-A.3L LEAGl 
 
 /£* 
 
ex libris 
 
 Robert G Sawers 
 
&g 
 
 CHIUSHINGURA 
 
 THE LOYAL LEAGUE. 
 
 A JAPANESE ROMANCE 
 
 TRANSLATED BY 
 
 FREDERICK V. DICKINS, Sc.B., 
 
 of the Middle Temple, Barrister-at-Law. 
 
 WITH NOTES AND AN APPENDIX CONTAINING A METRICAL VERSION OF 
 THE BALLAD OF TAKASAGO, 
 
 AND A 
 
 JSpuinuw of tin Original Sett iit % Japanese Character. 
 
 ILLUSTRATED BY NUMEROUS ENGRAVINGS ON WOOD, DRAWN AND EXECUTED BY 
 JAPANESE ARTISTS, AND PRINTED ON JAPANESE PAPER. 
 
 " Est hie, est animus lucis contemptor, et . . 
 Qui vita bene credat emi .... honorem.' 
 
 VlRG. 
 
 NEW EDITION. 
 
 London : 
 ALLEN & Co., WATERLOO PLACE. 
 
 MDCCCLXXX. 
 
■■■ 
 
ISlP^ 
 
 
 
 jgjy 
 
 ^i^^w 
 
 
 ERRATA AND ADDENDA. 
 
 Appendix, p. 157. — " Meiji," translated "illustrious rule," is better rendered 
 " enlightened rule." 
 
 Appendix, p. 164. — " We shall climb together the Shide Hill." The note 
 here is erroneous. Mr. Chamberlain (Trans. As. Soc. of Japan, vol. vii., pt. iv., 
 p. 293, n. 24) says : " Souls on their way to hell have to cross the river 
 Sandzugawa, containing the waters of Avarice, Cruelty, and Envy, where a 
 crone named Datsuiba despoils them of their raiment, which she hangs upon 
 the branches of a willow tree." 
 
 For the preparation of the design on the cover, taken from a Japanese album 
 of decorative art some two hundred years old, in the possession of the trans- 
 lator, he is indebted to his friend, Mr. T. W. Cutler, of Queen's Square, 
 Bloomsbury. 
 
IV 
 
CONTENTS. 
 
 Errata and Addenda .... 
 
 List of Illustrations 
 
 List of Principal Personages 
 
 Translator's Note .... 
 
 Note to the New Edition 
 
 Preface of the Author (Original Text see Appendix) 
 
 Book the First — 
 
 What happened at Tsuruga-oka 
 Book the Second — 
 
 The Rage of Wakasanosuke 
 Book the Third — 
 
 The Quarrel of Yenya with Moronaho 
 Book the Fourth — 
 
 The Seppuku of Yenya Hanguwan 
 
 Book the Fifth — 
 
 The Night Adventure of Kampei 
 
 Book the Sixth — 
 
 The Heroism of Kampei 
 
 Book the Seventh — 
 
 The Discomfiture of Kudaiu 
 
 Book the Eighth — 
 
 The Bridal Journey. (See Appendix, p. 180) 
 
 PAGE 
 
 iii 
 
 XI 
 
 xiii 
 xv 
 
 i5 
 
 33 
 
 45 
 
 54 
 
 7i 
 
 93 
 
■■■ ' 
 
 VI 
 
 Contents. 
 
 Book the Ninth — page 
 
 The Repentance of Kakogawa Honzo -95 
 
 Book the Tenth — 
 
 The Proof of Gihei . . . 117 
 
 Book the Eleventh— 
 
 Retribution . . . . 135 
 
 Appendix — 
 
 Notes ..... 147 
 
 •Metrical Version of the Eighth Book, with Notes and Illustration . 180 
 
 Metrical Version of the Ballad of Takasago, with Notes and Illustration 188 
 
 t Specimen of Original Text — The Author's Preface . 203 
 
 The same transliterated into Roman character . . 205 
 
 
 < 
 
V|l 
 
 ILLUSTRATIONS, 
 
 [The principal personages in each are named from left to right.] 
 
 TO FACE PAGE 
 
 Tsuruga-oka .... . . . . i 
 
 (Wakasanosuke, Yenya, Moronaho.) 
 
 The Audience of the Lady Kawoyo ...... 3 
 
 (Wakasanosuke, Nahoyoshi, Moronaho, Kawoyo, Yenya.) 
 
 The Meeting of the Affianced ....... 9 
 
 (Konami, Rikiya.) 
 
 The Brutality of Sagisaka Bannai ...... 23 
 
 (Karu, Sagisaka, Hayano Kampei.) 
 
 The Appeasement of Wakasanosuke ...... 25 
 
 The Quarrel between Yenya and Moronaho . . . ... 28 
 
 (Yenya, Moronaho.) 
 
 The Meanness of Kudaiu ....... 32 
 
 (Goyemon, Kudaiu, Kawoyo.) 
 
 The Message of Death ........ 36 
 
 (Ishido Umanojo, Yakushiji Jirozayemon, Yenya, Goyemon.) 
 
 The Agony of Yenya ........ 39 
 
 (Yuranosuke, Yenya.) 
 
 The Oath of Yuranosuke ....... 43 
 
 (Yazama Bungo, Katayama Gengo, Rikiya, Goyemon, Yuranosuke.) 
 
 The Rencontre of Kampei and Senzaki ..... 46 
 
 (Kampei, Senzaki.) 
 
 The Murder of Yoichibei ....... 52 
 
 (Yoichibei, Sadakuro ) 
 
 The Departure of Karu ... ... 61 
 
 (Kampei, Ichimonjiya Saibei, Karu.) 
 
Vlll 
 
 Illustrations. 
 
 TO FACE 
 
 The Distress of Kampei ........ 
 
 (Kaya [Karu's mother], Kampei [with the deed of sale to Ichimonjiya 
 before him], Karu.) 
 
 Satisfaction in Death ........ 
 
 (Senzaki Yagoro, Kampei, Hara Goyemon.) 
 
 The Game of Blindman's Buff ....... 
 
 (The central figure is Yuranosuke.) 
 
 The Dissipation of Yuranosuke ...... 
 
 (Heiyemon, Takemori, Senzaki — this figure is mistakenly named 
 Onodera by the artist.) 
 
 The Device of Kudaiu ........ 
 
 (Kudaiu, Bannai, two Aa^o-bearers.) 
 
 Villainy Defeated ....... 
 
 (Kudaiu, Heiyemon, Takemori, Onodera (Yagoro), Yuranosuke, 
 Karu, Yazama.) 
 
 The Despair of Konami ...... 
 
 (Honzo in disguise, Tonase, Konami.) 
 
 The Reward of Kakogawa Honzo ...... 
 
 (Ishi, Kakogawa Honzo, Rikiya.) 
 Repentance ......... 
 
 (Rikiya, Honzo, Yuranosuke, Ishi.) 
 The Proof of Gihei ........ 
 
 The Adventure of Sono . . .... 
 
 The Conspirators' Farewell . ..... 
 
 Retribution .... 
 
 Before the Tomb of Yenya— the last Homage of the Clansmen 
 (The figure with an outspread roll is that of Yuranosuke.) 
 
 The Bridal Journey ...... 
 
 (Tonase, Konami, Fujisan [Fusiyama] in the background.) 
 
 Takasago no ura .... 
 
 (The Spirit of Takasago, the Spirit of Sumiyoshi, a Crane, and a 
 Hairy Tortoise, with the Pine Tree, emblems of longevity.) 
 
 >AGE 
 
 67 
 
 70 
 
 74 
 78 
 
 81 
 9i 
 
 105 
 108 
 no 
 
 120 
 
 130 
 133 
 T42 
 144 
 
 182 
 191 
 
LIST OF PRINCIPAL PERSONAGES. 
 
 N.B. — Pronunciation. Vowels as in Italian, save " u " as in English " put, 
 " full," " bull," &c. Consonants as in English, h being well aspirated. 
 
 Bannai (Sagisaka), retainer of Moronaho. 
 
 Gihei (Amagawa), agent of Yenya. 
 
 Goyemon (Hara), retainer of Yenya. 
 
 Heiyemon (Teraoka), a common soldier, retainer of Yenya. 
 
 Honzo (Kakogawa), chief councillor of Wakasanosuke. 
 
 Ishi (or O Ishi), wife of Yuranosuke. 
 
 Ishido (Umanojo), one of the commissioners present at the seppuku of Yenya. 
 
 Kampei (Hayano), a retainer of Yenya, husband of Karu. 
 
 Karu (or O Karu), wife of Kampei (Hayano), daughter of Yoichibei, sold on 
 his account to the teahouse in the Gion Street. 
 
 Kawoyo, wife of Yenya, beloved by Moronaho. 
 
 Konami, daughter of Honzo, affianced to Rikiya. 
 
 Kitahachi (Takemori), a retainer of Yenya. 
 
 Kudaiu (Ono), a disloyal retainer of Yenya. 
 
 Moronaho (K6 no), Lord of Musashi, superior and enemy of Yenya. 
 
 Nahoyoshi, deputy of the Shogun. 
 
 Rikiya, son of Yuranosuke, affianced to Konami. 
 
 Sadakuro (Ono), disloyal retainer of Yenya, son of Kudaiu and murderer of 
 Yoichibei. 
 
 Tonase, wife of Honzo. 
 
List of Principal Personages. 
 
 Wakasanosuke Yasuchika, officer under Moronaho. 
 
 Yagoro (Senzaki), retainer of Yenya. 
 
 Yakushiji (Jirozayemon), one of the commissioners present at the seppuku 
 Yenya. 
 
 Yazama Jiutaro, a retainer of Yenya. 
 
 Yenya Hanguwan Takasada, officer under Moronaho, husband of Kawayo. 
 Yoichibei, a farmer, father of Karu, murdered by Sadakuro. 
 Yuranosuke (Ohoboshi), hero of the tale, chief retainer of Yenya. 
 
CHIUSHINGURA; 
 
 OR, 
 
 t\ 
 
 THE LOYAL LEAGUE 
 
 TRANSLATOR'S NOTE. 
 
 HE " Chiushingura " is, or at least was, one 
 of the most popular and best-known romances 
 in Japan. It is easy to understand why such 
 should be the case, the main object of the 
 
 ~% tale being to glorify " chiushin " or loyal- 
 heartedness, the supreme virtue of the Bushi 
 class under the old order of things that passed away 
 with the year 1868. The story is, as a mere story, 
 not unskilfully constructed, and the variety of its 
 incidents is sufficient to interest even the reader 
 of the sensation novels of the period ; while to those 
 who still preserve some lingering affection for the 
 quaint and picturesque national life that ended with the 
 last decade, to be replaced by the vulgar and commonplace 
 existence of the day, the following pages, as descriptive of old- 
 
Xll 
 
 Chiuskingura ; or, the Loyal League. 
 
 world manners and already obsolete sentiments, a portion of a 
 curious mediaeval system that has lasted down to our own times, 
 will not, it is hoped, be altogether unpleasing. 
 
 The title " Chiushingura " is hardly translatable, and is a notable 
 example of the Japanese love of a play upon words. " Chiushin " 
 may mean either " loyal-heartedness " or "loyal followers;" and 
 "kura" (gura) signifies a treasury or storehouse, while it is also 
 the first half of the name of the popular hero, Kuranosuke, of 
 the historical episode of the " Forty-seven Ronin," upon which the 
 romance is founded, and which has been so pleasantly told by Mr. 
 Mitford in his admirable "Tales of Old Japan." The translator, 
 therefore, without attempting to render the native title, has chosen 
 that of the " Loyal League," as fairly indicating the nature of the 
 story, and preserving as much of the spirit of the original title as 
 could be preserved in a single expression. 
 
 The translation, it should be premised, was made long since, 
 in Europe, without the possibility of assistance; and although it 
 has been revised with as much care as the limited leisure and still 
 more limited scholarship of its author have permitted, there are, 
 doubtless, numerous inaccuracies to be detected in it by those better 
 versed in the language and literature of Japan than himself; for 
 vhich an indulgent consideration is claimed. 
 
 The translation is made partly from the text of the abbreviated 
 form in which the story is more commonly met with, but mainly 
 from that of the "joruri " (or musical romance) in which the tale is 
 amplified and adapted for theatrical recitation. 
 
Note to the Present Edition. 
 
 Xlll 
 
 A few explanatory additions, necessary to make the story plain 
 to the English reader, have been incorporated with the translation, 
 which is throughout, and purposely, a free one; and in sorr.e in- 
 stances it has been found advisable to leave untranslated, or to 
 translate shortly, portions of the original. 
 
 m l<^>t *■ 
 
 NOTE TO THE PRESENT EDITION. 
 
 The whole translation has been revised, and much of it rewritten. 
 Errors in the earlier edition have been corrected, and the present 
 version is, on the whole, a closer rendering of the text now followed 
 than the former one. But it has not been the translator's aim to 
 assist in any way the student of Japanese, and amplification, con- 
 densation, and, to some extent, combination and alteration have 
 been practised where judged advisable to meet the exigencies of 
 English readers. 
 
 It should be added that the revision has been made in England, 
 without the advantage of the usual native assistance in its pre- 
 paration. 
 
 The text employed differs to some extent from that which served 
 for the previous edition. New notes have been added, and the 
 former notes have been rectified and enlarged. The Appendix has 
 been but little altered. 
 
 London, December, 1879. 
 
PREFACE OF THE AUTHOR.* 
 
 F you don't eat of a dish, however savoury, 
 
 you can't enjoy its flavour, they say ; and 
 Kb 
 
 so, in piping times of peace, the loyalty 
 
 and bravery of valiant samurahi remain un 
 
 noticed, like as the light of the stars, unseen 
 
 in the day-time, becomes visible only in the darkness 
 and confusion of night ; whereof an example will be 
 found in the following syllabary written pages. 
 
 * In the text the whole of the First Book is dignified by 
 the name of "daijo" or "preface"; but the introductory sen- 
 tence here translated alone deserves that title, the rest of the 
 book being, in reality, a portion of the narrative. 
 
 ^*^^N$-. 
 
 "V|JS» 
 
8&PW85 
 

* 
 
 E 
 
 ^ 
 
BOOK THE FIRST. 
 
 WHAT HAPPENED AT TSURUGA-OKA. 
 
 iFTER the Shogun of the Ashikaga dynasty, 
 Taka-uji ko, had overthrown Nitta Yoshisada, 
 profound peace reigned throughout the land. 
 His Highness built a palace at Kiyoto, and 
 the fame of his achievements penetrated into 
 every corner of the empire. 
 
 All the people yielded to his authority, 
 bowing down before him as the grass bends to the breeze, 
 ^ and the imperial might spread its protecting wings over 
 & the realm. 
 
 In commemoration of his success, the Shogun caused 
 a shrine to be erected to the War-God Hachiman at 
 Tsuruga-oka, and sent his younger brother, Ashikaga 
 Sahiyoye no kami Nahoyoshi ko,* to act as his deputy at 
 the inauguration of the newly completed building. 
 
 Towards the close of the second month of the first year of the 
 nengo Riyakuo (A.D. 1338), Nahoyoshi accordingly arrived at Kama- 
 kura, and was received by the Lord Moronaho, Count of Musashi, 
 
 The Lord Nahoyoshi of the Ashikaga family, Commander of the left 
 Imperial Guard. 
 
Chiushingura ; or, the Loyal League. 
 
 and chief representative of the Shogun at the Eastern capital, a haughty 
 nobleman, arrogant of carriage, and overweeningly proud of his posi- 
 tion near the person of his august master; assisted by Wakasanosuke 
 Yasuchika, younger brother of Momonoi, Lord of Harima, and Yenya 
 Hanguwan Takasada, a baron of Hakushiu, charged by His Highness 
 with the duty of receiving guests, and who were keeping strict ward 
 within the curtain before the shrine. Nahoyoshi, taking his seat under 
 the porch of the shrine, motioned Moronaho to a place on his left, 
 while the two younger noblemen took up their position below the steps 
 by the great maiden-hair tree there standing.* Pointing to a Chinese 
 coffer, which the attendant had brought forward at his command, 
 Nahoyoshi exclaimed : — " Among the helmets contained in this chest 
 is one which belonged to Nitta Yoshisada, who was defeated by our 
 brother Takauji, bestowed upon him by the Emperor Godaigo. Nitta, 
 it is true, was our enemy ; but he was a descendant, in the elder line 
 of the Seiwa family, a Genji house, and it is commanded that the 
 helmet worn by him should not be thrown aside, but placed in the 
 treasury of the shrine."f 
 
 " His Highness's command surprises me," cried the Count of 
 Musashi; "Nitta, no doubt came of the Seiwa stock, but thus to honour 
 a helmet worn by him, seeing that scores of feudatories of high and 
 low degree claim like descent, is hardly, I submit, a prudent policy." 
 
 "Nay, my Lord, not so," said Wakasanosuke; "it seems to me 
 that His Highness hopes in this way to obtain the submission of the 
 disbanded partisans of Nitta without having recourse to force, trust- 
 ing to the effect which his generosity in thus honouring their chief 
 will have upon them. Your counsel is lacking both in wisdom and 
 respect." 
 
 The words were hardly out of his mouth when Moronaho ex- 
 claimed, angrily : — 
 
 " Yah! you dare to interrupt me and twit me, Moronaho, with 
 lack of wisdom. Round the spot where Nitta was slain, forty-seven 
 
 * Still to be seen. 
 
 f I.e., As an offering to the God. 
 
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 I 
 
 
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 SB 
 
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 *** 
 
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 A 
 
 
What happened at Tsuruga-oka. 
 
 helmets that had fallen off the heads of their dead wearers were 
 found; who shall tell which of them was Nitta's? and if the wrong 
 one should be thus honoured, what ridicule would be incurred ! 
 Away with you* for an overmeddlesome raw youngster." 
 
 The colour mounted to Wakasanosuke's face; but Yenya 
 Hanguwan interposed. 
 
 ^Kowa! your lordship is r.o doubt right. Still, what Waka- 
 sanosuke says is worth consideration. His Excellency, perhaps," 
 he added, glad to avert a quarrel, " will assist us." 
 
 " Let the wife of Yenya be sent for," replied Nahoyoshi, in 
 answer to the appeal made to him. 
 
 A messenger was accordingly dispatched in quest of her; and 
 after a short interval the Lady Kawoyo, the beautiful wife of the 
 Hakushiu baron, presented herself. Her face was powdered, and 
 the brilliancy of her appearance rivalled the lustre of a gem, as, 
 with bare feet and long sweeping train, she modestly prostrated 
 herself at a respectful distance from His Excellency. 
 
 " Lady Kawoyo," said Moronaho, who was an admirer of the 
 sex, "we are much obliged to you. His Excellency has commanded 
 your attendance, pray come nearer," assuming a soft manner as he 
 spoke the latter words. 
 
 Nahoyoshi, regarding her, added : — " It is true that we have sent 
 for you. Some time since, during the rebellion in Genko (A.D. 1331), 
 Godaigo Tenwo bestowed a helmet that His Majesty had himself 
 worn ; iipon Nitta Yoshisada at the capital, and the latter doubtless 
 wore it upon the day of his death. It is supposed to be among the 
 helmets I have caused to be placed in yonder coffer, but there is 
 no one here who can pick it out. We have heard that the wife of 
 Yenya was, at the time we refer to, one of the twelve Naishi, and 
 if she can recognise the helmet in question we bid her to point it out." 
 
 The Lady Kawoyo listened modestly to His Excellency's command, 
 and replied softly : — 
 
 Lit., "Draw in your head as a tortoise does." 
 
 B 2 
 

 4 Chiushingura ; or, the Loyal League. 
 
 u Your Excellency's command honours me beyond my merits. 
 Every morning and evening His Majesty's helmet was in my hands, 
 and I was present at the bestowal of it upon Nitta. Indeed, it was 
 from my hands that the latter received it; accompanying his grateful 
 acceptance with the following declaration : — ' Man lasts but one 
 generation, but his name may endure for ever. When I go forth 
 to battle I shall burn precious ranjatai perfume in the helmet thus 
 graciously presented to me; and if I should die upon the battle-field, 
 the foe to whom my head will fall a prize will know by the fragrance 
 that he has taken the head of Nitta Yoshisada.' " 
 
 " Your answer, lady," exclaimed His Excellency, as the wife of 
 Yenya ceased speaking, "is sufficiently clear. Ho! there; take out 
 the forty-seven helmets in yonder coffer, and show them one by one 
 to Lady Kawoyo." 
 
 The attendants hastened to obey ; and, opening the coffer, 
 brought out the helmets one by one. After a number had been 
 examined, they came upon a five-fold helmet with a dragon crest, 
 which the Lady Kawoyo immediately recognised by the odour still 
 clinging to it, as the one bestowed upon Nitta by the Emperor 
 Godaigo. The helmet thus identified was delivered to Yenya and 
 Wakasanosuke, who were commanded to take charge of it, and see 
 that it was duly placed in the treasury of the shrine. Nawoyoshi 
 then rose and withdrew, followed by the two noblemen. 
 
 The Lady Kawoyo, thus left alone with Mcrcnaho, addressed 
 that nobleman with some embarrassment. 
 
 "My lord, pray excuse me. My duty being performed, and per- 
 mission given me to retire, it would not be fitting that I should 
 remain here longer. I beg, therefore, to take leave of your lordship." 
 
 Moronaho, however, coming close up to her, detained her. 
 
 " Met, an instant, pray. Your duties to-day are over, and I venture 
 to ask you to look at something I have to show you. His Excellency's 
 sending for you was a most fortunate thing for me, — just as if he 
 were a god desirous of bringing us together. You know that I am 
 fond of putting my thoughts into verse, and, day after day, I have 
 
 iHMMM 
 
What happened at Tsuruga-oka. 
 
 asked Yoshida Kenko to assist me in composing some lines to you, 
 which were to have been sent to you. You will find them in this 
 paper," slipping a folded letter into her sleeve-pocket. "I hope you 
 will look upon them favourably. You might give me your answer 
 now, by word of mouth." 
 
 The letter was addressed to the Lady Kawoyo — different enough 
 in face and form from the Musashi stirrup,* from whom it purported 
 to come. And the wife of Yenya, as she read the address, trembled 
 with shame and confusion, yet feared to reproach Moronaho, lest 
 disgrace should attach to her husband's name. At first she thought 
 of shewing it to her husband; but recollecting that it would only 
 make him angry and might cause trouble, she simply threw the letter 
 back without a word. 
 
 Moronaho picked it up, quoting a line from the Senzai col- 
 lection — 
 
 " What thou hast spurn'd, is prized by me, 
 For hath it not been touch'd by thee!" 
 
 and continued to press his suit, hoping by importunity to compel a 
 favourable answer — but in vain. 
 
 "Know you," he cried at last, "that I am Count of Musashi? 
 that on my will depends the weal or woe of the Empire? that your 
 husband's fate hangs upon your decision? — Do you hear me?" 
 
 Kawoyo could only answer with her tears, when Wakasanosuke 
 opportunely returned, and, seeing that some insult had been offered 
 to her, cleverly interposed. 
 
 " Lady Kawoyo, your duty is accomplished, and. permission has 
 been accorded you to retire. Ought you not, out of respect to His 
 Excellency, to avail yourself of it?" — motioning her to withdraw as 
 he spoke. 
 
 Moronaho saw that Wakasanosuke suspected something; and, 
 determined not to show any weakness, cried angrily, 
 
 * Moronaho, as Lord of Musashi, had designated himself upon the cover of 
 the letter as a Musashi Stirrup, Musashi being famous for the manufacture 
 of stirrups. 
 
6 
 
 Chiushingura ; or, the Loyal League. 
 
 " Yah ! again you dare to thrust yourself in my way. If the lady 
 Kavvoyo withdraws it is by my permission,, not by yours. Kawoyo 
 desires me, according to her husband's secret wish, to instruct him 
 how to discharge the duties of his office with perfect propriety, with- 
 out which he would be helpless. And Yenya, though a Daimio, seeks 
 my aid; while you, a petty fellow who got your rank through the 
 favour of nobody knows who, take care, and remember that a word 
 from me will suffice to bring you into the clutches of the executioner." 
 
 The colour mounted into Wakasanosuke's face at this insolent 
 speech, and he grasped the handle of his sword with force enough to 
 crush it. Remembering that he was within the grounds of the War- 
 god's shrine, and within the precincts of the palace, he had restrained 
 himself when Moronaho had previously insulted him; but this last 
 trial overcame his utmost patience, and he was on the point of making 
 it a life and death quarrel, when His Excellency's fore-runners came 
 rapidly up, clearing the way with loud shouts for their lord's passage. 
 
 In the confusion, Wakasanosuke was obliged to defer the hour, 
 but still treasured the hope of vengeance. Thus, Moronaho, with a 
 good fortune the reverse of merited, escaped destruction ; and the 
 next morning Yenya, ignorant of the ill-turn which his superior had 
 played him, followed in his suite. 
 
 Nahoyoshi, meanwhile, returned at a slow pace to the palace, and 
 his authority was everywhere reverently acknowledged; while his 
 servants held their heads proudly erect, and the war-helmets were 
 laid by arranged in peace-betokening order, according to the letters 
 of the I-ro-ha. 
 
 Thus a profound tranquillity reigned in the land ; throughout 
 which, not to harm a head-piece became an universally observed 
 rule. 
 
 END OF THE FIRST BOOK. 
 
BOOK THE SECOND 
 
 THE RAGE OF WAKASANOSUKE. 
 
 ;N an evening in the Yayoi* month, Kakogaha 
 Honzo, a man of some fifty years of age, 
 and of matured intelligence, shikkenshoku f 
 of Wakasanosuke almost ever since the 
 tall pines had overshadowed the courtyard of 
 his lord's castle, was pacing to and fro before 
 the sho-in,\ while the servants, muttering 
 together over their task, were sweeping up the dead 
 leaves, and putting everything in due order. 
 
 "Yesterday, at Tsuruga-oka," said one of them, 
 "our master was grievously insulted by the Lord 
 Moronaho. They talk of nothing else in the servants' 
 quarters. Indeed, it is said that violence was used 
 towards him." 
 
 " Vat, yai!" cried Honzo, breaking in, "what is all this about — 
 what have you to do with such matters ? If your work is finished, 
 away with you, every one." 
 
 * " Development month," the 3rd of the late national calendar, answering 
 to the middle of our April. 
 
 f Chief Councillor is a sufficiently near rendering of the word. 
 
 \ These appear to be anterooms on one or both sides of the Genka. porch, 
 or entrance hall. 
 

 8 
 
 Chiushingura ; or, the Loyal League. 
 
 Honzo spoke goocl-humouredly enough ; and, just as he ended, the 
 clatter of footsteps resounded in the verandah, and his only daughter, 
 Konami, and her mother, Tonase, came together out of one of the 
 apartments. 
 
 " How is this ?" he exclaimed, in a sharp tone, " both of you 
 absent from attendance on your mistress, amusing yourselves instead of 
 looking after your duties. Shame upon you — ten thousand times 
 shame upon you."* 
 
 " Nay, father," said Konami, " our mistress is more than usually 
 well to-day, she is now quietly asleep; is it not so, mother?" 
 
 " Yes," replied the latter. " But, Honzo, our mistress has just been 
 telling me a report she heard from Konami that our lord Wakasano- 
 sukeand Moronaho had words together after the close of yesterday's 
 ceremony at Tsuruga-oka.f Our mistress is very anxious about it." 
 
 " Now, now, TonaseV' cried her husband, " why do you listen to 
 such stupid rumours? Have a care, have a care! So our daughter 
 here got hold of this rumour yesterday, did she ? How people talk, to 
 be sure — but the whole thing is ridiculous ; I must go and put your 
 mistress's mind at ease about what you have told her." 
 
 Just as he was quitting the spot, however, a warder came up and 
 announced "Rikiya Sama, the son of Ohoboshi Yuranosuke." 
 
 "Ha!" said Honzo, "he will have brought instructions about the 
 reception of the guests at court to-morrow. Tonase', hear what he has 
 to say, and inform our lord of his message. And stay, Rikiya and 
 Konami are betrothed ; so treat him civilly. I must away to your 
 mistress." 
 
 So saying, Honzo hurried off in the direction of the inner apart- 
 ments. 
 
 " Ah," cried Tonase, approaching closer to her daughter, " your 
 father was always a punctilious man, but in this matter I am not at all 
 of his mind. 'Tis you ought to receive the message, not I. You and 
 
 * Lit., " A thousand times ten thousand times." 
 f I.e., " The Cranes' Hill or Mound.'' 
 

 '530 XXBk 
 
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 8: 
 
 | 
 
The Rage of Wakasanosuke. 
 
 your affianced would, of course, like to see each other, and be with 
 each other a little ; therefore, you take my place and receive Rikiya — 
 what say you?" 
 
 But Konami only turned red, and, although her mother repeated 
 the question, gave no answer. The latter divining, however, her 
 daughter's real wishes, immediately feigned an' attack of hysterics. 
 
 "Ai, ta, ta, ta, — daughter, — rub my back, please; I have been fearing 
 this ever since the morning. It is another attack of my usual spasms. 
 Ah ! it will be impossible for me to receive the messenger. Ai, ta, ta, 
 ta, — daughter, — I must get you to receive him instead of myself. Take 
 care to treat him civilly, and offer refreshments. This fit quite prevents 
 me. Mind you offer refreshments ; and, when Rikiya has partaken 
 of them, take his message carefully and make my excuses to him." 
 
 With these words Tonase' hobbled off towards the inner apartments. 
 Konami, bowing after her mother with an expression of entreaty, said 
 to herself, " Of late Rikiya has become very dear to me, but what am I 
 to say? How shall I act when I meet him?" 
 
 A timid blush dyed her soft cheek as she made these reflections, and 
 her little heart went "pit-a-pat, pit-a-pat," like the tiny waves* breaking 
 on the sea-shore. 
 
 Presently, Rikiya was announced, and immediately afterwards 
 entered the apartment, saluting Konami courteously. He was a 
 handsome youth ; and, as he and Konami shyly interchanged glances, 
 they were mutually charmed with each other. Neither could find a 
 word to say, modesty dyeing her cheek with the hue of the plum- 
 blossom, rivalled by the blush of the wild cherry that overspread the 
 face of her betrothed; and, the pair being alone, there was no inter- 
 mediary to bring them closer together, f 
 
 " Welcome, Sir," exclaimed Konami, with some embarrassment ; "we 
 
 * A pun upon her name, " Konami," i.e., " little wave." 
 
 f Lit., " There was no mahura-giydji present." A giydji is an umpire or director 
 in a wrestling match — makura-giyoji, pillow-umpire, is a term for a nakodo, or 
 matrimonial go-between, who is supposed to bring together the pillows of the 
 affianced, as the wrestling umpire (sumo-giydji) gives the signal for the onset. 
 

 IO 
 
 Ckiushingura ; or, the Loyal League. 
 
 hardly know how to thank you for the trouble you are put to on our 
 behalf. I am charged with the duty of receiving your communication. 
 Pray let me know what it is" — approaching her betrothed as she 
 uttered the last words. 
 
 Rikiya, however, drew back with an offended air. " Hold ! " he 
 cried, " this is scarcely civil. All the world knows that when a message 
 is to be received, the forms of politeness ought to be rigidly observed." 
 " My lord Yenya," he continued, " informs Wakasanosuke that His 
 Excellency's order is, that both my lord and yours be at their posts 
 to-morrow morning at the seventh hour precisely (4 a.m.), and in 
 everything submit themselves, without failing in any particular, to 
 the directions of Moronaho." 
 
 As the words flowed softly like water from the youth's mouth, 
 Konami was struck with admiration, and could not find a word to 
 say in reply : so completely was she under the charm of his address. 
 At this juncture a partition was pushed back, and Wakasanosuke, who 
 had heard the whole conversation from an adjoining room, entered 
 the apartment. 
 
 "Oh, I understand — many thanks, messenger. Yesterday, when 
 I took leave of His Excellency, I somehow missed Hanguwan. To- 
 morrow morning, is it ? At the seventh hour precisely ? Good, You 
 may assure your master I shall not fail to be there. Commend me 
 to your lord, and thank him for me; and I must thank you, too, 
 messenger." 
 
 " Your lordship, then," said Rikiya, " will permit me to take leave. 
 And to you, lady," addressing Konami, " I beg to express my thanks 
 for having received my message." 
 
 So saying, Rikiya courteously withdrew. Tonase' who had all this 
 time remained hidden behind a screen, where, after leaving her 
 daughter upon a pretended plea of illness, she had concealed herself, 
 also slipped away unperceived. Hardly had she disappeared when 
 Honzo entered the apartment. 
 
 " Ah, your lordship is here ? I am very sorry to have to remind 
 you that your lordship's presence at the palace is required so early as 
 
The Rage of Wakasanosuke. 
 
 ii 
 
 the seventh hour. It is already midnight. Will it not be well to take 
 some rest?" 
 
 " Is it indeed so late ? But hark ye, Honzo, I must have some 
 talk with you, in private. Send your daughter away." 
 
 " Do you hear ? " cried the Shikkenshoku, addressing his daughter ; 
 " If we want you we will clap hands. Away with you." 
 
 " I was desirous," pursued Honzo, after she had withdrawn, 
 approaching his lord, whose face had assumed an expression of the 
 deepest concern, " I was desirous of being allowed to inquire what 
 was troubling your lordship ? I pray you, tell me everything without 
 any reserve." 
 
 " You must swear to me that you will attend to what I am about 
 to say, whatever may be the results, without making a single objection." 
 " Surely, my lord, that is a strange request to your servant ; whose 
 duty it is to do whatever he may be directed." 
 
 " So, then, you will not give me your oath as a Bushi." * 
 " Nay, not so, — but first I would ask to hear the whole matter from 
 your lordship." 
 
 " Then you will give me your advice ! Nay, but perhaps you 
 would oppose my wishes." 
 
 " Is not my lord assured of his servant's respectful attention and 
 devotedness? I will not interrupt your lordship by a single word. I 
 pray you, therefore, tell me all, now ; and be not angry with this fellow 
 Honzo, who will treasure up in his inmost heart whatever you may 
 deign to confide to him." 
 
 "Well, then, I will tell you everything. As you know, the 
 Kuwanreit Nahoyoshi came down to Kamakura a short time since, 
 to inaugurate the shrine that has just been completed at Tsuruga-oka. 
 Yenya and I were charged with the duty of receiving guests, and were 
 commanded by His Highness the Shogun to put ourselves under the 
 
 2.1 * v 
 
 * The general name of the military or two - sworded class ; literally 
 "warriors." 
 
 f Governor-General of the eight eastern provinces cf which Kamakura was 
 formerly, and Yedo afterwards, the capital. 
 
12 
 
 CJiiushingura ; or, the Loyal League. 
 
 orders of Moronaho, a nobleman of great experience in all ceremonial 
 matters. Moronaho took to riding the high horse, and day by day 
 grew harsher and stricter with me, who am one of the youngest and 
 least experienced of all the samurahi in Kamakura. At last his 
 insolence passed all bounds, and I would have ere now cut him in 
 pieces, were it not that the respect due to His Highness has always 
 forbidden me to give way to my passion, and wreak vengeance upon 
 my enemy. But my patience is exhausted. To-morrow, come what 
 may, I will throw back his insults in his face before the whole court. 
 My honour as a samurahi is at stake. This hand shall strike the 
 villain dead. And you, Honzo, beware of attempting to restrain me. 
 My wife, and you too, have often remonstrated with me of late, 
 because of my quick temper gaining more and more the mastery over 
 me, and I know your counsel is good. But a samurahi, with the spirit 
 of a samurahi, I can no longer brook these repeated insults. You will 
 say, I am courting destruction, bringing grief upon my wife. Too true, 
 perhaps ; but the sword I wear, and the dread archer-god to whom 
 I pray, command me to wipe out the insults to my honour. Even 
 though I die not upon the battle-field, if I slay this Moronaho, a service 
 will be done to the Empire, and the name of my house will be saved 
 from infamy. I have spoken thus freely with you that my motives may 
 be known, and that it may not be said of me afterwards that I rushed 
 upon my fate in a mere fit of passion, like a mad fool or a stupid 
 wild-boar." 
 
 " Most clearly have you put the matter, my lord. You have indeed 
 acted with wisdom throughout, — a wisdom your servant could never 
 hope to imitate." 
 
 "Yaif Honzo," cried his master, interrupting him; "what say you? 
 I have acted with wisdom, have shown forbearance. What means 
 this ? Dare you to insult me ? " 
 
 " Far from your servant any such thought. Street-folk, it is true, 
 take the shady side of the road in winter, and the sunny one in 
 summer, to avoid disputes ; but samurahi follow no such coward's rule. 
 I pray you excuse my ill-considered words. Search my heart, my lord, 
 
 I'M 
 
 ..... ,-., ...v 
 
The Rage of Wakasanosukc. 
 
 13 
 
 and you will find in it no thought of disrespect to your servant's 
 master." 
 
 As he uttered the last words Honzo drew his short sword, and 
 with a blow cut off a branch from a pine-tree that stood close to the 
 verandah in front of the room where the conversation was being 
 held : immediately returning the weapon deftly to its scabbard. 
 
 " Sa ! So let the enemies of my lord perish by his hand." 
 
 " Silence ! Look well, lest there be any one about who can hear 
 what we say." 
 
 " And now, my lord," said the Shikkenshoku, after having peeped 
 into the adjoining room to satisfy his master, " it is already midnight, 
 pray take some rest : I will myself see to the alarm-clock. Do not 
 delay, I pray you." 
 
 " I am glad you quite understand me. If I see my wife, I shall 
 make some excuse for leaving her." 
 
 Bidding Honzo good night, Wakasanosuke then withdrew. For a 
 few moments Honzo gazed after his lord wistfully ; then rousing 
 himself, he bent his steps hastily in the direction of the servants' 
 quarters. 
 
 " Ho, there, some of you," he cried in a loud tone, " saddle a horse 
 for me, quick." 
 
 The order was obeyed without delay, and Honzo at once swung 
 himself into the saddle. 
 
 " Follow me, I go to the mansion of Moronaho." 
 
 As he spoke, Tonase' and Konami came out of an apartment, and 
 hurrying up to him, hung upon his bridle, exclaiming — " Where are 
 you going ? We have overheard everything. How, Honzo ! You 
 an old man, and yet you do not endeavour to moderate our lord's 
 anger by your wisdom — what can this mean ? Stay, stay ! " 
 
 And the two women clung beseechingly to his bridle. 
 
 " Silence, both of you," cried the Shikkenshoku, angrily. " Our 
 lord's life — the existence of his house — are at stake. Mind you do not 
 utter a word about my departure to your master. If you betray me, 
 you, daughter, shall be turned out of my family, and you, Tonase', 
 
14 Chiushingura ; or, the Loyal League. 
 
 shall be divorced. Ho, there (to the servants), I will give you your 
 orders on the way." 
 
 Tonase and Konami uttered an exclamation of alarm. 
 
 " You are too importunate," repeated Honzo, sharply. " Delay 
 not (to the servants), but follow me." So saying, he hastily rode off, 
 clouds of dust marking his rapid passage. Tonase' and her daughter 
 immediately afterwards betook themselves with heavy hearts to the 
 inner apartments. 
 
 END OF THE SECOND BOOK. 
 
BOOK THE THIRD. 
 
 THE QUARREL OF YENYA WITH MORONAHO, 
 
 USPICIOUS events were the completion of 
 the Palace at Kamakura, and the arrival 
 of Nahoyoshi K6, the Governor-General of 
 the eight eastern provinces ; brilliant was the 
 throng of courtiers of high and low degree, 
 in splendid attire, that crowded the spacious 
 apartments on the morrow of the day of 
 which the events have been already narrated. It was 
 as if the moon and the stars* had combined to shed 
 their radiance on the hills around Kamakura. About 
 the Rear-gate were waiting the no performers, who 
 had been summoned to display their talents before 
 the assembled court, while round the Great Gate were 
 gathered the officials charged with the reception and 
 entertainment of the guests. 
 
 As the seventh hour struck the assembled nobility and gentry 
 presented a gorgeous appearance. Now loud cries of "Hai, hai, 
 
 * The Governor-General (Kuwanrei) is the moon, the courtiers the stars— a 
 complimentary extravagance. 
 
i6 
 
 Chiushingura ; or, the Loyal League. 
 
 hai ! " from the warders of the western gate, gave notice of a fresh 
 arrival. Immediately afterwards, the glimmer of numerous lanterns 
 shone in the dusky dawn, and the lord Moronaho, Count of Musashi, 
 a proud and haughty nobleman, appeared, dressed in a court suit 
 of blue silk, ornamented with a large mori* and wearing a tall 
 yeboshi] cap on his head. His retainer, Sagisaka Bannai, causing 
 some of the attendants to herald his master's approach, and ordering 
 the remainder to betake themselves to the proper quarters, squared 
 his elbows in a superb manner, for all the world just like a stork,! 
 and, puffed up with his lord's dignity at secondhand, thus addressed 
 the great man : — 
 
 " Your lordship's arrangements are excellent, most excellent. As 
 to Yenya and Momonoi, however, strut about as they may with 
 awkward pride, they are as clumsy in their attempts to carry out 
 their duties as puppy dogs struggling to keep their footing upon a 
 slant roof. It makes one laugh to watch them. As to that fellow 
 Yenya, — by the by, his wife, I hear, has not yet answered your 
 lordship, — your lordship must not let yourself be disturbed by that. 
 Pretty though she is, she is beneath your lordship's notice ; and as to 
 her husband, it is wrong to mention him in the same breath with 
 your lordship, now made Shiutto by His Highness." 
 
 " Yai ! don't speak so loud, Kawoyo is a married woman. Pre- 
 tending to be a teacher of poetry, I have again and again expressed 
 my passion for her in verse, but hitherto without success. She has 
 lately, however, got a new maid, I hear, named Karu ; I must see 
 if I cannot bribe the wench to assist me. I don't abandon all hope ; 
 for if she really disliked me she would have spoken to her husband, 
 which she has not done." 
 
 While Moronaho and his follower thus conversed together familiarly 
 
 * Badge or device on the sleeves and back of the haori or mantle worn by 
 Samurahi. An interesting essay on Japanese heraldry by Mr. McClatchie will 
 be found in the Transactions of the Asiatic Society of Japan. 
 
 f Such as are shown in the first and second plates. 
 
 X A punning allusion to Bannai's surname " Sagisaka," sagi meaning a stork. 
 
The Quarrel of Yenya with Moronaho. 
 
 17 
 
 under the portal of the four-pillared gateway, one of the Samurahi on 
 guard came up hurriedly to them, exclaiming : 
 
 "Just now, as I was sitting on the bench by the gate, Kako- 
 gawa Honzo, the retainer of Wakasanosuke, rode up hastily and 
 asked for an immediate audience of the lord Moronaho; saying 
 he had been to your lordship's house, but had been told that you 
 had gone to the palace early. He seemed most anxious to have 
 an interview with your lordship ; and was accompanied by a number 
 of followers on horseback. What answer shall I make him ? " 
 
 " My lord Moronaho is on His Highness' service," cried Bannai 
 indignantly ; " such a request for an immediate interview is mon- 
 strous. I will see the man myself." 
 
 " Stay, stay," broke in Moronaho, detaining his follower. " I 
 understand it perfectly. Wakasanosuke does not come himself to 
 wreak his revenge upon me for what took place the day before 
 yesterday at Tsuruga-oka, but sends this fellow Honzo instead, to 
 flatten my nose for me. Ha, ha, ha ! Don't stir, Bannai, it is 
 some minutes yet short of the seventh hour. Bring the fellow here, 
 I will make short work with him." 
 
 " If that is your lordship's will," answered Bannai. " But look 
 out, fellows," turning to the attendants. Moronaho and his obse- 
 quious follower then wetted with spittle the pin that held the blades 
 of their swords in the handles; and rubbing the muscles of their 
 arms, waited for Honzo, who presently appeared advancing slowly 
 as he arranged carefully the folds of his dress. He was followed 
 by several retainers bearing presents, which he caused to be set 
 down before Moronaho ; while he himself fell prostrate, at a respectful 
 distance, from that haughty nobleman. 
 
 " Hah, if it please your lordship — His Highness the Shogun 
 Takauji lately honoured my master, Wakasanosuke, by entrusting 
 him with the discharge of the duties of an office of great dignity ; a 
 good fortune far beyond my master's desierts, who is young and 
 inexperienced in the duties of his post. Under these circum- 
 stances, I venture in my perplexity to request your lordship to act 
 
Chiushingura ; or, the Loyal League. 
 
 as my master's instructor, and to advise him in the execution of 
 his duty, so that he may perform it satisfactorily and without failing 
 in any point. We shall all, from our master and mistress down to 
 your servant, be overjoyed should this request be granted, and I 
 dare to ask your lordship's acceptance of the presents, paltry though 
 they be, which are enumerated in the list I hold in my hand, as 
 a slight mark of respectful gratitude, a condescension we should 
 treasure the memory of to our dying day." With these words the 
 speaker handed a paper to Bannai ; who wonderstruck at the whole 
 proceeding, received it without uttering a word, and unfolding it 
 with circumspection,* read out, after a short pause, as follows : — 
 
 " Memorandum, 30 picture rolls and 30 Ogon. These are pre- 
 sented by the wife of Wakasanosuke." 
 
 " Item, 20 Ogon. These are presented by the chief councillor, 
 Kakogaha Honzo." 
 
 " Item, 10 Ogon. These are presented by the retainers of 
 Wakasanosuke." 
 
 As Bannai finished reading the list, Moronaho opened his mouth 
 wide with astonishment, unable to utter a word, and staring in a 
 dazed way before him, while he and his follower looked at each 
 other with the foolish expression of men who had just been told 
 that the great mid-year feast had been put off, and were at their 
 wits' end what to do. t 
 
 * Lest perchance a dagger were wrapped up in it. The story is here alluded 
 to of the Chinese Emperor Shin-no Shikuwo (vide Appendix) and Keika, the 
 minister or envoy of the King of Yen, with whom Shikuwo had been at war. 
 The envoy presented the latter with a rolled-up map of his master's kingdom, in 
 token of its cession. But the roll contained a dagger wrapped up in it, which, on 
 it dropping out, Keika seized, and attempted, though fortunately without success, 
 to plunge into the Emperor's heart. 
 
 f Probably the " Great Pur fication " Minadzukino harayi or Nagoshi no hayaye 
 is referred to. Such a postpon m snt would of course excite as much astonish- 
 ment, and cause as much confu:ioi, as a sudden adjournment of New Year's Day 
 would give rise to. In the Calendar of Old Japan (Japan Mail, June 29th, 1878), 
 Mr. Satow says with respect to this festival, " The liturgy used. ... is to be found 
 in the ' Yengi-shiki.' Its object was to get rid of and appease evil gods, says the 
 Ya'xumo Gosho, whence the name nagoshi (appeasing) noharaye (sweeping away). The 
 
The Quarrel of Yenya with Moronaho. 19 
 
 Moronaho at last found utterance : — " Really, we are ashamed 
 to have put you to this trouble. Bannai (in a whisper), what does 
 all this mean?" 
 
