The town of Tokamachi lies about eighteen miles from Horinouchi in Uonuma County. Though a number of villages lie scattered between the two, they are separated by a range of mountains, through which leads a lonely path. One summer a certain wholesaler of Tokamachi placed an urgent order with another dealer in Horinouchi for a large bale of white crepe.The dealer who was to send the crepe chose a robust fellow, one Takesuke, whom he sent out at around noon with the load of crepe. By the time Takesuke had almost half of the way behind him, it was already three o'clock. Taking his load off his shoulders, he settled down on a stone at the wayside and pulled out his lunch of roasted rice balls and began to eat. At that moment, something approached him, pushing through the dense cover of low bamboo that blanketed the valley. When he looked up to see what it could be, his first impression was that it must be an ape. But then it wasn't, either. The creature had long half-white hair falling down from its head to the middle of its back. It was taller than the average person. And, although its face did resemble that of an ape, it was not red, and its eyes were enormously big and shining. As Takesuke was a fearless sort, he grasped the mountain axe that he always carried in his belt as a precaution and put himself in a position todefend himseif in the strange were to attack him. However, the queer animal did not show the least sign of aggression. Instead, it only pointed to the rest of the roasted rice balls which on the stone beside Takesuke, as if it were begging for some. Takesuke understood what the creature wanted and tossed it some food, With obvious pleasure, the funny beast devoured the treat. Watching this put Takesuke at ease and he gave the beast more, upon which the "Listen, you, I come from Horinouchi and am on my way to Tokamachi,” Takesuke addressed the fellow creature standing nearby. "Tomorrow I'll pass by here again. Then you can have more lunch. But since today I have to make a very urgent delivery, I must hurry on.” He arose, intending to load the backpack on his shoulders again, but the animal grasped it instead, lifted it onto its own back as if it were nothing at all, and began to walk ahead. “It's helping me out of gratitude for the rice balls I gave it,” Takesuke reflected while fol. lowing the beast, who proceeded as easily as if there were nothing in the pack at all. Thanks to this unexpected assistance, Takesuke passed over the narrow, winding road in no time and without the least difficulty. After a hike of a good three or four miles, they approached the outskirts of Ikedani Village, where the creature stopped, let down the load, and rushed as quick as the wind back into the mountain underbrush.
Upon his arrival at Tokamachi, Takesuke of course told the people in the crepe-dealer's shop everything that had happened on the way, And although that was forty or fifty years ago, the people still talk about this event. For after that a good number of people working in the mountains spotted the strange creature....
Suzuki Bokushi,translated by Jeffrey Hunter with Rose Lesser, Weatherhill, (1986)Snow Country Tales: Life in the other Japan. 引用元文献 英訳版北越雪譜(Snow Country Tales: Life in the other Japan.) 翻訳ジェフリー・ハンター/ローゼ・レッサー/アン・ワルトホール 1986.ウェザビル出版社