel awkward -to be well spoken of to their face, and my speech failed me somehow. -By the way, I was no longer “Bot’chan.” - -The school I found much larger and finer than the village one. The -pupils numbered ten times more. Each class had its own room, and boys -and girls marched in and out in procession every hour. It was so much -more orderly and systematic than the village school that there was less -of “out-of-tune” matter. But then there was one thing that puzzled me. -It was that often a boy was seen standing in the hallway with a bowl of -water in his hands. Sometimes he stood there motionless until the class -was all dismissed. But I was not slow to divine the cause. What puzzled -me was the question: “How could that be the best form of punishment?” -While a boy stood there he need not attend the class. That was -certainly easy for an idle boy. And then there was no pain to endure. -As to the holding of a bowl, why, did I not hold my bowl of rice every -meal and not know even if it was heavy or light? But another solution -suggested itself to me; it might have the same effect on the offender -as wearing a cap with “I am a Fool,” written on it. He stood there, and -everybody thought he was a bad boy. “It might be, it might be,” I said, -congratulating myself on the happy solution, when a crow that had just -alighted on a branch of the elm by the gate repeated, “It might be!” I -threw a stone at him without thinking that it was a violation of the -school rule, and, if discovered, I might have undergone the punishment. - -At any rate, I was destined, it appeared, to undergo the punishment -once at least. And it happened in this way. - -At this school, boys were not allowed to carry iron tops or even -hand-balls. There were too many of them, and if they should all indulge -in these sports, there would be constant danger of breaking their legs -or knocking their noses off. So comparatively harmless footballs were -provided. Now, one noon recess, ten of us wanted to have a game. We -were divided into parties of five and played. Of course we had no rules -to go by, but tried to carry the ball within the enemy’s lines by every -means. One time we fumbled furiously near the building, and, in the -heat of our tackling, one fellow seized the ball and kicked it without -minding in which direction he was aiming. If he had had less skill the -ball would have gone only over the roof and dropped on the head of a -jinrikisha man running on the other street. But as it was, it went -madly against a window-pane and smashed it all to pieces. What a noise -it made! For a minute it made all the boys and girls playing on the -ground keep quite still. And in this awful suspense a teacher appeared -and caught the five, I among the number, who were still in the position -of fumbling, together with the poor fellow who did the kicking, and -who stood dazed, unable to recover as yet from the shock of his late -experience. I didn’t know how the other four escaped being caught, but -I was glad that they did. - -There was no question in the teacher’s mind but that all six should -be exhibited in the hallway, and so we were made to stand there, each -holding a bowl of water. Now I had an ample opportunity to learn every -significance of this form of punishment. Naturally, we felt merry -at first. In the first place, there was something unreasonable and -ludicrous in the way at least five of us came to stand there. And then -when you have companions in your bad luck, you feel surely light of -heart. And so we did. But when fifteen, thirty minutes passed, our legs -got to be stiff and the weightless bowls began to weigh very much in -our hands. Indeed, the slightest inclination would spill the water! -But why did we not drink some of it, you may say? Well, we should have -done it, but we knew that it must all be there when the teacher came. -Forty-five minutes, and the bell rang for the dismissal. All the boys -and girls poured out, leaving us alone. Ah, that is the saddest moment -for any schoolboy, for after that the school is dismal as a prison. -Fifteen minutes more, and all the teachers, except the one in charge of -us, were gone. None of us dared to look up, our heads being bent with -extreme sorrow. Presently a weak-minded fellow dropped his china and -cried out. It was not I, but we were all ready to follow his example, -when the teacher came out, and, removing the bowls, read us a lecture -before sending us home. - -We lost our courage, even to run out of the school compound, but -dragged slowly home. But when I turned the first corner whom should I -meet but my Tomo-chan? - -“Why, Tomo-chan!” I looked at her in surprise. - -“I could not go home without you. So I waited for you. But isn’t it a -shame for teacher to punish you without your deserving it?” she said. - -“We did not want to let Takeda suffer alone, you know.” - -My answer was a surprise even to me. Of course, I did not think to the -contrary, but I was not impressed with the significance of it till I -put it into words and--to her. It came as a new thought to me. Our -hearts became light, the thing was forgotten, and only the prospect -of the fine time we should have that golden afternoon in late summer -occupied our minds. - -“Come along,” I said. “Let’s go to the field!” - -And we hastened on briskly, and, throwing our things into our houses on -the way, went to the field, green with cool, cushion-like grass. About -a dozen boys and girls were already waiting for us, and we just jumped -among them. - -“What shall we play?” said one. - -“Let’s have Kotoro-kotoro,” suggested another. - -“That’s fun!” all shouted. - -To play the game, we must first select from the boys one “chief” to -protect his “sons and daughters,” and one “imp” to catch them. The boys -stand in a circle and are ready to say “Jan-ken-pon,” and to hammer -with their fists. At “pon” you make one of three shapes with your hand. -When your hand is spread, that denotes a sheet of paper; when two -fingers only are stretched, that means a pair of scissors; and when -your hand is held closed, it signifies a stone. A sheet of paper can be -cut by scissors, but the latter is ineffectual on a stone. But a stone -can be wrapped by a sheet of paper. Hence, each one can defeat one of -the rest, but is conquered by the other. To simplify the matter, you -can use only two of the three shapes. The one who wins at first is to -be the chief, the one who is ultimately defeated, the imp. So we began: -“Jan-ken-pon!” - -Only three won. Then those three tried again. - -“Jan-ken-pon!” - -I won; and so was the chief. The rest went on jan-ken-ponning till the -imp was decided. - -Now all except the imp held firmly each other’s belt on the back, in -a line, with me at the head. It is a pity you don’t have any belt on -your dress, and so play the sport. It is very convenient to us. Apart -from its use in sport, when we meet a robber, we throw him down by -jiu-jitsu, and, untying our belt, bind him up hand and foot! But to -return. I was ready with the imp in front and with my “little ones” -behind, like the body of a centipede. The imp could not touch me; he -could only seize any one behind. I stretched my arms, ran to and fro -to prevent the imp from getting round to my flanks. The line swayed, -rolled, jerked like a serpent in a rapid flight. And the motion would -all but throw weak-armed ones off their holds. But they merrily -persisted, and could have held on longer but for their mirth being -worked up too high by the very manner of the imp himself. - -The boy who played that part was a born comedian. He loved his fun more -than his bread. Once in the midst of his supper he heard a man come -with a monkey dressed in a kimono. No sooner than he recognized that by -the sound of a drum, he threw away his chop-sticks, and, running out of -his house, danced all way up the street with the professional monkey -as his wondering spectator. Now in playing his part as the imp, he did -not go about it like an eagle intent on his prey. But he brought all -his talent into full play in every motion of his body, suggestive of -some grotesque form, heightened by a queer ejaculation. When, in his -series of performances, he imitated a pig, flapping his hands from his -head like large ears of the animal and grunting, Gr-r-r-r, Gr-r-r-r, -it caused everybody to burst into laughter. At this moment he made -a sudden turn, which caused such a jerk to the line, that, being -absent-minded from merriment, they were all thrown out of their hold, -each rolling on the grass, but still laughing at the grunting. The imp -could now jump at anybody for his prey, but as a true comedian, he also -rolled on the grass, laughing with the rest. - - - - -CHAPTER VI - -CHINESE EDUCATION - - My Chinese Teacher--How I Was Taught--Versification--My Uncle--Clam - Fishing--A Flatfish. - - -Some months after I entered the public school, my father came to a -conclusion that what was taught there was too modern to have enough -of culture value. My education had to be supplemented by the study of -Chinese classics. And his intention would have been of great benefit to -me if he had been equally wise in selecting a good private teacher. As -it was, I gained but a fraction of it, undergoing a hard struggle. - -There lived a Chinese scholar near by, who was second to none in his -learning within three miles. Formerly he was a priest of Zen sect, the -Unitarian of Buddhism. As it was considered most laudable to a man -of his calling, he never ate fish or meat, and had two frugal meals a -day, taking only a cupful of starch and sugar in the evening, till he -came to lead a secular life. Starch and sugar!--so he must have come to -have such white hair, I thought. Anyway, the snowy mass heightened the -expression of his earnest face, rather youthful for a man of sixty. He -was, indeed, the classic itself; the rhythm of it seemed to be ringing -in his veins, whether awake or asleep. And he delighted in nothing so -much as to eat his dinner listening to the clear-voiced chanting of -boys reviewing their lesson, as if they were minstrels entertaining at -a king’s feast! And, of course, I was sent to him. - -I started from the beginning, which was, indeed, no beginning at all. -The Chinese sages did not write their scriptures as graded school -text-books, but their descendants believed so, anyhow. Genesis was the -genesis of successful mastery. And so I began with that great sentence -in the “Book of Great Learning:” - - “Learning is a gateway to virtue.” - -I envy those boys who tore Chinese authors, and whose books, when taken -to a second-hand bookstore, were not bought even for a penny. My books -were, on the contrary, just as clean as ever, as if they had been too -loath to impart anything to the owner. And this was not from any effort -on my part to take care of them, but simply from the little use I -made of them. Now this was the way I studied them. Teacher would read -with me about four pages in advance, and see once how I could read. I -stuck; he prompted me; I stuck again; he prompted me again; I stuck for -the third time, and for the third time he prompted me, and so on, and -indeed continually, if I had gone on till I had thoroughly mastered -it. But one review seemed to him sufficient for such _easy_ passages, -and my boyish heart responded too gladly to be released after a short -lesson. And I laid my book by till the next day. I did not know how the -teacher regarded me, but he must have thought me a very bright fellow -for whom such a slow process as review was totally unnecessary. And -he immediately took up the next four pages and went on in the usual -manner. The first book was finished; the teacher’s instinct asserted -itself, and he wanted me to read a few pages by way of a test before I -proceeded. What a shame! I only recognized a box here and a starfish -there, and that was all. The teacher was angry at the result. He saw -that I was not prepared yet to take up the classics. And with his -admirable pedagogical insight, he sent me to a primer the very next -day. It was a Japanese history, written in easy Chinese prose. How I -enjoyed the change! The passages rolled off on my tongue as easily as -you might say, “Mary had a little lamb.” The teacher smiled at my -ease, and soon recovered his humor. But his eyes were so constructed -as to see nothing but the top and the foot of a mountain, and his mind -worked like a spring-board, which either stays low or jumps high up. -And on the third day I was ordered to begin the second book of the -classics, called the “Doctrine of Mean!” - -And I plodded on. I went through the “Book of Divination,” and “Odes of -Spring and Autumn,” and came out only with some phantoms of angular, -mysterious hieroglyphics dancing before my eyes. But my Chinese -education included something more than reading. It was versification. -Just think of requiring a ten-year-old boy to write verse in Latin or -Greek. But every Saturday I was required to do the same sort of thing -for two years. Oh, how I struggled! I hunted for something sensible -to write, but while all sorts of nonsense would come up, even common -sense, that most useful guide in a prosaic field, fled from me. -Outside, merry shouts of boys--a happy group who cared for balls and -kites more than dry-as-dust “culture”--were heard, and I mused in a -corner of a room, consulting such help as a phrase book and a rhyming -dictionary. Nothing but doggerel could be born of such a forced labor. -Here is a specimen: - - “Shut from the blue of skies in spring, - I sit and fret for words to rhyme. - O bird, if you have songs to sing, - Drop one for me to save my time!” - -The Chinese training did me at least one good turn. It drove Confucius -out of my head! - -I should have been a blighted boy if Sundays had not come to my rescue. -The real use to which the day should be put had not dawned on me, nor -was it in the mind of those who introduced the institution. But I am -glad to say that it did me good in many ways. With this, however, my -uncle is invariably associated. - -I have not said anything about him, but he was a well-fed man with a -goat’s beard. He was very nervous, however, and could not keep from -pulling his beard. This accounted for its scantiness. It was very -amusing to observe how easily his temper was disturbed out of its -normal mood. When he was contradicted he pulled hard at his beard and -wrung his hands furiously. His body seemed to expand with the inner -fire when he ejaculated many an “Ahem!” preliminary to an eruption. -Everybody had to find shelter and thrust his fingers into his ears, -lest the drums should break. But when he was pleased, his face melted -with laughter; he went to a cupboard to look for some nice thing for -us, ordered dinner to be hurried for our sake, and went round and round -us to see if we were really comfortable. - -He was very alert, and was always looking for a new thing. He did -well, too, to keep himself abreast of the age, and, indeed, mastered -something of the English language, of which he could well boast in his -day. His pronunciation, however, was rather painful to hear, and in his -talk with foreigners his nervous hands played a large part to fill in -the gaps in his vocabulary, with an intermixture of many a “you know.” - -One good thing about him was his love for outdoor sports. He could not -sit all day like my Chinese teacher, and if ever an eruption occurred, -it was always on the occasion of such confinement to his room. His -Sundays were scheduled for this or that kind of pleasure excursion. And -of course I was wise enough to do what I could to please him in order -that I might not be left out of his party. - -One Sunday we were to go clam-fishing. When it was announced on Friday -before, I thought of a great time and could hardly sleep for joy. After -a tedious labor of writing verse was over the next Saturday, I busied -myself the rest of the afternoon with the preparation for the next -day. I kept going to my uncle’s to see whether we had the same things -that they had, and also to suggest the necessity of providing things -we had and they had not. Many conferences for this purpose were held -at the door-sill with Tomo-chan. Small hand-rakes were bought, one for -each; small and large baskets, knives, thick-soled socks, small sashes, -and so forth, were collected from various sources. To this I added a -net three by four feet large, with two poles to meet the exigency of -encountering some large fish--perhaps a whale. But of this I did not -speak to anybody. - -Mother was also busy preparing our lunch. For this she got up very -early in the morning and boiled rice, which she made into triangular, -round, or square masses, speckled with burned sesame seeds. She -packed them in several lacquered boxes, with fresh pickles and cooked -vegetables. We relied on our clams for chief dishes; so some cooking -utensils were necessary. Also some tea and a teapot, cups and dishes, -together with chop-sticks and toothpicks, even. - -The day was not fair, but it was just the kind of weather for the -season, dull and somewhat hazy, but bespeaking a calm sea. The tide was -fast ebbing when we started in a boat. There was a good company of us, -including uncle, aunt, mother, Tomo-chan, and me. As we emerged into -the bay from the canal, the extended view was delightful. On one side -green masses of pine-trees overhung the stone mounds and merged into -a leafy hill, which stretched itself like an arm into the sea. On the -other, beyond reedy shoals, the old forts, with a lighthouse on one of -them, dotted the expanse. The view was washed in gray, and even the -sails of junks, hanging lazily from the masts, were scarcely lighter -than the background. - -All was calm. But as we sighted from a distance some other parties -already on the scene, we soon forgot everything for the excitement -and let the boatman hurry with all his strength. It was nine when we -arrived at the desired spot, and we had three hours to enjoy ourselves. -We fixed our boat to a pole, from the top of which was drooping a -piece of red and white cloth. This served as our mark to enable us to -find the boat quickly in the case of need. So each party had something -of its own design. Purple, green, white, and red in all sorts of -combinations and forms were displayed, while a coat, a shirt, or even -an improvised scarecrow was not denied use. - -So we went into water, our sleeves and skirts being tied up and -our legs bared to the knees. Each was provided with a basket and a -hand-rake--except myself, who, in addition to the implements, took out -secretly my net, wound round the poles. My people were all too busy to -observe me, however. We went on raking for clams. There seemed to be -lots of black or white shells which we did not want, but I soon found -that clams were rather a matter of chance, and a chance would come no -more than once in every fifteen minutes! I luckily struck on three nice -ones in a short time, and dug diligently for some thirty minutes, but -without any result. So I grew tired, and began inspection. Aunt had -ten, mother eight, and uncle five. When I approached him, he looked up, -red in the face. I wondered if he was not angry. But it was not so, for -he heaved a sigh and straightening up and striking his back with his -fist, said, “O dear!” - -“Uncle, you will soon be quitting your job, just as I shall, I think,” -said I. - -“Pshaw! How many have you?” - -“Three, sir.” - -“You can’t have more than that for your lunch, you understand, unless -you get more. Now don’t be in my way.” And again he doubled his -corpulent body to work. But I was right in thinking that he could not -keep himself in the same posture for another three minutes. Now I -passed on to Tomo-chan. Poor Tomo-chan had only two! She was all but -weeping for the bad luck. She, however, looked comforted to find that I -did not fare much better. But what was her surprise when I threw all my -clams in with hers! - -“Keep them, Tomo-chan. I am going to fish with this net.” Her eyes -looked gratitude. “Oh, thank you ever so much. But I’ll catch fish with -you if I don’t fare any better.” - -“All right.” And I went on thinking that if I could not get clams for -my lunch, I should have fish to the envy of all. I looked among the -rocks for some shadow of them. Surely I saw something shooting away now -and then, without waiting for me to find out whether it was large or -not. But anyway, they were all right if I could get a number of them, -and so I fixed my net and tried to drive them into it, little thinking -that the very whiteness of my net--I appropriated a net made for the -purpose of keeping flies off--scared every fish. I got irritated with -my ill-success, and finally splashed the water vigorously to punish -them. - -By this time my uncle had quit his work, as I predicted, and was -engaging with hen-like anxiety to look after his flock. He kept his -eyes on them, and would go like a shepherd dog to fetch any one who -went too far away from the boat. He looked at his watch to see if -the tide was not turning on, and went occasionally to the boat to -see if anything was lost. He seemed to like this kind of work better -than clam-fishing, for I could see even from a distance that he was -pulling at his beard, as he was wont to do when his mind was occupied. -Presently he heard me splashing the water far away, and started at once -to bring me back. Time could not be lost, he must have thought, but I -did not know anything of his approach till I heard a shriek behind me. -Surprised, I turned round when I found him just recovering his balance -and looking intently into the water. - -“What’s matter, uncle?” I hastened toward him. - -“Stop. A flatfish somewhere.” Seeing me with a net, he exclaimed, -“Quick with your net.” - -“A flatfish?” I queried in excitement. - -“Yes, I stepped on him and he gave me a slip.... Oh, here he is; cover -him quick!” And we covered him with my net without much ado. I was -surprised to see how easily I could catch him compared with other fish -that I had tried for. As I raised him, however, I found he was already -crushed dead under my uncle’s weight! - -But it was a large one, and I could have an honorable share at lunch. - -[Illustration: A TYPICAL JAPANESE STREET.] - - - - -CHAPTER VII - -AN EVENING FÊTE - - My Father--His Love for Potted Trees--A Local Fête--Show - Booths--Goldfish Booths--Singing Insects--How a Potted Tree Was - Bought. - - -Evenings were not without enjoyment for me. And for this I owe much to -my father. - -My father was a silent, close-mouthed man. His words to children were -few and mostly in a form of command. They were never disobeyed, partly -because it was father who spoke, but more because we knew that he spoke -only when he had to. Indeed, he carried a formidable air about him, -apparently engrossed in thought somewhat removed from his immediate -concern. He was by no means philosophical, however, and his reticent -habit was born of the peculiar circumstances under which he was -laboring. Fortune was evidently against him. And partly out of sympathy -with him and partly out of fear of breaking his spell, when we had -something to ask of him--boys have many wants--we had some indirect -means to devise. Thus, when my cap had worn out and I wanted a new one, -I dropped a hint in his presence by way of a soliloquy: “I wish I had a -new cap. My old one is worn out.” Saying this just once at a time and -thrice in the course of one evening, if I persevered for three nights, -I used to have my old cap replaced with a new one on the next day! - -He knew that he was fighting against odds, but his spirit was never -crushed. He only persevered. One day he came back from his evening -stroll with a piece of bamboo flute. Evidently he was attracted by a -tune a man at the corner of a street was playing on it as he sold his -wares, and felt his soul suddenly gain its freedom and soar to the sky. -I remember how well he loved his instrument, and from day to day he -used to pour out low, mournful tunes. But his art was never equal to -the demand of his soul, and one evening the bamboo flute was laid aside -for a pot containing a dwarf pine-tree. - -You may well wonder how a flowerless potted tree could be preferred to -even the commonest tune for spiritual solace. But at any rate it was a -piece of nature, and was healing to behold. And then, in its fantastic -shape, there was a beauty of repose which had a very soothing effect, -but which required some study for appreciation. But in his case, there -was something deeper in the matter. A tree over fifty years old, which, -if left in the field, would have grown to an immense size, was reduced -by human art to only a foot in height, and was kept alive on a potful -of earth. My father must have read a history of his own in it and tried -to learn a secret of contentment from it. - -One by one potted trees were added to his stock,--he could afford to -buy only at odd intervals,--and presently shelves were provided for -them in the small garden. Morning and evening he attended to them, and -with patience as well as with pleasure looked forward to the time when -his care would result in a growth of just an inch and a quarter of pine -leaves and palm leaves two inches by three in size. - -One night an unexpected thing happened. A thief found his way to the -garden from the back door and sneaked away with half a dozen of the -choice trees. Naturally, my father was distressed, but after a while he -was patiently filling the vacancy one by one, of course seeing that the -back door should be securely locked every night. - -I was going to tell you something about the amusements I had in the -evening, but it was mainly due to this love of my father’s for potted -trees that I was taken regularly to a local fête, held three times a -month. The day for this was fixed; it fell on every day connected -with, the number seven; that is, the seventh, the seventeenth, and the -twenty-seventh. And as in the calendar, rain or shine, it came and -went. Naturally, I had my weather bureau open on that day to see if -the evening was all right, for a wet night would be an irretrievable -loss. At the police stand they published a forecast in the morning, but -that was not to be too much relied on. It sometimes said rain when it -was anything but wet, and fine when it was actually drizzling--though -in the latter case I rather inclined to believe the report even if it -ended in sorrow. - -I did not need any formality of asking to be taken; it was a matter -of course with me as long as I behaved well. This behaving, however, -was peculiar. I had to be waiting for my father outside and follow him -when he came out, without saying anything or shouting for delight for a -block or so. The reason for this was simple. Mother objected to sending -out the younger members of our family in the evening, and especially -to such a crowded place where they were liable to be lost. My going -there must not attract their attention. - -One evening I slipped off with my father in this way. The place where -the fête was held was not far away, and after two or three turnings -we soon came to the street. At a distance, you might take it for a -fire, for the tiny stalls and booths crowding the place were lighted -by hundreds of kerosene torches which flared and smoked. The central -section of the street was not more than two blocks in length, but it -was literally packed with six rows of booths and stalls and with such a -concourse of people that there did not seem to be room even to move. - -The approach to the scene was marked by some show booths. Hung in front -were some wonderful pictures of what was to be seen within: a serpent -over thirty feet long, which had lived in some distant part of the -country and had actually swallowed two babies; a woman who had a real -rubber neck which could be stretched so far that while sitting still -her head could wander all over the house; monkeys dressed in old-style -costume and giving some theatrical performance, and so on. The entrance -fee was a penny, and men stood outside crying the various excellencies -of their shows, and when you stopped before one of them and looked at -the sign, they would lift the curtain for a second and drop it again, -just to whet your curiosity. I naturally wanted very much to look at -some of the monstrosities, and watched to see if the inducement would -work on my father, but, much to my disappointment, he walked calmly on -with his hands in his sleeves. - -Now we came in front of the goldfish booths. It was simply fascinating -to see such a number of dear little things swimming in wooden tubs, -some being hung high in glass globes by the side of helpless turtles -enjoying air riding. In the next two or three booths were masses of -minute bamboo cages. Most of them were only three inches by two. Here -they were selling all sorts of singing insects and fire-worms. And what -an orchestra these tiny winged things were! There were bell insects -which chirped on “chinkororin, chinkororin,” in staccato, crickets -which hummed in sweet undulating “rin--rin--rin,” and katydids which -broke in with a cymbal-like “gaja, gaja,” as we say. I watched to see -if these things would tempt my father, but no, his face was set on -something else ahead. - -Now a great part of these enterprising peddlers were gardeners by -profession. And out of the six rows of booths in the central portion -three were shows of potted flowers and trees. They even had for sale -grown-up trees half as tall as a telegraph-pole! As we came to this -part my father slackened his pace. Here was something at last which -interested him. He took time to examine some of the nice potted trees, -and his progress was very slow indeed, somewhat to my annoyance. I -would rather have him stop before a candy booth than in these places. -After a while, however, he found one tree much to his liking. He was -tempted just to ask the price of it. - -“Ten dollars, sir,” was the answer. - -My father smiled dryly and passed on. - -“How much you give, Mister?” asked the man. - -No answer. - -“I’ll make it five dollars this time, Mister,” cried the man. Still -receiving no answer, he came after us. “But give me your price, Mister.” - -“Fifty cents,” said my father. - -“Ough, that won’t pay even the express. Give me a dollar, then.” - -But my father was already some distance away. The man, growing -desperate to lose him, cried aloud: - -“Mi-ster, you can have it for the price. This is the first one I have -sold this evening. I must start the sale, anyway.” - -So my father came into possession of one more potted tree. The price -was low, to be sure, but the man did not undersell his goods. - -There seemed to be nothing now to do but to wend our way home as my -father turned round at the corner and came down with the crowd. We -passed toy booths, basket booths, booths where hairpins with beautiful -artificial flowers were sold, or where all sorts of fans, bamboo -screens, and sundry other things were for sale. And we passed them -apparently without any interest, at least on my father’s part. I was -wondering what my father would buy for me, when whom should I meet but -my aunt and Tomo-chan just going round the street in the other way? -I spoke with Tomo-chan while my father and aunt were exchanging some -remarks--possibly about the potted tree. - -“Did you get something bought for you?” I asked. - -“No, not yet. I’ve just come, you know. And you?” - -“N-no. But--” - -I could not say the rest as my father and aunt parted and the crowd was -pushing between us, and so I waved my hand to say good-by to Tomo-chan. - -We soon came almost to the end of the gay portion of the street, and -after a few booths a touch of festival air would be gone, when my -father halted before a molasses candy booth, and, to my great joy, -bought a nickel’s worth of cake. We got a big, swollen bagful; this -was for me and for our stay-at-home folks. I wished that I had met -Tomo-chan once more. - - - - -CHAPTER VIII - -SUMMER DAYS - - A Swimming School--How I Was Taught to Swim--Diving--The Old - Home Week--Return of the Departed Souls--Visiting the Ancestral - Graves--The Memorable Night--A Village Dance. - - -The third summer in Tokyo had come. The air was fresh and cool, while -the morning-glories in our back yard were blooming lavishly, and the -Ainu chrysanthemums in white, pink, and purple, and the late irises -were seen carried round the street in flower-venders’ baskets. But it -soon got warmer as they vanished from the sight till I found it hot -even in one piece of a thin garment over my body, though my mother -starched it for me just stiff enough for the air to pass through from -one sleeve to the other. - -In one of the canals near by, an annual swimming-school was opened. -The place was inviting in hot weather, besides, it was such fun to -bathe with hosts of boys, and to learn how to swim. I must confess that -I could not swim yet. I thought at first that it was quite an easy -thing, because I often saw a man swimming with his feet and performing -such a trick with his hands as peeling a pear with a knife and eating -it. But after a few trials I was obliged to correct my notion to such -a degree as to consider swimming an extremely difficult as well as -dangerous undertaking. Not only my body was found to be something -between a block of hard wood and a stone, and much nearer to the -latter, but once it stayed so long in the water, head and all, that I -experienced pretty nearly what it was to get drowned. But all this I -did in secret and did not tell to any of my folks. Indeed my mother -was keeping my younger brother from the water by telling him about the -story of a sea-monkey who would stretch his exceptionally long arm and -drag people into the depths, especially boys who went swimming against -their mother’s remonstrance. As an elder brother, I was bound to set a -good example. - -A week after the opening of the school, however, I brought the -swimming matter to my mother’s attention, and piling up such reasons -as I thought most expedient, and rounding up by mentioning names of -a number of my schoolmates, as if they were co-petitioners, who had -been enrolled in the membership, I wanted her to ask my father. I had -anticipated a refusal from both mother and father, but my mother was -all right as long as the place was safe, while my father surprised me -by his instant permission. He was an excellent swimmer himself and must -have felt it a shame that his son did not know even how to keep himself -afloat. My poor younger brother, however, was to wait another year. - -So I went to swimming. We had an exciting time in the canal, and the -heat of the sun ceased to be of any trouble to me. On the first day one -of the trainers supported me with his hands and made me move my arms -and legs according to his instruction. I made a vigorous effort, while -he carried me on as if I were making a progress myself. Now and then, -however, he would loosen his hold and see if I could keep myself going. -I was then taken with sudden fear, and, feeling that the water grew -instantly to be very deep, I gave a cry of horror and distress, and did -some splashing, too. The instructor laughed over my plight and told me -that I should be safe as he was near, and that I must try to acquire -the sense of ease with the water. As long as my limbs were moving -properly, I was sure to be floating. So I put confidence in his words -and cultivated assiduously what he called the sense of ease, which I -understood to be a suppression of fear. The first day, however, passed -without any result, in spite of my determination that I would go to -the bottom rather than call for help again. - -But, strangely enough, at the very first unassisted trial on the second -day, my body did float. How joyful I felt at this, you can hardly -imagine. I swam round and round the place--of course stopping every -quarter of a minute--till I was fairly exhausted. On my return home, -however, I mustered courage enough to impart to my brother on the -matted floor my successful experience in swimming. - -Diving came next. On my first dip I felt instinctively that man and -fish were at the opposite extremities of creation. The suppression of -breath and the closing of eyes were bad enough; but there was such a -roaring in my ears as if all the watery spirits were murmuring at the -intrusion, while my body was at once subjected to a different law of -repulsion. But it was great fun to play at being a sea-monkey and drag -the legs of idle boys, at which sport I had been a victim myself on -the very first day. So I began practising it, and in a few days was -already looking for a chance to apply my half-mastered skill. Seeing -once two boys near me engaging in splashing water, I plunged at once, -aiming at one of them. It was but a few yards to dive, but I came out -of the water without striking anything, and before I had time to brush -off the dripping water from my eyes, I was subjected to a furious -spray from the two boys, when, thud, came something on my side, and in -another second I was dragged into the water. A mouthful of water went -down my throat before I knew, and when I came to my feet with all the -water boiling around me, I noticed a third and new boy standing and -laughing over his trick! - -So passed a good part of the summer till about the middle of August, -when the Japanese “Old Home Week” came. The principal day falls on the -sixteenth day