Japanese Fairy Tale Series 02 #01- The Goblin Spider

JAPANESE FAIRY TALES. Sv.cond

Series,

7

No

V,

I

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1

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THE GO&LIN SPIDER

THE GOBLIN RENDERED

SPIDER

INTO ENQLIJ5H

BY JLAFCAD10 HEARN.

'N very ancient books is said

to be

many

it

that there used

goblin-spiders in

Japan.

Some are

still

folks declare there

some

goblin-spiders.

During the daytime they look just like

common spiders;

but

very late at night,

body

is asleep,

when every-

and there

is

no

sound, they become very, very and do awful things. big, Goblin-spiders are also

to

have

supposed

the

magical

power of taking human shape so

And

as

to

there

deceive is

a

people.

famous

Japanese story about such a spider.

(HEEE was some

once, in

lonely part of

the country, a haunted temple.

No one could live ing

because

in the build-

of the

goblins

that had taken possession of it.

Many

brave samurai went

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VA.

!

to that place at various times for the purpose of killing the goblins.

But they were never

heard of again after they had entered the temple.

At famous

last

one

who was

for his courage

his

and

prudence,

went

to the temple to

during

the night.

said to those ied

him

And he

who accompan"If in the

there:

morning I be shall

watch

still

drum upon

the

alive,

I

drum

of

/

.~#

the temple." alone, to

Then he was left

watch by the

light of

a lamp.

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As the night advanced he crouched down under the alwhich supported a dusty image of Buddha. He saw tar,

nothing

strange

no sound

till

and heard

after midnight.

Then there came a lin,

gob-

having

but half

iff; 1

1

a body and one eye, and said "Hitokusai!" (There is the

:

sniell of

a man).

But the

samurai did not move. goblin went away.

Then

1

V

there

came a

The

priest

and played upon a samisen so wonderfully that the samurai felt sure it was not the playing of a man.

So he

leaped up with his sword

drawn.

The

priest, seeing

him, burst

out laughing, and said:

"So

you thought I was a goblin ? Oh no I am only the priest I

of this temple

;

but I have to

play to keep off the goblins.

Does not well?

this samisen

Please play a

And he offered ment

to

grasped with his

the it

left

sound

little."

the instru-

samurai who

very

cautiously

hand.

But

in-

stantly the samisen changed H into a monstrous spider-web,

and the

priest into a goblin-

spider

;

and the warrior iound in

himself caught fast

web by the

left

struggled bravely, !

hand.

the

He

and struck

at the spider with his

sword, and

wounded

it;

but he

soon became

^

entangled still

more

in the net,

f

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/

and could not move.

However, the

wounded spider crawled away, and the sun In a

rose.

little

while

the people

came

and found the samurai in the horrible

web, and freed him.

They saw tracks of blood upon

fr

Sift'!

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the

and followed

floor,

the

tracks out of the temple to a hole in the deserted garden.

Out

the

of

hole

issued

a

sound of groaning, They found the wounded goblin in the hole, and killed it.

frightful

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JAPANESE FAIB.Y TALE SEBIES. Momotaro or Little Peachling. The Tongue Cut Sparrow. The Battle of the Monkey and the Crab. The Old Man who made the Dead Trees Blossom

I.

a. 3.

4.

Kachi-Kachi Mountain.

$.

7.

The Mouses' Wedding. The Old Man and the

8.

Urashima, the Fisher-boy.

6.

9.

10. II.

12. 13. 14.

Devils

The Eight- Headed Serpent The Matsuyama Mirror. The Hare of Inaba. The Cub's Triumph. The Silly Jelly-Fish The Princes Fire-Flash and Fire-Fade My Lord Rag-o -Rice. ;

15. 16.

The Wonderful

17.

Schippeitaro.

Tea-Kettie.

The Ogre's Arm. The Ogres of Oyeyama The Enchanted Waterfall. 20. The Goblin-Spider. 2nd Series No. " * The Wonderful Mallet 2. 1

8.

19.

I

V

"

" 3-

The Broken Images.