Pathway to Japanese Literature

"Clatter-clatter, hiss-puff-puff,

When the Scorpion’s red eyes appeared,

From four o'clock this morning too, it came.

The Tōno Basin was pitch-dark,
Only the sound of cold water could be heard.
Clatter-clatter, hiss-puff-puff,
It exhaled steam onto the frozen gravel,
Scattering sparks into the darkness,
Arrived at the serpentinite cliff,
And finally, the east ignited.
Clatter-clatter, hiss-puff-puff,
Birds began to sing as trees glowed,
The Aōgawa River flowed,
While both hills and valleys lay entirely
Covered in dazzling frost.

Both hills and valleys lay entirely,
Covered with dazzling frost.

"Clatter-clatter, hiss-puff-puff,

'Running sure warms me up,'

I panted and sweated.

'I want to race another seven or eight miles,'

Another day of frost haze.

'Clatter-clatter, screech, hiss-hiss'"

The first train from the east on the Light Railway came clattering in and stopped as though in a bit of a hurry.
From beneath its locomotive escaped feeble wisps of steam while thin blue smoke rose ever so slightly from its slender chimney.

At this development,the telegraph poles along the Light Railway buzzed ominously like relieved sentries,and with an audible clack,the signal post raised its white arm.
This straight-backed signal structure was none other than Signaress.

Signaress let out a small sigh of relief and looked up at the sky.
The sky was filled with thin streaked clouds, which cast cold white light onto the frozen ground as they quietly drifted eastward.

Signaress gazed fixedly at where those clouds were drifting.
Then, while extending her gentle signal arm fully toward that direction, she murmured a barely audible soliloquy.

“This morning my aunt and the others must surely be watching this way.”

Signaress remained absorbed in that direction endlessly.

“Clack.”

When a sudden sound came from the quiet sky behind her，Signaress hurriedly turned toward it.
Beyond the long-piled black railroad ties，that splendid main line signal post had just lowered its stiff arm above to welcome the train approaching from far to the south，billowing shining white smoke.

“Good morning. It’s warm this morning, isn’t it?” The main line signal post stood at strict attention like a soldier, offering this greeting with an oddly serious air.

“Good morning.”
Signaress became teary-eyed and answered in a lowered voice.

“Young Master, this is unacceptable.
From now on, I must ask that you refrain from carelessly addressing that thing.”
The thick telegraph pole that sent electricity to the main line signal at night announced with great self-importance.

Signal looked embarrassed, fidgeted, and fell silent.
The timid Signaress felt as though she wanted to either vanish into thin air or take flight.
But since there was nothing she could do, she remained standing motionless.

The streaked clouds grew hazy like thin amber panels, and as the faintest sunlight came filtering down, the telegraph pole attached to the main signal became delighted and, while watching a small horse-drawn cart crossing the distant field, sang a low, discordant tune.

“Hum-hum, drone-drone,

From thin clouds

Brew begins to pour,

From within the brew

Frost flows.

Hum-hum, drone-drone,

Hum-hum, drone-drone,

If the frost melts,

The soil is jet black.

The horse drops dung,

People chatter away.

Hum-hum, drone-drone”

Then they sang even more nonstop, their song filled with utter nonsense.

In the meantime, the main line signal post quietly entrusted these words to the west wind.

“Please don’t concern yourself—he’s utterly barbaric! He knows nothing of etiquette or propriety! Truthfully, I’m constantly at my wits’ end!”

Signaress of the Light Railway, utterly flustered and looking downward, said in a low voice,

“Oh, that’s not true at all,” she said, but being downwind, her words did not reach Signal.

“Will you forgive me? To tell the truth, if you were to get angry with me, I might as well not be alive.”

“Oh my, you shouldn’t say such things.”
The wooden Signaress of the light railway shrugged her shoulders as if troubled, but in truth, her slightly bowed face flashed with a white light of joy.

“Signaress, please listen to me seriously.”
“For your sake, I won’t lower my arm when the next ten o’clock train comes—I’ll hold firm and show you I can endure through it!”
The wind that had been faintly whistling suddenly ceased at that moment.

"Oh, you mustn't do such a thing!"

