232 ALL ABOARD FOR SUNRISE LANDS.

The young woman was crying sadly. Naturally, it attracted Sosano’s
attention. A Japanese lady richly dressed— her hair looped and
bowed — in her long robe and her big obi, sporting her fan and-
her umbrella, gay as a gaillardia-blossom, is quite a handsome
object anyway ; and when a woman cries, who can stand it? Sosano
could not. He learned from the old people the nature of the
trouble: that the young woman had been appointed to be a sacrifice
to an eight-headed serpent. Sosano at once offered his aid, if the
reward of victory could be the young woman herself. All consent-
ed. He filled eight big tubs with that fiery drink, saké. On wriggled
the eight-headed monster, but when he saw the eight tubs he smelt
the saké and stopped Then he dipped a head into each tub and
drank up every drop—the greedy creature! He became so drunk—
so boozy drunk —that Sosano easily killed him. So Sosano saved a
life and earned a wife. He gained something else, also. When cutting
up the big snake, Sosano found it difficult to cut through the tail ;
and what did he discover when he succeeded in splitting it, but a
Oh, I
can’t pronounce it,”’— and the doctor stopped hopelessly in the

 

wonderful sword that had a wonderful name, muraku

middle of the name.

“Tf,” said Ralph, his eyes flashing, “if they would just put rum
to that use, — kill snakes with it, I think it would be a good thing.”

“So do I; and this story is the first instance I ever knew where
any good came from stuff like whiskey, when taken just as a drink.”

“The Japanese have some very funny ideas, doctor,” said Uncle
Nat.

“Yes, some interesting ones, certainly.”

“Oh,” exclaimed Ralph, “I wish I could see that mat—the
shing you spoke about to me to-day.”

“ Matsuri ?”