of the seventh month, according to the lunar calendar, -which is about a month after the ordinary date. It is a sort of -Decoration Day, too, because we go to the temple yards and pay a visit -to our ancestral graves. Now for three years this duty was neglected by -us, and father thought it proper for some one to visit the old place -in the country. My uncle was also in a similar position, and it was -arranged that my aunt and Tomo-chan should go from their family while -I represented my own. And two days before the date we set out in a -conveyance called a kuruma. - -I wasn’t quite sure of the significance of the graveyard visiting on -this special occasion, and so found time to ask my aunt of it. And -this was what she told me, not on the road, but in her house the night -before we started. (I had known the inconvenience of the kuruma in -keeping me separate from my aunt all the way, though it had the decided -merit, as it turned out, of packing Tomo-chan and myself in one seat.) - -Now, when a man dies, he goes either to paradise or to hell, according -to Buddhism. In the former place, he is led to his seat on a large -lotus flower floating on the cool surface of the rippling water. The -sweet calmness of the summer morn is all his, my aunt said, but beyond -that there seems to be nothing going on in that floral berth. But in -hell, all is excitement. The king of devils will mete out punishment to -each arrival according to his guilt, and he is made by red and green -demons to tread on the hill of swords, to ride in the coach of fire, or -to bathe in the boiling caldron. But, good or bad, those departed souls -are allowed once a year to pay a short visit to their earthly homes, -and this happens on the sixteenth of the seventh month. So we go to the -graves of our ancestors, clean and decorate them so that the dead may -feel comfortable, and, delivering our message of welcome and turning -about, ask the invisible to get on our backs to our homes! I wondered -if my back was large enough for the whole train of my ancestors to -ride on. - -At my native village we stayed at another uncle’s. A day’s ride in the -same narrow kuruma made Tomo-chan and me more companionable than ever, -while the strangeness of the new place kept us two always close by. -Everywhere we were welcomed as Tokyonians, and treated to melons and -rice dumpling. We had not, however, much time to spare, for we were -quite busy seeing to our family graves. We hired a man to weed and -clean the lot, sent enough offerings to the temple so that the priests, -when chanting for the rest of the departed, might think comfortably -of it, and, above all, took care that every grave might not lack -fresh flowers for two days, that is during our stay. On the sixteenth -day I was prepared to carry any number of invisible spirits from the -graveyard to the house. But as some one told me that the spirits would -not dare to come in the daylight, I was glad that my service was not -needed, after all. - -The sun set gloriously behind the castle, and the mellow booming of the -temple bell was wafted through the evening air. Presently the misty -moon, just waning, rose from the plain, and the memorable night began. -In every house the rooms were swept clean and the tiny lights were -burning in the household shrine. In front, the flames from a heap of -flax stems, known as the “reception fire,” were dazzling, and, unheard -and unobserved, the ghosts of our fathers passed into the house. - -I did not know how long they would stay, but bowing once respectfully -before the shrine, I went out with Tomo-chan to stay around. In the -temple ground there was an open space hemmed in by tall, shady pines, -where the young people of the village would assemble that night -and hold the annual dancing. And naturally our steps were directed -there. We found that already many of them were gathered, and, by the -uncertain light of paper lanterns hung here and there on the trees, we -saw that they were all dressed in uniform white and blue garments, with -folded pieces of cloth dangling about their necks. The browned faces of -the swains were not distinguishable in such dimness, but those of the -lasses looked distinctly lovely, the scratches and blemishes incidental -to their outdoor occupation being invisible. The swains grouped on this -side and the girls on the other; the former being not yet bold enough, -and the latter too shy, to mingle with one another. Presently some -sweet-voiced lad sang a ballad, and then all rose to arrange themselves -in rows, boys on one side and girls on the other. They called to the -singer to start anew, and began to trip to the song, clapping their -hands at a rhythmic turn. They never moved on, but closed in and again -drew apart on the same spot, all repeating the same movement. It was a -novel thing for both of us, and we watched them with great delight. -Song after song was sung, all bursting into laughing cheers after each -piece and sometimes going into such commotion that each lad paired with -his bonny lassie. - -“Isn’t that delightful?” I asked Tomo-chan. - -“Yes, lovely.” - -“And simple, too.” - -She nodded. - -“Let’s watch again and see if we can learn,” I said to her, and we -stood at the end of the line. - -The song went clear and plaintive and the touching trill was preying -upon the hearts of the dancers and working them into dreamy ecstasy. -The moon by this time climbed high up in the sky, and when a filmy -cloud glided off her face, the pale weird rays revealed Tomo-chan and -me dancing in the group! - - - - -CHAPTER IX - -THE ENGLISH SCHOOL - - A Night at the Dormitory--Beginning - English--Grammar--Pronunciation--School Moved--Mother’s Love. - - -It was September and the beginning of a new term. Father decided that -I should leave the school I had attended hitherto and go to another -one where English was taught. This was the second time that I had -left school without finishing it, but I was destined not to fare any -better at the new place. Indeed, I changed school four times without -finishing, till I finally settled in a college. But this leaping -habit--I am sorry to say that it took a semblance of habit at last--did -not come from any changeableness on my or my father’s part, but all -from the sincere desire to prepare me for life in the best way. -This it was that drove me into the three years’ study of the Chinese -classics, though I beat a rather dishonorable retreat from it, and -again this it was that directed me to take up the foreign languages -early. I was afraid, however, that I leaped too much this time, as I -found that all my new schoolmates were much older than I, and, indeed, -there were some who needed shaving every morning! - -The school was at first very near to my house. The building was of -brick; the first floor was used for the class-rooms and the second was -made into a dormitory. This last was a novelty to me; I never knew -before that boys stayed away from home in this fashion, and entertained -a secret desire to share a bed once with somebody, just to see what -it was like. This, however, was easily granted, as I soon grew to be -a favorite with everybody because of my youthfulness, and one night -I made a bundle of my night-shirt and went to the room of one of my -classmates. I was at once devoured with curiosity in watching him -make the bed. It was not such a simple process as I used to see at -home--laying one or two quilts on the matted floor and another over -them. But he had to build a bedstead first from a sliding door, and -placed one end of it on his table and the other on his bookcases. Upon -that he laid his thin quilt and blanket. I wondered why he had to do -such a crazy thing. - -“Don’t you know the reason?” He seemed to be surprised at my ignorance. -“It is on account of the fleas. You can’t sleep on the floor. Look -here.” And he showed me a bottle in which an army of captured fleas -were drowned. After all, a dormitory was not a covetable place, I -thought. But there was some fascination in the sliding door bed, which -creaked like a cuckoo with every move of my body. - -But I must tell you about my first experience in English. English -was very encouraging to start with. The alphabet consists of only -twenty-six letters, and when I mastered that and was provided with a -handful of vocabulary, I felt as if I were already half an American. I -went around and talked to everybody, especially to those who did not -know anything of English, like this: - -“It is a dog. See the dog! It is a cow. See the cow!” I could even play -a trick by way of variation like this: - -“Is it a dog? Yes, it is a dog.” - -And my family, who were constantly spoken to in this unknown tongue, -were surprised at my speedy progress. - -And indeed I thought first that any number of words might be easily -learned, because they were but combinations of letters in one way or -other, which are limited to only twenty-six. But it did not take me -long to change this view. As the length of the daily lesson increased -I came to wonder more and more whether the English words were not -charmed after all. They were as slippery as eels, and, indeed, written -like eels too. I thought time and again that I had them secure in my -mental box, but when I opened the lid the next day, they vanished like -a spirit. Something must be done, I thought, to tie them down, and so -I invented a certain scheme. It was that when I looked up a new word -in my Anglo-Japanese dictionary, I put a black mark beside it to show -that on that very moment it passed into my possession. The plan seemed -to work very well, but before long I found I had to mark the same words -three or four times, till my dictionary looked very much as if it were -suffering from spotted fever! - -Then came grammar. Grammar is the least familiar part of language -study. We are never taught in that in learning vernacular Japanese. -Somehow words come out of our mouths naturally and arrange themselves -into smooth sentences. So when I had to commit to memory the -definitions of the noun, verb, adjective, and so forth, and to -classify English words into them, I came to doubt if I were not -studying botany instead of language. Fortunately I did not make such -a mistake as, “A verb is something to eat,” or “Every sentence and -the name of God must begin with a caterpillar.” But it took me months -to understand the difference between the transitive and intransitive -verbs. I finally struck an original definition of them. It is this, -that a verb is called transitive when it is ambitious and intransitive -when it is not, because in the former case it takes an object and in -the latter it does not. I wondered why some one among the learned -teachers did not tell me that right away in the beginning. It would -have saved me a lot of trouble. Again in parsing, any word parading -with a capital was a relief to me: I had no hesitation in giving it as -a proper noun, whether it appeared in the main body of a piece or--in -the title! - -Now there is one little part of speech which puzzled me a great deal. -It is the article. In translation I had the great satisfaction of -passing it over entirely, as we have no equivalent to it in Japanese, -but in composition it was the first thing that puzzled and annoyed -me. The Japanese formerly went out bareheaded, and their language -is also free from this encumbrance of a head-gear--for the article -is a head-gear to a noun--and I was liable to drop off the article -entirely, or, if I tried, to use a wrong one every time. Surely this -hat etiquette was difficult and capricious, too. I thought I could -master its secret if I knew thoroughly when and what sort of a bonnet -a girl should wear--of course including the case of wearing a derby -on horseback! This occurred to me a long time afterward in America, -however. - -[Illustration: A JAPANESE SCHOOL OF THE PRESENT DAY.] - -Let me mention another difficulty. This was the pronunciation. A number -of new sounds were introduced, the most conspicuous of which are those -in which th, l, f, and v are found. The th-sound was bad enough, -but l was next to impossible. Finding this to be the case, an American -teacher would draw a cross-section of a face on the blackboard, only -with a scant outline of the mouth and nose (once he drew the head, -too, but it caused an unusual amount of merriment among the boys, -as it was as bald as his, and he never finished the picture again), -and explain the position of the tongue in uttering the sound, which -we industriously copied. And he also would have us say, “Rollo rode -Lorillard,” instead of “Present,” or “Here,” when the roll was called. -But the semi-historical passage fell from the boys’ lips rumbling like -a thunder: - -“Rorro rode Rorirrard!” - -One year passed happily in the new school, when it moved to its new -buildings on the other side of the city, about five miles away. It was -at first a short walk from my house, but when it increased from two -minutes to two hours, with no convenience of street-cars to help my -feeble feet, I naturally hesitated to go. I had to walk if I continued -to attend, as boarding out in the dormitory was too expensive for our -means. The school, however, was too good to be given up at that time, -and so I made up my mind not to discontinue it. - -To cover ten miles a day, spending four to five hours, was not a light -task for a boy of thirteen. It was all I could do on fine days. In -stormy weather the feat would become a struggle, and I was more than -glad to accept the kind offer of one of my schoolmates to break the -trip at his home for the night. - -I had to start early to be on time at the eight o’clock exercise. Five -o’clock was the time for me to get up, but my mother rose at least at -half-past four to make me a hot breakfast of boiled rice and bean soup. - -My mother was the sort of woman who expresses herself in work rather -than in words. And in this she was regularity itself. One thing which -impressed me in this more than anything else was her management of my -dresses. Japanese decency requires eight suits a year for any one just -for ordinary use, and of course I needed, or rather my mother believed -that I needed that: eight suits--four in summer, two in winter, and one -each in spring and in autumn. The dresses were not always made from new -pieces, and so gave much more trouble. She made over the old clothes, -washed and turned or dyed, if necessary, before doing so. My notion of -her regularity, however, must be augmented five times, as she was doing -the same thing--though I did not notice it at the time--with the other -members of the family. - -And so this early rising on her part for my sake went like clockwork -morning after morning. If this means steadiness of her devotion to her -son and to all related dearly to her, she had it. - -Again she was not wordy in any case. I never had a long lecture from -her, though, I am sorry to say, I had some short ones. On the contrary, -she had the secret of speaking in silence. There was some magic power -in her touch. I love to look back to my childhood, when she used to -dress me in the morning, at the end of which she would whisper in my -ear just a word: “Be good all the day, dear child.” It was simply -pleasure. - -So at this hour when the world was still asleep, as I sat without -a word at a short morning repast before her, with the lamp shining -and every manifestation of motherly love around me, I was under an -unspeakable spell, and learned to love her most. - -I had to start soon, however. I descended to the door and opened it. It -was still dark and the sky was starry. There was something that held me -back for a moment. But I took heart and went out. Mother wanted to go -with me for some distance. Naturally, I declined the offer, wishing -not to seem cowardly, but also because I did not want to give her such -a trouble. So she just stood at the door with a lantern and saw me off -till I turned the corner. - -I thought she turned and stepped inside after that, as I heard the -noise of the sliding door being shut, and, being satisfied, I hurried -on my way. But one morning something happened that revealed the truth. -There was a bridge at the second turning, two blocks away from my -house, and from that a long street ran. I was away some distance on -this road when one of the fastenings of my clog-straps broke off. It is -sad when this occurs. We cannot walk at all. We should be provided with -material for repair, but it seldom happens that we are. To return was -to lose time, and I must be going. So I did what boys usually do under -such a circumstances. I hunted a wedge-shaped pebble, and, holding -the broken end of the fastening in the hole, where it had been kept -tight, drove it with another piece of stone. I was able to walk a short -distance, but again it broke off. I was irritated, but there was no use -in fussing: so I again went patiently to repair. I was hammering the -clog with a stone when I heard the noise of hurried steps approaching. -I was too busy to look back, but a voice came which made me drop the -stone. - -“Sakae!” - -I turned, and there my mother stood with a strip of cloth ready to help -me! I was surprised, but was too glad for help to ask any question. - -As I trod on, I reasoned to account for her appearance in this way: -that after seeing me turn the corner, my mother was wont to put out -the light, shut the door, and follow me to the bridge, and from there -was watching to see that I was safe. She saw that day that I was in -trouble, and divined the whole case by the knocks I gave at the clog. -So she was there with her help. As I thought of that, a silent tear -trickled down my cheek. - - - - -CHAPTER X - -A BOY ASTRONOMER - - What I Intended to Be--My Aunt’s View--My Parents’ Approval--My - Uncle’s Enthusiasm--The Total Eclipse of the Sun. - - -Like all ambitious boys, I now began to dream of my future. - -In a daily paper to which we were subscribing, there was a story -appearing in serial form, which I happened to read, and in which I -became immediately interested. It was a scientific novel, with a -revenge motive. The title, the author, the plot--all are now forgotten -except the vague idea that the hero in the end, by his high inventive -ability, built a wonderful machine, by means of which he poured -poisonous gas into the castle where his enemy lived, and thereby took -his vengeance upon him. I was simply fascinated, and wanted to be an -engineer. - -The first one to whom I confided my intention was Tomo-chan. Of course -I did not and could not depict an engineer as the one in the story, -wrapped in the glowing splendor of his intellectual triumph. I might -have tried it if she had given me a chance to do so. But too soon her -peculiar and perhaps truer view of the profession came on me like a -blow. - -“Why, isn’t an engineer a sort of carpenter?” she asked. Reduced to -such a lowest term, even my hero looked shabby, and from that very -moment I dropped him entirely. - -I was not, however, fortunate enough to find a substitute worthy of my -admiration, and I had to go without any. But this time my mind seemed -to be able to present to me a proper object of my ambition. All my -thought gradually drifted toward the province of science (I little -knew then that it was the same engineer story which influenced me). -Of all branches of learning, science appeared to me to be the most -substantial, most worthy of serious study, and most certain of arriving -at the secret of the creation. The study, however, of a small portion -of God’s work, such as a leaf of a tree or a nameless insect, did not -appeal to me. No, any section of the earth was not large enough to lay -down my life for. I wanted to take in the earth, the sun, the moon, -the planets, and the stars--in fact, all the universe at once! So I -fixed upon astronomy as my special study. The immensity of the field -and the purely theoretical nature of the subject, coupled with the -transcendency of the pursuit over the triviality of worldly affairs, -had all its charm over me. It was simply great. - -I went again to Tomo-chan to tell her of my intention. The idea of an -astronomer was apparently beyond her grasp. She could not think of any -occupation such as carpenter, mason, and so forth, to associate with -an astronomer, and it did not take her long to admit that it was grand. - -This was my first triumph, and now I approached my aunt to see what -she would think of it. She was one of those women whose mind never -soared above the world even for the sake of observation. She could -not conceive the idea that this earth--which, by the way, was flat, -according to her view--revolves every day. I went into a whole length -of explanation by the help of a lighted lamp and my fist, to show how -the revolution would cause day and night, but to no purpose. So I -changed my tactics and told her the story of a little girl, who, in -her own way, understood this fact. She lived at the foot of a high -mountain, on the summit of which there was a lake. The little girl -could not understand how water could be found in such a high place till -she was told one day about the diurnal revolution of the earth. “That -must be true,” she said, “and so the mountain dips into the sea in the -night and carries the water from there!” - -But it was not my purpose to convince her about such a matter, and so I -proceeded to acquaint her with my intention. I soon found that it was -not exactly in the line of her approval. She presented to me at once -her worldly view of the profession, how out of ordinary my choice was. -The astronomer was to her a man who sleeps when all should be up, and -is awake when all should be in bed. He looks always at the sky, and -does not know often that he is about to tumble into a ditch. He has to -perch on a roof or a tree-top like a sparrow, to watch the stars while -everybody is enjoying some nice thing in the house. - -This, however, had no effect of a wet blanket upon me. I knew that she -was teasing me for the mere fun of it. Her humorous eyes were ready -to take in any change in my surprised countenance, which on my part I -partly assumed to please her. - -In the end, however, she frankly admitted that the constantly -increasing number of new studies in these enlightened days bewildered -her greatly, and she could not tell which profession was sure to lead -one to success. Perhaps I was right, she said, in choosing a study -which only a few might attempt. - -Two days passed, in the course of which I became surer of my choice and -was ready to face my parents. I had a secret suspicion that my father -might have some plan already laid out for me. If he had had anything in -mind outside of a scientific pursuit, I should have been non-plussed. -But, luckily, I found I was ahead of him; indeed, he and my mother, -too, seemed to trust everything to my natural inclination, and had only -a vague but bright future for me without any particular road leading to -it. So, when I laid before them, side by side, my desire or rather my -determination to become an astronomer and a future college professor, -with an income four times as great as my father’s,--I reserved the -poetic side of my choice for my own meditation,--I made such a deep -impression on them that it surprised me altogether. My mother, bending -over her sewing by lamp-light, silently passed her hand over her eyes, -while my father picked up a paper which had been read all through, -with a slightly drawn “Um,” in his throat, which in his case was to -be interpreted as indicating some pleasant feeling. My mother was -the spokesman in such a case when my father’s silence was meant for -consent. She told me that one must go heart and soul into any sort of -study in order to excel in it. I simply nodded, and presently went to -bed with a light heart, after bidding good night to the dear little -stars who would be my constant companions hereafter. - -I could not meet my uncle till Sunday, but Tomo-chan told me that he -heard everything about me from my aunt, and was very enthusiastic over -my intention. Indeed, he was always enthusiastic over new things, -though his enthusiasm was usually rather short-lived. But I was glad -that my news struck him in that light. That morning I found him -reading a paper, but as I approached he looked up, and, removing his -spectacles, and combing his beard with his fingers, surveyed me awhile -as if to see if I was capable of my word. But really he was waiting for -the return of his enthusiastic mood. I felt that Tomo-chan was smiling -over my situation from the next room, though I could not remove my eyes -from my uncle. - -“Astronomer, eh?” he said at last. - -“Yes, sir. Going to be one.” - -“That’s grand. You will be the fourth or fifth in that line in our -country. I should take one of those new studies if I were young enough. -But astronomy is indeed fascinating. Do you know that the moon never -shows her other side?” - -Here he rose up and began to pace the room. His enthusiasm served to -bring back a flood of the shallow but ready knowledge which he stored -up in a corner of his head. And he did not let me speak a word till he -had finished a lecture on the solar system. - -“Look here,”--he turned to me with the look of a man who made a sudden -discovery,--“do you know of the solar eclipse we are going to have on -the 20th?” - -Of course I did. It was still two weeks thence, and the moon was as -opposite as could be, but I had already darkened a piece of glass over -a candle and begun to observe the sun at least once a day. - -“This is the total eclipse and its rare opportunity. You may not see it -again in Japan in your lifetime,” he went on. - -In my lifetime was too strong a phrase, but I was very sorry to miss -the chance, as the zone of the total eclipse passed some fifty miles -north of Tokyo, and I had--no money. - -“Perhaps in your lifetime, too,” I ventured to suggest. - -“Yes, indeed. I did not think of myself,” he laughingly said. “Well, -then, let’s go!” - -“Go?” - -“I will take you and Tomo with me.” - -In the adjoining room Tomo-chan was seen just raising both her -outstretched hands, opening her mouth, and rolling her eyes--all -bespeaking her joy and surprise. I wished very much to answer the -signal but for the presence of my uncle, who kept staring at anybody or -anything near him, and this time at me, while revolving some new plan -in his mind. - -For the intervening days I was busy making preparations for the -expedition. I had to buy half a dozen pieces of glass, frame and -darken them in a variety of shade; to adjust my watch to keep time; to -study the constellation where the sun was, and note the stars of the -first magnitude visible on the day; and to make four or five copies -of a drawing with a graduated circle in the centre for the sun, and -two other concentric circles for the orbits of Mercury and Venus. The -difficult part of the business was how to record time for the beginning -of the eclipse. We needed two, at least, for this. Tomo-chan was glad -to offer her service, but she did not want to look at the watch but -at the sun. Well, I had no objection to that, as long as she could -tell the right moment. But as I was a little in doubt on that point, -we spent several nights in drill by means of a shaded lamp which cast -a bright disc on the wall. No sooner than I moved an opaque one and -touched the other, she had to press my hand. But too often the movable -disc was a quarter of an inch inside the other when the belated touch -passed on to me. So I had to train her eyes first by giving a signal at -the time of contact by means of a pinch. And if she did not perceive it -still, she got pinched still harder. She was very unteachable in this -respect, but still wanted to look at the sun rather than the watch! - -So the day of the eclipse arrived. It was a hot, clear day in July, -and most fitted for the observation. We took an early train, as we -had a long way to go, and then we must settle somewhere to watch the -beginning and the end and the most precious middle. In the central part -of the zone of the total eclipse there was a government observatory -temporarily erected, and we wanted to get as near to it as possible. -But we did not take into account the rather slow service of the train, -and the hour for the eclipse had come before we got into the zone, and -were, of course, in the train. As nothing could be done under such -circumstances, we gave up the initial observation, and all the three -just looked at the sun through the soot-covered pieces of glass. We -did not know that we were a gainer and not a loser by this till late, -except Tomo-chan, who had already earned enough pinches merely to be -ready for the occasion. - -The train was a few miles within the zone when my uncle thought it -wise to stop at a small village and make an observation there, as the -sun was fast being overshadowed. We settled in a nice tea-house, whose -front room in the second floor with an open veranda was just the sort -of place for our purpose. And there, after a quick lunch, we awaited -the hour. Tomo-chan and I had a board and a sheet of paper which I had -specially prepared, to note the location of the visible stars and to -draw the shape of the corona. - -I never knew that the light of the sun was so strong, for till the -luminous surface was reduced to a very thin crescent, no change was -observed in the sky. But all at once, as the shadow of a man passing -on the street became weirdly faint, the color of the sky turned into -warm steel-black and the purple stars began to shine! And in no time -the crescent was changed into a mere speck of silver light, and in a -second, as it burned itself off, a beautifully soft fringe of twilight -appeared. That was the corona! - -I now assiduously set about to take down the exact shape of it. There -were only thirty seconds of this precious moment. So I just put down -important points on the paper, noting carefully the position and the -distance, and tried to take a clear impression in my mind to be traced -out later. Tomo-chan was working, too. But her process was just the -opposite of mine. Evidently she wished to follow my picture, but as -mine was no picture, she turned to the sun with a sigh, and, though she -finished it in time, she had a picture of a heavenly corona twisted -considerably by an earthly wind! - -The wonderful moment had now passed, and the corona, with a tail -trailing at the right-hand side of the sun, disappeared like a dream. -It was too brief, but we were satisfied, and did not know what to -think of our good fortune when, three minutes later, a dark cloud came -and brushed the sun off. Then we imagined what the consequence might -have been if the train had been fast and we had gone on further north. -The next day’s paper said that the government expedition was entirely -spoiled on account of the untimely shower! - - - - -CHAPTER XI - -IN THE SUBURBS - - A Novel Experiment--Removal--Our New House--Angling--Tomo-chan’s - Visit. - - -We were now to remove to the suburbs. Father got a better position with -a firm quite far from our house, and it was thought expedient for us to -do so for his convenience. - -There was one thing which made me dislike this change. And it was -about Tomo-chan. We should be separated, and might not see each other -so often; all the more so as we had grown to be quite intimate and -congenial by this time and had great fun in indulging in some novel -experiment now and then. This last was by no means of a scientific -nature. Still we went at it with something of scientific spirit to see -whether a certain innovation was applicable or not. - -Here is one such experiment we tried. Tomo-chan heard from one of -her friends, whose sister recently came home from America, that in -that enlightened country when a lady and a gentleman take a walk -together, the latter offers his arm to the former, who, of course, -never hesitates to take it. Tomo-chan thought it was a fine idea, and -asked me if we might try it. Well, I had no objection if it were only -dark enough to make the trial. So one evening, under the shade of -cherry-trees, we hooked our arms. Our cumbersome sleeves were somewhat -in the way, but still we got on famously. After that, whenever we were -in the dark, a hint would come from Tomo-chan to walk in that fashion, -and I was only glad to accept it. Curiously enough it was the girl who -suggested it every time! - -Of course we were not uniformly successful. I well remember the evening -of that memorable day of the total eclipse. My uncle’s enthusiasm -greatly abated as the event of the day passed, and as we alighted from -the train and stood before a fruit-vender’s stall, he now appeared -to be much interested in a large watermelon. Unable to resist the -temptation, he bought one and had me carry it. So I held it under my -arm and walked on. The street was not crowded and the night was dark, -and I went on behind my uncle with Tomo-chan beside me, when a touch -was felt at my unoccupied arm. It was the well-known hint, and in no -time Tomo-chan and the watermelon were hanging from my arms. It was -not an easy thing to walk in that way, especially behind the back of -my uncle, who might turn round to see us at any moment. Then I found -that even a watermelon had a bit of jealousy in it, for every minute -it would get heavier and more unmanageable as my mind inclined more -and more to my fair companion. The point was soon reached when it was -no longer endurable for the watermelon, and at my unguarded moment -it jumped out of my arm to commit suicide. The bounce at once made -my uncle turn and wring his hands for anger at my carelessness. I -was equal to the occasion, however. Quickly extricating myself from -Tomo-chan, I pounced at the sulky thing before a word was spoken, and -saved it from any harm. So we went on as before. Only both my arms were -now taken by the watermelon, and poor Tomo-chan dragged on crestfallen. - -But such fun we could no longer have now that we were to be separated -for a time at least, and we parted with heavy heart. - -The removal was a curious affair. On five or six carts, everything in -the house from paper screens to a kitchen stove was piled up. There -was an old pomegranate-tree in the back yard which we had brought from -the country some six or seven years ago. And of course we dug it up -carefully and loaded it on the cart. Also we did not forget to pull -down long poles for drying purpose and add them to the heap, together -with two or three round stones for pressing pickles. The train of the -carts pulled by coolies then moved slowly on through the city, and it -was after dark before we could unload them at the destination. - -The new house was in a charming spot. Just back of us was a low hill -thickly wooded with tall oaks and criptomerias; to the left across -a brook stretched a tilled field, fringed in the far distance with -bamboo bushes and elm groves; to the right and on the hill the eye -could command the western horizon where Fujiyama hung low like an azure -fan against the golden sky. The birds sang, the flowers bloomed, the -fire-worms glowed, and I never felt a change so delightful, coming as I -did from a town where boys believed that Indian corn either grew on a -tree, or sprang, like bamboo shoots, from the ground without planting. - -My school came to be much nearer; the potted trees of my father -increased; a baby was added to our family; and, as the sun and the moon -moved on peacefully, we were all well contented with our lot. - -There was not much to be recorded for our purpose in those days -except the angling my father and I had occasionally in a river. His -was always a calm turn of mind, and the soothing, restful pastime of -fishing suited him immensely. I love to picture him sitting under the -sheltering pine-tree by a quiet river bank, and handling the rod and -line, while quaint ripples of smiles came and went across his face as -the nibbling fish gave his line a tantalizing pull. Once, when it was -the season of smelt in the month of May, we went over to a stream about -two miles off. The scene around there was lovely. The mass of fresh -leaves covered the open field, and along the slope of the bank, with -stunted willows here and there, myriads of dandelions like golden stars -studded the green. And the breeze was fanning leisurely the warmth of -the May sun. The stream was shallow, and was singing and foaming on the -pebbly bed. - -“Let’s see what we can do about here,” said my father, as he selected -a spot where the water was going on in a cataract. And we cast our -flies and tried our luck. But, after awhile, having no success, I began -to doubt if my father had chosen the right spot, and so I thought -that I had better follow up the river and see if they bit. I left my -father to his fortune and started on my adventure. I did not know that -smelt-fishing was such a dull business, for, wherever I went, there was -the foaming pool, the steady flow, and there were practically no bites. -Yes, there was one, but I only fished a piece of some rotten wood or -dripping moss! I wondered what my father was doing, and, not without a -smile over his probable ill-luck, I went back, when I found him still -standing in the same spot. I doubted if he was not going to take root -there. I at once inquired about his success. “No, nothing remarkable,” -he gently replied, dreaming on the sparkling water. I went to his -basket dipped in the river, and lifted the lid, when a large prisoner, -disturbed by the jar I gave, snapped violently! After all, I thought, -he was of a piece with Izaak Walton. - -So days passed, and more than a year rolled on since our removal. It -was now the latter part of October, when one day we had unexpected -visitors. They were my aunt and Tomo-chan. This was not their first -visit since we came here, but I had always been out and had had no -chance to meet them. Still, they did not come very often, and so my -aunt, with many bows, apologized for her negligence to call, while -my mother, with equal courtesy, was not behind the guest in heaping -up apologies for neglect on her part. Then, as tea and cakes were -produced, inquiry after the health and condition of each member of the -family issued from both sides, and was answered modestly, followed -by amiable comment from the inquirers. Then, with equal lightness of -heart, the season was talked over, the recent events, and, indeed, -anything of timely interest. - -While such a talk was going on my eyes were secretly on Tomo-chan. I -was surprised at her change. I left her a mere child only a year and -a half ago, but the bud of yesterday was the flower of to-day. With a -snowy neck and rosy cheeks, her ebony hair done up stylishly, she sat -in striped silk of light azure and dove-gray. She no longer looked -at me straight, but, except for furtive glances, her eyes sought her -jewelled hands, idly occupied in clasping and unclasping on her knees. -A glow of bashfulness was beaming from her as most eyes sought their -focus in her. - -As the talk was about to become more personal, my mother suggested -that Tomo-chan might go out with me as a guide to look around the -place, which was beautiful at that time. My aunt seconded the motion, -and asked me to take the trouble of doing so. So there was no need of -hesitation, and in the next moment we were out for a walk on a country -road. - -At first we were speechless. She appeared to me no longer approachable -with the familiarity of “Tomo-chan.” But as the autumnal breeze cooled -down her bashfulness, and the beauty of the scenery was absorbing her -attention more and more, I ventured to falter: - -“Tomo-chan!” - -“Yes?” - -She looked at me with her eyes beaming with laughter, and there was the -same old innocent childhood, but where was the bashfulness? - -“Do you find this beautiful?” I asked. - -“Yes, certainly.” - -“It wasn’t so beautiful yesterday.” - -“You mean to say that you had a sudden frost last night that tinged the -leaves?” she archly asked. - -“Why, more sudden than that; it got to be lovelier this very afternoon. -We’ve had something better than a frost.” - -“How is it possible?” She laughed. - -“No stranger than that you are changed so _beautifully_ in a year.” - -I said what I should not have said, for she blushed to the roots of her -hair, and I repented of my forwardness. - -“But come along, Tomo-chan. I’ll show you what you have not seen yet.” - -And I took her over the hill and pointed to the faint shadow of the -peerless mountain. - -“Why, Fujiyama!” she exclaimed. “Oh, how lovely! Could you see that -every day from here?” - -“Not in rainy weather.... But she wanted to see you to-day, as -everybody else did, and waited there from morning.” - -“I wish you would thank her for that, Sakae-san.” - -“You ought first to thank him who told her about your coming.” - -“Oh,” she smilingly said, “but don’t tell me his name now, as I want to -repay him afterwards--abundantly.” - -I touched her dimple as she said so, and then we went to the secluded -part of the hill where the crimson branches of maples were projecting -from the green background, the red frosted “crows’ melons” festooned -high on the criptomerias, and the wild chrysanthemums were blooming -lavishly. In such a charming spot Tomo-chan was a child of thirteen, -and wanted me to take “crows’ melons”--I wonder if she remembered the -watermelon incident?