“Of course you mustn’t. Keeping my arm raised when trains come—that wouldn’t help either of us, so I won’t do it. But I’m telling you I’d even attempt such a thing. There’s nothing in the entire world as precious to me as you. Please love me.”

Signaress stared fixedly downward and stood in silence.
The short telegraph pole attached to the main signal was still singing its nonsensical song.

“Gogon-gōgō,

At the mountain’s rocky cave,

A bear tends a fire,

The smoke’s too thick,

Flees the cave it’s in.
Gogon-gō,

The snail crawls slow.

Ooh, the snail crawls slow.

The snail’s fleshy foot,

‘Top-quality woolen cloth, gogon-gōgō’”

The main line Signal, being impatient by nature, grew frantic when Signaress didn’t respond.

“Signaress, won’t you answer me?”
Ah, I’m completely engulfed in darkness.
Before me stretches a pitch-black chasm.
If only lightning would strike and shatter me to pieces.
Let eruptions burst from below and hurl me skyward.
Everything’s already finished.
Let lightning strike and shatter me to pieces.
“Beneath my feet...”

“Ah, but Young Master, should lightning come, I shall humbly receive all misfortune upon myself alone. I humbly pray you may rest assured.”

The Telegraph Pole Attached to Main Signal had at some point stopped its nonsensical song and was now blinking rapidly while stiffly raising the wire spear atop its head.

“Enough! What are you even saying?”
“That’s not what this is about!”

“What might this matter be, pray tell?”
“I humbly entreat that your esteemed self might deign to hear this lowly one’s report.”

“Alright, you just keep quiet.”

Signal shouted loudly.
However, Signal too fell silent.

The clouds gradually thinned, and soft sunlight began to shine.

The fifth-day moon emerged once more from the black horizontal clouds over the western mountain range and, for just a little while before sinking behind the peaks, filled the surroundings with a dull lead-like light.
The winter-bare trees, the stacked black railroad ties, and even the telegraph poles all fell asleep.
Only the sound of wind or water roared from far, far away.

Ah, I have no reason to go on living.
Every time a train comes, lowering my arm, putting on blue lenses—what’s the point of doing all this?
Nothing holds any meaning anymore.
Ah, I should die.
But how can I die?
So it has to be lightning or a volcanic eruption after all.

The main line Signal could not sleep again tonight.
It was a time of extreme distress.
But it wasn’t only Signal.
Across the railroad ties, the light railway signal—namely Signaress—stood pale and forlorn, holding up a red light, and she too was in precisely the same state.

“Oh, Signal, you’re being unreasonable! To get so angry and give up immediately when I can’t speak up or give you a proper reply.”
“Everything is already over for me.”
“O God, when You strike Signal with lightning, please strike me down together.”

Having said this, she prayed fervently to the starry sky.
However, that voice faintly reached Signal’s ears.
Signal suddenly straightened up with a start, puffed out his chest, and thought for a while, but soon began trembling violently.

He said while trembling.

“Signaress. What are you praying for?”

“I don’t know about that.”
Signaress lowered her voice and answered.

“Signaress, how can you say such terribly cruel things? I’m saying I want to be crushed right this instant by Lord Thunder, or have a volcanic eruption dragged out from beneath my feet, or nobly toppled by the wind, or drowned in Noah’s Flood—that’s what I’m saying! Yet despite all that, you show not an ounce of sympathy for me?”

“Oh… those eruptions and floods.”
“My prayers are for that.”
Signaress said resolutely.
Signal was so overjoyed, so utterly delighted, that he trembled even more violently.

His red glasses also trembled.

“Signaress, why must you die? Tell me.”
“Please tell me. Please.”
“Please tell me.”
“I’ll definitely drive away that troublemaker, so please tell me what’s wrong.”

“But it’s because you get so angry like that.”

“Hmph. Oh, that matter?”
“Hmph.”
“No.”
“You needn’t worry about that.”
“It’s alright.”
“I’m not angry at all, you know.”
“For your sake, even if they take all my glasses, rip out every arm I have, and smash me into the swamp’s depths—I won’t hold any grudge against you.”

“Oh, really.”
“I’m so happy.”

“So please love me.”
“Come on, say you love me.”

