"Please," said Taro.
"If we go now, we can go home by boat," said the Father.
"I didn't believe a single other nice thing could happen this day," sighed Take. "But going home by boat will be nicer than staying. Won't it, Taro?"
But Taro was already on his way to the landing.
There was a pleasure-boat tied to the wharf. The whole family got on board; the boatman pushed off and away they went over the blue waters and into the river, and down the river a long way, through the city and beyond. They passed rice-fields, where men and women in great round hats worked away, standing ankle deep in water. There were fields where tea-plants were growing. There were little brown thatched roofs peeping out from under green trees. There were glimpses of little streets in tiny villages, and of people riding in a queer sort of basket hung from a pole and carried on the shoulders of two men.
At last they came to a landing-pace near their home. They were glad to see the familiar roofs again.
Taro and Take raced ahead of the others to their own little house in the garden.
At the door they found ever so many clogs. There were sounds of talking inside the house.
"What do you suppose is going to happen now?" Take asked Taro.
"I don't know—but something nice," Taro answered, as he slipped tiff his clogs and sprang up on the porch.
They slid open the door.
"Ohayo!" came a chorus of voices.
The room was full of their aunts and cousins!
Taro and Take were very much surprised, but they remembered their manners. They dropped on their knees and bowed their heads to the floor.
"Where are your Father and Mother, and Grannie and Bot'Chan?" said all the aunts and cousins. "They are late."
"We came back by the boat, and it stopped at ever so many places," said Taro. "That's why we are late."
Soon their Father and Mother and Grandmother came in. Then there was great laughing and talking, and many polite bows.
Bot'Chan was passed from one to another. Everybody said he was the finest baby ever seen, and that he looked like his Father! And his Mother! And his Grandmother! Some even said he looked like the Twins!
Everybody brought presents to the baby. There were toys, and rice, and candied peas and beans, and little cakes, and silk for dresses for him, and more silk for more dresses, and best of all a beautiful puppy cat. Here is his picture! [The picture shows a portly little toy animal with curly whiskers, large round ears, and a fierce expression.] The Twins thought Bot'Chan could never use all the things that were given him but they thought they could help eat up the candied things.
Bot'Chan seemed to like his party. He sucked his thumb and looked solemnly at the aunts and cousins. He even tried to put the puppy cat in his mouth. Natsu took him away at last and put him to bed. Then everybody had tea and good things to eat until it was time to go home.
It took the Twins a long time to get to sleep that night.
Just as she was cuddling down under her warm, soft mats, Take popped her head out once more and looked across the room to Taro's bed.
"Taro!" she whispered.
Taro stuck his head out, too. She could see him by the soft light of the candle in the tall paper lamp beside his bed.
"Don't you think it's about a week since morning?" she said. "So many nice things have happened to-day!"
"There never could be a nicer day than this," said Taro.
"What was the nicest of all?" Take asked. "I'll tell you what I liked the best if you'll tell me."
Then Taro told which part of the day he liked the best, and Take told which she liked the best. But I'm not going to tell whether they said the little horse, or the tiny garden, or the cherry trees, or the animals, or the boat-ride—or the party. You can just guess for yourself!
When the Twins woke up the next morning it was cold, and the rain was beating on the roof. They couldn't look out of the window to see it, because there were no glass windows in their house. There were just the pretty screens covered with white paper.
Taro slid one of the screens back and peeped out into the garden."It's all wet," he said to Take. "We can't play outdoors to-day."
"We'll have a nice time in the house, then," said Take. "I can think of lots of things to do."
"So can I, if I try," Taro said.
"Let's try, then," Take answered.
They thought all the time they were dressing. They put on three kimonos because it was cold. It made them look quite fat.
"I've thought of one," Take called just as she was putting on the last kimono.
"I have, too," Taro said.
"You tell me and I'll tell you," Take begged.
"No, not until after breakfast," Taro answered. "Then first we'll play one and then the other."
After breakfast Mother was busy waiting upon Father and getting him off to his work. Then she had to bathe the Baby. So the twins went to Grandmother for help.
"O Ba San" (that means "Honorable Grandmother"), Take said to her, "it is rainy and cold, and Taro and I have thought of nice games to play in the house. Will you get the colored sands for us?"
"I know what you're going to do!" cried Taro.
Grandmother brought out four boxes. In one box was yellow sand. In another was black sand. The other two were filled with blue and red sand. Grandmother brought out some large pieces of paper.
"Thank you, O Ba San," the Twins said.
They spread the paper on the floor. Taro had one piece, and Take had another.
"I'm going to make a picture of a boat on the sea," said Taro.
He took some of the blue sand in his right hand. He let it run through his fingers until it made a blue sea clear across the paper.
"And now I'm going to make a yellow sky for a sunset." He let the yellow sand run through the fingers of his left hand.
"I'll put some red clouds in it," he said. Then he let red sand run through his fingers.
When that was done he took some black sand. He made a boat.
This was the way his picture looked when it was done, only it was in colors. The sail of the boat was blue.
"Oh, Taro, how beautiful!" Take said. "Mine won't be half so nice, I'm sure. I'm going to make—I'm going to make—let's see. Oh, I know. I'll make the pine tree beside the pond."