 " Well, it seems to me that to decline these gifts would be too 
 harsh a reception of this gentleman's polite intentions. As to assist- 
 ing his master, too, in the discharge of his duties, doubtless under 
 present circumstances, Wakasanosuke Sama* would be put to great 
 distress by a refusal." 
 
 "fya/" said Moronaho, addressing Honzo ; "I am not capable 
 of instructing your master, who is a clever man enough : he wants 
 no assistance from me, I am sure. Ho there, Bannai, see that these 
 presents are put away in a secure place. But (turning to Honzo) I 
 had forgotten to offer you tea after your journey. Pray pardon my 
 rudeness." 
 
 Honzo, who, in the space of a turn of the hand, had divined f the 
 
 Festival is of extremely ancient origin, and can be traced back to the very dawn 
 of Japanese History. In its earliest form it was a means of fining those who had 
 committed offences, or in other words, had contracted pollution, under which 
 term all crimes and sins were at first included. The meaning of the ceremony 
 was almost forgotten in later times, and the chief rite until lately seems to have 
 been jumping through a hoop or ring of plaited grass, which was supposed to act 
 as a charm against pestilence. It was also the custom to cast into a river human 
 images made of grass or hemp, a survival of the primitive symbolical washing in 
 order to get rid of pollution. This practice is mentioned in the famous romance 
 entitled ' Genji-Monogatari,' and also in verses by Teika, the well-known poet of 
 the 13th century, and others. Orthodox Shintoists trace back the various rites 
 which go by the name of harae to the washing in the sea which Izanagi-no-kami 
 performed after his return from the region of the dead, whither he had followed 
 his wife Izanami, to purify himself from the uncleanness there contracted. In 
 this legend we can only recognize a myth unconsciously invented in later times to 
 explain why death in a household was supposed to pollute the surviving inmates. 
 The 'Great Purification' is now held on the 15th June and 15th December, in 
 consequence of the change of calendar. 
 
 "It is worthy of notice that the Japanese work from which we extract the 
 principal parts of these notes (Nen-chiu-ko-ji-yo-gen) says that a similar ceremony 
 of Lustration used anciently to be performed by the Chinese twice a year, in the 
 spring and in the autumn." 
 
 * An honorific, appended to names, and answering to our Mr., Mrs., and Miss. 
 It probably relates to the same root as samurahi. 
 
 f Lit., " to arrive at a result by mental arithmetic." 
 
 C 2 
 
20 
 
 Chiushingura ; or, the Loyal League. 
 
 importance of the favourable acceptance of his gifts, prostrated himself 
 more respectfully than ever. 
 
 " It is already the seventh hour (4 a.m.), and I must ask leave to 
 retire. Today the inauguration festivities take place; and I venture 
 once more to entreat you to assist my master with your advice." 
 
 With these words Honzo rose to his feet and prepared to depart, 
 when Moronaho detained him by the sleeve. 
 
 " Nay, nay ; would you not like to be present at to-day's festivi- 
 ties?" 
 
 " Your servant is but an inferior follower,* and dares not venture 
 into His Excellency's presence." 
 
 " Oh, for that matter have no fear, have no fear. No one will dare 
 to say a word to you in my company. Besides, your master, 
 Wakasanosuke, has some sort of a post at Court. You may look on 
 safely, quite safely." 
 
 Thus urged, Honzo complied. 
 
 " In that case I shall be glad to be allowed to accompany your 
 lordship. I am at your lordship's orders." 
 
 " Honzo followed Moronaho, congratulating himself upon having 
 purchased his master's life by plastering the latter's face with money 
 and gifts, and overjoyed at the precision of his mental arithmetic, 
 which had brought out a result as accurate as if the calculations had 
 been worked out upon the soroban,\ without one slip of peg or ball. 
 So the Councillor of Wakasanosuke, crafty, white-haired old rat, kept 
 straight on in the path of fidelity, loyalty and devotion, and passed 
 with Moronaho through the Great Gate. 
 
 Almost immediately afterwards Yenya came up in a norimon. His 
 retainers remained behind, while Hayano Kampei, his hereditary 
 vassal, caused the norimon in which his master was seated to be set 
 down, and rustling in his yellow, figured, wide-pocketed, hemp-cloth 
 trousers, made for the Great Gate, exclaiming in a loud voice, " I have 
 to announce the arrival of Yenya Hanguwan Takasada." 
 
 * Lit., "follower of a follower." 
 
 f The Japanese abacus or calculating board. Vide Appendix. 
 
The Quarrel of Yenya with Mcronaho. 
 
 21 
 
 " Wakasanosuke Sama," said a gateward, coming forward, "has 
 just gone in, as well as Moronaho Sama. Both asked after your 
 master. Be pleased to enter at once." 
 
 Yenya, alighting from his norimon, exclaimed, 
 
 " How, Kampei, am I the last to arrive ? How unfortunate that 1 
 should be so late ! " and hastened through the gate as he spoke, 
 followed by Kampei. 
 
 Meanwhile the sound of singing was heard from the interior of the 
 palace, where the festivities had already commenced; and the words 
 of the old song, 
 
 " Harima's sandy beach we touch. 
 Takasago's noted shore," 
 
 were borne towards the Great Gate, wafted on the breeze which lightly 
 rustled amid the branches of a willow tree that grew hard by. More 
 graceful than the willow itself, a maiden, over whose head some 
 eighteen * or nineteen springs f had passed, with eyebrows slender as 
 the young shoots of a pine tree, who had been brought up in a strict 
 household, and was no less modest than beautiful, came up to the gate, 
 accompanied by a number of servants carrying lanterns that bore the 
 device of the house of Yenya. 
 
 " Ho, there ! men," cried the young girl, "dawn is breaking, and as 
 
 you cannot enter within the gate, you may retire Kampei, 
 
 Kampei," she continued, looking round after the servants who had 
 accompanied her had withdrawn, " where can you be ? I have a 
 message for you ; pray don't delay." 
 
 While she was still peering about, Kampei, coming forward in the 
 half-gloom, caught sight of her. 
 
 * There is a sort of pun, or rather rebus, here in the original text as unsus- 
 ceptible as unworthy of translation. It is one of a kind not unfrequently met 
 with in Chinese books, and may be thus shortly explained. The character for 
 "pine tree" consists of three parts, two meaning the numbers 10 and 8 respect- 
 ively, and the third pronounced "kit," equivalent to "k u," "nine." Herein is 
 involved the fact of the girl being eighteen or nineteen years of age. 
 
 f We should say " summers," summer being our most agreeable season ; but 
 in Japan, spring is the most, and summer the least, agreeable of the seasons. 
 
22 Chiushiiigiira ; or, the Loyal League. 
 
 " What, O Kara, you here?" 
 
 " Oh ! I am so glad, I wanted so much to see you." 
 
 "But what does this mean? While it is yet dark, without a 
 servant — all by yourself?" 
 
 "Nay, some servants came with me, but I have just dismissed 
 them, and so am left alone. But I have a message for you from my 
 mistress." And presenting a letter box * to Kampei, the girl continued : 
 " She said I was to tell you to hand this to your master, and to ask him 
 to be good enough to give it to Moronaho as my lady's answer, with 
 her excuses and compliments. At first, fearing there might be some 
 mistake in the middle of all this feasting, my mistress told me to put 
 off giving you the message for the night. But I wanted to see you, 
 and said, had not the letter better be given at once? and so I was 
 allowed to come, and I have run here so quickly that I am almost dead 
 for want of breath," — panting as she spoke. 
 
 " Good ! my master shall hand the letter-case to Moronaho. I will 
 go and deliver it ; wait for me." 
 
 As he uttered the last words, a voice cried loudly from within, 
 "Kampei, Kampei, your master, Hanguwan, is calling for you. 
 Kampei, Kampei." 
 
 " Hat, hat, I come. Yeh ! have a little patience." 
 
 And quitting! the girl, the youth hastened towards the palace. 
 He had hardly gone when Bannia Sagisaka came up with a stealthy 
 gait, like a heron trampling upon lampreys in a rice swamp. 
 
 " Hah, O Kara," he cried, " how love sharpens one's wits. Just 
 as the youngster was babbling in your ear, to shout out ' Kampei, 
 Kampei, your master is calling for you !' — a capital idea, was it not? 
 My lord Moronaho has a favour to ask of you, pray accompany 
 me. You will let me have just one 
 
 * Letters in Japan are sent in oblong lacquered boxes (often called and used 
 as glove-boxes by foreigners), which are tied with silk cord or paper string, and 
 sometimes seal-impressed as well. 
 
 f Lit., " shaking off and separating sleeves." 
 
-J 
 
 
 mm 
 
 * 
 
"TEN 
 
 % 
 
The Quarrel of Yenya with Moronaho. 
 
 23 
 
 And the fellow, as he spoke, endeavoured to embrace her. 
 
 " Let me go," exclaimed the frightened girl ; " how dare you use me 
 thus rudely — within the precincts of the palace, too. Away, villain," 
 escaping from his grasp, "away ruffian." 
 
 "Don't be so hard," replied Bannai. "Come it is still dark enough 
 to prevent any one seeing us — just for a moment." 
 
 And seizing her hand, he was on the point of dragging her away, 
 when loud cries of " Bannai, Bannai, the lord Moronaho is calling for 
 you. Bannai, Bannai," interrupted him, and two men came forward 
 through the gloom, looking anxiously around. They were not long 
 in catching sight of Bannai, with whom Karu was still struggling, 
 and exclaimed, angrily: "What are you about, Bannai? the lord 
 Moronaho has been asking for you some time. What ! ill-treating 
 a woman, within the precincts of the court, too ? Shame on you, 
 you ill-bred villain !" 
 
 " Yeh ! what are you fellows saying?" muttered the wretch; and 
 quitting the spot, the crestfallen* scoundrel made his way hurriedly 
 towards the palace. 
 
 Kampei appeared immediately afterwards : " Hah, O Karu, did 
 you understand my device? That Bannai is well tricked now. I 
 knew that if I were to shout out that his lord wanted him, that he 
 would cry ' stale trick ;' and to avoid such a result I bribed those two 
 fellows with a little sake to shout out instead of me. He will own 
 the trick is not a stale one for this once, I think ; ha, ha, ha ! And 
 now that this Bannai's affair is settled, will you not stay and let 
 me talk with you for a little while?" And the youth took her hand 
 as he spoke. 
 
 " No, no," said the girl ; " you take my breath away. Why, what 
 have you got to say to me, I wonder; cannot you wait?" 
 
 " Wait !" replied the youth ; " why, it will be daylight in a few 
 moments. Come, you must not refuse me." 
 
 After some further show of reluctance, the girl yielded to her 
 lover's entreaties, exclaiming, however, half repentantly, 
 
 * Lit., "with swollen features." 
 
24 
 
 Chiushingura ; or, the Loyal League. 
 
 " But, suppose some one should pass by here ?" As she spoke, a 
 verse of the old poem, " Takasago," was again borne by upon the 
 
 breeze — 
 
 " 'Neath the pine tree will we sit." 
 
 " Hark !" exclaimed Kampei, "are not the words apt? let us, too, sit 
 down here." And seizing the girl's hand in his, he led her gently away. 
 
 Meanwhile the guests were being entertained with various musical 
 and recitative performances, in which the praises of Nahoyoshi, 
 together with felicitations on the prosperity of the Empire, were 
 sung to the sound of drums and kettledrums, while his Highness' 
 continued well-being was the desire of every heart. 
 
 Momonoi, who had for some time been on the watch for 
 Moronaho, seeing that the latter did not arrive, rambled about the 
 palace in search of him. The long trowsers of his court dress were 
 well girded up ; his ears were open to every sound ; his sword-blade 
 was loose in its sheath ; while he held his breath, bent upon cutting 
 down his enemy the moment he appeared. 
 
 Moronaho, ignorant of Momonoi's presence, approached the spot 
 where the latter was ' standing ; and while yet some distance from 
 him, recognised the wrathful noble. 
 
 "Ho, there! Sir Wakasanosuke,* cried the lord of Musashi, "you 
 are early at your post ; nothing, to be sure, can exceed your attention 
 to your duties. I have a favour to beg of you, but hardly dare put 
 my request into words." As he spoke, the wily courtier took both 
 his swords out of his girdle and threw them on the ground at 
 Wakasanosuke's feet. " To tell the whole truth," he continued, " I 
 was most rude to you the other day at Tsurugaoka ; and, doubtless, 
 you were very angry, as indeed you had good right to be. I cannot 
 understand how I came to address such rough words to you. I 
 hardly know what they were; but I shall regret my ill-breeding all 
 my life. See, I, a wearer of two swords, am your suppliant. You 
 are a man of the world and will understand me. Were you an 
 
 * Momonoi Wakasanosuke. 
 
• ••' ' 
 
 *> 
 
 
 4 ■ : *. 
 
 
 

 * 
 
 fr 
 
 f'Xl ' 
 
The Quarrel of Yenya with Moronaho. 
 
 25 
 
 ignorant fellow, I should doubtless have to dread being cut down 
 by you. I tried to follow you, clasping my hands and begging your 
 forgiveness. Ah, I am an old man, of little use, now. You must 
 show some favour to my years. See, I, a Samurahi, have cast my 
 swords at your feet, and am a suppliant before you ; it cannot be 
 that you will not listen to me. I know that I have been wrong: 
 wrong in every way and repeatedly ; but I and my follower, Bannai, 
 entreat you to let your anger cease;' 
 
 Wakasanosuke, as he listened to this bribe-bought flattery, thought 
 he was dreaming. His threatening arm hung irresolute;* now was 
 the moment to draw weapon, but he could not unsheathe his freshly 
 whetted sword, and found himself obliged to hold it in the reverse 
 attitude to that of fighting. Honzo watched the scene with anxiety 
 from behind a neighbouring bush, without so much as winking, so 
 intense was his suspense, while his master let his head fall upon 
 his breast in dumb wonder. 
 
 "Ho! Bannai," added Moronaho, "that fellow Yenya! what 
 means his delay ? This gentleman," turning to Momonoi, " gives 
 a different attention to his duties. As to Yenya he is nothing less 
 than an ill-bred clown, not to have shown his face yet. Like master, 
 like man ; he has clearly no councillor wise enough to urge him to 
 perform his duty with propriety. Come, Sir," turning again to 
 Wakasanosuke, " we will go to his Excellency. Pray forget my wrong- 
 headedness, and do me the honour to accompany me." 
 
 " I think I must ask your lordship to excuse me, I am not very 
 well; pray do not wait for me." 
 
 " I am sorry to hear you are not well, pray what is the matter ? 
 Bannai, rub this gentleman's back, and send for some cordial." 
 
 " Nay, there is no need I should give such trouble." 
 
 " But at all events you will do well to rest awhile. I will look to 
 all arrangements being properly carried out. Bannai, conduct this 
 gentleman to an apartment." 
 
 Lit., " out of tutte with the opportunity.'' 
 
26 
 
 Chhtshingura ; or, the Loyal League. 
 
 Wakasanosuke felt as much embarrassed by this excessive attention 
 as if he had been suddenly invited to enter the Mikado's car. How- 
 ever, he accompanied Bannai, to the delight of Honzo, who thanking 
 earnestly heaven and earth for the success that had attended his 
 scheme, contentedly withdrew. 
 
 Immediately afterwards Yenya appeared, making his way towards 
 the palace. Moronaho, who was standing under the verandah, saw 
 him passing by and called out angrily, " You are late, you are late ! 
 what is the meaning of this carelessness ? You were to have been 
 here at the seventh hour (about 4 a.m.) precisely. Did you not receive 
 my message to that effect?" 
 
 " It is true, my lord," replied Yenya, " that I am later than I 
 ought to be. I must ask you to excuse me ; but I am still in time, 
 I think." So saying he took a letter-box from his sleeve pocket, and 
 handed it to Moronaho. 
 
 "One of my servants," he added, "came to me with this just 
 now, asking me to give it into your hands. It is from my wife, 
 Kawoyo." 
 
 " Is it so ? " said the lord of Musashi, taking the box. " Ha ! I un- 
 derstand ; your wife knows that I am fond of verse-making, and has 
 sent me some lines of her own for correction." 
 
 With these words the Shiutto* opened the case, and taking out 
 a paper, began to read it: 
 
 " Thus in truth it may not be, 
 That over the heavy day-dress 
 A night-garment should be thrown, 
 O'er a bordered robe (day-robe) 
 Who would throw a borderless one (night-robe) ? f 
 
 * Lit., the chief — as of a department — here, probably, equivalent to High 
 Commissioner. 
 
 f There is a word-play here. The last two lines mean also, 
 
 " To one who is not my spouse, 
 How may I, a spouse, be united ? " 
 
 the word '"JTima " meaning either a married person or the hem or border of a 
 garment. 
 
The Quarrel of Yenya with Moronaho. 
 
 V 
 
 " Ha ! from the New Selection of Ancient and Modern Poems. No 
 correction of mine wanted here, it would seem." 
 
 Moronaho understood that his suit was rejected, and felt sure that 
 Yenya had opened the box. Angry at the idea, he yet managed to 
 conceal his ill-humour; and with an appearance of unconcern, asked 
 Yenya if he had read the paper. 
 
 " I saw it just now for the first time." 
 
 " H'm, well, you heard me read — oh, your wife is a model of 
 virtue. See what she sends me. ' One who is not my spouse.' A 
 model of virtue ! a model of virtue ! what a fortunate man you are ! 
 That is the reason probably of your inattentiveness. You stick at 
 home tied to your wife's apron, and give no thought to your duties 
 here." 
 
 All this invective was really occasioned by the refusal of Kawoyo, 
 but Yenya, who did not know of this, could not understand Moronaho's 
 conduct. He managed, however, to restrain his indignation. 
 
 " Ha, ha, ha ! your lordship is merry ; doubtless your lordship 
 has been passing the bottle round a little." 
 
 "Passing the bottle; passing the bottle; what does the clown 
 mean ? Passing the bottle or not, I manage to attend to the duties 
 of my office. As for you, you neglect them. Explain that to me. 
 Have you been ■ passing the bottle,' or sticking at home glued to your 
 wife's side ? You had better take a leaf out of Wakasanosuke's book. 
 Oh, your wife is a model of virtue, eh ? a charming woman ! writes 
 most elegantly ! You may well be proud of her. Nay, don't look 
 angry, man ; what I say is all true enough. Now, ) r our wife's verses 
 
 here If you have such a treasure at home, we cannot expect 
 
 you to come to court. You fellows who remain at home remind one 
 of /una* in a well. These tiny fish — are you listening to what I 
 say? — think that neither in heaven nor on earth is there any place 
 comparable with the miserable hole, some three or four feet across 
 at the most, in which they live. They have never seen any other 
 
 * "Funa" (Carassius Langsdorjii). 
 

 28 
 
 Chiushingura ; or, the Loyal League. 
 
 place, and when they are brought up from the bottom in a bucket, 
 and then thrown into the stream, they cannot make out where they 
 are, and flounder helplessly about, until at last they knock their heads 
 against the posts of some bridge. You, and such as you, are just 
 like these carplets. Ha ! ha ! ha !" 
 
 Yenya, at this insulting speech, lost his patience, and exclaimed, 
 angrily : 
 
 " You must be out of your senses — you must be mad, Moronaho." 
 
 " Pshaw, fellow ! darest twit me with being mad? Me, the Shiutto .' 
 the Lord Moronaho !" 
 
 " H'm, then, your insults are meant as such?" 
 
 " Kudoi Kudoi! what a troublesome fellow it is. And if meant, 
 what then?" 
 
 "Why, this, then;" and drawing his sword, the enraged noble- 
 man aimed a stroke at Moronaho, which the latter tried to avoid by 
 ducking his head and leaping nimbly aside. The blade, however, 
 cut through his tall cap, and inflicted a wound on his forehead between 
 the eyebrows. His assailant again raised his weapon, but Moronaho 
 managed to shuffle out of reach, and made his escape ; while Honzo, 
 who had witnessed the whole scene, ran up and caught Yenya's arm. 
 
 " Restrain yourself, Sir, I pray you." Yenya struggled to free him- 
 self from his detainer's grasp, glaring after his enemy, who was making 
 off as well as he could, stumbling at every step. 
 
 "That fellow Moronaho," exclaimed Yenya, "will get away: let 
 me go, Honzo. He shall feel the weight of my arm. Let me go, let 
 me go." 
 
 Meanwhile, the scene of the quarrel became rapidly thronged 
 with nobles, high and low ; some making towards where the dispute 
 had taken place, their hands on their swords ; others flying to the 
 assistance of Moronaho. Indescribable confusion ensued; the gates 
 were closed, and lanterns began to flash about in all directions. 
 
 Hayano Kampei, hearing the uproar, was filled with anxiety ; and 
 running up to the Rear Gate, knocked at it as if he would shatter it 
 into pieces, crying loudly : " I am Hayano Kampei, clansman of 
 

 I 
 
 
 
 
 
 » 
 
 m 
 
The Quarrel of Yenya with Moronaho. 
 
 29 
 
 Yenya Hanguwan. My lord may be in danger, and I must be at his 
 side. Open, open, quick." 
 
 " This is the Rear Gate," cried the Gateward; " you must go round 
 to the Great Gate if you are in the suite of some nobleman." 
 
 "No, no;" exclaimed the vassal of Yenya, "this gate will do well 
 enough. Besides, the Great Gate seems besieged by such a crowd of 
 retainers that it would be impossible to get at it even if mounted on a 
 good horse. What is the meaning of all this disturbance ? " 
 
 " The disturbance is at an end,"' replied the Gateward. " Yenya 
 grievously insulted the Shiutto Moronaho, and for this offence is to 
 be confined to his house, where he is now being carried in a net- 
 covered norimon." 
 
 " Namn sambo* conveyed home a prisoner?" cried Kampei. 
 
 He was on the point of hastening after his lord, when he was 
 arrested by the thought, that the sentence of confinement would 
 entail a closure of the gates of the castle. Pacing up and down, 
 uncertain how to act ; in the midst of his embarrassment he was 
 joined by the maid Karu, whom he had left behind when he hurried 
 to the gate to see what was the cause of the uproar. 
 
 " Oh, Kampei," cried the girl, " I have heard all about it. What 
 is to be done ? What is to be done ?" 
 
 The girl clung to her lover, sobbing as she spoke. 
 
 Kampei, however, thrust her aside, saying : " Ych ! what is the 
 use of puling? Listen! my hofltaur as, a soldier and a clansman is 
 gone. Gone! do you hear? And now nothing remains for me but 
 this ;" grasping, as he spoke, the handle of his sword. 
 
 " Kampei, not that, not that, I implore you. You do not know 
 what you are doing in your bewilderment." 
 
 " Bewilderment ! I may well be bewildered, to find that I have 
 been absent from my lord's side in the hour of danger; that men 
 are conveying him away, a prisoner, in a net-covered norimon, like 
 
 * A portion of a Buddhist prayer, commonly used in former days as an 
 exclamation. 
 

 3° 
 
 Chiushingura ; or, the Loyal League. 
 
 a criminal ; that the gates of his castle are closed upon him ; while 
 I, his born vassal, have been spending my time in toying with you. 
 How can I ever again wear two swords before the face of men? 
 Let me go : let me go." 
 
 The girl, however, continued to cling to him, exclaiming : " If 
 only for a moment, listen to me. You must listen to me. What you 
 say is quite true ; but whose doing is it that your honour as a clans- 
 man is tainted ? Is it not mine, mine? 'Tis for me, then, not for 
 you, to die. If you should die now on this spot, how will any one 
 know your motives ? And not knowing your motives, how will any 
 one be able to praise your deed as that of a true clansman ? 
 
 Oh ! Kampei," the girl continued, " be guided by me ; come with 
 me for a time at least to my village, where my father and mother 
 are still living. They will do everything they can for you. Kampei, 
 let our common misery plead for me; let your affianced wife's 
 words persuade you" — bursting with a loud sob into a flood of 
 tears as she spoke the last words. 
 
 " Well, perhaps that were best," said Kampei, irresolutely, " our 
 lord's chief councillor, Ohoboshi Yuranosuke, is away at one of our 
 master's estates — you could not know this, being but lately come 
 among us. I can wait for his return, and then implore pardon for my 
 disloyalty and neglect. Come, let us away." 
 
 They were on the point of departing, when Sagisaka Bannai 
 suddenly made his appearance, followed by several armed men. 
 
 " Yeh ! Kampei," he exclaimed, "your master has been employing 
 himself in heaping insults upon Moronaho, His Highness' Shiutto, 
 and has actually dared to wound him within the court precincts ; for 
 which offence, strictly forbidden as you know, he has been confined to 
 his house, and no doubt ere long his head will be made to fly from his 
 shoulders." 
 
 " Sah !" continued Bannai in a loud voice, turning suddenly to his 
 attendants, '"seize this fellow, bind him, and prepare to hew the 
 scoundrel in pieces." 
 
 "Yeh !" cried Kampei, "nothing could be more opportune. Come 
 
The Quarrel of Yenya with Moron alio. 
 
 31 
 
 Sir Stork,* you are not equal to gobbling me up without assistance, it 
 seems ; but here is my arm thin as an onion stalk. Come and try what 
 it tastes like, all of you." 
 
 " Silence !" shouted Bannai. "Upon him, men." 
 
 "At your service, gentlemen." 
 
 Bannai's attendants, four in number, rushed upon the follower of 
 Yenya, and attempted to seize him ; Kampei, however, eluded their 
 onset, and grasping a couple of his assailants by the arm, twisted them 
 suddenly round, and spurned them with his feet right and left. They 
 returned to the attack, but he parried their strokes Avith his scabbard, 
 and hurled them on either side with the hilt and point of his sword, on 
 the top of each other, like skewered dengaku cakes, f Daunted by his 
 prowess, his assailants did not attempt to renew the fight, but made 
 away in panic-struck confusion. Bannai, beside himself with rage, then 
 flew at Kampei; but the latter avoided the blow, and, seizing his 
 antagonist, hurled him to earth with such violence that he turned head 
 over heels as he fell. The victor, placing his foot on his prostrate 
 enemy's neck, exclaimed : " Shall I stab you or slash you, or hew you 
 in pieces ?" raising his weapon as he spoke. 
 
 Karu, however, ran up to her lover, and laid her hand upon his 
 arm. "Hold!" she cried. "To kill the wretch may destroy your 
 chance of pardon. The fellow has had. sufficient." 
 
 Bannai, meanwhile, had wriggled from under his enemy's foot and 
 made off as hard as he could, crestfallen enough, and in mortal fear for 
 his life. 
 
 "Yeh!" cried Kampei, "it is a pity the rascal should get away, 
 too j but, as you say, it might be adding disloyalty to disloyalty to slay 
 the wretch just now. Well, we must away and hide ourselves, and 
 wait for an opportunity of procuring pardon." 
 
 The sixth hour was now long past, and the low clouds on the eastern 
 horizon were whitening with the dawn, while the crows* were leaving 
 
 * Alluding to the name Sagisaka ; " Sagi " meaning a stork. 
 f A sort of thin cake of baked bean-curd. 
 
H^^ 
 
 
 32 
 
 Chiushingura ; or, the Loyal League. 
 
 their perches, filling the air with their mournful caw as they flew by the 
 lovers, who hastened on their way towards the girl's home, their hearts 
 heavy with grief as they bemoaned the evil days that had come upon 
 their lord's house, and tremblingly asked themselves what fate was 
 reserved for him. 
 
 * There is a sort of appropriateness in mentioning the crows here. The caw 
 or croak of these birds is supposed to resemble in sound the repetition of the 
 word Ka-wai (pronounced " kah why"), "love.'" 
 
 END OF BOOK THIRD. 
 
34 
 
 Chiushingura ; or, the Loyal League. 
 
 I 
 
 " Ho there, young sir," cried the chief of the retainers, " you are 
 early in your attendance." 
 
 "It is my duty, as you know, sir," replied Rikiya, "to be at 
 hand from morn till night until my father returns from the provinces." 
 
 " And well yOu perform that duty." So saying, Goyemon pros- 
 trated himself, and addressing the Lady Kawoyo, exclaimed, "We 
 venture to inquire after our lord's health." 
 
 " I thank you heartily, gentlemen," said the wife of Yenya. " Of 
 late my lord has looked far from well, and I am in sad trouble 
 lest some illness should declare itself. Night and morning he keeps 
 his eye fixed upon yonder mound, now brilliant with flowers : and 
 seems to take so much pleasure in the contemplation of their 
 bright hues that I have caused rare cherry blossoms to be sought 
 out, and have had them arranged as you see, in the hope of afford- 
 ing him some distraction." 
 
 " Ah ! lady," cried Goyemon, " I understand your thought. As 
 the flowers open out so will the gates be thrown open, and the 
 order of confinement rescinded. It is well thought of. Would that 
 your servant, Goyemon, too, were a less clumsy fellow, and could 
 hit upon some such mode of alleviating our lord's distress. However, 
 lady, I would ask your attention for a moment. I have something 
 of importance to communicate to you. I understand that commis- 
 sioners are to come here to-day, and I do not doubt but that their 
 orders are to set cur lord at liberty. What do you think. Kudaiu?" 
 turning suddenly to his companion. 
 
 " Well," answered the latter, " if you ask my opinion, Goyemon, 
 why — do you see those blossoms there ? they are pleasant enough 
 to look upon just now; but let a puff of wind come, and their 
 beauty is all blown away in a moment. So too with your words. 
 They are pleasing enough to hear, but think you it is fitting that 
 you, a samurahi, should utter such honeyed phrases, as devoid of 
 meaning, if stripped of their show, as mere New Year's compliments ? 
 You know what I mean. You know the gravity of our lord's offence, 
 how, honoured by His Highness with a post at Court, in connection 
 
The Seppuku of Yenya. 
 
 35 
 
 with the festivities at Tsuruga-oka, he yet dared to lift his hand 
 against the Shiutto / Within the palace precincts too! The punish- 
 ment for such a crime is banishment, if viewed leniently; if not, 
 an order of self-dispatch. What but misfortune can be expected to 
 result from opposition to the Lord Moronaho?" 
 
 " Enough, enough," broke in Goyemon. " You talk of banishment 
 and self-dispatch as if you rather desired our lord should be so 
 punished " 
 
 "Not so! iya f" exclaimed Kudaiu, in some haste; "I desire 
 nothing of the kind. But I am a man of plain speech, and speak the 
 plain truth. And let me tell you, Goyemon, that all this trouble is 
 caused by your own parsimony. If you had but plastered Moronaho's 
 face with gold, things would never have come to this pass ; " trying to 
 dissimulate the mean expression of his face, that displayed so plainly 
 his true nature. 
 
 " No, samurahiy" said Goyemon ; " no one wearing the two swords 
 of a gentleman could condescend so to grovel before any one. Rikiya 
 will bear me out in what I say." 
 
 Desirous of keeping matters smooth, Kawoyo interfered : — 
 
 "Pray let there be no quarrelling, gentlemen. It is I, in truth, 
 who am the unfortunate cause of my husband's distress ; and I only. 
 Some few days ago, at the festivities at Tsuruga-oka, Moronaho, who 
 is an unmannerly fellow, dared to speak to me, a wedded wife, of 
 unlawful love. Pestered by his importunity, but without saying a word 
 to my husband, I tried to make him understand how shameful was his- 
 conduct, and how vain were his attempts, by a few lines from a well- 
 known song which I sent to him. Enraged by my refusal, he wreaked 
 his vengeance upon my husband by covering him with insults, and 
 Yenya, who is of a hasty temper, at last lost command of himself, and 
 so committed the offence for which he is now confined." 
 
 The cause of their lord's disturbance of mind was now plain to 
 Goyemon and Rikiya, and their faces betrayed their concern. At this 
 juncture the sound of voices was heard proceeding from the parlour by 
 the entrance porch, and presently the arrival of the Commissioners was 
 
 P 3 
 

 
 36 
 
 Chiushingura ; or, the Loyal League. 
 
 announced, who were demanding to be at once conducted to the inner 
 apartments. The Lady Kawoyo upon this came down into the body 
 of the apartment, and with Goyemon and Rikiya advanced to meet 
 the Commissioners, who presented themselves the next moment. The 
 Commissioners — there were two of them — were an esquire of Moronaho's 
 named Ishido Umanojo, and a samurdhi called Yakushiji Jirozayemon. 
 As they were on duty they did not return the salutations offered them, 
 but seated themselves at once at the upper end of the apartment. 
 Hardly had they done so when a partition was moved back, and 
 Yenya Hanguwan entered the room with dignified composure. 
 
 " Ha ! Ishido dono, you come officially ? I am ashamed of being 
 the cause of so much trouble to you. Ho, there ! offer sake to the 
 gentlemen. There can be no harm in a draught to chase away bad 
 spirits; and the purport of your visit can meanwhile be explained 
 to me." 
 
 " Capital ! " cried Yakushiji ; " I have no objection, I am sure. 
 But," he continued with a sneer, ''if you knew the purport of our visit, 
 I think the sake would stick in your throat." 
 
 Ishido now said : ''We are ordered to make an official communica- 
 tion to you, to which we demand your attention." 
 
 So saying, the Commissioner drew a paper from his breast, and 
 unfolded it, while Hanguwan arranged himself on his mat, and assumed 
 an attitude of respectful attention. Ishido then read out the paper, 
 which was to the following effect: — "Lately, Ycnya Hanguwan 
 Takasada, following the promptings of private malice, drew his weapon 
 on the Shiutto, the Lord Moronaho, and created a tumult within the 
 precincts of the palace, on account of which crime his estates are hereby 
 ordered to be confiscated, and himself is decreed to commit self- 
 dispatch." 
 
 As the Commissioner concluded, the Lady Kawoyo and the 
 assembled retainers were filled with sudden terror, regarding each 
 other with trembling amazement. Hanguwan, however, remained 
 unmoved. Without changing a muscle of his countenance he ex- 
 claimed, quite calmly, " I understand perfectly. But now, gentle- 
 

 
 
 
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 BOOK THE FOURTH. 
 
 THE SEPPUKU OF YENYA. 
 
 1*N accordance with the sentence of seclusion 
 pronounced against Yenya Hanguwan, that 
 |^ nobleman was strictly confined in his mansion 
 of Ogiga-yatsu, all communication with which 
 was rigorously prohibited. While things were 
 thus, the ladies of the household in the inner 
 apartments passed the time in all manner of 
 elegant diversions. One day, shortly after the event 
 mentioned in the Third Book, young Rikiya was in 
 attendance upon the Lady Kawoyo, and in the hope 
 of cheering his lord had brought a basketful of rare 
 eight and nine-fold wild-cherry blossoms, gathered upon 
 the hills around Kamakura; himself more pleasing for 
 the eyes to dwell upon than the flowers themselves. 
 Presently Hara Goyemon, the chief of the retainers, 
 passing under the verandah in front of the willow-room,* followed by 
 Ono Kudaiu, approached the son of Yuranosuke. 
 
 * The partition-slides of which were ornamented with paintings of willow-trees. 
 Similarly decorated apartments were common in the mansions of the old nobility, 
 doubtless in imitation of the " willow halls " of the Imperial Palace at Kiyoto. 
 
Chiushingura ; or, the Loyal League. 
 
 Meanwhile a confused sound of knocking in the partition 
 resounded from the adjoining apartment, and the voices of a number 
 of clansmen were heard clamouring for permission to look once 
 more upon their lord's face while in life, and begging Goyemon to 
 obtain that favour for them. Goyemon, accordingly, asked the 
 condemned nobleman to allow the retainers to enter. 
 
 " What is this?" cried Yenya. " Yet their request is proper enough ! 
 But they must wait until Yuranosuke returns." 
 
 Goyemon bowed assent, and addressing himself to the clansmen, 
 exclaimed : " You have heard our lord's will. You cannot enter 
 yet; not one of you. 
 
 They did not utter a word in reply, and complete silence reigned 
 in the apartment in which they still remained assembled. Rikiya. 
 meanwhile, at a sign from Yenya, had placed the sword with which 
 the self-dispatch was to be accomplished, and which had been pre- 
 viously got ready, before his lord, who, after composedly throwing 
 back the shoulder-folds of the kamishimo, arranged himself in a suitable 
 position.* 
 
 " And now, Sirs," said Yenya, addressing the Commissioners ; " I 
 call upon you to be witnesses to my obedience." 
 
 He drew a three-cornered stand towards himself as he spoke, and 
 taking up the short sword that lay upon it, lifted it respectfully to 
 his forehead. 
 
 '• Rikiya, Rikiya." 
 
 "My lord." 
 
 "Yuranosuke?" 
 
 " He is not yet returned, your lordship." 
 
 " Alas ! and yet I wished so greatly to see him once more in life. 
 There is so much to be arranged — but now " 
 
 As he uttered the last words the unfortunate nobleman grasped 
 the sword, point downwards, in his bow-hand, and with one movement 
 ripped himself open. 
 
 * So as to fall forward in the death-agony. To fall backwards was considered 
 ignominious. 
 

 *;■ 
 
 
 j- • - 
 
 
 
 s 
 
 
 
 
 y 
 
 ■ 
 
 --#>.&* 
 
 ■■-. 
 
The Seppuku of Yenya. 
 
 39 
 
 The Lady Kawoyo closed her eyes with horror and anguish ; and 
 with the tears streaming down her cheeks, muttered to herself a 
 Buddhic prayer for the dying. 
 
 Presently a panel of the partition that separated the apartment 
 where this scene was being enacted from the outer corridor, was 
 pushed suddenly back, and Ohoboshi Yuranosuke burst into the room, 
 followed closely by Senzaki, Yazama, and a crowd of other retainers. 
 As soon as he saw his lord's plight he started, and then made his 
 obeisance. 
 
 " Hah, Yuranosuke ! — you see I could not longer delay." 
 
 "At least I am thankful that I am in time once more to look 
 upon my lord's face in life." 
 
 "And I, too, am glad to see you, Yuranosuke, ere I die. You 
 know all, doubtless. Tis a pitiful story enough of unsatisfied 
 vengeance." 
 
 "Ay, my lord, I know all. But this is not the time to dwell upon 
 the details of what has happened. My only prayer now is, that my 
 lord's death may be such as befits a brave samurahi." 
 
 " Do not fear for that," cried Yenya, and, seizing the sword with 
 both hands, he widened the gash he had already inflicted upon himself. 
 Gasping for breath he continued, speaking with difficulty: " Yuranosuke 
 — this sword — my dying gift to you — you will exact vengeance. Then 
 stabbing himself in the throat, he threw aside the blood-stained weapon 
 with a last effort, and Yenya Hanguwan Takasada rolled over on his 
 face — dead. 
 
 The Lady Kawoyo and the retainers present started back in 
 affright, closing their eyes horror-struck at the terrible sight ; while their 
 sobs and the grinding of their teeth showed the grief and rage that 
 were in their hearts. 
 
 Yuranosuke meanwhile dragged himself* close to the corpse, and 
 grasping the fatal weapon, lifted it reverently to his forehead. Fixing 
 his eyes earnestly on the blood-stained point, he clenched his fist 
 
 * Lit., shuffled— a peculiar theatrical gait. 
 
Chiushingura ; or, the Loyal League. 
 
 convulsively ; while in a flood of tears he gave vent to the sorrow and 
 passion that consumed him. 
 
 The misery of his lord's agony had penetrated to the inmost depths 
 of his retainer's heart,* and it was at this moment that there arose in 
 Yuranosuke's breast those sentiments of unswerving devotedness and 
 loyalty to his dead chief's memory, that have made the name of 
 Ohoboshi famous for ever. 
 
 Yakushiji, springing suddenly to his feet, exclaimed : 
 
 " Now, my masters, Hanguwan is dead and done for. You can 
 take yourselves off. Away with you." 
 
 " You are too hasty, Yakushiji," said his colleague. " Yenya 
 Hanguwan was a lord of province and castle; and proper arrange- 
 ments must be made for the funeral rites. Therefore," turning to the 
 clansmen, " pray understand that there is no intention of driving you 
 hurriedly away from the castle. I will myself draw up a brief report 
 showing that I have, in the execution of my duty, witnessed the self- 
 dispatch of your master. And now, Sir Yuranosuke," addressing him- 
 self to the Karo,\ " I fully understand your distress. If I can render 
 you any service pray do not forget to avail yourself of my assistance." 
 
 As he concluded, the Commissioner courteously saluted the retainers 
 of Yenya, and composedly took his departure. 
 
 " For my part I want this dead body removed, at any rate," cried 
 Yakushiji. " Meanwhile I will snatch some repose within yonder. 
 Ho 1 Some of you, throw these fellows' rubbish out of doors. As to 
 Yenya's property — and you," turning to the clansmen, " away with you 
 and turn into ronin% as fast as you please." Glaring fiercely round, he 
 then strode out of the apartment. As soon as he had gone the Lady 
 Kawoyo suddenly lifted up her voice and exclaimed in a piteous tone : — 
 
 " Alas ! alas ! my friends, was ever condition more distressful than 
 
 * Lit., wrung his five entrails and six viscera — an expression borrowed from 
 
 the Chinese. 
 
 f Lit., " house-elder;" the title of the chief councillor of a Daimiy&, 
 
 \ Clansmen dismissed from, or who had abandoned, the service of their 
 
 master; lit., "Wave-men;" i.e., "Vagabonds," 
 
The Seppuku of Yenya. 
 
 4i 
 
 yours ! Oh ! that I had said all that I wanted to say to my lord in his 
 agony! But I did not know what to do. I was afraid of exciting 
 the contempt of the Commissioners; and so I have forborne from 
 speaking until now. I cannot tell you how miserable I am." And 
 falling upon the corpse, her grief overwhelmed her, and she burst 
 into a flood of tears. 
 
 Yuranosuke now called to his son : " Rikiya, you will accompany 
 our mistress, and at once convey the body of our dead master to 
 the family burying-place at the Temple of Komyo. I shall follow 
 close after you, and charge myself with the ordering of the funeral 
 ceremonies. Hori, Yazama, Odera, Hasama, and the rest of the re- 
 tainers will go with you as escort." 
 
 A norimon was immediately brought forward, and the body 
 reverently lifted and placed within, amid the tears of all present. 
 
 Yuranosuke tried to console the Lady Kawoyo, who was beside 
 herself with grief, while the clansmen strove each to be one of the 
 bearers, or, at least, to accompany the corpse. At last all was ready, 
 the more fortunate bore off their dead lord, while their comrades, who 
 remained behind, looked wistfully after them. As these seated them- 
 selves, Kudaiu, who was amongst them, exclaimed : 
 
 " Well, Ohoboshi, the office of Kara has been hereditary in your 
 family ever since the days of your ancestor Hachiman Rokuro. And 
 I, too, have been accorded a place at the right hand of him whom 
 they are bearing off yonder. But now we are all made rbnin; and 
 as we have to find food for our wives and children, why should we 
 not lay hands upon the treasure amassed by our lord, divide it 
 amongst ourselves, and leave the castle without further delay? 
 For Yakushiji is sure to be offended if we stop here much 
 longer." 
 
 " I think quite differently from Kudaiu," said one of the clansmen, 
 Senzaki by name. " It seems to me that as long as our enemy, the 
 Lord Moronaho, lives, vengeance is our care. Let us wait here until 
 he comes to dislodge us ; and die, if necessary, upon our own 
 ground." 
 
42 
 
 Chiushingura ; or, the Loyal League. 
 
 " I say, No," cried Sadakuro, son of Kudaiu. " The notion of 
 dying upon our own ground is a silly one. I am of the same opinion 
 as my father, let us ransack the place, divide what we find, and then 
 get away. That would be really sensible conduct." 
 
 Yuranosuke quietly intervened : — " I am quite of Yagoro's opinion. 
 We ought, according to old custom, to slay ourselves for the sake of 
 our dead lord. But instead of a cruel self dispatch, would it not be 
 better to await the force which Ashikaga may send against us, and 
 die in resisting it with our utmost determination ?" 
 
 " Yah ! what say you there ? " said Kudaiu. " Is that your sage 
 counsel ? What, we miserable ronin puff ourselves up with the notion 
 of drawing bow against Ashikaga ! A silly proceeding enough that 
 would be, and one in which Kudaiu, at all events, will have no 
 part." 
 
 " You are right, father," chimed in his son, " you are right. What 
 these gentlemen propose is to me unintelligible. However, what need 
 to prolong this discussion ? It is waste of time to remain here. Let 
 us away, father." 
 
 " We will, we will," replied the latter. " And you, gentlemen, 
 remain here if you choose ! It won't be for long," he added derisively. 
 Kudaiu and his son then took their departure together. 
 
 "Pah!" cried Senzaki, "what a covetous wretch that Kudaiu is ! 
 The pair were anxious to beat a retreat the moment they heard us 
 talk of resistance. Cowards ! But we need not concern ourselves 
 with them, let us prepare ourselves to meet the attack." 
 
 " Ah ! not so fast, Yagoro," broke in Yuranosuke. " What have we 
 against Ashikaga that we should draw bow against him? What I 
 said just now was only to find out the real sentiment of the precious 
 pair who have just left us. Let Yakushiji take possession of the 
 mansion, and bitter though it be to leave this place, let us make our 
 way to Yamashina near Miyako ; there I will unfold to you my designs, 
 and we can then arrange upon some plan of carrying them out." The 
 last words were hardly out of his mouth, when Yakushiji suddenly 
 made his appearance. 
 
■ 
 

The Seppuku of Yenya. 
 
 43 
 
 " Ho, there ! " he said with a snarl, " your conference seems long 
 enough. If the body has been removed, what do you linger here for ? 
 Leave the place at once without further delay." 
 
 " Hah !" broke in Goyemon, " your lordship cannot wait, it would 
 seem ? Well, there are our dead lord's arms, armour, and horse gear, 
 look them well over and take them. Come, Sir Yuranosuke, let us 
 withdraw." 
 
 Yuranosuke signified his assent ; and rising to their feet, their hearts 
 heavy with the thought that they were quitting for ever the castle where 
 for generations their ancestors, and where they themselves for so long a 
 time, had night and day done their duty as samurahi, the retainers of 
 Yenya slowly and reluctantly, and with many a wistful look back, 
 passed out through the castle-gate. Hardly had they turned their faces 
 from their old home when they found themselves confronted by Rikiya, 
 Yazama, Odera, and Hori, who, after escorting their lord's body to the 
 temple of Komyo, had hastened back to the castle. 
 