--and to gather chrysanthemums, and laughed and -sang to her heart’s content. She was her old very self. As the setting -sun was resting on her shoulder, I decked her hair with wild flowers, -and whispered in her ear that she would remember evermore the day we -spent together. She nodded, and smiled the sweetest of smiles. - - -THE END. - - - - - BOOKS - FOR - Young Americans. - - By ELBRIDGE S. BROOKS. - -_THE POPULAR “TRUE STORY” SERIES._ - - Seven 4to volumes of from 200 to 250 pages each, profusely - illustrated and attractively bound in cloth, each $1.50. - - “A series which is worthy of hearty commendation. Every grown-up - person who has read one of them will wish to buy the whole series - for the young folks at home.”--_The Christian Advocate._ - -This series contains: - - THE TRUE STORY OF CHRISTOPHER COLUMBUS, called the Admiral. - _Revised Edition._ - - THE TRUE STORY OF GEORGE WASHINGTON, called the Father of His - Country. - - THE TRUE STORY OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN, the American. - - THE TRUE STORY OF U. S. GRANT, the American Soldier. - - THE TRUE STORY OF BENJAMIN FRANKLIN, the American Statesman. - - THE TRUE STORY OF LAFAYETTE, the Friend of America. - - THE TRUE STORY OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA. From 1492 to 1900. - -Also, recently published: - - IN BLUE AND WHITE. A Story of the American Revolution. 8vo, - illustrated, $1.50. - - - Lothrop, Lee & Shepard Co., - 93 FEDERAL STREET BOSTON. - - - - - American Heroes and Heroines - -[Illustration] - - By PAULINE CARRINGTON BOUVÉ Illustrated 12mo Cloth $1.25 - -This book, which will tend directly toward the making of patriotism -in young Americans, contains some twenty brief, clever and attractive -sketches of famous men and women in American history, among them Father -Marquette, Anne Hutchinson, Israel Putnam, Molly Pitcher, Paul Jones, -Dolly Madison, Daniel Boone, etc. Mrs. Bouvé is well known as a writer -both of fiction and history, and her work in this case is admirable. - - “The style of the book for simplicity and clearness of expression - could hardly be excelled.”--_Boston Budget._ - - - The Scarlet Patch - The Story of a Patriot Boy in the Mohawk Valley - - By MARY E. Q. BRUSH Illustrated by GEORGE W. PICKNELL $1.25 - -“The Scarlet Patch” was the badge of a Tory organization, and a -loyal patriot boy, Donald Bastien, is dismayed at learning that his -uncle, with whom he is a “bound boy,” is secretly connected with this -treacherous band. Thrilling scenes follow in which a faithful Indian -figures prominently, and there is a vivid presentation of the school -and home life as well as the public affairs of those times. - - “A book that will be most valuable to the library of the young - boy.”--_Providence News._ - - - Stories of Brave Old Times - - Some Pen Pictures of Scenes Which - Took Place Previous to, or Connected - With, the American Revolution - - By HELEN M. CLEVELAND Profusely illustrated Large 12mo Cloth $1.25 - -[Illustration] - -It is a book for every library, a book for adults, and a book for the -young. Perhaps no other book yet written sets the great cost of freedom -so clearly before the young, consequently is such a spur to patriotism. - - “It can unqualifiedly be commended as a book for youthful readers; - its great wealth of illustrations adding to its value.”--_Chicago - News._ - - -[Illustration] - - Famous Children - - By H. TWITCHELL Illustrated $1.25 - -We have here a most valuable book, telling not of the childhood of -those who have afterwards become famous, but those who as children -are famous in history, song, and story. For convenience the subjects -are grouped as “Royal Children,” “Child Artists,” “Learned Children,” -“Devoted Children,” “Child Martyrs,” and “Heroic Children,” and the -names of the “two little princes,” Louis XVII., Mozart, St. Genevieve, -David, and Joan of Arc are here, as well as those of many more. - - The Story of the Cid - For Young - People - - By CALVIN DILL WILSON Illustrated by J. W. KENNEDY $1.25 - -Mr. Wilson, a well-known writer and reviewer, has prepared from -Southey’s translation, which was far too cumbrous to entertain the -young, a book that will kindle the imagination of youth and entertain -and inform those of advanced years. - - -[Illustration] - - Jason’s Quest - - By D. O. S. LOWELL, A. M., M. D. Master in Roxbury Latin School - Illustrated $1.00 - -Nothing can be better to arouse the imagination of boys and girls, and -at the same time store in their minds knowledge indispensable to any -one who would be known as cultured, or happier than Professor Lowell’s -way of telling a story, and the many excellent drawings have lent great -spirit to the narrative. - - - Heroes of the Crusades - - By AMANDA M. DOUGLAS Cloth Fifty full-page illustrations $1.50 - -The romantic interest in the days of chivalry, so fully exemplified by -the “Heroes of the Crusades,” is permanent and properly so. This book -is fitted to keep it alive without descending to improbability or cheap -sensationalism. - - -[Illustration] - - A Boy of a Thousand Years Ago - - By HARRIET T. COMSTOCK Large 12mo Profusely illustrated with - full-page drawings and chapter headings by GEORGE VARIAN $1.00 - -It will at once be understood that the “boy” of the story is Alfred the -Great in his youth, but it cannot be understood how delightful a story -this is until it is seen and read. The splendid pictures of George -Varian make this book superior among juveniles. - - “Not a boy lives who will not enjoy this book thoroughly. There - is a good deal of first-class historical information woven into - the story, but the best part of it is the splendid impression - of times and manners it gives in old England a thousand years - ago.”--_Louisville Courier-Journal._ - - “Mrs. Comstock writes very appreciatively of Little Alfred, who was - afterward the Great, and from mighty meagre materials creates a - story that hangs together well. The illustrations for this volume - are especially beautiful.”--_Boston Home Journal._ - - -[Illustration] - - The Story of Joan of Arc - FOR - BOYS AND GIRLS - - By KATE E. CARPENTER Illustrated by AMY BROOKS, also from - paintings, and with map Large 12mo Cloth $1.00 - -The favorite story of Joan of Arc is here treated in a uniquely -attractive way. “Aunt Kate” tells the story of Joan of Arc to Master -Harold, aged 11, and to Misses Bessie and Marjorie, aged 10 and 8, -respectively, to their intense delight. They look up places on the -map, and have a fine time while hearing the thrilling story, told in -such simple language that they can readily understand it all. Parents -and teachers will also be greatly interested in this book from an -educational point of view. - - “The tale is well told and the children will delight in - it.”--_Chicago Post._ - - “Told so simply and clearly that young readers cannot fail to be - entertained and instructed.”--_Congregationalist, Boston._ - - -For sale by all booksellers or sent postpaid on receipt of price by the -publishers, - -LOTHROP, LEE & SHEPARD CO., BOSTON - - - - -TRANSCRIBER’S NOTES: - - - Archaic spelling that may have been in use at the time of publication - has been preserved. - - Obvious typographical errors have been corrected. - - - - - -End of Project Gutenberg's When I Was a Boy in Japan, by Sakae Shioya - -*** END OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK WHEN I WAS A BOY IN JAPAN *** - -***** This file should be named 55939-0.txt or 55939-0.zip ***** -This and all associated files of various formats will be found in: - http://www.gutenberg.org/5/5/9/3/55939/ - -Produced by MFR, David E. Brown, and the Online Distributed -Proofreading Team at http://www.pgdp.net (This file was -produced from images generously made available by The -Internet Archive) - -Updated editions will replace the previous one--the old editions will -be renamed. - -Creating the works from print editions not protected by U.S. copyright -law means that no one owns a United States copyright in these works, -so the Foundation (and you!) can copy and distribute it in the United -States without permission and without paying copyright -royalties. Special rules, set forth in the General Terms of Use part -of this license, apply to copying and distributing Project -Gutenberg-tm electronic works to protect the PROJECT GUTENBERG-tm -concept and trademark. Project Gutenberg is a registered trademark, -and may not be used if you charge for the eBooks, unless you receive -specific permission. If you do not charge anything for copies of this -eBook, complying with the rules is very easy. You may use this eBook -for nearly any purpose such as creation of derivative works, reports, -performances and research. They may be modified and printed and given -away--you may do practically ANYTHING in the United States with eBooks -not protected by U.S. copyright law. Redistribution is subject to the -trademark license, especially commercial redistribution. - -START: FULL LICENSE - -THE FULL PROJECT GUTENBERG LICENSE -PLEASE READ THIS BEFORE YOU DISTRIBUTE OR USE THIS WORK - -To protect the Project Gutenberg-tm mission of promoting the free -distribution of electronic works, by using or distributing this work -(or any other work associated in any way with the phrase "Project -Gutenberg"), you agree to comply with all the terms of the Full -Project Gutenberg-tm License available with this file or online at -www.gutenberg.org/license. - -Section 1. General Terms of Use and Redistributing Project -Gutenberg-tm electronic works - -1.A. By reading or using any part of this Project Gutenberg-tm -electronic work, you indicate that you have read, understand, agree to -and accept all the terms of this license and intellectual property -(trademark/copyright) agreement. If you do not agree to abide by all -the terms of this agreement, you must cease using and return or -destroy all copies of Project Gutenberg-tm electronic works in your -possession. If you paid a fee for obtaining a copy of or access to a -Project Gutenberg-tm electronic work and you do not agree to be bound -by the terms of this agreement, you may obtain a refund from the -person or entity to whom you paid the fee as set forth in paragraph -1.E.8. - -1.B. "Project Gutenberg" is a registered trademark. It may only be -used on or associated in any way with an electronic work by people who -agree to be bound by the terms of this agreement. There are a few -things that you can do with most Project Gutenberg-tm electronic works -even without complying with the full terms of this agreement. See -paragraph 1.C below. There are a lot of things you can do with Project -Gutenberg-tm electronic works if you follow the terms of this -agreement and help preserve free future access to Project Gutenberg-tm -electronic works. See paragraph 1.E below. - -1.C. The Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation ("the -Foundation" or PGLAF), owns a compilation copyright in the collection -of Project Gutenberg-tm electronic works. Nearly all the individual -works in the collection are in the public domain in the United -States. If an individual work is unprotected by copyright law in the -United States and you are located in the United States, we do not -claim a right to prevent you from copying, distributing, performing, -displaying or creating derivative works based on the work as long as -all references to Project Gutenberg are removed. Of course, we hope -that you will support the Project Gutenberg-tm mission of promoting -free access to electronic works by freely sharing Project Gutenberg-tm -works in compliance with the terms of this agreement for keeping the -Project Gutenberg-tm name associated with the work. You can easily -comply with the terms of this agreement by keeping this work in the -same format with its attached full Project Gutenberg-tm License when -you share it without charge with others. - -1.D. The copyright laws of the place where you are located also govern -what you can do with this work. Copyright laws in most countries are -in a constant state of change. If you are outside the United States, -check the laws of your country in addition to the terms of this -agreement before downloading, copying, displaying, performing, -distributing or creating derivative works based on this work or any -other Project Gutenberg-tm work. The Foundation makes no -representations concerning the copyright status of any work in any -country outside the United States. - -1.E. Unless you have removed all references to Project Gutenberg: - -1.E.1. The following sentence, with active links to, or other -immediate access to, the full Project Gutenberg-tm License must appear -prominently whenever any copy of a Project Gutenberg-tm work (any work -on which the phrase "Project Gutenberg" appears, or with which the -phrase "Project Gutenberg" is associated) is accessed, displayed, -performed, viewed, copied or distributed: - - This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere in the United States and - most other parts of the world at no cost and with almost no - restrictions whatsoever. You may copy it, give it away or re-use it - under the terms of the Project Gutenberg License included with this - eBook or online at www.gutenberg.org. If you are not located in the - United States, you'll have to check the laws of the country where you - are located before using this ebook. - -1.E.2. If an individual Project Gutenberg-tm electronic work is -derived from texts not protected by U.S. copyright law (does not -contain a notice indicating that it is posted with permission of the -copyright holder), the work can be copied and distributed to anyone in -the United States without paying any fees or charges. If you are -redistributing or providing access to a work with the phrase "Project -Gutenberg" associated with or appearing on the work, you must comply -either with the requirements of paragraphs 1.E.1 through 1.E.7 or -obtain permission for the use of the work and the Project Gutenberg-tm -trademark as set forth in paragraphs 1.E.8 or 1.E.9. - -1.E.3. If an individual Project Gutenberg-tm electronic work is posted -with the permission of the copyright holder, your use and distribution -must comply with both paragraphs 1.E.1 through 1.E.7 and any -additional terms imposed by the copyright holder. Additional terms -will be linked to the Project Gutenberg-tm License for all works -posted with the permission of the copyright holder found at the -beginning of this work. - -1.E.4. Do not unlink or detach or remove the full Project Gutenberg-tm -License terms from this work, or any files containing a part of this -work or any other work associated with Project Gutenberg-tm. - -1.E.5. Do not copy, display, perform, distribute or redistribute this -electronic work, or any part of this electronic work, without -prominently displaying the sentence set forth in paragraph 1.E.1 with -active links or immediate access to the full terms of the Project -Gutenberg-tm License. - -1.E.6. You may convert to and distribute this work in any binary, -compressed, marked up, nonproprietary or proprietary form, including -any word processing or hypertext form. However, if you provide access -to or distribute copies of a Project Gutenberg-tm work in a format -other than "Plain Vanilla ASCII" or other format used in the official -version posted on the official Project Gutenberg-tm web site -(www.gutenberg.org), you must, at no additional cost, fee or expense -to the user, provide a copy, a means of exporting a copy, or a means -of obtaining a copy upon request, of the work in its original "Plain -Vanilla ASCII" or other form. Any alternate format must include the -full Project Gutenberg-tm License as specified in paragraph 1.E.1. - -1.E.7. Do not charge a fee for access to, viewing, displaying, -performing, copying or distributing any Project Gutenberg-tm works -unless you comply with paragraph 1.E.8 or 1.E.9. - -1.E.8. You may charge a reasonable fee for copies of or providing -access to or distributing Project Gutenberg-tm electronic works -provided that - -* You pay a royalty fee of 20% of the gross profits you derive from - the use of Project Gutenberg-tm works calculated using the method - you already use to calculate your applicable taxes. The fee is owed - to the owner of the Project Gutenberg-tm trademark, but he has - agreed to donate royalties under this paragraph to the Project - Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation. Royalty payments must be paid - within 60 days following each date on which you prepare (or are - legally required to prepare) your periodic tax returns. Royalty - payments should be clearly marked as such and sent to the Project - Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation at the address specified in - Section 4, "Information about donations to the Project Gutenberg - Literary Archive Foundation." - -* You provide a full refund of any money paid by a user who notifies - you in writing (or by e-mail) within 30 days of receipt that s/he - does not agree to the terms of the full Project Gutenberg-tm - License. You must require such a user to return or destroy all - copies of the works possessed in a physical medium and discontinue - all use of and all access to other copies of Project Gutenberg-tm - works. - -* You provide, in accordance with paragraph 1.F.3, a full refund of - any money paid for a work or a replacement copy, if a defect in the - electronic work is discovered and reported to you within 90 days of - receipt of the work. - -* You comply with all other terms of this agreement for free - distribution of Project Gutenberg-tm works. - -1.E.9. If you wish to charge a fee or distribute a Project -Gutenberg-tm electronic work or group of works on different terms than -are set forth in this agreement, you must obtain permission in writing -from both the Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation and The -Project Gutenberg Trademark LLC, the owner of the Project Gutenberg-tm -trademark. Contact the Foundation as set forth in Section 3 below. - -1.F. - -1.F.1. Project Gutenberg volunteers and employees expend considerable -effort to identify, do copyright research on, transcribe and proofread -works not protected by U.S. copyright law in creating the Project -Gutenberg-tm collection. Despite these efforts, Project Gutenberg-tm -electronic works, and the medium on which they may be stored, may -contain "Defects," such as, but not limited to, incomplete, inaccurate -or corrupt data, transcription errors, a copyright or other -intellectual property infringement, a defective or damaged disk or -other medium, a computer virus, or computer codes that damage or -cannot be read by your equipment. - -1.F.2. LIMITED WARRANTY, DISCLAIMER OF DAMAGES - Except for the "Right -of Replacement or Refund" described in paragraph 1.F.3, the Project -Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation, the owner of the Project -Gutenberg-tm trademark, and any other party distributing a Project -Gutenberg-tm electronic work under this agreement, disclaim all -liability to you for damages, costs and expenses, including legal -fees. YOU AGREE THAT YOU HAVE NO REMEDIES FOR NEGLIGENCE, STRICT -LIABILITY, BREACH OF WARRANTY OR BREACH OF CONTRACT EXCEPT THOSE -PROVIDED IN PARAGRAPH 1.F.3. YOU AGREE THAT THE FOUNDATION, THE -TRADEMARK OWNER, AND ANY DISTRIBUTOR UNDER THIS AGREEMENT WILL NOT BE -LIABLE TO YOU FOR ACTUAL, DIRECT, INDIRECT, CONSEQUENTIAL, PUNITIVE OR -INCIDENTAL DAMAGES EVEN IF YOU GIVE NOTICE OF THE POSSIBILITY OF SUCH -DAMAGE. - -1.F.3. LIMITED RIGHT OF REPLACEMENT OR REFUND - If you discover a -defect in this electronic work within 90 days of receiving it, you can -receive a refund of the money (if any) you paid for it by sending a -written explanation to the person you received the work from. If you -received the work on a physical medium, you must return the medium -with your written explanation. The person or entity that provided you -with the defective work may elect to provide a replacement copy in -lieu of a refund. If you received the work electronically, the person -or entity providing it to you may choose to give you a second -opportunity to receive the work electronically in lieu of a refund. If -the second copy is also defective, you may demand a refund in writing -without further opportunities to fix the problem. - -1.F.4. Except for the limited right of replacement or refund set forth -in paragraph 1.F.3, this work is provided to you 'AS-IS', WITH NO -OTHER WARRANTIES OF ANY KIND, EXPRESS OR IMPLIED, INCLUDING BUT NOT -LIMITED TO WARRANTIES OF MERCHANTABILITY OR FITNESS FOR ANY PURPOSE. - -1.F.5. Some states do not allow disclaimers of certain implied -warranties or the exclusion or limitation of certain types of -damages. If any disclaimer or limitation set forth in this agreement -violates the law of the state applicable to this agreement, the -agreement shall be interpreted to make the maximum disclaimer or -limitation permitted by the applicable state law. The invalidity or -unenforceability of any provision of this agreement shall not void the -remaining provisions. - -1.F.6. INDEMNITY - You agree to indemnify and hold the Foundation, the -trademark owner, any agent or employee of the Foundation, anyone -providing copies of Project Gutenberg-tm electronic works in -accordance with this agreement, and any volunteers associated with the -production, promotion and distribution of Project Gutenberg-tm -electronic works, harmless from all liability, costs and expenses, -including legal fees, that arise directly or indirectly from any of -the following which you do or cause to occur: (a) distribution of this -or any Project Gutenberg-tm work, (b) alteration, modification, or -additions or deletions to any Project Gutenberg-tm work, and (c) any -Defect you cause. - -Section 2. Information about the Mission of Project Gutenberg-tm - -Project Gutenberg-tm is synonymous with the free distribution of -electronic works in formats readable by the widest variety of -computers including obsolete, old, middle-aged and new computers. It -exists because of the efforts of hundreds of volunteers and donations -from people in all walks of life. - -Volunteers and financial support to provide volunteers with the -assistance they need are critical to reaching Project Gutenberg-tm's -goals and ensuring that the Project Gutenberg-tm collection will -remain freely available for generations to come. In 2001, the Project -Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation was created to provide a secure -and permanent future for Project Gutenberg-tm and future -generations. To learn more about the Project Gutenberg Literary -Archive Foundation and how your efforts and donations can help, see -Sections 3 and 4 and the Foundation information page at -www.gutenberg.org - - - -Section 3. Information about the Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation - -The Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation is a non profit -501(c)(3) educational corporation organized under the laws of the -state of Mississippi and granted tax exempt status by the Internal -Revenue Service. The Foundation's EIN or federal tax identification -number is 64-6221541. Contributions to the Project Gutenberg Literary -Archive Foundation are tax deductible to the full extent permitted by -U.S. federal laws and your state's laws. - -The Foundation's principal office is in Fairbanks, Alaska, with the -mailing address: PO Box 750175, Fairbanks, AK 99775, but its -volunteers and employees are scattered throughout numerous -locations. Its business office is located at 809 North 1500 West, Salt -Lake City, UT 84116, (801) 596-1887. Email contact links and up to -date contact information can be found at the Foundation's web site and -official page at www.gutenberg.org/contact - -For additional contact information: - - Dr. Gregory B. Newby - Chief Executive and Director - gbnewby@pglaf.org - -Section 4. Information about Donations to the Project Gutenberg -Literary Archive Foundation - -Project Gutenberg-tm depends upon and cannot survive without wide -spread public support and donations to carry out its mission of -increasing the number of public domain and licensed works that can be -freely distributed in machine readable form accessible by the widest -array of equipment including outdated equipment. Many small donations -($1 to $5,000) are particularly important to maintaining tax exempt -status with the IRS. - -The Foundation is committed to complying with the laws regulating -charities and charitable donations in all 50 states of the United -States. Compliance requirements are not uniform and it takes a -considerable effort, much paperwork and many fees to meet and keep up -with these requirements. We do not solicit donations in locations -where we have not received written confirmation of compliance. To SEND -DONATIONS or determine the status of compliance for any particular -state visit www.gutenberg.org/donate - -While we cannot and do not solicit contributions from states where we -have not met the solicitation requirements, we know of no prohibition -against accepting unsolicited donations from donors in such states who -approach us with offers to donate. - -International donations are gratefully accepted, but we cannot make -any statements concerning tax treatment of donations received from -outside the United States. U.S. laws alone swamp our small staff. - -Please check the Project Gutenberg Web pages for current donation -methods and addresses. Donations are accepted in a number of other -ways including checks, online payments and credit card donations. To -donate, please visit: www.gutenberg.org/donate - -Section 5. General Information About Project Gutenberg-tm electronic works. - -Professor Michael S. Hart was the originator of the Project -Gutenberg-tm concept of a library of electronic works that could be -freely shared with anyone. For forty years, he produced and -distributed Project Gutenberg-tm eBooks with only a loose network of -volunteer support. - -Project Gutenberg-tm eBooks are often created from several printed -editions, all of which are confirmed as not protected by copyright in -the U.S. unless a copyright notice is included. Thus, we do not -necessarily keep eBooks in compliance with any particular paper -edition. - -Most people start at our Web site which has the main PG search -facility: www.gutenberg.org - -This Web site includes information about Project Gutenberg-tm, -including how to make donations to the Project Gutenberg Literary -Archive Foundation, how to help produce our new eBooks, and how to -subscribe to our email newsletter to hear about new eBooks. - diff --git a/old/55939-0.zip b/old/55939-0.zip Binary files differdeleted file mode 100644 index cb0e4bf..0000000 --- a/old/55939-0.zip +++ /dev/null diff --git a/old/55939-h.zip b/old/55939-h.zip Binary files differdeleted file mode 100644 index d4ee1bc..0000000 --- a/old/55939-h.zip +++ /dev/null diff --git a/old/55939-h/55939-h.htm b/old/55939-h/55939-h.htm deleted file mode 100644 index 134a674..0000000 --- a/old/55939-h/55939-h.htm +++ /dev/null @@ -1,4850 +0,0 @@ -<!DOCTYPE html PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD XHTML 1.0 Strict//EN" - "http://www.w3.org/TR/xhtml1/DTD/xhtml1-strict.dtd"> -<html xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml" xml:lang="en" lang="en"> - <head> - <meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html;charset=iso-8859-1" /> - <meta http-equiv="Content-Style-Type" content="text/css" /> - <title> - The Project Gutenberg eBook of When I Was a Boy In Japan, by Sakae Shioya. - </title> -<link rel="coverpage" href="images/cover.jpg" /> - <style type="text/css"> - -body { - margin-left: 10%; - margin-right: 10%; -} - - h1,h2 { - text-align: center; - clear: both; -} - -p { - margin-top: .51em; - text-align: justify; - margin-bottom: .49em; -} - -.ph1 {text-align: center; font-size: xx-large; font-weight: bold;} -.ph2 {text-align: center; font-size: x-large; font-weight: bold;} -.ph3 {text-align: center; font-size: large; font-weight: bold;} - -p.drop-cap { - text-indent: -0.25em; -} - -p.drop-cap:first-letter -{ - float: left; - margin: 0.15em 0.1em 0em 0em; - font-size: 250%; - line-height:0.55em; -text-indent: 0em; -} - -@media handheld -{ - p.drop-cap { - text-indent: 0em; } - - p.drop-cap:first-letter - { - float: none; - margin: 0; - font-size: 100%; - } -} - -.gap {padding-left: 5em;} -.gap2 {padding-left: 1em;} - -div.titlepage {text-align: center; page-break-before: always; page-break-after: always;} -div.titlepage p {text-align: center; font-weight: bold; line-height: 1.5; margin-top: 3em;} - -div.chapter {page-break-before: always;} -h2.nobreak {page-break-before: avoid;} - - -hr { - width: 33%; - margin-top: 2em; - margin-bottom: 2em; - margin-left: 33.5%; - margin-right: 33.5%; - clear: both; -} - -hr.chap {width: 65%; margin-left: 17.5%; margin-right: 17.5%;} -hr.tb {width: 45%; margin-left: 27.5%; margin-right: 27.5%;} - - -table { - margin-left: auto; - margin-right: auto; -} - -.pagenum { - position: absolute; - left: 92%; - font-size: smaller; - text-align: right; -} - -.blockquot { - margin-left: 15%; - margin-right: 20%; -} - - -.center {text-align: center;} - -.right {text-align: right;} - -.smcap {font-variant: small-caps;} - -.caption {font-weight: bold; text-align: center;} - -.figcenter { - margin: auto; - text-align: center; -} - -.figleft { - float: left; - clear: left; - margin-left: 0; - margin-bottom: 1em; - margin-top: 1em; - margin-right: 1em; - padding: 0; - text-align: center; -} - -.figright { - float: right; - clear: right; - margin-left: 1em; - margin-bottom: - 1em; - margin-top: 1em; - margin-right: 0; - padding: 0; - text-align: center; -} - -.poetry-container {text-align: center;} -.poetry {display: inline-block; text-align: left;} -.poetry .stanza {margin: 1em auto;} -.poetry .verse {text-indent: -2.5em; padding-left: 3em;} -.poetry .indent {text-indent: 1.5em} - -.transnote {background-color: #E6E6FA; - color: black; - font-size:smaller; - padding:0.5em; - margin-bottom:5em; - font-family:sans-serif, serif; } - </style> - </head> -<body> - - -<pre> - -The Project Gutenberg EBook of When I Was a Boy in Japan, by Sakae Shioya - -This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere in the United States and most -other parts of the world at no cost and with almost no restrictions -whatsoever. You may copy it, give it away or re-use it under the terms of -the Project Gutenberg License included with this eBook or online at -www.gutenberg.org. If you are not located in the United States, you'll have -to check the laws of the country where you are located before using this ebook. - -Title: When I Was a Boy in Japan - -Author: Sakae Shioya - -Release Date: November 11, 2017 [EBook #55939] - -Language: English - -Character set encoding: ISO-8859-1 - -*** START OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK WHEN I WAS A BOY IN JAPAN *** - - - - -Produced by MFR, David E. Brown, and the Online Distributed -Proofreading Team at http://www.pgdp.net (This file was -produced from images generously made available by The -Internet Archive) - - - - - - -</pre> - - -<div class="figcenter"><img src="images/cover.jpg" alt="" /></div> -<hr class="chap" /> -<div class="transnote"> -<p class="ph3">TRANSCRIBER’S NOTES:</p> -<p>The cover image for this eBook was created by the transcriber from the title page of the original and is entered into the public domain.</p> - -<p>Archaic spelling that may have been in use at the time of publication has been preserved.</p> - -<p>Obvious typographical errors have been corrected.</p> -</div> - -<hr class="chap" /> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_i" id="Page_i"></a></span></p> -<div class="figcenter"><img src="images/i_frontis.jpg" alt="SHIO YA SAKAE" /></div> - - -<hr class="chap" /> - -<div class="titlepage"> -<h1> -WHEN I WAS A BOY<br /> -IN JAPAN</h1> - -<p><small>BY</small><br /> -SAKAE SHIOYA</p> - -<p><small><i>ILLUSTRATED FROM PHOTOGRAPHS</i></small></p> - -<div class="figcenter"><img src="images/i_title.jpg" alt="" /></div> - -<p><small>BOSTON<br /> -LOTHROP, LEE & SHEPARD CO.</small></p> -</div> - -<hr class="chap" /> - -<p class="center">Published, August, 1906.</p> - -<p class="center"><span class="smcap">Copyright, 1906, by Lothrop, Lee & Shepard Co.</span></p> - -<p class="center"><i>All Rights Reserved.</i></p> - -<p class="center"><span class="smcap">When I Was a Boy in Japan.</span></p> - -<p class="center">Norwood Press<br /> -Berwick & Smith Co.<br /> -Norwood, Mass., U. S. A.</p> - -<hr class="chap" /> - - - -<div class="chapter"> -<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_iii" id="Page_iii">[Pg iii]</a></span> -<h2 class="nobreak"> -PREFACE</h2></div> - - -<p><span class="smcap">Japanese</span> boys have not been introduced -very much to their little American friends, -and the purpose of this book is to provide -an introduction by telling some of the -experiences which are common to most -Japanese boys of the present time, together -with some account of the customs -and manners belonging to their life. I can -at least claim that the story is told as it -could be only by one who had actually -lived the life that is portrayed. I have -endeavored to hold the interest of my -young readers by bringing in more or less -of amusement. The little girl companion -is introduced to widen the interest and add -somewhat more of the story element than -would otherwise be present. The sketches -composing the various chapters are necessarily -disconnected, but they form a series<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_iv" id="Page_iv">[Pg iv]</a></span> -of pictures, priceless at least to the author, -which foreign eyes have seldom been allowed -to see.