She took some blue sand and made the little lake. Then she took the black sand and made the trunk of the tree and some branches.
She spilled a little of the black sand. It made black specks.
"Oh, dear!" she cried. "I've spilled."
Taro looked at it. "Put the green leaves over the spilled place," he said.
"It isn't the right place for leaves," Take said.
She took some blue sand in one hand and some yellow in the other. She let them fall on the paper together. They made the green part of the tree.
"I know what I'll do about the black that spilled," she said."I'll call it a swarm of bees!"
This is Take's picture. You can see the bees!
"I think your picture is just as good as mine," said Taro.
"Oh, no, Honorable Brother! Yours is much better," Take answered politely.
They showed them to Grannie when they were all finished. Grannie thought they were beautiful.
"Now, Taro, what's your game?" Take said when the sand was all put away.
"I have to go out into the garden first for mine," Taro said.
"Put on your clogs and take an umbrella, and don't stay but a minute," Grannie said.
Taro put on his clogs and opened his umbrella, and ran into the garden.
Take couldn't guess what he wanted. She watched him from the door.
Taro ran from one tree or vine to another. He looked along the stems and under the leaves. He looked on the ground, too. Soon he jumped at something on the ground, and caught it in his hand.
"I've got one," he called.
"One what?" Take called back.
"Beetle," Taro said.
Then he found another. He brought them in very carefully, so as not to hurt them.
In the house he put them into a little cage which he made out of a pasteboard box. Then he got more paper and a little knife.
"Oh, Taro, what are you going to make?" Take asked.
"If you and grannie will help me, I'll make some little wagons and we'll harness the beetles," Taro said.
"Won't it hurt them?" Take asked.
"Not a bit; we'll be so careful," Taro answered.
So Take ran for thread, and Taro got Grannie to help him. Grannie would do almost anything in the world for the Twins. And pretty soon there were two cunning little paper wagons with round paper wheels!
Taro tied some thread to the front of each little wagon. Then he opened the cage to take out the beetles.
One of the beetles didn't wait to be taken out. He flew out himself. He was big and black, and he flew straight at Take! He flew into her black hair!
Maybe he just wanted to hide. But he had big black nippers, and he took hold of Take's little fat neck with them.
Take rolled right over on the floor and screamed. Her Mother heard the scream. She came running in. The maids came running too to see what was the matter.
"Ow! Ow!! Ow!!!" squealed Take. She couldn't say a word. She just clawed at her neck and screamed.
Everybody tried to find out what was the matter.
"I know—I know!" shouted Taro.
He shook Take's hair. Out flew the beetle!
Taro caught him. "He isn't hurt a bit," he said.
"But I am," wailed Take.
Mother and Grannie bathed Take's neck, and comforted her; and soon she was happy again and ready to go on with the play.
She and Taro harnessed the beetles with threads to the little wagons. But Take let Taro do the harnessing.
"You can have that one, and I'll have this," Taro said; "and we'll have a race."
He set the beetles on the floor. They began to crawl along, pulling the little carriages after them.
Taro's beetle won the race.
They played with the beetles and wagons a long time until Grannie said, "Let them go now, children. Dinner will soon be ready."
The Twins were hungry. They unharnessed the beetles and carried them to the porch. They put them on the porch railing.
"Fly away home!" they said. Then they ran to the kitchen to see what there was for dinner. They sniffed good things cooking.
Take went to the stove and lifted the lid of a great kettle. It was such a queer stove!
Here is a picture of Take peeping into the kettle. It shows you just how queer that stove was.
"It's rice," Take said.
"Of course," said Taro. "We always have rice in that kettle.What's in this one?"
He peeped into the next kettle. It was steaming hot. The steam flew out when Taro opened the lid, and almost burned his nose!
That kettle had fish in it. When it was ready, Grannie and Mother and the Twins had their dinner all together. Bot'Chan was asleep.
After dinner Grannie said, "I'm going for a little nap."
"We shall keep very quiet so as not to disturb you and Bot'Chan,"Taro said.
When the little tables were taken away, the Mother said, "Come, my children, let us sit down beside the hibachi and get warm."
The "hibachi" is the only stove, except the cook-stove, that they have in Japanese houses. It is an open square box, made of metal, with a charcoal fire burning in it. In very cold weather each person has one to himself; but this day it was just cold enough so the Twins loved to cuddle close up to their Mother beside the big hibachi.
The Mother put on a square framework of iron over the fire-box. Then she brought a comforter—she called it a "futon"—from the cupboard. She put it over the frame, like a tent. She placed one large cushion on the floor and on each side of the big cushion she put a little one.
She sat down on the big cushion. Taro sat on one side and Take sat on the other, on the little cushions. They drew the comforter over their laps—and, oh, but they were cozy and warm!
"Tell us a story, honored Mother," begged Taro.
"Yes, please do!" said Take.
"Let me see. What shall I tell you about?" said the Mother. She put her finger on her brow and pretended to be thinking very hard.
"Tell us about 'The Wonderful Tea-Kettle,'" said Take.
"Tell us about 'The Four and Twenty Paragons,'" said Taro.
