THE SUNDAY OREGOXIAX, PORTLAND, APRIL 21, 1907.
1
' OKOHAMA, Japan. March 16. In our
days of childhood we learn with
much difficulty that boys may do things
that girls may not; by and by we learn
that 'tho' men and women have many
ideals In common, some virtues weigh
more In the scale for men, while others
weigh more in the scale for women; and
Anally having become accustomed to all
this, we achieve grown-up-ness and cross
the Pacific only to learn that whole races
of human beings live and prosper accord
In g to a scale of virtues that is their own.
It seems that something wider than, the
Pacific separates American from Japan
ese ideals; and one can not help wonder
ing how like us the Japanese will be
when our Western Ideals have held sway
longer.
This ta an interesting time to be in
Japan, for the old ideals and the new
flourish side by side. One often sees a
gentleman, the. victim of two codes of
etiquette, bowing the three, slow, deep,
ceremonial bows to an acquaintance and
at the same time taking off his hat In
foreign fashion. The other day in Tokyo
an incident happened that might have oc
curred in feudal times, but came as a
shock In this ath century. A betto stab.
bed a fellow servant, and afterwards
going to his master, prostrated himself,
begging pardon and expressing regret, not
for the murderous act, but because he. a
servant, had considered his own affairs
before the master's, and had - upset the
master's household!
Love and loyalty have led the Japanese
to extremes that we could never attain.
Irately we have been to two places, sacred
to the people, because they contain the
Braves of those who, true to their Ideals
of loyalty, died for others. The ideals of
loyalty are not ours, but whatever our
own beliefs, we must still admire those
who have died for their beliefs.
Story of Supreme Loyalty.
Do you know the story of the Forty
eeven Ronlns? If you know it as Mitford
tells It In his Incomparable "Tales of Old
Japan." you will find my account feeble
and halting. It is the supreme story of
Japanese loyalty and revenge, a story
that lives In Japanese art. in the color
prints especially; that lives in drama
every year It is played in the Tokyo the.
Rtera and that lives still in the hearts of
the people who throng each day to burn
incense before the forty-seven tombs at
the temple of Sengakeyi. A Ronin ("wave
man") was a well-born man who having
for some reason lost his land, was tossed
about by circumstances, wandering up and
down the country, living as he might,
until he could either return to the old or
find some new allegiance. Only yesterday
I met a modern Ronin boy of 17 whose
father belongs to an old Samurai family
and who has an assured position. The
lad Is going to Seattle to live as a servant
In some American family until he can
learn English. Two yearB ago In Amer
ica we had ourselves such a Ronin ser
vant; and on our coming to Japan his
father, a Tokro lawyer, called on us and
brought us presents. But the brave
Forty-seven
For Love of an Ancestor.
Asano, a daimio, lived early in the ISth
century in his castle in Harlma province.
On him fell fhe honor of entertaining In
Tokyo an Imperial envoy, so important a
personage that Asano was obliged to take
lessons In etiquette from a superior
named Kira. Asano bore his teacher pres
ents, but the lessons consisted of almost
nothing except insults, for Klra, who was
of a grasping nature, thought the gifts
of the daimio mean and insignificant.
Finally Klra. overbearing beyond endur
ance, asked Asano to tie the strink of his
nook, calling him a country lout, where,
upon Asano. justly incensed, rushed to
ward Klra, thrusting at him with a dirk.
The daimio was seized and Imprisoned, a
council sat on tho case and In accordance
with their decree. Asnno committed hara
kiri, his family was disgraced, his castles
confiscated, and his retainers disbanded.
He was a man much loved by those who
served him and especially by his coun
cillor. Oishi Kuranosuke.
Oishi resolved to avenge the death of
his master and so he chose 4S faithful
retainers, among them Chikara. his son
a lad of 18, and an old man of 77. and
these 47 men, banding themselves to
gether, resolved to kill the enemy of their
dead lord.
Klra. fearing them, kept himself well
guarded so the Ronlns disbanded becoming
tinkers, carpenters and tradesmen. Oishi
meantime, knowing that he would be
watched, went to Kyoto and gave himself
tip to a lire of debauchery, even desert
ing his children and divorcing his wife.
