10 of the Best Stories from Kenji Miyazawa and Nankichi Niimi

  "They are connecting up this thing called electricity. Once they do that, we won't need lamps anymore."

  Minosuke didn't understand. That's because he knew nothing at all about electricity. If it's supposed to replace lamps, then this electricity thing must be some kind of light. But if it's a type of light then they should be lighting up the inside of people's houses. What's the point of putting all of these great big poles along the road, he wondered.

  Chapter 4

  About a month later he was again visiting Ono, when he saw that those big poles that they had been putting in along the roadside, now had several black wires running over the top. Each black wire did a loop around the head of one of the little fat men sitting on the pole's wooden arms, and then continued on to the next pole, where it did another loop and continued on to the next, and so on, and so on.

  After following it for a while, he noticed that two sets of black wires would occasionally separate from the head of the little fat men, and join up with the side of a house.

  "What? I thought electricity was supposed to be some kind of light. It's just a cable. Well, it's a nice place for the sparrows and the swallows to take a rest," said Minosuke, laughing to himself. But on entering the amazake teahouse where he was a regular customer, he saw that they had taken down the large lamp that used to hang above the main dining table in the center of the room, and placed it against the wall. In its place, hanging from the ceiling by a thick cable, was a weird lamp that looked like a miniature version of the old one, but without a hole for pouring in kerosene.

  "What's this weird thing you've got hanging here? Was there something wrong with the other one?" asked Minosuke.

  The owner of the teahouse replied,

  "Ah, that's the electricity they installed. Don't need to worry about setting fire to the place, it's much brighter, and you don't need matches. It's very, very convenient.

  "Huh! But look how ugly it is. It doesn't suit your store at all. This will lose you customers."

  The teahouse owner remembered he was talking to a lamp salesman so he didn't say anything more about the convenience of electric light.

  "You see that. Take a look at the ceiling there. Look at how black it is. That's taken years and years of lamp soot to get that color. And now that lamp's gone, just like that. Just because this new convenience called electricity comes along, it gets pulled down and tossed in a corner. That's no way to treat a good lamp."

  By taking the side of the lamp in this way, Minosuke refused to admit any of the benefits of electric light.

  But before long, evening came, and without anyone striking a single match, the teahouse suddenly became as bright as day. Minosuke was astonished. It was so bright he instinctively looked behind to see what happened.

  "Minosuke, this is electricity."

  He stood for a long time, staring at the electric light through gritted teeth, making a face as if he were staring down the enemy. He stared so hard his eyeballs started to hurt.

  "I hate to be the one to tell you Minosuke, but lamps just don't compare. Poke your head outside and take a look up the road."

  He walked sulkily over, opened the paper sliding door and took a look outside. Electric lights were shining brightly in every house and every shop, the same as the teahouse. There was so much light it spilled out of the houses and poured into the street. It was almost blinding for someone like Minosuke, who was only used to the light of a kerosene lamp. Minosuke stood staring at the scene for a long time, his shoulders heaving out each breath with bitter resentment.

  A formidable adversary has emerged, thought Minosuke to himself. Up until now he had always sung the praises of cultural enlightenment, but he just couldn't understand that the electric light was a modern convenience more advanced than the lamp. Even a very smart person, when their livelihood is at stake, loses their ability to judge things correctly.

  From that day on, deep down, Minosuke was afraid of electric lighting coming to his own village. If electric lighting came to his village, then all the villagers would most likely take down their lamps and hang them against the wall, just as the owner of the teahouse did, or they might just stow them away in the attic. No one would need to buy lamps anymore.

  But he comforted himself by thinking about how much effort it had taken just to get lamps into the village; surely they'd be too afraid of electric lights to accept them without some kind of struggle.

  But when he heard the rumor not long after, that the next town council would be debating about whether to introduce electric lighting to the village, he felt as if he'd just received a smack over the head.

  The time has come to welcome thee, formidable enemy of mine.

  He could no longer just sit back and watch. He made his opinion known to everyone.

  "This thing called electricity uses great long wires that pass deep through the mountains, so you can be sure that those wires will lead all the foxes and raccoon dogs to your farms where they'll steal all of your rice and veggies."

  This is the kind of ridiculous thing that he would tell people in order to protect the business he had grown accustomed to. Every time he said something like this though, he felt a pang of guilt.

  When the town council was over and he heard that electric lighting was finally coming to the village of Yanabe Shinden, he felt as if he'd just received another smack over the head. He thought to himself, if I keep getting smacked over the head like this I'll start going crazy.

  And that's exactly what happened. He started going crazy. For three days after the town council, Minosuke stayed in bed with the covers pulled over his head. And that's when he started losing his mind.

  More than anything else he wanted someone to blame. So he decided to blame the mayor who had acted as the chairman on the town council. Then he thought of all the different reasons why he should despise the mayor. Even someone who is ordinarily an intelligent person, when it comes to a crucial moment where their livelihoods are at stake, loses their ability to make rational decisions. They start bearing the most ridiculous grudges.

  Chapter 5

  The night sky was lit up by the moon and the rape blossoms were in full bloom. Far in the distance came the sound of drums, announcing the start of a spring festival.

