THE FIREFLY HUNT

By Tanizaki Junichiro

It was a strange house of course, but it was probably less the house than sheer exhaustion that kept
Sachiko awake. She had risen early, she had been rocked and jolted by train and automobile through the heat
of the day. And in the evening, she had chased over the fields with the children, two or three miles it must
have been… She knew though, that the firefly hunt woulkd be pleasant to remember. She had seen firefly
hunts only on the puppet stage, Miyuki and Komaza was murmuring love as they sailed down the River Uji.
And now, they preared for a firefly hunt. They turned off their fashlight and approached in silence;
fireflies dislike noise and light. And on down the river were numberless fireflies. Lines of them wavering out
from bank and the other and back again, sketching their uncertain lines down close to the surface of the
water, hidden from outside by the grasses. Surely it was the impresive moment that made the firefly hunt
worthwhile. In Moniyami in Omi, the firefies are proteced but in the place where Sachiko is, no one cares how
many you take.
The event of the evening passed through Sachiko’s mind. A flicker of light moved across the next room.
They had turned their fireflies loose in the garden earlier in the evening and considerable members had
flown into the house. But they have been careful to chase them out before closing the doors for the night.
Along the edge of lake there were almost none left- had they back to the river? And the garden was lacquer
black.

THE FIREFLY HUNT

By Tanizaki Junichiro

It was a strange house of course, but it was probably less the house than sheer exhaustion that kept
Sachiko awake. She had risen early, she had been rocked and jolted by train and automobile through the heat
of the day. And in the evening, she had chased over the fields with the children, two or three miles it must
have been… She knew though, that the firefly hunt woulkd be pleasant to remember. She had seen firefly
hunts only on the puppet stage, Miyuki and Komaza was murmuring love as they sailed down the River Uji.
And now, they preared for a firefly hunt. They turned off their fashlight and approached in silence;
fireflies dislike noise and light. And on down the river were numberless fireflies. Lines of them wavering out
from bank and the other and back again, sketching their uncertain lines down close to the surface of the
water, hidden from outside by the grasses. Surely it was the impresive moment that made the firefly hunt
worthwhile. In Moniyami in Omi, the firefies are proteced but in the place where Sachiko is, no one cares how
many you take.
The event of the evening passed through Sachiko’s mind. A flicker of light moved across the next room.
They had turned their fireflies loose in the garden earlier in the evening and considerable members had
flown into the house. But they have been careful to chase them out before closing the doors for the night.
Along the edge of lake there were almost none left- had they back to the river? And the garden was lacquer
black.