Then, when Klra was thrown off his
guard and no longer feared the Ronlns.
Oishi Joined his comrades In Tokyo and
together they made their plans.
Avenged a Wrong.
On cold December night when snow
was on the ground they feasted together
talking over the last details of their at
tack and resolving to kill us helpless per-
4
Unceasing Devotion to the Memory of Brave
Men Who Hade Sacrifice. 1
Daily Worship at the Tombsof Those Who Gave
Up Their Lives for Others.
J II IE fk U -V&SrQk 111 II II IS H iEi aTTiSTNS tSygSfW )KsS possessions with them, fathers in semi
CP 8 'SSTgf lli III If tj llj 'S3 1. HW'"l"-"tJ foreign clothes, telling; the story to
i-, . Try Jir-'rffHi - - ' - ' " ' 1 wmmau-it -gW.--v -. tuVJ'Cf7 I - their schoolboy sons, mothers and
WvSU i . I - Ste'ir!rrPr 08hters: young wive, with babies
, . 7- , j ' f I?., l ''LSTT1 rMiVMml " their-backs: high school and
ZZJ--U . IfcA '' ' T Y-JWl 1 xW-W&-mM college students, soldiers in uniform,
-" ' . dflBfW. " jC -k. ' I Si ' --S'JSi rt i'ori I IV i F&SLlflfit i KE h well-to-do merchants and poor, bent.
' i ' r at- A I a, i Jifijt' ttStL 1 jM'm&'HiirmmLV', Id eronee. One tiny maid came alone.
- v .- T 3- ' WM&fi,-' &&2&t?S I $Mli n when -he had left sticks of tn-
. I ; WirTr' -.!r",f i?TS,. ' Hi I rWiVt" ce at each rave. clgpped hr hand
- d . I'V n-Kate, Couple. .
1 - ' a rsaa:::::: jU:Vwwv
sons, for said Oishi: "To slay old men
and women and children is a pitiful
thing." At midnight they attacked the
house. Oishi. with a party of men break
ing In the front gate while Chikara led
a party through the rear gate. Then be
gan a stirring fight with the men at
arms. The brave 7. without losing one
of their number killed all of Kira's re
tainers before they found him crouching
In an outhouse. This was Oishi' speech
to him:
"My lord, we are the retainers of Asano
Takumi no Ksftiii. Last year your lord
ship and our master quarreled In the pal
ace, and our master was sentenced to
haraklrl, and his family was ruined. We
have come tonight to avenge him, as is
the duty of faithful and loyal men. I
pray-your lordship to acknowledge the
justice of our purpose. And now. my
lord, we beseech you to perform haraklrl.
1, myself, shall have the honor to act as
your second, and when, with all humility,
I shall have received your lordship's
head, it is my Intention to lay -tt as an
offering upon the grave of Asano Takumi
no Kami."
But the cowardly nobleman refused to
kill himself so the Ronlns cut off his
head, and then in all their blood-stained
armor they set out as morning broke,
carrying the head in a basket to the tem
ple of Sengakuji.
Sacrificed 4 7 Lives.
On the way the Prince of Sendai sent
out to them inviting them to breakfast
in his palace so greatly was he impressed
by their valor and loyalty. After this
halt they went on until they reached the
temple where the abbot came to meet
them. They washed the head in a well
near by and laid it on the tomb with a
paper addressed to their loTd, saying :
"Although we fear that after
the decree Issued by the government this
plot of ours will be displeasing to our
honored master, still we, who have eaten
of your food, could not without blushing
repeat the verse. Thou shalt not live
under the same heaven nor tread the
same earth with the enemy of thy father
or lord, nor could we have dared to leave
hell and present ourselves before you in
paradise, unless we had carried out the
vengeance which you began."
Then Oishi and Chikara. his son, and
the others burnt Incense while the priests
of the temple prayed.
The decree of the supreme court was
that they should all commit haraklri for
the deed they had done though according
to the custom and feeling of their times
was no more lawful than Is the lynching
of fiendish negroes in the South today.
