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Xjince upon
couple

a time

there

lived

an

old

who had seen

better days.

Formerly

they had been well to do, but misfortune

came upon them, through no

fault

of their

own, and in their old age they had become

so poor that they

were only

just able

to

earn their daily bread.

One joy however remained

to them,

This

was

their

only

child,

good and gentle

maiden, of such wonderful beauty, that, in

all

that land bhe had

no equal.
fell

At length the father

sick and died,

and the mother and her daughter had to

work harder than

felt

ever.

Soon the mother

her strength failing her, and great

was

her sorrow

at the thought of leaving her

child aluno in the world.

The beauty

of

the maiden

was

so

Jhdl^^l^^

dazzling
that
it

bethe

came

cause

of

much
anxiety to the dying mother,

thongbt and

She
less

knew
as

that in one so
it

pow

and

friend-

her child,

would be

likely

to

of a blessing, prove a .misfortune instead

Feeling

her

end

to

be very near, the

to

mother called the maiden

and, with

her bedside,

many words

of love and warning,

entreated her to

continue pure, and good,

and

true,

as she

had ever been,

She

told

her that her

beauty was a perilous

ruin,

gift

which might become her

and comas possible,

manded her

to hide
all

it,

as

much

from the sight of

men,
this

That she

might do
the

the

better,

ff^fc
a lacquered

mother placed

on her daughter's head

wooden bowl, which she earned

her on no account to take

off.

The bow]
it

overshadowed the maiden's face, so that

was impossible
hidden beneath

to tell

how much beauty was

it,

'

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| ^r.-r.

.^...r:

:
(

After her mother's death, the poor child

was indeed

forlorn;

but she had a brave

heart,

and at once

set

about
her living
in the fields.

earning

by bard work

As she was

nevei

seen

without

W. }to> *

the

wooden bowl, which indeed appeared a

very funny head-dress, sbe soon begaa to

be talked about,
the

and

was known in

all

country round as the

Maid with the

Bowl on her Head.

Proud and bad j>eople scorned and lathed
at her,
idle

and the

young

naen of the village made fun of her, trying

to

peep under the bowl, and even

to pull

it

o# her head.

But

it

seemed firmly

fixed,
it

and none of them succeeded

off,

in taking

or in

getting more than a glimpse of

the beautiful face beneath.

The poor
patiently,

girl

bore

all

this

rude usage

was always

diligent at her work,

and when evening came, crept

lonely home.

quietly to her
at

Now. one day, when she was

a

work

in the harvest field of

rich fanner,

who owned most

the

of the land in that part,

master himself drew near.

He was

struck by the gentle and modest behaviour

*f the

young

girl,

and by her quickness and

diligence at her work.

Ha. vim-

watched her

all

that day,

hft

was

so

much pleased with

her, thai he kept her

in

work

until

the

end

of

harvest.

After that, winter

having now

come

on,

he

took her into his

to

own house
wife,

wait upon his

who
sick,
left

had long been

and seldom

her bed.

Now
-

the poor

orphan

,fyJL^

fl

had a happy home once

for

more,

both

the

farmer

and
to her.

his

wife

were

very

kind

As they had no daughter

of their own, she

child

became more

like the

of

the house than

a hired servant

And

indeed,
or

no

child

could

have made a
to

gentler

more tender nurse

did
this
little

a
to

sick

mother,
mistress.

than

inaid

her

After

some time the master's eldest son

visit to

came home on a
mother.
rich

his

father

and

He had been

living in Kioto, the

and gay

city of the Mikado,

where he

had studied and learned much.

with
to

Wearied
glad
the

feasting

and pleasure, he was

for

come

back

little

while

to

quie(
after

hi'-me

of

his

childhood.

But week

week

to the surprise of passed, and,

his

Mends, he showed no desire to return

more
truth
stirring life of
is,

to the

the town.

The

that

no sooner had he Bet

eyes on the Maid with the Bowl on her Head,

than he was
all

filled

with curiosity to
linked

know

ahout
and

her.

He
*he

who and what she

was.

why

was always seen with

and unbecominghead-dress.

such a curious

Fe was

touched

by her sad

story,

but

could not help laughing at her old fancy of

wearing the bowl on her head.

But, as he

saw day by

day, her goodness and gentle

manners, he laughed no more.

day,
to

And, one

having managed
a
sly

take

peep

=t% Aunder the

bowl, he saw

enough

uf her beauty to
fall

make him

her. deeply in tove with

From
i

that

moment he vowed

that none

other than the

Maid with the Bowl should

His relations,

be his wife.
however,
hear of
-4.

would not

_!

a
-

match.