</p> - -<p class="right"><span class="smcap">Sakae Shioya.</span></p> - -<blockquote> - -<p><span class="smcap">Yale University, 1905.</span></p></blockquote> - -<hr class="chap" /> - - - - -<div class="chapter"> -<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_v" id="Page_v">[Pg v]</a></span> -<h2 class="nobreak">CONTENTS</h2></div> - - -<div class="blockquot"> -<table border="0" cellpadding="2" cellspacing="2" summary="table"> - -<tr><td colspan="2">CHAPTER I.: <span class="smcap">My Infancy.</span></td></tr> -<tr><td> </td><td>How I Looked—My Name—Walking—In -Tea Season—My Toys—“Kidnapped”—O-dango</td><td align="right" valign="bottom"><a href="#Page_9">9</a></td></tr> - -<tr><td colspan="2">CHAPTER II.: <span class="smcap">At Home.</span></td></tr> -<tr><td> </td><td>Introduction—Dinner—Rice—Turning to -Cows—A Bamboo Dragon-fly—A Watermelon -Lantern—On a Rainy Evening—The -Story of a Badger</td><td align="right" valign="bottom"><a href="#Page_23">23</a></td></tr> - -<tr><td colspan="2">CHAPTER III.: <span class="smcap">The Village School.</span></td></tr> -<tr><td> </td><td>A Mimic School—Preparations—The School—How -Classes Are Conducted—Out of Tune—A -Moral Story—School Discipline—Playthings—“Knife Sense”</td><td align="right" valign="bottom"><a href="#Page_35">35</a></td></tr> - -<tr><td colspan="2">CHAPTER IV.: <span class="smcap">In Tokyo.</span></td></tr> -<tr><td> </td><td>Where We Settled—A Police Stand—Stores—“Broadway”—Illumination—The -Foreign Settlement</td><td align="right" valign="bottom"><a href="#Page_51">51</a></td></tr> - -<tr><td colspan="2">CHAPTER V.: <span class="smcap">My New School.</span></td></tr> -<tr><td> </td><td>Tomo-chan—The Men with Wens—A Curious -Punishment—How I Experienced It—Kotoro-Kotoro</td><td align="right" valign="bottom"><a href="#Page_62">62</a></td></tr> - -<tr><td colspan="2">CHAPTER VI.: <span class="smcap">Chinese Education.</span><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_vi" id="Page_vi">[Pg vi]</a></span></td></tr> -<tr><td> </td><td>My Chinese Teacher—How I Was Taught—Versification—My -Uncle—Clam Fishing—A -Flatfish</td><td align="right" valign="bottom"><a href="#Page_76">76</a></td></tr> - -<tr><td colspan="2">CHAPTER VII.: <span class="smcap">An Evening Fte.</span></td></tr> -<tr><td> </td><td>My Father—His Love for Potted Trees—A -Local Fte—Show Booths—Goldfish Booths—Singing -Insects—How a Potted Tree Was -Bought</td><td align="right" valign="bottom"><a href="#Page_91">91</a></td></tr> - -<tr><td colspan="2">CHAPTER VIII.: <span class="smcap">Summer Days.</span></td></tr> -<tr><td> </td><td>A Swimming School—How I Was Taught to -Swim—Diving—The Old Home Week—Return -of the Departed Souls—Visiting the Ancestral -Graves—The Memorable Night—A -Village Dance</td><td align="right" valign="bottom"><a href="#Page_102">102</a></td></tr> - -<tr><td colspan="2">CHAPTER IX.: <span class="smcap">The English School.</span></td></tr> -<tr><td> </td><td>A Night at the Dormitory—Beginning English—Grammar—Pronunciation—School -Moved—Mother’s -Love</td><td align="right" valign="bottom"><a href="#Page_114">114</a></td></tr> - -<tr><td colspan="2">CHAPTER X.: <span class="smcap">A Boy Astronomer.</span></td></tr> -<tr><td> </td><td>What I Intended to Be—My Aun View—My -Parents’ Approval—My Uncle’s Enthusiasm—The -Total Eclipse of the Sun</td><td align="right" valign="bottom"><a href="#Page_128">128</a></td></tr> - -<tr><td colspan="2">CHAPTER XI.: <span class="smcap">In the Suburbs.</span></td></tr> -<tr><td> </td><td>A Novel Experiment—Removal—Our New -House—Angling—Tomo-chan’s Visit</td><td align="right" valign="bottom"><a href="#Page_143">143</a></td></tr> -</table></div> - -<hr class="chap" /> - - - -<div class="chapter"> -<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_vii" id="Page_vii">[Pg vii]</a></span> -<h2 class="nobreak">ILLUSTRATIONS</h2></div> - - -<table border="0" cellpadding="2" cellspacing="2" summary="table"> - -<tr><td> </td><td align="right"><small>PAGE</small></td></tr> - -<tr><td><span class="smcap">Sakae Shioya</span></td><td align="right"><a href="#Page_i"><i>Portrait Frontispiece</i></a></td></tr> - -<tr><td><span class="smcap">A Japanese House</span></td><td align="right"><a href="#Page_22">22</a></td></tr> - -<tr><td><span class="smcap">A Japanese School Scene</span></td><td align="right"><a href="#Page_40">40</a></td></tr> - -<tr><td><span class="smcap">The Japanese “Broadway”</span></td><td align="right"><a href="#Page_56">56</a></td></tr> - -<tr><td><span class="smcap">A Typical Japanese Street</span></td><td align="right"><a href="#Page_90">90</a></td></tr> - -<tr><td><span class="smcap">A Japanese School of the Present Day</span></td><td align="right"><a href="#Page_120">120</a></td></tr> -</table> - - - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_viii" id="Page_viii">[Pg viii]</a></span></p> -<hr class="chap" /> -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_9" id="Page_9">[Pg 9]</a></span></p> - - - -<p class="ph1">WHEN I WAS A BOY -IN JAPAN</p> - - - - -<div class="chapter"> -<h2 class="nobreak">CHAPTER I<br /> - -MY INFANCY</h2></div> - -<blockquote> - -<p class="center">How I Looked—My Name—Walking—In Tea Season—My -Toys—“Kidnapped”—O-dango.</p></blockquote> - - -<p><span class="smcap">I suppose</span> I don’t need to tell you exactly, -my little friends, when and where I was -born, because Japanese names are rather -hard for you to remember, and then I don’t -want to disclose my age. Suffice it to say -that I was once a baby like all of you and -my birthplace was about a day’s journey -from Tokyo, the capital of Japan. I wish -I could have observed myself and noted -down every funny thing I did when very -small, as the guardian angel, who is said -to be standing by every cradle, will surely -do. But when my memory began to be<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_10" id="Page_10">[Pg 10]</a></span> -serviceable, I was well on in my infancy, -and if I were to rely on that only, I should -have to skip over a considerable length of -time. How I should dislike to do this! -So, my little friends, let me construct this -chapter out of bits of things my mamma -used to tell me now and then.</p> - -<p>When I was born, my father was away. -Grandma was very proud to have a boy -for the first-born, and at once wrote him -a letter saying that a son was born to him -and that he was like—and then she wrote -two large circles, meaning that I was very, -very plump. Do you know how a plump -Japanese baby looks? I have often wondered -myself, and have many a time -watched a baby taking a bath. Let us suppose -him to be one year old and about to -be put into warm water in a wooden tub. -His chin is dimple-cleft, his cheeks ripe as -an apple, and his limbs are but a continuation -of his fat trunk. And how jolly the -elfin is! After the queer expression he has -shown on being dipped has passed away<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_11" id="Page_11">[Pg 11]</a></span> -and he realizes what he is about, he will -make many quick bows—really, I assure -you, to show his thanks for the trouble of -washing him. At this, mother, sister, and -the maid assisting them give a burst of -laughter, when, with a scream of immense -delight, he will strike his fists into the -water, causing a panic among the well-clad -and not-ready-to-get-wet attendants. With -royal indifference, however, he will then -try to push his fist into his mouth, and not -grumbling at all over his ill-success, he -will set about telling a story with his everlasting -mum-mum. Now he is taken out -and laid on a towel. Glowing red, how he -will move his arms and legs like an overturned -turtle! Well, that is how I looked, -I am very sure.</p> - -<p>In Japan, in christening a child, we follow -the principle of “A good name is -better than rich ointment.” I was named -Sakae, which in the hierographic Chinese -characters represents fire burning on a -stand. The idea of illumination will perhaps<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_12" id="Page_12">[Pg 12]</a></span> -suggest itself to you at once, and -indeed, it means glory or thrift. And my -well-wishing parents named me so, that I -might thrive and be a glory to my family. -So I was bound to be good, wasn’t I? A -bad boy with a good name would be very -much like a monkey with a silk hat on.</p> - -<p>Now begins my walking. Now and then -mamma or grandma would train me, taking -my hands and singing:</p> - -<div class="poetry-container"> -<div class="poetry"> -<div class="verse">“Anyo wa o-jozu,</div> -<div class="verse">Korobu wa o-heta.”</div> -</div></div> - -<p>But my secret delight—so I judge—was -to stand by myself, clinging to the convenient -checkered frames of paper screens, -which covered the whole length of the -veranda. When I went from one side to -the other, at first without being noticed—of -course walking like a crab—and then -suddenly being discovered with a shout of -admiration, I used to come down with a -bump, which, however, never hurt me—I -was so plump, you know. I must describe<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_13" id="Page_13">[Pg 13]</a></span> -here a sort of ceremony, or rather an -ordeal, I had to pass through when I was -fairly able to stand and walk without any -help. For this I must begin with my house.</p> - -<p>My house stood on the outskirts of the -town, where the land rose to a low hill -and was covered with tea-plants. We -owned a part of it hedged in by criptomerias.</p> - -<p>We were not regular tea dealers, but -we used to have an exciting time in the -season preparing our crop. Lots of red-cheeked -country girls would come to pick -the leaves, and it was a sight to see them -working. With their heads nicely wrapped -with pieces of white and blue cloth, jetting -out of the green ocean of tea-leaves, they -would sing peculiarly effective country -songs, mostly in solos with a short refrain -in chorus. But they were not having a -concert, and if you should step in among -them, they would make a hero of you, those -girls. And then we had also a good many -young men working at tea-heaters.</p> - - - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_14" id="Page_14">[Pg 14]</a></span>Here they likewise sang snatches of -songs, but their principal business was -to roll up steamed leaves and dry them -over the fire. But when work is combined -with fun, it is a great temptation for a boy, -and I, a lad of five or six, I remember, -would have a share among them, and, -standing on a high stool by a heater and -baring my right shoulder like the rest, -would join more in a refrain than in rolling -the leaves.</p> - -<p>But I was going to tell you about the -ceremony I had to pass through, wasn’t I? -Well, it happened, or rather somebody -especially arranged it so, I suspect, that I -should have it just at the time of this -great excitement. The ceremony itself is -like this. They take a child fairly able -to walk, load him with some heavy thing, -and place him in a sort of a large basket -shaped like the blade of a shovel. Now -let him walk. The basket will rock under -him, the load is too heavy for him, and he -will fall down.</p> - - - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_15" id="Page_15">[Pg 15]</a></span>If he does, it is taken for granted that -he has in that one act had all the falls that -he would otherwise meet in his later life. -So, if he appears too strong to stumble, he -will be shaken down by some roguish hands -before he gets out of it.</p> - -<p>I was to go through this before august -spectators—country girls. They liked -to see me plump, because some of them -were even more plump than I. At -any rate, from everywhere they saluted -me as “Bot’chan,” “Bot’chan.” If -I had returned every salute by looking -this way and that, I should have -broken my neck. But it was customary -to make a bow anyway, and I was -ordered by my mamma to do so. On -this occasion I made two snap bows with -my chin, which excited laughter. Now a -basket was produced, a brand-new one, I -remember, and I was loaded with some -heavy rice cake. I stood up, however, like -Master Peachling of our fairy-tale, who -is said to have surprised his adopted<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_16" id="Page_16">[Pg 16]</a></span> -mother by rising in his bathtub on the very -day of his birth! I was then placed in the -basket and made to walk.</p> - -<p>I looked intently at the basket, not because -it was new, but because it gave me a -queer motion, the ups and downs of a -boat, a new sensation to me, anyway. -Attracted, however, by the merry voices of -the crowd, I looked at them, and suddenly, -being pleased with so many smiling faces, -raised a cry of delight, when down I came -with a loud noise. A roar of laughter -broke out with the clapping of hands. The -noise buried my surprise and I also clapped -my hands without knowing who was being -cheered.</p> - -<p>As the first-born of the house, I must -have had lots of playthings. But there -were two things I remember as clear as -the day. One was a sword, all wood, however. -As the son of a samurai, I should -have had to serve my lord under the old -rgime and stake my life and honor on -the two blades of steel. And so even if<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_17" id="Page_17">[Pg 17]</a></span> -the good old days were gone, something to -remind us of them was kept and made a -plaything of. But really, I liked my -wooden sword. The other thing was a -horse—a hobby-horse, I mean. I don’t -know just how many horses I had, but I -wanted any number of them. I had some -pictures, but they were all of horses. If -not, I would not accept the presents. And -with these two kinds of treasures I enjoyed -most of my childhood days, the -sword slantingly on my side, and the horse, -which I fancied trotting, under me, while -I shouted “Haiyo! haiyo!”</p> - -<p>Although I had my own name, people -called me “Bot’chan,” as I have said, because -it is a general term of endearment, -and papa and mamma would call me -“B” or “Bya.” Among those who -addressed me thus, I remember very well -one middle-aged woman who often came -to steal me from mamma, and by whom -I was only too glad to be stolen.</p> - -<p>We had a long veranda facing the garden,<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_18" id="Page_18">[Pg 18]</a></span> -on which I passed most of my days. -There I rode on my hobby-horse or played -with my little dog Shiro, who would go -through all sorts of tricks for a morsel of -nice things. Suddenly my laugh would -cease and nothing of me would be heard. -Wondering what the matter was, mamma -would open the paper screen to see, and -lo! not a shadow of me was to be seen. -Even Shiro had disappeared. Attacked -with a feeling something akin to horror, -she used to picture—so I imagine—a -winged tengu (a Japanese harpy) swooping -down and carrying me away to some -distant hill. But soon finding recent steps -of clogs on the ground, coming to and receding -from the veranda, she would nod -and smile at the trick. She knew that I -had been kidnapped by a good soul!</p> - -<p>Now I want to give you some reasons -why I liked this woman. First of all, it -was because she always carried me on -her back. The only way to appreciate what -it is to be tall, would be to be a grown-up<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_19" id="Page_19">[Pg 19]</a></span> -man and a small child at the same time. -And that is exactly the feeling that I had. -I could see lots of curious things over the -forbidden hedges. I could even see things -over the house-tops; they were all one-story, -and built low, though. In a word, -I always felt while on her back like a wee -pig who had first toddled out into a wide, -wide world. And then she would carry me -through town. What life there was! After -crossing a bridge which spanned the -stream, coming from the beautiful lake on -the north and going a little way along a -row of pine-trees, we would come on a flock -of ducks and geese on their way to the -water. What a noise they made,—quack, -quack! Then we would begin inspecting -rows of houses, open to the street and in -which all sorts of things were sold. Men, -women, and children, as well as dogs, -seemed to be very much occupied. Then I -would spy some horses laden with straw -bags and wood. Real horses they were, -but I was rather disappointed to find them<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_20" id="Page_20">[Pg 20]</a></span> -so big and their appearance not half so -good as in my pictures. My faith in them -always began to shake a little bit, but still -I used to persist in thinking that my hobby-horses -and pictures were nearer the reality -than those we met on the street. And -wasn’t it curious that my belief was at last -substantiated by seeing a Shetland pony -in America after some twenty years? Ah, -that was exactly what I had in mind!</p> - -<p>Then I would hear a merry prattle on a -drum—<i>terent-tenten, terent-tenten</i>. Ah, -here would come boy acrobats dressed in -something like girls’ gymnasium suits, -with a small mask of a lion’s head with a -plume on it, on their heads. A funny sort -of boy, I thought, but on my woman’s giving -them some pennies, they would perform -all sorts of feats which interested me never -so much. The woman used to shake me -to make sure that I was not dead, as I -kept very quiet, watching.</p> - -<p>The woman’s house was just behind the -street, and she was sure to take me there.<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_21" id="Page_21">[Pg 21]</a></span> -Here was another reason why I liked her -very much. She seemed to know just what -I wanted. She would set me on the sunny -veranda and bring me some nice o-dango -(rice dumpling). This she made herself, -and it was prepared just to my liking, -covered well with soy and baked deliciously. -I was in clover if I only had that!</p> - -<p>I will describe one of my visits, which -will well represent them all. The day was -calm and bright, and while we were feasting—she -had some of the good things, too—her -pussy sat on one end of the veranda -and was finishing her toilet in the sun. -Even the sparrows in this peaceful weather -forgot that they were birds of air, and -fell from the trees and were wrestling -noisily on the ground. Only the pussy’s -move broke up their sport. By this time -we were very near the end of our business. -Turning from the sparrows, my -woman glanced at me and sat for a moment -transfixed with the awful sight I -presented. There I was with my cheeks<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_22" id="Page_22">[Pg 22]</a></span> -and nose all besmeared with brown soy, -stretching my sticky hands in a helpless -attitude, and licking my mouth by way of -variation. She now broke into laughter -and was scrambling on the floor, weak with -merriment. But my mute appeal was too -eloquent; indeed, I was all ready to shed -tears with an utter sense of helplessness -when she hastened to bring a wet towel and -wipe my face and hands clean and nice, -with, “Oh, my poor Bot’chan!”</p> - -<div class="figcenter"><img src="images/i_022f.jpg" alt="" /></div> -<p class="caption"><span class="smcap">A Japanese House.</span></p> - -<hr class="chap" /> - - - - - - -<div class="chapter"> -<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_23" id="Page_23">[Pg 23]</a></span> -<h2 class="nobreak">CHAPTER II<br /> - -AT HOME</h2></div> - -<blockquote> - -<p class="center">Introduction—Dinner—Rice—Turning to Cows—A -Bamboo Dragon-fly—A Watermelon Lantern—On -a Rainy Evening—The Story of a Badger.</p></blockquote> - - -<p><span class="smcap">Our</span> family consisted of father, mother, -grandmother, and two children besides -myself, at the time when I was six years -old. I don’t remember exactly what business -my father was in, but my impression -is that he had no particular one. He had -been trained for the old samurai and devoted -most of his youthful days to fencing, -riding, and archery. But by the -time he had come of age, that training was -of no use to him professionally, because, -as quickly as you can turn the palm of -your hand, Japan went through a wonderful -change from the old feudal rgime -to the era of new civilization. So my<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_24" id="Page_24">[Pg 24]</a></span> -father, and many, many others like him, -were just in mid-air, so to speak, being -thrown out of their proper sphere, but -unable to settle as yet to the solid ground -and adapt themselves to new ways. My -mother came also of the samurai stock, -and, like most of her class, kept in her -cabinet a small sword beautifully ornamented -in gold work, with which she was -ready to defend her honor whenever -obliged to. But far from being mannish, -she was as meek as a lamb, and was devoted -to my father and her children. My -grandmother was of a retiring nature and -I cannot draw her very much into my -narrative. But she was very good to -everybody, and her daily work, so far as -I can remember, was to take a walk around -the farm every morning. She was so -regular in this habit that I cannot think of -her without associating her with the scent -of the dewy morning and with the green -of the field which stretched before her. -She died not many years after, but I often<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_25" id="Page_25">[Pg 25]</a></span> -wonder if she is really dead. To me she -is still living, and what the great poet said -of Lucy Gray sounds peculiarly true in her -case, too.</p> - -<div class="poetry-container"> -<div class="poetry"> - <div class="stanza"> -<div class="verse">“—Yet some maintain that to this day</div> -<div class="indent">She is a living child;</div> -<div class="verse">That you may see sweet Lucy Gray</div> -<div class="indent">Upon the lonesome wild.</div> -</div> - <div class="stanza"> -<div class="verse">“O’er rough and smooth she trips along,</div> -<div class="indent">And never looks behind;</div> -<div class="verse">And sings a solitary song</div> -<div class="indent">That whistles in the wind.”</div> -</div></div></div> - -<p>Only you would have to make Lucy seventy -years old to fit my grandmother.</p> - -<p>The introduction being over, let us -attend a dinner, or rather give attention -to a description of one. We do not eat -at one large dining-table with chairs -around it. We each have a separate small -table about a foot and a half square, all -lacquered red, green, or black, and sit before -it on our heels. A rice bucket, a teapot, -some saucers, a bottle of soy, and so -forth, are all placed near some one who<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_26" id="Page_26">[Pg 26]</a></span> -is to specially serve us. We used to sit in -two rows, father and grandmother facing -each other, mother next to father, with the -young sister opposite my brother and myself. -The younger children usually sit -next to some older person who can help -them in eating. No grace was said, but I -always bowed to my elders before I began -with “itadakimasu” (I take this with -thanks), which I sometimes said when I -was very hungry, as a good excuse and -signal to start eating before the others.</p> - -<p>Rice is our staple food and an almost -reverential attitude toward it as the sustainer -of our life is entertained by the -people. And I was told time and again -not to waste it. Once a maid, so my -mother used to tell me, was very careless -in cleaning rice before it was cooked. -She dropped lots of grains on the stone -floor under the sink day after day, and -never stopped to pick them up. One day, -when she wanted to clean the floor, she -was frightened half to death by finding<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_27" id="Page_27">[Pg 27]</a></span> -there ever so many white serpents straining -their necks at her. She really fainted -when the goddess of the kitchen appeared -to her in her trance and bade her to take -all those white serpents in a basket and -wash them clean. As she came to herself, -she did as she was told, trembling -with horror at touching such vile things, -some of which, indeed, would try to coil -themselves around her hands. But as the -last pailful of water was poured on them, -lo! what were serpents a moment ago -were now all turned into nice grains of -rice ready to be boiled. Now if there is -one thing in the world I hate, it is a serpent; -the mere mention of it makes my -flesh creep. So you see I took care to -pitch every grain of boiled rice into my -mouth with my chop-sticks before I left my -table.</p> - -<p>Another story was told me concerning -the meal. The Japanese teach home discipline -by stories, you know. This was -a short one, being merely the statement<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_28" id="Page_28">[Pg 28]</a></span> -that if anybody lies down on the floor soon -after he has eaten his meal, he will turn -into a cow. Now a number of times I had -found cows chewing their cuds while -stretched upon the ground. So I thought, -in my childish mind, that there must be -some mysterious connection between each -of the three in the order as they stand: -eating—lying down—cow. So, naturally, -I avoided the second process, and, -after eating, immediately ran out-of-doors -to see what our man, Kichi, was doing.</p> - -<p>Kichi worked on our little farm, and I -usually found him cleaning his implements -after the day’s work. We were -great friends, and he used to present me -with toys of his own making, which were -very simple but indeed a marvel to me. -Once he picked up a piece of bamboo and -made a chip of it about a twelfth of an -inch thick, a third of an inch wide, and -three inches and a half long. Then he -sliced obliquely one-half of one side and -the other half of the same side in the<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_29" id="Page_29">[Pg 29]</a></span> -opposite direction, so that the edges might -be made thin. He also bored a small hole -in the middle and put in a stick about -twice as thick as a hairpin and about four -inches long, the sliced side being down. -He then cut off the projecting end of the -stick, when it was tight in the chip. The -dragon-fly was now ready to take flight. -He took the stick between his palms and -gave a twist, when lo! it flew away up in -the air.</p> - -<p>I was delighted with the toy, and tried -several times to make it fly. But when I -used all my force and gave it a good long -twist, why, it took such a successful flight -that it hit the edge of the comb of our -straw roof and stuck there, never to come -down. I was very sorry at that, but Kichi -laughed at the feat the dragon-fly had performed, -and said that the maker was so -skilful that the toy turned out to be a real -living thing! It was perched there for the -night. Well, I admired his skill very -much, but did not want to lose my toy in<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_30" id="Page_30">[Pg 30]</a></span> -that way. So I made him promise me to -make another the next day, reminding him -not to put too much skill in it.</p> - -<p>It was summer, the season of watermelons. -We had a small melon patch and -an ample supply of the fruit. Here was a -chance for Kichi to try his skill again. -One evening he took a pretty round melon -and scooped the inside out so as to put -in a lighted candle. So far this was very -ordinary. He scraped the inner part until -the rind was fairly transparent, and then -cut a mouth, a nose, and eyes with eyebrows -sticking out like pins. He then -painted them so that when the candle was -lighted a monster of a melon was produced. -How triumphant a boy would feel -in possessing such a thing! I hung it on -the veranda that evening when the room -was weirdly lighted by one or two greenish -paper lanterns, and watched it with my -folks. I expressed my admiration for -Kichi’s skill, and with boyish fondness for -exaggeration mentioned the fact that a<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_31" id="Page_31">[Pg 31]</a></span> -toy dragon-fly of his making had really -turned out to be a living thing. All -laughed, but of course I made an effort to -be serious. But no sooner were we silent -than, without the slightest hint, the melon -angrily dropped down with a crash. I -screamed, but, being assured of its safety, -I approached it and found the skull of the -monster was badly fractured, in fact, one -piece of it flying some twenty feet out in -the garden. The next morning I took the -first opportunity to tell Kichi that his toy -was so skilfully made that it sought death -of its own accord.</p> - -<p>Well, I started to tell what I did evenings, -but when it was wet I had a very -tedious time. Nothing is more dismal to a -boy than a rainy day. To lie down was to -become a cow. So one rainy evening I -opened the screen, and, standing, looked -out at the rain. But this was no fun. The -only alternative was to go to one of the -rooms. Now there is no chair in a Japanese -house, and to sit over one’s heels is<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_32" id="Page_32">[Pg 32]</a></span> -too ceremonial, not to say a bit trying, even -for a Japanese child. So my legs unconsciously -collapsed, and there I was lying -on my back, singing aloud some songs I -had learned. Presently I began to look -at the unpainted ceiling, and traced the -grain. And is it not wonderful that out -of knots and veins of wood you can make -figures of some living things? Yes, I -traced a man’s face, one eye much larger -than the other. Then, I had a cat. Now -I began to trace a big one with a V-shaped -face. A cow! The idea ran through me -with the swiftness of lightning, and the -next moment I sprang to my feet and -shook myself to see if I had undergone -any transformation. Luckily, I was all -right. But to make the thing sure, I felt -of my forehead carefully to see if anything -hard was coming out of it.</p> - -<p>The room now lost its attraction. And -I ran away to the room where my grandmother -was. Opening the screen, I said:</p> - - -<p>“Grandma!”</p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_33" id="Page_33">[Pg 33]</a></span>“Well, B?”</p> - -<p>“May I come in? I want you to tell -me the story of a badger, grandma.”</p> - -<p>I was never tired of hearing the same -stories over and over again from my -grandmother. There was at some distance -a tall tree, shooting up like an arrow -to the sky, which was visible from a window -of her room. It was there that the -badger of her story liked to climb. One -early evening he was there with the cover -of an iron pot, which he made with his -magic power appear like a misty moon. -Now a farmer, who was still working in -the field, chanced to see it, and was surprised -to find that it was already so late. -He could tell the hour from the position -of the moon, you know. So he made haste -to finish his work, and was going home, -when another moon, the real one this time, -peeped out of the wood near by. The -badger, however, had too much faith in his -art to withdraw his mock moon, and held -it there to rival the newly risen one. The<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_34" id="Page_34">[Pg 34]</a></span> -farmer was astonished to find two moons -at the same time, but he was not slow to -see which was real. He smiled at the -trick of the badger, and now wanted to -outwit him. He approached the tree -stealthily and shook it with all his might. -The badger was not prepared for this. -Losing his balance, he dropped down to the -ground, moon and all, and had to run for -his life, for the farmer was right after -him with his hoe.</p> - -<p>I laughed and grandma laughed, too, -over her own story, when the paper screen -was suddenly brightened.</p> - -<p>“The badger’s moon!” I cried, and -climbed up to my grandmother.</p> - -<p>“Yes, I am a badger,” said a voice, as -the door was opened. And there stood -my mother with a paper lantern she had -brought for the room.</p> - -<hr class="chap" /> - - - - - - -<div class="chapter"> -<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_35" id="Page_35">[Pg 35]</a></span> -<h2 class="nobreak">CHAPTER III<br /> - -THE VILLAGE SCHOOL</h2></div> - -<blockquote> - -<p class="center">A Mimic School—Preparations—The School—How -Classes Are Conducted—Out of Tune—A Moral -Story—School Discipline—Playthings—“Knife -Sense.”</p></blockquote> - - -<p><span class="smcap">At</span> the age of six I was sent to school. -For some time before the fall opening, -I was filled with excitement and curiosity -and looked forward to the day with great -impatience. As our neighbors were few -and scattered and I did not have many -playmates, I wondered how I should feel -on coming in contact with so many boys, -most of whom were older than I. And -then there was study. I had a faint idea -what a learned scholar such as Confucius -was, and felt as if a plunge into school a -day or two would half convert me into that -obscure ideal. Weeks before, I insisted<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_36" id="Page_36">[Pg 36]</a></span> -on having a mimic school at home to prepare -myself a little for the august event, -and with my mother as teacher I learned -the numerals and the forty-eight letters -of the Japanese alphabet by heart. I -wished to do just as I would at school, and -so I used to go outdoors and with measured -steps approach the porch. Entering -the house, I sat down before a table and -bowed reverentially. When my mother -was there before me, I cheerfully began to -study, well, for five minutes or so, but when -I found her not quite ready I was mercilessly -thrown out of humor, and only her -exaggerated bows for apology would induce -me to dry my sorrowful tears.</p> - -<p>The few days before the opening of the -school were taken for my preparation. I -needed copy-books, a slate, an abacus, -which is a frame strung with wires on -which are wooden beads to be moved in -counting and reckoning, and a small writing-box, -containing a stone ink-well, a cake -of India ink, a china water-vessel, and<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_37" id="Page_37">[Pg 37]</a></span> -brushes. I must have also a round lunch -set, the three pieces of which can be piled -one upon another like a miniature pagoda, -and then, when empty, be put one within -another to reduce the size. A pair of -chop-sticks went with the set of course. -Now all must be purchased new as if -everything had a new start. And then a -new school suit was procured together -with a navy cap. These were all ready a -day before, and were exhibited on the -alcove.</p> - -<p>My younger brother was possessed of -the school mania at the sight of these last, -and insisted that he would have his set, -too. And so mimic ones were procured, -and these formed a second row together -with his holiday suit.</p> - -<p>And then came the night before I was to -go. I played the part of a watch-dog by -sleeping right near my property. In fact, -I went to bed early, but I could not sleep -till after everybody had retired for the -night. And then I dreamed that my abacus<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_38" id="Page_38">[Pg 38]</a></span> -stood up, its beads chattering on how to -start the trip in the morning. It was -joined by the copy-book, made of soft, -Japanese paper, which parted hither and -thither in walking, as a lady’s skirt,—a -Japanese lady’s, I mean. The chairman -was my navy cap. I did not know how -they decided, but they must have come to -a peaceful agreement, as they were found, -when I awoke in the morning, exactly in -the same place, lying quiet.</p> - -<p>The next morning I set out with my -father for the school. The faces of every -one in the house were at the door looking -at me. I made every effort to be dignified -in walking, but could not help looking back -just once, when my face relaxed into a -smile, and I felt suddenly very shy. But -as I heard my younger brother struggling -to get away from my mother to follow me, -I hastened my steps to turn round a corner -of the road.</p> - -<p>The school was a low, dark-looking -building, with paper-screened windows all<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_39" id="Page_39">[Pg 39]</a></span> -around like a broad white belt, and with a -spacious porch with dusty shelves to leave -clogs on. When we arrived, we were led -into a side room, where we met the master -or principal, and soon my father returned -home, leaving me to his care. I felt somewhat -lonesome with strangers all around, -but kept myself as cool as possible, which -effort was very much like stopping a leak -with the hands. A slight neglect would -bring something misty into my eyes. But -now all the boys—and girls, too, in the -other room—came into one large room. -Some forty of the older ones and fifteen -of those who had newly entered took their -seats, the older ones glancing curiously at -the newcomers. But we were all in back -seats and so were not annoyed with looks -that would have been felt piercing us from -behind. The desk I was assigned to was a -miserable one; not only was it besmeared -with ink ages old, but cuts were made here -and there as if it were a well-fought battleground. -But I did not feel ashamed to sit<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_40" id="Page_40">[Pg 40]</a></span> -there, as I thought that this was a kind of -place in which a Confucius was to be -brought up.