 "Ah!" exclaimed the latter simultaneously, impetuously arresting 
 as they spoke the progress of Yuranosuke and his companions, " has 
 the castle then been taken possession of? We thought we were to 
 make our last stand here against the force that Ashikaga might send 
 to expel us." 
 
 " Not so, not so," said Yuranosuke ; " we will not die here. Look, 
 comrades," displaying the short sword which Yenya Hanguwan had 
 made him a dying gift of. " With this weapon our dead lord let 
 out his lifeblood ; with this weapon he gave escape to his indignant 
 spirit ; and with this weapon will I take the head of Moronaho, and 
 thus fulfil the last command of our lord." 
 
 " So be it ! so be it !" they all exclaimed in a loud voice. 
 
 Yakushiji from within the gate heard the gallant cry, and, noisily 
 putting up the bars, shouted out derisively : 
 
 " Your lord's crime against Moronaho has met with its proper 
 reward. You are in a pretty plight now. Ha ! ha !" 
 
 His satellites backed up the fellow's sneer with loud laughs, which 
 so enraged some of the younger samurahi of Yuranosuke's party, that 
 

 44 
 
 Chiushingura ; or, the Loyal League. 
 
 they would have retraced their steps, if their leader had not prevented 
 them by reminding them of the necessity of sacrificing everything 
 to the accomplishment of vengeance upon Moronaho. Still they 
 could not help often glancing back with angry looks upon the castle 
 they were leaving in the possession of Yakushiji and his crew. 
 
 END OF THE FOURTH BOOK. 
 
BOOK THE FIFTH. 
 
 THE NIGHT ADVENTURE OF KAMPEI. 
 
 OT unmindful of the example set by the falcon, 
 that even in the last extremity of hunger, 
 will not peck at a single ear of grain, 
 Hayano Kampei, as the dark nights and 
 
 {K the bright days passed by, continued to 
 
 S3BJ 
 
 dwell in poverty and seclusion near the 
 
 village of Yamazaki, mourning over his 
 youthful error, and gaining his livelihood by tracking 
 the monkey and the wild boar along the narrow 
 mountain paths — narrow as were his means of 
 existence.* 
 
 One night he was out among the hills a-hunting, 
 when the thunder began to roar, and the lightning 
 to flash, and the ground to tremble with the storm 
 • — a veritable July tempest, — and his sleeves were 
 soon wet through with the pouring rain. 
 He sought shelter under a pine-tree, holding his matchlock in 
 readiness, until the storm should be over ; but hardly had he got 
 
 * Such is the sense of a play upon words occurring here in the original 
 text, and incapable of anything like a literal rendering. 
 
&tf8%&mttm: 
 
 
 m 
 
 4 6 
 
 Chiushingura ; or, the Loyal League. 
 
 there when he saw the glimmer of a light coming towards him through 
 the darkness. 
 
 It proceeded from a small paper lantern, carried by a man, 
 who seemed to be a samurahi, and who held it by its bow-shaped 
 handle under the folds of his dress, which, partly to shelter himself 
 from the tempest, partly to prevent the light from being blown out 
 by the wind, he had drawn close round his person. 
 
 " Iya ! there," cried Kampei. " Pardon me for stopping you, but 
 will you be good enough to give me a light?" With these words 
 he approached the wayfarer, who, as soon as he saw him, assumed 
 a posture of defence, exclaiming : 
 
 " I know the risk of journeying alone on this road, but you 
 must not fancy I have any fear of you, highwayman though you 
 look like ; you will get nothing out of me — try your tricks elsewhere." 
 And suddenly turning towards his questioner, the traveller scanned 
 him narrowly. 
 
 "What!" said Kampei, "you take me for a robber, your eyes 
 deceive you, but I can excuse your mistake. I am a hunter of the 
 neighbourhood, and the rain has so damped my match that I can 
 make no use of it. You can understand my plight. See, I will 
 give the gun into your own hands, while you can light the match 
 for me yourself." 
 
 The hunter spoke in an honest accent enough, and the traveller 
 once more regarded him attentively. After a slight pause, he ex- 
 claimed suddenly : 
 
 "Why, you are Kampei, Hayano Kampei, are you not?" 
 
 " I am ; and you ? You must be Senzaki Yagoro." 
 
 The two friends greeted each other cordially after their long 
 separation, and clenched their fists firmly as the memory of the ruin 
 of their lord's house again stirred their hearts in the undying hatred 
 of his enemy. Kampei, letting his head fall mournfully on his breast, 
 could not for some time utter a word. At last he found speech, 
 exclaiming : 
 
 " Yeh ! I am so stricken with shame — my honour as a Bushi is 
 
1 ^B 
 
- *m 
 
 ■ 
 
 ■-- 
 
 . p 
 
 ',• 
 
 -■ 
 
 > ? «-i 
 
 ./*■■•■ '■■■ 
 
 
 
 
 
 ,i> .-,' 
 
 
The Night Adventure of Kampei. 
 
 47 
 
 so entirely gone — that I hardly dare show my face even to so old 
 a comrade as yourself. I ought to have been at my lord's side 
 when the event that resulted so cruelly for our master's house took 
 place ; but my ill-fortune was such that I was not where my duty 
 called me, nor was it possible for me to return to the castle. While 
 waiting for a favourable moment for begging that my fault might 
 be overlooked, I was overwhelmed by the news of our master's 
 self-dispatch. Namusambb ! that fellow Moronaho is the cause of 
 all this; and thinking that at least I could accompany my lord on 
 the dark path, I laid hand upon my sword, when I was arrested 
 by the reflection that my lord would ask me what high deed I 
 had done to entitle me to follow him, and that I could do nothing 
 but hang my head with shame in reply. Heartbroken, I gave up 
 the idea of self-dispatch ; and it coming to my ears that it was 
 intended to avenge the death of our master, the design originating 
 with the Ohoboshis, father and son, and Sir Goyemon, and as I have 
 never been formally thrust out from the clan, I thought that if means 
 could be found of getting me a favourable hearing from Yuranosuke, 
 I might be permitted to add my name to the list of conspirators, 
 and should then never fear to face the world as long as I lived, 
 while my name would remain bright for ages after my death. In 
 our chance meeting to-day, I am as fortunate as if I were to come 
 upon the Udonge* in bloom. I adjure you, as an old comrade, as 
 a feWow-sawurakt, give me your aid, and help me to regain the 
 honourable position I have lost." So saying, Kampei prostrated 
 himself, full of remorse for his disloyalty, and burst into tears. 
 Truly pitiable it is to see a man weep. Senzaki felt that his friend's 
 repentance was sincere, but thought it right not to reveal the whole 
 plot, seeing how important a matter it was. 
 
 " Come, come, Kampei," he said, after a pause ; " you are speak- 
 ing at random. Your talk about a list of conspirators is all moon- 
 shine; as far as I know, no one has dreamt of any such scheme 
 
 * Udonge. Vide Appendix, and below. 
 
4§ 
 
 Chiushingura ; or, the Loyal League. 
 
 as you refer to. I am on my way from Yuranosuke to Goyemon 
 with a message about erecting a monument over our lord's grave. 
 True, we are all mere rbnin now ; yet we wish to put up a monument 
 that will last for ever, so that his memory may not be lost, and are 
 trying to collect the money necessary for the purpose among those 
 who do not forget the benefits they have received from our dead 
 master; whose disposition, however, we ascertain before we unfold 
 our scheme to them. You, of course, are among those who keep 
 a grateful memory of our lord." 
 
 The story about the monument was a fiction ; Senzaki, who was 
 moved by his friend's distress, meant to hint what Yuranosuke's 
 real design was. 
 
 " You are very good, Senzaki. A rumour had reached me of 
 your intention to get funds for a monument. I understand you 
 perfectly. I shall move heaven and earth to get money somehow, 
 so that I may join in the subscription. Senzaki, what a shameful 
 position I am in ; fit punishment for my disloyalty to our master. 
 There is not a single soul to whom I can apply for aid. However, 
 my father-in-law, Yoichibei, is a good-natured old man, a farmer of 
 these parts. My wife is as much grieved as I am at the remembrance 
 of my fault, and the old people are full of compassionate desire to 
 see me restored to my former rank by some means or other. I 
 shall tell them of my fortunate meeting with you to-night ; and, if 
 I let them know of this chance of my regaining my position, they 
 will, for the sake of their daughter, sell some of their land. I know 
 they will not refuse to do so, and I would beg of you to take the 
 money for me to Goyemon."' 
 
 Senzaki could not resist Kampei's pleading tone, and replied, 
 " Well, I will tell Goyemon all that you have said, and will see 
 what can be done by petitioning Yuranosuke on your behalf. The 
 day after to-morrow you shall hear from me without fail. And 
 here, by-the-bye, is Goyemon's itinerary," handing over a paper, as 
 he spoke, to Kampei, who lifted it respectfully to his forehead. 
 
 " A thousand, thousand thanks ; no danger of my being behind- 
 
The Night Adventure of Kampei. 
 
 49 
 
 hand with the money. The day after to-morrow I hope to see 
 you. If you should want to look me up you must go to the ferry 
 at Yamazaki ; turn to the left, and then inquire for the house of 
 one Yoichibei ; you will have no difficulty in finding it. And now, 
 ere it gets too late, I think you had better continue your journey. 
 Remember that the road you will have to travel over is somewhat 
 dangerous, and therefore do not cease to be on your guard." 
 
 " Good, I understand. Until the monument to our dead lord 
 has been erected, no flea shall taste this body of mine ; and be of 
 good cheer, you will get the money, I make no doubt. Fare you 
 well, fare you well." 
 
 Kampei and Senzaki then took leave of each other. 
 The rain continued to patter down, amid the sound of which the 
 clatter of wooden pattens betokened the approach of some way- 
 farer. Presently, Yoichibei, not fearing the darkness, for he knew 
 the paths well, came tottering by, leaning on his staff, honest stout- 
 hearted father, only fearing for his child, Karu, whose surviving 
 parent he was.* As the old man struggled forward through the 
 storm, he was startled by some one behind him shouting, " Oi, oi, 
 old gentleman, let's travel together." 
 
 This was no other than the son of Kudaiu, Sadakuro, whose 
 home was no more fixed than the white crest of a wave, and who 
 had betaken himself to night work on the highways, a heavy sword 
 hanging by his hip.f 
 
 "How, old fellow, art deaf?" cried Sadakuro; "I've been 
 shouting after you for some time. Perilous task for an old man 
 like you to travel alone, and by night, along a dangerous road like 
 this. Come, I'll keep you company." So saying, he got in front 
 of Yoichibei, and stared at him rudely. The latter started, but with 
 the craft of old age, replied : 
 
 * This portion of the text is stuffed with puns, of which a full rendering 
 is impossible. 
 
 t That is, not stuck in his girdle, as was usual, but pendent by his side, 
 so as to be readier for use. 
 
50 Chiushingura ; or, the Loyal League. 
 
 " Well, well ; you don't look young, and so I suppose I need 
 not fear you.* True, indeed, it is perilous for an old man like me 
 to be out on such a night, and all alone ; but there is no help for it. 
 Money, you know, is what people are always in want of, everywhere ; 
 and as I am behind with my taxes, I have been round among my 
 relations to ask assistance, but without getting a cash from one of 
 them ; and so, as none of them seem inclined to help me, I did not 
 trouble them with a long visit, and am now on my way home again." 
 
 Sadakuro broke in rudely: "Yai! don't try to fool me with 
 your nonsense about being behind with your taxes. Just listen to 
 what I've got to say to you. That bag in your bosom there, to 
 judge by its bulk, must contain some forty or fifty riyb. I caught a 
 sight of it just now, a striped bag — hand it over. What ! must I 
 ask it with clasped hands ? Of course, you will howl about your 
 poverty, and the money being for your family. I care nothing 
 about all that; you can't help yourself, that's clear, so let me have 
 it if you please, and at once." 
 
 And with a sudden movement he snatched the bag out of the 
 old man's bosom. 
 
 " Ah ! sir," cried the old man, " I implore you, that bag " 
 
 "That bag, that bag Well, it seems I was right as to its 
 
 contents." 
 
 And the robber grasped the bag more firmly as he spoke. 
 
 " No, no ; it only contains some cash left after buying a pair of 
 straw shoes at the last village, together with the remains of some rice 
 balls I had for my dinner, and some emollient physic and stimulant 
 lozenges my daughter gave me before leaving home, to use in case 
 of an attack of flux. Pray let me have it back." 
 
 And with a quick movement the old man repossessed himself of 
 the bag and made off with it. Sadakuro, however, soon overtook 
 him. 
 
 *JFor the young, so think the Japanese, not without justice, are commonly 
 more cruel and violent than the old. 
 
The Night Adventure of Kampei. 
 
 5i 
 
 " Yell ! you will be a fool then. I did not want to hew you in 
 pieces, but gentle means, it seems, only make you harder to deal with. 
 Hand that to me without more ado, or I'll have at you." 
 
 So saying, he drew his long sword and raised it high above his 
 head, and ere one had time to cry mercy he aimed a blow at the 
 old man, sweeping down with his sword as if it was only a bam- 
 boo he was splitting. But Yoichibei, whom some swerve of arm 
 or weapon saved for the moment, convulsively seized the naked 
 blade with both hands, crying : 
 
 " What, would you murder me ? " 
 
 " Ah ! I knew I was right," exclaimed the robber, " I felt sure 
 you had money about you. It is your money kills you. Come, 
 no more nonsense, but die and make no noise about it." 
 
 And the villain pressed the old man with the point of his sword 
 as he spoke. 
 
 "Ma, Ma! I pray you a little patience. Alas ! is there no escape 
 for me ! true, aye, true ! I have money on me, but this money belongs 
 to my only daughter. She has a lover, dearer to her than life itself, 
 and the money is for him. For certain reasons he became a ronin. 
 My daughter told me he had become a rdnin through her fault, and 
 begged us — her mother and me — that she might be allowed to help 
 him to get back his lost rank. Night after night she begged this. 
 But we are very poor bodies, and could hit upon no plan of bringing 
 about what she wanted. At last, however, her mother and I, after 
 talking over the matter, agreed upon a means of aiding her, and 
 got her to consent to it. We took good care, however, that her 
 lover should know nothing of our plan, and told her to be careful 
 to say nothing about it to him. Oh, this money has cost tears of 
 blood to us — my only daughter, her mother and myself. What 
 shall we do if you take it from us ? O, sir ; I ask you, with clasped 
 hands, to be merciful to us. You, too, sir, look like one who has 
 been a samarahi and will sympathize with us. Without this money 
 my daughter and her lover will never be able to hold up their heads 
 again. He is affianced to my only daughter ; how pitiable, how 
 
 E 2 
 
mM &8i 
 
 ■IfT 
 
 
 52 
 
 Chiushingura ; or, the Loyal League. 
 
 cruel to separate them. Oh, sir, consider their hard case. I beg 
 of you to afford us your merciful help. Ye, ye, you are young yet, 
 sir ; you have no children. Bye-and-bye you will have children, and 
 then you will understand why I plead with you so earnestly. You 
 cannot refuse to help us in our miserable lot. My home is but one 
 league farther on; let only the money be given to my daughters 
 lover, and do your will with me. Let me but see my daughter's face 
 happy, and I will gladly die. Have pity ! have pity !" 
 
 But loud as the old man's entreaties were, the far-off echoes 
 of the hills alone responded to his cries. 
 
 " O pity, pity," sneered the robber ; " what stuff you talk ; your 
 doing a kindness to me will not harm your son, nothing evil can 
 come out of doing a kindness." 
 
 " Have mercy on me," groaned the victim as, pierced by Sada- 
 kuro's sword, he fell down and rolled in his death agony on the 
 ground. The murderer, kicking the body aside, exclaimed coolly, 
 " Wretched piece of work ! Well, I am sorry for it ; I didn't do it 
 out of any malice ; but, you see, you had money. That killed you. 
 No money and you'd be alive now. Your money was your enemy. 
 I can't help pitying you, too. Which prayer are you for? Namu- 
 amida butsu or Namu miyoho renge kiyd ?* Choose one, and let all 
 end." And he buried his sword still deeper in the quivering form. 
 The blades of grass were red with dewlike drops of blood, and the 
 feeble breath passed away from the old man full of years and misery. 
 His murderer immediately possessed himself of the bag of money, 
 and tried to estimate its contents in the dark by feeling it with his 
 hand. 
 
 " Capital," he cried, after a pause ; " fifty riyb here ; it's a long time 
 since such a sum and I have been face to face. I am much obliged to 
 you." Casting a glance towards his victim, he then hung the bag 
 round his own neck and threw the corpse to the bottom of a neigh- 
 bouring ravine, little thinking of the retribution that was awaiting him. 
 
 * Vide Appendix, 
 
 ..,. w ,.v 
 


 
 
 
 ■5 
 
 
 
 -^ 
 
 , . .--. 
 
 - 
 
The Night Adventure of Kampei. 
 
 53 
 
 He had not gone far on his way when a wounded boar came 
 dashing up behind him. He stood aside to let the animal pass, that 
 rushed straight on, heedless of roots and stones. At the moment 
 Sadakuro stood back, startled, out of the animal's way, just as the boar 
 was flying past him through the mud and bushes, he was struck by a 
 double shot, which passed from his backbone through the side of his 
 chest, and rolled him over dead before he could even utter a groan — a 
 fit end for the villain. 
 
 Kampei meanwhile, for it was from him that the fatal shot pro- 
 ceeded, thinking he had hit the boar, came towards the spot, holding 
 his gun muzzle downwards, and searched for the animal's carcase. 
 Seeing something on the ground, he raised it up, and found to his 
 horror and astonishment that it was a human corpse. 
 
 "Yat, Yai ! 'Tis a man. Namu sambo, what an unlucky shot !" 
 
 It was so dark it was impossible to tell who the man might be, but 
 Kampei put his hand inside the breast to see if his victim's heart still 
 beat. In doing this, his hand came upon the purse of money, which 
 seemed by its bulk to contain some forty or fifty riyb. Overjoyed at his 
 luck, he lifted the bag gratefully to his head, and made off with the 
 speed of a bird, distancing the boar itself.* 
 
 * " Shishi yori saki he Issan ni tobu no Gotoku ni isogikeru." 
 
 END OF ROOK FIVE. 
 

 BOOK THE SIXTH. 
 
 THE HEROISM OF KAMPEI. 
 
 All the old folks, hand in hand, 
 Haste to watch the joyous band, 
 Mingling in the harvest-dance * 
 'Neath the old folks' kindly glance." 
 
 ||UCH was the country snatch the corn-threshers 
 
 greeted the morrow's dawn with at the village 
 
 of Yamazaki,f which, as you will guess from 
 
 the name, lay in the shadow of the hills. Here 
 
 stood the mud and wattle cabin of Yoichibei, 
 
 who tilled some few roods of land around ; and 
 
 it was here that Kampei had retired after his 
 
 disgrace with his affianced Karu, who, up betimes, 
 
 was combing out her disordered hair — of a truth, its 
 
 dishevelled state seemed to show her indescribable 
 
 anxiety for her lover's return — and restoring to it its 
 
 beautiful dark gloss, managing at last to arrange it so 
 
 charmingly that it was a pity there were none but country 
 
 boors to admire her. J As she finished her task, wishing 
 
 she had a friend to talk over her fears with, her mother, 
 
 leaning on a stick, came hobbling up the country path. 
 
 * Misaki-odori, i.e., misahi-dance. Misahi is the name of a place near Kiyoto. 
 Misaki means also the maturing of the ear, fruit or crop, 
 f " Before the Hills." 
 + In this passage, the sense of which is given with considerable closeness, are 
 
The Heroism of Kampei. 
 
 55 
 
 " Ah, daughter, so you have inished doing your hair. How prettily 
 you have put it up. Well, the v heat harvest is being gathered in, and 
 you see nothing everywhere but people as busy as they can be. Just 
 now, as I passed by the bamboo copse yonder, I heard the young 
 fellows singing, as they threshed the corn, the old snatch — 
 
 ' All the old folks, hand in hand, 
 Haste to watch the joyous band, 
 Mingling in the harvest-dance, 
 'Neath the old folks' kindly glance. ' 
 
 Your father is long in returning; I have been as far as the end of 
 the village to look out for him, but without seeing the least sign of 
 him." 
 
 "I wonder at that," replied her daughter; "I can't understand it; 
 what can make him so late ? Shall I run out and see if he is coming." 
 
 " Why, no ; young women cannot go wandering about all alone. 
 Don't you remember how you hated walking about the village when 
 you were a little girl ? and so we sent you to service at my lord Yenya's ; 
 but now, our grassy moor seems to have drawn you home again. Ah, 
 daughter," after a pause, " if Kampei were but here your face would 
 soon lose its anxious look." 
 
 " Yes, mother, of course it would. When a girl has her lover with 
 her, however dull and stupid the village may be, all seems joyous to her. 
 And soon we shall be in the Bon month,* and then Kampei and we 
 shall be the ' old folks ' of the song, and go ' hand in hand ' to see the 
 dancing — shall we not ? You don't forget your own youth, mother." 
 
 The girl spoke in a sprightly tone, wishing to spare her mother any 
 anxiety, but her trembling limbs showed the distress she could not 
 completely hide. 
 
 " Nambo ; you talk merrily enough, but in your heart, in your 
 heart " 
 
 various word-plays and a character-rebus, the explanation of which would be out 
 of place in the present translation, and would, besides, require the use of Chinese 
 signs. 
 
 * Vide Appendix, " Bon month.'' 
 
^H 
 
 
 56 
 
 Chiushingura ; or, the Loyal League. 
 
 " lye, iye I mother,"' said Karu, " I am not troubled. Is it not for my 
 husband's sake that I have engaged myself at the tea-house in the 
 Gi-on Street at Kiyoto? I am quite ready to go; and it is only the 
 thought that I shall not any longer be able to look after my father's 
 comforts that grieves me. My brother, who, though of mean condition, 
 has been permitted to become a retainer of our lord Yenya, will be 
 taken up by his duties " 
 
 Their talk was interrupted by the arrival of Ichimonjiya, the master 
 of the tea-house in the Gi-on Street, accompanied by two coolies bearing a 
 kago. " This is the place," he cried. " Is this the house of Yoichibei ? " 
 he added, as he came up to the door, entering as he spoke. 
 
 " Pray come in, sir," said the mother of Karu. " You have had a 
 long journey, to be sure. Quick, daughter, bring the gentleman tea and 
 tobacco.*' 
 
 The two women were so anxious to please their guest that they 
 would have covered the walls of their house with beaten gold, if they 
 could have done so, to gratify him. 
 
 " Well, mistress," said the master of the tea-house, " last night I 
 gave your good man a vast deal of trouble. Has he got back all 
 right?" 
 
 " Got back — did you say ? " cried the mother of Karu. " Why, sir, 
 has he not come back with you, then ? What can this mean ? Since 
 he went to see you he has " 
 
 " Not come back yet?" broke in Ichimonjiya; "well, that is strange. 
 Perhaps he has been carelessly passing by some shrine of Inari, and 
 been bewitched by some crystal-pawing fox.* However that may be, 
 here am I, come to take away the girl according to agreement. An 
 engagement of five years for one hundred riyo ; that was what we clapped 
 hands on. Your husband said he had a pressing need of the money, 
 and begged me with tears in his eyes to advance him half of the price, 
 
 * The fox, much dreaded on account of his supposed influence over human 
 beings, is generally represented as holding a crystal ball in his forepaws, without 
 which he is said to be powerless. 
 
The Heroism of Katnpei. 
 
 57 
 
 which at last, after he had sealed the paper, I agreed to do, bargaining 
 that the girl should be given up on the payment of the remainder. He 
 seemed beside himself with joy when I counted out the fifty riyo to him, 
 and set out on his return there and then, although it was late, about the 
 fourth hour (about 8 p.m.) I should say, and I warned him that it was 
 unwise to travel by night with money about one. He wouldn't listen to 
 me, however, and hurried off. Perhaps he has stopped somewhere in 
 the road." 
 
 " But there is no place he would be likely to stop at, mother," said 
 Karu. 
 
 " Stop, indeed ! " exclaimed the wife of Yoichibei, " he would be 
 sure to hasten homewards with all speed. He would never rest until he 
 had got back and gladdened us by the sight of the money. I cannot 
 understand his being so long, at all." 
 
 " Understand it or not," cried the tea-house master, impatiently, 
 " that is your affair ; here is the balance of the purchase-money, and 
 now I should like to take the girl with me." 
 
 The fellow took fifty riyo from his bosom as he spoke, and offered 
 them to Karu's mother, saying, "This makes up the hundred riyo; 
 come, take them, and let me have the girl." 
 
 " But I can't give her up," cried her mother, " spite of what you say, 
 until her father shall have returned." 
 
 " But you must, you must, I tell you," shouted Ichimonjiya ; " why 
 waste time ? Look, here is the agreement with Yoichibei's seal upon it — 
 it speaks for itself. The girl is mine from this day, and for every day of 
 her service I lose I will make you pay well. Go with me she must, and 
 shall." 
 
 Seizing Karu by the hand, he was about to lead her away when her 
 mother interrupted him, catching her daughter by the other hand, and 
 exclaiming, " Nay, nay, a little patience." 
 
 Ichimonjiya, however, pulled the girl towards him, and got her to 
 the kago, in spite of her mothers resistance. At this crisis, Kampei, 
 with his straw cloak over his matchlock, suddenly made his appearance, 
 and, seeing how matters stood, hastened into the house, exclaiming : 
 

 Spi %<& QRi 
 
 58 
 
 Chiushingura ; or, the Loyal League. 
 
 " What is all this about, Karu ? tell me. What is this kago here for ? 
 Where are you going in it?" 
 
 " Ah, Kampei !" cried the girl's mother, " I am so glad you have 
 come. You are just in time." 
 
 Kampei could not understand his mother-in-law's delight. "There 
 is some mystery here. Mother, wife, tell me, what is the meaning of 
 all this?" 
 
 Further conversation was interrupted by Ichimonjiya, who strode 
 into the apartment, and squatting down, exclaimed angrily, " O ! let 
 there be an end to this. You are my servant's husband, are you ? " 
 turning to Kampei. " Husband or not, matters little to me. The 
 agreement provides that no one (husband or other) shall prevent the 
 contract from being carried out. See, Yoichibei's seal is on the paper ; 
 is not that enough for you ? Come, old lady," he resumed, speaking to 
 Karu's mother, " let me have the girl without more ado." 
 
 " Oh ! son-in-law," exclaimed the wife of Yoichibei, " what am I to 
 do ? Our daughter told us some time since you were in great need of 
 money, and begged us to give her some for you ; but how could we, 
 poor folk, without a cash ! At last, her father said the only way was to 
 send our daughter for a time to service ; but that this must be done 
 without your knowledge, because he thought that perhaps you would 
 not like money to be got in such a way. In case of need, you know, 
 they say a samurahi may rob and steal ; * and as it was for her 
 husband's advantage, there was nothing shameful in parting with her. 
 So her father went yesterday to Kivoto and settled terms with this 
 gentleman here, the master of the house in the Gi-on Street, and ought 
 to have been back ere this, but has not yet returned, which makes us 
 feel very anxious about him. In the midst of our uncertainty this 
 gentleman appears, and says that he gave half the hiring-money to 
 Yoichibei last night, and has brought the other half with him, which he 
 offers to us in exchange for Karu. I have asked him to wait until her 
 father returns, but he refuses. What are we to do, Kampei ? " 
 
 * Allusion to the proverb, " Kiritori go-to-wa, bushinonarahi," i.e., Slaughter 
 and rapine, samurahi's daily deeds, 
 
The Heroism of Kampei. 
 
 59 
 
 " Really my father-in-law is most kind," said the youth. " I have 
 had a windfall, but more of that bye-and-bye. There can be no doubt, 
 I think, that Karu cannot be given up until her father shall have 
 returned." 
 
 " Cannot be given up," cried Ichimonjiya ; " and why not, I should 
 like to know?" 
 
 "Well," said Kampei, "this is Yoichibei's seal, no doubt, and 
 perhaps you really have paid the fifty riyo, but . . . . " 
 
 "lya!" broke in the tea-house master; "why, I could buy up all 
 the women in Kiyoto and Ohozaka, for that matter ; indeed, the whole 
 population of Nyogo island ; * and it is not likely I should say I had 
 paid half the money down if I had not done so — is it? Besides, I can 
 prove that I paid it. When I had counted out the money to the old 
 fellow he wrapped it up in a cloth, which he was about to tie round his 
 neck, when I showed him how dangerous it was to carry money in that 
 way, and lent him a purse made of stuff just like my dress here, both in 
 stuff and pattern. He tied the purse round his neck and started off at 
 once." 
 
 " What do you say," broke in Kampei, " a purse made of striped 
 cloth like this of which your dress is made ? " 
 
 "Yes, yes, that will be proof of the truth of what I say, will it not?" 
 
 A terrible thought rose up in Kampei's mind as he heard this, and 
 he furtively but closely examined Ichimonjiya's dress. His scrutiny 
 convinced him that it was exactly of the same stuff and pattern as the 
 purse he had taken the previous night, which was made of a sort of 
 striped cotton cloth, shot with silken threads, and he could only con- 
 clude that the man whom he had accidentally slain was no other than 
 his own father-in-law. " Would that the slugs had shattered my own 
 breast-bone," he thought to himself; "it would have been a less 
 miserable affair than this." 
 
 " Come, Kampei," cried Karu, impatient at her lover's silence, 
 
 Vifie Appendix. 
 
6o 
 
 Chiushingura ; or, the Loyal League. 
 
 " don't stand there hesitating, but speak out and decide whether I am 
 to go with this man or not." 
 
 "Ah, well," said her lover, "you see — what this man tells us seems 
 to be true. There appears to be no help for it, and you must go with 
 him." 
 
 " What, before my father returns ? " 
 
 " I forgot to tell you that I saw your father this morning. It is 
 uncertain when he will return." 
 
 " How ! you saw my father this morning ! Why did you not tell 
 us, then, at once, and put an end to our anxiety ? " 
 
 Ichimonjiya, taking advantage of the pause, exclaimed : " They 
 say if you search for something seven times without finding it you may 
 suspect some one. However, now we know where the good man is, we 
 need trouble ourselves no more about him. So pray don't let us be at 
 sixes and sevens * any more about the girl, or faith, we shall begin to 
 quarrel. Cheer up, all three of you ; and if ever you, sir, or the old 
 lady, should visit Kiyoto, I hope I shall have the pleasure of a call 
 from you. Now, my girl, into the kago with you ; up with you, 
 quick." 
 
 "At, at," cried the girl. "O Kampei, must I, then, go? I leave 
 my father and mother to your care. You will not fail to be kind to 
 them, will you ? to my father especially, for he is very infirm." The 
 poor girl, of course, had not the least notion that her father was no 
 more. Sad and pitiable situation ! Kampei was on the verge of 
 confessing everything upon the spot, but the presence of a stranger 
 restrained him, and he was forced to endure his misery in silence. 
 
 " Son-in-law," exclaimed the wife of Yoichibei, " you and your wife 
 must now take leave of each other. It is a bad parting for you, 
 daughter, but do not be faint-hearted." 
 
 " Do not fear, mother. It is for my husband's sake that I am sold 
 into service for a time. I have no cause whatever to be unhappy. I 
 
 * Lit., at fours and fives. 
 

 ■ 
 
 
 «JV * , « 
 
 4 * 
 
 M 
 
 HBj 
 
 
 X 
 

 &&& 
 
 ppp 
 
 i* 
 
 -3 
 
 N. 
 
 . 
 
The Heroism of Kampei. 
 
 61 
 
 shall have plenty of courage — it is only going without seeing my father 
 that troubles me." 
 
 " Your father shall come and see you as soon as he returns, I 
 promise you that. Take care of yourself, daughter; apply the moxa 
 occasionally, and bring us back a healthy face. Have you all you 
 want, — nose-paper and fan ? Mind you don't stumble and hurt your- 
 self." 
 
 The girl then got into the kago with her mother's help, and the last 
 farewells were exchanged. 
 
 " Ah me ! " cried the wife of Yoichibei, " what ill-fortune has 
 come upon us! why was the child born to such misery as this?" 
 
 The poor woman ground her teeth in an agony of distress, and 
 burst into tears, while her daughter, grasping convulsively the sides 
 of the kago, managed, but with difficulty, to stifle her sobs and 
 restrain her tears so as to hide her grief. Pitiable sight ! 
 
 The bearers now made a start, and the kago was borne rapidly 
 away, the poor girl's mother gazing after it wistfully. 
 
 " Ah !" she cried, " I have not comforted her at all ; how wretched, 
 how wretched ! " 
 
 "Son-in-law," she added, turning to Kampei, "you see I am 
 her mother, yet I have forced myself to let her go. You must not 
 let your grief overcome you. You spoke just now of my husband's 
 return being uncertain, and said you met him this morning." 
 
 " Ha ! did I ? " 
 
 "Yes. Where was it you met him? where did you part from 
 him?" 
 
 " Where did I part from him, you say ? I think it was at Toba 
 or Fushimi, or perhaps Yodo, or it might have been at Takeda." 
 
 The words were hardly out of Kampei's mouth, when a shuffling 
 of feet was heard outside, and three hunters of the neighbourhood, 
 Meppo Yahachi, Tanegashima no Roku, and Tanuki no Kakubei, 
 immediately afterwards thronged the entrance, bearing on their 
 shoulders a door, on which was laid a corpse decently covered with 
 a straw rain-cape. 
 
&m 
 
 j 
 
 
 62 
 
 Chiushingura ; or, the Loyal League. 
 
 " As we came back from hunting among the hills last 
 night," exclaimed one of them, "we found the body of Yoi- 
 chibei, who has evidently been murdered; and we have brought it 
 here." 
 
 Overwhelmed at the sight, the mother of Karu for a moment 
 could not find speech. 
 
 " O, son-in-law," she exclaimed at last; "whose work is this? 
 who is the villain who has thus slain my husband? Son-in- 
 law, son-in-law ! you must not rest until this cruel murder has 
 been amply avenged, amply avenged. O my husband ! my hus- 
 band ! " Her complaints and reproaches were, however, of as little 
 avail as the tears which flowed freely from her eyes. The hunters, 
 shocked at the sight of her misery, exclaimed together, "Dame, 
 dame, this is a terrible misfortune truly. But had you not better 
 lay a complaint at once before the magistrate? A sad business, 
 a sad business." With which -words they laid down the door with 
 its burden upon the matting, and took their departure. 
 
 The mother of Karu, restraining her tears for a moment, 
 marched up to Kampei : "Son-in-law," she cried, "what can all this 
 mean ? The more I think the less I understand. Samurahi though 
 you are, how can you look upon your father-in-law's corpse without 
 a start? You say you met him this morning. Did he not give 
 you some money ? Did he say nothing to you ? Speak, speak ! 
 What, you have not a word to say ? Ah ! I understand, this explains 
 everything." 
 
 She thrust her hand suddenly as she spoke into Kampei's breast, 
 and dragging out the purse, continued : 
 
 " I saw you looking at this furtively just now. Ah ! there is 
 blood upon it, — it is you, you who have murdered my husband." 
 
 " Iya / That purse is " 
 
 " That purse — ah ! you thought your foul deed would remain hidden, 
 but it is plain as sun at noon, in spite of you. You have killed him 
 for the money that was in this purse — did you know for whom it was ? 
 Yes, of course you did, and murdered him because you thought 
 
The Heroism of Kampei. 
 
 63 
 
 he might not give you the whole of it, and hide some on his way 
 back. Poor husband, poor husband ! was it for this you sold your 
 daughter? Wretch, we had always thought you a man of honour; 
 and all the time you have been a villain, — oh ! that I could kill you 
 on the spot; you are a monster, not a man. The horror has dried 
 up my tears, and I cannot weep. Alas ! my poor husband ! you 
 little knew what a brute of a son-in-law it was in whose behalf, 
 anxious as you were to help him to regain his position as a samurahi, 
 you, an old man, gave up your rest and travelled by night and on foot 
 to Kiyoto ; gave up your treasure and your only daughter for one who 
 sought to harm you in return for the good you were doing for him ; 
 like a dog that bites the hand that feeds him. Was ever such a vile 
 crime dreamt of as this? Monster — devil. Give me back my hus- 
 band, I tell you — bring him back to life ! " 
 
 Blind with rage and grief, the poor woman threw herself upon 
 Kampei, and seizing him by the side hair, dragged him towards her, 
 buffeting him the while with all her might. 
 
 "Wretch," she continued, "if only I had the strength I 
 would hack you in pieces, though even that would not glut my 
 vengeance." 
 
 She went on loading him with reproaches, until at last, exhausted 
 with grief and passion, she fell down in a faint ; while Kampei, in an 
 agony of remorse that made the sweat stand out upon his body,* 
 threw himself upon the ground, gnawing the matting in his dread 
 that the judgment of heaven had overtaken him. 
 
 Now two samurahi, wearing deep-brimmed bamboo hats that 
 concealed their features, knocked at the entrance. 
 
 " Does Hayano Kampei live here ? Hara Goyemon and Senzaki 
 Yagoro desire an interview with him." 
 
 Ill-timed as the visit of the two samurahi was, Kampei never- 
 theless rose to his feet, and, tightening his girdle, snatched up his side- 
 arms and thrust them hurriedly in. 
 
 Lit., " Throwing off boiling hot sweat in his distress.' 
 

 ^J 
 
 64 Chiushingura ; or the Loyal League. 
 
 He then went to receive his visitors, exclaiming : " Well, well, 
 gentlemen, who could have expected the honour of a call from you 
 at this poor hut? I am sure I do not know how to thank you suffi- 
 ciently ;" bowing his head low as he spoke. 
 
 "But perhaps," cried Goyemon, "we are interrupting you in 
 some family engagement; you seem occupied." 
 
 "Oh! nothing of any importance; some small private matter, of 
 no moment, I assure you. Pray do not trouble yourselves on that 
 point, but do me the honour to enter." 
 
 "In that case," cried the two samurahi, "we will accept your 
 invitation." And passing to the upper end of the apartment, they 
 seated themselves upon the matting. 
 
 Kampei, kneeling before them with the palms of his hands upon 
 the ground, exclaimed : " Lately I was absent from my lord's side 
 upon an important occasion ; a failure of duty for which it would be 
 vain for me to try to find any excuse. Nevertheless, I implore you 
 to procure my crime to be pardoned. I entreat you, gentlemen, 
 most earnestly I entreat you, to intercede for me, that I may be 
 permitted to join with the other retainers of my lord's household 
 in honouring the anniversary of his death." 
 
 As he spoke the unfortunate youth was overwhelmed with shame 
 at the recollection of his fault. Goyemon at once replied : 
 
 " Listen. Though a ronin without resources, you have offered a 
 subscription of a large amount towards the expense of erecting a 
 monument to our dead lord. Yuranosuke has been informed of this, 
 and is full of admiration of your conduct. The monument will be 
 placed in the family burying-ground of our lord. But your disloyalty 
 makes it impossible for our chief to receive your subscription. The 
 spirit of our dead lord would be indignant with us were we to 
 accept your money for such a purpose, and we have been ordered 
 therefore to return it to you." 
 
 As he concluded Senzaki drew forth from his bosom a paper 
 packet containing the money which Kampei had thought himself 
 so lucky in finding, and had shortly after handed to Senzaki, and 
 
The Heroism of Kampei. 
 
 65 
 
 placed the packet before the youth, who, wild with grief and despair 
 at the ruin of all his hopes,* was unable to utter a word. 
 
 "Ha, villain!" cried the mother of Karu, weeping and pointing 
 to Kampei; "you are now reaping your reward. Listen, gentlemen: 
 this fellow's father-in-law, a man stricken in years, but regardless of 
 his age, sold his daughter into service for the sake of this wretch 
 before you, who, lying in wait for the old man as he was returning 
 home, murdered him and robbed him of the money. The deed was 
 done in darkness, that none might know of it. Sirs, can you accept 
 the assistance of such a man, a parricide, whom, if the gods and 
 Buddha do not punish, they must surely be deaf to all entreaties. 
 You see the wretch, — a son, a murderer of his father. Hew him in 
 pieces, sirs^ I implore you ; for I am but a woman, and have not 
 the strength to avenge myself with my own hands." 
 
 Overcome with her feelings, the unfortunate mother of Karu threw 
 herself, in a flood of tears, upon the ground, while the two samura/ii, 
 aghast at the tale, laid hands on their swords. 
 
 Senzaki, his voice choked by indignation, exclaimed : " Kampei, 
 villain ! you dared to come to us with your murderer's booty in 
 your hand. Is this the way to atone for your disloyalty ? Inhuman 
 monster ! How dare you call yourself a samurahi '? — horror. A 
 parricicje and a thief, you deserve instant crucifixion ; and I should 
 be well pleased to spit you with my own hands upon the tree." 
 
 "Like the philosopher Koshi (Confucius)," added Goyemon, "who 
 declared that he would rather die of thirst than drink of the water of 
 a fountain so ill-named as that of T6-sen (i.e., the Fount of Robbers), 
 so no man of honour could hold intercourse for a moment with 
 such a wretch as you. How could, you dream of offering us your 
 ill-gotten gains for the service of our dead lord? Yuranosuke, with 
 his rare sagacity, must have divined what a disloyal and treacherous 
 nature yours was, when he ordered us to return you the money. 
 Bloodthirsty wretch, your name will be handed down to posterity 
 
 Lit., " Felt his senses turned upside down." 
 
' *V **>.«■, -V 1 
 
 is.-"'- " l c'J\.-'' r .' i«?.vfc*r ',»- VJ^ V " : ^f-»E f T^v-.,;.' ? v*'.- .:■■■-. - : o» 
 
 
The Heroism of Kampei. 
 
 67 
 
 "Goyemon," he cried to his companion, "come here. This at first 
 looks like a gunshot wound, but it is really a sword cut. Kampei, 
 you have been over hasty." 
 
 The mother of Karu was so astonished by the discovery that she 
 could not utter a word. 
 
 Goyemon, across whose mind a sudden recollection flashed, ex- 
 claimed : "Now I remember, — you too cannot have forgotten, — 
 the corpse we passed on our road here, with a gunshot wound in it. 
 We went up to it, and found it was the body of Ono Sadakuro, 
 whom his father — that covetous wretch, Ono Kudaiu — tired of the 
 fallow's evil course of life, had turned out of house. We had heard 
 that the son, not having a mat to bless himself with, had taken to 
 highway robbery. Without doubt, Kampei, this Sadakuro was the 
 villain that murdered your father-in-law." 
 
 "What?" cried the mother of Karu, bending over the corpse 
 and examining the wound, "Kampei then was not the murderer of 
 my husband? O! son-in-law!" turning to the unfortunate youth, "I 
 pray you with clasped hands to forgive me. I am but a silly, stupid 
 old woman, and you will bear with me and pardon me for all that 
 I have said. Kampei, Kampei, you shall not, must not die," turning 
 her face, streaming with tears, to him as she spoke. 
 
 " Now that what seemed evil in my conduct has been* explained, 
 mother," cried Kampei, " I can face the dark path in peace. Soon 
 I shall be with my father-in-law, and we shall climb the Shide Hill 
 and pass by the triple cross-way together."* 
 
 Goyemon, interrupting Kampei, who had seized the sword which 
 still remained in the wound with the purpose of hastening his death, 
 exclaimed : 
 
 " Ah ! Kampei, yet a little patience ; without knowing it you have 
 slain your father's murderer. Fortune has not been all against you, 
 and, by the favour of the Archer-God, you have been enabled to 
 take a glorious revenge. But I have something to shew to you ere 
 
 * Vide Appendix. 
 
 F Z 
 
68 
 
 Chinshingnra ; or, the Loyal League. 
 
 you die. Look here," drawing a paper from his bosom and spreading 
 it open before the dying youth ; " at the foot of this is a list of the 
 samurahi who have sworn to take the life of our enemy Moronaho." 
 
 Goyemon began to read the paper, but Kampei, who felt his agony 
 coming on, broke in, saying : 
 
 " Tell me the names of the conspirators." 
 
 " We are forty-five in all," replied Goyemon ; " but now that I 
 have come to know how truly loyal and devoted a retainer you have 
 been, I shall add your name to the list, and I give you this paper 
 that you may take it with you on the dark path, and reverently 
 offer it to our lord Yenya." 
 
 He then took an ink-horn from his bosom, and after writing down 
 Kampei's name, handed the paper to him, exclaiming : 
 
 " Seal it Kampei, seal it with your blood." 
 
 Kampei obeyed, pressing his bloody hands upon the paper. 
 
 " I have sealed," he exclaimed. " Comrades, I cannot thank 
 you enough ; you have enabled me to obtain what I most wished 
 for in the world. Mother, do not grieve, my father's death and 
 my wife's service will not now be of no avail. The money will be 
 used by these gentlemen who have sworn the death of the enemy 
 of our house." 
 
 The mother of Karu, her eyes filled with tears, placed the packet 
 with the purse and the money which Ichimonjiya had brought, before 
 the two samurahi. 
 
 " Pray accept this purse as a token of my son-in-law's share 
 in your enterprise : and consider that his spirit is with you in your 
 plot against your enemy." 
 
 " We will ; we will," replied Goyemon, taking up the purse. 
 " We will prize this purse of striped cloth as if it were full of barred 
 Ogon.* Sir," turning to Kampei, "may the perfection of Buddha 
 be yours." 
 
 " Alas ! " said Kampei, " the perfection of Buddha is not to be 
 
 Vide Appendix. /STfl" 
 
The Heroism of Kampei. 
 
 69 
 
 dreamt of by such a wretch as myself. The hand of death is upon 
 me, but my soul will remain on earth that it may be with you 
 when you strike our enemy." 
 
 His voice was rapidly failing, and the mother of Karu, seeing 
 the end was near, burst into loud lamentations. 
 
 " O ! Kampei, Kampei ! my daughter is away, and knows 
 nothing of all this misery. If only she were here to look upon 
 you once more ere you die ! " 
 
 " Nay, nay, mother ; let her know nothing of her fathers death, 
 nothing of my death. She has gone to service for the sake of our 
 lord Yenya ; and if she were told of all that has occurred, she might 
 neglect her duties, which would be like disloyalty to our dead chief. 
 Let things remain as they are. And now," he resumed, " my mind 
 is at ease;" and thrusting his sword into his throat, he fell back 
 and died. 
 