  Minosuke didn't take the normal road. He ran along the ditches like a ferret, stooped down low, and barged through the thickets like a stray dog. People do this when they want to avoid being seen.

  Because he'd stayed there for so many years, he was very familiar with the layout of the mayor's home. He'd decided the moment he left the house that the best place to light a fire would be the cowshed, because of its straw-thatched roof.

  In the main house everyone was sound asleep. And it was quiet in the cow shed too. That's not to say that the cows were necessarily asleep, because cows are quiet whether they are awake or asleep. But even if they were awake, it wasn't going to stop him from lighting the fire.

  Instead of bringing matches, he'd brought his old flint and steel he had used before matches had become available. He'd searched around the wood cooking stove for some matches before leaving the house, but hadn't been able to find any. Luckily his hand had fallen on the flint and steel, so he'd brought that instead.

  He started striking the steel against the flint. It sent out a burst of sparks, but because the char cloth was damp, it wouldn't light. This flint and steel isn't very convenient, thought Minosuke to himself. Not only can't it start a fire, it's so loud, it's bound to wake everyone up.

  "Damn! I should've brought matches. What an old piece of junk! The one time you really need it and it doesn't even work."

  Suddenly he stopped and thought about what he'd just said.

  "...old piece of junk! The one time you really need it and it doesn't even work...old piece of junk! The one time you really need it and it doesn't even work..."

  With these words, Minosuke's head suddenly cleared, like the moon breaking through the clouds.

  He finally realize
d his error. The kerosene lamp was now an outdated device. The world had a new and far more convenient device called the electric light. The world had become that much more advanced. Cultural enlightenment had progressed. If Minosuke really was a citizen of this nation of Japan, he should be proud that his country had made this much progress. Attempting to stand in the way of social progress out of fear of losing his own outdated business, and trying to set a fire because he bore a grudge against someone who'd done nothing wrong, was a disgraceful way for a man to act. If the world had moved on and no longer needed this kind of outdated business, then shouldn't he act like a man, discard his old business, and start a new business that will be of more use to people?

  Minosuke went back to his house the way he'd come.

  So what did he do then?

  He woke up his sleeping wife and he asked her to get all the lamps that were in the house and fill them with kerosene.

  When she asked him what he was intending to do at such a late hour of the night, Minosuke said nothing, for if she had known what he was planning then surely she would have stopped him.

  After they'd all been brought out there were fifty lamps in total, all of varying sizes. And they were all filled with kerosene. He hung them from his cart, just as he always did when he went out selling lamps, and headed off. This time he made sure he took his matches.

  Along the road heading to the western mountain pass is a large lake called Lake Handa. After the spring rains it was filled to the brim, and beneath the light of the moon its smoky surface glimmered like a silver plate. Next to the lake were willows and alder trees, leaning over the water as if trying to see their own reflection.

  Minosuke had purposefully chosen a place where there were no people.

  So what did he do with the lamps?

  He started lighting them. He lit each lamp and then hung it from a branch of one of the trees next to the lake. He hung lamps of all different sizes, side by side. When there was no more room on one tree, he moved to the next one along. Eventually he managed to hang all fifty lamps from three trees.

  It was a windless night and each of the lamps burned steadily, without a flicker, lighting up the area like it was day. Attracted by the light, fish glimmered on the surface of the water like shimmering knives.

  "This is my way of quitting," said Minosuke out loud.

  But he was reluctant to leave, and stood gazing at the trees, their branches crammed with lamps, his arms dangling loosely by his side.

  Lamps, lamps, my good old lamps. Been with me for so long.

  "This is my way of quitting," he repeated.

  Minosuke walked back to the main road on the near side of the lake. He could see the lamps burning above the shore on the other side. All fifty lamps continued burning steadily. Another fifty lamps were burning upside down on the lake's surface. Again he stopped and stared at them for a long time.

  Lamps, lamps, good old lamps.

  Eventually he bent over and picked up a stone at his feet. Then, taking aim at the lamp with the biggest flame, he threw it as hard as he could. The glass smashed and the largest flame disappeared.

  "Your time has passed. The world has moved on," said Minosuke.

  He picked up another stone. The glass smashed on the second biggest lamp and its flame was gone too.

  "The world has moved on. Now it's the age of electricity."

  After he'd broken the third lamp, tears began to well in his eyes, so he could no longer see the lamps properly to aim at them.

  And that was how Minosuke quit his business. After that he went into town and started a new business. A book store.

  ___________________________________

  "Minosuke still owns a book store. Of course now he's gotten quite old, so his son's taken over," said Toichi's grandfather, finishing up his story, and sipping his tea that had grown cold.

  Of course Minosuke was Toichi's grandpa, and Toichi was now looking earnestly into his grandpa's face. Toichi had sat up while listening to the story, with his hands on his grandpa's lap.

  "So, what happened to the other forty seven lamps?" he asked.

  "I don't know. Maybe some people traveling along the road found them and took them home."

  "So, didn't you even have one lamp in your house?"