The fifth-day moon hung precisely midway between cloud and mountain ridge.
Signal had turned ashen like a gray specter when he spoke.

“So you’ve fallen silent again.
“You do hate me after all.
“Fine then! Someone like me was destined to be destroyed by eruption, flood, or tempest anyway.”

“Oh, that’s not the case.”

“Then what do you say? What? What?”

“I’ve been thinking of nothing but you since time immemorial.”

“Is it true? Is it true? Is it true?”

“Yes.”

“Then that’s settled. Promise to marry me.”

“But...”

“But why? When spring comes, we’ll ask the swallows to announce it to everyone and hold our wedding ceremony. Please promise me.”

“But I’m so unremarkable.”

“I know that!”
“To me, that very unremarkableness is precious.”

Then Signaress summoned every ounce of courage and spoke up.

"But you're made of metal."
"You're modern-built."
"You have two sets of colored signal glasses—red and blue—and electric lights at night."
"While I'm just a lamp after dark, with only one plain glass, and made of wood."

“I know that!
“That’s exactly why I love you.”

“Oh, really.
“I’m so happy.”
“I promise.”

“Oh, thank you! I’m so happy—I promise too.”
“You are surely my future wife.”

“Yes, that’s right—I’ll never change.”

“I’ll give you an engagement ring—look, see? Those four blue stars aligned over there.”

“Yes.”

“You can see that small ring at the very base of the foot—it’s the Ring Nebula.”
“That ring of light—please accept it.”
“This is my true heart.”

“Yes. Thank you, I’ll accept it.”

“Bwahahaha!”
“What a riot!”
“You’re really pulling it off, I tell ya!”

Suddenly, the pitch-black Warehouse across bellowed in a voice so thunderous it seemed to defy the heavens.
The two of them fell completely silent.

However, the Warehouse spoke again.

“Ah, don’t you worry.”
“I’ll never breathe a word of this to anyone else.”
“I’ve got it locked up tight.”

At that moment, the moon sank into the mountains with a thud, plunging the surroundings into dim twilight.

Now the wind raged so fiercely that all telegraph poles—those of the Main Line and Light Railway alike—groaned like spinning tops, creaking "guuun guuun" under the whistling gale.
Yet above them stretched a sky of flawless azure.

Even the portly telegraph pole attached to the Main Line Signal had abandoned its usual nonsense ditties.
Hunching its bulk and squinting its eyes, it feigned compliance by droning "Buuu-buuu" along with the others.

At this moment, Signaress was watching clouds that limped along through the east’s intensely flickering blue light, but then she glanced briefly in Signal’s direction.
Signal was standing rigidly like a policeman today, but taking advantage of the strong wind that prevented the fat telegraph pole from hearing, he spoke to Signaress.

“This wind is truly dreadful. Does your head feel feverish or painful? I feel a bit dizzy myself. I have many things to tell you, so please just nod or shake your head. Anyway, even if you reply, it won’t reach me, so if there’s anything unpleasant in what I say, shake your head to the side. This is actually the European way of doing things. Over there, when close friends like us want to talk without others knowing, everyone does it this way. I saw that in a foreign magazine. Say, that warehouse fellow’s a strange one, isn’t it? Bursting into our conversation out of nowhere, going on about taking responsibility and whatnot. It’s gotten quite fat too—today it’s over there blinking its eyes away. I know it’s talking about me speaking to you, but with this wind I can’t make out a word. But tell me—can you hear it? If you can, shake your head. Yes, just so—you can hear it too, can’t you? We really want to get married soon, don’t we? If only spring would come quickly. Let’s not let that Telegraph Pole at my place know anything about it.”

And then—ugh!
Ah, this wind makes my throat rasp.
Ah, how dreadful.
"I'll stop talking for now."
"My throat has begun to hurt."
"Do you understand? Then I'll bid you farewell for the moment."

And then Signal, groaning "Uuuu" and blinking his eyes, remained silent for some time.

Signaress waited quietly for Signal’s throat to heal.
The Telegraph Poles hummed and groaned while the wind howled.

Signal kept swallowing saliva and clearing his throat with *ahem* sounds until his sore throat finally seemed better, then spoke to Signaress again.
But with the wind roaring like a bear and surrounding Telegraph Poles groaning as if they’d shattered a mountain of beehives at once, even his earnest voice reached her only halfway.

