St. Johnsbury Caledonian. [volume] (St. Johnsbury, Vt.) 1867-1919, 1901-02-20
A Japanese Hero.

1t is beautiful story told by Lafaca-
do Hearn of an old man whose great
deed belongs TO Japanese history. He
was Hamaguchi, and his farmhouse
stood on the verge of small plateau
overlooking the bay. The plateau,
mostly devoted to rice culture, was
hemmed in on three sides by thickly
wooded SUBMITS; and from the outer
verge the land sloped down to the sea.
Below were ninety matched dwellings
and temple; these composed the vii
lage.
One autumn evening Hamaguchi Co.
hei was looking down from his balcony
on the preparations for some merry max
ing in the hamlet below. All the villagers
were out; and he would have gone with
them, had he not been feeling less strong
than usual.
Suddenly there came an earthquake
shock, not very strong one; but Hama
guchi, who had felt many before this,
thought there was something odd in its
long spongy motion. AS the quaking
ceased, he CHANGED to look toward the
sea; and there he saw the strangest
possible sight it seemed to be running
away from the land. Apparently the
whole village had noticed it; for the peo-
pie stood still in wonderment. Only
Hamaguchi drew any conclusions from
the phenomenon, and guessed what the
sea would do next. He called his little
grandson, lad Of ep,-the only one of
the family left with him.
"Tada Quick Light me torch"
The child kindled a pine torch; and the
old man hurried with it to the fields,
where hundreds of rice sacks stood ready
for transportation. One by one, he
lighted them in haste; and they caught
like finder, sending skyward masses Of
smoke that met and mingled in one
cloudy whirl. Tada, astonished and ter.
ri6ed. ran after his grandfather, weeping
and calling. "Why? why? why?"
Hamaguchi did not answer. He
thought only OF four hundred lives in
peril. He watched for the people, and
in moment only they came swarming
up from the village. And still the sea
was fleeing toward the horizon. The
first party of succor arrived score Of
agile young peasants, who wanted to
attack the fire at once; but Hamaguchi
stretching out both his arms, stopped
them.
"Let it burn, lads" he commanded
"Let it be! l want the whole village
here"
The whole village came, mothers and
children last of all, drawn by concern
and curiosity.
"Grandfather is mad. am afraid o.
him !" sobbed little Tsda. "He set fire
to the rice on purpose. | saw him dc
| it,"
"As for the rice," said Hamaeuch
"the child tells the truth. set IRE to it
Are all the people here?"
""All are here i" was the answer. "Bui
we cannot understand this thing"
"See!" cried the old man, at the tor
of his voice, pointing to the open. "Say
ii | am mad !"
1t was the returning sea, towering
like cliff, and coursing swifter than the
kite. There was a shock, heavier thar
thunder, as the colossal swell smote th'
shore, with toam-burst like blaze o
sheet-lightning. Then white horror o
sea raved over the village itself. 1t drew
back, roaring and tearing the land as il
went. Twice, thrice, FIVE times, it strucl
and ebbed. each time with lesser surges
and then it returned to its ancient bed
and stayed there, although still raging
Of all the homes about the bay, nothing
remained but two straw roofs, tossinl
madly in the offing. All lips were dumb
until Hamaguchi observed gently
THAT was why l set fire to the rice.
He was now poor as the poorest in al
the village, but he had saved four hun
| dred lives