The Ginza Ghost by Keikichi Osaka

Author:Keikichi Osaka [Osaka, Keikichi]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Locked Room International
Published: 2017-05-29T04:00:00+00:00

First published in Shinseinen, August Issue, Shōwa 11 (1936).

THE COLD NIGHT’S CLEARING

The season of snow has arrived once again. And snow reminds me of that tragic figure, Sanshirō Asami. At the time, I was working as a simple Japanese language teacher at an academy for girls in a prefecture far up in the north: let’s call it H Town. Sanshirō Asami was an English language teacher at the same school, and also my best friend at the time.

Sanshirō’s parental home was in Tōkyō. His family had made a fortune as trade merchants, but, as the second son, he wouldn’t inherit and trade didn’t really suit him anyway. So, after graduating from W University, he became a teacher, moving all around the country. He originally wanted to write literature, but he’d had little success, and by the time we became acquainted in H Town, he was already in his thirties and had become the caring father of an eight-year-old child. Sanshirō could be a bit quick-tempered, but he was also a frank and lovable person, and we quickly became friends. And it wasn’t just me: there wasn’t a person around who didn’t become friends with him. This might have been because of his wealthy family, but he was also very easy-going with his fellow teachers and likeable in his dealings with his fellow man, with nothing calculating behind his actions. So he wasn’t really suited to walking the dark path of literature writing—which might explain his lack of success. I quickly noticed this as I became friends with him.

Sanshirō at home was a joy to see. His deep love for his beautiful wife and his only child was evident, as was the respect he enjoyed from his girl students, albeit tinged with envy. In fact, even though every teacher is destined to be given a nickname at a girls’ academy, I have to admit I’ve never heard one for Sanshirō. That was almost a mystery in itself. Yet, in hindsight, what occurred may have happened precisely because of his beautiful nature.

At the time of the horrific event I was living in a house very close to the Asamis, in the outskirts of H Town, which is probably why I was one of the first to hear about it. Sanshirō himself was away at the time and I was unsure what I should do. He had been sent by the Ministry of Education to a newly-opened agricultural school in the mountains, as a temporary teacher for the last month of the semester. The school vacation was supposed to start on December 25th, so Sanshirō was expected to return home that night, but the incident had occurred the night before, on the 24th.

The cousin of Sanshirō’s wife Hiroko had been staying with her since the start of the month; his name was Oikawa, and he was a student at M University. I didn’t know much about him except that he seemed to be a good, bright lad; that he belonged to his university’s ski club; and that he had been in the habit of visiting his cousin here in the north every winter.

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