世界怪談名作集World Famous Ghost Stories

About this story

A man reads by candlelight in a room with seven silent men and a corpse, awaiting something.

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Source

This text comes from Aozora Bunko (青空文庫), the volunteer-run library of Japanese writing that is out of copyright. See this work on Aozora Bunko

Base edition (底本): 「世界怪談名作集　上」河出文庫、河出書房新社
1987（昭和62）年8月4日初版発行

Typed in by もりみつじゅんじ. Proofread by 門田裕志.

Yomimaru changed the spelling to modern kana and modern kanji, and replaced classical grammar and some archaic words with modern ones.

The furigana are Yomimaru's. In the app it is split into 2 parts.

What you'll learn

In a dimly lit cabin, a coroner reads an old account book by candlelight while waiting for a witness. Eight men are present, including a corpse on the table. A young journalist, William Harker, arrives and is sworn in as a witness.

Harker gives his testimony in a written statement describing a hunting trip with Morgan. They encounter an invisible force that moves through the grass and attacks Morgan, killing him. Harker sees Morgan struggle with an unseen entity and eventually die.

The coroner examines the body, revealing severe bruises and lacerations. The jury is skeptical of Harker's testimony and delivers a verdict that Morgan was killed by a mountain lion, though they note some members think he may have had a seizure.

Key vocabulary

検屍官けんしかん	coroner
妖物ようぶつ	phantom, monster
旋条銃せんじょうじゅう	rifle
散弾銃さんだんじゅう	shotgun
陪審官ばいしんかん	juror
敷布しきふ	sheet (bed sheet)
荒野こうや	wilderness

Grammar points you'll meet

• ～たる (archaic attributive of ～たり/～である) N1Archaic form of ～である used attributively; equivalent to modern ～である or ～な

  来きたるべき何事なにごとかを待まっている様子ようすで

• ～ぬ (archaic negative) N1Archaic negative ending equivalent to modern ～ない. Often used in literary style.

  書物しょもつにむかっている男おとこは声こえを出だして読よんでいるのではなかった。

• ～ごとき (like, similar to) N1Formal/literary expression meaning 'like', 'such as', used attributively.

  獣ししのたぐいが藪やぶを突つき進すすむがごときひびきを聞きけり。

• ～ことなしに (without doing something) N1Literary expression meaning 'without (doing)', similar to ～ないで.

  すべての人ひとが来きたるべき何事なにごとかを待まっている様子ようすで、死しんだ人ひとばかりが待まつこともなしに眠ねむっているのである。

• ～し (listing multiple reasons) N4Particle used to list reasons or actions, similar to 'and' or 'besides'.

  しかも遠路えんろを歩あるいて来きたように、その着物きものは埃ほこりだらけになっていた。

Cultural notes

• Meiji-era Literary StyleThis text uses a classical literary style known as 文語体 (bungotai), which was common in Meiji-era Japanese literature. It features archaic grammar such as ～ぬ, ～たる, and ～ごとき. This style can be challenging for modern learners but is important for reading classic works.
• Inquest Procedures in Rural JapanThe story depicts a coroner's inquest in a rural setting, reflecting historical legal procedures. The coroner (検屍官) examines the body and collects evidence, while a jury of local farmers and woodsmen (陪審官) delivers a verdict. This mirrors early Japanese legal practices influenced by Western systems.

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