A Story of the Fox

[The Fox.--Orientals say that among the long-lived creatures are the tortoise, the deer, the crane and the fox, and that these long-lived ones attain to special states of spiritual refinement. If trees exist through long ages they become coal; if pine resin endures it becomes amber; so the fox, if it lives long, while it never becomes an angel, or spiritual being, as a man does, takes on various metamorphoses, and appears on earth in various forms.]

〔狐——東洋の人々は、長生きの生き物には亀、鹿、鶴、狐がいて、これらの長生きのものは特別な霊的な洗練の境地に達すると言う。木が長い年月存在し続ければ石炭になり、松やにが長くもちこたえれば琥珀になる。同じように狐も、長く生きれば、人間のように天使や霊的な存在になることは決してないが、さまざまに姿を変え、さまざまな形で地上に現れるのである。〕

Yi Kwai was the son of a minister. He passed his examinations and held high office. When his father was Governor of Pyong-an Province, Kwai was a little boy and accompanied him. The Governor's first wife being dead, Kwai's stepmother was the mistress of the home. Once when His Excellency had gone out on an inspecting tour, the yamen was left vacant, and Kwai was there with her. In the rear garden of the official quarters was a pavilion, called the Hill Pagoda, that was connected by a narrow gateway with the public hall. Frequently Kwai took one of the yamen boys with him and went there to study, and once at night when it had grown late and the boy who accompanied him had taken his departure, the door opened suddenly and a young woman came in. Her clothes were neat and clean, and she was very pretty. Kwai looked carefully at her, but did not recognize her. She was evidently a stranger, as there was no such person among the dancing-girls of the yamen.

イ・クェは大臣の息子だった。科挙に及第して高い官職についた。父が平安道の観察使だったころ、クェは小さな男の子で、父についていった。観察使の先妻はすでに亡くなっていて、クェの継母が家の女主人だった。あるとき閣下が巡察に出かけて役所が留守になり、クェは継母とそこにいた。官舎の裏庭には山亭と呼ばれる東屋があって、狭い門で公の広間とつながっていた。クェはたびたび役所の少年を一人連れてそこへ勉強しに行っていたが、ある夜遅くなって付き添いの少年が帰ったあと、突然戸が開いて一人の若い女が入ってきた。女の服はこざっぱりときれいで、女はたいそうかわいらしかった。クェはよく女を見たが、見覚えがなかった。役所の妓生にはそんな者はいなかったので、明らかに見知らぬ女だった。

He remained looking at her, in doubt as to who she was, while she on the other hand took her place in the corner of the room and said nothing.

クェは女が誰なのかいぶかしんで見つめ続け、女のほうは部屋の隅に座って何も言わなかった。

"Who are you?" he asked. She merely laughed and made no reply. He called her. She came and knelt down before him, and he took her by the hand and patted her shoulder, as though he greeted her favourably. The woman smiled and pretended to enjoy it. He concluded, however, that she was not a real woman, but a goblin of some kind, or perhaps a fox, and what to do he knew not. Suddenly he decided on a plan, caught her, swung her on to his back, and rushed out through the gate into the yamen quarters, where he shouted at the top of his voice for his stepmother and the servants to come.

「お前は誰だ」とクェは尋ねた。女はただ笑って答えなかった。クェが呼ぶと、女は来て前にひざまずいた。クェは、好意をもって迎えるかのように女の手を取って肩をたたいた。女はほほえんで楽しんでいるふりをした。けれどもクェは、これはほんとうの女ではなく、何かの化け物か、ひょっとすると狐だと結論を下したが、どうすればよいかわからなかった。突然クェは計略を決めて、女をつかまえて背中に担ぎ上げ、門から役所の住まいへ駆け込み、継母や召し使いたちに来てくれと声を限りに叫んだ。

It was midnight and all were asleep. No one replied, and no one came. The woman, then, being on his back, bit him furiously at the nape of the neck. By this he knew that she was the fox. Unable to stand the pain of it, he loosened his grasp, when she jumped to the ground, made her escape and was seen no more.

真夜中で、みな眠っていた。誰も答えず、誰も来なかった。すると背中の女が、クェのうなじに猛然と噛みついた。これでクェは、女が狐だとわかった。痛みに耐えられずに手をゆるめると、女は地面に飛び降りて逃げ、それきり姿を見せなかった。

What a pity that no one came to Kwai's rescue and so made sure of the beast!

クェを助けに来て、その獣を確かに捕らえてくれる者が誰もいなかったのは、なんとも惜しいことだ!

Im Bang.

任埅(イム・バン)