"What is a Paragon?" asked Take.
"A Paragon is some one who is very good, indeed,—better than anybody else," said the Mother.
"Are you a Paragon?" Take asked her Mother.
"Oh, no," cried the Mother. "I am a most unworthy creature as compared with a Paragon."
"Then there aren't any such things," said Take, "because nobody could be better than you!"
The Mother laughed. "Wait until I tell you about the Paragons.Then you'll see how very, very good they were," she said.
"Once there was a Paragon. He was only a little boy, but he was so good to his parents! Oh, you can't think how good he was! He was only six years old. He was a beautiful child, with a tender, fine skin and bright eyes. He lived with his parents in a little town among the rice-fields. The fields were so wet in the spring that there were millions and millions of mosquitoes around their home. Everybody was nearly bitten to death by them. The little boy saw how miserable and unhappy his parents were from the mosquito-bites. He could not bear to see his dear parents suffer; so every night he lay naked on his mat so the mosquitoes would find his tender skin and bite him first, and spare his father and mother."
"Oh, my!" said Take. "How brave that was! I don't like mosquito-bites a bit!"
"You don't like beetle-bites any better, do you?" Taro said.
"Well," said Take, "I'd rather the beetle should bite me thanMother."
"Well, now, maybe you'll be a Paragon yourself sometime," theMother said.
"There weren't any women paragons, were there?" asked Taro.
"Oh, yes," said the Mother. "Once there was a young girl who loved her father dearly, and honored him above everything in the world, as a child should. Once she and her father were in a jungle, and a tiger attacked them. The young girl threw herself upon the tiger and clung to his jaws so that her father could escape."
"Did the tiger eat her up?" said Taro.
"I suppose he did," the Mother answered.
"Was it very noble of her to be eaten up so her father could get away?" Take asked,
"Oh, very noble!" said the Mother.
"Well, then," said Take, "was it very noble of the father to run away and let her stay and be eaten up?"
"The lives of women are not worth so much as those of men," herMother answered.
Take bounced on her cushion. "I don't see how she could honor a man who was so mean," she said.
Take's mother held up her hands. She was shocked. "Why, Take!" she said. "The man was her father!"
"Tell us another," said Taro.
"Please, honored Mother, don't tell me about any more Paragons," said Take.
Her Mother was still more shocked.
"Why, little daughter," she said, "don't you want to hear about the Paragon that lay down on the cold, cold ice to warm a hole in it with his body so he could catch some fish for his cruel stepmother to eat?"
"No, if you please, dear Mother," said Take, "because all theParagons had such horrid parents."
"My dear little girl," the Mother said, "you must not say such dreadful things! We must honor and obey our parents, no matter what kind of persons they are."
"Well," said Take, "we love and honor you and our Father—you are so good and kind." She put her hands on the matting in front of her, and bowed to the floor before her Mother.
Taro saw Take do this, and he wanted to be just as polite as she was; so he rolled over on his cushion and bowed to the floor, too.
"Now, tell us about the 'Lucky Tea-Kettle,'" begged Take.
Their Mother began: "Once upon a time—"
But just as she got as far as that they heard a little sound fromBot'Chan's cushion in the corner, and the covers began to wiggle.
"There's Bot'Chan awake," said the Mother. "I must take care of him now. The 'Lucky Tea-Kettle' must wait until another time."
And just at that minute bright spots of sunshine appeared on the paper screen, and the shadows of leaves in pretty patterns fluttered over it.
"The sun is out! The sun is out!" cried the Twins.
They ran to the door, put on their clogs, and were soon dancing about in the bright sunshine.
Taro and Take loved their birthdays the best of all the days in the year.
They had two of them. Most twins have only one birthday between them, but Japanese twins have two.
That is because all the boys in Japan celebrate their birthdays together on one day, and all the girls celebrate theirs together on another day.
So, you see, though they were twins, Taro and Take didn't have the same birthday at all.
Take's birthday came first. She knew days beforehand that it wascoming, for every once in a while she would say to her Mother,"How many days is it now?" and her Mother always knew she meant,"How many days is it to my birthday?"
One morning when she woke up, Take said, "Only six days more."The next morning she said, "Only five days more." One morning shejumped out of bed very early and said, "Oh, it's to-day! To-day!It begins this very minute."
Taro didn't get up early that day. When he heard Take singing, "It's to-day," he just buried his nose under the bedclothes and pretended to be asleep!
He remembered Take's last birthday, and he remembered that boys seemed to be in the way that day. They weren't asked to play with the girls, and they wouldn't have done it anyway, because the girls spent the whole day playing with dolls! Taro didn't think much of dolls.
Before breakfast, her Father took Take out to the Kura. He reached up to the high shelf and brought down the big red box that held the dolls. It was as big as a trunk. Then he reached down another box and carried them both into the house.
Although it was so early in the morning, the Mother had already put fresh flowers in the vase, in honor of Take's birthday.
The bedding had been put away, and on one side of the room there were five shelves, like steps against the wall. Take knew what they were for.
"Oh," said Take, "everything is all ready to begin! May I open the boxes right now?"
