Tales of Old Japan Part 23

The relations of Sogoro and the elders of the villages having been summoned to the Court-house, the following doc.u.ment was issued:--

"Although the property of Sogoro, the elder of the village of Iwahashi, is confiscated, his household furniture shall be made over to his two married daughters; and the village officials will look to it that these few poor things be not stolen by lawless and unprincipled men.

"His rice-fields and corn-fields, his mountain land and forest land, will be sold by auction. His house and grounds will be given over to the elder of the village. The price fetched by his property will be paid over to the lord of the estate.

"The above decree will be published, in full, to the peasants of the village; and it is strictly forbidden to find fault with this decision.

"The 12th day of the 2d month, of the 2d year of the period Shoho."

The peasants, having heard this degree with all humility, left the Court-house. Then the following punishments were awarded to the officers of the castle, who, by rejecting the pet.i.tion of the peasants in the first instance, had brought trouble upon their lord:--

"Dismissed from their office, the resident councillors at Yedo and at the castle-town.

"Banished from the province, four district governors, and three bailiffs, and nineteen petty officers.

"Dismissed from office, three metsukes, or censors, and seven magistrates.

"Condemned to _hara-kiri_, one district governor and one Yedo bailiff.

"The severity of this sentence is owing to the injustice of the officials in raising new and unprecedented taxes, and bringing affliction upon the people, and in refusing to receive the pet.i.tions of the peasants, without consulting their lord, thus driving them to appeal to the Shogun in person. In their avarice they looked not to the future, but laid too heavy a burden on the peasants, so that they made an appeal to a higher power, endangering the honour of their lord's house. For this bad government the various officials are to be punished as above."

In this wise was justice carried out at the palace at Yedo and at the Court-house at home. But in the history of the world, from the dark ages down to the present time, there are few instances of one man laying down his life for the many, as Sogoro did: n.o.ble and peasant praise him alike.

As month after month pa.s.sed away, towards the fourth year of the period Shoho, the wife of my lord Kotsuke no Suke, being with child, was seized with violent pains; and retainers were sent to all the different temples and shrines to pray by proxy, but all to no purpose: she continued to suffer as before. Towards the end of the seventh month of the year, there appeared, every night, a preternatural light above the lady's chamber; this was accompanied by hideous sounds as of many people laughing fiendishly, and sometimes by piteous wailings, as though myriads of persons were lamenting. The profound distress caused by this added to her sufferings; so her own privy councillor, an old man, took his place in the adjoining chamber, and kept watch. All of a sudden, he heard a noise as if a number of people were walking on the boards of the roof of my lady's room; then there was a sound of men and women weeping; and when, thunderstruck, the councillor was wondering what it could all be, there came a wild burst of laughter, and all was silent. Early the following morning, the old women who had charge of my lady's household presented themselves before my lord Kotsuke no Suke, and said--

"Since the middle of last month, the waiting-women have been complaining to us of the ghostly noises by which my lady is nightly disturbed, and they say that they cannot continue to serve her. We have tried to soothe them, by saying that the devils should be exorcised at once, and that there was nothing to be afraid of. Still we feel that their fears are not without reason, and that they really cannot do their work; so we beg that your lordship will take the matter into your consideration."

"This is a pa.s.sing strange story of yours; however, I will go myself to-night to my lady's apartments and keep watch. You can come with me."

Accordingly, that night my lord Kotsuke no Suke sat up in person. At the hour of the rat (midnight) a fearful noise of voices was heard, and Sogoro and his wife, bound to the fatal crosses, suddenly appeared; and the ghosts, seizing the lady by the hand, said--

"We have come to meet you. The pains you are suffering are terrible, but they are nothing in comparison with those of the h.e.l.l to which we are about to lead you."