“Look, for your sake, when the next train comes, I’ll fight to keep my arm raised—I’ll do anything. You understand that, don’t you?”
“You must have that same resolve too, don’t you?”
“You’re truly beautiful—even in this world full of others like us.”
“Well, half might be women, but among them all, you’re the most beautiful.”
“Though truth be told, I don’t know other women well—but I’m certain of it. Can you hear me?”
“Everyone around us are fools—utter dullards! That Telegraph Pole near me’s trying to decipher what I’m telling you—look there! Blinking its eyes like mad! This lump here’s got a worse shape than chalk! See how it’s twisting its mouth now!”
“Unbelievable idiots... Can you hear me? My...”

"Young Master, what have you been blathering on about this whole time?"
"And what could you possibly be smirking about with that Signaress thing?"

Suddenly, the telegraph pole attached to the Main Line Signal—in a fit of irritation—bellowed an outrageous shout through the roaring din, causing both Signal and Signaress to turn pale and snap their bodies—which had been bent toward each other—rigidly straight.

“Young Master, now then—speak up.”
“You must accept this as your duty.”

Signal finally regained his spirits.
And taking advantage of the fact that whatever he said would be lost in the wind anyway,

“You fool,” he said with a straight face, “I’ll marry Signaress and find happiness, then get you a chalk bride for your troubles.”
Since his voice carried downwind to Signaress, she—though frightened—couldn’t suppress a laugh.
To describe the fury of the Main Line Signal’s telegraph pole upon witnessing this would defy words.
It immediately began trembling violently, turning pale with rage as it bit its lips and frantically waved its arms—sending a message all the way to Tokyo—to interrogate the Light Railway’s downwind telegraph poles about what exactly Signal and Signaress had discussed, and what meaning lay behind Signaress’s laughter.

Ah, Signal had made a lifelong blunder.
A long, long telegraph pole with remarkably good hearing was positioned slightly downwind from Signaress, feigning ignorance while gazing at the sky as it had been listening to their entire conversation.
Thereupon, it promptly sent that reply via Tokyo to the Telegraph Pole Attached to Main Signal.
The Telegraph Pole Attached to Main Signal had been listening while grinding his teeth, but once he had heard everything, he flew into a rage as if he’d lost his mind.

“Damn it! Take this!”
“Damnable!”
“This is too much!”
“You damn beast! This is too much!”
“You damn beast! Well, Young Master, I’m a man too!”
“Do you think I’ll stay silent after being ridiculed so cruelly?”
“If you think you can marry her, then go ahead and try!”
“All us Telegraph Poles are already against you!”
“Do you think even Signals would defy the Railway Director’s orders?”
“And the Railway Director happens to be my uncle!”
“If you think you can marry or whatever, then try it!”
“Take this, you damn beast! Take this!”

The Telegraph Pole Attached to Main Signal immediately sent telegrams in all directions.
Then, for a while, he changed color and listened to everyone's replies.
It seemed he had indeed secured promises of opposition from everyone.
And he must have successfully appealed to his uncle, the Railway Director, and others as well.
Both Signal and Signaress were now utterly dumbfounded and aghast at this turn of events.
The Telegraph Pole Attached to Main Signal, having fully prepared his opposition, now suddenly spoke in a tearful voice.

“Ahhh! After eight years of watching over you day and night without sleep, this is the thanks I get?”
“Ah, how pitiful! The world has fallen into chaos.”
“Ah, it’s all over now.”
“How pitiful! Even Mr. Edison of America has forsaken this wretched world?”
“Ooon ooon ooon ooon, Gogong-gogoo gogong-gooo”

The wind grew increasingly fierce, the western sky turned an eerie whitish haze, and just as one sensed something ominous, the snow came fluttering down in earnest.

Signal stood pallidly with strength drained away and quietly glanced sideways at gentle Signaress.
Signaress wept softly while dejectedly lowering her arm to welcome the approaching two o'clock train, her heartrending sloping shoulders trembling ever so faintly.
In the sky wind whistled, while tearless telegraph poles hummed their Gogon-goo gogon-goo.