Her Mother said, "Yes." She even got down on her knees beside the boxes and helped Take open them. They opened the red box first. It was full of dolls! A whole trunkful of dolls. Thirty-five of them!
The first doll Take took out was a very grand lady doll, dressed in stiff silk robes, embroidered with chrysanthemums.
"Here's the Empress," she cried; she set the Empress doll upagainst the trunk. Then she ran to get her dear everyday doll.She called her everyday doll "Morning Glory," and sometimes just"Glory" for short. Glory was still asleep in Take's bed.
"Why, you sleepy head!" Take said. "Don't you know you are going to have company to-day? Where are your manners, child?"
She took Glory to the trunk and put her down on her knees before the Empress. "Make your bow," she said. Glory bowed so low that she fell over on her nose!
"Oh, my dear child!" said Take. "I must take more pains with you! Your manners are frightful! You will wear out your nose if you bow like that!"
She reached into the box and carefully lifted out the Emperor doll. He was dressed in stiff silk, too. He sat up very straight against the trunk beside the Empress.
Take made Morning Glory bow to the Emperor, too. This time Glory didn't fall on her nose.
These dolls had belonged to Take's Grandmother. She had played with them on her birthdays, and then Take's Mother had played with them on her birthdays, and still they were not broken or torn; they had been so well cared for.
They were taken out only once in the whole year, and that time was called the "Feast of Dolls."
Take's Mother had covered the five steps with a beautiful piece of silk. Take placed the Emperor and Empress in the middle of the top step. Then she ran back to the trunk to get more dolls.
There were girl dolls and boy dolls and lady dolls in beautiful dresses, and baby dolls in little kimonos, strapped to the backs of bigger dolls.
Take took each one to the steps. She made each one bow very low before the Emperor and Empress before she put him in his own place. All the shelves were filled so full that one baby doll spilled over the edge and fell on the floor! Take picked her up and strapped her on Glory's back. "I know you won't let her fall," she said to Glory. Glory looked pleased and sat up very straight and responsible.
Then Take opened the other box. She took out a little stove and some blue-and-white doll dishes and two tiny lacquered tables.
While she was taking out these things, her Father brought in a new box that she had never seen before. He put it down on the floor before the steps. Take was so busy she didn't see it at first. When she did, she shouted, "Oh, Father, is it for me?"
"Yes, it is for you," the Father answered.
"Oh, thank you, whatever it is!" said Take.
She flew to the box and untied the string. She lifted the cover and there was a beautiful big toy house, made almost like the house the Twins lived in! It had a porch and sliding screens, and a cunning cupboard with doll bedding in it. It even had an alcove with a tiny kakemono, and a little vase in it! There was a flower in the vase! There were little straw mats on the floor!
Take lifted the mats and slid the screens back and forth. She put her little stove in the kitchen. She was too happy for words. She ran to her Father and threw herself on her knees before him and hugged his feet. "Thank you, ten thousand times, dear honored Father," she said.
When her own breakfast-time came, Take was very busy getting breakfast for the Emperor and Empress. She was so busy she couldn't stop. "It wouldn't be polite for me to have my breakfast before the Emperor and Empress have theirs," she explained.
Her Mother smiled. "Very well," she said, "You may get their breakfast first; we must be polite, whatever happens."
So Take had Morning Glory place the tiny lacquered tables before the Emperor and Empress. She put some rice in the little bowls on the tables. She placed some toy chop-sticks on the tables, too. Then she made Morning Glory bow and crawl away from the august presence on her hands and knees! "It wouldn't be at all right to stay to see them eat," she said.
Just then Taro came in, rubbing his eyes. He was still sleepy.
"Oh, Taro," cried Take, "look at my new house!"
Taro didn't think much of dolls, but he liked that house just as much as Take did. When he saw the little stove with its play kettles, he said: "Why don't you have a real fire in it?"
"Do you think we could?" Take said.
Of course they were never, never allowed to play with fire, but because it was Take's birthday the Mother said, "Just this once I will sit here beside you and you may have three little charcoal-embers from the tobacco-ban to put in the stove."
The tobacco-ban is a little metal box with a place for a pipe and tobacco. It always had a few pieces of burning charcoal in it so that the Father could light his pipe any time he wanted to. The Mother sat down beside the tobacco-ban.
She let Taro take a pair of tongs, like sugar-tongs. He put three pieces of charcoal in the tiny stove. Take put water in the kettle. Soon the water began to boil! Real steam came out of the spout.
"I can make real tea!" cried Take.
She got some tea leaves and put some in each tiny cup. Then she poured the boiling water into the cups. She put the cups of tea before the Emperor and Empress.
"Now you'd better have your own breakfast," the Mother said. She put the fire out in the little stove and the Twins sat down before their tiny breakfast-tables.
While they were eating, Taro had a splendid idea. "I know whatI'll do. I'll make you a little garden for your house!" he said.
"Oh, that will be beautiful!" cried Take,
The moment they had finished eating, they ran into the garden.Out by the well the maids were drawing water.
"I need some water, too," Taro said.
They let Taro draw a pail of water himself. Here is a picture of him doing it.