At these words, Kotsuke no Suke, seizing his sword, tried to sweep the ghosts away with a terrific cut; but a loud peal of laughter was heard, and the visions faded away. Kotsuke no Suke, terrified, sent his retainers to the temples and shrines to pray that the demons might be cast out; but the noises were heard nightly, as before. When the eleventh month of the year came round, the apparitions of human forms in my lady's apartments became more and more frequent and terrible, all the spirits railing at her, and howling out that they had come to fetch her. The women would all scream and faint; and then the ghosts would disappear amid yells of laughter. Night after night this happened, and even in the daytime the visions would manifest themselves; and my lady's sickness grew worse daily, until in the last month of the year she died, of grief and terror. Then the ghost of Sogoro and his wife crucified would appear day and night in the chamber of Kotsuke no Suke, floating round the room, and glaring at him with red and flaming eyes. The hair of the attendants would stand on end with terror; and if they tried to cut at the spirits, their limbs would be cramped, and their feet and hands would not obey their bidding. Kotsuke no Suke would draw the sword that lay by his bedside; but, as often as he did so, the ghosts faded away, only to appear again in a more hideous shape than before, until at last, having exhausted his strength and spirits, even he became terror-stricken.

The whole household was thrown into confusion, and day after day mystic rites and incantations were performed by the priests over braziers of charcoal, while prayers were recited without ceasing; but the visions only became more frequent, and there was no sign of their ceasing. After the 5th year of Shoho, the style of the years was changed to Keian; and during the 1st year of Keian the spirits continued to haunt the palace; and now they appeared in the chamber of Kotsuke no Suke's eldest son, surrounding themselves with even more terrors than before; and when Kotsuke no Suke was about to go to the Shogun's castle, they were seen howling out their cries of vengeance in the porch of the house. At last the relations of the family and the members of the household took counsel together, and told Kotsuke no Suke that without doubt no ordinary means would suffice to lay the ghosts; a shrine must be erected to Sogoro, and divine honours paid to him, after which the apparitions would a.s.suredly cease. Kotsuke no Suke having carefully considered the matter and given his consent, Sogoro was canonized under the name of Sogo Daimiyo, and a shrine was erected in his honour. After divine honours had been paid to him, the awful visions were no more seen, and the ghost of Sogoro was laid for ever.

In the 2d year of the period Keian, on the 11th day of the 10th month, on the occasion of the festival of first lighting the fire on the hearth, the various Daimios and Hatamotos of distinction went to the castle of the Shogun, at Yedo, to offer their congratulations on this occasion. During the ceremonies, my lord Hotta Kotsuke no Suke and Sakai Iwami no Kami, lord of the castle of Matsumoto, in the province of Shinshiu, had a quarrel, the origin of which was not made public; and Sakai Iwami no Kami, although he came of a brave and n.o.ble family, received so severe a wound that he died on the following day, at the age of forty-three; and in consequence of this, his family was ruined and disgraced.[67] My lord Kotsuke no Suke, by great good fortune, contrived to escape from the castle, and took refuge in his own house, whence, mounting a famous horse called Hira-Ab.u.mi,[68] he fled to his castle of Sakura, in Shimosa, accomplishing the distance, which is about sixty miles, in six hours. When he arrived in front of the castle, he called out in a loud voice to the guard within to open the gate, answering, in reply to their challenge, that he was Kotsuke no Suke, the lord of the castle. The guard, not believing their ears, sent word to the councillor in charge of the castle, who rushed out to see if the person demanding admittance were really their lord. When he saw Kotsuke no Suke, he caused the gates to be opened, and, thinking it more than strange, said--

"Is this indeed you, my lord? What strange chance brings your lordship hither thus late at night, on horseback and alone, without a single follower?"

[Footnote 67: In the old days, if a n.o.ble was murdered, and died outside his own house, he was disgraced, and his estates were forfeited. When the Regent of the Shogun was murdered, some years since, outside the castle of Yedo, by a legal fiction it was given out that he had died in his own palace, in order that his son might succeed to his estates.]

[Footnote 68: Level stirrups.]

With these words he ushered in Kotsuke no Suke, who, in reply to the anxious inquiries of his people as to the cause of his sudden appearance, said--

"You may well be astonished. I had a quarrel to-day in the castle at Yedo, with Sakai Iwami no Kami, the lord of the castle of Matsumoto, and I cut him down. I shall soon be pursued; so we must strengthen the fortress, and prepare for an attack."