"No doubt
was
all

girl

very well in her way,"

they
said,

=7$ "but

after all,

she was only a

servant, and no
fit

mate
the honse.

for the

son of

They had always said she was being made

too

much

of,

and would one day or another

her
benefactors.
true,

turn

against

Now

their

words were coming

and besides, why

did she persist in wearing that rediculous

thing on her head?

Doubtless to get a re-

putation

for

beauty, which most likely she

Indeed, they were almost

did not possess.

certain that she

was quite plain looking."

The two old maiden aunts of tbe young

man

were especially

bitter,

and never

lost

an opportunity of repeating the hard and

unkind

thinjr*

which were *aid about the

poor orphan.

Her mistress
to her,

even,

who

hd

been so good
against her,

now seemed

to turn
left

and she had no

friend

except her master,

"been pleased to

who would

really have

welcome her

as his daughter,

but did not dare to say

as

muck

Ihe

remained young man however,

purpose.

firm to his

As

for all the stories

which they
to

brought him,

he gave his aunts

underbetter

stand that he considered them

little

than a pack of illnatnred inventions.

At last seeing him so

steadfast in bis

their opposition only determination, and that

made him the more

fain to give in,

obstinate,

they were

though with a bad grace.

arose where
it

A
to

difficulty

now

was

least
little

have been expected.

The poor

Maiil with the

their

Bowl on her Head upset

all

calculations,

by gratefully but firmly

son,

refusing the

hand of her master's

and

no persuasion on his part could induce her

to

change her mind.

Great was the astonishment and anger of

the relations.
fools of in this

That they should be made

way was beyond

all

bearing.

TTImt did the ungrateful

ynnrg minx expect,

good enough
her true
clearly,

that her Master's son wasn't

for

her?

Little did

they

know

and

loyal heart.

She loved him

but she
the

would not bring discord and

strife into

home which had sheltered her

in her poverty

for she had marked the cold looks of her

mistress,

and very well understood what they

Rather than bring trouble into that
it

meant.

leave happy home she would

at once,

and

for ever.

She told no one, and shed many

bitter tears in secre^ yet she remained true

to her purpose.

Then,

that

night

when &he had

cried

herself to sleep, her mother appeared to her

in a dream,

and

told her that she

might,

without scruple, yield to the prayers of her

lover,

and

to the
full

wishes of her own

heart.

She woke up

of joy, and,

when

the young

man
yes,

once more entreated

her, she answered

"

with

all

her heart,

We

told

you

so,"

said the mother

and the
to

aunts, bat the young

man was

too

happy

mind them.

So the

wedding day was

grandest
preparations

fixed,

and the

were made

for

the
feast

Some

unpleasant remarks

were doubtless to be

heard about the beggar maid and her

bowl, but the young

wooden

man

took no notice of

them, and only congratulated himself

upon

Ms good

fortune

Now, when the wedding

all

day had at last come, and

the

company

were assembled, and ready to assist at the

ceremony,
it

seemed high time that the bowl

the
it off,

should be removed from

bride.

head

of

the
to

She tried to take

it

but found,

her dismay, that

stuck

fast,

nor could her

it:

utmost
and,

efforts

even succeed in moving

when some

of the relations persisted in

it

off the bowl, trying to pull

uttered loud

cries

and groans as of pain.

consoled

The bridegroom comforted and

the

maiden, and insisted that they should

more ado. go on with the ceremony without

And now came

the

moment when
in,

the wiae

cups were brought

and the bride and

"

bridegroom must drink together the

three

times three", in token that they were now

become man and

put her
lips

wife.

Hardly had the biide

Sake,

to

the

cup,

when

the

wooden bowl burst

M'ith

a loud

^^^

noise,

and

m
---4'
-

fell

in

a thousand

pieces upon
fell

the

floor.

And, with the bowl,

stones,
pearls,

a shower of precious

and diamonds, rubies and

had been hidden beneath
silver
in

emeralds, which
it,

besides gold and

abundance,

which now became the marriage portion

of

the

maiden.

Bat what astonished the wedding guests

more even than
this vast treasure,

was the
fully

wonderful beauty of the bride,

made

known
and

for

the

first

time to her husband

to all the

world,

Never was there each a merry wedding,

such a proud

and happy bridegroom, or

guch a lovely bride.

46

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