Shank's Mare

  Yaji looked at the bundles again and was startled to see that they were not their own.

  'Well, I never,' he said. 'It's my mistake. They're yours right enough. I wonder where ours are.'

  'What are you talking about? How should I know anything about your bundles?' said the man.

  'This is awful,' said Yaji. 'What shall we do, Kita?'

  'You tied mine up with yours,' said Kita,'and it was by your side all the time. I don't know anything about it.'

  'It's very strange,' said Yaji. 'Here,'—turning to the other travellers—'is this really Fushimi?'

  'Ha-ha-ha!' they laughed. 'What's he saying? Just look at him. What a silly face he's got.'

  'You're an impudent lot,' said Kita.

  'Never mind whether we're impudent or not,' they replied. 'You're a couple of thieves. But we've got the bundles back so we won't be hard on you. You can go.'

  'This is dreadful,' said Yaji. 'I don't understand what's happened. Do you, Kita?'

  'Not me,' said Kita. 'What day was it yesterday?'

  'Yesterday? Let's see,' said Yaji. 'There was a moon last night, wasn't there? It must be the twenty-fourth or twenty-fifth day.'

  'Is it a long month or a short month. What day was it yesterday?'

  'Where was it that we stopped the other day when they said it was the day of the rat?' asked Yaji.

  'Oh yes,' said Kita. 'That was the place where we had such good food.'

  'I never saw burdock leaves so big before,' said Yaji.

  'Ha-ha-ha' laughed the other travellers. 'They certainly can't be in their right senses. Ha-ha-ha!' and they laughed till their sides ached.

  'I see what they've done,' said an older man named Tarobei, after thinking awhile. 'They're neither of them clever enough to try and steal other people's baggage. What they've done is this. They went down the river from Fushimi last night, and when they got to the place where the boats stop they went on shore, leaving their bundles in the boat.'

  'That's it, that's it,' said Yaji.

  'I told you so,' said the old man. 'And then there were a lot of people getting in and out of the boats and when the boatman called out that the boat was starting everybody rushed to get in and they got into this boat instead of their own. So while they thought they were really in the boat they had travelled in, they were in another which brought them back again.'

  'That's right,' said Kita. 'It was so dark when we got into the boat that we didn't notice any difference, and we were so tired that we went straight off to sleep. And when we got here this morning and looked round all the faces were strange and we were thunderstruck.'

  'I thought it looked like a place I had seen before,' said Yaji. 'And now I look again I know it is! Ha-ha-ha! That's how we came to take your bundles, you see. Very sorry.'

  'Ah, now I see it all,' said Kita.

  'Yes, but where are our bundles gone to?' said Yaji.

  'Your bundles were left on the boat,' said the old man,'and they would be taken to the Hakkenya at Osaka. You'd better ask there.'

  'Ha-ha-ha!' they all laughed.

  'What a shame!' said Kita.

  'Never mind,' said Yaji. 'There's nothing in the baggage but a change of clothes. I've got all my money in my belt. Let's just let it go. We're Edo people, we are.'

  So although they wanted the baggage, they agreed that it would be rather foolish to go all the way to Osaka to get it, and they therefore decided to go straight on to Kyōto. Parting with the other travellers they set out with dejected faces to the capital.

  After leaving Fushimi they soon came to Sumizomé, where there is a small pleasure-quarter. Suddenly a girl parted the sunblinds hanging from the eaves of one of the houses and ran out. She was dressed in a blue cotton dress with a velvet collar and her face looked quite white with the powder that was plastered on it.

  'I say,' she said, seizing hold of Yaji's sleeve. 'Come inside for a little and amuse yourself.'

  'No, no,' said Yaji. 'Let go.'

  He shook her off and then she caught hold of Kita.

  'How about you?' she said.

  'How about me,' said Kita, and he put his finger to his lower eyelid and pulled it down.

  'Won't you come?' she asked.

  'Not even if I was Yoshihidé,' said Kita. 'Let go.'

  'Oh, that's it, is it?' said the girl and she disappeared in the house.

  Going on they came to Fuji-no-mori, where they worshipped at an Inari shrine.

  'What do you say to having a drop here?' suggested Kita.

  'All right,' said Yaji.

  They parted the sunblinds and went into a small teahouse.

  'I see they've got some sweet saké,' said Yaji. 'Here, granny, give us a cupful.'