Now it was night.

Signal stood dejectedly.

The moonlight cast a pale glow upon the clouds.
The clouds glowed brightly.
There floated transparent small crimson flames and blue fires.
It was utterly still.
The mountain range lay quietly white like the corpse of a young polar bear noble, while through the far far distance, the remnant of daytime wind whined as it passed.
Even so, it was truly quiet.
When the black railroad ties were all asleep, seeing various dreams of red triangles and yellow dots, the young pitiable Signal let out a small sigh.
There, the gentle Signaress—half-frozen yet standing perfectly still—also let out a small sigh.

“Signaress, we truly suffer, don’t we.”

Unable to bear it any longer, Signal quietly spoke to Signaress.

“Yes, it was all my fault.”
Signaress said, pale and hanging her head.

Ah, friends, Signal’s chest burned fiercely.

“Ah, Signaress, I wish we could just go—just the two of us—to some far, faraway place where no one else exists.”

“Yes, if only I could go, I would go anywhere.”

“Look—far, far beyond where our engagement ring shines in heaven, can’t you see that tiny blue flame burning even higher in the sky? Look—see? That place is so very far away.”

“Yes.”
Signaress looked up at the sky with her small lips, as if about to kiss that flame.

“There must be a blue mist fire burning there. I want us to sit together in that blue mist fire, don’t you think?”

“Yes.”

“But there are no trains there, right? Then I’ll make fields.”
“Because I have to do some kind of work.”

“Yes.”

“Ah, O stars, distant blue stars—please take us away.”
“Ah, O compassionate Santa Maria, and O gracious George Stephenson—please hear our sorrowful prayer.”

“Yes.”

“Now, let us pray together.”
“Yes.”

“O compassionate Santa Maria, look upon us who pray sorrowfully upon the cold snowy ground in the depths of this transparent night; O gracious George Stephenson, look upon the true prayer of these sorrowful souls—servants of your servant—ah, Santa Maria.”

“Oh…”

The stars quietly continued their course.
Then that red-eyed scorpion emerged from the east, twinkling busily, and when Santa Maria’s moon—with her merciful, noble golden gaze fixed upon the two—descended into the pitch-black western mountains, Signal and Signaress, exhausted from prayer, had already fallen asleep.

Now it was daytime.
Because night and day inevitably take turns.

The glaring sun rose over the eastern mountain.
Signal and Signaress suddenly glowed a vivid pink.
Suddenly, a booming voice spread everywhere.

“Hey.
Telegraph Pole Attached to Main Signal, you’d better hurry up and tell your uncle the railway director that it’d be better to let those two be together.”

Upon closer inspection, it was none other than the Warehouse Roof from that recent evening.
The Warehouse Roof was clad in tiles coated with red glaze that glittered like armor, sharply scanning its surroundings.

The Telegraph Pole Attached to Main Signal grated and trembled, then stiffened and answered.

“Hmph! What did you say? What possible connection gives you the right to meddle in this matter?”

“Hey now, don’t act so high-and-mighty.”
“Listen up.”
“If we’re talkin’ connections, I got major connections. If we ain’t, then I got none at all. But hey—a freak like you shouldn’t go stickin’ your nose into this business. In the end, it’ll only bite you in the ass.”

“What did you say? I am Signal’s guardian! I’m the railway director’s nephew!”

“Oh really.”
“Well aren’t you something.”
“So you’re Guardian to His Lordship Signal and nephew to the railway director?”
“But then what does that make me?”
“Yours truly here’s guardian to blind kites and nephew to the great lineage of windbaggery!”
“Well? Who’s more distinguished?”

“What’s th—Creak! Crack-crackle! Snap!”

“Now now, no need to bristle.”
“Just a jest.”
“No hard feelings.”
“Look at those two—pitiful sight.”
“Time you settled this proper-like.”
“Act your age.”
“Don’t be such a tightwad.”
“With a grand guardian like you, they say Signal’s blessed indeed.”
“Sort it out! Sort it out!”