</p> - -<div class="figcenter"><img src="images/i_040f.jpg" alt="A Japanese School Scene" /></div> -<p class="caption"><span class="smcap">A Japanese School Scene.</span></p> - -<p>Looking awhile on what was going on, -I found the boys were divided into three -classes. The method of teaching was -curious; one class alone was allowed to -have a reading lesson, while the other two -were having writing or arithmetic, that is, -the teaching was so arranged that what -one class was doing might not disturb the -others. I was struck, even in my boyish -mind, with the happy method, and learned -the first lesson in management. And then -reading was done partly in unison with -the master, in a singsong style, and the -effect was pleasing, if it was not very loud. -The class in arithmetic, on the other hand, -sent out a pattering noise of pencils on the -slates, which in a confused mass would -form an overtone of the orchestra. A -writing lesson taken in the midst of such -a company was never tiresome. Indeed, -anything out of tune would send the whole<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_41" id="Page_41">[Pg 41]</a></span> -house into laughter, and such things were -constantly happening.</p> - - - - -<p>I was not slow in becoming acquainted -with the boys. As I went into the playground -for the first time, I felt rather -awkward to find nobody to play with. -But soon two boys whom I knew thrust -themselves before me and uncovered -their heads. And from that moment the -playground became a place of great interest -to me. Two friends grew into five, -eight, ten, and fifteen, and in three days -I felt as if I possessed the whole ground.</p> - -<p>As things grew more familiar, I found -almost every boy was striving a little bit -to be out of tune. When singsong reading -was going on, pupils echoing responsively -the teacher’s voice, some wild boy would -suddenly redouble his effort with gusto, -and his voice, like that of a strangled -chicken, would soar away up, to the great -merriment of the rest. And then often a -boy, whose mind was occupied with a hundred -and one things except the book, engaged<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_42" id="Page_42">[Pg 42]</a></span> -in some sly communication with -another, unconscious of the teacher’s approach, -when he would literally jump into -the air as the master’s whip descended -sharply on his desk. We sat by twos on -benches, and when one boy saw his companion -carelessly perching on the end of -the bench, just right for experimenting -the principle of the lever, he would not -miss a moment to stand up, presumably -to ask some question. But no sooner had -he called to the teacher, than the other fellow -would shoot down to the floor with a -cry, and the bench come back with a tremendous -noise. But this was not all. -When the boys could not find a pretense to -make a noise, they would stealthily paint -their faces with writing brushes. Two -touches would be enough to grow a thick -mustache curling up to the ears. When -the teacher faced a dozen of those mustache-wearing -boys who were unable to -efface their naughty acts as quickly as they<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_43" id="Page_43">[Pg 43]</a></span> -had committed them, he could do nothing -but to burst into undignified laughter.</p> - -<p>One day a strange method of discipline -was instituted. The teacher must have -been at a loss to bring the urchins to behave -well. It was the last hour, the only -hour, I think, the boys kept quiet. They -did so partly because the course bore the -great name of ethics, but more because -moral stories were told. And the boys -did not care whether the stories were moral -or not, as long as they were interesting. -Here is one of the twenty-four Chinese -stories that teach filial duty:</p> - -<p>There was once a boy by the name of -Ching who had an old mother. He was a -good boy, and did what he could to please -her. The mother, however, often asked for -things hard to get. One day in winter she -wanted some carp for her dinner. It was -very cold, and the lake where Ching used -to fish was all frozen. What could he do? -He, however, went to the lake, looked about -the place to find out where the ice was not<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_44" id="Page_44">[Pg 44]</a></span> -thick, and, baring himself about his stomach, -lay flat to thaw it. It was a very difficult -thing to do, but at last the ice gave -way, and to his great joy, from the crevice -thus made, a big carp jumped out into the -air. So he could satisfy his mother’s -want.</p> - -<p>Not only the boys who listened intently, -but also the teacher, got interested as the -story grew to the climax, and the latter -would gesticulate and eventually impersonate -the dutiful boy, showing surprise -at seeing a carp jumping ten feet into the -air. This called forth laughter which was -meant for applause. But the teacher soon -came to himself and called silence. One -day, after telling this story, he said that -it was yet half an hour before the time to -close, but he would dismiss us. “But,” -he continued, “you can go only one by -one, beginning with those who are quiet -and good. This is to train you for your -orderly conduct in study-hours, and if any -one cannot keep quiet, even for half an<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_45" id="Page_45">[Pg 45]</a></span> -hour, he shall stay in his place till he can -do so.” This was a severe test. An early -dismissal, even of five minutes before the -time, had a special charm for boys, but -to-day we could march out half an hour -earlier. And then what a lovely day it -was in autumn! The warm sun was -bright, and the trees were ablaze with -golden leaves. Persimmons were waiting -for us to climb up and feast on them. -After a moment the boys were as still as -night. One by one a “good” boy was -called to leave; they went like lambs to -the door, but no sooner were they out, -than some stamped on the stairs noisily -and shouted and laughed on the green, -which act showed that the teacher did not -always pick the right ones. I naturally -waited my turn with impatience. I thought -I was a pretty good boy. At least I had -Confucius for my ideal, and those who had -it were not many. I never did mischief, -except once, and that was really an accident. -I dropped my lunch-box in my<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_46" id="Page_46">[Pg 46]</a></span> -arithmetic class, and chased it, as it had -rolled off quite a distance. Half the school -laughed at me, and that was all. I was now -musing on my ill-luck when a call came to -me at last. It was still a quarter of an -hour before closing time, and I thought the -teacher knew me, after all.</p> - -<p>Within a month after I entered the -school, I made a new discovery as to a -schoolboy’s equipments. I had thought -that they consisted only of books, copy-books, -an abacus, and such things. But -these form only a half of them. The -other half are hidden to view: they are -in the pockets, or in the sleeves, I should -have said. During the recess a strong -cord will come out and also a top about -two and a half inches in diameter, and -with an iron ring a quarter of an inch -thick. A Japanese top is a mad thing. -When it sings out of the hands and hits -that of the opponent, sending it off -crippled, it makes you feel very happy. -Another thing is a sling. It is as old as the<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_47" id="Page_47">[Pg 47]</a></span> -time of David, but it was perfectly new -to me. When a pebble shoots out and -vanishes in the air, you feel as though you -were able to hit a kite circling away up in -the sky. And another thing! It is a -knife, the broad-bladed one. With it they -cut a piece one and a half feet long out of -a thick branch of a tree and sharpen one -end of it. Selecting a piece of soft ground, -the boys in turn drive in their own pieces -and try to knock over the others. The -game depends much on one’s strength and -the kind of wood one selects. But there -is a pleasure in possessing a cruel branch -that will knock off three or four pieces at -a blow. Oh, for a knife and a top! I -thought. I disclosed the matter to my -mother, who thought a top was all right -and bought me one. But as for the knife, -she gave me a small one, fit only to sharpen -a pencil with. I felt ashamed (I blush to -confess, though) even to show it to my -schoolmates. If I had had money, I would -have given my all just for a knife. But<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_48" id="Page_48">[Pg 48]</a></span> -money was a mean thing; the possession -of it was the root of all evil—so it was -thought, and, indeed, I was penniless. -But I must have a decent knife—decent -among boys. If I could only get one I -would give my Confucius for it.</p> - -<p>One day I saw my Kichi—we had kept -up our meeting ever since. I talked to -him about a knife. He did not tell me how -I could get one because I talked only about -what the possession of a good knife would -mean to a boy. It was a rather general -remark, but I disliked to go right to the -point. It would be too much to presume -on his kindness, you know. And then I -rather wanted him to offer. He, however, -produced his own favorite knife and cut -a thick piece of deal right away to show -how sharp it was. Well, I thought he had -a knife sense, anyway. So I kept talking -about it day after day, and each time I -talked of it he showed me his, and tried it -on a piece of wood.</p> - -<p>One day there was a town festival and<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_49" id="Page_49">[Pg 49]</a></span> -in the evening I was allowed to go with -Kichi to see it. Kichi’s manner that night -was very strange; he appeared as if he -had a chestful of gold. He asked me in -a fatherly manner what I liked, and said -he could buy me all the booths if I wished -him to. I never felt so happy as then. I -thought my patience had conquered him -at last. And to make a long story short, -I came to own a splendid knife, better -than any other boy’s at the school! That -night I slept with it under the pillow.</p> - -<p>The next morning the first thing I did -was to go to thank Kichi.</p> - -<p>“Hello, Kichi,” I shouted. “Thank -you very much for the knife.”</p> - -<p>“Oh, good morning, Bot’chan. Let me -see your knife,” he said. “But I am -sorry that I played a joke on you last -night. It was your mother who paid for -it. You must go and thank her for it.”</p> - -<p>“Well, never!” I gasped. But being -told how she handed him the money when -we started, I gave him a slap—a mild one,<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_50" id="Page_50">[Pg 50]</a></span> -though—on his face and ran immediately -to my mother, thinking that after all she -had something more than a mere knife -sense.</p> - -<hr class="chap" /> - - - - - - -<div class="chapter"> -<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_51" id="Page_51">[Pg 51]</a></span> -<h2 class="nobreak">CHAPTER IV<br /> - -IN TOKYO</h2></div> - -<blockquote> - -<p class="center">Where We Settled—A Police Stand—Stores—“Broadway”—Illumination—The -Foreign Settlement.</p></blockquote> - - -<p><span class="smcap">About</span> two years after I entered the village -school I had to leave it for good and all. -My father, as I have said, was in mid-air -between the heaven of old Japan and the -prosaic earth of the new institution. He -would fain have remained there, had he -had a pillar of gold to support him. And -it is wonderful to see how this glittering -pillar does support one in almost any -place. It was a very serious matter for -him to launch in the new current without -any helpful equipment. But he had to do -it, and made up his mind to try his fortune -at the very centre of the new civilization, -Tokyo. And so one day we said good-by<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_52" id="Page_52">[Pg 52]</a></span> -to our friends who came to see us off, and -started for the capital. “Parting is such -sweet sorrow,” as the poet sang, but I -hardly remember now whether I shed tears -or not. As I, however, look back to the -day, I cannot but be grateful for the new -move, for the immeasurable benefit it -brought at least to us children.</p> - -<p>In Tokyo we settled very near where my -aunt lived. The street was by no means -in a noisy quarter, but I can hardly think -of anywhere in the city which was so well -situated for being in contact with so many -places of interest, at least for a boy just -from the country. It was near to the -“Broadway” of Tokyo, and just as near -to the foreign settlement and to the railroad -station, the only one of the kind in -the city in those days. And if I wanted a -touch of the old order of things, there was -a big temple, a block on the east, which -made its presence known to the forgetful -people by striking a big bell every evening. -I cannot say they rang the bell, because<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_53" id="Page_53">[Pg 53]</a></span> -the bells at Buddhist temples do not -chime, but boom. They are so big—bigger -than a siege-gun. I liked the -sound very much, as it brought to me like -a dream the vision of a hillside sleeping -under the setting sun. But I must not -forget to mention a large piece of grassy -ground very near us, where we could -romp, fly kites, or play at a tug-of-war.</p> - -<p>Now the first thing I did when I came -to the new place was to familiarize myself -with the neighborhood for the sake of -running errands, or just to keep myself -informed. First I started eastward and -turned the corner to the left, where I found -a wee bit of a house, or rather a box, six -feet by nine, where two policemen were -stationed. It was the first time I had ever -seen any of them, and I thought they were -a queer sort of people, who looked at me -suspiciously whenever I looked at them -in that way. But I thought as long as I -did not do anything wrong, they would -have no reason for coming at me. I also<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_54" id="Page_54">[Pg 54]</a></span> -had great faith that if a thief should break -into our house, they would soon come to -our help. So I made several trials to -see how quickly I could cover the distance -to give them notice. They must have -thought me a strange boy as I came panting -to the police stand and stopped short -to look at the clock inside.</p> - -<p>A little beyond began the market. First -a grocery store, then a fish stall, a bean-cake -shop, and so on. I remember that -the house I most frequented was a sweet -potato store. I could get five or six nice -hot baked pieces for a penny. And how I -liked them! At regular intervals fresh -ones were ready and we waited for them, -falling into a line. When we got as much -as we wanted, we would run a race lest -they should get too cold. At the end of the -street, just opposite a tall fire-ladder, -standing erect and with a bell on the top, -was a big meat store. Beef, pork, everything, -they had, and sometimes I found a -bill posted saying, “Mountain Whale,<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_55" id="Page_55">[Pg 55]</a></span> -To-day.” Whatever that might be, I -never cared to eat such doubtful things. -You never tried sea-horse or sea-elephant, -did you?</p> - -<p>Then, going in another direction from -my house, I made my way to “Broadway.” -I first crossed a bridge which -spanned a canal and came to an object of -much interest. It was a telegraph-pole. -I was never able to count the wires on it -unless I did it by the help of a multiplication -table, as there were so many of them, -coming from all parts of the country to -the central station. A strange thing about -them was that they sang. When I put my -ear to the pole, even on a windless day, I -could hear a number of soft voices wailing, -as it were. I thought they must come -from messages running on the wires, many -of which were indeed too sad to describe. -And then there was something which made -me think that boys in that vicinity had a -very hard time. Many a time I saw kites -with warriors’ faces painted on them, entangled<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_56" id="Page_56">[Pg 56]</a></span> -in the wires. The faces which -looked heroic, now seemed only grinning -furiously for agony! But I must not be -musing on such things, for if I did not -take care in that crowded thoroughfare, a -jinrikisha man would come dashing from -behind with “Heigh, there!” which took -the breath out of a country boy.</p> - -<div class="figcenter"><img src="images/i_056f.jpg" alt="The Japanese Broadway" /></div> -<p class="caption"><span class="smcap">The Japanese “Broadway.”</span></p> - -<p>Broadway was built after a foreign -style,—I don’t know which country’s, -though. There were sidewalks with willow-trees,—and -there are no sidewalks in -ordinary Japanese roads,—and brick -houses, two stories high, and with no basement. -Horse-cars were running, but they -would not be on the track after ten in the -evening. Many jinrikishas were running, -too, and some half a dozen of them were -waiting for customers at each corner. But -not a shadow of a cab was to be seen anywhere. -To tell the truth, I never thought -of finding one then, its existence in the -world being unknown to me at that time. -There were a good many wonders in store<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_57" id="Page_57">[Pg 57]</a></span> -for me in the shops, and I never grew tired -of inspecting them. One curious thing -was that here and there at the notion -stores boys were playing hand-organs, -probably to draw customers in. So I -thought, anyway, and every time I passed -I obliged them awhile by listening to their -music. As I strolled on, I came across a -sign with “Shiruko” in large letters on -it. Shiruko is a sort of pudding, made of -sweet bean sauce and rice dumpling, and -served hot. To be sure, it made my mouth -water, but I went on reading a bill over -the wall. There were twelve varieties of -shiruko, it said, styled after the names of -the months, and any one who could finish -eating all of them at one time, would get -a prize besides the return of the price! -How I wished that I had a big stomach!</p> - -<p>The sight of Broadway was prettier in -the evening, when the sidewalks would be -lined with hundreds of stalls. I shall have -occasion to describe them later, and so -let me now mention one thing which I<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_58" id="Page_58">[Pg 58]</a></span> -never remember without a smile. It was -an illumination on a holiday evening—not -of the whole street, but of only one -building, and that of two stories, I remember. -It was a newspaper office. And -as newspapers are always giving us something -new, this building, I think, awoke -one morning to give us what was very new -at that time. It girdled itself just once -with an iron pipe half an inch in diameter, -which twisted itself into some characters -in the front, and awaited a holiday evening. -The paper advertised that everybody -should come to see how they were -going to celebrate the holiday evening. -So the whole city turned out, and all my -folks, too. Hand-organs in the stores -around began a concert, and people waited -with their mouths open. The time came, -and lights were seen running from both -ends like serpents, closing up in the centre. -Wonder of wonders! “DAILY NEWS -OFFICE” in gaslight appeared!</p> - -<p>I must tell you one more adventure I<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_59" id="Page_59">[Pg 59]</a></span> -had, and that was an excursion into the -foreign settlement. As I came to the city -I met with a foreigner once in a while. I -wondered how I should feel if I but -plunged into their crowd and spoke with -them, if possible. So one day, with a -curious mind, I started for the place where -the foreigners lived together, about a mile -from my home. As I neared the settlement -I made several discoveries. First, -the houses looked very prim and square, -straight up and down, painted white, or -in some light color. When viewed from a -distance they looked as if they were so -many gravestones in a temple yard. Unfortunately, -it was the only comparison -that occurred to a country boy. As I -looked again, I found out another fact. -That was, that while Japanese houses were -nestling under the trees, foreign houses -were above them. In fact, there was nothing -more than low bushes around the -houses. So my conclusion was that foreigners -lived in gravestone-like houses, and<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_60" id="Page_60">[Pg 60]</a></span> -did not like tall trees, being tall themselves, -perhaps. As I entered a street I -found everything just contrary to my expectation. -Streets were deserted instead -of being thronged; only one or two people -and a dog were seen crossing. I went on, -when, as luck would have it, I neared a -Catholic temple from which two men, or -women,—I could not distinguish which,—dressed -in black, with hoods of the same -color, came! How dismal, I thought, and -immediately took to my heels till I came -to another part of the street where the -houses faced the sea. I wanted to see a -boy or a girl, anyway, if I could not find -a crowd. As I looked I saw something -white at one of the gates, and what was -my delight when I found it to be a little -girl! I approached her, but not very near, -as we could not talk to each other. I just -kept at an admiring distance. I stood -there, one eye on her and the other on the -sea, lest I should drive her in by looking -at her with both my eyes, and began to<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_61" id="Page_61">[Pg 61]</a></span> -examine her. What a pretty creature she -was! With her face white as a lily and -her cheeks pink as a cherry flower, she -stood there watching me. Her light hair -was parted, a blue ribbon being tied on -one side like a butterfly. She had on a -white muslin dress with a belt to match the -ribbon, but what was my astonishment to -find that I could not see any dress beyond -her knees! I could not believe it at first, -but the dress stopped short there, and the -slender legs, covered with something -black,—I did not care what,—were shooting -out. Might not some malicious person -have cut it so? “Oh, please, for mercy’s -sake, cover them,” was my thought. “I -don’t care if you have a long dress, the -skirt trailing on the ground.” But was I -mistaken in my standard of criticism? -I looked at myself, and, sure enough, my -kimono reached down to my feet!</p> - -<hr class="chap" /> - - - - - - -<div class="chapter"> -<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_62" id="Page_62">[Pg 62]</a></span> -<h2 class="nobreak">CHAPTER V<br /> - -MY NEW SCHOOL</h2></div> - -<blockquote> - -<p class="center">Tomo-chan—The Men with Wens—A Curious Punishment—How -I Experienced It—Kotoro-kotoro.</p></blockquote> - - -<p><span class="smcap">Of</span> course I attended another school as -soon as we were settled. And every morning -I went with my Tomo-chan.</p> - -<p>But I must tell you who Tomo-chan was. -She—yes, <i>she</i>—was the adopted daughter -of my aunt, of about the same age as -I, and in the same class at school. I wish -I had space enough to tell you how she -came to be adopted, but I shall have to be -contented just with telling you that the -main cause of her becoming a member of -my aunt’s family was all through me. -Aunty had no child, but she had found how -lovely a child is, even if he be mischievous, -through my short visit two years before, -which I have had no occasion to tell<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_63" id="Page_63">[Pg 63]</a></span> -you about. Now one of the first principles -in physics says that nature abhors a -vacuum. This means that it is unnatural -for a place to have nothing in it. I had -gone back: who was to fill my place? So -Tomo-chan, a better and certainly prettier -child than I, slipped into my shoes.</p> - -<p>Aunty wished us to be good friends. So -I called on her every morning on my way -to school, and in the afternoon we went -over our lesson together. Arithmetic was -not very hard for me, and so I helped her -over pitfalls of calculation, while she did -the same for me with reading. Girls remember -very well, but do not care to reason -things out, it seems. And indeed, -Tomo-chan remembered even the number -of mistakes I made in reading. Now what -one can do in half a day, two can accomplish -in half an hour, was the philosophy -that came to me from our case; for our -drudgery was over in no time, and we were -going through Tomo-chan’s treasure of -nice pictures and books of fairy-tales.<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_64" id="Page_64">[Pg 64]</a></span> -There was a picture in one of the books -of an old man with a wen on his cheek, -dancing before a crowd of demons and -goblins. “Look here, what is this?” I -asked. She laughed at the picture and -would not tell me about it till she had -thoroughly enjoyed laughing. That is -the way of a girl. But with “O dear!” -she started thus:</p> - -<p>“One day, this old man with a wen happened -to fall into a crowd of those ugly -monsters, and was made to dance. He -danced very well, and so was asked to come -again the next day. The goblins wanted -something for a pledge for his keeping -his word and so removed the wen from the -man’s cheek. The old man was very glad -to part with it, and went home, when he -met another man with a wen.” She -turned the leaf to show another picture. -This time the new man was dancing before -the weird crowd. “You see, this man -was told how he could remove his wen, -and is now showing his skill before them to<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_65" id="Page_65">[Pg 65]</a></span> -induce them to ask for the pledge. But -he did not have any practice at all in dancing -and so was just jumping round. -And the goblins got angry over his deceit, -and sent him back with the wen that the -old man had left.” Turning the leaf, -“Here he is with wens on both his -cheeks!”</p> - -<p>She laughed again, and I could not help -laughing with her, too. At this moment -some one was coming up the stairs.</p> - -<p>“Why, is this the way you study your -lesson?”</p> - -<p>It was aunty who entered the room -as she said: “I am surprised at you.” -And she laid down a tray with a teapot and -cups and a dish of cakes on it. The sight -made us happy all at once, and Tomo-chan -explained to her how soon we had finished -our study.</p> - -<p>“Why, Ei-chan helped me in arithmetic, -so we finished a long, long time ago.”</p> - -<p>“Well, Ei-chan is a good boy, isn’t he?” -said aunty. Boys feel awkward to be well<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_66" id="Page_66">[Pg 66]</a></span> -spoken of to their face, and my speech -failed me somehow. By the way, I was -no longer “Bot’chan.”</p> - -<p>The school I found much larger and -finer than the village one. The pupils -numbered ten times more. Each class had -its own room, and boys and girls marched -in and out in procession every hour. It -was so much more orderly and systematic -than the village school that there was less -of “out-of-tune” matter. But then there -was one thing that puzzled me. It was that -often a boy was seen standing in the hallway -with a bowl of water in his hands. -Sometimes he stood there motionless until -the class was all dismissed. But I was not -slow to divine the cause. What puzzled -me was the question: “How could that be -the best form of punishment?” While a -boy stood there he need not attend the -class. That was certainly easy for an idle -boy. And then there was no pain to endure. -As to the holding of a bowl, why, -did I not hold my bowl of rice every meal<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_67" id="Page_67">[Pg 67]</a></span> -and not know even if it was heavy or -light? But another solution suggested itself -to me; it might have the same effect -on the offender as wearing a cap with “I -am a Fool,” written on it. He stood there, -and everybody thought he was a bad boy. -“It might be, it might be,” I said, congratulating -myself on the happy solution, -when a crow that had just alighted on a -branch of the elm by the gate repeated, -“It might be!” I threw a stone at him -without thinking that it was a violation -of the school rule, and, if discovered, I -might have undergone the punishment.</p> - -<p>At any rate, I was destined, it appeared, -to undergo the punishment once at least. -And it happened in this way.</p> - -<p>At this school, boys were not allowed to -carry iron tops or even hand-balls. There -were too many of them, and if they should -all indulge in these sports, there would be -constant danger of breaking their legs or -knocking their noses off. So comparatively -harmless footballs were provided.<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_68" id="Page_68">[Pg 68]</a></span> -Now, one noon recess, ten of us wanted to -have a game. We were divided into -parties of five and played. Of course we -had no rules to go by, but tried to carry -the ball within the enemy’s lines by -every means. One time we fumbled furiously -near the building, and, in the heat of -our tackling, one fellow seized the ball and -kicked it without minding in which direction -he was aiming. If he had had less -skill the ball would have gone only over -the roof and dropped on the head of a -jinrikisha man running on the other street. -But as it was, it went madly against a -window-pane and smashed it all to pieces. -What a noise it made! For a minute it -made all the boys and girls playing on the -ground keep quite still. And in this awful -suspense a teacher appeared and caught -the five, I among the number, who were -still in the position of fumbling, together -with the poor fellow who did the kicking, -and who stood dazed, unable to recover -as yet from the shock of his late experience.<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_69" id="Page_69">[Pg 69]</a></span> -I didn’t know how the other four escaped -being caught, but I was glad that they -did.</p> - -<p>There was no question in the teacher’s -mind but that all six should be exhibited -in the hallway, and so we were made to -stand there, each holding a bowl of water. -Now I had an ample opportunity to learn -every significance of this form of punishment. -Naturally, we felt merry at first. -In the first place, there was something unreasonable -and ludicrous in the way at -least five of us came to stand there. And -then when you have companions in your -bad luck, you feel surely light of heart. -And so we did. But when fifteen, thirty -minutes passed, our legs got to be stiff -and the weightless bowls began to weigh -very much in our hands. Indeed, the -slightest inclination would spill the water! -But why did we not drink some of it, you -may say? Well, we should have done it, -but we knew that it must all be there when -the teacher came. Forty-five minutes, and<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_70" id="Page_70">[Pg 70]</a></span> -the bell rang for the dismissal. All the -boys and girls poured out, leaving us alone. -Ah, that is the saddest moment for any -schoolboy, for after that the school is dismal -as a prison. Fifteen minutes more, -and all the teachers, except the one in -charge of us, were gone. None of us dared -to look up, our heads being bent with extreme -sorrow. Presently a weak-minded -fellow dropped his china and cried out. -It was not I, but we were all ready to follow -his example, when the teacher came -out, and, removing the bowls, read us a -lecture before sending us home.</p> - -<p>We lost our courage, even to run out of -the school compound, but dragged slowly -home. But when I turned the first corner -whom should I meet but my Tomo-chan?</p> - -<p>“Why, Tomo-chan!” I looked at her -in surprise.</p> - -<p>“I could not go home without you. So -I waited for you. But isn’t it a shame -for teacher to punish you without your -deserving it?” she said.</p> - - - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_71" id="Page_71">[Pg 71]</a></span>“We did not want to let Takeda suffer -alone, you know.”</p> - -<p>My answer was a surprise even to me. -Of course, I did not think to the contrary, -but I was not impressed with the significance -of it till I put it into words and—to -her. It came as a new thought to me. -Our hearts became light, the thing was forgotten, -and only the prospect of the fine -time we should have that golden afternoon -in late summer occupied our minds.</p> - -<p>“Come along,” I said. “Let’s go to -the field!”</p> - -<p>And we hastened on briskly, and, throwing -our things into our houses on the way, -went to the field, green with cool, cushion-like -grass. About a dozen boys and girls -were already waiting for us, and we just -jumped among them.</p> - -<p>“What shall we play?” said one.</p> - -<p>“Let’s have Kotoro-kotoro,” suggested -another.</p> - -<p>“That’s fun!” all shouted.</p> - -<p>To play the game, we must first select<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_72" id="Page_72">[Pg 72]</a></span> -from the boys one “chief” to protect his -“sons and daughters,” and one “imp” -to catch them. The boys stand in a circle -and are ready to say “Jan-ken-pon,” and -to hammer with their fists. At “pon” -you make one of three shapes with your -hand. When your hand is spread, that -denotes a sheet of paper; when two fingers -only are stretched, that means a pair -of scissors; and when your hand is held -closed, it signifies a stone. A sheet of -paper can be cut by scissors, but the latter -is ineffectual on a stone. But a stone can -be wrapped by a sheet of paper. Hence, -each one can defeat one of the rest, but is -conquered by the other. To simplify the -matter, you can use only two of the three -shapes. The one who wins at first is to be -the chief, the one who is ultimately defeated, -the imp. So we began: “Jan-ken-pon!”</p> - -<p>Only three won. Then those three tried -again.</p> - -<p>“Jan-ken-pon!”</p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_73" id="Page_73">[Pg 73]</a></span>I won; and so was the chief. The rest -went on jan-ken-ponning till the imp was -decided.</p> - -<p>Now all except the imp held firmly each -other’s belt on the back, in a line, with me -at the head. It is a pity you don’t have -any belt on your dress, and so play the -sport. It is very convenient to us. Apart -from its use in sport, when we meet a robber, -we throw him down by jiu-jitsu, and, -untying our belt, bind him up hand and -foot! But to return. I was ready with the -imp in front and with my “little ones” -behind, like the body of a centipede. The -imp could not touch me; he could only -seize any one behind. I stretched my -arms, ran to and fro to prevent the imp -from getting round to my flanks. The -line swayed, rolled, jerked like a serpent -in a rapid flight. And the motion would -all but throw weak-armed ones off their -holds. But they merrily persisted, and -could have held on longer but for their<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_74" id="Page_74">[Pg 74]</a></span> -mirth being worked up too high by the -very manner of the imp himself.</p> - -<p>The boy who played that part was a -born comedian. He loved his fun more -than his bread. Once in the midst of his -supper he heard a man come with a monkey -dressed in a kimono. No sooner than he -recognized that by the sound of a drum, -he threw away his chop-sticks, and, running -out of his house, danced all way up -the street with the professional monkey as -his wondering spectator. Now in playing -his part as the imp, he did not go about it -like an eagle intent on his prey. But he -brought all his talent into full play in -every motion of his body, suggestive of -some grotesque form, heightened by a -queer ejaculation. When, in his series of -performances, he imitated a pig, flapping -his hands from his head like large ears -of the animal and grunting, Gr-r-r-r, -Gr-r-r-r, it caused everybody to burst into -laughter. At this moment he made a sudden -turn, which caused such a jerk to the<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_75" id="Page_75">[Pg 75]</a></span> -line, that, being absent-minded from merriment, -they were all thrown out of their -hold, each rolling on the grass, but still -laughing at the grunting. The imp could -now jump at anybody for his prey, but as a -true comedian, he also rolled on the grass, -laughing with the rest.</p> - -<hr class="chap" /> - - - - - - -<div class="chapter"> -<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_76" id="Page_76">[Pg 76]</a></span> -<h2 class="nobreak">CHAPTER VI<br /> - -CHINESE EDUCATION</h2></div> - -<blockquote> - -<p class="center">My Chinese Teacher—How I Was Taught—Versification—My -Uncle—Clam Fishing—A Flatfish.</p></blockquote> - - -<p><span class="smcap">Some</span> months after I entered the public -school, my father came to a conclusion that -what was taught there was too modern to -have enough of culture value. My education -had to be supplemented by the study -of Chinese classics. And his intention -would have been of great benefit to me -if he had been equally wise in selecting a -good private teacher. As it was, I gained -but a fraction of it, undergoing a hard -struggle.