  "No, not even one. All that was left was this lamp stand," said grandpa, looking over at the lamp Toichi had dragged out that afternoon.

  "You lost money, didn't you grandpa? Someone took away forty seven of your lamps," said Toichi.

  "Yes, I lost money alright. When I think about that now, I didn't really need to go and do that. Even after electric light finally made it to Yanabe Shinden, I still could have easily sold fifty lamps or so. There was a small village south of Yanabe Shinden called Fukadani, and they still use lamps even now, and there were other villages that kept using lamps for some time. But anyway, in those days I had a lot of energy. If I thought of something, I just went and did it, without thinking too deeply about it."

  "You were silly weren't you grandpa?" said Toichi, who felt his grandpa was someone he could speak his mind to.

  "Yes, I was silly alright. But I'll tell you one thing Toichi," said grandpa, gripping the tobacco pipe upon his knee tightly between his fingers. "The way I did it may have been silly, but I have to say, I think the way I quit my business was the best way of doing it. I'll tell you what I mean. If the country moves on, and a business is no longer of any use, then it's better to just do away with it and start over. Don't be forever hanging on to a stale, outdated business, always talking about the good old days when business was good, resenting the world for having moved on. You never want to be gutless like that."

  Toichi sat staring quietly at his grandpa's animated face for some time. Finally, he said,

  "You had guts, didn't you grandpa?"

  Then he looked with fondness at the old lamp next to him.

  THE END

  The Story of the Giant

  by Nankichi Niimi

  Chapter 1

  The giant lived with his mother in the woods, far, far away.

  His mother was a frightening witch; you know the one, that scary witch with a long nose like an eagle, and piercing eyes like a snake.

  One moonlit night, when the witch and the giant were already asleep, there was a knock on the door outside. The giant got out of bed and opened the door, and standing there were two women and a young girl.

  "This child is the princess of this land," said one of the women. "We are her attendants. Today we took her highness into the forest to play, but we became lost and have only now come upon your house. Please take mercy on us and grant us shelter for the night," she asked.

  "Our house is only poor," called out the witch in a caring voice, "but please do come in and rest." So the three of them came inside and went to sleep.

  When the giant woke the next morning the two women had been turned into black birds, and the princess into a swan. The witch had cast a spell on them.

  Despite the giant's efforts to stop her, the witch then pitched all three of the birds out the window, and they all flew away. However, when evening came, the swan, whimpering sadly, returned to the witch's house. Taking pity on the swan, the giant decided that he would raise it in secret. During the daytime he let it free in the fields, and during the night, he let it sleep in his bed.

  As the giant grew bigger and bigger, the witch gradually became old, and eventually she could no longer move. She would spend each day lying on her bed teaching her son the giant how to cast spells. But all of that magic was for turning humans into different kinds of birds and animals.

  The witch was becoming weaker and weaker and was finally close to death. The giant thought that if he didn't ask her how to break the spells now, the swan would never go back to being a princess. He leant down beside her pillow and he said,

  "Mother, you've taught me how to turn humans into all kinds of birds and animals, but you haven't told me how the spells are broken. Please, tel
l me how it's done."

  "Alright then, I will teach you," replied the witch, but she was quite out of breath and her voice was no bigger than a mosquito's.

  "Mother, please say it clearly!" said the giant and placed his ear right next to the witch's mouth.

  "If the creatures shed tears, they return to their original form…" said the witch, and then her head fell limp and she was dead.

  The giant placed the dead witch in a white coffin and buried her beneath a palm tree. Then taking the swan with him, he left their house in the woods.

  He had decided to go to the capital. On his way there he tried to make the swan shed tears. He tried knocking it on the head, and he tried pinching its tail. But the swan didn't shed even a single tear. It just whimpered sadly. The giant felt terrible, and eventually he ended up with his cheek pressed against that of the swan's. And it was the giant's eyes in which tears began to well.

  The giant walked all through the day and all through the night, arriving at his destination of the capital on the seventh day after leaving his house. But the people in the capital knew the giant was the son of that terrifying witch, so they thought up a round-about way in which they could kill him. They then sent a representative to the king's palace. When he met the king, this is what he said:

  "Your majesty's palace is beautiful, however a passing traveler was once heard to say that a palace without a marble structure is a blemish on the king's reputation. Why not build a tower of marble?"

  "Yes, that's a very good idea. But where on earth can one find marble?"

  "If you walk a long, long way south of here, over a mountain and across a desert, you will come to a small village. It is said that in that village one can obtain as much marble as one might want."

  "I see, but who will go and get it?"

  "For that, the giant who is now in the capital would be perfect. He is as tall as a palm tree and can climb over a small hill in just one stride."

  "Then bring him here."

  So the giant was brought to the Royal Palace and ordered by the king to go and fetch the marble. To stop him from running away, they attached an iron chain to his leg.

  "I shall bring it for you," said the giant, and taking the swan with him, he headed south. As the giant traveled further and further south, the chain remaining at the palace grew shorter and shorter. Finally on the nineteenth day, the end of the chain was reached and it pulled taut against the thick pillar it was tied to.