 " Son-in-law, son-in-law ! " exclaimed the mother of Karu ; " alas ! 
 alas ! he is dead ! Is there any one in the world so wretched as I ? My 
 husband murdered, my son-in-law, to whom I looked for support after 
 my man's death, a corpse before my eyes, my darling daughter 
 separated from me, none but myself, a poor old woman, left, — why 
 should I live all alone in the world ? what have I to hope for ? O, 
 Yoichibei, Yoichibei, would that I were with you ! " 
 
 Her sobs prevented further utterance for a time. At last, 
 mastering her emotion for a moment, she struggled to her feet. 
 
 " Son-in-law, son-in-law," she exclaimed, " take me with you;" and 
 falling upon his body, she embraced it convulsively, the tears raining 
 down from her eyes as she gazed now on the corpse of her daughter's 
 husband, now on that of Yoichibei, until at last, exhausted by grief and 
 despair, she sank on the ground, unable to utter a sound. 
 
 " Come, mistress ! " cried Goyemon, " do not grieve so much. I 
 know it is very hard to bear; but it may comfort you if I tell you 
 that I shall inform our chief Ohoboshi of the manner of Kampei's 
 death. You had better, keep this money, a hundred riyd in all. 
 'Twill buy a hundred masses — fifty for the repose of your husband's 
 
70 
 
 Chiiishingura ; or, the Loyal League. 
 
 soul, and fifty for that of your son-in-law's ; you will see that all the 
 funeral rites are decently conducted. And now." continued Goyemon, 
 " we must take our leave of you. Fare you well, mistress." 
 
 " Farewell ! " repeated Senzaki. 
 
 The two samurahi then took their departure, their eyes suffused as 
 they gave a farewell glance back, and the tears falling as they became 
 lost to view. 
 
 END OF THE SIXTH BOOK. 
 
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BOOK THE SEVENTH 
 
 THE DISCOMFITURE OF KUDAIU. 
 
 HE Gi-on Street in Kiyoto was crowded with 
 pretty girls, flitting hither and thither, a very 
 Paradise of Amida, beauty upon beauty 
 showing their dazzling charms, bewildering 
 and staggering the dullest and dreamiest of 
 the passers-by. 
 
 " Hallo, there ! " cried Kudaiu, making 
 his way through the throng, followed by Sagisaka 
 Bannai, to the entrance of Ichimonjiya, the tea- 
 house of Ichiriki ; " no host here ? host, host " 
 
 " Wait a moment, whoever you may be," cried a 
 voice from within. "Who are you?" the voice con- 
 tinued, after a pause, the speaker opening the gate 
 as he uttered the last words. " Ych t what, — Ono 
 Kudaiu, can it be your honour! with a gentleman 
 too ; pray enter, sirs, pray enter." 
 
 And the servant — for the speaker was none other — bowed respect- 
 fully as he spoke. 
 
 "fya/ n exclaimed Kudaiu; " this gentleman comes here with me 
 for the first time. You seem to be deuced busy just now, but I 
 suppose you can let us have a room where we can have a quiet drop 
 together." 
 
 "Plenty of rooms," replied the servant, "but a rich gentleman 
 

 ■mm ■mbBMJ 
 
 i»r 
 
 72 
 
 Chiushinguva ; or, the Loyal League. 
 
 named Yuranosuke has had a fancy to get together all the best known 
 women of the place, and occupies the whole of the ground floor ; 
 however, there is a small room at your service." 
 
 " Full of dirt and cobwebs, I dare say." 
 
 " Still as sharp-tongued as ever." 
 
 " Sharp-tongued ? no, but I am getting old, and must look out lest 
 I become entangled in women's webs." 
 
 " At least you are as pleasant a gentleman as ever. Well, I can 
 find you a good room upstairs. — Hallo, some of your there," continued 
 the servant, calling loudly for attendants ; " light a fire, bring sake cups 
 and tobacco, quick, pipes and bon...n...n...n ;" uttering the last word 
 in a loud ringing tone, that chimed in well with the ding of samisen and 
 drum that came from the apartments were Yuranosuke and his crew of 
 laughing girls were revelling. " What do you think of all this, Bannai?" 
 cried Kudaiu, turning to his companion. " You see how Yuranosuke 
 spends his time." 
 
 " Well, sir, the man must be crazy, I think. Your private letters 
 to my lord hinted at something strange about him, but my master had 
 no idea things had come to this pass. I was ordered to come here 
 and make inquiries, and if I saw anything suspicious I was to send 
 word at once ; but, faith, it is clear to me that I shall have my 
 trouble for my pains. His son, that lout Rikiya, by -the -bye, do 
 you know what he is about?" 
 
 "The lad seems to show himself here occasionally," replied Kudaiu; 
 " a couple of dissipated scoundrels they are, 'twill be strange if they 
 don't come to harm ! What I am here to-night for is to try and find 
 out if there is anything at the bottom of it all. Speak low, speak low, 
 and come upstairs with me." 
 
 " I follow your honour." 
 
 M Well, then, come." 
 
 ******* 
 
 " False, false your heart, I know it well, 
 You swear you love me, love me, while 
 Your lips a flattering tale do tell, 
 Your heart is ever full of guile." 
 
The Discomfiture of Kudaiu. 
 
 73 
 
 So sang a voice within, as Kudaiu and Bannai made their way to 
 an upper story. 
 
 Meanwhile Yazama, accompanied by several other clansmen of 
 Yenya, came up to the tea-house. 
 
 "Senzaki, Kitahachi, sirs," he cried, "this is the place where 
 Yuranosuke, our chief, passes his time ; it is called Ichirikiya. Ha ! 
 Heiyemon," addressing one of his companions, who seemed to be the 
 follower rather than the equal of the rest, "you can remain in the 
 servants' quarters ; at the proper time I will send for you." 
 
 " I am much obliged to your honour," said the latter, hurriedly ; " I 
 venture to ask your honour to do your best for me." 
 
 Heiyemon then withdrew. 
 
 Yazama, knocking at the side entrance, now asked for admission. 
 A girl's voice answered from within, exclaiming : " Ai, ai, there — who 
 are you, what is your name ? " 
 
 "Jya/" cried Yazama, as he entered with his comrades; "go 
 and tell Sir Yura that Yazama Jiutaro, Senzaki Yagoro, and Takemori 
 Kitahachi are here, and desire to speak with him. Tell him we have 
 sent messenger after messenger praying him to return, but without 
 success, and we have therefore come ourselves to see him and talk over 
 matters." 
 
 " I really am afraid, gentlemen, that you have taken all this trouble 
 for nothing," cried the girl ; " for the last three days his honour has 
 been feasting and drinking, and has got into such a muddled and 
 confused state that it will be some time before he is himself 
 again." 
 
 " Can this be true ? " cried Yazama : " however, never mind, give the 
 message all the same." 
 
 The girl, nodding assent, obeyed ; and Yazama, turning to one 
 of his companions, continued : " Did you hear what the girl said, 
 Senzaki ? " 
 
 " I did," replied the latter, " and she astonished me not a little. I 
 had heard something of our chief's dissipation, but thought it was 
 merely put on to lull our enemy into a false security. But this looks 
 

 74 
 
 Chiushingura ; or, the Loyal League. 
 
 like reality ; he seems to have given himself up entirely to pleasure. 
 I cannot make it out at all." 
 
 " You see it is just as I told you," broke in Kitahachi. " Yura's 
 disposition seems to have completely changed ; the best thing we can 
 do will be to rush in and slay him on the spot." 
 
 " No, no," cried Yazama, " let us have some talk with him first, and 
 then " 
 
 "That will be best," chimed in Senzaki, "and therefore we must 
 wait here a little until the girl returns." 
 
 Just then, Yuranosuke, with his eyes bandaged, appeared, 
 staggering towards where the three ronin were standing, and sur- 
 rounded by a number of girls, with whom he was enacting the part 
 of devil in a game of blind man's buff. " This way, devil, this way," 
 cried the girls, shouting with laughter as they frolicked about the 
 drunken fellow. " This way, where you hear our hands clapping." 
 
 " Caught, caught." 
 
 " Not yet, Yura, not just yet, devil." 
 
 " When I do get hold of one of you, I'll make her gulp down a 
 good draught of sate; she shall have a good pull, I promise you; ha ! 
 I've got some one," seizing Yazama as he spoke ; " bring the sake pot, 
 quick, quick." 
 
 " fya," cried Yazama, disengaging himself; "Yuranosuke, I am 
 Yazama Jiutaro, don't you know me ? what can all this buffoonery 
 mean? " 
 
 " Nardil sambo" muttered Yuranosuke ; " I have done, the game is 
 all up now." 
 
 " What kilhjoys those great hulking fellows are, Sakaye-san," said 
 one of the girls; "samura/n, I suppose, friends of our Yuranosuke !" 
 
 " I suppose they are," was the reply ; " a horrid-looking trio, 
 too." 
 
 " Pray excuse us, ladies," broke in Yazama, " we have some matters 
 to talk over with this gentleman, and we must ask you to be good 
 enough to leave him with us for a little time." 
 
 u Of course," cried a number of the girls together, " we knew you 
 
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 ivra 
 
 7 6 
 
 Chiushingura ; or, the Loyal League. 
 
 dispatch of our lord. Namu sambo! I turned my steps homeward 
 without a moment's delay, but the news reached me, while journeying 
 south, of the destruction of our lord's house, and of the dispersion of 
 the clan, and I was beside myself with grief and rage. Though a 
 common soldier merely, I could not forget that I owed everything to 
 our lord's favour, and a burning desire to revenge the destruction of 
 our house took possession of me. I went to Kamakura, and for three 
 months lived in the greatest wretchedness, dogging Moronaho's move- 
 ments continually, in the hope of finding some opportunity of striking 
 the fellow dead at a blow, but he took such care of himself that I could 
 never get at him. In despair I thought there was nothing left 
 but to commit self-dispatch, but then the recollection of my old 
 parents at home prevented me, and I went to see them. On the 
 road, I heard a rumour (perhaps it was dropped from the sun) that 
 a plot was being set afoot to revenge our lord's death, — your honour 
 can imagine how delighted I was at the news ; and, leaving everything 
 behind me, I sought out the route of you gentlemen," turning to 
 the three rdnin, "and followed you here, trusting that you would 
 have the infinite kindness to listen to my humble request, and in- 
 tercede for me with his honour for permission to add my name to 
 the list of conspirators." 
 
 " Ha ! " cried Yuranosuke, " you're quick of tongue, it seems, as 
 well as quick of foot — you ought to be clown to some strolling company. 
 As for me, my desire for vengeance is hardly strong enough to make 
 me smash a flea, if I had an axe ready in my hand, to satisfy it ; it 
 would be strange, then, if I should take the pains to get up a conspiracy 
 with forty or fifty comrades. Why, look you, if the plot failed, my 
 neck would pay the penalty ; if it succeeded, self-dispatch would in- 
 evitably follow ; death any way. Where would be the use of seeking 
 vengeance if I could not live to enjoy it ? — one does not swallow 
 jinscng medicine one moment to get strangled the next. Besides, 
 you were but a common soldier, getting your five riyd a year, and 
 three rations a day ; why should you trouble yourself about our 
 lord's misfortunes? Your pay was hardly more than a begging 
 
The Discomfiture of Kudaiu. 
 
 77 
 
 priest's dole of rice; for you to throw away your life in order to 
 revenge Yenya would be as absurd as if a man were to give a high 
 Kagura feast* in return for a morsel of laver. If you are bound to 
 take one head, I, with my appointments of 1500 kokus, ought to take 
 a bushel of heads at least. There need be no talk of seeking revenge, 
 do you understand, — better do as the rest of the world. Come, tsu-tsu- 
 ten, tsu-tsu-ten, don't you hear the joyous note of the samiscn ? away, 
 and make merry." 
 
 " Your honour cannot be in earnest," exclaimed Heiyemon. " My 
 wage, true, was small enough, and your honour held a high post, but 
 did we not both draw our livelihood from one and the same source ? 
 There is no question here of high or low. According to custom I know 
 well enough I have no right to ask that the form of a fellow like 
 me should be seen among you great gentlemen, but, oh ! let your 
 honour, though our lord's representative, listen to my entreaty, and 
 pardon my blunt speech ! I am really nothing but an ape in the 
 likeness of a man, 'tis true, still I implore you let me follow you ; if 
 only to tie your sandals or carry your burdens, take me with you ; you 
 cannot refuse me this boon, you . . . — ha ! he has fallen asleep." 
 
 " Asleep, aye, so he is," cried Kitahachi, " miserable wretch. You 
 need waste no further words with him ; Yuranosuke may be looked 
 upon as a dead man. Yazama, Senzaki, sirs, you now see what this 
 brute's real disposition is ; shall we make an end of him, as was our 
 intention ? " 
 
 " Yes, yes," responded his companions, " his fate will serve as a 
 warning — upon him then." They again laid their hands on their 
 swords, but Heiyemon a second time interposed, and restrained them 
 from giving way to their anger. 
 
 " Sirs," exclaimed the foot-soldier, drawing near, " if you will care- 
 fully turn over the matter in your mind, you will see that Yuranosuke's 
 conduct may be explained. Ever since our lord was taken from us, His 
 Honour has been harassed by the thought of vengeance upon our 
 
 * Vide Appendix. 
 
■ #>#& ■ fm$$M 
 
 
 ■n 
 
 7 8 
 
 Chiushingura ; or, the Loyal League. 
 
 clan's enemy, and none can know what cares have been heaped upon 
 him, or what anxieties he has had to pass through, in the exact per- 
 formance of the duties* devolving upon him. Look, too, how he has 
 been compelled to bear in silence the contumely of men, and restrain 
 his just indignation. If he did not. now and then, force himself to 
 drink a bottle of sake, he would die, worn out with trouble and vexa- 
 tion. Wait till he wakes up, and you will see him again in his right 
 mind." 
 
 Yielding to the justice of Heiyemon's address, the three rdnin, 
 attended by the foot-soldier, withdrew, and the good and evil of 
 
 Yuranosuke's conduct remained to be cleared up. 
 
 ***** 
 
 Now the waning moonlight began to merge in the breaking dawn, 
 and Rikiya, breathless with the haste with which he had made his way 
 from Yamashima, peeped through the paper screen, within which Yura 
 was lying in a heavy sleep, and, fearful of rousing some of the other 
 inmates of the house, gently approached his father's slumbering form, 
 and clashed his sword slightly. The Kara instantly rose to his feet, as 
 if awakened by the clang of bridle-ring.t 
 
 " Yah, Rikiya," he exclaimed, " the noise of your sword has awakened 
 me; what need presses now? Softly, softly." 
 
 " Here is a letter from the Lady Kawoyo, which I was ordered to 
 bring to you without a moment's delay." 
 
 " Have you any verbal message to give as well ? " 
 
 " Our clan's enemy, Moronaho, has obtained permission to return 
 to his lands, and in a few days will be ready to start. Details will be 
 found in the letter." 
 
 " Good. You can return home now, and at nightfall send me a 
 kago ; away with you." 
 
 Rikiya bowed assent, and at once left the apartment. 
 
 * Lit., " Scrutiny of each tree and bush " (to see if an enemy were lurking 
 there). 
 
 t Alluding to the saying, " Yushi wa kutsuwa no oto de ne wo sam asu," 
 i.e., " at clang of bridle-ring the sleeping hero wakes." 
 

' 
 
 
 I 
 
 • 
 
 
 
 
 
 -HB*-. 
 
 
 Mi 
 
 V 
 
The Discomfiture of Kudaiu. 
 
 79 
 
 Yuranosuke, eager to learn the contents of the letter, was in the act 
 of opening it when Kudaiu appeared. 
 
 "Ha, Sir Yura," cried the new-comer; "I am Kudaiu; I hope I do 
 not intrude upon you." 
 
 " Far from it," replied Yuranosuke, concealing his vexation ; " it 
 is quite an age since we met ; a good year at least, and we are older 
 than we were, older than we were. But you are here to rub out the 
 wrinkles in your forehead, no doubt? a sad dog, I fear." 
 
 " Iya ! Sir Yura," replied Kudaiu ; " one must not pick holes in 
 heroes' coats, they say, but to begin your enterprise by idling in a tea- 
 house, careless of men's blame — faith, it looks promising." 
 
 " Ho," exclaimed the Kara, "you are hard upon me, hurling words 
 at me like stones from a catapult." 
 
 " Now be frank with me," broke in Kudaiu, " this dissipation of 
 yours, you know, is a mere blind to cover your revengeful designs 
 against Moronaho " 
 
 " Not a| bit of it," cried Yura, " obliged as I am to you for the idea. 
 Here am I, over forty years old, and do you think I should run the risk 
 of being twitted with hankering after girls, called an old fool, and 
 laughed at as crazy, to cloak any such designs as you hint at? a 
 pleasant notion to be sure ! " 
 
 "Then you have really no intention of revenging the death of Yenya?" 
 
 " Not I ; not a whit of it. When our lord's castle and lands were 
 confiscated, I spoke of dying upon our own ground, but this was merely 
 to flatter the dowager. You remember you said that to fight with the 
 government was the same as declaring oneself a public enemy, and 
 so all at once left us to ourselves. Afterwards we talked a good 
 deal of nonsense, but nothing came of it at all. Then something 
 was said of committing self-dispatch at the tomb, but .... 
 we made our way out by the Rear Gate, and now, as you see, are 
 anything but wretched, thanks to your example. Old friends must 
 not forget each other, and so — take my advice — shiver the past, let it 
 care for itself." 
 
 " Ah ! " said Kudaiu, " as I think of old days, I feel as wild as if I 
 
SS • - ISS ^f #S HI 
 
 
 fti**i- 
 
 80 
 
 Chinshingura ; or, the Loyal League. 
 
 were changed into the fox Shinoda.* So let us have a draught, Yura; 
 come, it 's long since we had one together ; let me offer you a cup." 
 
 " Willingly. Now for a bout." 
 
 " Give me the cup ; let me have a drain." 
 
 " Here it is ; drink." 
 
 " Won't you have a bit of fish with your sake? 1 ' 
 
 Kudaiu, taking a piece of cuttle-fish with his chopsticks from a dish 
 beside him, offered it to Yuranosuke, who accepted the morsel, 
 exclaiming: 
 
 " Ah, a bit of the creature who salutes by throwing out his hands 
 and carrying his feet to his head.f Thanks, thanks." 
 
 Yuranosuke had lifted the morsel politely to his head, preparatory 
 to swallowing it, when Kudaiu seized his arm, saying : 
 
 " How ! Yuranosuke, on the eve of the anniversary of our lord's 
 death, have you the heart to swallow that piece of cuttle-fish?" 
 
 "Why shouldn't I, why shouldn't I? Have you heard that our 
 master, Yenya, has been changed into a cuttle-fish ? Yeh ! what non- 
 sense has got into your head. It was his stupidity that has made you 
 and me renin. We have all of us good reason to detest his memory ; 
 and as to fasting, I cannot see that we are in the least bound so to 
 mortify ourselves for his sake. What a delicious morsel this is you 
 have handed me ! " concluded Yuranosuke, swallowing it at one gulp 
 without changing a feature, and causing such astonishment to his 
 cunning interlocutor that the latter could not utter a word. 
 
 " Ah ! " resumed Yuranosuke, " it is but ill eating,! after all. I will 
 order a fowl to be stewed; come, meanwhile, with me. Here, you 
 women there," he added ; " sing, sing ; " and beating time gaily with 
 his feet, he continued, "tereisuku teretsuku, tsutsuten tsutsuten, keep up 
 
 * One of seven celebrated fox-goblins. The other six were named Kurosuke, 
 Reita, Sansuke, Osuke, Yatsuyama, and Kudsunoha. 
 
 t Alluding to the Japanese custom, which is just the reverse, of acknow- 
 ledging a gift by lifting it to the forehead. 
 
 I Lit., " does not tempt one to eat." Sakana, the common term for fish 
 when used as food, originally meant anything eaten with sake, perhaps even simple 
 vegetables (no). 
 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
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The Discomfiture of Kudaiu. 
 
 the merriment there," while he led the way, affecting a drunken gait, 
 towards the inner apartment. 
 
 Bannai, coming down from the room where Kudaiu had left him, 
 now made his appearance. 
 
 11 It is clear enough, Sir Kudaiu," he said, " that the man has no 
 thought of vengeance in his mind, or he would have been careful not 
 to eat flesh on the anniversary of our lord's death. I shall inform 
 Moronaho of this, and end his anxiety." 
 
 " In truth," replied Kudaiu, " it does not look as if anything was to 
 be dreaded from such a fellow — and see ! " he continued, pointing to a 
 corner of the room, " he has left his sword there, plain proof that he is 
 nothing but a spiritless brute ; the blade is all red with rust as a rotten 
 herring. We know the true character of the man at last, and need 
 trouble ourselves about him no further. Ho, there ! bearers, my kago 
 here ; quick, get in, Bannai." 
 
 " Nay," said the latter, " you are an old man ; pray take it." 
 
 " You will permit me, then," replied Kudaiu, making as if to enter 
 the kago, but deftly concealing himself under the raised floor. 
 
 " By-the-bye," continued Bannai, " I have heard that Kampei's 
 wife, O Karu, is in the house; you remember her, Kudaiu, do you 
 not ? " 
 
 Surprised at receiving no answer, Bannai drew aside the blinds of 
 the kago, and, looking in, was astonished to see nothing but a huge 
 stepping-stone,* out of the court-yard. 
 
 "Kowa/" he exclaimed, "this is strange. Has Kudaiu met with 
 the fate of the Princess Sayo of Matsura?"f 
 
 As he looked round with a perplexed air, he suddenly heard 
 himself addressed by Kudaiu from beneath the flooring. 
 
 " Bannai, Bannai, this is but a device of mine. Just now, Rikiya 
 brought his father a letter which has caused me some anxiety. I want 
 
 * Such as are generally found in courtyards of Japanese houses, for use 
 in wet weather. 
 
 t Said to have drowned herself from disappointed love ; and to have been 
 turned into a stone. 
 

 ■HH 
 
 82 
 
 Chiushingura ; or, the Loyal League. 
 
 to find out what its contents are, and as soon as I do, I shall let you 
 know. Meanwhile, accompany the kago as if I were in it." 
 
 "I understand, I understand," answered Bannai, nodding his 
 head, as he obeyed his companion's directions. 
 
 Meanwhile Karu was inhaling the fresh air from an upper 
 verandah close by, trying to dispel the fumes of the sake she had 
 been drinking, and chase away the gloom that settled upon her, 
 as she compared the simple life of her village home with that she 
 was now forced to lead. 
 
 Presently Yuranosuke appeared and said to her : " I must leave you 
 for an instant. I have forgotten, samuraki though I be, a valuable 
 sword, and must away at once to letch it. You can arrange the hanging 
 pictures on the wall and put fresh charcoal on the hearth by the time I 
 return.'' 
 
 Re-entering the room wheie he had had his conversation with 
 Kudaiu, he was surprised to find the latter had gone. 
 
 " Hearken how the childish voices, 
 Father, mother dear, repeat : 
 Now the wayworn spouse rejoices, 
 Wife and little ones to meet."* 
 
 " Yah ! what is that? " cried Yura, as the words fell upon his ear; 
 " cease, cease." 
 
 Then looking around for a light by which to read the letter 
 Rikiya had brought him, he caught sight of a lantern hanging by a 
 small doorway in a corner of the court, and went up to it. The 
 dowager's letter, which was about Moronaho, was a pretty long one, 
 and it took the Kara some time to wade through it, crammed as it was, 
 like all women's epistles, with " and so-you-know"s "f and sentences 
 
 * Lit., " As one hears in childish tones, Father, Mother, the words tell of the 
 return home of husband or wife." 
 
 t Lit., with " mairasespro's." In Japanese correspondence the word " goza- 
 soro," a polite epistolary form of the copula or substantive verb, is constantly 
 occurring. For "^ozasoro," the expression " marasesoro " (lit., to cause to come 
 or go is commonly used by women and others not well versed in the complicated 
 mysteries of Japanese letter-writing. 
 
 WLM 
 
The Discomfiture of Kudaiu. 
 
 83 
 
 turned upside down. Karu, who was looking down from above, thinking 
 the letter might be from some rival, leant over the balustrade, straining 
 her eyes in the vain attempt to make out what it was about. A way of 
 satisfying her curiosity, however, suddenly suggested itself. She 
 disappeared for a moment, quickly returning with a bright metal mirror 
 in her hand, by the aid of which she managed to read the letter from 
 beginning to end. 
 
 Meanwhile Kudaiu, who had all this time lain concealed under the 
 flooring of the adjoining room,* by furtive glances at the long slip of 
 paper f which Yuranosuke, not being a god, could not suppose was 
 within the ken of other eyes than his own, and had allowed to fall upon 
 the ground as he unrolled it, contrived, by the help of the moonlight, to 
 make himself master of the contents of the missive, and further managed 
 to tear off a portion, which he intended to keep as a proof. Just then a 
 metal ornament fell from Karu's hair upon the stones below, and 
 Yuranosuke, startled by the noise, looked suddenly up, instinctively 
 hiding the letter behind his back. A cunning smile crossed Kudaius 
 face, while Karu, confused at being detected, hastily shut up the mirror, 
 exclaiming, " Is that Yura ? " 
 
 " What ! O Karu, what are you about up there ? " 
 
 " Why, the sake you made me drink has overcome me, so I came 
 out to see if the cool air would revive me a little." 
 
 " Oh, you came out to see if the cool air would revive you, did you? 
 Iya / O Karu,i I have something to say to you. I cannot say it to you 
 up there, I might as well be talking to you on the bridge of Heaven ;§ 
 come down to me, and you shall hear it." 
 
 " You have something to say to me ? Why, what can you want 
 with me?" 
 
 "Come down, and I will tell you." 
 
 * The flooring of a Japanese house is always raised above the ground, and 
 is open, more or less, all round. 
 
 f A letter, if of any length, is always written upon a long, narrow slip of 
 paper, which is afterwards rolled up and fastened in various ways. 
 
 X See Appendix. Names of women. 
 
 § See Appendix. 
 
 S 2 
 
^^H ^1 ■ ■ ■ ■ 
 
 ■ 
 
 8 4 
 
 Chiiishinguva ; or, the Loyal League. 
 
 " Well, I will go round by the stairs and come to you." 
 
 " No, no ; if you go round, some of the servants will get hold of you 
 and make you drink more sake. Is there no other way ?— ha ! here 
 is the very thing ; see, you can come down this ladder." 
 
 And seizing a small ladder that stood close by, Yuranosuke placed 
 it against the eaves of the verandah. 
 
 ''I cannot come down that way," cried the girl; "I should be 
 frightened, I know ; I should be sure to fall." 
 
 "There is no danger," exclaimed Yuranosuke, "none whatever; 
 you need not fear, a strapping girl like you."' 
 
 " Don't be so silly ; it is like being in a boat, I know I shall 
 tumble." 
 
 The girl, however, got upon the ladder, and began to descend, but 
 very reluctantly. '• Quick, quick," cried Yuranosuke, " or I will pull you 
 down." 
 
 Frightened at his tone, she descended a few steps and then again 
 hesitated. Irritated at her slowness, Yuranosuke sprang upon the 
 ladder, and, seizing the girl, lifted her to the ground. 
 
 " What did you see from up there ? tell me," he added. 
 
 " See ? Oh, I did not see anything." 
 
 "You did, you did; tell me." 
 
 " Why, what should I see ? — the letter seemed to please you." 
 
 " You read the whole of it from up there." 
 
 " I have told you I saw nothing — you are troublesome." 
 
 Yuranosuke, persuaded that she had read the whole, couid not 
 conceal his vexation. Karu, coming softly up to him, exclaimed : 
 " What is it, Yuranosuke ; what is annoying you ? " 
 
 " O Karu, you know 1 have long loved you ; I want you to be my 
 wife." 
 
 " Don't say that ; you know you are not speaking the truth." 
 
 " Truth has come out of falsehood. I am now in earnest. Say 
 yes, say yes." 
 
 " No, I will not." 
 
 " Why?" 
 
 . ■ ,.,.. 
 
The Discomfiture of Kudaiu. 
 
 85 
 
 " You are not in earnest; your 'truth has come out of falsehood' 
 should be reversed. You have never wanted me, and now you only 
 pretend to." 
 
 " What if I purchase you ? " 
 
 " Eh ! " 
 
 " To show that I am in earnest, I will see the proprietor of the 
 house at once." 
 
 " I hardly know. I " 
 
 " If you have a lover, I will assist you both afterwards." 
 
 " If I could be sure of that — but are you speaking truly ? " 
 
 " I am, on my honour as a Samurahi. Remain with me but three 
 days, and then you shall be quite free." 
 
 " I should like that immensely, but you are only joking with me." 
 
 " Far from it ; I will see the proprietor of the house, and make 
 arrangements at once. Do not trouble yourself about the matter, but 
 stay here quietly for a little time, until I return." 
 
 " Well, then, I will do so ; you may trust me." 
 
 " Above all, do not stir from the place until I come back ; you are 
 mine now, you know." 
 
 " But for three days only." 
 
 " Of course, of course." 
 
 The girl was overjoyed at the prospect held out to her, and loaded 
 Yuranosuke with thanks, as he hastened away to fulfil his promise. As 
 she stood there, full of glad thoughts, she heard some one singing 
 
 " All the wide world cannot show 
 Grief the like of mine ; 
 Endless is the weary woe, 
 As for him I pine." 
 
 " Yah ! what is that ? cease ! " 
 
 " List'ning thro' the lengthen'd night, , 
 To the shore-bird's* shriek; 
 Sad I mourn my lonely plight, 
 Sleep in vain I seek." 
 
 * Chidori, a small bird found in flights on sandy shores. 
 
- s8l§- &fe 
 
 IH^H 
 
 mm 
 
 86 
 
 ChiushingUra ; or, the Loyal League. 
 
 And depressed by the words, she fell into a melancholy mood, in 
 the midst of which she was surprised by the unlooked-for appearance of 
 her brother Heiyemon. 
 
 "'■ How ! sister, is that you ?'" said the new-comer. 
 
 '• My brother ! " exclaimed the girl, in confusion, covering her face 
 with her hands. " O, what a shameful thing, to be seen by you in this 
 place ! " 
 
 " Nay, sister, not so," answered her brother, gently. " On 
 my return from the Kuwanto,* I heard the whole story from our 
 mother ; 'tis for your husband's sake, for our lord's service, that 
 you have been sold ; do not be ashamed, sister, you have acted 
 nobly." 
 
 " O brother, your kindness has made me quite happy — but I have 
 got something to tell you, that will gladden you too. This very night, 
 a gentleman is to take charge of me from the proprietor ; the offer was 
 altogether a surprise to me." 
 
 " That is most fortunate ; who is he?" 
 
 " You know him very well ; it is Ohoboshi Yuranosuke." 
 
 " What ! Yuranosuke has promised to take charge of you : is he 
 really fond of you ? " 
 
 " No, I don't think he is; he has only treated me several times 
 during the last two or three days. He says, afterwards he will let me 
 join my affianced, and let me go to him if I like. I could not meet 
 with a better chance, could I ? " 
 
 " Does he know you are betrothed to Hayano Kampei ? " 
 
 " No, he does not. How could I tell him ? My being here might 
 seem a shame to my father and my husband.'' 
 
 " H'm ! he seems to have become really a dissipated fellow. It 
 looks very much as if he had given up all thoughts of revenging our 
 lord's death." 
 
 " Nay, you are wrong there, quite wrong, I can assure you, brother ; 
 
 * The eight eastern provinces, of which Kamakura at first and afterwards 
 Yedo were the capitals. 
 
 ■ J 
 
The Discomfiture of Kudaiu. 
 
 S7 
 
 but — don't speak so loud — listen." And the girl whispered to him the 
 contents of the letter. 
 
 " Are you sure that you read the letter correctly ? " 
 
 " Yes, the whole of it. Afterwards, he came close up to me and 
 began to joke with me, and at last asked me to let him take charge of 
 me." 
 
 " All this took place, then, after you had read the letter? " 
 
 " Yes; but why are you so solemn ?"' 
 
 " Ah ! I understand it now. Sister, your days are numbered ; you 
 cannot escape. You must let me decide your fate." 
 
 As the youth spoke, he suddenly drew his sword and aimed a stroke 
 at his sister, who escaped it by a quick movement. 
 
 " Brother, brother," she cried, " what have I done wrong ? Both 
 my betrothed and my parents are alive ; they should punish me if I 
 have done wrong, not you. But if Yuranosuke takes charge of me 
 I shall soon see both Kampei and my father and mother again. It was 
 the thought of that made me so glad, — brother, do not be angry with 
 me, even if I have done wrong." 
 
 And she clasped her hands in entreaty as she spoke. Pier brother, 
 flinging the naked blade away, threw himself upon the ground in an 
 agony of grief, bending his head down to hide his tears. 
 
 " Poor sister ! " he cried, " you do not know, you do not know — our 
 father is no more. He was cut down and murdered, on the twenty- 
 ninth of the sixth month." 
 
 " Murdered ! my father ! " 
 
 " Aye, murdered. But that is not all. Oh, sister, try to bear the 
 ill news ; your betrothed, Kampei, whom you hope soon to rejoin, he 
 too is gone ; he has committed self-dispatch." 
 
 " O, brother, it cannot be true ! O me ! me ! my betrothed Kampei, 
 he too dead ! — tell me, brother, it is not true," she cried, clinging to the 
 youth's arm as she spoke, and bursting into tears. 
 
 " Too true, sister, alas ! But it would be out of place to tell you 
 the sad story just now. Our poor mother was beside herself with grief, 
 
' i&fi8 life 
 
 ■■■ 
 
 88 
 
 Chiushingura ; or, the Loyal League. 
 
 and her tears flowed constantly as she spoke to me of our loss. She 
 begged me not to say anything about it to you, lest you should weep 
 yourself to death at the terrible news. And I should have still kept 
 silence did I not know that you cannot now escape your fate. Yurano- 
 suke is immovable where his duty as a loyal retainer is concerned. 
 Knowing nothing of your relation to Kampei, he never had any 
 intention of taking charge of you ; still less did any thought of love 
 for you cross his mind. The letter you read contained matter of great 
 importance, and it is quite clear that he only wanted to get hold of you 
 to put you to death, and so keep his secret. You know the proverb, 
 ' walls have ears.' * If the contents were to get abroad, even if not 
 through you, your fault would still be as great. You were wrong to 
 read a secret letter, and cannot escape your fate. Better to die by my 
 hand than by that of some other man ; and if I slay you, and tell our 
 chief that, though you were my sister, I could not pardon you, as 
 knowing what ought not to be entrusted to a woman, he will let me add 
 my name to the list of conspirators, and I shall share with him the 
 glory of the enterprise."! 
 
 " What makes the meanness of my condition so intolerable is, that 
 unless I show the world that there is in me what makes me superior to 
 the mass of men, I cannot hope to be allowed to take part in our 
 chief's undertaking. You understand me, sister; give me your life, 
 let yourself die at my hands." 
 
 The unfortunate girl, sobbing, sobbing all the time, could not at 
 first make any reply ; mastering her emotion, however, by a strong 
 effort, she at last exclaimed : 
 
 " Hearing nothing from Kampei, I thought he had used the money 
 
 * " Kabe ni mimi, tokkuri ni kuchi," walls have ears and bottles have mouths. 
 
 t It is hardly necessary to comment upon the cold-blooded and selfish 
 ferocity here exhibited. But " Chiushin " was the supreme virtue of the 
 samurahi of old Japan, and to it, just as to the nobler sentiment of patriotism 
 among the ancient Greeks and Romans, all the tender feelings were required to 
 be sacrificed. 
 
 
The Discomfiture of Kudaiu. 
 
 8 9 
 
 paid for me, and had set out to join Yura, and I was angry with him 
 for not coming to say good bye to me first. Oh me ! what a miserable 
 fate is mine ! Though 'tis wrong to say it, my father was old when he 
 was murdered, while my husband was not thirty — that makes it so 
 pitiable, so pitiable ! Oh that I might have seen him once ere he 
 died ! Why were we not brought together ? I knew nothing of their 
 sad fate, and have never mourned for them, for my father and my 
 husband, both now no more. O, what have I to live for ! But I must 
 not die by your hand, brother, or our mother will be angry with you. 
 Let me end my life myself. You can still take my head, or my whole 
 body if you like, and show one or the other in proof of your devoted 
 loyalty." 
 
 " Farewell, brother, farewell," she concluded, after a pause, taking 
 up the sword he had thrown away, and placing the point against her 
 throat. At this crisis Yuranosuke suddenly came upon the scene. 
 Perceiving how matters were, he hastily caught Karu's arm, exclaiming : 
 
 " Patience, patience ; this must not be." 
 
 " Let go, let go," cried the girl excitedly, while her brother stood by 
 transfixed with astonishment at the unlooked-for appearance of his 
 chief — " I will, I must die." 
 
 " Ho, there," replied Yuranosuke, forcing the sword out of the girl's 
 hand. " Brother and sister, listen to me. You have cleared away all 
 doubt from my mind ; you, sir," turning to the brother, " shall accom- 
 pany me to the Kuwanto, while your sister shall not die, but live, and 
 duly mourn the dead." 
 
 " Mourn them," said the girl, " I will join them on the dark path," 
 trying to seize the sword as she spoke. 
 
 '•' Your affianced, Kampei," exclaimed Yuranosuke, keeping a firm 
 hold on the sword, "is one of us, but has not yet had the luck to 
 slay a single one of our enemies ; and now that he is among those 
 who no more are, he will be at a loss what to say to our lord ; but 
 he shall be at a loss no longer. Look here." 
 
 And jumping on the floor of the adjoining room, he thrust the 
 
^m H HH ffe^fe ■■■■■■■ 4 
 
 go 
 
 Ckiushingura ; or, the Loyal League. 
 
 sword between a division of the matting and through the planking 
 beneath, piercing the writhing rascal Kudaiu, who lay hidden there, 
 through the back. 
 
 " Drag the fellow out," cried Yuranosuke, at last.* 
 
 Heiyemon flew to obey his chief, and, seizing Kudaiu's blood' 
 stained form, pulled the wretch roughly out. 
 
 " Ya/i/" cried the soldier, "that rascal Kudaiu? This is a piece of 
 good luck, indeed - ' — flinging the miserable man down at his chief's 
 feet as he spoke. 
 
 Yuranosuke, to prevent his prostrate victim from rising, caught 
 hold of his side-hair, and forced his head roughly back, exclaiming : 
 
 " Villain ! Thou hast played the part of the vermin in the lion's 
 belly, who seek to destroy what gives them food and shelter. Well 
 rewarded by our lord, and honoured by his especial favour, thou hast 
 become a dog of a follower of his murderer, Moronaho; secretly 
 informing the enemy of our clan of everything, true or not true, that 
 thou couldest get wind of! Listen. Forty and more of us have le't 
 our parents, abandoned our families, and given our wives, with whom 
 we thought to pass our lives, to be harlots, that we might take 
 vengeance upon our dead lord's enemy. Waking or dreaming, the 
 scene of our lord's death was ever present to us, our bowels were 
 twisted with grief, and our eyes ever wet with tears. This very night, 
 the very eve of our lord's death-day — ah, what evil things I have been 
 forced to say about him with my lips ; but at least in my heart I 
 heaped reverence upon reverence for his memory, — this very night was 
 
 * Yuranosuke, it is said, on rolling up Kawoyo's letter, after Karu had been 
 detected in reading it, found that a portion had been torn off, and, always mis- 
 trustful of Kudaiu, was led by this discovery to guess at the latter's place of 
 concealment. According to others, the Kara saw his former subordinate's face 
 reflected in the mirror, by the aid of which Karu contrived to make herself 
 mistress of the contents of the dowager's missive, at the moment when, startled 
 by the fall of one of the girl's hair ornaments, he looked up and caught her in 
 the act of reading the letter. 
 
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 JL 
 
 
 
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 V *JT 
 
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 m 
 
 
 A I 
 
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 4E 
 
 
 IS 
 
 
' $0& &5§£l «S^- fe^^ &&& 
 
 I 
 
 \ 
 
 $ 
 
The Discomfiture of Kudaiu, 
 
 91 
 
 it thou chosest to offer me flesh. I said nor yea nor nay as I took it, 
 but ! with what shame, with what anguish did I, whose family for 
 three generations have served the house of Hanguwan, find myself 
 forced to let food pass my lips on the eve of my lord's death-day ! 
 I was beside myself with rage and grief, every limb in my body 
 trembled, and all my bones * quaked as though they would shiver 
 
 in pieces. Villain that thou art, devil, hellmate " and twisting 
 
 his hand more firmly in the wretch's hair, the infuriated Kara dragged 
 his victim roughly along the ground, and flung him heavily on the 
 stones, exclaiming : 
 
 " Ho, there ! Heiyemon, I left a rusty sword in yonder room ; 
 away with this fellow, and hew him in pieces with it; make his death 
 a long and painful one."' 
 
 <: So will I, my lord," answered the soldier, readily; and fetching 
 the weapon, he rushed upon his prey, and hacked at him until he 
 was covered with wounds. 
 
 •'Sir soldier," cried the miserable wretch, endeavouring to creep 
 towards his assailant, and clasping his hands pitifully. " Intercede 
 for me, lady," turning towards Kara. " I entreat you, ask his lordship 
 to have mercy upon me." Thus was the haughty Kudaiu reduced 
 to seek the aid of a common soldier, to implore the assistance of 
 one who in former days he would scarcely have deigned to see, 
 bowing his head repeatedly in the extremity of his shameful 
 agony. 
 
 "Stop, HeJyemon,' - cried Yuranosuke, suddenly bethinking himself; 
 '•it might be awkward if we killed the fellow here; take him away 
 with you, as if he were simply dead-drunk." 
 
 Ke threw off his mantle as he spoke, and cast it on his half-dead 
 victim, so as to cover up his wounds. 
 
 At this juncture, the partition was suddenly pushed back, and 
 Vazama, Senzaki, and Takemori entered from the adjoining apart- 
 
 * Lit., " my forty-four bones." 
 
f^fe? ' ' $M& '&ti$Mim hf&rj> ^^H 
 
 92 
 
 Chiushingura ; or, the Loyal League. 
 
 ment. "Sir Yura," they cried, "we humbly crave your pardon for 
 our error." 
 
 Yuranosuke, paying no heed to them, continued : " Heiyemon, this 
 fellow is dead-drunk, take him to the Kamo stream yonder, and 
 give him a bellyful of water-gruel ; away with you." 
 
 END OF THE SEVENTH BOOK. 
 
BOOK THE EIGHTH. 
 
 THE BRIDAL JOURNEY. 
 
 TRANSLATOR'S NOTE. 
 
 This is simply a description in verse of the journey of the wife and 
 daughter of Kakogawa Honzo from the eastern capital to Kiyoto, 
 the object of which is sufficiently indicated in the succeeding Book. 
 An attempt at a metrical rendering of this portion of the text will 
 be found in the Appendix, it being thought that an insertion of it 
 in this place would interfere with the action of the story. 
 
^H *&£* »■»■ 
 
 
BOOK THE NINTH. 
 
 THE REPENTANCE OF KAKOGAWA HONZO. 
 
 ;\" the morrow of the day when the events recorded 
 in the Seventh Book took place at the tea-house 
 in the Gi-on Street at Kiyoto, Yuranosuke, whom 
 a heavy fall of snow had detained through the 
 night, returned to the wretched dwelling in the 
 obscure village of Yamashina, where he had 
 found a retreat, attended by some servants of 
 the tea-house. 
 
 He seemed to be still under the influence of sakt, and 
 on entering the gate fell to heaping up the snow that 
 lay in the yard, in a helpless manner, as if he had lost 
 his wits. 
 
 " Ah, your honour," cried the servants, with a simul- 
 taneous note of admiration ; " how beautiful everything 
 this morning ! 
 
 1 See how yonder bamboos low 
 Bend beneath their load of snow.' 
 
 How apt the lines are ; 'tis quite a picture, a fair scene indeed ! " 
 
 "Ah! in truth," cried a woman-servant who had come out to 
 meet them ; " you need only see this place once never to wish to go 
 elsewhere, I am sure." 
 
fe* ■ ^1 - ®$ H^H ^HM 
 
 96 
 
 Chiushingura ; or, the Loyal League. 
 
 "Eh! what?" exclaimed Yuranosuke. 
 
 " ' From the shores of Sumiyoshi.' 
 
 You know the song, don't ye ? — 
 
 ' From the shores of Sumiyoshi, 
 Rising o'er the rippling sea, 
 High into the morning sky, 
 High into the evening sky, 
 Lo ! the hills of Awaji.' "* 
 
 " Let the wench boast of the place as she likes ; for my part, I 
 would rather empty a pot of sake in the Gi-on Street than finish a dozen 
 here. You're but a stupid lot, after all — into the house with ye, into 
 the house with ye ! Hallo ! wife," he continued, in a louder voice, 
 " where are you ? — here are some visitors." 
 
 Jerking the words out in a drunken fashion, the Kard staggered 
 towards the house, where he was greeted by his wife Ishi. " You are 
 back, husband," she cried, pouring out tea with a pleasant smile ; 
 " what a cold morning it is," she continued, showing no sign of 
 ill-temper or jealousy t as she handed her husband the fragrant 
 infusion, to which she had added a little salt to assist in clearing 
 away the fumes of the sake he had been drinking. 
 
 Yuranosuke, however, merely took a sip and then threw the rest 
 away, exclaiming: "Wife, wife, what stuff is this? do you think 
 this will refresh me after such capital liquor as I have been drinking 
 yonder ? Ah, ah ! how the snow has fallen, to be sure ! " 
 
 "Well, why stand there out in the cold?" cried Ishi; "see how 
 the snow drives in, like flakes of carded cotton." 
 
 " Ah, wife ! " exclaimed Yuranosuke, as they all entered, " you 
 women begin to lose your charms when the children come and 
 household cares press upon you. I am somewhat remiss in my 
 duty to you of late, I confess. O, what pretty girls there were 
 
 * A large island, some distance to the south of Sumiyoshi (a portion of 
 Ohozaka). 
 
 f The two vices most dreaded by Japanese husbands in their wives. 
 
 ■ ji^> 
 
The Repentance of Kakogawa Honzo. 
 
 97 
 
 yonder, with complexions pink as Ise prawns ! and what capital 
 sake, too ! True enough the proverb, ' love ^oes out with the red 
 petticoat' " * 
 
 " Wife, wife," he resumed, after a pause, throwing himself on the 
 ground with an expression of sudden pain, "quick, I have the cramp 
 
 in my foot, pray chafe it Ah ! it is better now ; 
 
 that will do, that will do'' — thrusting his wife, who was complying 
 with his request, rudely away, as he spoke. 
 