</p> - -<p>There lived a Chinese scholar near by, -who was second to none in his learning -within three miles. Formerly he was a -priest of Zen sect, the Unitarian of Buddhism. -As it was considered most laudable<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_77" id="Page_77">[Pg 77]</a></span> -to a man of his calling, he never ate fish -or meat, and had two frugal meals a day, -taking only a cupful of starch and sugar -in the evening, till he came to lead a secular -life. Starch and sugar!—so he must -have come to have such white hair, I -thought. Anyway, the snowy mass heightened -the expression of his earnest face, -rather youthful for a man of sixty. He -was, indeed, the classic itself; the rhythm -of it seemed to be ringing in his veins, -whether awake or asleep. And he delighted -in nothing so much as to eat his -dinner listening to the clear-voiced chanting -of boys reviewing their lesson, as if -they were minstrels entertaining at a -king’s feast! And, of course, I was sent -to him.</p> - -<p>I started from the beginning, which was, -indeed, no beginning at all. The Chinese -sages did not write their scriptures as -graded school text-books, but their descendants -believed so, anyhow. Genesis -was the genesis of successful mastery.<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_78" id="Page_78">[Pg 78]</a></span> -And so I began with that great sentence -in the “Book of Great Learning:”</p> - -<p class="center">“Learning is a gateway to virtue.”</p> - -<p>I envy those boys who tore Chinese authors, -and whose books, when taken to a -second-hand bookstore, were not bought -even for a penny. My books were, on the -contrary, just as clean as ever, as if they -had been too loath to impart anything to -the owner. And this was not from any -effort on my part to take care of them, -but simply from the little use I made -of them. Now this was the way I -studied them. Teacher would read with -me about four pages in advance, and -see once how I could read. I stuck; -he prompted me; I stuck again; he -prompted me again; I stuck for the -third time, and for the third time he -prompted me, and so on, and indeed continually, -if I had gone on till I had thoroughly -mastered it. But one review -seemed to him sufficient for such <i>easy</i> passages,<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_79" id="Page_79">[Pg 79]</a></span> -and my boyish heart responded too -gladly to be released after a short lesson. -And I laid my book by till the next day. -I did not know how the teacher regarded -me, but he must have thought me a very -bright fellow for whom such a slow process -as review was totally unnecessary. And he -immediately took up the next four pages -and went on in the usual manner. The -first book was finished; the teacher’s instinct -asserted itself, and he wanted me to -read a few pages by way of a test before -I proceeded. What a shame! I only -recognized a box here and a starfish there, -and that was all. The teacher was angry -at the result. He saw that I was not prepared -yet to take up the classics. And -with his admirable pedagogical insight, -he sent me to a primer the very next day. -It was a Japanese history, written in easy -Chinese prose. How I enjoyed the change! -The passages rolled off on my tongue as -easily as you might say, “Mary had a -little lamb.” The teacher smiled at my<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_80" id="Page_80">[Pg 80]</a></span> -ease, and soon recovered his humor. But -his eyes were so constructed as to see nothing -but the top and the foot of a mountain, -and his mind worked like a spring-board, -which either stays low or jumps high up. -And on the third day I was ordered to -begin the second book of the classics, called -the “Doctrine of Mean!”</p> - -<p>And I plodded on. I went through the -“Book of Divination,” and “Odes of -Spring and Autumn,” and came out only -with some phantoms of angular, mysterious -hieroglyphics dancing before my eyes. -But my Chinese education included something -more than reading. It was versification. -Just think of requiring a ten-year-old -boy to write verse in Latin or Greek. -But every Saturday I was required to do -the same sort of thing for two years. Oh, -how I struggled! I hunted for something -sensible to write, but while all sorts of -nonsense would come up, even common -sense, that most useful guide in a prosaic -field, fled from me. Outside, merry shouts<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_81" id="Page_81">[Pg 81]</a></span> -of boys—a happy group who cared for -balls and kites more than dry-as-dust -“culture”—were heard, and I mused in -a corner of a room, consulting such help -as a phrase book and a rhyming dictionary. -Nothing but doggerel could be born -of such a forced labor. Here is a specimen:</p> - -<div class="poetry-container"> -<div class="poetry"> -<div class="verse">“Shut from the blue of skies in spring,</div> -<div class="indent">I sit and fret for words to rhyme.</div> -<div class="verse">O bird, if you have songs to sing,</div> -<div class="indent">Drop one for me to save my time!”</div> -</div></div> - -<p>The Chinese training did me at least one -good turn. It drove Confucius out of my -head!</p> - -<p>I should have been a blighted boy if -Sundays had not come to my rescue. The -real use to which the day should be put -had not dawned on me, nor was it in the -mind of those who introduced the institution. -But I am glad to say that it -did me good in many ways. With this, -however, my uncle is invariably associated.</p> - - - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_82" id="Page_82">[Pg 82]</a></span>I have not said anything about him, but -he was a well-fed man with a goat’s -beard. He was very nervous, however, and -could not keep from pulling his beard. -This accounted for its scantiness. It was -very amusing to observe how easily his -temper was disturbed out of its normal -mood. When he was contradicted he -pulled hard at his beard and wrung his -hands furiously. His body seemed to expand -with the inner fire when he ejaculated -many an “Ahem!” preliminary to -an eruption. Everybody had to find -shelter and thrust his fingers into his ears, -lest the drums should break. But when he -was pleased, his face melted with laughter; -he went to a cupboard to look for -some nice thing for us, ordered dinner to -be hurried for our sake, and went round -and round us to see if we were really comfortable.</p> - -<p>He was very alert, and was always looking -for a new thing. He did well, too, -to keep himself abreast of the age, and,<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_83" id="Page_83">[Pg 83]</a></span> -indeed, mastered something of the English -language, of which he could well boast -in his day. His pronunciation, however, -was rather painful to hear, and in -his talk with foreigners his nervous hands -played a large part to fill in the gaps in -his vocabulary, with an intermixture of -many a “you know.”</p> - -<p>One good thing about him was his love -for outdoor sports. He could not sit all -day like my Chinese teacher, and if ever -an eruption occurred, it was always on -the occasion of such confinement to his -room. His Sundays were scheduled for -this or that kind of pleasure excursion. -And of course I was wise enough to do -what I could to please him in order that I -might not be left out of his party.</p> - -<p>One Sunday we were to go clam-fishing. -When it was announced on Friday before, -I thought of a great time and could hardly -sleep for joy. After a tedious labor of -writing verse was over the next Saturday, -I busied myself the rest of the afternoon<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_84" id="Page_84">[Pg 84]</a></span> -with the preparation for the next day. -I kept going to my uncle’s to see whether -we had the same things that they had, and -also to suggest the necessity of providing -things we had and they had not. Many -conferences for this purpose were held at -the door-sill with Tomo-chan. Small hand-rakes -were bought, one for each; small and -large baskets, knives, thick-soled socks, -small sashes, and so forth, were collected -from various sources. To this I added -a net three by four feet large, with two -poles to meet the exigency of encountering -some large fish—perhaps a whale. But -of this I did not speak to anybody.</p> - -<p>Mother was also busy preparing our -lunch. For this she got up very early in -the morning and boiled rice, which she -made into triangular, round, or square -masses, speckled with burned sesame -seeds. She packed them in several lacquered -boxes, with fresh pickles and -cooked vegetables. We relied on our -clams for chief dishes; so some cooking<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_85" id="Page_85">[Pg 85]</a></span> -utensils were necessary. Also some tea -and a teapot, cups and dishes, together -with chop-sticks and toothpicks, even.</p> - -<p>The day was not fair, but it was just the -kind of weather for the season, dull and -somewhat hazy, but bespeaking a calm sea. -The tide was fast ebbing when we started -in a boat. There was a good company of -us, including uncle, aunt, mother, Tomo-chan, -and me. As we emerged into the bay -from the canal, the extended view was -delightful. On one side green masses of -pine-trees overhung the stone mounds and -merged into a leafy hill, which stretched -itself like an arm into the sea. On the -other, beyond reedy shoals, the old forts, -with a lighthouse on one of them, dotted -the expanse. The view was washed in -gray, and even the sails of junks, hanging -lazily from the masts, were scarcely lighter -than the background.</p> - -<p>All was calm. But as we sighted from -a distance some other parties already on -the scene, we soon forgot everything for<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_86" id="Page_86">[Pg 86]</a></span> -the excitement and let the boatman hurry -with all his strength. It was nine when -we arrived at the desired spot, and we -had three hours to enjoy ourselves. We -fixed our boat to a pole, from the top of -which was drooping a piece of red and -white cloth. This served as our mark to -enable us to find the boat quickly in the -case of need. So each party had something -of its own design. Purple, green, -white, and red in all sorts of combinations -and forms were displayed, while a coat, a -shirt, or even an improvised scarecrow -was not denied use.</p> - -<p>So we went into water, our sleeves and -skirts being tied up and our legs bared to -the knees. Each was provided with a -basket and a hand-rake—except myself, -who, in addition to the implements, took -out secretly my net, wound round the poles. -My people were all too busy to observe -me, however. We went on raking for -clams. There seemed to be lots of black -or white shells which we did not want, but<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_87" id="Page_87">[Pg 87]</a></span> -I soon found that clams were rather a -matter of chance, and a chance would come -no more than once in every fifteen minutes! -I luckily struck on three nice ones -in a short time, and dug diligently for -some thirty minutes, but without any result. -So I grew tired, and began inspection. -Aunt had ten, mother eight, and -uncle five. When I approached him, he -looked up, red in the face. I wondered if -he was not angry. But it was not so, for -he heaved a sigh and straightening up and -striking his back with his fist, said, “O -dear!”</p> - -<p>“Uncle, you will soon be quitting your -job, just as I shall, I think,” said I.</p> - -<p>“Pshaw! How many have you?”</p> - -<p>“Three, sir.”</p> - -<p>“You can’t have more than that for -your lunch, you understand, unless you get -more. Now don’t be in my way.” And -again he doubled his corpulent body to -work. But I was right in thinking that he -could not keep himself in the same posture<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_88" id="Page_88">[Pg 88]</a></span> -for another three minutes. Now I passed -on to Tomo-chan. Poor Tomo-chan had -only two! She was all but weeping for the -bad luck. She, however, looked comforted -to find that I did not fare much better. -But what was her surprise when I threw -all my clams in with hers!</p> - -<p>“Keep them, Tomo-chan. I am going to -fish with this net.” Her eyes looked -gratitude. “Oh, thank you ever so much. -But I’ll catch fish with you if I don’t fare -any better.”</p> - -<p>“All right.” And I went on thinking -that if I could not get clams for my lunch, -I should have fish to the envy of all. I -looked among the rocks for some shadow -of them. Surely I saw something shooting -away now and then, without waiting for -me to find out whether it was large or not. -But anyway, they were all right if I could -get a number of them, and so I fixed my -net and tried to drive them into it, little -thinking that the very whiteness of my net—I -appropriated a net made for the purpose<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_89" id="Page_89">[Pg 89]</a></span> -of keeping flies off—scared every -fish. I got irritated with my ill-success, -and finally splashed the water vigorously -to punish them.</p> - -<p>By this time my uncle had quit his work, -as I predicted, and was engaging with hen-like -anxiety to look after his flock. He -kept his eyes on them, and would go like -a shepherd dog to fetch any one who went -too far away from the boat. He looked at -his watch to see if the tide was not turning -on, and went occasionally to the boat -to see if anything was lost. He seemed to -like this kind of work better than clam-fishing, -for I could see even from a distance -that he was pulling at his beard, as -he was wont to do when his mind was -occupied. Presently he heard me splashing -the water far away, and started at once -to bring me back. Time could not be lost, -he must have thought, but I did not know -anything of his approach till I heard a -shriek behind me. Surprised, I turned -round when I found him just recovering<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_90" id="Page_90">[Pg 90]</a></span> -his balance and looking intently into the -water.</p> - -<p>“What’s matter, uncle?” I hastened -toward him.</p> - -<p>“Stop. A flatfish somewhere.” Seeing -me with a net, he exclaimed, “Quick with -your net.”</p> - -<p>“A flatfish?” I queried in excitement.</p> - -<p>“Yes, I stepped on him and he gave me -a slip.... Oh, here he is; cover him -quick!” And we covered him with my -net without much ado. I was surprised to -see how easily I could catch him compared -with other fish that I had tried for. As -I raised him, however, I found he was -already crushed dead under my uncle’s -weight!</p> - -<p>But it was a large one, and I could have -an honorable share at lunch.</p> - -<div class="figcenter"><img src="images/i_090f.jpg" alt="A Typical Japanese Street" /></div> -<p class="caption"><span class="smcap">A Typical Japanese Street.</span></p> - -<hr class="chap" /> - - - - - - -<div class="chapter"> -<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_91" id="Page_91">[Pg 91]</a></span> -<h2 class="nobreak">CHAPTER VII<br /> - -AN EVENING FTE</h2></div> - -<blockquote> - -<p class="center">My Father—His Love for Potted Trees—A Local -Fte—Show Booths—Goldfish Booths—Singing -Insects—How a Potted Tree Was Bought.</p></blockquote> - - -<p><span class="smcap">Evenings</span> were not without enjoyment for -me. And for this I owe much to my -father.</p> - -<p>My father was a silent, close-mouthed -man. His words to children were few and -mostly in a form of command. They were -never disobeyed, partly because it was -father who spoke, but more because we -knew that he spoke only when he had to. -Indeed, he carried a formidable air about -him, apparently engrossed in thought -somewhat removed from his immediate -concern. He was by no means philosophical, -however, and his reticent habit was -born of the peculiar circumstances under<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_92" id="Page_92">[Pg 92]</a></span> -which he was laboring. Fortune was -evidently against him. And partly out of -sympathy with him and partly out of fear -of breaking his spell, when we had something -to ask of him—boys have many -wants—we had some indirect means to -devise. Thus, when my cap had worn out -and I wanted a new one, I dropped a hint -in his presence by way of a soliloquy: -“I wish I had a new cap. My old one is -worn out.” Saying this just once at a -time and thrice in the course of one evening, -if I persevered for three nights, I -used to have my old cap replaced with a -new one on the next day!</p> - -<p>He knew that he was fighting against -odds, but his spirit was never crushed. -He only persevered. One day he came back -from his evening stroll with a piece of bamboo -flute. Evidently he was attracted by -a tune a man at the corner of a street was -playing on it as he sold his wares, and felt -his soul suddenly gain its freedom and soar -to the sky. I remember how well he loved<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_93" id="Page_93">[Pg 93]</a></span> -his instrument, and from day to day he -used to pour out low, mournful tunes. But -his art was never equal to the demand of -his soul, and one evening the bamboo flute -was laid aside for a pot containing a dwarf -pine-tree.</p> - -<p>You may well wonder how a flowerless -potted tree could be preferred to even the -commonest tune for spiritual solace. But -at any rate it was a piece of nature, and -was healing to behold. And then, in its -fantastic shape, there was a beauty of repose -which had a very soothing effect, but -which required some study for appreciation. -But in his case, there was something -deeper in the matter. A tree over fifty -years old, which, if left in the field, would -have grown to an immense size, was reduced -by human art to only a foot in -height, and was kept alive on a potful of -earth. My father must have read a history -of his own in it and tried to learn a -secret of contentment from it.</p> - -<p>One by one potted trees were added to<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_94" id="Page_94">[Pg 94]</a></span> -his stock,—he could afford to buy only -at odd intervals,—and presently shelves -were provided for them in the small garden. -Morning and evening he attended to -them, and with patience as well as with -pleasure looked forward to the time when -his care would result in a growth of just -an inch and a quarter of pine leaves and -palm leaves two inches by three in size.</p> - -<p>One night an unexpected thing happened. -A thief found his way to the garden -from the back door and sneaked away -with half a dozen of the choice trees. -Naturally, my father was distressed, but -after a while he was patiently filling the -vacancy one by one, of course seeing that -the back door should be securely locked -every night.</p> - -<p>I was going to tell you something about -the amusements I had in the evening, but -it was mainly due to this love of my -father’s for potted trees that I was taken -regularly to a local fte, held three times -a month. The day for this was fixed; it<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_95" id="Page_95">[Pg 95]</a></span> -fell on every day connected with, the number -seven; that is, the seventh, the seventeenth, -and the twenty-seventh. And as -in the calendar, rain or shine, it came and -went. Naturally, I had my weather bureau -open on that day to see if the evening was -all right, for a wet night would be an -irretrievable loss. At the police stand they -published a forecast in the morning, but -that was not to be too much relied on. It -sometimes said rain when it was anything -but wet, and fine when it was actually -drizzling—though in the latter case I -rather inclined to believe the report even -if it ended in sorrow.</p> - -<p>I did not need any formality of asking -to be taken; it was a matter of course with -me as long as I behaved well. This behaving, -however, was peculiar. I had to -be waiting for my father outside and follow -him when he came out, without saying -anything or shouting for delight for a -block or so. The reason for this was -simple. Mother objected to sending out the<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_96" id="Page_96">[Pg 96]</a></span> -younger members of our family in the evening, -and especially to such a crowded -place where they were liable to be lost. My -going there must not attract their attention.</p> - -<p>One evening I slipped off with my father -in this way. The place where the fte was -held was not far away, and after two or -three turnings we soon came to the street. -At a distance, you might take it for a fire, -for the tiny stalls and booths crowding the -place were lighted by hundreds of kerosene -torches which flared and smoked. The -central section of the street was not more -than two blocks in length, but it was literally -packed with six rows of booths and -stalls and with such a concourse of people -that there did not seem to be room even -to move.</p> - -<p>The approach to the scene was marked -by some show booths. Hung in front were -some wonderful pictures of what was to -be seen within: a serpent over thirty feet -long, which had lived in some distant part<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_97" id="Page_97">[Pg 97]</a></span> -of the country and had actually swallowed -two babies; a woman who had a real rubber -neck which could be stretched so far -that while sitting still her head could wander -all over the house; monkeys dressed in -old-style costume and giving some theatrical -performance, and so on. The entrance -fee was a penny, and men stood outside -crying the various excellencies of their -shows, and when you stopped before one -of them and looked at the sign, they would -lift the curtain for a second and drop it -again, just to whet your curiosity. I naturally -wanted very much to look at some of -the monstrosities, and watched to see if -the inducement would work on my father, -but, much to my disappointment, he walked -calmly on with his hands in his sleeves.</p> - -<p>Now we came in front of the goldfish -booths. It was simply fascinating to see -such a number of dear little things swimming -in wooden tubs, some being hung -high in glass globes by the side of helpless -turtles enjoying air riding. In the next<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_98" id="Page_98">[Pg 98]</a></span> -two or three booths were masses of minute -bamboo cages. Most of them were only -three inches by two. Here they were selling -all sorts of singing insects and fire-worms. -And what an orchestra these tiny -winged things were! There were bell -insects which chirped on “chinkororin, -chinkororin,” in staccato, crickets which -hummed in sweet undulating “rin—rin—rin,” -and katydids which broke in with -a cymbal-like “gaja, gaja,” as we say. I -watched to see if these things would tempt -my father, but no, his face was set on something -else ahead.</p> - -<p>Now a great part of these enterprising -peddlers were gardeners by profession. -And out of the six rows of booths in the -central portion three were shows of potted -flowers and trees. They even had for sale -grown-up trees half as tall as a telegraph-pole! -As we came to this part my father -slackened his pace. Here was something -at last which interested him. He took time -to examine some of the nice potted trees,<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_99" id="Page_99">[Pg 99]</a></span> -and his progress was very slow indeed, -somewhat to my annoyance. I would -rather have him stop before a candy booth -than in these places. After a while, however, -he found one tree much to his liking. -He was tempted just to ask the price -of it.</p> - -<p>“Ten dollars, sir,” was the answer.</p> - -<p>My father smiled dryly and passed on.</p> - -<p>“How much you give, Mister?” asked -the man.</p> - -<p>No answer.</p> - -<p>“I’ll make it five dollars this time, -Mister,” cried the man. Still receiving -no answer, he came after us. “But give -me your price, Mister.”</p> - -<p>“Fifty cents,” said my father.</p> - -<p>“Ough, that won’t pay even the express. -Give me a dollar, then.”</p> - -<p>But my father was already some distance -away. The man, growing desperate -to lose him, cried aloud:</p> - -<p>“Mi-ster, you can have it for the price.<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_100" id="Page_100">[Pg 100]</a></span> -This is the first one I have sold this evening. -I must start the sale, anyway.”</p> - -<p>So my father came into possession of -one more potted tree. The price was low, -to be sure, but the man did not undersell -his goods.</p> - -<p>There seemed to be nothing now to do -but to wend our way home as my father -turned round at the corner and came down -with the crowd. We passed toy booths, -basket booths, booths where hairpins with -beautiful artificial flowers were sold, or -where all sorts of fans, bamboo screens, -and sundry other things were for sale. -And we passed them apparently without -any interest, at least on my father’s part. -I was wondering what my father would -buy for me, when whom should I meet but -my aunt and Tomo-chan just going round -the street in the other way? I spoke with -Tomo-chan while my father and aunt -were exchanging some remarks—possibly -about the potted tree.</p> - - - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_101" id="Page_101">[Pg 101]</a></span>“Did you get something bought for -you?” I asked.</p> - -<p>“No, not yet. I’ve just come, you -know. And you?”</p> - -<p>“N-no. But—”</p> - -<p>I could not say the rest as my father -and aunt parted and the crowd was pushing -between us, and so I waved my hand to -say good-by to Tomo-chan.</p> - -<p>We soon came almost to the end of the -gay portion of the street, and after a few -booths a touch of festival air would be -gone, when my father halted before a -molasses candy booth, and, to my great -joy, bought a nickel’s worth of cake. We -got a big, swollen bagful; this was for me -and for our stay-at-home folks. I wished -that I had met Tomo-chan once more.</p> - -<hr class="chap" /> - - - - - -<div class="chapter"> -<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_102" id="Page_102">[Pg 102]</a></span> -<h2 class="nobreak">CHAPTER VIII<br /> - -SUMMER DAYS</h2></div> - -<blockquote> - -<p class="center">A Swimming School—How I Was Taught to Swim—Diving—The -Old Home Week—Return of the -Departed Souls—Visiting the Ancestral Graves—The -Memorable Night—A Village Dance.</p></blockquote> - - -<p><span class="smcap">The</span> third summer in Tokyo had come. -The air was fresh and cool, while the -morning-glories in our back yard were -blooming lavishly, and the Ainu chrysanthemums -in white, pink, and purple, and -the late irises were seen carried round the -street in flower-venders’ baskets. But it -soon got warmer as they vanished from -the sight till I found it hot even in one -piece of a thin garment over my body, -though my mother starched it for me just -stiff enough for the air to pass through -from one sleeve to the other.</p> - -<p>In one of the canals near by, an annual<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_103" id="Page_103">[Pg 103]</a></span> -swimming-school was opened. The place -was inviting in hot weather, besides, it was -such fun to bathe with hosts of boys, and -to learn how to swim. I must confess that -I could not swim yet. I thought at first -that it was quite an easy thing, because I -often saw a man swimming with his feet -and performing such a trick with his hands -as peeling a pear with a knife and eating -it. But after a few trials I was obliged -to correct my notion to such a degree as -to consider swimming an extremely difficult -as well as dangerous undertaking. -Not only my body was found to be something -between a block of hard wood and -a stone, and much nearer to the latter, but -once it stayed so long in the water, head -and all, that I experienced pretty nearly -what it was to get drowned. But all this I -did in secret and did not tell to any of my -folks. Indeed my mother was keeping my -younger brother from the water by telling -him about the story of a sea-monkey who -would stretch his exceptionally long arm<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_104" id="Page_104">[Pg 104]</a></span> -and drag people into the depths, especially -boys who went swimming against their -mother’s remonstrance. As an elder -brother, I was bound to set a good example.</p> - -<p>A week after the opening of the school, -however, I brought the swimming matter -to my mother’s attention, and piling up -such reasons as I thought most expedient, -and rounding up by mentioning names of a -number of my schoolmates, as if they were -co-petitioners, who had been enrolled in -the membership, I wanted her to ask my -father. I had anticipated a refusal from -both mother and father, but my mother -was all right as long as the place was -safe, while my father surprised me by his -instant permission. He was an excellent -swimmer himself and must have felt it a -shame that his son did not know even -how to keep himself afloat. My poor -younger brother, however, was to wait -another year.</p> - -<p>So I went to swimming. We had an<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_105" id="Page_105">[Pg 105]</a></span> -exciting time in the canal, and the heat of -the sun ceased to be of any trouble to me. -On the first day one of the trainers supported -me with his hands and made me -move my arms and legs according to his -instruction. I made a vigorous effort, -while he carried me on as if I were making -a progress myself. Now and then, -however, he would loosen his hold and see -if I could keep myself going. I was then -taken with sudden fear, and, feeling that -the water grew instantly to be very deep, -I gave a cry of horror and distress, and -did some splashing, too. The instructor -laughed over my plight and told me that I -should be safe as he was near, and that I -must try to acquire the sense of ease with -the water. As long as my limbs were -moving properly, I was sure to be floating. -So I put confidence in his words and -cultivated assiduously what he called the -sense of ease, which I understood to be a -suppression of fear. The first day, however, -passed without any result, in spite<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_106" id="Page_106">[Pg 106]</a></span> -of my determination that I would go to the -bottom rather than call for help again.</p> - -<p>But, strangely enough, at the very first -unassisted trial on the second day, my -body did float. How joyful I felt at this, -you can hardly imagine. I swam round -and round the place—of course stopping -every quarter of a minute—till I was -fairly exhausted. On my return home, -however, I mustered courage enough to -impart to my brother on the matted floor -my successful experience in swimming.</p> - -<p>Diving came next. On my first dip I -felt instinctively that man and fish were at -the opposite extremities of creation. The -suppression of breath and the closing of -eyes were bad enough; but there was such -a roaring in my ears as if all the watery -spirits were murmuring at the intrusion, -while my body was at once subjected to -a different law of repulsion. But it was -great fun to play at being a sea-monkey -and drag the legs of idle boys, at which -sport I had been a victim myself on the<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_107" id="Page_107">[Pg 107]</a></span> -very first day. So I began practising it, -and in a few days was already looking for -a chance to apply my half-mastered skill. -Seeing once two boys near me engaging in -splashing water, I plunged at once, aiming -at one of them. It was but a few yards -to dive, but I came out of the water without -striking anything, and before I had -time to brush off the dripping water from -my eyes, I was subjected to a furious spray -from the two boys, when, thud, came something -on my side, and in another second I -was dragged into the water. A mouthful -of water went down my throat before I -knew, and when I came to my feet with all -the water boiling around me, I noticed a -third and new boy standing and laughing -over his trick!</p> - -<p>So passed a good part of the summer -till about the middle of August, when the -Japanese “Old Home Week” came. The -principal day falls on the sixteenth day -of the seventh month, according to the -lunar calendar, which is about a month<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_108" id="Page_108">[Pg 108]</a></span> -after the ordinary date. It is a sort of -Decoration Day, too, because we go to the -temple yards and pay a visit to our ancestral -graves. Now for three years this -duty was neglected by us, and father -thought it proper for some one to visit the -old place in the country. My uncle was -also in a similar position, and it was arranged -that my aunt and Tomo-chan -should go from their family while I represented -my own. And two days before the -date we set out in a conveyance called a -kuruma.</p> - -<p>I wasn’t quite sure of the significance of -the graveyard visiting on this special occasion, -and so found time to ask my aunt -of it. And this was what she told me, not -on the road, but in her house the night -before we started. (I had known the inconvenience -of the kuruma in keeping me -separate from my aunt all the way, though -it had the decided merit, as it turned out, -of packing Tomo-chan and myself in one -seat.)</p> - - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_109" id="Page_109">[Pg 109]</a></span>Now, when a man dies, he goes either -to paradise or to hell, according to Buddhism. -In the former place, he is led to -his seat on a large lotus flower floating -on the cool surface of the rippling water. -The sweet calmness of the summer morn -is all his, my aunt said, but beyond that -there seems to be nothing going on in that -floral berth. But in hell, all is excitement. -The king of devils will mete out punishment -to each arrival according to his -guilt, and he is made by red and green -demons to tread on the hill of swords, to -ride in the coach of fire, or to bathe in the -boiling caldron. But, good or bad, those -departed souls are allowed once a year to -pay a short visit to their earthly homes, -and this happens on the sixteenth of the -seventh month. So we go to the graves -of our ancestors, clean and decorate them -so that the dead may feel comfortable, and, -delivering our message of welcome and -turning about, ask the invisible to get on -our backs to our homes! I wondered if my<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_110" id="Page_110">[Pg 110]</a></span> -back was large enough for the whole train -of my ancestors to ride on.</p> - -<p>At my native village we stayed at another -uncle’s. A day’s ride in the same -narrow kuruma made Tomo-chan and me -more companionable than ever, while the -strangeness of the new place kept us two -always close by. Everywhere we were -welcomed as Tokyonians, and treated to -melons and rice dumpling. We had not, -however, much time to spare, for we were -quite busy seeing to our family graves. -We hired a man to weed and clean the lot, -sent enough offerings to the temple so -that the priests, when chanting for the -rest of the departed, might think comfortably -of it, and, above all, took care that -every grave might not lack fresh flowers -for two days, that is during our stay. On -the sixteenth day I was prepared to carry -any number of invisible spirits from the -graveyard to the house. But as some -one told me that the spirits would not dare<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_111" id="Page_111">[Pg 111]</a></span> -to come in the daylight, I was glad that -my service was not needed, after all.</p> - -<p>The sun set gloriously behind the castle, -and the mellow booming of the temple -bell was wafted through the evening air. -Presently the misty moon, just waning, -rose from the plain, and the memorable -night began. In every house the rooms -were swept clean and the tiny lights were -burning in the household shrine. In front, -the flames from a heap of flax stems, known -as the “reception fire,” were dazzling, -and, unheard and unobserved, the ghosts -of our fathers passed into the house.</p> - -<p>I did not know how long they would -stay, but bowing once respectfully before -the shrine, I went out with Tomo-chan to -stay around. In the temple ground there -was an open space hemmed in by tall, -shady pines, where the young people of the -village would assemble that night and hold -the annual dancing. And naturally our -steps were directed there. We found that -already many of them were gathered, and,<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_112" id="Page_112">[Pg 112]</a></span> -by the uncertain light of paper lanterns -hung here and there on the trees, we saw -that they were all dressed in uniform white -and blue garments, with folded pieces of -cloth dangling about their necks. The -browned faces of the swains were not distinguishable -in such dimness, but those of -the lasses looked distinctly lovely, the -scratches and blemishes incidental to their -outdoor occupation being invisible. The -swains grouped on this side and the girls -on the other; the former being not yet -bold enough, and the latter too shy, to -mingle with one another. Presently some -sweet-voiced lad sang a ballad, and then -all rose to arrange themselves in rows, -boys on one side and girls on the other. -They called to the singer to start anew, -and began to trip to the song, clapping -their hands at a rhythmic turn. They -never moved on, but closed in and again -drew apart on the same spot, all repeating -the same movement. It was a novel -thing for both of us, and we watched them<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_113" id="Page_113">[Pg 113]</a></span> -with great delight. Song after song was -sung, all bursting into laughing cheers -after each piece and sometimes going into -such commotion that each lad paired with -his bonny lassie.