Then he found a box-cover—not very deep—and filled it with sand. He set a little bowl in the sand and filled it with the water, for a pond. Then he broke off little bits of branches and twigs and stuck them up in the sand for trees. He made a tiny mountain like the one in their garden and put a little bridge over the pond. He put bright pebbles around the pond. When it was all done, they put the garden down beside the toy house. They put Glory in the garden, beside the tiny pond.
But a horrible accident happened! Glory fell over again, and this time she fell into the pond! At least her head did. Her legs were too long to go in. She might have been drowned if Take hadn't picked her out in a hurry.
Just as Take was wiping Morning Glory's face, her Mother came in dressed for the street. She had Bot'Chan on her back. He was awake and smiling.
Take ran and squeezed his fat legs. "You are the best doll of all," she said.
"You take your doll, and I'll take mine," the Mother said, "and let us go for a walk."
Take had put on one of her very gayest kimonos that morning because it was her birthday, so she was all ready to go. Her Mother helped her strap Glory on her back and the two started down the street.
There were other mothers and other little girls with dolls on their backs in the street, too. They were all going to one place,—the Doll Shop! Each little girl had some money to buy a new doll.
Such chattering and laughing and talking you never heard! And such gay butterfly little dresses you never saw! nor such happy smiling faces, either.
At the Doll Shop there were rows and rows of dolls, and swarms and swarms of little girls looking at them. Take saw a roly-poly baby doll, with a funny tuft of black hair on his head. "This is the one I want, if you please," she said to the shopkeeper. She gave him her money. He gave her the doll.
"Glory," she said over her shoulder, "this is your new little brother!" Glory seemed pleased to have a little brother, and Take promised that she should wear him on her back whenever she wanted to. Take bought a little doll for Bot'Chan, too, with her own money. It was a funny little doll without any legs. He was fat, and when any one knocked him over, he sat up again right away. She called him a "Daruma."
Bot'Chan seemed to like the Daruma. He put its head in his mouth at once and licked it.
Just then Take saw O Kiku San. O Kiku San was Take's best friend, and her home was not far from the little house where the Twins lived. O Kiku San had been to buy a doll, too. She had her new doll on her back. It was a large doll, with a red kimono.
She ran to speak to Take. "Won't you come into my house on your way home?" she asked.
"May I, Mother?" said Take.
Her Mother said, "Yes," so the little girls ran together to OKiku San's house.
Other little girls came, too, to see O Kiku San's dolls. She had just as many dolls as Take. She had five shelves, too, and she had an Emperor and Empress doll. But she had no little house to play with.
"Come home with me and see my new house, all of you," Take said when the little girls had looked at O Kiku San's dolls.
So they marched in a gay procession to the little house in the garden. All the other girls' brothers had had a very lonesome day, but Taro had had fun all the afternoon with the little garden. He had made a little well, and a kura to put in the garden He made them out of boxes. The little girls looked at Take's dolls. They thought the doll-house the most beautiful toy they had ever seen, and when they saw the garden, you can't think how happy they were!
"We wish our brothers would make gardens like that for us," they said.
Taro felt proud and pleased to have them like it so much, but all he said was, "It is very polite of you to praise my poor work!"
Then the Mother brought out some sweet rice-cakes. The maids brought out tiny tables and set them around. Take brought a doll teapot and placed it with toy cups on her little table. Then she made real tea, and they had a party! For candy they had sugared beans and peas. They gave some of everything to the dolls. It was nearly time for supper when the little girls bowed to Take and her Mother, said "Sayonara" very politely, and went home.
Take sat up just as late as she wanted to that night. It was eight o'clock when she went to bed. She hugged each one of the thirty-five dolls when she said good night to them.
"Sayonara, Sayonara," she said to each one; "good-bye for a whole year, you darling dolls!"
Then she took her dear old Glory and went happily to bed.
One morning Taro and Take heard their Father and Mother talkingtogether. They thought the Twins were asleep, but they weren't.The Mother said, "Honored Husband, don't you think it is timeTaro and Take went to school?"
"Yes, indeed," the Father said; "they have many things to learn, and they should begin at once. Have you spoken to the teacher yet?"
"I saw him yesterday," the Mother answered. "He said they might enter to-day. I have everything ready."
Taro and Take looked at each other.
"Do you suppose we shall like it?" Take whispered.
"I don't know," Taro whispered back. "I've liked everything so far, and I think going to school must be some fun, too. But of course, if I don't like it, I shall not say a word. A son of the Samurai should never complain, no matter how hard his lot."
"No, of course not," Take answered.
Before they were dressed, the Mother came into their room. "The bath-tub is ready, Taro," she said. "Hop in and get your bath early to-day, for you and Take are to begin school."
The Twins had a hot bath every day, but they usually took it before going to bed. The bath-tub was in a little room by itself. It was shaped a little like a barrel, and it had a stove set right in the side of it to heat the water. Taro went to the bathroom and climbed over the edge of the tub. It was hard to get up because the tub was high. He dropped into the water with a great splash. Take and her Mother heard the splash.
Then they heard something else. They heard screams! "Ow-ow-ow!" shrieked Taro. "Take me out! take me out! I'm boiled!"
The Mother and Take ran as fast as they could to the tub. Taro's head just showed over the edge. His mouth was open, the tears were streaming down his cheeks, and the air was full of "ows." His Mother reached her arm down into the water.