So the 47 disemboweled themselves and
their bodies were burled beside the tomb
of their lord. ,
The temple Is :n tne outskirts of Tok'o.
near Shinagowa Station. "We went along
a little side street lined with shops,
where postcards and books and sake
cups are sold, all telling the tale of the
bravery of the forty seven. Passing
through the temple gate we came to a
plain two-etory building where, for a
few sen, we saw the sacred relics:
awords. spears, old Iron helmets, worn
clothing of rich brocade, plans of Kirras'
house, old documents, chain armor, and
armor made painstakingly by hand of
metal and leather. Some distance beyond,
at the aide of the main walk, is the little
round well where the head was washed.
A short distance more and we came to
a -building filled with carved wooden fig
ures of the Ronlns, young and old. from
the man of 77, to the smooth-faced boy,
Chikara. A figure in white represents
Kira dressed In a nightrobe as he was
when the Ronlna killed him. A quaint,
good-natured old country man was in
charge of the figures. He lifted the cur
tain that we might sec from the outside
instead of going to the trouble of taking
oft our foreign shoes and entering the
room. We asked him the names of the
different figures but he only shook his
head and said, in his rustic Japanese.
"You would not understand if I told
you." As we went toward the graves a
young Japanese stepped - up. lifted his
hat politely, and asked us to write some
thing in English on a postcard: why we
did not know unless he felt surprise that
foreigners should visit the spot.
From another old man we bought sticks
of Incense, and passing the enclosure
'-.-ir ii 1 i KKt'iV.
showing the grave of the Lord Arano
came to the graves of his faithful rela
tives, marked alike, with small tomb
stones placed near together in a square.
In front of each stone stands a bamboo
holder filled with fresh green leaves, and
in front of each incense is burning al
ways till the place is grey with smoke
and the air heavy with perfume. The
gravis of Oishi and Chikara are covered
with little wooden shelters where the
Japanese have pasted their cards. Here
beside the grave of their Lord the
Forty-seven He. and with them another,
a Satsuma man, who had spat upon
Oishi and called him faithless and a
coward as he lay in drunken sleep In
the gutter one day in Kyoto. Assured
after Oisnl's death of his faithfulness,
the Satsuma man committed haraklrl
in atonement, before Oishi'g tomb, anJ
tho pitying piiests burled the body
beside the graves of the 47 heroes.
Reverence Without Limit.
It you go sometime to that little spot
in the temple yard of Lengskuji per
haps you too will do as we did: place
burning incense before the tombs of
the Forty-seven Ronlns, brave men and
true It Is a wonderful story of loy
alty, isn't It? And while we 20th cen
tury Americans shrink from the ven
geance so relentlessly pursued we must
share the Japanese feeling of reverence
for the men who were true to their
belief and faithful unto death. As we
tood there, several hundred people
came, men -and women from the coun
try, carrying many of their worldly
Leaving Sengakuji, we went by
winding lanes, bamboo shaded, to a
suburb called Meguro, where Komura
saki and Gompachl, the ill-fated lovers.
He buried in one grave. Meguro is a
thriving suburb, with so many new
houses building that it seemed we
should find no place secluded enough
to hold a grave. Once we thought we
had found the spot, for we saw In a
garden a great stone Buddha, with a
semicircle of saints standing reverent
ly about him. In reply to our knocking
an old man and an old woman came
out, quaint old-styleapanese, who di
rected us with such 6inness and cour
tesy that we half wished to remain and
make' their acquaintance, instead of
continuing our search. After many
turnings we came at last to a tea
house on the corner, where a pretty
vesau fetched the key to the gate and
made herself our guide. The wall and
gateway, alas for romance! are of gal
vanized iron sheeting. Within, shel
tered by bamboo and willow. Is the
grave where the lovers lie, the grave of
the Shlyoku, the Japanese call it, for
the Shlyoku is a mythical bird, the
symbol of conjugal faithfulness. This
is the atory:
Shrine for Lovers.