 '•Enough of this, husband," she cried; "have a care, have a 
 care; you are not yourself yet. — I fear,'' continued Ishi, addiessing 
 herself courteously to the attendants — " I fear he must have been a 
 great trouble to you." 
 
 Just then, Rikiya appeared, and enquired after his father. 
 
 " He seems asleep, mother ; had we not better put a pillow 
 under his head?" 
 
 Now, if we were to look a little below the surface, we should 
 find this conduct of the three all a mere pretence, cloaking the 
 reality like the varnish on the pillow concealing the common Kiri 
 wood it is made of. f They put the pillow, however, under the 
 Kard s head, who muttered a sleepy disapproval of the act. Ishi 
 then dismissed the attendants, who, after leaving their respectful duty 
 for the master of the house, and endeavouring, but in vain, by 
 expressive glances to induce Rikiya to return with them, reluctantly 
 withdrew. As soon as they were out of hearing Yuranosuke rose 
 to his feet. 
 
 " Rikiya, you see yonder mass of snow I have been pretending 
 to amuse myself by heaping up? There was a meaning in it — can 
 you guess what it is ? " 
 
 "I think I can, father. Snow is so light that the least breeze 
 blows it away in dust; yet when heaped up into a mass, as you 
 
 * A red petticoat was worn by unmarried girls only, 
 
 t For a description of the Japanese pillow, see Appendix. The Kiri tree is 
 the Paulowma Imperuilts. The wood is soft, light in texture and colour, and 
 peculiarly dry. 
 
S^£*$3 ■ I IS^#«^ 
 
 ^^^■i^H 
 
 9 8 
 
 Chiushingura ; or, the Loyal League. 
 
 have done there, it may roll down from some mountain-top and 
 crush even huge rocks, just as if it were a boulder. So our force 
 is in our united loyalty, in the weight of our affliction. But that 
 mass of snow will melt away in time under the sun's rays, and . . . . " 
 
 " Nay, not so," broke in the Kard ; " we forty-seven plotters, 
 myself, you, and the others, are all masterless men, in the sun of 
 no one's favour.*' In the shade, that mass of snow would take long 
 enough to melt. Let it be removed, by-the-by, into the inner court, 
 whce the sun's rays cannot beat upon it. As for us, we must 
 persevere and do the best we can, like the sage Sonko f of the old 
 story, who, being so poor that he could not buy oil for his lamp, 
 gathered fire-flies and studied by their light ; or that other philosopher 
 Riuto,+ whose poverty compelled him to be content to supply his 
 need with the dim light reflected from a heap of snow." 
 
 " Let yonder mass," he resumed, " be taken at once into the 
 small court at the back. I must away, and write to Sakai ; if any 
 messenger comes let me know." 
 
 "Your honour's orders shall be attended to," cried a woman- 
 servant who was standing by. 
 
 Yuranosuke, pushing back a partition, then withdrew. 
 
 Presently appeared the wife of Kakogawa Honzo, the Kard of 
 Momonoi Wakasanosuke, seeking out the retreat of the deep designing 
 councillor of Yenya. In her girdle she carried her husband's long and 
 short swords, and ordering the bearers to set down a norimono which 
 preceded her, she composedly demanded admission at the rdniiis 
 hermitage. A woman servant, letting down her long sleeves §— in 
 Yuranosukes better days it would have been a lackey — came 
 forward crying in a loud, vulgar voice : " Who is there ? '' 
 
 " I believe," said the visitor, " this is the dwelling of Yuranosuke 
 Sama ? If I am right, pray let him know that Tonase, the wife of 
 
 * " Hikagemono," lit., " person in shade," i.e., " under a cloud. 
 
 t A Chinese sage ; see Appendix. 
 
 J A Chinese sage ; see Appendix. 
 
 § That is a mere scullery wench, with her sleeves tucked up. 
 
The Repentance of Kakogawa Honzo. 
 
 99 
 
 Kakogawa Honzo, is here. It is long since I had the pleasure of 
 seeing your master, and I should be glad if you would tell him that 
 I have come a great distance in the hope of being allowed an 
 interview with him." 
 
 The wife of Honzo then turned to the bearers of the norimono, 
 and bade them bring their burden up to the gate. 
 
 " Come, daughter," she cried, as her order was obeyed, " you 
 can alight now." 
 
 Konami, for the occupant of the norimono was none other, 
 accordingly stepped forth, gladsome as the uguhu* at sight of the 
 wild plum's bloom in the valley-bottom. 
 
 " And is this then the home of Sir Rikiya ! " cried the girl, 
 whose face was concealed by the white head-dress of a bride. 
 " O, mother, how shall I meet him ! " The servant, meanwhile, 
 mending a little the disorder that was apparent about the mean 
 entrance, and affecting a soft manner, invited the new-ccmer to fcl'ow 
 her within. Tonase accordingly, dismissing the &2£0-bearers, passed 
 into the house, Konami clinging timidly to her mother's ar.n. 
 
 They had hardly seated themselves on the matting when Ishi 
 entered with a graceful step. 
 
 " Welcome, welcome, Tonase Sama," she exclaimed ; " and you 
 too, Konami; this visit is most kind on your part. I ought long 
 since to have presented myself to you, but you doubtless know our 
 situation ; really, your attention makes me feel quite ashamed of 
 myself." 
 
 " Pray, O Ishi Sama, do not make such strangers of us. True, 
 we meet each other to-day for the first time, but your son and my 
 daughter were betrothed long ago j we are both of us mothers-in-law, 
 and, I am sure, need stand upon no ceremony with each other." 
 
 " Your kind expressions fill me with confusion. How did you 
 manage to leave your husband, doubtless occupied as usual with 
 his lord's affairs, and journey, this cold weather, all the way to the 
 
 * The Japanese nightingale, Heybivox cantons. 
 
 K 2 
 
te'ivli» I « I •ti-.itf'.'JS^Ji."- H 
 
 ioo Chiushingura ; or, the Loyal League. 
 
 capital ? To you, madam, Kiyoto is probably familiar enough ; for 
 your daughter, however, it may have some novelty. She • must see 
 the famous Gi-on Street and the temple of Kiyomidsu, the great 
 Buddha at Nara, the Hall of Chion, and I can get you admittance 
 to the Temple of Kinkaku."* 
 
 The bride, overwhelmed with shyness, could only meet her hostess' 
 kind words with a faint " At, ai:' 
 
 But her mother composedly replied : 
 
 " No other than this is the reason of our visit. After the betrothal 
 ef our children, an unexpected turn took place in the fortunes f of your 
 lord Yenya-dono, and your son, together with his father, became without 
 a fixed home. Ah me ! such changes are too common in this world of 
 ours ; but my husband's purpose remained still unaltered, and we 
 sought after you everywhere for a long time, but without success. At 
 last we heard you were living here ; and as my daughter had arrived at 
 a marriageable age, we were desirous that she should come to you 
 without delay. I trust, therefore, you will not consider us as intruders. 
 My husband intended to have come in person, but could not ; and in 
 lieu thereof gave me his two swords, which, as you see, I carry in my 
 girdle, to represent him, so that at present I play the part of father as 
 well as that of mother. I should be glad to talk over the matter with 
 your husband, for I am very anxious the marriage should take place. 
 To-day is a lucky day, fortunately, and if you would kindly order the 
 necessary preparations to be made n 
 
 " What you say takes me quite by surprise," replied the wife of 
 Yura. "Unfortunately, my husband is away just now; if he were at 
 home, I am sure he would thank you most warmly for your kindness. 
 But, as you know, when the betrothal took place he was, by the favour 
 of our late lord, honoured with excellent appointments, and could well 
 aspire to the hand of your daughter for his son. Now everything is 
 
 * The "lions" of Kiyoto, of which a brief description will be found in the 
 Appendix. 
 
 f Politeness required the death of Yenya to be referred to in this indirect 
 manner. 
 
The Repentance of Kakogawa Honzo. 
 
 101 
 
 very different : he is but a ronin, without a single follower ; while your 
 husband is high in his lord's service — and though your daughter was 
 promised to our son, to ask for her now would be as out of place as if 
 one were to demand a temple-bell in exchange for a paper lantern. 
 Thus, then, we think the marriage ought not to be consummated. And, 
 as the betrothal has not been ratified by the customary exchange of 
 bridal presents, my husband says it will be no slight if your daughter 
 should find another bridegroom." 
 
 " Indeed, madam," exclaimed Tonase in a tone of surprise ; " I 
 hardly understand you; but, I can assure you, you are not just to 
 yourself. As to any difference in position between your husband and 
 mine, why, the disparity is all on our side. When your husband, as 
 councillor of one of the higher nobles, had appointments of 1500 koku,* 
 mine, whose lord was only a member of the lower nobility, was allotted 
 500 koku by the year, and no more — 1000 less than what your husband 
 received ; yet, did you refuse our alliance on that score ? Sir Yura, 
 compelled by misfortune to become a ronin, has nothing, — my husband 
 has — what ? only 500 koku more." 
 
 " Iya /" answered Ishi ; "you are in error. The difference of 500, 
 or even 1000, koku would not matter — if only your husband did not 
 differ so much from mine in disposition ; we should not refuse your 
 daughter because her father is high in his lord's service." 
 
 " What do you mean," replied the wife of Honzo, " by your talk 
 about your husband and mine differing in disposition ? — tell me, I am 
 all ears." 
 
 " Our lord's self dispatch," said Ishi, " was brought about by his high 
 spirit ; and it was his refusal to dishonour himself that resulted so 
 fatally for his house ; while Honzo, though of samurahi rank, stooped 
 to bribe Moronaho with money and gifts. Yura does not serve two 
 masters, and cannot receive your daughter as a bride for his son." 
 
 * A koku of rice (a little over five bushels) was worth about two thirds of a 
 sovereign. Hence, 1500 koku would be worth about £iooo. This estimate, 
 however, makes no allowance for the different purchasing values of money in 
 Japan, under the old regime, and Europe. 
 
■■■■I 
 
 102 Chiushingura ; or, the Loyal League. 
 
 Tonasd, starting angrily to her feet, interrupted the wife of the 
 Kard. 
 
 " Stooped to bribe ? — of whom talk you ? As matters are, I cannot 
 escape your insults ; for my daughter's sake I shall pass them over, for 
 the side of the wife must always give way to that of the husband. But 
 whether you allow the marriage to be consummated or not, my 
 daughter is your son's wife, before all the world." 
 
 "Pfuh!" answered Ishi, "all that is but fine talk; and, at all 
 events, if she is my son's wife, he can put her away at will ; and I, his 
 mother, acting for him, do accordingly put her away from this very 
 moment.'"* 
 
 As she ended, the wife of Yuranosuke suddenly pushed back a 
 partition and disappeared. 
 
 " 0, mother ! " 'cried Konami, bursting into tears, " I was full of 
 anxiety when I was betrothed, and you promised me that I should 
 be united to Rikiya, and— and so I am here with you ; never 
 imagining that my mother-in-law would drive me thus cruelly away, 
 Ah, mother, soothe her, and prevent my marriage from being broken 
 off." 
 
 And the poor girl clung to Tonase', who gazed upon her wistfully. 
 
 "Perhaps 'tis a parent's partiality,'' she said at last, "but you 
 always seemed to me to possess more elegancies than any ten girls 
 together ; and so I sought anxiously for a good husband for you, 
 and, thinking 1 had found one in Rikiya, I caused you to be betrothed 
 to him, and came to seek him here; it cannot be all for nothing. 
 I do not know what O Ishi means, but she cannot put you away 
 without his consent; no mother-in-law can do such a thing, the 
 
 * The husband could, and still can, divorce his wife at pleasure, the only 
 check on the practice being that imposed by public opinion. He must also, as a 
 rule, return any dowry he may have received. The wife can in no case avail 
 herself of a like privilege. In Japan, even at this day, the patr a potestas, in its 
 completest form, governs all social relations. An acqua ntance of the translator 
 got rid thus of three wives in less than three years ; but it is fair to add, his 
 conduct did not meet with the approval of his neighbours. 
 

 The Repentance of Kakogawa Honzo. 
 
 103 
 
 notion is preposterous. Perhaps it is that, rbnin as they are now, 
 they are at their wits' end to support themselves, and so have hit 
 upon marrying their son to some rich citizen's daughter, exchanging 
 their good blood for money, and shamelessly breaking their faith 
 with us. Daughter, when such people reject you, you can throw 
 the insult back in their faces. There are plenty of families who 
 will be glad enough to receive you as a bride — why should you not 
 marry elsewhere? Come, answer me, daughter, and with firmness." 
 
 The poor woman could hardly restrain herself from giving way 
 to her own grief, as she implored her daughter to master her distress. 
 "Mother, motler," cried the latter, after a pause, "you are 
 cruel to me. When we left home my father told me that I was most 
 fortunate in meeting with such a husband as Ohoboshi Rikiya, who, 
 though now a rdnin, was of excellent parts and elegant manners. 
 He said that no virtuous woman could love two husbands, and 
 enjoined me never to marry a second one if circumstances should 
 separate Rikiya and myself, for no married woman ought to think 
 of such a thing. Above all, sleeping or waking, I was not to 
 forget a tittle of my duty to my husband, and never to omit to 
 treat my parents-in-law with the utmost respect and tenderness. 
 ' Always cherish your husband most dearly,' he added, ' never show 
 a jealous disposition even by way of joke ; and if you should become 
 in a condition to make me anxious do not conceal it, but let me 
 know the moment you find that you are after the manner of 
 women.' I recollect my father's very words. If I am put away 
 I cannot help it, but I will not add grief upon grief to my father, 
 come what may, say what you will, mother, by becoming the wife 
 of any one but Rikiya." 
 
 As Konami concluded, her mother felt her heart swell, almost 
 to bursting, with affectionate sympathy, and, unable to restrain her 
 emotion, gave vent to it in a flood of tears, half unsheathing, in 
 her despair, the sword she carried in her girdle. 
 
 " Hold ! mother," cr'ed the girl, laying her hand on the weapon 
 and looking up in Tonase"s face ; " what would you do ? " 
 
104 
 
 Chiushingura ; or, the Loyal League. 
 
 "What would I do!" cried Tonase", "what am I to do? As you 
 said a little while since, your father is anxious that your marriage with 
 Rikiya should be concluded as soon as possible, desirous, as fathers 
 are, of looking upon the face of his first grandchild, and of seeing his 
 daughter happy, and now the marriage is become an impossibility; 
 you are rejected, and I shall have to take you back home, — how shall 
 I show my face to your father, and teli him you have been driven 
 away ! I do not know what to do, or where to turn for help. And the 
 truth is, you are not my own child, but your father's daughter by 
 a former wife, and as I have not brought about the marriage, I shall be 
 reproached as like all stepmothers and careless about your happiness. 
 What have I to live for ? let me die, let me die, and let your father 
 know afterwards why I sought death." 
 
 " No, no, mother," cried Konami, " 'tis not you, but I, who am 
 hated by my husband, who ought to die. Alive, I am but a trouble 
 both to my father and to you, and cause you nothing but grief, unfilial 
 wretch that I am ! Mother, take my life, I beseech you; I would fain 
 die here on the threshold of the house from which I am driven away,^- 
 quick, mother, do not delay ! " 
 
 "Well said, daughter!" exclaimed Tonase ; "you have a brave 
 heart, but you shall not die alone. We will together fate by the three 
 roads ; * your mother will do as you bid her, but will not be long after 
 you. Are you ready, daughter?"— restraining her tears with splendid 
 fortitude, and preparing to give the fatal stroke. 
 
 The shrill notes of a pipe arrested her hand. " Ha ! " she cried, 
 " did you hear that, daughter ? Tis some beggar, I suppose, and the 
 air is that of the ' Crane and her little ones.' f Though only a bird 
 she loves her young. What a terrible fate is mine —that I should have 
 to take the life of my innocent child ! " 
 
 Distracted with grief, Tonase - could with difficulty stand firm, while 
 with trembling hand she raised the blade aloft under which Konami, 
 kneeling on the ground, with a resolute expression, repeated, with 
 
 Vide Appendix, " Shide Hill. 
 
 t A popular song, so called. 
 


 The Repentance of Kakogawa Honzd, 105 
 
 clasped hands, " Nama-amida fiutsu" and calmly awaited the death- 
 stroke, Ere the blow descended, a voice called out loudly, " No more !" 
 
 Astonished at this unexpected interruption, Tonasd looked round 
 irresolutely. Her grasp on the fatal weapon relaxed, and the sound 
 of the pipe ceased, 
 
 " Ha ! the komusb is being sent away. Would that some help 
 came to us 3 but courage, daughter, we must not falter, if a thou- 
 sand voices cried ( No more ! ' or the whole world will laugh at us 
 as a pair of cowards," 
 
 <( Are you quite prepared?" she resumed, after a pause, raising 
 the weapon a second time. 
 
 She was on the point of delivering the blow, when the sound of the 
 pipe again made itself heard, and the voice repeated, " No more ! " 
 
 "What can this mean?" exclaimed Tonase', in perplexity. "Is 
 it only to send the komuso away with his dole, or is it to stay my 
 hand?" 
 
 "fya/" exclaimed another voice, from within, "it is to stay your 
 hand ; my son Rikiya shall marry your daughter." 
 
 " Yeh ! " cried Tonase, in a tone of astonishment. " Whose voice 
 
 is that? Can it be yours, O Ishi Sanaa? Oh, madam, are you in 
 
 earnest ? " 
 
 " O the pine trees twain ! 
 Like years, like love attain, 
 O joy no bounds restrain !" 
 
 sang Ishi, as she made her appearance, bearing a small white-wood 
 
 four-cornered stand upon her uplifted palm. 
 
 " I saw you were thoroughly in earnest, Tonase Sama," said the 
 
 wife of Yuranosuke, "in your purpose of taking the life of this young 
 
 lady, your only daughter — for such she is in effect, if not in blood — 
 
 whose modest behaviour has called forth my admiration as much as 
 
 her unfortunate position has excited my compassion. This marriage, 
 
 distasteful though it is to me, shall take place. In return, I must ask 
 
 for a bridal gift of a very different kind from what is commonly 
 
 bestowed on such an occasion as the present. And I have brought 
 
 this stand for you to place it on " — setting the stand down on the 
 
io6 
 
 Chiushingura ; or, the Loyal League. 
 
 matting before her guest, who, after some hesitation, returned her 
 sword to its scabbard with an expression of relief. 
 
 " Your wish shall be gratified, lady," replied Tonasd, after a slight 
 pause. " This pair of swords I carry in my girdle are heirlooms in my 
 husband's family. The long one is of the workmanship of the famous 
 swordsmith Masamune ; * the short one is of the handiwork of the 
 equally celebrated maker Yukiyasu ; f there is nothing, believe me, my 
 husband values more highly " 
 
 " You are laughing at us runin" broke in Ishi, "with your precious 
 swords. What help would they be to us in our need ? No, no, that 
 is not the bridal gift I want from you." 
 
 " Then, pray, lady, what is it that will satisfy you ? " 
 
 " The head of Kakogawa Honzo, placed upon this stand — that will 
 satisfy me," cried Ishi. 
 
 "The head of Honzo?" exclaimed Tonase, in astonishment. 
 
 " Yes," replied Ishi. " When our lord, the Baron Yenya, in 
 his high-spirited eagerness to revenge himself upon Moronaho, drew 
 his sword upon his enemy within the palace at Kamakura, your 
 husband, whom luck would have present, threw himself upon our 
 lord and prevented him from fully satisfying his wrath, so that the 
 destroyer of our house got off with no more than a slight scratch. 
 None can tell how terribly the recollection of his unfulfilled vengeance 
 embittered the last moments of our lord ! though no word could 
 pass his lips, well we knew how great was his agony, and how 
 intense was the hatred he felt for your husband, as the shades of 
 death were closing-in around him. We are still liegemen of our 
 ill-fated chief; if you would that the daughter of Honzo become 
 the wife of our son, you must present us with your husband's 
 head on this stand ; if you would not willingly be separated from 
 
 * Masamune flourished about the end of the thirteenth century. A very 
 cleverly written and interesting essay on " The Sword of Japan," by T. H. R. 
 McClatchie, will be found in the Transactions of the Asiatic Society of Japan, 
 from October, 1873, to July, 1874. 
 
 f His full name was Nami-no-hira Yukiyasu. 
 

 The Repentance of Kakogawa Honzo. 
 
 107 
 
 him, with both your heads. As soon as we shall have feasted our 
 eyes on this sight, the marriage shall take place without further delay. 
 Sa/i, sah ; what say you— yea or nay ? yea or nay?" 
 
 Confounded by Ishi's sneering tone and strange request, mother 
 and child hung their heads in confusion, unable to utter a word. In 
 the midst of their terrible perplexity, a voice, apparently that of the 
 mendicant, was heard, exclaiming loudly : 
 
 "Tis the head of Kakogawa Honzo you demand— here it is, take 
 it," 
 
 As the words were said, the beggar presented himself, and, throwing 
 off his deep-brimmed hat revealed the features of Kakogawa Honzo, 
 
 " Yah!" exclaimed Tonasd, in astonishment, "it is your father! 
 Honzo, husband, what means this disguise? Why have you come 
 here? Tell me " 
 
 " A truce to your chatter," interrupted Honzo. u I have heard 
 all that has passed. I came here, secretly, for a special purpose, of 
 which more anon — for the present forbear from questioning me." 
 
 "And so," resumed the Kurd of Momonoi, addressing Ishi, "you, 
 lady, are the wife of Yuranosuke Sama. I foresaw matters would 
 take this turn, and therefore, without saying a word to wife or child, 
 I came here to see for myself whether the state of things was such 
 as I anticipated ; nor have I been disappointed. And now you 
 would have my head, as a bridal gift. Ha ! ha ! why, your husband, 
 lost in dissipation and enervated by debauchery, has become an 
 imbecile, and must have quite given up the idea of avenging his 
 chief's death, which no true samurahi would ever cease to cherish. 
 Abandoned wretch ! Yura is a perfect model of a spiritless lout. 
 And as a frog's spawn can only be expected to produce frogs, doubtless 
 Rikiya is not far behind his father in imbecility and cowardice. Do 
 you think my neck is in any danger from the blunt-edged swords of 
 samurahi of that stamp ? Pshaw ! do not talk nonsense." 
 
 Setting his foot upon the stand, as he concluded this insulting 
 speech, the Karo of Momonoi broke it to pieces. 
 
 " Pick up the pieces," he resumed, " what want we with your son ? " 
 
wm 
 
 108 Chinshingura ; or, the Loyal League. 
 
 11 Ah ! " interrupted Ishi, " you are insolent, sir ; we will see 
 whether the sword of a rdnin, unused though it be, is not keen 
 enough to strike the head off your shoulders. The wife of Yuranosuke, 
 awkward as she may be in handling a weapon, is willing to try her 
 skill with you, so defend yourself, defend yourself" — gathering up 
 her dress as she spoke, and snatching a spear from the wall, with 
 which she made a hurried thrust at Honzo. At this sight Konami 
 and Tonase started back in affright, and threw themselves upon 
 Honzo, who cast them off with an angry exclamation, and seizing 
 the spear close to the point, twisted it away from his body. Ishi, 
 placing her feet firmly together, endeavoured to force the weapon out 
 of her adversary's hand, but the latter, giving it a sudden kick, 
 caused it to fly into the air. Without troubling himself further 
 about the spear, Honzo next seized Ishi by the dress and threw 
 her on the ground. This done, the dexterous Kard set his knee 
 upon the prostrate form of the wife of Yuranosuke, who gnashed her 
 teeth in the extremity of her rage. 
 
 The wife and daughter of Honzo looked on in fear and distress, 
 not knowing what to do. 
 
 At this juncture Rikiya unexpectedly presented himself, and, 
 seeing at a glance how matters stood, seized the spear which was 
 lying on the ground, and, without a moment's hesitation, ran Honzo 
 with it through the chest. The latter uttered a deep groan and fell 
 heavily to the ground, while his wife and daughter, their eyes blind 
 with tears, caught hold of each other, beside themselves with 
 terror. 
 
 Suddenly Yuranosuke came upon the scene, and seizing his son's 
 arm, prevented a repetition of the thrust. 
 
 '' Yah ! Rikiya, what are you about ? You are overhasty, 
 overhasty." 
 
 And turning to the wounded man, the Kara resumed : 
 
 " I am rejoiced to see you again, Sir Honzo, after so long an 
 interval. In falling by the hand of your son-in-law, you have, I 
 know, met with the fate you most desired." 
 

 
 i$^*k 
 

 ■Htf 
 
 
 
 JF^E 
 
 ? 
 
 ■ 
 

 The Repentance of Kakogawa Honzo. 
 
 iog 
 
 As Yuranosuke, who had divined Honzo's real wishes, concluded, 
 the latter opened his eyes, exclaiming : 
 
 " I knew from the first that you had never swerved from your 
 purpose of avenging your chief's death, and that your seeming 
 dissipation was a mere device to throw Moronaho off his guard, while 
 you collected your band together. Ah me ! would that I had acted 
 as you are now acting. At the inauguration at Tsuruga-oka, last 
 spring, my lord Momonoi was publicly affronted by Moronaho, and, 
 writhing under the insult, sent for me. After much angry talk, he 
 declared that, the next day, he would throw himself upon his enemy 
 and slay him within the very precincts of the palace ; and I could see 
 from the expression of his face that my youthful and headstrong chief 
 was not to be moved from his determination. Now, I knew that 
 Moronaho's treatment of my master was due to the fact that the 
 latter, who was a member of the lower nobility only, had made but 
 a trifling present upon receiving his appointment ; and, accordingly, 
 without letting my lord know, for I felt I was acting shamefully, I 
 went, most unbecomingly, to Moronaho, and gave him gold and silver 
 and silk robes, and other things. Thus I got my lord out of what 
 seemed to me a great peril, by bribing — for what I did was nothing 
 else — his powerful adversary, who, on next meeting my master, made 
 full apology for his insolent conduct ; so that all thought of revenge 
 had to be dismissed from my lord's mind, and he was forced to let 
 his anger be appeased. It happened otherwise with my lord's 
 colleague, Yenya Sama, whom I prevented from slaying his antagonist 
 because I thought by doing so I might render self-dispatch un- 
 necessary. In this I erred grievously, and, ever since, I have never 
 ceased to repent of the fault I then committed, and of which my 
 daughter's present wretched condition is one of the consequences. 
 As an atonement, I have travelled here to offer my gray head to 
 my daughter's betrothed. I sent on my wife and daughter in 
 advance, and, after fully confessing how I had bribed Moronaho, 
 obtained leave from my lord, and, journeying hitherwards by a different 
 road trom that which these women followed, arrived two days before 
 
Surau 
 
 110 
 
 Chiushingura ; or, the Loyal League. 
 
 them. I had learned to play on the pipe in my youth and I now 
 found the knowledge of use. After arriving here, I hung about the 
 neighbourhood for four days, and thoroughly penetrated your designs. 
 It then seemed to me that if I fell by your hand your hatred of me 
 would cease, and you would consent to the union of my daughter 
 with your son. If that hope should be realised I shall be infinitely 
 grateful to you for all time to come, and most earnestly do I implore 
 you not to make my journey fruitless. When I failed in my duty as 
 a loyal retainer, I did not, it is true, quit life as I ought to have 
 done, but now I abandon it for my child's sake. Sir Yura, you 
 cannot refuse to comply with the last prayer of a father." Choked 
 by his tears, the wounded man could utter nothing more, while his 
 wife and daughter, overwhelmed at the terrible sight, could only 
 repeat mournfully : 
 
 " Alas ! alas ! how could we foresee this ! 'Tis our delay, husband, 
 father, that has resulted thus miserably ! How terrible to know that 
 our cowardice has been the cause of your death— pardon, pardon !" 
 
 With these words the two women threw themselves at the feet 
 of the dying man, while Yuranosuke, with his wife and son, stood 
 by, speechless with horror at the frightful scene. 
 
 At last, Yuranosuke found utterance. " Honzo-dono,* we are told 
 that the superior man hates the crime and not the criminal, f Your 
 desire to form alliance with us, and our repugnance to it, are not 
 matters to be talked of at the same moment. It is true that we 
 disliked you, but now, as you are not long for this world, I will lay 
 bare to you my most secret thought." Pushing back, as he spoke, 
 the sliding windows of the room, which looked upon the inner 
 court, the Karo displayed to the dying man's view two tombs of 
 snow, fashioned with ornaments depending from each of the five 
 corners of the entablature, and thus revealing the future, showed 
 
 * " Dono," lit, " palace," is a title of great courtesy, equivalent to " your 
 excellency." 
 
 t A quotation from the analects of Confucius. 
 

 '•Hfc B 
 
 
 ; v>.~ jUiL 
 
 
MBfflMlfl 
 
 m 
 
 
 t * "" < 
 
 . 4 P 
 
 f 
 
 ■',- ;•.- #- 
 
 
The Repentance of Kakogawa Honzo. 
 
 in 
 
 what the final result of his designs would surely be. Tonasd at 
 once comprehended him. 
 
 " Ah ! " she cried, " they will slay their chief's enemy, but will 
 serve no second lord ; they will perish, as yonder snow will perish, 
 rather than prove disloyal to the memory of Yenya-dono. It was 
 with such a thought in his heart that Rikiya sought to put away my 
 daughter, not from harshness, but out of a most tender compassion. 
 O Ishi Sama, I would fain recall the wrathful words I have spoken 
 to you." 
 
 "Ah! Tonase Sama," cried Ishi, sadly, " there will be none of that 
 married happiness you hoped to see, that was to be without end,* like 
 the greenery of the tamatsubaki.\ To receive a bride so soon to become 
 a widow — can a more miserable mockery of joy be conceived ! How 
 cruel you must have thought me when, with feigned roughness, I told 
 you the marriage was impossible." 
 
 " Nay," exclaimed the mother of Konami, " you have nothing to 
 reproach yourself with ; but I, when I recollect how you must have 
 overheard me telling Konami that you were seeking for some rich 
 citizen's daughter as a bride for your son, breaking the faith you had 
 plighted to us, I am so penetrated with shame and distress that I hardly 
 dare lift my eyes to you, O Ishi Sama." 
 
 " Your daughter, Tonasd Sama, in birth and beauty is all that 
 we could desire in a bride for our son ; alas, under what evil destiny 
 has she been born !" 
 
 Ishi's tears checked her further utterance. 
 Honzo, mastering his emotion, exclaimed : 
 
 " Now I am happy, now my hopes will be fulfilled. The 
 devotion of Goshisho,J who received with a smile the news of his 
 
 * Lit., " for eight thousand ages." 
 
 f The " tamatsubaki " is probably a species of Euonymus, and consequently 
 an evergreen. 
 
 X An ancient Chinese sage, minister of the King of Wu, whose story will be 
 found in the Appendix. 
 
112 
 
 Chiushingura ; or, the Loyal League. 
 
 disgrace by the King of Go for the loyal advice he had tendered, 
 is less admirable than the rare fidelity of Ohoboshi, who will hence- 
 forth be cited throughout all Japan as a mirror of loyalty to suc- 
 ceeding generations, with a pride equal to that with which China 
 has for so many ages boasted of her hero Yojd.* In becoming 
 your wife, Sir Rikiya, worthy son of so unique a father, my 
 daughter is a hundred times more fortunate than if she were chosen 
 as the bride of an emperor. To you, the betrothed of my daughter, 
 —the most honoured in being thus accepted by you among the 
 daughters of samurahi,—! crave leave to present the bridal gifts 
 of which this is a list." And drawing a folded paper from his 
 bosom, the dying Kard gave it to Rikiya. 
 
 "KowaH cried the latter, in some astonishment, as he unfolded 
 the paper, after having lifted it courteously to his forehead — > 
 " this is no list of gifts, it is a detailed plan of Moronaho's castle ; 
 porch, barracks, quarters, water-gate, magazines, down to the very 
 wood-sheds; every portion is minutely delineated." 
 
 " Hah !" exclaimed the Kard of Yenya, delightedly, as he snatched 
 the paper from his son's hands, "a thousand thanks, a thousand 
 thanks. This is just what I was in need of. For some time past 
 we have been all prepared, but for lack of a guide like this could 
 not advance a step in our enterprise. This plan will be to us as 
 the secret books of Son and Go ; t will be our Six steps and Thru 
 Methods.% We had previously arranged to make an attack by 
 night, getting over the wall here by scaling ladders, then creeping 
 up to the porch and forcing open the outer rain-shutters, to rush 
 in and make our way to our enemy's apartments, — ha ! here we 
 can divide ourselves and then attack thus " 
 
 As Ohoboshi concluded, he exchanged a look of satisfaction with 
 his son, but Honzo, who had listened attentively to what had passed, 
 exclaimed : 
 
 * See Appendix. 
 
 t Ancient Chinese writers on military tactics. 
 
 i An old Chinese work on the art of wan 
 

 The Repentance of Kakogawa Honzo. 113 
 
 " Nay, nay, your attack must not be made in that manner. 
 Moronaho is a most cautious man, and every shutter and slide in his 
 castle is well furnished with bolts and bars and inside fastenings. You 
 cannot prize them open, and to break them open with mallets would, 
 of course, make far too much noise." 
 
 " True," cried Yuranosuke ; " but I have provided for that. They 
 say that too much pondering over a difficulty makes it harder than 
 ever to get over; and so it was that, on my return from amusing 
 myself at the tea-house, the sight of the bamboos yonder in the 
 courtyard, bending under their load of snow, suddenly made me think 
 of a plan of forcing open the shutters, which I will explain to you." 
 
 So saying, the Karo went out into the courtyard, and going close 
 up to a bamboo bending under the weight of snow that had become 
 heaped upon its branches, asked Honzo's attention. 
 
 " This bamboo, you see, is weighed down by its load of snow. 
 I shall procure a number of bows, and after bending them in like 
 manner by stringing them, I shall cause their ends to be inserted into 
 the upper and lower grooves in which the shutters slide. Next, upon 
 a given signal, all the strings will be cut through, and the bows 
 suddenly straightening themselves — thus," shaking off the snow from 
 the bamboo, which, relieved of its burden, immediately resumed its 
 natural position, " will prize out the edge of the upper slot, so that the 
 shutters will all fall outwards with a clatter, and we can rush in upon 
 our enemy in the confusion." 
 
 The wounded man, delighted with the device, for a moment forgot 
 his condition. 
 
 " Good, good," he cried, at length. " How could the Baron Yenya, 
 miserable man, be so shallow-minded * as not to have applied to you 
 in his difficulties, to a retainer so fertile in stratagems, so loyal of 
 heart." 
 
 And as he looked back on the past, he could not refrain from 
 
 * There is here in the original an untranslatable pun, based upon the name 
 of the real personage, of whom Yenya is the fictitious representative. The pun is 
 explained in the Appendix. 
 
 I 
 

 ■ 
 
 
BOOK THE TENTH. 
 
 THE PROOF OF GIHEI. 
 
 ND so muttering to himself, Ryochiku went 
 away.* 
 
 It was past the hour of the hog,f and the 
 
 night was dark, the moon being hidden by 
 
 clouds, when a patrol of several men, iron 
 
 mace and bundle of cord in hand,t and 
 
 darkened lantern hanging at hip, crept slowly 
 
 along one of the streets of Sakai, scanning each house 
 
 closely as they advanced. One of the number went in 
 
 front, like the dog scenting game for the hunter. Him the 
 
 one who seemed to be chief of the patrol motioned to 
 
 approach, and, as the former obeyed, whispered a word 
 
 or two in his ear, to which the man immediately nodded 
 
 an assent. 
 
 The party then stopped before a certain house, at the door of 
 which the one who acted as scout began to knock vigorously. 
 
 "Who is there — who is that ? " cried a man's voice from within. 
 " Iya /" said the chief of the party. " I am master of the ship 
 
 «*?- 
 
 jZC-k- 
 
 * The present book begins thus abruptly in the original. The following 
 pages will make clear who Ryochiku was, and whence he went away, 
 t About halt-an-hour after midnight. 
 X Usually carried, for obvious purposes, by policemen. 
 
n8 
 
 CJiiusliingura ; or, the Loyal League. 
 
 that arrived this evening. There is some error in the freight account — 
 let me in, I must have a word with you." 
 
 " You're making a mighty fuss," answered the voice, "about what 
 is a small matter enough, I dare say. Can't you let it rest till the 
 morning?'' 
 
 " Why, no," said the first speaker, " the ship ought to get away 
 to-night, and the account must be settled before she leaves." 
 
 Fearing lest the loud tone in which his interlocutor spoke should 
 awake his neighbours, the man of the house came to the door, and 
 opened it, utterly unsuspicious of any trickery. 
 
 Hardly, however, had he pushed the door back, when two of the 
 patrol threw themselves upon him, exclaiming : 
 
 " You are our prisoner ! Do not attempt to move — we arrest you 
 on authority ! " 
 
 The remainder of the patrol then closed round their prey, and 
 dragged him into the house. 
 
 "Kowa/" cried the prisoner, throwing his eyes round him in 
 amazement. " What means all this ? " 
 
 "What means this? Darest thou ask, villain!" exclaimed the 
 chief of the patrol. " Thou art Gihei, art thou not — living at the sign 
 of the Amagawa,* in this town of Sakai,f — and by order of 
 Yuranosuke, a kerai of the late Yenya Hanguwan, hast got ready 
 for him a quantity of arms and horse-gear, enough to load a good- 
 sized ship with ; which thou art about to send at one dispatch to 
 Kamakura. Our orders are to arrest thee, and doubtless thou'lt be put 
 to the torture— nay, thou canst not escape, — bind his arms, men." 
 
 " This is a strange charge, sirs ! " cried Gihei, for the prisoner was 
 none other. " I know nothing whatever about what you accuse me 
 of — you must have hit upon the wrong man !" 
 
 " Yah!" interrupted the chief. "Hold thy peace and make no 
 noise, there is proof enough, — now, men !" 
 
 * Lit., "The Heaven-stream" — the name given by the Japanese to The 
 Milky Way. 
 
 t A considerable seaport town, in the province of Idsumi or.Senshiu. 
 
The Proof of Gihei. 
 
 iig 
 
 Upon this, his subordinates brought forward a travelling-box, 
 wrapped in matting, that had been stowed on board that night, at the 
 sight of which Gihei appeared somewhat disturbed. 
 
 " Stir not ! " cried the chief to him, while the men rapidly undid 
 the covering and were beginning to open the box, when Gihei, freeing 
 himself by a sudden effort, kicked a fellow aside, and leaping upon 
 the lid, took up a firm position. 
 
 " Yah, you ill-mannered boors ! " he cried. " This trunk is full 
 of articles ordered by a noble lady, the wife of a daimiyd, and contains 
 various small things and warahi* books and objects, such as are kept 
 in the secret drawers of armour-coffers, together with the letter 
 ordering them all. If you open it, the name of a most illustrious 
 and noble house will become public; and you must take the con- 
 sequences upon yourselves, if you persist in disclosing it." 
 
 " Ah ! a likely story," exclaimed the chief. " Thou hadst better 
 confess the truth, without further trouble, — wilt not ? Good ! 
 
 " You know what you have to do," added the chief, addressing one 
 of his followers, who, with a gesture of assent, immediately left the 
 room, and returned, after a few moments' absence, dragging in with 
 him a child, a little over a year old, the only son of Gihei, and called 
 Yoshimatsu. 
 
 " And now, Gihei," resumed the chief, " for the moment we won't 
 trouble ourselves about the contents of yonder box. You know that 
 Yuranosuke and the other rdnin of Yenya's following have got up a 
 plot against the life of Moronaho, of the details of which you cannot 
 be ignorant. Reveal them to us and all will be well ; refuse, and your 
 boy here — you shall see what his fate will be." Drawing his sword as 
 he uttered the last words, the speaker placed the point against the 
 child's throat. 
 
 Gihei looked on unmoved, and said scornfully : 
 
 " Do you think you have to do with a woman or a child, that you 
 hope to terrify me into making some confession by threatening me 
 
 Vide Appendix. 
 
120 Chiushingiiva ; or, the Loyal League. 
 
 through the boy? You will find no coward in Gihei of the sign 
 of the Amagawa. No fear for my child will make me say I know 
 something, when I know nothing — nothing, I swear it by the lowest 
 hell. If, however, you are simply enemies of mine, my boy there 
 is in your hands, and if you choose to kill him 1 cannot help 
 it." 
 
 " Faith ! " cried the chief admiringly, " you're a stout-hearted fellow 
 enough ! Why, yonder chest contains spears, matchlocks, suits of 
 chain-armour, etc., together with some forty-six devices for the use of 
 the conspirators against Moronaho — and you dare to tell us you know 
 nothing about all this ! You would do better to end such talk, and 
 make a clean breast of the whole matter. If you don't, you will 
 be killed by inches ; hewed at, until your body is hewed into shreds. 
 How like you that?'" 
 
 " Do not think you frighten me," cried Gihei, " with your threats. 
 1 deal not in weapons and armour only, but also in yeboshi caps 
 for court and feudal nobles, in all sorts of things, in fact, down to straw 
 sandals for .servant lads and wenches. If there is anything unusual 
 enough in that to need enquiry, everybody in Japan will be pestered 
 out of their lives. If one is to be hewed in pieces, or scourged 
 with the threefold cat, for following a trade, why, life is not worth 
 having. Slay me, then ; thrust your sword through the child's 
 throat! Why don't you set to work upon me? Where would you 
 like to begin — hew off my arm, or tear open my chest, or slash me 
 on the shoulder or on the back ? " * 
 
 As he uttered the last words, Gihei, quitting his position on the 
 chest, made a sudden rush upon his captors, and snatched the 
 child from their grasp. 
 
 * Allusion is here made to the practice of hacking at the dead bodies of 
 criminals, by which the young samurahi was wont to perfect himself in swordsman- 
 ship, under the old order of things. Treatises exist upon this repulsive art — for 
 an art it seems to have been considered — and one of the commonest of picture- 
 rolls used to represent the various cuts, distinguished by special names, by 
 practising which the aspirant could best learn on the dead subject to qualify 
 himself for mangling the living one. 
 
% 
 
 
 ■ 
 
 § 
 
 / 
 
 w 
 
 I v : ''V 
 
 *- 
 
 m 
 
The Proof of Gihei. 
 
 121 
 
 "You shall see," he cried defiantly, "how far your threats are 
 likely to influence me ! " 
 
 The firm expression of his face shewed that he would not recoil 
 from any extremity, and he seemed on the point of strangling his 
 own child, when the lid of the chest was thrown open, and Yuranosuke, 
 who had lain concealed in it, stepped suddenly forth. 
 
 " Yah/" cried the Kard, "hold your hand, Gihei, hold your 
 hand ! " 
 
 Filled with astonishment at this unlooked-for appearance, Gihei 
 stood speechless, while the chief and the other members of the 
 seeming patrol threw away their maces and bundles of cords, and, 
 taking up a position at a little distance from their captive, assumed 
 a respectful attitude. The Kard of Yenya, with a dignified and 
 grave air, then advanced a step forward, and prostrating himself 
 before the wondering Gihei, exclaimed : 
 
 "Sir, I hardly know how to express my admiration for you. 
 Your devotion marks you out among the mass of men, as the 
 brilliance of its flower reveals the lotus in the muddy marsh ; as its 
 glitter shows the grain of gold in the sand of the sea-shore. For 
 my part, I knew well how loyal a heart was yours. The Kard of 
 Yenya never for a moment doubted your fidelity, but to my com- 
 rades here you were a stranger, and some among them thought 
 that since you were a Chonin* your fidelity ought to be proved; 
 and would not rest until it was settled that you were to be seized, 
 and your loyalty tried, by taking advantage of a father's natural 
 love for his child, and putting you to the proof— by threatening 
 
 * There were two main divisions of society— excluding the priestly class and 
 peasantry — in old Japan, the lines of demarcation between which are still far 
 from being obliterated. These were the Bushi or Samuvahi (lit., servers, like the 
 Saxon " thegn " ; then retainers and fighting men), originating in the soldiery of 
 the early days of the Shogunate ; and the Chonin (lit., "street people"), or 
 citizens and artisans. The first class had the right of wearing hakama (a species 
 of wide, loose trowser). and of carrying two swords, a short ( ne and a long one, 
 in their girdles ; the latter could only wear one short sword, and the ordinary 
 kimono, resembling a dressing-gown, with hanging sleeves. 
 
122 
 
 Chiushingura ; or, the Loyal League. 
 
 the life of your darling and only boy, unless you divulged our 
 secrets. To show my comrades how brave and true a heart yours 
 was, and to put these companions of mine at their ease, I have 
 joined in the proof, though I knew what a cruel trial it would be 
 to you. And now I do most humbly crave your pardon for what 
 you have been made to suffer. They say that we Bushi are the 
 bloom * of mankind, but never, never, has any Samurahi equalled 
 you in generous devotion, and the hero who should withstand the 
 onset of a thousand foes would display a courage inferior to what 
 you have just revealed. Would that we could borrow your brave 
 heart ! With your noble conduct as our model, could we possibly 
 fail in fulfilling our vengeance upon our enemy ; even though he 
 should betake himself to some precipice-fenced fastness in the moun- 
 tains ; or should enclose hinself within walls of iron and brass ! 
 Among men, true men are scarce, they say. Those that exist, it 
 would seem, must be sought for among the ranks of the Clwnin. 
 For what you have done for us, if we did not bow down before 
 you with reverent thanks, as before our village and household 
 gods, f we should be wanting in gratitude to you for the favour 
 you have shown us. 'Tis in the hour of need J that the hero reveals 
 himself. Our lord, who is no more — alas, alas, how sad, how 
 pitiable his fate ! — had he known your true and valiant heart, 
 would have advanced you to high military and civil rank, § and 
 never would have repented him of his bounty. The eyes of my 
 companions were blinded, as it were, to your worth; the courage 
 you have displayed this night has acted like the infallible specific 
 of some famous doctor, and they can now recognise your high 
 qualities, thankful that you have caused the scales to fall from 
 their eyes." 
 
 * Lit., " the wild-cherry blossom." 
 
 f Vide Appendix. 
 
 + Lit., " 'tis not in peaceful times that the hero reveals himself." 
 
 § Vide Appendix. 
 
The Proof of Gihei. 
 
 123 
 
 Yuranosuke and his fellows then withdrew a little, thrice bowing 
 their heads to the matting, and exclaiming : 
 
 " We humbly crave your pardon, sir, for our violence." 
 
