Stayed in Ainu villages and back to Tokyo
アイヌの村での暮らし・帰京
To visit the Ainu village、アイヌの村へ
LETTER 35 GINSAINOMAジュンサイ沼, YEZO, August 17
Isabella started her adventure in Hokkaido. “I am once again in the wilds! --- I am not yet off the “beaten track,” but my spirits are rising with the fine weather, the drier atmosphere, and freedom of Yezo. --- the Ainos, who are complete savages in everything but their disposition, which is said to be gentle harmless that I may go among them with perfect safety.”
Isabella was not so young (46 years old), however she was energetic, optimistic and adventurous. Moreover, she was innocent. She met someone on a mountain trail, and she was assisted to fix her saddle and to ride on her horse. She wrote “Who could help liking such a courteous and kindly people?” I think local people would have liked this cheerful lady foreigner, too.
Isabella started her adventure in Hokkaido. “I am once again in the wilds! --- I am not yet off the “beaten track,” but my spirits are rising with the fine weather, the drier atmosphere, and freedom of Yezo. --- the Ainos, who are complete savages in everything but their disposition, which is said to be gentle harmless that I may go among them with perfect safety.”
Isabella was not so young (46 years old), however she was energetic, optimistic and adventurous. Moreover, she was innocent. She met someone on a mountain trail, and she was assisted to fix her saddle and to ride on her horse. She wrote “Who could help liking such a courteous and kindly people?” I think local people would have liked this cheerful lady foreigner, too.
She continued to
go north and stayed at Mori port town. People in the inn reveled; “Mori is a large,
ramshackle village, near the southern point of Volcano Bay –-- a wild,
dreary-looking place on a sandy shore, with a number of joroyas (houses of
prostitutes) ---” “Last night the inn was very noisy, as some travelers in the
next room to mine hired geishas, who played, sang, and danced till two in the
morning, and the whole party imbibed sake freely.” They also played Japanese
chess. Next day, she got on a steamer and arrived at Muroran.
*1: “The 140th Memorial of Isabella Bird to Japan, Voyage of Unbeaten
Tracks in Japan” (December, 2018), Posters were covered by a plastic sheet,
therefore I and my background reflected in the photo, I’m sorry. 『来日140周年記念 イザベラバード「日本奥地紀行」の旅』（日本みち研究所）、ポスターに私と背景が写り込んでおり、見にくくてすみません。
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Volcano Bay from Yakumo in December, 2019
森町の北隣り、八雲町丘の駅からの噴火湾（内浦湾）
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| Former site of Mori pier、かつての森桟橋*1 |
イザベラは、北海道内の旅に出る。私はまた、自然に戻った、好天と乾燥した空気、蝦夷の自由さで心は高揚する、と盛り上がる。アイヌは、未開人と言われるが、親切で害を加えないので、安全に進めるだろう、とある。46歳、元気で、冒険好きで、楽天的なおばさんだ。また、山道ですれ違った日本人に親切にされ（馬の腹側に回ってしまった鞍を背に戻してくれ、鞍に乗る時に支えてくれた）、こんな礼儀正しく親切な人には誰だって好感を抱かずにおれない、書く。無邪気というか、こういう人は日本人も、アイヌ人も好きだろう。
イザベラは、北上を続けて駒ヶ岳の南端、噴火湾に面する港町の森に泊まるが、宿では人々が遊んでいる。女郎屋もある。宿は騒がしく、隣の部屋の旅人は芸者を上げ、飲んで歌って踊って、朝の２時まで起きていたという。また、人々が、囲碁、将棋をすることも書かれている。イザベラは、翌日、蒸気船で森を出発し、室蘭に着く。
LETTER 36, AINO HUT,
BIRATORI 平取, August 23
She proceeded on the unbeaten
track and arrived at Biratori (Hiratori) which was an Ainu village. Ainu (she
wrote “Aino”) are native people in Hokkaido. She stayed several nights there
and wrote “I was much surprised with the extreme neatness and cleanness outside
of the houses; “model villages” they are in these respects, with no litter
lying in sight anywhere, ---.“ She might be a privileged person, so I am not
sure that villagers were forced to clean up completely or not. She wrote “they begged and
prayed that I would not inform the Japanese Government that they（Ainu）had told me of their
customs, or harm might come to them!” Hiratori was the central village of Ainu,
but she was not the first foreign visitor. She wrote a lot about custom and practice of Ainu; I pick up some topics concerning the fun of life.
イザベラはついにまさに未踏の地を進むが、アイヌの清潔な村、平取に出会い連泊する。「モデルとなる村」では丁寧に迎えられ、ゴミ一つ落ちてないという。彼女は特別待遇だったのかも知れないが、本土と違って清潔だと書いている。一方、日本政府は、アイヌ人に風習を話さぬように圧力をかけており、徹底して清掃したのかも知れない。また、平取はアイヌの中心的な村であり、そこに来た西洋人はイザベラが初めてでないことを記載しておく。イザベラは多くのアイヌの風習を記述したが、その一部を紹介する。
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Nibutani Ainu
Culture Museu、萱野茂二風谷アイヌ資料館*1
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Living room of Ainu、アイヌの家の居間
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Custom and practice of Ainu、アイヌの風習
LETTER 36（continued, 続編）
She met three children
from 3 to 5 years old and wrote that they were as obedient as Japanese children.