The household, hearing this, were greatly alarmed, and the whole castle was thrown into confusion. In the meanwhile the people of Kotsuke no Suke's palace at Yedo, not knowing whether their lord had fled, were in the greatest anxiety, until a messenger came from Sakura, and reported his arrival there.

When the quarrel inside the castle of Yedo and Kotsuke no Suke's flight had been taken cognizance of, he was attainted of treason, and soldiers were sent to seize him, dead or alive. Midzuno Setsu no Kami and Goto Yamato no Kami were charged with the execution of the order, and sallied forth, on the 13th day of the 10th month, to carry it out.

When they arrived at the town of Sasai, they sent a herald with the following message--

"Whereas Kotsuke no Suke killed Sakai Iwami no Kami inside the castle of Yedo, and has fled to his own castle without leave, he is attainted of treason; and we, being connected with him by ties of blood and of friendship, have been charged to seize him."

The herald delivered this message to the councillor of Kotsuke no Suke, who, pleading as an excuse that his lord was mad, begged the two n.o.bles to intercede for him. Goto Yamato no Kami upon this called the councillor to him, and spoke privately to him, after which the latter took his leave and returned to the castle of Sakura.

In the meanwhile, after consultation at Yedo, it was decided that, as Goto Yamato no Kami and Midzuno Setsu no Kami were related to Kotsuke no Suke, and might meet with difficulties for that very reason, two other n.o.bles, Ogasawara Iki no Kami and Nagai Hida no Kami, should be sent to a.s.sist them, with orders that should any trouble arise they should send a report immediately to Yedo. In consequence of this order, the two n.o.bles, with five thousand men, were about to march for Sakura, on the 15th of the month, when a messenger arrived from that place bearing the following despatch for the Gorojiu, from the two n.o.bles who had preceded them--

"In obedience to the orders of His Highness the Shogun, we proceeded, on the 13th day of this month, to the castle of Sakura, and conducted a thorough investigation of the affair.

It is true that Kotsuke no Suke has been guilty of treason, but he is out of his mind; his retainers have called in physicians, and he is undergoing treatment by which his senses are being gradually restored, and his mind is being awakened from its sleep. At the time when he slew Sakai Iwami no Kami he was not accountable for his actions, and will be sincerely penitent when he is aware of his crime. We have taken him prisoner, and have the honour to await your instructions; in the meanwhile, we beg by these present to let you know what we have done.

"(Signed) GOTo YAMATO NO KAMI.

MIDZUNO SETSU NO KAMI.

_To the Gorojiu, 2d year of Keian, 2d month, 14th day_."

This despatch reached Yedo on the 16th of the month, and was read by the Gorojiu after they had left the castle; and in consequence of the report of Kotsuke no Suke's madness, the second expedition was put a stop to, and the following instructions were sent to Goto Yamato no Kami and Midzuno Setsu no Kami--

"With reference to the affair of Hotta Kotsuke no Suke, lord of the castle of Sakura, in Shimosa, whose quarrel with Sakai Iwami no Kami within the castle of Yedo ended in bloodshed. For this heinous crime and disregard of the sanct.i.ty of the castle, it is ordered that Kotsuke no Suke be brought as a prisoner to Yedo, in a litter covered with nets, that his case may be judged.

"2d year of Keian, 2d month.

(_Signed by the Gorojiu_) INABA MINO NO KAMI.

INOUYE KAWACHI NOKAMI.

KATo ECCHIU NO KAMI."

Upon the receipt of this despatch, Hotta Kotsuke no Suke was immediately placed in a litter covered with a net of green silk, and conveyed to Yedo, strictly guarded by the retainers of the two n.o.bles; and, having arrived at the capital, was handed over to the charge of Akimoto Tajima no Kami. All his retainers were quietly dispersed; and his empty castle was ordered to be thrown open, and given in charge to Midzuno Iki no Kami.