 " Nay, sirs," cried Gihei ; " I have done nothing to merit the 
 honours you heap upon me; pray rise. The proverb says, 'Judge a 
 man as you do a horse — after you've tried him.' And seeing that I 
 was unfortunate enough to be unknown to you, it was necessary that 
 you should put me to some proof. At first I was but a mean fellow ; 
 but since I have had the honour of transacting the business of your 
 lord's clan, I have become of some consequence. When I heard of the 
 calamities that befell your noble chief, I shared your terrible distress. I 
 racked my brains to devise some plan of exacting vengeance upon your 
 lord's enemy, but with no more success than a tortoise might hope for 
 trying to strut,* like an actor, upon its hind legs. It was then that his 
 honour here, Yuranosuke, came to me ; and I did my best, without 
 troubling my head about the consequences, to obey the commands I 
 was favoured with. Oh that I were not a mere chdnin ! If I were a 
 samurahi, were my rations no more than a handful of rice a day, I 
 might have asked to be one of you, following humbly after you f in your 
 enterprise. I should have been content if I could only have been 
 allowed to draw water for your tea when wearied ; but it could not be, 
 mean chdnin, O how mean ! as I am ; while you, sirs, by the favour of 
 your lord, enjoy the distinction of wearing swords, and are permitted to 
 devote your lives to his memory, — would that a like fortune were mine ! 
 At least, when in attendance upon your lord upon the dark path, you 
 will not fail to let him know how gladly the fellow Gihei would have 
 accompanied you ! " 
 
 The companions of Yuranosuke, deeply moved by these earnest 
 words, burst into tears, and ground their teeth in sympathetic rage, as 
 they saw how bitter was the distress of Gihei at finding himself unable 
 
 * Lit., " strut about " with the conventional, and, to Europeans, ridiculous 
 gestures of a Japanese tragedian. 
 
 t Lit., " following close at your sleeves, and at the hem of your garments." 
 
124 
 
 Chiushingura ; or. the Loyal League. 
 
 to give full vent to his loyal feelings. The Kard, however, restrained 
 himself, and immediately addressed Gihei as follows : 
 
 " We shall leave for Kamakura to-night, and ere long * we hope to 
 have achieved success. They tell me that you have gone so far as to 
 send your wife away, in your care to preserve our secret. 'Twas well 
 thought of, but you shall endure the discomfort of separation from her 
 for a short time only ; she shall soon be called home again. And now 
 I must say farewell." 
 
 " But let me wish you a fortunate issue to your undertaking in a cup 
 of sake ere you start, sirs," cried Gihei, as Yuranosuke prepared to depart. 
 
 " Nay, we must " 
 
 " Pray do not refuse me ; here are hand-struck buckwheat cakes — 
 they will bring you luck." 
 
 " Hand-struck, f are they ? lucky indeed," cried Yuranosuke. 
 
 " Ohowashi and Yazama," resumed the Karo, turning to his 
 companions, " you two can remain with me ; the rest of you may 
 depart, and, picking up Goyemon and Rikiya on your way, get 
 forward as far as Sadanomori." 
 
 " Will your honour please to come this way?" said Gihei to Yura- 
 nosuke, and the two men who remained with him, after the rest had left. 
 
 " It would be rude to refuse you," answered Yuranosuke, as, together 
 with Ohowashi and Yazama, he followed his host into an inner room. 
 
 At this juncture a woman came up to the house — Sono, the wife 
 of Gihei ; who, either at the instance of her father Ryochiku, or by 
 the will of her husband — she was puzzled between them, as one 
 might find it hard to tell whether the moon, just above the horizon, 
 was rising or setting — had been thrust out of doors. $ 
 
 She was alone, and carried a small lantern in her hand, and 
 as she knocked at the door she trembled with fear, confused with 
 the pitch darkness and full of anxiety about her child. 
 
 * Lit., " in not more than ona hnnJred days." 
 
 f The Japanese word translated " hand-struck " means also an attack or 
 encounter. 
 
 t This portion of the text is disfigure 1 by numerous word-plays, and a 
 general rendering of the meaning is all that has been attempted. 
 
The Proof of Gihei. 
 
 125 
 
 " Igo, Igo," she cried, after having knocked several times, " are 
 you there?" 
 
 " What's that," muttered the servant-lad from within, in a sleepy 
 tone, as he stumbled up out of bed, only half awake. "What's that 
 calling me — some wandering spirit or tricky goblin or other?" 
 
 " Iya, no. It is I, Sono, your mistress ; open the door, quick." 
 
 " Ah, but in spite of what you say I am rather frightened ; you 
 must not shout at me if I let you in," cried the lad, opening the 
 door as he spoke. 
 
 " Ye/if" he exclaimed, delightedly, as he saw Sono. "It is the 
 mistress; I am so glad to see you back. Why, you are all alone — 
 you might have got bitten by some wild-dog." 
 
 "I might as well be, and die from the bite," said Sono bitterly. 
 "I can no longer endure this misery — banished from my own 
 house." 
 
 " I don't understand you." 
 
 "Is my husband asleep just now?" 
 
 " No." 
 
 " Is he out ? " 
 
 " No." 
 
 " Well, then, where is he ; what is he doing ? " 
 
 " I am sure I don't know. Just after nightfall, a lot of men 
 came up here, shouting ' caught, caught,' like a cat might do that 
 had just got hold of a rat ; and when I heard the noise I covered my 
 head with the bed-clothes and went to sleep. The men are now in the 
 house, drinking sake, and enjoying themselves." 
 
 " Strange ! I wonder what my husband has in hand," said Sono, 
 half to herself. 
 
 " And baby," she added, addressing the lad, " is he asleep ? " 
 
 "Ay, he is fast asleep enough." 
 
 "Has he been sleeping with his father?" 
 
 « No." 
 
 " With you, then ? " 
 
 " No, all alone ; rolled up by himself." 
 
126 Chiushingura ; or, the Loyal League. 
 
 " Why, hasn't he been nursed to sleep, then ? " 
 
 " No ; master tried, and so did I, but we could not give him any 
 milk, so he did nothing but cry all the time." 
 
 <; Poor little fellow," cried Sono, leaning against the door, and 
 bursting into tears. " Of course, he would cry, what could he do else ? " 
 
 Gihei, who was near, no more noticed her tears than heaven regards 
 the patter of rain upon the earth beneath, and her sleeve was soon 
 drenched with the flow. 
 
 " Ho, there, Igo, Igo," he shouted, making his appearance and 
 looking round. " Where is the fellow?" 
 
 " Here I am, sir," said the lad. 
 
 " Blockhead ! " cried Gihei, looking aslant at him, with a scolding 
 expression. 
 
 " Go and wait upon my guests, yonder." 
 
 Storming at the lad, the husband of Sono left the room, and was 
 about to close the slide behind him, when his wife prevented him. 
 
 " Husband, husband, do not shut the door ; I want so much to 
 speak with you." 
 
 " I can neither listen to you nor talk with you. You and your 
 father, I find, are a pair of miserable wretches ; away with you," cried 
 Gihei angrily. 
 
 " You take me to be like my father," said Sono, " but I am not ; 
 look, this will prove it to you beyond a doubt," throwing a paper, 
 through the half-opened door, at her husband's feet, as she spoke. 
 
 As Gihei stooped to pick it up, his wife made her way to his side. 
 
 "What is this?" exclaimed her husband, in a tone of astonishment ; 
 " 'tis the letter of divorce I wrote some time since ; I don't understand 
 your bringing it back." 
 
 " You don't understand my bringing it back — how can you say so ? " 
 cried Sono. " You know well enough how ill-disposed my father, 
 Ryochiku, is towards you.* What could induce you to give that 
 
 * Ryochiku was a doctor, in the service of Kudaiu, and a man of mean and 
 parsimonious character. Dissatisfied with his son-in-law, on account of the 
 latter's connection with Yuranosuke, as well as by reason of certain pecuniary 
 
The Proof of Gihci. 
 
 127 
 
 divorce-letter into his hand ? As soon as he got back with it he wanted 
 to marry me to some one else, there and then, to my utter astonish- 
 ment. However, I put a good face on the matter, so as to lull my 
 father's suspicions, and watching my opportunity, stole the divorce-letter 
 out of his pocket-book, and ran back home with it." 
 
 " Surely you love your child," continued the poor woman, with her 
 tears flowing fast. " How could you be so cruel as to send me away, 
 for him to hang at a foster-mother's breast ? " 
 
 " Oh ! " cried Gihei, " the complaint comes from the wrong side, 
 I think. Did you not heed what I said to you when you left, that 
 I did not send you away for any fault of yours, but simply wished 
 you to stay at your father's for a short time, and could not give you 
 my reasons because he was formerly a follower of Kudaiu, and I 
 did not know which way his inclinations tended. I told you, too, to 
 feign illness, and to put on an indisposed look night and morning, 
 and neglect your hair, so that you might run no risk of being troubled 
 with offers of marriage — for who would think of asking a woman to be 
 his wife who neglected her hair? Why have you disobeyed me? 
 And as to your child, Yoshimatsu, think you that you alone were 
 distressed about him ? During the day that lad Igo could coax and 
 wheedle him into being quiet, but when night came he kept crying out 
 continually for his mother, and however much we tried \o pacify him 
 by telling him his mother would be back soon he would not go to 
 sleep, and when we sought to make him, by scolding or slapping him, 
 
 transactions on the occasion of the marriage, in which the doctor conceived 
 himself to have been ill-treated by Gihci, he had done his best to annul the 
 union with his daughter. Gihei, on the other hand, fearful of Yuranosuke's 
 secret being betrayed, through Sono, to Ryochiku, with whom he had had an 
 interview just before the arrival of Yuranos ;ke and his party, had sent his wife 
 home, under a letter of divorce, which, however, he intended to be of only 
 temporary force : so that she might be out of the way until Yuranosuke's designs 
 had been successfully carried out. 
 
 Such is the explanation generally given of the conduct of Gihei on this 
 occasion, but in the text followed in the present translation the reader is rather 
 left to infer, than expressly told, by what motives the husband of Sono was 
 actuated. 
 
128 Chiushingura ; or, the Loyal League. 
 
 or making faces at him, he did not cry, but whined and moaned so 
 pitifully that I could hardly bear the sight of his misery. I now 
 understood the force of the saying ' your children will teach you how 
 your parents loved you ; ' and remembering how often I had behaved 
 ill to my father and mother, I was filled with remorse, and wept almost 
 the whole night through. Last evening, I several times took up the 
 boy in my arms, with the intention of bringing him to you, and even 
 got as far as the door with him, but recollecting that for you to have 
 him for one night only would be of no use at all, and that I did 
 not know in the least how long you might have to remain away from 
 me, I thought it would make matters worse to take the child to you, 
 and so walked about with him, dandling him and patting him till 
 he at last fell asleep in my arms, when I lay down with him nestled 
 close to me, and rolling his head about as he sought for the breast. 
 I never intended to separate you from your darling for the rest of your 
 life, but only for a short time, and, under the circumstances, I could 
 not avoid writing the divorce-letter. Your father, Ryochiku, would 
 never forgive me were I mean enough to get back the letter I gave 
 him, in this underhand manner. I cannot receive it therefore, and 
 you must take it back with you. The gods have decreed our union 
 thus far ; we must now be to each other as if the one of us had died." * 
 
 As her husband ceased, Sono was silent for a moment. Knowing 
 well the resolution of his character, she felt that he could not be 
 induced to alter his determination, and when at last she found courage 
 to speak, her tone was sad. 
 
 " How wretched a fate is mine ! If I remain here I am in your 
 way ; if I go to my father's house I shall surely be forced to marry 
 again. Oh, husband, won't you let Voshimatsu be awakened, and 
 brought to me for a few moments ? Perhaps this is a last parting ! " 
 
 * In the tenth month of each year, the God Iyahiko is supposed to assemble 
 the eight hundred and more remaining gods at the yashiro or shrine near Namiki 
 in Idsumo, where all the varying destinies of men, their deaths, births, marriages, 
 &c, are arranged for the ensuing year. The gods being thus absent from their 
 usual abodes, the tenth month is called " Kamina-dsuki," or "godless month,' 
 during which the Japanese avoid forming new connections^ 
 
The Proof of Gihei. 
 
 129 
 
 " Nay," replied Gihei, " to see him for an instant, and then to 
 have to leave him, would but make the pain of parting from him harder 
 than ever to bear. And now away with you — I have guests here 
 to-night." 
 
 " Let me see the child," said the mother, " if only for a 
 moment." 
 
 " Come, come," cried Gihei, soothingly, " have a little courage. 
 Did you not hear what I said just now about the harm of seeing him, 
 even for a moment only ? " 
 
 And putting the letter into his wife's hands, he forced her to the 
 door, and, steeling his heart against her entreaties, pushed her out, 
 exclaiming : 
 
 " If you really love your child, return to your father's at once, and 
 get him to afford you hospitality until the spring — when I hope I shall 
 be able to come to some determination — if you will not do this, then 
 all had better end between us." 
 
 " Ah, if I could only be sure that my father would not force me 
 into marriage with some one, I might bear the parting," cried Sono, 
 from without. 
 
 " Cruel husband ! " she continued, " to send me away in this 
 manner, who have done nothing wrong — not to let me see my child's 
 face even. How can you be so hard-hearted ! 
 
 "For pity's sake," she continued, knocking at the door, "open; 
 let me have a look at him, even if asleep, just once, I entreat you with 
 clasped hands, I beseech you ; cruel, cruel ! " and overcome with grief, 
 she sank on the ground, and burst into tears. 
 
 " Ah," she cried, after a time, collecting her energies, " I will 
 restrain myself — I will say no more. Let my child but catch one 
 glimpse of me, I know he will cry out ' Mammy,' and cling to me 
 so that none can separate us. If I return to my father's to-night he 
 will force me into a betrothal ere a day passes. Oh, husband, what 
 have I to live for ? Adieu, husband, adieu for ever ! " 
 
 The wife of Gihei, however, did not at once go away, but placed 
 
13° 
 
 Chiushingura ; or the Loyal League. 
 
 her ear against the door, hoping to hear her child's voice, or perhaps 
 that her husband might relent enough to let her have a look at 
 him, but there was not a sound in the house. 
 
 " Alas, alas," she cried, mournfully ; " must I then go without 
 one look at him ! " 
 
 She turned to depart, when a couple of stout fellows, their faces 
 concealed all but the eyes, suddenly blocked up her path. Ere she 
 could utter a cry, they rushed upon her — was it not outrageous? — 
 and while one of them held her fast, the other gathered her hair 
 (which was dressed Shimada fashion) in his hand, and cut it off 
 close to the roots, deftly possessing himself at the same moment of 
 everything she had in her bosom. 
 
 The next instant the pair had vanished, no one could tell whither. 
 Brutal ruffians they must have been, to attack a woman ! 
 
 " Ah, wretches !" cried Sono. " Ah, villains ! What means this 
 violence? You have cut off my hair and seized the paper I had in 
 my bosom ; if you are common thieves,* why don't you kill me at 
 once?" 
 
 His manhood t roused by his wife's cry of distress, Gihei could 
 hardly refrain from rushing to her assistance, and the gnashing of 
 his teeth showed the struggle that went on in his breast. 
 
 While the husband of Sono stood thus irresolute close to the door, 
 Yuranosuke entered from the inner apartments, shouting out loudly 
 for his host. 
 
 " Ah," cried the Karo. as he caught sight of Gihei, " we are 
 infinitely obliged to you for your kind and courteous hospitality; 
 you shall have news from Kamakura — what other gear we may 
 require I will let you know of by a swift messenger. And now we 
 must bid you farewell — we should be on our way ere dawn breaks."! 
 
 * Lit., " robbers of combs and hair ornaments." 
 
 f Vide Appendix. 
 
 \ Lit., " ere night opens," i.e., grows clear. 
 
\ 
 
 
 I 
 
 v 
 
 ■i 
 
 «; —*v 
 
' ■■■ 
 
 The Proof of Gihei. 
 
 131 
 
 " Well, sirs," cried Gihei, " this is not an occasion on which I dare 
 detain you ; may your journey be a safe one, and may success attend 
 your enterprise." 
 
 " As soon as we get to Kamakura, we will send you tidings of us," 
 replied Yura. " Search as we may, we cannot find words in which fitly 
 to express our heartfelt thanks to you for the services you have 
 rendered us." 
 
 " Yazama, Ohowashi," continued the Kard, turning to his com- 
 panions, "present Gihei with the parting gift you have ready for him." 
 The two men immediately stepped forward, one of them bearing 
 an outspread fan, used for the nonce as a presentation stand, upon 
 which was laid a paper parcel. 
 
 " We beg that you, sir," resumed Yuranosuke, " and your wife, 
 will deign to accept these trifling gifts from us." 
 
 A cloud came over Gihei's countenance. " I should not have put 
 my neck in peril," he cried, " simply to get a present from you, sirs. 
 You despise me as a mere citizen, and think I shall be pleased by 
 having my mouth filled with gold pieces." * 
 
 " Nay, not so," exclaimed Yuranosuke. " We are taking the 
 last farewell of you we shall ever take in this world, where the gods 
 have decreed that you should remain, and it is by desire of the Lady 
 Kawoyo that we lay these poor gifts at your feet." 
 
 " It is plain, sirs," exclaimed Gihei, with increased vexation, " that 
 you do not know me, and treat me with contempt. Your gifts are 
 hateful to me," spurning the fan away from him as he spoke. The 
 paper packet opened out, as it fell to the ground, and its contents 
 escaped. On seeing them, Sono uttered a cry of astonishment. 
 
 " Why, these are my comb and hair ornaments, and my hair 
 that the men cut off just now." 
 
 * Lit., "by having Koban ears clapped on my cheeks." The Koban was a 
 gold coin of an oval shape, and about the size of a human ear, value nearly five 
 shillings. 
 
 K 2 
 
132 Chiushingura ; or, the Loyal League. 
 
 Gihei, meanwhile, had picked up the paper wrapping. 
 
 " And this," he exclaimed, " is the letter of divorce I wrote ! What 
 is that about some one's hair being cut off," he added, turning to his 
 wife — " whose hair ? " 
 
 " I will explain," said Yuranosuke. " I sent Ohowashi and Yazama 
 here, round by the back of the house, to seize your wife and cut off 
 her hair, so as to make her like a nun, which will prevent her father 
 from forcing her to marry. Ere her hair grows again, I hope we 
 shall have attained the object of our enterprise, and after our 
 vengeance shall have been fully accomplished, you will be reunited — may 
 you live long and happily together ! Then you, lady," addressing 
 the wife of Gihei, " can take these ornaments, and, using these tresses 
 as a cushion, dress your hair in the Kogai* fashion — no one happier 
 in the three kingdoms.-}- Only till then will you be, as it were, a nun. 
 And however long it may be ere she be reunited to you, Gihei, we 
 are all sureties for her that she will divulge nothing, and I myself, 
 from the dark path, will act as intermediary in effecting your 
 reunion." 
 
 " How can I be sufficiently grateful for the favours heaped upon 
 me ! " cried Gihei. " Wife, wife, speak your thanks to his honour." 
 
 " I can only say that I owe my life to you, sir," said Sono, softly. 
 
 " Iya ! I deserve no thanks," replied Yuranosuke — " none whatever. 
 And were Gihei not a citizen we should be overjoyed to have him 
 with us. When we determined upon making our attack by night, 
 our good fortune made us choose the name of your house, Amagawa, 
 as our watchword. When we shall be within our enemy's gates, 
 ' Ama ' will be our sign and ' Kawa ' our countersign, and as we shout 
 to each other ' Ama, there,' ' Kawa, there,' in the struggle, it will 
 be as if Gihei were with us. And the first character of your name 
 means 'rectitude ' and the last means 'level'; happy the omen, our 
 
 * In which the hair is kept in place on either side of the head by a comb, 
 t Japan, China, and India. 
 
m 
 
 1L 
 
 *.* 
 
 . 
 
 V 
 
 v- . 
 
 ■M 
 
 
 
 
■I 
 
 & 
 
 *5 
 
The Proof of Gihei. 
 
 133 
 
 difficulties shall be levelled for us, and a complete success achieved ! 
 And now, again, farewell." With these words, Yuranosuke rose, with 
 his two companions, and the three then took their departure. 
 
 The fame of Yuranosuke's deeds has come down to posterity, and 
 the watchword "Ama" shall be "Yama."* In the loyalty of his 
 heart he found his tactics of Son and Go,f and the double-meaning 
 language of the world tells us in his name how inexhaustible that 
 loyalty was. J 
 
 * Probably the Buddhic " Yama," the " heaven of perennial light," is meant. 
 
 t Vide ante. 
 
 I The puns in the text render anything like a literal version of the passage 
 impossible. The name of Yuranosuke's prototype was Kuranosuke (see Appendix), 
 and " Kura " signifies " a storehouse, magazine, treasury, &c." 
 
 END OF THE TENTH BOOK. 
 

BOOK THE ELEVENTH. 
 
 RETRIBUTION. 
 
 HAT the soft may overcome the hard, the 
 
 weak may overcome the strong, was the 
 
 secret revealed by Sekiko to the hero Choryo.* 
 
 Ohoboshi Yuranosuke, the liegeman of 
 
 Yenya Hanguwan Takasada, mindful of this 
 
 maxim, got together his fellow-plotters, forty 
 
 odd brave fellows, and, embarking with them 
 
 on board a couple of fishing-boats, in which they lay 
 
 concealed under straw mats, started for Cape Ina- 
 
 * The tale is as follows. In the reign of the Chinese 
 emperor Riuko, Choryo filled the post of Commander-in-chief. 
 One day, passing over a bridge known as the Bridge of Hi, he 
 met an old man on horseback, who dropped his sandal and 
 somewhat surlily told Choryo to pick it up for him. Though 
 annoyed at the tone in which the request was made, the 
 great man, seeing the age of his interlocutor, complied with it. 
 Thereupon the old fellow told him to be at the bridge at dawn on the fifth day 
 from that, and he would meet with due reward. Choryo accordingly presented 
 himself on the bridge on the fifth day, but was reproached by the old man as being 
 late, and told to come again at the end of another five days — which he did, and 
 was again dismissed in a similar manner and for a similar reason. The third 
 time, Choryo took care to be at the bridge by midnight, and this time was well 
 received by the old man, who bestowed upon him a book treating of the 
 art of war, the Rikuto Sanriyaku (previously mentioned in the Ninth Book), and, 
 telling him that he would meet him once more that day seven years, suddenly 
 disappeared. Choryo visited the bridge in the seventh year, but found 
 
136 
 
 Chiushingura ; or, the Loyal League. 
 
 mura,* in the neighbourhood of which they hoped to find their 
 landing as little guarded against as their enterprise was unsuspected 
 by their enemy.f 
 
 They arrived in safety at Cape Inamura, and as the first boat was 
 brought alongside a huge rock on the beach, Yuranosuke leaped 
 ashore, followed by Hara Goyemon, after whom came Rikiya, 
 succeeded by Takemori Kitahachi, Katayama Genta, and others. 
 From the next boat there landed in regular order, Kakuyama Mago- 
 shichi, Sudagoro Katsuta, Hayami, Tomonori, the famous Katayama 
 Gengo, Ohowashi Bungo, carrying a huge wooden mallet, Yoshida, 
 Ohokazaki, Kodera, and others, Kowase Chiudaiu, holding under his 
 arm a number of small bows, the renowned Ohoboshi Sehei, and 
 others, including the eldest son of Kodera, rising up together like the 
 lift of the morning mist, Shinoda and Akane, carrying halberds aloft, 
 with Nogawa, armed with a cross-bladed spear, while several men 
 provided with ladders brought up the rear. All wore mantles bearing 
 for devices different letters of the " Iroha " — a different letter for each 
 man.J Yuranosuke, not in the least dissipated now,§ had caused his 
 aide, Yazama, to bring with him a number of eight-foot bamboo poles, 
 
 nothing there but a huge yellow-coloured stone, and thus came to know that 
 his mysterious aquaintance was a spirit sent to try his patience and good 
 manners. The name Sekiko is an abbreviation of Kosekiko (" the lord of the 
 yellow-stone"), the appellation by which the seeming old man was afterwards 
 known. 
 
 * Near Kamakura. 
 
 t There is here a pun in the original which is not capable of being rendered 
 in the translation. The whole meaning of the passage is, however, given. 
 
 % In the text followed, the forty-six letters of the Japanese syllabary are here 
 enumerated in their usual order, with the names of the adventurers interspersed 
 in such a manner as to allow of a thread of meaning connecting the whole 
 passage. 
 
 § There again occurs one of those jeux dc mots which the Japanese apparently 
 mistake for wit. There are, however, equally poor ones, both in conception and 
 application, to be found in Aristophanes, and even in the mouths of Homer's 
 goddesses, as in the speech of Athene, Od. A. 62 : 
 " * * * 61 rojof o^vsao Ztv." 
 The last letters of the Iroha or Japanese syllabary may be read as forming 
 a phrase meaning " not to be overcome by drink." 
 
Retribution. 
 
 T-37 
 
 for the purpose of putting the plan of forcing open the shutters I 
 have already described, into execution. At a little distance behind 
 his chief, followed, humbly enough, Teraoka Heiyemon. In all, the 
 party consisted of forty-six men, wearing for device each a letter of 
 the alphabet on their sleeve, chain-armour on their thighs, on their 
 breast the cuirass of loyalty— of a truth, a lesson-book, as it were, of 
 the alphabet * of faithful duty. 
 
 " Comrades," cried Yuranosuke, turning to his companions, " do not 
 forget the sign and countersign, ' Ama ' and ' Kawa,' the names of 
 Gihei's house. As has already been settled, Yazama, Senzaki, Kodera, 
 and their party, headed by my son Rikiya, will make their way in 
 by the front gate, while Goyemon, with myself, will press round to 
 the rear entrance. At the right moment, a loud whistle will be heard — 
 let every one then rush to the attack ; there is but one head we have 
 to take." 
 
 The men listened respectfully to their chief's command, and as they 
 came in sight of their enemy's castle their eyes were ablaze with 
 fury, while, filled with hatred of their foe, they separated into two 
 parties, one to attack by the rear, the other by the front gate. 
 
 The great lord of Musashi, meanwhile, his suspicions lulled by the 
 account he had received of Yuranosuke's dissipated life, spent his 
 time in drinking and debauchery, assisted by the wretch Yakushiji,t 
 whom he had taken into high favour. 
 
 On this very night, exhausted by his excesses, the murderer of 
 Yenya had only just fallen asleep, when Yuranosuke and his party 
 approached the castle. A profound stillness reigned, broken only 
 by the occasional rap-rap of the clappers of the sentinel going his 
 rounds. 
 
 The plan of attack having been finally settled between the two 
 
 * There are forty-six letters in the Japanese syllabary, excluding the final 
 nasal sound. 
 
 t One of the commissioners officially present at the scppuku of Yenya, 
 described in the Fourth Book, who signalised himself by the brutality with 
 which he executed his duty. 
 
138 
 
 Chinshingura ; or, the Loyal League. 
 
 parties, Yazama and Senzaki, like a couple of bold fellows as they 
 were, crept up to the front gate, and, peeping through a chink, took 
 a survey of the interior. As soon as the faintness of the sound of 
 the clappers showed that the sentinel or watchman was pretty well 
 at the farther end of his round, they caused a ladder to be carefully 
 and noiselessly placed against the wall, and, mounting it rapidly, with 
 the agility of spiders climbing up their web, presently found themselves 
 on the top. The sound of the clappers now became more distinct, 
 and showed the approach of the sentinel ; to elude whose notice they 
 at once dropped to the ground on the inner side. But in vain ; the 
 man saw them drop, and uttered an exclamation. Before he could 
 repeat it, however, they rushed upon him, and, throwing him down, 
 bound his arms tightly. "You must guide us, and truly too," they 
 cried, gagging their prisoner as they spoke, and attaching him by a 
 cord to the person of one of them. Seizing the fellow's clappers, they 
 then went the rounds, forcing him to show the way, and clapping, 
 clapping, just as the sentinel himself might have done. Were they not 
 a couple of stout-hearted blades? 
 
 Presently the sound of a whistle is heard. Yazama and his 
 companion know that the moment for action is come. 
 
 Clapping loudly, they shout " Ama," " Kawa," and, drawing back 
 the bolts, throw wide open the great gate, through which Rikiya is 
 the first to rush, followed closely by Sugino, Kimura, and his brother. 
 
 " Here we are, here we are,"' cry the men of the party, as they 
 crowd tumultously in. 
 
 Rikiya, meanwhile, scans closely the line of outer shutters, without 
 being able to alight upon a weak spot. Remembering, however, his 
 father's device, suggested by the snow-laden bamboo, he deems the 
 occasion a fit one for putting it into execution, and, ordering the 
 unsplit bamboos they had brought with them to be strung with 
 stout cord, causes the ends to be inserted in the upper and lower 
 grooves in which the shutters move. 
 
 "Once, twice, thrice," and all the strings are cut at the same 
 moment ; the bamboos straighten themselves suddenly, and all at 
 
Retribution. 
 
 139 
 
 the same time, so prizing out the upper framework and pressing 
 down the lower crosspiece that the row of shutters fall in with a 
 simultaneous clatter. 
 
 "Now for the attack," shout the leaders, while cries of "Ama," 
 "Kawa," fill the air. The retainers of the house, aroused by the 
 uproar, begin to show themselves, carrying torches and lanterns. The 
 rear attacking party, having made their way through the rear 
 gate, now appear, one company headed by Goyemon, the other by 
 Yuranosuke. The Karo, seating himself upon a camp-stool, gave 
 his orders. His followers, few in number as they were, fought with 
 desperate courage, and displayed to the utmost their skill as swordsmen. 
 
 " Have no eyes for aught but Moronaho," cried Yuranosuke, " 'tis 
 his head that we require." 
 
 Aided by Goyemon, the Kard directed the struggle on every side, 
 while the young men, vieing with each other in bravery, kept up a 
 constant clashing of weapons. 
 
 To the north of the mansion of Moronaho lay that of Nikki 
 Harima-no-kami ; * to the south, the residence of Ishido Umanojo.t 
 On either side, the roofs of the buildings were crowded with men 
 carrying lanterns, twinkling in the darkness of the night like the 
 stars in heaven. 
 
 "Ya, ya," they cried, "what means all this uproar and confusion, 
 clashing of weapons, and hurtling of arrows? Are you attacked by 
 rioters, or by robbers, or has a fire broken out somewhere? We 
 have been commanded to find out what is going on, and inform 
 our masters of the cause of the disturbance." 
 
 "We are liegemen of Yenya Hanguwan," replied Yuranosuke, 
 without a moment's hesitation. " Some forty of us banded together 
 to revenge our lord's death upon his enemy, and are now struggling 
 to get at him. I who address you am Ohoboshi Yuranosuke, and 
 my companion here is Hara Goyemon. We are not rising against 
 
 * I.e„ Nikki, Lord or Count of Harima. 
 
 t One of the commissioners mentioned in the Fourth Book, 
 
140 Chiushingura ; or, the Loyal League. 
 
 the government, still less have we any quarrel with your lords. As 
 to fire, strict orders have been given to be careful, and we beg 
 you not to be under any apprehensions on that score. We only 
 ask you to leave us alone, and not to interfere with us ; if, as 
 neighbours, you should think yourselves bound to assist our enemy, 
 we shall be obliged, despite our inclination, to turn our weapons 
 against you.'' 
 
 To these bold words of Yuranosuke the retainers of the noblemen 
 on either side of the mansion of Moronaho shouted back approvingly : 
 
 " Right well done, right well done ; in your place we should 
 feel ourselves bound to act as you are acting ; pray command our 
 services." 
 
 And the next moment the roofs were deserted, amid cries of 
 " Down with your lanterns, there, down with your lanterns." 
 
 Meanwhile the struggle with the retainers of Moronaho continued, 
 some two or three only of Yuranosuke's comrades being wounded 
 after an hour's fighting, while quite a number of the enemy were 
 stricken down. 
 
 Nothing, however, could be seen of Moronaho, although the 
 soldier Heiyemon ransacked the buildings in search of him. 
 
 "I have searched every room," cried Heiyemon, approaching his 
 chief, " and probed the ceilings and floors with my spear, but without 
 coming upon any trace of our enemy. But I looked into his sleeping- 
 room, and found the bed-clothes still warm, so that, seeing what a 
 cold night it is, he cannot have got far away. Possibly he has made 
 for the great gate, so, without further delay " 
 
 The soldier was on the point of hastening away to guard the 
 issue he had referred to, when he was interrupted by a voice crying : 
 
 " Ho, there, Heiyemon, not so fast, not so fast." 
 
 The next moment, Yazama abruptly made his appearance, dragging 
 with him their long-sought enemy, Moronaho. 
 
 "Look at him, look at him," cried the elated captor, "I found 
 him hidden in an outhouse, and dragged him here alive.*' 
 
 The sight of their enemy in their power revived the cast-down 
 

 Retribution , 
 
 141 
 
 spirits of the conspirators, as the dew revives the drooping 
 flower. 
 
 " Well done, well done, indeed," cried Yuranosuke. " But he must 
 not be put an end to unceremoniously. He was a S/u'tsi/ji* in the 
 Empire for a time, and must be put to death in due form." 
 
 At a sign from Yuranosuke, Moronaho was placed in a prominent 
 position in an adjoining apartment. t 
 
 Yuranosuke, addressing the victim, exclaimed : " Though but as 
 doubly humble retainers!, we have ventured to force ourselves within 
 your walls, impelled by the desire of avenging the death of our lord 
 upon his enemy. We pray you pardon our violence, and beg of 
 you that you will present us with your head,§ according to the 
 usage of our country." 
 
 Moronaho, though a vile sort of creature enough, yet managed to 
 keep a composed countenance, exclaiming with forced calmness : 
 
 " Right, right, I am ready ; here is my head — take it." 
 
 Thrown off his guard for a moment, the Karo approached his 
 prisoner, who, suddenly drawing his sword, aimed a blow at Yuranosuke, 
 which the latter only escaped by a nimble leap aside, and twisting up 
 his assailant's arm. 
 
 " Ha," cried the Karo, " a clever stroke that. Sah ! Friends, upon 
 him — you may slake your thirst for vengeance now." 
 
 Another moment, and the body of Moronaho lay on the floor, 
 covered with wounds. 
 
 The conspirators crowded round it, wild with excitement, shouting ; 
 
 " O rare sight ! O happy fortune ! Happy are we as the moki\ 
 
 * Regent or Viceroy under the Shogun. 
 
 f Such seems to be the meaning of the author, who is here more than 
 usually obscure. 
 
 t Lit., " retainers of a retainer." 
 
 § The Karo wished his enemy to commit seppuku, and then to take his 
 head. This was the form of vengence that most approved itself to the 
 sentiments of a Japanese gentleman of the old school. 
 
 11 The moki, according to a Chinese fable, was a species of sea-tortoise 
 with one eye in its belly. For three thousand years the monster had longed 
 to see the light, but in vain. One day, while swimming about the surface of 
 
142 
 
 Chiushingura ; or, the Loyal League. 
 
 when he found his waif, fortunate as though we gazed upon the flower 
 of the udonge* that blossoms but once in three thousand years." 
 
 Cutting off their enemy's head with the dagger with which their 
 dead master had committed srppuku, they resumed their orgy, 
 exclaiming : 
 
 *■* We deserted our wives, we abandoned our children, we left our 
 aged folk uncared for, all to obtain this one head. How auspicious 
 a day is this ! " 
 
 They struck at the head in their frenzy, gnashed at it, shed tears 
 over it ; their grief and fury, poor wretches, beggared description. 
 
 Yuranosuke, drawing from his bosom the ihai\ of his dead master, 
 placed it reverently on a small stand at the upper end of the room, 
 and then set the head of Moronaho, cleansed from blood, on another 
 opposite to it. He next took a perfume from within his helmet, and 
 burnt it before the tablet of his lord, prostrating himself and with- 
 drawing slowly, while he bowed his head reverently three times, and 
 then again thrice three times. 
 
 " O thou soul of my liege lord, with awe doth thy vassal approach 
 thy mighty presence, who art now like unto him that was born of 
 the lotus-flower to attain a glory and eminence beyond the under- 
 standing of men ! Before the sacred tablet tremblingly set I the 
 head of thine enemy, severed from his corpse by the sword thou 
 deignedst to bestow upon thy servant in the hour of thy last agony. 
 O thou that art now resting amid the shadows of the tall grass,j 
 look with favour on my offering. 1 ' Bursting into tears, the Kara of 
 Yenya thus adored the memory of his lord. 
 
 " And now, comrades," he resumed, after a pause, " advance each 
 
 the sea, it came into contact with a piece of drift-wood, to which it 
 immediately clung in such a manner that the belly was uppermost under the 
 wood, a ragged hole in which fortunately allowed the tortoise the opportunity 
 of at last satisfying its long-cherished desire. 
 
 * The udonye is a plant so rarely seen in flower that it is fancifully 
 said to bloom but once in three thousand years. — Vide Appendix, 
 
 t Vide Appendix. 
 
 X An euphemism for the grave : a Buddhic term.. 
 

 "<Etfrg/*M^ 
 
■ 
 
 
 I 
 
 
 k 
 
 
 
 #* . 
 

 Retribution. 
 
 143 
 
 of you, one after the other, and burn incense before the tablet of your 
 master." 
 
 " We would all," cried Ishido, " venture to ask our chief first 
 among us to render that honour to our lord's memory." 
 
 " Nay," answered the Karo, " tis not I who of right should be the 
 first. Yazama Jiutaro, to you of right falls that honour." 
 
 " Not so," cried Yazama, " I claim no such favour. Others might 
 think I had no right, to it, and troubles might thus arise." 
 
 " No one will think that," exclaimed Yuranosuke. " We have all 
 freely ventured our lives in the struggle to seize Moronaho, but to 
 you, — to you fell the glory of finding him, and it was you who dragged 
 him here, alive, into our presence. Twas a good deed, Yazama, 
 acceptable to the spirit of our master ; each of us would fain have 
 been the doer of it. Comrades, say I not well ? " 
 
 Ishido assented on behalf of the rest. 
 
 " Delay not, Yazama," resumed Yuranosuke, " for time flies fast." 
 
 " If it must be so," cried Yazama, as he passed forward, uttering 
 gomen * in a low tone, and offered incense the first of the company. 
 
 " And next our chief," exclaimed Ishido. 
 
 " Nay," said the Karo, " there is yet one who should pass before 
 me." 
 
 "What man can that be?" asked Ishido, wonderingly, while his 
 comrades echoed his words. 
 
 The Kara, without replying, drew a purse made of striped stuff 
 from his bosom. " He who shall precede me," cried the Kard, " is 
 Hayano Kampei. A negligence of his duty as a vassal prevented 
 him from being received into our number, but, eager to take at least 
 a part in the erection of a monument to his liege lord, he sold away 
 his wife, and thus became able to furnish his share toward the expense. 
 Thinking that he had murdered his father-in-law to obtain the money, I 
 caused it to be returned to him, and, mad with despair, he committed 
 seppuku and died — a most miserable and piteous death. All my life 
 
 * I.e., " with your august permission." 
 
144 
 
 Chiushinguva ; or, the Loyal League. 
 
 I shall never cease to regret having caused the money to be returned 
 to him; never for a moment will be absent from my memory that 
 through my fault he came to so piteous an end. During this night's 
 struggle, the purse has been among us, borne by Heiyemon — let 
 the latter pass forward, and in the name of his sister's dead husband, 
 burn incense before the tablet of our lord." 
 
 Heiyemon, thus addressed, passed forward, exclaiming : 
 " From amidst the shadows of the tall grass blades the soul of 
 Kampei thanks you for the unlooked-for favour you confer upon him." 
 Laying the purse upon the censer, he added : 
 
 " Tis Hayano Kampei who, second in turn, offers incense before 
 the tablet of his liege lord." 
 
 The remainder followed, offering up in like manner, amid loud cries 
 of grief, and with sobs and tears, and trembling in the anguish of their 
 minds, incense before the tablet of their master. 
 
 Suddenly the air is filled with the din of the trampling of men, with 
 the clatter of hoofs, and with the noise of war-drums. 
 Yuranosuke does not change a feature. 
 
 " 'Tis the retainers of Moronaho who are coming down upon us — 
 why should we fight with them ? " 
 
 The Kard is about to give the signal to his comrades to accomplish 
 the final act of their devotion by committing seppuku in memory of 
 their lord, when Momonoi Wakasanosuke appears upon the scene, 
 disordered with the haste he had used, in his fear of being too late. 
 
 " Moroyasu, the young brother of Moronaho, is already at the 
 great gate," cries Momonoi. " If you commit seppuku at such a 
 moment it will be said that you were driven to it by fear, and an 
 infamous memory will attach to your deed. I counsel you to depart 
 hence without delay, and betake yourselves to the burial-place of your 
 lord, the temple of Komyo." 
 
 " So shall it be," answered Yuranosuke, after a pause. " We 
 will do as you counsel us, and will accomplish our last hour before 
 the tomb of our ill-fated lord. We would ask you, Sir Wakasanosuke, 
 to prevent our enemies from following us." 
 

 I 
 
 B 
 
 '■> 
 
Retribution. 
 
 H5 
 
 Hardly had Yuranosuke concluded, when Yakushiji Jirozayemon* 
 and Barmai Sagisaka suddenly rushed forth from their hiding-places, 
 shouting : 
 
 " Ohoboshi, villain, thou shalt not escape,"' and struck right and 
 left at the Kara. Without a moment's delay, Rikiya hastened to his 
 father's assistance, and forced the wretches to turn their weapons 
 against himself. The struggle did not last long. Avoiding a blow 
 aimed at him by Yakushiji, Rikiya cut the fellow down, and left 
 him writhing in mortal agony upon the ground. Bannai met with 
 a similar fate. A frightful gash upon the leg brought him to his 
 knee, — a pitiable spectacle enough, — and a few moments afterwards 
 the wretch breathed his last. 
 
 " A valiant deed, a valiant deed ! " 
 
 ******* 
 
 ******* 
 
 For ever and ever shall the memory endure of these faithful 
 clansmen, and in the earnest hope that the story of their loyalty — full 
 bloom of the bamboo leaff — may remain a bright example as long 
 as the dynasty of our rulers shall last, has the foregoing tale of 
 their heroism been writ down. 
 
 * One of the commissioners referred to in the Fourth Book. 
 
 t Take (bamboo) formed part of the boy-name of each successive occupant of 
 the throne of the Shoguns during the period in which the so-called temporal 
 power was vested in the hands of members of the Tokugawa dynasty. 
 
 EN'D OF THE ELEVENTH BOOK. 
 
 *3» 
 
I 
 
A P P ENDI X. 
 
 'HERE are several different texts of the 
 Chiushingura extant, among which that of 
 the jdrtin'* which lias been chiefly used in 
 preparing the foregoing translation, seems to 
 be the most popular. 
 
 The most complete and standard text, 
 however, is that of the " Vehon Chiushingura" 
 (Illustrated Chiushingura), in two parts, each ten 
 volumes, the first part narrating the events that led 
 up to the conspiracy of the forty-seven rdrrin, and 
 the successful issue of it ; the latter part the further 
 fortunes of the conspirators. The work is profusely 
 illustrated with spirited though coarsely-executed 
 woodcuts, and seems to have been published in the 
 twelfth year of the " nengo " Kuwansei (a.d. iSoo-i). 
 It is extremely badly printed, and little use has been 
 made of it in preparing the present translation. 
 
 * The etymology of this word is uncertain. It is, however, a Sinico- 
 Japanese compound, and the Chinese characters by which it is represented 
 mean " the pure blue porcelain glaze," or, metaphorically, the genius of tragedy. 
 According to a writer in the Japan Mail of March ioth, 1875, this species of 
 composition takes its name from Joruri Hime, the mistress of the favourite 
 Japanese hero Yoshitsune, the brother of Yoritomo, the founder of the hereditary 
 
148 Appendix. 
 
 The author was one Chikamatsu Monzayemon, who appears to 
 have flourished in the early portion of the eighteenth century. I 
 am not aware of any other important production of his pen. 
 
 The edition I have principally used* announces itself as having 
 been printed, partly at Ohosaka, by one Seisuke, at the sign of Kajima, 
 in the Funa-machi ("Ship Street'"); partly at Yedo, at a house in 
 the Seto-mono-eho ( " Porcelain Street " ), near the Nihon-bashi 
 ("Japan Bridge" — the "London Bridge" of the Capital of Dai 
 Nippon). 
 
 It is in eleven parts or livraisons, the last being double, and is 
 printed in a large thick character known as kantera, a term 
 apparently not Japanese, and the meaning of which I have been 
 unable to discover. 
 
 The text is written partly in sosho,i Chinese character, partly in 
 
 Shogunate (a.d. iiSo, circiter); and, though afterwards chiefly used in tragic 
 narration, was first employed in telling the tale of the loves of the frail princess. 
 More probably, however, the latter fact has, by a kind of metonomy, invested 
 this Japanese Timandra (Yoshitsune may, without impropriety, be called the 
 Alkibiades of Japan) with a posthumous title which it were not, perhaps, too 
 fanciful to render as " The Muse of the Drama." 
 
 A jdruri, at the present day, is a sort of dramatic part-prose part-metrical 
 romance, commonly of a tragic cast, of which the dialogue may be recited or 
 sung by actors, with appropriate gestures : the utaigata, or song-men of the 
 orchestra, interposing, from time to time, with the narrative, which is often cast 
 in a sort of irregular verse, and thus discharging to some extent the functions of 
 a Greek chorus. 
 
 * The original text of the translation now offered differs somewhat — in 
 places, considerably — from that resorted to for the earlier version. 
 
 f I.e. " grass writing, " a cursive abbreviated mode of writing, more com- 
 monly used in Japan than the ordinary square Chinese. The principal diffi- 
 culty in the acquirement of the written language lies in the decipherment of 
 this variable and puzzling form, well termed by the old Spanish missionaries 
 an invention dc tin conciliabulo tic los demonios para cnojar a los fidclcs, and several 
 years' assiduous study are necessary to obtain a useful command of it, which 
 can be retained afterwards only by constant practice. The advantages that 
 would result to the Japanese from an adoption of the Roman characters-— a 
 perfectly feasible change — are simple incalculable. A real foundation would 
 thus soon be laid, on which a true national civilization, very different from 
 the mere imitative and often very laughable travesty of Western forms, beyond 
 

 SkwYfl Jfl£KS^S»® $8&£$& 
 
 Appendix. 
 
 149 
 
 the flowing Japanese syllabic character known as hiragana, the sdsho 
 forms being not seldom accompanied by a transliteration into 
 hiragana. 
 
 In addition, the columns of the text are, to some extent, notated 
 musically; various marks indicating where and how the voice should 
 be modulated, and where the accompaniment should be introduced. 
 There is no punctuation, beyond a division into sentences or phrases, 
 shown by a plain circle having nearly the same value as our comma. 
 
 A Japanese orchestra generally consists of nine performers 
 (gakuni/i), distributed as follows : 
 
 Two Taiko-gata, or drummers. 
 
