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38
HONDA THE SAMUliAL
the magoriama jewels, and his bow and arrows were
laid at his side. The servants of his household were
then buried with him.
" The terrors of cold, hunger, and starvation, raven-
ous wild beasts and birds, were so horrifying that
from the circle of victims that forest rang with heart-
rending sounds. Yet it was an old custom, and hav-
an escort
ing the religious significance of furnishing
and company for the prince to the spirit-land, no ordi-
nary person dared to hint at a change.
" Now the Mikado who reigned at this period was a
man of very kind heart, and had not realized fully
the cruelty of the custom of jun-shi, or dying with
the master. But one day while passing through the
forest he heard the groans of men in agony, and
going forward saw the wan faces of the dead prince's
retainers appearing just above the damp earth.
They lived for several days in dreadful misery.
Then all was quiet, the piteous moans ceased to
reach the palace, and nothing but a row of heads
with rigid faces and staring eyes remained to tell the
tale.
" The good Mikado was so grieved that he scarcely
the matter with his chief
slept, and on discussing
counselors, they all agreed
that to sacrifice to the
spirit of a dead man the living whom he had loved
in life was a bad custom and ought to be changed.
It was suggested that the spirit might be appeased if
images of his people, horses, etc., were made and put
into the tomb instead of living beings.
This suggestion
was not well received at first, but the reformers