"It isn't so very hot, Taro," she said; "I can bear my hand in it."
"Ow—ow!" said Taro. He didn't even say, "Ow! ow! Honorable Mother!" as one might have thought such a very polite boy would do.
And he tried to get both feet off the bottom of the tub at the same time!
The Mother put some cold water into the tub. Taro stopped screaming.
"Oh, Taro," Take called to him, "you aren't really and truly boiled, are you?"
"Almost," sniffed Taro; "I'm as red as a red dragon. I think my skin will come off."
"I know you are dreadfully hurt, poor Taro," Take said, "because a son of the Samurai never complains, no matter how hard his lot."
The water was cooler now. Taro's head disappeared below the edge of the tub. He splashed a minute, then he said:—
"I guess a real truly Samurai would scream a little if he were boiled." His words made a big round sound coming out of the tub.
Pretty soon it was Take's turn. She climbed into the tub. She splashed, too, but she didn't scream. Then she stuck her head over the edge of the tub.
"I'm boiled, too," she called to Taro, "but I'm not going to cry."
"Then the water isn't hot," was all Taro said.
When they had finished their baths, they were dressed in clean kimonos. Then they had their breakfast and at seven o'clock they were all ready for school.
Their Mother gave them each a paper umbrella in case of rain. She hung a little brocaded bag, with a jar of rice inside it, on the left arm of each Twin. This was for their luncheon. Then she gave them each a brand-new copy-book and a brand-new soroban. A soroban is a counting-machine.
It is a frame with wires stretched across it and beads hung on the wires. The Twins felt very proud to have sorobans and copy-books.
"Now trot along," the Mother said.
The Twins knew the way. They marched down the street, feeling more grown up than they ever had felt in all their lives. Their Mother watched them from the garden-gate.
When they turned the corner and were out of sight, she went back into the house. She picked up Bot'Chan and hugged him. "Don't grow up yet, dear Sir Baby Boy," she said.
Taro and Take met other little boys and girls, all going to school, too. They all had umbrellas and copy-books and sorobans.
The children got to the school-house before the teacher.
They waited until they heard the clumpty-clump of his wooden clogs. Then all the children stood together in a row. Taro and Take were at the end. The moment the teacher came in, the children bowed very low.
"Ohayo," they called. "Please make your honorable entrance." They drew in their breath with a hissing sound. In Japan this is a polite thing to do. The teacher bowed to the children. Then each child ran to his little cushion on the floor and sat down on it. Taro and Take did not know where to go, because they had not been to school before.
The teacher gave them each a cushion. Then he placed beside each of them a cunning little set of drawers, like a doll's bureau. In the little bureau were India ink and brushes. The teacher sat down on his cushion before the school.
He told the children where to open their books. Taro and Take couldn't even find the place, but O Kiku San, who sat next, found it for them.
The teacher gave Taro and Take each a little stick. "Now I will tell you the names of these letters," he said, "and when I call the name of each one, you can point to it with the little stick. That will help you to remember it."
He began to read. Taro and Take punched each letter as he called it. They tried so hard to remember that they punched a hole right through the paper! But you might have punched something, too, if you had thousands of letters to learn! That's what Taro and Take have to do, while you have only twenty-six letters. They were glad when the teacher said, "Now we will learn how to count."
Taro and Take took out their new sorobans. The teacher showed them how to count the beads. They thought it as much fun as a game.
Then they tried to make some letters in their copy-books with a brush. That's the way they write in Japan.
Taro's and Take's letters were very big and queer-looking, and the paper got so wet that the teacher said, "Children, you may all carry your copy-books outdoors and hang them up to dry, and you may eat your rice out of doors."
The children took their copy-books and their bags of rice and ran out. The Twins found a nice shady place to eat their luncheon.
O Kiku San ate her rice with Taro and Take. They had a real picnic.
At half-past three all their lessons were finished, and the Twins ran home. Their Mother was waiting for them on the porch, with Bot'Chan in her arms.
"See what we made for you!" the Twins cried. They gave her the letters they had made that morning.
"You have made them beautifully, for the first time," she said.
She put the blistered papers with the staggery letters away in the cupboard to keep. "I will show them to Father when he comes home," she said.
I wish there was room in this book to tell you about all the good times that Taro and Take have, but they have so many holidays and such good times on every one of them that it would take two books to tell about it all.
They have cherry festivals and wistaria festivals and chrysanthemum festivals when everybody goes to picnics and spends the whole day with the flowers.
On the day of the Lotus Festival they go very early in the morning, before the sun is up, to a pond where the lotus flowers bloom. They go with their teacher and all the children.
When they get to the pond, the teacher says, "Listen!" Every one is still as a mouse. Just as the sun comes up, the lotus flowers open. Pop, pop, pop, they go, like fairy guns! The children love to hear them pop. "The flowers salute the sun," they say.
One of the best days of all is New Year's Day, when all the boys and their fathers and grandfathers fly kites. And such wonderful kites! The air is full of dragons and boxes and all sorts of queer shapes. Sometimes the dragons have a battle in the air!
