Kuma growled again. He shambled forward Noso Noso—and stood up and caught hold of the little boy with his two big paws. This was the bear’s great big hug, but oh my, what astonishing strength this little boy had! There are no words to tell it. In a few minutes Kuma was thrown down on the ground. It did not hurt the dear old bear, but it hurt his dignity very much.
Kuma looked up angrily and snarled, but the strong boy just stood there with a friendly smile on his face. Kuma plumped down again feeling very weak. He thought he might as well control himself and be friendly with this amazing little boy.
So he bowed awkwardly many times. And of course Shika the deer, and Saru the monkey, and Usagi the rabbit, all did so too. After that they were the best of friends.
This strong boy was Kintarō of the Ashigara Mountains. His mother, a beautiful woman who loved him very much, had brought him here when he was a tiny baby, and they lived a secluded life together. And what a happy and natural free life this was.
Very soon the strong boy, Kintarō, learned the ways of his forest friends. Best of all he loved Kuma, the big black shambling bear. He learned to be gentle to timid little Usagi the rabbit. He learned to be fleet on his feet as Shika the deer and as nimble as Saru the monkey.
Early on a warm sunny day, Kintarō opened his eyes and, grabbing hold of his axe, jumped out of doors. There was a no-smell-at-all kind of a smell in the air—such as there is when the warm sun is beaming down on you from a very blue sky. It was so pleasant and exciting that Kintarō skipped up and down and shouted “Oooi! Oooi!” at the top of his voice.
Out tumbled Kuma the bear, Shika the deer, Usagi the rabbit, and Saru the monkey to greet him. Then up jumped Kintarō on Kuma’s soft broad back.
“We’ll have a big wrestling match today,” he announced.
In Japan, Sumō wrestling matches fought by big fat men are very exciting. People shout and cheer. Some even throw their cushions and coats at the wrestlers in their excitement.
The Sumō match which took place up in the hills was just as exciting to the many forest animals who came to look on.
“Hakke yoi nokotta nokotta!” shouted Kintarō, acting as referee.
After all the animals had taken part in the wrestling, came the most exciting match of all—the fight between Kintarō and Kuma.
All Japanese boys are proud of Kintarō. On Boy’s Festival Day they decorate Kintarō dolls overthrowing the bear. We have Kintarō toys and Kintarō picture books.
And here I have a nice picture of him for you. From the picture you can be sure that Kintarō won the match. But he had a very fine way of making the loser feel comfortable, so the party broke up in merry fashion.
Now on their way home Kintarō and his friends wandered far into the woods. When they finally came to a spot which they knew, they found themselves on the other side of a deep canyon with no bridge.
“Oya oya, dear me!” panted the stout bear.
Saru the monkey scratched his head. Shika the deer sat down. Usagi the rabbit sat on his hind legs and looked very tired.
Near them grew a tall solitary pine tree. It was a very strong old tree. Kintarō leaned against its trunk and pushed and pushed until his little brown body was all red. The tree creaked and groaned and groaned and creaked. It leaned farther and farther toward the other side of the cliff, until with a crash it landed at full length across the canyon.
Proudly Kintarō led the way over. How relieved his animal friends were—and how lovingly they looked at the strong boy!
But someone else saw what Kintarō had done and was amazed at the strength of the boy. He was a traveler on his way to the capital. He was going to see the powerful Lord Raikō.
The traveler could not utter a word for fear of frightening the animals away, but he followed them at a distance. At last he saw the boy run toward his little mountain hut—wave goodbye to each of his friends, and give his mother a sunny smile.
Then the traveler decided to talk with Kintarō’s mother. His idea was to take the strong boy with him to his master, the great Raikō.
How nice it would have been if Kintarō was able to stay up in the hills with all his animal friends. But then nobody would have known how strong he was.
Instead of that he was taken by the traveler to the big city of Kyōto, which was then the capital of Japan. Here he served the great lord Raikō and, because of his bravery and goodness, became one of Japan’s best-known heroes.
Perhaps some day you will read other stories of Kintarō, for there are many, but this is the only one of him as a boy. Goodbye!
Nezumi No Yomeiri (The Marriage of a Mouse)
OTŌSAN AND OKAŌSAN NEZUMI, which means Father and Mother Mouse, lived in a storehouse in Japan. They possessed rice and were very rich.
They were also very proud of their beautiful daughter, and no wonder, for she was white and soft and furry all over. She had bright glistening eyes and the most delicate pink nose. She looked so sweet and pretty in a mousy way that young male mice from near and far came to ask for her hand.
But her parents Otōsan and Okāsan Nezumi were not satisfied to have a clumsy ordinary mouse as her husband.
“That can’t be—no ordinary fellow is worthy of our beautiful daughter,” they cried. “We must think of someone special. We’ll give her to the most powerful person in Japan.”
So they looked around and lo, up in the sky they saw the warm, kind sun beaming down on them!
“Why not the all-powerful sun?” they cried, delighted at the idea.
So they dressed their daughter in her bridal attire. Never was there such a desirable and beautiful mouse-bride as she.
Now I don’t know how they did it, but the three traveled and traveled and at last reached the sun.
The father, bowing low, said: “Gracious and kind sun, you are the most powerful person on earth. Behold our daughter—whom we wish to give to you as your bride.”
The sun continued smiling down on them, and he said: “You are kind, and I am thankful to you for your proposal, but I am not the most powerful being on earth. There is someone else.”
Otōsan and Okāsan Nezumi were surprised: “Who can this be?”
“It