i Gompachl. who was a handsome
youth, much skilled in the use of
arms, quarreled with comrade and
killed him. So he left his home and,
traveling far. stopped ne night at a
wayside house for rest. He was awak
ened from sleep by a beautiful girl,
who told him that he was in a den of
robbers, who' intended to kill him for
his sword and silver. She herself the?
had stolen from her father's home,
and she begged him to eaeape from toe
place, taking her with htm. Gompachl,
thus forewarned, lay in wait for the
robbers and. as they attacked him,
killed so the storr .goes all ten of
them. He -restored KomurasKI to her
father," who feasted him and gave him
jleces of sliver. The two young people
exchanged vows of fidelity, and Gom
pachl fared on toward the capital. He
was attacked by highwaymen and was
about to be overcome when a civilian
came to his rescue. This rescuer be
came his 'riend. entertaining him for
several month. Then Gompachl be
came idle and dissolute. Finally, in one
of his haunts he met Komurasaki
weeping. She told him that misfortune
had befallen her family, until in filial
obedience, to save her father and moth
er from starving, she had sold her
body to the keeper of the house in
which he found her. Gompachl In his
Idleness had not the money to buy her
freedom, but he went each .day to see
her. Then all 'his money was gone, his
host turned against him and Gompachi
became a common "Highwayman and
murderer. For his crimes he was caught
at last - and beheaded. Koraurasakl.
when he came no more, learned his fate
and went to find his grave at Meguro.
There, when she had wept and prayed
long, she stabbed herself to death with
a dirk. The priests who found her
there buried her in the grave with
Gompachl. Poor Komurasaki, life was
hard for her.
Lovers today flock to the place to
burn Incense and tie wisps of paper
prayers to the trees that overhang the
grave. ANNIE LAURA MILLER.
Ms
Argned by the Workln'
Llpplneott's.
Sea Paddy Fiynn f me lasht noight, ses he:
"RegobB. me bye. it's .grlttiri purty bad
Whin TA-lmln- folki. t' satlxfy a ad.
Air tnkln' jobs frim ye an' ine, me lad;
Sez Ol to ye, ses Oi, it shouldn't be."
At that Oi ups an answers wlnout fear:
"Indade. wld yez, me frind, Oi don't
agree;
Fer anil)- mon would not contented be
Wldout a gel t run th' famalee;
A maid." ser. Oi, "Is horn t' injineer."
I - - ; - -
Plans for High Bridge at Madison Street
Purpose Is to Lessen Annoying Delays to Traffic On Account of the
Opening and Closing of the Draw.
PERSPECTIVE VIEW OF PROPOSED HIGH BRIDGE AT MADISON
STREET, LOOKING FROM THE EAST SIDE
HE accompanying drawing is a
perspective of the proposed new
Madison-street bridge, according:
to plana prepared by the Board of
Trade and approved by the East Side
Federated Clubs. Relief of the pres-
ent congested traffic over this struc
ture is the main purpose sought to be
accomplished in recommending that the
new bridge shall be constructed at an
elevation nine feet greater than that
of the old one. This will give the main
part of the bridge an elevation of
about 50 feet above low-water stage,
which. will enable full j tO per cent
of the river steamers to pass beneath
the structure without opening the
draw, putting an end to a large per
centage of the present annoying: de
lays to traffic.
By extending 100 feet further west
the approach to the bridge from the
West Side, and continuing the bridge
level easterly on the East Side to
Union avenue, it is urged that two
advantages will be gained. Snob a
plan will grfv a grade not greater
than 2 H per cent to either approach;
and on the East Side will 'make pro
vision for underground crossings at
East Water, East First, East Second
and East. Third streets. By following
the plana recommended by the Board
of Trade, it Is argued that the conges
tion of traffic on the East Side will
be greatly relieved without noticeably
increasing the grade of the bridge..
The movement of freight ia increas
ing constantly and the officers of the
Board of Trade believe the benefits
that will result from constructing a
new bridge in accordance with its
plans are such as will be required
within a few years. The Board will
seek to convince the Executive Board
and the members of the City Council
of the advisability of providing for
future requirements by building such a
bridge as has been designed.