But one day I must tell you about, anyway, and that is Taro's birthday!
It isn't only Taro's birthday, you know. All the boys celebrate together. The girls—even if they are your very own twins—don't have a thing to do with it. And it lasts five days! On the first morning Taro woke very early. He was just as excited as Take was on the day of the Festival of Dolls. But Take didn't stay in bed on Taro's birthday. She flew out early, for she wanted to see all the fun, even if she wasn't in it.
First she went to the Kura with Taro and their Father to get out the flags. The boys' birthday is called the Feast of Flags.
They took Bot'Chan with them to the Kura. Take carried him on her back.
"It's Bot'Chan's birthday, too," she said, "so he must go."
In the Kura was a long bamboo pole. The Twins' Father took the pole and set it up in the street before their house. Then he brought out two great paper fish. They were almost larger than Taro. They had great round mouths and round eyes. A string was fastened to their mouths.
"There's one fish for Taro and one for Bot'Chan," said theFather. "We have two boys in our house."
He tied the fish to the pole. The wind filled the great round mouths and soon away up in the air the two fish were bobbing and blowing about just as if they were alive!
There was a bamboo pole with one or two—and sometimes three or four—fish on it before every house in the street!
"My! how many boys there are in the world!" Take said; "more thanI can count!"
The street was as gay as a great flower-garden. There were not only fish flags; there was the flag of Japan, with a great round red disk on it. And there was the flag of the navy, which was a great round red sun like the other, only with red rays around it, and there were banners of all colors waving in the breeze.
"Why are the fish flags all made just like the carp in the pond at the Temple?" asked Take.
"Because the carp is such a plucky fish," the Father answered. "He isn't a lazy fish that only wants to swim downstream, the easy way. He swims up the rivers and jumps up the falls. That's the way we want our Japanese boys to be. Their lives must be brave and strong, like the carp."
"And clean and bright like the sword, too?" Taro said.
"Yes," said his Father. "I'm glad you remember about the sword."
When the fish flags were bobbing about in the air, the Father and children went back into the house.
There were the steps in the side of the room again, just where they were when Take had her birthday. And Taro had his dolls, too. They were not like Take's. They were soldier dolls, enough for a whole army. Taro set them up in rows, as if they were marching! There were General dolls, and officers on horseback, and bands. There were even two nurses, following after the procession. There were toy guns, and ever and ever so many flags all in a row.
Taro was so excited he could hardly eat any breakfast! As soon as he had finished, he sprang up from his cushion. He almost upset his table, he was in such a hurry. He put on a play uniform like a soldier. And he had a wooden sword!
"There's going to be a war!" he said to Take.
"Where?" asked Take; "can I see it?"
"It's going to be in the street. I'm the General," said Taro.
"Oh, how I wish I could be a General," cried Take.
But Taro never even heard her. He was already on his way to join his regiment.
In a few minutes Take heard the "rap-a-tap, tap! rap-a-tap, tap!" of a drum. "They're coming! They're coming!" she called to her Mother and Father. The Mother rolled Bot'Chan on to her back. Take took her Father's hand. They all ran to the gate to see the procession. The servants came out, too, and last of all Grannie. They gave Grannie the best place to see. Soon around the corner came the procession.
First marched a color-bearer with the big Japanese flag. Then came Taro. He looked very proud and straight, walking all alone at the head of the procession. He was the General because he had a sword!
All the boys carried flags. They kept step like little soldiers.
"Oh, doesn't Taro look beautiful?" said Take. She climbed up on the gate-post. She waved a little flag with all her might, but Taro never looked round. He just marched straight along.
Just then "rub-a-dub-dub" came the sound of another drum. Around the next corner came another army of little boys.
They carried flags, too. They marched straight toward Taro's army.
"Now the war is coming! Now the war is coming!" shouted Take.
All at once Taro's soldiers began to run. The other soldiers ran, too. They ran straight toward each other and tried to get each others' flags.
Take saw Taro wave his sword. "On, soldiers, on!" he shouted.
Then there was a great mix-up of boys and flags. It seemed like a bundle of waving arms and legs and banners. Every boy was shouting at the top of his voice.
Take climbed right on top of the gate-post, she was so excited.She stood up on it and waved her arms!
"Look at that child," cried the Mother. "She'll fall."
Take was dancing for joy.
"There they come! There they come!" she cried.
Her Father reached up and held her still. "Be quiet, grasshopper," he said.
"But Taro is coming! They beat, they beat!" cried Take.
Taro and his army were coming up the street on the run. Nearly every little boy had two flags! The other army was running away as fast as it could go. They had only two banners left.
"Beat the drum!" shouted Taro. The drummer boy began, "rat-a-tat-tat," and the whole victorious army marched down the street and right into Taro's garden!
As he passed his Father and Mother and Grannie and Bot'Chan, Taro saluted. His Father saluted Taro, and every one of the family—Grannie and all—cried "Banzai! Banzai!" That means the same as hurrah!
Then Take tumbled off the gate-post and raced up to the porch after the soldier. At the porch, the soldiers broke ranks.
The General's Mother ran into the house and brought out sweet rice-cakes and sugared beans. She fed the entire army. There were six boys in it.