  'Ay, ay,' said the old woman. 'I'll draw you some in a minute.'

  'Seems as if the old woman had fallen in love with you, Yaji,' said Kita. 'She keeps looking at you all the time in such a queer way.'

  'Don't be a fool,' said Yaji. 'Here, old woman, hurry up.'

  'Ay, ay' said the old woman. 'In a minute.'

  Every time the old woman looked at Yaji her tears began to fall.

  'What's the matter with your eyes, old lady?' asked Yaji. 'Are they bad?'

  'It makes me feel sad every time I look at you,' said the old woman.

  'Why's that?' asked Yaji.

  'Wai-wai,' sobbed the old woman.

  'That's strange,' said Kita. 'What makes you feel so sad?'

  'I lost my only son the other day,' said the old woman,'and he was just like that gentleman, —just like him.'

  'Was he like me?' said Yaji. 'Then he must have been very good looking. What a pity he died!'

  'He'd got a hoarse voice just like you,' said the old woman,'and his face was pock-marked and black like yours, and he had a turn-up nose just like yours, and his eyes were crooked like yours.'

  'Well, he seems to have had all my bad points,' said Yaji.

  'He couldn't have had any of the good ones,' said Kita,'because there ain't any.'

  'Not only that but he was bald just like you,' went on the old woman,'with such a little queue. Oh, he was just like you.'

  'When you've finished taking stock of my face, perhaps you'll let us have that saké,' said Yaji.

  'Oh dear, I forgot all about it,' said the old woman, and she brought out two cups and filled them with the sake.

  'It's very weak,' said Kita when he'd tasted it.

  'That's because it made me so sad to look at the gentleman that my tears fell into it,' said the old woman.

  'What?' said Yaji. 'It ain't only tears. Seems to me as if your nose ran into it too.'

  'Well, to tell you the truth,' said the old woman,'it ran from my nose and my mouth too.'

  'Oh, how nasty!' said Kita. 'I can't drink any more.'

  'I've drunk all mine,' said Yaji. 'How horrid! Come on, let's go.'

  'How much is it?' asked Kita.

  'That'll be six coppers,' said the old woman.

  'You don't charge for the snot I suppose,' said Kita, and he went out spitting.

  They walked on and on and gradually grew nearer and nearer to the capital. The road become busier and busier, and they noted the courteous manners of the people and the gay dresses of the women. Soon they came in front of the Great Buddha.

  'What a fine big temple,' said Kita,'and there's a Buddha at the top there.'

  'Ah, this will be the Great Buddha,' said Yaji. 'I've heard about it, but it's bigger than I thought. Look at the enormous stones. Wonderful! Wonderful!'

  Thus talking they went in at the gate and climbed the steps up to the central hall in which stood the figure of Buddha.

  SECOND PART

  N the Great Hall of the Hokwō Temple the principal image is a carving of Rushana in a sitting position. It is six jō and three shaku high. The Hall, which faces the west, is twenty-seven ken from east to west and from south to north forty-five ken.

  'It's much finer than I thought,' said Yaji. 'Look at his great palms, the si
ze of a room.'

  'And he's got whatyoumaycallems as big as a badger,' said Kita.

  'What improper things you say,' said Yaji. 'A man could walk up his nostrils with his hat on.'

  'If he sneezed he'd get blown out pretty quick,' said Kita.

  'Don't talk foolishness,' said Yaji. 'Let's go round to the back and see what's there. Halloa, there's a window at the back.'

  'That's where he breathes,' said Kita.

  'He's not a whale,' said Yaji.

  'I say,' said Kita. 'Look at those holes in the beams.'

  'So there are,' said Yaji. 'That's strange.'

  At the bottom of the beams supporting the roof were cut holes just large enough to allow a person to wriggle through, and the country visitors were amusing themselves by getting through the holes. Kita also got through.

  'That's interesting,' said Kita. 'I can get through, but I don't think you could, Yaji. You're too fat.'

  'What are you talking about?' said Yaji, and pushing Kita out of the way, he went down on all fours and wriggled halfway into the hole. Then he found that he couldn't get any further and tried to get back, but the hilt of his dirk caught sideways in the hole and hurt him unbearably.

  'Oh, oh!' he groaned, red in the face. 'What an awful thing I've done.'

