Chapter 6
chapter six of little peachling and other tales of old japan retold by georgine faulkner this librivox recording is in the public domain chin chin once upon a time there lived in japan a little girl who was pretty but she was lazy and selfish the parents of the little girl were very rich they lived in a beautiful home the floors were covered with soft padded straw matting the screens were made of carved ebony and covered with silk which was embroidered by artists the little girl was always dressed in the beautiful embroidered silk kimonas she always wore a bright sash or obi tied around her waist but she never dressed herself her parents had so many servants and they were all so fond of the little girl that they spoiled her they dressed and undressed her they combed and arranged her beautiful black hair they polished her finger-nails they waited upon her from morning until night
doing many things for her which she ought to have done for herself and of course she just grew more and more lazy and selfish every day when she grew up to be a beautiful young woman a young warrior asked her father if he could marry her he was a very brave and handsome young man and the young people loved each other dearly after the wedding festivities were over the young husband took his beautiful bride to her new home he did not have a large house nor many servants there was only one old servant to cook the food and to care for the house so the lazy young woman for the first time in her life found that she had many things to do for herself she had to dress and undress herself now and she must take care of her clothes and make herself pretty and neat she tried hard to do this because she loved her husband and was anxious to please him now the young warrior had to go away very often and he had to be gone for a long time in the wars while he was gone she could be as lazy as she pleased for his old parents were good-natured and never scolded her one night when it was very still just at the hour of the ox which is two o'clock
and is a very mysterious time she was awakened by hearing some queer little noises in her room startled and frightened she sat up straight in bed and by the light of the big paper lantern she saw a strange sight tiny little men dressed just like japanese warriors were marching and dancing and whirling about her bed while the floor was covered with hundreds of these little men not more than an inch high these little soldiers wore two tiny swords and they were dressed just like her husband as they danced about her they grinned at her and sang in a mocking voice chin chin kobakama yomofukasoro oshizumara haimegimi yotonton which meant we are the chin chin kobakama the hour is late Sleep, noble, honorable darling. Although these words sounded very polite,
she could tell by the mocking voices and the grinning faces that these little warriors were making fun of her. Reaching out with her hands, she tried to catch them. She struck at them, trying to drive them away, but they jumped aside, and went whirling and whirling about,
waving their tiny swords and making up ugly faces as they sang over and over again, Chin Chin Kobakama Yomofukasoro Oshizumara
Haimegimi Yotan-tan All through the night they danced about her, and she was so frightened that she could not cry out, nor sleep. In the early dawn they vanished down under the floor mats,
as suddenly as they had come. She felt sure that they must be fairies, but she did not like to tell anyone about their strange visit. the next night just at the hour of the ox the little men came again and waked her up with their mocking song the little wife lay awake frightened until dawn every night after that they came back at the same hour and she was in such a panic of fear that she could not sleep at last she became weak and ill
she could not eat for all day she feared and dreaded the night and every night the tiny warriors came out and frightened her so that she could get no rest when her husband came home from the war he was worried to find her looking so ill what is the matter with my honorable darling he asked gently the little wife began to sob and cry at first she hid her face in her kimona sleeve for she was afraid that he would laugh at her and tell her that she had been dreaming but he was so very kind and gentle to her as he coaxed her to tell him her troubles that at last she sobbed out the whole story he listened very seriously and did not laugh at her but took her in his arms and wiping away her tears said do not cry poor little wife i will watch for these little men to-night and protect you with my big sword at what hour will these tiny warriors appear at the hour of the ox sobbed his wife they always come back at the same hour that night the warrior hid himself behind a tall screen in their sleeping-room watching through a crack to see what would happen
he waited and watched until two o'clock the hour of the ox when suddenly up through the mats came the tiny little soldiers dressed just as he was dressed they marched about waving their tiny swords and began to dance and to sing in mocking tones chin chin kobakama yomofuku soro oshizumara haimegimi yotan-tan as they danced and whirled about making up faces they looked so funny that the young warrior wanted to laugh then by the light of the night lantern he saw the drawn white face of his poor little wife who was watching the men in wild-eyed horror now the warrior knew that all fairies ghosts and goblins are afraid of a sword so drawing his big blade he rushed from behind the screen and giving a loud war-cry he struck right and left at the little dancers immediately the little men fell down right where they were and what do you think they turned into toothpicks yes just a lot of dirty old toothpicks that had been used and thrown aside by the lazy young woman there they were scattered all over the floor mats
when the young wife saw them she was very much ashamed for she knew that they were the toothpicks she had used each day she was so very lazy that after she used a toothpick she would stick it down through the tiny slats in the floor mats in her room the little fairies of the floor mats were angry at this lazy young woman and so they came out each night to torment her and punish her in this way you have only yourself to blame for this scolded her husband for this shows that you have been very untidy and lazy she knew that her husband was right so she promised to be a better housekeeper in the future the next morning the old servant brushed up the dirty toothpicks and they were carried out and burned so of course the tiny men never came back the young wife tried from that time to be as neat and orderly as her husband could wish and so they lived in good order and peace and happiness ever after chapter six