The Telegraph Pole Attached to Main Signal tried to speak, but he was so enraged that he could only crackle crackle crackle.
The Warehouse Roof, too, seemed slightly aghast at the sheer intensity of his rage—as if thinking *This can’t be how things were supposed to go*—and silently watched his face.
The sun had risen high, and Signal and Signaress let out a sigh of relief and exchanged glances.
Signaress lowered her eyes slightly, cast a fleeting glance at the vivid blue shadow of glasses falling upon Signal's white chest, then abruptly averted her gaze to stare at her own feet and became lost in thought.

Tonight was warm.

The fog grew thick and deeper still.

Through the permeating fog, moonlight cast its pale blue light quietly downward, and both the telegraph poles and railroad ties slept soundly.

Signal let out a sigh of relief as if he had been waiting.
Signaress too, her heart brimming with emotion, released a small sigh of relief.

At that moment, Signal and Signaress heard the warehouse roof’s calm, kindly voice resonating from within the fog.

“You two have truly suffered. We tried to handle things properly this morning but ended up making it worse instead.”
“It’s truly become a pitiful situation.”
“But I have another idea, so you needn’t worry so much. You must feel lonely not seeing each other’s faces in this fog.”

“Yes.”
“Yes.”
“I see. Then I’ll make myself visible.
“Listen up—both of you follow my lead and mimic me together.”
“Yes.”

“I see.”
“Then, Alpha.”
“Alpha.”
“Beater.” “Beater.”

“Gammā.” “Gammāā.”

“Derutā.” “Dērūtāāā.”

It was truly mysterious.

One day, Signal and Signaress stood shoulder to shoulder in the pitch-black night.

“Oh, what’s going on? The whole area’s turned into a jet-black velvet night.”

“My, how strange. It’s so dark!”

“No, look—the space above us is filled with stars. Oh, what an enormous, powerful star that is! And that sky pattern—have we ever seen such a thing before? Where could those thirteen blue stars in a row have come from? I’ve never seen or heard of stars like these—where in the world have we ended up?”

“Oh my, the sky is spinning so fast!”

“Yes, ah—that large orange star now rises from the horizon.
“Wait—that’s not the horizon.
“Is it...the sea’s horizon?”
“That’s right.
“This is the shore of the night sea.”

“Oh, how beautiful—the blue glow of those waves.”
“Yes, those are the crests of shore waves. How splendid they are. Let’s go take a look.”

“Oh, this water truly is like the light of the moon!”

“Look, there’s a red starfish at the bottom of the water.”
“There’s a sea cucumber in the silvery water.”
“It’s crawling ever so slowly. And that thing over there swaying its blue-glowing spines must be a sea urchin.”
“The waves are coming in.”
“Let’s step back a bit.”

“Yes.”

“How many times has the sky turned by now?”
“It’s gotten terribly cold.”
“The sea seems to have frozen over.”
“The waves have stopped singing.”

“Could it be because the waves have stopped?”
“There’s a sound.”

“What kind of sound?”

“There, a creaking sound like a dream’s waterwheel.”

“Ah, that’s it! That sound. That sound is the harmonic tones of the Pythagorean celestial spheres’ motion.”

“Oh my, everything around us is turning a hazy bluish-white.”

“Is the night dawning?”
“Ah, but wait—”
“Oh, magnificent.”
“I can see your face clearly.”

“You too.”

“Yes, at last, it’s just the two of us now.”

“Oh, a bluish-white fire is burning.”
“Oh, the ground and sea too.”
“But it’s not hot.”

“This is the sky. This is the mist-fire among the stars.”
“Our wish has been granted.”
“Ah, Santa Maria!”

“Ah.”

“The Earth is far away, isn’t it?”

“Yes.”

“Which direction could Earth be in? Stars spread all around—I can no longer tell which is which. I wonder what happened to my Bukkiriko. He’s truly pitiable, isn’t he?”

“Well, the fire has turned a bit whiter—it’s burning so busily now.”

“It must be this autumn now.”
“And that warehouse roof was kind too, wasn’t it?”

“That was indeed kindness itself.”

Suddenly, a deep voice rang out.
When they came to their senses—ah—they realized both of them had been sharing the same dream.
Eventually, the fog cleared to reveal a sky full of stars twinkling frantically in blues and oranges, while across the way, the pitch-black Warehouse Roof stood there laughing.

The two of them let out small, relieved breaths.