</p> - -<p>“Isn’t that delightful?” I asked Tomo-chan.</p> - -<p>“Yes, lovely.”</p> - -<p>“And simple, too.”</p> - -<p>She nodded.</p> - -<p>“Let’s watch again and see if we can -learn,” I said to her, and we stood at the -end of the line.</p> - -<p>The song went clear and plaintive and -the touching trill was preying upon the -hearts of the dancers and working them -into dreamy ecstasy. The moon by this -time climbed high up in the sky, and when -a filmy cloud glided off her face, the pale -weird rays revealed Tomo-chan and me -dancing in the group!</p> - -<hr class="chap" /> - - - - - - -<div class="chapter"> -<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_114" id="Page_114">[Pg 114]</a></span> -<h2 class="nobreak">CHAPTER IX<br /> - -THE ENGLISH SCHOOL</h2></div> - -<blockquote> - -<p class="center">A Night at the Dormitory—Beginning English—Grammar—Pronunciation—School -Moved—Mother’s -Love.</p></blockquote> - - -<p><span class="smcap">It</span> was September and the beginning of a -new term. Father decided that I should -leave the school I had attended hitherto -and go to another one where English was -taught. This was the second time that I -had left school without finishing it, but -I was destined not to fare any better at the -new place. Indeed, I changed school four -times without finishing, till I finally settled -in a college. But this leaping habit—I -am sorry to say that it took a semblance -of habit at last—did not come -from any changeableness on my or my -father’s part, but all from the sincere desire<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_115" id="Page_115">[Pg 115]</a></span> -to prepare me for life in the best -way. This it was that drove me into the -three years’ study of the Chinese classics, -though I beat a rather dishonorable retreat -from it, and again this it was that directed -me to take up the foreign languages -early. I was afraid, however, that I -leaped too much this time, as I found that -all my new schoolmates were much older -than I, and, indeed, there were some who -needed shaving every morning!</p> - -<p>The school was at first very near to my -house. The building was of brick; the -first floor was used for the class-rooms and -the second was made into a dormitory. -This last was a novelty to me; I never -knew before that boys stayed away from -home in this fashion, and entertained a -secret desire to share a bed once with somebody, -just to see what it was like. This, -however, was easily granted, as I soon -grew to be a favorite with everybody because -of my youthfulness, and one night I -made a bundle of my night-shirt and went<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_116" id="Page_116">[Pg 116]</a></span> -to the room of one of my classmates. I was -at once devoured with curiosity in watching -him make the bed. It was not such a -simple process as I used to see at home—laying -one or two quilts on the matted -floor and another over them. But he had -to build a bedstead first from a sliding -door, and placed one end of it on his -table and the other on his bookcases. -Upon that he laid his thin quilt and -blanket. I wondered why he had to do -such a crazy thing.</p> - -<p>“Don’t you know the reason?” He -seemed to be surprised at my ignorance. -“It is on account of the fleas. You can’t -sleep on the floor. Look here.” And he -showed me a bottle in which an army of -captured fleas were drowned. After all, -a dormitory was not a covetable place, I -thought. But there was some fascination -in the sliding door bed, which creaked like -a cuckoo with every move of my body.</p> - -<p>But I must tell you about my first experience -in English. English was very<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_117" id="Page_117">[Pg 117]</a></span> -encouraging to start with. The alphabet -consists of only twenty-six letters, and -when I mastered that and was provided -with a handful of vocabulary, I felt as if -I were already half an American. I went -around and talked to everybody, especially -to those who did not know anything -of English, like this:</p> - -<p>“It is a dog. See the dog! It is a -cow. See the cow!” I could even play a -trick by way of variation like this:</p> - -<p>“Is it a dog? Yes, it is a dog.”</p> - -<p>And my family, who were constantly -spoken to in this unknown tongue, were -surprised at my speedy progress.</p> - -<p>And indeed I thought first that any number -of words might be easily learned, because -they were but combinations of -letters in one way or other, which are -limited to only twenty-six. But it did not -take me long to change this view. As the -length of the daily lesson increased I came -to wonder more and more whether the -English words were not charmed after all.<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_118" id="Page_118">[Pg 118]</a></span> -They were as slippery as eels, and, indeed, -written like eels too. I thought time and -again that I had them secure in my mental -box, but when I opened the lid the next -day, they vanished like a spirit. Something -must be done, I thought, to tie them -down, and so I invented a certain scheme. -It was that when I looked up a new word in -my Anglo-Japanese dictionary, I put a -black mark beside it to show that on that -very moment it passed into my possession. -The plan seemed to work very well, but -before long I found I had to mark the -same words three or four times, till my -dictionary looked very much as if it were -suffering from spotted fever!</p> - -<p>Then came grammar. Grammar is the -least familiar part of language study. -We are never taught in that in learning -vernacular Japanese. Somehow words -come out of our mouths naturally and -arrange themselves into smooth sentences. -So when I had to commit to memory the -definitions of the noun, verb, adjective, and<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_119" id="Page_119">[Pg 119]</a></span> -so forth, and to classify English words -into them, I came to doubt if I were not -studying botany instead of language. -Fortunately I did not make such a mistake -as, “A verb is something to eat,” or -“Every sentence and the name of God -must begin with a caterpillar.” But it -took me months to understand the difference -between the transitive and intransitive -verbs. I finally struck an original -definition of them. It is this, that a verb -is called transitive when it is ambitious -and intransitive when it is not, because -in the former case it takes an object and in -the latter it does not. I wondered why -some one among the learned teachers did -not tell me that right away in the beginning. -It would have saved me a lot of -trouble. Again in parsing, any word -parading with a capital was a relief to -me: I had no hesitation in giving it as a -proper noun, whether it appeared in the -main body of a piece or—in the title!</p> - -<p>Now there is one little part of speech<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_120" id="Page_120">[Pg 120]</a></span> -which puzzled me a great deal. It is the -article. In translation I had the great -satisfaction of passing it over entirely, as -we have no equivalent to it in Japanese, -but in composition it was the first thing -that puzzled and annoyed me. The Japanese -formerly went out bareheaded, and -their language is also free from this encumbrance -of a head-gear—for the article -is a head-gear to a noun—and I was liable -to drop off the article entirely, or, if I -tried, to use a wrong one every time. -Surely this hat etiquette was difficult and -capricious, too. I thought I could master -its secret if I knew thoroughly when and -what sort of a bonnet a girl should wear—of -course including the case of wearing -a derby on horseback! This occurred to -me a long time afterward in America, however.</p> - -<div class="figcenter"><img src="images/i_120f.jpg" alt="A Japanese School of the Present Day" /></div> -<p class="caption"><span class="smcap">A Japanese School of the Present Day.</span></p> - -<p>Let me mention another difficulty. -This was the pronunciation. A number of -new sounds were introduced, the most -conspicuous of which are those in which<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_121" id="Page_121">[Pg 121]</a></span> -th, l, f, and v are found. The th-sound -was bad enough, but l was next to impossible. -Finding this to be the case, an -American teacher would draw a cross-section -of a face on the blackboard, only -with a scant outline of the mouth and nose -(once he drew the head, too, but it caused -an unusual amount of merriment among -the boys, as it was as bald as his, and he -never finished the picture again), and explain -the position of the tongue in uttering -the sound, which we industriously copied. -And he also would have us say, “Rollo -rode Lorillard,” instead of “Present,” -or “Here,” when the roll was called. -But the semi-historical passage fell from -the boys’ lips rumbling like a thunder:</p> - -<p>“Rorro rode Rorirrard!”</p> - -<p>One year passed happily in the new -school, when it moved to its new buildings -on the other side of the city, about five -miles away. It was at first a short walk -from my house, but when it increased from -two minutes to two hours, with no convenience<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_122" id="Page_122">[Pg 122]</a></span> -of street-cars to help my feeble -feet, I naturally hesitated to go. I had -to walk if I continued to attend, as boarding -out in the dormitory was too expensive -for our means. The school, however, -was too good to be given up at that time, -and so I made up my mind not to discontinue -it.</p> - -<p>To cover ten miles a day, spending four -to five hours, was not a light task for a boy -of thirteen. It was all I could do on fine -days. In stormy weather the feat would -become a struggle, and I was more than -glad to accept the kind offer of one of my -schoolmates to break the trip at his home -for the night.</p> - -<p>I had to start early to be on time at -the eight o’clock exercise. Five o’clock -was the time for me to get up, but my -mother rose at least at half-past four to -make me a hot breakfast of boiled rice -and bean soup.</p> - -<p>My mother was the sort of woman who -expresses herself in work rather than in<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_123" id="Page_123">[Pg 123]</a></span> -words. And in this she was regularity -itself. One thing which impressed me in -this more than anything else was her -management of my dresses. Japanese -decency requires eight suits a year for any -one just for ordinary use, and of course I -needed, or rather my mother believed that -I needed that: eight suits—four in summer, -two in winter, and one each in spring -and in autumn. The dresses were not -always made from new pieces, and so gave -much more trouble. She made over the -old clothes, washed and turned or dyed, -if necessary, before doing so. My notion -of her regularity, however, must be augmented -five times, as she was doing the -same thing—though I did not notice it at -the time—with the other members of the -family.</p> - -<p>And so this early rising on her part for -my sake went like clockwork morning -after morning. If this means steadiness -of her devotion to her son and to all related -dearly to her, she had it.</p> - - - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_124" id="Page_124">[Pg 124]</a></span>Again she was not wordy in any case. -I never had a long lecture from her, -though, I am sorry to say, I had some short -ones. On the contrary, she had the secret -of speaking in silence. There was some -magic power in her touch. I love to look -back to my childhood, when she used to -dress me in the morning, at the end of -which she would whisper in my ear just a -word: “Be good all the day, dear child.” -It was simply pleasure.</p> - -<p>So at this hour when the world was still -asleep, as I sat without a word at a short -morning repast before her, with the -lamp shining and every manifestation of -motherly love around me, I was under an -unspeakable spell, and learned to love her -most.</p> - -<p>I had to start soon, however. I descended -to the door and opened it. It was -still dark and the sky was starry. There -was something that held me back for a -moment. But I took heart and went out. -Mother wanted to go with me for some<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_125" id="Page_125">[Pg 125]</a></span> -distance. Naturally, I declined the offer, -wishing not to seem cowardly, but also because -I did not want to give her such a -trouble. So she just stood at the door -with a lantern and saw me off till I turned -the corner.</p> - -<p>I thought she turned and stepped inside -after that, as I heard the noise of the -sliding door being shut, and, being satisfied, -I hurried on my way. But one morning -something happened that revealed the -truth. There was a bridge at the second -turning, two blocks away from my house, -and from that a long street ran. I was -away some distance on this road when one -of the fastenings of my clog-straps broke -off. It is sad when this occurs. We cannot -walk at all. We should be provided -with material for repair, but it seldom -happens that we are. To return was to -lose time, and I must be going. So I did -what boys usually do under such a circumstances. -I hunted a wedge-shaped pebble,<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_126" id="Page_126">[Pg 126]</a></span> -and, holding the broken end of the fastening -in the hole, where it had been kept -tight, drove it with another piece of stone. -I was able to walk a short distance, but -again it broke off. I was irritated, but -there was no use in fussing: so I again -went patiently to repair. I was hammering -the clog with a stone when I heard -the noise of hurried steps approaching. I -was too busy to look back, but a voice came -which made me drop the stone.</p> - -<p>“Sakae!”</p> - -<p>I turned, and there my mother stood -with a strip of cloth ready to help me! I -was surprised, but was too glad for help -to ask any question.</p> - -<p>As I trod on, I reasoned to account for -her appearance in this way: that after -seeing me turn the corner, my mother was -wont to put out the light, shut the door, -and follow me to the bridge, and from -there was watching to see that I was safe. -She saw that day that I was in trouble,<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_127" id="Page_127">[Pg 127]</a></span> -and divined the whole case by the knocks -I gave at the clog. So she was there with -her help. As I thought of that, a silent -tear trickled down my cheek.</p> - -<hr class="chap" /> - - - - - -<div class="chapter"> -<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_128" id="Page_128">[Pg 128]</a></span> -<h2 class="nobreak">CHAPTER X<br /> - -A BOY ASTRONOMER</h2></div> - -<blockquote> - -<p class="center">What I Intended to Be—My Aunt’s View—My Parents’ -Approval—My Uncle’s Enthusiasm—The -Total Eclipse of the Sun.</p></blockquote> - - -<p><span class="smcap">Like</span> all ambitious boys, I now began to -dream of my future.</p> - -<p>In a daily paper to which we were subscribing, -there was a story appearing in -serial form, which I happened to read, and -in which I became immediately interested. -It was a scientific novel, with a revenge -motive. The title, the author, the plot—all -are now forgotten except the vague idea -that the hero in the end, by his high inventive -ability, built a wonderful machine, -by means of which he poured poisonous -gas into the castle where his enemy lived, -and thereby took his vengeance upon him.<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_129" id="Page_129">[Pg 129]</a></span> -I was simply fascinated, and wanted to be -an engineer.</p> - -<p>The first one to whom I confided my intention -was Tomo-chan. Of course I did -not and could not depict an engineer as the -one in the story, wrapped in the glowing -splendor of his intellectual triumph. I -might have tried it if she had given me -a chance to do so. But too soon her peculiar -and perhaps truer view of the profession -came on me like a blow.</p> - -<p>“Why, isn’t an engineer a sort of carpenter?” -she asked. Reduced to such a -lowest term, even my hero looked shabby, -and from that very moment I dropped him -entirely.</p> - -<p>I was not, however, fortunate enough -to find a substitute worthy of my admiration, -and I had to go without any. But -this time my mind seemed to be able to -present to me a proper object of my -ambition. All my thought gradually -drifted toward the province of science (I -little knew then that it was the same engineer<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_130" id="Page_130">[Pg 130]</a></span> -story which influenced me). Of all -branches of learning, science appeared to -me to be the most substantial, most worthy -of serious study, and most certain of -arriving at the secret of the creation. The -study, however, of a small portion of -God’s work, such as a leaf of a tree or a -nameless insect, did not appeal to me. No, -any section of the earth was not large -enough to lay down my life for. I wanted -to take in the earth, the sun, the moon, the -planets, and the stars—in fact, all the -universe at once! So I fixed upon astronomy -as my special study. The immensity -of the field and the purely theoretical -nature of the subject, coupled with the -transcendency of the pursuit over the -triviality of worldly affairs, had all its -charm over me. It was simply great.</p> - -<p>I went again to Tomo-chan to tell her of -my intention. The idea of an astronomer -was apparently beyond her grasp. She -could not think of any occupation such as -carpenter, mason, and so forth, to associate<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_131" id="Page_131">[Pg 131]</a></span> -with an astronomer, and it did not take -her long to admit that it was grand.</p> - -<p>This was my first triumph, and now I -approached my aunt to see what she would -think of it. She was one of those women -whose mind never soared above the world -even for the sake of observation. She -could not conceive the idea that this earth—which, -by the way, was flat, according to -her view—revolves every day. I went -into a whole length of explanation by the -help of a lighted lamp and my fist, to show -how the revolution would cause day and -night, but to no purpose. So I changed -my tactics and told her the story of a little -girl, who, in her own way, understood this -fact. She lived at the foot of a high mountain, -on the summit of which there was a -lake. The little girl could not understand -how water could be found in such a high -place till she was told one day about the -diurnal revolution of the earth. “That -must be true,” she said, “and so the<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_132" id="Page_132">[Pg 132]</a></span> -mountain dips into the sea in the night -and carries the water from there!”</p> - -<p>But it was not my purpose to convince -her about such a matter, and so I proceeded -to acquaint her with my intention. -I soon found that it was not exactly in the -line of her approval. She presented to me -at once her worldly view of the profession, -how out of ordinary my choice was. The -astronomer was to her a man who sleeps -when all should be up, and is awake when -all should be in bed. He looks always at -the sky, and does not know often that he -is about to tumble into a ditch. He has to -perch on a roof or a tree-top like a sparrow, -to watch the stars while everybody -is enjoying some nice thing in the house.</p> - -<p>This, however, had no effect of a wet -blanket upon me. I knew that she was -teasing me for the mere fun of it. Her -humorous eyes were ready to take in any -change in my surprised countenance, which -on my part I partly assumed to please her.</p> - -<p>In the end, however, she frankly admitted<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_133" id="Page_133">[Pg 133]</a></span> -that the constantly increasing number -of new studies in these enlightened -days bewildered her greatly, and she -could not tell which profession was sure -to lead one to success. Perhaps I was -right, she said, in choosing a study which -only a few might attempt.</p> - -<p>Two days passed, in the course of which -I became surer of my choice and was ready -to face my parents. I had a secret suspicion -that my father might have some -plan already laid out for me. If he had -had anything in mind outside of a scientific -pursuit, I should have been non-plussed. -But, luckily, I found I was ahead -of him; indeed, he and my mother, too, -seemed to trust everything to my natural -inclination, and had only a vague but -bright future for me without any particular -road leading to it. So, when I laid -before them, side by side, my desire or -rather my determination to become an -astronomer and a future college professor, -with an income four times as great<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_134" id="Page_134">[Pg 134]</a></span> -as my father’s,—I reserved the poetic -side of my choice for my own meditation,—I -made such a deep impression on -them that it surprised me altogether. My -mother, bending over her sewing by lamp-light, -silently passed her hand over her -eyes, while my father picked up a paper -which had been read all through, with a -slightly drawn “Um,” in his throat, -which in his case was to be interpreted as -indicating some pleasant feeling. My -mother was the spokesman in such a case -when my father’s silence was meant for -consent. She told me that one must go -heart and soul into any sort of study in -order to excel in it. I simply nodded, and -presently went to bed with a light heart, -after bidding good night to the dear little -stars who would be my constant companions -hereafter.</p> - -<p>I could not meet my uncle till Sunday, -but Tomo-chan told me that he heard -everything about me from my aunt, and -was very enthusiastic over my intention.<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_135" id="Page_135">[Pg 135]</a></span> -Indeed, he was always enthusiastic over -new things, though his enthusiasm was -usually rather short-lived. But I was -glad that my news struck him in that -light. That morning I found him reading -a paper, but as I approached he looked up, -and, removing his spectacles, and combing -his beard with his fingers, surveyed -me awhile as if to see if I was capable of -my word. But really he was waiting for -the return of his enthusiastic mood. I felt -that Tomo-chan was smiling over my situation -from the next room, though I could -not remove my eyes from my uncle.</p> - -<p>“Astronomer, eh?” he said at last.</p> - -<p>“Yes, sir. Going to be one.”</p> - -<p>“That’s grand. You will be the fourth -or fifth in that line in our country. I -should take one of those new studies if -I were young enough. But astronomy is -indeed fascinating. Do you know that the -moon never shows her other side?”</p> - -<p>Here he rose up and began to pace the -room. His enthusiasm served to bring<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_136" id="Page_136">[Pg 136]</a></span> -back a flood of the shallow but ready -knowledge which he stored up in a corner -of his head. And he did not let me speak a -word till he had finished a lecture on the -solar system.</p> - -<p>“Look here,”—he turned to me with -the look of a man who made a sudden discovery,—“do -you know of the solar -eclipse we are going to have on the 20th?”</p> - -<p>Of course I did. It was still two weeks -thence, and the moon was as opposite as -could be, but I had already darkened a -piece of glass over a candle and begun to -observe the sun at least once a day.</p> - -<p>“This is the total eclipse and its rare -opportunity. You may not see it again in -Japan in your lifetime,” he went on.</p> - -<p>In my lifetime was too strong a phrase, -but I was very sorry to miss the chance, -as the zone of the total eclipse passed -some fifty miles north of Tokyo, and I -had—no money.</p> - -<p>“Perhaps in your lifetime, too,” I -ventured to suggest.</p> - - - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_137" id="Page_137">[Pg 137]</a></span>“Yes, indeed. I did not think of myself,” -he laughingly said. “Well, then, -let’s go!”</p> - -<p>“Go?”</p> - -<p>“I will take you and Tomo with me.”</p> - -<p>In the adjoining room Tomo-chan was -seen just raising both her outstretched -hands, opening her mouth, and rolling her -eyes—all bespeaking her joy and surprise. -I wished very much to answer the -signal but for the presence of my uncle, -who kept staring at anybody or anything -near him, and this time at me, while revolving -some new plan in his mind.</p> - -<p>For the intervening days I was busy -making preparations for the expedition. -I had to buy half a dozen pieces of glass, -frame and darken them in a variety of -shade; to adjust my watch to keep time; -to study the constellation where the sun -was, and note the stars of the first magnitude -visible on the day; and to make four -or five copies of a drawing with a graduated -circle in the centre for the sun, and<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_138" id="Page_138">[Pg 138]</a></span> -two other concentric circles for the orbits -of Mercury and Venus. The difficult part -of the business was how to record time -for the beginning of the eclipse. We -needed two, at least, for this. Tomo-chan -was glad to offer her service, but she did -not want to look at the watch but at the -sun. Well, I had no objection to that, as -long as she could tell the right moment. -But as I was a little in doubt on that point, -we spent several nights in drill by means -of a shaded lamp which cast a bright disc -on the wall. No sooner than I moved an -opaque one and touched the other, she had -to press my hand. But too often the -movable disc was a quarter of an inch -inside the other when the belated touch -passed on to me. So I had to train her -eyes first by giving a signal at the time of -contact by means of a pinch. And if she -did not perceive it still, she got pinched -still harder. She was very unteachable -in this respect, but still wanted to look at -the sun rather than the watch!</p> - - - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_139" id="Page_139">[Pg 139]</a></span>So the day of the eclipse arrived. It -was a hot, clear day in July, and most -fitted for the observation. We took an -early train, as we had a long way to go, -and then we must settle somewhere to -watch the beginning and the end and the -most precious middle. In the central part -of the zone of the total eclipse there was -a government observatory temporarily -erected, and we wanted to get as near to it -as possible. But we did not take into account -the rather slow service of the train, -and the hour for the eclipse had come -before we got into the zone, and were, of -course, in the train. As nothing could -be done under such circumstances, we gave -up the initial observation, and all the three -just looked at the sun through the soot-covered -pieces of glass. We did not know -that we were a gainer and not a loser by -this till late, except Tomo-chan, who had -already earned enough pinches merely to -be ready for the occasion.</p> - -<p>The train was a few miles within the<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_140" id="Page_140">[Pg 140]</a></span> -zone when my uncle thought it wise to -stop at a small village and make an observation -there, as the sun was fast being -overshadowed. We settled in a nice tea-house, -whose front room in the second -floor with an open veranda was just the -sort of place for our purpose. And there, -after a quick lunch, we awaited the hour. -Tomo-chan and I had a board and a sheet -of paper which I had specially prepared, -to note the location of the visible stars -and to draw the shape of the corona.</p> - -<p>I never knew that the light of the sun -was so strong, for till the luminous surface -was reduced to a very thin crescent, -no change was observed in the sky. But -all at once, as the shadow of a man passing -on the street became weirdly faint, the -color of the sky turned into warm steel-black -and the purple stars began to -shine! And in no time the crescent was -changed into a mere speck of silver light, -and in a second, as it burned itself off, a<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_141" id="Page_141">[Pg 141]</a></span> -beautifully soft fringe of twilight appeared. -That was the corona!</p> - -<p>I now assiduously set about to take down -the exact shape of it. There were only -thirty seconds of this precious moment. -So I just put down important points on the -paper, noting carefully the position and -the distance, and tried to take a clear impression -in my mind to be traced out later. -Tomo-chan was working, too. But her -process was just the opposite of mine. -Evidently she wished to follow my picture, -but as mine was no picture, she -turned to the sun with a sigh, and, though -she finished it in time, she had a picture -of a heavenly corona twisted considerably -by an earthly wind!</p> - -<p>The wonderful moment had now passed, -and the corona, with a tail trailing at the -right-hand side of the sun, disappeared -like a dream. It was too brief, but we -were satisfied, and did not know what to -think of our good fortune when, three -minutes later, a dark cloud came and<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_142" id="Page_142">[Pg 142]</a></span> -brushed the sun off. Then we imagined -what the consequence might have been if -the train had been fast and we had gone on -further north. The next day’s paper said -that the government expedition was entirely -spoiled on account of the untimely -shower!</p> - -<hr class="chap" /> - - - - - - -<div class="chapter"> -<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_143" id="Page_143">[Pg 143]</a></span> -<h2 class="nobreak">CHAPTER XI<br /> - -IN THE SUBURBS</h2></div> - -<blockquote> - -<p class="center">A Novel Experiment—Removal—Our New House—Angling—Tomo-chan’s -Visit.</p></blockquote> - - -<p><span class="smcap">We</span> were now to remove to the suburbs. -Father got a better position with a firm -quite far from our house, and it was -thought expedient for us to do so for his -convenience.</p> - -<p>There was one thing which made me dislike -this change. And it was about Tomo-chan. -We should be separated, and might -not see each other so often; all the more -so as we had grown to be quite intimate -and congenial by this time and had great -fun in indulging in some novel experiment -now and then. This last was by no means -of a scientific nature. Still we went at it -with something of scientific spirit to see<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_144" id="Page_144">[Pg 144]</a></span> -whether a certain innovation was applicable -or not.</p> - -<p>Here is one such experiment we tried. -Tomo-chan heard from one of her friends, -whose sister recently came home from -America, that in that enlightened country -when a lady and a gentleman take a walk -together, the latter offers his arm to the -former, who, of course, never hesitates to -take it. Tomo-chan thought it was a fine -idea, and asked me if we might try it. -Well, I had no objection if it were only -dark enough to make the trial. So one -evening, under the shade of cherry-trees, -we hooked our arms. Our cumbersome -sleeves were somewhat in the way, but -still we got on famously. After that, -whenever we were in the dark, a hint would -come from Tomo-chan to walk in that -fashion, and I was only glad to accept it. -Curiously enough it was the girl who suggested -it every time!</p> - -<p>Of course we were not uniformly successful. -I well remember the evening of<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_145" id="Page_145">[Pg 145]</a></span> -that memorable day of the total eclipse. -My uncle’s enthusiasm greatly abated as -the event of the day passed, and as we -alighted from the train and stood before -a fruit-vender’s stall, he now appeared -to be much interested in a large watermelon. -Unable to resist the temptation, -he bought one and had me carry it. So I -held it under my arm and walked on. The -street was not crowded and the night was -dark, and I went on behind my uncle with -Tomo-chan beside me, when a touch was -felt at my unoccupied arm. It was the -well-known hint, and in no time Tomo-chan -and the watermelon were hanging from -my arms. It was not an easy thing to walk -in that way, especially behind the back of -my uncle, who might turn round to see us -at any moment. Then I found that even a -watermelon had a bit of jealousy in it, -for every minute it would get heavier and -more unmanageable as my mind inclined -more and more to my fair companion. -The point was soon reached when it was no<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_146" id="Page_146">[Pg 146]</a></span> -longer endurable for the watermelon, and -at my unguarded moment it jumped out of -my arm to commit suicide. The bounce at -once made my uncle turn and wring his -hands for anger at my carelessness. I -was equal to the occasion, however. -Quickly extricating myself from Tomo-chan, -I pounced at the sulky thing before -a word was spoken, and saved it from any -harm. So we went on as before. Only -both my arms were now taken by the -watermelon, and poor Tomo-chan dragged -on crestfallen.</p> - -<p>But such fun we could no longer have -now that we were to be separated for a -time at least, and we parted with heavy -heart.</p> - -<p>The removal was a curious affair. On -five or six carts, everything in the house -from paper screens to a kitchen stove was -piled up. There was an old pomegranate-tree -in the back yard which we had brought -from the country some six or seven years -ago. And of course we dug it up carefully<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_147" id="Page_147">[Pg 147]</a></span> -and loaded it on the cart. Also we did -not forget to pull down long poles for drying -purpose and add them to the heap, -together with two or three round stones -for pressing pickles. The train of the -carts pulled by coolies then moved slowly -on through the city, and it was after dark -before we could unload them at the destination.</p> - -<p>The new house was in a charming spot. -Just back of us was a low hill thickly -wooded with tall oaks and criptomerias; -to the left across a brook stretched a -tilled field, fringed in the far distance with -bamboo bushes and elm groves; to the -right and on the hill the eye could command -the western horizon where Fujiyama -hung low like an azure fan against the -golden sky. The birds sang, the flowers -bloomed, the fire-worms glowed, and I -never felt a change so delightful, coming -as I did from a town where boys believed -that Indian corn either grew on a<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_148" id="Page_148">[Pg 148]</a></span> -tree, or sprang, like bamboo shoots, from -the ground without planting.</p> - -<p>My school came to be much nearer; the -potted trees of my father increased; a -baby was added to our family; and, as the -sun and the moon moved on peacefully, -we were all well contented with our lot.</p> - -<p>There was not much to be recorded for -our purpose in those days except the -angling my father and I had occasionally -in a river. His was always a calm turn -of mind, and the soothing, restful pastime -of fishing suited him immensely. I love -to picture him sitting under the sheltering -pine-tree by a quiet river bank, and -handling the rod and line, while quaint -ripples of smiles came and went across -his face as the nibbling fish gave his -line a tantalizing pull. Once, when it -was the season of smelt in the month of -May, we went over to a stream about two -miles off. The scene around there was -lovely. The mass of fresh leaves covered -the open field, and along the slope of the<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_149" id="Page_149">[Pg 149]</a></span> -bank, with stunted willows here and there, -myriads of dandelions like golden stars -studded the green. And the breeze was -fanning leisurely the warmth of the May -sun. The stream was shallow, and was -singing and foaming on the pebbly bed.</p> - -<p>“Let’s see what we can do about here,” -said my father, as he selected a spot where -the water was going on in a cataract. -And we cast our flies and tried our luck. -But, after awhile, having no success, I -began to doubt if my father had chosen the -right spot, and so I thought that I had -better follow up the river and see if they -bit. I left my father to his fortune and -started on my adventure. I did not know -that smelt-fishing was such a dull business, -for, wherever I went, there was the -foaming pool, the steady flow, and there -were practically no bites. Yes, there was -one, but I only fished a piece of some rotten -wood or dripping moss! I wondered -what my father was doing, and, not without -a smile over his probable ill-luck, I<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_150" id="Page_150">[Pg 150]</a></span> -went back, when I found him still standing -in the same spot. I doubted if he was not -going to take root there. I at once inquired -about his success. “No, nothing -remarkable,” he gently replied, dreaming -on the sparkling water. I went to his -basket dipped in the river, and lifted the -lid, when a large prisoner, disturbed by -the jar I gave, snapped violently! After -all, I thought, he was of a piece with Izaak -Walton.