"I know my honorable mother is better!" cried Umé, beside herself with joy.
"The chestnuts did not go into the lucky-bag for nothing," said old Maru contentedly. "I knew they would bring an answer to our prayer."
But Umé did not hear her. She left the old woman picking her way carefully along the snowy stepping-stones while she flew to her father.
"Is my admirable mother better?" she asked breathlessly.
"Yes," answered her father. "O Doctor San says she will soon be well."
"It is because the gracious Kwannon was pleased with the red shoes," said Umé softly.
PRONOUNCING VOCABULARY
AND DICTIONARY
Ä sä'ku̇ sä, a temple in Tokio.
Bā, grandmother.
Bĕn'tĕn Sä'mä, a goddess of love and good fortune.
chi chi (chē'chē), father.
chŏp'stĭcks, small sticks used in eating.
clŏgs, a wooden shoe worn to lift the feet out of the mud.
Cŏn fū'cius (shius), a celebrated Chinese philosopher.
Dä ru̇'mä Sä'mä, a Japanese god.
ĕn ō shi'mä (shē), a small island on the east coast of Japan. Shima means island.
Fu ji ya ma (fu̇'jē yä'mä), an extinct volcano, the highest mountain of Japan. Yama means mountain.
gei sha (gā'shȧ), a dancing girl.
ge ta (gā'tȧ), wooden clogs.
gō, five.
gō'do͜wn, a fireproof building used as a storehouse.
hä'hä, mother.
i chi (ē'chē), one.
jĭn rïk'ĭ shä, a two-wheeled carriage drawn by a man.
jŭn̠k, a flat-bottomed, sea-going sailing vessel.
Kä mä'ku̇ rä, a small town on the east coast of Japan.
Ka mei do (kä mā'dō), a temple in Tokio.
ki mo no (kē mō'nō), a garment resembling a dressing-gown, worn by men, women, and children in Japan.
Kĭn tä'rō, a Japanese hero.
ki ri gi ri su (kē rē gē'rē su̇), a singing insect.
kō, little.
kō'tō, a musical instrument somewhat like a harp.
kō'to͜w, bow the forehead to the ground.
Kwän'nŏn, the goddess of mercy.
Mä'ru̇, round, a name sometimes given to girls.
ni (nē), two.
Nä ru̇ hō'dō, an exclamation.
ō, honorable, the Japanese honorific.
ō Bā Sän, honorable Grandmother Mrs.
O hay o (ō hī'ō), "honorable early," good-morning.
o mé dé to (ō mā dā'tō), "honorable congratulation."
ō yä'mä, a mountain near Yokohama.
rĭn, a coin, one tenth of a sen, one twentieth of a cent.
săn, three.
Sän, Mr., Mrs., or Miss; a title of respect.
sa ké (sä'kā), a liquor made from rice.
Sä'mä, Mr., Mrs., or Miss; a title of respect.
săm'ĭ sĕn, a musical instrument resembling a banjo.
sĕn, a coin worth one tenth of a yen, one half of a cent.
shi (shē), four.
su̇'zu, an insect.
Su̇ gä wä'rä-nō-Mĭch ĭ zä'né (nā), a Japanese goddess.
ta bi (tä'bē), stockings, with a place for the big toe.
Tä'mä, jewel; often used as a girl's name.
Tä'rä, a boy's name.
Tei (tā), a girl's name.
To ki o (tō'kē ō), the capital of Japan.
U mé (u̇ mā'), plum blossom; often used as a girl's name.
Ut su ki (u̇t su̇'kē), a family name.
yĕn, a coin worth about fifty cents.
Transcriber Notes:
The Cover Photo was computer generated to provide a cover image.
Throughout the dialogues, there were words used to mimic accents of the speakers. Those words were retained as-is.
The illustrations have been moved so that they do not break up paragraphs and so that they are next to the text they illustrate. The page numbers of the List of Illustrations have been changed to where the illustration apears.
Errors in punctuations and inconsistent hyphenation were not corrected unless otherwise noted.
On page 31, a comma was added after "said".
On page 42, a closing quotation was added after "are in full Blossom."
On page 74 the hyphen in jinrikisha-men was replaced with a space.
On page 94, "payer" was replaced with "prayer".
On page 116, "moring" was replaced with "morning".