He often ventured so far
out to sea that neighbors warned his parents that he would sometime go
too far and never return.
His parents knew, however, that he understood his boat and the sea
very well, and they were never much concerned about him. Even when
he failed to come back as soon as he was expected, they awaited his
return without anxiety. They loved him better than their own lives,
and were proud that he was braver and stronger than their neighbors'
sons.
Early one morning, Uraschima Taro went to haul in his nets, which had
been set the night before. In one of them, among some fishes, he found
a small turtle. This he placed in the boat, by itself, where it would
safely keep, until he could take it home. To his amazement, the turtle
begged for its life in most pitiful tones. "Of what use am I to you?"
it asked. "I am too small to eat, and so young that it will take me a
long time to grow. Have mercy and put me back into the sea, for I do
not want to die." Uraschima Taro had a very kind heart and could not
bear to see anything that was small and helpless suffer; so he did as
the turtle asked him.
Several years after this, when Uraschima Taro was one day far out at
sea, a terrible whirlwind struck his boat and shattered it.
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