</p> - -<p>So days passed, and more than a year -rolled on since our removal. It was now -the latter part of October, when one day -we had unexpected visitors. They were -my aunt and Tomo-chan. This was not -their first visit since we came here, but I -had always been out and had had no -chance to meet them. Still, they did not -come very often, and so my aunt, with -many bows, apologized for her negligence -to call, while my mother, with equal courtesy, -was not behind the guest in heaping -up apologies for neglect on her part.<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_151" id="Page_151">[Pg 151]</a></span> -Then, as tea and cakes were produced, inquiry -after the health and condition of -each member of the family issued from -both sides, and was answered modestly, -followed by amiable comment from the -inquirers. Then, with equal lightness of -heart, the season was talked over, the -recent events, and, indeed, anything of -timely interest.</p> - -<p>While such a talk was going on my eyes -were secretly on Tomo-chan. I was surprised -at her change. I left her a mere -child only a year and a half ago, but the -bud of yesterday was the flower of to-day. -With a snowy neck and rosy cheeks, her -ebony hair done up stylishly, she sat in -striped silk of light azure and dove-gray. -She no longer looked at me straight, but, -except for furtive glances, her eyes -sought her jewelled hands, idly occupied -in clasping and unclasping on her knees. -A glow of bashfulness was beaming from -her as most eyes sought their focus in -her.</p> - - - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_152" id="Page_152">[Pg 152]</a></span>As the talk was about to become more -personal, my mother suggested that Tomo-chan -might go out with me as a guide to -look around the place, which was beautiful -at that time. My aunt seconded the -motion, and asked me to take the trouble -of doing so. So there was no need of -hesitation, and in the next moment we were -out for a walk on a country road.</p> - -<p>At first we were speechless. She appeared -to me no longer approachable with -the familiarity of “Tomo-chan.” But -as the autumnal breeze cooled down her -bashfulness, and the beauty of the scenery -was absorbing her attention more and -more, I ventured to falter:</p> - -<p>“Tomo-chan!”</p> - -<p>“Yes?”</p> - -<p>She looked at me with her eyes beaming -with laughter, and there was the same -old innocent childhood, but where was the -bashfulness?</p> - -<p>“Do you find this beautiful?” I asked.</p> - -<p>“Yes, certainly.”</p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_153" id="Page_153">[Pg 153]</a></span>“It wasn’t so beautiful yesterday.”</p> - -<p>“You mean to say that you had a sudden -frost last night that tinged the -leaves?” she archly asked.</p> - -<p>“Why, more sudden than that; it got -to be lovelier this very afternoon. We’ve -had something better than a frost.”</p> - -<p>“How is it possible?” She laughed.</p> - -<p>“No stranger than that you are changed -so <i>beautifully</i> in a year.”</p> - -<p>I said what I should not have said, for -she blushed to the roots of her hair, and -I repented of my forwardness.</p> - -<p>“But come along, Tomo-chan. I’ll -show you what you have not seen yet.”</p> - -<p>And I took her over the hill and pointed -to the faint shadow of the peerless mountain.</p> - -<p>“Why, Fujiyama!” she exclaimed. -“Oh, how lovely! Could you see that -every day from here?”</p> - - -<p>“Not in rainy weather.... But she -wanted to see you to-day, as everybody -else did, and waited there from morning.”</p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_154" id="Page_154">[Pg 154]</a></span>“I wish you would thank her for that, -Sakae-san.”</p> - -<p>“You ought first to thank him who told -her about your coming.”</p> - -<p>“Oh,” she smilingly said, “but don’t -tell me his name now, as I want to repay -him afterwards—abundantly.”</p> - -<p>I touched her dimple as she said so, and -then we went to the secluded part of the -hill where the crimson branches of maples -were projecting from the green background, -the red frosted “crows’ melons” -festooned high on the criptomerias, and -the wild chrysanthemums were blooming -lavishly. In such a charming spot Tomo-chan -was a child of thirteen, and wanted -me to take “crows’ melons”—I wonder -if she remembered the watermelon -incident?—and to gather chrysanthemums, -and laughed and sang to her -heart’s content. She was her old very -self. As the setting sun was resting on -her shoulder, I decked her hair with wild -flowers, and whispered in her ear that she<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_155" id="Page_155">[Pg 155]</a></span> -would remember evermore the day we -spent together. She nodded, and smiled -the sweetest of smiles.</p> - - -<p class="center"><strong>THE END.</strong></p> - - -<hr class="chap" /> - -<div class="chapter"> -<h2 class="nobreak">BOOKS<br /> -FOR<br /> -Young Americans.<br /> -</h2></div> - -<p class="center">By ELBRIDGE S. BROOKS.</p> - -<p class="center"><i>THE POPULAR “TRUE STORY” SERIES.</i></p> - - -<blockquote> - -<p>Seven 4to volumes of from 200 to 250 pages each, profusely -illustrated and attractively bound in cloth, each $1.50.</p> - - -<p>“A series which is worthy of hearty commendation. Every grown-up -person who has read one of them will wish to buy the whole series for the -young folks at home.”—<i>The Christian Advocate.</i></p></blockquote> - -<p>This series contains:</p> - -<blockquote> - -<p><strong>THE TRUE STORY OF CHRISTOPHER -COLUMBUS, called the Admiral.</strong> <i>Revised Edition.</i></p> - -<p><strong>THE TRUE STORY OF GEORGE -WASHINGTON, called the Father of -His Country.</strong></p> - -<p><strong>THE TRUE STORY OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN, -the American.</strong></p> - -<p><strong>THE TRUE STORY OF U. S. GRANT, -the American Soldier.</strong></p> - -<p><strong>THE TRUE STORY OF BENJAMIN -FRANKLIN, the American Statesman.</strong></p> - -<p><strong>THE TRUE STORY OF LAFAYETTE, -the Friend of America.</strong></p> - -<p><strong>THE TRUE STORY OF THE UNITED -STATES OF AMERICA. From 1492 -to 1900.</strong></p></blockquote> - -<p>Also, recently published:</p> - -<blockquote> - -<p><strong>IN BLUE AND WHITE. A Story of the -American Revolution.</strong> 8vo, illustrated, $1.50.</p></blockquote> - - -<p class="center">Lothrop, Lee & Shepard Co.,<br /> -93 FEDERAL STREET<span class="gap">BOSTON.</span></p> - - -<hr class="chap" /> - -<div class="chapter"> -<div class="figleft"><img src="images/i_158a.jpg" alt="" /></div> -<div class="blockquot"> -<p class="ph2">American Heroes and Heroines</p></div></div> - - - - -<blockquote> - -<p class="center">By <span class="smcap">Pauline Carrington Bouv</span><span class="gap2">Illustrated</span><span class="gap2">12mo</span><span class="gap2">Cloth</span><span class="gap2">$1.25</span></p></blockquote> - -<p class="drop-cap">This book, which will tend directly toward -the making of patriotism in young Americans, -contains some twenty brief, clever and attractive -sketches of famous men and women in American -history, among them Father Marquette, Anne -Hutchinson, Israel Putnam, Molly Pitcher, Paul -Jones, Dolly Madison, Daniel Boone, etc. Mrs. -Bouv is well known as a writer both of fiction and -history, and her work in this case is admirable.</p> - -<blockquote> - -<p>“The style of the book for simplicity and clearness -of expression could hardly be excelled.”—<i>Boston -Budget.</i></p></blockquote> - -<div class="blockquot"> -<p class="ph2">The Scarlet Patch</p></div> - -<p class="center"><strong>The Story of a Patriot Boy in the Mohawk Valley</strong></p> - -<p class="center">By <span class="smcap">Mary E. Q. Brush</span><span class="gap2">Illustrated by <span class="smcap">George W. Picknell</span></span><span class="gap2"> $1.25</span></p> - -<p class="drop-cap">“The Scarlet Patch” was the badge of a Tory organization, and a -loyal patriot boy, Donald Bastien, is dismayed at learning that his -uncle, with whom he is a “bound boy,” is secretly connected with this -treacherous band. Thrilling scenes follow in which a faithful Indian -figures prominently, and there is a vivid presentation of the school and -home life as well as the public affairs of those times.</p> - -<blockquote> - -<p>“A book that will be most valuable to the library of the young boy.”—<i>Providence -News.</i></p></blockquote> - -<div class="blockquot"> -<p class="ph2">Stories of Brave Old Times</p></div> - -<div class="figright"><img src="images/i_158b.jpg" alt="" /></div> - -<p class="center"><strong> -Some Pen Pictures of Scenes Which -Took Place Previous to, or Connected -With, the American Revolution</strong></p> - -<div class="blockquot"> - -<p>By <span class="smcap">Helen M. Cleveland</span><span class="gap2">Profusely illustrated</span> -<span class="gap2">Large</span><span class="gap2">12mo</span><span class="gap2">Cloth</span><span class="gap2">$1.25</span></p></div> - - - -<p class="drop-cap">It is a book for every library, a book for -adults, and a book for the young. Perhaps -no other book yet written sets the great -cost of freedom so clearly before the young, -consequently is such a spur to patriotism.</p> - -<blockquote> - -<p>“It can unqualifiedly be commended as a book for -youthful readers; its great wealth of illustrations -adding to its value.”—<i>Chicago News.</i></p></blockquote> - - - - -<div class="blockquot"> -<p class="ph2">Famous Children</p></div> - -<div class="figright"><img src="images/i_159a.jpg" alt="" /></div> - -<div class="blockquot"> -<p class="center">By <span class="smcap">H. Twitchell</span><span class="gap2">Illustrated</span><span class="gap2">$1.25</span></p> -</div> - -<p class="drop-cap">We have here a most valuable book, telling -not of the childhood of those who have -afterwards become famous, but those who as -children are famous in history, song, and story. -For convenience the subjects are grouped as -“Royal Children,” “Child Artists,” “Learned -Children,” “Devoted Children,” “Child Martyrs,” -and “Heroic Children,” and the names -of the “two little princes,” Louis XVII., Mozart, -St. Genevieve, David, and Joan of Arc are -here, as well as those of many more.</p> - -<div class="blockquot"> -<p class="ph2">The Story of the Cid For Young People</p></div> - -<div class="blockquot"> -<p class="center">By <span class="smcap">Calvin Dill Wilson</span><span class="gap2">Illustrated by <span class="smcap">J. W. Kennedy</span></span><span class="gap2">$1.25</span></p> -</div> - -<p class="drop-cap">Mr. Wilson, a well-known writer and reviewer, has prepared from -Southey’s translation, which was far too cumbrous to entertain the -young, a book that will kindle the imagination of youth and entertain and -inform those of advanced years.</p> - - - -<div class="figleft"><img src="images/i_159b.jpg" alt="" /></div> - -<div class="blockquot"> -<p class="ph2">Jason’s Quest</p></div> - - - -<div class="blockquot"> -<p class="center">By <span class="smcap">D. O. S. Lowell</span>, A. M., M. D.<span class="gap2">Master in -Roxbury Latin School</span><span class="gap2">Illustrated</span><span class="gap2">$1.00</span></p></div> - -<p class="drop-cap">Nothing can be better to arouse the imagination -of boys and girls, and at the same -time store in their minds knowledge indispensable -to any one who would be known as cultured, -or happier than Professor Lowell’s way -of telling a story, and the many excellent drawings -have lent great spirit to the narrative.</p> - -<div class="blockquot"> -<p class="ph2">Heroes of the Crusades</p></div> - -<div class="blockquot"> -<p class="center">By <span class="smcap">Amanda M. Douglas</span><span class="gap2">Cloth</span><span class="gap2">Fifty full-page illustrations</span><span class="gap2">$1.50</span></p> -</div> - -<p class="drop-cap">The romantic interest in the days of chivalry, so fully exemplified by -the “Heroes of the Crusades,” is permanent and properly so. This -book is fitted to keep it alive without descending to improbability or -cheap sensationalism.</p> - - - - - - -<p class="ph2">A Boy of a Thousand -Years Ago</p> - -<div class="figleft"><img src="images/i_160a.jpg" alt="" /></div> - -<div class="blockquot"> - -<p class="center">By <span class="smcap">Harriet T. Comstock</span><span class="gap2">Large</span><span class="gap2">12mo</span><span class="gap2">Profusely illustrated with full-page drawings -and chapter headings by <span class="smcap">George -Varian</span></span><span class="gap2">$1.00</span></p></div> - -<p class="drop-cap">It will at once be understood that the -“boy” of the story is Alfred the Great -in his youth, but it cannot be understood -how delightful a story this is until it is seen -and read. The splendid pictures of George -Varian make this book superior among -juveniles.</p> - -<div class="blockquot"> - -<p>“Not a boy lives who will not enjoy this book thoroughly. There is a good -deal of first-class historical information woven into the story, but the best part of it -is the splendid impression of times and manners it gives in old England a thousand -years ago.”—<i>Louisville Courier-Journal.</i></p> - -<p>“Mrs. Comstock writes very appreciatively of Little Alfred, who was afterward -the Great, and from mighty meagre materials creates a story that hangs together -well. The illustrations for this volume are especially beautiful.”—<i>Boston -Home Journal.</i></p></div> - - - - -<p class="ph2">The Story of Joan of Arc FOR BOYS AND GIRLS</p> - -<div class="figright"><img src="images/i_160b.jpg" alt="" /></div> - -<div class="blockquot"> - -<p class="center">By <span class="smcap">Kate E. Carpenter</span><span class="gap2">Illustrated by -<span class="smcap">Amy Brooks</span>, also from paintings, and -with map</span><span class="gap2">Large</span><span class="gap2">12mo</span><span class="gap2">Cloth</span><span class="gap2">$1.00</span></p></div> - -<p class="drop-cap">The favorite story of Joan of Arc is here -treated in a uniquely attractive way. -“Aunt Kate” tells the story of Joan of Arc -to Master Harold, aged 11, and to Misses -Bessie and Marjorie, aged 10 and 8, respectively, -to their intense delight. They look -up places on the map, and have a fine time -while hearing the thrilling story, told in such -simple language that they can readily understand -it all. Parents and teachers will also -be greatly interested in this book from an -educational point of view.</p> - -<div class="blockquot"> - -<p>“The tale is well told and the children will delight in it.”—<i>Chicago Post.</i></p> - -<p>“Told so simply and clearly that young readers cannot fail to be entertained -and instructed.”—<i>Congregationalist, Boston.</i></p></div> - -<hr class="tb" /> - -<p class="center">For sale by all booksellers or sent postpaid on receipt of price -by the publishers,</p> - -<p class="center">LOTHROP, LEE & SHEPARD CO., BOSTON</p> - - - - - - - - -<pre> - - - - - -End of Project Gutenberg's When I Was a Boy in Japan, by Sakae Shioya - -*** END OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK WHEN I WAS A BOY IN JAPAN *** - -***** This file should be named 55939-h.htm or 55939-h.zip ***** -This and all associated files of various formats will be found in: - http://www.gutenberg.org/5/5/9/3/55939/ - -Produced by MFR, David E. Brown, and the Online Distributed -Proofreading Team at http://www.pgdp.net (This file was -produced from images generously made available by The -Internet Archive) - -Updated editions will replace the previous one--the old editions will -be renamed. - -Creating the works from print editions not protected by U.S. copyright -law means that no one owns a United States copyright in these works, -so the Foundation (and you!) can copy and distribute it in the United -States without permission and without paying copyright -royalties. Special rules, set forth in the General Terms of Use part -of this license, apply to copying and distributing Project -Gutenberg-tm electronic works to protect the PROJECT GUTENBERG-tm -concept and trademark. Project Gutenberg is a registered trademark, -and may not be used if you charge for the eBooks, unless you receive -specific permission. If you do not charge anything for copies of this -eBook, complying with the rules is very easy. You may use this eBook -for nearly any purpose such as creation of derivative works, reports, -performances and research. They may be modified and printed and given -away--you may do practically ANYTHING in the United States with eBooks -not protected by U.S. copyright law. Redistribution is subject to the -trademark license, especially commercial redistribution. - -START: FULL LICENSE - -THE FULL PROJECT GUTENBERG LICENSE -PLEASE READ THIS BEFORE YOU DISTRIBUTE OR USE THIS WORK - -To protect the Project Gutenberg-tm mission of promoting the free -distribution of electronic works, by using or distributing this work -(or any other work associated in any way with the phrase "Project -Gutenberg"), you agree to comply with all the terms of the Full -Project Gutenberg-tm License available with this file or online at -www.gutenberg.org/license. - -Section 1. General Terms of Use and Redistributing Project -Gutenberg-tm electronic works - -1.A. By reading or using any part of this Project Gutenberg-tm -electronic work, you indicate that you have read, understand, agree to -and accept all the terms of this license and intellectual property -(trademark/copyright) agreement. If you do not agree to abide by all -the terms of this agreement, you must cease using and return or -destroy all copies of Project Gutenberg-tm electronic works in your -possession. If you paid a fee for obtaining a copy of or access to a -Project Gutenberg-tm electronic work and you do not agree to be bound -by the terms of this agreement, you may obtain a refund from the -person or entity to whom you paid the fee as set forth in paragraph -1.E.8. - -1.B. "Project Gutenberg" is a registered trademark. It may only be -used on or associated in any way with an electronic work by people who -agree to be bound by the terms of this agreement. There are a few -things that you can do with most Project Gutenberg-tm electronic works -even without complying with the full terms of this agreement. See -paragraph 1.C below. There are a lot of things you can do with Project -Gutenberg-tm electronic works if you follow the terms of this -agreement and help preserve free future access to Project Gutenberg-tm -electronic works. See paragraph 1.E below. - -1.C. The Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation ("the -Foundation" or PGLAF), owns a compilation copyright in the collection -of Project Gutenberg-tm electronic works. Nearly all the individual -works in the collection are in the public domain in the United -States. If an individual work is unprotected by copyright law in the -United States and you are located in the United States, we do not -claim a right to prevent you from copying, distributing, performing, -displaying or creating derivative works based on the work as long as -all references to Project Gutenberg are removed. Of course, we hope -that you will support the Project Gutenberg-tm mission of promoting -free access to electronic works by freely sharing Project Gutenberg-tm -works in compliance with the terms of this agreement for keeping the -Project Gutenberg-tm name associated with the work. You can easily -comply with the terms of this agreement by keeping this work in the -same format with its attached full Project Gutenberg-tm License when -you share it without charge with others. - -1.D. The copyright laws of the place where you are located also govern -what you can do with this work. Copyright laws in most countries are -in a constant state of change. If you are outside the United States, -check the laws of your country in addition to the terms of this -agreement before downloading, copying, displaying, performing, -distributing or creating derivative works based on this work or any -other Project Gutenberg-tm work. The Foundation makes no -representations concerning the copyright status of any work in any -country outside the United States. - -1.E. Unless you have removed all references to Project Gutenberg: - -1.E.1. The following sentence, with active links to, or other -immediate access to, the full Project Gutenberg-tm License must appear -prominently whenever any copy of a Project Gutenberg-tm work (any work -on which the phrase "Project Gutenberg" appears, or with which the -phrase "Project Gutenberg" is associated) is accessed, displayed, -performed, viewed, copied or distributed: - - This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere in the United States and - most other parts of the world at no cost and with almost no - restrictions whatsoever. You may copy it, give it away or re-use it - under the terms of the Project Gutenberg License included with this - eBook or online at www.gutenberg.org. If you are not located in the - United States, you'll have to check the laws of the country where you - are located before using this ebook. - -1.E.2. If an individual Project Gutenberg-tm electronic work is -derived from texts not protected by U.S. copyright law (does not -contain a notice indicating that it is posted with permission of the -copyright holder), the work can be copied and distributed to anyone in -the United States without paying any fees or charges. If you are -redistributing or providing access to a work with the phrase "Project -Gutenberg" associated with or appearing on the work, you must comply -either with the requirements of paragraphs 1.E.1 through 1.E.7 or -obtain permission for the use of the work and the Project Gutenberg-tm -trademark as set forth in paragraphs 1.E.8 or 1.E.9. - -1.E.3. If an individual Project Gutenberg-tm electronic work is posted -with the permission of the copyright holder, your use and distribution -must comply with both paragraphs 1.E.1 through 1.E.7 and any -additional terms imposed by the copyright holder. Additional terms -will be linked to the Project Gutenberg-tm License for all works -posted with the permission of the copyright holder found at the -beginning of this work. - -1.E.4. Do not unlink or detach or remove the full Project Gutenberg-tm -License terms from this work, or any files containing a part of this -work or any other work associated with Project Gutenberg-tm. - -1.E.5. Do not copy, display, perform, distribute or redistribute this -electronic work, or any part of this electronic work, without -prominently displaying the sentence set forth in paragraph 1.E.1 with -active links or immediate access to the full terms of the Project -Gutenberg-tm License. - -1.E.6. You may convert to and distribute this work in any binary, -compressed, marked up, nonproprietary or proprietary form, including -any word processing or hypertext form. However, if you provide access -to or distribute copies of a Project Gutenberg-tm work in a format -other than "Plain Vanilla ASCII" or other format used in the official -version posted on the official Project Gutenberg-tm web site -(www.gutenberg.org), you must, at no additional cost, fee or expense -to the user, provide a copy, a means of exporting a copy, or a means -of obtaining a copy upon request, of the work in its original "Plain -Vanilla ASCII" or other form. Any alternate format must include the -full Project Gutenberg-tm License as specified in paragraph 1.E.1. - -1.E.7. Do not charge a fee for access to, viewing, displaying, -performing, copying or distributing any Project Gutenberg-tm works -unless you comply with paragraph 1.E.8 or 1.E.9. - -1.E.8. You may charge a reasonable fee for copies of or providing -access to or distributing Project Gutenberg-tm electronic works -provided that - -* You pay a royalty fee of 20% of the gross profits you derive from - the use of Project Gutenberg-tm works calculated using the method - you already use to calculate your applicable taxes. The fee is owed - to the owner of the Project Gutenberg-tm trademark, but he has - agreed to donate royalties under this paragraph to the Project - Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation. Royalty payments must be paid - within 60 days following each date on which you prepare (or are - legally required to prepare) your periodic tax returns. Royalty - payments should be clearly marked as such and sent to the Project - Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation at the address specified in - Section 4, "Information about donations to the Project Gutenberg - Literary Archive Foundation." - -* You provide a full refund of any money paid by a user who notifies - you in writing (or by e-mail) within 30 days of receipt that s/he - does not agree to the terms of the full Project Gutenberg-tm - License. You must require such a user to return or destroy all - copies of the works possessed in a physical medium and discontinue - all use of and all access to other copies of Project Gutenberg-tm - works. - -* You provide, in accordance with paragraph 1.F.3, a full refund of - any money paid for a work or a replacement copy, if a defect in the - electronic work is discovered and reported to you within 90 days of - receipt of the work. - -* You comply with all other terms of this agreement for free - distribution of Project Gutenberg-tm works. - -1.E.9. If you wish to charge a fee or distribute a Project -Gutenberg-tm electronic work or group of works on different terms than -are set forth in this agreement, you must obtain permission in writing -from both the Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation and The -Project Gutenberg Trademark LLC, the owner of the Project Gutenberg-tm -trademark. Contact the Foundation as set forth in Section 3 below. - -1.F. - -1.F.1. Project Gutenberg volunteers and employees expend considerable -effort to identify, do copyright research on, transcribe and proofread -works not protected by U.S. copyright law in creating the Project -Gutenberg-tm collection. Despite these efforts, Project Gutenberg-tm -electronic works, and the medium on which they may be stored, may -contain "Defects," such as, but not limited to, incomplete, inaccurate -or corrupt data, transcription errors, a copyright or other -intellectual property infringement, a defective or damaged disk or -other medium, a computer virus, or computer codes that damage or -cannot be read by your equipment. - -1.F.2. LIMITED WARRANTY, DISCLAIMER OF DAMAGES - Except for the "Right -of Replacement or Refund" described in paragraph 1.F.3, the Project -Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation, the owner of the Project -Gutenberg-tm trademark, and any other party distributing a Project -Gutenberg-tm electronic work under this agreement, disclaim all -liability to you for damages, costs and expenses, including legal -fees. YOU AGREE THAT YOU HAVE NO REMEDIES FOR NEGLIGENCE, STRICT -LIABILITY, BREACH OF WARRANTY OR BREACH OF CONTRACT EXCEPT THOSE -PROVIDED IN PARAGRAPH 1.F.3. YOU AGREE THAT THE FOUNDATION, THE -TRADEMARK OWNER, AND ANY DISTRIBUTOR UNDER THIS AGREEMENT WILL NOT BE -LIABLE TO YOU FOR ACTUAL, DIRECT, INDIRECT, CONSEQUENTIAL, PUNITIVE OR -INCIDENTAL DAMAGES EVEN IF YOU GIVE NOTICE OF THE POSSIBILITY OF SUCH -DAMAGE. - -1.F.3. LIMITED RIGHT OF REPLACEMENT OR REFUND - If you discover a -defect in this electronic work within 90 days of receiving it, you can -receive a refund of the money (if any) you paid for it by sending a -written explanation to the person you received the work from. If you -received the work on a physical medium, you must return the medium -with your written explanation. The person or entity that provided you -with the defective work may elect to provide a replacement copy in -lieu of a refund. If you received the work electronically, the person -or entity providing it to you may choose to give you a second -opportunity to receive the work electronically in lieu of a refund. If -the second copy is also defective, you may demand a refund in writing -without further opportunities to fix the problem. - -1.F.4. Except for the limited right of replacement or refund set forth -in paragraph 1.F.3, this work is provided to you 'AS-IS', WITH NO -OTHER WARRANTIES OF ANY KIND, EXPRESS OR IMPLIED, INCLUDING BUT NOT -LIMITED TO WARRANTIES OF MERCHANTABILITY OR FITNESS FOR ANY PURPOSE. - -1.F.5. Some states do not allow disclaimers of certain implied -warranties or the exclusion or limitation of certain types of -damages. If any disclaimer or limitation set forth in this agreement -violates the law of the state applicable to this agreement, the -agreement shall be interpreted to make the maximum disclaimer or -limitation permitted by the applicable state law. The invalidity or -unenforceability of any provision of this agreement shall not void the -remaining provisions. - -1.F.6. INDEMNITY - You agree to indemnify and hold the Foundation, the -trademark owner, any agent or employee of the Foundation, anyone -providing copies of Project Gutenberg-tm electronic works in -accordance with this agreement, and any volunteers associated with the -production, promotion and distribution of Project Gutenberg-tm -electronic works, harmless from all liability, costs and expenses, -including legal fees, that arise directly or indirectly from any of -the following which you do or cause to occur: (a) distribution of this -or any Project Gutenberg-tm work, (b) alteration, modification, or -additions or deletions to any Project Gutenberg-tm work, and (c) any -Defect you cause. - -Section 2. Information about the Mission of Project Gutenberg-tm - -Project Gutenberg-tm is synonymous with the free distribution of -electronic works in formats readable by the widest variety of -computers including obsolete, old, middle-aged and new computers. It -exists because of the efforts of hundreds of volunteers and donations -from people in all walks of life. - -Volunteers and financial support to provide volunteers with the -assistance they need are critical to reaching Project Gutenberg-tm's -goals and ensuring that the Project Gutenberg-tm collection will -remain freely available for generations to come. In 2001, the Project -Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation was created to provide a secure -and permanent future for Project Gutenberg-tm and future -generations. To learn more about the Project Gutenberg Literary -Archive Foundation and how your efforts and donations can help, see -Sections 3 and 4 and the Foundation information page at -www.gutenberg.org - - - -Section 3. Information about the Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation - -The Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation is a non profit -501(c)(3) educational corporation organized under the laws of the -state of Mississippi and granted tax exempt status by the Internal -Revenue Service. The Foundation's EIN or federal tax identification -number is 64-6221541. Contributions to the Project Gutenberg Literary -Archive Foundation are tax deductible to the full extent permitted by -U.S. federal laws and your state's laws. - -The Foundation's principal office is in Fairbanks, Alaska, with the -mailing address: PO Box 750175, Fairbanks, AK 99775, but its -volunteers and employees are scattered throughout numerous -locations. Its business office is located at 809 North 1500 West, Salt -Lake City, UT 84116, (801) 596-1887. Email contact links and up to -date contact information can be found at the Foundation's web site and -official page at www.gutenberg.org/contact - -For additional contact information: - - Dr. Gregory B. Newby - Chief Executive and Director - gbnewby@pglaf.org - -Section 4. Information about Donations to the Project Gutenberg -Literary Archive Foundation - -Project Gutenberg-tm depends upon and cannot survive without wide -spread public support and donations to carry out its mission of -increasing the number of public domain and licensed works that can be -freely distributed in machine readable form accessible by the widest -array of equipment including outdated equipment. Many small donations -($1 to $5,000) are particularly important to maintaining tax exempt -status with the IRS. - -The Foundation is committed to complying with the laws regulating -charities and charitable donations in all 50 states of the United -States. Compliance requirements are not uniform and it takes a -considerable effort, much paperwork and many fees to meet and keep up -with these requirements. We do not solicit donations in locations -where we have not received written confirmation of compliance. To SEND -DONATIONS or determine the status of compliance for any particular -state visit www.gutenberg.org/donate - -While we cannot and do not solicit contributions from states where we -have not met the solicitation requirements, we know of no prohibition -against accepting unsolicited donations from donors in such states who -approach us with offers to donate. - -International donations are gratefully accepted, but we cannot make -any statements concerning tax treatment of donations received from -outside the United States. U.S. laws alone swamp our small staff. - -Please check the Project Gutenberg Web pages for current donation -methods and addresses. Donations are accepted in a number of other -ways including checks, online payments and credit card donations. To -donate, please visit: www.gutenberg.org/donate - -Section 5. General Information About Project Gutenberg-tm electronic works. - -Professor Michael S. Hart was the originator of the Project -Gutenberg-tm concept of a library of electronic works that could be -freely shared with anyone. For forty years, he produced and -distributed Project Gutenberg-tm eBooks with only a loose network of -volunteer support. - -Project Gutenberg-tm eBooks are often created from several printed -editions, all of which are confirmed as not protected by copyright in -the U.S. unless a copyright notice is included. Thus, we do not -necessarily keep eBooks in compliance with any particular paper -edition. - -Most people start at our Web site which has the main PG search -facility: www.gutenberg.org - -This Web site includes information about Project Gutenberg-tm, -including how to make donations to the Project Gutenberg Literary -Archive Foundation, how to help produce our new eBooks, and how to -subscribe to our email newsletter to hear about new eBooks. - - - -</pre> - -</body> -</html> diff --git a/old/55939-h/images/cover.jpg b/old/55939-h/images/cover.jpg Binary files differdeleted file mode 100644 index 61dba94..0000000 --- a/old/55939-h/images/cover.jpg +++ /dev/null diff --git a/old/55939-h/images/i_022f.jpg b/old/55939-h/images/i_022f.jpg Binary files differdeleted file mode 100644 index dd00570..0000000 --- a/old/55939-h/images/i_022f.jpg +++ /dev/null diff --git a/old/55939-h/images/i_040f.jpg b/old/55939-h/images/i_040f.jpg Binary files differdeleted file mode 100644 index 3cf352c..0000000 --- a/old/55939-h/images/i_040f.jpg +++ /dev/null diff --git a/old/55939-h/images/i_056f.jpg b/old/55939-h/images/i_056f.jpg Binary files differdeleted file mode 100644 index 66dbdab..0000000 --- a/old/55939-h/images/i_056f.jpg +++ /dev/null diff --git a/old/55939-h/images/i_090f.jpg b/old/55939-h/images/i_090f.jpg Binary files differdeleted file mode 100644 index 1a77cef..0000000 --- a/old/55939-h/images/i_090f.jpg +++ /dev/null diff --git a/old/55939-h/images/i_120f.jpg b/old/55939-h/images/i_120f.jpg Binary files differdeleted file mode 100644 index e04d8ad..0000000 --- a/old/55939-h/images/i_120f.jpg +++ /dev/null diff --git a/old/55939-h/images/i_158a.jpg b/old/55939-h/images/i_158a.jpg Binary files differdeleted file mode 100644 index fa34497..0000000 --- a/old/55939-h/images/i_158a.jpg +++ /dev/null diff --git a/old/55939-h/images/i_158b.jpg b/old/55939-h/images/i_158b.jpg Binary files differdeleted file mode 100644 index ea0a3f1..0000000 --- a/old/55939-h/images/i_158b.jpg +++ /dev/null diff --git a/old/55939-h/images/i_159a.jpg b/old/55939-h/images/i_159a.jpg Binary files differdeleted file mode 100644 index 6a61823..0000000 --- a/old/55939-h/images/i_159a.jpg +++ /dev/null diff --git a/old/55939-h/images/i_159b.jpg b/old/55939-h/images/i_159b.jpg Binary files differdeleted file mode 100644 index 2e97a7c..0000000 --- a/old/55939-h/images/i_159b.jpg +++ /dev/null diff --git a/old/55939-h/images/i_160a.jpg b/old/55939-h/images/i_160a.jpg Binary files differdeleted file mode 100644 index 3ba2e2f..0000000 --- a/old/55939-h/images/i_160a.jpg +++ /dev/null diff --git a/old/55939-h/images/i_160b.jpg b/old/55939-h/images/i_160b.jpg Binary files differdeleted file mode 100644 index da19c5b..0000000 --- a/old/55939-h/images/i_160b.jpg +++ /dev/null diff --git a/old/55939-h/images/i_frontis.jpg b/old/55939-h/images/i_frontis.jpg Binary files differdeleted file mode 100644 index 9b2bd10..0000000 --- a/old/55939-h/images/i_frontis.jpg +++ /dev/null diff --git a/old/55939-h/images/i_title.jpg b/old/55939-h/images/i_title.jpg Binary files differdeleted file mode 100644 index 3659ffb..0000000 --- a/old/55939-h/images/i_title.jpg +++ /dev/null |
