Tonight’s story is an amusing one, and it also offers a glimpse into what life was like for the elite samurai in Edo — a life of politics and diplomacy. During the Edo period, the shogun kept control over his vassals with a clever system of hostage taking. Every lord was required to keep an estate in Edo, and their wife and children resided there as hostages. The cost of upkeep for a lavish estate, plus staff, in Edo as well as their estate back in their home province was a drain on resources. This system ensured that nobody could rebel effectively against the shogun. And it also allowed for situations like the one in tonight’s story, in which several lords gather to gossip about the situation in their estates.

This story is especially interesting, not just for the punchline, but for the drawing of the kappa that appears in Mimibukuro. Here it is:

In fact, that’s not the only version. Since books were copied by hand, the pictures were often copied by hand, and quality could vary by the artist. Here are two other versions of the kappa from other copies of Mimibukuro:

The quality gradually degrades, just like with the gradual evolution of mermaids on my mermaid poster based on Edo period mermaid drawings.

The Kappa

In August of the first year of Tenmei (1781), in Sendai-gashi at the estate of Lord Date, someone witnessed a kappa being beaten to death and preserved in salt. The witness’s story was made into a picture, which was then brought to me by Lord Matsumoto of Izu when he visited. Upon investigation, the following was revealed:

A young child at that estate drowned for no apparent reason. Due to the suspicious nature, a section of the canal was blocked off and drained dry. Then, something emerged from the mud, with an agility as swift as the wind. They finally managed to shoot it down with a rifle.

Lord Magaribuchi of Kai was also there, and he said:

“Long ago, someone showed me what they claimed was a picture of a kappa, and it was identical in every detail to this picture brought by Lord Izu.”