At last Kotsuke no Suke began to feel that the death of his wife and his own present misfortunes were a just retribution for the death of Sogoro and his wife and children, and he was as one awakened from a dream. Then night and morning, in his repentance, he offered up prayers to the sainted spirit of the dead farmer, and acknowledged and bewailed his crime, vowing that, if his family were spared from ruin and re-established, intercession should be made at the court of the Mikado,[69] at Kiyoto, on behalf of the spirit of Sogoro, so that, being worshipped with even greater honours than before, his name should be handed down to all generations.

[Footnote 69: In the days of Shogun's power, the Mikado remained the Fountain of Honour, and, as chief of the national religion and the direct descendant of the G.o.ds, dispensed divine honours.]

In consequence of this it happened that the spirit of Sogoro having relaxed in its vindictiveness, and having ceased to persecute the house of Hotta, in the 1st month of the 4th year of Keian, Kotsuke no Suke received a summons from the Shogun, and, having been forgiven, was made lord of the castle of Matsuyama, in the province of Dewa, with a revenue of twenty thousand kokus. In the same year, on the 20th day of the 4th month, the Shogun, Prince Iyemitsu, was pleased to depart this life, at the age of forty-eight; and whether by the forgiving spirit of the prince, or by the divine interposition of the sainted Sogoro, Kotsuke no Suke was promoted to the castle of Utsu no Miya, in the province of Shimotsuke, with a revenue of eighty thousand kokus; and his name was changed to Hotta Hida no Kami. He also received again his original castle of Sakura, with a revenue of twenty thousand kokus: so that there can be no doubt that the saint was befriending him. In return for these favours, the shrine of Sogoro was made as beautiful as a gem. It is needless to say how many of the peasants of the estate flocked to the shrine: any good luck that might befall the people was ascribed to it, and night and day the devout worshipped at it.

Here follows a copy of the pet.i.tion which Sogoro presented to the Shogun--

"We, the elders of the hundred and thirty-six villages of the district of Chiba, in the province of Shimosa, and of the district of Buji, in the province of Kadzusa, most reverently offer up this our humble pet.i.tion.

"When our former lord, Doi Shosho, was transferred to another castle, in the 9th year of the period Kanye, Hotta Kaga no Kami became lord of the castle of Sakura; and in the 17th year of the same period, my lord Kotsuke no Suke succeeded him. Since that time the taxes laid upon us have been raised in the proportion of one to and two sho to each koku.[70]

[Footnote 70: 10 Sho = 1 To. 10 To = 1 Koku.]

"_Item_.--At the present time, taxes are raised on nineteen of our articles of produce; whereas our former lord only required that we should furnish him with pulse and sesamum, for which he paid in rice.

"_Item_.--Not only are we not paid now for our produce, but, if it is not given in to the day, we are driven and goaded by the officials; and if there be any further delay, we are manacled and severely reprimanded; so that if our own crops fail, we have to buy produce from other districts, and are pushed to the utmost extremity of affliction.

"_Item_.--We have over and over again prayed to be relieved from these burthens, but our pet.i.tions are not received. The people are reduced to poverty, so that it is hard for them to live under such grievous taxation. Often they have tried to sell the land which they till, but none can be found to buy; so they have sometimes given over their land to the village authorities, and fled with their wives to other provinces, and seven hundred and thirty men or more have been reduced to begging, one hundred and eighty-five houses have fallen into ruins; land producing seven thousand kokus has been given up, and remains untilled, and eleven temples have fallen into decay in consequence of the ruin of those upon whom they depended.

"Besides this, the poverty-stricken farmers and women, having been obliged to take refuge in other provinces, and having no abiding-place, have been driven to evil courses and bring men to speak ill of their lord; and the village officials, being unable to keep order, are blamed and reproved. No attention has been paid to our repeated representations upon this point; so we were driven to pet.i.tion the Gorojiu Kuze Yamato no Kami as he was on his way to the castle, but our pet.i.tion was returned to us. And now, as a last resource, we tremblingly venture to approach his Highness the Shogun in person.