Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1907-12-22
The Discerning Magistrate

A1AMA-GIkA, the Discerning Mags- d.
IN trate. sat upon his heels, after the b
manner of his countrymen from
time immemorial in his diminutive
garden. with the inevitable lacquered
Ssaaa' supporting an outfit for or tea drink
however were untouched. In his left
hand he held singular looking picture,
while with the index finger of his right
he traced the lines of a stanza page
of that ancient collection OF japanese
poetry, the Manyoshin lying open before
him.
The picture, which he consulted alter
natey with the book, portrayed an old
dressed in the costume of Samurai, Cr3
who was represented as pressing two
small babes to his bosom, and at the
same time pointing to peculiarly shaped
vase that stood by his side. An inscrip-
ton in Japanese ran down on one side S
of the picture, and another in the ancient
Chinese seal character appeared opposite ..
to it.
On one side of the magistrate knelt
his little wife Shori-San, and on the other
the woman who had brought him the
picture also knelt and touched the earth
with her forehead. She lifted her tear
stained face to his as Nama-gika directed
his wife to hand her the painted tablet.
He asked her if she understood the
inscription written on it.
"Yo-fu the priest read it to me-" she replied.
"Wouldst know why this tablet was painted"
one of the inscriptions, Consult the one hundred
and thirteenth stanza of the seventh section of the
Manyoshn" and again turning to the book he
reread the stanza
Verify avarce is Unsuitable fire that doth
as feedeth ceaset long aught remaneth that
it may make its own.
1t is description of the character of Muscabora,
my husbands brother" replied the woman.
The Masr sd drew from his srd die
this Communication sent by the priest Yo-fu at
the Spring Hill temple in the great Matsunoh
Counsellor Ro, has left all that he possessed to
this Muscabora to the exclusion OF his wife and
children"
Honorable SIR" replied the woman, las long
as the counsellor my august husband strong and
well, he did not fear Muscabora in the least. Two
lovely boys had been born to him, and his happi-
no sooner reaches its utmost height than it turns
and falls Shortly after the birth of his two sons,
the health of my much revered husband began to
fail. He grew weaker day by day and at last
divinely retired.
when the honorable counsellor found that his
death was inevitable and rapidly approaching. he
called me to him and told me how long and earnestly
he had thought of ways and means to secure the
future safety and well being of his children and
band, what sort of my brother Muscabora
Inconsistencies and extremely avaricious, en-
tirely devoid of honor of honesty, of power
and position who uses his authority relentlessly to
ACCOMPLISH iniquitous undertakings man entirely
deaf to the appeals of humanity or of justice. You
also know my brother Muscabora was by no means
pleased that after living nearly seventy years
wifeless and childless should at last marry He
had for so long time relied with confidence upon
sooner or later inheritng his wealthy brothers
property that he could not accept the situation
patiently, and has been heard to say that by fair
means or by foul he would have what ought by
right to come to him
Honorable husband" said the Discerning Magis-
trates little wife Shori-san, if this man Muscabora
had what ought by right to come to him, he would
not be likely to make any more trouble for long
time
And yet,' replied the Discerning Magistrate,
"Ro the counsellor has fit to devise and be-
oueath every hand breadth of land with all that
grows or is built upon it. and every last bronze rin