  'What's the matter?' said Kita. 'Can't you get out?'

  'Here, just pull my hands,' said Yaji.

  'Ha-ha-ha!' laughed Kita. 'What fun!' and he caught hold of Yaji's hands and gave them a good pull.

  'Oh! Oh!' said Yaji. 'That hurts.'

  'What a weakling you are,' said Kita. 'Have a little patience.'

  'Try pulling me by the legs,' suggested Yaji.

  'All right,' said Kita, and he went round to the other side and caught hold of Yaji's legs.

  'Ya-en-sa! Ya-en-sa!' he cried as he pulled.

  'Oh! Oh! That hurts more,' groaned Yaji.

  'Have a little patience and bear it,' cried Kita. 'You've come out quite a lot. Ya-en-sa! Ya-en-sa!'

  'Wait a bit, wait a bit,' said Yaji. 'You'll pull my legs off. It's better from the other end.'

  Accordingly Kita went round to the other side and began to pull his arms.

  'Ya-en-sa! Ya-en-sa!' he cried. 'You've come out quite a lot.'

  'Oh! Oh!' yelled Yaji. 'I can't stand it, Kita. Just go round to the other end and pull like you did before.'

  'How you change your mind!' said Kita, and he went round to the other side and caught hold of his legs again.

  'Ya-en-sa! Ya-en-sa!' he cried.

  'Wait, wait,' said Yaji. 'It's better when you pull my arms after all.'

  'If I go on pulling you first at one end and then at the other,' said Kita,'we'll go on all day. Wait a bit, I've got an idea.' He called to some pilgrims who were standing by.

  'Just come here a minute, will you?' he said. 'If you pull in front I'll go and pull behind.'

  'Don't be a fool,' said Yaji. 'How are you going to get me out by pulling at both ends?'

  'Well, we can't get you out pulling first at one end and then at the other,' said Kita.

  'If we pulled at both ends,' said one of the pilgrims,'we'd stretch you a bit and you'd come out easily.'

  'I know what to do,' said Kita. 'We'll go and buy a bottle of vinegar for you to drink, Yaji.'

  'What's the good of that?' asked Yaji.

  'Why, you know vinegar makes you thin,' said Kita.

  'Ha-ha-ha!' laughed the pilgrims. 'But we haven't time for that. What we'd better do is to get a hammer and hit him on the head, so as to drive him out.'

  'I never thought of that,' said Kita. 'That's a good idea. But don't you think we might hurt him?'

  'Then I don't see how we're going to get him out,' said the pilgrim.

  Here a countryman joined in.

  'I'm from a far province,' he said,'but I don't like to see the gentleman in such a fix.'

  'Well, if you can suggest anything,' said Kita,'let's hear it.'

  'Well, I think if we were to cut his leg and rub some hot pepper in he'd get such a shock that he'd get out by hisself.'

  'That's like the girl and the snake,' said Kita. 'It's a good idea.'

  'What I think,' said another pilgrim,'is that you want to make his bones soft. Then we could pull him out. What we ought to do is to get some quicklime and sprinkle it on him.'

  'Ah,' said the countryman,'and you might get him a coffin at the same time. If we break his arms and legs we could probably get him in.'

  'What foolishness you're talking!' groaned Yaji. 'What's the use of saying such silly things? Can't you help me, Kita?'

  'Wait a minute,' said Kita. 'Ah, I see. The scabbard of your dirk has got caught crossways,' and he put in his hand and felt about till at last he managed to take off the dirk.

  'Ah, that feels easier,' said Yaji.

  'There,' said Kita. 'Now if you'll all push in front I'll pull his legs from behind. Ya-en-sa! Ya-en-sa!'

  'He's coming. He's coming,' said the pilgrim. 'Just a little more. Shove up.'

  'Oh, oh!' groaned Yaji.

  'Ha-ha-ha!' laughed Kita. 'What a joke!'

  'Oh, oh! It hurts,' groaned Yaji.

  'Can't be helped,' said Kita. 'En-ya-en-ya! There you are,' and he pulled Yaji out on to the floor.

  'Thank you, thank you,' panted Yaji, wiping his face. 'Thank you all. Now I know that it hurts the person being born more than it hurts the person bearing. My bones did crack when I was coming out. And look at my kimono how torn it is.'