 Two Fuye-gata, or fife-players. 
 
 Two Shoshichiriki, or flageolet-players. 
 
 One Kanc-gata, answering to our triangle-man. 
 
 Two Utai-gata, or song-men. 
 
 Such an orchestra is called a kunin-bayashi ; when it consists of 
 only one performer of each kind it is called a gonin-bayashi — i.e., 
 " five-men-grove " hayashi, " grove " being the technical term for 
 a musical band, company, or orchestra. The kanc-gata generally 
 introduces and terminates the whole piece, and each successive 
 movement of the music as well. He is followed by the flageolet- 
 players, and they, in their turn, by the lifers, the drummers coming 
 last. The whole band, except the kanc-gata and the utai-gata, then 
 perform a sextet in concert, the kanc-gata introducing his instrument 
 from time to time. The sextet finished, the duets — or, in a gonin- 
 bayas/ii, the solos — recommence, and the whole piece thus consists 
 of a succession of movements, in which the instrumentalists follow 
 each other in the order above described ; each movement being 
 a series of duets, in a full orchestra, by the different musicians, 
 
 which the Japanese, for the present, seem unable to advance, might be based ; 
 and the land of Dai Nippon, which can at least boast of never having been 
 insulted by the tread of the conqueror within historic times, would rapidly 
 assume a leading position among the ancient empires of the Extreme East. 
 
150 
 
 Appendix. 
 
 followed by a sextet of the whole of them, except the triangle and 
 song-men. 
 
 The action of the romance is laid in the 14th century, but the 
 events upon which it is founded really occurred at the commence- 
 ment of the 1 8th; and must have created a great and lasting 
 interest among the people, for the story is referred to in the 
 commonest epitomes of Japanese history, and is — or, at least, was, 
 some few years ago —familiar to every Japanese with the least 
 tincture of education. In view, however, of the severe penalties 
 that, under the Shogunate, attached to the publication of recent or 
 current events of a public character, the author found himself forced 
 to adopt the practice, not uncommon with Western writers of a 
 couple of centuries back, of barely disguising the reality by diluting 
 it, so to speak, with a certain amount of fiction, and by so alter- 
 ing names and dates as to evade the law without too effectually 
 concealing the truth. The episode has been given to the world by 
 Mr. Mitford, in one of his admirable Tales of Old Japan, that of 
 the " Forty-seven Rdnin " ; but I have nevertheless thought it not 
 out of place to re-tell the tale in the following abbreviation from 
 a. popular Japanese version of it, endeavouring as far as possible 
 merely to supply the lacuna in Mr. Mitford's version. 
 
 During the reign of the Shogun Iyetsuna, the President of the 
 Gordjiu (Council of State, lit, "August Assembly of Elders"), about 
 the middle of the nth month of k the 13th year of the period 
 Genroku (a.d. 1701), was officially informed that, in the 3rd 
 month of the ensuing year, three ambassadors of high rank would 
 arrive at Vedo from the Court at Kiyoto. The President, in con- 
 sequence of this announcement, appointed Asano Takumi-no-Kami 
 (Venya Hanguwan) and Kamei Sama (Wakasanosuke) special com- 
 missioners to receive the ambassadors, with directions to consider 
 themselves under the orders of an official of no very high rank, 
 Kira Kodskenoske Voshifusa (Moronaho). The Kard of Kamei, 
 Ogiwara (Honzo) by name, on hearing of his master's appoint- 
 ment under Kira Kodske, who soon began to show his harsh ancj 
 

 Appendix. 
 
 151 
 
 tyrannical disposition, lost no time in seeking out the latter, and 
 winning his favour by timely gifts. Ohoishi Kuranosuke (Ohoboshi 
 Yuranosuke), the Kard of Asano Takumi, refused to act in a similar 
 manner, though much passed to do so by Ohotaka Gengo (Ohowashi 
 Bungo), a retainer of Asano. Kira Kodske consequently received 
 Asano with the worst grace possible, and took every opportunity 
 of slighting him. On the arrival of the ambassadors, Asano, who 
 was but ill-acquainted with the duties of his office, committed 
 several grave errors in the discharge of his commission, for which 
 he was severely reprimanded by Kira Kodske. Anxious to avoid 
 a repetition of his fault, Asano, previously to the coming-off of a 
 grand entertainment which the Court at Yedo gave to the am- 
 bassadors, sought advice and instruction from his superior. But 
 the revengeful and covetous Kira Kodske refused to assist him in 
 any way, and treated him with such violence that the unfortunate 
 Asano at last lost his temper, and drew his sword upon his tyrant 
 within the precincts of the palace, inflicting upon him a severe wound. 
 Kira Kodske, indeed, would have been slain, but for the timely, or un- 
 timely, interference of one Kachikawa Yosobei (whose rdlc, in the 
 romance, is appropriated by Honzo). By thus drawing weapon 
 within the court-precincts, Asano committed a capital offence, and 
 was accordingly compelled to rip his bowels open, on the 14th of 
 3rd month of 14th year of Genroku (a.d. 1702). 
 
 Meanwhile, Kayano Sampei (Hayano Kampei), a retainer ot 
 Asano, in company with a comrade, had, at the commencement 
 of the quarrel between their master and Kira Kodske, the 
 consequences of which he dreaded, travelled the extraordinary 
 distance of 170 ri (420 miles) in 4^ days — ordinarily a journey 
 of 17 days — to find the Kard of their clan, Kuranosuke, who was 
 in Banshiu (Harima), and warn him of the danger which Asano 
 ran through the ill-will of Kira Kodske. 
 
 News of the self-dispatch arrived the very day after their 
 arrival, and the retainers of Asano, wild with rage and grief, 
 hardly knew how to act. Kuranosuke next received information 
 
J 52 
 
 Appendix. 
 
 from Yedo that, unless his master's castle and lands were sur- 
 rendered, orders would be issued that the whole family and clan 
 of Asano should be utterly destroyed. The Kard endeavoured 
 to avert this disaster, but in vain ; and, on the news of his want 
 of success reaching him, assembled the clan, and after explaining 
 to them their position, and the impossibility of defending their 
 lord's castle and lands against his enemies, produced a document 
 binding them to commit self-dispatch, to the terms of which he 
 prevailed upon sixty-three of them to signify their assent in the 
 most solemn manner, namely, by imposing upon it their hands 
 smeared with their own blood. The rest had discreetly retired 
 during the delivery of the Karffs address. 
 
 Having thus separated his wheat from the chaff, he called 
 the sixty-three together again, and told them that his real 
 purpose was, not that they should at once commit self-dispatch, 
 but that they should first of all slay Kira Kodske, and afterwards 
 "follow their lord upon the dark path." This was agreed to on 
 the nth of the 4th month. 
 
 Amano Yarihei (Amagawa Gihei) now comes upon the scene. 
 He had acted as agent for the clan, and, on hearing of the cruel 
 death of Asano, had offered Kuranosuke all the aid he could 
 give towards the carrying out of any design the Kard might 
 entertain against Kira Kodske. The Kard at first declined the 
 trader's assistance, but, on the latter's devotion being shown by 
 his attempt to kill himself on being refused the boon he asked 
 for, Kuranosuke revealed to him the plot to revenge the death 
 of Asano upon his enemy, and consented to allow the delighted 
 chdnin to furnish the requisite arms and fighting gear. 
 
 The Kard then laid hands on the treasure of Asano, and, 
 after calling in and paying off the paper currency of the clan, 
 and reserving a small sum for the expenses of the conspiracy, 
 divided the remainder equally among his sixty-three fellow- 
 conspirators, each of whom received 25 riyd. This was especially 
 displeasing to one Ono Kurohei (Ono Kudaiu), who had urged 
 

 Appendix. 
 
 153 
 
 the Karo to divide the money among the conspirators propor- 
 tionately to their salaries- — a proposition to which Kuranosuke 
 would not listen, saying that misfortune had put them all on 
 a level. 
 
 The conspirators then separated, promising to assemble upon 
 the signal of the Karo. 
 
 Kayano Sampei (Hayano Kampei), meanwhile, went to his 
 village, and there found his mother dead. His father besought 
 him to secede from the conspiracy, pleading his age and 
 loneliness ; and Kayano, distracted between his love for his father 
 and his sense of honour and loyalty to his lord, sought escape 
 from the dilemma in self-dispatch. 
 
 All proper preparations having been made, Kuranosuke, with 
 his comrades — the conspirators had, in the interval, dwindled down 
 to forty-seven in number — forced their way into the mansion of 
 Kira Kodske by night, and put the enemy of their much- 
 mourned lord to death. This act of vengeance seems to have 
 been accomplished on the 14th of the last month of the 14th 
 year of Genroku (a.d. 1702). The authorities were somewhat 
 perplexed how to act — so great was the sympathy felt for the 
 devoted band — but finally condemned them to Seppuku, which 
 they accomplished the following year at the tomb of Asano, 
 in the burial-ground of the Temple of Sengaku at Yedo. 
 
 The Temple of Sengaku is close to that of Tosen, formerly the 
 British Legation — and the tombs of Asano and his forty-seven 
 devoted followers are still shown there. 
 
 The marvellous portion of this " ower-true tale " remains to be 
 told. The conspirators, after slaying Kira Kodske, cut off his head, 
 and offered it with proper ceremonial at the tomb of their lord. As 
 the head touched the stone-work the monument was distinctly seen 
 to quiver. 
 
 The following is said to be the " Schwanenlied " of Asano : 
 
 Kazc sasou 
 Hana yori mo, 
 
154 
 
 Appendix, 
 
 Nawo mata haru no 
 
 Nagori wo 
 
 Ika ni to ka sen ! 
 
 which may be thus rendered — 
 
 * Tender blossoms strew the ground, 
 Flung in wan confusion round 
 
 By the wind's too boist'rous breath 
 More my lot might pity find, 
 Forced to leave sweet Spring behind, 
 Doomed to an untimely death- 
 
 Page i. Shtgun. 
 
 This, the ordinary official title of the former Kubo (known 
 generally to foreigners as Tycoon), is a Sinico-Japanese compound, 
 meaning "General" or " Commander of the Forces." 
 
 The full title is Sei-i-tai-shogun, "barbarian-quelling Generalis- 
 simo," and is said to have been first bestowed, about 86 B.C., by 
 the Emperor Shiujin upon his son, the celebrated Yamato-dake- 
 no-Mikoto, who reduced the indigenous Aino tribes of the North 
 and East into subjection to the Imperial power. 
 
 The first of the hereditary Shoguns, however was Minamoto 
 Yoritomo, upon whom the title was conferred in a.d. 1190, or, at 
 least, from that date, if, as some writers maintain, it was bestowed 
 posthumously. Whatever may be the truth as to the date of 
 bestowal of the rank upon Yoritomo, there can be no doubt as 
 to his exercise of the power belonging to it for many years previous 
 to his death, which was caused by a fall from his horse in the last 
 year of the 12th century after Christ. The predominant position 
 which he had won for the office was maintained by his successors 
 in it, all of whom were direct or collateral descendants from the 
 Minamoto stock — or were adopted as such — up to the year 1868, 
 when the Mikado resumed the power of which his ancestors had 
 
 * Asano died in the month of March, when the wild-cherry, so often the 
 theme of Japanese poets and artists, is in blossom — a fugiti%-e beauty soon 
 perishing under the rough blasts of the equinoctial gales. 
 
Appendix. 
 
 155 
 
 for so long a period been deprived, and H'totsubashi, better known 
 as Keiki, the last, and apparently the least energetic of his dynasty, 
 retired to the town of Shidzuoka, some 60 miles westward of 
 Yokohama, where, forgetful of the glories of his foregoers, he 
 leads a life of somewhat ignoble obscurity and ease. 
 
 Page 1. The Shdgun of the Ashikaga family had overthrown Nitta 
 
 Yoshisada. 
 
 The Ashikaga branch of the Minamoto family held the 
 Shogunate from a.d. 1334 to a.d. 1579, or thereabouts. 
 
 When the dynasty of Yoritomo became extinct, in a.d. 
 1 2 19, the Shogunate passed, nominally, first into the hands of 
 members of the great Fujiwara house (one of the original eight 
 noble families), and afterwards into those of a succession of 
 Shinwo, or princes of the Imperial blood, but the real power 
 was exercised by the H6jo family,* connected by marriage, and, 
 probably by blood also, with that of Yoritomo. 
 
 During this period, the Mikados seem to have been mere 
 puppets in the hands of the Hojo usurpers, but towards its 
 close, the Emperor Godaigo — who owed his elevation to the 
 influence of the Court of Kamakura (then the Eastern Capital 
 and residence of the Shoguns — as Yedo, now Tokio, was after- 
 wards — now a mere village, distant some 16 miles from Yokohama, 
 and chiefly famous for its grand bronze image of Buddha) — 
 nevertheless made a show of independence, and, in his attempt 
 to free himself from the thraldom in which he was held by his 
 powerful vassal, brought about the war known in Japanese 
 history as the war between the Faction of the North (the 
 Kamakura party) and the Faction of the South (Kiyoto part}), 
 which was to be alike ruinous to himself and his rebellious subject. 
 
 * The town of Odawara, so well known to European residents, was the 
 principal seat of this family, who had a strong castle there, now in ru'ns 
 and held sway over a large extent of the surrounding country. 
 
156 
 
 Appendix. 
 
 The war, which commenced in a.d. 13 19, lasted, or rather 
 languished, for 75 years. During it, either party maintained its 
 own Emperor, but since the revolution of 1868 the names of 
 the Emperors of the North have been expunged from the 
 Imperial catalogue, and the Emperors of the South alone are 
 now considered as having been the rightful occupants of the 
 throne. 
 
 In a.d. 1330, the Emperor Godaigo was taken prisoner and 
 sent in exile to the island of Oki. A year or two afterwards, 
 however, one of the Imperial generals defeated the Hojo forces 
 in a great battle, and made himself master of Kamakura. 
 The Imperial exile was re-established upon the throne, but 
 ungratefully gave his confidence, not to the men to whose 
 exertions he owed his return to power, but to a member of 
 the Ashikaga family of the name of Takauji. Disgusted with 
 their treatment, Nitta and his party rose in rebellion against 
 an emperor who knew so little how to requite their services. 
 The struggle was a brief one. Takauji was ordered to march 
 against them, and they were defeated with great slaughter, Nitta 
 himself being among the slain. The rebellion thus extinguished, 
 Takauji was installed as Shogun at Kamakura, and founded a 
 dynasty that for the next two centuries and a half was virtually 
 to govern Dai Nippon. 
 
 Page 
 
 Shrine to be erected to Ilachiman. 
 
 The etymology or real signification of this appellation of 
 the Japanese Ares I have not been able to trace. The Chinese 
 characters by which it is usually represented mean the " Eight 
 banners," and may possibly imply some notion of the god being 
 a sort of manifestation of the Buddha of the Eight Banners. 
 
 The hero deified under this title was the Emperor Ojin, who 
 died about the commencement of the 4th century of our era. 
 His mother was the Empress Jingu, celebrated as the conqueror 
 

 Appendix. 
 
 157 
 
 of Korea. According to some, Ojin was the conqueror of 
 Korea, and was, on this account, deified as the God of War. 
 Others, again, assert that he made the Japanese acquainted with 
 the art of weaving, and favoured the adoption of Chinese civilization. 
 He was commonly worshipped by samurahi, and was vernacularly 
 known as the Yumiya, or Archer God. The principal temple 
 at Kamakura is dedicated to his worship. 
 
 Page 1. Nengo Riyakuv. 
 
 Previously to the adoption, some two or three years since, of 
 the European calendar, three systems of chronology existed in 
 Japan, all similar in character to what still exist in China. 
 
 The era of the first commenced with the accession of the 
 traditional Emperor Jinmu, in B.C. 600. Thus a.d. 1870 was 
 2530 of the era of Jinmu. 
 
 The second was based upon the sexagenal cycle used in 
 China to the present day. The first of these cycles commenced 
 with the 61st year of the reign of Hwang Ti, B.C. 2637, and 
 the year 1875 1S the nth of the 76th cycle. 
 
 The mode in which the sexagenal cycle was used, and each 
 year of it distinguished, was not a little complicated, and for 
 an explanation of it — which would be out of place here — the 
 reader is referred to any work of repute upon China or Japan. 
 
 According to the third system, the one most commonly used 
 in books, any year after a.d. 645 was known by its place in 
 the "nengo" (chin "nien hao") or year periods, which from time 
 to time were established and named by Imperial decree. These 
 "nengo" had a duration of from 2 to 15 or 20 years, and were 
 distinguished by such high-sounding titles as "Exalted Virtue," 
 " Celestial Peace," " Great Development," and the like. The present 
 " nengo," which is not to be changed during the life of the 
 reigning Emperor, is called Meiji, " Ilkistrtetfcr Rule," and the 
 year 1879 ]S the I3tn )' car °f it' 
 
i5« 
 
 Appendix. 
 
 The name "Riyakuo" in the text signifies "Uninterrupted 
 Prosperity." 
 
 Page 2. Wakasanosuke Yasuchika. 
 
 In Japan, the family name, only used by men, comes first; 
 the individual name assumed at puberty comes afterwards. Under 
 the old regime, the son of a samurahi on attaining the age of 
 15 performed "gembuku," that is, shaved off his forelock, and 
 became a "jak'k'wan," entitled to wear a hat or cap. At the 
 same time he adopted a "nanori," or individual name, generally 
 selected for him, according to certain very intricate rules, by a 
 man of learning, with or without the assistance of a soothsayer, 
 astrologer, or diviner. 
 
 Government officials, and shizoku generally (the samurahi of 
 the "Tokugawa jibun," or old Tycoon days), are now giving up 
 the practice of "gembuku," and wear their hair in the European 
 fashion, as they clothe their bodies in strange-looking travesties 
 of European garments. 
 
 Page 2. A Baron of Hakushiu. 
 Hakushiu is synonymous with Hoki, one of the former Sanindo 
 
 provinces. 
 
 Page 2. Sciwa family, a Gcnji house. 
 
 The usurpation of Yoritomo — for such, in effect, his ascendancy 
 became — towards the close of the 12th century, was the culminat- 
 ing point of the struggle between the powerful Taira, or Hei, 
 and the Minamoto, or Gen, clans, that for a long course of 
 years had spread ruin through the Empire, to end in the 
 establishment of the hereditary Shogunate in the family of the 
 
 * Vide Mr. Satow's Geography of Japan, Trans. As. Sue. Jap., 1872-73, 
 
Appendix. 
 
 159 
 
 successful chief of the latter faction. The Seiwa was the elder 
 branch of the Gen house, and derived its name from its founder, 
 the Emperor Seiwa, who flourished about the middle of the 
 9th century. 
 
 Page 2. Feudatories. 
 
 In the text " Hatamoto," literally, " under the flag " (of the 
 Shogun). They were the lesser feudatories of the Kubo, and 
 were often known as Shdmiyd ("lesser names"), in contradistinction 
 to the Daimiyd (" greater names '*). The main difference, however, 
 between the higher and lower nobles seems to have been less one 
 of birth than of property — the Daimiyo being holders of lands of 
 which the produce was valued at 10,000 kokus of rice annually, or 
 more ; the Shdmiyd, of lands of which the annual produce was under 
 10,000 kokus. 
 
 Page 3. The Twelve Naishi. 
 
 A Sinico-Japanese word, meaning " inner attendants." They were 
 noble ladies, daughters of Kugc, who were peers of the Mikado's 
 creation, higher in rank than the Daimiyd (who were, in reality, 
 nothing more than deputies of the Shogun), but possessed only of 
 small estates, and of little direct power or influence. Their duties 
 were to wait upon the Mikado and his consort (fCwdgo). 
 
 Page 5. Yoshida Kcnkd. 
 A mediocre versifier, who flourished under the Shogunate of 
 Takauji. Some of the pieces in the well-known Kokinshiu (" Songs, 
 New and Old ") are attributed to him. He was also the author of 
 a collection of essays on all sorts of subjects of very little intrinsic 
 interest or value, known as the Tsure-dzure-smsa. 
 
 Page 8. Ogon. 
 Ogon should be translated " barred gold pieces." The coins referred 
 to were probably Oban. Oban, Koban, and silver coins seem (according 
 
i6o 
 
 Appendix. 
 
 to the Kingin-dzumoku) to have been first issued in the nengo Tensho, 
 (a.d. 1573-1596); though in the same work we find hints that coins 
 were in use as far back as the nengo Tengiyo (a.d. 93S-947). The 
 " oban " was a thin plate of gold (or heavily-gilt silver) of oval shape, 
 about 6 inches long by 4 inches broad, marked with various stamps 
 and seals, rough on the one face, generally on the other covered 
 with an elaborate design, consisting of rows (commonly seven) of 
 transverse shuttle-shaped depressions. The Tensho oban contained 
 44 momme of gold (a momme was, I believe, about 58 grains 
 troy). On the ornamental face are written the characters " ten 
 riyo," by which are meant, says the Kingin Dzumoku, ogon, 
 or fine gold, riyo, so that each oban was worth 420 momme of silver. 
 The seal was a paraph of the characters "yei-jo," which signify 
 literally " glory and order." 
 
 Page 30 (note). The J-'apanese "abacus" or calculating board. 
 
 The reader is referred to the article on Arithmetic in the " Encyclo- 
 paedia Britannica," where a full account of the abacus in use in China, 
 (swanpan), and in Japan (soroban) will be found. 
 
 Page 26 (note f). The word " suma " is a misprint for " tsuma." 
 
 Page 37. Kamishimo. 
 
 A sort of outer ceremonial dress, of stiffened material, curiously 
 shaped about the shoulders so as to present a winged appearance. 
 The trader-class, as well as the samurahi, seem to have had the 
 right of wearing it on certain occasions. A peculiar Kamishimo, 
 without any device or crest, was worn by a samurahi when committing 
 seppuku. 
 
 Page 45. Example set by the falcon. 
 
 "Taka wa shishite mo ho wa tsumadzu." — The falcon even at 
 the point of death will not peck at an ear of rice. Of such a noble 
 
Appendix. 
 
 161 
 
 nature is the bird, that it would rather die than rob the peasant of 
 a single grain of rice. 
 
 Page 47. J am as fortunate as if J were to come upon the Udongc 
 
 in bloom. 
 
 In the great Sinico-Japanese Encyclopaedia — Wa Kan Sansai-dzuye, 
 "Japanese and Chinese Illustrations of the Three Powers (Heaven, 
 Earth, and Man)/' — vol. 94, part 1, under the heading of Basho, we 
 are told that the Udonge is a kind of fig-tree. In vol. 88, under 
 the word Ichifiku, the Udonge is again declared to be a kind of fig. 
 The popular notion is that the Udongc blooms but once in three 
 thousand years, a notion derived, doubtless, from the fact that, in 
 figs, the flowers being within and not without the receptacles, are not 
 externally visible ; and hence the tree appears never to bloom. 
 
 In the Nchankiyo, a Buddhist doctrinal work said to have been 
 composed shortly after the death — or perfection — of Sakya Muni, the 
 manifestation of Buddha upon earth is announced as a most rare 
 event — rare as the blooming of the Udonge. 
 
 In the century of poems collected by Kiu-an, there is a stanza 
 referring to the Udonge, of which the following is a literal rendering : — 
 
 'The reign of our Emperor, 
 May it be as the Tama-tsubaki, 
 Everlastingly green ; 
 May his days be so long in the land 
 That he may behold the Udongc bloom a hundred times." 
 
 The Tama-tsubaki is a hardy ever-green shrub, apparently identical 
 with the Euonymus < y r aponicus. The Ficus Indica, it will be re- 
 membered, is reverenced by the Southern Buddhists as a sacred tree. 
 
 Page 52. " Namu Amida Butsu," or " Namu miyohd rcnge kiyd:' 
 
 Introductory phrases of Buddhist prayers. The words are neither 
 Japanese nor Chinese, but are altered Sanskrit. The first is said to 
 mean "0 aid me, thou everlasting Buddha," or "Buddha of boundless 
 
 M 
 
l62 
 
 Appendix. 
 
 light." Amida. Amita, or Amitabha, ib a personage of the later 
 Buddhism, especially honoured in China as the king of the paradise in 
 the Western Heavens. " Namu " is the Sanskrit " namoh," Pali " namo 
 used in invocations. The second, translating the Chinese characters 
 in which it is commonly written, would seem to signify : " O precious 
 law and gospel of the lotus-flower." It is commonly used, if I 
 remember rightly, by members of the Nichiren sect. Good souls are 
 supposed to live for ever, perched upon a lotus-flower. Sadakuro 
 tells his victim to choose whatever prayer he may prefer, and die 
 without further delay. 
 
 Page 54. /// the text, the teeth of Karu are said to have been unblaekencd, 
 which evidence of her youth has been erroneously omitted from 
 the present version. 
 
 The extraordinary custom of blackening the teeth and shaving off 
 the eyebrows was originally practised by legally-married women only, 
 but gradually came to be adopted by all women who had attained 
 their twenty-second or twenty-third year, whether married or not. 
 The practice of shaving off the eyebrows is said to be falling into 
 desuetude, and the teeth are now, it is believed, blackened by married 
 women alone, and even by them only after having given birth to a 
 child. The material used in blackening the teeth is a preparation 
 of gall-nuts and oxide of iron. The custom is said to have arisen 
 in the reign of the Emperor Daigo (10th century), but I have not 
 been able to find any satisfactory explanation of its origin or meaning. 
 
 Page 55. The Bon month. 
 
 That lSj the ?th month, when, on the 13th, 14th, and 15th days, 
 the Bon festival, or feast of lanterns, is held. The Chinese characters 
 representing the word Bon mean "demon or spirit-period," but the 
 etymology of the word is unknown to me. The popular term is 
 Tama-matsuri, for Tamashii no matsun] "feast of ghosts" — All Souls' 
 Day, as we should say. 
 
- 
 
 Appendix. 
 
 163 
 
 A shelf is erected in the principal chamber of each house, on 
 which rushes are laid, and over which the that* or tablets of the 
 departed, are suspended, in the hope that their spirits will revisit 
 the scene of their earthly life. A cord is carried across the shelf 
 (Tamadana, or spirit-shelf), from which depend various fruits, such 
 as millet {Panicum italicum), Hiye [Panicum cruscorvi), water-bean 
 nuts (Nelumbo nucifera of Gartner), chestnuts, and egg-apples or 
 brinjals (often called aubergines, fruit of Solatium mclongena). Various 
 boiled cereals are also placed upon the spirit-shelf, laid on leaves of the 
 water-bean. 
 
 On the 13th day, about sunset, an ogam, or hemp-stalk dried 
 after having been peeled, is lit. The flame, which lasts only a 
 short time, is the Mukai-bi, or "greeting-flame,"' welcoming the 
 spirits on their arrival. On the evening of the 15th, the ceremony 
 is repeated, and the Okuri-M. or " speeding-flame," signifies the 
 farewell of the living to the departing ghosts of the relations or 
 ancestors whose thai are suspended over the spirit-shelf. 
 
 Page 56. Inari. 
 
 Name of a Sliinlo deity, the patron of rice-farmers. The Chinese 
 characters of the name mean "the bringer of rice." The name 
 Inari itself is Japanese, and is probably connected with the word 
 ine — growing-rice, paddy. The lux {Kitsillie) is supposed to be 
 attached to the service of the god.f 
 
 Page 5<V Nyogo Island. 
 
 Said to he inhabited entirely by women. An account of it is 
 given in the Yumi-hari-dsuki, a sort of romance founded upon the 
 adventures of Yoritomo on a supposed visit to the island, which 
 
 * Vide post. 
 
 ! A different explanation is somewhere given by Mr. Satow. but the- translator 
 is, unfortunately, unable to say where it is to be met with. 
 
164 
 
 Appendix. 
 
 is placed in the neighbourhood of the Loo-choo group.* The 
 egg-plant (Solatium melongena), or bidnjal, is described as growing 
 there to such a prodigious size that ladders are necessary to get 
 at the fruit. 
 
 r 
 
 j2e 
 
 Page 67. We shall climb together the Shidc Hill. 
 
 Err*'' I 
 
 hi the mythical geography of Buddhisjn, a hill over which 
 
 souls have to pass on their journey to hell or paradise. Some 
 distance beyond it h they arrive at a place where three roads 
 (San-dzu) meet, one of which leads to hell (jigoku), another to 
 paradise (gokuraku), and the third from the world. Before continuing 
 their journey — to hell or to paradise, as may have been decreed — 
 the ghosts strip off their clothes, ajid give them up to an old woman 
 whom they find stationed there to receive them, under a pine-tree. 
 The old woman is known popularly as San-dzu no obdsan. 
 
 Page 68. That you may take it with you on the dark path. 
 
 The dark path is an euphemism for death. Ghosts are supposed 
 to go under the world, where both hell and paradise seem to be 
 situate ; hence the expression, " to go on the dark path/' 
 
 Page 76. yinscng medicine. 
 
 Jinseng or Ginseng is the aromatic root ol a species of 
 Panax, a member of the Ivy family, much esteemed in China, 
 and to some but a less extent in Japan, as a tonic and a 
 stimulant. The plant is said to live for a thousand years, and 
 then to assume a human form. The infusion, if given to a 
 moribund, is supposed to prevent decomposition. 
 
 * The Japanese commonly identify this mysterious island with Hachijoj 
 Dotes of a visit to which island will be found in Vol. vi. part III., of the 
 Transactions of the Asiatic Society of Japan. 
 
Page 77. A high Kagura feast. 
 
 There are two kinds of Kagura festival, both connected with 
 Shintoism, commonly celebrated in Japan. That referred to in 
 the text is known as a Dai-dai Kagura — lit, "great great Kagura" 
 
 — and is essentially a solemn adoration of the Sun-goddess 
 (Amaterasu no Ohongami, or Tenshoko Daijin), followed by a 
 sort of banquet, of which the expenses are defrayed by 
 subscription. The solemnities, which are conducted by Kannushi 
 (Shinto priests, guardians of shrines), take place in the hall of 
 a Shinto miya, or temple, previously guarded from evil influences 
 and from intruders by a roughly-made rice-straw rope carried 
 round its walls. First, the O-harai (august purification) of the 
 Sun-goddess is placed upon a stand, and proper offerings are 
 set before it. The O-harai is a kind of box containing a 
 fragment of the staff wielded by the priests of the temple of 
 the goddess in Ise, at the festival there held in her honour 
 twice every year. Each Kannushi then takes a branch of 
 Sakaki {Cleycra jfaponica), which he holds in one hand, while 
 with the other he commences to beat upon a small drum. 
 The attention of the goddess being thus aroused, the assembled 
 clergy, who have previously disposed themselves in a semicircle 
 in front of the stand upon which the O-harai was placed, 
 chant, in a monotonous drawl and to the accompaniment of 
 the drums which they do not cease to beat, a special liturgy 
 (noritd) to the Queen of the Plains of High Heaven (Takattiaga- 
 hara). The liturgy ended, O-harai inscribed with the name of 
 the Sun-goddess are bestowed upon the laity,* who, ranged in 
 front of the shrine, have assisted at the ceremony, and the 
 proceedings, passing, pleasantly enough, "from grave to gay," 
 terminate with an entertainment, in which those who have 
 
 * Strictly upon the Ujiko only — that is, upon the dwellers in the district 
 over which the local deity, worshipped at the shrine where the Kagura is 
 celebrated, is supposed to extend his protection. 
 
1 66 
 
 Appendix. 
 
 subscribed to the expenses, no doubt, duly play their part. 
 One of these O-harai ought to find a place upon every 
 domestic Kami-dana y or god-shelf — a small model of a Shinto 
 temple to be found in almost every house, labelled with the 
 names of various deities, one of whom must be the Sun-goddess 
 — for it affords protection to the believer's household — only, 
 however, for a period of six months, when it must be changed 
 for a new one brought or fetched from Is. : . 
 
 For the above description I am in part indebted to 
 Mr. Satow's account of the Shinto temples in Ise, contained 
 in the 1S73-4 volume of the Transactions of the Asiatic Society 
 of Japan, where a vast amount of information on the subject 
 of Shintoism will be found. The following specimen of a 
 Shinto prayer, which I quote from Mr. Satow's admirable essay 
 on the " Revival of Pure Shintoism," printed as an appendix 
 to the first part of the third volume of the Transactions already 
 cited, will, it is believed, be read with interest. 
 
 " From a distance I reverently worship with awe before 
 Ame no Mi-hashira and Kuni no Mi-hashira, also called 
 Shinatsu-hiko no Kami and Shinatsu-hime no Kami, to whom 
 is consecrated the Palace built with stout pillars at Tatsuta no 
 Tachina in the department of Heguri in the province of 
 Yamato. 
 
 " I say, with awe, deign to bless me by correcting the unwitting 
 faults which, seen and heard by you. I have committed, by blowing 
 off and clearing away the calamities which evil gods might inflict, 
 by causing me to live long like the hard and lasting rock, and by re- 
 peating to the gods of heavenly origin and to the gods of earthly origin 
 the petitions which I present every day, along with your breath, that 
 they may hear with the sharp-earedness of the forth-galloping colt." 
 
 The other kind of Kagura is a kind of mystery or musical panto- 
 mime, enacted at the shrine of a local deity, in a sort of raised building 
 or theatre accessory to the shrine and called Kagurctrdd. The 
 celebration may be in honour of the local deity, and then takes place 
 

 Appendix. 
 
 167 
 
 upon his death-day, or may simply be intended to propitiate heaven 
 generally. The expenses are usually defrayed out of the offerings 
 of pilgrims, and by contributions from the Ujiko — the dwellers under 
 the protection of the god to whom the shrine is dedicated. Before 
 the mystery opens, a particular kind of sudzu, Kagura-sudzu, and two 
 gahei are placed in front of the Kagura-dd. The Kagura-sudzu consists 
 of twelve small bells, resembling those fastened round the tails of 
 pack-horses in Japan, or those attached round the necks of mules in 
 European countries, curiously strung together. A gohei, the proper 
 Japanese term for which is mitegura, is a kind of wand, from one end 
 of which depend, on either side, strips of paper, notched or slit in a 
 particular manner, so as to present a twisted appearance. Woodcuts 
 and descriptions both of the Kagura-sudzu and gohei will be found in 
 the 15th volume of the Wo Kan Sansai-dzuye. The object of the bells 
 is to call the attention of the god to what is about to take place ; and 
 the gohei represent — according to Mr. Satow — offerings of rough and 
 fine cloth, which are supposed to attract the god to the shrine. The 
 mystery is then inaugurated by a Miko, a sort of virgin priestess, 
 generally a daughter of the Kannushi, presenting herself, carrying 
 sometimes the sudzu and gohei, sometimes a sword, and going through 
 a series of conventional gestures, which have the effect of purifying 
 the spot from all uncleanliness, and of keeping all evil demons at a 
 proper distance. 
 
 These preliminaries over, and the place thus made fit for the 
 reception of the god, the dance commences, regulated by the music of 
 a small band, consisting of drums and fifes. The dancers accompany 
 their movements by significant gestures by which the plot or tale is 
 told, no singing or shouting being permitted. The number of 
 performers varies considerably : all are clad in antique costumes, 
 with tall caps on their heads, long sleeves and preposterously lengthened 
 hakai/ia, or trousers, which turn up under their feet and are trailed 
 behind, and all wear masks — one simulating the head of a fox, 
 another the fierce look of a robber, a third the countenance of a mild 
 genius, a fourth that of a demon, while others have the expression of a 
 
i68 
 
 Appendix. 
 
 clown or natural, or are provided with horns, or show a protuberant 
 snout like that of a pig, or have the cheeks prodigiously swollen and 
 the forehead absurdly dimished. 
 
 The pantomime is various, but the following always forms a part 
 of it. A dancer wearing the mask of a gentle genius is attended by 
 another wearing that of a clown and carrying in his hand a bow and 
 arrows. The former represents Hikohoho no Mikoto, one of the 
 demi-god rulers of Japan. Their dance is grave and solemn, but is 
 soon interrupted by the advent of a sturdy performer, who comes 
 to the front strutting and stamping with great energy. This is 
 Honosusori, a demon, wearing an appropriate mask and provided with 
 a fish-hook and line. On approaching Hikohoho, he drops his swagger 
 and humbly salutes the superior genius, intimating by gestures that he 
 can make no use of the fish-hook and line, and begging to be allowed 
 to barter it for the bow and arrows carried by the god"s attendant. 
 His request being granted he retires in triumph ; and Hikohoho 
 tries his luck with the hook and line, but the first fish he catches 
 breaks the line and makes off with the hook. The angler and his 
 attendant thus discomfited, pray to the dragon-deities of the sea, 
 who recover the hook and line, and present them to Hikohoho, 
 who immediately returns both to Honosusori and takes back his bow 
 and arrows. 
 
 The dance ended, the Miko dips a bamboo branch (Arundo bambos, 
 Thbg) in warm water — according to some, the water of a bath which 
 she has previously taken — and flirts a shower of drops over the 
 assembled Ujiko. As the deity is supposed to have become incorpo- 
 rated with her body for the nonce, each drop so flung has a miraculous 
 power, and those who are fortunate enough to be within their range 
 may expect to be cured of all their ills. 
 
 The pantomime of Hikohoho and Honosusori is intended to com- 
 memorate the invention of angling ; and the mystery, as a whole, is, 
 according to Japanese tradition, a representation or imitation of the 
 efforts made by the gods of old to induce the Sun-goddess to sally 
 forth from the cavern to which she had betaken herself in a lit of 
 
Appendix. 
 
 169 
 
 dudgeon.* And, indeed, it seems probable enough that it is a relic of 
 the sun-worship which appears to have been the earliest definite form 
 of religion in the country, and simply signifies the joyous welcome 
 with which the rising of the sun over the illimitable waters of the 
 Eastern Sea was hailed by the primaeval fishermen who dwelt on the 
 shores of Dai Nippon. The etymology of the word is uncertain. Some 
 derive it from kami, a god, and eragz, t0 laugh, and this derivation is 
 countenanced by the fact that the Chinese characters by which the 
 word is ordinarily represented mean ' ; the pleasing of the god." To my 
 mind, however, the more probable derivation is that from kami and 
 hum, a seat. 
 
 The legend of the withdrawal of the Sun-goddess is a good 
 example of the Japanese myth ; ' and the following account of it, 
 taken, in great part, from Mr. Satow's description of his visit to the 
 Shinto temples in Isd, cited above, will not be without interest to the 
 curious reader. 
 
 After the consummation of the marriage of Izanagi and Izanami, 
 the first male and female deities and the immediate creators of Japan, 
 the god Izanagi underwent a long purification by washing in the 
 sea, in the course of which the Sun-goddess Ama-terasu no ohongami, 
 "the mighty goddess brilliant in heaven," was developed from his 
 left eye, while from the right orb was produced Sosa-no o no mikoto, 
 or the Moon-god. Of all the numerous progeny of Izanagi these two 
 were the most dear to him. He therefore resolved to make the Sun- 
 goddess the ruler in heaven, and she accordingly climbed up the pillar 
 on which heaven then rested, to assume the place assigned her. The 
 Moon-god, on the other hand, was given the sovereignty over the blue 
 sea; but the god neglected his kingdom, and the earth became 
 desolate in consequence. On being asked the cause of his evil temper, 
 the Moon-god replied that he wished to go to his mother Izanami, who 
 
 * It is no objection to this theory that the shrine at which the Kagura is enacted 
 may not be dedicated specially to the Sun-goddess, for the latter, as the Queen of 
 Heaven, is supposed to have a general right of tenancy of any shrine, and all 
 local duties are more or less under her control, 
 
170 Appendix. 
 
 was under the earth, and his father thereupon made him the ruler of 
 the night. This, however, does not seem to have satisfied the god, for 
 he committed various offences — among others, that of flaying 
 alive a piebald horse from the head to the tail, and then throwing the 
 carcase at his sister, who was seate:l at her loom, so alarming the 
 goddess that she injured herself with the shuttle, and, full of fear and 
 wrath, retired into a cave, the mouth of which she closed with a door of 
 solid rock. Heavens and the earth were thus plunged into utter 
 darkness, of which the more turbulent of the gods took advantage, 
 filling space with a buzzing noise, and the general disaster was great. 
 The gods then assembled in the dry bed of the Amenoyasu River — the 
 River of the Peace of Heaven — and consulted as to the best means of 
 appeasing the goddess. After much deliberation, the following device 
 was hit upon. Iron was obtained from the Celestial mines, and the 
 god Ishikori-dome, with the assistance of the divine blacksmith, 
 Amatsumore, after twice failing, succeeded in forging a large and 
 perfect mirror. " This, according to the legend, is the august deity in 
 Ise." 
 
 Other gods meanwhile planted " Kodzu " (Brousscmetia) and 
 " Asa" (Hemp), and from the bark of the former and the fibre of the 
 latter coarse and fine clothing was prepared for the use of the goddess. 
 A palace was also built for her, ornaments made to adorn her person, 
 and a sacred wand fashioned out of the wood of the '• Sakaki " (C/rycra 
 yaponicd) to place in her hand. 
 
 Tearing the bones out of the foreleg of a buck, the gods then set 
 this in a fire of cherry-wood ; the bone cracked in a particular manner, 
 which was considered to afford a favourable omen, and preparations 
 were at once commenced to entice the goddess from her seclusion. 
 
 One god pulled up a Sakaki tree by the roots, hanging on its upper 
 branches the mirror, and on the lower the coarse and fine clothing. 
 Another god then took the tree so adorned, and held it in his hand 
 while he praised in a loud voice the power and beauty of the goddess. 
 
 A number of cocks were next collected and made to crow in 
 concert. The god Tajikara (strong'i'th'arms) was posted close to 
 
Appendix 
 
 171 
 
 the door of the cavern. The goddess Ame no Udzume was chosen 
 as a sort of mistress of the ceremonies, and having adorned her head 
 with a kind of moss, and bound up her sleeves with the stem of a 
 climbing plant, commenced to play upon a sort of rude bamboo 
 flageolet, accompanied by another god, who drew music from the 
 strings of six bows, arranged with the strings uppermost (the origin 
 of the " Koto," a kind of horizontal harp), by drawing across them 
 the rough stems of a tall kind of grass and of a rush, while the rest 
 of the gods kept time with wooden clappers. 
 
 Bonfires were then lit in front of the cavern, and a circular box, 
 " uke," placed near, on which Udzume mounted and began to dance, 
 singing a song of which the words have been preserved : — 
 
 " Hito futa miyo 
 Itsu muyu nono 
 Ya kokono tari 
 Momo chi yorodzu." 
 
 These words are said to have been chosen afterwards to express 
 
 the numerals 
 
 One two three four 
 Five six seven 
 Eight nine ten 
 Hundred thousand myriad. 
 
 There is a difficulty, however, in identifying " tari " with " to," ten. 
 But the stanza is susceptible of a totally different interpretation, and 
 may be taken to mean 
 
 Gods ! behold the door, 
 Lo ! the majesty of the goddess ; 
 Shall we not be filled with delight ? 
 Arc not my charms excellent ? 
 
 The last line is an invitation by the singer to the assembled deities 
 to gaze upon her beauty. 
 
 These proceedings excited the mirth of the gods, whose Homeric 
 laughter caused the heavens to tremble. The rest of the legend may 
 be told in Mr. Satow's own words. 
 
 •• \materasu Ohonkami thought this all verv strange, and having 
 
172 
 
 Appendix, 
 
 listened to the liberal praises bestowed on herself, said * men have 
 frequently besought me of late, but never has anything so beautiful 
 been said before.' Slightly opening the cabin door, she said from 
 the inside ' I fancied that in consequence of my retirement both 
 Ama no Hara (heaven) and Ashiwara no Nakatsukuni (Japan)* were 
 dark. Why has Ame no Udzume danced, and why do all the gods 
 laugh?' Thereupon Ame no Udzume replied: 'I dance and they 
 laugh because there is an honourable deity here who surpasses your 
 glory ' (alluding to the mirror). As she said this, Ame-no-futadama no 
 Mikoto pushed forward the mirror and showed it to her, and the 
 astonishment of Amaterasu O-mi-kami was greater even than before. 
 She was coming out of the door to look, when Ame-no-tajikara-o no 
 Kami, who stood there concealed, pulled the rock door open, and, 
 taking her august hand, dragged her forth. Then Ame-no-kogane 
 no Mikoto took a rice-straw rope and passed it behind her. saying : 
 ' Do not go back in behind this.' " 
 
 Udzume is commonly called Okame, and is represented in the 
 Kagura by the dancer whose mask is a human face with puffed-out 
 cheeks and diminutive forehead. 
 
 Page 83 (note). Names of Women. 
 
 Women do not use surnames, not even those of their husbands, 
 and are known by one name only. In addressing them the honorific 
 "O"' is prefixed, and the honorific "sama" (often contracted into 
 '• san ") added. Thus, " Yuki," snow, becomes O Yuki san, — Miss 
 Snow ; "Tsuru," crane, O Tsuru san, — Miss Crane; "Kane/' gold or 
 metal, O Kane san ; " Hana," flower, O Hana san ; " Sono,' garden, 
 O Sono san, &c, &c. 
 
 Page 98. The sage Sonko and the philosopher Riuto. 
 Both appear to have flourished under the Tsin dynasty (a.d, 
 
 * The middle country of reedv moors. 
 
Appendix 
 
 173 
 
 265 — 317). On looking into their biographies, I find nothing worthy 
 of record beyond the anecdotes in the text. 
 
 Page 100. Gi-on Street, the Temple of Kiyomidzu, the great Buddha 
 at Nara, the Hall of Chion, and the Temple of Kinkaku. 
 
 The Gi-on Street was, and still is, the principal pleasure-street 
 of Kiyoto. 
 
 The temple of Kiyomidzu ("the temple of the Limpid Waters") 
 is sacred to Kwanon — Chinese, Kwanyin — the Buddhic Venus of 
 the Far East. It is much visited by women, especially by those 
 who desire children. In the grounds is a famous waterfall called 
 Otowa no Taki, the waters of which are supposed to be endued 
 by the goddess with various healing and invigorating virtues. 
 
 Nara is eastwards of the line joining Kiyoto and Ohozaka. 
 Formerly the Tenshi (Emperor) resided there, but it does not seem 
 ever to have been the real capital as some pretend. Mr. Brunton, 
 C.E., in a most interesting article upon native constructive art, 
 printed in the Transactions of the Asiatic Society of Japan (1873-4, 
 p. 81), gives an account of the Buddha, from which the greater 
 portion of the following brief description is taken. 
 
