Pine Bluff daily graphic., 1911-02-25
AN IDOL IN COURT
Made to Serve the Ends of Justice
 ln a Case In Japan.
THE RuSE OF A WISE MAYOR.

That oiseiosed the Real Cuprits.
 Cue day q servant employed by the proprietor Of q big store near Japan bridge in Yedlo. was sent with heavy pack of valuable cotton goods on his back to dyer in Honjo district. When the store's messenger reached Yoko gawa stres nt was ready to seek rest. What moe ssfe than the little grove of trees set about the stone statue of the god Jizo. the patron saint of trav elers and defcnseless woman and chil- dren.
 Ths scmnoient porter awole from nap 70 snd that his employers cotton had disappeared. In great distress he went to the sAorekeeper and confessed th0t he had slept and that q robbeI had made ofr with the goods during his alulDAer The master would not bn iieve his story, saying that it would have heen impossible for robber to make eff with so large a bundle in broaes daylight. Unless the porter should pay for the lost goods he would have t0 go to prison, said the master. In despair the porter took counsel of Mayor O-oka.
 ~Yeu are certainly to blame for hay. ing falieG asleep" reproved the Havor ''bBt If8o is equally to blame, for s'e is a god bound to protect every rne [ who trusts in him, and in this instance he has betrayed you. l will have him F -~'as rod. and brought before DIG Gor 1rlal.
 ! O"JIa gave immediate orders to his eouSt officers to go and arrest the .iZc hf EGkagaWa street and bring blm De fore slte mayors seat for trial. Ilrae pf tae officers departed on their I>is- sitD- They first bound the arms of the stone god with coils of rope; ther they tried to lift him from his firIc Fede staR into a cart. A great crowd assembled before the Jizo. attracted ivy tile unusual behavior of the court officers. When they were told that Jizo. ha1 to go before the mayor for tTing tffe citizens marveled
 The task of unseating the god was too aluch for the three court officers aAh hAGS ut dll ol liicNC about. They promised that in return far assistance. they would admit az volunteer workers into the courtroom to witness the extraordinary trial Hundreds were spurred by curiosity fo leud hand, and when the stone god weut through the streets strapped 10 cart like an offender the crowd grew 1t filled the great hall of justice wteem Jizo was placed before the plat focrn upon which sat the mayor. O-olla addressed the god in stern words.
 "You are negligent fool, O JiZow he exclaimed in voice loud enough eer all to hear ''You are supposed: 10 protect every one who believes IT. you and who renders tribute yet this trusting porter here made prayer tC rou, then fell asleep at your feet. anc be was robbed while he slept. You stand accused of being an accomplict sn this robbery. Have you anything to say for yourself before l pass sen tencer
 atayor o-oka waited for Jew mo- ments as If expecting the stony lips of Jizo to open In reply, but when no answer was made by the god he pass ed, sentence immediately.
 ssSiace you do not defend yourself l eorSlder that you are guilty" said his honor. .-and I shall imprison you" Ar this remarkable spectacle of a mayor passing sentence upon a stone god there was litter of laughter O-oka thundered fin voice of brass.
 Who are all these people standing about here?" he inquired of his court aftscersl Are they accompliceS of JiZo or onIy plain thieves? They think this court Is Il penny show, and they laugh at the courts orders. Shut all the gates at onceS
 The scared attendants hastencd to shut the gates of the courtroom. Then Mayor O-oka adiudged every man in she great crowd in contempt of court and fined each of them one tan Ca ki- mono length) of cotton cloth. The hun dredS thus suddenly found ill contempt were happy that their punishment had been so light at least. and under bonds shey hurried to their homes to bring lAck the cloth fine Before the day was done TOO pieces of cotton cloth had been presented before the mayors esxrt.. the name of each culprit being ser down upon the one tan of cotton cloth which he presented.
 Before he would allow the 700 to go, however, O-oka retired with the DOT ter who had been robbed to. an inner chamber; and he asked the porter to a.sk over the TOO pieces of cotton siotlf and see if he could identify any of them as having been once in the pack he had carried. Since every man. afacturer of cotton cloth in Yeddo all ways marked the selvage of each strip with little red trademark stamp the porter searched the edges of the many strips of cloth for stamp similar to that borne on the cloth of which he had been robbed. He found that two of the pieces of cloth brought to pay .he mayors fine bore the stamp of his pf9ndered pack. Instantly Mayor Ooka gave orders for the arrest of the
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