  Going out of the temple grounds into the bustling streets of the city they fell into admiration of the manners of the citizens, the gentleness of the men and women, even down to the postboys and the baggage-carriers, and the precise way in which they were dressed. As they were thus walking along looking at the strange sights, suddenly there was an agitation in the crowd, and they saw all the people, young and old, start running violently, uttering wild cries,'Ho-u-ho, yoi-yoi. Ekkorasassa. Ho-u-ho, yoi-yoi. Ekkorasassa.'

  'What are they all running for?' asked Yaji. 'There's something happened over there. What a fearful crowd! I say,' he called to a passer-by. 'Can you tell me what the trouble is about?'

  'There's a terrible quarrel going on over there,' replied the man.

  'A fight in the capital?' said Kita. 'That should be worth seeing,' and they hurried on till they came up to the crowd, which completely filled the street. Pushing their way to the front to get a look they saw the two men who had quarrelled. One of them appeared to be a fishmonger from the fish-tray that was on the ground beside him. His opponent seemed like a workman, —a very stalwart young man. In the capital people are not easily moved to anger, and although it was a quarrel, the two did not try to hit each other, but stood together in the sunshine quite quietly.

  'I beg your pardon,' said the fishmonger. 'It was not I that collided with you. I am sure you do not wish me to knock your head off.'

  'You talk big,' replied the workman,'but if you move a finger I shall be compelled to retaliate.'

  While he was speaking he folded his towel neatly and bound it round his head.

  'You wag your jaw too much,' said the fishmonger. 'Where do you come from at all?'

  'I?' said the workman. 'I come from Ame-no-kōji in Horikawa.'

  'What's your name?' asked the fishmonger.

  'I am called Kihei,' replied the workman.

  'How old are you?'

  'I am twenty-four.'

  'Don't talk nonsense,' said the fishmonger. 'You can't be as young as that. You must be lying.'

  'What are you talking about?' said the workman. 'It's perfectly true. My wife unfortunately died this year.'

  'That was a great misfortune,' said the fishmonger. 'You must have been sadly grieved.'

  'That is not all,' continued the workman. 'I am burdened with the care of a baby, which gives me great trouble.'

  'I can imagine so,' said the fishmonger. 'I am two years older than you.'

  'Then I am the younger of the two,' said the workman. 'W
here is your house?'

  'It's the first street to the east in Inokuma-dōri,' replied the fishmonger.

  'Really?' said the workman. 'A blind doctor named Sumpaku lives there.'

  'Well,' said the fishmonger,'and what about him?'

  'Oh, nothing, save that he is a relative of mine,' replied the workman. 'If you go that way you might remember me to him.'

  'Excuse me,' said the fishmonger. 'I see no reason why I should carry your messages. You must be a big fool.'

  Here the people looking on began to yawn.

  'Come on, Jōbei,' called one. 'Let's go.'

  'Wait a bit,' said Jōbei. 'They're just going to begin to fight.'

  'But I left a visitor at home,' expostulated the other.

  'Then go and bring him here,' said Jōbei. 'And you might bring a mat along at the same time.'

  Many of the spectators were sitting down on mats under the eaves of the houses, pulling the hairs from their chins to pass the time.

  'The fellow over on the other side is the best,' said another man in the crowd.

  'No, no,' said his friend. 'The one on this side is a good talker too.'

  'Yes, he talks all right,' said the first man. 'By the way, that reminds me, how's your missus? Is she better?'

  'Thank you,' replied his friend. 'She got very much better, but yesterday she got very bad again and last night she died.'

  'Ah, that must have given you great distress,' said the other. 'When is the funeral to take place?'

  'It had just started,' said his friend,'when I saw all the people running and heard there was a terrible quarrel going on here. So I told them to wait while I went to see.'

  While the people in the crowd were thus talking the quarrel was going on.

  'Come a little more this way,' said the workman. 'We are in the shade and it feels a little cold.'

  'Well, and what if I do?' asked the fishmonger.

  'I think you were pleased to call me a fool just now,' continued the workman. 'May I ask why I am a fool?'

  'You are a fool because you are a fool, I suppose,' said the fishmonger.

  'What are you talking about?' said the workman. 'From your observation I should judge you were the fool.'

  'Oh, no, not at all,' replied the fishmonger. 'I am a very intelligent person.'

  'If you are intelligent,' said the workman,'then I must be also.'