She also mentioned their parents; “We all ate together, ---. Their parents are
more demonstrative in their affection than the Japanese are, ---“.
Then she was
surprised with their sense of value; “What a strange life! knowing nothing,
hoping nothing, fearing a little, the need for clothes and food the one motive
principle, sake in abundance the one good!” I wonder what was their fun. They lived
in the beautiful Mother Nature, but the cold weather made their life difficult.
She continued “They will not accept anything for lodging, or for anything that
they give, ---“. I am also afraid that they accepted their fate with resignation. Because,
many Japanese moved to Hokkaido especially samurais who lost their job by
the fall of Tokugawa shogunate and they tried to control Ainu people strictly
at that time.
アイヌの3歳、4歳、5歳の子どもと会い、日本人と同じく従順だと評する。その親は、日本人よりも子供への愛情を示すという。続いて、アイヌが、何も知らず、何も望まず、衣食とふんだんな酒を求めるという価値観に驚く。酒を楽しむことは分かったのだが、彼らの楽しみは何だろうか。美しい自然の中で普通に生きる事か。食物豊富で温かい熱帯地域ならわかるが、北海道の寒さでは、日々のくらしは大変と思う。なぜ欲がないのか。宿泊費も取らず、物を売って儲けようともしない。屯田兵として武士だった人たちが北海道に渡った時代だ。アイヌの人たちが、諦観を持って生きていたとしたら寂しい。
LETTER 37-(Continued)
BIRATORI, YEZO, August 24 平取、蝦夷
Appreciation、感謝の念
She wrote “Some
idea of gratitude pervades their rude notions, ---.” and “To the sea which
nourishes us, to the forest which protects us, we present our grateful thanks.”
“The Ainos will always be the pride of the forest and of the sea.” They
really respect Mather Nature.
アイヌ人は、感謝の念が強い。祭りのときには、恵みをくれる海と自分たちを守ってくれる森に感謝し賛美する歌が歌われる。アイヌは海と森に誇りを持ち続けるだろう、と記している。
Drinking、飲酒
Drinking was a part
of a rite more than just a pastime; “To drink for god” is the chief act of “worship,”
and thus drunkenness and religion are inseparably connected, ---. It does not
appear that anything but sake is of sufficient value to please the gods.”
She added, “They
ferment a kind of intoxicating liquor from the root of tree and so on, but Japanese sake
is the one thing that they care about. They spend all their gains upon it, and
drink it in enormous quantities.” I hope that drinking sake was their fun.
酒を飲むことは楽しみというより儀式と一体だという記載になっている。酒は不思議な飲み物だ。また、木の根などから作るアイヌの酒もあるが、日本酒が好きで、稼ぎをつぎ込んで大量に飲む、と書かれている。やけ酒でなければ良いが。
Iyomante Festival and feast、熊祭・イヨマンテ
She wrote about “the
Festival of the Bear” which is the most famous one a.k.a. Iyomante. People caught
a baby bear and fed it. The bear grew up with villagers, however it became too
big and wild, they caged it. Then, the festival was held; “a great feast,
accompanied with much sake and a curious dance, in which men alone take part.” Finally, “Yells and shouts are used to excite
the bear, and when he becomes much agitated a chief shoot him with an arrow, ---“
It was the time
of fun for them, although Isabella mentioned “They have few amusements, except
certain feasts.”
イザベラが聞き取ったイヨマンテが記載される。昔、歌で有名だったものだ。春に捕まえた子熊に人が乳をやり家族とともに育つ。手に負えなくなったら檻に入れる。その後、熊祭り、イヨマンテとなる。酒が出て、男たちが踊る。そして、声を上げて熊を興奮させ、矢で殺す。イザベラから見るとアイヌ人の楽しみは少ないようで、祝宴を除くとほとんど楽しみはない、と書いている。
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| https://ja.wikipedia.org/wiki/%E3%83%95%E3%82%A1%E3%82%A4%E3%83%AB:AinuBearSacrificeCirca1870.jpg |
イザベラが聞き取ったイヨマンテが記載される。昔、歌で有名だったものだ。春に捕まえた子熊に人が乳をやり家族とともに育つ。手に負えなくなったら檻に入れる。その後、熊祭り、イヨマンテとなる。酒が出て、男たちが踊る。そして、声を上げて熊を興奮させ、矢で殺す。イザベラから見るとアイヌ人の楽しみは少ないようで、祝宴を除くとほとんど楽しみはない、と書いている。
LETTER 37-(Continued)
BIRATORI, YEZO, August 24 平取、蝦夷
She mentioned Ainu’s value of
peace. “They have no mode of computing time, and do not know their own age. ---
They have no tradition of internecine strife, and the art of war seems to have
been lost long ago, ---, Yoshitsune, their hero god, forbade war for ever, ---“and
“while in their social and domestic relations there is much that is praiseworthy.”
