奧さんは東京の人であつた。それは甞て先生からも奧さん自身からも聞いて知つてゐた。奧さんは「本當いふと合の子なんですよ」と云つた。奧さんの父親はたしか鳥取か何處かの出であるのに、御母さんの方はまだ江戸といつた時分の市ヶ谷で生れた女なので、奧さんは冗談半分さう云つたのである。所が先生は全く方角違の新潟縣人であつた。だから奧さんがもし先生の書生時代を知つてゐるとすれば、郷里の關係からでない事は明らかであつた。然し薄赤い顏をした奧さんはそれより以上の話をしたくない樣だつたので、私の方でも深くは聞かずに置いた。
translation
Oku-san was from Tokyo. I had heard about it from both Sensei and Okusan herself. Okusan said, ``I'm really a child of a match.'' Oku-san's father was from Tottori or somewhere else, but her mother was still a woman born in Ichigaya when it was called Edo, so she was half-joking. However, Sensei was from Niigata Prefecture, in a completely different direction. Therefore, if Okusan knew of Sensei's time as a student, it was clear that it was not related to his hometown. However, the pale red-faced wife did not seem to want to talk any further, so I did not ask too deeply.
kanji (pronunciations & definitions)
| 奧: inner part (おく), interior, back (of a drawer, one’s throat, etc.), depths (e.g. of a forest), recesses (e.g. of a cave) | 東京: Tokyo (とうきょう), Tokyo (とうけい) | 人: -ian (e.g. Italian) (じん), -ite (e.g. Tokyoite), -er (e.g. performer, etc.), person working with …, man | 先生: teacher (せんせい), instructor, master, sensei, title or form of address for a teacher, master, doctor, lawyer, etc. |
| 知: wisdom (ち), jnana (higher knowledge) | 本當: truth (ほんと), truth (ほんとう), truth (ホント), truth (ホントウ), truth (ホントー) | 合: between-season wear (あい), spring and autumn clothing, spring and fall clothing, together, condition | 子: child (こ), kid, teenager, youngster, young (non-adult) person |
| 鳥取: Tottori (city, prefecture) (とっとり), bird catcher (とりとり), bird handler (oft. chicken), bird catching, bird handling (oft. chicken) | 何處: where (いずく), where (いずこ), where (いづこ), where (いどこ), where (どこ) | 出: coming out (で), going out, outflow, efflux, rising (of the Sun or the Moon) | 御母: mother (おかあ), mother (みおも) |
| 江戸: Edo (shogunate capital, now Tokyo) (えど), Yedo | 時分: time (じぶん), hour, season, time of the year | 市: market (いち), fair, city (し) | 谷: valley (たに) |
| 女: female (うみな), female (おうな), female (おな), female (おみな), female (おんな) | 冗談半分: half joking (じょうだんはんぶん), being (only) half serious, (in a) jocular vein | 所: place (とこ), place (ところ), spot, spot, scene | 全: all (ぜん), whole, entire, complete, total |
| 新潟: Niigata (city, prefecture) (にいがた) | 新潟縣: Niigata prefecture (Hokuriku area) (にいがたけん) | 人: -ian (e.g. Italian) (じん), -ite (e.g. Tokyoite), -er (e.g. performer, etc.), person working with …, man | 書生: student (しょせい), student who performs housework in exchange for meals and lodging, houseboy (attending school or university) |
| 時代: period (じだい), epoch, era, age, the times | 郷里: hometown (きょうり), birthplace | 事: thing (こと), thing (こん), matter, matter, incident | 明: vidya (wisdom) (みょう), mantra, the coming (July 4, etc.), brightness (めい), discernment |
| 顏: face (かお), face (がん), visage, visage, look | 以上: not less than … (いじょう), … and over, … and above, … and upwards, … or more | 話: talk (はなし), speech, chat, conversation, topic | 私: I (わたし), me, I (あたくし), I (あたし), I (アタシ) |