 The image is contained in a temple 292 feet long, 170 feet 
 broad, and 156 feet high — that is, to the arete of the roof, which 
 is supported by 176 pillars. The height of the Buddha, which is 
 in the .usual squatting position, is 53^ feet, the length of the face 
 being 16 feet, the width of the shoulders 28 feet 7 inches, and the 
 length of the middle imger 5 feet 6 inches. On the head are 966 
 conventional curls. The glory or halo is 78 feet in diameter, and 
 on it stand 16 figures, each 8 feet high. 
 
 Two images are placed in front, each 25 feet high. 
 
 The whole is in bronze, cast in pieces, afterwards soldered 
 together, and the "whole construction shows great skill and original 
 genius in the mixture of the metals, and in the methods of casting 
 them.'' 
 
174 
 
 Appendix 
 
 The total weight of metal is about 450 tons, consisting of the 
 following ingredients: — 
 
 Gold 
 
 Tin 
 
 Mercury 
 
 Copper 
 
 500 lbs. Avoirdupois. 
 16,827 „ 
 
 h954 „ 
 986,080 ,, ,, 
 
 This is the largest Buddha in Japan, and was first erected in 
 743 A.D., but was twice destroyed in the course of the wars that 
 desolated Japan about that time, and the present image was set 
 up in the 12th century. Six times in succession the casting 
 failed, and it was only at the seventh essay that a successful 
 result was obtained. The head is said to be much more modern 
 than the rest of the figure. 
 
 The Hall of Chton (Chi-on In). — A celebrated temple in Kiyoto 
 of the Zenshu (Buddhist) sect. The name In is generally given to 
 a Buddhist temple of a higher, Tcra to one of a lower, order. An 
 intermediate kind exists, on which the appellation Ryu is bestowed. 
 Chi-on In may be rendered as " The Hall of Intelligent Benevolence." 
 
 The Temple of Kinkaku. — Erected by Taiko-sama, more renowned 
 for its decoration, internal and external, than for the beauty of its 
 situation. In fact, the temples of Kiyoto have been overpraised. 
 None are comparable to the Shiba temple, lately destroyed by fire, 
 in Vedo, or to the great T6sho-gu at Nikko. Kinkaku may be 
 translated "Golden Palace." 
 
 Page 111. The devotion of Goshisho. 
 
 Goshisho was a minister of a king of Go (Wu), who, 
 despite his remonstrances, neglected the affairs of the state and 
 engaged in a long and disastrous war with the state of Yets 
 (Vuch). Upon Goshisho strongly advising his master to have 
 nothing to do with a beautiful girl sent to him as a present 
 by the king of Yets, the king of Go became so enraged that 
 he ordered his faithful minister to be decapitated and his head 
 
Appendix. 
 
 175 
 
 exposed. Shortly afterwards, he was taken prisoner by his 
 adversary and led in chains past the very spot where the head 
 of the unfortunate adviser was exhibited, the features of which 
 were observed to form themselves into a bitter smile as the 
 degraded king went by. 
 
 Page 112. Hero Yojo. 
 
 Yojo (Yii Jang) was the minister of a king 01 Shin (Tsin), 
 who was defeated and slain in a war with a king of Shin 
 (Ts'in). Yojo vowed revenge, and in order effectually to dis- 
 guise himself swallowed varnish (some say, lime), which caused 
 an eruption to break out in his face that completely changed 
 his appearance. One da)', hearing that the king of Ts'in 
 would ride over a certain bridge, he stationed himself under it, 
 armed with a sword, and awaited his enemy's approach.. As 
 the king of Ts'in came near, his horse refused to cross the 
 bridge, despite the efforts of his rider, who, thinking there 
 must be some cause for such an extraordinary aversion, ordered 
 his attendants to search the neighbourhood. They did so, and 
 found Yojo, whom they brought to their master, to whom he 
 confessed his designs. The king laughed at the presumption 
 of Yojo, and, handing him his mantle, said scornfully, "Stick 
 your sword through that, and imagine that my body is within 
 it. Thus you can satisfy your longings for vengeance.'' Yojo 
 took the mantle without saying a word, and, wrapping it 
 round himself, thrust his sword through it into his body and 
 fell back dead. 
 
 Page 112. The secret books of Son and Go. 
 
 Son (in Chinese, Sun VVu or Sun Tsz) was a celebrated 
 Chinese commander of the 6th century before Christ, in the 
 service of Ho Lii, prince of VVu, He was also the author of 
 
176 
 
 Appendix. 
 
 a book on military science still in use. The " Three Steps 
 and Six Methods " is the book bestowed upon Choryo by the 
 genius Sekiko. ( Vide post, " Choryo.") 
 
 Go (Chinese, Wu K'i), a famous general in the service of 
 Ts'u (a feudal state under the Chen dynasty, flourishing from 
 the middle of the 8th to the latter third of the 4th century 
 before Christ). Ordered to march against the state of Ts ! i, of 
 which his wife was a native, he put her to death lest she shouid 
 persuade him to deviate from his duty. He was finally taken 
 prisoner and slain by the people of Ts'i. He wrote a book 
 on strategy, which is still esteemed by military men. (See Arts. 
 635 and 866 of Mr. Mayers' " Chinese Readers' Manual.") 
 
 Page 113. Note. 
 
 Asano Takumi no Kami was the real name of the prototype 
 of Yenya. Takumi no Kami was the designation of his office, 
 overseer of works ; but Asano Takumi, in the common language, 
 means " poor in resources," " shallow in conception," " witless," and 
 the like. 
 
 Page 115. The thread of his existence was snapped in twain. 
 
 The soul is supposed to be a material substance of irregular bag- 
 like form, kept within the interior of the body by a sinuous pro- 
 longation or " thread " attached to some part of the human frame. 
 On this " thread " being snapped, the soul flies forth and life is 
 terminated. The expression in the text tama no may also refer to 
 the rosary used by Buddhist priests, which consists of a hundred 
 and eight beads strung together in the usual way. These hundred 
 and eight beads are said to represent the hundred and eight lusts, 
 cares, miseries, and vanities of the world ; and as the sundering of 
 the thread puts an end to the existence of the rosary, so the destruction 
 
Appendix. 
 
 177 
 
 of that human consciousness which links together the troubles of 
 the world puts an end to all human ills and sorrows.* 
 
 Page 115. Komusd. 
 
 A class of men who, either from remorse or from disgust with the 
 world, abandoned society to lead the life of wandering mendicants. 
 They were — for the practice has now fallen into desuetude — generally 
 samurahi, and went about dressed in white, wearing a curious deep- 
 brimmed hat f which entirely concealed their features, and playing 
 a sort of rude flageolet as they solicited alms. No special religious 
 meaning seems to have attached to the custom. But the etymology 
 of the word points to that contemplative life which leads to absorption 
 in nirvana, and the practice therefore was, in all probability, more or 
 less under the sanction of Buddhism. 
 
 Page 119. Warahi books. 
 
 Lit. "jest-books," but in reality obscene novels and woodcuts, which, 
 even under the old regime, the higher classes in Japan at least avoided 
 diverting themselves with in the presence of others, and did not boast 
 of possessing. 
 
 Page 122. Village and household gods. 
 
 The household god (ujigami) is, strictly speaking, the common 
 ancestor of the clan, and corresponds with the Lar Familiaris of the 
 Romans, or the Herds epvnumos of the Greeks. 
 
 * " Tama no o " is also an extravagant grammatical term equivalent to " syntax." 
 The idea being that the latter, as a sort of connecting link between words, may 
 be fitly designated by such an expression as the " thread of jewels." See 
 Mr. Aston's Grammar of the Written Language. 
 
 f Sec the woodcut opposite page 105 
 
 N 
 
178 
 
 Appendix. 
 
 The village gods (ubusuna no kami) are the local gods, but just 
 as the Penates of the Romans often included, or were synonymous 
 with, the Lares, so the ubusuna no kami seem to be confounded with 
 the ujigami. Thus the inhabitants of a district under the protection 
 of a special deity arc commonly called the ujiko, or members of the 
 family of the deity, who himself is known generally as the ujigami. 
 On this subject much information will be found in Mr. Satow's essay 
 on the " Revival of Pure Shintoism " previously referred to. 
 
 Page 122. High civil and military rank. 
 
 Lit., to the command of his troops and the governorship of his 
 province. 
 
 Page 130. His manhood roused by his wife's cry of distress. 
 
 Allusion is here intended,. I believe, to the otokodate of Bandzui 
 Chobei, a sort of Japanese knight errant, or, more properly, benevolent 
 brigand who robbed the rich to aid the poor, and enforced a code 
 of, his own against the oppressor in favour of the oppressed. 
 
 Page 135. The Hero Chdryb. 
 
 fn Chinese, Chang Liang. One of the principal partisans of the 
 founder of the Han dynasty. He died in the early part of the 
 2nd century before Christ. (See Art. 26 of Mr. Mayers' work cited 
 above, and the note to page 135 supra. 
 
 Page 142. I hat. 
 
 These tablets are inscribed with the posthumous name (okuri-na) 
 of the deceased and the date of his death. When the wife 
 
Appendix. 
 
 179 
 
 survives the husband, she often has her name added in red 
 letters, which upon her death are converted into black ones. 
 Uiai are placed upon the Buts-dana, or Buddhist shelf, and also 
 — as stated in a previous note — on the Tatna-dana, or spirit-shelf, 
 on All Souls' Day. The ancestral halls common in China, in 
 which the tablets of the ancestors of a family, or sometimes of a 
 clan, for several generations back, are honoured, are not found 
 in Japan. 
 
 The Eighth Book consists of a metrical description, mainly in 
 the form of a dialogue, of the journey of Tonase, the wife of 
 Honzo, the Kara of Wakasanosuke, with her daughter, Konami, 
 from Kamakura to Yamashina, a small village hard by Kiyoto, 
 where they hope to lind Rikiya, the son of Yuranosuke the hero 
 of the story, who, since the destruction of the house of Yenya, had 
 withdrawn with his father into an obscurity hitherto impenetrable. 
 It will be remembered that in the Fourth Book Rikiya is affianced 
 to the daughter of Honzo. 
 
 On the stage, this portion of the romance would be sung or 
 recited with appropriate gestures, so arranged as to form a kind 
 of continuous slow dance, to the accompaniment of music. 
 
 The following attempt at a versified rendering* claims the 
 indulgence of the reader. The translator has endeavoured to 
 preserve, as far lis possible, the spirit and even the letter of the 
 original, although at the risk of roughness being perceptible in 
 the execution of his task ; but as the point o( the text often lies 
 in an untranslatable play upon words, he has been obliged in one 
 or two instances to omit, and in others to modify or amplify, 
 portions of the interlude. 
 
 * A previous translation by the present writer will be found in an Essay 
 on Ancient Japanese Poetry, contained in the Westminster Review for 
 October 1870. 
 
 N 2 
 
i8o 
 
 Appendix. 
 
 KONAMI. 
 
 "Its name upon this fleeting world* 
 Who first bestowed, O rapid Aska,f say, 
 
 Whose restless waters aye have swirl'd 
 Thro' changing channels ; as changeful is the way 
 
 Of Life to us from happiness hurl'd — 
 
 * More literally, "floating"; hence variable, light, changing, unstable world. 
 The earth is supposed to be suspended in the ambient atmosphere, as a fish in 
 water. The following account of the creation, according to the ancient philo- 
 sophy of Japan, extracted from the above-mentioned essay in the Westminster 
 Review, may be interesting. " Originally all was chaos, matter existed but rude 
 and formless. Divine influence penetrated the cosmic mass ; a process of 
 differentiation ensued, and the whole assumed an ellipsoidal form. Next the 
 grosser parts became concentrated towards the centre, and the foundations of 
 the earth were laid ; while the more subtle parts receded and enveloped the 
 globe with an ethereal fluid, of which the more delicate exterior layers consti- 
 tuted the sky, and those nearer to the earth's surface formed the firmament. 
 The notion of the existence of space apart from matter seems utterly strange to 
 the philosophy of China and Japan, which, besides, never attributes the creation 
 of the materials of chaos to any Divine First Cause ; but owns, though impliedly 
 rather than expressly, the self-existence of primeval unorganised matter and of 
 some divine influence, not seldom, indeed, supposed to originate within and from 
 the elements of chaos itself, by which the original substance of the Universe is 
 forced to differentiate itself into elementary earth, air, and sky. From such a 
 divine influence spring a multitude of powers personified as innumerable genii, 
 who are the immediate creators out of the already partially developed materials 
 of chaos of the animate and inanimate objects of nature, and to whom are 
 entrusted the government and regulation of the phenomena and laws of the 
 Universe." The original text is full of word-plays utterly unsusceptible of 
 translation, and the present version is, accordingly, in great part an imitation 
 rather than an exact rendering of ihc Japanese. It is, however, believed that 
 the meaning and colour of the text are preserved to the extent to which this is 
 possible. The metre, which is somewhat irregular, consists of alternate lines 
 of five and seven syllables — the following text of the first fourteen lines of the 
 translation will serve as an example : — 
 
 Ukiyo to wa, . . This " evanescent " (miserable) world, 
 
 Taga ii-somete, . . Who first named it so ? 
 
 Asukagawa ? . .0 River Asuka. 
 
 Fuchi mo chigiyo mo . j j^ y pla(es J ^ eState ' 
 
 [Continued on next page. 
 t A stream near Kiyoto, flowing through flat land and constantly changing 
 its bed. Hence the evanescent character of the banks amid which the river 
 threads its way. and the propriety of Konami's address to it. 
 
Appendix. 
 
 181 
 
 A Wavelet* breaks upon thy famous strand 
 
 Whom Yenya welcomed as the bride 
 Of his esquire who long had sought her hand, 
 
 Low fall'ii with Yenya's fall her pride; 
 She was betrothed and Kakogawa's child 
 
 Fond hope deep in her being bore, 
 But Fortune adverse ne'er upon her smil'd, 
 
 No bridal gifts exchang'd,y no more 
 By lover sought, her soul is sad." 
 
 TONASE. 
 
 " Peace, daughter, peace ; thy mother bids thee haste 
 
 Towards Yamashina, where glad 
 Thou shalt by bridegroom surely be embraced. 
 
 Alas ! a bride-train thus forlorn 
 Hath never yet in all the world been known, 
 
 With doubt and grief my heart is torn ; 
 Without attendant, mother and child alone, 
 
 On foot must urge their weary way, 
 And strive Yamato's far-off land to afain." 
 
 Seto kawari ; 
 Yorube ko-nami no 
 
 Shitabito ni 
 Musubu, Yenya no 
 Ayamari \va, 
 Koi no Kasegui, , 
 Kakogawa no 
 Musume Konami ga 
 Ii-nadzuke, 
 Tanomi mo toradzu, 
 
 Sono mama ni 
 Furi-suterareshi, 
 Mono omoi 
 
 < Course of life ) , ., , . 
 
 . ■< AT , , > how these change 
 
 ( Narrow channels ) b 
 
 . Of me, Konami, his dependent : (a wavelet touching 
 thy strand). 
 
 . To his (Yenya's) underman. 
 
 ) The contract of betrothal (was allowed) but 
 
 ) (there took place) the error of Yenya ; 
 
 . The deep foundations of love; 
 
 . Of Kakogawa 
 
 . The daughter Konami, 
 
 . She was promised, 
 
 . But there was no giving or receiving of bridal 
 gifts, 
 
 . Under these circumstances. 
 
 . Shaken off and abandoned. 
 
 . She broods over things. 
 * A pun on the speaker's name, Konami, " child-wave," " little wave." 
 t Without which a marriage, or rather betrothal, is not looked upon as 
 complete. 
 
[S: 
 
 Appendix. 
 
 KONAMI. 
 
 " My body's white as snow, men say, 
 The chilly winds with crimson hues it stain 
 
 Such as the wild-plum's flow'r make gay, 
 My fingers all are sore benumbed with cold, 
 
 Apt name Kogoye* pass is thine; 
 O'er Satta's ridge our toilsome way we hold, 
 
 Thence gazing back the curling line 
 All pensive watch of vaguely erring smoke 
 
 That issueth from Fuji's peak 
 And van'shing in the lofty sky is broke ; t 
 
 How sweet if 'twere the bonfire's reek 
 At threshold lit % my welcome home a Bride, 
 
 How 'twould our sadness charm away ! 
 With pines o'ergrown Matsubara's§ plain so wide 
 
 Now travers'd, crowded is the way, 
 The sea-coast way, || by some high Daimiyo's train, 
 
 I know not whose ; how blithe and gay 
 They seem : ah ! when shall I know joy again ? " 
 
 * A double pun here — " Kogoye " meaning : ist, "to freeze, congeal " ; 2nd, 
 " the passage of a child." 
 
 f They are travelling westwards, leaving Fusi-yama (more properly, Fuji-san) 
 behind them. Fuji-san is, and probably always has been within historical times, 
 completely extinct, so far, at least, as the summit is concerned. But the vapours 
 that commonly wreathe or hover around its high bare peak often have the 
 appearance of smoke or steam issuing from the long since cooled crater. The 
 elevation of Fuji-san is close upon 13,000 feet above the level of the sea. The 
 upper portion is covered with snow throughout the year, except from the end of 
 July to the middle or end of September, when the peak is bare, though even 
 during those months large masses of snow lurk in sunless clefts and crevices. No 
 Japanese poet has omitted to celebrate the picturesque beauty of the mountain. 
 
 + Alluding to the custom, probably borrowed from China, of carrying the 
 bride over a flame into her husband's house. 
 
 § That is, "the plain of pines." 
 
 || The Tokaido, "eastern sea-way," the high road between the capitals of East 
 and West Japan. 
 
m. 
 
 ~| 
 
 * 
 
 - 
 
Appendix. 
 
 183 
 
 TONASE. 
 
 "O would that Fortune smiling were 
 Upon us, proud thy bridal train should be; 
 
 Than thee none happier, none more fair. 
 Now yonder may we Sur'ga's Fuchiu* see. 
 
 The omen cheers thy mother's heart, 
 Her child shall yet the marriage pledge exchange, 
 
 By husband yet be led apart 
 In bridal bower, sweet vows to interchange. 
 
 In tender whispers heard by none. 
 Narrows the path thro' th' briars hardly seen, 
 
 To parents as to childf unknown ; 
 Fain would'st thou now on lover's strong arm lean." 
 
 KONAMI. 
 
 " On Mariko's sunny bank we stand, 
 His rapid stream shall roll our griefs away, 
 
 Dear mother ; now on our right hand 
 High Utsu's hill we leave behind, O say 
 
 Shall I a bridal pillow press, 
 Half-sleeping, by a husband's arms embraced ? 
 
 What mighty cares my mind distress, 
 Ohoi \ river ! thou whose waters haste 
 
 * A considerable town in the province of Suruga, some go miles westwards of 
 Yokohama. It is now known as Shidsuoka, and is the present residence of 
 Hitotsubashi, the last of the Sh&guns. There is a curious word-play here, the 
 sense of which I have endeavoured to give — sunt ga fuchiu meaning in the common 
 language, " the crowning of one's efforts with success." 
 
 f They are now supposed to be passing through a place called Oya shiradzu ko 
 shiradzu, which name signifies " unknown to parent, unknown to child.' and 
 involves probably some local story or tradition. 
 
 I Ohoi means " great," " vast." The River Ohoi is one of the largest in Japan, 
 and the bed of it, at the point where a ferry carries travellers on the Tokaido 
 across it, must be some hundreds of yards wide. But, except occasionally during 
 
1 84 
 
 Appendix. 
 
 In rapid tumult onwards sped, 
 As fleeting often is the love of man. 
 
 Yet 'tis not fickleness I dread 
 In him I love, but 'neath misfortune's ban 
 
 Our love's full flow'r can hardly blow. 
 Our feet upon Shiradsuka's bridge now stand. 
 
 Past Yoshida we further go 
 To Akasaka ; our wearied limbs demand 
 
 Repose ; the beckoning women * cry 
 That throng the door of every inn,f ' Fair Bride, 
 
 To Kyomids' i far-famed temple hie, 
 To Otowa's S plashing fall pray choose a guide. 
 
 And there, fair Bride, some space delay, 
 Adore the temple's deity and view 
 
 How to Kwanon || the pilgrims pay 
 With sacred dance and music homage due, 
 
 Then join in the applauding shout 
 And share the merry throng's loud happiness.' 
 
 'Not so, my tale of tender doubt 
 To my chosen lord alone I shall confess.' " 
 
 the heavy autumn inundations, the stream is not much more than a hundred 
 yards in breadth, occupying a sinuous channel in the middle of the dried-up 
 stony bed of the river's course. 
 
 * These are servants who tout for guests. 
 
 t What follows seems to be a portion of an ancient song, to be found, I believe, 
 in the Shinztnden of Bakin, and as old, probably, as the time of the Ashikaga 
 Shoguns. 
 
 % Kyomidzu. See ante . 
 
 § Otowa. This is a petty stream of water falling over the ledge of a rock in 
 the grounds of the temple of Kyomidzu, supposed to have peculiar restorative 
 qualities. 
 
 || Kwanon is the Buddhistic Venus, and like the hominum divomque voluptas, 
 Alma Venus ! of the great Latin poet, is regarded by some not only as the goddess 
 of mercy, but as presiding over the continuous sustentation of the world and all 
 its living creatures ; 
 
 " per te — genus omnc animantum 
 
 Concipitur, visitque exortum lumina solis." 
 
 She is the Avalfikites'vara of Northern Buddhism, first mentioned in the 
 
 
 ■ 
 
Appendix. 
 
 185 
 
 TONASE. 
 
 "Right, daughter; were thy lover here 
 Three suppliants we would Ise's * gods revere," 
 
 KONAMI. 
 
 "Thus we our clownish verses sing. 
 To Nar'migata's f town we come. Success 
 
 The happy name, I trust, may bring. 
 Ha ! Atsta's shrine descry we yonder — yes, 
 
 Full seven leagues across the bay; 
 Haul taut the sail, bend, fellows, bend to th' oar 
 
 With measured stroke — away, away — 
 Haste, haste, for distant still looms yonder shore. 
 
 Hark ! how loud the rudder's creak ! 
 Meseems the chirp of some small sndsu % fly, 
 
 Or the grasshopper's unceasing shriek, 
 
 Sutras of the fourth century after Christ. But Avalukites'vara was a male deity, 
 and Eitel gets over the difficulty by supposing that the Buddhist apostles to 
 China in the fourth and ninth centuries of our era, incorporated a native female 
 deity (Kwanyin) having similar attributes with those of the Buddhist god, with 
 the object of their own devotions. Kwanyin is said to have a disobedient 
 daughter of Chwang of the Chow dynasty, B.C. 690 ciniter. She was condemned 
 to be beheaded, but the executioner's sword broke, and she was put to death by 
 being smothered. Her soul descended to hell, which thereupon became a 
 paradise. But Yama, the Pluto of Buddhism, fearful of losing his kingdom, 
 rejected her, and she reappeared upon earth in time to cure her father of an 
 illness by cutting off the flesh of her arms. As a mark of gratitude he ordered 
 a statue to be erected to her " with arms and eyes complete (tsien)," but by a 
 misunderstanding of the word " tsien," which means either " complete " or 
 " a thousand," the statue was made with a thousand arms and a thousand legs ; 
 and the goddess is often so represented at the present day, both in China and 
 Japan. Vide Eitel, " Handbook of Chinese Buddhism." 
 
 * Ise is supposed to be the favourite abode of the primeval gods of Japan, the 
 chief of whom is the Sun-goddess, known commonly as Daijingu Sama. 
 
 f Narumigata, in the common language, may mean " the place of establishment 
 of oneself." 
 
 J A sort of small insect, making, by attrition of its wings, a somewhat pleasant 
 sound, and for that reason often kept in bamboo-bark cages, and fed upon bits of 
 cucumber or melon. 
 
1 86 Appendix. 
 
 The grasshopper that, as the old song tells,* doth cry 
 Thro' the chilly nights when the hoar-frosts lie." 
 
 TONASE and KONAMI. 
 
 " How fierce the hail drives thro' the windy air ! 
 
 Our heads before its pelt we bend, 
 We lead, we follow the crossing boats that dare 
 
 Still with the howling storm contend. 
 
 Next Kame's hill we pass, awhile 
 At Seki halt, where from the eastern way 
 
 Parts stretching south for many a mile 
 The road to distant 1st', — the merry play 
 
 Of packhorse bells we hear as thee 
 We view, Sudzuka, f Tsuchi's lofty peak, J 
 
 * Kirigirisu 
 Naku ya, shimo yo no 
 
 Samushiro ni 
 Koromo katashiki ; 
 Hitori ka mo nen ! 
 I spread my garment on the ground 
 Whereon the night hoar-frosts lie, 
 Through the gloom pierces the shrill cry of the grasshopper, 
 
 In the chill solitude 
 How can I find repose on my lonely couch ? 
 t Sudzu is the name given to the string of bells generally hung round the tail 
 of the animal. The pass of Sudzuka — Sudzuka-toge — is of considerable height, 
 but the traveller who climbs it is well rewarded by the succession of picturesque 
 views it affords him. 
 
 J Allusion is here made to the old song — 
 
 " Saka wa teru-teru, 
 Sudzuka wa kumoru, 
 Aino-tsuchi yama, 
 Ame ga furu.'' 
 Which may be thus rendered — 
 
 "The sun shines fair on Saka's peak, 
 While clouds veil Sudzuka's summit bleak, 
 And Tsuchi's top that lies between 
 Is through the shower hardly seen.'' 
 
 Saka, Sudzuka, and Aino-tsuchi are three conspicuous and contiguous hills, 
 forming part of the range crossed by the Sudzuka-toge, on which the phenomenon 
 referred to is often observed during the showery days of early summer. 
 
Appendix 
 
 187 
 
 Rain-hidden, hardly may we see j 
 Rain ever hides, men say, the summit bleak, 
 
 O Minaguchi ! * — the rocky vale 
 Of Ishibe f we next fatigued toil thro', 
 
 Pass Ohodsu, Mii's} temple hail, 
 The hillside skirt, our further way pursue, 
 
 And now a petty hamlet nigh 
 Yamashina,§ our journey's end descry." 
 
 * Meaning, strictly, " the outflow of the waters," but by a pun signifying 'the 
 mouths of all men," that is, common report, 
 f Literally, " the stony place." 
 
 J From which the finest view of Lake Biwa is to be had. 
 § Yamashina is the last village on the road, being close to KiySto. 
 
i88 
 
 Appendix. 
 
 THE BALLAD OF TAKASAGO.* 
 
 A wanderer's staff he grasps now erst 
 
 On distant journey bent : 
 Must many a weary, weary day 
 
 On perilous track be spent, 
 
 TOMONARI. 
 
 " Of Aso's shrine in Higo land, 
 
 Within broad Kiushiu's sway, 
 The guardian, Tomonari, I ; 
 
 Now list ye to my lay : 
 
 * Takasago is the name of a coast district in Banshiu (Harima), washed by the 
 waters of the Inland Sea, some ninety miles westwards of Ohozaka. The author 
 was one K'wanzei (according to some a writer of the name of Kadsu Mitsuyoshi), 
 a composer of No (historical lyrical dramas in irregular metre with musical accom- 
 paniments, commonly based upon episodes of the long feud between the Gen and 
 Hei families;, who flourished about the year 1450 a.d. The ballad is often sung 
 — a portion of it at least — as a kind of epithalamium, the changeless verdure and 
 longevity of the pine, as exemplified in the two trees of Takasago and Sumiyoshi 
 celebrated by the song, forming a theme appropriate to such an occasion. 
 The persons of the ballad are : 
 
 Tomonari, a country kannuski, or guardian of a Shinto miya or shrine. 
 The Spirit of the Pine Tree of Takasago in the form of an old woman, with 
 
 a broom in her hand. 
 The Spirit of the Pine Tree of Sumiyoshi (or Suminoye) in the form of an 
 old man, holding a kind of bamboo rake. 
 The portions not included within inverted commas are on the stage recited or 
 sung by the utaigata, or songmen, who thus, to some extent, discharge the 
 functions of a Greek chorus ; while the dialogue is carried on by actors to the 
 accompaniment of music and with appropriate gestures. 
 
 The term ballad (ballata, from " ballare " to dance) is as apt a name for the 
 piece as I could hit upon. The narrative portion, alone, is indistinctly metrical, 
 the dialogue is, more properly, prose ; but the whole is recited or sung in the 
 manner above mentioned. It belongs to the category of No, and, like its fellows, 
 is written in a language by no means always easy to understand. The present 
 version is a free imitation and not a literal translation of the original ; but with 
 the exception of some obscure passages, the sense is correctly, though not literally, 
 rendered. 
 
Appendix. 
 
 189 
 
 " Upon Miyako's wondrous sights 
 
 I never yet have gazed, 
 And towards the royal city press, 
 
 To feast my eyes amazed. 
 
 " And by the way I fain would halt, 
 
 And turn a space aside, 
 Where Takasago's famous strand 
 
 'Fends Harima from the tide.'' 
 
 O he has girded up his frock, 
 
 Nor fears the distant way, 
 All eager the stately town to gain, 
 
 No longer will delay. 
 
 Well through the surf his bark is launched 
 
 Upon the sparkling sea, 
 O may fair spring winds waft him on, 
 
 Clear skies above him be ! 
 
 Still o'er the wid'ning wat'ry waste 
 
 His course he presses on, 
 Beyond the dim, white, misty line 
 
 Where sea and sky seem one. 
 
 Beyond, and far beyond again, 
 And leagues still leagues upon, 
 
 His bark sails o'er the circling sea 
 Ere Harima's shores are won. 
 
 O hoar and venerable Pine ! 
 
 Thy swaying branches through, 
 With constant boom, the sweet spring winds, 
 
 And ceaseless murmur, sough. 
 
190 Appendix. 
 
 While from the sounding shore below. 
 
 Where still the mists adhere, 
 The cadenced roar of the flowing tide 
 
 Delights the wanderers ear. 
 
 ancient Pine ! whose lofty top 
 With countless winters' snow 
 
 Hath sparkled, is there wight alive 
 Thy birth or youth may know ? 
 
 Amid thy topmost twigs behold ! 
 
 The glitterings rime doth lie 
 Upon the crane's rough-woven nest, 
 
 Ere yet the sun is high. 
 
 Each morn, among thy far-spread limbs 
 The winds soft greetings sing, 
 
 Each e'en, low murmuring farewells, 
 Through all this time of spring. 
 
 1 well could rest beneath thy shade, 
 There commune with my soul, 
 
 And muse in silent loneliness, 
 While by the hours should roll. 
 
 For converse should 1 ever long, 
 And seek response from thee, 
 
 The rustle of thy wind-stirr'd leaves 
 Would softly answer me. 
 
 Lo! leaves and twigs the ground bestrew 
 
 And to my raiment cling, 
 I shake me free, with busy rake 
 
 The brown heap shorewards fling. 
 
*. 
 
 i 
 
 
E3w 
 
Appendix. 
 
 O far-famed Pine of Takasago ! 
 
 How scarred thy wave-washed trunk ! 
 The waves of time, too, on my brow 
 
 Have rippled wrinkles sunk. 
 
 Long, long have clung to thee, hoar Pine 
 These leaves now brown and sere, 
 
 With greenness aye renewed thou still 
 Thy leafy top shalt rear. 
 
 TOMONARI. 
 
 " 1 thought some peasant here to meet, 
 
 And lo an aged pan- 
 Con front me, yet perchance may they 
 
 Ale further wand'ring spare." 
 
 AN OLD MAN AND AN OLD WOMAN. 
 
 " What would'st thou of us ? Well will we 
 All that we know explain." 
 
 TOMONARI. 
 
 " A stranger your famed Pine would see 
 Hath come across the main." 
 
 igi 
 
 THE OLD MAN. 
 
 " From Takasago's lofty Pine 
 
 The leaves thou see'st us heap, 
 
 Are fallen ; 'neath the ancient tree 
 
 Our guardian watch we keep." 
 
 TOMONARI. 
 
 " Suminoye's Pine and you, men say, 
 Are like a wedded pair, 
 So far apart, how that may be, 
 1 pray you, sooth, declare ! " 
 
192 Appendix. 
 
 THE OLD MAN. 
 " Thou knowest the roll, ' Songs new and old,' 
 Therein wilt find it writ, 
 How Suminoye ; s Pine and yon 
 In wedded bonds are knit. 
 
 " Sumiyoshi in the land of Tsu. 
 Twas there I saw the day ; 
 This dame of Takasago is : 
 Now ask us aught ye may." 
 
 TOMONARI. 
 
 " How comes it, ye, so far apart 
 Saw light, together dwell 
 Beneath yon Pine? The mystery 
 Ye doubtless may dispel." 
 
 THE SPIRIT OF SUMIYOSHI. 
 
 " Thou say*st not wisely, Sir, methinks ; 
 From many a distant source 
 Down rush the mountain-streams to join 
 In the rivers mightier course. 
 
 " And so, by love or fate, two souls 
 Together drawn, make one, 
 Although ten thousand leagues may seem 
 To bar their union. 
 
 " And sooth, Sir, listen to my words, 
 And hearken to my say ; 
 The Pine Sumiyoshi's strand o'ershadows, 
 The Pine o*erhead doth sway, 
 
 " Are things without the breath of life, 
 Yet from remotest time 
 Hath fame them joined in. constant love, 
 Despite wide-sundered clime. 
 
Appendix. 
 
 " And shall we twain, whose pulses beat 
 With thrill of active life, 
 Whom many a year hath closer knit, 
 From discord free and strife, 
 
 " Since lirst I left my earlier home, 
 And here sought my dame, 
 Not still more rightfully to be 
 United lovers claim?" 
 
 TOMONARI. 
 
 " How pleasantly thou tell'st the tale, 
 Ne'er told before, I ween, 
 How have the bonds of love been knit 
 These stately pines between/' 
 
 THE SPIRIT OF SUMIYOSHI. 
 
 " Of old, men spoke of them, and said, 
 A happy omen here, 
 Now peace throughout the land shall reign 
 Thro' each succeeding year." 
 
 THE SriRIT OF TAKASAGO. 
 
 " Long, long ago the ancient tame 
 Have olden poets sung 
 Of Takasago's lofty Pine 
 
 The ' Myriad leaves'* among." 
 
 193 
 
 * The " Manyoshiu," or "myriad leaves," is the most extensive, and at 
 the same time the most ancient, collection of Japanese poetry known. It seems 
 to have been compiled about the commencement of the gth century, and no 
 doubt contains poems of a much older date — all in pure archaic Japanese, 
 free from any admixture of Chinese. See the article in the West. Rev.., cited 
 supra. 
 
194 
 
 Appendix. 
 
 THE SPIRIT OF SUMIYOSHI. 
 
 " Great Daigo on Sumiyoshi fair 
 Bestowed its name, men say, 
 O blest are those who live beneath* 
 
 Our Emperor's gentle sway." 
 
 THE SPIRIT OF TAKASAGO. 
 
 " The Pine, ne'er bared of leafy dress, 
 Still green stands 'gainst the sky, 
 Unfaded still long years shall stand 
 Sign of eternity."' 
 
 THE SPIRIT OF SUMIYOSHI. 
 
 " Unchanged through ages be the glory 
 Of Sumiyoshi's tree, 
 Fair emblem of the constant peace 
 These happy days shall see." 
 
 TOMONARI. 
 
 " O sweet your speech, a calm so sweet 
 My troubled mind doth bring; 
 O clear my soul from vexing doubts, 
 O clear the day of spring.'' 
 
 THE SPIRIT OF SUMIYOSHI. 
 
 " O clear the sunny day of spring. 
 Lo ! o'er the western sea. 
 Sumiyoshi's shores we may descry 
 From 'neath Takasago's tree." 
 
 * There is here in the original a play upen words difficult to render, 
 "Sumiyoshi" means "fair are cur abodes, happy our lives." 
 
Appendix. 
 
 195 
 
 THE SPIRIT OF TAKASAGO AND TOMONARI. 
 " Whose green leaves .sparkle set so fair 
 Against blue sea and sky; 
 Ah ! sweet, full sweet, the spring time is, 
 Bright shines the sun on high."' 
 
 How calm our land embosom'd mid 
 
 The four encircling seas ; 
 How soft the murmuring awaked 
 
 By the lightly blowing breeze. 
 
 So lightly felt in our happy land 
 
 Our mighty Emperors sway ; 
 O constant Pair your gladness add,* 
 
 And join in my poor lay. 
 
 Though poor it be, for how shall any 
 
 In fitting couplets sing 
 Of all the joys our gracious Lord 
 
 Doth to his people bring. 
 
 TOMONARI. 
 " The story of yon lofty Pine 
 Well have ye told to me : 
 Tall trees and lowly herbs, men say, 
 But lifeless things these be. 
 
 " Vet well tall trees and lowly herbs 
 Their appointed seasons know, 
 The Spring's mysterious power obey, 
 Sunward their blossoms show." f 
 
 * When sung as an epithalamium, the ballad usually ends with this stanza. 
 The text here is utterly untranslatable, owing to the word-plays, and 1 have 
 therefore not been able to give more than the bare idea of the original. 
 
 \ " Vere rosam, frumenta calore 
 
 Viteis auctumno fundi suadente videmus." — Llcr. i - ' y*f - ? 
 
 - 
 
 CXfV~*v 6**, 
 
 
 -7 t 
 
 • 
 
 
ig6 
 
 Appendix. 
 
 THE SPIRITS OF SUMIYOSHI AND TAKASAGO. 
 
 " The Pine no change of season owns, 
 Its foliage ever green 
 In summer heat, 'neath winter snow, 
 For a thousand years is seen." 
 
 THE SPIRIT OF SUMIYOSHI. 
 
 " Explained the tale of Takasago, 
 Suminoye's story told, 
 The antique legend now thou may'st 
 To all the world unfold. 
 
 " All living things from mother earth 
 Their life and being gain, 
 And nature, nowhere voiceless, sings 
 An universal strain.'' * 
 
 Tall trees and lowly herbs, stones, sand, 
 
 The soil our feet do press, 
 The winds and waters, everything, 
 
 A soul divine possess. 
 
 The murmuring of the gentle zephyrs 
 
 Amid the woods of spring, 
 The hum of insect 'mong the dews 
 
 Autumn abroad doth fling. 
 
 Arc these not strains of Nature's song ! 
 
 Her universal voice 
 In sigh of breeze, in purl of stream, 
 
 We hear and rejoice. 
 
 * This stanza is a quotation from a poem contained in the collection known 
 as Kokinshiu. 
 
Appendix. 
 
 W 
 
 Sublime its lofty top uprears 
 
 The peerless Pine on high, 
 For a thousand autumns still hath flung 
 
 Against the azure sky. 
 
 Its far-spread branches, vestur'd e'er 
 With dress of changeless green ; 
 
 Well Shiko's* favour were here bestowed, 
 Well men's loud praise I ween. 
 
 * The allusion is explained in the following song : — 
 Shin no Shiko 
 Mikari no toki, 
 Ten niwaka ni kaki-kumori, 
 Tai-u shikiri ni furishikaba, 
 Mikado ame wo shinogan to, 
 Komatsu no kage ni 
 Tachi-yoreba, 
 
 Kono matsu tachimachi taiboku to nari, 
 Yeda wo tare, ha wo kasane ; 
 Kono ame wo morasazarishikaba Mikado 
 Ta-iu to iu shaku wo 
 Kono matsu ni okuri 
 Tamaishi yori 
 
 Matsu wo Ta-iu to mosu to ka ya. 
 A spirited translation of the above appeared in the Japan Weekly Mail of 
 March 10th, 1875, on the basis of which the following version has been attempted. 
 Shin no Shiko 
 Once a-hawking did go ; 
 All at once the clouds lowered, 
 And down the rain poured, 
 
 Ho ! the Emperor must not get wet. 
 An ancient pine-tree 
 Seemed good shelter to be, 
 And 'neath it did he go, 
 When the branches grew so 
 
 Thro' the thick leaves the rain could not get. 
 'Twas the Emperor's whim 
 That the tree should from him 
 Have a shaku with Ta-iu writ on, 
 'Twas no sooner said than 'twas done, 
 
 And the pine-tree's called Taiu e'en yet. 
 
13S 
 
 Appendix. 
 
 The wind booms through the stiff-set leaves 
 
 Mid which the morning rime 
 Glitters, the deep green hues shall still 
 
 Endure throughout all time. 
 
 Aye morn and eve the leaves fall thick, 
 
 Yet still the ancient tree 
 With all its leafy glory clothed, 
 
 Shall ne'er unvestured be, 
 
 Ne'er bared of its dress of deep, deep green, 
 
 As by the long years roll ; 
 E'en to the leafy Kadsura* nature 
 
 Doth briefer being dole. 
 
 And ever monarchs of all trees 
 
 Shall either hoary Pine 
 Through happy ages reign supreme 
 
 Of constant Love the sign. 
 
 Well merit ye, tall Pines, your namcyj- 
 
 Ye seem with pride to say, 
 Your peers may fade and pine and die, 
 
 Ye ne'er shall pass away. 
 
 The point lies in a word-play upon ' Tai-u ' and ' Ta-iu '—the former signifying 
 "great rain," the latter being the name of a certain high rank. 
 
 A shaku was a sort of tablet on which memoranda were noted. The word 
 also means a degree in rank. 
 
 Shin no Shiko is the Chinese Emperor Cheng or She Hv.ang-ti, who 
 flourished between B.C. 259 and b.c. 210, and first consolidated the petty feudal 
 states of China into one vast Empire. (See Mayers' " Chinese Reader's Manual,'' 
 Article 597.) 
 
 * Masaki no Kadzura. It is uncertain what is meant here. Masaki is the 
 Euonymus Japonicus, Kadzura may be Uvaria Japonica Thbg, or a kind of wild 
 vine, Vitis Pentaphylla. 
 
 t The word matsu, " pine," means also " to wait, endure," and the compound 
 matsdai signifies " to the end of time." 
 
Appendix. 
 
 TPIE SPIRIT OF SUMIYOSHI. 
 
 " Sir Wanderer, hearken to my words, 
 Twain guardian spirits we, 
 Of Suminoye's tall Pine, I, 
 Of Takasago's, she.'' 
 
 TOMONARI, 
 
 '•'' Full strange the tale" ye tell, meseems, 
 A land of marvels this, 
 Of either Pine ye would reveal 
 Some deep mysterious bliss." 
 
 THE SPIRITS OF SUMIYOSHI AND TAKASAGO. 
 
 " Tall trees and lonely herbs possess 
 Of soul divine a share," 
 
 TOMONARI. 
 
 " O wise mankind are grown beneath 
 Our Emperor's fostering care." 
 
 199 
 
 THE SPIRITS OF SUMIYOSHI AND TAKASAGO 
 
 " Our lord is lord of all the land, 
 Of all the land bestows, 
 O long beneath his gracious sway 
 May men enjoy repose ! 
 
 '''Towards Sumiyoshi, abode of Peace, 
 Come, Wanderer, turn thy feet, 
 There pleasantly shall glide the hours 
 In various converse sweet." 
 
 A fisher-bark they launch, aloft 
 
 They hoist the narrow sail, 
 Far o'er the evening waters speed 
 
 Before the favouring gale. 
 
200 Appendix. 
 
 Towards where Awaji's isle looms high 
 
 Above the heaving sea, 
 And leagues on leagues they sail ere that 
 
 Suminoye's on their Ice. 
 
 THE SPIRIT OF SUMIYOSHI. 
 
 "Thou Pine that rearest thy lofty top 
 On Sumiyoshi's shore, 
 Ne'er since — ah me how long ago! 
 Thy stately form I saw, 
 
 " Have I thy glory ceased to own, 
 Through many a wakeful night, 
 Or the mem'ry lost of the secret bond 
 Doth me with thee unite. 
 
 "And thou, Sir Priest, before thy shrine, 
 Round fenced with red-stained pale, 
 May beat of drum at holy feast, 
 And sacred mime ne'er fail." 
 
 Tomonari. " Lo ! westwards o'er the heaving waters, 
 Beyond the purple sea," 
 
 S. of S. " Still Takasago's shore we view, 
 Where stands the lordly tree." 
 
 Tomonari. " Here store of Tamamo* herb wherewith 
 At New Year homes are dressed ; " 
 
 S. of S. "At foot of yon tall Pine reclined, 
 Our limbs we well might rest." 
 
 Tomonari. "The dead leaves of the deathless tree 
 Upon me fluttering fall," 
 
 * Perhaps " mo " (Ceratophyllum submcrsum). 
 
Appendix. 
 
 S. of S. "With wild plum's flowerful branchlet I 
 My wrinkled brow enthrall." 
 
 TOMONARI. 
 "Upon my raiment snow-flakes glitter; 
 Beneath the streaming moon, 
 With gods in godlike revel to join 
 How glorious the boon." 
 
 THE SPIRIT OF SUMIYOSHI. 
 " Hark to the music of the sea, 
 Sweet as the maiden's song, 
 Urging the sacred mime before 
 The temple-crowding throng. 
 
 " Behold how yon tall Pine's vast shadow 
 Trembles with ceaseless quiver, 
 Upon the moonlit waters mirrored, 
 At every wavelet's shiver." 
 
 TOMONARI. 
 
 "O blest the land doth heav'n's decrees 
 And god-gi'en chiefs obey : 
 To high Miako's lordly town 
 Still distant is the way." 
 
 THE SPIRIT OF SUMIYOSHI. 
 
 " May troops of maidens welcome thee 
 As chief from victory, 
 A thousand, thousand blessings ever, 
 I pray, attend on thee. 
 
 " White-robed when thou at holy feast 
 Invok'st the gods' high grace, 
 Thine outstretched arms all ill avert, 
 And every good embrace. 
 
 201 
 
202 Appendix. 
 
 "0 for a thousand autumns may 
 The people peaceful be, 
 For full ten thousand years enjoy 
 Long life, prosperity." 
 
 How softly sweetly sings the breeze, 
 
 O everlasting Pine ! 
 Among thy far-flung leafy limbs 
 
 Whereunder I recline, 
 And aye could lie, well pleased to list 
 
 To music such as thine. * 
 
 This last stanza is sung or recited by the " Utaigata. 
 
 
 X* ■ > 
 
 

■W 
 
 
PREFACE OF THE AUTHOR. 
 
 (original text reproduced opposite.) 
 
 KANA TEH ON CHIUSHINGURA. 
 
 D A I J O. 
 
 Kako ari to iyedomo shokusezareba sono ajiwai 
 wo shiradzu to wa, kuni osamatte yoki bushi no 
 chiu mo buyu mo kakururu ni tatoyeba, hoshi no 
 him miyedzu yoru wa midarete arawaruru tameshi 
 wo koko ni kanagaki no 
 
m 
 

YA 
 
 :AG 
 
 AP, 
 
 ION"