She praised Ainu for their pacifism as well as their social and
family relationship. I’d like to add that they didn’t have a writing system.
I checked their war history. It
was recorded that they had internal wars -- wars against Japanese, Russian and
Mongolian. However, after they were defeated by Japanese samurais in 1789, Ainu leaders decided
to avoid them because of difficulties of war itself and postwar issues.
アイヌでは文字も時間もなく、戦い・内部抗争もないという。平取では、義経が戦いを捨てるようにしたという。イザベラはこのような平和主義も含めて社会の繋がり、家族の繋がりを賞賛している。戦いについては、別途調べたところ、部族内、和人、ロシア人、モンゴル人との戦いの記録もあるが、1789年に大砲や鉄砲の火器に勝る松前藩との戦いに敗れた後、「首長たちは「血戦」の困難さ、事後の交易などにおける難儀などを考えて「血戦」回避に努めていたのである」と、関口明ほか編の「アイヌ民族の歴史」（2015）記載されていた。イザベラが訪ねた1878年には、平和主義になっていたのであろう。
Back to Tokyo via Hakodate、函館を経て帰京
LETTER 38 SARUHUTO佐瑠太, YEZO, August 27.
The storm stopped her ship, so she was forced to stay at an inn; ”I went to the yadoya(inn) where I
intended to spend Sunday, but, besides being very dirty and forlorn, it was
very center of sake traffic, and in its open space there were men in all stages
of riotous and stupid intoxication. It was a sad scene, yet one to be matched
in a hundred places in Scotland every Saturday afternoon.”
イザベラは平取から河口の町・門別に移るが、しけで船が出ないため、酔っぱらった男たちだらけの汚い宿屋に泊まる。酔っ払いが多いのがスコットランドの土曜の午後と一緒だというのが面白いが、酔いは楽しいのか、開拓の地で仕方ないから酔っているのだろうか。
LETTER 39 OLDMURORAN,
VOLCANOBAY, YEZO 蝦夷、噴火湾（内海湾）沿いの旧室蘭、September
2.
She visited another Ainu village, but it was different from Hiratori; “The Aino housed are much
smaller, poorer, and dirtier than those of Biratori.” “--- husband, wife, and
five or six naked children, all as dirty as they could be. --- Still, bad as it
liked and smelt,”
白老でもアイヌの村・コタンを訪ねるが、平取と違って汚く臭かったという。アイヌもいろいろある。
LETTER 41 HAKODATE 函館, September 12
She wrote how Ainu cherished
children. When the house master called Ainu family, she wrote “Their（Ainos）love for children
was most marked. They caressed them tenderly, and
held them a loft for notice, and when the house-master told them how much I
admire brown, dark-eyed, winsome creatures, their faces lighted with pleasure,
and they saluted me over and over again.” It was heartwarming time, however, I found it strange because she praised upon the relationship between parents and children
too much.
By the way, since late 19th
century, Ainu people have got
married with Japanese in order to escape from persecution. Therefore, there were only few pure Ainu people in Japan now. I felt the difficulty
to live with other ethnicities.
子供といる楽しみをイザベラは書くが、そんなに珍しい事だろうか。宿屋の主人がアイヌ人を呼んだとき、アイヌの子どもへの愛は特筆すべきだ、子どもを優しく撫でる、などと書く。また、主人が、イザベラが賞賛しているというと、アイヌ人の顔が喜びで明るくなり、何度も何度もお辞儀する、と書く。実に微笑ましい話だが、イギリスでは子どもを大切にしないのかと思い、ちょっと違和感がある。
アイヌは迫害の厳しさから逃れるため日本人と結婚し、今はほとんどアイヌ人と言われる人が居ない。多様性というのは難しいものだ。
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Rebunge track where she went through by horse
悪路の礼文華参道を馬で進んだ*1
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She returned to
Hakodate by horse and met British people there; “--- I met Mr. Dening, and then, seeing the
Consul and Dr. Hepburn ---“ It was the final destination of her travel in
northern Japan.
そして、函館まで馬に乗り、イギリス人に巡り合い、イザベラの北海道の旅は終わる。
LETTER 43 H.B.M.’s
LEGATION, YEDO, September
She got on the ship (Captain
was Moore) and went to Yokohama under typhoon. She finally reached British
legation in Tokyo. Her adventure was a four-month which started in Jun.
イザベラは、函館から台風の中、船（船長ムーア）で横浜に着き、東京の英国公使館に入る。6月から始まった4ヶ月の冒険旅行だった。
Previous post (From Aomori to Hokkaido、青森の旅、そして函館へ):
Travel
of Isabella L. Bird in 1878, part 8 イザベラバードが見た明治初期の日本（8）
Next post (Go to the western Japan、西日本へ):
Next post (Go to the western Japan、西日本へ):
There are 12 articles about Isabella's travel in Japan. The first page:
イザベラバードの旅は全12ページの記事です。最初の記事は上記のURLです。
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