"Fighting makes a soldier very hungry," Taro said.
Then his Mother went into the house and brought out more cakes and more beans.
The boys ate them all.
The army stayed at Taro's house and played with his soldiers and drilled on his porch until lunch-time, when they all went to their own homes.
After luncheon Taro played with his tops. He had two beautiful ones. One was a singing top.
He was spinning the singing top when all of a sudden there was a great noise in the street. He ran to see what was the matter.
There, almost right in front of his own house, was a real show! There was a man and a little boy and a monkey! The monkey had on a kimono. The monkey and the little boy did tricks together. Then the man and the boy did tricks. The man balanced a ladder on his shoulder. The little boy climbed right up the ladder and hung from the top of it by his toes.
Every boy in the street came running to see them. Take came, too. The little boy, hanging from the top of the ladder, opened a fan and fanned himself! Then he climbed to his feet again and stood on one foot on the top of the ladder. Then he made a bow!
Taro and Take almost stopped breathing, they were so afraid the little boy would fall.
The little boy threw his fan to the monkey. The monkey caught it and fanned himself, while the little boy came down the ladder to the ground, all safe and sound.
The Twins' Mother came out, too. She saw the little boy. She felt sorry for him. She felt sorry for the monkey, too. "Come in and have some rice-cakes," she said.
The man, the boy, and the monkey all came into the garden of the little house. All the other children came, too.
The Mother brought out cakes and tea. Everybody had some. The man and the boy thanked her. They made the monkey thank her, too. He got down on his knees and bowed clear to the ground.
When they had eaten the cakes and drank the tea, the man and the boy said, "Sayonara, Sayonara." The monkey jumped on the man's shoulder, and away they went down the street, with all the boys following after.
Taro and Take did not go with them, because their Mother said, "It is almost time for supper." They watched the others from their gate. Then they came back and sat down on the top step of the porch.
"I think you've had just as good a time on your birthday as I had on mine," Take said.
"Better," said Taro.
"Taro, we are getting very old, aren't we?" Take went on.
"Yes," said Taro, "we are six now."
"What are you going to be when you are seven or eight years old and grown up?" asked Take.
"Well," said Taro, "I'm not sure, but I think I shall be either a general or a juggler," Taro said. "What are you going to be?"
"There's only one thing I can grow to be," said Take. "If I am very, very good, maybe I'll grow to be a mother-in-law sometime."
Just then they heard their Mother's voice calling them to supper.It was very late for supper—it was really almost night.
The shadows in the little garden were growing long. The birds were chirping sleepily to each other in the wistaria vine. The iris flowers were nodding their purple heads to the little goldfish in the pond. Everything was quiet and still.
The Twins stopped to look at the little garden before they went in to their supper.
"Good night, pretty world," they said, and waved their hands.
"The Japanese Twins" is a story which gives a correct picture of the best phase of Japanese home life.
Like its predecessor "The Dutch Twins," the aim of this reader is to foster a just and discriminating respect for a foreign nation in whose history America has a keen interest.
Though the representatives of the Japanese race do not form an integral part of our national life, as those of the Dutch and many other nations do, yet the sympathy between the two countries is strong, and there is much to be gained by a knowledge of their manners, customs, and social ideals.
To make the reading of this story most valuable as a school exercise, it is suggested that children be allowed at the outset to turn the pages of the book in order to get glimpses of "Taro" and "Take" in the various scenes in which they are portrayed in the illustrations, thus arousing their interest. On a globe, or a map of the world, point out Japan, and tell the children something about the unique character of the country. The teacher will thus find no difficulty in relating this supplementary reading material to the work in geography, and the art teacher may find in it an opening for further illustration of Japanese ideas of art and architecture.
The text is so simply written that any third or fourth grade child can read it without much preparation. In the third grade it may be well to have the children read it first in the study period in order to work out the pronunciation of the more difficult words. In the fourth grade the children can usually read it at sight, without the preparatory study. The story appeals particularly to the dramatic tendencies in children, and this can be made an opportunity for lessons in courtesy in which social virtue the Japanese so excel. The use of the material for language and constructive work is also immediately apparent.
In connection with the reading of the book, have children read selections from their readers and other books about Japan and its people. Lafcadio Hearn's story "The Burning of the Rice Fields" (in the Riverside Third Reader) is an illustration of this kind of collateral reading. Let children also bring to class postcards and other pictures illustrating scenes in Japan.
The unique illustrations in the book should be much used, both in the reading of the story and in other ways. Children will enjoy sketching some of them; their simple treatment makes them especially useful for this purpose. Children will enjoy, also, making jinrikishas, fans, parasols, sand gardens, and sand pictures (where possible) and in painting the Japanese flags.
The book is printed on paper which will take water color well, and where books are individually owned some of the sketches could be used for coloring in flat washes. They also afford suggestions for action sketching by the children.
An excellent oral language exercise would be for the children, after they have read the story, to take turns telling the story from the illustrations; and a good composition exercise would be for each child to select the illustration that he would like to write upon, make a sketch of it, and write the story in his own words.
These are only a few of the many ways that will occur to resourceful teachers for making the book a valuable as well as an enjoyable exercise in reading.